WHY ?????????

I love reading Paul and seeing his humanity so clearly shown. It makes me realize that I am normal (or as normal as is possible). In Romans he writes that as hard as he tries to do what is right he stills does what is wrong.
Does that sound familiar?
If you say no then you need to repent right now for lying.
It happens to all of us.
We are born with a sin nature.
Have you ever done something and then looked at it and said,"Why did I do that?."

18 And I know that nothing good lives in me, that is, in my sinful nature. I want to do what is right, but I can't. 19 I want to do what is good, but I don't. I don't want to do what is wrong, but I do it anyway. Romans 7

Paul wrote this so that we could see that by ourselves we were doomed to continual failure with no hope. As hard as we try it seems that we will still mess up.

24 Oh, what a miserable person I am! Who will free me from this life that is dominated by sin and death? 25 Thank God! The answer is in Jesus Christ our Lord.

Without a relationship with Christ we will have no chance.
Thank You Lord that you paid the price for me to be forgiven.
Thank You that you fill me with Your Spirit and enable me to live as an over comer and not in perpetual defeat.
Understand that today we do not live in defeat or condemnation.
Christ has changed all that.

1 So now there is no condemnation for those who belong to Christ Jesus.2 And because you belong to him, the power of the life-giving Spirit has freed you from the power of sin that leads to death. Romans 8

Don't take any Crap from the devil today!
Just tell him where to go (it's hot there! - no not Florida).

We Are Blessed

As I was reading this morning I was reminded of God's provision for us.
It's easy to loose site of it when we live in such chaotic times.
But the truth is that God never changes.
And we need to re-focus on Him and stop worrying about everything that is out of our control anyway.
If you have placed your trust in Him, then here is what the bible says.

7 "But blessed are those who trust in the Lord and have made the Lord their hope and confidence.
8 They are like trees planted along a riverbank, with roots that reach deep into the water.
Such trees are not bothered by the heat or worried by long months of drought.
Their leaves stay green, and they never stop producing fruit.

What good news for us in the midst of a terrible economy. We are blessed. If you are struggling today know that your confidence in Him will be rewarded. God's economy is a super natural one. It's not that we get all that we want. But we get what we need when we need it. Part of the Christian life is to go through stuff so that we grow closer to God and stronger in our faith.

Continue to be strong today.
God is on your side and He will not let you down!

Songs of Heaven

We are getting geared up to begin writing our own songs. It is a very intimidating task. However we are made in the image of God.
The same God who created....well...everything.
He is the source of creativity.
Then as Christians we are filled with the Holy Spirit, and have the mind of Christ.
What a concept!
It means we should be able to think bigger thoughts and be more creative than those who don't know Christ.
We should lead the way in creativity.

Romans 12:2 (NLT)

"2 Don't copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will learn to know God's will for you, which is good and pleasing and perfect."

"Here is a great quote from the book on worship that I am reading.
If I know that I am loved by the Creator and King of the universe then nothing can shake my sense of security and destiny. All other descriptions are temporary. I could stop being a pastor or teacher or I could lose my friends but Jesus has told me that He will never leave me (Mat 28:20). That is a wonderfully secure place from which to live life, love others and write songs." page 30

Couch Potato

Very few words have a birthday so precise, and so precisely known, as couch potato. It was on July 15, 1976, we are told, that couch potato came into being, uttered by Tom Iacino of Pasadena, California, during a telephone conversation. He was a member of a Southern California group humorously opposing the fads of exercise and healthy diet in favor of vegetating before the TV and eating junk food (1973). Because their lives centered on television--the boob tube (1966)--they called themselves boob tubers. Iacino apparently took the brilliant next step and substituted potato as a synonym for tuber. Thinking of where that potato sits to watch the tube, he came up with couch potato.

That's his original drawing at the top.

Of course with our hundreds of channels and the multiple video game units we never need to leave the couch.

David was the ultimate example of the couch potato. You see it's so easy to just sit on the couch rather than get up and do something. We need to see this as a trap(especially men)to be entangled into something that could endanger our focus on achieving God’s purpose for our life. As they say “an idle mind is the devil’s work shop”, well idle time is to! Notice in 2 Samuel 11, in the spring of the year, the time when kings go out to battle, David was on his couch. We need to ask ourselves a question; are we on the couch when it’s time to go to battle? This question will keep us from finding ourselves in places we never should have been in the first place!

Homeless

I don't know what it's like in your area but I am seeing a lot more homeless people recently. Tough times economically and I guess that is the result. About a month ago I noticed a guy reading under the overpass near my house. After passing him for about the 3rd or 4th time I realized that he was probably homeless.
Man am I a genius or what!
I had just been reading about the story of the good Samaritan. As I passed him I thought,"am I the pharisee just passing him by?"
So I went back and got some water and some snacks and dropped it off to him.
Since then I have stopped to talk to Wayne(yes he has a name) and I check to see how he is doing and if he has any pressing needs.
Usually he just needs food but the other day he ran out of bug spray.
Not that big a deal unless you live outside.
It's not that I do anything great other than a burger here and there and some cold drinks. But it's the fact that I can do something and I do.

Maybe you pass someone everyday.

Do you notice them?

Could you do something?

I am sure we can all do something no matter how small.

I think that's what Jesus would do if He were here.

He would look for people like Wayne who lives under the I-75 overpass on Palmer and probably hang out with him.

Just something for you to think about today.

35 For I was hungry, and you fed me. I was thirsty, and you gave me a drink. I was a stranger, and you invited me into your home. 36 I was naked, and you gave me clothing. I was sick, and you cared for me. I was in prison, and you visited me. 37 "Then these righteous ones will reply, `Lord, when did we ever see you hungry and feed you? Or thirsty and give you something to drink? [18] 38 Or a stranger and show you hospitality? Or naked and give you clothing? [18] 39 When did we ever see you sick or in prison and visit you? 40 "And the King will say, `I tell you the truth, when you did it to one of the least of these my brothers and sisters, you were doing it to me!' Matthew 25

Ephesus

Here are some shots from our morning in Ancient Ephesus.
Day 7 of the cruise with 6 more days to go.
We had to take a bus ride for about an hour and a half to get there.
That meant meeting to leave the ship at 7am.
Wow was it worth it.
We were in Ephesus by about 8:45.
By far the best thing on our trip.
By the way the temperature hit over 100 that day.
It was interesting to walk the streets that the Apostle Paul walked.
In the afternoon we got to visit the ancient city of Corinth.
A full day for sure.
This video just covers Ephesus.

Have You Swallowed A Camel ?

You probably looked at the title and thought,"this guy needs to get some sleep."
On the surface it is a comical statement.
But Jesus was giving a very clear teaching when he used this illustration.
When we read the Bible at times the stories and teachings seem so far from us. But as I was reading this morning in Matthew, Jesus was once again ripping on the teachers of religious law. They were the pastors of his day.
His favorite target.
They thought that they were doing everything so well, but in reality had become the biggest hypocrites of all! The following is from Matthew 23;

"23 What sorrow awaits you teachers of religious law and you Pharisees. Hypocrites! For you are careful to tithe even the tiniest income from your herb gardens, but you ignore the more important aspects of the law - justice,mercy, and faith. You should tithe yes, but do not neglect the more important things.24 Blind guides! You strain your water so you won't accidentally swallow a gnat, but you swallow a camel......25 For you are so careful to clean the outside of the cup and dish, but inside you are filthy - full of greed and self indulgence!"

It is a warning to us today.

A very clear one.

Take care of your own house.

Religion makes you look good to others. Everything on the outside looks good.
But religion will send you far away from God.

The outside matters very little to God.

It's all about your heart.
What's on the inside?

God wants an intimate personal relationship with you. He longs for us to worship Him with everything that we have.
He is much less concerned with the many rules and regulations that religion offers us. Actually when you read this passage you realize that keeping a list of rules makes you no closer to heaven than the devil !
Make today a real day with God.
Take time to spend with Him.
Worry about the things that make a difference for eternity and that's your personal relationship.
You might look great on the outsider but your inside can still be a mess.
Don't swallow a camel!
And don't make yourself a target for God!

Unfailing Love

I thank the Lord for the love that He shows me.
It is an incredible thing when you think about it.
God continues to love us even when we make mistakes.
His grace continues to be poured out each time we return to Him for forgiveness.
Unfailing love is hard to even grasp sometimes.
But it's just that, a love that is always there.
Constant.
Never changing.
Ever working on our behalf.

23 This is what the Lord says:
"Don't let the wise boast in their wisdom,
or the powerful boast in their power,
or the rich boast in their riches.
24 But those who wish to boast
should boast in this alone:
that they truly know me and understand that I am the Lord
who demonstrates unfailing love
and who brings justice and righteousness to the earth,
and that I delight in these things.
I, the Lord, have spoken! Jeremiah 9

We have to continue to pursue him.
To understand that He is in control.
That He will never leave us.
That He will bring justice and righteousness.
That He continues to show unfailing love.

Think Orange

Reggie Joyner is one of the speakers that I will hear during a special session on Monday and Tuesday at General council in Orlando. I thought I would get his latest book and see what he is all about.
The book is very interesting.
The simple premise of the book is to get families and churches to work together to build faith in kids.
So far it's an excellent read but I am only 59 pages into the 220 page book.

"If you want to pass on a legacy to the next generation,it has to be transferred relationally. Anytime you pass down rules,practices,or truths outside of the context of a genuine,compelling love, you establish an empty religion. You promote an orthodoxy that will ultimately, become abusive, or even incite rebellion among it's followers." Page 58

I think that many churches have not moved from the rules and regulations era and are paying for it as their churches empty out.
It's ll about relationship.

Sometimes Life Sucks!

We just dropped off Leah,TJ, and the girls at the airport.

Some days are not as good as others.

This would be one of those days.

I hate to see them so far away but I do know that they have a great opportunity to grow in their new position.
I am pleased in that aspect but sad to have them leave again.

Last night McKenna decided to read me a book. After hearing it we got out the video camera and had her do it again.

This is so cute.

Priorities

"24 Then Jesus said to his disciples, "If any of you wants to be my follower, you must turn from your selfish ways, take up your cross, and follow me.25 If you try to hang on to your life, you will lose it. But if you give up your life for my sake, you will save it.26 And what do you benefit if you gain the whole world but lose your own soul? Is anything worth more than your soul?"

I was thinking about the world we live in when I read this passage this morning. It's a "get all you can" world.
Selfishness seems to be the mantra of the day. It really made me think about where I am placing my priorities.
Am I hanging on to "STUFF" too tightly?
Am I pursuing for selfish gain?
I am not suggesting that we sell everything and live in a commune but just take a look around you. Look at the home you live in. Look at all the things we are blessed with and yet we still want more.

And what if we get everything we want but lose out on God?

Or lose out with relationships.

It's time to take inventory of our priorities and make sure that Christ is the center.
Check to see that He hasn't slipped off to the side somewhere.
Take time to ask God to help you re-focus on what is important.

It's time to seek first His kingdom!

Family

Had a great day today. Spent time with all of our family. Susan and I are really blessed with great kids and two great son-in-laws. Also have some great in-laws as well. It's nice to get together and have no tension.We went to the beach with Shannon , the boys and Leah & TJ and the girls. We had fun playing in the sand and the water. Shannon had to go home and put Nathaniel down for a nap so we kept the boys. We finally dropped them off around 3:15. Then it was home to get ready for the turkey dinner.
Man was it good.
It felt like Thanksgiving.
Steve and Sherri, as well as LuAnne came over to join all the kids.
All in all a great day.
I will definitely tape McKenna later this week and post it. She read me an entire book tonight that she has memorized. I was blown away.
So cute!
It's 11:20 and we still have a house full.
Kinda reminds me of Christmas when you just kinda sit around and visit and eat.
It's not gonna feel that good when I have to get up for work in the morning.
But tonight I am thankful for such a great family and extended family.
Here's a little of our beach time today.

The perfect ending

Great day in church today. We had Roosevelt Hunter speak this weekend. He is an incredible speaker. He is suffering and is in stage 4 cancer. Please put him near the top of your prayer list. He has deteriorated very quickly since the last time we saw him.
Preached with only the strength of the Lord. Very weak after each service.
Still challenged us with a great, anointed message.
Then we ended the day with a sunset boat ride.

Great to have Leah and TJ home with the girls for a week.


Great to have Steve and Sherri take us out on their boat. We had a blast tonight.

Addison loved the ocean water.

Cracked Cisterns

This is one of the oldest and most famous cisterns. It is the Basilica Cistern in Istanbul(formerly Constantinople Turkey). It was built in 532 AD and has been restored and is a very popular tourist site today being reopened to the public in 1987.
The cistern is surrounded by a firebrick wall with a thickness of 4 metres (13 ft) and coated with a special mortar for waterproofing. The cistern's water was provided from the Belgrade Woods—which lie 12 miles north of the city—via aqueducts built by the Emperor Justinian.
In Jeremiah 13 it says;

13 "For my people have done two evil things: They have abandoned me — the fountain of living water. And they have dug for themselves cracked cisterns that can hold no water at all!

The first is done when we neglect God's Word and times of prayer. God is into personal relationship. How is yours with Him?
He hasn't moved, have you?
If you are not drinking from the living water then he says it is like digging broken cisterns. That's the second evil. Cracked cisterns. They can't hold water. Without water we will die. Without spiritual water we will die a worse death.
Apart from God that's what we are doing.
Looking to any other source for guidance and wisdom is like using a cracked cistern.
We are being called back to seek Him and the living water that He provides.
Today is a day to call out to God for forgiveness and partake of the living water that only He provides.

Day 6 Santorini Video

Another great day. We also had a sea day to recover from the first 4 days of activity. The highlight was probably running out of gas. We were very fortunate that 2 French tourists stopped and took us to a gas station. They were also kind enough to drive us back to our vehicle.

Day 2 The Girls Are Here!

Friday we had the whole family in the pool minus TJ who had to go to the wedding rehearsal.
Today McKenna, Susan,Addison,and myself spent another 3 hours in the pool. McKenna still didn't want to get out but it was time to get ready for the wedding tonight. They are all getting ready to leave while I am left behind to go to church tonight. Everyone else is at the wedding tonight so I will have to miss it.
It is great to have them back for a week. We are going to really enjoy the girls while we have them.
It's so funny to see Addison sitting up now. She has grown so much since she left for California.

Girls first Day

We got home from the airport last night at about midnight. They were starving and we had to find a McDonald's which took some time. McKenna didn't get up until 11:30 and Addison slept until 9:30.
Just waiting for the boys and we are going to hit the pool.

Day 4 Naples / Capri

Here are the highlights of day 4. We spent the first half of the day in Naples. We hired our own guide and got a great tour of the city (for a lot less than the ship tour). Then we took a ferry to Capri and rented a boat. It was a great day.

Pisa (2nd half of Day 3)

After spending the morning in Florence we boarded the bus and headed off to Pisa. I think it was an hour and a half ride. It was super crowded and hot when we got there. After seeing the tower there really wasn't a lot to do there. We walked out of the touristy area and went a couple of miles to a river. We always like to see all the parts of the towns we visit especially off the beaten path.
It was fun to be there but we were exhausted after a 3rd day of walking.

We actually would have gone up the tower but they were already sold out for the afternoon. They only allow so many per hour so we didn't have a chance to do it.

Hillsong Conference 2009

Well Hillsong Conference will be in it's 2nd night now. If you have God TV then check the listings as they are broadcasting a majority of the conference. I just set my DVR to tape a pile of episodes (some of which will be repeats but there is no program listing for each one so no way to tell which night it will be from). If you have Direct TV then you have God TV channel 365.
You can also watch online on the God TV web site. Checking this morning they have 3 nights of the Hillsong London 2008 conference archived for on demand viewing. You just have to sign up and then can watch all the archived footage.

Also go to the Conference web site as they give a recap of each days events.

And of course search you tube as there are lots of postings already. Not great quality but here is one from the opening night. It is obviously shot from the upper deck end of the stadium which is a long way from the platform.

Day 3 Florence/Pisa

This video covers only Florence since it was a little longer.
I will make another one for Pisa.
Florence has a rich history with giants such as Da Vinci, Michelangelo, and Galileo.
We really enjoyed our tour through Florence. It would definitely be worth another visit as half a day was not enough to see all the city.

Cruise Day 2 Monte Carlo/Nice

Here is our first port of call. We were still very tired from the flight and time change but we had a blast. After walking around Monte Carlo we took a train to Nice. It was a very good first day but we walked miles and miles.

God WILL Meet Your Needs

Matthew 6:33 is not our personal Aladdin's lamp. It is too bad that some people read it and only think about material things.

31 "So don't worry about these things, saying, `What will we eat? What will we drink? What will we wear? 32 These things dominate the thoughts of unbelievers, but your heavenly Father already knows all your needs.33 Seek the Kingdom of God above all else, and live righteously, and he will give you everything you need.34 "So don't worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will bring its own worries. Today's trouble is enough for today.

As I've grown to read scripture in it's context, I've learned that this isn't about a life of luxury at all. Really this passage is about life period. "All this" is equal to having food and drink and clothes - I don't even see anything in there about a BED let alone a house. I could be disappointed, I mean shouldn't my definition of "All this" be God's definition as well? But his economy is on a whole different level than ours. We can't understand it, but we must trust it. In our economy where people are loosing jobs daily, we can trust our God to provide our most basic of human needs. It may not be as we would hope or want, but he will provide. So... let's live remembering that our "Heavenly Father knows that you need..." And he will give us just that and most likely.... more!

I'm An Idiot (or something like that!)

After returning from vacation my laptop hard drive was dangerously low on space. I bought a small external for all of the video but didn't realize how many pictures we would take. So I went about the process of freeing up the much needed space so my computer would begin to work again. It was so low on space that it wouldn't do even simple editing in iPhoto. I was on a roll and soon got a couple of GB freed up. Enough space for it to get out of slow motion.
Did I mention that my external drive was still plugged in?
Did I mention how I took the time on vacation to import all of the video each day?
Did I mention how it was all categorized by day and even separate events each day?

Some of you smart people have already figured out where this is going. For the rest of you I'll keep typing until you catch up.
Did I mention that there was over an hour and a half of video?

I had it all ready to easily edit when I got home.

So I went to iMovie a few minutes ago and clicked on Day 2 Cruise.

NOTHING?

What do you mean nothing?

Nada, Ziltch,empty,ceased to be.......

But how could that happen, I mean really?

Gone.

I tired Day 3.

Still nothing.

Day 4 & 5..............

So I'm sure by now even the special among you have figured it out.

Some idiot deleted it all.

Fortunately I always keep my original tapes.

So much for all my time saving efforts.

Have a happy 4th everyone!

Nano Swims With Water Wings

Today our youngest grandson Nathaniel swam with water wings.

It seems like he was so little and now he is joining his brothers in the pool.

Only 5 days and Leah,TJ,McKenna, and Addison will be here.

Can't wait!

Day 13 Venice

Since this was the freshest in my mind I did this video first.
We got to Venice and headed to St Marks Square.
We made a beeline to the gondolas and got one of the first ones out. I wanted to be sure we got the ride in before it was dark.
It was a fabulous experience.
It is right up there with snorkeling in the Great Barrier Reef.

Back Home & Cruise video day 1

We got home last night and were in bed just before 11pm. Unfortunately we are wide awake and up at 5 am. Felt good to sleep in my own bed last night. It will take a few days to get back on eastern standard time. At least Sunday morning this is almost the normal time to get up anyway (Usually up at 5:30 on Sunday mornings).
I am going to post video clips of the cruise as I get them done.
Here is day 1. And this was the only rain we saw on the entire trip.
We had nothing but sunshine for 2 weeks.
Also we watched a couple of Movies under the stars, Mama Mia and Marley & Me.
Warning - if you hate ABBA, do not watch Mama Mia. Nothing like having the song "Dancing Queen" running through your mind for days!

Back in the USA

I just got off the coldest plane ride of my life. Susan always has a blanket on but I have never used one.

Never!

Until today!

Froze my butt off!

I don't know what the deal was but we were 3 rows from the back of the plane.
You could have hung meat back there.
So glad I listened to my wife and wore my jeans (my great idea was shorts!)

Susan actually used 2 blankets.

Anyway I'm sitting here in Philly. What a crappy airport!

They have no Starbucks!

What is up with that?

Then US Air has the connection 3 1/2 hours after we land.

What a pleasant place to sit and wait.

I do believe that we just took our last flight with US Air. No, I'm absolutely sure!

9 1/2 hour flight and the food was awful. Well what little food they actually served us!

OK. Enough complaining. It is great to be back in the States. We had an incredible vacation but it's time to be back home. When we arrive home we will have been up 23 hours. That's a lot better than the 37 hours on the way over.

Great the fire alarm just went off here in the terminal. They are directing us out. Can you believe it. That means we will have to clear security all over again.

I'm back.

They decided it wasn't serious I guess.

That's enough excitement for the day.

Venice

We are sitting in the Venice airport now waiting for our flight that takes off in 2 hours. With our late night in Venice we are running on about 4 hours sleep. We got off the ship last night around 8 pm.
Our first priority was to get a gondola ride.
We had been told that many closed at 9pm.
As the night went on we realized that that was not the case.

We enjoyed about a 45 minute ride through the canals of Venice.
What an interesting place.
It is built on over 100 islands.
Basically nobody lives on the first floor because of flooding.
These guys are really good at what they do.
Some of the canals are very narrow with crazy corner turns.
The sun was beginning to set as we got of the gondola and began to walk around.

We walked around and saw the sites and by the time we st down at a little restaurant it was midnight.
We had the most amazing calzone. Mama Mia!
Now for the 9 hour flight to Philly, the 3 hour lay over, and finally the 3 hour flight to Tampa, and of course the hour ride home.
We can't wait!
Look forward to seeing you all again.

Sailing Into Venice

These first two pictures are some of the ones that they take here on the ship.
We bought a few since they turned out so great.
We have just sailed into Venice and we can get off the ship in about 1/2 hour.
We are looking forward to it because originally we weren't going to get here until dark and would have no time in the city.
We are hoping the gondolas are still running.
From what we here they have a stronger union than the teamsters.
Of course we know what happened to the auto industry!
I think it's because I'm on board but I'm not completely sure on that one. I asked our waiter at dinner and he said that this is the first time the captain has done this.
However it happened we are going to take full advantage. We have until 1:30am to get back on the ship. Then we leave at 7:15 so we will not get much sleep tonight.

Day 11 Corfu

Corfu was our last port before Venice.
We dock in Venice tonight at 8pm so we will have a few hours to explore. They are providing water taxi service from the ship from 8:20 until 1:30am (so no sleep tonight). The water taxi drops us at St Marks Square.
We are hoping that it will not be too late to get a gondola ride.
Then it's off the ship at 7:15 on Friday morning to head to the airport that is 1 1/2 hours from the port.

Today we walked into Corfu and explored the city. That included touring the old fort that is there. It gave us some great views of the city.
This is taken about half way up the old fort.
The very top didn't give us a great spot for a picture of us since it had high walls and you could only shoot over it.
The next picture was taken from the other side of the fort.
The water color here has been phenominal.
It's so clear that you can see the bottom at great depths.

We had crab legs on Tuesday night. They doubled the portion! Then Wednesday night was lobster and again our waiter brought us a 2nd plate. It also included two huge shrimp.
I'm still full this morning.
Today will be a day of lots of sun by the pool and then packing as our luggage has to be out.

We ate at a little Greek place today and had a great Gyros and Greek salad. After lunch we went back to haggle with the car rental place. They wanted 50 euros in the morning for a car. Then 2 hours later they were down to 40.
When we went back after lunch I offered him 25 and got a car. So we drove down the coast to a beach for a couple of hours. We didn't go to the same one the ship offered tours to so we had one that wasn't very busy. It made for a nice ending to Corfu. We had to drive back and be on the ship by 4:30. We made it with 15 minutes to spare.