Communionism's

Why is it instinct for kids to want to lick every bit of juice out of the communion cups without any prompting?

Beka's Art

Beka painted our bathroom tonight and this was a piece of styrophome that she kept the paint can on. If you look at a drop ceiling tile, cracked plaster, a sidewalk, isn't it funny that even in accidents or random patterns you can always find a face. Hmmmm....
Here's some lyrics by JT (James Taylor - not Justin Timberlake for all you young whipper snappers out there) that this reminded me of:

Something's Wrong
Something's wrong, that restless
feeling's been preying on your mind
Road maps in a well cracked ceiling the signs aren't hard to find
Now I'm not saying that you've been mistreated
No one's hurt you - nothing's wrong
A moment's rest was all you needed
So pack your things and kindly move along
Like dust in the wind you're gone forever
You're wind-blown leaves you're a change in the weather
Just a town like any other a second brand new start
A third or fourth hand wife or lover no, you won't break her heart
Take some bacon go on and leave your watch chain
She won't count on nothing more
Wrap your hands around that small change
and tiptoe barefoot out the door
Yes, something's wrong that restless
feeling's been preying on my mind
When things get bad I'm bound to pack my bags and just
Leave them all behind.

Not to say I agree with the whole "third or fourth hand wife or lover" thing but his thoughts are always provoking...

Silence

I ran across this today and thought it might be of some help to you during this busy time of year.

Tim

Silence by Mark Driscoll

There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under heaven... a time to be silent and a time to speak...
Ecclesiastes 3:1, 7b

It was a very normal day until I realized that I was actively destroying my own soul.

The day began with my alarm jolting me awake. I immediately turned on my BlackBerry to hear it chime for each voicemail and email that had been left while I slept. I stepped into the shower where I listened to my waterproof radio. I then turned on the television to catch some news while I dressed. Driving to work I tuned in to some talk-radio banter. Throughout the day the chime on my laptop kept ringing as email arrived, and my cell phone continued to vibrate and ring on my hip. Before long, I needed a break, and I put on my iPod to go for a walk.

On the drive home, I again listened to the radio in an effort to drown out the blaring horns of frustrated fellow commuters. After eating dinner and tucking my five children into bed, I turned on the television to watch shows I had recorded on my Tivo. As I drifted off to sleep, it dawned on me that I had not had one minute of silence during my entire day. It was possible, I realized, that I could live the rest of my life without ever again experiencing silence.

In that moment, God deeply convicted me that I was addicted to the false trinity of our day, the gods known as Noise, Hurry, and Crowds. I remembered the words of missionary martyr Jim Elliot, who said, “I think the devil has made it his business to monopolize on three elements: noise, hurry, crowds . . . Satan is quite aware of the power of silence.”

I began to ponder what Jesus’ life might be like if He lived today. Would He be available to all of His followers twenty-four hours a day on His BlackBerry? Would He have left His phone on at the Last Supper and been continually interrupted by needless calls? Would He have failed to stop and speak to needy people because their weeping was not loud enough for Him to hear over His iPod as He hurried past them on His way to a meeting He was already late for?

In that moment I prayed, asking God for His wisdom and help to save me from myself. God answered my prayer and reminded me that Jesus often took periods of prayerful silence to hear from the Father and to ensure not that He was doing everything He could, but that He was doing only what was most important. For example, before beginning His public ministry, Jesus spent forty days fasting from food, people, and noise in an effort to prepare Himself to fully accomplish what God the Father had given Him to do on the earth.

Moreover, the Bible says in Luke 5:16 that “Jesus often withdrew to lonely places.” Jesus spent considerable time alone in silence to pray, rest, and focus on what priorities He should be devoting His time and energy to. This helps to explain why, in just three short years of ministry, Jesus had a greater impact on history than anyone else who has ever lived.

The Bible also describes multiple benefits of purposeful silence, including:

• hearing from God (1 Kings 19:11–13)
• waiting patiently for the Lord to act (Lamentations 3:25–28)
• worshiping God (Habakkuk 2:20)
• knowing God better (Psalm 46:10)
• praying effectively (Luke 5:16)

Since God convicted me of my addiction to noise, I have sought to conform my life more to the pattern of Jesus’, which has proven quite helpful. I try to spend at least five minutes an hour in silence, at least thirty minutes in uninterrupted silence each day, and a full day in silence once a month. During those times I find myself going for silent prayer walks to listen to God, writing in my journal, and sometimes doing nothing at all, which for me has become an act of faith that God is at work even when I am not.

My prayer is that those reading this who, like me, are guilty of noise addiction can also experience the regular gift of silence because that is often where God is waiting for us. There was silence before God spoke the world into existence, and silence for forty days before Jesus began His public ministry, which may indicate that silence is what allows us to speak as God intends.

Ice Ice Baby

I thought I would pass along some info that would be helpful to us all. Apparently this is a standard procedure all paramedics follow at the scene of an accident when they come across your cell phone.

ICE - 'In Case of Emergency'
We all carry our mobile phones with names & numbers stored in its memory but nobody, other than ourselves, knows which of these numbers belong to our closest family or friends. If we were to be involved in an accident or were taken ill, the people attending us would have our mobile phone but
wouldn't know who to call. Yes, there are hundreds of numbers stored but which one is the contact person in case of an emergency? Hence this 'ICE' (In Case of Emergency) Campaign. The concept of 'ICE' is catching on quickly. It is a method of contact during emergency situations. As cell(mobile) phones are carried by the majority of the population, all you need to do is store the number of a contact person or persons who should be contacted during emergency under the name 'ICE' ( In Case Of Emergency).
The idea was thought up by a paramedic who found that when he went to the scenes of accidents, there were always mobile phones with patients, but they didn't know which number to call. He therefore thought that it would be a good idea if there was a nationally recognized name for this purpose. In an emergency situation, Emergency Service personnel and hospital Staff would be able to quickly contact the right person by simply dialing the number you have stored as 'ICE.' For more than one contact name simply enter ICE1, ICE2 and ICE3 etc. A great idea that will make a difference! It really could save your life, or put a loved one's mind at rest. ICE will speak for you when you are not able to.

I wish you all a safe and Merry Christmas while we are all traveling abroad.

Tim

I Missed What?!

A friend of mine sent this to me today from the Starbucks I worked at this year. None other than Gallagher walked in the store today - and no he did not get on the counter with his mallet and destroy a frappuchino... that would have been cool though.

EMT (Emergency Merrychristmas Time

We live in a very wooded area and the only thing we hear out here is the snow falling and an occasional squirl. Tonight while cleaning up the garage I heard a very loud siren. I was in the mood to chase and found Santa on top waving to all the neighbors. Ahh there's a first time for everything I guess..

New Phone

As some of you know I don't keep phones for a very long time because I kind of have a unhealthy attraction for gadgets. I should not have walked into the verizon store tonight because they just released their new line of pda's. This new one they came out with is called the Samsung Omnia. It has a 5.0 mgpx camera - which made my 1.3 mgpx treo seem a little wimpy. Pray for me...