Today's the Day I Won't Live In a Hurry

All week I've been running around like a (insert favorite colloquialism here) and today I'm just not going to do it. I'm going to make every attempt to clean my desk, organize my activities, and enjoy the work that I do. I may have to speed up my body but I've had my mind racing enough all week to warrant some thoughtfulness, a little cogitation together with my action. For instance, typically I drive in listening to NPR, a podcast on my MP3 player, or maybe a favorite CD. I rarely look at the faces of the other drivers I meet in oncoming traffic. This morning I left the noise off and drove in silence, through the fog, intentionally watching each and every face I could see in oncoming traffic and also, between oncoming traffic and fog banks, a little of the greened-up countryside. Autumn is approaching quickly with winter following on her footsteps so a picture-perfect vision of a lush alfalfa field or rich Maple grove will be a good thought in February. So much time I've spent driving and not noticing things...I'm in a hurry to slow down today. I'll bet that sounds good to many of you too.

Time

I never have been as busy as I am right now. God give me energy, all of it. I don't mean just the kind you get from calories being used up but the kind that flows from every fiber of your being. I can remember waking up in a sleeping bag next to a tamarack swamp and feeling the sunshine pouring through the side of the tent as it burned away the cold of dawn. Thats the kind of energy I'm asking you for Lord. The kind that's breathed in with eager anticipation of what life will next unfold. I have it in my head and somewhat in my body but God you are the master of my heart and I'm counting on you to take care of that part.

Recession. Who can even begin to call this a recession? What are they counting? The dead are being raised, the sick are being healed and you God are on your throne. Me? See the sparkle in my eye, the spring in my step and the striding headlong into it all and convince me that we're in a recession.

Epiphany

Hell courtesy of Dr. Gregory Boyd

Since reading "The Great Divorce" by C.S. Lewis I've had the feeling that the mythological fire and brimstone image of hell is not the last word on the subject. In a sermon to his congregation on Jan. 4, 2009 Greg Boyd unleashes a scholarly study of the Bible on this subject. Surely if a person is pre-destined to believe that St. Thomas Aquinas had the last word on the subject you will not appreciate Dr. Boyd's treatment of the text. If you, however, have a hard time reconciling a God who calls himself 'Love' with the idea of eternal anguish in a burning cauldron of fire then listen to this guy put it all together. Its a beautiful work.

Tormented in the Flames? by Dr. Gregory Boyd

Throat-sticking Overdone Like That Turkey But I Can't Help It

But here goes....

I'm Thankful....simply because I'm able to be, that my heart is formed such that I can find something, someone, or some memory in this day of twenty thousand-some-odd breaths of air (of which every one I'm thankful for) to look upon with grateful eyes, a peace of mind, and say that- that right there is worthy of my thanks.

peace and thanks for you -

Maturing of the Web as a Social Network

Bulletin boards, email, chat rooms, instant messenger, myspace, facebook, twitter, google calendar, etc. I am a social networking addict. I began in 1998 in chat rooms talking about competition coon hunting, daschunds, gardening, Y2K, etc. It was novel and it was fun and it seemed you could soon discover nuances in the personalities of people that brought a level of intimacy that merely meeting someone face-to-face at an organizational meeting never could and possibly never will. I tried to count tonight how many people that I've met first on the internet and then face to face. I believe it is somewhere around a dozen people that I have met in face to face meetings that I probably would have never met otherwise. When you chit chat with someone in a fairly open forum and then meet them face-to-face it seems there is a greater intimacy to the relationship from the start.

One of the strangest phenomena I've noticed with online networking is what I will call 'ethno-centering'. A person that you may be familiar with and may even have frequent face-to-face conversations with, but may be on your 'outer circle' or 'exocentric' group of friends, can often become one of your closest networking friends. That online friendship will often bring people closer together as they move from the keyboard and screen out into the real world, strengthening their face-to-face relationships. A Facebook page or Myspace page (I'm going with the top two that I am aware of but there is also many more including Youtube, Picasa, Flikr, etc. that use media to build community around it) brings transparency to a relationship. Its difficult to attempt to be someone you are not when you Twitter often or reset your status often or share photos through Photobucket, Flikr, or Picasa or blog or whatever way you express yourself on the internet. A trail of information gets laid down behind you and like Ebay ratings or Diggs, you become the character that you exhibit, at least in the eyes of those stalking your profile or lurking on your wall (Facebook lingo).

My mug is raised to transparency and intimacy. I praise the author of all knowledge for making all things know in the Kingdom that is already but not yet. If you aren't on Facebook, get on there and join in the conversation. It is fun, rewarding, and so far I've seen it builds relationships.

Colab With My Friend Today

The Poem of Leo Leaf

budding tree

blooming green

silky, airy

joyful glee

spring

growing, feeding

shading, breathing

bugs feed on me

summer

color changing

yellow, red, orange

frosty, cold and wet

wind drives a herd

across the lawn

and men blow you into piles

autumn

crunch, shatter, organic matter

dead pumpkin smell

you're all brown and fallen down

no more story to tell

winter

or is there.....?