Still cutting through the fog

I was able to get out of work around noon yesterday and I headed straight for bed. Depsite my love's best efforts I was still woken up three times between 1:00 and 4:00. Once DD3 came in and said, "Daddy, I really want you to wake up now." Aw... but I was sooo tired. I told her that I loved her, but I really needed to get a little more sleep. She's had friends over pretty much constantly the past three days. We have some friends who are getting ready to move back to the west coast, so while they show their house they spend a lot of time over at ours. Sort of a bitter-sweet situation. Anyway, when I did get up I worked on making dinner for the kids as my beloved and I were heading out to see "The Bourne Ultimatum". Well, this update has taken me over 30 minutes to enter... and my mind is still tired. LOL I'll 'see' you all on Monday. God bless. Verse for today: Isaiah 64:3-4, ESV When you did awesome things that we did not look for, you came down, the mountains quaked at your presence. From of old no one has heard or perceived by the ear, no eye has seen a God besides you, who acts for those who wait for him.

Ugh! Is the sun up yet?

One thing about working in the IT field... the main hours to do routine maintenance is o-dark-thirty. It was a 'simple' LAN migration, but in order to have the least amount of impact on the critical systems (the ones the most users use during the business day) we started our day at 0400 this morning. It's hard to readjust the body. LOL And the mind seems to work on a 3 second delay... A long time friend will be starting a care/small/bible-study group up this September. Unfortunately (for him) he commutes 90 minutes each way to work. I felt led to offer him support in the teaching department (so to speak), which he gratefully accepted. now I am "on the hook" so to speak. :) We will be taking turns leading the discussion/teaching - four weeks on, four weeks off. My first "rotation" will be in October. But I am not sure of what to teach yet. My first thought was about "The Pursuit and Practice of Biblical Fellowship". It would be based off of a sermon by Kenneth Maresco I recently downloaded and listened to from Covenant Life Church. Some really good stuff about how we can come alongside one another to help lift each other up, challenge each other, and encourage each other. Unless your church is the size of a few families it is difficult for the Pastor to minister to each member of the congregation. And it becomes even more difficult as the church gets larger. This is where small groups become more beneficial. When I started this entry this morning I had some really good points that I wanted to share that Kenneth brings up in his sermon... but my mind is really 'mushy' right now. The overall general point is that it that the small group really can help each of us as individuals grow. It helps me see things that I am otherwise blinded too, and it allows me the opportunity to help my fellow brothers and sisters out. All done in grace. Well, I am going to wrap this up for today... God bless... Verse for today: Proverbs 27:17-21, ESV Iron sharpens iron, and one man sharpens another. [4] Whoever tends a fig tree will eat its fruit, and he who guards his master will be honored. As in water face reflects face, so the heart of man reflects the man. Sheol and Abaddon are never satisfied, and never satisfied are the eyes of man. The crucible is for silver, and the furnace is for gold, and a man is tested by his praise.

Getting ready for the '07-'08 "busy" season

We are getting close to the time of year when the kids head back to school, so I need to prepare myself for the "busy" season once again. DD3 (she's our only daughter, but child #3) begins full day kindergarden this year. Both she and her mother are looking forward to it (supposedly). But for different reasons I'm sure. My beloved, who at one time talked about heading back to the work force as soon as possible, is now talking about getting long "overdue" projects done around the house. After school DD3 wants to do gymnastics. DS2 will be starting at a new school this year. I have mixed emotions and thoughts about this. It seems every year we struggle with his teachers and special ed aides. Every year we have to re-explain what Aspergers is, how it manifests itself in our child - even though the aides are supposed to be fully trained in it. The month to month we fight the battles with both our son and the school system. In order to help him we have him in both a 'social behavior study' and 'therapy' lessons (one is once a month, the other is once a week). DS1 is also starting a new school this year. He is growing up so fast (he's only eleven). He is only about 5 inches shorter than I am, and he's becoming so much more aware of the world around him (which is playing havoc on me and the Mrs. getting some alone time if you know what I mean). He wants to play soccer this fall, which we love for him to do. Especially since his brother and sister demand so much more attention - he is often left on the sidelines. The result is 3 kids, in 3 schools, each with their own activities. And the things listed above are in addition to the church activities. Some are required, others are not. But it is just so hard to know where to draw the line. We want each of them to have their own intrests, and friends, but we (the parents) are finite in what we can support and provide. We struggle with alone time as it is. I really dread this time of year. Well, except for football season of course. :~) Verse for today: Proverbs 24:30-34, ESV I passed by the field of a sluggard, by the vineyard of a man lacking sense, and behold, it was all overgrown with thorns; the ground was covered with nettles, and its stone wall was broken down. Then I saw and considered it; I looked and received instruction. A little sleep, a little slumber, a little folding of the hands to rest, and poverty will come upon you like a robber, and want like an armed man.

Filling in...

... my mind is running in a lot of directions today... I will have to post tomorrow... An article I came across really intrested me. Especially since I am hearing something I've thought from some one else... Here is the link to the article: "Learn from the Fall of Rome" by Jeremy Grant for the Financial Times. Verse for today: Isaiah 6:8-13, ESV And I heard the voice of the Lord saying, “Whom shall I send, and who will go for us?” Then I said, “Here am I! Send me.” 9 And he said, “Go, and say to this people: “‘Keep on hearing, [3] but do not understand; keep on seeing, [4] but do not perceive.’ Make the heart of this people dull, [5] and their ears heavy, and blind their eyes; lest they see with their eyes, and hear with their ears, and understand with their hearts, and turn and be healed.” Then I said, “How long, O Lord?” And he said: “Until cities lie waste without inhabitant, and houses without people, and the land is a desolate waste, and the Lord removes people far away, and the forsaken places are many in the midst of the land. And though a tenth remain in it, it will be burned [6] again, like a terebinth or an oak, whose stump remains when it is felled.” The holy seed [7] is its stump.

Back from Vacation

Whew, am I glad to be back from vacation! I might be able to recooperate some now that I am back to work! :~)



All week DS2 kept asking us, "why did you have to pick this week to go on vacation!" It was incredibly HOT all week! Now, I've had to deal with prolonged exposure to such heat before, but my family has not - and that was an experience. The heat index did not get peak below 105 farenheit the entire time we were in Williamsburg, VA.



Before I give too much of an incorrect picture I need to say that my family is not a 'roughing it' kind of family. Our idea of 'roughing it' means that we have to do without a small fridge and/or microwave oven in our hotel room! ;~) *** hahaha *** We had a full week none-the-less.



On Monday we hit Busch Gardens (after looking at the Weather Channel when we got there we quickly decided that this would be the coolest day of the week). It had been almost 15 years since my beloved and I had visited there, and we had a blast. The park is actually smaller than I remember it though. I think the sensation is by design though. It allows the visitor the impression of not being over crowded, and if an area is getting congested it probably encourages people to move to another 'country' (or region). One thing in particular... DS1 was a little disappointed. Although Busch has some really good rollercoasters (and he rode everyone of them), there are not as many as he's used to from Hershey Park. His favorite was The Griffon, while mine was Apollo's Chariot! (Yes, he 'dragged' me on each and every one!). The one thing we did do to help dodge the heat some was we hit two shows. The first one was at the Fest House, and the other was of the Emerald Beat in 'Ireland'.



On Tuesday we hit Water Country USA. It is reported to be the largest Water Park in the mid-atlantic, and it is huge. The Wave Pool, and the 'Hubba Hubba Highway' were the biggest hits. Especially for my beloved and me. I liked that they provided courtesty life jackets. Especially on the 'highway'. Just because it moves you along, and there is not much swimming required to do so, does not mean that you do not have to exercise to keep yourself afloat! :) And the wave pool, well you can just use your imagination. ;~) I was ready to head home by 6PM, but the family would have nothing to do with that! LOL We stayed right up until the park closed. (OH, and I had wanted to buy a hat the entire day, but my beloved asked me to wait until the end of the day... I never did get it... but it is on my 'wish list for birthday, anniversary, or Christmas... here is a quick image of what I like...









(not really sure why I posted that... lol)

Wednesday we just took a break. We stayed in our hotel and just watched movies, ate popcorn, made spagetti, that sort of thing.

Thursday we ventured down into the 'Colonial Williamsburg' area. We wanted to see some of the attractions, and learn a little more about it, but it was incredibly HOT! After only two hours, and that included a nice 30 minute tour of the Governor's Palace we were baked! We did get some nice pictures of the Court House, and some re-enactors (I'm sorry, but I've not downloaded the camera yet :~( ). We went out to lunch and then back to the pool instead.

On Friday we went back to hit specific locations, like the Blacksmith and the museum. We were surprised by how well the kids did in the museum. There was not much to do, or things to intrest them there, but they hung in there. Afterwards we headed up to Yorktown to see the decisive battle of the Revolutionary War. The National Park Service really has a nice vistor's center. I tried to do the Battlefield tour, but the kids quickly lost intrest. We ended up on one of the few tiny beach areas that 'downtown Yorktown' has.

We originally planned to come straight home Saturday, but I had wanted to go visit Jamestown the whole week and we had not made it there yet. This time the family were great sports. They let me walk over the entire 'Towne'. I was able to look at each of the areas, and read most of the information. It is incredible to read about the original 104 Men and boys who ventured from England to establish the first 'permenant' colony.

I used to think that was where the first of my Paternal relatives come into what is now the United States, but I have since learned differently. Still... I am (I believe) the 12th generation of my family since the first arrived circa 1685 - and most likely he had a stop for at least a short time in 'James Towne'.

Wow - that was a little long winded! I originally wanted to post a lot of pictures like 'Susan' does, but I am just not as diligent in getting them downloaded as she.

I did want to share one thing that I believe God is doing in my life. Lately it seems like He is encouraging me to be less transparent about my faith. Not going out and becoming a 'street preacher' (I think) or anything, but just to be more bold in sharing who I am and what I know. Another is to get back to meditating on how Holy God is. It seems that my verse for this past week has been, "Woe is me! For I am lost; for I am a man of unclean lips, and I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips; for my eyes have seen the King, the Lord of hosts!" (Isaiah 6:5, ESV). My heart is not quite ready, but it seems as if He is moving me in a direction.



Verse for today:
Isaiah 6:4-7, ESV
And the foundations of the thresholds shook at the voice of him who called, and the house was filled with smoke. And I said: “Woe is me! For I am lost; for I am a man of unclean lips, and I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips; for my eyes have seen the King, the Lord of hosts!”

Then one of the seraphim flew to me, having in his hand a burning coal that he had taken with tongs from the altar. And he touched my mouth and said: “Behold, this has touched your lips; your guilt is taken away, and your sin atoned for.”

Are there any real answers out there?

Last night I stayed up WAY too late to watch the movie Bobby (2006) with my beloved. It was an interesting movie. I liked the way it followed the various charecters, and the variety of their lives and stories. But that is not the point of my post today. :) Somewhere in the middle it struck me. When exactly did our trust in politicians and the political process really start to wain? I am not really sure a finger could be pointed at JFK or his brother - I mean not at them personally, but at what happened to them. When did it become ok to wink at indiscretions of our political leaders (and I don't really care which side of the aisle your on) and just let them go on with a smack to the back of their hands? It's not just the morals of the leaders that we now doubt (I say this in an overly generalized way), but it is the system as well. Cover ups, scandals, misrepresentation, and just a general sense of distrust between her citizens and her government seems to be simmering. The tools of the enemy of our soul is distrust, etc. and he seems to be at work within the United States. And lately the endless bicering between those who are supposed to be working together for the greater good of the people they are supposed to represent. I don't have the answers, and I still believe that President Bush really has the best interest of the United States. I believe he makes good decisions in very difficult circumstances. Even when those decisions are not the most popular. I'm sure the decision by Moses to not enter the promised land, despite the reports from Joshua and Caleb, was the popular one. But in the end they people of Isreal did not get to see the promised land. I have no idea how all this will play out in the years to come. There is a long road ahead of us as a Nation. I just pray that those who are called according to the Lord's name get on their knees to march. Because, unless the Lord is Lord of this land... I don't want to think about it. I want this country to be a proud and strong place to be for my children, and their great-grandchildren. Verse for today: 2 Chronicles 7:11-22, ESV Thus Solomon finished the house of the Lord and the king's house. All that Solomon had planned to do in the house of the Lord and in his own house he successfully accomplished. Then the Lord appeared to Solomon in the night and said to him: “I have heard your prayer and have chosen this place for myself as a house of sacrifice. When I shut up the heavens so that there is no rain, or command the locust to devour the land, or send pestilence among my people, if my people who are called by my name humble themselves, and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and heal their land. Now my eyes will be open and my ears attentive to the prayer that is made in this place. For now I have chosen and consecrated this house that my name may be there forever. My eyes and my heart will be there for all time. And as for you, if you will walk before me as David your father walked, doing according to all that I have commanded you and keeping my statutes and my rules, then I will establish your royal throne, as I covenanted with David your father, saying, ‘You shall not lack a man to rule Israel.’ “But if you [2] turn aside and forsake my statutes and my commandments that I have set before you, and go and serve other gods and worship them, then I will pluck you [3] up from my land that I have given you, and this house that I have consecrated for my name, I will cast out of my sight, and I will make it a proverb and a byword among all peoples. And at this house, which was exalted, everyone passing by will be astonished and say, ‘Why has the Lord done thus to this land and to this house?’ Then they will say, ‘Because they abandoned the Lord, the God of their fathers who brought them out of the land of Egypt and laid hold on other gods and worshiped them and served them. Therefore he has brought all this disaster on them.’”

Why do I like...

...Necromunda. Recently I was pondering the various hobbies people have within the body of Christ. We all have the common intrest of Christ and the work we do within the local church we've been called to. But many have intrests outside of the 'church' as well. Horses, Archery, Hunting, Farming, Fishing, Stamping, etc. My main hobby is Necromunda. Why? I'm not really sure. I do not get a chance to play the game all that often. I spend more time reading articles, or writing stories, and modeling various things, than actually playing the game. I wonder how much longer I will actually be intrested in it. Especially because I am not able to spend much time playing the game... Verse for today: Jude 1:17-23, ESV But you must remember, beloved, the predictions of the apostles of our Lord Jesus Christ. They [6] said to you, “In the last time there will be scoffers, following their own ungodly passions.” It is these who cause divisions, worldly people, devoid of the Spirit. But you, beloved, building yourselves up in your most holy faith and praying in the Holy Spirit, keep yourselves in the love of God, waiting for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ that leads to eternal life. And have mercy on those who doubt; save others by snatching them out of the fire; to others show mercy with fear, hating even the garment [7] stained by the flesh.