Luke Skywalker

So... I have various Hallmark Star Wars ornaments for our Christmas tree.

Aaron pulled one of them down today and this is what happened:





Given what happened to Luke in The Empire Strikes Back... I guess this is kind of appropriate...

Enjoy...

Rejected Star Wars Toy

The Force™ action figure

It's not an empty box. The force is an invisible energy, it surrounds us and binds the galaxy together.

So stop whining. It's not an empty box, it's the FORCE™, all right?





If you want to see more rejected Star Wars action figures... visit this site:
http://www.mcmorran.org/pages.php?page_id=15

Let the Countdown Begin...

Words that Warmed My Heart

After Emily finished praying before a meal recently... somebody told her that she prays very well. To which she responded with the following words that made my eyes well up and warmed my heart:

"My daddy taught me how to pray."

Whew...

It's over.

I would like to officially say goodbye to National Blogger's Month. It was a challenge... but I am looking forward to moving back into my one to two post a week quota. Here's a few quick facts to make this post worth browsing:

Jeff and I had 52 downloads from our Cardinal Talk podcast last week! Pretty cool stuff! We've gotten about 39 already this week... but I don't know if we'll break last week's record. That will be tough.

I start my first advent season as a Lead Pastor this Sunday. Should be fun! I have always liked advent preaching... but many pastor's have told me to just wait about seven or eight years and I'll change my tune. Haha.

U2 re-released The Joshua Tree. That would make a fantastic Christmas present for me. Hint, Hint... Melissa... Hint, hint.

That's all for now. Here's to a quieter December on the blog!

We've been elfed!!

I thought I'd give my husband a break from all the blogging he's done this past month....hopefully he'll still appreciate it after seeing the video!!


http://www.elfyourself.com/?id=9636350903

Colorado Pics

Random Thoughts

Well, I'm not going to lie... posting everyday has been a challenge... and even annoying sometimes. But so far so good. I've got four days left and I'm sure the hardest part is behind me. (Especially when I was travelling to and from Colorado... some airports charge for wi-fi and that's just annoying.)

I'm not really sure what to talk about today. I have been keeping an eye out for Christmas specials to come on TV. Now that we have a DVR... it makes it much easier to record some shows that Emily and I could watch together. There are a ton of holiday specials that I have never seen but have always wanted to... so this year will be the year that we'll record those and watch them when it's convienient to our schedule.

This Wednesday, there is a Shrek Christmas special coming on. Looking forward to that... should be interesting. I love the Christmas season... faults and all. I love the music and decor and McDonald's eggnog shakes. Good times!

Jenny

This is kind of long... but well worth it!

Sermon Snippet

“They (Saul and Barnabas) traveled through the whole island until they came to Paphos. There they met a Jewish sorcerer and false prophet named Bar-Jesus, who was an attendant of the proconsul, Sergius Paulus. The proconsul, an intelligent man, sent for Barnabas and Saul because he wanted to hear the word of God. But Elymas the sorcerer (for that is what his name means) opposed them and tried to turn the proconsul from the faith. Then Saul, who was also called Paul, filled with the Holy Spirit, looked straight at Elymas and said, “You are a child of the devil and an enemy of everything that is right! You are full of all kinds of deceit and trickery. Will you never stop perverting the right ways of the Lord? Now the hand of the Lord is against you. You are going to be blind, and for a time you will be unable to see the light of the sun.” Immediately mist and darkness came over him, and he groped about, seeking someone to lead him by the hand. When the proconsul saw what had happened, he believed, for he was amazed at the teaching about the Lord.” (Acts 13:6-12)

Though this is a great story of courage and willingness to confront evil with the power of God’s spirit… the actual changing of Paul’s name is a little anti-climatic.

I mean, the three other men that we have looked at this month had fairly significant name changes… God spoke to Abraham very dramatically… God wrestled Jacob right before the change… Jesus proclaimed the change of Peter’s name. But in Paul’s case, there is just one line in scripture that refers to the change:

“Then Saul, who was also called Paul…” That’s it. In fact, we don’t even know if God changed Paul’s name. We really don’t even know the exact time when Saul’s name was changed to Paul. All we have is this line: “Then Saul, who was also called Paul…” That’s all we have to go on.

But perhaps it is significant to observe that we never see the name of Saul used again in the book of Acts. From this passage forward. Paul is always referred to as Paul.

So let’s pause to consider the definitions of these names and see if we can glean any insight from them: The name Saul literally means: ‘To ask’ or ‘asked of God.’ The name Paul literally means ‘small or little.’

The thought that might come to your mind is simply to observe that the definition of Saul sounds more significant than the definition of Paul. It sounds more spiritual… more meaningful… more groovy. I mean, given the choice… would you rather be called ‘Asked of God’ or ‘Little?’ I bet the majority of us, if we were honest, would rather be called ‘Asked of God.’ I mean, there’s a certain ring to that name. There’s really no ring to being called ‘Small.’ Hey Smalls! How you doing? No thanks. Just call me Saul.

Yet, given what we know about Paul… I think the definition 'little' is significant. Much like the Pharisees that Jesus personally dealt with… Saul grew up in an atmosphere of arrogance as it concerned the law. If Saul was anything like other Jewish teachers and leaders… He would have seen himself in a much greater light than normal people. He knew the law better than than. He lived the law more closely than them. He was a better person than them.

This attitude is certainly seen within Saul in the way he chooses to engage Christ followers. He condemned them. He gave approval to violence directed at believers… He stood against them whenever he could. He was not acting out of any sort of love… which Jesus indicated was of utmost importance when trying to follow the law.

Ultimately, Saul acted based on his own understanding, his own intellect, his own strength. There was a lot of Saul in Saul… and not much of God in Saul.

And perhaps the name Paul… perhaps the word 'little' or 'small' was a reminder to Paul of his place next to God. Tiny. Perhaps the name Paul was a call to humility. Perhaps being called ‘small’ or ‘little’ on a daily or hourly basis would help Paul prioritize his life in the right way… in a similar way that John the Baptizer organized his life: I must become less so that Christ can become more. I must become Paul, I must become little, I must empty my vessel of ME and fill it with Jesus. Perhaps.

I confess that I am just making a guess. Scripture does not confirm or deny the reason why Saul’s name is changed to Paul. But I can tell you with great certainty that scripture is very clear on this issue of humility and living on less of our own strength and resources and more on God’s.

In fact, Paul himself was very clear on this issue. He wrote some neat letters… and while it’s hard to pick favorites… especially when you are talking about scripture… the book of Philippians is a masterpiece as it relates to this issue of humility and living smaller lives so that Christ might be greater.

Bill Hybels wrote a book some time ago with a great title: Descending into Greatness. It’s a great irony in our faith journey: (one that Paul learned and taught about) In order to find true significance in this life… we must die to ourselves. In order to make a big impact we must become smaller… smaller as to create more room for God to fill us up and mold us into the type of person that He wants us to be.

And now that I think about it… maybe being called ‘Smalls’ isn’t as bad as I originally thought…

At the Pumpkin Patch

Christmas Tree

So we finally broke down and bought a new (fake) Christmas tree this year. It's a 7.5 foot, pre-lit, wispy willow pine beauty that stands tall and proud in our living room! We love it! (Pictures coming, but we are having issues with our digital camera.)

That said, I will always have fond memories of our old 'Charlie Brown' christmas tree. We bought it the year before we got married, after Christmas, for $10. It lasted nine years... which means that it cost us about $1.11 per Christmas to own and operate that tree. After looking at those numbers, we felt ok making the decision to buy a new one.

That old tree was the first tree to 'house' the presents of our young marriage; the first presents of Emily; and even the first presents of Aaron... though he'll never remember it. There's a significant amount of history that surrounds that old tree. (Even if it WAS just a tad little taller than me and, honestly, it was probably skinnier than me too)

It may not have been the prettiest tree in the world, but the family time that it represents more than makes up for its' deficiencies...

Happy Thanksgiving

Happy Thanksgiving everyone!

I am posting this from beautiful Colorado. We'll be back in Chicago tomorrow, but we spent the holiday at Melissa's sister's house.

We went through the mountains yesterday... I'll post pictures ASAP... probably next week sometime. Beautiful! The mountains were covered by trees... made even more beautiful by the fact that it snowed about an inch the day before... so everything was beautifully dusted.

We had our traditional Thanksgiving meal today and after the meal I walked into the kitchen and found Aaron unloading a case of Diet Coke into an empty cabinet. One at a time, he took a can and placed it in the cabinet. He was very systematic about it. It was pretty funny to watch... until he dropped a can on his bare toe and split his nail down the middle. After the blood and crying, he turned out ok.

It's been a fun trip! But now I need to write a sermon in less than two days... so we'll see how that goes. :)

Another Harry Caray Funny...

Traveling...

I traveled yesterday...

Traveling with a 17 month old is challenging.

Traveling with a 17 month old via plane is bad.

Traveling with a 17 month old via plane taking off from O'Hare is terrible.

Traveling with a 17 month old via plane taking off from O'Hare during Thanksgiving week is awful.

Traveling with a 17 month old via plane taking off from O'Hare during Thanksgiving week with a departure time at 9:00PM is brutal.

Traveling with a 17 month old via plane taking off from O'Hare during Thanksgiving week with a departure time at 9:00PM with the flight lasting 2 hours and 35 minutes is painful.

Traveling with a 17 month old via plane taking off from O'Hare during Thanksgiving week with a departure time at 9:00PM with the flight lasting 2 hours and 35 minutes and then finding out that the plane would be delayed until 10:10PM is pure torture.

Not getting to bed until about 3AM while traveling with a 17 month old is, well, not advisable...

This is Freakin' Hilarious

Sermon Snippet

On Peter:

“While Peter was below in the courtyard, one of the servants girls of the high priest came by. When she saw Peter warming himself, she looked closely at him. ‘You were with that Nazarene, Jesus, she said. But he denied it. ‘I don’t know or understand what you’re talking about,’ he said, and went out into the entryway. When the servant girl saw him there, she said again to those standing around, ‘This fellow is one of them.’ Again he denied it. After a little while, those standing near said to Peter, ‘Surely you are one of the them, for you are a Galilean.’ He began to call down curses on himself, and he swore to them, ‘I don’t know this man you’re talking about.’ Immediately the rooster crowed the second time. Then Peter remembered the word Jesus had spoken to him: ‘Before the rooster crows twice you will disown me three times.’ And he broke down and wept.” (Mark 14:66-72)

Many people look at that story and just assume that Peter was scared for his life. That he was a coward and not willing to give his life for Jesus… so he denied that he had anything to do with Jesus… and even called curses upon himself if he did know Jesus. You read that story and the first assumption to make is that Peter is just a big coward.

For a long time, I made that same assumption… until I took a closer look at something that happened earlier in the evening.

Back in the garden of Gethsemene, when the large crowd came to arrest Jesus… the gospel of John tells us that a detachment of Roman soldiers were sent to help arrest Jesus… along with many other people. The crowd came armed with weapons. There were professional soldiers there… and there were a lot of angry people there.

The disciples were outnumbered by a long shot… and yet we see Peter pull out his sword and cut off the ear of one of the people who came to arrest Jesus. I’m sorry… but when you are outnumbered, outclassed, and outsworded… this is not an action of a coward. This is not the action of a man who will just tuck tail and run.

Rather, this is the action of a man who is willing to give his life for the cause, this is a man who is desperate to see all the prophecies come true, here is a man who firmly believes that Jesus is the Messiah… only not the kind of Messiah that Jesus ended up being. Peter’s heart was right on the night of Gethsemene… but his understanding and discernment were way off.

He drew his sword and swung the blade against overwhelming odds… because he thought that this would finally be the time that the Messiah would take control… would wrest power from the Roman government… to rule as King David ruled. To reestablish the kingdom. This would finally be the time that Jesus would begin using his powers to destroy, rather than to heal…

And how crushed do you think Peter might have been when he saw Jesus reach over and touch the wounded ear and it was restored to health as if nothing happened? I bet his gut just knotted up… And how do you think Peter might have felt when the crowd successfully arrested Jesus and took him into custody without any fire from heaven or any resistance at all? I imagine there was a large dose of confusion going on in his head. How emotionally damaged would Peter have been that night when he saw the man who was supposed to be the conquering Messiah led away in chains? I suppose Peter must have felt waves of deep despair and disappointment.

And then flash back forward to Peter’s denials. I truly do not believe that they are denials based in cowardice. Peter was never a coward… he was always the boldest, loudest, the most audacious. No, these denials, I believe, were based in despair and disappointment. He believed that Jesus was there to save Israel through military action… there was no room in Peter’s messianic paradigm for a suffering savior…. and I believe it was despair that led him to deny Jesus three times that night before the rooster crowed. I imagine that this was the darkest night in Peter’s life…

Out of Posts...

So this whole writing in November thing has been fairly simple so far because I had about eight posts saved as drafts just waiting to be used on a busy day.

They are all used up now.

The rest of November will be completely current and I'll now be posting day by day. I'm not sure how this will look yet. It should be interesting. Here are some very random thoughts from my day:

I played Scene It! with some friends tonight. I realized how much I don't know about movies. I definately have a particular affinity for certain genres... and pretty much avoid the rest.

I've been playing a browser based game called 'Travian.' It's a lot like Age of Empires... yet completely different. You build your resources, villages, and armies up. You can align with other people playing the game. It's been a lot of fun.

I got a haircut today. I hate going to get a haircut and feel so much better once it's done. I do the same thing with oil changes too... I procrastinate on both.

I've been doing a Cardinal podcast with my brother. I have had a blast doing it. I finally found a program that will make the whole thing sound great... and I have enjoyed learning how to do that. Plus, I get to talk ball with my brother once a week... who can beat that?

That's all I have for today...

Final Photo Tour: Family Room

Here is our final photo tour of the inside of the house... coming soon will be pictures of the outside of our house... Emily's new playset... my office... and maybe some of the church... but we'll see. Enjoy.

Photo Tour: Master Bedroom and Bathroom

I'm a big fan of the metallic blue that was chosen for the bathroom!

Aaron Clapping

Another video from the summer...

Photo Tour: Living Room

Aaron Dancing

This is from the summer... but it's still pretty stinkin' cute!

Sermon Snippet

Continuing a series of sermons about men who had their names changed by God:

I love the story about Jacob wrestling with God… but the part I love the most about that story is when Jacob demands that God bless him. Not only that, but Jacob refused to let go of God until He received a blessing.

I know I’m jumping to conclusions here that are not necessarily spelled out in the text… but I think that made God smile.

Think about it: The last time Jacob tried to get a blessing… he snuck in like a coward… pretended to be someone that he wasn’t… in order to get a blessing that wasn’t really his.

This time… Jacob is Jacob. He’s not pretending to be anyone else. He’s not hiding or running or tricking like a coward… he is struggling… face to face with his opponent. And even in the midst of physical exhaustion and anguish… he hangs on and in boldness demands a blessing. And the blessing that God gave him was rightfully his...

What a change in how Jacob goes about getting blessed! And I really gotta believe that it pleased God. Jacob held on… he didn’t give up… and God blessed him for it.

There are bound to be some reading this who really feel that life is more of a struggle right now than anything else. Perhaps you are battling physical ailments; financial difficulties, relational stress; emotional drain; or even spiritual oppression.

I would encourage you to hang on. Don’t quit. Don’t give up. Persevere. Keep moving forward. Keep trying to do the right things. Don’t give up. Don’t. Give. Up. Keep on clinging to the Lord. After all, the story of Jacob teaches us that God is willing to bless those who are willing to persevere on His behalf in the midst of pain, loneliness, confusion and stress...

Tennis Lessons

Bringing it all back...

I ate breakfast this morning in the Wheaton College dining commons. I'm sure they have an official name for it, but I don't know what it is.

As I sat down to eat my eggs and french toast with the group of guys I was with... I heard the VERY FIRST Jars of Clay CD pumping through the speaker system. Yes, the one with classics like Liquid, Flood, and Worlds Apart. It immediately took me back to my own college days. That album came out the Spring/Summer before my freshman year of college. So it wouldn't have been surprising to hear that very album playing in the IWU student center during my years there. It's funny how music can do that to you.

DC Talk's Jesus Freak album also takes me back to my Freshman year of college. Dave Matthew's 'Under the Table and Dreaming' takes me to my Sophmore year. U2's 'Achtung Baby' takes me back to my Junior year. Sonic Flood, as much as I don't really care for them now... their first album takes me back to my Senior Year. It's just amazing how music has the ability to transport you to another time in your life...

Simple Church

I've been reading a book called 'Simple Church' and I gotta say... this stuff really makes sense. It echoes other books that I've been reading, like Andy Stanley and Reggie Joiner's book called 'Seven Effective Practices of Ministry.' The book suggests that the discipleship process shouldn't be complex... and that the ministries of the church really shouldn't be complex.

One passage of the Stanley/Joiner book really stands out to me: “Many of our staff had previously been involved with churches that were program-heavy, and we know how quickly things could grow out of control. So we became tenacious about staying simple. In fact, you might be surprised at some of the things we do not do. For example, we don’t have a Christian school, midweek services, men and women’s ministries, a children’s choir, adult Sunday school, Easter or Christmas Pageants, or a recreation ministry.”

The book suggests that churches that do too much are perhaps making a lot of noise, but aren't making any kind of an impact. It's very intriguing stuff. They took surveys and did studies of declining churches and pitted them against growing churches… and the results they found were staggering. The growing churches were the ones that had a simple process of discipleship… who clearly communicated that process to the people… and who leveraged all their energy, time and resources towards accomplishing that process. If a ministry did not fit the criteria of their process… they don’t consider doing it. They only do things that will compliment and add to their chosen process of discipleship.

It’s a fascinating way of doing church… mostly because I’m so used to the opposite. I’m used to being involved in program after program. Admittedly, I’ve started program after program… without asking the question: Does this compliment the mission of the church? Does this compliment the process? And unfortunately, there have been times where I couldn’t ask that question because there was no given process or mission to shoot for. In fact, I’ve worked in churches that Reggie Joiner could call: ADD churches. They have an inability to focus on ANYTHING for any length of time!

Our church here in Wheaton has just taken a Natural Church Development Survey... and we found that our limiting factor is Effective Structures. Some places of the church are over-structured… some places are under-structured. The church has had a vision or mission statement… but it’s pretty cumbersome and nobody really knows what it is. I am excited because I think ‘Simple Church’ will come in really handy in helping us move forward in identifying our process for discipleship.

We will begin really diagnosing things in the coming months… but this book fell in my lap at exactly the right time. It has made me ask some difficult questions of my own ministry paradigm. Why do we do what we do? What is the purpose of the church? How do we move people into spiritual maturity? It’s challenging, exciting, scary and intimidating all wrapped up into one. But I’m finding that that’s where God wants me to be… more times than not… in over my head.

Here’s to a simple church that can make a deeper and greater impact for the kingdom of God!

Buddies...

More Than An Exhibition?

A couple of years ago, Major League Baseball came up with the grand idea of having the winner of the All Star Game decide home field advantage for the World Series.

Traditionally, the All Star Game has been an over glorified exhibition game… and you know what? I liked it just fine that way… because all the super stars were on the field together playing ball in a way that wouldn’t happen the rest of the year.

What do I think of this new invention of the All Star Game ‘counting?’

Well, to be blunt, I hate it. An exhibition game deciding home field?

If we are going to have exhibition games decide home field… why don’t we just compile the National League’s record against the American League in Spring Training? The better league that Spring gets home field advantage in the next World Series. Yeah, that idea is just as ridiculous as the All Star game deciding things.

Not to mention the fact that about 90 percent of a normal MLB team has NOTHING to do with the All-Star game. Why would you reward or punish 90 percent of a team that had nothing to do with the outcome? It’s almost as absurd as rewarding home field advantage in the World Series based on who wins the Super Bowl. Crazy, I tell you. Crazy.

For instance, last year, the Cards made it to the World Series and didn’t get home field advantage because Trevor Hoffman from the San Diego Padres gave up the lead to the American League in the 2006 All Star Game. It was Hoffman’s fault and the Cards got punished for his inability to pitch in big games. (Turned out to work in our favor… but the point still remains.)

The best way to decide home field advantage? I see three possibilities:

1) Go back to the way it was: Alternate between the AL and the NL every year.

2) Reward it to the team that has the better regular season record. Let the teams in question earn it. Not just the three or four players from each team who may or may not even get in the exhibition game.

3) Now that we have inter-league play… and those games actually do count, perhaps you could award it to the league that won more games that year. (This is my least favorite solution… because you start getting back into the issue of putting your fate into what another team or set of players do.)

Regardless of the solution… the winner of the All Star game is not the best way to decide home field advantage… put the fate of the players that are involved in the World Series back in the hands of who it should’ve belonged to all along: The players themselves…

Photo Tour: Guest Room and Kids' Bathroom

Sermon Snippet

Here's a snippet from my sermon this morning. If I am going to post everyday in November... I might as well post snippets of the writings that I spend the most time on these days... This sermon is about what God did in Abraham's life... both by changing his name AND transforming his heart:



Where Abram means ‘exalted father’… the name Abraham literally means: ‘Father of Many.’ God changed Abraham’s name to represent the very promise that Abraham had such a hard time believing. God has a sense of humor, doesn’t He? Here’s Abraham… with no legitimate children… and his new name is ‘Father of Many.’

You can almost imagine people snickering when they started calling him by his new name. Hey Abraham… hey father of many.’ Was it awkward, perhaps, to be called something that didn’t yet apply to you? I’m sure at times it was.

But, thankfully, it doesn’t matter what other people thought about this new name… all that mattered was that from this day forward… God made sure that Abraham was reminded of the covenant that was made. From that day forward, Abraham’s very identity was tied into what God had in store for him.

In his book, Visioneering, Andy Stanley made a few observations about Genesis 17 that I found fascinating, and wanted to share them with you... He writes:

“On the day God instituted his covenant with Abraham, he changed his name to signify the certainty of his future. His name change was part of the vision he cast for Abraham and his descendants. God renamed Abraham as a way of pointing him in a specific direction for his life. Their names were a reflection of what could be and what would be.” (Andy Stanley)

There Are No Words...

National Blogging Month

So, I've heard that November is National Blogging Month. I'm not sure if it's official... or if someone on the internet is just playing with everybody... but the challenge put before us bloggers in the month of November is to try and post something every day.

I am going to give this a shot. Some days may just find me rambling on about nothing. Some days might just be pictures of whatever happens to be on my trusty digital camera at the time. I'm not sure what the heck I'll decide to post on.

Today's post is just telling you what I'm doing. But so as this is not a complete waste of time... I'll give a little update: Things are still going great here in Wheaton. Staff meetings are about Christmas plans... so that's always fun. I'm starting a series of sermons in November called: Transformer... we'll be looking at four men who had their name changed by God to reflect a greater change in their hearts. This week it will be about Abraham. I'm excited about it.

Our church is also going through Natural Church Development... but I'll save discussion on that for another blog post... I can't put all my posting 'eggs' in one basket when I have to post 28 more times this month!

Happy Blogging Month!

Photo Tour: Dining Room and more

A new table set was bought for this move as well!

And a new china cabinet... a long time dream for Melissa...

Here is our same floor laundry closet. Melissa loves this feature!
The kids' hallway...

A Tale of Two Friends

The following is a video that a friend of mine put together for our Friend Day here at church. The theme was looking at how Jesus modeled relationships... and I showed this right before my sermon. Thanks Steve, for your help in this. It turned out great!

Photo Tour: The Kitchen

Our amazing food pantry with pull out shelves galore!

Photo Tour - Emily's Room

We bought Emily this new cool bed right before we left Missouri!
She loves it!




These next two pictures are of Emily's huge walk-in closet! Amazing!