Here at CTK we are experiencing a deep sense of loss. A very fine man of God was taken to be with His Lord very suddenly.
Jim Eggers suffered what I understand was a tear in the aorta. He was life flighted to the hospital where he stabilized enough to begin surgery, but in the early hours of this morning the surgeon's efforts concluded. Jim crossed the finish line.
We know he is with his Lord, but he leaves a wife and 6 children ranging in age from 13 to 23. This causes me such grief.
I doubt that Jim ever had a hint of how much I admired and respected him.
Tuesday
Thursday
December 6
ElenaClaire lost the hearing in her right ear - apparently due to nerve damage and apparently permanent. In a hearing test they were sending signal to the ear and she said she could feel the vibration so she figured they were sending signal, but she heard nothing. That was 110 decibels.
They did an MRI and found that there was no mass pressing on the nerve causing the loss - this was what we expected but was a relief nonetheless. She will continue to see a Dr., now an otologist, until he says there is no further benefit. At this point there is an unlikely possibility that the otologist might detect something that might restore functioning. In the meantime college and work as a pharmacy tech is going well for her.
Miles is continuing incremental improvement both physically and emotionally. He was in the 5th grade's performance of "The Nutcracker" and did a great job. On Dec. 19 he will be a featured player in the church Christmas program.
This weekend is the church Cantata, this year a self-selected set of songs with a narration script I composed. Alicia will narrate. Our title song is Chris Tomlin's "Glory in the Highest".
I am toying with auditioning next month for "Annie Get your Gun".
and life rolls onward...
They did an MRI and found that there was no mass pressing on the nerve causing the loss - this was what we expected but was a relief nonetheless. She will continue to see a Dr., now an otologist, until he says there is no further benefit. At this point there is an unlikely possibility that the otologist might detect something that might restore functioning. In the meantime college and work as a pharmacy tech is going well for her.
Miles is continuing incremental improvement both physically and emotionally. He was in the 5th grade's performance of "The Nutcracker" and did a great job. On Dec. 19 he will be a featured player in the church Christmas program.
This weekend is the church Cantata, this year a self-selected set of songs with a narration script I composed. Alicia will narrate. Our title song is Chris Tomlin's "Glory in the Highest".
I am toying with auditioning next month for "Annie Get your Gun".
and life rolls onward...
Tuesday
Long-Overdue Update
Blogging has taken a back seat to other concerns of late. Let me bring you up todate.
Miles is showing signs of incremental improvement. He is on two medications for clinical depression. Since a test revealed normal gastric emptying we are operating on the assumption that gastroparesis is not the pressing G/I problem. His doctor ran out of ideas and so referred us to a colleague who decided to assume that eosinophilic duodenitis was at fault and started Miles on a medication that can help with that.
Meanwhile Miles had missed so much school that the state of Texas was (ill-advisedly) sending us boilerplate letters that inform us of heavy fines and/or prosecuting charges against us. We negotiated with the school a 3 week period in which Miles would arrive an hour later and leave an hour early, but would attend every day, no matter what his health was like. And, surprise, surprise, he actually made it to school almost every day for the past 5 weeks now.
ElenaClaire had been preparing for her first open water dive in a scuba class but was unable to do it because of a cold that turned into an inner ear infection, outer ear infection, and bronchitis. She was on several oral and injected antibiotics, several oral and injected steroids, topical treatments for the ear, nebulizer breathing treatments etc. Her health improved but the hearing in her rigth ear did not. Last week we learned that the 100% hearing loss in her right ear is probably permanent and due to nerve damage. She is still on steroids and will have an MRI to make sure nothing is pressing against the nerve but the news has been a great discouragement to her.
Smiles for Miles/Miles for Miles raised a grand total of $9,000 this year.
Alicia and I are doing well but struggling to keep our heads above water in all the stressors of our lives.
Ministry continues to go well at CTK. We have begun mentoring a small church plant who are presently without a pastor after their planting pastor left (after only 2-3 years) and part of what that means is that several of us are preaching there. We provide preaching 3 Sundays out of 4 for them. I preached on November 4 (reprising the Lost Sheep/Lost Coin piece and video, plus additional material) and am scheduled there once a month. In December I will preach at the 9:40 service at CTK. That's the weekend of the Cantata, which is presented Saturday night and at the 8:20 and 11:00 services, and for which I am writing the script.
Miles is showing signs of incremental improvement. He is on two medications for clinical depression. Since a test revealed normal gastric emptying we are operating on the assumption that gastroparesis is not the pressing G/I problem. His doctor ran out of ideas and so referred us to a colleague who decided to assume that eosinophilic duodenitis was at fault and started Miles on a medication that can help with that.
Meanwhile Miles had missed so much school that the state of Texas was (ill-advisedly) sending us boilerplate letters that inform us of heavy fines and/or prosecuting charges against us. We negotiated with the school a 3 week period in which Miles would arrive an hour later and leave an hour early, but would attend every day, no matter what his health was like. And, surprise, surprise, he actually made it to school almost every day for the past 5 weeks now.
ElenaClaire had been preparing for her first open water dive in a scuba class but was unable to do it because of a cold that turned into an inner ear infection, outer ear infection, and bronchitis. She was on several oral and injected antibiotics, several oral and injected steroids, topical treatments for the ear, nebulizer breathing treatments etc. Her health improved but the hearing in her rigth ear did not. Last week we learned that the 100% hearing loss in her right ear is probably permanent and due to nerve damage. She is still on steroids and will have an MRI to make sure nothing is pressing against the nerve but the news has been a great discouragement to her.
Smiles for Miles/Miles for Miles raised a grand total of $9,000 this year.
Alicia and I are doing well but struggling to keep our heads above water in all the stressors of our lives.
Ministry continues to go well at CTK. We have begun mentoring a small church plant who are presently without a pastor after their planting pastor left (after only 2-3 years) and part of what that means is that several of us are preaching there. We provide preaching 3 Sundays out of 4 for them. I preached on November 4 (reprising the Lost Sheep/Lost Coin piece and video, plus additional material) and am scheduled there once a month. In December I will preach at the 9:40 service at CTK. That's the weekend of the Cantata, which is presented Saturday night and at the 8:20 and 11:00 services, and for which I am writing the script.
Monday
SMILES FOR MILES REPORT
Last week was so much work preparing for SMILES FOR MILES. But in the end it was a smashing evening, more than doubling the money raised for diabetes reseaarch. We had a great turnout, all three bands did a fine job, comedian Chuck Montgomery was terrific, and the raffles were well supported. We had a live auction of two items: a signed Houston Texans football helmet, and a Christopher Radko baseball-themed ornament signed by Roger Clemons.
In the end, $4000 was raised - add to that the $1000 in sponsorships on the back of the T shirt and $1100 raised by the Creekwood Middle School kids selling paper sneakers last week with our help, and we are standing at over $6000 - with more than a month before the walk. That is awesome!
In the end, $4000 was raised - add to that the $1000 in sponsorships on the back of the T shirt and $1100 raised by the Creekwood Middle School kids selling paper sneakers last week with our help, and we are standing at over $6000 - with more than a month before the walk. That is awesome!
Thursday
Miles
His quarterly endo exam went pretty well. He needs to gain weight. His biggest problem and prayer request is about the pain and nausea caused by gastroparesis. I never imagined myself saying "Diabetes, by itself - those were the good old days..." It's September 6 and he has already missed 50% of school days this year. Hopefully we have nowhere to go but up.
September 6
• Of all places in the world, why here? Who knows? For that matter who ever expected it would make a comeback 25 years after spectacularly collapsing in 2 years? For whatever reason, the DeLorean Motor Company is starting up again, in our own Humble, Texas. They envision rolling as many as 28 cars a year off the assembly line, each with a $57,000 price tag. Attention, Marty McFly: why didn't you tell us this when you got back from the future?
Wednesday
Too Cool - Google Earth Flight Simulator
Stevie Baby had a link to this secret "Easter Egg" on the newest version of Google Earth. I had to download FlightSim.reg (a 25 second task) and restart Google Earth, then hit Ctrl-Alt-A. Here's a picture of me, buzzing over my hometown of Davis. The house I grew up in is actually right there on the screen, lower right corner. This could be a real time stealer. I gotta get back to work. Thanks Stevie Baby!
September 5
• Yesterday was Dad's birthday. We had a good talk and we sang to him over the phone. The link will take you to an article about Dad on daviswiki.org - taken originally from The Davis Enterprise. It's a very inspiring article (to me).
• Imprimis, the outstanding journal of Hillsdale College, has a great feature speech this month on the topic of global climate change and the dubious claim that it is caused chiefly by human activity. The author, S. Fred Singer, is professor emeritus of environmental sciences at the University of Virginia, a distinguished research professor at George Mason University, and president of the Science and Environmental Policy Project. So he has the academic clout behind his words. Other recent publishing on a US Senate Committe website also notes the growing dissension from the "consensus" view.
• When will the name-calling stop? Oh, the humanity!Wednesday, 8/29/07
• Miles had a great first and second day of fifth grade. Our major concerns were obviously his health, but also his attitude and his connecting with a boy who can be a friend. The good news is that in every way his first two days went very well. Today, unfortunately, gastroparesis is causing him severe discomfort and he is at home. We hope maybe he can get in for the afternoon.
• Meanwhile ElenaClaire has begun at Kingwood College and is enjoying that a great del. Especially the scuba diving course. Her big task is now to secure a job as a Certified Pharmacy Technician.
• Brad Bergfalk is getting a lot of positive feedback for some writing he's done on pastoral service and transitions. This is great stuff Brad. Worth reading are his posts on
What a pastor needs in a congregation
The Exit Interview
Open Letter to Churches seeking a pastor
Myth of the Pastor Call Process 1 and 2
Reasons the pastoral call process is broken
Strategy for a Meaningful and Effective Pastoral Call Process
• This is a ticket to a dance held in 1922. It was in a book that belonged to my great grandmother. Note the phrase in the bottom right corner. Either the phrase has changed in meaning, or she was quite the party girl!
• Meanwhile ElenaClaire has begun at Kingwood College and is enjoying that a great del. Especially the scuba diving course. Her big task is now to secure a job as a Certified Pharmacy Technician.
• Brad Bergfalk is getting a lot of positive feedback for some writing he's done on pastoral service and transitions. This is great stuff Brad. Worth reading are his posts on
What a pastor needs in a congregation
The Exit Interview
Open Letter to Churches seeking a pastor
Myth of the Pastor Call Process 1 and 2
Reasons the pastoral call process is broken
Strategy for a Meaningful and Effective Pastoral Call Process
• This is a ticket to a dance held in 1922. It was in a book that belonged to my great grandmother. Note the phrase in the bottom right corner. Either the phrase has changed in meaning, or she was quite the party girl!
Thursday
Miles Update
Yesterday Miles went to see the GI doctor. A decision was made to change the medication Miles is prescribed to deal with his gastroparesis (chronic partial paralysis of the muscles that contract to empty the stomach, causing cramping, stomach pain and nausea - a slow emptying of the stomach).
It's more than a little unnerving when a physician tells you that there are extremely few therapeutic alternatives left - or in simpler terms, we got no more ideas after this.
Last night Miles had very severe stomach pain in the hour or two after dinner.
This boy needs prayer and a miracle.
It's more than a little unnerving when a physician tells you that there are extremely few therapeutic alternatives left - or in simpler terms, we got no more ideas after this.
Last night Miles had very severe stomach pain in the hour or two after dinner.
This boy needs prayer and a miracle.
Tuesday
SMILES FOR MILES
We are moving into the time of year when we raise funds to find a cure for diabetes. September 14 will be the date of "Smiles for Miles", a fun evening of food, music and entertainment. These Guys Here , the kids from Centre Stage Theatre, possibly a stand up comic and some magicians will be performing - as well as a one-night-only Beatles Tribute band called "Sgt. Miles' Find the Cure Club Band". It's made up of a bunch of friends from church, but the artwork, as you can see, was all a family affair.
Wednesday
JDRF video
I was just sent this link to the JDRF video from this year's Houston gala, which raised a million dollars.
Tuesday
Gearing up for "Smiles for Miles"
It's the event we do in the fall to raise money for JDRF. Last year was the first one and this year we're adding some acts to the entertainment, as well as adding to the food offerings. And I'm assembling a second band...
Saturday
Vacation fever
• Our brief family vacation starts in a day and a half and we're focused on getting ready. Corpus Christi, TX is our destination. Beach time, movies, aquarium, USS lexington tour, restaurants, and who knows what. We'll keep you informed and post pics when we get back.
• Geoff and family are back. Stand down, Department of Homeland Security.
• Covenant President Glenn Palmberg has announced his retirement next August after 10 years of service. He's provided excellent leadership. My only sadness: I was voted off the island by Renton just before Glenn began his service (Thank God he was there as a supportive Superintendent during that tumultuous year of 1996-97), and if I am to return to the Covenant, I had hoped it would be during Glenn's tenure. But who knows. Maybe I have found the place where I am to stay right where I am. I am certainly not at all saddened at the prospect of staying here - I love CTK and all its people. I just miss the connections of my Covenant family. But I digress... Glenn is a good friend and I wish him all good things.
• Geoff and family are back. Stand down, Department of Homeland Security.
• Covenant President Glenn Palmberg has announced his retirement next August after 10 years of service. He's provided excellent leadership. My only sadness: I was voted off the island by Renton just before Glenn began his service (Thank God he was there as a supportive Superintendent during that tumultuous year of 1996-97), and if I am to return to the Covenant, I had hoped it would be during Glenn's tenure. But who knows. Maybe I have found the place where I am to stay right where I am. I am certainly not at all saddened at the prospect of staying here - I love CTK and all its people. I just miss the connections of my Covenant family. But I digress... Glenn is a good friend and I wish him all good things.
Thursday
July 13
• 3 D Ministries is the home of Mike Breen, the anglican guy who developed a series of geometric images as discipleship tools, called "LifeShapes". But 3D is more than 8 simple tools to help people think and talk about their walk with Christ. It's an organic movement of biblical discipleship and missional churches. This is the group with whom CTK is connecting, in what appears to be an evolving relationship in which we will be a "hub" church where eventually, leaders can come to receive training. The process is stillemerging but it is exciting to watch where the winds of the Spirit are blowing.• Geoff must be on a really slow airplane. They left Zurich 16 days ago and as far as I can tell, they are still in the air.
• ElenaClaire's first experience in opera is now history. It was great, and I'll get video up soon.
Tuesday
July 3 Update
Awfully rainy in Kingwood these past couple weeks. July 4th doesn't hold out much hope for dry weather either. Scheduled - Morning: The local parade. Afternoon: These Guys Here playing at a block party. Evening: Fireworks. We can move the block party indoors and play without drums if need be, but the parade and fireworks can't move inside very easily...
ElenaClaire got home from the mission trip Sunday night. These two snaps were taken by my buddy Spencer. While she was arriving home, Alicia and I were in the Theatre District enjoying "Sweet Charity". Cute show, well done. Very much a throwback to the
groovy Sixties. Quite a change from what we'll be doing next
weekend: going to hear ElenaClaire sing opera.
(I had some content in here about politics but I deleted it. My interest in politics is more like a morbid fascination, but more accurately, the more I see, the sicker I feel.)
Monday
June 25 Update
• I'm enjoying the travelogue posted by my buddy Geoff, who is in Europe with the choir from Menlo Park Pres. Geoff and I met 29 years ago on a music tour with "Song of Praise", a ministry of Artists in Christian Testimony.
Geoff is the shy one on the right; Gordon is the amused one on the left; Lauren is the embarrassed one in front; and Susan is the quiet one in the middle, in this re-creation of "The Sound of Music". I can't wait for the DVD!
• Scot McKnight has a wonderful essay today on the theology soundbyte "Love the sinner, Hate the sin". He offers a much more satisfying alternative. It's something after which he titled both his book and his blog: The Jesus Creed - Love God and love your neighbor as yourself.
• I led worship yesterday and we had a great time recreating the Newsboys' song "Wherever we Go". I was playing that reggae-influenced offbeat strat guitar - albeit on a keyboard. The theme - the Christian life is a life of letting joy and celebration go on display, and the blessings God pours into the life that follows Him. Sort of an updated Isaiah 55. Trees of the field clapping their hands isn't that different from squirrels smiling and waving, I guess. we had fun and the congregation were very delighted with the result - people had great joy at the end of the service as we concluded with Paul Baloche's "All the Earth will Sing Your Praises". (Paul wrote a great second verse that isn't on this linked recording, but we always do it):
No one, no name can rise above You Lord,
One hope, one light that shines forevermore,
Your kingdom in heaven and on earth,
Your children stand to sing of Your great worth.
We also taught our congregation, for the seond week, a new (to us) Chris Tomlin song called "How can I keep from singing?" It's the lead song right now on his website. We enjoyed hearing His song "Indescribable" on the evening news last week - when it was used to wake up the crew of the space station. Pretty amazing to hear that declaration of faith in the creator who placed the starts in the sky and knows them by name, when you're a little closer to them, I should think.
• Today is workday #1 for ElenaClaire and the rest of the kids and adults at the Valdosta workcamp. I bet she's hot and sweaty right about now, but probably just got off the worksite.
• Yesterday we had the fun of reconnecting via email with her Kindergarten teacher, Lynn Willis. He and his wife were delightful people. The exchange of emails made me miss their friendship.
• Finally, spent a couple hours last night picking fresh blueberries with Alicia, Miles, Tamara and Zach. Sweet and delicious - the fruit, and company and the activity
Thursday
June 21 Update
• The Houston Theater District is ranked second, only behind New York City, for the number of theater seats in a concentrated downtown area, and Houston is one of only five cities in the United States with permanent professional resident companies in all of the major performing arts disciplines of opera, ballet, music, and theater.
In this second-only-to-Broadway district, one of the most significant facilities is the Hobby Center for the Performing Arts. Our family was there a few months back to see "Seven Bride for Seven Brothers". Alicia and I will be there on July 1 to see "Sweet Charity" with friends Andy and Lanetta. But we may be back again on the other side of the curtain next year. "How to Succeed" had such a successful run that we may be reprising it next June, onstage at the Hobby Center. I did have a friend tape three production numbers at Final Dress Rehearsal, which you can watch here: The opening number; "A Secretary is not a Toy", and the smash closer, "Brotherhood of Man".
• I've just tried something that is absolutely cool & being the geek that I am. I've got it all set up, it's called SpinVox & it turns voicemail left at my cell phone into email that come to me in my inbox. You gotta try this thing.
(By the way, I didn't type any of the preceding paragraph. I left it as voice mail for myself and then copied it out of the resulting email and pasted it here. It even interpreted "gotta" accurately!)
• ElenaClaire will be among nearly 80 who leave on Saturday for the annual youth trip. This year it's a mission and rebuilding trip to Valdosta, Georgia. For the last 3 years, she's been part of these trips, and one of us has gone along as an adult leader. This year, her final trip, she makes without us. She'll be fine...we all will.
Valdosta, the birthplace of Doc Holliday, is a modern Southern town with a big heart-in a world where too many people just look the other way. The citizens of Valdosta are determined to fix the homes of their less fortunate neighbors. The entire community has made a commitment to eliminate all substandard housing by the year 2020. It's an amazing opportunity to help with this, tackling projects like…replacing rotten siding for an elderly widow, giving a disabled man the gift of mobility with a wheelchair ramp, fixing rickety front steps for a single parent with low income. Or, boosting a struggling family's self-esteem by making their house look like a million bucks with a bright new coat of paint. The City of Valdosta and Group Workcamps received the Community Development National Achievement Award for the Workcamp here in 2006!
In this second-only-to-Broadway district, one of the most significant facilities is the Hobby Center for the Performing Arts. Our family was there a few months back to see "Seven Bride for Seven Brothers". Alicia and I will be there on July 1 to see "Sweet Charity" with friends Andy and Lanetta. But we may be back again on the other side of the curtain next year. "How to Succeed" had such a successful run that we may be reprising it next June, onstage at the Hobby Center. I did have a friend tape three production numbers at Final Dress Rehearsal, which you can watch here: The opening number; "A Secretary is not a Toy", and the smash closer, "Brotherhood of Man".
• I've just tried something that is absolutely cool & being the geek that I am. I've got it all set up, it's called SpinVox & it turns voicemail left at my cell phone into email that come to me in my inbox. You gotta try this thing.
(By the way, I didn't type any of the preceding paragraph. I left it as voice mail for myself and then copied it out of the resulting email and pasted it here. It even interpreted "gotta" accurately!)
• ElenaClaire will be among nearly 80 who leave on Saturday for the annual youth trip. This year it's a mission and rebuilding trip to Valdosta, Georgia. For the last 3 years, she's been part of these trips, and one of us has gone along as an adult leader. This year, her final trip, she makes without us. She'll be fine...we all will.
Valdosta, the birthplace of Doc Holliday, is a modern Southern town with a big heart-in a world where too many people just look the other way. The citizens of Valdosta are determined to fix the homes of their less fortunate neighbors. The entire community has made a commitment to eliminate all substandard housing by the year 2020. It's an amazing opportunity to help with this, tackling projects like…replacing rotten siding for an elderly widow, giving a disabled man the gift of mobility with a wheelchair ramp, fixing rickety front steps for a single parent with low income. Or, boosting a struggling family's self-esteem by making their house look like a million bucks with a bright new coat of paint. The City of Valdosta and Group Workcamps received the Community Development National Achievement Award for the Workcamp here in 2006!
Saturday
June 9 Update
June 9Last night was opening night for "How to Succeed..." By almost any measure it was a smash success. There were a few gaffes, but they were minor, minor, minor. Alicia and the kids attended and LOVED it, as did the whole packed house.
This shot is from the end of the show stopping production number "Brotherhood of Man". I had a friend videotape the final dress rehearsal of this and two other numbers, which I'll edit and put up later this week.
I forgot to mention in my post about the Grad party that between songs, I announced that the event had special significance for me because it was the eve of a momentous anniversary: the next day represented 10,000 days of marriage for myself and Alicia. (A simple excel spreadsheet makes it very easy to track such things and surprise Alicia with dates of unexpected significance because they count days instead of years. There are two more surprising dates coming up this year, but I won't reveal them yet). I then sang Van Morrison's song "Have I told you lately that I love you".
We've begun plans to spend a three day vacation in Corpus Christi - a place the kids and I have never been and Alicia hasn't seen since childhood. We're told it's a delightful beach town. That will probably be July 9-11, after ElenaClaire's opera. If you know Corpus and can suggest places to go, stay, eat, etc. we'd love your feedback.
Thursday
May 31 Update
Google Maps Street View
Now you can walk the streets of Oakland Chinatown and 4 other metro areas in the US without ever leaving your computer! Take a look at this new feature inside of Google Maps called "Street View." The feature is in pilot mode so only a few locations are in Street View. These locations include San Francisco Bay Area, Las Vegas, Miami and New York. Look for the camera icon on the large scale maps, and look for the
streets outlined in blue on the small scale maps.
The image I've included here is from the sacred corner of Van Ness and Pacific, for many years the home of The Hippopotamus (aka the Hippo or the Hungry Hippo), the finest Hamburger place I've ever been. Since it closed back in the late 1980s (replaced by a stinkin' GAP store fer cryin out loud...), San Francisco holds very little reason for me to return. (via Geoff...)
The Party was awesome!
Tuesday night was the Graduation party featuring These Guys Here as the band. We were apparently the hot ticket on Tuesday night in Kingwood. People were in our house shoulder to shoulder, parking as far as 3 blocks away. Tamara was outside all evening grilling steak kabobs and shrimp kabobs - her grad gift to EC (and us). Other friends also brought food. It was a most amazing and memorable night.
Kingwood's getting hot and humid. Always seems to happen this time of year...
H2$ is getting nearer - tonight is my last free night until after opening weekend.
Miles has had 7 days in a row of (comparative) health - deepening my suspicion that there is a school-phobia elemt to his severe health challenge in addition to the obvious physiological ones.
EC will be singing in the Kingwood College Summer Opera Worskshop.
Now you can walk the streets of Oakland Chinatown and 4 other metro areas in the US without ever leaving your computer! Take a look at this new feature inside of Google Maps called "Street View." The feature is in pilot mode so only a few locations are in Street View. These locations include San Francisco Bay Area, Las Vegas, Miami and New York. Look for the camera icon on the large scale maps, and look for the
streets outlined in blue on the small scale maps.The image I've included here is from the sacred corner of Van Ness and Pacific, for many years the home of The Hippopotamus (aka the Hippo or the Hungry Hippo), the finest Hamburger place I've ever been. Since it closed back in the late 1980s (replaced by a stinkin' GAP store fer cryin out loud...), San Francisco holds very little reason for me to return. (via Geoff...)
The Party was awesome!
Tuesday night was the Graduation party featuring These Guys Here as the band. We were apparently the hot ticket on Tuesday night in Kingwood. People were in our house shoulder to shoulder, parking as far as 3 blocks away. Tamara was outside all evening grilling steak kabobs and shrimp kabobs - her grad gift to EC (and us). Other friends also brought food. It was a most amazing and memorable night.
Kingwood's getting hot and humid. Always seems to happen this time of year...
H2$ is getting nearer - tonight is my last free night until after opening weekend.
Miles has had 7 days in a row of (comparative) health - deepening my suspicion that there is a school-phobia elemt to his severe health challenge in addition to the obvious physiological ones.
EC will be singing in the Kingwood College Summer Opera Worskshop.
Tuesday
May 29 update
1. ElenaClaire Graduates! Friday evening
2. Sisters Elena and Rachel were here all weekend. Rachel still here; Elena has just left for San Diego.
3. Miles is on his 5th day in a row of health.
4. Tonight's the party, with These Guys Here playing music!
2. Sisters Elena and Rachel were here all weekend. Rachel still here; Elena has just left for San Diego.
3. Miles is on his 5th day in a row of health.
4. Tonight's the party, with These Guys Here playing music!
Thursday
May 24 Update
ElenaClaire graduates tomorrow from Kingwood High. The ceremony is at 8:30 pm at Reliant Stadium - the same venue where a famous wardrobe malfunction occurred. I feel confident that no such problem will occur tomorrow.
After Graduation, Alicia and I are volunteering at the "Project Graduation" all-night party held at KHS. Alicia and Miles are now at Hobby AIrport picking up Aunt Elena, flown in from San Diego and here until Tuesday afternoon. Aunt Rachel arrives tomorrow by car from Plano, TX. Elena can't stay for Tuesday night's party. We hope Rachel can.
ElenaClaire will spend the summer working part time as a nanny and a couple days a week as a barista at Jitters Coffee. What a thoroughly stereotypical thing for a 2007 grad to do. (One of her favorite songs is "Taylor the Latte Boy". A recording of Kristen Chenoweth singing “Taylor” is available here. Click the stream labeled 30:14 and scroll over to about seventeen minutes into the clip.)
EC was also offered a lead role in Kingwood College's Opera Workshop this summer. If she can work it into her schedule, it would be a great experience. Her role would be Gretel in the opera "Hansel and Gretel" by Engelbert Humperdinck (No, the famous British pop singer from the 1960s -- real name Arnold Dorsey -- the one with the cheesy tuxedo, sappy songs and silly sideburns -- did not compose this opera. The Engelbert Humperdinck who wrote Hansel and Gretel was born in Germany in 1854.)
Miles is officially through with 4th grade tomorrow at noon. Please God, may this year have been the worst year of his schooling. He's missed, I am sure, in excess of 50 days - nearly a third of the year.
I've just completed a re-designing of the basic arrangement of the CTK website. The goal was to make the page designed more for the visitor or person considering a visit, and less for the member (though members can still easily find what they need). The main menuing now makes it much easier for a visitor to find basic information they might need, and avoids churchy language. I implemented many suggestions made by Tony Morgan and the Internet Evangelism Day site.
Mark, my much-valued colleague in Worship and Music Ministry, has decided to remain at CTK rather than accept the call he received from the church in Ohio. We are all grateful. I still find the idea of a congregation officially extending a call to a pastor (or church worker) who has told you he is not interested is kind of unusual. But there are probably ways that seem normal to me that others would find strange.
Mike Breen was here yesterday to meet with our staff. Mike is the developer of LifeShapes, a series of unique discipling tools. He is now gathering 7 churches to be the model churches for a ministry approach that steps away from the well-marketed church growth method in favor of a disciple-making approach. What does that mean, you ask? Most of us are not entirely sure, and if we are, we're still looking for language to explain it. But it appears we are going to be one of the model churches. I am enthusiastic.
Brad was commenting on his blog about his experience of convergence:
After Graduation, Alicia and I are volunteering at the "Project Graduation" all-night party held at KHS. Alicia and Miles are now at Hobby AIrport picking up Aunt Elena, flown in from San Diego and here until Tuesday afternoon. Aunt Rachel arrives tomorrow by car from Plano, TX. Elena can't stay for Tuesday night's party. We hope Rachel can.
ElenaClaire will spend the summer working part time as a nanny and a couple days a week as a barista at Jitters Coffee. What a thoroughly stereotypical thing for a 2007 grad to do. (One of her favorite songs is "Taylor the Latte Boy". A recording of Kristen Chenoweth singing “Taylor” is available here. Click the stream labeled 30:14 and scroll over to about seventeen minutes into the clip.)
EC was also offered a lead role in Kingwood College's Opera Workshop this summer. If she can work it into her schedule, it would be a great experience. Her role would be Gretel in the opera "Hansel and Gretel" by Engelbert Humperdinck (No, the famous British pop singer from the 1960s -- real name Arnold Dorsey -- the one with the cheesy tuxedo, sappy songs and silly sideburns -- did not compose this opera. The Engelbert Humperdinck who wrote Hansel and Gretel was born in Germany in 1854.)
Miles is officially through with 4th grade tomorrow at noon. Please God, may this year have been the worst year of his schooling. He's missed, I am sure, in excess of 50 days - nearly a third of the year.
I've just completed a re-designing of the basic arrangement of the CTK website. The goal was to make the page designed more for the visitor or person considering a visit, and less for the member (though members can still easily find what they need). The main menuing now makes it much easier for a visitor to find basic information they might need, and avoids churchy language. I implemented many suggestions made by Tony Morgan and the Internet Evangelism Day site.
Mark, my much-valued colleague in Worship and Music Ministry, has decided to remain at CTK rather than accept the call he received from the church in Ohio. We are all grateful. I still find the idea of a congregation officially extending a call to a pastor (or church worker) who has told you he is not interested is kind of unusual. But there are probably ways that seem normal to me that others would find strange.
Mike Breen was here yesterday to meet with our staff. Mike is the developer of LifeShapes, a series of unique discipling tools. He is now gathering 7 churches to be the model churches for a ministry approach that steps away from the well-marketed church growth method in favor of a disciple-making approach. What does that mean, you ask? Most of us are not entirely sure, and if we are, we're still looking for language to explain it. But it appears we are going to be one of the model churches. I am enthusiastic.
Brad was commenting on his blog about his experience of convergence:
he's a pastor and missionary with the Evangelical Covenant Church, serving on Guam in partnership with the Liebenzell Mission and Pacific Islands Bible College, where their primary work is with Micronesians; he's also helping out at the Lutheran Church of Guam, an independent, culturally diverse Lutheran congregation which maintains affiliation with both the Evangelical Lutheran Church of America and the Lutheran Church Missouri Synod (where he and Cheryl regularly worship) as the intern supervisor and occasional preacher. Their summer seminary intern at LCG is an American who does US Air Force reserve duty on Guam every few months, but who is living down under, studying to become a minister in the Uniting Church of Australia.
I replied that as a Covenant pastor serving an LCMS congregation that has done 2 campaigns from Saddleback (a Baptist Church) and whose leadership is now being mentored by an Anglican who is connected with an ELCA congregation in Arizona, I thought all the convergence was pretty cool.
Wednesday
A confession for Mother's Day
This confession was written to follow a reading of Proverbs 31:10-12, 25-30 (NIV). It came out of an awareness that Mother's Day can be a difficult day for women whose relationships with their mothers were/are strained, those who have experienced infertility issues, etc. and others who find the Proverbs ideal too lofty to attain.
Lord, many of us read these words from Your Holy Word
And are inspired, encouraged, and grateful.
But some of us are tempted to doubt
That Your grace could ever produce
these kinds of virtues in our lives.
Some of us are tempted by resentment and unforgiveness
Because of those who have let us down.
Some of us are tempted to condemn ourselves for past failings,
and all of us remember times when we have fallen short.
Forgive us for doubt, resentment,
unforgiving hearts, self-condemning attitudes.
Remind us of your forgiveness, always available in Jesus Christ.
In Spite of our failures and sin,
We trust in Your power to transform our lives.
Fill us with Your Holy Spirit, Lord Jesus,
So that our lives may bring Joy to Your world
And Praise to Your Name.
© 2007 Rick Lindholtz
Lord, many of us read these words from Your Holy Word
And are inspired, encouraged, and grateful.
But some of us are tempted to doubt
That Your grace could ever produce
these kinds of virtues in our lives.
Some of us are tempted by resentment and unforgiveness
Because of those who have let us down.
Some of us are tempted to condemn ourselves for past failings,
and all of us remember times when we have fallen short.
Forgive us for doubt, resentment,
unforgiving hearts, self-condemning attitudes.
Remind us of your forgiveness, always available in Jesus Christ.
In Spite of our failures and sin,
We trust in Your power to transform our lives.
Fill us with Your Holy Spirit, Lord Jesus,
So that our lives may bring Joy to Your world
And Praise to Your Name.
© 2007 Rick Lindholtz
Friday
Friday 5/4
• For the third time in 6 1/2 years of calling Christ the King Lutheran Church my home, something has happened that I just find so interesting: Another church has extended a call to one of our staff, even though the staff person has clearly articulated that he is not looking and not open to a change of ministry. I find this interesting simply because it is so outside of my experience. In The Covenant I have never heard of such a thing happening. "No" means "No" in the ECC. If you're a Covenant reader, have you heard of a Covenant Church, in congregational vote, extending an official call to a pastor or staff ministry person who has said "no thanks" on more than one occasion?
This time (again)it is Mark, our Director of Worship and Music, who has been called by a church in Cleveland OH. And he figures that if a church is willing to extend a call, he needs to explore whether it is God's will. So he'll be up there next week.
I'm not concerned. God is in control, but I really don't expect this to happen.
• Miles has concluded his course of Prednisone. It has been sheer misery. Probably the worst month of our lives. And it will take a few days for the remnants of Prednisone to leave his system. Further, there is (as far as we can tell) no evidence that it has accomplished anything other than wreak havoc with his sleep cycle [and ours]and his Blood Glucose management. Today he is having a horrible day of abdominal pain - the presenting problem which the Prednisone was theoretically going to help.
This time (again)it is Mark, our Director of Worship and Music, who has been called by a church in Cleveland OH. And he figures that if a church is willing to extend a call, he needs to explore whether it is God's will. So he'll be up there next week.
I'm not concerned. God is in control, but I really don't expect this to happen.
• Miles has concluded his course of Prednisone. It has been sheer misery. Probably the worst month of our lives. And it will take a few days for the remnants of Prednisone to leave his system. Further, there is (as far as we can tell) no evidence that it has accomplished anything other than wreak havoc with his sleep cycle [and ours]and his Blood Glucose management. Today he is having a horrible day of abdominal pain - the presenting problem which the Prednisone was theoretically going to help.
Sunday
Sunday 4/29
-Awesome worship today in a service of confirmation for 39 8th graders. Doyle preached on "Oaks of Righteousness".
-Miles is slowly getting his sleep cycle back to normal as we taper down his prednisone dose. Last Monday night he slept not one minute from bedtime until 7:15 am. We are still recovering - all of us. Miles is enjoying his new pet, a leopard gecko named Faith, and also enjoyed a visit from
Maggie, who is owned by the Reuters - who are also the parents of Jeffrey, ElenaClaire's boyfriend.
-I just got home from a 5 hour rehearsal for "How to Succeed in Business without really trying", on stage here in Kingwood in June
- my first entrance into community musical theatre since "Bye Bye Birdie" 30 years ago in Davis. The time commitment is demanding but I'm having fun. today we choreographed "Brotherhood of Man" step for step based on this video of the Matthew Broderick revival of the show.
-Miles is slowly getting his sleep cycle back to normal as we taper down his prednisone dose. Last Monday night he slept not one minute from bedtime until 7:15 am. We are still recovering - all of us. Miles is enjoying his new pet, a leopard gecko named Faith, and also enjoyed a visit from
Maggie, who is owned by the Reuters - who are also the parents of Jeffrey, ElenaClaire's boyfriend. 
-ElenaClaire is moving into the home stretch - 
Pops Show is over (videos here) and Prom is coming - Graduation is May 25th and 
her Grad party at our house is May 29, featuring the music of These Guys Here.
Pops Show is over (videos here) and Prom is coming - Graduation is May 25th and 
her Grad party at our house is May 29, featuring the music of These Guys Here.Concordia and North Park both offered her generous scholarships ($8500 and $14200 respectively) but she is feeling like it would be wise for her to finish a couple years at Kingwood College - not certain that either she or Miles is ready for her to leave, and not feeling good about starting her post-college life with a pile of college debt (which would surely be the case if she went to either school).
-I just got home from a 5 hour rehearsal for "How to Succeed in Business without really trying", on stage here in Kingwood in June
- my first entrance into community musical theatre since "Bye Bye Birdie" 30 years ago in Davis. The time commitment is demanding but I'm having fun. today we choreographed "Brotherhood of Man" step for step based on this video of the Matthew Broderick revival of the show.I just finished reading "Flyboys" by James Bradley, author of "Flags of our Fathers". Awesome but disturbing book. No one really comes out of war virtue intact. But the details make it clear that a Pacific war was necessary back in the 1940s.
Thursday
Thursday 4/12
Easter was a great day... over 1700 in attendance, including the largest number of people ever to attend a single service at CTK (720 - all but maximizing our available seating, with folding chairs set up in the aisles.)
Miles was very sick on Tuesday, then had a great day on Wednesday. Today he is sick and at home again.
ElenaClaire secured a solo spot in the Kingwood High Pops Show at the end of the month. She'll be singing "Eleanor Rigby", backed by a small group of vocalists on the chorus.
She learned this week that she secured neither the vocal scholarship nor the LEadership Scholarship for which she applied. We are looking at Financial Aid packages, but realizing that in all likelihood she'll be at Kingwood College for a year or two. Still, we're making no firm decisions. Who knows what might still happen?
Miles was very sick on Tuesday, then had a great day on Wednesday. Today he is sick and at home again.
ElenaClaire secured a solo spot in the Kingwood High Pops Show at the end of the month. She'll be singing "Eleanor Rigby", backed by a small group of vocalists on the chorus.
She learned this week that she secured neither the vocal scholarship nor the LEadership Scholarship for which she applied. We are looking at Financial Aid packages, but realizing that in all likelihood she'll be at Kingwood College for a year or two. Still, we're making no firm decisions. Who knows what might still happen?
Friday
Good Friday
Miles' health has sort of taken over the subject matter on this blog - (and a lot of other stuff in our lives). It will not always be thus (I say in faith). The worship, music, drama, and theological musings will return.
Several of you who read here have sent encouraging notes - Thanks Geoff, Don, and John/Melissa, to name a few -
Miles started on prednisone Tuesday night and as expected, it is shooting his glucose levels all over the place - on the high end. Target levels are between 80-200, and the lower in that range, the better. On Weds., he didn't drop below 200 until 11:15 PM. Wake ups have been in the high 300s to middle 500s with the added complication of ketones, a chemical side effect of high numbers that make highs very stubborn. He went to school on Monday only this week. Last night we increased his nighttime basal rate (The dose of insulin his pump gives him every 3 minutes, day and night). ElenaClaire did a midnight check and I did one sometime in the 4 am hour. His wake up was 186. We'll learn a whole new system of management during his prednisone dose - anticipated to last 3 weeks, I think. Here's my best shot at explaining what this is like.
ElenaClaire had a phone interview yesterday with Concordia University in Austin. She's one of 8 finalists for 3 full-ride scholarships there. She also received a phone call Monday night from the Director of Biology and pre-nursing there, who when she learned North Park UNiversity in Chicago was also in the running, had very complimentary remarks about NPU and said she had sent students there to complete their nursing training - but most interesting was that Concordia is likely to start a school of nursing in the 2008-09 school year. For a number of reasons, not least of which is the relative proximity of Austin as compared to Chicago, I think Concordia has a subtle lead between the two schools. We should know by late next week what each school can do financially, and then ElenaClaire will have to make a decision.
At Christ the King, we had a great Palm Sunday which included a drama I wrote, with a cast of 7. I led last night's Maundy Thursday service worship along with Marilyn and John. Tonight and on Easter Sunday, I will be singing in the choir; on Sunday I will be conducting the choir on one song (Paul Baloche's "What can I do?") and leading vocally on one song ("Crown Him with Many Crowns", in the arrangement generated here last year by Brian West).
Several of you who read here have sent encouraging notes - Thanks Geoff, Don, and John/Melissa, to name a few -
Miles started on prednisone Tuesday night and as expected, it is shooting his glucose levels all over the place - on the high end. Target levels are between 80-200, and the lower in that range, the better. On Weds., he didn't drop below 200 until 11:15 PM. Wake ups have been in the high 300s to middle 500s with the added complication of ketones, a chemical side effect of high numbers that make highs very stubborn. He went to school on Monday only this week. Last night we increased his nighttime basal rate (The dose of insulin his pump gives him every 3 minutes, day and night). ElenaClaire did a midnight check and I did one sometime in the 4 am hour. His wake up was 186. We'll learn a whole new system of management during his prednisone dose - anticipated to last 3 weeks, I think. Here's my best shot at explaining what this is like.
ElenaClaire had a phone interview yesterday with Concordia University in Austin. She's one of 8 finalists for 3 full-ride scholarships there. She also received a phone call Monday night from the Director of Biology and pre-nursing there, who when she learned North Park UNiversity in Chicago was also in the running, had very complimentary remarks about NPU and said she had sent students there to complete their nursing training - but most interesting was that Concordia is likely to start a school of nursing in the 2008-09 school year. For a number of reasons, not least of which is the relative proximity of Austin as compared to Chicago, I think Concordia has a subtle lead between the two schools. We should know by late next week what each school can do financially, and then ElenaClaire will have to make a decision.
At Christ the King, we had a great Palm Sunday which included a drama I wrote, with a cast of 7. I led last night's Maundy Thursday service worship along with Marilyn and John. Tonight and on Easter Sunday, I will be singing in the choir; on Sunday I will be conducting the choir on one song (Paul Baloche's "What can I do?") and leading vocally on one song ("Crown Him with Many Crowns", in the arrangement generated here last year by Brian West).
Tuesday
Tuesday 3/27 pm
Miles is back home with abdominal pain. So much for 4 full days of school.
Last week I visted with my friend Gerard Baldwin, the last living director and illustrator of the Rocky and Bullwinkle Show. He drew and donated this drawing for the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation Gala Auction, scheduled for May 12. His wife Frances may also donate 5 hours of French Tutoring for the auction. They are really lovely people, most enjoyable company.Tuesday, 3/27 am
Miles is in school today. In the last month he has not been in school for more than 3 days at a time. Last week: Monday and Friday home because of illness. Yesterday: Home again. May this be a week he makes it through Friday.
He is on a new medication that is for his new, third diagnosis - ontop of Type 1 Diabetes and Eosinophilia, this is gastroparesis, a semi-paralysis of the stomach - a complication of diabetes. Very unusual for such a young child - typical only in adult diabetics. If the medication doesn't help, it might be an inaccurate diagnosis. Highly likely he'll go on steroids later this week - which should ease the eosin symptoms, but make his blood glucose go crazy.
ElenaClaire heard from Concordia yesterday. Of some 80 applicants for the Lutheran Student Leadership Scholarship (full tuition), she is one of 8 finalists for the 3 slots. She goes on to the next level: telephone iterviews next week. She's already assured of an $8500 Distinguished Student scholarship there; she is assured of $4000 so far at North Park ($2500 Dean's Award plus $1500 Covenant Ministers' Grant), with vocal scholarship potentially up to $4000 and other financial aid offers to come in early April. Several local scholarships await.
I am of no clear vision on this decision. I have a strong feeling for North Park, having lived there for 2 years while in Seminary. It has fine music and nursing programs. I'd love for her to have the Chicago experience. But Chicago is far away. I don't know if any of the 4 of us could handle such a great distance - esp. the kids. Austin is much nearer, a mere 3 hours away, which is a plus. But it has no nursing program - pre-nursing only. Perhaps 2 years there and then transfer? EC knows no one at North Park, though a dear friend of ours, like an aunt to EC, lives blocks away from campus. She has friends at Concordia and nearby at UT.
Ultimately it is her decision to make and I am confident that God will lead.
He is on a new medication that is for his new, third diagnosis - ontop of Type 1 Diabetes and Eosinophilia, this is gastroparesis, a semi-paralysis of the stomach - a complication of diabetes. Very unusual for such a young child - typical only in adult diabetics. If the medication doesn't help, it might be an inaccurate diagnosis. Highly likely he'll go on steroids later this week - which should ease the eosin symptoms, but make his blood glucose go crazy.
ElenaClaire heard from Concordia yesterday. Of some 80 applicants for the Lutheran Student Leadership Scholarship (full tuition), she is one of 8 finalists for the 3 slots. She goes on to the next level: telephone iterviews next week. She's already assured of an $8500 Distinguished Student scholarship there; she is assured of $4000 so far at North Park ($2500 Dean's Award plus $1500 Covenant Ministers' Grant), with vocal scholarship potentially up to $4000 and other financial aid offers to come in early April. Several local scholarships await.
I am of no clear vision on this decision. I have a strong feeling for North Park, having lived there for 2 years while in Seminary. It has fine music and nursing programs. I'd love for her to have the Chicago experience. But Chicago is far away. I don't know if any of the 4 of us could handle such a great distance - esp. the kids. Austin is much nearer, a mere 3 hours away, which is a plus. But it has no nursing program - pre-nursing only. Perhaps 2 years there and then transfer? EC knows no one at North Park, though a dear friend of ours, like an aunt to EC, lives blocks away from campus. She has friends at Concordia and nearby at UT.
Ultimately it is her decision to make and I am confident that God will lead.
Thursday
Thursday in Kingwood
Last Tuesday evening we took Miles to our regularly scheduled service of healing prayer. He seemed encouraged and blessed by the experience. He had been sick on Monday with EO symptoms but had been well enough to go to school on Tuesday.
He woke up with very good numbers and no EO symptoms on Weds and today and has had a couple of good days. In school three days in a row - which hasn't happened for a while.
He is also seeing his counseling therapist once a week now to help him cope with all this and is also taking painting lessons, which seems to help as well.
We expect to get info from his GI Dr. today about the tests he has had last week, and we are asking for an aggressive plan of treatment, even if it means doing a course of steroids which will complicate his diabetic regimen.
I am gearing up for leading a band as we lead worship this weekend; then on Palm Sunday I am directing a cast that includes myself in a drama I have written that will be halfway through the service and will be the tipping point as the service shifts from Palm to Passion emphasis. The drama takes place at Ground Zero in New York and is one of the best things I have written - based on a Willow Creek piece from years ago called "The Wall". Then Easter comes and EC and I will be in the choir. Alicia is not singing this year because Miles seems to need her to focus on him instead.
He woke up with very good numbers and no EO symptoms on Weds and today and has had a couple of good days. In school three days in a row - which hasn't happened for a while.
He is also seeing his counseling therapist once a week now to help him cope with all this and is also taking painting lessons, which seems to help as well.
We expect to get info from his GI Dr. today about the tests he has had last week, and we are asking for an aggressive plan of treatment, even if it means doing a course of steroids which will complicate his diabetic regimen.
I am gearing up for leading a band as we lead worship this weekend; then on Palm Sunday I am directing a cast that includes myself in a drama I have written that will be halfway through the service and will be the tipping point as the service shifts from Palm to Passion emphasis. The drama takes place at Ground Zero in New York and is one of the best things I have written - based on a Willow Creek piece from years ago called "The Wall". Then Easter comes and EC and I will be in the choir. Alicia is not singing this year because Miles seems to need her to focus on him instead.
Tuesday
Better on Tuesday
Miles is in school today - Thank you Lord. He woke up with no eosinophilic symptoms and a very healthy blood glucose number.
ElenaClaire received the Dean's award scholarship of $2500/yr at NPU. This week about 6 local scholarships will get filed. We expect to know the big picture by the first week of April. Then it all comes down to negotiations.
Christ the King is stepping into Lifeshapes - slowly but with determination and a sense that God is leading.
It's a beautiful day in Kingwood. And my attitude is much improved.
ElenaClaire received the Dean's award scholarship of $2500/yr at NPU. This week about 6 local scholarships will get filed. We expect to know the big picture by the first week of April. Then it all comes down to negotiations.
Christ the King is stepping into Lifeshapes - slowly but with determination and a sense that God is leading.
It's a beautiful day in Kingwood. And my attitude is much improved.
Monday
Sick and Tired
It comes down to this: I am fed up with illness. Not mine: Miles'. Eight plus years of dealing with diabetic management is bad enough. This new eosinophilic disorder is terrible. Miles stayed home from school today because he was not well enough to go to school. We know every year going into it that Miles will rack up more then the allowed days missed from school just from diabetic complications. This just adds to the burden.
I'm really tired of it.
I'm really tired of it.
Monday Afternoon - Music, Tools, Rodeo
• Here is a neat online tool. I needed to gather some information related to communications at CTK and this provided me with just the tool I needed.• We had a great day at the Houston Livestock show and Rodeo on Saturday. Ride 'em, Miles!
• EC received the "Distinguished Student Scholarship" of $8,500 per year at Concordia. Will she go? Hard to say. Other scholarships are out, there and at North Park, waiting on a reply, and more go out next week.
• My friend and colleague Marilyn Johnson and I collaborated on a song entitled "I am the vine". My contribution was the second verse. Written on Tuesday and Wednesday; presented in worship on Sunday, with Alicia and our friend George joining us on harmony vocals. Out of respect for Marilyn's ownership of the song, please do not use without contacting me first.
Thursday
Wednesday
ASK ME
My brother usually meets with a group at Starbuck's every Saturday morning, but apparently most everyone had said they couldn't make it. So, he told me, he was lying in bed early Saturday, wondering if he should go to Starbuck's or not.
Finally he decided to go and here's what he did. He made a little table-tent sign that said "ASK ME". He got a cup of coffee and the book he's currently reading, sat down at a table and set up the sign.
First thing that happened was a woman stopped and said "Ask you what?". Tom said "Anything". She replied "Okay, why is the sky blue?" Tom said "Great question. You want the serious answer or the funny answer?" "She said "Gimme the funny one", so Tom gave her the funny answer - an old Professor Irwin Corey routine.
Then she asked for the scientific explanation and he gave that to her. It turned into an interesting 10 minute conversation.
A few moments after she left a couple walked in. Same bit. The guy says "Ask What?" and Tom says "Anything". The guy looks at his wife, says "Honey, get me a cup of coffee" and sits down with Tom for 12-15 minutes of conversation that began with "What are you reading?"
Tom told me he figured that a) almost everyone has questions, and b) a lot of people don't feel like they have anyone they can ask. So he decided to let people know they can ask him.
I think he's on to something.
Finally he decided to go and here's what he did. He made a little table-tent sign that said "ASK ME". He got a cup of coffee and the book he's currently reading, sat down at a table and set up the sign.
First thing that happened was a woman stopped and said "Ask you what?". Tom said "Anything". She replied "Okay, why is the sky blue?" Tom said "Great question. You want the serious answer or the funny answer?" "She said "Gimme the funny one", so Tom gave her the funny answer - an old Professor Irwin Corey routine.
"'Why is the sky Blue' is a two part question. The first part is 'why?' This question has stumped philosophers for centuries. It's too complex to get into right now. The second part, 'is the sky blue?' Yes."
Then she asked for the scientific explanation and he gave that to her. It turned into an interesting 10 minute conversation.
A few moments after she left a couple walked in. Same bit. The guy says "Ask What?" and Tom says "Anything". The guy looks at his wife, says "Honey, get me a cup of coffee" and sits down with Tom for 12-15 minutes of conversation that began with "What are you reading?"
Tom told me he figured that a) almost everyone has questions, and b) a lot of people don't feel like they have anyone they can ask. So he decided to let people know they can ask him.
I think he's on to something.
Saturday
Random
• “Let them at least have heard of brave knights and heroic courage”. Walden Media is awesome. So is Hillsdale College's monthly print/electronic publication Imprimis. This month Walden co-founder and President Michael Flaherty writes about the vision of Walden.
• Every Last week of February, right before my March 2 birthday - I give myself back to my parents as a birthday present. I wish I could bring my whole family with me. I'm writing from my parents' home in Davis. Brother Tom picked me up late Thursday night at the airport; sister karin and husband Dave drove up from Claremont; and all of us had dinner last night (as is our tradition) at The Buckhorn in Winters, of whom the Davis Enterprise recently wrote:
• And finally, I typically will speak at a Vespers Service at URC, where Dad and Mom live. That's Sunday, after attending my home church, University Covenant.
It's all good - just as it will be good to get home Monday night.
"We wanted to create a company dedicated to recapturing imagination, rekindling curiosity, and demonstrating the rewards of knowledge and virtue. All of our films would be based on great books, great people, and great historical events. They would be made by the best talent in entertainment and they would all be linked to educational materials developed by some of the best talent in education. We were taking Henry David Thoreau’s famous advice—to march to the beat of a different drummer—to Hollywood, which is why we decided to name our company after Thoreau’s most famous book, Walden."Read more - you won't be sorry. These are the first guys I want to show my screenplay to.
• Every Last week of February, right before my March 2 birthday - I give myself back to my parents as a birthday present. I wish I could bring my whole family with me. I'm writing from my parents' home in Davis. Brother Tom picked me up late Thursday night at the airport; sister karin and husband Dave drove up from Claremont; and all of us had dinner last night (as is our tradition) at The Buckhorn in Winters, of whom the Davis Enterprise recently wrote:
Where's the best beef? The Buckhorn Steak and Roadhouse in Winters, according to the U.S. cattle industry. The Winters steakhouse has been named top independent restaurant in the nation with the National Beef Backer Award, announced last month by the Beef Checkoff Program at the annual Cattle Industry Conference in Nashville, Tenn.• An enjoyable side benefit to this annual soujourn to the town of my raising is dinner the next night - Saturday (tonight), which gathers a circle of friends who became close in our High School years. Some of them, like Peter York and Bill Pfanner, I count among my friends since our days at North Davis Elementary School (and Oliver Wendell holmes Junior High, where the three of us were Dorothy's companions in the spring 1971 production of "The Wizard of Oz"). Others, like Christine Hopper, our hostess, became a friend in High School. All of them are interesting people (one of them is getting lots of airplay (and residuals, I hope) in a Progresso soup commercial in which she is a woman trying on a black dress). It's good to be with people who have known me for over 35 years and like me even though they don't have to. They even schedule a dinner around my travel schedule. How nice is that? I'll snap some pics tonight and see if I can pare them with some old pics and post them next week.
• And finally, I typically will speak at a Vespers Service at URC, where Dad and Mom live. That's Sunday, after attending my home church, University Covenant.
It's all good - just as it will be good to get home Monday night.
Thursday
Random Notes
• Miles has been diagnosed with eosinophilic duodenitis. Those without highly technical interests can skip the following italicized portions.
Eosinophils (ee-oh-sin-oh-fillz) are a type of white blood cells. Eosinophils are the least common of the white blood cells and comprise approximately 1-4% of the blood’s cellular make-up. Eosinophils are most commonly associated with allergic diseases and parasite infections. This condition is most common in south Texas for unknown reasons.
Because it is believed that allergies play a role here, the treatment of the allergies is hoped to be the trick to treating the condition. If Singulair does not work, prednisone is the next step, which tends to drive blood glucose numbers crazy. Your prayers appreciated.
• ElenaClaire and the Kingwood High School Chorale is on a 2 1/2 day trip to San Antonio where they will sing at the Texas Music Educators' Association Convention - quite an honor. Her scholarship application to Concordia Austin was sent in today. She has applied to Concordia and to North Park. Everything rides on financial aid.
• Alicia is going to New Orleans March 1-4 with the CTK Women's retreat to rebuild.
• Covenant Bible College is closing at the end of the school year, reports the Covenant. That's a real loss.
• Brian came into my office yesterday and played me some music by The Redwalls. Since then I can't get "Colorful Revolution" out of my head. Sounds like The Beatles meet Dylan circa 1969, with Jeff Lynne or Gerry Rafferty at the boards. But it's none of those things, it's a band from Chicago.
• My band, These Guys Here, (be sure and check out the video) are booked for a wild game dinner on March 24 at the Humble Civic Center. I hope my family and I get back from seeing "Seven Brides for Seven Brothers" at TUTS in time.
• I've been cast in Center Stage's production of "How to Succeed in Business without Really Trying", June 8-17 in Kingwood.
Eosinophils (ee-oh-sin-oh-fillz) are a type of white blood cells. Eosinophils are the least common of the white blood cells and comprise approximately 1-4% of the blood’s cellular make-up. Eosinophils are most commonly associated with allergic diseases and parasite infections. This condition is most common in south Texas for unknown reasons.
Because it is believed that allergies play a role here, the treatment of the allergies is hoped to be the trick to treating the condition. If Singulair does not work, prednisone is the next step, which tends to drive blood glucose numbers crazy. Your prayers appreciated.
• ElenaClaire and the Kingwood High School Chorale is on a 2 1/2 day trip to San Antonio where they will sing at the Texas Music Educators' Association Convention - quite an honor. Her scholarship application to Concordia Austin was sent in today. She has applied to Concordia and to North Park. Everything rides on financial aid.
• Alicia is going to New Orleans March 1-4 with the CTK Women's retreat to rebuild.
• Covenant Bible College is closing at the end of the school year, reports the Covenant. That's a real loss.
• Brian came into my office yesterday and played me some music by The Redwalls. Since then I can't get "Colorful Revolution" out of my head. Sounds like The Beatles meet Dylan circa 1969, with Jeff Lynne or Gerry Rafferty at the boards. But it's none of those things, it's a band from Chicago.
• My band, These Guys Here, (be sure and check out the video) are booked for a wild game dinner on March 24 at the Humble Civic Center. I hope my family and I get back from seeing "Seven Brides for Seven Brothers" at TUTS in time.
• I've been cast in Center Stage's production of "How to Succeed in Business without Really Trying", June 8-17 in Kingwood.
Tuesday
Miles in Hospital Thursday
Miles will be in the hospital Thursday for an outpatient procedure, an endoscopy to figure out the source of his chronic severe stomache aches, present for the past 9 months but becoming more frequent and painful in the past month. We hope they can find a reason for this but also believe in may be emotional and stress related and rooted in his frustration with his illness. More than once, and as recently as last week, through tears of sadness, confusion, anger and who knows what else, Miles sobbed "Why did God give me diabetes?" That's a tough one to deal with when asked by a mature Christian who's suffering; it's heartbreaking to hear your 10 year old son ask it.
Meanwhile every spare moment these days is spent painting hardiplank siding. A gang of guys from church and I are tearing off the 30 year old cedar siding that is in terrible shapr, on 2 sides of our second story (the first floor is brick, and the streetward sides of the house are tudor style stucco). I figure it's easier to paint the stuff on the ground. I have 60 pieces of 8 inch siding still to do - 12 feet long. I've got a couple sawhorses set up in the garage and I can paint 10 pieces at a time. I do a batch at lunch, a batch before dinner and a batch before bed. I'll finish Weds night and then take Miles to the hospital on Thursday. Pictures will follow.
Meanwhile every spare moment these days is spent painting hardiplank siding. A gang of guys from church and I are tearing off the 30 year old cedar siding that is in terrible shapr, on 2 sides of our second story (the first floor is brick, and the streetward sides of the house are tudor style stucco). I figure it's easier to paint the stuff on the ground. I have 60 pieces of 8 inch siding still to do - 12 feet long. I've got a couple sawhorses set up in the garage and I can paint 10 pieces at a time. I do a batch at lunch, a batch before dinner and a batch before bed. I'll finish Weds night and then take Miles to the hospital on Thursday. Pictures will follow.
Monday
Who said it? - #2
My brother sent this link last night which included the following quote:
“He and I kept praying for the highest love to bring to people. We all [in the band] believe in Jesus and we believe in God and we believe that we were his messengers, so we followed through with our career as his messengers to the world."
He's talking about a song that he considers the high point of his songwriting and his prayer before recording it. OK, I realize one takes these things with a grain of salt, but as the author of the article comments, "there is this other voice, from the ancient Scriptures in the writings of Solomon: “If you search for good, you will find favor; but if you search for evil, it will find you” (Proverbs 11:27). So my bias is to find good in this quote, and to have hope for the heart of the author of the quote.
“He and I kept praying for the highest love to bring to people. We all [in the band] believe in Jesus and we believe in God and we believe that we were his messengers, so we followed through with our career as his messengers to the world."
He's talking about a song that he considers the high point of his songwriting and his prayer before recording it. OK, I realize one takes these things with a grain of salt, but as the author of the article comments, "there is this other voice, from the ancient Scriptures in the writings of Solomon: “If you search for good, you will find favor; but if you search for evil, it will find you” (Proverbs 11:27). So my bias is to find good in this quote, and to have hope for the heart of the author of the quote.
Who said it?
"I believe in the culture war," she said. "And you know what? If I haveto take a side in the culture war I'll take their side," meaning the Christian conservatives. "Because if you give me the choice of Paris Hilton or Jesus, I'll take Jesus."
Answer here. Her last name might ring a bell.
Answer here. Her last name might ring a bell.
Saturday
Innovation
Outreach magazine names Covenant Pastor Craig Groeschel of LifeChurch.tv the leader of "America's most Innovative church".
Celebrating our anniversary
We had a great day. Miles’ health care needs prevent us from going out very often, so we “went for it”. We began with breakfast out at La Madeleine, a little French café near here. Then we went to the movies. We saw “Rocky Balboa”, the final installment in the Rocky series – my interest had been piqued when I read / listened to Sly Stallone’s comments related to why he made this film:
"I think as a young person you tend to think that the world somewhat revolves around you, that you can recover from anything, that you tend to have this kind of vim and vigor and energy to take on the world on your own shoulders. Well, after you've been knocked down a few times and the world has shown you it's dark side, you realize that you need guidance, you need God's word, you need spiritual help and that's when your journey will begin."
So I, as I get older, I realize how - very much - I rely upon Jesus, the word of God, and his support and how I pass it on to my children because I want them to learn at an early age by - usually find out that we have to sometimes learn the hard way and then it really takes hold and that's what this is all about. "
So anyway – we saw that and enjoyed it – Alicia said it was good except for the boxing – which isn’t as funny as it sounds because the boxing is really just the last maybe 15 minutes of the film. It was a very good, inspirational, motivational story line.
Then we strolled the mall for half an hour before going back in to see “The Pursuit of Happyness”, which is a true story about a guy who went from homeless to a Dean Witter stock broker. It was a good film too.
Then we had about 4 hours. We shopped; and we exchanged a Christmas CD – Alicia and I had both given each other the new CD by Sting, which is very unique - a CD of music composed by John Dowland (1563-1626), performed on the lute. We are such fans of Renaissance and Medieval music that we both wanted to get this CD, but we didn’t need two. So we exchanged one for Carly Simon’s CD “Into White” – a CD of cover versions including Oh Susanna, Jamaica Farewell, Over the Rainbow, Manha de Carnival (from “Black Orpheus”), Scarborough Fair, etc. Really nice stuff. Then we had a really enjoyable dinner at Saltgrass Steakhouse before returning to the theatre for the 7:15 showing of “Dreamgirls”, which we had seen on stage about 15 years ago. It was very good – a little language, but a good story and great music. It’s a fictionalized version of the story of the Supremes.
Alicia and I realized that, since we saw “The Nativity Story”, Charlotte’s Web”, and “Night at the Museum” all last month, we’ve been to the movies 6 times in the last 5 weeks – which is more than we usually see in a year or more.
All in all, a fun and unique 12 hours. Miles was picked up from school by a friend and then he and EC had a most enjoyable evening together, and all was well at home.
Now - on to year number 28...
"I think as a young person you tend to think that the world somewhat revolves around you, that you can recover from anything, that you tend to have this kind of vim and vigor and energy to take on the world on your own shoulders. Well, after you've been knocked down a few times and the world has shown you it's dark side, you realize that you need guidance, you need God's word, you need spiritual help and that's when your journey will begin."
So I, as I get older, I realize how - very much - I rely upon Jesus, the word of God, and his support and how I pass it on to my children because I want them to learn at an early age by - usually find out that we have to sometimes learn the hard way and then it really takes hold and that's what this is all about. "
So anyway – we saw that and enjoyed it – Alicia said it was good except for the boxing – which isn’t as funny as it sounds because the boxing is really just the last maybe 15 minutes of the film. It was a very good, inspirational, motivational story line.
Then we strolled the mall for half an hour before going back in to see “The Pursuit of Happyness”, which is a true story about a guy who went from homeless to a Dean Witter stock broker. It was a good film too.
Then we had about 4 hours. We shopped; and we exchanged a Christmas CD – Alicia and I had both given each other the new CD by Sting, which is very unique - a CD of music composed by John Dowland (1563-1626), performed on the lute. We are such fans of Renaissance and Medieval music that we both wanted to get this CD, but we didn’t need two. So we exchanged one for Carly Simon’s CD “Into White” – a CD of cover versions including Oh Susanna, Jamaica Farewell, Over the Rainbow, Manha de Carnival (from “Black Orpheus”), Scarborough Fair, etc. Really nice stuff. Then we had a really enjoyable dinner at Saltgrass Steakhouse before returning to the theatre for the 7:15 showing of “Dreamgirls”, which we had seen on stage about 15 years ago. It was very good – a little language, but a good story and great music. It’s a fictionalized version of the story of the Supremes.
Alicia and I realized that, since we saw “The Nativity Story”, Charlotte’s Web”, and “Night at the Museum” all last month, we’ve been to the movies 6 times in the last 5 weeks – which is more than we usually see in a year or more.
All in all, a fun and unique 12 hours. Miles was picked up from school by a friend and then he and EC had a most enjoyable evening together, and all was well at home.
Now - on to year number 28...
Thursday
A Prayer for the New Year
Almighty and eternal God; You are hidden from my sight; You are beyond the understanding of my mind; Your thoughts are not as my thoughts; Your ways are past finding out.
Yet You have breathed Your Spirit into my life;
Yet You have formed my mind to seek You;
Yet You have inclined my heart to love You;
Yet You have made me restless for the rest that is in You;
Yet You have planted within me a hunger and thirst that make me dissatisfied with all the joys of earth.
Lord God, I praise and magnify Your name that You have set Your seal on my inmost being, not leaving me to my own poor and petty selfhood or to the sole empires of animal passion and desire, but calling me to be an heir of Your eternal kingdom. I bless You for that knocking at my heart’s door that tells me of Your waiting presence. I bless You for Your hand on my life, and for the sure knowledge that, however I may falter and fail, yet underneath are Your everlasting arms.
You who alone know what lies before me this day, grant that in every hour of it I may stay close to You. Let me be in the world, yet not of it. Let me use this world without abusing it. If I buy, let me be as though possessing nothing. If I have nothing, let me be as though possessing all things. Let me today embark on no undertaking that is not in line with Your will for my life, nor shrink from any sacrifice which Your will may demand. Suggest, direct, control every movement of my mind; for my Lord Christ’s sake. Amen
From: A Diary of Private Prayer by John Baillie.
Yet You have breathed Your Spirit into my life;
Yet You have formed my mind to seek You;
Yet You have inclined my heart to love You;
Yet You have made me restless for the rest that is in You;
Yet You have planted within me a hunger and thirst that make me dissatisfied with all the joys of earth.
Lord God, I praise and magnify Your name that You have set Your seal on my inmost being, not leaving me to my own poor and petty selfhood or to the sole empires of animal passion and desire, but calling me to be an heir of Your eternal kingdom. I bless You for that knocking at my heart’s door that tells me of Your waiting presence. I bless You for Your hand on my life, and for the sure knowledge that, however I may falter and fail, yet underneath are Your everlasting arms.
You who alone know what lies before me this day, grant that in every hour of it I may stay close to You. Let me be in the world, yet not of it. Let me use this world without abusing it. If I buy, let me be as though possessing nothing. If I have nothing, let me be as though possessing all things. Let me today embark on no undertaking that is not in line with Your will for my life, nor shrink from any sacrifice which Your will may demand. Suggest, direct, control every movement of my mind; for my Lord Christ’s sake. Amen
From: A Diary of Private Prayer by John Baillie.
Tuesday
This Little Babe
Here is a recording (from Sunday's worship) of the song I wrote based on a 400 year old poem entitled "This Little Babe". I first encountered the text in Benjamin Britten's "A Ceremony of Carols" as a sophomore in High School, and even then I found the text compelling, if a bit arcane, and the melody Britten used was ... well, not really usable. So I modernized the text a bit and gave the song an early American, Sacred Harp sort of feel. It wound up developing a musical feel that was a cross between a lullabye and a military march - which actually fits the text. Though it doesn't show up well on the recording, Brian played a keyboard voice that sounded like a field accordian. (That's EC singing with me, BTW.)
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