Christmas Week

I have been back in Iowa since Sunday night and at my house since Monday. I left after church on Sunday morning and had smooth sailing until the Kalamazoo, MI neck of the woods. At that point the weather turned nasty and the wind picked up speed thereby making travel miserable for thousands of people, myself included. After several hours of slow traffic and detours through the back roads of hillbilly towns (the kind of towns that have year-round 'live nativity scenes' in people's front yards) I was able to get back moving at a decent speed, and I made it to my grandparents house after 11 hours of travel. This meant that for me to travel all the way to Des Moines would have taken 13 hours and normally the trip is 9-9 1/2 hours. This equates to roughly a 28% increase in travel time compared to past trips.

I stayed at my grandparent's house Sunday night and arrived in Des Moines on Monday at noon. Monday night I went to my childhood best friend Kurt's house and we hung out for a few hours because his wife was working.
Wednesday night was the Christmas Eve service at church and then my family watched a Hallmark Christmas movie that my mom had recorded.
Thursday was Christmas and we opened presents in the morning, watched The Dark Knight during the afternoon (mom got her Hallmark movie, I got Batman - it's an even trade), and I watched the Lakers beat the Celtics in the evening. It was a good day.
Last night a couple friends came over and we all (friends and family) played Imaginiff.
This morning I hung out with my friend Jamie Miller and caught up on life and ministry. You can check out the ministry he heads up at the Consumed Ministries website.

While home, I was also able to read a few books. I reread Crazy Love by Francis Chan, I read The Prodigal God by Tim Keller, and I also am just about to finish Spiritual Leadership by J. Oswald Sanders. Next on my list are to reread Don't Waste Your Life by John Piper and read the fiction book, Peace Like a River by Leif Enger.

Oh ya, and I watched "The Incredible Hulk" yesterday. It was pretty good. "The Dark Knight" and "Iron Man" are better.

I leave tomorrow night to go to my grandparents before driving back to Michigan on Monday.

Go Tell It On The Mountain

My Christmas greetings to you all. May these ladies inspire you with Yuletide cheer.

"Henrietta and Merna Can't Sing"

A Purpose Driven Inauguration

Rick Warren, author of The Purpose Driven Life and pastor of America's 4th largest church (attendance exceeds 23,000 each week), has been selected to give the invocation at Barack Obama's presidential inauguration next month.

Watch the Anderson Cooper panel discussion below or read the article here.


The woman's comments in the last 10 seconds of the interview were the most interesting to me and seem to reflect 2 Timothy 4:3, "For the time will come when men will not put up with sound doctrine. Instead, to suit their own desires, they will gather around them a great number of teachers to say what their itching ears want to hear."

I'm not a political guru but I'm sure Obama's selection will stir up a great deal of discussion amongst both republicans and democrats.

What are your thoughts?

Recent Happenings

This past week I finished reading Mark Driscoll's book, Death by Love. It was one of the best books I've read all year. The book is a collection of pastoral letters written to individuals whom Mark has counseled explaining to them how Christ's work on the cross applies to their specific situation.

I still need to finish my current fiction read, The Story of Edgar Sawtelle, before I go to Iowa for Christmas because I need to return it to the library by Friday.

[This is one of the least flattering effects I've ever seen on a picture.
Both sweaters were store bought and then customized
- hers with ornaments and candy and mine with a full set of working Christmas lights.]

Wednesday night I lost my bet with a student regarding who would have a better/worse ugly Christmas sweater. She won the vote 16-14 so now I have to go see Twilight* in theater. Bug Man said he'll go with me. Anyone else want to go watch a vampire chick flick?

Saturday night was the church staff Christmas party at Pastor Bob's house. He made his special peppermint hot chocolate, and I must say that it took Starbucks out behind the woodshed and gave it a "rod of correction" Oprah-offending whoopin'. Don't get me wrong. I have great appreciation for Starbucks, but it's got nothing on what was being served up at the Johnson home Saturday night.

Last night I went to the church's Christmas concert. The choir and orchestra and technical crew did a wonderful job. Afterward a group of us went out to National Coney Island and had some food. I had blueberry pancakes. I love blueberry pancakes.

*Any guesses on how long before the Christian market starts selling Christianized "Twilight" merchandise? Maybe it's already out there and I haven't seen it. Possible ideas include:

A t-shirt that says, "Mylight", instead of "Twilight" (with a little John 8:12 "I am the light of the world" written underneath it)
Or instead of "Team Jacob" or "Team Edward," it could say "Team Jesus."

F + Sunday - S = Funday!

[Jaclyn, Sadie, and Becca with some new friends]

Sunday afternoon a group of the Middle School students and some leaders went to an assisted living center to sing some Christmas carols and hang out with the residents for a couple hours. All who went had a lot of fun and agreed that all the students who chose not to go really missed out.

[Helen the German and Parker who is learning German at school.

Helen the German pretty much danced her legs off to all the songs.]

[Cody and his Prom Dates 2008]

["She tried to kiss me on the mouth! So I quick turned my head

to the side so she got my cheek," said Cody after a close call.]

[Bug Man. 'Nuff said.]

When we got back to church we had some time to kill so we played some rousing games of dodgeball. On the 8th day, God created dodgeball. And it was very good.

For small groups in the evening we had a surprise Christmas Bash Party Extravaganza Event Celebration Festivity. We ate double stuffed Oreos, ice cream, rice crispy treats, popcorn, and candy canes, and washed it down with ice cold chocolate milk. Then we had a Christmas story quiz. Then we turned the guitars up and banged on the drums extra hard and jumped extra high on the chairs and sang a bunch of songs as loud as we could so as to do our best at letting the Sr. High students hear us in their room. They did. Then we played musical chairs. I pretty much hip-checked my way into winning second place. I played to win. No blood, no foul. But I still came up short. Then then party was over and we all went home.

Oh ya, and my office got "post-it-noted" again so I am going to lock my office door when I leave from now on. Take that burglars. Other precaution option: Ferocious guard dogs.

I'll be posting some pics of my Award Winning Ugly Christmas sweater and homemade Christmas ornament in the near future.

Resolution Reminders

In a previous post I provided a link to the 70 Resolutions of Jonathan Edwards. I have done my best to continue reading through them once a week and I have come to find certain resolutions particularly memorable and convicting. Here are some of them:

7. Resolved, never to do anything, which I should be afraid to do, if it were the last hour of my life. [I would hate to spend the last hour of my life watching YouTube.]

15. Resolved, never to suffer the least motions of anger towards irrational beings. [I preach this to myself when my computer freezes for no apparent reason.]

52. I frequently hear persons in old age, say how they would live, if they were to live their lives over again: Resolved, that I will live just so as I can think I shall wish I had done, supposing I live to old age. [Much easier said than done, but it's an intersting thought to keep in the back of your head.]

53. Whenever I hear anything spoken in conversation of any person, if I think it would be praiseworthy in me, Resolved to endeavor to imitate it. [I would add to this my own thoughts, "Resolved, whenever I am the recipient of compliments as to my behavior or character, to humbly and privately acknowledge and repent of my shortcomings before publicly setting out to live a life worthy of such compliments."]

54. Resolved, to endeavor to my utmost to act as I can think I should do, if, I had already seen the happiness of heaven, and hell torments.

63. On the supposition, that there never was to be but one individual in the world, at any one time, who was properly a complete Christian, in all respects of a right stamp, having Christianity always shining as its true luster, and appearing excellent and lovely, from whatever part and under whatever character viewed: Resolved to act just as I would do, if I strove with all my might to be that one, who should live in my time. [This is to be applied individually with the intention of one day pursuing it with your closest friends - think Daniel and the guys in the fiery furnace.]

69. Resolved, always to do that, which I shall wish I had done when I see others do it. [Have you ever stepped over a piece of trash on the ground, only to later see someone inconveniently and humbly walk over and pick it up and throw it away?]

Which of these sticks out the most to you?