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Things I Love 46: A Terrible Mystery

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“What a terrible mystery
How I searched for the key
To unlock your guarded heart
And set your love free
What a beautiful dream
I tried more than anything
To unlock your heart
And set your love free
A terrible mystery” (The Choir)

“How do I wake up to joy and grace and beauty and all that is the fullest life when I must stay numb to losses and crushed dreams and all that empties me out?” (Ann Voskamp, One Thousand Gifts: A Dare to Live Fully Right Where You Are)

“Joy and pain, they are but two arteries of the one heart that pumps through all those who don’t numb themselves to really living” (Ann Voskamp, One Thousand Gifts: A Dare to Live Fully Right Where You Are).

I keep returning to this well of thanksgiving because it is there that I find life. I don’t mean blood pumping through my veins, breathing in and out kind of life. I mean the kind of life that consists of more than just existing, but being fully enveloped in and aware of God in each moment. The life that sees the rainbow through the rain clouds, the sun behind the dark night, and the joy behind the thousand daily heartbreaks and little dream-deaths we face each day. Joy is being truly awake and alive to the good in everything, even the worst of circumstances, knowing that the Father will work out all these things for the best possible good.

1,431) Muggy days that make the coming crisp days of autumn all the more welcome.

1,432) Reepicheep, the bravest of all the talking mice in Narnia.

1,433) Seeing my job as a priestly function of offering my work as a thanksgiving offering to God.

1,434) Having a job to go to, even if it was at 6:30 this morning.

1,435)  That I still love driving my ’95 Jeep Cherokee even after 10 years.

1,436) Taking notes at Kairos tonight on my iPad2.

1,437) Having the best family (which includes blood relatives, and friends both on Facebook and in the real world).

1,438) Adam Wheatley and Courtney Cole leading the amazing worship tonight at Kairos.

1,439) My friend Paige who has faithfully led the greeter team and been one of my most supportive friends when I really needed it.

1,440) Signing up again to volunteer for Belmont move-in day for incoming freshmen.

1,441) Finally converted after much kicking and screaming (mostly in the metaphorical sense) to being an Apple guy. All I need now is a MacBook Pro.

1,442) Seeing one of my Romanian friends at Kairos tonight.

1,443) Resuming my lunch walks (even if this one was interrupted on account of rain).

1,444) Wifi when it is working right.

1,445) The movie Notting Hill, even if it’s a chick-flick. It’s a very well-made, well-written chick-flick.

1,446) Not even being the least bit tempted to break my more than 15-month break from carbonated beverages today.

1,447) My scars.

1,448) Singing “All that she wants is to go to Kairos” tonight to the tune of the Ace of Base song, “All That She Wants.”

1,449) When I let God be my defender and justifier.

1,450) Random acts of recycling.

1,451) Tagging these blogs creatively so more people can read them.

1,452) Being around something completely annoying and hearing the character Janice from the TV show friends in her nasal Bronx accent saying in my head, “OH MY GOD!”

1,453) Having such entertaining voices in my head.

1,454) Being reminded that surrender to Jesus is the truest freedom I’ve ever known.

1,455) Knowing that God is more faithful and eager to hear my prayers and answer them than I am to pray them most of the time.

1,456) The calming effect of hearing the rainfall outside.

1,457) Thinking of how very far my driving skills have come since my very first time behind the wheel, terrified out of my mind and driving down one of the busiest streets in Memphis.

1,458) Choosing joy over a bitter and complaining spirit.

1,459) My friend Emily, who also serves in Kairos faithfully each week and who has a true Proverbs 31 kind of beauty.

1,460) The thought of going to bed soon after a long day that started at 5:30 this morning.

Things I Love 30: That’s The Way Love Goes

/ Ragamuffingospelfan / 1 Comment

island hammock

“Who would ever know the greater graces of comfort and perserverance, mercy and forgiveness, patience and courage, if no shadows fell over a life?” (Ann Voskamp)

“The practice of giving thanks…eucharisteo…this is the way we practice the presence of God, stay present to His presence, and it is always a practice of the eyes. We don’t have to change what we see. Only the way we see.” (Ann Voskamp)

The big 3-0. That’s how many blogs I’ve written in this series. It seems like only yesterday that I was writing the first one. Actually, it was more like three weeks ago. Maybe four. But here I am yet again, starting out with #871.

871) Still having peace and joy after being defriended on Facebook for no apparent reason (at least none that was given with no chance to correct whatever I did wrong).

872) The comfort of chocolate ice cream.

873) That Aslan is on the move.

874) A surprise visit from a friendly neighborhood cat.

875) Hanging out with my sister when it’s just the two of us, even if it’s at Michael’s.

876) Lucy the Wonder Kitty half-asleep and purring in my lap.

877) Those times when God reminds me gently that He is all I really need.

878) Salted peanuts.

879) Being able to let go and move on.

880) Seeing pictures of my friends John and Michelle’s new baby and knowing she will be loved.

881) The way my old dog Murphy used to sigh with contentment at the end of a long day.

882) Being an Eagle Scout.

883) Adele’s voice.

884) Having a great weekend to look forward to.

885) Not giving a . . . well, crap about what other people think anymore.

886) The tender yet relentless pursuit of the Father for His children (including me).

887) My coffee table book of Ansel Adams photography that I picked up at an estate sale for $5.

888) Red Velvet anything.

889) God using people like the Apostle Peter and the Apostle Paul.

890) My big book of Vincent Van Gogh artwork.

891) Friends who refuse to give up on other friends.

892) That last bit of sleep just before I have to wake up in the morning.

893) My friend who recently moved to Orlando and who is one of the sweetest kindest people I’ve been blessed to know.

894) Visions of lambs lying down with lions and being unafraid.

895) Red kool-aid. As long as it’s not during VBS.

896) A really good foot massage.

897) Running water, indoor plumbing, and all those other things I take for granted that half the world would love to have.

898) My very swanky Mr. Rogers t-shirt.

899) When I stop trying to define who my neighbor is and start trying to be one.

900) Big Red gum.

901) That I’m down to less than 100 things I love left. Maybe

902) Finding the perfectly random pin on Pinterest.

903) Google Chrome (much more than Internet Explorer).

904) Purple stuff (way more than Tang).

905) 10,000 years to sing of 10,000 reasons to bless the Lord.

Things I Love 20: Still Living the Miracle

/ Ragamuffingospelfan / 1 Comment

island hammock

“And when I give thanks for the seemingly microscopic, I make a place for God to grow within me” (Ann Voskamp).

That’s what it’s all about, in case you’ve missed the first 19 of this blog series. It’s about naming and giving thanks for little things that most people would take for granted and not give a second thought to. I’m moving away from a very American sense of entitlement to one of gratitude where I see everything in my life, both the good and bad, the easy and difficult, as gifts and grace. All of it is emptying and enlarging me so that I can be filled with more of Jesus.

So I start with #516

516) That cold glass of water that perfectly quenches my thirst.

517) Waving at strangers in Radner Lake State Park (and having them wave back).

518) A perfect albeit unusually cool summer evening for hiking.

519) Bare feet on a sand volleyball court.

520) Drinking right out of a hose and feeling like I’m 10 years old all over again.

521) My Monday men’s small group where we all share joys and sorrows and do life together.

522) Seeing older pictures of me and realizing how much weight I’ve lost.

523) That I’ve seen The Princess Bride on VHS, DVD, and blu ray (and too many times to count).

524) Whenever TVLand has a marathon of Friends episodes.

525) Being able to pray for someone who’s constantly on my mind instead of obsessing over them.

526) Any of the black and white episodes of The Andy Griffith Show (especially the ones with Don Knotts).

527) Real authentic Christianity with answers that don’t fit on a bumper sticker.

528) Rescuing turtles from becoming roadkill.

529) Finding money in the pockets of clothing I hadn’t worn in a while.

530) The part of that Friends episode where Monica tells Phoebe not to get the sucker mixed up with the home pregnancy test ’cause that would be really bad for the sucker.

531) Really being able to relate to a character in a movie or TV show or in a book.

532) Song lyrics that speak the language of my heart.

533) The way the evening sunlight reflected off of Radner Lake and made it sparkle.

534) All the old Miles Davis jazz albums.

535) Finding out about a new Charles Martin book.

536) A tall glass of orange juice (but not after just having brushed my teeth– blech!)

537) Finding out that friends from different parts and places in my life know each other.

538) William Powell and Myrna Loy in all those Thin Man movies.

539) That Grease is still the word.

540) The steadfast love of the Lord that never ceases.

541) The perfect blend of sweet tea and lemonade.

542) The adventure of picking out a new book to read.

543) The turnip greens from Kleer-Vu in Murfreesboro.

544) Turning actual pages of an actual book and the feel of the paper in my hands.

545) The Ella Fitzgerald and Louis Armstrong version of Porgy & Bess. It’s the best.

546) Wearing my cowboy boots to church.

547) Being cold and crawling under warm blankets.

548) When a good song gives me  the good kind of chills.

549) Random memories of my old black lab Murphy.

550) Those chairs at Costco that give the best back massages.

Imaginary Girlfriends and Other Odd Topics

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Yeah, I heard about Manti Te’o’s imaginary girlfriend. I don’t know (and I don’t care) if he was in on the hoax or not. I’m not even sure what the point was. In fact, the more I think about it, the more it makes me want to lie down and take a nap.

But if I had an imaginary girlfriend, she’d look a lot like Zooey Deschanel. Or possibly Grace Kelly (if we’re allowed to use dead celebrities). And knowing my luck, I’d fool exactly no one. But she’d be pretty.

It seems to me that there are so much more out there that’s news-worthy. Imaginary girlfriend hoaxes strike me as being tabloid fodder more than actual news stories. But then again, I am not in charge of what is considered news.

That’s why I like my television to be as unrealistic as possible. Reality is too weird. I’ll stick to aliens and vampires and zombies and alternate universes. You know, the normal stuff. I avoid reality television shows like the plague and am drawn to shows like The X-Files and Charmed and Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Revolution (I do like some current series).

There’s not really a moral lesson in all this. Well, maybe this. I have enough trouble keeping my own life in line without worrying about other people’s issues. I certainly can’t cast any stones when I see my own long list of past mistakes and stupid choices.

I’m not quick to jump on the moral superiority bandwagon and bash those who’ve lied or cheated or messed up in some way. Who knows? I might have done the same or worse in a similar predicament.

I’d better end this quickly. My imaginary (and pretty) girlfriend just texted me and wants to set up a skype session. Now, I’m thinking she looks like Selma Hayek.

PS I’ve changed my mind again for the last time. Introducing my imaginary girlfriend whom I text every night. We are so very close, in a completely virtual way.

evangeline-lilly-kate-on-lost2

A Week Full of Mondays

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I had a week full of Mondays this week. Except for Tuesday, which was Christmas Day and awesome. That goes without saying. But the rest of the week . . . not so much.

Some weeks are like that. No matter how much you try, you say the wrong things. You do the wrong things. And when you try to correct your mistakes, it just gets worse. It’s like your foot got surgically implanted into your mouth or something.

So I’m glad it will be Saturday tomorrow. I mean surely, Saturday can’t turn into ANOTHER Monday, can it?

I suppose the lesson out of all of this is that a bad week serves the purpose of making you thankful for the good weeks, if nothing else.

I can at least be thankful for that.

 

An Ode to the Last Twinkie on Earth

/ Ragamuffingospelfan / 1 Comment

If you skim the headlines, you may get the impression that the twinkie, that perfect little concoction from Hostess with no actual food ingredients, is going away forever. You might be one of those who are hoarding up on the tasty little snacks in anticipation of the demise of Hostess and the inevitable zombie apocalypse.

I myself bought two boxes.

But before you give in to despair, read a little closer. Twinkies aren’t going away. In all likelihood, some other company will buy the rights to the brand and start making their own twinkies. And they will be just as bad for you and just as loaded with preservatives and ingredients that you can’t possibly pronounce as the current incarnation. And they will be just as tasty.

If, God forbid, twinkies should cease to exist, then the unthinkable might actually happen. No, I don’t mean an invasion by zombies or a crisis of cataclysmic and global proportions. I mean you and I might just have to start eating healthy. Egads.

All Things British

/ Ragamuffingospelfan / 2 Comments

I have a confession to make. Like most people, I talk to myself. Out loud. But I take it one awesome step further. I like to talk to myself in a British accent. It kinda makes me feel smarter and more suave.

I love accents of all kinds. British, Irish, Scottish, Austrailian. . . . it doesn’t matter. I like ’em all. There’s just something about an accent that’s not American that appeals to me, probably because I don’t hear it every day.

I’m not saying I’m particularly good at accents. When I talk to myself in my British accent, it sounds like I’m from all over the country. One moment I might sound gentrified and upper-class, one moment I might sound Cockney. It just depends on what movie I’ve been watching lately.

One day, I will make it to England and Scotland and Ireland. I hope to visit some of the villages and smaller towns and take in the scenery and have bangers and mash and fish and chips and (if I’m brave enough) even haggis. But I’ll stick to my own American accent, so no one gets embarrased.

I wonder sometimes if someone from England ever walks around talking to him (or her)self with an American accent, although I can’t imagine why. What would be the fun in that?

The Art of the Blog

/ Ragamuffingospelfan / 1 Comment

I’m sitting here at my laptop (+5 cool points) wearing my brown plaid shorts (-10 cool points) and pondering the mysteries of the universe. Which means I don’t have a topic to blog about and I can’t for the life of me think of one at the moment.

This is “stream-of-consciousness” blogging, or more accurately, “making stuff up as I go and hoping something sticks.”

I realize now this is why most people don’t do the daily blog thing. It’s really hard coming up with new and fresh and relevant material day after day. Especially when the highlight of your day was spending an hour on the elliptical.

I’m just an ordinary guy who loves God and loves to write. My goal is to communicate the truth of Who this God is and Who this Jesus is and to help you in your discovery of who you are in Christ and who God made you to be.

It’s hit or miss. Some blogs work, some don’t. Some may speak to you in the depth of your soul, some may just be words on a page. That’s okay.

I really do believe that if I was the only one getting anything out of this, that would be enough. And it is theraputic and healing to get these thoughts out of my head and down into a tangible format.

I intend to keep blogging away for as long as God allows. I intend to keep telling the good news that God really is for you and He really likes and loves you and He does have a wonderful plan for your life. He is the wonderful plan for your life.

I’m not saying everything will be sunshine and roses and kittens in baskets. Life is hard and storms do come. But God is just as faithful on the dark and stormy nights as He is in the sunshiny summer days. That’s all.

Your regularly scheduled game of Farmville will now resume. Thank you and have a pleasant evening.

What’s on Your MP3 Player?

/ Ragamuffingospelfan / 1 Comment

I have a Zune MP3 player. I think they’ll be the next big thing and eventully rule the competition. Of course, people said the same thing about Beta-Max and HD-DVDs. Not to mention New Coke, which I actually liked back in the day.

I have my Zune set on random, so I get a very interesting variety of music on any given day. For example, I listed 20 songs that came up in order:

1. Heaven’s My Home- Sam & Ruby

2. Low- Coldplay

3. The World’s Not Falling Apart- Dar Williams

4. Coconuts- Widespread Panic

5. Boom Boppa Boom- Jimmy Vaughn

6. Easy to Love – Ella Fitzgerald

7. You Ain’t Going Nowhere- Bob Dylan

8. All I Can Do Is Write About It- Lynyrd Skynyrd

9. Jigsaw Falling Into Place- Radiohead

10. In God’s Country- U2

11. The Night Time Is the Right Time- Creedence Clearwater Revival

12. Only a Memory- The Smithereens

13. Stone in Love- Journey

14. Eight Days a Week- The Beatles

15. Thriller- Michael Jackson

16. Let the Mystery Be- 10,000 Maniacs

17. 10 Rocks-Shelby Lynne

18. Able- Needtobreathe

19. Better Days- Robbie Seay Band

20. Journey into the Morn- Iona

I have an eclectic mix of classic rock, oldies, Christian, and Americana music. I also have 40’s big band, easy listening, country, rap, folk, disco, pop, and a few other styles of music represented.

What are you listening to on your iPod or other MP3 of choice? If you selected random mode and hit play, what would be the first 10 songs that would come up?

Inquiring ears want to know.

20. ion

Laptop Hunting

/ Ragamuffingospelfan / 7 Comments

I’m finally entering the wonderful world of laptop computers. I admit I’m a little green when it comes to shopping for one of these gizmos. I think I may have turned green when I saw the price sticker on one of the first laptops I looked at that was super compact and super skinny and probably had a Tommy Hilfiger designer processor.

I found one I liked, although it was not on sale and the price was a bit steep for me. I think it reflects my personality and would look really good in one of those laptop bags strapped over my shoulder as I walk into a Starbucks to order my mocha latte and sit down to do some existential ponderings over wordpress.

I think I need a laptop. I think the universe is ready for me to have a laptop, ’cause the universe is getting rather tired of waiting on my super-slow desktop to load up my facebook page. Not to mention that extremely annoying hourglass that pops up and causes me to have very un-Baptist thoughts.

Ideally, I would love a Mac, but I’m not quite ready to sell one of my kidneys for technology just yet. Maybe in 5 years, not not now.

So in the meantime I am forced to type my blog on a desktop that may or may not be possesed by Linda Blair and definitely cramps my style. I could be so much cooler and popular with a laptop, not to mention more mobile and more fun at parties.

Just for the record, any typos you find are not my fault. Blame Linda Blair.