I read the blog post of a friend (Chris Marshall) And wanted to post the same kind of memory and understanding of this day. So, here is his blog post with my own names entered:
On this day the Celts believed the veil between this world and the next was so thin that it was almost permeable. It was thought to be a day of transition, from summer to winter, where the dead from the year previous would passover to the eternal realm. I do not worship my ancestors and friends who have gone before me, but I do honor them.
So today I honor the lives that touched mine but have moved on either to the realm where God is or are asleep awaiting the final Resurrection (depending on your theology). These are the people that led me in my faith.
Rest and Reign well my beloved:
-Jay
-Nanaw
-Grandad
-Grannie
-Grandad
Hebrews 12 (The Message)
Do you see what this means—all these pioneers who blazed the way, all these veterans cheering us on? It means we’d better get on with it. Strip down, start running—and never quit! No extra spiritual fat, no parasitic sins. Keep your eyes on Jesus, who both began and finished this race we’re in. Study how he did it. Because he never lost sight of where he was headed—that exhilarating finish in and with God—he could put up with anything along the way: Cross, shame, whatever. And now he’s there, in the place of honor, right alongside God. When you find yourselves flagging in your faith, go over that story again, item by item, that long litany of hostility he plowed through. That will shoot adrenaline into your souls!
Have a happy hallows!
Oh and pumpkin pictures from this years Geek Halloween Pumpkins are below:
Daylight version
lit up on the porch, with the candy bowl lighted from under the candy…looked very cool.
OK, here is the video of my presentation in Central TX Conference called YASummit.com the presentation ws called: Creating Community From Nothing! Enjoy:
This past weekend Gary (My Sr. Pastor) and I went to a Young Adult Summit where we presented and spoke about Th3 Waters and Young Adults. I thought I would put up the Power Point Presentation.
Well, 1st up my 2nd hernia surgery went just fine and I am healing up good. I still can not lift anything over 10 lbs (i know I know, how will I be able to go to the bathroom? ha ha ha) for around a month, but other than that the pain only shows up if I twist a wrong way or bend over too far and I feel it, but I am not taking any pain meds, so I think I am in good shape as long as I listen to Tiffany and not lift anything over 10lbs.
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OK, on to the main topic I wanted tolet everyone know about. I have teamed up with a local internet start-up called photrade here in Cincy, that allows me to upload my photos, keep them safe (by putting a copyright watermark on them), and they even seel my photos for me!!! any photo that is a part of my photos on the site is available to purchase. And, you can buy just the photos (at practically ANY size!) but you can buy the photo to be on mugs, hats, shirts, etc… even to buy an electronic version of it, as well. Anyway, I just wanted to make evryone aware of the fact that now you can view the photos at very large sizes on my Flickr page as always, but now you can also purchase them for yourself, friends, or family! I just wanted to make everyone aware of the possibility. oh and the website shares the ad revenue from the site, so if your viewing my photo nd then click on the ads, I might get to see a few pennies from your clicking. anyway here is the link to my Photrade site:
Thanks and have a wonderful day! oh and I guess if you want to see a few of my latest photos. Tiffany and I just got back from our 10 year wedding anniversary and we went to Pipestem State Park Resort in West Viginia. I fo course took photos and so, here you go:
Yep there it is. on my right forearm. I know that several people love it and several people hate that I got a tattoo, but I just wanted to share why I did and the reason for where I did. So,
1. The tattoo is of a window in a church that my brother and his wife attend before he passed away. My brother told me he felt called into ministry at his annual conference, and right before he could get started on track to actually be a minister in the UMC he came down with cancer. So, I felt this was a wonderful reminder for me of how much I loved Jay, how much he loved me, and to allow him to be with me as I follow Christ in the ministry.
2. The window its self is a Trinity Window. It represents the Trinity (Father, son, and Holy Spirit) I have always been a huge Trinity kind of guy, and love the understanding of relationship, and mystery found in the understanding of the Trinity! So, this Tattoo represents God in all the forms that God has chosen to reveal himself to his creation.
3. The Tattoo is on my right arm. In the Old and New Testaments, the right hand has always had the imagery of someone’s actions the “doing” of someone. (hence Christ sits at the right hand of God the Father because he was the ultimate actions of God) And we are to keep the ways of God on our right hands and on our foreheads) to remember that our being/thoughts and actions are to be those of God’s in the world. I desire to be the hands and feet of God in all that I do, so every time I look down an see this tattoo I pray that it reminds me to attempt to live out this passionate desire in my life and in the lives of those around me. I actualy wanted the tattoo to be on my hand, but Craig would not do it because we use our hands so much that it would eventualy just fade away and i would have to get the same tattoo over and over again.
4. When I went to Guatemala on the mission trip one of the things I noticed when we were doing prison ministry to the gang members, was their respect and immediate connection to anyone in our group that had a tattoo. I did not think about this until afterwards, but I also pray that through this Tattoo I may be able to develope relationships with others that I might not have normally been able to by finding some common ground of a Tattoo and possibly being able to have a chance to exaplain the meaning and purpose behind my tattoo and maybe have the honor of finding out about the same meaning and purpose behind thier tattoos.
Well, I am blown away by the responses I am getting from the Tattoo, and surprised that my Father and Mother got over the shock fast. (only 2 small moments of awquard silence over the phone. ha ha ha ha) I am sure that many others will be shocked, and mad over time, but all the more reason to be able to develop relationships and get to love others. If anyone is interested I got my Tatto from a good friend that I went with to Guatemala named Craig. (In Guatemala he was doing tattoo cover ups for gang membersthat wanted out of the gangs and covered up their gang tattoos with Christian art…amazing) Anyway Craig owns two Tattoo shops here in northern KY called:
Well I decided to turn off the twitter updates because there are a few of you that actually come here to not stalk me! ha ha So, as soon as i am feeling better from my surgery i will post about my tattoo and my surgery. until then, blessings on you all!!!!
I was sitting down thinking about a few things I would like to get done in and around my life so I decided I would like to share them if yall:
1) Start a garden in my back yard
2) Build a compost bin for my garden
3) (play around with the fish in a barrel idea (here is a website talking about it ) very cool. And the implications for this is huge especially for places like Guatemala for sustainable good quality protien! )
4) Knock out this wall in my house ( link to the picture ) For some reason lots of friends would love to help knock it down, heh.
5) After the wall is down and the floor fixed I would love to put in a island in the kitchen
6) then a stained glass window above the front door. ( link to picture ) Nothing fancy, just clear and beautiful
7) Save up enough money to take Tiffany on an anniversay that she deserves to celebrate our 10 years of marriage in Aug.
Start an OG with the people in my neighborhood!
9) Get the air conditioner fixed in my Car
10) Register Tiffany’s car with the county! We have been the owners for close to a month, if she gets pulled over then it will not be a good day.
10.1) I want to hurry up and get my second hurnia surgery done!
Well, for those of you who don’t know I am doing three podcasts now, and loving every single one of them, but one in particular is causing me to do more research and getting to know my bible much better. the podcast is called, “Generally Speaking About The Church” and on the podcast I co-host the show with a new friend Cliff and we speak generally about our faith and Christianity. We join discussions live with people on the chat and the same with emails and voice mails. Well, a lot of the topics we have talked about lately are a few contriversial issues and one that we talked about is this text found in the Bible:
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2 Cor. 5:21-33
21Submit to one another out of reverence for Christ.
Wives and Husbands
22Wives, submit to your husbands as to the Lord. 23For the husband is the head of the wife as Christ is the head of the church, his body, of which he is the Savior. 24Now as the church submits to Christ, so also wives should submit to their husbands in everything.
25Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her 26to make her holy, cleansing[b] her by the washing with water through the word, 27and to present her to himself as a radiant church, without stain or wrinkle or any other blemish, but holy and blameless. 28In this same way, husbands ought to love their wives as their own bodies. He who loves his wife loves himself. 29After all, no one ever hated his own body, but he feeds and cares for it, just as Christ does the church— 30for we are members of his body. 31″For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and the two will become one flesh.”[c] 32This is a profound mystery—but I am talking about Christ and the church. 33However, each one of you also must love his wife as he loves himself, and the wife must respect her husband.
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And the more and more I got into the discussion the more and more I realized that I had not really crittically done any exgetical work on this passage, so I sat down and started the process… and here are the top ten thoughts I gleened out of the passge through study and prayer:
The way I see it:
1) this is only for husband and wife, not male and female roles.
2) Christ is the example that qualifies “headship”, and “submission”.
3) this must be read with the first century culture in mind.
4) the submission of the wife to the husband is within the wider submission of everyone to each other in 21.
5) the motive for submission of the wife is within the context of the wife’s relation to the Lord.
6) this submission is regulated by the divine pattern of Christ’s relationship to the church.
7) so, the husband’s authority is regulated by Christ’s example and the principle of love.
NO human or fallible husband could ever live up to the quality of love and sacrifice (and love in the past tense in my mind refers back to an event I.e. the cross ) that Christ has for the church, but even at a much lower level this is the quality or concern, love and sacrifice a husband must have for his wife!
9) the Agape love spoken of is one that is completely selfless in its nature and therefore does not give any right of the husband to hold any hint of selfish authority over his wife, it means she (his wife) must be above any of his own interests, pleasures, and personality for the benefit of his wife.
10) I believe there is many more verses found in the bible especially the New Testament that speak of mutual submission to each other than of husbands and wives. (just like in 21, that this is a value and expression for all believers to each other, and that wives to husbands is within that larger context. So, I choose to emphasize verse 21 of mutual submission to one another over that of husband “over” wife.
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So, what do yall think? I have a few more of these that I will put here as well, like “The Christian response to war”, and “the use of the American flag in worship”. those will come if yall want to read them, but chew on this one for a while and let me know what yall think. Thanks! and blessing on ya!
OK, I was reading the blog of a friend and he got punked by Larknews.com . 1st off I must say that the first time I went there I got punked as well, but man is it worth it! The reason? Well, Christians love to take their news and all of the things they read so serious. I just got through preaching a sermon all about laughter and humor, and happiness, and yes, the one that goes beyond them all joy. But, it just cracks me up!
For those of you who do not know it Lark News is a Christian version of The Onion. And they, like The Onion, do a great job! I wish Lark News had a podcast like The Onion, I would love it.
So, I went over to the site to check it out and I never really played around with it before, and I must say the past few mins. have been a blast.. so here are a few things for you to do…. and most of the jokes Christians will get, but they are for everyone Christian or normal people.. so have fun:
2. Click on horoscope (btw, Christians do not beleive in the horoscope, and that is what makes this funny) keep clicking and read the comments the site gives you.
3. Then have some more fun by clicking on Chinese, or Bald Men up at the menu bar of the site.or the “hearing impaired and check out the change of the logo…or “visually impaired”
4. Now go into any story rerad it and laugh, then go to the top of the story and clcik on “reading impared” . (enjoy)
5. Now go back to the main page click on the same story artilce and click on the “For Eunuchs” notice a difference from #4? (oh man that is funny!)
6. Click on the FAQ… man that is one of the best FAQ’s I have EVER read!!!! EVER!
I am sure there is more stuff, but I thought I would share that little bit of laughter for your day today! Have a great one!
<–click picture for the link
Start an OG with the people in my neighborhood!
