The great state of Tex-afornia

No More Sickies
I am finally feeling better. I was really worried that I would be sick for Thanksgving and miss out on all the fun.

Last night we played an old school version of Trivial Pursuit with our couples class. It was a fun game, especially when the focus turned from answering the questions right (which no one could do since the game was made in 1981) to seeing who could give the best clue. For example, one clue was: An early chevy chase movie and what all of us in our church are. My answer was Fletch Christian and they gave it to me anyway. In all it was a fun night, thanks guys.

posted by Kevin @ 10:26 AM 0 Comments

I am feeling sick today. Once again my vacation has been rudely interrupted by an illness. I was sick last thanksgiving, last Christmas, and last Easter. I had a fun week of goofing off planned and now I can't over do it because I can't afford to.

posted by Kevin @ 1:26 PM 0 Comments

Cleaning day
My wife and I got up this morning and have spent the day cleaning and doing laundry. I enjoy doing some mindless work that actually has visible results. Plus, there are some funny moments to be had between my wife and me.

On thursday we ate some venison that Matt had killed. It was quite good and I appreciate the ability to grill out in November. Much compliments to the chef (who had no real idea what he was doing). Bambi never tasted so good!

posted by Kevin @ 2:45 PM 0 Comments

Yay, some pictures are up! They are not the best pictures, but it's a start.

posted by Kevin @ 10:30 AM 0 Comments

New Comments
I have been having trouble with my comments lately so I switched to "Squawkbox" from a suggestion from my tech friend Matt.

posted by Kevin @ 9:19 AM 0 Comments

Jonah
I was reading Jonah this morning and I noticed something I hadn't seen before. Several times the Bible says that Jonah was fleeing from the "presence of the Lord". I wonder how many times we, as Christians, flee from God's presence. Yes, I know that God is everywhere and if you are Christian the Holy Spirit lives inside you so you really can't escape the presence of God. Well, maybe you can! Jonah did.

Am I fleeing from God? I sometimes feel like I am. Even though this is reading week I had made a decision to really spend some contemplative time with God this week. So, far that has not happened. Am I too focused on my school work? Am I too focused on my church work? Am I too lazy? Maybe I am just scared to find out what God may have to say to me if I do listen. Jonah was scared and wanted nothing to do with what God had to say to him. Could I be that way too? Am I scared to hear that I haven't been takin God seriously lately? Am I scared to find the deceitfulness in my own heart? Am I scared to realize that I am a child of the almighty creator? Am I scared to find out what that would require of me? I'll never know unless I stop to listen...

posted by Kevin @ 11:50 AM 0 Comments

This weekend
I have two weeks off from school so today I am officially on vacation. I really want to get a lot of work done these two weeks, but so far I am not doing a great job (that is why I am on the computer right now instead of reading).

Yesterday my wife and actually got to go to our main church service together. It's been about three months or more since we have been able to do so. There are few things I enjoy better than to be able to sing praises to God alongside my wife. Whether I stand next to her, hold her hand or when she puts her hand on my shoulder, there is something about worshipping with her that makes God feel so much more there. Maybe it's because she manifests God's presence in my life. Maybe it's the connection we have. Whatever the reason, it is a holy, joyful thing!

We also had a middle school sleepover on Saturday night. It was a really great time. I see our students coming together and becoming comfortable with each other. In the past this has been the turning point in a small group. That is when I start to see some things happen spiritually. I look forward to seeing what the future holds for these guys. I can see that they have the potential for being great men of God.

Lord, Jesus
I pray that you would grab ahold of the hearts of these young men. Lead them and capture their lives. Amen.

posted by Kevin @ 11:27 AM 0 Comments

I realized that there is an inactive link for the church sign site.
Here it is.

posted by Kevin @ 11:18 PM 0 Comments

Funny Church Signs

We have several churches around here that say the funniest (and sickest) signs you'll ever see. One of them was, "Most people want Burger King church, 'Have it your way'. We are Wendy's church 'Old Fashioned Hot and Juicy'.

I came across this site that lets you make funny church signs on your own computer.
Make some really funny signs.

posted by Kevin @ 10:12 AM 0 Comments

Another Video Made

I made yet another video this week. I find that I enjoy putting creativity into something that I can see the results fairly quickly. In ministry you don't get immediate results that often (especially working with middle schoolers).

I have been renewed in my passion for students as of late. I am enjoying the time on campuses I have been spending. I also have been paired up with a really great co-leader for our small group. He is a lot older than I am and he is awesome at connecting with our group. At first I was a little jealous because he was doing so well, but I realized that my pride is not healthy. God is using him and I should be excited that we have leaders who have the vision to connect with and love our students. I also need to see him as an example as someone who I can learn from.

posted by Kevin @ 10:03 AM 0 Comments

It was a good weekend. Last night my wife made the best chili! I love anything you can smother with cheese!

While teaching our young adults class yesterday I was reminded of my selfishness. Someone was sharing a personal story about God using that person despite their spiritual gifts and I kept fumbling through my notes and checking my watch. Wow, what a caring teacher I am! If you can't guess I am being sarcastic. Another time someone kinda highjacked the lesson for a while. Once again I felt threatened.

It just makes me realize that sometimes my agenda isn't God's agenda. I need to be sensitive to the needs of the people I am teaching and sensitive to the Spirit.

posted by Kevin @ 9:49 AM 0 Comments

Matrix:Revolutions
Well, my worst fears were realized for this movie. I won't spoil it, but there were a lot of unanswered questions left from the movie. I did love the movie. I loved the fight scenes. I recommend this movie highly.

Also last night on Conan O'Brien had a clip with triumph the insult comic dog that was hilarious. It was definitely needed to laugh heartily after thinking so hard through the Matrix.

posted by Kevin @ 9:47 AM 0 Comments

A big congrats to redminister. There's a baby on the way!

I am looking forward to Matrix:Revolutions. We're seeing it tomorrow night. I worry that there is going to be too many loose ends left at the end of the movie. There are a ton of philisophical references in this series and it got more jumbled in the second movie. Maybe that was because they knew there would be a third. I guess I am going to be a little peeved if there are a lot of questions yet to be answered at the end.

posted by Kevin @ 9:47 AM 0 Comments

Congrats to Matt for bagging his first deer. I am sure we will enjoy the spoils!

Last night there was supposed to be a special on the DaVinci code, which supposedly tells about Jesus' marriage to Mary Magdalene. It tells of how he started a church that became the Celtic church. Alas, the special wasn't shown so we could watch a roast of the local sportscaster. I think it will be shown on Sunday.

posted by Kevin @ 7:35 AM 0 Comments

This weekend was a fun one. We went to a Halloween party. I dressed up as an attck dog trainer (complete with dangling stuffed dogs). My wife was an incarcerated Martha Stewert. In all a fun weekend.

That's about it.

posted by Kevin @ 2:32 PM 0 Comments