robb blackaby

East Tennessee Boy

2008-10-12T22:30:00.009-04:00

If you have followed my blog for a few years, awhile back I posted about where my home country is. Yesterday Kim and I took a little trip up to the Cherokee National Forest and it reminded me again that I am an east Tennessee boy. We loved our time in the middle of the state and Nashville was great, but the topography and culture of the southeast of the state is a place I love. It was a beautiful drive on a gorgeous day. We first went up by Parksville Lake and up on Chilhowee Mountain (a friend from Alaska once told me that what we have here are not really mountains, but thats ok). The play of the cloud's shadow across the valley below was awesome, and we watched the shadows move across as we ate lunch at an overlook. After lunch we headed off the mountain and up highway 30, turning north from the lake. though there was not as much color as other years due to the dry season, it was still a great drive. The overhanging foilage along the roadway was lovely. When we lived here before we were often in the National Forest, and this was not our first foray since we have been back. But each week something seems to confirm that we are in the right place in this season of our lives. Things like passing over the Tennessee River towards evening, hanging out with family and friends, Jordan's Barbecue, and a whole host of other stuff point to how this is home. Home is not a place you stay forever, but it a wonderful place to be right now.

TN state mtg

2008-10-07T21:26:00.003-04:00

I was blessed to be able to attend the state minister's meeting today. John Wesley said it was a holy time when the ministers meet in conference, and I was reminded of that today. It was a good day of fellowship and administration. certainly business is done in these meetings, but I enjoyed much more the opportunity to talk with friends and fellow ministers.

To no longer be a pastor, it was an oddly affirming day. I feel at the end of the day more convinced that my family and I are where we are meant to be in this season of our lives. I honor and respect my fellow ministers who are in the pastorate currently and was happy to be able to be with some them today.

The Word of Reconcilation

2008-09-29T10:38:00.008-04:00

I have been thinking about the word/concept of reconciliation of late. Really it is more like I have been bombarded with it than contemplating it, seeing its evolution in others as well as in my own relationships. One of my mentors long ago when we were faced with a crisis where brothers and sisters were on both sides of the debate asked whether we would be a community of faith or a community of truth. The tension between these poles can be quite taunt at times, and that tension sometimes causes things to snap.

Another mentor once told me its all about relationships. It is all about relationships. This is what holiness is. But so often holiness gets plugged into an equation something like this - right with God= right doctrine, without any regard to "right with Brothers/sisters." The world is populated with right people who are living lonely existences. The world is also populated with people who don't have all the right answers and maybe even some wrong ones who are living in solidarity with God precisely because they are in solidarity with those whom they commune with.

Don't get me wrong- right doctrine is very important. We must know what we believe. Yet one thing I read early this week is that Jesus did not have theology of healing; rather he healed people. As important it is to think things through and to work out our salvation with fear and trembling (intellectually) we must also work out our salvation in other ways, in ways that reflect a catholic spirit as Wesley encouraged. We may not all think alike, but we can love alike is how he once put it, or something to that effect. How often we isolate ourselves from Brothers and Sisters who have gifts to give to us all because we do not think alike. R. G. Spurling was also concerned about how doctrine built walls between spiritual brothers and sisters. The lost link in the church was Christ's law of love. Since Nicea, according to Spurling, the church has become more and more concerned about right and wrong, who's in and out, then about showing love one to another. The Law of Love established by Christ had been supplanted with creeds and doctrines of men. I am a strong believer in doctrine, but it is hard to argue with the divisive nature the church has taken on in our day.

Prophesy Preaching; really, preaching the prophets

2008-05-26T00:50:00.005-04:00

Really sucked you in with that title, eh? Anyway, something I have been thinking about for a week is how my context uses the prophetic texts in sermons. The Prophets are rich and expansive in what they tell us both about God's character and the human heart. What we often hear are those beautiful passages of God's restoring actions and His ability/desire to heal, redeem, and bless. These passages use powerful metaphors and strong language to speak of God's love and power to bring his people back to a good land, a state of blessing, a state of unswerving fidelity to Him.

What is not so often touched on in is what precipitated the need for restoration as pointed to in the Prophets. The reason Nebuchadnezzar is at the gate is rarely the makings of a popular sermon. But the reason exiles were longing for home, and the reasons old men stood and wept at the foundations of the second temple in Jerusalem, remembering the splendor of Solomons', is that the judgement came and was not abated by confession and repentance on the part of the King or his people.

So often, the chapter before restoration, if one turns the page to the left from these golden texts of God's tender mercies, reveals the anger of a spurned husband. The Prophets spoke against the sin of the nation, of the corporate reality of their turning away from God. The Prophet not only addressed the King but also his subjects in their infidelity to God, their mistreatment of the oppressed and the stranger, as well as their disregard for the poorest among them. Judgement comes to the disobedient, but judgement comes to bring repentance, renewal of relationship. All judgement that precede the final one are for the purpose of restoring God's people to right relationship. This is one thing the Prophets tell us.

I love the prophetic texts, and the hope they bring. I am depending on the words of the prophets even now. But the prophets not only give us something to shout about, but also to weep about. There must be discernment in recognizing the voice of the prophets, discernment in rightly dividing their words of truth. We must hear all their words, and take up the Burden of the Lord they have delivered.

convalescence

2008-03-26T09:20:00.002-04:00

Since Sunday I have been waylayed by stomach flu. It started Easter afternoon. Sunday night was rough, and I don't remember much of Monday at all, but have been on the mend since yesterday. I can't be on my feet yet fro any length of time without getting woozy again, but while laying around have been able to enjoy a few things.

I am continuing to read 1421 and am continuing to enjoy it. I have also been watching at near marathon rate How Its Made, a show on Discovery Channel that does explain how relatively ordinary things are made. Highlights from over the past two days are guitar amps, banjos, incandescent bulbs. It has been pretty interesting distraction as await the return of my appetite and the ability to keep things down.

Spring has sprung

2008-03-22T11:37:00.004-04:00

On one of the few Saturdays I have to sit on the couch and read/hang out, I am sitting here with my wife, baby, and mom, who has come up to be with us on Easter. Thursday was the first day of Spring, and I am excited. Yesterday was beautiful here in Nashville, and I am happy to have winter behind us. I look forward to many days at the park, now that AC and Kim can join me and the dogs on walks.

Another nice thing about this Saturday in particular is the book I have to curl up with on the couch. 1421: The Year China Discovered America by Gavin Menzies (not a theologian, Pentecostal or otherwise) is about how the 3rd emperor of the Ming Dynasty sought to have the whole world pay him tribute, so he built the biggest armada ever seen (unduplicated till WWII) and sent them out to chart all unknown waters and explore all unknown lands. It is fascinating, and though I know there are detractors to Menzies theories (he would not call them such) it has been a delightful read.

My current trend of reading history started with Galileo's Daughter: A Memoir of Science, Faith, and love, by Dava Sobel. It is a biography of Galileo as seen through the correspondence he carried on with his elder Daughter, a nun. It was an excellent read as well, a well researched study of the man, a realistic appraisal of his many achievements, and how his times both enouraged and hindered his talents. To hear his story from his daughters' perspective if pretty fascinating. Inspired by this book I am now combing McKays for a bio of Copernicus.

If you have any interest at all in history, these are some great reads. They are certainly written for general audiences, but are well put together and deal with subjects directly connected with how we see the world, or worlds as it were.

Peace.

Promises, Promises.

2008-03-16T09:22:00.006-04:00

The snowball of events that have happened in my life that are bloggable are so daunting I don't know how to start again. I have a baby girl, Anna Claire, who is much more colorful than this pic. Figuring out how to navigate this new life of baby and the other responsibilities in my life have caused me to lay blogging down for a bit. At this point, I am not going to say "I will do better," but I am going to make an attempt, or maybe several. So I am not making any promises, but there are too many good discussions out there to allow to pass by. If you are more interested in AC's pic than my musings, click here. She is cuter. Peace.

A Few Thoughts

2008-01-05T23:11:00.000-05:00

We are going Monday to the Hospital for Kim to be induced into labor. Anna Claire will be joining us soon after. My wife has been such a wonder through all this, handling every stage of this process so well. We are so excited even while we are nervous about Monday. There is so much joy and anticapation in all this but at this moment and on several others through this Saturday of preparation my thoughts have turned to my Dad who is not here to experience this with us. I have wondered what he would have thought of all these goings on.

All is quiet on New Years Day

2008-01-01T19:50:00.000-05:00

This post will not be fraught with the lyrical references of my last post. It has been one of the best holiday seasons I have had in a long time. The season started with a brief visit from our friends the McMullins. They were on their way to rendezvous with their family. It was a great time for talking and hanging out.Our church party went well and was a lot of fun. We had a good attendance. The next evening we held a candlelight service at the church. For many of us it was a first and was a great success. It was a good time of prayer and reflection. I am hoping the success of this service will lead to more opportunities for creative times together for my church. That night my mother and sister arrived from Cleveland TN and the next day my brothers came up. It was the first time we had all been together for a few years it and our time together was wonderful. Everyone had a good time and we got to enjoy one another's company. I received some great gifts but the fact that my whole family came up to be with us at this time when Kim is so close to giving birth to our daughter was so special.

A (not so) long December

2007-12-15T22:21:00.000-05:00

As many of you know, I am a pastor of a small church here in Nashville. The physical structures of the church and parsonage are older, and as with most old things are in need of some maintenance . The only problem is that many issues are not revealed (literally) until the damage is done. One does not think to inspect the floor until it caves in; roofs are not known to need replacing/repair until the decking drops to the ground. So it seems we are always behind in keeping up with the necessities of maintaining our church (though I must say this has afforded me a wealth of knowledge on DIY issues).

I have also in the last year or so started at least dozen books, and tonight at the time of this writings there are more than a dozen books sitting somewhere in my house with a bookmark (napkin, index card,restaurant receipt, etc.) placed somewhere in the first three chapters or so. I rarely read all of what I want to read out of magazines these days.Pod casts are about the only media I finish with any regularity (I did not find my ipod, but bought a new one).

My life feels a bit this way as well. I take the time to deal with one issue and the resolving of it can not be celebrated due to the three other things pressing in on my time and faculties. Thus very few things receive the attention they deserve. This leads to a small degree of paranoia, when one is always anticipating the other shoe to drop on a maintenance issue too far down the list.

All of these things are occurring while the entire world (my entire world) is spinning head long toward that date of only God's knowing when my baby girl will arrive. But really she is right here beside me even now in my wife's womb. She is even now a source of hope, even as her mother is a source of strength and encouragement.

Around the new year I wrote about Keith Green and wanting to be a better person. I am not sure I have attained such a lofty goal. This December has not been so long, and I am not sure if there is reason to believe that this year will be better than the last. But I have some problems with reason anyway. I don't think I have a reasonable faith. I am not sure what one is, or if you can really put those two words togethersencically anyway. Speaking of sense, I am not sure I am making any at the moment. I have felt a compulsion to blog, or write, or whatever for several days without knowing what to say, or if I have anything to say, and here is the fruit of that compulsion.

I do want to hang on to these moments as they passs.

My Father

2007-11-04T07:51:00.000-05:00

Yesterday, November 3rd, was the 3rd anniversary of my father's passing. I spent the day remembering him in conscious nd unconscious ways, upon further reflection.

I began the day working at the church, replacing parts to a commode. Many times I can think of hanging out with Dad as he did minor repairs to a church building. Kim and I went to a funeral in the afternoon of one whose family is associated with our church. The afternoon following was spent reading and listening to one of my father's sermons. the evening was dedicated to football, being a fall Saturday, and many a Saturday have I spent watching either the Crimson Tide or the 'Cats football games with my Dad. I am proud to be my Fathers' son.

I had not thought of how well my Father preached in a long time. The audio I heard was from 1977, the monday service of a revival in Middleton (Ohio I think). I was struck at how communal the event was, and in what ways my Dad attempted to enter into the life of the community. In his opening remarks, he referred to 3 people who were seeking the baptism of the Holy Ghost, how he had prayed with them and was believing they would recieve in this revival. He named names. I was surprised at how open it was, that it wasn't shameful to not have recieved, but now everyone shares the burden of ministering to/with these 3 women who were seeking. My father also talked of a husband who was not attending church as under conviction, though this was his interpretation of a request. Conviction is a word not often heard today either, and it was refreshing to hear.

I had not planned to listen to this sermon, but I am glad I stumbled upon it. Because no matter what else he might have done, repairing churches, attending to the families of his cn=ongregation, or even being a football fan, My Dad was a great preacher.

Whiskey Falls

2007-10-08T18:02:00.000-04:00

My new favorite country band. The guy on the far left is sorta but not really my cousin. This is a bad recording, so you should go out and get their new cd.

Action Hero!

2007-09-30T22:10:00.000-04:00

You scored as Maximus, After his family was murdered by the evil emperor Commodus, the great Roman general Maximus went into hiding to avoid Commodus's assassins. He became a gladiator, hoping to dominate the colosseum in order to one day get the chance of killing Commodus. Maximus is valiant, courageous, and dedicated. He wants nothing more than the chance to avenge his family, but his temper often gets the better of him.

Maximus

67%

Neo, the "One"

63%

Indiana Jones

54%

The Amazing Spider-Man

46%

El Zorro

46%

Batman, the Dark Knight

46%

Lara Croft

42%

William Wallace

42%

James Bond, Agent 007

38%

Captain Jack Sparrow

33%

The Terminator

29%

created with QuizFarm.com

Not overly thrilled with the Maximus thing, but its ok.

I saw an army tank on the Interstate today

2007-07-29T14:34:00.000-04:00

Really it was a couple of days ago. But I really did see it. It was on a tractor-trailer. I was on the entrance ramp getting on the interstate, trying to think of all the stuff I needed to do that day, but when I saw the tank all I thought was whenI was a kid, my Dad would have sped up so I could see that. And I thought, I will too here in a few years. It was a pretty far out thought.

Then I started thinking about how I grew up loving military stuff, guns and tanks and planes. I still watch all kind of history channel stuff on them. I had as many books on firearms and military tactics as I had G.I. Joes. If I wasn't playing with army men, I was reading about them.

So the sight of the tank on the interstate prompted all the impending fatherhood thoughts. How will I, now commited to peacemaking as the way of Jesus, raise my child with regards to all? I am not sure what all that means. It is a whole new world.

The Police and Other Arresting Developments

2007-07-23T18:49:00.000-04:00

So, as many of you may already know, Kim and I saw the police while on vacation in Louisville. Ever since we had driven through Louisville on our way to the Assembly last year we thought it would be a nice town to hang out in. So we picked a date solely because it was the last open weekend for us before Kim started back to school. We were planning a very low-key type of vacation, with only a few things on the agenda. We spent a night in Lexington, Ky and had a great time. We spent the morning at the Kentucky Horse Park (where the Man'O'War statue is) and then headed on down to Louisville (technically up to). We enjoyed the evening there and the next morning we sat around trying to figure out what to do for the day. So we googled some museums and then thought to go check out Churchill Downs. They were actually closed as far as horses go but another event was scheduled for that night.

I didn't even know the reunion tour went to Louisville, let alone that it was that evening!. I also was astonished that tickets were still available. So we got some tickets, and saw the Police in concert. It was incredible. As much as I have been a Sting fan, and as good as he was that evening, Andy Summers was the highlight of the night. His playing was awesome, really special. The whole band played tight, and it was a great night of music. It really was great.

The night before the concert, before we knew that the police were in town, or that a race course was being converted for a concert, we arrived in Louisville in the early afternoon. We checked into our hotel and figured to visit some landmarks of my personal history. My family lived in Louisville from 1985-91, or somewhere around there. So I took Kim to show her the church Dad pastored, the house we lived in, and the schools I attended. I had not been back to Louisville in over 15 years. It was a hard time in our family's history, and something we might have talked about in fht family, but not too often.

I had not thought about the affect this little tour would have on me. I had assumed half the buildings of my past in Louisville would simply not be there now. Theay all were. The church was still there. The high school I had attended was still there, though it has been converted into apartments. It is hard to put into words how this evening felt. It still is. I had faced this part of my past in a long time, and it was a hard evening. But it was a good evening too.

Life in quadrants

2007-07-21T22:57:00.000-04:00

I have often found it interesting that the apparatus founded to ensure our countries security is now the main artery of the morning commute. This thought has struck me as funny for a long time.

I have been thinking for awhile about something else. Really ever since our vacation (more on that later). For all of my adult life I have lived in proximity to I-75. When I lived in Rossville, GA., I traveled to the mall, to movies, to guitar shops, and downtown to hear music on I-75. When I went to college, travelling up I-75 to get there, I went the opposite direction (south), but still I-75 got me everywhere I needed to go (that wasn't in Cleveland). When I moved to Knoxville several years later, it was 75 that got me there as well, and to do many things in Knoxville you had to go via I-75. It is a beautiful stretch of interstate that many of you are familiar with, that stretch that runs between Knoxville and Cleveland, and I love it. I love coming up on the Tennessee River around dusk or heading south and see the three radio tower lights at night. Or coming south out of Kentucky and all the mountains around Jellico North of Knoxville.

It is odd to be on a different quadrant now. I was contemplating this while driving north on I-65 the other week on vacation. I haven't been on 75 in months, and though I was on 65 at the time 0f contemplation, I am really an I-40 kinda guy nowadays. All thing I do involve 40, while occasionally I will access 65 for various things. To go have lunch with my wife on the rare day off, to go to the mall, movies, to libraries or downtown, it's all the even number East-West spectrum, no longer the odd numbers of north and south. I am not sure how to feel about that, but it does make me feel weird, odd even. It is a completely new way of thinking really.

I think its apart of change, a part of mathematical (or logical) familiarity. I had become comfortable with the axis of my journey being the north-south polarity, the identity of East Tennessee. I could order all things of my life around it. As many say that something is "west of the Mississippi," I understood or made sense of my world by its position with respect to 75. Though I no longer consider myself new to Nashville, and love it here, I have not yet gained a similar sense of polarity.

I've had caffeine

2007-05-26T22:27:00.000-04:00

This has been an interesting day. I began it around 5 o'clock going to pick up the food for the Angel Food Network, which was a blast because the other churches that pick up at that sight sent some fun people. We joked around as much as we packed food. The next phase of the morning was spent distributing that food to those who ordered it. It was a slow afternoon, just hanging out at the house, but dinner was fun. The gentleman who invited me to temple invited me out to dinner with he and his wife when he found out Kim was out of town, and it was a delightful evening of conversation. And surprisingly enough, they inquired about and offered advice about the church.

It has been a good day.

He, my Savior, makes me whole

2007-04-30T15:51:00.000-04:00

Jesus! what a Friend for sinners!
Jesus! Lover of my soul;
Friends may fail me, foes assail me,
He, my Savior, makes me whole.

Hallelujah! what a Savior!
Hallelujah! what a Friend!
Saving, helping, keeping, loving,
He is with me to the end.

Jesus! what a Strength in weakness!
Let me hide myself in Him.
Tempted, tried, and sometimes failing,
He, my Strength, my victory wins.

Jesus! what a Help in sorrow!
While the billows over me roll,
Even when my heart is breaking,
He, my Comfort, helps my soul.

Jesus! what a Guide and Keeper!
While the tempest still is high,
Storms about me, night overtakes me,
He, my Pilot, hears my cry.

The Temple

2007-04-29T08:49:00.000-04:00

There is one fellow at Lowe's I am becoming particular friends with. He trained me, and being older than I has taken on some paternal tendencies toward me. Really cool, real funny. He is from Boston, he and his wife having moved down to be near the grandkids. He is Jewish, so he chides me about the historical blunders and shames of Christianity: one day can involve a discussion of the crusades as well as that trial of the preacher's wife who killed her husband.

He grew up conservative orthodox, but attends a reformed temple here in Nashville. He invited Kim and I awhile back, and Friday was the first opportunity for us to attend. Kim had grown up going to Messianic Jewish Temples, but this was a totally new experience for me. We met his wife, daughter, son-in-law and grandkids and proceeded in. It was a beautiful building, large and ornate. Little did we know it was blue jean night, and were a bit dressed up, but so many were there from work that we were not a bit out of place. There was much chanting, the majority of which was in Hebrew. It was beautiful, not only in sound but in thought (the translation as well as a transliteration following the Hebrew text). It was very edifying. It was amazing to hear all the discussion of holiness and justice and righteousness and peace!

This was a special shabbat, for they were blessing confirmations grads as well as those moving on from post-con classes. Evidently, after confirming, you can continue your Jewish studies two more years voluntarily. Thus the focus of the service was on these young men and women who had remained in the classes and were about to head of to college. I was struck by how committed these were their heritage, and to their faith. They were all presented with shofars, hence the pic. It was inspiring, and also troubling. I have not witnessed this kind of devotion very often in the communities of faith I have been apart of. Certainly from adults, but not from eighteen year olds. There are exceptions of course, and most youth groups do have a core that hold tight with one another.

I think what I am getting at on a broader scale is the strong sense of community that I (we, Kim was with me) felt there. There was a strong connection fostered there, even though Lew, my friend, had only moved down seven years ago, and said he didn't know anyone. One of the things that might have spurred this on was the way the building itself functioned as much as a community center/school/resource center/ advising office. The didn't have a karate night, rather there were activities constantly going on that reinforced who they were as a community, and bolstered their identity and faith.

This was a lesson I will ponder for some time. I am excited about the current trending in Christianity of reflecting upon the Hebrew roots of our faith, and reaping the lessons that can be learned there. I hope it is a bountiful harvest.

the new preaching tape

2007-04-21T11:33:00.000-04:00

I have hundreds of preaching tapes collected over the years. I have worn out the tape deck of every car I have ever owned listening to them. My collection includes all kind of preachers, including many from my Dad. I have recieved contributions from all over, and refused no preacher. I see it as a historic deposit. I even have an ongoing process of digitizing many of them.
But the truth is between wearing out all tape decks in my possession and my schedule involving less traveling (the timespan of listening to a whole sermon) I have not listened to many in quite a while. But the beauty of technology steps in.

Kim and I got ipods about 6 months or so ago, and we listened to music for months. I had some knowledge and experience with podcasts but had not gotten into them. But recently, I have shopped for podcasts of notable churches/preachers and it has been a very enriching devotional experience. Walking the dogs, driving around town, or working in the yard have taken on a new significance, and has provided an great stage for taking in new ideas.

I have some concern about doing so much multitasking and not devoting time to the single purpose of spiritual growth as should be given. I am not sure what the didgital age means for spiritual disciplines such as solitude (as per Barth), and I hope I am not savving my guilt at not giving enough time to such by listening to podcasts while engaged in other business. But I have been greatly blessed as well as challenged by the experience so far, and am thankful for it.

The Oddest Thing

2007-03-29T12:26:00.000-04:00

The oddest thing happened the other day. We just bought some Frontline flea and tick stuff for Layla and when we brought it into the house, Kim saw a tick on it! The irony of that is really flabergasting.

Another post about the park

2007-03-24T13:32:00.000-04:00

This is my Father’s world,
and to my listening ears
All nature sings,
and round me rings the music of the spheres.

This is my Father’s world:
I rest me in the thought Of rocks and trees,
of skies and seas;
His hand the wonders wrought.

This is my Father’s world,
the birds their carols raise,
The morning light, the lily white,
declare their Maker’s praise.

This is my Father’s world:
He shines in all that’s fair;
In the rustling grass I hear Him pass;
He speaks to me everywhere.

This is my Father’s world.
O let me ne’er forget
That though the wrong seems oft so strong,
God is the ruler yet.

This is my Father’s world:
the battle is not done:
Jesus Who died shall be satisfied,
And earth and Heav’n be one.

This is my Father’s world,
dreaming, I see His face.
I ope my eyes,
and in glad surprise cry,
“The Lord is in this place.”

This is my Father’s world,
from the shining courts above,
The Beloved One, His Only Son,
Came—a pledge of deathless love.

This is my Father’s world,
should my heart be ever sad?
The lord is King—let the heavens ring.
God reigns—let the earth be glad.

This is my Father’s world.
Now closer to Heaven bound,
For dear to God is the earth Christ trod.
No place but is holy ground.

This is my Father’s world.
I walk a desert lone.
In a bush ablaze to my wondering gaze
God makes His glory known.

This is my Father’s world,
a wanderer I may roam
Whate’er my lot, it matters not,
My heart is still at home.

I know Nic put this song up a few weeks ago, but I forgot until reading through the words this morning. I love the line he used as the title of his post. I used to have this on a tape of Brentwood Jazz, a Christian jazz ensemble, and I sing the phrases I remember while I have been walking the dogs this week in Warner park. To read the song in its entirety has been devotional to say the least.I have so enjoyed the solitude, which there is not a lot of in my life with work and church demands. I think I will take the camera today to get some photos of the park.

An afternoon stroll

2007-03-22T20:20:00.000-04:00

The girls and I have for several weeks now enjoyed evening walks at Warner Park here in Nashville. Since Kim has been gone this week, it has been especially important for the dogs to get some exercise since I am at work all day. These walks have turned out to be very nice, quiet times of solitude and reflection. Today was a bit different...

As we got out of our car, me and Layla and Lili approached one of our favorite trails. A car parked a few spots down was also disembarking, and the gentleman letting out a golden retriever looked oddly familiar. I thought to myself, this guy looks a bit like Phil Keaggy. Our dogs began introductions with each other as he neared, so I said "hello, I'm Robb." He said "hello, my name is Phil." I then said, "I thought so" and went on a bit gushing. I took Kim to see Phil Keaggy on our first date. His music has been a fresh perspective to a lot of spiritual issues I have dealt with. And he is right here putting a backpack on in preparation for a walk in the park!

Well, after introductions and pleasantries, we both started off on our walks, which turned out to be the same direction. I inquired if that was alright, wanting to respect his privacy, but he was cheerfully insistent that it was quite alright. He was even the one who carried the conversation a large part of the time as we walked the entire trail together.

We talked about everything, from his kids, to the large number of songs that originated as he walked the trail we were on, to the fact that the dog he was walking is not even his, but his next door neighbors' who is out of town, to living in Nashville as an artist. We talked about the Lord, and the course of life as we get to know Him. We talked about wives and family. It was so wonderful to have a real conversation with him. We talked about all the people he has played with and how much music he has been apart of. Toward the end of our walk his cell phone rang. "Hello Randy" he said very loudly, as there was evidently poor reception. I instantly thought Randy Stonehill, but then decided such coincidences were way too unbelievable, like a bad novel or something where everything happens at once. Well, the call was dropped, and he looked over at me and held up his phone and said, "Randy Stonehill. You know him?" When I blubbered out yes, he attempted to call him back. He put the phone on speaker and said "I'm walking with a pal, Robb. Say hello to Robb." They are working on a project together and were working out some details. Randy was calling from Illinois I think. Somewhere on tour driving through the night to Minneapolis.

It was such a blessing. What a magical thing to be dropped into the middle of my week. I am very grateful for how gracious Phil was to share his time with me, to walk a bit with me.

I did think this would happen

2007-03-14T20:43:00.000-04:00

Greetings. I am not surprised by my haitus (sp). The new job, new puppy, and what not have taken a large bite out of my time.

They are both good things, and I am happy with them. I am sorry I have been so absent. I will attempt to check in more regularly now that my schedule is becoming more regular.

I never thought it would happen

2007-02-12T16:39:00.001-05:00

I can't believe this!

The Grammys

2007-02-12T10:19:00.000-05:00

I am not a grammy regular or anything, but I do enjoy them when I can. I enjoy what bit I caught of last nights edition. I missed the Police, which I greatly regret, but I did like Ludicriss and Mary J. Blige (missed EW&F in that act), and Christina Aguilara actually did pretty good on the James Brown tribute. I was a littled bothered by the those chosen to sing the Eagle's hits.

One thing that bothered me was the representation of the different eras of Rythm and Blues. I love Smokey Robinson, and I must admit with some embarrassment I enjoyed the dancing on the ceiling era of Lionel Ritchie, but it is interesting that they call what Chris Brown did as R&B. Smokey Lionel Ritchie sang songs that had a great melody, and were beautiful songs. I really enjoyed the music that Chris Brown did, and recognize totally the artistry and talent involved, but if the former examples were R&B, then I see very little of what makes up those great songs happening in Chris Brown's performance. It was mainly if not solely driven by percussion and tempo, with hardly no melody involved.

Rap and Hip Hop are great, and don't need my approval to be recognized as vital musical art forms, but I lament the passing of melody in so much of music today. Even in a lot of rock and pop, it is very much just generic cords with almost monotonal chanting over it. This is seen in bands like the Fray, Snow Patrol, etc. I enjoy this music, and am a fan, but I do miss a melody.

my day at the gun show

2007-02-12T09:41:00.000-05:00

Saturday my wife and I went to the Nashville Gun Show to see my brother, Keith, who was working one of the booths. He is working at a gun store in Cleveland, and his weekends are filled with gun shows all over the southeast. This is him in Iraq awhile back. He wasn't decked out like that at the gun show.

The Gun show made for a fascinating afternoon. I had some notion of the subculture, but had not been immersed as I was then. Kim and I were a bit taken aback by it. I have never seen so many firearms in one place, especially as they were being handled so openly. Many seemed to be adopting the premise of Red Dawn as a present reality, and were not going to be found unprepared. The majority of firearms were of military make, or at least faked out to appear so. The weapon to the left has been an internationally popular weapons for various military entities. It is the FN FAL, and due to its popularity there has been many made, by many manufacturers. This popularity has bled over into the retail market, and with so many having been made, they are reasonably inexpensive. They were all over the gun show, as were blasts from the pasts AK-47s, AR-15s, and even an uzi or two.

We estimated from our observations that about 75% of those at the show were involved in some conspiracy theory of some sort. there were collectors as well, who saw them as much as artifacts as weapons (there were many old weapons there as well). I even saw a guy with a six-shooter strapped to his leg old west style. Many brandished weapons, presumably unloaded (they were checked at the door), making you feel you were in an unsecured area of an embattled city.

I was carried back to my childhood, where I did almost systematic study on firearms and was fascinated by firearms, military history, etc. I probably also bought into some of those conspiracies at the time, though at age 10 I didn't have the money or credentials to make a purchase to properly outfit me for the presumed outcome. It was a very interesting day, reflecting both on those around me, and on my own history.

What is "soylent"?

2007-01-31T16:27:00.001-05:00

Robb --

[noun]:

A brand of soylent green breakfast cereal

'How will you be defined in the dictionary?' at QuizGalaxy.com

Red Dawn

2007-01-27T22:14:00.000-05:00

I am sitting here on the couch watching Red Dawn. I always enjoy it these days. It reminds me of nights of childhood filled with great cinema like AmeriKa, The Rambo trilogy, and the like that fueled the sentiment of anti-soviet rhetoric in the '80s. It also reminds me of nights filled with sleeplessness, waiting for the reality of these prophetic oracles to come. Now, at my age at the time I was as willing to take their reality as much as anybody elses, no matter how plausible. But I still remeber hearing the airliners coming into the Louisville International airport and hoping it was not an ICBM. The irony of this was with two brothers in the military, I knew all the lingo and all the tactics. It was kind of the political equivalent of the spiritual reality of growing up in the '80s for many of my tradition: living like a refugee when the rapture took place or living as an outlaw in the new soviet state in the US. I had both scenarios planned out, as to how I would live "off the grid" without interaction with anyone who might turn me in either to the Soviets or to the "One World Leader," Whose identity changed with every passing evangelist: Charles Manson, Kadafi, various resurrecting soviet leaders (there's some intertextuality for ya), even Prince.

My fear dominated many aspects of my pre-pubescent life. It is funny to watch how these movies now, and the fine acting involved. It shows how silly my fears might have been, on both ideas. But it is also interesting to see how much trafficing in the idealogies of fear there still is in both political and ecclesiastical circles.

A New Hope

2007-01-26T09:55:00.000-05:00

OK, so when I sat down I wasn't thinking of Star Wars. But when I wrote out the title, who wouldn't go with this association? It seems a lot of things, disparate and unconnected, point to the theme of Hope. Conversations I have had with friends and family seem to work around this theme for the last several weeks. And though I wasn't thinking about it, sometimes that hope seems as foolish and unadvised as the bands of rebels the empire was seeking out to wipe out in that movie of beautiful archetypes (See Joseph Campbell). Another way to put it is "Nothing is impossible with God." The context of that quote is astonishing (See KEA's post on Mary).

But really brought me to the keyboard this fine morning is something else. The above paragraph is only the rambling of word association from writing in the title. No, what has really got me thinking about hope in the last few days is u2 and my Mom. I am currently listening to Joshua Tree and the sweeping exultation of how streets have no name breaks out from the organ stuff at the beginning is really a great musical prelude to the lyrical inspiration of the song and of the whole album, really. And what is beautiful is that it is a hope that is knowledgeable about the pain of this world, that is experienced in what is going on in the world, in the lives of people, yet untainted, undiminished. and 20 years after its arrival, the band continues to be a lampstand of hope, even having seen so much more of the hurts of life, of this world. And it is a hope in grand things, in a new heaven and a new earth. It is about taking up the causes of those who have gone before, of those who do not have a voice, and calling out for justice, for righteousness. The hope that drives u2 is a hope unfulfilled, still searching, still pushing. While recognizing the reality of how things are, it casts a vision of how things ought to be, , and in so doing gives a glimpse of how things will be.

A conversation with my Mom this week reminded me of that hope this week. My mom, whose wisdom is disputed only by her, shared with me about being patient in times of (inner) conflict and indecision. She talked to me about the need to sing a new song, and I talked to her about an old song sung by an old but hopeful rock band.

If you hadn't guessed, I just figured out in the last few posts how to use the "link" button. So this is a little overboard, but really, y'all are all thinking what songs you'd put into the linked words I used. I recognize anyone with any familiarity with the band is already acquainted with the theme of hope and reality the band brings to the table. These are just my thought right now.

"We are the ones we have been waiting for"

2007-01-25T08:27:00.000-05:00

I have begun God's Politics by Jim Wallis and it has already peaked my interest (intro and into the 1st ch.). It has been recommended to me by several friends and mentors, especially Prof. Ayodeji Adewuya. I have enjoyed his critique of the current political climate and have been challenged (already even) by his call to reflect on how we are to live in a holistic manner. He really takes on the entire spectrum of political thought in challenging the reader to look at things from a Christian perspective. He is very much about bringing faith into public life, but in a way that catches up a wide range of issues, not allowing the candidates or pundits to dictate what the issues are that should concern us. He says that the church cannot be co-opted by either side so that it can be a prophetic voice to both sides. The quote in the title is one made to Wallis by a friend in a conversation about taking action and not just criticizing. He promises on some of how this can be done. I am looking forward to hearing how he proposes this. We shall see.

Layla (or The Perils of Working from Home)

2007-01-23T10:39:00.000-05:00

This morning I have several things I need to get done in the office, so of course my sweet puppy is not being so sweet. She has chewed up everything from napkins to pencils (mechanical) to study notes. All the while not giving me too much peace in between bouts of energy.

Well, Well

2007-01-22T16:54:00.000-05:00

Your Career Personality: Independent, Insightful, and Ingenious

Your Ideal Careers:

Architect
Artist
Business strategist
College professor
Computer programmer
Mathematician
Neurologist
Philosopher
Photographer
Video game developer

3 days and counting

2007-01-17T21:40:00.000-05:00

Today is the third day in a row going to the YMCA. I have not been battling my weight problem for a little while, so I thought it was time I took up the fight. Really, this is all part of that same thing of which I posted earlier- house cleaning/personal cleansing and what not.

It has felt good to do. Of course, I have done nothing strenious. But it has been a nice break in the day. It has been good so far.

Keith Green and the New Year

2007-01-16T09:50:00.000-05:00

I have been listening to Keith Green this morning. My wife and I cleaned out a bunch of old files and junk and what not yesterday. These two sentences seem unconnected, but they are not.

I only know keith Green from his music and stories of people just a tad older than me who were alive when he was alive. I came to his music later in life. There are few artist in recent history with the passion and intensity in their ministry than Keith Green. He was singleminded in his work for Christ (please note above that I only know him after his death, yet I am not attempting gloss over any shortcomings others may be aware of that I don't know of).

My wife has listened to him a long time, and still does. She puts his music on in the house often. I don't listen to quite as often, mainly cause I am a happy man, pretty carefree. Keith Green's music has the 2 fold effect of causing me to see with greater clarity the love of God for me and putting me under serious conviction. I begin to see where my shortcomings are in my life, especially my spiritual life- which prompts a thought about intergration: do we have a "spiritual life" vs. "life", but that is for another discussion I guess.

I want to live with a new intensity, passion this year. I want to not just clean out this place I live in as we did yesterday, but I want to put my house in order. I want this year to be more conscious of God in all that I do. My eyes have been dry for a while.

Make my life a prayer to you
I wanna do what you want me to
No empty words and no white lies
No token prayers no compromise

I wanna shine the light you gave
Thru your son you sent to save us
From ourselves and our despair
It comforts me to know you’re really there

Chorus
Well I want thank you now
For being patient with me
Oh its so hard to see
When my eyes are on me
I guess Ill have to trust
And just believe what you say
Oh you’re coming again
Coming to take me away

I wanna die and let you give
Your life to me so I might live
And share the hope you gave me
The love that set me free

I wanna tell the world out there
You’re not some fable or fairy tale
That Ive made up inside my head
You’re God the son and you’ve risen from the dead

Chorus

I wanna die and let you give
Your life to me so I might live
And share the hope you gave me
The love that set me free

Adversity

2007-01-15T07:15:00.000-05:00

What a melodramatic title. Truth be told I am not dealing with any at athe moment, but I just put a friend on a a plane who is dealing with a load of it.

People interpret adversity in many ways. Some believe it is part of the natural state of things in the fallen world. There are just things to deal with. Others see adversity as something to overcome, a test to pass, a victory to achieve. Still others see it as the chastening of the Lord, thus to be avoided or steered clear from.

I imagine the only wrong answer is that only one of these is right. If I eat some ethnic foods, adversity will soon follow of a certain type. That I would imagine be part of the natural state, and not a test or the correction of the Lord. But the Bible also speaks of two kingdoms who war against one another, thus adversity is to be expected on such a level. I would imagine adversity too is God's instructing for certain situations.

Would Jesus have endured Gethsemene if it was interpreted as chastening. It would seem that he would have changed course if the path he was one reflected a need to change. The adversity of that week had another purpose. I would imagine some things are worth the price, and for others the price is too high to pay. Adversity calls for us to reflect constantly on who we are to be and where we are going- weighing the cost.

New Year

2007-01-05T10:57:00.000-05:00

The new year comes with mixed emotions. It means football is almost over, though the end of the year has given us some good games. But looking out from this vantage, I am grateful looking out over the new year. I have a wonderful wife, I have a great job, living in a cool city. I am excited about the possibilities of this new year, and all it could hold.

Holidays

2006-12-28T17:59:00.000-05:00

We (my wife and I) are in Hoschton, GA , with my wife's family for the holidays. It has been a fun week hanging out and what not. We have watched Charlotte's Web, played many video as well as card games, shopped, and walked the dog and eaten a lot of good food. It has been a fun week and fun hanging out with Kim's family. It is odd being so old in this family (Kim is the oldest child) because in my family I am the youngest. I rediscovered my love for spades and realized I enjoy playstation games other than Madden.

In all this the strength of this family and their love for one another continues to be evident. I am privileged to have been accepted into such a warm family. The fun of the holidays are a welcome contrast from the normal pace of life, and the brevity of its duration makes it all the sweeter.

Good Friends

2006-12-19T10:14:00.000-05:00

It is weird, now having lived long enough to think of long-term friendship. My friend Mike and I have known each other 10 years or so, and have kept up our friendship through a lot of stuff. He and his family now live in Tyler, TX., and it is rare we get to hang out. Sure we do the electronic stuff and talk all the time, but not too often see each other.

He stopped by Nashville last night and spent the night (and his wife, Angeline and son Sam). They are heading to his parents in Cinci and broke the trip up by hanging out with me and Kim. We went to a basketball game and just talked the whole night. It was very refreshing. We reflected on both the similarities and differences of the paths each of us have chosen since seminary. And talked about football and theology and books and just stuff.

It was a good night.

Christmas is almost here

2006-12-18T15:50:00.000-05:00

I love Christmas. I always enjoy it. the memories from childhood standout the most. I am the youngest, and all my siblings are several years older than me. So when I was a kid they lived a long way off. Christmas was always filled with the anticapation of their coming in from around the world, literally, and then being around the house for a few weeks. The Holiday then was a long affair, with a lot of time spent with my family.

One Christmas in particular, in the early '80s, was very special. Not only did the brothers and sister come home, but so did my Mom's sister's family and my uncle. It was great. Half of us had to sleep on pallets and we stayed up all night playing games and talking. We played in the church gym (my Dad was a pastor) and went out to the lookout on Mobile (AL) Bay. It was the only opportunity I had to spent a large amount of time with my Uncle, my Mom's brother.

Adulthood has been different for the holidays. We all have lived in the same town for so long a lot of that specialness seemed to have dissabated. We all hung out, and it has been great to live so close to one another. But it has been different. This year, it is actually me (and Kim) coming back to Cleveland for Christmas. It is a new feeling. Some of that old anticapation can be felt again.

Merry Christmas.

College Football is Here!

2006-08-31T09:05:00.000-04:00

I am very excited that today begins the college football season. Rain on my parade is not even produced by the fact that its South Carolina and Miss. State. Rather, I am jazzed that it is SEC. It has been a long wait this year, though it may be every year and I just don't realize it. My evening will be spent in front of the tv enjoying the first game of the season. It looks to be an exciting fall, and one of the reasons for that is football.

Center of Sports?

2006-08-23T10:32:00.000-04:00

I was sitting watching Sportscenter this week and was using that "recall" button to watch CNN. Sportcenter was going back and forth between baseball division races and picking college games to be. CNN was talking about journalists who had been kidnapped in the Middle East and the concept of Civil War in Baghdad.

Spending no more than a minute at either channel was unsettling. I couldn't enjoy the comical banter of the sportcenter telecast thinking about the unrest in the Middle East. Nor could I bear to watch a lengthy portion of the CNN show, mainly because I had to see who would be ranked #8 in Sportscenters picks for the end of the college football season.

This week I happened upon a documentary about the melding of entertainment and reality, of how all things, especially through the medium of television, have merged and there is now no, or little difference. It is hard to admit that the knowledge of things going on in the world does not push out of my mind a concern for the ultimately important #8 ranking in a preseason poll. Entertainment and reality have merged, at least as far as ones' adeptness with the remote is adequate.

Football is almost here!

2006-08-23T10:22:00.000-04:00

I must admit I am very excited over the emminant arrival of the football season. I am a big fan, and enjoy all manner of games, from College to Pro, to fantasy games. I can sit and enjoy just about any matchup, from Division 3 college teams to National championships. As an Alabama fan, I approach this season with tempered hope, knowing we are on the upswing but still have a lot to do to replace our graduating seniors from last year. The Titans, who I have liked even before I moved to Nashville, don't look that great either.

But football is football, and I will be glued to the tv.Hope springs eternal, or at least in each fall. It will be a good fall for many reasons, and one of those is football.

Randomness

2006-07-21T23:05:00.000-04:00

Ok, so this has been a weird week. The weirdness of it has caused me no small amount of personal reflection, as well as long conversations with several people in my life. Those kinda what does this all mean sort of questions. Oddly, it has really been a very positive and blessed week in my life, and the fact that this is what has caused the consternation is funny. Can't handle playing with the lead I guess.

Anyway, this evening I was headed out the door to meet some friends. They called me to say they would be late because a storm had blown a tree down in the road in front of them. A car ahead of them had been demolished by the falling tree, so they asked me to pray while I waited on them. A few minutes later my friends called to inform me that though his family had been able to escape the car, the driver had been killed by the accident.

I sat there for a few minutes just stunned. Not that I knew this guy or anything, but how bizarre: you're just riding home (or anywhere!) with your family one moment and then your not. I wonder if that guy had any questions about where his life was headed, or if he was doing the right thing, or even what he thought his own future would be like? And in the end, did that matter?

I spend a lot of time in that existential self-conversation type of thing. Analyzing every move I make, or things that are going on around me. But one thing I have neglected in such conversations is the subject of mortality I guess.

Nashville

2006-07-02T00:09:00.000-04:00

Our new home, Nashville. We moved here about a month ago, pastoring a church on the west side of the city. We are excited to be here, and it is a cool thing living in such a big place. Not that its like a very big place, but compared to Cleveland, TN and Rossville, GA, my last 2 stops, it is very big.

This is the house we live in. It is provided by the church we are pastoring, and it is pretty cool. Pretty big by my standards too (a standard of apartments and dormrooms). It is in a quiet neighborhood where we are one of the few under 50 years of age.

Layla

2006-07-01T23:58:00.000-04:00

This is Layla. She is 8 weeks old. We have had her about 3 weeks. She is adorable about 40% or the time, the othe 60% she is a biting, urinating mess. She is pretty cute, though, so we're gonna keep hear around.

family reunion

2006-07-01T23:41:00.000-04:00

So I went to my family reunion today (biological). And in a way I had another reunion (spiritual) later on that day. Both were really enjoyable. My father's family had not been together in some time, since way before my father passed. It was interesting to see again where I had come from, and hear stories I had heard a thousand time again, but this time only from uncles. My Dad would have told many of them had he been there.

My spiritual family, or at least a part of them, also met up in Nashville (my new home-another post soon about that), Though I have a lengthening history with them, this reunion was all about the future, and what God was doing in all our lives. This was a meeting to celebrate and reflect on new stuff. New passions, new jobs, new opportunities. It was an interesting contrast from being with my Daddy's people, where all there is to talk about is twenty + year old stories, all of which I do treasure.

It is funny how jotting in the date book come together in reflective ways, seeing where I came from in the same day I see some of where I want to be in the future. I miss my Dad, and being with his brothers was kinda hard. So it was good that the day ended with hearing new things, and new directions.

New Semester

2006-01-28T13:43:00.000-05:00

As has been written before on this blog, I do some part time teaching in the areas of Christian Ethics and Theology, which I am beginning to think there is an artificial difference in those terms, for out of theology flows ethical thought, and the way we act, the people we are makes a statement about our theology.

Anyway, it looks like I have some good classes shaping up so far in this new semester. Neither is too large for interaction with the students, and so far I have had some good conversations with students in each class (I have one ethics and one theology, both introductions).

One such conversation was about the term Christianity. A gentleman in my theology class was not very fond of the term. He felt that it had been put on by others, and was not one that the early church had applied to itself, nor had God called them by that name. I found this to be an interesting point, and have thought some time about it.

What I took from that conversation, in good reader-response ideology, is not to utilize a term that is harmful or cuts off communication. So few want to have anything to do with "Christianity". From before the crusades, this negative vibe to the term has resonated. Even Constantines' time could be seen as giving Christianity a bad name. So instead of attempting to overcome these definitions or ideas of the term, don't use it at all. Find new ways in which to speak, new voices, new words.

This I have been thinking on since the class in which this idea was talked about. But is there a point in which you take on the task of revisioning, or providing a new referent to old terms. Could not new actions, new situations provide new ways in which to define old modes? I don't know if I am up to defending the term Christianity, but a few more peels of the onion might touch a nerve. It might bring to the surface words worth fighting for. Or better, the idea behind those words maybe.

But I don't know. The price of incarnation was pretty high for the one who modeled it. Perhaps laying down some ideology to enter in, to come among, might not be too high a price. Ideology might be another word for smugness anyway, at least in this case.

Mild Winter

2006-01-11T17:13:00.000-05:00

It has been a surprising winter so far here in Cleveland. lovely weather for those of us who do not like the cold. It is not odd for it to be in the low 60s in the mid-day the last couple of weeks. I have been greatly enjoying it. it has been short-sleeves feel during the day and not much more at night.

My apologies for not blogging in some time. The winter does make you retreat into doing only the most needful things. It goads one to self-protection and what not, but I will not succomb to such hereafter. I will attempt to post more regularly this year. That is not exactly a resolution because I don't do those. I think they only set me up for a fall.

I didn't say they wouldn't be rambling posts.

Peace

Prosperity

2005-11-11T02:50:00.000-05:00

I was leading a discussion in class this evening (intro to theology) about the loss of theology as teaching or pastoral in the life of the church and merely an academic enterprise. I discussed enlightenment epistmology's pedastalizing of reason to the detriment of more holistic interpretations of truth. Surprisingly enough several of them were into it. Of course by November they had heard me say such things a few times, as well as the need for theology to be relevant and plugged into the vitality of the church.

All of a sudden, one of the women in the class asked if there would be time in the semester to discuss prosperity gospel issues. She mentioned how in one of her classes a foreign (South American) professor had pointed out that prosperity preaching would not fly in his homeland (I don't think he used the word "fly"). So she wanted to talk about prosperity and the roots of the theology in our culture.

This sparked more conversation in the class about what it means to be North American and be aware of other contexts. What does it mean to be part of a culture that is so affluent? How do we rectify that with what we see to be true with the Church throughout the world? I am looking forward to further dialogue with my students even as the semester is wanes. They are coming to see that a proper definition of theology does have something to say about who they are in this world and what they are becoming. That it is not just right statements, but theology is right hearts, right faiths, right action all rolled up into one- something about integration.

This is not to say I have had anything to do with this. I have muddied the waters as much as anything. Its as much a desire to live right on their part as anything.

All Saints Day

2005-11-01T21:54:00.000-05:00

I was thinking earlier today about the whole issue of theodicy, or the justice of God (which also deals with the problem of evil) when I received a phone call. I was preparing a lecture on the subject over the past week for my class, so I was sorta forced to look at the issue. It was quite disheartening really. The more I look around at stuff, the less I have answers that make sense of it. The way lives around me have turned out were unanticapated to say the least.

About the time I was going to sit down and type this out I received a phone call as I mentioned above. It was my Mom telling me my brother had received early leave from the Army and was home. He had spent the last year in Iraq, and we knew he had returned to the states. We did not expect him for another week, so this came as quite a surprise. So I met up with him at Waffle House, his usual haunt, and proceeded to spend the day with him and my family.

Considering that my reflections on question of theodicy and the problems of this world revovled around so much of the past year, including the absence of my brother in that year was not an insignificant part of that year, I found it ironic that my reflection and his return coincided as they did. The justice of God is incomprehensible, and so much of life is without explaination. But even in inequity there is grace, a grace that ultimately is sufficient.

First Attempt

2005-10-25T04:00:00.000-04:00

This is the first attempt at blogging for me. I am not the most adept at technology so it is interesting to have gotten this far. I also carry around some level of paranoia about writing about myself. Don't get me wrong, I am plenty self absorbed, just guitly about it occasionally.