Well, Becca woke up excited this morning. She is starting her first day of Kindergarten. So Trina had to get up way too early, we got the kids dressed and ready, Cassidy came over waaaaaay to early (the knock on the door was 5:40 am) and they were out of the door at 7:30 am. I got to hang out at home until around 8:20 before leaving to go to work. I haven't heard from Becca how she liked her first day at school though. I talked to Trina twice today on the phone, once from her not being very happy that I left the dog inside and that she had to clean up after her and the other to make sure where Carrie needed to pick up Cassidy. Neither occasion gave room for me to talk to my eldest daughter to hear what she thought of her first day of a journey that takes too long for someone so young but something I would do over again if I could edit out some of the rough spots. I'm sure she was very friendly and very assertive, even with Trina there with an opening day parent meeting. (That's why the kids were all up at 7:30 to go be dropped off at a friend's house.) She told me she was shy and I kinda snickered. I've never seen her shy. Maybe scared of new situations but never shy around new people. She is the extrovert that Trina and I aren't. I hope Becca doesn't have to learn some of the lessons I had to -- that being mean isn't cool (I have always wanted to apologize to some of the kids I made fun of when I was young -- Jean Audette and Mark Grabazsweski) that other kids are mean sometimes, that being cruel isn't a good way to fit in, that behaving strange or odd is a good way to get attention. I hope she doesn't have to learn these the hard way. I do hope she learns to be compassionate, to learn how to learn, to be friendly even when no one else is, to be willing to stand up as an individual even against popular belief for what she believes, and how to distinguish between the truth and the lies. She is a smart kid but has never been in an organized learning environment (like I was in Kindergarten... I hope I turned out ok.) She seems, to me, a biased parent, to be the poster child of a kid who is well learned already because her parents invested in her (mainly Trina) and that preschool is not the universal solution to a problem they could not possibly try to solve. I hope she had a good day. They say in Baseball you can tell how the season's going to go by the first at-bat (watch Major League.) I wonder if the same is true in Kindergarten.
Verse: Philippians 1:9-11
9 I pray that your love will grow more and more. And let it be based on knowledge and understanding. 10 Then you will be able to know what is best. You will be pure and without blame until the day Christ returns. 11 You will be filled with the fruit of right living produced by Jesus Christ. All of those things bring glory and praise to God.
My friend Eric sent this to me. All I can say is that this is the polar opposite of the McDonalds commercial. Makes me glad that I am involved with kids. I'd love to see some copy cats at my league one of these years :)
It is quite large, so I hope you have a fast connection. (Made me tear up.)
Ok, we're watching beach volleyball right now (because there is absolutely nothing on.) Every commercial break, they are showing the new McDonalds commercial. This commercial right here:
Ok, when I saw this, I didn't think it was cute that the grey team got revenge by getting gross food or something. My first thought was that if I was the coach of the green team, I would have slapped them all around for a while. Ok, not literally slapping, but getting the point across that we need to be gracious in victory, and congratulatory in defeat. Ahhhhh... it's on again. That's 4 commercial breaks in a row. Anyway, the question comes up if we are wimpifying our kids? Is this a product of political correctness? In my opinion, no. What I find ultimately sad is that we have to make rules about this in team games instead of being inate. As an umpire, I have had to tell kids in the dugouts not to call out the other team's names and not to yell and scream when the pitcher is about to throw. In fact, I am going to bring up next year that there should be no negative cheering (hey pitcher, AHHHH!, the like) and only positive cheering (Let's go whoever, We want a home run, etc.) This should really be part of who the kids are. Sportmanship is bigger than winning and losing. That is the lesson of little league, AYSO, Pee Wee football, and all youth sports that should be conveyed. Not that winning is the ultimate goal but that character is.
The verse is actually what I taught this morning in Children's Church. It fits: "Blessed are the meek for they will inherit the Earth." Matthew 5:5
Meekness is not weakness, it's discipline to keep strength in check. It's being gracious in victory -- being a good sport.
Well, it seems that I am done umpiring for the spring/summer season and I wanted to go back and write down some of the things I went through this season. Let me say, this was my first season as an umpire and it definitely won't be the last. I had a blast getting back into baseball and people have told me that I lost weight during the season, so it was exercise (or I sweated it all off behind the plate while in full gear.) Some of the highlights of the season:
1) It was like my second game. Angels (who went 20-2 this season) vs. Yankees. Kid hits a ball right down the first base line. I look, and look, then call it fair as it hits the yellow line. Angels coaches not too happy. Then I look again, reevaluated, then call the homerun as the ball went off the foul pole. Coaches now really unhappy, but I stick by my call. I think I got it right.
2) It must have been my 10th game. I made a call at the plate that apparently the catcher didn't like. He turned around and said, "You suck!" I was in shock at this point and didn't do anything. After the inning I went to his coach and said, "If I hear that again for the rest of the season, I'm tossing him from the game." The League President said that if she hears something like that happening, the kid is out 2 games minimum.
3) Last game of the season for the Yankees and Angels. I've done about 60 games by this point so the coaches know me, my style, and I know them. The Angels are up by 14 or so in the bottom of the 6th (they scored them all in the top of the 6th. I thought, I'm going to give the Yankees their last ups since this is the last game of the season even though I could have called it for mercy rule. It's the last game and they needed some kind of confidence. It was bad though since the Angels kept scoring in the top of the 6th. Not very confidence building.) So, the Yankees end up scoring 2 runs in the bottom of the 6th (preventing the shutout) which was good. Two outs and the kid who told me that I sucked in memory two is up to bat. I've let it go by this point. He's caught a few games since then and it was cool. He hits a pop fly towards the 3rd base line which falls about 2 inches foul from my point of view. The manager, who is in the third base box, doesn't like the call (this would have scored another 1 or 2 at least) and turns around frustrated. He says, "If it would have been the Angels, I may have gotten the call." Now, on it's face, he said he was making a comment about the Angels, but to me, he was questioning my integrity -- saying that I was rooting for the Angels. Now mind you, the two Angels coaches, Bret and Roy, are good guys that I could even see myself hanging out with on the outside and I enjoyed talking with them throughout the season, but I call games fair. It's not right for me to cheat the kids by playing favorites. At this point, when Steve (manager of the Yankees) says this, I call time, stand up, and cool off for a second. After the game, Steve thought I was going to toss him right there. I calmed down, and called for the next pitch. I forgot what happened, but the third out happened pretty shortly afterward without another run scoring. I went to Steve as soon as the game was done and said, "I know you are frustrated, but that comment was totally out of line." He acknowledged, but was still frustrated and didn't say anything. About 15 minutes later, as I'm heading out to my car, he comes up to me and says, "If I ever say anything like that again, kick me out of the game." He realized what he had said and felt bad. We ended up talking for a while. I like Steve too.
4) In fact, I like the group up at the league. Mrs. Strong is great. Mr. Ford is great. The managers I had the opportunity to work with were cool. In the heat of the moment, sometimes tempers got riled, sometimes words were said that probably shouldn't have been said, but the kids are what are important and we all got that across. 5) Through the season, I saw teams that were good that played that way, teams that were overmatched that played that way and teams that were good that their attitude stopped them from doing well and they underachieved and another team that was overmatched but played with so much heart and discipline that they overachieved. It's hard to do bad if you have too much talent and hard to win if you are rebuilding, but those middle teams showed me that attitude and heart are the difference between 3rd and 4th place, between the coach having an all-star team and the coach watching all-stars from the bleachers. I was so impressed with how Coach Strong (the president's husband) ran his team. They called everyone sir or ma'am. They were respectful. They never gave up. And they overachieved. I'm looking forward to seeing them next year.
6) I umpired on the bases for a 9-10 year old all-star game. It was the league I umped at all season vs. another league. I did the bases since they wouldn't let me do the plate (makes sense. Home Plate Umpire has a lot of influence and they don't want the illusion of favortism.) The game went so against the my league's team in the calls that the kids thought I was cheering against them. One of the kids, on a close call at first, turned to me and said, "Why are you on their side!?" I wasn't. Everything inside of me wanted them to win, but I was not going to make calls that are against what I see that are going to benefit them. If they are going to win the game, they were going to win it on their own, not with my assistance. It was the hardest game I'm umped and looks like it may be for years. They lost. They didn't talk to me after the game (the kids, parents were ok.)
There are other umpire stories and people I will look back on this first season, but I wanted to get down some of the major ones.
Here's the verse that really exempifies Coach Strong and his team. Something for me to strive for: "We are full of joy even when we suffer. We know that our suffering gives us the strength to go on. 4 The strength to go on produces character. Character produces hope. " Romans 5:3-4
Well, with 4 kids, it is inevitable for them to grow up (unless you throw them into some cryogenic freeze machine, but then they will come back and zap you with their newly acquired freeze powers which emanate from their fingertips in an evolutionary desire for survival.) And with that, there are milestones which make me, as a parent, look and say, "Has it really been that long?" Becca turned 5 on Wednesday. She was so excited. I now ask her, 'Who's my 5 year old?' Of course, half the time she complains that Micah is still older (as he always will be, I explain.) She wants to grow up so fast and I still consider her my baby (again, something she has refused for the past 2 years.) (Just like real life, I use a lot of parenthesis in my listening to boring lectures, sometimes sermons, watching bad tv shows, etc. Too many smart comments like a dummy.) Well, if you are a reader of Trina's blogs, you will know that we are pretty broke right now. This always bums me around birthday time (July-October in this family -- except Trina, the odd-ball (I love you.)) One of the things I was thinking about for Becca's birthday was taking the family out to see Wall-E at the El Capitan, but that won't be happening. In fact, not much will be happening. We had some family over on Sunday to celebrate. Dad made a cake, Trina and Dianne made cupcakes for Extended Session at church earlier. Becca was ecstatic that she got 5 Barbies (3 big, 2 small, 1 elephant.) I wish I could have done more though. Of course, looking back on my childhood, the highlight of my life was my sixth birthday. My dad and I went for a walk to the mall and I got a radio and cassette deck for my birthday. I was so happy. Then we got back home and a bunch of people from the baseball park (It must have been my 7th birthday... I started playing baseball at 6) and church (I always thought it was 6th... could my mind be playing tricks on me?) were at our house and we had a baseball ice cream cake. But it was simple. I didn't get a lot, but it was a celebration. I learned that it wasn't about stuff, it was about recognition and celebration and getting together. Maybe us being broke and me not being able to spoil my children rotten is a good thing as they will grow up not being materialistic but will take joy in the little things.
I like Trina's gimmick. On substantial post, I'll probably find the verse that sums up the post.
11I am not saying this because I am in need, for I have learned to be content whatever the circumstances. 12I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want. 13I can do everything through him who gives me strength. Philippians 4:11-13
I had the opportunity to preach at another church on Sunday Morning. It was day 3 of their VBS (They ran a Friday, Saturday, Sunday VBS) and the day of the salvation message. Well, I began working on a sermon based off of John 14:6, the key verse for the day. Then God showed me Isaiah 43:1-4. Well, my sermon changed completely. Thought I'd post the sermon here for some bedtime reading:
Good morning.I love Vacation Bible School.Are you enjoying VBS this weekend?I became a Christian at Vacation Bible School when I was in first grade, so it has been one of my passions for years.It always excites me as the summer approaches and it is a little sad as it passes because I love VBS so much.
What is the motto of VBS this week?(Know the Truth, Speak the Truth, Live the Truth.)We are studying this week about living God's unshakeable truth and as I was studying for this sermon, God showed me a truth that I can stand on.It completely changed my idea of what this sermon was going to be, but after all, my words are meaningless without the power of God behind them.
I want to share with you something powerful, something life-changing, something that is such great news that you won't want to walk out of here the same way.That news, that truth, is that God loves you.
Like I mentioned before, I became a Christian at VBS some 26 years ago, and although my decision was real and life-changing, I have often struggled to get out of the way with my ego and intelligence and let God have His way with me.I have lived a defeated life for many years.I struggle with guilt about sin even after asking forgiveness.I beat myself up a lot.I look sometimes and wonder how God can use someone like me who just doesn't get it.
I'm sure that Israel felt the same way.Let's turn in our Bibles to Isaiah, chapter 42, verses 18-25.You'll see here that God calls Israel blind, deaf, disobedient, unreceptive to His messenger, and God was pouring out his furious anger on them.Look at verse 24,
"Who gave Jacob to the robber and Israel to the plunderers?
Was it not the LORD?Have we not sinned against Him?'
They were not willing to walk in His ways,
And they would not listen to instruction."
Look at what God's response is,
"So [God] poured out on Jacob His furious anger and the power of war.
It surrounded [Jacob] with fire, but he did not know it.
It burned him, but he paid no attention."
God is judging them for their disobedience.And then, the logic of grace steps in.Let's read Isaiah 43:1-4
1 Now this is what the LORD says— the One who created you, Jacob, and the One who formed you, Israel— "Do not fear, for I have redeemed you; I have called you by your name; you are Mine.
2 I will be with you when you pass through the waters, and [when you pass] through the rivers, they will not overwhelm you. You will not be scorched when you walk through the fire, and the flame will not burn you.
3 For I the LORD your God, the Holy One of Israel, and your Savior, give Egypt as a ransom for you, Cush and Seba in your place.
4 Because you are precious in My sight and honored, and I love you, I will give human beings in your place, and peoples in place of your life.
There are three things I want us to see in this passage about how much God loves us.
First, no matter what we have done in the past, God still wants to have a relationship with us.What we deserve is the full fury of God's anger.What He offers instead is forgiveness.He says that He already called us by His name.There is a scene in Toy Story where the Buzz Lightyear makes a comment about being accepted into the culture because their ruler, Andy, had written his name on Buzz's foot.In the same way, God has written His name on our lives.He made us.He loves us.He wants to be our best friend, our personal God.It doesn't matter if we fall or deserve punishment.Those may come, but God is offering a relationship with us that He will mend up.
And this relationship is stronger than any of our problems.
This leads to our second point.Not only does God want to have a relationship with us no matter of our past, but no matter what we go through in our present, God will be with us.Look at verse 2 again.In the waters, the river or the fire, God will be with us.I like how the Message paraphrase puts this,
"When you're in over your head, I'll be there with you.
When you're in rough waters, you will not go down.
When you're in between a rock and a hard place, it won't be a dead end."
Last week, I talked to the children of my church about some of the most depressing times of my life.I told them about how I saw my pet dog get ran over by a car when I was six, how I had to deal with a grandmother dying, how I grieved the closure of an after-school program I was in charge of at our church, how I mourned when my son was diagnosed with autism – times of real mourning and grief.We were talking about the second beatitude, 'blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted.'In times of real mourning in my life, God has comforted me in ways that I didn't see coming.He has been there when I lived in between a rock and a hard place.He helped me to not go under the depression.I know, because He has proven Himself faithful in the past, that He keeps His promise.My favorite verse in the Bible, Romans 8:38-39 says,
"For I am persuaded that neither death nor life,
nor angels nor rulers,
nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers,
nor height, nor depth, nor any other created thing
will have the power to separate us
from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord!"
This brings us to our third point.Not only does God want a relationship with us despite our past and not only will God be with us through our present, but that no matter what it will cost, God paid to have us back and secure our future.Again, I like how the Message paraphrase says verses 3 and 4:
"Because I am God, your personal God, the Holy of Israel, your Savior.
I paid a huge price for you:all of Egypt, with rich Cush and Seba thrown in!
That's how much you mean to Me!That's how much I love you!
I'd sell off the whole world to get you back, trade the creation just for you."
God says that we have redemption.What is redemption?
There is a story about a young boy who made a model sailboat.He worked carefully on it for days and finally finished it.It was beautiful and he couldn't wait to take it out and try it on the creek.
He took the boat out and let it sail.It floated beautifully, but soon got caught in the current and began to rush downstream.He tried to pull it back in but the string broke and the boat raced.He ran and ran and tried to catch up to it but it was no use.He looked all day until the sun went down and couldn't find it.
Two days later, the young boy was walking home from school when he saw a model boat hanging in the window of a pawn shop.The boy got closer and realized that this was his boat.He ran into the shop and said, "That's my boat!I lost it two days ago; can I have it back?"
The shop owner said, "I'm sorry, son, but someone brought it in this morning and I paid for it.If you want it back, you're going to have to buy it."
"How much is it?"
"One dollar."
The little boy ran out of the store and raided his piggy bank.He had exactly one dollar.He returned to the store and bought his boat.On the way out, the boy said, "Now you're my boat twice.I made you and then I bought you."
God made us.We were the apple of His eye, His personal treasure, but we left him and became slaves to sin.At the moment we told God that our way was better than His way, where we disobeyed Him, we became slaves to sin.But God, in his infinite mercy and grace, made a way to buy us back.Romans 5:8 says,
"But God demonstrated His love for us,
in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us."
I have sinned.Romans 3:23 says that all of us have and according to Romans 6:23, the payment of sin is death.Jesus is saying, "I paid a huge price for you!It wasn't all of creation.It was my own life."My sin says someone must die and that someone is either me or someone who has no sin.Jesus has no sin and He says that He will die for me!
But this doe requires an action on our part.I don't know if you sang the Wiki Wiki song, but it is based off of Romans 10:9, the basis of the ABC's of becoming a Christian.First, you have to admit to God that you have sinned.You have to repent, or make a u-turn and turn from living a life of sin and start walking towards God.Then you have to believe that Jesus is God's son and that He died but came back to life so that we do not have to die.And finally, you have to confess that Jesus is now you boss – what He says goes in your life and that you are allowing Him to make changes in your life.
------ And then, there was the closing and they went to the offering contest. The girls won (big surprise in my book.... not! and some guy named Alex got the pie. I told him I sympathized since I have gotten the pie 6 out of the last 8 years. Well, we went back today to pick up VBS decorations to give to Trina's Aunt and her church and talked to the pastor of the church I preached at. He said that 2 kids talked to the teachers afterwards and told them that they prayed to become Christians. He's getting me the names and addresses so I can send them letters or do whatever. Well, those are the first 2 decisions I've had from the pulpit, so it's cool.
For the past year or so I really have been in a glaze. A funk. Depressed. There have been so many different things which have totally torn me down. I think God showed me Isaiah 42-43 to show me that He still loves me and to get over it because to God, I'm worth more than being in a funk. I'm praying that this is a watershed moment - a turning from living a defeated Christian life to a real one, with my excitement and enthusiasm back to reach kids for Christ. It's been hard to get excited, but I was excited on Sunday. The message was from God because I never would have gone there without His guidance.
BTW, here's a video where they mention the verse shortly before but do an excellent job illustrating the fact that God paid a great price for me.
Pray for my friend and his wife, kid and one on the way. It's not good right now.
