it was requested that i post some pics of our trip to nyc. as i did this, i realized the greatness of blogs and photos in that you guys are not trapped in my living room watching my slideshow. you can turn me off whenever you want, and i don’t know the difference! how great is that?!? well, click here to see the pics.

for those of you who read this and wonder why there is nothing new, i apologize. dana and i hit the road last week to take in the great school of the USMA. we had a pre-game event for a huge baylor contingent, and then we hung out in NYC for a couple of days.

let me say that west point is one cool place. i had respect for those cadets before, but i really do so now. everybody was polite and helpful, and they were all in incredible shape. i can’t imagine running those hills, but if you want to get your people in shape, put them in the hills and make them run.

our time in NYC was great. we had fun seeing all the usual sites, and catching the show STOMP. we highly recommend the show if it travels to a town near you. they have great talent. both of us had been before, but we were able to catch some sites that neither of us had see before. we scratched that itch and we’ll now move on to other vacations sites. we definitely decided the big city is not for us - great to visit, but not to live.

some time last week my wife prayed the most dangerous prayer you can pray. during her prayer time, she prayed and told God, use me.” well, her request was granted yesterday.

you see, our church is second in line to receive victims of hurricane katrina in waco. there are all sorts of things that go along with being a shelter. She got a call from griff, our youth minister at church, who asked her to head up the food effort for the shelter. without pausing, she agreed to take on that job.

it’s quite a responsibility to make sure that 50-100 people get fed three times a day for an indefinite time. the great news is that the response to the call for help has been answered from all over. not only has our church responded, but we’re getting calls from churches all over waco, lorena, etc. baylor students are volunteering as well as other people from the community. that’s for everything, not just food.

the thing i love is watching my wife work. i wondered if she would just panic and worry, but she has jumped in and shown no signs of panic. she’s an organization queen, so she’s in her element. it makes me swell with pride and i know she’s enjoying the work. she’s always supported me, and now it’s my turn again to support her. i love it. she’s awesome.

well, i could say more about katrina, but what is there to say that nobody hasn’t already said? it’s sad, sad, sad. devastation and grief. loss of life and for some, hope. our God is an awesome God, and he brings out the best in people, even in the worst of times. it’s time for the Church to rise to the occasion and show people God’s love in their time of need. Franklin Graham challenged churches of all denominations to take on 10 people each or more. he says that it would solve much of this crisis. i doubt it will happen, but it’s quite a challenge.

that’s way too much for now. take care and comment if you want. all you do is click Comment below and fill out the form.

this article was pointed out to me by a fellow church member, who also happens to be the interim chaplain at baylor. it falls along the lines of some subjects that i’ve felt convicted about lately.

our church is a very strong church in waco, and has a solid foundation - thanks to our pastor emeritus, RVD. we have come to a plateau as far as growth, though. in our search for a new pastor, i see a real chance for us to grow and make a bigger difference in our community.

i could go on and on with my latest thoughts here. (and i will later with another post) this article did not start my thinking, but added to it. read it and tell me what you think:

– >10 Reasons why your church sucks<--

i’ll have enough time to do something like this. maybe in retirement. it seems that a former hollywood stuntman likes vikings and ice cream.

ice cream ship

found via relevant magazine, which was recommended to me by griff martin.