how tired is this? pix

even the most active of little boys eventually run out of steam.

on vacation (again) pix

yes, i'm on vacation, so not blogging regularly. but, shoppping with Iz is lots of fun and he got to see the big guy and get his picture taken with him.

he wasn't sure about the beard, but S.C. did a great job and let him feel the beard--it was real. Iz really likes to feel faces right now anyway.

so, in case i don't blog again until it's too late...

Merry Christmas to all - that's right, i said Christmas. that's the day i celebrate and Christ is the reason i celebrate it. i respect your right and beliefs, but likewise, i will tell you about Jesus and why He came. i'll tell you how He changed my life. and, even if you're offended by the notion, i pray for you, that you come to know Christ and celebrate His birth.

shopping list video

here's a simple video of perspective during the holiday season.

a historic high chair pix

this was my brother's high chair. then it was my high chair.
then, my brother's kids used it at grammy & papaw's house.
now, israel got to use it for thanksgiving this year as well.
they don't make high chairs like they used to.

finally thanksgiving pix

this is a historic photo, though you may not realize it. never before (ever!) have my dad and his three sisters been together in the same room at the same time as all four spouses. sure, they've seen each other often through the years, but not all at the same time. it was a really neat thing to see at thanksgiving this year. and, you may want to note, that this is ALWAYS the order in which the adamson kids sit for pictures--from L to R: viva, eileen, seth and cecy.

another great weekend in the life of jared

perhaps you've already read that israel started walking consistently this weekend. always a plus for the morale of the weekend. but, i can't believed the vast sum of greatness that i experienced this weekend.

• i had a day off on friday. i got to spend extra time with israel which is always a good thing. plus it was payday which helps soften the blow of bills coming due (i don't like bills, but i'm glad to be able to pay my bills).
• friday night i had a call-back audition for a new show with a new group. it was a little nerve-wracking and yet gratifying to be among so many deeply talented people (do i belong here with these people?).
• saturday morning brought a call from the producer of the show inviting me to join the cast. it wasn't a part that i read for, in fact, it was a dual part of two smaller roles. however, i'm fairly familiar with the characters (i saw the movie and the stage version) and i am so excited! i'm going to have great fun being a nice guy and then a evil guy! finally all these years of multiple personalities will pay off!
• of course, saturday was our annual open house. it was an incredibly full day, but we had a great time and hope our guests did as well. deep down, we're glad you like the food, but really want you to feel welcome in our home and also, we want you to know that our home is a safe place to be yourself and refresh your spirit through love and fellowship. we estimate about 150 guests came through on saturday, including family, church family, co-workers, students (past and present), current boyfriends (yes, kara's ian was there for a while) and a few people that i didn't really even know, but we enjoyed getting to know them.
• sunday was a good morning in church. if you've never experienced our church, you need to. while we are all only human and susceptible to fall, we know that God is great and that everyone is welcome here. the music had a different flavor as a couple of band members had the morning off from playing, but as always, it's a joy to participate in empowering people to come into God's presence through music.
• sunday afternoon was rehearsal for a show we're doing that opens this week. it went very well. in fact, depsite the fact that we started late due to the music director and producer being over booked and running a few minutes late (me and rhonda), we finished early and everyone is gearing up for opening night on this coming friday.
• sunday evening was our chance to see the kids' choir production of fear not factor. what joy to watch! though it was a little hard to not be involved this year, it's really refreshing to know that i have hard working and reliable people who are willing to step up and make the necessary sacrifices to bring this message of hope to a number of people (estimated attendance was around 300 for both nights). of course, the kids were well-rehearsed and cute, but i was truly touched by many things: the quantity of kids (24!), the purity of voices, the quality of music (they performed well) and the message was well done and easily understood.

i will never understand why You bless me like You do, but i'm humbly grateful for it. please don't let me keep it to myself, though. show me how to bless others and to spread around the goodness that is You in my life.

and i pray especially today for the family that has believed lies about me and my family. Father God, i really don't know what to do about this situation. keep Your hand over my mouth so that i don't say things i shouldn't; keep Your other hand to restrain me from striking out in defensiveness. i hope You have lots of hands to keep me in line. show us how to build a bridge to restore the relationship. open their eyes to the honest truth. help us in our hearts to not be angry or offended, but rather to be filled with the love that we claim to have for them. remind me to pray for them and to bring them to Your throneroom for You are the only one who can help them. i ask you to continue to provide for their daily needs. and now, more than ever, i plead with you to provide a place where they can have healthy emotional development, free from bias or ignorance. and, above all, i pray for two things: reveal Your true self to them (let them come to know You as i know You) and i pray for Your will to be present in their lives, in this situation and in my family's lives as well.

big mouth? pix

it's a little difficult to see, but he discovered on this bright morning that two pacifiers are better than one.

the reason for safety locks pix

these four pictures are the single reason we had to install cabinet safety locks. we're not completely oppressive to our child--we did give him one cabinet for him to play with and store his treasures of miss-matched tupperware, old pot holders, etc. we're thinking that santa might bring him some wooden spoons to chew on and bang on the tupperware with.

washing dishes

israel loves the dishwasher. whenever kara is loading or unloading, he rushes to her aid (literally, from anywhere in the house, he crawls to the kitchen as fast as possible). usually, he grabs on to the bottom draw and rattles it (to make noise). he even tries to chew on it ocassionally. i tried to tell him not to chew on it, but rhonda reminded me, "it's clean. it is the dishwasher afterall!" and, when it's running, he'll sometimes lean against it and fell the vibrations and place his ear against it, too.

in his boxers pix

he's still in diapers size three, but this day he wore his "box"-ers.

we have witnesses

yesterday was our annual open house and, as the Good Book says, with the eyes of many witnesses:

ISRAEL IS WALKING!!!

i'm not sure why he waited until everyone was there, but he did and it was wonderful to share the moment with our family and friends.

oh, by the way, thanks to all who came. i'm sure i'll blog about you more on a later date.

snow baby pix

he hated getting that bulky snowsuit on, but it was worth it once he got to the snow! one part was especially fun to watch. he couldn't figure out why he wasn't able to pick things up (he had mittens on). he tried and tried to pick up some leaves, but alas gave up and just rolled and crawled in the snow. it was his first snow and he loved it!

we try to give him food pix

we really do try to give him a balanced diet, but alas, socks were the entree of the day when we snapped these pix.

back again

for your faithful readers out there, whether you care what i write or just want to see more Iz pix, let me announce--i'm back.
after a week of vacation and a long holiday weekend prior to that i'm back to blogging. you're right if you suppose i could have blogged while i was away. but, when i'm away, i really go away (mentally, though not necessarily locationally). besides, i was too busy getting ready for the christmas open house. those cookies don't bake themselves and candy doesn't get spoke into being.
so, during this coming week or so, i should have more to say and expound upon. i should have more pictures to post. i should have more stories of my blessed life with a wife, a teenager and a baby.
until the next time,

O Great God in Heaven, thank you for all that you are and all that you do for us and to us. in this season of advent, teach us to renew our hope as we read and study prophecy of Christ's first coming and the coming to come. remind us of those things truly important. and for those closest to me, i pray today that we all spend wisely and stay within our budgets--that our eyes are not bigger than our purses when, though well-intentioned in our giving, the strong temptation is to buy now and pay for it later. i ask you to heal those that are sick. from stomach flu to cancer and HIV, i plead for you to intervene and heal their bodies and minds. and, through this healing, bring them divine awareness, true humility and repentance to receive your salvation.

busy (again)

with such a title you might think i'm writing to complain about myself once again. but, thus is not the case. i'm writing for a different perspective on my last post. i suppose it would be less confusing to have entitled this one "busy part 2", but i've never claimed to be non-confusing (just ask kara about that). so anyway...
i've not been blogging for very long. so some statistics are easy to track. such is the case with this one. no other posting has generated more feedback to me than my last post: "busy". everyone is busy. my fellow Christ-followers especially resounded with the posting and let me know it.
tangent: if we're so busy, we are we taking time to write and read blogs?
i want to thank everyone for sounding off. busy-ness can alienate us from those that we love, but the response has reminded me that i am not alone.
but, just to let everyone know that i'm serious, i want to tell you that i actually left someone hanging with an indeterminate commitment. of course, the holidays don't last forever (it just seems like it), so planning for january and beyond has already begun.
one person gave me an invitation to an event--an event that i would really like to attend. but, i shared my heart with them and told them i was not making any further commitments at this time. i assured them that i would probably be OK to come when the time came and that i would let them know for sure (to assure enough food. there better be food!).
it's not much, but fewer commitments are a good start to being less busy. less busy is a good start to being a better listener of Christ.

Holy Lord, please continue to teach me to listen. for my own benefit and the benefit of those around me, let me be less busy and more active in the things that really matter: love of family, time in Your Word, worship, serving and healthy living.

busy

why do we let ourselves get so busy?
i'm sure we'd all agree that we do it to ourselves. no one is making us busy against our wills. we keep agreeing to all of the busyness.
i'm learning that there is a major difference between busyness and hardship. some have a full plate dealing with issues of hardship (poor health, financial woes, etc). but, busyness is beyond that. sometimes we have both at the same time. hardship is often inflicted upon us, but busyness is brought upon ourselves.
when will we learn to quiet our hearts and minds?
it seems that too many people think God can speak louder than the noise. i'm not sure that, fundamentally, that is correct. i'm sure God can speak louder than the noise, for He can do all things. but, i'm not convinced that God would speak louder than the noise. His own Word tells us to "be still" before Him. He cannot contradict Himself, so i'm pretty sure that means to do it.
it is in those still moments when He speaks, not loudly, but clearly.
to be too busy is, in fact, too tell God to shut up. we choose cacophony over the still, small voice.

be encouraged, fellow journey-ers. God is patient with us when we bite off more than we can chew. He stays with us and says, "don't talk with food in your mouth. stay with Me and I will help you finish chewing and digesting all that you've taken on yourself. all that you're trying to eat will probably cause you heartburn and indigestion, but I'm here with you for that, too."

what a fool i am, o God. teach me to stay with Your quietness and to take time for the really important things, things i should do, not just things i can do.

deep sigh

finally it seems our email is working again.
please resume using jadamson@lovedtolove.org.
thank you.

baby moment

israel continues to grow and develop.
this weekend, he started to stand unassisted. he wobbles a bit, but not too bad. it's really funny because whenever he feels like he's started to slip, he tries to grip the floor with his toes. he tends to let his feet spread into the splits, but once he reaches a certain level, he just plops down on his butt.
this past saturday night, rhonda was folding some laundry. israel crawled over to the basket and pulled himself up to see what she was doing. she asked him, "are you going to help mama fold the laundry?"
he then proceeded to begin pulling a sock out of the basket. he looked at it for a moment and then tossed it over his shoulder like discarded goods. he then pulled another sock. he tried to pull a t-shirt, but it was stuck under some other clothes, so he just grunted a frustration and then went on to another sock. he then discovered underwear (which strangely was the things that he started to put in his mouth--we stopped him in time!), but eventually just tossed it over his shoulder, too.
Great God in Heaven, however it depends on us, let us continue to nurture in our son the desire to help and to work and to be a laborer for worthy causes, even if it's just laundry.

problems

first, let me officially notify you that our office email is down and has been for almost a week. we still have internet access, but no email is being delivered to or from our office network (except within the network itself). if you need to contact me, temporarily use adamsong22@msn.com for all communication. in fact, it would be helpful for you to cc to my regular lovedtolove.org account just to see when it reopens.

secondly, let me vent for a moment about communication break-down. i'm not specifically mentioning the email issues. they are unto themselves an inconvenience. but, i'm speaking more towards when words fail.
we've known nearly since it's inception that email is not the most reliable form of communication because you can't sense the writer's tone. that even goes back to typed notes and letters. same problem, different era. at least with handwritten letters you could...well...actually...no, it's not always reliable. even God's own Word, the Bible, has so many misinterpretations.
is there a way to improve communication?
yes!
what is it?
God only knows.
for now, my prayer is that people rediscover sincerity. say what you mean and mean what you say. speak love, compassion, generosity and verbalize disappointment, concern and correction.
please offer your stories of how communication improved in your life. i could use the help. (don't forget to send them to adamsong22@msn.com).

halloween baby pix

i know you can't see kara louise behind the pumpkin boy

he's smiling, but he actually hated wearing the hat

i love my mama!

i'm smiling and i haven't actually even had any candy

a full day

sundays are always full days, but yesterday felt like it was going to burst. i am so blessed to be a part of a church that is so active and alive. sometimes "alive" brings growing pains, but taking my cue from all the masichists out there--pain lets you know you're alive!

go God! teach me patience with those not functioning on my timetable. teach me graciousness to the honest and willing spirit of those who work for Your glory. teach me, above all, selflessness in all things.

chief hottom-bottom rides again

for some reason, when you strip down the baby and leave his shirt on his head, similar to a native american head-dress, the smiles flow a-freely! plus, last night i was sure there was a nitrous-oxide leak in our house because he literally laughed for an hour (intermitten with chewing on various items and the subsequent drool). so, chief hottom-bottom rides again!

Father, i need Your assurance today that everything is going to be OK. i'm overwhelmed by everything--so much is weighing on my heart and my mind. i don't know how i can cope much longer. give me Your comfort. give me Your peace. give me an inexplicable assurance and reminder that You are faithful and that You keep us and protect us. i rely on You, for i have nothing else.

registration

our family sometimes participates in market research or sensory research product tests. most often it's food, but sometimes there are other items like women's make-up, men's grooming products, etc.
well, today i went to update our user profile to include the kids.
i just had to laugh when it asked what stores the 7-month old frequently shopped. it also asked if there was a restricted diet. i had to answer 'yes', but when asked to explain i just put that he's a normal infant with normal infant eating habits.
automation can be a great tool, but it might someday overtake the human race if we don't account for common sense.

a great weekend

i had a great weekend, though it's far outside my typical weekend.

friday was normal: work, home, small group.

saturday was the big day to start cookie production. we may about 15 dozen and that doesn't count the dough that was made, but not yet baked. we didn't get as far as we wanted, but still a good start.

then, we went to a pumpkin patch with israel. i don't know that he appreciated it completely as much as some of the other kids from our small groups' families. but, we got some great pictures (see below) and so, we count it as a great afternoon. besides, the weather was perfect! thanks, tawnya, for coming up with the idea.

after we arrived at home, and israel fell asleep, we started to get ready for our sweetest day date. i really don't buy into the whole sweetest day commericality, but we had a chance to go out, so we did. this was the first time we had a sitter for israel just for us a date (as opposed to work or church, etc).

we grabbed dinner at izzy's (the kosher joint, not my kid's room). as always, the potato pancakes are worth the trip, but the sandwiches are also the best. http://www.izzys.com/

then, we headed down to annies (the venue, not someone from our circle of friends) to catch triad (and others) in concert. john, who's been guitarring with us at church for several weeks now, is in this band, triad. we caught their act and we're really impressed with them. i'm anxious to catch them again sometime soon. we caught their entire set and a couple others, but couldn't stay for all of the acts. you know us good church boys and girls must be in bed early on saturdays.

sunday was also outside the norm: brian was out of town, the instruments were reduced in number, etc. but, it was a great day in the Lord's house.

the choir never sounded better. i've received at least 3x the normal number of compliments. keep in mind that our choir always sounds good, but yesterday really began to dig deep into the quality level of great. hard work pays off, for sure, but we've got a great, committed group and God is blessing us like never before.

the simple trio of accompanyment was a refreshing alternative to our full band sound. even with the drummer looking and feeling like death, he played his heart out.

danny's sermon was a non-traditional format that hit the nail square on the head.

i got the privilege of rehearsing with the kids' choir in the afternoon (as jen was out of town). you are all in for a great treat when the kids present their program. already, it is taking shape and you're sure to be impressed by their work.

by the time i got home and ate dinner, israel and i baked more cookies and went to bed, pleasantly tired by all of our days.

Lord, you are an amazing blesser of Your children. thank You for all You do for us and the ways Your love is demonstrated to us.

my 7-month birthday picture.

learning to type with papa

just like a country boy, chewin' on some straw

i love my mamame and mama again

ornery waiting to happen!

we are blessed

here's more baby writings. you can skip it if it nauseates you.
of course, everyone's baby is the most beautiful, most talented, most intellegent, etc.
which, of course, leads to baby comparisons and measureing-ups.
however, last night as there were several babies gathered for church directory photos and others who currently had babies in their lives were watching each others' babies and sharing stories and memories and joys, it struck me: every baby is a precious life and a blessing to be cherished.
during the many years of fertility treatments (with no success) that rhonda and i faced, we often found comfort in the truth from scripture that says children are a blessing, not something to be expected. we never are good enough to deserve blessings; God just gives them to us because He loves us. we realized that we were so blessed in so many ways, that we cannot deny that God loves us, even though the pain and emptyness was overwhelming.
so, to everyone who sees a baby, i say, "take note of God's handiwork."
every baby is precious and fearfully and wonderfully made.

praise to the God in heaven for His indescribable gift of babies. help us be diligent in teaching them about You and raising them in the admonition of the Lord.

update on last post

after posting about our plans for the annual christmas open house, rhonda and i finally confirmed some of our menu items. we're pleased to announce that 2007 is the year of fudge with 25 different flavors of fudge on the menu.

of course, that will probably actually trim down to 15 flavors, but always start by dreaming big and then trim down as situations necessitate.

update on last post

after posting about our plans for the annual christmas open house, rhonda and i finally confirmed some of our menu items. we're pleased to announce that 2007 is the year of fudge with 25 different flavors of fudge on the menu.
of course, that will probably actually trim down to 15 flavors, but always start by dreaming big and then trim down as situations necessitate.

update on last post

so, after i wrote the last post about the upcoming christmas open house, rhonda and i made some decisions on menu, etc.

we're proud to announce that 2007 is the year of fudge with 25 different flavors of fudge planned (that'll probably actually work out to about 15, but dream big and then work out the details).

a sobering reality

even the big guy likes our cookies!

as the old gospel song says, "Christmas time's a-coming!"

that means plans have already been underway for a couple of months planning the menu for our annual christmas open house. this event is one of the highlights of our holiday traditions. it's our way to use our gifts (of food & cooking) to say "merry christmas" to our family, friends, students, etc. we've been doing it for 7 years now and we can hardly wait to do it this year.

but...

(everyone has a "but...")

this year perspectives have changed.

it's very difficult to make so many cookies when you're keeping one eye on the crawling baby. he'll only stay in the pack-n-play for so long.

it's very difficult to do baking times when you're helping your teenager with homework and then taking her to work (and then pick her up from work).

we'll we're still committed to having, continuing our tradition. but, we warn you now--even though i'm sure we'll have plenty of cookies for all to enjoy, this year may be the year to do "adamson open house greatest hits". instead of variety, we're just going for volume.

but, as stated before, we'll have plenty of cookies for the 200+ guests we anticipate this year.

mark your calendars for saturday, december 8, 2-10pm.

a christmas perspective already

those who know me well know that my secret addiction is christmas CDs. i listen to them year 'round. they are familiar friends to me; they are my drug of choice.
so, even though it's mid-october, i just received my first two new purchases of the year (not counting january post-christmas 2006 clearance rack great deals). one is of an incredibly talented vocalist in contemporary christian music. i love his voice and his interpretations. i feel connected to him because he was "discovered" while working as a music minister in texas. i'm not in texas, but i'm sure that someday i'll be discovered. (that's a topic for a different blog.)
but, the other is a new recording from a well-established pop-duo of the 70s-80s (rhonda was a big fan of theirs. in fact, i think she still has a cassette of them).
both albums are really well done. i like them both alot. i wouldn't go so far as to say that i like them equally, but once you get above a certain level of "good" then it's not really a contest anymore.
but, one song from the pop-duo has struck me oddly. please understand that i'm not criticizing the song for i see many different ways to interpret the lyrics. however, Truth is not vague. therefore, let me offer this christmas perspective.
no child should cry at christmas is the title and an oft repeated lyric in this song. i'm guessing they are referring to the joy and peace that comes at christmas and how good will and charity helps to provide comfort to many who are less fortunate.

• but, what if kids were allowed to cry at christmas?
• what if a bratty attitude was denied a gift?
• what if a squabble of selfishness was dealt with appropriately and not smoothed over because it's a holiday?
• how sad is it that we celebrate the birth of Christ be justifing anti-Christ behavior just because it's a warm and fuzzy day?

because we are too often too prosperous, our gift giving is too much. we don't actually believe that it's the thought that counts, but rather the volume that counts.

i know i'm new to this parenting thing and that we've got inside scoop on an oddly formed family. but, let me challenge you to let your kids learn lessons that sometimes involve tears. let me challenge you to give love instead of tanglible things.

it's just my opinion, but some kids should cry at christmas.

for your entertainment

these people may not approve of this posting, but many have requested it, so here it is:

community night

last night was our first community night of the season. it was so much fun!
i was there early, about 4 hours early, but that's because it's our month to cook. we had polynesian volcanoes which are always a hit.

chow mein noodles
rice
sliced celery
sliced almonds
crushed pineapple
shredded coconut
chopped chicken (or turkey works)
shredded cheddar cheese
chicken gravy

danny did a great job of getting us to interact with those we don't know as well. one such was was with tournament of a popular game. i would like to point out that i was the ultimate winner and champion of that tournament. i'd like to thank my wife, my kids, my small group and all the little people.
i really did get to know someone new. this fellow's been coming to church for a while now, but circumstances haven't allowed for us to get to know each other until last night. to be honest, we don't have much in common in terms of hobbies and interests, but his passioned plea to my wife about one particular piece of equipment i'd like to own really, really helped my cause (rhonda just doesn't want me to have a motorcycle, but i think we're winning her over).
so...

• the food was good
• the fellowship was good
• the games were fun
• the info-mercials were...um...well...interesting(?)!

it was a great evening that sums up what community nights are supposed to be. i can't wait for the next one.

it's been a while (pix)

last week wasn't my best week for keeping up with the blog. oh well, too bad for me.

but, it was a full weekend, so i've got lots to talk about and more pictures.

first, as i've been reporting, israel has been sitting on the potty. yes, we realize this is really early according to the current american philosophy of potty-training, but he can sit up, so we have him sit up on the potty for a little while each day. last week was a good week for this because as we figure up the price-per-diaper, we've saved about $3.50 so far. so far, we have not any pictures of him actually sitting on the potty, but i'm sure that'll come soon (purely for embarassment purposes). but, this is a picture of the first thing he did with the potty. please keep in mind, at this point of the process, it hadn't actually been used, so sanitation was not a problem.

Secondly, this weekend was homecoming at kings. it's fun for rhonda to get to go back on occasion to her old stomping grounds. this year had perfect weather and was a wonderful evening. of course, our team won and israel enjoyed the parade and the game (with a hefty-sized nap during the game). courtney, sydney and kara were also in the parade and we were quite proud of them in their respective skills (unicycle and singing). but also, please note what is printed on the baby's shirt.

saturday after homecoming means one thing: the dance. so, our home was full on that afternoon with 4 teenage girls primping and dressing and getting ready for the dance. even though courtney had her own date and dinner plans, she needed her cool aunt rhonda to help with hair and make-up (which the cool aunt rhonda was more than pleased to do). also, kara had 2 friends over and they went as a group (they shared a date between them all). all four of the girls were glamourously beautiful and i was quite proud.

on a side note, of the dresses that i was allowed to have an opinion regarding the amount of cleavage being shown, well, let me just say that there is no way to measure the pride that i felt as kara and courtney both found dresses that were highly fashionable as well as modest. for whomever can hear my voice (ie-read my blog), you can find dresses that show beauty without showing everything else too. that's not to say that they other friends were inappropriate, i'm just not allowed to have an opinion.

finally, another milestone--israel can eat zweiback! it's really cute and he loves them, but almost not worth the mess, i must say.

butting heads

i'm pretty sure that one of my most uncomfortable feelings is when i butt heads with someone. for the most part, i can take differing opinions in stride. i try to be sensitive to others and their opinions and ideas, all the while sharing my side. but, on occasion we meet head-on. this is not to say that we are arguing or debating, but simply just not seeing eye-to-eye.
this conflict has popped up in several different relationships in my life:

• between me and my wife
• between me and my parents
• between me and co-workers
• between me and students

you get the idea.

i think the biggest part of the discomfort comes from the regard with which i hold these people. "i shouldn't have this problem with them. we're supposed to be on the same side." we always get through it, but compared to the national fear of public speaking, i'd rather speak in public than butt heads with those around me.

so, everyone knows that my blog always comes from real-life experiences. you'd probably like for me to enlighten you about whom i am speaking.

well, i'm not going to do it, but i do covet your prayers. i know we'll get through this, but sooner is better than later.

he's a genius

well, it's official...my son is a genius!
he turned 6months old this past wednesday and this morning he used the potty for the first time. in an age when kids are not allowed to attend kindergarten because they have not yet been potty trained, we now realize how advanced he truly is. we'll be looking into enrolling him at CCU next fall.

Abba, You have given us an incredible gift. thank You for him and thank You for the people who allow me to share my joy through silly and meaningless stories.

thursday part 2

i was right. God blessed it and it was a great night of rehearsal.

Father God, thank You for the teams of musicians You've assembled from our congregation.

thursdays

thursdays are a weekly occurance for me.

each thursday i arrive in the office around 3pm and begin to prepare for choir rehearsal and band rehearsal. today is in-line with that trend. but, so much is working against me today, though. i'm extremely tired. i have a killer headache. i'm ... i've....

wait, let me remind myself again--it's not about me.

i don't know how it is in your church, but here God blesses rehearsals, too. we have productive rehearsals, but equally importantly, we have fun fellowship, group accountability and mutual mentoring.

so, i've decided that i need to put my self-pity away and get ready for a great evening with friends in rehearsal.

God, bless our time together.

ps - gratuitous baby picture.