What a busy August we’ve had! It started with Camp (see post below). Then we had the first Sunday in our new church building (I’ll try to post some pics later). After that, my entire family (all 16 of us) went on a Disney Cruise to celebrate my parents’ 50th Wedding Anniversary (see pictures below). Finally, we had the Dedication for our new church building yesterday.
Oh, and the kids start school tomorrow!
Check out This Video.
So….. Were you amused, convicted, or both?
Last night one of my favorite movies — Regarding Henry — was playing on one of the cable channels. It is a movie that preaches the Gospel in a powerful way. If you haven’t seen it, go to your local video store and rent it. I give it my highest rating.
What other movies can you think of that preach the Gospel?
Here’s a list of all the songs I heard (experienced) at the three Seger shows. Each show I went to had a slightly tweaked set list.
Roll Me Away
Trying to Live My Life Without You
Wreck This Heart
Main Street
Old Time Rock and Roll
Wait for Me
Face the Promise
Sunspot Baby
No Matter Who You Are
Betty Lou
No More
We’ve Got Tonight
Turn the Page
Travelin’ Man
Beautiful Loser
Real Mean Bottle
Simplicity
Ramblin’ Gamblin’ Man
Cest La Vie
Satisfied
Nutbush City Limits
Good For Me
Sightseeing
Fire Down Below
Horizontal Bop
Katmandu
Still the Same
Hollywood Nights
Against the Wind
Rock and Roll Never Forgets
My faithful readers will notice that I’ve changed the look of my site. I liked the other theme, but I didn’t think it was very ‘readable’ — the font was too small and the colors made it difficult to read on some monitors. The theme I chose is not very exciting or colorful, but it is very readable.
I may change it again soon if I find something better that is also easy to work with.
Well, the waiting is almost over. The BIG Game is next Saturday. After easily defeating Northwestern and Indiana, number one Ohio State and Number two Michigan will play for the Big Ten title and a spot in the National Championship game. This is the biggest rivalry in college football (and maybe in all of sports). Many fans believe that if the game is close, Michigan and Ohio State should play again for the National Championship. That’s not likely to happen, but it should.
I am a Michigan fan living right in the middle of Ohio State country (two of our elders are Ohio State grads). But it is a friendly rivalry here. The OSU fans I know give me a hard time about cheering for U of M, but they do so in a nice way. I will be proudly flying my Michigan flag next Saturday. GO BLUE!!!
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In other news, Ashland High School’s football team is now 12-0 after winning last night. They now advance to the Region 6 championship game against Piqua. Go Arrows!!!
Occasionally I check my stats to see how people arrived at my Web Site. Most people simply type in the address, or click a link from another site. But some people come here through a web search (usually Google or Yahoo!). Here are some of the searches the brought people in my site:
“Bob Seger CD”
“Jeff Gordon joke coffee cup”
“American International iPod nucleus”
“How to complain about a church”
But I think my favorite has to be this one:
“I love Jeff Slater”
That was from someone in New Jersey. Obviously someone with a thing for tall, handsome, dynamic, middle-aged preachers. Either that, or someone in mental hospital.
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Well, the Tigers lost a tough one last night. A game they should have won. But the Series is not over yet, despite what the “experts” at ESPN might be saying. Remember 1968!!! Go Tigers!!!
I’ve been bad about posting lately. September and October are busy months around here, and blogging has not been at the top of my priority list. I know that’s a lame excuse….. but it’s all I’ve got!
This Sunday we will have our annual Parent Dedication Day. We will will recognize the families who have had children in the past year, our elders will pray for them and encourage them to raise their children in the Lord, and we will challenge the congregation to help these families in their important task. We had one lady in the congregation who was not happy with our plans to do this. She sincerely believes it is unscriptural. I talked with her, and our elders went to her home to talk with her. We even offered to do the actual ceremony after the “closing prayer.” But she would not be persuaded, and I doubt that she and her husband will come back. It is very sad. They are a wonderful couple and they will be missed.
But the whole incident made me thankful for our elders. They could have easily given in to her and cancelled the event (and elders I worked with at another congregation certainly would have). But after discussing it, they came to the conclusion that this event is Biblical, helpful to the new parents, and encouraging to the congregation. And while it is difficult to have to part ways with good people, it is not right to stop a good work that blesses people because of a mere difference of opinion.
The following Sunday, October 8th, we will have our annual Friend & Family Day. This is always a great day for us. Lord willing, this will be the last F&F Day in our current building. Our new facility is coming along nicely and we should be in it by March or April of next year.
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How ’bout them Tigers! They made the playoffs for the first time since 1987. I’m hoping they can hold on and win the division (and then, of course, the World Series!).
It was just a normal September day…..
I arrived at the church building at approximately 8:30 a.m., said “Good Morning” to my secretary, and settled in to my office. At about 9:15, I was returning to my office after refilling my coffee when my secretary said that she had received an e-mail from a friend saying that a plane had crashed into the World Trade Center. My first thought was that it was a joke. And then I thought it was probably a small, single-engine plane. But then she said it was serious – that an airliner had hit the WTC. We turned on a TV, just in time to see a replay of the plane hitting tower 2.
We didn’t know it yet, but the world had just changed.
Shortly after that, they showed video of smoke coming from the Pentagon. My secretary looked at me with an expression of concern and asked, “What is happening?” We both got a sick feeling in our stomach when we saw the first tower collapse. We realized that no work was going to get done that day, so we went home early.
As the day progressed, we began to realize that the world had indeed been changed. Cable TV networks canceled their programming, professional sports were put on hold, churches all across the country (including ours) had prayer services on Friday, September 14th, and our nation was united in a way that I had never seen before.
Shortly after 9/11/2001, Max Lucado wrote a piece called “Is This Normal?” Here is an excerpt:
America was different this week. We wept for people we did not know. We sent money to families we’ve never seen. Talk-show hosts read Scriptures, journalists printed prayers. Our focus shifted from fashion hemlines and box scores to orphans and widows and the future of the world.
We were different this week. Republicans stood next to Democrats. Catholics prayed with Jews. Skin color was covered by the ash of burning towers. This is a different country than it was a week ago.
We’re not as self-centered as we were. We’re not as self-reliant as we were. Hands are out. Knees are bent. This is not normal. And I have to ask the question, “Do we want to go back to normal?”
Unfortunately, we did go back to normal. People have forgotten the evil of that day. Politicians are screaming at each other, trying to blame everyone except the terrorists for the attacks. Some want to try to understand the terrorists, or even negotiate with them (how do you negotiate with someone who only wants to kill you?).
Thankfully, some still remember. Pray for our enemies. Pray for Those who willingly put themselves in harm’s way to protect us. And pray for those who were personally affected by the events of that day.
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