A funny thing happened on the way to the company Christmas party

Actually the funny thing happened once we were already there. As we walked in the door to the banquet room all of the upper management were standing in a line with their wives and as you entered you had to shake their hands and wish them Merry Christmas and vice versa. One of the wives saw that Jade was pregnant and asked when the baby was due. Jade told her Wesley was due in a few weeks. The wife then responded with "Oh, baby Jesus. Baby Jesus," and held out her hands towards Jade's stomach. For about 30 seconds the lady referred to our son as "Baby Jesus." It was pretty funny.

I was tempted to tell her, "No, it's mine. He's all natural. No immaculate conception here."

Good Times

Wesley's Education

I signed Wesley up for Catholic school yesterday. He's just growing up so fast. One minute he's in the womb and the next he's well...he's still in the womb. But man he's kicking like he's ready to come out. I hope he's not claustrophobic and getting all panicky in there. Today I put my mouth to Jade's belly button and said, "Welsey, I am your father." I think that calmed him down a bit.

So yesterday some ladies from the Catholic church down the street were walking around doing a survey of the neighborhood trying to get a feel for the need of a daycare/school. They asked me if we had any kids and I said we were expecting our first in January and they said, "Oh good", "How exciting," etc, etc. I preceded to tell them that Jade would be a stay at home mom so we wouldn't be too interested in a daycare program. Then one of the ladies said, "Oh so your going to homeschool." And I said with a concerned look on my face, "Whoa, maybe not homeschool." (If you're interested in my views on homeschooling give me a call sometime and we'll talk about it). Then I said,"Well we still have a few years before we have to make any decisions like that anyway." And the homeschool lady said, "OK then, we'll mark you down as interested."

The lady with her said, "Well the baby's not even here yet, and the program is only available for kids 2 years and older."

But the homeschool lady wasn't deterred. She took my name, house number, and checked the "interested" box. She asked me if I was Catholic and I said no and she said that's ok, "It's for everybody."

So...Just like that Wesley's going to Catholic school. Whew...one less thing to worry about. I'm told you have to plan ahead for these kinds of things.

Pressing On

Sing-Song Phenomenon

So...I don't know if anyone else has ever experienced this phenomenon, but the truth is, I experience it quite regularly. I'll explain in a minute, but first a little background info.

For some crazy reason, I like to sing. Now anyone who knows me even a little bit, knows that me singing doesn't always (possibly ever) create an enjoyable sound for those around. As I know this, I usually restrict my nonharmonious vocal chords to the privacy of my own home, car, or church where all sounds are joyful to the Lord (my grandma told me so).

That said, I have to give a thankful shout out to my beautiful, pregnant wife who doesn't necessarily encourage my making of tunes, but does tolerate it rather well (She doesn't even flinch anymore).

Anyway, on with the phenomenon... Many times I will be driving in my car when a song on the radio or a CD is played that I know pretty well. So, natually I begin to sing along and within a minute or so, my song volume can raise quite high (not obnoxiously high because that wouldn't sound good.) When this happens, usually around the chorus because I know the words better, I tend to feel rather proud and begin to listen to myself. Man... sometimes I sound pretty good. And when I sound good, I obviously want to hear myself a little better and not that inferior sound coming out of the car speakers. So...I wait for the right moment when the chorus starts up again, make sure my voice volume is at the right level, turn the radio off, and keep singing...........

I don't know what happens. The beautiful sound my voice was making just seconds before disappears the moment the radio is off. All I hear is some obnoxious post-pubescent male voice shouting at the top of his lungs about "how to save a life" or choosing to "be a blessing for life" or some starving musician playin his drum "pa rum pum pum pum."

Now you might be tempted to say that this is rather sad that a 24 year old man who "can't carry a tune in a bucket" (What the heck does that mean anyway? Should we start telling all the colorblind people of the world they can't smell the color nine? Seriously) wishes to sing like a canary. But I don't need your pity. I'm actually thankful for my shy vochal chords. They keep me humble unlike the rest of you who walk into the room like you're walking onto a yacht.

But seriously, you do look a little funny carrying that bucket.

(What kind of bucket is it anyway? I always pictured a 5-gallon bucket. What do you think?)

Pressing On

Shrink Back = Destroyed

So I've been reading through the book of Hebrews. There's some pretty good stuff in there.

The last verse of Chapter 10 says "But we are not of those who shrink back and are destroyed, but of those who believe and are saved." In context, the rest of the chapter talks about Christ's sacrifice forgiving all sins and the confidence we should have to approach God and trust Him with our lives. The writer goes on to remind the Hebrews of their earlier trials when they first came to Christ.

"Remember those earlier days after you had received the light, when you stood your ground in a great contest in the face of suffering. Sometimes you were publicly exposed to insult and persecution; at other times you stood side by side with those who were so treated. You sympathized with those in prison and joyfully accepted the confiscation of your property, because you knew that you yourselves had better and lasting possessions. "

Apparently, the Hebrews were getting weary of "standing their ground" and no longer enjoyed public exposure to "insults and persecution" and didn't really want to "stand beside" and submit themselves to the same treatment of those who were facing suffering. Apparently, at this point the Hebrews were forgetting about their "better and lasting possessions" and instead began to focus on the temporal things of this world.

So the writer encourages them to not "throw away their confidence" but to persevere. He reminds them "we are not of those who shrink back and are destroyed, but of those who believe and are saved."

What interests me is the comparison between "shrink back"/"believe" and "destoyed"/"saved." When the writer says "shrink back", what is he talking about? "Shrink back" from what? Persecution, Empathy, Standing our Ground in Christ, Keeping our faith strong, Persevering in hard times...Believing God's promises?

Secondly, how does shrinking back destroy us? Perhaps when we shrink back from the things of God, from forgiveness and the fruits of the Spirit we find ourselves focusing inward on ourselves, how we were wronged by those who insulted us, and the unfairness of it all. I think anytime we take our focus off of things above ("better and lasting possessions") we inevitably begin to walk the wide road of destruction. There are Christians who destroy their hearts and subsequently their lives by shrinking back and harboring the bitterness that accompanies suffering when not viewed through their confidence in Christ.

So I suppose if I were to offer a challenge it would be to not "shrink back" from Christ's love and the actions that accompany it, but to believe His promises and persevere.

I mean heck, if...
shrink back = destroyed
believe = saved
I'm rooting for believe.

So this was kind of long for a first post, but I'm just getting the hang of this. Maybe next time will be shorter.

Pressing On