West Cocoa Chat

Perhaps a sign of maturity is when a child matriculates from asking a parent “what” they do to “why” are they doing what they’re doing? If so, then my son took a little step forward last night. Before I expound let me just say that I feel that way because it demonstrates some evidence they have been thinking about someone else beside themselves.

On the way home from Steven’s pitching lessons last night, Steven asked me a question. I guess I wasn’t paying attention (Probably due to the fact that he was driving and my eyes were glued to the road!) because my answer apparently didn’t match up with his question.

Steven told me I seemed distracted lately. He said, “Dad, you’ll probably think this is an immature question but why are you an elder?” I told him I was proud of him for asking such a question. It is in the asking of such questions that we grow for we must re-examine ourselves. As I told him, it’s not a question I haven’t asked myself periodically in the last few years.

Steve followed up his question by letting me know the fact that my father had died relatively (age 54) young was weighing on his mind. He told me I seemed distracted and that I always seem to have something on my mind. He was worried that all of the stress was going to result in high blood pressure and that concerned him. I wanted to hug him at this point but he was keeping the car on the road and that was most satisfying to me.

Any way, he asked me if I had “elder stuff” on my mind when I was distracted. I was honest and told him it was probably true most of the time.
Again the question – “So why do you do it?”

Big pause.

I told him the thought of resigning as an elder had crossed my mind occasionally and it certainly had it’s upside. As for reasons to support my continued service I came up with:
1. The church needs me right now. Not that I’m anymore qualified than the next guy but we tried to appoint some elders about a year ago and ended up with about the same score (elders – 0, FSU – 7) FSU dropped on the Gators.
2. I actually “like” serving (most of the time) the church. Call me a sick guy but I do “enjoy” (if that’s the right word) being involved in people’s lives.
Final reason:
3. I’m excited about the light for Jesus our church can still become in our community. I actually want to have a part in that process.

When I gave Steven those 3 reasons he gave me one of those looks that I often give my students, one of amazement. I don’t know if he understood or bought what I said but he did say something very important that right now, has me leaking as Steve said yesterday.

He said, “O.K. Dad, I’ll pray for you.”

Maybe today is a good day for all of us to ask Steven’s question to ourselves. Why am I doing this?

Have a good day my brothers and sisters.

Thought I'd do a post to clear out my camera. That should indicate to you blone nation how important you are to me. Here goes:

This is the "high tech" garage sale lady I blogged about earlier. My father-in-law is on the right. You can almost hear her say, "Breaker, breaker 1-9, why is this guy taking my picture?"

See anything you like? How about the furniture? Greg – I’ll bet Jan will foam at the mouth if she sees this picture?

O.K., here is the evidence that a 15 year old can be helpful without having his arm twisted. I was so proud of Steven that day. He pitched right in without being asked. We had several people comment on his manners.

This is an old, old friend of mine. Bob and I have known each other since the 3rd grade which would be about 40 years! This was taken on Thanksgiving morning. Bob was helping me put a grill together.

This is for Judy. As we were putting my grill together, our cat, Buddy, decided to play in the box. His favorite game is attacking your hand as you scratch the box. The hand in the picture belongs to Bob.

This is the wedding we left the game for. Buzz is

on the right. We also grew up together. Buzz

was the Best Man at my wedding. This is his

second marriage. I think the Lord really blessed

Buzz this time. He and Jackie seem very happy.

And finally the group picture. The 4 guys in the pictures (from left - Mike, Buzz, Bob, and me) have known each other for over 40 years. From the left for the ladies are Shelby - Bob's wife, Rita - Mike's wife, Nikki - Buzz's daughter, Jacki - the bride, Jacki's daughter, and my wife Barb.

Hard to believe we've known each other for over 40 years. Hope you enjoyed the pictures. As Jim Rome would say, "I'm out blones."

First, a prayer request. Steven’s friend Ryan, who was diagnosed with meningitis over the weekend, has viral meningitis. This is certainly an answer to prayer as the bacterial variety only has a 50% survival rate. I spoke with Ryan’s Dad last night and he is still concerned. Ryan’s spinal tap is still leaking and this is causing him severe headaches and nausea. He was also experiencing some nausea with the morphine that was being administered. I could tell that Ryan’s Dad was still very concerned.

So here’s the request; pray that Ryan’s headaches stop and the doctors can find the right combination of medicines that will stop Ryan’s nausea.

Now to some positive snapshots – I must admit there are times when I read Steve’s or Randy’s blog with some envy when they refer to the experiences they are having with their "younger" children. I don’t know if Greg, Brady, or Keith experience this phenomena since they have older children but I do. At times I miss the "younger" Steven when he thought Dad could do no wrong. That’s not to say that there aren’t any "positives", as your kids become older.

One snapshot that came to me occurred Sunday. We had gone out to eat (still tasting that blackened Mahi-mahi sandwich) after church. The teens had finished their meal first so Steven and 2 of his buddies went out to our car to listen to the radio. I left a little early to go to the hospital. When I walked out to our car I found Steven and his 2 compadres listening to a C.D. of praise songs. Warm fuzzy feeling inside.

2nd Snapshot – Last night after dinner, Steven asked me if I would come into his bedroom and watch the Colts vs. Pitt. Game with him. At 15 I know he at times (Thank God they seem to be somewhat infrequent) thinks that his Mom and Dad are not cool. Didn’t we all at that age? And yet I received a personal invitation to join him in his world. For a few moments the pressure to become "independent" was gone and we were able to just enjoy the moment, father and son.

Have a good day my fellow blones. Don’t forget Ryan.

Back to work. The 5-day break was nice. Here’s a re-cap of my time away from work and blogging:

Wed –
A.M. – Wife had me cleaning our pool patio. Lots of mildew removed. Wife happier.

Later A.M. – Dropped off Steven at “voluntary” practice. Returned home for more honey-do’s including trimming hedge and cleaning guest bedroom.

Noon – Picked up Steven along with his 2 buddies, Devin and Ryan. Stay tuned for news about Ryan.

Afternoon – More honey-do’s. Getting tired.

Evening – Really tired. Waiting for friend from (Bob – Shelby – Nathen) South Carolina to arrive along with his family.

10pm – Bob arrives quite proud of the time he made staying off I-95 and taking alternate roads.

Midnight – “Nighty.”

Thanksgiving:

7am – Walked about 5 miles with Bob.

Noon – Turkey / peanut oil / turkey fryer prep.

1pm – frying first turkey. Must remember – keep temp at 350, 3.5 minutes per pound.

1:36pm – frying second turkey. Gotta have leftovers.

2:15 – Let the eating begin.

Rest of Day – a cycle of resting, eating, walking, and more eating.

Friday:

6:15am – (I hate the baseball coach) Wake Steve up. He has to be at the ballfield by 7am! Fortunately he catches a ride with our neighbor Tyler.

8am – At the ballfield to see Steven play. Doesn’t start. Comes in at the 4th inning. Plays 3b. Several putouts. Doesn’t bat due to being substituted for the out-going pitcher who is being “DH” for. Big mistake. Dad’s opinion. We lose.

12:04pm – Tee time. Golf course backed up. Carts unavailable.

12:34pm – Finally tee off after being “tee-ed off.” Boys are in tow.

3:30pm – We stop after 9 holes. Round taking too long. Yours truly shoots a 45 for 9 holes after being off a course for well over 6 months.

5pm – Mexican food. Yummy.

7pm – Harry Potter movie. Not bad.

Saturday:

10am – At the ball field. I like the coach again. Game one – Steven starts at 3b and goes 2 for 3 with a single and a double. The kid is stroking the ball. He’s small so they give him a diet of fastballs. Big mistake.

Noon – We leave for an outdoor wedding. One of my friends long-time friends (Buzz) getting married, 2nd time, they seem very happy.

Reception – Cell phone call to ballfield to check on son. Now pitching in 2nd game. Goes 3 innings. Gives up 2 runs in the 3rd. Next kid gives up 12 more runs. Reminders to friend to tell Steven to ice his arm.

Return Home. Bob and family leave to try and get an early start on traffic.

5pm – Invite neighbors Monty and Sally over for last shot of leftovers.

9pm – early bedtime.

Sunday:

9am – Watched 5th episode of the Andy Griffith Show. What a church!

10am – Ate half of a doughnut at fellowship time.

10:30am – Don unveils our intentions to start a small group ministry in March.

1pm – Lunch on the Banana River. Ate excellent blackened Mahi-mahi sandwich.

2pm – Went to Cape Canaveral Hospital’s (not due to sandwich) ER. Ray’s 16 year old daughter admitted showing signs of meningitis. This is when I find out that Steven’s friend from the baseball team, Ryan, has meningitis and is at Arnold Palmer Hospital in Orlando.

3:30pm – Call from Ray. Praise God! His daughter doesn’t have meningitis. Still awaiting word on Ryan’s meningitis. (bacterial or viral?)

4pm – Watch Bucs lose to the Bears. You might have noticed that I didn’t mention my Seminoles being slaughtered by the Gators. Steve – how long does it take the pain to go away?

6pm – Back at church.

7:15pm – Heading home. I’m back.

A selfish request from a Dad. I would like to request prayers for Steven's elbow. For the first time last night he complained about some pain in his elbow when he threw in practice yesterday. The pain abated after the obligatory ice but it’s still a concern.

On a brighter note Steven (a sophomore) was invited to be one of 12 players playing in a Thanksgiving Tournament with the Cocoa High Varsity at the Cocoa Expo, former spring training home of the Houston Astros.

Hope you all have a wonderful Thanksgiving. We’re staying home and anticipating some company from South Carolina. I’ll be frying my Turkeys as I have for the last few years. Any of you blones have a special twist on Turkey prep?

Take care.

There was an episode of "MASH" where Father Mulchaey and Hawkeye are having a conversation about their respective vocations. In the conversation Mulchaey confesses his envy of Hawkeye because as a surgeon Hawkeye can see the results of his efforts almost instantaneously. Father Mulchaey however seldom knows the final results of his efforts as he ministers to the wounded. As an elder I can identify with the good Father. This week however, God gave me a window to see the fruits of my labor for him.

Thursday evening while Steven is at his pitching lesson, I called Billy. He is separated from his wife. I encouraged Billy to come back to the Lord and church. I also encouraged Billy to try and reconcile with his wife.

Friday afternoon – I receive a call from Billy. He took flowers and a card by his wife’s apartment asking for forgiveness. I tell Billy I’m proud of him and I’m praying for him. I also reiterated the church’s offer to fly he and his wife to the next Joe Beam’s Couples in Crisis Seminar.

Friday Evening, 8pm – I receive a call from Brett, our Youth Deacon and a good friend of Billy’s, while working the concession stand for the baseball team at Cocoa’s playoff football game. Brett had just spoken to Billy. Billy confessed to Brett that he had an affair. Brett tells Billy that he, Don, and myself will be paying him a visit.

Friday evening, 10:30pm – Brett, our minister – Don, and myself arrive at Billy’s house. Billy, a former world arm wrestling champion is crying like a baby. Billy has confessed the affair to his children (ages 12,13, and 15) and now confesses to us.

Friday evening, 11pm – 4 men in a house in west Cocoa join hands and pray a brother back into the Kingdom! A long day comes to an end on a good note.

Postscript – Billy came forward today to ask for forgiveness and prayers. Billy was surrounded by almost 100 folks as we prayed for he and his family. I would ask that you pray for his wife, Dawn, and their marriage.
This is 24 hours that I won’t soon forget.

Just spoke with our school secretary. I went to elementary through high school with her husband. He has worked for UPS ever since high school. He recently almost lost his job as a driver. A recent physical turned up the fact that Jim has had only 70% (most of us have 180 degree) of the normal person’s peripheral vision. When this was discovered his driver’s license was immediately revoked.

In an effort to save his job he was sent to U of F’s Shands Hospital. The doctors quickly surmised that Jim had been born this way and he didn’t know any different. He assumed that everyone had the same field of vision he had and he had quickly compensated for his undiscovered disability. In fact the doctors at Shands told Jim that if he had been diagnosed as a child he would have been declared handicapped by virtue of being legally blind.
By the way, growing up with Jim he played all sports including Little League Baseball.

The doctors were able to give Jim a set of glasses that act as a prism thus giving him enough peripheral vision to be able to maintain a driver’s license and his job. All of this made me wonder what part of God’s grace I have not been able to see due to my handicapped of “spiritual baggage?” I wonder what I’m compensating for without knowing I’m doing it in the Kingdom.

Have a good weekend my fellow blones.

I know Steve is missing baseball so I’ll continue the baseball themes to my recent posts.
2 for 2 last night. (Wednesday night)

First AB (at bat and not blood type) –
Our downstairs class ended 2 weeks before the end of our quarter. 2 of our song leaders used the time to introduce some of the “Zoe-songs” we heard this year at coincidently the Zoe Conference.
Great stuff. Real boost to the encouragement bank. Folks of all ages (about 30 of us) were singing and clapping in praise. Can’t get much better than “Beautiful One.”

Postscript – We’re excited about the AVOW slides we’re getting from Greg and Randy. We only had the words last night.

Second AB –
At the urging of my wife (Paul knew what he was doing when he put in the “wife clause” for deacons and elders) I took some leftover food from our Wed. night meal to one of our elderly couples. She just had neck surgery and hadn’t been out for a few weeks. Great visit. Both of them very gracious and affirming. Even offered me some of the pineapple upside-down cake I brought by. Talk about temptation.

Good to be 2 for 2.

Actually I'm 0 for 3 if you count my computer. I walked into my room with my computer flashing the curse of not being able to find the operating system. As luck would have it I was scheduled to get a newer Dell on Friday. It's good to be nice to the school's tech guy and bingo, score the newer Dell a couple of days early.

I wish I had a story like Steve's. "Hey guys, a school bus loss control and blasted through my room destroying my computer and half my (Justifiable homicide some days) first period." Maybe not. Any way, does that make me 1 for 4?

My "0 for 2" comment comes as a result of 2 phone calls I made last night. Imagine me in my elder's clothes.

Call #1 -
I decided to call a sister who handed me her church keys this past Sunday evening and stormed out before I could talk to her. She's been mad at the world, the elders, our (really mad at them) preachers, the re-decorated auditorium, and the L.A. (threw that in for Steve) Angels. Jeff and I met with her about 9 months ago. We left her with the direction Jesus gives in Matthew about going to your brother when there is conflict. I asked her if she had heeded this biblical mandate? She hadn't and didn't plan on doing so. I told her I was amazed that someone who claims to have "biblical concerns" would ignore a pretty direct "order" from Jesus himself.

Call #2 -
Called a brother whose wife has moved out and purchased a home of her own. I wanted to encourage him to try and reconcile with his wife if she would let him as well as start coming back to services. His 12 year old son answered the phone. I could hear him tell his son in the background to tell me he was in the shower and he would call me back. It’s 4:08pm and still no call. 0 for 2.
That’s how it goes in ministry some days. Have a good rest of the day.

I'm posting an email that was sent to us by our school's "Reading Coach." She facilitates research and training in the area of reading for both students and teachers at our school. Enjoy.

Where Teachers Go When They Die

A teacher dies and goes to Heaven. When she gets there, she meets Peter
at the Pearly White Gates.

Peter says to her, "Welcome to Heaven. Let me give you an orientation
first."

Peter first takes her to some beautiful mansions. The teacher asks, "Who
lives here in these beautiful houses?"

"These are for doctors. They did a lot of good on Earth, so they get a
nice mansion," replied Peter.

Peter then takes the teacher to some more mansions. These were more
magnificent than the first.

"Wow, who lives here?"

"These mansions are for social workers. They did a lot of good on Earth
but didn't make a lot of money, so they get a better house."

Peter took the teacher to some more mansions. These were the most
gorgeous homes of all. They had huge columns, well-manicured lawns,
beautiful stained glass windows--the works!

"These are the most beautiful homes I have ever seen!" exclaimed the
teacher. "Who lives here?"

"Teachers live here," said Peter. "They did much good on Earth and
received very little money, so they get the best houses in all of
Heaven."

"But where are all of the teachers?" inquired the teacher.

Peter answered, "Oh, they'll be back soon. They're all in Hell at an
in-service."

Our garage sale was a success I think? We made $800 which was $800 that I didn’t have before 8am this past Saturday. Should I tithe some of that to Steve for his recent brushes / crashes with the fine teens of Fresno?

Are any of you blones in the “GSJ Club?” That would stand for “Garage Sale Junkies.” I know one lady who is. She was the one who walked into our garage at 8pm on Friday night. That’s right, the night before the garage sale was scheduled to start. She told my wife she saw me placing a sign at the entrance to our circle so she wanted a little preview of our trash/treasure (T/T). My wife who had worked all day long clearing out our garage and organizing our trash/treasure gave her a quick, friendly, and firm “no.” She stormed off acting as if we were rude for not wanting to invite her into our garage, 12 hours before the sale of our T/T was to commence.

The day of the sale afforded us an opportunity to view a microcosm of humanity. Do you fit in any of the following categories:
1. Women by themselves looking at our T/T.
2. Couples walking together, looking at our T/T.
3. Couples apart, man in the car, woman looking at our T/T. We had several of these.
4. “Older men” by themselves, looking at our T/T. They tended to buy the fewest items of any category due to the “my wife will divorce me comment” we kept getting from them.
5. “Older women” by themselves. They purchased the most. Either they were already divorced or had husbands that wouldn’t dare divorce them.
6. Women with children. Most common comment made by these folks and remember, I live in an area that claims Jeff Foxworthy as a prophet, “Y’all got any huntin or fishin stuff.”
7. Garage Sale Professionals – Lady with cell phone complete with head set, talking to her husband who was at a different garage sale comparing the T/T.
8. Garage Sale Con-Artists – Older man and woman – The lady tried to negotiate a lower price on an item stating she didn’t have very much money left. When we capitulated, her husband opened up his wallet to pay us. That’s right; inside the wallet was a wad of “folding money!” Second- after helping them to their truck with (as Hawkeye once said on MASH) their “ill-gotten booty,” the old lady came back and took 2 figurines off one of our tables. She said she had “forgotten them.” The reason she had “forgotten” them was she hadn’t paid for them and I wanted my (my friend Monty would be proud of me) $0.50! So I “ran” her down and nicely informed her she hadn’t paid for the figurines and she owed me fifty cents! Now who’s the man?

Final results:
1. Garage is cleaner.
2. I have a little more folding (plus $0.50!) money.
3. I put a couple of garage sale cons in their place.
4. I don’t want to have a garage sale for a long, long time.

Steven went to Cocoa's playoff football game tonight which gave Barb and me a night alone. We're pretty much tired from getting our garage sale ready today. We did manage to go out to eat and when we came home we were welcomed by a ringing phone. It was Joe.

Joe calls about twice a month and he always calls collect. Joe hasn't felt grass on his bare feet nor has he opened a refrigerator in about a year and a half. Joe's current address is the Florida State Prison (Raiford) in Starke, Florida.

I always look forward to Joe's calls. In just a few seconds after the cursory greetings we give each other he is bursting forth with a message that God has laid on his heart.
In the fog (and dust) of cleaning up our garage today I can’t remember the first part of our conversation but I do remember how it ended. As we were given the one-minute warning over the phone, Joe asked if he could pray a blessing on my family and me. In his blessing he thanked God for how we had blessed him and he asked the Creator of the Universe to bless our family further so we might in turn bless others.
As we said goodbye I couldn’t help but be humbled by this man who lives in a very wicked place. Joe needs so much prayer and yet he took the time to bless me and my family and this despite the fact that he knows we can touch grass and open refrigerators any time we want.
If you get a chance, try to remember a brother who is trying to not only survive but be a light in a very dark place.

Why do "short weeks" seem like they're 8 days long? We're off tomorrow of Veterans Day. My students have been particularly “testy” this week. Is this an indication that Generation Y,Z,Alpha, or whatever we’re calling them now days, despises simple authority? After ejecting a student from my class because he chose to throw his row’s test papers at the student behind him rather than hand them to him to be passed back, another student said, “I’m glad I’m Mr. Walker’s friend.” It seems simple compliance to simple requests is becoming a lost art.
Speaking of art how about some pictures. Enjoy my fellow blones. Have a good weekend.
P.S.
Don't forget to remember our men and women in uniform who are serving our country as well those who have made the ultimate sacrifice for our freedom.

Our boys at the Duval County Fair next to the stadium. Why do I get the feeling I've already posted this picture?
Ron and the Chuckster at Alltel Stadium with the city of Jacksonville behind them.
Ron and I in front of the Jacksonville Jaguar. This is my son Steven at "Hardy-ville." This is the backyard of Mr. Hardy's home. You can see the pitching mound and home plate behind Steven. He has a padded backstop and the entire complex is lighted. The gate opens up to allow for long toss as well. Walking forward from where Steven is standing takes you to the lighted batting cage.

This is Mr. Hardy standing in front of his lighted batting cage. He is truly a community minded individual allowing folks involved with Cocoa Little League and Cocoa High to use his facility for free.

First things first - This will be my 3rd post for the day.
Has anybody topped that yet? Does anybody care?
As I’ve said in the past, Tuesdays are very busy for the Walker Clan. Barb is usually delivering the food for our church’s Wednesday night dinners at the building around 4:30 – 5pm. I pick up Steven from "voluntary" conditioning for the baseball team around the same time. If we have time we’ll go down to the building to help Mom unload her groceries. We usually have just enough time to eat a quick dinner. Then Steven has to be on Merritt Island for his (sickness) guitar lessons at 6:30 and then its back to the mainland by 7:30 for his pitching lessons.
Tonight was no different except for an unexpected chance meeting. As I was waiting for Steven’s pitching lesson to be over his old manager that I coached with from Little League Majors showed up, Coach Keith.
Side bar – I found out from Steven’s pitching coach (Brian Moore) he tried to walk on to Fresno State’s baseball team in the mid-90’s. He didn’t make it so he ended up playing community college ball somewhere in Orange County. He was then drafted by the Marlins and played minor league ball for them.
Meanwhile, back at the ranch:
Coach Keith was (and still is) the epitome of the book, "The Winning Edge." Keith wanted every advantage possible so he bought his own equipment for our team, we started practicing weeks earlier than the other teams, his practices were textbook with 5 hitting stations and no wasted time each day. Needless to say it was good to be on Coach Keith’s team and if you weren’t on his team you hated us. Steven and David Rowe pitched us to an undefeated regular season and then to the County Championship.
The funny thing is that was 4 years ago and yet Coach Keith remembered (as I do) every detail. He couldn’t wait to shake Steven’s hand when his lesson ended and reminisce for a few minutes. He asked Steven how he was doing at the High School? Steven told him his goal was making the Varsity this year and he was working his butt off to make it happen. You could see Coach Keith’s (and mine) eyes light up. He was always appreciative of Steven’s drive and competitiveness.
It’s funny how the word "goal" came to me today. I was reading Luke 13:31 – 35. Jesus says in verse 32 "…on the third day I will reach my goal." Is this the 3rd day after the crucifixion or is he talking about 3 days after this transpires? If it isn’t 3 days after the crucifixion, then why does it take Jesus 3 days to reach his goal? I guess even for the Lord, driving out demons and healing the sick is hard work?
My fellow blones, what is your take on this? My "goal" is to hear from all of you. Take care.

Here are some pics from our trip to see the Jacksonville Jaguars vs. the Houston Texans. The Jags won 21 to 14.

Yes, we had the "Bob Uker seats." From left it's Matthew (Chuck's son), Zack (Brett's son), Kyle (Ron's son), and my son Steven.

An amazing sight, teens up at 8am! They were taking advantage of the free vittles in the hotel office.

That's right, we were one row from the top! Nothing but the best for my West Cocoa compadres. From left - Brett's father-in-law, Ed, Brett, Chuck, and Ron. I'm the one taking the pictures.

The Duval County Fair was taking place next to Alltel Stadium. The food shack behind Steven served a great Polish sausage with onions!

This is our group as we walked from our parking lot to the stadium. Little did we know that shade would become a luxury later that day in the 87 degree heat.

This is me on Saturday morning. Chuck and I went for a walk down Jacksonville Beach. We stopped here to get a "perspective shot." Last year the wind was so strong that where I'm standing was covered in water and foam. If fact, the foam went passed the Lifeguard station behind me and was covering up some of their cars.

Believe it or not I have a few more pictures of our trip. I'll post them tomorrow since blogger isn't being very cooperative right now.

I’m going to play off Steve’s fine post from yesterday and try to go positive in today’s post. On the drive into work this morning I heard a song on our local contemporary Christian station. I don’t know who the artist(s) is or the name of song but the following lyrics made me sigh and smile which are two good things to do when you’re driving on I-95 in the morning. Here is a paraphrase of the lyrics:

“I want this waiting to be over. Every inch seems like a mile, every minute like an hour. I can’t wait for the waiting to be over so I can see you smile.”

How about that? For all the times we mess up in our flawed walk with the Lord, he is going to put his arms around us and smile!
Let that thought carry you through the day. Love you guys.

Hope everyone had a good weekend. We made it back from our road trip to Jacksonville in one piece and we thank God for that.
We arrived on Saturday afternoon to see part of Jacksonville’s annual “Air and Sea Show.” As we drove from I-95 to Jacksonville Beach we were “buzzed” a couple of times by the “Blue Angels.” The “kid” in me gets a big rush at that kind of display of military power. Apparently we just missed a simulated “amphibious assault” on Jacksonville Beach. More oohs and ahhs.

This was a “rite of passage” for our boys in several ways.
1st, after dinner at Carrabba’s Italian Grill, we allowed our 4 boys to walk from the restaurant to our hotel which was about a mile away. A couple of years ago our wives (and they still might) would have thought we’d lost our minds for allowing such an act of freedom.
2nd – We let the boys stay in their own room without any Dads. It didn’t matter that the Dads were in the next room, they still thought they were hot stuff.
3rd – The boys sat in their own section of Alltel Stadium. This was out of necessity due to the fact that I couldn’t purchase 9 tickets in a row. I was able to purchase 4 tickets for the boys and then 5 for the Dads. The boys were one section from us and seemed to have a good time.

The best part of the weekend was all of us sitting in the hotel room watching Miami crush “Va.-Tech.” I root for the other Florida teams unless they're playing FSU who picked an awful bad weekend to let N.C. State beat them.

On the way into the stadium we came across a gentleman who was unfurling a banner that read “Jesus Saves. Surrender all to Him.” He was positioned in front of one of the main gates into Alltel Stadium. We asked him if he did this at every home game and he said “no.” Ron said to him, “God bless you sir for your courage.” He seemed to draw a little strength from Ron’s encouraging words. I wondered if I have the same kind of courage.

Have a good week blones.

The weekend is finally here. It has been a long week or so it seems. As I mention earlier, Steven and I along with 3 friends from church and their sons are taking our annual trip to a football game. Since Steven was in 6th grade we've gone in this order to the following games: 1. Miami Dolphins game 2. Another Dolphin game 3. University of Miami Hurricanes game 4. Jacksonville Jaguars last year 5. Back to Jacksonville to see the Jags take on the lowly Houston Texans this year.
We really enjoyed the Jag game last year and Jacksonville is closer and seemed safer than Miami. One of my favorite parts of this tradition is the service we hold in our hotel room. The guys in the First Century knew what they were doing when they worshiped "face to face." I suppose we could find a local church to worship with but our tradition is usuallyto stay up late on Saturday night playing cards with the kids and then have a late breakfast on Sunday as well as our worship service in our room. I'll post some pics when I get back on Monday.

Now for a "Bird" story. I have always been a fan of Larry Bird since his playing days at Indiana State. The state of the NBA hasn't been the same since he, Magic, and Jordan have retired. When the Celtics played the Orlando Magic for the first time in Orlando, they took a tour of the Kennedy Space Center. One of our elders at Rockledge, Tom, was the Director of the Space Shuttle Payloads and he was given the task of taking Bird and the Celtics on their tour. Apparently the Celtics told NASA that the players just wanted to tour the Space Center without pressure of signing autographs.

Tom told me that at one point he had a chance to speak to Larry Bird while he was conducting their tour. He told Bird that he had a friend (that would be me) back at church that looked an awful lot like him. Tom said that Bird smiled and said, "Tell that good-looking guy I said hello." Although the Celtics didn't sign any autographs on the tour Tom did have his picture taken with Larry Bird. Tom gave the picture to me and wrote Bird's statement on the back.
Feel free to address me as "good-looking" any time you please. Hey, Larry Bird thinks I am!
You blones have a good weekend.

Those words (I’m sorry.) hold a lot of meaning for me. I’ve heard that phrase twice in the last 4 days. The first time (previous post) was this past Sunday at Central. A couple dear to my heart came back to the Lord and our church this past Sunday after having been away for several months. They were mad over some decisions that had taken place and had chosen to withdraw their fellowship from us and ultimately the Lord. As I hugged both of them during the invitation they uttered that phrase, “I’m sorry.” Those words were music to my ears not because that it was a way for my “position” to be vindicated. It was the signal that a relationship wanted to be and was going to be restored.

I heard that phrase again this morning with the added word, “Dad.” Last night on the way home from church, I informed my son that we wouldn’t take his surfboard to Jacksonville on Saturday. Myself, the Chuckster, Ron, and Brett are performing a rite that we’ve done for 4 years now. We’re taking our sons to a football game. We’ll be in Jacksonville Saturday afternoon for the Sunday game between the Jaguars and the Houston Texans. We’re staying in Jacksonville Beach on Saturday.

I was looking forward to this time with my son until he copped an attitude about the news concerning his surfboard. I reminded him (Randy remembers) of what happened the last time we mounted someone’s surfboard on top of my Expedition. Ron’s son Kyle, saw his brand new board go sailing off my car into the middle of “The Beachline.” I had visions of a reoccurrence as we traveled up I-95 for the 2 hour drive to Jacksonville on Saturday. So the result was Steven telling me he would rather not go to the game if he couldn’t take his surfboard.

I informed him that I was prepared to accept his proposal but I wasn’t happy that he valued surfing over spending some quality time with me. So I went to bed last night thinking I had a point to prove to my stubborn son and I was prepared to make it. I wasn’t happy about it emotionally but I figured this might be one of those times that I had to put on my “tough love” hat.

When we got up this morning I was in my “professional but not personal” mode. And then Steven came into my bedroom and told me that he was way out of line last night and he said the words: “I’m sorry Dad.”

I think those words are some of the most important words we should teach our children and our churches. The danger is when we get so caught up in our “position” on some issue or incident that we forget or refuse to bring those words into our thinking when it comes to our relationships.

Is there anybody you need to say “I’m sorry” to today? Don’t wait too long.
I’m glad my stubborn son didn’t. I drove to work with tears in my eyes. Sorry, I’m a softy.

On the way to Steven’s (sickness) guitar lessons last night we decided to eat at the new Vietnamese restaurant next to the Guitar Store. As we waited for the waitress we had one of those good, light-hearted family discussions. For some reason our 2 trips to Yosemite with Greg’s Family came up in the conversation. We laughed about our first trip when Steven was five and all the “men” slept out under the stars (actually blue tarps) in our “House-Keeping Unit.” It was very cold that night and for some reason Steven kept falling out of his cot. I was keeping and “eye” on him by crawling as far under my sleeping bag as my body could get to stay warm. At one point I had drifted off to sleep when I felt this little creature sitting on top of me saying, “Dad, Dad, are you in there?” When I poked my head out of my borough to answer him, I asked what was the matter? Steven shrugged and said, “I fell out of my bed (cot) again.” At that point we remembered how much Josh was laughing at Steven. Steven smiled and said, “Josh is always laughing at something I do.” He loves Joshua.

Talk about digressing, I digress – It was at this point our waitress came to take our orders. I was going to order based on the “sweet and sour pork” that I had at Mr. Trans, one of Greg’s favorite restaurants in Bixby Knolls. When I asked for the “sweet and sour pork” I received a “sweet and sour” look from our waitress. She informed me this wasn’t a Chinese restaurant. She said that Chinese food, Japanese food, and Vietnamese food were all different but if I trusted her, she would pick something for me that I would like. By the way, I can’t pronounce or even half describe what I had but it was good.

Now I was sure that I had ordered sweet and sour pork in Long Beach. I had assumed that all Vietnamese restaurants would have sweet and sour pork, and, I must admit for a moment I was disappointed. However, our waitress was so nice in her demeanor and when she asked me to trust her I couldn’t help myself and it all turned out for the good.

This incident reminded me of a conversation I had when I first started attending a Church of Christ back around 1983. I had asked a long time member about diversity (worship styles) among Churches of Christ throughout the U.S. This was his answer and it was given as a positive: No matter where you go in the U.S., every Church of Christ will have the same style and order of worship. In other words, you can expect “sweet and sour pork worship” at any U.S. CoC.

I don’t believe that was true in 1983 and I know it isn’t true now, and praise God that it isn’t. I believe the New Testament bares this out. I’m sure Paul enjoyed worshiping Greek Salad style in Athens as well as kosher style in Jerusalem. The same should hold true today. I had an inner-city minister in Cincinnati, Ohio tell me that if we came to his services, most of the young men would be wearing baggy pants with their underwear showing and most of their praise songs would have a “rap” background. Being an ex-collegiate basketball player, he actively plays and witnesses on the inner city playgrounds of his city.

Yes, it’s a good thing that we can’t find sweet and sour pork in all of our churches through out the country. Just trust the local “waiters and waitresses” as they live out their lives of faith in their individual communities. Mark 9: 38 - 40

I'm having one of those down times energy wise. Since the events of this past (work day at baseball field, church, Fall Family Festival) weekend I feel overwhelmed. There are a ton of projects to be done at home, at church, and on my desk in the form of papers to grade.
I love you guys but I have to grade these papers.