My newest family member

Austin and Calli ( with help from the parents) decided that I needed a dog, to replace Buddy T. Beagle who passed away this past year. So on Christmas day, they gave me Phillip (Phil ) James Mitchem Phil is 9 weeks old, so we will get to do all of the housetraining of a dog in the middle of winter, but it well worth, Phil does not bark ( yea!) and loves to snuggle. I will post more pictures in a couple of days. By the time we left the Walker Place, he had toys, food, leash and everything to get settled in the Mitchem Mansion.

What A fun Day

What  A fun Day

Yesterday the 23rd of December was one of those days with a lot of fun and business of the day. I handled  sound for a funeral, It was interesting thinking of death so close to Christmas. With not only this funeral, the death of Tony Dungy son, and 2 staff members lost in laws in the past couple of days. There is a lot of death around the church, at the this time of a birth of Jesus.

Afternoon was lunch with Aaron and Brett Johnson ( Parker Youth) who were in the twin cities having for the holidays. The afternoon was meetings for Christmas eve services. Around 6 pm got a call from Ty Schraufnagel who is also from Parker who in town for about a week  seeing relatives. He called and his Brother, Austin and I took off to see the NBA game at the Target Center, followed by a nice burger at Fudruckers. A quick stop at Cub for shopping and then to church around 1 am working on a sound issue.

I love busy days that are not only busy, but fun

Christ in us!

I KNOW most of you would look at this cartoon and simply see humor. But as I reflect on it I am reminded of Colossians 1:27 which says, “ Christ IN you, the Hope of Glory” and Galatians 2:20 Nevertheless, it is not I who lives but Christ who lives IN me”

Soooo, that means that we ALL should be in the same boat as Kermit, all we are and do and say is Christ living IN us and through us.

Mike Tice agrees with me

I guess my early post, about the Metrodome not being loud this past week, was correct as Coach Mike Tice rips fans for selling tickets to Steelers faithful
See the following link fromESPN ( The worldwide Leader in Sports!)

http://sports.espn.go.com/nfl/news/story?id=2266174

The Death of Leo

One of my favorite shows, all the way back to the beginning is The West Wing. There is not an episode of the show I have not seen. I have turned scenes of the show into bible studies, used clips from the show in youth group as a discussion starter, and gotten numerous illustrations and stories that were originally shared on the show. The show is smart, fast paced, and represents the west wing in a way that makes me sincerely hope that is how our government operates.

That being said, I was really sad yesterday to learn that John Spencer, who plays long time Chief of Staff to the President and current Vice Presidential candidate, passed away of a heart attack.
The first scene of the very first episode is a classic one that shows Leo walking through the west wing first thing in the morning and things are hectic as usual and as he walks and never slows down he is giving orders as fast as people can take them. From that first moment, viewers were drawn to his character. Leo was the Karl Rove of the west wing. Behind the scenes, controlling everything that goes on in the party, and hand picked Jed Bartlet and led him to the White House. In another twist of irony, the character suffered a heart attack on the show. Not only that, they were also both recovering alcoholics. Leo was a beacon of loyalty on the show, even at one point risking his career so that the president would not look bad for one news cycle.

He will be missed and I am really curious to see how the writers are going to handle the second half of the season in January. You will be missed Mr. Spencer.

comments

I have fix the feature, so you should be able to comment as you wish, so enjoy yourself

I all I want for Christmas is a goat

I all I want for Christmas is a chicken or goat. Really, the staff at HUMC is not given gifts to each other , but pooling our money to send to Heifer Project http://www.heifer.org/  or some organization like them I think it a great way for a church staff to model what important in the Christmas Season.  We did this at my last church also. The animal will go to a community in the third world nations to help families and the whole community. So if you like, please by me a goat this year.

steelers win

Today I was able to go to the Vikings / Steelers game. It was great to see the Steelers in person, it has been a several years. Some thoughts about the day

• The only way to go is the light rail system. Fast, easy and cheap


• I thought the crowd noise was not as loud as I thought it would be,  but then again the home team loss


• Every game needs a drunk fan in front of you, We had Kevin


• He always complains about how bad the team is and then praise them in the next play. He may get his own blog post on Monday


• The Dome, does need to be replaced, to help the Vikings and the fans


• The cheerleaders are very nice for the Vikes


• The fans from both teams made the event a fun place to watch a game


• It was very cold walking to the stadium, I am glad it was a dome. A cool 3 degree at game time. Yikes


• Tailgating appears not to be big deal when it 3 degrees


• Mike Tice and really throw the “red flag”

Simpsons and Religion

Can you tell I found a new Simpson site. Someday at HUMC i will do a short series on the Simpsons Bible Study.

Homer: I'm not a bad guy! I work hard, and I love my kids. So why should I spend half my Sunday hearing about how I'm going to Hell?

Krusty: So, have a merry Christmas, a happy Hanukkah, a kwaazy Kwanza, a tip-top Tet, and a solemn, dignified, Ramadan. And now a word from MY god, our sponsors!

Homer: Your mother has this crazy idea that gambling is wrong. Even though they say it's okay in the Bible.
Lisa: Really? Where?
Homer: Eh, somewhere in the back.

Ned Flanders: They've broken every commandment except one.
Carl: Hey Lenny, covet some chili fries?
Lenny: You bet.
Ned Flanders: That's it. The whole shebang.

Homer: Jesus, Allah, Buddah. I love you all!

Apu: I have come to make amends, sir. At first, I blamed you for squealing, but then I realized, it was I who wronged you. So I have come to work off my debt. I am at your service.
Homer: You're selling what, now?
Apu: I am selling only the concept of karmic realignment.
Homer: You can't sell that! Karma can only be portioned out by the cosmos.
Apu: He's got me there.
Homer: I've always wondered if there was a god. And now I know there is -- and it's me.

Homer: "You know, the one with all the well meaning rules that don't work out in real life, uh, Christianity"

Bart: Mom, can we go Catholic so we can get communion wafers and booze?

Lisa: I'm no theologian. I don't know who or what God is. All I know is he's more powerful than Mom and Dad put together.

Homer: God bless those pagans.

Barney: Jesus must be spinning in his grave!

Duffman: New feelings brewing inside Duffman... What... WOULD JESUS DO?!

Cletus: Stranger! You're tresspassin' on my dirt farm!
Man: Ah, do you happen to need a mesiah?
Cletus: No, but I'll take them sacks of money from ya.

The Simpsons

To encourge many visits to the blog, look to the right and you will see random Simpsons Quote, which will change with each visit. So when I do not have time to update the blogs, you will still have something to read.

Simpson Quote

Simpson Quote
“ Well, crying isnt gonna bring him back … unless your tears smell like dog food. So you can either sit there crying and eating can after can of dog food until your tears smell enough like dog food to make your dog come back or you can go out there and find your dog.

YOUR TICKET OUT OF VOICEMAIL PURGATORY

I hate not being able to talk to a human being when you call a company, but there is hope look at the attach link that will provide a cheat sheet in the those lovely voice mail systems. http://www.paulenglish.com/ivr/

Sucess is?

‘I don’t know the key to success, but the key to failure is trying to please everybody’ – Bill Cosby

Gallup Poll Find God in America!

Gallup: Poll Finds Americans' Belief in God Remains Strong By E&P Staff Published: December 13, 2005 12:15 PM ET
NEW YORK A new Gallup survey released today finds that four decades after the "God Is Dead" controversy was first noted, Americans retain a strong belief in a higher power. Some 94% think God exists. Only 5% feel God "does not exist" -- and even most of them "are not sure" of that. Exactly 1% are certain there is no God.But how strongly do the believers believe? Nearly 8 in 10, in fact, say they are "convinced" God exists, although Gallup does not ask them why that is.Conservatives are more likely to be convinced than liberals (87% vs. 61%), women a little more likely than men (82% vs. 73%), and residents of the South more than those in the East (88% vs. 70%).Surprisingly, some 61% of those who seldom or never attend church are nevertheless convinced that God exists.

A College Prayer

A College Prayer~"As I walk though I walk through the valley of borderline grade, I will not have a nervous breakdown; for thou art with me. Though giveth me answers in the moments of blankness; thou annointest my head with understanding my test paper runneth over with questions I recognize. Surely passing grades shall follow me all the days of my examinations and I shall not dwell in this University for ever AMEN. "

Weather

So what worse, -2 in Hastings and a little wind, or 10 degrees and 80 mph wind in Boulder or 2 feet of snow in Fountain Co. Thinking Hastings is better, well if the car starts tomorrow