I Will Follow Him

I love this particular arrangement. OK, I love "Sister Act" too!

love those animals

The following was found posted very low on a refrigerator door.

Dear Dogs and Cats: The dishes with the paw prints are yours and contain your food. The other dishes are mine and contain my food. Placing a paw print in the middle of my plate and food does not stake a claim for it becoming your food and dish, nor do I find that aesthetically pleasing in the slightest.

The stairway was not designed by NASCAR and is not a racetrack. Racing me to the bottom is not the object. Tripping me doesn't help because I fall faster than you can run.

I cannot buy anything bigger than a king sized bed. I am very sorry about this. Do not think I will continue sleeping on the couch to ensure your comfort, however.. Dogs and cats can actually curl up in a ball when they sleep. It is not necessary to sleep perpendicular to each other, stretched out to the fullest extent possible. I also know that sticking tails straight out and having tongues hanging out on the other end to maximize space is nothing but sarcasm.

For the last time, there is no secret exit from the bathroom! If, by some miracle, I beat you there and manage to get the door shut, it is not necessary to claw, whine, meow, try to turn the knob or get your paw under the edge in an attempt to open the door. I must exit through the same door I entered. Also, I have been using the bathroom for years - canine/feline attendance is not required.

The proper order for kissing is: Kiss me first, then go smell the other dog or cat's butt. I cannot stress this enough.

Finally, in fairness, dear pets, I have posted the following message on the front door:


TO ALL NON-PET OWNERS WHO VISIT AND LIKE TO COMPLAIN ABOUT OUR PETS:

(1) They live here. You don't.
(2) If you don't want their hair on your clothes, stay off the furniture. That's why they call it 'fur'-niture.
(3) I like my pets a lot better than I like most people.
(4) To you, they are animals. To me, they are adopted sons/daughters who are short, hairy, walk on all fours and don't speak clearly.

Remember, dogs and cats are better than kids because they:
(1) eat less,
(2) don't ask for money all the time,
(3) are easier to train,
(4) normally come when called,
(5) never ask to drive the car,
(6) don't smoke or drink,
(7) don't want to wear your clothes,
(8) don't have to buy the latest fashions,
(9) don't need a gazillion dollars for college and
(10) if they get pregnant, you can sell their children ...

my god is too small

One of my favorite shows has been in re-runs lately and it has reminded me of a number of things. Even though I have mentioned it in several sermons in the past it is worth repeating. The show is "Joan of Arcadia". God appears to the teenager Joan in various forms throughout the episodes. The one form that made me realize that my god was too small was when God appeared as a teen goth. And it bothered. Because my picture of god was too small to accommodate that view.

I think it is an overwhelming temptation to box god up in the package we want to see her. Anything that threatens that view of god is very threatening to us.

I pray that God will help to to open up my understand of what and who god is. I pray that god will help me to open up and see god in ways and in places that I would never image god to be.

Somehow I imagine that this will be a life long struggle for me.

The Servant Song

This was one of the hymns in church last Sunday. It is a beautiful song. I'm struck however, by the sad realization of how often I have failed in my own life to live up to being as Christ to others. My prayer is that this song will remind me fresh every day of the challenge to be as Christ to others in all I do.

thought for today

The Christian faith for most people is not communicated by doctrinal pronouncements ... but by what goes on in the church in its most local setting. It is here, in the church down the street, that people are caught up in the Gospel promise -- or are turned away.

- James C. Fenhagen, from his book Mutual Ministry

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One reason why we dont' need health care reform. :)

If bleeding and leeches was good enough health care for the Founding Fathers, it should be good enough for you!

thought for today

This reminds me to be thankful for all those who work in food banks:

Distributing food is a unique act of love because food is the basis for life. When the church can distribute food, it can allay one of people's most primal fears -- that of going hungry -- as a way of helping people come to peace. When sources of food are close at hand, peace may be sustained.

- Pamela Couture, Vice President for Academic Affiars, Dean, and professor at Saint Paul School of Theology

thought for today

Thanks to Karl for this.

Rarely do we find men who willingly engage in hard, solid thinking. There is an almost universal quest for easy answers and half-baked solutions. Nothing pains some people more than having to think.

- Martin Luther King Jr.

thought for today

I don't find anything comparable to the magnificent beauty of a soul and its marvelous capacity.

- Saint Teresa of Avila, from The Interior Castle

Prayers

Prayers for Mary Beth, a young woman having brain surgery, may God strengthen her and be with her, her family, and the doctors and nurses;
Prayers for those traveling, particularly my friends Maria and Peter;
Prayers for those in need, in our own communities and throughout the world.

thought for today

To say that I am made in the image of God is to say that love is the reason for my existence, for God is love. Love is my true identity. Selflessness is my true self. Love is my true character. Love is my name.

- Thomas Merton,
from A Book of Hours

Prayers

Prayers for Dennis for a successful surgery, which reminds me to be grateful for having access to wonderful health care, a blessing not shared by many people in the world and sadly not shared by some in my own nation;
Prayers of gratitude for a roof over my head and a warm place to call home, another blessing not shared by many people in the world and sadly not shared by some in my own nation;
Prayers that God would help remind me that all of the material blessings I have received all come from God and that all I have is truly God's.

thought for the day

Stolen shamelessly from a friend:

We all fall from grace, some take the scenic route, some the expressway.

Prayers

For those pursuing ordination; that all would feel God's guiding presence;
for those who work with the poor and those in prison; that they might be Jesus to the people in their midst;
for those who feel marginalized in the church; that they might know that they are loved and appreciated;
For our pets as many of them are blessed this day; for the unceasing love and companionship they provide for us.

Prayer

For my friend Maria who is traveling, and for all those traveling for a safe journey;
Thanksgiving for the rain, which while I don't enjoy walking in it all that much, provides many abundant blessings!

Prayers

For creation and all the blessings we receive from it, and that we might be good stewards of the earth and its resources;
Thanksgiving as I watch the snow line march down the mountains;
I pray for a grateful heart for all the blessings God has given me, and for a clarity of vision to see those many blessings I miss in my life.