My Part of the Conversation

We remain in one piece and good spirits as Hurrican Katrina passed through our part of the country. In Baton Rouge, we were hit with high winds and a bit of rain, but the major part of the storm missed us altogether. That being said, there are leaves and branches EVERYWHERE. One of the largest branches is laying on our powerline. One the ground. Power went out in our neighborhood sometime around 4:00 AM yesterday. We watched the tree fall on the line to our house at 10:00 AM. Power was out all day, and our neighbors got power about 9:00 PM, but there are still many areas that aren’t back on yet. That being said, we’ll have to wait our turn .

That all being said, we consider ourselves extremely lucky. New Orleans and cities east of there are all underwater. I heard this morning on the radio that the waters in New Orleans are continuing to rise. That’s not what they expected, and is a very bad sign. They don’t know how long it will take to get the water out of the town, because it has no where to go. And as bad as New Orleans is, it is even worse in some of the smaller towns east of there. News feeds continue to come in of people being rescued. We need to constantly be in prayer for the safety of those families.

God doesn’t protect us from the storm. Hurricanes, tornados, blizzards, monsoons- they move about our world and will always do so. When one misses me, it hits someone else. They are products of the physical world. Yet, even though God does not take away the storm, he does provide peace and comfort to his children as they face it. Difficult, tough times come. And though we must face them, God offers us strength, courage, peace and comfort to bring ourselves through.

May God comfort you as you weather the storms in your own life, whether they are physical storms or storms that rage when we feel like our lives are falling apart.

In HIM,
Blaine

We’re hunkering down and waiting it out. Keep us in your prayers.

Blaine

A couple random things for today:

Are you tired of having 4 message programs running on your computer at the same time? I get worn out with MSN Messenger, AIM, Yahoo Messenger, and Google Talk all running at once. If I only needed one, I’d definately use Google Talk. But, since I have different contacts on each one, it was nesssary to find a way to combine them. Try GAIM. It’s free, and incorporates all of those services into one. Plus, AOL INstant Messenger installs spyware on your computer. This program doesn’t. Anyway, I like it.

Had my first fantasy football draft yesterday. Joined a public league to get a practice draft in. Didn’t do bad, but not great. I broke my normal strategy and got a QB in the first round with the 8th pick out of 10 teams. My team is Dante Culpepper, Domanick Davis, Stephen Jackson, Joe Horn, Larry Fitzgerald, Nate Burleson, JJ Arrington, Pittsburgh defense, and Kerry Collins off the bench. Unfortunately, I picked two QB’s with the same bye week- go figure. I got Mike Anderson in a late round- I’ll need to figure out what to do with all these great RB’s.

For a good, fun read, check out “State of Fear” by Michael Crichton (especially, if you are my sister). Kate and I listened to it on tape last week and really liked it.

Our church is starting plans on our new building. I get to make input on what I would like the youth facilities to be like. Anybody have good resources? I haven’t been able to think outside the box.

Later!

Blaine

…is the Little League World Series.

I’ve never been a huge baseball fan. I like it a lot, just not my favorite. But, this week I’ve watched a few games of the Little League World Series, and I’ve fallen in love with it. It’s just good baseball, played by non-steriod boys that play because they love it. And they’re good. Real good. Just watch the Japanese team play. Good pitching, hitting, and something that is often missing, good sportsmanship. I’ve been routing for the Lafayette, LA team- but there’s some stiff competition!

On another note, Hudson is 15 months old and still doesn’t have much hair. Oh- and I have been trying out a beard.

Blaine

Just to quote my good buddy Matt Shaner:

“No one will be legislated into heaven.”

I think we need to constantly remind ourselves what we are here for. When Jesus walked the earth, he lived during the reign of a horribly cruel empire. Yet, all he says about politics is “Give to Caesar what is Caesar’s…” They commited many atrocities, but Jesus didn’t tell people to stand against them. He said “Love your neighbor” and “Blessed are the peacemakers” and “Turn the other cheek”. His message was always about love, compassion, and single-minded pursuit of the kingdom.

We sometimes think that we should change the world by making laws that fit Christian morality. But, those things will not bring salvation to the world. Only by connecting people to the Savior will do that. We need to bring them to the kingdom that is not of this world.

Major leaders in the Restoration Movement (including Alexander Campbell) taught that we should have nothing to do with government, that we shouldn’t even vote. I would definately not go that far. I think we have a responsibility to effect change where we can and make our voice heard.

But, we need to remember that the real, most meaningful work will not be done on Capital Hill. It will be done in our workplaces, schools, malls, supermarkets, and parks. It will be done when we serve others, when we show them love, when we offer them forgiveness and compassion… and when we introduce them to our Savior.

In HIM,
Blaine