Block Buster Motto

Few and far between is how I would describe last night. It was one of those rare times when my wife and I had an evening alone at home. No kids, no running around, no interruptions, no pressure! We decided to rent a movie from Block Buster called "The Gospel". If you enjoy Black Gospel choir music then you will love this movie as the music is quite spectacular. It is basically a prodigal son story and the acting is definitely "B" rated. While we were standing at the check out Cheryl noticed the motto of the Block Buster staff.

It reads: "At Block Buster, our employees are empowered, authorized and committed to taking care of you." Pretty heavy duty stuff for a movie rental outlet half full of teenagers receiving minimum wage for their efforts!

We chuckled and thought that this would be a good slogan for a church leadership team. At Peachland Community Church our leadership is empowered, authorized and committed to taking care of you!
I like it!
God is good all the time

The Case of the Missing Mojo!

This morning I went out to leave early for my work out and my truck wouldn't start. It just kept turning over and over. I checked under the hood to see if something obvious had happened but saw nothing. I hopped back in and noticed my gas gauge was on empty and I mean right empty. No gas No go! Someone had come and taken my gas out of my tank in my truck while it was parked in my driveway at some point in the night. I think it was just under half full when I parked it last time.
So, I guess I will have to go out and buy a key entry gas cap so I don't have to go this trouble of running out of fuel and the expense of the lost petro!
We live in a fallen world but...
God is still Good all the time.

The Measuring Wall

Its been a long time since my last note. So many things have happened, the good the bad and the ugly have been a part of my daily routine. One of things that was a big deal was lining up our kids against the corner wall in the kitchen and measuring their growth. It is fascinating to me. I live with them everyday of their lives and I don't notice the growth. That is I don't notice the growth until it is time to buy some shoes or pants or whatever! The biggest growth spurt in recent times goes to Paige. She must have grown a full 3+ inches in one year a while back. But needless to say, they are all growing up and there is nothing any of them can do about it. We ended up teasing Paige about her resistance to growing up. She used to cry when someone would say "my how you've grown" because she didn't want to grow older or grow up. But, all the crying in the world cant stop the growth that the body is created to go through.
Since I am in an apprentice type mood these days it didn't take me long to start seeing some interesting parallels between my girls growth spurt and the need to have a growing faith as well. We feed the body, we feed our faith, we exercise our bodies, we exercise our faith, we measure the bodies growth and we measure the growth of our faith. One thing remains the same, we are meant to grow and it would quickly be seen as a serious problem if growth suddenly stopped when we know it should be happening.
Every once in a while we need take out the pencil, line up the girls, back to the measuring wall, place the pencil on the top of the head and make the mark. I think every once in a while we need to take out our pencil, back our faith up against the measuring wall, place the pencil on top and make our mark. Stand back and see the results... Growing?

Blah Blah Blah

Wow what a week it has been. First week back from a break is usually full and this one was no exception. So I finally have some time to do a little blogging. And wouldn't you know it, I seem to be at a loss for what to write about. Our family is busy enjoying all their new Christmas toys, thanks to everyone for all the spoiling over the Christmas season. We had one of the best Christmas times on record. It was especially nice to re-meet Nyah and then to also get to know Avery and Ethan a bit better as well. What great kids they are all turning out to be. We are looking forward to the new addition in a few months from Chris and Jamie.
Well, I suppose one of things I haven't mentioned is that I received an invitation to become the chaplain for the local Legion. My instalment ceremony is Monday the 23rd - Election Day! I have taken on this task reluctantly and decided to say yes to it based on a 3 month evaluation where-by if the load is too much I will step down from being chaplain. I look forward to hearing all the stories that go with our war vets. Peachland has quite a few vets living in it. We have a very active Legion here with a membership of around 500 folks. The Legion crowd is a group of folks in town that I don't (for the most part) know. I know I am going to enjoy getting to know these Peachlanders.
My friend Blair Bates has worked for a couple of years to put together a Music CD and it was finished this past week as well. He is pretty excited about it and I have listened to it and he really has done a good job. I hope the sales go well for him and that his music is well received by those who listen to it. If you want to check out his Cd here is a link for his website www.journeymusic.ca
Today is my day off and I am glad I get a day to rest and get ready for the new week to come. Today at 3 pm I am off to pick up my girls and hustle them all over to the eye doctors for their regularly scheduled eye appoints. That should prove to be a real eye opener! Ha-ha.
Any way, have a good day everyone.
God is Good All the Time!

HAPPY NEW YEAR EVERYONE!

Christmas season always brings with it such high heights and then suddenly it's all over and done and life goes back to the glory of the grind. Whoosh is the sound that comes to mind when I think of it all! Then the first day of the New Year comes leaving behind a whole year for good and starting a new one once again! It is a clean slate, a fresh new start, an exciting beginning. The whole combination of spending time with family, shopping, seeking out a few deals between Christmas and new years, checking out a couple of movies, (fun with Dick and Jane was great), driving great distances, eating rich foods, staying up late, getting up early, laughing and reminiscing, missing some folks who we haven'’t seen in many Christmas'’s, saying all those yucky good-bye's, getting home, unpacking and settling in, seems to leave me in a reflective state of mind. I seem drawn to examine my journey, drawn to sitting in my favourite chair, to sip a hot cup of fresh coffee and contemplate the Lord of the past year and the same Lord of the New Year that's on its way in a big hurry!
I always like it when I get a "word". By that I mean a mental picture of what I sense the New Year will be like for me. An image of what I hope to look like at the end of the year in my life. An all inclusive "word" that just seems to be where I am headed based to a large extent on the experiences of the past year. Last year was the word "reason", taken from the book of Isaiah when we are instructed to come and "reason" with the Lord! As I look back I see the progress made in that particular area of my life. I feel that I have grown more reflective, more communicative, more prayer-full in my approach to life this past year. Thanks Lord for this gracious and spacious place you'’ve led me too in my journey. This year the word is "apprentice". I see myself as entering into a new and deeper relationship with Jesus. I feel as eager as those on the T.V. show apprentice to be like their master, to learn his ways, to understand his teachings, to follow in his footsteps and too becoming more skillful with the tools of his trade. I see myself growing deeper, moving farther along, and soaring just a bit higher than I have ever been before. Yes, I believe the word for 2006 is apprentice. "If any one would be my apprentice, he must take up his cross and follow me..." Jesus once said. Yes Lord, I am enrolling in your apprentice program in 2006. I am taking up my cross, I am counting both the negative and the positive costs that come with following you. And, I will follow you. I will be more like you by the grace of God come January 1, 2007. God is good all the time!