It's never too late

Our Daily Bread
The devotional was interesting this morning.  It referenced, like I do a lot, a song!  The song is Understand by Jeremy Camp.  I also thought about a song by Toby Mac called Get back up.

To me, the point of the devotional is that no matter what has you down, bad circumstances or a death in the family or just plain old sin, God understands and wants to help us.  I loved the last statement in the devotional:


"There is no place where earth’s sorrows
are felt more than in heaven."

Wow!  I never thought of it that way before!  As I wondered about all the miracles of Jesus, I wonder if part of the miracle of healing and making people whole was for him to feel their pain?  Hmmmm.  Something to think about!

Sooooooo, GET BACK UP AGAIN!  ;-)

Lord, thank you for understanding all my joys and sorrows.  I can share them all with you!


Technology Thursday

I almost bought a new phone this week.  I was one click away from owning it!  It is the Motorola Razr Maxx from Verizon.  If you have read my blog at all, you know that I am not easily impressed by a lot of the technology available today.  This phone seems to have it all (at least the best of what is available now!).  It is a little thicker than a Motorola Razr because the battery is more than twice the capacity of the original Razr!  Wow!  A 4G Android phone with battery life!  It also has the new Ice Cream Sandwich (ICS) version of Android.  Wow!  If you could see my face, it would be my "OMG! I am mpressed!" face!  hehehe  Check it out at the link above.  It is still sort of pricey.  The price and the "snowball" effect of learning new stuff in a short period of time and getting new accessories finalized my decision to stay with my iPhone 4S.  Oh, and the phone is still thinner than an iPhone!

Other Stuff
I had a busy evening.  I came home to make some snacks for D1 class.  I made some smokies in chili/cranberry sauce and a cinnamon coffee cake.  I also took cashews and a veggie tray.  It went over well!

Class was good, but I probably talked too much.  I feel like I need to back off some.  I will do better after we start back in two weeks.

I had a couple of nice talks with mi tigre.  I adore that man.  ;-)

Another busy day.  I would like to visit a friend in the hospital, but I am not sure I will have time.  Whew...

Let go, my friends!  God will be there to catch you and hold you in his loving arms!

How much is enough?

Our Daily Bread
If you go to the movies or watch TV, you have heard and seen the concept of "keeping up with the Jones'"!  You have also heard sayings like "greed is good".  How does that really fit with our life in Christ?

The devotional today talks about "how much is enough".  Should we always be asking for more?  A recent ad campaign by Coke Zero always asked the question "And?".  The young man was always wanting more until he found Coke Zero!

Here is a silly question for you?  What is the Coke Zero in your life?  When will we stop asking "And?" or "More?".  Think about that this week.  Personally, I have struggled with this issue recently.  I usually come into a little extra money this time of year from tax refunds, bonus, credit card cash back, etc.  I am ashamed to admit that I usually run up my credit cards before the money arrives and then pay them off.  I spend the money before I get it, then poof! it is gone!  That is not a good thing.  I committed to myself that I would not be as wasteful this year.  For example, I paid for most of my Chicago trip with cash.  I didn't run up my credit card with extra purchases.  I was very happy with myself for that!

What do you need to look at in your life?

Lord, thank you for opening my eyes to see that the only "more" I want and need is more of you in my life!

Witness Wednesday
Been thinking a lot this week about what is important to me and what I want to spend my time and energy on.  I felt like I had to make some tough choices.  I felt like I had to clean up some things that weren't that enjoyable for me and were taking too much energy.  I ended a friendship last week.  I quit the mens chorus this week.  I wasn't enjoying the experience any more.  It was taking too much energy that I could be spending on more important things like exercising and learning Spanish.  I sing in two other groups, so that will cover my singing time each week!

These decisions are not easy.  It can be painful.  It can be awkward.  It can make you look bad to people that don't understand.  Life is too short to not make these decisions.  Be brave.  Be true to yourself.

Other Stuff
I enjoyed my first Valentines Day with mi tigre.  I played with the ape he sent me over and over to hear all the things he would say when I held up his arm or pressed the button on his foot.  I am a sappy guy when it comes to that kind of stuff.  I also read his cards several times throughout the day.  He is a very special man.    We will see where this relationship goes.

I had a boot camp workout, then went home to finish my reading and put away my laundry.  I need to make snacks for tonight's D1 class after work.  I think I know what I am going to do.

Let go, my friends!  God will be there to catch you and hold you in his loving arms!

Friends are friends forever

Our Daily Bread
I was a little surprised that the devotional wasn't about love today!  Instead, it is about a form of love called "friendship".  What a blessing to have wonderful friends!  It made me think of the Michael W Smith song "Friends".  Check out the lyrics.

So what is a true friend?  That is a difficult one.  It is almost like the chicken and the egg paradox.  Which came first?  Getting a close friend or being a close friend?  My friendships have spanned the gamut from the ridiculous to the sublime.  There have been folks that I have been friends with most of my life.  There are some folks who want to be friends, but just can't do it.  I had to end one "friendship" last week.  It was so one-sided that I felt abused and taken advantage of.  God does not expect us to be in unhealthy relationships just for his sake.  The key is to remain open and loving without hard feelings.  I don't want anything or anyone to come between me and my relationship with God.

Lord, thank you for my beloved friends!  I praise you and thank you each day!

Teaching Tuesday
This week's lesson is about the book of Mark.  Apparently, it is the earliest of the New Testament books even though it doesn't come first in the order of the books.  Mark focuses on the immediacy of Jesus and his actions.  It is a short book with short chapters.  Give it a read today.  It is sort of like the Cliff Notes of the life of Jesus!

Other Stuff
I came home to do a few things, then went to church for week four of my small group.  It was an interesting class.  We are thinking about some things that are sort of deep right now.  It is good to know that we have people that we can talk to about these things.

I got to talk to mi tigre for a while before nodding off to sleep.  He saw the movie Safe House yesterday afternoon.  He felt the same way I did about it -- it could have been 30 minutes shorter!

I have a boot camp session tonight, then will finish my reading for D1 for this week.

I decided this week to drop out of mens chorus.  I have not been happy with the group since I went back last Fall.  I finally figured out that I didn't want to spend my time and energy on it.  I sing in two other groups that I enjoy more and don't take as much time.  I wish them the best.

Let go, my friends!  God will be there to catch you and hold you in his loving arms!

Let go...

Our Daily Bread
As might have noticed, I changed the last line of each blog entry a few months ago.  Today's devotional reminded me why.  Our God is a loving, caring God to whom you can cast you cares.

We don't have to "hang in there".  From the scripture passage in Psalms, we can see that the righteous can lean on God.  Instead of hanging in there, we need to let go of all of our cares so God can strengthen us each and every day, each and every breath!

What are you holding on to today?

Thank you, Lord, for caring for us!  Help us hand over our praise and cares to you!

Movie Monday
It was very cold in Chicago on Saturday, so I spent the day at the movies!  I had a good time even though the movie theater was very busy.  It looked like everyone else had the same idea!  I saw three films.

Safe House
The "safe house" was anything but safe!  This was a film about a rogue CIA agent (Denzel Washington) that turned himself in to the US Government.  The safe house was compromised and the character played by Ryan Reynolds was charged to keep him safe out in the wild.  There were lots of twists and turns in the movie, but I felt it was about 20 minutes too long.  I found myself not caring if either of main characters made it out alive.  I wanted to go to the next movie!

I give this movie two bear paws.  You can rent this one.  No reason you must see it at the theaters

Underworld: Awakening
I forget if this is the third or fourth entry into this series, but I still like it!  This time the main character has been frozen for twelve years while the humans purged the vampires and lycans off the face of the earth.  There are some major plot twists that I don't want to give away, so go see it!  The main character is rescued and battles some of the remaining lycans to an exciting close.  If you liked the first few movies, you will probably like this one as well.

I give this movie two bear paws.  This one was in 3D.  The effects were not that great.

Chronicle
This was a last minute choice after reading the reviews of the people who saw the movie.  It started very, very slow, like a normal teenage angst movie.  When the action started, it was slow then careened way off course!  In short, the plot is about three teenage boys who find an object underground that gives them superhuman powers.  They "chronicle" their development and progress.

I give this movie two bear paws.  See it at the theater for the special effects!


Other Stuff
I had a good trip home yesterday.  I worked on laundry and rested before heading to my dinner group last night.  We had a great time and the food was wonderful!  I also brought some Chicago mix from Garretts for my hero!

I have the fourth installment of my small group tonight.  One more week to go!  We have had a nice time.

I have most of my reading done for Wednesday night.  I need to read the manual tonight or tomorrow.

I talked with mi tigre yesterday about some decisions I need to make.  He was very sweet as usual and gave me his input.  I appreciated that.

Let go, my friends!  God will be there to catch you and hold you in his loving arms!

On Location: Chicago -- the trip home

Our Daily Bread
Today's devotional is a follow up from the Wednesday entry -- having faith when you pray.  The devotional reminded me of a Garth Brooks song that was in the back of my memory.  I read the words and thought about them this morning before I left Chicago.  Have you ever had a time in your life when you looked back and thanked God for NOT answering your prayers?  hehehe

I had a situation like this come to mind.  I have been clearing out the garbage and crap from my mind and heart the past few months so I can be a better man and better husband.  Is mi tigre the man I am supposed to be with?  We are getting to know each other to figure that out.  How about the other two men I have written about so much in the blog?  Well, the GB song reminded me to thank God for answering the many, many prayers about making one of those men my life partner.  Whew!  I knew they were both wrong for me, but I hung on with my stubborn mind and fragile heart for way too long.  I have tried being friends with both of them.  I can be friends with one.  The other friendship is too unhealthy for me to continue.  The saddest thing he doesn't have a clue why.  It is always the other person's problem (and there have been many...).

What am I going to do next?  Pray for discernment.  Pray for wisdom.  Pray for the things that I know God wants me to have.  The most important is "wholeness".  I wrote about that some here and there.  I will gather some more research into this topic.

I think the most important thing to learn from this lesson is: pray!  Even if you "don't know how" or "feel uncomfortable".  Talk to God like a friend.  Listen for him to speak back.  Be open.

Lord, thank you for answered and unanswered prayers!  Praise God!

Wrapping it all up
I flew back to Columbus this morning and are my arms tired!  hehehe  Seriously, the flight home was painless.  The security at the airport was easy this time.  Whew!  I got up and took a shower.  I finished packing then headed to train station just outside my hotel.  I said goodbye to the cute cub working at the front desk.  He was very nice the entire weekend.

I saw movies yesterday afternoon.  It was too cold to walk around very much.  I saw museums and other stuff the last two trips.  I snuggled up to some iced tea and some chicken strips and enjoyed three movies.  I will write about them tomorrow.  I watched a little of the Ohio State - Michigan State debacle and the beginning of the Kentucky - Vanderbilt game.  I had a quick talk with mi tigre and went fast asleep!

Here are a few pics from the car show.  I had a blast!

On location: Chicago Day 2

Our Daily Bread
I have a silly joke with some friends when looking at a man that I find attractive "I am licking him with my eyes".  ha!  It is my silly way of saying "I am lusting after him".  The devotion today talks about lust and sexual purity.

God convicted me of this many years ago, but I didn't do anything about it until about two years ago.  I trashed the few videos and porn magazines I owned.  I felt pretty good about myself until I realized that God wanted me to remove all the porn and hookup sites from my web browser.  I reluctantly did that next.  Finally God said I had to get rid of the thousands of pictures I had on my computer.  Whew!  I did that as well.  I ran across some computer backups and removed the temptation from there as well.  These simple steps helped me be more sexually pure.  It is not an easy thing,...that is without God's help!  After meeting mi tigre, my attitudes on some other sexual related things have changed as well.  I needed that!

Lord, help us all be willing to submit all parts of our lives to you, even the nauthy parts!

Chicago Stuff
I had a great first day in Chicago!  I was soooo tired by the time I finally got to my hotel room!  I arrived at Midway at 6:30 am CST.  I found the train and took it downtown.  I found my hotel so I could drop off my luggage.  I walked to Michigan Avenue where I took a bus to McCormick Place for the car show.  I was very, very early so I hung out for a while and talked to folks while I was waiting.  The car show finally opened about 10:00 am.  Wow!  I forgot how big it was and how many lights!  hehehe  Since the crowd was light first thing in the morning, I got through my favorite exhibits quickly.

I got some pictures for mi tigre.  That was very cool.  He wanted Silverado and F150 truck pics.  He also wanted a pic of the new Camaro if they had one there.  They did!  He was very excited to see those!  We have a couple of jokes about those pics, but I won't share them here!  hehehe

I found my way back to Michigan Avenue.  I stopped by Garretts to pick up my caramel popcorn and my cheese corn.  Mmmmm!  I ordered a small pizza from Giordanos and walked the few blocks to pick it up.  I walked back to the hotel with my treasures and stayed in the rest of the evening. 

It snowed like heck yesterday afternoon, which was interesting!  I was covered in snow when I arrived in the hotel.

I talked with mi tigre a few times and then passed out for the night.  Whew!

I am exercising this morning, then going to the movies.  It is like 10 degrees here.  Don't want to walk around too much!

Let go, my friends!  God will be there to catch you and hold you in his loving arms!

on location: Chicago

Flying to Chicago this morning for a weekend of cars, pizza and popcorn. I wish this show was in Spring! It will be cold ! Will post as I have a chance.