Where is Sasquatch?

A group of us is gathering at church this morning to do history work. We will sift through four boxes of materials to find what we can about the first 33 years of our church’s history, 1885-1918. This is to help me find material on which to write a book about this era in honor of anniversary 125 next March.

My son is having trouble with the word for a 125th anniversary, quasquicentennial. He calls it “Sasquatch in Tennessee” just to aggravate me. He’ll be singing a different tune once I write the book and win the Pulitzer for historical literature. Never set your goals too low. That’s my philosophy.

The interview with Kevin and Karol Hawkins last night was a hoot. You can tell they feel at home here at Second. Let’s get the vote behind us and get on with life. I’m pumped.

Humor helps. Jet pilot thoughts on helicopters. If a helicopter begins to stall, you have one second before the craft becomes unrecoverable; if this maneuver fails, the copter flies about as well as a twenty-case Coke machine. Even a perfectly executed takeoff gives you the copter a glide ratio barely better than that of a brick.

Comforting The Dogs

We broke the bad news to Jake and Millie as gently as we could. We told them they would not be moving to the White House. Another canine has been chosen as First Dog. It’s sad. I’m not sure how Sophie took the news. Amanda will have to comfort her. Congratulations, Bo. I had never heard of a Portuguese Water Dog. Google has some pretty pictures of them.

Almost 4000 of us were here yesterday morning. The music and sermons presented a clear, clarion message about Jesus being our crucified Savior and our Resurrected Lord. No one could have left saying they had not heard the Gospel.

Kevin Hawkins received standing ovations yesterday each time we announced we will be voting on him to become our Minister of Music. The vote on Kevin may be the most superfluous vote in our church’s history, but it has to be taken to make everything official. I am grateful for Kevin. We’re going to have a lot of good years together.

Humor helps. At age 57, I’m sure everything I can’t find is in a secure place, I’m realizing aging is not for sissies, I can’t remember what else I meant to type here.

A White House Dog

John, Amanda, Caleb, and Sam are in Ohio visiting her family. They did not take her dog. Have I forgotten to mention Amanda has a dog? Sophie is a Jack Russell Terrier. I’ve not met Sophie yet, but I do know this breed is what I commonly refer to as nervous dogs. It will be interesting to see how calm and serene Jake and Millie take to nervous Sophie, and vice versa. I’ll keep you posted.

Speaking of dogs, even the President of the United States is struggling with canine decisions. He promised his daughters a puppy. Since one of them suffers from allergies, choices are few. Whatever variety the First Family chooses will become a top seller overnight. Dog lovers hope they pick a pure breed. Half-breeds are often genetically weak, due to the unscrupulous practices of puppy mill owners. I’m not a dog lover, but I do believe all animals should be treated well. The Bible says, “A righteous man cares about his animal’s health” (PR 12:10a). The Obamas may spend over a thousand dollars for a dog. Rest assured, Jake, Millie, and Sophie are not for sale, at any price. I think.

My daughter, who is a great writer, has been bitten by the blog bug. If you want to learn more about my precious family, and are interested in crafts, check it out at yeebird.blogspot.com. Way to go, Rebekah.

Dog Baths

My daughter-in-law-to-be is rapidly endearing herself to our family. She is even impressing Jake and Millie. She intends to take them to the dog park soon to let them romp and play. She’s even going to take them in her car. Wow. There is one little hiccup, though. Since she intends to use her car, Amanda asked yesterday how long it had been since the dogs had had a bath. That’s a tough question. I hated to tell my adopted daughter how I feel about giving dogs a bath. It was a tough moment, but I think I finagled my way out of it quite well. Those dogs are going to be the death of me yet.

It’s baseball season again. Hurray for the Cardinals. I’m hoping for better things this year, but am saddened by the fact they lost two of their first three games. Oh well. I’m a diehard fan, especially of Albert Pujols. I appreciate his straightforward Christian testimony. His exploits on the diamond don’t hurt anything, either.

It’s Holy Thursday. Today we commemorate the Last Supper, Jesus washing the disciples’ feet, His agony in Gethsemane, and His betrayal by Judas Iscariot. Our Savior loved Judas to the end. The first word he said to Judas after the betrayal kiss was, “Friend.” Jesus is a loving Lord worth serving.

Cookie Cheater

You would think a Grandpa could bend the rules a little with his 21-month-old granddaughter without getting caught. Oh no!! Not in your lifetime. When her mom said they were going to Bass Pro Shops, Lilly Ruth said, “Grandpa. Cookie.” Uh oh. Rebekah asked me point blank, “Do you get Lilly Ruth a cookie when you take her to Bass Pro?” I told the truth, and tried to put a good spin on my explanation. Yes, I buy a huge chocolate chip cookie when we first go in. I eat half of it and parcel out to her the other half as we make our way through the store. It’s my way of helping her stay happy. Her mother was okay with this explanation. Whew. She even said she might do the same thing. Hurray!!

It’s holy week. I always try to keep a light schedule the week before Easter. It is the most important day of the year for our churches, and I always want to be my best on Resurrection Sunday. Let’s pray for a mighty day at Second. Also pray for me as I focus my thoughts on the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus.

I’m on target in my reading through the Bible in 2009. I began this second quarter of the year by reading the Gospel of Mark, which many scholars consider to be the memoirs of Simon Peter. I am now in I Peter, and will soon read 2 Peter and Jude, the other New Testament books heavily influenced by Peter.

Deep Preaching

Ben Pilgreen just preached as good a sermon on substitutionary atonement as I ever heard. So much for contemporary being synonymous with shallow. Whatever the preaching style, every sermon needs to make a beeline to the cross as quick as possible. It is the essence of our faith. Jesus, thank You for the cross.

I struggled terribly with temptation this morning. To my dismay we had no cereal. When I opened the refrigerator to see what I could substitute for Honey Scooters, temptation attacked me mercilessly. First thing I saw was a huge box of pizza. The battle was engaged. Should I do this? Aren’t there a lot of calories in a piece of pizza? Isn’t something else available? How will I face myself if I indulge like this at 6:20 a.m.? Finally I came to peace with myself. To satisfy my craving, I ate pizza. To satisfy my desire to be able to show absolute self-control in the face of temptation, I ate only one piece. It was good!! No kidding. Tasty breakfast.

Easter approacheth. Pollsters say Easter is the Sunday each year that provides us our best chance to persuade non-attenders to come to church. Invite everyone you have ever had a religious conversation with to be in church on Easter.

Extra Large Undershirts

Yesterday my son and I were folding laundry. I asked him how did we distinguish between his undershirts and mine. He said, “Mine are medium; yours are extra large.” Gee, wow, that hurt. The knife is still embedded in my chest.

I love time spent with college students. The group at the MSU BSU last night was wonderful. College students aren’t impressed with falderal, glitz, and glamor. My being Pastor of a large church didn’t intimidate them. Ties and cufflinks meant nothing to them. All they wanted was unadulterated truth. They cut through the fluff and got to the real stuff. They were hurling questions hot and fast at me about missions. I was firing right straight back. I loved it. Pray God will raise up missionaries out of that crowd. Billy Grady, you are doing a great job. Keep it up.

My father-in-law would have turned 91 today. I miss him. One of the most gregarious people I ever knew, he could talk to anyone anywhere on any subject.

Ruth and I plan to be at the Bellwether tonight for First Friday Artwalk. Come join us. I think you will find it worth the effort.

Within the hour, I hope to finish my Sunday morning sermon manuscript. Pray.