Fast paced

The pace is really beginning to pick up around here. I have to swing by my eye Dr's on the way home to pick up some contacts, then I have to pack everything for the Utah trip tomorrow.

The Stars game was awesome. We sat in the "VIP" section, and got to park underground underneath the arena. We even had our own private elevator that had an operator asking us where we wanted to go. We were stylin'!!!!

The Stars won in OT, 3-2. A little to close, especially since the Sharks are in last place, but hey, a win is a win...

Stars

If you've read this blog for any length of time, you know by now that my 2 most favorite sports in the world are baseball and hockey.

My buddy Jeff scored some platinum level seats for the Dallas Stars game tonight, and he invited me to go along....can you say "SAHHHWEEEET!!!!???!!!???"

So it's off to the American Airlines Center tonight to watch the puck drop at 7:30.

I have a very busy next 2 days preparing to jet to Deer Valley, Utah for some ski fun on Wednesday, so my blogging may be light until then.

GO STARS!!!

All Good Cafe

Tonight I am headed to the All Good Cafe in downtown Dallas with my good friend Drue for some awesome food (so I've heard...never been there before) fellowship, and to hear a local Christian musician crank out a few tunes.

I'm always up for trying new restaraunts, so this should be a fun adventure. I'll update later with a report on how the food was.

Flying insects

I am reading through Deuteronomy in my devotions. Here is a verse that really challenged me today. Deuteronomy 14:19 says, "All flying insects are ceremonially unclean for you and may not be eaten."

I wrong "Dang" in the margin of my Bible next to that verse.

Seriously, I'm feeling so spiritual today. I finally found a commandment I'm not even tempted to break. I'm on top of the world :-)

I've never broken this command. On occasion, a flying insect has gotten inside my mouth. But I cough religiously. I've never swallowed.

Some commandments are just easier to keep than others :-)

If you've never eaten flying insects reach around and give yourself a pat on the back today!

Deep thoughts.

New camera

Almost 2 years ago I purchased my first digital camera, a Sony DSC P72 that was 3.2 megapixels, and lasted about 2 weeks before it was stolen at the lake. I had to replace it quickly with a Nikon Coolpix 3200 that was 3.2 megapixels.

Back then both cameras retailed for $250. Fast forward to today, and I was able to pick up a Sony Cybershot DSC W7, that has a whopping 7.2 megapixels for the EXACT SAME PRICE. It's amazing how quickly technology continues to get cheaper and cheaper so stinking fast.

We'll see how well this bad boy performs when I head to Utah next week.

Gonna hit the slopes!!

Yesterday I mentioned briefly that I am planning to go skiing next week. A very good friend of mine has graciously invited me and a few (ok...9) other friends out to his vacation home on the slopes of Deer Valley, Utah.

There's a few of reasons why I am so stoked about this trip.

#1- It's gonna be cheap...that's always a good thing.

#2- I've never skied Utah before, and Deer Valley is the #1 rated ski resort in the US (that is according to the readers of Ski Magazine).

#3- It's in Park City, and with the Sundance Film Festival just ending, maybe we'll spot some celebrities!

I'll be flying out next Wednesday and will hook up with my good friend Cash at the airport in Denver, then my best buddy Charles will meet us in Salt Lake City on Friday.

I'll try to post some pics while I'm there!

Taking your prayer life to the next level

I'm digging my new prayer journal.

I haven't kept one in a long time, but I feel like it is taking my prayer life to another level. Here is the realization I had today. Writing down my prayers doesn't allow me to pray generic prayers. It forces me to pray specific prayers.

A few years ago I read something Yonggi Cho wrote: "Don't pray vague prayers." That challenged me beyond words. Vague prayers are a cop out. You don't require any faith. And you never know if God answers them because they're so vague.

Here's my challenge: don't pray generic prayers.

Get specific. I'm praying for for specific things for specific people. It's often a single word that I'll write next to their name. For example, I'm praying for different fruits of the spirit for different people.

Oswald Chambers said, "Let God be as original with others as he was with you." I live by that motto. God works in different ways at different times in different people. That's why I tend to be descriptive instead of prescriptive in my blogging. But if you want to take your prayer life to the next level I have a prescription: a prayer journal.

Starbucks in Sheffield, England

Thought this was cool... It's a walking tour to Starbucks in Sheffield (UK) courtesy of someone named Rachel.

I love the character and history seen in these pictures! I especially love the character of this Starbucks! Depresses me when I think of the Starbucks across from my home in a #!&*! strip mall.

Don't get me started...

Here's the link to the Starbucks tour.

Demotivators

Sorry it's been a while since my last post. I have been swamped with work, and I'm preparing for my ski trip next week. More on that to come...

Anywho...

Anyone find themselves irritated by those motivational posters you sometimes see in corporate offices and other places, praising the virtues of teamwork, persistence, creativity etc? If so, then I may have found the site for you. A friend send me an email with a bunch of "de-motivator" posters, which look the same, but have a quite different sort of message...

These posters can be found here.
Seems as if this is a company devoted to lowering people's expectations.

Top 10 Sayings of 2005

Anywho

Wonder Twin Powers Activate!

We put a man on the moon!

Heeeeyyyyy (hold the high-pitched "ey") A great way to set that up is to ask what horses like to eat :)

Lucky--Napoleon style

Don't listen to what people say--you're a winner! This is my standard line before we share "wins" during staff meeting at work. It makes the staff feel warm and fuzzy inside.

Praise the Lord and pass the popcorn! You can say that again.

Praise the Lord and pass the popcorn!!!

Let's make like a church and split. You can substitute "banana" for "church" :)

Stop!! Hammer time...

It's for the kids--say this right before throwing your spare change on the ground

Top 10 Lessons I learned in 2005

1) Who you know is more important than what you know

2) Dream God-sizzed dreams

3) Normality is overrated

4) Don't let what's wrong with you keep you from worshipping what's right with God

5) I'd rather have 1 God idea than 1,000 good ideas

6) So Far So God

7) The Holy Spirit will complicate your life in ways it should be complicated

8) Sometimes it takes a shipwreck to get you where God wants you to go

9) God wants you to get where God wants you to go more than you want to get where God wants you to go

10) Enjoy the Journey

Going Retro

Just thought I'd share one of my "holy experiments" in 2006.

I'm going to keep a prayer journal in 2006.

Here's why: I need to do a better job of keeping track of the things I'm believing God for, the things I'm grateful for, and the God ideas I get while praying and reading Scripture. I think it'll help me track my relationship with God.

One key to spiritual vitality is mixing it up. It's been years since I've kept a written prayer journal. I have a personal journal that I keep, but no prayer journal for a while now.

So I'm going retro.

For what it's worth, one of my "top 15 scriptures" of 2005 was II Corinthians 10:5. It says, "Take captive every thought." We tend to think of this verse in negative terms--arrest tempting thoughts. And that is half the battle. But the other half is capturing God ideas. Journaling and blogging are the keys to idea stewardship.

By the way....I had several Top 10, whatever lists, of 2005 that I'll be posting later today.

The Sock Monkeys

This is what you happens when you find yourself really, really bored while driving through the middle of Texas with no T-Mobile service.

It's the Sock Monkey.

Don't tell anyone, but there are really 2 monkeys. Because of their age, they both have to take turns for the photo shoots. State law prohibits them from working too many hours in a row (kind of like those little Olson twins back in the day...)