Today is a revisit of a “Christmas Classic” from earlier. How does a blog become a classic?  It is your blog, your site, you pay the server charge and you can call it whatever you want. So enjoy a classic from Christmas past… One of my contributions with this modest little blog is to continually ask the tough questions. While listening to  “Away in a Manger” at a recent Christmas program my inquiring mind kicked in. You likely know verse three of the song. The cattle are lowing The poor Baby wakes But little Lord Jesus No crying He makes As I listened an important series of difficult and probing inquiries popped into my head. What noise, exactly, were the cattle making when they started lowing? Was this normal cow talk? Did lowing just sound better than mooing in the lyric or is lowing a more spiritual and reverent cow sound? And then the most important question came to mind. What is wrong with me? I can’t
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I am a little too old and lot too cynical to be swept away by the latest fad in Christendom. I have sat on the sidelines while Jabez prayed, millions were purpose driven and others found their best life. I guess I was just left behind. Others were incredibly excited by one or all of these phenomenons. So I was more than a little surprised to find that God rocked my world through a ministry I knew little about just a few short years ago. Their books and materials have not become an entire section at your local Christian superstore. And that is a shame. Because they have a message that needs to be heard by most of us. The organization is called TrueFaced and the book of same name rocked my world.  I don’t think I have ever had a book (excluding the inspired one) impact me as much as this one. Here is how strongly I feel about this book
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On Monday I heard the sad news of the passing of Joan Horner. I lost a friend. The Texas Rangers lost one of their biggest fans. Thousands of women around the world lost a role model and mentor. Andy Horner lost his sweetheart of sixty-four years. She will be missed so much by her loving family and friends. Perhaps you don’t know who Joan Horner is. Joan and husband Andy started a little direct sales company called Premier Designs Jewelry a quarter century ago. That little venture now generates sales of 350 million dollars a year. But that is not what impressed me about Premier Designs. Lots of companies generate profits and hire people. Andy and Joan wanted to make a difference with their company. They have. Few companies have had a more concentrated plan to share their financial blessings than Premier Designs. Through the Horner-Premier Foundation the company has supported ministries and missionaries in 45 countries around the world. Locally, to help
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Christmas really is the most wonderful time of the year. I love the music, the memories, the traditions and the chance to annually think about Burl Ives. His memory came back again with the annual airing of Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer. That show first aired in 1964 and it has been a staple ever since. Ives is the voice of Sam the Snowman who narrates the “enhanced” story of Rudolph. Rudolph and his elf buddy Hermey don’t fit in with the others. Rudolph looks different than the others. Hermey is not interested in making toys. In an odd plot twist, Herme wants to be a dentist. Not surprisingly, his elf supervisor is upset with the unproductive Hermey. So the two outcasts set off to find their fame and fortune. The part of the story that resonates with me these days is when Hermey and Rudolph find their way to the Island of Misfit Toys. All of the toys on this island
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Buffalo Bill’s wide receiver Steve Johnson settled under a well thrown pass that would be the game winner against heavily favored Pittsburgh. The ball tumbled off the hands of the open receiver. Johnson sat in the endzone with a stunned look on his face. After the game he sent the now infamous Tweet questioning what God was up to. “I praise you 24/7!!! And this how you do me!!! You expect me to learn from this??? How??? I’ll never forget this!! Ever!! Thx tho.” A couple of things come to mind. One is that Twitter has officially ended the use of complete sentences for an entire generation. Second is that Steve Johnson may have chosen an odd forum to express his frustration but his response is not uncommon for honest believers. It makes sense in our performance based culture that if you commit to praising and proclaiming God that you should get a little something in return. Shouldn’t it go a little better for
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(This is a reprint from the iPod Devotional that is posted every Monday at theFish.com) I love watching the giant balloons of the Macy’s Thanksgiving parade floating through New York as wide-eyed children watch. I love the traditional football games. The official start of the Christmas season. The post feast nap. I love it all and Thanksgiving Day is fast approaching. Thanksgiving Song by Mary Chapin Carpenter captures the intimacy of this wonderful holiday. Grateful for each hand we holdGathered round this table.From far and near we travel home,Blessed that we are able. Grateful. That is a powerful word that is so easy to overlook in the tension of life and the depressing cycles of usually bad news. I have so much to be grateful for this Thanksgiving. I am grateful for another year with my best friend and bride Joni. I am grateful for three wonderful sons, two amazing daughter-in-laws and one soon to appear grandchild. I am blessed that
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My lovely bride Joni loves pottery so one of my “sacrificial” ways to love her is to accompany her to pottery shops. Guys refer to that as “hitting behind the runner” or “taking the charge”. On a visit to scenic Waco eldest son Matt and daughter-in-love Holly took us to a working craft village called Homestead Heritage. If you visit Central Texas this hidden treasure is worth a trip for the restaurant alone. It is a delightful array of shops that features a working gristmill, cloth weaving and spinning wheels, a real forge and a pottery shed. I was fascinated by the open work area of the pottery shop. There were several artisans making vases and pots right before my eyes. Behind me were shelves of the finished products -colorful and beautiful and functional. I watched a potter take a nondescript lump of clay and skillfully make an unique and beautiful creation. The verse from Isaiah came to mind. O Lord, you are our Father.      We are the clay, and you are the potter.     
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