Borrowed Thoughts

Friday, January 06, 2006

I like these comments Emily posted on Mike Cope's blog.

THOUGHTS ON EXERCISE

~ I joined a health club last year, spent about 400 bucks. Haven't lost a pound. Apparently, you have to show up.

~ If God meant us to touch our toes, he would have put them further up our body.

~ I have flabby thighs, but fortunately my stomach covers them

~ If you are going to try cross-country skiing, start with a small country.

~ The only reason I would take up jogging is so that I could hear heavy breathing again.

~ I don't jog. It makes the ice jump right out of my glass.

~ I like long walks, especially when they are taken by people who annoy me.

~ I have to exercise early in the morning before my brain figures out what I'm doing.

Football, Hamburgers and Sunny Days

Thursday, January 05, 2006

Vince Young and the Texas football team defeated University of Southern California for the national championship. Congratulations to them. I went to college at Abilene Christian in Abilene, Texas and so I have good feelings about Texas. At the same time I am bothered occasionally with their arrogance. I love George Bush. He calls what he does walking. I call it swagger. But, of course, I guess it’s alright to swagger. I wish I had something to swagger about. So again, congratulations to the Texas U. football team. I must admit that I wanted USC to win. I lived in southern California for about fourteen years and almost twenty in northern California. I went to Pepperdine when the college was on the old downtown campus. University of Southern California was just down the road. I attended many games---most of them when O.J. Simpson was playing. Now, I don’t care if I ever see him again. In fact, I hope I don’t. USC has won two consecutive championships it is time for somebody else to take over. HOOK’UM HORNS!

A few weeks ago I wrote about how many people love In-N-Out Burgers. One person sent a comment saying they taste like cardboard. I think that’s funny. It proves we don’t all like the same things. I’m glad we don’t. It’s hard to find a place to sit at In-N-Out Burger now. What would it be like if everybody liked them? Yesterday was a beautiful day so we stopped at Sonic for a burger. I like sitting in the car and eating. It reminds me of my High School days growing up in Oklahoma. Charlotte likes Sonic burgers much more than she does In-N-Out. I like them more too. In fact, I think they are one of the best in our area.

It is suppose to be 80 degrees today in Phoenix. It is not suppose to be that warm in January---but it is. I’m not complaining really, I’m not. It’s just that we invited friends from Stockton, California to come visit with us. They are coming next week and the weather is being reported as being about the same as now. I had told them we would sit around the fire and tell lies. We have been friends for many years and we only get to see one another about once or twice a year. So I’m sure there will be a lot of, let’s say, “wild stories” told. That sounds better than lies. But I doubt seriously if we will want to sit around a fire. We may sit on the patio by the pool. This would also be a good time to run up to Sedona, Flagstaff or the Grand Canyon. That way I would have them trapped in the car as a captive audience and I could tell all the stories I wanted to. I just turned and looked outside. It is absolutely beautiful out. I’ve got to get out there!

The God On The Mountain

Wednesday, January 04, 2006

Last night I went to bed praising and thanking God for saving those 12 miners trapped in a mine in West Virginia.

At 6:00 this morning I turned on the television to get news of how they were doing. I couldn’t believe the message: 12 Miners Dead. 1 Alive.

The families at the church building in West Virginia had been praising God. Now some of them were cursing him. They went from praise to profanity. This is not justifiable—but understandable.

What can I say? Words are not worth much at times like this. I can only give my witness. I am 71 years old. For almost 50 years of ministry with the church I rejoiced with those that rejoiced and wept with those that wept. I helped bury the young and the elderly. I have heard God being praised and I have heard him being cursed. My witness: God is good! My faith in Him is stronger now at 71 years of age than it has ever been. My heart goes out to those broken hearted families in West Virginia and I’m asking Him to give them strength and courage for the lonely days ahead. For reasons known only to Him, He didn’t bring those men out alive. But I believe that He is ALIVE AND HE IS GOD.

I am comforted by Lynda Randal’s singing. Her words go something like this:

Life is easy when you’re upon the mountain,
You’ve got peace of mind like you’ve never known.
But things change when you’re down in the valley,
Don’t lose faith for you’re never alone.

For the God on the mountain is still God in the valley,
When things go wrong he’ll make them right,
And the God of the good times is still God of the bad times,
The God of the day is still God in the night.

We talk of faith way upon the mountain,
Talk comes so easy when life’s at its best,
Now it’s down in the valley’s trials and temptations
That’s when your faith is really put to the test.

My Heart Goes Out

Tuesday, January 03, 2006

Can there be anything more agonizing than waiting for news of a loved one that is hurting or in danger?

My heart goes out to those thirteen men trapped in a mine in West Virginia and their loved ones who wait for news.

PRAY.

Prayer is no small thing. We often say, "There is nothing we can do but pray." To some that sounds like we can't do much. Prayer is the biggest and best thing we can do!

SO PRAY!

Sorry, Not Today

Monday, January 02, 2006

For almost fifty years I went to the pulpit every Sunday. I never went unprepared. NEVER!

Someone has said that many preachers give up because Sunday just keeps coming. Week after week the preacher has to be ready to stand before God and the congregation to speak the message of God. This is a tremendous responsibility. There is no time for messing around. You either are ready or you are not. Yes, it would be easy to quit because the Sundays just keep coming.

Even though I was always prepared there were Sundays that I felt like I should in all honesty go before the congregation and say, “NOT TODAY BELOVED. NOT TODAY” and then just sit down.

Well, that how I feel today about this blog. I have told my friends that all they are going to read here is what I happen to be thinking about on a particular day. If you are not interested in that (and why would you be) don’t look. Today, just the second day into the New Year I am saying, “NOT TODAY. NOT TODAY.”

I am now turning off the computer. Hopefully I will be back tomorrow.

Out With The Old, In With The New

Sunday, January 01, 2006

New Year’s Eve wasn’t all that exciting around our house. We did a little shopping at Kierland Commons in the morning. (If you haven’t been to this exciting shopping experience in Scottsdale, you should go someday). I guess I like it because it is laid out like our “old” towns back home were). We stopped by Blockbuster and picked up the DVD of Ray. This movie was big in 2005 so we wanted to see it before the year was gone. We watched it last night and then before toddling off to bed around 11:00, I couldn’t pass up watching a few minutes of You’ve Got Mail (one of my favorite movies) on television. I woke up at midnight when the fireworks started going off. Charlotte was sound asleep and didn’t stir so we passed on the traditional kiss. (Hey, we kiss all the time. What’s so big about a New Year’s Eve kiss?)

Around 7:00 on New Year’s morning, Charlotte rolled over in bed and said, “Happy New Year!” I grunted and went back to sleep until 7:50. This is very unusual for me. I am usually up by 6:00. Up, I said, not going! It’s a good thing we were not having our 8:10 Bible Class, we wouldn’t have made it. We went to the morning assembly and then we ate lunch at Picazzo’s Pizza place. I watched the Cardinals lose another game (which they almost won) and I couldn’t pass up watching the end of You’ve Got Mail again. (Is that movie on all the time?). Carol came over for a few minutes in the afternoon. It’s always a big day for us when one or both of our kids drop by. I went outside and looked at the Christmas lights on the house. I think that if I study the situation it will be easier to put them up next year. I am going to take them down tomorrow and put them away for another year. It’s late in the afternoon now. It will soon be time for dinner. We are having meatloaf tonight. That’s always a winner for the Ditmores and makes for a big day. Ok, I said it wasn’t all that exciting around here.