Grandchildren

Two weeks ago today Cadence Hope Anderson was born at 8:34 a.m.. What an awesome day. Connor and I had stepped out of the room moments b/f Cadie was born. What an awesome blessing grandchildren are. What an awesome God to plan people to begin as babies.

Rooster for free

A couple of months ago we acquired a rooster off of freecycle. He was "sooooooooo cute" (one of the twins's favorite sayings). Anyway I think I blogged about him being henpecked. We got to see that in action daily. Well he's bigger than the hens now and he's not going to take it anymore! He has become very aggressive to one particular hen (Moss- a buff orphington) and had pecked one side of her head to a bloody mess. We isolated her from him and he began picking at another hen (Meadow). Oddly it was our other buff orphington. Now we are separating TWO hens from him. I'm sure it is only a matter of time until he chooses a new target. So for the last couple of weeks I've been trying to convince the twins that maybe it is time for Roosty to find a new home. After a few tears they have both finally consented. The suggestion for rooster soup did not go over well. Then one of them suggested that he be "released into the wild". NOT fine with the other one, who said "something will EAT him". So we are waiting for someone to respond to emails I've sent out to give him a new home, hopefully with a dominant rooster. He has served his purpose of introducing the twins to reproduction and we really hoped to raise some chicks but he's crossed the line with me and has to go. So, any takers?????

Blessings and Curses

By all outward appearances, Kenny George has been blessed with the perfect basketball player’s body. The University of North Carolina – Asheville athlete stands 7 feet 7 inches tall. He weighs in at 360 pounds. His wingspan, fingertip to fingertip, is nearly 8.5 feet. Special order basketball shoes have to be made for his size 26 feet.

But the same physical attributes which offer such potential blessings can also be a curse. His extreme size has put greater stress on his joints and has led to several injuries. Common, everyday tasks that we take for granted are a trial for him. Another writer notes that “…he is too tall to fit into a driver’s seat, so he does not have a driver’s license and must ask friends for rides. When the semester ends, his father drives the 650 miles from Chicago, his hometown, to Asheville so George does not have to squeeze into an airplane seat. “I don’t hate it, but there are times when I wish that I weren’t so tall,” George said.” (Anne Katherine Clemmons, nytimes.com, January 9, 2008).

Christians with roots in the Restoration Movement have been blessed with a strong emphasis on biblical truth. The Bible certainly stresses the importance of truth (Jn. 17:17; 8:32) and, thus, we were taught early to love, honor and respect the truth. We have always placed a premium on learning and knowing the Word of God. We have expected all teaching to be grounded in “book, chapter and verse.” Kept in proper perspective, these are all blessings.

But a strong emphasis on truth can also become a curse. How so? An emphasis on truth can become a curse when it is used as a club to bludgeon other believers. An emphasis on truth can become a curse when it fosters ungodly words and attitudes. An emphasis on truth can become a curse when it blinds us to other facets of our mission for God.

We must remember that the Scriptures are not our source of life, but they do point us to the Life-Giver (John 5:39-40).

God loves you!
Mike

Beware Of The Railroad!

When a customary or traditional way of doing something is challenged, we often react strongly, perhaps even irrationally. Don Humphrey, in his book Hearts On Fire, provides an excellent illustration of this tendency by sharing a letter written by Martin Van Buren to President Andrew Jackson in 1829.

“President Jackson: The canal system of this country is being threatened by the spread of a new form of transportation known as railroads. The federal government must preserve the canals for the following reasons: One, if boats are supplanted by railroads, serious unemployment will result. Captains, cooks, drivers, hostlers, repairmen, and lock tenders will be left without means of livelihood, not to mention the numerous farmers now employed in growing hay for horses. Two, boat builders would suffer and towline, whip, and harness makers would be left destitute. Three, canal boats are absolutely essential to the defense of the United States. In the event of the expected trouble with England, the Erie Canal would be the only means by which we could ever move the supplies so vital to waging modern war. As you may well know, Mr. President, railroad carriages are pulled at the enormous speed of 15 miles per hour by engines which, in addition to endangering life and limb of passengers, roar and snort their way through the countryside, setting fire to crops, scaring the livestock, and frightening women and children. The Almighty certainly never intended that people should travel as such a breakneck speed. Sincerely yours, Martin Van Buren, Governor of New York” (pp. 71-72).

Looking back from the perspective of the year 2008, Mr. Van Buren’s opposition to the railroad seems almost absurd. His reasons for resisting the railroad are centered on fear. He even claims God as an ally. Sadly, some modern opponents of responsible spiritual change and progress use the same tactics. They, too, prey on our fears. And they are usually quick to claim that God is on their side as well.

When others look back on us after 179 years, will they see “railroad proponents” or “railroad opposers,” spiritually speaking?

God loves you!

Mike

What Do You See?

As our family traveled recently, I was impressed, once again, with the wide variety of landscapes which a traveler encounters as he moves from west to east across the middle of our great country. The evergreen forests of western California soon give way to the arid, high desert landscape that stretches across Nevada, Utah, and most of Wyoming. As you descend out of the Rockies into eastern Wyoming, the scrub brush recedes and you begin to encounter the vast grasslands and wheat fields of the high plains. As you journey into western Nebraska, you begin to see more and more evidence of irrigated agricultural pursuits. By the time you reach central Nebraska, irrigated farmland fills your view as far as the eye can see.

I confess that I still find the scenery in Nebraska to be attractive. The state has been blessed with adequate rainfall this year and it shows. Maybe it is just the “farmer\rancher DNA” that still resides within me, but row after row and acre after acre of healthy corn and soybean fields are still a beautiful sight to me. Seeing fat, sleek cattle grazing in green pastures still appeals to me. But others can experience the very same landscape and speak of how utterly boring and dull it is. I guess it just proves the old adage: “Beauty is in the eye of the beholder.”

Thankfully, God sees something beautiful within each and every one of us. Our lives may seem to be dry and desolate, but God can take even the smallest spark of life and create a beautiful work of art. Our lives may seem to be common and boring, but God has always used common people in uncommon ways. God looks past our failures and flaws and finds something attractive. God looks past our “warts” and sees someone of great worth and beauty. We are beautiful in the eyes of our Beholder. May we learn to see each other in the same way that God sees us.

God loves you!
Mike