There’s this great game we play. My youngest son will act as if he has just gotten hit, or smacked, or boomed, or shot by the aliens or mean guys, or enemies…or whatever he chooses to call them at that moment in time. He does this fantastic academy-award w
inning death scene where he bangs into the kitchen counter (laughing of course…for crying out loud the kid is only 5) t
hen he’ll nip the corner of the hallway, and then grabbing his injured arm/shoulder/stomach…he flops to the ground, laughing his head off, and awaits me to come to his rescue. I shout and yell, “Uh-oh! Gonna need the Nicky fixers”. And if I don’t yell it in time, he’ll bell out, “Dad! Where’s the Nicky Fixers!”
I reach behind me as if I am g
rabbing a couple of defibrillators, clap my fists together while making an electrical surge type of sound effect, and Nicky begins to smile…cuz’ he knows what’s comin’. I increase the volume of the sound effect as I grow nearer to his belly, and
Nicky’s laugh quickly turns into giggles as he attempts with all his energy to hide his growing smile with one eye open in grand anticipation of the tickling which is quickly creeping upon him. All the sudden the defribillators magically turn into 10 fingers furiously tickling this giggly young man, tickling him in every last crook and granny spot on his rib cage and belly as he enduringly tries to yell through all the laughing, “I’m alive! I’m alive!” I’ll place the imaginary
defr
ibillators behind my back and moments later the aliens attack once again…and there’s my son…lying on the ground with e grin the size of Brad’s mom waiting for me to come and revive him with the Nicky Fixers.
My youngest son just came in about 5 minutes ago and asked, in a hush-silent manner, “Dad…can I come in your office and play? I’ll be very quiet.” Whatcha’ gonna say? The thought of my own son wanting to be near me while he plays with his cars and little action figures…? I had to loosen my tie and unbutton the top buttons while my head grew a couple sizes bigger.
A moment later he is explaining to me that the vampire is going to be hard to verse (vs.) while fighting the ghosts. I couldn’t help but chuckle…for I had no idea where he gets this stuff. We have no video games about vampires and ghosts…and what 5 year old walks around saying stuff like “The vampire vs. the ghost”? Funny stuff if you ask me. With respect to staying focused on the task and getting the job done? I believe it is still very possible, if not more so knowing that your kids are right there by your side. Yes, sometimes there is no substitute for silence…and it is extremely difficult in this world to find such a commodity, however I prefer without hesitation, the sounds of action figures battling…or in this case…versing imaginary ghosts in far away villages and the clash of cars with sound effects that only a 5 year old imagination can dream of….sing it, Louis! What a Wonderful World
Yup…it’s November! Where did October go? We’ll wake up tomorrow and it will be Christmas. I have asked a few kids about thanksgiving and for what reason they had to be thankful and their reply was not what I expected. One teenager…let’s call him…oh, I don’t know, Johnny…told me online that his mother didn’t really care about him or life anymore, he doesn’t see his dad a whole lot, and is currently flunking school. Another teen told me that his friend wants him to help him sell some crack on the side, he has been kicked out of school and is on the verge of being expelled at the alternative school, but really has no hope for the future…and still another tells me that his mother is constantly yelling at him for nearly everything from the point he gets up and leaves for school until the point he closes the door and hides under the covers to escape…and they all asked me for what reason they should be thankful. This is a seemingly difficult question to answer to kids who reside in a depressed and angry living environment where God is unfortunately not welcome as a savior, but rather another being on whom their parents or they themselves place the blame for their current demise.
I am in prayer for them often as God constantly brings their faces and stories to my mind and I ask you to join me in prayer for these kids and many more like them whom I counsel online as they are seeking the truth and have the option to allow God to turn their story into a powerful testimony which can indeed change the lives of many.
How do we deal with loss in life? When we lose someone close to us, or a friend may have died early in life…much more so than we would have expected…how do we press on? Should we press on? Why is it important? This show tells you why.
We just finished a show on choices…let me tell ya’ somethin’…The one whom you marry is the most important decision you will make, second only to the reservations you schedule for the afterlife (smoking or non-smoking) My brother played this song for me while I was visiting in New Orleans…and I couldn’t stop laughing. I’m sure you’ve probably heard it all before…but to those who are seeking a mate for life…take some notes, my fellow brethren…cuz life can be a long, long, time. Fortunately for me, I found the love of my life while I was in college. There were 45 beautiful ladies, and the only other guy in class was 40 years old, and married. I was set. And, God brought my bride-to-be to me whose beauty both inside and out, is unmatched.
The above is half of the video we shot, if you would like the full version including behind the scenes commentary and interviews with the cast of the impact this drama had on them, the part they played, an more click here
Fall is upon us, and we are in the midst of gathering, shopping, and packing school supplies…but how do we gear up for our spiritual battle?
I have people all day long tell me, “Yea, I need to spend more time in devotions” or “I need to get back into devotions” and I tell them, “Well, when it becomes more of a priority…you will.” It is the same thing with saving for that one item you must have, losing weight, or whatever is is that we “wish” for which is such a losing proposition. What genie do we expect to jump out of a bottle and give us three wishes of infinite choice? What universe do we live in once again? Who made us? Gave us what we have? And can take it away in a flash? And we spend how much time with him every day?
Can we not take 30minutes aside to read in his word, be still, and know that He is God? We spend hours and hours practicing b-ball for the big game, football for the big tournament, and hundreds of dollars on equipment and supplies for our kids to go school so they can learn and hopefully apply it to their lives…well…why not spend a little time getting ready for the spiritual battles we face everyday? “For we wrestle not against flesh and blood” ring any bells?
C’Mon folks, let’s get serious about what we go through, and the main being who is willing to walk through it with us. He made himself a meager and mortal man, went through hell on earth while we crucified him, and came back from the dead so that he may make full payment for the crap we do and prep a place for us in Heaven. Can we spend a few minutes talking with him everyday? I think we can.
