A Great History CBO 2006

So, this is, oddly enough, my first [and now last] meditation, which was originally published in the 2006 CBO Meditation Journal, based on the theme Keeping Watch, from Luke 2:8.

A Great History

“The lamp of the body is the eye.  If therefore your eye is good, your whole body will be full of light.  But if your eye is bad, your whole body will be full of darkness.If therefore the light that is in you is darkness, how great is that darkness!” Matthew 6:22-23

Sometimes I forget that there is a great history around me.  In each building that I pass.  In each person that I meet.  In every corner of my life.  Sometimes I forget that there is a great history around me.

It seems fairly easy to forget this.  After all, I lead a busy life—full of work, love, church, and the occasional moment of relaxation.  And it is so easy to become wrapped up in my own worries and successes, and to forget that there is a great history around me.

But then, from time to time, I slow down and reflect on that great history.  I think of the plight of those men and women that have been oppressed so that other men and women could live in luxury.  I think of the children that have lost, or never had, a parent to guide them.

And I think of a Great God that created it all, and works through it all, so that he can care for and love all.  I think of his Son, who came as a baby.  I think of his Son, who lived to show us how to live and died to show us how to die, so that we could follow his lead.  I think of a long line of people that have carried their crosses so that I might remember to carry mine.  Yet sometimes I forget that there is a great history around me.

Remember to take the time to slow down and remember where you are, where you have come from, and where God is leading you next.  And while you're at it this holiday season, worry about your family more than about the gifts you will buy them.

+ Again and again, Jesus left the crowds to be alone with his Father in prayer, what will it take for you to find this same sense of Sabbath, this sense of solitude?

+ Our society is constantly preaching speed as a way of life, and when things aren't fast enough we get angry.  Are you willing to show patience in the face of adversity, love in the face of anger, and grace in the face of sin?

+ In what ways can you remember the story that is our history?

Peace and Love,

Pastor K

p.s. If I don't get a chance to tell you in person, Merry Christmas, Happy New Year and may you have a glorious holiday, whichever one you do or do not celebrate.

2 Meditations from CBO 2008

So, these two meditations were originally published in the 2008 Meditation Journal, based on the theme Visions of the Father taken from John 14:7.

Reflections of Love

Jesus answered, “I am the way, the truth, and the life.  No one comes to the Father, except through me.  If you really knew me, you would know my Father as well.  From now on, you do know him and have seen him.”  John 14:6,7

Is it me or has Noah's ark become a cute way to decorate the rooms of children?  Noah has become a little chubby guy with a nice grey beard and there seem to be about 10 or so animals on board.  It has a nice tan border with puffy white clouds and a bright shiny sun.  It is a very happy and serene scene.

A couple years ago I was in London.  I went to London's longest running play, The Mousetrap, a murder mystery by Agatha Christie.  I went to museums, the Tower of London, and to Stonehenge, all magnificent experiences.  One day, I ended up at the Tate Britain Art Museum and there I encountered a very different Noah's Ark Scene.  The artist was Francis Dabny and his painting was titled The Deluge.  Noah's Ark was in the background, but in the foreground the sky is dark, the lightning threatening, and a group of people flee from a wall of water,.  I wonder how many people would put that scene in their house, let alone a small child's room.

I say this to say the following, it is possible to look at the first half of the Bible, and see a harsh God, who is bent on punishing people for every mistake. But in the light of Jesus we see a very different God, we see a God of love and compassion, of grace and truth.  If we had understood God to begin with, we may never have needed a savior. But we did not understand and so we needed Jesus to come down to us and show us how God really is.

+ Do you think of God in terms of laws or love?

+ Think of a time when you saw something in one light, but then learned that it was different, how did it make you feel? How did it change you?


+ As you pray this month, ask God for more truth and understanding.

Mimicking Christ

“I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.” John 10:10b NIV

My father died when I was 5 years old.  It was a loss that I failed to comprehend at the time.  I missed him, but I didn't really know all the ways that his death would change things until later.  When I was a little older, I would see boys learning things from their fathers and being taught the little things that little boys can only learn from a father or a father figure.  Those were the times when I really understood what I had lost.

As I grew, however, my mom and grandma would occasionally say things like, “You remind me of your father when you do that,” or, “That is just like what Bob used to do when he was your age.”  One day, after I hadn't seen my grandma for a number of years, I showed up unexpectedly at her door.  A couple of months later, when I again visited (this time with my mom), my grandma said that she had known it was me the time before because I looked like my dad.

Those are the moments in which I most feel like my father's son.  In those moments, I reconnect with both my loss and the possibility of what could have been.  But it also brings me a bit of joy to know that my presence reminds people of the one I wish I was like.  What if the same thing could be said of all of us in relation to Jesus?  What if, when people encountered us, they realized that they were encountering him?

Only when we are connected to Jesus—when our branch is connected to the Vine, and when we grieve over his death and glory over his life—can we be reminiscent of the One who paid the price so that we could live and live to the fullest.

+ In what ways do your mirror your parents?

+ Do you mirror Jesus in similar ways?

+ Think back to a time in which someone noticed Jesus in you.  What were you doing?  How did it make you feel to be a mirror of Jesus?

Peace and Love,

Pastor K

A group of Anonymous Meditations CBO 2009

So, as the title implies the following meditations were all originally published anonymously in the 2009 CBO Meditation Journal, based on the theme Follow the Star. Throughout the journal there were meditations that were all told in the first person following various Biblical people that were intertwined in the Nativity story. These were my offerings.

Joseph, Surrogate Father of the Lord

“Arise take the young child and His mother, flee to Egypt, and stay there until I bring you word; for Herod will seek the young child to destroy him.” Matthew 2:13b

Mom, Dad,

The past couple of years have been a whirlwind.  It all started off when Mary, my wife, then fiancé, told me that she was a virgin and pregnant.  In my mind those two things can't both be true, so at first I thought she was losing her mind, and then she started to show, which made me think that she was lying about the former not the latter.  I was willing to let her go in secret, but then an angel appeared to me saying that yes both were true, and to top it all off, Mary was pregnant with God's own son.  So I took Mary as my wife, we went to Bethlehem to be counted and she gave birth in a manger, because the inn had no vacancies.  So here we are surrounded by a couple sheep and a donkey and a few other random animals when all of a sudden a small group of shepherds show up saying that angels told them to come and worship the newborn king.

That was crazy, but then a while later a few weird looking men  showed up, and they said that they had followed a star to find our child.  They were about to go to Herod and let him known where to find Jesus, when they were told in a dream that Herod wanted no good for our son and then left secretly in another direction.  After they left then I had another dream telling me to take Mary and Jesus, our son, and go to Egypt.  Of all places, Egypt, the same place and people who had enslaved our own people so many years ago, and the reason I was to do this, Herod wanted to destroy Jesus.  Destroy him, he can barely walk and Herod wants to kill him.  It doesn't make any sense, but I find that if you listen to God amazing things will happen.  So here we go.

Yours truly,
Joseph, husband of Mary, father of Jesus, more or less

+ Do you think that you could be as faithful as Joseph was?

+ In what ways can you be more faithful to God's will in your own life?

+ Pray that God would use you in whatever way he may choose.

Shepherds, followers of the Lamb

“Nearby, in fields outside of Bethlehem, a group of shepherds were guarding their flocks from predators in the darkness of night” Luke 2:8

“Can you believe what just happened?”

“No, what should we do?

“We should go.”

“Go where?”

“To see the child, see the king, the prophet, the savior.”

A Savior, a king, a prophet?  No, that is not what you might have thought on first sight, he was just a baby, as typical and normal as my own.  He cried when he was hungry, no matter what you may have been told.  He hungered and thirst like every other baby, and he may well have given Mary fits later on, that I do not know, but he was different in his own way, quite in an inward way, with a maturity that not only went past his years but also his humanity.  The angel said that he came from heaven to bring us back with him, our holy book foretold that his death would cross the divide that we created, and that his life would show us more than we had yet seen.  We went to see a savior, a king, a prophet and we found a child. A child to heal us, a child to save us, a child to show us the way.

Years later I would still hear of this child turned man, would hear that he speaks of himself like a shepherd trying to gather his flock to himself.  Me and my kindred know what he speaks about, we know the dangers that lurk behind the next rock, we know of the night air's chill and to gather together brings warmth and safety.  When I hear that Jesus speaks about gathering a flock I realize that I was a part of that first flock, that gathered around him to behold the future in the present.

+ When you think of Jesus as a shepherd do you think of him as kind and tenderhearted?  Do you also think of him as a protector and defender?

+ So often we take for granted that God sent Jesus in the form of a baby, but try to put yourself in the shoes of someone who is experiencing it for the first time, how would (did) you feel? What does it change about how you view Christmas?

Simeon, holder of the Savior

“In Jerusalem at the time, there was a man, Simeon by name, a good man, a man who lived in the prayerful expectancy of help for Israel.”  Luke 2:25 

You probably do not know me well, I am a mere blip on the radar screen of God's great plan, but like you, I know a thing or two about waiting, about searching.  I know that waiting is often the hardest part, I know that a search is as much about what you are searching for as it is about yourself.  And I know what it means for the wait to be over and the search to be through.

I had lived a long life, but I held onto this mortal coil because I wanted to see the new beginning.  My people were a people of suffering, of clawing our ways back up just to be knocked down again, but I knew hope was on the way, because I knew our story.  I knew of a promise to Abraham of a first son, a promise to David of a great son, a promise told by the prophet Isaiah of the one and only Son.  And because of my faith and because of my hope, my God gave me the gift to see the 8 day old savior of my people, of all people.

You probably do not know me well, I am a mere blip on the radar screen of God's great plan, I am Simeon and I held Jesus in my arms.

+ How are you preparing yourself for Jesus, even now?

+ Have you allowed life's searches to shape you as you shaped them?

+ Pray that God would allow you to feel Jesus in your heart this season.

The Magi, seekers of the King

“Where is the one who has been born king of the Jews? We saw his star in the east and have come to worship him.” Matthew 2:2 

Creation cried that first night, a cry of joy that reverberated through the entire cosmos.  It was a sight to behold.  We, three, saw what many others saw but, unlike them, we saw it for what it was, a birth announcement.  We gathered what we would need for the journey and set out across valleys and mountains, across plains and deserts.  We arrived in a far away land and were taken to the reigning power, and asked where the new king was to be born.  Even the leader knew nothing of what we spoke, so he had to ask his own wise men, who consulted their ancient texts and found what they sought.  But they did not rush out to find this king, they told us to go and find him, and then to report back.

We continued on our journey to find this new king, and find him we did.  In this small child lay the hope of the world, yet he cared more about the funny looking men with their odd colors and weird hair. We brought him our gifts, gifts of worship and material gifts, all gifts fit for a newborn king.  As we slept we dreamed that the ruler wanted this small child's destruction, so when we took our leave we left by an alternate way.  Having been changed by the journey, having been changed by the destination.

+  Think about the last time you took a trip, did you enjoy the journey as well as the destination?

+ What steps can you take to be sure you give this time of advent the seriousness it deserves? What gifts are you bringing to Jesus this year?

+ Pray that God would help you to seek the king as well.

Peace and Love,

Pastor K

A Push in the Right Direction CBO 2009

So, this meditation was originally published in the 2009 CBO Meditation Journal, based on the theme Follow the Star. A Push in the Right Direction was the edited title of what follows.

Sometimes, we all need to be dragged

“Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary as your wife...She will bear a son, and you are to name him Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins.” Matthew 1: 20b, 21

Now, for all the women reading this it might not be a big surprise that a guy would need the urging of an angel in order to be ready to be a father, and you guys out there might be a little red-faced right now.  But that's how it is sometimes, sometimes we need to be gently nudged, all right, down right pushed, into moving into the next phase of our lives. This is especially true when it happens in a way or time not of our choosing.

And this is often the case, many times we are all too often the last ones on board for any major change Joseph, the righteous man that he was, was willing to let Mary off in secret, rather than publicly scorn her which could have led to her death.  But, being told in a dream, instead took her to his ancestral home to be counted and to give birth. The result, angels and shepherds and men of wisdom came to behold the birth of Jesus, and the whole world was filled with his glory.

It is often a marvelous place we can come to if we but get out of God's way and get into God's plan.  In this time of anticipation may we all plan a little less and allow God to move a little more.

+ In what times have you been reluctant to move forward?

+ In those times did you seek God's will in prayer? Why or why not?

+ Pray that God would help you to get out of the way and to work his plan out in your life.

Peace and Love,

Pastor K

10 Books that have stuck

So, quite a few people have been posting on Facebook about the 10 books that have stuck with them. And while I have not officially been tagged in these lists I thought it might be fun to make a list myself. It was my original intention to just post this as a status on Facebook, but it became a little more bloated than I originally thought it would be, so instead I decided to post it here on my blog.

I tend to live my life with one foot in the 'Religious' world and one in the 'Secular' so my list is coincidentally 5 novels/series and 5 books on religion. And while we are at caveats I should mention that these are in no particular order other than this is the way they came to me. If I had to pick the one book that has had the biggest impact on my life and theology and grace it would be Velvet Elvis and if I had to pick my favorite one of the 'Secular' books I would pick Peanuts, because frankly I'm a little obsessed.

1. The Harry Potter Series by J.K. Rowling

I was introduced to the Harry Potter series by Myndie Turner shortly before Book 3 [The Prisoner of Azkaban] was released. She told me that I just had to read them, and while I was somewhat hesitant to read it at first, I fell in love with Harry, Ron, Hermione, Dumbledore, and Rowling's magical world. I always thought that the 'Christian' backlash against the books was ridiculous, it is a story of friendship, loyalty, love, and sacrifice. If you haven't read them you are doing yourself a disservice. If you are curious in order of my favorite to least favorite they go something like this: Book 4 [The Goblet of Fire], Book 6 [The Half Blood Prince], Book 7 [The Deathly Hallows], Book 1 [The Sorcerer's Stone], Book 3 [The Prisoner of Azkaban], Book 2 [The Chamber of Secrets] and finally Book 5 [The Order of the Phoenix] (Mainly because Harry is going through puberty and yells a lot)

2. If Grace is True by Phillip Gulley and James Mulholland

These next three books are controversial in some sections of the church, which is probably why I like them, because if I'm honest I am controversial in some sections of the church. [And if we are completely honest every single one of my five favorite religious books are controversial in certain areas of the church, because frankly a lot of people in the church are angry old curmudgeons]

In this book Gulley and Mulholland lay out an argument for universal salvation based on the Grace of God. It is not the only book I have read that espouses the belief, but it was the first. Obviously I have been taught that there is a certain course of events that happen after we die, but I don't know what happens when we do die, but I hope that Gulley and Mulholland and others are right. And for those out there that say if it is true what would be the point in following God, you just need to pick up the next book, If God is Love.

3. A New Kind of Christian by Brian McLaren

Modern. Post-Modern. Before A New Kind of Christian I couldn't tell you what they meant or why they were important. But what McLaren lays out in this first book of his trilogy [along with The Story We Find Ourselves In and The Last Word and the Word After That] is way forward for a Christianity that was becoming dull in my mind. To steal part of the official synopsis,

"This stirring fable captures a new spirit of Christianity--where personal, daily interaction with God is more important than institutional church structures, where faith is more about a way of life than a system of belief, where being authentically good is more important than being doctrinally "right," and where one's direction is more important than one's present location."

4. Velvet Elvis by Rob Bell

There are a million things about this book I could choose to talk about, but the section on belief and trampolines alone is worth the price of admission for me. If you know what I'm talking about, you know. If you don't buy a copy, or get one from the library, or just ask to borrow mine, except its already out on loan at the moment, so you might have to wait.

5. As the Crow Flies by Jeffrey Archer

If I had to pick my favorite novelist Jeffrey Archer would be the man I would pick. I love all of his books, but As the Crow Flies beats the rest by a slim margin. It is a tale of a young boy who becomes a department store magnate, and while that may not sound very interesting it is an edge of the seat journey through a rags to riches story.

6. All is Grace by Brennan Manning

I could pick other Books by Brennan, for instance The Ragamuffin Gospel, The Importance of Being Foolish, or The Furious Longing of God, but for me it is his auto-biography that really let me understand the mess of a man that he was. You may wonder why that is important, the reason is simple, if God can use the mess that was Brennan in the powerful way that God did, God can use the mess of a man that I am. That always seemed to be Brennan's main message it just took me a little longer than most of his devotees to realize it.

7. Redwall Series by Brian Jacques

Redwall is another "children's book series" that I first encountered in college. It is a series consisting of 22 novels following the various adventures of woodland animals, based in, around, and before the Abbey of Redwall. Unfortunately Brian Jacques passed away in 2011 so there will most likely not be another Redwall novel, but I made sure to collect the whole series for Henry and I to explore when he gets a little older.

8. Snow Treasure by Marie McSwigan

Snow Treasure, which is probably the least known of the books on this list is a fiction account of a true story about children in Norway smuggling gold behind the Nazis backs. I read this as a child and when I learned that we were going to have a baby it was one of the first books I thought of buying for him/her.

9. Abraham by Bruce Feiler

Abraham was introduced to me in a Missions class taught by Juanita Leonard in seminary. Feiler is a journalist who travels to the Middle East in order to investigate the man behind the 3 major monotheistic Religions, in chronological order, Judaism, Christianity, Islam. It made me realize that while each of these religions may have their differences we also have much in common. I believe that the peaceful way forward in both the Middle East and around the world is to focus on those connections as opposed to our differences.

And since its my list I am going to take a little liberty and say

10. Peanuts by Charles Schulz

Of course Peanuts is not strictly a book, but rather a comic strip. On the other hand though, I own quite a few books that contain Peanuts strips, and as I said it is my list, so there. I enjoyed Peanuts as I was growing up, but I do not think I fully appreciated it until I was older and could grasp the multi-layered comedy and brilliance that Schulz packed into those few squares. Along with the many books I own I also have a little collection of Peanuts memorabilia including stuffed animals, figures, and ornaments.

Peace and Love,
Pastor K

Moses and the back of God CBO 2010

So, this meditation comes from the 2010 CBO Meditation Journal, on the theme God With Us from Colossians 1:19-20.

Moses and the Back of God

"Then I will remove my hand, and you will see me from behind. But my face will not be seen."
Exodus 33:23

Sometimes I wonder if God really is with us.  So often it seems like God is easy to miss.  Like in those times when you pray for peace and there is no peace, or you pray for strength and there is no strength.  In those moments God can seem very far away indeed.  And it’s in moments like those that I try to remember something I read about Moses and his interactions with God.

In Exodus 33 Moses implores God to show him God’s glory; amazingly God complies with the request.  But since God is God Moses can not see God’s face, so God says he will cover Moses with his hand and that Moses will only be able to see God’s back.  In his book Velvet Elvis, pastor/author Rob Bell says that some of the ancient Jewish rabbis argued that “the word back should be understood as a euphemism for ‘where I just was.’”

This concept makes a lot of sense to me, because I can more likely see God interacting in situations when I look back.  So often when I am in the midst of a moment I lose sight of the larger implications and the more mystical aspects.  It is when I look back that I truly understand the amazing set of circumstances, words, and people that it took to carry me through, and it is then that I truly realize that God is most assuredly always with us.

+ How have you seen God working in your daily life?

+ Is it easier to notice God’s moving after you look back at moments?

+ Pray that God will open your heart and your eyes so that you can see where God is moving today.

Peace and Love,
Pastor K

Proud to be a Replacement CBO 2011

So, this comes from the 2011 CBO Meditation Journal, on the theme Making Room taken from Luke 2:7.

Proud to be a Replacement

‘For I know the plans I have for you’ declares the Lord, ‘plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.’ Jeremiah 29:11

I've never told this to anyone before, but I was never supposed to be a pastor, that was Kevin’s job. Growing up in church everyone always said that my friend Kevin would be a preacher and I would be on Broadway. I loved acting and singing so I was fine with that. I don’t know if being a pastor was ever Kevin’s plan, I never asked and he never said. Whatever the case it never happened, last I knew he was in the Navy.

Years passed and I began to feel a tug on my heart, and a feeling that maybe God wanted me to become a pastor. It was such a foreign concept that I spent some of my time in undergrad crawling toward it and the majority of the time running from it. It wasn’t until after graduation while I was living at home and working at a golf course that I finally relented. Now I have finished seminary, finally started the ordination process, and am looking for churches.

Maybe this is the path that I was always supposed to follow, but I tend to think that maybe it was Kevin’s and he chose something else and so God needed someone else and then chose me. Sometimes we only have to stop and give in so that God can make room in us so that we can make room for others.

+ In what ways do you need to give in so God can use you?

+ Have you ever felt that you were the replacement, how has God reassured you?

Peace and Love,
Pastor K

Peace, a fullness CBO 2012

So, this meditation comes from the 2012 CBO Meditation Journal with the theme A Child is Born stemming from Isaiah 9:6.

Peace, a fullness - 2012

"Jesus replied, "What is impossible with men is possible with God." Luke 18:27

We are promised a Prince of Peace into a world that appears to be ever more violent.  But, while Jesus may have been given to give us external peace, if we are willing to seek it, he most definitely came to give us peace internally.  So often we go through life and we wonder why we cannot find peace.  But is it really any wonder when we carry a bundle of anger and resentment at the world around us.  We are consistently holding things against our leaders our neighbors our friends our families and even ourselves.  We need to let go of all of that before we will ever find peace.

I think this, more than anything else, is what Jesus is really trying to tell the rich young ruler in Luke 18.  It was not about the actual money and possessions that the man had, but rather all that it meant to him, both the positive and the negative.  Only by letting go of the things we hold on so tightly too can we ever be free enough to find peace.  It is never the next thing that will bring us that elusive happiness security or peace, it is letting go of both our desire for the next thing as well as our love for the current things.

+What must you let go of in order to find peace in your life? Money? Anger? People? Things?

+Think back on the times that you were peaceful, where were you, what was happening, how can you find that place again?

Peace and Love,

Pastor K

Irrational Hope CBO 2013

So, each year Christian Women Connection (formerly Women of the Church of God) puts out a Meditation Journal to coincide with the yearly Christ Birthday Offering. For many of the past 8 years I have been fortunate enough to have been asked to write a Meditation. [And I am absolutely positive that it has nothing to do with the fact that my wife is the person in charge of the offering and its various parts] While I know that not all of my friends attend a Church of God and I can safely assume that it is possible that even the ones that do may have not picked up a journal, let alone read my devotions I have decided that the next few blogs will cover my various devotionals. I hope that they may be of some use for you.

Irrational Hope - 2013

“Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid or terrified because of them, for the Lord your God goes with you; he will never leave nor forsake you.” Deuteronomy 31:6

Have you ever realized that most times in order to be hopeful there has to be an element of irrationality to our thought processes? This dawned on me recently when, despite the dire circumstance and despite the fact that things seemed consistently more bleak my wife and I believed that things would work out. Yes, part of the reason that we had hope was because God had brought us through one thing after another not much worse for wear over the 7 or so years we have been married, but there was also that element of irrationality. That element that said no matter how bad things were or how bad things looked to be going, God would lead us through the storms, through the darkness.

I figure that Daniel felt similar when he was in the lion’s den, sure it was dark and scary, sure the lions were large and powerful and hungry, but he still believed that God would keep him safe.

I figure that Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego felt similar when they faced a fiery furnace, sure they were on death’s doorstep, they could feel the heat from afar, and feel the flames up close, but their faith that God would rescue them never wavered.

I figure that Mary and Joseph felt similar when they were told that the baby would be God, sure she was a virgin, sure it seemed unlikely, but they believed in the messages they had received.

Perhaps today you are in the midst of the darkness, perhaps today you are in the midst of the storm, hold on to the irrationality of hope, because God will never leave nor forsake you.

+ Take a moment to remember what God has already brought you through; what steps can you take to not forget those times?

+ I mentioned just a few Biblical illustrations of people who had hope, who else comes to your mind?

Peace and Love,
Pastor K

Lullabies and Mixed Up Lyrics

So, each night when we put Henry to sleep we play music. We have a wide range of options, from instrumental versions of Hymns, Michael W. Smith, Queen, and Kayne West to Lullaby albums from Jewel and Nick Lachey to just normal albums by Andrew Peterson, Andrew Osenga, and Jack Johnson, but my favorite artist to listen to while I am trying to convince Henry its time to sleep is Joshua Kadison.  If you are someone who matured musically in the 90's you might remember Josh by his 3 hits (Jessie, Beautiful in My Eyes, and Picture Postcards from LA) off his debut album (Painted Desert Serenade). And then for most of you he fell off your radar, but I continued to follow him and love everything he put out, which is not enough if you ask me.

I was listening to Painted Desert Serenade a couple hours ago and was reminded that when I first bought the album I was surprised by the lyrics of the song Jessie. When it first rose to popularity I thought that Jessie called at 5 am and said that they could move to Mexico Youth Academy, but in reality she says that we can move to Mexico you, the cat, and me. I don't know why I thought it was a youth academy, maybe it was because I was still a youth at the time, or maybe my ears simply played tricks on me.

As I have mentioned from time to time I used to write song lyrics [I say used to because it has been quite a while that I wrote a song that had more than three lines and was not intended to get Henry to calm down or go to sleep], in addition I am that guy that when he buys a new CD/download the first thing I do is check the booklet to see if lyrics are included and then I follow along for my first full listen. I love the way people put words together, my favorite bands/singers are those that are the best lyricists or at least pick the best lyrics to sing.

Now, I remember when Seal released Kiss from a Rose and I was so curious about some of the lyrics, specifically where or when was this kiss? Was it a kiss from a rose in the rain, on the brain, or a train or grain or drain or something completely different, what exactly was this guy singing about? And I remember someone asking him what he was singing and he said something along the lines of it doesn't really matter what I am singing what matters is what you are hearing, how you interrupt it. At the time that answer irritated me to no end, but back then I was a black and white type of guy, I consistently wanted to know what was right and wrong, whether that was politically, religiously, or lyrically.

If you have been following this blog for any amount of time you will realize that I am not the guy anymore, I pretty much live in the grey areas. And while I still believe that there are certain things that are right and wrong, politically, religiously, lyrically, I think that they are a lot less things than I used to think. I like to think that this has to do with a stronger understanding of grace and love, or it could be that I have begun to grow tired of arguing. I have been becoming a person who would rather leave as friends than as conqueror and conquered, rather leave with the possibility open that we may talk again than leave with the conversation over and done with forever.

I am still a work in progress, and truth be told I am beginning to think that I always will be in progress, and truth be told I am becoming very peaceful in that knowledge. To that end, I apologize for the times I may still try to 'win' when I should be playing for the tie, I apologize for the times I come across as a jerk, or worse. I apologize for the times when I fight for my Youth Academy when it really is you, the cat, and me.

Peace and Love,
Pastor K