Back to running

So I've got back to running in the past couple of weeks. Out of advice from my doctor I took a rest for a while because an x-ray showed a crack in my knee cap. It was a good news/bad news type of statement. The good news, "Surgery isn't necessary and after some rest it shouldn't effect your running and biking." The bad news, "Your knee will always hurt."

I have some great goals over the next couple of years for my new found past time. I'm not ready/bold enough to make those public yet. Right now I'm just happy to be able to get out on the road (I plan to graduate to trails soon too). For me a nice long run allows me plenty of time to think, reflect and release. Two years ago when I ran my first (and only) marathon it was one of the proudest moments of my life. In a car 26.2 miles doesn't seem too far but on foot it can be like the oasis you see in the distance of the desert. If there is one thing I've learned in my short life span it's that nothing worth having comes easily. A completed marathon takes hard work, dedication, and as many people have told me, "A little bit of craziness." But the feeling of accomplishment afterward is unfathomable.

This year I plan to compete in my first full distance triathlon. I've never possessed a great ability to swim so I have to admit I'm slightly nervous about that part. I completed a couple sprint distance races last year but they only had a 1/4 of a mile swim. I basically panic swam through those, I'm not sure I can do that for a full mile. Luckily I have a wife who is a great swimmer and I'm relatively certain she will guide me through it. Any advice you may have will be welcomed also.

I'm not sure what it is harder, the training for these races or a 3 hour wrestling practice both can make you want to lay down a die. However, just as when I won the region championship my senior year in wrestling, finishing a long run within your goal time makes you feel like you can do anything. So as the song goes "I can't wait to get on the road again, going place I've never been."

You Can't Always Get What You Want

Now that I have everyone singing I will be cliche and finish by saying, "If you try sometimes you'll get what you need." Jessica and I went to a new church this past Sunday. We both thoroughly enjoyed it. The minister was wonderful and his message was superb.

Just a side note. Reed also had a life changing experience. (Can you have one of those at 14 months old?) We dropped him off at the nursery and he never looked back. I think I actually heard him say, "New kids, new toys, c-ya mom and dad." Little did he know that in just a few short moments he would be whisked outside in his first ever fire evacuation. Turns out it was a false alarm but none the less all the kids were moved to a new location. However, the mass hysteria that I'm sure ensued didn't seem to bother Reed. When we went to get him he was happy and wanted to stay with the little girl he was playing with instead of coming with us.

Anyway, back to my point. Sometimes it seems that God will actually pick you up and sit you back down right where he wants you to be. The minister started the sermon with a joke about a marriage not being about getting the love you want but wanting the love you get. It was one of those opening lines that slaps you in the face and says, "Perk up -- something good is coming."

The sermon was based on Philippians 2: 1 - 11. In this passage the focus was more on verses 6 - 8 which speaking of Jesus reads:

"Who, being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be grasped, but made himself nothing, taking the very nature of a servant, And being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself and became obedient to death even death on a cross!" (NIV)

Paul was explaining to the Philippians that before his days on earth Christ enjoyed complete equality with the Father yet he laid that aside and came to Earth. Knowing he would be persecuted, beaten and crucified, he still gave up his glory and took our place on the cross. Jesus humbled himself so that we may be glorified.

As some of you know, the current economic situation has directly impacted Jessica and I. Jessica was laid off at the end of November and because of that we had to rethink a number of our expenses. Actually something we should have already done anyway. Some things we were really excited about getting to do we now cannot. A little budgeting has never hurt anyone and that is all we really have had to do. I'll confess though -- until hearing that message my own bitterness has kept my stress level high. Fortunately, Jessica has taken a higher road on the positive side. Ironically the one of us that should have been bitter has kept us sailing by stepping into the role of "wanting what we get" instead of "getting what we want." The sermon though showed me that we have to approach these tough times that way. It couldn't have come at the right time because this week has been full of bad news at my work. On Tuesday we started the day with an e-mail notifying us that my company would not be giving raises this year and they would be cutting 1,100 jobs. Then just today one of my co-workers became victim to this cut back. Luckily it wasn't me but without this message I'm not sure my stress level could have handled it.

What I do know is that I have a loving, hard working wife, a wonderful rambunctious little boy and a sweet little baby girl on the way. We have a roof over our head, heat to keep us warm and food to keep us nourished. All things that not only do I need but I definitely want.

Later in the passage I mentioned above we are explicitly charged with confessing that Jesus Christ is Lord because he earned that respect through his humility. Inexplicably, Paul is telling us to humble ourselves just as Jesus did. If we do, we may not get what we want but if we try sometimes God will make sure we get what we need.

It's Christmas Time in the City

Christmas is the most wonderful time of the year. I know "cliche" but for me it really is. I love decorations (even though Jessica and I haven't had time to put out as many as usual), Christmas carols (specifically "Carol of the Bells"), Santa Clause and Christmas movies. My favorite has always been Rudolph the Red Nose Reindeer with Burl Ives. Just the other day Reed pulled it out of the cabinet and brought it to me. I almost cried. Okay not really but I did put it in and we sat down and watched.


So why is Christmas my favorite time of the year. Is it the spirit of giving? Is it the time of good cheer? Is it the celebration of Jesus' birth? Well all of the above. It's the time of year when everybody seems to be cheerful and happy. People are shaking off another year of hard work.
Most getting a week or so break before bouncing back in after the new year. People deck their homes with greenery and lights. Driving up the street you see wreaths dressed in bows and berries. What is not to love?

So I say for the next week we throw away our worries, forget about whether the government is going to bail out the automakers and make the United Auto Workers disband and just revel in the glory of Christmas. Yes, I know the economy is struggling, I know we all are having to cut back just to stay afloat and I know that we are now "officially" in a recession. We will have plenty of time to worry about that but society only gives us this month to act like kids in a candy store.

I'm turning off the news if I see President Bush dodging shoes one more time. If I hear one more thing about how the UAW are going to have to cut their effective rate of $75 an hour down if the government passes the bail out, well I think I'll just scream. I want to hear about Jesus' birth. I want to hear how Rudolph saved the day by flying Santa's sleigh through the thick fog. I want to hear about cattle lowing and the baby awaking. I want to enjoy my savior's birth and my family's good cheer. Will you please join me?

Wordless Wednesday

Those Who Give

According to dictionary.com philanthropy is defined as, altruistic concern for human welfare and advancement, usually manifested by donations of money, property, or work to needy persons, by endowment of institutions of learning and hospitals, and by generosity to other socially useful purposes. Why does this matter? The apostle James writes in his book that we are not only judged by our faith but our works as well. In fact, he asks us to question our faith without our works. Philanthropy is one way we can provide our blessings in order to aide our neighbors who are less blessed.

Often we hear stories of those celebrities such as Oprah, and Angelina Jolie who often provide their time and resources to help those in need. I also like to find others who do the same. You see it is very easy to look into the mainstream media and see evil but we typically have to dig to find good , especially when the top stories are war and school shootings. So in a week when the top news story in Knoxville, TN was an unfortunate shooting in a school cafeteria, it was also announced that Pat Summitt also donated $600,000 to the University of Tennessee to be shared by the Knoxville campus and her alma mater campus UT-Martin.

My mother brought this to my attention the other day and it sparked me to conduct one of my searches to find more. Then I thought I couldn’t pass up posting some of these for those of you who take time to read my blog when Reed, Ada and Anna Kate all have much more interesting things to see. I also would like to hear about the ones you know, (it doesn’t have to be celebrity philanthropist). If for nothing else but to show that even though the economic outlook is bad we can face tomorrow because Jesus’ spirit lives within our works.

Boozer’s Buddies – Okay I have to admit I took a double take on this one but I quickly learned that just as we are not supposed to judge a book by its cover we shouldn’t judge a fund by its name either. This is actually a fund created by Carlos Boozer former Duke University basketball star and current member of the Utah Jazz. It supports families who have been affected by Sickle Cell Disease.

Shawn Marion Foundation – This one especially caught my eye because he is from my home town of Clarksville TN and graduated with my brother in the CHS Class of 96. Shawn currently plays for the Miami Heat. His fund supports single parent families. Something else that hits home with me. Although, I was young when Phillip came along I still remember the days of single parent living.

You can find many more just like these at www.givingback.org. However one that you may not find very easily is Dr. Jack Lupton, who is believed by some to be responsible for bottling more Coca Cola than anyone else in the world. In 2001, he donated $25 million to educational programs at the University of Tennessee Chattanooga. However, this is only one of the many donations that he and his wife have made. The Lyndhurst Foundation founded by his family has made many contributions most recently helping to fund and plan the Chattanooga Riverpark. Read more about this at http://www.moccasinbend.org/LuptonI.htm.

Oh and one last story. My brother once felt compelled to purchase a coke for a homeless gentleman in downtown Nashville. However, before giving him the soda it dropped and rolled down the street. Without, any more cash to purchase a new one for him, Chris still gave him the coke. What Chris has never told me though was if he warned the gentleman of the possible surprise when he opened the bottle. Well, I guess it’s the thought that counts.

Yep, I did it.

Okay, taking a break from my normal style blog and sharing a little bit of me. I've been contemplating, or maybe procrastinating, competing in a triathlon for a while. There was a short (and I do mean short) distance race this weekend here in Chattanooga so I decided it was time to give it a shot. I've never been a strong swimmer so I was very nervous about my chances at doing well in triathlons. Since this race's swim was only 1/4 mile I decided to test the waters (pun intended). It wasn't all just me though. Jessica and her parents competed as well. We all finished which was our goal. Here are a few pictures from the race.

Also exciting my parents came down from Clarksville to show their support. They've traveled all various places from Miami, Florida to Stillwater, Oklahoma watching me wrestle so I trip to Chattanooga for my first triathlon was a definite. However, I think a chance to spend the day with Reed also had something to do with it. We are currently in the process of purchasing a new home so it was a great chance to show it off to them as well. After that it was up to the lake for an afternoon of watching Reed enjoy the water. Jessica swam with him as Gramma, Grumpy, Granna, Papa T and Auntie K all enjoyed the entertainment. Here are some photos of that too.

Why Does God Allow Suffering?

(Sorry for the delay. My family has been relocating, which has taken a large amount of my free time.)

More often than not when engrossed in a conversation about Christianity I hear, "Why does God allow us to suffer?" If he is a loving god than why would he allow evil and anguish to exist? I heard a good analogy once (can’t remember from whom):

Minister – Do you love and protect you children?
Parishioner – Yes, of course. I would never let my children suffer.
Minister – Have they ever fallen off their bike and injured themselves?
Parishioner – Yes, but that is how they learn. By getting back up and trying again.
Minister– Well, just like you were letting them learn by allowing them to suffer, God does the same for his children.

At the day of creation, God did not intend for the Earth to be challenging and for his children to endure pain. However, in Genesis 3: 13 – 19 God explained to Adam and Eve how they must suffer for their sin. At that point the world was opened to evil. Sorrow became an obstacle we must all overcome.

You may now think, “But I’ve repented and accepted Christ as my Lord and Savior.” That is a fair thought but you must remember when Paul was speaking to the Romans he told them “We are all sinners and all have fallen short of God.” Each of us sin most everyday. It’s a fact of life that we cannot get past without Jesus. Jesus told us that we should take up our cross and follow him. Hinting that we must suffer as he did to fully understand the need for his loving care.

Paul was worried that his letter to the Corinthians had saddened and angered them to the point that they were shunning him. The Corinthians told him that it was not them that were shunning Paul yet he was shunning them by causing anguish with his written word. Paul responded that he did not regret that his letter caused them pain and sorrow. It is sorrow that brings us to the Lord and if his letter did that (which it did) then his job was successful.

A lot of biblical stories come to mind when I think of people who were brought to God through suffering. The leper, the lame and the blind came to Jesus for freedom from their illnesses. Jesus healed them and said, “Go and leave your life of sin. “ If they were healthy and prosperous would they have pleaded at Jesus’ feet for relief?

Revelation 21:4 says God will wipe every tear from our eyes; there will be no more death, mourning, crying or pain. The old order of things will pass away. In other words, we will be freed from sorrow once and for all. If we trust in Jesus we will experience the peace and harmony God intended during the six days of creation.

So for all who are suffering, whether it is from disease, injury or just everyday struggles, rest assure, endless prosperity is coming.