Notes from NYC

We arrived in New York City on Wednesday to prepare for the big Macy's Day Parade on Thanksgiving morning. We checked into our hotel right on Times Square. Our Thrive group from church (home small group) had been planning this trip together for more than a year. Six adults and nine children in all.

On Thursday morning (Thanksgiving) I got up at 4:30. I was down on the rail at 5:20 to save front row room for our group of fifteen. 3 million people would be vying for a spot to view the famous parade. The two other dads in our group joined me at 5:30 and 6. Still dark out (at least as dark as it can be in luminous Times Square). Temperature 31 degrees plus wind--at least it wasn't raining.

The parade would begin marching by in about four hours at 9:30.

At 8 our families began to arrive on the scene. By 8:30 all 15 of us were present with front row vantage points. By now I had consumed multiple cups of coffee and was shivering continually. The excitement was palpable.

The first float--a turkey--came rolling by. A marching band next with drums and brass thundering. 45 minutes into the parade (which would last two hours) my ten year old daughter turned her tear stained, cold face to me and asked, "Daddy, why are you making me do this when we could be watching it on TV?" Ummm.

Friday morning we got up early once again--partly because we had no choice with an 8 month old baby sleeping (or not) in our room. We boarded the subway and headed to Macy's Department Store to see Santa Claus. Did I mention that millions of others would be attempting the same thing?

We arrived early enough so that we only had about a thirty minute wait--excellent. It really was astonishing . . . very Disneyesque. All fifteen of us were herded into a small room where Santa awaited. All nine children were seated on Santa's lap or around his huge gold chair. Our son, Elijah, was on Santa's lap tugging his beard--and yes, it stayed on.

After the professional photographer (dressed as an elf) snapped the picture, one of the dads in our group shouted, "Okay, all the "white" kids over here!" Our "black" son, Elijah, was still in Santa's lap. The elf photographer looked mortified. I explained to everyone in the room that the family name was "White" and that their dad was not making a racial slur. I thought Santa was going to fall out of his chair laughing with relief.

Saturday morning we concluded our adventure with a 10 o'clock performance of the Christmas Spectacular at Radio City Music Hall. I must confess that I was a bit cynical heading into it. How in the world were they going to sandwich the baby Jesus in between the high kicking legs of the Rockettes? Somehow they pulled it off. Numerous times I was moved to tears. The show certainly lived up to its name--Spectacular. And, much to my pleasant surprise the Biblical Christmas story was told, complete with live camels.

So now we're home again. Recovering from sensory overload. Still processing the wonder, beauty and needs of a city of 8 million people.

Did I mention that there are 158 Starbucks in Manhattan? A little slice of Heaven!

107 mph

I was astonished when I read this story in the news . . .

"An Oregon teenager said she didn't see the police officer trying to pull her over for driving 107 mph because she was too busy talking on her cell phone!"

Ummm.

And then I thought of the way I sometimes live my life.

Perhaps God is trying to get my attention when I'm flying through my days but I'm too busy talking on my cell phone, checking e-mail, etc?

The need is great

Julie and I just had our meeting with our foster care social worker. We initially became licensed foster care parents so that we could adopt. Now that we have adopted Elijah God continues to wreck our hearts about children in need.

Sooo, we'll continue to maintain our foster care license, with all of the classes and reading required, so that we can care for at least some of the more than 17,000 children in the state of Ohio who are displaced from their families of birth.

The need is great. One child at a time.

If you are interested in learning more, please check out http://www.ccho.org/.

A can of something ugly and beautiful

Okay, I know I'm opening up a can of something potentially ugly--but also potentially very, very beautiful with this post. So many of my conversations as of late have been about the issue of abortion, pro-choice, child's rights, parental rights, adoption, etc., primarily as a result of our recent Presidential election. And . . . I'm glad. As long as we can keep the conversation loving, with respect to one another, and understanding of the worldview from which each of us comes, this will be good.

So right up front . . . I'm writing (and living), to the best of my ability, as a follower of Jesus. Albeit flawed and in process and flatout in error at times. Fair enough.

The question I want to raise is this: Can a follower of Jesus be pro-choice? And when I say pro-choice I mean in support of a mother's right to abort her baby through the third trimester (that is the issue that is politically on the table).

As a follower of Jesus, I hold God's Word, God's will, as revealed in the Bible as the highest authority for my life. Sooo, I'm going to quote some Scripture, not as a redneck Bible thumper, but as the guidebook for my life.

Psalm 139:13-16
You (refering to God) made all the delicate, inner parts of my body and knit me together in my mother's womb (emphasis mine). Thank you for making me so wonderfully complex! Your workmanship is marvelous--how well I know it. You watched me as I was being formed in utter seclusion, as I was woven together in the dark of the womb (emphasis mine). You saw me before I was born (once again, emphasis mine). Every day of my life was recorded in your book. Every moment was laid out before a single day had passed (you guessed it--emphasis mine).

Every single day in the United States of America, nearly 4,000 abortions are performed. That comes out to nearly 1.4 million abortions per year. When you add in the number globally it is virtually too much to comprehend.

But what about the life of the mother? What if she was raped? What if she is in danger? Okay, for argument's sake, let's say that we give those mothers "choice." For argument's sake . . . we give them the right to choose. Do you know how many abortions we would still have in the USA every day? Nearly 4,000!!! Virtually ALL abortions performed are what is termed "abortions of convenience." I'm not demeaning anyone by that phrase--it is simply used to delineate abortions that are not performed as a result of a health issue for mom or an issue of rape.

Sooo, I'll leave my post here for now and look forward to hearing from you and dialoging with you.

A beautiful thing

I'm in Dallas for a couple of days at Leadership Network. I'm hanging out with leaders from several churches across the country . . . churches that God is using in a profound and powerful way to bring His Kingdom to earth right now.

We're discussing ways to think outside of the box to see entire communities transformed in Jesus' name.

It is very encouraging to hear the stories of life transformation. Children being fed. Marriages restored. Financial aid being distributed.

When the church really is the church . . . it is a beautiful thing.

An historic day

Today is an historic day in United States history.

4 reasons I'm glad Barack Obama has been elected our next President . . . regardless of how you or I voted.

1. Racial reconciliation. Perhaps finally, the United States can begin to put behind us our notorious mistreatment of the black population.

2. The American Dream. Once again, it has been proven that anyone, regardless of their origins (Barak was raised by a single mom because his dad bailed on his family), can achieve greatness in America.

3. A global bridge. The perception of virtually every nation in the world is that Obama will bring about needed change in American global policies. (Let's face it, the past eight years haven't endeared us to the masses.)

4. The church will rise to the occasion. As the United States continues to slide in its understanding of truth and morality the church in America will be forced to put up or shut up. Historically, when things were at their worst, the church was at its best.

Issues I will be praying deeply about:

1. The sanctity of human life. I am distressed at Obama's cavalier attitude towards the protection of human life. God will not allow a country to prosper that murders millions of unborn children every year. Not to mention the inherent value of every unborn child's life!

2. Supreme Court Justices. In my opinion, the single most important thing that a US President does is appoint our Supreme Court Justices. In all likelihood, Barack will be our President for the next eight years. Thus, he will, once again, in all likelihood, appoint at least 4 individuals to the Supreme Court. You cannot legislate Christianity but you can legislate morality.

3. A divided nation. The Presidential vote was extremely close. We are a divided country in our views of who should lead us. We must follow the Biblical mandate to pray for those who are in positions of authority. (And remember that our ultimate Leader and Savior is Jesus.)

4. God's mercy. Throughout history God has responded to the cries of His people. As we humble ourselves and repent of any evil in our lives, God will turn His face toward us and bless us as His followers.

Election day

My friend and fellow follower of Jesus, Greg Spillman, sent me this reminder this morning:

Dear Brothers and Sisters,

Rejoice! Again I say Rejoice!, says Paul in Philippians. Today is an awesome day.

I was moved in the middle of the night to send this reminder out. Matthew 28:18 tells us that All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to Jesus. He is sitting on His throne right now and he is doing His thing. And be assured that we can trust that He knows what He is doing. Our prayers have been lifted up, and they have been heard. Vote today and rejoice. The outcome is His. May we all be filled with a joyful heart and worship Him fully with whomever is elected this day.

Holy, Holy, Holy is our God.

To Jesus Christ the Lord, our King be given the honor and glory at today's end.

Peace be with you all.

One of the best days of my life.

Saturday was perhaps one of the best days of my life.

Our team in Peru began the day by traveling to Hannah's Home where we finished digging the septic system for their new orphanage.

After the digging was done, we spent time with the children from Hogar De Ninos (another orphanage across the street). It was amazing to watch the guys love on these kids. Jesus and Jesus.

At 2 we took all the children for ice cream. Lots of happy children giggling and then falling asleep in our arms on the bus ride home.

Once back at our hotel, Ola Grande (Big Wave), we prepared for two of our team members to be baptized in the Pacific Ocean. Norm Jackson and Brandon Blood both followed Jesus as their Lord and Savior and were baptized as we did our best to avoid the eight foot waves that were crashing on the beach. Did I mention that the water was freezing?

Oh, and 30 minutes before the baptisms, an earthquake hit--4.0.

We had the full experience in Peru. One of the best days if my life.