Oh Canada...

Good morning from beautiful downtown Winnipeg. I am on another audio gathering trip and got in last night. Something interesting for all of you worried about American borders, take a tip from the Canadians. Upon my arrival, when asked the purpose of my visit, I said, "Business". I was asked what kind of business and I told them radio production, and that I was here to gather audio for an upcoming radio thon. That began an over hour long process of them explaining to me that a Canadian could do this job and asking me why would a Canadian entity hire an American to do this? You know what? I didn't have an answer. I explained that a Canadian could do this job, but that my company does it better. In hind sight, I probably should have left that part out, it might have made things go quicker. So a few phone calls later, I was allowed entry into the country.
All of that to say, "Nice Job!" to the Canadian Border Patrol, you guys should give lessons or do seminars or something. You care about your country, you take action to ensure the livliehood of it's members and you do it with a smile. The folks on our Southern border might want to follow your lead.

P.S. - I know I don't generally get involved in political based rants, but this one just struck me. Thanks for letting me go off course.

I need your help...

Good afternoon. I hope you all enjoy my rantings as much as I enjoy writing them down. Just so you have something to look forward to, I am going to begin to produce my very own podcast and need your help.

I need some topics.

I don't really care what they are, I just need them. I will tell you that as most of you know, my passions lie in how to apply biblical truth in the ridiculously fast paced, modern and self edifying world that we live in. Also because this little project has a dual purpose, spiritually related topics would help me complete multiple tasks at once. If you have any topics of interest to you or you think they would be of interest to me, please feel free to respond to this post or to email me directly using the email address listed in the profile section. I truly appreciate your assistance in this and I will do everything I can to do your topics justice. Any feedback you have would be greatly appreciated.
Oh yeah, if you want to send me an obscure topic, feel free. I am not afraid of a little research. Thanks again.

It's been awhile...

For those who wait with baited breath for the next words to flow from my mind to the keyboard, I appologize for the wait. It has been a while. So much has happened that is worthy of a good blog that I just haven't had the time to sit down and make one happen. Well, we're back!
Juat to catch you up on a few things...
Mar and I have not really seen each other in almost a week. I was at the AGRM conference in Seattle, and upon my return, she left for a girls weekend in Seaside. Last night, we were finally joined back together and oh how glorious it was. My first good nights sleep in over a week!
Speaking of AGRM, very interesting. For those of you who don't know, AGRM is the Association of Gospel Rescue Missions. They have many, I can't think of the number right now, Missions throughout the US and Canada that serve the transient and homeless population with food, shelter, addiction recovery and spiritual programs. It is a ministry that goes widely unnoticed and struggles for resources on a regular basis. The people who have been called into service there however, give the word dedicated a new definition. While I was there, I just saw so many opportunities to communicate the mission of these missions to the masses and I guess we will see what comes of it. If you have a Gospel Rescue Mission in your area, and I am sure that you probably do. Take some time and see how you can be part of thier work. It will be worth it.
My friend T. the Jehovas Witness was by Saturday. You know, it is interesting to me his philosophy. He has been going door to door, for over 16 yrs. I wish Christians I knew, including myself, had that kind of passion and dedication. Let me be honest. I think JW's have got a few of the foundational elements of faith a little mixed up. From our conversations, He does not believe in the deity of Christ, T. does not belive in the unity of the trinity and I am still a little unclear on this, but if I understand him correctly he believes that Jesus, Satan and the angels are all siblings. But you know what we agree on? This world is empty and pointless without a relationship with God. To be honest, some Saturdays when we talk, I think he is doing more about that than I am. Although it is not a contest, I believe that that needs to change. T. has become a good friend, we recognize that we do not agree on all things, but we respect the knowledge and passion that each of us carries for our faith. As I look around the world and see the fighting and the destruction that is taking place, I find some comfort in knowing that it is possible for two people to come together and disagree, but still respect each other and still genuinely care for each other. That, I believe is good and will possibly bring a change in both of us. I like it when T. comes by, I look forward to our time together.
In addition to T.'s visits, God and I have been wrestling with a few issues. Nothing of catastrophic proportion, but just day to day things that swim through my mind. Prayer has been one lately. I need to pray. Not because I don't, but because it is something that God has put on my heart. I not only need to, but I want to. I think we are called to be in prayer for so many things and recently I realized that when those who are close to us, do not share things, they actually deprive us of our calling. That can be very frustrating. I am not sure I feel comfortable demanding that someone share thier life with me, so I know how to best pray for them, but the reality is this, if you don't let people pray for you, you are basically telling them that prayer is not adequate, which in turn communicates that same message to God. Or you may be saying that you don't need anybody else and that you can do it on your own. I have been gulty of that so many times. Let me tell you from personal experience, you are wrong. God wants so much more for us, He designed us to work together, not seperated from each other and I hope that people realize this. For thier own sake.
Well, I have to go get a couple of things done, but I am not finished here. I will continue soon and I hope some of this means something to you. See you soon.