MuddyPuddles

I’ve been thinking about this day for 26 years—not as a day in general, but specifically as a last day.  On this day, May 12, 2008, I have lived the exact same number of days on this earth as my father lived in his entire lifetime.  Even now I have lived a few hours longer than he.  It’s pretty sobering to think that if I had been him, this would have been it.  My life as I’ve known it would be over.  My spirit would have left my body and my record would be “in the books.” 

It has gone by so fast.  Because of this day I can’t help but reflect on how I’ve spent my life—my time and energy and money.  In some ways I’ve done well, but I’ve sure botched a few (million) things too.  I’m thankful that God has blessed me in spite of my shortcomings. 

I obviously don’t know how many days I have left.  I’m sort of breaking new ground here.  But I do know that each day is a special gift, a bonus day, and I want to make sure it counts for something special. 

My friend Cody’s great grandmother lived to be 107 years old.  I wonder how it feels to be that old.  Check back with me 51 years from now and I’ll let you know.  God Bless.  Dennis   

Hello my friends,

I know it’s been awhile since I’ve posted and I’ve had several people inquire as to my state of being.  I want you all to know that I am doing well.  I feel incredibly blessed.  My heath and the health of my family is good.  I’m making great progress on my book.  (It’s really been time consuming.  I’ll let you know when it is published.  My goal is by the end of the year.)  Outreach church is doing wonderfully.  Ten days ago we had a record attendance of 98.  It was awesome.  We had nine visitors and the rest were regular members.  We have such a mobile group that usually more are out of town because we usually average somewhere in the sixties or seventies.  We are doing something that is kind of unusual in our worship planning.  We didn’t know how well it would work or if it would work at all, but it’s been working fantastically.  Each week a different couple plans the services from start to finish.  They decide who is going to lead singing, who is going to preach, who is going to lead prayers, who is going to lead communion thoughts.  They even decide what order to do things.  They can pick the songs if they want or they can leave it up to the song leader.  The results have been so gratifying.  Each week is fresh and uplifting and encouraging.  We’ve probably had at least ten or twelve different speakers this year, and each one has been good.  All but four have been our own members.  I’ve not heard one critical remark about any of the services this whole year.  I’ve not felt critical of anything that has happened this whole year.  It has just been so positive.  I never thought I would be so fulfilled in the worship services in this little town.  I’ve heard others express the same sentiments.  We all feel very blessed to be a part of Outreach.  I wish that each member of each church in this town (and in your town) could feel the same, but I know that it doesn’t always happen that way.  I know that what we have is rare.  I pray that God will continue to bless us and that we, through him, can maintain this Godly Spirit each Lord’s day.  God deserves the credit for what has happened.  I don’t think any of us could have worked it out this well.  I doubt if I will mention what’s going on at Outreach in this much detail any more.  I know that some could take it as arrogance or something like that.  It’s not like that at all.  I just wanted those of you that have been following our situation but have no connection other than this blog to know that it is going well and that there is hope for you if you are in a struggling church situation.  If any of you ever want to discuss your situation with me or just “talk”, I have a new email address.  It is quicksand@dishmail.net.  Feel free to contact me if you would rather not comment on the blog.

I will try to begin posting a little more regularly again.  I appreciate you all.  God Bless.  Dennis     

On October 26, 2006 my sweet little grandson, JD, was born and died.  He was quite premature and had no chance to live due to medical conditions that were irreversible.  His actual due date was February 15, 2007---one year ago today. 

Last night, his little sister, Aubrey Grace, was born.  She was five weeks premature.  I guess she didn’t want to wait five weeks past her brother’s scheduled birthday before she paid us a visit.  And in fact, since the 14^th was Valentines day, she just decided that this would be the best time to make her grand entrance into this world.

This little girl didn’t mess around either.  She was born less than one hour after her momma got to the hospital.  By the time I got there, about an hour later, she was already laying in her little warming bed all sprawled out with her toboggan cap on.  She was unbelievably beautiful. 

When I saw her my emotions just immediately welled up on the inside and just spilled out of me.  I basically had no control.  Until that moment I hadn’t realized how much pent up concern and hope and desire I had for this baby to be on the ground. 

It is so hard to watch your kids suffer.  And so much is at risk in bringing a baby through a full pregnancy.  There are so many things that can go wrong.  It seems like a miracle that any baby can make it through, much less most of them.  And if you’ve had (and watched your kids have) a difficult experience before, it only compounds your concerns and fears that you are going to have difficulties again. 

Add to that the fact that your baby is coming five weeks early and the alarm bells go off---your fears are elevated.  And then to find out that your baby is a “breach” baby (coming out backwards), the risk and worry levels go up even more.  There were some tense moments there.  We were all on pins and needles.  But Aubrey wasn’t worried.  Her first act was to moon the world---and she did it magnificently.

And now we are all reveling in the wonder of this---God’s glorious gift to us.  She is so tiny and so fragile but she shakes our world.  The reverberations we feel will impact all of our lives for a long time to come.  Her every movement is a glorious sight.  We are all convinced that this child is special.  We are all so thankful to God for this wonderful blessing (though we are concerned about the potential that her little finger may grow apart from her other fingers since she has so many of us wrapped around it already.) 

For everyone into details, she came in at 5 lbs 14 oz and was 19 inches long.  She was born at 4:22 p.m. in Providence Hospital in Waco .  She has dark hair and skinny legs.  Thank you all for your prayers on her behalf.  Please keep them coming.  God Bless,  

“Pa“        

To stay in shape (in other words---to keep most of my body parts from getting too far out of whack) I exercise regularly.  Very often I run laps around the school track.  Occasionally, while running on that track, my mind drifts back to my senior year in high school when I was on the school track team.  One of the races I always took part in was the mile relay.  This is where four guys (or gals) each run a quarter of a mile (one after the other) until the combined team completes the full mile.  The first runner would start off with a little stick (baton) in his hand and he would hand it off to his team mate at the completion of the lap who would then do likewise until all four runners had completed their laps.  We had a really fast relay team and always placed high in the competition.   

One of my favorite lifetime memories took place at the district track meet where we came from behind against the two fastest (supposedly) runners in our district.  With that win we won the meet and advanced to regionals to compete for a chance to go to state.  Even now, all these many years later, my heart gets to pumping and I can feel that adrenalin rush when I think back to that day.

While training for the regionals I “tweaked” my groin muscle a little bit.  I “pulled” it.  This was a huge bummer for me.  I knew this would probably slow me down some but I felt like I could still compete. 

Since I had been a “late bloomer” I didn’t have a lot of experience with competitive running and track.  Slow small people don’t get a lot of attention so I never went to the track meets until I was no longer slow, which was my senior year.  To make things worse, I was pretty naïve about a lot of things at the time (track and otherwise).  I was a good boy, but pretty gullible in some ways. 

My coach was primarily a football coach who was using track primarily to keep the football players in shape and to enhance their speed.  He was kind of naïve in the ways of the track world as well.  He meant well, but that and fifty cents will get you a cup of coffee.  Therefore, with our combined ignorance we did some things that, looking back, I wish we would have done differently.  I think it would have changed the outcome of the regional mile relay. 

There are two main things I would change.  First, I would have rested my leg after I tweaked it.  Instead, like everyone else I ran laps every day.  This made my strain get progressively worse.  Dumb mistake. 

Secondly, after getting my leg worked on by the Texas Tech trainers (which made it feel awesome) on the day of the regional track meet, my coach lumped me in with all of the other runners who he was telling to “get warm” even though it was several hours until my race.  By the time the mile relay came up, it was painful for me to even jog.  I did my best during the race but by the time I came around the last curve my leg felt like it was about to fall off.  It was hurting so bad.

Teams who finish in first or second place get to advance to state.  We finished just a few short yards behind the second place team.  As I came to understand the bigger picture of what took place on that day it just made me sick to think about how we blew our opportunity to go state.  We were so close and we just beat ourselves because of our own ignorance.  We should have gone.  We were so ignorant and stupid and naïve in our pre-race training and in our pre-race warmup.  As you can probably tell, it still bugs me a little.  What a waste.

As I’ve reflected back on that event (thousands of times) in the years since, I’ve learned some valuable life lessons.  I’ve learned from my mistakes.  For what it’s worth, I want to share what I’ve learned with you.  Take it or leave it.  “It is what it is.”

The main thing I’ve learned is that even people in positions of authority don’t always know what they are talking about.  People who are supposed to know what’s best are not always right.  And anyone who only listens to what others are saying without challenging the logic or the wisdom or without getting a second opinion if it doesn’t seem quite right, are destined to make needless mistakes.  We are all going to make mistakes, but we don’t have to be foolish enough to make them because of our timidity or laziness or our blind faith in what someone has told us.  Even if they mean well, people are flawed.  It is foolish to be afraid to challenge what they tell you, even if you love them and even if they love you.  The Bereans were more noble because they examined the scriptures daily TO SEE IF WHAT PAUL WAS SAYING WAS THE TRUTH.  Should we do any less (in Bible application situations and in life)?

And secondly I’ve come to the realization that I am responsible for my own decisions.  If I blow it, it’s my fault.  Some may mislead me, but if I didn’t do my due diligence before making my decision, it’s my fault if it fails.  I was just a young boy back then, but if I had been more savey I know I could have talked the coach out of making me run in the days ahead of the meet.  He knew I wasn’t a slacker.  And I know I could have held off on my warming up on regional track day if I would have been thinking about what order the races were scheduled.  I’m not so naïve now.  And peer pressure doesn’t do much to me.  And timidity doesn’t affect me much.  So I’m out of excuses.  I take responsibility for the choices I make---good or bad.  And I wouldn’t have it any other way.  God Bless, Dennis    

I’ve been thinking a lot about waves for the past few days---you know, those ripply things that move across the surface of the ocean.  I know.  It’s weird.  But, that’s the main thing that’s been popping into my mind during my “deep thought” modes here lately.  I’ve been reflecting on life and how much impact we really have (or don’t have) with our lives.  Solomon’s “chasing after the wind” statement has been popping in there a few times as well (I’ve been figuring my taxes).    

I believe that some of us have a tendency to think that we’re making more of a difference than we really are.  (I’ve been prone to do that from time to time.)  Others of us probably think they aren’t making any difference at all. (You know who you are.) 

The reality is that to some degree we are all making a difference with our lives just like the reality is that each wave in the ocean makes a difference.  Though it’s not always easy to see, each wave changes something during its brief lifetime (sometimes for good and sometimes for bad).  That’s why the wave metaphor works.  We are all just rolling along with our lives as the days, weeks, months and years pass.  Sometimes we crest and then splash down adding a little oxygen to the water below as we march along.  This helps the plant and marine life to survive.  Some times we raise things up along our journey and sometimes we bring things down.  As waves move along, the energy is actually transferred as it goes.  It looks like the water is moving just as fast as the wave, but it’s not. It’s an optical illusion.  Something floating in the water may only move an inch as the wave itself moves several feet.  The wave, though made by the water, is not the same thing as the water.  Just like the wave we may be overestimating our own impact.  It may look like we are moving right along at times when our impact is actually moving things along significantly less.  But at least it is moving.  But don’t kid yourself.  Just between you and me, you are pretty ineffective and so am I.  (I won’t tell if you won’t tell.) 

Each wave makes a difference when it finally reaches the shore, also.  It may move a few grains of sand.  It may smooth out some footprints or animal tracks.  It may dig microscopicly deeper into the rocks along the shoreline.  After a million years, or so, you’ll be able to see the impact.  So don’t kid yourself.  Unless you are some kind of tsunami you’ll just have to settle for being a regular ol’ wave.  So ripple on now and make yourself useful.  Start making a splash and then push a few particles around.  Those little varmits are getting a little too comfortable in their private little spots anyway.  Take care.   Dennis 

James 4:14 (NIV) 

    Why, you do not even know what will happen tomorrow. What is your life? You are a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes.

The other day a friend of mine was talking about how he hated it when an acquaintance of his kept saying the phrase “Do you know what I mean?”  It wasn’t that this was a bad phrase in and of itself.  It was just that the person using it would use it on things that were so simple that if felt like an insult when he said it.   “I don’t like hamburgers---do you know what I mean?”  “It’s cold and windy today---do you know what I mean?”  “I hate it when I run out of gas---do you know what I mean?”  Duh!!!  Of course I know what you mean---do you know what I mean?  What made this conversation kind of interesting was that a few days later I was with a long distance friend who used that same phrase on me a few times.  I almost laughed every time he said it.  I never said anything about it, but it humored me inside.  

It got me to thinking about conversation habits in general.  It got me to thinking about my own tendencies.  I remember about 30 years ago how I observed an older and wiser man use the phrase “don’t you think?” at the end of his statements.  It seemed like a good way to sort of get your way without coming across too pushy, don’t you think?  “We can eat at McDonalds, don’t you think?”  “We can do the chores later, don’t you think?”  It seemed to be working pretty well until I overused it and a fed up friend called me on it.  Then I realized that it was kind of manipulative and that manipulating others wasn’t too good of a way to be anyway.  Sharp people will catch you every time---even if you don’t think they will, don't you think?

Since then (and even before then, actually) I’ve been an observer of conversationalists.  Some people are so good at explaining things and others are so bad.  Many people (including myself occasionally) are deep in thought and then they all of a sudden blurt out something like you were supposed to know what they have been thinking about.  Or sometimes they are talking about one subject and jump over to another subject without warning and they leave us all confused.  Other people explain things in such detail that you just want to tell them to “get to the point” (I know I’ve been guilty of this as well).  Others just keep repeating the same point multiple times.  Repetition is good if it's done right.  If it's done wrong, it's kind of heavy and burdensome.  Not many people do it right.     
One of the best people I’ve ever seen at handling difficult situations used a technique of setting up his key statements with preliminary statements.  He would preface his remarks with some sort of disclaimer or modifier and then would tactfully broach the difficult subjects.  He would "frame up" or "reframe" the subject before getting into it.  After observing him for awhile I decided that there is a best way to say everything---even with very difficult, touchy subjects.  I was thankful that I got to observe this master of difficult speech.

When I was on the school board, Laverne was outstanding at periodically saying, “I just want to make sure we are all on the same page.  What I understand Joe to be saying is blah, blah, blah.  Is that right, Joe?”  It was a great clarifying statement and she was good at knowing when to use it.  And it did help us to all stay on the same page at critical times. 

When I am speaking in front of a group I have to work on  several problems.  One is knowing how simple to make my statements.  I don't want to insult people, but I want to be clearly understood.  Another is knowing how to say things smoothly so that they flow.  I have a tendency to be a little choppy when I speak before a group (Hey, I'm working on it.)  And finally, I struggle with knowing how much not to say.  I have a tendency to want to say too much.  I have to watch that.  I even wrestle with that on writing my blog.  I want to say enough, but not too much.  Brevity is difficult for me because I’m just not sure I can get enough information into the article if I cut it short.  I want to be clear about what I'm trying to say and I want it to be said in an interesting way---not "just the facts, ma'am". 
I think most of us probably feel (and are) guilty of all types of miscues from time to time.  I know I'm guilty of most, if not all of the faults I've mentioned.  But I want to get better.  To do that, for those of you that know me, I would value your input about areas I need to work on.  The good thing about this blog is that you can do it anonymously, do you know what I mean?  It could help me, don’t you think?  You won't hurt my feelings.  I promise.  I appreciate all of the comments from my awesome readers (and the rest of you too).  I'd also be curious as to what some of your pet peeves are in regard to speech and communication and conversation.  It will help us all to think about how we do what we do.  So please share.  Thanks and God Bless.  Dennis    

Near the end of last year I watched the movie, “Pursuit of Happiness” starring Will Smith.  It was based on a true story about a man who was pretty much flat broke whose marriage was falling apart and whose prospects for success in any area of his life were looking pretty bleak.  It showed how he overcame incredible odds to become a successful businessman after much great sacrifice and determination.  As a part of the movie, part of what opened the door for him to advance to the next level was his ability to solve a “Rubik’s Cube” in the presence of his potential boss during a taxi ride across town.  A statement he made during the process opened my eyes to a better understanding about how a Rubik’s Cube works.  (For those of you who may not know what a Rubik’s Cube is---tough cookies.  You’ll have to ask somebody to explain because I’m not going to do it here and now and that’s a fact.)  He said that whatever color is in the middle of the side is the correct color for that side.  In other words, just because one side may have eight white squares and one blue one doesn’t make it a white side.  If the center square is blue, it is the blue side and not the white side.  All the white squares are out of place.  This piece of information---knowledge---inspired me to buy a Rubik’s cube to see if I could learn to solve it.

            It took awhile, but I actually solved the Rubik’s cube.  I had to use instructions that I found on the internet to solve the problem, but I actually solved it.  In the process, I’ve thought about how great a metaphor for life is involved with this little cube.  It is so much like life and people’s lives.  And so I want to share some of those metaphors with you today. 

            The first thing I thought about is the thing I’ve already told you about (white squares all around the blue one).  With life, as well as the cube, if you don’t have the heart right, it’s not going to work.  You’ve got to have the heart right to be what God wants you to be. 

            Secondly, every time you move one square, it affects other squares as well.  In fact you cannot move only one square.  In order to move one square, you have to move the whole group of squares.  Everything we do in life impacts not only ourselves, but it necessarily affects other things (or people) with which we are connected.  We can’t do anything in total isolation (“Every action produces an equal and opposite reaction.”)   

            Thirdly, it’s much easier to start something than it is to finish it.  The method I use to solve the cube is to work on the top level first, then the second (middle) level and then the final level.  When you are focusing on the top level, it doesn’t matter if the bottom two levels are all out of order.  You can (and must) transfer cubes in and out of  the 2nd and 3rd levels to get them all organized and to the right spot on the top level.  It doesn’t matter what that does to the arrangement in the lower levels.  By the time you work on the bottom level however, it becomes more complicated.  If you are not careful you will mess up the top levels (which were all in the correct order) in the process.  This can put you right back where you started from---in chaos.  It defeats the purpose. 
       Fourthly, this puzzle can be solved by following detailed instructions or it can be solved by understanding what is happening with each turn.  I have learned to understand what is taking place---the bigger picture---while solving the top row.  I have a decent (not great) grasp of the consequences of turning things a certain way and can therefore manipulate the situation in such a way that I move the block I choose to move and I don’t move the block I choose to leave in place.  My mind can grasp what is happening overall.  In solving the edge pieces of the middle row, I have learned the formula to get the desired block from one spot to another, but my grasp on exactly why this formula works---what is taking place--- is very vague.  It’s starting to come into focus a little bit, but it is still very foggy in my brain.  By the time I get to the third row, I can follow the written formula, but I don’t have much of a clue at all about what is taking place.  It just solves the problem, but I really don't know how.  I just know that if I follow the instructions precisely (which is not always easy) then the outcome will be successful.  If I fail to follow the rules, I will fail to solve the problem.       

            We don’t necessarily have to understand why some things in life work for them to work.  If we follow certain rules we will have the consequences that come with those actions.  If we don’t follow them, it doesn’t matter if we understand them or not.  We will fail.  If you spend less than you make, your life is going to be much better than if you make less than you spend.  If you take in more calories than you burn up you will gain weight.  If you burn up more calories than you take in, you will lose weight.  These are facts that are useful to know if you want to gain or lose weight.  And we can all grasp them pretty easily.  One that is less easy to grasp is to “love your enemies and pray for those that persecute you.”  Though that may not seem like the best course of action to the average person, in reality, it is.  And the wiser we are, the more we not only understand the rule, but the more we understand why the rule works.

            Finally, I’ve noticed that after I have the top two rows solved, it’s a little bit difficult to make myself do the final row because I will have to temporarily mess up the other rows to get the bottom row in order (and I worked so hard to get them right.)  We sometime settle for life as it is, even knowing that it could be better, because we don’t want to risk losing what we’ve got.  Abused spouses will often stay in the relationship because, as bad as it is, at least it is a known quantity---at least they have a roof over their head---at least they have food to eat, etc.  We are usually more afraid of the unknown than we are dissatisfied with the known.  And this often holds us back from making progress.

            In one way I could think of every person as a type of Rubik’s Cube.  We are each at some level of solving the puzzle of life.  Some people’s puzzle looks pretty messed up.  And every choice they make seems to only complicate their life more.  My heart goes out to these people.  Others are making progress in getting it solved.  They may have started off in chaos and made some wrong turns along the way but they are starting to make some progress and some good choices and it’s getting their life in order.  Some look like they have a lot of pieces in order but don’t have their heart in the right place so we know they are headed for disappointment.  A few are making great progress because they are following some rules that some wise person laid before them.  They don’t really understand how these rules are working, but they are following the rules and it seems to be working for them.  A very few have a deeper understanding about how life works and how to make things better.  They not only know the rules, but they understand the principals behind the rules and what makes them work.  They avoid many mistakes because of their understanding.  They are perceptive and wise and have their hearts in the right place.  They are self controlled and because of their wisdom have great influence on those around them.  They haven’t solved the puzzle completely, however, but they have made great progress.   

            Only one has all the pieces in the right place and that’s Jesus Christ.  He understands the puzzle completely.  In fact, he invented it.  And if we listen to him, he will help us as we struggle to solve our own puzzles and as we help others to solve theirs.  He’s the teacher.  He’s the good Shepherd.  He has the words of life. 

May God Bless you as you listen to him. 
Dennis
P.S.  I think your corners are backwards!

I was watching my 4 year old grandson, Trapper, as he was playing a “Star Wars” computer game last week.  It is amazing to me at how skilled he was at manipulating the characters.  Part of the objective of the game was to destroy the bad guys.  The bad guys would fall apart (much like dismantled lego figures) when they got hit with the light sabers or the laser bullets.  As I watched him play, I got to thinking about the game and about how it is easy to know which ones are the bad guys.  It’s obvious.  They are always dressed certain ways and they are out there trying to shoot you or hurt you in some way.  And it’s always the good guys against the bad guys (with you being one of the good guys).

It reminds me about how things always were in the cowboy “western” shows as I was growing up.  The good guys always wore the white hats and the bad guys wore the black hats.  The good guys always won in the end, but not without some precarious, cliff-hanging, moments. 
Reality is a little different---on several different levels.  For one thing, sometimes the bad guys in today’s world seem to win.  Not every murderer or bank robber or kidnapper or bomber is caught.  Sometimes they get away (at least in this life). 

On another level, though we may see ourselves as good (or bad), none of us, in reality, is all good or all bad.  But we each have these periodic (sometimes daily) internal battles that we deal with.  Sometimes we are strong and do good in spite of any temptation to do bad.  Then, there are those times that we do bad in spite of our overall desire to do good.  We sometimes choose to stumble when we know we shouldn’t.  (And sometimes we are just clueless and do good or bad inadvertently.) 
Sometimes we think we are doing good when we are actually creating bad results.  Our motives might be right, but the end result is actually bad.  In “The Millionaire Next Door”, (one of the books listed on the side panel), it talks about how some financially well-off parents try to help their less motivated or less gifted kids (financially and other ways) to a greater degree than they help their more independent kids.  They believe that some of their (adult) kids can take care of themselves but that one or more of their “disadvantaged” kids needs some extra help.  This wouldn’t be too bad unless and until it actually makes the kid dependent for life.  It told of 60 year old children still depending, financially, on their aging parents.  The parents meant well by giving their children money each year to “help” them, but they actually created adult dependents in the process.  And that’s not good---even if the motives were right.

And then we have those in our lives with less than honorable motives.  These try to appear good but really don’t care too much about us at all.  Many advertisers will tell us whatever we want to hear if it will make us buy the product---even if it’s worthless.  Politicians will sometimes tell us what we want to hear (and leave out what we might not like) if they think it will get our vote.  Many construction contractors or workers will promise whatever we want to hear if it will get them the job or advance their momentary objective ($$$).  And this holds true right on down the line from employers to employees to relatives to friends.  I just visited with a good friend who feels like he has been brushed off by some with whom he shared some concerns.  I know, personally, the people who brushed him off and know that they are good caring people.  My guess is they were probably so distracted by their own problems and circumstances that they didn’t really focus on my friend’s needs.  They didn’t give it the value it deserved.  We all do that at times.  And we all feel that at times.

Sometimes motives are assigned to us that are not true but are merely misunderstandings.  One of my life long friends has told me of how people have sometimes accused him of being stuck up because he wouldn’t speak to them.  He said that he was just very shy and people assigned his quietness to stuckupness.  He had no motives, but some were assigned to him.   

There is much truth-stretching and deception (self and otherwise) and outright lying around us every day.  Sometimes we fall prey to this deception.  Sometimes we fail to ever realize that we’ve been duped.  Other times we finally realize it (usually when it is too late to do anything about it).

The truth is that we all have a flawed view of reality.  Some of the things we think are good are in reality bad and vice versa (Is there anything that doesn’t cause cancer?  Is jogging bad for your joints?  Is TV bad for you?  Is universal health care good for our country?  Are school vouchers good?)    Many if not most of the things we hear being promoted have some sort of agenda attached to them (There are NO major laws that are passed without “earmarks” being attached to sneak in private funding for special interest projects of the various congressmen?).  Motives are seldom as pure as the wind driven snow.  We are influenced in our thinking by what we have been taught or by our prejudices (like the father in the hospital who thought his new born baby (who was the ugliest one there in my opinion) was “without a doubt” the cutest baby there).

So what do we do with all this information?  How much skepticism is healthy and how much is damaging?  How do you know who and what to trust?  How much should you rely on what others tell you?  These are the never ending questions.

My guess is that you maintain an awareness of this human condition as you travel down the road of life.  You gather as much information as you reasonably can before making big decisions.  You don’t risk more than you can afford to lose.  You err on the side of kindness and gentleness and courtesy.  You forgive easily, even before it is asked.  You take care of your business as best you can.  And you pray for mercy.   And that’s a good thing. 

God Bless.  Dennis

From time to time, for as long as I can remember, I’ve had an image that has popped into my consciousness.  It is an image of being in a large empty warehouse with a smooth concrete floor.  There is a thin layer of water---about a quarter of an inch deep---that covers the surface.  I have a push broom and it is my job to sweep that water out the door with that push broom.  I have to start at one end (opposite of the door) and “herd” the water out with nothing but this push broom.  When I make a pushing stroke, the water that was beside my broom begins to drift into the void that was created by the stroke.  If I sweep rapidly and move side to side I can sweep a wide enough area that I can keep the water moving toward the door, but the warehouse is too wide to keep the line moving all across the building.  By the time I get to the right side, the water on the left side has drifted back further than where my strokes began.  If I stroke vigorously, it makes waves that help propel the water in the right direction and a little bit (but not much) drains out the door.  But the water that doesn’t make it out the door ripples against the end wall and comes back toward me.  It is always trying to seep back to where I’ve just swept.  That’s just nature and physics.  That’s what water does.  If I ever stop sweeping, all the water that is still in the room spreads back across the entire floor.  It looks like my time and effort was totally wasted. 

This image usually pops up when I’ve got a lot of irons in the fire.  As long as there are no significant problems it's all manageable.  But when several of them start self-destructing in some way, it creates log jam.  I see it when I’m trying to do 10 things at once and I’m making very little progress with any of them.  There is often this sense of frustration at the end of the day when I see how little I’ve accomplished in any area.  And, due to unexpected events or some of life’s curve balls, I sometimes wind up the day feeling that I’ve actually lost ground in the big scheme of things.  But I keep sweeping.
In reality, when any water goes out the door, I’ve made progress.  And though the remaining water spreads back across the floor again (if I stop sweeping), it is at a lower level.  It truly is progress, though it doesn’t always feel like it.  And, the lower the water level, the slower it drifts back.  So that makes the future sweeping more obviously productive than the earlier sweeping.  And that’s positive.

As I take a snapshot of my life where it is right now I know that progress is being made---especially at "church".  It was awesome Sunday---so inspiring and so fulfilling---and I think it will only get better.  One year ago I didn’t think I would ever experience such a positive worship service on a weekly basis in this little town.  In other areas, my health is good and getting better (I’ve started working out more vigorously again and running more (I had slacked off for awhile and was feeling the difference (I was having to pick up body parts and glue them back on each day)).  I’m seeing several of my friends making definite strides toward the fulfillment of some of their special dreams and goals (and that’s exciting).  I have great friends and loved ones.  I know that I’m truly blessed.  And though I sometimes get tired of the constant sweeping, I know that overall, things are going well.  I may start looking for a wet/dry shop vac pretty soon, however.  Let me know if you see any large ones on sale.  The head on this broom is getting a little wobbly.

God Bless.  Dennis