Mental Musings

Hollywood has finally created a wedding scene that men enjoy. Yesterday, the boys and I went to see Pirates of the Caribbean at World’s End. Perhaps the most exciting scene was the wedding ceremony. Wait a minute; I know that men don’t like wedding ceremonies. But this was the ultimate med’s wedding. Picture this: the wedding takes place on deck of an old tall ship. A ship’s captain officiates the wedding. The bride and groom are very much in love. Sounds like a perfect dream wedding that any woman would want. But what makes it exciting for the men is that during the entire wedding the bride, groom and captain are all fighting hand-to-hand combat with swords while cannons are trading fire between two ships. Splintering wood, cannon bursts, death and mayhem, the perfect action-packed wedding ceremony. Guess it will be the next big thing in themed weddings.

Before I was married, I thought nothing about calling other drivers idiots, jerks, morons, etc. Wendy told me that I would have to change what I say before we had children. I asked why? Nothing was wrong with these words. They are not cuss or swear words. She explained that we would not want our children calling other people that in public and than saying they learned it from their father. Good point. Now we have two boys, ages 9 & 11. They have become used to my driving and sometimes help me by saying things like, "That guy shouldn't have a license," "I don't know where some people learned to drive," or "Some people drive too slow." But that is not something that they would transfer to other situations. I doubt that they would get mad at a friend and shout, "I don't know ho you ever got a license, Buddy!" Yesterday we were running late getting to the bank. We pulled up to discover that they had just closed and I muttered, "C...

I am on vacation, but we are not leaving the area, so we decided to go to our church for worship and Bible study today. It was much less stressful than visiting a new church. We knew the routines, we knew where everything was, we knew what to expect. Wendy decided to go ahead and play keyboard at the Contemporary service as usual since it is not work for her. The boys and I sat in the balcony. Something happened that I hope others experience each week. When the praise team and band finished the last song before the sermon, I had this longing for more. Usually by that time of the service I have been running for around three hours (sound check, prayer with ministers, meet with choir, direct first Traditional service, rehearse with praise band and team, sound check for second service and lead Contemporary worship). I am usually ready fora break and my first chance to sit down for the morning. But that was not my experience yesterday. I wanted more. I felt somewhat like the little orphan O...

(For authenticity, check out Urban Legends concerning this) With the recent school shooting at Virginia Tech, I thought this reminder from Darrell Scott, the father of Rachel Scott, a victim of the Columbine High School shootings in Littleton, Colorado, was timely. Mr. Scott was invited to address the House Judiciary Committee's sub-committee. These courageous words spoken by Darrell Scott are powerful, penetrating, and deeply personal. They need to be heard by everyone. Transcript Below: Since the dawn of creation there has been both good & evil in the hearts of men and women. We all contain the seeds of kindness or the seeds of violence. The death of my wonderful daughter, Rachel Joy Scott, and the deaths of that heroic teacher, and the other eleven children who died must not be in vain. Their blood cries out for answers. The first recorded act of violence was when Cain slew his brother Abel out in the field. The villain was not the club he used. Neither was it the NCA, the...

While attending Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary, I learned that the various schools on campus had different opinions about the primary purpose of the church. The School of Christian Education believed that Discipleship was the primary purpose. The School of Theology believed that the primary purpose was evangelism or proclamation of the Word of God. The School of Music believed it to be worship. I am sure that they all felt the other areas were important, they just believed that their area was the most important. Almost every seminary graduate that I have encountered has told me that their first church after seminary was a complete failure. They entered their new ministry believeing that they were doing the proper thing in emphasizing their area of ministry. They were taught that preaching, teaching, worship, missions, etc., was the most important and they did everything they could to help the church understand that. When a church member, or more often another staff member, f...

A mother asked President G.W. Bush, “Why did my son have to die in Iraq?” A mother asked President Clinton, “Why did my son have to die in Saudi Arabia?” A mother asked President G.H.W. Bush, “Why did my son have to die in Kuwait?” Another mother asked President Johnson, “Why did my son have to die in Vietnam?” Another mother asked President Truman, “Why did my son have to die in Korea?” Another mother asked President F.D. Roosevelt, “Why did my son have to die in Iwo Jima?” Another mother asked President W. Wilson, “Why did my son have to die on a battlefield in France?” Another mother asked President Lincoln, “Why did my son have to die at Gettysburg?” Another mother asked President Washington, “Why did my son have to die on a frozen field near Valley Forge?” Another mother asked, “Why did my Son have to die on a cross outside of Jerusalem?” The answer is the same for each – “So that others may have life and dwell in peace, happiness, and freedom.”

I believe that scientists have just found the proof of life on Mars. After all, recent reports that the temperatures on Mars have been increasing over the past three years and that the polar ice caps have been shrinking could only be possible if humans exist on Mars and are driving those planet killing SUVs. [“ Sun Responsible for Global Warming ”] Or could the truth be something completely different? I personally believe that we are to be good stewards of the planet that God created, but I also believe that many politicians and politically active actors have decided that humans are more powerful than God. They want to give humans the ability to change the planets temperature and to “heal” the planet. They completely leave God out of the picture. Now we are beginning to get the truth about global warming. We suddenly have discovered that the increased temperatures are the result of solar irradiance, or “the sun’s magnetic field varies in its ability to repel cosmic rays coming from the...