I know that in the grand scheme of things, this is not really one of the most important issues in life. I appreciate that it shrinks into insignificance alongside the President’s efforts at a new Middle East peace accord this week.
But I want to go on record as saying that the NFL are out of their tiny minds giving coverage of major games to a network most of the country has no access to. So while the 10-1 Packers are playing the 10-1 bears tonight in Dallas, the game is unavailable to most football fans anywhere across the nation. Me included.
I’m ticked.
Take games off your own NFL Channel and give them back to the people – people like me!
We start our Christmas series, The Chocolate Box on December 9th. Chocolate donuts will be very prominent in our Big Screen Cafe, as will hot chocolate and our special seasonal offering – chocolate chip bagels.
People are asking what the series is all about and I’m enjoying keeping them guessing. You’ll have to show up to find out, or to quote an Old Testament verse, Taste and see!!!
It’s always interesting to see what parts of the world blog readers are logging in from. Over the past twenty four hours we’ve spanned from Cancun to Turkey.
Whether you’re sunning yourself in Mexico, preparing for a European winter, or somewhere in between, there’s good news here today.
This morning I took a quick trip to Stony Brook Hospital to check in with Greg Foley, the young man from our church who suffered serious brain trauma when he was hit by a car almost three weeks ago.
What a difference from my last visit!
A lot of the tubes and wires are gone, he’s out of the coma and we had a conversation. Sure his speech is deliberate and he’s reaching for some words, but Greg’s on his way back folks. Please keep praying for him and his family as they continue the journey to complete recovery and thank God for his goodness to them all.
We have seen people commit their lives to Christ on both of the past two Sundays and that is the greatest miracle of all. I’m expecting to end our Miracles series this coming Sunday on a very high note, with more lives being transformed.
As I teach on healing and we take time to pray for those who need their own personal miracle, I am anticipating that prayers will be answered and the Christ who never changes will be with us to bring healing and wholeness to many lives.
So if you know someone who’s sick and needs a personal miracle, be sure to invite them to be with us.
For the finale of our Miracles series this coming Sunday, I’m going to focus on one of Jesus’ healing miracles. Yesterday I invited our folks to share their stories of healing in an email of less than 200 words and I’ve had some great stuff come in already.
We’ll share these testimonies on Sunday.
Man, I’m looking forward to the weekend!
At the gym this morning I spent some time watching ESPN’s review of the weekend’s football. It seems there were a few good games around the country, while we were stuck with the Giants having a really bad day on our TV screens.
What followed just after dawn today was something my marketing executive friend Ian Baer should take a look at and maybe add to his portfolio. It was ESPN’s effort to sell this evening’s Monday Night Football game between the Steelers and the 0-10 lackluster, underscoring, underperforming, not-worth-watching Miami Dolphins.
ESPN went back to some footage of a Monday night game they had in the archives when the Dolphins achieved a stunning come from behind victory. Will they surprise us all again? Will this be Miami’s night once more?
No, of course it won’t.
They’re sad. A franchise with an impressive history that has spent more than enough seasons lost in space.
But kudos to the writers at ESPN for their great effort at selling this pointless game. Their creativity is truly amazing.
One thing I strive for when we put together promotional pieces for our church is truth in advertising. We have to be able to produce what we promise and avoid the trap of loading ourselves with superlatives that describe the way we wish we were rather than the present reality.
I can’t deal with hype in what we put out for those not yet in the church, or with hype inside for that matter!
+ It was cold early this morning, so I particularly appreciated the commitment of our set-up team who were out in the freezing temperatures to offload all our gear.
+ The theater opened for early shows at 10.30 today, but it didn’t cramp our style too much. We couldn’t have our prayer chapel or live video feed in the cafe, but apart from that it was business as usual. Good thing we have an excellent relationship with the manager.
+ After service I prayed with a young woman who wanted to commit her life to Christ. Great stuff – it’s why we do what we do!
+ Good news from the hospital on Greg. He has come out of the induced coma and is showing signs of awareness.
+ More new folks around. It really is getting difficult to keep track. I don’t know a lot of names, which is not good.
+ Watched the Giants this afternoon – waste of time as the Vikings blew them away.
+ My sister arrives on Tuesday. I’m looking forward to seeing her.
+ Peter Montana was in church today. He’s the guy who raised the money for our Thanksgiving outreach which provided all the ingredients for a full dinner for sixty families.
+ We need to do another new friends lunch soon so we can get to know some of the folks who have started worshiping with us.
+ The house is weird without Maggie around. It’s strange to come home and not have her jumping around as soon as you open the door.
+ This was the 15th consecutive dry Sunday – no rain yet since we moved to Ronkonkoma. Wet mornings would certainly make unloading and loading challenging.
Someone askied for the outline of today’s teaching, so I said I’d post it here – for him and the world to see!!!
It’s based on Jesus stilling the storm in Mark 4.
1. THINGS AROUND US CAN CHANGE VERY QUICKLY
Mark 4:37 – A furious squall came up, and the waves broke over the boat, so that it was nearly swamped.
2. IT’S EASY TO THINK GOD DOESN’T CARE
v38 – The disciples woke him and said to him, “Teacher, don’t you care if we drown?”
3. THERE’S A SPIRITUAL BATTLE GOING ON
v39 – He got up, rebuked the wind and said to the waves, “Quiet! Be still!” Then the wind died down and it was completely calm.
4. GOD LOVES TO SURPRISE US
v41 – They were terrified and asked each other, “Who is this? Even the wind and the waves obey him!”
5. JESUS IS NEVER ANXIOUS, SO WE DON’T NEED TO BE EITHER
v38 – Jesus was in the stern, sleeping on a cushion.
6. THOUGH OUR FAITH SEEMS INADEQUATE, IT’S OKAY
v40 – He said to his disciples, “Why are you so afraid? Do you still have no faith?”
7. JESUS ALWAYS TAKES US THROUGH
v35 – That day when evening came, he said to his disciples, “Let us go over to the other side.”
There’s a lot to be said for getting back to routine and that’s how today has been shaping up – with the one noted exception that I didn’t go out with our Grace Care outreach team this afternoon to bring Thanksgiving meals to the homeless men we serve every Saturday.
I resumed my Weight Watchers classes this morning and although the turnout was predictably thin (no pun intended!) on this holiday weekend, it was good to reconnect with those who did make it and encourage them as we move into a demanding season.
The rest of the day has been spent completing everything for tomorrow and I must say I’m really looking forward to teaching the third part of our Miracles series.
The countdown to Christmas now starts in earnest and we reckon our two Christmas Sunday services may well draw an even bigger corwd than Easter Sunday.
This time of year presents some great opportunities, so let it snow, let it snow, let it snow!!!
Just kidding about the white stuff God, honest!
Got home about an hour ago from our Thanksgiving in Florida and I have to say that I was superimpressed with Southwest’s service. Not only do they treat passengers like human beings and act as though they’re glad to see you, but going both ways the flights arrived almost 30 minutes ahead of schedule – which beats at least 3 hours after the designated time that seems to be the pattern for any airline you’ll fly out of JFK!
They’ve adjusted their seating arrangements too, but it’s interesting that however near to the 24 hours in advance you get on line, you’re still some way down the line!
Today I got an exit row seat, excellent service, a short flight and even the coffee was marginally less disgusting than what is served on most planes.
So that’s us back. As far as I know, I don’t have to get on a plane again for a while, which is a relief.
Tonight we’re having a Thanksgiving Dinner at Charlotte’s, though she’s serving chicken as turkey isn’t among her favorite meats.
Are you allowed to do Thanksgiving with chicken???
