Hurricanes, Gas Prices, Presidential Elections, and sleeping family

A lot going on these days. Just yesterday we remembered the great tragedy of 7 years ago known as 9/11. Hurricane Ike is beating up on Galveston as I write. Early on I heard someone mention that Ike might have come towards the East Coast. Boy, I’m sure glad it didn’t. No. Really. I thank God it did not but I ask God “Please spare lives and save souls” in Texas and Louisiana. Not to mention in L.A. where a commuter train collided with a freight train resulting in at least 10 lost lives.

Have you every wished you could go back in time and change something you did or did not do? I was thinking about just that today. Momentarily, I was wishing it was January again so I could take a different approach to one of my job assignments. But then I thought, “Wait a minute. We’re that much closer to Jesus coming back. I don’t want to go back.” I’m sure other people would like to go back if they could.

Gas prices. Today, A station / convenience store / country diner that just opened in the last few months that had been undercutting all the rest left and right was selling gas for $4.79 for regular! Shephard Smith speculated that gas prices might double or triple in the wake of Hurricane Ike and what he does to all the oil refinerys down around Planet Houston.

Presidential elections. Who’s wishing this one was over and in the books? I’m not going to hold back. For all that right and wrong between the 2 main choices (Obama_rama and McCain’t) I’m believing I McCain’t go as wrong with McCain as I can as with Obama. Don’t ask me why. I mean it.

Sleeping family. That’s what my family is doing right now and it’s what I should be doing, too. Jack just took a bottle and will again in 3 – 4 hours. Family life with my honey and two babies is great.

Thunder Son.

Eternal Life is Great.

I could have driven to Charlotte faster in a Hertz

I did an O.J. in the Charlotte airport Sunday night. The plane for my flight from FLO to Charlotte was two hours late getting to FLO. Had it been on time I would have had a two hour layover. As it was, I had a ten minute layover. Once the captain had landed the plane in Charlotte, taxied the plane to the terminal, and turned off the fasten-seatbelt sign, I leaped into the aisle and jumped ahead ten rows closer to the exit before any of the other passengers were out of their seats. Once the ground crew had secured the plane and we passengers had been cleared to exit, I pushed on ahead hoping to magnetically repel the people in front of me off the plane. We landed at Concourse E. My connecting flight was schedule to take off in ten minutes from Concourse B.

Once inside the terminal, what miniscule NFL runningback tendencies I had emerged. I did everything except jump over a footstool, or whatever it was the O.J. jumped over back in whatever decade it was when he was in the Hertz rental car commercials. I looked good in Concourse E.

“Stay to the right” I commanded the people in front of me with the longer layovers. “Stay to the left. Thank you.”

Concourse E ended in the choice of an escalator or an staircase. My weary legs chose the escalator. I let the escalator do the work.

Next was concourse D. I had slowed down to a fast walk, weaving in and out among the other passengers. I unknowingly passed the entrance to a moving sidewalk. My weary legs saw it out of the corner of my eye and turned my body to backtrack. I stepped on to the sidewalk and the pace of my fast walk increased ever so slightly.

“Stay to right, please.” A young girl obliged.

Concourse C. I was halfway home. The moving sidewalk ended. The walkway sloped downward causing my weary legs to wobble. I thought I was going to fall on my face. Thankfully, I never did.

After another moving sidewalk or two, I arrived at Concourse B. Across the way I saw the sign “B1 – B16″. My gate was B8. At least it wasn’t B16. I continued my fast walk. B1. B2. B3. B4. B5. B6. B7. Glancing ahead I saw a crowd on the left at B8. My flight had not even boarded yet. In fact it was delayed 15 minutes. I took advantage of that time to purchase a roast beef bagel sandwich, a poppy seed muffin, and a Diet Coke. I then sat down and rested my weary legs while I waited for my turn to board.

Response to Writer’s Digest Writing Prompt: Unusual Side Effect 5/6 – 5/12

From Writer’s Digest Online:

The government has issued a warning that a particular (and common) household item is having an unusual side effect on children. Worse yet, you own this item. You rush home to check on your kids. When you get there, you’re shocked to find that your kids have … . Write this scene.

Please limit your response to 500 words or fewer.

     …constructed a large obelisk out of marshmallows. I wondered where they had gotten so many. The object was sitting on top of the dining room table and almost reached the ceiling. Hovering above was a halo of compact fluorescent light bulbs.

The candle was also hovering above the obelisk, smack in the center of the halo. It was lit and fumes were rising from the flame. My wife, Darla, had mentioned she had bought it at Grab-Mart last week. Now I remember. She also had bought a case of marshmallows to see if she could make one thousand crispy rice treats.

            The swinging door from the kitchen slowly opened and out walked my daughter, Katy. She wore a shoulder harness connected to an ironing board. Darla was sitting on top of the board in the lotus position. Shouldering the other end was Jason, my son. Darla was wearing Jason’s football helmet and sat silently with her eyes glazed over. Katy and Jason were chanting “Marshmallow.” The three of them were oblivious to my presence.

            I tried desperately to recall what the radio announcer had said that others had done to counteract the effects of the candle. It had something to do with Pam® and Spam® but I couldn’t remember. I went to the kitchen and turned on the television to the twenty-four hour news channel.

            “Repeat. If you have any “Out-of-This-World” Scented Candles at home, destroy them at once. Thousands of viewers have sent camera phone photos of people under its control. These people have constructed large obelisks out of marshmallows, jelly beans, French fries, or a combination of these materials. One viewer, Stanley Johnson, of King of Prussia, Pennsylvania, has reportedly solved the mystery of how to stop this madness and is currently on the line. Stanley?”

            “Thanks. First, take some Spam®. I tried potted meat but it didn’t work. Mix it in a red, plastic bowl with any kind of Pam®, with olive oil or any other additive, as long it is not generic. Mix them well and then take a jar of Smucker’s® strawberry jam. Not jelly now. You must follow this to a tee. Mix in the whole jar; you cannot add too much.”

            I began to look for these ingredients in the cupboards.

            “After you have it well mixed, take a spoon and fling some of it directly at the candle. Immediately the trance will be broken. But don’t take too long. The scent will get to you, too.”

            I found the ingredients and mixed them according to Stanley’s instructions. I began to feel woozy and crave marshmallows but I was determined not to fall under the candle’s power. I hurried into the living room with the bowl and spoon. My family was standing in front of the obelisk with their arms raised. I aimed a spoonful at the candle and let it fly. The mixture hit the candle and doused its flame. Immediately, Darla and the kids turned towards me and….

Let’s be realistic, not crazyistic (Write a Novel in a Reasonable Amount of Time)

As I said in my post, I thought I’d never get to write, I have set out on a quest to write a novel in a month. I think what any of you should have commented is “Your crazy”, or at least “The way you eat an elephant is one bite at a time, not all at one”. That’s MHO.

I’ve got a story idea but I think to write it in a month is crazy so instead of writing the novel, I am going to just work on writing the details of the story like character’s, plot, theme, etc. I do appreciate the comments from my Write a Novel in a Month post back last November, however.

More importantly is my relationship with God and His Son Jesus Christ. For those of you who pray to Him, please ask that whatever I do that I may do it all for the glory of God (1st Corinthians 10:31).

Thanks

John

Who is Jesus?

Making straight arrows

“Like arrows in the hand of a warrior are the sons born in one’s youth.” Psalm 127:4 (HCSB)

The late Dr. Adrian Rogers (former paster of Bellvue Baptist Church in Memphis, TN) gave a sermon series entitled “Treasuring Family Values”. The synopsis of the series from www.lwf.org is found at the end of this post.

After preaching about Millionaire Marriages, God’s Plan for the Man, The Wonders of Womanhood, Treasuring Marital Fidelity, and Honoring Father and Mother, Dr Rogers preached a message entitled “Dads Who Shoot Straight”. He preached from Psalm 127 subtitled in the NASB as “Prosperity Comes from the Lord” and noted as “A Song of Ascents, of Solomon”.

Right from the start, this five-verse psalm sets the record straight. In verse one Solomon writes “Unless the LORD builds the house, they labor in vain who build it; Unless the LORD guards the city, the watchman keeps awake in vain.” Without God as the foundation of your marriage and your family, all your efforts to lead your family towards the greatest of successes will be for naught. You will miss the mark of true success: a family of which each member has trusted in Jesus Christ for eternal life and is constantly pressing “on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus” (Philippians 3:14).

Rather than give a full commentary, I recommend you acquire a copy of this series and listen intently to all 6 messages. My point to this post is that until 2 years ago, I had no arrows in my quiver. Now that I have one arrow and one on the way, I want to ask God to make make me a warrior (v 4) and to give me a bow of powerful prayers so that I might be ready to send out straight arrows conditioned from the precious, crooked little twigs that God entrusts to me. I know that God will bless me with godly children if I follow his lead to straighten my twigs, condition them as straight arrows, pull back the bowstring with prayers, and let them fly through the air toward their enemies, the enemies of Almighty God. I know He will be with them just as sure as He was with the young shepherd boy David as he faced his enemy, the giant Goliath.

So dads, get into God’s word (through the teaching of your local Bible-believing church and possibly with the help of a ministry like Dr. Rogers’ in addition) and learn how to straighten those arrows He has given you. Let them fly toward our enemy for God’s glory and your blessing.

Thunder Son

Who is Jesus?

Synopsis of the CD Album “Treasuring Family Values“

“How do you set an example of godliness in your home when society knows the price of everything, and the value of nothing? It’s hard, but you can with the Word of God as your guidebook and the Holy Spirit as your teacher and helper. Join Adrian Rogers in this six message series, as he opens the Word of God and provides victorious insights for those critical issues facing your family today.”

Messages included:
1781  Millionaire Marriages
1782  God’s Plan For The Man
1784  The Wonders Of Womanhood
1785  Treasuring Marital Fidelity
1787  Honoring Father And Mother
2157  Dads Who Shoot Straight

I thought I’d never get to write

Tonight I mean. Now 22 minutes isn’t forever but it’s a long time to wait to logon. Of course my computer’s in the running for the sssssssslllllllllllllloooooooooooooowwwwwwwwwwwwweeeeeeeeeeesssssssttttttttt PC ever. Aren’t they all.

You remember back last November when I decided to start writing a 50000 word novel in a month? Link Well, I’m at again except with a little twist. I’m the only one doing it. That I know of. And I’m starting on the 1st (today) not the 11th. And May has 31 days, November only has 30. You see November is National Novel Writing Month (or NaNoWriMo) or so started one Chris Baty some years back. Read the website for more info.

Last November was WriNoNo month for me (Write No Novel) which has basically been every month for me for the past 43 years. I therefore proclaim May as my personal, very own, one-of-a-kind “May My NaNoWrimo”*. Wish me luck.

* “May My NaNoWrimo” may turn into NaNoWriYear or NaNoWri365 or something like that.

Later.

Where have I been?

I don’t know if anyone has asked this question about me which, correctly, would be “where has thunderson been?” but I am asking it of myself.

One of my favorite authors, Jerry B. Jenkins, wrote in his book Writing for the Soul: Instruction and Advice from an Extraordinary Writing Life “Some pretend they could do it [make up stories people like to read] if they only had the time.” (p 42. I recommend the book and I haven’t read all of it yet.) And thus I am going to make the time. I’ll be a writer if I only write in this blog.

So, where have I been? Well, I’ve been working, I’ve been teaching Bible Study on Sunday morning (I’m extremely blessed to have this responsiblity), I been living life with my wife, my daughter, and are son (to be born this July) but I have not been writing. (I’m sure I’ve been doing more than this but you get the point.)

And so here I am. Writing. Let me change horses in midstream.

Yesterday, I heard about a link on YouTube you should check out. If the link doesn’t work, go to YouTube and search for “Lutzer” and “Oprah” or “The Gospel According to Oprah’s Friends”. The video is a portion of a sermon (9:40) by Dr. Lutzer regarding books Oprah recommends in her book club. The entire sermon can be heard at www.moodychurch.org/thelie.

To summarize the radio interview of Dr. Lutzer I heard yesterday, one message of these books is to say that the only things that matters are our thoughts and that if we think we are our own god then so be it. Go ahead, check out this link and let me know what you think. As another matter of fact, you can go to primetimeamerica.org and look at the program details for Tuesday, April 29th . You can listen to that days program but it is not separated out. You would have to listen to the first 50 minutes to get to that interview.

Well, that’s enough for now.

Greatest Super Bowl HALFTIME Show Ever (Great Game, Too!) But Most of All, GOOD NEWS

I’ve been trying to write this post since just after halftime. I guess I wasn’t pedaling fast enough because my internet connection kept hanging up.

 Any way. I thoroughly enjoyed Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers. No malfunctions this year.

Well, now that the game is over, I can also say, “Great game, Giants!”. Just think, Eli was my backup fantasy quarterback this year to Romo. Let this be the lesson. Stats aren’t everything. Winning is everything. (Who said that? Was it Vince Lombardi?)

Let’s say there’s this Giants fan who had to work late and couldn’t keep up with the game. Then at the end of the shift, his relief man tells him, “Good news! The Giants won the Super Bowl!” How do you think he’d feel? Elated perhaps but possibly also regretful because he missed it?

Well, reader, this one’s for you!

Good news! The creator of the universe, Almighty God, loves you.

You may be like I was: Separated from Him because of my sin which is living life my own self-centered way on my own terms (Romans 3:23)

You may be like I was: Destined to spend eternity separated from Him because of my sin for which only I am responsible for. There’s no one else to blame. (Romans 6:23)

You are definitely like I am: Loved by God because Jesus Christ died for you and me. He proved it on the cross at Calvary where Jesus willingly went to die in my place. (Romans 5:8)

You can definitely spend eternity with God in Heaven: By trusting in Jesus as Your Savior and Lord (Romans 10:9)

 Good News: The Son of the Almighty God, Jesus Christ, died in your place to pay your sin debt so that you can spend eternity Him! And you don’t have to miss it. Here’s a prayer, which is just respectfully talking to God:

“Thank you, Jesus, for dying in my place for my sin debt. Please take me to spend eternity with You and Your Father in Heaven. Please help me to give you my life every day so I can tell others about this Good News! In Your Name Jesus. Amen”

If you prayed that prayer from your heart, you are right now in the presence of God. If you have any questions read this: Who is Jesus?

If you are searching for a Bible believing / teaching church, check this out: Church Search! 

Also, read this (The Gospel According to John). It will definitely help.

God Bless.

Talking to Yourself or Thinking Out Loud: Which is Worse?

The man was pacing back and forth in the airport waiting area, talking to himself but not under his breath. Out loud! It was outright annoying! Despite my initial angry response I became somewhat concerned about his mental state. Was he practicing a speech? No, it didn’t appear he was. He words had no sentence structure. Every so often he uttered short phrases such as “Yes”, “No”, “You bet”, and “The Cat’s out of the Bag”. The clincher was when he appeared to comment on his own sanity. “You’re crazy!” he shouted. “Why don’t you go jump in the lake?” Well, I didn’t see any bag, cat, or lake so I fixed in my mind the following conclusion: He’s jumping out the plane with no parachute. It was at that moment he walked past me and I noticed the bluetooth earpiece in his right ear. I blushed and looked around to see if anyone noticed my embarrassment. The man sat down beside me and I leaned over and spoke in a hushed tone. “Sorry, I thought you were crazy.” The man looked at me with a worried look on his face as if he was thinking the same about me. I smacked the heel of my palm to my forehead. “Did I say that? Ohhhh.”

To My Darling Wife: I Love You

 Guys, have you told your wife you love her today?

 God tells us how we should love our wives.