Weekend Wonders

Saturday and Sunday blended together to form a really good weekend. Saturday we went to Apple Hill, east of Placerville, with some folks from church, and we had a really good time. Apparently in the 50s the area was known for pears, but a pear blight destroyed most of the pear orchards, so some of the growers decided to expand their apple orchards, and things took off. Some time in the 60s they formed the Apple Hill Growers Association, and the rest, as they say, is history (actually the first part is history also, eh!?!).

Of course, there are lots of apples of various varieties and other fruit. There are also all kinds of crafts at the various orchards... and food... and rides and games for the kids. One even has a big fishing pond. We stopped at 3 of the larger places, but there dozens of growers... many of them small operations, and some of them are even organic growers. I think we'll go back.

Sunday was great as well. Worship was deep and meaningful, and Jarrod really challenged us with the story of the rich man from Mark. He raised a lot of questions... for himself and us... and didn't let us off the hook... challenging us to wrestle with what that story means in our lives.

After lunch many of the ladies went to a baby shower, so four of the men from our Family Circle did some visiting. We went to see Estelle McClelland at Diamond Ridge Care Center. She wasn't totally lucid, but her sweet spirit and smile were worth the trip. I don't know if she'll remember we were there, but she wants us to come back. She even tried to get out of her wheel chair to "walk us to the door" when we left.

We also went to see Betty Welch and her husband, Carl, at the "Welch compound." Betty, even in her deteriorated condition, is a sweet blessing from God to all around her. I have yet to go see them when I did not come away feeling I had received much more than I had given. And Bruce and Sandy are just overflowing with God's grace in their lives.

Youth group capped Sunday. We're on hold looking for a youth minister, so Virginia and I are continuing our involvement with the youth ministry for now. Brian and Laura do such a great job, but it's nice to have several shoulders to pull together. We taught the group one of the new ZOE songs, "Magnificat" by Randy Gill. It has four distinct parts that build, and the kids picked it up well.

Thank you, God, for so many tangible blessings this weekend.

The Sky

We live just over the hill from Contra Loma Regional Park... acres and acres of hills and trails. Up the street a few blocks (and up a pretty steep hill) there is one of several public access gates and trails over the hill and down to the Contra Loma Resevoir. It's a great place to walk... a great back yard. Here's one look in the spring. There's a trail around the lake that Virginia and I really enjoy. It's pretty flat, serene, and the views range from pretty cool to spectacular.

Tonight was one of those spectacular evenings... cool... no breeze to speak of... lake like glass... and the sky... well the sky was one of those to write home about. Hmmm... guess that's what I'm doing, eh?!?

We don't have many clouds this time of year, but we did tonight... not thick clouds, but those high layered and rippled clouds that can catch the sun so marvelously. It's always hard to describe these things, but maybe this will jump start your imagination...

Before we got back to the house, the color was gone and it was nearly dark. But we still got to walk, and we still got to see the sky... together.

Generosity

Here it is Wednesday, and I'm JUST NOW writing about the special Katrina relief contribution we did Sunday... what's up with that!?! I was so proud of our church family Sunday. We're not a really big group (I think about 220 this Sunday in worship), but there are many who really have generous hearts. We decided to send the money we collected to 3 Houston area churches who are doing "front line" work with Katrina survivors. Virginia and I were at Sugar Grove almost 14 years; Lauren's folks are at Spring Woodlands; and some former Eastside folks are at Clear Lake. Sunday we collected over $16K, and more is coming in. I realize that doesn't sound like much compared to all the HUGE numbers we're hearing about on the news, but those dollars represent some sacrificial giving by many, and God will multiply the good that is done in the hands of our brothers and sisters in Houston. And, with Rita bearing down on the TX coast... they need our continued prayers as well.

Here's another one. Last week we heard about some Katrina survivors who had located in this area and needed clothing, so our church brought a whole boatload of clothes for them... much more than a few folks could use. So, another group picked them up yesterday to distribute to others in need.

In addition to that, we're participating in a Christmas dinner again this year that is put on by several Antioch churches to feed about 1200 homeless and poor folks at the fair grounds the first Saturday in December. For that effort, we're now collecting toys to give to the kids, and our barrel is almost full, after one Sunday.

I just pray that we can more and more see all the ways we are blessed and more and more see the responsibility we have to use those blessings in the life of others.

Thrive!

Back in the spring I switched my health insurance to Kaiser Permanente. More bang for the buck, but my first experience with Kaiser. I went online a while back and selected a primary care doc from the profiles available at the Antioch Kaiser center. That appointment was today at 2:00. When I first walked in the door, it was a little confusing... all the stations, people going everywhere... but the signage was good, and I found myself going from one helpful person to the next until I finally saw my doc. He figured out I was in for my "I just turned 55 check-up," so he checked me over, asked a bunch of questions, typed in his computer terminal, and scheduled me for several lab tests. I'll need to do those another day... have to fast 12 hours first.

He also gave me the form to get a "flexible sigmoidoscopy" as well. Not looking forward to that one, but I've had several relatives develop colon cancer, so I guess it's time to get that done. After reading the instructions, I think all the prep for the test will be worse than the test itself... I guess I'll find out. I need to call to schedule it... will have to drive to Walnut Creek.

I was really impressed with the friendliness of all the people I spoke with at Kaiser. They also seem to have health care well organized to cut costs... although it feels a bit mechanized... so the friendliness is a nice touch. I got the idea that they all are trying to do their best to help... to see that each patient really does... thrive.

College Football

College football has always been fun for me, and I've always liked watching it more than the NFL... not sure why... just do. Growing up as a kid in Oxnard, I was a big USC fan... which was convenient since they were usually a top 5 team in the 60s. I didn't play football in HS (band and cross country were my things), but I did play in the L.A. Coliseum once... it was "band day," and we were part of the halftime show. Anyway, it's quite nostalgic to be back in CA and USC being so good again... I can hear that Trojan fight song even as I write, and they're putting on Arkansas, 63 to 10 with 11 minutes left... make that 63-17... the Pigs just scored.

Pretty much all of my family has Oklahoma roots, and my mom has always been a big OU fan, so I guess part of me marches to "Boomer Sooner" as well. And in the 70s and the last few years it's been easy to be a Sooner fan as well.

Ooooooh...pig...soooey!! I never got where I could say that, but after a few years in Arkansas I even got to where I would root for the Hogs. However I must admit that I followed their stellar cross country team and Hogs basketball a little more closely.

In the 80s I had a relative that played at Florida State, so in those years in 80s and 90s when Miami, Florida, and FSU were always rated among the top teams, I found myself at least mentally doing the tomahawk chop.

Virginia's uncle played at Texas back in the 50s and is a huge UT fan, so part of me likes that burnt orange as well. I know Texas A&M folks won't understand this, but I also have pulled for them at times.

Notre Dame... the team everyone loves to hate. Big rivals for USC and many other teams. Not sure why I also root for the Irish at times... maybe just to irritate those other folks who hate 'em....

UCLA... Cal... Penn State... I've rooted for them at times as well over the years. It makes me wonder how I can be so schizo about college football. I mean, I know plenty of folks who are died-in-the-wool fans for their team... and their team only. I just don't know... maybe I have commitment issues.

Whatever... college football isn't life... but it can be fun.

Musings on Reading

I've always enjoyed reading... as a kid I could get lost in a book or a comic book. My mom tells me that my reading even made it pretty hard to get my attention sometimes. I seldom enjoyed reading stuff I was assigned to read... like that science chapter... or stuff that someone told me would be "good for me" to read... although I guess even here there have been some exceptions. I've enjoyed most reading purely for pleasure (which I don't do much of anymore) or things that I think will help me grow in some way... and that's a pretty long list.

Both my kids were into reading as well when they were young... especially Jennifer... she gobbled up books as a kid. And she seems to have passed that passion on to Kaleb. While they and Fok were settling into the apartment and Jen was getting ready to teach her classes at Brandeis, Kaleb was not in school yet, so he tagged along with her. They were reading the latest Harry Potter book on the commuter train, etc., but it wasn't going fast enough for him, so he decided to finish it on his own (he's entering 1st grade). Well, he finished it and decided he should read the others as well... since he hadn't "read them himself" yet. By the time school started, he had completed all five books. I'm sorry, but I just can't get over that. I just hope he has some time to play outside as well. :-)

Some time back, Virginia and I decided to read through that chronological Bible together... outloud. It took us about 18 months to do the years worth of readings, but we did it! Then we decided to read some other books together as well. I decided we could walk and read at the same time, so we did that with Blue Like Jazz... great book by the way. It then got too dark to read and walk, so we're walking faster and then reading Fresh Wind, Fresh Fire. Almost done with that one, so need to find another one. It's really pretty neat doing it this way. I'm pretty groggy when we hit the road (not being a morning person), but I'm always glad we made it out when we go. Now for that next book to read... hmmm... maybe we should try Harry Potter???

Saving Money

I remember when Virginia and I were newly weds while we were in college back in the early '70s. We knew we were poor college students, and we pinched our pennies, but we sure had a good time doing it. The first year we were married we averaged $11/week on groceries... remember...it was 1971-2. I think we ate OK, and Mrs Lomax, who managed the student inn where we both pulled a few hours each week, let us fix a free burger every now and then. There were several other young couples we knew, and we were all pretty much in the same boat, always stretching the dollars we had. One couple thought they could save quite a bit of money on dish washing liquid by eating off paper plates all the time... go figure.

I guess over the years we have continued to be pretty frugal most of the time... sort of following in the footsteps of our parents I think. Sometimes we've had a few more dollars than others, but "saving money" is usually still not far from our minds.

This weekend we saved some money... at least in a few years I think we will have saved some. We've had an extra fridge in the garage... you know, one of those older ones that was in the house when we moved in. It works OK, but the compressor labors some, and it's old enough that it sucks quite a bit of electricity. Well, Sears finally put their little fridges and freezers on sale (notice it was a sale :-), so we bought one of each. They came into the warehouse, so Doug brought his truck over and hauled me over to pick them up. We put the fridge in the laundry room for cold drinks and overflow fridge space. We put the little freezer in the garage. Both of them are "energy star" appliances, and they're so small, that I'm sure they'll use less juice than the old one. What I don't know is how many years of saving electricity it'll take to actually save what we paid for them.

Oh well, I think we're done spending for a while... can't afford to save any more money right now. And... those little appliances will help us be a little more "green." Now... where are those paper plates??

Pondering Stuff

Those two words in the title don't seem to go together to me. "Pondering" sounds... oh... sort of weighty and important, and "Stuff" sounds like... just stuff. Still, that's the way the last few days have gone for me... pondering stuff.

Jarrod and I had a conversation early in the week about the role racism played in the New Orleans fiasco. Larry James's blog has an ongoing discussion about helping the urban poor, and recent posts include lively exchanges about racism and New Orleans.

When I was in high school and college in the 60s and 70s, racism was easy to identify... it was mean... it was deliberate... it was obvious... as a student and young teacher, I felt like I had to fight it like a crusader. I guess I am in that class of "social liberals" for whom racism was a personal attitude... a debate to win... perhaps something to march against. If I didn't foster racism in my heart and in my children, then I could change my world.

Today, racism seems to be much more insidious... perhaps it was back then too, but the mean-spirited public version just sort of masked endemic racism. Anyway, the more I think about it, the more I believe that racism has sort of merged with classism... and basically the poor are the ones getting the short end of the stick in many arenas in our culture. It's tough to pull yourself up by your own bootstraps when you're barefooted, and that's where many poor in our culture are. And the truth is that a great percentage of our poor are black or hispanic.

Is it simple? No... it was a black mayor who neglected to plan for transportation for those who owned no cars and had no way to leave during an evacuation. It was a black police chief who enforced the order. And there was no excuse for leaving all those folks at the Super Dome and Convention Center with no food and no water. Yet, there is also no excuse... I repeat... no excuse for rapes and other violence that happened there, nor for the sniper shots taken at rescue workers and firemen the last couple of days. Is the problem simple? No. Will a solution be simple? No. Yet, deep down I am still convinced that the best way to erase the sin of racism from our culture is to do it one heart at a time... with the gospel of Jesus.

It's been really cool hearing and reading about all the ways different groups and individuals are helping with Katrina relief. Kids with lemonade stands... a youth group taking pledges during a 30 hour fast... collecting goods and money to send... inviting people into homes and churches... and on and on. Sugar Grove, the church where Virginia and I were for 13.5 years, is partnering with other churches and agencies SW Houston and Sugar Land to help thousands of folks who were able to leave during the evacuation and are now stuck in hotels with no home to return to, no jobs, and credit cards at their limits. This link tells some of what they are doing. http://www.sugargrove.org/hurricanerelief.htm. This is one of the churches to which Eastside will send some of the money we collect on the 18th.

This week has certainly been a week for thinking things over... for pondering stuff.

Great Sunday!

It was such a wonderful blessing to be together yesterday morning and last evening... to worship together, to re-affirm our commitment to joins hands with others in order to do the work Jesus would be doing... that He is doing... in providing relief in the wake of Hurricane Katrina!?! Days like that are snapshots of what it can be like every time we come together as a Family, and I love it that we are having that kind of Sunday more and more often.

Jarrod really challenged us from Mark to understand that we need to more and more work with others who are doing "Jesus ministry." So, I’m touched and thrilled to see our growing excitement about opportunities like the Hunger Walk, the Mission Christmas Dinner, a Habitat for Humanity house, and our relief efforts in the wake of Hurricane Katrina. Sunday night we joined together at several "worship stations" to pray and meditate and use our hands to express our love for God and one another. I know the 80 or so gallon zip lock bags with water and food will find their way into the hands of those in need over the next few weeks. I know some will visit our pantry because of the card in the bag. I know God will give us opportunities to help because of those who were there last night.

And I'm really looking forward to the 18th... to see how God will use us as we collect funds for Katrina relief.

God bless you this Labor Day and as we live and move and derive our very being from the One who loves us more than we can understand.

Following US?

I'm really looking forward to tomorrow for a number of reasons. Sundays are always great at Eastside, and Jarrod's series in Mark... ChristFollowers... has been both inspiring and convicting. Tomorrow he'll be unpacking the time Jesus had to tell his disciples that he had more followers than just the twelve... that if they aren't against them, then they're with them. What a wonderful text to explore in the wake of Katrina... as we see brothers and sisters of all traditions joining hands to bring aid and comfort. God, please use this time to revive a true spirit of faithful unity in your children. I'm also looking forward to our worship... to creating a context for communing and for looking at that text.

Sunday night we will reconvene our monthly Reunion service after a summer break. We call our small groups Family Circles, so when we gather our FCs on the first Sunday night of the month for worship, we call it Reunion. Our worship includes singing, prayer, meditation, and several "hands on worship stations." We started doing this in the spring, and we've had a really good response. One of our stations last spring was to put together a "snack pack" in a gallon zip lock, then keep it in your car to give to someone on a street corner at a stop light. Our folks really liked that one, so we're doing that one again... only more packs. I'll try to write how things go tomorrow.

God bless... have a great Sunday. Keep praying for the gulf coast.

The Ties That Bind

I know Katrina is on everyone's mind... and screens... and I know that multiple people are sharing thoughts and feelings and ideas about her path of destruction. I know that the government and some agencies are being criticized (and maybe rightly so) for not bringing aid quickly enough. I know there are miserable and hurting people who are slowly but surely being evacuated from New Orleans to Houston and other places; and I know that many who left affected areas a day or two ago are living in hotels or with friends or family all over the mid-section of the country.

Today I found out that Houston area Churches of Christ are cooperating among themselves and with other groups to feed and aid the thousands who are refugees in Houston hotels. Within three miles of the Sugar Grove building (where I used to be on staff), there are 3000+ in hotels as long as their money lasts. Wednesday night SG fed 500 at the building. Spring Woodlands (on the north side of town), where Lauren's parents worship, is undertaking similar measures. The IMPACT inner city church is gearing up to help.

I can't be there to roll up my sleeves and serve food, but I can pray for their efforts and I can send money. We're taking up a special contribution on the 18th... may God multiply it and bless its use beyond what we imagine.