- Hell's Kitchen
- The Discovery Channel
- When We Left the Earth
- Good Eats
- Iron Chef America
- Anything my children are watching if they have the remote!
- ESPN
Wednesday, June 18, 2008
Shows I Watch
I thought I'd post something different today, so here is what I watch on TV when I can.
Tuesday, June 17, 2008
The Rains Came Down, and the Floods Came Up
No doubt many of you have been hearing and reading reports of the recent devastation in the Midwest due to flooding. Record rainfalls and saturated earth has led to flooding beyond compare. Iowa, Illinois, and Indiana are only a few of the states that have been hit the hardest.
Sometimes it's hard to imagine what it must be like to live through a flood of that magnitude. We can only hope that faith will take people through the devastation and restoration that lives will be restored. In the midst of the flooding however, people seem to lose hope because everything is in ruin, lives are shattered, and what can be seems like it will never be revealed.
Flooding is a not too distant memory for many in Western Pennsylvania. It wasn’t too long ago that we were cleaning up our own houses when record rainfalls caused our rivers and streams to rise. Some people call them 100 year floods, others call them floods of the century. Regardless of what you call them, a flood is a flood.
Bishop Gregory Palmer of the Iowa Area was our guest preacher at Annual Conference Last week. While he was here, his own Annual Conference was dealing with the flooding. I can only imagine what it must have been like for him to be so far away – yet provide so much hope. Bishop Palmer spoke a lot about hope, hope that is restored, hope that can be revealed. We do not give up hope, but yet we remain steadfast in our conviction that God will see us through this. He has said openly as well as in print, “Remember, when you pass through the waters, God will be with you.”
That word of promise has come up so often in my scripture reading, “God will be with you,” or “I will be with you” is a promise that begins in Genesis and continues throughout the entirety of scripture. We hear it with Abraham and Noah, we hear it as a promise to Isaac and Jacob. We hear it with the prophets and we hear Jesus promise his Spirit to the Disciples. The promise of God’s presence is important for us as people of faith.
God’s promise is real in our lives. He promises to be with us always. His Spirit guides and protects us, reminds us of his love for us, and reminds us of Christ’s teachings. When we feel at our weakest, God is at his strongest.
As we remember those who are living through the floods in the Midwest this day, I hope that you will take some time to remember them in your prayers. Lift them up and pray that they might know God’s presence even in the midst of the devastation.
Finally, we have an opportunity to reach out in ways that go beyond prayer. Through the United Methodist Committee on Relief, we can respond to the need by contributing financially. Our financial gifts become a tangible presence of God for the people living in the midst of trouble. Consider giving. As the Bishop noted to us, this can be a second flood – a flood of compassion.
Donations for UMCOR's relief efforts in the Midwest can be made to Domestic Disaster Response, UMCOR Advance #901670. Checks can be dropped in church offering plates or mailed directly to UMCOR, P.O. Box 9068, New York, NY 10087.
I look forward to seeing you all soon. Please pray for me, and know that I am praying for you.
Greg
Sometimes it's hard to imagine what it must be like to live through a flood of that magnitude. We can only hope that faith will take people through the devastation and restoration that lives will be restored. In the midst of the flooding however, people seem to lose hope because everything is in ruin, lives are shattered, and what can be seems like it will never be revealed.
Flooding is a not too distant memory for many in Western Pennsylvania. It wasn’t too long ago that we were cleaning up our own houses when record rainfalls caused our rivers and streams to rise. Some people call them 100 year floods, others call them floods of the century. Regardless of what you call them, a flood is a flood.
Bishop Gregory Palmer of the Iowa Area was our guest preacher at Annual Conference Last week. While he was here, his own Annual Conference was dealing with the flooding. I can only imagine what it must have been like for him to be so far away – yet provide so much hope. Bishop Palmer spoke a lot about hope, hope that is restored, hope that can be revealed. We do not give up hope, but yet we remain steadfast in our conviction that God will see us through this. He has said openly as well as in print, “Remember, when you pass through the waters, God will be with you.”
That word of promise has come up so often in my scripture reading, “God will be with you,” or “I will be with you” is a promise that begins in Genesis and continues throughout the entirety of scripture. We hear it with Abraham and Noah, we hear it as a promise to Isaac and Jacob. We hear it with the prophets and we hear Jesus promise his Spirit to the Disciples. The promise of God’s presence is important for us as people of faith.
God’s promise is real in our lives. He promises to be with us always. His Spirit guides and protects us, reminds us of his love for us, and reminds us of Christ’s teachings. When we feel at our weakest, God is at his strongest.
As we remember those who are living through the floods in the Midwest this day, I hope that you will take some time to remember them in your prayers. Lift them up and pray that they might know God’s presence even in the midst of the devastation.
Finally, we have an opportunity to reach out in ways that go beyond prayer. Through the United Methodist Committee on Relief, we can respond to the need by contributing financially. Our financial gifts become a tangible presence of God for the people living in the midst of trouble. Consider giving. As the Bishop noted to us, this can be a second flood – a flood of compassion.
Donations for UMCOR's relief efforts in the Midwest can be made to Domestic Disaster Response, UMCOR Advance #901670. Checks can be dropped in church offering plates or mailed directly to UMCOR, P.O. Box 9068, New York, NY 10087.
I look forward to seeing you all soon. Please pray for me, and know that I am praying for you.
Greg
Tuesday, June 3, 2008
Grit, Determination, Faith, and Hope
Today, I am playing with just a little less than I would on a Tuesday. You may know that I typically go to bed around 10 to 10:30 at night. If you ask my wife, she will tell you that I usually fall asleep in my recliner about that time; and it isn’t until later that I move upstairs.
But last night I was up until after 1:00 a.m. The answer to the question is “yes!” I stayed up until the final goal in the Penguin’s Game 5, Triple Overtime Win over the Detroit Redwings! I put that exclamation point at the end of the sentence only to disguise my level of malaise.
I will admit to you that going into last nights game, I was not expecting much out of the Penguins. They had yet to score in Detroit during this Stanley Cup Final series, and this was a critical game for them. It was win or lose, do or die. If they lost last night, the Detroit Redwings would have won the 2008 Stanley Cup. Let’s also admit that Detroit is a great team and they were proving that throughout the series.
But being the fan that I am, I watched the game with great excitement as the Pens went up 2-0. I continued to watch as the Redwings cut the lead by one, and then eventually tied the game. I also watched with diminished joy as the Redwings scored a go ahead goal early in the game and listened as the fans in Detroit began to chant, “We want the Cup!” I admit that I was deflated; I felt defeated; I was a little hurt.
With less than a minute left in the game, however, the Pens scored the tying goal!
And then the game went into overtime. And then it went into a second overtime. And then it went into a third overtime. At this point, Tracy and I began to say things like, “even if they lose, they played with grit and determination. Even if they lose, they played with heart. They could actually win this game. Yet, if they lose – we can go to bed knowing that they played till the very end.”
What a roller-coaster ride! In the end, the Pens did win with a goal at around the half-way mark of that third overtime. I don’t think we had the energy to scream very much. Winning justified staying up that late to watch something that in the end holds very little influence in our life other than providing some entertainment and enjoyment.
I say that because I’ve been thinking a lot about hope and faith over the past few days. There are times in our lives when situations seem insurmountable, life seems inescapable, and death seems imminent. We lose hope sometimes when situations appear to be filled with hopelessness.
But, as Christians – we are always filled with hope and faith. Winning doesn’t always happen the ways that we think they should, healing isn’t always given to us according to ways that we expect. Filled with hope and faith, however, we are given new life through Christ who makes all things possible for us. Even in the face of insurmountable odds, we win – regardless of the outcome! Do you believe that?
One of my favorite passages of scripture talks about that hope. Paul writes in his letter to the Romans, “We know that all things work together for good for those who love God, who are called according to his purpose.” He then goes on to say that there is nothing that can separate us from God’s love in Christ Jesus our Lord.
But there is a great phrase that is a part of that concluding statement. Paul says, “I am convinced.” That simple phrase for me speaks volumes about faith and hope for me. It reminds me that sometimes we need to have a conviction that is greater than our doubts and our fears, one that allows us to hold fast to God’s love and the power of Christ to save us – even in the face of adversity.
Today, I don’t know whether the Pens will win the Stanley Cup. Regardless of the outcome, I know that there is always hope in my life and in the life of those who love God. And in the end, I guess its really about how we played, rather than if we win or lose in this lifetime.
I hope you are well. Get some rest tonight if you were crazy enough to stay up that late. This week, I will continue my mini-series on Genesis with a sermon entitled, “Go Where?” I look forward to greeting you in worship.
Please pray for me, and know that I am praying for you.
Greg
But last night I was up until after 1:00 a.m. The answer to the question is “yes!” I stayed up until the final goal in the Penguin’s Game 5, Triple Overtime Win over the Detroit Redwings! I put that exclamation point at the end of the sentence only to disguise my level of malaise.
I will admit to you that going into last nights game, I was not expecting much out of the Penguins. They had yet to score in Detroit during this Stanley Cup Final series, and this was a critical game for them. It was win or lose, do or die. If they lost last night, the Detroit Redwings would have won the 2008 Stanley Cup. Let’s also admit that Detroit is a great team and they were proving that throughout the series.
But being the fan that I am, I watched the game with great excitement as the Pens went up 2-0. I continued to watch as the Redwings cut the lead by one, and then eventually tied the game. I also watched with diminished joy as the Redwings scored a go ahead goal early in the game and listened as the fans in Detroit began to chant, “We want the Cup!” I admit that I was deflated; I felt defeated; I was a little hurt.
With less than a minute left in the game, however, the Pens scored the tying goal!
And then the game went into overtime. And then it went into a second overtime. And then it went into a third overtime. At this point, Tracy and I began to say things like, “even if they lose, they played with grit and determination. Even if they lose, they played with heart. They could actually win this game. Yet, if they lose – we can go to bed knowing that they played till the very end.”
What a roller-coaster ride! In the end, the Pens did win with a goal at around the half-way mark of that third overtime. I don’t think we had the energy to scream very much. Winning justified staying up that late to watch something that in the end holds very little influence in our life other than providing some entertainment and enjoyment.
I say that because I’ve been thinking a lot about hope and faith over the past few days. There are times in our lives when situations seem insurmountable, life seems inescapable, and death seems imminent. We lose hope sometimes when situations appear to be filled with hopelessness.
But, as Christians – we are always filled with hope and faith. Winning doesn’t always happen the ways that we think they should, healing isn’t always given to us according to ways that we expect. Filled with hope and faith, however, we are given new life through Christ who makes all things possible for us. Even in the face of insurmountable odds, we win – regardless of the outcome! Do you believe that?
One of my favorite passages of scripture talks about that hope. Paul writes in his letter to the Romans, “We know that all things work together for good for those who love God, who are called according to his purpose.” He then goes on to say that there is nothing that can separate us from God’s love in Christ Jesus our Lord.
But there is a great phrase that is a part of that concluding statement. Paul says, “I am convinced.” That simple phrase for me speaks volumes about faith and hope for me. It reminds me that sometimes we need to have a conviction that is greater than our doubts and our fears, one that allows us to hold fast to God’s love and the power of Christ to save us – even in the face of adversity.
Today, I don’t know whether the Pens will win the Stanley Cup. Regardless of the outcome, I know that there is always hope in my life and in the life of those who love God. And in the end, I guess its really about how we played, rather than if we win or lose in this lifetime.
I hope you are well. Get some rest tonight if you were crazy enough to stay up that late. This week, I will continue my mini-series on Genesis with a sermon entitled, “Go Where?” I look forward to greeting you in worship.
Please pray for me, and know that I am praying for you.
Greg
Monday, June 2, 2008
Race Results
Well, it took a while for the results to be posted, and then it took me this long to post them here. On Sunday, May 25th, I competed in my very first Triathlon in New Brighton. I am happy that I finished the race. I committed to myself that I would not walk during the race. I didn't. And I also committed that I would finish with a smile on my face. I did that too.
I finished in 1 hour and 23 minutes. That was 2 minutes faster than my estimated time. For that I was happy. However, I have been thinking now about things I could do better and so there is a touch of disappointment for me that I didn't fare better. I'm just being honest.
Now for the next one. Maybe an open water Triathlon this summer. Then I think I will be doing another 5K or possibly a 10K as well.
Thanks for all your encouragement and your prayers.
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