Playing Racquetball With God!

This afternoon, after work, I decided to go get a work out at my local gym; after all I am paying for a membership. Despite being the middle of the day, the treadmills and bicycle machines were full. Being prepared, I had my racquetball equipment with me. I found an empty court to play in and decided to just to hit the ball around some. Alas, it is not much fun playing by yourself! So, I challenged God to play with me.

We would play like a normal game, except you could choose to take a 2nd bounce on the initial serve. God agreed. I served first and the game was on. I served, then God returned, and then I hit and so on. It did make my boring practice a lot more fun. In the end HE beat me 21-14! At least I scored. God could have cheated and used His powers to crush me, but I guess He wanted to make it fair. It wasn't like wrestling with Jacob though. At least Jacob wrestled God to a draw (sort of!), and got a name change. I still have my name and God still reigns supreme.

At least no one could hear me talking to myself, "17 serving 15, God's Serve!" I may just have to invite God to do more activities with me. I think He would like that!

I Need a Moment!

There are a few people I know who have had one or two "defining" moments in their life. A moment that profoundly changed the way they think or act. After looking long and hard into my past I am not sure I have had one of those moments.

Maybe I had one when I chose to be baptized into Christ; however, I was raised a Christian and the decision to follow Jesus came naturally. I have grown in my personal faith over the years, but sadly I don't think I have had the experience of "discovering Jesus" like those who found their personal faith in later years.

Maybe I had one when I got married. I had to learn to live with another person and learn to love Jamie as I loved myself; however, I don't think it radically changed my personal behavior until much later into the marriage. I was still selfish with what I desired and still tended lie about things more than I should.

Maybe I had one when my kids were born. Bringing new life into the world is a miracle, but I don't think it radically changed my behavior.

Maybe it was when my wife and I separated for a while in our 13th year of marriage. It was a major crisis of course. We had to work very hard to change both our behaviors. I did finally learn to love Jamie "unconditionally" and the experience did help me to stop judging others for their behaviors. It brought me to my knees in prayer and devotion, but this re-dedication to being in God's word and in prayer only lasted about a year. This maybe the closest I cam to a radical change of behavior or thinking.

You would think how I found out I had high blood pressure would have changed my behavior. After all the doctors thought I was having a stroke; however, I still do not eat as healthy as I should and I don't exercise like I should.

You would think joining the Army would have changed me, but alas all it did was get me in shape and give me some leadership skills.

I want a moment! I want a moment that will change my life. I know I need to be careful what I ask for! I really don't want that moment to be the death of a child, the end of my marriage or a crippling injury to myself or a loved one. I still want a moment. A moment I can look back on and say, "This moment changed my way of life forever!" Maybe I have already had those moments, and I am just unappreciative of them; after all the Israelites of the Bible had many "Big Moments" (the plagues on Egypt, the parting of the Red Sea, the giving of the Laws from the mountain, and many others) but they still fell away from God from time to time.

Maybe I'm not meant for big changes all at once. My OCD would not like that at all, but maybe that's what I want. I want to scare my OCD right out of me. Until then, I will learn to look back on and love the smaller moments that created small changes that have improved me little by little.

These are NOT your Pirates of the Caribbean!

Argg, there be pirates on the oceans; however, these are not the romanticized version of pirates as presented by Disney's Pirates of the Caribbean. These pirates have machine guns and are literally terrorists on the oceans.

Apparently some pirates from Somalia are saying, "There is no one in the world who can stop them." If the rest of the world would let the United States, Britain or Russia use our Navies, we would show those pirates a thing or two.

Maybe we should sic our new Secretary of State in waiting, Hillary Clinton on them? I sure don't want to be on her bad sad.

Is There Such a Thing as Food Porn?

As most men do (if they admit it or not), I struggle not to look a little to long at the over sexual advertisements that blanket the television airwaves. I have also hesitated a tad to long when about to delete that spam e-mail asking me to view the available women in the local area. Even though pornography is not one of my major struggles, I do know my limitations and I do my best to avoid looking at or supporting anything that has to do with the porn industry.

What I do struggle with is, the overwhelming number of food commercials out there. I may not be looking or seeking out naked women, but I am constantly tempted to eat the calorie friendly Subway Sandwiches, the Red Lobster shrimp specials, or the best pizza deals from Papa John's or Pizza Hut. Food can, and is, controlling a large part of my thoughts. If I am correct, isn't this gluttony? Gluttony is a sin right? How am I supposed to focus my energies on the bread of life, when I can't quit thinking about the delicious bread sticks at Olive Garden?

I think the food commercials are affecting me much like the half-naked Dallas Cowboy Cheerleaders affect someone with a porn/sex addiction. I am going to have train myself to fast forward past food commercials when watching shows I have recorded. I am going to have to train myself to turn down the volume and look away from the television when the commercial for Burger King's Bacon, Mushroom and Swiss burger fills the screen. I do this when half-naked women appear in the commercials; why can't I do this when food comes on the commercials?

What about the billboards along the roads? When I see a billboard for a XXX place or a "Gentleman's Club" it almost makes me sick; yet, when I see a billboard for IHOP's latest monthly special, with those delicious looking syrupy pancakes, I "lust" for them.

I think I have stumbled across the answer to my food addiction. Treat food like I do pornography and I just may see things a little differently. Food Porn, that's what I'm calling it. It looks pleasing to the eyes, but it destroys your body and soul.