Rules:* Grab the book nearest you.* Turn to page 56.* Find the fifth full sentence.* Post that sentence along with these instructions in a note to your wall.* Don't dig for your favorite book, the coolest, the most intellectual. Use the CLOSEST.* Tag friends that might actually own a book. (Magazines don't count. Even if you read them only for the articles.) The sentence is supposed to say something about you...?
The book closest to me is When Christ Comes by Max Lucado...my page 56 quote is: "It wasn't enough to see the course and walk the grounds, I wanted to see the locker room."
I haven't read this book in very long time. I rarely play golf; which this sentence is referring to. So what does this sentence say about me? I guess it's the history teacher in me. I don't just want to look at the golf course (the museum, the old fort, or the artifacts), I want to see the locker room. I want to "feel" the history involved in everything I learn. Maybe that's what it means.
About ME
- Mr. E
- Grand Prairie, Texas, United States
- Mr. E is a Christian, Husband, Father of 2, former Army Officer and Texas Rangers Baseball fan.
Sunday, February 22, 2009
Thursday, February 19, 2009
Nick at Night
Matthew Chapter 3 tells of a influential member of the Jewish ruling council, Nicodemus, who came to Jesus at night (Nick at Night, get it!) to ask Jesus questions regarding the radical teachings Jesus had been teaching.
Why did Nicodemus come to Jesus at night...well, it could have been it was a time when not as many disciples of Jesus were around. It could could have been it was the only time he had available to speak to Jesus one-on-one; but probably it was because he did not want to be seen by the other religious leaders of the day, because of the persecution he might receive.
How many of us go to Jesus in secret to address Him with our questions, share with Him our concerns or just to worship Him. We won't pray with others while eating at a local restaurant because we are afraid of the stares we might get. We won't speak to God at work because we will be laughed at or scorned. We won't be Jesus followers at school because we will loose friends or social status. Teachers, scientist, politicians and other professionals are afraid to speak to Jesus during the light of day, because they might loose their jobs; much like Nicodemus probably would have if he had been caught speaking to Jesus in front of his peers.
Instead we come to Jesus at night or in private. How sad we are, when we do that. Are we that ashamed to be Christians? I am guilty of being "Nick at Night" on occasion, and I am embarrassed when I catch myself doing it.
One cool thing about Nicodemus's visit with Jesus that night; It was at that time that Jesus told him, "For God so loved the world, that He gave His one and only Son, so that whoever believes in Him shall have eternal life." God loves us no matter when we come to him, day or night; I just think He shakes His head for us, when we are to embarrassed to share Him with others.
Why did Nicodemus come to Jesus at night...well, it could have been it was a time when not as many disciples of Jesus were around. It could could have been it was the only time he had available to speak to Jesus one-on-one; but probably it was because he did not want to be seen by the other religious leaders of the day, because of the persecution he might receive.
How many of us go to Jesus in secret to address Him with our questions, share with Him our concerns or just to worship Him. We won't pray with others while eating at a local restaurant because we are afraid of the stares we might get. We won't speak to God at work because we will be laughed at or scorned. We won't be Jesus followers at school because we will loose friends or social status. Teachers, scientist, politicians and other professionals are afraid to speak to Jesus during the light of day, because they might loose their jobs; much like Nicodemus probably would have if he had been caught speaking to Jesus in front of his peers.
Instead we come to Jesus at night or in private. How sad we are, when we do that. Are we that ashamed to be Christians? I am guilty of being "Nick at Night" on occasion, and I am embarrassed when I catch myself doing it.
One cool thing about Nicodemus's visit with Jesus that night; It was at that time that Jesus told him, "For God so loved the world, that He gave His one and only Son, so that whoever believes in Him shall have eternal life." God loves us no matter when we come to him, day or night; I just think He shakes His head for us, when we are to embarrassed to share Him with others.
Tuesday, February 17, 2009
They Can't be Serious?
A recent article on CNN claims that GM and Chrysler are asking the government for an additional 26.1 Billion dollars to help bail out their companies. "Why would they do that?", you might ask. According to GM and Chrysler, there is a "worsening demand for their cars and trucks." So we are going to help rescue a company who makes a product that no one wants to buy anymore. How stupid is that? Why don't we give money to companies where people want to buy their products.
Additionally both these companies want "to cut 50,000 jobs worldwide by the end of the year. GM said it plans to close five more plants in the next few years." I thought we were giving these companies more money to save jobs not lay people off. What a bunch of greedy, greedy people and what a stupid, stupid government would give that kind of management more money.
Ohhhh, I am so mad.
Additionally both these companies want "to cut 50,000 jobs worldwide by the end of the year. GM said it plans to close five more plants in the next few years." I thought we were giving these companies more money to save jobs not lay people off. What a bunch of greedy, greedy people and what a stupid, stupid government would give that kind of management more money.
Ohhhh, I am so mad.
Saturday, February 14, 2009
Where are the Meerkats?
It seems that Animal Planet has cancelled one of my favorite shows...Meerkat Manor. I haven't seen any new episodes recently and the official site of Meerkat Manor on Animal Planet doesn't give any information about any new episodes beyond Season 4.
Any one know if the Meerkats are coming back for another year?
By the way...Happy Valentine's Day everyone! Go out and share the love of Jesus!
Any one know if the Meerkats are coming back for another year?
By the way...Happy Valentine's Day everyone! Go out and share the love of Jesus!
Wednesday, February 11, 2009
What Major League Baseball Should Do With Admitted Steroid Users
Should we erase all of their achievements or should we keep them? Should we ban them from the Hall of Fame or should we let them in? Should they be suspended or let them play?
These questions plague those who are so very disappointed in our "heroes" who have "cheated" to play the sport of baseball.
Here is my solution! First of all stick to the agreements that have already been established by the Baseball Players Union and Major League Baseball. The only exception I would make is for those who have just recently admitted to or been proven (in court) to have used illegal performance enhancing substances. If a player has recently admitted or been proven to have used illegal drugs or substances (such as Alex Rodriguez and ? Miguel Tejada), they should skip the first step/phase of punishment and move straight to the second phase. They should skip the first phase because they lied and got caught. They should at least move to the second phase, which I think involves some kind of suspension from playing the game. That way the players who were punished already don't feel like these players get to skip the punishment phase just because they came clean on their own.
As far as their records or accomplishments are concerned; It's hard to decide what to do here. They were competing against other players who were also cheating, but they still cheated themselves. You can't go back and alter the final results of the games they played in...so I think we should leave the records as they stand. You can put an * or two by their names if it makes you feel better, but what else can you do? Mickey Mantle played drunk, Doc Ellis pitched a No-Hitter while using cocaine, and Gaylord Perry cheated big time with his spitballs and no one is taking their performance numbers away from them. Mantle and Perry are in the Hall of Fame for crying out loud.
Should they be banned from the Hall of Fame? I think they should! Baseball banned "Shoeless" Joe Jackson from the Hall of Fame after he took a bribe to loose the World Series. Baseball banned Pete Rose and he didn't cheat by betting on baseball until after he was a player. These players knowingly broke the rules of the game and tainted the sport. I don't' care how good they are, they should be banned for life. Go back and take Gaylord Perry out if you wish to take out all cheaters. Just think though, the all-time hits leader (Rose), one of the all time strikeout leaders (Roger Clemens) and the Home Run leader (Barry Bonds) and possible future Home Run Leader (Alex Rodriguez) all banned for cheating the game. Wow!
At least the sports writers are punishing the steroid users with their votes on admission to the Hall of Fame. It looks like Mark McGuire will never make it. (Although I think you could make an argument that his playing career does not compare to the best.) It's a sad day in sports when one of the top 10 all-time strike out leaders, who didn't cheat, (Bert Blyleven) hasn't been elected to the Hall of Fame, but Roger Clemens, who did, probably will.
I am just sad that players have to feel they must cheat to win. I just hope they are happy knowing their names will go down forever as shamed players; at least in my book.
These questions plague those who are so very disappointed in our "heroes" who have "cheated" to play the sport of baseball.
Here is my solution! First of all stick to the agreements that have already been established by the Baseball Players Union and Major League Baseball. The only exception I would make is for those who have just recently admitted to or been proven (in court) to have used illegal performance enhancing substances. If a player has recently admitted or been proven to have used illegal drugs or substances (such as Alex Rodriguez and ? Miguel Tejada), they should skip the first step/phase of punishment and move straight to the second phase. They should skip the first phase because they lied and got caught. They should at least move to the second phase, which I think involves some kind of suspension from playing the game. That way the players who were punished already don't feel like these players get to skip the punishment phase just because they came clean on their own.
As far as their records or accomplishments are concerned; It's hard to decide what to do here. They were competing against other players who were also cheating, but they still cheated themselves. You can't go back and alter the final results of the games they played in...so I think we should leave the records as they stand. You can put an * or two by their names if it makes you feel better, but what else can you do? Mickey Mantle played drunk, Doc Ellis pitched a No-Hitter while using cocaine, and Gaylord Perry cheated big time with his spitballs and no one is taking their performance numbers away from them. Mantle and Perry are in the Hall of Fame for crying out loud.
Should they be banned from the Hall of Fame? I think they should! Baseball banned "Shoeless" Joe Jackson from the Hall of Fame after he took a bribe to loose the World Series. Baseball banned Pete Rose and he didn't cheat by betting on baseball until after he was a player. These players knowingly broke the rules of the game and tainted the sport. I don't' care how good they are, they should be banned for life. Go back and take Gaylord Perry out if you wish to take out all cheaters. Just think though, the all-time hits leader (Rose), one of the all time strikeout leaders (Roger Clemens) and the Home Run leader (Barry Bonds) and possible future Home Run Leader (Alex Rodriguez) all banned for cheating the game. Wow!
At least the sports writers are punishing the steroid users with their votes on admission to the Hall of Fame. It looks like Mark McGuire will never make it. (Although I think you could make an argument that his playing career does not compare to the best.) It's a sad day in sports when one of the top 10 all-time strike out leaders, who didn't cheat, (Bert Blyleven) hasn't been elected to the Hall of Fame, but Roger Clemens, who did, probably will.
I am just sad that players have to feel they must cheat to win. I just hope they are happy knowing their names will go down forever as shamed players; at least in my book.
Monday, February 9, 2009
This and That and Miscellaneous Stuff!
Over the past few weeks, I have found it hard to find topics to blog about. Finally, I just decided that I would do a potpourri of various topics until something just stands out.
While driving through the Dallas/Ft. Worth area recently, my wife and I kept seeing the billboards with pictures of people saying, "I am Second!", with the web-site IAmSecond.com underneath. We finally looked this site up. It is a site dedicated to people who are in recovery from various addictive behaviors. These recovering addicts tell their stories about how they realized that they needed God to help them in their lives. By putting God "first" in their lives and putting themselves "second" they are working to overcome their problems and stay on the road to recovery. It is a cool site. I really like the story of Josh Hamilton, who currently plays outfield for my Texas Rangers.
Speaking of the Texas Rangers, baseball season is almost upon us. This is my favorite sport by far of the major 4 (Baseball, Football, Basketball, and Hockey) in the United States. It seems the Rangers are going to have to rely heavily on their young pitchers to step up and perform well. I agree with the Rangers strategy of not "breaking the bank" to sign big name players, and I hope our young guys, with some veteran support can do well this year. If I get to attend any Ranger games live this year, I will have to get a Josh Hamilton t-shirt.
Other news from the baseball front. It seems the ever so wonderful, Alex Rodriguez tested positive for steroid use back in 2003. Well, well, what a surprise! It seems baseball's golden boy did a little juicing himself. What is really sad, because of this recent scandal, one sports writer has resorted to calling the Rangers the worst abusers of steroids in baseball. The nerve of that guy. I am not going to sit here and say none of the Texas Rangers have ever used steroids, but to call them the worst abusers in the league; Come on man!
I refuse to comment on the goings on with our nation's government. If you have read any of my past blogs, I think you know I feel about throwing out billions of dollars to agencies, businesses, and even the common tax payers in an effort to stop the current financial crisis we are in. Hey, I am not about to turn down free money, if it comes my way, but I think we brought this crisis on ourselves by not being good stewards of the boundless blessings God gave us. Throwing more money our way will not help us learn the lessons we need to learn to prevent this from happening again in the future. I guess I commented after all! Sorry!
Sunday, our preacher, gave us an excellent lesson about. "Flying Stand-By!" Have you ever flown stand-by? I have not. People who fly stand-by have to wait to find out if someone else has cancelled a flight or if their will be any unbooked seats on a plane in order to board that particular flight. It creates lots of uncertainties and stress because they do not know if they will be able to board the plane or not. People who have already booked their flights and have their tickets can arrive at the gate with a more relaxed attitude because they know they are going to get on the plane.
As Christians many of us live like we are on "stand-by" when it comes to our eternal salvation. Despite the many promises of God and the gift of Grace through the death of Jesus, many Christians have not accepted God's "free ticket" to get into Heaven. We still believe we have to earn our way into Heaven. We live a life of uncertainty, as if we are unsure if we will get into Heaven or not. Those Christians who have fully accepted the Grace of God through Jesus, can live a life focused on the important things we have to do while still here on this Earth. We can relax (to an extent) knowing we are going to going to live with our King forever. All we have to be concerned about is fighting the battle against darkness and making sure others know that God has give them a free-ticket on the plane to Heaven.
Also just to catch you up on the recent concerns regarding Jamie's health; read her recent blog about what is going on with her health.
While driving through the Dallas/Ft. Worth area recently, my wife and I kept seeing the billboards with pictures of people saying, "I am Second!", with the web-site IAmSecond.com underneath. We finally looked this site up. It is a site dedicated to people who are in recovery from various addictive behaviors. These recovering addicts tell their stories about how they realized that they needed God to help them in their lives. By putting God "first" in their lives and putting themselves "second" they are working to overcome their problems and stay on the road to recovery. It is a cool site. I really like the story of Josh Hamilton, who currently plays outfield for my Texas Rangers.
Speaking of the Texas Rangers, baseball season is almost upon us. This is my favorite sport by far of the major 4 (Baseball, Football, Basketball, and Hockey) in the United States. It seems the Rangers are going to have to rely heavily on their young pitchers to step up and perform well. I agree with the Rangers strategy of not "breaking the bank" to sign big name players, and I hope our young guys, with some veteran support can do well this year. If I get to attend any Ranger games live this year, I will have to get a Josh Hamilton t-shirt.
Other news from the baseball front. It seems the ever so wonderful, Alex Rodriguez tested positive for steroid use back in 2003. Well, well, what a surprise! It seems baseball's golden boy did a little juicing himself. What is really sad, because of this recent scandal, one sports writer has resorted to calling the Rangers the worst abusers of steroids in baseball. The nerve of that guy. I am not going to sit here and say none of the Texas Rangers have ever used steroids, but to call them the worst abusers in the league; Come on man!
I refuse to comment on the goings on with our nation's government. If you have read any of my past blogs, I think you know I feel about throwing out billions of dollars to agencies, businesses, and even the common tax payers in an effort to stop the current financial crisis we are in. Hey, I am not about to turn down free money, if it comes my way, but I think we brought this crisis on ourselves by not being good stewards of the boundless blessings God gave us. Throwing more money our way will not help us learn the lessons we need to learn to prevent this from happening again in the future. I guess I commented after all! Sorry!
Sunday, our preacher, gave us an excellent lesson about. "Flying Stand-By!" Have you ever flown stand-by? I have not. People who fly stand-by have to wait to find out if someone else has cancelled a flight or if their will be any unbooked seats on a plane in order to board that particular flight. It creates lots of uncertainties and stress because they do not know if they will be able to board the plane or not. People who have already booked their flights and have their tickets can arrive at the gate with a more relaxed attitude because they know they are going to get on the plane.
As Christians many of us live like we are on "stand-by" when it comes to our eternal salvation. Despite the many promises of God and the gift of Grace through the death of Jesus, many Christians have not accepted God's "free ticket" to get into Heaven. We still believe we have to earn our way into Heaven. We live a life of uncertainty, as if we are unsure if we will get into Heaven or not. Those Christians who have fully accepted the Grace of God through Jesus, can live a life focused on the important things we have to do while still here on this Earth. We can relax (to an extent) knowing we are going to going to live with our King forever. All we have to be concerned about is fighting the battle against darkness and making sure others know that God has give them a free-ticket on the plane to Heaven.
Also just to catch you up on the recent concerns regarding Jamie's health; read her recent blog about what is going on with her health.
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