Nonsensical Ramblings of Mark

My questions right now don't need all the answers Just, please don't ever let go of me No, don't ever stop loving me - The Unattainable Earth, Daniel Amos I often repeat the response Socrates gave to the question of whether he feared death or not. He responded that it was irrational to fear that which we do not know. I agree, but I am woefully irrational. In my life there have been situations and questions that have shaken me, literally, to the core of my being. They have left me at the end of myself and have given me more than pause...they have staggered me. My mind, (as small as it is), my understanding (as feeble as it is), my relationships (as shallow as they are) do not hold all of the answers and counsel that I need. And even if I received it I would not be able to understand it. Those are the times that I throw myself on Him and beg Him to never let go of me...to never stop loving me. Like a child I run into my Daddy's arms and ask Him nonsense questions praying...

En route to Albany from the Atlanta airport I had a great conversation with my youngest son: Drew: "Daddy are you flying Delta?" Me: "Yes I am, Drew." Drew: "Oh good I am soooo glad you are flying Delta Airlines!" Me: "Really?" Drew: "Oh yes. They give you drinks, they give you food. They are the best! You'll have a great time!" I wondered where all this came from, but I then recalled that we flew Delta when we visited our friends down in Asheville, NC. I am in Detroit now and recall our layover here on our way from Rochester to Asheville and back again. I love the wonder that my guys have as they live their lives. It makes me want to be more cognizant of the experiences I am having and look for the exquisite in the ordinary. Is there an ordinary? Not with them. It doesn't even enter their minds. It should have no place in mine either.

"Hi John, Let's break some rules." - Intergalactic Radio Station, Vangelis Last night we were informed of some big changes that are coming down the pike that effect the way I minister at my church and they won't be easy. More than a desire for a particular ministry, I just have a desire to be used by God to bring people closer to Him. If I can, more effectively, help make more and better disciples with a rubber band and a hamster than with what I am doing now you can bet that my next two trips would be to Staples and to the pet store. Even though it is hard and I will miss what I am doing now and what my boys are involved in my goal is not the preservation of the status quo or throwing the Great Commission to the wind so that I can continue in a ministry that I have grown familiar with. That just doesn't compute anymore. It is time to break some rules. It is time for me to grab a hold of ministry that has one measure. The old way of ministering for ministry's...

Sorry the updates and musings have been sparse as of late. Most of you enjoy the break but it won't last long...believe me. There is a boatload of hoo-hah that is going on at work and at our boys' school (Northridge Christian) that has had me hopping and hoping that it would all go away. No, actually I enjoy the challenge of being stretched on occasion. It helps me find out what I am made of. We are in the throes of preparation for the annual NCS Auction and God is showing us that he is providing for our needs even before the auction has begun. We have been able to get our hands on some very nice items that we have been able to sell on Craigslist for some serious cash. It look like, when it is all said and done, we will have over $300 to donate directly to the NCS Auction as a result of our selling those items. We have been working with the auction for 11 years now and this is the best (by far) that my wife and I have done with the pre-auction item hawking. It is so great to se...

I am sure there are a lot of people that are concerned about my reliance on the Bible to discern right from wrong, to confirm the existence and true nature of God, or for a myriad of other things that I need to have operating in my life for successful living and an abundant life. I can understand their concern because I had those concerns about people as well. I always hung around God and the Bible but never really made a stand on it or anything that it proclaimed. I guess when I finally came to and realized that the Bible is exactly what it purports to be I realized that I shifted my reliance on my reason and perspective to the Bible. After realizing that it scared me that I had not done it sooner. I may be delving into places that I have no business venturing into, but I just may share same concern that people have about me and my reliance on the Bible to them and their reliance on their reason. Both are unbridled and unapologetic and both our reason and the Bible have their genesis ...

Will has had a friend over yesterday so that they could play, go to Awana, and sleep over into today. Well, we have had a lot of snow lately and the boys got a hankering to go outside and play in it. They had just started when I arrived home from work. After we got some things around for dinner my wife decided to watch my two sons and Will's friend playing in the front yard. She was concerned at the scene. There they were diving on each other, hitting each other with the sleds, pummeling each other with snow, and laughing their fool heads off while they were doing it. By her own admission my wife has said that she grew up with a sister and was not well-versed in the ways boys play. I, on the other hand, growing up with three brothers know the ins and outs of the boy brain that thinks: "Here is someone hurtling down the hill on a sled. I can either get out of the way, jump on him, or chuck the sled that is in my hands at him." Two out of the three alternatives would be att...

I am singing a new "song of the month" with Northridge Church on Sunday mornings and it is hard for me to get through without being overwhelmed with emotion. I am not sure if any of the other former Catholics in the congregation have the same feelings that I have when I sing the refrain: Christ has died Christ has risen Christ will come again I have a hard time not weeping. I would like to think that it is because of the beauty and simplicity of this "mystery of our Faith" but I think it has more to do with how thankful I am that God pursued me. He caused me to be born into a family with parents that loved Him dearly. They kicked my butt out the door on Sunday to gather with the church and worship Him. The sacrificed mightily so that I could learn about Him from kindergarten straight through 12th grade. They made sure I got to vacation Bible school...even when the only alternative was the Lutheran church down the road or the backyard Bible club on Florence Avenue. T...