Hey! Can't You Guys Get Along?

I was visiting a church member a few days ago who has six hummingbird feeders under her carport. At the end of my visit, we chatted as I took some video of the "drama of survival" in slow motion. (Note: the resolution stinks because the camera (a point-and-shoot wonder, the Panasonic Lumix ZS20) takes 220 pics a second to catch the action. All this to say, DON'T view it in FULLSCREEN...just IMAGINE it in fullscreen. So, go ahead, and watch the drama. If you're in a hurry, move ahead to the four minute mark for the climactic battle! 

The point: these birds remind me of how senseless it is when Christians fight each other in ways that do not bring Christ glory. Those little, and I mean little birds are so territorial and aggressive, like, well.... like some of us. If their brains were bigger (they have to be tiny to fit in those little bird skulls), I wonder if they would get tired of all the fluttering, and diving, and squawking, and pecking that characterizes so much of their lives. One article describes them as more Tasmanian Devils than Tinker Bells.  They don't pause to thank their great feeder provider; resting in the fact that season after season, their needs are being met by some massive creature who looks menacing, but is not. Instead of living in gratitude, they are fighting and fussing to defend their natural, powerful state of THIS IS MINE! Hey, it's nature, right?

Sure it is, even with humans, but our human nature has an alternative to a lifetime of fighting and fussing and protecting one's territory. That alternative is to get serious about following Christ, and being transformed from the inside out BEFORE you go and attack someone else for invading your space. 

Paul writes in Romans 12:1,2: "Therefore, I urge you, brothers, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God—this is your spiritual act of worship. Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will." 

Before you go pecking somebody's eye out because they are threatening your territory, maybe you should pause and ask Father if there is anything in your thinking patterns that needs renewing. Surely with a brain as big as yours, there are SOME thoughts that need to be replaced and renewed. So stop pecking and squawking and fighting; embrace the renewed life Christ seeks to give you every day!

Kids Teach Us About America!

I really, really like this Fourth of July video. I liked it so much I even bought it for use this past Sunday at church. Used it with my children's sermon. What a great, quick look at our history, and I really liked the ending. Enjoy and THANK GOD FOR AMERICA!

Anniversary of D-Day! The Invasion of Normandy - 1944

On this day, June 6 in 1944, Allied Forces (including over 73,000 American soldiers) invaded Europe at the beaches of Normandy.  June 6, 1944, 160,000 Allied troops landed along a 50-mile stretch of heavily-fortified French coastline to fight Nazi Germany on the beaches of Normandy, France. General Dwight D. Eisenhower called the operation a crusade in which “we will accept nothing less than full victory.” More than 5,000 Ships and 13,000 aircraft supported the D-Day invasion, and by day’s end on June 6, the Allies gained a foot- hold in Normandy. The D-Day cost was high -more than 9,000 Allied Soldiers were killed or wounded -- but more than 100,000 Soldiers began the march across Europe to defeat Hitler.... from the official U.S. Army website (http://www.army.mil/d-day/). You can also go to this website for another video about D-Day! Don't ever forget: FREEDOM ISN'T FREE! So don't use it selfishly!

I have posted the following video before, but it's still so appropriate as we remember this day in our history!

We are VERY Tiny, but LOVED!

I took this photo on Tuesday, June 5, 2012. That green ball is the sun (it was taken through a piece of welding mask glass), and the little black dot is the planet Venus. It won't pass between the sun and the Earth again until 2117. That little dot is about the same size as our planet! Which reminded me of Psalm 8:3-5:  When I consider your heavens, the work of your fingers, the moon and the stars, which you have set in place, what is man that you are mindful of him, the son of man that you care for him? You made him a little lower than the heavenly being and crowned him with glory and honor.

We are really, really, REALLY tiny people living on a tiny speck in a vast, vast universe yet our Fathers cares about us! 

Looking for the Positive, the Beautiful, and Finding It!!

Life for the first three weeks of May has been filled with lots of meaningful events. Along the way, I've taken more photos than usual, and was amazed at how many "photo opps" I had. As I looked back over hundreds of pictures, I was grateful for how much "significance and beauty" my Father had allowed me to experience in three short weeks.

First, a few notes:

Except for the photos with me in them, I took all of these pictures between May 3rd and May 20th.

The major events include:

A couple of trips to the Edisto Rose Gardens in Orangeburg, SC, to test out my new Panasonic Lumix ZS20 Camera (hence the flowers and birds!).

The wedding of Matthew and Elizabeth Jones on Sullivan's Island. Matthew is the oldest son of Joel and Patty Jones...wonderful friends for over 35 years (Joel and I were at Clemson together)!

Baby dedication service at our church on Mother's Day with two families, the Huttos and the Brelands. I took group shots as part of the worship service. Hey, we're family aren't we!?

A trip to Wake Forest, NC, to visit Randy and Kittie Trail (again lifelong friends of over 30 years since seminary days), and to help out with things as Kittie had surgery while I was there. (It went well.)

I ended up with shots from my climb up on old fire tower (with permission from the owners!)! So this is just to remind folks that there is beauty all around us, if we'll take time to notice!

So here are just a few of the reasons I can say "Thank You Lord" over and over and over again!
Even in difficult days, we can find good if we look for it! If we can't see it, maybe that means it's our turn to do something good for others to take pictures of! Our Father wants us to focus on the good stuff. How do I know? Well, Philippians 4:8 for one: "Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things."

So look around...take a picture...if you're not having a good day, then find a way to make it a good day!

Hungry, Hungry Heron...and I Got Him on Video!

A couple of weeks ago I was at the Edisto Rose Gardens in Orangeburg, SC, and was amazed at how calm, cool, collected, and calculated a blue heron was. As children threw bread in his vicinity, and turtles approached, he remained unmoved, focused on the water, or, should I say, on what was under the water. After I videoed him the first time, I return a week and a half later to find him in the same stance at the very same location with "similar" results.

I've been playing around with iMovie, so this is what I came up with...


So what's the object lesson here? The heron lived by focusing on that which would sustain his life, not being distracted by that which would not.

Wow! What an Update on Caine's Arcade!

Here is a follow-up to my previous post about "Caine's Arcade."

Just a quick recap:

• A 9 year old spend last summer at his dad's auto parts store in L.A.
• He makes an arcade out of cardboard boxes using his old toys for prizes.
• He works hard, tries to get people to play, and they don't.
• He doesn't give up.
• His first customer (looking for a door handle for his car) is intrigued by his creativity and "spunk." He also happens to be a film-maker.
• He plays the games; he makes an eleven minute short film on Caine's arcade.
• He invites people to surprise Caine by showing up on a Sunday afternoon.
  
• They do, they play, and they give Caine "the best day of his life."
• The short film goes viral (4.5 million views).
• A website collects money for a scholarship fund. The film-maker (Nirvan Mullick)thought $25,000 was too high a goal. Well, here's the rest of the story...and it keeps getting better!

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/04/16/caine-monroy-caines-arcade-video_n_1429846.html

Oh, and a pinball company gave him a vintage pinball game, too! PLEASE, PLEASE don't forget the power of love, compassion, generosity, and kindness! Is there a Caine in your life who needs encouragement? Well, go and encourage! Today!!!

I loved what one article said about Nirvan. It was something like, "Nirvan set out to make Caine's day, and he's ended up making Caine's LIFE!" Never underestimate the exponential power of LOVE expressed in simple, sometimes LIFE-CHANGING.....KINDNESS!!!!!

Have You Ever Made Somebody's Day?

When was the last time you intentionally made someone's day? What if you didn't even really know the person? Nirvan Mullick, a young film-maker in Los Angeles did that for a nine-year-old kid named Caine Monroy, who spent last summer making his own arcade out of cardboard boxes at his father's car parts store. Nirvan came looking for a door handle for his '96 Corolla, and found Caine inviting him to play. He did, and then Nirvan asked Caine's dad if he could make a short film about Caine and his arcade. Here's the video (that has been seen by almost 4,000,000 people!):



After the flashmob, at the end of the day as Caine and his dad drove home, Caine turned to his dad and said, “Dad, this was the best day of my whole life.”

All because I guy looking for a door handle, found a smart, little kid waiting on a customer to play some games he made out of cardboard boxes from his dad's stockroom.

Nirvan had a simple idea: tell Caine's story and invite people into it. The result? EVERYONE was blessed! EVERYONE....Caine, Nirvan, the flashmob, oh, and the folks who have donated (mostly a dollar at a time) over $150,000.00 to Caine's college fund!

All because a complete stranger had an idea to bless a little kid, and ACTED ON IT!

So, again, I ask you: have you ever made somebody's day? What are you waiting for?

For more information on this story go to: http://cainesarcade.com/

Christ's Death Tears the Veil in the Temple

"With a loud cry, Jesus breathed his last. The curtain of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom.And when the centurion, who stood there in front of Jesus, heard his cry and[a] saw how he died, he said, “Surely this man was the Son of God!” Mark 15:37,38

Don't Rush Through Good Friday

Every year I find some pretty good videos to remind me (and hopefully others) of the significance of Christ's death and resurrection. This one focuses on "scars."