It won't be long now! In just a little over 9 hours I will be walking my daughter down the aisle. And shortly after reaching the front of the sanctuary ... the question will be asked, "Who gives this woman to be married to this man?" Wait a minute!! "Woman??!!" My little girl Kate is no longer a little girl but a "WOMAN??!!" It is true. Somewhere along life's journey - I looked away ... and when I looked back my little brown-eyed girl was no longer a girl - but a beautiful young woman. A college graduate. A successful high-school teacher. And soon - a wife! I can scarcely believe it! But I am so very glad for her and her soon-to-be husband!
Yesterday I had a great day celebrating with the groom in Washington, DC (in the photo the groom, Ryan is in the blue shirt). We took in, among other things, the National Archives (to view the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution of the United States), the WW II Memorial and a Washington Nationals vs. the Baltimore Orioles baseball game. Needless to say, by the time I got home (about 1:15 AM) I was one worn out Father of the Bride! 
In less than two hours I will be heading south with a bunch of guys who are going to celebrate my-future-son-in-law's impending marriage. Our day will include some sight seeing in Washington, DC, dinner and then a baseball game featuring the Washington Nationals vs. the Baltimore Orioles (now those who know my future-son-in-law will not be suprised about the day's itinerary. Baseball and U.S. history are at the top of his interests - but below his interest in my daughter!!!) . BUT before I leave on our excursion, I have to deliver all the reception favors to the resort (they need them no later than noon today). I will be glad to do so ... after all, I placed each and every one of the 556 truffles into their little white boxes (two per box and wearing these little plastic gloves while I did so). I sure hope the guests at the reception really (I mean REALLY) enjoy them! I spent several hours yesterday helping my daughter, wife and a few others putting the favors together. (I also made a "plum" run to pick up about three dozen more of the fruit - and if you are wondering what the plums are for - see my previous posting). 
on!!!). After cleaning Costco out of their plums - we then drove to some candy store to pick up truffles --- 550 truffles --- to be used as reception favors!! So it took a while for the store staff to get the order together ... so instead of getting home right after lunch (as I had been expecting) - we didn't pull into the driveway until close to 4:00! Then somehow, I found myself folding these little boxes that were going to be used to "house" the truffles. 
son got married. After going through that experience as "Father of the Groom" - I remember thinking to myself, "That was not all that bad. I can easily do this again!" What I did not take into account that when I would have to do it again - it would be with two daughters, not sons! And let me tell you - there is a world of difference between being the "Father of the Groom" and the "Father of the Bride!" So if you are reading this and you have all daughters -- guys get ready! But I do want to say this -- It's worth it all! 
In just five days (God willing!), I will be walking my youngest daughter down the aisle to give her away to her soon-to-be husband. It seems like just yesterday that Kate was just taking her first steps! Where has the time gone? 
In just six days, our youngest daughter, Kate will be marrying her wonderful fiance, Ryan. It is hard for me to believe that all of our months of planning is almost over! Yea! So beginning tomorrow (Tuesday, June 24th), I will be out of the office so I can be available for any last minute "stuff" that has got to be done. My plan is to post a brief blog posting each day as I reflect on what's happening from my perspective as the Father of the Bride. 
peals of thunder, shouting: "Hallelujah! For our Lord God Almighty reigns. Let us rejoice and be glad and give him glory! For the wedding of the Lamb has come, and his bride has made herself ready. Fine linen, bright and clean, was given her to wear." (Fine linen stands for the righteous acts of the saints.) Then the angel said to me, "Write: 'Blessed are those who are invited to the wedding supper of the Lamb!' " And he added, "These are the true words of God." (Revelation 19:6-9)
Yesterday I asked the question, "Where's the beef?" The sad situation within the Church today is that the average Christian has "dumbed down" his or her knowledge of the Bible. This is tragic for one cannot obey and apply what one does not know to begin with! For your weekend "fodder" I have included below some insightful comments about the Bible and our interaction with it. Take a moment and read through these ... and then examine your own practice of Bible intake. 
"For some years now I have read through the Bible twice every year. If you picture the Bible to be a mighty tree and every word a little branch, I have shaken every one of these branches because I wanted to know what it was and what it meant." --Martin Luther 
Dan Cohen just finished up his freshman year at Duquense University. He also just completed an amazing feat. He took a 4-by-4-by-4 Rubik's Cube and solved it in 46.03 seconds! Now that's amazing! And if you have ever struggled to solve one of these puzzling puzzles - you know just HOW amazing Dan's effort was! In fact, in doing what he did - he set a new world record, shaving .6 seconds off the old record which was set just last year by a Hungarian man. 
is that when life is growing more puzzling by the hour and we don't know how we are ever going to see it "solved" - we need to stop, take a deep breath, and then look to God. After all, he's the one (and the only one) with the solution in hand. Now as we fix our focus on God ... something incredible happens deep inside of us. Isaiah 26:3 gives us this promise: "You will keep in perfect peace him whose mind is steadfast, because he trusts in you." Even in the midst of great "puzzlement" - we can experience peace! Now that's amazing! 
I was very relieved when I saw the recent list (put out by CCC Information Services of Chicago, an industry group that tracks theft and vehicle damage) of the top 25 automobile models that are targeted by thieves. Why was I relieved? Because neither of our two cars (a PT Cruiser and a Nissan Sentra) were on the list! But if you own a model of the Acura Integra you had better take extra anti-theft precautions. Six of the top 10 most-stolen cars were models of the the Integra!
with what God has given you? Is your attitude one in which you "own*" things - or do your things own you? 
This intriguing question is behind a book John Stott wrote in 2003. In this book, Stott places before his readers 7 reasons as to why he is a Christian. Now some people might offer the following reasons as to why they happen to be a Christian: I was born into a Christian home, I accepted Christ as college student, I "went forward" at a Billy Graham crusade. Now granted, all of these are certainly part of the answer. Stott in his first chapter discusses what he considers "the most significant factor" as to why he or any of us are Christians. Read on and consider what he says, 
Yesterday I wrote about the "hypermilers" and how they try to squeeze every last mile out of a gallon of gasoline. Late yesterday afternoon I drove my wife down to North East Maryland for a special sea food dinner (it was her birthday). After dinner we drove to Sandy Cove Bible Conference to walk and sit and enjoy the beautiful views of the Chesapeake Bay. All in all we had a delightful time. 
When we take the information that God gives to us in its pages - info about life and how we are to order it in HIS presence and then apply this info to where we live we live - we will discover (as I discovered with the info from the hypermilers) that it (the truth of God's Word) works!!! And this should not surprise us. For the Bible is given to us by the Designer, the Creator and the Sustainer of life! 
Wayne Gerdes, of Wadsworth, Illinois is a "driven"man. He is obsessed with squeezing every extra mile out of a gallon of gasoline that he possibly can. And he has been surprisingly successful! He's been able to run a Ford Ranger pick-up so that it got 84 miles per gallon. And driving his current car, a hybrid Honda Insight, he's been able to achieve an amazing 180 miles per gallon! You see, Gerdes doesn't want just good or even great gas mileage - he is after "hyper" gas mileage. That's right, he's a breed of drivers known as "hypermilers." 
This morning as I was reading from Charles Spurgeon's Morning by Morning devotional, I encountered the following question that Spurgeon poses for his readers, Why does God leave us His children on earth when he could transport us to heaven the moment we trust Christ? He answers the question by saying, "We are here that we may 'live to the Lord' and bring others to know HIS love." Now of course we know Spurgeon is right on target with his answer. The Bible clearly tells us in 1 Corinthians 10:31 that "whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God." So life is NOT about me - it is ALL about HIM! 
Yesterday, I went to see the Pittsburgh Pirates play ... yes in Pittsburgh. Some might say that is a long way to go to see a baseball game. I agree. 225 miles and four hours of driving is quite the distance. That is why I don't do it very often (if twice in four years qualifies as "not very often.") But we had a great time, in spite of the mid-ninety degree temperatures (we managed to sit in the shade as did most of the other fans in attendance). And what made the trip so noteworthy - the Pirates won the game, rattling future hall of a famer, Randy Johnson in the process! So all in all ... it was a relaxing way to spend my day off. 
After filling our cups, I returned to the counter to pick up the order while my two companions found a seat (which was not very hard to do!). Now remember, BK is advertised as a "fast food" restaurant. But for some reason, last evening - our order was filled in any way BUT fast! It took almost 20 minutes for the BK crew to fill our order of three sandwiches. When the manager finally realized what was going on, she threw in two large order of fries for us to "ease our pain" (and I am sure, "expand our waistlines!). So what we had hoped would have been a 10-15 minute turned into a stop of just over 30 minutes! 
2 Corinthians 4:7 
Today, believe it or not, is National Doughnut Day (do you ever wonder who decides these things? I mean, why couldn't today be National Plant a Tree Day or National Hug Your Child Day? - both of which I think would be a better thing to do than eating a doughnut or two!).
So as followers of Jesus, we must continue to reach out to those in need (my wife and I have been supporting two children through Children's Fellowship of India (http://www.cfindia.org/) for a number of years as we seek to imitate Jesus in this regard). But as we do, we must never lose sight of the gospel. Alleviating suffering for this life only is not enough. We must prepare the needy for eternity.
As fuel prices rise, people are making a number of changes. For one, they are driving less. Gas sales in the U.S. have been in decline in recent weeks and urban centers around the country are reporting a significant upswing in the number of people using mass transit. In addition, Americans are switching from gas guzzling SUV's to smaller, more fuel efficient cars. But all of this is not surprising. But what might surprise you is that SPAM is on the increase. Now I am not talking about the cyberspace version of junk mail - but rather the mystery meat product put out by the Hormel Food Corporation.
including "SPAM Classic," "SPAM Oven Roasted Turkey," SPAM Hot and Spicy," "SPAM with Bacon," "SPAM Lite" and "SPAM Golden Honey Grail." And did you know that SPAM is so popular in Hawaii that the MacDonald's and Burger King franchises there offer it as a menu item right along with their Big Macs and Whoppers!
believers are very casual about their approach to living out their faith. If you look at these Christ followers, it may prove difficult to see just who it is they are following!
Last Wednesday evening as I was reading the back page of the Lancaster New Era, the following article caught my eye: Recently, my wife and I took a few days off and headed to Ocean City, Maryland. On the way home, we stopped at Rehoboth Beach. There we enc...
