David’s Blog

You are lucky you are sitting down as you read this. I was driving when I heard it!

Evidently McDonald's is putting coffee bars under the Golden Arches of many of their restaurants and they will begin to make custom coffee drinks like lattes and cappuccinos. I'm not sure if Starbucks is "worried" because McDonald's is the restaurant that introduced us to Chicken McNuggets "formed" with chicken parts and McRib sandwiches that contains a rib meat shaped patty without any bones. Who knows, McDonald's does do things with excellence and they research and usually make good decisions. However, Starbucks has the brand name and people's expectation as well as the total experience that will trump any fast food environment. Moreover there's the aroma…that might be a draw back to McDonald's experience, fries frying up in the deep fryer and mingled with fresh espresso…um, I don't know about that.

I'll try anything once so I'll probably experience the McDonald's version someday soon. Let me know where the nearest coffee serving McDonald's is!

I know it has been a while since a post; "they" told me it would happen when I wanted to start a blog, too, I thought "Not me…" Sorry, but here is something…

Christmas is great as an adult, isn't it! All of these games we never had as kids are given to our kids and we get to play them. There was a time when they were babies that they would play with the box or wrapping paper more than the actual toy but now that they are a little older there are so many pieces and things that require thought.

Just last week I was asked, "can you play my game with me?" One of the big gifts was a Wii and it is pretty cool. They definitely have put in more hours than I have but not by much. I couldn't help but to say "sure."

As I thought about the request I couldn't help but think about my relationship with my heavenly Father. What an invitation to Him! I should ask that question a lot.  Can you play, Can you listen, Can you talk Can you…  

Have you noticed that when you store some mint candies with other candy they begin to absorb some of the mint flavor. Yeah, I know, profound, but there are some days I want the great, untainted taste of chocolate all by itself.

The other day I combined chocolate mint truffles with plain dark chocolate in my candy jar and now there is a hint of diluted mint flavor in the dark chocolate. They are almost ruined…almost I'm sure I can still get them down. It is not so bad if I'm expecting the mint flavor but when it is just a "murky" mix somewhere on the back of the tongue it just isn't good.

That got me to thinking about several scriptures. "Taste and see that the Lord is good…" Psalm 34:8. Also, there are several instances of God's word tasting like honey in the Psalms, Ezekiel and others, mmm. Smell affects the tastes of things, too and sets up an expectation of what is about to take place on the tongue. There are scriptures that highlight this also. Many in the Old Testament talk about aromas of offerings that are pleasing to God. And in 1 Corinthians 2:15 those who are saved are the aroma of Christ to God.

What about when tastes and flavors mingle in a bad way like what happened with the mint/chocolate thing? I thought of Ephesians 5:3 "But among you there must not be even a hint of sexual immorality, or of any kind of impurity, or of greed because these things are improper for God's holy people." There is another verse in Revelation about lukewarm water making God want to throw up. Whew. That made me think, am I sharing the "candy jar" of my life with anything that taints me? Pleasing God is one of my goals so, guarding what might taint the taste or smell must become more important to my way of living.

Do you put the mint truffles with the mints or chocolates?

As an outdoors lover I came across this idea in a recent magazine article. I'm sure it has been around for a while since by nature we are gatherers/collectors. Plus, we track and keep records of everything in this age of technology and memory storage. Still it reminded me about my goals.

The article was about birding in and around your backyard or city and consisted of simply spending time in the outdoors with a pair of binoculars and a notebook and pencil. The goal was to check off "sighted" birds to a list of those you had seen in your lifetime. So, a person would set aside a morning or afternoon for bird-watching. Then, they would find a good spot the begin to scan the trees and brush for as many different species that they could find in a session.

That made me think about the things I want to accomplish in my lifetime. Some things on the list consist of things in the outdoors like, I would like to hunt in Canada. But I also think of my marriage, I want to continue to grow in my love for Kendra. Then, there is my role as father, I would like for my children to know their God given mission according to their unique personalities. There are other areas beyond that, my job, our finances, vacations, personal spiritual goals…on and on I could go.

Give it some thought and comment if you wish, "What is on your life-list?" 

Surfing the channels at the conclusion of an NFL game I had just watched, I found coverage of a press conference, I know stimulating TV. This athlete was talking about the recently ended game and answering questions concerning several of the plays. As I listened in, I think my mouth dropped open as this player was called into account for the mistakes that had just taken place in the heat of the game. Questions flew like, "what was going through your mind when you threw that interception?" "what were you doing out there when you saw cover two?" "why didn't you pick up that first down in that situation?" With very honest answers he navigated through the interrogation without passing the buck for the most part. I guess those press guys got their story.

As I thought about the process I couldn't help but wonder, what if my life were so public that what I did at "game time" was broadcast to millions and then I would have to answer for my words, actions and decisions? Would I pass the blame on to circumstances or to the people and environment around me? Would I confess that I made a wrong choice or ignored an opportunity?  I'm very glad there isn't a press conference to evaluate me and my performance on life's stage.

But…there is an audience and there are those in the audience that care more about me than an athletic team. There is a connection to my family and a body of believers that are watching. What if they have some questions about a play in the midst of the game? I hope I would be so honest. Moveover, there is also a "great host of witnesses" and One seated in eternity… maybe a press conference isn't so bad after all.

Several weeks ago I found myself in a discussion of respect in the context of marriage. Crucial to a healthy marriage, respect has to be given freely, without conditions, and earned constantly. That is definitely hard to do often because we want the other person to extend the same to us, first. Nevertheless, the power of the scripture in Ephesians 5 and the principle of unconditional respect will go a long way towards changing relationships.

In the course of the discussion we turned to kids and respect. Thinking out loud we covered how disrespectful kids seem today and gradually made it to "why."  Some of the things that were brought up were how we accept it when children are young because it's "cute."

Also, some mentioned that their families of origin were different and I thought about a recent overseas trip where it seemed that culture could play a role. There is a deep sense of respect within certain families and some cultures that one doesn't generally find in our community here.

Lastly, other influences were brought up from TV to music as bad examples.

Do any readers have any other thoughts?

I guess just in time for Halloween, wait,…did you feel that? Evidently I didn't either or did I or did you if you are a Blackberry user. There is a study that reported that Blackberry users are experiencing phantom vibrations. Are our Blackberries possessed?

I guess I'm in that group though I haven't been included in any study. Sometimes driving along with the Blackberry clipped on my belt I'll think, "Was that an email?" So I check and it wasn't must have been the road. Maybe it was something I had for lunch.

Or, maybe I'm not so important that people are emailing me every waking minute…hmmm that could be a dangerous phantom.

I heard someone make this comment the other day and it doesn't quite make logical sense, "This guy has great character he just made a bad decision."

Isn't that what character is choosing right when given a choice between right and wrong? One of the definitions that Webster's gives states that character is certain features that set apart individuals like "the complex of mental and ethical traits."

We confuse resiliency amidst unfortunate circumstances and a person's ethics when we forgetting that our actions are a result of who we are at the deepest level. Too often we rationalize that we/they couldn't use self control or blame someone else for a slip up. In court it is labeled temporary insanity but I'm afraid it is becoming less and less temporary.

I think one has to question a person's character when…they do something illegal or lie to mislead someone or similar thoughts and actions. Such actions aren't the result of one bad decision, they are the result of walking down a path of a choice and ignoring the alarms going off in your conscience along the way. That leads to bad character not just bad decisions and you should stay away from such characters. 

I was listening to a radio talk show several weeks back and the talk was centered around several "X" factors that made predicting outcomes relatively futile. An "X-factor" was defined as a variable that influences life's circumstances, business models or sports events.

I guess the talk made me wonder why people seem to want Control so much when they really can't have it. Maybe that's why, we can't have it.

People generally like ruts, traditions, things to stay the same and the familiar but there are so many variables and change is constantly changing that we should learn to be prepared for the X factors.

what are the X factors of your lives? i.e. things you can't control…

In what ways do you cope with life regardless of what the "X?"

What kind of control over your life will you give an X factor?

Hmmm, how about this, the letter "X" is also the letter "Chi" in the Greek alphabet and in early church history it was known as a symbol of or as an abbreviation for Christ… Now that is an "X" factor that definitely could cause both chaos and comfort.

How many times have you heard that? Also, when you hear it, what do you do with the phrase that follows?

If you have children you may hear something similar, "That was the best pizza ever, or that was the greatest  cartoon ever." It tends to be one of the trendy new tags place on every experience. So, I tend to disregard such superlative exclamations because I know about a child's tastes and limited comparison history. Children are still in that process of discovery and as adults/parents we celebrate their discovery but we know there is more.

However, when I hear a similar phrase from a well aged, seasoned adult I listen differently.  The subject could simply be a restaurant or recent book so as a result I make a mental note about it. Yet, when it is a comment about an experience or a personal memory I listen with more attention. The history of such a well, lived life has many comparable circumstances to pull from and when one stands out as the best, well, then it may well be. There is often a simplicity to the experience and a sense of character that is appreciated. Often referred to as the "good ole days," there is good reason they were "good."

Take some time to listen to someone wiser this week and you may hear about one of the "best ever's…" for you to consider as your own personal history matures. Also, the future holds some of the best days to come so as you look back and listen, dream forward.