Mile High Rev

REVolting - Giuliani - "I'm Among Best Known Americans"

Giuliani: I'm Among Best Known Americans.

Proverbs 27:2 comes to mind: “Let another praise you, and not your own mouth; someone else, and not your own lips.”

REVrant 29. 6 - Good Decision - No to Ahmadinejad

Iranian President's Visit to Ground Zero Denied.

The idea that Iran’s President Ahmadinejad would like to visit Ground Zero at the World Trade Center site in NYC on his upcoming trip to address the U.N. General Assembly so that he might “lay a wreath” is preposterous!  He is a state sponsor of terrorism, has called for “wiping Israel off the map,” and has mocked and ridiculed our President time after time.  His nation funds and supplies Jihadists who are killing our troops in Iraq.  Ground Zero is a sobering cemetery for victims of terrorism.  To allow this wild man access to the site would be dishonoring to the memory of the victims and their families.  Whoever said “no” to Mahmoud made a very good decision! 

REVrant 29.5 - Church Hopping

I read a fascinating article on beliefnet.com about “church hopping” recently.  Get this: “Each year, one out of every seven adults changes churches.  And one out of every six adults attends a carefully chosen handful of churches on a rotating basis.”  The author of this article adds, “Church loyalty is a modern casualty.”

Why don’t people just settle down somewhere?  Why not choose a good church and stick with it? 

The answers to these questions are complex.  “Religion and spirituality have become just another product in the broader marketplace of goods and services,” says American Demographics Magazine.  Clearly, there isn’t one simple and obvious solution to this problem.

Church growth guru Lyle Schaller observes: “The loyal member born before 1940 is upset and baffled when a longtime member becomes dissatisfied and quietly departs to worship with a different congregation in that same community.  The younger member, who was reared in a culture overflowing with choices, shrugs off that departure as normal and completely acceptable.”

The article suggests four ways churches respond to church hopping: 1) Deny it, 2) Do nothing, 3) Don’t worry about it, 4) Hook the committed ones.  I am particularly drawn to #3 and #4.

REVolting - O.J.

O.J. Simpson Held Without Bail.

There he goes again…

REVrant 29.4 - Sick Call at Retreat

Yes, I made it all the way up to Deer Valley Ranch in Nathrop, Colorado on Thursday.  Ate dinner with the team and gave my talk on Thursday night.  Problem – about 3/4’s of the way through, I got hit with major intestinal cramping and had to wrap up and run down to my room where I got very sick…and stayed the next 12 hours.  Major stomach upset.  Not sure if it was food-borne illness or something else, but it hurt…and it wouldn’t go away.  I’ve been in bed ever since.  Today was my first “vertical” day where I was able to sit up and eat some solid food without getting sick.  Before that it was only water, Gatorade, Jello, and tea.  I lost 5 pounds in four days. (Wouldn’t recommend doing it this way, however.)

The worst part of it for me was that I had responsibilities throughout the retreat and weekend that I wasn’t able to fulfill.  I hate that.  But I had to resolve that God knew exactly WHAT was going to happen…and WHEN!  So I defer to His wisdom and providence in what has been a very depressing and sick weekend.  (I did get a little encouragement when the Broncos stole a win from the Raiders yesterday in .)

As usual, my dear little wife nursed me back to health.  She’s good medicine for me.  Even when I’m sick, she always manages to find a way to encourage me.  (Thanks, Jan!)

All of us have times in our lives when things don’t go as planned. (Like this weekend for me.)  The situation is out of our control.  And there’s not much we can do.  I know some people who freak out over changed plans.  After all these years on the trail, I’ve acquired greater ability to accept whatever God sends or allows to come my way.  I think if you look at it this way, it can help you – apparently, God didn’t want me up at the retreat for the full weekend.  I wanted to be there.  But, He had other ideas.  I accept that.

 

REVerie - As I Predicted

BRONCOS – 23

RAIDERS – 20

Priceless.

REVerie - Light Blogging Forecast

It’s been a very busy week getting ready for our 23rd Annual Leadership Retreat.  Yes, we’ve been conducting annual leadership retreats for 23 years…hard to believe, I know.  We’re heading to beautiful Buena Vista, Colorado later this afternoon and because of spotty Internet access and my schedule the next three days, blogging will be “light” or non-existent.  I’ll get back to it on Sunday, perhaps.  (That’s the day the Broncos are going to beat the Raiders at Mile High, in case you wondered.)

Have a wonderful weekend and I’ll be in touch as soon as I can.

REVrant 29.3 - She was 14. He was 34.

The Denver Post - She was 14. He was 34..

The State of Colorado has been dealing with a controversial matter for the last four years – a 34 year old man entered a “common law” marriage with a 14 year old girl.  Apparently, a loophole in the law allowed this.  Lawmakers quickly passed a law – because of this situation - that made it illegal for anyone under 18 to enter a common law marriage.  And that meant prison for the 34 year old man.  After release from imprisonment, the man (now 39) not only wants to pick up in his relationship with the girl (now 19), and his son (who was born when the girl was 15), but he also plans to sue the State.  What do you think?  Common law?  Common sense?

REVered - 9/11

No one who was alive on 9/11/01 will ever forget this date.  Nor will we forget the images.  As we pass the 6th Anniversary of the deadliest attack ever on U.S. soil, let’s pray for the families of the victims whose grief is triggered once again by those two numbers – 9–11.

Let’s also recall the heroic rescuers who raced to the site in the aftermath of this tragedy, risking life and limb.  Their courage and unselfishness still moves a nation on this historic day.

 

REVrant 29.2 - GETTING MARRIED

This past weekend – Thursday and Friday – I had the honor of participating in a rehearsal and a wedding for an amazing couple.  The couple are the daughter, and now son-in-law, of dear friends of ours.  We started the preparation for the wedding earlier this year.  I enjoyed several premarital sessions with them.  I kept saying, “I’m far more interested in planning for your marriage than for the wedding!”  Not to say the wedding wasn’t important.  But, laying the foundation for marriage is bedrock to premarital counseling in my opinion. 

We had a wonderful time getting acquainted and getting ready!  All of that is confidential, of course.  But after completing the process on Friday night, I have some reflections about marriage, preparation for marriage, and weddings:

1. I’m thrilled to see that there are still young men and women who believe in the institution of marriage.

2. I’m thrilled to see couples who value advice from old married guys like me. (34 years of marriage and counting!)

3. I’m thrilled to see Christian “kids” (they’re kids to me!) who are willing to publicly express their faith in Christ to family and friends at the wedding. (This couple did it beautifully!)

4. I’m thrilled to see young men and women who are excited about starting their new life together on the “path of righteousness!”

5. I’m thrilled to see couples who are willing to put others first – instead of wedding favors, this couple chose to give a donation to Compassion International – a Christian child-advocacy organization.

Can you tell I enjoyed walking through marriage preparation and a wedding with this couple?