the WB

Devotion: On Fire

2012-01-26T07:29:00.001-05:00

"Since we are receiving a kingdom that cannot be shake, let us be thankful, and worship God with reverence and awe, for our 'God is a consuming fire.'" Hebrews 12:28-29Last weekend, I was hosting an Indian Princess gathering for my daughter. I had hoped to build a fire in the backyard, but after two days of rain, the wood was wet. As I tried frustratingly to get the fire started I watched

Sermon: The Third Way

2012-01-23T15:28:00.003-05:00

January 8, 2012 "The Third Way" Numbers & Luke (function(){ var headTag=document.getElementsByTagName('head')[0]; var meta=document.createElement('META'); meta.name='viewport'; //

JWB::1-on-1

2012-01-16T15:49:00.001-05:00

Jack and I went to the NASCAR Hall of Fame today. Last year on MLK day Elli and I went, and that was the only other time I've been. Let's just say Jack and I had a near run of the place. Though not sure going to the NASCAR Hall of Fame is an appropriate MLK celebration. But as the car lover he excitedly ran up the ramp screaming each car's color as he passed by. His favorite activity was the

1-on-1

2012-01-15T20:30:00.003-05:00

So last year was all about giving stuff up. This year, each month I am going to do a one-on-one event with each of the children. Ellie and I went to a Davidson basketball game; But James and I discovered an awesome event. Twice a month, Lowes hosts a Kids Build and Grow gathering for free (at least I hope so, otherwise I owe some money to Lowes). They gave him an apron, a pair of googles,

Devotion: Store up stuff

2012-01-11T14:20:00.001-05:00

“Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moth and rust do not destroy and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there also will your heart be.” Matthew 6:19-20 Recently a family went to an estate sale at a very large home in the area. As

WTHeck Week

2012-01-06T13:31:00.002-05:00

MondayDay off...discovered that one of my beer brews got over carbonated and exploded (hope that my Xmas presents to others didn't!) TuesdayLindsay's car dies while in the carpool lineMy cell phone battery is dead preventing me from get her distress call. WednesdayRealized I have lost my Starbucks Goldstar Card ThursdayLindsay's car won't startI cannot get a computer in the office to hold a video

Devotion: New Year, New You?

2012-01-04T17:52:00.001-05:00

It’s a new year? Is it a new you?People complain about those who make New Year’s resolutions, thinking they are just meaningless goals that we will all drop. But I find the discipline in goal setting (not just on January 1, but throughout life) to be an important spiritual discipline. It claims that God has the power to recreate and reshape me. That life has meaning and direction, should I be

Thou Shalt Nots...

2012-01-02T20:35:00.005-05:00

2011 Goals Completed:Give up one thing per month (cannot recall them all)January: Texting while drivingFebruary: InternetMarch: SodaApril: AlcoholMay: Processed FoodJune: TelevisionJuly: Work Email after hoursAugust: September: No Screens Past 8October: Credit CardsNovember: CoffeeDecember: Shopping at chain storesRan 575.5 miles (like going from Charlotte to Tampa Florida)Biked 1779.18

Reverting

2011-12-14T22:37:00.002-05:00

Georgia Supreme Court recognizes the PC(USA) to be "hierarchical denomination." This is interesting to consider that from the "outside" the world recognizes that the PC(USA) has wandered from its original structure...Presbyterianism was founded in protest (ala protestantism) to the hierarchical church. By electing elders and deacons from the local congregation, Presbyterian structure was meant

Random Knowledge

2011-12-06T19:54:00.000-05:00

Just learned on the radio the average woman weighs 170lbs but believes that the ideal weight is 138lbs for a woman. The average male weighs 196lbs and believes 196lbs to be the ideal weight for a man.Thanks American culture for giving women a distorted-self-image and men a distorted-ego.

O Tannenbaum

2011-12-03T08:13:00.001-05:00

Devotion: Advent Week 1

2011-12-01T08:18:00.000-05:00

This past week the Catholic church made changes to their English speaking services, but altering the prayers and phrases. For example: when the minister starts the service with "The peace of Christ be with you" the old response was "And also with you." The new response is "And also with your spirit." This is the first change in their worship services in 40 years, and has unsettled many of

Devotion: God our Father

2011-11-08T08:19:00.000-05:00

"And because you are children, God has sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, crying, "Abba! Father!"" Galatians 4:6 I was studying this passage in a Bible study this past week, which led into a conversation about how we address God. Abba is the Aramaic word for "dad" or "father." So we wrestled with whether we felt comfortable approaching God in prayer with such a deeply relational and

Devotion: Watching

2011-11-03T07:00:00.002-04:00

"Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight and the sin that clings so closely, and let us run with perseverance the race that is set before us..." Hebrew 12:1 As we approach All Saints Day, I was given a new way to consider Hebrews 12:1. One of the traditional readings of this is that the "cloud of witnesses" is in

HalfIronman Recap

2011-10-14T12:15:00.008-04:00

It all began as a dream... ...which was brutally interrupted at 4:30am by my alarm clock, as I had to prepare to drive down to Anderson, SC for the race. Arriving at the race sight at 6am, I had to set out my Transition 2 gear, grab a bus, and head over to the lake. Seated next to another first time Half-Ironmanner, we nervously complained about the length of the swim. I shared that my

Devotion: Public Displays of the Good News

2011-10-06T13:01:00.000-04:00

2 Corinthians 5:20 “We are therefore Christ's ambassadors, as though God were making his appeal through us.”This past Sunday, I had the privilege of leading worship with my daughter sitting on the front row. This was the first time she has been with us for worship, while I was helping to lead the service. This new vantage point provide a new insight for me, as I led the congregation through

Barry 1-Andersen 0

2011-09-19T20:05:00.001-04:00

Good Scripture; Good Morning

2011-09-19T09:33:00.000-04:00

1 Peter 5:7The Message (MSG) 6-7So be content with who you are, and don't put on airs. God's strong hand is on you; he'll promote you at the right time. Live carefree before God; he is most careful with you.

Devotion: Climbing Down the Ladder

2011-09-15T19:12:00.002-04:00

"Your attitude should be the same as that of Christ Jesus: who being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be grasped, but made himself nothing, taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness. And being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself, and became obedient to death--even the death of the cross!" Philippians 2:5-8 As the mother

From Bermuda to Bootyville

2011-07-29T20:46:00.000-04:00

Devotion: Rejoice with me

2011-07-18T09:37:00.001-04:00

“What woman having ten silver coins, if she loses one of them, does not light a lamp, sweep the house, and search carefully until she finds it? When she has found it, she calls together her friends and neighbors saying, ‘Rejoice with me, for I have found the coin that I had lost.’’ Just so, I tell you, there is joy in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner who repents?”I lose things

Devotion: Rest

2011-06-01T09:21:00.001-04:00

“And there was evening and there was morning, the first day.” Genesis 1:5 Did God get this backwards? It was evening and then morning? That seems out of order for our modern lifestyle. The morning is what begins a new day for us. Our alarms awaken us to the morning tasks we have before us, and our electric lights illumine our homes well into the evening. We try to squeeze more and

Devotion: Where were you?

2011-05-02T14:46:00.001-04:00

John 21:15 15 When they had finished breakfast, Jesus said to Simon Peter, "Simon son of John, do you love me more than these?" He said to him, "Yes, Lord; you know that I love you." Jesus said to him, "Feed my lambs." This past Sunday night, as the news broke of Bin Laden’s death, the newscasters mentioned that this would be one of those events where you will always remember where you

Devotion: Crescendo

2011-04-28T16:11:00.001-04:00

“See the home of God is among the mortals. He will dwell with them; they will be his peoples, and God himself will be with them; He will wipe every tear from their eyes. Death will be no more; mourning and crying and pain will be no more, for the first things have passed away.” Revelation 21:3-4. I was in a spin class at the Y this week, when I was struck by how abruptly each song

Thou Shalt Not...

2011-01-31T15:21:00.000-05:00

For the past 31 days, I have given up talking, texting, typing while driving. Big woop, I understand. But I figured I would ease into these “Thou Shalt Not…” Three reflections I had on this 1) I tended to make many of my personal phone calls on the commute home. This would also give my wife a 30 minute heads-up that I was heading her way.

Week 4 Training

2011-01-30T21:02:00.000-05:00

Swim: 2400ydsBike: 24miRun: 8miJanuary TotalsSwim: 6miBike: 88miRun: 57.25miWes<>

Devotion: Dry Spells

2011-01-28T08:58:00.001-05:00

The Book of Genesis ends with one of the best literary stories, the story of Joseph. From a young child who receives hisfather's coat, to an Egyptian jail cell, and ultimately aspiring to become the right-hand man of the Pharaoh, we read about a manwhose life is dramatically transformed by the hand of God. His final interaction with his 11 brothers, he forgives them and boldly states, "Even

Wikiterian

2011-01-27T11:43:00.001-05:00

Written by Wes Barry, published in The Presbyterian Outlook,Tuesday, 25 January 2011 18:55. The Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) may want to take note of a phenomenon occurring online. What if the Presbyterian Church took a page — a Web page — from Wikipedia? Click here to read more

Training Week 3

2011-01-24T20:02:00.001-05:00

Swim: 3000ydsBike: 29milesRun: 14.5miles

Week 2 Training

2011-01-17T17:24:00.001-05:00

Swim: 3400ydsBike: 27miRun: 14.25mi

Devotion: Family Story

2011-01-13T08:40:00.000-05:00

“When Enoch had lived sixty-five years, he became the father of Methuselah. Enoch walked with God after the birth of Methuselah three hundred years, and had other sons and daughters. Thus all the days of Enoch were three hundred sixty-five years. Enoch walked with God; then he was no more.” If you’ve ever tried reading the Bible cover to cover, or just the New Testament. You quickly come

Thou Shalt Not...

2011-01-02T07:45:00.001-05:00

I fully admit this is originated from Outside Magazine, but I figured I would try a new form of New Year Resolutions: each month giving up something.For January, I thought I'd start small but also with the hopes this will translate into a new practice year round. No mobile device (phone, gps, texting) while drivingAs my most recent text while biking proves, perhaps I shoul expand that to any

Devotion: Prayer

2010-12-30T07:00:00.002-05:00

“Prayer is surrender without giving up.” This phrase came from a journalist who was kidnapped in Afghanistan by the Taliban. As a non-religious person, he found himself turning to the spirituality of his youth in order to sustain him while in captivity. I found this phrase to be a wonderful description of the point of prayer, and why prayer is such a difficult spiritual discipline.

I'm a Character!

2010-12-14T21:09:00.001-05:00

in Stephen Frey's Book, The Fourth Order:

Hope Santa's got a big enough bag

2010-12-11T19:56:00.003-05:00

Things that Irk Me: Security

2010-11-22T16:32:00.001-05:00

Online Photo Sites whose login that require 8 characters, 2 symbols and an alphanumeric combinationI think "12345" should be a sufficient passcode to place orders at Walgreens.com--if someone wants my family photos they can steal 'em off of Facebook.

Costco's Video Camera's and Receipt Checkers...To treat every costumer as a potential shoplifter does not make me interested in your

Blind Photographers

2010-11-20T21:08:00.001-05:00

"I have a private gallery, but, unfortunately, I am the only one who can visit it. Others can enter by means of my photographs, but they do not see the originals, just the reproductions." Evgen Bavcar Blind Photography is interesting because it highlights whether a piece of artwork's accomplishment is based upon merely the aesthetic product or the experience of making that artwork. Any fool

Redneck Bike Stand

2010-11-13T16:46:00.000-05:00

Marking Off the Bucket List at Age 10

2010-11-07T17:43:00.001-05:00

Outside Magazine had 51 things to do before you die,Number 11, Go to Havasu Falls in the Grand Canyon and jump.Thanks to a family vacation, Check.

Devotion: Trail Blazing

2010-09-30T08:30:00.001-04:00

Ex. 13:21 The LORD went in front of them in a pillar of cloud by day, to lead them along the way, and in a pillar of fire by night, to give them light, so that they might travel by day and by night. 22 Neither the pillar of cloud by day nor the pillar of fire by night left its place in front of the people. I was trail running the other week when I came to a fork in the trail. I had

It's Time

2010-09-12T10:36:00.002-04:00

For Coach K.

2010-09-09T18:54:00.002-04:00

Barry Boys are already practicing. Jack looks like a point guard when he gets on his fast break. James is a defensive specialist who will take the foul And Thomas--well clearly he is the bruiser. We are working on his hanging on the rim too.

Devotion: Church Attendance

2010-09-09T08:00:00.000-04:00

As we enter the Digital age, it would be very feasible to download the sermon of your favorite minister, put in a popular Christian music CD and “have worship” in front of your computer. If worship is merely listening to a sermon and singing along to some songs, why is this not sufficient? Reading through CS Lewis—a mid-20th century author and theologian—he writes, “When I

13 Months

2010-09-03T14:47:00.001-04:00

Devotion: Seeing Clearly

2010-09-01T14:55:00.002-04:00

Matthew 7:3-5 3 Why do you see the speck in your neighbor's eye, but do not notice the log in your own eye? 4 Or how can you say to your neighbor, 'Let me take the speck out of your eye,' while the log is in your own eye? 5 You hypocrite, first take the log out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to take the speck out of your neighbor's eye.This past Sunday, Dr. Wood referenced

Devotion: What is in a name?

2010-08-29T13:53:00.001-04:00

..it was in Antioch that the disciples were first called 'Christians.'" Acts 11:26 This is the first time that Christian appears in the Bible. What is interesting is that this was not a self-given title but something that they were called. While we may choose to take upon the title of Christian, for these disciples this was a descriptor given to them by others. Therefore it had to be based on

Serious Question: G-6.01016b

2010-08-25T12:40:00.001-04:00

With local presbyteries having debated for a fifth time G-6.0106b, and now changed ordination standards, a particular question has sprung up for me. I had the core of my question/argument answered in this article by the LA Times regarding Rev. Saphr. The argument has been made, and upheld, that she is allowed to be openly homosexual and an ordained minister in the PC(USA) because her ordination

Boycotts

2010-08-16T23:03:00.001-04:00

With all the talk this summer about boycotting Arizona, the PC(USA) boycotting Caterpillar and personally I have stopped buying gas at BP. Does boycotting really work and what constitutes a boycott?Question 1:I have heard it argued that boycotting bp stations does not matter because it is detrimental to the local station owner not the multinational corporation. Is this just a "big oil" strategy

Mountain Adventures

2010-08-15T20:23:00.006-04:00

Devotion: Availability

2010-08-09T08:03:00.002-04:00

Mark 1:35 35 In the morning, while it was still very dark, he got up and went out to a deserted place, and there he prayed. When I was a youth, I remember going to some church event where they emphasized the importance of morning quiet times. They would quote the above scripture to prove that even Christ woke up before sunrise to read his Bible and pray. Not being a morning person, this

One Year

2010-08-03T09:25:00.001-04:00

100 miles down, 50 to go.

2010-07-31T09:43:00.000-04:00

Bootyville

2010-07-30T18:52:00.001-04:00

The Other Half (well technically 5/6ths)

2010-07-08T18:18:00.001-04:00

Well, while I enjoyed three weeks in Charlotte. Lindsay, Ellie, Jack, James and Thomas got to have an amazing summer with their Mimi and Papa in Colorado.