God of this City

This is one of the best songs around right now. It ushers into the heart of God.

Over the past few weeks God has affirmed my calling to Memphis.
My calling was more than just me becoming the Preaching Minister at SVC.
It was a calling to be a voice for God in the city of Memphis.

102 Fever Isn't that Bad

He woke up with a runny nose on Monday morning. The poor kid doesn't know how to blow his nose yet, so Kayci and I wiped it dozens of times yesterday.
He is just now learning how to cover his mouth when he coughs and to turn his head when he sneezes. When your 19-month-old sneezes while eating chocolate teddy grams, your sweatshirt reaps the benefits.
The worst day in my life as a dad came on December 22, 2007. Kayci and I were exchanging presents on the end of our bed with Truitt (6 months old at the time) sitting beside us. He made a sudden move and before we knew it, he was on his way to the floor. We felt like the worst parents in the world.
He refused to lift his arm why crying hysterically for an hour.
I tried to get Kayci to wait until the Maverick game was over to take him to the ER, but she insisted that we leave right then. (I am totally joking!)
We waited for about an hour in the ER, at 10:15 at night, in Houston, TX. The wait time was approximately 4 hours! As we looked around the ER, we saw kids coughing, sneezing, wheezing, and pale-faced. We left thinking that a few hours in the waiting room at the ER was just going to make him worse.
The next morning we went to our doctor, and long-story-short, he just had a bruised collarbone.

Truitt woke up this morning with an awful cough and a 102 fever.
And...I have spent time thanking God.
In 19 months, the only other time we have had to take our son to the doctor (other than a check-up) was when he fell off a bed a few days before his first Christmas.
A few minutes from my home in Memphis is St. Jude's hospital. For me, I am grateful for bruised collar bones, a respiratory virus, and a fever.

I will pray for Truitt's healing, but I will also thank God for 19 healthy months.

Sports...Sports...and Sports

The Cowboys blew it yesterday. Had the Steelers in the palm of their hand going into the 4th quarter and blew it.

The Mavericks have turned it around this season and are playing some great ball. However, they will be good for a 6-8 seed and won't be able to make it past the 2nd round of the playoffs.

The Huskers are 8-4...are playing in a New Year's Day Bowl (Gator Bowl)...and have a chance to get to 9 wins. They were two plays away from being 10-2. I'll take it!

I still haven't been to a Memphis Tigers game yet, but I'm hoping to pretty soon.

Sam Bradford will win the Heisman, but Colt is just as deserving.

This is funny--Colt McCoy was awarded the Offensive Player of the Year in the Big XII, but he was also 2nd Team All Big XII.

Most Influential People

There is no right or wrong answer...but I'm curious:

Who are your top 3 most influential people in America?

"When Was the Last Time?"

The following was an article written by my mentor and good friend, Mike Cope.

WHEN WAS THE LAST TIME?

• When was the last time a Christian college named a blue collar worker with a modest income to its Board of Trustees because he or she was a devoted follower of Jesus with much wisdom to offer?
• When was the last time Robert Schuller bumped a celebrity from his television program to interview an elderly widow who gives generously from her Social Security check?
• When was the last time special visits were made by the ministers and elders to an unemployed family, encouraging them to "place membership" at their congregation?
• When was the last time one of our institutes of higher learning named a building for someone who never was able to give $100 but who modeled the life of costly discipleship?
• When was the last time the shepherds of a church confronted someone over a covetous, materialistic lifestyle?
• When was the last time a brother or sister was disfellowshipped for being greedy (1 Cor.5:11)?
• When was the last time a church moved from the suburbs to the heart of the city to try to reach the poor?
• When was the last time a Christian family "downscaled," not because they couldn't make their high payments any more but because those high payments stretched them to the point of being unable to contribute to the church or to help people in need?
• When was the last time a confession was read at church confessing love of money?
• When was the last time a Christian "made it big" without it affecting the size of their house of the model of their car?
• When was the last time a Christian college named as their "alumnus of the year" a single mother who, out of great love for God and her children, had managed to juggle both a secretarial job in the marketplace and a parenting job at home?
• When was the last time we really listened to the haunting words of Jesus: "a person's life does not consist in the abundance of possessions" (Luke 12:15)?
• And when was the last time we faced up to the piercing implications of James 2:1: "as believers in our glorious Lord Jesus Christ, don't show favoritism"?

We Arrived

After 9 hours on the road, we arrived in Memphis around 7:00pm tonight. Though Truitt had his moments, he did pretty well. Hey, I don't blame him. It would be torture to be strapped into a seat for that long, especially after 17 days with grandparents.
Please pray for us as we prepare for a full week of detox with our son. :)

Yesterday, I had the pleasure of preaching at Highland Oaks in Dallas. I worked at this church back in 2000 and 2001. This church has played a pivotal role in forming me in my life, my faith, and my ministry.
I will admit that it was pretty intimating preaching the week before Randy Harris fills the pulpit for 4 weeks.

Tomorrow, I am back to work:
-Preaching from Luke 11
-Planning worship (something Kip and I do every Tuesday...one of the highlights of my week)
-Praying for vision for 2009
-Preparing a two part Wednesday night class I'm teaching on racial reconiliation (one of my deepest passions)
-And booking lunch appointments over the next 3 weeks
-Oh...and working through 9 days of emails (at least an hour long task)

Back to Tennessee

After a week in the DFW area, we are on the road to Memphis this morning. I'll be back in blogging land tomorrow.