It came in the mail close to two weeks ago. "It" is a summons to appear for jury duty for the City Of Houston Municipal Courts tomorrow morning. Tomorrow also happens to be the first day back from Spring Break as well as the first day of a new nine weeks grading period so it's not the best time to be called on for the obligation of citizenry. (In a what are the odds scenario, fellow WCS instructor Wen Zhou has also been summoned. What's the likelihood of that coincidence?) This marks the fourth time I've been selected for this civic duty. The following is from June 4, 2007.
It came in the mail last week. Official looking envelopes make me nervous, even my tax refund from the IRS. Inside the envelope was a command for me to report to jury duty. I've lived in Nebraska, Arkansas, Georgia, Tennessee, and now Texas since my eighteenth birthday and it was only my second summons to fulfill my civic duty. There was a problem. The date my presence was requested, July 5, will find me flying back to Houston from St. Louis on the tail-end of a family reunion in Arkansas. It isn't impossible that I might be able to make it back for the 12 noon reporting time but there is no margin for error. There was another dilemma. Two days later, I will be leaving the country for my eight day mission trip to Honduras so if I were to be selected, I might be gone by the time the trial commenced. Fortunately, Dr. David Lacey, our Upper School Administrator at Westbury Christian and a lawyer, explained to me how jury duty could be rescheduled twice without a problem. I called the phone number on the notice and was directed to the court's website. Online, I was able to reschedule my time to August 2, which happens to be during our school in-service. The justice system will just have to survive until further notice.
Too bad it isn't always that easy. A click or two of the computer mouse and we can rearrange a court date but not everything is that simple to shuffle. There is coming another time when I will be summoned to appear in court. In Acts 17, Paul explained that day to the men of Athens:"For he (God) has set a day when he will judge the world with justice by the man he has appointed." (verse 31)There is no wiggle room in that date. It is set and not negotiable. It won't matter if I am on a plane or sleeping in bed. It could be the day of a my funeral or it might coincide with my wedding. It can't be changed on the calendar for my convenience. And if I have lived my life well, I wouldn't want it to be postponed. Now, the only question is, which court appearance of mine will come first?
Applicable quote of the day:
"When you go into court, you are putting your fate in the hands of twelve people who were not smart enough to get out of jury duty."
Norm Crosby
God bless,
Steve
Luke 18:1
www.hawleybooks.com
E-mail me at steve@hawleybooks.com
Sunday, March 18, 2012
Saturday, March 17, 2012
Children Of The Father
 |
| Cana |
 |
| Isabel |
It was a pretty typical yard sale with the typical ebb and flow of customers. I brought a few things to donate- vacuum, Dust Buster, nick knacks- and was put on the spot when asked the value. (I always go low- don't want to hurt anyone's feelings!) I engaged in conversation with a charming Hispanic lady who purchased a bag of clothes and some toys for her adorable children, a five year old girl and her three year old brother. As she was preparing to leave, she indicated Cana and Isabel and said to me, "You have beautiful daughters!" I quickly explained my connection with the family and that Troy, the father and husband, was inside at the moment, and we shared a laugh. But I'm not going to lie. I came away from the nice woman's comment with sort of a glow. I don't know if anyone has ever assumed that any child before belonged to me and the lady was right. Cana and Isabel are beautiful daughters- they just don't belong to me.
I wonder if our Father in Heaven gets that glow about us. I hope so! Five times in 1st John, the apostle used the term children of God in describing believers. My favorite of the five comes from chapter 3, verse 1, where he puts it this way:
How great is the love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God! And that is what we are!
WOW- two exclamation points in a row! I don't feel I'm worth even one exclamation point but God does. And I know two little girls who definitely deserve two exclamation points plus a great deal more. All you have to do is just ask Troy and Rachel.
Applicable quote of the day:
"The father of a daughter is nothing but a high-class hostage. A father turns a stony face to his sons, berates them, shakes his antlers, paws the ground, snorts, runs them off into the underbrush, but when his daughter puts her arm over his shoulder and says, "Daddy, I need to ask you something," he is a pat of butter in a hot frying pan."
Garrison Keillor
God bless,
Steve
Luke 18:1
www.hawleybooks.com
E-mail me at steve@hawleybooks.com
*To see where the funds from the yard sale are going, please check out these websites!*
http://missionlazarus.org/
http://hopeforhaitischildren.org/
Friday, March 16, 2012
Don Meredith And Time Travel
At Christmas time, my brother, Dave, who is an avid reader, was into a book he had a hard time putting down. It was 11-22-63 by Stephen King, a historical/science fiction novel about time travel. Two days ago, our minister, Dave Yasko, mentioned the same book in conversation and graciously offered to let me read the copy he bought, interestingly enough, for his unborn granddaughter. I started it this morning and am already engrossed. It's not not the first book historical novel I've read on this fascinating topic. The following is from February 23, 2006.
I love to read. Having time to do it is another matter. Years ago, I read one of the best books in my memory. In 1992, Harry Turtledove authored Guns Of The South, a novel of alternative history. The premise of Guns requires the reader to tolerate time travel. White separatists from South Africa go back to the time of the American Civil War, attempting to rearrange the future by manipulating the past. Arming the Confederacy with AK-47 rifles and knowledge of Union troop movements based on historian Bruce Catton's writings, the Afrikaners try to alter the outcome of the War Between The States. The men from the 21st century hope that if the South prevails, apartheid in Africa will not be overthrown. It is a fascinating concept. You have to suspend reality to swallow the story but it opens a Pandora's Box of possibilities. I had a birthday last week. My folks' gift to me was What Ifs? of American History, edited by Robert Cowley. What Ifs? is a collection of essays by historians who contemplate life in the United States IF key moments in American history had alternate outcomes. What if FDR had made overtures to Japan in November of 1941 and Pearl Harbor remained a peaceful Hawaiian paradise instead of a buzzword for war? What if John Kennedy had decided against a November trip to Dallas in 1963? What ifs can go on for eternity. Historians love getting the last word...but there is no last word. There will always be another thesis, angle, or twist to the accepted truth. All history is revisionism. Historians write and no one wants to keep reading the same spin on the same events that happened before any of us saw the light of day. It's a lucrative business!
Monday Night Football is no longer free. Starting this fall, the games ABC has carried since 1970 will move to ESPN. I don't remember specifics of any MNF games growing up but I remember the announcers: NFL great Frank Gifford, the loquacious Howard Cosell, and my favorite, former quarterback Dandy Don Meredith. Actually, I only recall one thing any of them said. Dandy Don verbalized it but I doubt the quote originated with him. It's not quite the Gettysburg Address but it has its own depth of meaning: "If ifs and buts were candy and nuts, we'd all have a Merry Christmas." That was life in a nutshell to the former Dallas Cowboy star. Truer words were never uttered by an athlete turned broadcaster. I laughed today, listening to a man prominent in Canadian hockey explaining why our Northern neighbors fell apart in the Olympics. This is word for word; "I'm not making excuses BUT..." We are tough on kids when they make excuses but adults are no better. "I would have accomplished this or that but the boss-teacher-coach-parent, etc. didn't like me. I could have made straight A's- played in the major leagues- married the homecoming queen- won American Idol if I had wanted to." We've all heard it. We've probably let something along those lines escape from our own vocal chords. Historians rewrite history; the rest of us do it with our own biographies. We feel better when we think how it might have been. Time we waste on that line of reasoning is time we could use to improve what lies ahead. Our future is moldable, our past is set in stone and baked in the oven. To the Christian, the future is Jesus and the past doesn't count. The long ago has been washed down the drain at Golgotha along with sins we wish had never been committed. What if someone could go back to the past and change our future? The simple explanation is that God did just that by making the sacrifice that would alter the eternal fate of his children. It was set in motion by Adam and Eve but we were involved in the master plan, too. Revelation 13 tells us that Jesus was ''slain from the creation of the world.'' I can't fathom God and his relationship to the clock but he acted at just the right time by sending his Son. That would make the story line of another great book. We call it the Bible.
Applicable quote of the day:
"I know where I'm going. I want to see where I've been."
Baseball legend Jimmy Piersall (explaining why he ran around the bases backwards on a home run following his release from an asylum)
God bless,
Steve
Luke 18:1
http://www.hawleybooks.com/
E-mail me at steve@hawleybooks.com
I love to read. Having time to do it is another matter. Years ago, I read one of the best books in my memory. In 1992, Harry Turtledove authored Guns Of The South, a novel of alternative history. The premise of Guns requires the reader to tolerate time travel. White separatists from South Africa go back to the time of the American Civil War, attempting to rearrange the future by manipulating the past. Arming the Confederacy with AK-47 rifles and knowledge of Union troop movements based on historian Bruce Catton's writings, the Afrikaners try to alter the outcome of the War Between The States. The men from the 21st century hope that if the South prevails, apartheid in Africa will not be overthrown. It is a fascinating concept. You have to suspend reality to swallow the story but it opens a Pandora's Box of possibilities. I had a birthday last week. My folks' gift to me was What Ifs? of American History, edited by Robert Cowley. What Ifs? is a collection of essays by historians who contemplate life in the United States IF key moments in American history had alternate outcomes. What if FDR had made overtures to Japan in November of 1941 and Pearl Harbor remained a peaceful Hawaiian paradise instead of a buzzword for war? What if John Kennedy had decided against a November trip to Dallas in 1963? What ifs can go on for eternity. Historians love getting the last word...but there is no last word. There will always be another thesis, angle, or twist to the accepted truth. All history is revisionism. Historians write and no one wants to keep reading the same spin on the same events that happened before any of us saw the light of day. It's a lucrative business!
Monday Night Football is no longer free. Starting this fall, the games ABC has carried since 1970 will move to ESPN. I don't remember specifics of any MNF games growing up but I remember the announcers: NFL great Frank Gifford, the loquacious Howard Cosell, and my favorite, former quarterback Dandy Don Meredith. Actually, I only recall one thing any of them said. Dandy Don verbalized it but I doubt the quote originated with him. It's not quite the Gettysburg Address but it has its own depth of meaning: "If ifs and buts were candy and nuts, we'd all have a Merry Christmas." That was life in a nutshell to the former Dallas Cowboy star. Truer words were never uttered by an athlete turned broadcaster. I laughed today, listening to a man prominent in Canadian hockey explaining why our Northern neighbors fell apart in the Olympics. This is word for word; "I'm not making excuses BUT..." We are tough on kids when they make excuses but adults are no better. "I would have accomplished this or that but the boss-teacher-coach-parent, etc. didn't like me. I could have made straight A's- played in the major leagues- married the homecoming queen- won American Idol if I had wanted to." We've all heard it. We've probably let something along those lines escape from our own vocal chords. Historians rewrite history; the rest of us do it with our own biographies. We feel better when we think how it might have been. Time we waste on that line of reasoning is time we could use to improve what lies ahead. Our future is moldable, our past is set in stone and baked in the oven. To the Christian, the future is Jesus and the past doesn't count. The long ago has been washed down the drain at Golgotha along with sins we wish had never been committed. What if someone could go back to the past and change our future? The simple explanation is that God did just that by making the sacrifice that would alter the eternal fate of his children. It was set in motion by Adam and Eve but we were involved in the master plan, too. Revelation 13 tells us that Jesus was ''slain from the creation of the world.'' I can't fathom God and his relationship to the clock but he acted at just the right time by sending his Son. That would make the story line of another great book. We call it the Bible.
Applicable quote of the day:
"I know where I'm going. I want to see where I've been."
Baseball legend Jimmy Piersall (explaining why he ran around the bases backwards on a home run following his release from an asylum)
God bless,
Steve
Luke 18:1
http://www.hawleybooks.com/
E-mail me at steve@hawleybooks.com
Thursday, March 15, 2012
Select Group
Another Selection Sunday is in the books and the games have begun! The seedings and pairings were announced four short days ago for the NCAA men's basketball tournament and as usual there were complaints about who was not invited. The following is a scriptural view of selection, taken from 3-11-07.
It's official! Today is Selection Sunday for the NCAA basketball tournaments, when seedings are announced and match ups become public. No big surprises in the number one seeds in the field of sixty five: Florida, Kansas, North Carolina, Ohio State. All four are heavyweights on the collegiate level and all are considered legitimate threats to make a run at the national title. Thirty-one bids to the Big Dance are automatic, coming from an end of the season conference tournament champs plus the Ivy League, which has no tourney, regular season winner. The at-large bids are another matter. There are thirty-four of these issued. Some might as well have been automatic as in the case of Wisconsin, ranked #1 only two weeks ago. Here is where the invitation process become contentious; the little guys tend to get left behind. Missouri State and Drexel went uninvited this evening. Media critics are already lambasting the slights. Their fans and players/coaches are in mourning....but there is the NIT, a scaled-down version open to the also-rans. It won't be the same. Most teams, I am convinced, would rather be eliminated in the first round of the NCAA's than win the NIT. Wait 'til next year.
There's going to be a Selection Sunday for all of us someday. Well, it might be Monday or Thursday but it's coming. Some will be selected; some will be rejected. There will be rejoicing and there will be weeping. Based on several of Jesus' teachings, some will be shocked that their names aren't penciled into a slot. In Matthew 7, prophesying/driving out demons/performing miracles would not guarantee a reservation. In Matthew 25, in regards to the goats in the sheep/goats analogy, ignorance was not acceptable as an excuse. (Some of the sheep seem surprised as well for their inclusion!) We will be in or we will be out. There will be no play-in games or seedings and no more wait' til next year cries. There will be no office pools....because there won't be anymore offices! They call this time of year March Madness. Interestingly, the first games this year will tip off on March 15th...the Ides of March. Not a good day for Julius Caesar! History will repeat itself this Thursday for a number of pretenders for the throne, when great triumph vanishes in a blink of an eye. But, everybody who loses this Thursday...still got in! The more important field isn't set yet. It isn't limited to sixty-five or any fixed number. Unlike the NCAA tourney teams, it doesn't help to be prominent. Come as you are...but come! There's still time!
Applicable quote of the day:
"For a college basketball player or coach, to reach the Final Four is la-la land. You've achieved, you've got your stamp of approval."
Mike Krzyzewski (Duke University basketball coach)
God bless,
Steve
Luke 18:1
www.hawleybooks.com
E-mail me at steve@hawleybooks.com
It's official! Today is Selection Sunday for the NCAA basketball tournaments, when seedings are announced and match ups become public. No big surprises in the number one seeds in the field of sixty five: Florida, Kansas, North Carolina, Ohio State. All four are heavyweights on the collegiate level and all are considered legitimate threats to make a run at the national title. Thirty-one bids to the Big Dance are automatic, coming from an end of the season conference tournament champs plus the Ivy League, which has no tourney, regular season winner. The at-large bids are another matter. There are thirty-four of these issued. Some might as well have been automatic as in the case of Wisconsin, ranked #1 only two weeks ago. Here is where the invitation process become contentious; the little guys tend to get left behind. Missouri State and Drexel went uninvited this evening. Media critics are already lambasting the slights. Their fans and players/coaches are in mourning....but there is the NIT, a scaled-down version open to the also-rans. It won't be the same. Most teams, I am convinced, would rather be eliminated in the first round of the NCAA's than win the NIT. Wait 'til next year.
There's going to be a Selection Sunday for all of us someday. Well, it might be Monday or Thursday but it's coming. Some will be selected; some will be rejected. There will be rejoicing and there will be weeping. Based on several of Jesus' teachings, some will be shocked that their names aren't penciled into a slot. In Matthew 7, prophesying/driving out demons/performing miracles would not guarantee a reservation. In Matthew 25, in regards to the goats in the sheep/goats analogy, ignorance was not acceptable as an excuse. (Some of the sheep seem surprised as well for their inclusion!) We will be in or we will be out. There will be no play-in games or seedings and no more wait' til next year cries. There will be no office pools....because there won't be anymore offices! They call this time of year March Madness. Interestingly, the first games this year will tip off on March 15th...the Ides of March. Not a good day for Julius Caesar! History will repeat itself this Thursday for a number of pretenders for the throne, when great triumph vanishes in a blink of an eye. But, everybody who loses this Thursday...still got in! The more important field isn't set yet. It isn't limited to sixty-five or any fixed number. Unlike the NCAA tourney teams, it doesn't help to be prominent. Come as you are...but come! There's still time!
Applicable quote of the day:
"For a college basketball player or coach, to reach the Final Four is la-la land. You've achieved, you've got your stamp of approval."
Mike Krzyzewski (Duke University basketball coach)
God bless,
Steve
Luke 18:1
www.hawleybooks.com
E-mail me at steve@hawleybooks.com
Wednesday, March 14, 2012
The Understudy
March Madness is upon us!! In our Bible study tonight, our minister, Dave Yasko, made mention of John the Baptist willingly giving up the glory to his cousin who just happened to be Jesus. It had to be tough when John became famous before Jesus and had his own fanatical followers. Below, from March 23, 2009, is a story of a basketball player who took one for the team just like a certain wilderness preacher who ate locusts and honey two thousand years ago.
We made it through the first weekend of the NCAA Men's Basketball tournament. There have been a few close calls but the #1-3 seeds in all four brackets have survived, meaning the inviting committee did an excellent job of bracketology. In classes today, I let my students pick which team of those remaining in the Sweet Sixteen they believe will be crowned champion in two weeks. The majority of the kids chose one of two teams- Pitt or North Carolina. They always ask me who I want to win. My answer is that I don't care. I favor underdogs (I think that's an oxymoron) and I like the so-called Cinderella schools who are given little chance. This year, I do have a favorite player, though. Ironically, he was one of my least liked just last season. For the past three years, Greg Paulus was the starting point guard for the Duke Blue Devils. Duke is akin to the Yankees in baseball and Notre Dame in college football- fans love to hate them. As a freshman, sophomore, and junior, Paulus was on the floor for the tip off. But before the beginning of this campaign, Duke's legendary coach, Mike Krzyzewski made the decision that the Blue Devils would be better with sophomore Nolan Smith running the show. Entering his senior season, Paulus assumed a seat on the bench. As I watched Duke play on Saturday, I looked to see how this young man reacted to becoming a substitute. If I did not know better, I would have assumed he was a freshman walk-on, just deliriously grateful to be included on the squad. He led the cheers on the bench, he sprinted to the huddle for timeouts, and he was giving instructions to the younger player who has supplanted him. In Duke's 74-69 victory over the Texas Longhorns, Greg Paulus played two minutes. But, that's not an accurate measure of his value; as a coach, I know he has been instrumental in his team's success. His demotion is the kind of scenario which causes rifts and schisms and Duke has had neither. Hand it to the Duke coaching staff, too. They did what was best for the team even though it meant relegating a three year regular to spotty minutes. That's why they are successful. and apparently, Greg Paulus has been listening the past four years.
Jesus made a big deal about our serving and putting others first. That 'last shall be first' stuff sounds good on paper...but it's hard when the drama is carried out on national television and on Internet message boards. In the 'me before team' atmosphere that permeates athletics on all levels, one kid has it right. Role reversals can be excruciating if you were the one on top who now has the vantage point of looking up. Like I said, I don't really care who wins it all this year but I hope Greg Paulus has a few shining moments on the court itself. And when his career comes to an end, I bet he'll make a tremendous coach. He's already a wonderful example.
Applicable quote of the ady:
"There is no higher religion than human service. To work for the common good is the greatest creed."
Woodrow Wilson
God bless,
Steve
Luke 18:1
http://www.hawleybooks.com/
E-mail me at steve@hawleybooks.com
Tuesday, March 13, 2012
The Older Brother, 2012
Several weeks ago, my Gospels' classes, which are mostly sophomores, quizzed over the story of the Prodigal Son in Luke 15. We will return next week to take notes on the parable but at this point in time, we concentrated on the older brother and whether he had the right to be angry. I laid out the scenario and substituted one of our students and his younger brother in the equation. Almost unanimously, the young people sided with the older son who was obedient. Most of the kids believe their parents, if they had the choice, would take the older boy over the younger, even though the prodigal turned out better in the end. When I ask my female students who they see as a better marriage partner, most again choose the older brother. When we cover the parable in detail, we'll point out the prodigal represents sinners who repent/come home and all of us want mercy instead of justice. In the meantime, here are some thoughts of my students to the question, Did the older brother have a right to be angry?
"I believe the older brother had the right to be angry although I honestly believe he was confused and jealous more than anything. For someone who does the right things and lives a life to be proud of, it can be tough to not be shown any appreciation. But when his brother who is a screw-up comes home and is celebrated? I would be angry, too. However, I would try to show compassion and enjoyment for my brother returning, knowing he wanted a better life." M.J.
"I do not believe the older son had the right to be angry because the younger son could not have been a Christian. It should be his duty to celebrate that his younger brother has come into the life of Christ. However, even though this happened, I believe the brother had a right to be angry at his father because as it says in James 2:9, "But if you show favoritism, you sin and are convicted by the law as lawbreakers." This is a very tough decision because the older brother can either convict his father of favoritism or be jealous of his brother because of the favoritism. The older brother should not have become this angry because he, as a Christian, admits that everyone sins. Why should he be angry at his father for favoritism when he has a sin problem of his own? This relates back to the illustration Jesus used of the man who ignores a plank of wood in his eye to help someone else get a speck of sawdust out of their eye. First, you have to get the plank out of your eye. The older son is very much like all of us, though. Our jealousy makes us oblivious to important things. If I have to give a direct yes or no answer to the question of the older brother's anger, I feel I would contradict myself either way but I don't think he had a right to be mad." Lindsay
"I think the older son absolutely has the right to be angry. I feel I can relate to this story as I have an older cousin who has grown up with me like a big brother. It seems like he always gets away with everything or has been let off easy. Every time I've been in trouble, it's been blown WAY out of proportion even if it's a small thing. Every time it looks like I MIGHT get in trouble, I hear about it all the time but any time he would get in trouble, it would just get pushed to the side like its no big deal. So, I believe the brother had every right to be mad because he was the perfect child who wanted to make his father proud and keep the family name upstanding. But, his brother ran around, doing whatever he wanted, living his wild life, and he was treated like gold. I'm sure that was extremely frustrating!" Anonymous
"The older brother does not have the right to be angry. According to the Parable of the Lost Sheep, the shepherd leaves the ninety-nine who are on the right path and goes after the one lost sheep. It's says in Luke 15:7 that there is more rejoicing in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons. This seems crazy but the message is that if one person is saved, we should rejoice. The older brother should be happy that his lost brother was saved by grace. The father did not count all his son's wrongs against him. In the same way, the older brother also should not count the sins of his younger sibling against him. Therefore, he should not be angry." Andrew
Applicable quote of the day:
"I believe the older brother had the right to be angry although I honestly believe he was confused and jealous more than anything. For someone who does the right things and lives a life to be proud of, it can be tough to not be shown any appreciation. But when his brother who is a screw-up comes home and is celebrated? I would be angry, too. However, I would try to show compassion and enjoyment for my brother returning, knowing he wanted a better life." M.J.
"I do not believe the older son had the right to be angry because the younger son could not have been a Christian. It should be his duty to celebrate that his younger brother has come into the life of Christ. However, even though this happened, I believe the brother had a right to be angry at his father because as it says in James 2:9, "But if you show favoritism, you sin and are convicted by the law as lawbreakers." This is a very tough decision because the older brother can either convict his father of favoritism or be jealous of his brother because of the favoritism. The older brother should not have become this angry because he, as a Christian, admits that everyone sins. Why should he be angry at his father for favoritism when he has a sin problem of his own? This relates back to the illustration Jesus used of the man who ignores a plank of wood in his eye to help someone else get a speck of sawdust out of their eye. First, you have to get the plank out of your eye. The older son is very much like all of us, though. Our jealousy makes us oblivious to important things. If I have to give a direct yes or no answer to the question of the older brother's anger, I feel I would contradict myself either way but I don't think he had a right to be mad." Lindsay
"I think the older son absolutely has the right to be angry. I feel I can relate to this story as I have an older cousin who has grown up with me like a big brother. It seems like he always gets away with everything or has been let off easy. Every time I've been in trouble, it's been blown WAY out of proportion even if it's a small thing. Every time it looks like I MIGHT get in trouble, I hear about it all the time but any time he would get in trouble, it would just get pushed to the side like its no big deal. So, I believe the brother had every right to be mad because he was the perfect child who wanted to make his father proud and keep the family name upstanding. But, his brother ran around, doing whatever he wanted, living his wild life, and he was treated like gold. I'm sure that was extremely frustrating!" Anonymous
"The older brother does not have the right to be angry. According to the Parable of the Lost Sheep, the shepherd leaves the ninety-nine who are on the right path and goes after the one lost sheep. It's says in Luke 15:7 that there is more rejoicing in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons. This seems crazy but the message is that if one person is saved, we should rejoice. The older brother should be happy that his lost brother was saved by grace. The father did not count all his son's wrongs against him. In the same way, the older brother also should not count the sins of his younger sibling against him. Therefore, he should not be angry." Andrew
Applicable quote of the day:
| “If they had a social gospel in the days of the prodigal son, somebody would have given him a bed and a sandwich and he never would have gone home.” | |
|
God bless,
Steve Luke 18:1
www.hawleybooks.com
E-mail me at steve@hawleybooks.com
|
Monday, March 12, 2012
One Way!
One of my students is obsessed. Well, maybe that's a little strong but let's just say Kaitlyn is TREMENDOUSLY ENTHUSIASTIC! Yesterday, I noticed every time I looked at FACEBOOK that Kaitlyn, one of my very bright eighth graders, had posted some new update about something called One Direction. From what I saw, it looked to be some sort of advertisement for a TV show or movie or the like. A quick glance at WIKIPEDIA enlightened me to the fact that One Direction is a boy band made up of five English and Irish young men who were put together as a group for the British show The X Factor in 2010. Since then, their careers have skyrocketed, first in the UK and now in the US. Yesterday, Kaitlyn started a countdown of how long until they appeared on The Today Show (this morning) and how many hours until the release of their newest CD which apparently is tonight. In the last two days, she has posted at least twenty comments/pictures/etc of her favorite quintet. Some of her friends have accused her of going overboard- I like the one where a young man suggested an intervention. Good thing it's Spring Break; Kaitlyn has quite a bit on her mind!
Here's what I like about Kaitlyn who granted permission for me to write about her tonight and even told me she would love it and she was excited! I like the fact that she is enthralled and passionate about something and doesn't care who knows it. I'm not interested in five guys performing; the last five-some I thought played together perfectly was the 1970 New York Knicks. And yet, Kaitlyn's focus on One Direction led me to curiosity and now I have some small clue as to the objects of her affection. Isn't that what we are supposed to do as believers, make others curious as to what motivates our lifestyle? Listen, Kaitlyn is a well-balanced young lady. She makes great grades, is the model of classroom decorum, knows the Bible, serves as one of our Student Ambassadors, and is part of our outstanding WCS middle school cheer squad. She just 'loves' these teenage boys and their music. You know what else I found out when I googled One Direction? Their followers have their own name- Directioners. That should be good moniker for any of us. We ought to know where we are headed.
Applicable quote of the day:
“Here's a haiku/palindrome I wrote called, "Obsession."
God bless,
Steve
Luke 18:1
www.hawleybooks.com
E-mail me at steve@hawleybooks.com
Here's what I like about Kaitlyn who granted permission for me to write about her tonight and even told me she would love it and she was excited! I like the fact that she is enthralled and passionate about something and doesn't care who knows it. I'm not interested in five guys performing; the last five-some I thought played together perfectly was the 1970 New York Knicks. And yet, Kaitlyn's focus on One Direction led me to curiosity and now I have some small clue as to the objects of her affection. Isn't that what we are supposed to do as believers, make others curious as to what motivates our lifestyle? Listen, Kaitlyn is a well-balanced young lady. She makes great grades, is the model of classroom decorum, knows the Bible, serves as one of our Student Ambassadors, and is part of our outstanding WCS middle school cheer squad. She just 'loves' these teenage boys and their music. You know what else I found out when I googled One Direction? Their followers have their own name- Directioners. That should be good moniker for any of us. We ought to know where we are headed.
Applicable quote of the day:
“Here's a haiku/palindrome I wrote called, "Obsession."
Bob, Bob, Bob, Bob, Bob,
Bob, Bob, Bob, Bob, Bob, Bob, Bob,
Bob, Bob, Bob, Bob, Bob”
― Jarod Kintz, (A Letter to Andre Breton, Originally Composed on a Leaf of Lettuce With an Ink-dipped Carrot)
Bob, Bob, Bob, Bob, Bob, Bob, Bob,
Bob, Bob, Bob, Bob, Bob”
― Jarod Kintz, (A Letter to Andre Breton, Originally Composed on a Leaf of Lettuce With an Ink-dipped Carrot)
God bless,
Steve
Luke 18:1
www.hawleybooks.com
E-mail me at steve@hawleybooks.com
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