Nicht nur, dass der Zuschauer Tag für Tag gefühlte 99% der Sendezeit mit völlig belanglosen, inhaltsleeren, ja sogar ärgerlichen Sendungen traktiert wird, so sind die wirklich guten, spannenden Sachen auch noch auf den unattraktivsten Sendeplätzen zu finden. Wer sich also die Mühe macht, die durchaus vorhandenen Perlen herauszusuchen, braucht entweder wenig Schlaf oder einen Videorekorder, um diese auch sehen zu können.

Nicht, dass man mich falsch versteht: Es spricht wenig gegen leichtverdauliche Unterhaltung und Trash für die werberelevante Zielgruppe der 0- bis 14jährigen, solange diese Formate nicht die Oberhand gewinnen. Mittlerweile ist es aber so, dass jede halbwegs gute Sendung kilometerweit aus dem sonstigen Sendeauswurf heraussticht. Und während man als sich selbst, seine Arbeit und sein Publikum hassender, in Zynismus ersaufender Verantwortlicher fleißig an der hundertsten Realityshow für zehn Euro fuffzich bastelt, echauffiert man sich ab und an über die geringe Bildung der Bürger im Allgemeinen und der Jugend im Besonderen; gerne auch mit Hilfe unterhaltsamer Einspieler in Comedyformaten, bei denen von der Situation überforderte Menschen auf der Straße vor laufender Kamera vorgeführt werden. Vorbild-Doofe blamieren sich für die debil lachenden Konsum-Doofen. Und damit meine ich uns alle, die wir uns den Mist auch noch freiwillig ansehen.

Schuld ist aber sicherlich auch das perfide Quotensystem. Denn selbst, wenn morgen 99,999% der Menschen ihre Flimmerkiste aus ließen, würde die Quote weiterhin funktionieren, solange die 0,0002% der Haushalte, die über unseren Fernsehgeschmack bestimmen, am Apparat blieben. Toll, nicht?

So, genug aufgeregt. Mal schauen, … was läuft heute sonst noch ? Ah ja, der Deutsche Fernsehpreis. Um zwanzig Uhr fuffzehn.

Ploeg: Roel - Ben Kris Frederick - Thomas Floris  Johan Thomas Philippe (Michael - Koen (Jan) Stefan

Doelpunten: Philippe - Koen - Thomas

Matchverslag: 
Technico begon geconcentreerd aan de wedstrijd. Dit resulteerde onmiddellijk in een aantal schietkansen voor Technico die vaak maar net naast doel gingen. Zo ging een schot van een bedrijvige Johan net over. Technico A had de wedstrijd vanaf de eerste minuut in handen maar de goal viel pas diep in de eerste helft. Een ijverige Koen trapte eerst naar doel. De keeper verkeek zich een beetje op dit vluchtshot en moest een corner toestaan. Deze werd door Stefan diep naar de tweede paal getrapt en waaide over alles en iedereen over. Behalve over de vrijstaande Philippe die de bal simpel binnen tikte. 
Ook daarna bleef Technico de match domineren met een zeer actief middenveld. Maar ook de 2e goal viel eigenlijk uit de kluts. Koen werd beloond voor zijn uitstekende eerste helft toen hij al glijdend eerst bij de bal kwam en de keeper verraste. 2-0. 
Toch was de match niet gespeeld want Familie Horemans had enkele goede voetballers vooraan lopen. Toen één van hen iets te veel ruimte kreeg, haalde hij uit van aan de grote baklijn. Hij trof gelukkig voor ons de deklat. Technico A liet de teugels toen iets vieren en Familie horemans kreeg nog wat kansen toen Roel onder de bal door ging. Hij kon de bal echter nog voldoende opzij tikken waardoor de speler de bal niet in doel kreeg getrapt.
2-0 bij de rust.

Na de rust zette Technico de match helemaal naar zijn hand. Familie Horemans greep naar de lange bal en creëerde maar weinig gevaar. Enkel een vrije trap van de rand van de grote baklijn leek gevaarlijk te worden, maar de speler kraakte zijn vrije trap en de bal hobbelde naast.
De beste kansen waren echter voor Technico. Stefan en Jan hadden verschillende kansen en ook Thomas kon dreigen met een schot. De afwerking was echter te pover om de keeper te grazen te nemen. 

Toch kon Thomas de score nog aandikken, na een prachtige actie met Johan, Stefan en  Thomas in de combinatie. Thomas kwam alleen voor de goal en maakte 3-0.  Hiermee was de wedstrijd gespeeld. Technico kon rustig de wedstrijd uitspelen en kreeg nog enkele kansen om de score aan te dikken. Een goede wedstrijd van Technico die met 9 op 18 zijn start van de competitie als promovendus niet heeft gemist

I watched Thomas and thought:

we should all walk into rooms

“Pared down to its barest essence, wabi-sabi is the Japanese art of
finding beauty in imperfection and profundity in nature, of accepting
the natural cycle of growth, decay, and death. It’s simple, slow, and
uncluttered-and it reveres authenticity above all. Wabi-sabi is flea
markets, not warehouse stores; aged wood, not Pergo; rice paper, not
glass. It celebrates cracks and crevices and all the other marks that
time, weather, and loving use leave behind. It reminds us that we are
all but transient beings on this planet-that our bodies as well as the
material world around us are in the process of returning to the dust
from which we came. Through wabi-sabi, we learn to embrace liver spots,
rust, and frayed edges, and the march of time they represent.” - Tadao Ando.

It's lovely.

Hail Mary by Pomplamoose is delightful I like the idea of a video song also.

Yes, I KNOW it is in Washington D.C. and not Virginia; however, this is my blog and I make the rules so I'm going to write about it.  We are just too darn close to our Nation's incredible Capital to not include it here!

While not the most popular memorial in D.C., the Jefferson Memorial is definitely a must see.  This tribute to our 3rd President is modeled after the Pantheon of Rome and the circular style was introduced in this country by Jefferson himself.  Visiting the Memorial is free of charge.

The statue of Jefferson inside the memorial looks out toward the White House.  Adorning the interior walls are 5 quotations taken from Jefferson's writings that illustrate the principles to which he dedicated his life.  The site is surrounded by cherry blossom trees which were a gift from Tokyo in 1912.

The Jefferson Memorial is not the easiest to get to on foot.  We actually "swung by" during a recent trip.  You can park nearby and walk if you arrive early.  Limited free day long parking is available along Ohio Drive SW which is along the Potomac River south of the Lincoln Memorial or in Lots A, B & C south and west of the Jefferson Memorial.  Bring a stroller if you can!  Like the Lincoln Memorial, there are a lot of steps to climb; however, my son had fun counting all of them.  The statue of Jefferson is 19 ft tall and mesmerizing.

Inside the monument, take the elevator down and you will find a museum and not one, but 2 gift shops (they call one a bookstore) along with restrooms.  The Memorial is part of the Junior Ranger Program with the National Parks Service.

If you have time and if it's a nice day, you may want to rent a pedal boat and pedal around the basin in front of the Memorial.  It's a great opportunity to appreciate the Memorial from another vantage point and also open up conversation with your child about our 3rd President.

There are wonderful children's books about Thomas Jefferson which can be picked up at the library to make the visit more enjoyable.  A couple of my favs are below in my picture gallery.

Les resten av artikkelen her.

Luis Thomas, figlio di Gigi Buffon e Alena Seredova è stato battezzato lunedì mattina in una piccola chiesa nel comune di Bagnone, Massa Carrara.

TORONTO, JULY 28, 2007 (Zenit.org).- World Youth Day 2002 woke up the Church in Canada, said Basilian Father Thomas Rosica, national director of the event held in Toronto five years ago.

Speaking with ZENIT to commemorate the fifth anniversary of the 17th World Youth Day, Father Rosica commented about what effects the event brought to Canada and the Church.

Father Rosica is the director of the Toronto-based Salt and Light Media Foundation and Catholic Television Network, which he founded in 2003. 

Q: World Youth Day 2002 in Toronto took place five years ago. What do you think has been the most profound effect the event had on the Church in Canada? 

Father Rosica: World Youth Day 2002 was a tremendous catalyst allowing many great things to happen in and to Canada. 

We may choose to speak of World Youth Day as something in the past -- that brightened the shadows, monotony and fatigue of our lives at one shining moment in history in 2002. 

Against a world background of terror and fear, economic collapse and ecclesial scandals, World Youth Day presented an alternative vision of compelling beauty. 

World Youth Day 2002 woke up the country and the Church in Canada. 

The Catholic Church was alive and young during those glorious days of July 2002, and the Church continues to be alive and young today. 

World Youth Day 2002 also shifted the plates of the earth in Canada in the area of media relations. Two sections of the Holy Father's talks remain engraved on my memory. 

First, at the arrival ceremony in Toronto for John Paul II at the beginning of World Youth Day 2002, the Holy Father spoke these prophetic words to government officials and the people of Canada at Pearson International Airport on July 23, 2002: 

"Canadians are heirs to an extraordinarily rich humanism, enriched even more by the blend of many different cultural elements. ... 

"In a world of great social and ethical strains, and confusion about the very purpose of life, Canadians have an incomparable treasure to contribute -- on condition that they preserve what is deep and good and valid in their own heritage." 

Then on Saturday evening, July 27, 2002, on the tarmac of a former military air base in Toronto, Downsview Park, John Paul II spoke these thought-provoking words to the crowd of more than 600,000 young people gathered at the great vigil of World Youth Day 2002: 

"The question that arises is dramatic: On what foundations must we build the new historical era that is emerging from the great transformations of the 20th century? 

"Is it enough to rely on the technological revolution now taking place, which seems to respond only to criteria of productivity and efficiency, without reference to the individual's spiritual dimension or to any universally shared ethical values? 

"Is it right to be content with provisional answers to the ultimate questions, and to abandon life to the impulses of instinct, to short-lived sensations or passing fads?" 

And what happened in our country over the past five years? One of the most serious crises of our times is the crisis of marriage and family life. 

Canadians have to reflect carefully on the social consequences involved in the redefinition of marriage, examining all that is entailed if society no longer gives a privileged place and fundamental value to the lifelong union of a man and a woman in marriage. 

As the keystone of society, the family is the most favorable environment in which to welcome children. 

I will never forget the sight of John Paul II descending the stairs of the plane that brought him to Toronto, and ascending the stairs of the plane that would take him to Guatemala at the end of our World Youth Day in Toronto. 

John Paul II taught us in the twilight of his pontificate that everyone must suffer, even the Vicar of Christ. Rather than hide his infirmities, as most public figures do, he let the whole world see what he went through. 

In a youth-obsessed culture in which people are constantly urged to fight or deny the ravages of time, age, disease, he reminded us that aging and suffering are a natural part of being human. 

Where the old and infirm are so easily put in nursing homes and often forgotten, the Pope was a timely and powerful reminder that our parents and grandparents, the sick, the handicapped and the dying have great value. 

Our Canadian reality is truly based on a transcendent vision of life based on Christian revelation that has made us a free, democratic and caring society, recognized throughout the world as a champion of human rights and human dignity. 

We will only continue to offer this treasure to humanity and history if we preserve what is deep and good and valid in our own heritage. 

We must uphold the dignity of all human life, from its earliest moments to its final moments of natural death. And we must celebrate the dignity and sacredness of marriage between a man and a woman, as well as fostering and loving family life. 

Q: You attribute the founding of Salt and Light Television to World Youth Day. Can you explain more about your network and how it was the direct result of that event? 

Father Rosica: Canada needed this television medium more than we know. 

Starting up a television network anywhere is fraught with challenges, and in Canada this is compounded by the country's size, distances, languages and cultures. 

But God was with us from the beginning of this great adventure, just as he was with us through the preparation and execution of World Youth Day 2002. 

I learned most of what I am doing here at Salt and Light Television from John Paul II. He was a brilliant teacher and model of goodness and humanity, a wise communicator and a true "Pontifex Massmediaticus." 

Salt and Light Television was born on the wings of World Youth Day 2002, drawn from Matthew 5:13-14 -- "You Are the Salt of the Earth and Light of the World" was the theme for World Youth Day 2002. 

The Catholic television project is clearly a tribute to and a legacy of John Paul II, and World Youth Day 2002 was the wind beneath our wings. 

There could be no better way to carry on the legacy of World Youth Day 2002 than through Canada's first national Catholic television network that bears the imprint and tradition of World Youth Days. 

The television network came about through the generosity of an Italian Canadian family that owns the largest private print and media company in the country, St. Joseph Media. 

Its founder, Gaetano Gagliano, now 90 years old, was a disciple and friend of Blessed Giacomo Alberione. Gagliano views Salt and Light as the crown of his long career in the print, media and communications industry. 

The Gaglianos provided the seed money of $15 million to get this project off the ground four years ago. 

Initially available only in the Toronto area, the network is now carried by cable and satellite television services that cover Canada coast to coast. 

Its programs -- in English, French, some Italian and, most recently, shows in Mandarin and Cantonese -- are available to nearly a half-million Canadian homes, primarily as a low-cost pay-cable channel. 

A limited amount of Salt and Light programming also can be seen in the United States. U.S. residents can sample Salt and Light programming on our Web site, which offers promotional clips of all current shows as well as streaming video. 

Salt and Light documentaries appear periodically on the Eternal Word Television Network. Salt and Light also has entered a programming exchange with Boston Catholic Television Network, which is available in various parts of the East Coast of the United States. 

Recently has been announced the launch of H2O News, a new multilingual television service developed in cooperation with several Vatican agencies.

We are thrilled to have been invited by H20 to provide the English component of H2O, as well as assisting with the French and eventually the Chinese services. This will certainly help us to enhance our news dimension and thrust us on a global stage. 

Q: Staffed by young people, most of whom participated in some way in World Youth Day, what do you think is the unique contribution Salt and Light offers television viewers? 

Father Rosica: First and foremost one of the great contributions of Salt and Light Catholic Television Network is the unique manner in which young Catholics have assumed leadership roles in our evangelization efforts. 

One clearly gets the impression that the Church is "alive and young" at Salt and Light. 

Second is our commitment to offer Canadian society a message of hope, and an invitation to draw closer to Christ and the Church through our programming. 

In many ways, Canada is a new mission territory, and the urgent pastoral needs for education in faith and spirituality, history and Church teachings are so vast and can never be fulfilled by one group or agency. 

Everything we do at the Salt and Light Catholic Television Network revolves around the five pillars of the Salt and Light Television network: 1) prayer, devotion and meditation; 2) multilingual Catholic liturgy, Vatican events and ceremonies; 3) learning and faith development for all ages; 4) stories of Catholic action and social justice throughout Canada and around the globe; 5) stories of our Catholic communities, information and context. 

Salt and Light Television network also works closely with the major television networks in Canada to assist in the background material and education about Catholic matters. 

This was clearly evident in 2005 during the transition in the papacy. These efforts have built badly needed bridges with the secular media, and continue the legacy of World Youth Day 2002. 

Q: Other than the network, have you seen tangible examples of young lives changed by World Youth Day? And what about the not-so-young you encounter? 

Father Rosica: One of the most significant aspects and fruits of World Youth Days is that young people have rediscovered their bishops and priests, and bishops and priests have rediscovered their young people. 

I recall John Paul II stating on several occasions that World Youth Days exists not only for the conversion of young people and the societies in which they live, but also for the conversion of their bishops and priests. There is much truth in these words. 

Canada was particularly blessed to have many bishops who truly believe in World Youth Day as a powerful instrument of evangelization. 

Through World Youth Days, John Paul II unleashed something totally new and unthinkable some 25 years ago! 

We have felt the effects of World Youth Day 2002 throughout the vast Canadian landscape over the past five years, from the dynamic Youth Ministry Program in the Archdiocese of Vancouver, to the powerful Scriptural "Lectio Divina" evenings with the young people of Edmonton, Alberta. 

Over these past five years the Cathedral of Kingston, Ontario, came alive with catechesis sessions for young people and many older ones as well! 

There have been revitalized youth ministry programs in the Ontario Dioceses of St. Catharines, London, Toronto, and Cornwall. 

We cannot help but be grateful to God, giving thanks for the renewed energies among the young people of the Archdiocese of Montreal, Quebec. 

In Atlantic Canada there has been a veritable explosion of youth activities in Halifax, and World Youth Day inspired the birth of the John Paul II Media Center in Halifax, a creative media project led by young people. 

In Quebec City, birthplace of the Church in North America, the seeds of and winds of World Youth Day 2002 have empowered young people and the Quebec Church to prepare for the Eucharistic Congress in June 2008. 

The energy of World Youth Day has swept across Canada through powerful, Gospel-rooted movements like Catholic Christian Outreach, now present on many university campuses of the country. National Evangelization Teams Ministries continues to flourish with the World Youth Day 2002 spirit. 

The phenomenon of World Youth Day has become a powerful seedbed for vocations to the priesthood, consecrated life, marriage and lay ecclesial ministries. 

Whether it is because those who have already sensed a call choose to attend World Youth Day out of their strong faith life, or because World Youth Day awakens young adults for the first time to the special call of God, World Youth Day can be a moment of life-changing discernment. 

On June 29, as I sat in St. Peter's Basilica and watched the scene of Benedict XVI placing the pallium on the shoulders of five new Canadian archbishops, I quietly thanked God that each of these pastors and leaders had already taken to heart the gift of World Youth Day 2002 and have built so well on its foundation. 

And many of the episcopal appointments in Canada over the past five years have manifested that being a bishop today in the Church means that one has a special mission to young people. 

Q: Canada once had a thriving Catholic culture. Have you seen a return to the participation in the Church, sacraments, etc., in the years following World Youth Day? 

Father Rosica: World Youth Days offer no panacea or quick fix to the problems and challenges of our times. Rather, they offer a new framework and new lenses through which we look at the Church and the world, and build our future. 

One thing was clear after World Youth Day 2002: We realized that we have much work to do in reaching out to young adults across this vast land. 

July 2002 was for us not an end or accomplishment of some feat; it was rather beginning of a new adventure of faith and hope for the entire Canadian Church. 

At our World Youth Day 2002 in Canada, John Paul II issued a clarion call to commitment to the entire Church in Canada. 

To his young friends he said: "Many and enticing are the voices that call out to you from all sides: many of these voices speak to you of a joy that can be had with money, success, and power. Mostly they propose a joy that comes with the superficial and fleeting pleasure of the senses." 

The alternative call was Jesus' cry: "He calls you to be the salt and light of the world, to live in justice, to become instruments of love and peace." The choice was stark, self-denying, life-defining, and irrevocable. 

It was between, "good and evil, between light and darkness, between life and death." 

There were no shortcuts or compromises for John Paul II, only clarity. And that is what young people are seeking today, not quick answers but Gospel clarity. 

It is incumbent on the Church to offer solid opportunities for youth and young adult ministry that contain solid content, vision, community and hope. 

Many people have commented to me that World Youth Day 2002 taught them to wear biblical lenses in order to understand what July 2002 was all about for the Church in Canada. 

On a very personal note, as I remember the great event of World Youth Day 2002, and allow it to take on its true dimensions -- one image seems to dominate: that of the rather violent and ferocious wind and storm that rocked Downsview Park on Sunday morning, July 28, 2002. 

It was for me and for many the wind of Pentecost that we read about in the New Testament. 

And yet, in the midst of the howling wind and violent storm, the nations of the earth -- at least 172 of them huddled together in that field -- understood one another as they gathered around the successor of Peter on that July morning five years ago. 

This was the wind that had led the World Youth Day Cross from sea to sea to sea, across Canada "a mari usque ad mare." That summer and that particular morning of July 28, 2002, I believe that the Church in Canada was born again on the shores of Lake Ontario. 

Canada is often described on the international scene as being one of the most politically correct or tolerant societies in the world. 

Some take great pride in these words applied to our country. Others, including myself, do not necessarily see this description as something terribly positive. 

There is nothing politically correct about preaching and living the Gospel, about being salt and light in a culture that has lost the flavor of the Gospel and tried to extinguish the light of Christ. 

In fact, the Gospel message is at times completely incorrect in the eyes and ways of the world! The Gospel of Jesus Christ is proclaimed with boldness and with courage -- and that is one of the great lessons of World Youth Day 2002. 

A boldness that does not overpower, that is not rude, that does not bully, that is never disrespectful, that never shows off or flaunts gifts that one has received -- but where the Spirit has been so lavishly poured out upon us as individuals and as a faith community, the Church has an obligation to announce and to proclaim Jesus Christ boldly, unapologetically and unabashedly -- with great joy. 

Earlier this month while visiting Rome, I spent several long moments in the crypt of St. Peter's Basilica, at the grave of John Paul II, the great dreamer and father of World Youth Days. 

Every day I ask the Servant of God Pope John Paul II to pray for us and intercede for us, and especially for the young people who found in him a father, a grandfather, a teacher and a demanding friend who loved them. 

May those same young people find in the Church in Canada a rock, a shelter, a harbor, a home, and a possible lifetime of service in the Church today -- a Church that is "alive and young," as Benedict XVI said at the inauguration of his Petrine Ministry in 2005.

Thomas has done an amazing amount of growing this Summer & has gotten down to one pair of shoes that he can wear that are "nice" (a $2 pair of brown leather sandals from Goodwill. Sandals don't do so well in cooler weather...). So, thankfully I have a TARGET across the street (wait- this can be bad, too) and I found him another pair of shoes that will fare better in the brutal winters we have down here in the South (LOL! Just KIDDING)! After his nap today, he brought them to me and wanted to wear them. Notice in the picture that he is half naked...runs in the family I see....

and of COURSE Ava had to get in on the action, she jumped in the chair when Thomas was done and said, "black shoes, Mommy"!

her first word was "Ava" her second was "shoe"....go figure!

*What is YOUR favorite pair of shoes?

Thomas Making Tracks Game actually a pretty clever board game, although to truly play it according to its rules, I'm guessing you really need to be at 6 or so. It's recommended for 4 or up, so even by those standards N would have another year.

The game play is divided into two parts. In the first part, you spin a spinner to see what kind of track (curve or straight combined with one of three colors) you get to place on your section of the board. Then, once you've built track that connects the starting line to the finish line, each spin determines how far to move your game piece. (Candyland style).

The game is very well constructed; the tiles are thick, solid plastic and have a little button (more like a square nipple, actually - not quite sure what to call it) on top that fits into a hole on the game board, so that the tiles actually stay where you place them. Other than the spinner pointer coming out of the box broken (which I'm going to guess is a fluke), this seems to be very solidly put together.

Right now, N is simply happy to place the tiles on the board, and after a day or two playing with it, he's starting to make patterns with the tracks (big brother J is helping, too). We'll have to see if he progresses to the point where he can make a long enough connected path of tracks to follow the game rules, but in the mean time, he's enjoying placing the tiles and driving the character pieces along it (although humorously, he keeps taking them out of their plastic 'feet' and instead drives them in the slots formed between the rows of tiles.)

Overall, I'd recommend this for your older Thomas fans - at least 5 or 6 years old - unless they've shown they can sit through games like Candyland and you can picture them doing that and more.

(But, of course, it has no noise - always a plus!)

Link: Thomas Making Tracks Game

Recently one of Tony Alamo’s shills, Thomas Richards, declared me to be a Jesuit coadjutor.  I wonder what he has to say about the fact that ole Tony has his bum in a bind again?  Over the weekend I visited the Tony Alamo’s ministerial website and listened to the recording of him asking children and young adults whether or not he ever molested them.  Then Tony’s wife gives her blast about how this is all the work of the evil Vatican.  (Don’t get Thomas Richards wound up…)  Then Tony rambled on about how God tells him what he should eat and what shoes to wear.  And how well connected he was in Hollywood and how he was a professional bodybuilder and how all the movie studios wanted to make films of his kid…

Oh, I almost forgot, he also called his accusers homosexuals and paedophiles.  Not to say that these accusers are or aren’t homosexuals and paedophiles but I guess it would make Tony feel better that his accusers weren’t straight like him.

So I kinda thought to myself, “Wow!  The young ones that Tony picked out to record their testimonies all said ‘no, we weren’t molested!  Tony Alamo is the best man in the world.’  That’s it.  The Tony has spoken, I believe it and that settles it!”

Not.

Tony, if you are guilty then may you rot in hell.  If you are innocent, well, here’s some advice:  It is probably time you started to watch out who your running buddies are.  If these folks accusing you are so God awful then how did they get close to you?  Isn’t it kind of like Jerry Falwell knowing that there was a cartoon of him committing incest with his mother in Hustler magazine?  Surely it wasn’t a Christian who alerted him to this?!?

Maybe since I am from the same part of Arkansas as where the Tony Alamo Ministry has its campus and since I am such an obvious Jesuit coadjutor (according to Thomas Richards) and since the Vatican is behind all of this (according to Mrs. Alamo), then maybe I was the one who was working behind the scenes to bring Tony’s downfall?  Nah!

But wouldn’t it be nice?

Footnote:
Last Friday, my high school football team, the Prescott Curly Wolves made a visit to Foulk, Arkansas.  This wasn’t to visit Tony Alamo’s ministry though.  It was to beat the pants off the local football team.

Prescott Curly Wolves  60
Foulke Panthers 12

Go Wolves!

Matt and Chris and I shot a few portraits outside our house today.  I like the idea of a triptych, but can't decide on the shots or the order.  Here are a couple ideas.  Matt can get pretty excited about our new utensils, and Chris likes to use 'em.

Il suo rientro, avverrà in occasione di un evento speciale

COMMENTATE IL POST ANCHE NEL NOSTRO FORUM
 
LEGGI ANCHE :
Ridge vs Rick

!!!

My colleagues at Homipalooza agreed that the same was true for them.  There were people like that in all their churches.  As good pastors and not only good preachers they wondered how to proclaim the good news of Easter without running roughshod over the honest intellectual struggle of those "doubters." 

I found something in my files that spoke to that concern, and without asking you to read the whole thing let me share the closing paragraph of a sermon delivered three years ago at the First Baptist Church of Washington, DC.  It was about Doubting Thomas, who eventually looked on the risen Christ and believed, and about all those doubters who are still waiting for such a moment.  It was called "Easy for You; Hard for Me":

We’ve worked pretty hard in the last few years to make sure that our building is accessible.  We put in a wheelchair lift over here, automatic doors on the front and back of the building.  We want to be sure that when a disabled person comes to our church it will be easy for him to get into our building and find a place in our pews.  You can see that symbol on some of our doors, the one with the little wheelchair on it, that proudly proclaims: “this church is accessible!”  I wish there were some way to put another symbol on the door, some small icon or image of Thomas, maybe, that would tell the world “This church is accessible to those who have some doubts.”  Because you never know when Jesus is going to show up.  You never know when someone who has been struggling with doubt might look on His face and say, as Thomas did, 

“My Lord and my God!”