Life...to the max!

...five thoughts about the margins of society...#5:

OK...this is it! You've now got to buy Bob Ekblad's book, "Reading The Bible With The Damned," and read the rest for yourself.

Do read it if you want to be in touch with deeper places in your own soul. If that's not you...read it anyway...and get in touch with something important.

Surprise yourself...and others. God is waiting.

...what's up #56:

Somewhere in my wild travels since the first of the year, vegging out between meetings in a hotel room, I heard a provocative and excellent quote from the Prophetess Oprah. I found I could not have agreed with her more as she was speaking about the response (or lack thereof) to the Katrina situation last fall...and to the continuing response (or lack thereof).

* * * * * * *

Babies starve and people suffer, not because of what God does, but because of what we don't do.

...simple gifts:

Received this today from a friend who is involved with students in the Harvard area...remarkable, rich, deep, good things happening there. They recently held a retreat and began their first time of worship with this...

Simple Gifts--
19th century, Shaker hymn

'Tis the gift to be simple,
'tis the gift to be free,
'tis the gift to come down where you ought to be,
And when we find ourselves in the place just right,
It will be in the valley of love and delight.

...may that be the blessing of this weekend for you.

...five thoughts about the margins of society...#4:

Looking out the second story window of my warm home office...watching the snow fall gently from the sky...and having felt the bitter cold when dashing from warm car to exercise facility earlier this morning...I keep wondering for whom is the bitter cold the only sense of temperature for them this day? What do I do with that?

...more from Ekblad's book.....which has been informing my heart and stirring more questions in my over-active mind than I can grab answers...........and that is a good thing:

...five thoughts about the margins of society...#3:

Huddled in the median coming off the freeway twice yesterday I saw the same man holding a ragged sign asking for food. The second time by, all I had was a bottle of "SmartWater," but it became his.

Two cars behind me honked long and loud about me momentarily holding them up. One driver, almost in a "road rage moment" zoomed around me flipping me the "international wave," you know the one with the middle finger that says "you, dude, are a total idiot!"

So be it. Sometimes I am...when I drive right on by with nary a thought about the person in the median.

Huddled against the increasing cold wind...huddled against the whoosh of cars zipping past...huddled against life...wondering about this midian-man's story...as I drove on from that moment, my mind returned to what I've read in just the introduction (even though I'm now well into this remarkable tome) from Bob Ekblad's book, "Reading The Bible With The Damned," page xvi...........

...careful:

It has been an intense few weeks of travel...for ministry/business and pleasure. Too intense in some places...and some welcome, even unexpected, delights in others. Frankly...there IS no place like home. :)

...dealing with death...and life:

A couple I don't know well, Tom and Margene Terry, have been living for months now the slow death of this precious woman...wife...mom...sincere friend of many around the world. At 5 AM this morning, in Colorado Springs, she was set free from here. Tom's generous grace-filled words in preparation for that momentous event follow.

...five thoughts about the margins of society...#2:

From where I'm at today, amidst a place of significant power and wealth, my thoughts turn to the homeless young woman we encountered last Saturday evening. God put her in our path to jolt us well. At this early hour, I'm led to further ponder some of Bob Ekblad's book, "Reading the Bible With The Damned"...page xv-xvi: