Sunday, Workday, Funday

We attended the 9:00 service this morning. Drew Sherman, minister at Compass Christian Church in Colleyville, Texas, was our guest speaker. He ministers where Trevor DeVage was associate for 11 years, and I know Trevor was delighted to be with him this weekend. We were pleased too, because he brought us a WONDERFUL sermon on the life of David, challenging us to allow ourselves to be used by God as David was.
We had breakfast at Marie's Scrambler. The food is fine, but in spite of the fact that the place is always packed, I just can't convince myself that it's a place I really like. It had been a long time since we'd been there, so I decided to give it another try, but my feelings about the place haven't changed.

The proof page for our November cover. Scott Ryan designed it, and
we think it will attract attention.

Mostly what I did this afternoon is read the proof for the November issue of Christian Standard, which goes to the printer Wednesday. For some reason, I've gotten a little behind this month; it's been awhile since I've read proof on a Sunday afternoon.
The November issue will center mainly on missions; we'll distribute it at ICOM in November. There's some really good stuff in it! :-)
I was at it from about 1:00 till about 5:00, with a nice break to talk with Geoff on the phone somewhere there in the middle. Jennifer called not long after I was finished, and we had a nice visit with her too. They're each involved in meaningful and important things. Geoff is editing his doctoral dissertation proposal down to the right word length before emailing it tonight. He and Lisa have found a new, larger apartment they'll move to on October 16. Matt and Jen are making final preparations for a 10-day trip to India to speak at a huge youth conference sponsored by Central India Christian Mission. They leave October 7.

Evelyn and I ate butternut squash soup from Costco for supper and watched the season premier of "60 Minutes." If we can stay awake, we'll watch PBS's "Foyle's War" at 9:00 before bedtime

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Weekends Are Made for This . . .

• Eating out (at a new Mexican place, Blue Agave beside LaRosa's in Tri-County for supper last night, [new for us, that is] and Bronte Bistro at Joseph-Beth Bookstore for brunch today).
• Running errands: Visits to Costco, Home Depot, Lowe's, the Apple Store, Staple's, and of course my favorite, Kroger's.
• Good times with friends: the Wuskes last night and Bill and Verna Weber and Paul and Sev Friskney today at brunch.
• Doing stuff we love: After Costco last night we picked up the Wuskes and drove to Newport on the Levee to hang out and see the fireworks after the Reds game. We stumbled into a big Oktoberfest celebration on the river bank below the stores at the Levee. We'd already eaten, so we passed up the goetta balls, brats with sauerkraut, and funnel cakes (although that last one really tempted me).
• Doing something on a lark: In addition to trying the Mexican restaurant when we'd really driven over there to eat at LaRosa's, we and the Wuskes decided to try the giant ferris wheel set up at the edge of Oktoberfest. It was a beautiful evening to see all the lights at the riverfront and feel the cool breeze.
• Laughing: with the Wuskes, and always with Sev Friskney and Verna Weber. The Webers, Friskneys, and Taylors used to get together every six weeks or so, but we hadn't been together since before school was out last spring. It was great to reconnect. And laugh. We sat at Bronte for at least 2 hours together.

On the way home, Evelyn and I decided just to stop at the Apple store and see what they're saying about iPhone 5s availability. The guy said a) they're getting new stock every evening, b) the online "order and pick up at the store" option had been disabled; maybe it would be reinstated this week, and c) if you show up at the store when they open, at 10 a.m. weekdays and Saturday, you'll have a pretty good chance of getting the phone you want. That's encouraging, because I thought with the hot interest in the new iPhones (9 million sold in the first weekend), maybe they'd be out of stock till next month or something. Also discouraging, though, because taking two hours on a work morning to drive down there, wait in line, and get the phones set up before driving back to work is almost impossible. We're thinking we'll be there when the store opens NEXT Saturday.

Another Meal

Had lunch with Trevor DeVage yesterday. (Mimi's serves a good soup and sandwich for lunch!) It was great catching him up on some details in my life and hearing him talk about progress and his vision for our church.
He mentioned my Sunday blog post, and as we talked I thought of another point to add to my rant.
The subject was "being fed vs. feeding yourself." And as we ate our tasty viddles, it dawned on me: "Some of the best meals I've eaten were when I was feeding someone else!" Lunch with customers or writers, a Saturday-night dinner with friends at our house, a holiday meal for our family. I always eat better when I'm feeding someone else. I invited Trevor to Mimi's, but I'd never grab lunch there by myself.
And I seldom learn the Bible better than when I'm preparing to teach a Bible lesson, lead a small group,  or prepare a sermon.
So here's another response to "I'm not being fed." Not only, "Pick up a fork and eat," but also, "Go prepare a meal for someone else."

Fed, but Not Enough

I had lunch at church today. Dale Reeves and Allison Rambo did a fine job offering training to small group (a.k.a. "Tribes") leaders at our church, and lunch was a part of the deal. (Side note, how great to have folks responsible for and helping adult discipleship/education/classes/small groups now!) They had box lunches from Honeybaked Ham, one of my favorite lunch spots (their cafe is just down the street from my office location), and I tried the chicken salad sandwich. Never had it before--it was great!

Dale had extra lunches on hand, and he was passing them out after the meeting. I brought two more
home, and Evelyn and I will have 'em for supper tomorrow night. So that means the church will have fed me TWICE this week! Sweet! And this in appreciation for doing a task I was already committed to.

But here's the thing. The church isn't feeding me all week. I spent about $100 at the grocery store yesterday, and Evelyn will probably hit Kroger's for some midweek fill-ins later. Not only that, but I also have money in my pocket for at least a couple lunches out this week. I'm making plans, investing resources, and looking forward to some fine meals Evelyn and I will provide for ourselves. After the church offered me a couple of box lunches, I figure the rest of my "three squares" are on my plate to provide.

Pretty obvious, right? Eating is my responsibility, not anyone else's. Preschoolers and invalids may depend on someone else to keep them fed, but I'm very pleased I'm not in either category. I feed myself. If I looked at my wife and said, "I'm not being fed," she'd probably tell me to pick up my fork or get off my duff and open the refrigerator.

Occasionally I don't eat enough for dinner, so I supplement with a bedtime snack. Sometimes I end up at a restaurant that doesn't please me and I decide not to go back. There's nothing wrong with deciding the dispenser of the food is not satisfying me. When that happens, I choose another menu. But I don't blame the cook. When it comes to being fed, I'm my own dietician.

Actually, there's nothing new about this. Maybe 20 or 30 years ago a preacher friend of mine was reflecting on the accusation he'd heard from some disgruntled church members. Their beef? "I'm not being fed."

Unfortunately, the complaint doesn't go away. But neither has the response. "If you're not being fed, go get something to eat!"

This is especially appropriate when the complainers are not new Christians, starving for truth, but experienced believers with a finely developed appetite for what they do and don't like. I'm thinking of so many people I've encountered in the Two Thirds World eating little or the the same something day after day. I imagine them standing with a sack of White Castles in their hand, taking a bite of the oniony  bullets, making a face, and saying to their benefactor: "I'm not being fed." I don't think so. Hungry people relish whatever's put before them.

I have lots of concerns about my spiritual diet. I don't know the Bible as well as I wish I did. I don't read as much of it each week as I think I ought. I pray, but I want to pray more. I study, but each lesson reminds me how much I still need to learn. I eat, but not enough.

And I know whatever the church serves for an hour on  Sunday cannot be anything more than an appetizer or, if done really well, a cooking lesson.

I'm grateful for the lunch the church served today. Delighted for the leftovers to enjoy tomorrow. But the church did not feed me enough this week. And it never will. And it never should.

A Saturday at Home

Woke before 7:00 and padded out to the living room about 10 minutes before Evelyn was up. It was gray and rainy outside, and we stayed inside reading and eventually eating some coffee cake and peaches for breakfast. Wendy had said she could Skype "later morning" for us, so I went to the grocery store about 9:00 since it was chilly and damp outside but the promise was for a pretty day in the afternoon.
We talked to Wendy for 90 minutes or more. She told us the harrowing (that's actually not too strong a word for it) story of her tending to the delivery and ultimately (after more than 24 hours of labor) Caesarean birth to a minister's wife who had come to the center with him for the current training session. Wendy was up and working for 30 or 36 hours. Evelyn and I were talking about it at supper, and we agreed, "Only God and adrenaline gave her the ability to do that, because she just isn't a stay-up-all-night kind of girl."
We ate after we talked with her and then headed outside to clean the garage. I love the kind of day when you can jump into a project and work at it for as long as it takes, without worrying about a time deadline or a schedule. Evelyn and I spent the rest of the afternoon working in the garage--I hosed off my potter's bench and a set of plastic bins/shelves, rearranged all the stuff on the utility shelves, helped Evelyn decide where to put what in the white cabinets and what could be donated or thrown away. Evelyn swept and Shop-Vac'd the whole floor, and since the Shop-Vac was out, I swept out my car and then washed the windshield and back window in and out. It was cool outside, but the sun was warm. It was a great day to do this work, and I feel really good about it.
After a shower, I cooked some hamburgers on the grill, and Evelyn made cole slaw and heated up a can of Bush's baked beans. It has been a good Saturday! We're adjourning to the family room to watch a movie before we go to bed.

Before

After--actually the picture doesn't really show
how much better this looks!

21st Century, Here We Come!

I decided we would take a plunge into the 21st century and get iPhones. Our current cell phone contract has expired, so we can change with no penalty.
I decided we should get the 5s model, better in every way than the 5c, but the 5s couldn't be preordered.
We decided we'd go to the Apple store during suppertime when maybe the line wouldn't be long. It wasn't long, but by the time we got there, all the Verizon 5s's for that store had been sold.
"You can order them online," the polite young fellow in the blue shirt said.
We ate supper at Cheesecake Factory (a couple of delectable dishes from the "Skinnylicious" menu--and we resisted the urge to get cheesecake for dessert), shopped the sale at Dillard's (Evelyn found some shoes at a great price), and then headed home through a driving rain to watch an old movie we had recorded months ago.
Before we fired up the television, I went online to order our phones. But the online Apple store will allow a person to order only one phone at a time. Only when it is delivered (in 7-10 business days) and activated can the second phone be purchased.
That won't work for us.
So we'll keep checking the Apple store every other day this week to see when their additional stock gets in.
21st century--we'll be there soon. We just don't know when.

Four Issues

It dawned on me this evening that I've been working on three issues of Christian Standard all at the same time, with a fourth one in process.
I'm reading (i.e., editing) the December issue. The theme is incarnation, and we have three really good theological articles, one each from Matt Proctor, Miriam Perkins, and Jon Weatherly. They're so good, I wish I could share 'em now! The cover for this issue is coming from Plain Joe Studios, and we expect to see it soon. We'll meet with Scott Ryan a week from tomorrow to agree on illustrations/graphics for the rest of the issue.  It goes to the printer the first week in November.
Meanwhile, I've been assigning material for the February issue. The theme is "How to Teach the Bible in a Biblically Illiterate Age." The deadline is November 1, and I still have a couple of pieces to assign and a couple of assigned pieces to verify. It goes to the printer the first week in January.
At the same time, Jim Nieman is completing the layout for the November issue. I'll read proof on it next week, write the editorial for that issue, and we'll show it to Scott Ryan for suggestions/tweaks on the layout. It goes to the printer the first week in October, just about the time the January issue's pieces are due. That's the fourth issue, although we're not really doing much with it this week.
It all sounds a bit confusing, I guess, and I must admit when Jim asks me a question about one issue just as I've answered an email about another, it's easy for me to get them mixed up.

Evelyn asked, "Do you really think anyone cares that we had
Peanut Butter 'n Chip ice cream  tonight?"
"No," I answered.

Whining from a Night Person

Our Thursday group is doing a three-week study on prayer that I developed in anticipation of
participating in an all-church study October and November.

This week I'm beginning a regimen of getting up by or before 5:00 a.m. to be at the church by or just
after 6:00 a.m. TWICE each week.
Some observers might think I've chosen this plan because I am a morning person. I AM NOT.
For some time now (how many years has it been?), I've met with a circle of guys on Thursday mornings for Bible study. That is continuing this year. Tomorrow will be the third Thursday we've met this September as we're starting a new school year. We meet at 6:00 a.m. and finish shortly after 7:00 so everyone can get to work.
A few weeks ago Jim Baird asked me to participate in a study they've been offering to men in the church: "No Man Left Behind," a course about how to disciple men. Dale Reeves suggested to him that he ask me. It's meeting on Tuesday mornings at 6:15, I think for eight weeks.
So twice each week I'm setting out all my clothes the night before and making sure my briefcase is packed and easy to find, sliding my change and phone and keys onto the bathroom counter so I won't have to hunt for them in the dark in the bedroom, and aiming for bed by 10:00 p.m. so I can get up around 5:00 (actually on Thursdays I set the alarm for 4:50!). The goal is to slip out of bed, close the bathroom door in the dark before turning on the light, opening and closing cabinets and drawers as quietly as possible--all in an effort not to wake Evelyn.
She, by the way, IS a morning person, and also a very light sleeper. And now in this first semester of her retirement, she has me bumbling around at least an hour before she would normally get up (and at least 90 minutes or more before I would prefer to).
I need to commit myself to seeing some growth happening in me in exchange for these upsets to my natural body rhythm. :-)

Weekend Update

Friday night we went to see A Strange Brand of Happy, Joe Boyd's new movie, with Terry and Shirley Wuske and enjoyed dinner with them at Red Robin afterwards.

Our granddaughter, Nina, decorated this pot as a Christmas
gift last year. It looks nice with a pretty yellow mum
to decorate our deck this autumn.

Saturday morning I cut grass, trimmed bushes, edged the front lawn, watered, fed, and rearranged flower pots, and made a bouquet of zinnias for the kitchen table.
I took my shower at noon and was dressed just in time to help Evelyn finish up lunch for Byron and Katie Cartwright,
who were in town for a conference last week at CCU. They arrived about 1 and spent overnight with us. We laughed, ate, talked, and thoroughly enjoyed catching up with them. They took us to dinner at Wild Ginger in Hyde Park Saturday night, and we capped off the evening with ice cream at Graeter's (on Hyde Park Square). The evening was cool, and we were almost shivering as we finished off our ice cream outside and hurried back to the car.
I was "hosting" in both chapel services Sunday morning, and Evelyn attended the 9:00 service in the worship center. So we met at Panera's for lunch. As soon as I was home and had changed clothes, I started on a list of more yard work. Finished trimming the bushes in front of the house, mowed down the fading patch of black-eyed Susans, watered plants again, and repotted some maroon shamrocks that had gotten water-logged and wilty on the deck. Then a trip to the store before chicken tacos while we watched the evening news.
It was a full weekend, remarkably productive while also making time for lifelong friends and meaningful worship. The beautiful sunshine, dry air, and cool temperatures just added to the blessing of it all.

Another Good-bye

We've been having hot, hazy weather this week, and the rising sun has been beautiful every morning on the way to work. I stopped in the church parking lot to try to capture it today. It was prettier than this, but this will help me remember it.

Today we had another going-away party. Joann VanMeter decided to retire (I think she had toyed with the idea for some time), and we had a surprise farewell lunch for her today at noon. Matt Lockhart expressed the company's appreciation for her 14 years (I think that's the right number) of service, most recently (and most valuably) as our rights and permissions manager. Her skill and knowledge of the whole rights scene has grown with her years of experience. That, plus her knowledge and concern for our customers and contributors and her warm personality and ready laugh all combine to make us very sorry she's leaving.
But she's not the only one to go. A week ago Friday I treated the Magazines staff to lunch so that Shawn McMullen could tell them that he's been recommended by the elders of Lifespring Christian Church to become their senior minister. He'll preach trial sermons at Lifespring's various campuses this month, and if the elders' call is confirmed September 29, he'll begin at Lifespring November 1.

This follows a summer in which we lost Jared Alexander, Robb Faust, Zach Davis, Valaira Hoskins, and a couple of others I didn't know as well and whose names I've forgotten.
Someone came by my desk after lunch today, "You're not planning on leaving, are you?"
"Not planning on it," I said.

Weekend Update

This daily diary is turning into a weekly (or less) update! Let me record our activities at least for last weekend.
Friday Evelyn and I went to Relish Modern Tapas for a wonderful supper. We tried a couple of their larger portions, main dishes (she the fish tacos, I the salmon) along with hummus and pita bread and later some lettuce wraps filled with quinoa salad. Very yummy, and different from the usual and mainstream. Then we hopped across the street to the Regal Cinemas to see Lee Daniels' the Butler. Our verdict: the acting was superb, especially by Oprah and Forrest Whitaker, despite the much-publicized departures from actual history. We enjoyed it.
Saturday I was at the BMV at 8:05 to get new plates for my car. I stood in four lines throughout the morning and was finally out of there by sometime after 10:00. Line one: to pay the sales tax and transfer the title. But that can't be done until the folks next door do a VIN check. Line two: Grab my number out of the machine--I was 31, and they were serving number 2--sit and read the newspaper till I'm called to do my VIN check. Line 3: take the VIN check form back to the title transfer lady, pay the sales taxes (the second largest check I've written this year), and get my Ohio Title. Line 4: go to the Returning Customers counter where I am called ahead of all the people in the room with numbers and escorted to the counter where I can buy new plates.
I stopped to buy two new tires for the car (the rear tires were waffled and wobbly-sounding) and had just enough time to stop at Auto Zone to buy bolts to attach the plates to the front (I bought the car in Kentucky, where they don't require front plates) and browse the garden section at Wal-Mart.
Then off to lunch with Dave Faust to brainstorm with him some ideas for replacing Shawn McMullen who plans to leave the editorship of The Lookout to become senior minister at Lifespring Christian Church.
I paid bills and cleaned out a drawer in the afternoon after I finally got home. (Dave and I enjoyed a LONG lunch at Seasons 52, a place I definitely want to return to!) Then we had a pleasant and fun evening with Terry and Shirley Wuske at their place. They fixed a steak on the grill and we ate on their patio adjacent to their spacious, park-like backyard. Brandon was in for the day, and we enjoyed visiting with him too.
Terry drilled holes in my front bumper, and we installed my shiny, new Ohio license plates.

Sunday was worship at the 9:00 service, breakfast at Cracker Barrel, Skyping with Wendy, a trip to the grocery store followed by my daily watering, some desk work inside (wrote a draft of my column that goes live Tuesday--tomorrow--morning at ChristianStandard.com), chicken tacos and some TV in the evening. A pleasant day!

Sundays With Friends

This Sunday evening we enjoyed a wonderful dinner and fun celebration with Kay and Fred Freeberg, two former neighbors who are celebrating their 50th wedding anniversary. The party was at Jag's Steak and Seafood Restaurant, a great place not far from home in West Chester. I've often thought about visiting there, and this was the perfect opportunity.
The food was wonderful. We had great fun visiting not only with Kay and Fred, but their kids Kathy and Rob, their kids spouses, and other former Pheasant Hill Drive neighbors Gayle and Glenda Mulberry.
The thing is, we had attended the Mulberry's 50th wedding anniversary celebration just three weeks earlier. Their party was at Parkers Blue Ash Tavern, another fine restaurant in our area, with equally excellent food and a great time of visiting. We visited across the table with the Freebergs at the Mulberry party and with the Mulberrys at the Freeberg's party. Two great meals and two fine times of catching up with former neighbors and friends.

I didn't get the best pictures of Kay and Fred at their party. These were taken as they were speaking at the end of the evening after all the tributes, memories, and a Jeopardy-style guessing game.

 The better picture of Kay and Fred was at the Mulberry's party.

And I snapped a picture of the Mulberrys that night too.