The Boy Loves Books

As I mentioned in a post a while back, Isaiah loves to read. In fact, he loves to read so much that he has many of his books mostly memorized. For instance, The Great Dog Wash (which came out of a cereal box) is one we've read several times lately, and I no longer read this book to him, he reads it to me. Granted, it's not that long and it does rhyme, but still...


Another one his favorites right now is the Read Aloud Bible Stories book, which I have to say, is pretty cool. The stories are well summarized, easy to understand, and have good illustrations.

We currently have volume 4 (above), so if anyone is wondering what Isaiah might enjoy for Christmas, I would guess volumes 1-3 (available on Amazon). In fact, since Isaiah does have many of his books memorized, we are in need of restocking his library, so feel free to pass along any of your favorites as well.

A Tale of Two Donalds

Today started as any other Monday would start at our house. Early.

I don't know if I had a case of the Mondays or just a lot on my mind, but I felt a little bit in a funk this morning. I was ready to spend some time in peace and quiet at the Wesley House, as well as get some tasks accomplished today. I was not expecting to have an adventure.

------------

One of the people I follow on twitter is Donald Miller. He wrote Blue Like Jazz several years ago and it was a pretty big hit in the Christian-verse. I've read it a couple of times myself, and I always thought it was a fun, thought provoking, and faith challenging read. Anyway, I follow him on twitter and I've been reading his blog quite a bit, too. He's been talking about his new book more and more, and upon reading some samples on the blog, I began to get pretty excited about it. I was even more excited when he announced that a promotion for the book would be hiding manuscripts all over the country for people to find - from hints and directions via twitter (and facebook).

------------

This morning I'm leaving Wesley's treasurer's office on campus and Corrie texts me, "Donald miller is hiding one in memphis today." Immediately I call her and ask, "Do you want to go?" She says, "Sure!" After a little more discussion we realize that taking the boys on this venture might be too hard, so my sweet, loving, and beautiful wife lets me go to Memphis to look for this manuscript. I traded in my blah of a Monday for a Quixotic adventure.

As I head out of Oxford, I realize that I could be driving to Memphis for nothing. It takes an hour and fifteen minutes to get there and what if the location is sent while I'm driving. I try not to think of that, and I just keep driving. I've already called my friend Michael who lives in Memphis; we're going to eat lunch together if nothing else, and since he lives there, he might be able to help me find it quickly.

As I drive I receive a text that says the location will go out around noon. Perfect. I'm due to arrive in Memphis around 11:30am. That gives me thirty minutes to find a place to station myself and also familiarize myself with the surroundings. Michael suggests a place just off I-240 on Union Avenue, close to the interstate but also just east of downtown. I find a spot in the McDonald's parking lot, and I wait.

...and I wait.

...and I wait.

Noon comes....and goes.

...and I wait.

...and I wait.

Finally, at 12:54pm, the location is sent, and I'm off. I need to get to

Marlowe's, a BBQ and ribs place just down from Graceland. AH. Of course! Graceland is an iconic place to hide something in

Memphis. Why didn't I think of that?

My station close to the interstate pays off since I have to head south 7-8 miles to get to the Graceland part of town (thanks Michael!). Corrie is feeding me directions over the phone. The race is on!

As I exit off the interstate, I realize I'm only 2.5 miles from Marlowe's and only 10 minutes has passed; I think to myself, "I might actually get this thing!"

I cruise by Graceland. I go through what seems like 20 stop lights (it was probably 5 of them). Then I see it. Marlowe's Ribs and Restaurant. Complete with, not one, but two pink cadillac limos in the parking lot. (Just call and they'll pick you up and bring you to the restaurant!)

I pull in, get out of the car, and walk in to the restaurant. There aren't very many people around. Could I be first? I look around for a book, package, anything that looks out of place, but I don't see anything.

There's a gift shop to the left. I walk in there looking expectantly. Nothing. An older gentleman walks in to the gift shop and goes behind the counter. I walk up and ask, "Do you know anything about a book that's hidden here?"

He responds, "I sure do." He reaches down behind him and picks up a bulky manilla envelope and says, "I'm supposed to give this to the first person who shows up." And he hands it to me!

YES! I found the book. I call Corrie - she is ecstatic. I call Michael - he laughs out loud. (Then says he'll meet me for lunch there at Marlowe's.)

I had gone out to the car to make those calls, and on my way back in to the restaurant, three other searchers are coming out. They congratulate me and then we talk for several minutes about ourselves, Donald Miller, etc. Turns out they're all musicians of some kind (one is even the violinist for Skillet - whoa!), and they were camping out on twitter today, too.

On the cover of the manuscript is a letter written by Donald Miller

extending his congratulations. He explains that this copy is numbered and signed, and that he hopes I will enjoy the read. Then he states,

"I'd love the opportunity to talk with you more, which is why I'm including my cell phone number, ***-***-****. I'd be most grateful if you didn't share this number with all your friends, but please do give me a call. I would love to "meet" you over the phone, learn more about you, and get your feedback on whether you think this book is any good. I look forward to hearing from you soon."

So, if you'll excuse me, I have some reading to do, and a phone call to make.

Aarrrgh

As a dad, I take it upon myself to teach my sons the really important things in life. Things like "touchdown", "you're out", "swing batta batta", and "Go DUKE!"

Isaiah and I have been reading a couple of pirate books lately. They are very entertaining and, it turns out, educational. For instance, did you know pirates don't eat spinach or change their socks?

The fruit of reading these books has been Isaiah learning a new phrase:

"Scurvy dog!"

Almost done...

There's light at the end of the tunnel....and no, it's not the train.

After almost 5 full years, I am two credit hours away from finishing my Master of Divinity degree. Today, I finished an exegesis of Galatians class. You may be wondering what "exegesis" is, well, it's studying the original language of the Bible in order to come to a deeper understanding of the text. I've been working on my final project all week, and I emailed it in just a little while ago.

Here's a taste of what I had to do...


Maybe you had to diagram sentences in english class growing up. Well, we do it in Greek too. What you see (sorry it's a little small) is my diagram of Galatians 6:1.

Seasonal Resources

I take the seasons of the church year pretty seriously. I usually read some kind of devotional books during times like Lent and Advent as a way to bring more focus to my life. I think Lent has become one of my favorite ones over the past few years because it's the only one we get to fully experience together at Wesley. So I thought I would give you a glimpse of what I'm reading.


This is a blog of Asbury Seminary, which gives a Lenten reading everyday. It will also give readings during Eastertide (because Easter is more than just one day long). Additionally, there is a devotional thought or quote from one of the great saints of the faith.


I've owned this little book for almost ten years. I pull it out about once a year as a guide for just reading the Bible, but also for reading the Lectionary passages every Sunday.

As a reminder, I continually update my bookshelf on the lower right side of my blog. It gives you a look at what I'm reading for school but also for fun.

Post-Election Reflection

One of our hopes for Isaiah is that he becomes a lover of books. I was not much of a reader growing up, but I am trying to make up for it now. I am usually reading about 2-3 books at a time, and I always read at least a few pages of something before I go to sleep at night. So, our house is filled with books, and Isaiah has many of his own books to choose from as well. One of those books is this one:Last night, Isaiah chose this one to read and as I read it, I realized that this book now has a different ending. The book ends with the phrase, "Now anyone can go to any school, eat in any restaurant, or drink from any water fountain...and dream their dreams just like Martin Luther King, Jr." All these things are true, but there is one thing that African-Americans have never done...until Tuesday.

I watched the events unfold Tuesday night and knew I was witnessing history. I am excited for the day when I can tell Isaiah and his little brother about the night I saw the first African-American become the President. As a white man, though, my experience of that night is mostly cognitive, not emotional. I've been told my whole life that I can do whatever I want, and that is true because white men have ruled the world for over 2000 years, and America since its inception. I spoke with a friend of mine from Jackson on Wednesday night, he is African-American. He said, "Now I really believe I can be whatever I want. Not that I want to be president, because I don't, but I just believe it's possible now."

As I read The Story of Martin Luther King, Jr. to Isaiah last night, something deep inside me clicked. I knew that history was different, and this little children's book somehow needs to be rewritten: "Now anyone can go to any school, eat in any restaurant, drink from any water fountain, or even be President of the United States..."

Dr. King once wrote, "Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere."* I like to think one of the last great injustices of the American racial divide has been torn down, which means true justice and peace are close at hand.

_____________________________

*from A Letter from Birmingham Jail, April 16, 1963. If you have time, I highly recommend reading this letter. It's important to note that he is addressing clergy.

Dr. Seuss meets Job

Isaiah really likes for us to read to him these days. We're really glad since a goal of ours has always been for our kids to prefer books to TV. The only downside to this plan is having to read the same books over and over and over and over again. There's one book in particular that Isaiah likes right now; it's The Tooth Book by Dr. Seuss. I'm not lying when I say that I've read this book about 50 times in the last 1o days. Like any good Dr. Suess book, the rhyming scheme is fun and makes it easy to remember. For instance,

"They come in handy in my job,"
says high trapezer Mike McCobb.
"If I should ever lose a tooth,
I'd lose my wife and that's the truth."

After you read this over and over, you start to think in seussical type rhymes. So, this morning I was working on an assignment for my Exegesis of Wisdom Literature class, and I was supposed to reduce a couple of chapters of Job in to manageable sizes. Our professor told us to be creative, and this is what I submitted.

Job 11:1-20

I am Zophar, a Naamathite
and let me try to set things right.
Your words are many, but your thoughts are flawed,
your speech has nothing to do with God.

God is higher than all of space,
His ways unknown to the lower base.
He knows evil when he sees it,
you’re a deceiver, so you better cease it.
And if you think you know his plan
then a donkey has just birthed a man!

So, Job, put away your sin and pride
and with God ultimately you will reside.
Your darkness it will be made bright,
or I’m not Zophar the Naamathite.

fathertide?

Yeah, I made it up.

Whenever tide is used as a suffix (at the end of a word), it denotes a specified time or season. This is mostly seen within the context of the Church calendar, like Eastertide or Kingdomtide.

I am in the season of fatherhood, hence fathertide. Though I am a campus minister by vocation and calling, a husband, a brother, a son, a grandson, a nephew, etc. etc...It is in being a father that I find profound insights about life and faith. Who knew you could learn so much from a 20 month old? Who knew that reading Rudolph's Surprise Party in mid-September (5x in a row, 2 days in a row) could teach me about patience?

That's why I'm blogging. Fathertide is not just about what I will teach my sons (the second one is coming at the end of January), but about what they will teach me.