Today is our last weekly youth meeting for the school year. We'll do some stuff during the summer here and there. Our mission trip isn't going to happen. The organization we were a part of has dissolved. No worries.

To tell you the truth, I can't wait until the next school year. This year was a struggle for a number of reasons. Our youth ministry hasn't been where I would have thought it would be, or be doing. That is necessarily bad. It just means things didn't go the way I planned them. We've had some issues to take care of, and I think we've been doing that.

Now, I'm not looking forward to next year so I can be done with this one. No; the praying, planning and building has accumulated into a wealth of ideas and information. I truly believe we'll be able to start ministering with the these students on a different level than we have before. That said, we're not done.

My request is that you would continue to pray for:

the students in Bandera
our student ministers/leaders
discernment

I'll be out of town for the next several days. My number 2 sister (age, not rank) will be graduating Thursday night from High School. We'll leave Thursday afternoon and return Sunday evening. This should be the first Sunday back in the new sanctuary. You guys try to behave. Stay blessed...john

I don't recall where I got this from. But it's been in front of me for a while now and I thought I would share it with you today.

Joy is contagious, be a joy carrier

A kindness each day brings joy your way.

Take time to enjoy yourself or you'll never enjoy anyone else.

Turn a frown to a smile by thinking of God's love.

(I'm not quite sure about this one, but here it is anyways) Happiness comes when you stay too busy to worry.

No one can take your joy away from you. That's something given to you by God. Just ask Paul.

Shout with joy to God, all the earth! (Psalms 66:1)

Stay blessed...john

This is an addendum to my last post. It is a wonderful thought that I think I might print out and place somewhere I can always see it.

Whether you like it or not, your life is the first Bible most people ever read. That is why Jesus taught that our lives must be dominated by His love, not by religious activity alone. Our sociology must reflect our theology. How you treat people will be the clearest indication to them of who you really think God is.

Becky Pippert in Discipling the Young Person

Awesome! Stay blessed...john

I got this from a blog I usually scan. The blogger has a great interest in Robert Ingersoll (late 1800s political figure). He was probably most known for his speeches, and, for our purposes, his views on religion. As I read this selection today I was troubled; I don't even know how to describe it.

Am I saddened by the thought that someone would think this way about Christ? Of course, but this is nothing new; it wasn't in Ingersoll's day and it sure isn't in ours. Does the influence of this kind of thought seem surprising? No, the apostle Paul dealt with it and suffered because of it. Can I say anything about evil, animosity or lack of biblical understanding in thoughts like these? Yes, I could, but those who view Christ (God) this way don't see enlightenment as evil; I'm not saying I do, but when our thoughts and ideas turn away from God that, by definition, is evil.

The words of people who hold these beliefs speak of truth and character. However, I have trouble finding resources that do not use derogatory language, hateful speech and the frequent use of belittlement as a technique for defense when discussing religion or faith--yea, no animosity there. It's obvious that thousands of years of education of who Christ is will never be enough. If Christ viewed Himself as God, then He knew all about science, justice and education.

I'm not trying to pose a defense against these words/thoughts. Basically, I'm just doing a little ranting. BUT! I pray this would be a spark for some of you. God's work should always be ever pressing in our hearts. Only the Kingdom of God will bring change; that is what Jesus taught. I pray to let my life be a reflection of that kingdom---that way I wouldn't have to say a thing. Stay blessed...john

IS CHRIST OUR EXAMPLE?

He never said a word in favor of education. He never even hinted at the existence of any science. He never uttered a word in favor of industry, economy or of any effort to better our condition in this world. He was the enemy of the successful, of the wealthy. Dives was sent to hell, not because he was bad, but because he was rich. Lazarus went to heaven, not because he was good, but because he was poor.

Christ cared nothing for painting, for sculpture, for music — nothing for any art. He said nothing about the duties of nation to nation, of king to subject; nothing about the rights of man; nothing about intellectual liberty or the freedom of speech. He said nothing about the sacredness of home; not one word for the fireside; not a word in favor of marriage, in honor of maternity.

He never married. He wandered homeless from place to place with a few disciples. None of them seem to have been engaged in any useful business, and they seem to have lived on alms.

All human ties were held in contempt; this world was sacrificed for the next; all human effort was discouraged. God would support and protect.

At last, in the dusk of death, Christ, finding that he was mistaken, cried out: “My God My God! Why hast thou forsaken me?”

We have found that man must depend on himself. He must clear the land; he must build the home; he must plow and plant; he must invent; he must work with hand and brain; he must overcome the difficulties and obstructions; he must conquer and enslave the forces of nature to the end that they may do the work of the world.

–Robert Green Ingersoll, “About the Holy Bible” (1894)

Okay, click on the link to see an optical illusion (kind of). Look at the center of the page for about 5-10 seconds then turn away. (whoaah!) The music isn't anything special.

Strobing

A little boy, waiting for his mother to come out of a store, is approached by a man asking directions: "Son, can you tell me where the post office is?"
"Sure," says the kid, "just go straight down the street a couple of blocks and turn right."
The man thanks the boy kindly and adds, "I am the new preacher in town, and if you come to the church on Sunday, I will show you how to get to heaven."
The boy grins, in that way kids have a way of grinning when they know something you don't: "Aw, c'mon, you don't even know the way to the post office!"

Here are some of the famous faces that bear my resemblance. This is from MyHeritage.com. Give it a try and lets see some pictures. Stay blessed...john

I love the Spirit Song, and I used to live in Edinburg. Can you feel the vibes right now? Stay blessed...john

about the gas station owner who did not sell gas for 24 hours?

The owner of Towne Market Mobil in this suburb north of Milwaukee shut down his pumps for 24 hours, hoping to start a movement aimed at persuading oil companies to lower their prices.

"Somebody out there is making money at these prices, but not me," said Pollack, 57. "So I just thought: What can I do to help the consumer?"

That is an exert from an Associated Press article today. You can read the entire article here. Interestingly enough I can't figure out what I would want to write down about this. Okay, I'll think out loud on this one--hey I can always use the delete key.

Can we call the man heroic, or a consumer advocate? Probably not, at least not at this point. But at least he tried something. Why do we think all our ideas have to "work" for them to mean something. Oh yes, even in the church, but I won't go there right now. Your ideas/work should be meaningful to you. If they are you have a great likelihood of reaching others. Maybe you won't "win them over," but at least they know what you stand for.

Oh, I could so make that into a sermon right now about the importance of taking a stand in our culture. But I won't. You are spared. Stay blessed...john

Yes, even in the church we find many guilty parties. If you've ever used PowerPoint or been aggravated by someone's overuse of it, I guarantee you'll laugh at some point in this video

Life After Death by PowerPoint

There's a new movie coming out in June called Evan Almighty. It looks to be a sort of sequel to Bruce Almighty. I haven't read any reviews or heard whether it's any good or not. We'll probably go see it. It comes out June 22nd.

A website called arkalmighty.com has launched and is a tool for churches to follow the theme of the movie--acts of kindness to others. Here is an exert from the website:

"Doing kind deeds for others isn’t a new phenomenon. Fourteen years ago, Pastor Steve Sjogren inspired thousands of people to engage in random acts of kindness in his ground-breaking book, Conspiracy of Kindness: A Refreshing New Approach to Sharing the Love of Jesus with Others. The book ignited a flurry of selfless, unexpected acts of kindness intended to help others understand God’s gift of love and grace to all people.

ArkALMIGHTY takes Sjogren’s ideas one step further by actively seeking out people in need and connecting them with those who are willing to help. Inspired by the themes in the upcoming film, Evan Almighty, ArkALMIGHTY seeks to follow God’s call for Christians to always do good - to friends, to neighbors, to family members, to strangers, even to those who don’t like us."

I haven't completely looked through it. Just on the surface it looks great. It's an idea that's been something a lot of churches have done a decent job at. I'm hopeful that this will perhaps springboard us into further ministry to others and from others as well. We'll see.

Stay blessed...john

What's better than a little friendly competition? Well, maybe, but for our sake here let's go with friendly competition.
I will warn you this game can get frustrating after the first few hours (yes, I'm not kidding) :)
Anyways, have fun TRYING to beat me. If you think you can try the monkey kick off.

Go Spurs Go!

I finished Max Lucado's book entitled The Applause of Heaven. Our Womens' Bible Study used this book and God's Psychiatry by Charles Allen to study the Beatitudes. Everyone seemed to enjoy it. Allen's book is a small gem; I recommend it. Here are a couple of thoughts from Lucado's book I thought were worth repeating.

"Paul never took a course in missions. He never sat in on a committee meeting. He never read a book on church growth. He was just inspired by the Holy Spirit and punch-drunk on the love that makes the impossible possible: salvation."

"We would do well to learn a lesson from the rod, the rock and the saliva. They didn't complain. They didn't' questions God's wisdom. They didn't suggest an alternative plan. Perhaps the reason the Father has used so many inanimate objects for his mission is that they don't tell him how to do his job!"

It's an easy read. Someone probably has a copy you can pick up. Stay blessed...john

I like the concept. True, not every half sentence that shows up on a church marquee is worth a lengthy discussion. The "We're not Dairy Queen, but we have Great Sundays" is a lot overused. But this could spar some conversation.

This is one of those balance issues. There are a lot of questions that come to mind, for me, when I think about using this.

• If not every search, what kind of searches can Google satisfy?
• When are we satisfied with the answers we find?
• At what point does the search end?
  
• Do we trust (are satisfied) more easily (are convinced of) Google's (or fill in the blank) answers more than we are with God's?
• What is it we find when we search?

And on and on...

I believe the ultimate authority in my life has to be God. Through constant prayer, meditation, contemplation and seeking I feel God has led me where He wanted me to be, and provided answers for me when I needed them--and even when I didn't want them.
That said, I couldn't recall every time a word from someone, or a thought provoking question :) led me to an important faith lesson. I know some people will shy away from asking advice, or seeking other's opinion for fear of not following God. That's seems like a noble thought. However, God has worked in other's lives, just as well as He is wanting (and probably has) to work in yours.
Part of the community of God is the commitment to each other to support, love, encourage and, dare I say, hold accountable. If you don't think so reread Paul's letters the the churches. There's all that and more. All I want to emphasize to you is the benefit of sharing in the community of God. Let God be your ultimate guide; let God guide you to those you need in your life right now. Stay blessed...john

Most of you are aware of the remodeling project going on in our church sanctuary. I read a story from home that the city of Galveston is looking to build two resort hotels on the west end of the island. The area they have targeted is where I spend the last years living.

It'll be interesting, at least for me, to see how that will develop. I'm not against it or anything. But for me it was another message to my heart. When the remodel began in the church I took our youth group for a short tour and talked about what they would be doing.

It was a good starter to go into a talk about remodeling, or renewing, our lives. And it definitely coincides with the small series were on now (The Power of a Changed Life). The key verse for this series is Romans 12:1:

Therefore, I urge you, brothers, in view of God's mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God—this is your spiritual act of worship.

This is a good time for us all to reflect on how we can change our lives--whether we're new to the faith or not. Are there areas we need a little remodeling done? We see what kind of work God can do in creation; what could He do with our lives if we consecrated them to Him? Stay blessed...john

Here's this week's video invite for our youth group. We're studying "The Power of a Changed Life." Wednesdays @ 5:30 pm.




Stay blessed...john

Here is a picture I found of Tuffy Tor (see recent post below).
As you can see, everyone has a good sense of humor about it (the police tape & wheelchair). My sister told me they did catch who was responsible.

Justice!!!
Stay blessed...john

One of our Sunday School classes has recently began a study on marriage. Now, I want you to know this will not be covered in that class! This is pretty funny, though. Don't worry I'll figure some way to get it to everyone.



How far could we reach into this one. Is does make for a great intro into a discussion about communication in marriage. What do you do if this is all you have? Is this really the way it works? Is this how we treat our communication with God? Oh, the possibilities are endless. We'll pick up on that later. Stay blessed...john

One of the last sections in my Sociology class dealt with race, ethnicity, discrimination and prejudice. This website explores many of the areas of concern within these topics. I haven't gone through the entire site, but it does look to be informative. Let me know. Stay blessed...john

RACE--Are We So Different?

I thought this was humorous. It pokes a little fun at how news organizations can want a story a little too much. Hope you enjoy. Stay blessed...john

Here's a tragedy. It involves a kidnapping. Someone has kidnapped Tuffy Tor and left him for dead. Tuffy Tor was (is, and will always be) Ball High School's mascot. We didn't have someone running around in a suit. We had an 8-foot tornado that was lifted above the shoulders of class members.

I've tried to see if I could find an actual picture, but with no success. You see, you just don't appreciate what you have until you lose it. I'll keep looking though. Here's the story from The Galveston County News.


Kidnappers leave Tuffy Tor beaten, broken

By Rhiannon Meyers
The Daily News
Published May 4, 2007

GALVESTON — Tuffy Tor is no more.

Galveston police found the beaten and broken Ball High mascot in a field on 7-Mile Road Wednesday night.

Tuffy had been a fixture at Ball High. He stood watch at the front doors of the high school. He was there at every football game and even had his own graduation cap.

Students claim Tuffy was kidnapped from his front-door post at Ball High on Saturday morning, but he wasn’t reported missing until Wednesday, said Galveston Independent School District Police Chief LeeRoy Amador.

It was unclear Thursday what happened in the last moments of Tuffy’s 22-year life, but apparently it was brutal.

Tuffy’s 8-feet tall, yellow Fiberglas body was found beaten and broken in half Wednesday night. The kidnappers punched holes in his head, snapped off several fingers and dumped him in a pasture, said Lisa Schweitzer, Ball High’s student council sponsor. An empty wheelchair was found near his body.

“He’s our mascot and the soul of our campus and community,” she said. “He will remain in us through our spirit and camaraderie. Now is the time to show our loyalty.”

Police were able to extract some intact fingerprints from Tuffy’s body. Students on Thursday came forward with information, but Tuffy’s kidnappers remained at large Thursday night, Amador said.

Anyone with information is urged to call Galveston Independent School District police at 409-766-5811. The student council is offering a cash reward for information that leads to the arrest and conviction of Tuffy’s kidnappers.

On Thursday, students placed flowers near Tuffy’s broken body at Ball High, Schweitzer said. The body will be moved to a repair shop today, she said.

The Ball High student council is hoping to raise money to repair Tuffy so he can attend graduation May 31. The student council has set up a Tuffy Tor Fund at Ball High.

“We just can’t not have Tuffy there,” she said. “He’s very much a part of this school.”

+++

Tuffy Tor Fund c/o Ball High School Student Council 4115 Ave. O Galveston, Texas 77550

"The End" of someting is usually a big deal in our world. Have you ever known when something was going to end and the few weeks beforehand seemed to last forever? What is it about the end that creates all the emotions we tend to experience?

As I'm writing this we're heading into the final days of another semester. Believe me, I've been looking forward to this! It just got me thinking about how we handle the ends in life.

Do we really have ends, or does everything work together to continue a work in progress? We can't say "the end" happens when we die. As CHRISTians we believe death to be the ultimate beginning. Does life end then as we enter eternity, or was this life a preparation for what is to come?

See what a few moments of time to sit and write can produce. Yes, a mass form of confusion. Actually, I just wanted to give you something to think about. Perhaps we can talk about it soon. In the mean time I'm going to enjoy the END of the semester....no crying, looking back or remorse for me! Stay blessed...john

No, I'm not singing the song.
I actually am exciting about some things going on in our church. Last night our Missions Committee met; this was only their 2nd meeting. We had a guest join us to help us explore some possibilities for community service and members shared ideas about some things we can do. All the ideas are being worked on and you should be hearing about some of these soon...like real soon. There was a lot of enthusiasm at the meeting.


The night before at Bible study there were several people seriously considering what they could do to promote more the values and benefits of Scripture to our communities.

I'm telling you; I've told you before. The sparks that flare when we involve ourselves in CHRISTian education and mission can be very powerful. They are very contagious.

I am very excited about what I think God is preparing for our congregation. Be careful!

Stay blessed...john

You might be a part of a church. What an experience that can be! Of course, that can be true in many faithful, positive, self-serving and negative ways. This blog is a place where all of those come together. Hopefully, when reading this blog you will laugh, think, Amen! and want to shoot the messenger. My love for the church, though, is so great that I have no other option than to be as honest and straightforward as I can be when it comes to what the church does. Sometimes that is another celebration and other times it’s another “come home to Jesus” moment.

Me?

• I’m just another follower of The Way. I came to know God’s love when I was 18 years old. Since that time in my life I have tried to figure out what it means to love God in return.
• Those beautiful people I live with? Well, what can I say? I’m another husband with a beautiful wife and another dad with three children. They all remind me constantly of what it means to live a life of love.
• And, I’m trying everything I can to be another UMC minister—a good one, too. The funny thing, it seems, is that you get to decide if I am, but then again you don’t. Does that make sense?

You can expect to read another post 3-4 times a week. Regular posts include Music Monday, another weekend linkdump and Sunday’s sermon with a few comments a la carte. There are several ways to keep up with anotherjohn.com. You could get in the habit of typing that address in your browser’s address bar; that would designate you as a top notch anotherjohn.com reader. Then again you can subscribe to receive email updates of all the latest posts. Just think abou it, a free copy of anotherjohn.com sent to you and your email account—priceless. Finally, well there are probably other fancy things you can do to read a blog, but I don’t know about them—you can subscribe to the feed in your favorite news aggregator (Good reader, etc).

Is there anything I’m leaving off that you are just dying to know? I probably left it off for a reason. Still, you can ask. Follow me on Twitter (@RevJohnFletcher), and keep up with my church on Twitter (@oakhaven) and on Facebook (Fan Page).

Finally, a disclaimer I think I am supposed to make. What you read here is mine all mine (muhahahaha). It should be noted my less than exemplary opinions reflect me and my less than exemplary self, not my less than exemplary denomination or church. Did that come out right?

Did I mention I'm an Eagles fan?