35mm Negatives

Do you remember the old 35mm negatives that were stuffed in the package with the prints? 

I found a bunch in the desk drawer I was cleaning out. 

Holding them up to the light I strained to make out the images trying to recall the places and faces of whom I had photographed. 

This got me thinking about how much easier it is to perceive the situation when looking at the print, the positive, not the negative. 

And then I pondered the idea of all the man make rules and regulations.  

All the “thou shalt not” rules...don’t do this and don’t do that. 

How much easier it would be if we just stuck with two rules, the two positive rules Jesus taught us.

He said to him, “You shall love the Lord, your God, with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind. This is the greatest and the first commandment. The second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself. The whole law and the prophets depend on these two commandments.”Mathew 22:37-41

This would work if I really looked at my actions and words with real love…and looked at every neighbor...searching for that little bit of Jesus hiding away in each of us.   

Dear Lord Jesus

When I’m down and feeling blue

And mucking about in a stew

All the times I’ve had no clue

I forget to call on You.

And when it seems a painful labor 

To truly love that dreadful neighbor

I need to ask this special favor

That I may feel Your love to savor.

So on this day I truly pray

That You might show me the way

To think of You when I stray

For my ransom You did pay.

Amen.

Unbelievable

As I kneeled in my unbelief while the priest raised the bread and the wine and declared “The Body and Blood of Christ”…I thought how could this be…this is unbelievable. My mind wanders and wondered about all the other unbelievable mysteries, the Virgin birth, three persons in one God, the seven Sacraments, walking on water, water into wine and on and on. 

 Then I thought.  How can it be that so many times I have experienced unbelievable situations, bad situations that I was powerless to execrate myself from but some how they were resolved?  “Dumb Luck” can only go so far.  There has been too many times that some power…some God…some unbelievable God was watching over and taking care of me. 
And what about all the good stuff, all the blessings: the roof over my head, my warm bed, a good life and a wonderful wife…it is all unbelievable.   

 And why is it that nothing gives me the calm and peace that I find in knowing that God is in charge and everything will be OK?  That is unbelievable.  

So if God is God he can do whatever unbelievable stuff he wants.   

 I’m going to take him at his “Word” and believe the unbelievable stuff.

Consequently, I’m in…hook line and sinker…I choose to believe even if my tiny brain can’t figure it out.

Amen.

Mark 9, 23-24

 “If you can’?” said Jesus. “Everything is possible for one who believes.

 Immediately the boy’s father exclaimed, “I do believe; help me overcome my unbelief!”

A Trip Back In Time (Before time runs out)

                                                          I

When I realized that the number of time I would possibly blow out my birthday candles could be counted on my fingers…Mary and I decided it was time to make that trip of a lifetime while we still could.

Not knowing what to take I have put off packing under the elusion that I will have some epiphany at the last minute. I’ve learned from past trips that you can get what ever you want at the local Walmart. So packing light and “VISA, don’t leave home without it” have become my mantra.  Apparently there is no Walmart in Israel and I’m glad.  I didn’t want this to be a “vacation” vacation. I didn’t want to be a tourist. I want to see and feel the Holy Land as if it were two thousand years ago, if that is possible. 

I was feeling a little uneasy about the trip…thinking about flying in a big airplane with seats that only recline in a metaphorical sense, looking outside through a peepholes three seats over and trying to determine exactly where I was. And…worst of all… not being the pilot, not having any control of the stick and rudder.  

Then there was that going to an unfamiliar place. Being driven around in a bus not knowing exactly where I was or where I was going.  I’ve got to have a map and a compass.  I’m not comfortable just looking out the window at the scenery and not knowing the longitude and latitude.  So, I spent the whole day on Google maps plotting our entire itinerary, recording the mileage from stop to stop and checking the Google street view through the eyes of that little orangie-yellow man down in the tool bar.  Pouring over the maps and material
.  Now, I can look forward to the pilgrimage that will take me to the places where my Redeemer was born…lived, died and rose again.  

I was asked if I was excited about going…but I’m not sure “excited” is the correct adjective.  I’m a little curious and a bit apprehensive about what to expect.  I’m concerned that my bad knee will hinder my ability to walk the cobble stone streets of the Via Dolorosa.  But I’m determined to trod that path even if I have to drag that gimp leg one step at a time the entire way…it will never be as painful and a nail thought the hand.  My hope is that I will be able to better appreciate the Bible, piece together the puzzle of snippets I hear at Mass by knowing where it all took place…maybe even crank my faith up a notch. 

                                                II

And then…like Dorothy…I’m no longer in Kansas.  

I’m standing on the shores of the Sea of Galilee smelling the charcoal fire as Jesus calls to me…eating the fish that swallowed the coin…walking the road from Nazareth to Capernaum after standing on Mount Precipice.  I’m sailing on the “Jesus Boat” after He calmed the sea and listening to the beatitudes on the hillside. Renewing our wedding vows at Cana was like a taste of the best wine. 

Then to Jerusalem…Walking the Palm Sunday road, praying in the Garden of Gethsemane and singing “Hallelujah” in the tomb…all moments I’ll never forget.  East to Jericho, the Dead Sea, the lowest place on earth (where I bobbed like a cork), the Jordan River for renewal of baptismal vows. 

In this place there are too many the holy sites, too many rocky hills, too many breath taking views, too many unforgetable moments and too many cultures for me to comprehend. In this place there is too much geography, too much topography and too much history for me to fathom.

It’s a place of the Old Testament and the New Testament with pockets of illegal settlements, separation walls and groups of people with many different beliefs. I get the impression that it’s still an eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth. There are complicated confusing rules that change from town to town, from neighborhood to neighborhood and from church to church. “don’t walk here”, “don’t sing there”. Being stoned is the price you may pay for breaking some rules.

It is such a mishmash of culture, architecture and beliefs.  Strange customs, strange manors of dress, at less it seem strange to me. I was amused by the ones dressed in black with black fedora hats that appeared to be several sizes too small and long curls of hair hanging down each side of their face.  They wore long tassels and wide phylacteries. How strange that those who stuck to such strict rules of the Old Testament (such as not pushing an elevator button on the Sabbath) walked around talking on a cell phones. But, then again in their defense, I didn’t see cell phones mentioned in Leviticus, Numbers or Deuteronomy.  

I struggled to sort out my thoughts of the previous nine days as the wide-bodied metal bird chase the sun across the Atlantic. It was whirlwind trip of the Holy Land that traced the steps that Jesus walked and still walks. From Bethlehem to Capernaum, from Jerusalem to Jericho, and all those places the Bible talks about. I experienced the texture, temperature and topography.
The smell, sights and sounds overwhelmed me but the place has changed me…I needed to change.

It is so comforting to know that God is in charge and every thing will be ok.  I am so blessed to be able hang out with people who take God seriously. 

It’s you my Lord that saved the day
And that’s a debt I cannot repay
Thank you Lord for all you’ve done
Thanks to you the day is won.

You my Lord have paved the way
Help me now not to sway
To you my Lord a prayerful cry
Into your arms I long to fly.

Amen.

III

I’m back home now, back to work, back to my normal day-to-day routine.  

I’ve been asked “how was the trip…was it emotional?”  

Honestly it was not emotional, but it was educational, overwhelming, enlightening, awe-inspiring, amazing, awesome…I’ve yet to find the right adjective.  I was besieged by so much information, so much history, and so many different cultures and religions that I never had the time to get emotional.

I did not need this trip to make me believe that Jesus Christ risen is my Lord and Savior.  But those flat pages…those black and white pages in the Bible seem to have a three dimensional quality…now they are in living color.  I can smell the breeze off the Sea of Galilee, feel the ground beneath my feet that Jesus walked, and I can see myself in the upper room…and that is very emotional.  It is difficult to get through a Mass without biting my tongue, holding my breath and fighting back the tears.  

I can’t say the Rosary without having visions of the garden of Gethsemane, that “hole” at Caiaphas’ house, the Temple walls or the tomb Jesus lay in and rose from.

The trip has added a whole new dimension to the “Word” it now has a texture that I never imagined.  No longer is it just hearing the word.  It’s like I can taste every word and smell every page.  It is no longer a story that took place in some far-a-way land. 

Yes, it was an unforgettable trip with some unforgettable people.  

Thank you, Lord Jesus, for a trip of a lifetime.  

The memories of which are so sublime.

The land of milk and honey now is real.

And that Holy Land is the ground I feel.

Amen

Brain Surgery

I’m well on my way to recovery after going through brain surgery. The new arthroscopic procedure is experimental. They removed my frontal lobe and replaced it with a donor frontal lobe from a chimpanzee. 
I must admit my cognitive skill have dramatically improved...especially my problem solving skills. The only side effect so far is an insatiable appetite for bananas and an overwhelming urge to scratch in the most inappropriate places.

The Underwear Conundrum

After showering I went to closet to retrieve a clean pair of Underoos.  I was surprised to find only one pair.  Thinking it was a little strange to find only one…when normally the shelf is stuffed full with a variety of colors and styles in all stages of shabbiness…I shrugged it off and assumed the lady of the house had finally carried thru with her threat to commandeer my supply and use them as dust rags.  Anyway, washday was tomorrow and surely replacements would show up.  Well…washday came and went and only a miniscule amount of the clean essentials appeared on the typically full shelf.  As a mater of fact the wife even quizzed me about the whereabouts of my Fruit of the Looms.  

I was clueless and could not imagine what had become of my “Whitie Tighties”.  Days and weeks went by with no sign of the missing man wear. Finally, I broke down and purchased replacements.  Sometimes the only way to find missing articles is to buy new ones.  Another washday passed and we revisited the discussion about what had become of the boxers, the briefs, those designer shorts form Walmart.  Then in a moment of clarity I thought…could they still be packed in my saddlebags from last months motorcycle trip?   

And there they were…nine day of dirty clothes packed in with my rain gear…rain gear that went unused.  

It has to be either dementia, Alzheimer’s or old age…probably all the above.

Now, I have a lifetime supply of those essentials.

Where There Is Smoke There’s Fire

After scratching my head for hours, after checking each and every component with my trusty Fluke and after reviewing every formula in my Electrical Engineering Handbook from E = IR to e = mc2…I was without a clue.  I had no idea as to what was causing the catastrophic control voltage problem.  After burning though a box of fuses…the ole’ time honored, trusted and true “smoke test” proved to be the answer to solving the confounding conundrum.  Conclusion: If you have enough fusses you can start a fire…where there is fire there is smoke…and where there is smoke you will find the problem.

A cracked terminal block can be hard to find until you apply 480 volt to it. 

But when the smoke clears…it’s a “hallelujah” moment.

 

Thank you, Lord.  You always make me look more intelligent than I am…or will ever be.

 Amen.

Dogwood

I followed the ribbon of asphalt as it twisted and turned over hill and dale through the East Texas woods crossing the aptly named creeks like Dry Creek, Clear Creek and Big Cow Creek until I came to the Sabine. Amongst the piney evergreens the flowering dogwood displayed it’s violet, yellow and white blooms....the beauty of which assured me that there is a God and this is one way he shows us his handy work.  As I crossed over the Sabine River into the land of my birth...the land my cousin loved and lived in and now the land in which he would be put to rest I pondered the thought of his passing. 

It concerns me that I am now attending the funerals those in my generation...wondering when the next shoe would drop.  He was three years my junior...the second of the first cousins to go.

Funerals always bring up haunting thoughts of the Hereafter and the unanswered questions about where we will spend our eternity... more importantly where I will spend my eternity?  I can’t help but wonder if I will measure up to God’s expectations.

I must console myself with the faith I’ve come to rely on.  Faith in the promises God make to us.  The promises I find on each and every page of the Bible.

42,748,832,140 Miles

Today completes my 73^rd lap around the sun. That is over 42 billion miles. Mentally I am as immature as I ever was…but physically my body is starting to feel the miles.  I consider myself blessed to have rolled up that many miles with virtually no problems and very little maintenance.  I have never had a broken bone, nor had even enough stitches to count on one hand.  I’ve never had my appendix removed nor any serious surgery.  I don’t think my teenage acne, hang nails nor occasional bouts of hay fever qualify as major medical problems.

I don’t know how much farther I will go before the wheels come off...but, it has been a marvelous ride so for.

I promise to do a better job of taking care of myself in the future and work on getting some of these wrinkles out of my birthday suit.

Thank you Lord, One of Three,

For always taking care of me.

You are the key, You set me free

And fill me up with lots of glee

This will be my only plea

I pray that it will come to be

That down the road I hope to see

You, Lord Jesus, One of Three.

Amen.

Trip Around the Sun - Jimmy Buffett & Martina McBride
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BaKqwvGa6Bw

Lubbock

For those who still subscribe to the idea that the world is flat…Lubbock is the last remnant of evidence in support of that argument. 

Looking in any direction you can see the ends of the earth…for there is not as much as a hill or tree to obstruct your view. 

Lubbock can be colder than the North Pole in the morning and hotter than Hades that same afternoon.  I love the calm clear winter days with unrestricted visibility but springtime can bring violent dark funnel clouds, sand storms and haboobs that will blast the chrome right off your bumper. 

So dry you can’t grow at sprig of grass but will flood when it receives it’s average annual rain in one afternoon.

Lubbock is a place of extremes; a place for which I have extremely strong feels.

There is something special about Lubbock even though it’s not the place of my birth; I consider it my adopted home.

You either love it or hate it, there is no middle ground.  I choose to be in the former category. 

Maybe it’s the people that make it special.  Complete strangers are friendly and the entire place has a “Happy Days” atmosphere.

It’s not necessarily the famous people…home of Mac Davis and Buddy Holly.  But ordinary people…nicest, friendly, real people…people who are not ordinary.  People like Elizabeth Owen top the list.  She was not an ordinary second grade school teacher…not hardly.  Ask any of her students.

May God Bless Lubbock and all the people.

Thanks A Ton

I struggle with understanding all the unbelievable stuff that’s in the “Good Book”.  Understanding the mystery of the bread and wine becoming the body and blood, the virgin birth thing, God asking Abraham to sacrificing his son and God actually sacrificing his only son...it is all beyond my comprehension.  In my tiny brain it just does not add up…I can’t make the math work.

But without fail everyday there is that moment in time when I get this unexplainable feeling…a feeling deep down in my bones…a feeling that reduces me to tears…a feeling that God is really real. 

Therefore is must conclude that God is God…and God can do anything…for nothing is impossible for God.  Regardless of whether I understand it or not.  After all I barely understand long division and have no clue when it come to  calculus…but I know it works.

So I’m OK with all those unbelievable mysteries of the Bible.  I hang on the promise God made to us and I wait in joyful hope for the deal of a lifetime…my undeserved reward.

Thank you, Lord Jesus, for all you’ve done.

Because of you my freedom’s won.

God’s only son, You are the One.

And so I say…“thanks a ton”.

Amen