Get 'em! Get 'em!

2 posts, so scroll down
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Oma and I took Ethan to his 2nd ever Beavers game on Thursday. All the better that it turned out to be the 2nd time in 41 years the Beavers beat a #1 ranked team! What a great time we had!

The best part was how Ethan reacted. He was pretty unsure at first, but really had a blast. I think he fed of the buzz of the crowd and was going pretty nutty at the end. So many fun / cute moments to share, but I think my favorite was "get 'em!"

Several times when the Beav's were close to sacking the opposing quarterback or tackling the opposing running back I would yell "get 'em!, get 'em!". Later, during a t.v. timeout when the crowd of 43k people was pretty quiet, Ethan broke out with "get 'em!, get 'em!" thrusting his arms forward. The whole group around us thought this was great stuff.

Getting psyched at home with a new Beav's jersey.
Dada and I are tough in our Beavs gear! Maybe I'll play for them some day!
I just like this shot (1st quarter). All the orange across the way are people, not seats.
Oma and I love the Beavs!
No time for pics! Just football.

Get 'Em! Get 'Em part 2

Celebrating with the crowd at the end (this is like bed time + 3 hrs and still going strong)
Yeah right!
Totally by accident but this photo gives the sense of the rush. Stare at it, you'll see it's moving!
Go Beavs!

Again!

Two posts so scroll down for more...

Scenes from the Sunriver North Pool this past week. Lots of laughing and lots of "Again!".

Sarah, "Oma" and I took the kids to the pool on a nice sunny day without cameras. Ethan had so much fun we knew we had to come back for pictures. So the next day, despite cooler temps we braved the outdoor pool and, well, see for yourself!

I like the next one...kind of "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon" or "Matrix"

Again!

2nd Post: the slide (the main reason we came back!)

The Great Romance

I just finished reading a trilogy by Ted Dekker called The Circle. I highly recommend it...there are 3 books: Black, Red, and White.

I suppose at times it reads a bit like a teenage thriller/fantasy, but due to its deeply compelling sub-plot (which I would argue is more important than the main story line) I came away moved by God's passionate, irrational and almost irresponsible love for us. There are wonderful metaphors in this story (especially in the final book White) helping remind the reader about our Maker's complete abandonment to love ("The Great Romance") and ultimate sacrifice to claim His "bride". Suffice it to say I had many goosebump moments.

Even if you're not into that, the main story is fun and action packed...A man literally living in separate realities trying to stop the end of the world in one reality, while interacting with Good and Evil (quite literally) and God Himself in another. I'll have to check out Dekker's other books in the series (apparently he went on to write several more).

I have also read a book by him called Obsession with some of the same themes which was a quick, high pulse read. It's got a very different theme (much more based in reality) and I enjoyed it too.

Happy reading!

Remind me Lord

I get so busy and focused at work. It's good to be reminded of God's presence. Today I'm beginning a review of over 300 pages of internal documents for the big project I've been hired on.

It's a kind of "buck stops here" effort since I am the business lead for this content. Since other folks put together the 300+ pages I am now reviewing to ensure the content is correct and up to the right level of quality.

Since I'm bunkered down reading, I put on the ipod and wanted mellow music so I put on my worship mix. I rarely listen to music at work and as the songs are playing I find myself remembering whose hands hold me even when I forget and focus my energies somewhere else.

May I remember more often! Here's a sampling of the last couple songs that reminded me...


SeeqPod - Playable Search

Life's score

(before you see lots of words and click away, note the end of the post. You can skip to after the equal signs below if you don't want to read)

Music is something that speaks to us all. It's wonderful how God created music to touch us, speak for us, speak to us, and move us. We can celebrate with it, cry with it, laugh with it, praise God with it, contemplate and share.

I've always believed music has power which is exactly why Satan, the father of counterfeit, so often imbues it with a negative message, and why I am strict about what I'll listen to. By no means does that mean I only listen to "Christian music" because, as mentioned, God created music and gave us creativity. However I take the Bible seriously when it says to judge something by its fruit. If the fruit of a song or artist is anger, rage, depression, jealousy, or a tearing down of fellow children of God then it's not getting in my ears. Music ministers to our inner spirit, thus I view music as ministry and refuse to let my money go to support a negative ministry. Instead I look for music that lifts me up or inspires me.

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Anyway, I've tried to get away from preaching in this space, so I'll stop there.

The point of this post is that I've found something fun to share with friends and family who frequent this space. It's something called "seeqpod". You can host music on your blog with it. (By the way...I wholly disapprove of stealing intellectual property and as far as I can tell this site is completely legal. If I find a song on it I like, I will purchase it.)

These days a song that I have been enjoying is called "Beautiful World" by Colin Hay. There are some lyrics in it I don't agree with but the spirit or fruit of this song for me is one of thankfulness for the simple things in life. I often turn it on in the car after a hard day of work (most days for me lately) and think about how work is not very important. I think about a hug from my son, a kiss from my wife, a giggle from my daughter. It's a beautiful world and I'm thankful for the many graces of God.

Enjoy! (and here's hoping I did this right)