summer vacation

free background to download

I've just created a new graphic that can be used for a background or wallpaper. It emphasizes the optimistic nature of being a Christ-follower. Feel free to download and use. I'm also including the Photoshop file if you wish to edit or change.

Psalm 118:24 large file.
Psalm 118:24 Photoshop (psd) file.

new church happenings in san diego

A few exciting things are happening on the church front here in San Diego. CityWalk Church held her first service a few months ago and is establishing a new model for urban church planting. LifePoint (www.lifepointcommunitycom) designates ten percent of our weekly offerings to CityWalk.

Recently I 've had several conversations with our bass player at church. With a background in ministry, he has been considering returning to church work as a church planter. It looks like he will be starting a new church in the older part of Chula Vista in a few months. I've encouraged him to share his vision at LifePoint and to ask for helpers.

It's exciting to see new dreams and visions spring up!

new web work

I was recently hired to redesign the website of C&C Glass here in San Diego. C&C is a large commercial glass company that works on a variety of commercial and municipal projects. Part of my assignment was to improve their search engine appeal. I designed the site entirely in CSS (that's a bone for you web geeks out there). Take a look: www.ccglass.com.

boy or girl?

I'm sitting here at Cosmos and there' s a new group on stage. When I close my eyes, it's hard to tell if the singer is a boy or girl. Opening my eyes doesn't help much either.

podcast updated

For those of you who may suffer from extreme insomnia, here's a link to my podcast which contains my weekend teaching.

http://lifepointcast.blogspot.com/

customized google

Have you customized your Google page yet? For several years I have had Google set as my home page since that's where much of my web surfing begins. As a true believer in all things Google, I'd like to encourage you to customize your Google page. You can now set up Google to include news, weather, stocks, custom searches ... almost anything. If you have a Google account, you can even customize the theme and save it.

sell your own designs

Click here to get started.

a good day at church

It's been a while since I've posted something about LifePoint. We recently turned 18 months old and are continuing to grow and develop. We've been through a few hiccups -- that's the theological term for minor challenges. None have been life-threatening. I feel like we're just now beginning to hit our stride ... moral is good, music is good, and newcomers are becoming regulars. Even the pastor is OK.

Looking back, it's easy to see things that I would have done differently but that's a part of the maturing process. Looking ahead, I see a bright future and am encouraged by the quality of people that God brings our way.

If you're in San Diego, stop by and say hello.

hannah turns ten

It's hard to believe but our oldest daughter turned ten today. It was ten years ago we went to Kaiser hospital in downtown Walnut Creek. The wonder has never stopped.

making a difference

I believe that within each of us is a desire to know that we made a difference in life. We want to know that how we spent our time, energy, and money contributed to something greater than ourselves.

However, it seems that relatively few people find what I call alignment -- the opportunity to match up their skills and life experiences with their desire to make a difference. A few people find that intersection at work; others look for ways to contribute outside of their careers. Some have stopped looking altogether.

As Christ followers, we have a unique opportunity to not only make a difference in our world but to make a difference for eternity. From the very beginning, Christianity has been a movement focused on changing the world. We call fellow travelers to follow Jesus with us because we believe his way is the best way.

a blind eye

I went this past week for a free LASIK eye examination. LASIK is one type of laser surgery that involves reshaping your eyeball with a high-powered laser. Admittedly, that’s an over-simplification.

The doctor confirmed what I already knew -- I’m basically blind. Take my glasses off and I’ll walk straight into the wall. With my glasses off, everyone looks pretty.

I began wearing glasses in the third grade; to be honest, it’s hard to remember life without glasses. Every morning I reach over to the night stand, feel for my glasses, and start the day.

You can track fashion trends by looking through one of my photo albums. The “lost years” had to be the 1980s when big, and I mean really big, glasses were in style. Though I’m ashamed to admit this, I even had a pair of red glasses at one point in the 1980s. Not red lenses -- red frames! Surprisingly, most of those pictures have somehow disappeared :-)

Bad fashion is an equal opportunity employer and blindness isn’t restricted only to eyesight.

Believe it or not, I pass many blind people every day who are driving cars or waiting in line at Albertsons. Some wear glasses and some do not. Worst of all, many don’t even know they are blind.

Some are blind to the needs of those around them. Others are living with no vision for their life. Many of the walking blind fail to see God’s fingerprints, the imprint he has left on them.

Spiritual blindness may be the most insidious form of blindness. It means our lives are out of focus with God’s plan for us. Dreams and opportunities look fuzzy and we just assume that everything is normal.

May your spiritual eyesight come into great focus this week!

one month later

Wow, it's been almost a month since my last post. I would like to have some exotic tale of why there hasn't been a post ... something like spending a month in Tahiti or prison, but nothing exotic comes to mind. It's just been a busy time of year and blogging took a backseat. But I'm back!

veggie delight

The following is a true story:

I'm waiting in line at the local Subway near our house, waiting to grab some sandwiches to take to the Padres game. The lady ahead of me in line orders a "Veggie Delight," Subway's all-veggie sandwich. When the fellow behind the counter finishes with the veggies, the lady asks him, "Where's the meat?" Without missing a step, he simply asked her if she wanted turkey.

file this one under "oh my"

Saw this on the job section of Craigslist. No commentary needed -- it speaks for itself.

*****

2 Male Models needed for daughters birthday
Reply to:
Date: 2007-04-25, 12:43AM PDT

I am looking for 2 gorgeous guys to carry my daughter on a chair as an entrance to her 13th birthday toga party. You will need to dress in Toga attire, be in great shape (a six pack is required) not be over 21. Once she has made her grand entrance you will fan her with a huge fan and feed her grapes. You will only need to be present for apx 30 mins max! You will be paid $75 for 30 mins. The event will be held on May 12th at 7pm-7:30----this will be a kids event. I just want to totally shock my daughter and give her the time of her life. Please send me 2 RECENT photos and why you would like to have this job, do not forget to include your phone number. College students feel free to apply.

judge who?

I was trapped. Even as I tried to work and do something productive, I found my attention being drawn back to the television.

On Tuesday, I found myself inside the local automotive shop while I waited on them to finish several repairs. Unfortunately for me, the television was tuned in to what must have been the all Judges channel. Judge Alex Ferrer followed by Judge Judy.

I’m sure I’ve probably forgotten one or two of the others. But you have to understand that after several hours, my mind was jumbled and I began rooting out loud for different plaintiffs or defendants.

I have to admit, I was a bit disappointed that the judge from the Anna Nicole Smith trial didn’t have his own show yet.

The whole experience lead me to one conclusion: we are a strange bunch of people. Unfortunately, we beam the best and worst of our television programming to the rest of the world. I wonder if they think we all go before Judge Judy to settle disputes over bad hair extensions.

But if I ever do get a bad hair extension, I’ll know where to go to get it resolved.

Our mission here at LifePoint is to point people to real life in Jesus. In case you’re wondering, real life isn’t often found on daytime television.

Real life as a Christ-followers is about following God into a life of adventure. It requires a depth of soul and spirit not often found in our cosmetic culture. It welcomes and embraces big challenges and opportunities.

I would go on ... but Judge Joe Brown is about to hear his first case.

firestone fireworks

For the second day in a row, I'm at Firestone Tires on Lake Murray Boulevard having work done on a car. In this case, it's routine work on Tonya's van before her parents arrive. As I'm waiting, the two front desk workers get in a verbal shouting match about how to schedule appointments. One of them is the manager and she is giving as good as she is receiving. The ironic thing is that myself and another customer are less than ten feet away. The lady next to me can hear them over the music playing on her iPod.

The best part is when the phone rings and the employee picks it up and answers in a sweet voice. Then goes back to shouting.

be your own cause

This morning a commercial for Kaiser caught me eye. The tag line was "be your own cause" and was designed to encourage people to take responsibility for their health and wellbeing. But the phrase made me think of how often our culture encourages us to be our own cause ... look out for yourself ... do what makes you happy ... it's all about you.

Yet it's not that bad of a tag line. There are times when we do need to see our lives as part of something significant -- a cause that extends us beyond ourself. The trouble comes when all of our causes extend no further than the shadow we cast.

a culture of death

By now, you’ve surely seen some of the coverage about the shootings at Virginia Tech. I was stunned as the news went from one shooting to a mass murder. My heart still aches when I think about the deep trauma suffered by those who lost a loved one and those whose lives were spared.

Dramatic stories are beginning to come out about what happened. Liviu Librescu was an aeronautics engineer and teacher at VTU. The 76-year-old gentleman was also a survivor of the Holocaust. The professor blocked the door with his body while telling his students to jump out the window. He was eventually shot and killed.

There are already critics and finger-pointers looking to place blame. There will certainly be a time to reflect and inspect – but hopefully we will move beyond the immediate cast of characters and look at the deeper issues.

Issues like why we live in a culture that glorifies death and violence. Issues like why we allow toxic video games to pollute the values of our youngest minds. Or why we commercialize music that dehumanizes and incites.

Are any of these the immediate reason why a young man would kill so many? Probably not. But they do explain (in part) why we are seeing an increasing rate of these types of activities.

This is not a political issue; it is a moral issue. It sounds trite, but we really do need to promote a culture of life rather than death. As Christ-followers, let us do our part to hold out hope in the midst of despair.

a nice afternoon

We had a good morning at church -- the full band was back and was rocking. Doug has added a steel guitar to his reportoire and it's really cool. After church, we went over to some friend's house and had a BBQ. A bunch of people from church was there and it was really fun to just hang out and talk.

softball update

The girls are continuing to improve at softball. Both girls enjoy the sport and are quick to pick up and learn. I'm especially pleased with Hannah's coaches -- not only are they good instructors but they are very positive as well.

easter update

Here are few pictures of the girls on Easter Sunday ...

i'm alive

No worries ... I'm still around. For whatever reason, updating the blog has taken a backseat to living life :-)

On the family front: all three girls and both cats are doing fine. Hannah and Hope are both progressing well at school and softball. It's been exciting to watch both of them improve and get better. Tonya is excited to have her parents coming out in a few weeks. Pokey and Smokey are enjoying our new leather couches.

On the church front: we had our best crowd year-to-date on Easter. A good number of our guests were locals, which is always exciting. Several good stories are beginning to percolate.

On the job front: still a mixed bag. I've continued to send out resumes for local jobs and have begun pursuing freelance options. I've landed a few freelance projects but will definitely need more to afford the good coffee.

On the picture front: I'm hoping to upload a new batch soon ... just to prove we're still alive!

new shoes

I bought a new pair of dress shoes. I figure since I will be hitting the streets to drum up business for my new creative design venture, I'll need a good pair of shoes. After sticking my feet into more shoes than I can remember, I walked away with (pun intended) a pair of Born Shoes and I like them.

To learn more about my new venture/adventure, visit fullybrewed.com.

pastoring or pasturing?

You have to love Microsoft's auto correct / auto fill-in features. As I was typing an email tonight, I typed "it would allow me more time for pastoring." Only Outlook changed it to "it would allow me more time for pasturing."

How did they know!

pictures from the USS Midway

catching up

It's been another busy week. I often wonder, did my parents find themselves saying ... "Wow, another busy week." Or was life run at a different pace back then. I honestly don't remember being shuffled around from one activity to another; I do remember riding my bike through the neighborhood and building piles of leaves. Pretty soon I will remember having to walk to school through snow drifts. But wait! I did walk to school through snow drifts, albeit with shoes on.

On Friday of this past week, Hope had only a half-day of school so we made it a father-daughter day. We went to the USS Midway and took a tour. The Midway is a retired aircraft carrier and is enormous. It's been relocated to San Diego and turned into a museum by a private foundation. I had my doubts about how long Hope would stay engaged but she outlasted me. I'll upload the pictures soon.

After that, we meandered down to SeaPort village which just so happens to have a Ben and Jerry's Ice Cream store. After twisting Hope's arm, we decided to have some ice cream. It was OK.

Saturday was softball and more softball. The girls both love it and have great coaches this year. Hannah is even beginning to slide. During practice last week she did a head-first dive into second base ... and it was a planned dive, not a trip and stumble dive. Kind of reminded me of her old man ...

And today is Sunday. We get to gather with a great group of people at LifePoint and have a worship celebration. Life is busy but life is good.

creative brain trust

Fully Brewed Creative Group

astronaughty?

"Astronaughty." That was the creative genius of some writer at Fox News. It was used as the story title for an update on the astronaut who drove to Florida in a diaper.

you don't bring me flowers anymore

It's been so long since I've posted a blog entry that it made me think of that line from a Neil Diamond song ... "you don't bring me flowers anymore." I never was a Neil Diamond fan ...

Busy. That's about the best way to sum up life over the past few weeks. In order to allow LifePoint to remain viable, we made the decision that I would seek employment in the marketplace. So, it's been a flurry of resumes, a few interviews, and no job offers -- yet. I've mainly looked at web and graphic design positions, along with general marketing and communications positions.

I've also decided to start a freelance marketing firm. It will combine web, print, and other media. It's called Fully Brewed Creative Group. Here are the logos:

Those of you who are keen observers, might notice from where I get my inspiration.

So ... any job leads would be greatly appreciated!

ugandan orphan's choir

LifePoint hosted the Ugandan Orphan's Choir last Sunday night and our family had three little girls and a chaperone stay with us. It was a true blessing to have these special ladies in the house -- especially for Hannah and Hope. Through limited English and the universal language of smiles, the girls got along great!

One of the girls left a note for Hope, part of which said "You showed me love and fun." I'm actually tearing up again (sorry to disappoint you real men out there).

Most of the kids who stay at the village sponsored by Childcare Worldwide in Uganda have lost one or both of their parents to AIDS. Though the spread is declining, it is still devastating. They estimate that there are over 2 million orphans in Uganda -- a country about the size of Oregon.

I'm glad our daughters got to befriend girls from another part of the world, a part of the world that is experiencing struggle. And yet Fina, Ruth, and Joann beamed with love, joy, and thankfulness ... even thanking me for cooking after every meal. My prayer for Hannah and Hope is that they grow up with a sense of two things -- thankfulness and vision. To be thankful for what they have and to have the vision to see how they can make a difference.

Ruth, Hannah, Joann, Fina, and Hope

i'm a dummy

I’m a dummy. Maybe I’m only admitting what some of you have known for a quite awhile. If so, please be kind ... my children may still think otherwise.

What brought me to this recent revelation? The book I bought at Barnes and Noble told me I was a dummy. In fact, it reassured me that I wasn’t the only dummy but part of a larger group of dummies. There are times when one can find comfort in numbers; I’m not sure this is one of them.

Sitting three feet away from me is a book entitled, “InDesign CS2 for Dummies.” It’s mine. It’s not a gift for someone else. I am that dummy!

The “For Dummies” series of book have swamped every conceivable topic. Based on the large number of titles in the series, I can only assume that I’m surrounded by a bunch of dummies. Fortunately, I’ve not seen the “Brain Surgery for Dummies” book yet. But I emphasize yet.

Since we’re being candid, can I let you in on a secret? You’re probably a dummy, too. That’s ok: God loves dummies.

The “For Dummies” books are designed for people who want to learn, expand, grow, and develop. But the title alone forces you to admit that you don’t know it all; in fact, you may not know anything at all.

Take it from this dummy: When it comes to matters of faith and spirituality, we all have room to learn, expand, grow, and develop.

a day of guests

Yesterday was a good example of what it means to be a church community. Our worship leader was out of town, our main sound tech was out of town, and I was at Disneyland -- out of town. And yet the wheels of church didn't grind to a halt!

snapshots from disneyland

We took the girls and went to Disneyland over the weekend. We spent Saturday at Disneyland and Saturday at California Great Adventure. Everyone had a good time and no one got lost or otherwise injured.

where are you going?

I'm going to Disneyland. Each year -- around the time of Hope's birthday -- we take the girls to Disneyland. Since this is a three day weekend, we're sneaking off to the house of mouse. This will be the first Sunday since we started LifePoint that I won't be physically present!

after God's own heart

Logo for March teaching series at LifePoint.

sdsu softball

One of the young ladies on the SDSU Lady Aztec softball team is Tamani Wells. We've known Tamani and her family since our days in the Bay Area. She also attends LifePoint with us. We took the girls on Saturday and watched a doubleheader. First game ... good result. Second game ... don't ask!

first softball game

Action photos from the girls' first softball games.

it's a crazy world

Crazy. That’s about the best way to describe the news lately.

First, there is the story about the astronaut who drove 900 miles from Houston to Florida to confront another lady over a lover. Never mind the fact that she’s married and has three kids. Or that she drove the 900 miles wearing a diaper so she wouldn’t have to stop for potty breaks.

Then Anna Nicole Smith dies in a hotel room in Florida. She’s the former Playboy model, former wife of an elderly billionaire, and a former reality show celebrity. In the weeks leading up to her death, two men were embroiled in a paternity suit over her five-month-old daughter. Now a third man, the husband of Zsa Zsa Gabor, says he might be the baby’s father.

Prince Frederick von Anhalt, Gabor’s eighth husband, has been married to Gabor for 20 years but claims to have had a 10 year-long affair with Anna Nicole Smith.

Crazy!

And where has God planted you and I — right in the middle of this crazy world! It’s no mistake that we are Christ-followers living in 2007 instead of 1507. You are not here by an accident.

And what does God expect us to do in the midst of such a mixed-up world? He expects the same thing that he has always expected from those who follow Jesus — that we will live as authentic extensions of Jesus himself.

a dancing mom

As I'm sitting here at Starbucks, waiting for an appointment, there's a mom with two small boys dancing in the line at the counter. And then I notice the back of her jacket -- Irish Dance Team.

morning scriptures

Listed below are a few of the Bible verses that I was reading this morning during my early morning Bible reading. In light of the current challenges and opportunities facing LifePoint, they seem almost providential :-)

"I will lead the blind by ways they have not known, along unfamiliar paths I will guide them; I will turn the darkness into light before them and make the rough places smooth. These are the things I will do; I will not forsake them" (Isaiah 42:16).

"When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and when you pass through the rivers, they will not sweep over you. When you walk through the fire, you will not be burned; the flames will not set you ablaze" (Isaiah 43:2).

"Do not be afraid, for I am with you; I will bring your children from the east and gather you from the west. I will say to the north, 'Give them up!' and to the south, 'Do not hold them back.' Bring my sons from afar and my daughters from the ends of the earth - everyone who is called by my name, whom I created for my glory, whom I formed and made." Lead out those who have eyes but are blind, who have ears but are deaf" (Isaiah 43:5-8)

"Forget the former things; do not dwell on the past. See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it? I am making a way in the desert and streams in the wasteland" (Isaiah 43:18-19).

halftime report

Here's my perspective on the Super Bowl ads ... at halftime. Most creative: the Dorritos ads that were created by amateurs. Among the worst: the Garmin GPS ad with the map monster -- what was that! Among the most confusing: the CareerBuilder.com commercial that featured the office in the jungle.

softball opening day

Both girls are in softball again this year -- Hope is in the Mini's division and Hannah is playing in the 10 and under league. Here are a few snapshots from today's opening day ceremony ...

great adventure of faith

Following Jesus is an adventure of faith. There are times when God prods or pushes us into areas where we might be fully prepared. His timetable for action doesn’t always match our own; in fact, I’m not sure he consults our timetable at all.

This adventure of faith is filled with twists and turns. Those looking for a straight line from accepting Jesus to spiritual maturity will be frustrated to know ... There’s not one! A Christ-follower must be content to know that God is in charge and is at work in her life.

But it’s also the twists and turns that add excitement to this great adventure of faith. For when we least expect it, God shows up and in ways we may not have predicted.

What a great God we serve!

camp theme

Here are two graphics I just designed for Opportunity Camp's theme. Full picture:

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Text only:

new website released

I just finished redesigning the website for Opportunity Camp, a camp I've worked with for the last ten years. Opportunity Camp provides a week of free camping for kids from Contra Costa County Social Services and is staffed entirely by Christian volunteers. A fair number of these kids are in foster homes or group homes; others are in the social service network for various reasons. Opportunity Camp really is unique among Christian camps.

My "official" role is Director of Spiritual Development ... a fancy way of saying that I create the teaching material and speak at the morning and evening assemblies. Most of our campers have little or no church background and have a hard time sitting still -- a great combination for a pastor!

You can download a copy of the teaching material if you're really bored and need something to do.