South Dakota isn’t in AT&T’s wireless coverage area. Which means an iPhone wouldn’t do me much good at this point.

I like tech toys as much as the next guy but I’m kind of glad I can’t get one yet. I’ve read a number of blogs (from pastors) pimping it, that, well…… I’ll stop there. But I think you get my point.

One pastor who seems to have the right perspective on this is Chris Elrod. He posted this on his blog. I think it says it all.

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A news story that’s just gripped me is the murder-suicide involving pro wrestler, Chris Benoit, his wife, and 7-year-old son. It’s difficult to comprehend because the guy was like the Rocky Balboa of professional wrestling.  The underdog that everyone rooted for.  A working-class hero for many.

Here are a few lessons to be drawn from this tragedy:

• It’s takes a lifetime to develop a reputation and earn respect. It takes a moment to lose it all.
• Bibles should be opened- not place. 
• Marriages planted in bad soil often sprout turmoil.
• Greatness in your profession doesn’t equate to greatness at home.
• Sometimes you just don’t know what’s going on in people’s minds and in their hearts.
• Evil exists and can be defeated with good.  I pray God will use this for good.

The second bullet point is what tugs at my heart.  My heart broke when I read that Benoit had placed Bibles next to his wife and his son after he killed them.  I’m sure in his mind this somehow made things better and that God would appreciate it.

Man,  what would have happened if he had opened one?  Makes me want to read mine.  How about you?

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LifeChurch.tv is at it again. They are proactive in engaging culture and using technology to do great things. They did it with Second Life; they did it with their online church campus; and now they are now using Web 2.0 to launch a new free, interactive Bible called YouVersion. Here’s what its all about according to their blog post:

YouVersion is a free online Bible that allows users to associate video, audio, images, text, tags, and links to other websites with any verse or series of verses in the Bible. Each piece of contributed content can be labeled as public or private, so the application can be used both as a personal study tool and a public expression of user-generated commentary. In addition to contributing content, Scripture can be organized by assigning user-defined “tags” to any verse of the Bible.

For users who are skeptical about whether the Bible has application for their lives, YouVersion provides a platform to learn from the experiences and perspectives of others from around the world in a non-threatening and easily navigated environment.

Discover more at http://www.youversion.com. It should be available to begin using soon. Kudos to the gang at LifeChurch.tv.

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Here’s some “thinking in progress” as I read through the Bible. These are my initial thoughts as I read through one of my favorite books- Jude. It’s a small one and is the second to last book of the Bible- but its good stuff.

JUDE

• 1- Three words stick out from this verse: Called, Loved, and Kept. Click here to read more on this…
• 2- One word sticks out in this verse to me: abundance.
• 3- You’ve got to dig Jude. He was going to write a warm, fuzzy letter about what they share and have in common but instead he felt compelled to write proactively to contend (love that word) for what they share.
• 4- Wow. Not much has changed. There are still people parading as Christians who believe in Jesus…and everything else too. Also, he states, “…who change the grace of our God into a license for immorality.” Grace is NOT a license to sin.
• 5-7- Just in case we forget the just and all-powerful God we serve. Jude gives us several examples from Scripture of God’s justice. We need to make sure we aren’t deceived.
• 8- Rejecting authority is almost common place today. No one wants to be under authority but the truth is we are and Jude says we’re living in a fairy tale if we do reject authority.
• 9- Angels are angels- God is God!
• 10- Isn’t this the truth? I like Jude’s reference to “unreasoning animals.” In other words, reasoning is biblical and good.
• 11- Jude again uses 3 references to Old Testament Scripture to show the connection between people like this to those from long ago.
• 12-13- Okay, now Jude is really talking smack and backing it up. He calls these “bad guys” blemishes, selfish, a cloud, an unfruitful tree (Jesus hates these), and dead- twice. They are shameful foam, wanderers, and will have to be in the “blackest darkness” forever. Ouch!
• 14- Not only did Enoch prophesy this but John will see the same thing in Revelation 19.
• 15- Jesus will come back with his posse and boy, he will be pissed. He’s going to judge and convict the ungodly.
• 16- How will we recognize ungodly people? Jude describes them like this- they complain, they look for the bad, they are all about themselves, they brag about themselves, and when they do acknowledge others it’s with selfish intent. These kind of people are bad news.
• 17-19- We shouldn’t be surprised. We’ve been warned. These are the people who will divide Christ Followers. We really need to be on-guard. They are not filled with the Spirit which marks a follower of Christ. Instead, they are full of themselves.
• 20- Now Jude gives Christ Followers instructions. We are to build ourselves up (we are a work in progress) in faith and “pray in the Holy Spirit.” We build with faith and prayer.
• 21- We are also to remain in the God’s love.
• 22- We are to show mercy to doubters. These are potential Christ Followers and we need to not expect them to believe what we believe…yet.
• 23- These words absolutely capture me: “snatch others from the fire and save them.” People all around us need rescue. People all around us are falling into fire. Will we try to save them? Will we be cowards and watch them fall with no attempt to save them. They need Jesus.
• 24- Life is one big fall. Man fell with Adam and Eve. Jesus captured us from the fall and now keeps us from falling again.
• 25- There is only one God and only one way to him through his only son- Jesus. I love these words- “glory, majesty, power, and authority.” The Lord reigns- yesterday, today, and forever. He’s a BIG God.

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As a guy, I really could care less if someone gives me a greeting card.  To be honest, I think they’re a waste of money and trees.
That said, I loved my Father’s Day cards from my two kids.  You see, they created them for me.  Not only did they spend the time to do it but their cards were much more thoughtful than any Hallmark card could be.
My son created a card that said “Philadelphia Eagles Rock” with his own unique font on dark green construction paper.  Awesome! He knows me so well. My daughter’s masterpiece was filled with buckets of joy.  The cover of the card were hand-drawn hearts of a five-year-old.  When you open the card a party comes to life complete with balloons and confetti.  The back of the card is a drawing of a eagle with the words, “Regan [hearts] Daddy” written on it.

I hope that when they are both grow up they will still create cards for me for Father’s Day.  It’s priceless.

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They say can learn a lot about a person by what music they listen to.  Here’s my current playlist. Figure me out if you can.

1. She Moves In Her Own Way- The Kooks
2. Hey There Delilah- Plain White T’s
3. Hey Baby- Stephen Marley (with Mos Def)
4. Vultures- John Mayer
5. Never Be Lonely- The Feeling
6. Ruby- Kaiser Chiefs
7. Crashed- Daughtry
8. A New Law- Derek Webb
9. Times Like These- Foo Fighters
10.  For the Ride Home- Josh Kelly
11.  Forgiven- Relient k
12. Canned Heat- Jamiroqui
13. Everlasting God- Lincoln Brewster
14. What I’ve Done- Linkin Park
15. Undeniable- Mat Kearney
16. Sound of Melodies- Leeland
17. My Little Girl- Tim McGraw
18. Work- Jars of Clay
19. If Everyone Cared- Nickelback
20. Love Song- Third Day
21. Control- Mute Math
22. Nuisance- John Reuben
23. I Will Wait- Hootie & the Blowfish
24. Club Foot- Kasabian
25. Nothing in My Way- Keane

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While waiting to watch “Fantastic Four- Rise of the Silver Surfer” this weekend I saw a preview for “Transformers.” As a child who grew up with 80’s cartoons, I’m very pumped about that movie. It looks like they did it right.

That got me thinking about other 80’s cartoons that I think would be awesome movies (if done right). Here’s are some that came to mind:

• He-Man: Masters of the Universe: No doubt about it. This is just begging to be a big summer blockbuster. The key is to do it right and base it on the 1980’s cartoon and not the Dolph Lundgren He-Man movie. With the advancement of CGI this could be off the charts. Who would play Adam/He-Man? I don’t know but he’s got to be just as muscular as the cartoon like the size of Hulk Hogan. Perhaps there’s a bodybuilder or professional wrestler out there who fits the mold. My wife would add that She-Ra should either be in it or have her own movie.
• GI-JOE: I’m surprised this hasn’t been done already with the rise in popularity of military-based movies. Good vs. Bad, explosions, war. What more could a dude ask for?
• Captain Caveman: I see this as more of a comedy but hey, if the Geico Cavemen can get their own sitcom on ABC, why can’t there be a movie about “Captain CAVEMANNNNN!” I vote Steve Carell for the role of the Caveman.
• Thundercats: I’ve heard rumors that this is already in the works. Cool…
• Rainbow Brite: This one’s for the girls- but why not? The show was on 20 years ago and I still see merchandise with Rainbow Brite on it.

Any others?

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Boring is one word that would NOT describe my marriage. My wife and I really do enjoy each other. We don’t have the “perfect” marriage but we do work at it. We’re best friends who strive towards oneness.

This past week I posted about a little project we did recently- a tournament to select, “our song.” The best part of the activity wasn’t really finding the right song- it was collaborating with my wife. We selected a total of 16 songs (8 each) and we made a date and set the bracket. As we went through each matchup discussing why or why not a song should advance in the tournament, we were able to focus on what makes our relationship special. Plus, we had to be loving and open to each other’s song choices. This was definitely a true test of sacrificial love and open communication. Creative things like this help bring a little spark to our relationship. It was fun!

How about your relationship? Is it boring? Is it mediocre? Is it lukewarm? If so, why? It doesn’t have to be. There’s no one like you and no marriage like yours. You can have the relationship you always wanted if you both put forth the effort.

I want to stay alert of the potential dangers to my marriage. There are many obvious things to lookout for but we often forget complacency. We spend so much time and energy on other things- even important things- and our marriage is taken for granted and our spouse gets leftovers. It’s a challenge- we know- we’ve been guilty of this too. But the truth is complacency is a silent relationship killer. Fight it- and fight for your marriage! Our purpose in marriage is oneness. God, your matchmaker, brought you two together to bring glory to him. You do that by loving Him and each other and putting your spouse’s needs ahead of your own. It’s a beautiful, mutual submission.

One in two marriages fail. Please don’t let it be yours. It’s worth fighting for.

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Here are the results of our love songs tournament.

“Look What You’ve Done to Me” by Boz Scaggs vs. “Crush” by The Dave Matthews Band

Winner: Both.

My wife said, “why can’t both songs be ours?”  As usual, she had a good point and so we now have two songs.

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