This morning I was standing by the front door getting ready to leave for work. Laura Marie came walking around the corner, and when she saw me getting ready to leave, she immediately ran over to me and jumped into my arms.
That’s as good as it gets this side of heaven.
You can keep your kingdoms, your wealth, your fame and fortune, your whatever. I’d rather have my little girl running into my arms.
This morning Chris and I did two miles (with a short walking break in the middle) for the second time this week. It’s funny how when we’re jogging, we talk about how old we’re getting. Coincidence? I think not.
The Dallas Cowboys are 1-7. Yesterday they fired their coach in the middle of the season.
So today I’m wearing a Cowboys windbreaker. Underneath that is a Cowboys jersey–injured quarterback Tony Romo, to be precise. Underneath that is a Cowboys t-shirt. Underneath that is just my linebacker bod. Okay, more like a desk jockey bod, but that’s not the point. I’ve crowned it all with a pretty sharp Dallas Cowboys hat. And I am not ashamed.
A fan should be a fan at all times, through good and bad. My family (on Mom’s side, at least) have been Cowboys fans for 50 years. We’ve seen the good and bad. I grew up in Redskins country when the Cowboys went 1-15. I enjoyed the Super Bowl years with Emmitt, Aikman, and Irvin. And now they really stink and just fired their coach. (Their biggest problem, of course, is their owner–but that’s a different blog post altogether!)
I wore the silver, blue, and white during the great times, so why should that change now? A day will come when they are again Super Bowl champions. And on that day, I’ll still be wearing my Dallas gear. What’s the point in being a fan if you’re only a fair-weather fan? How can you truly celebrate the highs if you’re not willing to suffer through the lows?
So I’m sporting my allegiance today loud and clear. Let there be no doubt which team my affection belongs to.
But there’s a bigger point than that.
My greatest allegiance belongs to Jesus Christ. Right now it looks like He’s not winning the war. If you look around at how the world seems to be falling apart, it looks doubtful that He’s going to emerge victorious in the end. But He will! Revelation 17:14 says: “They will wage war against the Lamb [that's Jesus], but the Lamb will overcome them because he is Lord of lords and King of kings—and with him will be his called, chosen and faithful followers.”
Did you catch that? Jesus will triumph, “and with him will be his called, chosen and faithful followers”–that is, the ones who wear His gear through good times and bad. I am clothed in Christ, and I am not ashamed.
When all is said and done and Jesus comes again, I want there to be no doubt whose I am. I want it to be loud and clear that all along I’ve been clothed in Christ, layer after layer after layer, all the way from the top of my head to the bottom of my heart. I want it to be abundantly clear at all times that Jesus Christ is my God, my Savior, and my King.
Go Cowboys… and go Jesus!!!!
Today I saw a bumper sticker that said: “1.20.13: End of an Error.”
Reminds me of all the bumper stickers that were around during President Bush’s last year or so, that simply had the date of the next inauguration.
It’s weird how so many people still place so much hope in a politician.
There’s a day coming when we will have a new leader who will make a difference and we will see positive and lasting change. But as Jesus said: “About that day or hour no one knows, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father” (Matthew 24:36).
Maybe I should get a bumper sticker with a blank date.
Yesterday I went running on the boardwalk with my friend Chris. Actually, to be more precise, I should say I went jogging. When you’re 19 you go running. When you’re 35 you go jogging. Running is what you do on the way to first base after laying down a bunt. Jogging is what you do on the way back to the dugout after you get thrown out at first.
Anyway, I discovered a disheartening catch-22: I’m jogging so I won’t be fat anymore, but since I’m already fat, it’s very difficult to jog. I expected that the whole cardiovascular aspect of jogging would be the hard part. I was wrong. The hard part is that with every step, I’ve got 220 pounds slamming the boards. With each step my legs were like, “Seriously? What’d we ever do to you? Sit down and give us cheese dip!”
Reminds me of something that Cal Ripken Jr. said in an interview many years ago: You never have to get in shape if you never get out of shape. I’m already in shape, but I guess it’s not the shape he had in mind.
Anyone want to write a check for $9,000-10,000 to get a billboard for the Shirley Grace Pregnancy Center for a year? That’s one of the best ways to effectively reach the thousands upon thousands who travel along Route 50 to Ocean City–not to mention, of course, the locals. Hey, it’s tax-deductible! 
So if you want to spend a few thousand bucks on something will literally save lives, just let me know!
Last night we had our monthly Praise & Prayer worship service at CrossWay Church. God’s presence was very powerful, especially during our prayer time. I loved the freedom in prayer that we experienced as we tuned in to God’s leading and surrounded one another in prayer. The theme for the night, which we hadn’t planned in advance, was praise. Everyone who shared from the Scriptures read from Psalms.
God does indeed inhabit the praises of His people! (See Psalm 22:3.)
Our next Praise & Prayer service is Wednesday, November 10 at 6:30 p.m. I’m already looking forward to it! Everyone is invited!
Today when the Pre-K class at the Training Station was praying before lunch, I was standing nearby so I took off my hat during the prayer. Here’s the conversation that followed:
Four-year-old boy: Pastor Nathan, guess what?
Me: What?
Four-year-old boy: You don’t have any hair!
Thanks kid.
We’ve got a new video promo for “Rated R Bible Stories,” the new sermon series at CrossWay Church beginning October 24:
I know I haven’t blogged about this yet, but if you live locally, you’ve probably heard that the new Shirley Grace Pregnancy Center in Berlin is now open! What an enormous miracle!
Click here to read the most recent article about the center.
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