Killed some Fish this weekend

My good friends Tom, Jim, and I went fish killing this weekend. We went up to the woods of east Texas and fished on the Sabine river. We were guided by Simon, part of River Ridge, and he did a great job. We didn't get as many as we wanted (75), but we got enough (27). It was fun to have someone else do the baiting, netting, and cleaning of the fish. And many thanks to my boss, Kurt, for funding this good time.

An atheist says, "I truly believe Africa needs God"

This is a really good article. Very insightful. Matthew Parris is someone who knows Africa. He grew up there and has extensively traveled throughout the continent. He doesn't explain why he is "Now a confirmed atheist", but he doesn't let that get in the way of truly seeing the good that comes from Christian conversion.

Those who want Africa to walk tall amid 21st-century global competition must not kid themselves that providing the material means or even the knowhow that accompanies what we call development will make the change. A whole belief system must first be supplanted.

And I'm afraid it has to be supplanted by another. Removing Christian evangelism from the African equation may leave the continent at the mercy of a malign fusion of Nike, the witch doctor, the mobile phone and the machete.

Here's the article by Matthew Parris at Times Online.

Manna Bags

Well, we did it again. My Sunday School class made Manna Bags. They are bigger and better than last years. But, what is a Manna Bag? Well, it comes from the Old Testament story in Exodus chapter 16. Manna was the bread like substance that God provided to the Jews as they crossed the desert on their way to the promise land. It was a daily miracle of God for the sustenance of the people. Our Manna Bags are kind of like that. They are a day's worth of sustenance that we give to the beggars/homeless on the street corners.

This year our Manna Bags have: an Oatmeal Raisin bar, bag of salted peanuts, cooked salami sticks, a bag of cheez-it, fruit snack, cheddar cheese crackers, lolly pop, can of mixed fruit with a plastic spoon, bottle of water, antibacterial soft wipe, travel size tooth paste and tooth brush, stamped envelope with a sheet of paper (so they can write a letter), pen, a Gideons New Testament, and a gospel tract. All of this is stuffed into a gallon size zip lock bag. Here's a picture. Click on the picture for a larger version.

Helping the Homeless

I came upon this web site today, www.PimpThisBum.com. It was from a story in the Houston Chronicle. I'm very interested in seeing how it all works out. Take a look. Best of luck to Tim.

MS 150: Houston to Austin, Please Give.

The Houston to Austin MS 150 bike ride is the best ride. I'm signed up to ride again this year. I'm hoping that you might join in my fund raising efforts and "support" me. Here's a link to Byron's MS 150 page.

Be Like Jesus

The following is copied (with permission) from SmuloSpace. I love the way John sees Jesus. Not as our churchified Jesus, but a wild, radical, revolutionary.

1. Get baptized by the craziest guy in town.

2. Say and do things that are guaranteed to make religious people want to kill you. Repeat again, and again, and again, and again, and again and don't stop unless forced.

3. Do amazing things for people and ask them to not tell anyone.

4. Hang out with the most despised, marginalized, looked down upon, and shunned people you can find.

5. When possible, forgive and restore people, even if they betrayed you.

6. Live in a way that provokes gossip.

7. Win the most grace competition.

8. Keep the party going.

9. Serve people (note: nose plugs may be required).

10. If you're sad cry.

11. Empower people to do the extraordinary.

12. Act like a rock star in a hotel temple.

13. Radically simplify theology.

14.Break human-made religious laws. Repeat consistently.

15.Prioritize the most important over the important.

16. Let women with questionable backgrounds pay your bills.

Happy Birthday Brenton

Hey, happy, happy 26th.
Love ya,
Dad