Punkinface's pumpkin

This is so awesome. Punkinface drew me a pumpkin. I held it up next to him and said, "It looks just like you!" 

To which he replied, "Nuh-uh. It has different eyes!"

do dogs lay eggs?

Punkinface always has me crackin' up, but yesterday he said, "If Cheyenne laid a dog, would she be on a farm?"

Not that funny? Allow me to explain. Cheyenne is his dad's dog. She's old, but super sweet. She, obviously, is a female. Hence, she can have pups. However, she does not.

April's mom, Punkinface's grandma, raises chickens who lay eggs and lives on a nice slice of acreage (could be construed as a farm-type situation.) He's familiar with that farm-ish, egg-laying hens in the coop lifestyle. He plays with the hens and gets chased by the roosters. He knows about laying eggs. I think - although I don't know for sure - that he believes that human babies are hatched, or laid, also. It's too cute at this point to correct him if he does. Anyhoo...

He must've assumed Cheyenne, a dog, as well as every other girl dog, lays baby puppies like every hen dropping a chicken egg that he has ever seen. Coupled with his cute factor, this conversation made me laugh.

it wakes!

Yes, the blog has slumbered many a moon, but I will attempt to wake the beast! Rise, blog, rise from your restful sleep and begin to tell the world again of the many adventures that you have born witness to!

This blog pulled a Houdini. Vanished into thin air. Or so it seemed. But, it was really just taking a nap behind the old oak tree. Rip Van Winkle-style apparently. So, here I am, once again trying to wake the slumbering dragon...

But, it's tough. SO MUCH goes on that I hardly have time to write it down before I find myself doing something else. It's like I would need nanny cams all over the house to catch the stuff on tape, just so I can remember it later. But, that ain't happening. What will happen, hopefully, is that I will begin to jot things down here and there on this blog as religiously (pun intended) as I do my other blog (See John 5:17). Have you bookmarked that one yet? You should. Seriously...

Okay, so the slumbering beast has been stirred. Let's see if it stays awake this time. And for a recap, we now have 8 KIDDOS: M, J-Girl, Lil' A, Lil' B, G, Rubberface (formerly J-Boy), Punkinface (formerly E) and Baby Dude (formerly Mini Me.)

Why "M?"  Nothing crazy fancy. Her name starts with "m." And it's a pretty cool name. Too bad I'm not gonna mention it here. Moving on...

Why "J-Girl?" Her name starts with "j" and so does her younger brother's. And the "-Girl" part to is distinguish between the two. However, as you will see below, her brother's codename has been altered, so the "-Girl" part is now just pure nostalgia.

Why "Lil' A?" As you may gave guessed, her name begins with...."a!" However, so does my wife's. And since our daughter looks like a little version of my wife, it only helps make this name more awesome.

Why "Lil' B?" You're catching on. Yes, his name starts with "b." And so does mine. And to be honest, since I don't speak in third person, his codename could just be "B" and there be zero confusion, but he's a kid and littler than me and it sounded cool.

Why "G?" This name just sounds cool - and yea, his name starts with this letter. "G" has become an endearing term people call other people who are cool. Yes, this letter used to be short for "gangsta" back in the day, but that was when "gangsta" was derogatory. Today, it means "overall neat dude" or "baller."

Why "Rubberface?" He makes tons of different faces and can squish his cheeks around. I called him this one day and he laughed so hard we decided to go with it. For a moment, maybe a day, he wanted to be called "Legoface," but that didn't last.

Why "Punkinface?" Started off with a Lego pumpkin head - which is a bit dog-chewed, but still in existence. From there and most likely due to his usage of the said pumpkin head, I began calling him punkinhead. From there, he and I used to call each other "punkinhead," then "punkinarms," "punkinlegs," "punkinears," etc - which we still do. Somewhere along the line "Punkinface" stuck and there it is.

Why "Baby Dude?" Because he's my baby and he's a dude.

The kiddos' codenames are designed to not blow their cover in the field. They're secret agents. Obviously...

so much stuff!

WE HAD OUR BABY!!! Now I have 7 kiddos already, but watching our 8th - my first biological child - being born was incredible. I think it just hit me the other day I have a baby. I was walking around this past week in sort of a daze. I remember saying at the hospital how surreal this whole thing was. I didn't freak out about blood, or seeing EVERYTHING at the birth or even cutting the umbilical cord. I did fine. Thank the Lord, right? Because normally...I'd be on the floor with all that going on.

The kiddos love our new one also. G was telling us he gets to help with the diapers - um, okay! E said he gets to tuck the baby - Mini Me - in bed every night and said.

"And I'm gonna read him a story. Oh wait. I'm gonna tell him a story because I don't know how to read yet."

Preciousness. And J-Boy gave him is own blue baby blanket, which was a huge message of L-O-V-E. And M and Lil' A all dressed up to meet their new baby brother. (M was at the hospital for the delivery and loves to claim she was the first person to ever give Mini Me a kiss. That's a cool honor!)

And Lil' B spiffed up nicely. He was beaming when we brought baby home. And the ringleader of this welcome home parade was J-Girl. She kept calling asking, "When exactly are y'all gonna be home" over and over. It was awesome and all the kiddos were amazing.

Okay, so...so much stuff to talk about. Christmas was great, except for M perhaps wanting a complete do-over with her gifts. Alas, that ain't happening...

But, the kiddos got so much stuff from everyone. And, on top of that, got their little brother Christmas night. More on Mini Me's birth in another post. There are some cool numbers happening there if you're into that sort of thing.

A month or so back E and I were playing action figures - um, that's right! - and I took a few shots right before  the mob went crazy. Take a look...

As you can see, it was good guys versus bad guys. I personally love the last one with Wolverine keeping Boba Fett in check. You may have noticed Iron Man on the ground looking not-so-good. Don't worry. He made it out okay!

Being a reporter right in the midst of this battle was crazy. Although from different dimensions, the superheroes/supervillians were well matched against their Star Wars Rebellion/Empire counterparts. Plus, I believe there were some army dudes, some GI Joe, that were, again, from separate worlds, but fought valiantly. It was awesome and E had a great time.

If I talk a moment about this blog...I'm not lazy, per say, but I do fancy myself someone who loves to have all my ducks in a row...and blogs in the same place. I had this blog previously on PastorBrennan.com but moved it back here, but now...I think I'd get to this a lot more often than once a month if I had on the site I go to ten times a day. I just hope if and when I do move it, you guys will venture that way, despite any opinion one way or the other as to my amount of "religious" commentaries.

I will look to devote an area to my site for Adventures in Role Modeling so that everyone can see the day-to-days of our family shenanigans.

But, again, how cool is that Wolverine vs. Boba Fett picture! Right? C'mon!

"Can I be a writer?"

E just asked me that. Um, of course! Last night he showed us his "special sandwich" book he wrote. He folded a bunch of written and colored on memo-sized pieces of paper together like a...book. The sandwich, which I promised him we'd make today, has several of the rainbow colors in it apparently, so we'll see how that pans out. Anyhoo...

        "Can I be a writer?"

He was so excited when he asked me that. I love that he wants to write. And look - he's already got a published book! Today he brought in another, larger book that was about, among other things, a "police dragon king horse." In case you didn't know, allow me to break down what "police dragon king horse" means: He has combined the idea of the police Lego man he has, a Lego horse and then these rotating characters called "Dragon Kings" - depending on who has the cape, Lego torso with the dragon emblem on it or knight's helmet at the time. Rules vary day to day.

He was so cute today coming in and announcing he wants to be a writer. April was doing her make-up and kept "ahh'ing." Then he asked...

                 "Do you think it's a good idea?"

I told him, "I think it's the best idea ever, punkinface!"

time has flown

Well, gang, it has been a bit since I last fired up this blog and I realize that I was mistaken for lumping this personal stuff in with our public outreach stuff. Some of you have expressed your wishes for me to talk more about life with April and the kiddos - apart from our ministries. More like a publicly private family message center. So, the blog is back. I do hope you continue to frequent our other sites to get my devotionals, random thoughts and notes, and daily doses of what I think it is to live a WWJD? lifestyle. Anyhoo...

Time gets away from us when we're not looking. Here it is almost December and we got a baby coming soon. A Christmas baby! Awesome! We've had two wonderful Thanksgiving dinners, one with my side of the family and one with April's. Good talks. Good meals. It has been a blessing. We are truly grateful for those put in our lives.

Hm. Lemme see...things you guys need to get caught up on...M's first high school dance, the fish she (may have possibly) sent prematurely up the sewage river, Baby E's (not to be confused with E the awesome 4 yr-old) Star Wars baby shower and all the awesome things we've received for his room, Lil' A and April getting their stuff into a consignment shop called "Anomaly Shop" in downtown McKinney. There's a lot of stuff.

Check back soon for it!

I'm Seriously!

E has a new phrase that has seemingly – except for random times – replaced his patented “That’s how!”And if you couldn’t tell from the title of this post, his new adamant proclamation after most things he says is, “I’m seriously!”

It’s pretty much awesome every time he says it. It’s kinda like you halfway want to tell him that’s not quite how to say it, but the majority of you wants him to keep saying it the way he wants. Like not telling him yet that just because nickels are bigger than dimes, it doesn’t make the nickel worth more. You know?

So, even though we aren’t trying to defy his ability to grow up, we are, in effect, attempting to defy his ability to grow up too fast.

And I’m seriously about that!

God Makes It Rain!

While we were sitting on the front porch, each of us eating our respective ice creams out of the pint with a spoon, E remarked that two of his older brothers – Lil’ B and G – say they are in charge of their own room. He laughed and said, “But you guys are in charge of their room, Brennan!”

I smiled and nodded, eating my cookies n’ cream. Then E said…

“God is in charge of the whole world. Even the trees. And the bushes. And the cars. And the trailers…even you!”

“That’s right, He is,” I told him.

“But He doesn’t even water the plants,” he said.

I turned to him and asked, “What about rain?”

“Oh yea! God waters the plants with rain,” E replied. “That’s what He uses the clouds for!”

E talks Family

The other day E was in the van while we ran errands and started to talk about when he was older and about having a wife and family of his own. He asked, “When I’m older, will God send me down a house and car before I get married?”

We laughed, but soon realized that this was so close to how God wants us to be. April remarked, “Faith of a child.” The Bible wants us to be dependent on God – and who wouldn’t want to be? That’s the big question. Rely on the Creator of everything for your everything? Sounds like a win-win to me. And it sounds stress-free which is awesome.

I love the one-liners E throws out in pure wonderment and innocence. He is really a lot wiser than his 4 and a half years should garner. It’s so cool.

Paul & I

I am a "B" movie version of Paul the Apostle. Maybe a straight-to-the-dollar-theater version. Maybe a token RedBox throwaway. However, he, more like any other man in the Bible, do I relate to most. I fully expect to have a "thorn in my flesh." Don't know what I'm referring to? Check out 2 Corinthians 12: 5-10.

What if I posted that I won the lotto yesterday? How fast would my inbox and cell phone have blown up with "congratulations" and "can I borrow some...?" I didn't want this position for my own personal praise. I knew taking on this role would bring on mixed feelings and hard times.

I don't mind the insults. I will turn the other cheek to give you a second shot.

I don't mind the accusations that I'm not worthy of this position. God called me to do it and too bad He didn't stop to ask you for permission.

I don't mind anything negative that anyone says. It's expected. Look where I came from. Look at my history. Funny that this same "history" should be testament enough that God must've had a hand in my direction, because I was spinning in circles.

My wife, April, supports me. My children support me. They are my launching pad into the great unknown as I try to spread God's word whenever and however He wants me to.

"How, then, can they call on the one they have not believed in? And how can they believe in the one of whom they have not heard? And how can they hear without someone preaching to them? And how can anyone preach unless they are sent? As it is written: “How beautiful are the feet of those who bring good news!" - Romans 10: 14-15

READ THESE ALSO:
Acts 9 
2 Corinthians 10

Pastor Brennan?

Today I was given new purpose. My direction has been towards God and His Son Jesus Christ for a little bit of time now, but today, that arrow has been sharpened. Today, I was ordained as a minister. That's right, Pastor Brennan McMahon, at His - and your - service. (Side note: Pastoring doesn't always mean preaching from the pulpit. For the time, I intend to use my office to further grow our homeless ministry A Couple Bucks & a Bible, and to help others along the way with my co-Pastor wife. Of course, whatever God calls me to do with this new title is what I'll ultimately do.)

Funny thing, ordination. Ask me three years ago if I'd ever be a pastor and the words would have lost most meaning before all the letters left your lips. No one saw this coming....except April. She saw early on in our relationship that God had bigger plans for me. Plans I thought were not just impossible, but somewhat funny given my worldy past. And tap those brakes, I wasn't a devil or anything, but. my past was materialistic, meaningless, lazy, blasphemous, sinful...unfortunately, normal.

That's right. I was like society wanted me to be. Lost. Tired. Alone. In need of it. "It" being society. "It" being Satan and his goons. "It" should've been Jesus and I should've been kickin' it with Him from the jump, but that ship has sailed, but thank God, another boat just pulled up to the dock!

Well, here I am, just got my confirmation that I was ordained as an independent minister.  I remember saying on this blog that it'd never be about religion. That didn't last. I remember saying I'd never be a pastor. So much for that.

No matter what YOU have planned, GOD has a better one for you. A better job. Better benefits. Better life insurance.

God Bless from the newest Pastor you know!

Notes - The Book of Genesis

These are my personal notes after reading the book of Genesis. Be sure to check out the external link at the bottom to find out more about something not necessarily mentioned in this chapter, but usually on many people’s minds. But, read my stuff first!

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GENESIS
Author: Moses, written 1450-1410 B.C.
Genesis time period: Creation (undated) - 1805 B.C.

Where was the light on Day 1- 3? God created earth’s sun and moon on the 4th day.

Can God, or the Holy Spirit, emit pure light?

Jesus was at the beginning of creation as God’s son, a physical representation of what we humans were to be modeled after on the 6th day. So, Jesus was there, perhaps in the exact form that the Twelve Disciples and thousands of others saw him in years later as he grew up and began to preach Salvation to the world. So, if this is the case, is Jesus technically the first human? Or is it more like when a manufacturer will make a prototype out of expensive materials to show investors, but then when it comes time to mass produce, the product is made of some other, less costly pieces? The product is still a modern marvel, but never as good as the original.

The fall of angels, of Satan and 1/3 of heaven, happened either during the early creation of Eden, or before. Either way, it happened before the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil, because its name implies there is such a thing as “evil.”

“Doing evil.” Shorten those two words to read “d-evil.”

Being tempted is not a sin. We have not sinned until we give in to temptation.

Temptation can come in the form of thoughts. If these thoughts are quickly discarded, or run from, then we have not sinned. It is when we dwell on, or act out, the thoughts and temptations that is becomes sin. Paul tells us to run from the things that produce evil thoughts.

A guilty conscience is God’s warning bell that we’ve done something wrong and need to ask for His forgiveness.

How long did Cain and Abel live, how many offspring must they have had, before Abel was killed? Because Cain pleads with God not to cast him out as a homeless wonderer because he is afraid someone will kill him? What “someone?” His sons? His grandkids? Certainly not his father, Adam, or his mother, Eve. Other brothers and sisters of his? Did Abel have no children, ergo, no personal lineage?

Adam and Eve had a multitude of children. They were charged with filling the earth with them. Cain must    have feared other brothers and sisters, or their children, would seek revenge for him killing Abel.

The only odd thing is that Eve is overjoyed with the birth of Seth, whom she assumes was granted to her by God to replace Abel. This implies that 1) Eve had no other children, at least other boys; or 2) that none of them was capable, or good enough, to replace Abel until Seth arrived; or 3) Seth was the next born son after Abel was killed.

It appears Abel never had children of his own.

People lived to upwards of 900 years near the beginning. These lengths of time are contributed to either actually meaning family dynasties lasting that long, not an individual, or that it was literally how long the person lived, citing no cosmic radiation from the absence of rain and sunlight reflection that causes rapid aging, coupled with the notion that God allowed them to live longer to allow for more procreation.

Enoch was “taken” to be with God. If he was literally taken, human body and all, that would mean there are two physical people in Heaven, Enoch and Jesus.

The word “taken” sparks to mind the idea of alien abduction. Did anyone see Enoch get taken? I wonder what their scene descriptions would be if they did. At this point in my studies - which is novice, at best - I am toying with the idea that aliens are more likely demons, maybe sometimes angels, rather than little green men from Mars. Cave drawings and ancient secular scrolls and manuscripts claiming people from the stars came down and interacted with our ancestors could very well could’ve been angels carrying messages, or demons on the prowl. Perhaps Enoch was “abducted” by an angel?

Nephilites were the offspring of “sons of God” and  mortal women. They were the heroes and famous warriors of the time. They were considered giants. Are these “sons of God” the angels, or fallen demons?

Angels or demons do not reproduce, so “sons of God” might not be referring to them. Another theory is that these “sons” were descendants of Seth who intermarried with Cain’s descendents. This may have weakened the good influence of the bloodline and created a wicked lineage.

Goliath was thought to be a Nephilite. Some scholars believe them to have been nine or ten feet tall.

After the flood, God told Noah that the rules were pretty much “an eye for an eye.” If someone kills another human, they must be killed by yet another human.

How does this not create a domino effect that eventually wipes out the human race - again? If one person kills someone, they will be killed by a third person, but then that third person is now a murderer and, by definition, must be killed by a fourth person who will then be a murderer and so on. Unless, God ordains the murder of a murderer and pardons the executioner? Confusing stuff.

Melchizedek, first mentioned priest/king in the Bible. Not Jewish, but worshiped God. Abraham (Abram) had conquered the evil kings - saving Lot in the process - and returned with Melchizedek’s servants and possessions to give to him. He also offered a 10th of all the other goods he recovered. The king refused and asked only for his people to be returned, offering Abraham all the possessions, but Abraham did not take them, thinking the king could then say he was the one who made Abraham rich, not God. King Melchizedek assured Abraham that he, too, knew that is was God who won the war against the evil kings. Some scholars believe that King Melchizedek, who was only seen in all of recorded history during this one encounter, was actually Jesus long before the days of the manger story and Jerusalem.

Beer-lahai-roi, “Well of the Living One who sees me.” Where an angel of the Lord found Hagar and convinced her to return to Abram and Sarai, and told her that she would have a son named Ishmael (“God hears”) and that she would have more descendents than she could count. The well was located between Kadesh and Bered.

El-Shaddai (“God Almighty”)

El-Olam (“Eternal God”)

Yahweh-Yireh (“the Lord will provide”)

Sarah died at the age of 127 and was buried in the cave of Machpelah, near Mamre (Hebron.) Abraham bought it and the surrounding field from Ephron, son of Zohar, a Hittite, for 400 pieces of silver (shekels) as a permanent burial place for his people.

When Rebekah saw Isaac walking in the fields, she followed two ORIENTAL customs: she dismounted her camel to show respect, and placed a veil over her face as a bride.

If an Oriental custom made it all the way to the Middle East, where is the mention of Oriental people, travelers, etc in the Bible? They must have inter-mingled for a long period of time if their customs remained.

Before Abraham died, he sent the sons of his concubines, and possibly those of his second wife, Keturah, to the east, leaving Isaac as his sole heir.

Perhaps the sons sent to the east further developed the far Asian nations, although by Rebekah’s acknowledgment of Oriental culture, people were already there by this time. Who’s descendants were they?

Jacob’s name was changed to Israel which means “he struggles with God.”

Rebekah sent Esau into the tent to be blessed by a near-blind Isaac, thus attempting to fulfill God’s promise that Esau would be the family leader. She took matters into her own hands and did not wait for God’s plan to unfold.

How do we know that this wasn’t God’s plan unfolding? God knew she would do this. Her actions brought about the same result, yet she has been chastised for this action. How do we know when to act and when to sit and wait? Are we not tools of God, helping to bring about His will and the events He says are to come? How then is acting in the best intentions towards what we were already told would happen be bad?

It’s when we push up the timeline of God’s plan by way of selfish, or deceptive, practices that should be chastised. His plan will work out, with or without, our help. We should prepare for the things He promises, not force them to happen. By that preparation, we are showing our faith and actually helping set the stages for positive change.

Bethel (“House of God”)

Jacob, upon being left alone in his camp after sending many gifts towards Esau, and his family and possessions across the river the other direction, was met by an angel (the Bible literally says “God”) and wrestled with him. Because the angel could not best Jacob, he was renamed Israel, “One who wrestles with God,”  “He Struggles with God” or “God Fights.”

Why did Esau bring an army of 400 men to meet Jacob if he never intended him any harm? Did he have a change of heart along the way? Last minute?

El-Elohe-Israel (“God, the God of Israel”)

Rachel died giving birth to Ben-oni (“son of my sorrow”), but Jacob renamed him Benjamin (“son of my right hand.”) Rachel was buried on the way to Ephrath/Bethlehem. The stone monument that Jacob placed there can still be seen today.

Joseph was sold to Ishmaelite traders into Egypt by his jealous older brothers.

Obviously, his brothers did him wrong, but that “wrong” saved Egypt from famine and brought the knowledge of God into a sinful country, quite possibly changing peoples lives forever. Is that not the definition of a “necessary evil?” Joseph had to go into Egypt. Does God not use people for the ultimate, long-term good when the immediate, short-term good looks more like evil? We are limited in our understanding of Him and his reasons. Clearly the brothers’ goal was not to do any sort of good and they had no idea their actions would result in a positive outcome, it was God who knew. However, had the brothers not done this, would the rest of the story’s bullet points ever had happened?

Judah, one of Joseph’s older brothers, met and married a Canaanite woman, daughter of Shua. She bore him three sons: Er, Onan and Shelah. Er was slated to marry a woman named Tamar, but was considered “a wicked man in the Lord’s sight” so the Lord “took his life.” Onan was then tapped to marry her and make her pregnant, so, according to custom, provide his deceased brother with an heir. However, Onan refused to give help to produce a child that would not be his own heir, so he had sex with the woman, but “spilled the semen on the ground.” The Lord thought it was evil that Onan would not give his brother an heir “so the Lord took Onan’s life, too.”

Joseph went from slave to prisoner to ruler of Egypt. Because of his faith and trust in God, the Pharoah named him Zaphenath-paneah (“God speaks and lives”) and made him second-in-command of all Egypt. This, of course, after Joseph, will God’s help, interpreted Pharaoh’s dreams about 7 good years and 7 bad years of crops. Joseph suggested that storehouse 1/5 of everything for the first 7 years so they would have enough for the last 7 years that will produce little to no food. People from all over Egypt came to Joseph during those famine years to purchase grains and food, because a famine had struck the known world.

Without God’s help, the nation of Egypt would have crumbled. Even if they don’t believe in God, wouldn’t the record books show a man of God, Joseph, is the one responsible for the famine avoidance situation? Surely, that fact alone would allow for thoughts of the one true God’s existence for those who still don’t believe. The Bible is a history book, full of facts. Egypt surviving because of a man and his faith in God is a FACT. God saved a nation of pagans. That’s love for His creation right there.

Joseph married Asenath wore bore him two sons: Manasseh and Ephraim.

Joseph’s brothers came to Egypt to buy grain, not knowing that he was the man in charge, nor recognizing him when they were dealing with him at first. His younger brother, Benjamin was not among them. He had a plan: accuse them of being spies and told them that in order to prove they were who they said they were, they had to present to him their younger brother. He allowed them to go home and fetch Benjamin, keeping one brother, Simeon, in jail as collateral. Upon hearing this news, Jacob, their father, was unnerved. He did not want his youngest son to be killed as he believe Joseph was and refused for some time to go along with the plan. Finally, the grain the brothers had returned home with was gone and they convinced their father to allow Benjamin to travel with them in order to buy more grain, for if they showed back up in Egypt without him, they feared they’d all die. When they arrived back before Joseph and he saw that Benjamin was still alive, he prepared a feast.

At the feast, Benjamin received five times as much food as his other brothers. Upon Joseph’s revealing of his true identity to his brothers, Pharoah invited all the brothers and their father, Jacob, to live in Egypt and have every need attended to. They were given new clothes, but Benjamin received five changes of clothes and 300 pieces of silver (shekels.)

Jacob and his entire family settled in Goshen in the northeastern part of Egypt.

On his deathbed, Jacob gave a blessing, or curse depending on who it was, and a prophecy to each of his sons. He cursed Reuben for sleeping with his concubine and defiling his “marriage couch.” He cursed Simeon and Levi who were cruel. But, he blessed Judah, most likely for his change of heart and willingness to give his life up for Benjamin, and told him that his descendants would be prosperous and “the scepter will not depart Judah nor the ruler’s staff from his descendants until the coming of the one to it belongs, the one whom all nations will honor.” (Also translated as “until Shiloh comes.”) “Shiloh” may refer to “Messiah” since it means “sent.” Messiah = Jesus.

Jesus was born unto Judah’s line of descendants.

Abraham (Abram) > Isaac > Jacob > Joseph

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As I finished Genesis, I thought, “Wow. And so it begins…and, oh wait, what about the dinosaurs? Where they on the Ark? What’s the deal?”

After a little research, I found an awesome article on that very topic. Seriously click this link and read about it >>> Answers in Genesis: Dinosaurs. <<<

(The Bible I am reading is the New Living Translation Life Application Study Bible by Tyndale House Publishers, Inc. This is the one I have referred to as the "SuperBible." My notes are my own, but I do borrow some of the intellect and wisdom from this version's scholars.)

witnessing for Jesus

God has certainly put things on my heart lately. That, or for the first time in my life am I finally listening to Him. Either way, as we push forward with A Couple Bucks & a Bible and the One Flock series, we have started up another way to get the Word out called Outcast. Now, this isn't a business, yet, but rather a Facebook page targeting everyone who needs some Jesus in their life. And since that would include everyone on the planet, therein lies our hope of who will stumble upon our 1 page among millions. However, Rome, that wicked place, wasn't built in one day so I'm going to illustrate some of that crazy "patience" stuff that God instilled in me not too long ago. Still getting the hang of it...

Of course, like any good Christian, I have prayed, and continue to pray daily for blessings on my family, my friends, my businesses. And like any good Christian knows, we aren't always good Christians - but we're quick to jump right back up after we trip. However, I'm gonna be more careful to watch the sidewalk in front of me so as to not trip so much anymore.

I also pray that my dear friends and family, those who either don't live a life for Jesus, or those who are what I like to call Splenda Christians - good, but not the real thing - begin to walk with Christ and invite him to come into their lives and repair the damage. We all have damage. Some of us have just figured out it's better to call in a professional rather than repeatedly fail to fix it ourselves.

God Bless.

first day of school 2011

Like most posts, I kinda have a point and destination in mind, but usually these things just start off however God wants them to...and they usually end up that way, too.

I just wanted to mention that today was the first time I ever dropped my kiddos off to school for the first day of school! And today was even more special because some of them were attending new schools, which meant milestones and new challenges ahead. I got to be there as they first faced these new obstacles and, I don't know, and without sounding too emotionally unglued, I was touched. It was amazing to see these kids about to learn a whole new level about themselves. I guess I liken it to watching a space shuttle launch. Who knows what they are going to discover this year? With God's help and some guidance from us, these new adventures will benefit them today and for a multitude of tomorrows.

To be honest, I am worried about the influence of others. Because I know negative influences wait around every corner. Evil is everywhere whether you want to admit it or not. But, that's part of the challenge of being human. As we get older, those challenges will get harder when combined with bills, relationships, life...

It's a test of our children, and of us, that we allow all of us to go through. Rite of passage, so speak. We can't hold their hands forever, nor can we expect our hands to be held all the time. I think sometimes we find security in our children. Something we have control over. But, as a parent, I know that's a two-way street. You're either super militant or in a suspended mode of fooling yourself if you think you have total control over your kids. They need to be allowed to make choices, because that helps them hone those "adult" skills for later on in life. And we need to give them that respect to make those choices, and then face the consequences. They will learn cause and effect, which is a priceless lesson to learn. Hopefully, they don't take a liking, or an indifference, to the negative ones. But, you pray for protection and wisdom for them everyday, right? So, no worries there. Right?

I think I am pulling from this past Sunday's sermon a bit. Maybe more than a bit. But, that's okay. Our pastor is wise. God works through him, too, so he knows what he's talking about. And you may not go to my church, so you're none the wiser anyway. Well,  I guess you are now...

That's pretty much all there is for now.

hi, friends

I've begun reading the Bible. And this Bible is like a SUPERBIBLE. It's got interpretations and translations of some key Hebrew phrases - man, this thing has got it all. Hands down, best present anyone ever gave me, save Christ dying on the cross for me and when God presented me with April - whoa, my wife just got outed on my blog!!! Yes, "A" is April. No shocker there since about 99.9% of the people reading this actually know who we are. However, we just found out we're having a boy - our 8th child - so that is kinda a nice big present as well. I guess, despite any money problems, health scares or worldly frustrations thrown our way, April and I have been blessed. I pray that God continues to bless us and our family...sevenfold!

Anyhoo, the Bible. I've skimmed through pages of one before. Even read the entire "Action Bible" front to back. If you remember, that Bible is a comic book version, with the "meat" of the Gospel accompanied by really cool drawings. I wholeheartedly recommend it to anyone who's transferring into Christianity from some other worldly, decaying place. This particular Action Bible will give you more than enough to hold a normal conversation about God, Jesus and the Holy Spirit - the Divine Trinity. Plus, it acts as an amazing aide into the love and compassion that Jesus Christ had, has and will have for all of those who believe in Him and act in His name for the good of all mankind.

From that Bible, I began to read the NIV New Testament Bible that I hand out for A Couple Bucks & a Bible. By the way, funds are low and we did receive our tax deductible 501(c)(3) status, so if you're feeling overtly Christian today, we need the funds.

I was able to read the New Testament while waiting for April at commercial shoots or here and there, but I never gave God the time he deserved. He gives me all this time I have, and I only - barely - gave Him Sunday mornings. Not a very balanced relationship.

So now, every morning I come downstairs to the office and read the Bible, starting with Genesis. This is the SUPERBIBLE I am talking about. And even though it has extensive notes, I am taking my own, of which I will, at some point, transfer to this blog.

My notes have wonders, amazement, historical details, and yes, even a few doubts. Not "it never happened" doubts, but more like "how could that happen?" Doubts are healthy because they then require further inquiry into God's Word, thus revealing more beauty and understanding. Doubts are normal.

God gave us a brain that doesn't stop. It continually looks for angles, reasons, understanding. And even though our brains are trying their hardest, God doesn't have to be inside the realm of what we consider logical or reasonable. God is outside of time, space, here, now, yesterday, today and tomorrow. We are limited by these things, God isn't.

I remarked to April the other day about people trying to "crack" the Bible. Figure out its meaning and all its secrets. I think that's impossible. If mankind was able to do that, then mankind, tied so firmly to the wickedness of the world, would try and somehow expose that meaning. Plus, if everything we are supposed to ascertain from the Bible was known, what use would the Bible be afterwards? A simple history book?

Nope. The Bible has endless life lessons for us because we are constantly messing up. The Bible is like no other book. To even call it a book is iffy. It is so much more. And the power is not contained in the thin paper and printed ink, but rather in the WORDS on the pages, and those Words are powerful. They tell you - personally! - what you need to hear at that certain time that you finally realized that the only One who can help you is Jesus Christ.

One last thing. I just read this and I can't get it out of my head, but I don't want to so that's okay. First off, a disclaimer. People tend to associate Jesus Christ with the New Testament only. He is often bypassed for names like Noah, Abraham, Adam, Eve and David in the Old Testament. Although Genesis has He, God and the Holy Spirit at the beginning of the earth with the mention of "Let us make human beings in our own image, to be like us." (Genesis 1:26) Jesus was there. He is part of the Holy Trinity. We, as humans, look like Jesus. But, that's not the part I just read, I knew that. This was just the disclaimer.

Melchizedek was the first priest/king mentioned in the Bible. Abraham (at the time still known as Abram)had just conquered the evil kings of the valley and was returning possessions to this priest/king. I won't get into all the details, but this priest/king was only recorded once in all of written history. Abram, nor anyone else, seemed to know him. He was a mystery. He wasn't known to be a godly man, yet credited God for all of Abram's victories, which was a shock to those who heard it. This man was only seen by the people one time. Scholars believe that this was Jesus Christ, long before Mary, long before the miracles, long before the cross. Read about it.(Genesis 14:17-24)

Jesus is all throughout the Old Testament. The rituals, the rules, the prophecies all point towards the Messiah. On top of that, He may have actually been there in the flesh as well.

I want to live in an empty field with my family...#1

Society is a trap. If someone did everything the ads said to do. Everything their TVs told them to do. Everything the internet shows them to do...they'd have a materialistically shallow version of a life. A hollow shell of what could be and a constant yearning for more because that emptiness will never be filled. In today's case, that pretty much means a massive chunk of the population of earth.

You may live a seemingly wonderful life by doing everything society tells you is the "cool" thing to do. You may appear happy. You may even be able to fool yourself into happiness for a day or so. But, it'll be just on the surface. You can lie to others and to your own face in the mirror, but inside you know you're empty and tired because you are continually attempting to keep up with and appease, if not impress, society.

Crazy alot like the idea of The Matrix - computers notwithstanding - you have to be woken up in to "real life" versus "a worldly life." This happened for me when I met my wife and saw, for the first time, the ugliness behind society's curtain. It is designed to make you a slave. You are under its power every waking moment of the day and don't think for a second it isn't trying to somehow get to you in your sleep.

The constant bombardment of half naked people on the billboards and foul language used in everyday TV shows has numbed you to their effects. Who is society telling you to look like? Be like? Be intimate with? I hope you said your significant other to that last question.

Society tells you that it's okay to look. Window shop the other men and women in this meat market. And it used to finish that idea with "but don't touch," however these days it tells you that touching is now also allowed. Your spouse doesn't mind because either she's doing the same thing or wants to. And if she doesn't, she's been brainwashed by some cult or religion. To that I ask: If the majority of the population thinks that society isn't as bad as poison for them, then who's really been brainwashed?

More to come later....

family business

When it comes to businesses, an open door policy between the suits and the worker bees is a novel approach to morale boosting and employee ownership.

However... As I have come to learn, such a policy is not ideal in the parental business. We have since adopted a new policy. A "knock on the closed door" policy. Literally. Please, knock before you repeatedly barge into our room. And this isn't even about what you may be thinking this is about. Quite simply, A and I like the antiquated respect-oriented notion of knocking before entering a room. It shows courteousness and self-restraint.

That's our policy. How its holding up? I'll give you some numbers. 50/50.

Art Show UPDATE

A's two paintings didn't get a single award. Sham...

Shame. I mean shame. It's a shame.

well, hello there

About to go up to our church for a ceremony-type-thing where they are showing works from local artists - A has two paintings up there! - and giving out awards and such.

Hope she wins audience fave at least. I saw some of the other paintings up there. Better than what I could do, but not near as good as she does. Not just being biased, just being for real.

On the nonprofit front, I am tinkering with single monthly campaigns that hit a specific area hard and make an impact. Downtown. North Dallas. Mckinney. Wherever. We'd just collect as many donations as possible at the top of the month and at the end, hit someplace with as many Bibles with a two dollar twist as we can. So, there's that.

As far as the web series, I'm lovin' it. Not to steal the McDonald's tagline, but there it is. Hope people out there are watching and loving, too. The numbers are good for a web series like ours with no huge promotions going on or anything. Friends of friends of friends being told in emails and text messages works for us for now.

Check out the show!

marketing poster