Black Friday Laughter

Yesterday (the Friday after Thanksgiving) is called Black Friday -- Why? -- because it is the day stores turn a profit due to the massive crowds that come out to do Christmas shopping seeking glorious bargains. I did my part to contribute to western material profitability...I went shopping at 5:00 a.m. when the stores opened. Now, to be honest I've done this for several years in a row - it's not a new thing. Why would a sane (usually), sensible (not always) older guy like me join the maddening crowds of frenzied shoppers who brave the mornings after Thanksgiving in search of the "super specials"? I would like to be able to say that it's because I'm spiritual and I am getting my shopping out of the way before the beginning of Advent, which is tomorrow, Nov. 26th. I would like to say that I'm an early morning guy anyway, so why not go out and get it over with? I'd love to come up with some nice spiritual, or at least sensible, answers; but one trip out on a Black Friday would lead most people to realize that it's not a fun place to be if you're interested in sane and sensible!
Linda was going to go with me this year...her first time ever. We set the alarm for 4:15 and when it went off, I went "Uugh!" I was tempted to ignore it, catch another hour or so of sleep and just forget the whole thing...but then Linda got up and I thought, "OK, she's getting ready", and so I got up and started to get ready also. No, she was not getting ready, she was instead saying, "I don't think I feel good enough to go out...", which left me with the choice of either congratulating her for stopping me from also going, OR....do what I did, go on without her.
I slipped into the car at 4:45, a cup of coffee, and four store circulars from which I had noted things I was after...five great bargains, one purchase for myself, and four presents to finish off most of the shopping I would need to do. As I took off, it hit me that traffic was about the same density as I've seen traveling into Madison on weekdays at 9:00 a.m...that should have warned me. I foolishly kept thinking, "I wonder how many people will be there at 5:00 a.m.?" I thought a couple of hundred would be at Best Buy, my first stopping place...FOOL! When I pulled up to Best Buy, I noticed the parking lot completely full! In fact, the restaurant parking lot across the street was also full, and there was a long line awaiting the doors to open in a minute to two. I notice that there was a line out of Kohl's next door, but I wasn't going there, so I bravely walked across the lot to get in line. THE LINE...snaked around the building, along the wall and across their back loading and unloading area...and then made a uturn where it snaked back towards Kohls! Yes, that line outside of Kohls was actually the end of the line for Best Buy! Uugh!
I stood and thought..."this isn't going to work, switch plans and get to the Mall first". As I passed through the lot, I saw a Best Buy traffic/sales/I-got-stuck-maintaining-the-line person and asked him, "When did people get in line?" He replied the first arrived at 3:30p.m ON THANKSGIVING DAY! Later on I met one of those who had been in the line since 3:00 a.m., they were about 50 people back from the door...got what they wanted in less than 10 minutes and stood in line to check out for 1&1/2 hours! No thanks...sane, sensible man is thinking I should have stayed in bed.
Nevertheless, there are still four presents to find, and so off to the Mall I head. It's not wall to wall people, but there are a lot of people in the first store. That is when it began...the smile, and the inner laughter. People watching...kids watching...amazing moments that made me smile. I headed for the section for gift #1...easy, it was there! Yeah! Standing next to me is a woman talking on her cell phone...one of those walky-talky ones... "No, don't go there, they don't have any left, I found ones at Sears"...squawk..."how much?"...squawk..."$17.95, she replies". I thought, "it's a military maneuver!" I had all I could do to stop from laughing out loud. I walked away, heading for department #2, gift 2, along the way I started noticing people's faces...serious, stern, focused! These were people on a mission. I started smiling and those that noticed probably wondered if I wasn't either a store owner or security...only a couple smiled back. As I got to #2, a woman walked alongside...three close-to-teenage kids in tow..."OK, now (names a name) what would you like to do, what do you need?" Before the kid can answer..."And (next named kid)...what about you..?" Again, before either one can answer, "We need to get organized and be as effecient as possible with this time." The kids had that hollowed glazed look on their faces that kids give to parents when they have checked out on the parental concern topic! I smiled, and turned away. A woman walks past in a hurry..."C'mon (she names his name)", and clearly he is following along grudgingly. I find #2 and head for the counter to check out. I'm standing behind this woman, but a couple of feet away, when this woman walks up, totally oblivious to my presence and steps in behind her and in front of me...I decide to say nothing...and smile! Then, the husband steps in next to her..."Honey, you cut in front of this guy". "Oh, I'm sorry..." We start a light-hearted conversation. He wanted to be up north deer hunting, but dad had to go to the hospital, and they decided to do some shopping since they were home anyway. "Do you do this every year?" I ask..."No, I've never done this before, and I don't know that I ever will again!", he says..."Oh, Larry", she gives him a good nature slap on the shoulder! We laugh.
On to quest #3...no one is in this line, wow! Amazing, but the clerk and I exchange pleasantrys and I ask how she handles a day like this..."It goes fast", she says. Are people generally nice? "It depends...not if they don't get what they want at the price they want it for." I check out, "Thanks, hope you can find some peace in the middle of this hectic crowd, Happy Thanksgiving and Merry Christmas to you". Off to stop #4 - back to Best Buy.
It's not an hour and half later...6:30 and the line outside the store is gone, but there are a lot of people inside. I head for my goal...shoot, not there! A woman in a Best Buy shirt sees me looking..."Can I help you find something?" "Well, I was looking for this thing," pointing to the item in the circular. "Ok, let's see", and walks to a table not at all connected to this item. There's one left!!!! Success, victory, God is good! I had to ask, "So what was it like in here at 5:00?" She smiled, "People made a mad dash for different bargains...most were snapped up in less than 30 minutes...we ran out of" --and she named off three big bargain things. I smiled, thanked her for her help and went to the back of the check out line which by then had been reduced to only about 100 people!
Home at 8:00, my presents purchased, and coffee in hand...I pronounced a fun-filled zany adventure in people. Black Friday laughter...as I laughed my way through explaining it all to Linda...she was not convinced she missed a great Adventure. Still, the sane and sensible man I usually am gave way to my German, never miss the chance to get a bargain!

Happy Birthday Kelly

I have a wonderful daughter -- Kelly -- my firstborn, and today she is 32! Wow, I can't believe how those years have flown by so quickly. What I can say is that I'm incredibly proud of who Kelly is, and what Kelly has become. SO....HAPPY BIRTHDAY KEL!

Early Snow - Smile!

It snowed this last weekend!
While I've gotten less enthused about snow as I've gotten older, there's still something very sweet about the first major snow.

All Hallowed Eve

It's Sunday the 29th as I write this, but Tuesday is "All Hallowed Eve"...something that perversely became "Halloween", but is really the evening before "All Saints Day". This day is a "holy" day in the Catholic Church...The Festival of All Saints and All Souls. Halloween was a day inherited from the Celts. Originally, before it was a Christian holy day, October 31st was a Celtic celebration wherein the Celts believed their departed family and friends returned to their homes to eat and drink. Being the harvest time, food was more plentiful, and some was left out on this evening for this purpose. Later, in England this tradition began on "Mischief Day" where kids would dress like goblins, ghosts, witches, etc. to be scary, then knocking at the doors of their neighbors, they would demand treats, or they'd do some sort or michievious "trick" on them. I have many fond memories of growing up in a small town going on an expedition for candy and treats on this day. In many ways it was a harmless day for kids to have fun.
The idea behind The Festival of All Saints comes from the medieval period. Pope Sixtus IV in 1484 established November 1, the Feast of All Saints. It was declared a holyday of obligation and given both a vigil (known today as "All Hallows' Eve" or "Hallowe'en") and an eight-day period or octave to celebrate the feast. By 1955, the octave of All Saints was removed.

For Protestants, All Saints Eve took on great meaning when Martin Luther, in 1517, posted his "95 Theses" to raise awareness of the abuse of indulgences being sold.
Luther had been ordained a priest ten years before and then became a professor of theology at a recently founded University of Wittenberg. He also served as priest of the Wittenberg parish. In the course of the next 8 years he studied and taught from Romans, Galatians and the Psalms and came to believe that humans are saved through the grace of God alone, (per solam fidem), and that a person could not be justified by "merits" of the church nor through works or religious observances. The sale of indulgences was simply the "straw that broke the camels back" in a growing list of disturbing acts of the church to Luther.
It should be noted, Luther had great reverence for the church and the leadership. He - naively - believed that once these abuses were brought out into the open the authorities would disavow the practices as incorrect and return the church to more sound practices. Well, we all know what happened. Instead the church leadership reacted with strong arm attempts to silence him. He went to Augsburg where he was told he would meet a Cardinal (Cajetan) and without conversation simply recant. That didn't work. Then he was summoned to a place in SW Germany called "Worms" (best pronounced 'Verms') where he was confronted with his writings and given an ultimatum - recant - or be excommunicated. I guess the Roman officials didn't understand German stubborness. Growing up in a German family, and thus sharing in those in those old European genes, I do. It's not enough to tell a German what to do...and above all else avoid telling them their wrong unless you have a lot of proof!

OK...my long winded recounting of the beginnings of the reformation are simply an attempt to say I continue to celebrate this eventful - but not very well known - holy day. I believe that the church and saint that loves Christ best is continually seeking to be "Re-formed". Our faith, and our fellowship together in the church needs to embrace the great need of "Formation". I don't decry the role of the institution as some want to do. Christ died for the Church - the whole thing. Yet, we, who make up the church, need to keep our Formation in Christ as the best way to bring about the kind of "Re-forming" of the church that will bring about unity, not division, and effectiveness in witnessing to Christ as the ultimate reality to a world in desparate need of reality.

So...Happy "All Hallowed Eve" All You Saints!

Granpa Elliott

We are celebrating some good news. We were sitting around on a Sunday afternoon a week ago, having a belated birthday dinner for Andy's 21st, and Chris announced that Sarah was probably pregnant (or at least were fairly sure they were expecting at that time). They only needed to take a EPT at home...which they did that night. Needless to say that was great news around the table. Linda blurted out some noise and had a smile that stretched from ear to ear. She's been waiting a little while for this, so I could understand her joy.
SO...the next morning Linda awakes all bright and chippy. She is smiling, unusually happy and talking about how the world is all of sudden brighter. I'm groggy, barely functioning, and head out to the kitchen to turn on the coffee maker. Eventually she comes out all dressed, happy, talking about how neat it is that there's a baby coming...she hopes. She looks at me...it's 6:30 in the morning...and says, "Do you think it's too early to call Chris and Sarah to see what the test showed?" I go, "Huh?, you gotta be kidding..." AND I SWEAR...within 10 seconds the phone rings. She leaps to her feet and sprints to the phone, and after a calm "hello", she shrieks! I just smiled, and said, "tell Chris congratulations..."
I am going to be a Grandpa, and the woman I love is going to be one happy Grandma!

A Sabbath Saturday Afternoon

It's a Saturday afternoon in October...a quiet one. I have vegetated on my computer and football on TV for the last few hours, but just recently shifted to the baseball playoffs.
I have enjoyed today, if for no other reason that I've had very little "to do". I got up and spent some time reading...bible, then newspapers. Then Tully and I went for a brief run. I didn't really want to run, but he kept standing next to me whining about "c'mon elliott, it's that time of the day, get off your butt and let's go out in the cold!
So...we jogged for a while. I love being out in the morning with him. This morning the geese flew in formation overhead and Tully kept turning his head around trying to figure out what his duty was in relation to the noise from the skies.
I have heard that the geese fly in that "V" formation because they are working with each other - a community at work -providing enough draft to spell each other and make it possible to go longer distances. Not a bad idea...I think we humans should try it sometime.
I got back with Tull, and decided to "suck up" some leaves with my blower/grinder...which is one of those "man" toys that make lots of noise and you can see progress because the leaves disapppear and everything ends up in the bag. Then I put the lawn bag on and mowed the lawn, basically chewing up the leaves that have begun to fall.
FALL... The season we that means "you're going to rake a lot of leaves before this month is up".

In all of this, there is satisfaction. I spent some time quietly this morning...thinking, meditating, praying...followed by exercise...and some enjoyable work...then football (Badgers kicked Gopher butt)...and then more football...with some baseball thrown in for fun.
OH YEAH...and I had the enjoyment of listening to "Click and Clack" on public radio this morning while working...
This is a Sabbath Saturday afternoon.

Four weeks into it

Well, it's been four weeks into being a pastor again...so far, no desires to drive my car off a cliff. I have enjoyed -- for the most part -- being back in this thing called "Pastor"...or should I say "pastor".
I had an interesting conversation with a guy who came to buy the old oven we had in the garage. We got into a conversation about what he did, where he lived, etc...and then he asked me "so, you're a teacher, huh?" I didn't know how he knew that I taught, but understood that Linda had told him that info. I said "Yes", and then he asked, "So where do you teach?" I told him about the training community and the 35 or so, (largely) twenty-somethings that I get to teach. Then he asks, "What's the name of it?" I replied, "Mad City Training Community".
"Interesting name...what's that?"
OK...he's got me. I have to start talking about the Training Community as a part of the church, and that I'm a pastor. "Oh, that's good...I don't have to worry since you're a man of the cloth." Smile...
There's this web site that I often go into. When it came to filling out some info on who, where, what...I wrote "educator".
It's not that I'm ashamed of being a pastor; but, it sounds so "sterile". Pastors have been around since the beginning of the church. The Apostle Paul said "appoint elders" and "God gave to the church: apostles, prophets, evangelists, pastors/teachers." So, I prefer the second part of that gifting...teacher to pastor. Why? I value teaching. I value thinking...learning...the process of growth in learning. I have grown so much through those who invested themselves in me...to guide, encourage, and develop what they saw inside. I simply want to return the gift to others.
This is something I genuinely love to do.
So...four weeks back into getting paid to do what I love to do...it's going ok.

MyBrother & Foggy Walks

Labor Day this year is one of those every 7 year times when my brother Ed and I celebrate our birthday. Yeah that's right, I'm now officially 57...doesn't feel a whole lot different than 56, but it is the official anniversary of the "labor day" my Mom had with the two of us 57 years ago.
The day started off with Ed coming to church with us and listening as I preached. We haven't had the ability to be together for a long time for that. Then, in the afternoon, we ate together, played cards, and had a "birthday cheesecake" that Kelly made for us. I don't remember the last time we celebrated our birthday together, so it was a special day. So, sincerely, Happy 57 years Brother! Ok...there's no correlation between My brother and the Foggy walks. As of writing this he doesn't seem to be in any kind of foggy walks. What I'm adding on to this is that one of the things that Linda and I have done recently is take the camera with us on our early morning walks. I should edit that to say that Linda takes the camera with her on our walks, which means we do less walking and more camera shooting. Still, it's been interesting to see some of the pictures she's taken with the early morning fog settling over our farm land less than a mile from our house.
The fog often settles in over the horse pasture on the farm near us.
Tully loves the horses, especially when they gallop...thinks they are big dogs!

Oh yeah, here's Tully...with me after one of our most recent walks...he always comes along and lives for the morning time with us outdoors. Yes, he's getting bigger!

Summer Over, Yeah!

I have to admit, I'm not ever sorry to see Summer come to a close. I know there are people who love the summer...I just don't get it. Hot, Humid, always perspiring...never able to take off enough stuff to get comfortable. Granted, not every feels as I do. There are people who love the summer hot weather and grieve the passing of summer to Fall...I am not one of them!

Fall...now that brings a smile to my face. It's my favorite time of the year. The weather is clearer, the temperatures "fall" to very nice 60's & 70's in the daytime, and perfect sleeping weather. While it's still fairly humid, the lower temps lead to lower humidity. I have the windows open and the air is fresh...not soggy as it is during the summer. The leaves begin to turn...every morning as I jog I look up to see if I can see anything changing. The sumac on the back hill have a touch of red already, but everything else remains fairly green. The early morning jogs in the early Fall are quiet and the country side drips with low hanging fog over the majority of the countryside. As we walked this morning, the sun began to rise and the light began to burn back the low hanging clouds to allow the air to dry out. At the beginning of Sept. the daytime is still almost 13 hours. By the end of the month, it is less than 12 hours. I love the early sunsets, and the nightime quietness, stillness, and slowness to life that comes with this shifting season.

What is there not to love?
The apples come to ripeness...the tomatoes and zucchini are ready to pick. The squash and pumpkins are not far behind, and because it's finally cooler, the oven can be used to bake some delectable dishes.
The school year begins, which for me means the Training Center year is about to begin -- this now the 5th year for me.
I love looking at the little kids as they march down the street in new clothes, new backpacks, shoes, and for the most part, smiles on their faces.
And most of all...the Fall means Football begins. It's Saturday as I write this. The first couple of games have been played. Not very thrilling as of yet, but I love football. The game can be on in the background and I may not pay much attention to every game, but I enjoy the atmosphere.
Our Packers have a very "tough road to hoe". They may not do well, but right now at the beginning of the year, everyone is a champion.
My Badgers hold more promise for an enjoyable year than the Pack...but we'll see how things look after tonight's first game.

Fall, Autumn...I'm smiling.

Changes, Changes, Changes

OK...first a confession -- I'm sitting at a Starbucks in downtown Madison (sorry to all of you I've just offended). I'm here because my son Chris is here...working for now as a Barista guy. I came here because I wanted to do some work, but also because Chris is only going to working here for a few more days and I always like to see my kids at work.
The title of this little blog ditty is "Changes..."
Many changes have happened in the last month, and most have been of the really good kind.

FIRST OF ALL, CHRIS HAS A TEACHING JOB!!! Even though I know he blogged this himself, I couldn't help but brag on this change for his life. First of all, this is the beginning of what might be 30+ years of work (don't let that freak you out Chris). When your in your twenties (or 30 for that matter) you often settle into a career choice, but it doesn't hit you that you might be doing this for a number of years to come. Chris, and Sarah with him, have spent the better part of six years preparing for this day...needless to say, I am very proud of what is happening for them.
I've seen Chris teach, and he's awesome. The parents of the kids that he gets to teach are going to have a quality guy impacting their kids life. Nice job Chris...and Sarah, we're praying for that job for you.

SECONDLY, KELLY AND GREG ARE MOVED INTO COTTAGE GROVE after living for several years in Chicago. It has seemed like a very long extended weekend for a month now as Kelly, Greg and often their dogs Diesel (isn't that a great name for a Bull terrier?) and Sunny come walking into the house. We've eaten more meals together in the last month than we did in the previous six years! One of the changes ahead for them is in securing their jobs --I'm very hopeful for their job situation. Still, the fact that they are so near and a part of our lives is something we never dreamed of and very grateful for.

THIRDLY, MY JOB SITUTATION IS CHANGED. After three years away from the title "pastor", I've returned to this maddening career choice. I've become a part of Mad City Church's pastoral staff...a combination of working with the other pastoral staff and expanding some of the equipping needs within the church. I've done this "job" for 30+ years (see above). It's a position for the "spiritual masochists", but I keep saying to myself, "Jesus loves the church" :)

LASTLY...MISC NOTES ON CHANGES:
Linda starts her 17th year with Madison Schools...it may be her last????
Andy starts another year at MATC...moving along in his degree work.

LINDSAY AND PETER CELEBRATED ANNIVERSARY #2 YESTERDAY....HAPPY ANNIVERSARY GUYS!

Ok...end this with a phrase from the Psalms: "The boundary lines for me have fallen in pleasant places..." Amen, thanks God for goodness and mercy!

Colorado Fun

July was a chance to get away on our 35th Anniversary to visit sunny, and hot, Colorado. We had numbers of highlights from this trip. So, here goes:
1) Our visit to our friends Bill & Mary Housley in Granby, Co. was amazing. First of all, Bill & Mary are wonderful hosts and made us not only feel at home, but helped us to relax and gave us a tour of some very beautiful spots in their "neck of the woods". Bill is chief of police in Granby, having left Madison a year ago to form a brand new police department. Mary has formed her own business -- she's the "Chinker Chick" -- which means she "chinks". For most people that probably causes a few eyebrows to furrow...what in the world is "chinking" (I think we all get the "chick" part). Mary took a need -- their own log cabin to be finished with the caulking in between the logs -- chinking -- and started her own business. Now she is steadily building a business she can earn money from and give money away to the Kingdom with...nice. Most of all time with Bill and Mary is refreshing and very relaxing.
Some of the highlights of our time with them:
> Their deck...fantastic relaxing views. It started with the first night and the Sunsets, with the valley lighting up as the sun set, and the temperatures dropping...amazingly quickly after the sun went down. One moment I was sitting there in shorts and a t-shirt, and the next moment I was dashing for a hooded fleece to stay warm! Each morning we arose to crisp air...very clear, and very cold. But, the fleece, coffee, and reading material meant I spent the better part of each early morning on the deck.
Now, don't get me wrong...the rest of the house is pretty amazing also. They have a wonderful log home that Mary, the "Chinker Chick", along with Bill have done a pretty neat job of making a beautiful home. After settling in, the next two days we made day trips to two pretty neat places:
> The first trip was up to and through Rocky Mtn National Park...it's impossible to describe the beauty of going over the mountains with all of the natural beauty, vistas, and animals we saw along the way. I suppose the best part for me was the hike at the top...12,500 ft...and the herd of Bull Elks we came across and photographed.
The trip up took us through the Grand Lake area. That was, in itself, an awesome view. Hopefully you'll catch some of the flicker photos of that place. The trip was most of Friday, which sounds like a lot, but believe me, there was so much awe inspiring moments, that I didn't need the altitude to take my breath away!

> The following day we took a trip to Steamboat Springs, where the highlight was the gondola ride up the mountain to the first major ski hill. It was only the first hill, if it had been winter, there would have been more lifts and more hills to climb to. It was an awesome sight from the top and made me wish to be more than an amateur skier.

While the trips were fantastic, the time with Bill and Mary was the most fun. It's sad to know they are so far away, but it's nice to think that we have friends in a place with such beauty.
Mary and Bill, thanks...and oh yea, we'll be back!!

2) Even though we only had a few hours with each, we made visits to some friends. First, Milo and Karen Bishop, who've we've known since 1972. We spent the first night in Colorado with them and went out to dinner...catching up on life, politics, faith, with lots of good natured kidding and laughter to go along with every serious conversation.
The next day we got the treat of Eric Jensen for the better part of the morning. Eric is the son of our close friends Russ and Sandy and we've known him since he was 12. He's all grown up now and we had a great time as he showed us his "Golden" -- both on the ground walking and from a 1000 or so feet up on Lookout Mtn. It was great catching up with E, and just to spend time where he lives, talking about what is ahead in life, and even catching a home-town brew made it a fun few hours.

3) Colorado Springs and the Cheyenne Canon Inn was our final destination for three days and four nights. The Inn is a former bordello :), now turned into a 13000 sq foot B&B. Unbelievable breakfasts and spacious quarters make it a "wow" place. From there we explored the Colorado Springs surrounding area. Two notable places are worth mentioning:
> The Garden of the Gods is a city park in Colorado Springs that has some outstanding rock formations...with walking trails, hiking trails, and unbelievable spots for Sunset and Sunrise -- and it was all free! It's a don't miss thing.
From this park you can also see Pike's Peak. I wanted to get to the top of that 14,110 ft. Mtn. There's a Cog-Railroad that climbs to the top, and I even tried to get a ticket, but they were all sold out for that day. The time that I wanted to get on ended up having a thunderstorm hit the top of the Mtn while that group was up there...thank you Lord for keeping me from that experience.
> The second trip was to the Royal Gorge, about 40 miles south of Colorado Springs. This was a two hour train trip through the Gorge. It was an awesome ride and the views were amazing. I saw lots of "rafters" on the river...made a mental note that if I get back again, I definitely want to do that. The view from the bottom of the Gorge up to the suspension bridge is 1000 ft. We didn't get on the bridge...I don't think I could convince my bride to walk across this bridge and look down on the gorge below.

We left on thursday, driving the 1100 miles in 16 hours...almost 5 of it with the convertible top down before the heat on the plains got too hot. We crossed the long stretch of Nebraska and Iowa on I80 with the heat between 105 and 112 degrees! Still, we pulled in tired, but having had a great anniversary trip. Thanks Bill & Mary, Eric, Milo & Karen...you guys made our time really enjoyable.

Peninsula Camping Expedition

This last week our family went to Peninsula State Park to go on a camping expedition. Lindsay and Peter were back from England, Chris and Sarah, Andy, and Linda & I went with them to Door County and enjoyed Peninsula...the place we had camped as a family for so many years.

Camping can be enormously fun, but it's also quite ponderous...nothing is easy. You go get water, start fires, boil water to clean dishes...even making coffee which is an absolutely necessity in life has to be carefully and slowly down if you're going to enjoy something more than campfire mud. But what you get with camping is the outdoor aesthetics... campfires on cool nights, amazing sunsets, and early morning campfires when all is quiet. You can't beat it.

This expedition was really the brain child of our children. Chris, Lindsay, and Kelly (at first) wanted to take their spouses to this place that we had so often gone to as a family while they were growing up. It so happened that Kelly and Greg couldn't join us...they moved to Cottage Grove from Chicago at the end of that week! So, while we missed them joining us at the camping, we got the joy of having them just a few blocks away for at least the next year.
It's been so great to have Lindsay and Peter around for the last week. They still have almost a week left to be with us, so we're cramming in as many things as possible in order to enjoy the time together with them.

World Cup Mania

OK...I've officially joined the rest of the world. I just watched the first World Cup match of 2006, Germany beat Costa Rica, 4-2. For a team that is highly favored, I have to say Germany didn't impress me, but it's early and they did get a win, so that's all that counts.
I love the World Cup. It truly is a world event, like the olympics. The Olympics is of course multi-event competition, which makes for good specific dramas, but the World Cup is the only championship that is about one sport - Soccer...alright, "Football", or should I say "Futbol"?
The Germans are hosting it...a country of my native origin. The Germans average 3000 glasses of beer per year! Did you know they produce over 2000 sausages? We Germans know how to eat, drink, and be merry!
The whole family has gotten interested. Peter, my son-in-law in England, began the mania with an email suggesting everyone join a World Cup Fantasy league...create your own team, create your own team colors, and team name. It sounded like fun to Chris who created one with the help of an ESPN World Cup magazine. It sounded good to Andy also. Me? Well, I created a team, and joined the mania...the only problem was I only know a few of the stars, so my team was a "by guess and by golly" set of choices. It doesn't make any difference, I've also joined the World's One Month of Mania called the World Cup...My favorite team, naturally USA...
And if not them, England, of course..., and if not them...I don't have any other favorites!
Makes no difference, it's in Germany all month and into early July...so celebrate with the rest of the World in Germany... Prost!!

New Wineskins? It's Still a Container

I'm doing something in this blog I've never done before. I am placing the body of a letter that I just returned to a friend, answering his inquiry into what I felt about "seeker-sensitive" and "Purpose-driven" churches. I find that these church styles seem a bit passe' now that the Emergent Church movement has begun in earnest. Still, there are many churches out there committed to these "styles" of doing church. There are also a growing number of churches being founded on the new "emergent church" style or philosophy, if you will. As a teacher I am often reluctant to tell my students "what I think". That is a deliberate (or should I say "intentional" :) for the sake of my students) on my part.
What follows though is more or less a personal response to an inquiry into "What do you think?" that this friend as me about in relation to these evangelical movements of doing church. His question had to do with his local church that has embraced a style of doing ministry that is embracing one, or maybe even both, of these styles of ministry. My sense in his letter (which I've not included even as I've not included his name) is that he isn't so much as disturbed by this all, but wondering what the long term goals are in doing ministry with these ministry styles as the primary focus. He asked what I thought (along with a few other pastors he knows) ...and so this is what I think. It should not be construed as a final thought, but one that is current for me on my own radar as I think about the Historic Faith we are stewards of, The Church as the mediator of that stewardship, Jesus Christ as the Personal allegiance to that Faith, and the 21st century that we living all of this out in.
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Hi _______,

Well, first of all thank you for the inclusion in the "six pastors whom I respect unreservedly" category...I'm flattered and honored.
It's an interesting subject that you bring up, because it's much more than simply the issue of "style" which is what so many seem to think of this as. I think the issue is more framed by the "theology" behind these ways of doing church. Forgive me for dragging the issue more deeply than perhaps it should be, but I do think we're dealing with the 21st century, Western, Material/Consumer, Rugged Individualism that is a product of 60+ years of Evangelicalism, and to be even more broad stroked in historical theology, the product of the 3 centuries of tweaking the reform movement away from it's Reformed base to one that is decidedly Arminian -- for good or for worse is up to you to decide.
My overall sense -- and I teach a section on "the future of the church" in both the last Church History lecture, as well as in a Ministry Internship class -- (much to long of a paranthesis, so I'll start over). My overall sense is that we are seeing a continual evolution of theology away from the "Monergism" of the Reform period. The first shift came after the Reform period's generation died out and cold sterile orthodoxy (that's an oxymoronic idea) led hungry believers to Pietism (which was a practice more than a theology) and a shift away from the strict Monergism of the Reformers to a softer Arminianism that embraced the changing world of scientific discovery.

Forgive me ______ for this lengthy diatribe...I hope it will lead to something clear.

The attack (??? Not sure if that is the right word to use) on Christianity began in earnest as the initial scientific enlightened world began to question the traditions and religion of the church -- something I believe was of God. As the age of discovery, both in the extension of Europe to new worlds, and the emergence of a scientific shift in worldview, began to emerge the church adapted it's theology. No longer was God in charge of everything...that was obvious. Instead, human kind had a much bigger part to play in the overall work of God in the world.
Theologically the shift is most pronounced in Arminian theologies that emerged in old rejected Calvinism -- Methodism, Frontier Baptist (remember Baptists at first were Calvinists), and the many revivals of the 18th & 19th century. Finney was a great proponent of revival as the natural outcome of Human derived efforts working in concert with God. From Finney we go to the Keswick movement...the beginnings of Pentecostalism. Before that though, evangelical revivalists like Moody. The supposed clash between Pentecostalism and Fundamentalism is not nearly as significant as the 20th century revivalists that continued to proclaim a message of individuality in relation to salvation and faith.
Eventually, Evangelicalism bridges the gap between Pentecostal and Fundamentalist zealous fringes...a softer Evangelicalism emerges...Billy Graham (not soft at first, but eventually)...Bill Bright...and as well, the shift of missions to a world focus that is quite Arminian - DAWN and Center for World Missions as examples.

OK...thanks for hanging in this little History summary. My point is that in our believing lifestyle we've seen all sorts of attempts to grasp the "Holy Grail" of what is going to next change the world and bring the Kingdom of God to the earth. It seems, to me, that it's focus is more or less strongly the product of this theological evolution and worldview that seek to be brought together in harmony.

Seeker-Sensitive, Purpose-Driven, as well as a whole host of other movements from the last 40 years continue to be reflective of a western world always looking to bring about the newest and the better to solve our problems (don't we remember the Jesus People Movement, The Charismatic Movement, John Wimber and the Vineyard Movement, etc...even to today in the newest -- the Emergent Church movement?).

It's not so much that I'm against them, or even wary of them as theologically incorrect, but I think more than anything I am weary of lurching towards the next and the best way to now reach the world.

Church History has ruined me! I see God at work in people and in relationships, in prayer, in the clear and simple proclamations of Jesus, and in the presence of the Kingdom of God. There has been an attempt to dress that up in many different clothes over our lifetime, and the years before us...and I think, somewhat sadly and perhaps cynically...there will always be attempts by people of faith to take the simplicity of Christ and his church and change it into something of their own creation.
Is it of God? I don't know...I doubt it, but then again...Jesus is coming back for a bride not a harem! So, in the end, we're part of it whether we want to be or not.

Forgive my long answer, but thanks for the question, and if you did read this in entirety, thanks for honoring me!

Much Love, with Faith and Hope,
Elliott

DaVinci, DaVinci, DaVinci - What have you Done?

OK...another Hollywood blockbuster has hit the scene -- The DaVinci Code -- from the Dan Brown novel has made a big splash with mainly "not so great reviews". Translated that means that even Tom Hanks can't save a plot built off of lies.
It's interesting to watch the public reaction to the DaVinci movie. It seems that most newspapers and movie reviewers go to great lengths to avoid getting involved in the overall controversy associated with the novel and movie theme. One local writer editorialized that "it's just fiction". That's interesting given that the author, Dan Brown, states even before the prologue, “All descriptions of artworks, architecture, documents and secret rituals in this novel are accurate.” Book reviews followed suit. The author himself has claimed on television and his web site that his depiction is based on credible facts that he believes.
The Da Vinci Code is a murder mystery coupled with a conspiracy claim. That claim is that the story of Jesus in our gospels is actually a lie that has been covered up by the Church for centuries and there are other gospels revealing that Jesus was just a man who married Mary Magdalene, had children with her, and left her in charge of his church when he died. The overall premise is that the church, around 300 a.d., under the control of Constantine sought to make Jesus divine -- more than human -- and therefore squelched all other gospels that might reflect on Jesus as mere mortal. A 2004 article in Christianity Today makes that point: "The Da Vinci Code, villain Leigh Teabing explains to cryptologist Sophie Neveu that at the Council of Nicea (A.D. 325) "many aspects of Christianity were debated and voted upon," including the divinity of Jesus. "Until that moment," he says, "Jesus was viewed by His followers as a mortal prophet. … a great and powerful man, but a man nonetheless."
Neveu is shocked: "Not the Son of God?"
Teabing explains: "Jesus' establishment as 'the Son of God' was officially proposed and voted on by the Council of Nicea."
"Hold on. You're saying that Jesus' divinity was the result of a vote?"
"A relatively close one at that," Teabing says.
A little later, Teabing adds this speech: "Because Constantine upgraded Jesus' status almost four centuries after Jesus' death, thousands of documents already existed chronicling His life as a mortal man. To rewrite the history books, Constantine knew he would need a bold stroke…Constantine commissioned and financed a new Bible, which omitted those gospels that spoke of Christ's human traits and embellished those gospels that made Him godlike. The earlier gospels were outlawed, gathered up, and burned." The link to the full article is... http://www.christianitytoday.com/ct/2004/006/7.26.html
Almost 20 years ago a religious scholar, Elaine Pagels, published The Gnostic Gospels in which she lays claim to many other sources of information about Jesus from gospel accounts written in the early church period. Thus has begun a resurgence in a populist, and relatively humanistic attemtp at de-divinizing Jesus.
The problem is that Pagels simply chooses to ignore the theological history of the early church. By the end of the 1st century Gnosticism had reared up as a competitive voice to the Apostolic fathers. Gnosticism isn't easy to define, but it looks a lot like modern day Pseudo-Intellectual Humanism with a bit of Eastern Religion mixed in. Basically, the early Gnostics claimed that Jesus was only a human whom God came upon and endowed with supernatural abilities until his mission was completed. His mission? -- to bring knowledge or enlightenment to people in darkness (hence Gnostic from the Greek word gnosis). So, the modern Gnostics, like the ancient ones made claim to a human Jesus, who God used as a noble prophet teacher, but who was not God. Pagels, Brown, and other modern Gnostics simply pick up where the early church Gnostics left off.
Why?
I have pondered that question for a while as I've seen the popularity of Dan Brown's novel take off and the movie come to pass. I am of the opinion that there are a number of things at work in this.
1. There is the underlying tension that has often existed between people who believe in Christ and non-believers. This just serves to give ammunition to those who aren't inclined to "trust" anyone other themselves.
2. There is the tension of authority around what we believe. If we say that we are believers in the authority of the bible -- that it is timeless truth -- of necessity anything that can undermine that truth becomes important. While many see the DaVinci Code as an assault upon the divinity of Jesus Christ, I think the greater issue is the assault upon the notion of the Bible -- as we know it -- to be the truth of God. There's a good article on the authority of the Bible written by the New Testament scholar N.T. Wright on the Mars Hill web site and can be found at http://www.mhbcmi.org/learn/HOW_CAN_THE_BIBLE_BE_AUTHORITATIVE.pdf
3. Finally -- and as a church historian I can tell you this is clear -- this is just one of many attempts that the enemy has made down thru the centuries to discredit the person and the work of Jesus Christ. It should not surprise us -- ever -- to see someone argue that Jesus is not who the church has confessed him to be for 2000 years, and that Jesus has not done what he did in terms of God and mankind.

If there is one great benefit of all of this it is that people who have read the book, and/or seen the movie are more open to dialogue about Jesus as a result of it. This is a great opportunity to ask someone what they think about Jesus and share with them the truth.
Thanks DaVinci!

Celebration Time! Yea Chris

Of the many things my children have done to make me proud, and happy -- and there have been lots of them -- one of the things that ranks right up there occurred this weekend as Chris graduated from the UW School of Education with his teaching degree!

I found myself going through all sorts of emotions as I watched Chris get his degree. Linda, Andy, Kelly, Greg, along with Sarah (Chris' wife pictured here) and Sarah's family went to the Kohl Center to watch Chris get his diploma. I wanted to cry a couple of times...just incredibly proud of him and happy for Sarah and he as they venture into life with this big accomplishment behind them. Anyone who knows me will remember how I've often stated publicly -- in many different preaching/teaching venues -- that if God were to ask me what I wanted 100 young adults who are believers to be, it would that they would become public school teachers. Why? Because no one has the ability to so affect the world around us than public school teachers.
As I watched Chris get his degree I thought about that, and it hit me how I lucky some kids are going to be to get a man of such character and integrity, with principles and values that will change their lives. Wow...I almost wished I were an elementary school kid again!

Chris, you've accomplished much in life and there's a lot more to go yet, but I just wanted to publicly, loudly, emotionally, and proudly say "CONGRATULATIONS, YOU MADE ME PROUD TO BE YOUR DAD!"

OH yeah, Celebration continued this weekend. We also had the opportunity to have everyone but our British family contingent home for Mother's Day. It was a grand celebration for Linda also as the kids came back on Sunday afternoon to eat more...Kelly's cheesecake destroyed all of our attempts to eat healthily! But, we die with a smile on our face!
The picture here is Andy's attempt to capture the essence of the day...it was about Mom and it included lots of food!
What more can I say?
Well, I can say that I'm incredibly lucky to have a woman I love so much after 36 years. I can say that my children are fortunate to have a Mom who still revels in playing games with them. I can say that she is the best of the best Moms I've ever known.

Wow...Celebrations! Aren't they awesome...thank you God!

Talkin' at em

OK...it's time to try and put something down that might be worthwhile reading. The time keeps marching on...relentlessly sometimes.
I've been busy with lots of teaching. I love teaching in general. I love the learning process and I love seeing those I'm teaching grow and learn...the "lightbulbs" so to speak go off. A week ago I also taught in my church -- Mad City Church -- here in Madison. It's not always easy to teach on a Sunday morning. Part of that has to do with my own desire and need to connect with students as disciples. I have never been a huge fan of the sermon as the best way to connect to people's hearts and minds. I know it has worked down through the centuries...but in this modern age of a doubting, visually stimulated, short attentioned span people, it doesn't always work well. Add to that I am teaching on a once a month basis...and add to that, I am teaching alongside of a young preacher -- Shane Holden -- who has a gift of teaching/preaching that does really grab one for the hour or so that he teaches. OK...no comparison...I really don't compare myself with Shane, and my own self-confidence does not lack in being able to get up in front of 1200 people and deliver something. What is somewhat frustrating is that I know that people really don't learn well when all that is being done is that you're talking at them. People learn because they engage wholeheartedly...intentionally, if you will...in the things they are hearing. Otherwise, it probably is like the proverbial "water off the duck's back".

We need a revolution in terms of learning...the greek word for "learning" is "mathetes" which is a learner, but it is translated most often in the New Testament as "disciple". A disciple is a learner...Discipleship. The leading assumption in the average American church is that you can be a Christian but not a disciple. That is incrediby difficult to break through and it has placed a tremendous burden on a mass of Christians who are not disciples. We tell them to come to church on Sunday mornings (Ok, I realize some do church at other times) and we tell them to participate in programs and give money. But isn't it true that what we see of church is that it knows nothing of commitment. We have settled for the marginal, the least common denominator, and so we carry this awful burden of trying to motivate people to do what they don't want to do. We can't think about church the way we have been.
We need to clear in our heads about what discipleship is. A good definition: A disciple is a person who has decided that the most important thing in their life is to learn how to do what Jesus said to do. A disciple is not a person who has things under control, or knows a lot of things. Disciples simply are people who are constantly revising their affairs to carry through on their decision to follow Jesus.
I am thinking about all of this as I participate in the process of "teaching". I want so deeply to avoid just being another voice making "noisy gongs and clanging cymbals".
I have this current notion going on in teaching about the "journey of faith". I love the theme and it's been a wonderful study for me alone. If you're interested you can find the messages at http://www.madcitychurch.org/listen.asp. My most recent message was on "Taking the land of the Giants", a story from Exodus and Numbers concerning Joshua. I am going to follow that message in a week with a second part based on Joshua 4 & 5.

So...I continue to "talk at em"...knowing it's not the best way to learn...drats! "O wretched man that I am, who shall deliver me..."?

Daughters of Eve...Sons of Adam

I've been around the block a few times when it comes to church life. I have this great affection for Christ's bride, and when I see it functioning well I get really excited. Lately, I've been hanging around...as well as reading...women who God is working in, on and through...and I'm better for it.
It started about a month ago in a conversation with a CHURCH LEADER - Wendy Andrews. Wendy came from our community's training center and ended up as a Co-Director for 24/7PrayerUSA. She's young, and she's a she...which has caused some encounters that she has had to be less than great! Leave it say that she's had her share of men ignore her, talk past her, look beyond her, and generally...through body language primarily dismiss her. As a Spiritual Dad and Mentor/Teacher in her life, my encouragement is to understand that all as a part of the development of God's character being shaped "in" her. A.W. Tozer said, "God cannot use a man (I'll include a Woman) greatly until he has hurt them deeply. Part of the process is the assault against our desire to be recognized...that happens to everyone who steps out to serve God...but recognize that its often greater offenses that many women who have tried to step out for God have had to go through. The conversation with Wendy went something like this: "That sucks...That's not how God sees you...Persevere...In your offense, pray...Trust that God is working "in" you even as he works "through" you."

Then I came back home... the conversation continued. One of the bright wonderful and beautiful people around my world is one of Mad City's Youth leaders -- Stephanie! I hang out with Stephanie because we clicked in the mentor/student role -- at first -- but now it's more of an Older Leader/Younger Leader relationship. In other words, Steph can hold her own when it comes to leading, being godly, maturity, etc... She's passionate for God...grounded in reality...and aware that the church God loves sometimes "sucks"! She's been challenged...dismissed... often questioned --simply because she's a she! I should add...women as just as culpable in this as men are. Yet when I converse with her around life, observations on God...awareness of people, prayer, God's word alive...she's a theologian. Not bad for a 21 year old woman leader! All I can tell you is that at age 21 I wasn't anywhere near that level of competence in Christ. Again, rise up Steph...God has a lot more to do "in" you, but he is working mightily "through" you.
She's got a blog site that I love to read...but I won't share it with you without her permission.

OK...not done yet... One of the most talented young artists I've ever met is living in Kansas City - Linnea. About 2 weeks ago, this beautiful (and I don't mean primarily as it relates to looks...even though she is beautiful in looks also) young woman - that I have seen open up in so many wonderful ways wrote to me that she has begun to sense God moving in her to write. Since I have longed had the opinion that Linnea is one of the brightest minds I've been around, I celebrate her stepping out in giving voice with her spirit, mind, prayers. Linnea just sent to me a reflection on Good Friday...she just smashed my stain glassed view of this day we oxymoronically we call "good". Wow...I've read it twice so far and am going to have to read it a few more times if I even hope to "mine the depths" of it all... She's a writer!

Just a few minutes ago, in the MI class that I am now in...another young beautiful leader woman began to share - Lisa. I've been in a car with Lisa for 8 hours...this girl can lead! What she was sharing...ever so briefly here...is her passion for discovering God in these sacred places of prayer, intimacy, passion that she had the audacity to say would even sustain people to go into places of martyrdom. Well, I'm not a fan of being a martyr...haven't ever been asked to be one...and hope I don't...but there have been times in church history that God has brought the church to it's knees -- Tertullian (not my dog, but the 2nd century theologian) said, "the blood of the martyrs is the seed of the church". Lisa is a leader...I hope she won't have to be a martyr, but I don't think she will hesitate if asked to...there's a passionate leader for God in there.

Lastly...for now...my Son writes these amazing reflections on his wonderfully beautiful spritiual Leader wife -- my daughter in law, Sarah. I loved reading what my son wrote...and can't even begin to summarize it...it's thoughts that have been forming, not just because he's married to this wonderfully spiritual leader wife, but because he's a man who has seen in Sarah the capacity to lead. Sorry for not asking Chris, but I'm pretty sure you wouldn't mind my letting people see your posts -- after all it's in my links next to this writing anyway... BUT, please, please take some time if you haven't read it yet to go to his site and read what he had to say. It's at: pollasch@blogspot.com... or if that isn't it, just hit the link next to this.

OK...that's a lot of musing...if you read this far, blessings on you.
We have a lot to think about men when it comes to being Sons of Adam along side of gifted leaders who are Daughters of Eve.

Relationships...it's what makes life interesting!

The last two weeks have been travel weeks. I use to travel a lot but have really curtailed travel over the last couple of years. I made a trip last summer to Russia -- and read Mary's blog on her recent trip which reminded me of how great it was.
This last trip though was to much more modest places. Starting two weeks ago it was a four trip to Kansas City, returned home for four days and headed out again to Cincinnati, and then four days later drove up to Cleveland. Now honestly, how many people do you know who took two weeks to visit those three cities?
The remarkable thing about the trip was that I drove through snow in all three!!!! Amazing!!! I thought, "I'm going south, it will be Spring". Foolish thinking I'm afraid. It was an amazing 60+ degrees one afternoon in KC, but the trip home was through a snowy, sloppy, crappy Iowa and SW Wisconsin. A few days later, heading to Cincinnati, we hit a snow storm in No. Indiana and drove through that snow all the way to Cincy...about 4 hours worth. Then a few days later, another crappy snowy trip north to Cleveland. Cleveland is on Lake Erie, so snow tended to fall steadily during the whole time we were there, and then the ride home was snow through all of Ohio and part of No. Indiana. Yuck!!! I've been longing for Spring and getting Winter.

OK, so why keep traveling in the snow belt? One reason: Relationships.

Kansas City has Wendy Andrews and Linnea Spransy...two wonderfully beautiful girls who moved from Madison last summer to become a part of a new church plant, and to stretch their creative and leadership gifts for the sake of the Kingdom in art and prayer. Unfortunately, Linnea was on a trip to NYC, but we crashed Wendy's birthday party and got an opportunity to see the stuff she is involved in as co-director of 24/7 Prayer USA and on the leadership team of her new church.
Cincinnati was a trip with some of the Training Center students to Norwood, a city within Cincinnati. Norwood is home to our friends in Vineyard Central. Again, the simple reason for the visit is relationships. Our friends Dave & Jody Nixon hosted us for several days. It was a wonderful time for retreat and rest. I marvel at the way they have lived together in an intentional community for quite a few years. Their presence in a very poor area of Cincinnati being "salt and light" for the sake of Christ's Kingdom.
Finally, four of us: Fran, Jamie and Alexis...three girls and myself trekked north through the snow to Cleveland. There we joined up with the rest of the Training Center folk who had traveled to other places and joined up with some new friends from a church community to share the weekend together sharing life, jamming, and eating good food. One of the highlights of the trip was meeting new friends, Todd and Laurel...and Bob. Bob is 60, an advertising exec who lives about 30 minutes out in the country in a beautiful home and he hosted us for the evening...what a wonderful time it was. Staying a strange home is always a bit of a stretch for me. I never quite feel comfortable, but Bob managed to make things comfortable right away. My conversation with him was one of the highlights of the last two weeks away.
Relationships:
Wendy who've I've known well.
Dave & Jody who I've come to know more and more as friends.
Fran, Jamie, Alexis, Jordan who all traveled hours with me in one leg or another -- young adults with the old guy laughing, goofing around, listening together with me as I explain the story behind the music from "Les Miserables" for three hours...talking seriously at some times and hilariously at others.
Todd, Laural, and Bob who've I've just met. Relationships...it's what makes life interesting, don't you think?

Eatin' Crap

This morning Linda and I joined Dan & Jennie Sandridge on a morning walk...with our two dogs, Tully (our 10 month old Golden Retriever) and Micah (their 11 month old Golden Retriever). The two dogs have met twice now and it was love at first site...ok, maybe not love because they are both males and I don't want to get into that kind of a mess, but they really really like one another. They ran to each other as soon as they saw each other and played and played and played.

The walk consisted of allowing the dogs to run free as we walked along the bicycle trail that runs near our house in Cottage Grove. This trail is a wonderfully flat old railroad bed that actually goes from Cottage Grove to near Milwaukee! Some 80 miles if I am correctly assessing the distance. The dogs ran ahead, either playing with each other, or sticking their noses into the ground to smell who had dropped the latest "animal dew". I was telling Dan that we really had to watch Tully because he has the habit of grabbing "animal logs" (excrement, crap, shit, whatever you want to call it). Dan replied that Micah does a lot of sniffing, but no eating. Wow, I thought, if only I could get Tully to leave it alone, I could probably handle the sniffing. About that time, Micah dove into the side of the trail and even though he was told to come back, he remained fixed on a "clump" of what only looked like a mass of leaves. We managed to get him to drop it and went on ahead. Later on the return, having forgotten all about this mass of something, Micah ran far ahead, and we all too late realized he was headed for the leaf mass. Before Dan could stop him...well let's just say it wasn't a pretty site. He ate it all!!! And, he smelled very, very bad! Inside, I'm going..."Way to go Tull"...he had listened, but I tried to be polite and sympathetic to Dan and Jenn as they had to contend with "what do we do with a dog that has just eaten a pile of crap?"
I got to thinking about that...it doesn't seem logical that anything that can think would want to eat something else's poop.
But, then again, I realize that we can all be prone to listening to the lies within...
"I'm never going to make it..."
"I can't do anything right..."
"Why am I so stupid?"
"What's wrong with me?"
I think that is the same thing as eatin crap myself!