Thursday

This cartoon cracks me up! I'm not sure we could handle the truth of what people really think at times. That's an interesting thing to think about, isn't it?

Yesterday was one of the longest days I've had in a while. I was up at 5, doing what I do -- reading, praying, getting ready for the day. I ran Ben into football condition a little after 6 and came back home for breakfast with Kedra. I saw her off, read a little bit more, and then went for hilly chilly 6 mile run. The sun was so nice! After the run, it was off to the office for a meeting, followed by some more study of Zechariah. Then I went to a funeral in Livonia, followed by a visit to couple, followed by a meeting, followed by a brief trip home to change clothes, followed by a meal at church, followed by a class, followed by some Toy Sale stuff. Yesterday was a rare day with little to no down time. Of course, scattered amongst all that were several phone calls, texts, and emails with various people needing various things.

Today will be a little quieter, I think. This morning I will work on preparing for Sunday: sermon, slides, life group discussion guide, and Sunday a.m. class. I will run late morning, when the sun has warmed things up a bit. I have a St. Vincent Dunn Ethics Committee meeting today. I really enjoy those. We talk about the new policies being adopted, do case studies, and problem solving. I think I would really enjoy being a hospital chaplain. Today's meeting is considering that piece.

This afternoon I am getting with Pat A to work on our sermons. We are doing a collaborative effort on the Christmas Carol series. He met with his church last night regarding the text, and I had my class which did the same. We'll bring all of our individual study, coupled with what we learned in class, plus what we work on this morning, to the table this afternoon to see how that influences what we say on Sunday. The sermon belongs to the church, not the preacher alone. They should help prepare it, in the sense of helping the preacher see what the text says. I've been doing this for about 8 years, I think. That's what my doctoral thesis was about.

My 26.2 effort is going exceedingly well. I am staying right on track and doing well. The eating is not too hard and the core work is coming along nicely. Tomorrow will be my bike day, along with my last core session of the week. Saturday I plan to run 12 miles, which will put me at 35 for the week.  I did this 26.2 type thing about 2 years ago and lost 12 pounds and got my body fat down to 10% or less.

Jay Eubanks and I were talking last night and we stumbled upon the fact that we both love the TV show Amazing Race. Long story short: we think we should apply to participate! I think we are serious (ha ha). If you have seen the show, then you know that each couple has some interesting angle. Ours would be: black/white, short/tall, preacher/former pro basketball player, etc. Every time I watch the show, I tell Kedra that I would love to do it. It involves world travel, physical challenges, problem solving, and other things that I would enjoy. We'll see...

OK, here we go...!