Archived Posts
Republican family values can be interesting sometimes. We have Joe Biden, who traveled home every night from Washington. And we have John McCain, who has been largely absent from his kids' lives. But the Republican is the "family values" person....
October 8: Swampland's Live Blog: Comments (0)
You must read the transcript of the Swampland live-blog of the debate, by reporters Karen Tumulty, Michael Grunwald, and James Poniewozik. It's hysterical. They started a half hour before the debate started, and continued to the end, injecting snide little...
October 8: Thoughts on Debate 2: Comments (2)
Some of my reactions to last night's second presidential debate: BORING!Debates seem to sap every ounce of charisma out of Obama.I found myself terribly annoyed at both of them for ignoring the agreed-upon time structures. They both see themselves as...
October 7: Is This Really a Deterrent?: Comments (2)
I mean, really. How many men would give up drinking if "faced" with a threat like this? Or maybe the men of the early 1900s were more character-driven....
October 6: God on the Internet: Comments (0)
Wanna be stretched? An Alabama pastor, while attending the Innovate Conference in Granger, Ind., felt it was important to baptize one of his parishioners NOW. Not to wait until he returned to Alabama. So he conducted a baptism over the...
October 4: BishopBlog Posts: Comments (0)
I contribute occasionally to our denominational BishopBlog. Here are some recent items by me: Tool or Toy? (Part 1) (Sept 27).Tool or Toy? (Part 2) (Sept 19).Going First (Sept 27).Notes from MinistryCOM, Day 1 (Sept 19).Target the Young, Get the...
October 3: My View of the Debate: Comments (2)
The pundits are going gaga over Sarah Palin's performance, as if she charmed the socks off of voters with her folksiness. I find this terribly condescending. The coastal pundits think we heartlanders are a bunch of shallow hicks who swoon...
October 2: Time Live-Blogs the Debate: Comments (0)
Time has been running live blogging of the debates by some of their crack correspondents. Tonight it was Karen Tumulty (whom I love), Jim Poniewozik, and Michael Grunwald. I love Karen Tumulty's writing on the Swampland blog; she's very funny....
October 2: The Tin Caps? What's That About?: Comments (1)
Fort Wayne, in its infinite wisdom, decided to get rid of its semi-pro baseball stadium, which is still fairly new, is very attractive, and has abundant, accessible parking. A new stadium is being constructed in what's being called Harrison Square....
October 2: Tucking: Comments (0)
At MinistryCOM, I was different from most of the other speakers and workshop leaders in one key way: I tucked in my shirt. There is a certain cool factor in not tucking in your shirt. I don't have it, and...
I got up at 6:00 this morning to see what Joe Scarborough (on MSNBC) had to say about the financial crisis. Glad I did. He was basically in rant mode, flinging blame in all directions. Incensed with the breakdown of...
September 29: Four Vacation Mystery Novels: Comments (0)
I had mentioned the three books I hoped to read on vacation. I got them read, plus one more. Die Trying (Lee Child). My second Jack Reacher book. Wow, what a great character! The ultimate tough guy (tougher than...
September 28: Sonrise Church at Aboite: Comments (0)
Since we're still on vacation, what church should we attend today? We tried Sonrise Church, which is probably closer than any other church to our home. An evangelical United Methodist church of about 600 people. I've always heard good things...
September 27: Swampland: Comments (0)
The only political blog I read religiously is Swampland, from Time Inc. It's a group blog with a wonderful handful of writers, all respected journalists. Except for Mike Murphy, a recent addition I dislike because of his Republican connections (though...
September 26: Thoughts on the Debate: Comments (0)
The first presidential debate confirmed (to me) my sense that we have two good candidates. Very different candidates, indeed. But both would make good presidents. I can't say that one person won and the other lost. Both did well. Let's...
September 24: Oklahoma Steakhouses: Comments (0)
Two Missouri couples joined us Sunday morning at the bed & breakfast. During out breakfast conversation, I mentioned that we'd spent three days in Oklahoma City. I said there wasn't much to do in OKC, but that the city had...
September 23: $3.17: Comments (0)
That's how much we just paid for gas. Three dollars and seventeen cents. Per gallon. Right down the road at the 7/11 here in Oklahoma City, a few minutes from the airport. I don't care if it was cheap, as...
September 23: Branson 2008: Comments (0)
Pam and I have been in Branson, Missouri, since Saturday. Had a nice bed & breakfast overlooking the city lights. But no internet access. Cable, but no internet. This was our fourth visit to Branson. So we kinda like the...
September 19: Friday Nite in OKC: Comments (1)
MinistryCOM ended today. Tomorrow, Pam and I head to Branson for a few days. So what of our Friday night? We headed to Bricktown, a renovated area near downtown Oklahoma City with lots of restaurants, the Triple A baseball stadium,...
September 18: Respecting Our Military: Comments (0)
Before 9/11, in airpots, you could accompany someone to the gate even if you weren't personally flying. A wife could wait with her husband until he actually boarded the plane. Can't do that now. But on Wednesday, as Pam and...
September 16: Prelude to MinistryCOM: Comments (0)
Thursday and Friday, I'll be in Oklahoma City for the MinistryCOM conference, billed as the "National Church Communications Conference." I attended two years ago in Phoenix and last year in Nashville. This year, I'm doing a workshop about writing. Twice...
September 15: Quote Unquote: Comments (0)
Ed Rollins: "[Obama] is not going to win by telling voters McCain is too old and doesn't know how to use the Internet. Many of McCain's supporters are old and could care less about the Internet."...
September 14: Proud Churches: Comments (0)
Tim's preaching through the seven cities of Revelation. I wrote a song for the worship team, based on the CCR "Proud Mary" tune. We played it today as a special. Really, really fun to play "Proud Mary" in church. As...
September 14: Going Easy on Palin: Comments (1)
For me, Charles Gibson's interview of Sarah Palin was disappointing. She came across about how I expected--straightforward and earnest, but shallow on the issues. My big disappointment was with Gibson. He didn't press her on anything, except for that stupid...
September 11: Those Who Died on 9/11: Comments (0)
At break this morning, we reminisced about where we were when we heard about the 9/11 attack in New York. I had just returned to the office from an elders meeting at Bob Evans. CNN has a memorial to all...
September 11: We're Prepared: Comments (0)
I was told yesterday that one of the almanacs is predicting one of the coldest winters ever. We have a new furnace and roof. Bring it on....
September 11: 200 Channels, and No News: Comments (0)
At the Y, a long bank of TVs hang on the wall to help fitnessnics while away the time on the treadmills, bikes, and arc trainers. My arm-bound Radio Shack tuner lets me dial into the various channels. So I'm...
September 10: In Praise of the Corn Casserole: Comments (0)
My all-time favorite church potluck food is the corn casserole. You know, the corn with Jiffy cornbread mixed in. I can never get enough of it. In what must surely be the bizarrest-ever version of a midlife crisis, I've spent...
September 8: GraphJam: Comments (0)
I am really enjoying a website called GraphJam. People post silly graphs and charts about all manner of nonsense. It's quite funny. Some are good, some not so good. Here are two recent ones I got a kick out of....
September 6: The Decline of Journalism: Comments (0)
I'm a trained journalist. I used to regularly read Washington Journalist Review and Columbia Journalism Review. I'm an admirer of old-school journalists, and I appreciate their mindset. You put aside your own biases and follow the story, wherever it leads....
September 5: Now I Can Get Some Sleep: Comments (0)
Regrettably, I fell asleep halfway through McCain's speech last night. When I woke up, he had just finished. Time for balloons. Poor Andrea Mitchell, drowned in balloons. She was trying to come up with something clever, like when John Chancellor...
September 4: Wasilla - A Big Small Town: Comments (0)
Laugh if you want about Sarah Palin being mayor of a little town like Wasilla. Truth is, Wasilla is the fourth-largest city in Alaska. And it's growing. Used to be ninth. If Palin were mayor of the fourth-largest city in...
September 4: Sarah Palin: Gotta Love Her!: Comments (0)
Sarah Palin rocked. Her family rocked. Excellent pick, Mr. McCain. The news this morning, various channels, replayed her best lines--and there were a lot of them. When she was selected, the conventional wisdom was that McCain had just forfeited his...
September 4: Olberman: Funny Guy: Comments (0)
Mike Huckabee said that Sarah Palin got more votes for mayor than Joe Biden got for President. It was a joke. But soon as the speech ended, Keith Olberman felt compelled to offer a correction--that Joe Biden got far more...
September 3: Go Vs. Do: Comments (1)
BusinessWeek had a superb issue about life in the office. One of the articles talked about working from home, and said, "In the future, work will not be a place you go, but something you do." That's not an exact...
September 1: Two Books for Labor Day: Comments (0)
Finished two mysteries over this long weekend, both from the Black Lizard imprint. A Coffin for Dimitrios, by Eric Ambler. This 1939 book roams from Turkey to Greece to Yugoslavia to Paris, as our protagonist, a writer of detective novels,...
September 1: Appaloosa: Comments (0)
I saw a photo somewhere of Ed Harris in an upcoming Western movie called "Appaloosa." I wondered, "Is that from the book by Robert Parker?" Parker, of the Spencer novels? The Appaloosa which had been setting on my bookshelf for...
September 1: The Van Wert Fair, 2008 Edition: Comments (2)
Last night, Pam and I made our annual pilgrimage to the Van Wert County Fair. We figure this is the 20th (if not 21st) year in a row for us. We started coming at least one year before we were...
This is really freaky--you can see out, but not in. Theoretically. But would I fully believe that nobody could see in? I'm not sure. Definitely not for the faint of heart or hyper-modest....
August 29: Sarah Palin: Comments (0)
I like Sarah Palin. A lot. She'll come under fire for lack of experience and gravitas (could she go toe-to-toe with Putin?), but I think she'll do fine. She's good people, and pretty spunky from the sounds of it. Four...
August 29: Who is McCain's VP?: Comments (2)
Watching Morning Joe right now. The press is going nuts trying to figure out who McCain's VP will be--with the announcement only two hours away. They keep ruling out people--Pawlenty and Romney, for sure--and keep putting people back into play....
August 28: Keith Olberman has to go: Comments (0)
Great speech, as expected, by Barack Obama. But I want to talk about the post-speech pundit coverage. Keith Olberman has to go. He is so utterly, profoundly partisan. He loves--absolutely loves--to hear himself talk, and he does wax with considerable...
August 27: The Other Line Always Moves Faster: Comments (0)
Ate at McDonald's today. In my quest to place my order ASAP, I deftly weaved back and forth between the lunchtime lines, picking my spots and seizing openings. However, it didn't seem like I was gaining any ground. Finally, people...
August 27: Household Upgrade: Comments (0)
So now we've got a new furnace, heat pump, humidifier, and water heater. The shower sputtered rusty water for a few seconds this morning. A green-lit touchpad thermostat now hangs on our wall. It has all kinds of options. I...
August 26: MSNBC: Getting Along: Comments (0)
This morning, sparks flew on MSNBC's Morning Joe when David Shuster, in kind of sideways manner, told host Joe Scarborough that he was being unduly biased in favor of John McCain. You don't come on somebody else's show and accuse...
August 26: The Home Front: Comments (0)
Today, as I write, two guys are installing a new furnace, humidifier, heat pump, and water heater at our house--the whole shebang. Just did the roof a couple weeks ago. Molly and Jordi are locked in the bedroom. A banner...
August 24: China: Comments (0)
As the Olympics comes to a close--a true "coming out" event for China--I thought I'd share some information from Fareed Zakaria's superb book The Post-American World, which I mentioned in an earlier post. He has lengthy chapters on China and...
August 23: Wars and Rumors of Broken A/C: Comments (0)
It's incredibly hot and humid, and our air conditioning isn't working. Got a guy coming Monday morning, but by then, it'll probably have cooled off. We've got fans going like crazy, but it's not helping. Oh, the travails of 21st...
August 22: Fireman--Yes. Police--No.: Comments (0)
The firemen are out collecting money for muscular dystrophy. I put a dollar in a boot yesterday, and will no doubt fork over more money. Pam can never resist giving to the fireman, and she transferred that to me. It's...
August 21: Power! Ambition! Empire!: Comments (1)
Time magazine's August 18 cover story on Rick Warren was good. However, some headline-writing editor definitely had a one-track mind, wanting to portray Warren as power-hungry. The cover described Warren as "America's most powerful religious leader."The article was actually titled...
August 20: Clamping Dissent During the Olympics: Comments (0)
I've been following a Newsweek blog called "Beijing Beat," which is focused on the Olympics. The two lead writers are Melinda Liu, an acclaimed American journalist who has specialized on China; and Mark Starr, another excellent writer. On August 13,...
August 20: Brian McLaren: Thumbs Up to Obama: Comments (0)
For all of you who like to read Brian McLaren's books about postmodernism and the church (Curt and Paula--I'm talking about you), you may be interested in this little ad in support of Barak Obama....
August 19: The Olympics: Comments (1)
I've been greatly enjoying the Olympics. Some thoughts. The Chinese are doing a spectacular job. Still an authoritarian, politically repressive country. But give 'em credit for putting on a great show for the world.I like NBC's coverage. They're showing lots...
August 17: The Saddleback Forum: Comments (0)
Watched the Saddleback Civil Forum tonight, with Rick Warren asking questions of Obama and McCain. I think we've got two very good candidates for president. I'm happy with both. Some random reactions to the event: The commentators on three networks...
August 16: Musing About My Heavenly Mansion: Comments (1)
As previously noted, Mom and I played "Mansion Over the Hilltop" last Sunday on our accordions. The song title comes from the King James version of John 14:2: "In my father's house are many mansions....I go to prepare a place...
August 14: What Were They Thinking?: Comments (0)
August 12: Justice with a Sense of Humor: Comments (0)
I love this. At a cheerleader camp at the University of Texas, 26 cheerleaders, ages 14-17, decided to see how many girls could squeeze into an elevator. The number was 26--the number of cheerleaders, and the number of minutes they...
August 10: I Get Crushed in Dueling Accordions: Comments (0)
Dad preached at Anchor today. He pastored the church from 1995-1998, leading the people to accept the idea of a restart, which occurred in October 1998 (so we're coming up on our 10th anniversary). He and Mom have attended services...
August 10: Book: The Post American World: Comments (0)
A book I can't recommend highly enough is Fareed Zakaria's The Post American World. I love big-picture books, ones which don't focus just on what's happening in the United States, but put the US in a global context. With that...
August 9: The Olympics are Here (Actually, in China): Comments (0)
I'm really excited about the Olympics. Only comes around every four years, and there's always plenty of drama and the unfolding of neat stories. Right now, I'm watching Kerri Walsh and Misty May in beach volleyball. Had men's gymnastics earlier,...
August 7: Oh Say Can You See: Comments (0)
Canadian pitcher Chris Reitsma about Beijing's pollution: "You're watching batting practice in the outfield and you can't see the ball because it's the same color as the sky." Newsweek reporter Melinda Liu describes the skies as "the color of bed...
August 7: My Inability to Swallow Pills: Comments (0)
You've seen this in movies and TV shows. Someone is having a medical attack of some kind--heart, anxiety, whatever. With much over-the-top dramatic fumbling, the person finds and opens a pill bottle, tosses the pill open-palmed into his mouth, throws...
August 6: Three More Novels: Comments (0)
Here are three more novels I've read recently. The Last Good Kiss, by James Crumley. This Black Lizard book sat on my shelf for a long time. Didn't know what I was missing. Another roman noir book. The book takes...
August 5: Politics as Usual for Republicans: Comments (0)
I had thought John McCain had the potential to be the kind of transforming figure in politics that I've yearned for. I was a huge fan. But I'm an objective person, too. And McCain's continual petty and usually baseless attacks...
August 5: When You Just Won't Take it Any Longer: Comments (0)
One of the blogs I read regularly is by Perry Noble, pastor of Newspring Church, one of the fastest-growing in the country. The last few days, he's been talking about obesity, and of his own battles with weight. Today he...
August 4: Worries Me, Too: Comments (0)
Senator Thad Cochran (Republican-Mississippi) earlier this year said of John McCain: "The thought of his being president sends a cold chill down my spine...He is erratic. He is hotheaded. He loses his temper and he worries me."...
August 4: Segregated Sundays: Comments (0)
CNN's website has an excellent article on racial segregation in churches. It examined a lot of the nitty-gritty dynamics in churches with multiple ethnic groups, and how it can be like tip-toeing through a minefield as you try not to...
August 4: Breaking Out of Your Ruts: Comments (0)
The Swerve blog, from Lifechurch.tv, has a piece on "The Numbness of Frequency," by staffer Sam Roberts. Robert says that when you continually xpose people to the same thing in the same way, they become numb to it. At work,...
August 2: Three Novels: Comments (0)
I need to get caught up on some novels I've read during the past couple weeks. Here are three. Under the Skin, by James Carlos Blake. I stumbled across this book in Hyde Brothers used bookstore here in Fort Wayne....
August 1: Good Attitude: Comments (0)
Dwayne Wade played on the 2004 Olympic basketball team, which went 5-3. Since 1936, Americans had lost a total of only two basketball games, so the 2004 Olympic squad more than doubled the loss number. Wade says the 2008 team...
Today I was doing some research on Jim Ellifritt, one of our ministers who is also a lieutenant colonel in the Army Reserves. A Google search led me to a page where his son, also a reservist (while Jim Sr....
July 30: This Made Me Smile: Comments (0)
From Chris Elrod, a church planter and former Christian comedian in Florida: "I could care less what the 'experts' or books say about small groups. We’ve read them…been to the conferences…and they’ve ALL been wrong for us."...
July 30: Cultural Christianity: Comments (0)
Dave Datema, on his blog, pointed people to a post by Tim Timmons from a year ago. He said it was long, but worth reading. Yes, it was extremely long. And yes, well worth the time. Timmons talks about we...
July 30: The Wisdom of Sisters: Comments (0)
This is from my brother Rick's blog. A couple nights ago as I was tucking him in, Cameron said he knew what he wanted to be when he grew up. He said he wanted to be one of those "war...
July 28: No Money to Work With: Comments (0)
George Bush inherited a $128 billion surplus. The White House now projects a record $490 billion deficit for 2009. The Bush Administration has posted a budget deficit every year since taking office. This will be his gift to Obama or...
July 28: The Joker's Deleted Scenes: Comments (0)
When "The Dark Knight" hits DVD, I'll bet sales are amazing. It'll contain "previously unseen footage of Heath Ledger's last performance." Stuff that didn't make it into the theatrical release. And a few years down the road, there'll come a...
July 27: Saw Batman on Saturday: Comments (0)
Wow. Great movie. And like everyone else, I was blown away by Heath Ledger's Joker. I kept trying to see Heath Ledger, the guy from "The Patriot" and "A Knight's Tale," but he was unrecognizable. Totally disappeared into the character....
July 27: Fun in the Yard: Comments (0)
Did a lot more yardwork Friday and Saturday. Placed a layer of block around a little island thing in the back yard. Got 50 blocks from Menards, and they didn't go very far--just one layer. Hauled in a couple...
July 25: Teen Purity Balls: Comments (0)
Nancy Gibbs, one of Time magazine's ace reporters, wrote a superb piece called "The Pursuit of Teen Girl Purity." It told about "purity balls," Cinderella-ish events attended by fathers and daughters that stress the role of the father in a...
July 24: The Evangelical Suburban Infatuation: Comments (1)
Here are two thoughts from Gary Lamb, whose blog I just started following. He's a church planter in Canton, Ga., a town of 20,000. He has a heart for small towns. His church is starting a new church in a...
July 23: MinistryCOM 2008: Comments (0)
In September, Pam and I head for Oklahoma City to attend MinistryCOM, a national conference for church communications professionals. I attended this conference the past two years (in Phoenix and Nashville), and have found it exactly what I've been thirsting...
July 22: To a Rhyme Search For: Comments (0)
On Sunday, Pam and I attended church at a United Methodist retreat center/camp called Epworth something, in Ludington, Mich. Every Sunday they have speakers from across the country. It was an enjoyable service. But as we sang one hymn, I...
July 21: The Dennie Reunion: Comments (0)
Last of a generation. L-r: Marie (widow of Dad's brother Howard), Leila (Dad's sister), Dick and Ruth (Dad's other brother and his wife), Mom and Dad, and Grace (Dad's other sister). The three widows, Marie, Leila, and Grace, are...
July 21: This Guy Can Drum: Comments (0)
One of the blogs I read regularly is "Random Reflections" by Greg Boyd. He's a former atheist, former theology professor at a Christian college, and now founder and senior pastor of Woodland Hills Church, a megachurch in St. Paul, Minn....
July 18: Movie: Mama Mia: Comments (2)
While everyone else was going to see "The Dark Knight," Pam and I saw "Mama Mia," the musical based entirely on Abba songs. I was a huge Abba fan (particularly of Agnetha--hey, I was a college student), back when they...
July 17: An End Times Spoilsport: Comments (0)
Pastor Tim started a series on Revelation, the first time he's tackled that subject at Anchor. He's not an "End is Near" kind of guy. Neither am I. Doomsdayers and gloomsayers abound, but really, the world is in remarkable shape....
July 16: A Pleasant Surprise: Comments (0)
Seth Godin ended a blog post with this line: "The value of a perk is inversely related to the expectation of that perk." Now that's a fascinating observation. If you do something for someone, and they aren't expecting it, then...
July 15: Jordi's Personal Blocky Highway: Comments (0)
Last Thursday and Friday we worked like dogs in the blazing sun, putting blocks around one side of the house. The line between the grass and the mulch kept getter more and more scraggly and uneven, with the grass...
July 14: Movie: No Country for Old Men: Comments (0)
I forgot to alert the world to the fact that Pam and I watched "No Country for Old Men." That was a strange movie. In places, it skipped over entire scenes, letting you guess or assume what happened (and it...
July 14: Movie: Hancock: Comments (0)
Pam and I watched Will Smith's latest July 4 blockbuster, "Hancock," this weekend. It was a pleasant surprise. Very good. Knowing Hancock was a superhero, I expected some villainous superhero to come along to do climactic battle with Hancock. That...
July 13: Book: Faith and Politics (John Danforth): Comments (1)
I always liked Sen. John Danforth. He was a humble man, an Episcopolian priest, a man of strong moral convictions. But unlike today's Republicans--self-righteous defenders of God's will as determined by the Elephant platform--Danforth was a true statesman. He prided...
July 10: Flying the Flag: Comments (2)
There are all kinds of rules about flying the American flag. I thought my generation just didn't get the memo. Or school budget cutbacks killed the Flag 101 course. When displayed at night, the flag must be properly illuminated. When...
July 9: Larry King's Popularity: Comments (0)
I watched Larry King interview Ingrid Betancourt about her rescue after over six years as a hostage of Columbian guerrillas. It's a fascinating story. But I was thinking about viewers in other countries who watched this, wondering what they thought...
July 7: Jericho, Season 2: Comments (0)
Over the weekend, Pam and I watched the entire season 2 of the TV show Jericho (which has now been cancelled). That was truly a compelling show, and I mourn its passing. But with such a large cast, I'm sure...
July 4: Molly Goes to the Vet: Comments (0)
Took Molly to the vet to get her teeth cleaned yesterday. Or what's left of her teeth, since half of her formerly-cancerous lower jaw was removed years ago. Molly, a skinny 9 pounds, is always eating, partly because it takes...
July 4: Jordi's Three-Hour Tour: Comments (0)
Wednesday is trash pickup day in our neighborhood. Tuesday night, before going to bed, I opened the garage door and took some additional trash out to the road. Coming back in, I noticed that the door to the house, inside...
July 3: A Ronald McDonald Surprise: Comments (0)
A strange thing happened this morning. I went to the McDonalds on Illinois Road, ordered a Sausage-Egg-and-Cheese McGriddle and a Sausage Burrito...and got exactly what I ordered. This rarely happens at that McDonalds, or the one at Village of Coventry....
July 1: OnePrayer Thoughts: Comments (0)
Anchor participated in the OnePrayer emphasis/initiative/thingy in June, and I thought it went well. Pastor Tim started out by preaching a message on "Lord, Make Us Courageous." We then used video sermons from these three pastors: Craig Groeschel, "Make Us...
July 1: Walk Thru the Bible Seminar: Comments (0)
Anchor people (l-r): Tim and Alice Bauman, Pat Minch, Joanna Jacobs, and Jennifer Kirchner. On Saturday, Pam and I joined 17 others from Anchor in a Walk Thru the Bible seminar, Old Testament. I'd heard great things about these...
According to a CNN report, high gas prices are hurting Nevada's brothel business. According to Geoffrey Arnold, president of the Nevada Brothel Owners' Association--and isn't Momma Arnold proud of her son's accomplishments--truckers account for 75% of of the business at...
June 27: Bill Gates Tries to Download a MS Product: Comments (0)
Here's an email Bill Gates wrote, expressing his frustration with the lack of usability in their website as he attempted to download a program. It's an actual email he wrote. If Gates, a genius, is frustrated with MS products...I'm sure...
June 26: A View I Feel Dirty Defending: Comments (0)
I know this subject is saturated with emotion, but I agree with the Supreme Court's decision to not allow the execution of child rapists. Yes, it's a horrible, horrible crime, and it seems somehow uncompassionate to not want child rapists...
June 24: Glenn Flint Patriotic Concert: Comments (0)
Glenn Flint, a good friend and my former worship pastor, is doing a patriotic concert this Friday night in Angola at the Buck Lake Ranch, which I understand is a pretty famous place. Pam and I are taking my parents,...
June 23: Tiger Woods and Church Attendance: Comments (1)
The PGA, golf tournaments, and sports networks are lamenting the absence of Tiger Woods for the rest of 2008. Everyone predicts that the number of people watching golf will plummet. It's like when your pastor takes the week off, and...
June 22: Our Habitat for Humanity Home: Comments (0)
The Somali family, plus others from Somalia. Farfun, the father, is in the middle in back, and his wife is to the left of him in the pink and black attire. Click photo for a larger view. Click photo...
June 21: Maxwell Smart and Indiana Jones: Comments (0)
Saw two movies this weekend. "Get Smart" was delightful. Pam and I laughed a lot, and they didn't go for a lot of cheap sexual humor, a la Ben Stiller. The bathroom scene in the airplane had us LOLing....
June 19: Unintended Consequences: Comments (0)
According to CNN:Americans drove 1.4 billion fewer highway miles in April 2008 than they did in April 2007.Americans have driven nearly 20 billion fewer miles overall this year.Less gas used, means less gas tax revenue going to the Highway Trust...
June 19: Living with Herb Tea: Comments (0)
I'm feeling the caffeine urges this week. We started a four-day work week, with 10-hours days. It costs me $8 to drive to work, and several other persons live as far away as I do (or farther). So it'll be...
June 18: Thoughts on Golf (Which I Hate): Comments (0)
BusinessWeek had an article about the decline of golfing. Still plenty of interest, but people are golfing less. Related businesses are hurting, particularly those offering consumables like golf balls and tees. Three factors inhibit the spread of golf: timemoneyskillGolf is...
June 16: A Matter of Proportion: Comments (0)
I enjoyed the tributes to Tim Russert. And yet...it was a bit much. A case of press self-indulgence. The networks, particularly MSNBC, went overboard in paying tribute to Russert. I think the world of Russert; he's irreplaceable. But in the...
June 16: Russert Recap: Comments (0)
Here's a great quote from Mitch McConnell concerning Tim Russert: "I’m sure I speak for all elected officials when I say he always asked the question we hoped he wouldn’t."...
June 15: Sunday Night Pre-Game This and That: Comments (0)
Some miscellaneous blogworthy thoughts: Mom and Dad came over for lunch, for Father's Day. I grilled ribeyes, did a crockpot with potatoes, onion, and carrots, made a fruit bowl, and sauteed some vegetables. Had a great time with them. They...
June 15: A Rockin' Sunday: Comments (0)
Anchor is taking part in the OnePrayer.com emphasis. Pastor Tim got us started last week with his prayer for Anchor: Lord, Make Us Courageous. This week we watched Craig Groeschel, the impetus behind OnePrayer, preach on, "Lord, Make Us One."...
June 14: An Important Day for Two Sisters: Comments (0)
Pam's Dad died exactly six months ago. This is the six-month anniversary. He lay in a coma for a week, and on the 14th of December, they removed life support and he very soon was pronounced dead. So this...
June 12: The Money Keeps Rolling In: Comments (0)
Got my semi-annual letter from InterVarsity Christian Fellowship, with a check for $5.61. That's about what's it's been for several years now. It's nice being able to depend on a steady income. It's a royalty check from InterVarsity Press. My...
June 11: The Fox News Blondes: Comments (0)
Has anyone else noticed all the blondes in ridiculously short skirts on Fox News? Yes, in fact, many people have noticed. Just Google "Fox News blondes." Lots of chatter on this subject. I don't watch Fox News, normally, but I...
June 11: Our New Furniture Arrives: Comments (0)
Ashley Furniture delivered our new living room furniture yesterday afternoon. Our former couch and loveseat, a matching set from Kittles, were carted away to the Mustard Seed Furniture Bank last Wednesday. After 15 years, there wasn't much padding left....
June 10: Football Thoughts: Comments (0)
Lots of talk on ESPN this morning about the retirement of Michael Strayhan from the New York Giants. All of which prompted these thoughts: That was sure a great Super Bowl this year!What will the Patriots be like this year?...
June 8: Book: Dark Places: Comments (0)
What a book! I'm talking about Jon Evans' Dark Places, published under the Dark Alley imprint. The protagonist is an adventure traveler, a top-notch but distracted computer programmer whose first love is backpacking across remote areas of the world. In...
June 7: A Gumshoe in War-torn Sarajevo: Comments (0)
Finished Dan Fesperman's Life in the Dark, a Black Lizard imprint about Vlado Petric, a police detective in Sarajevo during the Bosnia-Serb war of the 1990s. I previous read Small Boat of Great Sorrow, the second Vlado Petric novel. That...
June 5: Our Empty Living Room: Comments (0)
It's gone. The first set of furniture we bought for our house, clear back in 1993--couch, loveseat, recliner--gone. Well, not the recliner. It's still in the bedroom in good shape. But the couch and loveseat had lost their padding,...
June 4: Please Don't Choose Hillary: Comments (0)
At this point, I don't know whether I'll vote for McCain or Obama. It's a win-win thing for me. I like McCain a lot, but when it comes to issues I care most about--Iraq, health care, climate change, energy independence--he...
June 4: Beauty Vs. Bullies: Comments (2)
Wow, this put tears in my eyes. Must be from an American Idol for kids in England. Simon Cowell says some great things. The stunned expressions when this kid started singing are priceless....
June 3: Tournament Frustration: Comments (0)
Tonight was our monthly club table tennis tournament. I was in a group with four other guys, and we did a round robin. Very closely matched. I played great, winning three matches and losing the other 3-1 against an Asian...
June 3: Let Your Light Shine, and Beat Them with It: Comments (2)
The Ragamuffin Soul website showed this picture of a protest sign. Evidently, some confused Christian felt this was a good evangelism tactic. I got a kick out of some of the comments: Winning people to Christ…one picket sign at...
June 3: Oh Here I Go Again: Comments (0)
Every week, often several times a week, we learn of additional ways the Bush Administration has abused its power or displayed incompetence. I just now read about efforts to squelch scientific evidence about climate change (old news, actually), which is...
June 2: Look What Nature Hath Wrought: Comments (0)
Seeing Barack Obama gazing at Mount Rushmore takes me back to Mrs. Friedrich, my fifth-grade teacher at Paxtonia Elementary School in Harrisburg, Pa. One day, she showed us a picture of Mount Rushmore and explained that it was a natural...
Saw "Prince Caspian" today, the second Narnia movie. This one was a lot more serious, gritty, violent. Not so much a children's movie, though there was nothing graphic. I really liked it. The religious themes were much more subtle, even...
May 30: Harley and the Open Road: Comments (0)
Harley-Davidson has this incredible ad on the back of the May 12 Sports Illustrated. Masterful writing which captures a lot of things about the Harley experience--freedom, country, cynicism, love of the open road, self-empowerment, and a touch of outlaw. Here...
May 30: When Things No Longer Click: Comments (0)
Here's some simple management philosophy from Mark Cuban. When asked why he fired Avery Johnson as coach of the Dallas Mavericks, Cuban said: "There's just times when things work until they don't." I love that. Things change. Honeymoons end. Life...
May 29: Why Now, Mr. McClellen?: Comments (0)
I'm very interested in Scott McClellen's tell-all book. There will no doubt be many such books telling about the inner workings of the Bush administration, tales that make you cringe and ask, "How did this guy become so powerful?" But...
May 28: Wearing the T-Shirt: Comments (0)
I'm only to page 28, but already I can say, "Wow! I love this book!" The book is I Became a Christian and All I got was this Lousy T-shirt, by Vince Antonucci, a church planter in Virginia. He's a...
May 27: Watching that Table Tennis Rating: Comments (1)
My first table tennis tournament was the St. Joseph Valley Open in March 2007. I left that tournament with an initial rating of 995 with the US Table Tennis Association. I've fancied myself a 1350-1400 player, so I've been trying...
May 25: Garage Sale Observations: Comments (0)
I spent a good deal of Friday and Saturday at Mom and Dad's garage sale. Here are some random observations: It's amazing how you can price something dirt cheap, and someone still wants it for half of that amount....
May 25: Garage Sale? Or Bake Sale?: Comments (0)
Mom and Dad had a big garage sale on Friday and Saturday. Pam took over a bunch of stuff from her Dad's estate, and my niece Paula had gobs of stuff there. Plus Mom and Dad's stuff. But the...
May 22: NBA Thoughts: Comments (0)
It's just after 11 pm, and I'm watching the final minutes of the Boston-Detroit game. Rooting for the Celtics.I'm bummed that my beloved Suns bowed out so quickly. I've decided the current team doesn't have what it takes. Time to...
May 20: The Point of Need: Comments (1)
"The closer you are to the point of need, the more you can charge," writes Seth Godin.Airport food is outrageously expensive, but people buy it, because they're stuck.If you need a computer part tomorrow, you pay FedEx to make it...
May 19: Rockin' on Geritol: Comments (2)
While my musical tastes have broadened over the years, at the core I'm a 70s rocker. That's the music I began listening to in my formative, high school years. Do you ever outgrow your musical "first love"? Well, actually, the...
May 18: The Clothing Give-Away: Comments (10)
This morning Pastor Tim preached about the importance of church attendance, of not forsaking our gathering together. He used an illustration from his college days, when, after a lifetime of attending church every Sunday, he experimented with not going to...
May 16: Quote Unquote: Comments (0)
"Better a democracy with scandals than an authoritarian system without scandals." -- Shimon Peres in Newsweek...
May 16: Commenting Fixed: Comments (0)
If you've tried to comment on my posts, you encountered the frustration of having your computer just spin, as if it's trying to send your comment but not getting anywhere. Well, your comments were, indeed, getting to me (often, several...
May 15: Kurt Wallander and Jack Reacher: Comments (0)
Since I was on vacation last week, I decided to tackle two 400+ page novels. Sidetracked, by Henning Mankell. This is the fourth Kurt Wallander mystery. I can't say they keep getting better, because the third book in the series,...
May 15: When Jesus Becomes Boring: Comments (0)
One of the blogs I read regularly is by Perry Noble, a megachurch pastor in South Carolina. He's authentic, down-to-earth, and earthy. Yesterday, Perry listed a bunch of statements which completed this sentence: "I don't want to live a life...."...
May 14: All Clean: Comments (0)
Dentist appointment this morning. Time for a cleaning. Immediately afterwards, I went to Scott's and got a couple donuts. No sense leaving them clean....
May 13: It's Not All About Winning: Comments (0)
This is a really great story. Left me with tears. I had read about it, but seeing this clip is much more meaningful....
May 13: The Crime-Fighting Mac: Comments (0)
Two thieves broke into Kait Duplaga's New York apartment and stole thousands of dollars of stuff, including a Mac laptop. Duplaga works for an Apple store. Someone told Duplaga that her Mac was online. Using a different Mac, she gained...
May 12: Speaking Truth When Needed: Comments (0)
Here's a great quote from Mark Cuban, billionaire owner of the Dallas Mavericks and other stuff, from his blog: "I have told just about everyone who has ever partnered or reported directly to me, that I can get so focused...
May 12: Ann Kiemel: The Comments Continue: Comments (1)
It's been nearly two years since my September 2006 post Ann Kiemel, Wherefore Hast Thou Been? The response has been astounding to me. Every month, I get several more comments--a total of 45, thus far. Most are by people who...
May 10: Movie: Ironman: Comments (0)
Pam and I saw Ironman today, our first theatre experience of 2008. Loved it. Great performance by Robert Downey Jr.Beautifully written script. I loved the writing.Lots of humor. I laughed a lot.Very clean. I'm not sure there was any swearing...
May 8: Obscure Lessons from a Bird That Couldn't Wait: Comments (1)
I'm still searching for the spiritual application. So help me out. I'm taking the week off, staying at home. I've just finished taking a shower, and now I'm sitting in our screened-in porch reading a good Christian book, Confessions of...
May 7: Using Your Vote as a Prank: Comments (0)
Rush Limbaugh is far from my favorite person. He's just a loud-mouth, totally partisan, highly divisive show-boater. The world would be a better place without him. And he obviously has little respect for American democracy. He encourages Republicans to play...
May 6: ADD at the Balance Center: Comments (0)
Yesterday was my appointment with Dr. D, the dizziness specialist at Ear Nose and Throat Associates. After waiting an hour, Pam and I were ushered into a tiny room, and a few minutes later, Dr. D came in. I explained...
May 6: Saturday Night at Granger Community Church: Comments (0)
Pam and I spent Saturday night in South Bend, since I would be playing in the table tennis tournament at 9 a.m. We decided to go early enough to attend the 5:30 Saturday night service at Granger Community Church. We'd...
May 4: Movie: Once: Comments (0)
Pam and I watched "Once" tonight. Wow, what a charming movie! Mostly a modern musical, set on the streets of an English city. Probably 60% music. No villain. In fact, no unlikable characters, period.No conflict.No denouemont. There's a word I...
May 4: A Good Day of Table Tennis: Comments (0)
Back from the St. Joseph Valley table tennis tournament. Started playing at 9 a.m. and finished around 2:30. To improve your rating with the US Table Tennis Association, you need to beat higher-ranked players. I did that three times today,...
May 3: Recent Fiction Reads: Comments (0)
Polished off a couple of quick fiction reads recently: "Million Dollar Baby" by Robert Parker, and "Grifter's Game," by Lawrence Block. But since I'm taking all next week off, I started a big fat fiction book: "Sidetracked," a Kurt Wallander...
May 2: Notes on Ministering to the Emerging Culture: Comments (0)
On Tuesday and Wednesday, I attended the "Hit the Bullseye" conference in Lima, Ohio. A lot of good stuff there, even though I felt sick the first day. Here are some notes from "Leading Change in an Emerging Congregation," by...
May 2: Movie: The Brave One: Comments (0)
Watched "The Brave One," with Jody Foster. Enjoyed it. Nice vigilante flick, with a somewhat surprising ending. I really didn't have a clue how it was going to end, which always makes a movie more interesting....
May 1: I'm Enjoying This Election: Comments (0)
I think this election is thrilling. But a lot of people don't. I talked to someone yesterday who said, basically, "This country is so messed up, what with this crazy election and everything." I regularly hear people complaining about how...
I felt vertigo coming on just before the first service yesterday. Things were a bit dreamy during the song package, but I made it through. But the second service was worse. I have a two-keyboard arrangement. When I switched from...
April 26: Any Connection with Hillary?: Comments (0)
After a beautiful day yesterday, cold weather blew in this morning. It warmed up somewhat in the afternoon, but a chill remained in the air. Hillary blew into town this morning for a rally....
April 25: My Four Horsemen: Salt, Stress, Caffeine, Booz: Comments (0)
I had a major, debilitating vertigo episode Wednesday night, while visiting some of Pam's relatives. Spent a couple hours on their bathroom floor, the world spinning around me. Not fun. And not exactly civilized behavior for a guest. So I'll...
April 24: Life in Slo-Mo: Comments (0)
When Yao Ming entered the NBA, commentators noted how the game was too fast for him. But the more he played, the more it would slow down. I remember my first school game, in 8th grade. I started. But the...
April 24: How Seriously Do We Want to Reach the Lost?: Comments (0)
Wow. this is what it's about. This is the approach Jesus would take. This is from Kinetic Church, a church plant in Charlotte, NC. They meet in a movie theatre. The trailer containing 75% of their equipment was stolen. This...
April 22: Approving the Menu: Comments (2)
The Executive Leadership Team for our denomination met last night and today. Good meeting. Today's lunch was at Huntington University. We had a taco salad. It was okay, after I scraped off the sour cream and guacamole. But not what...
April 22: Beowolf: Comments (0)
Watched Beowolf Sunday night. Didn't really care for it. Don't know why they did that cartoonish effect. I guess the director had a "vision" for that, but it was a stupid vision. I'm enjoying "Combat!", the TV show from the...
April 21: Somalis in Our Midst: Comments (0)
At Anchor, we're working with several Presbyterian churches in a Habitat for Humanity project. Only need to raise another $1000, and that should be easy with the Nelson's BBQ event in a couple months. Yesterday, I heard that a family...
April 20: Our Sacred Saturday: Comments (1)
Yesterday was a sacred day in the Steve and Pam Dennie household: the first Saturday after April 15. Meaning, the first Saturday of the year that Pam didn't have to work. The first Saturday she could sleep in. The first...
April 18: More Reasons to Buy a Mac: Comments (0)
According to Popular Mechanics: Macs, both laptops and desktops, run Vista faster than PCs.PCs, of course, are actually designed to run Windows operating systems.Vista was more sluggish than Leopard. Duh....
April 17: Our Love of Bottled Water: Comments (1)
Pam and I make a run to Sam's Club every time we get low on water. By "water," I mean Ice Mountain bottle water. That's the kind we prefer. A shelf in our refrigerator holds one case of Ice Mountain...
April 15: Fast Food Prayers: Comments (0)
What does God think when I ask God's blessing on my meal when I eat at...McDonalds? Or Wendy's? "Lord, please bless these jumbo fries, double cheeseburger, and Frosty to the nourishment of my body." Is God going, "So in other...
April 15: True Love in Hollywood: Comments (0)
Read an article in Time about Charlton Heston, who died last week. Most impressive part: he and his wife were married for 64 years. Now there's a Hollywood maverick for you....
April 14: The Sanctimonious Corner: Comments (0)
One of our churches was mentioned in an article about the use of technology in churches. The online article included three comments. Before looking at them, I figured they would be people griping about how we've become entertainment-driven, worldly, etc....
April 12: My Day: Comments (0)
Pam spotted a nail sticking in her left-front tire, so getting it fixed intruded into my schedule today. That schedule had featured three things: Work on a new website for work (we're in a rebranding initiative).Go to the table tennis...
April 10: Obama Comes to South Bend: Comments (0)
My brother Rick attended an Obama rally in South Bend, Ind., and wrote about it on his blog. Interesting stuff....
April 10: Great Ways to Use Duct Tape, #317: Comments (0)
My Canadian friend, Brian, sent me this. That sounds like I only have one Canadian friend. I probably have at least a handful of Canadian friends....
April 10: Baby Steps Against Factory Farming: Comments (1)
So I'm horrified by factory farming, which grossly abuses cows, pigs, and chickens. What should I do about it? The other day, I bought some eggs. I noticed containers marked "Cage Free" which promised that the chickens weren't pumped with...
April 9: No Comment: Comments (1)
Oooops. I've been wondering why nobody's been commenting on my extraordinarily insightful musings, not to mention the other 99% of drivel on this site. Turns out that, in cranking up my spam filter, all comments--including comments from Yours Truly--were getting...
April 9: Seeing the Eye Doctor (Get It? Ha Ha.): Comments (0)
Visited the eye doctor this morning. Three years since the last exam. I've had to squint to read the wall menus at Starbucks and Panera Bread; the lettering keeps getting lighter and lighter. So it was time. Or past time....
April 8: Table Tennis Battles: Comments (0)
I had a good night at the Three Rivers Table Tennis Club. Only lost once, that to Mike, whom I've never beaten in four years, and I at least won a game off him, losing 3-1. Jenning, an Asian player,...
April 8: My Political Dilemma: Comments (0)
Barack was in town last week. No, I didn't go hear him. I do have a dilemma, though. I like John McCain. However, the issues I care most about right now are not Republican issues. They include: Instituting a national...
April 8: Deep Thoughts: Comments (0)
Saw this on Chris Elrod's blog: "“Friendship is like peeing your pants, everyone can see it…but only you can feel the true warmth!” It sounds cute, but I'm not totally sure what it means. Is fellowship the same way? I...
April 4: My Fabulous New Bayonet Cabinet: Comments (2)
For the last month or so, Dad's been building me a display cabinet for my bayonet collection. I've watched it come together with eager anticipation. My bayonets have been displayed in a wall case in the basement, a case...
April 2: Man of the People: Comments (1)
Barack Obama rolls a 37 in bowling. That's my kind of guy. A common man, in touch with the blue-collar values. A champion of the working class. Everyday folks. 37? I've not bowled in 20 years, but short of an...
April 1: One Prayer for the Church: Comments (0)
I regularly read Craig Groeschel's "Swerve" blog. He's the pastor of >LifeChurch.tv in Oklahoma City, one of the most innovative and internet-savvy churches in the country. He puts some outstanding leadership stuff on the blog. I just learned of a...
We introduced Michael Neale's song "More and More" today at Anchor. People loved it. Get it from iTunes. It's really a great song. I heard Michael Neale last September at the MinistryCOM conference in Nashville. The event was hosted by...
March 29: Logitech's Paranoid Protectionism: Comments (1)
Logitech is pathetic. I had to reformat a drive, and just needed a Macintosh mouse driver to download. Could I find it anywhere on their website? Nope. Tried searching, tried their tedious help menus. I tell you, they closely guard...
March 29: At The Grind: Comments (0)
L-r: Me, Terry, Joe (drums), Tom, and Tim. The Anchor worship team played for two hours last night at The Grind coffeehouse, over on the east side of Fort Wayne. I'd never been there before. Nice place. The smell of...
March 28: Baseball Blues: Comments (1)
Ah, the start of baseball season. The fresh spring air, the crack of bats, the green grass, the history, the tradition. This is the time of year when I tell myself: "I'm unbelievably bored. How long 'til football starts?"...
March 27: Topless Meetings? I Say Yes.: Comments (0)
Last Friday I spoke for an hour about church communications to a class at the Huntington University Graduate School. Ray Seilhamer, the prof, invites me to do that about every two years. A couple students had laptops open, and paid...
March 25: Randy Newman Fans of the World--Go Away, Please: Comments (0)
I, like millions thousands hundreds scores several other people, was disappointed that perennial Oscar nominee Randy Newman didn't perform anything at this year's Oscar ceremony. Fortunately, there is water in our desert. Newman has released a whole album, based on...
March 25: Feel Free to Ignore This Post: Comments (0)
Here are some word-related useless facts. Being a wordsmith, I found them interesting, though I don't require that you find them similarly interesting. "Stewardesses" is the longest word typed with only the left hand."Lollipop" is the longest word typed with...
March 20: Celebrities Dressed Like Christians: Comments (1)
This is hysterical--photos of celebrities and what "type" of Christian they represent. I especially like the shots of Ryan Seacrest as "The Relevant Pastor," Diane Keaton as the "Show No Skin Fundamentalist," Justin Long as "The campus Crusade for Christ...
March 19: How Many Five-Year-Olds Could I Beat Up?: Comments (0)
This is wrong, just so wrong. But I took the test. And it turns out that I could fight off 15 five-year-olds at once. That does not sound like anything to brag about. In fact, I feel downright wimpy. 15...
March 18: What Makes a Distinctive Rock Group: Comments (6)
Coming home from Indianapolis Saturday, I listened to Creed's "My Sacrifice" and realized, "There's a group I miss." Then I thought of Guns 'N Roses, another band with a distinctive sound and a collection of great songs. Miss them, too....
March 17: Tactics Vs. Goals: Comments (1)
From Seth Godin's blog: "Persistence isn't using the same tactics over and over. That's just annoying. Persistence is having the same goal over and over." We hear people, and churches, say, "We already tried that before, and it didn't work."...
March 16: Light Vs. Dark Office Space: Comments (1)
Do you prefer working in light, or dark? A company called Rackspace has two sections to its corporate office: a lights-on section, and an all-dark section. People have different preferences, and in progressive high-tech startup companies, they can actually cater...
March 15: Old Guys Can Still Have Glory Days: Comments (0)
Age 51, and still winning athletic trophies. Yay me. Played in a table tennis tournament in Indianapolis today. I have a rating of 1081 with the US Table Tennis Association. I entered the Under 1250 and under 1450 categories, and...
March 14: Unwelcome, Late-Night Visitors at Church: Comments (0)
Sunday night, some mischief-makers broke into the church. We couldn't find anything that was stolen, though I understand some things were, indeed, taken. They also: Jammed the photocopier.Jammed the paper shredder.Turned on the computer in the sound booth and accessed...
March 12: Dream-Killing Debts: Comments (0)
One more note from Mark Cuban's post about destiny, which I referred to Monday. He wrote: The greatest obstacle to destiny is debt, both personal and financial. The more people you are obligated to, the harder it is to focus...
March 11: "It is Good, and It is Love, and It is Triumphant": Comments (0)
This is a pretty amazing post on the Swerve blog, the words of a young woman who, at 26, succumbed to cancer. Oh, to have a love for and experience with God like Katie....
March 10: Crash Course Learning: Comments (0)
Mark Cuban, the billionaire owner of the Dallas Mavericks, wrote an interesting piece called "What are You Destined to Be?" on his popular Blog Maverick blog. "Going to college should be about experiencing as much academically as you possibly can,...
March 10: One of Those Pictures: Comments (0)
Observed: a 40-ish man standing outside the YMCA, dressed in his warm-up outfit, either concluding or waiting to start his workout. Smoking....
March 9: A Fellow American Citizen: Comments (0)
One of Pam's tax clients is a young mother who immigrated from South America. She married an American guy, and they have two kids. Nice family. They are among Pam's tax clients, and came for an appointment one afternoon this...
March 7: Spinning Our Christian Wheels: Comments (1)
The March 3 Time magazine featured an article about George Clooney. I like him a lot. He’s got journalism roots, which brings a degree of open-mindedness, of considering both sides of an argument, plus a heavy dose of cynicism. Legions...
March 6: Exalting Suburban Christianity: Comments (1)
Today I received an email about a “Good-Time gospel Jubilee Show” coming to Fort Wayne next month. It sounds pretty neat. One line describes it as “family friendly” and “affordable,” at only $12 a ticket. By today’s standards, for a...
March 5: A Few Thoughts About Apples (Not the Computer): Comments (0)
I grew up loving Golden Delicious apples. Our family preferred the Delicious family, whether Red or Golden. Jonathans also had a following in the Dennie clan, but always secondary to Delicious. I personally have always preferred Golden. In recent years,...
March 4: Most Powerful Hollywood Christians: Comments (0)
Beliefnet lists the "12 Most Powerful Christians in Hollylwood." There is a page for each person, along with info about why that person is included in the list. I raised my eyebrows a few times as the next page appeared...
March 4: Evangelicals and Politics: Comments (0)
Greg Boyd has become one of my must-read bloggers. He's a pastor and intellectual-type guy who voices, with solid rationale, many of the views I hold but can't articulate in any convincing way. He recently participated in a debate on...
March 4: Preaching Vs. Blogging: Comments (0)
An interesting piece called "Preaching vs. Blogging." It compares the two mediums (media, whatever) with a chart. For instance: preaching includes voice inflection and body language, but blogs have a delete button and audience feedback....
March 4: Larry Norman: RIP: Comments (0)
Larry Norman died Sunday morning. He and Randy Stonehill were kings of the Christian rock scene during my college days. I never heard Larry Norman in concert, but I know his music well. Songs like: Why Should the Devil...
March 3: Ordinary Attempts at Evangelism: Comments (1)
In the past, I've been through a lot of different evangelism training. The mere word "training" is intimidating to many Christians. Certainly Evangelism Explosion went far beyond what ordinary Christians could master. Campus Crusade and the Navigators give you a...
Yesterday one of Pam's tax clients brought her flowers. She said, "Today is the anniversary of my husband's death seven years ago. On this day I always buy myself flowers, and I thought I'd get some for you, too." Neat....
February 28: My Morning at Fishhook: Comments (0)
A week ago, I attended a Communications Roundtable in Indianapolis. They meet every month or two, mostly people on staff at megachurches. Evan McBroom and his firm, Fishhook, sponsor this thing. I've been trying to attend since last fall,...
February 24: The Roots of My Piano Playing: Comments (1)
This morning we sang the hymn "Stand Up for Jesus." That hymn takes me back to the summer after my freshman year of high school and to a 76-year-old Aussie named Gordon Hooker. Hooker taught piano at Biola University, and...
February 22: Leaping to Conclusions about Swedish Detective Novels: Comments (0)
I've read books by two different Swedish authors. Three books by Henning Mankell, whose protagonist is police detective Kurt Wallander. And two books by Maj Sjorrel about detective Martin Beck. Mankell is the better and more prolific writer. His book...
February 19: How Can People do This?: Comments (2)
Yesterday I wrote about the horrors of factory farming. The images from the videos I watched haunted me all day today. I've watched such videos before--there are lots of them on the internet--but have never been bothered at such a...
February 18: Factory Farms: More than a Moral Dilemma: Comments (2)
The enormous beef recall, the result of animal cruelty violations, has brought the subject or factory animal farming to the forefront. Again. Greg Boyd, a minister in Minnesota, discussed the issue of factory farming in a blog post, "Compassionate Dominion...
February 18: Lovin' This Ecumenical Stuff: Comments (0)
Five churches in our neighborhood have developed a good working relationship, and we're doing some things cooperatively. Two years of doing VBS together. A picnic in the park. Last year, for each Sunday night during Lent, we met in a...
February 15: The Toughest Greeters: Comments (0)
I came across a church called The Church at the Pen, which exists to start churches in Idaho's State penitentiaries. The tag line says, "Our greeters can beat up your greeters!" Yagottaloveit!...
February 15: Internet Usage in China vs. the US: Comments (0)
The number of internet users in the US and China is now equal. But they don't use the internet the same way, according to an interesting study. 78% of Chinese internet users visit social-networking sites, compared to 54% in the...
February 13: Spade, Marlowe, Archer, and Spencer: Comments (0)
I love the old-time, private detective pulp novels, and so I'm going to bore you with amateur drivel about the most famous ones. Please don't humor me. Just go away and come back tomorrow, unless you envision the possibility of...
February 12: Keyless: Comments (0)
This morning, the planning committee for the 2009 US National Conference met at a coffeeshop in Bryan, Ohio. It's been snowing a lot since last evening, and not wanting to drive my truck over there, I hitched a ride with...
February 11: Just One of the Villagers: Comments (0)
Before the 9:00 service on Sunday, Jesse came running into the sanctuary and beamed a big smile at me, seeking reaction. Jesse is three years old, the son of a very young single mother, Lee, who attends regularly. The two...
February 6: Shaq a Sun?: Comments (0)
On the way to work, I learned that Shaquille O'Neal had been traded to my favorite team, the Phoenix Suns. Who saw that coming? The NBA's premiere run-and-gun team opts for a hobbler like Shaq? Is this purely a move...
February 5: Scenes from Our Really Big Bowl Party: Comments (0)
Seventeen people, all rooting for the Giants, attended our party on Sunday night. I took some photos, but only got some of the people. Anyway, here's some of what I snapped. Two photos of pretty much the same people. Here's...
February 4: Whatta Party. Whatta Game. Whatta Spread.: Comments (0)
Pam and I hosted a Really Big Bowl Party (need to avoid trademark infringement) last night. Had 17 people, all from Anchor. All rooting for the Giants. So bedlam erupted in the last minute, as you can imagine. We're all...
February 4: The Website Comes Through Again: Comments (0)
Met a really nice family yesterday, visiting our church for the first time. Five kids. I usually ask first-timers, "How did you find us?" Because Anchor isn't exactly located on a thoroughfare. We're on a secondary street in a residential...
February 2: What Happens to Unused Gift Cards?: Comments (0)
I always assumed that stores and restaurants just pocketed the money when gift cards went unused. You know, like that $5 Starbucks card you got for Christmas but misplaced, probably amidst a bunch of wrapping paper. It's estimated that of...
February 2: My Hessian Heritage: Comments (0)
Learned something interesting about my heritage today. We've known that on my Mom's side (the Welkers), we are German and Irish. Some of Mom's cousins, doing geneology research, discovered that the German part goes back to a Hessian mercenary who...
The Anchor worship team has a gig on Friday night. We're playing for a couple hours at the Grind coffeehouse in Fort Wayne. I've not been there before. Interestingly, we're required to do only our own original music. The Grind...
January 30: The Dead Weight Around Hillary's Neck: Comments (0)
My brother Rick wrote an interesting piece on his blog called "Why I Don't Want Hillary as President." I gotta agree with him. But there's more: the Bill Factor. The guy just can't help himself. He loves the spotlight, and...
January 25: Why I Could Never Vote for Rudy: Comments (0)
I'm not a Rudy fan, and would not vote for him. I don't see that he has much of a moral base, and I've read too much about the bad ways he treats people (which speaks to his character). His...
January 24: I am a Workout Worm: Comments (0)
I'm horrified. Ashamed. Smitten with self-loathing. Last night, as Pam and I drove home from working out at the YMCA, I realized that I had committed a terrible faux paux. After 20 minutes on the arc trainer, I left...without wiping...
January 21: Mitt Romney on Religion: Comments (1)
I finally got around to reading Mitt Romney's December "Faith in America" speech, in which he talked about religion. It's very good, and I fully respect what he said. Christianity is kind of the "dominant" religion of the US,...
January 20: Martin Luther King: "Jesus Wasn't Playing.": Comments (0)
The worship team, as a special, did the song "Get Together," from the 1960s, as a way to celebrate the legacy of Martin Luther King, Jr. While the band played, a series of photos from King's life and from the...
January 18: The Road Untravelled by the Likes of Me: Comments (0)
Last year, on the Sunday prior to Martin Luther King Day, we showed a clip from the "I have a Dream" speech in church. That was really neat. We're not doing that this year, but last night at music practice,...
January 17: The Self-Superiority of the Macintosh Minority: Comments (1)
Mike Dennis pointed me to an article about the mindset of Mac buyers, which is perhaps the only minority group WASPs like Mike and I can claim to be part of. According to Mindset Media, a group I know nothing...
January 17: Incrementally Saving the Environment: Comments (1)
And now, a lesson in coffee preparation technique. I use cream, and I always put it in first. That way, when I pour in the coffee, it automatically mixes. You don't need to find one of those cheap plastic straw-things...
January 16: Humility, Credit, and Blame: Comments (2)
A very interesting post on what I've discovered is a very interesting website: Swerve, by Craig Groeschel, pastor of the highly innovative Lifechurch.tv. Groeschel is writing about humility. He says it is dangerous to not only take all the credit...
January 15: Lame thoughts from the Political Fringe: Comments (0)
A few thoughts, lame-brained yet spoken with delusionally convincing authority, from the political world. Two questions floating around with reckless abandon: Is the country ready for a woman president? Is the country ready for a black president? My answer to...
January 13: There Goes the Season: Comments (0)
Oh crud, the Colts lost. Peyton didn't have a good day--lots of tips. Looks like I'll be rooting for the Packers from here on. Can't possibly favor San Diego or New England in the Super Bowl. So it's gotta be...
January 11: Excellence is Over-Rated: Comments (2)
"Excellence is over-rated," the speaker at MinistryCOM said. My generation, the baby boomers, is mightily smitten with excellence. We need to give our best to God. We wear bluejeans to church, but everything we experience there—the music, the message, the...
January 10: Plaxo and LinkedIn: Comments (0)
At work, we're well along in experimenting with Plaxo, an online resource for managing your address book, calendars, and other things. One of the founders is the Napster guy. It's a very cool resource. If a minister is a Plaxo...
January 10: Megachurch Architecture: Comments (0)
Slate magazine has a fascinating slideshow of megachurch architecture, including good commentary. You'll find photos from Lakewood Church (Joel Osteen's stomping ground), Willow Creek, the Crystal Cathedral (which is the only one which inspires awe), and others. Including the 21,000-seat...
January 9: Scanning Our Library: Comments (1)
Pam and I bought Delicious Library, a $40 Macintosh program for inventorying your library of books, videos, and music. You can buy a scanner (which we did), for scanning bar codes. It then transfers the info via bluetooth to your...
January 8: McCain as a Speaker: Comments (0)
Tonight was our monthly tournament night in the Three Rivers Table Tennis club. I never do well in these tournament. One two and lost one tonight. I left just after 9 p.m., and on the radio, John McCain was just...
January 7: A Hole in My Geographic Knowledge: Comments (0)
I always get Vermont and New Hampshire mixed up. Is New Hampshire on the right, or the left? Every four years I care, but don't bother cementing the answer in my mind....
January 7: Notes from the Gun & Knife Show: Comments (0)
On Saturday I went to the Fort Wayne Gun & Knife show. Bought five bayonets for my collection, which now numbers 43. Added bayonets from Chile, Egypt, Italy, Siam, and Spain (though I already had a couple Spanish bayonets). I...
January 4: Late-Night Post-Iowa Reflections on the Candidates: Comments (0)
That was quite a speech by Obama. I like him. Rudy can be quite a speaker, too. I don't like him. Can't imagine Hillary or Mitt giving a speech that stirs me in any way. Way too scripted, cautious...boring. And...
January 3: Photos from the Dennie Christmas: Comments (0)
Here are some photos from my family's get-together on New Year's Day. Click on a thumbnail to get a larger version.Benjamin (right) and Cameron.Benjamin watching Anna and Cam open presents.Cameron giving his irresistible puppy pose.Dorene (Rick's wife) with the hyper...
January 3: The Convenient "Christian" Life: Comments (0)
Tom and PaulaSince my brother Rick and his family saw fit to flee to Florida around Christmastime, we held our family Christmas on New Year's Day. When we got together with Pam's family the previous week, I made a vegetable...
Years ago, I heard Jerry Ballard, the head of World Relief, talk about taking Charleton Heston with him on a tour of some of their mission relief work in other countries. He said Heston was impressed with the World Relief...
December 26: Now Playing Left Field for the Yankees....: Comments (1)
I dreamed last night that I was playing left field for the New York Yankees. And at third base was Cosmo Kramer (a.k.a. Michael Richards). A-Rod was evidently injured or in contract negotiations. A ball flew over my head, hit...
December 25: A Most Unusual Christmas: Comments (0)
So it's Christmas Day. Pam and I slept in 'til about 9:00, and have been reading most of the day. She polished off a Nora Roberts book, and now is well into another book, which she'll no doubt finish tonight....
December 19: Snowblower Blues: Resolved: Comments (0)
When I got home yesterday, the driveway and sidewalks had been snowblowered with my very own heretofore dormant Troy-Bilt. Thanks, Dad. I can be so helpless without you....
December 18: Snowblower Blues: Comments (0)
Last year I bought a big, powerful Troy-Bilt Snowblower. Just chews through snow like it's something softer than snow that I can't think of at the moment. With last week's hecticness, I didn't get the snowblower ready for the storm...
December 15: Death of Pam's Dad, Chuck Wilkin: Comments (0)
My father-in-law, Chuck Wilkin, passed away just after midnight on Friday, December 14. He was 65 years old. Chuck drove himself to the emergency room of Lutheran Hospital on Friday, December 7, where a CAT scan revealed a tear in...
December 11: The Getaway / 361: Comments (0)
Two nights ago I finished Jim Thompson's "The Getaway," the book on which the movie starting Steve McQueen and Ali McGraw was based. I loved the movie, and wouldn't mind seeing it again. The movie followed the book in some...
December 11: R.I.P. Mr. Whipple: Comments (0)
I read yesterday that Mr. Whipple, the "Please don't squeeze the Charmin" guy, died last week. Age 91. That ad campaign lasted 20 years, starting in 1964, and included over 500 commercials. Real name: Dick Wilson. The first ad was...
December 10: Pam's Dad Undergoes Heart Operation: Comments (0)
Pam's Dad, Chuck Wilkin, underwent an eight-hour open-heart surgery on Friday. He had driven himself to the emergency room of Lutheran Hospital, which is only a half-mile from his condo. Pam was called at her office around 1:15, and told she...
December 3: The Quiet Dennie Home: Comments (1)
Last Friday, about noon, I received a call at work from Kathy Ayres, a lady from my church. Some things were in motion. It looked like Allen and Carolyn might be able to get their own place. Right away. I...
I just signed up for a Table Tennis tournament on December 9. The registration form includes a liability release statement I had to sign. I laughed out loud as I read the first line, in which I, the undersigned, acknowledged...
November 28: I Have Arrived at Senior Citienship: Comments (0)
The place I get my oil changed went out of business, so I tried a place in Huntington during lunch. I told them I wanted the full service oil change. The guy told me it would be $29, and then...
November 26: Spiritual Gift Scores, Vs. Doing it All: Comments (2)
I try to be a champion for small churches. This doesn't mean I'm anti-Big Church. Sure, I have my issues with them, but I'm also fascinated and thrilled by what some megachurches are doing--Granger, Quest, Willow Creek, Seacoast, Lifechurch, and...
November 21: Jerry Garcia Lives!: Comments (0)
A Google alert this morning tells me that Jerry Garcia is doing a concert at one of our churches. That brought a smile to my face. I imagine the guy jokes about his more well-known (and drug-infested) namesake. There's a...
November 19: Bill O'Reilly Knows His Bible: Comments (0)
The thing that really turned me off to John Kerry was that he pretended to be religious, when he obviously wasn't. Bill O'Reilly plays the same game, I'm afraid, and I similarly despise him for it. On his November 16...
November 19: I Choke Again: Comments (0)
Yesterday I skipped church to play in the Highland Table Tennis Tournament. Highland is just a few miles from the Illinois border, in the greater Chicago area. They had about 30 tables set up in a fieldhouse. My rating in...
November 13: Questions from a Bizarro World: Comments (1)
I remember when I was talking to my grandparents about things happening in society, and my dear, godly Grandma used the word "condom." It just didn't seem right. In our society, lots of things don't seem right. When it comes...
November 12: Who Was That Woman?: Comments (0)
I was to meet Pam for lunch around noon today. At 11:50, as I approached the Indy office building where Pam's class was being held, my cellphone rang. I figured it was Pam calling to let me know they were...
November 12: A Long Day in Indy: Comments (0)
Spent the day in Indy again; Pam had a continuing education class (CPE) on bankruptcy. She pretty much suffered through it. I just kicked around here and there. Looked up two used bookstores on the west side; one didn't exist,...
November 6: Apathetic About City Elections: Comments (3)
This morning I voted in the city elections. I never much care about local stuff, even though it more directly affects me than national politics. Pam told me to vote for Henry for mayor, because Kelty intentionally lied on some...
November 5: Train Vs. Car: Comments (0)
The train sat, unmoving, about 20 yards back from the crossing on Hadley Road. It was dark, and it was time to get this long beast moving. The engineer knew that the approaching car couldn't see the train, so he...
November 1: Useful "Little" Mac Programs: Comments (0)
I've been using the Macintosh since 1988, when I switched from an AT&T computer with two floppy drives (no hard drive) running DOS. Still makes me cringe. Suddenly I found myself with a huge hard drive (40 gigs!), a mouse,...
Dancing with the Stars is now a joke. No way should Sabrina have gotten voted off. She was consistently near the top. The judges were astounded. But alas, she lacked the fan base of Jane Seymour and Marie Osmond. The...
October 29: Twitter - Too Much Information About Me: Comments (0)
I joined the Twitter craze. It enables you to keep people micro-informed about your doings. For instance, that you're getting ready for work, and now you're driving to work, and now you're checking your email, and now it's break time...little...
October 27: At People's Church in Nashville: Comments (0)
Last Sunday, Pam and I attended The People's Church in Franklin, Tenn., basically a suburb of Nashville. It was the last thing we did on vacation, before heading home. Just a month before, I had attended the MinistryCOM conference, which...
October 26: Latest Chinese Toy Recall: Comments (0)
Another Chinese toy that, after several months of US government study, was ordered to be recalled. Thanks to Brian Magnus for alerting me to this....
October 25: It's Good to be Missed: Comments (0)
Pam and I had a meeting at church tonight. About a dozen people were there. It's the first "chuch" thing we've had since returning from vacation. And almost every person there, upon seeing us, said "Welcome back," or "We missed...
October 22: The Cherokee Llama Bed & Breakfast: Comments (0)
That's me with some of the llamas at the Cherokee Llama B&B. The llamas always acted like they were ready to spit. Kept me on edge. Pam and I did something new last week on vacation: we stayed at a...
October 22: Five Traffic Jams: Comments (0)
We made it home. Finally. We attended church in Nashville, Tenn., yesterday morning and started back for what should have been a seven-hour trip. A nice, casual Sunday drive, right? We took I-65 north. About 30 miles from Louisvile, Kent.,...
October 20: At the Grand Ole Opry: Comments (0)
Tonight Pam and I went to the Grand Ole Opry here in Nashville. That was a neat experience. Neither of us are avid country fans, but like country music enough to enjoy something like this. Tonight, the 82nd birthday of...
October 18: Quest Community Church: Comments (3)
On Sunday, we attended Quest Community Church, a fast-growing, outreach-oriented church we had become familiar with through a media conference. The church started in 1999 and now runs about 2700 people, most of it conversion growth. Pam and I occasionally...
October 18: No Room in Lexington: Comments (0)
Pam and I are on vacation. We turned over the house to Allen, Carolyn, and Connor, and headed south to Kentucky and Tennessee. Our first stop, last Saturday, was Lexington, Kent. That was the only stop where I hadn't reserved...
October 11: A Humble View of The Gathering: Comments (0)
I love this quote from a Wittenburg Door Interview with Rob Bell, pastor of Mars Hill church in Michigan. We say, "This isn't the church, this is a church service. It's just an hour where we have some teaching, some...
October 8: Random Monday Catchup Thoughts: Comments (1)
On Friday I had lunch with Evan McBroom, who heads a Christian communications consulting firm called Fishhook, out of Indianapolis. It's always fun talking with someone else in my field. I've spent my whole career working, basically, alone when it...
October 3: Discomfort in Foreign Pews: Comments (0)
What is most important to a first-time visitor to your church? David Zimmerman, writing on Church Marketing Sucks, says, "First-time visitors care most about not embarrassing themselves." He then gives some examples of what a visitor might fear: How they...
October 3: Isiah Thomas - Beyond His Abilities: Comments (1)
Isiah Thomas was a phenomenal basketball player with an engaging personality. But his post-NBA career has been an example of living above your competency. He hasn't shown success in anything he's done--a couple GM positions, a couple coaching position. He...
Last night the Anchor worship team skipped practice and, instead, went to the Auburn Fall Free Fair. The draw: a free concert by the Little River Band. I remember the 1970s and 1980s, when they had a bunch of hits....
September 26: Tonight's Democratic Debate: Comments (0)
I watched tonight's Democratic presidential debate, moderated by Tim Russert. Very interesting debate. I could vote for several of them--Biden, Dodd, Richardson, and yes, even Hillary. I like Obama and Edwards, but don't think they would be effective presidents. However,...
September 26: Mistakes, Context, Proportion, Blah Blah: Comments (0)
When public people screw up and they go into damage-control mode, they tend to utter words like these:"I made a mistake.""My words were taken out of context.""This was blown out of proportion." Bill Clinton's escapade with Monica was a "mistake."...
September 25: How to Trash My Male Ego: Comments (2)
If I think I possess the slightest hint of manliness, the notion can be shredded by going for a blood test. Like I did this morning. The nurse wraps a tournequet around my upper arm, asks me to clench my...
September 25: The Endless Tube: Comments (0)
It seems that no matter how flat the toothpaste tube, you can always squeeze out enough for another scrubbing....
September 24: Clarence Kopp: I'm Delighted to Have Known You: Comments (0)
Clarence Kopp's funeral was yesterday. He served as a bishop in our denomination 1981-1993, and I worked with him that entire time. Let me make these observations about him from my own experience: He would not criticize or speak ill...
September 23: Make a Joyful Grammatical Noise: Comments (6)
Is anyone else bothered by the last line of Amazing Grace, "We've no less days to sing God's praise/than when we first begun"? It should be either "than when we first began," or "than when we had first begun," which...
September 21: Unabashedly Sheltered: Comments (0)
I like listening to Mike & Mike, the ESPN show on weekday mornings. They often give their picks for upcoming football games, and do it in terms of "the odds." They talk about "the spread" and say things like, "I'll...
September 20: My Onslaught of Idiocy: Comments (0)
Stopped at Starbucks this morning. Not many parking places in front of the Village of Coventry store, and some numbskull had parked really really crooked, taking up two spaces. I squeezed my truck into the adjacent space and went inside,...
September 19: Connor's First Birthday: Comments (0)
Connor turned one year old today, September 19. Since December 1, he has lived with his parents in our humble home. He's the first baby that I, a 50-year-old, have ever held. It's been a delight watching him grow....
September 18: The Happy Billionaire: Comments (0)
Pam and I watched some of last year's "Dancing with the Stars" and found it fun. Last night Pam said she'd like to watch it regularly this time, because Marie Osmond and Jane Seymour are participating. She likes them. I...
September 16: The View from the Brethren: Comments (0)
Last Sunday I skipped church to play in the Indiana Open Table Tennis Tournament. I didn't do well, which was probably a sign of God's judgment. Today in church, a lot of people ribbed me about skippin