I have been feeling a little dirty over the last couple weeks…almost as if I have committed some type of browser adultery. (Let me preface this by imploring all you Apple Fanboys to refrain from adding your little jabs about PCs and Internet Explorer. Thank you!) Anyway, our household has always owned PCs with the exception of a Mac Mini which found its way into our home when my wife was working for Apple; besides that short time period, PCs and Internet Explorer have been our computer/browser of choice. However, a few months ago Google released its own browser called Google Chrome, so being a person who is open to technology change I downloaded it. At first I had a hard time using it because I was familiar with Internet Explorer and felt like an old friend was missing; but the more I used Chrome, the more I began to enjoy my online experience. I have even slowly transitioned into using many of Google’s features such as Gmail, Google Calendar, Google Reader, and Google Docs (I’m writing this blog entry in Google Docs right now). What’s weird is that even though I am enjoying my new acquaintance with Chrome, a part of me still feels as if I’m committing browser adultery whenever I use it. 

Nothing spiritual to this post, but just wanted to get your thoughts and see if maybe we could start a Browser Adultery Support Group together.

Tonight my wife sent me on a mission – go buy an electric pencil sharpener. Over the past several months our son has tried to use the cheap sharpeners as well as mechanical pencils but nothing seemed to work. I rushed out the door with an Office Max coupon in hand ($10 off a purchase of $20 or more) and soon found myself scouring the store for the proper aisle. I must admit, it took me a few minutes before finding the right section where I was met with multiple options. Ultimately I am cheap so I found the one closest to $20 (so I could use my coupon) and proceeded to the cashier to check out. A few minutes later I arrived home and my wife ripped into the packaging with the same glee as a child on Christmas morning. I stood by because I was just as excited. She plugged it in and it hummed to life as she began the process of turning dull pencils into daggers sharp enough to pierce through a person’s skin. I needed to try this. Not pierce my skin, but sharpen a pencil. I shoved her aside and placed a pencil through the hole and watched it chew apart the end in order to make a beautiful writing instrument. “Give me another one,” I said. This was pretty invigorating. After I tried a few, my wife wanted another turn so she interrupted my newfound fun. Our kids also wanted to join the fun, but we just yelled at them warning of the potential danger in sharpening pencils. In reality, Leah and I just didn’t want to let them take a turn…we were having too much fun.Sometimes it is the simple things in life which bring us joy… Have you discovered something simple lately?

My daughter asked me this morning about the outcome of last night’s election. I explained that Barack Obama had defeated John McCain in the race for the president. Without missing a beat she proceeded to tell me about another election which had taken place in her own classroom at school. Apparently today they will be having a special guest pet in their class, a hermit crab, but my six-year old was not happy about this creature paying a visit to her elementary school. It seems that she and nine of her classmates had voted to bring in a fish instead of the hermit crab.

Some of you can identify with my daughter’s disappointment. You woke up this morning (or stayed up late last night) to find that the person for whom you voted yesterday lost the presidential election. Until this point I have chosen not to blog about politics, but today I just wanted to weigh in on the unending banter between the candidates over the last several months and the final results of this 2008 election. I love the United States and when I voted yesterday I was reminded why. At 6:30am the lines were long and I saw all kinds of people waiting alongside me…a doctor, soldier, school teacher (in front of me), moms with newborns, old and young, black and white, handicapped and healthy, democrat and republican. All of these diverse groups of people were exercising their freedom to vote in hopes that their candidate would bring the “change” our country needs. To me, having a say in who is elected is a huge privilege that I do not take for granted.

Although I voted for the person whom I believe closely represented issues which were important to me, my faith is not in the government, whether republican or democrat. Maybe you think that is a “spiritual” cop out. Maybe it is, but for me “change” does not depend on an elected official. My life did not “change” overnight because of the next president. I hope you did not go to work in a bad mood because of the election results. I hope you are not declaring that the world is coming to an end. I hope you are not making a fool out of yourself by arguing with someone about your strong opinions on the election. Circumstances should not cause our faith to waver. I have confidence that God sees the whole picture. He knows the beginning from the end. This election did not catch Him off guard. The country has spoken – Barack Obama is the next president and Christians should pray for His wisdom as he leads the United States of America.

The king’s heart is in the hand of the Lord, Like the rivers of water; He turns it wherever He wishes (Proverbs 21:1).

Yesterday was an extremely long day for our entire family. Following church and lunch with some band members performing at our church’s community festival later that day, we had a very brief stint at home. I decided to use these few minutes to sit in front of the television, which I do not get to do that much. I quickly landed on the Univision channel where they were airing a live soccer game and there is no other sport I love more than the real football, soccer – it’s the world’s sport! Since Univision is a Spanish speaking network I could not understand one thing the commentators were saying, except maybe gooooooooooal. There was something in the voice of those two announcers which caused me to get into the game, even though I did not follow either team or know any players on the field. I could tell that these guys loved the game and wanted everyone to feel the same way they felt. In my opinion, if someone can give me a desire to watch something I do not fully understand, they are pretty amazing.

I have often wondered what people who do not fully understand God, the church, or Christianity thinks when they listen to me talk. Are they curious about my faith by listening to me speak? Or, do people detect more passion in my voice when I talk about sports, politics, the latest flavor at Starbucks, and who Dwight Schrute is dating on The Office? I like sports, hate politics, enjoy good coffee, and occasionally indulge myself in television drama; however, do these things deserve more passion than my Creator? I must be honest…I struggle with this in my own life. I am never at a loss to discuss the latest music, the newest trend, the weekend blockbuster, a book I just finished, and the final score. Don’t get me wrong…I am not proposing that we abandon anything connected with current culture, but I am challenging all of us to give God His rightful place in our hearts. We must be a people who are passionate about God and His life-changing work in our lives. When we are convinced about His work in our world and in the hearts of people, we will develop a passion which is contagious, even when others don’t understand all the facts.

This weekend I will be speaking in the main service at our church. Our Pastor has been in a series entitled “Treasures of a Transformed Life” and it has been an intensive study on the beatitudes found in Matthew 5:1-12. He has already covered the significance of the beatitudes, which are basically inner attitudes which lead to happiness or satisfaction in life. God asks His followers to live distinctly from the world and Jesus teaching proves that His ways are contrary to human nature. Jesus challenges his followers to be poor in spirit (humility before God), peacemakers, and ready to be persecuted for doing right. I cannot say that these things come naturally for me. The particular one I am teaching on is meekness, which is found in verse 5. Jesus simply states “Blessed are the meek for they shall inherit the earth.” Sounds clear, right? Wrong. I have had a real struggle while studying through this verse, especially since I am responsible to communicate it to the congregation. In my 21st century mind, I like definitions and so I was looking for a biblical definition for meekness. I could not find one. In fact, I would say that the Bible hardly ever defines terms, but rather chooses to illustrate concepts with real life stories which are detailed in a person’s interaction with God. I guess I always knew that God’s word was not a book of definitions or bullet points (like many of my messages), but a living, relevant book which demonstrates truth through the lives of people, history, and written letters to individuals or churches. When we approach the Bible we should not look for formulas or perfect outlines, but rather to get a grasp on God’s message to His people in order to conform our lives to His ways. Any thoughts?