While we are getting ready in the morning, Dale and I listen to our local Christian radio station. Dave and Linda host the morning show and can be very funny. Each winter the two DJ’s put up their respective walls. This is a wall that describes their perfect winter. Linda is from Canada and puts many “snow” things on her wall in hopes that will bring snow to south central Virginia. Dave is from Arizona and puts up “sun” things to keep the winter away. Over the past few years, we have had much more sun winters than snow winters, but all of that has changed with the current winter. Our cozy neck of the woods has set a record for snowfall in a season. The “walls” are a source of conversation during the morning show. This week they took a poll on Facebook asking if the snow wall should come down because of all the snow we have had this winter. Again all of this is done in fun. As Dave and Linda conversed about the results of the poll this morning, they told about some who were upset that they would even dare to put up a snow wall or sun wall. These joy-suckers (as H. B. London likes to call them) tried to remind them that God is sovereign and doesn’t need silly things like snow walls and sun walls and polls because God was in control of what was happening – God is in control. Of course, God is in control of the weather and God is still in control of the world. We can’t change the weather. Dale is quite the weather fan and enjoys making observations about the weather, but he can’t change it. But sometimes it helps to laugh and joke about what we might be able to do if we could. I think that was the whole point of the snow and sun walls. Sure there are times to be serious and we need to know the difference. God gave us a sense of humor and wants us to be joyful.

Speaking of being joyful, enjoy this video that we found via one of our friends, which is a great way to teach the Ten Commandments.  We had never heard of these guys until today.  Enjoy!

Today is the last day before we enter the season of Lent (a season of prayer and fasting.)  As I was reading through the blogs that I read regularly I came across this post on the significance of Fat Tuesday.  Where I grew up, we always had Fastnachts (or fatty doughnuts.)  Mark Roberts writes a great post that can be found [here].

In case you don’t want to follow the link, here’s the part I liked:

Notice also the rationale for the party: “This is a sacred day before our Lord. Don’t be dejected and sad, for the joy of the Lord is your strength!” (8:10). In my tradition, holiness is usually associated with somberness and seriousness. This isn’t wrong, but it can lead to a lack of balance in our experience of God. Sometimes on a sacred day it is absolutely right to celebrate and to experience the joy of the Lord.

Nehemiah 8, therefore, stands as a corrective to two opposing views of life that battle our allegiance. On the one hand, some would argue that the only way to enjoy life is to live excessively, engaging in behavior that is beyond the parameters of decency, not to mention God’s Word. Others, by contrast, would contend that godly living always demands austerity and solemnity. In fact, the Bible reveals that God created the good things in this life to be enjoyed . . . within limits. There is a time to “eat the fat” in celebration even as there is a time to fast in repentance, and plenty of times in between.

So if you’re going to eat pancakes today, or some other equivalent delicacy, enjoy your feast because this day is holy to the Lord. Celebrate his goodness with delight because the joy of the Lord is your strength!

Well, it’s that time for a random collection of thoughts from this past week.  I’ve been doing this on Sunday night, but we have been having great fellowship following choir practice, so it’s a bit difficult to get to this on Sunday night.  Here we go!

• Yesterday, Pam and I celebrated 23 years together!  I am a lucky man.
• The weather has been crazy in the Shenandoah Valley.  Any snow that we get today will break the record for snow in the Valley.
• James has been off of school for two weeks.  Today we have a two-hour delay.  Hopefully they get a day of school in today
• I have shoveled many times in the past week.  I’m looking forward to not shoveling and being able to get back out and run safely.
• We had a great time with our teens at Valley Mission this past Saturday.  The really cool thing is that our teens brought their friends to help.  Thanks to all the teens and adult volunteers.
• This Saturday we go to Winterjam in Charlottesville.  Looking forward to going to a concert with our teens.  It’s been many years since I’ve been to anything like this.
• In the middle of last week, we had a great time with one of our missionaries.  I met Matt at Indiana Wesleyan and served on staff with him.  He was the youth pastor and I was the worship pastor.  It was great to catch up and also to listen to what God is doing in he and his families life and to hear about where God is calling them.
• We had an awesome time of worship on Sunday morning.  This was the first time in three weeks that our congregation had gathered on Sunday.  I really missed them.  The singing was great.
• We also tried out our new technology.  We have added confidence monitors for the praise team.  This way we can get rid of music stands.  We also just purchased EasyWorship 2009.
• The choir is coming along nicely. I am really looking forward to presenting this musical on Palm Sunday.
• This week we begin our Forty Days of Prayer and Fasting.  We are calling it “Extreme Makeover: Holiness Edition.”  I am really looking forward to this meaningful time of preparation for Easter.

That’s about it.  Have a great week and remember to Seize The Day!