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Check out Earth Shots. You can view NASA pics of the Earth by region and set as wallpaper. They've even got shots of the Kuwait oil fires.

Blue and Green Pearl

John Shuttleworth from a 1975 interview in Mother Earth News(interesting read)

But once you take a giant step back, shake off all your cultural myths, and look at the earth wholistically from the vantage point of space My God! You can see all kinds of trends washing over the face of the planet for all sorts of reasons.

Look at it! It's beautiful! And it has a life of its own. With or without man, the earth is born it lives and it dies. Once it cools as it spins there in space and once the spark of life flickers into being on its surface, hundreds of thousands of species rise and fall on its face. Continents appear and disappear. Volcanoes erupt. Forests creep across the land. The sun pours energy on this lovely blue and green pearl floating in the incredible black void of nothing. Cool rains sweep over its oceans and islands. The earth is gently wrapped with a constantly renewed cloak of plants and animals and its fragile beauty is showcased by an ever changing, swirling veil of opaque, transparent, and translucent atmosphere. Could any planet be more delightful?.

And now, amidst the incredibly complex but self regulating operation of this perfect gem, we see man arising. Alone of all the plants and all the animals on the earth's surface, he can collectively look at himself. And he does and in that first instant of self examination, his brain of which he is so proud deceives him.

"I am something special," man tells himself. "I will prove it by conquering nature." But as one of his number is later to observe, "Nature is always passive. It, therefore, can never be defeated. It can only be destroyed."

And as the destruction goes on, man's brain deceives him again and again. With imaginary lines that divide the planet's lands and waters into territories, nations, and states. With concepts of "right", "wrong", "wealth", "yours", "mine", "money". Always, above all else, "money".

Quote of the Day

"Forget the problems. Concentrate on solutions. And present those solutions in down to earth, easily understood, easily duplicated, relevant terms." - John Shuttleworth co-founder of Mother Earth News

Found this in the October/November issue of Mother Earth News. He was responding to a question "about setting editorial policy for an environmental publication", but I think it is relevant to the emerging conversation and most definitely to me in my current situation.

Father me

Where do I begin?.........We need a plan......We are so young and ignorant. Why is God 'calling' US?

"I have found my calling: my call is love." A quote from St. Therese.

I've grown apathetic about things that are really important to me.(ie His Church and 'those crazy freaky people' like Heather and I who the Church, in my experience, isn't reaching)

Pray that I would let God father me.

Broken

I am nothing, but frustrated! I've realized my inability to do anything. Want to learn/be trained to serve in the 'emergent' Church.--whatever that means.

"So, let's go to Dallas!"

Heather and I have no marketable skills to find well paying jobs....

Heather finds some thing she thinks she would like to take courses for and then do......then she just begins doing it. She has a self-confidence. I on the other hand can not find anything positive about myself to find the confidence to just begin doing something. I would love to get into a number of different things, but do not see an ability to achieve those goals. I fear trying and failing......so I do nothing. The result being frustration...more fear...anger....sadness....the feeling of not being the man that can take care of this family....

I am nothing. I'm having a hard time praying. Reading the Bible. I need to see Christ @ work in me, but when I can't it's hard to just give it all to Him and realize "I can't, but He can" isn't just something we as Christians say, but something we need to live......

Lightning Does Strike Twice....

According to the BBC,

"Actor Jim Caviezel has been struck by lightning while playing Jesus in Mel Gibson's controversial film The Passion Of Christ. The lightning bolt hit Caviezel and the film's assistant director Jan Michelini while they were filming in a remote location a few hours from Rome.

It was the second time Michelini had been hit by lightning during the shoot.

Neither of them was badly hurt, according to the film's producer Steve McEveety.

Michelini had previously been struck during filming in Matera, Italy, when he suffered light burns to his fingers after lightning hit his umbrella.

Describing the second lightning strike, McEveety told VLife, a supplement of the trade paper Variety: 'I'm about a hundred feet away from them when I glance over and see smoke coming out of Caviezel's ears.' "

Feeling like poo. I've been sick for the past couple of days. Not sure how that happened. No one around me has been sick. Gotta be brad. Have to send him a nasty email. Heh-heh! Kidding! Glad to hear you're feeling a bit better man.

My lovely wife blessed me with some delicious minestrone soup today. She's so great.

Derek says, "We must find out where we are on our journey and let Him parent us there, so we can progressively come into the fullness of knowing Him. God is a great parent and knows what we need at each stage! But we do not always know where we are at. We need to get with Him and find out. He will tell us, so we grow into a solid tree by His River!"

Trying see where we are at and if it is NOW that we go to Dallas or later or if we are just supposed to be networked with everyone down there or..........We really need to be still and listen to him for a bit. Could use your prayers on this.

I have to remember that the 'normal' folks aren't' going to understand or agree with who I am......

I am called to a unique purpose. I may be crazy. I hope I am NUTS more often than not. I went looking for that metaphor to describe myself to myself a few days back.....I couldn't think of one. I would have to be able to think of all these traits that are good about me. That is not something that I am good at. I am good at seeing those things I am not good at though. And I realize when I am at my weakest and relying on God that is when I am my strongest. I know that the more I look to him the more I will be transformed.....into myself. Christ in me. This sounds crazy to most.

Derek speaks about God using "left-handers". Sweet talks about God using those who are NUTS. A run through of the those God used in the Bible, of our Saints, shows us that they were quite the band of misfits. In the process of 'waking up' I look around and see that everything that is 'normal' is quite different than that which is to be normal to me-a disciple. And like the lion who asked the horse how to 'be' I am quite confused as to who I am. Like Neo, I'm looking for purpose. Mark has said that, "As we get to look more and more like Jesus, we don't get to look more and more like each other. We get to look more and more like ourselves."

I am unplugged. I realize I have the freedom of choice. Who I am is found in the 'how' and 'why' I make the choices I do.

I wander what choices will be made in Revolutions.

Mikah and Kiara brightening up another day.

HOT HOT HOT--CAN'T STOP THE POTTY-ROCK!!!

Wooooo-weeee!!! I just made my first curry and man is it HOT! Oh man.....(i had to get a glass o' milk). Very good though. Needs another vegetable I think. I got to say I'm a little proud of myself it is very, very good.

Oh, yes! I'm also proud of my little Kiwi. She has just gone pee-pee in the potty for the second time. She's doin' good! Go Kiwi-Go Kiwi!

I got a call right after the last post telling me I do not have to go to work....Should I go back to sleep?

Councilor Hamann - "I hate sleeping. I never sleep more than a few hours. I figure I slept the first eleven years of my life, and now I’m making up for it. What about you?"

I wander if I could have this coffee injected straight into the blood. Hmm..... Ahh well, it's 3am and this cup is the only thing keeping me from falling out of my chair, but I did get to sleep in an hour. YEAH!

AMERICA THE DUTIFUL?

Dan Hughes' future sister-in-law, Beate (Bay-ah-tah), incarcerated by Homeland Security. Check out the article here in the Gazette.

Turned Away at Border

The love story of Trevor Hughes and his fiancee began in an elementary school in the Himalayan foothills.

They were "global nomads." He was a diplomat's son. She the daughter of missionaries. They lived in Asia, attended school together, fell in love and want to get married in June.

But when Hughes' fiancee, a German national, tried to visit him on a six-month tourist visa Monday, she was detained in Atlanta, handcuffed, jailed--even stripped of her diamond engagement ring.

Then, after 20 hours without food, she was put on a plane and shipped back to Stuttgart.

"This isn't the America I fought for," said Hughes, who served in the Navy and U.S. diplomatic corps. "You don't expect that from a great country like ours."

Trevor says,

"Two things need to be accomplished to begin to correct this injustice:

1. There must be a high level inquiry into this situation, a records review and a full reversal of all that has happened. All records pertaining to this incident that are not deemed essential for security or relate to an infraction of the law (which will be none) must be destroyed and removed from any computer system so that Beate can travel freely to this country after being given a new and legal tourist visa.

2. Oversight must be installed for this specific immigration issue. A personal second opinion must be mandatory for a situation like this and the "good old boy" system must not override the dignity and rights of the human beings involved. The holes in the system that allow non-criminals to be treated as criminals for "procedural reasons" must be proactively addressed with new policy outlining how non-criminal foreign citizens being denied entry into the United States are to be treated; how said foreign citizens' right to counsel are to be handled and what right to appeal to a person or body acting as oversight to the immigration officials making these decisions is to be undertaken.

It is not right for a person, especially a visitor to our country, to be told that they are both innocent of any wrong doing and not suspected of anything to be handcuffed and processed into a city prison system with actual criminals. That procedure does not follow the logical and systematic rule for the use of proportionate force.

The punishment must fit the crime, and if there is no crime..."

"Over and over, the Rule calls us to be more mindful of the little things, even as it reminds us of the big picture, allowing us a glimpse of who we can be when we remember to love." - pg. 7 The Cloister Walk

I've been thinking about who I am. About needing or not needing to be "relevant". About what being "saved" is. About the pain that comes with losing someone you love that you have never met.

I became a drug addict @ 17. AFTER being "saved" @ 15. If I had not turned back to reach-out for Christ a few years back, to trust in Him again DAY AFTER DAY, this recent loss would have broken me.

I am selfish. If Christ was not in me I could not love. If I did not try and learn from his life I would not know how. In losing a child I have wanted to be angry. "Why us?"--- "What was the purpose of it all?" -- "This *#@&?!$ sucks!" -- "What now?" If I did not love as I do I would have remained angry. I would have been a shadow of myself. Because of Christ and His love and being His disciple I realized that I could not remain angry. I would not have treated my children like the blessings that they are. I would have not been a loving husband and friend to my wife. I would have given up on trying to live a missional life because I would have said, "what's the point?".

I still hurt, but knowing this child is with God and realizing we are still here..........we must move forward. We must ask what we are to learn from this situation and being followers of Christ we must ask what we can learn of Him. We have realized that other's who choose to follow Him day after day, his disciples, have been the biggest blessing and testament of what salvation means in the here and now. You all may not be a 'gathered' church, but you are His Church and you have blessed us beyond measure with you words, your petitions to God, your open doors, lives, hearts...refrigerators and your wallets. It is not a common thing for people to live as we all are choosing to live---For each other, knowing that it is for Christ as well.

We are already moving on with our lives, yes we still hurt, but it is not because we do not care it is because we love. We love and are loved. It's because of Christ. It's because of Christ in you.

This is HOPE! This is RELEVANT! This is CHURCH!

This is SCOTTY!

Psalms 34:11 - 19 from The Message

Come, children, listen closely; I'll give you a lesson in God worship.

Who out there has a lust for life? Can't wait each day to come upon beauty?

Guard your tongue from profanity, and no more lying through your teeth.

Turn your back on sin; do something good. Embrace peace - don't let it get away!

God keeps an eye on his friends, his ears pick up every moan and groan.

God won't put up with rebels; he'll cull them from the pack.

Is anyone crying for help? God is listening, ready to rescue you.

If your heart is broken, you'll find God right there; if you're kicked in the gut, he'll help you catch your breath.

Disciples so often get into trouble; still, God is there every time.

ARE YOU THERE BLOG? IT'S ME, SCOTTY

Sorry I have not been around. Thoughts and emotions have been everywhere lately. Been trying my best to take care of my little fam. Lots and lots of prayer! (and we thank you for yours)

As a result of Cairn and the lives of the people who were involved our prayer life has grown tremendously. We have also started recycling a whole lot better. (prayer....recycling....Hmm?)

Anyway, I'll be back later. MUST HAVE COFFEE!!!

THERE AND BACK AGAIN

A journey of self-discovery? Shall I find a metaphor to explain myself....to myself? Hmm...

As I think about what it will take to move forward in our spiritual journeys, I think self-awarness will be key. Before we can change the church (or even the metaphors of the church), we need to understand who we are as individuals and what we bring to the table. -Spencer Burke

I have tried numerous times to post since arriving back in Indiana on Wednesday night. I just don't know what to say...or feel at the moment. I have the right to be confused and lost in this cluster of emotions I suppose.

We thank you all for your prayers. And to all you in Texas we thank you for bending over backwards for us. Other than in my own home I have never felt so cared for. Heather's mother is very touched by all of you. She has said she can not believe that people would open up their home and their lives to 'strangers'. WE know you are not strangers though. You are our family. An eternal bond. We love you all so very much! I would begin listing names, but I would unintentionally leave folks out and I don't want to do that. All of you know who you are.

Again, I am sorry I have not posted until now and we have not contacted you to let you know how we are doing.....we don't know either. We feel your prayers and know that we would not be moving along without them.

I came across this in Brennan Manning's The Signature of Jesus yesterday. It was something that i needed to here. It is something i hope i can say at some point in my life. This was his friends last entry in his journal before he was found dead in his appartment in a Perisian slum..

"All that is not the love of God has no meaning for me. I can truthfally say that I have no interest in anything but the love of God which is in Christ Jesus. If God wants it to, my life will be useful though my word and witness. If he wants, my life will bear fruit through my prayers and sacrifices. But the usefulness of my life is his concern, not mine. It would be indecent of me to worry about that."

...or why i do the things i would not or don't do the things that i would...

I....don't...know...why I...feel...so...tongue...tied -- RH