Category: General

New Haircut

OK, I’ve been considering trying to cut my own hair for a few years, but I’ve been too scared to. Well, that was the case. Last night I decided to give it a try.

I think it turned out OK, but I think I can do a better job next time now that I’ve got some experience with it. One thing I learned is that I really do need some better hair clippers than what I used. It was really hard getting the hair even with my cheap clippers that are designed mostly for facial hair.

I was using this hair style as a guide and I think it came out close. I’d rather cut my hair like Matt Damon or Paul Walker, but I don’t think that’s possible with my receding hair line. 🙁

Let me know if you have any haircutting or styling advice for me. I think I can improve on this next time.

Will the Super Bowl Happen?

…or will I be lynched by an angry mob of 100 football fans when they show up Sunday and discover we can’t get FOX?

So, last night I headed over to the church tech booth to hook up the HDTV receiver and make sure everything was working fine for Sunday.  Everything looked like it was going great till I tried to tune into FOX.  “Huh, the HD signal from FOX must be weak here.” So, I tried to tune it in on an old fashion VCR.  “Uh oh. No signal at all!”

Well, hopefully it’s just an issue with the antennas up on the roof and they just need to be reaimed slightly.  Unfortunately there’s about 8 inches of snow up there.

I wonder if I could convince a roomful of football fanatics to watch the Biggest Loser instead of some silly football game.  🙂

Authentic Joy

Friday morning on my way to work I got stuck in some construction traffic and noticed a man waiting for a bus on a street corner. Though it wasn’t obvious at first, I noticed that this guy was somewhat developmentally challenged. He was about my age, but I could tell from his next action that he didn’t carry all the baggage on his back that I do.

As the traffic started to flow I saw this guy start thrusting his fist into the air and pumping it down. It caught me off guard for a second till I noticed the semi truck traveling toward him. This guy was so excited to see the semi and it was going to make his morning if this semi driver would blast his air horn. I started to feel sorry for the guy as the semi began to pass quietly, but then at the last second the driver let out a short horn blast. The man on the corner had a huge grin on his face as the semi rolled away.

That got me thinking about why I don’t get noticeably excited by life very often. Why don’t I find joy in the simpler things of daily life?

It’s easy to look at people like this guy on the corner and feel sorry for them, but we can learn about joy from them. I think one secret to the joy I see in people like this is simply their innocence or lack of what I’d call more worldly concerns. They’re not focused at impressing people, climbing the corporate ladder, or ashamed of their failures. They’re authentic. I want to live my life more like this!

How about you? What robs you of joy in your life?

Life Lessons from 2007 – Part 1

This past year has definitely been the hardest year of my life. At the same time it’s been my most defining and best year. Today I begin a series of posts to help me look at the past year and document what I’ve been learning through various hardships.

It actually started over a year ago. In October 2006 God really started challenging my faith and belief.

“Bill, if you believe that faith in Jesus is key to people finding hope, forgiveness and eternal life, why don’t you seem to care? Why don’t you care about people? People who are far from God? People you work with? People from church? Family? Bill, what have I called you to? Didn’t I say love me and love the people around you? I didn’t call you to some other mission.”

I never heard an audible voice or anything, but God started putting that burden on my heart last fall.

So, life lesson number 1: Relationships matter everything. God’s core desire for us is to know Him and share our lives with people around us (see: Greatest Commandment). If those relationships aren’t at the core of what I’m doing, I’m not really in the game. This wasn’t really new to me, but the newness was an understanding and appreciation that God sets this as the top priority.

So, in October 2006 I started to move toward investing in relationships as a core focus. There are times when I’ve gotten off track and sat on the bench, forgetting how to play the game, but this new passion for relationships has been the basis for making the past year incredible. You’ll hear about some of these new relationships in future parts of this post.

What about you? Do you really let the value of relationships be the top priority in your life?

Do you have any advice for keeping this a core focus in your life?

Our Deepest Fear

I just heard this quote in the movie Akeelah and the Bee.

Our Deepest Fear

Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our darkness that most frightens us. We ask ourselves, Who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented, fabulous? Actually, who are you not to be? You are a child of God. Your playing small does not serve the world. There is nothing enlightened about shrinking so that other people won’t feel insecure around you. We are all meant to shine, as children do. We were born to make manifest the glory of God that is within us. It’s not just in some of us; it’s in everyone. And as we let our own light shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same. As we are liberated from our own fear, our presence automatically liberates others.

by Marianne Williamson
from A Return To Love: Reflections on the Principles of A Course in Miracles

This poem struck a chord with me when I heard it. After looking up Marianne Williamson online, I’m pretty sure I don’t agree with her on a lot of her philosophy and theology. But still, I like this poem.

What do you think? Do we often play small instead of shining like the stars?