Joseph, my youngest (8 years old), is a tough little football player. Last week we feared he had broken his nose while sacking the quarterback. I missed the game but left work to meet him and the fam at the emergency room. As soon as I saw him I knew it wasn't broken (at least not badly) because nothing was out of alignment so we left the ER. But he did have a massive welt on one side that went from the side of his nose to under his right eye. It was a thing of beauty and has now left him with one cool black eye. Joseph plays linebacker so these things are to be expected.

  Joseph's team lost today by a score of 6-0. It was homecoming and I have a video and several pictures for you. Sorry for the video quality but evidently the cameraman had been sipping some of grandma's special recipe. He's only 14 so that presents a problem that is a whole 'nother kettle of worms...er.. can of fish...That is a whole 'nother issue.

And here are some pictures:

I sure do miss you Cup A Joe people but I just don't have time to write these days.

  I recently re-read Francis Chan's Crazy Love. It is as good a book as I've read in several years and re-reading it has confirmed that for me. GO BUY IT AND READ IT NOW!!

 I command thee.

Following is a 15 minute video of Francis talking about his creator. It is well worth it if you have the time:

  I think we can all agree on something. We all hate death. In fact, at the risk of a spanking from my father:

DEATH SUX!!

    We've been surrounded by it lately. Lotsa' famous folks:

• Michael Jackson
• Farrah Fawcett
• Walter Cronkite
• John Hughes (Breakfast Club, Sixteen Candles director)
• Ed McMahon
• David (Kung Fu) Carradine
• Karl Malden
• Steve McNair

  All of these within the last 9 weeks and half of them died far younger than you would expect. All had lives that would have been able to pay for the best health care(DON'T GET ME STARTED!!) and were all probably expecting to live much longer but John Hughes, 51, dies while walking down the street in New York. Michael Jackson, 50, takes a drug to go to sleep and never wakes up. Steve McNair, 38, has an "innocent" affair and ends up murdered.

  When famous folks die it doesn't affect us much even though that is alot of famous deaths in such a short period of time. But when people we are close to die it really hits us and hurts us and confuses us and frankly, pisses us off. Some of you have already had parents or loved ones die and some before their times. And to this day, when you think about them, the hurt is as raw as the day they died. And I believe most of you, if I am not mistaken, have had a close friend or family member die very recently. For example, my Mom's oldest sister, Betty, died Friday night. Another friend of ours shot himself and left his wife to find him. Another young man, my age and a very close friend to many of you, died and now a beautiful young wife and their precious young children are left to wonder...why? And that question will probably be in their heads until those children are 80 years old. That fills me with...rage.

  However, for you personally, another's death can in some ways be an incredible blessing. Now yes, I am saying this before having experienced anyone who was extremely close to me die. At least not in many years.

    It's like this sorta. When someone gets cancer, it's always good if we catch it early. You've heard it said  that there is a good chance we can beat this thing cause the doctors caught it early before the cancer has had a chance to spread too much for our medicines and our life saving processes to perhaps have a chance to destroy the cancer. Death is sorta like that. You need to catch death early...before it can kill you.

  What? 

John 8:51 (NIV)- (Jesus speaking) "I tell you the truth, if anyone keeps my word, he will never see death."

  What?

2 Corinthians 5:1- Now we know that if the earthly tent we live in is destroyed, we have a building from God, an eternal house in heaven, not built by human hands.

   What?

   That tent is talking about your earthly body; weathered, tattered and torn and eventually it will be destroyed. But God has a new body, incorruptible, waiting for His folks.

   Heard this from Chuck Smith but it applies to me too; One day some of you may read an obituary for me. It will say that on such-and-such-a-day, Joey Smith died. Don't you believe it. That is shoddy reporting. That writer didn't have all the facts. It should say on such-and-such-day that Joey Smith moved... from his earthly tent to a building made in heaven, not by earthly hands. So at my funeral, feel free to dance on the tables and throw a party cause I won't be suffering on your planet any longer.

1 Corinthians 15:53-55- For our dying bodies must be transformed into bodies that will never die; our mortal bodies must be transformed into immortal bodies. Then, when our dying bodies have been transformed into bodies that will never die, this scripture will be fulfilled: "Death is swallowed up in victory. O death, where is your victory? O death, where is your sting?

  Those verses were written in a letter that Paul wrote to a body of believers in a town called Corinth. It is a promise for Christ followers alone.

Here's a quote you will probably never hear in heaven:

HOLY CRAP! I MADE IT!!

What?

1 John 5:13 (NIV) -I write these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God so that YOU MAY KNOW that you have eternal life.

Do you know?

What?

  I said earlier that death fills me with rage but nobody hates death more than Jesus so he came down here and kicked the poopy out of death. Just totally and completely destroyed it. A complete and utter victory...BUT...

  I really like Steve Spurrier...There I said it. I can't help it. I love to watch him call ball plays on the sideline. I don't know why other than I have a demon. But anyhoo, he can call a great game and cause his team to win but it doesn't do me any good, cause I'm not on his team. I am Clemson Tiger fan...if they will still have me. And the same is true for Jesus' great victory over death. His victory does me no good unless I am on his team.

  So the way that someone else's death can be a blessing? Let that death have it's way with you. Let it be a reminder that you too will die and maybe before this day is done. Frederick Buechner wrote, " Intellectually we all know that we will die but we do not really know it in the sense that the knowledge becomes a part of us. We do not really know it in the sense of living as though it were true. On the contrary, we tend to live our lives as though our lives would go on forever."

 But that's not true.

So let death run your scared butt to the Cross...so I can dance on a table at your funeral.

I may write more on this very soon.

But then again, maybe I won't.

   About 14 years ago I was at my dad's house and I decided I wanted to go rummaging through his attic looking for "memorabilia"  from my younger years. I got up there and I found an old football helmet, alot of old photographs and scrapbooks. I also came across a few old report cards but I decided not to look at them. At the bottom of one old box I came across a thick green book that looked like a journal. It was about an inch thick and when I opened it up I could see that it was in my dad's handwriting.

   I began to read and saw that it was chock full of all kinds of information. There were parts of it that were all the different ways that he loved me. Other parts were rules for living that would insure that I would grow up to be a good man. There was advice on how to be a good son, husband, father, citizen and friend. It was a great deal of material and I wanted to read it all so I took it down from the attic and took it back home so I could read every last page. It would take a while.

  After I got home and got settled, I took out the journal and began to read it all the way through. There was alot more stuff in there. More great advice about how to handle money, how to control anger, how to be a man of your word, what humility looks like and kindness. But most of all, what it was about was Jesus and God. It described how Jesus is the example of all those things my dad wanted me to be. How I was going to sin because I was a sinner and that I needed to understand that God gave His Son to take the punishment for my sin if I would just believe and repent. My father wrote more about this than anything in this journal. It was obviously the thing he wanted me to know the most because he wrote so much about it. There was tons of stuff in their about Jesus. My father also really likes poetry and music, so there were several sections that was just songs and poems written about God. There was another section that was just a list of wise sayings and advice for right living.

 This journal helped me to understand myself, humans and this world alot better. I also had alot of strong and differing emotions as I read. Fear, awe, love, anger, sadness but most of all, incredible gratitude to my father for writing all of this down just for me. As the journal was quite large, it took me a month or so to get through it the first time. I also realized that one reading would not be enough and since there was an incredible amount of valuable information in it, I would need to read it again. So I did. And then I did it again. I even began to try to memorize some of the most important parts. In fact, like I said, this was 14 years ago but to this day I still read this journal every day. I do it because I don't want to miss anything that my dad wants me to know and I want to be the man my dad wants me to be.

   One thing I forget to tell you; When I read through this journal for the first time, I was a little angry. In many ways I had made a mess of my life by the time I found this thing. Why oh why hadn't my dad given this to me sooner. In fact, why did I have to find it myself. So I called my dad and asked him why he hadn't given it to me sooner. Well, he explained to me that he had tried to give it to me many times but I just wasn't interested. But he also explained that he knew I would eventually find it and cherish it as I do now. Ok. So I wasn't mad anymore. Just thankful.

    This whole story is hogwash.

    But I do have a Bible and the way I feel about it and what I have found in it is very similar to the things I wrote above. Including the part about my Father writing it.

  There are 1,189 chapters in the Bible. There are 929 in the Old Testament and 260 in the New Testament. If you read only 10 chapters a day you would finish reading the Bible in only 4 months or you could read the New Testament in a little over a month and a half by reading only 5 chapters a day.

   The Bible is 66 books written by nearly 50 authors over the course of nearly 1600 years.

   The number of new Bibles that are sold, given away, or otherwise distributed in the USA is about 168,000 per day.

   The Bible devotes some 500 verses on prayer, less than 500 verses on faith, but over 2,000 verses on money and possesions.

 You should give it a shot and see for yourself what the big deal is about this book. You couldn't possibly do a more valuable thing for yourself, your children and your children's children.

  Just finished reading an excellent, excellent, excellent book called SAME KIND OF DIFFERENT AS ME. If you can get through the first 50 pages, it will be one of the best books any of you have ever read. I cried many times during the reading of this book, and I am a big strong man. Or at least big. My mom recommended it and she was oh-so-right. It is even better than THE SHACK. Click on that link and it will take you to the book at Amazon.com.

   I know I have been away for a while but life has just been very busy lately. I worked second shift for several weeks and also, my daughter Katie was in a play and she had to go to practice every evening for about  six weeks.

BUSY, BUSY, BUSY:

  So anyway, things have calmed down somewhat as we head into summer and I will begin trying to write again from time to time. I just finished reading through the New Testament of the Bible again and believe I may have some interesting stuff to share the next few weeks. The Bible is such a unique book in that every time you read it, you learn something new or notice something you've never seen before. The Holy Spirit is such an excellent teacher.

   One thing that I have been thinking about is miracles. Lotsa folks don't have a problem believing some of the miracles that Jesus (God) performed. Take turning water into wine for example. Some might judge that one of the easier miracles (oh really? Try it). But when it comes to things like the Great Flood, six days to create the universe or Jesus rising from the dead, we tend to question those miracles because they would seem to be much more difficult. The reason for this is because we are seeing these things from our point of view and we don't understand what Omipotent means. God is omnipotent, meaning he has infinite or unlimited power. He doesn't get tired or perplexed. He doesn't have to learn how to do something. So from His perspective, creating a universe is no harder or more amazing than turning a little water into a little bit of wine. We couldn't perform either miracle but one seems more miraculous than the other. But not to Him. He could sneeze a universe into existence if he so desired. In fact Jesus once told some religious leaders, who were thinking they were special, (Jews) that God could make Jews out of the rocks that were on the ground next to them:

Matthew 3:9 (NIV) And do not think you can say to yourselves, 'We have Abraham as our father.' I tell you that out of these stones God can raise up children for Abraham (Jews).

 God's perspective is imperative in all things. One cannot understand anything that truly matters without faith in Him and some understanding of who He is. I know, I know. Man and his science have proven that many of the miracles described in the Bible could not have happened. But you know what? I have met alot of men in my day and thus far I haven't been too impressed. Knowing Someone who is omnipotent has that affect on people.

  Oh and a little trivia to end this write-up. Since we were talking about sneezing, the word Gesundheit is the word we often say to someone who has just sneezed. It is a German word that basically means "God bless you". Supposedly it started back when the black plague was killing millions in Europe in the 1300 to 1700's. The first symptom of this terrible disease was sneezing so that when someone sneezed they would say "Gesundheit" (God bless you) and boy they really meant it. Fershizzle!

  So there you go. More useless trivia from my head to yours.

  I've been away awhile but I am back. I just flew in from Chicago.

  And boy are my arms tired.

  STUPID!!

 Seriously. Uhhh...I had the Swine Flu!! Yeah... YEAH! And I got it directly from some pigs (swine). See, it happened like this:

"There was a man who had two sons. The younger one said to his father, 'Father, give me my share of the estate.' So he divided his property between them.  "Not long after that, the younger son got together all he had, set off for a distant country and there squandered his wealth in wild living. After he had spent everything, there was a severe famine in that whole country, and he began to be in need. So he went and hired himself out to a citizen of that country, who sent him to his fields to feed pigs. He longed to fill his stomach with the pods that the pigs were eating, but no one gave him anything. "When he came to his senses, he said, 'How many of my father's hired men have food to spare, and here I am starving to death! I will set out and go back to my father and say to him: Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you. I am no longer worthy to be called your son; make me like one of your hired men.' So he got up and went to his father. "But while he was still a long way off, his father saw him and was filled with compassion for him; he ran to his son, threw his arms around him and kissed him. "The son said to him, 'Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you. I am no longer worthy to be called your son.' "But the father said to his servants, 'Quick! Bring the best robe and put it on him. Put a ring on his finger and sandals on his feet. Bring the fattened calf and kill it. Let's have a feast and celebrate. For this son of mine was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found.' So they began to celebrate. "Meanwhile, the older son was in the field. When he came near the house, he heard music and dancing. So he called one of the servants and asked him what was going on. 'Your brother has come,' he replied, 'and your father has killed the fattened calf because he has him back safe and sound.' "The older brother became angry and refused to go in. So his father went out and pleaded with him. But he answered his father, 'Look! All these years I've been slaving for you and never disobeyed your orders. Yet you never gave me even a young goat so I could celebrate with my friends. But when this son of yours who has squandered your property with prostitutes comes home, you kill the fattened calf for him!' " 'My son,' the father said, 'you are always with me, and everything I have is yours. But we had to celebrate and be glad, because this brother of yours was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found.' "

   Ok. Ok. I didn't really have swine flu but I am always looking for a way to throw some scripture atcha, baby. By the way, the swine flu epidemic you have been reading so much about lately has thus far killed, I think, about 8 people in the U. S. of A. Did you know that the normal flu bug that comes around every year kills, on average, about 36,000 Americans every year? Am I missing something? I hope that the media and our government doesn't end up like the boy who cried wolf and when the BIG ONE really does hit, no one will take precautions. Just in case, my boss and I have been hording flu masks at work. You know, these things:

It will only cost you $4,000.00.....each, baby.

   While I have been away, Cup A Joe has still been visited alot. Weird. Alot of the images and photos I have put up over the last 2 years have been Googled alot so that Cup A Joe has been visited from all over the world. I have put up pictures of Jesus Christ, John Travolta, C.S. Lewis, Van Halen, Snoop Dogg, etc. A lot of very famous people but do you know which image has been Googled the most? This one:

And it ain't even close. I still get between 5 and 15 Googles for that image every day. Here is a short list of some of the places where the people lived that have visited us:

1. Cambridge, Massachuseets (Home of Harvard University)
2. London, England
3. Pleasonton, California
4. Jerome, Idaho
5. Singapore (Asia)
6. Anchorage, Alaska
7. Belgium

8. Pamplona, Spain

 How weird is this? It's got my head all screwed up. The Apocalypse can't be far away.

Anyhoodles, as I am prone to do, I had an imaginary conversation with one of these dudes, the guy from Singapore. I'll call him Achmed:

Me: So, Achmed. I see where you visited Cup A Joe. That's very cool but can I ask a question; Why Arnold Horshack?

Achmed: OOO!! OOO!! Mr. Kotter!! Mr. Kotter! Me laugh everytime I think of he. All time I think of he. We worship him in my country.

Me: Ok. Well, is there anything else I can put on the blog for you?

Achmed: Ooohh Jes! Jes you can. Freddie "Boom Boom" Washington. You know he, jes? Can you put picture up?

Me: Well Achmed, JES! Jes I can. In fact, I'll do better than that:

 

Me: There ya' go Achmed. Hope that makes you happy. And Achmed?

Achmed: Jes?

Me: Up your nose with a rubber hose.

 

  And one last thing that is both very sad and funny but I feel I must share it with you:

He was supposed to breath in it. It's a breathalyzer test to see if you are legally drunk. I breathed in one of those once and it melted.

  I'd like to tell you a true story about a close friend of mine and Cheryl's named April Moore. She and her husband, Chip, are in a Newspring (our Church, baby) sponsored Home Group that meets in our house every Wednesday night. This is in her own words:

I was raised in an upper middle class neighborhood in Anderson. I am my father's only child but I have a half-brother that is 8 years younger than me. I left home at age 16 and was in full-blown active addiction at this time. I had only drunk alcohol, tried pills and marijuana. I left home and moved in with a boyfriend (who happened to use and sometimes sell drugs). I became pregnant at the age of 19 with my daughter. I found out I was pregnant after my first stay in jail. I stopped using during the pregnancy and she was born healthy and normal. I became pregnant again two years later (age 21) with my son and again stopped using and had a healthy child. After my son's birth I found what became my drug of choice-methamphetamine. I used constantly for the next two years-doing whatever necessary to obtain the drugs; staying up for days and days on end. The week prior to June 21st, 2001 was when I hit rock bottom. I was held in my house against my will and beaten and abused for a week. The whole time I was up on meth and not allowed to eat. The children were in the house. I had never been allowed to leave the house with both children at the same time because the person who I was with feared that I would leave. I wanted to get out of the drug lifestyle but at this point I wasn't able to get free.

   At one point during this week, I was on the floor, physically unable to get completely to my feet. I mustered enough strength to get up on one knee. My then husband approached me with a 45 caliber handgun that was loaded with hollow point bullets and placed it between my eyes. He told me he was going to kill me and then kill himself. I wasn't raised in church, we didn't pray before meals or say bedtime prayers. However, I cried out in my heart to God with all sincerity and asked Him if he was there, and did exist, if he would give me a chance to get my kids out of there, I would sober up and find out who he is. I just talked to God from my heart- even though I didn't feel like I knew how to- and honestly begged Him to save me and my children. What seemed like about fifteen minutes passed and my husband took the gun away from my head and told me to take both of the children and go get him something to eat and more beer. Now I found the strength and I had the opportunity to pick up both of my children (then ages 3-1/2 and 1-1/2), put one on each hip and walk across a field to get to a phone to call police for help. It was June 20th, 2001.

   I went to a safehouse with the children, got into alcohol and drug treatment, eventually re-connected with my family (I hadn't spoken to them in 8 years, my mother didn't see my babies born), and began a life finding out who God is and what He wants for me.

   I later moved in with my mom and step dad, got a job, completed treatment, started going to church, saved money and got onto my feet. From there I have been blessed and blessed and blessed. God laid the vision for the APRIL house on my heart and has equipped me every step of the way. I am the most blessed girl ever!!

   Having been around Chip and April these past few months, I can truly say that they have been radically transformed by God Himself. They both have terrific, powerful testimonies of what God can do. There coming into our lives has been a rich blessing that gets richer by the day.

   Several years after April's escape she felt God prompting her to start a non-profit recovery house for men seeking a place to stay while they continue their recovery from alcohol and drug addiction. It is a place where they can get their feet back on the ground in the areas of learning to follow rules, accountability partnerships, gaining employment and in general to recover, manage and be responsible for their own lives. As in all 12 step programs, spirituality and worshipping a higher power is encouraged but of course in April's case it goes much, much farther than this as she will let you and anyone who will listen that this Higher Power has a name- Jesus Christ.

   For April, this house is a Ministry and she is carrying through on a promise she made to her Creator when she was on one bended knee with a gun between her eyes. It is truly an outgrowth of her, in her words, "finding out who HE is".

   The house opened in 2005 and has been successful in helping transform lives. The story of starting the APRIL house is much more complex than all of this so if you would like to know more, please let Cheryl or I know and we will be glad to explain more or we can put you in touch with Mrs. April herself. She would love to tell you more. And also, if you would like to make a donation to the APRIL house (I am encouraging you to do so) you can make your checks payable to:

The APRIL House

724 Anderson Street,

Belton, SC 29627

 

Following are some pictures from a few Saturdays ago, when most of our Home Group helped Chip and April have a "Clean-up" day at the April House. The first picture is of April.

Some of the men in the House:

Home Groupers:

Chip:

I long for your embrace, every single day;
To meet you in this place, and see you face to face.

Will you show me? Reveal yourself to me
Because of your mercy, I fall down on my knees.

And I can feel your presence here with me. Suddenly I'm lost within your beauty.
Caught up in the wonder of your touch. Here in this moment I surrender to your love

You're everywhere I go.I am not alone
You call me as your own,to know you and be known.

You are holy and I fall down on my knees.

I can feel your presence here with me. Suddenly I'm lost within your beauty
Caught up in the wonder of your touch, here in this moment I surrender to your love.

I surrender to your grace. I surrender to the one who took my place.

I can feel your presence here with me, suddenly I'm lost within your beauty
Caught up in the wonder of your touch, here in this moment I surrenderto your love.

Lyrics from the song Here With Me by Mercy Me

The following was first posted about 9 months ago:

 

John 14:6- Jesus said to him, "I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me."