September 16, 2007

What I like about my church

  1. We have an awesome facility that is kept up very well. It's very nice and functional without being ostenstatious.
  2. The senior pastor is very approachable, no airs.
  3. The music is very professional. Flawless.
  4. Has 7 well-established core values around which everything is decided and done.
  5. Excellent use of multi-media, as well as decor and other "atmospheric" components.
  6. The focus is on learning, discipleship, and continual growth, not just "crisis" experiences.
  7. Very contemporary. Does not do anything because, "that's the way we used to do it."
  8. Willing to take risks to see what works.
  9. Very little "drama" for being such a large church.
  10. Committed to not putting any barriers between the unbeliever and the gospel, other than the gospel itself. If someone is going to be offended, it is not because of the church being offensive.
  11. Preaching is relevant and practical and Biblical.
  12. Organizationally excellent, planning and administrating church functions like a finely tuned swiss watch.
  13. No long list of rules or commitments or beliefs to be a member. If you are a follower of Jesus, have been baptized by immersion, and want to do what you can to connect, contribute, and receive, come on in!
  14. No personality cult. The leadership and "glory" is very spread out. No one person has developed their own "following."
  15. Lots of "specialty" ministries. Lots of places to fit in.
  16. Devloping "satellite" churches. Not a need to build one huge, ever-expanding centralized church.
  17. An excellent reputation in the community.
  18. Although there are many "important," or "wealthy" people who attend, everyone is very human and friendly and "equal."
  19. You gotta love the golf carts that chauffeur you to the building when you park far away! :)
  20. Heavy focus on short-term mission projects, and practical small-group involvement in community needs.
  21. Hosting Celebrate Recovery.
  22. The Lord's Supper every week.

And now for the commercial!

September 11, 2007

if you look good, brains are optional?


Q: "Recent polls have shown a fifth of Americans can't locate the U.S. on a world map. Why do you think this is?"

Answer by a Miss Teen USA contestant...

"I personally believe that U.S. Americans are unable to do so because, uh...

some people out there in our nation don't have maps and uh...

I believe that our, uh, education like, such as in South Africa, and, uh, the Iraq, everywhere like such as...

and I believe that they should, uh...

our education over here in the U.S. should help the U.S., or should help South Africa, it should help the Iraq and the Asian countries,

so we will be able to build up our future . . . for our... "

September 6, 2007

Would you allow this book in your school's library?



Once upon a time there was a mayor of Centerville, Bernstein by name, who had many children.

Slade, Mayor Bernstein's son, had a sister who was very attractive. Her name was Britney.

Justin, also Mayor Bernstein's son, was in love with Britney. Justin was obsessed with his sister Britney to the point of making himself sick over her. She was a virgin, so he couldn't see how he could get his hands on her.

Justin had a good friend, Stone, the son of Mayor Bernstein's brother Rodney. Stone was exceptionally streetwise. He said to Justin, "Why are you moping around like this, day after day—you, the son of the mayor! Tell me what's eating at you."

"In a word, Britney," said Justin. "My brother Slade's sister. I'm in love with her."

"Here's what you do," said Stone. "Go to bed and pretend you're sick. When your father comes to visit you, say, 'Have my sister Britney come and make some supper for me here where I can watch her and she can feed me.'"

So Justin took to his bed and acted sick. When the mayor came to visit, Justin said, "Would you do me a favor? Have my sister Britney come and make some tacos here where I can watch her and be fed by her."

Mayor Bernstein sent word to Britney who was home at the time: "Go to the Justin's house and make him some supper."

So Britney went to her brother Justin's house. She took some shells, formed them into tacos, and cooked them while he watched from his bed. But when she brought the tray over and tried to serve him, he wouldn't eat.

Justin said, "Get everyone out of here," and they all cleared out. Then he said to Britney, "Bring the food into my bedroom, where we can eat in privacy." She took the tacos she had prepared and brought them to her brother Justin in his bedroom. But when she got ready to feed him, he grabbed her and said, "Come to bed with me, sister!"

"No, brother!" she said, "Don't hurt me! This kind of thing isn't done in Centerville! Don't do this terrible thing! Where could I ever show my face? And you—you'll be out on the street in disgrace. Oh, please! Speak to your father—he'll let you marry me."

But he wouldn't listen. Being much stronger than she, he raped her.

No sooner had Justin raped her than he hated her—an immense hatred. The hatred that he felt for her was greater than the love he'd had for her. "Get up," he said, "and get out!"

"Oh no, brother," she said. "Please! This is an even worse evil than what you just did to me!"

But he wouldn't listen to her. He called for his valet. "Get rid of this woman. Get her out of my sight! And lock the door after her." The valet threw her out and locked the door behind her.

Britney ran screaming and pulling her hair... Mascara ran all over her face and onto her clothes. She eventually slumped to the ground, held her head in her hands, and sobbed uncontrollably.

Her brother Slade said to her, "Has your brother Justin had his way with you? Now, my dear sister, let's keep it quiet—a family matter. He is, after all, your brother. Don't take this so hard."

Britney went and lived in her brother Slade's home, bitter and desolate.

Mayor Bernstein heard the whole story and was enraged, but he didn't confront Justin about it. Mayor Bernstein doted on him because he was his firstborn son.

Slade quit speaking to Justin—not a word, whether good or bad—because he hated him for violating his sister Britney.

Two years went by.

One day Slade threw a harvest party in Centerville in the vicinity of Georgetown and invited all the mayor's sons. He also went to his Dad and invited him. "Hey, I'm throwing a harvest party. Come, and bring your staff."

But the mayor said, "No, son—not this time, and not the whole staff. We'd just be a burden to you." Slade pushed, but his Dad wouldn't budge. He wished him a good time.

Then Slade said, "Well, if you won't come, at least let my brother Justin come."

"And why," said the mayor, "should he go with you?" But Slade was so insistent that he gave in and let Justin and all the rest of the mayor's sons go.

Slade prepared a huge spread. Then he instructed his friends who were helping him, "Look ... When Justin has had a few beers and is kind of out of it, and when I give the order, take him out back and mess him up. Kill him! And don't be afraid—I'm the one who will take all the responsibility. Come on! You can do it!"

Slade's friends did to Justin exactly what he had told them to do. All the mayor's sons got out as fast as they could, jumped on their motorcycles, and rode off.

While they were still on the road, a rumor came to the mayor: "Slade just killed all of your sons—not one is left!" The mayor stood up and gasped, grabbing his chest. His face turned white. His staff was shocked and speechless as well.

Just then, Stone, the mayor's brother's son, stepped up. "Sir, don't think that all the your sons are dead. Only Justin is dead. This happened because of Slade's outrage since the day that Justin violated his sister Britney. So don't make things worse than they are, thinking that all your sons are dead. Only Justin is dead."

Just then the security guard on duty looked up and saw a cloud of dust on County Line Road alongside the mountain. He came and told the mayor, "I've just seen a bunch motorcycles on County Line Road, coming around the mountain."

Then Stone exclaimed to the mayor, "See! It's your sons coming, just as I said!" He had no sooner said the words than the mayor's sons burst in. They all cried and sobbed bitter tears together. Mayor Bernstein mourned the death of his son a long time.

In the meantime, Slade had fled and had gone to stay with Michael, son of Mayor Stanton, in Newport. He stayed there three years.

Mayor Bernstein finally gave up trying to get back at Slade. He had come to terms with his son's death.

The end.

(See 2 Samuel, chapter 13. Names have been changed to protect the guilty!)

September 3, 2007

You know you're from central New York when...



  • You stay in your house most of the summer because you aren't used to the heat.
  • You drive 55 mph through 10 feet of snow during a raging blizzard without flinching.
  • You see people wearing hunting clothes at social events.
  • You install security lights on your house and garage, and then leave both unlocked.
  • You've noticed that True Value Hardware on any Saturday is busier than toy stores at Christmas.
  • You define summer as three months of bad sledding.
  • One of your neighbors constantly has bonfires.
  • You carry jumper cables in your car, and your girlfriend knows how to use them.
  • There are 7 empty cars running in the parking lot at the supermarket at any given time.
  • You know 4 seasons: almost winter, winter, cold, and construction.
  • It takes you 2 hours to go to the store for one item because you have to stop and talk to everyone in town
  • Cows are just part of the scenery
  • You know that the phrase, "Goin up ta," applies to going north, south, east, or west, up or down in elevation, and pretty much any other way you can travel.
  • The smell of freshly spread cow manure doesn't bother you.
  • Its perfectly normal for your life's aspirations to be working for the county.
  • Getting "dressed up" means tucking your shirt into your jeans and putting on clean work boots.
  • Halloween costumes are always designed around a snowsuit and winter boots.
  • You know what cheese curd is, and love it.
  • You can name everyone you graduated with.
  • You know what 4-H is.
  • You said the 'F' word and your parents knew within an hour.
  • You ever went cow-tipping.
  • School gets canceled for a sports team going to State
  • You had a senior skip day.
  • Your car is always covered with mud, slosh, and salt.
  • You have more miles on your snow blower than your car.
  • The town next to you is considered "trashy" or "snotty" when it is just like your town.
  • You have experienced frostbite and sunburn in the same week.
  • Getting paid minimum wage is considered a raise.
  • You refer to anyone with a house newer than 1980 as the "rich people."
  • You think driving is better in the winter because the potholes get filled in with snow and the snow banks protect you from the guardrails.
  • The Country Club doesn’t have a golf course.
  • You wear shorts when it hits 50 degrees.
  • You know exactly what time it needs to start snowing in order to have a snow day (3:30am).
  • Winter starts Halloween night.
  • You think that they don't have enough weather coverage on TV and radio.
  • You live within 10 minutes of an Ice Rink.
  • Weekend excitement involves a trip to RiteAid drugs.
  • Even ugly people enter beauty contests.
  • You decide to walk for exercise and 5 people pull over and ask you if you need a ride.
  • Your graduating class has no more than 500 kids, including the 100-200 that didn't quite make it through.
  • Your doors to your car freeze shut.
  • Your teachers call you by your older sibling's name.
  • The local phone book has only one yellow page.
  • You leave your jacket on the back of the chair in the cafe, and when you go back the next day, it's still there, on the same chair.
  • You don't signal turns because everyone knows where you're going anyway.
  • You call a wrong number and they supply you with the correct one.
  • You have to name six surrounding towns to explain to people where you're from.
  • The town population increases by one-third when the universities go on break.
  • Your snow blower gets stuck on the roof.
  • The mosquitoes in your yard have legal landing rights.
  • Catching lighting bugs is a way to entertain your kids for hours.
  • You’ve ridden your bike on the Erie Canal.
  • You can speak a second language: Native American. (onondoga, chittenango, oneida, Tuscarora, Seneca, Canaseraga, Canastota, Oswego, Otisco, Owasco, Cayuga, Sauquoit, etc.)
  • You suffer a heart attack while shoveling snow out of your driveway.
  • You owe more money on your snowmobile than your car.
  • The mayor greets you on the street by your first name.
  • You keep the snow tires on your truck all year because it ain't worth taking them off for only two months.
  • You consider it a sport to gather your food by drilling through 36 inches
    of ice and sitting there all day hoping that the food will swim by.
  • You're proud that your region makes the national news 96 nights a year
    because Saranac Lake is the coldest spot in the nation, and Syracuse gets more
    snow than any other major city in the US.
  • Your l ocal Dairy Queen is closed from October through May.
  • If you get 131 inches of snow in a week and you comment that 'winter's finally
    here', you might live near Oswego.
  • You instinctively walk like a penguin for six months out of the year
  • Someone in a Home Depot store offers you assistance, and they don't work
    there.
  • Your dad's suntan stops at a line curving around the middle of his forehead.
  • You have worn shorts and a parka on the same day.
  • You have had a lengthy phone conversation with someone who dialed a wrong
    number.
  • Down South means Corning .
  • Your neighbor throws a party to celebrate his new shed.
  • You go out for a fish fry every Friday .
  • Your 4th of July picnic was moved indoors due to frost.
  • Your idea of a traffic jam is 10 cars waiting to pass a tractor.
  • You measure distance in hours.
  • You know several people who have hit deer more than once.
  • You often switch from "heat" to "A/C" in the same day.
  • You know you’ve lived in Syracuse too long when…

  • You know the correct pronunciation of "Pompey."
  • You no longer need to brace your eardrums when exiting the pressurized Carrier Dome.
  • You can tell all the Hafner establishments apart.
  • Your chest bursts with pride when Syracuse's climate runs as the top story on cable TV's Weather Channel.
  • You know where to find parking spaces in Skaneateles.
  • You're surprised that people from other parts of the country know nothing about lacrosse.
  • Your idea of fun is to pack a picnic lunch and go watch the mosquitoes get sprayed in Cicero.
  • You attended a Syracuse Chiefs game at MacArthur Stadium. Bonus points if you attended a Chiefs game at Municipal Stadium.
  • You've shopped at Switz's novelty store in North Syracuse.
  • Attending the State Fair is a family tradition, and you go more than three times during the 12 days it's open.
  • You've shopped at the Tri-County Mall.
  • Half the change in your pocket is Canadian.
  • You can make a weekend out of going to Carousel Mall.
  • Erie Boulevard is the place to go on weekends.
  • You request the Syracuse vs. Miami Football game off from work a year in advance.
  • You go on a "big" camping trip to Green Lakes.
  • 75% of your friends work at Wegmans.
  • You accept the fact that the Carrier Dome isn't air conditioned, despite being named after the World's Largest A/C Company.
  • You have a stuffed Orange in your car (Otto).
  • you can accurately forecast just how warm the day will be according to the intensity of the stench coming from the lake during your morning drive.
  • Jim Boeheim is starting to look sexy to you.
  • You feel like you're being subversive when you go to Hoffmann's instead of Heid's.
  • You know that Gate 2 at the Fairgrounds is always open.
  • you chuckle with glee whenever you hear that yet another truck has had its top sheared off by the rail bridge over Onondaga Parkway.
  • The word "iniquity" inspires images of a bejeweled hand gesturing from the edge of a grainy black-and-white television screen on Channel 5's Monster Movie Matinee.
  • You call the intersection of Salina and Jefferson streets "Downcity."
  • Your children dream of being on WIXT-Channel 9's "Storm Team."
  • You have the time and temperature number memorized
  • You're beginning to suspect that the time and temperature lady actually died years ago and her voice is now computer-generated and preserved for all eternity.
  • You miss Bowling for Dollars and its host, Bud Hedinger.
  • You remember the key to open the door of local TV's Magic Toy Shop.
  • You automatically give speeding cars with Canadian license plates the right of way on I-81.
  • You can determine how much a person's house is worth by the way he or she pronounces Skaneateles".
  • You can explain to visitors what salt potatoes are.
  • You remember Fairmount Fair. Bonus points for remembering it before it expanded at the western end; double points for remembering it before it was enclosed.
  • You've shopped at the Penn Can Mall. Bonus points if you remember its jingle or know that it's named Penn Can because of its location between Pennsylvania and Canada.
  • You know not to drive through Baldwinsville's Four Corners between 3 and 7 p.m.
  • You know how to decode the weather star on top of the MONY Tower.
  • You remember when Doug's Fish Fry had only one location.
  • You know the service elevator shortcut out of Hotel Syracuse's 10th-floor Grand Ballroom.
  •