In a section of the book titled “On the Anvil” by Max Lucado. It says this: “When a potter bakes a pot, he checks it solidity by pulling it out of the oven and thumping it. If it “sings” it’s ready. If it “thuds”, it’s placed back in the oven. The character of the person is also checked by thumping. Been Thumped lately? Late-night phone calls. Grouchy teacher. Grumpy moms. Burnt meals. Flat tires. “You’ve got to be kidding” deadlines. Those are thumps. Thumps are those irritating inconveniences that trigger the worst in us. They catch us off guard. Flat footed. They aren’t big enough to be a crises, but if you get enough of them, watch out. Traffic jams. Long lines. Empty mailboxes. Dirty clothes on the floor…thump. Thump. Thump. How do I respond? Do I sing? Or do I thud? Jesus said that out of the nature of the heart a man speaks (Luke 6:45). There is nothing like a good thump to reveal the nature of a heart. The true character of a person is seen not in momentary heroics, but in the thump-packed humdrum of day-to-day living.” I do not know about you but I really do not like being thumped...but it seems that I have been a lot lately. There have been times of song and times of hollow “thudding”. So how are you handling your thumps? Singing...or thudding? I pray that my life, and yours, will produce a “sweet sound” to our God.

We are currently in a series on the New Testament Book of James. One of the things James talks about is having JOY! That which can only be found by putting Jesus first, Others second and Yourself third. Hold that thought... In watching the Olympics I have been struck by the different emotions expressed by the various participants. The American men gymnastics team elated at Bronze. The American women gymnastic team settling for Silver. The ever smiling Michael Phelps (except when his goggles are full of water) and the sheer pain of finishing fourth...again (Katie Hoff - USA). Then there is the relief expressed by China's Du Li as she "redeemed" herself and won the gold. What the point? The point is that when Benoit Caranobe of France won the Bronze medal by .175 points - (in the men’s gymnastics all around competition) he could not contain his emotions. The commentator then said, "That is a picture of true joy!" And as I sat there nodding my head...it hit me. NO IT IS NOT! That is a picture of true happiness. Had he scored .2 points lower...no happiness...only disappointment. Happiness depends on our circumstances...JOY depends on Christ - and He never fails! I guess it was another reminder to me how alive the Word of God is and regardless of how things are going...I still can have JOY in Him. So I ask you, are you happy? Or do you have JOY?

Royals StatueMike SchmidtCal Ripkin JrHank AaronGeorge BrettCale & Craig - front row seats for All-Star ParadeCale and I decided that a day trip to NYC to watch the MLB All-Star parade would be fun...and it was. We saw the Hall of Fame cast as well as the 2008 All-Stars. We met a really nice Yankees fan (yes they do exist) by the name of Rich and had a front road seat to view the parade. We saw legends including Hank Aaron, Ernie Banks, Yogi Berra, Wade Boggs, Lou Brock, GEORGE BRETT, Rod Carew, Rollie Fingers, Goose Gosage, Harmon Killebrew, Tommy Lasorda, Juan Marichal, Willie Mays, Willie McCovey, Phil Nekro, Cal Ripkin Jr, Frank Robinson, Mike Schmidt - just to name a few. It was a fun day. Cale and I then saw some sights before heading home in time to watch the game. I made it through the end...Cale did not! Click on the links at the beginning of the post to view a picture or two. Enjoy!!!!!