Football is the most popular sport in America. In the fall and winters months, football is a Thursday through Monday event. Football is exciting! The strategy, the athleticism, the hard hits, the long passes, the trick plays. There is nothing quite like American Football. Still, I can't think of a single event in any sport that is better than the World Series. Baseball is an experience. You go to the arena for basketball and hockey, to the stadium for football, but for baseball you go the park. The experience of baseball is a day at the park: the hot dogs, cracker jacks, the bratwurst, the peanuts. It's not something you go and watch, it's something you experience.

I remember my last year of college at Oklahoma Christian--it was the 2001 World Series (Arizona versus the Yankees). I worked nights at UPS and was unable to watch more than the first four or five innings of a given game. I didn't get to see Game 7 (at UPS, the work week starts on Sunday night) when Randy Johnson came out of the bullpen, after having thrown 104 pitches in Game 6 (on the previous night), but I saw the replay on ESPN. I LOVED the way the crowd screamed when Johnson ran to the mound, and some how you knew, you just knew, that those sorry Yankees were about to get dealt, baby! Of course, I saw it in replay, so it wasn't the same, but some plays in sports...some of them keep the electricity and you feel it every time you see it.

My roommate that year told me he thought the baseball season should end in September, that in October the weather is too cold. But I like October baseball. I like to see the boys of summer shiver and blow hot air on their hands as they try to make all that summertime effort worth it. But, as I wrote a few weeks ago, I just love October. I love it when the weather gets cooler. I love it when baseball gets cooler, and more serious. There is nothing as serious as a pitcher staring down a hitter as steam shoots from his mouth and nostrils like a bull preparing to attack an overmatched matador--kind of like Adam Wainwright last night.

Yes, I am a diehard Cardinals fan.

There has been a lot of talk lately about North Korea's dictator, Kim Jong Il. I know that he hates freedom and everything (just like Hurrican Katrina and those birds with the bird flu), but I also think that Kim Jong (or, as I like to call him, Il to the K Jongy) has some redeeming qualities.

Number one, of course, is the hair. Not many heads of state have the nerve to do much more than your classic right-side part, comb forward, or comb backwards. And, then there's the classic cut-it-so-short-I-will-neither-need-to-comb-forward-backward-or-sideways. But such traditional hair styles won't work for Il to the K Jongy. He is doing for international politics what Madonna did for pop music: offering an atypical hair style coupled with a bizarre and twisted epistemology, which translates into world domination within his own bubble. (Just cause you own a cape don't mean you can fly--Just cause you run North Korea don't mean you run the world...or do you?)

Number two redeeming quality (and perhaps most important): Il to the K Jongy keeps the United States from winning the award for "Most Delusional Head of State." Now, a lot of people may criticize me for placing G.Dub ahead of Castro, or even Hugo Chavez (on a side note, I recently told a guy I was moving to Vienna and he was really concerned because Vienna's president recently accused our president of being the devil). And these guys probably hold their own level of delusion, but at the end of the day, Castro is president of CUBA! And, he knows that. He's not fooling anyone. Meanwhile, G.Dub is doing everything possible to make us long for the rights and benefits of citizenship in that island nation to our south. The United States is right to be concerned about N. Korea's nuclear situation, but it is a little over the line to call for K Jongy's removal. Without him, The U.S. gets the award.

Well, there's two good reasons why Il to the K Jongy isn't so bad. Maybe you can name a few more.

October has always been my favorite month of the year. I've always loved Halloween: the pumpkins, scary movies, costumes, candy. I love the festive atmosphere of Halloween. I've always loved the fall. I like the way the mornings are cold in October, and the way the temperature warms to a gentle warmness in the afternoons--the type of warmness that still requires a jacket or long sleeves, but isn't a coldness that freezes your fingers.

Yesterday at the church building, the heaters were turned on for the first time since last spring. I like the smell of the dust burning off the heating coils (I wouldn't want to smell it all the time, but I like it because it's a part of that change from summer to winter). Last night, Alisha and I, along with Alisha's younger sister Christy, went to Ron's cafe and I ate a bowl of chili.

This is my favorite time of year.

Well there's alot to say about being a first-time mother, but because of the immense sleep deprivation there is also some brain stallouts.  I could talk about my horrible pregnancy, the difficulties of having a baby in NICU, the difficulties of breastfeeding, or being tied to a breast pump every three hours. 

However, the most amazing thing about being a mom is that there really is an amnesia about the above things and all you think about is the sweet little angel who you watch sleep.  I fall in love with Zaden more and more each day--although the poor little guy is subject to mine and Ira's inexperience as parents, but you learn as you go.

You know, I love the little guy so much.  He is completely dependent on Ira and me for everything and he doesn't have much to offer us back at least right now.  So I figure God loves us just as much--not because of what we have to offer Him, but because we are HIS.  His children, His Creation, and He just likes to take care of us even when we make a mess of things, or fuss and cry at what life is handing us at the moment. 

So, dear friend the next time you stop to ponder what this life is all about--

Remember that there is a loving father who wants to be with us because he has adopted us as children and he has made it possible for the imperfect to be with Him (The perfect) through the blood of His son.  May the joy and struggles of parenthood bring all of you closer to an understanding of our Heavenly Father's love.  

Kari

Well,

Another week into September and I am already enjoying the cooler weather and rain.  This last weekend marked a significant milestone in the life of my sister-in-law Kaci.  She got married!!! Congrats to her and her new beaming husband Mikel Hoppman.  It was a great event and of course Zaden was there dressed in proper wedding attire.  He was given the job of honorary ring bearer, but he didn't really have to do that much.  In fact, he just slept, and that was okay with me. 

Weddings are a very special time and should be honored and celebrated with family and friends.  The mark the beginning of one of God's best gifts, Marriage.  And for all of you guys who make the joke about weddings being more of funeral than a celebration, you know you wouldn't be who you are today without your wives.  Needless to say, there weren't any somber faces at Kaci's wedding just one sleepy one....not me....Zaden.

Anyway, in addition to my sister-in-law's wedding, today (technically yesterday since this is so late) was my Dad's birthday.  Happy 55th birthday Dad!!!  I have no fear writing anything at this point about him since I know that he will never sit down at a computer and read this blog.  He has a rare condition known as compumonia which causes him to moan and groan with gastrointestinal pain anytime he is near a computer.  He also comes down with the condition when my Mom sits down at their computer.  But I do wish him a happy birthday and I am thankful, now more than ever as a dad myself, for all the effort he put in over the years to raise us kids.  It can be tough work being a dad, even if my dad managed to avoid those dirty diapers.

In closing, I will leave you with a picture of sisters.  The photo says it all, let me know what you think of Zaden's tux in the comments. 

Friends and Family,

It has been awhile since our last blogasation.  Needless to say a lot can happen in a few months. For example, we just recently became parents for the first time.  A little earlier than I promised at my last writing, but everything is going well since Zaden's homecoming.

From the pictures, you can see that we have quite a handsome little man for a new son.  Everyone tells you what being a mom and dad feels like, but I have found that it really requires experience to fully comprehend and appreciate the gift of parenthood.  I am sure this is only the beginning of all the learning experiences I will have in the coming years.  Zaden has already been an incredible gift and blessing from God for our family.

Even as I write, life is rapidly changing.  Not just with being a new parent.  For many, school is starting up, or football season if you prefer.  For other political gurus, the coming elections will mark a time of change.  For our team, this fall will be the end of our secular jobs and the beginning of our work in ministry.  This is a rite of passage that all missionaries usually take at some point, and I would say it is a very challenging step.  Most of us have worked at the same job since graduating college.  We are comfortable there, we have friends, and for the most part, we enjoy our work.  I would ask that you pray for our team as we make the transition, and if you have ever completed this rite of passage yourself, feel free to leave some advice or encouragement for us in the comment section. 

Thanks for all your prayers for Zaden and Kari.  As you can see, he is already starting to work on some athletic moves.  I can't figure out if this is the stiff arm, freestyle stroke, or his version of the macarena. Talk to you soon...... 

This summer our family had the opportunity to vacation with some of our extended family in the Bahamas, and we had a great time. While the white beaches were nice, the crystal blue water was beautiful, and the cooler temperatures were a relief, one of my favorite parts of visiting Nassau was the opportunity to meet more of my brothers and sisters in Christ, encourage each other, and worship God together on Sunday at the Highbury Park Church of Christ. When we asked the people at the front desk of the place where we were staying how to get to the address of the church, they said that it was on the other side of the island and that it would take at least 25 minutes to get there; they thought we were quite strange for wanting to go there. We had to charter a special bus to take us, and the ride seemed to last forever; we began to wonder if the driver knew where he was going and if we should have just had a family devotional together in our room. Once we arrived at the church building, several members of the congregation warmly greeted us and asked where we were from and what we were doing in Nassau. Though services were a bit different from what we were used to, the church was perhaps the kindest I have ever visited.

Sometimes we neglect to consider the fact that neither God nor his church is confined by geographic or linguistic boundaries. We often understand church and Christianity only as we have experienced it. Visiting churches in foreign places should enlighten us to the reality and blessing of being a part of a worldwide community of faith. If you ever get the opportunity to visit Nassau, be sure to meet the wonderful Bahamian people at the Highbury Park Church of Christ on the “other side of the island”. And, by the way, after we got back on the bus to leave the church building, we all agreed that we were glad to have chosen the long bus ride and the opportunity to meet more of our spiritual family over the devotional in the room.

Alisha and I, along with everyone on our mission team, attend Memorial Road Church of Christ. MRCC is also serving as the overseeing congregation for our mission to Vienna, Austria. As a member of a congregation of approximately 2500 people, it becomes easy, if not convenient, to criticize the problems of ministry which accompanies being such a large group of Christians. What about the people who fall through the cracks? Should they be encouraged to find a smaller congregation because “big congregation” just doesn't fit them? I don't know of anyone who thinks that's acceptable. How large to we get before we decide that we're too big for effective ministry? Edmond, Oklahoma is growing so quickly, surely if MRCC broke into several medium sized congregations, these, too, would soon become large churches.

As I begin to work more closely with the leadership of MRCC I am impressed by how these issues and concerns are neither ignored nor disavowed. These are the real struggles of being a large congregation and ministry to our fellow Christians, as well as to those who don't know Christ, weighs heavily on the hearts of the church leaders at Memorial Road.

Memorial Road is known as a great missions church: they build strong relationships with their missionaries, they seek to give good care to their missionaries, they desire for their missionaries to be successful. As someone soon moving to proclaim the Gospel overseas, it is comforting to have that type of congregation supporting you, praying for you. But, the most exciting thing about Memorial Road, the reason that really makes me thrilled to be a member of this congregation, is that the church never fails a challenge that our leadership sets before us. I don't think you'll hear anyone apologize for us being a large congregation, but we do acknowledge the challenges that our sheer size brings, and we seek to meet those challenges with Godly solutions.

July 16 was the day for our Special Missions Contribution. The goal that was set and the dollar amount reached are not important. But what is important is that every year our leadership challenges us to give to missions, and every year we surpass the goal. That's exciting. Every year our church members are compelled to give money for one explicit purpose: missions.

At a time when many churches of Christ are reluctant to engage in European missions, and are even pulling support from European missions, Memorial Road is expanding their European missions. In 2007, we will depart for Vienna, Austria, and in 2008, MRCC will expand their current mission effort in Warsaw, Poland by sending a new mission team there as well. There's a challenge in European missions and we need churches to accept those challenges. We need churches that aren't afraid of being challenged so that those who don’t know Christ may find him.

I’ve been thinking about community a lot lately.  I recently finished reading The Shaping of Things to Come by Frost and Hirsch, which talks a lot about developing community to bring people into a relationship with God and followers of Christ.  I’m not talking about community outreach ministries that spend a lot of time developing programs to help bring people into the church – or at least the church building.  I’m talking about living Christ in the community, becoming a part of the community and every day letting your light shine, which will prompt people to worship God (Matthew 5:16). 

I think we’ve started to rely on church as our sole community and as a result we have lost our connection to the lost.  Frost and Hirsch state that when many people become Christians they change so much to fit into the church culture and community that they lose their standing in their former communities – communities that are full of people that need God!  Of course you are going to change when you become a Christian, but I wonder how much of that change is turning away from an ungodly past and how much of the change is adapting to the church culture. 

I guess this ties to something else I’ve been thinking about a lot recently – Why do we feel compelled to be so busy?  In life in general, but specifically in the church.  Our churches are overflowing with programs and activities and get-togethers and whatever.  What happened to having time to rest?  I’m going off on a tangent now, so I’m going to stop this all together.  Maybe I’ll write something more coherent after I think about it some more – maybe not.  In any case, I highly recommend The Shaping of Things to Come.