Happy Anniversary: George Brett Pine Tar Incident

22 years ago this week, George Brett hit a controversial 2 run home run off of Goose Gossage, the New York Yankees 'unhittable' reliever in the top of the 9th inning. Yankee manager Billy Martin protested, saying that Brett had too much pine tar on his bat. The pine tar rule was originally written into the baseball rule book, early in the century, as a means to conserve pine tar. The ump then ruled Brett out which then lead to Brett storming out of the dugout after the ump and Martin.

I remember this moment vividly. As a kid, I wanted to be George Brett. Happy Anniversay, George!

For more on the story, click HERE.

The game was protested, then, by the Royals and was later finished almost a month later. The Royals won 5-4. This was and is just one of many reasons to hate the New York Yankees.

down with the sickness

so this week, jen & I have been sick... sore throats, congestion, you name it. it blows (n o pun intended). we even both had a fever for a short while.

i am not a fan of it, being sick, that is. frankly, i'd rather not endure the sickness.

oh, and on tuesday we had a tornado warning.


here are common causes of sore throats...




i just coughed. fun.

30 Days / Homosexuality

last night i was watching 30 DAYS, the show on FX, created by Morgan Sperlock (the guy who made Super Size Me - see my blog on Super Size Me HERE). 30 Days is a great concept for a show... it takes individuals and places them an a strange (to them) or uncommon environment for 30 Days to see what they learn. Episodes have dealt with Living on Minimum Wage, Being a aprt of an Eco-farm community and last nights episode which dealt with a heterosexual Christian man living in an all gay community in San Fransisco.

At one point during the show, Ryan met with a pastor of a homosexual church called Metropolotian Community Church. Her name was Penny Nixon.

After viewing the show, I decided to e-mail her. Below is what I wrote. [i am not posting this to start a controversy in any way]

Penny,

I saw you on 30 Days last night. I wanted to point out that you mispoke (or at least that which was shown appeared to be a mis-statement). When you were talking to Ryan you said to him something like this: "The Bible says 'Thou Shall Not Kill'. How do you justify carrying a weapon in combat?" Most modern translations of the Bible say "You Shall Not Murder." There is a difference between the two, wouldn't you agree?

Websters Dictionary says that there is a difference.
murder: the crime of unlawfully killing someone, especially with malice aforethought.

kill: to deprive of life. to slaughter for food.

If we take Exodus 20:13 out of context, then it was a sin for David to kill Goliath, for the Israelites to kill in combat and for lambs to be sacrificed. It would also have been a sin for our forefathers and military soldiers to 'kill' as a means of protecting themselves and their country or for a police officer to use any form of force to prevent or stop crime.

A distinction between murder and death in battle is apparent in David's statement in 1 Kings 2:5.

Therefore, your question to Ryan was unfair and was used as a means (it appeared) to show that if Ryan was going to choose to accept carrying a weapon in combat was 'O.K.' then he was contradicting the Bible. This, possibly used to then argue that homosexuality is not 'detestable'.

What do you make Leviticus 18:22 & Leviticus 20:13? Forgive me for being so blunt. I have had limited contact with the homosexual community. Also, what do you make of Genesis 1:28: "be fruitful and multiply?" Homosexuals can not naturally procreate. I just don't see how homosexuality is in line with God's plan for his creation (as seen in Genesis and throughout the scriptures). Maybe you could help me understand.

What do you make of those people who have left the homosexual lifestyle and are now straight? Were they born gay or are they just confuesed? (www.exodus-international.org)

You also said 'I think God cares more about what we do with our resources as aposed to what we do with our genetalia. The fact is, you don't know, nor do I know what God 'cares' about more or less. I do know that the scriptures say that a sin is a sin in the eyes of God... There is no hierarchy of sin... lying, lust, stealing, sexual sin, etc... all equally detestable.

Let me close by saying this: although I am a Christian, I do not feel that gays/lesbians should be discriminated against in any way. Also, I do not feel that God Hates Fags. I believe God loves us all equally, no matter what we do or who we are. His desire is for all of us to come to a personal saving relationship with him and to turn from a life of sin. Fred Phelps is an idiot and will pay, in the long run, for his actions against Gays/lesbians. Lastly, I do not doubt that you love your family.

May we both continue to seek God's guidance when it comes to this 'hot topic.'

God bless... politan
Community Churches

Don't Forget about Micah!

a few weeks back, we took Micah to Tuscora Park down in New Philadelphia, Ohio. Micah had a great time with his cousins, Gabe & Harper and with his grandparents. He rode the train 4 or 5 times, played on the playground and even rode the car ride (where small cars go around in circles) all by himself.

It was a hot day but Micah had a good time none the less. The afternoon ended with a downpour which cooled us off nicely.

more Addie 'Beth (one month)

Addie 'Beth

State of Mind...

bold the states you've been to, underline the states you've lived in and italicize the state you're in now...

Alabama / Alaska / Arizona / Arkansas / California / Colorado / Connecticut / Delaware / Florida / Georgia / Hawaii / Idaho / Illinois / Indiana / Iowa / Kansas / Kentucky / Louisiana / Maine / Maryland / Massachusetts / Michigan / Minnesota / Mississippi / Missouri / Montana / Nebraska / Nevada / New Hampshire / New Jersey / New Mexico / New York / North Carolina / North Dakota / Ohio / Oklahoma / Oregon / Pennsylvania / Rhode Island / South Carolina / South Dakota / Tennessee / Texas / Utah / Vermont / Virginia / Washington / West Virginia / Wisconsin / Wyoming / Washington D.C. /

Go HERE to have a form generate the HTML for you.

Cedar Point

So yesturday was a good day. it began with a 120 miles per hour journey up 420 feet and back down again with an inverted twist, ta boot.

Yesturday, we took a group of 46 to Cedar Point, the greatest amusement park in the world.

Here is a rundown of my day:
10:20 am - tix in hand, the group is released to a day of enjoyment.

11:30 am - after only an hour wait, we ride Top Thrill Dragster.

12:05pm - we ride the Magnum - at one time, it's 209 ft. first hill was the tallest in the world. This is always one of my all time favorites. It was my first real roller coaster that I rode back in '89. Wait time: 25 minutes.

12:33pm - up next is the Gemini... the classic wooden racer. Wait time: 15 minutes.

1:00pm - lunch back at the pavilion.

1:35pm - we get in line for the Raptor (a feet dangling suspended roller coaster with many inverted loops.

2:25pm - Raptor rules the sky! i actually got dizzy. We were all really dehidrated so we went back to the pavilion to get some water. wait time: 50 min.

3:10pm - i had never ridden the Disaster Transport. It is an indoor ride that is air conditioned. Since it was 95 degrees, this ride was perfect. wait time: 20 min.

shortly after, a Mountain Dew was needed.

We headed next to the Mantis, a standing roller coaster, with a series of inverted loops.

4:20pm - We ride The Mantis. When your legs are tired, and you've been on your feet, who would want to ride a roller coaster in which the rider is requred to stand? Oh well, it was a good ride. wait time: 55 min.

Nest we rode the train over to Fronteer Land so that the youth could ride the water rides.
Bryan and I sat these out and rested in the shade.

5:50pm - Bryan and I head back to the pavilion for supper. I wanted to get Chicken fingers but it would have been a 10 min. wait. I then got a foot long hot dog and some fries in stead.

7:45pm - the final ride of the day is The Millenium Force - a fast ride that starts our with a 300+ ft. incline and descend. This ride is like riding a motorcylcle really fast. It was a great way to close out the day. wait time: 70 min.

we left Cedar Point, on our 59 passenger Dutch Transit Tour Bus at around 8:45pm.

It was a great day and we didn't have any major problems. My love for amusement parks grows after each trip!

my new toy

i have joined the iPod revolution. my new U2 iPod arrived on my doorstep this morning at 9:38am.

the first song to ever play on it was Simon & Garfunkel's "The Only Living Boy in New York City" @ 6:56pm.

->to steal a line from that song: Hey- I've got nothing to do to-day but smile...






word.

ap

abandoned places...

sORRY bOut yOUr Luck ChuCK!

you know you're having a bad day when...

this happens

ugly dogs

U-G-L-Y
YOU AINT GOT NO ALIBY
YOU UGLY

CYF 2005

so for over 10 years i've been serving on staff for a week long summer camp called CYF. we used to meet up at Lakeside, Ohio (on Lake Erie) but this year we took a giant leap of faith and moved to the Malone College campus in Canton, Ohio.

my role this year was Worship Coordinator.

to be honest, going in to this years camp, i was being puleld in many directions. My wife and i just had a baby a few weeks back, but we had made arrangements for me to spend as much time as i needed over at CYF (about a 15 minuted drive from home) as her mom was visiting to help with the baby. I was able to come home in the afternoons and at night to see my new little one and to help out.

in addition to that, i had been in a rather dry place spiritually. i've had no problem 'feeding' my sheep (i serve as a Youth Pastor) but had not been fed myself in quite some time.

what happened this past week was AMAZING. i've seen the move of the Spirit before. I've seen God move before... but not like this. It was supposed to be a difficult transition. We expected it to be a challenge. God is stronger and wiser, though. Thankfully, we, as a leadership staff, wholly put our trust in Him. God did the rest.

Not one technical glitch.
Not one injury.
Not one instance of conflict amongst the 100 teens in attendance.
Not one instance of a teen sneaking off or a couple messing around.
Heck, not even one instance of a girl (or girls) flaunting their stuff (in other words, the girls all dressed modestly).

i've never seen an event prayed over more. God taught me so much in that. my prayer life has definately ben rejuvinated as a result.

After most camps, you leave on a spiritual high, only to gradually fade... On Friday morning, we challenged the teens to finish strong... to finish the race... to answer the call.

i could go on and on...


basically, i am so thankful that God has given me the awesome privilage of mentoring, teaching and befriending teenagers. i am so glad i answered the call he placed on my heart. i count it an honor to be placed in such a position. but it's all God. When i rely on my strength, i fail. I realized that again this week. But when I (we) rely on God for all things, many things can happen... things that can not be planned or contained.

God is so much bigger than my measly thoughts of what he can do and how he can do it. Praise & glory to the One who sacrificed it all even if for only me.

-tim

Explosions in the Sky / Sigur Ros

in honor of the Forth of July, I am listening to nothing but Explsosions in the Sky. I've added Sigur Ros to the rotation 'cuz my brother in law just got back from Iceland.