Praying Mantis, Praying Mantis, Praying Mantis

Praying Mantis thoughts for Tuesday, December 30, 2003

Below are the heroes and villans of 2004 according to Noam Chomsky, as taken from the Independent.uk.co web site.

Heroes for 2004

Those who struggle courageously and unpretentiously against oppression, violence, and needless suffering. They would not want me to mention their names.

Villains

I do not have the moral authority to rank villains.

praying mantis - Friend - John 15:15 - Call me Amadeo

Praying Mantis thoughts for Monday, December 29, 2003

Can't imagine a silent room,
no mismatched shoes strewn in my halls,
the noisy girls and noisy boy,
the messed up kitchen in need of a broom.

would hate to never
have to raise my voice,
to discipline, rebuke
or encourage some more.

thankful beyond measure,
for my arrows and quiver,
God bless me,
God raise me,
God send me,
some more time,
for loving those
children, your children
and mine.

praying mantis - Friend - John 15:15 - Call me Amadeo

Praying Mantis thoughts for Sunday, December 21, 2003

From the Paris Match interview:

"Bono: I've never been ashamed of showing my emotions. I'm very easily moved. I was bowled over, finding myself in that prison courtyard. This man fascinates me. In spite of his humor, the elegant way he always stands up straight, I have the idea that he can't forget, not for a second, that they stole 27 years of his life from him. Mandela, like Kofi Annan, is one of those men who have a certain grace. The person who has affected me the most is the archbishop, Desmond Tutu. He is inhabited by the Gospel. Tutu's got the laugh which for me is the real evidence of liberty."

interesting thing: Bush shows his emotions easily too. He cares. Watching your country burn and thousands die must be similar to the pain a prisoner feels. Helpless...Hopeless. Yet, you are leader, so you must take some action. You stand up straight, you re-evaluate what you must do, you take stock of your faith. Tutu laughs, Bush laughs, all the time...over the cheesiest jokes, he is a simple man. In the whole article above you see Bono bursts out in laughter too. Tutu is inhabited by the gospel, everything Bush does seems to come from his faith in Jesus Christ, and Bono...well, you know. Bono, Bush, Tutu - each completely different people from different backgrounds, with different ideas. "You got stand up straight, carry your own weight...you got to get yourself together, you were stuck in a moment and you can't get out of it." But these guys have all got out of their moment - whether it was rock star egotism, a country ablaze, or the cell of a prisoner.

God help me to laugh more, to stand up straight and be brave, to love and cry and stand up for right wherever I see injustice...even if I am not always exactly right.

praying mantis - Friend - John 15:15 - Call me Amadeo

Annah is starting to walk and getting a personality. Jennah was watching a show where this guy gave another guy a swirly in t toilet and she was visibly distressed. She wanted someone to help stop the guy on the television. Noah showed true appreciation for gifts that he thought were just alright. I am so proud of what they are becoming.

praying mantis - Friend - John 15:15 - Call me Amadeo

Praying Mantis thoughts for Friday, December 19, 2003

What present would you like this year?

praying mantis - Friend - John 15:15 - Call me Amadeo

I am having troubles with my margins. Life is kind of like that.

praying mantis - Friend - John 15:15 - Call me Amadeo

Praying Mantis thoughts for Thursday, December 18, 2003

The faith of the non-followers of Jesus: Those that did not give up their jobs but still lived lives of faith. (Part I)

Consider the centurian. Busy at his his job. Doing what he does best, leading men in secular endeavors. This man gives orders, puts his brow to his daily labor and still understands the deeper things of life. "In all of Israel, I have not seen such faith," Jesus says to him, giving him a deeper complement then even most of his followers ever got. "Ye of little faith," he says to Peter as he sinks in the water. But, this journeyman - could sink himself in his own depression because of the sickness in his beloved servant, but he knows in humility, he doesn't even deserve Jesus in his house. And he has faith that this son of God, if he declares something, it will be done. How might the common man, entrenched in common activities, in a common day have the faith to believe that this man was "Jehovah Rophe," the God who heals?

praying mantis - Friend - John 15:15 - Call me Amadeo

Praying Mantis thoughts for Wednesday, December 17, 2003

Help us God. It has started. (Or continuing)

PARIS, France (CNN) -- French President Jacques Chirac has called for a law banning religious symbols and clothing in state schools and hospitals.

Chirac's remarks Wednesday came in response to a commission report favoring the banning of Muslim head scarves, Jewish skullcaps and large Christian crosses in public schools

praying mantis - Friend - John 15:15 - Call me Amadeo

"The greatest thing is to love...
and to be loved in return," Moulin Rouge

Noah, I love you.

praying mantis - Friend - John 15:15 - Call me Amadeo

Anybody want a peanut? (That's my boy!)

Click here

praying mantis - Friend - John 15:15 - Call me Amadeo

Our new alarm system:

When I was a kid, I remember going to the beach and making a sand castle close to where the tide was. I would then build big trenches and walls to try and keep out the water as the tide raised. I considered the battle over when the castle was destroyed. Sometimes just a few walls would be torn down, a few times the tide would give up and go back down and wait for another day, but the castle would never last, because the water eventually came up and tore it completely down.

Installing an alarm on my house is fun in the same way. It is a project, not meant to really stop anyone from intruding in the house if they really want to. Instead it will ring two sirens (one inside and one out). I can also rig it up to call my cell phone and give me a number indicating what has happened at the house. I am encountering some problems hooking it up, but it is like software - if I can just find the right combination then it will be setup right. Slowly, I work through the bugs - and it begins taking shape. My sand castle in the home.

Our window pane still isn't replaced from the thief, but it is coming soon.

Can't wait till he comes. Let him break down the door. Set off the alarms. Let the glass sensors trip at the sound of the broken glass and the crashing sky. Let the motion detectors see beauty for the first time. Let his wave wash over me, let my castle be brought to the ground - break on through to the other side.

praying mantis - Friend - John 15:15 - Call me Amadeo

Praying Mantis thoughts for Tuesday, December 16, 2003

Build me a family,
build it strong,
pay it great attention,
seek first the kingdom of God... there.

Love it,
nurture it,
listen to it,
feed it,
teach it,
care for it,
have fun with it,
have contact with it,
shower it in blessings,
just as I have done with you.

Remember, the garden?
It wasn't a mistake.

There was no kingdom building there,
no vision casting,
no goals and objectives,
just a call to love your family,
let your family be the church,
that loves the rest of the church.

It's not so complicated.
In the beginning was the family,
and the family was with God,
and the family was God,
and the family dwealt among us,

yet, you love the world so much more
than the family.

Yet, the family calls out from the deep,
singing, "come home,"
You were lost but now you are family.

praying mantis - Friend - John 15:15 - Call me Amadeo

Praying Mantis thoughts for Monday, December 15, 2003

Thanks to N. Luft for your help once again with code. You are the java master and purveyor of all things, "Automatic for the people." You are appreciated.

praying mantis - Friend - John 15:15 - Call me Amadeo

I've got my tickets for Lord of The Rings on Thursday.

praying mantis - Friend - John 15:15 - Call me Amadeo

Interviews
15 December 2003

TRANSCRIPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER
THE HON JOHN HOWARD MP
INTERVIEW WITH LARRY KING LIVE, CNN

Subject: Capture of Saddam Hussein.

E&OE��

KING:

Mr Prime Minister, we understand the President of the United States called you today. What did he say?

PRIME MINISTER:

Well he rang me to talk about what had been announced, that was the capture of Saddam Hussein. We shared a satisfaction, a very deep satisfaction, and a common belief that this would be very good for the people of Iraq. He talked a little about the events that led up to it, the success of American intelligence. I congratulated the American military on its achievement. The American military of course is carrying the main burden in Iraq, and for their sakes in particular I think this is a wonderful development and it will give the boys and girls of the US Defence Force a great Christmas present to feel that the person who has been the chief tormentor of the Iraqi people for so long, for more than 35 years, has now finally been arrested and is going to face justice.

KING:

And should that justice be by Iraqi trial or international tribunal in your opinion?

PRIME MINISTER:

I would support a trial by Iraq in Iraq. Although Saddam Hussein committed many crimes against others, he conservatively has probably murdered about a half a million of his own fellow countrymen and women, perhaps more. He has tortured hundreds of thousands of others, he�s starved many. His main crimes have been committed against the people of Iraq and it only seems fair and reasonable to me that they have the opportunity of trying him according to their laws. I hope that the trial, if it takes place, will allow enough time and be public enough for all of the crimes he has committed to be detailed so that the world will know the full measure of what sort of person he was, why he had to be got rid of, and the world will never forget the crimes that he and his henchmen inflicted upon the Iraqis and upon many millions of other innocent people in the Middle East.

KING:

You still have troops there. Are you concerned that there might be short-term a little increase in the violence?

PRIME MINISTER:

Well Larry that�s very hard to know. It might happen. I certainly continue to worry about the safety of our troops and indeed about the safety of all the allied troops. The likelihood in the medium to longer term is that with Hussein gone, the violence might begin to subside, but that won�t happen immediately and it would be foolish indeed for people to imagine that just because Saddam Hussein has been caught, then the violence is going to end. So it continues to be a very risky place and I continue to be apprehensive of course about the safety of our own men and women, and also about the safety of Americans and British and other allied forces who are there in their very large numbers.

KING:

How long do you think your troops will stay?

PRIME MINISTER:

Too early to say, Larry. They will stay while they have a job to do. We�re not going to prematurely pull them out. We made a contribution, a very important contribution, during the military conflict and we said we�d maintain a reasonable number there after � not a huge number because we have peacekeeping obligations in our part of the world � but we don�t intend to pull those troops out until they have done their job. They�re doing a fantastic job at present and they will stay there for so long as is necessary to achieve the objectives of stabilising Iraq and providing Iraq with a hopeful democratic future.

KING:

Are you glad he was taken alive?

PRIME MINISTER:

I am glad he was taken alive because it will allow the opportunity of a trial. It will allow an opportunity for the world to be reminded if necessary in painstaking detail of the kind of person he was and why his removal is such a long term boon for that country. Sometimes people of this nature die in the capture attempt, sometimes they take their own lives and thus avoid that public exposure and public demonstration and reinforcement of everything that they have done to their people. And I believe overwhelmingly to the good that he was taken alive and I certainly look forward to a public trial in Baghdad where the full measure of what he did to the Iraqi people is spelt out in graphic detail.
Nod.

Larry King:

Do you think this is the chance now to internationalise this occupation more?

PRIME MINISTER of Australia:

Well that really depends on the willingness of other countries. I, of course, share the disappointment of President Bush and Tony Blair and others that many of the countries in Europe, apart from the United Kingdom and Poland, and Spain, and a few others have been unwilling to contribute more resources and more people. The offer is there, the expression of hope is there and in a way the internationalisation of this lies in the hands of those who thus far have been unwilling to participate. The obligation of internationalisation lies on those who don�t participate rather than those who do participate because by their participation they�re indicating a willingness to share the burden.

praying mantis - Friend - John 15:15 - Call me Amadeo

Nothing is ever completed in one sweep.
But, you still have to pick up the broom.

praying mantis - Friend - John 15:15 - Call me Amadeo

Praying Mantis thoughts for Sunday, December 14, 2003

Good always conquers evil...

Sauron will go down...
sin will go down...
bugs will be destroyed...
darth vader's dark soul will be won...
evil dictators will go down...
the devil will go down...
ugliness will be gone...
lack of purpose will be cast away...
cruelty will have an end...
money will be no issue...
bullies will go down...
tyrants will fail...
idealism will previal...
hope will be renewed...
the promised land will return...
but first the evil must be put down

praying mantis - Friend - John 15:15 - Call me Amadeo

Praying Mantis thoughts for Friday, December 12, 2003

Tonight, the wife and I are singing the "Elephant Love Medley" from Moulin Rouge at a Christmas Banquet. We are having a sort of variety show thing. She is very nervous - it should be kind of funny, we've worked it into a skit about a man who can't go to sleep until he has sung this song to his wife.

praying mantis - Friend - John 15:15 - Call me Amadeo

Praying Mantis thoughts for Thursday, December 11, 2003

What to do? Here are the things I'm thinking about. Finances. Desires. Means of ministry. Family.

Am I really saying I love money more, if I quit my ministry job to make sure my family has good health insurance, money to pay the bills, and additional comforts?

Is is less noble for me to work in the Engineering field and help a church plant, then to use the God given leadership skills I have with the youth I am currently working with?

Is it stupid to long for full time ministry and then give it up because the bottom line doesn't match up?

Is it lack of faith or lack of brain-power?

Do I fail in "imagination" class?

Is it strange to get a cut in salary of $2160 when a church comes in with +$20,000 for the year?

Is it strange that my last two corporate jobs gave three weeks for vacation, but the church gives two?

Am I weird to think that you shouldn't have to be paid less than average in the community in which you live in order to do ministry?

Sorry for all the complaining-thinking, I guess this might be a "not so noble" post.

praying mantis - Friend - John 15:15 - Call me Amadeo

Praying Mantis thoughts for Wednesday, December 10, 2003

Thanks to Luke from Australia for the cool banner. A stranger serving another stranger. See his link on the right side of my blog.

praying mantis - Friend - John 15:15 - Call me Amadeo

Praying Mantis thoughts for Tuesday, December 09, 2003

I've gotten a rashion of crap for my stupid fund-raiser thermometer . It seems the more people give me crap for it, the greater my pride becomes. I am thinking about bringing back the flannel graph.

praying mantis - Friend - John 15:15 - Call me Amadeo

God is still providing. I prayed for $18,000 before the end of this years. Zoinks. Ask and ye shall receive.

praying mantis - Friend - John 15:15 - Call me Amadeo

I'm going to try to think of raising money for at least two children with aids

Read about this place that serves children dying with aids.

It reminds me of Mother Theresa's home.

praying mantis - Friend - John 15:15 - Call me Amadeo

Praying Mantis thoughts for Monday, December 08, 2003

Three things I want to talk about tonight before I go to sleep:

1. The flu that is killing people here in the states

2. My house being broken into.

3. Safety and trusting God.

1. Last week several people in Colorado died of a flu. My friend who worked in the hospital in our neighboring city had a 13 year old die, or something like that. Well, I had 103.5 temperature on Sat and Sunday, and my 1 year old and 6 year old also had a fever, now my wife. It is scary to think that we could all die with something as simple as a flu. Yet, no good worrying since, we have no real control over it. Even the flu shots they have don't protect from the one that is killing people.

2. Today my house was broken into. Somebody opened our unlocked gate, walked to the middle of the yard which backs up to a public golf course on a beautiful day, picked up a brick of ours and broke it in to a smaller piece. Both neighbors on both sides were home. Then the burglar took the broken brick and threw it through the window where the latch is and opened the window. They got to the top of our house in the master bedroom and looked through everything. They left the safe as it was (opened), left the jewelry, the coin collection, the video camera, all the sound equipment, other expensive items and decided to take the DVD's off our counter. They also looked at the presents under the tree, one was a DVD, and took the one wrapped DVD. They didn't unwrap anything. They left a small hole in the window and must have seen us leave for under two hours to take a car into the shop. They were quick and precise and strange about what they took. They also took a guitar case that belonged to a new guitar I was getting for my daughter, probably to put the DVD's in. We only had like 20 - but what will I do without moulin rouge and evita, along with pirates of the Caribbean and the veggie tales. They did leave one DVD, the Jesus DVD. Heh. A gun wouldn't have protected us, maybe a dog, alarms don't necessarily work unless you pay for a service. But, still we are getting an alarm system, a non paying one, just put a big alarm on the house to annoy the neighbors, I guess. Yet it is still all in his hands. What are we going to do.

3. Safety. Whether it is the twin towers or our DVD collection, we can't just sit and wait for something to happen - yet still, we can't control everything. Yet we can't be still. God is in control, I am not worried but the wife feels violated. Wish I could change that. That is the one thing. DVD's don't mean a thing, and even the $500 window is just an inconvenience. But feeling safe, is hard to get back. Even if you do a bunch of hurdles to protect yourself. Well, i will. And I'll trust in God. If we accept good from God, must we also not accept bad? Yes. Praise you God, for my home is not here, and these things, even safety, are not my own, even though I will take steps to be responsible with what I have.

praying mantis - Friend - John 15:15 - Call me Amadeo

Praying Mantis thoughts for Friday, December 05, 2003

How Bush and Bono are alike:

1. Their names each begin with a "B" and have four letters (Except when you go by Paul - but it still has four letters)

2. Both are intensely spiritual men with strong convictions

3. Both have abused alcohol at least a few times in life

4. Both do things that irritate people because of their strong ideologies

5. Both are at the top of the game, despite the fact that many despise their game (Judgemental Christians who look at the plank in Bono's eyes, and the world who judges Bush for his actions.)

6. Both are fighting wars against tyrants in foreign lands (Bush - Oprressive regimes, Bono - Aids [Although Bush is also pledging money])

7. Both want money for aids in Africa (One wants more, I am sure)

8. Both say bold things in public that cause many people to cringe

praying mantis - Friend - John 15:15 - Call me Amadeo

praying mantis - Friend - John 15:15 - Call me Amadeo

I really like these two paragraphs from a Time article.

Europe these days is a curiously inward-looking place. Its political class is preoccupied with the time-consuming process of building the European Union. Young Europeans, meanwhile, are enjoying the borderless, happy and comfortable world that is their own continent. I couldn't prove it, but I suspect that Europeans are both less interested in and less knowledgeable about the U.S. than they were 20 years ago. They increasingly form their views of the U.S. from the sort of European journalism that stresses American weirdness, as if every American were a Botoxed, snake-handling cowboy Holy Roller, and that has produced what Nick Robinson calls a "grotesque caricature" of Bush in Europe.

Fair-minded Europeans who read Bush's speech in London last week will surely adjust their image of him. I was particularly struck by this passage: "Because European countries now resolve differences through negotiation and consensus, there's sometimes an assumption that the entire world functions in the same way. But let us never forget ... beyond Europe's borders, in a world where oppression and violence are very real, liberation is still a moral goal, and freedom and security still need defenders." Every word of that is true. If Europeans continue to hate the man who said them, they diminish not him, but themselves.

-Time Magazine

praying mantis - Friend - John 15:15 - Call me Amadeo

Delirious is in town and I am missing them because of:

1. Need for more family time
2. Son's soccer game
3. Son's soccer party - he gets his trophy
4. Wife's fondue party

Much more important things, I know. I always wanted to see them in concert. We have 15 going from the youth group.

praying mantis - Friend - John 15:15 - Call me Amadeo

Praying Mantis thoughts for Thursday, December 04, 2003

Is anyone else out there doing youth ministry and ticking off parents at the same time? I am so good at that. Don't mean to be - people are just so easily bugged. Am I bugging you? I don't mean to bug you.

praying mantis - Friend - John 15:15 - Call me Amadeo

I'm going to the men's group tonight. Applebee's, it's your store.

praying mantis - Friend - John 15:15 - Call me Amadeo

Praying Mantis thoughts for Wednesday, December 03, 2003

Ok, these are my new business cards - but you can't see them unless you have a microscope.

praying mantis - Friend - John 15:15 - Call me Amadeo

Check out this new cool tool, especially if you have a radio voice.... which I do not.

audio post powered by audblog

praying mantis - Friend - John 15:15 - Call me Amadeo

Praying Mantis thoughts for Tuesday, December 02, 2003

When vacation meets spiritual retreat:

Taize - read all about it

Since I have been talking about vacations, leisure and spirituality, it has also caused be to think about incorporating family into work and spiritual experiences. What a great spiritual retreat it would be if I could take my family to Taize -and spend a week with the family just being still, silent, having the kids hear Bible lessons, and sharing the work of a community for a brief week. I'm not doing it justice. Follow the link and see what a cool experience this would be in the green hills of France during the week of Pentecost. The flight from Phoenix to Paris CDG airport would be about $919 roundtrip for one person, and for a family of 5 the accomadations and food for the week would be about 496. To get us all on flights would be expensive though, almost $4,500 for the whole gang. This is my next vacation goal. God if it is your will make a way.

praying mantis - Friend - John 15:15 - Call me Amadeo

Praying Mantis thoughts for Monday, December 01, 2003

Software testing and Youth Work. Very strange similarities really when you think about it. There are some very definite things that help you be successful in both arenas, yet both demand creativity and working outside of the lines. You have to try something new - think outside of the box. There is always a danger to just "make it work," instead of being brave and examining what is broken - to admit the software or organization might have some flaws if only I went down the path far enough to find it. How do you find God in your secular work-place? How do you see the spiritual raise its head in the secular? Here are some other questions I have.

1. What's so spiritual about your work?

2. What's so spiritual about your play?

3. What's so spiritual about your quiet times and thin places?

praying mantis - Friend - John 15:15 - Call me Amadeo