Monday Morning Minute: May 31, 2010

“He makes me lie down in green pastures, He leads me beside still waters; He restores my soul.” Psalm 23: 2-3

Now the green pastures make me itch. But the calm, still waters? Bring ‘em on! Some time back a new friend I have gotten to know invited me to go fishing with him at Lake Lure. It has been decades since I fished for that illusive Walleye that hides in the clear waters there. I thought about it for 1,00000 of a second and accepted his invitation. See, my pastor preaches that we should not run through life at full speed, but that we should take time to slow down occasionally and recharge our batteries. He even said it was biblical! Seems Jesus would put in long and grueling hours like I am now writing these devotions, and then he would get away, slow down and renew His physical strength. I believe he scheduled these times. Yes, scheduled. Planned them, and did them. He knew the time spent in quietness and reflection with God would return huge dividends to his ministry. Like a friend of mine once observed, “You never get out of your car at night and leave the engine idling all night so that it would be ready in the morning.” You cut it off and let it rest. Otherwise it wears out way too soon and is of no use to you. But some people, including me at one time in my life, live that way. Always stressed out about things that need to be done or are not done and never turning the ignition off. If Jesus scheduled a day off to rest and go fishing with the boys (they fished, he slept), shouldn’t we. Man, I feel the need to wet a hook already. Oh yes, just a note. In my case, fishing does not always mean catching. But that is another story. Take a day off. You need it.

Thought for the week: Craftiness must have clothes, but truth loves to go naked.
-- English Proverb

Funny for the week: Thoughts

1. I think part of a best friend's job should be to immediately clear your computer history when you die.
2. Nothing sucks more than that moment during an argument when you realize you're wrong.
3. I totally take back all those times I didn't want to nap when I was younger.
4. There is great need for a sarcasm font.
5. Just how the heck are you supposed to fold a fitted sheet?
6. Was learning cursive really necessary?
7. Map Quest really needs to start their directions on #5, as I'm pretty sure I know how to get out of my neighborhood.
8. Obituaries would be a lot more interesting if they told you how the Person died.
9. Bad decisions make good stories.
10. You never know when it will strike, but there comes a moment at work when you know that you just aren't going to do anything productive for the rest of the day.
11. Can we all just agree to ignore whatever comes after BlueRay? I don't want to have to restart my collection...again.
12. I'm always slightly terrified when I exit out of Word and it asks me if I want to save any changes to my ten-page research paper that I swear I did not make any changes to.
13. I hate when I just miss a call by the last ring (Hello? Hello?), but when I immediately call back, it rings nine times and goes to voice mail. What did you do after I didn't answer? Drop the phone and run away?
14. I hate leaving my house confident and looking really good and then not seeing anyone of importance the entire day. What a waste!
15. I keep some people's phone numbers in my phone just so I know not to answer when they call.
16. I think the freezer deserves a light as well.
17. I disagree with Kay Jewelers. I would bet on any given Friday or Saturday night more kisses begin with Miller Lite than with Kay.
18. I wish Google Maps had an "Avoid BAD Neighborhood" routing option.
19. Sometimes, I'll watch a movie that I watched when I was younger and suddenly realize I had no idea what the heck was going on when I first saw it.
20. I would rather try to carry 10 grocery bags in each hand than take 2 trips to bring my groceries from the car into the house.
21. The only time I look forward to a red light is when I'm trying to finish a text, change my shoes or finish applying my mascara.
22. Sometimes I have a hard time deciphering the fine line between boredom and hunger.
23. How many times do you suppose it is OK to say "What?" before you just nod and smile because you still didn't hear, understand or you just weren't paying attention to a word they just said?
24. I love the sense of camaraderie when an entire line of cars team up to prevent a jerk from cutting in to your lane. Stay strong, brothers and sisters!
25. Shirts get dirty. Underwear gets dirty. Pants? Pants never get dirty, and you can wear them forever.
26. Is it just me or do teenagers get dumber & dumber every year?
27. There's no worse feeling than that millisecond you're sure you are going down after leaning your chair back just a tad too far.
28. Sometimes I'll look down at my watch 3 consecutive times and still not know what time it is.
29. Even under ideal conditions people have trouble locating their car keys in a pocket or purse, finding their cell phone, and Pinning the Tail on the Donkey - but I'd bet a lot that everyone can find and push the snooze button from 3 feet away, in about 1.7 seconds, eyes closed, pitch black, first time, every time!