Tyler Redden | Thoughts along the way...

Tired & Sore

2009-01-04T19:01:00.004-05:00

I had one of those nights last night in which I didn't sleep very well. Actually, I woke up every hour.

I kept having weird dreams - dreams that were, no doubt, leftover from last night. We played maui (a card game - however you spell it) with some friends. It's basically crazy eights, but with a bunch of extra rules. Plus, when someone wins a round, they get to make a new rule, on top of the old ones. When you go on to the next round and forget any of the previous rules, you get cards thrown at you until you figure out what you did. Fun, but frustrating.

So I kept having dreams where I would be looking for 3's, 7's, etc. then worrying about the rules.

It occurred to me that as I got up, pretty tired, that I didn't sleep because of the game we played last night. I was feeling the effects of a fun night.

Then all these other memories of the last two weeks came running through my head, and the effects of them:

My right arm is sore from playing the Wii with some friends, and later renting the game ourselves.

I've gotten a headache in the last few days from laughing so hard.

My stomach has hurt as well from laughing so hard.

I am sure that I weigh more because of so much eating that has gone on with people the last couple of weeks.

I thought to myself that this is what I will remember from the holidays and time off this year. The people that we were blessed enough to spend time with, the fun that we had, and being 'sore' the next day.

So, to summarize - we're tired. We're sore.

We love it.

2008 in review

2008-12-30T12:07:00.002-05:00

I just took some time and read through my blog entries for 2008. I was pretty amazed.

Having never done a blog before, it was really nice to be able to look back and see what 2008 looked like for me. I noticed a trend though - I have had fewer posts these past few months than when I started. I'm going to try and blog more in 2009. It was invaluable for me to be able to look back and remember the year.

Here are the highlights:

Started a blog
Had an amazing youth conference, “Re-Created”
Collide worship band recorded 2 original songs
Met my goal of reading at least 1 book/month
Traveled to Washington DC with friends

Met Mark Batterson – author, pastor
Was inspired to start a coffee house that’s open for business during the day and have an auditorium built on that would function as a church on the weekends.

Said 'see you soon' to our good friends, David & Jodi Eash as they made the move to Illinois, on their way to Wisconsin ultimately.
Led worship (along with the other Youth leaders) for one night during Collide - the only time this year!(The kids are probably thankful for that)
Read ‘Communicating for a change’ – transformed the way I prepare and deliver messages.
Put our house on the market, only to take it off due to financial difficulties. Wondered what God was doing, discovered what He was doing 3 months later (when we decided to move back to Montana in 2009)
Had countless Fridays going out of town spending time with my Wife (loved those days!)
Held our 1^st annual watermelon eating contest – watched people throw up from eating watermelon (we even got it recorded!)
Kicked off the ‘We Are Family’ series – outstanding time for the church!
Joined Twitter
Joined Facebook
Spent the fourth of July in Rockford, IL with David & Jodi.
Bought a Wii, became a tennis & bowling pro (yes, that's a highlight)
Through the 21 series, I established a ‘New Normal’ and began running. I ran 3.5 miles for the first time in my life.
Welcomed my newest nephew, Trey Mitchell Redden, into the world.
Had a great unexpected weekend in Chicago with friends before going back to MT for a couple weeks. (Why didn't Bob Evans have Ribs that night?)
Spent 2 weeks with family & friends in MT

Got a tattoo (that my oldest brother drew) to honor my parents
Toured Gates of the Mountains
Climbed MT Helena with the coolest kid I know (my brother Bridger)
Had conversations that would ultimately affect the next several years of our lives

Attended my first demo derby (there was even a Superman car there. He was horrible. He got creamed right away)
For a date night, we had dinner by campfire in the backyard. Then our firepit exploded.
Attended the LifeLinks Leadership conference in Medicine Hat. Got to meet up with old friends, as well as make new ones.
Attended Catalyst One Day in Granger, IN. Got to see Andy Stanley and Craig Groschel in person. Learned so much that day.
Made the decision to move to Montana in April 2009.
Celebrated my 30^th birthday in Chicago at Medieval Times

On top of the highlights, I have to say that this year I felt like I learned a lot about myself. How I interact with people, my strengths, my weaknesses, what makes me tick - that also has been invaluable to me.

Looking forward to what 2009 brings!

Shopping Done?

2008-12-20T20:23:00.002-05:00

Everyone knows what Black Friday is. Well what about Black Last-Weekend-Before-Christmas?

We went to Battle Creek today for a relaxing day out of town. Hit some stores, the mall, etc. It was absolutely crazy everywhere! People going nuts to get that last-minute gift.

But, I can't complain. With all the craziness that was Battle Creek, we did end up having a great day and we got all our shopping done - with 5 days to spare!

Medieval Times

2008-12-12T08:19:00.002-05:00

So excited for this weekend! This morning we leave for Schaumburg, IL - home of Medieval Times! It's something I've wanted to do forever and Leslie has planned for us to make a weekend of it as we celebrate me turning the big 3-0.

Bring it on.

What's Next

2008-12-07T16:24:00.002-05:00

Here is an update of some things coming up for Leslie & I.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TbV-8HkTIEk

The Next 5

2008-11-16T20:32:00.003-05:00

Last week we met together as a staff for some 'saturated' pancakes.

As we were all finishing up with our breakfast, we had the beginnings of a really good conversation.

The question was a philosophical one - what will the church (not just GCF but the church as a whole) look like in the next 5 years?

It really had me thinking for the rest of the week. So I thought that I would jot down a few things that I think are going to be critical for the church, as well as the people in it, in the next 5 years.

1. Transparency

Without a doubt, this is huge. One of the biggest problems in the church today is that people have hurts or issues they want help/counsel with, but they don't speak up because all they see is perfect people in the church. They end up thinking they're the only ones who are dealing with ___________.

If the church is going to grow and be a force to be reckoned with, we have to be willing to be real and transparent. Now I'm not talking about glorifying sin or being given license to sin, I'm just talking about being real, transparent & honest with each other. Because here's the truth - when we're transparent, it gives other people permission to do the same. If the church is going to be viewed as a safe haven, where all are welcome, transparency needs to be part of it's DNA.

2. Relationships

Can't stress this one enough. It's often been said that people will walk in the front doors of the church for the preaching (or the music or the _________), but they stay for three reasons - one of which is relationships.

I believe relationships are critical to every aspect of our lives. The church needs to be a breeding ground for relationships. Real, authentic relationships of people doing life together. Inclusive rather than exclusive. The people that you actually WANT to hang out with on a Friday night. People you count on for good conversations. People that watch your kids. That's what makes coming together on a Sunday morning so fun. The church needs to be a family, where there's always room for more.

3. Power of God

Let's face it - there are some big issues out there. People are ashamed of their past, are just 'surviving' in the present and are worried about their future. We are living in a time where one sermon ain't gonna cure our problems, and the latest self-help book won't make a dent. We've got significant questions and we need significant answers. More than any other time when I've been alive, I see people having an open mind, and legitimate need towards the supernatural side of God.

I think too often that which we fear imprisons us. We see so many things that make us apprehensive towards the things of God that we are willing to not even take a chance.

I can safely say that I was the same way. I had plenty of questions and I saw enough people to keep me out of the church for good. Then I got to a point in my life that I didn't have all the answers. I got to a point where I said, "ok, I'll check it out". I'm glad I did. I'm glad I didn't let that which I feared, imprison me. Because it was at that time that I decided to have an experience for myself that I encountered the supernatural side of God and my life hasn't been the same since.

Critics say that God is a crutch for weak-minded people. I can't change their opinion. But they can't change mine either. I would encourage such people to have an open mind and to walk with God for a bit and then tell me what the weak part is - I'd love to see it :)

4. Communicating for today

I love this topic. Simply put - the message can't change, but the packaging HAS to change.

Gone are the days when people sit and listen to a 2 hour sermon. It's a waste of time. Yep, I just said that. I believe it's a waste of time for the people listening and the person that prepared it. You might have some great revelation that God himself spoke to you, but if it's wrapped in the middle of a 2-hour long sermon, it's safe to assume your audience won't get it. The mind can only absorb what the butt can endure. Better to split up a talk that long into several messages. Sunday comes again next week, just like this week.

I believe that our job as leaders, especially those that communicating is part of their responsibility, is to present the Bible in a way that is honoring to God. Communicating in a way that is a catalyst for producinglife change in the people that are listening to it.

Personally, I'll use whatever method I can if it means that a person will understand the Bible more than when they came in. That means videos, movies, dramas, music (both secular and Christian), dance - whatever it takes for a person to have a love for the Bible, and ultimately, for God.

5. Growing & Going

I admit, that sounds a bit churchy, but for some reason I like it :)

I talked quite a bit about this in my last message at GCF. Again, simply put, it means we take responsibility for our faith and then we use the growth we are experiencing and share it with the world. That means that there is more to our spiritual walk than Sunday morning.

Here's a great quote I recently heard: "What you put in your mind eventually gets to your heart. And whatever is in your heart becomes your pursuit." Our spiritual growth needs to be what we are pursuing. Only 12% of people today attend church. That means statistically, your friends will have a spiritual conversation with you before they walk into a church.

We need to grow, and then go. It's vital.

Well I admit that got long, but those are the 5 that I see. I'd love to hear your comments and/or some trends that you see.

My list

2008-11-11T10:24:00.002-05:00

I talked on Sunday about my task list and how everything on it was very 'right now' sort of things.

As I look at my list today and for the upcoming weeks, it is very different. There's still some 'right now' tasks on there, but 80% of my tasks are all future-planning type stuff that either require me to organize or think creatively.

Love it!

Sunday

2008-11-10T08:19:00.002-05:00

Had a lot of fun giving the morning message yesterday. I got to speak on a topic that I really enjoy - revolutionary spiritual growth (how you grow as a Christian).

I tried a new approach to sermon prep. My goal was to do the whole sermon without notes. I've seen it done before and it really impressed me. I've always wanted to have the information so a part of me, that it just comes out, without notes.

Consequently, that took quite a bit more work.

Usually what I do is start with a bare bones structure for the sermon. A lot of that taken from Andy Stanley's, "Communicating for a change". After my structure is complete, I will write out the sermon, word for word - just to get all my thoughts down on paper.

Usually at that time, I'll just study what I've written, etc. This time I broke down the sermon into paragraphs and assigned a one sentence intro to the paragraph. I then memorized the one sentence intros and the general flow of the message.

I really enjoyed it. I felt freed up - I wasn't relying on a piece of paper. Now the sermon didn't go exactly as it was on paper - never does! (Which I'm thankful for!)

Funny thing happened while I was speaking - I was differentiating between spiritual growth and revolutionary spiritual growth. To illustrate that, I was explaining four habits of spiritual growth, equating each one of those to the ingredients of a strawberry smoothie - which I was making on stage (apron and all!)

Once I blended the smoothie, I took a drink of it and a lot of the powder mix must have been underneath the straw. I got a big gulp! It was pretty funny to me!

If you missed any part of the message, it will be posted on the GCF Website.

America

2008-11-05T08:01:00.002-05:00

I was thinking this morning about the election results and just how much of a history-making night it was last night and how for the first time in history, we have an African-American president. That in itself is amazing.

I was also thinking of our friend, Deo Mwanje, from Uganda, Africa.

When Deo was here a couple weeks ago he was watching all the campaign coverage with us. He said something that is ringing in my ears this morning.

We were discussing how politics work in Uganda. He said that they are similar to the US in that the country becomes divided with party loyalties, etc. He said that remains even after the election. All the drama we've seen from the two campaigns - he said that it's like that all the time in Uganda.

We went on to discuss how it's different in America. Oh sure, America is definitely divided pre-election. Some McCain supporters, Some Obama supporters. But as we're now on the other side of the election and we see the results, I believe that we are able to rally behind a leader and get some things done. It doesn't mean that we're all going to magically agree on everything we've been talking about the last few months, but there is a coming together. Almost a 'ok, we've got clarity at the wheel -- let's get down to business'.

I'm thankful this morning that we as a country can have spirited conversations, make our voice heard, and in the end, no matter who wins, be a country that can come together after it's done and accomplish some things.

Medicine Hat

2008-10-26T17:06:00.002-04:00

Every October LifeLinks does an international leadership conference in Medicine Hat, Alberta, Canada.

The experience at this year's conference was incredible on several levels. It was good not only because of what we heard there, but also because of the people. We saw a lot of old friends and also made some new ones.

I have so much stuff to process - I actually didn't want to read on the plane on the way home because there was so much stuff in my head already.

I'll be blogging a bunch of my thoughts from the conference in the days to come.

Definitely worth the trip.

Quarter of a point

2008-10-21T08:14:00.004-04:00

I play in a fantasy football league in Yahoo where you pick different players across different teams. How well they do reflects on your score - if the QB you choose scores a touchdown in his game, you get 6 points, etc.

My team, the Barbaric Barbarians, went ahead and pulled out the victory by a quarter of a point. That is by far the closest game I've ever seen in fantasy football.

I actually thought I was going to lose - I had Morris & Welker from the Patriots left - both playing last night. Morris was my trump card - I was hoping to get 25+ points out of him. He got injured and went out at the half.

Somehow I squeaked out the victory. By a quarter of a point.

Go Barbarians!

Remembering

2008-10-19T16:07:00.002-04:00

We had a trememdous amount of fun today during our service.

A couple weeks ago our worship leader, Ross Eicher, asked everyone what songs they would like to hear during an upcoming worship service. He let everyone know that he would comprise his worship list today from those songs.

What a great idea.

There were songs that I haven't heard in years. When the familiar chords began to play, I instantly remembered my days of leading worship at Lighthouse Church in Helena, MT. It was a church plant that was being pastored by my first pastor, John Swanson. It was in that church that I really learned a lot about life and ministry and made some friendships that are still foundational to my life today.

Hearing those songs today and remembering my roots was a good reminder for me. It made me realize that one of the dangers in ministry for me is that sometimes I confuse my own Christianity with my job. It's the fine line between giving out & receiving. Today was a good day to sit back and receive. It was fun to take that trip down memory lane.

Ross even managed to put "Awesome God" in the list. :)

Praying for the Kennedy's Today

2008-10-15T09:19:00.001-04:00

At GCF, we have designated today as a day to pray for Lee Kennedy and his family. Lee, with his wife Pat, moved to Houston, TX for work and has been battling stomach cancer over the past year. Today we will be praying for Lee and his family, and for a complete miracle in Lee’s body.

Please take some time today and offer up a prayer on behalf of the Kennedy's.

Hawks v. The Pack

2008-10-12T15:27:00.003-04:00

Today the Seahawks are taking on the Packers. It's actually a game that I got invited to go to in Seattle. A friend of mine had tickets 7 rows up from the 30-yard line.

Due to some schedule things, I couldn't make it. What a bummer!

The good thing though is that this will be the first Seahawks game I've actually gotten to watch all year - not a lot of them make their way over to Michigan via regular programming. If the Hawks aren't playing the Bears, Colts, Lions or Packers I probably won't see the game.

There is a bit of conflict within me though. Even though I'm a Seahawks fan, Aaron Rodgers from GB is my Fantasy Football QB AND I have GB's Defense. So I don't think I'm going to be able to have it both ways. I'll either have a great day in Fantasy Land, or the Seahawks will win. Not sure which one I want to happen. I guess it depends on how well I'm doing with my other players.

At any rate, I'm excited to be watching the game. Go Hawks!

Update:

Just got the above picture from my friend, Jerrad. That picture was taken from his seat!

On my way to 5

2008-10-10T21:26:00.002-04:00

Today was a day that I had to push it.

I did my exercise routine today - part of which includes running. My top has been 3 miles. Well at 2 miles I felt pretty good, so I decided to see if I could push it and go 3.5. I am proud to say that I did it - ran 3 1/2 miles - felt really good. Although I will say the last .2 miles were a bit tough.

I've been doing something I haven't done before. Usually I'll listen to music on my phone's speaker but recently I have been using headphones - really liking the difference! Now I don't have to listen to me breathe hard!

On my way to 5! Never done that before!

Dinner by campfire

2008-10-02T18:34:00.003-04:00

Came home to a nice surprise tonight.

Leslie informed me to expect something special tonight. It's Thursday, which is always like a Friday night for us (I get Fridays off) so I wasn't sure what she had up her sleeve.

As I came home, she told me that we were staying home for dinner - sort of. As she led me into the kitchen, She directed me to the back window, where I saw two lawn chairs setup in front of our fire pit, along with wood, paper, matches, hotdogs & marshmallows.

A nice fall evening outside, dinner with my Wife, and getting to build a fire. Is there anything better?

Thanks, hon.

Outstanding Video

2008-09-29T13:03:00.003-04:00

We're begun a series at GCF entitled, "Revolution".

It's all about understanding basic Biblical practices at a heart level. The 'Revolutionary' part is not the concepts - these concepts are nothing new. These are the same concepts that have been around for 2000 years. The Revolutionary part is us actively participating in them and making them part of our lives.

A couple weeks ago we covered Revolutionary Evangelism. Check out this video that I just watched on the subject. It's honest and straightforward. It challenged me.

http://www.worshiphousemedia.com/index.cfm?hndl=details&tab=MM&id=7868

Eagle Eye review

2008-09-29T08:38:00.002-04:00

Eagle Eye opened up this weekend - it's the new movie with Shia LaBeouf.

We went to Three Rivers on Friday to see it. Decided to go to the early 11:00 show. Out of the whole theater, we were there and 2 other guys. 4 people. I wonder how they make any money on those early matinees?

In any case....

The movie was great - it reminded me a lot of Enemy of the State (with Will Smith and Gene Hackman). Even though there were similarities, there was much left to figure out. Great story, great action - great movie. We were highly impressed with it.

Don't wait to rent it - definitely a theater movie.

Hopes up....then utterly destroyed

2008-09-19T19:53:00.003-04:00

So there Leslie and I were at Wal-Mart, getting some groceries, when we passed the RedBox machine. We both perused the selection of movies when we both decided on a movie to get: she wanted "Baby Mama", I wanted "88 Minutes".

It seemed we were at an impass. We couldn't remember who got the last movie rental pick. So we walked around Wal-Mart as we decided.

Then we came up with the idea that the decision would be won over a came of rock-paper-scissors, best 2 out of 3.

Round 1 came and went, I won. Paper covered rock.

Round 2 came and went, I won again. Again, paper covered rock (we laughed quite a bit at that one).

So we went around, got some groceries as I basked in my victory.

We checked out and I was like a little boy at Christmas going to get my movie.

We started the RedBox machine up, went to pick out the movie.....and....what's this? It's not there? IT WAS OUT!!!! AARRRRGGGHHHH!!!

My loving Wife assured me I could pick something else out, but there was nothing we wanted to see. So, after all that, we rented.....you guessed it.....Baby Mama.

I do get a nice consolation prize though: home-baked chocolate chip cookies :)

The Derby

2008-09-18T10:19:00.002-04:00

Almost ashamed to admit this, but I've never been to a demo derby before. I went last night to the one at the fair. Other than eating crud (didn't quite get to C3 last night) and paying for it later, it was a great time.

I'm convinced that there is no more guy-oriented thing than what I saw last night.

I pictured how demo derbys were invented - probably two guys that had $500 beater cars were hanging out together, complaining about how each of their cars were on their last leg. Then one said to the other, "Hey, rather than continue to drive these cars, how about we rip everything out of them, weld the doors shut, then crash into one another until one of us can't move anymore".

"That'd be fun, let's do it."

Thus, the first demo derby had been established.

What a cool thing.

The Abnormal

2008-09-17T08:34:00.003-04:00

Been thinking the last couple days about, and been inspired by, those people you meet in life who are abnormal.

I don't mean weird. I mean abnormal.

There are people in all walks of life, in various arenas, that have decided that they will not be normal. They will be abnormal. They are abnormal because they make abnormal choices. Instead of sleeping in, they get up early and exercise. Instead of coming home and plopping down in front of the tv, they engage their family. Instead of their Christian walk comprising of Sunday morning, they carve out time in the week to meet with God. Abnormal choices, abnormal results.

Again, these are abnormal choices. They don't reflect the majority. The easy thing for us all to do is to be normal. To 'go with the flow'. Take whatever life gives us. Let the world establish our routine.

But as I look around and see the people that are really excelling at things - especially those that are known - I see things they did early in their life to produce abnormal results.

The danger for me is that I am comforted by the majority. When I'm not doing any one particular thing, I talk with someone else and find out they're not doing it either and I find comfort. A silent acceptance comes over me of, "Well he's not doing it either, so I'm ok".

I think that's what's led me to where I am now.

I've been feeling rather undisciplined lately in a lot of different areas. The last couple of days I've been realizing it. It's been nothing major, but I'm a firm believer in the choices you make today will form your tomorrow.

So, I decided I want to be abnormal.

I've identified 8 areas in my life that I want to be abnormal - sort of my 'C8'. Every day I want to make abnormal choices that will benefit at least one of the C8 areas. A great day would be where I touch every one of the areas.

In case you're curious, my C8 areas are:

1. Communicating - actually spending time praying, rather than getting up to pray and falling asleep then waking up just in time to go to work. This is a season in life I really need to be listening.

2. Cardio - getting back to the running routine I established in August. I WILL run 5 miles.

3. Consumption - watching what I eat (darn value meals make it SO easy to eat cruddy)

4. Canon - I really prefer reading the Bible thoroughly, taking time to study the context and things that were happening in that day. I've tried the plans where I read X amount/day. For me, sometimes that works, sometimes it doesn't. I've gone back to what works for me.

5. Contemplation - It's amazing what thoughts run through my head in an average day. Been trying really hard to "take every thought captive" (2 Cor 1:4-5).

6. Calling - Anything that will make me better at what I do. That includes reading authors, having challenging conversation with people, taking further classes, etc. I'm a believer that we need to be continually innovating the way we do ministry. We can run into trouble when we start doing ministry from memory.

7. Creating - As many of you know, I also have a graphic design business that I own. If I'm not learning new techniques, I'm relying on the old ones. Not good in a technology-based business.

8. Companion - I want my Wife to be spoiled. I want to have good conversations and quality moments with her. I never want to stop courting her.

The funny thing is that a list like this could feel overwhelming, but it actually does the opposite for me. Now that I've outlined the goals, and I've decided that I probably won't hit each one every day, it gives me freedom to know that I HAVE hit certain ones. (Proverbs 29:18 - Where there is no vision, the people perish)

When I see someone who is in great shape I get inspired to get back running. I hope that we all live abnormally and inspire others to do the same.

Why I love fall

2008-09-16T19:37:00.002-04:00

Fall has got to be the best season of the year.

Each year I debate whether I like spring or fall best. Well, it took me 29 years, but I finally figured it out - Fall is the best season of the year.

Here are my reasons:

It's not 90-some dang degrees outside anymore.
You can sleep with a window open.
Leaves start to turn colors that are all shades of awesome.
Football!!!!
Fantasy Football!!! (This year is my year!)
Reruns = over New Seasons = Begin (incidentally, the season premiere for House and Smallville happen this week!)
Brisk evening walks.
The holidays are right around the corner.

Gotta love Fall.

Object Permanence

2008-09-08T08:10:00.002-04:00

I read something interesting this weekend that made me think.

It was out of John Eldredge's book, "Walking With God" (a great book!)

He writes about object permanence - the understanding that just because you can't see a thing right now doesn't mean it no longer exists.

Think of the stars - you see those every night, but then when the day comes, they're gone. They haven't gone anywhere - you just can't see them anymore.

I thought about that in terms of our faith. It's so easy for me to be full of faith and ready to act right after I hear God speaking something (when the stars are out). But then, after a while when some time has passed (the day comes and the stars vanish), how quickly I lose heart and begin to wonder. Just because I can't 'see' whatever it is anymore.

I guess that's what Paul was talking about when he wrote in Romans,
"But hope that is seen is no hope at all. Who hopes for what he already has? 25 But if we hope for what we do not yet have, we wait for it patiently."

That's why we're encouraged to focus on what is unseen (eternal things), rather than on what is seen (temporary things). (2 cor 4:18) If I keep focusing on the fact that I can't see the stars right now, I'll lose hope. Rather, I need to focus on what is unseen, remember what God has spoken, combine that with faith, and know that if God has spoken and promised something to one of his sons, He will be faithful to fulfill it.

That's His nature.

Food Poisoning?

2008-09-02T19:44:00.002-04:00

Ever have one of those nights when you wake up every half hour? And when you do sleep your dreams are so wacked out that you don't want to go back to sleep?

Yeah, I had one of those last night.

We ate some fast food yesterday for lunch that I think I picked up a little something from. Felt fine before eating, but afterward my stomach was a bit off all day.

We got home from a fun labor day with friends. About 7:30 I plopped down on the couch, feeling cold. I knew that wasn't good. Took my temp - it was 100.9. So at 9:00, I went to bed.

The night would follow with waking up a lot, then having to visit the facilities a lot. Needless to say, I was pretty useless today. I went into work to do some things that needed to get done, then came home early to get some rest. Feeling better now, but there's still a headache that is hanging on.

I checked out WebMD and looked up food poisoning - all the symptoms fit. My fever has subsided and I think I'll feel fine tomorrow.

I'm looking forward to sleeping tonight!

a reason to pray

2008-09-01T21:23:00.002-04:00

Some very sad news today:

Judi Ahumada passed away suddenly at her home around 1:20 p.m. today.

Please pray for God’s peace and comfort for Lupe, the children, Gloria Whitmore (Judi’s sister), and other family members as well.

Dealing with a death is never easy - it's even tougher when it's sudden like this. As you read this, take a moment and pray for the family.

Please - it's important.