Today the altar and podiums went into St. George’s in Muncie and the sign went up on the street.  It is all coming together, but it is not coming together without sacrifice.

PT, on Wednesday and on one of the last pieces of trim for the altar, had his saw kick back and cut his finger severely.  It was and is a mess.  He thought he would lose the end of his finger, but they sewed back what was there.  It however, will not be the same.

Still, PT was up with Deacon Kim and I this morning to deliver the altar and podiums he had made and to help install the signs.  AND, a week from tomorrow he will be at the Open House at St. George’s as well……in addition to doing some services this weekend.

It however is very typical of the dedication of the people in the Order to the work they do.  Sure, PT could be compared to the Black Knight in that Monty Python picture, but in all honesty, he is far more well-adjusted.  It is just part of the idea of sacrifice.  And he would have it no other way.

So tonight’s picture is of the altar, podiums and sign.  It is coming along!  Pray that we continue to move ahead.  And pray that PT continues to heal!

Goodnight my friends and God Bless!

Tommy+

Today has been a wild day, and very frustrating in parts, but in the end a fine one.  Although I was in Muncie to put our signs up and my drill died, I still was able to get home to take Stephanie to the doctor.  It was a great success!!!  She is fixed (no, not like a dog) but her heart has been fixed and today she was totally released to return to playing lacrosse for her college!

Honestly, there has been so much stress for us all over this, that it was finally nice to put it all to rest.  She LOVES playing lacrosse, but more than that, it’s her HEART and she NEEDS IT TO WORK!!  And today’s exam included a post procedure EKG to make sure that what they did to fix it did not do any lasting damage.  The good news is that it all turned out okay.

And while she was in her appointment, Ben and I went to the cafeteria at the hospital where he decided to take a few pictures.  So to celebrate, one of them is the picture for tonight’s post!

What a great day!

Goodnight my friends and God Bless!

Tommy+

Everything I read today is about Chick-fil-A and all that surrounds it.  I went there myself today, twice, to support not only their values (which I support) but also their right to express them.  Unfortunately, the wait was far longer either time than I could spare.  I however was impressed with the response.  Scotty actually worked there for a time, and it was a great company.

Two days from now, apparently others who disagree with Chick-fil-A’s values will come and attempt to express their views with a protest.  I am not surprised by this, but saddened by it, because it comes from a movement that seems to want tolerance, but defines it as “only if you agree with us.”

I came from such a place.  I spent the majority of my ordained career in the Episcopal Church which preached a gospel (SMALL g) of tolerance, but practiced it poorly.  Tolerance, inclusion, all the buzz words but there was never any room for me….someone with traditional values.  And it was only when I left that they insisted that there was “room at the table for everyone.”  But I was an enabler.  As long as I was there that could be preached as truth, but in fact it was a lie.  Ironically, I retired, yet despite not being a part of them, they still charged me, had a trial, and convicted me…..declaring me unfit for ministry.  And this is probably one of the most honest things I could ever say…..”ironic” is probably, by far, too insufficient of a word.  These people were some of the worst I have ever encountered.

But getting back to my point…..at some point in this life sex came to the forefront of what defines us, and that to me is unfortunate.  In truth, I do not need to know what you do in your bedroom, and in all honesty, that should not define you.  Everybody is in need of redemption, and everybody deserves respect.  I am not responsible for your soul and you are not responsible for mine.  We can speak what we believe is the truth to each other, which I will continue to do, but beating and extorting each other should be “out of bounds.”   We live in a world where people are not just wounded by such things, but they can be destroyed.  I have been the victim of such attempted destruction.  I will not set out to do it to anyone else.

On August 3rd, I will go to Chick-fil-A again.  You can too.  I will have a chicken sandwich, and I will if need be, encourage people to not destroy one another, and offer to pray for them (on both sides of these issues).

I am a traditionalist….and I feel strongly about my beliefs. I am not a “hater, a “bigot,” a “homophobe,” or even a bad guy.  Let’s just grow up…..this is not junior high.  It’s life.  And the best thing we can do is to act like adults and to treat each other with respect.  You see, when you do not agree with something or someone, stop patronizing it.  Extortion is an ugly thing, and never leads to anything good.

Goodnight my friends and God Bless!

Tommy+

Yes, the picture is an old one of Ben at a hotel waiting for his mom to take him down to the pool…..pretty cute, but very appropriate for tonight’s blog post entitled “I’m ready.”  You see I am ready for a lot of things, and tonight I wish to mention just a few.

1.  I’m ready for what divides us to not be the defining marker of human relationships.
2.  I’m ready for politicians to represent the people who put them in office and not be such dirtbags.
3.  I’m ready to not know what everyone’s sexuality is as if that is my business to know or yours to tell me.
4.  I’m ready for you to respect the right to my beliefs as you expect me to respect yours.
5.  I’m ready for people to respect the rights of others to have their beliefs and not resort to extortion.
6.  I’m ready for people to deal fair and honorably with each other.
7.  I’m ready for common sense and concern for others be put in front of self-interest.
8.  I’m ready for people to not put me in a box as a conservative Christian and pastor.
9.  I’m ready for a new and better future.

This is just a SMALL list for me, but an important one.  And I am ready to do my part to start making many of these things happen.

Off to bed I go…..

Goodnight my friends and God Bless!

Tommy+

I am not quite sure which superhero is responsible, but at this point none of them are talking.  For I had been planning to prank my daughter Stephanie for over a year and on Friday I put that plan into action.

Yes, on the way home from doing some work at St. George’s in Muncie with Ben and Scott, we stopped at a BAIT STORE where I bought $3.00 worth of crickets.  The idea seemed fool-proof.  We got home and took the crickets out of their sealed bait shop container and put them into Ben’s “bug box.”  There were 35-40 of those little boogers and the plan was to sneak them up into Steph’s room and hide THE BOX before she went to bed.  So that when the lights went off the concert would begin.

Steph went out, Scotty delivered the crickets, and then nothing was said……for days.

Apparently crickets make noise in the dark to FIND EACH OTHER but when they are all hanging out, let’s say in a bug box, they just “chill” (“chill” – young people’s lingo for loitering).  So when Steph never complained, yesterday I sent Scott to get the bug box……but it was gone.  And soon Steph was asking me about crickets she was finding (in a VERY SUSPICIOUS WAY) and then they began to appear elsewhere.

Of course no one knows where the bug box is, nor how the crickets got out.  I imagine there is a superhero involved but the ones I have interrogated are not talking.

There is most probably a moral to this story, but I believe it is still playing itself out.  But it is surely a victory for cricket freedom if such a thing exists.  And although I have my suspects, I must confess….one man’s suspect is another cricket’s hero.

Goodnight my friends and God Bless!

Tommy+  

I DO NOT miss Sundays, but today I did.  And I missed it, not for me, but for others.

Over the weekend I was not feeling well.  I had a temperature, and last night, even after Motrin, I was at 102 degrees.  My stubbornness said go, but my head won over.  There were THREE of us scheduled at St. Patrick’s and they assured me they would be fine.

And they were.  And as hard as it as for me to stay home, the lesson was a good one.  The Lord has raised up some spectacular people in our ministry, and in truth, they can actually cover, if not exceed, for me!  AND THEY DID………

Yes, my post is short tonight because I am STILL under the weather, but my gratefulness is never ending….

The Lord is doing marvelous things!!!  Can you see it??  I can!!!  And I am excited about being a part of what He is doing in our part of the world!!

Goodnight my friends and God Bless!

Tommy+

I was always of the mindset that as an athlete you play smarter, not harder…..sometimes however, harder gives the edge.

I approach my day tomorrow with that philosophy.  I have felt awful all last night and for much of the day, and as I get ready for bed tonight my temperature is at 102……Ben’s is at 100.  And since I am one of three clergy scheduled for tomorrow at St. Pat’s, I have already sent word to the other two that I may not be making it.  They are both very capable guys and will do fine, even though I am scheduled to deliver the sermon.  But if I am sick and go, others can be exposed.  And for how I feel now, I would hate to think of giving it to anyone.  If I feel fine when I get up I will be there, but I am VERY DOUBTFUL that I will be making it.

On an up-note, Amanda, Steph, and a bunch of her friends ran in the “Color-Run” today.  It was a 5k and they had a blast.  I often stay out of their “weirdness” and today was such a day.  Amanda left in a white outfit.  The picture is an example of what they went through.  Steph has a BUNCH of pictures of it on Facebook.  Look them up if you have some time.

But as for me, the day is done and I am going to bed.  My head hurts, and it hurts just a little bit more than the rest of my body.  I am hoping that all of this is a memory in the morning………but I am not counting on it!

Goodnight my friends and God Bless!

Tommy+

To confess to you that I am a bit “under the weather” would be a bit of an understatement.  In fact, I feel miserable.  It has RAINED here much of the day, but the fronts that come through often wreck havoc with my head, and today that has been the case.  I have a headache and feel like a SLUG.  I have spent much of the day in bed, but hopefully I can “make the turn” tomorrow.

Headaches can be debilitating.  My wife has migraines and I cannot even imagine.  At one point in my life I had headache all the time….mostly from the weather.  In truth, that was far easier than this.  I was used to them.  Now they hit me hard……tomorrow however, should be a better day.

The fronts should be through the area and my head should clear up….but I AM THANKFUL for the RAIN!!!!!  There may be a shot of my lawn returning to green bu summer’s end.  That would make me very happy!  There is nothing more miserable than all the dust and dry, dead grass from a drought……other than maybe a Cub’s loss…..but I digress.

Saturday is a new day and a new start……….and honestly it cannot start soon enough.

Goodnight my friends and God Bless!

Tommy+

The New Sign

Ben and Scotty joined me up in Muncie this afternoon to do some work at St. George’s.  Tonight’s picture is the design of our sign that arrived today and will be up tomorrow.  And while Ben did his usual disconnected rambling about superheroes and watched Transformers on the computer, Scotty and I finished most of the place up.

We had converted the bathroom into a unisex handicapped bathroom and Scott and I had to put a new toilet in today.  As Scott had not done one before it was a great teaching opportunity and we really made a good team.  Scotty re tiled the floor before installing the new commode and despite TELLING Ben we were removing the old one 10 times, he only had to go in the time between removal and installation.  I swear I think he does it intentionally sometimes.

BEFORE

AFTER

But the good news is that it is done.  The kitchen area and sacristy need some work and we will put furniture in over the weekend.  The sign will go up tomorrow and the web will be updated to show the address and ALL our progress.  So if you know ANYONE in Muncie, tell them to check it out tomorrow and see what we are up to.

And although I am home, sore, and tired, it has been a good day.  St. George’s will open soon, and I am blessed that my family could be a part in it all.

Goodnight my friends and God Bless.

Tommy+

Tonight I had the great pleasure of going to dinner with my family.  Steph has company in from New York and with that, the usual crew…….and we had a great time!

I know it is a somewhat usual thing for me to post about getting to have dinner with all three kids, but I suppose that has a lot to do with how special I feel it is.  But more than that, Steph no longer lives here and Scott is rarely here, so being connected to them and the people in their lives is important to me as well.  And I am always impressed as they seem to be doing quite well and they seem happy too.

Sure, there is a part of me that would like to nose in and be more involved, but that would just not be proper!  They have their own lives and I am a PART, and I try my best to let them navigate it on their own.  My observation is that they do a pretty great job, and I am proud of them.

So now I am home, well fed, and will be able to be asleep by 10!  I even told Ben he could sleep with us and I have not seen much of him this past week and he jumped at the chance.  Life should get back on schedule in the morning.

But for now I am just thankful for the kids we are raising and the lives they are living.  They are a blessing to me, and the people they bring into my life are as well.  It has been a pretty wonderful evening.

Goodnight my friends and God Bless!

Tommy+