And the Rat Race Winds Down

With my FL-NC and Inter-Florida holiday traveling finished I can finally rest for a few moments, or days, before returning to the frozen Northland on the 3rd. Christmas was wonderful; Grandma, Dad, and I attended the Christmas Eve service at her church, Grace Episcopal where Fr. Don Curran delivered a beautiful sermon and celebrated a wonderful Christmas Eve Mass. Surprisingly, he left out his normal Christmas Eve line, which he had said the previous four or five years. In it's place he told the story of the athiest and the bear:

An athiest was out hunting one day and spied a bear. He raised his rifle and fired, but missed and the bear charged him. Frantically trying to reload, the athiest saw the bear rapidly approaching. The athiest dropped his gun and began to run, crying out, "O God!! Help me!!" Freeze Frame. Everything stops. A voice - "I see you've finally decided to believe in me." The athiest - "I suppose so." A voice - "And are you willing to believe in the saving grace of my son Jesus and become a Christian?" The athiest - "I don't think I'm willing to go that far yet. But I'll make you a deal - why don't you make the bear a Christian?" A voice - "Done." Un-Freeze Frame. The bear catches the athiest and drives him to the ground, burying his claws deep in the athiest's chest. Then the bear pauses and says, "O Lord, for that which we are about to receive..."

Anyway, it was a fine sermon about the gift of God, Jesus Christ, His only Son, our Lord.

On the 27th, we traveled to Brooksville as a family (plus Sarah, my cousin) to spend the day at Uncle Brent and Aunt Kristine's house where Aunt Joy, Uncle Steve, and Ronnie were also present. Joey, Brent and Kristine's 2 year old son, was awesome! He treated us to a variety of hugs, exclamations, and even a somewhat halting, but nonetheless amazing (for a two year old!!!) rendition of the first two verses to "White Christmas"! Good job Joey! The day was lovely, the meat cooked to perfection, and the time with family a needed respite.

Today, I've got a few things on which to work and several things upon which to ponder. One being that all my prayers go out to those affected by the devastating earthquake in Iran - 25,000+ dead is unbelievable. I'll think on other news items as well, not the least of which is the story printed in the NY Times that the Diocese of SW Florida, my diocese, would be pursuing with 12 other dioceses, special accomodation within the Anglican Council outside of ECUSA. The fact is that is not true; see the full story here. Bishop Lipscomb has been and remains a voice of concerned moderation in this entire controversy. While he opposes the consecration of Gene Robinson, he has no intentions of leaving the Episcopal Church. He did serve on a committee that drafted a Theology Statement for "a network of confessing dioceses and parishes", which we hope brings understanding and continued conversation with our brothers and sisters of different minds.

So, that is that. God is still on the throne. The sun shone this morning. 'Cold Mountain' the movie did justice to the book. Life goes on.