Blood Type

It's a Wednesday night and you are at a church prayer meeting when somebody runs in from the parking lot yelling, "Turn on a radio, turn on a radio!" And while the church listens to a little transistor radio with a microphone stuck up to it, the announcement is made: "Two women are lying in a Long Island hospital dying from'mystery' flu." Within hours it seems, this thing just sweeps across the country. People are working around the clock trying to find an antidote. Nothing is working! California, Oregon, Arizona, Georgia, Minnesota, Massachusetts. It's as though it's just sweeping in from the borders. And then, all of a sudden, the news comes out. The code has been broken. A cure can be found.. A vaccine can be made. It's going to take the blood of somebody who hasn't been infected. And so, all through the country, through all those channels of emergency broadcasting, they ask you to do one simple thing: Go to your downtown hospital and have your blood type taken. That's all we ask of you. When you hear the sirens go off in your neighborhood, please make your way quickly, quietly, and safely to the hospitals...

Sure enough, when you and your family get down there late on that Friday night, there is a long line, and they've got nurses and doctors coming out and pricking fingers and taking blood and putting labels on it. Your wife and your kids are out there, and they take your blood type and they say, "Wait here in the parking lot and if we call your name, you can be dismissed and go home." You stand around, scared, with your neighbors, wondering what in the world is going on and if this is the end of the world. Suddenly a young man comes running out of the hospital screaming. He's yelling a name and waving a clipboard. What? He yells it again! And your son tugs on your jacket and says, "Daddy, that's me." Before you know it, they have grabbed your boy. Wait a minute!Hold on! And they say, "It's okay, his blood is clean. His blood is pure. We want to make sure he doesn't have the disease. We think he has got the right type." Five tense minutes later, out come the doctors and nurses, crying and hugging one another... some are even laughing. It's the first time you have seen anybody laugh in a week, and an old doctor walks up to you and says, "Thank you, sir. Your son's blood type is perfect. It's clean, it is pure, and we can make the vaccine." As the word begins to spread all across that parking lot full of folks, people are screaming and praying and laughing and crying.

Then the gray-haired doctor pulls you and your wife aside and says, "May we see you for moment? We didn't realize that the donor would be a minor and we need you to sign a consent form." You begin to sign and then you see that the number of pints of blood to be taken has been left blank. "H-how many pints?" you ask. And that is when the old doctor's smile fades and he says, "We had no idea it would be a little child. We weren't prepared. I'm sorry sir, we need it all!" "But but ... You don't understand." "We are talking about the world here... Please sign. We need it all!" "But can't you give him a transfusion?" "If we had clean blood we would. Can you sign? Would you sign?" In numb silence, you do. Then they say, "Would you like to have a moment with him before we begin?" Can you walk back? Can you walk back to that room where he sits on a table saying, "Daddy? Mommy? What's going on?" Can you take his hands and say, Son, your mommy and I love you, and we would never ever let anything happen to you that didn't just have to be. Do you understand that?" And when that old doctor comes back in and says, "I'm sorry, we've GOT to get started! People all over the world are dying. Can you leave?"

Can you walk out while he is saying, "Daddy? Mommy? Daddy?" "Why, why have you forsaken me?" And then next week, when they have the ceremony to honor your son some folks sleep through it. Some folks don't even come because they go to the lake or the seashore. Some folks come with a pretentious smile and just "pretend" to care. Would you want to jump up and say, "MY SON DIED FOR YOU! DON'T YOU CARE?" Is that what GOD wants to say? "MY SON DIED FOR YOU. DON'T YOU KNOW HOW MUCH I CARE?" "FATHER, Seeing it from YOUR eyes breaks our hearts. Maybe now we can begin to comprehend the great Love YOU have for us."

Oasis/The Fixx-How it All Began

http://www.myspace.com/thefixxokc

The Tapestry Project

http://www.thetapestryproject.org

Get Your Own Dirt

God is sitting in heaven when a scientist says to Him,
"Lord, we don't need you anymore. Science has finally figured out a way to create life out of nothing. In other words, we can now do what you did in the ‘beginning'."

"Oh, is that so? Tell me..." replies God.

"Well", says the scientist, "we can take dirt and form it into the likeness of you and breathe life into it, thus creating man."

"Well, that's interesting.. Show Me. "

So the scientist bends down to the earth and starts to mold the soil.

"Oh no, no, no..." interrupts God. "Get your own dirt."

Why does my prescription take so long to fill?

Ever wonder? Check out this blog. I promise this guy's story is more the rule and not the exception. Seriously! You wonder why I don't work at the pharmacy full time?!

http://drugmonkey.blogspot.com/2006/08/i-realize-today-ive-done-you.html

The Silent Sermon

A member of a certain church, who previously had been attending services regularly, stopped going. After a few weeks, the preacher decided to visit him. It was a chilly evening. The preacher found the man at home alone, sitting before a blazing fire. Guessing the reason for his preacher's visit, the man welcomed him, led him to a comfortable chair near the fireplace and waited. The preacher made himself at home but said nothing. In the grave silence, he contemplated the dance of the flames around the burning logs. After some minutes, the preacher took the fire tongs, carefully picked up a brightly burning ember and placed it to one side of the hearth all alone then he sat back in his chair, still silent. The host watched all this in quiet contemplation. As the one lone ember's flame flickered and diminished, there was a momentary glow and then its fire was no more. Soon it was cold and dead. Not a word had been spoken since the initial greeting. The preacher glanced at his watch and realized it was time to leave. He slowly stood up, picked up the cold, dead ember and placed it back in the middle of the fire. Immediately it began to glow,once more with the light and warmth of the burning coals around it. As the preacher reached the door to leave, his host said with a tear running down his cheek, 'Thank you so much for your visit and especially for the fiery sermon. I shall be back in church next Sunday.' We live in a world today, which tries to say too much with too little. Consequently, few listen. Sometimes the best sermons are the ones left unspoken.

No Dogs Allowed

A dog had followed his owner to school. His owner was a fourth grader at a public elementary school. However, when the bell rang, the dog sidled inside the building and made it all the way to the child's classroom before a teacher noticed and shooed him outside, closing the door behind him. The dog sat down, whimpered and stared at the closed doors. Then God appeared beside the dog, patted his head, and said, 'Don't feel bad fella'...they won't let ME in either'.

Brennin Hunt's in Ellen's Bathroom Concert Contest!!

http://ellen.warnerbros.com/polls/bathroomconcertseries/index.php

Please go vote for Brennin's video to win!! It does take a little bit for the page to load the first time, but the reload doesn't take too long. Vote as many times as you want. Thanks for your help!!

Brennin's entry:

Ellen's response:

simple advice to survive a complex world

• Never borrow from the future. If you worry about what may happen tomorrow and it doesn't happen, you have worried in vain. Even if it does happen, you have to worry twice.
• Pray.
• Go to bed on time.
• Get up on time so you can start the day unrushed.
• Say No to projects that won't fit into your time schedule, or that will compromise your mental health.
• Delegate tasks to capable others.
• Simplify and unclutter your life.
• Less is more. (Although one is often not enough, two are often too many.)
• Allow extra time to do things and to get to places.
• Pace yourself. Spread out big changes and difficult projects over time; don't lump the hard things all together.
• Take one day at a time.
• Separate worries from concerns . If a situation is a concern, find out what God would have you do and let go of the anxiety . If you can't do anything about a situation, forget it.
• Live within your budget; don't use credit cards for ordinary purchases.
• Have backups; an extra car key in your wallet, an extra house key buried in the garden, extra stamps, etc.
• K.M.S. (Keep Mouth Shut). This single piece of advice can prevent an enormous amount of trouble.
• Do something for the Kid in You everyday.
• Carry a Bible with you to read while waiting in line.
• Get enough rest.
• Eat right.
• Get organized so everything has its place.
• Listen to a tape while driving that can help improve your quality of life.
• Write down thoughts and inspirations.
• Every day, find time to be alone.
• Having problems? Talk to God on the spot. Try to nip small problems in the bud. Don't wait until it's time to go to bed to try and pray.
• Make friends with Godly people.
• Keep a folder of favorite scriptures on hand.
• Remember that the shortest bridge between despair and hope is often a good 'Thank you Jesus .'
• Laugh.
• Laugh some more!
• Take your work seriously, but not yourself at all.
• Develop a forgiving attitude (most people are doing the best they can).
• Be kind to unkind people (they probably need it the most).
• Sit on your ego.
• Talk less; listen more.
• Slow down.
• Remind yourself that you are not the general manager of the universe.
• Every night before bed, think of one thing you're grateful for that you've never been grateful for before. GOD HAS A WAY OF TURNING THINGS AROUND FOR YOU.

a world we were not created for

So many conversations recently, with so many different people. Discontentment with a certain area of life. Why Lord? Why me? I don't understand. Yesterday was eye opening, life changing. Such an easy concept, why has it not made sense before? Same "conversation", slightly different approach. "Light bulb moment". Twice in one day... ok, Lord. You are speaking... I am listening.

10am LifeChurch.tv-SOKC. Tracey and I sat in the experience room. Unlike any other day, Pastor Craig full of his comedic stories...then bam... a profound statement and a room of silence. True[ish] week 2: As long as your happy. Today's funny story a fish out of water... put him on a beach... vacation time... sunglasses...a corona...and a playfish magazine...[oh yes! he really said that!!] is the fish happy? NO! He's out of the water he was created for. He's not where he belongs. The longer he stays away... he will begin to die. And then bam... we on earth are like the fish out of water. If we are basing our happiness on the things of this world, we will never find it. People think: better possessions + peaceful circumstances + thrilling experiences + right relationships + the perfect appearance = happiness. But... Nothing of this world will make us happy b/c we were not created for this world. We both look at each other... WOW!! I've never thought of it quite that way. I've always known, it's not the "things" that make you happy. But I've always limited those "things" to actual material objects. I certain can and have done without a lot of things that most think they can't do without. But have honestly never grasped the idea that relationships and peace are also "things". It's ok, to have wants and desires. & there will be times when God blesses us with material things, relationships, a peaceful life. But when we place these things before Him, true happiness and contentment will never be obtained. We must place our happiness in HIM, the ONE we were created for. All other blessings are a bonus.

Later in the day, I was reading a blog posted by my sweet friend Sarah. The morning's revelations were reenforced so perfectly by her words...

"There deep in the Word (both written and living) I find comfort that great warriors of Christ are simply human at times and only reside wholly in Him when we briefly escape our bindings. But the truth is blaringly clear: He brought the opportunity down from heaven and inserted it here in the middle of this world; the world we will never belong to, the world we were not intended for. He finds us here every day and seeks to give the Divinity of walking with Him….and, daily, this world blinds the eyes of many to seeing it. Nothing before Him!!! I say it again….Nothing Before Him!!!"

Wow!! So profound!! I leave you with a verse I found today. One that pretty much sums it all up:

Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a huge cloud of witnesses to the life of faith, let us strip off every weight that slows us down, especially the sin that so easily trips us up. And let us run with endurance the race God has set before us. ~ Hebrews 12:1 NLT