He Man is Keeping Me Down

I have a theory about the phrase "The Man is keeping me down." Actually I think it may be a typo that has been propagated throughout the ages. I think the original quote was "He Man is keeping me down." I mean look at him. He kinda looks like someone who would keep someone else down. And I am pretty sure that cartoon was all just propaganda and press spin to make him look good. I mean, come on....

Man Vacuum

As I was mowing the yard today, I thought of something that I had always taken for granted. Lawn-mowers are a kind of "man-vacuum." We, as men, use this tool not only to shorten the grass, but we also use it to pick up debris that happen upon the green fields of our domains. It's funny really. I will push my mower over and over a bit of leaves, sticks, garbage, or whatever may be in my yard, trying to suck it up into the bag. Just like with a real vacuum (and I KNOW you know what I am talking about here...) I will push it and push it over the item in question rather than bend over and pick up said debris. Over and over. It may take 10 times as long to do it that way, but I do not care. I for some reason, will not simply pick up the junk...

Mullet

I am glad I do not have a mullet. Mullets, while once cool, have lost their flair, I think.

Of course, one of the meanings of "mull" (according to the dictionary) is "to heat, sweeten, and flavor (as wine or cider) with spices." And I think "et" is Latin for "and", so maybe "Mullet" just means " A little bit sweeter" or "A little bit more spice"...

And this guy sure is "spicy", isn't he. But then again it might just be the mustache...

Hrmmm. Food for thought....

Arms

14 years of marriage.

Here is to the lady who has put up with me and all my crap for 14 years. I love you more today that I did when we first got maried. Hopefully we will see 14 more.


"Sometimes, you just need longer arms..."
Holly Abshire, March 26th, 2008

Not Enough Posts

Holly is bugging me because I do not post enough on my blog. So when Erin (who is home from school with the flu) starts a blog, Holly tells her things like "Don't be like Daddy. He only posts like once a month. If you do that, I will make your blog go away..."

So, here is my post.

Do You Really Love Him?

I read this this morning. Thought I would share. It's from the devotional book "My Utmost For His Highest" by Oswald Chambers...


February 21, 2008

Do You Really Love Him?


She has done a good work for Me —Mark 14:6


If what we call love doesn’t take us beyond ourselves, it is not really love. If we have the idea that love is characterized as cautious, wise, sensible, shrewd, and never taken to extremes, we have missed the true meaning. This may describe affection and it may bring us a warm feeling, but it is not a true and accurate description of love.

Have you ever been driven to do something for God not because you felt that it was useful or your duty to do so, or that there was anything in it for you, but simply because you love Him? Have you ever realized that you can give things to God that are of value to Him? Or are you just sitting around daydreaming about the greatness of His redemption, while neglecting all the things you could be doing for Him? I’m not referring to works which could be regarded as divine and miraculous, but ordinary, simple human things— things which would be evidence to God that you are totally surrendered to Him. Have you ever created what Mary of Bethany created in the heart of the Lord Jesus? "She has done a good work for Me."

There are times when it seems as if God watches to see if we will give Him even small gifts of surrender, just to show how genuine our love is for Him. To be surrendered to God is of more value than our personal holiness. Concern over our personal holiness causes us to focus our eyes on ourselves, and we become overly concerned about the way we walk and talk and look, out of fear of offending God. ". . . but perfect love casts out fear . . ." once we are surrendered to God ( 1 John 4:18 ). We should quit asking ourselves, "Am I of any use?" and accept the truth that we really are not of much use to Him. The issue is never of being of use, but of being of value to God Himself. Once we are totally surrendered to God, He will work through us all the time.

Distractions

Ever notice how life is full of little distractions? Things that can keep you from doing much of anything substantial. I mean, you being here, reading this blog is a distraction. Me writing it - distraction. Most of the internet is just one big distraction. Those little kitties over there may be distracting you, even as we speak... We as a society actually pay to be distracted. Movies, amusement parks, TV just to name a few.

I often wonder what could I accomplish if I didn't get distracted? But then I get distracted, and forget what it was I was thinking about...

What was I saying? Oh, right...

Anyway... What kind of great problems could mankind solve if we could just pay attention. Or what kind of "small" things could we do for each other, to love one another, if we weren't worried about all the things that don't really matter anyway. What could God do with our lives if we didn't let every little thing turn us down a rabbit trail.

I like the words to this song. Maybe I can try and remember it today, even with all the stuff going on around me.


Turn your eyes upon Jesus,
Look full in His wonderful face,
And the things of earth will grow strangely dim,
In the light of His Glory and Grace.

Words and Music by Helen H. Lemmel
1922

Houses

I hate houses. They are either nice, full of space, in good repair, and out of my price range, or busted, old, crowded and mine. Seems like there should be an in-between level, but so far I have not found it.

It's fun. We have 5 people (2 of which are right on the verge of teenager-ness and 1 that is no where close, but acts like she is), 2 big dogs, and a cat in 1480 square feet, with no yard, on a super-busy-go-out-front-and-get-run-over-before-you-know-what-hit-you street...

Oh well, some day I will either have enough money to buy one that everyone fits in, or everyone will grow up, and my busted, tiny house will suddenly be big enough for Holly and I. Either way, I guess, is OK.

Wrongness…

Ever noticed once men are married, they become wrong? I mean, it seems like every decision relating to the family, finances, and general home life somehow becomes incorrect. It’s like at a genetic level, once we say “I do”, something changes. The genes that used to guide our decision making process are somehow mutated. Don’t get me wrong (<-- see), I am not saying that I think I am right, and that my wife makes me feel wrong. I am not trying to be sarcastic. This is not a tongue-in-cheek commentary on how men are right and women are naggy. I am saying that we, as men, actually and truthfully seem to lose the ability to make correct decisions once we tie the knot.

I think I know why. My wife is just smarter than I am. I think that is really the bottom line. I bet most men marry women that are their intellectual superiors. I know I did. That is why, when we come along with our half baked schemes, like “Honey, I think we need that 52 inch plasma TV,” or "Sweetie, why don't we buy that extremely expensive house/boat/car/insert item here?", our wives come back with that “hrmmm…” response. The wheels in their heads are turning. I am sure they are wondering what we have been drinking, or if we dropped something heavy on our heads while we were out in the garage. They probably seriously wonder what they were thinking when they agreed to marry us, and if we will ever, ever, ever figure out why the kids needing orthodontia, or the house needing repairs is more important that big TV.

You know come to think of it, I think I have this all wrong (typical). I think it’s not that we lose the ability to make good decisions. I think it’s that we finally have someone in our lives who knows that our decisions are bad ones. We sure don’t see it, and our buddies are probably no smarter than we are, so they certainly don’t see it. Then, once we get married, we have someone to check our stupidity. God knew what he was talking about when he said "It is not good for the man to be alone. I will make a helper suitable for him."(Genesis 2:17-19 ). See, even God is being euphemistic here (probably for our benefit as men). I think the “helper suitable for him” part roughly translates into “helper to keep him from killing himself in some kind of ridiculous accident, or starving to death because he has no resources because he bought the expensive item…” Food for thought. As always, I could be wrong...

Proverbs 18:22 (NIV)
22 He who finds a wife finds what is good
and receives favor from the LORD.

Rabbit

I just realized something last night at a bible study...

"Rabbit" is just the word "Rabbi" with a "t" on the end....

interesting...