Steven Cole

I have not written anything in while.  We have been in an adoption process with CPS here in California.  We are now fostering 2 children under 3 years old.  We are hoping we will be able to adopt them, but the court will have the last word!  Needless to say, we are a bit busier than we were last week!

So beyond my excuses for not writing lately, I wanted to have you guys read this article that my friend Matt (aka-Snoop) posted.  I was intrigued by what was said.  I haven’t decided how I feel about it, so I thought I would put it out there and see if I could get any comments on it.  So go read it and come back and tell me what you think…or how you feel! (trying to reach both the thinkers and feelers!!)

 http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2008/sep/28/usforeignpolicy.useconomicgrowth

Last night Maggie exchanged emails with her memaw (Beth’s mom) in Georgia.  I don’t know why she has to talk about her rear with her grandmother, but the following interaction is a direct quote…I laughed so hard I thought it must be shared with the world!

On Sun, Sep 21, 2008 at 6:23 AM, <Memaw> wrote:
Hey Maggie, I love your email address. You are so darn cute. I love you and miss you!!!!!
Memaw

On Mon, Sep 22, 2008 at 6:50 PM, <Maggie> wrote: (She dictated, her mother typed!)
Dear Memaw,
I liked-ed that. I am the maggiest girl. my booty is not powerful, it’s just a crazy old behonkey. Your behonkey has super powers!

Love,
Maggie
And Newdoggy is not real! (Newdoggy is Memaw’s favorite stuffed animal…but she acts like it is alive!)

This email came on the heals of a conversation I had with her one night while putting Maggie to bed.  She told me that her “booty” hurt and so I was making up funny stuff to say about her “booty.”  After a while, she was tired of the teasing and she told me to stop being “So jealous of her booty”  I asked her if she knew what Jealous meant and she knew that it meant that you “wanted something someone else has.”

Maybe I should be worried that my daughter is confident with her booty!

Signed - Concerned Father!

We had some new family pics taken the other day.  Here are a couple of my favorites.

Last night Mitt Romney was one of the  many warm-up speakers before Sarah Palin gave her acceptance speech for the V.P.  He ended his speech with the lie we all secretly want to believe!  You can watch it here…I will comment below…

Ok, maybe you don’t believe that “America is the hope of the earth” is a lie, or maybe you know that Jesus is the hope of the Earth and not some country that has been around for a couple hundred years. Ultimately, that is the problem with our government…they have read their own press…believed all the hype…and now it has all gone to their head.

If you call yourself a Christ follower, you know that you are citizen of the Kingdom of Heaven…you also know that Jesus said “In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.” He also said, “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.” But if we are Christ followers we know that. So why is it so tempting to believe what Mitt said last night? I think it is because people like to be on the winning team. We are winning right now because we the dominant country in our world. What happens when that changes…will the hope of the world die with our dominance? The true danger in believing in Mitt’s rhetoric is that we begin to blend our faith with our nationalism…eventually you will not be able to see where your faith ends and your patriotism begins.

We do have a tremendous responsibility because of our status in the world. But it isn’t about our brand of government, but about our responsibility to serve the world and be the light to a world who needs to know that the hope of the earth is found in Jesus Christ.

Sorry for the delay on announcing the giveaway winner.  I have had some computer issues the last few days and I am still trying to resolve them.

Without further ado, the winner of my free book giveaway is Yan Lin of Pennsylvania.  Thanks to those who sent me emails with your info.  I appreciate you participating.

Have a great day!

Ok…here are a few things that have frustrated me over the last couple of days.

1.  I just bought a brand new Dell computer to replace the one I am I currently typing on.  You can guess that since I am typing on my old computer, my new one doesn’t work.  That is right, my 1 week old computer’s motherboard fried.  So I have to continue to hit this one every 5 minutes so I can type out this blog.  I guess I should be happy that I have a computer to hit!

2.  Beth and I went to a meeting with our adoption social worker.  We sat for 45 minutes waiting until the receptionist found out that she was sick and would not be coming in.  So we wasted our time.  I have to say that if we did not feel called to do this, we would have quit a long time ago.  While the state wants to help these kids, they must be so overwhelmed that caring for their clients must be low on the priority list.

I posted a review of “Wild Goose Chase” last week.  With that post I offered a chance to win a free copy of the book.  I will be giving it way on Wednesday, so email me with your Name, address, and email and I will enter you into the drawing.

You can read about he book at here.

You can read my review here.

Like my last post says, I received a copy of “Wild Goose Chase” by Mark Batterson from the publisher so I can review it and give a copy away to a lucky reader.

If you would like a chance to win the free copy I have to give away, please email me with your name, mailing address, and email address, and I will include you in the drawing.  You can submit your information until August 27th (my birthday) and I will then choose a person at random to win.

Summary
Most of us have no idea where we’re going most of the time. Perfect.

“Celtic Christians had a name for the Holy Spirit–An Geadh-Glas, or ‘the Wild Goose.’ The name hints at mystery. Much like a wild goose, the Spirit of God cannot be tracked or tamed. An element of danger, an air of unpredictability surround Him. And while the name may sound a little sacrilegious, I cannot think of a better description of what it’s like to follow the Spirit through life. I think the Celtic Christians were on to something….
Most of us will have no idea where we are going most of the time. And I know that is unsettling. But circumstantial uncertainty also goes by another name: Adventure.”–from the introduction.
After an introduction of the idea of “Chasing the Goose,” Batterson challenges his readers to live a life that does not get stuck in a rut and to stay on the edge of what God is doing around you.  On page 16 Mark says,

“I’m not convinced that your death is the date carved on your tombstone.  Most people die long before that.  We start dying when we have nothing worth living for.  And we don’t really start living until we find something worth dying for.  Ironically, discovering something worth dying for is what makes life worth living.”

It is clear that Mark’s goal is to help people get out of what seems to be normal and into a life that is about passion and calling.  Living a life chasing after God given life goals and passions is wildly more successful than a life lived in safe mediocrity.

I have enjoyed reading this book and I recommend it to all. It it is a great book to help you get focused on your spirit filled calling and goals, regardless of what your job maybe.

If you are interesting in buying the book (if you don’t win my giveaway) you can buy it on Amazon.com.
If you would like some help with setting Goals, Mark has document on “Chasethegoose.com” that you can download if you purchase the book.  It is worth checking out.

Not ever, but on my blog.  I read Mark Batterson’s blog.  He is the author of “In a Pit with a lion on a snowy day.“  He has just finished his next book, “Wild Goose Chase,” and I get to review it on  a blog tour.  He posted a way to get the book for free and review the book.  I also received and extra copy to give away.  The books came in the mail today, so I will be reading it soon and posting my review.  With that review, there will be an opportunity for you to enter a drawing to win the extra book I have to give away.  Come back soon and I will have the details!

As I sit here watching the news rip McCain and Obama for being arrogant; mostly because they believe they can lead our nation, I am thinking about something my friend Paul Tate asked me today.  he asked me how I was using my “voice” as a new leader in our church’s national denomination.  Without wading too deep into the realities of our denomination, I want to talk about the idea of having something to say.

If you know me, you know that I am very rarely short on words to say.  But when Paul asked me how I was using my voice to impact our denomination, I couldn’t help but think that I might have something to say in leadership circles.  I don’t know about you, but I don’t believe that I could lead the nation…I struggle to see myself as having a “voice” as Paul put it.  But it has been a good for me to think about what he said today.  In reality, we all have a voice of influence with someone or in some arena…I tend to forget that…I don’t ever want to be arrogant in my self-understanding, but I am glad for friends like Paul who remind me of the things I have to say!  So thanks Paul for asking such a great question.  You have always been a good at encouraging me.  We all need people like Paul to help us process through our junk!