We Interupt this Program for A Word from Our Sponsor

Death is an interruption. I spend the last four days reviewing Uncle Tom. His life, his friends, and his stuff were all a part of the review process. I have never experienced death this way. In every death there is a sense of sameness, but also a sense of uniqueness.

Uncle Tom retired at 52, not because he had struck it rich, but because he was fed up with being produce manager at a Vineland, N.J. grocery store. He loved the Philadelphia Eagles and people. He married my Aunt Maryann when she was 39 years old. Uncle Tom was a people machine. From the UPS guy to the employees of Winn Dixie, they all knew and loved him.

Except for Aunt Maryann, we all will just dig back in now. We really don't have a choice. Back to the grind, the roles, the responsibilities, the appointments, etc. For a few of us, an occasional thought in the midst of a busy day about Uncle Tom, will flash in our brains. A Philadelphia Eagles sweat shirt or a leaf blower will remind me of him.

Where do I go from here? Someone will go through my stuff one day. They will see a few books, a Saint' T-shirt, Weight Watcher journals, and baseball cards. They will laugh and tell stories. Why did he keep this? He was always obsessing on these things. Then they will move on. Sobering? Challenging? All of the above. Death is a commercial for important things. Things that will last for ever. People and God's will are two of those things. Pardon me now, while I dig in. I needed the interruption.

Columbia today with the North American Mission Board partners. Big week. Busy Week. More tomorrow.

Clearing the Air - Ocala, FLA

I feel much better now. My Aunt MaryAnn told me when I dropped the heavy wooden object on my sister's head (The Santa Affect), I told her it was an accident. Maybe Santa didn't give up on me after all.

Clearing up business in Ocala with my Aunt. I am not sure why God pauses our daily lives unexpectedly. I noticed this first in 1998 when my dad had by-pass. I know the relationship part of life becomes a priority during these pauses. That is a good thing. We are eating at Panera Bread in Ocala as we speak. I would be doing something else if Uncle Tom had not died last Saturday. I am not glad he died, but I am glad I am here right now.

Did you ever notice that Jesus valued relationships over roles and responsibilities? I know He was the Son of God, so He obviously did things I will/can never do. But the relationship thing was the delivery system for all His important business. Same way He works today. I need to work more like Him. Don't you? More Monday.

PFP - The Dream Behind The Dream

I am old enough now . . . not to be a threat to waitresses. When I ask them questions they don't think I'm trying to find love. One that inspires great next level conversation is, What is your dream? Most who serve you in a restaurant are on their way to somewhere else. Their dreams are bigger than Atlanta Bread or M's Asian Grill. Remember, everybody, even the quiet ones, have something they want to talk about.

Rick Dockery (Playing for Pizza) thought his dream was to make it big in professional football. His real search (Dream Behind The Dream) was meaningful relationships, significance, and a place to belong. He had an opportunity to bolt from Parma and his Panther team mid-season. A $400,000 contract with the Saskatchewan Roughriders of the CFL was his road closer to his apparent dream. A decent raise from the $36,000 he would make with the Parma Panthers awaited him up north. He said no.

My dream was to play professional baseball, specifically for the Cincinnati Reds. My other dream was to preach before large crowds. Neither happened, although my mother still thinks the scouts were stupid when they refused to offer me a contract. Thanks mom. The dream behind the dream was the same as Rick's though: meaningful relationships, significance, and a place to belong. God has given me all three . . . beyond what I could ask or think (Eph. 3:20). He knew all along what I really wanted.

Yesterday provided great conversations from Greenville to Columbia, Maryland to Tennessee, Spartanburg to Anderson . . . On the road today with my sister Debbie, my brother-in-law, Randy and my cell phone to Ocala, FLA. My Uncle Tom died last Saturday. My Aunt MaryAnn is all that and a bag of chips to my sister and me. She is pretty blue right now. I don't blame her. We are going to laugh, talk about old times and Uncle Tom. Unresolved stuff there. Like jazz music. Like Playing for Pizza.

PFP - Herbie Hancock Freebie

Nice surprise at Starbucks last week. Free I Tunes! An old Herbie Hancock Jazz recording promotion . . . I downloaded and enjoyed for about 30 seconds. I am going to make myself listen again. I am trying to branch out a bit. The problem is Jazz seems to go no where. Jazz has no beginning, no ending, and no real story line.

Grisham did not answer every question I had about the main characters in Playing for Pizza. Some things were resolved. Other things were not. Bummer. I want the stories to end, even if I don't particularly like the ending. I want resolve. Did quarterback Rick Dockery get another shot at the NFL . . . or maybe even the CFL? Did Lizzy find herself in Italy and reconcile with her parents? How did the Parma Panthers do the following season?

We earthlings love resolve. Problem is, the times life is resolved, we often are not satisfied. In the faith hall of fame chapter (Hebrews 11) we read of people who had great faith but did NOT receive what was promised (verse 39). Some times no resolve is the resolution. Peace comes in acceptance. With that, I am going to leave today's blog unresolved. Just not sure where that fits. You, the reader, will have to figure that out.

More thinking with Chris and Neal about landscaping yesterday. Also with Carl Martin and Steve Cloud thinking about a powerful tool of God for transformation . . . coaching. Greenville today with Larry Bateman. Also in Columbia having coaching fun and hanging out at SCBC world headquarters. More unresolve, tomorrow.