Does God care about the details?

I'm sure there are cynics out there that say that God isn't real. Some others may say he might be real, but he doesn't care about me. "Do you know what's happened to me in my life?" or "Why does God feel like He's got to pick on me? What did I do to Him?" I'll admit up front that I feel like I've had a blessed life. I was raised by parents who loved me and are still married. I went to the college I always dreamed of attending. I married the love of my life, and we have a healthy (although "busy-body" little) son who I wouldn't trade for the world. I love my job and the people I work with (that's the truth, really). So a cynic may not appreciate my point of view on this. We still struggle with money, figuring out how to discipline a busy-body little 3-year-old, and don't seem to have enough time for the ones we love among other things. But as a Christian, I would like to think that I would still have this world-view even if the struggles were tougher.

Our lesson this month in Sunday School was on apologetics, defending our Christian faith. It seems that Christian values are under constant attack so you have to be strongly rooted in the things that you believe. The last lesson was on the fact that God is in control. He's a personal God who loves and cares for each of His children even though they may spite him to His face. I believe he sent His Son to die a horrible death so that I can be eternally forgiven for my sins. He's not a God that created the universe and now sits back to watch us fight it all out. He tries to lead each of us to His love that I feel we all need and yearn for in some way. So yes, I do think that God cares about the details.

This was made even clearer by some events that took place this week. If I may tell the story... I usually work on-site at one of our clients on Wednesday. Well this week, I went up on Tuesday. It just so happened that I needed to get my network access renewed at the client office (this is something that I have to do only once every 3 months, so it's pretty infrequent). I was there early so there was only one lady in the entire department where I sit. While I was walking over to ask her for help, another guy walked by and spoke to her. She sounded congested so he said he was sorry to hear she was still struggling with allergies. Her eyes were red, but she said that it wasn't allergies but that her husband wasn't doing well. I've known her for a couple of months, and we usually speak for a few minutes when I'm on-site. We've not gotten past casual conversation. But she began to tell me of her husband's struggle with a cancer relapse. I'm not very good in these situations in knowing what to say. I talked about the only thing that came to mind, that God had a plan. He wouldn't take us through anything that He didn't think we could handle through faith in Him. We go through things in life and God will lead us a little deeper into the water to strengthen our faith in him. As she sat with tears rolling down her face, I could only think that God had lead us to that moment. He was using me at that moment to talk to somone who was having trouble finding peace in a turbulent time. And it wasn't the specific words that I was saying that would make her or her husband's pain go way. It was the reassurance that God is in control. Sometimes it helps to hear someone else say it.

That has stuck with me all week. How many times do we miss the opportunity to help someone? It may be just a caring word or a kind inquiry when you know someone is struggling. God calls us to be encouragers of each other and to not beat each other down to make ourselves feel better. I got an email from her this morning that said he husband is during better after visiting the doctor. He's worrying less and returning to his normal self. Was it our conversation that caused that? No. But I think that God did teach us both something in that conversation. Sometimes all we can do is pray and rely on Him to provide something or someone that will give us strength. Because through our weakness we will see His strength.

Can you forgive me?

As in any relationship, mistakes can be made.  Things are said and actions are taken that are later regretted.  Once words leave your mouth, they cannot be returned.  Many times those unfortunate events will be caught on video or in pictures and posted for the world to see.  Forgiveness can be given, but often times, things are not forgotten.

I made one of those mistakes. We should support the ones we love no matter how hard times are.  We shouldn't give up on someone just because we feel we've been wronged.  I gave up on someone I have loved longer than I've known my wife.  Even though the bond is not strong and the commitment not as deep as my marriage vows, this love has existed since my childhood.  Yes last night, I quit on the New York Yankees.  It was a big game against the rival Red Sox, and I quit.  Facing a home sweep and the possible collapse of our season, I gave up.  And I'm sorry.  Can you forgive me?  We've had a good relationship.  It started out rough, but they've been very good to me over the years.  And in return, I've been very loyal.  I rooted for Hideki Irabu and stood by Jason Giambi.  Relationships can hit a rough spot.

In this game, Phil Hughes had pitched very well.  Alex Rodriguez delivered in the clutch with 2-run homer in the 7th inning that gave us the lead.  We made it through the 8th and had Mo Rivera coming back in the 9th.  He's been more than reliable for over a decade and is a major reason that I've seen 5 World Series championships won by my team, but Mo had a bad night.  After giving up the lead in the top of the 9th, I held out hope that we could win it in the bottom of the inning.  Papelbum was coming in, but he was far from perfect this season.  Thanks to Cano who's been a league MVP caliber player this year, the Yanks tied up the score.  But with the bases loaded and only 1 out, they could not take the lead.

I was done.  It was 11:30, and I had to go to work the next day.  I'd given them 9 strong faithful innings, but I couldn't stay up any longer.  Once again, I'm sorry.  I woke up the next morning to find out they won the game with a walk-off walk in the 10th.  Just one more inning was all it would have taken for me to see the Yanks defeat the Sox.  I gave in too soon.  I'm always the optimist, but in this case, I was weak.

I promise that as long as the season continues, I will be there watching.  I won't give up.  My sleep will be sacrificed to offer up the support that may be needed to pull another late-inning victory out.  Let's just hope that the games continue until late in the month of October.

So why all the questions?

The reason that I phrase the title for each posting as a question is basically an extension of the blog name itself.  As I mentioned earlier, the name Shed Talk was a term that I created to describe the conversations old men had sitting outside the shed at my grandfather's house while they sat under the shade trees.

As a young kid, I didn't pay attention and take part in all of the conversations, but I have an idea on what they talked about.  I'm sure they covered sports, a little politics, and some local gossip.  The one thing I do remember was that when someone would drive up to visit or if someone was looking to break the silence that had lingered underneath the shade trees there would be a question.  The answer to the question would foster a discussion on the topic at hand.

For example when someone would show up to chat, you'd hear a "How ya'll doing?"  That would start a conversation on what had been going on.  To beak the silence you may hear a "Watermelons gonna be any count this year?" (translation: Will the watermelons that you are growing be good quality this year?).  Most of the men that would stop by had land they farmed or where they at least tended a garden.  So the topic of struggles with that was a frequent one.

The one thing that got me was even if it was a statement, it could still be turned into a question.  Here are some examples:

Braves can't win a game, can they?

We ain't had no rain, have we?

Tomatoes just ain't makin' nothing this year, are they?

It was usually hard to argue with any of the facts in the statement.  It just required a "yep" or "nope" that would lead to some sort of discussion.  As I mentioned before, my Pawpaw was not a big talker.  So many times the only response you would get from him was a single word response.  Then, a return to silence.

So when you see a question in the title, know that I'm just breaking the silence.  No offense taken if you're like my Pawpaw and don't give much of a reponse.

So what is Shed Talk?

Let's start from the beginning.  When I decided to do this blog (or was convinced to do so by my wife), I wanted to come up with an interesting name.  I don't know why.  I don't know much about blogs.  I don't read any on a regular basis.  Something just told me I needed a name.  That served as a problem because that kind of creativity is not my forte.  When we sign birthday cards at work, I just sign "Hope you had a great birthday" because I would spend too much time coming up with something creative.  I always have what I think are funny ideas, but I always talk myself out of them.  I think that they are too corny and I'll look like a dork or it's a joke that the person may not get.  So I choose thoughtful and sincere, but safe, conservative, and to the point.

So I couldn't think of anything that I liked.  But it just came to me during one of the few quiet moments I have during the day, while I was shaving.  It's the first thing I do when I get up in the morning, and it happens before I have to be a husband, a dad, or a hard-working employee.  No fighting traffic, no ringing phones or emergency emails, and no juice cups to fill or trips to the backyard for bathroom time (the dog, not the child).  But I digress.

Something made me think of my grandfather.  I was lucky enough to grow up across the street from my grandparents.  My grandmother passed away when I was in the 7th grade, and I was fortunate to have my grandfather until several years ago when he passed away from the effects of diabetes and several other health issues.  In his earlier years he was a carpenter, but by the time I got older he was "retired" and spent his days farming the land around his house.  I always admired his hard-working spirit.  He had a gruff exterior, but on the inside, I believe lied a man that deeply cared for others, especially his family.

He would spend sunny days sitting outside this shed, or if it was raining, would move inside under its room .  It wasn't much to speak of, just a tin shed that housed a couple of tractors, a lawnmower, and his tools.  That speaks to the time and place I grew up in the fact that it never was locked but nothing ever seemed to get stolen.  That could be from the fact that folks knew pawpaw had plenty of guns and a little bit of a temper.  Some other things that were always under the shed were chairs, and that is the main inspiration in the name of the blog.

Pawpaw's shed seemed to be a destination of sorts for men in the community.  It served as a gathering place for people to stop by and talk.  I've now termed those discussions shed talk.  Pawpaw would eat supper at night with us after my grandmother passed.  We'd spend many a night waiting to eat supper because someone was next door at Pawpaw's, and we didn't want to start without him.  It seemed like there was always someone over there.  Which is very interesting because Pawpaw was not a big talker.  And that's something now that I regret.  I regret not asking more questions and having him tell me more stories.  I do remember stories about him serving overseas in WWII.  He'd talk about riding the trains for days to get back home after being on one of the Army bases.

That was a large inspriration for me to start this blog.  This is a way for me to tell my stories.  Like my Pawpaw, I'm not a big talker.  But this gives me an avenue to express my thoughts and opinions.  Like visitors to the shed, there could be different people dropping by from time to time reading this (or there could be no one at all).  But one thing this shed talk won't do is make you late for supper.

The tractors, lawnmower, and tools are all gone, but the shed still stands to this day.  I think that speaks to the solid way in which things were built in that day, no shortcuts.  So this blog is to honor my Pawpaw and the men that sat in and around that shed.  Come on by anytime, there's always an empty chair for you.

What happened to the creator?

It took a couple of weeks, but I'm finally getting around to my first political rant. The president gave a speech over the weekend. It seemed to be his normal fare where he was long on rhetoric and short on details. There was one portion of his speech that made a few headlines and caught my attention. Of course, this has not been picked up by most of the media who probably don't consider it a big deal.

The president was quoting the Declaration of Independence and left out a significant phrase. "...We hold thee truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal. Endowed with certain inalienable rights; life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness." Notice what was missing? That's right, the Creator.

To me that's significant. First of all as a Christian, I find it apalling that he would leave that out. I think he went to church for the first time in office a few days later. Hopefully, he was able to brush up on the whole God/Creator idea.

In another way, I think it's part of a larger movement to rewrite our country's founding and history to remove any semblence of God from the public square. I believe it's the desire of some in the ruling class to make the people dependent on government and not God. There are too many people, especially in the younger generation that are looking for a hand out. Why should I do it when someone will do it for me?

On the Statue of Liberty, there is a plaque on which "The New Colossus" by Emma Lazarus is engraved. "Give me your tired, your poor, your huddled masses yearning to breathe free..." This doesn't mean send them over and we'll care for them. This means that we'll take them in and together we can build something strong that will be a lamp unto other nations who long for hope.

We need to once again come together as a nation for the future of our country. There will be things that we disagree on, major things in some cases. I know the founders didn't agree on everything. But they worked together for the good of all to establish some thing God has blessed like no other in history. It is now time that we restore that hope and rely on God to bring us together and strength us again.

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Have you ever eaten goose jerky?

Like most jerky, it was a bit chewy. But it was seasoned something special and was very tasty. What about cajun gator bites? Or pheasant and cheese pie? That along with carved wild buffalo and some other tasty treats was my dinner. Now if you know me you'd be suprised I would eat wild game like that. I'm the guy who never had chicken until college and still picks things off and out of my food.

This was my second year attending the Sportmans Banquet at Life Community Church outside of Greensboro. It's a bunch of guys eating things that are hunted and listening to the gospel of Jesus Christ. I personally find it a fun evening. It's like a revival meeting in a Bass Pro Shop.

The speaker tonight was Steve Hudson, a chaplain for several Nascar teams and the Motocross series. He was entertaining and yet straight-forward in his presentation of the gospel.

He spoke on being a tough guy. He deals with guys who would be considered tough. Guys that go really fast or jump over large things. But would you really consider Jeff Gordon or Kurt Busch a tough guy? I digress. A big mouth or a big gun doesn't make you a tough guy. Tough guys actually cry. Tough guys need help too. In his message, he related how tough guys have a responsibility to teach their sons (or daughters). That us something that I took to heart. What kind of example do I set for my son? What kind of example do I set for Christ. It's a daily battle sometimes. However, I know my strength comes from God, and that he has a plan for me if I will seek his will.

I just have to have faith. Who knew that I would enjoy Goose Jerky? Miracles do happen.

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What's a Cone of Shame?

This is Jordan.

And that is his cone of shame.

Jordan is our almost 8-year-old Weimaraner that should be more excited than he seems in this picture.  He is now cancer free.  About 3 months ago, the Vet noticed the lump growing on his left front leg and wanted to run a test.  It came back that it was a group of mast cells, which is cancer.  We were worried, but it didn't bother him.  He was his normal self, which is to say he was slightly shy of doggy insanity.  We'll cover that later.

He had his first surgery back in July, but the doctor didn't get all of the mast cells.  So a few weeks ago, he had his second surgery to remove the cancer from his leg.  So back came the cone of shame.

The reference comes from the Disney movie Up.  It's in Taylor's rotation of favorite movie of the moment.  It's a pretty funny movie if you haven't seen it.  I recommend it.

This is Doug.  See the resemblence?

The problem since I took that picture 2 days ago is not Jordan's leg but his side.  In the picture, you can see the shaved area on his side.  During the last surgery, the doctor decided to remove a fatty deposit on his side just to be on the safe side.  Not a big deal until that area split open yesterday, and Jordan had to go back to the vet.  Turns out it's a medical mystery in that his side had not healed at all.  They had to restitch the area.  Terrific.  Well tonight, he managed to pull all of his stitches out of his side.  Way to go.  So who knows what's going to happen now.  We've got him bandaged up, but got a feeling that won't last.

Looks like another trip to the vet is going to happen next week.  I feel like a wing of the Cabarrus Animal Hosptial needs to be named in Jordan's honor.  I'll tell you Jordan's story later, but I wonder why I didn't get a less troublesome animal than a 70 pound neurotic dog with a penchant for devouring any morsel of food in sight.  Like Doug says in Up, "He is my master, and I love him."  That's my Jordan.

What makes a grown man do jumping jacks in his living room at midnight?

Two words.  College football.

It was the fourth quarter of the UNC/LSU game.  After falling down by 20 points, our team was making a great comeback.  Maybe the players heard something that Kirk Herbstreit said from the broadcasting booth.  He'd been the one all week saying that we could rally together and have a chance to win.  We'd been reminded all night of the issues our program faced with the suspended players.  We'd made every dumb mistake possible in the game (2 of our first 4 offensive plays were fumbles) but somehow we were driving to win the game.

Back to my impromptu exercise routine that had broken out in my living room.  It was nearing midnight, and the rest of the family was long asleep.  At least some of them were.  I'd just ran into the bedroom and woken up my wife to let her know of the epic comeback that was taking place on my TV screen.  After realizing the house was not on fire, our child had not been kidnapped, and we were not being robbed, her heart was able to return to some semblence of a normal rhythm.  Apparently, she didn't like being woken up from a dead sleep all circumstances considered.  I felt like a blue-clad Paul Revere alerting the masses of the things going on while they slept.

As I've mentioned before, I get a little excited during sporting events.  Two fourth quarter touchdowns and an LSU fumble when they were trying to ice the game had given Tarheel nation hope.  As the Tarheels drove down the field with less than 1 minute to go, I found myself jumping up and down as T.J. Yates completed pass after pass to seemingly wide open receivers.  I couldn't yell and scream because my 3-year old was asleep.  So the extra excitement that couldn't be audibly released somehow turned the jumping around into full-out jumping jacks.  I'm sure it looked silly, but who cares, our offense was moving the ball like I've never seen.

Unfortunately, 2 straight passes were dropped in the end zone to end the game.  Final score, 30-24.

I can't watch commercials during high drama sporting events in which my team is playing.  So in the fourth quarter, I would flip channels just to pass the 2 to 3 minutes during commercial breaks.  Somehow that was easier than watching the commercials.  I kept going back to TNT which was showing Titanic.  It was the end of the movie (spoiler alert) where the ship was going down.  I kept thinking to myself at that time when we were down 20 points in the fourth quarter that our season and program as a whole could be like that ship.  Full of promise but arrogance and poor decisions would dereail the trip.  Oh how true that may turn out to be.  John Blake "resigned" yesterday from UNC's football staff.  He was at the center of all the controversy and his fingerprints appear to be all over the evidence.  I'm hoping that was just the glancing blow to the ship that is our football program.  But who knows what other damage is below the surface that could inflict more carnage.

Who wouldn't want to spend Labor Day weekend in Chapel Hill?

I loved Labor Day weekend in Chapel Hill when I was in school there.  We were only about 2 weeks into classes so the stress levels were still pretty low.  No major exams to study for.  No end of term papers due.  Labor Day weekend is the start of the college football so the first home football game of the season was usually that weekend.  In 1996, I was at the game where we beat Clemson 45-0 to start off a 10-2 year.  Good times.

This Labor Day weekend as I await the kickoff of the Chick-fil-A season kickoff game featuring the Tarheels vs LSU, there are several people spending the weekend in Chapel Hill which I wish were not.  They are 13 players from our 2010 Tarheel football team.  This includes 7 starters from our defense which was set to be one of the best in the nation.  And to be balanced on both sides of the football, those players include our best playmaker on offense and our top 2 running backs.  Our new-found football notoriety couldn't come at a worse time.  After several dreadful years, we finally had hope that this could be the year that we made noise in college football.  We made noise alright.  Unfortunately, it was like passing gas in church.  And it does stink.

I've listened to commentators all week talk about how dreadful this is.  But, Kirk Herbstreit has instilled in me confidence that the backups are going to give it everything they have.  They'll throw caution to the wind.  Our backs are against the wall.  We've got nothing to lose.  Insert tired platitude here.  Bad thing is that we have a lot to lose.  Our entire season can hinge on this game's outcome and the outcome of the ongoing investigation.  Our next game is against GA Tech, last year's ACC chamption.  So we have a lot riding on the early part of the season.  And to make it worse, it could get worse.  Marquise Williams, a top 15 national recruit at QB, says he is still firm in his commitment to UNC (unless we go on probation, then he's gone, his words, not mine).  How many others would follow?

The game's about to start so we'll see how it goes.  Just to be clear, I have faith in my team, and I think we can win the game.  Hopefully, they just believe that themselves