The one about catching up (2)...

I know, I know. It has been well over a month since I blogged last. So much has happened... fun things, ministry things, church things, family things, hard things, finally-this-is-coming-to-an-end things. So much, in fact, that I feel as though I have completely failed my readers (all 3 or 4 of you). Thankfully, my readers are those close to me so not much is lost.

Nonetheless, what I would like to do is revisit and re-cap, a little. Perhaps I am kidding myself... but it is worth a try, even if it's for no other reason than preserving the memories.

I got a week off in July. My beloved son and I spent the first three days just hanging out. We went to the water park, went to the movies! I have one of those kids a parent never needs an excuse to be away from! God gave me so much more than I deserve when He saved me... ditto when He gave me Collin (I love you, bubba)!

Bethany and I went away for the next three days. We attended Kingsfest at Kings Dominion! If you've never been... go! And if you profess to be a born-again Jesus-lover, yet you still fill your head, heart and time with secular music... well, there is a lot I could say that would send probably 80% of today's church-goers into a tantrum. THERE IS NO EXCUSE for "Christians" to listen to worldly music. God has gifted us with lots of great music that glorifies Him. At Kingsfest, Beth and I saw three of my top five Christian artists in a matter of hours: BarlowGirl, Casting Crowns, Newsboys. It doesn't get much better than that, folks.

One of those days, we ventured to Washington, DC to mark off some remaining items on a checklist from a previous trip four years earlier. I am still waiting on the photos from our trip (hint, hint). Some of them MUST be shared! I had a great time.

Did I mention we stayed at the Hilton for three nights, too? Supposedly, the mattresses in the hotel are so nice they accomplish in six hours of sleep what a regular mattress does in eight. According to my chiropractor, I did such a smashing job aggravating my already "sensitive" neck and spine at the water park with Collin earlier in the week that it's no wonder those superior mattresses had no effect on me!

Oh, by the way, Bethany rode her first roller coaster! It was quite an event. I think she'll agree that she shut her eyes as hard as I laughed... the whole time! I don't know what came over me... I don't know what came over her. It was great!

Well, that's that, I guess. I need to go to bed. I hope to set aside some time to blog this week, or next, about some cool God-sized things. For now, I'll share an excerpt from this morning's "My Utmost for His Highest" devotion. It so perfectly addresses shaky theology in us as individuals, and just-as-perfectly confronts those who would make excuses for themselves, or their loved ones, when it comes to shaky professions of faith:

Continually bring the truth out into actuality; work it out in every domain, or the very light you have will prove a curse. The most difficult person to deal with is the one who has the smug satisfaction of an experience to which he can refer back, but who is not working it out in practical life. If you say you are sanctified, show it. The experience must be so genuine that it is shown in the life. Beware of any belief that makes you self-indulgent; it came from the pit, no matter how beautiful it sounds.