It's early a.m. (Well, actually it's 8:40 a.m. and some call that early!) I was thinking about writing my prayers online this morning and sharing with you.

Then a steady stream of instruction came through and I'm scrambling to remember it all. And, I'm like, "Wait God!! I don't have anything to write down with and You know how bad my memory is!"

So, now I'm writing down what God said before I forget it!

I'm designing our Water's Edge website and it's been more than challenging. The hugest part of the issue has been that I've been playing both designer and wordsmith. I've got a good design. But I figured out yesterday that I couldn't keep going down that road because the design is taking more time (too much time) and where my attention needs to be is on the words and images that, hopefully, move people to join with Jesus in life!

So, I just hired a guy who I think will do a fabulous job. After much angst, by the way, I've decided to use Wordpress as our CMS on this site with that consultant's input.

But I digress.What did God say?

Here's the way the dialogue went. (And honestly, I was minding my own business and just thinking ... until God butted in. LOL)

Okay, so apparently I'm helping plan a Dockside happy hour! Let me explain . . .

One of our liveaboard neighbors doesn't got off to work in the morning. I suggested that we go grab lunch together one day, and she countered with "How about breakfast?" Interesting and fun lady. It was my first opportunity to really go "deeper" with anyone down at the docks. So, we went to Jimmy's - a local spot in Fells Point. Great conversations about life.

That tumbled into her showing me around some - because I'm still getting to know the neighborhood and she's lived here a long time. She's got a great spirit of hospitality! That led into her taking me to the laundromat she uses to do her laundry. (Honey, got the laundry done!) By noon, we had parted ways happy to know each other ... and looking forward to more down the road, er water.

God has blessed me with simple friendship around simple things.

(Picture a movie setting with a voice over) Later, back at the docks . . . She's back "home" and I'm returning home with sacks in hand. "I really, really had a good time with you today. I was thinking that we should get together all of the liveaboards and have "Happy Hours" on Fridays down here at the docks! What do you think? My husband says I'm an instigator. But it'd be fun! Let's go talk with John (dockmaster)."

Okay, it was a peanut butter and jelly sandwich. But it counts!

The reefer (refrigerator on a boat) quit working this past weekend. All of our food went south fast. It was not a fun job pulling that food out of there, let me tell you! No, I did not take any refrigerator experiment pictures for you.

Moving onto the sailboat is filled with all sorts of challenges. We have been ferociously sorting, labeling, velcroe-ing, finding cubby holes to stuff, buying Rubbermaid/Sterlite containers, pulling extension cords through openings and figuring out how much an extension cord can take before you trip the breaker, making boarding steps and a landing area to the boat, filling water tanks and 'getting the antifreeze out of the lines', setting up the TV and figuring out how to keep it from falling over when weather is rough. Every surface area has been full of stuff to figure out it's future permanent location. It has been difficult finding one seat some evenings.

  Do you think Play is soul training?

Several years ago I was part of a Covenant Group. We set some "rules of life" to live by together. After much discussion about what our "rules" would be, we decided one of our rules of life needed to be "playing!"

Playing! Come, on. Playing? Isn't that the opposite of soul training? Like, be serious.

We realized that all of the people in this group tended to hold jobs with high responsibilities and much stress, and that our collective sense of perfectionism sometimes kept us from a much needed holy act. Yep, we didn't play very well! We felt guilty when we just played!

Spiritual Exercise:

Take 5-10 minutes to sit still with Jesus. 

Ask this question in conversation with him: What would my good and beautiful life look like? What would I be doing? What would you have me doing? What kind of quality would I feel? What quality would you have me feel? Will it involve a major life change?

A mid-week call to reflect. What has a grip on your life's energy?

Romans 1:21-23 (NIV) ²¹For although they knew God, they neither glorified him as God nor gave thanks to him, but their thinking became futile and their foolish hearts were darkened. ²²Although they claimed to be wise, they became fools ²³and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images made to look like mortal man and birds and animals and reptiles.

A quote from the book:

Idolatry: We must have a god.
"We would like a god who would do a lot of good for us and ask very little in return. The solution: create an idol ... Idols do not have to be little images; they can be anything we invest our lives in, in order to gain pleasure, happiness and a false sense of purpose. . . . Here is the key: the idol serves us by giving us our desires, and we serve it by sacrificing our life energy to it."

Getting a better life? Does life feel the same this year as it did last year? Choose a guru. Muhammad. Mother Theresa. Deepak Choprah. Gandhi.

Historians place all of these names side by side, as if they each has historical value, lumped together as 'heroes'  of some sort.

But Jesus addressed our heroism centuries ago. He addressed our guru-itis. And he addressed our quest for the good life - all in one sweeping statement that even baffled the people hearing him say it. "I am the way and the truth and the life." (John 14:6, NIV)

What do you mean you're the way, Jesus?? Isn't that a bit - oh shall we say - arrogant?

Relative to every other guru, Jesus says he's ... the way.

"He could have scored more points in political correctness had he said, 'I know the way,' or 'I show the way.' Yet he speaks not of what he does but of who he is: I am the way." --Max Lucado, 3:16 The Numbers of Hope, p. 87

How can Jesus be my way today?

I want to live!

There are days we feel as if God is very hard to find - and possibly dodging out just when we get him in sight! We put a lot of energy into the chase. And chasing God is a great concept. The only problem is - God is right here!

So, is it actually a chase? Are we working and leveraging the

I was not expecting to be caught up short this morning. But Vince is one of those guys that goes deep before you expect it - or maybe just before you've bolstered up to be ready for a gem to land. He takes the less trodden path.

What did Vince Antonucci say that turned all of the lights on in the city? Simple. It got to me.

1 Timothy 2:1-5a :    ¹I urge, then, first of all, that requests, prayers, intercession and thanksgiving be made for everyone— ²for kings and all those in authority, that we may live peaceful and quiet lives in all godliness and holiness. ³This is good, and pleases God our Savior, ⁴who wants all men to be saved and to come to a knowledge of the truth. ⁵For there is one God and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus . . .