the good donut

"The best donut is a free donut. The next best donut is the next free donut"

Monday, January 24, 2005

The Strong Tower

The name of the Lord is a strong tower; The righteous run to it and are safe Proverbs 18:10

A couple of summers ago Kris, Noah and I had the opportunity to go camping with my family to Lake Shasta. It was a good time of swimming, eating dirt, living in a tent; camping stuff. Kris wasn't sleeping well from the combination of Noah sharing our air mattress and it being hot (110+ F). As a result she happened to be awake when the local wildlife entered the camp.

"Pat, I hear a noise"
"It's the dog in the campsite next to us", I managed to mumble. Hoping to end it there and go back to sleep.
"No, it's bigger"
"It's a big dog"
"Get up and look"
"Ugh"

At this point I need to raise a question. Let's say it is 1200 lbs. of California bruin with fire in it's eyes and a taste for human flesh on it's lips. What did she expect me to do, armed only with a pare of gym shorts which I happened to be wearing? I did what any coward would do. "Get the baby NOW and get into the van"! (My car key had to be replaced after I nearly twisted it in two during the adrenaline rush). You see to 1200 lbs. of California bruin with fire in it's eyes and a taste for human flesh on it's lips a four man Coleman tent is nothing more than the wrapper on a tasty snack cake. (mmmmmm! Twinkie). The next morning, while we were eating a ham-less breakfast, my Dad found what he said was a raccoon track and that proved it was no bear. I believe all it proves was the bear had little feet and a taste for Virginia ham. After all, even though it was totally dark, with no moonlight under the trees and I, with no flashlight, had seen it. We didn't stay another night.

Whether or not it was really a bear is up to debate. However, I have camped in areas where I had to put my food in a tree and the only security from the wildlife was 8-mil nylon. There are those who might question the sanity of that. The truth is, people are equally insane with their security all the time. We live in evil days. Where is your security? Do you trust your finances to the stock market? Do you trust your security to the deadbolt on your front door, the local police or the military? Do you put your trust in your employer? In your Spouse? In your friends? In your family? In yourself? The problem is all those things, although good, involve people and people are fragile and foulable. When you put your security in something fragile foulable you might as well be facing down a bear in a Twinkie suit. You're going to get bit.

The thing about being a Christian is it's not about rules that must be adhered to or "religion" The thing about being a Christian is our relationship with the one living God. That we don't have to put our security in the foulable or the fragile. We can have true security;

The name of the Lord is a strong tower; The righteous run to it and are safe
Proverbs 18:10 NKJV.


When Christ came to earth as a fragile baby only later to be crucified for our sins then raised on the third day He provided us with the security we can not find anyplace else. Because, although fragile as a human, as God; He is not foulable.

Sunday, January 23, 2005

Oh How Special

Since we started the adoption process we have heard allot of people express what special people we are for adopting. To tell you the truth I have always been a little uncomfortable with that label. I don’t consider myself any more special than any parent who does what it takes to do the right thing for their children. Yes, going to China is a bit more involved than walking down the street to the preschool but it is simply what we do as parents do.

As far as even being a special parent goes there are many times I don’t feel all that special, I feel like I am just getting by, like I’m just faking it, I just hope I’m not screwing up Noah to badly. See my problem is that I’m "only human" which means not only do I not have all the answers but also I can be selfish and self-serving. I wish I could be the perfect father to my children but I know that eventually my humanity will get in the way. While I may not be a perfect parent I do know a perfect Father.

…What man is there among you who, if his son asks for bread, will give him a stone? Or if he asks for a fish, will he give him a serpent? If you then, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father who is in heaven give good things to those who ask Him! Matthew 7:9-11 NKJV

People, even with all the good intentions in the world, will eventually let us down. I know this is not so with my Heavenly Father. He is always at the ready with good things. All I need to do is ask, God has made provision for my every need. Jesus didn’t come to earth to establish a list of oppressive rules or a religion. He came to accept a punishment that should rightfully be mine. He came to defeat death. He came to make it possible for our relationship with our Heavenly Father to be restored should we chose it. I am glad that God, our Heavenly Father, doesn’t "fake it"; that He knows exactly what He’s doing all the time.