More Baseball Tricks

Here's more bat tricks for Womack. I don't know how good of a player he is, but he has a future in the circus if not the majors.

Only 26 College Grads in MLB..

Found this at Kentucky Sports Radio. That number includes the managers according to the Wall Street Journal. Just an interesting statistic. Where's the calls of explotation and outrage..you know the things you here about basketball players...

"Shockingly, while many current major leaguers had college experience, we found only 26 (including managers), who have earned degrees. The brainiest team was the A's, with three graduates and seven key members of the lineup having university experience.

Here's the link to article: Baseball

Katz on Next Years Draft (UK, OU. OSU players)

• John Wall, Kentucky: Wall will be the projected No. 1 pick throughout the season. He has game-changing ability on every possession. He can fly as a lead guard and will be extremely tough to stay in front of on a possession. He could, and should, be Calipari's second No. 1 pick in three seasons after coaching Derrick Rose at Memphis in 2008. Of course, it helped Rose's candidacy for the top spot when he led the Tigers to the national title game. Wall could do the same at Kentucky.

• Patrick Patterson, Kentucky: Patterson returned to school because he didn't think he was ready for the NBA. Great call. He clearly knows his game. He should flourish playing for Calipari, and there's no doubt the interest in him will only increase, as he likely will lead Kentucky to great things. Without Jodie Meeks, Patterson will be counted on to be more vocal. If he stays healthy, proves he's a leader and continues to be productive, his evaluation likely will be extremely positive.

• DeMarcus Cousins, Kentucky: Cousins comes to a team expected to compete for the national title with plenty of hype. But how John Calipari uses him and how he meshes with Patrick Patterson are questions still unanswered. He's not ready for the NBA, but if Kentucky has a banner season and he flourishes, he could be tempted for a short stay with the Wildcats.

Read the rest, including Willie Warren (OU) and James Anderson (OSU): '09/'10 NBA Draft Projections

Is This Guy For Real? (Shaq challeged him to a game of HORSE)

Is this guy for real or is this some incredible editing? I don't know, but Shaq has challenged him to a game of horse for $1,000, so I guess we'll find out. If it's real, I think it's safe to say this guy may have a little too much time on his hands...

Being Led by the Spirit of God

This past weekend's service at Chruch on the Move for all of you outside of OK. I'm so thankful to have the opportunity to serve here...

The Lamp - Part 3 from Church on the Move on Vimeo.

A Baseball Post?

Not a big baseball fan, but this is a pretty cool trick...

Disagreeing to Agree

About 13 years ago I sat down with my wife and asked her..."What do you think about us making a change and working with Children's Church, instead of teens?" At the time we were volunteering with the teens in our church and loved it, but I just knew, for some reason, God was leading me to make the switch. The youth pastor was also overseeing the children's ministry so the change would be smooth and easy, or so I thought. Her response..."No way! He might be leading you, but he's not leading me!" We had a "disagreement". What do we do now?

The goal in every marriage should be agreement in all things. After all, the Bible asks the question in Amos 3:3, "Can two walk together unless they be agreed?" However, as in our situation, there will be times when there is disagreement. "Does my wife not trust me?" Does she not respect me?" "Who does she think she is, disagreeing with me?" These are all question that go through my mind at these times. One's pride can be an obstacle to God's best for your marriage. Reacting to disagreement in pride can lead to insecurity and strife in a marriage. To avoid the dangers and effects of strife, we must deal with disagreement in a Godly and healthy way.

Realizing the importance of my wife's agreement, I decided to ask her to pray about making the change to Children's Church, specifically, before she made a final decision. I realized that this had not been on her radar at all. She was having a great time with teens and was not really looking to make a change. I would also take advantage of this time to seek more wisdom and direction. After a few weeks of praying, my wife came to me and said, "I think you may be right, but I just have some questions I need answered." Her questions were of things I hadn't thought about; questions that would prove to be extremely important to our decision. You see, little did I know, God was opening up a door for me to enter into full-time ministry as the Children's Pastor. The questions she shared with me had to do with the protection and provision for our family. You see, my personality is one that says, "we know what to do, now let's go do it!" It's a good trait to have, however, I need my wife's, "Hold on a second, let's look at how this might effect other people, first" personality to get the best results. The results God is seeking.

Throughout our marriage, God has used our disagreements as a means to agreement. My advice to all couples is to never take your spouses disagreement as some kind of knock against you personally. This type of response can lead to strife that can eat away at your relationship. Approach disagreement as a team, and understand that God is trying to get the best to you and your family. He has placed you together for a reason. Sometimes that means your spouse has a unique insight that God needs you to see. Loving your spouse means to think the best of them, trusting that their intentions are good and not meant to harm.

1 Corinthians 13:4-8

4 Love suffers long and is kind; love does not envy; love does not parade itself, is not puffed up; 5 does not behave rudely, does not seek its own, is not provoked, thinks no evil; 6 does not rejoice in iniquity, but rejoices in the truth; 7 bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.
8 Love never fails.

Communication in Marriage

Let's kick this off with a little marriage humor. Communication is one of the biggest challenges in a marriage. There are clear differences in the communication needs of a husband and a wife. Here's Tim Hawkins with some wise advise to husbands...

Do You Want To Read This??

Image via Wikipedia

Things to expect from reading this blog:

1. Insights into marriage and parenting. It's going to be real, because my life is real. I am a husband and father to two teen girls. I am seriously out numbered, but I wouldn't change a thing. I also have the honor of ministering to the families of our church; both pre-marriage and post-marriage. Sometimes the issues are simple, sometimes complex, but either way, God has given us principles and wisdom from his Word to overcome them all.

2. Thoughts on ministry, discipleship, and church marketing or marketing in general. I have worn practically every hat on a church staff over the past 12 years. (Children's pastor, Youth pastor, Worship pastor, Asst. pastor, Maintenance director, Grounds keeper...the list goes on and on). I also have worked with hundreds of churches, helping them with marketing campaigns that are current, but not "trying to hard" current. (this is also a line I try not to cross as a nearly 40yr old father in what I wear).

I'm currently serving as an Asst. pastor and direct the discipleship program for Church on the Move in Tulsa, OK. We are a church of 12,000 and are using some creative ideas in reaching and maturing new believers.

3. Following Kentucky Basketball is my hobby of sorts. I follow them 365 days a year. There will be links and some thoughts and opinions from time to time about the goings on of UK basketball and maybe some football as well. (If your nice, I will even throw all you Okies a little OU and OSU football, but not basketball, sorry)

4. This fall, I'll keep you updated on Lincoln Bulldog football and volleyball. Just some scores, stats, and updates. (and maybe some praise of some certain volleyball player). I will not tolerate any criticism of any athletes, schools, or administrations, period.

5. Lastly, I'm leaving this one open for any rants, opinions, funny observations or links, I may want to share from our society.

This should be fun. I'm looking forward to it and hope you enjoy reading. In meantime, may God's best be yours today, tomorrow and every day.