The big question

"Why then, did Jesus have to die? Even Jesus asked that question. In the Garden of Gethsemane he asked if there was any other way. There wasn't. There isn't. On the cross, in agony, he cried out the question, "Why!?" Why was he being forsaken? Why was it all necessary? The answer of the Bible is - for us."
Timothy Keller in The Reason for God.

Quiet reading this morning

- "...the basic premise of religion - that if you live a good life, things will go well for you - is wrong. Jesus was the most morally upright person who ever lived, yet he had a life filled with the experience of poverty, rejection, injustice, and even torture."
- "The Christian gospel is that I am so flawed that Jesus had to die for me, yet I am so loved and valued and that Jesus was glad to die for me."
- "All other major faiths have founders who are teachers that show the way to salvation. Only Jesus claimed to actually be the way of salvation himself."
Various quotes from The Reason for God, Timothy Keller.

The sun and shadows play on a staircase inside the Abbey of St. Gall. Taken Friday in St. Gallen, Switzerland.

More Chip Shots with KD

Ball Return Machine

My automatic ball return machine. I can get 10-15 chips in before our dog K.D. ("Kraft Dinner") tires out and runs off with my ball. By then I'm ready to quit too. What a great dog!!

Now THAT'S creative

We were out to eat this evening with friends, unstringing the bow, and enjoyed seeing this fantastic moustashe across the room. Those are some serious handlebars.

It was fun to try and sneak these photos. Our friends, Ken and Marilyn, helped me sneak this shot.

Today's Sermon Sketch

Our friend Howard Dueck spoke this morning in church. My notes are pretty unusual this time. You will have to click on the picture to actually read this one. I have to admit that most of this one was drawn after the service at home. This is a great way to reinforce the message into my life.

Howard drew many parallels from the journey of the Hebrews to the promised land and our walk of obedience toward God and His call on our lives. Good stuff.

Father's Day

Father's Day 2008. Me with two handsome boys - Tyler and Luke. I love you guys. 

I love Father's Day!

It's Father's Day. My son's are the greatest!! Thank you boys.

Just kidding. I can dream can't I?

Abbey Road Guys?

Mark, Hans, Bill and me. Just a bunch of old buddies out having fun "unstringing the bow".

Q: Why did these guys cross the road?
A: (Any suggestions? Leave me a comment!)

Sunday Sketch

A quick sketch from Senior Sunday. My friend Lane Young shared from his heart to our soon to-be graduates. These are some of Lane's main points to the students.

I'm not very good at drawing people, so let's just say this looks similar to Lane.

Keeping my Sanity

More meeting doodles. I'm not sure why doodling helps me to concentrate during meetings, but it does. I like these kinds of shapes - all of them are random, with no planning whatsoever. When you doodle, what do you doodle?

Some random doodles from a recent meeting

Not sure if these objects mean anything, they're just doodles.

I did it.

Sermon Sketch

Today's message from 2 Samuel 22.
Learn trust, forgiveness, the Word, and rest. The service included communion.

A quick card

I made this card this morning for Sandee. It was a short personal message to her on this Mother's Day. I enjoyed making this little watercolor.

Kenya blend

Just started this pound of coffee. It was a gift from my brother Tom. This coffee has an earthy, full-bodied flavor. The taste has a touch of currant berry, native to the area where these beans are grown. You can also detect a hint of black pepper. The acidic, yet sweet richness, is enhanced by the rich aftertaste of flavor.

Ok, enough of that snobbishness. (I always wanted to write a review like that.) I'm kidding, of course. It's coffee. It's good. Nuf said.

Thank the Creator for the miracle of the coffee bean.

Sermon Notes

Today was baptism Sunday at church. What an amazing experience. Nine individuals, all teenagers, declared their intention to follow Christ publicly. It was like nine different sermons - each one was a challenge and a living sermon. These are my "notes" from the service.

We do baptism a little different here. We actually allow the fathers of our students to baptize their kids. The pastor only baptizes those that wish it that way. In most cases, the mother was also there to pray for her child. It makes the whole experience very intimate and personal. This sketch is a kind of compilation of today's service.

One of a kind

Like a snowflake, each pinecone is unique. The words creator and creative are connected. This pinecone that I drew was never noticed before, yet it was totally unique, one of a kind, and it will never been seen again. Clearly you can see the Creator's design. If you look you can see it all around you.

Celebrating 50 years

Yep, that's me, birthday cake in hand! Today, fifty years.

Favorite Birthday Greeting

I really like this birthday note I got today. (Yes, it's my birthday - the big 5-0.) This note is from David one of our grade 12 Korean students. Please take a look at the little stick figures - can you figure out what's going on?

Yes, it shows me standing and David bowing to me for my birthday. Now that's a special Korean gift. I love living and working in an international setting.