Prayer For Ricky

Please pray for Ricky, my friend in India. He is still searching for a job. This is the e-mail that I received from him today (presented here just as he sent it to me):

Dear brother

JAI MASIH KI

Brother i have not got any job Sofar. my Dad talked to our village head.He suggested to us to change religion and make certificate of being SIKH. then only i can get job in ARMY because there are many battlions of SIKH but not even a single battalion of CHRISTIAN.My dad and i were not agreed with his advice and we can die of strvation but cant change the religion. Chances of getting job are very grim. Actually i dont want to tell you about this. i am very sorry. Still its going fine.

YOURS RICKY

My heart aches for him knowing what a dark world in which he and his family are living. Please commit to praying for encouragement and strength -- and for God to continue to provide for their needs.

I am in regular e-mail contact with Ricky, and plan on sending him a package soon in time for Christmas. If you have any particular prayers for him or any scriptures to share, please post them here. And if you have any other recommendations of things for me to include in the package (particular books? supplies?), please let me know.

We're The Fourth House Down On The Right. You Can't Miss It.

I wonder ... would this family still be considered "white trash" if they left THIS up all year long?

Click here to see (and be sure to have your sound on).

My Tour Of Duty

For me, jury duty is like a dream vacation with so many of my passions coming together into one experience.

A variety of people from all walks of life. Exposure to the legal system. Anticipation about the surprises -- and drama -- that may be around the corner. A great equalizer where all people -- regardless of race, age, gender, income, education, etc. -- have an equal say in the process. Democracy in action. A day off from work. I love it.

So you'll understand how disappointed I was when my juror number was never even called. I never left the assembly room except to go to the vending machines and the Burger King (or "Burger Doodle" as the bailiff called it) across the street. It's like going on that dream vacation but never getting off the airplane.

Regardless, I enjoyed my time there.

In a room of hundreds of people randomly selected from throughout Harris County, I saw four people that I know (to varying degrees, of course). Actually, to say that I "know" some of them is a real stretch.

There was a maintenance guy from M. D. Anderson Cancer Center (where I work). I do not know his name. There is a guy who I know has visited HFBC, but who really attends Second Baptist (I think). I do not know his name. There was the former CEO of ConocoPhillips -- a Christian man named Archie Dunham. I recognized his name when it was called out by the bailiff.

And then there was Laura Wilcox. She is the only person I can say that I really "knew" at jury duty. Laura and I met through our mutual friend Lane Alexander. Lane and Laura (and Kelley Kirby) went to NYC on a mission trip after 9/11. Laura is on staff with Priority Associates here in H-Town, the marketplace ministry of Campus Crusade for Christ. She was quick to express her disappointment that "Murray Christmas" had been cancelled.

I wish I had more to share about my tour of duty today. But not much transpires in the assembly room. I read a little, text messaged a little, played Bejeweled on my cell phone a little, watched TV a little. I was surprised that they had Fox News showing in the assembly room. Couldn't stories about crimes (with images of suspects) potentially bias jurors right before they are put on a panel?

Anyway ... my dream vacation was cut short. They sent me home at 3:00 pm. For the record, I have seen WAY too many episodes of Law & Order for them to put my sharp legal mind to waste. WAY too many!

Separated At Birth ... Again?

Thanks to my good friend Stan Kwan for indulging me ...

Always Get It In Writing

Some guys ask random women for their phone numbers. In my case, I ask them to write down their compliments (when I actually get them).

Here's an unsolicited comment from a sales clerk at a store in Ft. Worth. When I told her I should get it in writing so my friends would believe me, she did not hesitate for a second.

Thoughts From The Road

As I type this, I am in Magpie's Newsstand and Cafe in Durango, Colorado. Just a quick jump on the internet to check my e-mail and how much cash I have to burn at the Polo outlet down the street.

(For the record ... I have not seen a single cloud since we left Texas on Monday morning. Bright blue skies and temperatures in the 50s to low 60s. Perfection, I tell ya. Perfection!)

Anywho ... if you ever stop off at the Whole Foods in Santa Fe, New Mexico, please be sure to wear a t-shirt with something to the effect of "I [heart] George W. Bush" or "That Tree You're Hugging Will One Day Be The Wood Paneling On The Dashboard Of My Gas-Guzzling SUV" or anything along those lines.

You'll be sure to get a few looks ... and sneers.

Thank you, Matthew

That does it.

There is no way I'm going to give up my longer hair now.

People magazine has named Matthew McConaughey the "sexiest man alive."

So, for all of you who have commented to me (or to a mutual friend behind my back) that I should get a trim, you'll have to wait until Bruce Willis wins the title.

I ain't lettin' go of all THIS!