Build it and they will chat

One of my new favorite websites is the Houston Architecture Info Forum.

I am a sucker for new developments here in H-Town. I love to hear about 'em and to watch 'em go up. As a kid, I wanted to be an architect (not just to pretend to be one, but to actually be one). But when I learned that math and science were involved, those plans changed.

The best part of the website? The forums. You'll find inside scoops from folks who are "in the know" about such things. Here's one of the best ones concerning the southwest corner of Kirby and Westheimer. Sure looks better than Jalepenos and a gas station! But with hundreds of high-rent-paying-inner-loopers right across the street, the wait at Chuy's may get a lot worse! iAdios mios!

Tearing Down Walls In More Ways Than One

Thanks for your prayers for Bob. I want to share with you an e-mail that I received from him today:

"Hi, thank you for your card. Im so sorry for what happened to the wall and at the same time I am very grateful that I was not seriously hurt, not even a scratch. I was not aware that I came out in the news. What did channel 2 say? Can you give me some information about that? Anyway............yes I would love some information about your services. I will not be going any time soon though, but I will go..........I just need some time. I know God has something for me and he is going to do it the easy way or hard way. I just need some time to get my life in order. Thanks again for sending me a card instead of a bill for the wall. Please keep me in your prayers, I really do need them alot."

In my reply to Bob (again, not his real name), I talked about "walls" that we build up in our lives that prevent us from having a closer relationship with God. I commented on the symbolism of his crashing into a wall -- and one at a church, too! It reminded me of how God chipped away at the walls in my life -- but that He just may be doing it more dramatically in Bob's life!

As I was typing my reply, Stephen Curtis Chapman's "Great Expectations" was playing on my radio. I was reminded of how that song ministered to me so much, especially not long after the "walls" had come down in my life. So, I quickly googled and shared the lyrics with Bob in my e-mail, too.

I offered to take Bob to lunch or dinner sometime with some other friends of mine. Please pray that he would be open to connecting more -- if not in person, then at least through e-mail. More importantly, pray for his heart to be softened and in tune with what God may be showing him.

Prayer for "Bob"

Please say a prayer for the guy who ran into our wall here at HFBC. For his sake, I'll just refer to him as Bob. (No, "Bob" is not his name.)

I'm sending him a card just to say that we are thinking about and praying for him. I also invited him and his family to come visit our church -- and promised that we would have an actual parking space available for him!

He's a young guy in his early 20s and lives on the other side of town. That's all I know about the guy (other than his real name). Since the scene had been cleared by the time I arrived that morning, I did not get a chance to meet him.

Anyway, say a prayer for him, please. Particularly, pray that the message in the card would be well-received. More importantly, pray for freedom from any circumstances in his life that may have led him to have that accident.

Who needs Pottery Barn?

My latest office decor ...

It's A Sign

My cell phone went off around 4:25 a.m. last Friday. Miraculously, I actually heard it. Truth be told, I think that the first call stirred me a little and it was the beeping of a new text message that finally raised me from a dead sleep.

The missed call and the text message were both from Priscilla Kwan, a friend of mine who is a reporter with KPRC Channel 2. She needed me to give her a call ASAP regarding an "accident" at HFBC. Not knowing what to expect -- and somewhat fearing the details -- I gave her a call.

Priscilla explained that a pick-'em-up truck had slammed into the "Houston's First Baptist Church" sign at the base of the tower along the I-10 feeder road. She asked if I could come up there for a live interview. I was to be the "spokesperson" for the church.

Now, I'm not sure if she tells all of her interviewees this when she wakes them up and summons them to the scene in the wee hours of the morning, but Priscilla specifically said, "Don't take a shower. Just comb your hair and come!"

Uh ... right.

So as the minutes ticked by -- closer and closer to the live 5:00 a.m. broadcast -- I frantically began to get ready for my first public statement on behalf of HFBC. My first project was my hair. Even if my head were small enough to wear a hat, I'm not sure that would have been the look I would've gone with. Instead, I stuck my head in the shower to wet down the Einsteinian morning mess and then towel-dried the life out of it. Just slap on some product and the hair project was set.

My second project was my clothes. The first couple of shirts that caught my eye had horizontal stripes. With God's mercy, I had the presence of mind to calculate the impact of horizontal stripes in front of a camera notorious for adding 10 pounds. Tragedy averted. Then, my eyes fell on my 2005 Houston Project t-shirt ("pray for more") and the clothing project was concluded.

My third project was to notify friends and family. Driving through Memorial Park, I managed to text friends (or at least the ones spiritually mature enough to forgive me for a pre-5:00 a.m. message) and asked for their prayers. (Thanks to those who replied!) Then, I called Mom and Dad. I hate calling the folks at odd hours because I know that from the time they hear the first ring until the time I can explain that I am not dead, every conceivable horrific scenario goes through their minds. Bless their hearts (literally).

It was an eerie sight when I arrived at HFBC only 28 minutes after getting the call. There in the pre-dawn fog and unflattering street lights were Priscilla, Steve (the camera guy) and a pile of shattered bricks. The cops, ambulance, tow-truck and suspect had already cleared the scene. Priscilla was told that the driver of the truck suffered only "bumps and bruises" -- no serious injuries at all. Police suspect alcohol may have been involved. Please lift up this unnamed man in a prayer.

We did a live segment a little after 5:00 a.m. and then did combo live/pre-recorded segments at 5:30, 6:00 and 6:30 a.m. You can see one of the segments on the Channel 2 website.

Since I started working at HFBC in early February, I have slowly been getting my office set up and arranged. Friday morning provided me with unique and unexpected decorations. On the top of my desk's hutch, I now have mementos from my first "crisis" at work -- portions of the brick wall and the large letter H. It's a sign of a special moment in my new career here. More importantly, it's a sign that the church is more than the bricks around us. The Lord's work keeps on going!

My Unexpected Day At The Spa

While hundreds of genuine and wannabe cowboys made their way down Memorial Drive from Memorial Park to downtown for the rodeo parade last Saturday, I passed by them on the way to the spa perfectly secure in my masculinity. The fact that I was using a gift certificate -- and not paying for this on my own -- gave me further comfort as I compared my plans for the day with those of the guys clomping along on horseback facing the cold and rainy elements.

The leadership team of The Shed class at Houston's First Baptist Church gave me a gift certificate to a spa when I stepped down as director last September to teach The Real Deal. They know me so well.

So finally, I made an appointment and went in for my day of pampering last Saturday. I signed up for the Chairman's Retreat which included a massage, manicure, pedicure, facial, haircut -- and "spa lunch" (which is spaspeak for "girl food").

When I made the appointment, the kind lady asked me what I would want for lunch that day. I opted for the chicken salad sandwich since BBQ ribs were not an option. She asked what I would want to drink and I asked for a Coke. I said, "I realize that a real Coke may not go with the whole concept of a 'spa lunch' but if you try to slip a Diet Coke on me, you can count on my throwing a spa tantrum." I got my Coke.

My day at the spa did not quite go as I had expected.

Keep in mind that most patrons are women, and most are not there for hours worth of pampering. They are in-and-out for either a manicure or a haircut or a pedicure ... or whatever else women get done to themselves. Therefore, they come in in their normal clothes and stay in their normal clothes.

I, on the other hand, had five "treatments" lined up. This elevated me to a whole other level of spa patron -- the partially dressed level. Upon arriving at the spa, I had to change into a robe, a pair of drawstring pants and a cheap pair of flip-flops. As I was escorted around the spa from one station to another (with resting stops in between appointments in the men's "holding room"), there I was in my spa get-up amidst women in their normal clothes.

I felt like Mrs. Roper in her muumuu on Three's Company.

Anyway ... back to the unexpected day at the spa. Here it is in a nutshell ...

• Pedicurist was a Christian woman who attends Second Baptist. She's friends with an HFBC staff member who provides her with Bibles in different languages so she can distribute them to the different women who work at the spa. And she loves Beth Moore.
• Masseuse was a Christian woman who attends Lakewood Church. Did not get to talk to her much given the circumstances (nearly being asleep during the massage).
• Manicurist was an Asian woman. My assumption is that she is one of the women to whom Pedicurist has been reaching out to with the Bibles.
• Hair guy asked me what "religion" I was when I told him I worked for my church. I said that I was Christian and attended a Baptist church. He said that he was Baptist, too, but did not attend a church. I invited him to visit my Sunday Bible study. Pray for him, please.
• Facial lady was widowed last year. When it came up that I worked at a church, she asked about opportunities for women in her situation. God gave me some names of other widows her age in our church and I've followed up with a few of them this week in hopes of making a connection. And she loves Beth Moore, too.

Finally, the front desk manager introduced herself to me during one of my layovers in the men's "holding room." She recognized me as a new staff member at HFBC. Turns out, she and her husband teach a Sunday Bible study there. When I checked out at the end of the day (six hours after I arrived), we compared notes on all of the "divine appointments" that I had during my spa day. Plans were made for her to continue where I left off with hair guy, and we talked about ways to minister to facial lady.

I left my day at the spa with opened pores, buffed nails, relaxed muscles and manageable hair. But I also left -- unexpectedly -- reminded that ministry opportunities are all around us if we take the time to stop, look and listen to others.

Right And Wrong Is Black And White -- or Gray?

Let me be honest ... I am totally stealing this from a friend of mine who sent it out via e-mail. My friend does not have a blog, so I'm taking liberty to add it to mine. But my friend gets all the credit. However, since my friend refers to a "client" I do not want to reveal my friend's identity.

--------------------------

I was just reading an excerpt from a client's "core values" statement, which is probably fairly similar to many of corporate America's value statements. Under integrity, it says "There are no gray areas between right and wrong."

And I got to thinking - (I don't have a blog so this is my version) - that statement is totally contradictory to many Americans' personal views. But somehow when you bring the concept of right and wrong into the workplace, there's a different standard than when it refers to your personal life. But the workplace is obviously made up of these individuals who apply the gray concept to many personal moral issues - so how can the 2 coexist??

Interesting.

U-S-A! U-S-A! U-S-A!

Check out this screen capture from the NBC Olympics website.

I think it's safe to say that NBC and Coca-Cola are more than just a little biased toward the good ol' US of A when it comes to coverage of the Olympics.

I mean ... wow.

Support Dee

Many of you know Susan Mayoli -- a wonderful Christian sister here in the singles ministry at Houston's First Baptist Church. One of Susan's sisters in Kenya -- Dee -- is battling breast cancer.

We've set up a special blog containing e-mail updates from Dee sent over the past few months. What an incredible spirit this woman has! Not all of the e-mails have been posted yet (it's a work in progress). And now, Dee and Susan have been given access to the blog so they may be posting their own posts soon.

The blog is simply called Support Dee. I've put a link to it over there in the right margin under "My other blogs ..." so you can easily get to it at anytime.

Please keep Dee in your prayers, and be sure to post any encouraging words you may have for her on the blog!

Open For Business

For those of you who frequent the halls of Houston's First Baptist Church, you are welcome to drop by my office now anytime! I am located on the 2nd floor in the Education Suite right in the middle of the "Hall Of Pastors" -- between B. F. Riley and Joseph Leonard Gross. If you know where the Connection Center is on the 1st floor, we are basically right above that.

Being a sucker for history and heritage, I did some quick googling on the two men mentioned above. I've come up short on information about Dr. Gross. However, the caption under his picture here in the hallway says that the idea for the Star of Hope mission began during a prayer meeting in his office. He was also active in the founding of the Baptist Hospital, which later became the Memorial Hospital System and is now the Memorial Hermann Healthcare System.

My googling was more productive for B. F. Riley. Here's an excerpt from an article in the Baptist Standard commemorating the 100th anniversary of the 1900 hurricane in Galveston:

The building of First Baptist Church of Houston was destroyed. Pastor B.F. Riley had come to the church only a week earlier. At the time, the church had a membership of about 575 and a building valued at $37,000.

In the Sept. 13 Baptist Standard, Riley reported that wind and rain battered Houston and his church for 10 to 12 hours.

"Houses are demolished, and the streets are barricaded with beams, bricks and stones, trees, telegraph poles and wires," he wrote. "Among the wrecked buildings is the Baptist church. The steeple in falling carried away the whole south end of the building. The remainder is practically useless for service. Our people have suffered severely. ... I have never seen more universal desolation."

At the time, First Baptist Church of Houston was the largest in Union Baptist Association, which then listed 27 churches and covered a vast area, including Galveston.

An Extraordinary Life

I wanted to share a few moments from Marge Caldwell's memorial service today. These are some of the highlights that really stuck out to me:

• Dr. John Bisagno, HFBC Pastor Emeritus, led the Welcome and Remembrances. He said that when Marge got to heaven, they tried to give her some wings to reward her for her years of service -- but she turned those down and asked, "Could I have those gold eyelashes instead?"
  
  He reminded us that Marge served on two Pastor Search Committees at HFBC -- the one that brought us Bro. John and the one that brought us Pastor Gregg. When Marge showed up in heaven, he said, her daughter probably greeted her and asked, "What now, Mom? Looking for another pastor?"
  
  Bro. John pointed out that while everybody referred to her as Marge, Chuck called her Margie. Then, he led us all in singing the song, "Margie" written over 60 years ago:
  
  Margie, I'm always thinking of you, Margie
  I'll tell the world I love you
  Don't forget your promise to me
  I have thought of home and ring and everything.
  
  For Margie, you've been my inspiration
  Days are never blue
  After all is said and done there is really only one
  And Margie, Margie it's you.
  
  Finally, Bro. John was joined on stage by his wife, Uldine, and they sang a duet for Chuck -- "Walkin' along, singin' a song, side by side!"
  
  
• Jeannette Clift George, founder of A. D. Players, spoke about "An Extraordinary Friend." She shared how Marge was instrumental in bringing her back into the Christian life and how for so long she tried to be just like Marge. At one conference, Jeannette said she caught herself telling people about her beloved husband, Chuck! Jeannette encouraged us to have a "Marge day" -- to live out Hebrews 13:3 and "encourage one another daily, as long as it is called Today."
  
  
• Beth Moore, Bible teacher and author, spoke about "An Extraordinary Mentor." Marge was the person who first invited Beth to speak at a women's retreat, and encouraged her -- many times -- to pursue teaching and speaking. She pointed out that she had not lived one day of her ministry without Marge being in her life -- until now.
  
  Toward the end of the service, when the slide show was playing, Beth went down and sat with Chuck on the front steps of the Worship Center so he could see the show up close on the monitor. I could see them whispering things to each other as each new picture came up -- and laughing more than a few times, too.
  
  
• Gregg Matte, HFBC Pastor, delivered the message. He pointed out that there were many funerals going on throughout the city today, and most of them would focus on the "who" -- who the person was. Marge's memorial service helped us understand the "why" behind "who" she was -- her relationship with Jesus Christ.
  
  Gregg said that when he first began to think about this service, he was drawn to Psalm 116:15, which says, "Precious in the sight of the LORD is the death of his saints." But as he prepared, he turned the page of his Bible and saw Psalm 118:13-14:
  
  I was pushed back and about to fall, but the LORD helped me.
  The LORD is my strength and my song; he has become my salvation.
  
  Gregg shared how Marge had been "pushed back" so many times in her life -- including the final weeks of her life. But just as she had helped so many people, the LORD helped her -- and she knew it.
  
  Finally, Gregg shared that in recent weeks, the HFBC Counseling Center staff met and talked about what they were looking forward to in 2006. Marge, a member of the staff, shared that she wanted to become more like Jesus. Referring to how much Marge already looked so much like Christ, Gregg asked us, "What could Marge possibly share in an accountability group?" When Marge told her husband Chuck her goal for 2006, he wisely advised her that that would mean she would have to endure more suffering. Shortly after that, they were in the car wreck.
  
  So not only did he talk about the "why" behind the "who," but he explained the "how" as well, presenting the Gospel message and inviting people to come and talk with any of the folks on the stage after the service.
  
  
• Following a slide show set to Mark Schultz's "Remember Me", Bro. John closed us in prayer and then had everybody to reach across the aisles and hold hands as we sang, "Sweet, Sweet Spirit" -- a former tradition at the end of each service at HFBC:
  
  There's a sweet sweet spirit in this place
  And I know that it's the spirit of the Lord
  
  There are sweet expressions on each face
  And I know that it's the presence of the Lord
  
  Sweet Holy Spirit
  Sweet heavenly dove
  Stay right here with us
  Filling us with your love
  
  And for these blessings
  We lift our hearts in praise
  Without a doubt we'll know that we have been revived
  When we shall leave this place

If anybody else reading this attended the service, feel free to share the moments that you remember! I know there were many, many more!

Kiefer Sutherland Will Not Die

Watching 24 on Fox is a ride like none other on TV. Even though I have only seen the first season (on DVD), I can attest to the (literally) minute-by-minute roller-coaster of a ride that the show is. Plot twists. Double agents. Accidents. Bad guys behind every corner. You never know what is going to happen next.

But there is one thing that you do know. Kiefer Sutherland will not die.

Kiefer plays Jack Bauer, the star of the show. Each season, for 24 hours, we follow him through the minute-by-minute action of one horrific scenario. Presidential assassinations. Nuclear bombs. Terrorists threats. He has dealt with all of them (and more).

But Kiefer Sutherland will not die.

Why? Because he is the star of the show. As I watched the show on DVD with some friends, you could feel the tension in the room each time Kiefer was in a sticky situation. Chalk it up to great writing and production -- we were on the edge of our seats.

But Kiefer Sutherland will not die.

I guess the same could be said about James Bond films ... or anything starrring Harrison Ford. We know 007 isn't gonna get knocked off, and Harrison's whole career is based on being the tough guy who comes out on top. There is great freedom in knowing that. Your focus switches from being worried about the star to being thrilled by the story.

That's what the Christian life is like, too.

We know how the story ends. While we will actually die a physical death, as believers we know where we are going. There is nothing to fear! We will not truly die! Our focus switches (or should switch) from being worried about our lives to being thrilled by the story -- the eternal story unfolding around us each day, minute-by-minute. Talk about freedom!

The next time your find yourself dwelling on your self, remember this -- Kiefer Sutherland will not die!

Tribute to Marge

The HFBC Counseling Center has posted a great tribute to Marge on the HFBC website. Be sure to check it out!

Services for Marge

The Caldwell family will be having a private family burial for Marge at some point this week.

The visitation is on Thursday at Memorial Oaks Funeral Home (13001 Katy Freeway) from 5-9 pm. The memorial service will be in the HFBC Worship Center on Friday at 12 noon. The memorial service is open to the public.

Her obituary can be found in the Houston Chronicle, along with a Guest Book where people have already begun to post comments about what Marge meant to them -- as well as messages for Chuck.

I Can Only Imagine!

My first day on staff at Houston's First Baptist Church was Marge Caldwell's last day on Earth.

There is something poetic in that for me.

As a freshman at Baylor University, I was introduced to Marge when she spoke during Welcome Week as the keynote speaker for the "Social" general session.

(For those not familiar with Welcome Week, it was based on the concept of the whole person with the theme verse of Luke 2:42 -- "Jesus grew in wisdom (intellectual) and stature (physical), and in favor with God (spiritual) and men (social).")

For the next three years, I always looked forward to Marge returning to Waco to tell us about her love for Chuck, how they met, and the importance of relationships in our lives. That an elderly woman could have 2,500+ freshmen wrapped around her little finger simply amazed me.

My senior year, I served on the Welcome Week Steering Committee and had the privilege of taking Marge and Chuck to dinner before her general session. What an amazing couple! My parents were there and they still remember that dinner -- the one and only time my folks ever met the Caldwells.

Marge's joy and love for Christ encouraged me each time I heard her speak during my years at Baylor, and again each time I heard her speak during my years here at HFBC. Since I was always skeptical of large churches -- and even the Baptist denomination -- I was reluctant to ever come to HFBC. The fact that someone like Marge Caldwell called this place home made it more inviting to me. Something must be real at HFBC, I thought, if someone like her could call it home.

As I type this, Mercy Me's hit song "I Can Only Imagine" is on the radio. What is Marge doing right now? Dancing? Being still? Standing? Falling? Singing? Silent?

I can only imagine ... but if I were a betting man, my money would be on dancing ... and laughing!

My First Day

My first day at Houston's First Baptist Church was February 6. Thanks for your prayers as I've walked through the process of starting this new job -- rather, this new ministry. It's great to work at a place where you are prayed over three times before noon on your first day!

I am in a temporary office with a temporary laptop and do not have too much work to do just yet other than getting to know my team and how things work -- which is plenty of work in and of itself! After 8 years at HFBC, I know a good number of the staff members already. Learning how we all work together and what my role is in the mix -- that's another story.

When I logged on to my church e-mail account today for the first time, I had 128 items in my inbox. Since today is just my second day, I was leary of e-mail traffic that rivaled both of my last two jobs -- combined! But, as it turns out, my e-mail was added to the church staff distribution list weeks ago so those 128 e-mails were 3 weeks' worth of traffic. Not bad.

For those of you who attend HFBC, let me say this ... even in just the two days that I've been here, I have been tremendously blessed by the warmth of the other staff members, the excitement and passion they have about their jobs, and the desire they have to make improvements where needed (especially as it relates to communications). As a lay member, I've always had great respect for our church staff. Now, from a "behind the scenes" viewpoint, it's great to see just how well-deserved that respect truly is!

My Last Day

My last day of making cancer history at M. D. Anderson was January 27. Thanks to all of you who prayed for me that day so I wouldn't "lose it" like I thought I would. No tears were shed on my part, but there were a few from my co-workers. And I have to admit that I choked up as I walked out of the building for the last time. M. D. Anderson is a phenomenal place and I had the privilege or working with a talented and fun team.

For my "farewell" party, co-workers really went all out. In the background, there was a slide show of pictures from throughout the past few years, accompanied by well-selected music. My co-workers had picked up on things I had said in the last few weeks and built a "soundtrack" for the occasion with songs I liked or that had special meaning -- such as "Hail To The Chief" and "Can't Take My Eyes Off Of You" and "We Got The FUnk" and more.

For food, there were two bowls of punch -- one gold and one green (Sic 'Em Bears!). The cake was red, white and blue and was set up in front of the "SWM 2008" poster from my surprise birthday party in 2003 (which I had kept in my office ever since).

For a memento, they had people sign a book or send in stories or well wishes that they compiled into a scrapbook for me. Not knowing they were going to do that, I brough my white labcoat for people to sign -- the labcoat that I kept in my office and threatened to put on any time I needed respect or authority. (That's a "hospital thing" if you don't get the joke.)

So ... my last day was a good day. Until the last 10 minutes.

As I was finishing up the mass-deletion of files and programs off my laptop, I accidentally deleted several important folders -- not just files, but folders filled with files. It was about 6:00 pm on a Friday when this happened, so everybody else had already left for the weekend. So, on Monday, as I was on the road to my "pre-sabbatical" in the Hill Country, I called the tech guy and asked if we had a backup of the files. We did. Thank God. My reputation was spared!

Doodle #1

Here's a doodle from Monica Roberts.

Great Things

My head hangs low today, my friends, in shame and disgrace.

January 20, 2006, has come and gone and I forgot to celebrate the 25th anniversary of Ronald Wilson Reagan's inauguration.

Can you forgive me?

While we're on the subject of Reagan, let me share one of my favorite quotes of his. He spoke these words in his final address to the nation from the Oval Office on January 11, 1989:

"I wasn't a great communicator, but I communicated great things."

I take those words to heart as I begin my new role at HFBC. God is doing great things in our church. I think all of us who go there can attest to that! What a joy it will be to have "great things" to communicate -- to have "great things" that almost speak for themselves!

Doodle Time!

If you were like me as a child, you used to pass time away in church by doodling on the bulletin. And now, if you are like me as a grown up, you are actually interested in hearing the message each Sunday and are focused on trying to write down each thought and nugget of truth.

Therefore, you have no time for doodling on Sundays.

Well, now's your chance. If you attended HFBC this past Sunday and did not get a chance to doodle, simply right click on the picture above, copy it, paste it into Microsoft PowerPoint or Photo Editor, print it out, and doodle your heart out. Glasses, hats, warts -- the sky's the limit. Consider it my gift to you.

When you're done, e-mail your doodlings back to me so I can share 'em with others.

And for those you who like to know "the rest of the story," here's the original picture taken with Dinah (and Dave) at Dustin and Megan's wedding reception.