Wednesday, November 28, 2007

Don't see this movie...

I was recently sent this article regarding a movie that will be released on December 7th called "The Golden Compass." The commercials make it out to be a pretty intriguing, Lord of the Rings/Chronicles of Narnia-type movie to draw in the kids. However, the author has different motives. Phillip Pullman is an atheist who "hated" C.S. Lewis and hates Christianity. The author says he wants children to see the movie and read his books and decide against Christianity and decide against the kingdom of heaven. He is actually quoted as saying, "My books are about killing God." Pay attention people. In this movie there is an "Aslan" like character; however, in the movie he is killed and does not come back to life like our favorite lion Aslan did. This dude claims to be both an agnostic and an atheist, which I don't think is possible...so the guy is very confused and cookoo. I'm praying that this movie makes zero dollars at the theaters. The movie stars Nicole Kidman so it is definitely going to get some hype but I'm asking all Believers to boycott the movie.

I've attached an article that you can read for yourself how disturbing this is. Just click on the link below...

The Golden Compass


Grace and peace.

Tuesday, November 20, 2007

Nashville and my Tuesday

This past weekend I made the trip up to Nashville and it was a great trip! My older brother, Andy, and his wife moved to Nashville several months ago when he took a job at Vanderbilt to work in their Sports Information department. They were previously in Huntington, West Virginia where he worked at Marshall University. Anyway, I headed up Nashville after I got off of work Saturday night. My parents and little brother got there earlier in the afternoon. The next day we had an early Thanksgiving dinner since Andy will be traveling with the Vanderbilt basketball team over Thanksgiving. I ate way too much (which tends to be the case whenever I eat holiday meals). Meagan, Andy's wife, and my mom prepared an amazing spread. That night one of my cousins and her husband stopped by. It was my first time meeting her (I think she's my second cousin? I don't understand family lingo sometimes). Anyway, her husband plays in a bluegrass band in Nashville and he plays with Alan Jackson! Needless to say he is really good on the 6 string...and mandolin...and banjo...

On Monday I headed over to the Mann house! I was able to see Kevin, Mandy and Bennett, as well as Mandy's parents. Bennett is a super cool baby. I particularly enjoyed the mix of laughs, hiccups and spitting up...priceless! Then Kevin and I went and had lunch together. I hadn't had good quality Kevin time in over a year. It was so good to catch up and laugh together again. Kevin and Mandy are like a brother and sister to me, which makes me Bennett's uncle...Uncle Justin...I like the sound of that! You know you have a close friendship when you can not see someone for 1-2 years and once you see them, you pick right up where you left off. That's how Kevin and I are, and I'm so thankful that he is as close as a brother to me.

Now I'm back in Marietta. I don't have to work any before Thanksgiving so it means I get to fill my time up with whatever I can find to do before I head to Macon on Thursday for another Thanksgiving dinner! I'm going to gain so many pounds over Thanksgiving...oh well. That will just mean I will have to get back in the gym...so I can throw out my back again!

Today I had the cool opportunity to go to McClure Middle School and talk about veterinary medicine. Emily and I prepared a power point presentation about why we chose to become a veterinarian, what veterinary school was like and what a typical day looks like for us. We also brought in some radiographs (ie. x-rays) of some cool cases we had seen (pregnant Pug with 7 puppies inside of her abdomen, broken bones, x-rays of a dog who ate a bottle cap and a nickel, etc). The kids were very attentive and asked some good questions. I find that I really enjoy teaching people about animals and what I/we try to do to make them better.

Well, that's it for now. I hope everyone has a great Thanksgiving with their respective families. Be safe.

Grace and peace.

Friday, November 16, 2007

In the Name of Jesus

I was going to blog about this earlier, but I went ice skating with a big group of folks...it was fun. Then I read Annie's blog and I sadly realized we were blogging about the same subject. There is a guy that used to work at a veterinary clinic I work at fairly regularly. His name is Denard and a few months ago him and his wife had a miscarriage. She was 7 months pregnant and they were expecting a boy. He was devastated but still remained amazingly strong and faithful to the Lord. Then I find out today that their 4 year old daughter, Kristen, was diagnosed with a rare lung cancer on Halloween and just finished her first week of chemotherapy. I'm having a hard time conjuring up how I would react to this same situation. But I don't think I would be handling it as well as Denard is. His faith is still strong and he is trusting the Lord for great things.

I just don't understand why this sort of thing happens. The Sunday School answer is to say that this happens in order for God to show His glory. Don't get me wrong, I totally believe this. I believe God is going to show Himself mighty in both Kristen and Evan's (see Annie Down's blog) situation. But still, it breaks my heart when a young boy or girl has to undergo something traumatic and painful. Maybe it stems from my own personal history as a baby, but I think it touches every man and woman's heart.

So, please pray for Denard, Keisha (his wife) and their little daughter, Kristen. She is at Eggleston Hospital right now and I heard that she is still a light and so full of joy in the hospital, even when her hair is falling out. Some of these kids are so strong! To be even bolder, let's join together in prayer to eradicate cancer. It is killing so many and it needs to be gone!

Grace and peace.

Wednesday, November 14, 2007

You don't like it? Deal with it!

Ok, there is one thing I have a problem with...well there are lots of things I have problems with but this one makes me shake my head in disgust. I have a big problem with people saying they do not like a particular worship song. I know I know, there are plenty of songs out there that really are NOT good, a one bit. Just listen to the Fish every now and then and you will hear some songs that musically are not that good. But don't listen to the Fish now because all they are playing is Christmas songs. They have been playing Christmas songs since Halloween! Yes, Hallo-freakin-ween!! Who are the ad wizards that came up with this one? Still, the focus and heart behind the song is Jesus and what He did and is doing for us. How can you dislike this?! And even more absurd is that one can have the nerve to go up to somebody else and say, "Hey, you know that song that talks about praising God? Yeah...I don't like it. Let's not sing that one anymore." What?! Please do not confuse this with singing a song too much or too often on Sunday mornings. I am totally in favor of putting a song on the bench for a while and bringing it back some time later. It tends to have a rather profound effect on worship. Nor am I talking about playing a song the same way every single time. I am all about doing the old songs in a new and fresh way. I'm talking about criticizing a song because of how it sounds or because you don't like the wording.

Anyway, I'm sorry to be venting a little but sometimes I get fed up with "too" opinionated people. More people these days are getting their theology out of the songs we sing than by liturgy or a good Sunday sermon. Music across the board is very influential, especially the words inside the music. I used to be a big cynic when it came to worship songs and I was full of musical snobbery. But after realizing how much music affects people, and how much people are paying attention to the words they/we are singing, I've slowly but not so gently, put the proverbial foot in my mouth. Writing songs is hard; writing congregational worship songs is THE hardest thing to do (I know, I'm trying and I can't seem to finish nary a song). I truly believe God anoints and speaks songs to those with the gift of song-writing. So by criticizing and passing judgments, you are doing the same thing to God. Stop it!!

Sorry this came out of nowhere. People just need to think before they speak.

Thursday, November 8, 2007

Incredible!!

I was going through old emails today and I came across this one that was sent to me by Amy Norris. This kid is like 12 years old I think at the time and he is SICK!!! Throughout the whole video my jaw is dropped open in awe of his skills. There's a part towards the end where he starts playing the toms with one hand...you can barely see his hands. Anyway, hope you enjoy.

Grace and peace.


Sunday, November 4, 2007

Mentors

As I sit down after playing guitar non-stop for over like 4 hours (and after reading most people's blogs that are doing the daily blogging), I feel the need to write a little somethin somethin. I just got back in town from a Continuing Education seminar in Raleigh, NC. Veterinarians here in Georgia have to have 30 continuing education (CE) hours every 2 years to maintain their license. Anyway, at this conference, there was a professor/clinician I had at vet school. He was/is a mentor of mine and he is awesome...I mean he has his own Infectious Disease Book (Infectious Diseases of the Dog and Cat). Dr. Greene is an amazingly smart doctor. One time during one of our clinical rounds sessions, he asked me if I had considered this one particular bacteria as the cause of this cat's swollen joints. I of course answered no (in my mind I said heck no). Dr. Greene then chimed up, "It's on page 430, 2nd paragraph on the left hand side." I was like, "Wha?!" I got out his book at home and checked his referencing skills. He was exactly right! Way too smart for me! Well, he is also really stinkin funny. If you know a little about medicine, steroids (not the kind that's plaguing are sports these days) do have some benefit, but also have some bad side effects. Dr. Greene will not call these steroids by their name. One in particular is Prednisone. He calls it "Vitamin P", or "Pixie Dust", or "the exogenous unmentionables" to name a few. He used to randomly call me after I graduated, introducing himself as "El Presidente" or "god" and ask if I was keeping my "gun in my holster," which meant that I was not using any steroids. I would tell him of course...I was a little bit of a brown-noser. Anyway, before I left for North Carolina, I picked up 2 toy guns with a holster and put "P"s on all the handles. I gave them to him before one of his talks and he thought it was pretty funny. He actually used them in a few of his sessions! Again, I am a little bit of a suck-up.

You are probably wondering where the heck I'm going with this. I do have a point, just be patient! As I thought about Dr. Greene and how he has influenced how I practice medicine, I began to think of other "mentors" in my life that have influenced or affected me. The first person I thought of was Kevin Mann. He has been so instrumental in my walk with the Lord and my passion for worship. He is such a kind, gentle and wise man of God and I thank the Lord everytime I think of him. Kevin, if you do read this, I plan on coming up to Nashville the weekend of Nov 17-18th. I hope to see you, Mandy and Bennett!. Then I thought of other mentors of mine. Here they are in no particular order: Bill Tanner, Mark Fritchman, Tom Tanner, Steve Hambrick (miss you dude), Clay Kirkland and of course, my dad. All of these people spoke words of life, wisdom and encouragement into me, whether through meeting one on one, praying for me, teaching and admonishing me, or just simply being my friend.

What I've realized is that I need to tell these people that they have been a huge part of my life and have helped mold me into who I am today, and that I need to thank them! So, if you are on the list and you read this blog, THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU!!

I encourage you to think about those who have affected and influence you and find them! Find them and tell them thank you. I just hope one day someone will find me and tell me how I influenced them. It would be such an encouragment to me!

Grace and peace.