Random Ramblings

Great Moments in Sports...with Kari

2011-03-09T23:30:00.005-06:00

Tonight as Kari and I were getting ready for bed I started talking about the 40th anniversary of the first Ali-Frazier fight. Then I decided to wow her and list off ten monumental boxing matches of the last 50 years.

This led to Kari doing a monologue on how she doesn't understand the allure showing up to watch two guys fight. According to her, she saw the same stuff at the bus stop in junior high, specifically citing when Brad Hopkins "got his nose punched".

This penetrating insight led to roughly 600,000 questions in my head and I settled on one, "What are my wife's insights and thoughts on great moments in sports history.".

Here ya go...

Babe Ruth hits 60 home runs in one season during the Dead Ball Era - "I don't even know what that is. Was Babe Ruth pre-steroids?"
Jim Thorpe wins 8 gold medals in the 1912 Olympics - "Okay."
Johnny Vander Meer throws back to back no-hitters - "That was probably a pretty boring game to watch. But impressive that he was able to do that."
Billie Jean King defeats Bobby Riggs in the Battle of the Sexes in 1973 - "Alright! It gives me hope to be stronger than you. Not really, I'll never be stronger than you. And I don't really care about tennis."
Joe Dimaggio hits in 56 straight games - "Oh. I just keep thinking about how your grandpa played against him in the Navy."
Wilt scores 100 points in one basketball game - "That's ridiculous. Ball hog."
Terrorists murder 11 Israeli athletes at the 1972 Olympics in Munich - "Wow. Is the bombing of the Olympics going to be in here to?"
Wayne Gretzky becomes the NHL's all-time leading scorer - "Way to go Wayne. Don't have a lot of thoughts on that. Although I'd like to go a hockey game some time."
Tiger Woods wins 1997 Masters at age 21 - "Still the most exciting moment in golf for me was when Phil Mickelson won. That's the only time I have ever actually gotten excited about golf."
Tiger Woods revealed as an adulterer - "That's pretty gross."
Joe Namath promises a win in Super Bowl III - "Ah like Babe Ruth calling his home run. (I follow up with how she knows that about Babe Ruth.) "I saw The Sandlot."
Jackie Robinson breaks the color barrier - "Big deal."
Miracle on Ice at 1980 Olympics - "Awwwww. Our second date." (We watched "Miracle" and then kissed for a while. Baller.)

At this point in the conversation, Kari was begging to just let me let her go to sleep. You probably all want to do the same after reading this post.

Don't Ask, Don't Tell

2010-12-22T21:11:00.007-06:00

I needed a few more than 140 characters to flesh out how I feel about the President repealing "Don't Ask, Don't Tell".

Stick with me on this as it's possible that these thoughts might seem scattered. To be honest, they aren't completely my thoughts. They are my thoughts that have been derived from the opinions of my brother - who is a soldier on active duty right now in Afghanistan.

Our current political/cultural climate really dictates that I should feel one of three ways about DADT:

Republicans tell me that I should be appalled that openly gay men and women are allowed to serve in the Armed Forces. If I'm not livid about it then I'm unpatriotic.
Democrats tell me that if I believe homosexuality is a sin (which I do) that I am a narrow-minded bigot who is unpatriotic.
Total apathy because it doesn't affect my lifestyle. And, of course, apathy is unpatriotic.

First let me say this. I think one of the sins facing American Christians today is patriotism. (I'm never going to be elected to public office if that last line sees the light of day.) People in this country love their country more than they love Jesus. One thing I prayed against when I went to Kenya was that I wouldn't be tempted to show those orphans the "love of America" but the love of Jesus instead.

Look, patriotism is great. But I'm not proud to be an American. Sorry for ya Lee Greenwood. I am grateful I live in America. I love that I have the freedom to worship Jesus freely (ironically, in a public school) every Sunday. I love that I've never been asked to stop reading my Bible in public or that my wife and I can openly pray for our food in public. God Bless the men and women who helped create the religious freedoms that we have. Our troops are awesome. Am I biased because I'm related to one. Heck yes.

And those are the guys who have what we are all lacking in this ridiculously overblown issue of DADT: perspective. I am embarrassed that this is the story that it is. I guess I'm also embarrassed that gays were not allowed to serve openly in the military now that I think about it. But the DADT policy is so remarkably irrelevant to many that are currently serving in the military.

What is relevant? The troops that have served, are serving, and will serve overseas. I personally know several men who were in Iraq and Kuwait, one man in Korea right now and one who is in Afghanistan. You don't think about it but the fact is that American troops die every single week in Afghanistan or Iraq. Did that last sentence even resonate with anyone? They die. Almost every day.

Genuine patriotism is giving a rip about those soldiers and their families. Patriotism is absolutely 100% not fighting for the plight of homosexual men and women. It's also not fighting against it. As I said earlier, I am embarrassed that the news is treating the repeal of DADT and our country's vast opinions on it as if it's the Emancipation Proclamation. It's not.

I don't feel any safer or less safe now than I did two weeks ago. Being open about your sexuality doesn't make you a better solider and it doesn't mean the end of our military. You should all feel safe because some men and women, gay and straight, leave their families and risk not coming home because their country has asked them to. They are selfless and they are patriotic.

So can we please stop with the hyperbole about how big it is to have DADT repealed? That was a legislative act for a group of people to get re-elected and the opposition to it was the same thing.

No one asked my opinion but it's my blog. If you don't like it then don't read it. I just can't stomach what the news gives us these days. Ask my brother or 90% of the troops in the service right now and they will tell you that DADT doesn't matter. It's a fight being acted out in Washington that reminds me of a pro wrestling show. A lot of yelling back and forth and we know the ending before hand.

Day Five, Six and Seven...I think

2010-09-27T23:05:00.001-05:00

It’s 6:29 a.m. here in Kenya and Lopez is currently sitting in his bed, under the covers, listening to an audio stream of the Yankees/Red Sox game.

I’m typing away over here and fighting some sort of allergy mess that has my right nostril completely closed and my head all kinds of congested. Nothing a little Kenyan coffee won’t fix.

Since I last posted, we have seen the worst and the best of this country. Saturday morning was spent inside the slums of Kibera. Saturday afternoon and Sunday morning were spent on the most ridiculous vacation experience of my life.

Almost everyone on this trip (I think there are 23 of us) will go back to the United States and speak of what Kibera did to them emotionally – and rightfully so. I was stirred a little differently.

First of all, there is no getting around the level of poverty these people are living in. I can try and explain it to you but it will be impossible for you to understand. It’s disgusting that human beings are forced to live this way. Let me just put it this way – we were told about the “flying toilets”. This is when families will use the bathroom in a bag, take it outside, and throw it as far away from their homes as possible.

Speaking of homes, there are 800,000 people living in a three square mile area of Kibera. So there homes are just mud or tin or wood and they are crammed together like you wouldn’t believe.

We got to visit Eric’s (spelling?) home in Kibera where he lives with his mom, dad and two sisters. It was extremely small but actually had a comfortable feel to it. Eric seemed really proud to show us his house and have us meet his family. As we talked to them, I didn’t get the impression they were embarrassed by their living situation at all. They definitely want to be out of the slums but they didn’t seem like an unhappy family.

The street he lived on was predominantly Muslim and we were definitely garnering a lot of looks. I never felt threatened or afraid as we walked down the street to Eric’s house. I just tried to wave and say hello to as many people as possible.

After each group came back from their respective home visits, there was a variety of emotions. Some guys had tears in their eyes, some were very verbal in trying to process what they saw and others were very quiet in trying to do the same.

I don’t know where I fall in that spectrum. I wasn’t emotional nor was I overly talkative or silent. Being in these homes and seeing what Compassion projects are doing and listening to testimonies of students and pastors has strengthened a resolve in me that something needs to be done.

Being on this trip has made it all make sense to me. When I’m in America, I think about all the things I have to do and how I am going to make it happen. I think about being a godly husband, being a faithful employee, a good uncle, working out for wrestling, etc. None of these things seem daunting to me because of the hope I have in Jesus.

But when I think about ending poverty world-wide, or really making a difference in a family’s life in Kibera, the problem just seems to big. There is no possible way that donating $38 a month is really making a difference, right?

Wrong.

I have been walked step-by-step through how $38 per month changes lives. My response to all that I have seen here this week is not emotional. It’s not a church camp experience. This trip appealed to the very way that I am wired and has convinced me, beyond a shadow of a doubt that Compassion works.

(I took a little break in the middle there and now it’s 6:03 p.m. on Monday night.)

If you thought that I was convinced this morning then I am even more so this evening. We spent the morning touring the Compassion offices in Nairobi and then had lunch with three Leadership Development Program students. Ben, Rafael and Maurin were absolutely mind-blowing. All three grew up in the slums. All three had nothing. Now all three are saved, in college and planning careers in politics, pregnancy counseling and community development.

I was blessed more today than I have been all week by seeing the “finished product”. By that, I mean that they are going to graduate from college soon and move on from being sponsored in the Compassion program.

I normally come back to the hotel exhausted everyday but today was so encouraging! I love what this trip has done for me and I am so looking forward to coming home and advocating for Compassion with our church leaders as well as my friends and family.

We have just one more day of project visits before we leave on Wednesday. I miss my wife like crazy and I miss chips and salsa just slightly less.

Catch you guys later.

Day Three and Four in Kenya

2010-09-24T22:22:00.001-05:00

It’s 6:00 a.m. here in Nairobi and I kind of hit a wall yesterday.

I’ve been getting up early (5:30 – 6:00) every single day, even though we don’t meet in the hotel lobby until 8:45 every morning. Part of it is because my sleep schedule is so fouled up, another part is because I love the breakfast buffet and I am enjoying eating alone every morning and spending my time with the Lord.

So today was no different as far as waking up. I woke up at about 5:20, got out of bed about 5:30, showered and now I’m in the hotel lobby waiting for the restaurant to open.

Another reason for waking up this early is because it’s my best time to get in touch with Kari so this morning’s early rise is so that I can catch her on IM. It’s 10:00 in Austin and she usually checks email and stuff at night before bed.

BUT, our internet connection is shaky at best. Right this second I am writing all of this out on a Word document and I’m planning on posting it whenever I can.

The last two days have been our first two days of “work”. After two days of travel and one day of recovery we went out to one of the Compassion projects. The project we visited on Thursday was called AIC Kamungu. We heard from the pastor the church (all Compassion projects are based at churches), the project director, a former sponsored child who now works for AIC Kamungu.

Then yesterday was a visit to Kisserian, a small suburban town to the south of Nairobi. We were greeted with song and dance, then enlightened on Compassions CSP program – Child Survival Program.

There was great testimony to the work that God is doing through Compassion at the project but we got to experience it on a home visit. We visited the home of Jennifer and her twin daughters Tabitha and Dianna. Jennifer has five children, one on the way, no husband and is not a Believer. She supports herself by doing bead work (bracelets, necklaces, etc.) and part-time prostitution.

This was a terribly sad but also a hopeful experience. Jennifer is a really beautiful woman who, currently, has no hope. She told us that when she had her daughters her plan was to kill them and then kill herself. Fortunately, God allowed that not to happen and she is involved with the CSP program now.

I am hopeful for Jennifer because of God’s faithfulness through the Compassion staff. They won’t forget about Jennifer and her girls. So I left sad, but encouraged.

Really the things that have struck me the most is the commitment and pride of the Compassion staff. They all work so hard and they are so thorough in what they do. There is no lip service here – when people commit to something they do it.

We were told on the first day how important a persons word is here in Africa. That’s why they told all of the pastors on the trip not to promise to build the Kenyans a church or promise to give them money. Because even though you might mean well and you really want to do it, the Kenyans take it as a done deal.

Last night was dinner with a group of African pastors who gave wonderful testimonies to what Compassion has done in their churches. I felt bad for them because they were speaking with such enthusiasm but everyone in the audience was dead tired.

Today is a trip to the slum of Kibera then on to an overnight safari. I have no expectations of the visit to Kibera. I want to be completely open and vulnerable to what is going on there.

We have passed the halfway point of the trip as we leave for Texas on Wednesday. It’s been a real experience here but I am ready to see my wife. And eat Mexican food.

See you guys soon.

Days One and Two en route to Kenya

2010-09-22T05:59:00.002-05:00

The blog is starting at 8:04 a.m. on Wednesday the 22^nd even though our trip to Kenya started two days ago. I’m traveling with Justin Lopez, who is my boss in my new ventures with the For The City Network. We are traveling to Kenya with Compassion International on behalf of Austin Stone Community Church.

Let me recap some of highlights so far, though I don’t know how many highlights their can be from 19 hours on airplanes and another ten waiting around in airports. How about just a quick timeline of our lives since Monday morning:

5:00 a.m. – Wake up in Austin, TX

6:21 a.m. – Make it through security and waiting at gate two hours and nine minutes before my flight leaves. Delta employee at baggage claim looked at my passport and told me I was very photogenic. I tell you this to inform you that Delta clearly lets people drink on the job.

8:30 a.m. – Flight leaves for Detroit.

12:25 p.m. – Flight arrives in Detroit. I have to go pick up my bag from baggage claim and go through security again because they didn’t check my bag all the way to Kenya. Again, this is why alcohol is discouraged in the workplace.

1:00 p.m. – It’s lunch time so Lopez decides we should get as much Detroit culture as we can in the airport. So of course we eat at the best Michigan has to offer – Chili’s.

2:00 to 5:50 p.m. – Sitting and waiting at the gate for our connecting flight to Amsterdam. Very boring until former Houston Astros shortstop Adam Everett walks up to the gate and I realize he is going on the trip as well. So now Lopez, a former first baseman at Texas A&M, is not the best baseball player on the trip. Sorry J.

5:50 p.m. – Flight leaves for Amsterdam. Up to this point I have spent 6 ½ hours in the airport and 2:52 in the air. This trip will balance things out as we are scheduled for seven hours and 29 minutes of flight time. Lord, beer me strength.

7:25 a.m. (Dutch time) – Arrive in Amsterdam. I slept about 45 minutes on the trip over from Detroit but I did watch two episodes of Glee, the new Karate Kid movie and most of the A-Team. So I get to Amsterdam really entertained but really sleepy. The Amsterdam airport is really impressive. They have a casino, lounge, internet center and a really small room for people to smoke in. The Dutch also don’t have specific sections for their adult magazines. They just kind of mix them in with the rest.

10:25 a.m. (Dutch time) – Board a Boeing 747 that has a SECOND FLOOR on it and get ready to head to Kenya. At this point, both Lopez and I have barely slept. J is 6’6” and was up every 15 minutes on the Detroit to Amsterdam flight so people could use the rest room. He is visibly miserable.

10:26 – I am sound asleep before the plane takes off. I wake up more than 6 hours later to discover that there is only an hour and a half left in the trip. I also woke up just in time for aiplane pizza!!!

7:25 pm. (African time) – Hop off the plane and head to customs. It’s crowded and we are all tired but it’s still so unreal to be in Kenya. To be honest, I started to think about just how far away I am from Kari. That made me sad but I began to thank God for just how far He was going to stretch me on this trip. If any of you knew me when I was 17 and how homesick I used to get, you would realize what a victory it is for me to even be on this trip. Praise God for how He grows us.

9:33 pm. – Made it through customs, got my bag and now we’re bussing to the hotel. It’s night time and I am pretty tired but I am struck by how beautiful Nairobi is at night. Driving along the highways, the city reminded me on Nashville for some reason. As we got into downtown, it looked like a city in the Northeast. There were lots of trees and brick sidewalks and the city is very colorfully lit.

11:00 – Grab a snack, brush my teeth and head to bed. Total hours of travel is about 26 hours, covering two days.

5:20 a.m. – A lack of caffeine meant I went to sleep with a headache and woke up with one as well. The restaurant doesn’t open for breakfast until 6:30 so I lay there until 6:00 then I get up, shower and head to the restaurant to eat.

Breakfast was SO good. I had two eggs, chicken, beef and three pieces of bread. And coffee. WOW the coffee is fantastic here. Definitely bringing some home to the wife.

I spent my time with the Lord for about an hour during breakfast. I read Romans 6:1-14 and thanked God for taking my sin to the cross once and for all and that because of that I am no longer a slave to sin. I prayed that God would take my sin and kill it in whatever way was necessary. If it needed to be as violent and as agonizing as Jesus taking my sin then so be it.

I also spent some time praying for my brother Jason, his wife Lanessa and his sons Parker, Banner, West and Clark. Though we are only here for a short time I am asking God that being so far away from my wife will help me to better understand what they are all going through during his deployment to Afghanistan. This trip has helped me to better pray for them during this.

Now it’s 9:00 here in Kenya, with means it’s 1:00 a.m. in Texas. We have a meeting at 9:30 to spend some time getting to know each other and to know Compassion a little bit better. Today is a pretty light day so that we can rest up for the next few days. Thursday and Friday will be pretty full days and Saturday morning as well. Saturday and Sunday we will be on a safari, which is just going to be epic. Then Monday and Tuesday are more visits with kids and observing Compassion at work. Wednesday we will wrap up the trip and head to Amsterdam that night.

I would covet your prayers while I am here. Please pray that God would help me to leave here changed. If this is just a “cool trip” then I have wasted it. I want to leave here with a spiritual and emotional investment in those in poverty – particularly children. God adopted me into his family from a destitute place and I am praying that my heart would respond to the poverty here in a way that brings great glory to our King.

Talk to you guys soon.

Jesus in the DR

2010-01-19T11:07:00.004-06:00

I've been back in the US since Saturday night and, to be honest, it's been a little bit of a challenge. Though life is harder for the Dominican People, it seems like a simpler existence than the one that I lead here in the states. Don't know if that makes sense but it's been a bit of a prevailing thought since I got back.

To be honest, I really can't wait to go back. I just loved the people that I met there. I loved getting to know the Snapps a little bit as well as meeting Jody Chance and Charlie Nettles. The Mak teaching staff was super cool as well. I wondered if they would be at all envious of those of us that were getting to go back to the comforts of home in the US. It turns out that I am a little bit envious of them for getting to stay.

Maybe that is a little bit of the selfishness that I have been praying would be purged out of me. I wanted to stay there and lead that simple existence, working and serving, instead of coming back and tacking the responsibilities that I have here. Responsibilities like work, raising money, wrestling, etc. If Kari would have been in Puerto Plata with me, I might not have ever come back!

The trip to the DR has really made the world shrink. It's made my world view more intimate. I always knew that the Dominican Republic existed, I just never thought about the fabric of the country. My idea of the Dominican Republic was just baseball. Now, the country has a face and a heart and I feel like I recognize both.

I guess it's a lot like knowing Jesus. I sat back from afar and knew about the DR. I studied it's population, language, imports/exports, poverty levels, etc. So I knew a little bit about the DR. But then I was drawn there, slept there, tasted their food, conversed in their language and fully experienced the culture. Now I know the DR a little bit. Soon I'll go back and get to know it a little bit more.

Our relationship with Jesus is that same. For years and years and years I was able to study Him. I knew of His attributes, characteristics and works. But in recent years (and really months) I have begun to know the fullness of His grace. I've begun to understand that His love is unattainable through my own actions. I have begun to know that just as I can't earn His grace through work, I can't lose that same grace through shortcomings.

I am thankful that the Lord took me down there to help provide me a different, better perspective on His glory. I am thankful for the complete unwarranted grace He showed us along the way.

I've heard a lot of different ways that people describe God's sovereign grace - the idea that he rules over all and gives according to his pleasure and his plan. One such way to think about it is to realize that we are fortunate to wake up every day. If we believe that God is sovereign then we have to recognize that every single breath is a gift.

I spoke to our team about this in the DR one night. The team was a little bit frustrated with the fact that Mother Nature had altered our original plan of mission. One by one, everyone in the group expressed their dismay at not getting to do what we wanted to do on our trip.

What a crazy yet typically human thought! "God, I will respond to your call to mission but here is what I want to do."

As a group, we reviewed His grace and the fact that it was because of it that our plane took off and landed safely, that our gua gua didn't crash on the insane Dominican roads or that the earthquake didn't rock Puerto Plata. We were blessed with another day to live and serve and worship the Creator simply because God decided it to be.

So I come away from this trip thankful. Thankful to be saved by His grace. Thankful to be given another day to share it. Thankful to have the platform to proclaim it.

Mostly I am thankful that grace is not just spoken in English. It is universal and penetrates the hearts of all. From English to Spanish to the Creole spoken in Port Au Prince. It's my hope right now that God is opening the hearts of the people in Haiti to hear about His love and mercy.

Until next time...

Update from the DR

2010-01-14T21:44:00.003-06:00

My apologies for not updating last night. Our power was out here in Puerto Plata.

The last two days have really been distinctly different. Yesterday everyone in the group was a little bit down. We have faced constant rain every single day since being here and all of us were being a little selfish. We were all feeling sorry for ourselves because we haven't gotten to do all the things we want - working with lots of kids, manual labor, etc.

Then last night we just decided to blow ourselves up. We had a really healthy discussion about our own selfishness and were reminded of the fact that it is God's sovereign grace that allows us to even wake up in the morning, let alone travel safely, let alone be in the DR. Our selfish nature has no place at the throne of God.

Therefore today was significantly different. First of all, there was sunshine...

I will finish this update tomorrow. It's almost midnight here and I am exhausted.

God is doing big things here and is sure to make Himself known in Haiti in the coming days, weeks and years.

Please continue to pray for Haiti.

Adios!

Day 5 from the Dominican Republic

2010-01-12T20:50:00.003-06:00

It's days like this one that I remember that God is the very definition of love and that He is good.

I have to think about this when a 7.0 earthquake hits the capital of Haiti, which is already riddled by poverty. I think of all of the destruction and chaos that has happened upon a poor and oppressed people and I just remember that God is good and He is sovereign.

Despite all the chaos of the last five hours, God is still on His throne and ruling over all. I don't understand what happened in Port Au Prince, nor will I try to understand. I can simply bow down and worship my God and humbly ask for His mercy on the people of Haiti.

I am thankful for His mercy that He protected us here in Puerto Plata in the DR. He chose where that earthquake would hit and I am thankful for safety. I hope that if I am faced with a mountainous challenge like the Haitian people one day, I will continue to thank Him for who He is.

Strangely enough, today was largely uneventful. There were only 20 kids at the school and we combined the four classes into two and had a little fun. One cool thing at Makarios is how they "take the roll".

In America, we say "here". Not at Makarios baby!!! We sing a song that goes like this:

"Ambiolix is here! Ambiolix is here! Ambiliox is here!"

And while we are singing, Ambiolix is absolutley breaking it down! One little one named Luisi kicked his chair back and started moonwalking. He's only 5. Greatness!

Since there weren't a lot of kids today, me and Robin and Anne Marie and Kendall walked around the village of Tamarindo and went to kids houses to get them for school. Of course, they don't really live in houses. What they live in could kindly be called a tool shed. Familes of 4, 5 and even 6 or 7 all crammed in there.

As we walked around it was so easy to think about how poor and deprived these people were. But realistically, they were incredibly nice and polite. They don't know any different, they are content to live in their community and spend time together. Sure, they are lacking in some basic essentials we have but they don't complain. They are very sweet.

We ate lunch at the same place as usual and then went back to help the teachers with their supplies and supply closets. The rain has absolutely killed any chance of moving the garden like we originally intended so we are working on the fly. God has been good to us through all this so it is a blessing to be working for him at all, even if it is organizing a storage closet.

Then tonight we got back to the house and started on dinner. I was in the kitchen talking to Chris Snapp (one of our hosts) and I was looking at the floor while we were talking. All of the sudden my legs felt like jello and I felt dizzy.

I asked Chris, "Is the house moving?". He said, "Are you alright man?"... like I was insane. Then I looked over and saw an open cabinet with the door shaking. I walked into the dining area and notice the hanging light swinging back and forth. I asked the girls if they felt the house move and all of them said "Yes!!" It made me feel better that I wasn't coming down with vertigo or something.

Then Jody, who lives at the Mak house came down the stairs asking the same thing. We were all laughing about how cool it was until Charlie Nettles called and said there was a quake in Haiti.

We looked in the web and there was a 7.0 quake and a 5.4 quake seven minutes later. From all we can find out, the city of Port Au Prince has been decimated. It made me so sad. It turns out that the quake in Haiti caused an earthquake here that registered 3.4 on the scale.

I am new at international travel and this is my first mission trip in quite a few years. There are times on this trip that I just feel helpless. There is so much more need than what I feel like I am capable of doing. The quake in Haiti just made it worse. I want to be there assisting and rebuilding lives. I want to help heal those people and that city.

Then I remember that my hands, my labor and my intentions are all part of a sovereign God's plans. The things that I am doing here are not to small and they are not too big. They are just as God designed them.

And so is the quake in Haiti. I am so fortunate to be at a church that teaches us about a Lord rules over all. That He is a God that allows destruction so that we might know him. I'm not a biblical scholar but I would imagine that God's desire in this is to reveal Himself to us. That is the absolute best that we can hope for.

I love that our great King is a mystery and personal all at the same time. I am grateful that He is above all and that He chose to reveal Himself to me.

Please pray for the poor folks of Haiti. There is great poverty there and rebuilding there might make the the Katrina efforts look like another Starbucks popping up. In other words, Katrina might look easy compared to this one.

God Bless all of you.

Day 4 from the Dominican Republic

2010-01-11T20:35:00.001-06:00

Today was a good day.

We wake between 6:45 and 7:00 each day and have breakfast. Usually 2-3 people are on breakfast prep duty and they get up a little easier. I am typically on dishwashing duty but today I got up around 6:50 and came down hung out before breakfast started. Our team is really cool and the fun literally starts when we all get up in the morning.

Unfortunately, our day was completely rearranged because of rain. Apparently it has rained everyday for the last couple of weeks except for Sunday.

We got over to the school around 8:30 and kind of hung out and waited for the kids to arrive. Normally there are about 60 kids that come to the school but today there was only about 15-20. Me and Sara Hoffman (a freshman at TAMU) were in Kim Nettles class. Kim and Charlie used to go to the Stone and moved here in August.

The classroom setting was awesome!!!! We had 9 kids in our class and all of them were in Pre K. They spent about an hour and a half learning numbers and days of the week and colors. It was neat because I knew how to say all those things in spanish and a lot of my high school spanish started to come back. So I actually got to communicate with the kids! Totally fun.

Because of the rain, we couldn't have recess so we stayed in the classroom a little while longer. We all left and went to lunch around 11:30. We eat everyday at the same restaurant and eat the same meal. Chicken, beans, rice, vegetables. There were fried banana-type things for lunch but I didn't eat one.

We really had a good time sitting and talking at lunch. Me and Bradley get a long GREAT and I really like Chris Snapp and Charilie Nettles. They are both married and a little older so I relate to them better.

After lunch we were supposed to start working on moving a garden but it was so so wet. Instead we worked on cleaning up the yard area and making a pile to burn. Me and Bradley used an axe and just beat the crap out of some logs to break them up. Until I broke the ax...oops. After that, me and Bradley and Chris used machetes to work on the logs until we just decided to pick them up as a team and move them. It was such a cool MAN moment. There were seven of us moving these giant logs. We took a picture on top of the pile in the rain afterwards...totally freakin awesome.

When we did all that we could do outside, we cleaned the classrooms (sweep, mop, etc.) and helped with some arts and crafts. I love working for the staff here. I get a blessing by blessing them.

After that we came back to the house. I took about a 15 minute nap then showered and helped with dinner. Dinner tonight was a chicken enchilada casserole that Erika made. She thinks she can't cook but it was great.

Then we sat and shared our thoughts on the day and played Scattergories. Everyone sucked at the game but HOLY CRAP, was Erika funny. The letter was T and the line was "US Presidents" and she wrote Tubman...as in Harriet Tubman. Then Chris started making fun of her and another member of our team. I laughed so hard I cried. Bradley has also had me in tears more than once.

Now the team is playing cards and getting ready for bed. Another regular day tomorrow. On Wednesday we will work in the class in the morning then in the afternoon we will visit Pancho Mateo, a local village, then go get ice cream (our treat for the week) and then go to the coop run by women who have all been rescued from prostitution.

Please be in prayer that we would be able to be effective and leave a lasting, godly impact on the students and staff at Makarios.

Talk to everyone tomorrow.

Day 1-3 from the Dominican Republic

2010-01-11T20:30:00.002-06:00

Greetings from Puerto Plata in the Dominican Republic!

I've been traveling since Friday and we are working in the DR with the Makarios School. I am with a group from my church, The Austin Stone and we are serving the children and the Makarios staff here.

We left Austin on Friday morning and stopped in Dallas. Our flight from Dallas to Miami was delayed an hour which meant we missed the last flight from Miami to Santiago. American Airlines put us up in a hotel on Friday night and fed us then got us on the 11:40 flight on Saturday morning.

We got into Santiago about 2:50 local time and our driver Juan drove us to the Markarios house. Shari, Erika and Chris Snapp and Jody Chance (all Makarios staff) were here to greet us. Some of the rest of the staff came over and we all had dinner and spent some time getting to know each other. After the staff left, Erika, Chris and Jody gave us a bit of an orientation as to the business of the Makarios house and what to expect this week.

This morning we went to church at Tempo Biblico with most of the Makarios staff (minus Sharla, who went back to Santiago to take care of some business). The service was solid. Lots of hymns, scripture reading and prayer for the first hour then communion and offering. Then we were fortunate that the pastor had a translator! He preached from 1 Corinthians 15:51-58 and taught on the coming hope that is Jesus. The worship and teaching are, of course, so much different than what we have each week but it was fun to worship in such a different setting.

Then we had lunch and spent about an hour and a half at the Makarios school. We gave them their snacks and vitamins and helped out with the lesson, which was a gospel-centered school lesson on things that give light and things that give darkness.

From there we got our first taste of the real, abject poverty that so many are dealing with. We went to a Haitian village called Chichigua and took a tour and played with the kids. The group did a really nice job of diving right in and just going berserk playing soccer and frisbee. Mostly we wrestled and just carried the kids on our shoulders.

We're prepping dinner now then we'll discuss the day and then relax before heading to our first day at the school tomorrow.

Our group is really getting along well. We'll see how it continues as we get progressively more tired though. It's easy to be gung-ho on the first day. I am praying for endurance and consistency from our group. Bradley Jackson is our team leader and is doing a nice job of leading - both by word and by deed. He is a really neat guy.

I am grateful thus far that God is allowing us to be used here. The people are just as eager to be with us as we are with them. It couldn't be a better situation. There is no hostility or crazy looks at all. They are so welcoming of us. It's a blessing.

I'll keep you updated as the week goes on.

Update from Egypt

2009-11-20T19:38:00.002-06:00

Hey everyone, this is an email from my buddy Jeremy Taylor. It's an update from the guys from the Christian Wrestling Federation, who are over there until Monday wrestling and sharing the name of Jesus. I know they would covet your prayers.

Updates from Egypt:

1. The ring is together, although it took all day to do. It is structurally sound; their only concerns are the wood planks, since they were unable to use ones long enough to stretch the entire length of the ring as they normally would. Instead they had to use smaller ones and piece them together to cross the ring. Additionally, where the turnbuckles are attached to the ring posts were not fully welded. Supposedly someone is coming to do that (they hope). Please continue to pray for the ring's performance and use.

2. It is possible that the guys may now be given 1 hour and 15 minutes to rest between wresting shows, but that is not certain. It might still be only 30 minutes. Prayer would be appreciated for this as well.

3. Prayer is requested for those who are preaching at their shows:

Day 1 -- Friday in Egypt -- Show #1 Rob is preaching; Show #2 Cory is preaching (first time to preach)
Day 2 -- Saturday in Egypt -- Show #1 Ron is preaching (first time); Show #2 Randy is preaching (first time)
Day 3 -- Sunday in Egypt -- Show #1 Seth is preaching (first time); Show #2 Albert is preaching

4. Most of the guys will also be giving short testimonies at some time. Please pray for what they will share during those times.

5. They are using translators, so prayers for the translators would be appreciated as well.

6. Please pray for the CWF guys' health - that they would stay well regardless of the food, heat, or taxing situations, as well that they would be safe from injury.

7. And pray for the people coming to the shows. The CWF wrestling events are being set up as the main draw, amidst a number of different 'events' happening. Pray that their unique style of evangelism would be used to reach people that might not otherwise hear the message.

2009-11-11T17:06:00.004-06:00

Greetings!

I have kickstarted my blog again!!! It's been a while but I needed a way to communicate with the masses that was more than 140 character Tweets or Facebook updates. Also, I wanted to update all of you of what’s God is doing in my life and how you can help with where life is taking me.

Right now

As of October 1, 2009 I am serving as an unpaid intern at The Austin Stone Community Church. It is very young church with its roots dating back to 2002. The church was founded by Matt Carter, Brad Cauley and Chris Tomlin that has since grown into a spiritual and cultural force in Austin. Many of you may know or remember Jeff Mangum, a Georgetown High and UMHB grad, who is a teaching pastor on staff at The Stone. To save space, I’m attaching the web address for each of you to read more about The Austin Stone if you are interested.

http://www.austinstone.org/who/

In the last seven years, we have grown to see over 4,000 people worship with us each Sunday as we meet at Austin High School and our church leaders have sought God’s direction in making us a “church for the city”. The church is committed to honestly preaching the Gospel of Jesus Christ and allowing that to change hearts, change the city and change the world. As of now I am living in Round Rock with Jeff and Christy Mangum and their 3-year old Paige (who I ADORE). They have been kind enough to allow me to live with them for the duration of my residency.

How I got here

About eight months ago I was living and working in Lubbock and began to feel God slightly nudging me back to Austin. I was working in the golf business at the time and assumed that meant looking for a golf job in Central Texas. As usual, God had a better idea.

About two months later I met Kari Kriegel, an Austin resident and Austin Stone partner, and we’ve been dating since then. Then about four months ago, I discovered that The Austin Stone was hiring “residents” for 2010. A resident is a full-time staff member that is responsible for raising their own support during their tenure as an employee. I prayed about it, talked to some people at the church and applied. I was hired about three weeks later and started as an intern on October 3, 2009.

As some of you know, since graduating I spent about six years in the journalism/communication world then stumbled into the golf business for almost four years. During that time I came to see that I really only had desire in life: to know Jesus Christ and make Him known.

It has been a wonderful blessing to see God’s faithfulness thus far as I left a comfortable, financially-rewarding job for a position that required me to ask for money. I am fully confident that the Lord will provide for me in the coming year. I don’t know yet if the Lord desires for me to spend a lifetime in church ministry but I do know that, for this particular season, He has me at The Austin Stone to grow as a believer, a minister and to also help spread the good news of the Gospel with the staff here.

What I will be doing

I was hired as a resident to the Operations Pastor Dave Barrett and I will be playing a role in Physical Environment Support as well as Project Decision and Operation Team Support. Some examples of what I am currently doing:

Developing a parking/traffic team for Sunday services at Austin High
Assist in volunteer coordination for weekly setup/teardown at Austin High
Support on our St. John’s facility renovation
Create and execute survey of PAC service attendees
Organization of monthly financial data for presentation to Elders/Finance Team

Also, I will be sending $100 per month of my support to support a foreign missionary and, in January, I will make my first trip out of the county as I go to the Dominican Republic for eight days to work with Makarios International.

In addition to my role as a staff member I will be a part of Discipleship Group with five other men as we unpack the role of a Godly man in the world today. I will also be taking weekly classes along with our other interns and residents. Thus far we have been doing a study called God, Gospel, Mission and truly unpacking our design, our sinfulness and God’s awesome role in redeeming and sanctifying us. So, much like a medical residency, I will be working and learning simultaneously.

What I am asking for

In order for me to commit to full-time work I am going to be asking for support from those in my life. The goal that has been set for me is $26,000 in 2010 – a breakdown of $2,167 per month. This will come solely from donations.

What you can do

What I am asking from each of you is prayer and financial support. I do not believe that my ministry will be successful without reverently seeking God’s blessing. If you are committed to pray for the lost, The Austin Stone, and my role there then I am more than grateful.

Should you decide that financial support is something you are interested in then by all means contact me!!! I’ve decided to break down the financial gifts into two categories – one time gifts and monthly support.

One time gift – This can be for any amount at any time in the next 12 months. Should you decide this is something God wants you to do then please contact me and I will send you a donor card for your gift.
Monthly support – This is a year-long commitment of $10, $25, $50, $100 or $100+ per month. As I mentioned above, I have to raise almost $2,200 per month and it will require a great deal of support from a lot of people. If you decide to commit to monthly giving then I will send you 12 donor cards to be sent in each month. The donor cards HAVE to be sent in with the donations as it has my Donation Code on it.

Also, if you are planning on monthly support then please carefully consider what you are doing. I am asking for a year-long commitment and I am hoping that no one decides to change their mind five months into the process.

This is the most important thing I have ever done in my entire life and I hope you will prayerfully consider your role in this. You were contacted because I know that I can count on each of you for your spiritual support. Should you decide to support financially then it is greatly appreciated.

Chris

My sister in law

2008-12-03T09:17:00.005-06:00

Lanessa had surgery to reattach the bone plate to her skull on Monday and she is doing fine.

They went in for surgery at 7:30 and the procedure was scheduled to start at 9:30. The staff didn't actually take her back until 10:45 then they didn't start the surgery until 12:50.

Apparently the reason that the surgery started late was because Dr. Becker was running late. Perhaps he was out buying beard products or polishing his degree from Stanford. That poor girl, she has had the surgery pushed back for weeks now and now, when the time finally arrives, they push it back three more hours.

It reminds me of the time when I was 8 or 9 and my parents got me a tetherball pole for my birthday. I had really been wanting, nay NEEDING, a pole for a while and I was truly joyful when I got it. We put it in the ground in the frontyard but my dad said I had to wait a few hours for the concrete to set. This was unacceptable. I threw a fit (as I am prone to do). My dad simply said, "You've never had a tetherball pole in your whole life. Why is it so hard to wait 3 more hours?" Hard to argue with that logic.

Okay, so realistically my tetherball pole and Lanessa's surgery have nothing in common but I couldn't pass up on a chance to talk about myself.

Anyway, I talked to Lanessa last night and she has her head wrapped up like a member of Platoon and she said the left side of her face is swollen and her left eye is swollen shut. I asked Jason if it looked like someone punched her in the eye and he said it looked like a bunch of people had punched her in the eye, hence the graphic at the top.

But she is doing better and hopes to be home by Friday. It's my prayer that this is the last MAJOR procedure she has to go through with this and now she can focus on TOTAL recovery. She is a soldier in every sense of the word and I'm very proud she's my sister-in-law.

To God be all the glory for showing her and our family His mercy. Thank you guys for praying. Please don't hesitate to let me know how I can pray for you. God is good.

SHE IS HOME!!!!

2008-09-19T15:58:00.002-05:00

She came home last night. We got to sleep in our own bed, she got to take a shower in her own shower and most importantly she got to take care of Clark.

Me and the boys are so excited to have her home.

This is going to be a short post because Lanessa has updated her blog, so please got to her site and you can finally hear from her.

Jason

Update on Lanessa

2008-09-16T11:38:00.008-05:00

I got to come home for alittle while today so I wanted to give everybody a quick update on Laness and post a few pics of her at rehab. My brother is in Lubbock for work so he has not been able to.

She is doing great at Healthsouth, that is the rehab facility she is at right now. She does PT twice a day, phyiscal therapy in the mornings and occupational therapy in the afternoons.

We were told she would be there at least 2 weeks if not more because of her condition when they evaluated her at Flowers hospital. Now she is being released on thursday the 18th. That means she will have only been there 11 days. As of today she can walk really well with a walker and they even gave her a cane. She won't have to come home with a wheelchair or any other aids besides the walker and cane, and knowing Laness she wont use either anyway. She has worked very hard and through alot of pain to get out of that place. I am so very proud of her, she has been emotionally and spritually stronger than I could have asked for. She has her rough moments, but with all she has been through and missed with the boys and especially Clark, she is the strongest person I know.

Once she leaves there she goes straight back to Flowers hospital and will see her neurosurgen about putting the bone flap back in. We are praying he decides to and if that happens she will have the surgery on Friday and then spend a day in ICU and then a day on the recovery floor, and then she will be coming HOME! Its possible she could be home Sunday or Monday. If they dont do the surgery that day then we have to see what the doctors time line is and if it is going to be a week or two more she can come home for a few days and then go back. If she comes home early she will have to wear a helmet and be very careful at home. (Which in our house that is really hard to do.) We all want her home so badly and I know she wants to be home, I just worry about her coming home and then having to go back into the hospitial. I want to see this thing through and then have her home for good. No matter what we will do what is best for her.

Thank you all again for everything. Here are a few pics of her with Parker, Banner, her netbed and her helmet. (she is very proud of bed and helmet)

Jason & Lanessa

Thank You All........

2008-09-10T21:59:00.006-05:00

WOW, were do I even begin. Right now I really wish I had my brothers talent for writing because I would love to be able to tell all of you how I have been feeling the last month, but I still just don't have the words to describe it all.

What I can say is Thank You.

Thank you for every card that was written

Thank you for every note that was sent or left for us

Thank you for every gift card for food or gas

Thank you for every piece of clothing or gift given

Thank you for all of the dinners brought to us

Thank you for all the formula and diapers

Thank you for each comment left on the blog

Thank you for every dollar given to me or my family (I promise that what has not been used directly for this situation will be tithed to our church in all of your names)

Thank you for all the beautiful flowers (we put them all by her bed so she could at least smell them even if not see them)

Thank you for your time spent with Lanessa, me or our families

Thank you for every encouraging word

Thank you for your churches and their hearts for us

Thank you for all your concern for us

and especially....

Thank you for your prayers. Your prayers brought back a wife, mother, daughter, and friend. That is power for which I cannot comprehend.

As you can see even through all of this I still have so much to be thankful for. All of you have done more for us then we could ever ask. You each deserve my personal thanks and I will try to do that as I see you. I love you all so much.

These are the verses that have gotten me though many a long night this past month, just wanted to share it with you.

To keep me from becoming conceited because of these surpassingly great revelations, there was given me a thorn in my flesh, a messanger of satan, to torment me. Three times I pleaded with the Lord to take it away from me. But he said to me, "My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness." Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weakness, so that Christ's power may rest on me. That is why, for Christ's sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong.

2 Corinthians 12:7-10

Please continue to pray for my wife, much of her physical struggle is still ahead of her but now she must confront the emotional and spiritual battles as she begins understanding what all she has been through.

I also know that at times it is easier to put a face on who or what you are praying for so I wanted to leave you a picture of my lady and I. We took this tonight before I left the hospital. Eleven days ago I did not know when or even if I would get to talk to my wife again.

To see how she has come so far in such a short amount of time see the thank you for your prayers post above.

Jason & Lanessa

Wednesday morning

2008-09-10T11:56:00.003-05:00

Jason took a picture of he and Lanessa yesterday and I think it will be up on the blog in the next couple of days. I think she wanted to give photographic evidence that she was improving. And also to let people know that even with a hole in her head and no hair, she is WAY WAY out of my goofy brothers league.

Lanessa is, of course, out of the hospital and doing physical therapy daily. Yesterday was her first day at Health South and she actually enjoyed it. Jason said that she likes her physical therapist, I think her name is Tammy. He told me that Lanessa just likes being able to DO something during the days instead of just lying around in bed all day.

Apparently they have tailored the therapy to Lanessa's exact needs which is great. I'm really excited for her that she likes it and I can imagine that she will accelerate through this faster than a normal person would. She's just that way.

I talked to Parker on the phone yesterday and he told me that he thinks Momma can come home in "about 14 nights" so he is probably eagerly awaiting her return. I also talked to Banner on the phone and he said, "Hi toot" and then laughed hysterically. So did I.

Please lift her up in prayer that her spirits and motivation would stay high. Lanessa is a winner and I don't think she's ever not been good at something. Please pray that she would attack this challenge like she does all challenges - which is full force.

Blog updates will probably be a little more sporadic now that Lanessa is out of the hospital and at the Health South rehab facility. I'd love to give everyone breaking news but there just isn't that much to report on a daily basis. But I will make sure to update anytime there is something big, including when she goes back in to have the bone plate put back in.

Monday night

2008-09-08T18:46:00.009-05:00

I really want to apologize for not posting since Wednesday night. Ever since I got back to work, I've just been completely overwhelmed. Okay, enough about me.

God continues to be so so SO good to my beautiful sister-in-law and our entire family.

When I last posted we had just found out that Lanessa was going to get moved out of ICU and into a recovery room. This was on Wednesday night and it was just another total blessing from out of left field! As I probably mentioned, our family was hoping that Lanessa would get moved out of the ICU on Friday. The one of her doctor's cleared her, then another, and another and another and so on. Now, here she was, getting out two days early! Just a total blessing.

I want to clarify, in case anyone feels like they have missed anything. She is still missing the 4x4 inch bone plate in her head. The plan is for her to go to the rehabilitation center then come back to the hospital and get the plate put back on. The wonderful news is that the swelling in her brain continues to go down, apparently it is pretty noticeable now. Another tremendous blessing.

From the time she got moved out of ICU, I started thinking about two things: when can she see the boys and when does she get moved to the rehab facility. Not a rehab facility in the "Lindsay Lohan" sense but a Health South rehab facility. I don't think Lanessa has any addictions - unless you count giving birth.

She got moved out of the ICU on Wednesday night and Jason got to stay the night with her. Now I've never been married but I have to imagine that sleeping alone for a month while your wife is in the hospital is just excruciating.

In fact, it's funny because now whenever I call my brother and ask him what he is doing he always tells me what "they" are doing. If I say, "What are you doing?" he'll say "We're just sitting here watching The Office." or "We just took a trip around the hospital in a wheelchair." I'm just overjoyed at the fact that "they" are getting to do anything together. Because, in all honesty, there were times Jay was worried he might not ever get her back.

Well on Friday morning Jason got to take Parker up to see her. I think Jay was probably a little bit curious about how Parker would react. Parker is a sensitive, emotional little man (he's a lot like his Uncle Chris) and I was also kind of worried how he might react. But he soldiered through it and went right in and hung out with momma for a while on Friday morning. He did tell GiGi (my mom) that "mommy cut all her hair off".

The biggest challenge she has faced so far since being out of ICU is her physical therapy. The first day she took a few steps and did her therapy sitting in a chair. Then the next day she took 5 steps, then 7 steps, then 10 steps. Today she walked around the room. She is making baby steps in her progress - literally.

Probably an even bigger highlight than getting out of ICU and seeing the boys was that she FINALLY got to take a shower! Can you imagine the utter discomfort that comes from laying in bed for a month and not taking a shower?

(Actually, I know for a fact that some of you can imagine that because laying in bed and not showering is what some of my friends called "Freshman Year". Ya, I'm talking to you Jerrod. And you Dave.)

Jason actually said that getting to take a shower really helped her attitude. Uh Jay, she has a hole in her head, blood clots in her legs and hasn't seen her kids in a month - a little attitude isn't alright?

That's another thing that has been comforting has been listening to the stories of them making fun of each other. Jay keeps telling her she needs to have a better attitude. She got my mom on the phone one day and said ,"Tell Jason to let me take a shower. He listens to you at least.". It's so good to have her back.

On Saturday, Jason took Banner and West up to see her and he said that West did GREAT! He just climbed up on the bed and was completely fascinated with Lanessa's buzz cut. Just take a look at this kid. He has a grin permanently implanted on his face.

He did say that Banner was a little shy at first but that he warmed up. Banner being shy is a little bit of a surprise. I completely expected him to commandeer an electric wheelchair and drag race down the halls of the pediatric unit. Seriously.

Then yesterday, Lanessa got to see Clark. So she has gotten to see all of her boys, her husband and her parents in the last few days. We finally feel like things are getting back to normal. In fact, I feel much much better about it right now because I just got to talk to her!

I took a quick break from writing to call Jay and I heard her talking in the background. I asked if I could talk to her, not really not knowing what kind of condition she would be in. She just hopped on the phone and gave me a big ole "WHAT UP?". It just about made me want to cry.

She actually did make me cry but it was from laughing. I asked her what she was doing and she said, "Nothing. Just sitting here like an invalid trying to eat something." I laughed so hard. She also wondered aloud if she would be allowed to compete in the Special Olympics. That might be offensive to some but, man, is it funny. She is hilarious.

She moved to the Health South Rehabilitation Center this afternoon and gets started again on physical therapy tomorrow morning. She told me that she really doesn't want to do it and that it really hurts. The blood clots in her legs are still pretty bad and Jason said that the swelling is pretty intense. Please be in prayer that the blood thinner she's on will take effect and the swelling would start to go down.

Also be in prayer for her strength and stamina. Therapy is really hard on her and she is also having headaches because of the missing plate in her head. So she is making progress but it is challenge for her daily. She is so strong though.

She is also tremendously blessed. We all are. God has been so good to surround Lanessa, Jay and the boys with godly people. All of your prayers have been heard and the Lord has answered beyond what we could have hoped for.

"Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen."

Ephesians 3:20-21

He has done more than we could have asked or imagined. The Father is so good to us.

I know that Jason is going to log on to the blog and thank everyone but, on his behalf, I want to continue to thank all of you. They have been overwhelmed by the support and prayers. Please continue to pray for her. You all have been so faithful.

I don't think I have missed anything but if anyone has any more questions, please call me at (254) 541-9013 and I will tell you anything you need to know. Jason is still tough to get a hold of and will be for a while. Thank you all so much. To God be ALL the Glory!

Wednesday night

2008-09-03T21:32:00.005-05:00

I'm exhausted from work so this will be a quick update. But, man, is it a good one.

In fact, by the time you guys read this my sister-in-law will be out of the ICU. I am so so overjoyed to get to write that.

Jason called me at 7:30 and when I called him back they were getting ready to finish up the paperwork and head out of the ICU and back to the second floor. Jason told my dad that the nursed on the second floor were scurrying to get Lanessa the nicest suite.

All praise and honor goes to God. I am just overjoyed tonight. Tomorrow morning Parker gets to go see his momma and tonight Jason gets to sleep in the same room as his wife for the first time in a month.

I will give more details tomorrow but I just want to point all glory and praise and honor in the direction of the Father. We are in awe of Him tonight.

Praise God.

Wednesday afternoon

2008-09-03T14:50:00.004-05:00

Got another very good report this afternoon from Jason.

Lanessa spent the morning with her mom, Lisa, while Jay stayed at the house with the boys for a few hours. He got there around 12 while she was doing her therapy and said she did really well. Lisa also said that she had another very good morning, being fairly talkative and awake.

After a morning of therapy and being awake, she was pretty tired so Jason didn't spend much time with her before he let her go to sleep. So there is not much to report at this minute.

One really great bit of info is that Dr. Davis, her nuerologist, has signed off on her. I believe that this means that, nuerologically, she is ready to leave the ICU. Praise God!! Of course, she still has 1,600 other doctors that have to sign off on her before she can be released to a recovery room. As long as she is improving, I know we can all wait as long as needed. We just want her to be healthy.

Speaking of moving to a recovery room, I want to tell you guys how wonderfully generous the people at Flowers Hospital in Dothan have been. The pediatric nursing staff on the Second Floor told Jason and the Kings that when Lanessa gets out of ICU she can actually come back to the Second Floor and Clark can stay in there with her. These nurses invested so much emotionally in Lanessa, Jason and the boys that they now want to help see Lanessa through this until the end.

While Clark was in the nursery and Lanessa had moved up to ICU they let us stay in the original hospital room but when Clark was discharged we had to vacate the room. They allowed Jason and me to stay in a "courtesy" room on the third floor for almost ten days. They continued to bring my brother a tray of food three times a day and nurses from the second floor and third floor were continuously checking on Lanessa's progress.

The nurses in the nursery actually cried when Clark left. They were so sweet to him and our family while he was there. Jay and I went to the nursery one day and a nurse was holding him while she did work on her computer. They were just tremendous.

Lanessa's dad Lynn mentioned all the miracles that have taken place thus far in Lanessa's illness and he was dead-on. She was fortunate to already be in the hospital when she got sick, fortunate enough to have a Stanford-trained nuerosurgeon (not some guy straight off the boat from Panama) on staff, fortunate to be in a hospital with a staff full of Christians.

So Lanessa had a good morning this morning and we can continue to pray for the encephalitis to go away, the swelling in her brain to go down, protection from blood clots, pnuemonia or any other sickness. We can also pray for continued progress and humbly ask God to move Lanessa out of ICU so she can see her Army of Allmans.

Things are looking better each day and we are so unworthy of God's favor. We also don't deserve the care and concern you all have shown to Lanessa, Jason and the boys. I can't wait for Parker, Banner, West and Clark to hear about all that God did when their Momma was sick. Thank you all for being a part of the lives of the Kings/Allmans the last few weeks. Please don't stop now. God is so good.

Tuesday night

2008-09-02T23:40:00.005-05:00

I'm sorry for not posting since this morning but there hasn't been much news to report. Jay has been going home in the evenings to spend time with the boys so there isn't a ton of different news to report in the evenings.

Jason saw Lanessa at 12, 2, and 4 and gave me thumbs up on each report. He said that she did really well during her 12 o'clock visit when she got to spend time with Kim and her friend Kacey.

We are still praying intently for a hedge of protection around Lanessa. What we really don't need right now is any kind of sickness - from pnuemonia to the common cold. We are praying that the Lord would protect her from those things while continuing to cure the encephalitis and the brain swelling and protecting her from those blood clots.

I would ask for you all to be praying for my family - me in particular - in one certain area.

A friend from college posted a great comment on the Tuesday morning update that was a tremendous eye-opener. She posted that "God is good and gives us so much more than we deserve, but not more than what He trusts we can handle."

What an awesome statement and it was what I really needed to hear. I have a tendency to receive God's blessings and then I go back to my regular, irreverant self. I get fat and happy with the fact that God provided once again and start to think that I am entitled to it. Please be in prayer for all in my family that we would be constantly reminded what God has done/is doing in Lanessa's recovery. Let us not get content with God's blessings and take them for granted.

Basically just be in prayer for me that I would stay out of the way of God's wonderful work and be continually humbled and grateful for His blessing.

I'll update tomorrow around lunchtime. Thank you all so much.

Tuesday morning

2008-09-02T11:42:00.006-05:00

Here was the exact quote from Jason when he called me just after 11:00 this morning.

"Oh man. She did soooooooooooooo good."

I don't think that the words in this update will be able to express the joy and enthusiasm that I have right now for Lanessa and for Jason.

Jason went in to see her at about 9:15 and the ICU nurses had her bed sitting at a 90 degree angle. She was sitting on the bed and basically kind of holding her head up, which may not seem like much but it is a tremendous step forward! She also made huge strides in her occupational therapy, doing things such as taking cups from her therapist and stacking them on top of each other.

The swelling in her arm and legs is also down a bit as she is able to bend her fingers a little bit more and physical therapy comes a little later today.

Jason stayed in there from 9:15 until 11:00 and said that he didn't want to leave. I can only imagine how excited he is. Her friend Kim from church came in to see her and she and Lanessa talked for a while. The really encouraging thing is that Jason said they talked about all the things they usually talk about. The things they talked about before Lanessa got sick.

Jason also said that Lanessa smiled real big once and even made a couple of jokes. She hasn't smiled in weeks. Apparently she was lamenting to him how bad she just wanted to leave the hospital and that she didn't want to be there anymore. A few minutes later Jason told her about their friends that had each accepted Christ and joined the church and Lanessa said, "Oh good! And I'm just sitting here compaining."

Dr. Davis (nuerologist) and Dr. Hewitt (some other type of medicine) were both very pleased with Lanessa's progress and a case manager from the hospital talked to my brother and told him to start thinking about where he wants her to do her rehab when she gets out. You hear that? WHEN she gets out!!! Music to my ears!!!

There is a slim hope that she could even get out of ICU by Friday which would mean her boys would get to see her. Parker is really the only one who is old enough to really realize that Momma has been in the hospital for a month so it would be a great blessing for him and a tremendous joy for her.

It brings tears to my eyes to hear that she is improving. It is so wonderful to hear Jason say that he really believes she is getting better. To hear the hospital staff talk about a plan for when she gets out is just more than expected today.

It was 5 days ago that Jason, Lisa and I sat in the waiting room on the 4th floor and waited to see the results of her second CT scan. We had just gotten the news about the blood clots and we were really praying hard that she could start on the blood thinner. Then we got good news about that and the good news just started to snowball.

I want to hammer home a point that I've probably mentioned a few times. Our families or so unworthy of the blessing God has shown us and this is no different. There is nothing about any of us (Lanessa, Jason, parents, siblings) that is SO good that it warrants this type of mercy from the Lord. Beginning to heal Lanessa is an example of the abundant mercy and grace that abounds from His throne.

So my wonderful wonderful sister-in-law had another good day. And if you read this and you can tell the joy it brings me, just imagine how full my brother's heart is right now. He loves his wife so much.

She still has a long road ahead of her but we are so grateful for progress. I am humbled by this entire situation and it has caused me to develop a genuine awe of the Father.

Please continue to pray just as humbly and as fervently as ever. Pray for a wall of protection in that ICU and in her heart. We are confident that God will guide her through this completely.

Thank you all for caring so much. People are going to come to Christ though this and it is because of each of your personal spiritual investment in praying for this situation.

I stole a photo from Beth Saxton's blog and I'll leave you with this wonderful thought about my sister-in-law's healing. If hearing about what God is doing through her and hearing about her healing makes you smile, you can know that, for the first time in weeks, Lanessa is smiling with you.

Praise God.

Monday afternoon

2008-09-01T16:04:00.005-05:00

Just got a GREAT phone call from my brother. His 2:00 visit was awesome! He said it was the best visit he has had with her.

Most visits last about 30 minutes or 45 minutes if she's feeling up to it. Jay was in there for an hour and a half and got to talk to her the whole time! And this was after physical therapy which was really wiping her out last week. So she has made some progress in that area.

He got a chance to sit and tell her EVERYTHING that has gone on in the last 2-3 weeks. She was kind of turned on her side and he got to pull up a chair and get face to face with his wife for the first time in about two weeks. Imagine the joy he felt getting to be that close and that personal with his wife. That in itself brings me such joy.

Lanessa remembers everything before August 14 and not much afterwards. Her short-term memory is what's currently being affected. It's nothing drastic like her not remembering that Jay is her husband or not remembering Clark. It's things like not remembering that her Sunday School class came into pray over her in ICU and she only slightly remembers her nurse from yesterday. Jay said that tomorrow, she likely won't remember everything about today. He will probably have to refresh her daily but I certainly don't think he minds sitting and talking to his wife at all!

Jason also saw Dr. McBecker and he was very pleased with Lanessa's progress all the way around. He told Jay that things are really starting to tighten up for Lanessa, meaning her brain is looking better, the blood clots, her sodium levels, kidneys and liver are also all improving.

She likely won't get out of ICU until she can sit up on her own and feed herself and we don't know how long that will be. We are hoping for about another week but we will be grateful whenever it happens. We also don't have a timetable on when they will put the bone plate back on.

Jason sounds so much better. I am encouraged for him. We took a couple of minutes to pray and thank God for His wonderful mercy and then, of course, said KEEP IT COMING LORD! We are again hoping and praying for even more progress each hour and praising God for being so compassionate to our family in the last few days.

Her recovery from this is going to entail much more than a physical recovery . It's mental, physical, emotional and likely spiritual. When you get a chance, read this to find out what encephalitis survivors have to battle.

Please join our family in rejoicing for progress but I am pleading with all of you to continue to fight for Lanessa. To steal a phrase from Dr. Home Alone, she is improving but she's still a sick girl. She still has a long road ahead of her and it will be very difficult at times. Continue to pray for healing, the swelling in her brain to go down, the blood clots to dissolve, swelling and movement in her arms and legs and also that the Lord would equip her and prepare her for ALL of the coming battles ahead.

Praise God for His mercy and compassion and His desire to hear our prayers.

If anyone wants to "subscribe" I usually send out text message updates on her condition and anytime I update her condition on the blog. Just call me at (254) 541-9013 or text me with your name and I will put you on the list.

Also, some of you have private blogs that I want to look at (I'm talking to you college roommate Eric and Erik). So why don't you guys stop being so CIA and let me look at your site?!

Monday afternoon

2008-09-01T13:01:00.005-05:00

I apologize for not getting a Monday morning report up sooner.

I talked to Jason at around 11:00 and he said that Lanessa had another good morning. She talked to him and it looked like the swelling in her arm and legs had gone down JUST a little bit. The most encouraging part of Jay's report was that they had started Lanessa's physical therapy again. What an answer to prayer! I was so happy to hear that because that means that the blood clots are not as severe of a threat as before. It's also beneficial because her being able to move around helps fight against the possibility of pnuemonia.

I always ask my brother if HE is encouraged by the reports. Just because I think something is good news doesn't mean it always is. He told me he was encouraged by his visit and was pleased with the progress. I believe that they are going to have a speech "doctor" come and look and see if her throat is healthy enough to swallow. If it is then she might get to take out the feeding tube and perhaps have a regular drink. This is a small step but it is a step forward.

After Jay told me about her progress I just felt an overwhelming need to say a prayer of thanksgiving immediately. I would encourage all of you to do the same. I am once again humbled by the fact that God is healing Lanessa and that he is kind enough to hear our prayers.

1 PRAISE THE Lord! (Hallelujah!) I will praise and give thanks to the Lord with my whole heart in the council of the upright and in the congregation.

2 The works of the Lord are great, sought out by all those who have delight in them.

3 His work is honorable and glorious, and His righteousness endures forever.

4 He has made His wonderful works to be remembered; the Lord is gracious, merciful, and full of loving compassion.

5 He has given food and provision to those who reverently and worshipfully fear Him; He will remember His covenant forever and imprint it [on His mind].

6 He has declared and shown to His people the power of His works in giving them the heritage of the nations [of Canaan].

7 The works of His hands are [absolute] truth and justice [faithful and right]; and all His decrees and precepts are sure (fixed, established, and trustworthy).

8 They stand fast and are established forever and ever and are done in [absolute] truth and uprightness.

9 He has sent redemption to His people; He has commanded His covenant to be forever; holy is His name, inspiring awe, reverence, and godly fear.

10 The reverent fear and worship of the Lord is the beginning of ^[a]Wisdom and skill [the preceding and the first essential, the prerequisite and the alphabet]; a good understanding, wisdom, and meaning have all those who do [the will of the Lord]. Their praise of Him endures forever.

Psalm 111:1-10

I am so grateful that the Lord is letting Lanessa slowly get better. His name is holy and above all names. It overwhelms and humbles me.

Please continue to thank Him for his wonderful mercy and continue to pray that it is in His will that Lanessa be completely healed. Thank you all for everything.

Sunday night

2008-08-31T23:46:00.003-05:00

Having some trouble laying down to sleep tonight as I am thinking so much about my family. I was reading a book that someone gave me a few months back and it pointed me to Luke 22:39-44.

39 Jesus went out as usual to the Mount of Olives, and his disciples followed him. 40 On reaching the place, he said to them, "Pray that you will not fall into temptation." 41 He withdrew about a stone's throw beyond them, knelt down and prayed, 42 "Father, if you are willing, take this cup from me; yet not my will, but yours be done."43 An angel from heaven appeared to him and strengthened him.44 And being in anguish, he prayed more earnestly, and his sweat was like drops of blood falling to the ground.^[a]

I don't want to lose the agony and anguish that I have when praying for Lanessa. I don't want to be distracted by my everyday life. I want to bear her burden and Jason's burden. I'm not praying that the Lord would keep me from hurting. When I feel that anguish or that agony or that "thorn in my side", if you will, I want to pray more earnestly and more intensely. I really want to pray the right way instead of just praying the same prayer over and over again.

Just a few thoughts. I appreciate all of you that are bearing this burden with Lanessa and Jason. Please continue to pray earnestly and humbly that the Lord would "take this cup" from Lanessa but most importantly please pray that His name is glorified and His will is done.

Pray against the blood clots, against pnuemonia, for her organs and vital signs and that the encephalitis would continue to be healed. Thank you all.

Sunday afternoon updated

2008-08-31T16:46:00.005-05:00

I haven't talked to my brother since about 11:15 this morning but that's actually good. Last night I told him that if I didn't hear from him much, then I would assume no news is good news. So as far as I know Lanessa is doing okay today. I will likely talk to him later this evening and try to post late (anytime between 8:45 and 11:00).

Remember to pray for good news from the doctors tomorrow. Pray for protection from the blood clots and pnuemonia and that the swelling in her brain would continue to plummet. Thanks for all your encouragement and prayer for Lanessa, Jason, the boys and the entire King and Allman families.

**I talked to Jay at about 5:00 and he said that the 4:00 visit was pretty good but that she was tired. I think we both forgot that it still takes a whole lot out of her to do much right now. So being awake and talking at 10, 2 and 2 o'clock probably wears her out a little bit. Wish I had more to update but it's been a fairly slow afternoon. Thank you all for your prayers. Keep it up!**

Sunday morning

2008-08-31T11:23:00.014-05:00

That picture will make a lot more sense when you get to the end of this report.

Just got another update from Jay and it was another pretty good one.

He said she was the same as she was yesterday and on Friday night which was responsiveness and somewhat talkative. Jay said that she talked to Sara pretty good this morning and he said that he might be able to give her something to drink today which is good.

He is also hoping that they remove the feeding tube on Monday as well. As far as I can it's a tube that goes in through her nose and into her stomach to provide some nourishment while she can't eat anything. So if Jay is allowed to give her a regular drink then I am pretty confident that progress is being made.

The real shining moment of the visit was that the very first thing Lanessa asked when they got there was how Clark did last night. It was totally unprompted. Jay didn't even say anything and she asked about him. This is so encouraging in part because part of the scare of encephalitis is possible short-term memory problems. So it was great to hear that she asked about Clark, who she has not been able to spend much time with at all.

It also serves as a reminder that love is something that isn't generated from any part of our brain. She might not remember all the details about having Clark but she knows it's her son and she loves him.

I asked about the swelling in her arm and legs and Jay really couldn't tell if it had gone down. She also hadn't seen any of her doctors today so we don't have a report on sodium levels, kidney, liver or her brain swelling.

The doctor's are going to reassess things tomorrow and hopefully they will confirm what we are hoping and praying for - that she is getting better.

So it was another encouraging report and I'm pumped to be able to share it with you guys. She's had about 36-40 hours of pretty good progress and we are just continuing to pray for more while standing in awe of God's mercy. He is so good to allow progress and I am reminded daily of God's faithfulness and consistency.

I am humbled by the fact that the Lord that we pray to is the exact same one who rose Lazarus, fed thousands with nothing, resisted Satan's every temptation, endured the shame and pain of the cross and rose from dead. He is truly the same yesterday, today and tomorrow.

Thank you all for praying so hard for Lanessa, Jason and their family. Please don't stop. After being home for a couple of days and not being right there with my brother I can understand the helplessness some of you feel being at home and waiting for updates. It's brutal.

I want to encourage you all with a passage I really clung to about 6 months ago during a difficult time in my life. It's the story of Lazarus. When I read it, it is revealed to me to be a story about hope. That we all hope is literally lost, God revives.

40 Then Jesus said, "Did I not tell you that if you believed, you would see the glory of God?"

41 So they took away the stone. Then Jesus looked up and said, "Father, I thank you that you have heard me.

42 I knew that you always hear me, but I said this for the benefit of the people standing here, that they may believe that you sent me."

43 When he had said this, Jesus called in a loud voice, "Lazarus, come out!"

44The dead man came out, his hands and feet wrapped with strips of linen, and a cloth around his face.
Jesus said to them, "Take off the grave clothes and let him go."

John 11:40-44

We have had very scary and nearly hopeless moments in the last few weeks but we know what our Savior is capable of. We are praying hard for His perfect will and hoping beyond hope that He will heal Lanessa. Thank you all again for praying.

Before I go, I did want to say that I discovered a family whose children's names are even more wacky than Jason and Lanessa's (Parker, Banner, West, Clark.)

It's newly chosen Republican VP candidate Sarah Palin. Her kids names are Track, Trig, Bristol, Willow, Piper.

My nephews are named after super heroes. Her kids are named after and Olympic sport, math, a city in Connecticut, a brilliant 80's movie about a dwarf, and professional wrestler/B-movie hero.

I love my country.

Saturday evening

2008-08-30T17:33:00.006-05:00

This is the oldest Allman boy, Parker. The other night we went to Red Lobster and the waiter said he was "gonna bring us some hot biscuits". So Parker's new nickname is "Hot Biscuits" Allman.

Just got off the phone with Jason and it was another pretty good report.

She was responsive at 4:00 and was able to talk to B and Sara Skaggs (yes, they made it there). Jason also said that her sodium levels were down and her kidney and liver numbers were better today also. One of her doctors said that it looked like the swelling in her arm and legs might have gone down just a hair.

I needed to clarify with Jason that her responsiveness and the swelling going down were good things. I didn't want to assume that she was improving but find out that these are just fluke things. He said that they were, in fact, good signs and hopefully are a sign that the methods they are using are working.

I have learned to temper my enthusiasm for the most part and continue to march along but my heart is just full of joy right now because my sister-in-law had two pretty good days in a row. Now I thank God and then continue to pray full force.

I was listening to a podcast (I'm very hip to technology. I have a laptop, an IPOD, a blackberry and I listen to podcasts. Of course, I also don't have cable and still use my VCR. Maybe I'm not that hip after all.) from my pastor, Matt Chandler today and he was talking about 9 prayers of Jesus in Luke Ch. 11. He said he believed that the Lord's Prayer was a very mature way to pray. He called it "varsity prayer". He said that it was God-centered and focused on the Father's glory in any and every circumstance. I was encouraged because I really feel like that's how I have been praying. To God be the glory in every instance. In this particular case, all praise goes to Him for allowing my wonderful sister-in-law to have a couple of pretty good days. And for being Our Light when it seems so dark.

Please continue to pray against those blood clots, against pnuemonia and for the swelling in her brain to continue to drop. To God be the glory!

1 One day Jesus was praying in a certain place. When he finished, one of his disciples said to him,

"Lord, teach us to pray, just as John taught his disciples."

2 He said to them, "When you pray, say:

" 'Father,^[a] hallowed be your name, your kingdom come.^[b]

3 Give us each day our daily bread.

4 Forgive us our sins, for we also forgive everyone who sins against us.^[c]

And lead us not into temptation.^[d]' "

Luke 11:1-4

Saturday morning

2008-08-30T11:17:00.006-05:00

Being back at work stinks.

I just got off the phone with Jason about 30 minutes ago and it sounds like Lanessa was pretty much the same as she was last night. She was a little groggy but responsive. She had her eyes open for most of the visit and managed to talk to Jay for a little while. Praise God for that.

Jay sounded encouraged which was honestly music to my ears. My focus right now is praying Lanessa back to health but my second priority is making sure my brother doesn't lose hope and doesn't get beaten down by Satan's attacks. Read this passage from Exodus:

10 So Joshua fought the Amalekites as Moses had ordered, and Moses, Aaron and Hur went to the top of the hill. 11 As long as Moses held up his hands, the Israelites were winning, but whenever he lowered his hands, the Amalekites were winning. 12 When Moses' hands grew tired, they took a stone and put it under him and he sat on it. Aaron and Hur held his hands up—one on one side, one on the other—so that his hands remained steady till sunset. 13 So Joshua overcame the Amalekite army with the sword.

Exodus 17:10-13

People this is us. The battle being fought is for Lanessa's health and Jason is our Moses. He is praying fervently for his wife because he loves her and leads her as Moses did the Israelites. Who are we? We are Aaron and Hur. Simply put there are going to be times when Jason's arms start to fall. Our job is to sit by Jason's side and hold him up.

Please continue to pray specifically for the following things:

Swelling in the brain to go down
Blood clots to "dissolve". That her heart would be shielded from those clots
Sodium levels keep improving
Responsiveness

I was also praying this morning that somewhere inside of her that Lanessa has the strength to pray. She is an incredibly godly woman and I'm certain that she has never wavered through this.

Just please continue to pray for Lanessa's healing. We are humbled and grateful by God's presence and his work already and we are eager for Him to continue to move. There are many challenges ahead and I pray that Lanessa and Jason are equipped for them.

Also pray for B and Sara Skaggs. They are driving to Alabama right now and if I know B then they are probably somewhere in Maryland right now trying to find their way back to I-20. Bless his heart. The kid is gifted in so many areas but navigation is not his forte. Remind me to tell you all about the time that B and Jay were driving back from Houston with B driving. Jay fell asleep in the car in Bastrop and woke up three hours later...in Bastrop. Man I love B.

If anyone has any thoughts to pass along to Lanessa and Jay or questions about her health don't hesitate to email me at callman@eaglegolf.com

You are all awesome.

Friday night

2008-08-30T00:07:00.002-05:00

I'm sorry for the delay today. It has been a long day for me personally between flights and trying to get back for something work-related.

Okay, here's the latest on Lanessa.

For the first time in about a week Lanessa was fairly responsive to Jason. He went to see her at 10:00 and she was pretty much the same as she has been. Then he got the chance to spend the day with a couple of his many many sons at Chuck E Cheese. Lucky.

When he went back to see Lanessa at 4:00 she was more responsive than she had been in more than a week. She had her eyes open for most of the visit and even managed to talk to Jay a little bit.

Then when Jason went back at 8:00 she was even more responsive than she was at 4:00. He said she had her eyes open and was able to talk to a little bit more than at 4:00. The good news was that she knew she was at Flowers Hospital. Jason asked her if she knew how long she had been there and she responded, "It doesn't matter".

Also, Dr. Becker had mentioned to Jason, Lynn and Lisa that they needed to try and rouse her by raising their voices. So Jason will occasionally say, "Laness. Wake up! Laness." In the past she had just kind of softly "shooshed" them. Tonight she told him to stop yelling at her and that she didn't like when they did that. She was kind of mean (in a sweet married way) and I really think it made Jason feel better. He sounded so much better on the phone tonight than he did yesterday. The poor kid is just beat down.

I wish I could give you the actual medical reason for why Lanessa was responsive this afternoon and evening but I can't. The nurses said that one potential reason is because the sodium levels in her blood have improved. For the past couple of weeks she has had very high sodium levels. I THINK it was because she was so dehydrated. The healthier levels could be a result of her slowly getting rehydrated.

We don't know if this is going to be an isolated incident or if this is the beginning of some improvement. Obviously we are hoping and praying for the former and not the latter. Her progress today might be the most resounding answer to prayer that I have seen since this whole ordeal started.

In the past few days there have been some spiritual battles going on in my world. I have really been attacked with some scary thoughts about what might happen to Lanessa. It has caused me to absolutely pour myself out before the Father and ask for a wall of protection for me and, especially, Jason. For the last two or three days I have just been completely broken. I have praised God, asked for His forgiveness and then just PLEADED for compassion and mercy on Lanessa. I mean PLEADED.

This morning was especially emotional for me as I had to leave my baby brother in the midst of the hardest time of his life. Satan attacked me and tried to tell me I was an abandoner and that something bad was going to happen to Lanessa and I wasn't going to be their to comfort Jay.

I prayed and prayed and prayed all day long for a hedge of protection and for a physical change in Lanessa and a spiritual encouragement for Jason. I prayed that Lanessa would have the opportunity to touch the garments of Jesus Christ and be healed. I prayed that the blood that is clotting in her vains would be replaced with the perfect pure blood of the Lamb of God. I prayed for a tidal wave of mercy and healing to sweep through that ICU and begin to heal her. I also prayed that Jason would be hit with a spiritual shot-in-the-arm. I prayed and I prayed and I prayed.

I was really grieving over Lanessa's condition and not being able to be with Jay when he called to tell me about his visit at 4:00 and then his visit at 8:00.

I immediately felt an assurance that the Lord had answered my prayers.

I am not ready to sit here and say that we are out of the woods just because Lanessa had a good day. I am not ready to sit here and think that just because I prayed hard enough that Lanessa is going to get better.

But what I can say is that God heard my cries today and responded. He was good enough to give Lanessa a good day, to reinvigorate my brother and to calm my fears. I would also imagine that this good news today is an answered prayer for all of you.

But we still have SOOOO far to go. Please be in fervent prayer that today was not an isolated incident. Please ask God to lower the sodium levels, lower the swelling in her brain, DESTROY those blood clots and help her start to get better. I just don't know how many more up-and-down days Lanessa and Jason can take.

Please pray that when Jason sees her at 10:00 tomorrow morning that she is even better. Plead with the Lord to have mercy and compassion and that he would begin to move in a mighty and sweeping way.

Folks please just pray. And pray and pray and pray. The boys need their mom back. Jason needs his wife back and I want my sister-in-law and my friend back.

Most importantly, take a moment to praise our awesome God. He had been so good to us thus far and performed many miracles that we don’t even realize.

I can’t begin to explain to you how overwhelmed my entire family has been by all of your support. The other night Jason and I were sitting at dinner and he asked me, “Why do people care about us so much? Why do they care so much about this?” Those might not have been the exact words but it’s pretty close.

My brother is a pretty humble guy so I told him that I thought people are just carrying out the mission Christ called us to. People are bearing burdens and interceding in prayer. They are doing exactly what a body of believers are supposed to do.

Then I also explained that there is obviously great sympathy and compassion when a mother of four sons is battling for her life.

Thirdly, he’s part of the UMHB family. I know that a lot of people said they we all lived in a bubble when we went there but let me tell you something – the folks in the bubble have been UNBELIEVABLE in recent weeks. We’ve heard from the Speers, the Fitzwaters, the Higginbothams and many more that I haven’t talked to in years.

My brother reads all the comments that are posted here and I know he appreciates every one. If you don’t know Jason he won’t ever be a guy that delivers a big thank you speech and makes a big deal out of all of this. But I can honestly tell you that he has been stunned by all of you guys support. Please know that. I am very serious

Thank you all again. Please continue pray fervently for my beautiful sister-in-law, my rock solid brother and my nephew Clark and his three hair-raising brothers, Parker, Banner and West. Thank you again.

Friday morning

2008-08-29T08:39:00.002-05:00

I love waking up in the morning at our hospital "dorm" room and knowing that Lanessa had another night with no issues. Praise God.

I am going to be on airplanes all day but I will keep all of you updated with text messages and post as soon I talk to Jason and can get to a computer.

Don't stop praying today!

Thursday night

2008-08-28T16:36:00.016-05:00

I'm sorry for the delay in posting. Lanessa had a rough day today.

Last night she started developing swelling in her right arm and her left leg. This morning they pointed it out to Jason and hypothesized that it was likely blood clots.

It turns out that she does in fact have three blood clots - one in each leg and one in her right arm. The doctors pointed out two potential options for dealing with the clots. One was to start her on a blood thinner and the other was to insert something they called the "umbrella".

Here's the difference between the two: the umbrella would have been put in place just above an artery in her heart and would have been in place to stop any blood clots. What it would not have done was help "dissolve" any current blood clots or prevent any other ones. It is basically something that allows blood flow but catches any clots before they enter the heart, which is the pathway to the lungs and brain.

The advantage of the blood thinner is that is will help prevent other clots from forming and also help to "dissolve" the current clots. If you notice I keep putting "dissolve" in quotes. They don't actually dissolve as much as they just kind of return to being part of her natural blood flow. It's a process too complicated to explain but I think I might have dumbed it down enough that we can all understand. it.

But before they could decide which route to go they had to get a CT scan on her brain because if there was any type of blood already on her brain then they couldn't do the thinner. The only option would likely be the umbrella.

So we suffered through a pretty tough 90 minutes or so as we waited for the CT scan. Dr. Becker was on the phone with Dr. Prophet consulting about the results and ultimately Dr. Prophet came to see us to tell us that the CT scan looked okay and he recommended the blood thinner.

I actually found this to be a relief just because it would really attack the blood clots and not just hold them in place until it was okay to use the blood thinner. Ultimately, Dr. Prophet's recommendation meant that we could bypass the umbrella (which is not a routine procedure by any means) and start on the blood thinner.

There are still several risk factors involved. First, there is still a chance that the clot could get loose and head towards her heart. It's a very slim chance but it is still there.

Then there is the risks of the blood thinner. There is a chance it might not work. It is also a very small risk. They mentioned that since Lanessa has never had blood clots before then it should work but nothing is full-proof.

Finally, there is the chance that the blood thinner could cause some bleeding on her brain. Again this is the small chance but it's there. Although when there is bleeding on the brain the first concern becomes pressure on the brain and skull. Well since she is missing a 4x4 inch part of her skull then the threat of pressure subsides just a little bit.

Which brings me to the swelling on her brain, which is really the barometer for progress and how she is doing. Dr. Davis, the nuerologist, showed Jason today's CT scan and compared it to the CT scan that was taken last Monday when she had emergency surgery.

It showed that there is still very serious swelling going on. What it also confirmed was that if she had not had the surgery last Monday night then she most certainly would have died.

So today's challenge has been the blood clots. It will likely be the focus of every visit and every meeting with the doctors for a few days.

I'm not going to lie - it was scary today for a little while. We were really afraid that the blood clot was going to dislodge at any minute and kill her. We were also afraid that they were going to discover that her brain couldn't handle the thinner and she would be forced to undergo a pretty major procedure to insert the umbrella.

But God continued to show His faithfulness and saw her through yet another challenge today. Lanessa encountered another challenge today and made it through another day. She is so so so tough. She got her another small victory today.

What I have prayed hard about today is that God would see her through this challenge with the blood clots and she could get back to the business of getting that swelling down in her brain.

I know that Lanessa is the focus of this but today's news really hurt my brother and he has been really discouraged since this morning. I've honestly never seen him as down as he was this afternoon. He's not getting to spend any time with his sons and it's just brutal on him.

If you're scoring at home, here is how I would pray for Lanessa:

Blood clots - that they would "dissolve" and that they would stay away from her heart, lungs and brain.
Swelling - that it would continue to go down
Overall healing
Jason - that he would find the strength and stamina to continue to fight spiritually for his wife. We're human and sometimes we are just too tired to pray or read. He needs to be lifted up.
Parker, Banner, West, Clark - These boys don't even realize what's going on but I want them to have their mommy back.

The latest prognosis seems to be that Lanessa is still a couple of weeks away from the bone flap being replaced on her head. I have also been under the misconception that as the swelling goes down, her level of alertness will slowly rise. This is not the case. The swelling will need to go down and THEN her level of alertness will rise. I have been confused as to how her swelling can be slowly going down but she has not talked to Jay in a week because of unresponsiveness.

Another wonderful blessing from this has been that someone from the Army anonymously contacted Similac, the baby formula people, and informed them of Jason and Lanessa's situation. They have donated a very large amount of formula that will be delivered to the house in a couple of days. What a wonderful act and we thank God for that person(s).

Also, the EEG that we were worried might show possible seizures that were missed turned up normal. We are thankful that there was not any more trouble with her brain.

I am going to be going home tomorrow morning but I will continue to update after every phone conversation. Please be in prayer for me as it is going to be very hard to leave my little brother in the midst of such a difficult time. I just feel like if I leave now, when things are slowly improving and not so critical, it allows me to come back in the coming weeks or months when Lanessa starts to get better. But I am already very emotional about leaving Jason and our family in the midst of this.

I just got back from seeing Lanessa with Jason and reading some Scripture and then praying over her. I absolutely can't stand seeing her suffer. I want so badly to trade places with her so that neither she nor Jason has to endure this trial. My mind and heart are consumed with this little girl's health.

At this point we are weary and heavy-laden. We are all tired and hurting but we will not doubt the goodness of our Father.

And a woman who had had a hemorrhage for twelve years, and had endured much at the hands of many physicians, and had spent all that she had and was not helped at ail, but rather had grown worse, after hearing about Jesus, came up in the crowd behind Him, and touched His cloak. For she thought, "If I just touch His garments, I shall get well." And immediately the flow of her blood was dried up; and she felt in her body that she was bested of her affliction. And immediately Jesus, perceiving in Himself that the power proceeding from Him had gone forth, turned around in the crowd and said, "Who touched My garments?" And His disciples said to Him, "You see the multitude pressing in on You, and You say, 'Who touched Me?' " And He looked around to see the woman who had done this. But the woman fearing and trembling, aware of what had happened to her, came and fell down before Him, and told Him the whole truth. And He said to her, "Daughter, your faith has made you well; go in peace, and be healed of your affliction."

Mark 5:25-34

Thursday morning

2008-08-28T12:20:00.005-05:00

Jason is up with Lanessa right now visiting. As far as I know we still don't know anything from the EEG.

Lanessa was pretty unresponsive this morning and she also had really bad swelling in her right arm and left leg. They are planning to run an ultrasound at some point today to see if she could possibly have blood clots developing in her arm or leg.

I think we all want a little bit of good news today. Please continue to pray fervently for healing for Lanessa.

Wednesday night

2008-08-27T20:16:00.006-05:00

Okay, here's the latest on Lanessa.

She had the bolt removed this afternoon and, as expected, it was quick and painless. However, she has been pretty unresponsive for most of the day.

When I say "unresponsive", it can mean a couple of different things. Some days she wakes up, has her eyes open and will talk just a little bit to Jay or Lynn or Lisa. Other days she doesn't ever really open her eyes but she hears all that is going on and will nod or respond to doctor's commands.

Dr. Becker can usually rouse her from her slumber by calling her name loudly. When Jason tries that she tells him to be quiet. But today, it sounds like Dr. Becker couldn't really get her to wake up. So what he did was order an EEG.

I read a great deal about it on Wikipedia and I really don't completely understand what an EEG is but, from talking to Jason this evening, they did the EEG to see if it's possible that Lanessa suffered a seizure that they might have missed. If you remember, they had to take her off of her anti-seizure medicine because it was affecting her kidneys while they were dehydrating her. Here's what I pulled straight from Wikipedia:

These various forms of EEG recording can be used in the following clinical situations:

to distinguish epileptic seizures from other types of spells, such as psychogenic non-epileptic seizures, syncope (fainting), sub-corticalmovement disorders and migraine variants.
to characterize seizures for the purposes of treatment
to localize the region of brain from which a seizure originates for work-up of possible seizure surgery
to monitor for non-convulsive seizures/non-convulsive status epilepticus
to differentiate "organic" encephalopathy or delirium from primary psychiatric syndromes such as catatonia
monitoring depth of anesthesia
as an indirect indicator of cerebral perfusion in carotid endarterectomy
to serve as an adjunct test of brain death
to prognosticate, in certain instances, in patients with coma

They will get the results of the EEG in the morning and, if necessary, order another CAT scan. The doctors aren't quite certain they will order the CAT scan so that is kind of a wait-and-see for tomorrow.

Please continue to pray for Lanessa. She is just being thrown one challenge after another. She is truly in need of a completely supernatural strength. There is no way that the human body can endure what she is going through. It is going to take the power of Jesus Christ inside of her to get her through this.

I have been praying that while Lanessa is struggling physically, mentally and probably emotionally that she is growing spiritually. I have been praying with Jason that the Lord is already shaping her testimony and His glory even though she is physically incapacitated. Jesus Christ is very much alive in my sister-in-law and it's by His mercy she is still with us and by His wonderful grace that she is going to beat this.

When Jason and I got back to the hospital this evening, he went to visit and I read Psalm 100-103. I found great encouragement as well as the word I have been looking for since these trials began. The word I was looking for was "compassion".

We have praised God and adored God. We have asked for mercy and for his strength to manifest inside of Lanessa. But as I have begun to pray for compassion this evening, I have felt like I was really talking to the God of this situation. I would ask all of you to pray specifically for compassion as you pray for Lanessa. Compassion for Lanessa, Jason and the boys.

I also want to encourage each of you begin your prayer life by praising God for who He is. That's what we are doing here because it is an absolute necessity to realize that the greatness of our Father does not rest in the outcome of this sickness. He is a perfect God with a perfect plan that just happens to be a mystery in this instance. So please remember to praise Him for who He is and pray expectantly for compassion, healing and strength for my beautiful sister-in-law.

I'll try to post tomorrow morning or whenever we get the results of the EEG.

103:1 Bless the Lord, O my soul,

and all that is within me,

bless his holy name!

2 Bless the Lord, O my soul,

and forget not all his benefits,

3 who forgives all your iniquity,

who heals all your diseases,

4 who redeems your life from the pit,

who crowns you with steadfast love and mercy,

5 who satisfies you with good

so that your youth is renewed like the eagle's.

6 The Lord works righteousness

and justice for all who are oppressed.

7 He made known his ways to Moses,

his acts to the people of Israel.

8 The Lord is merciful and gracious,

slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love.

9 He will not always chide,

nor will he keep his anger forever.

10 He does not deal with us according to our sins,

nor repay us according to our iniquities.

11 For as high as the heavens are above the earth,

so great is his steadfast love toward those who fear him;

12 as far as the east is from the west,

so far does he remove our transgressions from us.

13 As a father shows compassion to his children,

so the Lord shows compassion to those who fear him.

14 For he knows our frame; [1]

he remembers that we are dust.

15 As for man, his days are like grass;

he flourishes like a flower of the field;

16 for the wind passes over it, and it is gone,

and its place knows it no more.

17 But the steadfast love of the Lord is from everlasting to everlasting on those who fear him,

and his righteousness to children's children,

18 to those who keep his covenant

and remember to do his commandments.

19 The Lord has established his throne in the heavens,

and his kingdom rules over all.

20 Bless the Lord, O you his angels,

you mighty ones who do his word,

obeying the voice of his word!

21 Bless the Lord, all his hosts,

his ministers, who do his will!

22 Bless the Lord, all his works,

in all places of his dominion.

Bless the Lord, O my soul!

Wednesday morning

2008-08-27T10:10:00.002-05:00

Lanessa had her physical therapy this morning at 9:15 and Jay was back in our hospital room by 9:55. He said she really didn't wake up much for physical therapy and that she went right back to sleep when it was over.

I can tell that he is very discouraged by how little she responded this morning. He totally understands how sick she is and how long it is going to take for her to get better but I think there are times when he really has high hopes when he goes into ICU and he really just wants to talk to his wife.

My brother doesn't talk a whole whole lot and the one person that he does talk to is unable to talk back to him. He has to be a wreck inside right now.

Anyway, just please pray for a better afternoon for Lanessa and please pray that a little trip to see his sons will reinvigorate my brother's spirits.

Remember the bolt comes out today and I will let everyone know how that goes. Thanks.

Tuesday night

2008-08-26T22:17:00.004-05:00

This afternoon has been pretty quiet. Lanessa had physical therapy again this afternoon and was totally wiped out this evening when Jason saw her.

Sometime tomorrow the bolt comes out of Lanessa's brain. I was under the assumption that this was going to be a very tedious and dangerous process but I was wrong. This is why I'm not board certified in nuerosurgeon. But I did stay at a Holiday Inn Express last night. (Sorry I couldn't pass on that joke.)

Anyway, the procedure to remove the bolt is actually pretty quick and painless. It's not even something that is scheduled. When Dr. Becker arrives he will remove the bolt and, apparently, that will be that. Again, this is really being done for fear of an infection arising if the bolt stays in her head. But we are also encouraged because this means that Dr. Becker will be monitoring her brain swelling just by look and feel and I really believe that is a good thing.

She is not talking very much just because the swelling in her brain is still there. She was kind of talkative last Thursday but, from what I understand, that was because of the immediate release of pressure from the surgery. As the swelling continues to go down then her speech will come back.

But she is very aware of what's going on. The other night Jay mentioned that B and Sara were coming to visit and he said "You know B and Sara?" He was just asking to test out how her memory was working at the moment and she rolled her eyes at him, as if to say, "Do I remember B and Sara? What a stupid question!"

Folks, my sister-in-law is coming back full force.

When I can see her sense of humor and her sarcasm, that's when I feel the most comfortable. I miss her joking and laughing and her self-deprecation. She and I are very similar and I didn't realize how much I miss talking to her. There is really nothing we don't joke about.

And I don't think she realizes what she's in for or what we are in for when she gets healthy. There is literally NOTHING that is off-limits with this family. We can make a joke about ANYTHING! I can totally see this conversation happening six months down the road.

Jason: Honey, can you pour me some Mountain Dew?

Lanessa: Pour your own, I think my Encephalitis acting up.

That may sound crude but I'm not kidding. We turn everything into a joke. We like a family full of Chandler Bings.

Anyway, just be in prayer for Lanessa tomorrow and for Jay as well. I know he's very tired and we are all going to start going home over the next 5-6 days. Lynn is leaving on Thursday for a day or two. I'm going to leave on Saturday night and my dad is leaving Monday.

Once we leave it just means one less person to watch the boys or run errands or make lunch. I hate the idea of not being right here next to Lanessa and next to Jay but their church is phenomenal and I have great confidence in this family. Just please be praying for Jason and the boys through this.

But at least I can write to you tonight and say that Lanessa is getting better. But we CANNOT stop praying for God's loving protection over her. There are still so may scary things that can happen. She still has the encephalitis which is a scary scary disease. She has so far to go and their are so many roadblocks to pass that we can't let up in any of our support for her and her family.

Just remember to be praying for Lanessa tomorrow as well as Dr. Becker when he removes the bolt. God is good.

Talk to you guys tomorrow.

Tuesday morning

2008-08-26T10:41:00.005-05:00

Jason just got back from seeing Lanessa. He went up to do her physical therapy with her at 9:15 but no one ever told him he could come in so he totally missed it. Poor kid, got up early to do the right thing and then missed it.

It reminds me of a story from the brief time Jay was a student at UMHB. He had a bit of a problem getting up for class in the mornings, so when it came time for him to take his 8:00 a.m. Safety and First Aid final he decided to stay up all night so he wouldn't sleep through it.

He stayed up the entire night and sat down to put his shoes on at about 7:45 a.m., fell asleep in the chair and missed the final! I love that story.

He did get to see her at 10:00 but she was pretty wiped out from doing therapy. Lanessa does physical therapy twice a day during the week and once a day on weekends. Travis is the physical therapist and when he comes in he has Lanessa do "exercises" such as making fists with her hands, trying to sit up, leaning on one hand, stretching her calfs (she HATES this one) and then she does things like pointing at the boys in pictures.

Progress today included putting both her hands on her nurses shoulders on her own, which is great because she has limited movement in her left hand and leg.

Also, the swelling in her brain was also pressing on her optic nerve and she didn't really have full range of motion with her right eye. Today she could look around in all directions so that is another small victory.

Lanessa is totally wiped out after these therapy sessions and let me see if I can explain why. Even though she is not doing a great deal of physical activity she has been bed-ridden for the last 2 1/2 weeks and was also pregnant and raising 3 boys for the last 9 months. It's not like she walked out of Lifetime Fitness and straight into Labor and Delivery. She has literally had all the strength she has sucked out of her between pregnancy, a C-section, Encephalitis and being bed-ridden.

Dr. Becker did tell Jason this morning that he was going to take the bolt out of her head tomorrow so that is encouraging. The bolt has been what is monitoring the pressure on her brain. He is removing it because he doesn't want an infection to develop but I think he is also pretty confident that the critical stage of the brain pressure is behind us. So praise God for that!

Our friend Beth mentioned in a comment yesterday about celebrating the little victories each day and that is really what I am encouraging my brother and Lynn and Lisa to do. She is simply not going to get up out of the bed and walk out tomorrow. She is going to gradually get better each day. This is going to be such a slow recovery and difficult on everyone - of course most difficult on Lanessa.

Please continue to pray that the white count would go down and that the swelling would continue to subside. We are still hoping that they will be able to reattach that part of her skull in two weeks. I'm also praying that they can move her out of ICU and into a recovery room before that time. It IT possible for her to get out of ICU without the skull attached. If she moves into a recovery room that means that Jay can stay in the room with her.

Its possible that I'm getting ahead of myself with all this. For now we are just counting our blessings that the scariest part is behind us and looking forward to what God is going to do in the coming days and months.

I got a chance to talk with Lisa last night and I told her I was praying for patience for them and to look forward to the day when Lanessa walked in front of her church and told everyone about the wonderful things God has done in her life. On that day all of the fear and apprehension and stress that we have felt in recent days will be washed away in a sea of joy and tears.

And so we are looking forward to that day while enduring this race that the Lord has put us in. I know that Jason and Lanessa and all of our families appreciate all of you running along beside us. The genuine care and concern for my wonderful sister-in-law has stunned us all.

"My grace is sufficient for thee; my strength is made perfect in weakness." 2 Corinthians 12:9

That's where we're at today. Acknowledging and celebrating our helplessness in this situation. Grateful that God is at work all around us.

I'll post another update in a few hours.

Monday evening

2008-08-25T18:58:00.006-05:00

I just had a chance to sit with my brother while he spoke with Dr. Becker, the neurosurgeon. Two interesting facts about Dr. Becker:

He's not McDreamy at all. - He's probably in his mid 50's and looks like the the scary old guy across the street in Home Alone. Remember that guy?
He's Stanford-trained and not some guy fresh off the boat from Panama. - That was a direct quote from Dr. Weissner, one of the internal medicine doctors who has looked at Lanessa. It was all I had in me not to start laughing out loud. He's lucky I'm not Panamanian or I would have worn his butt out.

In all seriousness, Dr. Becker was a very nice man who was very no-nonsense and answered all of Jason's questions patiently and thoroughly. The high point of the conversation was when he said he was "cautiously optimistic" about her condition and her progress. He said that she is slowly getting better but that he still has concerns. These are the things that you all can continue to pray for:

Though the skull pressure is down their is still pretty significant swelling. He seems to think it will be two weeks minimum before they want to attach the 4x4 piece of skull that was removed. That is going to require great patience on Lanessa's part as well as Jay, Lynn and Lisa. Please pray that the swelling would continue to go down and that they would be able to reattach that part of her skull in two weeks.
Because the bolt (pressure monitor) has been in her head for a week now Dr. Becker is concerned about about an infection in her skull/brain area. He's also very wary of pneumonia, urinary tract infections and any other type of bacteria or infection. So please pray for that.
She has a little bit of an elevated "white" count. I don't know exactly what that means but between the "white" count, the Panamanian joke and being in the Deep South, I'm starting to wonder how tolerant these doctors are of people of color. Regardless, they think the elevated white count might just be might still be because of the Encephalitis.

So there are good things happening here but Lanessa still has soooooo far to go. Praise God that Parker, Banner, West and Clark are still just chugging along and don't miss Momma too bad yet.

Lift my brother up as he is starting to get really worn out. God has been really faithful to provide strength and stamina as we roll through this thing. There are great challenges ahead but we know that God is faithful and God is such a wonderful Counselor and Teacher that we cannot helped but be changed through this.

We are grateful that He has chosen our family and this situation to shine His magnificent Light.

"Consider it pure joy, my brothers, when you face trials of any kind...the brother in humble circumstances ought to take pride in his high position...blessed is the man who perserveres under trial." James 1: 1-12

Monday morning

2008-08-25T12:23:00.005-05:00

I guess technically it's Monday afternoon and not Monday morning but I wanted to drop an update on Lanessa.

Yesterday evening, around 6 p.m., Dr. McDreamy Becker decided to start to rehydrate Lanessa with 20 cc of water and 20 cc of a nutritional supplement every hour. I suggested that she just start mainlining Red Bull but my ideas were met with contempt.

Jay went back to see her after dinner (around 8:00) and she was already a little bit more alert. He read the Bible with her for a few minutes and right before he left, Dr. Becker called to check on her and ordered a much more substantiantal amount of rehydration, I think he called for another 500 cc over the following 5 hours.

She slept through the night and Jay went to see her this morning at 9:15 for physical therapy. She has been doing physical therapy for about 4 days as she has had very limited movement in her left arm and left leg. The therapist is just working with her to keep all of her limbs moving because she is spending so much time just laying there. I don't see how laying around is a bad thing. B and Jay pretty much did that for their adolescence and they've turned out okay.

But Jason said that she did really good in physical therapy this morning, even going so far as to yell "Stop it Travis!" when her therapist pushed her a little too far. Of course, she was worn out after therapy so she crashed pretty quick.

The good news is that even after being pulled off of her diuretic (which dramatically dehydrates you) and starting the rehydration process over the last 18 hours, her pressure numbers have remained outstanding. I think this means that fluid is not building up in her brain, which is awesome. Her heartrate was also down this morning which is another blessing.

Because they have started the rehydration process they are going to keep the brain probe in her head for another couple of days to really keep a close eye on the swelling. Jay is fine with that as he understands that this is going to be a slow process and he would rather have his wife back at 100% in a year as opposed to 60% in a month. Did that make sense?

They are also giving her chest compressions in order to prevent pneumonia. I don't think they feel like she is coughing enough so they are just taking this extra precaution.

The only immediate concern right now is that her "white" count is kind of elevated which is usually a sign of an infection somewhere and they haven't detected any infections in Lanessa. So they are a little bit miffed about that. It could still be from the encephalitis as well.

Please just continue to lift this sweet girl up in your prayers. I have been overwhelmed by people's response and so has my brother. Jay read every comment that has been left on the original post last night and he is incredibly moved. Well, as moved as my brother is going to be.

My mother is standing over my shoulder wanting me to let everyone know how great of a mother/grandmother she is in her care for Clark. We're an incredibly humble family. Parker also reminded me at lunch that he doesn't love me. You know it's gonna be a high self-image day when your oldest nephew says, "Uncle Chris, for real, I don't love you.".

Just continue to pray for Lanessa and for this stupid Encephalitis to just go away. Lanessa is such a fighter and my love and respect for her grows leaps and bounds everyday. Also be praying for the communication and the relationships of all of us here. When you put people in a pressure situation like this and they start to spend hours and hours together there is a potential for friction. Fortunately we're avoided it so far.

On behalf of Lanessa and Jay I want to thank everyone again for lifting them up. I know that if Jay had the time he would call so many of you and thank you himself. Unfortunately, you are subjected to this blog.

I'll keep you guys updated.

Just a few pics...

2008-08-24T20:49:00.005-05:00

In the midst of all that has gone on, I'm not sure we have properly celebrated the arrival of Clark Elliot. Here are few pics of the sixth member of the Allman family.

Clark with Momma

Clark with his Uncle B and Aunt Sara

Back later with more pictures...

Lanessa

2008-08-22T20:13:00.018-05:00

If I have your phone number then you certainly know by now that my sweet sweet sister in law is sick.

Let me see if I can reset the entire situation for you:

On August 8, Lanessa gave birth to Clark Elliot Allman. Jay and Lanessa deviated from the middle name-monotony in the Allman family (Dennis Brian, Christopher Brian, Jason Brian, Parker Brian, Banner Brian, West Brian) to honor the memory of our "nephew" Elliot Skaggs. Elliot is the son of Brandon and Sara Skaggs.

Clark is their fourth child (all boys) so giving birth to Lanessa is pretty routine. She has more kids than I have had girlfriends in my life. (4 kids-1 girlfriend...not that I have a problem getting girls. I am actually quite a ladies man...i'm incredibly off topic right now.)

Anyway.

Not long after she gave birth she began experiencing high fever and some pretty intense headaches. As the week went on her fever kept, her headaches continued and she began to experience some disorientation. The symptoms got worse a couple of days later as she didn't know who Jason was on one day and on another tried to get up out of the bed and take out all of tubes because she didn't realize where she was or why she was in the hospital.

They began to treat her for encephalitis, though they weren't 100% sure that's what it was. On Friday the staff here at Flowers Hospital in Dothan decided to put Lanessa into the intensive care unit so they could monitor her and give her the proper care. She had a decent day on Saturday but Sunday was a bit of a down day.

Then on Monday night I got a phone call from my brother as I was sitting down to dinner with Eric Jackson in Plano. Lanessa had severe swelling in her brain and if it didn't go down they would have to remove a portion of her skull to relieve the pressure. If they didn't do that they were afraid that she might not make it through the night.

That was the absolute worst phone call I have ever gotten in my life.

My heart just wrenched on so many levels. Poor Lanessa. Poor Jason. Those poor boys.

I stood outside the Snuffers off Preston Road and needed some way to magically transport to Dothan, Alabama to be by my brother's side. I didn't know what to do. Should I just drive straight to the airport? Should I gas up the truck and drive through the night? I just wanted to be there to fix the situation.

I realized very quickly that there was nothing I could do right then but pray with my brother. We prayed on the phone and I just asked God for mercy. That was the only word that came to mind. I just asked the Lord to have mercy on my sister-in-law.

It was the most helpless spot I have ever been in in my entire life. And folks, if you ever tried to watch me play defense on the basketball court, that is saying something.

I raced home (stopping to pay the tolls along the way, mind you) and started looking for the first flight out. Unfortunately the first thing I could get was a Tuesday morning flight so once it was booked and I went out to my usual Monday night CWF Bible study to be around my boys and spend time in prayer.

It was the strangest drive of my life.

I was making the same drive that I make every Monday and its usually one that brings me great joy. But on this particular trip I was just praying that the phone wouldn't ring. I was afraid my brother was going to call me and tell me that my sister in law was gone. It's hard to even type this right now, thinking back to it.

This is where things started to happen that really surprised me. I had called Jerrod Wittman and asked that he and Kristi start praying. He assured me that they would and about five minutes later I got a call from Jeff Mangum, a long-time friend who I hadn't talked to in a long time.

I have known Jeff probably since I was 12 or 13 and have always counted him a man of God but I didn't expect to hear from him at that moment. It was an incredible gesture and I am assuming I have Jerrod to thank for making that call.

I'm gonna skip ahead a little - past Bible Study. My sister drove up from Austin with Becky and Carly Skaggs (you will notice the Skaggs are in this story a lot. They're kind of important to us Allmans) and she got to my apartment about 12:45 a.m.

I had just talked to my mom and she told me that they had decided to take Lanessa into surgery to relieve some of the pressure on her brain. If the swelling of your brain is on a number system during your everyday normal activities then it usually rests at a 0 or even a -2 or -3 if you are sedated. Or high. Or Brandon Skaggs.

Lanessa's number had jumped all the way up between 40-45 which is really a critical point. If they didn't do the surgery she would most likely die.

I was actually quite relieved that they had decided to do the surgery only because I am a human and I am a fan of action and not reaction. I didn't want them to wait and see if the swelling got worse. I wanted them to do the procedure and start the healing process. Actually I was ready to give her my brain at that point but I don't imagine Lanessa would want to be saddled with thoughts of Diet Pepsi and wrestling for the rest of her life so I opted against it.

The surgery was successful from the standpoint that it dropped her pressure numbers down into the twenties. I think 23 is the number that I saw when I arrived at the hospital on Tuesday at about 2:30.

The moment we got to the hospital I dropped my stuff in the room, kissed my new nephew Clark and went straight up to ICU.

I walked in that room totally unannounced and I think I startled my brother and the entire King family. What I saw completely startled me.

There was my beautiful sister in law with a monitor implanted in her head and under an array of bandages was a 4x4 inch hole in her skull that they had removed. I was stunned.

Since Lanessa had gotten sick, I had managed to keep it together emotionally. I had calmed my father, mother, brother and sister while they cried on the phone and tried to be a rock.

Now I as stood just a few feet from her I had to look down at the ground to keep from losing it.

When I was 14 my grandmother got sick with ovarian cancer and I remember my grandfather telling her that he wished he could switch places with her. I KNOW Jason felt that way at that moment but so did I. This beautiful, faithful, loving mother of four needed to be on her feet and with her husband and sons. The world of golf would certainly survive without me.

I stayed in the room for just a few minutes before I went back out in the hall to wait - and to compose myself. It was so surreal to see her like that. But it was also confirmed to me that this is the toughest woman I have ever known in my life. Being an Army wife, raising three sons while pregnant and doing it while my brother is gone for long periods of time made me respect her so much but this takes it to another level.

Now I grew up in church and I gave my whole heart and soul to Christ when I was 20. I know that none of us deserve good things that happen. I also know that God doesn't give us disease or hardship based on the levels our our transgressions. I know that God is a God who has a plan and a way that He does things. They are often times a mystery but thats okay - I don't need to know why.

In the last six days I have asked myself why this is happening to Lanessa. To Jason. To the boys. But the question is not asked out of anger or confusion. It's been more like "Okay Lord, what do you want us to learn from this. Why are you doing this? How can your glory be known through this?".

I might be getting sentimental but I believe my sister in law would gladly endure this again if she knew what God was doing through her suffering.

Jay and Lanessa have neighbors named Randy and Casey and their sons Brody and Decker. On the Monday before Lanessa had Clark, their neighbor Casey accepted Christ. I told Jay that I believed that watching Christians handle adversity would have a profound impact on Randy.

He accepted Christ on Friday.

Maybe that's it. Maybe that is the ONLY reason Lanessa got sick. If it is then praise God.

I don't know if that's the reason Lanessa is sick. I don't know if their is a reason. I just know that in place of a reason I have seen results. I have seen what the body of Christ is supposed to be.

Jason and Lanessa attend Hillcrest Baptist Church in Enterprise, Alabama. Their Sunday School has been absolutely remarkable in the last week. I've met all of the staff, their friends Mike and Kim, Randy and Casey and on Tuesday night about 20 people were in the lobby to greet my brother. They have been at the hospital, they have been at the house, they have been everywhere meeting needs. On Sunday morning the pastor devoted the first half of his message to Lanessa. People are sacrificing their own time to be their for Jason and Lanessa and the boys. I can't put into words how much of a model these people are. I'm blown away.

Notice I said that Jason and Lanessa "attend" Hillcrest. They aren't even members yet and they are receiving unreal support! Although as Jay put it, "When we get through this we are definitely joining. And we aren't even waiting for the invitation. We're just walking to the front during the welcome."

(On a side note, every time I talked to my dad before I got here he told me he was in Enterprise. I was honestly trying to figure out why my father chose to spend so much time at a rental car facility but that's neither here nor there.)

Anyway, it's Sunday evening now - six days since we really thought we might lose her. There have been good days (Tuesday and Wednesday) and not so good (Thursday and today have been a little rough) but Lanessa is still fighting.

She has such a neat relationship with my brother and such an awesome sense of humor. When she first got the breathing tubes out after surgery she told my brother not to come back until he had shaved, brushed his teeth and put on a new shirt.

Another day, she noticed a nurse checking my brother out and kindly reminded Jay that a male nurse had given her a sponge bath. Of course, no one heard her because we were all laughing too loud at the idea of a male nurse.

Obviously we are in better shape here in Dothan, Alabama than we were a week ago and all glory goes to God. I don't completely understand the process that God goes through when someone encounters tragedy and I don't understand why some people are healed and others aren't. When I pray with my brother these days we thank God for who He is. For mercy, grace, healing, salvation, joy and trials. And then we just pray to be in His will. We pray that it's in His plan for Lanessa to recover 100%.

But we also pray that we would be equipped for whatever the result may be. But as I have told some of you, God has recently been teaching me about taking GREAT joy in the process and not the result. So that's what we are doing here - thanking God for this challenge and humbly asking for the strength to face the next one.

It's Sunday evening right now and my brother just left a meeting with the nuerosurgeon Dr. Derek Shepard.

Just kidding, his name is Dr. Becker.

There was some concern about Lanessa's anti-seizure medicine and what it was doing to her kidneys and liver. He is going to start slowly hydrating her so that he can change out her anti-seizure medicine. My brother is encouraged and feels good about her progress but there are still some major roadblocks ahead. Specifically pneumonia or other infections that might creep in.

But as I sit here and stare out the windows of this hospital I see an absolutely beautiful evening with the sun setting amidst the green landscape of Southeastern Alabama. Not five hours ago we were getting hammered with the storms of Tropical Storm Fay and now the sun is too bright to look at through this tinted glass.

It's a perfect metaphor for what we are hoping for. After the violent storms of recent days we are looking forward to a God-given sunny day when Lanessa can tell you all about her recovery herself. We are praying expectantly for healing and praising our Father for every single thing that happens.

And we are seeing the Glory of God shine bright like this Alabama sunset. So big. So bright. Pumping rays of sunlight into our lives despite the tinted view of our human nature. He is so good.

Thank you all for praying and I will continue to update.

Patrick Crayton tells it like it is...

2008-08-10T12:09:00.001-05:00

Cowboys wide receiver Patrick Crayton likes the fact that the team's camp has been virtually free of controversy. And then he couldn't help himself.

"Green Bay, that's a soap opera,'' he said, referring to the ongoing Brett Favre saga. "It's shaking Aaron Rodgers, I don't care what they're saying.''

Then Crayton went on to urge the Packers to start Rodgers, not Favre, against Dallas on Sept. 21. When he was reminded that Rodgers played fairly well against the Cowboys when Favre was injured, Crayton said, "Did anyone have any film on him?

"Their defense had film on him for last week's scrimmage. How'd that go?''

Rodgers was 7-for-20 and booed by Packers fans in last week's Family Night scrimmage.

Good news. Bad news.

2008-08-10T08:23:00.002-05:00

Well the good news is that the Texans won 19-16 last night. The bad news is that Carlos Lee is likely out for the season after breaking his finger yesterday.

Are pinkies really all that necessary?

If you want to get more excited about the Texans just watch these highlights. All of them.

http://www.houstontexans.com/tv/Top25Countdownof2007.asp?

Oh yes!

2008-08-07T10:04:00.001-05:00

Johnny Depp

Bring on Batman 3

by Mike Krumboltz

August 4, 2008 03:26:42 PM

"The Dark Knight" is still on the tip of everyone's tongue. But now, instead of folks breathlessly asking each other if they've seen it, talk has turned to speculation over Batman's next foe. Who's it gonna be?

iVillage is reporting that the Caped Crusader may take on theRiddler in "Batman 3." According to the rumor mill, Johnny Depp might sign on to play the nefarious super-criminal. But caveat emptor—this could be just as false as the one about Crispin Glover playing the Joker.

Slashfilm notes that there are additional possibilities floating around. For instance, Phillip Seymour Hoffman may play the Penguin or Angelina Jolie could don Catwoman's skin-tight suit. Truth or fiction, fanboys around the world must be having a heart attack at the mere possibility.

Still, the "official" rumor mill is just one of the ways superfans are checking in on the next Batman flick. Many seek the scoop themselves. We've noticed impressive searches on "batman 3 rumors," "dark knight sequel casting rumors," and "batman's next villain."

That last query is very telling. People clearly want to know the answer, but we doubt even the filmmakers have decided. To that end, may we offer the studio execs this humble piece of Search-informed advice: Go with Catwoman. She's far-and-away the most popular baddie and there are already a slew of searches on possible cast members including Jessica Biel, Amy Adams, and, wait for it, Maggie Gyllenhaal. Do fans think Rachel Dawes, Bruce Wayne's one-and-only, was really the Catwoman all along?

What I wanna be when I grow up...

2008-08-03T16:21:00.000-05:00

Been a while

2008-08-02T14:18:00.003-05:00

It's been about a week since I posted. I just work a whole lot. But I got some free time at work today and was watching old clips of the original Dream Team. I actually wrote a poem about these guys in my 10th grade English class. They were so good! Watch Scottie Pippen absolutely clown some dude at about the 2:35 mark.

Wow!

2008-07-27T11:28:00.002-05:00

Truly the most bizarre tribute video in Astros history. Could this person not find any video or Enos Cabell?

Little something to look forward to...

2008-07-27T11:14:00.003-05:00

I'm honestly getting goosebumps watching these highlights...

MVP! MVP! MVP!

2008-07-27T10:14:00.005-05:00

Unfortunately there is a very slim chance of Lance Berkman being MVP thanks to the Astros being a really bad baseball team. But let's give the Big Puma some love.

There are basically eight offensive categories that baseball pundits pay attention to and Lanceford is in the Top 10 in seven of them. And he is 11th in the league in home runs, his only non-top ten category.

I think that Alex Rodriguez is the best player in baseball and I think that Albert Pujols is a close second and definitely the most intimidating hitter in the game. But if I had to choose between one of those guys or Lance Berkman, I would probably take Lance.

Don't get me wrong, I have a legitimate and obvious bias towards any Astros player. But one thing I look at as far as value is what he does to get you to the playoffs and what he does once he gets there. Here are the postseason comparisons

Lance Berkman

Games: 29

Average: .321

Homeruns: 6

RBI: 26

World Series appearances: 1

World Series wins: 0

Albert Pujols

Games: 53

Average: .323

Homeruns: 13

RBI: 35

World Series appearances: 2

World Series wins: 1

Alex Rodriguez

Games: 39

Average: .279

Homeruns: 7

RBI: 17

World Series appearances: 0

World Series wins: 0

So I'm not about to start piling up on A-Rod for not being dominant in the postseason. I just wanted to point out that Lance gets it done ALL the time. If he played for one of the following teams: Yankees, Mets, Phillies or Red Sox he would lead off Sportscenter every night. I just love the guy. I'm glad he's an Astro and he is the bright spot in an otherwise dark time in franchise history.

We love you Fat Elvis.

Long day...

2008-07-26T18:26:00.001-05:00

How was everyone's lazy Saturday? I was up at 5:00, at work by 5:45 and now leaving at 6:27. I'm tired.

Great read!!!

2008-07-24T20:05:00.003-05:00

I read this article online today on ESPN.com. I don't agree with much of what L.Z. Granderson writes but this particular article has needed to be written for a couple of years now. I firmly believe that people don't like Terrell Owens because they just don't want to. They mistake the football player and the man. Just read the article...

When I lived in Atlanta six years ago, I frequented two gyms to play hoops: Run N Shoot, a 24-hour joint that featured some of the best players in the area, and Crunch Fitness in Buckhead, Ga., which featured some of the best talkers.

At Crunch, there were guys who would start yapping in the parking lot on their way in and wouldn't stop until they got back in their cars hours later. A dude could trip, kick the ball in the air and bank in a half-court shot and you'd think he meant to do that by the way he'd start talking junk afterward.

It was the kind of gym that'd be perfect for a selfish egotistical maniac to let his voice be heard. So imagine my surprise when I was in the gym for about an hour one day before someone told me Terrell Owens had been on the opposite court the entire time.

Quietly playing.

Quietly winning.

An outstanding basketball player, Owens was easily one of the best guys playing that day. And yet, in a facility where smack talk is more important than actual skill, Owens was as quiet as a Ralph Nader for President rally.

Before that day I thought I had a pretty good understanding of who T.O. was.

But that afternoon I met Terrell Owens.

Fast-forward to 2008. I see that the gap between Owens' public persona and his private one is widening. It's evident by his lack of a shoe contract. Evident by a recent poll of NFL GMs that listed him as the last player they'd want on their team, even though he was in the top five in receiving yards and receiving touchdowns last season, and even though he has lost a fumble once -- just once -- in the past seven seasons. And evident by many of the responses I've read in cyberspace the past few days regarding his helping a friend of mine, Sam Alipour, after he was hit by a car following an ESPYS party.

"Sam getting hit by a car and T.O. helping him out, all i got to say is ANYTHING IS POSSIBLEEEEEEEEEEEEE !!! lol," posted one person.

"It's pretty fascinating to hear a story that actually paints T.O. in a positive light," wrote another.

It's all a bit irritating to me. Because for all the press this guy has received during the past four years or so, the words "arrested," "domestic violence," "rape," "assault," "DUI," "steroids" or "phone calls to the Minnesota Vikings using a Green Bay Packers telephone" have never been attached to him.

What I do know is that Owens has been an advocate in the fight against Alzheimer's disease, volunteered in New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina without any Manning-like fanfare, donated a game check to the Sri Lanka tsunami relief fund, signed a waiver saying that the Philadelphia Eagles would not be financially responsible if he got hurt playing in the Super Bowl against doctor's orders, and opened his offseason home in suburban Atlanta on Saturday mornings to the guys at Crunch who could play with their mouths shut.

This is the real Terrell Owens -- kind, giving, warm, funny. Of course he helped Alipour after witnessing him in a car accident. In fact, when I ran into Owens that night, it was he who told me what happened and walked me over to the scene of the accident. This isn't anything out of the ordinary for any decent human being to do -- especially someone as genuinely nice as Owens.

"I didn't know who that was that got hit by a car until afterwards," Owens said. "I was just concerned for another human being. But for a lot of people it's a shock that I would care like that, and that's disappointing. Even a couple of articles I've read had all of this sarcasm to it, like they were making fun of me. I try not to let it bother me, but I am human."

The problem is that T.O. fella.

That dude tends to rub people the wrong way -- doing shirtless crunches in his driveway, throwing Donovan McNabb under the proverbial bus, signing a football during the game.

T.O. -- the guy in front of the camera -- occasionally can be a pain in the you-know-what.

Terrell Owens? He's a really good dude.

I just wish he'd get out of his own way and show you.

But apparently something happens when the lights come on that neither I nor he can fully explain. I've asked him about it. He's not sure why T.O. and Terrell Owens are worlds apart in people's eyes. He blames it all on the media. And yeah, we're responsible for a lot of his image trouble.

But not all of it.

He's still the guy dogging Jeff Garcia and doing the crunches. I believe that because football is such a macho sport, any sign of weakness could be used against him. And because greeting the world with a hug and a smile isn't readily associated with masculinity and strength in this country, he occasionally has to act out to protect himself. Owens doesn't fully agree with that, but that's my theory, and I'm sticking to it.

"Everybody makes mistakes," he said. "I have made mistakes, but who hasn't done things wrong? The only thing is, I'm in the limelight.

"I've read what people had to say about me when the story about Sam came out and how people are so surprised. I can't say it doesn't bother me, but I have to remember who I am and what's in my heart. I know my grandmother and mother raised me to be a good man, and I try every day to honor them. T.O. is a name that was given to me by John Madden. A lot of people hear it and think of this arrogant, cocky kind of person. But those who know Terrell know I'm relaxed and laid-back. That's the difference. I'm Terrell all of the time, but the media only shows this T.O. image."

The cynics who are reading this think I'm either a jock-sniffing columnist or just plain naive. I can tell you I'm neither. I'm just a guy who has gotten to know someone and has grown a little tired of the rampant misrepresentation of that person. Again, he's responsible for a lot of the criticism that's directed his way, but there are cats with DUIs and steroid suspensions who receive much more love. Is it really all about his constantly putting his foot in his mouth, or are some of us just shooting at an easy target? And, in either case, when do we cut the guy some slack?

"I do a lot of stuff like signing the football because it's fun," he says. "I'm not trying to disrespect the game. I love this game and God's blessed me to be able to play it. I just want to lighten things up."

Maybe some of us should follow suit.

Tragic news

2008-07-24T13:12:00.005-05:00

Estelle Getty passed away the other day at the age of 84. I don't know about that age because I'm pretty sure she was 106 when Golden Girls was on the air.

http://ap.google.com/article/ALeqM5iTMkQDONxgujdSXbarMnrHCD_7FwD92342UG0

Couple of early thoughts...

2008-07-24T11:35:00.002-05:00

The Astros are just absolutely terrible. We got swept by Pittsburgh. I believe that is the first sweep in Pirates history. Glad we could be a part of that.

Wanna give a little bit of love to the fellas at www.homersontherange.com. My boys Jerrod and Josh (Steve is the third amigo over there. I've hung out with him a couple times and he's awesome but I don't wanna presume we're "boys". He might hate my breathing guts for all I know.) post some pretty funny stuff over there. If you have ever met Jerrod or Josh then you'll love it because they write just like they talk. Also, Steve is AWESOME and has an uncanny ability to put into writing what everyone is thinking. Their site is not made up of pics of their kids or stories about last Sunday's sermon. It's biased, unedited and pretty much raw. I'd encourage everyone to read it.

What makes a great man? How many TRULY great men do we know. I'm not talking about men that are influential to us but genuine men of faith, character, integrity and strength. Think about that one for a while.

Truly truly funny

2008-07-22T15:28:00.000-05:00

See more funny videos at Funny or Die

Hilarious...

2008-07-22T12:00:00.001-05:00

This is from a satirist named D.J. Gallo that writes for ESPN.com. I love that people are now off the Reggie Bush bandwagon.

Houston Texans

Camp To-Do: Improve the pass rush

Mario Williams had 14 sacks last season, but opposing teams are able to key on him because of the lack of talent around him. So it looks like we have yet another reason Houston should have drafted Reggie Bush instead of Williams. Not only would they have no one for opposing teams to key on, but also their running game would produce an extra 500 or so yards every year.

Pirates 9, Astros 3

2008-07-22T11:41:00.004-05:00

In baseball, a closer is supposed to come in and "close" the deal on a win. He usually comes in with a lead and gets three outs and his team wins.

For example, L.A. Angels closer Francisco Rodriguez, Chicago Cubs closer Kerry Wood are "closers". Their teams are in first place because when their team gets a lead then they come in and get three outs and the fans cheer.

In Houston, our "closer" Jose Valverde comes in and gives up seven runs in the top of the ninth and our team loses 9-3. He gave up an inside-the-park home run!! The last time I saw an inside the park home run was on a tee ball field that had no outside fence.

Interesting note, in the accompanying photo Lance Berkman was actually throwing his bat at Valverde's head. Unfortunately he missed.

34 minutes and 22 seconds...

2008-07-21T17:21:00.004-05:00

...that's how long it took me to get my electricity switched over from my old apartment in Euless to my new condo in Coppell. Because, ya know, I had an extra 34 minutes and 22 seconds to kill. Anyway, here is the new place.

What goes up...

2008-07-21T15:11:00.002-05:00

About .8 milliseconds after this picture was taken I broke my left big toe on the concrete. Not my finest hour.

When did things change?

2008-07-21T09:39:00.004-05:00

Here is what my day has consisted of so far:

Up at 5:15, drive to work and put the finishing touches on a golf tournament for 12 mentally-challenged young people.
Back into my chair to close out yesterday's finances.
Fill out Daily Revenue Report
Fill out weekly Food and Beverage Report
Order beer

Several things stand out from that very short list. First of all, when did it become the status quo for me to be up at 5:15 IN THE MORNING?! Secondly, what kind of company puts me in charge of keeping up with daily revenues when I don't even balance a checkbook. Finally, what am I doing ordering beer? Well the beer's not for me. It's for the mentally-challenged young people.

I remember a time in my life when I couldn't (or just wouldn't) get up for an 8:00 staff meeting at the newspaper. I used to sit at my computer at the newspaper and drink Dr. Pepper and read about wrestling while I procrastinated for hours on end. Now I have lists of things to do daily that are pretty vital to the everyday reporting of one of the countries biggest golf course management companies.

I have really begun to think about what kind of man I am and what kind of boy I have been since I turned 30. I waited way too long to grow up and assume the full responsibilities of being a man. I may not like some of the minutia of my job but I feel like I'm putting in a full day's work every day in an effort to provide for our guests, support my employers and honor my God.

When did things change? I don't know.

But I'm glad that they have.

More Matt Chandler

2008-07-20T19:39:00.002-05:00

Here's a link to more podcasts from Matt Chandler courtesy of Blundy.

http://www.theresurgence.com/podcast

Random Ramblings

Great Moments in Sports...with Kari

Don't Ask, Don't Tell

Day Five, Six and Seven...I think

Day Three and Four in Kenya

Days One and Two en route to Kenya

Jesus in the DR

Update from the DR

Day 5 from the Dominican Republic

Day 4 from the Dominican Republic

Day 1-3 from the Dominican Republic

Update from Egypt

My sister in law

SHE IS HOME!!!!

Update on Lanessa

Thank You All........

Wednesday morning

Monday night

Wednesday night

Wednesday afternoon

Tuesday night

Tuesday morning

Monday afternoon

Monday afternoon

Sunday night

Sunday afternoon **updated**

Sunday morning

Saturday evening

Saturday morning

Friday night

Friday morning

Thursday night

Thursday morning

Wednesday night

Wednesday morning

Tuesday night

Tuesday morning

Monday evening

Monday morning

Just a few pics...

Lanessa

Patrick Crayton tells it like it is...

Good news. Bad news.

Oh yes!

Bring on Batman 3

What I wanna be when I grow up...

Been a while

Wow!

Little something to look forward to...

MVP! MVP! MVP!

Long day...

Great read!!!

Tragic news

Couple of early thoughts...

Truly truly funny

Hilarious...

Pirates 9, Astros 3

34 minutes and 22 seconds...

What goes up...

When did things change?

More Matt Chandler

Sunday afternoon updated