Jared, My Boy

Can I just say how proud I am of Jared. Without prompting from Angie or I, Jared came to us saying he wanted to be baptized. Angie and I were both surprised and excited. Wanting to make sure he understood what this meant, we quizzed him on what it means to be baptized and why he wanted to be baptized. In short, his answers were all right on. He told us he wanted to be baptized to show that he "loves Jesus and wants to live for him the rest of his life." Talk about thrilled and excited. Our hearts jumped for joy.

If you know Jared, he is not one that likes the attention or spot light to be on him. This makes his desire to be baptized even more special.

In addition, he asked if I would baptize him. I so love him. Needless to say, tomorrow Jared will be baptized. I will get to baptize him with Pastor Barry. I can hardly keep from crying just blogging about it.

It's our heart to raise our kids to "Love God, Love People, and Love Life!" Seems to me Jared is headed in the right direction. I couldn't be prouder!!!

Ben Stein Comments On God

remarks from CBS Sunday Morning - Ben Stein

I Only hope we find GOD again before it is too late ! !



The following was written by Ben Stein and recited by him on CBS Sunday Morning Commentary.

My confession:

I am a Jew, and every single one of my ancestors was Jewish. And it does not bother me even a little bit when people call those beautiful lit up, bejeweled trees, Christmas trees. I don ' t feel threatened. I don ' t feel discriminated against. That ' s what they are, Christmas trees.

It doesn ' t bother me a bit when people say, ' Merry Christmas ' to me. I don ' t think they are slighting me or getting ready to put me in a ghetto. In fact, I kind of like it. It shows that we are all brothers and sisters celebrating this happy time of year. It doesn ' t bother me at all that there is a manger scene on display at a key intersection near my beach house in Malibu . If people want a creche, it ' s just as fine with me as is the Menorah a few hundred yards away.

I don ' t like getting pushed around for being a Jew, and I don ' t think Christians like getting pushed around for being Christians. I think people who believe in God are sick and tired of getting pushed around, period. I have no idea where the concept came from, that America is an explicitly atheist country. I can ' t find it in the Constitution and I don ' t like it being shoved down my throat.

Or maybe I can put it another way: where did the idea come from that we should worship celebrities and we aren ' t allowed to worship God as we understand Him? I guess that ' s a sign that I ' m getting old, too. But there are a lot of us who are wondering where these celebrities came from and where the America we knew went to.

In light of the many jokes we send to one another for a laugh, this is a little different: This is not intended to be a joke; it ' s not funny, it ' s intended to get you thinking.

Billy Graham ' s daughter was interviewed on the Early Show and Jane Clayson asked her ' How could God let something like this happen? ' (regarding Hurricane Katrina).. Anne Graham gave an extremely profound and insightful response. She said, ' I believe God is deeply saddened by this, just as we are, but for years we ' ve been telling God to get out of our schools, to get out of our government and to get out of our lives. And being the gentleman He is, I believe He has calmly backed out. How can we expect God to give us His blessing and His protection if we demand He leave us alone? '

In light of recent events... terrorists attack, school shootings, etc. I think it started when Madeleine Murray O ' Hare (she was murdered, her body found a few years ago) complained she didn ' t want prayer in our schools, and we said OK. Then someone said you better not read the Bible in school. The Bible says thou shalt not kill; thou shalt not steal, and love your neighbor as yourself. And we said OK.

Then Dr. Benjamin Spock said we shouldn ' t spank our children when they misbehave, because their little personalities would be warped and we might damage their self-esteem (Dr. Spock ' s son committed suicide). We said an expert should know what he ' s talking about. And we said okay.

Now we ' re asking ourselves why our children have no conscience, why they don ' t know right from wrong, and why it doesn ' t bother them to kill strangers, their classmates, and themselves.

Probably, if we think about it long and hard enough, we can figure it out. I think it has a great deal to do with ' WE REAP WHAT WE SOW. '

Funny how simple it is for people to trash God and then wonder why the world ' s going to hell. Funny how we believe what the newspapers say, but question what the Bible says. Funny how you can send ' jokes ' through e-mail and they spread like wildfire, but when you start sending messages regarding the Lord, people think twice about sharing. Funny how lewd, crude, vulgar and obscene articles pass freely through cyberspace, but public discussion of God is suppressed in the school and workplace.

Are you laughing yet?

Funny how when you forward this message, you will not send it to many on your address list because you ' re not sure what they believe, or what they will think of you for sending it.

Funny how we can be more worried about what other people think of us than what God thinks of us.

Pass it on if you think it has merit.

If not, then just discard it... no one will know you did. But, if you discard this thought process, don ' t sit back and complain about what bad shape the world is in.



My Best Regards, Honestly and respectfully,

Ben Stein

Swine Flu and Whine Flu

Carl Edwards gets upended at Taladega. Wow!

Jarron Gilbert a Bears draft pick jumps out of a pool. Amazing!

09 Florida Vacation

As you can tell by the date of my last post, I took a vacation from blogging. Now that we have been back from vacation for a week and a half and I'm getting all caught up, it is time to catch you up.

As many of you know, Angie, the kids and I took a 2 week vacation to Walt Disney World and Southeast Florida. It was the best vacation ever. I was so blessed by the way the three kids behaved and how God blessed us in so many ways in the short 2 week period of time. We will surely remember this vacation for a lifetime.

This vacation was extra special because there were many "firsts" for the kids. Let me explain...

1. This was the first time the kids have flown in an airplane. Prior to our flight, they had loads of questions. In fact, Grandma and Grandpa Johnson gave them all kinds of info about flying. Some true and some not so true. Thanks Dad! As we got on the plane, we met the pilot. Joel and Jared got to speak on the intercom and welcome everyone aboard. All three got to sit by the window at some point and loved looking outside. I think Jared said, "Look Dad, the cars and houses look like ants." Jenna was grinned ear to ear the entire time. Sitting next to her Mommy was extra special for her. And Joel, he loves anything fast. This was right up his alley. They were wide eyed and loved both flights.

2. It was the 3Js first time at Disney World. I could talk about this all day. There were so many special things, but I will just share one. We arrived at our resort, Port Orleans Riverside, late in the afternoon. We ate dinner at the resort and it was excellent. Following dinner, we headed for the Magic Kingdom. Angie, being the planner and tour director that she is, thought we should catch the parade and fireworks in front of the castle. Thankfully, we timed it perfect. We arrived at a very crowded Magic Kingdom and found a seat right in front of the castle. The kids were just beaming. I wish you could have seen them. The parade was awesome. The kids loved it. The fireworks followed. These had to be the best fireworks we have ever seen. I would even say they were better than Chicago's 3rd of July photos. Our time at all the parks was almost as wonderful. Ask me sometime and I will fill you in with all the details.

3. During our second week, we stayed at a condo on the beach in Surfside (Miami). This was the kids first time ever seeing the ocean. They loved playing in the surf. They jumped waves, searched for shells, played in the sand, and attempted to body surf. We all loved the beach/ocean and had the sun burns to prove it.

These are just a few firsts that I thought you might enjoy. There were several other highlights. Feel free to ask. We love talking about our great time.

I am so blessed to have the family that I do. We loved being together.

Unbelievable Football Video

I'm Proud Of Angie

I'm going to take this opportunity to brag about Angie, just a little... I hope you will allow me to boast on my wonderful wife and best friend. 

As you may or may not know, Angie has been directing choir with the Young Naperville singers for about 9 years. The last 2 years, she has been the Artistic Director, in charge of all the artistic staff. She is completely awesome at her job. That, however, is not what I'm going to brag about. 

Prior to having Jared and and joining the YNS staff, Angie taught for several years as a middle school choir director and general music teacher in Naperville and Yorkville. She had fantastic programs in both school districts. Well, this past Friday she was the guest speaker/clinician at a teacher's institute at her former school district (Indian Prairie School District 204). This was an all day institute where she taught all the district's music teachers. There were about 60 teachers there. 

To some this may not be a very big deal. However, to Angie, this was a huge deal. She said it would have been much easier to do an institute in a district that didn't know her so well. These were her peers, colleagues, and people she looks up to in the field of choral teaching. Consequently, the pressure seemed to be on. 

I am so proud of her. She raised to the occasion. Though stretching and stressful, she did a fantastic job. The feedback she has received has been amazing. I am so proud of her because the easy thing to do would have been to turn down the invitation. She had numerous valid excuses she could have used. But, she choose to do something out of her realm of comfort. Way to go Ang!!!

I am so fortunate to have a wonderful wife that is talented in so many ways. I thank God for her daily. She makes me a better person. Together, we make a good team. 

Quotes I Love

The following are quotes passed on from Tony Morgan and Catalyst One Day by a favorite of mine Andy Stanley:

"Continuous improvement requires systematic evaluation."
"If lack of momentum doesn't bother your current personnel, you have the wrong personnel."
"Momentum requires friction."
"Complexity kills momentum."
"If you're just trying to draw a crowd, it'll feel gimicky."
"New systems and structure will create internal momentum but not external momentum."
"You have to decide that it doesn't matter if they fire you."
"If personnel decisions are not emotional and difficult, then we have a heart issue."

Andy is the man!

Check out this video. Firefighting, Blago style.

Cool Commercial. Check It Out

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V2CaBR3z85c

Cold, Cold, Cold.

First of all, I must say it has been awhile since I have blogged. My Grandma Kling passed away January 2nd. She had a major stroke on Christmas morning. The doctor's did not expect her to live through that weekend. She actually lived for a week. My Mom and her siblings got to spend some wonderful time with her that week. What a blessing. The family got to read the Bible and pray with her daily. It was really special for my Mom. Consequently, I have been a little busy with family stuff and work. Thankfully things are back to normal.

Sitting here watching the news, I can hardly wait for tomorrow. Not! It is going to be bitter cold. Yuck.

I talked to my friend Matt today who lives in southern Florida. He helped me feel better by saying, they too are experiencing a cold front. It was 60 degrees down there today. My heart bleeds for him. lol

Sitting here thinking about all the snow we have had and the coming cold, I can't help but hear all those around who are complaining. All I've got to say is boo hoo. This is Chicago. We have cold weather and snow in the winter. It is what you make of it. Bundle up and suck it up folks. Have a positive attitude. Enjoy the beauty of God's creation.

Have a great Thursday and Friday. Yes, highs will be in the single digits, but this too shall pass. Before you know it, someone will be complaining about the heat and/or humidity. Enjoy everyday as a gift. Eventually your days here will end.