not sure what i was thinking joining a flag football league. yesterday, my left foot found a hole on the field (literally) and now i have one ankle twice the size of the other one. i'll see how it recovers over the next couple days and decide if i need to go see the doc. it sure does hurt, i know that. so, am i too old for for this kind of fun or was it just bad luck stepping in a hole in the ground? i'd like to think it was just bad luck.....

in our sunday am high school class we continued our discussion about the disconnect between god's promises and our experience of reality. in other words, if god promises to protect us from harm, keep us from evil, etc., why doesn't that seem to be what happens. can we have faith in the promises when the experiences of life seem to suggest that he (god) is not keeping them (the promises)? as greg has put it, the dots don't connect.

throughout history, god's people have wrestled with this dilemma. i mean, just read the psalms and it becomes quite obvious that there were many who struggled to get a handle on the disconnect. we talked for a moment about the ends jesus' apostles met... crucifixion, stoning, exile, speared to death. i can only imagine the struggle those things must have created for them. questions like: ok god, i have been your servant and now i am looking for your protection.... hello?, are you going to rescue me?.... are you just going to let this happen?.... am i not sheltered in the 'shadow of your wing'?....

thinking about these things certainly doesn't connect all the dots. they don't connect. my belief in the promises of god will never be dependent upon 'evidence' of their truthfulness. that doesn't make them less true.

my lenten prayer for this week..... god, increase my faith. give me the courage to believe in your promises. amen.