Firefox - Tab Preview Extension

Here is an AWESOME extension that shows thumbnails of the unselected tabs in your Firefox 1.5 browser. If you are a tabbed browser fiend like I am, you will not want to live without this extension.

Andrew Petersen - The Far Country Podcast

I think God gives us our imagination to teach us about what his kingdom is going to look like, and what heaven is going to be like one day. - Andrew Petersen

Grassroots Music blog had an Andrew Petersen podcast where he discusses his new album, "The Far Country." This is Andrew's best album to date and the podcast is wonderful.

Because of Winn Dixie - Just The Sermon I Needed

I have seen two movies in recent weeks that have spoken to me about Christ and his relationship to the world and to the church on a very deep level.

The first was Rent. This movie captured the reality of the how the "least of these" discarded by the world and ignored by the church understand more about the love of 1 John than so many of us who claim the name of Christ, and study his words in their written form.

The second "Because of Winn-Dixie" I watched tonight while I was supposed to be writing my sermon for Sunday. The funny part is that though I got not one line of my sermon written, I got to see and hear the message I needed. I have NEVER cried so many times during one movie.

I have three quotes from the movie:

"I thought about how life was like a Litmus Lozenge, how the sweet and the sad were all mixed up together and how hard it was to seperate them out." - Opal

"Miss Franny said the problem here was people forgot how to share their saddness, but I think they forgot how to share their joy." - Opal

"But when I look at you
You are like a butterfly.
A catapillars dream to fly.
To bust out of this old cocoon
and dry your wings off...
Butterfly
go ahead and fly"
- Otis

I love to gospel of John so much. I am reading it again right now.
John 4:25-26 The (pagan adulterous Samaritan) woman said, "I know that Messiah" (called Christ) "is coming. When he comes, he will explain everything to us."
Then Jesus declared, "I who speak to you am he."


The amazing part of the amazing love of Jesus is the first person he tells who he is, is an adulterous Samaritan Woman. He could have claimed his Lordship in Jerusalem at passover, but he did not. He could have declared he was the Immanuel to Nicodemus, Israels teacher, but to him he only spoke in prophecies. He could have saved his declaration, for a crowd of faithful ready to crown him king. Instead he opened the curtains of heaven and revealed his glory to she who was the absolute least in His culture.

I think today Jesus' revelation of his glory would not have been brodcast on the 700 Club. It would not have been featured as the Liberty University commencement adresss. It would have been saved for a crack whore whose body trembling from the pain of the AIDS ravaging her brokeness He was holding in His arms. From her pain, from her despair she is looking for hope, for comfort, for release from the suffering. She has longing eyes that are filled with all the saddness and all the brokeness of the 3 generations of dysfunction and abuse that have led her to this place. I see him look into those eyes, and lean his face close to hers and whisper into her ear the greatest message of hospice anyone has ever heard, "I am the Christ, and I am making all things new!"

I think Winn Dixie represented the "Love of Christ" I think Opal represented the church. When we are following the dog, will never meet a stranger he does not love. Each encounter is a friend waiting to be made, a life prepared to be shared, a litmus test of our learnings in Love. The church (at our best) is the butterfly, emerged from her cocoon, the hope of caterpillars, the paradox that is the balance between sweet and sorrow.

St. Claire - Patron of TiVo

st. claire
Originally uploaded by rocket_la.

I have long considered St. Augustine and St. Francis my patron saints, however today I am deeply considering the addition of a third saint, The recently cannonized St. Claire for her love and protection of all people who use and depend on TiVo for TV their way.

2 Saturdays Before Christmas

Ella and Anna Santa 2005

Click Photo For Full Size

Christmas Photos

To order the the girl's Christmas pictures goto the Smile Store

Password Incorrect!



Enter Password For Photos:







Wow!!! What a day the Bowman family had. We have been to two malls, waited in line to see Santa for an hour and a half, and printed 50 dark colored shirts front and back.

We started the day at Stratford to get the girls pictures made at Picture People, and decided to wait the hour to see the pics. While we were waiting we went to see a magician who was performing in Kohl's. My 4 year old got on stage twice and totally upstaged him both times. I being a performer myself was quite proud of her natural abilty to draw the crowds attention.

With our hour finally over we picked out our pictures (which you can see if you use the password above. ) and left to go work at the T-Shirt shop and allow our toddler her nap.

So our next adventure was Woodfield Mall to see Santa. This resulted in the one and a half wait that included a 25 minute non moving period while Santa went to "feed the reindeer." That was lovely!

On our way home from the mall my 4 year old suggested we play a game on our "Gamecube." I tried to argue that we did not have a Gamecube. She argued back that we did because she saw me pick up a Gamecube at Fry's Electronics and then mommy took her to see MP3 players. I think her little 4 year old mind was quite proud she had connected the dots and figured out a gift on her own.

So that is our crazy day. If you want to see the pictures send me an email and I will give you the password.

Lion Witch & The Wardrobe Review

A wonderful telling of C.S. Lewis's wonderful tale. Andrew Adamson did magnificent. The children were acted excellently, and Weta workshop came through once again with the magic of bringing fantasy alive in reality. One can say only WOW!!! My 4 year old, the youngest in the audience by at least 3 years remained capitivated and entertained. I was surprised to hear Alanis singing at the credits her Theme Song Wunderkind, and loved the little extra after the cast list.

I must say, it is WELL worth your ticket price to see this first Chronicle of Narnia.

Strange Christmas Products

A Cube MP3 player? One may ask why? All I can say is I have no clue, but boy does my consumeristic American leanings make me want one.

Lust of the eyes for me looks more like Tech toys...

Bought My Narnia Tickets

Friday night, 7:30 PM at the Streets of Woodfield theatre I, my wife, and my daughter will be seeing Chronicles of Narnia - The Lion, The Witch, and The Wardrobe.

Thanks to our good friend Doris taking care of the baby we will be able to see this movie on opening night.

I am doing a happy dance

A War Quote To Bother My Family

So this one is for my dad and my brother.

Bushes' 'holiday' cards ring hollow for some - washingtonpost.com Highlights - MSNBC.com: "That is the same rationale offered by major retailers for generic holiday catalogues, and it is accepted by groups such as the National Council of Churches. 'I think it's more important to put Christ back into our war planning than into our Christmas cards,' said the council's general secretary, the Rev. Bob Edgar, a former Democratic congressman."

I will admit that, due to my brothers fabulous logic and reasoning, I have come around to accept the Iraq situation as a necesary evil, however as the pacifist I am I loved this quote.

Since I know you both disagree with this, I welcome more hearty debate in a few weeks when we gather for Christmas.

A Timely Quiz - Call Me Mr. Tumnus

Beliefnet is offering a quiz to identify your Narnia character. The seemed timely with this week's release of Lion With and the Wardrobe. So I came in a Mr. Tumnus Take the test and see your results.

We Are Dispossessed - The T-Shirt

I am going to do a print run of 10-12 shirts on this dispossessed theme. I need to record this feeling and making shirts is just how I do that. I am going to print mine and a few for friends I know will want one this evening, but I will leave the screen up for a few days if anyone else wants one. I can only afford to print no more than 15 so let me know before like next Tuesday when I will reclaim the screen.

Click on The Logo below to see it and the shirt sample big:

Just leave a comment with your size and then drop me an email with your address and I will send you one.

dispossessed:

I feel very dispossessed right now!

I am not satisfied at my church at ALL!!! I would even go so far as to say disatisfied. I now after a year, no longer feel it has even the potential to change. Young people will be scowled at, marginalized, and treated as an inconvience forever because they don't like the fact that children make noise. I will NEVER apologize for my children being children. They are good kids, even the 16 month old monster.

I don't feel I can go back to the old church. It is 35 minutes away and truthfully, though the people there are like family, I don't know I fit in there either. I am libertarian/anarchist social liberal and I never in 7 years really meshed with "God Save the Bush's Republicanism."

I think I want to plant a church. We will be called "the dispossed:" We will meet in a Warehouse with a locker room where the homeless can shower, it will have a kitchen where we can feed the hungry. It will be a place of refuge first, and an assembly place for "worship service" second.

It will not have a cool projector, stained glass, or an awesome sound system. We will not stream our services.

We will train people how to use computers, care for children, and improve lives.

We will be a place where people lower their cripple friends through the roof, for a chance to be healed by Jesus. (Allegorically I mean, I'm an evangelical conservative Christian afterall)

I am a dispossessed pilgrim.

More Sex Talk

My friend Dion Pugil had a great post on God and understanding him through our sexuality. You all might remember my own post on this subject from back in October.

God is pursuing us as the Lover pursues his bride. I will never forget the longing I had for my bride as we approached our wedding day, and that kind of passion deomstrates the awesome power of God's redemptive plans.

Please Be A Frappr w/ Me

It has been 1 month and all of 2 people have added themselves to my Frappr Map. This is giving me a complex.



If you love me, please sign on!