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Welcome to the first annual National Insult a Stranger Day.

To celebrate this day, you need to find someone you don’t know, discover his take on any given topic, then insult him for having that opinion.
Or insult him for existing.
Or because you don’t like his name.

“But wait!” you may say. “Isn’t that just a normal day on the internet?”

Yes, yes it is.

And that is kind of my point – to show the need for a National Be Nice to Someone on the Internet Day.

Although I’m not sure if the official day of observance is August 20 or March 4. Maybe it could be both?

(Bonus points if your first thought was “It should be every day.”)

This Public Service Announcement is brought to you in part by my commute.

What’s wrong with this picture? And what’s right with it?

We will come back to that. First, though, let’s look at this photo.

By the way, all photos are courtesy of my dash cam.
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Ah, the old riddle: what gets wetter the more it dries?

Before answering that question, allow me to show you a photo from a hotel at which we stayed during a recent trip.

Here’s a closer shot so you can read it.

It says

Please towel dry before leaving pool.
Thank you.

My wife pointed it out to me, as she correctly knew I would appreciate it.

The sign should have said to towel dry before leaving the pool room or before entering the hallway or courtyard.

To comply with the sign as written would have required over 100,000 towels (according to a topic I saw on Reddit about how many towels it would take to dry a pool. They assumed a larger pool, but they also assumed larger towels so it’s close enough).

Not only would the pool users waste a lot of time drying off while in the pool, they would need a pool-sized space to discard the wet towels.

We did not comply with the letter of the law, but I do believe we followed the spirit of the law.

Now back to the original question. The answer is, of course, a Hampton Inn pool room.

This was indirectly inspired by a recent post about things learned from Visionary Family Ministries.

Women, here is a tip to help you when speaking to your husband: don’t insult him.

I know that sounds obvious, but you might not know you’re insulting him.

Let me give an example.

Let’s say Dear Husband is working on a project. Maybe it’s changing the car’s oil. Maybe it’s replacing the kitchen faucet. Maybe it’s installing a sprinkler system. Doesn’t really matter, other than it’s something that, when it’s done, he can say he accomplished it.

Now let’s say you see him working on said project, and you want to be helpful, so you ask him if he needs any help.

That was the insult.

I know you meant well, but just don’t ask or say anything about needing help.

If you are worried about his safety, then stay nearby (but out of harm’s way) so he can ask for help once he realizes he needs it.

If you have seen The King and I, then you may be familiar with the concept of letting the king (or husband – those terms are interchangeable, right?) think he thought of an idea that you led him to.

In summary: if a guy wants to do something, let him accomplish it on his own.

Also, results are not guaranteed. Your mileage may vary. Some guys might like being asked if they need help, as if they are still kindergarteners.

The exception – the only time you can offer help – is if the help is one of his children. If you say “Little junior wants to help. Is there anything he can do?” then he will find a way to need help. Even if it is just handing him that wrench.

This is the follow-up to the previous blog post about our week at Maranatha, mainly more information about Visionary Family Ministries.

If I could sum up the teaching of the week in one paragraph in my own words, it would be this:

You are a pastor.
You have a congregation.
How are you leading and teaching them?

Now to use his words, paraphrased.
“For most of history, discipleship and religious teaching was family-centered and church-supported. In the last 100 years, it has switch to be church-centered and family-supported, leading to weakened faith.”
“The family is God’s plan for small-group ministry, the primary tool for evangelism.”

Now back to regular bloggy writing:
From my summary, above, you have a congregation. In my case, it’s a congregation of 5 – a wife and 4 kids.

Who is responsible for their spiritual development?

Not the head pastor. Not the youth pastor. Not anyone in the church organization.

The husband/father is.

If, in an average week, you are doing nothing to promote spiritual growth in your wife and/or kids, then you need to start. Make a plan and start small.

Of course, Visionary Family Ministries is a good place to start

Other Things I Noted During His Sessions
I have heard sermons preached on Ephesians chapter 5 before – the roles of husband and wife. But Rob Rienow’s exposition of it was the first I can recall that gave the Why behind each command. It made sense the way he explained it.

Women must be careful with criticism. “If a man decides that you can’t be pleased, then he will stop trying.” Applies to her dealings with kids as well as husband.

“Honor your father and mother, that your days may be long in the land which the Lord your God gives you.” is a familiar verse, but misapplied. It is not a cause-and-effect that applies to individual people – the you in there is plural. It is a promise to the nation, society. When kids don’t honor their parents, families break down. When families break down, society breaks down. When society breaks down, it doesn’t last long in the land. That’s what the verse means.

In conclusion, Rob Rienow is a great speaker. If you get a chance to hear him at an event, go. If you don’t get a chance, you can order the DVD set and have almost the same effect.

Many people have garbage disposals in their kitchen sinks.

We are not those people.

But if we were, I would opt for this product, which I just made up:

The In-sarlacc-erator

There would also need to be a line of In-sarlacc-erator-compatible sinks, the Great Sink of Carkoon.

Note: if you don’t get it, go ask a Star Wars fan.

I wonder if it’s easier to get a licensing agreement from Disney than from Lucasfilm.

Another year, another trip to Maranatha. Which means another vacation recap blog post.

Don’t read that opening sentence with the wrong tone of voice – it’s a happy time, not a here-we-go-again dour attitude. The kids love going; we look forward to it each year.

Visit 2010’s recap of our trip to Maranatha for a refresher course, or to see how similar trips to Maranatha are. We want them to be similar, because kids need traditions.

Let’s see… things to recap.

• The Beach

  The beach was good, weather cooperated for the most part.

  I got some photos of the sunset our first night there.

  

  

  Given the number of phones and teenagers there, I bet there were a ton more sunset photos on Instagram too. The problem with those is that the photographers kept sticking their own heads in the way.
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