Drunks, Psychs, and Suicides in Human Nature

For the past few weeks we've had more psych, alcohol, attempted suicides, and other patients equally detrimental to themselves at fictionville E.R. than I can remember than in the past year and a half. -Which leads me to ask, "what the heck is going on with people this season?"

I think I've come to the conclusion (and this includes everyone) that if we put half as much energy into our future, of what we expend dwelling on the past; I believe our lives would be much, much, better... Which of course leads to the human nature perspective of; 'Why, as humans, do we spend so much time focusing on the dreads of our past?' Why do we continue condemning ourselves, and preoccupying what little precious time we have, with miseries and drudged up old painful memories?

I believe the issue is rooted in spiritual warfare.

False expectations appearing real, in the present.. when they are in the past...

My faith and understanding of the gospel of Jesus Christ leads me to believe that demon possession IS real in the unsaved. -It also leads me to believe that a person that is saved through the Resurrection power of Jesus Christ CANNOT be possessed, but can certainly be spiritually oppressed and demonically harrassed if they:

1. Give the authority to the enemy.
2. Don't use the spiritual weapons and giftings freely given to believers through the Holy Spirit.
3. Don't acknowledge Jesus' supreme power and authority over all things physical and spiritual.
4. Don't lay it down at the foot of the cross.

You'll notice that the keywords are all 'self-action words'. "Give", and "Don't" are all conscious behaviors manifesting from decisions. (Whether subconsciously motivated or not.) -In our minds and hearts we are saying we are weak, when really, as children of God we are not.

We as Christians should, and have the critical need to digest, and awaken ourselves, of the Grace and real working power of Jesus Christ. This is our defense.. And, it's our offense. Cumulatively, we need to stop giving ground to the enemy.

I've got to get back to work.

Be blessed and keep in the fight. Wherever you are, don't accept the lies.

-C

We get to go out!?

For the first time since Noah was born, we went 'out', together as a family to someplace other than church..

We started getting ready early, and actually made it out of the house NLT 11am.. Later than anticipated, but together just the same. -Having this much fun outside of the house makes it a shame that we had to come home by 2pm so that I could catch a nap before spending another three nights at work.

Can you guess who's who?

Tess made this with her digital scrapbooking software this morning. She was so excited about it, I voted it best for todays post.

Can you guess who's who?

-C

Still at Fictionville

See you thursday!

Monday Morning

Dig our digs

Because of this, we have hope

100" of snow

I am so tired of the 'snow-story' that I'm not even going to justify it's occurrence by posting pictures of it..

You know what Michigan snow looks like. You know what 'Thunder' the little snowblower looks like. And you know I've already covered miles-and-miles of pushing 'Thunder' around the circle of our driveway. 100" of snow is: 8.333 feet. I say; "Enough!"

My suspicion is that this all might be my fault. -Three days ago while working on my motorcycle I was thinking of ways to make more room in the garage.. Primarily being, finally stowing the snowblower for the season.

• Thirty minutes later, the weather dude was forecasting snow.
• The second; I was laughing at the demise of the poor folks of Allegan county because they were suppose to get the brunt of this winter weather system, and Ottawa county was only suppose to get a "dusting".
• The third; I was laughing even harder yesterday morning when the forecasted snow that was suppose to arrive between 1am and 8am... It Didn't. "Suckers!"

Outside of humor, I can't express the angst and remorse I felt as I woke from my post-shift nap yesterday afternoon only to discover a fresh six inch covering of snow hiding what used to resemble the spring thaw of grass and leftover fallen leaves from six months ago.

"*&%$#?@#* !!!!" -I hope I have enough gas leftover in the snowblower to do one last 'hoorah' snowjob.

"I refuse to waste one more gallon of gasoline just for this... (Of course, since I just said that, surely I am going to be forced to go buy some two cycle oil to mix for the previously mentioned.) --If that happens, the only way to save that specialized mixed fuel will be to put it in the chainsaw; and If I do that, SOMETHING WILL BE GETTING CUT DOWN...

Reflecting on the inventory of potential events that might occur, it sure sounds like a slippery slope.

If, in the next seven or so days of posts you see pictures of trees being fallen by my trusty chainsaw, you'll already know why. 'Self-fulfilling prophesy'..

-C

Freedom~!

After what seems forever, I'm finally outta here (Fictionville) for two days.


I'm going to celebrate my newfound freedom by waiting around the EMS ready room after shift surfing and checking email until the time is nearly right to rendezvous with the Secretary of State office at 08:00a.m. in Hudsonville.. -Yes. A challenge to the senses, I know. But I'm all about challenges. -After a 13 hour shift I'm headed right over to the one single place you won't find in a State of Michigan tourism brochure... The S.O.S. office. Do you think wearing black E.R. scrubs will get me brownie points and friendlier, more expedient service? In all impartiality, I'm thinking NOT. But if ever there was a SOS office to visit, Hud-ville's the one for speediness.


It's only 07:18, thirty more minutes to burn before I hit the road.

Addendum:

Wrong! Someone gave me the wrong info. They didn't open until 09:00am (but I was in and out in less than ten minutes.) I had to burn some time at the hardware store..

-C

Ever have one of those Days?

Or week.. Or month..
Dude. Where is the love?

Top Five

Top Five Reasons Why I Maintain a Weblog:

5. Writing allows me the luxury of mentally unwinding after a days events.
4. I'm able to maintain a 'virtual photo cache'.
3. I'm able to document the sights, sounds, and emotions of a given time, place, or experience.
2. Web-logging affords the ability to keep our entire extended family abreast on our lives.
1. Unless I delete it, Someday I'll print it all out. 'Web-logging' is a permanent record for our kids to see 'how it was', when they come of age.

"Nobody cares about your stupid bike"

"That's why you don't get any comments..."

The words pierced my heart.. (Ego)

-Might I remind my dear bride that:

• My bike costs less to insure than a car.
• It costs less to operate than a car.
• Even though it's a 1985, it's PAID for.
• Through fuel savings it's already paid for itself.
• It's much more fun to drive than a car.
• In THREE years she's never planted her 'behind' on the seat, let alone go for a ride.
• It gives me satisfaction as a functional hobby.
• Oh, and yes they do. ...And that's why I will continue soliciting comments by posting cool pictures and mechanically challenging stories.
• When the time comes when you actually ride with me, you'll enjoy it, and be sold, and kick yourself for not doing it sooner. ; )

-C

Can you say "Happy!" Birthday Present? (Finally)..

Chirp. Chip. Cricket. Cricket... I went in. We talked. We saw. I conquered..

(Oh. By the way.. Happy St. Patricks day!)

-C

We were home! We were all right here!

(Satire By Carl)

Oh! The frustration.. (and I am not mocking either..)

'Sometimes the toughest thing of anticipating a gift that you already know of, is; the expectation that we build up within ourselves, and (unfortunately) the potential for disappointment.'

Tess has been waiting patiently for her birthday present (a 'Cricut' I bid for and won on eBay) for the past four or five days. Even I, had really expected it to be delivered no later than Saturday afternoon via the U.S. Postal service...

...Oh, they delivered something alright.

They delivered a little canary colored postcard with the regular mail in our roadside mailbox that said: "Sorry we missed you!" "We tried to deliver a package to you, but you were not home. Package can be picked up at the A-town Post office after 08:30am, MONDAY MORNING".

Friends; WE WERE HOME ALL DAY!!

I was sleeping, and the kids and T were bouncing around the house in front of the picture window. -Our 'Union' mail deliverer apparently didn't want to slow their car down enough to actually pull into our driveway, and push that little rectangular button that we customarily call a 'doorbell.' (We would have even been cool with it if they simply tossed the package into the breezeway.. we left it unlocked just for that purpose.)

Ah well. I guess the "Not sun, nor rain, nor snow or storm shall deter the U.S. Postal Service from it's mission" no longer applies.

I would LOVE it if FedEx, UPS, or DHL, could compete for the Post office routes to provide better service. Perhaps if mail delivery was treated as a business and customer satisfaction was tied directly the the companies bottom line instead of the USPS looking at operations as being a government subsidized utility..

..For a fun time on the telephone, try calling your local Post Office directly.. (Seriously. It's impossible to do. Seriously. Try it today.)

Well, enough about my ranting on behalf of what my dear wife won't verbalize. I leave this mornings post with a final thought for USPS workers who disagree with my rumblings...

"When it comes to 'Going Postal', no one goes 'Postal' like a former U.S. Marine."

OohRah! Woot! Woot!

Sorry babe. I'll personally pick it up Monday morning at 08:00:01 a.m.

-C

While you were out.

Tess' parents took the family out to eat for T's birthday while I was at Fictionville last night.. From the pics, I think Grace might have thought that it was HER birthday

A 'Shout Out' to the Lisiaks' for picking up my slack. It looks like a lot of fun, -wish I could have been out there celebrating with ya' all.

-C

Happy Birthday Tess

If you are what you eat.. Tess is sweet.A "few years ago" on this day Tess was born on the 'other side of the pond'.. No. Not the Atlantic or Pacific. I mean Lake Michigan. Here are a couple fun facts about Tess:

1. She was born a Wisconsin 'Cheesehead'.
2. She has an insatiable sweet tooth.
3. She loves scrapbooking and holds monthly or quarterly 'scraps' at our home. (Hint. Hint. To all you local 'scrappers' out there).
4. She is obsessed about not having dishes in the sink.
5. She cannot have her food 'touching' on her plate.. (I think motherhood might have changed that a little.)
6. When I met her, one of our first discussions rotated around handgun ballistics. -I was smitten.
7. She knows how to fire a .45 cal. and hit what she's aiming at.
8. She hates the way I drive through Chicago. (Race. Or be raced.)
9. She loves being a 'mommy'.
10. She loves her Savior Jesus Christ, first and foremost.

We are all hoping that you get your Birthday present on time (from eBay!) today.

Happy Birthday Tess. We love you.

C, A, G, N,

Well, that can't be good.

But it is!

A tow truck you say?

Generally speaking, seeing a tow truck 'hook' a parked car isn't a good thing. Even more so, if it's your car.

...But not in this case. : )

After over a year of uselessly sitting in our driveway, our Ford Taurus is finally going into the transmission shop for overhaul repairs. (Yes. I know that sounds like a long time, and kind of 'redneckish', but let me explain.)

16 months ago we put about $2000.00 into our Ford Taurus FFV to get the upper engine rebuilt after a breakdown. We were happy as a pair of claims in the warm Caribbean.. for the ONE week it was running post-repair.

Just one week after the major engine repair work, while Tess was driving, (coincidental) the transmission went totally out. We had it towed back to the same garage that did the job in the first place, (Tolmans) and they recommended the transmissoin shop next door eyeball it. Their estimate: $2,000.00! -(A shop employee told me they'd be happy to pay me $500.00 to take the lemon off my hands.) -Long story short, we only had one car, We were in a dire pinch with no more $$ to toss around.. It got towed back to our home and parked until the resources to fix it arrived.

-FAST FORWARD 2008.

God is good! The tax man is fixing our car. What joy! What freedom! What a blessing! Now, finally, Tess will be able to have room for the kids in a sedan that is built to haul kids around (without forcing knees into the dashboard to accommodate for the rear car seats.) Plus, it's a flex fuel vehicle.. We can run it on gasoline OR ethanol. (When we parked it, it had a fresh tank of ethanol in it. After starting it once a week, for fifteen minutes each time, it's down to 1/4 tank.)

It should be ready Friday or Monday!!

Woot! Woot!
-C

"Are you lookin' at me? Well. Are ya?"

Our two un-shy jokers hamming it up.

The Joy of Children part IV

All last week we were wondering why the showers had gotten so cold, so soon. I attributed it to setting the hot water thermostat at 110 because we have the babies...

...Tess had mentioned of the same experiences having the showers go cold after only 10 minutes..

She had also mentioned, that one of the things Grace had been playing with in the basement, was the "little white knob over there"... (It was the hot water heater thermostat knob.)

Two weeks of freezing cold water solved.

C's motorcycle-ing season

My all-time favorite 'Boys club comedy' movie is "Wild Hogs". If you haven't yet rented it, do it. You'll laugh your butt off. (Which brings me to the topic of the day.)

You can always tell when spring is around the corner by the amount of motorcycles, and motorcycle parts that start popping up for sale on eBay. The pre-riding season has begun. Everyone is either looking to upgrade from the bikes they had learned to ride on last year, or purchase a reasonable sized starter bike to learn on, or begin the pre-riding season maintenance since it's (barely) no longer 10 degrees F out side.. I fall into the maintenance category..


Since no one hopped on the bandwagon during the winter to save some big bucks on purchasing a motorcycle (ie; my Magna), and since gas prices are expected to be getting worse and worse, I guess I'll prep her for one more riding season. What that means is, I'm lurking around eBay, stalking out the best prices for sprockets and a new chain. In the meantime, even though it's still dern' cold outside, LAST week I cleaned out a nice work area section of the second garage to have a little 'motorcycle workshop area'. Once it's all up to snuff and my personal satisfaction level is achieved, riding season should be here. -I just need some buds' to spend leisurely riding time with instead of just riding back and forth to work everyday looking cool and saving $$$ on gas.


Although I wish he did, my brother, Cal, doesn't have a motorcycle. My other brother, Chuck, has a Kawasaki Vulcan that he doesn't ride.. (It's been sitting there in his garage collecting dust regardless of intent)... I'm envious, and I have begged him to either give, sell, or trade it to me, but he just hangs onto it like an old baseball card; just happy to hold onto it.. Arrggh!


-My Dad, used to ride. He had a 400, and then a little 750 tourer that he sold years ago. Since then, no go. -As a matter of fact, last year he told me that "since I have a family now, I shouldn't be riding a motorcycle.. their dangerous". (He seems to forget giving us kids rides on his bikes when we were barely big enough to hold onto him. Mostly, from Tri-ponds campground, to Wayland and back to feed the rabbits during our weekend camping trips). I wish Dad would make a small purchase so that we could ride together up to the farm in Traverse City for a weekend. How cool would that be?


The secret to a safe and enjoyable ride is O.C.R.P... Or, "Obsessive, Compulsive, Riding, Paranoia". "Everybody is out to get me". The greatest hazards I've witnessed in the past few years would be Michigan typical road hazards, deer, and little old ladies not paying attention. -And remembering that everyone else is still out to get me..


And yes Mom and Dad. I am still overly cautious because I have a sincere and passionate desire to come home each day and see T, Grace, and Noah watch their cool dad roll into the driveway just in time for a 70 degree summertime swim. ...Summers coming. I can feel it!

-C

7 of 7 days Complete

Have you ever had a week when you just left work and didn't realize what day it was until you got on the highway and there was NO traffic??

I was dumbfounded for a few minutes this morning until I realized that it was Saturday morning.. Finally. Two days off.

I miss the by-gone days when Saturday was a sleep-in-and-watch-cartoons kind of day. -I guess that's why we have kids.. Here is Grace reteaching us how to enjoy Saturday a.m., 'Cinderella style'

What's stopping your Pastor?

Spiritual warfare. Believe it folks. If you're a Gospel preaching, God fearing, Jesus loving Christian... Expect some flak. -If you're a Christian Pastor of a flock, expect some serious, hardcore, painful, spiritual warfare.

-If you're the father; mother; brother; sister; cousin; son; or daughter; or even a parishioner of that effective Christian Pastor, you ought to do some serious prayer for that individual (and his or her family).. Because your loved one; or your Pastor, and his or her family is under some serious spiritual assault by the enemy.

Why? To knock him, (or her) out of the business of saving souls.

Please remember that when 'lifes circumstances don't seem so good'.
-In the end. The big picture rules.

-C

Oswald Chambers

Joy comes from seeing the complete fulfillment of the specific purpose for which I was created and born again, not from successfully doing something of my own choosing. The joy our Lord experienced came from doing what the Father sent Him to do. And He says to us, "As the Father has sent Me, I also send you" (John 20:21 ). Have you received a ministry from the Lord? If so, you must be faithful to it— to consider your life valuable only for the purpose of fulfilling that ministry. Knowing that you have done what Jesus sent you to do, think how satisfying it will be to hear Him say to you, "Well done, good and faithful servant" ( Matthew 25:21 ). We each have to find a niche in life, and spiritually we find it when we receive a ministry from the Lord. To do this we must have close fellowship with Jesus and must know Him as more than our personal Savior. And we must be willing to experience the full impact of Acts 9:16 — "I will show him how many things he must suffer for My name’s sake."

"Do you love Me?" Then, "Feed My sheep" ( John 21:17 ). He is not offering us a choice of how we can serve Him; He is asking for absolute loyalty to His commission, a faithfulness to what we discern when we are in the closest possible fellowship with God. If you have received a ministry from the Lord Jesus, you will know that the need is not the same as the call— the need is the opportunity to exercise the call. The call is to be faithful to the ministry you received when you were in true fellowship with Him. This does not imply that there is a whole series of differing ministries marked out for you. It does mean that you must be sensitive to what God has called you to do, and this may sometimes require ignoring demands for service in other areas.

Rarely

Jeddiah "Jed" DeGroot

GROOT Jeddiah "Jed" DeGroot, aged 27, of Moline, was ushered unexpectedly into Glory on Saturday, March 1, 2008, and is now praising the Lord whom he loved. Jed proudly served for six years as Staff Sergeant in the US Air Force. He was preceded in death by his grandparents. Surviving are his parents, Alwin and Judy DeGroot; many loving brothers and sisters; his grandparents, Hank and Millie Bomhof; as well as several nieces, nephews, aunts, uncles, and cousins. The Funeral Service will be held 10:00 a.m. Friday, March 7, at Moline Christian Reformed Church, 4341 Chappell St., with Rev. John Ouwinga officiating. Interment in Hooker Cemetery. Memorial contributions may be given to Moline Christian School. The family will greet relatives and friends Wednesday from 7 to 9 p.m. and Thursday from 2 to 4 and 7 to 9 p.m. at: STROO FUNERAL HOME 1095 68TH ST. SE http://www.stroofuneralhome.com/
______________________________________________________________

Our prayers go out to his family and love ones that they be lifted up and comforted in the knowledge of the saving Grace of Jesus Christ..
-C

Grandpa Lisiak and Noah

Lean week

Posts might be a bit more infrequent this week as I'm on seven days in a row at Fictionville.
We'll update when we can.
Thx,
-C

M/GV Update

My mother, 'Vicky' (M/GV)'s surgery was completed as planned. She was discharged home the day after the surgery. She's in a great amount of pain and in need of alot of rest. Thanks for your prayers.
-C

Day in Pictures