Disturbed

My family and I watched a movie the other night, that really disturbed me. The movie was titled 'Joyful Noise'. It supposed to be about a church choir singing in a competition between churches.

The movie was filled with all kinds of things that I found offensive. Pre-marital sex between a choir member and a random dude. Teenage kissing between a choir member and some other kid. The performing of secular songs in church. I mean really, if this is the way that the world sees us Christians, they really missed the boat.

If I were to attend a church service where all of this was going on, it would be my last at that church. To me, this movie portrays us Christains as a bunch of hypocrites. To me, to be a memeber of the choir, you need to old yourself up to some higher standards. Not worldly standards. We are to be in the world but not of the world.

I know that this isn't a Christian film, but seriously, they got it all wrong in my book. I don't know what kind of church they went to, to research this, but rest assured it wasn't my church!

Once again, this is just my opinion about this movie.

My Daughter

My daughter just finished 8th grade. This has caused me to reflect back on what has happened in her life so far. Here comes the nostalgia.

Thank You God for her birth. She was born five weeks early and had to spend the first nine days of her life in the hospital. Her lungs were not full developed and had to be watched 24/7. She was transfered from Mercy in Aurora to Lutheran General in Park Ridge. Not being able to hold your own child for the first nine days, very painful.

Thank You God for getting her through her heart surgery when she was a year old. She had a hole in her heart that should have closed by itself by the age of six months. It did not. So she had to have surgery. Thank You Jesus for answering our prayers, even when we weren't walking with you. I did not know You at the time, but yet You still kept Your hand on the situation. Looking at her today, you would never know that she had these problems in her first year of life.

Thank You God for her very first day of school in kindergarden. Her class would line up outside and then all go in together. She went in the building but somehow got seperated from her class. So she came back outside crying that she was lost. Good thing I didn't leave right away. I got her straightened around and she made it through her first day.

Thank You God for every parent/teacher confrence that I ever went to was a positive one. Every teacher from kindergarden all the way to her eighth grade, gushed about her. How helpful she was in class. How she did everything they asked her to do. Her awesome grades. Even when she changed schools, the teachers could not tell that she was a transfer. She adapted so easily. Thank You Jesus.

I thank You God for her musical and acting abilities. She recieved the highest score on her solo ensamble in sixth grade. She won an award for that. She sang the song "I Can Only Imagine" by Mercy Me. Made us all cry! She has tried out for and was awarded roles in every play from the sixth grade to the eighth. Not afraid to be on stage.

Thank You God for her softball ability. She is a really good player and understands the game well! I love being able to go out and play catch with her. Every Dad's dream right. To play catch with their kid.

Thank You God for her being a Cardinals fan and for loving the game of baseball. She actually wants to get a score book and keep score of games we watch on tv. Awesome! Her school went on a field trip last week up to Milwaukee to watch the Brewers play. Her friend wanted to walk around, but my daughter said that she came to watch the game! She would ask questions and give answers to her friend. I was so proud of her!!

Thank You God for blessing me with my daugher! I don't know what I did to deserve her, but thank You!