I've never gone to Starbucks on Christmas Eve morning until today, but I think it might be the start of a great holiday tradition. That is, if coffee prices and profits regain lost ground on the New York Stock Exchange so the doors to this modern-day temple can remain open. It's here where I feel trendy, hip, and pretty cool for a 48-year-old. It's here where I've worked on many a sermon. It's here where I've robbed my children of their inheritance, but it's at Starbucks that I was able to gain a little perspective and write just a bit on this very special holiday...

It’s our final day at the beach as we wrap up summer study break ’08. It’s been good. Our family time has been great (although we competed rigorously to decide what to do on our last night in Myrtle Beach), our kids did well, and my time to think, pray, study, reflect, and worship has been great as always. Intense, intentional time away like this has become such a family tradition, and personal necessity for me.

God is so good. Over three-fourths of our blue earth is covered in the substance that is precisely needed to sustain life. It points us to a loving God… taste (drink) and see that He is good! God, in his amazing grace and mercy, gave us a way to be pointed to him in the slightest of details… such as quenching our thirst with life-giving H2O. Let the painstaking and unremitting pursuit of His love sink into your soul a bit. Take a drink. Dig a little deeper…

If I am honest with myself and God … which I hope I am … I would admit my tiredness. It’s not exactly a physical thing as much as it is emotional, mental, and unquestionably spiritual.

My third child, Morgan, is nine years old. This July she turns 10. Incredibly, this means we only have one child left in the single digits. While this may not seem like a big deal to you, for a parent of four this has the same magnitude of finally being out of Pampers.

Why do I like to smell the occasional waft of cigarette smoke at the beach? Weird. It has become one of those distinct smells defining an ocean side summer vacation. Like the mesmerizing scent of a funnel cake at a county fair or the allure of charcoal on an outdoor grill --- the bouquet of burning tobacco says, “Welcome to and enjoy God’s great creation!” What?

It's Sunday... no study break post today. Even God rested. I'm playing with my family all day today!

However, I am attaching a graphic that I've been working on. If you're reading this, would you please send a comment on what you think? This would be very helpful.

This morning, in the blurry after wake and hangover from midnight breakfast, Henry Blackaby’s June 7th entry challenged me to pray in an obviously extended way. I will reap what I sow in my own personal prayer life. I decided at the end of my morning reading, I would go for a long walk and talk… and listen to… my Creator.

Look closely at the attached blog pix. What do you see? Are you able to use the zoom button on your computer to get even closer to the details? Are you struggling with beach envy because of those gorgeous palm trees? Can you see the romance of the Atlantic in the far distance? Notice the crisp blue sky and the absence of white caps riding the surface of the water (okay... the sky is a washed-out white because I'm a horrible photographer)? All of this means there is a perfect, only slight breeze that enables a great beach day to unfold. See the bars up close?

Brooklynn DID get up with me this morning to run. It was a gorgeous sunrise. She ran really well and long… until she stopped. This wasn’t for a mere breather. She wasn’t feeling good. She plopped down on the sand like a wet towel, and it wasn’t a particularly proud moment for Brooklynn as she just laid there in the soggy sand. I immediately started preparing my parental psyche for some classic beach throw up. There’s nothing worse… but the clean up is as easy as the rising tide. I was really hoping she wasn’t going to lose her Cheerios.