Year / 2011

by Greg

Testing The System: Failure?

Curious as to the scope and effectiveness of the Nationwide Emergency Alert System test scheduled for 2pm EST today, I did a little research. A quick scan of various news sources seems to suggest it didn’t go off “without a hitch”.

ABC News out of DC reports that the first-ever nationwide test today “appeared to be a failure“, while CBS New York reported still more technical difficulties.

The ABC report described the test as being, “designed to allow the president to commandeer the airwaves and deliver an audio message to the U.S. people in a national emergency.”

This is either complete technical ignorance and buffoonery, or maybe something slightly more insidious? I’m guessing it’s the first. Hoping?

Haven’t these people heard of social media? Within seconds of the event, the entire world now knows news before any big cable news or radio station can broadcast it. Twitter, Facebook, Google+… you name it. Regular people report the news and literally within seconds to at most minutes, that news has spread with more success than apparently the EAS had today. (And they had their test planned for weeks… even months?)

Fascinating …

Maybe someone can give FEMA a crash-course in the latest technological advancements. Seems like they could benefit from a little refresher.

by Greg

Local Politics

If you’re like me, you got a sticker similar to this a couple days ago at your local polling booth. (Our son, Ian, was with me, and he actually got my sticker.) It is your badge of honor for participating in our great representative governmental system. This year may not have been the more exciting, national-level elections, but they’re still important.

Right?

When I scanned the ballot as I was casting my vote, I noticed that in many cases, the people running for the various local town, village, and county positions were unopposed. Some of them were listed as the representative for all of the parties! (How can you be backed by all of the parties?)

This made me wonder, why are we even doing this? I’ll admit to not being too plugged in to all the issues that face my village, town, etc, but I really didn’t know that these local representative positions were so unimportant as to have only one person raising their figurative hand to accept the spot! It actually made me want to run, just to compel people to look into the reasons you might want to cast your vote for whomever you end up choosing.

The trouble is, I don’t think that matters. We’ve become so politically polarized in our country that we just let the party that the candidate is listed under direct our vote. (That’s good for those chaps who were listed under all the parties!) It doesn’t matter what the person under that banner has done, or believes, or wants to do … as long as they have the right party flag, they get the vote!

The other piece is the glamorization of the national political elections. Any news you might hear about elections is often so heavily weighted toward the national elections, national issues, that the local races aren’t even noticed. They aren’t exciting enough to want to vote for (or apparently, to run for).

And in the end, I’m not even sure what our local government does. (Which is likely all my fault. I’m sure I could do a little investigating and fairly quickly find out at least more than I know now.)

So if I were to add my name to the ticket, what is it that I would be hoping to accomplish? Probably lowering taxes (we pay something like $23/1000 for our school taxes, plus town/county, and village property taxes) as well as trying to figure out why we need all that tax revenue in the first place!

Then, soon after that, I think I’d try to figure out a way to let other people in our community know (once I discover what it is) what exactly it is that our elected local representatives do for us. (If I discover that such positions are so unnecessary that there aren’t even people willing to volunteer to run for that office, then we can just probably do away with it altogether!)

So, this year’s elections are over. The unopposed candidates have been duly elected to their spots. But watch out in 2012 (maybe 2013, since 2012 is the big presidential election year…) you might have to make a choice which candidate you choose! And, since I am not affiliated with any particular party … I might just create a new one! 🙂

[post-tiles posts=’4′]

by Greg

Beautiful Skies

Darkened Fall Skies

I truly love the beauty of the fall season. This was the view out of my third-story window today. A very dark sky on the horizon, with fluffier white clouds above and blue sky (and sun) behind. And this was just minutes after a wet, heavy snow was showering down on us.

It’s more than just the colors of the leaves. And the sky. The angle of the sunlight this time of year does wonders with just about anything it falls upon. The colors, the shadows, and of course the contrast against magnificent skies!

And if that wasn’t enough, have you seen the skies on a clear autumn night? Beautiful full moon for most of the night. (It even accompanied me on an early morning walk just after sunrise today!) Close beside the bright large orb in the black sky you’ll find a smaller one, though seemingly just as bright. Jupiter is doing a little dance with its larger partner these last few days in November.

Somehow the sky has always fascinated me. I am drawn to it. I love to just stare up at it, marvel at its visible beauty, as well as the beauty of what we know of how it is made and how it works. Magnificent. Beautiful. Majestic. Breathtaking.

There is certainly beauty in every season, but if I ever had to be stuck in just one, I’d most definitely choose autumn!

Note: The photo does not begin to capture the beauty of the sky I saw, but the iPhone camera was all I had with me at that moment… 🙂

by Greg

Programming of Life

Wow! We just finished watching this video (which is available in its entirety at their website, where you can also order the DVD).

It was produced by some friends of ours, and man, they did a fantastic job. It’s the incredible story of the cell, DNA and all the “building blocks” of life. Just so incredible. We had seen this video from some other friends of ours who have a website full of Health and Wellness Facts. The kids think it is so cool looking, and we all think it’s AMAZING what happens inside each cell, let alone the whole bodies of living things! (And even more amazing are the bodies of we people!)

When you have the time, please watch this 45 minute video and enjoy!

(And if you can, let them know what you think of it, either at YouTube, their video website, or their business website. From what I know this is the first in a series of at least three more. Already looking forward to them!)

by Greg

Unpredictable

Life is full of unpredictability. We can often live under the illusion that we know what’s coming, that we are in control, but really… life throws you a curveball more often than not.

And that includes the NFL. 😉

As you may know, if you’ve frequented this blog, the Campbell family enjoy a weekly seasonal tradition of tracking whom we think will win each of the NFL games every fall. It’s a fun thing to do together that we all enjoy, but the best part for me is watching the youngest choose the team they think will win. They are usually pretty sure they know, with a good measure of certainty!

And so am I… but this week, not so much!!

All year I’ve been doing pretty well. I had begun to think, “Hmm… I have this thing all figured out!” Going into this weekend, through nine weeks, 130 games, I had gotten ninety of them correct. 90-40. That was several (or many) games better than many so-called “experts”. Nice!

But then what happened? Who knew Seattle could actually beat Baltimore? And, who in the world could have predicted the John Skelton-led, 2-6 Arizona Cardinals could fly all the way across the country to Philadelphia and beat a much more talented Eagles team???

Not me.

So, I have fallen from my perch atop our family league’s standings (at least, I think I was previously atop it…) and I’ve also slipped into second place in another league of NFL pick making.

What is this world coming to??? 🙂

For now, I think it’s a good reminder that you never really know what’s coming. No, life is not one big NFL game. (Or even a collegiate level or otherwise lesser game.) However, it does seem to throw just as many curve balls as some crazy NFL weeks, like this one!

Speaking of unpredictable and the world of NFL football… how about those Buffalo Bills?!

Good thing we at least know there is Onewe can always count on in this crazy unpredictable world. 🙂

by Greg

Transformation and Process

One of the most amazing things to me in all of God’s creation is the butterfly. From gross slimy larvae, to slightly cuter (but still sort of gross) worms, to goo inside a cocoon, to a beautifully colored, light and delicate airborne display of it’s Designer’s creativity. It is truly incredible.

But this post is not about butterflies.

Another incredible process in creation is the making of us. By combining the DNA of one man and one woman, a new person is formed. It grows from one cell (is it really just one cell??) to a cluster, and then more… and somehow in that ball of “goo” is YOU, and ME. Throughout the course of the 35-40 weeks, we gain more of the parts we will need for life in this world, all developing while we live in water!? And by the end, the birth process is designed just right for the separation of mom and baby, till a new, separate, wonderful life has been added to the world.

But this post is not about babies.

Don’t copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will learn to know God’s will for you, which is good and pleasing and perfect.

There is definitely a theme of restoration throughout the gospel. It’s what Jesus was all about. He came to “seek and save the lost”. He healed people. So many hurting people. And he loved them. He didn’t turn them away, or heal grudgingly… there are times when it says he healed everyone who came to him, of any malady that might be plaguing them. He could, and he would.

And he does. And I’ve seen it.

I have recently witnessed rebirth. Someone who has for so long been crushed by unwillingness (or inability?) to be loved (by others, and even self) finally having walls broken down, eyes renewed to see all the God is offering through this life lived in Him … years of work He’s done building trust in Him mixed with an intense, four-day weekend of revealing that life to the full that he wants for us all… culminating in a new beginning.

It was the cocoon. It was heart surgery (as well as mind/spirit/soul surgery). It was the final stages of a hard labor.

And we have a butterfly. A healthy patient. A new life.

I read a book recently that brought up the caterpillar-to-butterfly transition. Here’s what it said:

“I love how God has been changing me one small bit at a time. Sometimes I don’t even notice he’s doing that until I’m in a situation and I watch myself respond in ways I never would have before. I am enjoying immensely the [person] he is allowing to emerge.”

“Just like a butterfly taking wing from its cocoon. Isn’t it sad that we thought we could press people into spiritual change, instead of helping them grow to trust Father more and find him changing them? You can’t press a caterpillar into a butterfly mold and make it fly. It has to be transformed from the inside.”

And transform God does. Not just once, at one time, but over the course of our lifetime. That butterfly goes through many stages, and there are noticeable markers along the way, and we do too, but our transformation is a life-long process, a journey. In fact, that’s really what the Kingdom boils down to: a reality that God is inviting us to join him in. A fresh way of looking at him and the world he has made and inhabits, and also a different perspective on us and who he sees us as. We are his friends (Romans 5), his adopted children (Ephesians 1, Galatians 3-4, many more) and it “gave him great pleasure” to give his own life to set us free from sin and shame. Incredible.

When we realize that, we emerge from the cocoon. Still a bit clumsy at first, but a new creation. A completely new creation. Beautiful. Magnificent.

His amazing handiwork.

There are so many ups and downs that life brings (even many of our own doing) but he is there with us in them all, and he continues to mold and shape us from within to be the perfect masterpiece (Ephesians 2:10) that he has planned for us to be.

What a process! What an amazing Father!

I love being a butterfly!

by Greg

Beautiful Eggs

Our oldest son was asked to take care of our friends’ animals while they are away visiting family for the Thanksgiving weekend. One of his plentiful duties is to collect the eggs laid by their hens at the end of every day. There are usually around eight to ten eggs per day, but tonight there were around a dozen. Nice job, chickens!

We brought them home and I didn’t really know what to do with them, so I washed them off. (I have since learned that this may not be the best idea… but we plan to use them soon, so it’ll probably be OK…)

As I was cleaning them, I noticed how vibrant the colors were. Not easter-egg vibrant, but just solid. And even a speckle or two of a darker shade of their natural color. There were three main hues: light blue, pink, and brown. It truly looked better than any Easter eggs I’ve ever colored!

And their shape. It was so perfectly round. Like they were somehow manufactured to exact specifications. And yet, there was a slight variation in each one. Distinct artistry. Not a shortcoming of any kind. Beautifully unique, while being perfectly uniform.

Then I remembered that these were fashioned inside a living creature. They weren’t pressed from a mold in a machine, then wrapped in a perfect packaging and placed on a pristine, immaculate store shelf. It was birthed. It was the natural product of a natural process.

And I was filled with wonder for the Creator of that process.

So many times we miss the incredible reality that is around us. The chickens are fed and cared for, and as their bodies process the food they take in, a natural outcome is this perfectly formed, beautifully colored and designed egg … that I eat for my breakfast. Or use to bake a couple dozen cookies or a deliciously moist cake.

Somehow, sometimes, the simplest things are so incredibly, jaw-droppingly astonishing to me. The creativity and genius of our Creator just blows me away.

Eggs aren’t much in the grand scheme. Nor are chickens, I guess. You and I are worth much more than sparrows (and probably chickens, too…) and every little part of God’s creation reminds us of that. His provision for us is not something that he does because he has to, or grudgingly, but with great pleasure.

Including ours.

by Greg

On Being Thankful

This is the day we are thankful. All over our country we spend the day—even the whole weekend—thinking about the things for which we are thankful.

Sometimes we have cute ways of saying it. You know, like the annual “go around the table and say what you’re thankful for” exercise. Or maybe it’s a more tactile expression, written on paper or some other tangible medium.

Sometimes we are just quietly, introspectively thankful.

But on this day, we are Thankful.

And even though I have one of those brains that is always going, always thinking, always processing, always introspectively examining and pondering … and also despite the fact that I am wont to buck almost any tradition… I’m certainly not exempt from being in this frame of mind come late November.

In fact, there are quite a gamut of things I’ve dwelt on today, grateful that God has either been the Giver (James 1:17) or he has walked with me through it.

One of the first things I was grateful for today was a dinner that I got to prepare and share with some new friends one year ago this day. They were new friends to us, had known them only a few months. But they had already been so welcoming and loving toward our family that our kids readily adopted them as their third set of grandparents! I felt a kinship with Wayne, too, as he was a prolific writer (something I have aspired to be) and definitely marched to the beat of his own drum (something to which I also aspire).

The reason I am extra thankful for that one particular meal we shared together (besides the fact that I always love to make food for people, and visit with people) is that just two months later, Wayne would no longer be with us.

Ordinarily we would have been visiting with family that day. With Jen’s family, or perhaps my family … or both? In fact, that had been the plan: to join my parents who were with my sister and her family after the birth of their daughter. However, various circumstances kept that from happening … and when we found ourselves with an open Thanksgiving Day, we were delighted to find out that our new friends had found themselves in just that same spot!

Who could have known that there wouldn’t be very many more meals we’d all share together?

I think that’s a great reason for being thankful. I read a sign tonight, it was a picture of a sign actually. It said, “It’s not happy people who are thankful, it’s thankful people who are happy.” Indeed. Somehow it’s a truth that is at the core of our makeup. The “power of positive thinking” perhaps. Whatever it is that is behind it, there is a deep reality in the power of our perspective, our attitude.

I can go through my days worried about how I am going to pay our mortgage this month, or afford the repair work for our van (or really, the new van we need to be saving for!), or how I can better help equip my kids with the right tools they need for life, or even just spend my days being bogged down by the details of all the various projects I juggle for my work. Those things are indeed important, but perhaps not mine to struggle with.

When that is my focus, I might miss the chance to have an impromptu Thanksgiving dinner with someone whose presence I will not much longer share. I might miss an opportunity to see my wife’s beautiful heart in the way she expresses a thought she had or something Jesus is teaching her. I might miss (and sadly, have missed) the tender, loving heart of one of my sons or daughters so open and fully extended to their Dad (whom they often seem to view as so much more than I know that I am).

All because I was so focused on the things that seem to need attention—or change—rather than savoring the gifts that the Giver has already provided.

Like my beautiful, precious wife. Like our six amazing children. Like the family that God has surrounded us with: parents, siblings, grandparents, aunts and uncles, cousins, and even non-blood family.

And how about a roof over our heads? All the crazy freedoms and luxuries we have in this country? (Though, perhaps that is not really always—or ever?—something that we should be thankful for, at least, not in the way we usually think we should be.) How about the incredibly difficult year that 2011 has been for our household? More importantly, the fruit that we’ve seen Holy Spirit grow in and around us as a direct or indirect result of that?

There is an unending list of things we can be thankful for. In fact, it’s really more of a reality to live in (a paradigm, or perspective) rather than a list to check off.

Jen said it best today when she commented, “I’m really not any more thankful on this day than I am any other day. I’m not sure how to be!”

When you can breathe thankful, that is certainly the case. “Always be thankful.” Not just a command to “do it”… or else! But an invitation to the fullness of life that can be known when we shift our focus from our own efforts and abilities (or lack thereof) to gratitude for his provision, his caring… and his extraordinary capabilities. (Ephesians 3:20-21)

So as this Thankful day comes to its close, I am thankful. For the day spent with nearly all of our close family. For a belly full of delicious food. For a quiet house full of Sleepers, without whom my life, even I myself would not be the same. I’m thankful for my Father who loves me, and even likes me. 🙂 That he wants to be with me, and me to be with him, still amazes.

And I’m thankful for Wayne. Glad for the very short time God crossed our paths. Looking forward to the rest of the path crossings God has in mind for me during the time I have left, however much that may be.

We can’t know. We only know now. We have now.

And for that, I’m grateful.

by Greg

No Comparison

I have this friend.

He’s pretty amazing at everything he attempts. He has a lot of the same interests and capabilities, and does a lot of the same work as me, only a lot better. He can build smarter web sites. He can code (well) in several web programming languages. He’s even a handyman kinda guy, who can build just about anything. (Wonder if he uses duct tape?)

There are days I think, “Man, I should just quit right now! My friend can do all this stuff I’m trying to do so much better than me. Sheesh!”

I have these other friends.

They have been in the hospital with their beautiful baby boy almost the entire 3 months he has been alive. (When they weren’t in the hospital with him, they were at home—not sleeping—just to make sure he would make it through the night.) It’s not looking good. There are people all over the world praying for this little guy (with God, all things are possible) who is suffering from a terminal genetic disorder. (Though, actually, adding to the difficulty is the fact that the doctors aren’t even sure what is causing all that is happening to his tiny body.)

There are moments where, when I look back at the very emotionally and physically and spiritually draining year (plus) that we have lived through in 2011, I am tempted to think, with my heart heavy for my friends, “Well, I suppose I should be thankful that all that I have been through can’t be as bad as what they are facing, and all they have been through.”

What is it about our hearts, our inner selves, that must compare?

Whether it is, “I’m not as good as him…” or, “I guess I’m better off than them?” … there is a strong tendency to compare.

It’s why we judge. It’s why there are prejudices. We are constantly looking at others lives in comparison to ours.

But there is no comparison.

I am me. You are you. You are the most perfect you. And quite likely, no… most definitely, you are not me. (And of course, I am not you.)

And, we shouldn’t be.

God made a world full of diversity. There is diversity beyond our imaginations in all the rest of his creation, and when we’re having a good day, we can see that there is beautiful diversity in Us: the Crown of His Creation.

I’m not sure why we do it. I am thankful that God keeps developing my trust in him to the point where I am doing it much less often. But I still do.

And I should not.

All we are meant to do is to stay connected to him, listen to him, be loved by him, and then live life with the people he asks us to: rejoice with those who rejoice, mourn with those who mourn. None of us is better or worse than another. We may make choices that are better or worse, but even in those, we are not the ones who are to judge others and mete out praise or punishment (unless we’re in some official capacity to do so).

[T]he Lord has told you what is good, and this is what he requires of you: to do what is right, to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God.

Micah 6:8

We’re not competitors in life. We are fellow pilgrims. We have the same Father, and the same Oldest Brother. And the same Spirit he promises to those who will follow. Life lived together with him is vibrant and deep and there’s enough to go around, through the highest and lowest we go through.

It’s a lie that we should be as good as that guy, or that we’re not as good as that girl. We can’t have it any better or worse than anyone else. We have it exactly as he wants us to. We’re right where we’re supposed to be, especially if we’re listening to—and following—His lead.

Then there’s no comparison.

by Greg

Wrapping Up

Editor’s Note: This post is taken from a recent newsletter to our basic mailing list. Seemed a fitting post for GregsHead.net on this last day of 2011. The email updates are infrequent, but if you’d like to sign up for the list, you can do so from our basic website or Facebook page. Thanks

Another year has come and gone, but I think 2011 will remain in our memory for a while as it has been so full of rather significant ups and downs. Sometimes it’s difficult to know if you can use the word significant while you are still in the midst of life’s events, but somehow it does seem appropriate for the events of this calendar year.

We still get to sing. I (Greg) led worship for a friend a few times in the last half of this year (and brought one of the Campbell kids with me each time, which made it even better!). Our whole family sang Christmas carols for a hundred people or so at a nursing home earlier this month. (That was fantastic!) And of course there is much singing around our home with Mom, Dad, and six junior musicians about. (All have shown a love and talent for things musical, and Alex in particular has written several well-crafted songs!)

Yes, there is still music in our home.

I am still building websites. There have been many interesting and challenging projects through the past year. And even better maybe is that I have joined forces with a couple other designer/programmers. Not only are they able to help me accomplish more work, they are skilled in other areas and allow me as Basic Web Design & Graphics to do more for my clients, AND, I really enjoy working with them.

The work goes on.

And there is certainly still joy. From the recent milestones of our first teenager (Ian) and our second double-digit-er (Alex), to the beautiful thoughts and insights that come the mouths of our youngest three children (Julia, Emma, Cameron), to the graceful growing up of our first daughter, Kirstie. We have moments to treasure from every day, really. It’s an amazing gift from God to be their Dad and Mom. We enjoyed a family vacation for the first time in a few years, and there was also a wonderfully encouraging workshop Jen was invited to attend that inspired her to live fully in the freedom and love of Father.

Add to that a few smaller joys like our kitchen remodeling project (something we’ve wanted to do for years, and managed to do with help from my parents, in synch with God’s bigger-picture timing that became a double blessing to us!) … financial restructuring thanks to some generous friends that should get us to a significantly better place in just five years… a backyard ice rink that should be usable in a week or two… eclipsing 200,000 miles in our trusty minivan… and enjoying seeing our kids enjoy their various activies: soccer, ballet, hockey/ice skating, and more.

There is definitely joy.

There has also been loss. The loss of a friend to a sudden, unexpected passing. Praying and grieving with many friends dealing with similar loss (and worse, if that were possible). Losses of our own. Even the loss of a “dream”.

In late 2010, things were coming together for us to begin a new, exciting venture as a family: opening a restaurant! It was to be a loose partnership with a long-time acquaintance/friend who has been in the food business for a decade or so. Things progressed, God seemed to be leading us through several confirming doors… and then several things completely fell apart. What seemed a “dream” was dashed against many rocks and became an obvious “dead end”. (At least, for the forseeable future.)

Through much pain, loss, hardship… God has always been presnt, loving, life-giving. We are learning to trust him more and more. I think that we are even learning that together as a family. All of 2011 will also help our kids to know and trust and follow their true Father. But that doesn’t make loss easier, or less painful. It just helps you see better.

What will 2012 hold? Not certain. I’m sure we will still sing. (Whether that is with/for other people, or just in our hearts to our King.) I’m sure there will be joy. (How can there not be with him?) And I’m sure there will also be loss, a certainty in this shifting, changing world.

And I am certain there will be Him. With us through all: good, bad, and in between. And in that certainty is our peace, our hope, our joy, our contentedness. We will trust and follow him, through whatever may come!

I hope you will, too. One thing I’ve noticed, even at the toughest times in 2011, is that we are definitely not alone or unique in our suffering. In fact, sometimes in comparison, we have it pretty “easy”. You may have had an equally challenging calendar year.

I hope that you know – without a doubt – that he is with you – and for you – through it all. Keep your eyes fixed on him. Trust him. And your heart will know peace.

There is nothing greater than to know him. Nothing.