I Got Hacked!

Yes, you read right, I got hacked. Yes, I'm hacked for a number of reasons most of which are familiar to most anyone. And yes, it was time to move along on from the sadness of losing our dog, although I keep looking for him everywhere at home, but he's gone. Anyway, I tried to call my bride last night on skype. I love skype and have been using and telling everyone about it for years. We really couldn't do without it because its the main way we are able to see and talk to Noah, Cohen, and of course their parents and our daughter too, not to mention a number of other folks around the world, for either free or cheap.

When I logged onto skype something was wrong, my contact list was missing and my skype credit was lower than last I recall. What happened was on July 21st, somebody somehow hacked into my skype account and used my account and credit to call literally all over the world, for approximately 2 days. We're talking Nigeria, Ghana, places in Europe, and some places I've never heard of. There were skype to skype calls, mobile phone calls, and landline calls. Many of the calls didn't cost anything but they ended up charging about $100 worth of calls and that's a bunch of calls on skype. Then they were gone, after two days.

Needless to say I was hacked at being hacked. I did whine enough to skype to get $25 back but thats it. Far as I can tell they didn't find their way into anything else, paypay, bank, but I'm still looking. Well, thats my rant for the day. Thought for sure I was diligent on all my security stuff. Still not sure how or when it happened. Whatever you do, watch yourselves and try not to get hacked.

Have a good one,
de

Man....that hurt!

Yesterday was a first for me. You tend to think that when it comes to the things of life, surely I've been there...done that, and I have. I don't even know how many funerals I've been to or presided over. The only folks who've done more are the funeral home folks. But yesterday after literally months of contemplating and agonizing, we took our dog Frazier, 17 years a part of our family to our friend and vet Dr. Larry and had him put to sleep. It wasn't a spur of the moment decision. He'd been struggling for a long time. His quality of life was really, really poor.

For me, it was one of the hardest things I've ever done. We laughed with Dr Larry about how Fraz got run over the first few days after we had picked him up outside the Houston SPCA. The kids were young and we had lost our former American Eskimo dog King after a good long life and well...it was time for another dog. We couldn't afford to buy a designer dog of any sort so we trekked down to see what dogs were available at the Houston SPCA. About the time we were being greeted by the receptionist a young couple came in with this 6 month old schnauzer dog in tow, they couldn't keep in their apartment. We struck up a brief conversation with them, told the young lady behind the counter, "we want this dog." But that's not the way it works so she quietly instructed us that we'd have to take it all outside, arrange the transfer between ourselves and so we did. For like 75 bucks we did the deal outside, loaded up 3 very happy kids, (parents too) and headed home with Frazier, his cage, his bed, and his food bowl.

His favorite thing early on was to bolt out the door, and make a break for it just as fast as he possibly could go. Within just a day or two of bringing him home he made that break, ran outside and headed straight for the street, only to be rolled under an oncoming car. That was our first call to Dr Larry. He rolled under the car and thankfully not the tires which flattened out his hips pretty badly but he recovered. For the rest of his life he would sit on the floor with his hips spread totally flat and back legs pointing out like he'd been run over or something.

A few years later we had moved to a house just a few blocks over and were cooking one Thanksgiving day. Kim ventured out into the back yard, with Fraz, and saw the neighbor across the fence in her back yard. Why not go meet the neighbor? Sounds good. They met at the back fence and so did the two opposing dogs, whereby Frazier defended Kim and proceded to attack the neighbors dog through the chain link fence. He managed somehow to get ahold of the neighbors dogs paw and chew on it so bad that they had to call Dr Larry out on Thanksgiving day for a repair job. We never did get close with those neighbors after that, I'm not sure why.

There were so many other joys of having a good natured dog like Frazier. I don't recall him ever biting anybody else but the neighbors dog and me! Yeah me, good natured me. Even in the patient room yesterday as we waited even though he hadn't felt well for months, couldn't see, struggled to walk, and flinched everytime I put my hand on his head, we briefly played one last time. I would tap the side of his mouth, he would open his mouth and lightly snap...tap...snap... tap...snap. It was something we did his whole life. A couple of times over the years he snapped a little too much but he never really bit anybody but me...and maybe Jared but never any children or strangers.

He was always great around kids, of all ages. A couple of our grown children's friends wrote yesterday on FB about things they recalled and about life with our dog Frazier. He loved popcorn and people food though we didn't give him much of the people food, just as Dr L said. He liked grapes, watermelon, and bread...boy he loved bread. For years if you left the loaf of bread near the edge of the counter and he could see it was there, he'd jump up, grab the loaf of bread and have at it. I never did see him do it but found the half eaten loaf on the floor countless times. Oh yeah, no people food. He survived a cancerous growth on his foot not too many years ago, thanks to you know who. He gave us great joy and sorrow. He was without a doubt, part of our family. And because of how much he was a part of our lives...our childrens lives...our friends lives...yesterday... man...that hurt...it still does. I cried like a baby and I don't cry.

The doggie door is closed today at our house and won't be opened again for awhile. I'm sure I'll continue to look and listen for him for quite some time...and miss him. For all those who have experienced such a loss, I know you know. Thanks Fraz for being a part of our family. With such an enjoyable relationship as they can be, surely, all dogs go to heaven, don't you think?

Thanks for listening,
de

Prayer for my friend

I tried to recall when M & I first met. It's been several years now, I know that. He came to our church through a fellow elder and friend via the prison ministry. M got in trouble back in the day for drugs and was one of those folks you hear about who gets hooked the first time and loses everything. That's what he did, he lost it all, his wife, his son, his long time and good job at the papermill, all to a crack pipe, and the price that goes with it. Somewhere in prison he found a Christian, the Word, the Lord and eventually us. While it certainly was the right move, in the right direction, it was far less than a miraculous and permanent turnaround. Truth is, for many who go the way of prison for felony crimes its a difficult and lifelong struggle after they pay their debt. Many do not survive it without returning again to prison or worse.

The best job he could find with that kind of record was working for an local outfit that hires many folks like him. That's good news and bad news. The good news is they will hire folks with a felony record. That's also the bad news because that's who you work with...not a real encouraging lot if you're trying to do right and good. It's been a real struggle for him these years since prison because he's got no family, few friends, and some of the same struggles he's had for years. By the nature of his workplace he fell in with a mostly ethnic crowd, courted a fairly young, sweet, naive, undocumented female, married her, and all was grand...until her family found out more about M. Not long after what looked to be the happiest days of his recent life, did her family literally take her away from him and forbid her to come back. That's another story but that's what happened. It's been an even harder struggle since then. The ethnic crowd at work hated on him so bad, he eventually quit his job or go crazy. Everyone it seemed was against him. Yet somehow he held on, found some temp work, and stayed in touch with a couple of us at church.

Believe it or not that's the abridged version of M's tumultuous life. Today however, I offer a prayer for my friend, and ask you to do the same if you're so inclined. Today, after working hard since he quit his other job, he starts a new job, thanks to a hispanic friend at our church. Today, he's got his TWIC card, which is a special maritime security clearance card that you have to have to work in and around the Port of Houston. (His felonies weren't enough to get in the way) Today, he has passed two different tests (a 96 & a 90) to get this new job. Today, he drove onto the Exxon plant property and begins this new job as a scaffold builders helper with one of the subcontractors on property. Today I ask you Lord to bless M, help him do well, to fit in to whatever situation comes his way and to keep him safe. May today be the step up to a better life for my friend. It's been years in coming and I don't think he thought something like this would ever come. Thank you Lord, and may it be the step forward that he needs and that I pray it is.

Thank you Lord for my friend M, and I hope he gets rained out about 3 pm. ;)

have a blessed day ya'll,
de

Moving On

I appreciate all the comments, mostly on FB, from my recollection and blog of Monday's events entitled "Never Know." "Necessity is the mother of invention," "there's nothing new under the sun," and lastly, "I am neither especially clever nor especially gifted. I am only very, very curious." Albert Einstein

So today, moving on from Monday, I'll share some of Terry Rush's thoughts recently on his 34th anniversary at the Memorial church in Tulsa. He blogs regularly and you may not always agree with everything he says but he's always makes you think and he has quite a heart for God.

From Terry Rush, not me.

It's been an interesting and exciting experience to be around this congregation this long. Here are a few of the things I've learned along the way:

1. Not everyone should think the way I think regardless of how strongly I believe they should.
2. Those who believe the strongest we are the only ones saved are often the very ones who fear most they are lost.
3. I preached too many sermons on church growth when I should have been preaching on The Church Grower.
4. I've learned to like to pray.
5. God will remain in the shadows of mystery and I need to learn to live there without explanation and response for every question coming my way.
6. I am not tired of ministry but am growing in curiosity. What has God in store that no one has yet seen Him do for mankind?
7. The Holy Spirit loves to work directly in our lives; yet He remains humble enough that mere man can quench him if we so desire.
8. Everyone is deeply guilty of sin; not just the rare few of us I had assumed.
9. People possess a deep strength within that only God will reveal when we are in pivotal crisis.
10. God will bless when we will risk.
11. The more we accept the unacceptables of society the more the heart of Jesus seems to reign among us.
12. I've learned the sermon isn't the main part of church; it turns out God is.
13. The more we stay out of His way the more we see His way becomes ours.
14. While I spent so much time trying to escape weaknesses I discovered they are His secret to my strength....II Cor. 12:9.
15. God will make a way....when there seems to be no way.

I told you it was good.

cya,
de

Never Know

The call came yesterday morning, Monday morning, about at 10:35 am. Monday's are notoriously less than productive for me in ministry life. Most Monday's I'm tired. Sunday's have a tendency to wear me out, even with the periodic Sunday afternoon nap. Mondays are pretty tough to get going. I used to take off on Mondays but then decided I'd rather have off later in the week when I can get going better, but that's another blog or not. You get the idea. The phone call Dave, what was the phone call? Oh right.

"Chaplain Ellis, this is B-town Police dispatch, Chaplain P is out of town today, can you respond to an incident this morning? It involves an officer that has been shot and killed." "Do you need an officer to come and pick you up?" (normal protocol) "No," I said and they told me where to go.

I got in my truck, after going over in my head exactly what she said, and telling the other staff at church, and headed East on I-10 towards the HRP, raceway. By the time I turned off I-10 to look that direction, I knew it was bad because there were four helicopters hovering way back. By the time I reached the scene, got past the perimeter which is not easy even with correct ID, parked, a half mile away, and finally found who I was to talk to, the County guys had already left to make the notification of the death of the officer. They just couldn't wait. Everyone else was focused on the situation at hand and considered that taken care of. Not why I came but I went to see what else I could offer.

I spent a good bit of time with the fallen officers partner, who was standing right next to his uniformed brother when the shots rang out. His partner was shot and killed instantly while he escaped any physical harm. He and another officer who came in shortly after shots were fired ducked, grabbed their brother, and drug him out of the trailer home. They were both really shocky when we visited. I checked to see if their families were notified they were ok and if they were alone. They nodded, offered few words, and continued to look dazed and confused by what all had happened. I politely declined to enter the ambulance where the fallen man lay, to pray for him. I did pray mind you, but declined to get in with him.

After awhile there I went back to the Command post to await the outcome and be ready to offer my services if needed. Man, was it hot. "Lord, please make it so that I am not needed any further today? Please keep all these men and women safe? Please let there be no more loss of life than has already taken place?"

I was pretty much useless the rest of the time, clergy wise, and am thankful for that. I mostly handed out water and gatorade. I can say without a doubt I have never seen so many officers of different kinds ever in my life. There were Baytown PD, Pasadena, LaPorte, Chambers Co, Game Wardens, Hiway Patrol, and Texas Rangers everywhere. There were aircraft circling, a bomb squad robot in action, and at least 3 different SWAT squads working. There were EMT units from everywhere, thankfully again, not needed.

It all ended pretty much the way I thought it might, the gunman dead in the house, probably from the first gunfire exchange or something he did himself not too long after the fact. It then took hours of coordinating dozens of specialized folks to make sure it was resolved some 8 hours later with no more loss of life. The day started off pretty much as normal. It ended in a day I will never forget. It just goes to show, as Jack Johnsons song says, "Never know."

It all happened so much faster
Than you could say disaster
Wanna take a time lapse
And look at it backwards
From the last one
And maybe thats just the answer
That we're after
But after all
We're just a bubble in a boiling pot
Just one breath in a chain of thought
The moments just combusting
Feel certain but we'll never never know
Just seems the same
Give it a different name
We're beggin and we're needing
And we're trying and we're breathing

Never knowing
Shocking but we're nothing
We're just moments
We're Clever but we're clueless
We're just human
Amusing but confusing
Helping, we're building
And we're growing
Never Know (hope I haven't violated any copyright laws) by Jack Johnson

cya,
de

Wanna Be Healthier, Breath!

Yes, I know it sounds silly but many health experts say if you want to have better health, reduce blood pressure, and reduce stress it as simple as breathing. Well, not really breathing, if your reading this you must be breathing if not please call 911 now, sorry. The key is breathing better. Do some breathing/relaxing exercises. I was reminded of this today by Dr Mercola, whose health newsletter I get every week via my email. He was reminded of this by attending a talk entitled "The Most Powerful Health Recommendation of Dr. Andrew Weil." Dr Weil was doing this kind of thing way here in America way before it leaked its way into the mainstream. Some say it hasn't and never will and for some they will never let it. Doctors always know best right? NOT! Keep breathing dave, thats right, slower now. I have a certain aversion to the all knowing approach of western medicine and its practioners. Anyway, Dr Weil has an article called Breathing 101. You may think that sounds crazy, breathing is breathing, but its not. I remember one time several years ago when I was having trouble falling asleep. The remedy I found that worked then and still does is a breathing/relaxation exercise. I've got pill aversion. Call it semi-hypnosis, or whatever you want, I learned how to regulate my breathing, relax myself through some breathing exercises, and go to sleep. I haven't had to use it much lately but who knows. When my bride was in such terrible pain, even with meds, one thing that helped her was to work on her breathing, to relax.

I told you, my regular readers, whoever you are, that my blog goes all over the place, but you know that by now. Today, its on breathing. So, don't just read, think, that's weird and go to the next blog, check out your breathing, learn some exercises. It's good for you.

I think I'll go outside now and stand in the rain,

de

Go here and read some of the health claims on breathing.com

Always Something New

My nephew Blaine, one of the most creative people I know, posted this link a little while ago. Ours is a fascinating and interesting world.
Atheist Camp.

de

Final Day/First Day

Technically today is the final day of our Mt Belvieu campaign. It's been so busy I've lost track of what day it is. Paul just told me its Wednesday, oh yeah, that is the last day of our door knocking. We've endured days of 100+ temps but done well. Yesterday was the first day it didn't break 100. We've even had some rain, which you know in Houston just make it steamy, but we are grateful for every cloud and every drop of rain. This mornings Chronicle said today looks to make June 2009 as the hottest ever on record, yep ever. While the heat did likely cut down the amount of time we could walk and knock, it didn't discourage our spirit. We knocked on 100's of doors, met lots of people, and prayed with around 200 people. That's right, prayed with them, at their door on the front porch or in their house. There were all kinds of different responses, hardly any were rude or terribly dismissing, a few maybe but a real minority.

Today we spend the last day knocking a few more doors, but also doing some follow ups on those who had a positive response in some way, wanted us to check back, wanted to talk to a spouse, had background or interest in the CofC, were interested in a bible study or just were really hurting and obviously needed a friend.

So, today's the final day of door knocking for this effort. Actually, its the first day of a follow up campaign that I pray will last months and even years because of some relationships that may have been started. Follow up is the key. We need to follow up with continued prayers and concerns and really be Christ to these people. Final day, first day. Truth is, I guess its that way every day, the final day of our past, the first day of our future. With God as our guide, every day is an opportunity to serve and a day to give Him praise for every good thing.

de