This past February we went to Disneyland and stressed out the iPhones to check line lengths and text when we split up because the girls wanted to go on different rides. Typically around 2:00 PM my phone would dip below 20% and my wife’s would hit it a little later. The first day we just stayed together, but eventually a 5-year-old and 10-year-old run out of rides they can agree on. So the next day we said we’d take an afternoon break and go to the car to recharge our phones. It just so happened that we were apart and my phone was fading fast it was time for the break. We had some tense moments relaying where we were, where we were going, and I had a 5-year-old who was melting down to top it off.

So for our April trip to see The Mouse, I bought us a pair of New Trent External Batteries. Two because I figured we should have a backup even if we are split up, and to keep in each of our cars as emergency phone power. I decided on this model because it seemed to hold a good charge and the pair wouldn’t be too expensive ($45 ea.). The unit is a about the same thickness as an iPhone and a little wider. Not really small enough to fit in the same pants pocket as the phone, but easy enough in the same jacket pocket.

How did they work? Great! It was so nice to be able to not stress about the battery getting low, I just plugged in the iPhone and got a full-recharge. The device holds 2-3 phone recharges and I was even able to give a charge to someone while we were in line for Space Mountain. Since the trip, I’ve used the device several times when I’ve forgotten to charge my phone.  I’m not sure what more you could ask of a device like this.

Church, Sunday School, and tomorrow’s a big day.

I’ve been listening to some old Issues, Etc. episodes that happened to be focusing on vocation and they certainly helped me get through yesterday. While my wife was taking the girls to their swim lessons, no small feat, I went to Costco to do some shopping. Then after putting away the oversized package of cheese and diapers I cleaned the bathrooms, mopped the kitchen floor and cooked dinner. While cooking dinner I noticed a few dishes in the sink so I figured I should do them now rather than after dinner. In the middle of rinsing a dish the fatigue hit me and I just wanted to throw the dish across the room and sit down on the floor with a beer. I restrained myself and fought through the last few pots but I was done. Except I knew my wife had a meeting to go to and I had bath (can’t skip after swimming) and bedtime with the girls. At that point the only thing that held together my sanity and held back my sinful rage was the Doctrine of Vocation. Knowing that God had given me this time to help relieve some of the burden of the housework my wife does and given me my daughters to shepherd in body and spirit gave me the peace I needed to get through it.

Now I didn’t list all those things to toot my own horn. In fact, I needed to repent of those things which I should not have let pile up in the first place and of the frustration in trying to get a 3 year-old to take her bath and dry her hair. I say all this to remind myself of all that God has blessed me with and the simple and obvious ways He uses me to do His will.

First, true good works, those that God considers good works, can only done by Christians. But wait, don’t unbelievers do good things like give to charity, lend a helping hand, etc., etc? Of course they do, but those are civil good works (good in the sight of man). Good works in God’s eyes are those works that are 100% out of love for Him. So, the unbeliever who is doing his civil good work because it will raise his standing in the community, or gain favor with someone, or even out of his own sense of compassion is not doing a good work.

Hey, don’t we have to do good works to please God? Whoa, that is the worst kind of “good work” because it imperils the soul. We don’t do anything to please God. Christ has done this for us by His perfect life, death, and resurrection. If we try to please God, we’re essential trying to buy our salvation, and that is not love, that is self-interest.

So how does anyone do good works? Even as a Christian, when I do things that look like good works like giving to charity or volunteering, if I am motivated in any way, and I am, by a tax deduction or perceived status, then I have not done this work out of 100% love of God. However, because I am a Christian, this sin is covered by Christ and God accepts it as a good work just like He accepts me, a sinner, because of Christ.

This past Sunday at Bible class, my wife learned about adiaphora. This sparked an awesome discussion over dinner. The discussion turned to why we go to church and my wife gave the correct, but incomplete answer that the Bible tells us that we should be of a church and go to worship Him. Ah, my chance to catechize the family. I said that was correct (I’m starting to learn that I should point out the correct parts before I move to fill the gaps). God calls us, via His word, to gather together. When we are gathered He gives us the gift of salvation through His word and sacraments and we respond with thankfulness and praise i.e. worship.

With this understanding, the term Divine Service takes on the appropriate meaning that God, the divine, comes to serve us. So then what does Contemporary Service mean, the contemporary serves us? Seems more like we’re serving the contemporary i.e. the culture.

I often wonder if my kinder graduate listens to me. I may say, “Dinner is ready, put your toys away and wash your hands.” When she doesn’t move I ask her what I just said and she’ll reply “I don’t know” or “Dinner is ready” at best. So I had a most joyful experience when I was putting her to bed last night.

She asked me if I love her even when she makes a mistake and I said, “Of course, and God does too.” Then I asked her how she knows that God loves her. She said, without prompting, “Because He died on the cross to forgive my sins… He sent Jesus to die on the cross to forgive my sins.” So she’s knows the Gospel and she has some understanding of the Trinity. So I’m really happy to know she listens to what is truly important, but sometimes I wish she’d listen to the mundane as well.

Some things are with you so much that you forget about them. But when they’re gone, you really feel a void. I lost my wedding ring yesterday while running with my daughter (If you’re near Frankie, Johnnie, & Luigi’s in San Jose, look out for it). Now I feel so weird without it. The weight on my hand. The slight pressure it put on the adjoining fingers. Really subtle stuff. So, HB, I just want to say that I love you. You mean more to me than that symbol could ever relate.

[Update]
HB found my wedding ring in the washer. Woo hoo! I’ve been putting a band-aid on it to prevent it from falling off.

Today is the ninth anniversary of my marriage to Erin (sorry for the horrible wording, I try to get things grammatically correct and end up with stuff like that). It has truly been an inspiring, eye-opening, fantastic 9 years. We have been blessed with a large, prospering, and loving extended family. We have grown in our relationship and love. Happy anniversary, Erin. I love you.

We’re going to be in Lake Tahoe for vacation. Going to play some golf, read, and likely swim a lot with Emi. I don’t know if the places we’re staying at have internet access, so I might not be posting for a bit if they don’t.

Whenever there’s a fly around the house or a spider on the wall, I get called to duty. Erin doesn’t like to mess with those icky bugs, but there’s a gadget called the bugzooka that can suck ‘em up without touching them. For you touchy-feely types, it doesn’t harm them it just puts them in a little container. I guess you can remove the container to release them. Personally, I’m hoping for a reverse setting so I can take them outside and shoot them into the street.