December 2nd and my Christmas Music

It's the day after Christmas, so I thought I would share a bit about my Christmas music addiction.

December 2nd is the day Christmas season officially starts in our home. My son's birthday is on the 1st, so we give our son the focus before we decorate and play our favorite Christmas tunes. I know many people start way sooner and stores bust out their stuff the day after Halloween. My problem is I always have to refrain from playing Christmas music when Thanksgiving comes and goes. It might seem strange, but I really like Christmas music. I have about 15 CDs of the stuff and every year I seek out at least one new one. Now I know you think that most Christmas music they play on the radio is horrible. Unless it's oldies, I do agree. But the stuff I have rarely does get general market radio play. This year at work Sabrina and her co-workers were annoyed constantly about the horrible "Christmas" music that is piped in at Verizon. They usually turned it down. Finally Sabrina took some songs and put it onto a memory card and they got to enjoy about an hour or so of real good Christmas music. Funny thing is they can play a type of Christmas music but can't say Merry Christmas.

If I was allowed to I could play Christmas all year round. I cannot pinpoint on when I got "addicted" to it, but when December 2nd rolls around, I load all the CDs onto itunes and pick my favorites and put it on my ipod. It might be unusual to see me rocking out to Christmas music, since my style is the more raaaar kind of stuff. There are rock bands that take traditional songs and make it there own style, but I do enjoy the soothing soft tune about our Saviors birth. I am even playing it now as I type out this post. The main CDs I enjoy are put out through the years, by Tooth & Nail Records or BEC Recordings (Happy Christmas Vol.1-4 and X Christmas). Various artists from their labels and a tiny bit from others, get together and record their favorite Christmas songs or sometimes they write a new one. No matter what style I tend to enjoy them all. Frank Sinatra, Nat King Cole, Bing Crosby and the like are hard to find cheap, so I only have a sample of their stuff. If I could I would love to get every Christmas CD I ever wanted. I don't like the chorus, orchestra,country, unnamed artist compilations, Lennon/Oko, and most general market radio wannabe Christmas CDs. Other than that I like tons of Christmas music.

HAPPY BOXING DAY!! The Christmas music by the way gets packed up on New Years Day. That's our boxing day.

Baby Jesus: How special was his birth?

I put this is a little newsletter article to the youth, I thought I would share it with you. I will continue to elaborated on Christmas even. It obviously will go beyond Christmas, but the celebrated of Jesus' birth should not go beyond one day.


Prophecies fulfilled, a miracle birth celebrated like no other, gifts given fit for a king. So fragile and small, the child could do nothing, but eat, sleep and cry. But this one child would be celebrated and revered by so many. One man would live until he saw this baby (Luke 1:25). This child was also a fugitive of a king, but wise men still sought him (Matthew 2). The story of His birth has been told to many from His first day on earth and will be continued to be told to many more. Songs, plays, movies, and many more presentations, tell of His birth in some way. His actual day of birth is not clear, but one day was chosen to celebrate it.
December 25th and the season leading up to it, is celebrated around the world by many walks of life, on every continent. No other birth is more celebrated and told of than the Birth of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. It is seriously amazingly ridiculous that one child would have such an impact on the world, before he was even a year old. His birth so celebrated, is also unforgettable by the fact that it shows how it was a start to how He lived and died, and then conquered death for us all, that too is seriously amazingly ridiculous!!!
I hope you to will celebrate His birth thinking about how special it was. I hope you will also celebrate His birth beyond the CHRISTmas Season.

My Daughter Asks: Are you going to vote for me?

I voted today. My youngest asked me a question before I did. She asked "Are you going to vote for me?" I am not sure if she meant something else, but I responded with: Of course, I am voting for your future. She responded by asking: "For when I grow up and be a teenager?" And I said "Yes." (She is 4) I was thinking of her, my other kids when I voted. I wanted to show I cared what happens in California and the U.S. I wanted to show that I am letting my voice be heard, even if the outcomes do not go my way. I was also thinking of all the other kids in the US.

I do want to go off about the Propositions but I will spare you all. As a Christian I do want to say, think about kids. What do they need to really know? What does there future hold with the decisions being made? What does the Bible clearly say? If you are a Christian why be for things that are clearly against God's Word? Even if we are sinners we are not to practice sin. This has to do with everything we do, not just what is popping up in politics.

"Love is to be serious. Hate what is evil." Romans 12:9. It does not say anything about hating people. It says don't embrace sin, but flee it. That's why I voted for her.

Day 4 (or 5) of National Youth Worker Convention 2008 in Sacramento.

Day Three (or 4) Youth Worker Convention

My day was not as fun as yesterday, but it was a blast too. It was fulfilling and challenging. It was a weird thing also my ring fell off today while I was clapping. It has really come to a point that I have lost a lot of weight. I did not lose the ring, so don't worry. No stupid remarks today, which is good, hehe.

What I did for the day I got up after falling asleep last night trying to watch a movie. I slept so well that I did not wake up until 8. Which is rare since my kids never have done that and my schedule won't allow it. We all got ready and went to the exhibit hall. Rode the unicorn, played some boat game and looked at all the cool wares and freebies people had. I even won a big pickle, which Sabrina and the kids would have loved. Then we went to the general session, which the comedy and worship were great but the speaker bombed. I'm not trying to be mean, but it was just like a lecture. We left early to lunch (a long with many others) and then went back to the exhibit hall. David and Amara bought a bunch of resources and stuff for their youth group. I just had fun getting all the freebies and chatting with people. Later we all went to separate seminars and then met up to got dinner. After dinner we went to the general sessions and stayed for the comedy night. It was awesome, I laughed so much my face hurt. One guy (Thor Ramsey) even changed his act and went on to tell jokes that people got bent out of shape about. None of them were bad, but I guess some people are rigid and can't take a joke. Equally funny of how he told of how people reacted to them. Then we came back to the hotel, hung out for a while and went to bed.
Who did I run into Lon and Carla Hanson. They have been helping with the youth in some capacity at Central Christian Church for 22 years! I remember Lon and this other guy Mark, the teacher sitting in on youth group boring us to death. It's not that they were bad, Mark's teaching was just over our heads at times. Lon and Carla have stepped in every time a youth pastor has left. They have basically kept the youth group a float during the time with no Youth Pastor. John Watts was just a parent of two kids that were in my youth group at Lemon Grove Christian Church. Now he is the Youth Pastor there! He seems to be doing well, and soaking up everything at the convention.
Where I ate Magnolia Grill, for lunch. I had a avocado and turkey sandwich, with a Henry Wienhard's cherry creme soda (yummy yummy),and for dinner we traveled to Elk Grove at Deahna's sister Cheantelle's house. We had BBQ chicken, rice and corn. The dessert was awesome, it was banana pudding, and some sort of cookies from Pepperidge farm and bananas. I had too much of it, it was hard to resist.
What I thought about the seminars and general sessionsMissed the first seminars, general session was a disaster of a history lesson. Again not to be mean, it ws a lecture that brought back the days of taking Western Civilizition in college (is this in the test?). Second was awesomely funny. Mike Pilavachi, a youth pastor from England. He had told hilarious stories from the Bible that were a little messed up humorously. He said it was the Greek, well what he got from it, which was equally funny. His accent added to it too. He used the stories to show how God can work in people no matter how. He also reminded us of the youth we have and how God can use us to reach even the most resistant. Amongst all the laughing It help me come to full circle in what I was already contemplating about how things are going at Easy Valley.
And what mood I am in Not satisfied. Why? From all the seminars, general session, conversations with people, I have come to a point about how I am doing things presently as a Youth pastor. I have been so content and have grown reluctant to push. I just do not want to do the things at East Valley that I had done to me in former ministries. So I resisted change and to move us as a group. But when you hear constantly what not to do or go beyond the basics in Youth Ministry. It's time to move. I don't want to be a hindrance, I want youth to be stretched and not so comfortable. So that's why I am not satisfied. I want more!

The Magic Unicorn!


Me in a moustache, getting ready to ride "The Magical Unicorn. " You gotta be macho!


Me riding the Unicorn.


David riding the unicorn.


Some boat balance game we played. David beat me three times.

Day 2 of the Youth Worker Convention - officially day one

Wow what a day it was! This was a packed and fun filled day. Very inspiring speakers and with wild and crazy thing to do.

Dumbest thing to say while in elevator: "Oh no, there goes the weight limit" - I said this as a joke but did not realize the lady coming in was not here for the youth convention. We were pretty packed when she came in.


What mood I am in I was in pain and anguish for a while there. My lips then burned of the feeling of them being on fire for a while. Why? I ate a nice tasty orange pepper called the habanero (which they use in pepper spray/mace!). It was yummy then bam it hurt, it burned, it tickled in a bad way (I can't explain what that means) I felt dizzy a bit, I could not talk, tears came out, my nose ran, I could not really function other than run around in pain. It was not like a jammed finger or stubbed toe pain but, like almost breaking a bone, but in your mouth pain. I know that's a weird way to describe it, but David just cracked up as I was in anguish. Amara was a trooper and ate a less hot one a serrano pepper. She was sweating and tears coming out of her eyes. I did not see her eat it because I was dying myself. David laughed at her too. We should have recorded it all on video. Why did I do it? I got $60 bones to use on Sermon spice, an illustration, and creative ideas for lessons web source. I am in a good/great mood now. It was a fun day and can't wait for tomorrow!
Here comes the pain & suffering. There is Amara about to eat hers too.


Suffering from pepper


Even more suffering. If you can see I was crying and my nose started to run.



What I did for the day: Well it all started with the early bird seminars. I went to one called Spiritual Sabotage (with an additional longer title. David went to the seminar: Rap it, Tag it, Speak it. Then we all met up and ate lunch and went to the general session. I was supposed to go to a seminar afterward but none of them seemed interesting or I already did not know. So I walked around the exhibit hall where everyone is advertising there organization ans selling their whatnot's. I later found David and Deahna hanging out at the pool, which was a tad cold, but the hot tub was, well hot. We all went to dinner and then to the next general session. After that David, Amara, and I went to the exhibit hall and then back to the hotel room. We were watching a movie but I fell asleep.
Who did I run into: Wow it was several today. First person was Ken Rawson. He was texting me trying to find where I was, he even left his seminar to see me first which was kind of funny and cool. He texted me "look for the fat guy". He's not fat though. It was cool to see him again. It's been over ten years since I have seen him, but we have talked over the phone, e-mailed and trash talked each other on Fantasy sport leagues. We later ate lunch together with his wife Jen, to catch up. Then I ran into a former youth Mike Collins who was there helping out. He is a youth pastor in Tracy. I did not remember his name at first, so I ashamedly asked him. It was cool that he remember me, but I am the type to be unforgettable (hehehe). I ran into another former youth who is a youth pastor at a church in Modesto, Russ Cantu. Then at one of the general sessions, I ran into Kevin Neuner, and his wife Danielle. We went to school and had many adventures together. He is a Youth pastor at Abundant Life in the Bay Area. Sadly there was even some people I did not remember who they were or even recognized their face. I just said hi and the normal hey how's it going stuff.
Where I ate We ate at the popular place everyone seems to go to at these conventions, Upper Crust Pizza. It's all you can eat Pizza and salad. Yummy ( A youth workers dream). For Dinner we went to a Sushi place. I had a Bento box (Teriyaki) and some soup, and everyone else had sushi. It was called Amakari. It was scrumdidlyumshish.
What I thought about the seminars and general sessions: The Seminar I went to was cool, it was about preparing youth beyond their years in Youth group and getting them ready to be in the world and not be of the world. A times we just have them do their time and as they leave they leave behind their faith. David and Amara's was about bringing the Hip-hop culture into view and just using it in a way for youth to express their faith. Which is a cool way to do things with youth.
Wow! The first general session was awesome. Sherwood Carthen was the speaker. He was so intense,uplifting, and very funny. "Amen by myself" - his favorite saying. He spoke on us being in the wilderness (Matthew 4)
The Next seminars I skipped (lazy I know). The next general session was a bit different. We had three speakers, who had about 18 minutes to speak and then we texted questions to be asked after we discussed the subject with people in the crowd. The first speaker was not really impressive, but the next two were cool. The second one talked about reaching out to the gay community (by Andrew Marin), which is probably the last subject you would think about hearing at a youth convention. It was good to hear since we don't even talk about it at our churches. Since we reach out to other sinners, why not all? It's those sexual sins that we seem to frown upon more in church than say gluttony or hypocrisy. Even so it is a hard subject matter, but I do think we must go at it with gusto and not reluctance. After the second speaker, Shane Clairbone came on stage. He is the cross between a hillbilly, a hippie and radical Christian. Which is not bad, just funny and quirkiness all together. He talked about how his ministry/community and some other stuff. His basic idea was we need to be more focused on our people than stuff to reach people. The three speakers and then discussion was unique and cool at the same time.

Day One of Youth Worker Convention - well sorta

The Convention technically did not start yet, but they did have some pre-convention things going on. So here goes:

What I did for the day: I got up early packed my stuff and headed to the airport. I flew from San Diego to San Jose. Met up with my mom who I had not seen in almost a year (she lived in Oregon). We then met up with my brother and his wife and went to a cool breakfast restaurant. Then we took off towards Sacramento with another of his youth leaders (Amara), and checked into the Hyatt. After hanging out a while we walked to get dinner. While we were walking we noticed some lady trying to push her car out of the street. It looked like she had been in some kind of accident and she was acting a bit strange. I As we helped he push her car to the side of the street, I asked if we should call for help and she said she did not want to get in trouble, so my brother and I seemed confused as to what to do. So reluctantly we left after trying to figure out ways to help her. Later walking back I noticed a wan parked in a dirt lot that had the door wide open, which was strange in the middle of the night. It was a Youth for Christ van but no one around. I sure hope it was not broken into. So I locked it and we went back to the hotel. Strange things happening in down town Sacramento.
Who did I run into: I ran into Les Christie in the hotel lobby. He was my old professor at SJCC. He is the Chairman of the Youth Ministry Department at William Jessup University (new name of my old school) If my brother, his wife, and his youth leader Amara count then I ran into them too.
Where I ate: For breakfast I ate at "Stacks" in Campbell (where my brother and his wife lives) with my mom. She wanted to take us out for our birthday. For Dinner We went to "the Melting Pot" in Sacramento. It's a Fondue restaurant. We were there from 6:15 to about 8. It always really fun and interesting to eat that way. It was very expensive though. But hey we deserve it was our birthday
.
What I thought about the seminars and general sessions: We did not have any yet. But there was a late night concert (Telecast). I did not go to it thought. Amara went and said there was about 15 people (yeeouch).
And what mood I am in: Tired, very full and excited for tomorrow. I hope I get a ride on the unicorn.


Me, My Brother, and my mom.



At the Melting Pot




This is how much dinner was for 4 adults and one child. It was well worth it.



The gang at dinner



Giving Fiona a shoulder ride

Going to the Youth Worker Convention

Tomorrow very early, I am going to travel up to the bay area and meet up with my brother David and his wife. Then we are going to the Youth Worker Convention. It's put on by Youth Specialties. I agreed to blog about my happenings while I am there. My plan is this:

What I did for the day
Who did I run into (old friends, teachers, etc)
Where I ate
What I thought about the seminars and general sessions
And what mood I am in
If you are interested that's great. It will be surprising if more than three people read my blog. So I'll keep you posted.

Palin's Baby name generator

This is seriously funny. I read this post from YSMarko. Sarah Palin is a strange person when it comes to names. No, I am not showing I am for her or against her either. Tell me what your name is.
Mine: Dust Chinstrap Palin = Dan Rosch
Chap Poach Palin = Daniel Rosch



YS Marko's post about Sarah Palin's Name generator

God's little miracle

About four months ago the kids and I where out walking one day and we saw all these caterpillars crawling up this wall. They were black, had yellow dots with spikes on them. Tabitha tried to grab one but it spooked her because of the spikes. I grabbed one for her and we took it home. We put some leaves and stick in a large tin and put it in. I looked up the name for it and made sure it was a butterfly and not a moth. I found out they climb until they find a place to make their cocoon. As soon as I read about it I went and looked at it and it had crawled out on the floor. I put it back in the tin and put it on top of the turtle's tank. Later I looked and it was gone. The kids had been doing their homework so they were not messing with it. So I preceded to look for it everywhere, later the kids tried to help but we had lost it. So some caterpillar is crawling around our home and could die.
About a month later the kids and Sabrina went shoe shopping and I just sat down at the computer to check on my fantasy baseball and whoosh the little black blurr comes out from under the table which holds the turtle tank. I turn and look and there it is... God's little miracle flying around my home. It flew to the window and rested. It had just hatched from it's cocoon and it was still getting strength for it's wings.

I left it until the kids came home and I showed them the butterfly. It was so cool because we thought we lost it and it had died somewhere. But we got to see one of God's cool miracle of creation and how he made a spiky caterpillar into a beautiful butterfly. In all his power he made a small beautiful thing for us all to see.

I then gently took it and let it go outside on a tree. The cool thing was Tiana and I just saw one or the same one again yesterday. So it reminded me it write about it. It also reminded me that God loves us so much that with such a insignificant thing in this world, he cares for, us too. It seems crazy to me when I think of what God has done for me and for others. Why can't others who don't believe see that too? Well I will live my whole life out telling others about God, his miracles, his sacrifice and his love. May it be a butterfly or a child's sweet kind words of love that sets a heart toward God.
Here is a picture of it before I released it:



Men cannot say they do not know about God. From the beginning of the world, men could see what God is like through the things He has made.This shows His power that lasts forever. It shows that He is God. (Romans 1:20 New Life Version)

Wow it's been a while

Well I have a ton of posts I would love to write about but I am procrastinating and I am busy, busy. Anyway, I have been busy this Summer with everything. I am doing things with the family (adventures everywhere), church stuff, coaching soccer (yeah I know, I don't like it but I can coach it) and misc. I also challenged my niece to read the whole New Testament in 6 months and I am going to read the whole Bible. She gets a snazzy t-shirt if she does it and another if I don't finish. Well check more for later if you care.

Results of loser contest

Well last time I check, which was the day we had to weigh in on the "Are you a bigger loser than Marko", I weighed in at 200 and I ended up in 15th place (in men's , 25th overall). Out of all the people (176 of them), I placed pretty high. I will continue to try losing weight and exercising though. I would like to get to 190 at least. My wife says my chest is back to being bigger than my gut so that's good, I guess. Will all my muscle I still look big, but people who see me constantly have notcied I have lost weight or say I looook gooood (as someone put it).

I won movie tickets to Expelled

About two weeks ago I got this e-mail about a contest to win tickets to Expelled. So I entered it but the e-mail adress was wrong and I noticed they purposely spelled gmail wrong so I resent it with the correct adress and I won two tickets to Expelled. Free tickets are always awesome. It was movie I wanted to see, so now I can, without paying an arm and a leg to go see it. IF you don't know about the movie check out my previous blog I commented about it.

Weight loss

I don't know if anyone read this or cares. I am down to 204. But....Sabrina bought a new scale and I actually weigh 211. So I guess I was heavier before and I am not closer to 200. I am a bit disappointed but I am still going to keep trying.

Week 5 of losing it

Well I am down to 210 but I don't see then difference. Maybe the scale is off or something. I know that I will be big, but hopefully my gut will go away. I wish I could drop muscle but it's pretty impossible to do that. My muscle was great to have when I was young but no point now. If I reach 200 I'll be happy. That's my first goal.

10 years!!

Sabrina, my love: We have been together for 10 years!! 10 years of growing together in our relationship. 7 (almost 8) have been as husband and wife. It's been a great 10 years and I am glad you are mine and I am yours.

Week 3 of weight loss

Well I only managed to lose 2 pounds. I did not over eat I just did not count my calories. I went snow boarding and chowed down at lunch cause I was so hungry. That could have been something to do with it. Plus this week was so busy, I hope week four I can exercise more. Current weight 214.

Week two of Youth pastor biggest loser

It's week two of "Are you a bigger loser than Marko" (official name). I am really proud of what I have accomplished and it was not as hard as I thought. I've been counting my calories and I have not cheated either.



Here is week one weigh in : (click to enlarge)


Here is week two weigh in (Mon. morning) (click to enlarge):


It's all worth it.

Youth Pastor Biggest loser

Well here we go. I am going to try to lose some weight and compete against other youth leaders. If you want to check my progress check back here often. I wish I could show you the site but you have to sign in to view it.

I start tomorrow (Feb. 4.) Starting weight 228

WHAT IS EATEN (and spent) IN ONE WEEK

I recieved this e-mail from my friend Talicia(thanks). The pictures tell a lot. Take a good look at the diet of each country and the cost of what is eaten in one week. It's amazing on the contrast between countries and size of families. We are so so so blessed.

Germany: The Melander family of Bargteheide
Food expenditure for one week: 375.39 Euros or $500.07




United States: The Revis family of North Carolina
Food expenditure for one week $341.98
I Sure hope most American families eat more fresh fruits and vegetables and less junk food than this family.)



Italy : The Manzo family of Sicily
Food expenditure for one week: 214.36 Euros or $260.11


Mexico: The Casales family of Cuernavaca
Food expenditure for one week: 1,862.78 Mexican Pesos or $189.09



Poland: The Sobczynscy family of Konstancin-Jeziorna
Food expenditure for one week: 582.48 Zlotys or $151.27




Egypt: The Ahmed family of Cairo
Food expenditure for one week: 387.85 Egyptian Pounds or $68.53


Ecuador: The Ayme family of Tingo
Food expenditure for one week: $31.55



Bhutan: The Namgay family of Shingkhey Village
Food expenditure for one week: 224.93 ngultrum or $5.03


Chad: The Aboubakar family of Breidjing Camp
Food expenditure for one week: 685 CFA Francs or $1.23


The end of email said this: "Don't know about you, but right about now, I'm counting my blessings!" As I said in the beginning of this blog, we are so so blessed.

Dan

Life is so delicate

I don't know why I have been thinking so much about a certain person's passing, but I can't get it out of my head. Heath Ledger, died recently at a very young, 28. Some probably are thinking it. No, I did not have a man crush on him or something like that. He was not portrayed by the media as a party animal, like some celebs are. It would surprise me less if they died (not that I am wishing that). I don't really care how he died, but I am just surprised on how young and sudden he is gone. To the world he had it all and more. But what really has me thinking is: I don't know what his faith was like or if he ever was talked to about eternity. Did he have a chance to decide? Did he ever set foot in a church during an authentic service? There are others just like him, that will probably go quickly and young. It's strange how many celebs are connected to the wacky wild world of Scientology. Sadly we don't hear much of any other would be "faiths" they are connected to. I just wonder who really reaches out to the celebs without the agenda of being able to drop names and have opportunities for bragging. Do people sincerely pray for them on a regular basis?
There are tons of organizations that evangelize to some sort of demographic out there. Is there one for the A and B list celebs? I don't really have a pulling to start one, but hey it's just going through my mind right now wondering if there is. I wonder if they would be harder to reach them then a person raised from birth following some eastern religion. Hollywood is so mixed up spiritually and is a melting pot of strange ideas, it has to be hard to get the hearts of celebs to even open up. I know there are some actual actors/actresses that are Christians, but it is probably real rare. I just think about these things when someone famous dies. This time the Knight Tale guy's death is constantly on my mind. I will pray for his family, especially his little girl.

Why, you do not even know what will happen tomorrow. What is your life? You are a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes. James 4:14

Check out Expelled movie

I was reading YSMarko's blog today and he posted about a documentary movie, that Ben Stein (the teacher from Ferris Bueller) made, called Expelled. It's about how scientists who believe the opposite of the "big bang theory" or "darwinism" are blacklisted, and frowned upon for thinking something else. I went to the site and watched the trailer. Looks very intriguing. I am surprised, like others, that it's coming from him and not some ultra fanatical religious person.

Will anyone read this?

Well it's a take off from what I started ages ago, but here I go again trying to blog like all the other cool guys out there. I read a ton of blogs and comment on them, so maybe people will do the same on mine. Who knows? Let's hope I don't go to long in between years to acually post stuff. Funny thing is, I ask others when they are going to post if they have not in a while. I wonder if anyone will even read this? Let's see how long it takes.