Eric Bailey's

Everyone else seems to be posting songs.

They say when men dream
we can reach the stars
They tell us to try
nothings out of reach

Every dream I've had
is reaching for you
Even when I dream
I can't catch you

You are a princess
and I am your slave
Just say what you want
and I'll get it for you

You are the master
I am your geni
You tell me your wish
it is my command

Have faith in yourself
and things will work out
Trust in others and
you're never alone

I believed in love
like never before
I trusted in you
and I'm all alone

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It's old, it sounds kind of juvenille but I wanted to post it anyway. It is at least something else to read than just a post from last week.

Some of you may have noticed that this last weekend was not one of my better times. I know that I was particularly down this weekend. I recognized the desire to not do anything, at all, nothing, zip, nada...

One of my friends noted that it was existing even during hockey, which started okay, but I got quickly frustrated with and angry at some of the other players. Most of the weekend anger was not the emotion of choice. Mostly I felt like crying and just wanted to vegitate in front of the tv in my room. I didn't, I went with my wife and boys to the parade and it was okay, but I was somewhat distant.

As Satuday went on I knew it was getting worse again, and I was thinking of possible reasons why I would not have to be at church in the morning. In the evening and morning I finished my preparation for church and found out (I knew this might happen and was prepared for it) that I would be teaching the teen/pre-teen class (the boys as the class is sometimes called). I did not communicate very well, I had trouble explaining my points and I did not have much patience with their antics. It was a difficult class for me. So I will be teaching them this week again just so that I can finish the material that we started.

This week is going better than the weekend, but I would not say that I am well yet. I am trying and I am doing what I have to do.

I started a new bus route this morning and I ended up behind schedule because we had to get a light a fixed on the bus. Well that makes the morning less fun. I have a person riding with me on the bus, giving directions and he seems a little more negative than my trainer. It could just be the kids, he did not seem to like the first group of kids on this run. It's not his old route, I think that he is a spare driver who is helping me learn the route. At least I'll be done earlier tonight.

I was Reading Mike Cope's Blog and he wrote about singles in church and issues surrounding that. The blog was so interesting that I thought I would post it (so no one would have to go all over the internet to find it) and hope to have a discussion.

Mike writes:
What's it like to be a single adult in church? So much of what we do is family-centered: family retreats, family encampments, family devotionals, etc. Are we doing a good job of communicating that after baptism the first family is the body of Christ? Is it the best idea to have singles classes or would it be better to integrate people so that relationships are formed?
From Lauren Winner:
"There is a trend in churches today to segregate people into demographic groups. Single twenties and thirties in one Sunday-school class, families with small children in another, empty-nesters in a third, sernior citizens down the hall, and so forth. Indeed, many churches have 'dealt with singleness' by starting singles' groups or singles' Bible studies, and hiring associate ministers who are charged with the task of ministering to single Christians.
"I see the appeal of such groups, but I am cautious about them. Perhaps the most robust expression of Christian community comes when we connect people of all demographics, people who might not meet each other if left to their own devices--toddlers and senior citizens and married couples and single professionals and empty nesters. This may cut against the grain of the organizational flowcharts that have become de rigueur in so many churches, separating parishioners into market groups (though the intentional fostering of relationships across demographic lines does not necessarily preclude a thriving Bible study for single parishioners, or a young mothers' prayer group). I have never joined a church with a singles' group, not because I think they are horrible or suffocating, but because church has always been one of the very few places where I can meet and know people who are not superficially like myself--it is only in church that I get to know kindergartners, and elderly people, and young families. . . .
"One of the best ways Christian communities can support chastity is to ensure that married people and single folks are in relationship with one another. Fostering relationships between married and single means not assuming that 'couple' is the basic unity of Christian identity. It means asking the single person not only who are you dating? but how is God calling you to be faithful now as you are? It means making sure you have an odd number of chairs at your dinner parties."

This month is disappearing on me. Right now I am working far more hours as a bus driver than I expected. It's good money, but it keeps me out late and I start early. I am still able to put in time at my church work, but life feels crunched. I leave home at about 6:30 and drive bus until 9:30. I do church work from about 10:00 - 2:00. Then it is back to the bus to go from 2:15-6:15. Then I come home. On Wednesday & Thursday I have small groups to lead (or at least be involved in), On Tuesday, well that is cheap movie night (sometimes there is a church ministry team meeting or that can happen on a Monday night like this week) and this week we took in a cheap movie.

Tomorrow, I will drive my bus hours, work my church hours in the day, and then at 9:30 or 9:45 I will head off for hockey with the boys. My wife asked me if we could go watch the Christmas parade on Saturday morning, and I found that I was not anxious to do that, but as I think about it, I think I really do want to. Every bone (and joint) in my body will not want to, I think that the idea of going out with my wife and the boys and spending time together sounds like a good idea and I'm going to like it and enjoy it.

Sunday also looks busy with our regular church in the morning, and then in the evening we have a special event I have been waiting for, the start of our coffee house season. If I stay out late that night, I think I will definitely be in trouble come Monday morning at 5:45 when I try to wake up. Pray for me.

I have been unable to post using Safari. I could put the title on the blog but everytime I hit send, the words of the blog would disappear. I have been leaving the messages in the comments section until I figure out what is going on.

For a while I was using Explorer but then it stopped allowing me to post, but I could still put comments on using Explorer. Now Safari won't let me post and it appears that Explorer is.

Computers are weird and sometimes totally unexplainable.

For the past couple of days I have been in a classroom setting, taking a defensive driving course for my bus driving licence. There were a couple of things that really caught my attention (I was paying attention for the whole thing, but a couple of ideas seemed very interesting). One of the interesting notes (which I may have said before) is that the safety things they are teaching me with the bus is the same kind of thing that they teach with motorcycles. You know, things like make sure the other drivers see you (how can you miss a bus?!?! people do), position your vehicle so that others don't try to do things they shouldn't, and always be prepared for people to do the weirdest and most dangerous things. You are to do more than the average driver to prevent accident situations. On the bus you are always aware of what people are doing and what dangers there could be. On the motorcycle you are always watching all around you loooking for dangers and predicting what people are going to do. The difference is that the motocyclist will be killed, while the bus driver will kill the other driver.

The other interesting note was the greater responsibility that the government puts on bus drivers and truckers. As I was first grasping this point I was a little puzzled. I understand the company expecting more from its drivers, but the government? For every accident that a bus is you will get points (the company will) If a car rear-ends the bus, you will get a point. What could you do? The thing that made this okay with me was when the trainer used the word "professional driver". Think about playing hockey with a NHLer. If the two of you collide the assumption is that he should have been able to recognize the situation and avoided it or at least minimalized the potential damage. He is more responsible than the rest of us Friday night guys, even though we are the ones skating with our heads down.

The other drivers on the road are amatuers. I am not saying that they are all bad drivers, but they haven't been through professional training, and the kinds of tests that the "professionals" have. We have more responsibility for the road. Scary thought. That also means that I shouldn't get angry at the stupid drivers who do stupid things, because they haven't been trained like me. There are definitely some things that the amatuers need to improve around town, but the responsibility to show how to do it and to drive properly falls back on those like me who have been trained. Weird thoughts. So much for my time of blissful ignorance on the road, now I am responsible. Soon I will even be licenced.