A rare daytime nap

A well-deserved beak at home:

8-Man Analysis

District 1

Remsen-Union (6-0), Newell-Fonda (5-1), Kingsley-Pierson (4-2) and Remsen St. Mary's (4-2) are all in.

District 2

Armstrong-Ringstead(6-0), Graettinger-Terril (5-1), West Bend-Mallard (5-1) and North Sentral (3-3) are all in.

District 3

Northeast Hamilton (6-0), Clarksville (5-1) and Tripoli (5-1) are all in.
Ventura (3-3) can qualify if any of the following happen:
--They beat Riceville
--They lose to Riceville by 1 point (or in overtime), and Janesville loses to Northeast Hamilton by 8 points or more
--They lose to Riceville by 6 points or less, and Janesville loses to Northeast Hamilton by 13 points or more
--Note: More scoring combinations like the one above exist
Janesville (3-3) can qualify if any of the following happen:
--They beat Northeast Hamilton, AND Ventura loses to Riceville
--They lose to NE Hamilton by 6 points or less, AND Ventura loses to Riceville
--They lose to NE Hamilton by 13 points or more, AND Ventura loses to Riceville by 7 points or more --Note: More scoring combinations like the one above exist

District 4

Preston (7-0), West Central (5-1) and Kee (4-2) are all in.
East Central (3-3) can qualify if any of the following happen:
--They beat Kee
--Springville beats Dunkerton, AND East Central loses to Kee by a margin of defeat less than or equal Dunkerton's margin of defeat, AND Central City loses, AND Midland loses to Olin
Dunkerton (3-3) can qualify if an of the following happen:
--They beat Springville, AND East Central loses
--Springville beats Dunkerton, AND East Central loses to Kee by a margin of defeat greater than Dunkerton's margin of defeat, AND Central City loses, AND Midland loses to Olin
Central City (3-3) can qualify if they beat West Central, AND East Central loses, AND Dunkerton loses

District 5

Moravia (6-0) and Grandview Park Baptist (5-1) are both in.
Twin Cedars (4-2) can qualify if any of the following happen:
--They beat Meskwaki Settlement
--Seymour beats Melcher-Dallas
--They lose to Meskwaki Settlement by 11 points or less
--Melcher-Dallas beats Seymour by 3 points or less
--Note: More scoring combinations exist like the one above
Melcher-Dallas (3-3) can qualify if any of the following happen:
--Twin Cedars beats Meskwaki Settlement
--They beat Seymour by 5 points or more
--They beat Seymour, AND Twin Cedars loses by 8 points or less
--Note: More scoring combinations exist like the one above
Meskwaki Settlement (3-3) can qualify if any of the following happen:
--They beat Twin Cedars, AND Melcher-Dallas loses
--They beat Twin Cedars by 12 points or more
--They beat Twin Cedars by 10 points, AND Melcher-Dallas wins by 1 point (or in overtime)
--Note: More scoring combinations exist like the one above

District 6

Lenox (6-0), Adair-Casey (5-1), Anita CAM (4-2) and Murray (4-2) are all in.

District 7

Coon Rapids-Bayard (6-0), Glidden-Ralston (6-0), East Greene (4-2) and Boyer Valley (3-3) are all in.

District 8

Fremont-Mills (6-0), East Mills (5-1), Stanton (5-1) and Nishnabotna (3-3) are all in.

District 1
Harlan (6-0), Winterset (5-1) and Lewis Central (5-1) are all in.
Carroll (3-3) qualifies if:
-They beat Glenwood (1-5)
-Creston (3-3) loses to Harlan (6-0)
Creston (3-3) qualifies if:
-The beat Harlan (6-0) AND Carroll loses to Glenwood

District 2

Sioux City Heelan (6-0), Boyden-Hull-Rock Valley (5-1) and LeMars (4-2) are all in.
Denison-Schleswig (3-3) can qualify if any of the following happen:
--They beat Boyden-H-RV
--Spencer (0-6) beats Sergeant Bluff-Luton
--They lose to BHRV by one point, and Storm Lake beats Heelan by 8 points or less
--Note: Other scoring combinations involving BHRV and Storm Lake exist.
Sergeant Bluff-Luton (2-4) can qualify if:
--They beat Spencer, AND Denison-Schleswig loses AND Storm Lake loses
--They beat Spencer, AND Denison-Schleswig loses AND Boyden-H-RV loses
--They beat Spencer by 13 or more, AND Denison-Schleswig loses by 7 or more AND Storm Lake wins by 1 point (or in overtime)
Storm Lake (2-4) can qualify only if:
--They beat Heelan by 10 points or more, AND Denison-Schleswig loses AND Sergeant Bluff-Luton wins
--Note: Other scoring combinations involving BHRV AND Storm Lake exist.

District 3

Clear Lake (6-0), Webster (5-1), Ballard (4-2) and Boone (4-2) are all in.


District 4

Decorah (5-1), West Delaware (5-1), Waverly-Shell Rock (5-1) and Oelwein (4-2) are all in.


District 5

LaPorte City Union (6-0) and Marion (5-1) are in.
Maquoketa (3-3) can qualify if any of the following happen:
--They beat Marion AND Western Dubuque loses
--They beat Marion AND Vinton-Shellsburg loses
--Central Clinton AND Western Dubuque both lose, AND Vinton-Shellsburg wins
--Central Clinton AND Vinton-Shellsburg both lose, AND Western Dubuque wins
Central Clinton (3-3) qualifies if any of the following happen:
--They beat Center Point-Urbana AND Western Dubuque, Vinton-Shellsburg and Maquoketa all win --Western Dubuque, Vinton-Shellsburg, and Maquoketa all lose
--They beat Center Point-Urbana by 5 points or more
--They beat Center Point-Urbana AND Vinton-Shellsburg loses
--They beat Center Point-Urbana AND Maquoketa loses
Vinton-Shellsburg (3-3) qualifies if any of the following happen:
--They beat Union AND Western Dubuque and Maquoketa both lose.
--Central Clinton wins AND Western Dubuque and Maquoketa both lose.
--They beat Union AND Westerun Dubuque wins AND Central Clinton loses.
--They beat Union by 13 points or more AND Central Clinton wins by 4 points or less AND Western Dubuqe loses
Westen Dubuque (3-3) qualifies if any of the following happen:
--They beat Anamosa AND Maquoketa loses
--They beat Anamosa AND Central Clinton loses
--They beat Anamosa AND Vinton-Shellsburg wins
--Central Clinton, Maquoketa and Vinton-Shellsburg all lose


District 6

Solon (6-0), Grinnell, (5-1), Williamsburg (5-1) and Clear Creek-Amana (3-3) are all in.


District 7

Pella (6-0), Mount Pleasant (5-1) and Oskaloosa (5-1) are all in.
Fairfield (3-3) can qualify if any of the following happen:
--They beat Keokuk (1-5)
--Fort Madison (3-3) loses Oskaloosa
Fort Madison (3-3) can qualify only if:
--They beat Oskaloosa AND Fairfield loses to Oskaloosa


District 8

Carlisle (5-1) is in.
ADM (4-2) can qualify if any of the following happen:
--They beat Perry (2-4)
--Dallas Center-Grimes loses to Knoxville
--Newton loses to Carlisle
--Norwalk beats Saydel
--They lose by 1 point (or in overtime) AND Norwalk loses by 8 points or more
--They lose by 6 points or less AND Norwalk loses by 13 points or more
--Note: More scoring combinations exist involving Norwalk
Dallas Center-Grimes (4-2) can qualify if any of the following happen:
--They beat Knoxville (2-4)
--Norwalk beats Saydel
--ADM loses to Perry
--Carlisle beats Newton
Norwalk (4-2) can qualify if any of the following happen:
--They beat Saydel
--Dallas Center-Grimes loses to Knoxville
--Carlisle beats Newton
Newton (3-3) can qualify if any of the following happen:
--They beat Carlisle, AND Dallas Center-Grimes beats Knoxville AND Norwalk loses to Saydel
--They beat Carlisle, AND Knoxville beats Dallas Center-Grimes AND Norwalk loses to Saydel AND Perry loses to ADM

Nights with Alice Cooper

No, we'er not messing around with Halloween face paint. And no, he didn't get into a can of blueberries. This is what Cash looks like when Cash's pediatrician gave him some purple medicine to get rid of thrush.

Jersey Shore

Thanks to Uncle Grant for pointing this out:

All Smiles

Little Cash has been flashing his beaming smile lately, and it is just awesome. It's one of those truly awesome moments in parenting.

Miss my boy at Work!!

Around 2:30 every day, I get homesick for my baby son, Cash.

I usually go to facebook and look at his pictures just to keep from going nuts.

Baby Pictures of Cash

Becky Hunder Photography in Union, WV is an awesome place to get newborn pictures done.

She is very nice, very accomodating and very affordable.

More than anything, she just plain does an awesome job of shooting pictures.

She really knows her way around babies.



My parents were in town for the week. Becky was so nice in letting them (along with Nana Joan) crash the party. She loves having grandparents be a part of the fun.



In an unfortunate turn of events, Becky's grandmother-in-law passed away in the weeks since we did the photoshoot. She was especially grateful that the Nana's and Papa Harold could be there for the photo shoot.

We are very grateful, too, that they could be there. We are also very glad that Cash behaved so well pretty much the whole time. He was so good, we couldn't believe it!! It was a great day, and we have some awesome pictures to show for it!!

Happy Birthday, Uncle Grant

In honor of Uncle Grant's birthday, Cash let us get a photo of him doing a big smile.

He's been smiling big quite a bit lately, but he would never hold the pose long enough for us to get a picture. Well, tonight was the big night. We finally got one, and it was worth the wait!!

Chillin' out on Sunday Morning

Wearing shirt that Nana Julie got him.

Fortunate

On his birthday, Dennis Prager wrote a great article about being lucky.

The Role of Luck -- Thoughts on a Birthday - Townhall.com

He concluded that a lot of life (your health, your family, living in America) is mostly dumb luck and not entirely the product of anything you've personally done. Normally, I'd say this isn't true. "You make your own breaks," as my old basketball coach used to say.

But two events in the last month have changed my thinking. First off, I became the father for the first time to a wonderful baby boy, and I couldn't be more proud. However, that little guy came with one thing I didn't anticipate: nighttime colic. For the first month of his life, little Cash has yet to sleep longer than about three hours between 10 PM and 6 AM. He wakes up (loudly) and can be very difficult to get back to sleep.

Nighttime colic is something that affects somewhere between 15-30% of all newborns (and is usually the worst for the first child in a family, for some weird reason). Along with this comes the bad side effects for Holly and me (OK, especially Holly): We feel sleepy, we don't get to go out much, we can't travel anywhere for longer than a few hours, etc.

But one of the most disturbing parts that I've had to experience is this: Parents who's children aren't/weren't colicky don't understand what Holly and I are going through. They have an attitude of, "Well, that never happened with our baby. Therefore, it's really not a problem. We must've done something better than you have."

OK, so they don't that outright, but it sort of comes out in their attitude or other things they say. "We had our baby and were able to go to church/go shopping/go on a long trip, etc. within a week" or "Our baby sleeps 7 hours every night."

Well, good for you, but it's not really anything you're doing to make your baby that way. You're just very lucky not to have a fussy baby. That's it.

Whenever someone asks me how the baby is doing, I'll say, "Pretty well, but he doesn't like to sleep that much." Every now and again, someone will say, "Yeah, my kids were the same way!!" Then we'll have this whole conversation about how nobody else who has colicky kids could possibly understand how hard it is.

And then it occured to me - this has been my attitude towards people less fortunate than myself for a long time. I think, "Wow, stinks to be you. I'm healthy, have a good job, live in America...I must've done something better."

Which brings me to my next attitude-altering event: This past week, a young couple from my old hometown (for the second time in three years!!) lost a child six months into a pregnancy.

Zion Thomas Lorntson -- Jennings family blog

This happened by absolutely no fault of their own. Sonya and Seth are two of the most Godly people I know. They come from Godly families. They're truly great people. This was just purely bad luck. Plain and simple.

These two events have caused me to reach a new level of gratitude and mindfulness of other's needs. And it's made me (humbly) re-evaluate everything that I know about my own life and how fortunate I am. I've also realized the following:

Holly was lucky not to have any significant health problems (especially morning sickness) during the pregnancy. We were lucky to be born into great families with the world's greatest parents. We're lucky that our ancestors moved to America and, by doing so, put us in the nation with the greatest health care system in the history of the world.

This was all luck. All of it. I'm very grateful for it, and I realize that I have nothing to do with most of it. I have only God and my family to thank. Not me.

Trip Back to Days of Yore

When my parents came last week, they brought some old photo albums, and I took the time to upload a few pictures to my facebook profile.



This picture of my brothers and I is the crown jewel of the collection. Love these pictures!!

Saying good-bye to the grandparents

Today, Cash has to bid farewell to his Nana Julie and Grandpa Harold. We really enjoyed their visit, and we also feel bad for working them to death. They lanscaped, did handywork and babysat for us all week, and we are very grateful.

We hope to see them again in November when we take a trip out to the Midwest.

Nana Julie and Grandpa Harold

The Grandparents arrived on Sunday night, and fawned over their newborn grandbaby.



Yesterday, we went to a photographer and got some awesome baby picks!! Can't wait to see them!!

Cash is a hit at the Cash Reunion

Yesterday, we went to the annual Cash family reunion. And the man of the hour was none other than Cash, himself.



And nobody was more happy to see him than his great aunt, NanNan. Afterwards, he went to his great grandma Ninny's house and met her for the first time.



It was a great day for everyone.

Talkin' to the Camera

Just hanging out:

Photo Shoot Prep

I think Holly missed her calling as a baby photographer. She shot these the other day, and I love 'em.


We hired a high school classmate of Holly's to do our newborn photos, but she's too busy to do pictures for the next week and a half. The bummer part about that is, in a week and a half, I think he won't be much of a "newborn." He'll be more of an "infant" -- or whatever the department stores call babies who are a month old.

I think we'll end up getting his picture taken by a lady in Monroe County (about 30 minutes south of us).

On another note, Baby Cash slept a little better last night. He actually had 3 hours of uninterrupted sleep from 2AM to 5AM. Woohoo!!

You Find Out Who You're Friends Are

If we've learned anything in the last two weeks, it's who we can count on in a time of need.

All in all, here's a partial list of really terrific people who we are forever indebted to (note: there are more than just the people on this list, for sure. These are just the people I can think of off the top of my head. If you helped us out and I haven't mentioned you here, I completely apologize. We are very grateful for you!!) --

* Nana Joan - Long story short, she's a saint and deserves her own Presidential Suite in Heaven.
* Holly's niece, Dawn - She was a great "labor assistant" who kept me from passing out during the delivery. She also helped us organize our nursery and ran countless errands for us. She was invaluable during Week 1.
* Holly's sister, Sissy - She's always willing to take time out of her extraordinarily busy schedule.
* Various people in the community - Especially a family from church that cooked us dinner one night (it was a very delicious, I might add!!)
* Holly's friend from high school, Erin - She has a three-month old at home and definitely knows what we're going through. She brought us dinner (and the greatest apple pie ever made) a few days ago.
* Honorable Mention - My immediate Ridpath family. Upside: All five of them (mom, dad, Reid, Grant, Liz) wanted to pitch in right away and were ready to book the next flight to West Virginia, if needed. Downside: They all live 1000 miles away (curse!!). In a perfect world, I'd live right down the block from these guys. Nana Julie and Grandpa Harold are going to be here next week. We can't wait!!

And with that in mind, I want to personally extend the following: If anyone in my immediate family (or church family) has a baby, I offer my full, unmitigated, no-strings-attached services to you. Need dinner? You got it. Need a babysitter? I'm always here. Need someone to rock a fussy baby so you can get some sleep? God knows, I will be right there with a blanket, bottle and pacifier.

Cash meets a friend for Supper

This afternoon, Holly's good friend from high school, Erin, dropped by with her three-month old daughter, Cora. They travelled all the way down from Cape Cod, Mass for a wedding and to spend time with family.

It's amazing to think little Cash will be that big in three months. I'm so used to dealing with a newborn that 3-month-olds seem like giants.

Cash meets his Great Grandpa

This afternoon, we drove 20 miles (by far the longest distance we've travelled since having a baby) on our way to Holly's grandparent's house. Once there, history was made when Cash met his great-grandfather, Wesley "Papa" Wickline.

This was a truly awesome moment and something Holly and I relished. Neither of us were alive to meet our great grandparents. (My great grandma Bartels - my mom's mom's mom - died about a year before I was born. That's the closest either of us came to meeting one.) So it was awesome for us to witness this rare opportunity.

Cash is fortunate to have four (out of eight) great grandparents still alive. Holly's mom's parents - Wesley "Papa" and Maguerite "Ninny" Wickline - are both living, as are both of my grandmothers - Grandma Ridpath and Grandma Francis.

The moment was underscored by the fact that both Holly and I have a grandma in the hospital right now. Ninny and Grandma Francis are both recouperating from complications due to vaious illnsses they have. Please pray for them.

We're parents now!!

Cash William Ridpath is a great little boy. We love him so much.




I'm constantly getting interupted whenever I try to pots something, but I'll try to get more updates via the blog.

Last Day Before I Become a Dad

Yup!! Holly goes in tomorrow for induction. We'll keep you posted, and hopefully the next time I log in, I'll be a dad!!

Baby Update

I could make this a really long story, but I think I'll keep it short, mainly because most of my blog readers know all the details anyway. But as it stands, it looks like Holly will be induced on Sunday. We'll get to have her favorite doctor for most of the time.

We're very excited and couting down the 91 or so hours until the process goes underway (and we become parents).

Never wear a Blue Shirt to Wal-Mart

The other day, I ran to Wal-Mart on my lunch break to get some Expecta for Holly. I was wearing a blue dress shirt, a red tie and khakis. To make matters worse, I'm tall and goofy-looking, which means I stick out to people. What does this perfect storm add up to? People mistakenly think that I'm a manager there.

In 15 minutes, I had three encounters with people who asked where stuff was:
1. I'm in the paint aisle, and a sweet little old lady comes up to me and asks, "I'm sorry, do you work here?" I smiled and politely said no. She had a puzzled-angry look on her face and walked away.
2. I'm talking with an actual Wal-Mart employee about exterior paint. All of the sudden, a random guy walks up and completely interrupts me mid-sentence. "Sandpaper! Do you guys have more of this?" he said holding the piece of sandpaper. The Wal-Mart lady leaves to go help him. I thought to myself, "Man, that guy was really rude," but what I didn't realize was that he thought we were just two Wal-Mart employees shooting the breeze together. He didn't mind interrupting us, because he thought (correctly) that we should drop everything and help him. He didn't realize that I was just another customer getting help, too.
3. This is just comical at this point -- a redneck basically shouts me down from across the aisle. "Vinegar? Got Vinegar?" I smiled and said, "I'm sorry, I don't work here." He just looked embarassed and pissed at the same time.

This is an important lesson. Never wear a blue shirt to Wal-Mart. Same goes for wearing a red shirt to Target or K-Mart.

Happy 2nd Anniversary to my Beautiful Wife

Two years ago, I walked up to the altar (my groomsmen in tow), looked towards the back of the sanctuary and out walked the most beautiful woman in the world. Thank God she took the vows and agreed to spend the rest of her life with me. Up until I met Holly, I spent a lot of time thinking that I would never find anyone, but God put someone in my life who surpassed my wildest expectations. I'm not perfect, but she is perfect for me, and I hope I'm perfect for her.

The first chapter of our marriage has been filled with many blessings. It's seen us change jobs, move closer to family and grow closer together. We've had losses (our cat, Angels) and gains (two new cats, a sister-in-law Liz and a "nephew" Cam). Now, we are opening a new chapter, one that will see us make another addition to the family (and we ain't talkin' about cats).

I can't wait for it to start....Holly, I love you very much!! Thanks for being my wife!!

Reunion Time

We are heaing to Holly's 10-year class reunion. This mornng, Holly and our niece, Laura, took a farirly large group of people on a tour of the old high school.

Should be a hundred or so people there tonight. Weather should be nice.

Epidural Needle = KCCI TV tower

When I was in high school, I played a football game against a team (North Polk) whose field was right next to some giant TV towers. The tallest tower belonged to our local CBS affiliate, KCCI.

A few weeks ago, during our childbirth classes, they showed us what an epidural needle looked like. And for the life of me, it's notched design looked exactly like the red-white-red-white alternating colors on the TV tower.

So now, whenever Holly asks me if I she should get an epidural, I always tell her, "Whether or not you want the KCCI tower stuck in your back is totally up to you."

Happy Father's Day

In honor of my dad and his relentless pursuit of family history, I bring you the following Father's Day tribute. It's also a tribute to his dad, his dad's dad, and every dad all the way up to my great-great-grandfather (forgive me if I have some of the dates wrong):

James William Ridpath (18xx-1902)



William Alanson Ridpath (1888-1972)



William Dwight Ridpath (1924-2003)



Harold Dwight Ridpath (1954-)



Alanson Clark Ridpath (1981-)



"Baby Boy" Ridpath (2010 [coming soon]-)

Really Useful Bible Quiz

My sister-in-law is hosting an event for her church tomorrow night, and one of the things she needed were some Bible-related quiz questions. I had a book I bought a while back call "The Really Useful Bible Quiz Book." I lifted some questions straight out of there, and combined them with some Holly came up with:

1. Where is Jesus now seated?
2. What are these: Love, Joy, Peace, Patience, Kindness, Goodness, Faithfulness, Gentleness and Self-Control?
3. Why the poor blessed?
4. What kind of giver does God love?
5. What does Jesus say will not add a single hour to your life?
6. Why did the Angel tell Joseph to call Mary’s son Jesus?
7. What did Jesus say will happen if you do not judge?
8. Why did Paul tell people to follow him?
9. All things work together for good for who?
10. Why did Jesus say to lay your treasure in Heaven?
11. To whom much is given, much is __________.
12. What man in the old testament said “Restore unto my the joy of my salvation.”
13. We are to look to Jesus as the author and _________ of our Faith
14. Where does a small gate and narrow road lead?


Answers:

1. The right hand of the Father.
2. The Fruits of the Spirit (Galatians 5:22)
3. Because theirs is the Kingdom of Heaven (Luke 6:20)
4. A cheerful giver (2 Chorinthians 9:7)
5. Worry (Matthew 6:27)
6. Because he will save his people from Sin (Matthew 1:21)
7. You will not be judged. (Luke 6:27)
8. Because he followed Christ (1 Chorinthians 1:11)
9. Those who love God and are called according to his purpose (Romans 8:28)
10. Where your treasure is, your heart will be also. (Matthew 6:20-21)
11. Required/Demanded/Expected (Luke 12:48)
12. David
13. Perfector (Hebrews 12:2)
14. Heaven/Life

Bob Devaney Legacy - Joining Big 10

Great article about former Nebraska coach Bob Devaney and how he would've approved joining the Big 10:

A fitting epilogue to Devaney’s legacy -- Omaha World-Herald

Happy Birthday, Angels

Today is a bittersweet day as we celebrate the birthday of our wonderful cat, O'Neal (aka Angels). She passed away this summer from complications due to her kidneys. She would have been 17 years old today.

Even though we're very sad she's gone, we are so grateful to have had her as long as we did.

She was at the backdrop of the first three years of our relationship. She moved into our house in Virginia with us, was there for us when we were planning our wedding, greeted us as we came back from our Honeymoon, and helped us make the big decision to move back to West Virginia.

She truly was our daughter, and we could not have asked for better "practice" for our human child.

Cinnamon Rolls and River Fest

This morning, we drove down to Ronceverte for the River Festival. The highlight of the morning was getting to eat some Cinn-Sational cinnamon rolls. Cinn-Sational is known for having hour-and-a-half-long lines at the West Virginia state fair.



We were lucky this morning...no line at all.

Baby Classes

Just a quick update: Tonight was session #4 (out of 6) for baby classes.

Without fail, each session has caused me to the "green bean face" at one point or another. The green bean face/sound stems from my ever-since-childhood disgust of green beans. A few weeks ago, we watched a live birth, and I saw the umbilical cord get cut -- ugggh, green bean face. Last week, we got to see the epidural needle -- ugggh, green bean face. This week's topic: circumcision. Do I even need to tell you how I reacted?

Next week, we get to take a tour of the maternity ward. I wonder what'll get me to squirm then.

Baby Bump Update

I figured I'd take a moment to show some progress on the baby bump


Holly is 30 weeks along, and she is due July 26, although we (along with her grandma) think that she is further along than the doctors think.


If she doesn't mind me saying, I think pregnancy has looked really good on Holly. She just has that glow. She always has.

Thesis #5: “Serve the Lord” trumps “Feed the World”

For the first 25 years of my life, nearly every church service I’d ever been to ended with these words: “Go in peace. Serve the Lord” (or “Go in peace. Love and serve the Lord.”)

That was, until I moved to Virginia and decided to try out my local ELCA church. The congregation was very small, mostly elderly and led by a woman in her 50’s. I was one of two people under the age of 35 in the crowd (which only numbered 20 or so). This didn’t necessarily bother me, but I had some reservations about becoming a regular, because – for no other reason - I wanted to worship with people closer to my own age. Nothing against these folks; I just didn’t think I’d make a good fit. However, the final words of the morning certainly ensured that I would never return to this congregation: “Go in Peace. Feed the World.”

At this point, you’re probably thinking, “Chill out. That’s harmless. God wants us to feed the poor.” That’s true, but there was something very unsettling about “Feed the World,” and it wasn’t because of a change from my status quo “green jello” Lutheran experience. There was something subtly disturbing and bothersome about replacing “Serve the Lord” with “Feed the World.” Forever, I couldn’t put my finger on it, but with a little research and a lot of scripture study, I think I finally figured out why.

I submit to you the two following pieces of information/wisdom:
1. “As for me and my House, we will SERVE THE LORD” – Joshua 24:15 (emphasis added)
Encapsulated in this verse (and the other parts of Joshua 24) is the idea that a true disciple of the Lord does not serve other gods. In the context of this passage, people were warned not to serve the false gods of the land they entered, but to instead serve the true God who led them out of Egypt. In today’s context, this is often taken to mean not only shouldn’t we worship false gods, but we shouldn’t elevate other things (money, activities, work, etc.) above God. This is an example of how “Serve the Lord” isn’t just limited to feeding the poor.
2. Since the formation of the ELCA, the number of missionaries supported by the church has dropped 80%. Whilte the ELCA is very active in world relief, they have severely de-emphasized "actual" global mission work. (By “actual,” I mean going into an area where Christ is not known - or where Christians are persecuted – and spreading the word, i.e. actually convincing people to become followers of Christ.)

“Feed the World” is a significant but small subset of all that is required of us when we “Serve the Lord.” To the congregation in Virginia and, in general, the larger ELCA family, “Feed the world” has been singled out and elevated above all other aspects of “Serve the Lord.”

Absent from the concept of “Feed the World” are the many other important parts of “Serve the Lord”: repentance, avoiding sin, striving to be like Christ, discipleship, spreading the Gospel, witnessing, loving the Lord with all your heart/mind/strength…just to name a few.

Without these, the church is nothing more than a glorified Rotary Club. Anyone can “Feed the World.” Atheists, Muslims, Buddhists, Wiccans and Sun-Worshippers can all donate clothing, collect cans for a food drive or build shelters for the homeless.

But what is the one thing that a Christian – and ONLY a Christian – can do? “Love and Serve the Lord.”

Thanks be to God.

Thesis #4: The Sanctity of Unborn Life should be protected

As I’ve researched more into the grievances lodged against the ELCA, a litany of flagrant positions/actions by the synod has come to light. Perhaps none was more shocking to me than the following: For many years, the ELCA’s health plan has covered abortions for its female pastors and that a female pastor is permitted to get an abortion for nearly any reason, including gender selection (“I wanted a boy, but I got a girl. I want to abort it and try again”)

That is sick and abhorrent and has no business being a part of any Christian church’s policy.

Now, does this mean that Lutherans have to form their own Moral Majority? No. Does it mean they have to march lock-step with Pro-Life groups in Washington every year? Not necessarily, and I can certainly respect (or even admire) any Christian’s desire to keep their church relatively apolitical.

But, can we at least start with this: most abortions, though legal, are not moral. Killing your unborn baby because it’s not your favorite gender, you wanted a Summer baby instead of Fall baby, or just because you felt like it – That is immoral.

Whether abortion is legal or not shouldn’t matter within the Church. Many things are legal. Gambling your life savings away is legal. Leaving your wife and kids for your secretary is legal. Having sex before you’re married is also (usually) legal. But God holds you to a higher standard.

Ethics is not enough. Holiness is what God has called you to do.

Thesis #3: Biblical Justice is “Traditional Justice” – not “Cosmic Justice”

One of the final straws for me was the 2009 ELCA youth gathering in New Orleans. The theme was “Jesus. Justice. Jazz." On the surface, that seems fairly harmless. Who isn’t for justice? However, it’s the type of justice being considered that’s questionable.

In his book, “The Quest for Cosmic Justice,” economist Thomas Sowell spells out two often-conflicting view of justice: Traditional Justice vs. Cosmic Justice.

Traditional Justice deals with innocent vs. guilt and right vs. wrong. Justice is served when the guilty are punished and innocent are set free. Under traditional justice, everyone is BORN equal; all laws apply equally to everyone, regardless of class, race, gender, etc.

Cosmic Justice deals with poor vs. rich. Justice is served when everyone has equal outcomes. Under cosmic justice, everyone is to END UP equal; everyone is entitled to the same lot in life, regardless of their talents, skills, abilities or how hard they’ve worked. A huge empahsis is placed on economic outcomes.

(Note: One of the widely used synonyms for cosmic justice is “Social Justice,” however as Thomas Sowell points out, “There is no such thing as ‘non-social justice.’ Someone alone on a deserted island isn’t concerned about being treated justly.”)

While many Christians hold the Biblical model of justice to the traditional standard, the ELCA has gone the cosmic route.

Along with this follow all the usual myths: economic inequalities alone cause poverty; poverty causes crime; Economics is a zero-sum game; Capitalism oppresses the poor; wealthy Americans become wealthy by exploiting the poor; government is a worthy agent of creating wealth and ending poverty, etc., etc. I don’t have the space or time to write about all these, but they have all been debunked by modern economists.

The exact opposite of all the above are true: the breakdown of the family and a crisis of values cause crime; Economics is predicated on win-win scenarios; Capitalism uplifts the poor; wealthy Americans became wealthy by serving their fellow man with products/services they want; the government perpetuates poverty and squanders resources.

The ELCA (especially many of their clergy and most of the professors at their colleges) have bought into the cosmic justice myth. While many have not explicitly upheld socialism or communism as the ideal, socialism and communism are the logical conclusions of cosmic justice.

Don't fall for it; socialism doesn't work. Capitalism does.

Thesis #2: Universal Salvation is a Lie

If there is one idea that is more dangerous than any other, it has to be "Universal Salvation" -- the belief that everyone goes to Heaven. While not everyone in the ELCA believes this, it is a growing idea in many pastoral circles and should be refuted at every opportunity.

Universal Salvation can encompass one of two ideas. They are:
1. Hell does not exist, or
2. Hell exists, but it is impossible to go there.

Both are scripturally untrue (Mark 9:43-49 and Matthew 7:23, respectively, deal with these issues.). Universal Salvation is another product of wishful, self-therapeutic thinking, ("I believe in a loving God, and my concept of a loving God is one that would never condemn someone to Hell.").

The problem with this is that, if you everyone goes to Heaven, why do you need a Savior? Why do you need to Repent? Why do you need to change your life and strive to become like Christ? Why even go to Church?

I believe that nearly all of the other problems in the ELCA stem from the first two of my theses (See #1 here) . Without scriptural authority and the need for a Savior, your entire moral and intellectual foundation will crumble. More theses to follow...

Thesis #1: The Bible (and not your "bound conscience") is the ultimate source of Truth

In 1517, Martin Luther wrote down 95 grievences (or "Theses") against the Catholic Church, and he hammered them to the cathedral doors at Wittenberg Castle. It started what we now know as the Lutheran Reformation.

Fast forward nearly 500 years, and this time, it is the ELCA Lutheran Church that needs Reforming. In the spirit of Luther, I've come up with a dozen or so theses of my own, and I will hammer them to my blog. Enjoy..
*****************************************
#1: The Bible (and not your "bound conscience") is the ultimate source of Truth--

At the heart of the ELCA's position regarding gay clergy is the non-biblical concept of a "bound conscience." Apparently, more and more people's consciences are bound to the idea that homosexuality is not immoral. The ELCA has responded by saying it's OK for some congregations to have gay pastors, even if other another congregation's "bound conscience" is geared towards the Biblical standard of sexuality (i.e. One Man + One Woman in a marrage)

This is really an intellectually elite way of allowing moral relativism ("What's a sin for you may not be a sin for moe, because morality is relative to my feelings/thoughts/conscience.")

If I were the Devil, I would LOVE the idea of a "bound conscience." That's just the foothold I'd be looking for. Now that the immovable Bible has been supplanted by peoples' shifting feelings, there's no telling what havoc Satan can use.

Leaving the ELCA

For the first 24 years of my life, I attended and worshipped at an Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) church. I went to an ELCA church, sang songs at an ELCA Bible camp and attended an ELCA college. However, certain things have happened in my own life and within the hierarchies of the ELCA that have caused me to distance myself from the organization.

Things officially came to a head this past Summer when the ELCA bishops voted to allow churches to ordain openly gay ministers. As a result, my parents have decided to leave their church home of nearly 30 years and seek out a new place to worship.

And it's made me take a very close look at what I believe and what has lead me to where I am now. I know for a lot of folks, the decision to include homosexual clergy was a shock and a surprise, but for me, it was the straw-that-broke-the-camels-back on a long list of things that have led me to cut ties with the ELCA.

I'll write more about this in later posts, because there are so many things that bother me about the whole situation. But on a brighter note, this whole ordeal has renewed within me a drive to study the Word (i.e. the actual Bible). So this hasn't been totally a bad thing.

Bo Pelini Bingo -- "BingBo"

Reporters covering Spring Practice for the Nebraska Football team have been bored with the lack of "big" news surrounding the program. To combat their boredom, they've created a form of Bingo using words that head coach Bo Pelini uses during press conferences:

BingBo - Big Red Network

Chocolate Festival

Yesterday, we went to Lewisburg for the 2010 Chocolate Fest. Lots of good eats, plus they did a reading of "Curious George," which prompted Noah to dress up!!

Pray for the Miners

I came into work today and noticed that our student counselors were all gone. Here's why:

Update on WVSOM Response to Mine Disaster

Several members of the West Virginia School of Osteopathic Medicine community will be in Montcoal, W.Va. today to provide mental health services to those affected by the Upper Big Branch mine explosion.

In collaboration with Greenbrier Valley chapter of the American Red Cross, WVSOM staff members Gretchen Lovett, Ph.D., Professor/Clinical Psychologist, Donna Tolbert, M.A., LPC, student counselor, and Adrienne Biesemeyer, M.A., LPC, student counselor, are on site in Montcoal.

Dr. Lovett, Tolbert and Biesemeyer will provide grief counseling services to family members, co-workers, first responders and people in the community.

Meg McKeon, Ed. D., LICSW, assistant vice president for Student Development, will serve as the institutional contact person for this initiative. Dr. McKeon and Biesemeyer are certified American Red Cross Emergency Responders.

The official notifications from Massey Energy of those miners killed and those still missing will come today, so the need for qualified counselors is expected to be high. WVSOM personnel will provide services for the remainder of this week and next week as needed.

We will continue to update you on WVSOM’s involvement over the coming days.

Richard Rafes, J.D., Ph.D.
President

Truly a trying time for everyone involved.

Nephew in the News

Our nephew, Dylan, made it into the paper. He was at home for Spring Break from the US Military Academy in West Point, NY when the local rotary club asked him to come speak.

Alive and Kickin'

The baby kicked last night, and I could definitely feel it. It was awesome!! Up until now, Holly would have me put my hand on her stomach, but I couldn't tell if it was the baby kicking or if it was my pulse.

But last night, it was unmistakable. That baby was kickin'!!

It's a BOY!!!!

It didn't take too long for the ultrasound lady to find what she was looking for...



It's a boy, and we are very excited!!!! Holly's Grandma predicted boy, as did her sister, and Grandma Ridpath. I guess they were right!!



Holly also had a quick appt with her obstetrician. Everything looks good!!

Another Stupid BCS "Solution": Conference Mega-Realignment

Forget expansion -- it's time for full-blown conference realignment - SI.com


Basically, another journalism major thinks they actually know something about basic economics. The article is one of those, "Yeah, that's interesting, but basically a supid idea," sort of things. He also has one major flaw: He doesn't include South Florida in his "re-alignment." Again, he probably can't do math, because he's a journalism major.

Update on Baby, Basketball, Etc.

Holly and I are less than one week away from finding out if we're having a boy or a girl, and we are very excited to find out. I took more "Baby Bump" photos, but the blogger uploader doesn't seem to be working all that well. So, if you have facebook, go check her out on there.



Otherwise, we went and watched Holly's old high school, Greenbrier East, play for a chance to go to state last night. They lost to the #1 team in the state, George Washington High of Charleston, by nine points, but we led for a good part of the game. It just came apart at the end. Still, it was a great game and a great season for the Men of Sparta.



Conference tournaments heat up this weekend, and Selection Sunday is in a few days. And last but not least, "Selection Tuesday" will tell us who's going to be joining our family!! Stay tuned!!

Contemporary Worship

Our church in Lewisburg has voted to add a Contemporary service (in addition to our Traditional Service) on Sunday mornings. This is a very exciting and scary time for us, as we're not exactly sure how it will all pan out. Holly and I went to an information/planning meeting session about it. Our first "contemporary" Sunday will be in April, the weekend after Easter.

I found a really good article about Contemporary worship here:
Traditional vs. Contemporary, and the Myth of Blended Worship - AllThingsNewMinistries.org

Basically, this pastor says that Contemporary worship doesn't have as much to do with the music as it has to do with the "flow" of the service. You can have a "contemporary service" and still be singing 500-year-old hymns. It's really interesting.

On the other hand, my church in Arkansas had one service each Sunday in which they sang contemporary-style songs, but they were still doing it in a "Traditional" worship style (i.e. stand up here, sit down there, three readings, a sermon, bunch of prayers, go home).

A contemporary service places focus on getting you in the mood to worship; traditional is more of a structured set of tasks. A lot of people have different opinions on what they like, but I think it's cool that our church is exploring all of the possible ways to connect people to Christ.

Baby Bump Update

Wish I had a more updated photo than this, but I just wanted to give you an update on how Baby Ridpath is progressing.



Earlier this month, Holly had another ultra-sound, and everything showed up Okie-dokie. We find out in a couple weeks whether it's going to be a boy or a girl. Her doctor would have been able to do it sooner, but he's out of town, so everything kind of got pushed back.

Based on what we've read on-line (and in "What to Expect, When You're Expceting"), our baby is about the size of a mango. We're very excited, and we can't wait for little Mango to arrive!!

"My Team can beat your team"

There is an aweseome feature on Masseyratings.com where you can compare any two high school basketball teams in the country and see if they have a connection.

We're better than.... - Masseyratings.com

Here, I've demonstrated that, if the conditions were right, my high school could beat Holly's high school. On the other hand, her team could beat my team, too.

Happy Birthday, "Grandpa" Harold

My dad turns 55 today. He's going to be a grandfather in about 5 months, so I'm teasing him unrelentingly...

Happy Valentine's Day

I love Holly very much, so I did my usual "scavenger hunt" for gifts, notes and everything else. This year's scavenger hung included a special video message from Angels:



Translation: "I love you very much!!"

I hope everyone had a wonderful weekend with their special someone. And to Holly: I love you bunches!!

Funny: The Pro-Abortion Ad for Pro-Abortionists

This is a funny and interesting take on the whole Tim Tebow vs. Planned Parenthood controversy:



"Abortion: Don't Rule it Out"

Awaiting Another Snowstorm

School has already been called off for Holly tomorrow, and I'm definitely thinking about bailing out of work, myself. We are supposed to start getting snow at Midnight, and it's not supposed to stop until Sunday afternoon.

Ahhhhhh...more "global warming" is on the way!!

Lost: The Final Season Begins Tonight

I've come an ultimate conclusion: Lost is the greatest show in the history of television.


Why? To summarize a post I read on the IMDB.com message board (my paraphrase):
"If you like shows with drama and deep character development, you'll like Lost. If you like action, you'll like Lost. If you like romantic struggle/drama stuff, you'll like Lost. If you like comedic twists, you'll like Lost. If you like shows/movies/books/plays where there are a lot of inter-connected sub-plots and everything has an ultimate significance, you'll like Lost."

Basically, if you've ever liked a TV show for any reason at all, then you'll really enjoy Lost. There's something for everybody. And tonight, the sixth and final season gets underway. I can't wait to see how it all turns out.

Happy Birthday, Grandma R

My Grandma turned 89 years old today.



Happy Birthday!!

Cleaning Up

This weekend has been very productive. I've gotten my Christmas letter ready (only a month late!!) We are also cleaning up after our cats who decided to shred up a roll of toilet pater in our bathroom. There's little shards of paper everywhere.

We also might start on our taxes, and watch the last few episodes of Lost Season 5 on DVD. The sixth and final season begins on Tuesday!!

Big News

We're gonna be parents!!

Coming this summer!! Due Date: July 29, 2010