08.10.08 Do I have A Story For You

You’ll probably have to wait until Tuesday to hear it, but do I have a story for you?  It’s about yesterday, Saturday, and some crazy people I met in Maryland.

But today.  Today, I played and talked at Pete‘s church - the church Pete is part of, not owns.  It was jarring at first to be there.  It’s like a bizarro version of the church I’m part of.  We and they meet in school cafeterias that smell exactly alike.  Our cafeterias are both packed with chairs that have to be stacked when we leave each Sunday and we both have speakers and a sound system that have to be torn down every week too.  The only real major difference between Pete’s church and mine?  Actual rocket scientists and members of Bush’s cabinet are part of his church and, um, we’ve got me and Brian and Redneck Neighbor and, uh, well, that’s not even close to the same thing huh?

Anyway, he and his wife and their very quiet daughter took me out for lunch - Thai food.  I’ve never had Thai food.  Chinese food, unfried and sweeter.  Yum.  An attorney who works for International Justice Mission and his wife and very well-behaved kids came along too.  As did the pastor’s college-aged son and a friend of his.  (I remember being in college and calling a beautiful girl my “friend.” I also remember marrying that girl.  Yep. I do.)

Some people - and Pete’s one of those for sure - somehow give me more life and energy than they take or I can give them.  I didn’t I was coming to his church this morning - didn’t connect those dots at all.  Very pleasant surprise. Pete’s one flaw?  He’s slacking on his blogging at the moment.  He’s Twittering instead.  (Twittering?) So, stop by his “blog” will ya? And ask him to post something new, something with a subject and a verb and capital letters mixed in with lowercase ones...every day...because we care...and, seriously, he has a lot to offer us.

So now, with a happy stomach and a flight that doesn’t leave Baltimore for a couple hours, I’m resisting the smell of bread and “cheese food” emanating from Aunt Annie‘s a few feet away from me.  And after I publish this post (and buy a pretzel and a cup of “cheese food") I’ll watch a movie on my laptop and begin my sabbath.  No work tomorrow.  And that means Tuesday - hopefully Tuesday - I’ll be able to tell you that story I mentioned earlier.  Invite every cynic to meet you here Tuesday...along with every person who thinks bigger is always better, especially those church leadership guys (bless their heart) who think success = attendance.  ‘Cause I have a story to tell.  Yessir, I do.

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Update: I’ve been at the Baltimore airport for 6—count ‘em—6 hours. 1-2-3-4-5-6 hours.  Our plane was grounded in Rhode Island all afternoon.  They say it’ll be here any minute, and then, finally, I’m heading home.

While I waited, I watched There WIll Be Blood.  I would love to watch some cartoons right now.  And wash my soul.  Wow, that was dark.