Pastor's Corner

As you already know, a devastating 7.0 magnitude earthquake struck near Port au-Prince, Haiti on Tuesday affecting the nine million people who live in that country. Haiti is the poorest country in the Western Hemisphere with 80% of the population living under the poverty line and 54% living on less than $1 a day.

You have likely been inundated with lots of information about how you can help, but I thought I would provide some additional information on two Christian organizations that I have had personal contact with and trust.

Covenant World Relief
http://www.covchurch.org/cwr

This week we jumped off on the Essential 100 Challenge together.  I hope you have already discovered the "alive and active" nature of God's Word.  If you haven't started the Bible reading plan yet, start now.  You can download the plan HERE.

Some great discussions have already started on the Riverside E100 webpage.  Make sure you comment on any passages that spark a question or insight.  We want to engage and wrestle with the passages together.

Finally, make sure you are signed up to receive the E100 passages and devotions each day in your email.  You will also receive a link to listen to the passages online if you would prefer.  To sign up simply enter your email address in the box at the top of the Riverside E100 webpage and click "submit."

"Every part of Scripture is God-breathed and useful one way or another—showing us truth, exposing our rebellion, correcting our mistakes, training us to live God's way. Through the Word we are put together and shaped up for the tasks God has for us."  2 Timothy 3:16-17 (The Message) 

On Monday, January 4, 2010, Riverside will begin "The Essential 100 Challenge™ (The E100).  Are you up for the challenge? The E100 is a Bible reading program built around 100 carefully selected, short Bible passages — 50 from the Old Testament and 50 from the New Testament. It is designed to help us get the big picture about God's Word and into the habit of reading the Bible on a daily basis.

This evening, Dana and I went out to dinner with some out-of-town friends that were passing through the area.  The last time we saw them, Adelaide was very young and Miriam hadn't been born yet.  After about a half hour of catching up, Adelaide eased into her chatty self.  She began telling our friends about her day at preschool and how one boy was not being nice, hit another kid, and would not "listen and obey." 

Someone recently sent me a link to The Fun Theory and the above video. The site is dedicated to the thought that something as simple as fun is the easiest way to change people’s behavior for the better.

While I appreciate the premise, I have found it quite exhausting to repeatedly dance on my dinner chair in an effort to get our girls to consume vegetables. I am also intrigued to know whether they could make watching Illinois football fun this year.  

This week inventor James Dyson (of Dyson vacuum cleaner fame) unveiled his newest product, which is a bladeless air pusher.  His Air Multiplier sucks in air from its base before propelling a constant stream through a thin gap in the fan's ring.  The result is a powerful, yet soothing airflow.

Proverbs 17:22 says, "A cheerful heart is good medicine, but a crushed spirit dries up the bones."

Adelaide has been learning some jokes in recent weeks.  (What do you call a one-hundred year old ant?  An antique.  <laugh here>)  It has been a blast watching her laugh and seeing her make others laugh. 

There are always a lot of things in our lives that are not funny, but few can deny the cleansing and refreshing feeling of a good laugh.  I received the below ideas to cure a bad day.  Let me know how they work for you.