undefeated losers

hey there.

it's always fun to be undefeated.  there's nothing better than pulling off what you knew you were capable of...  even in the face of every critic.  the kansas city chiefs currently find themselves 3-0, the only  unbeaten team in the nfl!  nobody truly believed they would be in the position they are in this week.  but they have relearned something about themselves:  money & prestige can occasionally have an impact on the win column; but strong hearts and raw talent carry the trump card every time.

go ahead.  get out there and prove your critics wrong.  don't be fooled into thinking that you will win every battle...  but with the right motivation and God's help, you will win the war.

[and also, please pray for the chiefs...]

_that's what matthinx.

my friend steve

check this guy out:  steve parsons dot net

hey there.

God knows.

He always knows!

it never matters what we've been through, or even where we've been...  God knows how to reach us with His relentless love.


it's like when a stranger from the other side of the planet shows up to worship with you at church, and then he sings a couple of songs that God uses to bring you crashing to your knees.


steve parsons is a funny guy.  i really think you'd like him.  his humor is perfectly dry, and his sarcasm is perfectly dropped.  he's not some pre-packaged squeaky clean plastic christian.  he's real.  he's been there.  but He is madly in love with God as he follows Jesus in real life.  and i haven't even know him 24 hours, but we are kindred spirits.  his lyrics are honestly raw, leaving no room for excuses:

one truth can set a man free, lift him up out of the dark, give him a reason, give him a new song to sing. one Man nailed to a tree, paying the price of a new beginning.  love is His answer and life is the gift that He brings.

i want to care without a stony heart.  i want to love and never lose the spark.  i want to go illuminate the dark.  and i want to, want to love.

[from 'one life'  _  written by steve parsons]

 check this out:  i attended central bible college with danae rutherford, who married steve parsons [singer/songwriter from the uk], who was invited to attend a conference in estes park colorado with eugene peterson [the beast behind 'the message'], and then got in touch with paul church [college friend & current pastor], to finally minister to the body of believers at dakota ridge assembly [where i just happen to attend].  you can call all of those details a tangled mess of happenstances, but i would simply call you crazy.


thank God for working all things together for the good!


_that's what matthinx

the do-over

hey there.

before the great wii, before the xbox, before psanything, even before running water...  we had atari.  it was back in the old days when 3D graphics weren't part of gaming.  some of us remember a time when our video games didn't come with pre-packaged imagination.  we primitively manipulated our pixelated icon across the tv screen, and sat amazed.  it was magical!

one thing has never changed though:  the reset button.  honest gamers will admit to using it more than they were proud of...  but we were thankful to have one more chance to beat the machine.  one more chance to figure out the things we had missed.  one more chance to execute the perfect game.

i'll never forget the long wait before the system was able to reboot.  it seemed like an eternity.  such wasted time.  we had more important things to do than just sit there waiting...  like fixing what we did wrong.

life is like that sometimes, and we find ourselves waiting to reboot.


thank GOD for HIS relentless love!

_that's what matthinx

better late than never?

as all three of our faithful uftv followers will remember, i delivered a rather hefty promise to be a better blogger in 2009.  and i failed...  miserably.


but, in an honest effort to redeem my honor, i am making a valiant effort to finish the year strong. i'm not promising a bunch of new fangled ideas this month, just some that have been carefully dusted off. please enjoy the following vintage blog posts that will remind us how the underground fellowship journey began here at pocono community church. stay connected with us, and the reward will be brand-spankin' new material in 2010.


[pm@]