The Wonderful World of Disney

Yes, it is true. I, being an Assemblies of God minister, did in fact enter the Disney Land Resort. And can I be honest? I didn't feel one bit of guilt about it. Ok, I am joking a bit. Anyways...

Before our trip, I made the vain attempt at trying to find discounted tickets to the park on line. About the only thing I could come up with was hotel and park combo's and with that you had to stay multiple days. During this search I ran across a website where it was stated that the reason Disney doesn't offer discounted tickets is because people will come anyways.

So, in my brilliant state of mind, my immediate reaction to the comment was "well that is dumb!" But, weeks later, as I entered the park and witnessed the joy on the face of my 3 year old daughter at the site of Tinker Bell flying through the sky with the backdrop of fireworks was enough to make a grown man cry. Or the uncontrollable excitement that Reghan experience as we watched the parade and the princess march by; the look on her face was priceless.

At that moment, I understood the statement, people will come anyway. Young and old alike, millions of people weekly are enthralled with the wonder of Disney. And as I sat there and watch the parade flow by and my daughter jumping up and down and screaming, I thought why isn't it that way in the church? People don't just come anyways. It seems like we have to really coerce someone into coming. Maybe I am raising more questions than I have answers for. But I guess I struggle with the fact that people just don't come to church anymore. Now we can blame that on our changing culture or whatever we want to blame it on. But the reality is, the buck stops with each and everyone of us as individuals. The life that we live and demonstrate to others speaks volumes. If you get anything out of this short blog post, get this: Live a life that people want to emulate and not a life that they would want to distance themselves from.

Incoming Freshman

For me it is almost crazy to consider that this years incoming college freshman class was most likely born in 1990. Hmmm... I was starting my junior year in high school in '90. YIKES! That means in two more years... whoa, I can't think about that yet. Anyways, I received an email this morning that contained this information and then I read about it on the web. There is a college in Beloit Wisconsin that puts out a list annually to the administrators and professors. On this list are things that are completely unique to the incoming freshman class, or another way to state it, the world seen through their eyes. I will post this list, it is a bit lengthly, 60 in all, but for those of us who are a little older, I think you will enjoy.

1. Harry Potter could be a classmate, playing on their Quidditch team.
2. Since they were in diapers, karaoke machines have been annoying people at parties.
3. They have always been looking for Carmen Sandiego.
4. GPS satellite navigation systems have always been available.
5. Coke and Pepsi have always used recycled plastic bottles.
6. Shampoo and conditioner have always been available in the same bottle.
7. Gas stations have never fixed flats, but most serve cappuccino.
8. Their parents may have dropped them in shock when they heard George Bush announce "tax revenue increases."
9. Electronic filing of tax returns has always been an option.
10. Girls in head scarves have always been part of the school fashion scene.
11. All have had a relative — or known about a friend's relative - who died comfortably at home with hospice.
12. As a precursor to "whatever," they have recognized that some people "just don't get it."
13. Universal Studios has always offered an alternative to Mickey in Orlando.
14. Grandma has always had wheels on her walker.
15. Martha Stewart Living has always been setting the style.
16. Haagen-Dazs ice cream has always come in quarts.
17. Club Med resorts have always been places to take the whole family.
18. WWW has never stood for World Wide Wrestling.
19. Films have never been X rated, only NC-17.
20. The Warsaw Pact is as hazy for them as the League of Nations was for their parents.
21. Students have always been "Rocking the Vote."
22. Clarence Thomas has always sat on the Supreme Court.
23. Schools have always been concerned about multiculturalism.
24. We have always known that "All I Ever Really Needed to Know I Learned in Kindergarten."
25. There have always been gay rabbis.
26. Wayne Newton has never had a mustache.
27. College grads have always been able to Teach for America.
28. IBM has never made typewriters.
29. Roseanne Barr has never been invited to sing the National Anthem again.
30. McDonald's and Burger King have always used vegetable oil for cooking french fries.
31. They have never been able to color a tree using a raw umber Crayola.
32. There has always been Pearl Jam.
33. The Tonight Show has always been hosted by Jay Leno and started at 11:35 EST.
34. Pee-Wee has never been in his playhouse during the day.
35. They never tasted Benefit Cereal with psyllium.
36. They may have been given a Nintendo Game Boy to play with in the crib.
37. Authorities have always been building a wall across the Mexican border.
38. Lenin's name has never been on a major city in Russia.
39. Employers have always been able to do credit checks on employees.
40. Balsamic vinegar has always been available in the U.S.
41. Macaulay Culkin has always been "Home Alone."
42. Their parents may have watched "The American Gladiators" on TV the day they were born.
43. Personal privacy has always been threatened.
44. Caller ID has always been available on phones.
45. Living wills have always been asked for at hospital check-ins.
46. The Green Bay Packers (almost) always had the same starting quarterback.
47. They never heard an attendant ask "Want me to check under the hood?"
48. Iced tea has always come in cans and bottles.
49. Soft drink refills have always been free.
50. They have never known life without Seinfeld references from a show about "nothing."
51. The Windows 3.0 operating system made IBM PCs user-friendly the year they were born.
52. Moscow residents have always been able to buy Big Macs.
53. The Royal New Zealand Navy has never been permitted a daily ration of rum.
54. The Hubble Space Telescope has always been eavesdropping on the heavens.
55. 98.6 F or otherwise has always been confirmed in the ear.
56. Michael Milken has always been a philanthropist promoting prostate cancer research.
57. Offshore oil drilling in the United States has always been prohibited.
58. Radio stations have never been required to present both sides of public issues.
59. There have always been charter schools.
60. Students always had Goosebumps.

Thank God

I just want to state from the beginning that I am extremely thankful that I am a man. Now before a get comments stating that I am sexist or something like that, please let me explain.
I went to the doctor with my wife today to have our first visit regarding Stacy's pregnancy. And let me just say "WOW!" I won't go into all of the details, but I cannot image what it would feel like to have all of that stuff done to you. YIKES!!!

But on the flip-side, they did an ultrasound and we got to see the baby. You could see its little heart beating and it even moved for us. We both cried. And so I also thank God for that too.

Tragedy Averted

It seems easy to say now, but we had a really close call yesterday. In hindsight, it seems scarier than it did while in the situation, but I thank God everything is ok.

The whole Grogan clan all decided that we would head down to Coronado Island and enjoy a few hours at the beach. It was an absolutely beautiful day, 76 degrees, a nice breeze blowing in off the ocean. It doesn't get much better than that.

At first, Reghan was very apprehensive about the sand and the water. It took her a good hour before she would walk on the sand. After that, she moved onto the ocean. At first she didn't even like the little bit of water that came rushing up the beach. Finally I convinced her that if she held onto me, we could walk out into the water and enjoy some waves. A decision I would later regret.

At first things were going great. The water was cold, so there was a shocked reaction from Reghan and myself. The water was just below my waist and when the waves would crash in they would be about my stomach level. So we were having a blast as the water came crashing in. After about 5 minutes, as the tide was coming in, I guess i didn't realize that the water was getting a little deeper and the waves were getting a little bigger. A wave came that it crashed in about my upper chest, I thought whew that was close, but I was prepared for the next. The looked up to see the next wave coming in and it was about the height of my head. My natural reaction was to jump to keep my head and Reghan's head above the wave. That was when a few things happened.

A week earlier I had torn my quad muscle which still at this point is limiting some of my mobility with my right leg. As I jumped, I felt the muscle pull and at the same moment the wave came crashing down and the strong undertow was too much for me to keep my balance. Reghan and I both plunged under the water.

People say at times your life can flash before your eyes, well for me, I daughters life flashed before my eyes. When we went down, I was still holding Reghan and because of the waves crashing on my I couldn't stand back up unless I let go of Reghan. It is amazing to think how fast our minds can process and problem solve in fractions of seconds. I knew if I didn't let go of my daughter I would not be able to pull us both up. So for a brief moment I loosened my grip, pushed myself up, and reached for my daughter I grabbed her by the ankle and pulled her up by her leg out of the water. We were maybe underwater a total of 3 to 5 seconds, but it seemed like a lifetime.

Later that night, as I was sitting in The Phantom of the Opera at the Civic Center in downtown San Diego I reflected back on the event. Tears came to my eyes as I thought about the possibility of losing my only daughter. With the waves crashing down, and the undertow pulling out it would have been very easy to have Reghan get pulled under. But tragedy was averted, I was able to pull her out. Needless to say, Reghan was not happy, and as we were later walking back to the car, Reghan looked at me and said "Dad, I don't ever want to go back there again." As tears flooded in, I just smiled. Even cuter than that, was the fact that as I get knocked over, my hat came off my head and I lost my brand new glasses in the ocean. And whole time after that, Reghan was so concerned that I had lost my glasses and couldn't find them. It made her sad that I had lost my glasses.

I actually have a lot of spiritual application that I received because of this event, but I will save it for later. At this very moment, we are getting ready to drive to DisneyLand for the day. I am glad I have my daughter with me to enjoy it.

Leavin' on a jet plan

Here I am packing up and preparing for a trip to sunny San Diego. Stacy, Reghan, and I are traveling out there to visit Stacy's brother. While we are there, we are going to head north and visit Disneyland for 2 days. We are going to suffer through the 76 degree days, with 10% humidity. Man, its going to be rough.

Garage Sale

I am about to join the thousands of americans who during the wonderful weekends of the summer open up their garage doors to display those items that have sat in the garage or basement for the past few years. That's right, the great american garage sale. Thankfully I am married to a woman who cannot stand clutter. This is our 4th garage sale in only 6 years of marriage. What is it about a variety of items strung all over the driveway that causes us to slow down and look or if the seller is lucky, we pull over.
Well, here is to a great american past time. And I hope I make some good money!