Tuesdays with Muerte

Spiritual Thought of the Day They say, all men must be tried like Abraham to merit eternal exaltation. After pondering the acts of Peter throughout the New Testament, it would seem that this intrepid, shamelessly faithful Apostle would have done just about anything to have pleased or defended the Savior. The three examples that primarily come to mind are: 1. Peter leaping out of his fishing vessel and swimming to shore once he recognized the Savior instead of waiting for the wind to take the ship in, like the rest of the Apostles. In John the Beloved's words, "he girt his fisher's coat unto him (for he was naked,) and did cast himself into the sea. (John 21:7) 2. Peter beseeching the Savior to wash all of him instead of just his feet, once he understood its significance at the Last Supper. (John 13:6-12) 3. Peter smiting off the Jewish, night guard's ear to protect the Savior in Gethsemane. I wonder if Peter understood his purpose for being on the Mount ...

A midget Mexican wrestler is brutally drop kicked and fired at another wrestler on the outside of the ring. (Mexican wrestling > WWE) A Power Ranger-looking wrestler spins relentlessly around his opponent's neck, ultimately launching him from the ring.

Do you see the one in the middle? I totally had him. And the trumpet guy. But the raisin I remember best had red and white checkered glasses and sneakers and pointed in both directions with his hands. That guy had a special position of honor on my wooden bunk bed post. He stood as sentinel of my dreams throughout my formative years, as I grew up in the Blue House. Heather, do you have the picture of the raisin and me posing on my bed with my red and white checkered shades on? Why were those guys so cool? Did they have their own TV show? Were they cereal box celebrities? Or were they advertising icons? Let's take a look at the 1986's California Raisin "claymation" phenomenon: What were the fates of my precious little figurines? I don't recall. I probably gnawed off their arms and had to throw them away when I was 11 or 12. I definitely didn't hold them in the same regard that I did my prized box of Star Wars action figures . My Star War...

Nature Boy , by Ella Fitzgerald is one of those peaceful, moralistic songs that you listen to when you are in the mood for "good music." The level of guitar playing in this version of the song represents what I ultimately hope to achieve one day. i.e. Once I can play this song well, I'll know I have arrived . Here are some accompanying pictures that I think go along well with the song: *This post was inspired by my recently added blog-follower, Jessica L. Saari. She was the one who introduced Nature Boy to me. *I found out later that these pictures are not originals creations. The Box Boy character in these pictures is named Danbo and is featured in a Japanese Manga called: "Yotsuba&!" ---------------- Listening to: Glenn Miller Big Band - In The Mood

Phil, this video is dedicated to you. I don't know if the situation has changed since you lived in Provo, but my guess is that you still haven't seen Star Wars. If that is the case, I'd like you to perform a simple exercise. I'd like you to record your self explaining the plot of the original, first three movies in under three minutes. You can use your Macbook, or a digital camera, or a voice recorder, or a camcorder if you have one. Then I want you to post it and we will compare it with the video below. I hope you win. May the Force be with you... ---------------- Listening to: Lights - Drive My Soul

tl;dr — Never keep you hands in your pockets while walking on ice. While I was holidaying in OH with the family, my older sister told me a story of when she was walking, one wintry day, with a boy who served his mission in the Ukraine. When he looked over at my sister, he nearly screamed for her to take her hands out of her pockets. Alarmed, she jerked them out and asked why? LIFE LESSON "You never, never, NEVER keep you hands in your pockets when there is ice around. It the fastest way to fall on your face!" One week later, I found myself back in Provo. I had just finished helping my roommate, Kim, move out. It was about 30 degrees outside so I naturally had my big fluffy coat on. (When I have the big, orange coat on I feel invincible. This one girl in my ward, named Carrie, always slugs me in the arm whenever I'm wearing it just because she enjoys testing its impenetrability. BTW, everyone knows me now as the guy with the orange coat.) As Kim drove ...

“וְהָעָ֥ם לֹא־שָׁ֖ב עַד־הַמַּכֵּ֑הוּ וְאֶת־יְהוָ֥ה צְבָאֹ֖ות לֹ֥א דָרָֽשׁוּ׃” For one of Stef's school assignments, she asked her family members to help her brainstorm different sermons that are taught in the Old Testament in a single line. The example given was in Gen. 39 when Joseph of Egypt provides us with his timeless words, "There is none greater in this house than I; neither hath he kept back any thing from me but thee, because thou art his wife: how then can I do this great wickedness, and sin against God?" I've decided to gather information for a one-line sermon of my own. Stef, you are more than welcome to use any these ideas. The "one-liner" I have selected is repeated numerous times in the first chapters of Isaiah: For all this [apostasy] his anger is not turned away, but his hand is stretched out still ." The EXAMPLES section towards the bottom is the best chunk if you only have a little time to read. Isaiah 5:25 "Therefore...

During Sunday School yesterday, we were asked what things we had already thought about and plan to teach our future children. One idea I had was to develop a series of visits, beginning in elementary school to help my kids stay morally clean in this age of degrading values. Another idea mentioned was my plan for the Tanner Dating Academy where children learn from the ages of 12-16 how to develop relationships that can develop from fellowship --> friendship --> dating, and on. (This idea was adapted from a Education Week talk given by BYU Professor, Matthew Richardson.) This video, sent to me by a friend, illustrates one father's attempts at teaching his little ones the importance of self-defense. We will be shown the precise techniques to effectively disarm attackers in the most dire of circumstances. WATCH OUT for the assailant; she's fearsome! . . . Is this guy serious? Methinks yes; I think he's deadly serious. Perhaps he's terminally i...

A Familiar Rock That rock! Doesn't that rock look like the one in front of our old house? (Wow, I just said, "old house". That's the first time I've referred to it since the padres have relocated. What are we calling it now? The High School House because we all attending HS while living there? Sounds logical, but not very catchy...) The Toilet Paper Debate This is my attempt at mediating a peace between the two waring factions regarding The Great Debate. We simply have to understand where the other side is coming from. Those who have adopted the "sheet-under" method have a perfectly logical explanation for their actions. This group consciously chooses to drape the sheet under in order to deter their children under the age of two from streaming the toilet paper all over the house. It is natural for curious youngsters to spin the toilet paper roll forwards, but it much more difficult to spin backwards. The other half of the toilet paper u...