Now That's More Like It!

Remember that old puzzle kind of thing they use to put in the newspapers? They would print two nearly identical pictures that actually had six tiny differences and your job was to find them? Well ... let's play again!

Here ya go ...

Photo #1


Photo #2


I know it's tough but keep trying ...

Inning #5. Baseball 7 - Ron A GAZILLION!!!!

HOUSTON, WE HAVE SPLASHDOWN!

And I have no video. No proof. Debbie was feeling sick. And she was on the phone with Alisha. She was not on the balcony with a video recorder.

I had already tried once today and my poor sore arm was not happy. But after an hour the baseball called my name again. If you ever played baseball you know exactly what I mean.

It whispered, "Ron. One more time. Just one more time."

When a baseball pleads no self-respecting man can refuse its call. I grabbed it in all of its brown glory. I stepped onto the balcony. No warm-up. No scanning for the best angle. No adjusting for the wind. I just threw it.

It carried over the grass, over the rocks, hit the sidewalk, bounced once, and immersed itself into the Great Lakes.

It is gone forever. And I have no proof. But if there is any integrity left ... any trust left ... so help me that ball is on the bottom of the lake.

And then the strangest thing happened. I was jumping and yelling and dancing. I told Debbie and I ran down 9 flights of stairs and straight to the place where the ball crossed into semi-international waters. And there, on the sidewalk, was a coin.

A coin.

I don't know what kind of coin. It isn't from the United States. I thought it was Mexican but the print looks oriental. And it was just lying there, marking the spot of my victory. What's that all about? I have no idea.

I only know that ... THE BALL IS IN THE LAKE!

We aren't home yet

I wonder why disaster keeps striking in such enormous ways. Earthquakes. Cyclones. Tornados. It just keeps coming and coming and coming. People are dying by the tens of thousands. Why?

(We aren't home yet.)

Life is going whack-o. Gas is $4.00 a gallon. Airlines are cutting service. Truckers are in deep trouble. What's going on?

(We aren't home yet.)

My almost daughter-in-law is having surgery tomorrow. I'm concerned about her. Why does someone so wonderful have to suffer?

(We aren't home yet.)

My sister-in-law is still recovering from a very long illness. She's doing well but not even close to being back to normal yet. Why does healing take so long?

(We aren't home yet.)

I visited a woman in the hospital today who has been knocking on deaths door. Her predominate and repeated statement was, "Bless His holy Name." Why does she have to linger when she wants to see Jesus?

(We aren't home yet.)

The more I ask God what to do about a particular situation the less certain I am concerning His will. Why can't I hear and understand more clearly?

(We aren't home yet.)

I miss my kids, my granddaughter, and my closest friends beyond all ability to put into words. Why does God sometimes require us to be far away from those we love?

(We aren't home yet.)

Living in a one room apartment with sterilite furniture for seven months is not my idea of fun and tonight I found out that the new real estate agency I just contracted with to sell my home has already lost my paperwork. Tomorrow I have to reprint, resign, and refax it all. For the third time. What's the deal with that?

(We aren't home yet.)

My wife and I were eating lunch today at a restaurant in Cleveland. A man came and stood over us and asked if we had ordered the chili fries. (Clue: they were sitting on the table between us.) We said yes and then he told us what he had ordered. He was obviously very, very lonely. Why do people have to be lonely in the midst of 2.5 million people?

(We aren't home yet.)

I was sitting on a concrete wall along the lakeshore tonight watching the waves roll in and the ships roll out when a friend called. He was sitting on a lawn chair near his home watching the traffic go by and breathing fresh air. We had both been thinking of the other. We are connected by the same Spirit. Why does that Spirit draw us together while keeping us at such a great distance?

(We aren't home yet.)

After my friend and I hung up I asked God "Why?" And I heard Him. He said ... "we aren't home yet. But when we get there? When we get there it will all make sense. And it will all be fixed."

He promised. And He asked me to remind you.

inning #4. Close. So very, very close. Baseball 7 - Ron 0.

Today the arm felt good. The wind was calm. Mayeflies were swarming. Yet sometimes you just ... feel it. So you uncork another virtual ROCKET. Here she goes. From the ground up.



Can you believe that? That's her, sitting there all brown and beautiful just at the edge of the rocks. I don't know if I need more altitude on my throw or just more horsepower in the arm. Geez. Maybe tomorrow. All I have to do is carry those darn rocks ....

Highway To Heaven

Why do I miss all of the good accidents? I've been stuck on this particular expressway so many times but I have yet to have free cookies to make it worth my time ...


MORRIS, IL -- You'd need a lot of milk to dunk all the cookies that spilled on an interstate highway in Illinois this morning.

A trailer loaded with 14 tons of double-stuffed Oreos overturned, dumping boxes of cookies all over the road and the median about 50 miles southwest of Chicago.

It shut down the highway and backed up traffic.

Illinois State Police say the truck crashed after the driver fell asleep at the wheel.