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I wore my “I’m Blogging This” shirt on Friday, and Shane said I should blog everything I do when I wear the shirt.  That sounds like something I’d do.  Here goes:

07:50 - left WAY early for work. I woke up early and couldn’t sleep.
08:15 - it feels weird being here this early
09:00 - called Charter Business support.  Brad was a total jerk.
09:15 - called Cbeyond support. Lady was much nicer than Brad from Charter.
09:45 - finally off phone. Rush to meeting that started 15 minutes ago.
10:45 - out of meeting. Listening to Ben Shive’s CD. (It’s brilliant, btw.)
10:55 - read this post on Stuff Christians Like. It’s funny because it’s true.
12:00 - going for salad at Ruby’s
12:10 - never mind, I want the burger
13:30 - should have had the salad
13:53 - am I seeing this right…McCain picked a woman?
14:38 - saw a “My VP candidate is hotter than your VP candidate” shirt on CafePress.  That didn’t take long.
15:35 - gone to get gas, Diet Mt. Dew, and to mail a book to Bryan.
15:47 - Our QT has the best fountain Diet Mt. Dew mix ever.
16:18 - Charter called me with a recording to call them.  Idiots.
16:34 - Been navigating Charter’s phone system for 16 minutes already.  Why didn’t they just have a person call me?
16:57 - our UPS driver shows up within 5 minutes of 5:00 every day.
17:28 - headed home to pack for a weekend in SC
18:15 - on the road for SC
19:00 - I love me some Mexican food.  And since Mexican restaurants are on every corner, they’re always easy to find.
19:45 - Stopped at Wal-Mart for car stuff.  Man, some people really annoy me.
19:51 - saw a lady that looked EXACTLY like the grandma on The Nutty Professor.  I was able to resist asking her to say “relations” but it was hard to do.
20:15 - finally on the interstate.  It’s going to be a long night.
21:00 - kids are asleep.  Praise the Lord.
21:30 - spinning MPJ’s “Swallow the Sea” again.  Good stuff.
23:30 - ending the night with some more Ben Shive.  Again, wow.
00:28 - pulled into the driveway.  These late night Friday drives are no fun.  At least it’s a long weekend, so I don’t have to drive back on Sunday.

When I was invited to review Mark Batterson’s new book “Wild Goose Chase,” I was pretty excited.  Based on the cover picture, it looked like it would be a story of adventure.  Like maybe a hunter is hunting the big wild goose or something.  It seemed intriguing, and I was pretty excited when it came in the mail.

I guess you really can’t judge a book by its cover (art), because when I looked closer, I saw that it was really about reclaiming the adventure of pursuing God.  Well, that’s not a hunting story, but there’s nothing wrong with reading a book about pursuing God.  So I sat down to read.

As I began reading this book, I was thoroughly confused about how pursuing God had anything to do with chasing wild geese.  Then I saw the introduction, which included this quote:

The Celtic Christians had a name for the Holy Spirit that has always intrigued me. They called Him An Geadh-Glas, or “the Wild Goose”. I love the imagery and implications. The name hints at the mysterious nature of the Holy Spirit. Much like a gild goose, the Spirit of God cannot be tracked or tamed. An element of danger and an air of unpredictability surround Him. And while the name may sound a little sacrilegious at first earshot, I cannot think of a better description of what it’s like to pursue the Spirit’s leading through life than Wild Goose chase.

Ahhh…I see it now.  Clever title.

I read the first chapter and was really looking forward to reading the rest of the book.  The book only has 7 chapters, and I figured it wouldn’t take me long to finish it.

That first chapter is mostly introduction.  Batterson speaks of reasons Christians don’t “chase the Wild Goose” in their lives (”cages”), and then each of the following six chapters deals with one of those “cages.”  They are:

• The Cage of Responsibility
• The Cage of Routine
• The Cage of Assumptions
• The Cage of Guilt
• The Cage of Failure
• The Cage of Fear

The first few chapters really made me think.  Specifically, when he talked about the cages of responsibility and routine, I was really challenged to stop and think about things.  I won’t dive deep into the personal stuff here, but I really enjoyed those first couple of chapters.

Unfortunately, the rest of the book didn’t impress me much.  Batterson must have used some variation of the phrase “chase the Wild Goose” a hundred times in those seven chapters, and it got to the point where it came across as trite, almost forced.  By the time I was nearing the end of the book, I almost cringed every time he used that phrase.

Though I enjoyed the first few chapters, it did seemed to me that throughout the book Batterson was throwing out some theory and then rummaging through Scripture to find something to back him up.  I expected more meaty content from a book by a pastor.

It’s certainly not the best book you’ll ever read, but if you’ve got the opportunity to check it out, you might find something in one of the chapters that really makes you think about your own life.

The other day I found a Ron Paul bumper sticker in my glove box.  I intended to put it on the car, you know, when Ron Paul was still running for President.  I guess it got put away and never found its home on my back window. My daughter was with me as I went to put it on the back of the car.

KD: You’re actually putting a sticker on your car?

RD: Yup.

KD: Is that who you’re voting for?

RD: Unfortunately, no.

KD: Why not?

RD: He’s not running in the election any more.

KD: Then why are you putting his sticker on your car?

At this point, I don’t remember exactly what I said, but it was something about subscribing to a particular set of ideas about how a government should operate and what its role in the lives of its citizens should be.  I was trying to use words she might be more familiar with, but my attemps were pointless.

KD: Huh?

RD: Because I like him.

KD: Oh.

Then she walked inside the house like she understood everything perfectly.  I guess if you like a guy, it makes perfect sense to put his sticker on your car, even if he withdrew from the race 2 months ago.

This post is because of for Bryan.  He’s curious about my lunch habits.  I’m sure these questions are probably bugging the rest of you, too, so here goes.

1. What time do you usually leave for lunch?

Absolutely no later than 11:45, unless we’re being nice and waiting for somebody who decided that an 11:30 conference call was a good idea.

2. How long do you usually take for lunch?

It’s usually around an hour, maybe 1:15.  Some are longer.  Not many are much shorter than an hour.  The longer ones usually involve work discussion though.

3. Ever eat lunch at home?

In 5+ years at our current residence, I think I’ve eaten lunch at home once, maybe twice.  It’s 11 miles each way, and that’s really too far to go for a lunch commute.

4. What are your favorite places to eat out for Work Lunch?

Man, I could go forever here.  Chilitos and Paisano’s generally top my list.  Zeigler’s BBQ is awesome (times 10), but I’ve not been there in a while.  Every Wednesday we go to Buckhead Burrito Grill, and I enjoy that office tradition.

5. How often do you bring food in from home?

Never.  I’ve got to get away from the office mid-day, or I’ll go nuts.  Eating at the desk just isn’t an option for me.

6. Are you a lone ranger or a community eater?

I’m no fan of eating alone.  I’ll do it if I’ve got errands to run, but typically I’m going with somebody from work or meeting a friend somewhere.

7. How often does your company pay for your lunch?

Every time there’s an occasion worthy of the expense.  Welcoming a new employee and completing big projects typically justify a company-sponsored lunch.  It doesn’t happen very often, but to be fair, when it does, it’s usually a really good meal.

8. What is your favorite lunch meal of all time?

Picking one favorite?  That’s like asking a father to pick his favorite child.  (Eating is a big part of my life, in case you haven’t picked up on that before now.)  I guess if I had to pick just one, a lunch at Chilitos would top my list, but the meaty pizza at Paisano’s would be a very close 2nd.

One more book review from the boy this week.  This one is “God Gave Us Heaven” by Lisa Bergren.

I’d recommend this one to folks with kids in the 4-5 age range.  It’s an easy way to start up some interesting, important conversation with a kid.  I read it with Brett.  Here’s a portion of our discussion.

Brett Davis: That book’s good.  I like that book.  Isn’t that one a good one?

Ron Davis: Yes, it was.

BD: And I really like it.

RD: What’s it about?

BD: Heaven.

RD: What about heaven?

BD: All about heaven.  I like the pages.  They have polar bears on them.

RD: What did the polar bears learn?

BD: About heaven.  There’ll be lots of stuff there for them to do.

RD: What will they do?

BD: Umm..walk around.  Worship Jesus.  And they’ll play too.

RD: How do they get to heaven?

BD: They go across the bridge.

RD: Who is the bridge?

BD: Jesus is.  See. (points to picture of the bridge)

Here’s my son Brett’s 2nd book review of the week.  This time it’s “When God Created My Toes” by Dandi Daley Mackall.  We read the book and then had the following conversation:

Ron Davis: So what did you think?

Brett Davis: I liked that.  It was a good book.

RD: Yeah?

BD: Yeah because the cat wasn’t happy.  That was the best part.

(There was a picture of a sad cat. I’m not sure why he liked the sad cat.)

RD: What is this book about?

BD: When God created you.

RD: What about when God created you?

BD: He made all of you.

RD: I see.  Did you like the pictures?

BD: I like the picture where the girl does the flip.  Maybe after you take a shower, we can do that.  Not now though.  Now you stink.

(I had just finished mountain biking, and I really did stink.)

RD: Not tonight.  It’s time for you to go to bed.

BD: Ok.  Bring my blanket.  But don’t make it stink.

Tune in tomorrow night for Brett’s final book review of the week.

I picked up some new music in the iTunes store tonight:

• The Midtown Project - quoting the web site, these songs are “written and recorded by members of Midtown Fellowship and leaders of our worship team for congregational use on Sunday mornings.”
• “Swallow the Sea” - the latest release from Matthew Perryman Jones.  It released this week, actually.  I’ve not had a chance to really sit and chew on it, but so far I really like it.  I absolutely loved his last CD “Throwing Punches in the Dark” and am looking forward to hearing this one.
• “All Things New” - this single from Andrew Peterson is a radio mix of the song from his soon-to-be-released “Resurrection Letters” CD.  The difference between this and the album version, according to Andrew, is that “the album doesn’t include [Andy] Osenga’s killer electrics, plus there’s a longer intro, with some perc and [Andy] Gullahorn singing a background part.”

Ok, I’ve got some listening to do. :)  More later.

In our pastor’s message on Sunday (”The High Priest vs. The Great High Priest“), he talked a good bit about the Old Testament priests.  Today, I heard Randall Goodgame’s “Jerusalem” on the way to work and thought it seemed quite fitting:

I am Jerusalem
I am the temple of the Lord
Holy of Holies, the Lord dwells within
the Lord God Almighty, Maker of men

I am Jerusalem
I am the temple of the Lord
and of Aaron’s tribe
only a chosen few dared to lift the veil
and come and dwell with You
then You came to die, but not to fail
Behold the Lamb, the Lamb that tore the veil

“Jerusalem” can be found on Randall’s CD “The Hymnal” and in the iTunes store here.

I am really excited about this.  I got 3 books in the mail that are for kids.  And since my 4 year old son Brett loves a good bedtime story, I decided to let him offer a review for them.

This, the first of 3 reviews he’ll have for you this week, is a review of “God Loves Me More Than That” by Dandi Daley Mackal, illustrated by David Hohn.

Ron Davis: Did you like this book?

Brett Davis: Yes. I want to read it again tomorrow night.

RD: Did you like the pictures?

BD: Yeah, they were cool.

RD: Which picture did you like the best?

BD: (long pause) I like the one in the space suit and the one of the boy riding on the bee.

RD: (finds picture of the boy on the bumblebee) This one?

BD: Yes. I love that part when the boy rides on the bee.  I like bees, but not when they sting.  Bees are not cool when they sting.

RD: So what is this book about?

BD: God loves us a lot.

RD: How high is God’s love?

BD: Really high.

RD: How deep is God’s love?

BD: Really, really deep.

RD: How heavy is God’s love?

BD: Really, really heavy.

RD: Like how heavy?

BD: Like 100 pounds!

So there you have it, folks.  It’s got a good story, the kid liked it, and the pictures are great.

I’ve said it before - my loyalty in bicycle shopping lies at Outspokin’ Bikes in Woodstock.  Those guys are amazing.  Unfortunately, they’re also a long drive from my house.  Last weekend I broke a spoke when I was out riding with some friends, and I wanted to get it fixed before I take my daughter riding this weekend.

Yesterday I stopped to see the guys at Bicycle Jones here in Dallas.  I’ve been in there before, never really impressed with the people, but they do sell bikes, and I like bikes.  It seems only natural that I’d check them out.  I had almost given up hope for these guys, but then my friend Steph recently got a good deal on a road bike from them, so I figured I’d give them another chance.

It turns out that this bicycle sales and service shop doesn’t do service on the weekends.  They’ll gladly sell you anything with 2 wheels, but they can’t fix it unless it’s a week day.  That’s a problem, since most of my riding (and my time to get repairs done) is on the weekends.  So I left Bicycle Jones today (most likely for the last time) very frustrated.  Maybe one day when I’m rich and retired, I’ll have time to deal with a weekday-only schedule, but for now, this doesn’t work for me.

Of course, when I’m rich and retired, I’ll take my mountain of cash to Outspokin’ Bikes and be happy to deal with people who really understand what they do for a living.