This happened just down the road from my house yesterday:

Cat-filled home deemed uninhabitable
Authorities remove 28 cats, look for owner of residence
By J.E. Espino Post-Crescent staff writer
APPLETON — A house on the city's south side, where some 28 cats were found unattended Sunday, was posted as uninhabitable by city health officials.

Police and fire officials were on the scene for more than 11 hours Sunday, cleaning up debris and getting the animals safely out of the home. They filled the garage with mattresses, cloths, blankets, sofa cushions and chairs soaked in urine that they removed from the house.

Attempts to locate the homeowners as of late evening had been unsuccessful, said police Lt. Greg Franzke.

Authorities said the cats were hiding in the basement, bedrooms and a crawl space that runs the length of the house.

"There's all kinds of pictures, crystal glasses, boxes, stuffed animals, garbage everywhere and feces that has multiplied by 'nth' degree. It's unbelievable," said Robin Spears, a humane officer for the police department.

Police initially were called to the home at 1412 S. Kernan Ave. about 11:15 a.m. on a report of a possible restraining order violation. When officers arrived, no one was home.

Franzke said they went through the back, found the house was unlocked and "knew something was wrong."

Police were unable to determine how long the animals had been left on their own or if they had had human control. Spears described the animals as "very wild." A bag of food was found in the house, but she was unsure if they had a water source.

Firefighters were called to assist and provide oxygen tanks to enter the house and clear it of debris to get to the animals, which were transported to the Fox Valley Humane Association for evaluation. Among those transported first was a litter of kittens, believed to be a few days old.

With temperatures in the high 80s and firefighters and police having to use special uniforms to enter the house, paramedics also were dispatched to make sure no one was getting overheated.

Spears said charges of abandonment and mistreatment could be filed against the property owner.

Neighbors on the block said they were unaware of the situation at the house.

"Looks like a nice house. Who would just leave it?" said Carol Stuyvenberg.

"You never know what your neighbors live like," said Diana Peterson, another resident of the neighborhood.

Spears attempted to reassure the first cats coming out of the house, saying, "It's not so bad. You're probably happy to get out of there."

Tom Cruise and Jamie Foxx have an interesting conversation in the movie "Collateral":

TC: Six billion people on the planet and you're bent out of shape because of one fat guy.
JF: Who was he?
TC: What do you care?
TC: Have you ever heard of Rwanda?
JF: Yes, I know Rwanda.
TC: Tens of thousands killed before sundown. Nobody's killed that fast since Nagasaki and Hiroshima. Did you bat an eye Max?
JF: What?
TC: Did you join Amnesty International or Oxfam? Save the Whale, Greenpeace or something? No. I off one fat Angeleno and you throw a hissy fit.
JF: I don't know any Rwandans.
TC: You don't now the guy in that trunk either.

Like I said, interesting. What do you make of this?

In the past I have often made light of my friend Dan and his carefree, laissez faire attitude. He's studying Hebrew and Semitic Languages at UW-Madison (what kind of job can you get with that degree?), accumulating massive debt (how are you ever going to pay that off?), and yet he continues to head to Kenya every summer (how can you afford this?), the past two with me, this year on his own (we'll join him in July. But the email he sent this week humbles me and puts me in awe of our Lord and brings me to a greater understanding of obedience to His calling! It seems that he has been prepared for such a time as this...

My Family and Friends...

But on to the exciting stuff....The mystery of God’s workings are amazing to me, and while I don’t want to become too mystical, I realize now that God’s had has been upon this trip far longer than I ever realized. My purpose here, while unsure for a bit, has solidified significantly this week. Currently I work much with the youth here (18-30) They are amazing to say the least. The questions they ask are so astute, and their earnest pursuit of God is staggering.

Yet this group has not been without trouble for the last 6 months. A cult moved into the area where my church is located (Ngong Road) and it has been taking many youth away from the bible study. In fact at one point the bible study even ceased meeting together because of the havoc this cult presented.

Actually my first time attending the group was last week, which was only the 2nd time they had met in 6th months!! I was not sure the exact intentions of God when He brought me here, but I am now sure that one of His purposes is defending this youth group. Of all the types of cults that exist in the world the one that is troubling this church is a "Hebrew Cult" focusing on the lost knowledge of the Old Testament that can only be found by understanding the "true" Hebrew of the Bible….Coincidence? The discord which this cult provoked was only heightened by the fact that this church could not defend itself against the arguments the cult proposed; because no
one here can read or interpret Hebrew. Needless to say the Youth Group and I were both astonished to the point of silence when we found out that we suited each others needs so well. Being a Hebrew Student I am able to confront many of the topics this cult posses, while also teaching the youth how to defend themselves against such arguments.

It is amazing thinking back to this winter as I discussed with people, "Am I being "called" to Kenya". And at the end of the day I could confidently say that Yes I was being called…But what I was being called to was a mystery to me. It was very much a leap of faith to come to Kenya, only to find that (without my knowledge) Our Father had placed me with precision in the exact
spot I was needed. Some may call that coincidence, but I can’t help but to call that the Hand of God.

Kendyl is 100% terror! From the time she wakes up in the morning until the time she goes to bed (just minutes ago) she terrorizes the house and goes 100mph. If you take her away from what she is doing, she throws a mini-fit and get into something else. The house is a disaster from her! Yet I wouldn't trade her for the world.

One of the cool things I was reflecting on as I put her down tonight was the love of God and if everything in this world were taken from me, I would still have Him and that is all I need. Friends, family, possessions, they could all disappear, like Job, yet the Name of the Lord would still be Praised. And that is a freeing feeling! It frees me not to sell out to the world or anyone in it. It frees me to care less about what the world thinks of me. Sure, I care deeply what Lisa and the kids and some of you along with other close friends think of me and, but that's only because I care about them and you as well. I appreciate our relationship and want to keep that. But beyond that, I'm free to be me, serve the Lord, and love and live in His Creation with no worries, with eternal security. What freedom! Now if I could just get that freedom to move from my head to my heart, I'd be in business.

Right now I feel like Marques Johnson's character in "White Men Can't Jump." One of my favorite parts is when they are hooping and he wants to hustle Wesley Snipes but doesn't have the money, so he puts on a mask and goes over to the liquor store. He enters, "Give me all your money" and the owner responds "Raymond, is that you? Take that mask off!" So Raymond relents and sells the guy the gun, but for under the price. He agrees, but says, "All right, but now you are robbing me!"

As I mentioned last week we have an accepted offer on the home, but it was contingent on the inspection. Wouldn't you know that the furnace is junk. It worked all summer, but the guy said it was junk, and I agree, I think it might be older than me. Anyway, we had to renegotiate and came to an agreement tonight, it cost me $1500 more, but there was nothing we could do. Like I said, "All right, but you are robbing me.!"

What's crazy to me is that the Suns have a great chance, a better chance than last year, to represent the West in the Finals even without their best players. I hate Nash, but credit to you man! Same with D'Antoni, great coach!

Why are series finale's so bad? Alias sucked tonight, no answers to the questions I've been waiting 5 years for. What a waste.

I was rooting for the Spurs, but the Mavs gained my respect, and I may just root for them the rest of the way. Going into San Antonio in a game 7 and winning in OT? Crazy!

How in the world does this happen?

So let me get this straight:

Phoenix and the Clips play game six on Thursday night, the Clips win forcing game seven, and that game won't be played until Monday.

Dallas and San Antonio play on Friday night, San Antonio wins, forcing game seven, and that game won't be played until Monday night.

Detroit and the Cavs play on Friday night, Detroit forces game seven, that game is played today.

I've never understood the NBA scheduling, any rhyme or reason for this? Why no games yesterday and only one today? Then two of the biggest games of the year on a Monday night?

Immigration was on my mind again today, particularly the idea that I want our borders to be open to those who desire to come here to make a better life for themselves, but I want it to be done legally. Which got me thinking, I hear so much how difficult it is to get into this legally today, and I wonder if one of the reasons for that is the amount of people who are here illegally? If we controlled the borders, didn't let people in illegally, would it be easier for people to come here legally? I'm also not for sending everyone back who is here illegally, so I guess I'm somewhat in favor of a plan that includes amnesty, we just need a record of who is inside of our country, kind of like every other country requires. Just some thoughts, any ideas?

From a former prof of mine:

The Ancient Word...

The Book of Revelation symbolically portrays Christ as both a powerful warrior "Lion" and a helpless sacrificial "Lamb" (Revelation 5:5-6, NIV). Paradoxically, these contradictory images of Christ complement one another.

In Revelation, Satan tries to "overcome" Christ and his people by persecuting and killing them (see 11:7; 12:4-5; 13:7).

In contrast, Christ "overcomes" Satan and the forces of evil not by killing, but by dying. On the Cross, the "Lion" offers himself as the sacrificial "Lamb" that brings forgiveness of sins and a place in God's Kingdom:
...you were slain, and with your blood you purchased men for God from every tribe and language and people and nation. You have made them to be a kingdom and priests to serve our God, and they will reign on the earth. (Revelation 5:9-10)

Revelation also proclaims the good news that we, his New Covenant people, share in Christ's victory:
The great dragon was hurled down -- that ancient serpent called the devil, or Satan, who leads the whole world astray...They overcame him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony; they did not love their lives so much as to shrink from death. (Revelation 12:9, 11; compare 3:21; 17:14; 21:7)

First, Christians overcome Satan and his allies "by the blood of the Lamb" -- by embracing the sacrifice of Christ and the benefits it brings.

Second, Christians overcome "by the word of their testimony." By proclaiming the good news of Christ's death on the Cross, we enable others to embrace forgiveness of sins and God's emerging Kingdom. We participate in Christ's victory over Satan by helping to free people from the Devil's power.

Third, Christians overcome Satan by remaining faithful to Christ until death. In other words, we overcome by not allowing Satan to reestablish his hold on us even if serving Christ brings hardship, persecution, or martyrdom. Revelation 2:26 affirms this as Christ offers promises to "him who overcomes and does my will to the end."

... for Today
The irony is obvious. Just when we think that "overcoming" means glorious living, the New Testament tells us that death may come first. Just when we want to embrace words like "victorious," "conquering," and "defeating," Revelation reminds us that the Lord defines these terms differently than we do.

The prosperity gospel of our day, with its emphasis on health and wealth (if we have enough faith), is actually a counter-gospel. The Apostle John invites us to embrace poverty and death (if need be) as a sign of our deep faith.

The only way we can live such radical lives -- prepared to die such radical deaths -- is by fixing our eyes on the Lamb.

Jesus stands at the center of Christianity. His life, death, and resurrection become the pattern for his followers. We dare not expect short cuts or cheap options.

Many of us struggle with this gospel call. Although Christ rejected violence, we want to justify or excuse our own fury. While Christ did not open his mouth at his trial, we want to defend ourselves and our reputations vigorously. We don't see that dying helps anybody, so we resist it. We want to be activists, not passivists. Hanging on faithfully is not enough for us. We need to storm the heights and flex our muscles. But as Jim Wallis once noted, "The difference that we make will be determined in the end simply by how faithful we are to the gospel. The rest has to be left to God."

We want the glory of the Lion, not the meekness of the Lamb. But, paradoxically, God touches the world most powerfully through faith, not force.

The promises of the Christ-experience (death and resurrection) belong to those willing to walk in the way of the Lamb.

I had the post all written writing off the Pistons, saying how their dynasty was over, Dumars was going to break up the team, etc. Then they get three offensive rebounds in the final minute, they escape a near-disaster when Billups almost tips in Lebron's miss, and now there's no way they're losing at home on Sunday. It looks like they'll escape (and I hope I didn't jinx them).

This past Saturday I went to a local presentation by a gentleman from the Darfur region of Sudan educating the public on what needs to be done to help the situation. I'll preface my thoughts with some excerpts from the following article I received as an email yesterday:

The African Union has dispatched a force of 7,000 troops to monitor the situation in Darfur. However the force is under-manned and ill-equipped to handle the job. According to a New York Times report "Taking reports and making patrols is nearly all the African Union is mandated to do. Since arriving in 2004, the African Union force has been here to monitor - but
not enforce - the cease-fire agreement signed between the rebels and the government...The African Union force is small enough that, spread out, each soldier would oversee an area larger than Manhattan. By contrast, tiny Liberia, which is slightly less than one-quarter the size of Darfur and has a population half of Darfur's six million, has a United Nations peacekeeping
force of 15,000 troops."

I asked the gentleman this same question, what role does/should the AU have in this situation, and from his response and the text above, it seems like there is no role for them, not one that will help the situation anyway.

If the situation in Sudan is really as bad as humanitarian groups say it is, why hasn't something been done to stop the atrocities? Why hasn't the UN sent a peacekeeping force to the region? The answer to this question can perhaps be found in Sudan's massive oil reserves. When Sudan began producing oil in 1999, its government began collecting $500 million a year in revenue
(about 80 percent of which went to buy weapons). Sudan's oil minister inaugurated its newest pipeline in April which will raise oil production to 500,000 barrels per day and provides a structure to potentially double output in the coming year. If Sudan's reserves are really as big as
experts suspect, Sudan has the potential to collect tens of billions of dollars a year in oil revenue.

So who has benefited the most from Sudan's new found oil wealth? China is, by far, the single biggest consumer of Sudanese oil. China's transformation from an insular, agrarian society into a key force in the global economy has spawned a voracious appetite for raw materials. The pressure to find new sources of oil has grown as China has swelled into the world's second-largest consumer and as production at the largest of its domestic fields is declining. According to government statistics, China's imports have grown from about 6 percent of its oil needs a decade ago to roughly one-third today and are forecast to rise to rise to 60 percent by 2020.

The Darfur region is known to have major yet untapped oil reserves, representing a vast amount of potential wealth at a time when crude oil has risen to nearly $75 a barrel. The China National Petroleum Corp (CNPC), owned by the Chinese government, has invested over $300 million in an expansion of Sudan’s largest refinery, doubling its output. The refinery now supplies most of Sudan’s petroleum needs. The CNPC began oil production at a field in southern Darfur in 2004 and it holds a large share in Sudan's southern oil fields. Another Chinese firm, Sinopec Corp., built a 1,000-mile pipeline from that complex to Port Sudan on the Red Sea, where China’s Petroleum Engineering Construction Group has built a tanker terminal. All
in all, China buys about two-thirds of Sudan’s oil.

Sudan is China's largest overseas oil project. China is also Sudan's largest supplier of arms. Chinese-made tanks, fighter planes, bombers, helicopters, machine guns and rocket-propelled grenades have intensified Sudan's internal strife.

From its seat on the United Nations Security Council, China has been Sudan's chief diplomatic ally. In recent months, the council has attempted to pressure Sudan's predominantly Arab government to protect the African tribes by threatening to sanction its oil sales. However China has used its veto power to stop any Security Council resolutions against Sudan, thus prolonging the cycle of violence in the region.

Two things this gentleman was adamant about, and he kept repeating it and repeating it. First, the UN is not the solution. Second, the reason for this is that foreign countries Russia and China), according to him, have their hands in this situation and therefore will not allow the UN to do anything about the situation due to their oil interests. Both sit on the Security Council with veto power, so Mohamed said the US would have to go around the UN if they were to help the situation.

No disrespect for Lebron, as I've gained a lot of respect for him on and off the court this series, but if the Cavs make the Finals, I will not watch one second (though that won't be the first time I haven't watched a moment of the Finals). They are just too bad of a team save for Lebron.

Honestly, I almost threw up when I read this latest update from International Teams:

A pick-up truck pulled up on the Matumaini property in Molo, Kenya. With a limited explanation, government workers backed up the vehicle to one of the main buildings, opened the rear door, and out stumbled a little girl falling headlong onto the dirt. Stunned, ITeams missionary Anthony tried to find out what was going on, only to be handed a document just before the workers climbed back into the truck and drove off. The body lying in the dust was little Rose.

The paper given to Anthony was a brief dossier that indicated Rose had spend 5 years in prison. Apparently she was now 14 years old. In the section titled "Conviction" it simply said "No Parents." This was a common fate of many children born with mental disabilities. Their parents simply had no support system or understanding of how to cope with such disabilities.

In due course, Anthony learned that, at age 9, little Rose had been dropped into a mixed male and female prison ward and had been horrible abused week after week for 5 years. The staff at Matumaini worked with little Rose over a long time to help her begin to barely talk, feed herself, learn basic personal hygiene, and even smile. The little girl who cowered in a corner, so deeply damaged and unable to trust, was beginning to gain "Matumaini, which is Kiswahili means "new hope."

This furthered by conviction even more that I hope to be able to minister with Kelvin Mwikya this summer. Dan and I met with Kelvin last summer, and he runs one of the major (possibly only) prison ministries and rehab centers in Kenya. I feel ecstatic for Rose to be delivered from that torture, but now many more are lost in that system?

I saw a sign on a local Lutheran church tonight that fit right with my ideology, but infortunately not enough with my practice:

"If you can't afford to feed 100 people, feed one."

This story utterly amazed me:
http://msnbc.msn.com/id/12789463/


It's not often I agree with Hillary, but I think she, like Bill, understands that the US economy is changing and we need to keep up with the times or our workers are going to be losing jobs.
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/12591415/

1716 South Kernan is no longer on the market. AMEN!

Roger Clemons' family offers him $10 million, one-year deal to stay home with family.

"It's hard to put a dollar amount on what Roger has historically meant to this family," said Clemens' wife Debbie, who has been handling most of the negotiations. "Many of the younger members of this organization really look up to Roger—growing up, he was their hero. Now Roger has the chance to be a kind of mentor to guys like Kacy and Kody. They have really been lacking the strong veteran presence that's so crucial at this point in their careers."

John Stossel came out with a new book this past week (Myth's, Lies, and Downright Stupidity) and dedicated last night's "20/20" show to the top ten myths the public buys into. The number one myth was that more foreign aid to Africa will help pull them out of poverty. He interviewed Jeffrey Sachs, considered the foremost expert on the third world economies and what needs to be done to improve them (and whose book I've read and commented on much in the past year). Stossel noted that we've spent half a trillion dollars in the past thirty years on aid to Africa and as a whole, they've gotten poorer. Sachs said that is ludicrous, we need to give more.

My take: Both men are right and both men are wrong. Stossel is right in that most of the aid we have given has gone into the hands of the corrupt government officials and immediately made its way to foreign banks (mostly European). He is wrong in that more aid is needed, and if done right, will not be wasted.

Sachs (along with Bono) is wrong in his being adamant that the West needs to give more aid to soothe our conscience and that we continue to go through the corrupt government systems. He is right that more aid can and will make a major difference in the developing world.

I've stated my solution many times, here is another summary: More aid is needed to pull the poorest of the poor up to the first rung of the economic ladder. The developing world governments also play a role, they need to open up the markets and rid themselves of corruption (which the cynic in me says will never happen). Grass-roots (mostly faith-based) organizations need to continue to get involved and help the people they can help. If it is a village here, a community there, a slum here, whatever, every little bit helps, all we can give us what we've been given, we are only required to be faithful with that.

There is nothing that can break your heart like the church, but neither is there anything that can so restore your heart as being among a few people whose love is transparent, tenacious, and utterly not their own doing.

The recent edition of ESPN The Mag had an interesting article about American basketball players in the Iranian pro league. It mostly focused on one guy, Andre Pitts, and his experience in Tehran. I found one quote absolutely hilarious:

"It is a great cultural exchange," Bahrami (teammate) says. "We'd invite Dre to family dinners, and he'd teach us how to shoot craps."

You've probably seen this, but recently there was some study published about the lack of knowledge Americans have when it comes to world or even national geography. We get this all the time when we tell people about our work in Kenya. "Now, where in Asia is that?" "Is that in Central or South Ameria?" If they know it's even in Africa I'm surprised. Now, geography is somewhat of a passion of mine, I've been known to go to Barnes and Noble and read maps teh whole time, so I'm kind of an outlier here, and some of these were tough, but these figures just astonish me. It's not like we are trying to locate Benin or Uraguay or some of the Indonesian Islands:

Among the findings:

One-third of respondents couldn’t pinpoint Louisiana on a map and 48percent were unable to locate Mississippi.

Fewer than three in 10 think it important to know the locations ofcountries in the news and just 14 percent believe speaking anotherlanguage is a necessary skill.

Two-thirds didn’t know that the earthquake that killed 70,000 people inOctober 2005 occurred in Pakistan.

Six in 10 could not find Iraq on a map of the Middle East.

While the outsourcing of jobs to India has been a major U.S. businessstory, 47 percent could not find the Indian subcontinent on a map of Asia.

While Israeli-Palestinian strife has been in the news for the entire livesof the respondents, 75 percent were unable to locate Israel on a map ofthe Middle East.

Nearly three-quarters incorrectly named English as the most widely spokennative language.

Six in 10 did not know the border between North and South Korea is themost heavily fortified in the world. Thirty percent thought the mostheavily fortified border was between the United States and Mexico.

I had this thought less than 90 seconds ago, so please bear with and forgive me as I want to get it in writing and hear any responses to it as I work through it:

My problem with the Gospel as presented by many evangelicals and extremists is that it starts with the sin of man instead of the love of God. God's love was first, then we sinned, so He showed the depth of His love by sending Jesus to pay the penalty for sin. A conversation/outreach must begin with God's love and move into man's sin (not excluding it) and the penalty as such, not vice versa.

An interesting excerpt from an article that will appear in July's issue of "Leadership" magazine. I think he brings up some interesting points:

Right now churches are focusing on one product to the exclusion of others. Most often, it’s teaching, a 60- to 90-minute event held at a particular time, at a particular physical address. It’s basically the same product we’ve been selling since the Renaissance. People sit in a room and listen to someone talk.

But here’s the thing: back then, it made sense for people to travel miles to hear someone talk about God. After all, people were mostly illiterate, Bibles were expensive, and Sunday morning was often the only time people could expand their horizons. Teaching was a rare commodity.

That’s no longer true today. Teaching is available everywhere—on television, radio, online. The local church no longer has the corner on the market.

The situation reminds of the banking industry. At one time, if you wanted to deposit or withdraw money, you had to go to the bank and stand in line. You had to fill out a slip and wait for someone to serve you. Today, there are independent ATMs capable of instantly dispensing cash everywhere—from grocery stores and restaurants, to sports stadiums and bars. I can’t remember the last time I actually "went to the bank." It’s not that I’ve stopped needing money; it’s just that I choose to get it in other ways.

But the church seems largely oblivious to this trend toward flexible, on-demand service in our culture. We still expect people to come to us, at our buildings, to do transactions with God or make deposits in their spiritual account. When congregants complain about pastors and churches not fitting their lifestyle, the church cries foul in the form of "consumer!" But does anyone ask whether the church is delivering what the market needs?

Imagine if people were encouraged to do their spiritual banking in ways that fit their lifestyle. They could watch some of the world’s best speakers on TiVo, DVDs or download resources for their iPod, then gather in smaller groups to discuss and apply what they’ve heard. A church wouldn’t necessarily need its own teaching pastor on the payroll anymore, and people wouldn’t need to leave their community in search of better teaching.

We need to see teaching not as our core product, but as one part of a line of products that also includes community, service, and worship.

Let’s move beyond the blame game and look at the church with a fresh perspective. Let’s start our conversation with the mission of the church, not about any particular tools or methods. Let’s let function drive form, and be willing to follow Jesus even if it means re-tooling everything we do.

I thought this looks like a book that would be right up my ally and some of yours too.

Every now and then I get to read the Wall St. Journal at school, and I always enjoy it, it's one of my favorite papers, though I don't get to read it often. I wish I could subscribe but it's just too costly for me, and I hate reading papers online, I only go there if I'm searching for a particular article/piece of news.

Having said that, this article caught my eye today. I find it interesting that the Chinese are taking right after us in their consumerism. I sat next to a retired teacher on the way to Guatemala last month who teaches English in foreign countries for a month or so at a time. He'd been to China at least three times by my recollection and came away with one memory: Chinese students desire one thing, to work for one of the large corporations, get that credit card, and SPEND MONEY. He couldn't stress that enough. Crazy! Now the China I think of, but the one that seems to exist in reality.