We went to the Escondidos MC 2nd annual Mardi Gras Party, which was a crawfish boil at C-Hunts in Austin on Burnet Rd. Had a big group there, and the weather started out kind of rainy in the morning, but cleared up about the time the party started at 1PM. We planned to meet at the Starbucks up in Round Rock near the Outlet Mall, but though Debbie and I were there, no one else showed up. Turns out there are two Starbucks with apparently the same address but a block apart. Anyway we finally connected up with the Potters, and headed down to the party. Janice met us at C-Hunts, then we headed in to talk and greet all our friends. As you can see, I took a few pictures. Debbie and I aren’t big crawfish fans, so we opted for the tubular crawfish that tasted just like sausage. Boy was it good. After eating, we listened to some great music from a group laying some cajun music. They were really good, and matched the party mood perfectly. Finally we bid the party goodbye, and headed off into the sunset, or maybe that was afternoon set. Anyway, it was a great time. If you weren’t there, you sure missed it.

Choices

Debbie and I went to a funeral service this weekend for an friend. He was apparently very well known, because there were about 500 people there. He was Catholic, and this was the first Catholic funeral service I have been to. It was really something to experience. In prayer, song, spoken word, and communion, the focus was to give the deceased a sendoff to our Holy, Majestic and All Powerful God. Truly, it was magnificent.

In perspective, the experience makes me consider whether I have fully communicated the love I have for all of you, my “friends”. I smile when I see you, we hug and I ask you how you are doing, and I pray for you when you are down, or sick or broken, but I wonder, if that is the extent of my love? I think it isn’t, or at least it shouldn’t be. Like all of you, I lead a busy life, but also, like (most of) you, I get to make decisions about how I am going to use my free time. When I make those choices, often I choose based on my mood at the moment, not on some logical analysis of what I should be doing next. This article for example is late, because I chose to watch TV last evening, because “I felt like it”. So how do my choices tie in to how effectively I communicate my love for y’all? Well, it’s like this. I am a Christian. and God gives me His Grace in the form of His Love, time, energy, money, etc. Everything good that I receive comes from God, and belongs to God. He fills my life with friends to whom I can pass on (at least some of) what He give me. Then, He give me the choice of how and when I will do that. Will I choose now, or will I choose “someday”. You see, God has chosen to use me and you to love and help others in this world, and He asks only that we “consider” Him in prayer when we make those choices about how we are going to use our time and resources. He doesn’t need to use me, or you, but He knows that when we seek His will, and pass on the love that He pours out into us, that we will experience His Joy, a Joy that touches us in our inner most being and connects us even closer to Himself. Truly an experience that far exceeds that of watching TV, dare I say magnificent.

I for one am not going to make a new years commitment to watch less TV. I am instead, going to commit to do the only thing that really matters, which is to Love God more, and ask Him to remind me to do the one thing I often seem to forget, which is to remember Him in my choices.

Tom

Debbie made a salad for Valentines day dinner with Carne Asada beef and Blue Cheese dressing.  The Chips  were the Works!, with Poppy and Caraway seeds, plus Minced Garlic and Onion.  Then, Peach Cobbler and Vanilla ice cream for desert. YUM!

Here are a few pics from the FTLOG rally in Thrall today. Not a big crowd, but we had a good time. Lin was calling out raffle prizes.