Yesterday Ann and I declared MISSION ACCOMPLISHED for our renovation project on the “blue house” we purchased last fall. We have made it a guest house which will be available for rent starting September 1. Our website is www.pleasantviewhouse.com .

We are in the process of furnishing the house and there are still several items on our punch list. We just hope that we haven’t jumped the gun like George W. Bush. I don’t think we could spend seven more years mopping up.

Life in the church is dangerous. Much of the danger comes from from becoming so cozily familiar with the way of faith that we feel set apart or above our early status of what we sometimes think of as a mere Christian. We become so diligent in learning about and working for Jesus that our relationship with with Jesus erodes. The constant danger – and this has been going on for a long time in church – is that we rake on a role, a religious role, that gradually obliterates the life of the soul.

Life in today’s world, more than ever before, is about this—getting things done, controlling our environment so that we can create the results we want. As Os Guinness has written,

What counts in the rationalized world is efficiency, predictability, quantifiability, productivity, the substitution of technology for the human, and-from first to last-control over uncertainty.

Blake and Grayson as well as Tyler have been playing with post season All-Star teams. It looks like Kyle is going to be able to join his team this next weekend. His arm has healed nicely. All star tournaments are grueling. Grayson played three games yesterday in 95 degree heat. His team finished 3rd and he played very well.

The next few weeks are looking busy. We continue to work on the blue house. We are looking forward to having Clark and Vanessa for a visit next week. It is possible that we may go to Alabama for my 50th high school graduation reunion at the end of the month.

Individualism is the growth-stunting, maturity-inhibiting habit of understanding growth as an isolated self-project. Individualism is self-ism with a swagger. The individualist is the person who is convinced that he or she can serve God without dealing with God. This is the person who is sure that he or she can love neighbors without knowing their names. This is the person who assumes that “getting ahead” involves leaving other people behind. This is the person who, having gained competence in knowing God or people or world, uses that knowledge to take charge of God or people or world.