Go Barefoot!

Just saw this on the internet. It's about a campaign tomorrow to raise awareness of how many children around the world don't have shoes. I'm thinking about going barefoot, will you?

He Is Risen!

Hear the heart of heaven beating, "Jesus Saves. Jesus saves."
And the hush of mercy breathing, "Jesus Saves. Jesus saves."
Hear the host of angels sing, "Glory to the Newborn King."
And the sounding joy repeating, "Jesus saves."

See the humblest hearts adore Him. "Jesus saves. Jesus saves."
And the wisest bow before Him. "Jesus saves. Jesus saves."
See the sky alive with praise, melting darkness in its place
There is life forevermore, "Jesus saves. Jesus saves."

He will live our sorrow sharing, "Jesus saves. Jesus saves."
He will die our burden bearing, "Jesus saves. Jesus saves."
"It is done!" will shout the cross, Christ has paid redemption's cost!
While the empty tomb's declaring, "Jesus saves."

Freedom's calling, chains are falling, hope is dawning bright and true.
Day is breaking, night is quaking, God is making all things new.
"Jesus saves."

Oh to grace, how great a debtor! "Jesus saves. Jesus saves."
All the saints who shout together. "I know that Jesus saves."
Rising us so vast and strong lifting up salvation's song,
The redeemed will sing forever, the redeemed will sing forever, the redeemed will sing forever, "Jesus saves."
"Jesus saves."

Words by Travis Cottrell

It's Friday...but Sunday's a comin'

Thank you Jesus for your purchase of my salvation.

What???

Some things just don't need a comment. Go Red Sox!

Yeah baby!

Watch CBS Videos Online

Portland Bound! See you Thursday!

Staying Faithful in Uncertain Times

Lately my pastor, Les Hughes, has been bringing it from the pulpit. He's in a series called "When God Gets Personal," and we've been hearing great things from the congregation about the messages. The last couple of weeks he's been talking about "When God Gets Personal With My Stuff." It's been a great two weeks of messages about the resources we have and our stewardship of them. He's also been able to bring some timely advice to the body about how to react during the stress-filled economic times we are in. As church leaders, we struggle just like everyone else with making ends meet, making wise financial decisions, trying to decide what to spend and what not to spend, etc. We've also had to react to giving patterns in the church and nationwide as we restructure our budget for this year.

Did you know that the average church member that gives will give about 2% of their income this year to any and all Christian charitable causes? George Barna reported that in 2008 one out of every five households have decreased their giving to the church compared to previous years. Of those who have decreased their giving, 22% stopped giving altogether. What do these types of statistics say about the Body of Christ in America, one of the most affluent nations in the world?

I know that times are tough for a lot of people and a lot of people I know have lost jobs due to no fault of their own. I see the same depressing news you do every morning as I get ready and have found that I have a lot more interest in the stock market recently. I didn't have much set aside in my 403(b) with Guidestone, but I looked at it recently and I have lost 53% of it since January 2008.

Here are a few of my personal thoughts about this mess:
1. The root of most of this economic collapse is spiritual and moral, not financial. Greed, excess, and discontentment have created the mess we are in. Bankers loaned money to people that couldn't pay, people bought more house than they could actually afford with money they didn't have, and financial investors took risks that were too big a gamble all because of the desire to add more to our personal worth - greed. I think God will and is using this time to show the Christ-followers and true church in this country that we need to be more dependent upon him than we are on Ameritrade or Edward Jones. Greed is at the heart of many of the problems with humanity and the church. If you bought more house than you could afford, it was not just because it was a good investment. It was more likely because you are greedy and being able to say "I live in ..." makes you feel better about yourself. Paul said "Now there is great gain in godliness with contentment, ⁷for we brought nothing into the world, and we cannot take anything out of the world." (I Timothy 6:6-7)

Greed is a heart issue, not a financial one. How much is enough for you? How expensive a house do you need? Could you possibly live in a smaller house and use the extra money from your house payment to sponsor a child through WorldVision or take a mission trip to share the Gospel? Everywhere I look, I see greed. But I see it most evidently in my own heart. I always want more. Bigger toys, nicer cars, bigger house. I bought a new TV last year for Father's Day and still find myself browsing through Best Buy looking at the bigger ones that are cheaper than mine now. Despite what Gordon Gekko said in the movie Wall Street, Greed is not good. Have you found thorough this experience that you are a greedy person? If so, what changes are you making to correct that?

2. While many have been seriously affected by the economic downturn through job loss, most of us have not. I would venture that the majority of Christ-followers in the church today are making close to the same amount of money they did this time last year. You may be in sales and get paid on commission, or your company may have recently had to cut costs and payroll by some percentage recently. However the vast majority of us are making very close to what we made last year. At the same time, while many of us are making the same amount of money, giving to churches has decreased. Loosely translated, people are more concerned about the economy and one of the first places they tighten up is giving to the local storehouse. Bottom line, if you are making about the same amount you did a year or two ago and you are giving less or have stopped giving to your local church, you are robbing God. Check out Malachi 3:8-10. If you give less to God during tough economic times, then who are you really trusting? Do you trust God to provide for you like he does the sparrows and the lilies (Matthew 6), or are you trusting in what you can put back on your own? Do you not remember that God rewards faith? What better time to test God and your faith in him than to faithfully give? Isn't God the same God when the stock market is 6,000 points as He is when its 11,000 points?

3. Finally, the consequences of lacking faith in God during tough times is much worse than the consequences of misplaced trust in Wall Street. If you trust in financial institutions for your security, then when those institutions fail, your security is stressed or destroyed. However, God is our sure rock during unsure times. The consequences of lacking faith in God will have spiritual ramifications long after the recession has subsided.

I would encourage you to be a trendsetter and not a trend-follower. Show the world that as Christ-followers, we may not know where Wall Street is heading, but we know where Christ is. Be faithful. Test God and show the world that His kingdom advances and His church in on the front lines.

Essential Church Retreat

Last weekend I had the opportunity to attend the Essential Church Retreat at Ridgecrest Conference Center in North Carolina. This event was sponsored by Lifeway and featured its president Thom Rainer and his son Sam who co-wrote the book Essential Church: Reclaiming a Generation of Dropouts. I am a big supporter of Dr. Rainer's books, and my ministry has been profoundly helped by his insights during his time both at Southern Seminary and now as president of Lifeway. My denomination is blessed to have Dr. Rainer leading the helm at Lifeway.

I picked this book up originally because every time I go to the bookstore and see a Thom Rainer book on the New Releases shelf, I automatically look inside. The staff at my church read Simple Church a few years ago and radically restructured a lot of our ministry around the four discipleship envriornments we indentified as part of reading that book. Essential Church is in many ways a follow-up to Simple Church. The research was done to show how to recapture and prevent the large number of church dropouts that occur between the ages of 18-23. Being a previous youth pastor, I have seen first-hand how many students walked away from the local church during this time, no matter how strong the youth program or their seemingly strong personal walk with God during the High School years. I was also intrigued reading the book because the research is part of the basis for my Doctor of Ministry Project that I am working on at New Orleans Seminary.

During the retreat and in the book, the Rainers show that "of those who dropout of the church, 70% will do so between the ages of 18-22." There are many reasons given in the feedback by the survey respondents, but the primary reason for their dropout is that they no longer saw the church as an essential part of their lives. They made a consumer decision of their time and energy and the church lost out. The Rainers also show that these young adults did not necessarily walk away from God or change their views of God, just His bride. While these trouble me, they don't surprise me. The authors also did a fantastic job in the retreat and the book showing that there are four elements that are necessary to create the type of Essential Church that will bring this generation back. They also showed that while the research was limited to a young adult population, the principles of the Essential Church transcend all age groups and will probably be necessary to reach the de-churched no matter what the generational identification is.

Another very interesting insight from the Rainers is that of the "Third Place" mentality. At one time, it was common in the culture that outside of the home and work, the church was the center of cultural life. That is no more. However, many places have started to capture this "Third Place" mentality. Starbucks is a prime example of this. The authors encourage the readers to begin to investigate ways to bring this Third Place mentality back to the local church. I think this is an effort that deserves some more research.

Overall, a great time the whole weekend. The insights from the retreat were great. Alison and I got to spend some much needed time alone together. It was significantly impacted by the fact that Ridgecrest doesn't have televisions in the rooms. Wow! That was an adjustment. We took a rainy tour through the Biltmore Estate on Saturday and then had a fun ride home in the sleet and snow that hit the Southeast on Sunday.

Christianity in Crisis: 21st Century - A Review

A few weeks ago I signed up to be a Book Review Blogger with Thomas Nelson publishers. The first book I choose to review was Christianity in Crisis: 21st Century by Hank Hanegraaff. Hanegraaff is the president of the Christian Research Institute and known as the “Bible Answer Man” because of his radio show in which he fields questions about cults and cultic groups. Christianity in Crisis: 21st Century is the author’s response to the popularity and subsequent dangers of the Word/Faith movement that has infiltrated the American church. He does a good job of not only showing the cultic nature of this dangerous movement, but also helping the reader understand that not all Charismatic branches of Christianity espouse this dangerous doctrinal poison.

The Word/Faith movement is not a new one. Hanegraaff shows how its seeds have been sown for over a century now. He also does a good job of showing how the ever-changing cast of characters have developed from its beginning with E.W. Kenyon and Kenneth Hagin to more current proliferators like Joel Osteen, Joyce Meyer, and T.D. Jakes. The movement lacks denominational structure and its teachers have differing emphases and dangers in their teachings. Hanegraaff shows, however, that most all of them have some consistent heresies in their doctrine and teaching. The author’s main points of dissention are that the movement redefines faith as a metaphysical force by which the believer can require and demand from God; a reduction of the deity of God and Jesus and a subsequent deification of man a sovereign over the earth; a redefining of the atonement of Christ in which Christ’s redemption is not won on the cross but in an encounter in hell; and a dangerous teaching that believers should never be sick or in want because of the force of their faith.

Hanegraaff’s book is well-written and well thought out. It exposes a very dangerous branch of the American church that very few in today’s society have had the courage to confront. The movement’s lack of structure and the vast bank of resources by its proponents have given it a strong foothold in the culture. Hanegraaff’s writing shows a well-crafted researcher who has spent many years studying the false teachers of the Word/Faith movement. The author has employed over 1100 footnotes and quotes directly from these false teachers, exposing the reader in a large scale manner to the depth of deception and deviation from the truth that characterize the movement. However, the author does not just expose false teaching, but shows sound theology by giving the reader firm answers to the deceptive teaching.

In addition to the solid research and sound theology, the author makes use of acronyms to present the material to the reader. While seeming a little cheesy at first, the use of these acronyms provides the reader with memorable handles to recall the dangers of the Word/Faith heresy. This helps boil down the information into memorable handles that will go beyond the reading of the book.

Overall, Christianity in Crisis: 21st Century is a much-needed and timely alarm to the church today. In a time when present day books for church leaders mostly focus on missional renaissance and leadership techniques, and rightly so, Hank Hanegraaff has given those same leaders a sound call for doctrinal purity. Whether they realize it or not, all church leaders are battling every day with the subtle decay of sound doctrine and proliferation of man-centered, greed-filled teachings of the Word/Faith leaders. To overlook this decay leads to a silent endorsement of its teachings and quiet approval of its results. Pastors, read this book.

Quick Updates

It's been a crazy couple of months and it's hard to believe that 2009 is almost 1/6 gone. Lots of stuff happening in the Haines' world the past couple of months. Here's some quick updates about what's happening in my life.

- I'm presently at Ridgecrest finishing up a great time with Thom and Sam Rainer about their book Essential Church. It's a great book about helping church leaders to understand why 70% of those who were active in the church before age 18 still drop out and what it takes to reclaim them. It's a great research and awesome book that every church leader needs to read. It's principles are transferrable and impact all generations and not just the 18-25 year olds. It's the basis of my doctoral project and it's been a great time.
- Speaking of doctoral work, after about 4 months of agony and trying to run away from D.Min. work, I am now beginning to put together a project proposal to submit to the seminary. My project will be in the area of creating a discipleship strategy to reach 18-25 year olds at Westwood Baptist Church. I'll be buried in a lot of research in the coming months. It's going to be tough, but I must push through. Pray for perseverance and clarity.
- While Alison and I are in NC, we are going to the Biltmore House tomorrow. Never been before and I am looking forward to it. It's been a great trip here with my wife and a much needed time of connection for us. She is still the most beautiful person I have every laid eyes on and I need to do more to invest in her.
- Nathan has started baseball practice. He has moved up to 9-10 year old Minor league this year. This means a transition from Machine Pitch to Kid-Pitch. He's excited, but it's going to take a few weeks to shake the rust off. His team is the Red Sox (woohoo!) and we are playing once again with Coach Heath Pender who we played with two years ago. I'll post season updates later.
- Drew turned 8 on February 2. Hard to believe. He is growing up way too fast. He is an excellent student and sneaky smart. It's amazing how much he has grown in the last couple of years. He got an Nintendo DS for his birthday and has spent much of the last 4 weeks with his head buried in it. He wrapped up Upward Basketball a couple of weeks ago. It was his first time playing basketball. I got the privlege of coaching him. It was a rough start for him, but he made a lot of progress during the season. He didn't score much, but he did real good playing defense. Most of the time he just wanted to know where the snacks were.
- John David is still our "Pete". He loves his school and is getting old too fast. He's not playing any sports yet. He's still not sure he's any good and won't try unless he can do it right the first time. He's learned a lot at school this year and amazes us every day.
- Life at Westwood is busy. Every week my world is occupied with making room in the sanctuary and parking lot. Good problems to have.
- The Red Sox have started Spring Training. While the Evil Empire outbid us for Mark Texeira, I am still hopeful for a great season. The first three spring training games have not been good, but it's just Spring Training.
- I got to take Nathan to his first basketball game at The Hump a few weeks ago to see them play Alabama. He enjoyed it. The MSU Baseball team has started under new coach John Cohen. I hope to get to a couple of games this year. I am also very excited about Dan Mullen and the energy he's brought to Starkville along with a great recruiting class.

That's about it for now. I'll try to be more consistent as well as more meaningful in the days ahead.

Great words for a Sox fan...Pitchers and Catchers Report

Yesterday was a great day for any baseball fan. It's the promise of a new year. Everyone's got a chance to be a World champion. Here's to the 2009 Red Sox!

A-Roid or A-Fraud

Alex Rodriguez tested positive for anabolic steroids in 2003, when he was with the Texas Rangers and won the AL home run title and MVP award, according to a report by Sports Illustrated.

According to the report, which was posted Saturday morning on SI.com, sources told the publication that Rodriguez was on a list of 104 players who tested positive that year, when Major League Baseball conducted survey tests to see if mandatory, random drug-testing was needed.

Sources who know about the testing results told Sports Illustrated that Rodriguez tested positive for testosterone and Primobolan, an anabolic steroid.

I don't care who you are...this is funny

VAIL, Colo. — The guy who ended up dangling upside down from a ski lift with his bare bottom whistling in the wind probably doesn't want to hear any "ski bum" jokes. Vail Resorts said the 48-year-old man wasn't injured and was rescued after about seven minutes. His name hasn't been released.

Resort officials have said only that the man was trying to get on the Blue Ski Basin lift on New Year's Day. They haven't said what went wrong.

Resort workers stopped the lift, backed it up about 10 or 12 feet and rescued the man.

Bystanders snapped photos and posted them the Internet, showing a man who looks to be hanging by one ski boot, his ski pants and underwear apparently snagged in the chair and reaching no farther than his knees.

Vail spokeswoman Liz Biebl confirmed the photos on one site were in fact the victim.

Happy Birthday Alison!

Today is my beautiful bride's birthday! She has been the treasure of my heart for 12 years now. She believes in me much more than I deserve and has seen me at my worst and still sticks around. Join me in wishing her a wonderful birthday.

(Don't you love the Minnie Mouse hat?)

Hearing God Through the Noise

As 2009 starts, my prayer is that it will be a year in which God is richly and powerfully manifested in my life and in my family. As my kids get older, I am more acutely aware of the gravity of being a parent who believes in Jesus Christ. It's far too easy to teach my kids sports and too difficult to teach them to pray. After the hustle and bustle of the day, I would rather leave them to Disney Channel for an hour to escape than to turn off the TV and train them in God's Word. I find myself looking for a quick-fix or plug and play family devotional that I can fit into the course of the week rather than allowing God to speak to my children out of the overflow of my own walk with God. I also find myself more enamored as a leader with books and blogs on religious methodologies than with Paul's words to the Corinthians or Ephesians. One problem with our day and age is not the lack of Christian ideals or words, but the abundance of them. I am a Christian book freak with more books than I have bookshelves. As I walked yesterday through the local Lifeway store, I was struck by how we have so much religious teaching, theory, and training, but little of the true Christ-like life. I read this quote yesterday from A.W. Tozer:

"Every age has its own characteristics. Right now we are in an age of religious complexity. The simplicity which is in Christ is rarely found among us. It its stead are programs, methods, organizations and a world of nervous activities which occupy time and attention but can never satisfy the longing of the heart. The shallowness of our inner experience, the hollowness of our worship, and that servile imitation of the world which marks our promotional methods all testify that we, in this day, know God only imperfectly, and the peace of God scarcely at all." A. W. Tozer

"God, grant that I would become totally and completely satisfied in you. Help me to trust in you and your mysterious ways more than I do my gifts and talents. Help me to embrace simplicity and look through the fog of methods and words that currently exist to see and hear from you. Help me to be a lens by which my wife and children see you. Help me understand that my life in you is not measured by how fast or how far I can run, but by how much of you that others see in me. Be my satisfaction, now and always."

Goodbye 2008...

Well, it's New Year's Eve. Time to say "Goodbye" to 2008 and "Welcome" to 2009. Time for dads to become fireworks aficionados and spend way too much money on overpriced fireworks and talk about lighting the "Grand Finale." Time for kids to get extreme joy from running around with lit sparklers.

It's also time to think about all that has happened in this year. 2008 saw a historic race for president and a historic and politically charged election. It saw a tremendous economic downturn and massive fluctuations in gas prices. At one point this year gas was almost $5 a gallon. At another point, it was going for $1.39 a gallon. It saw an unknown governor from Alaska become the most intriguing figure of the year.

Being a sports fan, 2008 also was an interesting year. LSU started the year as the runaway winner of the national championship in college football. The NY Giants pulled off a huge upset in probably the best Super Bowl in the last 15-20 years. Kansas beat out Memphis for college basketball's championship. Tiger won the U.S. Open on one knee and then had surgery the next week. The Boston Celtics went from worst to champions in one year. And the Tampa Bay Rays dropped the "Devil" and became the feel-good story of the year in baseball.

Sports also saw huge moments in the Olympics. Michael Phelps ignited the United States with his performance winning 8 gold medals, including a heart pounding dramatic come from behind by Jason Lezak in the 400M relay that anyone watching could not believe. Usain Bolt was the world's fastest man in the 100m relay. Nastia Lukin won the all around gold in women's gymnastics.

On a personal note, 2008 saw another year of my sons growing up way too fast. 9 years ago I held my firstborn son Nathan and now he's driving me around the golf course in the cart. Nathan played his second year of machine pitch ball and had a great season. He played outfield and spent most of the year batting clean-up. He started the year with great success at the plate and finished the season with a .720 batting avg, 3 hr's, and 7 doubles. He also made the All-Stars for the second year. Nathan tried football for the first time this year and did pretty well. He played offensive line and his team made the first round of the playoffs. Nathan has also done real well in school and was selected to participate in the gifted program at Creekview. My middle son Drew turned 7 this year. He started the year trying out soccer again. He had a great time and played real good defense. Drew also signed up for Upward Basketball for the first time. He started off rough, but has made great improvements. John David turned 4 this year. He is no longer the baby and is becoming more of a little boy everyday.

Our family took our first trip to Disney World this year and had a great time. It was awesome seeing the excitement on the kids faces as they experienced the the rides and Disney characters for the first time. They loved the roller coasters and dining with Goofy, Pluto, Tigger, and Pooh.

2008 saw Alison and I celebrate 11 years of marriage. It also saw me complete my 12th year on staff at Westwood. The church continues to grow and have one of the best staffs I have ever seen.

No Longer Here
One of the reflections I always do at this time of year is look back at the people who died over the past year. More than any other year in recent memory, 2008 had some huge losses. Maybe I am just getting older and the more I see people I have watched pass away, the more it brings to light my own mortality. Here are some of the people that are no longer here:

1. Paul Newman - I remember how sad I was to hear this one. One of the greatest actors ever and the star of classics like "Cool Hand Luke" and "The Sting" left us at age 83 from complications of lung cancer.

2. Charlton Heston - Another legendary actor who played Ben Hur, Moses, and the astronaut Taylor in Planet of the Apes died at age 84 from pneumonia.

3. Heath Ledger - I remember the shock when I heard this one on the Today show. Ledger died way too soon from a drug overdose. Although he hadn't made a lot of movies, he was great in "The Patriot". His most memorable performance though came months after his death as The Joker in "The Dark Knight". He gave a mesmerizing performance and deserves the Oscar.

4. George Carlin - Although I don't agree at all with his political or religious views, I always enjoyed Carlin's satirical outlook on life. He had a comedic talent that spanned generations. He died at age 71 of heart failure.

5. Bernie Mac - one of the funniest comedic actors around. His sarcasm and wit in movies like Oceans Eleven and Transformers and his own TV show were great. Mac died of pneumonia at age 50.

6. Roy Schieder - legendary actor best known as Sheriff Broody in the Jaws movies. Died at age 75 from complications of a staph infection.

Other notable deaths from 2008:
Sir Edmund Hillary - Climbed Mt. Everest
Bobby fisher - legendary chess player
Susan Pleshette - wife on the Bob Newhart Show
Bill Buckley - leader of the conservative political movement
Sidney Pollack - actor and director
Bo Diddley - legendary guitarist
Jim McKay - sports TV anchor known as the voice of the Wide World of Sports
Tim Russert - host of Meet the Press
Jesse Helms - long time US Senator
Tony Snow - White House press secretary and TV anchor
Alexander Solzhenitsyn - Russian writer Estelle Getty - actress best know from "The Golden Girls" Harvey Korman - comedian from The Carol Burnett Show Bettie Page - 50's pin-up girl Michael Crichton - author of Jurassic Park and creator of TV show ER Leroi Moore - founding member of the Dave Matthew Band Levi Stubbs - lead singer of the Four Tops Isaac Hayes - actor and musician

All in all, 2008 was a year of extreme ups and downs, highs and lows. Is the world a better place now than 12 months ago? Have we progressed as a society? Are we closer to seeing the Kingdom of God come to fruition? What will 2009 hold? Time will tell...

Immanuel

Welcome Lord Jesus and Happy Birthday.

What's Wrong with Baseball

Alright. About the worst news a Red Sox fan can get occurred today. After spending weeks courting free agent Mark Teixeira and offering one of the highest contracts in baseball history, at the last minute today the Yankees swept in with 12 million dollars more and landed the big fish. Nevermind that I am a Red Sox fan and am feeling quite a bit of jealousy right now. I can acknowledge that. Never mind that the Red Sox had just as much of an opportunity to meet Teixeira's demands and fell short because they wouldn't give 1.5 million more to an already overpriced contract.

The Yankees have once again proved what is wrong with the current state of baseball operations. They have shown once again that they are the best team money can buy. They have shown that they are more concerned with flaunting their enormous revenue stream than they are with fair and balanced competition. After all, aren't greed, indulgence, buying your way to power the new American way? Isn't it just sound economics to build your own empire without regard to how your decisions affect your competitors. It's the Wal-Mart way!

So far this off-season, the Yankees have signed three high price free agents and have committed $400 million dollars over the next 8 years. They have pulled out of their deep pockets and snagged the big ones. Some will say that fans shouldn't be upset because the Yankees are just taking their profits and putting it back into the product for their fans. They say that the Yankees actually cleared $88 million off their payroll this year and have only spent $65 million. They say that the Yankees are just trying to reward their fans with the best baseball team they can. To that I say "Bull Butter!"

Let's first remember that the $88 million that the Yankees cleared off their payroll is twice as much as the payrolls of teams like the Rays, Royals, and other small market teams. Those teams can't clear that much off. Let's also remember that the Yankees have more income than any other team. With their YES Network, their large (and increasing) ticket prices, and their other business means that they have more revenue to spend than any other team. Their payroll last year was over $200 million dollars and they just paid a $26 million luxury tax (Something that Bud Selig seems to enjoy). They just finished a $1 billion stadium and in the process received millions of dollars from New York city residents through taxes.

Let's remember that the Yankees now currently own the 4 highest paid contracts in professional baseball (ARod, Jeter, Sabathia, and Teixeira). 4! The Yankees have 7 of the highest 10 contracts in the history of professional baseball. That just sounds wrong. It's not about fairness, it's about balance and making sure that every team that suits up in March will have an equal opportunity to compete. It's about fans in Kansas City, and Cincinnati, and Oakland actually having a something to root for other than a .500 record. There are fans in some cities that have grown up without knowing what a playoff team looks like for most of the last 20+ years. No team has taken advantage of the Free Agent system than the Yankees.

I heard it said today that George Steinbrenner "showed the world that you have to spend money to make money." I understand that principle. Big Daddy George did a good job of helping all teams to evaluate the product they put on the field. He also made the game more about greed than competition. He made it possible for snakes like Scott Boras to make millions of dollars giving small-market teams the shaft. Boras and the Steinbrenners represent all the worst of sports.

Some will say, "Matt, your team has one of the largest payrolls too." I know. I realize that the Red Sox spent $130 million (far short of the Yankees $200 mill). I know that their free agent spending enabled them to compete and win 2 World Series in four years. I know that they are sometimes exploiting the system too. But not this time. This time John Henry and Theo Epstein refused to play Boras' game. And they paid for it too. However, I feel they escaped with a little class. They showed that they were willing to bet on the 2007 World Series MVP and the third best player in the American League (Youk) last year rather than be held hostage to big contracts.

What will be the result? The Yankees will probably be a better team and could (definitely should) have a great record with their monster lineup. The Yanks might even make the playoffs. (You should with the best team money can buy) They may even buy their way to a championship. However, they will not gain respect. They will gain little admiration.

Again, some will say, "You're just jealous Matt. The Yankees gave the Red Sox the shaft again. They did the same thing they did with ARod." I cannot plead innocence. Whenever the Yankees pull one over on the Sox, my jealousy does rise. But so does my hatred for everything the Yankees stand for. I have not always been a Red Sox fan. I have always been a Yankee hater. In the 70's, I was a Reds fan because Pete Rose, George Foster, and Joe Morgan played baseball hard and with class. In the 80's, I was mostly a Tigers fan because I loved the way Alan Trammel and Lou Whitaker played the middle and Kirk Gibson and Jack Morris played with heart and talent. However through all my baseball fandom, I have always had a vitriol for the Yankees. Not because they win, but because of the way they do it. Now, I think I have enough fuel to advance my hatred for many years to come.

Boo Scott Boras. Boo Hank Steinbrenner. Boo the spineless baseball commissioner Bud Selig. Boo the MLB Players Association.

Family Disney Vacation Report - Part 2

Here's some more info on the recent Haines' vacation. On our third day we went to Hollywood Studios. Our first stop was a jump on the Tower of Terror for Alison, Nathan and Drew then a jump on the Rock n Roller Coaster. Later on I got to ride both of these with the boys. The Tower of Terror takes you up about 10 stories and then drops you suddenly, picks you back up, drops you again, and so on and so on. The Rock n Roller Coaster takes you on a ride from 0 to 60 in 2.8 seconds, then it takes you in a loop and on a fast ride through twist and turns. Drew and I rode it twice!

One of the highlights of Hollywood Studios was the animation studio. Nathan, Drew and Alison got to take a drawing class with one of the Disney animators. Another great ride was the Toy Story Mania 3D ride where you go through a fun shooting gallery throwing pies, balls, darts, etc. We also got to see the Indiana Jones Stunt Show which Nathan liked a lot.

The trip to Hollywood Studios ended early so that we could prepare for the Mickey's Very Merry Christmas Party that night. We staked out our spot right in front of Cinderella's Castle about 5. Alison did some shopping and the boys and I rode a few rides and waited on the Christmas show. It was full of singing and Christmas magic. The parade was awesome and colorful. They even had "snow" coming off the roofs on Main Street. We didn't get back to the room till late and slept in a little the next morning.

The fourth day we made our trip to the Animal Kingdom. Highlights of it included "It's Tough to Be a Bug" - a 3D show about being a bug that encompases the audience. Lots of fun. We also went through an animal exhibit and a bird sanctuary. Alison and Nathan rode Everest - the big roller coaster. It had an 80-foot drop. We rode a couple of other ride, but we left Animal Kingdom early. That night we went to a Polynesian Luau. Awesome food. Ribs, Chicken, Pineapple, rice, and cool dancing.

More cool pics:

Family Disney Vacation Report, Part 1

Alright, it's been a long time coming, but here is some pictures and reports from our trip to Disney. We arrived at the Disney complex about 10:00 on Sunday, November 30 to find our room was already ready (very pleasant surprise!). We dropped our stuff off at the room, got our tickets, and headed off for Day 1 at EPCOT. EPCOT was first because TourGuideMike.com said it would be a low crowd day there. The kids had no idea what to look for. When we passed by a hotel, John David said "Is that DisneyWorld?"

We entered through the gates wide-eyed and staring at the giant Spaceship Earth that symbolizes EPCOT. We moved quickly thoughout the day to the space simulator, Mission: Space, to the Test Track that sends you around curves at 60 mph, and to Soarin' that sends you up to an IMAX screen giving you the sensation of hang gliding. We also saw the 3D show "Honey I shrunk the audience" which scared John David. Loud noises and his first experience of things jumping at you in 3D.

The only downer the first day is that it rained most of the day and soaked us and our shoes. We left for a couple of hours to go back to the room and change clothes. When we got back to EPCOT, the Christmas lights were turned on. WOW! We went to the Mexico pavilion and then a couple of other world showcase exhibits. We had an awesome dinner at the San Angel Inn and then watched the fireworks show. It was probably the best fireworks show I had ever seen. All in all, great first day to the week despite the rain.

Day 2 brought our first trip to the Magic Kingdom. We hit the Pirates of the Caribbean and Magic Carpets of Aladdin early. Crowds were really low and the wait was seldom more than 10-15 minutes. We also hit the Big Thunder Mountain Railroad and Splash Mountain. Those two rides were probably the kids' favorites all week. We did some rides in Tomorrowland and then had a character dinner at Crystal Palace with Pooh, Tigger, Eyore, and Piglet. That afternoon we hit the rest of the rides we missed including Space Mountain and the Monsters Inc. Laugh Floor. We truly had a magical first couple of days. We were tired when we left that night though.

Here are some pictures of the first couple of days:










John David got called up on stage to participate in a game.










Drew was amazed at how small the food was and said "Honey I Shrunk the Flauta"










Mom and Nathan on the Magic Carpets of Aladdin










Dinner with Tigger










Hanging in front of the castle decorated for Christmas

Update coming soon

Sorry for the lack of updates about the Disney trip and life in general lately. I had planned on providing daily updates and pictures from Disney, but the internet was $10 a day and since we had already paid enough for the trip to finance the gross national product of many third world countries, I decided to wait. Then when I got home, I had lost the cord to download the pictures from the camera to the computer (auggh!). I found it Thursday but I had to leave my computer at the church this weekend because we are updating servers and IT companies.

Long and short, I have been very disconnected from the blogosphere for about three weeks now. Updates and opinions coming soon.