Your Flashforward:

My wife and I are pretty big fans of LOST.  We've watched every episode.  It all started during a tremendous weekend with our good friend the stomach flu.  When I got feeling better she came down with it and date night turned into holding the trash can while the other "evacuated".  I think it was my sister who loaned us season 1 & 2 on DVD.  With all the downtime we devoured every episode.

JJ Abrams, the creator of LOST, has a new show out (Which is chock full of ex-LOSTies).    I've been watching it with a family in our church because my wife works on Thursday nights.  The set up helps fight the loneliness and gives me a chance to build community.  On a side note, I love this family.

I also, love Flashforward, the new JJ show.  It's like LOST if LOST was a cop drama . . . and made any sense.  The premise is that for one minute and thirty-seven seconds everyone passed out and got to see what they were doing six months into the future.  Of course a lot of carnage occurred during that minute and a half, but for the most part the show is about the visions.  Some people get hopeful visions, others see their marriage ruined, but most frightening of all, some people see nothing.  The race is on to figure out why the blackouts happened.

Take the jump to read some more of my thoughts and how this show asks a question we should all want to answer.

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How to see the future:

I got a chance to sit down with a couple of my high school students tonight. Originally, my plan for the evening was to eat something and fall asleep as hard and as fast as possible. I'm glad my plans changed because I got to have a really good heart to heart with them. They shared their concerns about the future and how daunting it is to feel pressured into knowing what you want to do for the rest of your life at 16. Take the jump to read my thoughts.

Also, I'll be interposing pictures of what people thought the future would look like in the 1950's. If you think they add some depth or meaning that's awesome, but I'm just doing it because they make me chuckle.

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A Beautiful Thing:

There is a graduate in my youth group who has been very special to me ever since I started working at Euharlee. I've watched her grow and come out of her shell. She has endeared herself to me. I love to tell stories about the things that she does. I love to remind myself of her loving servant heart. She's a rolemodel to me and probably doesn't even know it.

I've been through some of the ups and downs of her life with her, but it seems like lately there have been a lot of "downs". Family trouble keeps popping up, money is tight and they recently suffered the loss of a loved one. Her aunt passed away yesterday after suffering from a stroke. I could tell on her face that something was bothering her. I reminded her that if she was a Christian then death was an upgrade and we'll see her again. That seemed to help her, as did the See You At The Pole event.

When we got back to the church her mom came to pick her up. Her mom, by the way, is just like her. Mom asked me if we could step inside, away from the insanity of the rest of the youth. When we got in she looked at me and said, "I just need a hug."

It was her sister who had passed away. She came to me to be consoled. I don't know why I was lucky enough to be the one she confided in, but, it was a beautiful moment as her mom wept while I hugged her. I tried to say some pastoral things, but realized pretty quickly she didn't need them, she just needed a hug.

We talked for a minute afterwords. Things are tough for them. Please pray for them. Join with me as I praise God for giving me the chance to be part of something so special.And here is the rest of it. The Jump!

Sportsmanship:

The video I'm posting today seems like one of the ultimate shows of sportsmamship. Giving a young man with Downs Syndrome the chance to score a touchdown seems like the ultimate type of class, right? Why do I keep feeling like it was more pity than class? The coach will only let him play when the team is in an impossibly bad spot. He asks the other team to let him through untouched. The kid ran the play, let him say he played the game, not got babied.

All I'm saying is, is coddling the same as sportsmanship?

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And here is the rest of it. The Jump!

Check it out Basebal and Sci Fi fans:

I think this is 100% real. I am not even going to try to explain how it works. I tried doing this at the Labor Day Picnic and almost threw the bat in the river. If anyone has any idea how to pull this off or can make a video of themselves doing this I'll wear a diaper out in public.

Seriously, watching this video it almost seems like a shame that he has to swing the bat for real. Apparently, he's a AAA ball player named Josh Womack. What I want to know is, why the heck is he not playing for the Rome Braves. I've been to a couple Rome Braves games and Mr. Womack doing that wackiness on the sidelines would pay for admission.

Oh, after the jump, see the rest of his tricks.






Amazing Baseball Bat Tricks Part II - Watch more Funny Videos The Jump!