He would have been 49 today.

I stopped in my insurance agent today, and had to sign a paper. When I hesitated before putting the date, she said, "It's the 29th." I responded with a "sheesh." and she said, "Yes, the year has gone fast."

But my "sheesh" came for a different reason. My brother would have been 49 today. He died several years ago of an intentional overdose. He just couldn't take being an addict anymore. It was so bad that he chose to take his life over it. So much for drugs being an escape from one's problems.

I do not know his eternal destiny, although things don't look good. He was antagonistically agnostic. He had a Buddha in his house, but when questioned about Buddhism, he admitted he did not really know much about it. I think it was mostly there to antagonize any Christians who might enter, like me.

He tried 12 step programs, but they don't work so well when you refuse to have anything to do with a higher-power. And yet, he believed in something. He was, among other things, a mountain climber. He said once, "You can't stand on a mountain and look around and say this all happened by chance. There has to be a creator."

Yet, he didn't like the creator. He didn't want to have anything to do with a god who would let children starve, or any of the other seemingly unexplainable miseries that befall mankind.

Brother, you are still loved and missed. I wish we could have talked more, although I don't know if it would have changed anything. I wish you peace. I pray that in those last moments, you wrestled with God and lost, that you might win something greater.

News from the Doctor (Introducing Mini-Bob)

I'm here inviting the sin-sick, not the spiritually fit. (Mk 2 TMSG)

Jesus came to restore the broken, not to check on the status of your life. If we don't think that we really need Him, then we are probably not living a full life!

Think of it this way: Jack goes to the doctor. He tells Jack that he could stand to lose a couple of pounds and exercise a bit more. Jack thanks the doctor, pays his bill and leaves. How much does Jack's life change?

Bob goes to the doctor because of chest pains, and the doctor tells him that he must immediately be admitted to the hospital. Once there, Bob is told that they can help, but he is also going to have to make some radical changes if he is to survive. Bob understands the gravity of the situation and listens to his doctor. How much does Bob's life change?

What did Jesus say to you? What is he saying now?