Of course in my Back Pew way of looking at things I have imagined and illustrated a few of these temple violators. There were The Temple ..

• Money Changers/ATMs, ...
• A Temple Bird Salesman, the ...
• Slinkee and Pet Rocks table, and the 'standard'
• Bible Bobblehead vendors 

all these and more turned the temple into a true den of thieves.  So I guess frustrated was a true understatement as I will call Jesus state of mind The Temper in the Temple.

After turning over a few tables Jesus left the temple not in the mood for encountering a 'fig-free-fig-tree' which he promptly cursed.  This was a lesson NOT LOST on his disciples.

It is not fair to assume the mind of Christ, but from my human perspective I imagine Jesus did feel the emotions that went along with his triumphant entry that first Palm Sunday as well as the frustration of this broken world where on Monday the Temple was shameful, and the fig tree bore no fruit.  Simple emotions for someone like me but deeper and more complex for our Savior as his foretold arrest and crucifixion were only days away.

While my cartoons are a smirky look at very real biblical events my prayer is we remember the Holy Week. Remember and honor the amazing truth of salvation realized between that first Palm Sunday and that first Easter morning.

Blessings

Jeff

FRIDAY
Just 1 week before the crucifixion of Jesus the gospels tell us about 'Dinner at Simon's.  
This sounds a bit like a Neil Simon comedy, but it was not, and so I do need to clarify, This happening event was former leper Simon throwing a dinner party with former dead person Lazarus in attendance. Of course while not being an expert at throwing or attending parties.. former lepers and dead folk are not what you would find at let's say a Hollywood A list party after the Academy Awards.  Then again this former leper and dead person were now more alive than most anything found in the spirit ual death valley of Hollywood.

But 2000 years ago both Simon and Lazarus are lookin’ good for a couple guys who had either 1 or both feet in the grave.  Never the less I would have been very careful about the finger foods being served by a former leper. I think you get my point and DO NOT need this cartoonist to draw you a picture.

Then what became an awkward dinner party moment was Mary performing the extravagant act of love by washing Jesus feet with her hair, her tears, and expensive perfume. 

I guess by strict definitions I am a protestant, but technically more of a protestant MUTT with a dash of Catholicism.  Actually I would like to be simply defined as a CHRISTIAN thank you very much as I don't fit nicely into any denominational box.  

Don't get me wrong I am not judging anyone else choice of 'box' though I am a little concerned if you are into SNAKE HANDLING.. but I digress BIG TIME.

No matter your flavor of faith as long as you 1. Love God, and 2. Care for Others while using your Bible as your guide I think God will be pretty pretty pleased.

Abraham at age 75 was called by God to postpone his retirement and START A NATION. These stories from Genesis regarding Abraham and his faithfulness speak volumes to me. 
Today, when I think of Full Time Ministry I think of a missionary or preacher, BUT this narrow definition of ministry lets the rest of us non-preacher folk off the hook. 
If ministry was reserved only for preachers and missionaries I would be left to center my life on ME. More hours for reality TV, and all the delivery pizza I could stomach.  
But.. 

Saint Patrick's Day is a cultural and religious holiday celebrated each year on March 17th, the death date of the most commonly recognized patron saint of Ireland, Saint Patrick.
     The day commemorates Saint Patrick and the arrival of Christianity in Ireland, and is a celebration of the Irish heritage and culture. Celebrations generally involve public parades and festivals and wearing green attire and shamrocks.
     The Lenten restrictions on eating and drinking alcohol are lifted for the day which has encouraged and propogated the holiday's tradition of alcohol consumption.  <pause> like man needs another excuse to drink beer... even green beer 
     Thank you God for St. Patrick and his mission to Ireland. May God bless the Irish and all the people who pretend to be Irish each year in March. May it be a great day of celebration of heritage and culture, and may the consumption of all be done with reasonable moderation.
     Please enjoy my modest collection of St Patrick's Day cartoons.

 I like all those clever quotes regarding aging. Here are a few I gleaned from the web.

• Your'e not getting older, your'e getting wiser
  

• With age comes wisdom, but sometimes age comes alone...  
• You can't teach an Old Dog New Tricks. 
• Age before beauty
• Age is a question of mind over matter.  If you don't mind, it doesn't matter.
• Youth is a wonderful thing.  What a crime to waste it on children. 
• Middle age is when your age starts to show around your middle.
• Thirty-five is when you finally get your head together and your body starts falling apart.
• Youth is a disease from which we all recover.
• Old age isn't so bad when you consider the alternative. 
• You are only young once, but you can be immature forever.

I may not be wise like.. King Solomon who wrote the bible books Proverbs and Ecclesiastes that focus on wisdom and provide perspective for everyone.. BUT I did stop with having ONE wife while 'wise' King Solomon collected wives (700 wives, 300 concubines) like some people collect stamps.
 Like I stated earlier, aging and wisdom are relative commodities.  We all have a limited 'shelf life' on Earth and our aging process ultimately an expiration date (just glad it is not stamped on my forehead like a bottle of milk). BUT then Eternity in Heaven for those who believe. 

We once took a shortcut across a mountain in Colorado.. This was back before the days of GPS, and while vacationing in Colorado along with my wife and kids my wife pulled out the good ol' paper map and found a 'shortcut' that would cut off miles on our quest to reach the Royal Gorge.  
Well, we ended up Royal Lost driving where a minivan passed sherpas, mountain goats, and the body of George Mallory until we back tracked to civilization. 
So I believe our 'shortcut' took us an extra 1 1/2 half hours to reach the 'Royal Hole in the Ground'. So lesson learned is beware of things called 'short cuts' when driving to the Royal Gorge or if choosing to use CliffsNotes for Intimacy with God.

I was praying 'anxiously' the other day. Of course praying anxiously is an oxymoron bigger than a skinny baptist preacher.. BUT God reminded me I am called to be FAITHFUL in the MOMENTS that make up my day.  I am not called to be FAITHFUL in a MOMENT in my day.  

I guess this is obvious to everyone else, BUT for me it was an epiphany.. and my calling.  

I should not longer worry about being known as  A Farside 'like' Cartoonist/Preacher.. but instead focus on being Faithful in Word and Deed when ..

• I am driving my car (even in rush hour),
• buying groceries (even in a long line),
• watching Packers (even IF they lose),
• eating dinner out (even when the service is bad and food cold),
• paying my bills (even when my bank account balance appears to be on a diet), OR when..
• having 'heated' discussion with my wife (even when she is wrong, and I am AGAIN right). 
  

FAITHFUL .. it's not just for Sunday mornings anymore!  Who knew?

I like those Info-mercials with high energy sales person pitches the latest and greatest product to

• remove stains, 
• control zits,
• color gray hair,
• hide bald spots,
• lose weight
• or help with ED!  
  * note * Before the recent blast of ED commercials, the only ED I was aware of was Ed Cleary who ran a local gas/service station in my home town of 280 people 30 years ago.

A Better Deal:
These are all possibly issues you are aware of, but to limit ourselves to solutions found on infomercials (even though most only cost $9.99) would miss us out on the power of the creator of the universe.

What?
Ok, you say you have never even had coffee with the pastor of the church you attend, then creator of the universe would be outside your social network.  Truth be told our God is a personal God and He still answers prayers.  This is the same God who..

• parts seas,
• falls walled cities,
• feeds 5,000 with fish and chips leftovers, and he 
• slays unsightly giants.

So my prayer for myself and for you today is to .. THINK BIG.  Don't put a lid on what is possible with God on our side.