Adam Swann

Mono? That's Fantastic!

This week, my immortality has caught up with me. Hearing the doc tell me that I have mono and that I can't do anything active for 6 weeks or I might die was not what I wanted to hear. I haven't been sick in years and can't remember the last time I went to the doctor. But, after a couple of days of fever and tiredness, I couldn't deny it anymore. I had it.

I'm feeling better now because he gave me an antibiotic but still feel like I could fall asleep at any minute. It's quite odd. I've never felt anything like it before. But, I'll listen to the doc and stay away from physical activity for a while. God made the body to work a certain way and when it doesn't, it's amazing how bad you can feel. But, when you begin to feel better you are much more thankful for your health because you know how it is when you don't feel good.

Dorlene Crim, one of my faves

One of the best parts of my job is going to hospitals. Hospitals are funny places. You're very vulnerable there. Anyone can walk in on you at anytime. All modesty goes out the window. It's a place where no one can be anything that they're not. You are who you are in the hospital. So, it's especially odd when you go to visit someone lying in a hospital bed and leave feeling that you were the one who benefited from the visit.

This happened to me today when I went to see Dorlene Crim. Ms. Crim has been in the hospital for a while now. Most people would want you to feel sorry for them. But I left Gadsden Regional Hospital today feeling like I'd just had a conversation with Jesus. In effect, I had. Ms. Crim lets Christ shine through her so much that He is who I see when I see her. Love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, gentleness... they all radiate from her. It wouldn't matter what she was doing or where she was or how bad she felt, Christ reigns in her mortal body. It's amazing.

That's why she is one of my faves!

Mike Huckabee in 2008

For 2 years now I've been keeping up with former Arkansas governor Mike Huckabee. When he decided to run for president I was thrilled. You may not have heard of him because he seems to run far behind in the polls and doesn't get much media attention. And not being a current senator or congressman he doesn't have a lot of money to throw around. If you've watched any of the debates he doesn't get a lot of time but when he does get an opportunity, he makes you remember him.

He's a witty guy who's not mean spirited. You may recall a recent line at a debate where he said, "We have a congress who spends money like John Edwards at a beauty parlor." When asked about what he thinks about evolution he said, "It's interesting that would be asked of someone running for president. I'm not going to be writing the school curriculum. I'm simply asking for an opportunity to lead our country. But since you asked, I believe that in the beginning God created the heavens and the earth." I thought, what a great response.

Huckabee is an ordanined minister who doesn't seem like he's forgotten how to be a real person. Most people think that he's the best debater in the debates and polls seem to show that he could come in 2nd in the Iowa straw poll. He's said many times that he's the only true conservative running for president, which means he'd be a great running mate for someone like Guliani or Romney. He's also a fiscal conservative who left Arkansas in amazing economical shape after his terms in office. And if that's not enough, he plays the bass guitar and has a rock band called "Capitol Offense". I'm not kidding.

Check him out on the web. I think he's a great candidate and he has my support. I'd love to see him get the opportunity to lead our country. 

756!

Sitting in my living room late last night, I watched Barry Bonds make history. You would have to be living under a rock this morning to not hear about him hitting his 756th home run. Even last night after it happened, I flipped the channels to see how many stations were covering it. Almost every station had gone to it. CNN, Fox News, all the local channels, the world stopped.

My entire life I have seen the clip of Hank Aaron rounding the bases as he broke Babe Ruth's record at 715. It was strange to think that when I have kids one day and they see footage of when the home run king broke the record, it won't be that clip of Hank Aaron they see. It will be what I watched last night. But who knows? It may not be the clip of Barry Bonds either. When I'm 32 I may be sitting in my living room watching Alex Rodriquez hit # 800 to break Barry's record.

Steroids or not, it's a pretty amazing feat. Maybe I'll get the chance to see it shattered a few more times in my lifetime. Or maybe I'll even break some kind of record one day. We don't have to live our lives vicariously through sports figures.

I'm So Much Cooler Online!

Actually, I'm not. I hope I'm really cooler in person. The day that the online me is cooler than the real me, I have issues. Anyway, for the last couple of months I've been enjoying Brad Paisley's new CD, 5th Gear. Brad gets credit for single handedly winning over a country music critic such as my self. I used to hate country music. I'm still not a huge fan but I am a Paisley fan. Here are a few reasons...

1. Brad writes all of his own music. I'd say 95% of current country artists have songwriters who write their music for them. All they are is an image and a "decent", and I use that word very liberally, voice.

2. He's an amazing guitar player. Of all my favorite guitar players, he's got to rank up there at the top of my list. I could listen to him play all day.

3. He does all of his own animation at his shows. Any videos you see are usually done by him on his mac. Incredibly talented. He also has a big hand in all of his music video direction. They're usually hysterical.

4. He seems to be a real guy. Not a weirdo famous musician type.

5. His entire band is from Alabama.

If you ever have a chance to catch him in concert, you should do it. My wife and I are going to Orange Beach to see him next weekend. It should be a great show.

Going Back to My Roots

I had an unbelieveable opportunity this morning. I woke up at 4 am and drove to Rockford, AL to give a morning devotion to my high school's football team at their football camp. It was the best thing I've done in a while. To be able to stand in front of teenagers that go to school where I did and encourage them and talk to them about Jesus was amazing. The great thing was, I think they really listened. Planning a morning devotion for 6:30 in the morning is debateable. Everyone was tired, but I think they were listening. God was too good to let me do that. Go Panthers!

The Cat's Out of the Bag

Ok, so last night may have been the strangest night on record in the life of Adam Swann. Are there ever times in your life where you end up in a certain place and say, "How did I get here?" That's what I was asking myself last night when someone was suffocating a cat in my backyard. I'm sure you want an explanation so here it goes.

My peeps and I have a cell group that meets in my bride and I's home on Monday nights. Everyone came over @ 7 pm. We usually have a light dinner, hang out for a bit, and study the bible together. Laura and I bought a new fridge on Sunday because the one that was in the house when we bought it tanked. It was supposed to be delivered before 5 pm yesterday. I called Lowe's at 5:30 to see where it might be and they said they were running late but were out and should be there shortly. They showed up @ 8 pm, right in the middle of some pretty deep discussion about the book of Romans.

As the guy was bringing the fridge in a cat walked by our porch that looked pretty rough. About 10 minutes later I had gone inside to help the fridge guy when I heard some commotion from outside. This cat had walked up on our back porch and plopped down right in front of our door. One animal lover said that it needed to be put out of it's misery because it was almost dead. I didn't think she was actually going to do it. I opted for leaving it there and maybe it would get up and leave later. Cats have 9 lives you know.

A word of advice. If this ever happens to you, just leave it. If it dies, you can dispose of it or maybe it will get up and walk off. Then you won't have to worry about it. After this incident, I know I'll never own a cat.

More Than One Way to Use a Plunger

My bride and I just bought a new house and it's kind of a work in progress. I've learned how to do a lot of things. My newest endeavor is plumbing. It's not one of my faves, let me tell you. Since buying the house I have...

1. Ran new drain pipes and supply lines for our washer and dryer. (total time - 12 hours)

2. Installed a new sink, supply lines, faucet, and countertop in our kitchen. (total time - 8 hours)

3. Completely replumbed a toilet. (total time - 2 hours)

Our sink in the bathroom had some serious drainage problems. It really didn't drain much at all. But someone told me about a trick. They said you could plunge it. Run a little water in the sink, stick the plunger over the drain and go to town. Guess what. It worked like a charm. I'm sure there are many other uses for that great invention and I'm sure I'll find out what they are very soon.

The Greatest Place on Earth

One of my favorite things to do is ride rollercoasters. So naturally, one of my favorite places to go is Six Flags. I went yesterday for the first time this year. It was amazing. I don't know what it is about that place but it makes me act like a little kid. I can't walk fast enough to get to the rides so sometimes I end up running. When the ride is over, I'm so bummed. They're never long enough.

I remember the first time I ever rode a rollercoaster. I held on for dear life and just hoped that I wouldn't die. It took many times of riding until I would even think about letting go of the handles. Like if anything happened I'd be able to hold on. There's something about knowing that there's nothing you can do about it. You're at the mercy of the coaster. Whatever it does, you do. You're connected to it. You're a part of the ride. It's an amazing feeling.

I feel really close to my creator when I'm riding. Maybe it's because it's so much like my relationship with Christ. Hopefully, after a while, I become part of him. Once the ride starts there's really nothing I can do to stop it. I'm at the mercy of where Christ has me. Even if anything happened there's really nothing I can do about it. I just have to bite my lip and hold on. But, just like a rollercoaster is the most fun when you let go of the handles and throw your hands in the air, following Christ is the most fun when you do the same. Forget logic. Forget clear concise lines. It's actually pretty chaotic. There are a lot of corkscrews, loops and hairpin turns. And sure, you might die. That's what makes it fun and unpredictable.

Na, na, na, na, na, na, na... Hey Jude!

In preparing to teach our students tonight at our weekly gathering I was studying the book of Jude. You know, it's that really small one right before Revelation. It's probably one page in your bible. It really doesn't even have chapters. Only verses.

Jude urges us to contend for the faith, defend it, fight for it. Something I'm not great at. I'm going to share with the students tonight that there are a few reasons that we don't contend for it.

One is that it doesn't belong to us. You really don't fight for something that doesn't belong to you. I'm praying that I can lay hold of the gospel and make it mine this week. Another would be that we're not equipped. No one knows what the bible says. We don't study it. How can you contend for something when you don't know what it says. The last would be that we lack compassion. That's the one that hurts the most. If I saw my neighbor's house on fire I would probably kick the door in and do everything I could to get him out of there. I want the same passion for people who are in spiritual darkness.

God speaks to me everyday about something that is amiss in my life. But he also encourages me and lets me know I'm on the right track. Here's hoping that you allow him to do that with you.