Look Ma, I'm Famous!

I'd like to take this moment to thank my mom for not naming me Keisha, Jamal, or Deshawn. If she had, the national weather service wouldn't be able to bestow the honor on me that I'm currently receiving. (At least, that's what one of my state representatives said a few years ago)

As tropical storm "Chris" sets his sights on the Caribbean en route to the United States, my name is being heard on newscasts all over the world. I'd like to thank all the little people who made this honor possible.

People keep telling me that there's no way this storm is actually named after me - after all, there were four kids named "Chris" in my third grade class. If it were named after me, they say, it would be "Chris F.," the name by which everyone from my childhood knew me. Have you ever noticed that in your moment of glory, people seem to line up to shoot you down?

So what am I doing now that I'm famous? Well, mostly sitting by the phone waiting for Pat Robertson to call. The 700 club will surely want to interview me about God's latest display of wrath. That's good, I've got some stuff I want to tell them.

Meanwhile, since today is the first day of the month, I get to start a new book of the Bible on my devotional plan. Last month was Lamentations, and I'm sure glad to move on. Sure, Lamentations was good. There were some good surprises throughout the month - like discovering that the book is about hope more than it is about lamentation.

If you count how many times the book refers to God's promises either directly or indirectly, you see that Jeremiah (I'm assuming he wrote the book) was convinced that even the current situation - as awful as it was - was a reflection of God's faithfulness to His promises. And throughout the book you see hope shining through that God's faithfulness in judgment was evidence that He would be faithful in restoring His people.

But beyond that, Lamentations was a whipping for me. So I'm excited to move on.

If you're taking the devotional plan journey with me, you should know that I'm going to depart from my plan this month. I've had some recent thoughts about the Sermon on the Mount, and am going to spend this month in it instead of going to 1 Peter. I'll get back on track with 1 Kings in September.

That's all for now. Watch for my namesake on television tonight, and stay tuned for updates on exactly when I'll appear on the 700 club. I'm thinking about growing a mullet so I fit in with some of the previous guests.