A Fall Classic

Tonight was an historic moment in baseball. The White Sox beat the Twins 1-0 in the AL Central Division play-off game. This means that both Chicago teams, the Cubs and White Sox, will be in post-season play for the first time since 1906 when they met in the World Series!

Congratulations to the Twins for a great season. It's too bad that their season had to end this way. And I still don't understand why home-field advantage is decided by a coin flip rather than going to the team that had the best head-to-head record.

But be that as it may, the Sox will be playing the Rays next Thursday in the American League Division Series. It should be a great series. The Rays are the biggest baseball story of the summer.

And what have the Rays done? Until this year, the Rays had a string of 10 straight seasons of at least 90 losses, a new American League record! The Rays entered this season with a career winning percentage of .399. They finished last in nine of their first 10 years. They had the worst record in baseball in each of the last two seasons.

Yet, somehow, this team with a $43 million payroll beat back the mighty New York Yankees and outlasted the world champion Boston Red Sox. They finished with a division best 97 wins and 65 losses. Their payroll ranks 29th out of 30 teams, well behind the $209 million spent by the Yankees!

I'm happy for the Rays and their incredible story from worst to first. We had the opportunity to see them in spring training 1 1/2 years ago in Ft. Myers, Florida.

But for me, I'm rooting for a White Sox and Cubs World Series. It would be pure bedlam. North siders against south siders. A windy city showdown! It would be a fall classic for the ages!

It Ain't Over When It's Over

As a lifelong baseball fan, I'm totally enjoying the ESPN broadcast tonight of the last game in Yankee Stadium. The 85 year old ballpark is full of memories and nostalgia. With the closing of Yankee Stadium, only Wrigley Field in Chicago and Fenway Park in Boston are left of the old parks.

The pre-game ceremonies were moving as they honored many of the Yankee greats. Sons, daughters, wives and entire families took their place on the field representing players who are no longer living. I especially enjoyed the introduction of Bobby Richardson at second base. Sharon and I had the opportunity to enjoy dinner with Bobby and his wife Betsy several years ago when he was in Cedar Rapids to speak at the FCA banquet.

And an evening of Yankee baseball wouldn't be complete without Yogi Berra. The special piece that ESPN did with Yogi on Yankee Stadium is very moving. The piece and the telecast reminds us that time moves on. Nothing stands still. Our heros age and even pass away. Some, like Thurmon Muson and Lou Gehrig, leave us much too soon. Big plays, big games, and even championships fade into the past. We're left with stories of days gone by.

But memories don't have to anchor us to the past. Memories can propel us into the future. Long after the important events and people in our lives are gone, we can take their memories with us. They can inspire us to a better future.

And tonight, after the lights go out at Yankee Stadium, the memories will continue on. As Yogi says, "Like the home runs that built it, this place will soon be out of here. Gone. History. Only this time it ain't over when it's over. So I'm not going to miss it. I'm not going to dream about perfect games and championships. I'm going to remember them."

Eight Days of Hope

Steve Tybor and members of the Eight Days of Hope leadership team were in town on Wednesday and Thursday of this week. They were here to do advanced planning for their October 26 thru November 2 trip to Cedar Rapids. Eight Days of Hope plans to bring 400-600 volunteers from all over the US to Cedar Rapids to assist with wiring, plumbing, sheetrocking, painting and repairing over 100 homes that were damaged in the flood! In addition, we hope that another 400-500 people from the Serve the City chruches will join this army of volunteers to show the love of Jesus to our community.

It was a busy two days! We met with Mayor Kay Halloran and City Council member Brian Fagan to introduce them to the leadership team and to let them know that several hundred people will be descending on Cedar Rapids at the end of October. We toured the 10 churches that have offered to open their facilities so that the out of town volunteers will have a place to sleep. We met with Tom Watson, the infrastructure commander in the town of Palo. By the way, almost half of the 477 homes in Palo are still uninhabited!

We had two meetings with over 60 people attending to learn how to complete the Homeowner Repair Request form. Oakland Nazarene hosted an informational lunch with 60 in attendance. We had an informational meeting for the churches providing housing, and we also met with several local electrical contractors and representatives of the Linn Area Long Term Recovery Coalition. You can click on the this link to see a slideshow of our time.

Whew! It was a full two days. I'm encouraged with the progress we have made. Let me encourage you to volunteer for two or three days during Eight Days of Hope. Or better yet, jon us for all eight days! You can go to the Eight Days of Hope website to see Frequently Asked Questions to learn more about this ministry, and to volunteer.

Volunteers are needed in all shapes and sizes. In addition to those skilled in the construction trades, people are needed to help transport volunteers to and from the work site, deliver lunches, clean bathrooms, do laundry, do data input, print out maps and many other tasks. There is something for everyone.

Please pray that God would use Eight Days of Hope to help us care for our community. We have been praying for those on our wall. It's now time to care and share. I hope you will join me on this incredible adventure this fall!