1) Well, American Idol is over. Jordin Sparks is it. Unfortunately, our DVR did not catch the final few minutes of the show so we sat through a couple of hours of other stuff and never saw her actually win. She's talented and I am excited for her. It's a big deal. Part of me wonders if these young singers really know what they're in for now. My lighlight of last night's show was Melinda Doolittle singing "Hold Up The Light" with Bebe and Cece Winans. She was every bit as talented as they are.

2) I have taken a few days off from my Bible-Chapter-A-Day posting. Am trying to decide what book of the Bible to explore next. Am thinking maybe I Corinthians. We'll see.

3) A couple of days ago, Lisa and I had the opportunity to speak at a banquet that was held at Evan's school for participants and parents in their EAGLES program. I can never remember what "EAGLES" stands for exactly but it is their enrichment program for gifted learners. "Banquet" is a funny word, isn't it? In first grade, I won a contest sponsored by a local realtor in which first graders and high school seniors were asked to write an essay on "What my home means to me" or something like that. As the first grade winner, I had to go to a banquet at the Swedish House restaurant and read my essay. I was most confused by what "banquet" meant ... that was after I was confused by what "essay" meant. Anyway, when we spoke the other night, Lisa did a great job -- much better than I did. One of the things I spoke of, though, was how God gives us all different gifts and talents and expects us to use them for His glory. I mentioned that I wonder whether, if we don't use our gifts, God takes them away. For example, I jokingly pointed out that I once had a full head of nice hair but apparently I did not use it well. But, really, I guess the Parable of our Talents does somewhat indicate Jesus' teaching that we are to use and build upon what we have or else we might lose it.