Trash Talking

Let’s face it, we love trash talking and we love to trash talk in sports and we love those athletes that trash talk well.  Now there is a difference between trash talking and cussing.  Cussing requires no creativity; it is merely repeating vulgar, offensive, or explicit words.  You can teach a parrot to cuss, as happened with a bird that was kept on the bridge of a naval ship on which my uncle served.   No trash talking is more of an art form than simply insulting someone.  It is the barb and the sting of a well-turned phrase that is deeply painful, true, and to which there is no retort.  Trash talkers may cuss, but the best trash talking contains only words that are, in themselves, acceptable in polite conversation.

If the first aspect of trash talking is creativity and a rapier wit, the second is the ability to back it up.  Trash talking an opponent and then having them clean your clock is the ultimate rebuttal to trash talk.  To tell a linebacker, “My mom hits harder than you,” and then have him knock you out of the game, defeats the whole point of trash talking.  When you talk smack (aka trash) and then get smacked around, the trash talk comes back on you and hangs on you like ugly on an ape.  It is the kind of thing that will out last the game.  In fact, years later, you may still face good-natured (or not so good-natured) ribbing for your imprudent words. 

It is reported that the Celtic Larry Bird was one of the greatest trash talkers of all time.  On one occasion, when the Celtics had the ball on the side line during the TV time out, Bird went over to the opposing bench and said, “ I’ll come across the court, take the pass, go to the left side of the arch, and hit a three.”  Which, when play resumed, is exactly what he did.  Then he went over to the opposing bench and said, “I told you what I was going to do and you still could not stop me.”   That is pretty good trash talking. 

Not all trash talking is that good.   When King Arthur and his brave knights attacked the French defending a castle, they were taunted (aka trash talk) by one of the defenders.  “Your mother was a hamster and your father smelled of elderberries,” is pretty memorable, but not very biting.  By the way, talking about someone’s momma is pretty easy in trash talking, but usually not very creative.

In my opinion, the apex of trash talking is found in scripture.  It combines a reference to the ultimate smack down, beautiful poetry, and bold confidence that dwarfs a blitzing linebacker on an unprotected and unsuspecting quarterback.  I do not mean to speak lightly of Holy Scripture, but there is a real beauty and joy when you can get in your mortal enemy’s face and major trash talk.  The passage I have in mind is often read with serious and solemn voice and inflection, which I suppose can be appropriate.  But it is also the celebration of winning.  This passage calls for celebration and exuberance.  Don’t worry, there is no penalty for un-sportsman-like conduct. 

The passage of course is, “O Death, where is your victory? O Death, where is your sting?” 

Woody Allen, who appears to me to be the image of perpetual fear, speaking of death once said, “It is ‘absolutely stupefying in its terror’.”   In contrast, on April 8, 1945, in Flossenburg Concentration Camp, shortly after the last prayer in a short worship service, the Nazi guards entered the room.  “Prisoner Bonhoeffer, get ready to come with us.”  The phrase ‘come with us’ was code for the scaffold.  Bonhoeffer said to the other prisoners, “This is the end; for me, the beginning of life.”

I love trash talk, especially when it is in the face of our most hated enemy.  I will indulge in a little paraphrase just for the joy of it.

“Yo, Death, what happened to our plan for a Victory? Looks like you got smacked around so hard you got nothing.

Hey, Death, the worst you got is pathetic.  You may get one tiny moment in an eternity of shame and defeat.  So sit down, shut up, and just wait to go to Hell!”

On an unrelated note:

If you are a minister and the child of a minister I would like to send you an invitation to participate in a project I have started.  It will not cost you anything (doesn’t pay anything either).  It is a tribute to the ministers whose children entered the ministry.  Rather than sending out a bulk email that you may not want, or that may not apply to you I will ask you to send me an email saying.  “I’m a PK and would be willing to listen to your ideal for this tribute.”  I promise I will not spam you or try to sell you something.  Reply to Charlie@colemanssi.com

Encouragement for your week

I sometimes become discouraged about the world in which we live.  We have the best resources in the history of mankind to distribute bad news.  We are daily bombarded with stories of corruption, decay, and rot of society.  It seems that evil is so pervasive and powerful that ministry is all but impossible. We wistfully long for the golden age of the church, whenever that was, and wish that the world were a little more receptive to the gospel. 

But the growth of the church in the first century was a glorious move of God.  When the day of Pentecost dawned it has been estimated that in Palestine there was only one follower of Christ for every 3 million people.  Over the next forty years, the church grew at an average rate of 40% a year, every year.  Within two generations it had reached across the Mediterranean basin and mission efforts had gone from Spain to India.  It might be tempting to think that the ancient world was a more moral and noble world than our own.

I came across a quote from the noted historian Alfred Edersheim:

“Absolute right in Rome did not exist, might had become right.  The social relations exhibited, if possible, an even deeper corruption.  The sanctity of marriage had ceased, female dissipation and general dissoluteness lead at last to an almost entire cessation of marriage.  Abortion and the exposure and murder of newly born children were common and tolerated.  Un-natural vices which even the greatest philosophers practiced if not advocated obtained proportions which defied description.”

Almost sounds like he is describing the early twenty-first century.  So as you recover from Sunday, if you are feeling discouraged, remember we may be just around the corner from a glorious move of God.

Our Bible colleges are in trouble.

I’m writing this not to make accusation or to bring judgments against my fellow believers.  Nor do I claim to have all the answers to the challenges faced by our Bible colleges.  I believe our colleges are being lead by deeply committed and faithful Christian servants.  I write this because I am deeply concerned about what is happening to our Bible colleges. 

Perhaps what our Bible colleges are evolving into is the very best option and will result in more and better-trained ministers.  Nevertheless, I am concerned. These are my observations and concerns.  I do not claim to back them up with volumes of research or superior wisdom.  You may of course agree, disagree, or dismiss me as a crackpot.  All I ask is that you will use this as a prompt to hold our Bible colleges accountable.   Let me outline six of my concerns. 

1   The cost of Bible college is very high.  After two years at one of our colleges, my daughter is back home taking class at a local community college.  We simply could not afford the cost.  She worked about 20 hours a week as a waitress, applied for every scholarship she could, kept up her grades and lived frugally.  But at the end of two years, she concluded that $16,000 a year (before aid) was too much.    I am sure that her’s is not a singular story. 

I am not sure what, if anything, can be done.  But we may price ourselves out of higher education if we are not careful.

2 We have a dependence on federal money.  Most of our colleges would close within a matter of months, if not days, if their students did not receive Federal grant and aid.  This is either the result of high college cost or part of its cause.  This dependence on Federal money comes with certain strings attached.  These strings, I fear, will become more numerous, more egregious, and stronger in the years ahead.   What if our colleges were given the option of providing gay-married housing or loosing eligibility for Federal Money?  “That will never happen,” some might say.  Sorry, I just don’t trust our government that much.  Never forget that the one who pays the fiddler gets to call the tune.   Our Federal government may call a tune we can’t accept.

3 Related to the above is the relationship between accreditation and federal money.  One of the ways that the tune is being called from the outside of our colleges is via accreditation.  Accreditation is voluntary, but it is needed in order to have access to the Federal money.  I remember taking classes that were utterly useless, completely unrelated to ministry, but required because of standards set from the outside.  Might this be the door through which a Trojan horse enters?  I am not sure who coined the term, “Follow the money”, but here it needs to apply.  Are we submitting to accreditation standards because we are hoping to obtain a vigorous academic stand or because it is a pathway to money?

If you are not convinced that I am crackpot by now, allow me to bring that conclusion home now.

4 I am deeply concerned that our Bible colleges are moving away from an emphasis on specialized ministry.   One Thursday night at Christian service camp the preacher at Vespers said, “Some of you young men need to stop running from the call of ministry.  You need to make a commitment to specialized Christian Ministry.”  I made a commitment to answer that call.  I think we should extend that challenge to our Bible Colleges. 

Yes, we need Christian businessmen, teachers, councilors, and for that matter, all the other trades.  By the way, notice how none of our colleges seem to be offering vocational-type training.  Maybe we don’t need Christian plumbers, carpenters, or auto mechanics.  Or maybe we are being smoke screened.   We need preachers, evangelists, church planters and missionaries more than ever.  Somewhere (and I suspect it has a lot to do with more students, more money, and more bragging rights) many of our colleges have made vocational ministry just one of many options.

Hiding behind the guise of “all our students are preparing for ministry,” some of our colleges have lost the commitment to help men answer the call to be a preacher.    Some of our schools are still doing a fine job of preparing ministers, but, at some, the ministry training department is POINTLESS. 

5 For reasons that escape me, many of our colleges are pushing for athletic enrollment.  Once up on a time Bible Colleges played each other in sports for the fun of it.  College athletics were a recreational outlet.  Now it seems that college athletics have become a recruiting tool. Sometimes called the Flutie Effect, there is said to be a correlation between athletic success and enrollment.  It is argued that having extensive athletic programs allows our colleges to recruit students that would go to state/secular schools.  But allow me to offer an observation.  This gets back to, “Why do we have Bible colleges?”  It seems that this is another de-emphasis of ministry.

When I was getting ready to go to Bible College, I wanted to be a preacher.  All other considerations aside I was going to make my decision on that criteria.  Now students are asked to choose a Bible college because they run a spread offense or they need a shooting guard.   

6 My final point of rambling is many of our colleges are experiencing an identity crisis; there is a loss for the heart of the Restoration Movement.   I believe it is a mistake to think that we have perfectly and fully restored the church of the New Testament and that we can’t learn from any other faith community.  But it is also a mistake to divorce ourselves from our historic plea and effort to restore the church.  Many of our colleges are doing just that.  In fact, some of our colleges have no tie to the thought and commitments of the Restoration Movement, except taking money from Christian churches.  It is possible to graduate from some of our schools and be completely comfortable in a commitment to a denominational church.  In fact, I worked for a time with one of our colleges that had no Christian Church/ Church of Christ staff, no classes on the Restoration Movement and no students from any Christian church.  Their only tie was the monthly contributions made by some Christian Churches. 

Which is the point of all these ramblings and ranting.  Our church leaders, ministers, elders, and mission committees need to hold our colleges accountable.  They need to ask tough questions and refuse to accept vague generalities and clichés.  I don’t believe we should hold colleges hostage with our giving, but we do need to ask the hard questions and, if those answers are wanting, reconsider support.  If, however, those answers are faithful and true then our support needs to be aggressive and generous.  I fear we are betting the future, with all our chips on the table, on what may be a bad bet.  

A Word of Encouragement

Each morning I begin the day by reading scripture and then looking over the news feed. That way I have an idea of what each side is up to.  My scripture reading of late has been Isaiah and Ezekiel for the Old Testament and Romans from the New Testament.  On more than a few mornings it seems that the scripture readings and the news feed are describing the same reality from different perspectives.   As I look at what is happening in our world today, especially in the western church, it seems eerily similar to what was happening in Israel and Judah before, at the time of, and during the Babylonian captivity. 

It is a time in which it is easy to become discouraged.  It is a time in which we can see parallels between the ancient people of Israel and our churches.  We may want to look at the world through rose-colored stain glass windows, but those windows will not change the reality.  The Pollyannaism of a ‘don’t worry, be happy’ mind set will do little to solve our world’s problems.  The denial of fallen human nature that often permeates left-leaning thinking, as well as, the ‘can-do entrepreneurial’ spirituality which drives more than a few contemporary churches, cannot deal with the greatest challenges we face.   It is easy to be discouraged.

But I came across a quote from the great British journalist Malcolm Muggeridge that I found especially encouraging.  Muggeridge witnessed more than a little of the evil in this world.  He summed up his perspective in this quote for the latter part of the 20^th century.  Some of the references may seem dated to us, but for the person who lived though these moments they represented true disillusionment and despair.  This is a quote worth reading, indeed memorizing, for anyone who lives in discouraging moments.   It is a quote I use as often as I can. 

Malcolm Muggeridge said:

We look back upon history and what do we see?  Empires rising and falling; revolutions and counter-revolutions. Wealth accumulated and wealth dispersed.  Shakespeare has spoken of the rise and fall of great ones that ebb and flow with the moon. 

I look back upon my own fellow countrymen, once upon a time dominating a quarter of the world.  Most of them convinced in the words of what is still a popular song that ‘the God who made them mighty shall make them mightier yet’.  I heard a crazed cracked Austrian announce to the world the establishment of a Reich that would last a thousand years.  I have seen an Italian clown saying that he was going to stop and restart the calendar with his own ascension to power.  I met a murderous Georgian brigand in the Kremlin, acclaimed by the intellectual elite of the world as wiser than Solomon, more humane that Marcus Aurelius, more enlightened than a Shoka.  I have seen America wealthier and in terms of military weaponry more powerful than the rest of the world put together.  So, that had the American people so desired, they could have out done a Caesar or an Alexander in the range and scale of their conquest.

All in one lifetime, all gone, gone with the wind.

England, part of a tiny island off the coast of Europe, threatened with dismemberment and even bankruptcy.  Hitler and Mussolini dead, remembered only in infamy.  Stalin a forbidden name in the regime he helped found and dominate for some three decades.  America haunted by fears of running out of those precious fluids that keeps her motorways roaring, the smog settling.  With troubled memories of a disastrous campaign in Vietnam, and the victories of the Don Quixote of the media as they charged the windmills of Watergate. 

All in one lifetime!  All in one lifetime, gone.

Behind the debris of these self-styled solemn super men and imperial diplomatists stands the gigantic figure of one person because of whom, by whom, in whom, and through whom, mankind might still have hope.  The person of Jesus Christ.

In the midst of all the bad news, we have hope; we have Jesus Christ.

The Characteristics of an Excellent Greeter.

Last week we talked about the “Ten Marks of a Friendly Church”.  A copy of that article can be found in this blog.  I wanted to follow up this week with the “Eight Marks of an Excellent Greeter or Guest Servant”.  The term greeter is one we are all familiar with, but the term Guest Servant is one we hear less often.  It is, however, a term I believe we need to adopt.  The objective of the person who greets in our church on Sundays needs to be to serve those they meet. 

Many churches are satisfied if they can get a warm body to stand at the door and hand out bulletins.  I believe we can and ought to do better.  It is reported that a Disney World employee/cast member will be required to receive 32 hours of training to be qualified to take tickets.  What we do is infinitely more important than getting people to go along with “Mr. Toad’s Wild Ride”.

While there is no one personality-type that will make a great guest servant, here are eight things that a guest servant can do to serve the Lord more effectively.

Smile. 

In certain cultures a smile is indicative of a sense of shame, but in our culture a smile has the potential to change the atmosphere.  Guest servants need to be conscientious to smile.  I heard a great story about Truit Cathy of “Chick-Fil-A”.  At a grand opening, one of the employees was struggling with the rush.  She was not smiling as she had been coached.   Rather than tell her to smile for the customers, Mr. Cathy would come by from moment to moment and say things like:  “You have a beautiful smile”, “You look so nice when you smile”.  “Your smile brightens your beautiful face.”  Before long she was smiling all the time.  Encouraged smiles are more real than those we plaster on. 

Speak first. 

Guest servants need to take the initiative while greeting.  More than simply being at their post, they need to look for opportunities to serve.  Rather than reply, be the first to speak. Rather than wait inside, open the door for guests.  Rather than hand out bulletins, engage the guest in conversation.  Never wait for a guest to instigate the friendship, always be the first to reach out. 

Open personality. 

Get the right people in the right place.  Some folks should not be greeters. Often we will settle for anyone who is willing.  Ralph (not his real name) was a member of a church I served.  He wanted to be a greeter because he wanted to meet pretty girls.  Yes, he was that creepy.  Even if a person is not a creeper, he may not be a great guest servant.  This is not too difficult to figure out.  Look for people who are friendly and warm, people who set others at ease and someone you look forward to speaking to. 

Focus on the guest

I have said before and will repeat that Sunday morning is the best time to ignore our dearest friends.  We have a tendency to want to use Sunday morning as a time to reconnect with our church friends, often to the exclusion of our guests. 

One Sunday our church had a number of guests visit-three couples that knew each other and were looking for a church.  I was a friend of a couple of the men.  After the service, several couples from the church offered to take my family and me to lunch.  I suggested that they invite these new couples and I would join them on my own dime.  Being the preacher, I got away late and arrived at the restaurant to find the five church couples seated together with space saved for my family.  I asked, “Where are the visitors?”  The reply hit me like a rock.  “We didn’t have space for everyone; they’re in the back room.”  Yes, the church club sat together while guests were told in not very subtle ways, “We don’t care about you.”

This is an extreme example, but serves to teach the lesson; Focus on the guest.

Be prepared

Guest servants need to be prepared; here are a few steps that can help: 

·      Be at your post early.  This helps you be at ease in your responsibilities.

·      Know the information about the church.  For instance, where things are and how to access these services.  You may want to have helpers who can escort guests to where they need to go.

·      Good grooming helps you with your confidence, which will help you RELAX.  Back off the coffee; you can drink later.  Please have breath mints.  I was once greeted by a man that must have eaten collard greens, sardines, and contents of the litter box for breakfast. 

·      Look like you are anticipating a great day, don’t look bored, rather give your guest your undivided attention.  A great way to do that is to maintain good eye contact.

Go the Extra mile

Guest servants must take seriously the command of our Lord to go the extra mile.  Guests are going to be inconvenient; they know nothing about our church buildings and they may have no connection to anyone in the church.  Some may need extra help.  Guest servants need to be the kind of folks who like to give that help. 

A single mom approached the church building.  Services had already started and the greeting couple wanted to go find their place in the service, but instead waited for the late arriver.   Once in the door they realized the baby had a dirty diaper that was leaking out.  The five-year-old boy must have had rocket fuel for breakfast and the three year old was insecure, cross, and had become a Klingon, refusing to let go of mom. 

The greeting couple did more than give her a bulletin and point her in the right direction.   First, the husband of the team, engaged the little boy in some playful fun, a simple magic trick in your pocket can work wonders.  With the little guy intrigued they were off.  The wife of the greeting team carried the messy baby so mom could comfort the three year old.  While mom checked the two older kids into children’s church, the baby’s diaper and outfit was changed.  The couple invited the young mom to sit with them in worship and join them for lunch.

They missed sitting with their usual friends.  But what is the likelihood that mom will return to visit that church again?

Discerning. 

People don’t just visit a church.   If an unchurched person comes to church for a visit “out of the blue” you can bet there is a pretty good reason for it.  When people are hurting, guest servants need to have the discernment and the sensitivity to the leading of the Holy Spirit to be prepared and able to minister.  Guest servants need to be in the habit of praying for insight so that when hurting people arrive, they will be ready to serve them more than a bulletin.

Has a spiritual appointment book

Related to the previous, if I were looking for guest servants I would look for people who are constantly having “Divine Appointments”.  I would look for the people who seem to be meeting folks who have spiritual needs and then ministering to them.

If a person is beginning to seek the Lord, if the Holy Spirit is prompting them and convicting them to find a place where they can hear the good news, which do you, think is more likely.  That the Holy Spirit will lead them to a church where they will be greeted by an indifferent greeter or one that will be willing to love and serve them into the family of God?   

That Awkward Moment

Have you ever been at a park looking for a place to have a picnic?  You approach a pavilion and find that it has a party already in progress.  On the one hand you would love to be a part, to join in, but at the same time you get the feeling that this is a private party.  There is no indication that you are welcomed, no sign that says, “You are wanted here.”  You could impose yourself; ask to join in if you are of the imposing personality.  But most of the time we simply go away and look for another place.

That happened to me this weekend, well sort of.  This past Sunday morning my wife and I were unexpectedly traveling.  We were not going to be able to attend our regular worship service.   In order to be in a worship, I got online and looked up churches that were near our travel route.  Having located a church that was only a little off our path and had services about the time we would be passing, we decided to stop by and visit.

We arrived 7 minutes early and noticed that a bunch of people were unloading lawn chairs and setting up for what appeared to be a picnic.  There was nothing about a church picnic on their website. 

We got out of the car and walked toward what appeared to be the front/main door for the church building.  We could not be sure because there was no signage at all except for several signs that forbid smoking on campus.  Jesus loves you as long as you don’t smoke here.

Oddly, there was no one near the front door.  I had noticed that there was quite a bit of activity near a rear/side door.  Maybe they had a secret entrance that was supposed to be used.

When we got to the front door there was no greeter, nothing that indicated welcome, in fact, the doors were locked.  There was not even a sign to indicate how to get in or where to go.  An appropriate sign might read, “If you are not one of us, you are not welcomed here!”

We returned to our car, got in, and went somewhere else.  As we left I did honk the horn just to say, “We got your message that we are not wanted.”  Ironically, their church motto is, “Church name, Where everybody is somebody and Jesus is Lord.” 

Perhaps this church has grown so rapidly that they cannot meet inside any more.  Perhaps they have so many folks in attendance that they meet outside in a picnic like pavilion because only God can provide space large enough for all the people who are part of this church.  But my guess is they are stagnant, dying, and wondering why they can’t grow.   Every church says it is a “friendly” church.  I have never heard any church describe itself as unfriendly or exclusive.  But what many churches, and almost all stagnant churches, mean by that statement is, “We are friendly to the people with whom we are attending church; we are friendly to the people we already like.”

In a world of people who are lonely, hurting, and needing relational connections perhaps the most oxymoronic phrase is, “We are a small, friendly church.”  If a church cares about people it cannot stay small.  If a church is small there is a strong possibility that it is either so new that people have not yet discovered it, or it is only friendly to the people they already have and like. 

Here is the good news: I am a committed follower of Jesus.  My faith in Him is not adversely influenced by this failure.  But if I were a person seeking help with the struggles of life, I would never give that church a second chance.  Maybe this church has a powerful and dynamic ministry in the community, but it sure doesn’t seem so.

Several years ago I coached churches on how to have a positive impression on first time guests.  After doing this for several years I discovered that churches fall into one of two categories.  First, are the churches that gut out how to treat guests by trial and error; they may have needed some improvement but, by and large, guests knew they were welcomed.  In the second category were churches that just didn’t care about guests.  For these churches guests were just something you put up with till they went a way.

If you would like a free copy of an outline I used in guest services evaluation, simply send me an email asking for 10 marks of a friendly church.  There is no cost and no obligation.  I simply ask that you treat guests so well that they will want to be part of your church.

My Error

In addition to posting to this blog I also send these post in an email newsletter.  In my last email newsletter I had a typo in the header.  It read, "I don't believe that Jesus’ last miracle was healing someone who planned to be His enemy."  It should have read, "I don't believe it was an accident that Jesus' last miracle was healing someone who planned to be His enemy."

The header line is something I don’t plan well; duh.  This one I typed in with my mind running a lot faster than my fingers and I made a mistake.  What I found interesting was my own reaction.  I have perfectionist tendencies, something that is very bad for a person like me who makes a lot of mistakes.  I reacted to finding this typo by ripping myself up one side and down the other.  I was furious with myself. Not only had I made a mistake, but I had denied one of the miracles.  I tried to send a follow up email or retraction and apology, but the email server limits me to only one a day.

After I calmed down a bit, I realized that I was living outside of grace.  I was acting as if my typo was something that would some how put my soul in danger.  I was acting as if only perfect performance was sufficient and my failure would be the end of me.  I made a mistake; it was unintentional, singular, and did not reflect my convictions.  I am not sure it was even a sin, but that is a discussion for another time.  But I reacted or over reacted in how I berated myself.

I don’t meant to make light of sin, but isn’t that the point of grace?  Grace is not having to be good enough.  Grace is only grace if it comes to the rescue of those who, by intent or by accident, fail.  Grace would not be grace if it were some how optional.  If I didn’t really need it, then it would not be grace.  And here is the point: I don’t need to excoriate myself for failures.  The gospel of the Old Testament says,

            But He was pierced for our transgressions,

                        He was crushed for our iniquities;

            The punishment that brought us peace was upon Him.

                        And by His wounds we are healed.  Is. 53.5 NIV

In other words, I don’t need to be beaten up for my failures, either by myself or by someone else.  Someone has already taken the beating and punishment that all my failures, from typo to acts of open rebellion, truly deserve.  I will continue to dislike it when I make a mistake; I really don’t ever want to get too comfortable with failure.  But what I do with those failures needs to be shaped by a personal understanding and application of grace.

One of my professors was reported to have a sermon that he would preach from time to time called, “The Campaign Platform of the Gospel: Welfare, Rest and Free Love” taken from Romans 6.  The main points being: 

1.  Welfare, it is undeserved: Know what Christ has done for you on the Cross, v3

2.  Rest, in the finished work of Christ: You are dead to sin, but alive in Christ, v11

3.  Free love, our response to God: give yourself over to God, v13

Good theology always preaches and always has practical applications to life.  So, if you find errors in this treatise, know for certain that they aren’t there on purpose.  And while I will gladly make corrections, I know God loves me anyway.  That makes my failures, both the little typos and the acts of rebellion, easier to deal with.

On an unrelated subject, if you are going to the Catalyst Atlanta please let me know.  I would like to make an introduction for you at this year’s gathering.