Rafael Nadal Makes History

As a good, biblically-minded Protestant I do not believe in any form of salvation by works. However, if I did, I would have an unhindered, straight-shot right to heaven. Do I have your ear? Well, yesterday I sacrificed the French Open final on the alter of going to church. There was a slight temptation to fake a cough. But then I realized that I had agreed to preach the Sunday morning message. Was I to do the unthinkable and miss watching one of the most historically significant matches in the history of the game of tennis, or do I fulfill the calling of the Lord? Talk about persecution; talk about suffering.

As expected, #2 in the world, Rafael Nadal, squared off against #1 in the world, Roger Federer. Nadal has won the French Open the past three years in a row, but Federer has always given him a run for his money. This year things were a bit different. Nadal smoked Federer 6-1, 6-3, 6-0. If you don't know what 6-1, 6-3, 6-0 means, just understand that it is a "good, ol' fashion whoppin." Nadal is now the second man to ever win four consecutive French Open titles (the only other is Bjorn Borg).

Moose A. Moose

This is James' favorite song. It sung by "Moose A. Moose," the host of "The NOGGIN Channel." Make sure to watch the video. Every time Moose A. Moose comes on the TV James smiles real big, kicks his legs, and flails his arms. Enjoy!

"Everywhere I Go" (lyrics)

Days are the sunniest
Jokes are the funniest
Rabbits are the bunny-est
Hives are the honey-est
Elephants the ton-iest
Troubles - they're the none-iest

Everywhere I go!

Straws are the bend-iest
Time is the spend-iest
Cards are the send-iest
Books are the lend-iest
Fun's the pretend-iest
Friends are the friend-iest

Everywhere I go!

Berries are the fruit-iest
Shoes are the boot-iest
Puppies are the cute-iest
Treasure is the loot-iest
Teams are the root-iest
Horns are the toot-iest

Everywhere I go!

Birds are the tweet-iest
Candy is the sweet-iest
Socks are the feet-iest
Tricks are the treat-iest
Drums are the beat-iest
Lunch is the eat-iest

Everywhere I go!

Flowers are the smelliest
Jams are jelly-est
Rain's the umbrell-iest
Tales are the tell-iest
Wishing is the well-iest
Buttons are the belly-est

Everywhere I go!

Skies are the blue-iest
Cows are the moo-iest
Gum is the chewiest
Ghosts are the boo-iest
Goo is the gooey-est
You can be your you-iest

Everywhere I go!

Got Toilet?

Apparently, 7 astronauts are left in space without a way of relieving themselves. The New York Times reports that the only toilet on a "Russian-built service module" is broken. I am starting have second thoughts about wanting to be an astronaut. I once thought that being stuck in traffic was the worst place to be when in need of relief--I stand corrected.

O Jamesy Tree O Jamesy Tree, I Really Love Your Branches

Somethin' Changed!

Meet Dr. James R. Snowden II

This is a picture of James in his new wheelchair/stroller. He really likes it! Grandpa John is making a whole bunch of changes to it--I guess you could say that he is pimping James' wheel chair (is that an ok thing to say on this blog?).

Rhyming: The Work of the Devil?

One of the things James has really grown to like in recent days is books. Unfortunately he is not all that interested in my books. I guess biblical backgrounds, hermeneutics, and Greek are not yet his "cup of tea." I guess there is always next year. Although he doesn't like my books, he is all over books like "Touch and Feel Farm Animals," "The Ox Cart Man," and his favorite is "Boats!"

The stupid thing about most children's books is that they rhyme. Because I am something of an annoying person (no commenting on this statement please), when I read to James I make it my goal to undo all the rhyming done in his books. I know what you are thinking, "What? You undo all the rhyming? Aren't you concerned about your son enjoying the book? After all, is it not the rhyming that makes such books fun for children?"

First of all, the theory which says that rhyming is what makes reading fun for kids has become highly suspect in recent scholarship. Ok, so maybe it hasn't, but I can say that James likes my unconventional reading style.

Here is how it goes--I will give you some lines:

"High boat; Low Boat; Fast Boat; Slow.
Boat by itself; Boats in a LINE."

Obviously, it was supposed to read, "Boats in a ROW." How stupid! Who writes these books anyway?

Want another? OK!

"Then all the birds began to sing
to tell the bears, 'Wake up, it's not winter any more.'"

This quote came from the book, "It's Spring." The Line was supposed to be read like this: "To tell the bears, 'Wake up, it's Spring.'" Need I say more? Do you now see why I am playing the role of a redactor?

My fellow fathers, I hope this adds some spice to your time with your children. The goal is to see how fast you can read the book while trading the rhyming words with other words that do not rhyme but are similar in meaning. Your child will love it if you yell the supplied word like moron.

Ok, so maybe i need to get a life or something.

No Fun Allowed!!

Where's All the Snow? It's In New England!

Oh, the joys of living in New England!

Whew: That Was A Close One!

As Kristal, James, and I were on our way home from a doctor appointment last week:

I was driving down the road minding my own business. I take a gander to my left and see a cop car. I see a woman inside the car looking at me. Immediately she flips her lights on, does a uey, and pulls me over.

She approaches the car: "Sir do you know why I pulled you over?"

Honestly, I hadn't a clue.

Apparently, I was doing 52 in a 35. I do not want to make excuses, but I can say that it was not intentional. Those of you who have known me for a while are probably laughing. Those of you who haven't known me for a while do not realize that I am a "speed nazi."

I got a speeding ticket in June of 2000 while I was on my way to my brother's rehearsal diner. I am a tightwad and so never wanted to get a ticket again (costs too much money--and you thought I obeyed the law out of righteousness--HA!).

I cannot even count how many times my dad constructed me: "Jim, you are going too slow. You are a hazard to the safety of others. Go with the flow of traffic!" Time and time again I heard this from his lips.

Well, in the same way that Jesus will come like a theif in the night, the cop puts his radar on you like a thief in the night. You don't know when it is coming ("unawares" is a good choice of words here). Luckily, because of my good driving record, she didn't write me a ticket! She slapped me with a warning.

I want to thank all of my sponsors. I especially want to thank the NH police department for extending their grace to me by not giving me a ticket. I want to thank my lovely bride for consoling me while Officer Lady Cop computed my information. I want to thank my handsome son for giving her the "evil eye" as we pulled away (he has a rear facing car seat!). I want to thank my dad for encouraging me to break the law. I want to thank the Lord for all of the opportunities I will now have to royally tick off untold numbers of other drivers for driving under the speed limit. Things are looking up for the Snowden household today. If things continue to go like they have so far in 2008 we will have a busy thanksgiving day this coming November.

Well, I guess it is time to go back t0 driving like an old woman. I will once again not go with the flow of traffic. I will once again be a huge traffic hazard. And why? Why will I become a hazard? To save a buck!

By the way, I did not take a picture of the cop after she pulled me over. I got this off the internet somewhere.

DJ Jazzy James

The Lord has been good. Last night when we went to bed we lamented the fact that we would probably not be leaving the hospital for a while. Well, this morning when we woke up the nurse came in and told us that they took James off his oxygen early this morning. They still have the tubes in his nose just in case, but his breathing is much better.

About 15 minutes after posting yesterday, the doctor decided it was time to put an IV in. They did not want him to get more dehydrated and thus go further backwards. Well, the IV is still in, BUT James has been holding his food down really well. He hasn't thrown up since last night around 8 pm (and his 8pm barf fiasco was on the smaller side of things). The doctor just (as I am typing this) came in and informed us that they are going to start trying to feed James 3 oz (about 1/4 of a can of soda) every 3 hours. She said if he can keep 3 oz down without throwing any up until this evening, we might be able to go home.

Since we have been to the hospital James has not cracked one smile (which is unlike him). Well, this morning he has been smiling all over the place. He is much more awake and energetic.

Things seem to be looking up for DJ Jazzy James. We are not sure when we will be leaving, but we are hopeful that it will be sooner than later. Please continue to pray that James would continue to fight through this nasty RSV.

Also, they took another x-ray of his chest and his lungs were Kristal clear (haha)--no more pneumonia.

Heck, what do you know, God does answer prayer. I guess it is not a waste of time getting on your knees praying to the invisible God. Hmmm... I guess his promises are true.

Well folks, continue to pray. Continue to sick God on James--He seems to know how to deal with that "untreatable" monster, RSV.

Top Ten Best TV Shows

So here is my "Top 10 Best Tv Show List." You will find that I have a pretty boring TV Life.

10. Really big Things: This is a relatively new show hosted by Matt Rogers. He travels the world looking for massive construction. He is a large meat head and likes to fit the part. He says lots of meat head things and gets excited about big metal things and fire and destruction and other things and stuff like that (haha). You can also see quite a lot of cool things. Ok, so you don't learn hardly anything, but it is a good show to watch after studying for 10 hours straight. You know, when you just want to sit like a vegetable and mindlessly get your mind of anything to do with words, numbers, ideas, and other "things of that nature" ("things of that nature" is a quote I picked up from the Governator).
9. The O'reilly Factor: I can feel the surge of people leaving my blog as I type this. Bill O'Reilly comes across a big-headed, pompous jerk. I hate to admit this in public... but... I like the guy. In my opinion, he is, by far, the most fair and balanced anchor on tv. I watch him for two reasons: 1. I like his ideas, and 2. I like watching him "bloviate" (anyone who watches the show will pick up what I'm putting down). Anyway, 1 and 3/11 thumbs up to Bill.
8. Build it Bigger: This show, hosted by Danny Forster, is slowly becoming one of my favorites. Danny travels around the world looking for large construction. He is a high energy geek who gets overly excited about little things--this is what makes the show. He is like watching an eighth grader pack his belongings to go on a fishing trip. Also, it is cool to see the massive construction and how they do it all.
7. Iron Chef America: Iron Chef America is an intense gourmet cooking competition. I was going to put this one last, but knew that people probably wouldn't read the rest of the list thinking that it was going to be too boring. If you don't like my shows then go watch your own TV (sorry, I take this sort of thing personal). Anyway, Iron Chef America, hosted by the interesting Alton Brown, is fun to watch. Personally, my favorite chef to watch is Bobby Flay. I know... I know... i'm not scoring points with the Gen-X'ers on this one.
6. Wow Wow Wubbzy: And you thought that I didn't watch television with my son. Every time Wow Wow Wubbzy comes on James starts laughing, smiling, and uncontrollably throwing his arms in the air (oh yeah, and drools in the process). Anyway, Wow Wow Wubbzy is a hit for 10 month olds and their parents.
5. Dog Whisperer: Cesar Millan is by far the coolest Mexican on TV. I really like watching the Dog Whisperer--it is amazing how quickly he can change the entire personality of dogs. You are probably already beginning to see that my top 10 list is much the same as that of the average middle-aged woman--Oh Well. Have you ever seen Cesar get bitten by a dog? I wonder how many times he has been bitten. I lost track at ummm... somewhere around 23. I am surprised he still has hands. Maybe he is part Mexican part machine or something--I wouldn't be surprised.
4. Survivor Man: Believe it or not, Survivorman is one of those survival shows--I know... hard to believe. It is hosted by the most savvy Canadian alive, Les Stroud. If I were making this top 10 list a year ago, Survivorman would have been #1, but the show this past season was pretty lame. He just didn't seem to do anything new or crazy--what is the point of doing a survival show if you don't do anything crazy? However, I have high hopes for the next season. If anyone comes to any understanding of how he stays so clean throughout his survival trips, fill me in.
3. Dirty Jobs: Mike Roe travels across the country finding the most disgustingly dirty jobs out there. The best part of the show is Mike and his witty humor. While watching the show I get the feeling that Mike is the sort of guy who never shuts up. Anyway, Dirty Jobs takes a strong 3rd.
2. Man vs. Wild: This is a survival show hosted by Bear Grylls. Bear has a cool accent, eats 3 day old dead zebras raw, climbs lots of things, and does stuff that would cause me to poop my pants. Anyway, this is an excellent show--you can learn lots about staying alive and stuff--which is nice... if you think about it.

And my #1 favorite show is...
1. Holmes on Homes: This has quickly become my favorite. There are a lot of crooked construction contractors out there. Mike Holmes has dedicated his life to helping people who have been ripped off by such contractors. He goes through houses messed up by contractors and redoes everything that was done wrong FOR FREE (oh, and did I mention that he makes made cash for doing so. Who would of thought: you can help people AND get rich in the process. SIGN ME UP!). I am convinced that this show applies to my spiritual life, but I can't quite make the connection--someone acting like they know what they are doing comes into the houses of uninformed people and messes everything up and then Mike has to come in and fix everything--Nope, still can't make the connection. Holmes is extremely smart and knows most construction trades very well. This show is by far the best show on TV at this point. If you disagree with me I will just build a wall around you so you can't get out--because that is something I know how to do because I watch Holmes on Homes. I have got to get me some of those overalls--This guy I once knew told me that wearing overalls actually changes your DNA. Anyway, he died from salmonella poisoning 3 months after filling me in. Hmmm...????

So what did you think of my incredibly boring Top 10 TV Shows list? Making this list was very therapeutic for me--now I know why my life leans on the "not too eventful" side of things. I trust that you noticed that there was nothing about Lost, CSI, House, or any of those other shows. I guess murder mysteries and car chases put me to sleep--haha. Actually, Kristal and I just don't like all the violence and cleavage that is scattered throughout most shows. Not saying that you are in sin if you watch those shows, just saying that you are of the devil. Haha. Anyway, I like my shows so leave them alone. If you think I am nonspiritual because I watch tv I have some advice for you: Get off the computer and go read your Bible. Haha, I should be a Christian comedian.

It's About Time

Yahoo.com news has announced that some man (moron) built a 76 foot, 22,000-pound pencil. All I have to say is, "It's About Time--the void in my heart is now officially filled."

Logos Bible Software Rocks the Planet Off Its Axis

For all of you nim-wits out there who aspire to learn Greek and Hebrew:

A few months ago while my mom was out visiting Baby James (notice that I didn't say she came out to visit us), I jokingly told her that I wanted her to buy me the "Logos Bible Software: Orignal Languages Library." Well, surprisingly she said, "I'll get that for you. Go get my computer, I will buy it right now."

I tried to convince her to not buy it--I just didn't want her to spend so much money (haha, yeah right). Anyway, she bought it for me.

Let me just tell you, this "Logos Bible Software: Original Languages Library" has revolutionized my study of the Greek New Testament.

Most people say that the thing that motivates them the most to study and learn the original languages is the glory of God. Not me. The thing that motivates me is the amount of money I have poured into all of my Greek reference materials. Just kidding.

I was thinking about going into the details of why learning the languages is important for pastors--it's the Bible for crying out loud--but I won't do that here. My purpose here is to highly recommend this Logos Bible Software to anyone who wants to learn the languages. It is well worth the cost. It makes learning the languages much more enjoyable. You don't have to flip thousands of pages (literally) in order to find the meaning of just one word.

So, if you want it here are my suggestions:
1. Go ask your mom
2. Go make some rich friends and con them into buying it.
3. Refinance your house and use the monies to buy it.
4. Sell your car--this software is much more important than transportation.
5. Make one of those fake printing press thingies: KIDDING
6. Whatever you do, don't try and buy it with your own money. Unless, of course, you have adequate overdraft protection.

Eschatology is Life: The Rest is Just Details

Now that's a Christian t-shirt that could bring in the big bucks. If I could only find a way to twist a scripture, convincing my fellow believers that they are out of the will of God if they don't buy my new "Eschatology is Life: The Rest is Just Details" t-shirt, I could make millions. Or maybe I can make it look like one of those totally sweet Abercrombie and Fitch t-shirts--It could become a racy Christian fad (to the glory of God, of course) for teeny boppers and old gray haired men who are torn between their love for eschatology and a desire to dress their age (a love for eschatology always wins in the end). If I were only a marketing specialist, I would be in a place where I wouldn't even have to trust God or ask for my daily bread. The possibilities are endless.

For those of you who don't know me, this is what I like to call satire.

Anyway, onto the outcome of our latest poll on eschatology (the study of the end times). I was surprised by the outcome: 1 Historical Premil, 8 Amil, 0 Dispensational, 1 Postmil, 4 Don't know's, 0 Don't Care's, and 0 Have never heard of these terms.

I did not realize that there are so many of like mind who come to this blog. Personally, I voted "I don't know." I really am torn between the Amil and Historical Premil positions. In this post I am not going to take you through what the Scriptures teach about eschatology. Rather, I am going to just say a few important things about eschatology in general.

1. Fellowship should never be broken over eschatological views. Great grace and humility should accompany a person's end times position. There is no eschatological view which is essential for saving faith. End times issues should be considered debatable, non-divisive issues--in the same category as things like sabbath observance, predestination, politics, spiritual gifts, music, and other issues like this. Christians can and will think differently on these things because we see dimly as through a mirror in this time between the times. Sheer immaturity is what causes Christians to divide over issues like eschatology (and the other issues listed above).

2. Just because eschatology is a debatable issue does not mean that it is unimportant. Many neglect eschatology as if it were never talked about in the Scriptures. Eschatology is talked about in the Scriptures just as much as any other doctrine. It is the primary theme in the book of Revelation and in 1 and 2 Thessalonians. It is talked about in detail in the Gospels, and here and there throughout the letters of Paul and Peter. It is also discussed in some detail in the Old Testament--Daniel, Ezekiel, etc. No, we should not divide over it, but we should take it very seriously. We should also speak out against (but not divide over) certain eschatological views that seem to go against other important doctrines of Scripture. For example, I would never refuse fellowship with a full-fledged dispensational, but I would speak out against their view that the sacrificial system will be reinstated during the millenium because it goes against the entire book of Hebrews.

3. In our study of eschatology, it is just as important, if not more, to know why the author (of whatever book) is talking about eschatology than it is to know the specifics of what the author is actually saying about eschatology. This may seem like splitting hairs, but I do think it is important. Many get so bogged down with trying to nail down the exact chronology of end times events that they fail to understand why end times events are talked about in the first place. End times events are hardly ever talked about in the Scriptures for the express purpose of giving us a detailed chronology of what is going to happen. It is written to help Christians live their everyday lives in the midst of a crooked and perverse generation. End times doctrine is first and foremost to help us in our everyday lives.

4. It is of utmost importance to know how apocalyptic literature works before we go to the book of Revelation to gain a better understanding of what the Bible has to say about the end times. Apocalyptic literature functions a certain way. Unless we know how it functions, we do not have a point of reference when it comes to interpreting it. Apocalyptic literature is a literary genre like poetry or narrative. And, just like poetry and narrative, it can only be read and interpreted correctly when done so following the rules of interpreting that particular literary genre. Thus, apocalyptic literature cannot be read in the same way that we read the Gospels, or Paul's letter, or the Psalms.

The End Must be Near!

On my way to check my email at yahoo.com, an article entitled "Don't Send in the Clowns" caught my eye. Apparently, researchers from the University of Sheffield polled children to find out what they think about clowns. The result was unanimous--children are not partial to clowns.

My first thought was, "The Book of Revelation has to talk about this somewhere. We got the war in Iraq, nation-wide economic hardship, global warming, a prevailing paranoia of being bar-coded (for those out of the Dispensational loop, bar coded refers to being officially branded with the mark of the beast by having a bar code inserted into your right hand or forehead. Ok, so bar-coding is my own term), and now... and now... children have declared their suspicion of clowns! Surely it must be in there somewhere, anywhere. I might have to twist some Greek to find it. Maybe i'll have to ignore context. Who knows! What I do know is that it must be in there."

Actually, my first thought was, "Where on earth have you been? You actually had to spend thousands of dollars to figure out that clowns are the freakiest, sanity-stealing phenomenon on the face of the planet?"

Either way, the end must be near. Oh well.

Stellar Ornaments!!

Here is a picture of James in front of our HUGE Christmas tree. Last year (Our first Christmas as a married family), Kristal and I started an ornament exchange tradition. It has been a lot of cheap fun. I have posted pictures of all of the ornaments that are presently on our Christmas tree. The tree is sorta bare right now, and will be until we are married long enough to collect adequate ornaments.
I hope you like the ornaments. I am sure that you will not want Kristal or I to pick ornaments for your tree after you see them all--we value humor over asthetic appeal!

WOW! Kristal got this fine specimen for me this year. It takes up about 3/4 of our tree. My wife knows a good ornament when she sees one.

I stumbled upon this beaut in the crafts department in Wal-Mart. It was not made to be an ornament, if you can't tell. Do you like the ornament string--it is gaudily twisted scotch tape. I am confident that Hallmark will soon be calling asking me for future ornament creation advice.

I gave this one to Kristal last year. Actually, I got it for her because I thought it was cool. Every single one of his limbs have been broken at one time or another. Super glue has saved this prince's life.

Kristal got this for me last year--It definitely enhanced the romantic essence of the Christmas season.

This is James' first Christmas ornament from Kristal and I. This also was not created to be an ornament--it is a simple Christmas rubber duckie. I have an eye for ornament potential. I thought Kristal was going to hate it when I brought it home. She didn't! Rather than hating it, she simply poked some holes in it's head and ran a ribbon through to hold it on the tree. This ornament is evidence that we could conquer the world together if we really wanted to.

John and Kelly (the in-laws) gave this to us as a family ornament. Moose are our favorite animal.





Mommy Kristal got this ornament for James. I could never in a billion years buy something this cute. If I got him an ornament, it probably would have been a miniature basketball, hatchet, Greek New Testament ,or soemthing along these lines. Oh well.

And there you have it! Our 2007 Christmas ornament collection. Next year I will add our new ones.

Rocky III in Spanish!!!

Friday night Kristal and I watched the last 3o min of the classic "Rocky III" on the Spanish Channel (yep, that's right--Date night! All you men who need ideas, come to me). Just to let you know, it was just as good in Spanish as it was in English. I think this should be the litmus test for manly movies. You know a movie is just for men if you can watch it in Spanish with just as much pleasure as you can in English.
Rocky's redone Spanish voice was pretty funny, as was his Spanish speaking opponent--Mr. T.
Although the Latino's have ruined the great drama of Rocky III for those who don't know Spanish, they cannot ruin the fighting. Although I didn't understand a word that Mr. T said, I saw him grit his teeth, stare down Rocky, land a few good body shoots, and I think I heard a "stupido" once or twice. Sorry Spanish Channel--if you want your channel to be completely useless to us stupid Americans, you are going to have start playing movies that arn't so manly!

The Complexities of Lifting Hands in Worship

Whether or not one raises his/her hands in worship is not a good test of spirituality. I am not saying that lifting up your hands in worship is not Biblical. I am just saying that it is not the test of spirituality. I have lifted up my hands on occasion during worship, but I always felt uncomfortable. Of course there was a fear in me that the people around me would associate me with the Benny Hin bunch, but the main reason why it was uncomfortable was simply because IT WAS UNCOMFORTABLE. My arms get tired. After about 10 seconds of lifting up my hands my arms start to fall asleep. I have some heavy duty arms and my lats are not quite in shape enough to hold them up for extended periods of time. I guess you could call me a weakling. I guess if I really loved the Lord I would go work out my lats a bit more so I could lift up my hands in worship. I am not knocking on you if you lift up your hands in worship. I am sure that that is a wonderful way of expressing your love to God. But honesty, isn't it kind of weird?

"I Love you GOD! And This is how I am going to show my affection for you! STRETCHING STRETCHING."

I am sure that sometimes God is up in Heaven saying, "WOW! Now that's devotion. He must really mean that song. I had my doubts. I had my doubts until I saw those hands in the air."

Why is it that those who raise their hands in the air only raise them at certain times in the music. When the music hits its high note? I think it is because they want to raise their hands, but they know they can't raise them for the entire song so they have to plan it out so that they don't waste their lat capacity too quickly. So they lift up their hands when the song seems to say something about our lost condition. Then when the song transitions to something about the deity of Christ they lower their hands. Then when the song goes to the death of Christ they shoot them right back up.

I think those who do this are afraid of looking like quitters. They are afraid of looking weak, so they conveniently take breaks when the lyrics are at their low. Doesn't this say something about the teaching in the songs we sing. I lift up my hands when I totally agree! I lift up my hands when I get REALLY excited. Well what about those times when you don't have your hands raised? Do you disagree with the teaching? Is that specific teaching boring? (By the way, I am being sarcastic).

I can remember the days when I had strong lats. I can remember lifting up my hands. I would lift them up and my arms would immediately feel awkward and tired. Similar thoughts went through my head, "What if I put my arms down now? I mean what are people going to think? I have only had them in the air for about 12 seconds. They are going to think I am a major quitter." So I would hold out until the theology of the song got boring again and I would let my arms down sssllloowwwllyy, very slowly. You know, with emotion.

We have all watched people lifting weights. I love watching someone lift too much weight. Their whole body begins to bend and shake. They can't quite get it up. I wonder if my body ever did that when I was trying to keep my hands in the air for too long? The guy behind me starts to position himself behind me.

What about the one hand in the air stunt. I think people do that when they don't love God enough to lift up both. I think it is a window into their spiritual life (I am just kidding). I was never so low as to lift up one hand alone. I am going to have a baby boy in a couple of months. The first thing I am going to teach him is, "HEY BOY! It is either two hands or none." I think that should be the rule. You either really love God (2 hands) or you don't at all. There is none of this one hand stuff.