100 things about me...

Born Frederick Christian Blauer the 4th on Aug. 28, 1970.
In Maryville, California.
Virgo.
Some of the places I have lived: Boise ID, Tangent, Corvallis, Bend and Portland OR.
Sometimes a procrastinator.
I miss Powell’s books in Portland, OR, I think a tear formed as I entered the last time I was there…
I could care less about sports.
Once was called “Howie” as a nick name.
I go to bed early and often rise early too.
I have a few close friends and know way too many people.
I weighed 170 when I was married, 15 years ago and weigh 240 now.
I snore.
I am really love the Lord Of The Rings and try to work it into too many sermons.
I write letters to the editor of the local paper.
I didn't graduate from high school but I did get my high school diploma through a community college program.
I am proud of the above accomplishment and not just getting a GED.
I was raised by a vegetarian mother who cried when she saw me eat a hamburger.
I love chick-a-sticks, butterfingers and skittles.
I enjoys collecting and reading books, especially the feel and smell of old books.
I've never seen someone die.
I have broken my right wrist trying to kick two balls at once.
I have had my heart broken by 3 girls that I really loved.
I love cats more than dogs but I don't have a cat, but I own a dog.
I eat a lot of toast with peanut butter.
I like to lift weights but I am not doing that now.
I've been to France, Holland, England and Norway.
I have a heart for foreign missions in Western Europe.
I own a tobacco pipe that I bought in Norway.
My first concert was KISS.
I really like the rain, especially when its really misty.
I still get way too many zits.
I don't know any foreign languages.
I used to wear three earrings.
I want a tattoo but have not got one yet.
I own a 1969 Mustang that needs a bigger engine.
I burn lots of incense (patchouli)
People who chew with their mouths open irritate the heck out of me.
I can't really do much with my hands and it bothers me to death.
I want to go to Thailand where my brother lives.
I make a mean breakfast.
I love no-bake cookies the best, thanks to Grandma Peggy.
I watch way too much TV.
I am the oldest of three brothers, whom I wish I could see more often.
I can't seem to get too excited about much of anything.
I love Starwars movies…a lot.
I really like heavy metal.
I really, really like Judas Priest.
I don't have a lot of cash.
I have been known to read at stoplights.
I miss the Grotto in Portland, OR.
I can draw and paint but don't.
I love the Dutch people the best.
I love gardens but suck at anything that requires a green thumb.
I have never won anything.
I want to be an author but won't write a book.
I preach a lot but never went to Bible College.
I had a dog as a child named Dusty that was killed by a UPS truck.
I love leather jackets.
I have a good collection of Tarzan books.
I hate mowing the lawn.
I love Bob Dylan music but own only one cd.
I got fired at my first job for turning in someone for selling drugs at work.
I love swimming in rivers the best.
I can't stand most Christian music on the radio.
I read the paper a lot.
I have a picture of Marilyn Monroe in my study.
I hate legalism.
I really dig Sheryl Crow.
I think Catherine Zetta Jones is a babe and my wife knows it.
I wish I were a Viking.
I love dark beer.
I don't like vegetables.
I am really sensitive to caffeine, it makes me angry.
I like earth tones and black clothing.
I think gothic chicks are sexy.
I really love fantasy, sci-fi and action movies.
I wish I had a degree in something.
I have a fish.
I have owned a snake.
I am a pastor.
I am a big Seinfeld fan.
I can't dance.
I have lost too many really good friends too a cult.
I was a part of a really awesome home church that turned into a really nasty cult.
I am really squeamish and can throw up really easy.
I own way too many pairs of shoes.
I love art.
I want a drum.
I have been married almost 15 glorious years.
I love pizza.
I love poetry and have written a lot myself.
I did a lot of drugs as a teen.
I want a big sword.
I have 5 kids.
I struggle with joy.
I was allergic to sugar and milk as a kid.
I didn't get a license until right before I got married.
I've never seen any Austin Powers movies.
So I Married An Axe Murderer is one of my favorite movies.
I shave my head regularly.

Roughing it...

Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things you didn't do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover. -Mark Twain

Mark Twain is one of my favorite authors, there is something about him and the way he writes that moves me. I am reading his book called "Roughing it" and have laughed out loud, which I don't do that often. It's a book about his first travels out West to Nevada and so far it's been a great read. His description of sage brush and jack rabbits are amazing, especially if you have ever lived around them. I know that doesn't seem that interesting but for me the way he writes captures simple things in unique and often hilarious ways.

I saw all three versions Of JESUS WALKS music video by Kanye West today...I was really moved. What an awesome message that needs to be heard in the rap world, let alone youth culture.

Alien VS Predator

I watched Alien VS Predator this week and I really enjoyed the ride.
I love Science fiction and the Alien movies have always given me a great Sci-fi buzz.
You just cant go wrong with the Alien, he/she has got to be about the best evil creature on film, in my opinion. This movie had its weak elements but all in all, I will add it to my good list.

Does anyone else have a better choice for best beastie?

so true....

A man who has a vision but no task is a dreamer; a man who has a task but no vision is a drudge; but a man with a task and a vision is on the brink of victory.

I am currently racking up hours on Lord of the Rings Third Age on the Playstation 2.
Wow, I didnt think I would like the turn based format of this video game but I am hooked.
I am fighting the Balrog right now and on my first attempt, I got my whole party slaughtered. I am also totally digging traveling through the mines of Moria, the graphics are sweet. I have always loved the dwarves the best and being able to wander through the deep city under the mountains is amazing to behold. It's a must play for any Tolkien fan or fantasy junkie in general. Very cool, two thumbs up for me.
 

A moving film...

I saw this film while I was down in Portland with my Dad Fred and step-mom Sue.
It was a very tough movie to watch but has stayed with me for a long time, which is the sign of a good movie to me. I had a lot of mixed emotions afterward...sorrow, anger, fear and some doubt. It is hard for me to wrap my mind around such atrocities, hate and suffering. I get a bit ticked at God for allowing such things to take place. I know all the pat answers to such a thought but honestly they just dont satisfy my angst. Though I know the truth of Job 41:2-6 in my mind; in my heart there is still trepidation about one who can do good but doesnt seem too. I just wish He would come back and put an end to this madness that we are doing to ourselves.

Old paths...

It will sound very strange to some to hear me talk about holding fast to old ways, old doctrines, old customs, old anything from me, whose whole life and ministry has been an incitement to new thought, to development, to on-going.

As if there were any real antagonism between the hand that goes out to sow the seed, and the hand that comes back with the sickle to reap that which has been sown! As if growing and development, were not perfectly harmonious with maintaining the stability of things gained already! As if there could be a wise conservatism that did not take into account a wise progressiveness!

We are not in this world, to hold on to anything as if it were the perfect form of thought, or the final form of principle; but we are to hold on to all those things which long and ripe experience have shown to be beneficial until something else which is more beneficial can be put in their place.
Henry Ward Beecher from the sermon "The Old Paths" ...Thanks Dad, for this one ;)

Pearl harbor survivor Houston James of Dallas embraced Marine Staff Sgt. mark Graunke Jr. during a Veterans Day commemoration in Dallas yesterday. Graunke lost a hand, a leg and an eye when he defused a bomb in Iraq last year. -Associated press
 

Here is a shot of all the of the Hunt family together, which would be all of my wife, LeeEllas family.  

A cool piece of art in the grotto in Portland OR. 

Here is two of my sons, Christian on the right and Austin on the left. A couple of good looking boys, if I do say so myself. 

BLAZE Youth Conference, May 13-14, 2005.
Here at New Hope Christian Center, Spokane Wa.
Free admission. 2 days of life changing encounters with God and each other through spoken word, music, ministry and new/old relationships.
BLAZE is a gathering of spiritual tribes that are desperate and committed to see the Kingdom of God advanced in the lives, ministries and cities of the Pacific Northwest. We welcome anyone that has a heart and vision to see the purposes of God accomplished in and through the emerging generations, no matter what your age.
 

Here is Dallas Sphar living out his dream in South Africa. I sent out a prophesy last month that he gave concerning Nation Building, it was a good word. He has always had a heart for the African people and now for the last few years he has been advancing the kingdom of God in South Africa. It has been cool to see the desires of his heart coming to pass.  

Here is my favorite statue in the Grotto. It is at the top of the 150 foot cliff and overlooks the valley. It perfectly captures, spiritual longing, to me. I think it is just divine. 

My brother Marcs wife Angie and Raleigh.
 

My brother Marc and his son. 

Here is a picture of a picture of my dad and my brother Marcs son Raleigh. I thought it was a cute picture.
 

Here is Lilly Blauer the newest member to the Blauer clan. She is the first daughter of my brother Marc and his lovely wife Angie. I got to spend a few hours with them this last weekend while I was in Portland. She was a doll.  

Saint Francis...

Here is a great shot of one of my favorite statues in the Grotto, good ole Saint Francis.

My own private Eden...

Here is one of my favorite shots I took this weekend at the Grotto.
If you can not pray in this place and discover the face of God in nature than you are blind, deaf and dumb.
I truly was walking with God in the cool of the day....my own private Eden.

Hey buuuuuddy....

Here is Jason Miller, one of my best friends that I visited down in Portland this weekend. it is the first time I have seen his kids in years. I joined him at his church which is called Imago Dei for Sunday service. They have 3 services on Sunday (close to 1000 people) and the majority of the congregation are in their 20-30's. It was weird being one of the older ones there...

The monastery at the Grotto...

This is a shot I took of the monastery at the Grotto in Portland Oregon.
I always wonder if someone is looking at me looking at them when I stand here.
I also wish I could have a place devoted to just seeking God...sometimes I imagine what would happen if I went up and knocked on the door?

Doing it differently but the same....

Truth remains the same, but you have to LEARN to make it new and exciting to your spirit and in your walk with the Lord- Dr. John A. Tetsola

There's More Than The Missionary Position
I think learning truth in a new way is similar to marriage/sex/relationship. I think we have to add various different elements, positions, places, patterns and words to keep the freshness alive. If all one did with their spouse was the same thing, the same way, the same place and at the same time...that relationship would grow so painfully predictable and stale. Many people do grow bored of their spouses because they have not learned how to make their life together, new and exciting.

I think life in the Spirit and the church is the same.
So often we stay in the same mode, the same places, the same faces, the same music, the same words, the same everything...and people just get bored and move on to another church. Not because there was something so bad at their church but simply because they couldn't ever cook anything other than the same meal day in and day out.

Bored Out Of My Mind
People move on out of extreme monotony of spirit.
They long for something spoken in a way that stirs them, something fresh, something new...a new word, or how about new faces! Sometimes seeing the same people over and over again with no new birth or no new people to add to the flavor gets real stale too.

I think the Lord would desire His people to explore the various ways to take an eternal message and make it new every morning. Just like the dawn. Every day is a new day but every day we can expect the same thing to happen but God does the same thing every morning but different. I think that is the way God is...the same and yet not. Stable, secure and orderly but with a wild unpredictability and holy chaos that makes every dawn or dusk ripe with new possibilities. You never see the same day twice but you can always be assured the sun will rise, that is the glorious newness of the God.

Just Do It...but Do It Differently
Unfortunately we rarely see such characteristics within the average church. I think we need a renaissance in how we experience life in the Spirit in church gatherings, church ministries and simply discipleship. New speakers, new paths of discipleship, new ways of presenting the word, new arrangements of how we sit or the flow of our times together. How about the use of color, painting, imagery, scent and sound. How about architecture and the predictable use of space, form and function of our buildings. How about dreaming new ways to facilitate spiritual growth among a congregation that goes beyond the tried and true methods we've grown accustomed to relying on out of complacency instead of a spirit of adventure.

All of this translates down to seeking new rivers of spiritual refreshment in our own private devotional life too. A new ministry, a new bible translation, a new journal, a new place or time to seek God, a new book, new mentors or at least add some fresh voices. How about a new small group or new worship music.

These are all very simplistic steps but there are far more daring steps for the more adventurous dreamers but that is for another discussion...-Eric Blauer

Baby Got Book...

This music video is hilarious!

If you don't have a sword...

The attackers march like warriors and scale city walls like trained soldiers.
Straight forward they march, never breaking rank.
They never jostle each other; each moves in exactly the right place.
They lunge through the gaps, and no weapon can stop them.
(from Joel chapter 2)

These are warriors not consumers.
They are wild men and women who long for something that makes their blood tingle in their veins.
They want gasps not yawns.
They long for a company of warriors that guard each other's back.
They revel in the skill of their comrades.
The stronger each is, the more they accomplish.
They abhor the skill of only a few, what good is it?
They train for war not peace.
They serve one who came with a sword
and offered them a life of service
without the assurance of peace.
(excerpt from a prophetic word I gave on April 6 2004)

If you don't have a sword, sell your clothes and buy one! -Jesus (Lk 22:36)

A bored spirit...

The second entrance of sinful attack is a boring spirit.
Being bored with what used to excite and ignite you will create a door to seek an alternative excitement or interest, and it does not matter what kind of interest or excitement, as long as it is an alternative, it is fine to a boring spirit. Boredom means to weary by monotony, it means to weary by doing or repeating the same thing. A boring spirit is a spirit that is tired and weary of repetition. Truth remains the same, but you have to learn to make it new and exiting to your spirit and in your walk with the Lord.

When a person has a boring spirit, four things happen.
First, your focus becomes affected and becomes diverted to an alternative, and normally the alternative is that which is contrary to our assignment.

Secondly, your pursuit becomes affected and diverted to an alternative. David was called to lead a nation and to conquer territories. Unfortunately, he became distracted in his pursuit, and began pursuing a woman instead.

Third, your commitment becomes affected and you no longer commit to that which used to feed and give you life. David was no longer committed to his assignment, but was instead committing himself to a woman. The principle is, whatever is valuable to us at certain times in our lives is what we often commit to.
Commitment is covenant. What you commit to, you will sleep with.

Finally, the last thing that is produced from a boring spirit is the birthing of an Ishmael. Prophetically Ishmael is the manifestation of a wrong decision and represents that which God has not ordained. A man with a boring spirit has no restraint. And where there is no restraint, there is the gratification of self-pleasure.
-by Dr. John A. Tetsola

I finally figured out what has been wrong with my life for so long...I forgot the crystals...LOL, sorry couldnt help it, I just love Napoleon Dynamite. 

Here is one of my favorite pictures of myself playing the guitar in the devotion room at a Christian youth hostel in Amsterdam. Special moments of living out ones prophetic dreams. I've shed a lot of tears in this room for the dear Dutch people. Ive seen a number of people give their hearts to Jesus there and seen God touch my heart in ways that are hard to explain. 

Prophetic words don't change our lives

Much dreaming and many words are meaningless...-Ecclesiastes 5:7

How foolish it is to think that you can take a revival meeting or a dynamic weekend to change the way a city thinks, all by shouting at the air. This is not an air thing. It is a mind thing. It is a mindset or a way of thinking that has been sown from one generation to another. And it will take more than shouting in the air to dismantle and destroy it. Instead, you have to get a generation to renew their minds and be re-brainwashed, and then the power over the mind is broken.

Most people don't like to hear about dismantling the strongholds, because it puts the responsibility on them. They want people to lay hands on them, shout at them, spit on them, and then they can go free. That is nonsense. Prayer works well when you are playing your role properly. Prophecy or prophetic words don't change our lives. They just indicate what the Father wants to do for you. Your job is to find your role or your responsibility in the Father's plan and do it. If you won't do anything, nothing will happen in your life.

-by Dr. John A. Tetsola