Someone's been looking at my blog...

Holy counter hits Batman...what in the world have ya'll been doing: forwarding the Saints thing to the entire world? I logged on to see recent activity and the site has gone through the roof t0day- I guess I'll paint my face every Monday- Good to see all of you checking in from all over the globe- from the West Coast through the mountains to as far away as England/Scottland (shout out to Roddy Mckay!) Roddy- post your blog in the comment section so people can see your photography! Just as an FYI update on the Lagniappe Church website- we've finally got some of my 'old' sermons posted- starting with "7 Relationship Issues Jimmy Buffett sang about"- I hear Buffett is working on a new album called "7 Spiritual Issues that Jean Larroux preached about", but I'm not sure when it's going to be out....

Who Dat?

There are moments, and then there are MOMENTS. 70,000 fans, 2 teams, 1 Superdome- the cost of parking didn't matter, a $7 hot dog didn't matter, 'bloody nose' seats (as Hannah Grace put it) didn't matter- New Orleans needed something to rally around, the Saints delivered. It would be a close to a non-religious, religious experience I've ever had. From the first 1:40 of the game until the end we all stood. We all screamed. We hugged complete strangers. We cheered, "Who dat? Who dat? Who dat say they gonna beat them Saints? Who dat?" We cheered when the 'dirty birds' fumbled. We cheered when we scored. Ray Nagin declared a few months ago that New Orleans was going to be a chocolate city. Last night the city was neither chocolate or milk white. It was Black and Gold. I will post other pictures later, but suffice to say that everything you've ever read or seen about Mardi Gras was condensed into an 8 hour window on Monday night. Unbelievable. As we walked out of the stadium I heard one person say, "Superbowl..." People wonder how New Orleans and coast is going to recover from Katrina. We've been cheering for the losingest football team in NFL history for years. We win 3 games and think "Superbowl!" We love lost causes, we do. There's a little Lagniappe in New Orleans, a love for lost causes- I love that. I love to dream that maybe the impossible might, one day be possible- Go Saints! Go New Orleans! Who Dat BABY! p.S. that is Jordan, Ryn and Me from the Sun-Herald newspaper this morning (they cropped t-Jean out of the photo- acutally he was at the concession stand getting his old man a beer...)

Are you ready for some football?

Ba, ba, ba-bamm, doon, doon, doon, doon-doon- That's right, you can hear it can't you the Monday Night Football theme music...well Saints fans, get ready- Jean IV, Jean III, Jordan Sikkema and Ryn Lukcas are all headed to the Louisiana Superdome TONIGHT to see the first night the Saints are back in the dome- it is going to be unreal, UNREAL- check out this link- U2 is there, Green Day is there, former President Bush is tossing the coin! It will be a good break from shingles and drywall- although I imagine Jordan will be scoping the dome roof to see if the hole has been fixed (should we send a team over?- could be fun, trip to New Orleans, hang a little drywall...seafood, Pat O's...) Look for pictures tomorrow- I'm sure we won't get any posted tonight. I'm considering the face paint thing.... Okay, blog poll- Face paint or no face paint? Post your answers on the comment section: we've had several hits from England/Scottland lately so all of you 'across the pond' chime in dearies...not to exclude all of you non-Continental types- I know you're out there checking in so you chime in too...p.s. if you post any 'Go Falcons' type stuff I will delete it!

Pure Genius...

Okay, many of you are going to think that what I'm about to write is crazy...so be it. The above threesome is a band called Obadiah Parker from Phoenix, Az. I was sitting in the Mockingbird Cafe here in the Bay answering e-mail, etc. and I got an .mp3 from my little sister Hayden. It was listed as an acoustic cover of "Hey Ya!" by the pop band OutKast. I thought to myself, "Boy I'm glad I just downloaded 4.5 mb of that!" But then in a blessed moment iTunes opened and it played. Listen to me- DOWNLOAD this file. Just do it. I would say that this may be the most artistically creative cover work I've ever heard. It is remarkable and the Grizzly Adams fella on the left has an unreal voice. I think they are believers to boot- that would just be gravy- they certainly aren't awkward evangelicals. Enjoy this and let's hear some chatter in the ole comment section for "Obadiah Parker"!
Download the song right here (to save it to your hard drive right-click 'save target as')

Another day...

Jackson the dog is furiously searching around each corner for someone to puppy dog around with him. I imagine that spending each day laying on the linoleum, taking a break to eat, scratch or stretch must get old so he releases the pent up energy when we walk in the door. Dogs are funny like that- my theory is that they have no 'hard drive' only 'RAM'. Everything exists in the moment, no context, no history, just the 'now'. What a blessing to have some hard drive space, to have a default system software- we have hard drive space and our Father, in a sense (if you'll forgive me beating the analogy to death), reboots us each day- new mercies, new day. That is a good thing- there are things on this side of eternity that are hard to decipher. I received some hard words from a friend today- a rebuke of sorts, but it is hard to know sometimes- our propensity to read between the lines is one of those non-dog, manish sort of things. They are good occasions for 'manual re-boots', personal re-orientations to be the godly man I am called to be. It is hard to fail a friend, but it is good to know that in those moments there is another FRIEND, he protects even when I cannot or don't, he is an older brother who is not only friend, but Christ. He is a good friend indeed and holds us in moments when we must say, "sorry". There are just a few more days until these days which are passing away will indeed pass, just a few more days... We will awake and be changed- non posse pecare! NON POSSE PECARE!

Good Monday Night...

Ann Elizabeth is sporting her 'Lagniappe' wear which she has chosen to make a 'sleep shirt'. Homework is done... lunches are packed for the morning... Ann has come in for 2 sets of kisses... and now sleep time is here. It's a great time to be a dad- an experience that I'm trying to share via the blog- but it just doesn't do justice, hmmm! Apparently LPC t-shirts will do double duty for the Larroux girls- when the ole LPC shirts are too big they're just perfect for sleep (even those green staff ones)! I'm checking out a hard fought Monday Night Football game between the Steelers and Jaguars (scoreless in the entire first half) and doing a little blogging/work in between the plays. Okay...back to some real work...love to hear from ya'll...goodnight.

Women's Conference, "Magellan" Chapman and Thai Food

This weekend we attended the PCA women's conference in Atlanta, Georgia. There were almost 3,500 women in attendance and it was a great opportunity to say and show that the work on the coast still continues and needs their support. There were some great conversations and opportunities to catch up with old friends (campus minister's wives, etc...) as well as make new contacts for Lagniappe. The interstate photo on the left is included in the blog as a tribute to Andy "Magellan" Chapman who took over the helm on our way to Atlanta. I casually pulled over south of Montgomery, got some more coffee, plugged in my laptop and left it to Andy to simply take us to Atlanta. After getting engrossed in my work I happened to look out the windshield to see "Birmingham 14"! Fourteen miles to Birmingham? Andy was on the phone when I screamed. Needless to say I abused him all the way to Atlanta and planned at that moment to blog about it- the only virtue of the detour was that it made the drive home today seem short (acutally it was 1.5 hours shorter.) At the top right are Sid and Shay Grant from Gainville, Georgia- new friends of Lagniappe! We accompanyed them to a Thai resturaunt in Atlanta for dinner on Friday night- it was amazing! I love oriental cooking, but this was off the charts- I wish we had one here in the Bay. I could go for it anytime! One of those strange things about it- you have it and then an hour later you could eat again and again and again.... What a great night! Sid is working on putting together a group to come down to the coast and do a whole house build with us! Can't wait to have them in the Bay!

Presbytery Today...

I am heading out of the Bay for a meeting of Grace Presbytery today in Collins, Mississippi. It promises to be 'lively' and should provide some occasion to talk about what God is doing on the coast. Friends, please pray- these are HARD days in the Bay, Satan is so passionate about destroying what he can. He cannot thwart the ultimate work of God, but desires to devour each of us. Please pray, please. I am learning the sobering truth that God must be enough. He must be. He is. I will have some good time to pray in the car, great talk time with God. Psalm 62:5

Promised photos of T-Jean (future Heizman)

T-Jean (short for Petite Jean) suffered his first loss in football to Hancock North Central Hawks last Thursday evening, but did get some good playing time. He is number 51 in the top picture (duh!) HNC is the alma mater of Mr. Brett Favre aka. King of the Kiln- his hometown in Kiln, MS. The boys put up a good fight, but in the end came in second. I simply told him when he got home that he should have tried harder and then I would be prouder. (If you think that is serious don't ever logon to this blog again, you don't know me at all- and if you do know me but then think that things like that are too serious to kid about and that he could be wounded etc... bla, bla, bla... then please, please don't ever logon again and especially don't 'confront' me on a post- I'll just delete it!)

Goodnight...

It is late Sunday evening, actually Monday morning- I'm finishing up lots of details on the computer, etc... (I watched the Manning brothers battle it out on Sunday Night Football) This week holds a very hectic schedule- Presbytery on Tuesday, PCA Women's Conference (raising awareness about Lagniappe) all weekend long. I enjoy getting on the road and talking about the work God is doing- there is something about it that re-kindles the passion to labor in these fields at this time. Lots of thoughts and things to say, but my eyes are heavy- I'll write more in just a few more days...goodnight. P.S. Keep your eyes open this week for my 'web publication' of a Children's book I've written called 'The Moon is still round'- very exciting and packed full of good, solid, subtle theology!

5 feet, 9 1/2 inches

A man must know when he has been beaten. Tuesday I went to the doctor here in the Bay, they weighed me and then she measured my height. I was wearing shoes that probably have 1/2 inch soles on them and she very casually verbalized as she wrote, "5 feet, 9 1/2 inches, okay you can hop down." Sure, I can hop down can't I! Not such a long hop for a Hobbit! Hey, Rumplestiltskin why don't you repel down from that scale platform and follow me, little guy! The above photo was the beginning of the slippery slope of my emasculation. This past summer, I challenged Haley Darylimple to a 'Who's taller' contest? She was wearing heels as the picture clearly shows and obviously cheating. I can't remember the exact occasion of the picture, but I remember it being a great night, wonderful food and dear friends (minus Haley). Haley should be at the conference in Atlanta this weekend...I plan to bring some platform shoes and try again, but at a miserable 5'9" (once you remove the shoes) I imagine that I will just have to embrace being vertically challenged. P.S. Haley, you were right! (P.S.S. What rhymes with 'Pig Arby'?)

David & Bekah...thinking about ya'll today!

I spent some time in the yard today. I had to rent a brush cutter and a very cool propane torch that I used on the fence to burn off some vines, etc. As I was thinking about a short blog tonight I came across this great picture of David and Bekah who served at Lagniappe this summer for a week or so in their second or third tour of duty. Why, might you ask would they be part of the blog about the Larroux yard? Well, David and Bekah made the first beachhead clean-up effort at 1129 Old Spanish trail- David is a chainsaw master and Bekah is such a servant. We met them through Jordan 'Jordy' Sikkema and they have been great friends of Lagniappe, the kind that come once and then come back over and over again! Lagniappe is special that way, kindof magnetic. There's something about a place and particularly people that say "It's okay that you're NOT okay!" that turn 'normal' things into profound moments. Normal internships and friendships are transformed into inseparable bonds. Speaking of inseparable: David- I got a couple more trees if you want to come back to the Bay sometime soon! Miss you guys, thanks for being part of the Lagniappe family!

Geaux Tigers!

Jean IV has his first Bay Middle School football game tonight! He is number 51 and is slated to play tackle, linebacker and possibly kickoff. I plan to be in the stands yelling at the referee in my Lagniappe Church golf shirt as I throw popcorn on the people in front of me. The day will probably end like an episode of COPS with me being handcuffed into a BayPD squad car while beating my head against the plexiglass divider. I'll post some pictures when I'm bailed out. Please just make sure ya'll come visit at the Bay-waveland central lockup.

Signs of the times...

Two interesting signs aren't they? Before you get too offended, think of the sentiment behind the signs- there is something at work in the Bay-Waveland area right now. C.S. Lewis would call it 'deeper' magic! There is a frustration and an abandonment of hope and trust in the 'normal' places of hope and trust like insurance companies or savings accounts. Concurrently, there is an appreciation and a reliance upon the unknown, unidentified hereos on the Coast know affectionately at coffee shops and Wal-Mart lines as 'volunteers'. You can go anywhere and the residents ask groups, "Are ya'll volunteers?" There are always words of appreciation and thanks that follow. there are statements like "I don't know what we'd have done without the volunteers, thanks!" WAVELAND LOVES YOU- the generic, unknown, nameless volunteer that is driving down the beach road and happens to see the sign- YOU! Our mission at Lagniappe is to 'participate in the restoration of the Gulf Coast through the declaration and demonstration of the love of God shown to us in Christ Jesus!' Part of the beauty of Lagniappe is that we get the opportunity to not only do the work, but to put a 'why' behind it. Waveland may love us, but that wonderful city's love is not enough to compel us- We love Waveland because we have been loved by the God who made Waveland. Perhaps, just perhaps, we should give thanks for the 'State Farm Sucks' signs- they might be saying more than you think. State Farm is not enough to hope in. Savings accounts don't cover everything. Even volunteers won't be enough. He is enough. He loves Waveland and her people, so we do too.

Three Larroux Generations

From left to right: Jean Francois Larroux, III, Jean Francois Larroux, IV, Jean Francois Larroux, Jr., Michael Pierre Larroux. All of my family was in town for the anniversary of Hurricane Katrina and the passing of my Aunt and Uncle Gloria and Luke Benigno (Gloria was the sister of Jean, Jr. and Michael P.) As a special bonus many of my family members joined us at LPC for worship on Sunday morning. I preached on Psalm 107:23-32, an incredibly encouraging passage about God's sovereignty over the storms of life. It also speaks of His redemption after the storm and our joy in being guided to 'our desired haven'. He is good to have brought my family togehter again even through the storm. We gathered the previous night at the home of my cousins- Charley and Teri Lucas (Gloria's daughter). It was a fabulous evening despite the occasion. It was a great time to remember family and also friends who walked through this time with us. My cousin from Seattle, Eleana Waite (Gloria's other daughter) joined us with her husband Ben Hines who travelled to the Bay with fresh salmon from Washington state. It was fabulous and definately made me want more- grilled, charred, a little bit of lemon- oooohhhh eeee, gimme some mo of that!

Guest Book...kind of

I would love to know who actually makes it to the personal blog- leave a comment or a hello :) either personally or 'anonymously' either way I'd love to know that people 'dropped by' the digital neighborhood. Also, how do you like the site?- I'm such a stickler for design detail, but if I don't say so myself I like the white with sepia photos- blogging can get so chaotic, you gotta reign it in...I guess I'll only have myself to blame if it gets junky. I will try to keep the site fairly fresh- I wish I could keep up with each of you personally, laugh with you on the funny posts and cry with you on the hard ones but I guess this will at least give you a window into moi! You are all in my prayers...I know that the Bay isn't the only 'hard' place in the kingdom, so please know that there are prayers and love coming from, not just headed to me at Lagniappe!

First Post...

Blogger offered to let me create a blog on their new google beta version, so here's a try and I will probably use this to post more personal thoughts about Lagniappe and Life while leaving the church stuff for the other blog! Above are my babies- not so baby anymore- Hannah Grace (9), Jean IV (affectionately known as T-Jean, 13) and Ann Elizabeth (10).

Mrs. Haley Barbour, First Lady of Mississippi

You may have seen the recent post on our other blog that shows us at the Governor's prayer breakfast in Jackson, Mississippi. We joined Lagniappe friend Charles Irby for the breakfast and he was kind enough to introduce me to Mrs. Barbour. She was a kind person and has a real passion to help the people of the coast. Mississippi is blessed to have her in the Governor's mansion. She mentioned to me, "Haley couldn't be everywhere. I had to go down to the coast and be his eyes for him." Maybe somewhere in the future I've got some politics in the Larroux blood- it will take the right people around me, but I think I'd love it!