I know life has ups and downs,

but I don't care much for the downs. I imagine you'd agree.

We prefer the magnificence of the mountaintop to wallowing in the stench

of the valley.

Sometimes we wonder, "What

is God doing while we wallow in the valley?"

In the 1970s a little-known

Christian psychologist published a controversial book about child discipline.

The book caught the eye of talk show guru Phil Donahue, who invited the

psychologist onto his Chicago-based talk show. It was such a great opportunity

for Christians - to have a trained, articulate, bright Christian

debating the liberal Donahue on television.

The show as a disaster. Critics

said that Donahue made the Ph.D. in child psychology look like a child.

What is God doing while we

wallow in blown opportunities?

A man in his mid-forties wakes

up one morning and realizes he's been a horrible father to his son,

who's now in college. He resolves to remedy the situation. The next

weekend he drives four hours to campus, then knocks on the door of his

son's dorm room. He takes his son out for pizza. And he begins to

talk. He almost chokes on the words.

"I'm sorry I missed

all those ballgames. When you wanted to go camping I said I was too busy-I

can't tell you how much I regret that now. I realize I've been

a poor father. Son, I want to ask for your forgiveness. And I want the

chance to try again."

The father goes out on a limb,

lays it all out there.

And from his son? Silence.

No hugs, no pleasantries, no forgiveness offered. Only cold, awkward,

silence. Finally after several minutes the son whispers, "I need

to get