Snow NO!

I'm sorry... I don't mean to reject or demean God's creation or His sovereign wisdom and will. I understand that He has His reasons and they are CLEARLY higher than mine. However, I see absolutely no good reason for us to get more snow this morning!! I say snow- NO!

It is no longer charming. It isn't sweet or cute. Clearly it is not romantic. We got ALL of that stuff out of our systems already... most of us were done the day after Christmas!

Personally, I blame everyone who has all these cutesy (aka: cheesy!) decorations out with snow men and snow flakes. Come on people... in the South they're already mowing. Put the winter decor up and let's go for some Spring-time stuff.

I know that I-- in personal protest of the weatherman's threat of snow today--removed the decorated sled from our front porch yesterday along with the winter greens that were in the pots on either side of our front door. Also gone is the winter wreath. Clearly, I'm doing my part... what's wrong with the rest of you. I'll say it one more time: Put the winter stuff up!! Put it in a tightly sealed container and store it-- not to be re-opened until the day before Christmas 2005, the next time any of us will need or want snow!

Well, I feel better now that I've got that off my chest.

Seriously, it was starting to get so nice here. Even though it was still cold, we were experiencing beautiful sunny days. The kind of days that fool you into thinking Spring is almost here. I had even gone about two weeks without wearing a coat! The gloves were a thing of the past along with the ice scraper in my car.

Oh well... I am alive and healthy. My God is good and He continues to provide for me and my family in such amazing ways! May He continue to bless you and your family-- whether you're warm, cold or somewhere in between.

Father, thank you for the gift of changing seasons. I do praise your creation-- even snow. Thank you for providing for me in such amazing and faithful ways. Amen.

Stepping Out

In our Wednesday night "house church" meetings we have been working through-- at a very slow and methodical pace-- "The Purpose Driven Life." It has been a rich, deep and sometimes emotional journey. Last week we began the section on the Holy Spirit (I believe it's chapter 22, but I'm not sure).

That week we had a terrific discussion on recognizing the Spirit in our lives and we were all able to witness to one of our members who felt he had never directly experienced the Spirit before. It was amazing as we went around our circle and each shared all kinds of amazing (and some even kind of weird) ways the Spirit works in each of our individual lives. It was honestly one of the coolest things I've ever been a part of. I shared with this brother that I felt it was really him not know what to look for... so I gave him this example: when my family first bought our Escalade we were amazed at how "suddenly" there were so many other Escalades on the road... of course they were there all the time, but until we knew/thought to look for them they went by us completely unnoticed. I think that analogy really helped him and he was looking forward to sensing the Spirit more in life.

This past week was not as dynamic as the week before, but it was still fascinating. I was especially struck by one specific thought: the Spirit is waiting on us to step out in faith and THEN the Spirit will be there for us. I've always thought-- and acted as if-- it was the other way around: Show me a sign, Spirit, and THEN I'll step out in knowing you want me to.

Wow! I have to really think some more about that... This is a new paradigm for me! I've spent my whole life looking at life from the other perspective: "Show me a sign..."

What are your thoughts on this?

Father, thank you for the gift of your Spirit. Help me to better understand and utilize this precious gift from you, Father. Amen.

Is it showing?

Sunday was so convicting. I know I've written before about our minister's ability to present God's word in such a convicting and personal manner... and yesterday was especially so! We talked in our Wednesday night class about the Spirit's role in accomplishing that...both through preparing our hearts for that message and in preparing Larry in his delivery of that message.

We have been studying Philippians for awhile now, and yesterday we were in Philippians 2:12-18. Larry's lesson was titled "Stars shining brightly" and it focused on some really great practical "hows" for us to be the light of Christ in our everyday life. One of the things I love about Larry is his ability to teach a passage so that it is so clear and convicting, and then to help you apply to your life in a very practical way. Every week we leave convicted, uplifted and with a plan of how to make the week a better one. It's awesome.

He really challenged me to think about how much light I'm actually providing for Christ in my corner of the world. At work, at home, with my friends, at the grocery store-- am I being the light of Christ? ESPECIALLY the portion about "do everything without complaining or arguing..." I'm afraid I may have flunked that aspect! I really need to work on that area of my life-- especially now that I understand those behaviors/attitudes can be keeping others from seeing Christ in me.

How about you? Do you have trouble with complaining and/or arguing? If so, join me in asking our Father to refine us in that area so that we may bring glory to Him.

Father, thank you for your word and it's convicting power. Thank you for men like Larry who you have gifted to share it with us. Father, I confess that I have been a complainer and an arguer-- forgive me. Bless me this week with an humble, peace-keeping spirit that will shine like a star for you! Amen

V-I-C-T-O-R-Y!

My 7th grade daughter was "bumped up" to the 8th grade cheerleading squad for the State Basketball Tournament. We're so proud of her! Over the past week, we have helped her cheer our team on to the State Championship Finals-- which will be played tomorrow night. How exciting!!

My wife, my son and I rode the "fan bus" to every game of the tournament and it has been lots of fun-- but boy do we feel old! (There's only so much you can take of 50 8th graders screaming and hollering non-stop for two hours.) Actually, they're a great group of kids and we're very proud of their conduct and sportsmanship. As a Christian school, I think the kids/fans get judged harsher than everyone else... but this bunch has done a superb job of representing Christ at every game. In fact, one of the representatives of the host school pulled me aside at last night's game and paid me that exact compliment. I accepted on behalf of all the parents... it was rewarding to know that someone had noticed and that our attitudes were showing through. To God be the glory!

And speaking of victories... my wife and I will officially be debt-free (other than our mortgage) by tomorrow. What a sense of freedom that brings! Now, we must stay focused on maintaining that status and doing more for God with ALL the extra money we will have that will no longer be tied up with making payments!! Praise God!!!

How about you... any victories for you this week?

Father, thank you for allowing us to show your Son through our lives-- even through being good fans. Thank you for gift of financial freedom. May we honor you through that experience. Amen.

Sunshine

Not to be outdone, the Sun is exceptionally bright today.
Masquerading as summer... defying the winter chill that still hangs in the air.
Glorious.

The river sparkles with life. Ice melted into faint memory. Reflecting His glory.

I close my shades reluctantly, but bask in the warmth.

My scarf and gloves seem silly, but are still necessary.
Bitter cold has less sting when the sun is so bright.

Dancing light on my window. I dream of the months to come, but enjoy today.

Warm and joyful. Grateful and loved.

Snow

Not a blanket, just a dusting. Magical and white.

The kind that turns the woods behind my house into a Winter Wonderland. And makes the rooftops glisten.

Swirls of smoke leaving chimneys. Ice-caps gliding down the river swiftly.

Geese are long gone. Sweaters are well-worn.

The sun will hide today. The snow rejoices and shines regardless.

Crying out to its Maker. Praise You! Praisie You!

Happiness

No profound anologies or commentary today... so if you're searching for a real pearl of wisdom or even wit, you might want to click the "Next blog" link above.

I just wanted to share with you that I'm really happy today! I love my wife and she makes me feel so good about myself. I don't deserve someone as wonderful as she is... but God has blessed me with her regardless. I could not ask for a more loving and caring partner in life. She makes me happy!!!!!

And, this morning I got to eat chocolate chip pancakes (with peanut butter on top!) with my kids before school. It was a fund raiser for the Korean Mission Team at school. What a great way to start your day off... having pancakes with your kids! I blew off a client meeting-- called my office and told them I couldn't make the appointment because I was eating breakfast with my kids!

Now if that's not happiness, I don't know what is.

How about you... Have you found happiness today?

Father, thank you for giving me my wife. Thank you for ministering to my heart. Help me to help others find joy today. Amen.

Be careful what you pray for

In my last post titled "Focus" I wrote about my son and his lessons from Karate-- and my own lessons on focus. Well, little did I know I was about to get a first-hand lesson in "focus"-- literally.

This past Saturday as I rolled out of bed threw on a pair of sweats and a ball cap (my weekend "uniform"), I had no idea what experience lay ahead of me. Clutching my Starbucks and still half asleep, I walked with my son into the dojo for his karate lesson. I noticed there were lots of extra people there and many of them had cameras.

"What's going on?" I mumbled to myself. "Why are all these people here... there's nowhere for me to sit!" I grumbled under my breath.

"OK, Parents... go ahead and be taking off your shoes and socks and stand behind your child on the mat. Be sure to bow on before stepping onto the mat," the leader of the Karate school announced to all the eager parents.

"WHAT?!" I said to myself-- out-loud. "What is this"... I thought to myself.... "what is going on?" Gulping the last of my Venti Americano, I stooped to pull off my shoes and socks. "I can't believe I'm doing this," I said to myself. "I'm not in the mood for this... and I don't really feel like being humiliated in front of all these parents," I popped off in my head.

"FOCUS!" commanded the head instructor.

And then it hit me-- you asked for this buddy. You blogged about it, you prayed about it-- you even asked others to pray about it.

OK... so to make a very long story (an excruciating hour-and-a-half to be exact), it was a great experience. My son and I had a bast together. I was focused on him (when I wasn't focused on blocking the pain signals emanating from every muscle in my body) and we definitely bonded.

As an added bonus, there was a competition at the end with all the dads competing and all the moms competing. I'm proud to say-- and my son was even prouder-- that I was ranked third out of all the dads. Not bad if I say so myself.

Father, thank you for your love. Thank you for providing for us as we ask of you. Thank you again for the gift of my son... and for the unbelievable gift of you Son. Amen.