29 June 2006

Happy Anniversary!

Today is my 10 year anniversary to the love of my life. Glenda and I have been married for 10 years now. It is so amazing to look back over the years and celebrate where God has brought us. After 10 years we are so in love and have such a great family. We have 2 beautiful children that are growing healthy and love God. Glenda is so wonderful. Glenda is such a servant, she is so giving, loving and caring. Time and time again I see what a big heart Glenda has for others. About 13 years ago when we first met this was one of the things that attracted her to me, her magnetic personallity. Glenda has a way of drawing others to herself and making them feel special. She is the best listener. I have learned so much by watching her in conversation and relating to people. I have no idea who or where i would be without her today. She has helped me grow in so many ways.

Babe, I love you. Today, I celebrate us ... 10 years! WOW! I am looking forward to our future together. God has so many incredible things instore. I cannot wait to see what the next 10 years hold.

27 June 2006

Another HOT day in Mexico. We got to our worksites today. We are assisting the remodel of a local church. Today we painted and painted and painted. White and beige. It was a lot to get used to, because the paint was a lot different. It seemed like it was watered down. The best part about the whole time was that we were able to meet the pastors of the church and talk with the asst. pastor. He shared the heart of the church and his passion for ministry. It was really cool to meet these people and and see their passion for God.

We are so spoiled in so many ways in the states. So many people dont even realize how blessed we are and how good we have it. If these people had one ounce of what some of the locals have here... I would predict a lot less whining. It is refereshing to serve. It is refereshing to see people so authentically excited about Christ.

I think I have drank 5 gallons of water today. We are downing the bottled water faster than we can get it. Absolutely no public water, bad news.

It is great to serve. Philippians 2:14.

26 June 2006

Hello from Mexico.

It is hotter than spicy guacamole down here. And let me tell ya it is spicy, but oh so good. Our flight was great, we landed 20 minutes early. So, we got to stand outside twice as long. We finally arrived at the place we are staying. The food is authentic Mexican, it is awesome. One of the team tried to eat some sauce that ended up being too hot, "it almost came out because my stomach rejected it". Honestly an exact quote.

Being near the ocean is such a calming time even if you are dripping sweat. I am literally sweating just thinking about sweating. God is going to do great things. I know it. I know I just need to hang on!


22 June 2006

Team

Summer football practice is under way. I love it. It is so much fun having the opportunity to get back on the field. There are so many things I love about it. I just love football, what a great game. I love team-based sports. Team sports teach so many invaluable life lessons. In fact I would go as far to say that the lessons learned through team sports cannot be learned elsewhere.

I walked into the high school Tuesday evening as we were preparing for a 7 on 7 passing tournament. The smell of the hallway in the summer brought back so many memories of summer practice, two-a-days, hell week, weightlifting, ... I just cannot say how excited I am to be back involved with football.

The other aspect is coaching. Coaching has become something that I get really excited about. There is a special bond between the coach and the player. A great coach can take a player to a new level of competition.

It is very interesting how much the coaching and team aspects have crossed over into the church and business world. So many "Monday morning quarterbacks" think they know team just because they think they know sports. In fact many consider themselves coaches or leaders that have no business leading or coaching. A coach was once a player, a leader is a learner (being taught). Too many self appointed leaders think they have nothing more to learn. Too many self appointed coaches have no idea what they are doing. You must be willing to be part of a team to be able to be a coach. You must be humble enough to continue learning to be a great leader. NOT everyone is a leader! NOT everyone is a coach!

At this point in my pastoral ministry I am so much more aware of the absolute necessity of a tight-knit team. I am so frustrated with lazy team members that won't pull their weight. There are no victims on the team. A true team member takes responsibility for their involvement or lack of involvement. A true team member puts the team before their self. A true team player seeks relationship between the other team members. A true team player give it their all. If you are not willing to go the distance then get OFF the field and quit wasting time and screwing things up.

Coaches have some of the best one liners, the one I will leave you with...
Leave it all on the field.

Whatever field you are in love it! Leaving it all on the field means that you give it your all, you have done your best. You know that you could not have done one more thing. I challenge you to leave it all on the field. If you cannot do that it is time to re-evaluate what you are doing and where you are doing it.

21 June 2006

Refreshing

It has been HOT here lately. And to make it worse the wind is out of control. There is nothing better than ice cold water on a hot summer day. It is amazing how children have the ability put everything into perspective. I have been carrying a heavy burden lately. This past week has been "that week" if it could go wrong it has. Today my wife had to take our daughter to the doctor's office and I spent the afternoon with my son. We crawled around the family room and wrestled. It was such a refreshing time. It does not change what is going on, but it is a reminder of values and priorities. It is such a blessing to have such a great family; my wife, daughter, and son are so wonderful! Why is it that when "stuff' happens family takes the hit? Family is our support. Family is our team. Wow! What a blessing children are. My son will never know the impact of this time. There is no doubt I was in need of God reaching in to my world today. I am so glad I stopped and looked at things in that "childlike" perspective. I don't do that enough.

07 June 2006

1 Year Today...

One year ago today, my son Samuel was born. Kids are such a blessing! Wow! Right now everything is "gaachk" or something like that. He will see a ball and say "gaachk". So we sit down and play catch for a bit, he loves throwing... just about anything. I thing he understands that it is fun to throw stuff. Monday evening I had Emma (my 4 year old) and Sam in my car and Emma was making Sam laugh so hard. She was making funny faces in the back seat of the car. There isn't much better that hearing your kids laugh together. I can't imagine, if I feel this way how does God feel about us, His children.

01 June 2006

Syringadenous (adj) of or relating to the sweat glands.

We are watching the national spelling bee. The kids that are crazy smart! I have NOT recognized ONE word that they have had to spell. This is intense stuff... maybe not. But they sure are smart. I did learn a new fun word to describe my over-active sweat glands.