Divine appointment

Tuesday nights are very special nights for me. Tuesday nights my wife, Julie, has worship rehearsal with her teams from 5-10 (Julie is the Worship Director for RiverTree). So, Tuesday nights are my nights with our eight year old daughter, Tabitha.

Here's how tonight went. We started by playing five games of Crazy Eight. Tabs won 3 out of 5. And for those of you who know how competitive I am, I did not let her win. Next came dinner. Kraft macaroni and cheese and hot dogs. Yes, I can cook more than that but it's what we both wanted. While I played gourmet chef, Tabs read a book about penguins to me. Before we started eating we thanked God for our food and prayed for the three children we sponsor through Compassion International--Inte, Darwin and Bakari. We prayed that they would be safe, have a warm place to sleep and enough food to eat. During dinner Tabitha (who found out today that the father and daughter dance was coming up in a couple of weeks) told me how excited she is to go to the dance with me. Life is good. After dinner we got her pajamas on and then watched a half hour of the Cleveland Cavaliers. The Bible says, "Train them when they are young and when they are grown they will not depart from it!" After a snack of Cookies and Cream ice cream we headed for bed. I read a Bible story to Tabs from her Beginners Bible, we said our prayers, once again praying for Inte, Darwin and Bakari, we snuggled and I kissed her goodnight.

Not every night is like this. But as many as I can make possible will be.

My friend Wess Stafford says that every encounter that we have with a child is a divine appointment. Tonight I had a divine appointment.

Pontius' Puddle

I came across this old Pontius' Puddle cartoon. Pontius is sitting on a rock with a friend and he says to his friend, "Sometimes I'd like to ask God why He allows poverty, famine and injustice when He could do something about it."

And his friend replies, "What's stopping you?"

And Pontius honestly answers, "Im afraid God might ask me the same question."

11 1/2 hours of classes

Julie and I just arrived home after spending 11 1/2 hours in classes on adoption and foster care. First of all, no matter how good the classes are, 11 1/2 hours straight is grueling. Secondly, the topics you are learning about/discussing take an enormous emotional toll. There were numerous times that we were all on the verge of tears (partly because we had to sit in a classroom all day and evening--did I mention that it was 11 1/2 hours?).

As we heard story after story about children at risk, children desperately needing a "forever family," children being burned with cigarettes by their biological parents . . . my heart broke with God's heart. Children should NEVER be placed in these situations! How can God allow it?!? And the answer is that God desperately wants it all to stop--and His plan is you and His plan is me. What are we going to do about it? We can choose to ignore it. Ignorance is bliss. But if you read this . . . you can't claim ignorance any longer.

God instructs us to "Speak up for those who cannot speak for themselves; ensure justice for those being crushed. Yes, speak up for the poor and helpless, and see that they get justice." (Proverbs 31:8-9)

For further information on adoption and foster care, visit www.borninourhearts.org and www.ccho.org.

Alright, I have to go to bed, I have another 8 hours of classes tomorrow.

Finishing well

I recently spent several days at a conference with sixty other Pastors. This particular conference is one of my favorites because we simply get together to learn from one another, encourage one another and help one another be the best Pastors we can possibly be.

As most of you know, from following the evening news, it’s not unusual these days for many in the ministry to mess up. Scandals like Ted Haggard’s recent fall are unfortunately far from uncommon. The respect that once came simply from being “clergy,” at the very least is now tainted.

At the end of the conference, we honored two men who will be retiring this year from the churches they have been leading. Both of them have been in ministry for more than forty years. We honored these two Pastors for finishing well. For staying faithful to their wives. For keeping their hands off the money. For being men of integrity.

As a husband, a father, a Pastor, my deepest desire is to finish well. So, I’ve surrounded myself with close friends who really know me. Friends who aren’t afraid to ask me difficult questions. Friends who love me enough to say hard things to me.

God says, “As iron sharpens iron, so one friends sharpens another.” (Proverbs 27:17) Do you have friends in your life who are “sharpening” you? Do you have friends who will help you “finish well?” Are you willing to invite people into your life and allow them to know you at an intimate level?

Building the kind of relationships, that in my opinion, make life worth living can be difficult. Relationships take time, energy and grace. Sometimes they’re painful. Sometimes they’re messy. Sometimes they’re just downright hard. But in the long run, if these relationships help us stay faithful to our spouses, handle money with integrity, be the kind of people that others want to emulate, then the work and pain and messiness is worth it.

It really comes down to how highly we value finishing well.

Stripped

I just finished reading Jud Wilhite's new book, Stripped. Jud is a good friend of mine and sent me an advance copy of his latest release. Not because he's my friend, but because the book is excellent, I encourage everyone to pick up a copy and put it on your priority reading list. I couldn't put it down. It will be released on March 19th, but you can pre-order at Amazon.com.

Jud is the Senior Pastor of Central Christian Church in Las Vegas--a church of about 12,000 people. Stripped is filled with true stories of God's amazing grace in a city that desperately needs it. Page after page is filled with unbelievable but true life transformation testimonies.

And then Friday struck

Julie, Tabs and I spent the past week in Orlando, Florida at a Pastors' conference. The conference was amazing. But as amazing as the conference was, what Julie and I were really looking forward to was spending the weekend at the Magic Kingdom with our daughter Tabitha. Tabitha is eight--the perfect age for magic with Mickey.

And then Friday struck.

Tabs woke up with the flu. She threw up eight times in 24 hours. Sooo, for the next two days we settled for watching the Disney Channel.

Life is sometimes like that . . . you're hoping for the Magic Kingdom and you end up with the Disney Channel.

And by the way, having spent the past 48 hours trying to master it . . . Sudoku is from Satan!!!

Lessons learned

The past few days I've been in Orlando at a conference called The Megachurch Pastors Conference. (That may be the worst possible name I've ever heard for a conference.) You get invited to this conference when your church attendance passes the 1,000 mark. I've been attending for the past ten years.

The Megachurch Conference is one of my favorite learning experiences to attend. We rarely bring in guest speakers, we simply learn from one another.

This year, at the opening dinner, Dave Stone spoke to us. I attended college with Dave at Cincinnati Christian University twenty years ago. This past year, Dave transitioned into the Senior Pastor role, replacing Bob Russell, at Southeast Christian Church in Louisville, Kentucky. Every weekend more than 18,000 people attend Southeast.

Dave's "talk" was one of the most important I've heard in quite some time. He simply spoke about the lessons he has learned since becoming a Senior Pastor. I think, at some level, his lessons apply to us all. Here are three of them.

Lesson one: I'm not as good, or as bad, as Satan wants to make me think that I am.

Lesson two: My wife and children are more important than the thousands attending my church.

Lesson three: My significance is not to be found through the size of my church--my significance is to be found in my relationship to Jesus Christ.

Thanks Dave!

Don't sleep with your team members

Last night I was reviewing my notes from some time I was able to spend with Mark Miller. Mark is the Vice President of Leadership Development for Chick-fil-A.

Mark was kind enough to share with us Chick-fil-A's operational leadership parameters. Surprisingly, there were very few. These are the do's and don'ts for the guys and gals that run the individual Chick-fil-A restaurants.

Operational Parameters

1. Follow the recipes and procedures.
2. All the money has to go to the bank.
3. Don't sleep with your team members.
4. We're closed on Sundays.

Good advice for us all!!!

In A Pit With A Lion On A Snowy Day

The title alone of Mark Batterson's book, "In A Pit With A Lion On A Snowy Day" will probably grab your attention. Along with the recommendation of a friend, it grabbed mine.

The big idea behind Batterson's book is this: "What if the life you really want, and the future God wants for you, is hiding right now in your biggest problem, your worst failure . . . your greatest fear?"

Mark makes the case that God is waiting for people to overcome their biggest problems, allow God to use their worst failures, face their greatest fears. And if we do . . . let the adventure begin!

Here are some of my favorite quotes:

*God is always using past experiences to prepare us for future opportunities.

*Don't accumulate possessions; accumulate experiences!

*Half of Spiritual growth is learning what we don't know. The other half is unlearning what we do know.

*Are you living your life in a way that is worth telling stories about?

*At the end of the day, I'd rather be disliked for who I am than liked for who I'm not.

THIS BOOK IS A MUST READ!!!

This one is mine

For many of us, this single digit weather brings our warmest sweaters off the shelf. I don't know of any warmer than hand-knit Irish wool sweaters. From my time of living in Ireland, I have several. By far, my favorites come from the Aran Islands--not because they are more beautiful, but because of the story behind them.

The Aran Islands are three small Islands off the West Coast of Ireland. They are beautiful, but they are desolate. Few people live on the Islands because of their rugged climate and difficult accessibility. For a weekend getaway, there is no place finer.

Historically, most men of the Aran Islands have been fishermen. They would put out into the Sea in the morning and pray to return with a good catch later that same evening. The waters surrounding the Islands are known for their quick storms and treacherous currents.

While the men are away at sea, the women spend a great deal of time knitting. Hence, the famous Aran sweaters. What is most unique about these sweaters is that each one has its own pattern. A wife would lovingly knit a sweater for her husband to wear while out at sea. She would carefully weave the "family pattern" into it. The pattern was for far more than beautification--it was for identification.

If a man were lost at sea, the people of the Aran Islands would wait for his body to wash up on shore. The woman whose husband was missing would be able to identify her lost love by the pattern she had knit into the sweater. She would simply say, "This one is mine."

In Romans 13:14, God instructs us to "clothe ourselves with Christ."

There will come a day, when like the Irish fisherman who was lost at sea, we too will come to the end of our life. And when we travel to the farthest shore, if we have "clothed ourselves with Christ," then God will say, "This one is mine."

The desolate beauty of Inishmore

Twenty years ago I lived in Dublin, Ireland. I moved there to plant a church. I don't think I did very well at church planting, but God did some amazing things in my life during my time on the Emerald Isle.

One of my favorite things to do was to travel from Dublin (where I lived) to the Aran Islands for the weekend. I would catch a downtown train very early in the morning and begin my three hour ride across the country. I would always take a good book. On one occasion I remember reading "Gone With The Wind." En route I would enjoy a good Irish fry (breakfast) in the dining car--Eggs, rashers, sausages, baked tomato, mushrooms and slices of soda bread--all, of course, accompanied by a pot of tea. As we traveled the Irish countryside it was just as you would imagine . . . they say you can view forty shades of green. There was typically some rain, thatched cottages and on a really good trip, a rainbow or two. In the purest sense of the word, it was one of the most "romantic" experiences of my life.

I would arrive around ten in the morning in Galway. A quick pub lunch and a visit to a bookstore or two and it would be time for me to catch my flight to the Aran Islands. When I say "catch my flight," I don't mean "board a jet." I would go to the local runway where I would board a four seat plane to take the 20 minute flight over Galway Bay. Landing in the cow field was always an adventure!

Once on the island, there were no motorcars and most of the residents (few that there were) spoke the Irish language. I would be taken to my bed and breakfast by horse and carriage. For two days I would walk the rocky knolls, stroll the beach, read, and all the while spend time with God. In the evening I would walk to the local Irish pub for dinner which ironically was called, "The American Bar." After dinner there was always live folk music and great "crack" (Irish for "fun," not the drug).

Monday morning I would train back to Dublin having paid $80 for the entire experience!

Living here in the States now, I think those trips to the Aran Islands are one of the things I continue to long for. Time alone. Extended time with God. The desolate beauty of Inishmore.