Its a good thing that God reminds us of stuff.  Not the little stuff, like where I misplaced my keys.  But the big stuff, like where the good stuff in life comes from.

I was on a walk with my dogs on the side of a nearby mesa.  I hadn’t taken the dogs on a long walk in way too long.  Oh, the dogs have been on long walks, but I’ve been driving the truck in front of them.  It was time for me to hoof-it with them.  The two days prior to this walk had been rainy summer days.  There were lots of clouds in the sky and lots of puddles on the ground, but there were also strikingly blue skies and only a few free afternoons left in an over-crowded summer.

The walk itself was good – nothing out of the ordinary.  What blew my mind were the clouds. They weren’t wispy, or even menacing.  They were mighty.  They could not be ignored.  They moved at a slow, determined, unstoppable pace.  Not only were they undeniable, but they carried the precious water that we so desperately need.  Nothing else could bring the rain like those big, mighty clouds.

God is big and mighty, and only he can bring us what we truly need. 

How often do those of us in “ministry” try to soften God?  How often do we paint God as our buddy and friend (he loves us, that’s for sure) but we fail to emphasize the reality that God is the most mighty, undeniable, powerful entity in the universe.

In addition to his power, he is the only one that can bring us what we truly need: peace, rest, purpose, his presence in our lives.  We strive after those things on our own, but we end up tired, spent, frustrated, and bitter.  Only mighty God can truly deliver.

Let’s not forget the one who is power and who truly delivers.

It has been a while since my last post.  Call it a lack of motivation.  Call it being distracted by the tyranny of the urgent.  Call it whatever you want. 

The good part is that God has brought me back to the wonderful place of being centered on Him.  Not pleasing, or serving, or doing, or performing.  Just Him.  The lyrics of this song pretty much capture where I am right now.

So what brought about this re-centering?  Several things. 

• Special time in the mountains with Jodi and the boys.
• An evening here in Branson with folks gathered around a campfire.
• A great hike with my dogs under some incredible clouds.
• New faces in church today.
• Reminders from several places (yep, including the Bible) that God wants us to be still before him.

Yeah, there are still things to do, projects to finish, and people to serve.  But all of that fades in comparison to simply knowing, living in, and resting in Jesus.  That’s where our focus needs to be.

In that focused rest comes motivation.  In that focused knowing comes peace.  That’s real life.

That’s where I am today.  Whatever tomorrow brings, I know that I can face it as I rest in and move in Jesus. 

How ‘bout you?  Where has your focus been lately?  Have you been worn out, or do you feel rested? 

“Fight!  Fight!”

No two words could make you leave your game of kickball on the playground faster.  Just watching two kids get scrappy was more than exciting… until a teacher came and broke it up.

Yesterday Brock got to watch some violence right in our house.  Not on TV, not between his brothers, and not between mom and dad.  What he saw was more visceral, more primal than any of that.  Here’s his quote:

“Dad, there are 10 moths in the bathroom, and they’re having a fight!”

Right now is miller moth season, so there are hordes of moths everywhere (there was one inside my coffee maker this morning).  Up until witnessing this moth-brawl, Brock would not use that particular bathroom if he saw a moth in there.  He was afraid of them.  Something about the watching them fight (they were probably trying to escape the wrath of a bug-squishing 3 year old) converted his attitude from afraid to entertained.

What are those things in life that you were once scared of, but are now entertained by?  And what triggered the transition out of fear?

God’s word tells us that perfect love (his love) casts out fear.  Sometimes we are forced to face a fear head-on.  After dealing with that fear or circumstance, we realize that it was really no big deal.  Sometimes we go through a tough issue, and we realize that the things we’re afraid of are way smaller than what we just survived.  Sometimes we just mature and realize that we are no longer afraid of the things that used to scare us.

But sometimes that switch never gets flipped, and we stay afraid.

Fear of rejection.  Fear of being alone.  Fear of being wrong.  Fear of looking foolish.  These fears paralyze people for years.  They keep us from connecting with others, from being the people God has designed us to be, and living the best life possible.  These fears are real.  They have deep roots.

We can only be free of these fears if we rest in the reality that Jesus never rejects, never leaves, and never condemns.

What kind of fears do you face?  Are they paralyzing?  Are they laughable?

With the right perspective, all of our fears can be a silly and harmless as the miller moths that get caught in a little boy’s bathroom.

People here in Branson fall into one of 2 categories: “cowboys” and “those related to cowboys.”  If you’ve seen me pedaling around town on my mountain bike while proudly wearing my orance Crocs, you know I definitely fall into the “related to a cowboy” category.   I enjoy helping my family brand cattle in the summers, and I enjoy the occasional horseback ride… but I’m just not a cowboy.  In fact, I’ve had a hard time relating to the cowboys in our community that I’m not related to (yes, there are some people here in Branson I’m not related to… not many though).

In the last 4 days, I’ve had 2 encounters with individuals associated with RFD TV (a station on one of the satellite networks dedicated to all things rural).  Before this week, I didn’t even know what RFD TV was.

Cowboy TV Connection #1: This past Thursday, Branson hosted a concert by Susie McEntire Luchsinger.   The name should sound kinda familiar, Reba McEntire is her sister.  Susie has an amazing voice.  She also happens to host a show on RFD TV called Cowboy Church.  She spoke between songs and what she said really spoke to my heart.  

Cowboy TV Connection #2: As church was wrapping up today, I noticed a group of horse riders stop at our town jail (it’s a small adobe and rock building with a porta-potty and some picnic tables near it – it’s the one “place” place to stop if you’re passing through and don’t know anyone in town).  It turns out that those riders are riding from Mexico to Canada.  Talk about saddle-sore!  This trip was coordinated by the guys behind the RFD TV show “Best of America by Horseback” and segments of this trip are going to be made into its own series.  Who knows, Branson could be featured!

What’s it all mean?  Does God want me to go into Cowboy TV broadcasting?  Maybe I’m supposed to buy a cowboy hat and turn in my orange  Crocs so I can more effectively reach our cowboy culture here.  Perhaps God is just trying to tell Jodi and me that it’s time to get satellite TV.  

Yeah, I don’t think so.  The orange Crocs aren’t going anywhere.

Have you ever needed a rainy day?

If you’re a rancher or a farmer, your answer is “yes, and we could use more of ‘em.”  True, but that’s not the kind of need I’m talking about. I’m talking about needing to have your plans for the day postponed due to rain (or some other factor).

My plan for today entailed helping my family brand a few calves.  Branding days are fun, manly days that I genuinely enjoy.  Branding days test your strength, endurance, and your humor… and they always include an over-the-top home-cooked meal at lunch that leaves you way to bloated to do any real work in the afternoon.  Our family does four or five of these branding days at the end of every spring.  Today was a wet, drizzly day from start to finish.  Rain keeps the calves’ hair wet and the branding irons too cool to do their job, so I got the early morning phone call letting me know that branding had been postponed to later in the week.

As it turns out, my soul needed the rain delay today more than my machismo needed the branding day.  I’ve been running hard, trying to get things done.  None of the directions I’ve been running in have been bad directions at all, I just needed a breather… a day to catch up… a day to be.

Our lives happen so fast.  For those of us with kids, they grow up fast.  For those of us with jobs, things change fast and we have to keep up with those changes or else.  For those of us with male patter baldness, our hairlines recede fast.

Take a rain day to breathe.  Enjoy your kids just as they are today. Enjoy the hair that you have today.

Really, take a slow walk and see what God has created for you to appreciate and enjoy today. You’ll like what you find.

I recently read a very interesting article on ESPN’s website that made me think.

The article was a back-and-forth dialogue between two sports writers, in which they present an interesting idea: why don’t NBA teams use the full court press more often?  The full court press doesn’t guarantee that a bad team will beat a good team, but it does increase the bad team’s odds of winning.  They take the logic a step further and suggest that a team should find 5 super-quick, young, hungry, non-superstar guys to be their “press-squad” … specifically trained to run the full court press during critical parts of the game.  This would let the superstars stay take a breather fresh, give the team a boost at critical junctures, and open up doors for new players contribute.

Would this work in a church setting?  I think it could.

Very often in churches, the main volunteers have a defined role or responsibility that they have had for a long time.   Those work horses work so hard for so long, that they get worn out.  Some people even leave churches because they can’t get out of their responsibility ruts.

What if a church had a team of young, passionate, hungry-for-God people that came in and put the full-court-press on in special situations?  Th Press Squad could focus on special short-term projects that requires lots of energy, or on a task that the main work-horses haven’t been able to get to.

This could work well in larger churches (I’m sure something like this has been done before),  but could it work in a small rural church like ours in Branson?  Here in Branson, just about everyone pitches in to get things done.  Is there a small handful of people that are really able to dive in and put on the full-court press as needs arise?  Age could be a factor, but it doesn’t have to be… this could be something for the teens and the retired seniors in town.

What kind of role do you play in your church setting (or in whatever kind of group you happen to be involved with)?  Are you a faithful work-horse that could use a breather, or are you more suited to a high-energy press squad?  If you’re not a press-squad kind of person, who are those people in your group that would be on the press squad, and how can you encourage them to that end? What situations in your group could use a litthe help and a little energy from a press squad?

This is what every youth ministry worker in the world needs to learn… especially those unique souls that enjoy working with junior high boys.

It’s been way too long.  Lots of life has happened since my last post.

1.  Guinea Pigs are stinky. We recently took in a guinea pig that needed a home.  It smells bad.

2.  Preschooler track meets are too cute for words. Brody and Brock “competed” in a elementary track meet a couple of weeks ago.  I’ll post some pics in the next several days.

3.  Kids with fevers are scary. Little Will ran a nasty fever for two nights.  No fun at all.

4.  Vista isn’t all that bad. Ya just gotta give it some time and some love.

5.  Chicken coop remodel projects don’t happen as fast as baby chick grow. The coop has framed walls now, but the chicks are growing really fast.

6.  The Branson Community Garden is “growing.” The ground is ripped and tilled, all we need is plants, water, and wind-breaks.

7.  The Friends of Historic Branson Colorado are trying to make a difference. There’s a new non-profit in town working towards opening a museum/cafe/gallery/social gathering spot.  More info on this later.

8.  God’s provision is awesome. God has provided for us financially in some very unexpected and very appreciated ways.  Thank you, thank you.

9.  We have a church bus. 1991 Dodge 15 passenger fan. Faded gray exterior.  Ready for adventure.

10.  I’m giddy about the Nuggets in the playoffs.

11.  My wife is awesome.

2.  How do we treat high-fliers when life has us playing the dive-bomber role?  Sometimes we get stuck in a rut where no matter how hard we try, we can’t seem to get off the ground.  It’s those times when it is very difficult to see others that are doing well or enjoying peace (or maybe an absence of chaos) and respond to them with a genuine, positive attitude.  Our natural response is to try to drag the high fliers down.  Jesus wants more from us.  He wants us to enjoy and appreciate those around us, regardless of our circumstances or theirs.

A lot of moisture at once that’s easier to manage than a flood, one of God’s cutest creations, and a necessary evil.

Blizzards, puppies, and teething.

Several days ago, we got hit with a blizzard that swept through Colorado and most of the west in some fashion.  Here in Branson, we got about 18 inches of snow (I think), which drifted up to 6 feet in places.   This has presented several challenges, all of which have had good outcomes.

1.  We’re in the doggy-sitting-for-free business. Some friends here in Branson were out of town for blizzard week (this past week was Spring break for our little school), which you would normally think is a great time to be gone… but they left a momma dog and her four puppies for us to care for.  We moved momma and her pups into our garage to weather the storm and my boys have loved visiting their “puppy friends.”

2.  I’ve spent way too many hours on the business end of my snow shovel over the last 2 days. Yep, I’m tired and sore, but it’s a good tired and sore.  One of my shoveling gigs was spent with one of my freshmen guys from youth group.  Another gig allowed for some catch-up time with another friend in town as we shoveled someone’s driveway.  Some of that shoveling was good time to be alone with my thoughts and God as I focused on Him with each monotonous (and increasingly heavy) shovel full of snow.  I felt like Brother Lawrence washing dishes (he was a monk who had awesome times with God as he washed dishes every day in his monastery… and my middle name is Laurence, really it is).

3.  Teething is no fun. This really has no relation to the blizzard, other than fighting the temptation at 3:00 a.m. to throw my 9 month old teething son out into a bank of snow because he won’t go to sleep and he hasn’t slept through the night in I can’t remember how long.  I’m sure there is some lesson to learn here about perseverance or something, but I’m too tired to tired to see it right now.  Having been through this with the older 2 boys, I know the teeth will all come in and Will will eventually sleep through the night – but it sure seems a long way off from here.

Much like waiting for the blizzard snow to melt.