What Brad is Made For

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? 

Tasty Grit In My Teeth

Nothing says yummy like licking dust off your teeth.

Today didn’t start off gritty.  My cousin (one of my favorite people on the planet) and I gathered a pasture of cows into a set of corrals to be checked for tuberculosis (yep, cows can get it too – luckily for us our cows were healthy).  He and I have similar values, but we are very different – which is very cool.  We’re never trying to outdo eachother because we’re into the same stuff.  Just lots of low-key good times.  We rode horses to gather the cows in the morning before the wind picked up and it was a beautiful day in a pretty pasture.

Then we got to the corrals.

Somehow it happens to be extra windy on the days I help my family work cows.  There are several places we work cows.  Some of those places have a little bit of wind protection – by that I mean trees, or hills, or well, something to slow down the wind.  The places we worked today somehow missed the day God was handing out extra trees and hills for wind protection.  These two corrals are out on the plains where trees are scared to live.  Several moments made me wonder what the dust bowl must have been like.  I think my lungs are a pound heavier from the dust I inhaled. There were times when I was walking behind a large bunch of cows and I couldn’t see them in front of me. 

We didn’t have to be out the wind too much.  The particular job that had to be done in the dust-bowl-throwback corrals was pretty easy.  The job got done.

How much of life is like that?  A lot I think.  Parts of a day start nice, then it’s time to work.  Sometimes work pleasant, but sometimes it is eye-squinting, grit-licking, grime-pushing work. God gives us work to help us get past ourselves.  There was no time today to focus on “my” issues – there was just the job that needed to be done.

Have you thanked God for your work lately? 

Fun With Crowbars And Sledgehammers

Well ventilated!

I’ve said it about chainsaws, but it applies to these “toys” as well:  if you can’t have fun with a crowbar and a sledgehammer, you just can’t have fun.

No, I’m not talking about some weird WWE cage match with toolshed weapons (although that may have a certain appeal to it).

I started remodeling our chicken coop today.  There’s no way of telling how old the coop is.  I could radio-carbon date the wood, but I hear that process is kinda pricey.  The newest third of the coop is still in pretty good shape.  The oldest two-thirds needs a new roof.  Today I finished tearing off that roof.

The first picture you see is the coop with the roof that eventually came off. The second picture is my progress at the end of the first day.  Notice the nice hole in the roof.  The third picture was taken after my second day of demolition.  Notice the huge sag in the lower wall and the sag in the rafters.  That wall and the rafters will be rebuilt.  Don’t you like how the pile of junk grows and grows?

There's a hole in the roof!

So why am I bothering to blog about a construction project?  Believe me, this is not about me showing off my construction prowess (it’s more of a comedy of errors).  Its about motivation, action and accountability.

Motivation: Jodi and I want to expand our chicken flock.  Ideally, we would like to supply our entire little town with eggs.  We started out with 2 guineas, 6 hens and a rooster about a year ago.  Between bad fences and hungry dogs and owls, we’re down to one hen (who still gives us an egg a day).  We’d love to buy laying hens, but they’re very hard to come by.  That means we’ll probably be ordering a bunch of chicks from a hatchery or a semi-local farm.  Chicks need a dry and warm place to mature. Clearly, the old coop wasn’t going to work as-is.  The old section of roof was about 12 feet X 16 feet and covered with old tar paper and even older tin.  Snow and rain left that section of the coop nice and muddy.  Although mud is good for facials, it is definitely not good for raising baby chicks.

Action: Good intentions mean nothing if you don’t do anything.  As much as I’d like to wake up one morning and magically have a baby-chick-ready chicken coop, that would never happen.  I needed to start.  Hence the crowbar and sledgehammer fun.  Without the initial action, the project would never get started, let alone completed.

The roof is gone!

Accountability: I am convinced that posting this project on my blog will help me get the construction project done faster.  There are still several days worth of work ahead.  Setting ties, building walls and a new door, putting up rafters, more roof support, then tin. None of it is rocket science, but it’s good, physically tough work. And if it doesn’t get done, the flock doesn’t grow, and the town doesn’t get their fresh eggs.

The Bigger Picture: How much of life is like this project?  Quite a bit, I think.  I tend to get stuck on different phases in different situations.  Sometimes I don’t see the need around me (a problem with motivation).  Sometimes I have a tough time taking the first step (a problem taking action).  Most of the time I have a great idea and get started on it, but I don’t see it to completion (a problem asking for accountability).

Tonight at youth group we discussed Jesus’ teaching on meeting others’ needs in practical ways, then we talked about helping a family in town who just went through a horrendous car accident.  One student came up with the great idea of making a get-well banner for them with signatures from everyone in school.  Great idea. The action needs to be taken tomorrow to start the project and then it needs to get finished by the end of the day.  As their adult “leader” I’ll need to help them along the way to make sure it gets done.

Sometimes we’re in the position of needing accountability and sometimes we’re the ones to help keep others accountable.  Which side have you been on lately?

Fatal Reflections

Tragedy makes a guy reflective.  This past Sunday, as I was getting ready for church, I got a phone call from a friend.

“Brad, it’s me.  Call the paramedics. Christian’s down!”

My friend was in a car accident with three of his four sons.  He was on the way to church. He veered off the road, over corrected, and the car rolled several times.  One boy died instantly.  The two other boys were helicoptered to Pueblo and Colorado Springs.  The dad ended up in the hospital as well.

As the town pastor and a member of the volunteer fire department, I had an interesting role in the day.  I helped strap the dad onto a stretcher.  I prayed over the dead boy (yep, I thought that would have been a great time for a miracle).  I also had the wonderful job of telling the mom that her son did not survive the accident.  (There really is no right way to do that.  It’s just horrible any way you look at it.)  Jodi and I took the mom and the fourth son (both were at home at the time of the accident) to the hospital in Trinidad.  Being a local guy, I drove down some backroads so we could avoid the accident scene on the highway.

Here’s what’s crazy wonderful – on the day before the accident (Valentine’s Day), this couple invited Brody and Brock to their house to play all day long so Jodi and I could have some relaxed time alone.  My boys spent all day playing with the boy who died the next day.

What’s the point in all of this?  Is there a point?  Here are several things I’ve absorbed over this crazy week.

1.  Hug your wife and your kids. A lot.

2.  Help people around you. Look for ways to help them.  Don’t wait for them to ask.

3.  Bad things are going to happen in life. It’s not a matter of “if” – it’s a matter of “when”.  I’m not a doomsday guy at all  (I’m probably too optimistic most of the time).  Here’s the question: is your focus going to be on God before the tragedy strikes, or will it be the tragedy that brings your focus back to God?  I think God lets it happen both ways.  I’d rather choose option A.

What a week.

P.S. Just in case you’re curious, the injured kids and the dad are doing fine.  The family has a strong and real faith in Jesus and they’re doing pretty well at this point.  Pray for them if you have a minute.

Beyond Wrestling With Dogs

No, I won’t be joining Michael Vick’s dog fighting circuit.  Yes, I have been involved in two dog wrestling matches in the last two weeks.  

The first involved me breaking up a 2-dogs vs. 1 cat fight for survival (at least for the cat).  My two huskies and I returned from a hike, and it was time to let the dogs out of the back of my truck so they could run straight back to their pen (which they normally do).  On this adrenaline-filled day, they happened to corner our cat on the way to the pen.  

Normally, I would chalk this up to survival of the fittest… and the cat was definitely not the fittest in this matchup.  Problem was that my wife and my almost 3-year-old son were about 6 feet from the fight scene.  So rather than letting my impressionable son watch my dogs turn the family cat into lotsa kitty pieces, I jumped in the frenzy, which somehow allowed the cat to escape.  The dogs got penned up, the cat survived, and I walked away with nothing more than an elevated heart rate.  

Fast forward to two days ago.  Jodi and the boys and I are in Dallas, visiting Jodi’s sister and her awesome family. They have a great yellow lab named Maggie.  She’s a very well-behaved mild-mannered dog who loves to play fetch.  Well Uncle Brad was out playing sword fights with all the kids and fetch with the dog.  During a sword-fighting break, I decided to wrestle the dog.  As I tried to execute a quick take down, Maggie turned around and got a quick paw on my chin.  We wrestled on, and it turned into a good ‘ol belly rub for Maggie.  The kids all commented on my scratch, I’m thinking it’s no big deal because I’m tough Uncle Brad.  It turns out she gave me a pretty good scrape – about 1.5 inches long and bright red in all the holiday photos.  I think it makes me look tough.  Jodi thinks it reveals my true inner 9-year-old.  She’s probably right.

There is a common theme (at least for me) in both of these dog encounters: dogs have a certain nature that they can’t be blamed for.  Maggie is a playful dog that happens to have long paw claws.  I instigated it and she responded in the only way a fun-loving dog could… like a dog.  My dogs are huskies and exactly what I want them to be: outdoor dogs with tons of energy who are willing to fight wild animals when we’re out hiking (that’s the exact reason I got them). When given the opportunity to chase a smaller animal on the way to their pen (probably seen as an after-hike snack), they responded the only way they could have: like dogs.

We forget that people are like that too.  We have certain natures that we cant’ be blamed for.  When we engage with other people, we are bound to get an occasional scratch on the chin courtesy of someone else.  We instinctively do things and say things in reaction to certain stimuli: fear, worry, anger, and excitement (I’m sure there are lots of others).  Animals leave the instinctual reactions and scrapes in the moment.  People hold onto those scrapes for years and let them turn into scars.  

I’m learning that the good life, the kind of life God wants for us to experience, is about going beyond those scrapes and scars.  Jesus tells us to go beyond hiding anger, beyond managing the anger, beyond letting go of anger, and to go to the scrape-giver (and those we’ve scraped) and reconcile, to heal.  

Who have you scraped on the chin lately?  Who do you need to reconcile with?  Take some time and make that phone call.  Have that conversation.  Its not an easy call to make, but its the right call to make.  Let the healing process begin.  Live beyond.

5 Lessons Learned From Losing My Dad

Thirty-three years and 2 days ago, I was born. Two years ago today, my dad died.

A lot has happened in those two years.  Many ideas I held to have changed; some disappeared, some solidified.  More than getting married or having kids, my dad’s passing has made me grow up.

I had a great relationship with my dad.  Many people today have screwy relationships with their fathers, which leads to lots of messed-up grown-up kids.  My dad was awesome.  He loved me and my sisters and my mom with an amazingly fun devotion.

My dad was a leader in our family and in our community.  As the school board president, he had the keen ability to make both parents and teachers feel appreciated and valued.  He really believed that if people came together, they could achieve something great together.  He inspired hope and optimism.

All that to say that learning to adjust life without my dad around has been a challenge.

Here are the top 5 things I’ve learned in that process.

1.  Spend quality time with your kids (and grandkids).

2.  Love your wife like she’s your new bride.

3.  Value your heritage, but don’t let it completely define who you are today.

4.  Hold babies whenever you can.

5.  Your foundation needs to be God, not your immediate family. People die, move, leave, get sick… God is always there and will never ever leave you.

Living the Right Life Better Than The Seal Song

Baby seals sing about life?  Huh?  I’ll explain the title at the end of this post.

It’s Sunday night and I’m reflecting on the Right Life.

As I think about my incredible wife and our three amazing sons, I am convinced that this is the right life.

As I learn that the Biblical truth of trusting God in every situation not only brings me peace of mind, but it also leads to amazing outcomes, I am convinced that this is the right life.

As I watch my heart break with compassion where it didn’t even bend before, I am convinced that this is the right life.

As I face choices and challenges with no clear direction other than knowing that Jesus is guiding my thoughts, I an convinced that this is the right life.

As I watch my 4 year old write his name, my 2 year old begin to draw, and my 3 month old begin to giggle, I am convinced that this is the right life.

As I learn to be more and more comfortable in my own skin, I am convinced that this is the right life.

As I find my interests and focus becoming more and more outward focused and less about me,  I am convinced that this is the right life.

I could go on and on.  For those of us that are on this journey with God, we need to remember and be reminded that he created us, he knows our path, he knows right where we are right now, and that he is always there.  His Spirit is inside us, guiding us, molding our thoughts and lives into who we are destined to become.  He never makes mistakes, and he did not make a mistake with you.

There is no wrong life.  There is error when we begin to think that we’re in control, but that too is part of the learning, part of the path that’s meant for us.

About the title of this post… “Living the Right Life” is a song by Seal, the guy who sang “Kissed By a Rose” from one of the Batman movies.  He also happens to be married to supermodel Heidi Klum.  Not too shabby.

Here a few new pics of our crew.

My New Favorite Picture

The boys, the dogs, the truck, and Saddlerock... fun.

The crew on our big train ride.

Writing In The Sky

Have you ever tried to paint?  Do you remember the progression of painting when you were little?

I remember finger painting in kindergarten.  Creating masterpieces with sticky, wet, color-covered fingers that were hung with pride on the family fridge.

Paint by numbers came a little later.  The little plastic paint containers were kinda tricky to open, and they never seemed to have enough blue… blue is still my favorite color.  After several hours of matching colors to numbers, you ended up with a painting that actually looked like something.  Well sort of…

After several years of doodling and dorking around with art, I took a junior high art class.  That was fun.  Just enough art to make you feel like an “arteest”  and just unough junior high to make it really fun.

The next major art step came from my college art appreciation class.  We focused on Italian Renaissance art… Michaelangelo, Donatello, Raphael, Leonardo (so that’s where the Teenage Mutant Ninga Turles got their names!).  The art we studied was absolutely beautiful.  While in college I also had the chance to visit some amazing museums in New York and Washington DC to see firsthand some of the finest art created by man.

All of it fails compared to what I saw last night.

I drove west in my truck as the sun set over the Sangre De Cristos.  A medium-sized cloud blocked the sun, so I was spared from blinding glare.  An orange curtain flowed from under those clouds and draped over the Sangre De Cristos, which are bookended by the Spanish Peaks to the north and Fisher’s Peak to the south.  Coulds of every shape and color filled the sky, but not so full as to block out the light and turn things grey.  It was breathtaking.

The interesting part is that at that moment I was thinking about purpose, vision, destiny, fulfilling God’s role for my life… big thoughts.  God answered me back by writing on his sky “This is what I have for you, this is where I have you, and it is more beautiful than you can imagine.”

That was more than enough to still my mind and my heart.

Equipping People To…

It’s almost 2 in the morning, my mind is awake, I’ve spent some good time in God’s word… it’s time to blog, baby!

“Equipping the saints to …”

That’s what every church leadership urges their readers to strive for.   I’m sure there are some very good seminary courses on the subject.  When it comes down to it, it’s what Ephesians 4:12 says church leadership is about.  Equipping the saints.  Getting people ready.

But to what end?  What are we equipping them for?  What in the world and I supposed to be trying to do?  The answer is right in front of my face in that verse.  It’s been a theme rolling around my brain for several weeks now.

“works of service”

Serving others.  Getting outside of ourselves.  Taking our focus off of our issues and needs and loving other by serving them.

As people serve, the body is built up.  That’s the order it needs to be in.  It’s right there.  I’ve been trying it backwards.  I’ve been focusing on teaching and preaching… mostly intellectual equipping.  Maybe it’s time to start giving people more opportunities to serve others… outside the church.

I think that’s where church folks miss the service thing.  Only a handful of people can lead music or be a deacon and that’s what most people think of when they hear the word “service” in church.  But that leaves most of us feeling unable to serve.  But we’re all called to serve.  Church leaders are supposed to equip everyone to serve.  So….

Most of that service must be outside of the traditional service roles inside the church.  It’s time for us to get outside.

I’ll expand on this more in the near future.

Thanks for reading my ramblings.  Keep on keepin’ on.

Missing The Now

Goals can great. They help us stay motivated as we trudge through the difficult/mundane/miniscule parts of life. The next big vacation… the next promotion… retirement… your kid’s graduation… a better future. We all have different goals for different reasons. Some of them are very long term, and some of them are things we’re trying to achieve by next week. Goals can be team-based or solo missions. Business, ministries, and even families use goals to motivate people to buck up and work together to achieve something significant.

As good as goals can be, they can cause us to miss out on something wonderful: now.

How many wonderful moments in life do we miss because we are trying to achieve a goal? How much of today is missed because we’re looking towards the future?

I’m incredibly guilty of this. I’m a dreamer, a vision guy. There are about three thousand really cool ideas running around my head about my family, our community, ministry, our local economy… you name it. If they all happened, life would be great, wouldn’t it?

I find that as I’m planning a better tomorrow, I often find myself missing moments right now . Moments to ask people how they’re doing today. Moments watching my boys throw rocks. Moments teaching them how to swing a baseball bat (although Brock is really pretty good swinging a bat like a club Bam Bam style). Moments just soaking in the beauty of my wife.

Jesus told a bunch of people to stop focusing on some future event, and start being excited about the now. Specifically he was talking to some people waiting for the kingdom of heaven as a future political upheaval, and he wanted them to know that the kingdom was, in fact, himself right there with them. The thing they were supposed to be focused on was right in front of them, not somewhere off in the future. (I spoke on this last Sunday. Give it a listen if you have a few minutes — http://bransonchurch.org/sermons/Kingdom 2 – Near.mp3).

Don’t get me wrong, goals are good things. However, once in a while we need to take an inventory of the things we’re missing. Maybe the now moments should outweigh pursuing the goals for a change.

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