October 5

Facebook, Twitter, blogging, email, letter writing, journaling... so many things to write and so many places to write them down. So many places to read and learn of other's thoughts and opinions as well. And now Apple has unveiled the iPhone 4S that has voice recognition and will answer your questions with a voice and take dictation and write it all out for you. Where is all this going? I have no idea. One can only imagine.

You've heard of those that sit on opposite ends of couches and text each other? It happens. I haven't done this one yet, but I have been known to text to the other side of the house. It does get the girls' attention. Or, rather, one girl's attention. Some days, we parents will do whatever it takes to get connect with our children.

Why am I writing this and telling you about it? Because even if we have all those things in which to write our thoughts and opinions, to share our dreams and aspirations, and to use the written word to persuade, it doesn't change the fact that you have to have something to say. And I don't today. Not really. Nothing earth shattering. Nothing really at all. My thoughts are about others I have been thinking of recently.

I could write about the painful divorce of a good friend of mine that I just learned about yesterday. His wife left him this summer and the divorce was finalized last week. His daughter just got married and moved to California and his son just went off to college. He now lives in a huge house all by himself. He doesn't know what he's going to do. He's sorting it all out. I could write about my other friend who is battling cancer again and is going through treatment. The road will be long and rough. I could write about the friend who is struggling financially, on the brink of disaster. He doesn't know how he will dig out of this hole. I could write about a church I know and love that is struggling with declining membership and an aging congregation and the future is not bright. The history has been great and God has done great and mighty things, but those days are long past. I could go on. And on. And on. The common thread with all these are that they are committed Christians, deeply devoted to Christ in their lives and their congregations.

Today in my devotion I read the following words: "Remember that joy is not dependent on your circumstances... True Joy is a by-product of living in My Presence. Therefore you can experience it in palaces, in prisons... anywhere. Don't judge a day as devoid of Joy just because it contains difficulties. Instead, concentrate on staying in communication with Me. Many of the problems that clamor for your attention will resolve themselves. Other matters you must deal with, but I will help you with them." (Jesus Calling, Sarah Young)

"Though the fig tree does not bud and there are no grapes on the vines,
Though the olive crop fails and the fields produce no food,
Though there are no sheep in the pen and no cattle in the stalls,
Yet I will rejoice in the Lord, I will be joyful in God my Savior.
The Sovereign Lord is my strength;
He makes my feet like the feet of a deer, he enables me to go on the heights."
Habakkuk 3:17-19

September 28

This past Sunday morning was a special experience for us as a faith community. We had a young man lead worship from our congregation. Nate Boyd led us Downtown. This young man is a senior in high school and has felt the call of God in his life. He believes that, as a follower of Christ, God has a plan for his future. It includes leading others in worship. In submission to that belief, he has been trying to strengthen his skills in that area.

Nate is a talented young man. He has sung in choir and special musical groups. His voice is natural and clear. He is a section leader in the marching band, playing French horn, though you don't really march with a French horn. It's something else, but who can remember?! He is an excellent guitar player and has a heart for what he wants to do. With those qualifications, he has the right stuff, right?

Some people believe that leading in worship is picking out some songs and singing them with some other people. For young leaders, most of these songs would consist of the ones that the leader would really like to do. You know, "I really play these well", or "my voice sounds really good on these". Unfortunately, this is not the mark of a worship leader. They would be classified as song leaders, not worship leaders. Worship leaders consider the community they are leading. What would be appropriate for them? How do I get the community of faith to move from our individual concerns and thoughts to a corporate place in order to hear the Word of God and experience His presence? Worship leading takes on a whole new meaning when this happens. Picking out a few songs is easy; thinking about the progression of the worship experience isn't. It takes time, experience, and personal growth.

That's why Sunday morning was special. Nate has been leading our youth for more than a year in worship. It was time he had the opportunity to lead a broader group in that experience. We had the chance to join him in the journey. In doing so, we also had the chance to encourage his giftedness and affirm the call of God on his life. True, for some, the musical style may have been a stretch. But we all need to be stretched a little. God was honored in the morning and the community experienced a new generation of leaders beginning to emerge. It doesn't get much better than that!

September 21

Yesterday I took a day of vacation. I have too many days that have accumulated and I am beginning to lose them. So I need to take some for several reasons. So yesterday I began using my vacation bank and stayed home. It was an interesting day in so many ways. I had made the decision not to work. In essence, this day was to be a Sabbath for me. It was harder than I anticipated. 

The weather was beautiful. Since we haven't had any rain, the grass didn't need to be mowed. There were a few things I could have done out in the yard, but I had made the choice not to. The only pressing item of the day was to go to the grocery store for two items. The rest of the day was an open book. I was going to sleep late but it was my morning to drive the carpool to band. Rachel and Jamie Knox had to be there before 7:00AM, so off we went. Jan asked me if I was going to go back to bed. I was already awake, why crawl back in? When I got home I made me some coffee and sat and read my devotional for the morning. I also looked at the paper and listened to Good Morning America. Next came the grocery store. After going to HEB and Sam's, home to put all my groceries away and putting dinner in the crock pot, I looked at the clock. It was 9:20AM. It was going to be a long day, I could tell already!  Bella, the pup, looked at me since I was standing there with my shorts and tennis shoes on. I knew what she wanted. She wanted to go for a walk. I decided not to go the normal route we take in the morning, but we piled in the car and went to Lion's Park. We had a wonderful walk for over an hour. This was the highlight of the morning. The rest of day went rather smoothly, filling the afternoon with a short nap, a drive in the country, and some reading. The rest of the family began arriving home about 4:15PM and the evening was filled with normal activities. Such went my day of vacation.

It was fascinating to me as I dealt with my own reactions of the day. I wasn't used to a day like this. Normally vacation consisted of doing something. I was trying very hard not to fill it up with stuff to do. I had made the determination that I wasn't going to check email. Jan asked me how many times I had talked to the office during the day. I had to answer 4. I assured her that it was me calling about information and reminders, not necessarily to do work. Then she asked me what I did all day. I felt a tinge of laziness when I answered not much. After all, aren't we supposed to be "doing something"? One of the greatest challenges for me was to disengage in media. With the exception of Good Morning America, the TV was never on all day long. I didn't talk to people on the phone, (with the exception of the 4 calls to the office.) I spent some time with my iPad, but it was mostly reading and learning. The little red dot with the increasing numbers alerting me of the ever growing email box was a constant reminder that there was something out there for me to "do". It wasn't until late in the day when I finally checked the email and deleted most of them.

It was hard to stop doing stuff. I didn't realize I was so connected to all that was happening around me. I learned yesterday how difficult it was to disconnect. We are conditioned with our bombardment of media to have access at all time. TVs stay on, the radio has music, our cell phones and land lines are ringing, our computers flash reminders that people are out there and want some of our time. I learned yesterday that it takes a larger amount of discipline to disconnect than I was used to. I pray that the next vacation day will be easier!

September 14

When I began my ministry at Gaston Oaks BC in Dallas, Jan was pregnant with the girls. When we announced it on a Wednesday evening, the people were thrilled and excited. The following Wednesday evening the church librarian, Ms. Ruth, brought me a sack. It was full of children's books. I know my face revealed my surprise. She simply smiled and said, "start reading to your children now. Every night, read them a bedtime story." I thought she was crazy! Jan wasn't even showing her pregnancy. And I was supposed to read?! The books sat in the car for the next two weeks until I remembered to return them to the library. I placed them in the book return slot and went to supper. Before supper was over, Ms. Ruth was standing by my side with another bag of books. I smiled once again and took them as she reminded me that I should be reading every night to my children. This went on for quite some time. Probably two months passed of me carrying around a bag of children's books, never opening one up at all before returning them. I think Ms. Ruth grew a little suspicious, maybe even knew for sure, but she never scolded me nor became angry. She simply would hand me another bag of books.  
                One day she looked at me and asked if I was enjoying reading them at night. I smiled sheepishly and lied. She smiled back and gently reminded me that my babies, though unborn, would hear. She smiled again and said that they would get used to my voice, know who their daddy was, and would learn from the cadence of reading. Her smile was one that said, "trust me, I know." And so that night, when I got home, I pulled out the books and felt a little ridiculous as I read these preschool books to Jan's tummy. Knowing me as many of you know me, you would understand why I would say that I came to enjoy those little books. They didn't take long, but I began reading them often. This was usually after Jan got sick since she had night sickness instead of morning sickness.
                A few months later the girls were born and upon getting them home, I began reading to them. Many were the same books that I had already read. They were short little rhymes with funny words. And each time I returned a bag of books, Ms. Ruth would hand me another bag. I never wanted for books to read to my girls. As they grew through their preschool years, no matter their attitudes or the level of their fussiness, if someone started reading a book, they would immediately quiet down and sit bone still until it was finished. We learned to always have a stack of books close by.
                Through elementary school we read to them as well. One of the favorites of Kylie was Beauty and the Beast. It was a Disney book that was large, had beautiful pictures, and was about 100 pages. There were times that I would skip pages to make it go faster. It didn't take long until one of the girls would stop me and say, "Daddy, you missed a page." I finally had to go to the librarian at the elementary school and tell her to not let Kylie check out the book any longer. I was tired of reading it to them! I was glad when the day came that they could read for themselves.
                All that reading paid off. Both the girls are veracious readers. Rachel reads faster than anyone I know. They are currently juniors at Temple HS and are in the AP/IB track. This year has a lot of reading. It does some kids in. My girls are reading and still having some time after they finish. I am, once again, thankful for Ms. Ruth so many years ago.
                What we do today pays off in the future. This can be for good or evil. Our actions today lay the foundations for the future. No matter our age or our lot in life, this is a common truth for all.

Lord Jesus, we come to Thee now as little children. Dress us again in clean pinafores; make us tidy once more with the tidiness of true remorse and confession. Oh, wash our hearts, that they may be clean again. Make us to know the strengthening joys of the Spirit, and the newness of life which only Thou can give. Amen.

Peter Marshall (1902-1949)