School Started: How Loud Is Your House?

Our house is crazy loud all the time. I find myself needing to escape the din and the noise and retreat to a room full of silence at times. But not this morning.

Today is the first day of school. Ethan started 1st grade. Jon and Matty went to preschool where they will be enrolled full time for the first time ever. So my home this Monday morning is silent.

I sat down with a cup of coffee and my Bible. I put some music on as I read and I drank all of it in—the quiet, the contemplation, and the caffeine. I like it, but I don’t want to get used to it.

Our house is usually what I like to jokingly call a “happy bag of chaos”. It’s always, always, always, full of crazy frenetic energy. Until it’s not.

This morning it is not.

And, while the peaceful moment is momentous I don’t want so many of them that it becomes the norm. Like many parents I wonder at the sanity of trusting my children to strangers during their formative years while at the same time being intensely thankful for the people who often lovingly and sacrificially give of themselves to better our kids.

My house is quiet, but my heart is not. I relish this moment to reminisce, but I am already ready to see my boys again. I’m already ready to fill this house again with the sounds of legos, and fighting, and boys at play.

Not all noise is great, but when it comes to the kind of noise arising within a house filled with life there can be no better sound. This is a rare moment. Next week I’ll go back to school myself and then my house really will be silent.

But our house is not our home. It’s just the place we experience the joy of togetherness most often. Where our noise is where home is. Even as I bask in the ever fleeting silence I miss it.

You Can Jump

I stood on the edge in the hot summer sun. The water I was covered in gathered around my hands which gripped the rails behind me ever so tightly. The rest dripped fifteen or so feet to splash into the pool below. My breath seemed to have stopped. Time too as my friends and family below looked on.

“Jump!” Someone shouted. I did. Gravity reached up and plucked my ten-year-old frame from the sky, jerking me into the waters below at a speed alien to me. SPLASH!

I found my footing at the bottom of the pool, kicked to the surface, and broke the bubbling surface with the ferocity of a lunging reptile to the cheers of everyone. Actually, I don’t think anyone cheered except my mom. Everyone else remarked on how long it took for me to stop peeing my pants and let go of the rail.

It wouldn’t be the last time I would jump. It wouldn’t be the highest thing I would jump from either. Nearly three decades later I’m still jumping.

These days the pool side balconies of my youth have been replaced by high dives and high cliffs. Gravity still plucks me from the sky. The water still whips into a frenetic froth upon entry. And the exclamations of my companions is a mixed bag of “attaboys” and indifference.

I’m ok with that. I don’t jump for them. I jump for me.

I’m not a daredevil. I never have been. I like to have fun, but my fun is usually of the measured and calculated variety.

I don’t jump to impress anyone. I don’t jump to feel like I’m flying. I jump because I’m afraid.

When I reach the top of some high place I have already decided I am going to jump, and so I do it. Not because I’m brave, but because I am not brave. I jump because I’ve made a promise with myself to never again let fear hijack my life.

I say “never again” because there have been plenty of times I did let fear hold me back. There are have been entire dreams remain dormant, unique opportunities pass by, and chances to make a difference spin away—all because of fear. There have been plenty of times in my life I’ve let fear hijack my response. Now, I’m aiming for something different.

Whether its a leap from a ledge or a plunge of faith into some unknown tomorrow—fear doesn’t win. It doesn’t even get to get in the game. Life’s bold steps take bold trust in a good God that knows better than I do what the outcome will look like.

Don’t let your fear tie you down, hold you back, or keep you down. Climb. Dream. Scale. Jump. Make up your mind on the way to the top you will go for it with all of the boldness you can muster.

You Don’t Need Permission

Photo by my friend Whitney. https://www.instagram.com/whitney9067

Every day the sun rises and the sun sets. It goes where it is supposed to go. It follows its path. And it doesn’t need permission. It only needed a trajectory.

God gave it one. He pointed the sun like a cosmic nuclear orb of unimaginable potential. It hurtles through space set on a course erupting from the echoes of the universe’s architect.

You have unimaginable potential. But you’ll never know it if you’re too busy waiting for permission. You don’t need it as often as you think. You’re hurtling through space set on a course erupting from the echoes of the universe’s architect.

Go. Be. You. You’re better at it than anyone else we’ve got. We need you.

Do the work. Take the steps. Dream bigger tomorrow than yesterday.

Don’t wait for the sun to set on the promise of your potential. Don’t wait for permission. Dig deep to find that thing stirring your heart and aim it at the biggest need you can find. You don’t need permission—you need trajectory. You don’t need a vote—you need velocity. You don’t need another meeting—you need momentum.

Go. Do. Today.

Where Are You Going?

​Dave Matthews asked a compelling question. I know it was a compelling question because it was featured heavily in one of the only movies Adam Sandler made that didn’t stink. Dave’s question: Where are you going?

So, um, where are YOU going? Usually when a guy like me asks that question what we really want to know is if you think you’re going to heaven. That’s a pretty monumental question. You should have a good answer for that one.

But I mean right now. Where are you going? Grocery store? Football practice? Shady backroom business deal? Are those real?

Where are you going? As in—what are you on your way to do?

I’m convinced we are all going somewhere. A key part of my faith leads me to believe in a postmortem metaphysical destination— aka afterlife. But I sincerely hope you don’t wait until you’re dead to go somewhere. You have a perfectly great before life available to you right now.

Do something with it. Run with the bulls. Buy a guitar and write your wife love songs. Figure out a way to tap into the stuff inside your soul that fires you up—and do a lot of that. Invite other people to do it with you.

I know someday will be my last day. And like the guy with the big sword and blue face said—I want all of my days between this one and that one—to mean something.

So where are you going? Where I’m going is in the direction of somewhere I’ve never been. It’s a new me that is learning as much as I can. Loving as much as I can. Living as much as I can.

Because the where we’re going right now is less about a set of points on a map and more about a drive through the mountains. Full of twists and turns and ups and downs and all of the beautiful in betweens. Where are you going? Wherever it is I hope you won’t go it alone.

What Can You Do?

What’s the one thing you can do today to make a difference in the lives of the people around you? Think about that for a moment. If you don’t come up with anything let me challenge you to try harder.

There are people in your life no one can help like you can. You help them. It could be a simple thing like a kind greeting in passing. If that’s what you got go for it, but I’m betting you can dig a little deeper. So go on, swing for the fence on this one.

Photo by Lizette at  http://capturettephotos.com/

Make a batch of cookies and pass them out to your neighborhood. Read an extra bed time story to your kids. Cook dinner AND do the dishes—or if you always do the cooking and cleaning make someone else in the house so it.

If you’re a follower of Jesus like I am, you’ve got a light inside you this world needs. Do something with it. Don’t be content to hide it away or hold it back. Let it out into your everyday world.

Don’t overcomplicate it, and for goodness sake, please don’t make it weird. Just make it joy. Joy is life and joy is strength. Our world could use more joy. Be the ambassador of joy in your neighborhood, your marketplace, and your living room. Give it away like cake at a birthday party.

Everyday Difference

 “Make a life-giving difference in your everyday world.” That was the answer to the question I had never even realized I needed to ask: What do you want to do with your life?

As a man of faith, and family it can be really easy to pour my everything into those two things. But the simple and honest reality is I am more than a man of faith; and I more than a husband, Dad, son, brother, etc.. The two inform a major piece of me, maybe even the majority of me, but I am more—and so are you.

I mess this up a lot. There are entire days that meander by with my having made almost no difference for anyone whatsoever. Especially if I get caught in the self-reflective trap that’s so easy to slog my way into on occasion. 

However, what I really want is to leave everyday a little better because I showed up. I want every room to be a little brighter because I brought love there with me. I want everyone to know they are important.

I get it wrong a lot. I’m still learning a lot about this.  But I know my life is aimed at something bigger than I’m able to do on my own. I know I want to learn a little more, love a little more, and live a little more.

I want to do all of it in the company of the people who mean the most to me—and I want to invite as many as possible into this same adventure. High-fives, handshakes, and attaboys are the tip of the ice-berg. Let’s aim at the everyday difference we can leave in our wake when we love everyone the right way.

Let’s lay down our conditions. Let’s set aside stereotypes, hasty generalizations, and the mind numbing polarization that frankly most of us grew tired of months ago. Let’s offer a kind word, a neighborly gesture, and strong hand to those who need us.

Let’s get where we’re going in the glad company of everyone around us. Let’s do it together. Let’s make an everyday difference. What are we waiting for? 

With Thanksgiving

 Thanksgiving has always been an incredible holiday experience in my family. Food, family, and fun have always been the norm resulting in a lifetime of memories that have helped shape my values and direct my life. This has given me a thankfulness for my past that is rooted deep in my soul.

I realize that my experience is not the same as everyone else's. I know how blessed I am. I know that those like me who find the holidays to be refreshing and full of joy have something truly amazing to be thankful for. I try very hard on a daily basis to live in a way that does not take it for granted. This stage of life is showing me on a daily basis what I have to be thankful for right now, today, every day.

Last year Thanksgiving changed. We were at my parents' farm where I group up. It was early in the morning. We were getting to ready to have breakfast when we got the news. My father in law had passed away early in the morning hours before dawn.We were close. He would frequently supervise me as I tackled projects way beyond my skill set—offering up his expert advice and informed opinions—all smothered in generous helpings of his winsome sarcasm. 

Over the years I had come to love and appreciate our conversations. They were packed with questions. He would quiz me on different passages of scripture and I would share my opinions. We disagreed almost as much as not and I ALWAYS came away learning something even though I was the one being asked the questions. 

His passing hit me hard. He had become a second father to me. Of course I was sad, as most people are when losing someone they care for, but I was reassured by one simple passage of scripture that I have probably heard hundreds, maybe thousands of times.

“Enter his gates with thanksgiving; go into his courts with praise. Give thanks to him and praise his name.” ‭‭Psalms‬ ‭100:4‬ ‭NLT‬‬

A year ago that's exactly what he did. It was a reminder of the joy that awaits us. In an era of cultural uncertainty it has renewed in me a sense of thankfulness for the future.

Love: More or Less

 The cashier looks at us and says the words everyone hopes to hear standing in the checkout line. "I'll take the next in line over here" as she opens a new lane.

A man and his wife cut in front of our family at the grocery store. I'm holding my six month old son, he's crying, having exhausted all patience for this place. My oldest son is bouncing from rack to rack begging for candy. My wife has had a LONG week. Sick kids, crazy work stress, the pressures of ministry. How do we react?

Love. But it doesn't feel very lovely. In fact I have a rare talent for opening my mouth at all of the wrong times. And this is one of those times when I absolutely want to. But I don't. Truthfully it won't hurt us to wait a couple of more minutes—and I don't know what is going on with this young couple that they feel the need to rush in front of a dozen or so other people. 

Now, don't confuse love in this situation with quiet, or passiveness. In fact, never confuse love with quiet or passiveness. Sometimes loving someone means making A LOT of noise and getting right in their face to tell them the hard thing they need to hear. 

I work with people. Most of us do. I see people, talk to people, and help people daily. If I don't love them how can I fulfill what I believe to be my life's purpose? Really that's what this idea boils down to for me. 

Every day, in every situation, we have a choice to make regarding each person we interact with. We can choose to love them more, or love them less. 

Loving them more could mean extending grace, holding back judgement, and offering goodwill, but it could also mean correction or confrontation. We have to decide that. You know, like that famous Disney cricket from the 20th century said, "Let your conscience be your guide."

What does it mean to love people less? Well, don't we see the fruits of this on a regular basis? War and violence, disrespect and discord. 

In the absence of love there will be the presence of something. Some emotion. Some thoughts or feelings. I choose to fill my heart and thoughts with love toward others. I don't always get it right. But I'm aiming to love more, not less.

What about you? It's not a one time sweeping decision. It's an every day—every interaction—kind of decision. Choose. Because you can. Choose to love more, not less.

Thanks for reading,

Nate

Parent Stuff: The Weight of Grace

 In 2011 I had the incredible opportunity to travel to the Arkansas State Capitol at the invitation of then Lieutenant Governor Mark Darr. My responsibility that day was to open the afternoon session of the 88th Assembly of the Arkansas State Senate in prayer. I had thought long and hard about the words I would pray over those important lawmakers. Here is an excerpt from the prayer I prayed that day.

"God, my fervent hope today is that you would help them to continue to hear—not just the voice of their constituents, but your voice as well. God grant them the wisdom to make sound decisions and the discernment to understand the far-reaching implications of those decisions."

I don't remember what was on the docket for the day. But I know that each man and woman in that chamber was responsible for representing a body of people they had chosen to serve. Their actions—no matter how small, or even seemingly insignificant, carried weight. What they discussed, conclusions reached, votes cast. It all mattered. It all made a difference. The molding of the law was akin to working the clay of civilized society.

What about you? In your world you may be the lawmaker. You may be making the rules of the house. You might be passing down mandates and dictating decisions that shape the days, months, or years to come. If you're a parent or guardian of a child you better believe this is true.

Your every decision, reaction, omission, and word have weight. The things you do will echo in the future of your child. The things you don't do will echo just as loudly! The point I'm trying to make is that you have a responsibility. It is holy. It is God-given. It is authority. It is blessed. It is vital.

The implications of your every action are so important. I wish I could say I always get it right. I love my boys so much. But not an hour ago I was sending my three-year-old off to bed with a much harsher tone than was probably necessary. 

Parents, do you feel the weight of the life you hold in your hands? I hope so. Does it keep you up at night sometimes? I hope so. I think it should.

Now. Stop holding your breath. Unclench a little bit. Relax. Breathe deep. After all, you're not perfect. Yes, your every action and inaction as a parent matters. But you're never going to get it all right. But guess what? It's alright. After all, who better to guide you through your imperfectness as a parent than the perfect parent?

Ask God to help. Go ahead. Ask him right now, I'll wait.

Now, doesn't that feel a little bit better. Ok,maybe it doesn't yet. But long before you became responsible for guiding this little human being through the obstacle course of life God set your memories into motion. The first steps, the first fight, the crying, joy, gladness, serenity, and taxing anxiety of parenthood...God has already experienced all of it, for everyone, ever. Whoa!

He's right there in the middle of your mess waiting for you to ask him to make it better. I love my boys "to the moon and back again" as one of our favorite bedtime stories goes, but I'm so far short of the perfect parent.

Thank God I've got God. He's in the mix. He's helping in the moments when I want to duct tape my son to his bed and scream at the wall. He's there rejoicing when I get it right! He's there when my heart hurts over a poor decision I have made. After all, there's grace for that.

Yes, there are far reaching implications for your every action but God's actions can reach farther than yours. There is a weight to grace.

PERU: DAY 1

 I marveled at the near midnight colors of the clouds cutting across the wing on my side of our Boeing jet as we made our decent into Peru just a few short hours ago. Blues, greys, and intermittent flashes of red, orange, green, and white played across my narrow field of vision—and then it happened. We broke the cloud line.

The mist-filled murkiness of our midnight approach into South American peeled away into a crystal clear visage of a sea of lights. Lima loomed below. Beautiful and beckoning at the end of an approximated 2,900 miles of flying.

We were here. Peru. Adventure and opportunity await. Prayer and planning have refined and pointed us toward our purpose. Let's do this!

What I Wish You Knew . . .

We’re selfish. By nature. We don’t understand when others get things we don’t. We don't know why everything can't be fair. And in the classroom, sometimes, I hear a lot of complaining about that. But I am your teacher, and I wish you knew . . .

• That student left class early because they are on the way to a meeting with their oncologist to discuss new treatment options.
• I know who is cheating.  I know how too.  But I also know you will learn a valuable lesson on test day when you can’t cheat and you still have to be able to answer the question. Or, you won't learn that lesson at all and get what you deserve.
• I accepted that student’s homework late because her child has been at Children’s for the last week and a half.
• I ignored that student’s question because I know she missed what I said the last ten minutes of class because she was playing on her phone.
• Your classmate gets to borrow my book because although she bought one she can no longer access it.  Why? Because she had to flee an abusive relationship and left all her possessions in the process.
• That student who seems to be understanding everything in class has spent three hours in my office this week.
• That student wears long sleeves in class because he has had so much blood work this month he looks like an addict.  And they still don’t know what is making him sick.  Please don’t bother him about his clothing choice.
• The reason your classmate cried when they got their paper back is it was their first time taking a test with new accommodations and they just made their first C (their highest grade) on a math test ever.
• That student sleeps in class sometimes because he just finished working four twelve hour shifts.
• I really don’t know where that student in your class went.  They haven’t responded to any of my attempts to contact them and I am very worried.
• I take my job seriously.  I chose this job.  Most week’s I cry more tears for you than my own children.
• You’ll never know the sacrifices my family makes for me to be here.
• You’ll never know what the person beside you is going through.

Maybe that’s a good thing?  I want you to learn to be sympathetic to others without having to know how hard it is for them.  I want you to get to spend your time here without the worries they have.  I want you to know I understand you have bad days too.  Because one day you are going to face the tough stuff.  One day you will understand the struggles of #adulting aren’t wearing pants and paying for your own cell phone. #adulting is having a clear vision of the big picture (the good, the bad, the ugly) and still getting up and putting your pants on.  It’s admitting you can’t do it on your own and submitting every day to the One Who Can.  Oh and it’s praying.  It’s a LOT of praying.

Not Even A Little Bit

 How much does God want to see you suffer? Not even a little bit.

He is for, beside, around, inside you. A lot. It's his peace that carries you past the point of understanding the incomprehensible. His joy that flexes in the face of the frailty of our fear.

How much does God want to see you fail? Not even a little bit.

His Word is the way that lights up our every possible step. It shines into our every season. His Spirit is the still the small voice that pierces uncertainty and calms the raging of tumultuous emotion. 

How much does God want to see you quit? Not even a little bit.

His hope is our help. His Son is our sure thing. His favor our final word. His Church is our cheerleader. His mission is our motivation.

God wants every bit of who you are to love and lean into him. How much is he willing to leave to you for yourself? Not even a little bit.

Hindsight: Add Value

 I'm older today. Though not exactly old. This last year has brought a few unexpected, yet God-ordained, transitions that have been wonderful blessings in their own right. I've learned a lot of stuff in my life. But it all boils down to this.

Learn how to add value to people's lives and you will never be without friends, job, cause to live for, something that matters, purpose that wakes you up in the morning, and a reason to keep on breathing.

Life is about more than just yourself. Life is about more than having the latest things, wearing the latest things, driving the latest things, knowing the latest things. Life—and the only thing that really matters right when you boil it all down to the bare essentials—is all about connecting to others, and helping others connect to God. The best, broadest, purest, and the simplest way is to learn to live, love, and add value to another person's life.

Life lived for yourself is a roller coaster, up one day and down the next—good and bad, great and worse. But life lived for others is never about you. It keeps the eye on the prize. It keeps the main thing the main thing.

You can never go wrong not living for yourself. You can never go wrong putting others first.

Another word we use for that sometimes is humility. Sometimes people think humility is about thinking less of yourself. That's not true. Humility is about thinking of yourself less.

What could be more humbling than a life lived in pursuit of adding value to the lives of others. Agree? Thanks for reading. God bless.

Living Water

  Man, there are few things more difficult than being thirsty for a prolonged period of time. Probably many of us have never really had to face true thirst. Especially dangerous life threatening thirst.  When I think I'm thirsty my first craving is for a Dr. Pepper or good old southern sweet tea. When I was a kid working in the hay field or watermelon patch with my dad there was nothing more satisfying than a tall cold glass of water.

Have you ever found yourself thirsty inside? That's thirst on an entirely different level. It's life threatening all the same. At the core of our soul. 

Maybe you didn't articulate it that way—but the acknowledgement for something more was present like an inexplicable craving or yearning. 

Do you believe in Jesus? He told us he was that kind of satisfaction. 

On the last day of the feast, the great day, Jesus stood up and cried out, “If anyone thirsts, let him come to me and drink. Whoever believes in me, as the Scripture has said, ‘Out of his heart will flow rivers of living water.’" ‭‭(John‬ ‭7:37-38‬ ‭ESV‬‬)

He made it really simple too. If you're thirsty go to him. How? Believe.

He is living water. (Check out the fourth chapter in John's Gospel for some more on that). 

He also said, that when we believe in him that same kind of living giving spirit would flow through us. We're not just receptacles. We're channels. 

Jesus himself saves, quenches, and supplies us with life inside—and desires that we might share it with all. 

That should impact is in the day to day stuff. Make us love bigger and better. Help us to speak with a kindness that is uplifting, work hard, and give selflessly. Basically, we should be refreshing to anyone and everyone we're around. 

How's that working out for you?

Thanks for reading! We're always interested in hearing from you in the comments. ~ Nate

Loving People On a Not-So-Lonely Mountain

 I hear crickets. Dogs call to each other across the ridges. A turkey gobbles off in the distance. The huge leaves of the banana tree my hammock is perched in on the side of this mountain rustle with the never ending breeze. After a scorching week in the sun the coolness of the continuous flow of wind borders on miraculous. It has been a week of weeks. Our team has been outstanding. They work and play with an energetic tenacity on par with their vivacious faith. Grace drips from these people like the sweat they have shed for seven days.

We have been to school after school playing with kids, performing skits, praying, speaking, loving. We have visited small churches, in the remote places of the Guatemalan Mountains where our people have preached the love of Jesus. We have given away food. We have built a wall. We have built a road. We've been busy. It's been good.

Busy and good are not always words I like to put together—but accomplishing the work, sharing the good news, and serving my friend Greg's ministry are both. Because busy can be good when it is purpose driven.

As I lay in my hammock staring out across the expanse of darkness at the closest ridge I can see the humble twinkle of distant village homes. The places that house the beautiful people of Guatemala.

I can rest full of faith in the one who sent us. I can sleep soundly satisfied in our pursuit of purpose. I never enjoy leaving my family behind—and under different circumstances would probably bring them—but even in my homesickness I can rest in the peace of God.

In Matthew 5:14-16 Jesus declares his followers to be as a shining city on a far dark night. That's our job. To take hope with us. We partner with powerful people of God in needed places. We are Gondor in the midst of Mordor. We are beacons among burdens—and bonfires among chilling darkness.

I have burned in my heart the desire to go to far places and far people because, as A.W. Tozer penned, "if my fire is not large it is yet real, and there may be those who can light their candle at its flame."

Deep Roots

  Today's my parents anniversary! God knew he'd have to put two amazing people together to come up with someone as epic as me... 

Joking aside, I'm so thankful for their values, authenticity, and faith—driven by a love and selflessness that has always modeled God's love better than anything else. Faith has always came easy to me. I have had a lot of people ask me why that is over the years. I never knew quite how to answer that question until today.  It's easy for faith to grow strong in your life when your roots run deep.

Say a prayer for them today when you read this. My momma is taking care of my brother who is still recovering from surgery and my dad is no doubt in a watermelon patch.  Thanks for reading. Go make a difference in someone's life today.

Braille In The Mirror

Maybe it is a very common practice among businesses. Perhaps it happens all of the time and has so far gone entirely unnoticed by your's truly. Even so, I have never before saw a Braille sign in the top corner of the mirror in a bathroom. But just the other day I saw exactly that while my family and I were out for evening meal. Why!? Why would anyone put a braille sign in the top corner of the bathroom mirror? Sure beats me.

I don't want to sound insensitive or anything. Maybe it's completely entirely a common practice to put Braille signs in places that seem strange to the non-vision impaired. Or maybe proprietors of this establishment put the sign up because it was a sign they are required by law or health code or something to display. I feel that this is probably the case.

Sometimes in our society we seem to do a great many things like this. We take things that have a purpose and we use them in ways that make no sense simply to fulfill some obligation. In our rush feel some requisite obligation we missed the point of the thing itself.

Haven't you seen things like this? Have you done things like this? If I were to speak for you, and I would—if only for a moment, I would say yes. Yes, you have done this too. I most certainly have.

The government does it all the time. People in a mad rush to finish whatever they've begun do it as well. And oh man! Does the Church ever do it.

We never stop to think if the thing we're doing that makes so much sense to us is in fact completely nonsensical. No we have requisite obligations to fulfill. We have behavior to police. We have culture to overwatch. We have morality to guard. We have judgment to pass?

How about we just stop right there. I've said enough. What are your thoughts on this? Let us know in the comments.

Baby Eyed Faith

   I have always had strong faith. Faith just comes really naturally to me. That isn't to say that I have not gone without struggles. And I find myself deep in doubt more often that I am comfortable admitting. But overall I am quick to grasp faith in God, his goodness, and his personal impact on both my eternal and temporal my well-being. But I know after countless conversations over the years that I am not necessarily the norm in the faith department. Staring into our one month old son's eyes last night I started thinking of this verse from Matthew's gospel in a different way. 

And he said: "Truly I tell you, unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven. (Matthew 18:3 NIV)

My son Jonathan is a month old. This early in his development his vision is roughly 20/400. He sees nothing but a blur past the twelve to eighteen inch mark, and colors are largely something he will not even begin to appreciate for three more months. What does this have to do with faith?

Jon doesn't have to scramble, cry, and worry for everything in his life, it is provided for him. He doesn't have to fret for his safety and well-being. It is provided for him. All my son has to do is sit back and be. 

He just has to be my son. The very fact that he lives and breathes, that he is mine, bestows upon him the guarantee for protection and provision given to the fullest measure of my ability.

Even in my easy approach to faith there are moments of darkness. There is apparent blurriness. There are times when I do not have the answers and no answers seem forthcoming. Those are the moments when even walking by faith seems impossible. 

In those moments we must simply be. We must belong to the Father. We must realize that just being his guarantees us the fullest redemptive measure of provision and protection that is His to muster, which is all of it.

It's yours. Just be His kid. 

That doesn't guarantee you a steep bank account and a lavish life. But it is an unshakable eternal promise worth SO MUCH MORE.

We Need You

What are we doing? I mean, what are we REALLY doing to impact the world around us? Chances are, unless we live in a cave of apathy and indifference (as many do), we are making a difference. But what kind of difference are we making? Is it an intentional difference? Do we have a presence about us that is measurable by our absence? For good, or ill?

Life matters. People matter. Your neighbors, friends, coworkers, and enemies. Those you like and dislike. Those with whom you do and do not agree. 

The truth is, we need you.

The world needs the selfish, entitled, pansy, lazy, overly sensitive, easily offended wonderful, productive, engaging, understanding, and actually tolerant and compassionate you that is far too easily hidden, marginalized, and/or forgotten. 

Step up. Do something. C'mon already! We need you! What will you do that world needs? Let us know below.