Employee Of The Month

I enjoy seeing Employee of the Month pictures. There they are, smiling, happy, proud of themselves for whatever. Sometimes, they will have a little diddie as to why this person earn such prestige. "Bobby went above and beyond cleaned every window in the store yadda yadda yadda..." Other places are sort of ridiculous. You know they only have 6 employees and yet they have E-O-T-M. Your odds of getting it twice are pretty good.

Last night, at youth group, we had a missionary, Ethan Molsee, come and hang out with us. He shared the what's and why's of being a missionary. He and his family are going to Togo. Ethan had an interesting story and said all the missionary things you would expect him to say. But, he said something that stuck with me. He doesn't feel qualified for what he's about to do.

That surprised me. I don't think I have ever heard any missionary say that. At least not so plainly. "I'm going to go here and do this and hopefully do that. I'm super excited and it will be challenging..." But,"I don't feel adequate for the job but this is what God wants me to do." Hm

It made think of a couple things. First, I thought of Star Trek. "To boldly go where God tells you to".  Cue music. The other thing was our last trip to Tecate. I honestly felt the same way. I am not qualified for this task. I was nervous. Especially as things started going sideways. (see TKT 2011 blog) And when Theresa took ill, ooo boy!!

Back to Ethan. He followed that by saying, it just means he needs to trust God more. So true. Quite often, we get into a situation and think, "Holy crap!! What am I doing? How am I going to get out of this? What are people going to think of me?" All of those statements are messed up. It's not about you and only people who don't think say things. When God puts you in a situation and you know you are there because of that, it only matters what God thinks of you. He trusts you enough to put you there. Trust Him enough to get you through it.

I follow the mantra of "If you want something done right, do it yourself". That means TRUST NO ONE!!. In Tecate, that wasn't going to work. I had to put all my trust in Him. From the start. Not half way through the week. From the time I asked, "Who wants to go to Tecate?". And I did, sorta. Honestly, my all wasn't all until Steve and I hit the road and the trip was amazing!

To keep Jesus as our focus, my leaders and I would meet each morning and just talk stuff through and pray. On our last day we summed up the week and shared what we learned from it. This is when Emily said the nicest thing anyone has ever said to me. With tongue in cheek, I would end all my e-mails with "Your Fearless Leader".  With everything that happened that week and all the things that we had to alter she expressed how I truly was their fearless leader. I'm not sharing this to say "Look at me" but, rather, that should be our goal or motivation in life. That at the end of it all, when we meet Jesus face to face, He can say, "My Fearless Leader. Nice job." Then lead us over to wall of pictures. Above the pictures is a heading, "Good and Faithful Servants". An eternal employee of the month if you will. Then He says, "Look over here" and pointing at one picture, you look and it's you. Not of you smiling, happy, proud of whatever. You painting a wall in Tecate or feeding a homeless person in the streets of Seattle at 1 a.m. Sharing the gospel with the person next to you on a plane. Taking a classmates hand when she tells you that the boy who said he'd love her til the end of time won't have anything to do with her now that she's pregnant.

In the trenches, trusting Him. That's a wall I want my picture on.

 Listen to this song by Phil Laeger and Aaron Shust

Gimme a Heater

Sometimes, you have a cup that's half full and has gotten cold. I worked with a guy that had funny euphisms(?) for coffee. He would be asked how do you like your coffee and he'd say, "Hot, black and sweet. Like my women." He'd also say, "Gimme a heater." when his cup was half full and just needed to be warmed up.

So, you don't need a whole cup. You have some in there. You just need that extra little bit to get it. I heard a song the other day by Brandi Carlile called "Before It Breaks" click this> http://t.co/QasDRiB

In the song, she says she can make her own mistakes and, whoever she is talking to, should let it bend before it breaks. I heard that and my brain snapped. I got my heater.

Recently my oldest daughter got married. Big holla-balloo. The boy she married I wasn't too keen on. I was hard on him. Like really mean. He didn't go away. My boys got after him. He still didn't go away. My daughter says to let her make her own choices. (see where this is going?)

He really went through some crap and stayed. That shows some character. At the reception, we passed a microphone around and let people say things about and to them. My boys each said something and the two oldest got a little choked up. The boy was accepted into our family at that moment. I don't if he realizes that but the words they shared were huge for me.

Family is a big deal for me. I'm the youngest and wasn't to smart, but I had a family that was there for me. Even when no one else was. My family backed me up. I tried to instill that into my kids. Right or wrong, standing up or on the ground, you be there for them. On that day, my kids showed me they paid attention.

I don't know what the song is about. I just know those words heated my cup. "Let it bend before breaks" Don't keep it from bending or you'll never know just how far it can bend before it breaks. Listen to it again. I love how she puts so much passion into her songs.http://t.co/QasDRiB And my niece made her clothes. Cool, huh?

TKT 2K11

Hola!
OK, it's been awhile. We went to Mexico! It was a total blast. Our theme this year was "Fan the Flame" from 2 Timothy 1:6-10. ⁶ For this reason I remind you to fan into flame the gift of God, which is in you through the laying on of my hands. ⁷ For the Spirit God gave us does not make us timid, but gives us power, love and self-discipline. ⁸ So do not be ashamed of the testimony about our Lord or of me his prisoner. Rather, join with me in suffering for the gospel, by the power of God. ⁹ He has saved us and called us to a holy life—not because of anything we have done but because of his own purpose and grace. This grace was given us in Christ Jesus before the beginning of time, ¹⁰ but it has now been revealed through the appearing of our Savior, Christ Jesus, who has destroyed death and has brought life and immortality to light through the gospel.  I could probably summize it in 2 points. 1) Your relationship with God doesn't end at "Amen" and 2) Are you putting your trust in God or do you keep Him at arms length?

We had a few firsts this year. This was the first year we didn't finish a job. The 2nd floor was a bigger project than we thought. But, that's ok. I don't think there was anything different that we could have done to finish the room. If we had another compressor and 2 more guns...It doesn't matter. It just needs the finish work and they have people to do that. There's more to that I'll share later.

The other big first was a medical emergency. That was exciting!! And out of left field. It started with Emily giving us a jolt. She's 2 or 3 months pregnant and told me she was "spotting". OK. I have 6 kids and dealt with every kind of scenario there is, so, I wasn't too worried. But, it caused me to think, "What if something does happen? How do we get out of here in a pronto fashion?"

Another first, I had a laptop with internet connection. I contacted a friend of mine who is a 911 dispatcher and she told me what to do. Cool. No problemo. Emily rested and was fine. Two days later however, Theresa had a stabbing pain in her side and was vomiting. No bueno for sure. After a few questions and not the right answers, we hauled her out of there to the border. We knew what to do and God got us to a hospital in Cali and all was well. Amazing.

We dragged a trailer behind the van this year. Literally, dragged the trailer. A friend of mine let us his use his trailer. Great! This is going to make things so much easier! Well, right around Eugene, we noticed the tires were wearing down. BAD. It turns out the axel is off a bit and the wheels weren't rolling straight. We were dragging one at a slight angle and burning the tread off.

For the trip back, we loaded as much in the van and as little in the trailor. We made it home. It's still under warranty so my friend is getting it taken care of. We should pray for that situation.

Moriah was a champ!! She's 16 or 17 and took on the childrens program. We thought we would have 200+ kids, but, when we got down there, we found out they were still in school. So, I believe the most we had was 70. The thing is, we lost our translator and all we had was Letti, the Pastor's wife. She doesn't like translating and sometimes runs off to find more kids. Moriah worked through all that. She was in complete control and only once came to me with a problem. What impressed me the most about Moriah was her whole character throughout the week. She was able to do all that and still be a teenage girl. Some of you might be thinking so what but those of you who know her know exactly what I'm getting at.

It is so important that teens especially teenage girls just be teens. With the crazy world we live in these days, teens tend to take on too much and they completely miss out on really enjoying being a teenager. I believe they call it "drama". Too much drama. It made me so happy to see her and the other 2 teen girls just be teen girls. Giggling and being goofy and when it was time to be serious, they were ready. All 3 of them were a true blessing to have on this trip.

Which brings me back to 2 Timothy. Who are we trusting? You can't fan the flame if you are trusting you. We need God to have successes in our life. As the verses read, He didn't give us timid hearts. Get out there! Go and go with God! Make your life mean something. In this video, I have Josh Wilsons song "I Refuse". Too many times I didn't move. I let someone else do what God wanted me to do. Enjoy the video but absolutely ask yourself, "How is your flame?"

                                                              Click here >TKT 2K11

Stamp Card

Most coffee stands have stamp cards or punch cards. Each time you roll up and get a drink, you get your card stamped for each purchase. After so many, usually 10, you get a free drink. What a glorious day that is! I use my freebie when I don't have enough money to buy a drink. I would imagine alot of people do that.

What is really special is when you forget you have a freebie. The thought enters your head of having a delicious latte but alas, you have no money. A frown forms and sad music plays. Then you think, "I have a card!" The sun shines, birds sing and your all smiles again. Happy days, happy days.

The antagonizing part is from stamp 1 to stamp 10. Unless you are one of those that gets a drink every day, unlike me, it probably isn't a big deal. I get a drink on occasion. When I'm out and about and I see a stand. I only visit stands. Corporate coffee just isn't the same. Stands are personal, friendly, neighborly. Some are too friendly. It's a little un-nerving to order a coffee from a naked 19 year old. No bueno.

I digress.

It takes me awhile to fill a card. In someways, I have to work at it. Mostly because I'm tight. C'mon, at $5 a drink, that adds up. So, I need balance. To get a drink is an event. A special treat. Or, an excuse to get a stamp.

Life has it's stamp cards too. Especially if you have kids. The difference would be, you don't know when the free drink is coming. God gives you a card and holds the stamp. Sometimes, the stamps are doing a school project that you really have no idea what you are doing. Sometimes a stamp could be driving a kid here, then there, then back over here. Showing up for a school event unexpectedly. Praying with an unsaved co-worker. Inviting nieghbor kids to church. 

Stamps can also be very difficult. Standing up for Jesus at work. Enduring ridicule or jokes from classmates. Confronting a friend that has strayed only to get anger and rejection. Or when your kids think in their 3 or 5 years of adulthood, they, somehow, have gained more wisdom and knowedge than you. I'm not saying I'm smartest guy in the world or even on my street, but, I do know a thing or two about a thing or two. These occasions usually lead to arguments and/or silent treatments. Silent treatments are the worst. That's when you think, "Where is my free drink?!"

Last night I got my free drink. 

Keep doing what God wants you to do and get your stamps. When the time is right, God will give you your freebie. Birds will sing and the sun will shine. 

If you haven't got your free drink yet, maybe you aren't getting any stamps. What you done for God lately? 

Straw No Whip

The weekend was great.

Saturday, six youths and I drove to Seattle for the Rock and Worship Roadshow. While we were there we found out some others were there,too. That was cool but our little group stayed together and partied. Well, that is until Jayk found his friends from school, so he went and set with them. He later joined us for Mercy Me.

Ok, the R&WR is several bands that travel the country and all seats are $10. They wanted to keep the price as low as possible so families can go out and have a good time. These are good bands too. Mercy Me, Anthem Lights, Matt Maher, Jars of Clay, Lecrae, 1000 Foot Krutch and The Afters.

Different genres with the same theme-worship. 17,000 people celebrating our Savior with rock music. 17,000 people singing, bouncing, dancing, praising our Lord! Just a great experience. Bart Millard, lead singer of Mercy Me had an excellent message of "it doesn't stop here". We can all cheer and sing and get warm and fuzzy about the concert, but, there is tomorrow. We need to be this way all the time for our God. If not, what's the point?

Everyday is a battle to keep our relationship with Jesus open and honest. When we're with 17,000 of our brothers and sisters, it's easy. When we step out into the real world, well, are you still as excited as you were at the concert? Are you praising and worshipping, thanking God like you were in that arena?

I almost always get a 20 oz triple mocha with a straw and no whip. I don't like whip because it cools the coffee too quickly. Also, when you order whip, they don't fill your cup as much to make room the whip. So you are basically shorting yourself when you have whip. 

I use a straw for a couple reasons. It's too hot at first. As it cools, everything settles to the bottom. I use the straw to stir it up. I'm usually driving when I get my drink and I like sipping while I drive. It only takes one bad experience to develop mannerisms. One day, I got my 20 oz triple mocha with a straw no whip on my way to a job site. While on I-5, I picked up my 20 oz triple mocha with a straw no whip and as raised to my mouth to take a sip. The cup buckled and the lid came off and I was wearing my 20 oz triple mocha with a straw no whip. Needless to say, I screamed. Now, I use a straw.

Don't live on whip. You're shorting yourself the full drink. Use a straw. Keep it stirred up. Enjoy your drink. Sip it and relax. Don't be thinking, "I got this" and have the lid pop off. With out Jesus stirring your life, you may get burnt.

Freeze Dried

It's snowing! Well, sorta. In Washintons' Puget Sound area, we have what is called a convergence zone. Apparently, it runs from the Canadian border to the Oregon border. I think it's an excuse for the weather people so they don't have to admit they really don't know anything. It's all guess work.

Anyways, it snows like nobodies bizness in places while the sun beams down in other places. Thats the way it was here for awhile. All of Washington was in a panic. Here where we are, glorious sunshine. Then when it did snow, an inch, at the most. We have icicles now. Those are neat.

The kids are on break and tonight, we are having a movie night for the youth. When there is no school, we don't have YG. It used to be nothing would happen. Just a week off. Then I shared how "back in the day" my YG would get together for unofficial youth events. We would make up reasons to get together. They were unofficial because no youth leaders were around. Usually, we were at someones house and their parents were there. So, we weren't totally unsupervised. Man, we had some fun.

One of kids thought 'why can't we do that?' and now we have movie nites. Which is very cool. I go and one of the other leaders go but, it's still all them. The real reason why we go is because we just like hanging out with them!

I hope the snow doesn't stop anyone from going.

Drip Brewed

You know how you make a pot of coffee? The old fashioned way. Not those one cup things or an espresso. A drip brew coffee maker. You pour in the coffee grounds, the water and hit the button. The aroma of the grounds. Yes, I said aroma. Then the thing gurgles a little bit. You walk away.
Soon, you can smell a pot of coffee in process. You know it's not ready, but, whatever you're doing, you want to go to it. Holding back a little, you occupy your mind with your Farmville or shaving or the news. Then that aroma hits you to wake you up again.
There it is, a pot of black heaven. Liquid buzz, joe, java, the good stuff, morning mud. Whatever you call it, that first sip is everything to get your day started.
Can you tell I like coffee. I drink too much, though. I'll down a pot before 11 am. Serious. It's my addiction.

I digress.

My life has gotten fairly interesting as of late and reminds me of drip brewing coffee. The anticipation of what will be. It's just that I don't know what will be. Kinda like I recieved a bag of ground coffee with no label.
So, in the coming days, I will try to be more diligent with my updates and together, we will find out what's brewin'.

My Girls

At last! The long awaited Girls video. It took so long because I was waiting that perfect song. But all I've heard is, "Where's our video?" Well, here it is. The song is "Stop Time, Stand Still" by Ben Wakeman off his EP "I'm the Same As I Was" I hope you enjoy it. Kirra and Kaley will always be my Daddy's Girl and Baby Girl. I love you both very much.