Reflecting

Looking over the last year I cannot decribe the ups and downs we have been through in our lives. But what I can describe is the reality I am living with today knowing that over 2000 years ago my Saviour was killed by people who thought they knew God and were trying to be what they understood God to be. I also look into the truth that Jesus chose to be wrong in the face of those people becasue he knew he was right in the sight of God. And as this story has played out my life has been changed and guided becasue of the truth and wieght of that reality. MAn what a God who would die for me even while I was his enemy. I long for life in Jesus, because there is no tomorrow with Him.

Life

I was built for this. I am living my dream of what God built me to be. I spent most of my day today hanging out with some students who came to the building to volunteer. I love the affirmation God brings to me through this new life I have and I know that I am created for this moment to be here. God is shaping me into a new person as I belong and become here at Mountain Lake. I am being afforded the opportunity to influence churches beyond our community through the church planting efforts we have and I am able to see churches get intentional about reaching into culture to reach students.

At home things are reaching a state of normal as we have gotten through the stomach virus that plagued our family. AArrggh. It was nasty. Farah is doing well and I cannot tell you the love and respect I have for her as she is the primary care giver to two boys who push the limits ever hour. We are getting adjusted to life in NW Georgia and are exploring the area weekly for cheap fun things to do.

There is the update, let me know what is up in y'alls world.

Here's a Quarter....

I was setting up for a new comer's lunch I was about to attend at church and in moving some chairs I looked down and noticed a quarter. I said to myself, "score", and then noticed a little girl near by and thought I'd give it to her. But someting inside me said to just put it in my pocket so I did and felt a little guilty for this, it was only 25 cents. I went through the rest of my day with a lunch, two youth services I was teaching at and then to the ER in Cumming to have Farah checked out because of some possible pregnancy complications. While in the ER we came to the haunting truth that our third child might never breath. This crushing reality was too much to bear so I took a walk to the vending machines to gather my thoughts and pray. When I got there I came face to face with God. The cokes were $1.25, and as I reached for the single quarter in my pocket God wispered..."I knew you would be here and came before you." In the moments that followed we learned our newest child had died only days after our first ultrasound. In all of this I now can reflect and have peace in knowing that God knew this child and ordained all its 74 days of life. He knew what I would discover and made sure I knew that he was not surprised.

Greatness Lost????

Where is the stage for greatness these days? I love Remember the Titans because the coaches achieve greatness and inspire us to be great. The same is true for Invincible, Miracle, Coach Carter, and Ricky Bobby. These people all used the stage of sports to achieve a legendary status and inspire others with their life. But where is that stage today? With the over media of sporting events you would think greatness would still walk among us, but it seems the opposite is true. All we see is the ego of the the athletes who might otherwise inspire us. Anyway, I have some thoughts, but I want to hear yours. Let me know what you think. Is greatness lost??

A day in the life

My life looks a little different these days. Instead of stress filled days with construction problems and schedules and budgets, I am in my first paid ministry position. This is an incredible place God has brought me to and I have enjoyed the new pace of life. So for all of you wondering here is a quick description of my new gig. I am at a church with about 2000 people attending weekend services. The church is committed to reaching disconnected people and I am excited about the vision we have for the next 5-10 years. The student ministry has about 150 students and they really want to reach more with the message of hope through Christ. I am challenged by the magnitude of this which is driving closer to Christ. I cannot tell you the dream I have for this position and for reaching these kids. I'll keep you up to date on the happenings as I get more familier with the ropes.

Quick update

We have not had our internet set up yet, but we wanted to do a quick update. We are in Georgia and I started work at the church Feb 1. It has been a blur, but I believe I am going to love it. We will post some more and pics and all that stuff later, when we get a chance.

Farah is feeling ok, but still feels a little sick and is quite tired at times. She has her hands full.

Thanks for your prayers and support

It all starts here

One of my favorite movies is Goonies, and in that movie the kids get trapped in a basement after dicovering a secret passage way. When the kids realize their only chance for escape is through the fireplace one of the characters says,"it all starts here." They began the scariest most adventurous journey of their lives and I think that is where I find myself today. We got the job at Mountain Lake and already it is a challenge and scary adventure. So we are headed in a direction that will hopefully lead us closer to God and to who he created us to be. Thanks for your prayers and we will continue to need them as we move for the 6th time in the last 8 months.