Happy Friday Friends!
I hope and trust this post finds you all having a great day! I truly hope that your Thanksgiving Day was filled with family, friends and keen awareness of the countless blessings that abound in our lives.
I apologize for getting this Happy Friday to you a day late. One of my favorite traditions is Black Friday shopping with my Beautiful Bride. It is not really about shopping or buying things; it is about being with Kath and getting to know others as we stand in line with them. With Black Friday starting at midnight - which of course means we had to be in line at 10! - and getting home at 8:00 a.m., I could barely walk straight let alone think straight. I quickly realized - between naps...please notice the multiple reference - that it would be pointless to try to share anything with you yesterday!
I have been thinking a lot this week about Thanksgiving Day. It is the day that we set aside to give thanks. It strikes me as I type this that we have to set aside one day out of 365 to make sure we give thanks. Could write a lot about that however I don't want to chase that rabbit down the trail this morning...I have 3 boys and a brother-in-law who are waiting to put up Christmas lights who will not be very happy with me if I prolong this to much!
No, what has really struck me this week are the many blessings that each of us have in our lives every day, our failure sometimes to recognize them, the millions of people who never do recognize them and the incredibly self-destructive ways we try to fill the void - the failure to recognize how blessed we are - with "stuff." What causes a person to shoot another person because they cut in front of them in line at a department store? On the other hand, what causes a child in Mexico to be genuinely grateful for the gift of half of a candy bar? Why don't we see the smallest of blessings in our lives - interestingly, they often give us the greatest joy - in the simple moments, times of each day? And how come our children often do...ever notice how they have to stop and look at a bug, a plant, etc.? AND please don't let it escape you that it seems to be the adults that have the problem and children who have it figured out!!
There are two thoughts/points I would like to offer this morning.
1. There are a lot of broken, hurting people in this world. What rips at my heart this morning - as a husband and father - is how much of this brokenness can be tied back to the failure of a husband and/or father. Our wives and children need us men! We are called by God to love them (unconditionally!), to lead them (servantly!), to guide them (according to God's will, calling and purpose for their lives...not ours!), to protect them (from all enemies including their own selfish desires), etc. If you are blessed this morning to have a wife and/or children in your home, it is my sincere hope and prayer that you will realize this morning the influence - for good or bad...to the furthest extremes of both! - that you have in their lives. And for all of us, when we encounter someone who is angry, mean, etc - it really isn't very hard to recognize brokenness - I hope and pray that we will slow down, recognize that this is a broken person (think about it...how many mean, nasty and angry babies have you seen? No, as these little blessings grow older, sadly brokenness begins to emerge in some) and give love, mercy and grace freely.
2. For all of us, please be mindful of and protect yourself from the "when/then disease." You know the disease I am speaking about...it has affected each of us at one point or another. It looks something like this:
- "When I get that job [whatever that job is] then I will be happy."
- "When my wife does this [whatever this is], then I will love her unconditionally."
- "When I buy/get that [whatever that is], then I will be happy/content."
- "When I get this or that [whatever this or that is] done, then I will have time for my spouse and children and we will all be happy."
You see, the list goes on and on. We get caught up and believe the lies of "when" and "then." The reality is when "when" happens you and I are still going to be the same people we are - with all of our strengths and weaknesses, successes and failures, peace and pain, etc. - and then the "then" is going to be the overflow of our hearts. We will simply have the same problems with new jobs, spouses doing things they may or may not want to do, new possessions, spouses and children who may or may not know us, etc. Joy, happiness, peace and gratitude are not found "when", they are found in the daily living of our lives each and every day...wherever we are. We just need to refocus our vision, the adjustment nob is found in the heart, and look for these things each and every day. In all aspects of life, we generally find what we are looking for!
My hope and prayer for each and every one of us Friends is that this year we will see the blessings that we have in each and every day. That every day we will give thanks for our blessings and that next Thanksgiving Day we will have an overabundance of blessings to count. The blessing might be big and shiny like a new job, house or car or it might be small like the look of a spouse, the gentle touch of a child or the way the sun reflects off of something we never noticed - we find what we are looking for! - before. The blessings are there, we just really need to see, recognize and appreciate them.
Please don't hesitate to contact me if there is ever anything I can do for you.
Have a great day, enjoy the remainder of this Thanksgiving weekend and please cherish your family and friends.
Kev
Happy Friday Friends!
I hope and trust this post finds you all having a great day and an awesome week coming to a close for you!
When I was driving home listening to the radio earlier this week, the announcers were talking about the lyrics that a lot of us learned when we were little, "And they'll know we are Christians by our love." The announcers then talked about how ironic it is that many, especially in Christian circles, often demonstrate everything BUT love - pick apart others, gossip, judge, etc. I also want to share a few excerpts with you from the book, "Breaking Free: Making Liberty in Christ A Reality in Life" by Beth Moore (I highly recommend this book to everyone - men & women):
"The best of our churches tend to welcome those captive (to alcohol, drugs, homosexuality, promiscuity, and so forth) at first; but if they don't 'fix' pretty quickly, they will probably soon be despised." She continues, "A captive in our midst wears out her [his] welcome if she [he] doesn't get with it and change." And then, Beth points to our Example, "In gracious contrast God stands by us until we are free. He never forsakes us. God is the only One who is not repelled by the depth and length of our needs. Although God never excuses our sin and rebellion, He is fully aware of what drives our actions." She further explains, "Even though my rebellion was still sin, God's heart was full of compassion. Through loving chastisement, He continued to strive with me and waited patiently for me to leave my prison."
All of this got me to thinking; who are we...really? If you can tell a tree by the fruit it bears, what type of trees are we? Not what we want to be or hope to be but what are we...really. Do words like love (genuinely caring about and wanting the best for them), compassion (genuine understanding, care & concern), honesty (complete truth without deception), integrity (doing what we say we will do...always!), excellence (always doing our best) describe us? Or maybe here is the best question of all; are peoples lives better for having crossed paths with our lives? We are bearing fruit - is it sweet and life-giving or is it bitter and life-taking?
A few thoughts/ideas:
1. I have shared before the quote from Ken Whitten; "What's in the well will always come up in the bucket." What we truly allow to be poured into our lives, the water we feed our tree, will impact the health of the tree and the type of fruit it bears. Don't think so? Why don't we water trees with acid? No, we water trees with pure, clean water. Are our lives being watered with pure, clean water or with acid? Our spiritual, mental and physical health will answer that question!
2. I would like to encourage us to take an honest self-assessment. What do our lives say about us? Do we shine as a light? How healthy, after "eating our fruit", are our spouses/partners, kids, friends, co-workers, etc.? Be honest...not what we hope but rather what is really the over-flow - the fruit - of our lives.
3. If we really want to learn, grow and become all that we were created to become, I would like to encourage us to ask others - who truly know us - to tell us what they see in our lives. Yes, it will take courage and boldness...I would like to remind us all that we were created to be courageous and bold.
My hope is that we will all sincerely give some thought to who we are...really. That we will understand that our words, our actions as well as our silence and inaction's for that matter, show who we really are. They will know we are...[each of us will finish this sentence first by what we allow to be poured into our hearts and then by the overflow of our hearts].
Please don't hesitate to contact me if there is ever anything I can do for any of you. I will always be willing to help you any way I can.
Have a great day, a wonderful weekend and please, cherish your family & friends!
Kev
Happy Friday Friends!
I hope and trust this post finds you all having a great day and a truly awesome week coming to a close for you! It has been one heck of a week for me - full of learning, growth, love & faith.
One of my sons has struggled lately with honesty - complete truth without deception. As my Beautiful Bride and I have found times of his dishonesty we have addressed it...first by talking, demonstrating grace, then taking away privileges...and yet, sadly, there was another instance of dishonesty. I was shocked, disappointed, angry, confused - how could this be? We had talked about honesty, how honesty is the foundation of every relationship, how his continued acts of dishonesty were harming our relationship, how it would be difficult to ever trust him if I didn't know he was ALWAYS (that is measurable by the way!) telling me the truth, etc.
Not knowing exactly what to do - and definitely not trusting MY initial thoughts & feelings...the song "Lead Me" by Sanctus Real comes to mind! - I prayed. I asked God to give me His knowledge and His wisdom to lead my son through me, to see the greatness that God sees in him and to do what God would have me do to empower my son to become all that God has created him to become. The answer came almost immediately...though all of the lessons of the action would be revealed slowly. My boys love sports - go figure! - and for a couple of months this son had been looking forward to the start of basketball season...the first time he would be able to try-out and play on a school team. This is a privilege that would now be taken away...there were much more important things to work on than basketball.
As I sat down with my son and began talking to him, he acknowledged his dishonesty, he stated that he knew he shouldn't have done it - though he knew in his heart it was wrong...this is a great sign! - and yet he did. We again talked about all the consequences of dishonesty and then I told him what the consequence of his actions would be. His eyes immediately filled with tears and a look of complete brokenness crossed his face...at that exact moment my heart broke for my son. Almost immediately I wanted to take it back. I silently asked the Lord if He was sure. Couldn't we do something else? Does it have to be this way? And then I recognized the peace in my Spirit that only comes from the affirmation of God. No, we couldn't do something else. Yes, it has to be this way. I am teaching my son a lesson and I am the one learning...I clear heard and felt God say, "Trust me."
There are two specific things I want to share with you from all of this.
1. I have the unspeakable privilege, honor and RESPONSIBILITY of being a husband and father. My sons are counting on me to lead them, guide them, protect them. While my heart truly broke for my son - honestly, it still hurts right now as I am typing this - I am very mindful of what is at stake here. My son will face many more challenges than he faced when he chose to be dishonest. There will be tests of character and integrity greater than he or I, as we sit here in this moment, could ever imagine. It is my responsibility, my obligation to him to do everything in my power - ordered and ordained by God - to prepare him so he is ready when those tests come. My sons wife and children are counting on me. The people who he will have the honor and privilege of having in his life are counting on me. His future employers are counting on me. Yes, this is much bigger than a basketball season. This has ramifications that can reverberate for generations and, no, I don't think I am making a bigger deal out of it than it really is.
2. That night as I was tucking him in, both of our hearts absolutely aching, I snuggled him up close to me, his body melting into mine as he laid his head on my chest and I said, "I love you son. We are going to make it through this together." And at that moment, my Spirit moved within me. In that moment I truly think I got a little glimpse of how God feels about each one of us. We are broken, we make mistakes and we do things that aren't right and He has to mold and shape us. His heart breaks for us, He desperately wants us to become all that we are capable of becoming, He loves us enough to teach us the lessons though He feels our pain and He is there for us - every step of the way - as we make it through this together. Wow! And again, I thought this was about my son learning a lesson!
I also wanted to share a real quick story with you that still makes me laugh just thinking about it. I was taking my 15-year old and my 6-year old (the Little Preacher as I like to call him!) to school. We are driving down the highway, nobody saying a word when the Little Preacher says, "Dad, I see God on you." Startled, surprised I said, "huh?" He said, "yes, I see God in your shadow." With all my fatherly wisdom I said, "wow." Then he said, "I know, it's amazing isn't it?" (Please try to hear this through the voice, the lisp of a 6-year old missing his two front teeth) Yes, it is amazing Little Preacher...all of this is absolutely amazing!
To all of the current and former service men and women out there...from the bottom of my heart, thank you for your selfless service and sacrifice.
Please let me know if there is ever anything I can do for you or your families.
Have a great day, a wonderful weekend, cherish your loved ones and Happy Veterans Day.
Kev
Happy Friday Friends!
I hope and trust this post finds you all having a great day!
This week I was involved in two situations that grabbed my heart and simply won't let go.
1. On Monday my Beautiful Bride and I served at Trunk or Treat with our church. Over a 4 hour span we had literally thousands of little kids stop by our trunk to get candy. I got to see firefighters, police officers, doctors, a veterinarian (who I mistakenly referred to as a doctor until my sweet little 5-year old teacher pointed out that there were animals on her coat and a doctor would not do that!), Spiderman, Batman, countless Princesses, a whole bunch of things that I have no idea what they were, etc. The thing that struck me with all of them was the sense of wonder, excitement as their sweet little eyes danced. The younger they were, the more full of wonder and opportunity they cherished in their hearts. Maybe, just maybe they thought - as demonstrated in their words & actions - they could become what they had dressed as that night. At that time and in that moment, they were not concerned with or thinking about the difficulties, the probabilities or the possibilities. They simply dreamed the sweet dreams that are in their hearts.
2. Last night I had the unspeakable honor & privilege of speaking to a football team, their coaches and their parents. Most of the players were Sophomores in high school. As I spoke to them about pursuing their life purposes, becoming the best they could become and not allowing the world to define them, you could FEEL the wonder, the hope in the room. Sadly, as I looked intently into the eyes of some, you could see the darkening of a spirit...the loss of hope.
Hopes and dreams...we all have them. I believe they are placed in our hearts to cheer us on as we pursue our life purposes. Some of us have been so discouraged, so hurt, so jaded by the walk of life that we don't even recognize them any more, let alone pursue them with passion.
There was a great quote I read once - which for the life of me I cannot find!! - which said something to the affect, "don't tell someone something can't be done. God may have waited centuries for someone ignorant of the facts to do that thing." I know I have not gotten it exactly right however I trust you get the point. As I was desperately trying to find that quote, I found a few others that I want to share with you and allow them to speak to your heart as they will:
- "Everybody has something good inside of them. Some hide it, some neglect it, but it is there." - Mother Teresa
- "Go confidently in the direction of your dreams. Live the life you have imagined." - Henry David Thoreau
- "Hold fast to your dreams, for if dreams die, life is a broken winged bird that cannot fly." - Lanston Hughes
- "When you say a situation or a person is hopeless, you are slamming the door in the face of God." - Charles L. Allen
- "Hope never abandons you; you abandon it." - George Weinberg
- "The very least you can do in your life is to figure out what you hope for. And the most you can do is live inside that hope." - Barbara Kingsolver
My Friends, I would like to respectfully request two things of each and every one of us today:
1. Find, rediscover - whatever it is - the hopes & dreams that have been placed as a great treasure within your heart. They are there and you are meant to pursue them. Please find the time to discover or rediscover them and pursue them with everything that is within you. I promise you will not regret it.
2. Please be extremely careful of the words that you speak into others lives. Words are seeds that get planted in the heart and grow. Please don't allow your words be the poison that kills a seed planted in the heart of another.
I really do believe there is greatness & goodness, hopes & dreams within each and every one of us. If there is ever anything I can do to help you in the pursuit of your hopes & dreams, please don't hesitate to contact me.
Have a great day, a wonderful weekend, cherish & enjoy your precious families and dream big dreams!
Kev
