Lord I ask you to pour out over our schools today. I pray blessings on the buildings and roofs and windows. That the corners are softened and the windows are bright and Your light shines in.
I pray over the maintenance staff and their support teams. That they are happy and kind to our children. That our children are kind to them. That they are blessed from the work they do to support our children.
I pray over the teachers. That they are overcome by You Holy Spirit and that they feel a shift in how they think of You. That they leave anything that is dark or not of you at their home. That they are truly hungry to be the leaders of this generation in knowledge and health. That You find a way to use the interaction of our children and these teachers that can only be described as miraculous and amazing from You.
And Lord I pray over all the children. I pray that the ones who know You are bold and unafraid. That Your light shines from them in an amazing and undeniable way. Lord protect them from the evil one, from influences and dark places. Show them the times they need to turn or walk away. Give them strength to stand strong and make wise decisions.
And Lord, thank you for schools. Thanks for getting the kids out of the house for a while so we can get something done.... thanks God!
Monday, August 23, 2010
Tuesday, August 3, 2010
A/C and Heat - Don't Talk to Me!
In the winter we complain about the cold, and in the summer we complain about the heat. I try to convince myself that I love all the sharp winds of the north and the warm dry breeze from the south, but there is a lot to be said for the comforts of the modern home. However, the direction God has me going with the Kids Outdoor Zone Youth Adventure Ministry, I don’t spend a lot of time cuddled up inside.
I had a friend tell me the other day that society, in his opinion, began to degenerate when air conditioning was created. He believes that when people began to stay inside to be cool, we became detached from each other and thus began societal detachment (I just made that word up but I think it works). People quit sitting on the porch, taking slow walks, enjoying each other as neighbors in many ways.
I think societal detachment happens in a lot of areas. Next time you’re driving in your car, look and see how many folks are driving alone. Our cars are very sacred in this country. I know for me that my truck, in many ways, is a safe haven when I am traveling or even when I need to think about something important. The Ipod is another way we detach. You don’t interrupt folks or try to spark up a conversation with someone who has their earphones in.
For me, I get frustrated when I am talking to someone who pulls out their phone and reads a text message. Can I just say to them right now that is totally not cool and I have been known to walk away? Look at all the kids walking around with a phone right in front of them typing away the whole time you watch them. Not only are they not learning to communicate verbally but they are also doing it in a non-expressive way. They can end a relationship, beat another kid down and laugh all in symbols and letters. And it can still hurt or make them feel good about themselves.
Does anyone remember when we used to call each other and talk for hours? Now you Facebook them, text them and e-mail them a long note without punctuation or correct grammar. Is there a kid out there under 20 who has ever written a letter to someone with paper and pencil today? I am thinking a bar that serves oxygen, plays funky music and has pens and tablets of paper might work. Call them Twain bars after Mark Twain, the author, remember him? Make it cool to write letters. I would go, but then I am old.
What about reading? I think the art of reading is waning in the younger generation. My friend Ben Rehder, an author, was doing a trade show once with me, and there were kids everywhere. When they would come up to his table and ask what he had for them he would say, “Books, kids. Look, you can read them.” They would run off immediately because he had nothing free to offer, and, for the most part, I don’t think mystery novels about the outdoors interested them much. But then, not reading isn’t just a kid thing; most adults are not readers -- I mean book readers. But I digress.
There is a day we have recognized as National Get Out of Your House Day, or National Sit In Your Yard Day – something like that and it works to get some people outside and meet their neighbors. That can only be counted as a plus, but will we ever really have the opportunities to befriend those crossing our living areas again?
The Lord calls us to share the Good News of his gift. It happens in many ways, but human to human connection, emotional and heartfelt, is most powerful. He wants us to know those around us, care for them, include them in our life story.
I Facebook, I text, I use my cell phone when I shouldn’t, I am imperfect for sure. I do, however, strive to do better. This summer, this August, take the time to get outside and enjoy your family, meet a neighbor or a few of them. Take your family on an overnight camping trip or a ride to the lake for the day. The key will be to leave the electronics behind, which that includes the kids’ stuff. Turn off the world beyond your immediate reach and watch how God will move to speak to you and your family. I bet you God will put someone into your life that day who will be amazing and awe-inspiring. You wait and see! Then e-mail me how the day went. I would love to hear the stories.
I had a friend tell me the other day that society, in his opinion, began to degenerate when air conditioning was created. He believes that when people began to stay inside to be cool, we became detached from each other and thus began societal detachment (I just made that word up but I think it works). People quit sitting on the porch, taking slow walks, enjoying each other as neighbors in many ways.
I think societal detachment happens in a lot of areas. Next time you’re driving in your car, look and see how many folks are driving alone. Our cars are very sacred in this country. I know for me that my truck, in many ways, is a safe haven when I am traveling or even when I need to think about something important. The Ipod is another way we detach. You don’t interrupt folks or try to spark up a conversation with someone who has their earphones in.
For me, I get frustrated when I am talking to someone who pulls out their phone and reads a text message. Can I just say to them right now that is totally not cool and I have been known to walk away? Look at all the kids walking around with a phone right in front of them typing away the whole time you watch them. Not only are they not learning to communicate verbally but they are also doing it in a non-expressive way. They can end a relationship, beat another kid down and laugh all in symbols and letters. And it can still hurt or make them feel good about themselves.
Does anyone remember when we used to call each other and talk for hours? Now you Facebook them, text them and e-mail them a long note without punctuation or correct grammar. Is there a kid out there under 20 who has ever written a letter to someone with paper and pencil today? I am thinking a bar that serves oxygen, plays funky music and has pens and tablets of paper might work. Call them Twain bars after Mark Twain, the author, remember him? Make it cool to write letters. I would go, but then I am old.
What about reading? I think the art of reading is waning in the younger generation. My friend Ben Rehder, an author, was doing a trade show once with me, and there were kids everywhere. When they would come up to his table and ask what he had for them he would say, “Books, kids. Look, you can read them.” They would run off immediately because he had nothing free to offer, and, for the most part, I don’t think mystery novels about the outdoors interested them much. But then, not reading isn’t just a kid thing; most adults are not readers -- I mean book readers. But I digress.
There is a day we have recognized as National Get Out of Your House Day, or National Sit In Your Yard Day – something like that and it works to get some people outside and meet their neighbors. That can only be counted as a plus, but will we ever really have the opportunities to befriend those crossing our living areas again?
The Lord calls us to share the Good News of his gift. It happens in many ways, but human to human connection, emotional and heartfelt, is most powerful. He wants us to know those around us, care for them, include them in our life story.
I Facebook, I text, I use my cell phone when I shouldn’t, I am imperfect for sure. I do, however, strive to do better. This summer, this August, take the time to get outside and enjoy your family, meet a neighbor or a few of them. Take your family on an overnight camping trip or a ride to the lake for the day. The key will be to leave the electronics behind, which that includes the kids’ stuff. Turn off the world beyond your immediate reach and watch how God will move to speak to you and your family. I bet you God will put someone into your life that day who will be amazing and awe-inspiring. You wait and see! Then e-mail me how the day went. I would love to hear the stories.
Thursday, July 29, 2010
Random Rocket Men
Science has never been one of my gifts. I love the science channels on television and all types of smart inventions and ideas. I was talking with a group of young teenage boys recently, and they were telling me all about video games and gaming systems. They were explaining new gear that has been created or are coming out that makes the video games more interactive. One of the ones I thought quirky was a helmet and suit you put on that popped you on the head or body when you were struck by another gamer’s virtual bullets during the game. It sounded to me like it would hurt.
I shared with them that back in my days, in the ‘60s and ‘70s, the show “Star Trek” had a room on the ship that you could program to be any environment you want and then enter the room and be in the place you created. On the beach, in the mountains or at an event, it was all just a few keyboard strokes away. They didn’t know the show, but they thought that that idea was not far from reality and I have to say I think they might be right, virtually.
Like I said I have never been good at science. I remember once when I had signed up for a science fair at school. I waited until the morning of the event, got up early and went out in the garage. I took some scrap wood, nailed some plants from the yard on it and wrote edible and non-edible. I somehow snuck it into the fair and forgot about it until later that day when my class was to go see the projects. I was horrified, thinking it was going to be seen and I would look like the total loser I was that day. Much to my surprise, it was gone. I never asked about it again and never heard what had happened. Obviously someone learned a great lesson of science and ate the edible stuff, discarded the non-edible poisonous stuff and threw away the debris. Good science? I don’t think so. A lesson learned? Somewhat.
I did love model rocketry when I was young and to this day enjoy a good rocket launch. I grew up in Nassau Bay, Texas, and the Apollo astronauts’ kids were my friends.
My youngest son, Jon-Michael, and his pal, Luke, have taken model rocketry to the next level. Recently they began a series of rocket launches with a slight twist. They are launching things.
The first launch was a car. It never went up; it just kind of went sideways then burned up. To some, it may be considered a failed launch. To them, it was totally cool. The next launch was a vertical success. They launched a Barbie doll strapped to a rocket. It went really high, and, except for the parachute malfunction, it was flawless. That went so well they figured that, heck, maybe if they taped her arms facing up hands together, she might be aerodynamic and fly. They strapped a giant D-something engine on her and launched her away. Fantastically, she went really high and came back to earth really fast.
I feel like that Barbie rocket on some days. I have a really wonderful encounter with God one moment and then find myself in a ditch the next. My desire today is to try and live in the high parts, the parts where I feel I am in His presence, doing His will. I hate it when someone says you have to accept the ups and downs in life. My friend Jimmy told me once he was at a place in his life where he accepted things to just be God’s will or His plan. He said, “You get a flat, it keeps you stranded for a while and you get mad, when maybe He was keeping you safe from an accident you may have otherwise had.”
I don’t know yet how to live today without an encounter with the world and not get drug into the ups and downs. I like the big G rocket engine on my back, and I am learning to go to God more often, learn to talk to Him before, during and after I do life launch each moment of the day. I also find solace and answers to my life science questions in the book of direction, encouragement, love and life -- the Bible.
Good science for me today is mixing the right ingredients for a barbecue rub or a homemade salsa. My days of mixing salt peter, sulfur and charcoal together creating smoking blobs of stink are long since over. Good science for me today also seems to include cash donations to the rocket guys’ engine fund so they can continue their launching operation and get it on their Web site for scientific documentation.
You ask what kind of science is that crazy Barbie rocket stuff? Well as a matter of fact, that is rocket science in its purest form.
Check out the boys’ launches under Random Rocket Men on Youtube …cool.
I shared with them that back in my days, in the ‘60s and ‘70s, the show “Star Trek” had a room on the ship that you could program to be any environment you want and then enter the room and be in the place you created. On the beach, in the mountains or at an event, it was all just a few keyboard strokes away. They didn’t know the show, but they thought that that idea was not far from reality and I have to say I think they might be right, virtually.
Like I said I have never been good at science. I remember once when I had signed up for a science fair at school. I waited until the morning of the event, got up early and went out in the garage. I took some scrap wood, nailed some plants from the yard on it and wrote edible and non-edible. I somehow snuck it into the fair and forgot about it until later that day when my class was to go see the projects. I was horrified, thinking it was going to be seen and I would look like the total loser I was that day. Much to my surprise, it was gone. I never asked about it again and never heard what had happened. Obviously someone learned a great lesson of science and ate the edible stuff, discarded the non-edible poisonous stuff and threw away the debris. Good science? I don’t think so. A lesson learned? Somewhat.
I did love model rocketry when I was young and to this day enjoy a good rocket launch. I grew up in Nassau Bay, Texas, and the Apollo astronauts’ kids were my friends.
My youngest son, Jon-Michael, and his pal, Luke, have taken model rocketry to the next level. Recently they began a series of rocket launches with a slight twist. They are launching things.
The first launch was a car. It never went up; it just kind of went sideways then burned up. To some, it may be considered a failed launch. To them, it was totally cool. The next launch was a vertical success. They launched a Barbie doll strapped to a rocket. It went really high, and, except for the parachute malfunction, it was flawless. That went so well they figured that, heck, maybe if they taped her arms facing up hands together, she might be aerodynamic and fly. They strapped a giant D-something engine on her and launched her away. Fantastically, she went really high and came back to earth really fast.
I feel like that Barbie rocket on some days. I have a really wonderful encounter with God one moment and then find myself in a ditch the next. My desire today is to try and live in the high parts, the parts where I feel I am in His presence, doing His will. I hate it when someone says you have to accept the ups and downs in life. My friend Jimmy told me once he was at a place in his life where he accepted things to just be God’s will or His plan. He said, “You get a flat, it keeps you stranded for a while and you get mad, when maybe He was keeping you safe from an accident you may have otherwise had.”
I don’t know yet how to live today without an encounter with the world and not get drug into the ups and downs. I like the big G rocket engine on my back, and I am learning to go to God more often, learn to talk to Him before, during and after I do life launch each moment of the day. I also find solace and answers to my life science questions in the book of direction, encouragement, love and life -- the Bible.
Good science for me today is mixing the right ingredients for a barbecue rub or a homemade salsa. My days of mixing salt peter, sulfur and charcoal together creating smoking blobs of stink are long since over. Good science for me today also seems to include cash donations to the rocket guys’ engine fund so they can continue their launching operation and get it on their Web site for scientific documentation.
You ask what kind of science is that crazy Barbie rocket stuff? Well as a matter of fact, that is rocket science in its purest form.
Check out the boys’ launches under Random Rocket Men on Youtube …cool.
Wednesday, June 2, 2010
Early Mornings, Naps and Martha Stewart
I have always been an early riser. I love the mornings when few folks are out. The mornings are also the coolest time of the day, and if the days are hot, I choose to start early and end early on outside projects. In the mornings, before anyone is up at our house and the world begins to spin, I love the smell of the coffee and quiet moments on the front porch. The older I get, the longer it takes my brain to begin functioning correctly, so I need a few minutes.
Some of my best memories have come around a mid-day nap when I have been up early. Take elk hunting, for example. I hike way up into the timber or along a ridge, find a comfortable tree or a dead fall to lean against and doze, nodding in and out. That time being quiet and just sitting there has provided many a shot at unsuspecting elk. I remember once waking, standing up and being in the middle of a herd of them. Crazy.
Our cat likes to nap a lot, and I know few earthly creatures that are as calm and cool as Pumpkin. Pumpkin was an old feral stray that, over the years, has conned his way into a regular feeding bowl and warm comforts during the winter months. I usually find him tucked away napping or watching his cat world go by. I have seen him pounce on other cats coming in the yard, and he kicks tail on them. He doesn’t want anyone coming in on his gig. But, mostly, he is calm, seemingly going from one objective to the next or resting.
The Mexican culture has it figured out -- siesta. They work hard until it gets hot, then they find a shade tree and nap for a few hours; revitalized, they return to work and finish the day. Long haul drivers say when they get tired, they stop on the side of the road and nap for a few minutes. It refreshes them so they can get on with their work.
I know some folks who just can’t nap or slow down during the day. That is fine. My wife, forget it, she is non-stop all day. I don’t know where the energy comes from, but it wears me out just writing about it and I might have to take a quick nap right here and now.
Truthfully, I have said it before, it is these moments and ones like it when I best communicate with God -- quiet, restful, contemplative times. He is always there; I just don’t always think about Him being there. I guess maybe I take Him for granted. Maybe I just get moving so fast that I forget to talk with Him about things. When I can rest, when I can slow down and be still, I notice Him there with me and I do better.
I am thinking we might be better off if we were more like Pumpkin, maybe a Mexican Pumpkin. Work hard and pay attention to what is going on around us. Take some time each day to slow down and make sure life and the things important to us are not slipping by. I, for one, am going to try my best to take time each day to check in with God, try to keep Him closer, to listen when He whispers and not wait for Him to be yelling, “Hey knuckle head, I am talking to you!”
Thinking, napping and quiet time with God -- perfect!
Some of my best memories have come around a mid-day nap when I have been up early. Take elk hunting, for example. I hike way up into the timber or along a ridge, find a comfortable tree or a dead fall to lean against and doze, nodding in and out. That time being quiet and just sitting there has provided many a shot at unsuspecting elk. I remember once waking, standing up and being in the middle of a herd of them. Crazy.
Our cat likes to nap a lot, and I know few earthly creatures that are as calm and cool as Pumpkin. Pumpkin was an old feral stray that, over the years, has conned his way into a regular feeding bowl and warm comforts during the winter months. I usually find him tucked away napping or watching his cat world go by. I have seen him pounce on other cats coming in the yard, and he kicks tail on them. He doesn’t want anyone coming in on his gig. But, mostly, he is calm, seemingly going from one objective to the next or resting.
I like a breeze when I am napping, too. I love the sound of the wind through the trees, the song of the wind chimes, the breeze crossing through the house. The air seems cleaner when it is moving, too -- no science behind that observation, just a personal thought.
I saw where Barbara Jordan was once quoted as saying, “Think what a better world it would be if about 3 o’clock, the whole world just had a few cookies, a glass of milk and took a nap.” How can you not like that? Who would not like that in their day-timer every day?
If you really struggle with naps, just consider what 
Martha Stewart was once quoted as saying, “I catnap now and then, but I think while I nap, so it’s not a waste of time.” That’s it -- nap and think at the same time. I may think best when I nap.
Martha Stewart was once quoted as saying, “I catnap now and then, but I think while I nap, so it’s not a waste of time.” That’s it -- nap and think at the same time. I may think best when I nap.The Mexican culture has it figured out -- siesta. They work hard until it gets hot, then they find a shade tree and nap for a few hours; revitalized, they return to work and finish the day. Long haul drivers say when they get tired, they stop on the side of the road and nap for a few minutes. It refreshes them so they can get on with their work.
I know some folks who just can’t nap or slow down during the day. That is fine. My wife, forget it, she is non-stop all day. I don’t know where the energy comes from, but it wears me out just writing about it and I might have to take a quick nap right here and now.
Truthfully, I have said it before, it is these moments and ones like it when I best communicate with God -- quiet, restful, contemplative times. He is always there; I just don’t always think about Him being there. I guess maybe I take Him for granted. Maybe I just get moving so fast that I forget to talk with Him about things. When I can rest, when I can slow down and be still, I notice Him there with me and I do better.
Yes, there are times you have to mow the world down, push through when you are tired to get something done. Yes, some people can be slothful and wait for the world to hand them something or fill their needs. I am not talking about that.
I am thinking we might be better off if we were more like Pumpkin, maybe a Mexican Pumpkin. Work hard and pay attention to what is going on around us. Take some time each day to slow down and make sure life and the things important to us are not slipping by. I, for one, am going to try my best to take time each day to check in with God, try to keep Him closer, to listen when He whispers and not wait for Him to be yelling, “Hey knuckle head, I am talking to you!”
I will not waste another minute when I get a chance to nap, either. I am going to be thinking the whole time, just like Martha. Planning meals, considering drapes for the foyer and cool new craft ideas will be my objective, and I vow to stay napping until I figure out that crazy tomato plant thing I saw on TV that grows upside down.
Thinking, napping and quiet time with God -- perfect!
Monday, May 31, 2010
The War at Home - Our Soldier.
Two years ago my nephew left for the war in Iraq. This is what I blogged and seems appropriate to rerun it today.
Monday, October 20, 2008
The War at Home
Jason has been a warrior his whole life. I have heard stories of his childhood obsession playing with green army men for years. He would play for hours in his room or in the yard strategizing and destroying the enemy. The most recent story I heard was when his soldiers would die, he would bury them then forget where and they would be lost.“I didn’t just dig a hole and stick them in it; I had a service and all. I did it right,” he explained. I can tell you somewhere in south Austin, buried in the yard of his childhood home, are possibly thousands of small green army men. The graveyard.
It seems that some people know their destiny early. They, I believe, are the lucky ones. They are driven to be whom they know they are. After high school Jason went straight into the National Guard. A week or two into it he called home and wanted out. His mom and I talked and she decided to put the kibosh on his leaving.“No, you don’t want to regret this,” she coaxed him. He knew in his heart she was right. He completed the time with honors.Not long after returning from his National Guard training and duties he was milling around trying to figure out what he was going to do next. Police work became his next objective and he started his education at cop school. Upon graduation he found a position in a small town east of Austin and went to work. Police work was good to Jason.
He shared story after story of his days and nights on the job. He loved his work and you could hear it in every word. As he began his emersion into police work, each month he would report for National Guard duties. Then came 9/11. The world was thrown into frenzy. Americans raised their hands over their hearts and were proud to be Americans as we took on the terrorist of our world. They had attacked us all around the world and we were detached, but now they were in our country and everyone felt the heartache and patriotism. We are Americans and this is our country and that cannot happen here. Jason was standing tall ready to go should they call.
Eventually he moved to a bigger city and a new position in their police department. There he had drug duty and sting operations -- he loved all that. He always said, “I want to be in the tough part of the city – the rough side.” He usually was. After years of weekends and summer training Jason’s time with the National Guard was coming to an end. He had never been called up to fight in Iraq, some don’t. He was well into his new job and had gotten married and had a newborn baby girl. Everything was in place. Except for one thing -- he had to decide, do I re”up” with the guard or not.
Resigning with the guard meant a lot of things. It meant he would be able to continue to work on the pension and other rewards he would eventually receive when he completed his service. But it also meant he was probably going to go to Iraq for a period of time, most likely a year or more. A decision that meant leaving his wife, new baby daughter and other family. It meant months of boot camp style training with long days and short nights.We had long talks about the pros and cons of going to Iraq and the chances he would take. He went to council with others and prayed about it with his wife. When he told me he had decided to go and that they had a date for him to leave, I was mad. How, why, why now with the baby?
But I know why Jason went; I know why he is there. He is there because since he was little boy, he has been preparing to be an American soldier. He is there because deep inside Jason, ingrained in this young man with everything going for him, is the desire to serve his country. He is old school patriotic. He is willing to give his life so others may be spared the tragedy of 9/11 or something even more horrific. He is, like so many of our American soldiers, committed to the calling of God and country.
Don’t tell me American is anything less than great. Don’t put our president or our soldiers down in front of me. I stand next to my nephew who is headed to Iraq; I am humbled by his bravery, his honor of country, his willingness to die to protect his nieces and nephews. He is willing to sacrifice all he has for you and me. He is a man. I pray a legion of angels will protect him as he goes forward and that God will use him to minister to others in His great commission.
We can agree to disagree here in America and not have our hands cut off, our families killed, our daughters beaten and raped because of the freedom our soldiers have sacrificed for. So, tell me, what are you doing?
***Update: Jason, his two daughters and wife are good, living in Victoria, Texas and continues his police work and National Guard service.
Monday, October 20, 2008
The War at Home
Jason has been a warrior his whole life. I have heard stories of his childhood obsession playing with green army men for years. He would play for hours in his room or in the yard strategizing and destroying the enemy. The most recent story I heard was when his soldiers would die, he would bury them then forget where and they would be lost.“I didn’t just dig a hole and stick them in it; I had a service and all. I did it right,” he explained. I can tell you somewhere in south Austin, buried in the yard of his childhood home, are possibly thousands of small green army men. The graveyard.
It seems that some people know their destiny early. They, I believe, are the lucky ones. They are driven to be whom they know they are. After high school Jason went straight into the National Guard. A week or two into it he called home and wanted out. His mom and I talked and she decided to put the kibosh on his leaving.“No, you don’t want to regret this,” she coaxed him. He knew in his heart she was right. He completed the time with honors.Not long after returning from his National Guard training and duties he was milling around trying to figure out what he was going to do next. Police work became his next objective and he started his education at cop school. Upon graduation he found a position in a small town east of Austin and went to work. Police work was good to Jason.
He shared story after story of his days and nights on the job. He loved his work and you could hear it in every word. As he began his emersion into police work, each month he would report for National Guard duties. Then came 9/11. The world was thrown into frenzy. Americans raised their hands over their hearts and were proud to be Americans as we took on the terrorist of our world. They had attacked us all around the world and we were detached, but now they were in our country and everyone felt the heartache and patriotism. We are Americans and this is our country and that cannot happen here. Jason was standing tall ready to go should they call.
Eventually he moved to a bigger city and a new position in their police department. There he had drug duty and sting operations -- he loved all that. He always said, “I want to be in the tough part of the city – the rough side.” He usually was. After years of weekends and summer training Jason’s time with the National Guard was coming to an end. He had never been called up to fight in Iraq, some don’t. He was well into his new job and had gotten married and had a newborn baby girl. Everything was in place. Except for one thing -- he had to decide, do I re”up” with the guard or not.
Resigning with the guard meant a lot of things. It meant he would be able to continue to work on the pension and other rewards he would eventually receive when he completed his service. But it also meant he was probably going to go to Iraq for a period of time, most likely a year or more. A decision that meant leaving his wife, new baby daughter and other family. It meant months of boot camp style training with long days and short nights.We had long talks about the pros and cons of going to Iraq and the chances he would take. He went to council with others and prayed about it with his wife. When he told me he had decided to go and that they had a date for him to leave, I was mad. How, why, why now with the baby?
But I know why Jason went; I know why he is there. He is there because since he was little boy, he has been preparing to be an American soldier. He is there because deep inside Jason, ingrained in this young man with everything going for him, is the desire to serve his country. He is old school patriotic. He is willing to give his life so others may be spared the tragedy of 9/11 or something even more horrific. He is, like so many of our American soldiers, committed to the calling of God and country.
Don’t tell me American is anything less than great. Don’t put our president or our soldiers down in front of me. I stand next to my nephew who is headed to Iraq; I am humbled by his bravery, his honor of country, his willingness to die to protect his nieces and nephews. He is willing to sacrifice all he has for you and me. He is a man. I pray a legion of angels will protect him as he goes forward and that God will use him to minister to others in His great commission.
We can agree to disagree here in America and not have our hands cut off, our families killed, our daughters beaten and raped because of the freedom our soldiers have sacrificed for. So, tell me, what are you doing?
***Update: Jason, his two daughters and wife are good, living in Victoria, Texas and continues his police work and National Guard service.
Monday, May 24, 2010
Survival Camp
With Kids Outdoor Zone youth adventure ministry Jesus has and still does come alongside us time and time again. He loves on us and cares for us. He carries the yoke we struggle with and talks to us in those still quiet moments encouraging g us and comforting us. Over the last few months we have learned to “press in,” to strive for God’s love and direction in our lives and KOZ. We are learning a lot about preparing our hearts and our intentions before acting on behalf of KOZ. He showed us this weekend that He is there and that He loves that we love Him and are coming to Him for cover and direction.
This Friday we left Austin with eight boys, one guide in training and three men who have a heart for the Lord and KOZ.
Saturday was spent teaching survival skills to the boys as if they were stranded from a plane wreck. They learned about finding water and purifying it. They were taught how to start a fire and create an SOS. They build debris huts and learned how to select the right spot to build shelter. They caught fish with survival tools and ate them. They all did a great job.
We love all the guy activities. It gets hot, we get tired and hungry but we bond together during these lessons. This trip was no different than ones we have done in the past except that, the weeks leading up to this trip our leaders, prayer warriors and intercessors cried out for Jesus to be with us, to heal the boys who were coming, to love on them. To show us how to love them, care for them, lead them to Him.
Saturday evening started off tense with a lot of the boys tired and hot. That can be fuel for anger, frustration and a mean spirit. The talk about the campfire was all but loving and caring. One of the leaders called for a time of quiet reflection and for all the boys to separate for a period of time. They were not allowed to talk or be together, they spread about the pasture, valley and creek side.
When they returned we pressed in. We began to talk about where they were in their walk with the Lord. That is when He came. The Holy Spirit filled the valley, the pasture, the camp ground, the area about the camp fire and the boys. Over the next period of time they shared their hearts and heart breaks, their love for family and worries. We wept and hugged and cried more. This was one of the most powerful times with God many of us had ever experienced. The wounded began healing, the lost accepted His direction and caring. Eternal life changing moments flowed from the 10-year-old to the 17-year-old. Beautiful words and emotions. By the end of the time together we were exhausted and sleep came easy.
Sunday morning was beautiful and a cool breeze crossed the valley. We awoke to find the Lord was not finished with us. One young man with a wounded eye from months before woke in severe discomfort. His eye was red and swollen and he could not keep it open. A leader asked if he could pray healing over him and as he did the Lord told him to press in. He prayed over and over and over pressing in as the boys eye got better, and better and then, like the man on the road to Jerico, his eye healed. Healed. A physical healing. A wounded eye from a wounded boy crying for the Lord to help him, heal him, be with him. It was nothing less that miraculous.
After breakfast the boys made their way to the creek. The cool waters were a comfort in the heat the day before and on this Sunday morning they became a place of healing and commitment to live a life for the Lord. Four boys accepted the eternal gift of life with our Lord in front of their peers. The time was joyous and filled with cheering and laughter. A true day of glory for the Lord.
The blind man took up his garments and followed Jesus after he was healed. Lord we pray these boys, mentors and leaders hunger to follow you each moment. It was not a prayer that Jesus prayed, it was the blind man’s trust that the Lord would heal him that healed him. Lord thank you for the boys who inspired faith this weekend. Thank you for their hearts of innocence and joy. Thank you for filling us with the Holy Spirit and His guidance. Lord thank you for those who cover us in prayer and stand beside us when we waver or feel down. Holy Spirit use us, tool our hearts into servant hearts that please You.
The survival skills for the boys at this camp were well received and the one boy who has done Marine Corps training summer camp said it was awesome and he learned a lot. As far as us leaders, we changed the name from Survival Camp to God Camp. He provided the boys with survival tools they can use for eternity and used the leaders along the way. We, again, found He provides us with pure fresh living water, burning fire, comforting safe shelter and food for life. The best survival tools we could ever need and no devastating crash required.
Amen!
Tuesday, May 4, 2010
The Summer Vacation
I have lived the movie “Vacation” with Clark Griswold (Chevy Chase). The crazy adventures and slapstick humor are off the wall but just barely different from my experiences growing up and some of those we experience at our house today. 
My dad built the ultimate camping trailer when we were kids. It had compartments for every item from the tent and coffeepot to the Coleman stove. It was a rolling shadow box of camping gear that pulled behind our family station wagon.
We would travel each summer to a different destination mapped out on our free Shell gasoline station map and handy camper guide. Mom had the check-off list for everything we needed. We travelled to the Grand Canyon, Petrified Forest and Yellow Stone. It was there in these national treasures we had our National Lampoon moments.
There was the time we were camping when, in the middle of the night, my sister needed to go to the bathroom. I was charged with walking her to the public restroom. Just as we began to leave, out of our camping spot a large black bear walked in front of us. She screamed and we both ran back into the tent scared. We watched out the tent window as the bear moved from camping area to camping area, destroying ice chests and picnic baskets. On another night, in the middle of the night, a bear chased a small squirrel up and over our tent. My mom used hairspray to coat the bear paw prints that went up the side of the tent just above where my brothers, sisters and I slept.
Other wacky, crazy events from my childhood summer vacations include once, while horseback riding in the mountains, my horse spooked, broke from the pack and bolted across a field, stopping at a fence and launching me from the saddle. Another adventure ended in disaster when I tried a shortcut down a steep cliff face where I lost my footing, slid and rolled to the bottom. My hands were cut up and my body bruised. I remember camping up on a mountain side once and watching a tornado in the valley below. I was frightened and kept asking my parents what we would do if it came after us. They explained we would just lay in a ditch, but that it would not come up the mountain. It didn’t. I did, however, become mindful of ditches at every camping area thereafter.
My kids are creating their own vacation memories. Jon–Michael remembers when we were passing through north Texas and entered the town of Dumas, Texas. He thinks “Dumas” is funny. He also tells of the time we were driving along a highway in Colorado when we passed two guys in Ninja suits with a sign that read “Free Ninja Hugs.” My daughter on the other hand remembers horses and young cowboy wranglers at the dude ranch and surf camp instructors -- uggg.
Jesus had a wacky vacation when He was young. His family went to celebrate the Passover, a must back then, and when his family was leaving, that nutty, crazy kid Jesus, then 12, slipped off and his parents left without Him. They each thought the other one knew where He was -- that He was with His buddies chasing camels or something. When they realized He was not with them, they had to go all the way back to town. They finally tracked Him down inside a temple teaching the adults.
That, for Joseph and Mary, was the moment they realized Jesus was going to be leaving their care soon. They realized that their time parenting Him was coming to a close and the intimate childhood moments and time together was to be savored.
The memories of time together, be it summer vacations or family night at home watching a movie, are precious moments etched in our hearts and, in many ways, make us who we are. I am sure those camping adventures as a young boy are a big part of why I am an outdoor writer and love outdoor adventure.
A favorite quote from “Vacation” -- Clark: “Hey, hey, easy kids. Everybody in the car. Boat leaves in two minutes... or perhaps you don't want to see the second largest ball of twine on the face of the earth, which is only four short hours away?”
My dad built the ultimate camping trailer when we were kids. It had compartments for every item from the tent and coffeepot to the Coleman stove. It was a rolling shadow box of camping gear that pulled behind our family station wagon.
We would travel each summer to a different destination mapped out on our free Shell gasoline station map and handy camper guide. Mom had the check-off list for everything we needed. We travelled to the Grand Canyon, Petrified Forest and Yellow Stone. It was there in these national treasures we had our National Lampoon moments.
There was the time we were camping when, in the middle of the night, my sister needed to go to the bathroom. I was charged with walking her to the public restroom. Just as we began to leave, out of our camping spot a large black bear walked in front of us. She screamed and we both ran back into the tent scared. We watched out the tent window as the bear moved from camping area to camping area, destroying ice chests and picnic baskets. On another night, in the middle of the night, a bear chased a small squirrel up and over our tent. My mom used hairspray to coat the bear paw prints that went up the side of the tent just above where my brothers, sisters and I slept.
Other wacky, crazy events from my childhood summer vacations include once, while horseback riding in the mountains, my horse spooked, broke from the pack and bolted across a field, stopping at a fence and launching me from the saddle. Another adventure ended in disaster when I tried a shortcut down a steep cliff face where I lost my footing, slid and rolled to the bottom. My hands were cut up and my body bruised. I remember camping up on a mountain side once and watching a tornado in the valley below. I was frightened and kept asking my parents what we would do if it came after us. They explained we would just lay in a ditch, but that it would not come up the mountain. It didn’t. I did, however, become mindful of ditches at every camping area thereafter.
My kids are creating their own vacation memories. Jon–Michael remembers when we were passing through north Texas and entered the town of Dumas, Texas. He thinks “Dumas” is funny. He also tells of the time we were driving along a highway in Colorado when we passed two guys in Ninja suits with a sign that read “Free Ninja Hugs.” My daughter on the other hand remembers horses and young cowboy wranglers at the dude ranch and surf camp instructors -- uggg.
Jesus had a wacky vacation when He was young. His family went to celebrate the Passover, a must back then, and when his family was leaving, that nutty, crazy kid Jesus, then 12, slipped off and his parents left without Him. They each thought the other one knew where He was -- that He was with His buddies chasing camels or something. When they realized He was not with them, they had to go all the way back to town. They finally tracked Him down inside a temple teaching the adults.
That, for Joseph and Mary, was the moment they realized Jesus was going to be leaving their care soon. They realized that their time parenting Him was coming to a close and the intimate childhood moments and time together was to be savored.
The memories of time together, be it summer vacations or family night at home watching a movie, are precious moments etched in our hearts and, in many ways, make us who we are. I am sure those camping adventures as a young boy are a big part of why I am an outdoor writer and love outdoor adventure.
A favorite quote from “Vacation” -- Clark: “Hey, hey, easy kids. Everybody in the car. Boat leaves in two minutes... or perhaps you don't want to see the second largest ball of twine on the face of the earth, which is only four short hours away?”
This summer I am taking my family somewhere special. I haven’t got all the details worked out yet, but I have ordered a really good first aid kit, emergency radio, topographical map showing all the ditches in the area and a large bottle of Tylenol. You need to be prepared.
God bless, TJ
God bless, TJ
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