Growing Up and Hearing God

My daughters are growing up too fast.  It's hard to believe that my girls are almost out of elementary school.  I recently set them up with email addresses, and so now I get cute emails and instant messages from them throughout the day.  It's amazing and a little scary to see them developing their personalities and independence.  One thing that I'm enjoying observing is their growing relationship with God.  I see them using the principles they have been taught at home and church in their interactions with their friends.  One of my daughters is especially inquistive about how God works, and has been reading "The battlefied of the mind (for kids)" by Joyce Meyer.  This is a really good book for her, as she has wrestled with fear and is learning how to ask God for strength and courage when she needs it.  The other night as Anne and I were tucking her in, she asked a great question.  She asked "How do I hear God's voice?"  At first I wasn't sure if she was asking this deep, unsimple question to prolong our visit to her room, or if she really was curious.  It became clear that she really wanted to know as she got out the book and began reading a passage that talked about hearing God.  I savored the opportunity to share with her about my own journey, and talk about how I recognize His voice in my life.  I am so glad that she is asking these questions and wants to not only learn about God, but to understand what it means to have a real relationship with Him.

So, How do we hear God's voice?  I don't have time to write a Theological study on the topic, but I will leave you with a couple of thoughts that I hope will cause you to dive in a little deeper.

1.  Be still and ready to listen- Psalm 46:10 says, "Be still, and know that He is God."  Our hectic lives leave little room for being still, but unless we stop and take time to spend with God, we might miss what He is saying to us.  When I am quiet and giving God my thoughts, will, and emotions, then I can focus on Him and become ready to receive.

2. "Open the eyes of my heart"-  There is a worship song that says "Open the eyes of my heart."  At first, being more of a literal guy, I didn't like that line.  After all, we don't have eyes in our heart! :) But the reality is that God is spiritual.  He created us as spiritual beings, with a soul.  When we can get past the distractions of the physical circumstances that we see with our natural eyes, then we can see clearly in the spiritual what God is saying to us.  In 2 Kings 6, the prophet Elisha's servant woke up one morning to some unwelcome guests, but Elisha helped him to see why there was no need to be afraid. 

"15 When the servant of the man of God got up and went out early the next morning, an army with horses and chariots had surrounded the city. "Oh, my lord, what shall we do?" the servant asked.

 16 "Don't be afraid," the prophet answered. "Those who are with us are more than those who are with them."

 17 And Elisha prayed, "O LORD, open his eyes so he may see." Then the LORD opened the servant's eyes, and he looked and saw the hills full of horses and chariots of fire all around Elisha.

When we only see with our natural eyes, we lose sight of God's power.  He is with us no matter what it looks like on the outside.

3.  If you feel like God has spoken to you, make sure that it doesn't contradict something God has already said in His word.-  For instance, I told my daughter that since the bible says in 2 Timothy 1:7 that God has not given us a spirit of fear, she can be confident that any thought that causes her to be afraid is not from God.  Since He is the same yesterday, today, and forever, we must make sure that we don't attribute something to God that doesn't line up with scripture.

3.  Finally, hear what God says and do it!-  When God speaks, take action.  James 1:22 says, "Don't just listen to God's word, you must do what it says, otherwise you are only fooling yourselves." 

Open up the eyes of your heart today and hear what God speaks to you! 

Catching Up

Have you ever had the feeling that no matter how hard you try, you just can't seem to get caught up? Lately I've been feeling that way. Like a greyhound chasing a fake rabbit around a circle. Well, that's the best excuse I can come up with for not posting in a month. I've been nudged by the only two people who read this blog to get with it, so here's what's been going on in my life recently.

Back on July 31, two significant things happened. My parents celebrated their 48th wedding anniversary (Yay!!!) and my daughter Samantha got her tonsils out (boo!!!). My parents are still together so I think the anniversary went well. The surgery went well too, and Samantha was a real trooper. When we got home that afternoon, Anne started to get a fever. I checked her temperature and it was almost 102! The next day, she went to the doctor and was diagnosed with pneumonia! Sami's recovery went well, but she was in a lot of pain. Her doctor told us that he doesn't know why some kids experience pain and others don't, but that it happens. Anne's recovery has been slow. It has taken a long time to get her energy back and is still suffering through coughing fits. She is beginning to feel better, but still isn't 100%.

We got another bit of unexpected news when we learned that my mom (who had a double mastectomy last year) had a small lump removed and it was shown to have cancer. We were really unprepared to hear this. As a family, we have been so glad that my mom's recovery has gone so well. Even though it's been a long process, she has been feeling better and looking forward to living cancer free. We weren't sure what this was going to mean. Was she going to have more treatments and start all over again? A PET scan was scheduled to see if there was any more cancer in her body. When the results came back there was good news, NO CANCER! We were very relieved and were so glad to hear the news. We don't know if she will have to do any preventative treatments or not, but at least we know that she is cancer free! Thank God!

One more bit of craziness to add...the girls had to go to the dentist on Monday. The dentist came out and told Anne that Samantha (poor girl) needed to have EIGHT teeth pulled! For some reason, they were not coming out on their own and her permanent teeth didn't have room to come in. But the dentist said that he couldn't do that many at once. We figured if we didn't do them all at once, we may not get her back to the dentist to get the others out. :) He said he would see how it goes and how she was feeling. After he took the first four out, he gave her the option to come back later, or get the others out. She told him to go ahead and take them out, so he did. The dentist had never taken out that many teeth at once on a child before. Samantha came through it with no problems and didn't really have any pain either. I think she was glad to get it over with!

That's a little bit of what the last month has been like, and I didn't even mention what has been going on at the church (which has continued to grow and do well). Maybe I'll give an update on that later.

Just remember...even if you don't hear from me every day, we're still friends!

Trip Recap

I wanted to take some time to reflect on how blessed I feel to have had the opportunity to go on vacation. The five of us in our family had some much needed “together time,” and we were able to connect and catch up with a lot of our extended family and friends. I’m grateful that I work in an environment that values families and allows me to take off of work to recharge my batteries. I won’t bore you with every detail, but I thought I’d share some of the highlights of our trip. So far, we have traveled 2000 miles, and by the time my family drives home at the end of the week (aided by my wife’s parents) we will have logged more than 3100 miles on the Odyssey. By the way, the Odyssey drove great with no problems! As I mentioned before, our family loves road trips and this was no exception. The first night we had the opportunity to stay with Anne's brother's family in Little Rock. Their boys are growing up fast! Then it was on to Bardstown KY. My sister's in-laws were very gracious and hosted us in their "hill house."


We met up with my sister's family and her in-laws, my parents, some friends from Colorado, and Anne's parents came in later in the week. The views from the house are incredible! It's is such a great location and the Kentucky hills are really beautiful.

While we were at the house, the girls enjoyed fishing for the first time.



There is an amphitheater in Bardstown where we saw "Stephen Foster-the musical". Stephen Foster was a famous songwriter in the 19th century who wrote "My Old Kentucky Home", "Suwanee River", "Oh Susanna" and a bunch of other songs that are a part of our heritage. The girls dressed up in period costumes and got a picture with the performers.



We went to a July 4th parade in Springfield, KY and made quite a splash with our fashionable hats. In fact, this picture ended up in the local paper.



I had fun driving an RTV all over the hills!



I Can't wait to do it all again!

VACATION!!

Today we are starting our vacation!! We are packed and ready to go. We are going to be seeing all of our family as we make stops in Little Rock AR, Bardstown KY, and then on to Tampa. By the time it's all said and done we will put 3,000 miles on the Odyssey. It's a good thing our kids like to travel. In fact, they love getting in the van and going on the road. My mom says they must have got the traveling gene from her. My daughter Morgan told me, "My friends think I'm crazy, but I looove road trips!"

Vacation here we come!!!!

Six Week Odyssey

Yesterday I mentioned that I picked up our van from the shop. Well, this wasn't just a routine oil change. Let me give you a little history...

A couple of years ago we decided to buy a brand new minivan. We wanted to know what it felt like to put the first 100,000 miles on a car instead of the second 100,000. We researched all of the brands and settled on the one that appeared to be the most reliable, and the one that would fit into our 10 year plan. We bought a 2006 Honda Odyssey. We have been so happy with our decision in a lot of ways. It's a great family vehicle. There is room for everyone, and it is great on the road. It gets decent gas mileage too, which is especially important now.

A few months ago we approached the end of the "bumper-to-bumper" 36,000 mile warranty. I made sure to take it in so that if there was anything wrong, it would get fixed. The good news was that Honda made every effort to make sure it was in top condition. The bad news was that they had to replace motor mounts, power steering pump, brakes, and a seat that was stuck in the forward position. I didn't expect that many repairs under warranty.

Then, on a routine trip home from the mall, it overheated. When I pulled in the driveway, there was liquid spewing out of the engine. I certainly never expected that to happen. I called a mechanic who makes house calls, and when he gave me the news I could hardly believe it. The Odyssey had a blown head gasket. Now I don't know much about engines, but it was clear that this was not good. I had the car towed to Honda and prayed that this would be covered by the 50,000 mile powertrain warranty.

Long story short...Honda did completely fix it under the warranty which was a huge relief. The service advisor showed me the ticket, and the repair would have cost $5300 if I would have had to pay for it. Yikes! Because they had to order a new engine and clean the oil out of the entire cooling system, the process took over six weeks! But Honda did provide us with a loaner car (an Accord) so that we would have transportation. I was very pleased with their customer service, which is the good news. The bad news is that the Odyssey has been less reliable than I expected. I just hope that the major repairs are behind us, and that we will be able to count on it for our entire 10 year plan.

Busy, Busy, Busy

The last week it seems like life has been going non-stop. Maybe you're wondering, "What does a carefree guy like me do with all his time?" Well, I'm glad you asked. Since my last post we celebrated Father's day. I always try to milk everything I can out of the holiday. Hey, it's all we dads get right? Since Sundays are kind of busy for me, my family fixed me breakfast on Saturday morning. Waffles, bacon, orange juice, coffee, you just can't go wrong with that.

As last week began, the girls started counting down the days until "Camp Rock Day." Yes, the latest Disney Channel movie aimed squarely at kids my girl's age. On Tuesday, I was informed that the soundtrack was coming out and they just HAD to have it. I needed to keep my reputation as the #1 dad, so I bought it for them. Even kicked in for the bonus DVD! (EXTRA POINTS!) That evening I had a meeting at church with the usher leaders, and Anne had a meeting with the worship team, so the girls stayed in my office learning the new tunes so they would be "ready" for the premiere. While they were in there, they imported the cd onto my computer so that the next time I synced the DJ, it would download to my mp3 player so they could listen to it in the car. Surprisingly resourceful and geeky at the same time. I have to say I was a little proud, even if they did defile my player with their music.

Wednesday brought regular work hours during the day, and then a board meeting at night. After a long day in the office on Thursday, I was looking forward to a little rest time on Thursday night, and a day off on Friday. But when I got home, Anne thought it was a good night to buy our daughter Sydney the dresser that she's needed ever since we moved here. Even though I really didn't feel like it, I agreed that the time was right, so we loaded up and drove to Ikea to pick it up. The great thing about Ikea furniture is that you get the satisfaction of putting it together. I started the process at about 9:30. I'm sure most people could have knocked it out in about thirty minutes, but I finally got it done at 1:30am after realizing that I had put two screws in the wrong place, and then trying to get them out, and then giving up and hoping that it stays together anyway.

Friday was "Camp Rock" day. Most of the day was spent preparing for the big event. The girls were having a couple of friends over to watch it with them. They were so hyped up, they were screaming when it actually did start. I'm not sure if they liked the movie or not, but they watched it at least four more times over the weekend.

Saturday meant it was back to church for the weekend services. Since we had communion last weekend, I got there at about four oclock to help get set up. After service, we all went over to Pastor John's house to get a chance to visit with the Exleys who are in town from Africa. Sunday brought three more services, lunch with friends at La Hacienda, and then life group on Sunday evening.

Monday meant the work week started again. After I got home, we met up with Aaron and Jeanette and walked downtown to get a snowcone from the Snowcone Lady. (I had the white hawaiian, highly recommended).

Today I went back to the office, visited Aubrey and Jen's new arrival Grady in the hospital, picked up our van from the shop (a whole other story), and then enjoyed dinner at home with the family and our summer intern Courtney.

That pretty well catches you up. I have to admit, I like being busy. Especially when I feel like it's busyness with a purpose.

Theme Song

After my last post on the best seven bucks, I was overwhelmed with all the comments I received. Thanks!!! You've inspired me to write another post that will allow you to share your thoughts...

Whenever I drive my girls (ages 10, 10, and 9- yes, those are their ages...that's another post...) in my car, they like to grab my Dell DJ (if your a newbie, you can click here to see why I use this lame mp3 player) and crank up the tunes. Over the last several months, they have decided on a "theme song" that we must play every time the four of us are in the car together without mom. They insist on rolling down the windows and singing along at the top of their lungs. Sydney said we needed to roll down the windows so we could, "share God's love with the world around us." I'm not exactly sure if the world around us would recognize a dad driving his three tween girls around in a bright orange Element with the windows down and obnoxious music blaring as "sharing God's love," but it just makes me smile. The Theme song that they have come up with is called "No One Like You" by BarlowGirl. I have to admit, I sometimes sing along too. They will usually follow that up with something like "Rush" from Aly and AJ. I don't have Miley Cyrus or I'm sure I would have to hear "Girl's Night" or something else like it. Hey, even the Dell DJ has some limits.

So tell me, if you were going to come up with YOUR theme song that you rolled down the windows and played everytime you got in your car, what would it be? Don't let me down... :)

The Best Seven Bucks

This week we went grocery shopping, and I saw a huge bin of seedless watermelons. (Is the plural for watermelon spelled with an "s" or is it just watermelon...hmm..) Since it's starting to feel like summer, and Memorial Day was just last Monday, I knew that we NEEDED to buy one. As I was looking them over, Anne said, "I don't think we need one THAT big." I replied, "This one's not the biggest one, but we don't want it to be too small, there's five of us for pete's sake!" She rolled her eyes and said, "Put it in the cart." I was so excited about it, that I didn't even look at the price. (That might be a first) :) As we checked out, I realized that it rang up $6.98. Walking out of the store I said to my family, "Seven Bucks! That better be one GOOD watermelon!" After dinner, it was finally time to carve it up. I realized that all five of us were only going to eat about a quarter of it in one sitting. Okay, maybe it was bigger than we needed. (She's right again, yeah, yeah, yeah...) We started eating and it really did taste GOOD. We were all eating and making noises like mmm, yum, etc. when one of my daughters asked, "Is this the best seven bucks you've ever spent?!" The question took me by surprise. I mean, it was good and all, but was it the BEST SEVEN BUCKS ever? I'm still not sure. But if not, then what was the best seven bucks I've ever spent? I have thought about it way longer than I should, and I can't think of one thing that I've ever spent seven bucks for that was any better. So I guess I'm going to have to conclude that that watermelon truly was the BEST SEVEN BUCKS EVER! I'm curious, what was the best seven bucks you ever spent?

Galaxy Drive In

Last night we took a little field trip south of Dallas to the Galaxy Drive In for a little "blast from the past" entertainment. I didn't even know there were any drive in theaters still around, but some families from the church had been there before, and they thought it would be fun to take the kids. Because it was the Sunday before Memorial Day, I think a lot of people had the same idea. I never dreamed there would be so many cars at a drive in. This particular theater has four screens and was showing current films. I was glad we were watching Narnia: Prince Caspian instead of Indiana Jones because the Indy screen was packed. Before the movie began the announcer said it was the first time that they had caused the traffic to back up on the interstate, and they turned away 250 cars! Who'da thunk it! The movie started a little after 9pm. I enjoyed it, but not as much as the original. We decided to skip the second feature since we had about an hour drive to get back home. It was a fun time with family and friends, and a great way to start our Memorial Day.

The Force Lives On

One of the things I love as a parent is introducing my kids to the things that I loved when I was younger. Growing up, I was a huge Star Wars fan. I was really too young to see Star Wars when it first came out, but by the time The Empire Strikes Back came out, I was totally into it. Over the last couple of weeks I've had the chance to relive my childhood through the eyes of my girls. They decided that they wanted to see the Star Wars trilogy, and I was more than happy to oblige. I guess the fact that they are getting older and hearing about it from their friends made them curious to know what all of the fuss was about. They have always been so scared of any costumes or creatures, I'm glad that they're growing out of that stage. Anyway, it was so fun to see them experience these movies for the first time. I forgot about some of the great quotes Yoda has while training Luke. "Try not. There is no try. Do or do not." I've already reminded one of my girls of that one. Or, Luke: "I don't believe it." Yoda: "That is why you fail." But my favorite momemt of all came at the end of The Empire Strikes Back. Luke and Darth are fighting and this exchange takes place:

Darth Vader: Obi-Wan never told you what happened to your father.

Luke: He told me enough. He told me you killed him!

Darth Vader: No. I am your father.

Luke: NOOOOOOOO!!!

My girls were stunned. They asked, "Is it true??" "Can it be?" I said, "We'll have to watch the next movie to see for sure." They wanted to go to Blockbuster right then to see how it turned out. Sydney and I kept acting out the scene the next day. She always made me do the Vader voice. When we finally did get to see "Return of the Jedi" and they found out that Luke and Leia were siblings they said, "You mean Luke kissed his sister?!" I just couldn't believe how much fun it was watching these with my kids! I've already made them sit through ET. I think Raiders of the Lost Ark is next on the nostalgia train.

Nostalgia

A couple of days ago my friend Tim celebrated eighteen years serving at the same church, Faith Assembly in N. Ft. Myers, FL. Tim was already on staff when Anne and I moved there for my very first full time pastoral position in 1992. We were there a little over two years, and we became good friends. You can tell by the picture that we were WAY ahead of our time. Totally cutting edge! (I think we were doing a drama about Sunday School, but I still wear the cap occasionally). We still keep in touch even though we rarely get to see each other in person. I have a lot of great memories of my time there. We were treated very well by the pastor, Phil Goss, and the church family. One cool thing is that 3 of the pastors, including Pastor Goss, are STILL THERE!! I think that says a lot about the character of the leaders there. Anyway, as I was thinking about my time there, I was reminded of a funny story that has a moral in the end...

Tim was/is a huge Atlanta Braves fan. He was always trying to figure out how to mix his love for the Braves with some type of viable ministry opportunity. One day, he decided to organize a church outing to Miami to watch the Braves play the Marlins. When I heard about the incredible ministry that was going to be happening, I asked Tim if he needed my assistance. (Doesn't every good bus trip need to include the Music Pastor? I thought so.) So I came along and we had a fun trip over to the park. By the time we arrived and got to our "great" seats (outfield of couse, Tim spared no expense), I was really hungry. Of course if you read this blog very often you know that it's against my personal values to buy overpriced stadium food, but there was no escaping it this time...I HAD to EAT!! To my surprise, they sold large pizza's for ten bucks! Not a bad stadium value, so I got one and started in. About half way through the pizza, I was feeling kind of full, but I could still eat some more. Now you have to remember that this was a long time ago when I was pretty skinny and could eat whatever I wanted and never had to think about it (oh, the twenties....how I miss thee). That's when the guy behind me (a big guy, man's man, who was on the church board) asked, "You gonna eat that whole thing?! You can't eat that!" I said, "Oh yeah, I'm going to eat it, and I'm going to love it. Just watch!" He had set the hook, and I had taken the bait. I was in. By the time there were two pieces left, I was FULL. But there was NO WAY I was going to stop with just two pieces left. When I stuffed the last piece in my mouth, I turned around and showed him the empty box, and said "See, no problem!" I think he even acknowledged my greatness by saying, "You're crazy" or something like that. Either way, I had WON! No pizza's gonna get in my way...yada, yada. I then turned back around in my seat and my stomach started to churn almost immediately. That dough felt like it tripled in size when it hit my stomach. I sat through the last half of the game with the worst stomach ache in my life, but I couldn't let anyone see because that would cheapen my earlier win. It was kind of a miserable ride home, and I can't even remember if the Marlins or Braves won the game, but there is one thing I have remembered to this day...there are times when "winning" is JUST NOT WORTH IT!!

16th Anniversary

Today is our 16th wedding anniversary. It's hard to believe that we've been married that long. I am very blessed to be married to my best friend. She knows what I'm thinking even when I'm not saying anything. Someone asked us yesterday what we were doing to celebrate, and it was almost embarrassing. "Well, we went to the Cheesecake Factory last week...and...I got her a card!!" We are pretty low key about events like this. It's a good thing she's forgiving. We don't have anything special planned, but it's a great opportunity for me to share how much I love her and that she means the world to me.

Gracie Graduated

We are very proud of our puppy, Gracie, who graduated from puppy school last night! I have to admit, there were times when I didn't think she (or I) would make it. But sure enough, she performed like a champ at her final exam last night. She knows how to sit, stay, wait, come, down, turn, spin, and is getting better at walking without pulling us everywhere. I have to say that I'm starting to get used to our scruffy gal.

Motivation

Last week as I was going through one of my daughter's homework folders I noticed that she had received an 87 on her spelling test. Now I recognize that an 87 is not really a bad grade, but she typically gets higher scores on these tests. I wasn't upset with her, but when I looked at the words she had missed, it was clear to me that she had not spent much time studying. So, when I asked her about what had happened she said, "'nesesary' is a hard word! And besides I lost my study sheet." It was clear that she had put zero effort into this test, but wasn't really concerned about the fact that she had received a grade that was lower than her usual. To be honest, I didn't really know how to respond. I needed to tell her why it was important to do her best, but I was finding it hard to understand why she wouldn't already know that. In that moment I realized something about motivation. In my whole life I've never needed any other reason to want a 100 on a test, other than the fact that a 100 exists. My personality tells me that if there is a possibility of getting a 100, then of course that's what I want to get. If I ever got an 87 in school, it was clear to me that I needed to do something different next time so that I could get a 100. I guess I never stopped to consider that anyone would ever accept less than that if they had the chance. Now it would be different if someone was working at it and putting in effort and received that grade. But to make a conscious decision not to study because you know that you will pass anyway, is just something that never crossed my mind.

Since that happened, I've started thinking about the difference between leading and motivating. I've always felt like I was a good leader, but I recognize that I'm not the best motivator. What I mean is this...the times when I have been most successful as a leader, I have had staff that was high-capacity and self motivated. My strengths come into play in these situations by helping these groups of people reach consensus, prioritize and focus, and redirecting them when they go off course. However, I have had other situations where a staff member really wanted to be told what to do, and needed "encouragement" in one way or another to get things done, and it ended up being frustrating for them and me. I guess I am learning that I need to grow as a motivator, whether it's as a parent or as a leader. I need to recognize that different personalities are motivated in different ways, and so I need to respond to them accordingly.

Does anyone have any thoughts to add?

Backyard Soccer & Donkey Kong

The girls are getting ready to start soccer season this year. We took some time Sunday afternoon to practice in the backyard. It's nice to feel some Springtime weather.

I decided to check out some of the advanced features on the Wii. One of the things you can do is download games from older systems. I noticed that they had Donkey Kong from the original NES. Back in the day I loved playing Donkey Kong and wasted countless hours away climbing ladders and jumping barrels. I decided that for $5 we needed that game, so I downloaded it. I've had a blast reliving my youth. But it just seems wrong to have a "next generation" game console, and playing a "last generation" game.

Texas Snow

The girls are enjoying their first taste of snow in Texas tonight! It's hard to believe that yesterday it was 73 degrees and we were wearing short sleeve shirts and shorts! Crazy! The girls were having fun making snowballs. Sami thought she would be cute and throw hers at me after I took this picture. Good thing she has bad aim! :) (She is with me writing this)

Sami: I think that my dad is wrong.

Dad: About what?

Sami: My bad aim

Dad: Don't get defensive--you have plenty of other great qualities. :)

Sami: Oh I'm getting defensive.

Dad: All right, All right. I'm sorry I said you had bad aim. Now, go to bed.

I knew it was a bad idea to let her start typing. :)

Sami: Hey I thought you said that I coud take a long warm bath p.s it really was a good idea to let me typ.

Dad: I'll be the judge of that. Take your bath and go to bed.

Sami: oh fine

Pay Attention

Last week in our life group we were discussing a chapter in our book titled "Love Pays Attention." This quote really grabbed me:

"God's greatest commandment for building community is 'love one another.' A primary work of love is paying attention. It is such a valuable thing that we don't just give it-we pay it. It's like money."

I had never thought of it that way. When I talk to someone and give them my attention, I am giving them something valuable. I guess it makes sense, because I always feel more valued when someone gives me their attention. But the book goes on to say more:

"One of the great miracles of life is that God pays attention to us. This is partly why the writers of Scripture speak so often of God's face. The great priestly blessing that God himself taught the people of Israel says: 'The Lord bless you and keep you; the Lord make his face shine upon you and be gracious to you; the Lord turn his face toward you and give you peace.' (Num. 6:24-26)"

How humbling it is that the God of the universe, who probably has a lot on his mind, has the time to turn his face toward us and give us His attention.

I have really been convicted about this lately, and have started to make an effort to pay attention to those I care about the most. It really is difficult, when I have a lot of things swirling in my mind, to stop and look at one of my children as they tell me some tidbit that seems insignificant. The truth is, they probably don't even care that I know the information they are giving, but want to know that I care enough to pay attention. I don't always pass the test...

Last week, we watched the tv show "Supernanny." (I like to watch that show, because it makes me feel like I'm not the worst parent in the world). :) The nanny was at the home of Wendy Wilson, daughter of Beach Boy Brian Wilson. She made a comment that stung me. She said that her father was "not present. Whether he was at home or away, he wasn't available." She went on to say how that relationship had affected her parenting and every other relationship in her life. I want to be present for my kids...

This morning before work, I was sitting on the couch, drinking coffee and watching Good Morning America. Anne was asking me some questions when she finally said, "Mark, will you pause the show. I'm trying to have a conversation with you before you leave for the day. I've asked you seven questions and the only answer I have received is 'I don't know.'" She was right. I hadn't turned my face, or even thought about her question enough to give her an answer. The truth was, she really didn't need to know any of the information in the questions she was asking, she was just trying to get my attention. By not paying attention, I was sending the message that I didn't value her. Ouch. I guess I've got a long way to go...but I hear that acceptance is the first step. :)

Back in Time

It's been great having my parents in town for the last few days. Yesterday, we took a little trip down memory lane and drove about an hour south of Frisco to Waxahatchie to visit my dad's old stomping ground, Southwestern Assemblies of God University. Of course, it's changed quite a bit in the 50 years since my dad attended. But some things haven't changed...I was surprised to learn that the dorm my dad lived in is still there and being used. I mentioned it to John McKinzie this morning, and he told me he lived in the same dorm when he went there! I haven't been out of college as long as either of them, and all of the dorms that I lived in have since been torn down! (I guess I was a little harder on them than they were). I enjoyed meeting one of dad's college buddies, Earl Moore, who has retired and moved back. When they were in school together, Earl's father was the Dean of the school. It was fun hearing stories about how they would "bend" the rules together. Of course, sometimes the rules weren't bent. My dad tells that he went over to Earl's house to hang out one night, and came back to the dorm late. When he was asked where he had been, he said he had been at the Dean's house. His connections didn't matter that time, and he was forced to stay on campus the next day. But my favorite story of the day was when my dad was awakened by the assistant dean telling him, "Get your car out of the women's dorm lobby!" The dorm he was talking about is still in use, but it is no longer a women's dorm. There are stairs leading up to the front door. I guess that a group of guys had decided to pick up his car (it must have been small) and place it in the lobby of the women's dorm. He had to get up, go to the lobby and ease it down all of the stairs. Later in life he found out that the assistant dean was actually in on the prank.

Happy New Year!

I'm a couple of days late, but my new year's resolution is to get back to blogging, working out, and other good things. :)

We had a great Christmas, highlighted by Anne's parents coming in from Tampa. Papa saved Christmas for our family by securing a Wii from a crowded Target store early on a Sunday morning. I'm not sure who loved it more, the kids or the grown ups. Anne's brother Thad and his family came down to spend a couple of days with us...and challenge us to Wii bowling.

Sunday afternoon we drove up to Little Rock to stay at their house for a couple of days. One of the big highlights was driving to Pinnacle mountain state park for a little hiking. We were only going to go part way up the mountain but my daughter Samantha (9) and my nephew Wilson (6) would not stop. They were determined to get to the top. Of course, that made me want to keep going too, so the three of us finished the mile and a half trek together. I don't think Wilson was even breathing hard, which was amazing because the peak of the mountain was literally rock climbing. Coming down was actually a little scarier than going up because there were no guard rails or anything. I told Wilson I had to hold on to him tight or his mom would never forgive me. :) Here's a picture of Sami and Wilson at the top.

The lowlights of the new year included my USF Bulls getting trounced in the Sun Bowl. Thad was bummed that the Razorbacks got routed in the Cotton Bowl. Hopefully the Bucs can lift our spirits this weekend. :)

Now, I'm back to work getting ready for an incredible 2008. Our church is having a prayer emphasis this week, and as I was praying last night, I was reminded how good God is, and how much He has blessed me. I'm glad that I'm able to know Him, and this year I want to share His love with more people and in more ways than ever before.

Here's where I've been...

I know that a lot of you have been wondering where I've been for the last month. Well, Texas has been keeping me busy. At church, we just finished a campaign for an auditorium expansion and new children's building. Over the last month we had ten separate informational meetings, a leadership banquet, and a big service last Sunday outdoors under a tent so the whole church could be together at one time. It's been a great month, but I couldn't find the time or energy to write any posts.

The other major event that happened this month, is that the Lunsford family grew! We added a new puppy to our family! Gracie is a 2 and a half pound Yorkie-Poo that was born on August 24, 2007. We drove four hours to meet the breeder from Fredonia, Texas and pick her up. She is very cute, but we haven't decided if she's smart or not. :) It's taken her a couple of weeks to respond to her name, and she's not even close to being potty trained. Ugh! But, she's a lot of fun and she's making me get up early to let her out and take her for walks. Which is causing me to fall asleep earlier than normal. For those of you who know me, you may be surprised that we even got a puppy. But, our daughter Samantha has always been a dog lover. She has begged us for years to get one. I always told her that our house in Tampa was too small, and until we had a bigger house, having a puppy was not an option. Well, when we moved to Frisco, we were able to get a bigger house. Funny how she didn't forget our conversation. :) Anne and I decided this would be a good time to go ahead and get a dog, so we began our search. Anne found this one online and we fell in love with her. The girls love her and she's fitting right in.

Tomorrow, we are loading up the Honda and traveling back to Tampa for the Thanksgiving holiday. Pray for us because we'll be traveling overnight on Friday. I haven't pulled an allnighter in a long time. We are excited to get back and see our family and friends. For those of you from Grace Family, we are planning to be there for service this Sunday morning. Make sure that you look for us!