The Adventures of “Illinois Luke”

First off, I have to say, my sister is the ultimate party planner. She puts together the most amazing themed parties for her kids (sample). Today was no exception. It was an overnight camping Indiana Jones theme where they went geo-caching for treasure and every kid got an archeologist bag, brown fedora and a whip! Due to having a two year old, we came for the morning fun. It was a beautiful forest preserve I’ll be returning to for hiking! Luke took to the trails immediately… It is right along the Fox River in Cary, so there were many water views on the hike. One funny sight (that I couldn’t take a picture of) was three guys fishing with beer bottles. A poor man’s technique perhaps. They tied fishing line to the neck of their beer, threw the line out, drank while waiting, and when then got a bite, wound the line around the beer bottle to reel it in. Yes, we saw them catch one! One of the kids caught a craw fish. Going with the theme, we just pretended it was a scorpion! I showed my son how to intimidate a small creature by returning its taunts right…

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What if I got saved TODAY?

A few weeks ago, our pastor gave a wonderful salvation message – it was so good, I wanted to get saved all over again. I was kinda bummed that I already was, since he made the invitation to be a part of God’s Kingdom so inviting… it got me thinking… what if I DID get saved today, in fact, everyday… Below is what I wrote in my journey the next morning, and I was thinking perhaps others who are already saved might want to consider getting saved again.* I dare you to PAUSE and reflect on each of the questions below… it’s not easy, I know. WHAT IF I GOT SAVED TODAY? What would change? What would I do differently What would I give up? What would I stop doing? What would I start doing? Who would I ask forgiveness of? Who would I choose to forgive? What would I give away? How would I spend my time? How would I spend my money? How would I arrange my life? How would my relationships be impacted? Where would I go? Where wouldn’t I go? What would others notice about me? How would I start my day? How would I end…

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19th Anniversary of First Date

It was 1986. There were hardly any computers. To figure out the first Friday night of September four years in the future required some manual scratching on paper trying to remember leap year! (a PDA would have been wonderful then!) But I finally figured out what the first Friday Night of September 1990 would be… why? That would be the first Friday Night of my Philippine Missionary Kid Pen Pal’s first eligible date when she finally came to the USA for college! Perhaps she thought it was a joke, or was just being nice, but she accepted the rambling invitation to her first date with me, granted four years in the future, and I began counting the days! Finally, the date arrived, and we had our first official date in the United States! September 7th, 1990 finally arrived! I could only afford a one way limo ride to the shore where we went for a dinner cruise at Navy Pier in Chicago – however, it was not the place it is today. It was an empty freight yard with only one ship! (I’ve had to work closely with Mayor Daley to get many much needed improvements though for my annual…

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A Cow in the Sky

For the first time in his little life my son woke up crying because of a nightmare. We awoke to his tears and like a good father I ran upstairs to see what my little boy needed. Did he climb out of the climb and fall? Did he get an arm or leg stuck through the railings? Did he drop a toy or binkey that he can’t sleep without? Nope. He saw a cow. (don’t laugh) I came in the room, “Daddy’s here, everything’s O.K.” to see his fear filled eyes looking to me for salvation. He reached out to me like someone drowning reaching for the life guard. I scooped him up, and seeing that nothing was physically wrong, asked, “What’s the matter, Lukie?” “Cow!” he whispered in my ear as he pointed up toward the ceiling. “Cow up in the sky.” I put his head on my shoulder so he wouldn’t see the smile I couldn’t resist. My voice remained deeply concerned but my face couldn’t hide the silent laughter at such a cute fear. I was so happy the scariest thing in his little world is a cow in the sky! He clung to me as I…

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SLAYING THE E-MAIL MONSTER!

First, watch this funny video of me doing what you may WISH you could do to your computer: Then, check out my 5th Kidology Leadership Lab: Define, Refine and Shine! (Link works for Kidology Members) The 5th installment of Kidology Online Training is now available. This Leadership Lab, titled Define, Refine, and Shine, is priced at only $9.99 for Kidology Members so that everyone can afford this valuable resource. We think it’s that important! Are you exhausted? Stress robbing you of the joy of ministry? Overloaded with more to do than time and resources allow? Then now is the time to evaluate your life and ministry. Yes, life and ministry. In this Leadership Lab, Karl Bastian will walk you through a thoughtful process that will bring definition, margin, and joy back into these areas. PLUS! This Lab includes a FREE BONUS REPORT: Slaying the E-Mail Monster. Learn 10 AMAZING SECRETS from a leader who personally manages hundreds of e-mails a day. What’s he’s learned the hard way will put YOU back in charge of your computer again! Purchase the accompanying Leadership Lab Download Kit for the complete training experience! Watch video online – Purchase Download Kit Share your thoughts in…

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