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Category: Life

Dreary Day… until you look closely.

Today was one of the hardest days of my life. For the first time in over 18 years I didn’t kick off a new season of Kid’s Church. To make it worse… of course, it rained. The bleary view out my back patio door. Change is difficult. I suppose I should feel some relief from my former hyperbusy hyperacheiver hyperactive hyperministry hyperspeed pace of life… and in many ways I do. But I still miss painfully the things I loved most… and have deep regrets that are still healing. I prayed for one phone call today from one person who might realize what today was and meant to me… but instead, God must have wanted me to feel the emptiness and loneliness of loss. My head understands and is accepting, but my heart is still catching up and has quite a ways to go. One day at a time. One relationship at a time. One prayer at a time. I’ve not allowed myself much time to focus on what these changes in life have cost me – selfishness got me into the mess I got myself into – so I don’t feel entitled to focus on my own losses, but…

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A week away does a spirit good….

“Be still and know that I am God” is the advice of David in Psalm 46:10 – but how do you find the time to be still when you are in very full time Christian ministry… or more honestly, when you do not know how or when to STOP and listen to God? I am guilty of doing MUCH for God, but much less with God. God tried to get my attention many times over the past several years – through family, friends, and circumstances… but I was too busy doing ministry to hear that still small voice, or simply too exhausted to hear it even when it was yelling at me. So, this past week was a week to finally listen. My wife and I (and Luke) headed to Tennessee for a place with no Internet (yes!), no phone, and barely cell reception. (Yes, I’ll admit holding my phone up at strange angles to see if I could get one bar… I’m not healed yet!) The place was Fairhaven Ministries, and I highly recommend it (and the burgers at the White Way Grill at the base of the mountain) to anyone needing some time away in a place where…

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Morning Feedings

I have a baby son. Since the day he entered our home, one of the biggest changes was that I have never used an alarm clock since. That era can now be refered to as ‘BC’ – Before Cryingbaby. Before Crying baby, I would fight the alarm clock every morning. Snoozing it untold times… exhausted from the day before and often working too late into the night, I would finally get up with just enough time to start my day. But since ‘the boy’ (as we call him) entered my home, I have awakened to his gentle cries for his morning feeding. Since he is adopted and we feed with formula, I volunteered the first day to be the one to do the morning feedings so my wife could sleep a little longer before starting her day. While eager for this time with the baby, I would nevertheless rise lethargicly and pick up ‘the boy’ and move to the couch or rocker in the front room to feed him. This morning I did so yet again. I am always amazed that he rises without an alarm – just an internal reminder that it is time to eat – simple hunger…

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Steve Tanner is my Inspiration!

My Smoke Detector Adventure (Inspired by Steve Tanner) You may not realize it, but my inspiration to blog came from my friend and now Kidology Web Director, Steve Tanner. His forum homepage is at www.steveandamysly.com but all the conversations end up at the Tannerworld Junction. There you can read about… well, just about anything. From beverage reviews to bathroom hand dryer advertising to the Trash Cans of DisneyWorld to his new toothbrush to the history of Dorito’s logos or watch Star Wars as an animated GIF! It’s all there among thousands of the other 13,547 posts Steve has posted to date! But this week, his inspiration went to all new heights and INSPIRED ME! It was his latest edition of This New Tanner Condo. (Changing the Smoke Detector!) READ IT! I was so inspired, I decided that I needed to blog my own adventure with a smoke detector. My smoke detector wasn’t broken, but it has needed a new battery for awhile now. So here is the blog record of my ADVENTURE this evening. I’d like to dedicate this post to Steve Tanner. Here is my upstairs smoke detector. It has been disconnected for several months. (My wife claims it…

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Happy Six Months Luke!

HAPPY SIX MONTHS LUKE! Baby Luke is now 6 months old, and to celebrate, he had food for the first time! Luke is all smiles as Sara gives him his first spoonful of rice cereal… Not so sure he likes it… but doesn’t fight it. Mom and Dad aren’t sure how much got into his stomach! Instead of going to a studio or kid-photo place, we decided to try our hand at doing our own Six Month Pictures…. how did we do? Though, we did have a pretty cute kid to work with! Ooooooo… this is soft!Winter styles… Just chillin… Hi, I’m Luke! You can’t help love me, can you? Wheeeeeeeeeeeeeee DAD’S FAVORITE: Bombs Away on Mom! Every day with this baby is a joy and a delight. I’ not sure how I survived not being a dad. I was made for this. People ask me often how I am adjusting to being a Dad, and I answer, “I always was adjusted, I just lacked the kid.” Probably doesn’t make any sense to most, but I feel like there is no adjustment… its the way it’s supposed to have been, and finally having a kid just feels so right. I’m…

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