A Cranium Sandwich

American Idol Gives God Great Glory!

2007-11-19T15:05:00.000-06:00

Last Saturday night Pam & I took our daughter Leslee and her friend Kennedy to Decatur Illinois to see Matthew West and Mandisa. I was really excited about seeing Matthew West and the girls were excited to see Mandisa. Mandisa was on American Idol two years ago. I went to the concert with a heavy mind thinking about things other than going to a great concert. Mandisa was on stage first. She came out and was so much fun! She did a medley of soul hits from yesteryear. I think she was better or as good as some of the original singers! We were just singing away having fun. Then after a few more songs she told about what had happened at the American Idol auditions. She auditioned and was invited to go to Hollywood. After she left the audition room Simon made a terrible comments about her being oversized. Mandisa said she was so down after that. During that time she had people praying for her and for Simon. They prayed that she would forgive him. Right before Mandisa was to go into the room to sing the next time the TV people told her that she could say anything she wanted to say. So she walked in and sat down. She said "Simon I forgive you, because Jesus has forgiven me for all I've done wrong so I'm extending that forgiveness to you". Simon got up and hugged her. It was really cool to see that kind of witness on america's #1 TV show. At the concert Mandisa went into a time of worship that was so inspiring and it brought me to the place where I kind forgot everything else for a while and I enjoyed God's presence in a special way that night.

It's refreshing when someone is doing their best to live for the Lord and they bless other people.

Mandisa is a blessing! Afterwards I took a few pics as Leslee and Kennedy got their picture taken with her after getting her autograph. Oh and by the way Matthew West was really great too!

Time with God

2007-10-11T15:09:00.000-05:00

Lately I've been on a 30 day quest to spend time with the Lord alone. I read the Bible and pray for myself and others each day for about 10-20 minutes. I know it's kind of legalistic the way I'm doing it, but it really has helped me a lot. I'm on day 19 and now I don't want to miss a day where I quiet my world down and spend some time with just me and the Lord! I looked forward to that time and I've been getting stuff out of it even when I started to do it just, because I made a commitment to do so for 30 days. The other day something bothered very deeply at around 8:00. Instead of tackling many things that I needed to do that day I took a few minutes to read my Bible & pray. A verse popped into my mind that I memorized a long time ago. "Be anxious for nothing, but in everything with thanksgiving make your requests to God. And the peace of God which passes all understanding will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus." I prayed that as a prayer and it was amazing how much better I felt afterwards. My typical response would have been to get busy with the day and let that worrisome situation get the best of me for the rest of that day. I want to encourage other followers of Christ to start on a 30 day quest of Quiet Time with God too! Go ahead start today.

It keeps going and going and going

2007-10-03T14:46:00.000-05:00

This last Sunday our Honduras youth missions team got the privilage of sharing what God did on our missions trip last July and what God has done in our lives! I was very nervous about it, because a lot of time had passed since we returned and I was afraid that the passion and fire would have gone out already. During the services I stood there amazed not only at what God did on our trip and in the lives of our youth, but also in the response of our congregation. People loved hearing from the youth. They nearly cried as Diana (youth leader) shared about Carlos who always smiles, because he feels that he is alive only by Jesus! The drama was also very moving. There are so many people that have told me that they were touched deeply. One man said that he was so moved that when he tried to speak to Eric (who played the role of Jesus very well) he was unable. Some others had tears in their eyes and the children were glued to what was happening.

At the end we had a prayer time that lasted through a couple of songs. I had our pastoral staff plus Pam pray for people and they all had people coming up to them. It was so cool to see God working in people as they responded to God! I feel like the Lord not only used our youth team down in Honduras, but they are also touching people lives here through this trip and effort!

One other awesome thing is that the children's home in Honduras that we have been helping with is now launching a church. They've had over 100 women & children coming on Sunday mornings! Now the people who we have been reaching out to are reaching out to others in a great way! So our efforts and any effort that makes a difference in someone's life can make a difference in many other lives that are affected by the person whomm you or I reached out to in the first place. The people who were reached by the people you reached can reach others.... it keeps going, and going.....and going.........

Getting Into Shape

2007-09-07T09:48:00.000-05:00

About 3 weeks ago I decided that I needed to start getting into better shape. So I did what I've done a bunch of times before and went for a jog. Usually the first jog after being in poor shape isn't too bad, because I'm motivated. The next day I wasn't very motivated, but I went out anyways and jogged a mile and a half very slowly. I kept doing that and I realized that I was starting to get into shape. The course that I ran slowly was becoming easier. Once in a while I even ran fast (for me). Then I saw an ad for a 5k race at the Cheese Fest in Arthur on Labor Day. I thought that I'd love to run it, but I better make sure that I can run that far first. So I ran that distance twice and I determined that I was going to run it. I still was a little chicken so I wanted my daughter Alyssa to run it with me. She runs that kind of race all of the time in Cross Country. I just wanted someone to run with me (slowly) so I'd be encouraged to finish it. So we got there and we were at the starting line and I got a little nervous. Not because I thought I'd go too slow, but because I thought I might run too fast and get tired out. As the gun went off EVERYONE seemed to be passing me. I ran the first half or so with Alyssa until I knew she was like a caged animal ready to be let out to run. In just over a mile she passed 22 people. As for me on the other hand, I think I only passed two people. One young boy who was out of shape and a man about 20 years older than me who basically did some kind of super power walk. I learned some things on that race day! 1. It helped having an experienced runner like Alyssa with me giving running advice. 2. I really needed this other runner whom I didn’t know to encourage me after Alyssa took off to run fast. 3. Don’t freak out at the starting line! 4. It’s always easier to be a spectator than a runner. 5. Some people will cheer you on even if they don’t know you. 6. I thought that I’d run really fast when I saw the finish line, but I could only run a little faster. 7. It helped that people were cheering me on! I also thought about how we all need to have these things in our lives spiritually. It was a cool experience and I accomplished one of my life goals. I ran and finished a 5k without walking. Next up a few more 5k's, then hopefully 10K & mini marathon. I'm way ahead of myself but I'm just hoping & dreaming of doing those things right now!

See How It Grows

2007-04-05T15:45:00.000-05:00

A few years ago, Pam was given this tiny willow tree by a coworker at her school that loves growing trees, bushes etc. We let the tree sit in its small pot outside throughout the winter. We thought it was dead. Then spring came and I saw a little life in it so I watered it. The little thing grew a little bit at a time. Then I repotted it in a larger pot, because it's growth had plateaued. Then two falls ago I planted it in the ground. As I returned from work one day I saw one of the branches had been broken off. I thought it would be ok, because it still had three decent branches. Then the next day two more were broken off. I looked at it closely and realized that bunnies were eating the little willow tree. I was determined to give this little willow a chance to live so I put a little fence around it. This whole time Pam had poked fun at my little tree obsession. I watered that thing most days and it grew again. After a full spring & summer of growing it was much larger than before 3 of the 4 branches were gnawed off by those ferocious bunnies. It's a new spring and I can't wait to see how high & wide our little willow will grow. I made a preciction that our willow would grow taller than our neighbors tree on the other side of the fence are by fall of 2008. My little Leslee shares my love and optimism for "willow". I'll show you this summer how it's doing. If we take this little lesson we can look at things in our lives and see how we can help people, jobs or ministries to grow if we don't give up and water them consistantly!

Representing Well!

2007-02-12T14:19:00.000-06:00

This last weekend one of my college roommates Jim Boscaljon was inducted into the Judson College (soon to be University) Athletics Hall of Fame. Jim is still the second all time leading scorer in Men's Basketball at Judson. I was privilaged to get to play basketball with him for 1 1/2 years. We both played in the Alumni game last weekend and finished the game successfully (these days "successfully" means not getting hurt). It was a lot of fun and we saw a lot of friends. In Jim's last basketball game the coach from Olivet Nazarene who had coached for years against Jim said that Jim represented Judson well over his four years of playing. I thought that was a great compliment that the coach gave to him that day. I thought about a deeper concept though in regards to all of us as followers of Christ. Pastor Wisehart who was the senior pastor at First Baptist in Marshalltown once gave a sermon on making God look good. He said that's our job. If we make God look good people will more likely believe & follow Jesus. So how am I representing Him right now? How are Christians all over doing in this regard? Each of us followers needs to do our best to represent Him well. This last Sunday we also visited Christ Community Church in St. Charles Illinois. The Pastor preached on living for the Lord in our workplace. He said it well when he proclaimed that we are God's ambassadors in whatever workplace He has in right now! That can give us real meaning to whatever we do. Hopefully one day we'll hear the Lord say "Well done my good & faithful servant!"

Connecting With Friends

2007-01-30T14:16:00.000-06:00

It's been a while since I've submitted a new post, but I've been thinking about this one for a while. I don't really like to make New Year's Resolutions, but I sort of have one this year. My resolution is to try to connect better with people in my life now and from the past. We had the high school group called SALT (Student Action Leadership Team) over to our house for the annual Christmas Spaghetti dinner. Kurt brought over the incredible Italian bread that I'm sure had about 8 million calories per bite, but it was awesome! You'll see a green and red picture (green & red shirts) and a picture of all the youth and Kristen (youth leader). We sat around and told stories and laughed for most of the time. I hadn't laughed so hard in such a long time!

The day after Christmas our family went out to California to see Pam's family and to participate in a wedding of (Gina) one of the girls that was in our first youth group while we were in seminary. It was a great time to reconnect and be a small part of their very special day! We talked a lot with the all grown up youth (mostly in their 30's by now) and caught up on what's happening as well as laughed at old stories of yesteryear! What a fun time!

On New Year's Day the four of us Chambers went to the beach and put our feet into the COLD water. We also found this huge starfish that you'll see in the picture. We literally soaked up those moments in the California sun since we would be back in the midwest the next day! So all in all I guess you'd say that my wish is that for all of our friends and family out there to know that we truly love you and are glad that you have been in our lives!

The Butterfly in our office

2006-11-30T14:08:00.000-06:00

Today at the office I heard Shari & Anna talking about something that was alive on Shari's desk. I went over there and saw that they were looking at a Butterfly (or maybe a moth). I think it's a butterfly, because it's not fuzzy at all. The butterfly would probably already have been dead if it were outside, because today the temperature is supposed to drop over 30 degrees from yesterday. Everyone is talking about the snowstorm that's coming in today and tonight. Back to the Butterfly. It isn't moving much, but it's still kicking. Shari brought it over to my desk, because it supposedly was using her desk as a toilet. Hmmmmmm.... I haven't seen anything like that yet and I doubt that I will. Soon the butterfly will die, but it can hang out in my office until that time comes. It reminds me of how the seasons change so fast sometimes in life. Here in the midwest we notice the change in seasons well, because they are distinct from each other. In life the regular person has those seasons too. We don't know how many seasons we might have left. There are no guarantees. So we need enjoy the season that we are in, because it can be a big blessing from the Lord. If we don't receive our blessing now we certainly will in heaven if we trusted Christ here on earth!

DA BEARS & more deer in the wrong places!

2006-11-13T14:06:00.000-06:00

I'm a HUGE Chicago Bears football fan! It's been a lot of fun watching them this year! It's so interesting listening to the sports fans talk about how good or bad they are this year! They were undefeated and everyone thought they'd beat the Arizone Cardinals badly. They were losing 20-3 at halftime. They came back to win 24-23. It was one of the most exciting second halfs I've ever seen. Pam & I were watching it in bed. Well I was watching and she fell asleep quickly. I'm the kind of guy likes to yell or clap when they're doing well so it was hard to sit there and be quiet after one great play after another great play was made. Then they played the Dolphins who had only won one game. They were supposed to beat them badly, but they lost. Last night the Bears played a good team (New York Giants) and they beat them convincingly. It got me to thinking that as people we often listen too much to what people around us are saying. When the Bears thought too highly of themselves they didn't play that well. When they were questioned they've played very well. As followers of Christ we need to listen to what God says about us not just what people say about us. Sometimes people determine how we feel. We need to have an audience of one. That one is "THE ONE" that counts. We need to look forward to the day when the Lord receives into heaven and says "Well done my good and faithful servant!"
Oh yea, I almost forgot about the deer. Some other friends of ours have had the privilege of having a deer jump through their window and out another window. They were home and were amazed when it happened. Fortunately no one was hurt. On TV we saw that a deer made it into a Target store and ran around for quite a while before they got it out of there. Check out the video from NBC http://www.nbc11.com/news/10284183/detail.html

Not a Deer in the highlights, It's in the Living Room!

2006-11-06T09:32:00.000-06:00

Yesterday some friends of ours got news right after church from their neighbors that a deer had jumped through their living room window. They came over to church as it ended to let them know what happened so they wouldn't be so surprised when they got home! When they got home they found a note from another neighbor detailing what had happened, because they actually saw the deer jump into the house. Now I've heard and seen birds that have done that, but not deer! That deer must have freaked out like they do at night when they see the headlights of a car coming and they run the wrong way. The deer jumped in through one of the three large front windows and tried to get out the back. It then turned around and jumped through the window next to the one it used to come in. Therefore it broke 2 of the 3 windows instead of just one. When they got home they found blood all over the tile and some on the carpet along with a lot of broken glass. Just think what it would have been like if they were home when the deer came through the window. WOW! That would have been exciting! Through this the family is counting their blessings seeing that it could have been worse and hoping that insurance will pay it. I jokingly asked my friend if he had "deer insurance". That got me to think about the unexpected things in life. Some of it is good, but much of the unexpected seems to be bad. We don't always have the right insurance for the bad things that happen unless we trust Jesus! Jesus said "Do not let your hearts be troubled. Trust in God; trust also in me. In my Father's house are many rooms; if it were not so, I would have told you. I am going there to prepare a place for you." John 14:1-2 Whenever I have a pity party about how things aren't going so well I always think that there are other people with much worse circumstances. Some how that helps me. What helps me even more is to think about what Jesus has done for me and how will join Him in heaven if I trust Him here on earth!

Movie Mania

2006-10-26T10:09:00.000-05:00

I've been so excited to hear of good movies with a good message have been hitting the movie theatres. I've heard that "One Night With The King" is a great movie that's been in the theatres the last couple of weeks. Today I heard about the movie "Unidentified" which is based on stories and hoax's of UFO's and it challenges people. I have a hunch that if there's a lot of money to be made by film makers who make a great movie without the junk that usually has to be added. I think that people who want these movies should really back these movies! Check out the website for Unidentified. www.unidentifiedthemovie.com

Find a Penny pick it up..........

2006-10-24T09:30:00.000-05:00

Am I just in the right place at the right time or what? In the last week I have probably picked up at least 5 or 6 coins just left on the ground. I still get excited to find money on the ground! I pick it up every time I see one. Many people will never stoop down to pick one up. Maybe it's because the value of a penny, nickel, dime or even a quarter has gone down so much. Some people throw coins on the ground. I wasn't able to finish this Blog in one sitting so I went out to lunch and on my walk to the car I found a quarter. I couldn't believe it. I was just writing about finding coins and I found one. Then I also thought that maybe I just keep dropping coins and I find them. When I was a kid there was such a thing as penny candy. For 25 cents you could have a load of candy enough to make you sick. Today it can't even get you a pack of gum. I wonder how much money I've collected over the years? This reminds me of the story in the Bible where the woman can't find her valuable coin. She turns everything upside down in order to find it. When she finds it she celebrates BIG TIME! That's a great picture of the Lord. He desperately wants to find us in a right relationship with Him. He wants it so desperately that He puts His Spirit in people so that they do incredibly unselfish things for the good of others. I believe they do it, because the wants all people to come to Him! Last Sunday our Pastor told us of the awesome acts of forgiveness that the Amish community in Lancaster Pennsylvania extended to the family of the murderer of the little girls in the that small school. They even set up a college fund for the children of the murderer. They also visited the widow of the murderer WOW! When asked why they forgave they said the line from the Lord's prayer about forgiving others as we have been forgiven by the Lord. If you are wandering away from the Lord or have never come to meet Jesus as your Savior & Lord you should do so today. Just ask for forgiveness for all of your sin and ask Him to lead your life instead of you. When you do there'll be a big party in heaven with angels as they celebrate the finding of a lost soul!

Adios Audio Adrenaline

2006-10-16T10:37:00.000-05:00

Adios Audio Adrenaline! Another one of my favorite bands of all time is about to call it quits. When I started in full time youth ministry they came out with their hit song “Big House”. I remember learning that song and playing it at First Baptist Church in Marshalltown Iowa. When I heard that fun song it made me think of some friends that have recently gone to heaven to be with Jesus. My college roommate Sam Ost died a couple of weeks ago and Scott Nisely from Marshalltown who served in Iraq died in the last few weeks too. I served with Scott in both the youth ministry & worship team ministry. He always had a smile, a funny comment & a great demeanor! Both Sam & Scott are probably living in a mansion right now and living with incredible joy that we can’t understand here on earth! Back to the concert! I was so excited to see Audio A. again. They started with Clap Your Hands. A couple of
memories that I have from the concert was when Mark Stuart was out in the crowd singing Big House. I think he’s probably done that a few thousand times. I also remember them singing their new song “Goodbye” which was written to say goodbye to their fans. Another era has passed for me since they are breaking up! I tried to savor that concert like I’m savoring each moment in life now! Life is too short not to do so! I really have appreciated this band, because they have been open about who they are as Christians! Their music has ministered & reached out to many people over the years! Audio Adrenaline you have ministered to me and my family over the years! Thank YOU! And Adios Audio A.

That maze was simply aMaZiNg! You won't believe what I didn't know!

2006-10-09T09:04:00.000-05:00

Last night we went to the Hardy's Reindeer Ranch in Rantoul. First of all, I have to admit something! Until I went to the Reindeer Ranch about 2 or 3 years ago I didn't know that Reindeer really existed. No one ever told or taught me that they were real. I just thought of them as fictional characters like Rudolph etc. I couldn't believe that I had not known such a simple fact for 40 years! WoW! I wonder what else don't know that I should know! Now, back to last night. We went into the huge corn maze shaped in a pirate ship with a skull in it or something like that. For me and most of the people in it we couldn't tell at all where we were once you were further away from the entrance. The funny thing is that I got out, because it was almost time to go, then I realized that the youngest group (including my youngest daughter wasn't out yet) so I went back in to find them so the group could leave. Once we found them we started going back towards the way that I went out last time.
It took several wrong turns and a little help by the workers to finally get out for good! This all has made me think of life and how it is like a maze and how we need each other! This is another thing that I've come to know more fully through the years is our need as Christians for other Christians! Sometimes we need a group of people to enjoy going through life. In the maze I was a group of 4 others (Sarah, Jenn, Kristen & Jordan) for a while and we had so much fun scaring each, scaring others, singing "We are the Pirates who don't do anything....." and running through the maze with our lights held high just for the fun of it! We also NEED others to show us the way ! Today it seems like everyone likes to be on their own to make decisions whether they are right or wrong, good or bad. That's foolish to live life that way! We need each other in the family of God! We all need encouragement, friendship and direction!

Legacy of my good friendSam!

2006-10-02T12:18:00.000-05:00

Last week I received a call that I had been expecting for some time. It was the phone call to let me know that my friend Sam had passed away after battling M.S. for many years. Sam was my first college roommate at Judson College. It would seem like it was just a random pick by someone at Judson to put us together, but I know better now! He has been a lifelong friend. My two other college roommates also flew down to Texas from Ohio & Iowa for his funeral last Wednesday. The four of us have been the kind of friends that could always pick up just where we left off even if we hadn't seen each other in a long time. The jokes, memories & teasing instantly resurfaced whenever we got together. Last Tuesday was a night that I'll never forget. It was Sam's memorial service. It lasted two hours and was full of worship, a slideshow & 10 people standing up and telling about Sam & their relationship with him. Each person made you laugh & cry before they were done. You also thought that the next person could never be as meaningful & fun as the last one, but it seemed like it just kept picking up steam as each person spoke. There were hundreds of people there to pay tribute to Sam. It made me (and probably a lot of others) think about what if any positive impact that I'm making on other people for the Lord's sake! I've learned many things from Sam. It was said that he never put anyone on a black list (where he'd hold a grudge or give up on someone). Most everyone also said that Sam was very competitive. Those two things came true in my first week of school at Judson. We were playing basketball and he threw the ball toward me real hard and I thought we were going to fight. We were nose to nose ready to go at it until our other roommate Bosco broke us up. I thought "oh great my roommate & I can't even get along and this isn't going to work out". Later that night there was big bonfire the freshmen week and Sam came over to me and apologized. We honestly never had a fight or argument that I can remember after that incidenet. We even played a lot basketball throughout the years and never got into it again like that first week of school. Different people said that Sam helped them follow the Lord. One young man said that Sam was his spiritual father. Sam also said things like God is good all of the time! WoW!! What a legacy!
I'm thankful to God for upclose view for a Legacy like Sam!

What a Disappointment....... But What a Blessing!

2006-05-16T14:45:00.000-05:00

We worked for months on the Youth event for the community. We had a great youth speaker in Ryan Dobson coming as well as the Vineyard worship band, Meadowbrook youth, and The Lyrical Miracle hip hop artist all lined up for a great night. It seemed like every day for a couple months beforehand I was talking to people about this great event that was coming. The evening before we were at the AGAPE Festival listening to great Christian music. I was getting real hungry and decided to have some tacos in a bag. Those might be the last tacos in a bag I ever eat. I ended up on the bathroom floor at 2:00 a.m. throwing up those tacos and ...... well you get the idea. At 7:00 in the morning I called our Pastor and told that I didnt' think that I could lead worship that morning, but I would try to come if possible. Every time that I tried to get out of bed I felt like I was going to get sick. I ended missing that morning and thought I'd try to be well enough to go at night. The weather was looking questionable and finally about 6:00 p.m. the weather people called off the warnings. I thought that I should call Pam and tell her to tell everyone that it would be ok, but I fell asleep. I woke up at 7:00 p.m and I felt different. I knew my fever was gone so I threw on my pants, sweatshirt, coat & hat and drove to the church. I thought that I'd at least see the parking lot or look in from the back. As I drove up to the church I noticed that they propped the doors open to cool it off so I parked and walked up to the door. I got to hear most of Ryan's talk. He even mentioned my name and I wanted to say here I am, but knew that that would only distract people and take away from the impact of his talk. I was bummed out that I couldn't fully enjoy the special day with Ryan which would have included lunch, but I was ok with it. I heard from so many people that were blessed during that day!

Still Pumpkin Growing

2006-04-18T13:20:00.000-05:00

Yes, I'm still growing my pumpkin indoors. I was so excited, because two flowers bloomed at the same time. Remember these flowers basically only bloom for one morning and then kinda dies. We are making plans to transfer it outside in the next few weeks as the weather stays nice. I think that I've come to a conclusion. I'm a closet Hortorculturalist (I'm not sure of the spelling and I can hardly pronounce that word)! I'm also growing something else in my backward that I'll take a picture of and tell you about sometime.

Bowling

2006-04-11T09:54:00.000-05:00

We had a great time bowling with the high school group last Sunday! With Jennifer E. and her feast or famine approach (getting a strike, spare or a zero). With trick shots like the super hook from Dan or changing our names on the scoreboard with names like the Classic Emo Man and the Antiredneck. I was also thinking about how many people that I've bowled with in my life. When I was a little kid bowling with my childhood bestfriend Albert to my first real date with Pam to bowling with youth.
Think of all of the moments that we have in life to build into other people. There are many opportunities and we have a choice at each time to build, do nothing or tear down. I hope that I can build into people's lives even more so than people have built into my life! Just think what our churches would be like if we all did that? What would our community be like? WOW!!! I better get going!!!

How Ironic? Tornadoes & No Fear!

2006-04-04T15:50:00.000-05:00

Last Sunday night was one of the nights that you just can't plan for very well. The topic was supposed to be "No Fear". Yet we never got into much after a few games & 2 songs. Then someone informed us that the warning sirens were going off. We took cover in the locker rooms. The high school was in one & the middle school was in the other. I was with the high school group most of the time. It actually turned out to be kind of fun. I had my guitar so we sang a few songs, then Matt Owens played some songs that he knew. Then Eric Hirschi and I made up a song. We also ate our snack for the night (ice cream) in the locker room. People were taking photos with their cell phones and it was strangely fun! I wish I had one of the pictures. If someone has one I wish they'd send it to me. In the midst of the storm we could trust in the Lord even though the skylight window on the roof sounded like it could be ripped off at any moment! The no fear theme reminds me that Perfect love casts out fear!

Heaven or Harvard?

2006-03-27T12:38:00.000-06:00

Back when Pam & I served at a Korean church one of the youth leaders who was a college student challenged the parents of youth & children at a family retreat.
He challenged the notion that the most important thing in life for parents was getting children into the best acedemic institution like Harvard, MIT etc. To make heaven the ultimate goal of their children's lives was supposed to be the most importatnt thing and not anything else. Now, we're parents of a teen & pre-teen and we see the temptations out there! It's tempting to do very good things and not put Jesus as both our priority and our children's priority. In our society, it's things like sports, theatre, acedemics, friendships etc. It's easy to get our priorities out of whack when society keeps pushing. Our schools, teams, groups can demand incredible amounts of time from us & our kids and we give it to them. We'll go to great lengths and sacrifice many other things that are even more beneficial. The sad part is that most of the time our kids won't even continue in the things that we sold out to for some years! Not many people get to make it big in sports, theatre etc. In the meantime church, youth group small groups & Bible Study have become an occasional option rather than the priority. These things are designed to deepen our relationship with God and we put them on the back burner for when the time is right. I think our friend had it right when he asked a group of parents "is it more important that your kids are in Harvard or heaven"? It's kind of like what the scripture that says "What good will it be if we gain the whole world yet forfeit our souls?" Matthew 16:26

Why grow a pumpkin in the winter?

2006-03-08T12:27:00.000-06:00

Last October Leslee and I were cleaning out her pumpkin to get ready to carve a cool face on it when we noticed something that we hadn't seen before. We found a pumpkin seed that was already starting to grow. We thought it would be cool if we took this seed and actually grew a pumpkin inside this winter. Would it really grow inside? If it did, when would the pumpkin be full grown? Hmmm... It's strange, but Leslee and I have been growing our pumpkin inside and it actually is blooming and stuff. We keep hoping for spring to come soon so we can transfer it outside so it doesn't die due to lack of soil. When the flowers bloom it only does so for a day or so and then it's gone. So when the next flower was blooming I had take picture of it since I missed the last one thinking it would last longer than it did. It reminds me of the Bible verse that says "All people are like grass, and all their glory is like the flowers of the field; the grass withers and the flowers fall, but the word of the Lord stands forever." It makes me want to make sure that I'm doing things in my life that will last! Most things don't last long so we need to build our lives around what God says we need to do in His word!

Thank God for FCA!

2006-03-02T13:50:00.000-06:00

I thank God for FCA (The Fellowship of Christian Athletes)! Six FCAers came to 24/7 from the U of I last Sunday. It was a great time with them! As they talked about their lives and their faith I was thankful for their striving to live for Christ. Those athletes have a platform to share Christ with others in a way that we can't. I also thought about where God has placed each one of us. He has placed us in a place where we can influence others for Christ that people like those athletes can't. So we all have a mission in which in serve God!

I'm Open and REALLY COLD!

2006-02-21T14:41:00.000-06:00

This past weekend our high school group went up to Timber-lee in East Troy Wisconsin for the WinterXtreme. Man alive it was EXTEMELY cold! I guess that's the point of an event called WinterXtreme, but I've never been on any Winter trip when it was that cold! After a game of Squamish (a game kind of like soccer and American football) it took hours to get rid of the red color in my cheeks! Even though it was below zero for some of the weekend our group had an awesome time! I saw hundreds of high school youth and their leaders come closer to God! One of our youth said that this what he's been craving! That is so cool! When people crave God! People all around us (and ourselves) crave things to fill or fulfill us yet nothing truly does except for Jesus! When we open ourselves to God He's always there. Matter of fact He never moved. We are the ones who always move away from God! That's what I really love about God. He's always right there waiting for us to come to Him, becuase He's already come to us! We just have to be open even if it is REALLY COLD!

Is Silence REALLY Golden Anymore?

2006-02-15T14:39:00.000-06:00

Last Sunday night at our 24/7 youth ministry we had a lesson on silence. Hmmmm....
Seems strange!!! We watched a Rob Bell (Nooma) video. After just a couple minutes of him talking about our noisy and busy world the screen went black. The youth were restless and started getting noisy. Then words popped up on the screen. They had to read it out loud and answer the questions. Others had to make noise by tapping or some other way. It's amazing how much we probably need silence and time with God, but hardly ever get it. We say we want to hear God and follow, but hardly ever put ourselves into the right position to hear Him speak to our hearts and minds.
Whenever I have quiet time with God I always come away feeling better, less rushed, more confident and more peaceful. Why wouldn't I want more and more time like that?
I too, get rushed and run by my schedule and the tyranny of the urgent. I'm trying not to let those things run my life anymore!

A new baby & "The Bus"

2006-02-06T09:28:00.000-06:00

Last week I held our friends' (Matt & Heidi) new baby! James Paul Eckhardt was only two and a half days old. What an awesome feeling it is to hold a new born baby! It makes you feel all gushy inside! The look on Matt & Heidi's face was so cool too! They are so excited and have been waiting a long time for their baby! I recently saw some video clips where some parents baptized their children. One dad spoke (and choked) as he told his daughter that he was there when she was born into this world and also when she entered the kingdom of God as she asked Christ to come live in her! That's worth livin' for! Seeing people enter the kingdom of God! We chase after so much stuff that is so temporary and unfulfilling for the long run!

The Super Bowl last night was cool, because I wanted the Steelers to win. I'm a Bears fan and you know how often they are in the Super Bowl, so I usually pick a team to root for so I can enjoy it more! I wanted the Steelers to win for the "Bus".
Jerome Bettis who people call "The Bus" retired after the game. He's called "The Bus", because it's so hard to stop a 5 foot 10 inch 255 pound bus running quickly at you. He usually runs people over! I wish we could all have that kind of ending to our careers or life. It's so dramatic and ideal. When we stop and think about it we can have a great ending to our lives, or should I say a new beginning? When we live our lives for Jesus and we stand before God one day we hope to hear the words "Well done my good & faithful servant"! Now that's worth livin' for!