The Road Less Traveled

It Won't Be Like This For Long

Last night my daughter asked me to go jogging with her. (Now you need to know I don't like to run. I enjoy Basketball or other team sports, but running...boring) However, my daughter (11) asked me to run with her. So I proceeded to change and get ready to run, honestly, not to excited about it.

As we started to run, I found that she has this long stride, nearly as long as mine and I'm 6' 3"! So as we jogged we talked. We talked about a lot of different things... and we laughed...and we laughed. Sometimes we had to stop running and walk because we were laughing so much.

This run was good for the heart... in more ways than one. Then as I came in because she went over to her friends house, I thought to myself, "These are rich moments." I felt good about running and I felt good about spending time with my daughter.

Darius Rucker has a song called "It Won't Be Like This For Long." I think it says it all, especially the last few  lines. Listen for yourself please...

Please spend time with your kids. It does a heart good.

Church, Daddy, Church

Lately I have been taking Erik, 2 years old, to his home daycare each morning as usual, however, when we get in the car, he wants to go to church. "Church, daddy, church." Even sometimes when we put his coat on in the house, he wants to go to church. Not only does he want to go, he gets mad if we are driving the opposite direction. He knows the way to church and he loves to go to church. I know it won't always be this way, but it is a blessing to hear.

 O LORD, I love the habitation of your house and the place where your glory dwells. (Psa 26:8 ESV)

Back Surgery Goes Well - All A Blessing

My back surgery on my L5 - S1 Disc in my spine went very well on Feb. 4th. I am back home now and recovering. It will be a little while till I will before I am back to full swing, especially since I cannot sit, but only stand or recline for a week or so. (Praise the Lord for laptops!) Rather strange not to be able to sit.

These great words from Scripture, from St. Paul, sum up best what I believe and have been blessed to have a better grasp on:

"3 Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort,  4 who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves have received from God.  5 For just as the sufferings of Christ flow over into our lives, so also through Christ our comfort overflows.  6 If we are distressed, it is for your comfort and salvation; if we are comforted, it is for your comfort, which produces in you patient endurance of the same sufferings we suffer.  7 And our hope for you is firm, because we know that just as you share in our sufferings, so also you share in our comfort." 2 Corinthians 1:3-7 This is the power of Christ and the power of the vacant cross and the empty tomb.

I truly feel this entire trouble has been a blessing and comfort on many different personal levels:

• The Lord has used me in way I would not have expected. I got to connect with different people around the community that I would not have without these herniated discs. The Lord has given me opportunities to share Christ and his hope, truly a gift.
• The Lord has shown me what others are going through with chronic pain. I am very, very thankful for the blessing of being able to have the surgery and have the pain removed after months, but there are others who go sun up to sun down dealing with pain. I pray that I have a better understanding as a pastor to walk with them in their pain and lead them to the power of the cross. (Rom. 8:16-17)
• This was my first surgical experience. I have spent countless hours beside others beds before and after surgery, but I am thankful that God has allowed me to step into their shoes, even if if it is only a moment and something relatively minor. 
• The Lord has shown me things that I would have never imagined from the outset. For example, I felt like I had joined a new "club." The "Those Who Have had Back Surgery Club." I have been blessed with another wonderful connection with so many members as they have shared their stories of back surgery, pain, and recovery, stories of success and failure, but in all great stories of God's hand at work in their lives. This has truly been and unexpected blessing.
• The Prayers, and the prayers and the prayers. Prayer brings God's children closer together, and the family of OSL and others who have prayed for me that I know from around Michigan and the country has lifted me up. I can tell you that one can feel the power of prayer from God's children. (James 5:15-16)
• Another wonderful blessing has been that the Lord has afforded me more prayer time of my own. Many, many late nights of pain without sleep where the TV is off and the pain killers make it difficult to read and concentrate, prayer is the perfect calm. (Ps. 17:6)
• Appreciation for the smaller things in life, like just sleeping in your own bed. There was a period of about 2 months or so where I had not been able to sleep in my bed. I had spent all that time sleeping down stairs on the couch. Believe it or not is was just painful to sleep in the bed and the couch seemed to ease the pain. So I would kiss Joann good night. (Joann however got the whole bed to herself. Well, honey I'm back, sorry.) 
• Most importantly, of all the blessings from God throughout this, is that God has reminded me to see the cross in the midst of my suffering. We are not to run from our pain but to see Christ right in the middle of it with us.  It is not an easy thing to do, but Christ promises to be with us in the midst of suffering and pain and quiet frankly, he often uses it to draw us closer to Him. In that we give thanks. (1 Thess. 5:16-18)

I want to thank everyone for the outpouring of love and support throughout this. There will be many weeks ahead of continued therapy and taking it easy, but patience is another one of those Spiritual Gifts that God is using this situation to teach me. And I know I need to thank him for that also. I would like to leave you with my favorite Bible verse, one that is also my Confirmation Verse. I pray that if you are going through pain, or surgery or a situation in your life that this verse may be an encouragement to you as it has been for me over the years.

  May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit. Romans 15:13 

God's Todo List or My Todo List

"For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways," declares the LORD. (Isa 55:8 NIV)

            How true this is and how evident this has been lately in my life. One week I had three funerals for three wonderful men of God. Were any of these on my schedule or my to-do list? No? Did I see the funerals coming? One possibly. The weekly schedule of a pastor is filled with the unexpected. I like to reflect at the end of a week and look back on God’s weekly planner as opposed to my weekly calendar and see what He had in store for me so that I might grow as a Christian, minister to families or individuals, and mourn with those who mourn and rejoice with those who rejoice (Rom. 12:4).

            His to-do list for me is far beyond my thoughts and well beyond my ways. The struggle sometimes is to let him in to my schedule. I have things I need to do. I have things that have to be accomplished. I have reports that have to be done and meetings to prepare for. And just when my day or week gets behind, God brings someone or a situation forward that redirects me away from myself and what I have to do, to what He needs me to do.

            So after the week of funerals, comforting families and sharing the hope of the Resurrection, the Lord finds a new way to rearrange my schedule. I get a call from a friend working with a ministry that shares God’s word with international students to ask me if I would be willing to do a Baptism for someone before they return to their home country. So it is off to East Lansing, MSU campus. Then… I receive a call from one of our parents in our Kindergarten who would like to have her daughter Baptized before they move away the following week to another part of the country. We schedule a Baptism for that week during the school day so her friends can be a part of this glorious event. Then… another one of our school students, a fourth grader, wants to be Baptized and after talking with family and classmates, he will be Baptized that next Sunday, with his classmates a part of this event, sharing in the joy with him.

            And so another week goes by, this time with three Baptisms, and my to-do list is still there. Programs still have to be worked on, etc.; but God reminds me again that He has a to-do list for me also, His to-do list. And as I reach the end of another week, I see that God has His ways, and I had my ways. He is still reminding me that He is in charge and that the work of a pastor, of a church, doesn’t lie in the business of running a church, but in having a church running to do His business. And His business is to Baptize and make disciples. I pray that you are reminded daily that God is in charge and that you find peace and comfort in knowing that His thoughts are not ours, and His ways are not our ways. May we make our thoughts His, our ways His, and our very lives His. Here’s to your day, week, month, given over to Christ, the One who gave to us first.

Baptism joy with Kindergarten Class

What a joy to Baptize another child of God at Our Savior Lutheran Church and School, Lansing, MI. Akolde is moving south and we will miss her, but before she leaves, her kindergarten class joyed with her mom, sister, parents and our principal as we all got to be a part of this wonderful work of God.

The kindergarten children sat on the floor around the Baptismal font and listened to the words of Matt. 28:18-20. And they participated by saying the Lord's Prayer with me. As those five year old children began to say the Lord's Prayer, I have to admit I was overcome by a wave of emotion. The beautiful sound of these precious children sending this prayer up to Jesus brought a tear to my eye. It may very well be one of the most beautiful sounds that I have ever heard.

We rejoice with all of heaven over one and pray that as she moves south she always remember the promise given to her by her Lord and Savior, "I am with you always." 

Jesus Carries Erik Through Surgery

We had just come back from vacation. While we weren't dreading returning to Lansing or returning to work, we were dreading the impending surgery on our "little man," Erik, who is 18 months. He needed to have a procedure on a hernia and possibly two the day after we returned from vacation. So Thursday we took him into Sparrow Hospital for his surgery at 12:30 pm, only after he couldn't eat since the night before. Ever try to keep an 18 month old from eating or drinking anything after he wakes up? (He did pretty well though.)

The worst for us was yet to come. They got him his little gown, quite cute honestly with little spaceships on it. Mom already needed a few tissues, so daddy went in to change into the scrubs because one parent had to go into the operating room with the child to help him go under the anesthetic. The doctor came and talked to us about the procedure and was wonderful with us explaining everything including the way Erik was going to be after he was put under. "It is not like he is sleeping. It is quite different, so don't be alarmed." I appreciated greatly the "heads up," but I have to be honest, it was still frightening to see him look so lifeless.

After a time waiting, around 12:30 pm I carried him into a very brightly lit room with 6 other people in scrubs waiting to attend my son. Then another two came in. It They had me sit with him in a chair and hold him while they prepared the anesthetic. The doctors, nurses, and addendants were wonderful. One kept him distracted while they began. The doctor drew a dog on a bag attached to the machine. When it was blow up with air, Erik would be out.

Well, as you can guess, he did not like the mask being placed over his face. He had been great up until this point. I recall the doctor saying, "Man this kid is strong." After about four breaths or so, he was out. He was limp in my arms. The doctor told me to place him on the surgical bed. And when I did he just laid there, not like a sleep, but different. The only thing  I ever saw like it was when I sat next to a small child lying dead in the middle of a highway, but that is a story for another time. 

The doctor took off the mask and there he lay. He told me I could give him a kiss before I left. As I leaned over I kissed his little forehead and whispered in his ear, "The Lord bless you and keep you." I wanted my little man to know that Jesus was watching over him. Then my head pulled away and small tear dropped to his little forehead. As I walked away it occurred to me that I l was leaving my little boy to a bunch of strangers.

For those who do not believe in God, or that Jesus holds the little ones close to him, I feel very sorry for you, for that waiting room would seem awfully lonely.

Now, I know there are many parents there who have had there children undergo more series surgeries and procedures. But it is still difficult. We had been at the hospital before with Erik for heart issues and even life threatening RSV at 7 weeks old. This was different.

I recall the doctor telling us that he will not remember this experience in the hospital. I wish he would have told me that I would forget the experience.

About an hour or so later, the doctor came out and said that everything went fine. Erik did not wake up very happy though, but by the next morning he was his normal, run around, get into things he is not suposed to, self.

I found that I needed to write this, not only to share an experience with you, but to help me express the emotions of going through this. I thank the Lord for a wonderful wife, a bright daughter, a strong little boy, and a faith in Christ that holds us all together.

 Cast your cares on the LORD and he will sustain you; (Psa 55:22 NIV)

Getting Excited About the New Year

It is summer I know. People like to kick back, relax,watch some baseball, enjoy the outside. This certainly describes our family. (After this winter I never thought I would crank up the lawn mower!) But... summer is also a chance to start planning for the new year beginning in September (OK, late August). I am soooooo excited about the plans that are taking shape for our TLC (Small group ministry), our Adult Bible Classes, our new Confirmation class, new tweaks to encourage and build the family(think marriages and parenting) for the 09-10 year, the exciting additions to our our PSI (Public School Instruction) Confirmation classes, the continued growth of our Family Care Groups as we continue to grow closer to Christ and one another, as well our School Chapel Schedule that is shaping up to be filled with some wonderful people coming to share Christ with the children and in the fall the return of the Minstry Fair. This is just the tip of the iceberg. Trust me!

I enjoy the summer because it does give one time to look back over the year, evaluate, refocus and renew. But it also gets me reved up (excited) for the next year because I love to plan ahead. I pray that you are enjoying your summer. Relax now...because once September hits we are going to "kick it up a notch!"

5min's Smart Player - Ministry Tool

More DIY videos at 5min.com

How awesome would this tool be for sermons or Bible Classes? You could post the information, add extra links for more research, links for scripture passages, the sermon notes, the powerpoint screens that went with the sermons or class, etc., etc. Could be an incredible tool for posting sermons. Yes, drawbacks include equipment to produce a quality video experience, time to get all this put together and the person/persons to do it, but I know it could be AWESOME! Technology like this could really bring the Word of God right home to people. If your church is using seomthing like this, please let me know how you do it and how it is working. It definately has some real ministry potential.

If you know of another service like this let me know. We always need to keep our eyes open for ways to share the faith, spread the Gospel, and empower people with the Word. 

  5 For this very reason, make every effort to add to your faith goodness; and to goodness, knowledge;... 8 For if you possess these qualities in increasing measure, they will keep you from being ineffective and unproductive in your knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. 2  Peter 1:5,8

Regina Spektor - Laughing With

What do you Regina is telling us?

Youngest Preacher

Future pastor. "Little Man" was practicing his sermon after confirmation rehearsal on Wed. May 13th. 

Translation:
Erik: "BBBB Bye, Bye" - Law - The wages of sin is death.

Erik: "Light" - Gospel - Jesus Christ is the light of the world.

Sermon Over! (Man, he's good! He knows other words, but he believes in preaching short sermons.)









(Pictures taken with iphone)