I traveled to Asheville this morning with Karen and Joshua to see Kristen and Marshall. It has been a while since we have made this trip, and it had been a while since we had seen Kristen and Marshall. Monday, being a day-off, seemed like the best time to go. So, mountains....here we come.
The leaves are still beautiful heading up I-40, and Joshua and Karen are having a contest to see who can get the best photo of the colors. I'm sure some of them will end up on Facebook pretty soon. After picking up Kristen, we drove on the Blue Ridge Parkway for a few hours and stopped at the over-looks for more pictures and to just look out across this massive landscape of colors. Wow, God, this is impressive!! There were quite a few people up on the Parkway doing the same "leaf-gazing" as we were, but at one point, we were the only people at an over-look. It was so quiet. No car engines running. No people talking. No dogs barking. Just silence.....and a huge, colorful masterpiece that stretched out forever.
I once studied about an artist named Kandinsky, and how he used colors to represent sounds in his paintings. Reds were like harsh, shrill sounds.....yellow was like a loud blast of sound....blues were a soothing sound. When you would look at his paintings, you would get a sense of music playing to help you appreciate his work. When I sat on the railing and looked out at this amazing piece of artistic wonder....in the silence....I was listening to the most incredible orchestra playing the most amazing symphony ever composed.
How can you not know that there is a God? Even the trees sing out with all the colorful sounds that are reserved for the ears of God. If we would just take the time to enjoy this song we call "Autumn"....
Shouldn't we be making music and singing to Him as well?
Monday, October 26, 2009
Friday, October 23, 2009
beach in October
I like to go to the beach. I'm partial to visiting the beach in the summer though; when it's good and hot with lots of chances to play in the ocean and body surf. But, this week.....I am at the beach, and it has been great. It's not crowded. I got sunburned a little on the first day. I did some fishing for the first time. Actually, I was supposed to be watching the lines, but there was a bite and I was the only one at the rod. Go figure. I got to play a round of golf with some fun people. Golf is so much better when you can laugh while you play. (Oh, I won. Best round I have shot in a long, long time) I have gotten a chance to run a few miles with Karen. I've walked the beach, looking for shark teeth and have been surprised by some sneaky waves that just jump up and get you wet....with no warning. I've been swimming in the pool and laid out in the sun. Is this really October? I have sat in a rocking chair and watched the stars at night, looking for meteors, and listening to the waves crashing.
Tonight, I get the honor of rehearsing a wedding ceremony for the daughter of some dear friends, and tomorrow I test my sea-legs as I perform the wedding ceremony on a boat. They say that it will be just a "three hour tour.....a three hour tour." Of all the great things that have been a part of this trip to the beach.....I'd have to say that I am enjoying spending time with Karen, along with some amazing friends, listening to the ocean at night, and flat out enjoying life.
Isn't that why God created all of this for us anyway?
Our loved ones, our family, our friends....all given to us by God to enjoy here, surrounded by His creation, and His presence....to remind us all of how much He loves us.
Tonight, I get the honor of rehearsing a wedding ceremony for the daughter of some dear friends, and tomorrow I test my sea-legs as I perform the wedding ceremony on a boat. They say that it will be just a "three hour tour.....a three hour tour." Of all the great things that have been a part of this trip to the beach.....I'd have to say that I am enjoying spending time with Karen, along with some amazing friends, listening to the ocean at night, and flat out enjoying life.
Isn't that why God created all of this for us anyway?
Our loved ones, our family, our friends....all given to us by God to enjoy here, surrounded by His creation, and His presence....to remind us all of how much He loves us.
Thursday, October 15, 2009
24 hours
I remember hearing once, that when the Temple was built by Solomon, that there was continuous worship. That before Solomon began the construction, his father David, had selected a group of Levites that were skilled in playing instruments and singing to be the "worship leaders" for the Temple when it was finished. I had heard that the worship was going on for 24 hours each day, every day.
Twenty-four hours!?! I mean, I like to play and sing, but twenty-four hours of playing and singing. I had always thought that maybe this was an exaggeration on the part of the people that were sharing this information with me. Maybe they were wanting to add to making the description of the Temple even more magnificent than it was; just to give us a mental picture of what was taking place then. Then, the other day I was reading in I Chronicles 25, and I came across where David had assigned singers and musicians for ministry in the Temple. There were 288 "young and old alike, teacher as well as student." They cast lots to determine, basically, when they were scheduled to play. There were 24 lots cast. 24 time slots. 24 hours in a day.
How important were the people that helped to lead worship in the Temple? How important are the people that help to lead worship here at HRCC? To me, they are very important. Not because they can sing and play, and are willing to rehearse for hours to get ready for a weekend of services. Not because they show up at least one hour before the services start, or for their willingness to learn new songs for the church to worship with, or even their understanding of changes that come about between services. What makes them so important to me, and to the church body, is the fact that God has given them all a talent and a willingness to allow God to use that talent in leading His people, the church, in worship.
I know that the people that entered the Temple in the Old Testament were surrounded by music and singing. There had to be an excitement and anticipation in the eyes of everyone that would be participating in worshipping God. I also know that when we come together on the weekend, I can sense the excitement and anticipation of worship just by looking at the faces in the room. I truly believe that it is a reflection of the same excitement and anticipation that the members of the Praise Team have as we all join as one body to worship the God that has brought us all together.
Twenty-four hours!?! I mean, I like to play and sing, but twenty-four hours of playing and singing. I had always thought that maybe this was an exaggeration on the part of the people that were sharing this information with me. Maybe they were wanting to add to making the description of the Temple even more magnificent than it was; just to give us a mental picture of what was taking place then. Then, the other day I was reading in I Chronicles 25, and I came across where David had assigned singers and musicians for ministry in the Temple. There were 288 "young and old alike, teacher as well as student." They cast lots to determine, basically, when they were scheduled to play. There were 24 lots cast. 24 time slots. 24 hours in a day.
How important were the people that helped to lead worship in the Temple? How important are the people that help to lead worship here at HRCC? To me, they are very important. Not because they can sing and play, and are willing to rehearse for hours to get ready for a weekend of services. Not because they show up at least one hour before the services start, or for their willingness to learn new songs for the church to worship with, or even their understanding of changes that come about between services. What makes them so important to me, and to the church body, is the fact that God has given them all a talent and a willingness to allow God to use that talent in leading His people, the church, in worship.
I know that the people that entered the Temple in the Old Testament were surrounded by music and singing. There had to be an excitement and anticipation in the eyes of everyone that would be participating in worshipping God. I also know that when we come together on the weekend, I can sense the excitement and anticipation of worship just by looking at the faces in the room. I truly believe that it is a reflection of the same excitement and anticipation that the members of the Praise Team have as we all join as one body to worship the God that has brought us all together.
Wednesday, September 30, 2009
september what?
This is the last day of September?!? Are you kidding me?!? I haven't blogged in 50 days?!?
That's right. I was sitting here at my desk reading, answering a few phone calls, and doodling on my desk calendar when I realized that September had just shot past me and now I am looking at October being here in less that 13 hours. What has happened?
It seems like the last thing I remember was being at the beach with my family, and now....leaves are beginning to turn and fall. The scriptures are so right. Our life is but a vapor. We really aren't here long at all. I guess when we think about our life as a brief moment in time, we start to understand the urgency in which we do things. Everything seems to revolve around a drive-thru mentality.....and we have become accustomed to it. The quicker...the better. Even if it isn't any quicker, we tend to think that it is. I mean, does the addition of a second window at any fast-food place get you your meal any quicker?
And now, we look at a desk calendar and think that September just shifted into a hyper-month, and we feel like we missed thirty days of our life. Thirty days.....that if we would stop for a minute....and write down everything that happened in those thirty days (in the blocks on the calendar), is it not possible that in these thirty days, we would be reminded of all that God has done in our lives. I don't mean the big, noticeable things that have made an impact on us. Those are amazing in their own right. But, I am talking about remembering those little things; those quiet times when God was close and you could sense it. Maybe it was in the rain; or a sunrise; a sunset; a full moon; a song; a passage of scripture that came to mind when you needed it most; a card in the mail; a phone call from a friend. It may not always be something good that we remember, but the reality is that we need to focus on each day that we have been given and not let it slip away without being a part of it.
So, if you'll excuse me......I need to fill in some blocks on my desk calendar.
That's right. I was sitting here at my desk reading, answering a few phone calls, and doodling on my desk calendar when I realized that September had just shot past me and now I am looking at October being here in less that 13 hours. What has happened?
It seems like the last thing I remember was being at the beach with my family, and now....leaves are beginning to turn and fall. The scriptures are so right. Our life is but a vapor. We really aren't here long at all. I guess when we think about our life as a brief moment in time, we start to understand the urgency in which we do things. Everything seems to revolve around a drive-thru mentality.....and we have become accustomed to it. The quicker...the better. Even if it isn't any quicker, we tend to think that it is. I mean, does the addition of a second window at any fast-food place get you your meal any quicker?
And now, we look at a desk calendar and think that September just shifted into a hyper-month, and we feel like we missed thirty days of our life. Thirty days.....that if we would stop for a minute....and write down everything that happened in those thirty days (in the blocks on the calendar), is it not possible that in these thirty days, we would be reminded of all that God has done in our lives. I don't mean the big, noticeable things that have made an impact on us. Those are amazing in their own right. But, I am talking about remembering those little things; those quiet times when God was close and you could sense it. Maybe it was in the rain; or a sunrise; a sunset; a full moon; a song; a passage of scripture that came to mind when you needed it most; a card in the mail; a phone call from a friend. It may not always be something good that we remember, but the reality is that we need to focus on each day that we have been given and not let it slip away without being a part of it.
So, if you'll excuse me......I need to fill in some blocks on my desk calendar.
Thursday, August 20, 2009
32 years of dating
My gosh! It seems as though it was just yesterday that I was washing the old Mustang and getting it all polished up for my first date. And as the hour drew closer....the nerves began to take over. This would be my first date with Karen. Everything was gonna have to be just right. I have to be polite.....open the door for her......compliment her.......pay for the meal......and take her safely home. That doesn't sound too nerve racking does it? Oh yeah, this is a blind date.
Of course it was a blind date that changed my life forever. King of Pizza in Kannapolis became like a shrine to me. I can still see the inside of that place, and the booth that Karen and I shared with my brother and his date. Can't tell you what kind of pizza we had, but I can tell you that I sat beside of Karen. I don't know what it was, but I would try and remember everything, and every time we were together. The first movie we saw together was "Rocky"; the first Christmas we exchanged gifts (I still have the chair she gave me); my birthday gift to her (an engagement ring). Our lives have been filled with lots of "firsts"..... first kiss, first home, first child, and the list goes on and on. But, more importantly.....our lives together have been filled with dates. 32 years of dating.
One of the greatest pieces of advice that Karen and I received in pre-marriage counseling, was to continue dating. Of all the things that I have learned in 30 years of marriage, taking Karen on a date still makes my heart race just like it did 32 years ago today.
Karen.........I love you........wanna go get a pizza tonight?
Of course it was a blind date that changed my life forever. King of Pizza in Kannapolis became like a shrine to me. I can still see the inside of that place, and the booth that Karen and I shared with my brother and his date. Can't tell you what kind of pizza we had, but I can tell you that I sat beside of Karen. I don't know what it was, but I would try and remember everything, and every time we were together. The first movie we saw together was "Rocky"; the first Christmas we exchanged gifts (I still have the chair she gave me); my birthday gift to her (an engagement ring). Our lives have been filled with lots of "firsts"..... first kiss, first home, first child, and the list goes on and on. But, more importantly.....our lives together have been filled with dates. 32 years of dating.
One of the greatest pieces of advice that Karen and I received in pre-marriage counseling, was to continue dating. Of all the things that I have learned in 30 years of marriage, taking Karen on a date still makes my heart race just like it did 32 years ago today.
Karen.........I love you........wanna go get a pizza tonight?
Wednesday, August 19, 2009
play-doh
One of my favorite art classes that I took in college was in ceramics. I guess the main reason was the chance to learn how to mold clay into a piece of art. There was always a fascination at a young age with being able to make a recognizable object out of a lump of clay.....mainly play-doh. But, here was a chance to learn how to mold clay......real clay. I would even get a chance to "throw" a pot on a wheel. (That's just some artist lingo to make you think I knew what I was doing) It was thrill for me to sit at the wheel with a lump of clay in the center and using a combination of force and control to begin the process of creating a pot/vase. Whether it would have any real use would be revealed after it was fired and glazed.
I always think about that ceramics class and "throwing" pots when I read in the scriptures how we are described as clay in the hands of the potter. And, I can see how we are that lump of clay until God takes us and places us on His wheel to mold us and shape us into what He wants us to be. Just like an artist, He has a plan on what He needs to do to make us useful for Him. I know it seems like it is all up to God how this all will turn out, and in the area of art, the clay is pretty much totally controlled by the potter. Once it is on the wheel, it stays there till the potter is finished. This is where the difference is.
It takes quite a bit of force for the potter to turn a lump of clay into a piece of art. Sometimes, it takes a lot of force for God to turn us into His piece of art. The difference in us and the clay is that, when we feel like it is too much force; too hard on us; too difficult for us; too painful to bear....we choose to get off of the wheel.
Oh....for the strength to stay on the wheel and allow the Creator to finish what He has started in us; to feel His hands as they shape and mold us from the inside out; to feel His force on our lives as He lifts us higher and higher...... making us His work of art.
People will be able to look at us and know that we are His because we were willing to stay on the wheel.
I always think about that ceramics class and "throwing" pots when I read in the scriptures how we are described as clay in the hands of the potter. And, I can see how we are that lump of clay until God takes us and places us on His wheel to mold us and shape us into what He wants us to be. Just like an artist, He has a plan on what He needs to do to make us useful for Him. I know it seems like it is all up to God how this all will turn out, and in the area of art, the clay is pretty much totally controlled by the potter. Once it is on the wheel, it stays there till the potter is finished. This is where the difference is.
It takes quite a bit of force for the potter to turn a lump of clay into a piece of art. Sometimes, it takes a lot of force for God to turn us into His piece of art. The difference in us and the clay is that, when we feel like it is too much force; too hard on us; too difficult for us; too painful to bear....we choose to get off of the wheel.
Oh....for the strength to stay on the wheel and allow the Creator to finish what He has started in us; to feel His hands as they shape and mold us from the inside out; to feel His force on our lives as He lifts us higher and higher...... making us His work of art.
People will be able to look at us and know that we are His because we were willing to stay on the wheel.
Friday, August 7, 2009
others
I was reading in a book by Eric Rees the other night, and he was commenting on the Good Samaritan parable in Luke 10. I've heard about this man in messages, studied about him in Sunday School lessons, and I have even taught about him to youth at a summer camp. And, you know how, even if you are familiar with a story in the Bible, and you think you have heard every angle that could be presented on the topic......there always seems to be a new view point. That was the case in my reading.
The Good Samaritan is all about being a servant; simple as that. We are called to be servants as we follow Christ. He is our example of how we are to live our lives. I guess I just didn't consider the importance of our mind when it comes to being a servant. Most of the time...we focus on our heart and we want to have a servant's heart to help us be a servant. But, our mind? Eric Rees says that he has heard it said, "The body never goes where the mind has never been." He goes on to say that if our mind is set on serving others, then that is how we will respond to others. We need to be aware of how we can serve at all times. Serving others must be in our mind at all times.
I have come to the realization that for "serving others" to always be on our mind, then it needs to have a place of importance in our mind. If serving is something that we just think about from time to time, maybe when prompted by a message at church, or a commercial on TV, then it is not important to us. How important is serving to us? .......to me? Are we ever saddened when we can't serve someone, or miss an opportunity to serve somebody in need? Or, do we look for a reason not to serve? Does our mind start to calculate how much time this will require, or how much it my cost us?
And when that happens, we will realize what is important in our minds......our self. We become more concerned about "our" time and "our" resources (money). Where do the "others" fit into our mind? The "others" need a place of importance, and that place can only be seen as important if we have the mind of Christ; who said that He "did not come to be served, but to serve." The "others" were always on His mind. He gave His life for the "others".
That makes us all................."others".
The Good Samaritan is all about being a servant; simple as that. We are called to be servants as we follow Christ. He is our example of how we are to live our lives. I guess I just didn't consider the importance of our mind when it comes to being a servant. Most of the time...we focus on our heart and we want to have a servant's heart to help us be a servant. But, our mind? Eric Rees says that he has heard it said, "The body never goes where the mind has never been." He goes on to say that if our mind is set on serving others, then that is how we will respond to others. We need to be aware of how we can serve at all times. Serving others must be in our mind at all times.
I have come to the realization that for "serving others" to always be on our mind, then it needs to have a place of importance in our mind. If serving is something that we just think about from time to time, maybe when prompted by a message at church, or a commercial on TV, then it is not important to us. How important is serving to us? .......to me? Are we ever saddened when we can't serve someone, or miss an opportunity to serve somebody in need? Or, do we look for a reason not to serve? Does our mind start to calculate how much time this will require, or how much it my cost us?
And when that happens, we will realize what is important in our minds......our self. We become more concerned about "our" time and "our" resources (money). Where do the "others" fit into our mind? The "others" need a place of importance, and that place can only be seen as important if we have the mind of Christ; who said that He "did not come to be served, but to serve." The "others" were always on His mind. He gave His life for the "others".
That makes us all................."others".
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