Happy Birthday Mi Amor

This is to you, mi amor. I love you. Thanks for making my life so great! Thanks for providing for Amalia and me and thanks for being the best ever papi to Amalia and husband to me!!!! You are my best friend, a true man of God and the one whom I respect and look up to more than anybody else on this earth! I always think of you first when I need advice, encouragement or a shoulder to cry on. On top of all that, you have an amazing vision and dream that you are couragious enough to follow. I am so blessed.

Faith and Green Onions

Laura is one of my best friends in the world and also my hero at present. She and her husband have left their comfortable, secure lives in New Mexico and have moved to a whole new part of the country to Washington State to plant a church. It is so awesome to see their faith and hear how God is providing. I was cracking up when she wrote me this story. With her permission, I wanted to share it with you:

. . . I am searching for recipes on the internet. We are trying everything we can to save money. I am so not susie homemaker, but you would laugh at the lengths to which we are going. We are planting a garden, baking our own bread, making home made cleaning products. Oh, and the best story is when a few weeks ago I went to make some potato soup. The recipe calls for green onions. I went outside and saw where a previous tenant had planted a million green onions. I was ecstatic. I said "Craig, look, we will save so much money with all these green onions!" I cut them up and put them in our soup. It tasted a little different that night. We described it as "earthy" and "organic" but we were so proud that I had found them outside and not spent money on them. Our neighbor came over the next day and I offered her some since we have so many. Her name is Anna too. She says, "Green onion? Are you sure? You better show me what you ate." She pulled some up and we all died laughing when she let me know that I had picked and cut up garlic bulbs that hadn't matured, and wouldn't mature until July. Um, yeah. I won't be throwing random vegetables from our yard into our food without confirmation of what they are anymore. Hope that makes you smile. . .

Thanks Coach!!

I was recently reminded in 1 Thess. that I should remember to thank those in my life past or present who have encouraged and influenced me for Christ. Then I was given the opportunity when I heard my college soccer coach was being inducted into the National Christian College Athletic Association Hall of Fame. Here is what I wrote to be included in a book given to him at the ceremony:

When I heard you were being inducted into the NCCAA Hall of Fame, I could not think of a more deserving person. Having you as a coach during my 4 years of college soccer as well as working at summer soccer camps at BBC were some of the best times and my most cherished memories. I do not even know how to begin to thank you. Above all, thank you for being faithful to Jesus Christ in everything because through you, I learned more about Him. You always kept our team focused on glorifying God with our lives and through soccer, taught us the essential life lessons of perseverance, endurance, joy, the value of teamwork, etc. I have fond memories of summer soccer camp, pre-season team-building trips (remember the white water rapids trip that turned out to be more like the brown water floating trip in 1998?), bus rides (at times, keeping you awake and praying the bus would make it and driving past the thriving metropolis of Turbotville), championship games and indoor soccer in the winter. I have fond memories of all the wonderfully grueling morning runs (rain or shine . . . or snow!) always in your excessively chipper morning fashion. I came to love those morning runs, and I still jog in the mornings, but it is not nearly as fun without you and the rest of the team. You were somehow always able to work us extremely hard and yet we would have a blast doing it. Actually, I had so much fun that I kept on playing and coaching and I now direct a girls’ soccer program at a soccer club in my area.
Also, I could not thank you without also thanking Mrs. Davis for all the sacrifice, love and support she gave which enabled you to be so great. As time passes, I realize more and more what an amazing blessing and honor it was to be part of your team. I also realize that I am just one of many who could say the same. You have made a huge impact and have left quite a legacy. Thanks Coach and congratulations!!!

Pink Umbrella

This is my conversation with my 2 year old, Amalia this morning while I was getting her dressed.

Amalia: Mommy, its raining outside.
Me: Yes, you're right.
Amalia: We'll need an umbrella.
Me: OK, we'll use an umbrella today.
Amalia: Yes, we need to use an umbrella today.
Me: OK
Amalia: Mommy, I need my own umbrella. I would like a pink one.
Me: But we already have umbrellas.
Amalia: No, I want my own umbrella. I want a pink one.
Me: OK well, we'll see.
Amalia: But mommy, I need an umbrella . . . can I have some apple juice?

Learning Patience

Today Amalia was with Nana and she came into the kitchen and asked Nana if she could have some chocolate covered cherries (an indulgence only nana's can get away with). Nana was busy cooking and said, "Nana is busy cooking at the moment, but I'll get you some in a few minutes. Just be patient and wait." Amalia seemed to be ok with this and went back in the living room. Well, Nana accidentally forgot all about the chocolate covered cherries and about 15 minutes later, Amalia comes back into the kitchen doorway with arms crossed and foot stamping and says, "I'm waiting, I'm patient." Of course, Nana just starts cracking up and Amalia got her cherries!

Searching for Significance

I've been having significance issues lately and I've been doing all kinds of things to try to fix the problem. I've been praying for direction and clarity, I've been trying to get more involved at church, I've been thinking through career paths, I've been looking at grad schools and then prayed some more and all I got was a bunch of road blocks and one answer from God, "Spend more time with me." This was NOT the answer I had in mind. So I completely ignored God and kept striving on my own (*side note: As I look back over all the wonderful things in my life, I have never had to strive for any of them, so what made me think I would need to start now?). And again, all I got was more road blocks and one answer from God, "Spend more time with me." This whole "ignoring God" thing went on for a while and the frustration mounted. I have even lost sleep over this. I kind of thought God's answer was beside the point, but in my heart I knew that it WAS the point. So recently I have given in to God and started spending more time with him and all the sudden I have more direction and peace than I've had for months! Then I came across John 12:43,

For they loved praise from men more than praise from God.

And it hit me that my striving was due to my perceived need for praise from people. Erwin McManus in "Wide Awake" says it like this:

God glorifies himself and finds the greatest honor from our lives when we are willing to fail in the eyes of others simply by doing what is right even if it means losing our perceived value in the world. Faith is not measured by success . . . would you choose success in the eyes of others or failure that brings your life its greatest meaning? Sometimes we hesitate to choose the more difficult path even when we know it leads us to the life we were born to live.

I was searching for significance in all the wrong places. In short, significance and success defined by our culture is vain and empty. It will neither satisfy nor give us the peace that we are all looking for. But Christ will. It is such a huge relief to not be under the pressure of the world. This song by Tenth Avenue North says it well and brings me to tears when I hear it.

On Discipline

Ok, now I really am on my little soapbox, but I have been thinking on this lately. I believe children are a wonderful gift from God, but also a great responsibility entrusted to us who require A LOT of time and energy. That said, the longer I have been a parent, the more I realize that you cannot be lazy and be a good parent. I see so many children who are terrors and it weighs heavy on me. I am sad for the children much more than I am sad for their parents. They are not going to be able to live life to its fullest if they are focused only on themselves. Discipline is not a way of controlling a child so parents can have an easier life, it is setting our precious gifts from God up for success in life. All of life is about serving others and when children are taught that they are the center of the universe and parents and others are there to serve them, they will be rudely awakened when they get older and enter the workforce, and it will be painful for them. I discipline because I love my daughter intensely. I want to set her up with truth and character. Cute little sins now turn into big ugly ones later and it is much easier for her to learn the lessons now. But my aim is not to change outward actions (that is just legalism). My aim is her heart. Sorry to get all preachy on you. This is what I woke up thinking about this morning.