Catching Up

Monday Morning

It's Monday morning, the clouds are hanging low over the sky, the Seattle drizzle is happening, my dog is sitting at my feet as I write this, I'm on hold with my bank, I'm listening to one of my favorite radio talk shows....what a wonderful morning it is. Later on I will go work out then start to make dinner for my wife (Since this is my day off I am responsible for dinner plans.... I wonder if a Big Mac would do tonight....maybe not.)  Yesterday, after the three services, I came home to rest and watch some football, fell asleep and woke up to my phone ringing. It was a pastor friend of mine wondering if I was up for a bike ride for a few hours.  I jump at the chance with this thought in mind, first-the weather was great, a little chilly but not wet,  second-the Hawks game wasn't on till later in the evening, third-he's my friend and I want to invest in my friends when they call.  This fellowship thing means taking time whether it convenient or not to be with a friend.  By the way it was very convenient and enjoyable, although a little chilly on the way back.

For several years now we (Brooklake Community Church) have been emphasizing the importance of being a small group of some sort. I really believe this is where the action is, in terms of being encouraged and growing in ones walk with God.  I guess only time will reveal the eternal impact of our emphasis on this means of helping people connect with and grow in their walk with Jesus Christ.

I just want to make sure that I live it and not just talk it.  I get this strange feeling that i will be held accountable for my actions and not my talk... just a thought though.

By the way I am still on hold with my bank....I'm glad it was a toll free line.

Airport pickup

Today I go to airport to pick up my second born son , Marc and and his wife Krystn.  They have been gone for nine months living in Europe. Recently my first born son, Micah and his wife Bria move back from Texas and are now living in Olympia.  My youngest son, Morgan and his wife just got back from their honeymoon and are living in Bothell.  Each time they come back it is with great joy in seeing them. Giving them a hug and getting caught up with whats been happening in their lives.  I can't help but think what heavens going to be like. I can only imagine the first time I arrive, (I am not saying there will be a second or third time arriving just a figure of speech.) the people I will see, the hugs and talk that will be going on. And then when I see Him, the One I've lived for, the One who gave me life, what will I do then? It will be such a holy moment, a moment when the first thing I see my self doing is falling to the ground out of honor and gratitude, a moment when tears of joy  fall from my face like a water fall.  I don't think I will have thoughts of, "I can't believe I actually made it to heaven", because of my absolute confidence in trusting in what He did for me on the cross. What a day that will be! Wow, not that I am in any rush for it to happen but what a day that will be! If I as an imperfect father get such joy out of welcoming back each of my sons when they have been away, I wonder how our Father in heaven will feel when He sees me coming home?  What a day that will be!

Still trying to catch up

Well here I am trying to catch up again with my thoughts on line.  Wow, what a few months it has been. Currently I am teaching on the Lords Prayer, we've called it the Path to Inner Peace.  I am always amazed at how God guides me in these areas.  This series on the Model Prayer that Jesus gave to us has been a very timely teaching series for me. It seems like God really does know our future and exactly what we need.  He knows what we can handle and what we can't .  He truly is amazing. 

So here's what's been happening.  First, I am doing a lot better and recovering from the blood clot in the lung.  I still need to get my strength back to where it was, but I am doing better every week. Second, Melody and I have had the honor to have our oldest son and his wife live with us till they close on their house.  I've really enjoyed having them around and getting reconnected with them. Oh, did I tell you they are expecting their first (of many) child in October?  Third, our youngest son Morgan got married this last weekend to a beautiful girl, Nicole. I was honored to officiate the ceremony.  It was hard emotionally but I made it through, barely though. At one point I thought I was going to lose it, but I sent up a quick prayer for help and He gave me the emotional strength to continue without causing embarrassment to my son and his new bride, that was a close one. Fourth, my father-in-law, suffered a heart attack the Friday before the wedding, went to the hospital and was admitted and scheduled for open heart surgery on Monday. He had four bypasses on Monday and today was released from the hospital to a rehab place till he can navigate taking care of his wife. He is doing really good. Fifth, our middle son, Marc,  just won the Basketball championship in Spain. This just happen minutes ago. He played in Finland this year and then was signed by a Spanish team for their playoffs and they win the big prize.  I keep telling him, one day he's going to wake up from the dream he is living. His wife, Krystn, brothers, mother and I are enjoying the ride he is on.  Sixth, yes there is a sixth one, my father was up for his grandsons wedding.  I went down to Oregon the week before and picked him up. At this stage of his life he is dependant on others for transportation.  Because of my wifes father pending surgery on Monday following the wedding, I took my father home on Sunday, the day after the wedding.  I went down and back in the same day, it was a 10 hour trip altogether. When I left his house, the one I grew in, I saw him standing in the drive way with his walker looking tried and a weak from the busy schedule he had.  That was a tough one for me. Since my mothers passage to heaven, dad has lived on his own.  He has amazed my brother and I in how his lived on his own since his wifes passing away. We are every proud of our father.   While he gets help from friends and some limited VA help, he's a combat veteran, it still is emotionally hard every time I leave him. Yet, he is so happy to be around his friends.   My uncle told me after my mother departed to heaven not to make a quick decision to move my dad.  Let time and your father tell you what to do.  I look back on that advise and thank God daily for it.  If we would of moved him to either our house or my brothers house he would've been miserable. The lesson I learn during this time is this: When you are going through a crisis slow down your decision making process.  Give yourself some margin in making all decisions. Keep in mind I have a short memory, so I need to always remind my self of this.  I also find its true in following Jesus. I forget how good He really is and that He does longs to care for me and help me.

Every day is a good day when you and I remember God loves us and is always with us. 

On the Road to Recovery...

As I look back to the time I titled this blog "Catching Up"I didn't think I was a prophet . Yet it seems I am always trying to catch you up on whats happened since the last time I wrote. 

After I got home from India I was playing catch up with my responsibilities at the Church. Then I had this surgery that needed to be done, plumbing reconstruction.  That surgery took place three weeks ago at Harborview hospital. It was a success which I am very grateful for and everything seems to be working great :).  During my recovery time I felt out of energy and tried to increase my stamina by doing some exercises.  As I was resting I felt some pressure in my chest. I thought it was just the normal recovery thing, yet it seemed to increase.  Finally my beautiful wife insisted I go to the doctor the next day.  Thursday of this week I went to my doctor, he thought it would be a good idea to have a cat scan done.  He set up an appointment for me and they got me right in.  After the scan the technician asked if I was going back to the doctors office, I said no I was going home.  He said it would be a good idea for me to return to the doctors office.  When I got there the doctor took me right in and said based on the scan I needed to go right to the hospital and check in through the emergency room. He said they found a large blood clot in my lungs and I needed immediate attention.  Now during this time, I was both relieved and scared.  First, I was relieved the pressure I was experiencing was actually something and not the figment of my imagination. Second, I was scared because the doctor said this needs immediate attention because I could die from this.  That was hard to process in my mind, "I could die from this", know one had ever said that to me before.  During my drive to the hospital and getting checked in I experienced an emotional breakdown, not a mental breakdown. I began to cry uncontrollably and felt very embarrassed.  They got me into the hospital and started the therapy I needed, thinning out my blood to stop the clot from growing larger.  At that point my emotional breakdown started to subside. I was amazed at how I was beginning to feel.  Was I just imagining it or was there something tied to my emotions as I was getting something flowing though my veins?  At this hospital they have wireless Internet service, boy have hospitals changed, I went on the web to find out more about my current situation.  One of the things I discovered was when you have a blood clot in your lungs it is causes anxiety and raw emotions.  When the blood begins to flow again it reduces physically the anxiety one experiences. To say the least I was relieved that my anxiety had a physiological bases for it.  I thought I was really losing it.  Feelings can be really deceiving when you don't know the facts behind them, yet they are reality telling us something is wrong and needs attention. So here I am am on some blood thinner having to stay at the hospital for several days till they establish therapeutic levels in my blood system so the clot in my lungs will begin to dissolve.

I am reminded again that we are wonderfully and and fearfully made by God.  I hope to be back teaching on Easter Sunday with a greater appreciation for life and the seasons of ones life. Oh did I tell you I get to watch the final four basketball games while enjoying an espresso with cheese cake top with strawberries?  Boy have hospitals changed :)

Exercise

Over the span of my short life (54) I have gone through ups and downs in my exercise progam. Currently I am not at the top or the bottom. I work out by walking and doing some limited weights and crunches. I can tell you this, when I do work out I feel a lot better the next day. Not right afterwards but the next day, unless I over do it, which hasn’t happen in a long time but you get the idea. At this point in my life I have settled into this type of route unless I face a crisis. Then I will be really faithful in my work outs. I wish I could say with total transparency that I work out every day and maintain the greatest health habits but that would be a lie and that’s not good for a follower of Jesus.

Over the last several months I have been working on several things for the church family I lead and serve. Here are a few of them:

  Funding for the new Children’s Worship center and lobby area. We have made contact with a company that will be our lead group in securing the financing needed for this project, around 1.5 million. Did I tell we also get to wide the road in front of our church campus as part of getting the permit from the city. What’s a few extra $100K We may be able to start moving dirt by July the earliest or October the latest if everything goes good.

  Developing a video venue at our new Des Moines campus. The project requires some remodeling in three phases, as funding allows. We have got together a wonderful team with a campus pastor identified. Our desire is to be operational by this coming Easter. We have never done an off site video venue yet so this is brand new for us. Yes, we have allowed our selves to make mistakes and readjust as situations develop. It’s sort of like being a parent with your first born. You’ve never done this before so not only are you teaching you are learning at the same time.

  I’ve been invited by the Purpose Driven ministry from Saddleback church to go to India and teach pastors how to be a Purpose Driven Church. I will be leaving February 1st for 9-10 days for this ministry opportunity. This is a real stretch for me. While I’ve taught all the material to our church family through our classes and have attended numerous conferences at Saddleback, my challenge is how to make it effective for churches in India. My prayer is that God would show me some keys to understand their culture and challenges so that I can be as effective as possible.

  On going for me is my desire to be a better team leader for the team I serve with. I find my self always asking my self: Am I creating a safe environment for their success with the proper amount of feed back? We have been going to some get training called Cohorts, a ministry offered through our Northwest Ministry Network. It has forced us to ask ourselves some very tough questions. I continue to thank God for Mel Ming and those who support his leadership in our ministry network. Recently we just completed a book called, “7 Practices of Effective Ministry.” One of the joys of the team I serve with is their openness and robust discussion we have. Every thing gets to be discussed and ideas challenged.

  Every January I try to put together the next twelve (12) months of teaching calendar for the weekend services. So far I am on track with that. In my heart I have always sensed God directing me on the various series to teach on. I continue to be amazed at His guidance knowing my weakness and short comings in being the lead pastor of the Church.

Okay by now maybe you have figured out it’s been a while since I’ve written in my blog. It’s sort of like my exercise program. My excuse: I am human, but need to improve because when I do the things I know I should do it does make me feel so much better. Okay I feel better now. See you next time.

Back from Vacation

Well this has been a longer break from blogging than I thought. So much has happen, yet so little space to share. So here is a quick review. Just got back from the first part of our vacation with the family, it was wonderful. Morgan our youngest son announced his engagement! I know it was coming but was caught off guard when he announced it. Nicole will be a wonderful addition to our family. It looks like a May wedding. As is our custom every summer we spend a week up in Canada enjoying the Rockies and chasing after a little white ball. It is one of the greatest thrills for me to play golf with each of my three sons, each one unique and gifted and each one a pleasure to be around. Eating together and playing games and enjoying a ten hour drive each way; these are the good old days. Maybe by next year we will have to take two or three cars if some little Axton’s show up, just a thought of course, no pressure, even though I am getting older and would like to enjoy my grandchildren while I have some energy, but no pressure, just a thought.

During this time we got to see some dear friends whom we have known since 1974, that’s 32 years, John and Lila deWeber. They use to attend the Brooklake and have recently moved to Blaine Washington. John and Lila, what can I say, what a wonderful house and even more than that, your friendship through out the years continues to bless Melody and I, thanks.

Yesterday Marc and Krystn announced, they are not expecting a baby, they will be returning to another team in Finland in the next three weeks. It’s one of the leading teams. Marc should have another great year and Krystn another adventure.

Last night I traveled up to Bellevue to watch Morgan play his last summer college basketball games. I was tried and wanted to stay home and get caught up on some rest but for some reason I felt compelled to go and watch. I had a lot of good reasons to not go and I really was tried. In-between games Morgan came over to me and mentioned the engine light came on and the temperature gauge was very high. I asked him the normal questions like, is there water in the radiator and did you check the oil. All he answered in the affirmative. I, of course, double checked it and sure enough he was right. I then realized it was the thermostat. It’s this little regulator of water from the radiator to the engine. I also realized that if I wasn’t there and he continued to drive the car, the engine would’ve blown. That’s an expensive item for a college student trying to graduate without any debt. I wonder if that sense of being compelled to go was God? Just a thought. I wonder if He is concerned over a college kid’s finances and his transportation needs. Just a thought. If I wouldn’t have gone and fixed it, did God have a plan B for someone else to help out and get it fixed or if the engine would have just blown? These are deep theological thoughts for a guy just coming off vacation. I can’t wait to share more.

P.s. Pray for Israel

Getting Ready

Since last Sunday afternoon, I have been getting ready for our missions trip to Copper Island.  For the past three years we have joined with two other churches to help out at a camp  for First Nations children.  These are the forgotten children in the Barkley Sound area. For one to two weeks in the summer they come and hear about Jesus and His love for them. We have been  working on the camp for improving shelter, access-docks, and all around improvement.  To get there you have to travel by boat, so I have been going over my boat to make sure everything needed is on it and working good. Not just the fishing items, we will do some fishing of course, but safety items and engine performance.  From changing oil in the lower units to steering fluid to electronics-GPS Radar, and marine radio. I've have experienced engine failure, hitting a log caught in a wave, to electrical failure.  Each crisis has taught me to be prepared.  Especially when it involves other people on your boat.  I do like to tinker around and fix things.  To find a problem and then a solution that actually works is very rewarding to me.  So starting Saturday morning at 5:00am, I will be on a mission from God along with 8 other men from Brooklake.

Encounters

The only bummer of the day is it started raining.  But what a great day other than the rain.

Today was my small group meeting with a bunch a great guys, who have all these stories to tell. They challenge me with their lives and we all get to share our struggles with a group that understands and cares for the other guy. Sometimes I come away from this group drained and then there are other times I feel like I am the most blessed man on the planet with friends like these. The pay off is great.

I also had a meeting with a long time friend, Miles Musick, who is the founder and director of  New Beginnings Home.  Miles and I have know each other for over 25 years. His story of coming to Christ and what has transpired since that decision is amazing.  The people he and Debbie have touch for eternity is mind boggling. I wonder if the people who prayed for Miles and those who invited him to that concert know the fruit that has come?  Talking with Miles today has caused me to appreciated every word I say in pointing them their Creator.

24+

So here is my last 24+ hours, give or take a few minutes.  Okay, I am no Jack Bauer who is trying to keep the country safe despite a crooked president who wants him dead. Yes, I got to admit the show has hooked me.  It’s a guy type show, with lots of action and a base of right and wrong.  My 24+ is a little more average, in fact a lot more average.

It started yesterday at:
2:00pm. Meeting with the leadership team of our school ministry: What a great group of people who serve the children of this school.  Every teacher is a follower of Jesus who has high academic standards.
3:00-Personal counseling session.
4:00-Went over the teaching for this weekend services.
5:00-home for dinner, what a fabulous dinner, my beautiful daughter–in-law Krystn, was the chef of the night.  Dinner for four and getting caught up with what happen during the day. I am a very rich man.
7:00-the walk.  Yes, my dog Finn 14 weeks old and I went on a two mile walk.  I was getting him ready for the all night sleep through experience. 
8:00-person reflection time.  Reading some of the magazines I subscribe to: The Weekly Standard and National Review.  Two magazines I’ve come to appreciate in terms of their thoroughness in thought.
10:00-Law and Order.
11:00- bed time
12:00-midnight up with the dog for a stroll in the back yard. The sound from his cage was one of urgency, hurried down from the bed room just in time to get him out. This reflection time was very shallow.
12:30-sleep, wonderful sleep
6:30 -dog needs to go out side for another nature trip.
7:30-Breakfest, the paper and get ready for the office.
9:00-office prep for meetings. Review what needs to be done today and for the weekend services.
10:00-weekend production meeting with Pat, Tom and Ian.  These are great people to work with. Very creative and each one has a desire to honor God in what they do.  I am really honored to work with them. Brainstormed doing a Christmas music CD, Starting a third service on Sunday morning beginning in September, and prayed for each other.
11:00-Went over again the teaching for this weekend services.
11:30-Travel to South Seattle to view a work project of Del Davis.  Del and his wife Sue have attended BCC for over 28 years. They came one month before I got here. Enjoyed a hamburger and seeing a new portable rock crushing machine.  Del is in his element. Great creation Del.  I was very impressed.
1:30-Arrive at Auburn Hospital to visit a man who just had a heart attack this morning. It’s wonderful to live in this age where we can get such good care in critical times. We are praying for you Michael and you to Doris.
2:30-quick trip home to check in on Finn, the puppy.  He needed a break.
3:00-back to office with Finn. He really enjoys the office.
3:15-drop in session with one of our families in the church. We do have such wonderful giving people at Brooklake, who really care about others by investing in them. Thanks Terry and Jeanette, you walk the walk in your faith.
3:45-Finn is at my feet with not a worry at all.  He knows my voice and when he calls out in desperation I will be there.   I think there’s a teaching illustration here some where.
4:00-heading home to go over the teaching for the weekend in my backyard.

On the personal side of life.

So here is what is happening in my life recently.

            I’ve been in the organizing, throwing out mood in the garage lately. Because of the new puppy and wanting to make sure that he is in a safe place when we are not at home, I built a small kennel for him in the garage.  This of course caused me to make room for it which led to a two day job of clearing out and reorganizing my entire garage space. Boy did I have a lot of junk that just needed to be thrown away.   Two trips to the dump with the truck.  Did I tell you throwing things away isn’t cheap also?  You pay for the thing and when you want to throw it away they charge you, I wonder if I could have got along without that stuff in the first place?  Just a thought.  I am not a saver of things, it’s easy for me to throw away stuff or give it to Goodwill. I do realize that I only have so much space and when I buy something, usually some thing else has to go.   I wonder if the same thing is true in relationships, when a man and a women gets married, when a husband and wife begin to have children, do we understand new relationship means letting go of others?  How about when you decide to be a follower of Jesus?  What are the implications of letting go?  Wow, all I was trying to do was make room for my puppy.