I rarely get to sit at weddings. But I’ve stood in more than 200 of them. And may I say, I usually get the best, um, standing position in the house.
I’m not talking about seeing the bride make her way down the aisle – everybody gets up to see that. The best place to stand in a wedding is next to the groom. When they fling that door open and she comes in on Daddy’s arm, I can sense it. I can feel it. Heck, sometimes I can hear it.
There in that least-photographed moment, an otherwise robust, strong-hearted man melts. I’ve seen grown men cry. I’ve seen them rendered speechless. I’ve sensed their breathing and pulse increase. I’ve heard them say under their breath, “Ummph,” or “Wow,” which sorta says it all.
Friends and family have helped his beloved adorn herself. For him. And in that moment, there is nothing he wouldn’t do for his bride. Nothing he wouldn’t say to express the depth of his love for her and the level of his commitment to her.
And after that, they both live happily ever after. [click to continue…]
Christmas 2004. I’m pretty sure it was the last time I made the trek to Deer Bluff. Pictures were the thing this year, and one day Joel wanted to go to Deer Bluff to take some. It was nice to be back there, this place near the family farm that has always captured my imagination.
At one point I was up on top of the bluff and Joel was down below taking pictures of the initials carved in the stone near the small cave. Meandering through the volcanic rock and fallen branches, I tripped over a log and fell with a thud on my stomach and shoulder. I also hit some sort of piece of wood, and cut a couple of plugs out of my fingers.
The fingers were the ugliest, but the shoulder was the greatest concern. Lying there, I wondered if something had been broken. Later, my biggest fear was that I had torn my rotator cuff. Finally, a year later, the MRI showed I had shredded the tendons in my shoulder and yes, I would need surgery.
Awesome. So that’s what a stumbling block is. And I was right in the middle of a stumbling zone. [click to continue…]
(Baby giraffe born Sept. 23, 2012 at Hogle Zoo, Utah. AP Photo/Utah’s Hogle Zoo)
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“Whence comes this idea that if what we are doing is fun, it can’t be God’s will?
The God who made giraffes, a baby’s fingernails, a puppy’s tail, a crooknecked squash, the bobwhite’s call, and a young girl’s giggle, has a sense of humor.
Make no mistake about that” –(Catherine Marshall)
Our mouths were filled with laughter,
our tongues with songs of joy.
Then it was said among the nations,
“The Lord has done great things for them.”
The Lord has done great things for us,
and we are filled with joy (Ps 126:2-3, NIV).
Have I told you lately that I love to laugh?
That hasn’t always been true.
There was a time I was convinced that the world was going to hell and I had to do something about it. And by God, that was serious.
I’m still convinced the world is going to hell (I have that on pretty good authority). But I’ve realized two other things as well. First, God has already done something about it – it doesn’t depend on me.
Second, the nations will never see what God has done for me until my “mouth is filled with laughter and my tongue with songs of joy.” Angry sermons and surly scowls from Mister Blister won’t get the job done. [click to continue…]
Where can I go to get away from your Spirit?
Where can I run to get away from you?
If I go up to heaven, you are there.
If I make my bed in hell, you are there.
If I climb upward on the rays of the morning sun
or land on the most distant shore of the sea where the sun sets,
even there your hand would guide me
and your right hand would hold on to me (Ps 139:7-10, GW)
It’s the fundamental reality – the primal fact on which all else we know is built. The immortal, invisible, only-wise God, not made with hands, eternal in the heavens, knows no limits of time or space. For those who have experienced the kindness of His grace, the implications of that are profound. Simply put, wherever you are, there He already was, is, and shall be. [click to continue…]
It’s hard to look in the mirror – literally or figuratively – and not see it…
The evidence…
The scars…
The stains that are so obvious to us and, we’re sure, to the world around us.
Let someone float a compliment our way, and up they rise, at least in our silent thoughts –
The objections.
The dismissals.
That internal whisper that says, “If only they knew the whole story…”
Know what? Somebody does. And He’s the only one who has lived your story and His. And His declaration over you is the final say:
Sin erased. Shame forgotten.
Make no mistake about it. [click to continue…]
The one lasting promise that rewrote the rules,
Reinvented the contract, and changed my horizons
Was made with the faithfulness, love, and great power
That rolled back that tombstone and conquered the grave.
You said You’d be with me – that You’d never leave me,
Regardless of how well I held onto You.
Still Your “always” and “never” bring peace and contentment
And courage to love and declare You are true.
As long as You’re there, there’s an intimate boldness –
To fearlessly show you what’s real in my heart. [click to continue…]
It’s a small, weary feeling you carry day and night
Against a vast expanse of time, trouble, and exhaustion.
You’re at the mercy of circumstances that somebody else controls.
You feel jerked and tossed back and forth like a rudderless boat.
Lost for direction or answers,
You’re still moving, but you don’t quite know where…
You’re still seeking,
But sometimes you forget what the questions were in the first place.
Yet something keeps you hanging on –
A voice that says, “I’m here, be strong,”
A prayer of faith, a nighttime song
Of hope that says, “This won’t be long.”
Someone keeps you hanging on. [click to continue…]
I keep a list of Darling Words – words that have a lot of charm or inspire the imagination. “Forever” is one of those words. It speaks of life. Grace. Commitment. And a long, long time.
Used poetically, Forever speaks of a depth of love that’s supposed to exceed the way we feel about watermelon or melted cheese on tater tots. It’s supposed to last longer than the latest distraction or the next annoying thing somebody does.
Forever is sometimes used to take a snapshot of a moment or a feeling. It’s the language of a hopeless romantic or magical thinker, inviting someone to a lifetime of adventure.
But more than that, Forever speaks the language of letting go of the past and starting something new. It speaks of a lifetime pursuit worth waiting for or something more powerful than death and the grave.
We come by our attraction to Forever honestly. The Bible says that God has placed eternity in our hearts (Ecclesiastes 3:11). In spite of the vanity of our fallen condition, we are instinctively drawn to love for the long haul and life beyond this lifetime. Why, then, is “Forever” such a fleeting thing? Why don’t connections or commitments last beyond the latest inconvenience or frustration? [click to continue…]
(Sort-of-random thoughts after two road trips and some new journeys to come…)
For all the delight I have in seeing family, especially grandbabies, the comfort found in my own bed is irreplaceable.
I’ve been blessed by delighted voices that call me “Papa” and wordless raised hands that see in me the solution to the primal angst of not being able to reach a Ritz cracker without help. With that kind of adoration, what else in this life could be a more precious investment of time?
There was never a time I could remember when I didn’t want to be a father. But being a grandfather is like showing up at McAlister’s Deli on Free Tea Day having forgotten it was free tea day but there you are and the tea is free!
Some of life’s delights are limited to the moment – then they leave an emptiness that’s sort of like the crash you get after eating a lot of sugar. On the other hand, some of life’s delights feel as if God has poured permanent joy in me, even when I’m tired and know the “Mickey Mouse Clubhouse” and “Elmo’s Greatest Hits” lyrics by heart. [click to continue…]
Well… THAT was an adventure! Apparently when the doctor said, “Let’s go,” you decided you would prefer to stay, and that sure got everybody moving!
But we are so glad that today, July 23, 2012, we were able to welcome you into this world… healthy and with a strong pair of lungs, even if you weren’t happy about having to use them yet. Your Mama, Daddy, and big sister and big brother have been waiting with excitement for a long time for you to arrive, and you didn’t disappoint. And though I have only held you once, you have already established yourself as a one-of-a-kind. [click to continue…]
