Travel Thoughts Rewind... from Zambia

Been on the road ...err the air the last week from Canada to Zambia. Today we spent time at Miracle Life Church in Lusaka, Zambia. It's exciting to see the hunger of the people here for the things of God. Tomorrow we will spend time at a minister's conference then some time taping broll of the countryside hopefully. Plenty to come on that but ...
Here are some observations that I have made concerning overseas travel. Some are from my blogging from last year at this time ...and a few I have only recently learned.

-Bottled water is my friend.
-Internet access is always more expensive at the hotels with more stars after their name. Seriously this is something that is really ridiculous.
-No place in America is the traffic even close to how bad it is in Jakarta Indonesia. LA, NY and Houston combined are no comparison.
-A wool suit is not a good idea in Bangkok.
-Eating a Mowpani worm on a dare from a missionary kid is a dare I will take.
-My electric razor dies every time I go to Africa!
-Samoa is Hawaii 100 years ago (before the touristy stuff )
-More and more places are discontinuing postcards.
-It’s harder on the body’s internal clock going east across time zones then going west.
-I love Polynesian/Asian cuisine!
-My rep as a degenerate coffee drinker has led to everyone giving me coffee beans and getting me to the best coffee shops in their city wherever I go!
-I am not interested in a Fish Spa.
-The closer to the equator you get …the better your sunscreen needs to be.
-I am a huge fan of instant coffee. As long as it's the Sbux Via I brought with me

And on a more important note:
We need to daily pray for the challenges that our missionary friends are dealing with …that they would have favor with leaders and have their financial needs met.

The Danger of Hope Lost

I do really believe that there is nothing more dangerous to your heart than when you truly lose hope. I think we all can point to a time in our lives where we really questioned the trajectory of our life. We question the quest or journey we are on.
When confronted with unexpected bumps in the road and failures along the way we ask the dreaded, "How did I get here?" It seems that is when we are in the gravest place of losing hope. Deep within our hearts we find that this is a crushing blow. If our heart loses that hope what then?

The very existence of our dreams seems to be teetering.


I'm reminded of the Fellowship of the Ring quote by Tolkien "The Quest stands upon the edge of a knife. Stray but a little, and it will fail ..." Losing hope in one’s heart means leading a life with no purpose. We catch ourselves muttering "what does it matter". So how does one choose to not lose hope? Even when things beyond our control have hammered us? Or people have betrayed and hurt us?

Finding joy.


What? We have to find joy? What does that mean or look like? I like what C.S. Lewis said

"All joy...emphasizes our pilgrim status; always reminds, beckons, awakens desire. Our best havings are wantings."


To once again have desire for hope,life,… even to dream we must choose joy. Because it's there that God beckons us to this divine conspiracy awakening our spirit to His desire ...for our dreams.
In Jeremiah 29:11 NCV ..."I know what I am planning for you," says the Lord. "I have good plans for you, not plans to hurt you. I will give you hope and a good future."(emphasis mine)


So hope is lost ...when joy cannot be found. Desire for dreaming is missing when joy is forgotten. Nothing is harder in my experiences than finding joy. But, I know I cannot change what I cannot control but I can control what I set my heart to.

Once again C.S. Lewis writes "The very nature of Joy makes nonsense of our common distinction between having and wanting."

I believe joy can be elusive ...it needs to be sought after. But finding joy makes all the difference.

What Legacy as a Godly Man ...?

For a long time I'll admit I've wrestled with this subject. What does it mean to lead in this area? Legacy is defined as "handing down to another". While I can say with certainty that I would want my children to have a legacy from me that was positive I can't say that I always have fully understood how to exactly achieve it.
We are in a Christian subculture with formulas and cliche' sayings that fool us all into thinking that we can just read a book or take a class and presto ...good to go.
Truth is navigating this life parenting and striving to give my kids an example of what a "Godly Man" looks like isn't easy. It also isn't easy to always clearly communicate to my kids what I want them to understand ...after all, they're kids and they can't always grasp it.

So what keeps me awake at night? My seeking the face of God to guide me here ...in this confusing and distracting world. If there is one thing to know about me is that I read ...a lot. And in the Sacred Romance, Brent Curtis and John Eldredge point to the attacks of the enemy towards our soul and spirit as "arrows". Some are flesh wounds, while others pierce deep and get lodged in our hearts. What is the mistake is not taking that wound to Jesus ...admitting and asking Him to be the healer.

See I can't be a whole person to parent or be a friend or a son ...if I don't allow Jesus to heal and remove that arrow. Only He can fill the void in my soul. Only He can lead me in the path that enables me to instruct and raise my children right.
It's in this moment that I can stand against the onslaught of the arrows ...and it's this reaction to it that shows my kids the legacy to be remembered as they embark in this journey. I choose to be the standard bearer for their sake.
It's what God has called each of us who parent to do.
And by the way ...I am still learning and stumble at this like everyone.