The Way

I arrived back in the US on Sunday am about 1030, made it through customs and immigration and headed to the gate and the plane that would take me home. Made it there in time to realize my flight was delayed by almost three hours. Just what you want at the end of a long journey. I did make it home about 430p on Sunday. So nice to be home. Got to see Shelbi for about 5 min. and to give her the Lacoste shirt I bought for her. Got one for Morgan too and to say that they were inexpensive is somewhat of an understatement. I also purchased a Louis Vittoun purse for my wife. They thought I was wonderful and actually I was just cheap. The whole trip to Malaysia was very successful. We used a very interactive style of learning that was received very well by the attendees and I always learn alot too. The hosts in Malaysia were all wonderful and I have gained friends for life. Monday was a good day w/ an all morning meeting and then I headed home for a 2 hour nap and then worked in the yard for ab...

I am sitting in the Kuala Lumpur airport taking advantage of free wifi and getting to know a japanese lady who has decided that 15 people can fit on this bench made for 8. Cheek to cheek takes on a whole new meaning. Today's training finished really well and we had 62 attend. I am so encouraged that these Malaysian youth leaders really do see the importance of student development rather than just building a student ministry. They understand the importance of partnering with parents and I think in many ways will get ahead of the curve. Larry, Emilia and Joel took me to dinner tonight at a seafood restaurant where we enjoyed muscles, crab, leafy vegetable, tofu, rice of course and Sprite for me. They are a sweet young family who have a heart for resourcing the church for ministry through Canaanland . A great ministry they have through the 4 stores with another one opening soon. I look forward to boarding this flight soon. We fly back through Seoul/Incheon Korea and then through Atlan...

This has been a great trip so far and now I find myself counting down the hours until I climb on board Korean airlines and begin my trip home. Since Weds. it has been pretty fast and furious. I had multiple meetings on Thursday beginning at 10a meeting with the National Evangelical Council which is a group that represents non-Muslim religious groups to the Muslim gov't. officials. Sort of like a lobbying group that tries to keep the gov't. in check for not imposing legislation that restricts non-Muslim groups. These guys have a great challenge but huge hearts to accomplish the task. Met with Pastor Tan who is the pastor at FBC, KL and found him to be amazing. He retired as a professor of microbiology to pastor. To say that he is pretty smart is a pretty large understatement. Yesterday's training on Friday was a great time of many of us crammed into a small room. Most conferences/training sessions are pretty presenter driven so the interactive style that we used was somewhat...

I woke up pretty early this morning and had a hard time going back to sleep. I knew I had some budget to work on and was going to try and check email at work and so . . . the mind was racing and I could not sleep. I worked about 3 hours before I was to meet with some friends to run and then catch breakfast. Francis and his wife own Canaanland Distributors and are LifeWay partners here in Malaysia. They are wonderful folks. The run was in a nice park complete with monkeys running around and jumping from tree to tree. Have to say that running with monkeys was a first for me. We had an Indian style breakfast which was much like the breakfast I had every day when I was in India two years ago. It was very good. In fact, all of the food has been very good. At lunchtime I met with David who is an IMB missionary here and is doing some work among students. Wonderful guy who is doing a very good work here. He will be a part of the training that we do on Friday. I was to have had a meeting this ...

What a great first couple of days in Malaysia. I arrived very late Sat. night, early Sun. am and enjoyed some pretty good sleep. It was interesting that on the flight from Seoul to Kuala Lumpur I sat beside a Malaysian that had lived in Madison, TN for 5 years. He was a great guy and helped me get a cab from the airport to my hotel. Sunday I woke up and got out for a 5-mile run and sort of turned/tweaked my ankle but seems to be doing okay now. Spent most of the day reading and studying and got out for some lunch. Staying next to a mall that was hosting a cheerleading competition so saw a little of that. Grabbed a burger at Bubba Gump's (was not sure what else to trust here) and then met Larry Lee and Edward who are my hosts from Canaanland. We drove to Ipoh (about 2.5 hours north) and checked into the hotel. Met with Elijah, his wife Angela and child Michael for dinner at a very good chinese restaurant. Good night's sleep last night and then an all day conference with 26 today...

Had a great trip on Tues-Weds to Williams Baptist College in Walnut Ridge, AR and met up with good ministry friend Walter Norvell. Taught a parent/youth minister's class on Tues. night and then spoke at 8, 9, 10, 11, and 12noon to various classes, outside folks and spoke in chapel as well. Williams is one of those great unknowns in colleges if you ask me. Great school in the middle of a rice field and the students and faculty were great. Went back through Jackson on Weds. and spent a couple of hours with Shelbi at Union. Big fun! She is such a great young lady. We watched a little Union baseball, caught some dinner together and then I headed back home. Thursday it was up for a 10-miler, mowing the lawn and packing for Malaysia. As of right now I am sitting in the Incheon Airport (Seoul) waiting on my next flight to Kuala Lumpur. Long 14 hour leg to here and then another 8 or 9 to KL. Looking forward to the youth leader training that we are doing. Hoping to meet up with Mike Loftis ...

Got the results back from Morgan's CT scan and blood work from last week. All is good. Nothing showed abnormal on either test, well . . . there is this deal about a double outlet on one of her kidneys which is just like her mother. She did come down with the stomach bug today though. Bummer. Puked her toenails up this morning but is keeping food down now some. Body aches, fever, general yuck. Yep, that is the stomach virus that has been going around. I got home from Des Moines about 5 hours late yesterday due to fog in Memphis. Made a stop in St. Louis for a couple of hours just for grins evidently. Made it to Memphis finally and waited there about three hours for another plane to Nashville. Tomorrow I head to Arkansas to speak at William's Baptist College in Walnut Ridge. Will be with a good friend, Walter Norvell, who is a professor there. Speak tomorrow night and most of the morning on Wednesday before heading back home through Jackson and spending a little time with her. Wi...

Last week I finished up a week of travel from FL to CA and got home on Sunday. It was nice to be at home and see my wife and Morgan. I was in the office both Mon and Tues and then off to Michigan to train their state youth ministry multipliers. Met some great folks up there and enjoyed my time with them. The weather on the other hand was pretty stinking cold. Weds. with the wind was just miserable. Cold to the bone cold for this boy. The lows were 4 and 5 with the highs in the 20s. I flew out from there on Fri and landed in Des Moines last night for the Ignite conference. It is a very good conference that we partner with Grace Church, Iowa Southern Baptists and a host of others good ministry folks. The running has been somewhat sparse the last few days with it being icy in Michigan and I just finished 3 on the treadmill here at the hotel. Ready to head home tomorrow morning. In the office on Mon. and then off to AR and Williams Baptist College to share in their youth ministry emphasis...

Growing up protestant and a conservative one at that so have precluded me from understanding and participating in all things Lent. I do not remember it being said but somehow believed that Lent was something that only Catholics or high-church folks participated in. It was a ritual and not something we “good” protestants participated in. As I got older I realized that I missed a great observance for many years. I do have to tell you that the whole Fat Tuesday (live like hell) so you can repent and have a dusty forehead (Ash Wednesday) practice seems really different to me, but the 40 days between that Wednesday and Easter Sunday called Lent appeals to me. Fasting, not my strongest spiritual discipline, appeals to me a little bit. I even thought about and then read about a tech fast (supported by the Pope) and think that could be viable in this socially networked world. But, whatever I fast from, needs to be channeled to focused prayer time for me. I talk about prayer, and even participa...

I heard this in the DFW airport the other day, “Hey, how’s it going?” I turned around to someone I had never seen before, who immediately said, “Oh, sorry. I thought you were someone else.” I followed that statement with, “No problem. No need to apologize. I like that I am me.” I then began to wonder if the person mistook me for Jesus. I know you are laughing thinking I have finally gone off the deep end but actually I have been challenged lately wondering if what I am doing is really making a difference. I do not think it is a mid-life thing, only just an evaluation of where I am presently. (Francis Chan really voiced this thought at the Youth Pastor’s Summit in Orlando in early March.) I love my family, my incredibly too cool wife and two beautifully, brilliant daughters, love my church, New Hope in Hermitage, and even really enjoy my job. Heck, I get to travel and encourage youth workers around the globe. It is all good. But, I wonder if it is really all that God has called me to be...

Say it like Arrnhald and you will know I am in California. Got here yesterday afternoon after a long flight from Orlando via Dallas. I am out here with a team of folks from LifeWay and we are leading conferences for the Bay Area Sunday School conference. This used to be one of the largest conferences of its' kind, but I think all of them have shrunk over the years. I will be leading a couple of conferences on student ministry. I have presented at this conference before but it has been a few years ago now. Spent a good part of today writing and preparing for the speaking I have coming up in the next month. Lots of stuff going on and it was nice to just spend some time focused on writing. Missing my family for sure but we skyped tonight and it is always good to not only talk, but to see one another too. Hope to get a 5-miler in the morning and then hopefully at 10-miler on Sat. over in San Francisco on the wharf and Crissy Field and the GG Bridge. One of my favorite runs that I try t...

Here it is March 3rd already and I have not posted since last Fri. I was in St. Louis for the MO Youth Minister's Conference called Engage and had a great time. Love those MO folks being a native of that great state myself. Got home on Sat. in time to spend some time with all three of my girls. Shelbi had come home for the weekend and it is always good to be with all of the girls. Sunday was a tough but good day as we navigate through some things as a church but I am thankful to be part of a body of believers that is concerned about grace and truth. It is good to be with God's people. I flew out Sun. afternoon for the Youth Pastor's Summit in Orlando and routed through Miami. With the snow event going on on the east coast it was pretty crazy. I smiled alot at disgruntled travelers. Monday and today have been wrapped up in meeting with student pastors and some fun in the Universal Parks. LifeWay partners with Universal for this event and Rock the Universe in September. A gr...