The Way

Okay, so December is usually fairly busy but this one has been incredibly so! Work was off the chain through the first 14 days of the month with a quick trip to Atlanta the 2nd and 3rd; our state leaders here the 4th-6th; more meetings than should be allowed; and an all day filming with my Ben Trueblood and Allen Jackson. It was busy! but now I am officially on vacation through the end of the year. I have a couple of afternoons to do some interviews for summer staff for World Changers and P2 Missions but that will be in the comfort of my own home. Morgan is home from college and it is good to have her here. She and some boy named Wil/Wilson have burned up the local concert circuit seeing Dave Barnes and Andrew Peterson. One of the nice benefits of living in Nashville is great musicians and great venues. I have lots of plans to get some things done around the house. Not big stuff but stuff I need to get done.Got the chainsaw out today just in time for a thunderstorm to strike. We...

It seems that the best made plans are really worthless unless one carries out those plans. And . . . so that pretty sums up my blogging habits this month. I always plan to update the blog and then distractions and busyness creep in and well . . . I end up apologizing in the first blog post back. I headed to Dallas the weekend before Thanksgiving for the Youth Specialties conference. It always proves a good time meeting with youth leaders and catching up with old friends. Being back in Dallas was good too, although we were downtown. Much has changed in Dallas since we moved away in 1989. It was good to run in few areas that I ran in long ago and the weather was nice. I took the week of Thanksgiving as vacation and thoroughly enjoyed the time off. I played golf one day; raked leaves in an exercise of futility (the yard looked great for about 4 minutes); and, enjoyed basically being a bum. Thanksgiving was simply wonderful with my dad and nephew, Mark, Shelbi and Morgan home and ma...

The past couple of weeks have included less work travel so that has allowed for more family time on the weekends. And that is good. I love what I get to do work wise, but I am most fulfilled when I get to hang out with Sondra and the rest of our family. I know over the years I have had to remind myself that what I get to do work wise does not determine who I really am. I have repeated that to myself many times and have shared that with many people I come in contact with in life. Our culture can deceive us into believing that real success is based upon how much you are "out there making a difference". I know that that if I am "out there" making a difference and my family is sucking wind and crumbling, then really I have taught our kids how to gain the whole world and lose their own soul. Definitely not something I want to be indicative of me. A couple of weekends ago we headed to Rome, GA to hang out with Mark and Shelbi. Morgan came home from Union, we jumped...

Yesterday was my turn to work in ETC at church and once again, I learned alot. I am not really sure if I am working with older 3s, younger 4s, and I think there were a couple of 5s in the mix. Regardless, there were a bunch of them and yesterday started out  mild and then got cranked up. . . cranked up in a hurry. Our Bible study was based on Elijah praying for rain and I thought it would be awesome if we mixed in some water balloons for special effects. The kids were pumped but we settled for water colors instead. The two other adults in the class overruled us all. (I went down fighting.) I won't mention names of kids, in order to not break any laws unknowingly. They are an eclectic bunch. Some of them I have learned who their parents are but the majority of them are just kids that I know through that one Sunday a month connection. I see them in other areas of the church at other times and we acknowledge each other, but most of my interaction with them is in the "Purpl...

As crazy as it sounds, I began year 21 at LifeWay this week. I would have never imagined that God would allow me to serve Him through one place this long. What an incredible ride and storied past. I began as an editor for some discipleship resources; transitioned to managing the youth discipleship section; became a consultant in discipleship; ran back to the student area as an editor and most recently as a specialist helping student leaders minister to students and their families. What an amazing run and what a great ministry like LifeWay that has allowed me to grow and stretch and learn and help others. I am excited about a new opportunity that LifeWay is allowing me to influence and guide. In September, Eric Geiger announced a new strategic emphasis for our World Changers and P2 Missions (PowerPlant) ministries called “Change the City, Change the World”. (You can read that announcement here .) The impact of the cities upon the culture of the world is powerful. So . . . God is ...

The last week and a half has been pretty much a whirlwind! I was in California and Texas speaking and teaching and loved every minute of it except for the one day I drove from LA to San Diego and the 5 was an angry highway. I love how people on the west coast talk about their highways. The 5, the 405, the . . . it is like their highways are real live people or something. Anyway, even though the highway was angry, the view was pretty sweet. Monday this past week, my boss and I flew to Tampa and back for a meeting. Great meeting; nice to be out just during the day and sleep in my own bed that night. Thank you Southwest Airlines! Work has been incredibly busy and later this week I can tell you about some changes that are already happening for me job wise. I am really excited for an opportunity to reinvent and stretch. It is both scary and overwhelming! but exhilarating. Today is my wonderful wife's birthday. I will not tell you how old she is but I will tell you that we are bot...

I rarely post anything related to politics and know that many might take issue with me on my thoughts, but here goes . . I did not vote for our current President in '08 because I did not agree with his stance on many issues related to the protection of the unborn; his views on same sex marriage, etc. When he was elected I committed to praying for him like I have every President that I can remember in my lifetime (basically Richard Nixon to now). I am aware that I have limitations on knowing all the facts as it relates to candidates, their past voting records, etc. I publicly announced that I would pray for President Obama and I have done so. As the election draws near, I find myself more and more conflicted with our two choices of major party candidates. I disagree with many of the decisions that our current administration has made. I do have to say though, this administration pretty much has done what it said it would do before it was put into power. Mr. Romney se...

The MLB Playoffs are in full swing and in my opinion, this new format shows how goofy leaders have become in this sport. A one-game playoff and then the Division Series where teams with the better record in the regular season are sent on the road for the first two games. Seems to be no reward for playing well during the regular season. But . . . they get three games at home IF it goes to 5 games. I realize that it did not effect all of the better recorded teams but Selig seems to just be a goober and this is another instance. I remember when MLB used to be fun. I spent the weekend watching alot of football since Sondra headed to MO to be with her mom (more on that in a minute). The MIZZOU debacle last week of 5 players being suspended for marijuana use; Pinkel announcing a divorce from his wife; etc all led to a miserable performance on the field against that powerhouse Vandy. Now, I like Vandy. I have struck up a casual friendship with Jordan Rodgers, quarterback for Vandy and ...

I have been remiss in blogging the last couple of weeks and some of you have been unable to sleep without the aid of reading my blog late at night. It usually helps people right off to sleep. Last week was a bit of whirlwind with a trip to Atlanta for a Transform event where I had the privilege of learning alongside of some great youth workers. We covered many of the "basics" in student ministry that I have the arrogance to overlook too many times. It was good to be reminded of the simple things in ministry that tend to make the most impact. On the backside of that trip, I went through Rome, GA to see Shelbi and Mark; catch one of Morgan's roommates who plays soccer for Union play against Shorter College and then get home late Sat. night. Sunday was quick with church, meetings and packing for the D6 Conference in Dallas Mon-Weds. It was good to be able to spend some time with a couple of ministry friends, Shelby Baucum whom I have mentioned earlier, and Gene Wilkes w...

An odd thing happened the other night while Sondra and I were getting caught up on a long running, summer TV show called The Closer. We enjoy that show and have kept up with it over the last 5 or 6 years. It is one of those seasonal kind of shows that the non-big 3 have aired trying to woo watchers/viewers to their network. If you do not know the show, a Georgia girl moves to LA to lead a homicide group of investigators. There are many characters of various ethnicity (which I really like) and the show can be violent and funny at the same time. Weird, I know, but it is an entertaining show. We are behind on catching up on this series and in fact, the series has ended already and spun off into another TV show with most of the same characters but a new female lead. I think we have two more episodes until the series finale for us. So . . . on Sunday night of this week we were watching an episode and at the end of the episode, a death occurs that hit home to me. The main character's ...

This past week was a lot of fun and a lot of work as well. LifeWay Student Ministry partnered with Urban Youth Workers Institute to encourage/train/minister to student leaders from across the country. Here is brief recap of that time together in video: 360 Nashville ReCap from UYWI on Vimeo .

One of the joys of being around the 3s/4s at our church (Hermitage Hills Baptist) is the constant change and the continual "who knows what is going to be said next" moments that at times come like a gushing fire hydrant. In order to not make myself better than I actually am, I want to remind you that I am a rookie at working with 3s/4s with the exception of our own two daughters who were that age almost 20 years ago. And . . . I only work with them once a month, so by no means am I putting myself in the category of those saints that work with 3s/4s every day in your home or every week at your church. The other Sunday I got bumped from the 3s to the 4s which meant I went from the Aqua room to the Purple room. Everything in the room was new to me except for the kids that had graduated last month. So, I was reunited with the kids but the surroundings were all different. New toys; new books; new chairs; new tables; and a new co-worker. One new-to-me boy came in the room ...

If you are a repeat offender to my blog (yes, I am speaking to you dad and about two other people), you will notice that I have changed the look up a little. After 4plus years of the "dark" look I have decided to lighten things up a bit. The profile pic is one from a photo shoot I did back around February for a MORE Magazine which is supposed to do some little blurb on what I am passionate about. I wanted to go with Sondra as that story but they said it had to be ministry related and I told them that she had taken me on as a ministry project almost 28 years ago. Needless to say, I tried and they went with something else that I said I was sort of passionate about. I would disclose it here, but . . . I signed a contract so I cannot reveal before it comes out which is sometime soon I think. One of the great new things at the Turner household is Alysha. Alysha is staying with us for a few months while she waits on an opportunity to get involved in a "missions around the...

Every time I see this video I pick up something different but I love how HIStory is captured in this short video.

Back in the summer, Lydia and I sat down and talked through using the Leader Guide for The Gospel Project for Students. Thought it might be helpful for you last minuters who are about to start using this resource and want your teachers just a little more prepared. And, I have no idea why someone did not tell me to fix my collar!

These past few weeks have been fairly reflective, emotional, and filled with gratefulness. Friday I traveled to AL via MS to train AL youth leaders and then return home to attend the 100th Anniversary of First Baptist Church, Donelson. It was was a busy weekend but a really good one. There are four churches that have had great impact in my early ministry life and those adults and leaders who have invested in me are some real saints to be sure. East Lynne Baptist Church - located in rural MO, the wonderful people of this church invested in a young boy who loved hunting and fishing and was pretty quiet and shy. He was always observing, learning and not willing to risk much. Some sweet people like Phil and Norma Belcher, Bobby and Margaret Ely, Eddie and Betty Deardorff plus a couple of godly parents named Charles and Frances nurtured a young boy and laid a great foundation for ministry. Beaumont Baptist Church - an inner-city church in KC, MO where some godly folks like Mrs. Lor...

How in the world does a dad steel himself for not only giving away the bride, but also officiate the ceremony? I have no idea. I do know that yesterday was an amazing day of worship, and family and friends.Thanks to so many who have prayed for us as parents and for our girls. Mark and Shelbi's wedding day was splendid. It was great fun to see so many family and friends and we are especially excited to be family with not only Mark but his entire family. I am not sure they know how to take us, but it was just a sweet time with Mark's parents praying right before we all headed down the aisle. Just another huge blessing among so many others. The newlyweds are enjoying the week together and we are getting back to some normalcy. Thanks for continuing to pray for the new Ellison family; Mark's parents and family; and for those Turner folks as well. And she "left with her new favorite boy."

So it is Monday, August 6th and I have lived 48 August 6ths before but this Monday starts a different week for us as a family. This Saturday, Shelbi, our oldest trades her name in for one that comes alot earlier in the alphabet. It is true, Shelbi Brooke Turner will become Shelbi Brooke Ellison and Mrs. Mark Ellison. Holy freaking cow! our baby is getting married! And . . . it is a very good thing. I spoke about Mark earlier here so I will not rehash that all over again. I will say once again, how thankful and proud we are to have him as a part of our family. This past few months (about four or so) Sondra and Shelbi have been in wedding prep mode. Actually I think they both had been thinking through alot of plans prior to the engagement and just put most of that plan into action in April. To watch those two has been a blessing in itself. A little background will help you understand that last statement. Both Shelbi and Sondra are "planners". They make lists of lists of t...

This is one of the those posts that might be better left unsaid for fear that I am going to bring some kind of wrath down on myself, but alas,  I press on with the posting anyway. Lately, actually pretty much always, it seems that many people I know are in a constant state of spinning and many of those "many spinning" are on the brink of or are "out of control." I first have to admit that I tend to be a "low-key, sort of take things as they come", kind of person. I do not get rattled or overwhelmed very often. Some of that can be interpreted as "not caring" or "too dumb to realize how dire the straits are" or just to lazy to get engaged. I admit, sometime I get tired and some things that come along just are not worth the energy. But there are those I observe where EVERYTHING in life is a 14 on a ten point scale. There is no margin for when something really big or catastrophic or stressful comes along. If you are always pegging the ...

At times I have these episodes of ranting, throwing up on a page and sort of "going off" on things that irritate or frustrate me. I am normally easy-going, docile, and pretty conservative about what I comment on. Too many times I am guilty of commenting on things/issues that I know very little about but come across as authoritative (at least in my own mind). With all that said, there are a couple of things I feel compelled to comment on that in my opinion are good examples of overreaching. One is the Roger Goodell and New Orleans Saints Bountygate issue. I am in no way supporting a system that would intentionally pay players to go "take out" people on the field, but, the NFL has a system set up for on the field play that monitors and controls the games. Officials are there to flag any plays that are deemed outside the rules of play. Mr.Goodell has been given too much authority and has over reached his responsibility in my opinion. The whole Penn State deb...

I volunteer once per month to work with three-year-olds during worship. (I should know what ETC stands for but I don't but evidently that is what our church calls what I have volunteered to do.) I always go in ready to learn something (and hopefully, come out alive!) Today was no exception. Our lesson was on Peter being prayed for by his friends while he was in prison; the angel appearing to Peter saying, "You are free to leave this prison"; and then Peter appearing to his friends who had prayed for him. There were interjections throughout the story by the students and I am listing a sample of them below: Question asked during the lesson - "Do you remember ever praying as a family for someone who needed prayer?" Answer by 3 year old S - "We never pray at our house! Well, we pray for meals." I am sure the parents would be mortified. I know them. They are praying people. Me - "So, how did you cut your thumb?" "I cut it while I was op...