The Way

Here is a little catch up for the last few weeks. World Series Champions 2015 - #KCRoyals Here is a follow up to my World Series Statement post a few days ago. We Won! and I had nothing to do with it other than just being an obnoxious fan. Would have loved to have been there for the celebration on Tuesday but did watch a little of it online. It sure was a fun season and anytime you see me post #KCRoyals on social media, it reflected a win. I posted that about 110 times this past season. Sorry if you got tired of seeing that in your feed. You get a break now until April when the Mets come to the K to start off the season. How fun that will be to invite them to our season opening World Series Championship Celebration. I have not posted any workouts in a few weeks but that is not indicative of me not working out. I have been giving you a little bit of a break. Those posts are not designed to be self-righteous brags but a form of accountability. After Ironman Chattanooga , I...

I am a KC Royals fan through and through. I want them to win the World Series this year. I also need to make a statement for all of you friends of mine to help you understand where I stand on all of this stuff. 1. If the Royals are winning, I have absolutely nothing to do with it. 2. If the Royals are losing, I have absolutely nothing to do with it. Many of you may feel inclined to text, FB, or tweet me some things like this; "Dude, you guys are killing it." "Dude, you gave up three runs in the 8th with 5 errors." and other well meaning things. If you feel compelled to send me a message through any means, make it something like, "I'm pulling for your Royals" or "I am NL guy and can only pull for the Mets because of that" "Or I am a Mets fan so that's who I'm pulling for." I can respect and handle those messages. I don't need, "The Mets Suck!" "The Royals Suck!" or anything negative related t...

Some of you know that I have been training to complete an IRONMAN competition. Some of you know it all too well. I have posted to Twitter and Facebook incessantly and you have endured those posts. What you may not have known is that the reason I post my silly workouts is because there are many folks who hold me accountable to do the workouts. Twitter and FB are the easiest way to keep those few informed. Thanks for enduring. If you have known me for awhile, you have known that I enjoy being outside; I enjoy physical exercise; I like to set some goals that I just cannot go out and accomplish without some pretty strong disciplined and regimented plans; and that I am a tad bit obsessive. (I may have understated that last statement.) I have a friend at work who has completed 8 IRONMAN competitions and a couple of years ago I went to support him at IRONMAN Florida. I wrote about it here if you are interested. It was at that event that I realized that I believed I could finish one of t...

Recently I have been reading a book called Crucial Conversations that I am finding to be very beneficial not only in a work setting but in all relationships. This morning in our team devotions this book was mentioned again and then it was asked, "What instances in Scripture come to mind where you see crucial conversations take place." It was a good exercise and one of the things that I was reminded of was the issue of trust and how trust is pretty foundational in relationships and in crucial conversations. I remember running across some key elements to trust that I have shared in conferences and in conversation. I would like to give proper credit to the source of these but they really are a mash up of things I have discovered and learned so it is not intentional not to cite sources. Keys to Trust - Tell the truth. Always. - Be transparent. Always. - Extend trust and respect. Always. - Be vulnerable. Always. - Don't play games with people. Ever. - Keep your p...

Sometimes I get more than I aimed for. I realize that is a terrible way to start a blog post and to end a sentence, but it is very true. Sondra will always be the one that I out punted my coverage on. As a young teenager, I made a list of what I would look for in a wife and then I met Sondra in college. I looked at my list, wadded it up and threw it away. She was and continues to be more than I ever had dreamed of as a mate. Then God gave us two daughters. I have written much about each of them. Shelbi and Morgan are truly delightful, wonderful and far more than I ever dreamed gifts from God. Sondra and I made some mistakes along the way in rearing them but we intentionally purposed to help them love the Lord their God with all their heart, mind and soul. As they grew and matured and headed off to college, God brought a couple of young men into their lives. Mark grew up as an east Tennessee boy where I think they got indoor plumbing about the turn of the century. ;-) He and Shelbi...

Overwhelmed. That is how I feel at times. Not to the point of depression (although my dad and I have discussed how depression has been a part of our family for generations) I don't think, but then again denial is usually first the sign that you have something. :-) And . . . I do believe that depression is real and it is more of a "fix" than most believers will say. I do grow a little weary and annoyed at people who say, "just pray about it; spend more time in Scripture; etc. and everything will work out okay." Sounds good and all but I believe depression is more than just a "spiritual fix". There are too many physiological issues going on inside of us. I know that we don't tell cancer sufferers to just spend more time in the Bible and prayer and that cancer will go away, so I am not sure why we thing depression is less than a similar type of illness or challenge. (Enough rant on that.) I know Jesus drew away from the crowds. I know he suffer...

We saw this preview last night. Sure looks like it could be pretty funny. I am thinking this is pretty accurate. Enjoy.

One of my favorite memories of being a dad while Shelbi and Morgan were young girls, were the times that they would take their own money to the store to buy something. Most of the time it involved something Barbie but sometimes it would be something like rocks. You know those bins of rocks that were so mesmerizing for young eyes. So many small things in a various array of colors. It was always a "fun" time trying to help the girls understand their options based upon the amount of money they had to spend or the packable space still left in the '95 Saturn. (Still driving that beast by the way! I know you are jealous.) Invariably, the question, "How much does it cost, daddy?" followed by, "Do I have enough?" Sometimes when they did not have enough, I would make sure that they were covered. It's what we dads do sometimes. It was in those times that I realized that I was investing in their lives not only for the "here and now," but in hop...

Photo by Harrison's Lens It has been a bit of a whirlwind since the Big Day of the Wil and Morgan wedding. They honeymooned in Mexico and came back relaxed and tanned and ready to start real life together and 6 weeks in to their marriage they are doing great. Their apartment is set up and they are back into a routine of work and living life. I do want to share this picture with you of Morgan and me walking down the aisle. The first time I saw it, well, I might have teared up a little. So honored to be dad to both Morgan and Shelbi and now dad-in-law to Wil and Mark. Who knew it could be this good? Mark and Shelbi are doing great and extremely busy. Mark's season of work is much like mine in the summer. We work about 10 months behind the scenes and then summer hits and we run like crazy as campers hit our respective sites. Mark is training for IRONMAN Arizona which takes place in November so he is swimming, biking and riding whenever he can between a busy work schedule. ...

I realize that is has been almost three weeks since the wedding for Morgan and Wil and it is time for me to give you a little insight to what happened. I want to explain it in just a few short words - God-honoring! Beautiful! Humbling! FUN! God-honoring: Wil and Morgan have been a wonderful example of how to honor one another in a dating/engagement relationship. It has been a joy to watch them interact; learn one another; and figure out how two people who are different temperaments and personalities learn to accept one another just as God designed them. Beautiful: Okay, so I am a biased dad, but Morgan was just beautiful. She glowed. She beamed. She was just . . . well, beautiful. My mom always said that I would have made a beautiful girl and since Morgan has a tendency to look like me, I take mom's words as a compliment. Wil looked fairly handsome himself and to watch him watch Morgan walk down the aisle was pretty awesome. (I had a great vantage point.) Humbling: It wa...

So ESPN does this documentary series called 30 for 30. Some are okay and some are really good. Today, Sondra and I celebrate our 30th wedding anniversary and quite honestly, all 30 years have been incredible. I remember May 11, 1985 like it was yesterday. Sondra and I were both young (see the picture) and were smart enough that we did not have it all figured out, but we committed to figure it out together and so here we are 30 years later, with much still to learn, but more in love today than ever. May 11, 1985 Here are a few things (I might make it to 30) that have been a highlight of these 30 years. (This will not be an exhaustive list by any means either.)  1. We had 4.5 years of just us before Shelbi came along. I think it helped us solidify our relationship in those early years.  2. We moved 500 miles away from our parents and had to make it on our own. Man, we had so little money, but we had each other and a sweet couple, the Reynolds, who took us under thei...

St. Patrick During worship today I was reminded of this hymn that was said to have been on the breastplate of St, Patrick. He is much more than green beer and I have posted his story many times in commemoration of St. Patrick's Day. You can find it here . I do want to share this with you this week this Lorica. I find it beautiful. I bind unto myself today The strong Name of the Trinity, By invocation of the same The Three in One and One in Three. I bind this today to me forever By power of faith, Christ’s incarnation; His baptism in Jordan river, His death on Cross for my salvation; His bursting from the spicèd tomb, His riding up the heavenly way, His coming at the day of doom I bind unto myself today. I bind unto myself the power Of the great love of cherubim; The sweet ‘Well done’ in judgment hour, The service of the seraphim, Confessors’ faith, Apostles’ word, The Patriarchs’ prayers, the prophets’ scrolls, All good deeds done unto the Lor...

It has been a sort of busy December but an incredibly relaxing one for sure. There is some big news to pass along, so here goes. Back before Thanksgiving, Wilson approached me about "meeting for breakfast" one morning while I was on vacation. I said yes, and knew that this conversation was going to lead to some pretty serious conversation about Wilson's and Morgan's future together. We had a great conversation that morning at Panera and I was able to share with him that we have been praying for him long before we even knew who he was or what he looked like. It was an expensive conversation for me and a nervous one for him. :-) On a mid-December weekend he planned a trip for Morgan and he to jet away to Washington, DC to meet up with some friends and just enjoy the sites in DC. Morgan was not aware that many of her friends would be meeting them there so that was a nice surprise once they arrived in DC. They explored the city, saw many of the great sites there ...