Wide Open

The idea of running “wide open” is when we are running full speed through life, operating at 100% capacity. It’s not necessarily a negative phrase, but carries the idea of moving at a high efficiency without being completely overwhelmed.

Are we living a wide open life? What does that look like?

-Stepping into new areas of faith
-Using our gifts in ways that fulfill us and stretch us
-Engaged in authentic community
-Investing deeply in the lives of our family
-Open to creative ways of worship
-Looking for God in all parts of our life
-Pursuing our passion and contributing to the growth of our community

I want to live a life that is fully and passionately engaged. My desire is run wide open in the grace God has given me. This style of life brings contentment as we thrive becoming who God has created us to be.

Full

Today has been full. Not just full from a schedule perspective (although that is certainly true) but full from a spiritual view. I have had the tremendous pleasure & responsibility of teaching God's Word and I have prayed with several people. I was honored to baptize three people into Christ and talk with another about her future partnership with our church. I have been encouraged by the words of good friends and challenged by God's powerful reminders of my weakness. I was incredibly proud to witness the initial message of a God-honoring man and to share in moments of worship with brothers & sisters from another local church. I now have the incredible privilege of wrapping up my day with my beautiful daughters, our energetic puppy, and my devoted wife.

I think it's going to simply be enough to say that today was full in some of the very best ways. Even though it may seem that I am the central character in most of the good things about today, I recognize that it is far more about God and His generosity.

I am grateful for the gift of this Sunday. Selah.

The Simple Life

It's the simple pleasures in life that sometimes mean the most:

• Laughing with my children as we quote our favorite movies while driving home
• A Sunday afternoon nap after preaching
• Making a pot of specially brewed coffee to share
• Taking a leisurely walk with my beautiful wife on a chilly, cloudy afternoon
• Holding hands with my wife as we walk
• The ease of conversation with my love that drifts from the mundane to our future
• Picking up fried chicken for dinner & seeing the smiles on my children's faces
• Watching a classic movie with my wife

I'm grateful for these moments and many more. They remind me of how blessed I am to live this life in its complexity & simplicity.

Balanced

We can strive to keep parts of our life separate, but we'll quickly find that we aren't successful. Attempting to create partitions between our home, work, spiritual, and physical health will eventually bring frustration and a sense of being incomplete. In the same way that one flat tire negates the effectiveness of three good tires, our lives must be kept in balance. When we neglect an area of our life for too long, we will feel the effects of of this inequity and suffer the consequences as we careen off our intended life path. Taking time to focus in each area is the only way we can find true health and life satisfaction.

Full Life

One of my favorite verses to quote & preach is John 10:10, "The thief comes to steal, kill and destroy, but I have come that you might have life and have it to the full."

It's amazing how I know this verse so well and yet I ignore it when satan attempts to do those same things to me. I have been caught up in the things that he has been doing to distract and hurt me while ignoring the promise of the second part of that verse. The evil one only has as much power in my mind and spirit as I allow him to have and I have been giving him too much of a foothold. It's good to be reminded by a good friend (and great boss) of how much I am loved by God and that there is a full life to be had.