11.23.19 - week 30
on what we gain while we wait
i would check it within 20 minutes of waking up every day. it was the key metric i was monitoring in our progress.
if i could get to a certain threshold, we would get this thing i really wanted. if that number was going up, i was having a good day. if it wasn’t, i would spend the day plotting how to change it.
and the thing is, it was a healthy thing to care about, it was measure of how many people were being blessed by the music we were making.
and then we made it.
and we got to do the thing i really wanted us to do.
and then i didn’t check the number for 3 months.
when our desperation stops, usually so does our prayer.
to pray without ceasing (1 thessalonians 5.18) is to live with an attitude of perpetual surrender.
we so easily toggle over to self-reliance when things are good. one of the gifts god is giving us while we wait is a developed pattern of needing him. take delight in the discipline of prayer, while you wait for an answer to it.
KG Korner
(a few wise words from lady kristen macdonald)
Happy 34th birthday to my husband!!!! 33 for him/us looked a lot different than we thought.
But this man has kept standing---
Luke recently preached a message from 1 Thessalonians 3 and one of the things that he preached about from verse 8 is that sometimes standing is enough. Luke has woke up everyday of this year and chosen to get into the Word and pray no matter what he is facing. As humans we are so gratified by progress and forward movement and yet there are seasons in our lives where just showing up is enough. He for sure had burdens on his shoulders but He was there saying Lord I am trying, and as his wife I am so incredibly grateful for that.
Kept praising, {psalm 63:3 - Because your steadfast love is better than life, my lips will praise you.}
Luke’s always been my music provider. From burned cd’s to his spotify playlists, I’m blessed by the way he’s always finding new songs. And one of the things I have enjoyed through this year is hearing him sing the songs he’s got on his mind. From Highlands of Ascent by Hillsong to Known and Hills and Valleys by Tauren Wells to Bigger than I thought by Sean Curran to Find you Here by Ellie Holcomb to Goodness of God by Bethel Music to Not in a Hurry by Will Reagan to Take me Back by Maverick City Music. He has praised God when he could see what God was doing and when he couldn’t and that’s one of the many things I deeply admire him for.
Kept trusting our God.
If you have ever heard Luke and my love story - it’s long and has lots of twists and turns. I guess that’s the case when you meet at age 14 and have some real big life lessons to learn. There’s been many things we have had to trust God for in our lives but this year takes the cake in believing God for his Word when there were a lot of days when it felt like we were in a foggy tunnel. His trust inspired my trust therefore inspired a fresh wind of trust in our kids to trust the God we always have and therefore leading the way for our family. He is the great love of my life (we have officially celebrated birthdays 17 together!) And I am asking the Lord for many more!! 34 here we go!!!
Cup of Leadership
healthy relationships require a lot of tools, a dexterity for knowing what and how and when. encouragement, instruction, rebuke, space, listening, etc etc etc can all help you build a house, but not if they are the only thing you use.
when you to use a chainsaw to hammer a nail, you end up with mutilated wood and a frustrated carpenter.
if newlyweds only develop the physical connection part, then a baby or an illness can tear the whole thing apart.
if parents only utilize fun to build connection when the child is old enough to find their own fun, the parents are useless.
if christians only know how to punish those they perceive as sinful, they can’t actual complete the cycle of redemption.
often when you find something broken, it’s because people refuse to develop new ways of communicating + solving problems + building trust. usually when someone describes to you a right way + a wrong way, they are really expressing that only their way is acceptable.
so go buy a bigger tool belt and develop some new tactics.
Book Review
this is a useful and timely book, especially for young leaders. the author has invited us past the reality of distraction (which anyone w a pulse already knows is a problem) into an understanding of why we are distracted. it’s more than millennial laziness … rather he has invited us to the root and some healthy practices to root it out. written in a breezy and easy to understand manner, you will like this book.
Podcasts This Week
the listenership is slowly but surely growing. would love for you to rate/review to help us along
1. for my birthday, i had my brother landon on to list the10 things he dislikes the most about me, if that doesn’t make sense to you, that’s just kinda our deal … we had a lot fun.
2. part 2 of my series through the book of 1 thessalonians, i think you will find these messages challenging and encouraging. this sermon is also on youtube.
Things I Liked This Week
1. i preached this past weekend at faithful central on ‘the power of verbal restraint’ – i think you might be blessed…
2. i am absolutely blown away by this new ep from maverick city music, the rawness and sincerity of the sound is stunning …
3. there isn’t much on tv anymore that can be unequivocally recommended, but i really liked ‘modern love’ on amazon prime. its old school tv, saccharine and simple and you are happy when each episode ends.