Author: Wick

Husband, Father, Pastor, Missionary, Writer, Poet, Friend, reader, coffee enthusiast, hockey Wing-Nut, musical participator, etc...
Posted in Different Moments

yum.

Posted on by Wick

The weather in Central Illinois has suddenly and dramatically changed.  We’ve gone from a couple of the hottest days of the summer last week, with temperatures above 102 with 95% humidity – to evenings touching down near 50 degrees this week.  We still need rain, even though I’ve enjoyed not mowing for just about 2 months now.  But the weather has provided a nice change in pace in regard to “outdoor times”.
We moved into our new home in mid-April, and it was well into the summer before the new house felt more like our home.  So we are experiencing great weather without the stress of “setting up home” in many ways for the “first time”.  The heavy blanket of summer heat has finally lifted.  It gives us a chance to slow down life, and change pace not only with what we’re doing, but where we are doing it.  I like it.

More than once this past week, we’ve taken our quiet evening moments (okay, some not so quiet, as giggles drift down the street) outside to the porch.  Sipping hot chocolate with our kids, or just enjoying a bit of “Favorite Part of the Day” discussions, it has been beautiful time of slowing our pace.  I blame my wife for this, as my natural tendency would be to continue to “check things off the list” of what needs to be done before we fall asleep.

As we go around the circle, asking “What was your favorite part of today?”, we mentally go through everything the day held.  Yesterday there were an amazing number of great experiences.  It was our oldest daughters’ first day of homeschool.  The day began with new activities/projects, and amazing rainbow waffles my wife worked on late into the night to perfect.  They even had a field trip on the first day of school, and took pictures of Addie’s “favorite things”.  So when we asked the question, we waited, anticipating the moment she would declare “Favorite Part”, and we would know all that effort was not in vain.

Her response?  “Mmmm, hot chocolate!!”

Often we get that kind of response.  Whatever the most immediate source of smiling on the time-line of “today” is, wins the award.  Our children can be great reminders of “living in the moment”.  Usually we see this in regard to not worrying so much about tomorrow, but it also extends into the past.   The pains and the joys from the past day are not worth as much as this moment, sipping hot chocolate on the porch with my family.

May God continue to use our children to remind us to slow down our pace.  May we let go of controlling tomorrow, and being controlled by yesterday, that we might enjoy this moment and be fully present with those we love…

Posted in Different Learning

have room?

Posted on by Wick

Recently the NY Times published a fascinating piece that revealed the rooms children live in around the world.  From many different vantage-points, we are reminded of what truly matters when “making a home” for our children to grow up in.  It is not the walls, or what decorates them.  It is not the fluffiness of the bed.  It is not the Barbie shoe you step on every single night after putting your daughters to bed, that hurts just enough to make you grunt, making your daughters laugh at you – thinking you want them to, and you try and smile as you leave the room quietly restraining yourself.

Recently I’ve been reading a book that challenges me.  I don’t agree with everything the author says.  But I do believe there is something important to the point he is trying to make.  Over time, we’ve let go of one of the most important things that has been a part of “making a home for our children” for centuries.  We send our kids to Sunday School, to Wednesday night programming, to children’s church, to summer camps, and to VBS.  We pray with them.  Once in a while, we’ll even follow up on a Sunday School lesson that was sent home.  But it seems largely, the primary role of discipleship of our children has been slowly given over to “ministries” that for a long time have advertised any good parent would do so.

The answer is not to disband all ministries, and slap a giant “evil” stamp on them…by any means.  Sooo much good has been done, and sooo many lives transformed by ministries that provided what wasn’t happening in the home.  Because this has been happening for more than one generation, many of us parents take our kids to church/other ministries, and accidentally make them the primary source of discipleship simply because we never saw it happen in our own homes growing up.

Thankfully, there are ministry resources popping up all over the place these days, some for good reasons, and some probably hoping to profit off this “new wave” in ministry.  But for many this is not simply a “new wave”.  Many pastors are repenting of “ministry focused” approaches, and laying new foundations of families and homes.  For many of us parents, we’re realizing our role and wanting/praying to begin growing our children at home.  Building relationships with our children so that when they have questions of faith or need someone to pray with….they know home is where we begin…together.

The problem is, our culture and pace of life seem so focused on claiming as much of our time/space as possible, by the time we realize the need to re-orient our home life…it feels too late.  We may already be in routines that ways of living, that the only time we have to disciple our children…is after their bedtime.  It may take some difficult and sacrificial changes in our schedules and homes, sometimes on a daily basis, to see this happen.

And so, as my daughters march around “Jericho” (the center area of our house), culminating with some loud shouting/screaming at the fireplace, each of them excited to play the role of Joshua the next time around….I smile.  Sure, we’ve got a great home, and I think we do a decent job at giving our kids comfort/safety.  But I hope and pray that the home we’re providing for them is soooo much more than what we can see in pictures, and that I can make room for it when it doesn’t happen naturally…

 

 

Posted in Different Scriptures

Making an offer…

Posted on by Wick

“For those who want to save their life will lose it, and those who lose their life for my sake will find it.  For what will it profit them if they gain the whole world but forfeit their life?  Or what will they give in return for their life?” (Matthew 16:25-26 NRSV)

The truth of this passage can be easily missed.  “Of course nothing is worth trading my life (other translations: soul) for.”  We dismiss the statement as silly or extreme, nod that Jesus has a good point here, and read on.  But there’s something larger being said, that connects with us, especially as parents, in a very real way.

Jesus had just finished blessing Peter for proclaiming Christ as Messiah (v. 16-17), and now we see him saying to Peter “Get behind me, Satan!” (v.23).  It’s true, Peter claimed Jesus as Messiah, but apparently this meant something different to him than to God.  Peter and many of the other followers saw Jesus as their ticket out from under Roman oppression.  A political hope that they could attach themselves to, and be elevated to power alongside their new Messiah.  So when Jesus starts talking about suffering and being killed, Peter rebukes him.  Of course that would never happen, because that’s not the way I want it.

And that, we may accidentally try to value as much as our soul.  Our way.

The issue comes up in a different way as a parent.  Who do we want Jesus to be for our children?  We want Him to take them to heaven someday, to Love them, to protect them, to bless them, and for our children to know about God and be involved in what He’s doing to make all things new.  But are we willing to let go of our children?  Not literally drop them on the side of the street, allowing God to do what he wants…

But in prayer, to offer God our desires and hopes for our children, submitting one of the things we value most in our lives – to His will?  Perhaps it’s not so much that God needs us to do this to use our children for the Kingdom…just like Peter could not have stopped Jesus. But it could be that just as Peter needed to have his view of “Messiah” transformed to help Christ build the Church, we need to have our view of “Parent” and “Jesus loves my children” transformed to partner in what God wants to do within our homes…

It seems that doing so, may lead to finding life as a family…