The tree gave its life

Hi again.

Remember the tree? 

The burning tree. 

Burning with passion. 

On fire with life.  From within. 

The strong tree.

Standing for something. 

Strong and distinctive.

I love that tree - will never forget it...

Know what I have been thinking about the tree? 

I have been thinking about when we drove back by there the next day -- after the fire - and then what we saw the day after that - and what I saw this morning when I drove by that field.

The next day - after the passion and the fire - after standing for years - strong and independent.

On that next day the tree was down on the ground in a heap of charred wood. 

Only the trunk left standing. 

And then the next day there was nothing - only a memory of where the tree stood. 

Oh, I remembered - I could walk you to the place where it stood - but it was not there anymore.  Only wind whispering across the frozen fields of February - whispering of the great tree - of its presence.  Gusting at times as if calling out to the tree - searching for its branches to whip thru, to dance around.  But the tree was not there.

To me tonight, i feel sad at the departing of the tree.  Sad that it no longer stands.  Sad that it isn't there to reign over the field.

But then when i think about it a little bit, i remember something.  Over its many years that tree sent out thousands and thousands of seeds - caught in the wind and floating to land on the edge of a field, to land in the depths of the forest, who knows...each one a bundle of the tree's life, filled with the tree's passion and energy.  A thousand saplings, all bearing the mark of the great tree - growing all over the Midwest.

Know what else?  If the tree had never blazed with passion, it might still be standing there - if the fire had not lit it from the inside out, it might still stand over the field.  But it would not have been that particular tree then - its life was linked to that fire - that flame...it would also have never quite caught my eye - would not have inspired me, would not have struck me so deeply.  Would not have moved all of us so much.  It would have just been a tree.

Know what else?  I would rather burn with passion than live safely.  Even if it means that my life will be risky and used up for something bigger than myself.  Even if it means that i risk feelings of brokenness that i could hide if i were someone different.  Even if it means that i risk deep feelings of insecurity as i learn to be real.  Even if i have to face my mistakes and shortcomings with an intensity that i would rather just avoid.  Even if i have to go into the depths of the pains of this life with friends and family that i would have been able to avoid if i had not been so violently ignited.  Even if i have to face exhaustion and weakness in myself that i had no idea could be so deep and yet i could still survive.  I would rather risk being ignited if it has the accompanying chance of my life making a difference in the world.  This is dangerous business - it will mean that i will not be like the rest of the world.  It will mean that i will not be nice, just loving.  It means that i will not be typical.  I will stand out - ready to be hurt, to be criticized, to be put down.  I will not be able to deny the difference between me and the people around me.

I would rather be the tree of fire.  Even if it hurts me.  I want to send a thousand saplings into the world - and more. 

Know what else?  The thing is, the power for this ignition never came from the tree really.  It was ignited by the lightening.  There was a power so much bigger than the tree itself.   The power for the seeds came from the sun and the rain and the nutrients in the soil.  It never really was the tree itself.  It was the power of an awesome God who provided the lightening and the rain and the sun and the soil and the roots. 

This is true for me too.  Inside me blazes a passion - sometimes the passion flickers and falters and the pain of this life threatens to drown it out - but it stays kindled and never is quenched.  My weaknesses and mistakes and faults threaten to drop a torrential rain on the flames, but it is not me who keeps the passion burning.  It is the God who supplied the tree.  He lives in me - He produces thousands of seeds in my life - scattering them far and wide and producing many who are marked by His Goodness and love.

This difference between us and the world around us is what we are all about at More than more.  We are sick and tired of the usual way of being a tree - buy more stuff - get more - get ahead - succeed more - and on and on it drones - the American idea of more.  NO!

We are determined to live a different way - regardless of the ups and downs of life - regardless of the burdens of life - regardless of how hard it is - regardless of our own mistakes and brokennesses - we will be different.  We will live for something More.  In our case it takes shape simply in forming healthy relationships, accepting and being accepted for who we are - serving and caring about the people around us and getting to know a fantastic God who loves nothing more than to make life full of passion.  Those who join us find that they laugh tons and spend a light and fun time with some crazy different people.

If this kind of life is sounding like something you are interested in, we would love to have you join us at More than more - we will be hanging out 645-800 pm on the 11th of December at McAllister Recreation Center - just off 20th and Schuyler Ave, Lafayette.  As always there will be activities for all ages.  Hope to see you there.

Roots

So I have been thinking about that tree Jason wrote about before.  I picture this massive tree with deep roots, distinctly beautiful through every season.  I imagine it standing tall and proud in this open field.  I picture it blazing from the inside.  I try to figure out how it was burning yet not entirely consumed.  I wonder how long did it burn?  What was it like before?  After?  Then I remember what Jason wrote about passion and standing firm.  I cannot help but sigh and feel crummy.  

Then I think about another tree that is rooted in my mind - a tree that caught my eye on the way to a friend’s house one day, a tree standing alone in open field.  Yet this tree was vastly different.  This tree was weak.  This tree looked dead.  There were no leaves like many other trees had at the time.  No fire.  This tree looked old and crumbly.  I feel like this tree- fear, isolation, different. It’s all I can do to just stand.  There is no passion.    

This cycle of the image Jason painted and the image I saw with my own eyes is never ending.  For months it has stuck in my heart.  I want so badly to feel the passion burning inside me but I feel so empty.  It’s much easier to stick with the image I remember.  But the burning tree ignites this aching hope.  It’s almost too much.  I feel like giving up.  But something stops me.  I may feel like this dead tree with nothing left inside, but my roots are strong.  What are the roots you may wonder?  The roots are the friends and family that love me.  The roots are the leaders that guide me to the truth.  The roots are the prayers for strength.  The roots are the Paul’s words in Ephesians.  The roots are the song lyrics like…Burn bright in my life, burn away the things I hold tight.  The roots hold me up.  The roots remind me, “It’s such a different thing to know in your head and feel in your heart.”

I wonder is that aching hope a spark to a burning passion?  Maybe the spark is the passion.  On our own it is just a spark.  But if we give God control of our spark He can use it is a mighty flame for all to see.  Under our control it will consume us.  We need to let God burn away the things we hold tight.  To the world we still look like a tree- but there is something different about us.  There is a light inside us.  See the intense passion is not the fire itself but is the bright blaze that God creates in us.

Think of the tree.  Season by season it changes.  Leaves sprout, change colors, and fall.  The tree has barren seasons.  Branches stretch into new branches.  Trees bloom and trees wither.  Season by season the tree is there – standing.  Sometimes it stands firm.  Other times it all it can do to just stand.  Same with life; we go through seasons.  We experience seasons of growth and joy, beauty and new life, seasons of pain and loss, and seasons of fear and anticipation.  I am the tree.  You are the tree.  The question is not if you have any passion- but who controls it.  The question is what are you holding tightly to that needs burnt away?  What season are you in?  What roots do you have?  The question is who controls your spark?  I know who controls mine.  Sometimes I feel the need to grab the spark back and control it myself.  But that’s why I am grateful for the roots God has placed in my life.

Need some roots?  I know a great place to find some.  Join us Thursday 645-800 pm on the 13th of November at McAllister Recreation Center - just off 20th and Schuyler, Lafayette.  All ages, all seasons.  There is something for everyone.  Safe, loving childcare provided.

Megan

Don't forget tomorrow

Tomorrow night, the 30th of October, we will be hanging out for More than more at McAllister Recreation Center - just off 20th and Schuyler Ave, Lafayette, from 645-800PM.

As always there will be activities for all ages.

Hope to see you there

A Tree that STANDS

Hey again!  I wonder if you have been thinkn about the tree?  The one that is burning inside - maybe with passion...

I love that tree - it has made me think so many times.

There was the tree, in the field, by itself - only crops around it in the spring and summer and fall and in the winter only open field.  The tree stood tall.  I would even say it stood proud.  Glad to be a tree - the last tree of what I am guessing was a forest of trees plowed over for houses and crops.  The tree doesn't pretend.  I doesn't hide.  It stands for something.  There is something beautiful about that.

You see, I want to be like the tree.  I want to stand.  I want to be true.  I want to know who I am and what is REALLY important in life and I want to stand for those things.  When I say something is important to me, I want people to look at the details of my life - how I spend my time - how I spend my money - how I invest the passion (fire) in me - all the moments of my life - and I want them to see that what I say is important really shows in all the areas of my life.  I want to be true to who I am and who I want to be.

After all if I say family is important and no one can tell by looking at my time, passion, money, moments, is family REALLY important to me?

If I say that serving the world and loving people is important to me but no one sees me investing time, money, passion, moments, in serving and loving, is serving and loving REALLY important to me?

If I say that honesty is important, if I say that standing for the little guys, the weakest, the defenseless is important, if I say that being a peacemaker is important, if I say that laughter is important....if no one can see it in my life...is it REALLY important?

Reminds me of another Switchfoot song:

"The World You Want"

I'm kickin up the pieces
I'm trying out adhesives
I'm trying to fix a place that feels broken
All my words they fail me
My voices don't avail me
I'm trying to say the hope that's unspoken

Is this the world you want?
Is this the world you want?
You're making it
Every day you're alive
Is this the world you want?
Is this the world you want?
You're making it

The world feels so malicious
With all our hits and misses
Feels like we're in the business of rust
It's when I stop to listen
All the moments I've been missing
I finally hear a voice I can trust

Is this the world you want?
Is this the world you want?
You're making it
Every day you're alive
Is this the world you want?
Is this the world you want?
You're making it
Every day you're alive

You change the world
You change the world
You change the world
Every day you're alive
You change the world
Honey, you change the world
You change my world

You start to look like what you believe
You float through time like a stream
If the waters of time are made up by you and I
If you change the world for you, you change it for me

What you say is your religion
How you say it's your religion
Who you love is your religion
How you love is your religion
All your science, your religion
All your hatred, your religion
All your wars are your religion
Every breath is your religion yea
Is this the world you want?
Is this the world you want?
You're making it
Every day you're alive
Is this the world you want?
Is this the world you want?
You're making it
Every day you're alive

You change the world
You change the world
You change my world
Every day you're alive
You change my world
Honey, you change my world
You change my world

I love this idea.

Problem is that so many times I look up from my day and realize that it would be pretty hard for someone to identify me as I claim to be...

Instead of being true to who I am and what I believe, I am worried about what people think. 
Instead of standing up for good, I cave to finance.
Instead of fighting for the little defenseless ones, I concede to big healthcare.
I preserve myself.
I save myself.
I pretend so i'll look good.
When I go to stand up like the tree, I find that it is sometimes lonely and hard and I would rather feel good and do what is easy, even if i am acting more like a fern than a mighty burning tree.

I see the same thing all around me - our country is chock-full of people who say they believe this or that and you would never know by looking at them - they look more like a cup of pudding than a tree!

I hope that you are not like me on this one - i hope that you are always true to who you are - that your life lives out what you believe and anyone who meets you would know what you believe and who you are by how you act and what you say.

But, if you struggle with being true.  If you find yourself in the tub of jello, no backbone, wallowing in the way of this crazy world we live in.  I hope you would consider joining us at More than more.  By no means have we perfected our trueness to where we stand up tall and strong all the time, like passion-filled trees and say to the world around us, "Bring it!"  But we are all on our way - all of us closer to the tree than we used to be.  We are learning to be true.  We are helping each other along and finding that as we journey through life together it is easier to be true.  Each time we get together we focus on something that shows what really matters in this life - we remind each other of what is true and good and right and real.  We accept each other making fake unnecessary.  It is a great way to live life.

We hang out every other Thursday night at McAllister Recreation Center - just off 20th and Schuyler Ave, Lafayette - 645-800 pm - activities for all ages are available.  We will return to this usual schedule on the 16th of October.  We hope to see all of you then.

This next Thursday night, October 2nd, will be a different More than more time together - for those who are part of the group already.  It will be a special outreach night serving the families of Murdock Elementary.

Passion - What I would like to have burning on the inside of me.

Have you had a chance to think about the tree?

The burning tree.  So ablaze there in that field, yet not consumed.  Fiery hot in the inside, looking like a tree on the outside.

I hope you have had a chance to think about it. 

When you think about it, what does it make you think?  Any feelings?  Any thoughts?

I start thinking about the tree and i think of someone that looks like a normal person at first glance, or maybe even second glance.  But then when you look deeper, when you listen to their heart, their core,  you notice something burning inside them - no not heartburn from too much of Mike's chili - you begin to hear a passion - something big and wonderful and powerful that oozes from them. 

I think about that tree and it makes me think of some people I know:

I think of Emily when she is with horses.  There is a light in her eyes that burns with passion.

I think of my friend Mitch when he talks about sorghum and plants and research and genetics.  The words from this humble and usually soft-spoken man get faster and louder and more animated  - Passion.

I think of my friend Ryan when he plays his guitar.  Even when he talks about how he got this Indiana guitar.  Passion.

I think of Melissa when someone messes with one of her kids - or her dog...Passion.

I think of my dad, in almost everything he did or was - Passion.

Then I think of our world.  You see we live in a world that talks a fair amount about passion.  Mostly it is on commercials and in novels and on TV shows.  We get it on ESPN and the Speed channel.

But I just don't see that much of it in day to day life.  Most people work their jobs, do their thing, pay their bills, live out their lives - and they do not have much in the way of passion.  They just live.  They don't LIVE.  They feel passionate about whether the Bears or the Colts make the playoffs and whether the Yankees or the Cubs make the world series (hey - don't crush my dreams ok?)  But having passion in their day to day lives is something they just don't have much of.

It makes me think of a song by a group I like - Switchfoot:

Been fighting things that I can't see in
Like voices coming from the inside of me and
Like doing things I find hard to believe in
Am I myself or am I dreaming?

I've been awake for an hour or so
Checking for a pulse but I just don't know
Am I a man when I feel like a ghost?
The stranger in the mirror is wearing my clothes

No I'm not alright
I know that I'm not right
A steering wheel don't mean you can drive
A warm body don't mean I'm alive
No I'm not alright
I know that I'm not right
Feels like I travel but I never arrive
I want to thrive not just survive

I come alive when I hear you singing
But lately I haven't been hearing a thing and
I get the feeling that I'm in between
A machine and a man who only looks like me

I try and hide it and not let it show
But deep down inside me I just don't know
Am I a man when I feel like a hoax?
The stranger in the mirror is wearing my clothes

No I'm not alright
I know that I'm not right
A steering wheel don't mean you can drive
A warm body don't mean I'm alive
No I'm not alright
I know that I'm not right
Feels like I travel but I never arrive
I want to thrive not just survive

I'm always close but I'm never enough
I'm always in line but I'm never in love
I get so down but I won't give up
I get slowed down but I won't give up

Been fighting things that I can't see in
Like voices coming from the inside of me and
Like doing things I find hard to believe in
Am I myself or am I dreaming?

No I'm not alright
I know that I'm not right
A steering wheel don't mean you can drive
A warm body don't mean I'm alive
No I'm not alright
I know that I'm not right
Feel like I travel but I never arrive
I want to thrive not just survive

I want to thrive not just survive

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Or1aFVBEZBY


Ask 100 people what the most important things in their lives are.  let them have 5 answers.

What would they be?  What would yours be?

You know what?  I hear few people whose passion and energy of life flow into those 5 things and out of those 5 things.

 We Americans spend most of our time on the things that don't matter much too us and it leaves us with not nearly enough passion to burn with for the things that REALLY matter.  Why? 

We are distracted.  Spending our lives chasing after things that everyone tells us we need.  Spending our lives running away because we don't know how to live with passion and not destroy ourselves or those around us.  Spending our lives thinking we are going after what really matters to us, when in fact we are not at all - in fact so many times looking backward on our lives and realizing that not only did we not live with nearly the passion we wanted to, but we invested that passion in the wrong places.

Now I don't know about you but I want to LIVE - I want to live with passion - I want to thrive not just survive.  I want a fire to burn inside me every second of every day and I want it to be all about the 5 things - those that are the most important.  The things that at the end of my life will matter.  I want to look back and see that tree burning in the field - fiery - passionate.  I want people to talk to me and realize that I am not normal...

now don't get me wrong, I know no one can live in hot passion all the time, but I can live with more, and be more true...

At More than more we are people looking to focus our lives on what is most important.  We realize that chasing after the usual American stuff is not what we are passionate about and it is not what we want to look back on our lives at the end and see. 

We realize that this is totally different than much of the people around us think and that after talking to us many people will feel as if they have come in contact with a burning tree...but we also want to make a difference in our world and help many more people see the emptiness and brokenness of our culture.


If you have had it with usual American life and are looking to begin a path to passion (one which takes a long time to develop), we would love to have you join us for the first step in that journey this Thursday night - September 18th - 645-800 PM at McAllister Recreation Center - just off 20th and Schuyler Ave, Lafayette.  As always there will be free and excellent activity for people of all ages - yes even your kids.

We would love to see you there!

Thursday - tomorrow

I know this is late...

But tomorrow night is More than more - Sept 4th

We will be hanging out at McAllister Recreation Center - just off 20th and Schuyler Ave, Lafayette from 645-8 - free and excellent activities for all ages - kids too.

It is a fun and restful time - really hope you can make it.

Be looking for more about the burning tree - in the works - just not ready yet...

Hope to see you soon

Is it ever good when a doctor writes about burning?

There are all kinds of burning that we deal with in the office in a given day...

Most of which are probably not the best to be talking about on the blog...

But I do have a story about burning I would like to share with you...

Last April, as usual in the spring, we had some bad storms.  The morning after a particularly electrical storm - lightening crisscrossing the sky in a million directions - we headed out for school.  The bridge is out near us, forcing us to take a multiple-mile-out-of-the-way trek each time we leave the house for town - our trip to school included.

In fact, it is actually faster for us to drive through 10miles of farms and fields to go to school because of this inconvenient detour than it is to drive through town to the kids' school.

On this particular morning, the one after the awesome electrical storm, we were driving down one of those country roads along fields that were recovering from the recent heavy snows and, in their own way, anticipating the planting of the spring and the crops to be grown in their fertile Midwestern soil.  We came around a corner and up a steep hill and saw smoke.  The thing is, that smoke was not coming from a house or school or building of any kind - it was coming from the center of a field.  I know that must seem strange to you, so let me explain.  Unlike many of the fields in the Midwest, where the trees have been taken out for the sake of farming, this farmer had left one tree...one massive tree...right in the middle of his field.  Now, the ADD in me wants to have a tangent conversation about the reasons why that tree was left there...but I will leave that for now (leave it - haha - a pun!).

Regardless of why the tree was left there, it was left there and that particular morning, it was not just smoking, it was burning - blazing in fact.  But the blaze was not consuming the tree - it was not on the branches.  It was coming from inside the tree - or so it looked from the road.  It burned in orange and red hot flames, but the tree itself did not look a whole lot different than it always did, other than that.

That tree has been in my mind on and off ever since - especially when we go back by the field where it burned.

That morning I was struck by a range of thoughts and feelings at the vision of that beautiful tree burning from the inside...

I would like to write a few different posts about it...

If you think that the idea of noticing something unusual on your way to school/work sounds interesting, or if you just are looking to break out of the usual American buy more, get more, become more, cycle, we would love to have you join us this Thursday night, August 21st, from 645-800pm, at McAllister recreation center - just off 20th and Schuyler ave, Lafayette.

We are a goofy, messed up group of people, trying to find a better way in this life - together.  We care very much about our world and each other - we laugh more than any group I know and would love to have you join us - we have new people all the time it seems and they always feel welcome.

Hope you can join us!

Thursday - time together

Hey everyone! We will be hanging out again Thursday night, August 7th from 645-800pm at McAllister Recreation Center.  Just off 20th and Schuyler Ave, Lafayette. 
It's always a great time - laughter and lots of goodness - and some people who know you without wanting something from you.
We will have activities for all ages.
Hope to see you there!

Tomorrow Night - same time, same place!

Hey everyone!  Come to McAllister just off 20th and Schuyler Ave, Lafayette) tomorrow night, 645, for outreach night.  More info will be available there, but dress appropriately for the weather and plan to have a blast outside!!

 

Looking forward to seeing everyone there!

 

CHOSEN

Have you ever had a song stuck in your head? Well I have had the same song in my head for 5 days now. Usually it drives me crazy when I cannot get songs out of my head- but in this case it has been quite perfectly fitting. I love how God uses music. The song is called Daddy’s Girl by One Girl Nation. My step daughter just loves this group. And this song happens to be her favorite. We listened to it twice this morning on my way to work. Ella is absolutely a daddy’s girl. There is just something special there. I can still recall watching her dance with Matt at our wedding. The look in her eyes said it all. She will always be her daddy’s girl. I can relate. I was a daddy’s girl too, which is why I struggled so massively went I lost him. Any daddy’s girl who has lost their dad can tell you it is like a piece of you just disappears. The song says:

Our souls are forever tied together
Through tears and all the laughter
You love me like no other
You say I'm the center of your whole wide world
I'll always be my daddy's girl

For the past six years I have grieved and healed grieved and healed, and grieved and healed some more. Most of this time I have clung tightly to the hurt; however occasionally I opened the door to my Dad vault. Overall I have been stuck in the verse “you love me like no other.” I feel like my Dad was the only person who ever really got me. We share so many characteristics- some good and some bad. I thought there was nothing stronger than the father daughter bond. In a way this is true- but not in the way I was thinking. You see as much as my earthly father loved me- my Father in heaven loves me more. He chose me. Really chose ME.

The love that you gave me came from another
Passed down to me from a Heavenly Father
Who chose me as his daughter

Well this got me thinking. What does it mean to be really chosen? We chose things every single day. We choose what bunch of bananas to buy. We choose what clothes to wear. We choose what type of gas to buy. We choose a doctor. We choose what song to listen to when our stepdaughter allows us. We choose a snack to eat. We choose our furniture. Choice after choice after choice. But what do we base our choices on? Typically it is on some type of quality or preference- best price, best taste, best skills, etc. I have yet to see someone pick the mushy brown banana or the broken recliner. We want the best. Think about it. In school when kids line up to pick teams for dodge ball what are they bases the choice on??? You want to pick who is going to do the best- not the scrawny kid that can barely lift the ball, not the boy in his own world who cannot focus, not the girl that hides in the back terrified. Picking flowers to plant… are you going to choose the near dead weedy looking flower or the one with bright beautiful blooms? Are you going to pick the doctor with no experience and bad reviews? In other words we typically do not choose the broken, messy, or weak.

So why did God choose me? I am far from the best. I am a bigger mess than that mushed up brown banana. Here is what I have discovered. God did not design me to be a broken mess. Nor did he design me as the best. He did however have a plan. God created me to be me. He gave me freedom of choice and endless love to surround me regardless of choices I made. God knew I would mess up, he knew I would make dumb choices; he knew I would be full of flaws. Yet He never abandoned me in my mess. In fact He had made beauty out of brokenness. Look at David- scrawny little guy who no one would have guessed could take down Goliath. How about the boy with focus difficulties that turned into the most loving doctor anyone could imagine. Or the dead azalea plant I bought my mom as a child that bloomed with gorgeous pink flowers year after year. How about the near rotten bananas that are used to make delicious banana bread?

No matter how broken we are God chooses us. And to me that is the best kind of love anyone can ask for. I’m not sure about you, but I will always be a Daddy’s girl.

Choose to join us. Choose to notice. We will be meeting Thursday July 10th at 6:45 – 8:00 pm at McAllister Recreation Center just off 20th and Schuyler, Lafayette.

As always we will have free activities for all ages.

We hope to see you there!

Tomorrow

Well, we did go and put in flooring and move storage stuff - shared dinner and the kids had tons of fun in the sprinklers.  It was on awesome time on the 12th!  This is the kind of life we want to live - giving and caring - showing up!

Tomorrow we will be back to McAllister Recreation Center just off 20th and Schuyler, Lafayette, from 645-800 to talk about continuing to live this life outside life as usual in this country!

As always we will have free activities for all ages.

We hope to see you there!

Dinner and Flooring!

Hey everyone!

This Thursday, June 12th, we will be meeting at 6pm for dinner and a time of sharing help and good times.  We will be meeting at:

7924 Ramona Lane
Lafayette 47905

This is the home of one of Kale and Andrea's friends, Brian.  He has 3 kids and we are gonna help him put in a floor.  We are also gonna have some fantastic food and hangout time.

The Hendrick kids are organizing an evening of fun for the kids.  Your kids should coming planning to get wet and messy.  Bring towels and swimwear.

Come planning to share the love that you have in your heart and maybe help with some construction (don't worry, our construction experts will be there to tell you what to do!!).

We truly hope to see you all there!

In 2wks, on the 26th of June, we will be back at McAllister, 645-8 pm, as usual - we would love to see you there too!

A Reminder and Some News

Hey everyone.  Wanted to remind you of one thing and tell you about something else that you probably don't know.

1st the reminder:  We are hanging out at Morethanmore tomorrow night from 645-800pm at McAllister Recreation Center - just off 20th and Schuyler ave.

2nd some news: On June 12th we will be having a fantastic chance to reach out into our community.  We will be caring for a friend Kale and Andrea's who lost his wife recently.  It will be from the usual 645-800pm as usual for Mtm.  More information will follow, but plan to come to McAllister that night just like you always would and we will head over to share the goodness in our lives with him and his kids.

 

hope to see you tomorrow

 

keep noticing...

Time flies. Don’t get lost in the blur.

When I was young the days seem to be longer, clock ticked slower, and an hour could feel like eternity. I do not recall being rushed. Almost think spent more time waiting for the next thing to happen. As I have grown older this concept has completely flipped. I am constantly rushing from one thing to the next. Days turn into weeks and months disappear in the busy cycle of life. Everything just blends together. As a child I recall distinct separation of events- it was more like a timeline. Today it feels like a blur. It is like I am riding the tilt a whirl or tea cups at an amusement park. Spin spin spinning. Before I know it I am dizzy and cannot focus. Every now and then the whole rides stops. I call this a vacation. Someday I will take one of these. However life cannot stop whenever you like. You cannot just slam the break on when you have had enough. You can however slow down. Let God have control of the wheel. Choose to notice. It is not always easy. It may take time, energy, patience, and focus. But it is worth it. For example- our recent outreach. We chose to notice. We chose to love. We chose to pause our crazy lives and busy schedules to lend a hand to a new friend by doing yard work. And what a beautiful choice it was. Please note- the yard work was not the beautiful choice. This is the only time you will ever hear me say yard work and beautiful choice in the same context. Ha. I do not like yard work. Not a bit. Raking, mowing, planting, trimming… all yuck. It is just not my cup of tea. The yard work was the act of service. It was an opportunity to help. The beauty was in the love we showed. The beauty was showing up for a sweet lady who has been let down before. The beauty was a teenage boy respectfully expressing sympathy of loss of a loved one. The beauty was how God orchestrated the right people with the right skills. I am so grateful for Jas’s ability to use a chainsaw. Seriously can you see Deb with a chainsaw? Or me! There was something for everyone. Even sweet little Emeree found a very important task. Emeree and I share the same level of love for yard work. Picking up sticks was not her cup of tea. So I sent her off on a mission to take photos. She ran around bursting with grins and giggles snapping pictures. We ended up with quite an assortment of photos. Most were blurry. Turns out she moves faster than my cameras can focus. Yet there is one truly amazing photo that stood out. This picture captured the ability to focus on a person in the midst of a blurry world. This is how God sees us and wants us to see others. Not as our circumstances or surroundings. No matter how fast life is spinning or how busy we are he can always see us clearly. Makes me wonder- how much do we miss? Do we get so rushed that we forget to notice those around us? I know I do. Sometimes I just need to be reminded to focus. It is amazing how God used the eyes and hands of a 6 year old who loves him to remind me.

Thursday Night

Hey everyone! Wanted to remind you that this Thursday, the 15th of May, we will all be hanging out. Morethanmore is a great place to hang out with some real people who are looking to live life different...better...than the usual life we see around us in this world. We will be at McAllister recreation center, just off 20th and Schuyler Ave, Lafayette. 6:45-8:00PM. We will have activities for all ages. Hope to see you there

What happened with that Outreach?

Well, I have been out of writing commission for a couple weeks (more like a couple months - sorry about that) and so have not yet updated you on the outreach to Mary's house almost 2wks ago. It was a wonderful time! It was a hard working time. Funny though how hard work does not seem nearly so hard when you are working with your friends, being kind, and the playful laughs of little people resounds all around you! As we gathered in a big circle at the end of the evening, Mary summed it up, "All of the other people who said they would come and help me never came. You did." Most of us are not particularly skilled - most of us are not even the people that someone would choose to come and work on their yard. Yet, on a Tuesday night in April, we joined together and gave a gift of a nice clean yard to Mary - but more than that, we gave her More. We showed her love. Real love. Love that sweats and works and laughs and hugs. Love that doesn't sit by and cheer when there is a difficulty but that wades right into the trouble to help. Love that acts like the marines and runs toward the chaos and difficulty. Love that changes lives if we would only be willing to notice and open our lives up. Love that sings in the voices of little people and echoes in the voices of those who are older. Real love. We do not claim much at More than more. We are not fancy. We are not sophisticated. But we are learning to love. And while we learn, we are putting to use what we are learning. If you are looking for something different than every usual American life, sick of a life focused on more more more. If you are lonely and looking for some real people who are learning a new way to live this life. If you are even just curious about a group of people who does life this way. We would love to have you join us this Thursday evening, May 1st, 645-800 pm, at McAllister Recreation Center. Just off 20th and Schuyler Ave, Lafayette. As always there will be free, awesome activities for people of all ages. Hope you can make it!

Outreach Thursday

Hey everyone. We will be helping out a friend of mine Thursday night. Her name is Mary. She's about 80 yrs old and she was widowed last fall. She really needs some help with spring yard clean up. So, bring your rakes and yard gloves and join us! We will have a great time hanging out and encouraging Mary, not to mention helping her real practically! All the family is welcome - but she lives on a pretty busy road, so kids will need to be pretty closely monitored ad there will be no formal childcare - it is a time for all of us to enjoy some laid back time together and see what we can notice!! Meet at McAllister Recreation Center, just off 20th and Schuyler Ave, Lafayette, at 645 (we will leave at about 650, but will leave maps for anyone who is late) this Thursday night the 17th. We will all go together to her house and will plan to work until 8 or 830! Looking forward to seeing you there.

Thursday Night

Hey everyone! 2 things to let you know. 1st - this Thursday night, the 3rd of April, we will be hanging out at McAllister Recreation Center, just off 20th and Schuyler ave, Lafayette. We will be there from 645-800pm and as usual there will be wonderful free activities for youth and kids. 2nd - 2 wks from this Thursday night we will be having one of our super fun outreach nights. On these nights we serve someone in our community. On the 17th we will be helping an older lady clean up her yard in preparation for spring. All kids are welcome! So get out your work gloves and yard tools and keep watching for more info. We will still meet at McAllister, but instead of staying we will drive over to do the outreach. Hoping to see you all soon!

Buckets

It's funny how on work days at 8 am I cannot wait for 5 pm to come. Then at 5 pm I think oh let this next 15 minutes go super slow! Why you question. Well those 15 minutes on my drive home from work are the most peaceful moments of my day. Fifteen minutes of music and prayers. Fifteen minutes till the craziness begins. It is my recharge time. And as I arrive to pick up my much missed kiddos I almost have to say- Ready, set, GO! See having a 7, 6, and 2 year old means never a dull moment, no time to relax. It's Mommy I need this, Mommy can we do a project, Steppy is it time to eat yet, Mommy I need help, Mommy, Steppy, Mom, Mom, Mom! Just going from the car to the house drains me some days. Drew get your bag, Ella close the car door, quit arguing!!! And it's no calmer once in the door. I remind myself deep breaths Mom- remember you overslept this morning and the house was left a mess. The rush begins- pick up, start laundry, fix dinner, go over schoolwork, and entertain 3 wild monkeys at the same time. Ahh- when is Matt going to be home- how I love the days he is off work before me and picks up the kids. Well Tuesday Matt had choir practice so it was just me and the munchkins. I was rushing around gathering laundry from well- EVERYWHERE in my house and my sweet observant stepdaughter made my day. "Steppy I'm only 6, but I know better than Dad where my dirty clothes go!" Gee if she can see this then maybe she can teach miss Lucy who loves to take her clothes and diaper off at random times throwing them anywhere and everywhere as she runs thru the house yelling "I'm nakie!" I giggled and tried to explain Dad knows- but there is a difference in knowing and doing. And if he is helping me with laundry I better not complain where he puts the laundry. Then Ella said the oddest thing- dumbfounded me. "Well Steppy that is because I'm a bucket filler." Now I'm wondering is she talking about the laundry basket???? What does she mean???? Bucket filler??? I think the grin on my face made her giggle. I asked her what she meant and she proceeded to explain that she had learned it at school. It means that if you do something helpful or right you fill the bucket. And when you do the wrong thing or cause a problem you empty the bucket. Hmm- still was not sure what to make of this bucket thing- but I told Ella she was definitely a bucket filler. That little sweetheart is the BEST helper I could ask for. She is just so full of love and always wants to help. Well I couldn't get this bucket thing out of my mind. Made me question am I a bucket filler or emptier? And in what context? Marriage? Friendship? Parenting? Workplace? What about God's bucket? Do I fill it or empty it? Do I share his love or hoard it? Do I follow his direction or chose my own path? Do I trust him or doubt him? When things are bad do I run away or be embraced by God? I can almost hear Jason saying- What would it look like? How would you fill God's bucket? Then I remembered what I told Ella- there is a difference between knowing and doing. Knowing his love is not sharing his love. Knowing his grace is not extending his grace. Knowing his amazingness is not praising it. Wow- life lesson from my 6 year old. See Ella fills God's bucket. She treats everyone with love. She forgives. She praises God in her prayers and actions. She is as Jamie Grace sings " A God Girl- from the top of her head to the soles of her feet." She trusts God even when it is difficult. See when Ella is worried about something you can see it in her eyes but she does not hide from it- she prays. Ella notices God, notices people, notices love. That is how we fill God's bucket. We love. We forgive. We share. We trust. We praise. We notice. Come join us at More Than More. Notice with us. Fill a bucket. We will be meeting Thursday March 6th at 6:45-800 pm at McAllister Recreation Center, just off 20th and Schuyler Ave, Lafayette. Amazing childcare for all ages is available. And one of the best bucket fillers I know will be encouraging the teens. Don't miss it!

tomorrow

Just a reminder that we will be hanging out tomorrow night, February 20th, 645-800 pm at McAllister Recreation Center, just off 20th and Schuyler Ave, Lafayette. Hope to see you there.

The fogs...and snows...of life

I had the pleasure this week of being in sunny Florida. Please don't start off your reaction to the post being too mad at me...I know the weather in Indiana has been massively wintery and everyone is sick of it, but I had the chance to go and I went. Try not to hold it against me. We met some friends of ours for dinner one night and ate and laughed late into the night. On our way to dinner, it was a beautiful evening so we were surprised when we got out onto the road for our drive home and found that it was majorly foggy. Like majorly! We were barely able to see the road in places. I drove, white-knuckled, for the 60 miles or so back to where we were staying while Melissa read the map to tell me where a turn was coming - that's how foggy it was(I hate to read the map was her most common saying for the trip...). Did I mention that we had rented a car that is roughly the equivalent of a matchbox car - a Mazda 2. Pretty sure it failed all crash testing they did with it, including the crash testing with Amish horse and buggies! We made it home in one piece and fell into bed. We woke the next morning, ready to get ready to head home to Indiana, with bright sunshine streaming in the windows. I walked out of the bedroom and looked out the windows and it was a clear as you could imagine. Not the slightest hint of fog anywhere! It was gorgeous. We scooted around, cleaning up and getting ready to go, and headed out for the airport - a little over an hour drive away. We were buzzing along in our speedy matchbox when we came to this place where the road goes across water for a couple miles - a super long bridge road - and out of the blue (literally) there was this giant fog bank over the road - we slowed down of course and crept our way across the bridge. One thing I noticed about this fog was that it was much easier to deal with than the fog the night before - because it was daylight and all around the fog, and above it, it was super bright. The fog was still thick, but it was much easier to navigate because of the sunshine. We actually had one more of these odd bridge fog-banks on our way to the airport and on the other side of the road there were multiple accidents we saw - people who had driven into the fog and been shocked by the slow moving car ahead of them... We were glad to make it to the airport after all this, needless to say. We caught our plane. Then connected in Atlanta. Then on to Indiana. Well, I have to tell you the day we landed in Indiana was yesterday, the 4th, at 520 pm. And yes, it was snowing, like crazy. The roads in Indianapolis were a snarl and so we took backroads to Lebanon and caught US52 home. It was terribly hard to see and we saw multiple wrecks and cars in the ditch - one being almost vertical! We crept our way along - the worst being next to and behind semi's - the amount of snow they kicked up was nasty and made it so hard to see I had no idea where I was sometimes! Eventually we did make it home, safe and sound - thankful once again this winter for a big 4x4 truck. So here's the point: Life is a lot like our past 24hrs. Sometimes we are just enjoying life, having fun with our friends, laughing and living and then all of a sudden, totally unexpectedly, we get slammed by some major fog. We can't tell where we are, where we are going, or what the deal is. We are freaking out and we fear for our safety. We hold on tightly to the wheel and try to survive. Our life fogs have names like broken trust, divorce, job loss, foreclosure, addiction, abandonment, abuse, cancer, heart disease, death of those we love - you know them - they mess with our ability to see life clearly - suddenly it is all foggy! Then, seems like we start to clear that mess and we wake up one day and all is clear and sunny and then without warning another massive patch of fog - and we see other people wrecked by it - and then snowstorms and ditches and accidents. We feel the instability and unpredictability of life so painfully! We want it to all be the fun nights with our friends, but it just doesn't work that way. I am sorry to say that at 43 years of age I have yet to find people who do not regularly encounter the fog and snowstorms of life. We all want to avoid them. None of us can. A few things to notice though: First - if we are going to go through the fog and snow anyway, it is much better to go through it with sunshine and a 4x4. What is the sunshine and 4x4? Well, I suppose there are a lot of things that might bring some help in the midst of fog-banks and snow storms, but to me the very best is a group of people who actually care about me and are going roughly the same direction in life as I am. We have this in Morethanmore. We are not fancy people. We are aged from infants to late 70's and represent all different jobs and lives. We do not claim to have all the answers. What we do is journey through life together. And when the fog comes, we do not run away - we are like the marines - we run toward each other. And what I have found in the midst of my fog-banks is that that makes the fog much easier to navigate - it does not make it go away, but it makes it better. Second - if we are going through the fog anyway, we want to become someone new out of it all. Somehow to grow and learn. Maybe even be in a place so that someday we can share some sunshine and 4x4's with someone else in the midst of their fog-banks. We also do this in Mtm. We want to continue to look for ways to become the best people we can be - to make a difference in our world - we are sick of the lip service to caring about other people that we see and hear all around us - we want to actually do it! Now i do not want to paint the wrong picture of what our Mtm times are like. They are light and fun and involve tons of laughter and very little that is serious. But then again meeting people who you might want to journey through fog and snow with is something that is likely to take some time. Mostly we just get together - and the rest happens mostly on its own. No pressure. Now, if are looking for some people to hang with and laugh, to be silly, to begin to look at life differently and maybe to find some people to journey into the fog and snow of life with, you should join us at Mtm. We will be hanging out next tomorrow night, February 6th, 6:45-8:00 PM, at McAllister Recreation Center - just off 20th and Schuyler Ave, Lafayette. As always there will be fantastic, fun, free and responsible activities for kids and youth. We would love to have you join us!

What to Notice?

Yesterday was a dark day in our community. We gathered around our screens. Large screens and small screens. We texted and waited. We talked to God and listened to reports. Then we were shocked - hurt - afraid - uncertain. We did not look at Purdue quite the same. We did not look at our homes quite the same. We did not even look at ourselves the same way. The questions swirl. The most simple but included in almost all? Why? Times like this make us all question. We are jolted out of our every day existence and we see life differently. We see the people we love differently. Someone I love very much was only feet away from this tragedy. I was tied in knots thinking about her...life without her. I wanted to hug my wife and kids more last night. I wanted to make sure they saw me and I saw them. I wanted to not allow work to be the most important thing. I wanted to tell the people I love that I love them. We see the things we do in our days with different significance. We feel the fragility of our lives with poignancy. In fact, life's fragility slaps us across the face like the coldness of this day does our cheeks when we step outside. If this was my last day. If this was my wife's last day? It is only a moment away...all the time. What must that 21 year old have been thinking when he walked into that building? Before he died? What did he spend his time doing? If he had known that yesterday was going to be his last day, would he have lived the day differently? If today is my last day at the end of it, would I regret the way I have lived it? We see our money differently. Our spending. Our diets. Our activities. In these changes to our view, good things happen - we may notice the things in life that really matter. We may make changes that make our life look more like our values. After all, we want our lives to be consistent with what we believe. Otherwise, do we really believe it? What do we believe in? What do our lives look like? Where do we spend our time? Where do we spend our money? If you are asking these kinds of questions, we would love for you to join us tomorrow night at McAllister Recreation Center, just off 20th and Schuyler Ave, Lafayette, from 645-800pm. But, there's another side to this tragedy in many of us. We see things differently. Now we see people and we wonder who is likely to hurt us next. Sometimes now we look around in fear and wonder how we will ever make it. We remember the pains of our lives and we read the news and we want to hide. We do not want to feel the pain anymore. We ask ourselves, "What if?" so much that we begin to doubt there is goodness in this world at all. Now we see the world with distrust and pain. We shake our heads and moan over the pitifulness of the world. We simply despair the society we are in. We feel more hopeless. We decide that we want to hide. We want to run. We take this as another evidence that life is filled with loss and risk is not worth it. Many times when we feel like this, we don't really want to believe this is true, but it is all we can see! Let me tell you something if this is your response. If you just feel buried by days like yesterday...let me tell you that there really is goodness in the world. There is a chance in the midst of the pain and the hurt to have life and joy and peace. there is healing for hurt and brokenness. There is love. there is laughter. The path of pain of this culture we live in is not the only way! I know. I used to live in despair. So did many of us at Morethanmore. But we will not live that way anymore. We have found a better way. We will live life differently. We will shed the usual American life and forge a new path. We will laugh. We will care. We will support each other through the hard times. We will give to our community and make a difference in our world. We will live what we believe. Plus, we would love for you to join us! We have great times every other Thursday night just hanging out - light and fun - we celebrate a different way of life every time we are together. It is so amazing to hang out with some people who actually care about you for who you are rather than for what you can provide to them. To laugh and not have to fake it. To have no agenda and no axe to grind. We have activities for kids - and for youth. Both led by people who really want to help the kids become all they can be - not people who were voluntold they had to fill a spot. Responsible and good people you can trust. We would love to see you! Like i said earlier, we hang out at McAllister Recreation Center, just off 20th and Schuyler Ave, Lafayette, from 645-800pm every other Thursday night - next being tomorrow night the 23rd of January.

Morethanmore for Thursday January 9th is canceled.

Hello everyone. Because of the crazy bad weather in the Lafayette area, we will be canceling Mtm this Thursday the 9th. We will miss hanging out with you all, but with the roads so slick, we do not want you to risk your safety to come to Mtm. We will be hanging out again on the 23rd of January - 6:45-8:00. Hope you all can join us then. Extra info about that next time together on the 23rd: We will be restarting our youth time. Kale Fisher is going to be leading and he has some cool new plans for our young people. As usual, the kids will be hanging with Mrs. Abbott, our wonderful preschool teacher/kids leader. see you soon - stay safe, keep warm, and don't forget to notice!