Hi everyone
wanted to remind you that More than more will be hanging out at McAllister tomorrow from 645-800 pm - it is always a good time - hope to see you there - just off 20th and Schuyler, Lafayette
keep noticing...
Wednesday, December 9, 2015
Wednesday, October 21, 2015
When you're lost
Emily my oldest daughter, and Melissa have this ongoing joke. Whenever they are lost, or even don’t know where i happen to be taking them, they say, “I think we might be lost traveling buddy (their name for each other). Oh! There’s Meijer! Now i know where we are!"
It goes back to a story from months ago, when they were in Indianapolis together and had somehow taken the wrong turn somewhere and neither had any idea where they were. Feeling lost, they at least kept going (reminding me of a Winston Churchill quote - "when you’re going thru hell, keep going”) and only a minute or so after saying how they both had no idea where they were, they turned a corner and saw the, now famous, Meijer (that my wife knew because she had driven the 60 miles to Indy to get the first Blue Bell ice cream in our state month before - which says something about her and our family in general…).
I was reminded of this recently.
I have been really tired. Working hard. Busy schedules. Broken lives. So many hurting people.
There are times that the weariness of it all gets into my head and starts to remind me of a time when i was overwhelmed more than ever before and ever since. A time that led me into the darkest days of my life. Days spent in utter emotional agony, turmoil, lostness. In that time all i could see was darkness in those days. Hopelessness was my song. Despair was my future - or so it seemed. I was not suicidal, but i certainly would not have cared if i didn’t wake up the next day - if i could sleep at all.
The weariness i felt just prior to all that darkness was not the cause of the darkness - it was just the culmination of a lifetime lived the wrong way.
But sometimes when i feel really weary, i am reminded of the darkness. And i start to feel afraid. Defensive. Protective. Without knowing it sometimes i start to retreat inside a little bit - thankfully not as much as i used to - when living with me was like riding the latest and greatest Cedar Point roller coaster - up and down, back and forth - it was crazy. The retreat takes me into myself and i start to think about me and what i need and who’s going to take care of me - i start to become someone different than who i really am.
That has happened recently. Tired. Grieved inside, but with no time to weep the tears that lurk in my soul.
It was in this state that i was reading recently. I was not reading anything profound or philosophical. I ws resting my mind in the pages of good fiction. Good fiction by one of my favorite good fiction authors, Jacqueline Winspear. The book, entitled, “The Care and Management of Lies,” is about World War 1 and 2 English families that go through it. There are chapters of vivid descriptions of the war - and how no one would ever be the same after facing those trenches, the death, the barbed wire, the losses. I sat there reading and i began to feel all the feeling that i had not been able to (really who takes time in the middle of the busy schedule of a family practice office to weep over the loss of a patient, or over the death of divorce, or the maiming of sexual abuse, or the mine field of depression). The tears flowed and it felt good to be human…to be compassionate. In those moments, i remembered the war i fight in. I remembered that i fight on a battlefield where people spend their lives searching for the wrong things - where the damage is not with machine guns, but in courtrooms and where the barbed wire is racking pain across our children who are neglected and abused. I fight in a war where there is a better way. Where the hopelessness of my past has led to hope for each day - even the weary ones. Where there is goodness and laughter and real relationships and people who care. Where meaning is measured not in what you have, but in who you are and how you love.
It was a Meijer moment.
I turned a corner and saw Meijer in the pages of that book. I felt lost. But i wasn’t. God knew where i was. He knew i was weary. I did not need to protect myself. He was driving the car.
So, if you are feeling lost. If you are are not sure where you are or where you are going. I know this group of people you should meet. We get together every other Thursday night (the next is next Thursday, the 29th of October), from 645-800 and we savor some moments of life - we notice some amazingness of life - and we look for ways to journey in a different way.
We get together at McAllister Recreation Center, just off 20th and Schuyler Ave, Lafayette.
Maybe it’s time for a Meijer moment for you.
Hope to see you there.
Tuesday, October 13, 2015
What do you believe and why?
Last meeting we started with a great introductory question. What do you believe and why? It sounded like we were driving into a rather deep question that could perhaps open some really lengthy conversations. But silly won. We giggled at the fact that you cannot lick your own elbow and that Ty’s tomorrow will always be a better day. As we went around the room some much needs laughs were shared. But I was stumped- no quirky fun answer. Then the beautiful and profound belief came from the quietest gal. People change. She and I are proof of it. We are the unexpected friendship that grew out of unusual circumstance. We are the awkward conversation of explanation of how ex wife and new wife became a team for one amazing little girl.
People change.
It reminded me of a song I have been glued to by Toby Mac. As he describes it:
“The song "Feel It" is really a celebration, a celebration of God’s love for us. People are always asking me, especially today, how do you know God exists Toby? And uh it’s hard to prove, you can’t see him, just like the wind, you can see the wind moving the leaves, you see the effects of the wind, but you can’t see the wind. Those leaves moving, well God does the same thing, he loves us. We can’t see him but he changes our lives, he takes our lives, he takes our brokenness, and he makes us beautiful. That’s what a loving God does. That’s how I know. And no matter what they say. They can’t take that from me.”
People change. I believe it because I have changed. Anything is possible. I believe it because I have experienced the impossible. Life is hard. I believe it because I see the struggles. Depression hurts. I believe it because I battle it daily. Joy is real. I believe it because Deb radiates it. Cancer does NOT always win. I believe it because I'm watching someone defeat it. Forgiveness happens. I believe it because I have given it. Mercy is real. I believe it because I have received it. Grief is survivable. I believe it because I’m here. Laughter is medicine. I believe it because chuckles are far better than any pill I take. Feelings are real but truth is bigger. I believe it because I am constantly reminded of it.
God exists. I believe it because I notice it. I notice it because I get to be part of this amazing group that takes every other Thursday to discover something else amazing about God. And we notice each other. “That’s how I know. And they can’t take that from me.”
Join us Thursday October 15th from 6:45-8:00 as we notice an amazing God and amazing people. We meet at McAllister Recreation Center 2351 N 20th St, Lafayette, IN 47904. Childcare provided too :)
Check this song out!
https://youtu.be/7rHiVj_N4ms
Sunday, September 27, 2015
Have you tasted a Jazz apple?
Turns out I, the noticing pusher - the one who is always talking about noticing - who signs many of his emails and letters simply, noticing...
Yes - me - I am not a very successful notice - at least not nearly as good as I would like to be.
I decided to take some time to be in the quiet. Just to sit. To get out of the crazy - the noise - the pressure - the heartbreak - the expectations - for a couple days to be in the quiet. It is not easy. It feels uncomfortable and I can feel myself being pulled to do something - to text someone to tweet something to do instead of be...but I insistently am pushing back at that and allowing the quiet to sink in a little.
I was eating dinner just now. Sitting outside. I had grilled a tri-tip roast and made some veggies, a little salad, and a Jazz apple sliced up (these are Nate's favorite so I picked one up at the store).
At first, I sliced the meat, intentionally quieted my thoughts, and savored the flavor. Amazing. All those years that cow lived. Raised under the tender care of the rancher. And its life was given for mine. The bites slowed and my thoughts became calm - calm in the arms of a God who so beautifully planned the cow, the rancher, and me. God could have made the earth with only one protein source - and it might not have tasted nearly so wonderful as a bacon-wrapped, slow grilled tri-tip - He could have made just enough for us to survive - and we would never have known the difference. But He is not that kind of God - He is imaginative and loving and generous and wants us to not just be nourished but to be thrilled as we are sustained. He made a million kinds of meat and protein and ways to get our fill!!
Then I looked around - I saw to my left, sitting in a tree, a little gray bird - gentle and small - light and peaceful - it seemed to be looking at me (or maybe my tri-tip!). And then as my focus changed a little, 50 yards behind him, in another tree, was another gray bird - maybe his brother?? Up to a branch a beautiful blue feathered bird came, and went. Amazing color - amazing function - amazing! Within a few minutes the little gray bird flew off the branch and then came over to another branch, closer to me. There was no place to land apparently, so he hovered there - wings pushing back the air and holding him in that spot - all grace - all beauty.
I took a Jazz apple - lifted it to my mouth - and bit, purposely trying to experience the fullness of the apple. It was grown on a tree - cared for by the farmer of the orchard - and then picked and delivered to me (via the grocery store). A wonderful, crunchy, tart, but sweet explosion in my mouth!! It was like all the taste buds that weren't being used on the beef were now awake and alert and ready to tell me of the wonders of a God who gives me fiber and nutrition and health (for Em it is even the mainstay of her hydration...) in a million ways - Pears and Apples and Oranges (yes, Marcie, oranges!) and Plums and Apricots and Peaches and on and on and on - He could have just given us a single source - but no, He is way to wonderful and creative and joy-filled than that - He wanted us to have the wonder of all the experience - and I would imagine that when we appreciate it, we thrill Him and He laughs out loud!!!
Here I notice. I am overcome with the love of a God for me - us - that chooses to so extravagantly lavish goodness on us in the way of food (thanks John for the book by the way!). And in this moment, I find myself seeing life for what it really is - and I invite God to join me in the moment, as I notice.
Here's the thing...
the flies...
what I didn't tell you is about the flies - seems as soon as I am out there eating, they are buzzing around - apparently wanting their portion?? They buzz and annoy and distract. Now, I know that some of you "bug bowl" lovers will remind me if I give you a chance that the flies too, are part of God's plan and that they have their part in the big picture of life and love and goodness on this earth. I agree with you- I was just having a hard time seeing it while I was eating my lunch. They were distracting me. As I swooshed and swatted them away, I began to feel as i had better hurry to get the meal eaten - stop looking at the birds, stop experiencing the apple and the tri-tip. I found myself pushing, racing, to get done so as to avoid the annoyance of the flies. The meal started to become something that I needed to get done with - rather than a moment to BE in.
Life is a lot like this lunch. There are birds. There are apples. There are tri-tips. They look like our kids. They look like our spouses. They look like our co-workers. Sometimes they just look like a good meal. They are beautiful and amazing and wonderful. They are passionate expressions of God's raging love for us. He is so creative. He is so big. He is so good. He has filled our lives with other people, with a wonder of food, with the feel of a good piece of wood in our hands and the joy of a hot shower - with the joy of a fireplace on a cold evening and the snuggle of a warm blanket when it is snowing. He blessed us with the warm sun to scoot away the chill in our hearts and the cold ice cube to cool us when we are roasting.
But...
there are flies...
they buzz around at us and sound like expectations of what we need to buy, they sound like internal screaming matches over what we know is bad for us, and yet we want it anyway way more often than we should. they sound like bills and budgets and schedules and homework and deadlines and credit cards and bodies that do not look like we think they should. they sound like TV's and screens that occupy our minds but don't leave us having noticed anything at all. they sound like the internal desire to get everything right all the time, to control everything all the time, to be in charge all the time, to make everyone happy. if nothing else, the flies are just the sheer number of things we have to do - from 5am to 11pm every day at home I run - and too many times the pressure to get to the next thing I have to do keeps me from really tasting the apple - from really seeing the bird - from really experiencing the life of the cow and the rancher and the apple - from really wallowing in the joy and wonder of a God who cares so much that He made all this - for us.
So there you have it - I am not nearly as good at noticing as I want to be - but I am determined to keep pushing back the flies and see the wonder expressed to me in the everyday moments of my life.
If you are tired of life as usual - have a sense that there is much more to this life that what we are experiencing - and are looking to get better at noticing, I hope you will consider joining us at More than more. This is our whole purpose. To notice.
We will be hanging out this coming Thursday, October 1st, from 645-800pm at McAllister Recreation center in Lafayette. As always there will be free and excellent childcare for kids up to middle school age. Hope to notice you there!
Yes - me - I am not a very successful notice - at least not nearly as good as I would like to be.
I decided to take some time to be in the quiet. Just to sit. To get out of the crazy - the noise - the pressure - the heartbreak - the expectations - for a couple days to be in the quiet. It is not easy. It feels uncomfortable and I can feel myself being pulled to do something - to text someone to tweet something to do instead of be...but I insistently am pushing back at that and allowing the quiet to sink in a little.
I was eating dinner just now. Sitting outside. I had grilled a tri-tip roast and made some veggies, a little salad, and a Jazz apple sliced up (these are Nate's favorite so I picked one up at the store).
At first, I sliced the meat, intentionally quieted my thoughts, and savored the flavor. Amazing. All those years that cow lived. Raised under the tender care of the rancher. And its life was given for mine. The bites slowed and my thoughts became calm - calm in the arms of a God who so beautifully planned the cow, the rancher, and me. God could have made the earth with only one protein source - and it might not have tasted nearly so wonderful as a bacon-wrapped, slow grilled tri-tip - He could have made just enough for us to survive - and we would never have known the difference. But He is not that kind of God - He is imaginative and loving and generous and wants us to not just be nourished but to be thrilled as we are sustained. He made a million kinds of meat and protein and ways to get our fill!!
Then I looked around - I saw to my left, sitting in a tree, a little gray bird - gentle and small - light and peaceful - it seemed to be looking at me (or maybe my tri-tip!). And then as my focus changed a little, 50 yards behind him, in another tree, was another gray bird - maybe his brother?? Up to a branch a beautiful blue feathered bird came, and went. Amazing color - amazing function - amazing! Within a few minutes the little gray bird flew off the branch and then came over to another branch, closer to me. There was no place to land apparently, so he hovered there - wings pushing back the air and holding him in that spot - all grace - all beauty.
I took a Jazz apple - lifted it to my mouth - and bit, purposely trying to experience the fullness of the apple. It was grown on a tree - cared for by the farmer of the orchard - and then picked and delivered to me (via the grocery store). A wonderful, crunchy, tart, but sweet explosion in my mouth!! It was like all the taste buds that weren't being used on the beef were now awake and alert and ready to tell me of the wonders of a God who gives me fiber and nutrition and health (for Em it is even the mainstay of her hydration...) in a million ways - Pears and Apples and Oranges (yes, Marcie, oranges!) and Plums and Apricots and Peaches and on and on and on - He could have just given us a single source - but no, He is way to wonderful and creative and joy-filled than that - He wanted us to have the wonder of all the experience - and I would imagine that when we appreciate it, we thrill Him and He laughs out loud!!!
Here I notice. I am overcome with the love of a God for me - us - that chooses to so extravagantly lavish goodness on us in the way of food (thanks John for the book by the way!). And in this moment, I find myself seeing life for what it really is - and I invite God to join me in the moment, as I notice.
Here's the thing...
the flies...
what I didn't tell you is about the flies - seems as soon as I am out there eating, they are buzzing around - apparently wanting their portion?? They buzz and annoy and distract. Now, I know that some of you "bug bowl" lovers will remind me if I give you a chance that the flies too, are part of God's plan and that they have their part in the big picture of life and love and goodness on this earth. I agree with you- I was just having a hard time seeing it while I was eating my lunch. They were distracting me. As I swooshed and swatted them away, I began to feel as i had better hurry to get the meal eaten - stop looking at the birds, stop experiencing the apple and the tri-tip. I found myself pushing, racing, to get done so as to avoid the annoyance of the flies. The meal started to become something that I needed to get done with - rather than a moment to BE in.
Life is a lot like this lunch. There are birds. There are apples. There are tri-tips. They look like our kids. They look like our spouses. They look like our co-workers. Sometimes they just look like a good meal. They are beautiful and amazing and wonderful. They are passionate expressions of God's raging love for us. He is so creative. He is so big. He is so good. He has filled our lives with other people, with a wonder of food, with the feel of a good piece of wood in our hands and the joy of a hot shower - with the joy of a fireplace on a cold evening and the snuggle of a warm blanket when it is snowing. He blessed us with the warm sun to scoot away the chill in our hearts and the cold ice cube to cool us when we are roasting.
But...
there are flies...
they buzz around at us and sound like expectations of what we need to buy, they sound like internal screaming matches over what we know is bad for us, and yet we want it anyway way more often than we should. they sound like bills and budgets and schedules and homework and deadlines and credit cards and bodies that do not look like we think they should. they sound like TV's and screens that occupy our minds but don't leave us having noticed anything at all. they sound like the internal desire to get everything right all the time, to control everything all the time, to be in charge all the time, to make everyone happy. if nothing else, the flies are just the sheer number of things we have to do - from 5am to 11pm every day at home I run - and too many times the pressure to get to the next thing I have to do keeps me from really tasting the apple - from really seeing the bird - from really experiencing the life of the cow and the rancher and the apple - from really wallowing in the joy and wonder of a God who cares so much that He made all this - for us.
So there you have it - I am not nearly as good at noticing as I want to be - but I am determined to keep pushing back the flies and see the wonder expressed to me in the everyday moments of my life.
If you are tired of life as usual - have a sense that there is much more to this life that what we are experiencing - and are looking to get better at noticing, I hope you will consider joining us at More than more. This is our whole purpose. To notice.
We will be hanging out this coming Thursday, October 1st, from 645-800pm at McAllister Recreation center in Lafayette. As always there will be free and excellent childcare for kids up to middle school age. Hope to notice you there!
Tuesday, September 15, 2015
thursday
wanted to remind you all that this Thursday, the 17th of September, we will be hanging out at McAllister from 645-800pm - it is always a great time and we hope to see you there
Tuesday, September 1, 2015
cups to share
at Mtm we are a group of totally broken and messed up people who have come together to laugh, to try to learn to have relationships that matter and have a chance to last, and to try to live a different way than the life as usual we see around us in this country.
i was told recently that this country is getting lonelier and lonelier - and i agree - we do not value what is really important - we spend tons of time entertaining but not much time really being...we spend gobs of time impressing and statussing (if it's not a word, it is now!) but not much time loving...we spend lots of time achieving but not much time being real in the middle of and at the end of, our achievements...we spend lots of energy commenting on relationships, but not much time gutting through the messiness of them.
at Mtm we are pushing back against all this. we are trying anyway. turns out it's hard. but, turns out it is also wonderful and real and full and good. turns out it is the only way that really is worth doing anymore...
we would like to share this with you - we are like one of my friends said the other day - like the sample cups at pink walrus - when we get together every other Thursday at Mtm, 645-800pm at McAllister Recreation Center, Lafayette - we give a sample of what this life is like - and there is no charge. Plus we almost always have good food and free childcare. it is definitely worth a try - and we hope you will join us - all are welcome - we are a group of all ages from newborn to way past retired and of many experiences and backgrounds...
we will next be hanging out this Thursday evening the 3rd of September. hope to see you there
Wednesday, August 19, 2015
tomorrow night
Hey everyone.
Tomorrow night, the 20th, we will be hanging out at More than more. It is always a great time of laughter and seeing life differently.
We will be at McAllister Recreation Center - off Schuyler Ave, Lafayette - from 645-800. We will have awesome childcare for kids up to 5th grade.
It is so hard in this life to find people who genuinely like you for who you really are - i hope we get a chance to see you there!
Monday, August 3, 2015
Thursday Night - the 6th of August
Hey you all - we will be hanging out this Thursday, the 6th of August from 645-800pm at McAllister Recreation Center, just off 20th and Schuyler Ave, Lafayette - we would love to have you join us!
It is always a relaxed and fun time - just hanging out with some people who care for no reason but that they do - no agendas!
Hope to see you
It is always a relaxed and fun time - just hanging out with some people who care for no reason but that they do - no agendas!
Hope to see you
Wednesday, July 22, 2015
Life's Garden
I read a sign recently that’s said “Life's a garden, dig it up.” I immediately began to chuckle as I thought to myself how dug up my life currently felt. I tossed around several interpretations which all brought me to the same conclusion – stupid sign. But I just couldn't get it out of my mind. I felt like God must be trying to tell me something but I was puzzled as to what. You reap what you sow…? True but not it. Life is messy but amazing things can come from dirt…? Again true but that was not it.
Whatever it was I knew I was supposed to write about it. I prayed and prayed but nada. I gave up. I decided if He wants me to do something with it He was going to need make it obvious. Then my pastor said something on Sunday that opened the door back up. He talked about getting to a point of desperation to hear Gods word for a message to share, not because my pastor didn’t have anything to say but because he knew it needed to be Gods word not his own. Hmm. Was that what I was doing?? Trying so hard to make sense of it and find a way to turn into clever blog?? Gut punch! I needed to get out of my head and let God into my heart. Funny thing was as soon as I stopped trying to figure it out God made it obvious.
Today I was going to write on my lunch break, however a coworker/friend asked me to join her as she escaped work for lunch. We had a great time just chit chatting about work, life events, pets, friends, etc. She shared how she had just picked a TON of corn and green beans to can. It was a lot of work! I mean a LOT of work. But I noticed something amazing about her. She had more joy for being able to share the veggies then she did about having a TON of yummy food to last her a long time. She was grateful to have a brother who helped her numerous times with car troubles that also accepted corn as even trade. She also shared with friends and family just because she appreciates and loves them. It was beautiful to hear about such a simple act of love. Think about it if you spent your weekend working your butt off would you give your earnings so generously? If you worked all day to build the perfect bench for your garden would you give it away? Reminds me of a dear friend of mine who made my family a pot of chili- not just any chili- really really yummy chili! Chili that probably cooked all day. He was thrilled to be able to take the burden of making a meal for my family off my shoulders. Also reminds me few other amazing individuals I know who work incredibly hard in life yet generously give out of love.
That is what the sign means. Gardens take work. Lots of work. Planting, digging, watering, pulling weeds, picking, etc. Just like life. You can reap great benefits from what you sow. Just like life. But gardening is messy too- bugs, dirt, mud, thistles, rotten veggies. Just like life. Mine particularly feels messy…leaky roof, bills, relationship struggles, etc. Maybe it’s a flooded basement making life messy, or a hornets nest making you want to run for safety. The mess is easy to find. But amazing things can come from the mess – corn, green beans, friendships, laughter, etc. The point is share your garden. Notice others gardens. Help others pick the corn- whether its rebuilding a bedroom or sharing a meal.
Life is a garden- dig it up. Don't get stuck on your perfectly crafted bench- get in the dirt, notice people, work hard, give generously, love just because. Not sure where to start? Join us Thursday July 23rd at 6:45 pm at McAllister Recreation Center just off Schuyler Avenue. You will be surrounded by some of the best gardeners I know.
Thursday, June 25, 2015
tonight - More than more
Hey everyone!
Tonight we will be hanging out from 645-800 at McAllister Recreation Center - just off 20th and Schuyler Ave, Lafayette.
It will be an awesome time to laugh and enjoy - hope you can make it!
Tonight we will be hanging out from 645-800 at McAllister Recreation Center - just off 20th and Schuyler Ave, Lafayette.
It will be an awesome time to laugh and enjoy - hope you can make it!
Tuesday, June 2, 2015
Where do we find something from nothing?
So, the questions continue. Seems we answer a few and then have a few more.
Wind - that's where we started. Wind that might blow away the problems of our lives. The hurts. The pains. The weaknesses. The bitterness. The habits. The insecurities.
Yet we have seen that the pain and all the brokenness in our lives may be like childbirth - producing something that is amazing. The pains may not go away (most likely wont). And yet, there seems to be some perspective on them that can change them and the way we see them.
But at the end, when the brokenness has swallowed us and we are face to face with a reflection of who we are, at the end of our abilities, what do we do now? There in that place of desolation, what direction do we turn? I can see that it is possible for another person to journey out of their individual brokenness and childbirth experiences to where the perspective is different and they can become someone new. But what about me? What about you? I know so many who have experienced the rock bottom end of their attempts to control, escape, buy, salvage, their lives. I have seen them try to be religious enough to fix it all - only to find that their religion was empty and their religious people just as broken as them. I have seen them try to run away from the pain to alcohol or marijuana or crack or meth, only to see them burned out, arrested, about to lose everything. I have seen them try to work their way to the top, making tons of money, buying what they want, only to experience emptiness in their lives sitting in rooms of all their stuff. I have seen them convinced that having fun would make them happy, only to find that in the end, the fun was empty and there was nothing left there. I have seen them eat and eat and eat to squash the pain they feel inside, only to find in the end that the food made their health suck and left them ready to die.
There, at the bottom, we experience emptiness. We experience the totality of nothing. The person we wanted to be? Nothing. The person we have been? Nothing. The accomplishments of our life? Nothing. The running away? Nothing. The purchases? Nothing. Nothing left of all of it.
In the space of nothing there is terror. There is despair. What is left?
What can you do with nothing?
Well, consider for a moment...
I knew a man once. He was wanting to build a new house. He bought a lot in the location he liked and started drawing up the papers for the house, with anticipation, we crafted the blueprints with his architect and builder. He came and talked to me about something else and the new house came up. He showed me pictures of the lot and i was struck...there was a house on the lot. What about the house? I asked. Well, it is old and broken down and beyond repair. Can't u gut it and rebuild from it? it seems such a waste to just tear it down. No, it would be impossible to get the wonderful house we are going to have from that house. It's better just to tear it down and start over.
you will have to tear it down first - this is me - I was the old house - I had not intended to have a broken down and ineffective and messed up way of living. I had just tried to survive my circumstances. That house (that man in the mirror that I hated) was simply the best I could do. But in order to build a new house, I needed to get to nothing. Unfortunately nothing does not feel good - it is bad. But, bad in the only way we seem to ever get motivated to go ahead and move on from our broken house to building a new one.
My friend was an alcoholic. He knew it. He was messing his life up. He knew it. But that was the life he knew and he was not about to risk changing it - it was what was safe to him. I tried to reach out to him - even having him meet with me and a recovering alcoholic/counselor I knew. We sat down, had lunch, chatted. It all seemed to be fine to me. My friend left, leaving me with the older counselor - "He's not ready yet," he said. "why do you say that?" "It hasn't cost him enough yet. Alcohol has not broken his life enough yet." I shook my head - but he was right - my friend had a long way to go yet before alcohol pushed him to be motivated to change - when there was nothing, there was a chance to build.
Out of nothing.
Something.
But where does the something begin? It begins with those cries from the pit of nothing. Then we begin to look for who we might be. In our terror, we realize at some point that the pain has not killed us yet and we look around.
That is when it is essential that we NOTICE. Most often we find that God is there. In the world around us. In the relationships that we "bump" into.
We see the sun. We realize the simple warmth of it. We are thankful for the warmth. We recognize the infinitesimally small chance in all the universe of people being on a planet with a sun that forms just the right amount of heat - not too much, lest we be fried to a crisp and not too little, lest we be frozen like human popsicles. We realize that the most likely answer to this is that it is not an accident - and though we do not understand, we thank the God who was so particular about the distance of the Earth from the Sun. We ask Him to join us in our life. We ask to notice.
We see the smile of a child - and we recognize something amazing and wonderful about life and the way children grow and develop. And we realize that the most likely is that that is not an accident and we thank the God who chose to make kids...
We look for chances to be with people who are also noticing. We listen to their stories. And we share in them. We look for chances to own the nothing of our lives and then allow this God who is speaking to us of goodness in life through the sunshine and smiles that we always knew was there, but were so wrapped up in trying to survive that we were never able to see it with clarity to continue to show us who we can be now - we allow Him to begin to write the blueprints of our lives - that something beautiful would be built on the broken nothing foundation of what we were.
Over time, noticing becomes a piece of the new us. And, although we still wrestle with the past habits and pain and loss often, we realize that God is taking us to something new. And we begin to dare to want to share of our nothings with those who we encounter who have seen nothing too and don't know where to turn. And we find in our stories, that there is a thread of commonality of our broken attempts to survive and the building of a new house on the nothing that the broken left us with. We find that there is goodness coming out of the nothing. That others can see life through us and in this we find more and more of the new life that God is making in us. We see the string of connected notices and God leading us to see Him - loving us - healing us - rebuilding us - out of nothing, into something.
We are broken at More than more. We do not claim to "have it all figured out." But, we do see that out of the nothing of our lives, is coming something. Something that is amazing and wonderful - like the warmth of the sunshine and the smile of the child. We find ourselves being made new. And we are on this journey together.
I understand that many of you who read this will not be ready. It's ok. But I want all of you to remember - that when you find yourself at nothing, because the wind never will blow away all the pain and guilt and hurt and insecurity and loss and habits and heartaches and anger and escapes, there is a God who cares to show you a path, a blueprint, to a new house. the house is not magic and is almost never a "home makeover" in a weekend. it is painful and long, but it is worth it and it is wonderful. If when you are ready, you would begin by noticing. And, if you are anywhere, from broken and not ready, to at the end and acutely aware of your nothing, you are welcome to join us - next Thursday night, June 11th, from 645-800pm at McAllister Recreation Center - just off 20th and Schuyler Ave, Lafayette. I think you will find that we are strange and fun and awkward and messed up, but that we notice better than almost anyone you know. We would love to meet you and hang out - hope you can make it.
Wind - that's where we started. Wind that might blow away the problems of our lives. The hurts. The pains. The weaknesses. The bitterness. The habits. The insecurities.
Yet we have seen that the pain and all the brokenness in our lives may be like childbirth - producing something that is amazing. The pains may not go away (most likely wont). And yet, there seems to be some perspective on them that can change them and the way we see them.
But at the end, when the brokenness has swallowed us and we are face to face with a reflection of who we are, at the end of our abilities, what do we do now? There in that place of desolation, what direction do we turn? I can see that it is possible for another person to journey out of their individual brokenness and childbirth experiences to where the perspective is different and they can become someone new. But what about me? What about you? I know so many who have experienced the rock bottom end of their attempts to control, escape, buy, salvage, their lives. I have seen them try to be religious enough to fix it all - only to find that their religion was empty and their religious people just as broken as them. I have seen them try to run away from the pain to alcohol or marijuana or crack or meth, only to see them burned out, arrested, about to lose everything. I have seen them try to work their way to the top, making tons of money, buying what they want, only to experience emptiness in their lives sitting in rooms of all their stuff. I have seen them convinced that having fun would make them happy, only to find that in the end, the fun was empty and there was nothing left there. I have seen them eat and eat and eat to squash the pain they feel inside, only to find in the end that the food made their health suck and left them ready to die.
There, at the bottom, we experience emptiness. We experience the totality of nothing. The person we wanted to be? Nothing. The person we have been? Nothing. The accomplishments of our life? Nothing. The running away? Nothing. The purchases? Nothing. Nothing left of all of it.
In the space of nothing there is terror. There is despair. What is left?
What can you do with nothing?
Well, consider for a moment...
I knew a man once. He was wanting to build a new house. He bought a lot in the location he liked and started drawing up the papers for the house, with anticipation, we crafted the blueprints with his architect and builder. He came and talked to me about something else and the new house came up. He showed me pictures of the lot and i was struck...there was a house on the lot. What about the house? I asked. Well, it is old and broken down and beyond repair. Can't u gut it and rebuild from it? it seems such a waste to just tear it down. No, it would be impossible to get the wonderful house we are going to have from that house. It's better just to tear it down and start over.
you will have to tear it down first - this is me - I was the old house - I had not intended to have a broken down and ineffective and messed up way of living. I had just tried to survive my circumstances. That house (that man in the mirror that I hated) was simply the best I could do. But in order to build a new house, I needed to get to nothing. Unfortunately nothing does not feel good - it is bad. But, bad in the only way we seem to ever get motivated to go ahead and move on from our broken house to building a new one.
My friend was an alcoholic. He knew it. He was messing his life up. He knew it. But that was the life he knew and he was not about to risk changing it - it was what was safe to him. I tried to reach out to him - even having him meet with me and a recovering alcoholic/counselor I knew. We sat down, had lunch, chatted. It all seemed to be fine to me. My friend left, leaving me with the older counselor - "He's not ready yet," he said. "why do you say that?" "It hasn't cost him enough yet. Alcohol has not broken his life enough yet." I shook my head - but he was right - my friend had a long way to go yet before alcohol pushed him to be motivated to change - when there was nothing, there was a chance to build.
Out of nothing.
Something.
But where does the something begin? It begins with those cries from the pit of nothing. Then we begin to look for who we might be. In our terror, we realize at some point that the pain has not killed us yet and we look around.
That is when it is essential that we NOTICE. Most often we find that God is there. In the world around us. In the relationships that we "bump" into.
We see the sun. We realize the simple warmth of it. We are thankful for the warmth. We recognize the infinitesimally small chance in all the universe of people being on a planet with a sun that forms just the right amount of heat - not too much, lest we be fried to a crisp and not too little, lest we be frozen like human popsicles. We realize that the most likely answer to this is that it is not an accident - and though we do not understand, we thank the God who was so particular about the distance of the Earth from the Sun. We ask Him to join us in our life. We ask to notice.
We see the smile of a child - and we recognize something amazing and wonderful about life and the way children grow and develop. And we realize that the most likely is that that is not an accident and we thank the God who chose to make kids...
We look for chances to be with people who are also noticing. We listen to their stories. And we share in them. We look for chances to own the nothing of our lives and then allow this God who is speaking to us of goodness in life through the sunshine and smiles that we always knew was there, but were so wrapped up in trying to survive that we were never able to see it with clarity to continue to show us who we can be now - we allow Him to begin to write the blueprints of our lives - that something beautiful would be built on the broken nothing foundation of what we were.
Over time, noticing becomes a piece of the new us. And, although we still wrestle with the past habits and pain and loss often, we realize that God is taking us to something new. And we begin to dare to want to share of our nothings with those who we encounter who have seen nothing too and don't know where to turn. And we find in our stories, that there is a thread of commonality of our broken attempts to survive and the building of a new house on the nothing that the broken left us with. We find that there is goodness coming out of the nothing. That others can see life through us and in this we find more and more of the new life that God is making in us. We see the string of connected notices and God leading us to see Him - loving us - healing us - rebuilding us - out of nothing, into something.
We are broken at More than more. We do not claim to "have it all figured out." But, we do see that out of the nothing of our lives, is coming something. Something that is amazing and wonderful - like the warmth of the sunshine and the smile of the child. We find ourselves being made new. And we are on this journey together.
I understand that many of you who read this will not be ready. It's ok. But I want all of you to remember - that when you find yourself at nothing, because the wind never will blow away all the pain and guilt and hurt and insecurity and loss and habits and heartaches and anger and escapes, there is a God who cares to show you a path, a blueprint, to a new house. the house is not magic and is almost never a "home makeover" in a weekend. it is painful and long, but it is worth it and it is wonderful. If when you are ready, you would begin by noticing. And, if you are anywhere, from broken and not ready, to at the end and acutely aware of your nothing, you are welcome to join us - next Thursday night, June 11th, from 645-800pm at McAllister Recreation Center - just off 20th and Schuyler Ave, Lafayette. I think you will find that we are strange and fun and awkward and messed up, but that we notice better than almost anyone you know. We would love to meet you and hang out - hope you can make it.
Tuesday, May 19, 2015
wind blown perspective
So, it is hard to figure isn't it?
wind blows away the problems of the past and I become someone vastly different than who I am today - leaving those people (and some of you) that the wounds in me have helped to heal today to find their help elsewhere
wind blows away the problems of today and alters my course in life - my future...
but...
wind blows away the problems and I have less insecurity, less pain, less wrestling, less hurt, less anger, less resentment, less uncertainty, less heartache...
there are times that I want to be free of the pain so much that I would sacrifice all the good it produces to just feel free
and there are times that I am so glad I have experienced the life (including the pain) I have experienced that I would not change a minute of it
I find that I am a man torn, divided, like a seam is there in the middle of me, and at times it pulls apart and the fabric frays at the tension...
One thing I have learned is that the pain from my past (sorry) does not go away.
As much as I would like it to blow away (or blow it away - with substances, food, numbing, etc), it never goes away - it is always there again when the wind dies down (or the sugar rush, or the high).
But there is something here that is hard to explain -you see, the pain does not own me the same way it did - its not that it doesn't hurt - it does - it's that it's power to dominate my life is so much less than it used to be.
Let me see if I can give you a couple examples:
I have never pushed a baby from my body, but I am going to venture a description of new motherhood - please do not shoot me for I am a pitiful male and will never experience such things as this, as I have been told many times...
But, unlike most men, I have delivered hundreds of babies. I have known hundreds of momma's. I have known many long before they were pregnant. I have seen them grow up. I have been there to tell them of the positive test (some surprises and some not). I have taken their calls in the middle of the night to tell me about the contractions. I have counted the pushes and been there to make sure their babies were healthy and strong as they delivered. I have reassured the dads and glanced at them to make sure they were not gonna pass out, handing them the scissors to cut the cord. I have heard moms cry out in agony as that baby arrives. They have strained more than you would think a human could if you have never seen it. I have heard some scream at the exhaustion and the pain. I have witnessed ladies I thought were far too immature to be moms discover something inside them that they (and I) had no idea was there, in the midst of that pain. Worlds are crushed and worlds are built in the delivery room. As I think of it now, I am in awe of it all again!
Yet, with all that pain - all that agony - all that screaming...there was never a time - not one of all the deliveries I helped with - that when I held that baby up to the momma - that she was thinking at all about the pain - she did not say how bad it had hurt (just a few minutes before) - in fact, the pain was far from her mind. It was not that the pain was not real - it was. It was not that she had forgotten completely - it was forever a part of her (and she would likely remind that child when they were 15!!!) But there was a simple realization that the pain was part of her and that child. She could not have had the child without the pain. She would have missed out on those little hands, that smile, that life if she had not had the pain.
Here's another:
In my life, I have struggled with control. My life was shattered as a young person. The losses so severe and so pervasive that I feared that I would not be able to survive. At times wishing that I could just die, I resigned myself to a broken, lonely heart. I wrestled with faith and felt betrayed and hurt by the faith system that surrounded me - I felt condemned and cast out. I formed a view of life that was broken and cynical - that was determined to be prepared for ALL bad things that may come in the future - ultimately leaving me expecting brokenness and hurt. This left me completely unable to be a decent human being.
I realized this often - at first a victim of life, I had been beaten down and broken - and then as I wrestled with the pain, I had become a person that was so broken that indeed I was not someone people wanted to be around - so scarred and broken inside - I had no idea who I was or who I was to be. Face to face with myself, I hated who I had become - but I had no idea how to be someone else.
I cried out and found that no one was there who could help me. In my pit of despair, utter and totally broken - trying to simply survive a moment at a time yet not sure I cared if I did - I found the end of my ability to control the pain. I was no longer able to protect myself - no longer able to anticipate anything. My own method of dealing with the pain of life unraveled and I feared for my sanity as I faced the unchecked fear of my childhood. It broke over me in waves. I felt as if I was drowning. I wanted there in those moments to experience some beautiful moment where someone would save me - where God would swoop in and rescue me in my heartache - but that is not what happened. I simply felt my total inability to deal with the burdens of life and the brokennesses of life in the method that I had used my entire life.
It has been many years since those days - I am thankful they are far behind me. But in spite of the fact that I am different now - a man of hope and life - that place in my life was something I did not want to face - did not want to deal with completely - that place of desolation. And it was because God was not there the way I thought he should have been - I figure He should have saved me or something and all I found was emptiness - no satisfying answer from heaven to my cries.
I had spent all these years so unsettled about that time. Knowing it was pivotal to me and my life. But still sometimes soaking in the pain of it - certainly not seeing any well defined point to the pain - there was no baby delivered from my childbirth of the soul...
Then the other day a man sat down with me. He described to me myself. He described his life and the darkness of a time when he was devastated and broken and cried out for help from God and heard nothing - no epiphany - no relief - just silence and pain.
And then it happened...I understood my story as I told him...
My loss in those days was not about God at all - it was about me. I reached the end of my coping mechanisms - I realized that I could not keep myself safe, could not protect myself. The hole that I found there was where, little by little, day by day, moment by moment, year by year, God brought me to know TRUTH. Where he showed me who I really was - the shattering of the distorted mirror I saw before those days was painful, but was key to my beginning the process of seeing who I really am in the True mirror God has shown me over all these years since.
And this man, so abandoned, looked at me and recognized the Truth. He heard the Truth. And he shared his relief. His understanding. As I showed him the mirror God has constructed for me - and what he looks like.
Out of the pain - years of uncertainty
and the birth of this man to Life - and I see that so much of my life is built on the framework of the hole of those days now. I never understood. And now I do. And so does another man who has experienced the same loss.
It makes the pain of those days seem both more and less important.
And it breaks the hold of that pain on my life - another step to freedom.
2 stories
clearly the pain and the perspective are key
- to the mom the pain is not relevant and yet it is - and to me in the moment I was able to throw a rope over the cliff to the man who was falling forever in his pain, the pain is relevant and not...
it is good to think about these - but it leaves us with more questions:
How do we go about life? In the presence of these pains and hurts, how do we do life? Even if we agree, we have to survive this day. How do we progress? Out of the hole, how is there a new us constructed? How is the True mirror made? practically what does that look like?
That should bring us to our last post about the wind - sorry this was long - just kinda kept flowing
If you are ready for life to start living different - you might just consider joining us at Morethanmore. We will be hanging out at McAllister Recreation Center, just off 20th and Schuyler Ave, Lafayette - from 645-800pm on May 28th - it is a group of broken people who will laugh and joke and care and spend an evening with you, with no pretenses and no expectations. There will be free childcare up to 5th grade. Hope you can join us!
wind blows away the problems of the past and I become someone vastly different than who I am today - leaving those people (and some of you) that the wounds in me have helped to heal today to find their help elsewhere
wind blows away the problems of today and alters my course in life - my future...
but...
wind blows away the problems and I have less insecurity, less pain, less wrestling, less hurt, less anger, less resentment, less uncertainty, less heartache...
there are times that I want to be free of the pain so much that I would sacrifice all the good it produces to just feel free
and there are times that I am so glad I have experienced the life (including the pain) I have experienced that I would not change a minute of it
I find that I am a man torn, divided, like a seam is there in the middle of me, and at times it pulls apart and the fabric frays at the tension...
One thing I have learned is that the pain from my past (sorry) does not go away.
As much as I would like it to blow away (or blow it away - with substances, food, numbing, etc), it never goes away - it is always there again when the wind dies down (or the sugar rush, or the high).
But there is something here that is hard to explain -you see, the pain does not own me the same way it did - its not that it doesn't hurt - it does - it's that it's power to dominate my life is so much less than it used to be.
Let me see if I can give you a couple examples:
I have never pushed a baby from my body, but I am going to venture a description of new motherhood - please do not shoot me for I am a pitiful male and will never experience such things as this, as I have been told many times...
But, unlike most men, I have delivered hundreds of babies. I have known hundreds of momma's. I have known many long before they were pregnant. I have seen them grow up. I have been there to tell them of the positive test (some surprises and some not). I have taken their calls in the middle of the night to tell me about the contractions. I have counted the pushes and been there to make sure their babies were healthy and strong as they delivered. I have reassured the dads and glanced at them to make sure they were not gonna pass out, handing them the scissors to cut the cord. I have heard moms cry out in agony as that baby arrives. They have strained more than you would think a human could if you have never seen it. I have heard some scream at the exhaustion and the pain. I have witnessed ladies I thought were far too immature to be moms discover something inside them that they (and I) had no idea was there, in the midst of that pain. Worlds are crushed and worlds are built in the delivery room. As I think of it now, I am in awe of it all again!
Yet, with all that pain - all that agony - all that screaming...there was never a time - not one of all the deliveries I helped with - that when I held that baby up to the momma - that she was thinking at all about the pain - she did not say how bad it had hurt (just a few minutes before) - in fact, the pain was far from her mind. It was not that the pain was not real - it was. It was not that she had forgotten completely - it was forever a part of her (and she would likely remind that child when they were 15!!!) But there was a simple realization that the pain was part of her and that child. She could not have had the child without the pain. She would have missed out on those little hands, that smile, that life if she had not had the pain.
Here's another:
In my life, I have struggled with control. My life was shattered as a young person. The losses so severe and so pervasive that I feared that I would not be able to survive. At times wishing that I could just die, I resigned myself to a broken, lonely heart. I wrestled with faith and felt betrayed and hurt by the faith system that surrounded me - I felt condemned and cast out. I formed a view of life that was broken and cynical - that was determined to be prepared for ALL bad things that may come in the future - ultimately leaving me expecting brokenness and hurt. This left me completely unable to be a decent human being.
I realized this often - at first a victim of life, I had been beaten down and broken - and then as I wrestled with the pain, I had become a person that was so broken that indeed I was not someone people wanted to be around - so scarred and broken inside - I had no idea who I was or who I was to be. Face to face with myself, I hated who I had become - but I had no idea how to be someone else.
I cried out and found that no one was there who could help me. In my pit of despair, utter and totally broken - trying to simply survive a moment at a time yet not sure I cared if I did - I found the end of my ability to control the pain. I was no longer able to protect myself - no longer able to anticipate anything. My own method of dealing with the pain of life unraveled and I feared for my sanity as I faced the unchecked fear of my childhood. It broke over me in waves. I felt as if I was drowning. I wanted there in those moments to experience some beautiful moment where someone would save me - where God would swoop in and rescue me in my heartache - but that is not what happened. I simply felt my total inability to deal with the burdens of life and the brokennesses of life in the method that I had used my entire life.
It has been many years since those days - I am thankful they are far behind me. But in spite of the fact that I am different now - a man of hope and life - that place in my life was something I did not want to face - did not want to deal with completely - that place of desolation. And it was because God was not there the way I thought he should have been - I figure He should have saved me or something and all I found was emptiness - no satisfying answer from heaven to my cries.
I had spent all these years so unsettled about that time. Knowing it was pivotal to me and my life. But still sometimes soaking in the pain of it - certainly not seeing any well defined point to the pain - there was no baby delivered from my childbirth of the soul...
Then the other day a man sat down with me. He described to me myself. He described his life and the darkness of a time when he was devastated and broken and cried out for help from God and heard nothing - no epiphany - no relief - just silence and pain.
And then it happened...I understood my story as I told him...
My loss in those days was not about God at all - it was about me. I reached the end of my coping mechanisms - I realized that I could not keep myself safe, could not protect myself. The hole that I found there was where, little by little, day by day, moment by moment, year by year, God brought me to know TRUTH. Where he showed me who I really was - the shattering of the distorted mirror I saw before those days was painful, but was key to my beginning the process of seeing who I really am in the True mirror God has shown me over all these years since.
And this man, so abandoned, looked at me and recognized the Truth. He heard the Truth. And he shared his relief. His understanding. As I showed him the mirror God has constructed for me - and what he looks like.
Out of the pain - years of uncertainty
and the birth of this man to Life - and I see that so much of my life is built on the framework of the hole of those days now. I never understood. And now I do. And so does another man who has experienced the same loss.
It makes the pain of those days seem both more and less important.
And it breaks the hold of that pain on my life - another step to freedom.
2 stories
clearly the pain and the perspective are key
- to the mom the pain is not relevant and yet it is - and to me in the moment I was able to throw a rope over the cliff to the man who was falling forever in his pain, the pain is relevant and not...
it is good to think about these - but it leaves us with more questions:
How do we go about life? In the presence of these pains and hurts, how do we do life? Even if we agree, we have to survive this day. How do we progress? Out of the hole, how is there a new us constructed? How is the True mirror made? practically what does that look like?
That should bring us to our last post about the wind - sorry this was long - just kinda kept flowing
If you are ready for life to start living different - you might just consider joining us at Morethanmore. We will be hanging out at McAllister Recreation Center, just off 20th and Schuyler Ave, Lafayette - from 645-800pm on May 28th - it is a group of broken people who will laugh and joke and care and spend an evening with you, with no pretenses and no expectations. There will be free childcare up to 5th grade. Hope you can join us!
Thursday, May 7, 2015
The Wind & the Change - the darkness
So, maybe it wouldn't be the best if the wind blew away all of the things we wish it would...
maybe the windblown stuff of our lives has the possibility to produce something in our lives and through our lives that is bigger and more good than we can possibly see...
but I am also evidence of the fact that the pain and burdens of our lives don't always lead us to good...
sometimes, they lead us to
insecurity fear withdrawal depression inactivity
weakness hatred bitterness escape abuse
substances
I have lived in many of these (as have my friends) - they have characterized me for variable amounts of my life...
So, maybe we should have the wind blow away the pains - it sure does get confusing when product of the windblown stuff is sometimes so bad and sometimes so good...what do we do with the bad?
At More than more we deal with real life - and we care about each other and our world - we refuse to see life the way the rest of the world does - we choose to Notice - we would love to have you join us next Thursday night, may 14th, 645-800PM at McAllister Recreation Center - just off 20th and Schuyler Ave, Lafayette
maybe the windblown stuff of our lives has the possibility to produce something in our lives and through our lives that is bigger and more good than we can possibly see...
but I am also evidence of the fact that the pain and burdens of our lives don't always lead us to good...
sometimes, they lead us to
insecurity fear withdrawal depression inactivity
weakness hatred bitterness escape abuse
substances
I have lived in many of these (as have my friends) - they have characterized me for variable amounts of my life...
So, maybe we should have the wind blow away the pains - it sure does get confusing when product of the windblown stuff is sometimes so bad and sometimes so good...what do we do with the bad?
At More than more we deal with real life - and we care about each other and our world - we refuse to see life the way the rest of the world does - we choose to Notice - we would love to have you join us next Thursday night, may 14th, 645-800PM at McAllister Recreation Center - just off 20th and Schuyler Ave, Lafayette
Wednesday, April 29, 2015
The Wind and the Change
Well, I have changed - and so have you I bet
I would so like for the wind to blow away all the things in my life that hurt, that frustrate, that are a pain of any kind at all. I am sick of wrestling - sick of arguing with myself - sick of hurting.
But, I cant deny the result of this wrestling in my life has at least partly been to bring me to a better me. In fact, much of the most wonderful parts of me and my life are directly a consequence of the things I would have had the wind blow away if I had the choice a long time ago.
Which makes me ask the question - what in my future will I miss if I have the Indiana wind blow away my troubles now??? What glorious and wonderful parts of my life will I erase if I simply escape the pain and frustration of my life??
And another question that will talk about in the next post
I would so like for the wind to blow away all the things in my life that hurt, that frustrate, that are a pain of any kind at all. I am sick of wrestling - sick of arguing with myself - sick of hurting.
But, I cant deny the result of this wrestling in my life has at least partly been to bring me to a better me. In fact, much of the most wonderful parts of me and my life are directly a consequence of the things I would have had the wind blow away if I had the choice a long time ago.
Which makes me ask the question - what in my future will I miss if I have the Indiana wind blow away my troubles now??? What glorious and wonderful parts of my life will I erase if I simply escape the pain and frustration of my life??
And another question that will talk about in the next post
Wednesday, April 22, 2015
If the Wind worked
If the wind blew away all those hurts and frustrations and issues...
Today I spent the day with people - wonderful people - people I love - serving and listening and guiding and teaching - running and sitting (at the same time it seems like).
And you know what they love about me? It is definitely not my wardrobe!! In fact I barely match at all most days. It is not my timeliness - check out Meg's post from a couple wks ago!!
Most common thing I hear? They love my heart - my love for them - my compassion - my listening.
Well, I have to tell you that my nature is not to be compassionate - or to listen well (ask my wife) or even to love..
I have thought about this a lot - because it is a bit mysterious to me how much I have changed (sounds like a Rascal Flatts song) - and it turns out that these traits have come from the wrestling and struggling and the hurts and the frustrations...
Think about it a bit and I will be back soon
Today I spent the day with people - wonderful people - people I love - serving and listening and guiding and teaching - running and sitting (at the same time it seems like).
And you know what they love about me? It is definitely not my wardrobe!! In fact I barely match at all most days. It is not my timeliness - check out Meg's post from a couple wks ago!!
Most common thing I hear? They love my heart - my love for them - my compassion - my listening.
Well, I have to tell you that my nature is not to be compassionate - or to listen well (ask my wife) or even to love..
I have thought about this a lot - because it is a bit mysterious to me how much I have changed (sounds like a Rascal Flatts song) - and it turns out that these traits have come from the wrestling and struggling and the hurts and the frustrations...
Think about it a bit and I will be back soon
Tuesday, April 21, 2015
The Wind
It is VERY windy today. Would make my Oklahoma roots proud!
I was just sitting here thinking, "Wouldn't it be nice if the wind would just blow away all of my frustration, all of my inadequacies, all of my habits and hurts?"
All of it could just be gone.
No more.
Never to harass me again!
All Peace
All Joy
All the time
Let me ask you a question...
If the wind would blow away anything you chose, what would you ask it to blow away?
No need to answer here on Google - but kick it around in your head - make a list maybe - and I will be back on before too long talk more about it.
I was just sitting here thinking, "Wouldn't it be nice if the wind would just blow away all of my frustration, all of my inadequacies, all of my habits and hurts?"
All of it could just be gone.
No more.
Never to harass me again!
All Peace
All Joy
All the time
Let me ask you a question...
If the wind would blow away anything you chose, what would you ask it to blow away?
No need to answer here on Google - but kick it around in your head - make a list maybe - and I will be back on before too long talk more about it.
Wednesday, April 15, 2015
An update and an outreach!
Tomorrow night, the 16th of April, we will be hanging out at More than more from 645-800pm! We get together every other Thursday night at McAllister Recreation Center, just off 20th and Schuyler Ave, Lafayette . We have a great time laughing lots and enjoying some people who care for no other reason other than that they do. We try to focus our lives on something More than just what we are told is important is in this crazy world around us by our culture.
Also wanted to let you all know that we will be having an outreach we call Love Your Feet at Murdock Elementary on the 30th of April - for those of you who are counting, that is 2wks from tomorrow - our next More than more! What we do is have dinner with some folks from Murdock and then share some shoes for their families with them, in a discrete way. We are good friends with the principal at the school (she is a More than more attender who can't generally come because of another Thursday night activity she has) and we enjoy developing relationships and sharing some of the goodness in our lives with some other people!
We would be glad to have anyone attend who reads this, but we do need to know you are coming because we cook for the whole group! And we would also like to talk about the mission of the evening and some ideas of what the whole thing is about - so send us a comment on the blog or an email if you are gonna be there!
Otherwise, we will be back at McAllister on the 14th of May, 645-800pm again!!
looking forward to seeing you and serving alongside you!
Also wanted to let you all know that we will be having an outreach we call Love Your Feet at Murdock Elementary on the 30th of April - for those of you who are counting, that is 2wks from tomorrow - our next More than more! What we do is have dinner with some folks from Murdock and then share some shoes for their families with them, in a discrete way. We are good friends with the principal at the school (she is a More than more attender who can't generally come because of another Thursday night activity she has) and we enjoy developing relationships and sharing some of the goodness in our lives with some other people!
We would be glad to have anyone attend who reads this, but we do need to know you are coming because we cook for the whole group! And we would also like to talk about the mission of the evening and some ideas of what the whole thing is about - so send us a comment on the blog or an email if you are gonna be there!
Otherwise, we will be back at McAllister on the 14th of May, 645-800pm again!!
looking forward to seeing you and serving alongside you!
Wednesday, March 25, 2015
I'm late, I'm late for a very important date...
As a child I was taught never be late, actually never even be close to late. My mother was amazingly early for everything- she still is to this day. In fact I know to expect her a minimum of 15 minutes earlier than planned time. Sounds ideal, right? Not so much. Don't get me wrong I think my mom is amazing. Seriously how she managed to be on time anywhere with three stubborn daughters I will never understand. I do not remember ever being rushed to hurry or any panic. I don't recall my mother being frazzled and dashing through the house like a crazy woman. I don't remember her forgetting things and rushing back in a grumbling state of annoyance. I just cannot understand how she did it. Before kids I was my mother. I arrived 15-30 minutes early everywhere. I was annoyed with friends that showed up late. I mean really what is so hard about knowing what time you need to be somewhere and planning how to do it?!?!?!? HA! Three kids later I'm lucky to even make it anywhere some days. I try- really I do! But no matter how much planning and preparing I do- something always comes up! Overslept, can't find keys, forgot backpack, Ella wants to wear something else, Drew taking 20 minutes to put on EACH shoe, Lucy having meltdown because heaven forbid I brush her hair! Something- always something. I can list about a million somethings- and just when I think I ran out of things that could possibly make me late- something weird happens. Stray dog deciding to get in my car. Daylight savings time. Fall back- spring forward becomes jumble of trip forward and takes two steps backwards. I know excuses excuses. Bottom line my timing is off. And I am far from Mary Poppins like during this crazy rush. More like Wreck it Ralph or honestly- The Hulk. Yikes- I know. But are you going to tell me you have never screamed a request after asking 15 stinking times??? No- because even if you haven't flipped out- please just pretend to keep me from feeling like scum. Well I have a dear friend whose pet peeve is people being late. It's really quite ironic because I have been tossing this blog around in my head for about a month but ultimately hesitated to write because of a chuckle from loved one when when heard I was writing about timing- "you really have no room to write about that." But after friends facebook post about annoyance of people chronically being late and linking lateness to bad traits- I had to share something.
Throughout the course of life God has taught me something amazing about timing. First off- yes there are clocks and 24 hours in a day, 60 minutes in an hour, etc. No one is exempt to this fact of life. It's all pretty amazing if you think about it. Really how intricate is His plan!? It's miraculous!!! Sure does not feel miraculous at 8:07 am as we rush to school, feels more like need of miracle to pause time to make it. But that is the amazing part- God is in control of every single second! Every single second! Every one!!!! He can make anything happen in any amount of time- even in a second! Ask someone who just barely missed being hit by a car. Seconds matter. Ask the gal watching the clock tick as she awaits pregnancy test results. Ask the daughter whose father is dying before her eyes. Each and every second means something. He can make seconds feel like hours. Especially those last 60 seconds of school day or work day- tick tick tick- come on! So although time does not technically stop- God does control the clock!
Does this make being late acceptable? Not necessarily. But it does also not make it shameful. God will get us where he wants us in his timing. I still need to attempt to be on time- however do not need to beat myself up for being late. In past if I found I was going to be late somewhere- 8 times out of 10 I would turn around and go home. No way in the world I would walk into a meeting or party late. I hated the saying- better late than never. But God taught me patience and acceptance of my messed up timing and others timing. Not perfectly. I still get frazzled and rush but eventually I remember I cannot control time. I am not my mother. Every person moves at the pace God sets them at. His timing is much more beautiful than mine. I do not mind others being late anymore. I strongly disagree that lateness or earliness are negative traits. I learned that sometimes we need to wait and sometimes need to be waited on. We do not always know the details or reasons people are late- often sound like excuses when in reality are part of His plan. Let me give you an example that many of you can understand. My doctor runs late often. In fact when he is on time I question if picked wrong room and should be seeing the patient next door. Ha. But he does not intentionally run late. He runs behind schedule because no matter how careful his schedulers are to allow the right length of time only God really knows what is needed. He runs late because it's not about his timing but about God's timing. He does not rush anyone out of the office because people matter to him. He knows they matter to God and God's timing is more important than the time on the clock or company standards. Not very many people understand this. It's easy to get frustrated because you have a schedule too. But if my doctor can trust God's timing then why can't I?? Honestly I have found that God uses that waiting time in ways I won't allow myself. It's probably the best quiet time I get. Someday my doctor will come in office and I will be sound asleep relaxing. Running behind schedule does not make him a bad doctor- in fact it does quite the opposite. Timing- early or late can be a positive trait if put in the right hands- no pun intended- hands- ha ha.
Join us at More Than More- come early or late- no worries. We will be meeting Thursday April 2nd at at McAllister Recreation Center, just off 20th and Schuyler Ave, Lafayette, from 645-800pm. Hope to see you there!
Throughout the course of life God has taught me something amazing about timing. First off- yes there are clocks and 24 hours in a day, 60 minutes in an hour, etc. No one is exempt to this fact of life. It's all pretty amazing if you think about it. Really how intricate is His plan!? It's miraculous!!! Sure does not feel miraculous at 8:07 am as we rush to school, feels more like need of miracle to pause time to make it. But that is the amazing part- God is in control of every single second! Every single second! Every one!!!! He can make anything happen in any amount of time- even in a second! Ask someone who just barely missed being hit by a car. Seconds matter. Ask the gal watching the clock tick as she awaits pregnancy test results. Ask the daughter whose father is dying before her eyes. Each and every second means something. He can make seconds feel like hours. Especially those last 60 seconds of school day or work day- tick tick tick- come on! So although time does not technically stop- God does control the clock!
Does this make being late acceptable? Not necessarily. But it does also not make it shameful. God will get us where he wants us in his timing. I still need to attempt to be on time- however do not need to beat myself up for being late. In past if I found I was going to be late somewhere- 8 times out of 10 I would turn around and go home. No way in the world I would walk into a meeting or party late. I hated the saying- better late than never. But God taught me patience and acceptance of my messed up timing and others timing. Not perfectly. I still get frazzled and rush but eventually I remember I cannot control time. I am not my mother. Every person moves at the pace God sets them at. His timing is much more beautiful than mine. I do not mind others being late anymore. I strongly disagree that lateness or earliness are negative traits. I learned that sometimes we need to wait and sometimes need to be waited on. We do not always know the details or reasons people are late- often sound like excuses when in reality are part of His plan. Let me give you an example that many of you can understand. My doctor runs late often. In fact when he is on time I question if picked wrong room and should be seeing the patient next door. Ha. But he does not intentionally run late. He runs behind schedule because no matter how careful his schedulers are to allow the right length of time only God really knows what is needed. He runs late because it's not about his timing but about God's timing. He does not rush anyone out of the office because people matter to him. He knows they matter to God and God's timing is more important than the time on the clock or company standards. Not very many people understand this. It's easy to get frustrated because you have a schedule too. But if my doctor can trust God's timing then why can't I?? Honestly I have found that God uses that waiting time in ways I won't allow myself. It's probably the best quiet time I get. Someday my doctor will come in office and I will be sound asleep relaxing. Running behind schedule does not make him a bad doctor- in fact it does quite the opposite. Timing- early or late can be a positive trait if put in the right hands- no pun intended- hands- ha ha.
Join us at More Than More- come early or late- no worries. We will be meeting Thursday April 2nd at at McAllister Recreation Center, just off 20th and Schuyler Ave, Lafayette, from 645-800pm. Hope to see you there!
Wednesday, March 4, 2015
sometimes it is hard to believe the sticky notes
On Valentine's Day, my sweet wife decided it would be a good idea to put sticky notes on the bathroom mirror of some of the things she loves about me.
They were pink (Valentine's day)
And she shaped them in a heart...
To you it probably seems silly, or just frilly and romantic. But to me, it was quite significant. You see, many times I do not feel lovable. Too many times people have told me I wasn't; treated me like I was not worth their time or energy; put me down; threw me away, like so much trash. I began to believe it somewhere along the way.
And there's this heart, on my mirror - and it says all these reasons to love me - that someone who I love very much believes - enough to spend time shaping them into a heart.
It was wonderful.
So much so that I have left them up for the 3wks since Valentine's Day. I love looking at them. I love the reminder.
But I noticed something.
Sometimes I do not see them - or if I see them, I discount them - I can say to myself that they are not true or don't matter (but I must say it doesn't even get that far sometimes, sometimes I don't even look at them). It's weird - it 's not like I don't want their encouragement - its like I know what they are saying and I already don't believe it and so I wont even look at them - it's like in my head I believe they are lying to me (ok now I feel like pink papers can lie - I am losing it!!) and so I don't even want to pay attention to them - or maybe because it's safer somehow in my mind to just not believe the good things, but to stay where I am. Sometimes I am discouraged and frustrated and hurting and I don't feel like I am all those things, and it is easy to negate them...
Then, you know what happens, someone from More than more, who I have had a chance to get to know through this crazy group of broken people, replies to my cry for help. They tell me that not only are they talking to God about me, but they say some of the things on the pink papers too - they care and they believe good things about me. They become a source of the Goodness of God to me - and suddenly the pink papers are more true, validated by someone else; someone who has no ulterior motive - no agenda - no manipulation - nothing they want from me. And life looks different - the darkness recedes some. I can see myself for who I really am better. and I am thankful.
I don't know if you sometimes struggle seeing the pink notes on your mirrors. They can look like a lot of things - hugs from kids, smiles, care of co-workers, love from a spouse, or a mom. They can be so many things. Or, you may not have many pink notes in your life at all - I have been there.
If you are in that space - or if you have been - or if you find yourself there at some point - I wish you would consider joining us at Morethanmore. We will be hanging out tomorrow night, the 5th of March, at McAllister Recreation Center, just off 20th and Schuyler Ave, Lafayette, from 645-800pm. This is a group of people that love to just hang out, laugh, enjoy time together. But we grow something bigger with time. We grow the chance to remind each other who we really are - we grow encouragement - and it is worth an evening of your life every other Thursday. Hope to see you.
They were pink (Valentine's day)
And she shaped them in a heart...
To you it probably seems silly, or just frilly and romantic. But to me, it was quite significant. You see, many times I do not feel lovable. Too many times people have told me I wasn't; treated me like I was not worth their time or energy; put me down; threw me away, like so much trash. I began to believe it somewhere along the way.
And there's this heart, on my mirror - and it says all these reasons to love me - that someone who I love very much believes - enough to spend time shaping them into a heart.
It was wonderful.
So much so that I have left them up for the 3wks since Valentine's Day. I love looking at them. I love the reminder.
But I noticed something.
Sometimes I do not see them - or if I see them, I discount them - I can say to myself that they are not true or don't matter (but I must say it doesn't even get that far sometimes, sometimes I don't even look at them). It's weird - it 's not like I don't want their encouragement - its like I know what they are saying and I already don't believe it and so I wont even look at them - it's like in my head I believe they are lying to me (ok now I feel like pink papers can lie - I am losing it!!) and so I don't even want to pay attention to them - or maybe because it's safer somehow in my mind to just not believe the good things, but to stay where I am. Sometimes I am discouraged and frustrated and hurting and I don't feel like I am all those things, and it is easy to negate them...
Then, you know what happens, someone from More than more, who I have had a chance to get to know through this crazy group of broken people, replies to my cry for help. They tell me that not only are they talking to God about me, but they say some of the things on the pink papers too - they care and they believe good things about me. They become a source of the Goodness of God to me - and suddenly the pink papers are more true, validated by someone else; someone who has no ulterior motive - no agenda - no manipulation - nothing they want from me. And life looks different - the darkness recedes some. I can see myself for who I really am better. and I am thankful.
I don't know if you sometimes struggle seeing the pink notes on your mirrors. They can look like a lot of things - hugs from kids, smiles, care of co-workers, love from a spouse, or a mom. They can be so many things. Or, you may not have many pink notes in your life at all - I have been there.
If you are in that space - or if you have been - or if you find yourself there at some point - I wish you would consider joining us at Morethanmore. We will be hanging out tomorrow night, the 5th of March, at McAllister Recreation Center, just off 20th and Schuyler Ave, Lafayette, from 645-800pm. This is a group of people that love to just hang out, laugh, enjoy time together. But we grow something bigger with time. We grow the chance to remind each other who we really are - we grow encouragement - and it is worth an evening of your life every other Thursday. Hope to see you.
Tuesday, February 17, 2015
Atm's
My wife and i recently
are on the plane returning from Italy
No matter how much you want to rest though, and how
comfortable you feel in another country, you still are acutely aware of your
"foreignness" - this is one of the inviting things about it for us,
no cell phones (sorry if i didnt return your text message for the past few
days), and a nearly complete ability to just disconnect - but this
"foreignness" also requires some extra thought. For example, the Italian people are not
interested at all in having US dollars - they want Euro's, and we do not have
Euro's in the U.S.
Because of all these foreign things about Italy, in order
for us to get our rest, we need to make sure that we have money, that we are
mentally prepared for the late dinner and that we have our trusty Italian
phrase book with us (No, my wife is not that far along in her online course -
she can say the dog eats, yellow bicycle and the man drives and car all really
well). In order to get money, the
cheapest and easiest way is to use an ATM and our bank allows us to withdraw
money from there with no problems. This
most recent trip, we wanted to make sure we had some money and so on the 1st
day we were there, we were looking and
looking for an ATM. We walked miles and
miles and it seemed that we were just not seeing one. In places that seemed like they should have
an ATM, none. It was super frustrating.
After a lot of looking, we did finally find an ATM and got
our money - no problem - but i noticed something interesting afterward...
Once i had searched and looked for ATM's for a while, i
started seeing them everywhere. I was
noticing ATM's at every corner it seemed.
It got me to thinking - i wonder if life is like that a
little bit....
Like this...
Ever started to think about how frustrated your wife makes
you in a certain area of life/marriage/parenting and then the more you think about
it, the more you notice it?
It has definitely
happened to me (not that my wife has much to notice, because she is so
wonderful - that was a close one!).
Ever start thinking about how a job frustrates you to no end
- how it is not what you wanted and is not what you deserve? Then before you know it, it starts to be
easier and easier to notice the crumminess of the job?
So many times, we start to look for something and then we
begin to find it more and more and more...
And don't we often times find ourselves looking for the same
ATM's over the course of our lives - having an easy time noticing the spouse,
the job, the money, the co-worker, the house, the family?
Why then do we tend to look for the same types of things
over and over again?
I suspect it has to do with how we have been programmed over
our lives, partly how we were raised, partly our genetics, partly our life
experiences and traumas.
But how then can we stop noticing the pain in the butt
things in this life? Are we to be
forever trapped in the land of seeing every ATM in Italy
No. We are not
trapped.
The answer seems to come partly from choosing to notice
other things - and from getting the God who made us involved in the day to day
moments of our noticing. It appears to
not be whether we will notice something but what will we notice?
Choose to notice the good.
Choose to see the love. And when
you do, invite God into the moment. And
when you can't seem to, let someone who loves you know that you just can't seem
to see the good anymore - all you see is ATM's - ask them to help you see. And, talk to God about it - let Him know that
you just can't seem to see the good anymore, ask Him for help - to be involved
in your life.
Plus, it helps to be around some people who are really
working hard to see the good - to notice - and trying to have God involved in
their day to day lives - not weird religion - just God involved in people's
lives and people caring enough to show the goodness to each other.
This is what we are all about at Morethanmore. We will be hanging out this Thursday night
645-800pm at McAllister Recreation
Center Lafayette
We always have fantastic and free child care for kids
through 5th grade and McAllister has tons of fun activities for the older
kids. We truly hope you can join us!
Tuesday, February 3, 2015
Being a Puppy - What is the Draw?
It is good to be back to writing again - sometimes it feels like life crowds out this time, the time that I communicate with you out of my soul - I never want the crowding to happen, it just does - and Im sorry to have been away - but I am back, with the initiative to write again for a little bit...
Many of you who read this blog will remember Flo - Flo was my dog...was...
I realize that this will come as a shock to many of you, but Flo had to leave this world last summer. It was not a happy time for our family - but her grave is behind our house if you ever want to visit it. I know that there will be a thousand questions from those of you who loved Flo vicariously through this blog, but it is not for this post. I will give you a few lines to recover now.
In the late summer, after we were healing up some from the freshness of Flo's departure, we (much more some of us than others) decided that we needed to have another dog. A friend (thanks Deb!) sent us a contact for silver lab puppies and through a remarkably short courtship, we fell in love with Truffle. She is now about 7 months old. She is gorgeous, but she is crazy and full of energy, and not always super obedient
Many of you who read this blog will remember Flo - Flo was my dog...was...
I realize that this will come as a shock to many of you, but Flo had to leave this world last summer. It was not a happy time for our family - but her grave is behind our house if you ever want to visit it. I know that there will be a thousand questions from those of you who loved Flo vicariously through this blog, but it is not for this post. I will give you a few lines to recover now.
In the late summer, after we were healing up some from the freshness of Flo's departure, we (much more some of us than others) decided that we needed to have another dog. A friend (thanks Deb!) sent us a contact for silver lab puppies and through a remarkably short courtship, we fell in love with Truffle. She is now about 7 months old. She is gorgeous, but she is crazy and full of energy, and not always super obedient
Well, this dog is insane. We have made it pretty clear from her earliest days that she was not to chew on the wood of the furniture. We have used bitter apple spray and treats to distract her and a wide variety of things, but she knows she is not supposed to chew on the coffee table, the rocking chair, the cabinets. You also need to know that she has toys - toys everywhere. There are some mornings that I have nearly woken the entire house by stepping on a squeaky toy sitting in the middle of
the living room - it can sometimes feel like trying to navigate a mine field getting from one side of the house to the other without stepping on a toy.
So, this crazy dog has all these toys - and knows not to chew on the coffee table, etc.
So, what does she chew on?
She will walk right past, over, around, or through, more toys than many children in the world will ever get in their lifetimes so that she can chew on the coffee table, the rocking chair, the cabinets, etc.
I know!
It is ridiculous!!
She knows what she is supposed to do. She knows there will be consequences from choosing the wrong way. She knows the toys are good too. Yet, she so often chooses the wood!
Is it that she just loves wood so much? I don't think so. I think it is that she is stubborn and ornery and just wants what she wants.
Since she can't talk we will never know, but I think there is a part of her that just wants to do what she wants to do, and sometimes that part is just stronger than the part that wants to make her people happy, so she does what she wants - and pays the price. Seems pretty lame, until I look at my own life. In fact when I look sat Truffle's coffee table chewing, I might as well see myself.
There are so many things in this life that I know I really would be better off if I would just do the right thing - yet I have chosen so many times over the year to go ahead and do what I feel like doing - and I pay the price and many times so do the people I love. So many times I don't even have a great reason for doing the stupid things I do - I just do them. I am an idiot!
Well, I am convinced that Truffle will not always chew on the wood in our house - I suspect that she will learn that we love her and she will start to chew on the right stuff because wanting to make us happy is better than her orneriness.
I am also convinced that I am not choosing what I want just because I want it nearly as much as I used to. I am inviting God to join me in my day - and I am journeying with some people who are just as messed up as me - and who have also chewed a lot of wood in their lives too - and together we are seeing a better way of living.
We hang out together every other Thursday night at McAllister Recreation center, just of 20th and Schuyler Ave, Lafayette, from 645-800 pm and this Thursday night, the 5th of February is the next time - when we hang at McAllister, we call ourselves Morethanmore and we laugh more than any group of people I know. From time to time, we serve those in our community who have needs that we run into too. We would love to have you join us - I don't think you'll find a place on earth where the people are more accepting. We do have free, excellent, child care for kids up to 6th grade if you have kids.
If you have problems with chewing on the wood in this world - I hope to get a chance to see you soon!
Tuesday, January 20, 2015
This Thursday the 22nd is More than more
Hey guys!
Just wanted to remind you that this Thursday, January 22nd, is More than more - at McAllister Recreation Center - just off 20th and Schuyler Ave, Lafayette.
We will be there from 645-800pm and there will be activities for all ages!
It is always a fun, laughter-filled time when we get together - and I have found no place where people are more welcome on earth.
Hope you all can join us!
Just wanted to remind you that this Thursday, January 22nd, is More than more - at McAllister Recreation Center - just off 20th and Schuyler Ave, Lafayette.
We will be there from 645-800pm and there will be activities for all ages!
It is always a fun, laughter-filled time when we get together - and I have found no place where people are more welcome on earth.
Hope you all can join us!
Monday, January 5, 2015
Thursday night the 8th is More than more
Hey everyone!
The Holidays have left us with a confusing schedule, but we are going to be back together again this Thursday night, January 8th, at McAllister Recreation Center - just off 20th and Schuyler Ave, Lafayette.
As usual there will be activities for all ages!
Hope to see you there!
The Holidays have left us with a confusing schedule, but we are going to be back together again this Thursday night, January 8th, at McAllister Recreation Center - just off 20th and Schuyler Ave, Lafayette.
As usual there will be activities for all ages!
Hope to see you there!
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