I Think I Know Why I Cried

College Road Trip with Martin Lawrence and Raven-Symone will not be a blockbuster. Disney did not have that in mind when they produced the movie. I would say it was another day another dollar for them.

Since I was a little kid passages made me uncomfortable. I love to hold on to the moment. In fact, some of those assessments (tests to see if you are wierd) verify I am an in the moment type person. Mary wanted to hold on to Jesus in the garden. Peter, James, and John wanted to hold on to the apprearance of Jesus with Moses and Elijah. I am not alone.

College Road Trip is about a major passage of a daddy's little girl moving from high school to college. Comfortable relationships are great, but no matter who they are with, they are going to change. The rythm of life demands relationships change. Nothing is more sad than separation. Thank God for unlimited nights and weekends but wow it hurts sometimes.

I think about how fun it was to watch David Letterman with Krista when she was five. I loved the buzz of taking her to King's Island at eleven. At 21 I sat across the table from her this week, a young wife, mother, and credit union employee in downtown Columbia. I admire her, but it is so hard to let go. I wanted to say, hey take the rest of the day off and let's go ride a roller coaster. Instead, I motioned to the waitress, one check please. We had spent the hour talking about grandsons, cars, David, and Weight Watchers. I went back to work and so did she.

As Raven said good-bye to her mother and father at a key point in the movie the cry monkey jumped on my back. Somehow they captured the fact that as much as Raven wanted separation, independence, etc. that at the final moment she was sad too. Nobody likes it, but change is a part of relationships. I am convinced that God pours value in my life as people come and go. Relational space is limited. No one enters and exits without purpose.

World Headquarters for a record third day in a row. Wow. One more day and its vacation. Ocala, Resurrection 5K (get ready to go down frogman), maybe a little golf, and some crazy fun little girls who will not little very long. Do I need it? Yeah, well who cares what you think? I am takin' it!

Welcome to Holland!

I was on a plane last week that was scheduled to land in Spartanburg, North Greenville, Greenville, Greer, and back home to Columbia. I was packed and fully prepared for all the excitement. Planters from U.S./Canada, college students eager to change the world, and movement makers of all ages were part of the itinerary.

Instead my plane landed abruptly in West Columbia, Tuesday afternoon. Two weeks before the big Resurrection 5K, I had one workout and two blogs for the week. Talk about an empty tank. I was face up on a mattress sweating through my fifth t-shirt in two days. No movement makers in sight. Our Siamese cat (who was in heat, btw) Tiger Lilly a.k.a Lilly, was as close as I would be to mulitiplication. Her week didn't go well either.

I wanted my Yvette to call Dustin Willis (Midtown) to pass on my thimble full of wisdom and the keys to my humble ministry in South Carolina before I died of the flu. She called him but he suggested I just text him anything he needed to know and to leave my keys in the mail box. Talk about living in the margins.

What happens when the plane lands at the wrong place? A place you didn't pack for. A place you never wanted to go, etc. Has that ever happened to you?

World Headquarters today. A bunch of catching up to do.

Self Worth - Where are the Bees?

You can really tell what puts more fuel in your tank when you can't do much. I have a lot of inspiring thoughts on paper about be vs. do. Do is such a trap door yet do defines me, unfortunately.

Maybe that is why Jesus had such a heart for the chronically ill and the poor. Helplessness is tough place to be. Your activity or ability to produce results is no longer fuel. People throw you an occasional bone, but those who are in the margins spend most of their time waiting for that someone to come along.

Hey, don't misread this. I am not that person. I have people swarming over me like bees (wife, daughters, staff) now. But just for a moment, if I let my mind wander, I get a faint idea of what it could be like. A scary place . . . out of the main stream of meaningful activity. Wow. I needed that reminder. Who is someone in the margins that you need to connect with today?

Still in rehab but there is a light at the end of the tunnel.

Quotables - Confession

I am on injured reserve with a pretty impressive case of the Flu. Bad timing. I missed two days of Intensive Church Planter Training, speaking at North Greenville chapel, etc.

Two weekend observations. Observation #1 was an impressive quote from Cleatus Blackmon, missionary in Greer with the Greer Baptist Association: Lord help us finish like we started.

I started with incredible passion for God. Risk was never an issue. Criticism usually fueled me vs. discouraged me. How did you start? Often we get mature and miss God's plan for us to finish well.

Observation #2 - I confess I cried at a movie for the first time in my life (No death or disease btw). Sounds pretty metrosexual doesn't it? College Road Trip with Martin Lawrence and Raven Symone was a heart stopper if you have daughters. The second Disney movie in a row (Game Plan) that implied certain family values. The movie was also rated G. Too much slapstick in College Road Trip at times, but that was probably the G part. Little kids love to see pigs destroy weddings.

Nothing dramatic today. Home and on the mend. I feel like I did when I was a kid. Looking out the window, watching my friends play baseball, knowing I can't play for today. Oh well.