Insanity

I have mentioned in the past an organization I am connected to called Café 1040.  Café 1040 is dedicated to taking the story of Jesus to people groups that have never heard it before.  My good friend, Stephen Byerly, is a leader there, and he sent me a book called The Insanity of God by Nik Ripken.  The forward to the book lets us know that Nik Ripken is not the author’s real name, as the places he has been and the stories he reports could place him, his family or his subjects in danger.  Nik reports story after story of people making supreme sacrifices to spread the story of  Jesus.  In fact, Nik lost his own son while serving overseas.  If you are passionate about spreading the Word of Jesus, please check out this book or visit Café 1040 for more information.

The Truth

Veritas is Latin for “truth”.   Veritas Church is in Decatur.  We had the privilege of being some of the first members of that church, and while we don’t still attend there, Veritas is celebrating its 10^th birthday this week.  If you have been around church plants, you  probably know that very few new churches are still around after 10 years.  I believe that Veritas Church is still around because, the pastor, David Slagle, listened to God before starting it, listened to God while he was leading and is still listening for God’s direction for the church.   After listening to God, David delivers the truth, and delivers it beautifully.  While David is not my current church pastor, I do consider him my life pastor and also consider him to be one of my closest friends.  May God bless Veritas Church and all that have been and will be connected with it.

Moving Day

I am so excited for my son Michael and his wife Emily this week.  They have just purchased a home in Jefferson and are moving  there from Athens this week.  The move gives them more space for their family and puts them 30 minutes closer to us in Braselton and 30 minutes closer to Michael’s work at Lake  Hartwell.  They still have easy access to Athens for Emily’s work and church.  I am very  proud that they have done an amazing job managing their spending over the last few  years allowing them to make this move without financial trauma.    I am also proud of all that they are doing to raise their two boys in a Godly home, ensuring that they have the best chance possible of loving Jesus as they are old enough to make that decision.  Praise God.

Connect To The Vine

I am looking forward to a new season with my Connect Group through The Vine Church  in Braselton.   My friend, Dan Kniffen, will be leading our group that will be reading and discussing Mere Christianity by C. S. Lewis.  The book and author are probably my favorites of all time.  For anyone that is close, I would love for you to join us on Tuesday evenings at our home.  For those where that is not convenient, I would love for you to read along with us.   If this topic is not up your alley, you are welcome to join one of our other groups here.

Mindfulness

Last September, Caroline and I went on a bike trip to France.  One of the things that made the trip so great were the two guides that took care of us while we were biking.  One of the guides was Suzanne.  She had an amazing way of handling the most awkward situations (old people complaining) perfectly.  She also was great at making you feel like you were the only one on the planet when you were talking with her.    I found out that she is a student of “mindfulness”.    I am  not ready to give mindfulness full credit for how amazing she was, but it no doubt at least plays a part.   Mindfulness got some national attention last December when Anderson Cooper made this report on 60 Minutes.  I think this practice is an important part of prayer that I am not very good at.  I would like to change that this year.