Thirty years ago tomorrow, Linda (my wife) and I were sitting at the dining room table with our realtor in Elmira, NY. He presented us a purchase offer on our home. We were planning to move but had no destination. After pastoring an established church for nearly seven years, we were fairly certain that God was nudging us to start a new church to reach unchurched families. But where? We had checked out multiple possibilities the previous months. Nothing clicked.
The phone kept ringing. A quandary. Do I interrupt our conversation with the realtor regarding an appropriate counter-offer on our home or just ignore the ringing? It was an old school pre-voicemail nonstop ringing. Something (or Someone) prodded me to do the unusual. I left the negotiating table to answer the call. It was a call that changed my life.
A gentleman on the other end of the line was calling from Florida about an opportunity to start a church in Cape Coral. Five months earlier, we were very interested and had inquired. We were informed another pastor was being considered for this position of “church planter.” We were disappointed. But on this day, this hour, this very minute—while our house sale contract was being finalized—the door was reopened to a dream, a new hope, a possibility, a calling.
Three decades later, we’re not shocked or surprised, but always in awe. That call resulted in fruitfulness that was once just an internal aspiration and vision. But the vision was shared with two additional couples. A core group formed. A new church was launched. And Cape Christian has thrived and flourished, survived and persevered. It has expanded and contracted. It has impacted thousands of families, marriages and lives. Grace extended. Redemption received. Marriages transformed. Families healed. God’s amazing grace. Evident. Abundant. Undeserved.
With boundless gratitude, we are humbled that God would call us. That He would work in us and through us. That He would send us ministry partners to walk with us. That he would call others to take the torch and run beyond us. What a ride. We are blessed on this 30th anniversary of the call. It changed my life, our lives and the lives of many more.
QUESTION: Have you had a call that changed your life? (I’d love to have you share it in the comment section below).
Pumpkin-flavored drinks and breads, turkeys, football, Pilgrims, Native Americans and colorful leaves are standard diet and décor this time of year. Not sure which of these appeal to you, but this is the season of Thanksgiving.
A pumpkin field photo taken by Dennis in his home state of Oregon. For his nature photography, go to www.GingerichPhotoArt.com.
Thanksgiving Day is traditionally a day of giving thanks for the blessing of the harvest and of the preceding year. It is celebrated on the fourth Thursday of November in the United States and on the second Monday of October in Canada. Thanksgiving has its historical roots in religious and cultural traditions, but has also become a final day to take a deep breath before the starting gun is fired for the Christmas sprint.
In the United States, the modern Thanksgiving holiday tradition is often traced to a poorly documented celebration at Plymouth, MA in 1621. There’s a lot of debate about who was present and what kind of religious significance this holiday really has. However, we are more certain that Thanksgiving was first proclaimed a holiday by President Abraham Lincoln as a way to foster unity between the northern and southern states after the Civil War. It was then standardized in 1941 through an act of Congress under President Franklin D. Roosevelt so all states would celebrate Thanksgiving on the fourth Thursday of November.
Regardless of its roots and traditions, it’s a good thing to take one full day a year to reflect on our blessings and to give thanks for all the many things we frequently take for granted. Maybe our goal this Thanksgiving season would be to find ways to be develop patterns of expressing gratitude the other 364 days each year.
I heard someone say, “What if God only gave you today, the things you expressed thankfulness for yesterday?” Honestly, would you be satisfied with what you still have today? That thought might be startling to some.
Do you stop each day to give thanks to God and for God and His blessings? Do you thank Him for your health? How about your wealth (yes, even if you make just $35,000/year, you are in the top .73% of the world and if your household income is $100,000/year you are in the top .08% of the world)? Even in difficult times, there is always something to be thankful for if you pause to look around you.
I’ve had the privilege of traveling and rubbing shoulders with every-day folks in some of the most impoverished regions of the world: Haiti, India, Democratic Republic of Congo, etc. In those places of extreme poverty, I have found some of the most grateful, generous, joyful and happy people. Gratitude is a choice. It’s an attitude that can be cultivated when we are intentional.
Take some time to reflect. What are you thankful for today? What new habits of gratitude do you want to develop in your life? What is one step you can take today toward a more grateful lifestyle and attitude?
QUESTION: What is the one thing you are most thankful for today? Please share it in the comment section below.
It took me 61 years to finally have my first experience with such luxury—at the push of a button—people actually come to your bedside to meet your needs! I arrived home a couple days ago from an unexpected 4 day staycation on the 4th floor of the 4 star “hotel” located on a major thoroughfare of our city. The staff at Cape Coral Hospital took care of all my needs and then some!
And, go figure this—I was denied food or liquids by mouth for the first two days and then only clear liquids for another day. Finally, I had actual food the last evening I was there. And, I came home weighing nearly 10 pounds MORE than I went in. I guess it must have had something to do with about a million or so of those 2 1/2 pound bags of fluid hanging on a pole and emptying into my veins non-stop from Monday evening until Friday morning!
I had lots of time to think and reflect. I learned (or was reminded of) a few things.
Life Is Uncertain – I had a packed schedule. Tons of very important meetings planned. I didn’t have any clean socks, underwear or toothbrush with me when I went to the emergency department. After all, the few other times when I’ve been at the ER, no doctor ever told me I was going to be admitted. But meetings can be missed and rescheduled. Others can and will fill in the gap.
Scripture describes the posture we should daily live in, “Now listen, you who say, ‘Today or tomorrow we will go to this or that city, spend a year there, carry on business and make money.’ Why, you do not even know what will happen tomorrow. What is your life? You are a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes. Instead, you ought to say, ‘If it is the Lord’s will, we will live and do this or that’” (James 4:13-15 NIV). That’s how I’ll start this coming week, because life is uncertain.
Some Things Are More Important – As a pastor for 36 years, I’ve told many people, “Some things are more important than other things.” I’ve always tried to be a good steward of my temple. But when you are flat on your back absorbing the narcotic they just gave you for heavy abdominal pain, and the ER doctor gives you a worse-case scenario of the diagnosis of diverticulitis—possible surgery, a temporary colostomy and a second surgery to reconnect the bowel, you listen. At least I did. Some things are more important; your health, future, well-being, staying active and quality of life.
People Care – I never doubted that people cared but I did witness it in action as a recipient. While I intentionally kept my hospitalization on the down low and didn’t post it on social media or let many know, one way or another friends, family and colleagues prayed, called, texted, emailed and visited. I was touched when one of my children drove a couple hours to come and pray for me. I was honored that the hospital CEO stopped in for a brief visit. We may get the impression by watching the news that no one cares anymore. That’s really not true. People care.
People Still Love Their Jobs – I was so impressed by how much those in the hospital enjoy their work. My wife is a maternity nurse and of course she loves her job. Who wouldn’t love bringing new life into the world? But the food service workers, maintenance crew, housekeepers, laundry workers, spiritual service volunteers, phlebotomist, CT scan techs, doctors, nurse assistants and administrators were all smiling. I heard no one complaining. They seemed to genuinely enjoy taking care of all my needs.
Gratitude is a Choice – I’ve believed it and preached it for years. I’ve blogged on it. I authentically experienced it for myself this past week. I’m very grateful I went to the ER when I did because I was told it could have turned out much worse had I waited. I’m filled with gratitude for the diagnosis. I don’t require surgery, radiation, chemo or immediate preparation for my funeral. Instead, I can manage a healthy future with a fiber-rich diet and avoiding a few foods I can easily live without. I’m sincerely grateful for my wife, my children, my friends, my neighbors, my co-workers, and my pastors. I’m thoroughly grateful for God’s grace, healing, peace and presence, at all times in all situations.
Each part of our journey in life can be something we just go through or grow through. I’m thankful that my first hospital experience was a time of learning and blessing. God is good.
Previous Blogs on Gratitude:
Gratitude Unlocks the Fullness of Life
About 15 years ago, someone gave me an idea. It was one of the best ideas ever. It has changed my life for the better. It has sharpened my focus. It has boosted my productivity and efficiency. In reality, possibly the best idea ever!
Dennis’ hobby is nature photography. This is a photo of his from Many Lake in Glacier National Park, MT. www.GingerichPhotoArt.com
That idea was this. Like a company or an organization, individuals should have a mission statement. I wrote my first mission statement that year. It was: “To be an authentic connection between God and people through exercising my leadership gifts and unique personality.” Several years ago, my friend Lloyd Reeb coached me to refine that mission statement. And I did. Now, my mission statement is more concise: “Inspiring TransforMissional Living in Others.” And, every word of this short statement is critically important. I wrote my first blog about that.
Recently, Dr. Peter Borghese was a guest speaker at a business leader luncheon in our city. He asked for a show of hands as to how many in the audience had a personal mission statement. Among the hundred or so in attendance, myself and a couple more participants raised our hands. It made me realize again, even though many business leaders have a mission statement for their companies, few have created one for themselves.
Dr. Peter Borghese
Dr. Borghese shared an excellent four-step method to developing a personal mission statement. He graciously gave me permission to use his I.D.E.A. Here it is:
I dentify your personal values, your strengths and virtues. When you have clearly recognized the things that are core to you, then you have a better sense of what you makes you uniquely you. The better you know you, the easier it will be to craft your personal mission statement.
D efine your passions. It’s important to be tightly tuned in to what makes your heart sing. The more you understand the activities that energize you and the things that drain you, the more likely you will be able to sharply define your mission.
E stablish your priorities. What is at the very top of your priority list? If you check your calendar and your debit/credit card statement, you’ll get a pretty good idea. You might think there are other things at the top of your priority list, but in reality, what you spend your time and money on are most important to you. The sooner your actual priorities align with your idealist primacies, the fewer regrets you’ll have when you get to the end of your life.
A ffirm your goals. What do you want out of life? What do you plan to accomplish in life? What do you want to be remembered for? If you complete your day to day and year to year goals, will your achievements be what you want to be remembered for? If not, what needs to change? Make sure your goals reflect the mission you want to be on over the next season of your life.
The scripture reminds us: “We are God’s masterpiece. He has created us…so we can do the things He planned for us long ago” (Ephesians 2:10 NLT). God has a plan for me and you. Do you have any idea what His plan is for you? He would love for you to get to know Him so He can help you understand His greatest desires for you…including your mission.
Need further help developing your mission statement? Check out a few of my previous blogs — Starting Your Mission Statement, Your Mission, Develop Your Mission Statement, What Do You Want Them to Say? or go to the Halftime website for lots of great resources.
QUESTION: Do you have a mission statement? I’d love to hear it. Share it in the comment section below. Thanks!
So many people think their legacy starts the day they die. I see it another way. Don’t wait to leave a legacy. Start living your legacy now. You can actually live your legacy and love it along the way. Why wait until the end to leave a legacy and miss out on it? One very important way you can live your legacy if you are at a more advanced stage of life, is through grandparenting. Intentional grandparenting. Grand-parenting on purpose.
Several years ago, my wife Linda developed a three-hour class she teaches to young parents in our community. She calls the class, “Parenting on Purpose.” More recently, we developed some new material for grandparents. We love grandparenting!
Dennis holding Noah, Rylee, and Analise holding Haley.
We have four grandchildren: Analise (9), Rylee (5), and twins, Noah and Haley (22 mo.) We think they are the best! Don’t all grandparents think that about their grandchildren? That’s normal. That’s good. That’s the way it should be. But, we also grandparent on purpose. And, that’s not so normal. We find that most don’t even think much about being intentional about their grandparenting. Let me share four purposes that Linda and I have for our grandchildren.
1. To influence our grandchildren in their development of a personal relationship with God. Our goal is that our four little ones will choose to love God with all their heart, soul, mind and strength. We are already seeing that goal realized. I, and her grandpa on the other side of the family, had the privilege of baptizing our nine year old granddaughter a couple years ago. What a joy! She was publically declaring her relationship with Jesus.
We all desire our children/grand children to develop loving, unselfish character traits. The foundation for a healthy “character” is a relationship with Jesus Christ. What we do and say, day-to-day, can shape our grand children’s perspective of God. Tell the stories of God’s faithfulness and the miraculous acts of God in your own life. Point out where you see God currently at work in your life or in the lives of others. Make opportunities to connect them to spiritual truths via church, reading, concerts, etc.
Deuteronomy 6:4-9 is our guide on this first purpose: “Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God, the LORD is one. Love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength. These commandments that I give you today are to be upon your hearts. Impress them on your children. Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up. Tie them as symbols on your hands and bind them on your foreheads. Write them on the door frames of your houses and on your gates.”
2. To reinforce the truth that our grandchildren are God’s treasured and unique creation. Our goal is that our four grandchildren will each discover their unique God-given talents and use them for a life of significance—not just success. We believe they will discover their identity and purpose through a relationship with Christ. Psalm 139:1-18 gives the foundation. Other scriptures like Jeremiah 1:4-5 reinforce this belief. Ephesians 1:11-12 states, “It’s in Christ that we find out who we are and what we are living for. Long before we first heard of Christ and got our hopes up, he had his eye on us, had designs on us for glorious living, part of the overall purpose he is working out in everything and everyone” (The Message).
We always try to speak of, call out, and affirm the gifts and talents we see in our grandchildren. We have prayed intentional blessings out loud over them at various milestone events. We know that when our grandchildren feel valued, they develop healthy self-esteem. Self-esteem is closely tied to a child’s ability to discover his gifting and then grow in it.
3.To leverage our past experiences in teaching life lessons. Our goal is to make sure our grandchildren will see and desire the reality and blessing of making wise choices. We try to tell them our own life stories with honesty, integrity, authenticity and humility. We want our successes and our mistakes to become life lessons so our grandchildren will develop their own stories that hopefully include many more successes than failures.
King Solomon got it right in the Hebrew scriptures: “Start children off on the way they should go, and even when they are old they will not turn from it.” (Proverbs 22:6). That passage isn’t a money-back guarantee. And I’m thinking it is more descriptive than prescriptive. When I was a young parent, that was a sobering scripture. But as a grandparent, it is now gratifying and reassuring. I now get to see the fruit of, not perfect, but excellent parenting, which is leading to another generation of outstanding parenting. The future looks bright!
4.To leverage our current time and resources in creating powerful memories. We are trying to make sure our grandchildren will understand the meaning of life is not found in the “things” we are they have. Our goal is that they know they are more important than any “thing” in life. Therefore, we are extremely intentional to plan memorable activities with them instead of just giving gifts.
Three years ago, my wife and I watched our beautiful grandchildren tearing open Christmas gifts, setting them aside, ripping off the beautiful paper on the next one, setting it aside and repeating the fury until there were no more gifts under the tree. We reflected on that annual tradition and realized those gifts would just be added to a playroom full of other toys and eventually end up in the attic, or at a yard sale, or in the landfill. As an adult, I now can scarcely recall any gift received as a child from my parents or grandparents. But I have heaps of memories of special times, trips and traditions. We made a decision that day. We would be intentional about making memories instead of loading landfills. We would make time for what matters most.
Since that time, we have invested in a weekend together in the oldest city of America – St. Augustine, FL. We toured Castillo De San Marcos, as cannons and muskets were fired in reenactment by men dressed in colonial attire. We hired two horse-drawn carriages and explored the beautifully decorated historic sites of this quaint city. We all ate an evening outdoor dinner together at a nice upscale restaurant near the brightly-decorated, decked-to-the-hilt town square. Memories were made. I doubt if they can remember what gift we gave them, but our grandchildren can still tell you the names of the horses and the drivers from our carriage ride.
Ready for Disney on Ice
And here’s a few more examples: Chartered a boat to go to an island for a lunch; Held sleep-overs at our house; Built a fire-pit in the backyard for hot dog roasts and making smores; Took them one at a time on an out-of-town trip; Spent a week with them at a house overlooking the Pacific Ocean on the Oregon Coast; Dune buggy rides on the Oregon sand dunes; And bought tickets to Disney on Ice and we dressed up as Snow White and the Prince.
Now days, our grandchildren receive very few gifts from us. But instead, we use that money to give them the gift of time and an experience they will not soon forget. We are making time and memories for what matters most.
As a grandparent, are you being purposeful? If not, start now. Live your legacy. Begin with intentionality. Use the four purposes above. And, here are some additional great resources that Linda and I have found helpful.
www.ChristianGrandparenting.net
www.GrandparentingWithAPurpose.com
www.RaisingYourGrandchildren.com
QUESTION: What ideas can you add to help us all be more purposeful grandparents? Share them in the comment section below.
Erma is the “Domino Queen” in an Ohio retirement community. She wins and she wins. Erma’s the undisputed, unsurpassed Domino champion. Hands down. Tiles up. Tiles down. At least, that’s what David, Fred and Bob told me.
L to R: Fred (age 94), Dave (age 85) & Bob (age 100)
Fred, Dave, and Bob couldn’t stop smiling. They laughed. They giggled like school girls. They smiled. Big grins. Ear-to-ear grins. Laughing so hard I thought some teeth might come flying my way. Or at least, someone might need to change their Depends. All of it was over a statement by the century-old jokester of the elderly trio — “She doesn’t’ even smile when she wins.”
Then the threesome got serious. They felt sorry for Erma. They wondered. They lamented. What could be the reason behind a person never smiling? Even when she wins. Doesn’t everyone smile when they win? Between the triad of elderly friends, they conjectured about what kind of painful life experiences Erma might have encountered that would lead her to a smile-less existence. David suggested she might have possibly eked out a slight smile one time in all the years they’ve lived in the retirement center. But Bob argued, “She doesn’t even smile when she wins.”
We’ve been told by those chain emails that it only takes 17 muscles to smile and 43 to frown. That’s debatable. Some naysayers claim it’s quite the opposite. Possibly, it takes more muscles to smile than to frown. The reality is, every smile is different. One person’s smile is another person’s smirk. So, a smile is pretty hard to measure.
Mother Teresa said, We shall never know all the good that a simple smile can do,” Absolutely! True! A smile can fill a depleted soul. A smile can bridge a language barrier. A smile can diffuse road rage. A smile can welcome a stranger to the potential of a friendship. And so much more.
Linda Augsburger Gingerich
Fred’s daughter, my wife Linda, is the best at smiles. She even smiles when she loses. She smiles at strangers in the airport. She smiles at friends. She smiles at her children and grandchildren. She almost always smiles at me.
As a labor and delivery nurse for over 25 years, hundreds of babies have been welcomed to a brand new sphere with her beautiful smile. They are privileged, fortunate and blessed. Whether starting life outside the womb or finishing life in a retirement community, everyone deserves a smile.
Who will you intentionally smile at today? Your smile just might prevent despair, a suicide or World War III. At the least, someone else’s heart will be filled. Someone will be encouraged. Someone will be blessed. Have a smile-filled day!
Question: Do you have any story to share of how a smile blessed you? Share it in the comment section below.
As a used-to-be regular at the same gym for a dozen years or more, I always got amused (and truthfully) even annoyed during the first weeks of each new year. The cross-trainers, stair-steppers and treadmills were occupied. The weight room and the locker rooms were crowded. But I soon learned it wouldn’t last very long.
It’s now the second full week of 2015, and once again, New Year resolutions are fading. It’s the regulars who are still in the gym each week. Most of the newbies aren’t showing up much any more. It’s the time of the year when the resolution to lose the holiday weight gets sandwiched between the binges at half-time of the college football Bowl games and the NFL pre-Super Bowl match-ups. And of course, along with it, the resolutions to change unsavory habits, stop smoking, drink less and all the rest start to drift back to familiar patterns.
On a recent post on Bob Tiede’s insightful “Leading with Questions” blog, guest writer Bobb Biehl shared a few thoughts from his book, “Leading with Confidence.” Both of these wise mentors focus their writings on helping others ask the right questions of themselves and others. For certain, if you aren’t asking the correct questions, you definitely aren’t going to get good answers.
If you are struggling with making and keeping resolutions as you move into the new year, Bobb Biehl suggests asking these three questions:
- If I could do only three things this year, what would they be?
- Of those three things, which should be done first? Next?
- Fifty years from now (or 10 or 20 for more mature readers), when looking back on this time, what will I see as this year’s most significant accomplishments?
I love the wisdom in asking those questions. Serious attention to those three inquiries could revolutionize your productivity and accomplishments in 2015. It might just mean your resolutions become more than short-lived wishes and dreams.
Yet, let me have the audacity to suggest Biehl is missing something important. The three questions revolve around “doing.” Performance. Actions. Activities. Goals. Objectives. Calendars. Steps. Achievement. Accomplishments. All of those are important. Especially to success in life, business and more.
[Tweet “In the big picture, who we’ve become is ultimately more important than what we have done.”]
What if we substituted the word “be” or “become” instead of “do” or “done”? I happen to believe that, in the big picture, who we’ve become is ultimately more important than what we have done. It’s almost always easier to see the skill gaps than it is see the character gaps. Skill issues (doing) are usually easier to fix than character (being) issues. Character gaps are frequently masked and hidden much longer than the shortcomings at the skill or doing level.
So, let me suggest three of the best questions you could be asking yourself before you get too settled into the routines and habits of 2015:
- If I could be only three things this year, what would they be?
- Of those three things, which should I become first? Next?
- Fifty years from now, what will I see as this year’s most significant transformation of my character and being?
If you get solid answers to those three questions written down, placed before you regularly (like on your bathroom mirror) and prayerfully ask God each day to empower change in those three things, the growth and transformation may just impact all of the other “doings” in your life in such a way you will be amazed at what you accomplish in 2015. Have a blessed year! Now it’s time I get back to the gym!
QUESTION: What is one thing you would put on your list to become this year? Share in the comment section.
As a 21 year old, I stood expectantly at the front of a church filled with family and friends, vowing to love my college sweetheart until “death do us part.” Then the reception and away Linda Augsburger and I went on a much anticipated honeymoon. I thought I couldn’t love this woman any more than that night – December 27, 1974.
We just celebrated our 40th wedding anniversary and some have asked me how we survived four decades of marriage. We didn’t survive. Instead, we found a way to thrive. Honestly, I would have never dreamed how much more I love Linda now than I did that night forty years ago.
So, here are five things I’ve learned that lead to a thriving marriage:
Learn to Love with Intentionally – We all tend to look for love in dramatic and epic ways. But usually, love plays itself out in lots of unremarkable ways: putting the toilet seat down, picking up your socks, a tender touch, ignoring a snarky comment, taking out the trash, offering to do the dishes or sharing the last cookie. It’s the little loving decisions we intentionally make every day where love is being forged in our hearts and our marriages are being transformed to become what we long for.
Learn the Language – We all have a love language. Dr. Gary Chapman researched, articulated and popularized the idea a while ago. I read the first version of The Five Love Languages when it was released in 1992. Yet, not until a few months ago, did I realize how negligent I was in speaking my wife’s top love language. Intentionally speaking her number one love language has made such a positive difference. My advice. Learn it sooner. Speak it often.
Learn to Give – Two ways. Generosity. Flexibility. Marriage takes oodles of both. Self-centered living leads to empty love tanks, resentment, bitterness and worse. Survival will be the best outcome. A thriving marriage always includes openhandedness and bighearted attitudes and actions. A flourishing relationship has elasticity, willingness to adjust and adapt to uniquenesses, and yes, even idiosyncrasies.
Learn that Little Things Matter – It’s not the enormous things that impress as much as the diminutive things. When I rented a limo to drive us to our 40th anniversary dinner, Linda was pretty surprised. But what touched her the most were the little things—a card, a rose for each decade, her favorite three-berry wine, and the engraved champagne glasses from our wedding—all waiting for her inside the limo when it pulled up in front of our house. The fact that I even thought about it, and then prearranged and executed the plan, scored gigantic points with her. Listen up guys. A single rose twelve times a year for no particular reason speaks a lot louder than a dozen roses one time a year for an obvious reason.
[Tweet “Love Tip: “A single rose twelve times a year for no particular reason speaks a lot louder than a dozen roses one time a year for an obvious reason.””]
Learn to know the Ultimate Lover – The ultimate lover gave us the ultimate definition of love in this oft-quoted passage, “Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.” (1 Corinthians 13:4-7). It’s impossible to give away what you haven’t received yet. A thriving long-term marriage takes loads of supernatural love. It’s hard to survive four decades in a marriage if you always react at the level the other person gives. God’s incredible grace that “loved us while we were yet sinners” (Romans 5:8) has to be proactive in giving love from a supernatural source, not just human effort. Get to know the Ultimate Lover and you’ll become a much better lover!
[Tweet “Get to know the Ultimate Lover and you’ll become a much better lover!”]
QUESTION: What would be a sixth learning you would add? Share it below. Thanks!
It’s the last day. The final day. The end of another year. 2014 is nearly toast. You might be reflecting on your year too on this New Year’s Eve. Some of you can’t wait to push the reset button. It’s been a challenging year for you. I’ve had those kind of years too. But this time I can say, 2014 was a year of blessings.
I will share a few of those blessings in this final blog post of the year:
This blog is a blessing. I just received a summary from WordPress about my blog statistics during 2014. I’m blessed to see the potential impact I’ve had inspiring transformissional living in others. There have been around 11,000 views. The busiest day of the year was February 14. Interestingly enough, the top five posts for the year were in this order:
1 – Valentine’s Day
3 – The Fear of a Pointless Life
4 – Gratitude Unlocks the Fullness of Life
5 – Sabbatical: Vision Becomes Reality
It’s also interesting to note there were blog visitors from 136 countries. The three top countries were the United States (7,805), United Kingdom (400), and India (340). I am intrigued to see, for example, that I had 308 visitors from Brazil, 154 from Australia, 42 from Russia, 22 from Saudi Arabia and 14 from Turkey. Writing a blog certainly has the potential to leave an impact around the world. And here’s the link if you wish to take a closer look at the details of the report.
Our marriage is a blessing. This week, my wife Linda and I celebrated 40 years of marriage. I’ll write more later about the kind of hard work it takes to grow a healthy marriage that lasts. But, I’m so blessed with a great marriage. For the first time ever in four decades, we spent 130 contiguous days together 24/7 while on our sabbatical. And the miracle is this, we came away loving each other more than ever!
Our sabbatical was a blessing. Linda and I received a fully-funded four-month sabbatical through the Lilly Endowment/National Clergy Renewal Program. Designing it. Planning it. Executing the plan. And experiencing the result of the plan was glorious. We were filled with gratitude each and every day as we lived the four R’s.
Our family is a blessing. Twin grandchildren turning one year old. Our nine year old starting a full-time gifted program in a new school. Our five year old starting Pre-K. As a part of our sabbatical, all of our children, their spouses and grandchildren spent a week with us on the Oregon Coast for legacy week. Even an extremely difficult start to the year with our son’s addiction to a mix of alcohol and over-the-counter cold medicines leading to an all-time low, resulted in a huge blessing. He was introduced to the caring and skilled team at The Shores Recovery and Treatment Center and experienced a lot of grace-filled healing and freedom as a result of his stay there.
Our church family is a blessing. Being away from leadership and ministry at Cape Christian for our sabbatical gave us a much deeper appreciation for what we founded and developed over the last 28 years. Excellent young leaders, people who love and respect us and a strong organizational commitment to transform the city through healing our homes is not to be taken lightly.
2014 was a blessed year. We are so blessed to be living our legacy. I can’t wait to see what 2015 will bring! Happy New Year!
QUESTION: What were some of your blessings this past year? I’d love to hear them in the comment section below. Thanks!
It’s a frenzied time. The holiday season is filled with preparations, parties and programs. Buying, baking, decorating, wrapping, and welcoming guests from afar, we anticipate the arrival of Christmas and Hanukkah but are often relieved when it is over. It’s a frenzied time of the year. So, pause for a moment and ask yourself, “Am I making time for what matters most?”
A few years ago my wife and I watched our beautiful grandchildren tearing open Christmas gifts, setting them aside, ripping off the beautiful paper on the next one, setting it aside and repeating the fury until there were no more gifts under the tree. We reflected on that annual tradition and realized those gifts would just be added to a playroom full of other toys and eventually end up in the attic, or at a yard sale, or in the landfill. As an adult, I now can scarcely recall any gift received as a child from my parents or grandparents. But I have heaps of memories of special times, trips and traditions.
We made a decision that day, some two years ago now. We would be intentional about making memories instead of loading landfills. We would make time for what matters most.
The next year, with the exception of a small gift for the grandkids and a few inexpensive stocking stuffers, we invested in a weekend together in the oldest city of America–St. Augustine, FL. We toured Castillo De San Marcos, as cannons and muskets were fired in reenactment by men dressed in colonial attire. We hired two horse-drawn carriages and explored the beautifully decorated historic sites of this quaint city. We all ate an evening outdoor dinner together at a nice upscale restaurant near the brightly-lighted decked-to-the-hilt town square. Memories were made. I doubt if they can remember what gift we gave them, but our grandchildren can still tell you the names of the horses and the drivers from our carriage ride.
This year, since we were granted a fully-funded sabbatical during the summer which included planning a legacy week at the Oregon Coast with our children and grandchildren, we toned down our holiday celebration just a bit. And due to work schedules, we celebrated ThanksMas weekend at our home. We held a massive sleepover, roasted marsh mellows and made Smores over a newly created backyard fire pit, chartered a boat to Cabbage Key for lunch, took a hike on the island and returned to mainland. We made time for what matters most.
Pause today and reflect. Are you planning your holiday activities to make time for what matters most? For certain, your love for God and people are what really count in the end. Most all of the other stuff that takes our time, talent and treasure will fade, falter and fail. Family and faith matter most.
Here’s my suggestion. Don’t wait to leave a legacy. So many think their legacy starts the day they die. Start living your legacy now. You can actually live your legacy and love it along the way. Why wait until the end to leave a legacy and miss out on it? Why not leverage this holiday season as a time to make memories. Begin a new tradition. Make time for what matters most.
Merry Christmas. Happy Hanukkah. And a blessed memory-making, legacy-living New Year!
QUESTION: What traditions do you have in your family for making memories? I’d love to hear them in the comment section below!
