Tuesday, June 17, 2008

Father's Day

This was a special weekend for me and my son. I had challenged him at the beginning of the school year to memorize the books of the New Testament and if he was able to do that then I'd take him to Splash Lagoon near Erie, PA. In addition to memorizing them he had to learn to spell them which proved to be more of a challenge but he's mastered them and has learned many of the Old Testament books too.

Part of my goal for this trip was that we'd begin to have some official "Father/Son" talks with this one being the inaugural conversation. The topic I chose this time was what has become known to Amie and me as the "Pre-Puberty" talk.

As a part of our weekend I threw in comments about how his body would change as testosterone was released into his system and the impact that would have on his mind as well as his physique. It was fascinating to watch him learn new things and ask questions along the way. He's still very innocent and I didn't shatter that but I did want him to know that our relationship would begin to morph into a more intentional discipleship and mentoring role. I'm looking forward to the years ahead and the chance we'll have to grow together.

In addition to going to the water park we sat together on Presque Isle and watched the sun set over the horizon. As we neared the end of our evening we bowed our heads and prayed for one another and for his mother and sister. It was a special time that I will hold dear forever. He's one of the best gifts God has given me and I love him more than I can express.

As we left to head out for our overnight trip away my daughter cried and begged me to take her too. As hard as it was for me to leave her I know that our time away together will quickly approach and we'll have a bond that is unique to Father/Daughter relationships. I look forward to that season as well.

I wonder how you learned about things like puberty. Who told you? Did your parents talk with you about things like that? Will you talk with your kids about these important matters?

Wednesday, June 4, 2008

10 Years

That's how long we've been at Riverside Community Church! It's hard to believe that at 26 and 23 Amie and I packed up everything we owned to move out to Oakmont, PA so I could be the Associate Pastor. And it's even more amazing that we're still here a decade later.

This past Sunday I was completely surprised when our Student Ministries Pastor (Donnie Marsh) show up at the Mills theater where we hold our services weekly to present me with a certificate for us to go to the Cincinnati ATP Masters Tournament in July. In other words, I'll be going to a professional tennis tournament for the first time in my life! This has been a dream of mine for over 20 years so I'm as excited as I can get!

In addition, an amazing video (fantastic job Chad!) was shown that encompassed my love for Star Wars and had people describing me as an excellent, sweaty, anal, organized leader who has compassion for people. Quite overwhelming to say the least! I'm still processing all that was done and said. And if that weren't enough ...

On Sunday night they surprised me with a party where 65 of my closest friends and family showed up to celebrate with us this milestone in our ministry. Several of those who know me best spoke and shared memories and stories of things we'd been through together. It was hilarious to reflect back on some of the crazy stuff that has gone on.

At one point my parents spoke which was probably the best moment of my life to this point personally. Their love and support have meant more to me than I can possibly express and I'm still trying to digest all they said and the moments we shared together. If you ask me, God broke the mold after He made my parents. They are the best!

This entire experience was led by Bill Ellis and Donnie and Laurie Lesoon. I know they worked tirelessly to make it especially memorable and it certainly will be. Chad Zollo put in countless hours on the video and the Section Leaders (Shawn, Heather, Bob, Joe, Jill & Mark) gave of themselves so generously too. I'll never be able to adequately thank all who participated but I know that my love for them has increased beyond what I thought was possible.

All of this has been incredibly humbling and I'm so blessed by the family and friends God has given me at RCC. Thanks for allowing us to be on the journey with you!

Baptism

This Sunday at RCC I have the privilege of speaking on the subject of Baptism.

I was baptized in a swimming pool at Roaring River State Park in MO when I was about 7 1/2 years old by my father.

When were you baptized? Where? Why did you do it? What did it mean to you?

Two New Parks

Memorial Day weekend was wonderful for our family. I had the chance to take my parents to two parks I'd never been to myself.

On Saturday we went to Keystone State Park out past Murrysville and saw an Osprey plunge into the lake to catch a fish. That was so cool. The kids had the chance to play in the "beach" for just a few minutes and thoroughly enjoyed it. I left questioning our use of the word "beach" here in PA. I think we use that term pretty loosely. Do you?

On Monday we went to Moraine State Park and saw all kinds of birds and waterfowl. That place is huge and we were all amazed at how big parks are here in PA when compared with the parks in MO where we are from. Simply put - we didn't have real parks there.

What did you do for the holiday weekend?

French Open

Have you been watching it? Can you believe that Maria Sharapova and the Williams sisters are out? Wow! What a shocker?! I have been recording it all and watching as much as I can among all the other things going on in life.

The league I'm in (East Hills Summer Tennis League) has begun and we've played one doubles match. So far we're 0-1. I'd say we were a bit rusty and looking to knock some of that rust off in the weeks to come. Right now it's pouring down rain and is supposed to for the next few days. Hopefully it will end soon so we can get back out there and get going!

Allowance

Wow ... so much has been happening since my last post so I'm going to write about a few different things today.

Last week we began giving our son an allowance based on reading. He has the chance to earn up to $5 each week if he reads for 30 minutes Monday through Friday. Let me explain how this works: he earns $1 each day if he reads a book of our choosing for 1/2 hour. This does not apply to Saturday or Sunday and if he misses a day he can't make it up the next. If he reads more than 30 minutes he doesn't earn anything extra - it's just a bonus for his own personal edification.

Each week he is required to perform basic household chores like taking out the trash, picking up his room, making his bed and other cleaning chores. But we have decided that those are part of being a member of our household and they are expected so he doesn't get paid for those tasks.

I came across this idea several years ago when I read John Maxwell's book, "Breakthrough Parenting." In it he described how his parents took this approach to the allowance and how it had produced three adults who LOVED to read. I thought it was brilliant at the time and have been waiting for our kids to be old enough to read and responsible enough to begin teaching them wise money management.

Each week he is paid on Friday and we are teaching him to tithe 10% and save 10%. In the two weeks we've done this he's really beginning to develop a habit and looks forward to reading. It's been wonderful to watch this switch get flipped in his life.

I'm curious, did your parents give you financial counsel as you were growing up? I'm so glad mine did and am prayerfully passing it on to the next generation.