Little Foxes

This week, I preached the second sermon of the Song of Solomon series. Part of that sermon was giving a list of the "little foxes" that couples should be looking out for. Here's the list:

• Insecurity
• Addictions
• Anger
• Inability to manage money
• Sexual past
• Sexual abuse
• Depression or other mental issues
• Communication
• Conflict (Cowboys or Eskimos)
• Conflict within families
• Faith

These are also issues to be aware of in general. Looking back at the sermon, I think I would have added this one caveat - whether you end up getting married or not you want to be cooperating with God's Spirit as He moves in you to transform these and other areas. All humans have little foxes that eat away at the root systems of our lives and need to be paid attention to. You don't want singleness or youthfulness to be an excuse to let things go until you get older and decide to deal later. The longer these issues are around, the more they sink their roots into our lives.

Not all Heroes Wear Capes - Bryan Hall

I was in the Apple Store this week with my 13 year old son having his Ipod serviced. We were being waited on by a very helpful technician at the Genius Bar when I notice a message on one of the genius's shirts. It said "not all heroes wear capes". It got me thinking - "You know what? They're right!"

I've had a lot of heroes in my life so I thought that periodically I'd share about some of them. The first one that came to mind for some reason was Bryan Hall. Bryan was the youth minister at Woodlawn Baptist Church in Austin, TX when I was just starting out on my own journey in the church world. He's still there after serving over 20 years. Bryan isn't your typical youth dude. I noticed that most of the guys doing youth ministry were trying to be really cool so they could impress the kids which they thought would then lead to the kids wanting to listen to what they had to say.

Not Bryan. He is just comfortable being himself. For example, his main source of humor is punnery. This guy can make a pun out of anything and once on a roll he just can't be stopped. While the jokes are corny beyond compare, they stand as a symbol of his unique personality that God has shaped and used to bless a whole lot people in his church and beyond.

He has much more to offer than puns. He also has a really unique gift of administration. He can juggle a million and one details and make it look like he is having fun - I'm fairly certain it is because he is. While served as a youth minister at a church in Austin, he directed our yearly summer camp of 500 kids/chaperones and our yearly Mania Marathon event which was a New Years Celebration for teens that was attended by 2000 plus people and a yearly retreat for youth workers. All of this on top of his other duties at his local church.

While all of this admin looks like leaping tall buildings in a single bound - the most impressive part of his ministry is his relationships with his youth. He and I were assigned a Jr. High Boys cabin one year at camp. It was late at night. I had about had it with my little band of testostrone driven teeny boppers. They had finally gotten showered and in bed and I was settling in to my squeeky bunk for a moment to myself. As I lie there, I catch Bryan out of the corner of my eye.

He's working his way around the room to have an end of the day chat with every one of his junior high boys. With some, he had a laugh. With others, he had a serious conversation. With others, he said a quick prayer for whatever it was that was a pressing need. This man who had somehow got his sizable youth group through a day at camp, directed the whole camp, was now tending to God's flock that was under his care.

I don't think I said anything to Bryan that week but that moment sticks in my mind as a model for what ministry looks like. It's one life at a time. It's personal. It's delivered according to the needs of the person with whom you are working. It's done with a sacrificial love that can only come from Jesus.

Thanks Bryan - You're my hero.

Watchful and Thankful - On a Monday?

Yesterday's sermon was on the nuts and bolts of prayer and came from Colossians chapter 4 verses 2-4. It was a reminder that we are called to devote ourselves to prayer (be consistent and intentional) and that we should be both "watchful" (looking forward for God's agenda instead of our own) and "thankful" (looking backward and remembering what He's done so far).

So here I am on a Monday morning. I'm not bantering from the basement because all three of my kids are down there and I'm in the living room trying to get some work done. My wife is out of town and so I'm on kid and pastor duty. I can hear the crying and fighting as I type knowing it's building up to a nuclear melt down that will need to be dealt with in the next few minutes.

Just a minute I hear them coming up the stairs now . . .

I suspect many of you are having a similar kind of Monday. Maybe it's kids that fight or finances that don't add up or morning sickness or who knows what. This is why we're told to "devote" ourselves to this prayer thing. It's when we feel the least like doing it that we need to do it. So from the bowels of a Monday morning, which is probably a better place to try this truth on for size than the Sunday morning hoopla, hear the sermon again. "Devote yourselves to prayer being watchful and thankful" and have a great Monday!