Dear Daughter (Father's Day 2021)

Dear Daughter, 

First, know that I love you beyond my words. I pray this is obvious by my actions, our late-night talks, and each early morning breakfast together. I pray you’re reminded of this each time I hold you tight and carry you to your bed at night. I pray each silly song we sing, and each note we play on our out-of-tune piano brings us closer together. 

I hope you hear my prayers and know I’m praying for you, your mother, our family, our church, our community, our country, and our world. Our prayers, including yours, are powerful. I hope I can be a teacher to show you the word of God, and explain how it changed my life, so you know how it can affect your life and the lives of those you influence. 

I hope I can shield you from some of life’s hurts, but when I can’t, I pray to always have the strength to hold you close and hold you tight when the pain becomes more than you can bear alone. 

I know you're strong. I know you're independent and I know you have your own path to forge in this life. I pray the road you take is full of both ups and downs, strength and weakness because without the lows you won’t fully appreciate the highs. I pray each time you fall, you rise up, rise above, and keep moving forward. You’re an amazing young lady. 

Second, I pray you know I’m not perfect. I fall, and I fail. I hope you see beyond each tired outburst, each time I’ve said “no,” without reason, and each time I’ve not been the dad I could have been. It’s not you, it’s me, and know that I’m trying each day to be a better dad than I was the day before. 

With much love, 

Dad

God See’s the Sparrow

They say he watches the sparrow, so maybe a sparrow never feels inadequate. Maybe the sparrow never feels defeated, as life consistently lands blow after blow leaving them bruised and hurt. As they soar high above, do they ever feel lost or do they have some kind of internal compass that keeps them from going in circles?

What is it about the Sparrow God sees?

There are days when we wake up ready to take on the day. We'll fight, we'll push, do whatever it takes to move forward, but when evening comes, we're exhausted. When we check our progress, we realize we've only moved inches, not yards, or feet, not miles. We're still in basically the same place.

What if we're doing it wrong?

We're trying to fight our battles alone. We're trying to swing our own punches when God is asking us to turn the other cheek. We're pushing forward so focused on the path we've set before our feet, We don’t see the door God already opened next to us.

Somehow, we've closed our eyes and our hearts to the scripture that says, “Seek Ye first the kingdom of God [Matt 6:33].” The goal shouldn’t be to press forward through the day, but instead to be like David. We should be still and know with confidence that He is God [Psalms 46:10]. We need to remember, if God doesn’t forget the sparrow [Luke 12:6], then he hasn't forgotten us. His word says he’s even numbered the hairs on our head [Luke 12:7].

Let’s press toward the mark for the high calling of God, but while doing so, let’s watch for the open door [Rev. 3:8] having enough courage to run through it [Joshua 1:9].

A sparrow may have an internal compass, they may not, but we need to let God be ours and trust he will direct our paths [Proverbs 3:6].

God knows exactly what he's doing.

Never Underestimate the Power of Twenty-Five Cents

To a Church Elder,

For you, it was a quarter, but to an eight-year-old child from the trailer park, you gave me an opportunity. One, I couldn't have otherwise afforded.

The offering plate passed me each week. Others dropped in change or a few dollars while I watched with empty pockets wishing I had something...anything to offer. I didn't. Until, one day, you slipped that first quarter into my small hand.

That morning, I remember counting stained-glass window panes from my usual groove in the second pew. Then, before the music started you brought me over a small coin and I knew in the instant I saw it what I'd do with it. Judging by your smile, you must have known as well.

Over the years you brought me multiple quarters, but it wasn't a quarter that made the biggest impact on my life. It was the opportunity it afforded me when I finally had something I could put in the offering plate.

It started with me giving those quarters, but a desire to do more began to cultivate itself. I gave more and more time to reading my Bible and studying the word. I fell in love with it. Around age twelve, I became a Jr. Bus captain to help other "bus kids" get to church, but I believed God had even bigger plans for my life.

Years have come and gone, but the desire to give remained. I've come a long ways from where I had been in that rickety old wooden pew on the second row. Now, in a new church, in a new state, at age thirty-five, somehow I've become a Children's Pastor. I still get the opportunity to ride along with my wife as a Jr. bus captain, a big kid doing all I can to get other "bus kids" to church. Each day, not just on Sunday, I'm given an opportunity to reach and teach future generations. They will become the church's next leaders, teachers, preachers, and Pastors, or whatever God has planned for them.

These opportunities to give started, with a quarter. I'll never underestimate what can be done with a seemingly small gesture of kindness.

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Now let me ask you, what small impact can you do to reach the next generation? Can you show a child how to worship? What about prayer? Don't stop at praying for them, I'm asking you to ask yourself, can you pray with them?

Maybe all you can do to bridge the generational gap is offer a small coin. Do it. God has a way of multiplying our offering in ways we may never know or expect, but it can't happen if we don't first give. Small sparks can start wildfires and you might have that spark in your pocket right now.

Luk 6:38 KJV

Give, and it shall be given unto you; good measure, pressed down, and shaken together, and running over, shall men give into your bosom. For with the same measure that ye mete withal it shall be measured to you again.