5 Kids in the Car: 3 Days Till Disney: Okay, so after many many requests and despite the fact that Rachael won't have one single National Park to tell you all about, it is ti...
Friday, August 30, 2013
I've Got Your Back
FOOTBALL! It’s a game of inches! A Hundred Yard War! And yes, I am a serious football fanatic. As in, I count down the days to the supplemental draft fanatic.
What I love most about football is that every man on that field knows instinctively that the man next to him has his back. He has to know this. If he does not have that confidence, he can’t do his job. He can’t take on his assignment without knowing that whatever happens when the ball is snapped, his teammate has his back and will do whatever it takes for them both to succeed. The best QB is absolutely useless without the left tackle having his back play after play after play.
Without this mindset, nothing else matters. The entire game hangs on this simple fact.
I love this. My wife and I plan to hit every NFL stadium in the near future, and our next stop is the season opener in Jacksonville. I don’t even care about Jacksonville. I just love football.
I do serious statistical research for my fantasy teams, and never miss an opportunity to share tales of my glory days as a backup kicker in high school. I’ll never forget that legendary 2-point conversation PAT fake that I sold ever so well. They totally thought I was kicking it. Totally! Fooled them Every. Single. Time. It was so convincing that we almost even scored points from it.
But I digress…
Being the fanatic I am, I am thrilled that my son has the same affinity for the game. If there is a football game on television, any game, he is watching it through the waning seconds. He understands the subtle nuances of most defensive schemes, and is among the most dominant defensive players in his league. They call him “Seek and Destroy”.
Did I mention he is seven?
Of course, here in Texas, by the time you are seven you are expected to be a seasoned veteran with significant experience under your belt, battle scars and helmet stickers to show for it.
Seriously.
But the truth of the matter is that when he takes the field with his fellow gridiron warriors, what really lies behind that facemask is not Brian Uralcher or J.J. Watt, but a little boy. My little boy.
While dads like me dream of full-ride scholarships and Hall of Fame acceptance speeches, he is just hoping to get McDonalds for lunch because the new Happy Meal toy is cool.
Or maybe he is thinking about digging into the sandbox, coloring a picture, molding some Play-Do into the carpet, or going to the playground to ride the merry-go-round. And of course, he wants me to take him. Because I’m his dad.
And if I can devote hours and hours to football practice, I should certainly be able to find some time for those things.
He deserves that.
So I will cheer him on faithfully over the next few months, win or lose, starting hero or lonely benchwarmer, and will make an effort not to moan and groan about him wanting to play checkers when we get home from practice.
My son loves football as much as I do. But in the big scheme of things, all that matters to him, all that ever has mattered and all that ever will matter, is knowing that I have his back.
Sunday, August 25, 2013
No More Back to School
Tomorrow is a true turning point for me. 
A few months ago I left school for the summer. For the last twelve years I have looked forward to the summer as a time to recharge and refresh before heading back for another year of teaching. But this June was different. This June I packed up my classroom and traded in my teaching profession for a ministry profession. Which is not a real shock to those who know me. I've always hovered between two worlds that way...
I met some very talented and generous people as a teacher, and like them I cherished those ever-so-wonderful "A-HA!" moments.
So tomorrow will be the first time in an awful long time that will not find me Back-to-School.
But my time in the classroom, and time with the many people who crossed my path as a teacher has shaped who I am and what motivates me.
Every day I had the privilege of spending time and investing in students and their families. I talked kids through tough choices, tough situations, and tough writing assignments.
I met some great parents who supported our school and their children. And I met some parents who thought I was doing a horrible job and didn't mind telling me so. :-)
I coached a small soccer team through some tough losses and some great wins.
I moved from being a novice to being a mentor.
I became friends with teachers who consistently put others before themselves, and worked tirelessly to motivate, encourage, and offer a smile.
I met people who had the smarts to do just about anything they wanted in life, but chose to be in the classroom, because deep down they really believe in the difference they are making.
Sure, lots of people can teach reading, writing and arithmetic. But not everyone can teach children.
I can also recite an awful lot of Shakespeare. Because as an English teacher I read it all. day. long. It can be fun at parties.
________________
My first full-time teaching gig was at an alternative school as a permanent sub. I got to hang out in the library, hang out with the students, and learn how to teach from the best in the business.
These students, whom others had given up on, proved to be more than capable given the right motivation and the right environment. They went on to teach us all a lesson by voting our school custodian as their graduation speaker, and it made the national news.
Why? Because he is a good man and a positive role model, who exemplifies hard work and lives what he talks.
In retrospect, I'm sure I learned more than I taught at Fern Ridge. Teaching is often like that.
From there I taught English in several schools in Missouri and Texas. So there will always be a place inside of me that is a Winfield Warrior, a Windsor Owl, a Klein Collins Tiger, and a Morton Ranch Maverick. I have a closet full of outdated spirit shirts, and it seems that just about everywhere I go I run into a former student, and I enjoy hearing the "what are you up to now?" stories.
I guess my point is this. We may not always agree with every policy decision the school makes, or every decision that is made in the classroom. But I can say without reservation that the teachers I know choose to spend their life teaching because they want to. "Bad" teachers are the rare exception, not the norm. The teachers I know teach because they want to make the world a better, wiser, more meaningful place; one class period at a time.
And that's exactly what they do.
Teachers - thanks for what you do. You rock. We are praying for you, and we've got your back. Get some rest and have a great tomorrow.
Tuesday, August 20, 2013
Unqualified: The Story of Amos
When we are seeking God in the Scriptures, we often instinctively turn to the Gospels or to the Psalms. But much wisdom can be found in a section few of us rarely turn to called the “minor prophets”.Really? who would want to be called a “minor prophet”?
It sounds rather derogatory.
I mean, would you rather play in the Major Leagues or the Minors?
The truth is that these prophets are called “minor” merely because they wrote smaller amounts of material than say, Isaiah or Jeremiah, and it has nothing to do with being less important than the others.
Among these “minors” is the book of Amos. But in spite of being “minor”, he has a very significant message. In fact, the book of Amos was even a favorite of Martin Luther King, “But let judgment run down as waters, and righteousness as a mighty stream” (5:24).
Amos was unique among the prophets, and he is a guy I think many of us can relate to. To start with, he was admittedly not your standard prophet material.
“I was not a prophet, nor am I the son of a prophet; for I am a herdsman and a grower of sycamore figs. Then the Lord took me as I followed the flock, and the Lord said to me, ‘Go, prophesy to My people Israel.’” (Amos 7:14-15)
Like Shakespeare wrote, “Some are born great….and some have greatness thrust upon ‘em”.
But clearly his heart and mind were ready. He was out in the field working his job, God called him elsewhere, and he went about fulfilling the call.
He had no seminary training, no ministry experience, no public speaking seminars, no qualifications, no expert references, no previous prophet work, no famous prophets in his family.
What he did have was the call of God. And it turns out that’s all he needed.
The name Amos means “burden-bearer”, and Amos indeed carried a heavy burden. He was called from his native sheep-herding lifestyle into the nation of Israel, where he pronounced very unpopular prophecies of judgment to the King and leaders.
He knew he was called of God, but they saw him as...well...unqualified.
He pointed out their oppression of the poor (5:11-13), dishonesty in business (8:4-6), selfish indulgence (6:4-7), and their idolatrous worship (5:21-27).
Not sunshine and roses kind of stuff.
Keep in mind that things in Israel were good! Very good! Israel at the time was a very prosperous nation, and archaeological evidence proves that the reign of Jeroboam was the most prosperous the nation had known. and few were interested in hearing such a “doom and gloom” message in good times. Especially from an out-of-town guy who just came off the farm.
Amos was an average guy chosen by God to leave what he knew, to walk out in the public and speak a very unpopular message.
Although Amos ends his prophecy with a hopeful vision of the future, he is the first prophet to predict the captivity of Israel and God’s punishment upon His chosen people (4:4, 5:21-24). We know historically that this prophecy came to pass years later.
He even went so far as to accurately predict the end of the King's royal lineage.
His prophecies contained pretty bad scenarios regarding their behavior and apathy, and they were all based in the truth of God. Yet the priests and the leaders, instead of listening and repenting, chose to complain about him and simply wanted him gone (7:10-11).
Why?
Because they were qualified, and he was not.
Sunday, August 11, 2013
Unqualified: the Stories of God's Chosen.
For being omnipotent and all, God seems to make some pretty big mistakes when it comes to choosing the right person for the job.
Then again, maybe He is just really, really that good.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
Posts
