Showing posts with label lessons learned. Show all posts
Showing posts with label lessons learned. Show all posts

9.11.2012

11 Years Later

I can remember growing up and hearing the older adults in my family talk about remembering all the details of the day when President John F. Kennedy was assassinated.  Many years had passed since that day.  Many new memories had logged a place in their minds.  The events of that day though were still crystal clear.

I always wondered if there would be something that would etch a picture in my mind and last for the rest of my life.  11 years ago today, it happened.  The day, as Alan Jackson sang about, "when the world stopped turning."







I can remember many of the details of that day.  I remember being woke up by a phone call from a friend who asked what I was doing.  I politely told him that I was sleeping because of the late night of work the night before.  I remember turning on the TV to see the second plane hit the World Trade Center towers. I remembered the puzzled and helpless feeling in that moment when I realized that our country had been attacked.

Today, I think about that day and some of the lessons I learned from it.

  • Don't be caught asleep.  I can remember Jesus telling these words to His disciples in the Garden of Gethsemane just moments before He was betrayed.  When we are asleep at the wheel and feel like nothing can happen to us, that's when the bomb is dropped on us.

  • Don't wait to tell your loved ones you love them.  How many on September 11, 2001 had wished that they had simply said those three little words to the ones that meant the most to them.  God gives us each day and we need to make the most of each one He gives us.  Tell your loved ones what they mean to you every chance you get, because when they're gone, you can't.

  • People look to God in times of desperation.  I remember that Sunday, September 16, 2001 was a high attendance day in many churches across the USA.  People flocked to the one place they thought had answers.  When our world comes crashing down around us and everything we think was so stable crumbles, we are faced with the reality that the only sure, stable thing in the universe is the Sovereign God who loves us so.


Take a moment today to remember those who lost loved ones on this day 11 years ago.  Say a prayer for those families.  Never forget the lessons you've learned in life.

11.10.2011

I'm Thankful: Day 3

Day 3: My Children

As I continue to think about the blessings that I am thankful for in my life, I'm drawn to thinking about the 4 children that God has blessed our family with. God continues to use each of them to teach me about my relationship with God. Let me tell you about them...

"Peanut" - "Peanut" was our first child. We were looking to start a family and Peanut came along. When we went to hear the heartbeat, that's when we realized that we had lost Peanut. This little one has taught me that God truly is sovereign. Also, Peanut has taught me to not be afraid of being real with God about my feelings (even when I'm angry with Him).

Andrew - Andrew is our 4-year-old. He is one of the most compassionate people that I know. He has such a tender heart and cannot stand to see people hurt. He is also very loving and affectionate. My wife started a notebook to write down some of what we call "Drewisms". These are some of the sayings that Drew comes up with that are just priceless. We gave our first born the name Andrew Thomas after the two apostles of Jesus. It is our prayer that our Drew would be one who brings people to Jesus (Andrew - John 1:40-42) and one that would not just take people's word for it, but look for evidence (Thomas - John 20:24-25)

Samuel - Samuel is our year and a half old. He is also going to be our strong-willed child. He is so mischievous. He is also a "Daddy's boy". Sure, he wants his mommy when he's sick, but if he doesn't get some time with Daddy on a consistent basis, he gets all out of whack. Sam has taught me dependence upon God. Sometimes it's depending on God for patience to deal with him. Sometimes it's a reminder that if I don't spend time with my Heavenly Father regularly then I won't be right.

Nicolas - Nicolas (Cole) is our baby boy. At the time of this post, he is almost 4 months old. He was our "surprise baby." God showed us that His plans are sometimes not ours with Cole. Though Cole was not "planned" by us, he is such a blessing. He teaches me about how a child's laughter/smiles can warm a father's heart. There have been many times when God has spoken to my heart as I look at Cole smiling at me. God has told me that His heart warms in that way when His children find their joy in Him.

You can see that I'm very blessed with the children God's graciously granted to us.