Top nine of oh nine (that i can remember)

1. Polar Plunge
Who doesn’t want to start the new year by jumping into Lake Michigan amid snow, 20mph winds, floating ice, and lake ice bergs.

2. 10 year anniversary in Lake Geneva
Vicky and I celebrated 10 years of marriage on June 5, 2009 with a small vacation in Lake Geneva. We enjoyed finding turtles, eating pizza, and big jacuzzi tubs.

3. 2009 Leadership summit
Wow. This was a great opportunity to spend time with our team from Veritas and hear some excellent teachings. The standouts were Wes Stafford, President of Compassion international, sharing his story of God using his pain to end suffering for children around the world. Also Tim Keller’s teaching on the story of the Prodigal Son was epic and life changing.

4. Berkley Community Church 90th
The church my Great Grandfather started in 1919 celebrated its 90th anniversary. I wasn’t able to attend any of the festivities but for me this was of the greatest highlights of the past year. I will do everything in my power to be there for the 100th anniversary. I can’t believe Caleb will be 12, ugh. I’ll be 41 UGH.

5. BVNA leadership Conference
This was a leadership conference hosted by the Bay View Neighborhood Association. It had good content and God used this event to speak to me about the future of Veritas more than any other thing this year. Main take away-Use your strengths to address your weaknesses. This changed the game for our church.

6. Caleb being potty trained
Four days of the Wilson Family Potty Training Boot Camp and he mostly got it. He is doing well with the process. I am so incredibly proud of my boy. He taught me so much in four days of us forcing a new behavior on him. He adapted well with much suffering but he got through it and is better on the other end. I have so much to learn from him.

7. Chill on the Hill family night
I was so proud of our people on this night. We had frogs, elephants and an incredible Ark all built and dreamt up by our people. LOVED IT


8. Veritas first baptisms
EPIC. It was such a joy to do our first baptisms as a church on July 26th at South Shore Park. We will always do them outside. I loved it. The stories of lives redeemed never gets old.

9. I got a hobby
I finally got a hobby. I spent much time down on the shores of Lake Michigan this year. While I was there I started collecting Sea Glass. This is glass that has been tumbled and worn down by the waves and rocks of the lake. Its fun but it makes it on the list because of what God has taught me through this hobby. Every time I needed to hear from God this year he spoke through this medium. Also it helped with making some cheap Christmas presents.

Honorable Mention
Seeing Matisyahu, No Doubt, and Paramore in one night at Summerfest for $8.

Christmas, placentas, and evergreens.

I am into Christmas more than I have been in years. I usually don’t get into it. If I had my way I wouldn’t put up a tree, stockings, or lights. Well, maybe a few lights but thats it. I would still watch Elf just because its hilarious. I haven’t gotten into the whole Christmas buzz in a while. For the past couple years there has been some big things going on in life through the holidays. So the stress has kinda outweighed the joy.

This year though I am finding myself in awe of it all. I’m looking at this story of Jesus and his birth and just laughing. I am choosing to be more conscious about the story I’m listening to.

I was asked to teach about a movement called the Advent Conspiracy. It is a movement within the Church to not spend as much during the holidays but then to give more away and worship God more throughout the season. The main thing I came away from that teaching with was to be conscious of what story I’m listening to this season.

There is one story that is told to us by the marketers, other consumers, and massive corporations. This is the story being told to us that says that the house has to be decorated, cards need to get out, presents need to be bought, that we need to be busy and get caught up in the buzz that surrounds the season.

There is another story. This story is not glamorous. This story is about God becoming human. This is an excerpt from the teaching I did about the Advent Conspiracy: “The first breathe that filled Jesus’ lungs was filled with the particulate of manure and straw. He was born in a place that most moms today would make sure to bathe their kids in Purell after leaving. Through the contractions, screams, breathing, and pushing of young girl named Mary Jesus entered into this world in a way that showed a solidarity to the poor and the left out. The first announcement of the messiah, the person that would be the culmination of all that the bible was and is, was told to Shepherds. I know you have heard this before.

God entered this world just like you and I. His entrance involved screaming, pushing, blood, amniotic fluid, and placentas falling to the floor. The cord that he drew the foundations of his human existence from had to be cut. It was gritty, real, and messy. No one puts that scene on a Christmas card. It looked nothing like the nativity scene that was on my grandparents mantle with the slightly chipped orange lightbulb sticking through the back wall of the stable.

Then the first record we have of visitors to this scene are shepherds. Really God? You send the culmination of your plan for the redemption of humanity and you tell shepherds? You couldn’t come up with a better plan? Shepherds? I know when we had our child some of the last people I would choose to be around my newborn would be grimy, dirty, smelly strangers. Imagine this group of very rough around the edge guys who smell like they have been sitting in a field around a fire hanging out with animals (because they had been) knocking on your door, without warning, as your wife is nursing your newborn son. They say that angels told them to come here and see your kid. Then because angles talking to people about this kid seems normal at this point you let them in.

Christmas isn’t about what the marketers tell us it is about. Jesus was crammed into the middle of a bunch of pagan festivals and traditions surrounding the winter solstice. The Jesus story does not have anything to do with what Christmas is about because it never was until someone from the church crammed him into the middle of mistletoe, evergreens, and presents. The birth of the messiah. The birth of the culmination of everything the story of God is about has nothing to do with evergreens with lights and tinsel. It has to do with God coming for the not so good. God intimately involving the grimy, dirty, and smelly into his story. It is about God breathing my air so I could one day breathe his. It is the opening sequence of the last installment of the trilogy. Its the beginning of our story. Its about God becoming man so we could be his children.

Teachers, asses, and tour guides.

Just heard Chuck Swindol on the Catalyst Podcast say, "The word of God is alive, active, and sharp, not what I have to say."

For some reason God has given me the gift of teaching. I sometimes wonder what God was thinking for giving this passion and skill to me. But the more I read the Bible the less sense I can make of God. So I guess its just par for the course.

I am a teacher of the word of God. Anything anyone ever gets out of what I teach has nothing to do with me. I just get to be a guide to the most amazing amusement park, most interesting museum, or attraction you have ever been to. I just get to highlight the things that maybe you miss when you just walk through it alone not knowing what you’re looking at. I don’t always do what I teach. I sin. I fall short. I don’t teach what I have mastered. I teach what is there. Some would say I’m a hypocrite. I might be. I might not be. What I do know is that I’m forgiven. I know that its only by the grace of God that is given to me through his blood that stained the dirt around the cross that I can do any good with my life. I am in awe of the grace of God.

Rich Mullins once said, “God chose to speak through Balaam’s ass and he has been speaking through asses ever since. So if God so chooses to speak through you, you shouldn’t think too highly of yourself. And, if upon meeting someone, right away you recognize what they are, listen to them anyway, because God chose to speak through Balaam’s ass and he has speaking through asses ever since.”

I am just an ass God has chosen to speak through. If you ever think you are changed by anything that you hear me say. You weren’t changed by what I had to say you were changed by Jesus. I’m just a dumb ass Jesus chose to give a voice to.

Weddings, Marriages, and Roses

I have caught Vicky watching some show on We network where this guy helps brides plan their wedding. I either change the channel to football or sit there and watch it with her cause she wants to watch it.

This guy takes what they have already done, which most of the time is hideous, and creates this lavish experience out of it. They have party favors, decorations, the dress and maybe a location. Most of the time this guy takes what they have done and takes the essence of it and then trashes the rest. He helps them pick out a dress that is perfect for the particular bride. He helps them pick bridesmaid dresses, plan the ceremony, and plan the reception. It turns into these lavishly incredible weddings.

We were watching one last night where the bride originally had a couple roses on each table. The planner plastered the reception room with roses. They were everywhere. I think they had over 30 varieties and dozens upon dozens upon dozens of roses flown in from Columbia to New York. They spent more on flowers for the reception than we did on our entire wedding.

It is not uncommon these days to have a wedding that costs in the tens of thousands of dollars. There are months of planning, massive amounts of debt that is accumulated, dozens of people working toward one goal of making a one day event to celebrate a wedding.

I think its interesting that we are willing to put months into planning, thousands of dollars of investment, and coordination of dozens of people to make one day happen. What would happen if when the marriage gets rocky we put that kind of energy, effort, and money into saving a marriage. I know someone who I know spent a significant amount of money, time and planning into a beautiful wedding day. Less than a year later they are getting divorced. I know for myself when in my own marriage we have faced hard times the level of effort I was willing to put in looked nothing like the effort put into making those wedding days happen on that show.

Maybe by some standards I can seem like a good husband. Most of the time though I am selfish, show love the way I want to receive it instead of the way I know will speak to Vicky, I watch too much sports, I am on the computer too much and countless other things that I do that don’t move our marriage forward.

I am trying to turn over that leaf. I am trying to do better. I am trying to love, honor, and cherish more. Am I even doing a good job at that? I don’t know. It would be better to ask Vicky. At this point if she said yes it would probably to just protect me in your eyes. I want to be able to have her bring it up without people even asking. I want her to brag on me with random people. I want to give her a husband that she is proud to be with. I want a marriage where we both make each other better.

I think if people put a quarter of the energy, effort, work and resources into their marriage as that guy puts into those weddings on TV the divorce rate in this country would be negligible.

Let us be a people that care more about the marriage than the wedding.

Off The Menu

So I frequent Stone Creek Coffee in Bay View. To say I frequent it might be an understatement. One of the baristas the other day was telling another customer that I am more like a plant at Stone Creek than a customer. I am a fixture.

Now Stone Creek like many other coffee establishments offer the punch card. I can carry a card around with me and when I buy a coffee they will use their special punch on my card. One coffee one punch. Well sometimes its more than one punch but we won’t go into that.

So after you purchase ten coffee drinks you have earned the free one. I used to get lattes so this would require me to spend about $40 to get a free one. Now I drink straight coffee. So now it only requires approximately $20 to get my free drink. Much better stewardship of resources.

In my opinion when you have earned the mystical free drink you can’t just waste that on a regular coffee. Sometimes I save it for a special occasion. Sometimes I will just use it instead of buying my normal drink. But the important thing is to wait. You have to wait till the right barista is behind the counter (you can’t have some newbie make your free drink) and you have to wait till there isn’t a line. You see when I have the free drink I always order off the menu.

There is a pastor down in Dallas that I heard talk about going to a restaurant and ordering the “Feed me.” The feed me you see is when you let the waiter know of any food allergies you have and then you put the meal into the hands of the chef. You let him create whatever he wants to serve you. I shared this concept one night in a bar with one of the owners and cooks at Comet Cafe and Honeypie restaurant. He was like “Oh ya I would totally do that.” He said “if you come in during the rush on a Friday night you will get a fish fry and just pay more than everybody else. But if you come in at an off time I would cook you up something incredible.”

This is the concept I use with my free drink. These baristas have to sit there all day making the stuff on the menu. Then someone comes along and says create. I don’t want anything on the menu. My only personal stipulation is no chocolate. I don’t like mochas. I have had the cream city liam which was made by Liam and was a blended creamy ice drink with espresso grounds and some combination of chocolate and vanilla syrups. I know I said I don’t like mochas but this was cold it worked. I have also had a vanilla honey latte. I am told of a latte creation that tastes like a cinnamon roll that I haven’t tried yet. The most recent off the menu creation was a cherry hazelnut latte. As my son would say, “so good so licious.”

Its is almost worth it to buy the ten drinks so that its free and there are no constraints on how to figure out how to charge you for this kind of drink. They don’t have to figure out how much each shot or squirt of syrup should cost. They just make a drink they think would be awesome. To remove these constraints is a delightful experience and usually results in a fabulous sensory overload for my tongue and brain to enjoy.

So I dare you. If you earn your elusive freebie or you go to one of your favorite small restaurants order off the menu and see what ensues.

Glass by God

I have taken up a new hobby. It actually came from a combination of a travel channel episode I watched a long time ago and recent walks on the beach thinking about church and life. The beach near our house is quite rocky in places. So as I was walking along I would take a look at the rocks every now and then. I would pick out some interesting ones every now and then. Then one day I found a small piece of glass. This brought my mind back to the old travel channel show about Sea Glass.

Sea Glass is glass that has been worn down by water and tumbling across rocks till it has been smoothed so it resembles a small rock. So a lot has been going on with church and life lately and I find that I can gather my thoughts and listen best near the water. So I have been down by the water a lot lately. I have been honing my sea glass skills and have been learning a lot from my walks on the beach and my gathering of sea glass. So these are some of the lessons I have learned.

-You have to be attentive to what God is doing around you. There are a lot of rocks on the beach not much sea glass. You have to pay attention. You have to look for it.

-The more you look for it the more you see. God is working all around us. Sometimes we just walk by and don’t see it. Although if you’re looking for it you will see it. The more you sea glass you find the more your eye gets trained to notice the distinct colors and textures in sea glass. We can train our senses to see God in places we couldn’t see him before.

-God is not done with us. There is a line between broken glass on the beach and sea glass. The line can sometimes be hazy. I have found the more pieces I discover the more I am throwing ones back. If it isn’t totally smooth I am throwing them back now. There are some exceptions if there is something unique about a piece but I didn’t used to do that. I kept ones with some hard edges still on them. I have since gone through my collection and taken some back to the beach and threw them back. God isn’t done with us. Until we are a tiny smooth little piece of glass he isn’t done with us yet. So many times we think we have arrived at some plateau. And we have. We got to the beach so we could take a look at ourselves and get thrown back in to be worked on and be smoothed out some more.

-You can be selective. I think when we started Veritas we were looking for good people and didn’t care as much about other things. I am finding that it is ok to let good people go. They might not jive with who we are or it may not be the right place for them at this time in their life. Thats ok. I hope they find a good church somewhere else. I can let good things go now. I am passing over good pieces or throwing great ones back because they aren’t quite smoothed out yet. I can do that with life too.

God has met me so many times over that past couple months out walking and finding this stuff. I know there are many more lessons to be learned. I am looking forward to it.

One percenters

I was reading Seth Godin’s blog the other day. He shares a statistic: of the 13 million songs for sale online last year, 10 million never got a single buyer and 80 percent of all revenue came from about 52,000 songs. That’s less than one percent of the songs. I found this idea very interesting.

Of course I started to think about church. There are the one percent churches out there like Northpoint, Willowcreek, Elevation, Mosaic, Mars Hill (both of them) and some others. Their leadership does the conference circuit and they write the books and articles. Now don’t get me wrong I admire most of these places and what they are doing in the kingdom. But…. They are the one percent churches. They are the stuff that gets played on the radio all the time. Doesn’t make what they do bad. There is good music on the radio.

What I wonder about is how many great musicians are in the 3 million other songs that were purchased. They just don’t have the right look or they live in a town of 100 people so they don’t get the exposure someone else does. How many beautiful expressions of the kingdom of God in a local context are there that we never hear about?

I have another observation I think is odd when I think about this music and church relationship. Most churches are looking to that one percent of churches and trying to be like them. Now I know there are some bands that try to be like or cover popular bands. Don’t we all just kinda feel sorry for them though? I have much higher respect for a local musician that is doing their own stuff. Yes, maybe they cover a song here or there to pull the audience in but mostly they play stuff they have written. Why don’t churches do this? I feel like churches are trying to be like the next big thing. In the 90’s everybody was trying to be Willow Creek or Saddleback. Why? Sure they are in the one percent and we can respect them and listen to them. But why not work on our own stuff? Why do we listen to what the spirit is telling Rick or Bill over what he is saying to us? I think it is easier to listen to what God is telling other people instead of hearing what God is telling you.

What is God telling you to write and sing?