We provide leverage!

Did you ever watch the TV show, Leverage?  This drama series aired on TNT from 2008-2012.  It followed a five-person team: a thief, a drifter, a hacker, a retrieval specialist, and a former insurance investigator.  As a team they used their skills to fight corporate and governmental injustices inflicted on ordinary citizens.

The famous line from the shows opening credits says, "We provide leverage.

The word leverage is defined as the ability to influence people. events, or decisions.  

This coming Sunday I'm looking forward to speaking about one of my favorite heroes from the Bible, the patriarch Joseph.  Joseph had the character to leverage his influence for the greater good.

You can read the narrative of Joseph's life in Genesis 37-50. Joseph lived a life of ups and downs.  He was chosen, betrayed, tempted, and imprisoned before he become second in command.

In Genesis 39:20b-21 we read that " . . . while Joseph was there in the prison, the Lord was with him; he showed him kindness and granted him favor in the eyes of the prison warden."

As a prisoner Joseph could have seen his situation as hopeless, Instead, he did his best with each small task given him.

Sometimes we may feel like our situation is hopeless,  We may be unhappy in our job, in our marriage, with our sport's team (come on Mariners).  But how we respond in those situations is the key.

You see Joseph' s diligence and positive attitude were soon noticed by the warden.  

In Genesis 39:22-23 it says, "So the warden put Joseph in charge of all those held in prison, and he was made responsible for all that was done there.  The warden paid no attention to anything under Joseph's care, because the Lord was with Joseph and gave him success in whatever he did."

Prison isn't a place where you feel like you would want a promotion.  But while in prison Joseph was not only promoted but he was able to leverage the influence to interpret some dreams.

Events don't always turn out the way we planned.  Joseph didn't plan on being in prison.  

Life may not be going as you planned.  At home, or work, or school, follow Joseph's example by taking each small task and doing your best to leverage your influence for the greater good.  You can be a hero by just thriving in whatever task you have been given.

Best Week Ever

Best Week Ever!  What comes to mind?  A childhood memory?  A family vacation?  

I have had the opportunity to serve on leadership teams at summer camps for most of the last 15 years.  It is always one of the highlights of my entire year - maybe one of my Best Weeks Ever!

I have so many great memories of camp over these years. The birthday cake field activity (flour, water, and frosting), amazing worship and altar times, fun times hanging out with our cabin staff counselors playing German Uno.

• Camp takes kids and counselors out of their normal routine.  The TV is turned off, screen time is eliminated.  
• Camp provides an environment where kids slow down to play and have lots of fun.
• Camp also provides an environment where they can hear from God, can encounter God in a new way, and experience life change.
• Camp even provides an opportunity for kids o develop controlled independence while being surrounded by so many positive role models.

There are lots or ways you can invest in your kids.  Football Camp.  Horse Camp.  Summer School.  All of those things in themselves are wonderful.  I love that my kids are apart of sports.

But there is no greater investment than the investment you make into your child's spiritual life.  In the end that's all that really matters.

Don't miss out on this opportunity to get your kids to camp.  On August 10th-14th I'll be at SOAR Kids Camp in Cedar Springs with a great group of campers and cabin leaders from Inspire Church.  For more details, go to http://www.icskagitvalley.org/what-we-do/inspire-kids/soar-kids-camp---the-amazing-race

Holy Heroes Batman!

I'm just young enough and old enough to be a fan of the original Batman TV show starring Adam West.  It was one of my favorite shows.  Watching one of the shows now is kind of lame.  I mean it was kind of cheesy. 

The cool thing about Batman though is that he doesn't have any super powers, he just has really cool gadgets.

• Batmobile Bat-phone
• Shark Repellent Bat Spray
• Anti-Penguin Gas Pills
• Batcomputer Bat-Key

A great quote from Batman is: "The true crime fighter always carries everything he needs in his utility belt."  You may not have Batman's utility built, but there's tremendous power in being a follower of Jesus.

Starting the first Sunday in July our church will be learning about different Heroes from the Bible. In Inspire Kids, the focus will be on how Big Heroes serve a Big God.  In our main service, the focus will be on how the Bible is more than just a manual, it is a story of history which comes alive when one studies the people involved.  These people are real and have a story of their own to tell.  A story that can apply to every follower of Jesus.

Most weeks the kids will be learning about the same Bible Hero as their parents will be.  We can all be a hero. We may not be able to fly like Superman, or walk through a wall like Green Lantern, or have super strength like the Incredible Hulk; but a real hero doesn't need those things.

We can be strong, we can be a hero if we trust in God and his strength. What is God asking you to do?  

Maybe you can be a hero by leveraging your influence to benefit others like the patriarch Joseph did.  Or maybe you're the hero that can never be counted out like King David was.   

Be strong.  Stand up for others.   Speak up for the weak.  Be the modern day hero that God is asking you to be! 

School's Out! Now what?

Summer is here.  School's Out!  Now what do I do with my kids all summer.  With our kids out of school it can be stressful and not relaxing.

There's that pressure to keep your kids busy so they don't get bored or to keep them out of trouble. Depending on the age of your kids, they need different things.

• Young children:  need their parents participating in quality play.
• Elementary Children:  Need interactive activities with peers and parents.
• Middle Schoolers:  Need peers involved in all summer activities and begin to need less parent involvement.
• High School Students:  Need to begin work while they have fun in the summer.

Summer is a great time to create positive memories as a family.  Look back at your past year.  What jumps out of you?  It could be a tragedy or it could be a great memory like a family vacation.  Our kids look forward to my wife's family reunion every year.  I probably drive her family crazy and they drive me crazy sometimes.  But I guess it adds to the memory.

There's an app available from Orange Leaders called "Legacy Countdown."  Here's how it works.

1. Enter a child's name and graduation date.
2. A countdown for the clock will begin.

Our oldest son, Isaac has his first summer job.  So he's living in Chelan with his grandparents as he works this summer.  The house is really quiet without him.  I'm excited for this growth opportunity for him but it's also a reminder that we only have about 200 weeks left before he graduates from high school.

Time is running out.  It can be depressing or exciting, depending on your perspective.  Value the time you have with your kids.  It won't last forever.

Hope

Hope is an interesting thing isn't it?  It is a feeling of expectation and desire for a certain thing to happen.  As I child I was hopeful that someday I would be a NBA star for the Los Angeles Lakers.  I only had a couple of challenges:  I was short, slow, and didn't have a great jump shot!

We hope for so many things.

• Money
• Love
• Peace
• Happiness
• Good Health
• For the kids to sleep in on Saturdays.

Although we hope for so many things, we don't find true hope in those things.  Real hope only comes through faith in God.

Joseph is one of my favorite characters from the Bible.  God spoke to Joseph through dreams.  Joseph didn't just have a feeling of expectation but he had a certainty of expectation.  He knew certain things were going to happen.  Despite that certainty, life wasn't easy for Joseph. His bothers threw him in a pit and left him for dead.  Pharoah's wife got him thrown into prison.

Yet God was faithful to Joseph in each of these circumstances.  God brought hope to what must have seemed to be a hopeless situation

"So Pharoah asked them, 'Can we find anyone like this man, one in whom is the Spirit of God?"  

Genesis 41:38

That's what God does.  He brings hope where there seems to be no hope.

We see this a lot in sports.  The game seems to be over and yet a team makes an unbelievable comeback.  My favorite comeback of all time is the 1991 National league Division Series between the Atlanta Braves and Pittsburgh Pirates.  The Braves were down to their final out, with the slowest runner on their team at second, and a seldom used guy up at the plate.

No matter what you are going through, No matter what you're desire or expectation for something to happen, God can bring hope.  Maybe its finances or relationships or a sickness.  Whatever your situation, hope remains.

He has not abandoned you.  He is there for you.  He will never leave you or forsake you.  Put your trust in Him.

Yes I really believe that!

Conviction!  A firmly held belief or opinion.  I don't know about you, but I sure do have a lot of firmly help opinions!

• The Dallas Cowboys can win the Super Bowl next year.
• The Seahawks would have won last year's Super Bowl if they would have ran that ball on the last play.
• Skagit Valley Burgers are the best burgers in the county.
• Pepsi is way better than Coke.
• Baseball is not boring.
• Nascar is not a sport.
• Captain America is the coolest Avenger!
• I am a horrible golfer.

This month in Inspire Kids we will be learning about the Life App, "Conviction."  We will define Conviction as standing for what's right even when other's don't.

The book of Acts is full of stories about Peter, Paul, and others standing up for what's right even when it was unpopular.  In Acts chapter 5 the apostles were arrested and put in jail.  But during the night they escaped through an angel of the Lord.  The next day the apostles went back to preaching in the temple courts.  As they were brought to stand before Sanhedrin and the High Priest they responded by saying:

"We must obey God rather than men!"  

Acts 5:29

There will be situations when you have an opportunity to stand up for what's right.  It won't necessarily be easy.  Sometimes you won't want to stand what is right.  Sometimes you'll be tired or even feel alone. As parents those opportunities can come at home or at work.  Your children face these opportunities every day at school or at their sports practice or just by hanging out with their friends.

"For kids, standing up for what's right is one of the most difficult lessons to learn.  But thankfully, as parents we have a unique opportunity to influence our kids and help them navigate the wise choice while the stakes aren't so high."
- Dan Scott

So how do we help our kids stand up for what's right?

1. Start with conversations about what you support and what you are opposed to.
2. Be an example on your own.

It won't be easy but we can trust God no matter what.  He'll give us and your kids the strength and courage we need to stand up for what is right..

My Top 5!

The #5.  The number of Super Bowl Championships that my Dallas Cowboys have.  Gary Chapman talks about and has written extensively about the 5 Love Languages.  The number 5 is mentioned 318 times in Scripture.  Who knows - I may have just helped you out in your next game of Trivia Crack!

I recently reread a blog by Carey Nieuwhof called "Why Your Kids Need Five Other Adults in Your Lives."  In this blog, Carey says . . .

"When your kids, need to talk, who do they talk to?  I mean beyond their friends and beyond you as a parent?  Friends are limited help; sometimes the last thing a 6-year-old needs is advice from another 16-year old.  And sometimes the last erson they want to talk to is a parent.  I'm sure there are parents who say, "my kid will talk to me." But let me ask you something, did you tell your parents everything?"

You can read the entire blog at http://theparentcue.org/why-your-kids-need-five-other-adults-in-their-lives.

I don't know about you but there are sometimes when my kids just seem to be tired of my voice.  I'm thankful that there are some adults in my kid's life that have similar values that I have.  Adults that I feel comfortable with my kids going to to discuss difficult questions with.

How can you help to develop these relationships?  I would suggest the following ideas to get you started.

1. Help them to connect in Small Group environments at church.  Does your church offer Small Group opportunities for your students?  If so, wow!  What a great opportunity.  Get them involved.
2. Cultivate the relationship with your Children's or Youth Pastor.  Sometimes this happens naturally but at other times you may need to actively develop this.  Invite your Children's or Youth Pastor over for lunch or invite them to one of your student's sports games.
3. Make your extended family a priority.  Does your student have an aunt, uncle, or grandparent who serves the Lord who also has a great relationship with your student.  Cultivate that relationship,

You also will want to involve your child in this process.  Your top 5 may not be their top 5.  Open up the lines of communication and talk about the top 5.

Who is your Top 5?