Category Archives: Experience

Experience

This Is Just A Tribute

In the song Tribute by the ribald and insane comedy-folk-rock-metal group, Tenacious D,  recount for the listener the tale of the time they played The Best Song in the World. At the demand of a shiny demon, the duo, Jack and Kyle, are forced to play the best song in the world or risk having their soul’s devoured. So, the band plays the first thing that comes to their heads and it just so happened to be The Best Song In The World. Unfortunately, after the encounter, The D tell us that they cannot remember the song and so what we are listing too is a tribute to the Best Song in the World and not, actually, the Best Song in the World . Get it?

That’s what this post is. This is just a Tribute.

Last week I determined that I would  publish a blog post everyday for the next month or so.

With this personal challenge in mind I set out to post an article about how I use my Kindle Paperwhite both personally and professionally.

It was the best blog post in the world. Funny. Insightful. Practical. The post was destined to win the Nobel Prize for Stunning Insight…

Then I clicked something… And it was gone.

I had failed to save along the way. What was left was a mere shadow of the glory that had been. Cntrl – Z couldn’t recover it. It was gone. Forever.

To say that I was upset and felt defeated is an understatement. I got up, left my office, and ran an errand to get my mind and heart right.

“I wrote the post. That’s enough,” I thought. “I’ll work on it again and post later – tomorrow or even the next day. I tried.”

No. I can’t do that. I resolved to hit “Publish” every day. Yes, I want to post great content but I mainly want to get back into the habit of generating content and shipping it out. In these early days of this new habit formation, what counts is producing something getting it out there on the blog.

So, here I am publishing this requiem for a lost post. 

I’ll rewrite my Kindle post another day. Until then, I’ll post this. It isn’t perfect. It isn’t the best.

It’s just a Tribute.

 

 

Experience

Lessons from the ER

As I was changing clothes after church service on Mother’s Day, I noticed what I thought was a small fire ant bite on the inside of my knee. It was red and irritated but I didn’t think another thing about it until I woke up on Monday to discover that the bite had more than doubled in size and was an angry red. By the end of the work day the pain was getting pretty unbearable. At the clinic, they diagnosed me with an infection and put me on some antibiotics. They told me to watch the infected area and to go to the ER if it got worse. Fast forward to Wednesday afternoon… The infection was spreading around my knee and up and down my thigh, the pain was not subsiding, and my anxiety was through the roof. I didn’t hesitate, I drove straight to the ER where they cut me open, drained all that junk out, and shot me up with a high dose of medicine to knock out what was remaining inside me. The doctors told me I had made the right decision to come in and get it all taken care of. They told me that the damage would have been much greater had I waited even a few more hours. The consensus is that all of this probably began as a spider bite. At the end of the day, whether it was a bite or some sort of staph infection, I needed to be treated immediately and aggressively in order to put a stop to the damage the infection was wreaking on my body. Which got me thinking…

Inside of each of us emotional junk infects our hearts and minds each and everyday. What begins as a back-handed comment or a bit of self-consciousness or even self-doubt can begin attacking our hearts and spreading the negativity all over our lives. Left untreated, the virus grows and threatens to kill our joy and effectiveness. Over the course of dealing with this physical infection, I observed 3 things that I believe can help us deal with negative emotional infections in our lives.

1) Get Help
I quickly realized that whatever was happening to my leg was something that I couldn’t handle on my own. No OTC cream or medicine was able to treat the pain and heal me. I had to get someone who could help me to look at and diagnose my problem.

When it comes to emotional pain and hurts, we need to be able to go to family, friends, or mentors and tell them what’s happening inside of us and what kind of pain we are dealing with. It is also ok to take what’s bothering you to a professional counselor. If you are hurting emotionally or spiritually, the infection has taken root and it needs to be identified. Don’t believe the lie that all pain will eventually heal on its own. Don’t ignore the fact that you are hurt. Get some help, even professional help, if you are struggling with emotional pain in your life.

2) Cut It Out
This was the hardest part of dealing with my infection. On the first night that I went to the doctor, they attempted to cut open my infection. Without numbing my leg, the doc pulled out the meanest, ugliest Exacto-knife looking scalpel and pushed it into my leg. Yowza! Nothing came out. The infection was there but wasn’t ready to give up the fight just yet. Over the next 2 days, the infection grew and spread. When Wednesday came, I had one thing on my agenda. I wanted that junk out of my body. The ER doc gave it her best shot and with another mean scalpel, a lot of pressure, and her body weight on my leg we got that infection out of my body. It had to go!

Too often, when it comes to emotional pain and infection, we want to hang on to it rather than getting rid of it. May it never be!

Whatever is hurting you emotionally or spiritually, get it out and away from you. If it is a person whose spews their negativity all over you, remove that person from your life. If it is a hurt from years ago, find some way to forgive and let go. This process may hurt, it might take a few tries to make it work, or it just might take a whole lot of focus and pressure but you can’t get healthily unless you remove the infection from your life.

3) Take Your Medicine
After it was all said and down, I was on two sets of antibiotics. One I took 2 times a day and another I had to take 4 times a day. Every one I know who cares for me told me that same thing: Take ALL your antibiotics! If I heard that once, I heard it 50 times. This was a crucial step in regaining my health and working to prevent a recurrence of the infection in my leg.

When it comes to getting emotionally healthy and avoiding a recurrence of the infection you have to take all your medicine too. Surround yourself with those who love you and who lift you up. Avoid contact with whatever causes you emotional pains and hurts. Choose to believe the best about yourself and stop believing the worst that others say about you. Do these things and other things that bring you joy consistently and you can begin to stave off another infection that seeks to damage your heart and mind.

I am happy to say that one month out, my leg is almost completely healed. I followed my doctors advice, took all my meds, and rested well. Unfortunately, I know that emotional wounds don’t heal as fast as our physical ones do.

My prayer for you will be that God will guide you to seek help for what may be infecting you emotionally, that you will let go of and seek to remove the infection in your heart, and that over time He will send you positive and life affirming people to help you find emotional health.

Ethos, Experience, Life

The War Within

“Never give in–never, never, never, never, in nothing great or small, large or petty, never give in except to convictions of honour and good sense. Never yield to force; never yield to the apparently overwhelming might of the enemy.” – Winston Churchill

Every feel like you just can’t get any traction? No matter how hard you try, no matter what you do, no matter the preparation? We all have plans and visions but often life gets in the way and we abandon these hopes and dreams before we can even get started.

Take for example what happened to me yesterday morning: I wanted to schedule a mid-morning workout so that I could get in a run before lunch. In order to do that I had to plan my day, get up a bit earlier, eat a good breakfast, get the kids off to school, and crush my morning tasks before 11am.

I hit everyone of those targets like a boss! As I gathered up my keys and wallet to head to the gym I suddenly realized that I left my hat at home. (I’ve been growing out my hair and my luxurious mane keeps getting in my face.) “Oh well, good try. I guess you’ll have to wait until later to run.”

I pushed back. “No worries,” I thought. “I’ll swing by the house and grab one. It’s on the way.”

As I pulled out of the parking lot I remembered that I had left my gym lock on my desk. “Oh well, better luck next time. Don’t want someone to steal your stuff.”

I let out an audible sigh groan and determined that I would grab my hat from the house, head back to the building, grab the lock, and then, finally, get to the gym.

Once at the gym, I put on my running gear and then put on my wireless headphones. Dead.

“Are you kidding me!?!?!” I thought. I wanted to leave and come back later. Fortunately, I pictured Eric Liddell kicking me in the shin for giving up because the battery had died on my headphones so that didn’t detain me for too long. (And Yes, in my vision Liddell kicked me dramatically and in slow motion.)

Now, I was about 15-20 minutes past the time I had wanted to start my workout and as I headed to my favorite treadmill I got a call from my wife. I stepped to the side to answer my phone and watched as another gentleman got on my favorite treadmill and start walking backwards on it. He. was. walking. backwards.

“Ok! That’s it! I’m done. Maybe I’ll come back tonight!”

That’s when it hit me. The Voices WITHIN me are often louder than the voices around me.

Nobody in that gym was telling me to pack it in and give up. Nobody was encouraging me to put my jeans back on and go get a cheeseburger. No, the loudest voice of discouragement and of self-doubt was coming from inside my own head and heart.

The Voice Within was telling me that I was too messed up, that I was incomplete, and that I was lacking what I needed to fulfill the hopes and plans I had for my day.

Steven Pressfield, author of The War of Art, calls this The Voice of Resistance. The Resistance is “the most toxic force on the planet. To yield to Resistance deforms our spirit. It stunts us and makes us less than we are and were born to be.” The Resistance doesn’t come to play- it comes to destroy.

So how do we silence this Voice of Resistance? How can we defend ourselves from something so insidious and debilitating.

We overcome the Voice of Resistance by remembering our Identity. Author Jeff Goins believes that once we have a clear understanding about our identity, that clarity can and will move us to action.

In order to quiet those negative thoughts and feelings inside of me today, I had to remind myself who I was and why I was at the gym in the first place.

I was there because I AM A RUNNER.

I may not be very fast but, I AM A RUNNER.
I may not have a hat today but, I AM A RUNNER.
My headphones may not work but, I AM A RUNNER.
I may not feel like it but, I AM A RUNNER.

That’s my identity. I have a log of all my runs, some race bibs, and a couple of medals that says that’s who I am. When I presented the facts of who I am to The Resistance, he left me until a more opportune time. I got on another treadmill and hit the start button.

Walt Disney once said, “The difference in winning or losing is most often not quitting.”

What ever you do today, what ever obstacle you face from within or without, what ever voice is telling you to pack it in… REMEMBER WHO YOU ARE.

DON’T QUIT!

Discipleship, Ethos, Experience, Faith in Action, Thoughts

Coda

As I wrap up the last few minutes in my office on this final day of 2013, I wanted to post a thought or two here before I power-down the Mac, lock the doors, and head home for the evening.

I keep thinking back over the previous 364 days and I’ve come to the conclusion that this past year was a bridging year for me and my family. We had to cross a mighty river and we experienced a myriad of emotions, setbacks, triumphs, near-tragedies, exhaustion, much grace, and lots of mercy.

All this to get us from where we are now to where God intends for us to be.

I look forward to the new year because I can see a hint, a glimmer, of hope and God-sized possibilities. This vision has been born out of the crucible of this past year. I wouldn’t trade the last 12 months for anything because I believe God gave us this past year to lay a foundation for what is to come.

I’m ready to live in 2014.

My prayer is that you are too.

Let’s live a better story together as we move forward into whatever God has in store for us this next year.

 

Chase the Lion, Ethos, Experience, Life

Chasing Down Regret

$75.

That’s what it cost in the fall of 1999 to register and compete in the Athens Marathon. Or, you know, as the Greeks call it, THE MARATHON.

Studying abroad afforded me a tremendous amount of opportunity but none were as intriguing to me as the chance to run in the sandals of Pheidippides. Even though there were only a very few weeks available to train, a handful of my classmates eagerly signed up to run the original 26.2. They were of all shapes and and sizes and ran the gamut from fit to not-so-fit. A couple of the guys banded together and vowed to cross the finish line together. They wanted to know if I was going to join them.

$75.

When our plane landed in Athens I had a crisp one hundred dollar bill folded and hidden away in my wallet. When it came time to decide wether or not to run the marathon, I pulled out old Ben and contemplated my decision.

I can’t run a marathon.
What if I can’t keep up?
What if I hold everyone else back?
What if I don’t finish?
How embarrassing fill it be when I fail?

These and a half dozen other thoughts and questions rushed in and flled my heart with fear and anxiety. I calmly folded my money away and made an excuse that $75 was too big of a risk to take.

A few weeks later I watched as every single person that signed up for the marathon crossed the finish line. I was thrilled for them and I cheered as they entered into the Olympic Stadium, stepped across the line, and took ahold of their medals. I was so happy for them… and ashamed and disappointed in myself.

I was 19 years old and I consider that decision not to run that marathon as one of the biggest regrets in my life.

One of my favorite books is In a Pit With a Lion on a Snowy Day by Mark Batterson. I can honestly say that reading that book changed the way I see myself, my Jesus, and the world around me.

The book centers around the idea of seizing every opportunity that God places before you in this life. It’s about looking past the risk and putting your trust in the One who can carry you through. Mark uses the obscure story of Benaiah from 2Samuel 23 as the foundation for this bold and courageous book.

“Benaiah chased a lion down into a pit. Then, despite the snow and slippery ground, he caught the lion and killed it.” – 2 Samuel 23:20

Ultimately Benaiah became head of David’s security team. Mark believes that God used events like pursuing a lion during a snow storm to prepare and develop Benaiah for his ultimate purpose. He makes the case that the greatest regrets in your life will not be when you took the risk or when you chose to place your trust in God to help you overcome an obstacle. Your greatest regrets in life will be the lions you didn’t chase.

Last week I turned 33. For the last few months I have been slowing preparing and training for something big. Despite a few obstacles like illness and having my appendix removed, I have been logging miles and making plans.

Today, I took the biggest leap yet on my way to chasing down that lion that has haunted me for the last 14 years. I registered for a marathon. 

On January 12, 2014, I plan on crossing the finish line and taking that lion to the woodshed.

Between now and then, I’m praying like it all depends on God and working like it depends on me. In the few months that I have been “training” I have seen God move me and develop me. I am learning so much more about myself and I’ve even captured some insight about leadership and ministry.

I ask that you pray for me as I move forward toward this dream and Big Hairy Audacious God Given Goal (BHAGGG).

I’ll leave you with Batterson’s Lion Chaser Manifesto. My prayer for you is that you will, with God’s guidance and help, chase down the lions in your life. Forget 14 years – one minute is too long to live with regret. Let us live boldly. Loudly. Audaciously. Not for ourselves but for the glory of Jesus Christ!

Quit living as if the purpose of life is to arrive safely at death. Set God-sized goals. Pursue God-ordained passions. Go after a dream that is destined to fail without divine intervention. Keep asking questions. Keep making mistakes. Keep seeking God. Stop pointing out problems and become part of the solution. Stop repeating the past and start creating the future. Stop playing it safe and start taking risks. Expand your horizons. Accumulate experiences. Enjoy the journey. Find every excuse you can to celebrate everything you can. Live like today is the first day and last day of your life. Don’t let what’s wrong with you keep you from worshiping what’s right with God. Burn sinful bridges. Blaze new trails. Criticize by creating. Worry less about what people think and more about what God thinks. Don’t try to be who you’re not. Be yourself. Laugh at yourself. Don’t let fear dictate your decisions. Take a flying leap of faith. Chase the lion!

Experience, Grace, Hope

Thank You, Dr. Neller

There are a few things I will do today when I walk into my office and begin a week full of ministry.

At some point today, I will open God’s Word and beg God to speak to me, to change me, to guide me. There is a great difference in studying for life change and studying to help other people experience life change. The Word must speak to me before I speak it to others.

At some point today, I will thank God that he has put me at this place in His kingdom and worry very little about where I might one day be.

At some point today, I will be more concerned with pleasing God, glorifying Jesus, and living empowered by his Spirit than I will about critics, difficult days, and greener grass.

At some point today, I will connect with someone whom I can pray with, guide, speak Scripture over, and practically bring them the Good News and ministry. I may prepare for a baby blessing, a hospital visit, a funeral service, or a wedding ceremony. From life to death, I am tasked with helping people experience God’s presence in their day to day activities.

At some point today, I will use the Bible software program Accordance that enables me to have all my teaching and study materials all in one place.

At some point today, I will read a little Greek.

At some point today, I will attempt to navigate the waters of being a scholar pastor. I will try to learn much while loving people more.

I will do all these things today and every day because I had the opportunity to be profoundly influenced by Dr. Ken Neller.

Dr. Ken Neller, professor at Harding University and shepherd/minister at Downtown Church of Christ, passed away suddenly last Thursday. His memorial service was yesterday. I was unable to attend the service but, over the last few days, a few thoughts have bubbled to the surface and I would like to share them today as a tribute to his influence on me and many others.

Dr. Neller was one of the best professors at Harding and I was privileged to have his New Testament Survey, Greek 3, Christian Ministry and Christian Worship Classes. My freshman year, the powers that be decided to place all the Bible majors into the same Old Testament Class and New Testament class. As far as I am concerned, that was the greatest thing the University could have done for us. It created a group of men and women who could rely on one another as they navigated the experience of learning to love God and love others. We became a close knit group of majors. So much so, that in the Spring semester we organized a “field trip” to the old fairgrounds in Little Rock for a Bible Majors Night at the Hockey Game. We invited our OT professor, Dr Dale Manor, and Dr. Neller came along with us as well. I have so many fond memories from that night and that entire semester. It was a year in which I experienced, without a shadow of a doubt, confidence in God’s call on my life for ministry.

As time went on, I had Dr. Neller for Christian Ministry. This was a class that covered the practical, day to day flow of life as a full-time minister. We visited hospitals and funeral homes. We visited retirement centers and served within our community of Searcy. His insight and leadership from that one class has had a profound impact on the way I approach ministry to this day.

I grew up in a very large congregation (1700+) deep in the heart (clap, clap, clap) of the Bible Belt. To me this was normal and so, of course when I graduated, my first ministry position would be in a similar congregation. That’s just how it works. I wasn’t delusional I was simply naive. Dr. Neller stopped class one day out of the blue and said, “Gentlemen, realize this. The average church in America is less than 100 people. The vast majority of you will not end up at large churches in Dallas or Nashville.” My immediate reaction was to push back and argue. Instead, because of his genuine care and concern for us that was on display every day, I let his statement wash over me. An overwhelming sense of peace came over me. I knew that he was right. From that day forward, I never once looked for a position or a church that was big. I have instead tried to find where God was leading me. Some big congregations have looked at me, interviewed me, passed on me, or offered me a job. A minister can go crazy trying to jump through the hoops, worrying about image and disappointment, moving from job to job in an effort to climb the ministry ladder. Instead, I know that my God is faithful and will place me where he wants me, when he wants me there, and for as long as he wants me there.

After Sandy and I were married, we were invited into the Neller’s home on a weekly basis for a Young Marrieds’ Bible Study. We were with two other future ministry couples and two other great couples who were incredible influences on us. These weekly Bible Studies were an opportunity for us to grow in so many ways and I will never forget the times we spent with the Nellers, the Stockstills, and the Fryes. Their dedication to God, one other, us, and ministry was on full display for us to glean from. Many nights, I think back to those evenings gathered together with God’s Word, good friends, and incredible mentors.

I was shocked to hear about Dr. Neller’s death. It hit me and the rest of the Harding community hard. The outpouring of love and support toward Barbra, his wife, his sons and their families is proof that the Neller’s live lives that impact others to the glory of Jesus Christ.

I’m not nearly as articulate as some others who have expressed their tributes and memorials this past weekend on blogs and social media.

All I can say is that I loved Dr. Neller and knew that he loved me and my family in return. I am a better Disciple, Husband, Father, and Minister because I was able to be impacted by a great man of God.

Thank you, Dr. Neller.

Ethos, Experience

21 Days To Experiment With

Today, was the first day in my 21 day challenge to Become a Morning Person.

For most of my life I have been a Night Owl. However, recently I have been winding down much earlier and when I have been up late I have felt less productive than in the past.

The biggest change though has come from not experiencing the effects of my insomnia. I was diagnosed with simple insomnia over 10 years ago and have had to live with the fact that there are some nights when I don’t sleep. Over the course of the last 2 years, I can probably count on two hands the number of times that I have stayed up, involuntarily, for nights on end. I feel as though, by the grace of God, my sleeplessness is under control.

The truth is I love being up early. Some may find that hard to believe but I really do. Once I’m awake, it’s on brother! I feel more productive in the mornings and I feel more creative before noon than any other time in the day. I recently read some research that claimed Morning People make more money, are more satisfied, and live longer. Struggling through sleepless nights never made me money, never made me feel satisfied, and never ever left me feeling healthier. This year I’ll turn 33 and life is too short to continue down a path that leaves you frustrated, drained, and weak.

Scientists say that it takes around 21 days for a new habit to take hold. Becoming a Morning Person isn’t a resolution. This is an experiment.

I can do anything for 21 days so I thought I should give this morning thing a chance and see how it fits on me. If after 21 days if I do not see any difference or benefit to being up before the birds than I’ll go back to staying up late.

Life is a series of experiments. Some work. Some don’t. Keep what works. Throw out what doesn’t.

Ditch the resolutions and start experimenting. I’ll be here when you wake up tomorrow.

What lifestyle change do you want to experiment with? Leave your comments in the comment section or connect with me on Facebook or Twitter. Let’s be lab partners for the next 3 weeks!

Collecting Experiences, Experience, Faith in Action, Personal Leadership, Pope Bono

Dream Out Loud for 2013

In the final moments of 1989, U2 played a handful of shows at the Point Depot in their hometown, Dublin. The concerts brought their Love Comes to Town tour to a close and marked the end of what had been a phenomenal and meteoric rise to becoming the World’s Biggest Rock Band.

dublin1989xl5

Two years earlier, the band released The Joshua Tree. This seminal album contains the hits Where the Streets Have No Name, With or Without You, and I Still Haven’t Found What I’m Looking For. These four boyhood friends from Ireland had officially made it. The album went on to win Album of the Year and the band became a household name. Next they made a movie and released the follow-up/extension album Rattle and Hum. They had rode a fast and high wave to superstardom and in the final days of the decade many, including the members of U2 themselves, wondered what was next.

As the clock counted down the last remaining seconds of the decade, the band started playing the opening chords to Streets and then as the clock struck midnight, Auld Lang Syne kicked off a pretty boisterous and incredible live show that was broadcast on the radio all over the world.

Sometime during the night Bono, the lead singer of the band, address the crowd saying, “This is just the end of something for U2. And that’s what we’re playing these concerts — and we’re throwing a party for ourselves and you. It’s no big deal, it’s just — we have to go away and … and dream it all up again.”

Of course, everyone wondered if the band was breaking up. They weren’t.

Bono has a flair for the dramatic but he and his bandmates were at a crossroad. They had experienced tremendous success as a result of their very hard work and effort for many years. Here they were at the top of the game and faced with a new year and a new decade they had to wrestle with what to do.

Today, is January 1, 2013.

What I love about the beginning of the New Year is that we all get the opportunity to “dream it all up again.”

You may have experienced your greatest success last year. However, what got you here may not be enough to duplicate that success in 2013.

Conversely, 2012 may have been devastating for you. It might have been so bad that you were actually looking forward to the Mayan apocalypse. The great news is that today is a new day. Today is a new year.

U2 did go away for a while. In fact, the start of the new decade actually was an extremely difficult time for the band personally and professionally. The process that they endured as they dreamed it all over again was rough but it was not a wasted effort.

In 1991, U2 released the album Achtung Baby complete with a brand new sound and look. They had dreamed big and it paid off. Achtung Baby also won the Album of the Year and for some, it is an even greater album than The Joshua Tree.

So, what are you going to do today?

I would suggest that you do reminisce about the year that has just past. Give Thanks where Thanks is due. Address mistakes and work to strengthen relationships with those closest to you.

And after that… dream it all up again.

All is quiet on this New Year’s Day. Don’t let the sun set on January 1st without making some concrete decisions to do things differently this year. Don’t rely on your past successes and never allow past mistakes to crush you completely.

My prayer for you is that God will pour out every grace and mercy he has on you so that 2013 might be your greatest year ever. As you dream about what may happen this year and what you may do, allow God to give you His agenda for your life. He is the one who wired us to dream and He is the one who gives us the strength to move.

I’ll leave you with some more of Bono’s words from that first day in January, 23 years ago.

“Forget about the past. We’re gonna celebrate the future. Seeing as it’s New Year’s Day you probably expect me to get all sentimental, yeah? Well, you’re exactly right. The only limitation are the limits of our imagination. Dream up the kind of world you want to live in. Dream out loud at high volume. That’s what we do for a living.”

Happy New Year everyone! Dream out loud today. And tomorrow. And the day after that.

Collecting Experiences, Experience, Get Back, Personal Leadership

Get Back

In the spring of 2004, I signed up for a free account with Blogger and began my blogging journey. I have always had a burning desire to be a writer and blogging gave me an outlet and a platform to share my thoughts, ideas, and passions. I instantly fell in love with writing posts, sharing my thoughts, and engaging with others in the blogging community. I was able to connect with music writers, ministry leaders, friends, and thought-makers. I blogged about 2 years using that free account before I graduated to this self-hosted site at MichealFelker.com. This site gave me the freedom to make my blog exactly what I wanted it to be. Again, I fell in love with posting my thoughts and ideas and linking to articles and starting conversations and relationships.

Most of all I loved writing. Every day.

I developed a rhythm and a voice. I learned about myself, ministry, and developing/creating content.

Fast forward 5 years. Then my son was born. Then our family suffered through a miscarriage. Then our church entered into a season of transition. Then I transitioned from youth ministry to the role of lead minister.

Life got busy. Things changed. Schedules got shuffled. Making time to write and to develop my writing became harder and harder.

Reality is, I’ve been able to spend the last few years living life. And in my opinion, I live a great life.

I have a smokin’ hot wife who loves me unconditionally and supports me completely.
My son is pretty much the greatest kid on the planet.
I have a brand spanking new daughter who is beautiful.
I love my church and I absolutely love what I do.
I have a group of awesome friends.
Every day I’m given unlimited opportunities to succeed.

Life is good.

However, I miss writing and posting articles on my blog each day. There have been fits and starts over the last year or so, but nowhere near the consistency of the past or the vision I have for my writing life.

This summer, I am preaching a series based on the Book of Ephesians called Get Back. I’ve decided that it’s time to Get Back to blogging.

Over the course of the next 40 days my goal is to post 40 articles based on my favorite people, places, and things in an effort to be re-inspired and to get back in the groove of posting again on a daily basis.

Over the 40 days (Mon-Fri), I want to write about my life, my passions, my hopes, my dreams, and my core values.

I’m ready to get back to writing.
I’m ready to get back to sharing.
I’m ready to get back to Kicking at the Darkness.