It's a BIG Target

He said to them, "Go into all the world and preach the good news to all creation. Jesus Mark 16:15

This is one of the very first cartoons I remember as a kid... Crusader Rabbit... and his pal Rags. This may even be the very first Crusader Rabbit episode. Crusader Rabbit's fellow rabbits are in danger- it's much too big a job to do alone -he searches for someone to join the cause, finds Rags, shares his mission and a great part of my childhood was born.

Crusader Rabbit wasn't particularly heroic- on the small side with no special powers... and Rags... well let's just say Rags needed a little help to appear anything close to the ferocious lion he was portrayed to be by the circus. Together, they made quite a team and always managed to get the job done.

Jesus gave His church a BIG job... go into the whole world and love everybody. It's a great life mission statement... love everybody. He also gave us a huge target- the whole world; how could we go wrong? Pretty big target to miss.

We were each created with one target in mind- the whole world, "all the nations." Tragic how quickly we get off track and fall short of the mark when all we have to do to hit the target is walk out the front door, ready to serve Him and love everybody. Our problem's not the target- no one, not even you or me could miss the entire planet, we hit it with every foot fall. Give's new meaning to the scriptures: "How beautiful are the feet of those who bring good news..." That's anyone walking out the door ready to love everybody and serve in His Name. It start's when our feet hit the floor.

While writing this morning I heard a mockingbird screeching in the neighbor’s tree. I walked to the open door and stood at the screen looking out at the apparently irritated bird- suddenly he flew straight at me and landed atop a chair on our patio just feet from me. I began to talk to him- he continued to screech loudly, then jumped to the ground -where I noticed a caterpillar, quietly making his way across our porch. The scenario became clear- the bird was out for breakfast. But I was standing just a foot or two from it all, and chatting to the bird on the hunt... certain it would come no closer... then it jumped to the ground, stepped within inches of my feet, snapped up the innocent butterfly never to be in its beak, and flew away. A simple event that occurs millions of times a day around the world, but suddenly I was in the midst of it all, taking in a thousand lessons in the moment.

To eat, this bird had to have keen eyes- the screeching meant something I'm sure -then it had to come closer to a human then it'd possibly ever come, risking it all for the days survival. It was a tiny target from a great distance with huge risk- but a bunch of little birds may have depended on it.

Too often we turn our faith walk into an equally challenging task. Jesus sent us to "all nations" the whole world... He knew we needed a BIG target and he gave us one... he wanted us to succeed... He wants us to succeed even still.

The "church" has gotten off track too many times in pursuit of serving the call of Christ. The crusades being only one of many glaring examples. Christ calls to us to love everybody, to serve in His Name... right out our own front door... then as we grow and mature in Him... through every door He opens. Our faith, our calling, His church is an "open door, that no one can shut."

It's easy to relate to the caterpillar- dreaming of becoming a butterfly -only to get snatched up before we make our way across the porch. Most days I feel like Crusader Rabbit- a HUGE task with no special powers to get the job done... other days I feel like his pal Rags: not nearly as powerful as people imagine me to be for as big a task as God's given us. Then I remind myself- it's a BIG TARGET -God wants me to succeed. My journey in Him begins when my feet hit the floor.

Pondering life- the lesson of my mockingbird and the worm -writing this journal entry, I decided to buy another domain name: www.bigtarget.org. I'm pretty certain God's got something great to do with it... my job today was to take the first step. God's got great things for your life- it's a big target- no worries about failure... get out there and do something good for him. When you're feeling more like the caterpillar then the mockingbird, hum the theme song to Crusader Rabbit and you'll feel your spirits soar!

blessings,

Eric

Good Advice for Men

http://health.msn.com/centers/mensexualhealth/articlepage.aspx?cp-documentid=100164474>1=10105

That's me, my father and my cousin Jim Minnis at Dad's 90th birthday celebration. Dad will be 93 in September, Lord Willing. Jim's in his 70's... may even be pushing 80... me, I'll be 53 in July. Around the world, in all but the most developed nations, all 3 of us would be considered old enough to be wise... having lived well past our prime and shared in blessings most never imagine. The Bible says a man's time on earth is three score and ten - that's 70 years -Dad always said anything beyond that "was just gravy." Dad and Jim are well into their "gravy" years and doing their best to enjoy it every step of the way.

Good article posted above on the top ten ways men die. Which means, if you're a man, this may be your final scenario. Interestingly enough, old age wasn't listed. Guess no one just gets old and dies anymore. I've watched loving friends in their 90's one over 100 die and people still ask me- "What'd they die of?" Doctor's have to write something down I suspect. We all want to have a reason for everything. But I try my best to be honest and say- "They were old and ready to go." There's no shame in that.

I suspect one of the reasons old age isn't listed as a cause is because there's no solution for it other than salvation. Old age is one of the few things that makes Heaven seem like a wonderful welcome home at the end of a day that stretched a little too long. That said, the advice given for prevention of almost every other cause of death in men was the same: eat right and exercise. (In a desire to meet all standards of full disclosure and to be completely honest, I wrote this blog while eating left over oreo cookies for breakfast and dreaming of a great big root beer... after not exercising one lick this morning.)

My Dad and cousin Jim are two of the hardest working men I've ever met. Both could work me into the ground and take pride in doing it, even when I had the advantage of age. Both grew up athletes and played ball, fished, walked, golfed and accepted almost any challenge that came their way- late into life. Both have lived adventures most of us will never dream about- while serving The Lord in parts of the world most will never learn to pronounce much less ever hope to see. Their examples are living legacies to our family, and I mean it in the biggest sense of the term when I talk about our family... we're a BIG family... that have liberated the rest of us to live out our dreams and calling from God. We've been blessed.

Eating right... they taught us to love peach cobbler, to never pass the opportunity to eat good Mexican food together and to understand that the best food is food shared with family and friends. I still believe that's the way to eat "right." You might live longer avoiding biscuits and gravy but you'll rarely live better.

Exercise... again, something to be shared with friends. Golfing, softball, basketball, fishing, whatever... get outside, get outside together and get outside often. These guys didn't golf together for weeks or months but for lifetimes. Life is an investment in each other- in good times and bad -don't let the challenges keep you from exercising every opportunity to have a little fun with friends. It doesn't matter what the exercise is... just enjoy it with someone... enjoy life and you'll live longer.

Exercise and eat right... do it all with friends and when the end comes, however it might come, whether we make the top ten or not... we'll know we've given it our best and given it all for God. He's too good.

blessings,

Eric

Do It Now

I understand why we put things off- we hope life, and it's challenges, will resolve itself without forcing us to make a decision. Decision making can be tough. Decision makers live with the consequences- good and bad -we forget that the penalty for indecision can profoundly change our lives, our world even our existence.

The photo's of Greenland, melting away, while the world continues to heat up at a faster pace then anyone imagined. There's a great article on Greenland's meltdown on cnn at: http://www.cnn.com/2007/TECH/science/06/06/greenland.warming.reut/index.html.
100 years ago my grandparents were in the first years of their marriages, enjoying the blessings and dealing with the struggles all new parents face. Computers, microwaves, telephones, television, air flight, space travel, atomic bombs, ipods... well the list is rediculous really... were all the fruit of decisions yet to be made, they had no clue what the world held for their grandchildren, they lived for today.

We have a clue of what the future holds for our grandchildren a century hence. Even with inventions, creative thinkers and a world of discovery that we, like my grandparents 100 years ago, can't begin to imagine, it's important to remember a simple truth from God's Word - "Earth abides." There's a great old science fiction book from the '50's that takes it's title from the verse (think I'll find it on Amazon.com and buy a copy to read again). The Word says Earth abides... not the world as we know it. Life, civilization, society and our interactions with our living planet is in a constant state of flux. It's a truth we can depend on. It's a reminder to each of us: do it now!

Riverside's probably not going to have beach front property any time soon, however, the world our grandchildren live in will be radically dependent on the decisions we make today. Every little issue that come's up- every earth shaking glacier that drops into the sea, should be a reminder to us: Do It Now! Don't let another day slip by. Love someone, help someone, worship God, create, share, say hello, encourage a stranger, embrace a friend, tell your family you love them, make a decision to be a better person, be exactly who you dream of being, live! Be a great steward of the earth, ride share, ride a bike, get a hybrid, care. Do it now.

The ice is shifting. The water is rising. Today is our only day to be exactly who God created us to be. In a world that's rapidly melting away are you living a life to make your children proud, to leave a legacy to your grandchildren? Do it now!

My Mornings

I'm a simple guy. When I'm feeling good, I like to start my day off with a run. When I'm less then 100%, I read the paper, have a cup of good Kenyan tea with milk and hang out with our dog. That's the three of us in a cheesy phone photo- Hunter, cup of tea and me in my pj's.

I've always been a great believer that dogs belong outdoors. When we were kids, one of the exciting moments of life was when our dog- who always lived in the backyard -managed to sneak his way into the house and wreak havoc. Debi, however, loves having a dog in the house. Chelsea, our last dog, spent most of her days in the yard... until she got older, or I was away... when she romped freely through the house. Hunter on the other hand has spent most of his days indoors. He's spoiled and it shows. As he gets older, I've quit fighting the battle and decided that maybe indoor dogs aren't so bad after all... hey, Debi keeps me inside... so Hunter and I spend our mornings and many of our evenings together.

The dog's a pain in the neck... but I'm still stuck on him. Once a month he'll decide to bark all night- even in the house -that's almost two weeks a year of lost sleep over a dog. His ears get yeast infections and need to be cleaned on a regular basis- even then he spends half his life shaking his head. He can't be trusted around food- not for a second. If it's within reach and it's edible, from fruit to nuts, he's on it. Those complaints out of the way- he's a great running companion and can go for miles at any pace, he's smart as can be and learns most anything we're willing to teach him, (with the exception of all night barking and food on the counter), and he loves to hang out with us- the dogs NEVER had an "accident" in the house and gladly "go's" on command. All in all, pretty easy to live with, for a dog.

Life's filled with surprises. Some great and some not so great. Hunter's never shared his opinion in good times or bad, and I appreciate that about him. One more reason they're man's best friend. Don't know if Jesus had a dog- hope so. With the way some of his friends treated Him- it would be good to know He had a dog to hang out with when everyone else was on the run.

Hope your morning has a routine to it- something that starts the day off right -cup of tea, newspaper, time with the dog. Sometime's it's the simple things we take for granted that can get our days off to a great start and one more simple reason to come home at the end of the day.

blessings,

Eric

Standing Tall

You've probably seen it by now. It took less than ten seconds to locate a copy of it on line. Representing the US at the Miss Universe pagent, she strides out confidently, ready for her big moment. Following some of the most beautiful women in the world, ready to stand up before a somewhat hostile crowd: smiling, looking her best... and boom, down she goes in one of the most public falls one can imagine. Nowhere to hide... nowhere to run... doesn't begin to cover how she must have felt in that spit second- watch closely and you can see the fleeting desperation flash across her face. And then, as quickly as she went down, she was up again: no apology, no self deprecating humor, no tears and no running off stage, she was up and walking beautifully, smiling as if nothing had ever happened, ready to move forward.

Her resolve carries a powerful lesson for each of us; in her moment of public humiliation, she didn't quit.

We all fall... thankfully, for most of us, it happens in private. However, many of us have walked that painful path of failure that others know about, too great to be kept a secret, we relate, even as we laugh, to the lady waxing the stage in public with her posterior. It's important to remeber a few simple realities. She had been brave enough to labor through countless pagents that nobody cared about. When no one was watching, she trained, practiced, studied and did her best to live a life that could suffer the scrutiny of being on one of the world's biggest stages. She gave her life to get out on that stage- it was a huge risk -only people willing to work hard- to take a risk- ever make it as far in any field of endeavor.

Falling is not failure. We don't have to worry about her future. Anyone who works hard and disciplines themselves to go the long haul succeeds- even when they fall. A friend is running a marathon this week. That's 26.2 miles- a long way to run by almost anyone's standards. I've run ten or twelve marathons myself so I took the time to email him some unsolicited advice: it's one of the rewards of crossing the finish line- giving advice. The truth of the matter is, in the big scheme of things, his race is already run. The long term training that goes into marathon running: early morning runs, eating right, long runs with friends, time away from family, pain... those are the real rewards of the race. I pray each runner in the race meets their personal goals- but the reality is that while others were sleeping, when a world was unaware that a race was being run, they were up and wearing a number- ready to run, they'd paid the price. There's no failure on race day... only rewards.

If "Life is a stage," the floor must shine brilliantly from all the times we've hit it hard, the lesson this young woman teaches us is a lesson worth holding onto for life: it's not about the fall, it's about getting back up again and going forward. My prayer for us today is that we're ready to scuff up life's stage with risk ready feet- and that when we wax it with the wrong end -we're ready to get back up and start all over again. She did it. We can.

blessings,

Eric