Beard Update Day 30

So I am a few days late.  Life has been hectic and it keeps getting hectic.  Hope you aren't to upset.  Enjoy!

Giving Credit Where Credit Is Due...

"Each week has just intensified my faith in the Lord, just understanding where my strength and where my power comes from," Johnson said. "It's not about me, it's about him and bringing honor and glory to his name..."

That is a quote from University of Tulsa Quarterback David Johnson.  I have to say I had a lot of respect for him and how he had led his team to their first 8-0 start since 1942, but to hear a guy who is on the rise in the national platform take all the credit he is getting and turn it to the Lord.  That is a guy I want on my team.

Judges 13

So I shared devotions in staff meeting today.  I thought I could share with you as well.  Lindy and I have been reading through the book of Judges and we just got to chapter 13.  The little sub-heading for the section is entitled "The Birth of Samson".  Now Samson was and still is a great name in the Old Testament.  It is recognized very widely.  In reading this chapter though, The focus is not so much on him, but like most births, it is on his parents.  It says in v. 2 that the wife of Manoah (Samson's father) has been barren.  And an Angel of the LORD appears to her and tells her that she is going to conceive a son.  At this point, she has to be really excited. Probably soaking up every word the angel is sharing with her. He goes on to command her to keep from wine and strong drink and to eat nothing unclean.  He says that no razor shall come to his head for the child shall be a Nazirite. (See Numbers 6)

She goes and shares this with her husband, who prays and asks the Lord to send the angel again so that he might hear what they are to do with the boy once he is born.  The Angel returns and tells him the same thing he told the mother.  The Angel didn't share what Manoah was looking to hear, he just shared what had already been shared with the mother-to-be.

It is sometimes hard to understand what we need to take away from a passage like this, but in asking the Lord to open my eyes to this passage, I saw something that applies to every level of our faith, from very personal to very corporate.

On a personal level, when God reveals something to us through His spirit, it is not our place to seek out what the future of that might look like, it is our place to simply obey.  I know for myself it can be hard not to want to question every aspect of the decision.

On a relational level, either in ministry or in the home, workplace or wherever, God gifts each of us to do what He has called us to do.  I was not gifted to do what my co-worker does, and vice-versa.  We are each part of the body and it takes all parts to make it work.  In this situation, Manoah wanted to know what the future had for he and his family.  I enjoy watching "Heroes" on Monday nights.  One of the powers that is present in the show is the ability to see the future.  When those who possess this ability see the future, they try to manipulate the present to change the future they saw.  I think sometimes God holds back from us everything, because it isn't always what we would choose for ourselves.  Thankfully, what He has for us is so much better.

Finally on a corporate level, I think there is something to take away for church leaders who are challenged with where the next step for their church will be.  While it is important to not overstep what God is calling you to, trusting in Him to lead the way is what He has called all of us to do. Proverbs 3:5 says as much: "Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not lean to your own understanding."

We can all do better at breaking free from the need for our own knowledge and trust that He will lead us to a place where we can glorify Him and serve Him in the most effective way possible.

What is God calling you to do?  Is the Spirit speaking to you today?  Are you in a place where you are uncertain of the future?

So They Can't Say A Woman Killed Me...

Lindy and I have been reading through Judges in the mornings and today we read chapter 9 which talks about Abimelech taking power and then falling from power because of his own selfish ambitions and his failure to recognize God's grace and provision on the people given through his father Gideon.

Once Abimelech was in power over the people of Shechem, A guy named Gaal comes to town and says, "Who is Abimelech, that we should serve him?"  Zebul found out what Gaal was saying and he went and riled up Abimelech.  They devised a plan to kill Gaal and take back control.  Gaal caught on to the plan and got away with his family, but Abimelech who was itching to show his power stormed in and took care of the people of Shechem.  He even burned down the strong tower where the leaders of the city were hiding.  That day about 1000 men and women were killed.

Abimelech was feeling so strong, he and his men went on to Thebez and captured it.  Again all the men and women, the city leaders fled to the strong tower and climbed up to the roof.  Here is the best part.  

Verses 52-54: And Abimelech came to the tower and fought against it and drew near to the door of the tower to burn it with fire. And a certain woman threw an upper millstone on Abimelech’s head and crushed his skull. Then he called quickly to the young man his armor-bearer and said to him, "Draw your sword and kill me, lest they say of me, 'A woman killed him.'" And his young man thrust him through, and he died.

How embarrassing it must have been to be killed by a woman that he would make his own man kill him.  What I find ironic is that this many years later, as I read it this morning, I knew that the injury caused by the woman would have killed him.  The story was written so, which means that one of those people that was there that day told the story of Abimelech calling on his armor bearer to kill him so he wouldn't die by the hand of a woman.

How many times have we been so unwilling to speak or accept the truth for fear of embarrassment?  How many times has the truth of the matter been brought to light in spite of our trying to cover things up? I was encouraged today to not try to change things; God is in control and He will bring everything to be according to His will.  

Had Abimelech not brought to light that he was killed by a woman, I would have read right over that verse and never thought twice about it.  In trying to avoid embarrassment, he only inflicted more upon himself.

The story goes on to talk about what happened once his men noticed he was dead. Verse 55:

And when the men of Israel saw that Abimelech was dead, everyone departed to his home.

The other thing God brought to mind this morning was that it is important to believe in the cause for which you fight.  Had those men believed in what Abimelech was doing, they would have continued the fight.  They would have sought vengeance for their leader.  Instead, they saw him dead and said, probably in an apathetic tone, "Well, he's dead, I guess I will just go home now."

How often do we see a cause and support it for a time, but when it gets hard, or it falls on us to finish the task do we fail to complete it.  We let it go unfinished, or we don't see the value in its completion.  There are times that the task shouldn't be completed.  In this case, the people of Thebez didn't need to die. These men realized what they were doing was foolish and unnecessary. 

What I want to gain from this passage is a desire to evaluate where I am going, who is following me, and who I am following.  Do I believe in the cause for which I fight? Is it worth believing in?

Gotta Try this one!

You Gotta try this one! It gets addicting though!

Credit Cards? What are Those?

I am happy to say that last night, Lindy and I paid our bills for this month and we were able to make the last payment on our credit card debt (I should say "MY" credit card debt).  It is a great feeling to get to such a milestone.  I still have student loans to repay, but we both drive cars that are paid for and we aren't buying a house until we get a down payment saved.  We can now turn our focus to that saving goal.  To give you an idea of where the Lord has brought us, about 18 months ago, maybe a little longer, we began purposing to reduce the 12K-14K in CC debt.  We knew it would be a slow process, but the Lord has proven himself over and over with blessing upon blessing.  

We minimized our expenses as much as we could, in order to maximize our surplus.  We cut out individual spending (meaning that we didn't spend anything on ourselves).  This was much easier on Lindy than on myself, but I knew that in order to conquer the debt mountain it had to be done. Lindy became a super grocery shopper both before we got married and after.  She primarily paid for our wedding herself.  There was help from our family, and we are thankful for that, but we had the wedding we had because she worked so hard.  We didn't incur any extra debt during that process.  Thank You Lord for the provision!  Once we got our income and outgo in order, we snowballed.

Snowballing can be done in different forms.  You can go after the highest interest rate, or the lowest balance, or you can figure out which one will increase the cash flow the fastest.  Any of them work as long as you are consitent.  We chose to go after the lowest balance first.  We paid it off quick and rolled that payment into the next card.  That allowed us to triple or maybe even quadruple the minimum payment (which is the only way you can get out of credit card debt).  We also played the balance transfer game.  Anytime I got a 0% offer with no transfer fee, we did it.  To the maximum.  Then we focused on the remainder of the balance that was collecting interest.  Once we got everything to lower interest cards, the principle fell faster.  

Each time we paid off a card, we celebrated in some way (without spending money). Sometimes we danced to loud music, and other times we enjoyed a fun free outing.  But we made sure we felt good about what we had accomplished.  I am not sure yet how we will celebrate this milestone, but I will be sure to let you know what we do.

I have to thank a few people who really helped along the way.  Wayne and Jean Carol Miller and Jim and Amy Pitts were both gracious enough to provide me with cost-free living quarters that allowed me to make strides on the debt.  My Wife, who continually pushed me to evaluate my spending.  Many who prayed and encouraged us along the way including my family, my in-laws, the people of Yorktown Baptist Church and Bethel Church, Leah Getz (who helped my wife become a great shopper in NW Indiana as well as an encourager and listening ear for us both).  So many more along the way have encouraged us and allowed God to bless us through them.  We are so thankful.

I hope this is an encouragement to you that you can conquer mountains in your life.

Have you had any mountains that you were able to conquer?  Are you climbing any mountains right now?

Retro-post

This is a post that I typed on the plane Thursday night, and planned to post on Friday morning. Being without internet access this weekend, I am just now posting it.

Vacation has finally arrived. We left yesterday after work and headed to Chicago to catch our flight to Houston. I got off work around 4:30 or so and headed home to get Lindy and grab a few last minute things. I checked the bus schedule to make sure we would be ok to ride the bus without having to get a cab. See, I have a cousin who lives about 5 miles from Midway Airport in Chicago. Due to the high cost of parking, we park our car at her house and then go to the airport. Sometimes she can take us, othertimes we call a cab and the most efficient (cheapest) way to get there is the bus. We can also take the train, if we have time and can make it to the station before 5:35. Due to our work schedules, that usually doesn’t happen. Our plan for this trip was to catch a bus and then take a cab back to the car on Monday since we are getting in so late. Before we left the apt. I checked the traffic and noticed that the exit we have to take from the Interstate to the airport was closed in both directions and the next exit is another 5-10 minutes and then another 15 to backtrack. I thought avoiding the Interstate might be our better option, so we set off for the airport around 5:10. We stopped for some Wendy’s Spicy Chicken Meals and Dr. Pepper. We finally made it to the city by 6:45, a trip that usually only takes 45 minutes. We parked at my cousin’s house (who by the way is driving to OK with her family for a college reunion at OU) and began walking the 8 blocks to the bus stop. We waited a short while for the bus and looking like we might have missed it or it wasn’t on schedule began walking toward the airport that is 5 miles away. We got about 3 blocks down the road, all the while looking for the bus, when a very kind lady, who was completely out of her mind for doing this, offered us a ride to the airport. I think she felt sorry for us and thought we were the crazy ones for walking toward the airport with our 4 bags of luggage. She was probably right. See, most people would have called the cab first, or even paid the high parking rates at the airport, but we work hard to maintain a tight budget and a $1.50 bus ride is much more affordable than a $20 cab ride. Thankfully, though the bus wasn’t running on schedule, God was in control and He took care of us and met our needs. I don’t know the lady who picked us up and I don’t even know her name, but I do know that she is going through a divorce and has two children who will be affected by it. She shared with us that she was prompted to pick us up because she had just seen a show that Oprah did about paying it forward and helping someone out. I wish I had been bold enough to share with her the love of Christ, I just sat quietly while she poured out her heart to us about the struggles she was having with her husband. I felt sorry for her. I felt sorry for her children. I don’t want anyone to go through that. You can have two of the best parents in the world and it still be hard to deal with divorce. I was personally affected by it and have seen many others who have had to deal with it. It is not good in any sense. I will pray for this generous, caring, crazy woman who had the willingness to pick up two total strangers on the side of a major road in a major city and take us to a place 10 miles out of her way. I did give her some money for gas and my card. I hope that our paths cross again one day so I can have another opportunity to share with her. I know that not only was God meeting our needs through this woman, but He was also opening the door for us to share His love and compassion into a hurting family. We failed in that and I hope that we get another chance.

With that on my mind, I am entering into a nice relaxing weekend and hoping for some renewal and strength while I am away. I will leave you with a question (which I hope to do with each of my posts from here forward.

Have you had any opportunities recently to share God’s love and Christ’s Gospel? Did you do it? Did you chicken out? Did you not realize it until it had passed?

Day 21 Beard Update

I have some things to share from this last weekend in Louisiana so be sure to check back for those.  With me growing my beard in an effort to make blog consistently, I ask this question:

What have you done in the past as a motivation for accomplishing a task or project?

New Addition to the Communication Bundle

Check out melrosefamily.org to see pictures and other media from my family and I.  

Day 15 Beard Update

Sorry to be a day late.  We are heading out of town this weekend and we have been busy trying to get ready for that.  We are going to Louisiana to see my wife's family and one of the places we are seeing is Natchitoches, LA (pronounced - Nack-a-dish).  This is where she went to school and where her brother is going to school and lives with his wife.  This is also the place where Steel Magnolias was filmed, so in preparation for going, my wife "asked" me to watch the movie with her last night.  I have to say that I was pleasantly surprised with how good it was.  It had been some time since I had seen it and even then I am sure I didn't pay attention to the whole thing.  The humor throughout is really quite funny and keeps it from being a complete cryfest.  Yes I did cry.  But with a great cast who genuinely stepped into the roles of this film, it was hard not to feel every emotion they were feeling.

What movies have you watched or re-watched lately that just seem to be a cut above the rest?

24 Hours of Fun

So I haven't posted in a few days.  I have been busy.  The end of the week always gets crazy leading up to the weekend services.  Not to mention it is a busy service this weekend, so that required some extra attention.  I did however have the opportunity to hang out last night with my good buddy Ty and about 15 or so other men and boys.  Ty just turned 5 and I was invited to his "Nacho Libre" Wrestling Party.  I went as "Spike - The Executioner."  We had such a good time wrestling and doing all the stuff that boys do... Though I did miss my wife, it was refreshing to do guy stuff that she doesn't like and not have to feel guilty for enjoying myself.  Lindy is a great sport, but wrestling is where she draws the line.  She would probably say that she draws the line way before wrestling, but she is always a good sport about watching football and baseball.  She doesn't like NASCAR, which is my dad's favorite.  I hope he doesn't read this.  She might lose some brownie points.

Anyway, that is not where I was going with this at all.  I was talking about how much fun I had.  I got to body slam some kids and drop some DDT's.  It took me back to the days of my childhood watching the Macho Man and Hacksaw Jim Dugan.   I didn't take my camera, but I will retrieve some pics and maybe even some video footage.  Check back for that.

Then, this morning, we got up and met some of the other young married couples from our church at County Line Orchard.  It is an apple orchard about 20 minutes from us.  They have these amazing Apple Cinnamon Donuts that they make fresh every day.  They are so good.  We checked out the pumpkin patch and the corn maze, then we got our picture taken by the sign for Melrose apples.  

The last 24 hours have been a total blast.  Two different events with two different groups of people.  I am wiped out, but it has been worth it. I have a short week this week and then we are off to vacation in SW Louisiana with my in-laws.  Riding the Jetski and relaxing will be the extent of that trip.  Check back for some pics of the orchard and Wrestlemania!

Great Video Shot Entirely On A Cell Phone

I came across this video today.  It was shot completely on a cell phone.  The technology today is getting so good that anyone can be a filmmaker.  It has a great message as well.

65 Years and Still Going

Today is October 9, 2008.  65 years ago, Gayle and Lois Clawson joined their lives together. Since that time, they have parented 4 children, who have parented 16 grandchildren, who have parented 19 great-grandchildren.  There are also 15 in-laws along that ladder of descendants.  What an amazing picture of God's love to see so much goodness come from a marriage of two people.  

I am one of those in-laws.  My wife, Lindy is one of those grandchildren.  It is such a blessing for us to see firsthand that not only is it possible to be married for 65 years, it is a joy for both of them to have each other.  My own grandparents, who have since passed on, were able to celebrate 61 years together. In a world where Divorce takes 1 out of every 3 marriages, it is rare to see such an accomplishment.  It gives us hope and something to work toward.  It commands our attention and respect.  It causes us to think about our own marriages and whether or not we are headed on the same path of longevity. It also reminds me of the unending love that Christ my Savior has for me.  His love is never ending.  We see that picture reflected in strong Christ-honoring marriages.  

To Nana and Grandaddy (Lois and Gayle),

Thank you for loving each other without conditions.  Thank you for modeling Christ's love to your children, grandchildren and great grandchildren.  Thank you for each of the sacrifices you made along the way so that we could celebrate with you on this day.  Thank you for showing each of us that it can be done.  My prayer today is that you would be able to celebrate many many more years together and that you will get to see many more children born into your family.  Your legacy will be never-ending.  Your wisdom will influence generations to come.  Your faith will continue to carry you and your love will show Christ to the world around you.

With Much Love,

Colt

I hope you find this encouraging even if you don't know Gayle and Lois.

Day 7 Beard Update

Here is my Day 7 update on the beard.  Enjoy!

Colt

Smashing Post - pardon the pun

Smashing Magazine posted this yesterday.  It is a great article for anyone who needs an intro into design as well as anyone who has been designing for some time.  There are some really good things in here.

Thoughts from Dave Ramsey

Dave Ramsey responded to the bailout passed by Congress.  I think he hits it right on the head.

Read It!

Too Good Not To Share With You

This is so fantastically funny.  I am sure that 30 years from now, we will look back at things we do now and laugh like this.  Enjoy!

Why I Want To Blog

I work in an environment where creativity has to come quick, be good and be applicable. I need a place to talk about what I am thinking in hopes that someone else who is creative can help me make good ideas great and bad ideas disappear.  Whether that is the alter ego of myself or someone else who happens upon this blog, I don't know.  I also want to blog because I see the opportunity for networking and personal growth in blogging.  There are many people I know that do what I do across the country and they all blog.  I read most of their blogs daily.  I think it is time for me to join in the conversation about what I am learning as I travel through this process of creating creative elements to help spread the Gospel of Jesus Christ.  I am passionate about what I do, but I need to have an outlet to focus that passion and desire so that it becomes refined into an effective tool for the Kingdom.  I hope that this can be that outlet.

A New Day

Today is the beginning of a new day.  This is my new blog, "A Conversation With Myself."  I chose this title because I doubt anyone will read what I have to say.  This blog will most likely be a place where I can hash out my thoughts and have a sounding board for expressing creative ideas, joys in ministry and frustrations of life.  Though I hope the last one doesn't manifest itself too often... 

I recently shaved off the goatee I have had for several years.  Though it morphed into many variations, there was always some form of facial hair on my chin.  I suppose that this isn't a BIG deal as I did so to start a new venture with my face, a full beard.  Starting on Oct. 1 I began with a clean slate and will see what transpires through the winter months of NW Indiana.

I just want to talk for a minute about the feeling I had for the few days after the shave.  It was as though part of me had been taken away.  I could feel the breeze on my chin, as though someone had rubbed icy-hot on it.  (You know the sensation that causes.)  It was new and different; yet it was very freeing and exciting.  My wife even commented on how it felt to kiss me, and how different it was to look at me.  I will even admit that in my vanity, it was almost giddy to look at myself in the mirror.  

That time though has passed, and now I have at least some stubble that had found its home again on my face.  The beard has begun and there is some level of comfort again for me. (Glad that I don't look 17 again).

I say all of that for two reasons.  I hope that the updates on my beard will intrigue anyone who happens upon this blog.  If you have nothing better to do than to check out beard updates, I am glad I can give you some sort of entertainment.  Secondly, I have several friends who are in the process of starting churches or business ventures, or are in a new phase of ministry.  I think there are a couple of things we can learn from my facial hair experience.

First, you have to make the cut.  It can be hard sometimes to remove yourself from something that is so much a part of you.  There is comfort and enjoyment in what you know, who you know.  There is experience to build from and growth that has already taken place.  You might be in a good place financially or ministerially and it might not even make sense to make the cut. The other option might be full of unknowns, uncertainties, challenges and even needs that would hinder the work you desire to do.  That can be a big wall to climb over when trying to make the cut.  I think of it this way: When God calls you to something, that is the best place you can be, because you know that you have His encouragement and guidance that will carry you through the challenging times that come with making the cut.

The other thing that I am learning through this facial hair ordeal is that there are always second chances.  This isn't so much related to the other, although I am sure we have all missed the boat a time or two in trying to follow God's will.  Maybe we have made the wrong cut, or made the right cut to early or late.  Regardless, this truth can be applied to so many times in our lives.  Just like the facial hair grows back, so we too are continually growing and striving to be more like Christ.  That doesn't mean we don't stumble, or accidentally jam the trimmers right into the middle of our 2 in. goatee.  We all make mistakes, but the glorious truth of grace allows us to have a second or third chance. or fourth or fifth, well you get the point. The other thing that happens when you make the cut because you need a second chance; The goatee comes back thicker and fuller and stronger. We do too.

I hope you find this encouraging to you. I know this was a long and weird post.  But like I said this whole facial hair stuff is the catalyst and hopefully the fuel to make this blog run.