Got to love that West Coast sunset... 

Went out to LA this weekend with Charissa...it's just awesome out there. 

Took a tour of the West Wing today. It was a great honor to walk the same halls of so many great leaders of our country. Seeing the Oval Office was truly an awesome experience and one that I'll never forget. 

Kayaking on the Potomac... 

Great picture of Charissa and Me 

Took a trip down to North Carolina to see Mark, Kim, and the nephews before they move to Japan for three years!

The crew at Schnabel's wedding, Annapolis MD
Great picture!
 

Steve and Ryan
Tyler and Ryan playing in the back of Momi's car
Bath time!
Me and my Babes!

It seems that everything in life is a process. Steps that have to be taken to get to a certain point or reach a certain goal. Everything ranging from learning to walk to applying for a job requires passing certain benchmarks along the way. Regardless of what it is you are trying to get to, you always want to get there as quickly as humanly possible. Nobody likes to wait in line, sit in traffic, wait to open Christmas gifts, get put on hold, told you'll have to wait 45 mins. to get a seat. We want to be at the finish line yesterday.

During this time of searching for where the Lord wants me to be, I've learned the hard way about what patience really means. Not the kind of patience required when waiting for the traffic light to change, but rather the patience needed in managing life's challenges. The patience that forces you to fall on your knees and let the words "be still, and know that I am God" wrap around your soul and comfront you.

All throughout the Bible you read countless stories of men and woman who, against their desires, are called to wait on the Lord for years before they are used for one purpose or another. How did they get through that waiting period? I believe they did it by holding on to Isaiah 40:31...,"but they who wait for the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings like eagles; they shall run and not be weary, they shall walk and not faint." We have the promise that if we wait on the Lord, we too, will receive these blessing. That's the deep patience I feel like I'm learning and will undoubtedly continue to learn for the rest of my life.

Each morning I wake up, I've learned to simply ask the Lord to sustain me by His grace for that day as I wait on Him. It takes patience to learn patience.

We sang this at church this morning and it really is the image of the gospel...

"Before the Throne of God" C.L. Bancroft

Before the throne of God above, I have a strong, a perfect plea,
A great High Priest whose name is "Love," who ever lives and pleads for me.
My name is graven on His hands, my name is written on His heart;
I know that while in heav'n He stands, no tongue can bid me thence depart.

When Satan tempts me to despair, and tells me of the guilt within,
Upward I look and see Him there who made an end to all my sin.
Because the sinless Savior died, my sinful soul is counted free;
For God, the Just, is satisfied to look on him and pardon me.

Behold him there! the risen Lamb, my perfect, spotless Righteousness,
The great unchangeable I Am, the King of glory and of grace!
One with Himself I cannot die, my soul is purchased by His blood;
My life is hid with Christ on high, with Christ, my Savior and my God.

Here's a couple of pictures from Dave and Amy's trip to St. John.

 

It's just my luck that after I make the analogy that "life is a lot like bumper cars"... I get hit by a guy backing out of his driveway. Well, I guess it's back to the dealership for a new door and mirrow...after just getting it back from them. Everyone I have told has had the same reaction...they've all laughted. Not cause it's funny, but because they know it's just another thing to add to the list of unfortunate luck.  

I've been thinking alot lately about the timing of events in our lives. Specifically events that happen that knock us off track. Then the thought occured to me that life is alot like bumper cars. You remember the fun it was to get in that electric car that was wrapped in a rubber bumper and then go smash into anyone and anything that got in your way. You ram into someone and you get turned around or you end up leaving a mark of paint or dent on their car. How true this is with those in our life and the bumps we take with each other. I'm not suggesting that we are simply getting tossed around aimlessly or that our path in life is controlled by another person, but rather the bumps we do take shape and chisel us into the type of person we are becoming. The bumping into each other may result in us being pushed back or jarred in a new direction, but isn't that the adventure and freedom that life calls us to have. I'd rather have a life of being knocked around with my foot on the gas pedal than one where I'm just sitting idle.
I believe that you go nowhere in life by accident and the people that are in our lives are there for a reason at just the right place and time to help knock us on the right path. Regardless if it's a bruttal hit from behind or it's a bumper car that you've rubbed up against for a lifetime...it's still part of God's plan for your wild adventure.

Got to spend the weekend at Amy's bay house. It's alway so refreshing to my heart to wake up to the still waters and amazing perfection of God's creation.

Eric and Mary's little boy is here!
Gabriel McClaughry Teather born Feb 9th at 11:53pm weighting in at a strong 5lbs 4 oz 17 inches.

 

Got to see the nephews this past weekend down in NC. They're getting really big! 

Had the great honor of being able to see my brother, Mark, receive a civilian military award for his service over in Iraq this past weekend. Congrats bro!

Last night I was driving home and my Explorer completely gave out. I lost complete control of the wheel and brakes. Thankfully I was able to get off the road without hitting anyone. I called AAA only to find out that my policy had expired, so I had to spend a half hour alone just trying to renew it, then another half hour trying to explain to some person, who probably was somewhere in middle America, where I was located. Then wait another hour for the tow truck to show up...only to be told that I had intrupted the guys dinner. The drive to the Dealer's was me basically listening to him talk on the phone to his girl. Once there, he told me to get in the car (while it was sitting at a 45 degree angle) and drive it off the flatbed...that's gotta be illegal somewhere. But the worst thing about that....the service guy calling me today with the damage report. It's never a good sign with they start off the conversion saying, "um, yeah, were you in a really bad accident or something." "Um, no...why?" Then the best is how they start listing all the terms you've never heard of in your life..."um, your ball-bearing crankshaft caused the glow plug to bust the steering pipe which in turn caused the lay down to over run your chassis." Of course you have to sit there and pretend you know exactly what he's saying. Well, looks like it back to bread and water for the rest of my life...

One of the greatest quotes I loved from the LOTRs trilogy was from Frodo wishing the ring had never come to him:
Frodo: I wish the ring had never come to me. I wish none of this had happened.
Gandalf: So do all who live to see such times, but that is not for them to decide. All we have to decide is what to do with the time that is given us.

It struck me today how often I find myself wishing that the "rings" that have come into my life would just be taking away. I find that I continually have this conversation with God about how these "rings" are really messing up my plans...and that if only He would remove them, I could get on with my life. But I think we all reach a point that we have to decide what to do with these "rings" during the time that is given to us. Are we going to allow it to infect us until all we do is complain about out state of existence? Or are we going to learn to live free and let Christ move you in ways you never imagined. Not easy, but it is the call of the Christian. After all, the Bible is filled with story after story of men being called and used mightly by God through their human weakness. Christ had to make the same choice...."not my will Father, but yours be done". We must decide to fight, and not let these "rings" hold us down from who Christ calls us to be.

 

 

Went out this past weekend and did some Country Line Dancing. It was actually kinda fun. Here's a few pictures of the crew. Gitty Up. 

“The longer I live, the more I realize the impact of attitude on life. Attitude, to me, is more important than facts. It is more important than the past, the education, the money, than circumstances, than failure, than successes, than what other people think or say or do. It is more important than appearance, giftedness or skill. It will make or break a company... a church... a home. The remarkable thing is we have a choice everyday regarding the attitude we will embrace for that day. We cannot change our past... we cannot change the fact that people will act in a certain way. We cannot change the inevitable. The only thing we can do is play on the one string we have, and that is our attitude. I am convinced that life is 10% what happens to me and 90% of how I react to it. And so it is with you... we are in charge of our Attitudes.”
Charles Swindoll

Christmas is just one of those times I believe God gave to us as a gift. It's a time that we can just put down all the work and just spend time with loved ones. It was special this year cause my oldest brother come home from Iraq and was able to be reunited with his wife and 2 boys. As we move on into 2006, I really wonder what this new year will hold. For someone who so desires stableness, I'm sure it'll be one of unpredictability. Good thing there's faith. 

Seriously, how can you say no to that face. 

Pic's of the nephews...

It's about relationships. Life is about relationships. I was very fortunate to spend some time with close friends whom I use to work with recently. And as I looked around, I couldn't help but think how dear they were (and still are) to me. It's the type of friendship that comes from being in each other's lives on a daily bases, and knowing that no matter what you may be going through, they still love you for who you are. These are the friendships that make life.

A lot has happened over the past couple of years in my life. Things that I have had zero control over. Things that make you fall on your knees and say "enough already." But these experiences have drawn me closer to understanding who I am in Christ. Not overnight, but years of searching for understanding. When what we have relied on in life is taken away...I mean stripped from you without any warning...our true selves are revealed. It's then that we are brought to the point of knowing that we can't go through this world alone, and we start to understand the joy of living in God's grace and provision for our lives. It's then that we can begin to understand that we are only who we are in Christ...and no more. That's wild...

Got to see POTUS land on Air Force One at Andrews. That plane is huge...