Andrew update

It was good seeing my buddy today. Andrew was off the ventilator - awake - and able to reach back and use the one thing that makes him Andrew...his sense of humor.

He's stable - breathing well on his own (well, that might be stretching it), and fairly pain-free (thanks to the morphine button he gets to press every six seconds).

I'll be calling Mary for another update in a few minutes, but we're hopeful Andrew will be released from the ICU today.

I'll let you know.

Till then, thank you for praying.

Dennis

Please pray for Andrew

Yesterday, Andrew McElyea, one of my closest friends, fell from a ladder - about 10-12 feet - and landed on his back on a flagstone walkway.

He has been in Parkland's ICU since yesterday afternoon.

He broke some ribs and breathing was labored so they placed him on a ventilator and have him in a medically induced coma to take the pressure off of his heart and lungs. They are still waiting on test results and watching him closely --- as of of this morning, his stats were looking good and he is stable.

Please pray for Andrew and Mary (and their children).

We love you Andrew - hang in their bro, and I'll see you this afternoon.

Dennis

The Countdown

Just an update on a lion I presented a few months ago. Sunday is another challenge that was offered to me several months back that I accepted. THE WHITE ROCK 1/2 MARATHON!!!

Staci and her team will join in on the fun running the relay marathon this Sunday. We will miss church as it might take until late Monday for me to finish. Just kidding. (hopefully) I will only be running the half marathon so this is an easier start.

Enjoy your weekend and think a good thought for us on Sunday.

There will be a Christmas Party update coming later today. Mark your calendars for the 15th. It is going to happen.


Wally

South Africa Video

For those that missed the weekend of my video here it is. I hope you enjoy it. This was a magical trip that blessed me and those we worked with while we were there. I haven't been able to thank all of you individually but I really do count it a blessing to have been sent by all of you. I couldn't have done it without the support of all you crazy Lion Chasers that helped make it happen.

We will be having class this Sunday for the last time this year. Please make it a point to be there. I know you are all looking forward to being able to sleep in through December but we won't have any more through the holiday season.

I love you all and look forward to seeing you again.

Wally

HAPPY THANKSGIVING

This, my favorite of all the major holidays, is going to be a great weekend. Why is it the best? No presents!!

Thanksgiving is kind of like Christmas without all the angst regarding gifts. You get all the good stuff. Family, food, football, cooking, and movies are the plays of the day for both and are great. However, the lack of consumption is so refreshing.

So, enjoy your Thanksgiving and the refreshing family time that it is. Don't stay up too late; Christmas shopping starts at 4AM on Friday.

Wally

Thoughts From the Comfort of Home

After a 25 hour plane ride home we arrived in Dallas to friends and family. It is nice to be back in the US. My beautiful family arrived at the airport with some dear friends to welcome us back. It was very nice.

In trying to summarize this trip I have so many conflicting feelings. When asked by Staci, if I was ready to go back the answer is two sided. I don't want to return due to the level of suffering that you experience and the depth of the pain. On the other hand there is nothing like serving the Lord in this capacity.

First the good. Jesus is quite clear that you are serving him when you are serving the least of these. There is more blatent opportunity to serve the Lord in Africa than most anywhere else in the world right now. It seems disease, poverty, and death are around every corner and there is an orphan waiting for ANYONE to come and show that you care about them. There is an extreme level of joy that comes in serving.

Why not go back? Pain that deep is not easy to deal with. I remember the last time I felt that level of pain and it was during the death of a 10 year old boy that was the son of a good friend. There was a point in this trip that I got a glimpse of our Lord's pain as he yearns for his children. Why does God allow this kind of suffering? I don't know but I certainly was asking.

The question for this trip that was answered, "will I go if I am sent." I have answered that question for the time being. I am just responsible for taking the next step. I don't know what that step will be, however, I am willing to take it.

I appreciate all the prayer and effort it took for our little team to go. I want to thank each of you for your part. There were people that loved on my family, took Staci out on her birthday, fixed Caleb's bike, watched the kids, served dinner, checked to see if there was any work that needed to be done, worked on the project with me, and emailed to let us know you were thinking about us.

Lastly, I appreciate my dear family for what they gave up while I "Chased the Lion" to the other side of the world. I know it was hard. They not only "made it" but blessed me upon my return with what they had done while I was gone. I am very lucky to have a family that is willing to give so much.

Wally

Winding Down - Mathew 25:40

Well, it has come down to one more meeting with the CEO adn COO of Hands and I will officially be done for this trip. There is much more work to do but it will take place at home.

There really isn't a way to summarize the trip within the confines of this blog. The impact of the trip will be whether what I have seen will make me live a different life at home. I pray that I will never forget what I have seen and felt here.

We finished last night with worship, prayer, and communion together. It was a powerful experience. Our team has shared something unique in that we were not close before we came. Mostly, we didn't know one another. Foxholes has a tendency to create deep and lasting friendships. We all feel like we are about to climb out together and there is a sense of relief on the team.

We all share the same concern. How do you translate this to people back home. There is so much need, so much pain, so much death, yet our God is enough. I don't know how; but he is.

This is something that the team will all be a part of in some form for the rest of our lives. I hope I am able to help people get here to serve their Lord in this place. Matthew 25:40

Thank you all for your help in getting me here through prayer and support. I hope I am able to do the same for some of you. I ask you now to pray for those working here in Africa. They are volunteers for the most part and come here with a heart to be the hands of Jesus.

See you soon,

Wally

Cramming for Finals

After looking through my posts, I am encouraged to be brief.

Today the team has travelled to Cork, SA, to do home based care in that community. I am back on campus completing all I can to leave Hands at Work with guides on what needs to be done next.

This is similar to preparing for finals. Tomorrow at 330 PM I will meet with the CEO and COO and present my ideas for improvement and show them what we have completed while I was here.

All the people I have worked with have been great. I ask a lot of them with hard deadlines and they have hit most of them. Business here is not like at home. People are more relaxed about deadlines and requirements. They have been gracious with my requests. However, I am pretty sure some of them will be helping me pack.

We leave on Friday morning for a trip to Kruger Game Preserve that is just a couple of miles away. This is going to be a great experience as we should see all kinds of animals from a truck just like you see on TV.

From Kruger it is back to Joburg and begin the short trip home. (uuuggghhhh) The winds are supposed to turn the 15 hour flight here into 18 hours fight back to Washington DC. That is a really long time to be on a plane...

Wally

Simple Observations Through the Senses

One of the great things about being here is just the chance to see something new. It isn't always easy but I do appreciate it more now.

Here are some simple observations about South Africa through the senses.

• It rains with the electrical intensity of a power plant. No sleeping peacefully through these storms.
• There are very few puddles in the morning. The ground must be so thirsty that it soaks it up quickly.
• While running in the morning you will smell the intensity of mangos and tropical flowers.
• Monkeys are funny and don't like you to look them in the eye.
• Beetles are huge.
• Centipedes viewed to this point max out at about 8 inches.
• Driving on the wrong side of the road isn't as hard as it looks.
• Nobody here seems to be in hurry for anything until they get in a car.
• Bathwater can have a smell.
• Home cooked food tastes better than you think.
• The touch of another human can transform a bad situation to a good one.
• South Africans hold your hand while they talk to you until the short conversation is done. It is nice to have the connection.
• God can touch you through worship in any language.
• Everyone in the world has an accent except those from Texas.

Wally

Quiet on Campus

Tonight is a little different in that most of the team is doing something called "home stays." They divided up into teams of two and have ventured into the community for a two night stay in the community of Masoyi. This is the community that Masoyi Home Based Care serves. Several were apprehensive but did it anyway. I stayed behind to work and to have a couple more meetings in the morning.

Jeff returned telling us that one team is staying with a guy that will sleep on the kitchen floor so the visiting couple can have his bed. He told them that he didn't have electricity but it was okay because he would cook their dinner on his gas stove. The common denominator of the love of Jesus goes a long way to bridging our two worlds.

I am excited to hear their reports when they return. I hope to get a majority of my work done before they are back. I am still very overwhelmed by the amount of work to be done but God is merciful and will direct. I was offered a position here to have more time to finish the work but I have presently declined. I promised Staci that I would at least come back to Dallas to pick them up.

I went down to see the hippo that lives in the lake at the bottom of the hill this evening. It is interesting to have hippos to view as the sun goes down. God is good.

I am looking forward to sharing God's grace and how he has really blown up my little world. I don't know that God calls everyone to an adventure like this but I highly recommend it.

Wally

Saturday - God Cries Too

Today was an incredible day for the team as we took a field trip to the St. John Mission about an hour South of the campus. The ride was crazy enough as they were doing highway construction on the road that we took. They don’t shut down two lanes and complete them before starting on the other two. They tear up the whole thing and you drive on dirt where the road should be. However, I am burying the lead story here.

The mission is run by six nuns (sisters) and there are 28 children that are a mix of HIV+ and HIV-. All children are there because they have been removed from the family (using that term loosely) or both parents have died from HIV/AIDS. There are about 20 children on side of the facility that are younger than about 7 and the other from 7 and up. I was put with the older group for some serious play time.

Hide and seek, reading Spiderman, swinging, running, making videos on Jeff’s camera, singing, and a tour of the facility were the items of the day. I made a special with connection with a boy named Victor. We played together most of my time there. I was able to give him a gift gave me the day that left. Caleb wanted to send something for a special boy and it was clear that this was him. I was able to bless him with Caleb’s gift.

Victor’s story is one of miracle and complete heartbreak. He was found at a hospital a few days after his mother struggled to gain the strength to tell the sisters that there was a baby boy that he had and left at a camp. The sister hunted for him for days and eventually found him at a hospital where was taken to die. The sisters rescued him and he has been with them since.

His birthday was established as Jan 1, 2000, by the courts and his name picked by the sisters. He has no sense of history except that someone at St. Johns loves him.

Needless to say this was an emotional nuclear bomb. Upon arriving last week, Jeff talked about letting Jesus touch you in a way that will destroy how you look at the world. I was safe until today… The damage is done.

May God bless you to feel His heart for His kids. He is the Father to the fatherless.

Wally

Day Four

Today I will tell you about what the rest of the team is doing. We have several jobs while we are here and people are rotated through each area daily. The areas are the garden, the building project, home based care, hospice and two orphanages. Everyone has enjoyed the different jobs but the favorites seem to be the building project, because of the workers, and the orphanages, because you just love on and play with the kids.

Today was Jeff’s day to do some home based care with a group called ACTS that is currently serving 1000 people that are HIV+ in the Masoyi community. He had a wonderful experience of seeing a man that was mere days from death last year that is now walking and doing well. That experience was followed by a drastically different one.

Upon arriving at the small home, a woman walked out wearing a black scarf to tell the nurse, and Jeff that the patient had passed away. He was HIV+ and had suffered terribly. Jeff and the nurse were invited to come in and sit on grass mats and pay their respects. They did.

The story in Masoyi is like Jeff’s day. Good things are happening and terrible things are happening all around. Yesterday, one of the teams was able to go in a treat a small child with medicine. His grandmother was a witchdoctor. Both happiness and horror live in the same home.

There are a lot of people working hard here. Our team is one of many that will come through and assist this year. People that follow Jesus they tend to end up near the sick, the poor, and the dying. There are a lot of those here.

Blessings to all,

Wally

Day Three - the work begins

Today I spent most of the day figuring out why I am here. They are a great mission with a genuine desire to serve the desperate poor, the sick, and the orphan. H@W is also experiencing extreme growth which they are not equipped for. This organization is in need of help with structure and everyone I met with was ready for some assistance.

I don’t think there is enough time to accomplish even half of what they need here. Please pray that God will direct to the areas with the most need and the fastest resolution.

I met an incredible couple that are here as a part of the US Peace Corps and I think they are a big part of the solution. They both have business organization backgrounds and have been waiting for my arrival. We are going to work together well. They are from Minnesota and have an incredible heart for God.

My internet connection has not come through yet because this is Africa (TIA). I went to the computer store today to get it resolved and the power was out. They just close up and go home. Two hours in and out town and no internet. However, we were able to secure some very necessary items; Coke, Diet Coke, and cookies. I was able to ride in with Jean Amie so it was worth every minute. She is an awesome individual.

We are about to go have our day wrap up meeting and then I will be working well into the night to finish the work of the day.

Bless you all. I appreciate your prayers and emails.

Wally

Day Two - The Head of the Lion

We left for Church today in the community of Masoyi and we had church. On the way, we stopped to pick up a friend named Busi and she translated for us. The speakers spoke in both English and Sswati (a derivative of Zulu) but most of the singing was in Sswati. They saved several rows for us up front and sang like angels behind us. We were able to sing along a little but most of the time I was sitting there stunned by the glory of God in the place.

In the “doesn’t God enjoy a little irony” department, Jeff was pointing out some of the landmarks on the way to the church and pointed out a mountain that we can see from our accommodations. He told us the real name which I can’t spell in any form so I will give you the translation: The head of the lion. This mountain when viewed from the correct angle looks just like the head of a lion with the ears, mouth, a long nose made from rock formations and the mane made of trees.

They did have a small building for meeting and many were dressed in their Sunday best. There were all ages and several people participate at many levels. Offering was broken into three different opportunities to give. Three plates were up front. One for tithes, one for feeding the orphans, and on that I didn’t hear. They sang and danced to the front to give to the Lord. (Here come the tears) Giving back to the Lord is a glorious occasion in any language and they gave like the widow. They were not giving out of their wealth. Lord, may I learn from their example.

Now for the preaching. (better hold on) One of the older women came up for preaching and this was all done in Sswati with the English interpretation. The passage was from John 6:22 regarding Jesus talking about being the bread of life. Have you ever thought about that verse from the standpoint of actually being hungry? I had not. We listened as the speaker poured out her heart to Masoyi and its problems. The answer to all the conditions in this community lie in John 6:22.

After church, we returned home. Eric, Amber and I made grilled ham and cheese sandwiches with chicken soup. Very fun. We then were able to do rest for about an hour where I went to talk to Eric N. and had some coffee with him. We had a team meeting to determine what we would be doing for the next week and I am excited to share what the team is doing as we go. It looks as though I will mostly be here at the school working with them. Hopefully, I will get out next week to one of the orphanages. H@W has about 30,000 kids in its care right now and we are aiming for 100,000 by 2010.

Tonight I have my initial meeting with Marc. (COO H@W) We are getting things rolling and I am ready.

Wally

Day One if Africa

We arrived in Joburg yesterday around 3PM local time. The plane flight was long and there wasn’t much sleeping but it is over and I won’t have to ever to that again. (oops) The drive to the African School of Missions (ASM) was interesting as we saw several animals along the road that you don’t see in our part of the world. (no lions) It was also interesting in that they are not that concerned about lanes or speed limits here. After the 4 hour trip we ended up in city that could have been mistaken for anywhere in Texas. It was like driving through Frisco.

Another 10 minutes down the road and we weren’t in Frisco any more. ASM is located between the community discussed above and Mosayi. Middle class here starts at the equivalent of about $90k a year and the people of Mosayi would be lucky to make $100 per month. The level of poverty is something we really don’t understand. According to Jeff, the surrounding communities are not even aware of Mosayi and the road signs in the area lead you around communities like this. The HIV+ rate in this city is 2/3.

The ASM is a beautiful campus with huge tropical plants and a mountain on one side. There is also a large electric fence around the place that gives you a sense of being protected and confined. Normal life is a little different. The huge fences are just part of everyday life. To show how safe it was, the leader told us that they were able to let the guards go and haven’t had an incident since December. Sounds good to me; let’s keep that streak going.

I was up early this morning for a run, some reading, a bath (no showers), and a modest breakfast. Sounds like a regular Sunday morning. (minus the starbucks, doughnuts, and goodies everyone brings to class) We are about to leave for church in Mosayi that Jean Amie is taking us to. She has a friend that will translate for us and I am really looking forward to it. I wish I could remember the language but I wouldn’t be able to spell it anyway. I am anxious to get started as I really don’t get going until the work week starts.

Wally

Soon and Very Soon

I have completed packing and ready to embark on my adventure. After a beautiful day with my wife and a fun evening with the kids it has come down to go time. Staci and I had some great discussion over lunch that I wanted to relay to you guys.

Most of this is in the form of prayer requests for the trip. The basics are the same: safety, health, and effective travel. The other things are more particular and center around the effectiveness of my work. They are as follows:

• Stamina to work as long and hard as it takes to get the work completed
• The Spirit to guide every word that comes out of my mouth when discussing how to better the work that is already being done
• The Spirit to close my mouth when it should be closed
• Direction on how to direct this project. (I have little idea what I am walking into and fear that it may be more than I can handle)
• A spirit of family with those I am working with so we may accomplish the work of Jesus in this troubled part of the world

Lastly, if I may steal a thought from the book, I pray that God will return the investment with children that will be led to him as a result of this work. Hands at Work is touching kids on a grand scale but this could lead to an exponential exposure to more kids.

Thank you for being an important part of this trip.

Wally

FishCamp 2007

This post has nothing to do with our Sunday School class, but I couldn't resist the temptation to post the pic's from our men's camping/fishing weekend.

I know you are jealous.

The pic's are set to the song, "Point of Difference" by Hillsong.

Got lions?

Since Wally reminded me that we're bearing down on the end of the Lion book, I thought I'd post a few of Katherine's lion's that I'm stealing from her RaisingFive blog.

She wrote a post the other day called,

"More on the end of the parenting honeymoon."

Kath's a great writer - I can't read her posts without cracking up. But I appreciated her thoughts in this post because she "candidly" described the lion's she's chasing, and I thought that some of the folks in our class could relate to them. Here there are:

• Keeping my marriage strong, when kids’ needs seem to be so insistent
• Raising kids to know and love God in today’s culture
• Finding balance with our schedule so we can have dinner together most nights of the week
• Strength to deal with ongoing character issues such as selfishness, anger, carelessness

She finishes up with a quote from Batterson,

There is a pattern that I see repeated throughout Scripture: Sometimes God won’t intervene until something is humanly impossible. And he usually does it just in the nick of time. I think that pattern reveals a dimension of God’s personality: God loves impossible odds…

Too often our prayers revolve around asking God to reduce the odds in our lives. We want everything in our favor. But maybe God wants to stack the odds against us so we can experience a miracle of divine proportions. Maybe faith is trusting God no matter how impossible the odds are. Maybe our impossible situations are opportunities to experience a new dimension of God’s glory.

Can anybody relate?

So...how big's your miracle?

Are you Foolish Enough

I am looking forward to finishing up the "Lion" book on Sunday with everyone and wanted to give us some thoughts to consider before class on Sunday.

Is it the fear of foolishness that keeps us from walking on water or killing giants or finding the Messiah. What foolish thing is God asking you to do? What Lion is he calling you to chase?

Following is a list of things that you may want to consider. Then again you may have your own. Please bring your thoughts to class on how you may pursue some of these things.

• Tell someone your sorry
• Fast
• Confess a sin
• Share your faith with a friend
• Tithe
• Serve in the church
• Go on a mission trip
• Tell someone you love them
• Lead a small group
• Befriend a homeless person
• Ask for a raise or new responsibility at work
• Ask someone out
• Sell something and give to a person in need
• Pray every day
• Pursue a new hobby
• Submit your resignation
• Submit your resume for a new job
• Go back to school
• Other?????????????

"Instead, God has chosen the world's foolish things to shame the wise" (1 Corinthians 1:27a)

So how do we overcome the fear of foolishness? Read Eph 5:18 and come talk about it on Sunday.

The Great Commission is Risky

We have had some good comments through email and posted on this blog. Thank you for all the thoughts and prayers. Following is a comment from someone in the class followed by a video from South Africa.

From Anonymous:
"As usual, this was going through my head DAYS AFTER our class. I think understanding scripture is KEY in knowing the heart of God and therefore giving us direction in our lives.It seems that to the degree of importance (from scripture) something is, the greater risk is justified. e.g. evangelizing unreached people is in line with the great commission, and therefore worthy of greater risk."



George is the CEO of Hands at Work. I will be working with George and others to develop their systems. Thank you to all of you that are praying for my family.

Wally

Within His will

Some discussion from Sunday morning's class focused on recognizing opportunities that God is placing (or walking) in front of us. How do we know if we are walking in the will of God. Ps 37:4 says "delight yourself in the Lord and He will give you the desires of your heart."

If you are delighting yourself in the Lord then you are more than likely within the will of God. Staci discussed walking within the valley of the will of God. God will direct us within the Mountains and He just wants to keep us going in the right direction.

There are several people in our class and church that are looking for answers. God is good and will provide the answers as we walk in the right direction. Moses didn't know everything that was coming, he just took his shoes off and the rest is history.

I am excited that new people are finding our class at just the right time in their life. God will bring people to us that we can help.

Now go jump on a lion. I know you can see them better now. God has raised your awareness to see them as they come. They can't hide anymore.

Wally

WOW !!!!!

Hope you made it to church this morning. God is doing some business in our church.

Are You Comfortable?

God has been speaking to those around me regarding the level of comfort we experience in this country and it has got me to thinking. Are you comfortable? I googled "comfortable" and found 154 million possible hits around the world. We are consumed with comfort.

When talking with a client today about my impending trip, he mentioned that he is reminded of our comfort every morning when he tests the shower to make sure it is just perfect before getting in. (not too hot, not too cold) The concept really stopped me in my tracks and spoke to me. I would venture to say that I am guilty of being a disciple of the cult of comfort.

As we look around the world, those born in the US are some of the luckiest people in the history. Even the poorest among us live better than a majority of the third world. We were the lottery winners. We did nothing more than being born in this great country.

How did we get chosen to be the winners? I really don't know. I would enjoy your answer if you have one.

Having had all these conversations has led me to the conclusion that God isn't looking out for my comfort. He must have tremendous pain as he looks at his people's suffering. The problems seem so big, yet God is big enough for them.

I pray that God moves you in a way that does not end with you being comfortable. God is doing something in our church and our little class. It is not comfortable to step out and do something out of the comfort zone but you will be so happy you did because God will show himself out there.

Wally

On Your Mark...

The latest installment of "hey I haven't done that yet" is the topic of the White Rock Marathon. I have decided that it is probably time to go public with this small endeavor. If for nothing more, I am beginning to wonder about whether or not this is a good idea so I will put it out there to hold myself accountable.

Before admitting to completely loosing our minds, we have modified the andeavor a little. Staci has assembled a team that will be running the marathon relay and I will only be running half. See not so crazy after all.

Before any of you ask and I have to feel like a bad guy, I don't run with people. I am chubby, slow, and only trying to maintain the ability to process oxygen so running with people does not work. Staci and I tried it. Nope...

If you are feeling like signing up, go to www.runtherock.com to get signed up. Come to think of it, I should go ahead and sign up...

I promise a more spiritual post next time. God is so good.

Wally

Beyond Measure

As I have contemplated my recent decision to follow God to Africa I have slowly been made aware of the honor to serve God with my talents. I have been made keenly aware that I have the opportunity to return a very small portion of what God has given me. I feel more alive (and scared) than I have in a long time.

"I know that I've been given more than beyond measure. I come alive when I see beyond my fears" (Jeremy Camp, Beyond Measure, 2006)

God isn't going to reveal the whole story at the beginning, it would take the fun out of it and we probably wouldn't be able to handle it. When we decide to break down and give God control, every next step is an extraordinary scene. God is revealing Himself to us and our Church as we move toward Him.

My hope in sharing is for those of you looking to step out and risk something will see that it isn't easy for anyone. We all have crazy fears. Name your fear write about it with the steps we discussed in class then: JUST BEGIN... TAKE A STEP... See where God will take you.

I am looking forward to this Sunday in the Conference Center. We will finish this chapter so you can relax beginning next week.

Wally

Taking Risks

Wally dove in to Chapter 6 (Taking Risks) this morning - most likely he'll post about it later.

Just had to put up one of the bullet points from his outline:

"Lion Chasers have the courage to overcome inaction inertia. The fear of missing out is greater than the fear of messing up."

I'd like to say this described me perfectly. But I've missed too many years being more afraid of messing up than missing out. In fact, I've gladly "missed out" more than once because I was afraid of blowing it - messing up - failing - and wondering what others would think.

I can relate to what Gwen said in class - much of that fear has been focused on a desire to "not fail" my children. Or, should I say, "not fail in front of my children."

Either way - I've got to trust that God is in control. Like we discussed a few weeks back, whether I choose to embrace uncertainty has a lot to do with my perspective on life. Do I really believe God is ordering every footstep even when it feels like I've taken a wrong step? Do I really believe God is sovereign when nothing seems to be going my way? Do I really believe God is good even when bad things happen?

I want to.

And, like Wally mentioned this morning, I want to continue trusting that God is connecting the dots of my life, even if I can't comprehend what "in this world" He's doing.

Even if it never makes sense this side of eternity.

Dennis

Now that I was able to play nice for one post I wanted to present a challenge for you. Take a look at this blog http://www.wivafrica.blogspot.com/ and take a look at someone that decided to chase a lion right into the lion's den. Please take the time to go down through the blog to see how God honors the work of those that honor him first.

Has anyone else noticed that God seems to be waiting for someone to sign up for a ride? I know a few of you have really taken this thing to heart and are moving forward on your lion. I am moved every time one of you shares another story about what is doing through you. Please sign up to be a story and share it with the rest of us.

Those of you that are waiting to hear the voice of God, He says "Be still and know that I am God." Here's to being still.

New Blogger...

Just wanted to take a test drive on this and make sure it works. I know I need to write something here that provokes serious thought or how great family is over the Labor Day Holiday, however, I just don't have anything awesome right now.

I will have an update soon on a serious lion encounter in a couple of days.

We are so crazy excited about our move on Sunday mornings to a larger place. I hope you join us in our new digs. God is doing something in our our church and our class is one of the places it starts.

Thanks to Dennis for taking the time to put this thing together. You are one of a kind dude.

Wally and Staci

The Solomon Question

Food for thought from Buddy Cremeans blog:

A recent question that’s been lobbed out to me by a friend of mine, that I can’t stop thinking about and I still don’t have the answer for, is this…

THE SOLOMON QUESTION
If God could do ANYTHING for you Buddy…just ONE thing, what would you ask for?

I still don’t have my answer, but if someone asked you THE SOLOMON QUESTION, what would your answer be?

That's makes two of us, Buddy.

But I'm sure it would have something to do with one of my favorite lions (one that I don't want to chase away).

This Lion's not from Narnia

We've been working through Batterson's In a Pit With a Lion on a Snowy Day, and our last class only got 5 pages into Chapter 5 (Taking Risks).

I found some of the text from Batterson's sermon on his ChasetheLion site, and wanted to reference them here just to help them sink in a bit:

During the Chase the Lion series we’re looking at one of the most courageous acts recorded in Scripture. An ancient warrior named Benaiah chased a lion into a pit on a snowy day and killed it.

Scripture goes on to list his military achievements and they are pretty impressive. He was one of the most decorated and celebrated warriors in Israel’s history. He was the captain of King David’s bodyguard. He was one of David’s thirty mighty men. In fact, Scripture says he was more honored than the other thirty. And Benaiah goes on to become Commander-in-Chief of Israel’s army.

But the genealogy of success can always be traced back to the risks we take. II Samuel 23 records three dominos. Benaiah took on two Moabites despite being outnumbered; he chased a lion despite snowy conditions; and he fought an Egyptian despite the fact that he was out armed. And those three risks had a domino effect.

As I reflect on my own life, I realize that most of the good things that have happened are the byproduct of a few risks. And the bigger the risks the bigger the rewards!

I'm still in the pit wrestling with one of my lion's (man, this is one long wrestling match). But I am determined to crawl out of this pit alone.

What lion are you chasing (or should be chasing)? I would bet that you can't even imagine the domino effect it will have on your life. What's keeping you from doing a roundhouse on the first domino?

Mine is fear of the unknown (it's career-related). What if it doesn't work out? Go as planned? One thing I know - whether it goes as "I" plan, matters not. I will have the lion skin on my wall. And I'm convinced that God's blessing will follow.

By the way...it's a pretty boring existence being in the pit alone - without any lions to kill.

I've decided that, while I'm there, I'm not comin' out unless I've got some fur between my teeth.

How 'bout you?

Dennis

Chase the Lion with us

No turning back. We've decided it's time to "openly" chase our lions, so we (The Candid Life class from Hillcrest Church, Dallas, TX) are going public.

In the process of nailing our lion skins to the wall, we'll use this site to update our fellow lion-chasers about what's going on in class - upcoming events - class notes, etc.

As noted on the sidebar, we'll skip class this coming Sun. 2nd, as we'll be partying down @ Family Sunday, starting @ 10:30am. All families will be meeting together for worship, then, we'll eat and let the kids tear it up on the inflatables.

We'll be back at Chapter 5 (In a Pit With a Lion, On a Snowy Day) on Sunday 9th - join us at 9:00am. We'll drink coffee (maybe eat something unhealthy), talk straight, and get in the chase together.

Email me if you need directions: thecandidlife@gmail.com

Dennis