August 2010

(5 Best Memories here & 5 Worst Memories here) 5. Teams can accomplish what individuals cannot. I absolutely could not have made it on my Mt. Baker climb without my guides and my team.  In life, we often dream of what we can do as individuals, but the truth is, we are better and can [...]

(5 Worst Memories & 5 Life Lessons Coming Up Next) 5. That I actually did it. It was literally the hardest physical and mental thing I have ever done.  My physical challenges caused more pain than I ever expected and I am not joking when I say I thought seriously of quitting within the first [...]

(Writing this from a plane on my way to a mountaineering school/expedition outside of Seattle in the North Cascade mountains) As you may know, I was pretty badly assaulted at the age of 15.  A pretty vicious crime.  Fractures in my face. Badly damaged sinus cavity. Fractured ribs.  Completely ruined self-esteem. The worst of the [...]

On Friday I am traveling to Washington state to go mountain climbing.  This big one in the back is one of the three mountains we’ll climb. I am going to be a part of a training team partnering with Alpine Ascents – the best mountaineering company in the world. Pray for me :-)  I will [...]

I have found honesty to be a tricky, thorny issue as a pastor. As a general rule, I tell the truth, but I am increasingly convinced that people don’t want the WHOLE TRUTH.  People say they love transparent pastors, but they don’t quite mean transparent – they mean transparent-ish. Sometimes my wife and I yell [...]

On September 15th, 2010, something that has never been done before is going to take place. It’s revolutionary. It’s going to make international news. It’s going to make a legitimate, tangible difference on the ground in Haiti. It’s so unique that it has to be kept a secret for at least 2 more weeks. Here’s [...]

People mainly just tweet about the great stuff going on in their lives.  I do the same thing.  However, I have learned from people that are watching and studying me (and other leaders) that they get the impression that our lives are always GREAT!  They then start to feel really weird and inadequate because their [...]

As you likely know, I just took a team of about 70 people to Haiti to begin building a home and school for severely disabled children with aHomeInHaiti.org. Many people on our team are a bit depressed now – finding it to be a hard transition from Haiti to life in the states.  I feel [...]

(Nobody asked me to write this.  I am doing so out of my deep, decade+ long love for a great elementary school and the leaders/teachers there that I know, love, and respect.) No need in hiding it. Frank L. Stanton Elementary School is my favorite school in Atlanta – always has been since I started [...]