A lot has changed since the last post.  Susan and I are on the crest of child number 2 (Nolan Crosby Barlow), I am no longer a "new" senior pastor with 2 months shy of two years at Royston, and 30 is only 4 months away.  I have a toddler who thinks everything in the world is awesome!  Just look at the picture below.

As Pastor, in my head I like to think the type of work I do looks similar to the picture on the left, however most of the time I am typing on the computer or meeting with people.  (And truly I couldn't make a living with my hands on a construction crew... I'm not at all talented at that type of work) 

It is good to have some constants in an ever-changing world and it is good to have some variety as well.  I look forward to spending time with Sue, catching up on the day and hearing what she has done as I try and remember my day.  I look forward to coffee in the morning.  I am trying to make it a discipline to exercise at least every other day and that has been good. 

I think routine is going to be the key for the upcoming months because I can only imagine how chaotic the coming months will be.  But in spite of all the change and chaos life is great!  Really great!  I feel like I am living a dream, I am truly blessed!

This has been the journey as of late! I will keep you posted on how everything is going from time to time.  (Here is a picture of the family enjoying vacation this summer.  The waterfall behind us was beautiful and P-man loved it!)

Advent like Lent?

I have drawn an unusual parallel in my mind this year that I just can't quite shake; Advent is a lot like Lent. I thought I was pretty crazy the first time I thought about it, but as time has marched on the notion seems to be settling quite nicely. As I have been trying to prepare own heart for the coming of Christmas, it has felt a great deal like the Lenten season, when I am preparing my heart for the return of Jesus!

This strange waiting period we call Advent is not something I have traditionally grown up celebrating and maybe that is part of my problem. I come from a very non-liturgical background where following the church calender would have been as foreign to me as dancing down the aisles during the 11 service (it was always interpretive movement), having the sermon first in the service with the singing and anthem coming after the preacher had finished up, having incense burned, not taking up an offering, or even better letting the kids take up the offering instead of the deacons. Needless to say, I was not raised with such a thing called the church calendar.

I have grown to appreciate the flow of the church calendar. My church uses it loosely, but I like to follow its major movements in my personal life. I have found that Advent helps me to wonder. It brings back some of the starry eyed boy that couldn't wait for Christmas morning. I find myself feeling less burdened about the parties, the cooking (who am I kidding, we all know my wife does the cooking) the multiple trips to the store so the cooking can continue, the gift buying, the Christmas music, the holiday travel etc... These are a part of the Advent season. I am preparing for Christmas, I am anticipating the day.

I had the most fun I have had in year's putting up the Christmas tree with my wife. The reason, it was the first time we have ever gotten a real Christmas tree for one (thanks Dad for putting ours up all those years, it's hard to get that sucker straight) and it was another symbol for me to get ready, Jesus is coming. Get excited, be ready, don't miss it, God is coming in the greatest scandal that history has ever dreamed up. Our God, creator of all is coming in the form of a child vulnerable and helpless and a teenager of all people is going to bring God into this world.

In my personal devotion time I am trying to quiet my heart, listen, and find that excitement. rekindle the excitement and wonder I had about Christmas when I was a child. I know that Jesus is coming and for the next few weeks, I now is the time to stop and think about just how great that really is!

I hope you will too.

Advent's a lot like Lent... the difference, I get really sorrowful, full of despair, and repentant as I wait for the celebration of Easter to come; during the Advent season I am not sorrow and full of despair but rather excited and full of wonder that builds inside my mind and heart as I wait for the joy of Christmas morning.

Happy Advent Season, I hope you enjoy the wait for Christmas!

The Masters

Sue and I are going to the Masters! We are very excited about it and I will post about it when I get back!

More creative

I am not creative in my personal opinion, but I am working on it. I have a goal to be more creative in all areas of my life. Why, because I feel that knowledge is great but creativity is the true genius of life. I believe that my God is and was creative and tapping into the more mystical side of life that can not be measured with success is somehow connecting with God. God constantly defies the correct or the smart move and chooses the creative, the loving, the unpredictable. So, I am trying to be more creative.

Busy weekend

Leaving tomorrow and going to Mississippi. Coming back on Saturday. It will be a quick trip but am going to be able to see my Aunt who is dying of cancer, one of my best friends who is going through a tough time, my Dad who just got a job on Monday (whoop whoop), my sister who is soon going to be married, my brother and sister in law and nephew and niece (you better believe I'm bringing presents, small ones but presents nonetheless) , and hopefully going to get a chance to see the campus of MC for a few minutes. It will be a busy weekend, but hopefully a very good one.

The sermon went well on Sunday. If you would like to listen in please check it out at http://spdl.org/ and then look for the sermon. I am going to bed now. Oh yeah, and if you aren't twittering yet give it about 6 months to a year and you will be. It is the next big thing.

The sunshine comes and it goes

Saturday was awesome! Susan and I ran the Berry Half Marathon. A wonderful experience overall. I woke up in Rome, GA after staying the night with four (five, sorry about that little gymnast, you were the best!) wonderful friends. Sue and I ran the Half Marathon as two of our friends ran the 10 K! Katie and Brian, ya'll both did a great job! The race was beautiful. Sue did great! She ran a personal best!

We just got the proofs from the photographers who were on the course and I couldn't help but laugh because I was always smiling at the camera and goofing off and Sue was focused on the course. I didn't realize it as it was happening but she was motivated and would not be distracted.

And then the sunshine, it has gone again this morning and taken the warm weather with it. I also found out last night as the weather was leaving by the vale of the night my Aunt has 4-6 weeks left to live. She was diagnosed earlier this year with terminal cancer and has recently decided not to continue chemotherapy. Which has led me to ponder about life and the way that it ends. She has been able to tie up loose ends and knows she is close to the end. Would I rather go out that way, or pass quietly in the night, or would I rather not think about it.

But it's going to happen sometime. Which leads me to think about why we try not to think about death? Do we not have a future hope of heaven? And if we as followers of Christ aren't comfortable about an afterlife than is the hope we have for people here on Earth, as we try to bring back people into this glorious light, enough? Does it say something about our faith if we aren't comfortable with the the thought of heaven?

Spring is coming and Easter is on the way, but this seems like an appropriate Lenten Post.

On the sunnier side, here are some pictures from the race.

Some days are better than others

Today was not a good day... It started out really well with Sue getting the day off and getting to see her in the morning but quickly changed. My Dad lost his job today. No one I have ever known works any harder or with more loyalty than my Dad. I don't hesitate to think that he will find a great job and that things will work out for my family but this has made the current financial downturn look entirely different to me.

I have known for some time that it was bad, about one in ten give or take the state. I have even had friends around my age who have been laid off, so it was already personal for me on some level as well, but all of a sudden it seems harder.

It makes me question not just the current resolve of our country but the resolve of this young country for the next few years. If this recession gets really tough, and I don't think it will turn into anything like the 1930's with a 30% unemployment rate, but heaven forbid it does, I wonder if are ready to rebuild like our Great Grandparents and Grandparents did?

I just hope that today is just a bad day. And I hope that our economy comes back with a solid return soon enough and that it is not artificially inflated and therefore it is back with confidence for some time. Some days are better than others.