Way to Go Britt

As I mentioned a few days ago, Britt graduated from Gr. 7 this week. Yesterday was her last day of elementary school. I think she's going to miss it, because she hung around after school was over just to be there. She had a great report card with some very positive remarks from her teacher regarding her citizenship (which I think means a sense of community responsibility) and her leadership (which I'm very proud of!)

She's had quite a week. On Saturday morning, it looked like she was going on a Mission's Trip to Mexico this summer. By Saturday afternoon, that fell through so it looked like she was going to be spending summer "on the couch". That all changed on Wednesday when she was invited to go on "Street Invaders". Street Invaders provides a crash discipleship, evangelism and ministry training course where the students are placed on teams and work with local churches to reach their communities. She's on her way to Saskatchewan which isn't quite Mexico, but provides all of the bugs, heat, travel and adventure, while still speaking the same language. :-)

She's looking forward to getting there and is going to be raising her own funds to make it happen SO ... if you need a baby sitter, weed wacker, housecleaner or a friend you want to hire, please... CALL BRITT! She's mature, reliable and stable. She makes great cookies and KD without the slightest bit of stress. She's never lost a child she was looking after and always brings them home on time after the field trip to the park/mall/woods!

Walking my dog...

I took Zoe for a walk tonight and had a great "aha" moment. She's a yellow lab who loves to play fetch. We didn't have to teach her to fetch, she was just born to do it and she does it very well... most of the time...

It's been a while since we were out together so she often needs to get focused because she's just so happy to be out in the woods. I threw a few sticks down the hill which she found really quickly, then we moved into more of a treed area. She was so happy to be chasing sticks that she forgot to pay attention to where the stick was going. I threw the stick to the left and she took off full speed to the right. Needless to say, she didn't find the stick on her own.

That's when I had my "aha" moment. It occurred to me that I've been like Zoe on multiple occasions in my life. There are times I've been running one way when the place where I'd be fully satisfied is in a completely different direction. I don't think this a one time lesson, but one that reminds me to keep my eye on the stick so that I can do what I was meant to do.

This has been a great transition period but I'm getting ready to get busy "chasing the stick" that I've been made to fetch. :-)

Frying eggs...

Kamloops hit a record 38.4C yesterday. Not sure how hot that is in Farenheit, but it's REALLY Hot in Celsius. Kamloops is rumoured to be one of those places where it's hot enough to fry an egg on the sidewalk in the summer. Who knows if it's really true, but it was hot enough to melt ice cream as I walked back to the office.

Anyway, on to some serious stuff. Leading Influence is now an approved ministry of the PAOC. That's kind of nice as it just adds to our credibility. On another note, for the first time ever I've got my own personal marriage register. It comes with the official approval.

I can hardly wait to put it to use so if you know anyone who wants to tie the knot, send them my way. Sonya, you and Gary should get married ... for the sake of the kids...

Tim

Christmas in June...

I always thought that Christmas was insane until now... We just finished our 12th weekend in a row with at least two baseball games and usually 3. Not to mention practices and weekly games that pretty much consume every other evening of the week. Let's just say that we've made a whole bunch of new friends (marmots) at the park where the boys play ball.

I'm not complaining... much... but the idea of a laid back summer is just an idea. I don't think it really exists because now we're headed off into "Summer Ball". Tyler is on the travelling tournament team and for this year Zack is on the devlopment team. Practices are on opposite nights so that means 4 nights at the park PLUS alternating game times on weekends. (Did I mention the grass needs cutting, the house needs painting and the dog needs to go to the lake??

In addition, Britt is graduating from Gr. 7. Big day for her. She's quite excited and we are quite proud of her. Her last graduation was in Kindergarten so it's been a while since she's graduated. I'm not sure why, but she doesn't want me to chaperone the dance after. Could it be that there's a boy somewhere in the mix that I don't know about??

Stay tuned for more in the life and times. I'll be the guy with the farmer tan...

Tim

When Blasphemy Becomes Boring

If you've read the article in today's National Post (A14), feel free to skip this, but I found Father Raymond J. De Souza's article very interesting to say the least.
As you may know, Madonna is performing in Montreal this week. Her show includes a number where she appears on a cross wearing a crown of thorns. La Presse gave the tour front page coverage with the headline "Madonna L'Icone" and added an 8 page supplement.
De Souza says that most of her audience wouldn't even see the the blasphemy in her actions because in our culture blasphemy has become blase. He says that if Madonna had writhed provocatively over a Koran, the response in La Presse would have been entirely different.
"To blaspheme is to show contempt for the sacred. It means insulting the things of God. And when culture reaches a point where blasphemy is boring, it is an indicator that the sense of the sacred and an affinity for the things of God are severely eroded."
Listen to this...
"That is the implicit diagnosis of the Archdiocese of Montreal, which chose to provocatively drape it's cathedral as well as billboards and posters across the city with some of the more famous Quebecois curses.... What happens when religious faith recedes to the point where the words are only heard in their profane usage but never in the original sacred one?"
The church is undertaking to educate people as to the true meaning of the words that they use profanely as a form of evangelism.
Kind of brings to mind what Jesus had to say about salt... when the salt is no longer salty, it needs to be tossed aside...
Lord... have mercy!

Things I saw & heard today...

Okay the title sounds boring but it's just been an interesting kind of day as I've travelled through Alberta.
I started in Sylvan Lake Alberta which is a great resort town with it's own lighthouse. Can't tell if you it works, but the town looks like a sea-side resort. Very cool.

I overheard a guy talking about his dying father and his cynical wife saying the only reason anyone cared was so they could get in the will. Hmmm...

I heard about a septic pump truck that flipped over and stopped traffic in Edmonton for an hour. The reporter said that traffic was "overflowing" in that area... (Sorry ... body function humour cracks me up!)

I saw a horse hobbling along a driveway with wire tangled around it's leg dragging along a broken fence post... couldn't help because it was behind a closed gate and this is Alberta and they don't take kindly to "city folk" messing with their "critters"...

I saw one kid throw another out of one of those inlflatable pools. They obviously spend too much time watching professional wrestling.

I saw the coolest abandonded buildings all along the way. Just old barns, bins and houses. I couldn't help but wonder what happened to the people who used to live there.

I saw 2 F18's fly over. Their "roar" was about 10 seconds behind them.

I saw a town called "Hairy Hill". Do you think they call the residents "Hillites", "Hillers" or "Hairbillies"?

I was near "Two Hills" today but didn't see any hills and now I'm in St. Paul (which is a very unique community....) and ready to have dinner.

What did you see today?

The Prize

I happened to be in Edmonton today and missed the return of the Stanley "Cup-less" Edmonton Oilers by a mere hour. I would have enjoyed seeing them because in my mind they are incredibly successful. I read today that they are the only 8th seed team in Stanley Cup history to make it to the finals, much less to Game 7.

During the presentation last night, Tyler (our youngest son) went to his room and brought out his McDonalds replica Stanley Cup to kiss and parade around the room in the same way the Carolina Hurricanes were doing on the ice. (He's convinced that he's going to play hockey for the Calgary Flames and win the Cup with Jerome Iginla... I hope he does. A hockey career will help considerably with my retirement plans!)

Hebrews talks about running to win the prize and I can't help but think that the celebration in heaven will trump anything that we can create here for a sports championship. The crowd there is made up of every saint that has ever run "the race" and even today they are cheering you and me on to run it well. Max Lucado wrote that when it's all said and done that our Heavenly Father will rise from His throne to join the applause as we cross the final finish line. (If you think about that for too long, it will bring tears to your eyes or keep you from sleeping!)

Tyler may one day be in a Stanley Cup, World Series or Grey Cup championship parade. (Let a dad dream...) but of this I'm sure, the party in heaven when we arrive there will make anything here look pretty lame.

Keep on running! The prize makes it all worth it!

Tim

The Church and Leadership

This is part of an email that came from a friend...

I got so excited the other day reading "Authority in Prayer" by Dutch Sheets. I read the most interesting thing that I believe is confirmation for this ministry.

He speaks about the scripture in Mat 16:18-19 where he says "Upon this rock I will build my Church". When Jesus used this word in Greek (ekklesia) the disciples weren hindered by our contemporary preconceived ideas as to what that meant. Church is far different from ekklesia as it was back then. To us it is a local congregation of Christians who meet and worship and what not but back then ekklesia was: (get this it is so exciting) an assembly of people set apart to govern the affairs of a state or nation- in essence, a parliament or congress.

To the Romans it meant a group of people sent into a conquered region to alter the culture until it became like Rome. Realizing this was the ideal way to control their empire, they infiltrated government, social structure, language, school etc., until the people talked, thought and acted like Romans. When Jesus said he would build his church, he was without question speaking of a body of believers that would legislate spiritually for Him extending his government rule over the earth.

Tim again: So... What do you think??

I AM A CHRISTIAN

I'm a part of the fellowship of the unashamed. I have Holy Spiritpower. The dye has been cast. I have stepped over the line. Thedecision has been made. I'm a disciple of His. I won't look back,let up, slow down, back away, or be still.My past is redeemed, my present makes sense, and my future issecure. I'm finished and done with low living, sight walking, smallplanning, smooth knees, colorless dreams, tamed visions, mundanetalking, cheap living, and dwarfed goals.I no longer need pre-eminence, prosperity, position, promotions,plaudits, or popularity. I don't have to be right, first, tops,recognized, praised, regarded, or rewarded. I now live by faith,lean on His presence, walk by patience, lift by prayer, and labor bypower.My face is set, my gait is fast, my goal is heaven, my road isnarrow, my way rough, my companions few, my Guide reliable, mymission clear.I cannot be bought, compromised, detoured, lured away, turned back,deluded or delayed. I will not flinch in the face of sacrifice,hesitate in the presence of the adversary, negotiate at the table ofthe enemy, ponder at the pool of popularity, or meander in the mazeof mediocrity. I won't give up, shut up, let up, until I have stayedup, stored up, prayed up, paid up, and preached up for the cause ofChrist. I am a disciple of Jesus. I must go till He comes, give tillI drop, preach till all know, and work till He stops me. And when Hecomes for His own, He will have no problems recognizing me--mybanner will be clear!!!Written by a young African pastor: It was tacked on the wall of hishouse, and found after he died as a martyr for the Gospel!

Accomplishment

I got a great surprise this afternoon when I typed in www.leadinginfluence.com and saw the ministry website appear. After several weeks of building it, tweaking it, re-thinking it, it's finally gone live with the right address. There's a real sense of satisfaction in seeing this come to reality as it's just one more step on the road to fulfilling the dream.

So... feeling as though I have accomplished something today, here's a quote that I came across today. We have but one life here... It pays, not matter what comes after it to try and do things, to accomplish things in this life, and not merely to have a soft and pleasant time.

Theodore Roosevelt

If God Were To Have His Way...

"If God were to have His way, what would my ___________ look like 5 years from now? Filling in the blank does something to you, or at least it does to me. It forced me to seriously consider how much freedom I was giving God to work in me and consequently in my future. I mean it's one thing to spend all your time living in the past looking at what God has done, but God is also the God of the future and He wants to do something with mine and yours.

The question is "What does He want to do?" and secondly "How does He want to do it?" Jer. 29:11 "I KNOW PLANS I HAVE FOR YOU" tells me that He constantly has something in mind for me that is bigger than anything I have seen thus far. The second question generally involves cost. God doesn't charge me for a brighter future but in order to go there, I have to be purified, pruned and refined. If I could get to the next step without anything changing in me, I'd already be there. Changing is challenging but well worth the reward.

So... if God were to have His way in your life, what would your life look like 5 years from now?

A Case of Mistaken Identity

I read in the Vancouver Sun this morning about two 19 year old women who were both in a serious car accident in Michigan. One was killed in the accident and the other had severe injuries and has just come out of a 6 week coma. The details are amazing. They look a lot alike and the wrong family was told that their daughter was killed in the accident. So, (follow this carefully...)

Girl A was buried by Girl B's family and Girl B was being visited in the hospital by Girl A's parents. Girl A has a tombstone with Girl B's name on it. The way the mistake was discovered was when Girl A's family kept calling her by Girl A's name. Girl B has recovered enough that she knew her own name and kept correcting them.

As a parent, I can't begin to imagine what these parents must have experienced. At the same time, I see a powerful spiritual lesson here. There are at least 3 types of messages that we hear about ourselves that shape what we believe about who we are.

There's self talk - where we are talking to ourselves about ourselves. We send ourselves messages constantly, some negative, some positive, but they are ever constant.

Secondly, there are the messages that we hear from the devil. They are always deceptive, never empowering and ultimately lead to to disappointment and destruction, because the thief comes to steal kill and destroy.

Finally, there are all the messages that God says about us. These are rooted in truth. Full of affirmation, power and life. These are the messages that make a difference in our lives and transform us from death to life, discouragement to hope, despair to confidence. These messages speak to us about who we are, what we can accomplish and what we can be. The words that God speaks over our lives are the words that shape our identity and destiny.

The challenge is to believe the right message, because what we believe about ourselves is what we ultimately become. Listen carefully. Believe only the best!!

Have a good one!!

Tim

New Website - Temporary Address

Hi again - I knew there was something that I missed. The website is also live, although the address is temporary because hosting with homestead is a bit "price". I think what they do is prey on people like me who don't know how to build a site. Homestead makes it easy to build a site that looks reasonably good and then you fall in love with what you've done. Once that happens, you're willing to lay out over twice what normal hosting fees are to "keep your site".

The address is www.leadinginfluence.homestead.com until I find someone who can build a site in front page, net fusion or some other application that will allow me to come in and edit easily. Any takers?? No pressure... You've got 23 days to save the ministry $250!! If you want to help (and can actually build a site..., you can get me at ptim@telus.net)

Thanks!!

Tim

Seeing It Happen...

I had another day of firsts today. I picked up the business cards for the ministry today. (This is hardly a big deal, but I felt like I was seeing a baby for the first time...) This afternoon, I picked up the brochures that are ready to be distributed. This has been so long in coming that it feels like what I have seen by faith for so long is starting to become reality. On the one hand it's unreal, on the other hand, it's surreal.

Maybe this is what Abraham felt like when he saw Isaac for the first time. Maybe a bit overcome, with a sort of "how can this be" type of look and at the same time "O WOW!" it's really happening kind of look.

I'm off to a conference tomorrow that I'm very excited about. Peter Wagner is teaching a seminar on Market Place ministry that I'm going to attend for a few days. It will be great and while I really don't want to spend ANOTHER day on the road, this is for a purpose for which I will gladly lay down my life.

I'll tell you more tomorrow when I have a chance to post.