I'm back alive...

Yes Mom, I am back and I am safe. Bryan and I were in the back-country of Glacier National Park for 4 days. After our first day of hiking we were resting at the head of Red Eagle Lake when a small grizzly bear walked out on a sandbar. The bear then entertained us with 45 minutes of swimming in the lake and playing with a stick.
After we were certain that the bear was gone we went out to the sandbar to check out the tracks.

Our second day was a long day (nearly 11 miles and climbing over a pass). Our last opportunity for water was the runoff from a glacier (Sorry Mr. Gore).

This is the final push to the top of Triple Divide Pass. The mountain off to the right is the central watershed of the continent.

The difficult climb was worth the view - both sides of the pass were spectacular. (Bryan is the mountain-sized guy on the right.

The next day was certainly restful as we had no option but to sit in our tent for 9 hours and wait out the pouring rain. After the clouds broke we tried to dry out our belongings.

The next day was even worse so we decided to cut our itinerary short and hike out of the back-country. We met a ranger on the way out and she advised us to head out quickly as a storm producing strong winds, low temperatures and snow was on its way. We made our way to a gravel road and...don't read this part Mom...and stuck out our thumbs for two rides - one from two Native Americans and one from an Irish guy and his girlfriend. They were nice people to get us back to our car at Two Medicine Lake - about 30 miles away from the trail. It was a memorable trip and probably the most beautiful scenery I have ever seen. God's creation screams of His majesty!

Here's the church, here's the steeple...

I recently read that the reason church attendance is declining in some churches is because those who attend on a regular basis are not inviting their friends, neighbors and family members.

What do you think? If we are not inviting people to church - who is? Who or what are we relying on to bring people through the doors of our church?

Fingernail Clippers

Clamp

Cotter Pin

Nature-Deficit Disorder

In less than two weeks I will be heading off into the great outdoors of Glacier National Park for a time of retreat. I enjoy backpacking, hiking and anything else that has to do with mountains. I have jokingly said that my responsibility as a father is to teach my boys what to like at an early age. Out of responsibility I am trying to teach them how to enjoy backpacking, hiking and anything that has to do with mountains. They will come around eventually.

All joking aside - I do believe it is my responsibility as a father to train our boys to enjoy God's good creation. This happens best in the context of being out in God's good creation. I don't want our boys to grow up with the understanding that all good and fun things happen inside with electricity.

Albert Mohler recently wrote on this topic. He says

The troubling development is that many children never play outside. They prefer to play computer games, surf the Internet, or update their Facebook pages. Their parents are increasingly afraid to let them play outside, scared by the constant barrage of news stories about crimes against children. These children and teenagers are accustomed to air conditioning, sophisticated entertainments, and lack of physical activity. They are aliens in the outside world...

...God reveals His glory in creation. How can we read the Psalms with insight if we never look and see that the heavens really are telling the glory of God? Something precious is lost when children -- or adults -- are alienated from the created world. This choice for alienation is a choice to cut ourselves off from what God has given us to enjoy and to appreciate.

Here's some good news. You don't have to spend thousands of dollars to provide your children with experiences in nature and outdoor play. Just open the door and point them into the back yard or take them to a local park. Take a walk in the woods or go fishing in the lake. Go where the light does not obscure and see the wonder of the night sky.

Who knows? Your children just might forget to look for the nearest electrical outlet.

So here is my challenge. Go outside. Stay outside. Enjoy, or learn to enjoy being outside and worship God for His unique work of creation!

Are you a member?

Several months ago my friend and I started a series about the importance of church membership. The blog series was about as consistent as the attendance of many church-goers and like many church-goers it stopped showing up altogether.

Church membership is an important part of the local church. If you consider yourself a regular attender of a local church and still have yet to become a member - it's time. I have yet to hear a good reason for NOT becoming a member of a church.

Up until now there weren't many resources on church membership. I recently finished reading Thabiti Anyabwile's book - "What is a Healthy Church Member?" I plan to give this book to everyone who becomes a member at our church. It is a simple encouragement and challenge to church members about how to be a healthy support to your church. As a member, do you want to serve your church and the leaders in your church? Read this book. It is a short book with ten short chapters. Buy the book. Read the book. Give the book to someone who should be a member and encourage them toward this commitment for the glory of God.

New Church Blog

Our church has started a new blog. It is a means of communication for our congregation - but it is also open to everyone else. I am learning that not many people in our church know about the blogosphere and so many of the comments have come from outside of our church. Please feel free to read, participate and comment. The current post is about tipping the wait staff at restaurants. Join the fun.

Man

Waffle Fry

Potato

I really enjoy blog post series. I don't post to this blog much and I thought it would be fun to begin a series of posts. Over the next several days I am going to post single images that, in my opinion, are best when viewed as a single image. My hope is that, as you view these images, you will appreciate the image for what it is. Don't take it for granted. There are things in life that we need to appreciate more.

Bibles

*UPDATE* - I do have a friend.

A friend of mine asked me what bible(s) we use for the discipleship of our boys. I have posted this information in the past but I will post it again for your reference. I would highly recommend both of these books. Unlike many children's bibles which simply point out the moral lessons of Scripture, each of these books gets to the heart of Scripture. One reveals how the bible is tied together from the sin of the garden to the Revelation of John. The other shows the common thread of Jesus running throughout the Old and New Testaments. On a side note - the illustrations in each are pretty spectacular!

We have used both for about two years now and recommend them to everyone who has children or will have children or once was a child.

It wasn't worthless

Many of you know that I graduated with the very useful degree of Sculpture. Some of you have asked - "do you still do any artwork?" I don't. I don't have a lot of time and sculpture can be an expensive hobby.

In June our eldest sons were painting with some cheap watercolors during our visit to my parents. While they were painting I took a piece of paper to see what I could do. Below is the product of 4 years of study in art. I left the masterpiece at my parents and my dad sent me a scanned copy. I think he was overwhelmed with pride for the greatness of his son.
Please don't flood my inbox with requests for portraits. I simply do not have the time.

She's back

She's back! Some of you may be reading her blog but it has been quite some time since you have seen her bedhead. Check the previous entries here. Send your submissions to me for the Bedhead Hall of Fame and I may post them - if they come close to this queen!

Face it - She's hot!

Vnela

Our friends purchased sparklers for the 4th of July. They were going to spell their names with the sparklers and take pictures of the outcome. I asked them to spell my name and send me the picture. This is the outcome. For the purposes of our friendship, I will say - great job!