Love

In 1 Corinthians 12 Paul talks about spiritual gifts. We all have gifts and we are all a part of the same body. It is important that we realize none of these gifts are more important than another. They all have importance and they all have their place. They are all still relevant until we find ourselves in heaven with Jesus Christ. Paul places great importance on these spiritual gifts, but he places even more importance on love in the next chapter. All those things are great, Paul says, but without love it is all meaningless. If we as Christians don't interact with people in love, they will have no interest in what we have to say. 

I have seen no where in scripture where anyone went up to non believers and told them God hates them. That's probably because that is completely opposite of the Truth. God loves everyone exactly as they are right now. He only wants them to come to know His saving grace. God will lead them from there. Each of us have a different function in the body. We all come from different backgrounds, with a different purpose in life. When we go to people in judgement we are stripping them of their God given purpose. God never ordered us to go and judge the world, He said to go and make disciples. 

Paris Marathon

The first thing to say about France: their food is much better than German food. I'm not much of a pork person, however, bread, cheese, and chicken? Sign me up.

We left for Paris early Saturday morning. Our plan was to check into our hotel near Disney Paris and then take the train into the expo and do some touring. Unfortunately our room wasn't ready at 11:30am when we showed up to the hotel, so we didn't get to check in first. So off to the train station we went. But before that we stopped at a little mall where we had to buy some baby wipes, since we forgot to pack some. (how?) And we had a little lunch. It was delicious.

 Me & Marty

We bought our two day train tickets and hopped aboard. It was about a forty-five minute, or hour ride to the expo. Thankfully when we showed up the line was very, very short. Like no waiting short. Rarely happens in a race with 40,000+ participants.

Marty, Brian, Me & Madi

This was us arriving at the expo. It was very big. The biggest expo I have ever been to by far. However, also the biggest race I have ever been in as well.

Packet pick up next to our goal times. Brian just about nailed it, running a 4:16. Marty(5:32) and I(4:44) on the other hand didn't quite make it. But for our first marathon we were happy that we finished. This was Brian's 10th marathon. He is much more experienced in this than we are. 

This is how the expo looked. Crowded explains the weekend well. A lot of cool booths at the expo. Cliff Bar was there, however they cannot sell any bars in France, so all we could get was a little sample. It really made me miss the White Chocolate Macadamia bar. We hung out at the expo for an hour or so and gathered lots of brochures for upcoming marathons. 

Future proof that Madi was in Paris. We didn't go up in the tower due to time constraints. I don't think Madi would have liked waiting around that much. She did do a very good job on her first trip though. She mostly slept, and cried only when she was ready to eat. 

Nailed it.

Marty & Emily

Marty and his wife bought locks for us to put on the bridge of locks. I'm not sure the real name for it. Now our love is forever locked in Paris....I guess. :-)

I was mildly jealous.

Race morning. I do not think I had a good enough breakfast. I intended to have my usual eggs and toast, however we forgot to bring eggs. I had a banana instead. I think that was part of my problem. We were pretty excited at this point. We left the hotel around 6:45am and race start was at 8:45 am. Or so we thought.

Waiting around at the start. Marty and I got in line for the bathroom while Brian dropped off our bags at the finish. We didn't think we would see him again until the end at our meet up point, but a little while later while we were walking to the starting line Marty and Brian almost ran into each other. It was kinda funny considering how many people were there. 

Walking to the start line.

Excited for a little longer. 

Brian and I started in the 4:15 goal area, and Marty started behind us in the 4:30 goal area. The starting areas were fenced off with only one little opening. We were pretty sure that we were going to miss the start, however we ended up waiting for about an hour and a half to start after the first group started. The winner finished in just over 2hrs, or, about the time we hit the 5km mark. The amount of clothes left at the start was crazy. It was pretty chilly in the morning, and then by the time the race started people had begun to shed layers. The first 6-8mi had lots of jackets, shirts, gloves, and hats laying next to the road. 

This was the view I had of Brian most of the race. We ran together the first 15mi and then I started to slow down and I waved Brian off and he left me in the dust. I was right on pace through the first half(2:04) but after mile 20 I began to wonder why I signed up for this.

Entertainment along the route. About every few miles there was some sort of band playing music.

It was this crowded the entire time. 

This was somewhere around mile 22. I think because of my lack of breakfast, or lack of training I couldn't push on past mile 20. I ran/walked the last 6.2. And the gels I was taking were starting to make my stomach hurt. I also probably didn't drink enough water. I learned a lot about how to prepare for a race and how to actually race. 

The proof that I did actually make it! Oh yeah, the spectators. The first half of the race was great. It was right through town and there were a ton of people cheering. After about mile 16 it was very sporadic. We ran through a couple parks and on some roads where it must have been inconvenient to get to. I think that made it a little more difficult as well. One cool thing about the bibs is that our first name was printed on them. Occasionally I would hear people actually say my name and shout encouragement. That was pretty neat I thought. Maybe its normal for names to be on bibs in larger races. 

Madi and I at the pool afterwards. The lady folk met us not long after we Marty finished and we jumped on the train and headed back. They also brought us Chipotle. It was probably the best part of the day. I could have eaten two more burritos, but I sufficed with one. The hot tub was a great way to relax. Marty and I really needed it. 

A different Notre Dame. It is smaller than the popular one. It was pretty neat to tour. We did this on Monday on our way home. 

Ally and I got a candle to light and said a prayer of thanks. It was a neat experience. I believe that this specific church was built sometime around 1220. 

The smiling angel. 

After touring the church we went across town (Reims) to tour Taittinger Champagne. In the cellar we toured they store 3 million bottles of Champagne. It ages anywhere from 3-10years before being sold. They have another cellar downtown that stores 18 million bottles of Champagne. 

 I don't think it was this part of the cellar, but in one of the storage areas they had 72,000 bottles. They are all stacked by hand and it took 2 weeks to do that one area. It seems a little daunting to me.

When Madi turns 21 we are going to get her a bottle to celebrate. Hopefully we will not forget. It was actually pretty good Champagne. And I don't usually like Champagne. 

We thought we should have at least one group photo from the weekend. All in all it was a great weekend. I told Marty that we have two more Paris Marathons we can run before we both move. It seems like a pretty good annual tradition. 

He lives

"Our Redeemer lives..." I was singing the chorus in church this morning, like every other Sunday. I was a little distracted this week, so I was mostly just singing, not really worshipping. I realized this, and then I started thinking about the huge impact this line has. Our Redeemer lives.... The Muslims worship a god, and fight for and kill for a god that is dead. He can't do anything. He doesn't hear their prayers, or send angels to care for them. He doesn't even know their name. The Hindus go to their temple in the morning before they do anything, even shower, in order to offer a sacrifice to their god so that he won't be angry with them. Their god is made out of wood. Or snakes. Or any concoction of crazy images. Their god is not alive. He doesn't care about them. Hindus think their gods will destroy them if they don't appease them. They serve their god out of fear for their life. Buddhists are much the same. They think the more impoverished they live in this life, the greater their next life will be. But their god is not alive. He can't care for them. My God can. He is alive! He's ALIVE! He does know my name. In fact He knew everything about me before I existed. His thoughts towards me are more numerous than the sand on the seashore. He cares about me. He loves me. He is living & active. He encompasses the whole world. He sees all & hears all. I am important to Him. He wants good things for me. I don't have to appease Him. He is not just a statue. He is real. And He loves us! If I was a little more charismatic, or a little less laid back I would have started dancing around the church. How exciting is that news! Our Redeemer lives! That's one thing Christianity has that no other religion has. A living, breathing God. How incredible. Take time today to worship Him.

Forgot to mention

In my haste to write a new blog post I forgot to mention the most exciting news of the year yet. Shortly after we moved to Germany we found out we will be having a baby! We are quite excited to become parents. Allyson has been busy finding out what types of things we need and what brands are best, according to other peoples opinions. I listen and smile and say, "sounds good babe." I hope we don't end up with too much stuff. But, that's usually the case. It still hasn't quite hit me that we will have a little one soon. I am probably going to get a reality check one day. But Allyson isn't really showing very much, and aside from the few things we have gotten already, not much has changed. Except ally's frequent use of the bathroom. If I thought she used the bathroom a lot before, she's in there all the time now. Ok...not ALL the time, just a lot. :-) February 20th is supposed to be the big day. No valentines day in Paris this year!

We are spending Labor Day weekend in Brussels. We have made friends with another couple, and they are coming with us.  Jake is a Crew Chief, which means he walks around kicks tires to make sure everything is ok with the aircraft. Not really, but that's the joke. Crew Chiefs kind of do a little bit of everything. I believe their say is, "a jack of all trades but a master of none." We all get along well. His wife, Elyse, and Allyson have really hit it off. It's nice to have a good 'couples' friend. It looks to be a very good weekend!

A new way of life

In the last thirteen months we have definitely started a new way of living life. Air Force boot camp from September-November started it all off. Being away from Allyson for those 8.5 weeks was terrible.  Hasty 30min phone calls every Sunday didn't quite do us justice. It was just enough time to ensure that we were both still alive and well. Upon BMT graduation we moved to Biloxi, MS where I started classes on electronics. That was a whole new world to me. I didnt know anything about current and voltage and resistance. The learning curve was steep. (it still is) we enjoyed Mississippi quite a bit. Allyson had an apartment right across the street from the beach, unfortunately I had to live on base I the dorms. But I was only there as much as they made me. Those 10 weeks were filled with early morning PT sessions(4:45am) and early nights going to bed. However, we managed to find time to go to New Orleans and Hattiesburg. From Mississippi we went on to Wichita Falls, Texas, which I came to call the sphincter of America. We didn't really enjoy the few months we were there. But we made the best of it. The Dallas and Oaklahoma City zoo were our favorite attractions there. We then got the word that Germany was where we would be stationed. We were very excited about that. We only had heard how hard it was to get stationed overseas, so we didn't really think it would happen. We have been here for a couple months now. I think we have found a groove, finally. But it's a tough transition. Nothing is convenient over here. And it always seems like we need something. We are planning our first out-of-Germany trip this weekend. We will be spending a couple nights in Brussels with some friends of ours. It'll be a nice little getaway. 
This is just a short, short summary of what life has been like. Maybe I'll get more into it another time, but if not,too bad. Just my re-intro back to blogging. 

Priority: God

Sometimes I hear events happening in other peoples lives and wonder how they can be so ridiculous as to let these things happen. I wonder how they can be so naive and wasteful. Or so incompetent. I heard about some people the other night that made me say that to myself. Now I sit here and wonder, what is it that I do that makes people say that? Honestly, I feel I have a well balanced life. Maybe a little on the busy side at times. I get out enough, and I rest enough. I eat well most of the time, and exercise. I spend time with my wife, and I spend time with friends, and sometimes I spend time alone. I read my Bible and pray. I am involved in some things, but not over committed. There is always things that can be tweaked, but mostly, I think I am doing well.

Matthew 6:33 "Seek the Kingdom of God above all else, and live righteously, and he will give you everything you need."

Maybe you aren't feeling balanced. Maybe life is out of whack. Spend more time in the Word. Seek God. Seek the things that God seeks. Prioritize God. Turn of the TV. Turn off the cell phone. Turn off the video games. Tell your husband/wife/family that you will talk to them after you spend time with God. You see, we can worry all we want. But when we fix our eyes on Christ, the things of this world grow dim. It might seem like a big task to sell your house, pay your bills, have peace in the family, love your spouse, etc... but not when you put God where he belongs. He goes first, family is second. He goes first, hobbies are second. He goes first, exercise goes second. Put God first and you won't have to worry about your 401k, your monthly bills, food, etc...because Christ will give you what you need.

Yes you need to pay bills, you need to spend time with your family/spouse/friends, you need a hobby, you need to exercise. Those are not bad things. But when God is your first priority the rest fall into place.

Who, or what is your priority? Video games? Exercise? Cell phone? TV? Make God your priority and your life will have peace.

Stalled

As I was reading in the book "Plan B" yesterday, I figured I had gotten the jist of the book, and not much more would surprise me. After all, I was in the 2nd to last chapter, what could be left? As it turns out there was more for me to learn. Pete Wilson mention a book called, "The Critical Journey: Stages in the Life of Faith" Now, understand I am not really a fan of, "follow these steps and God will do..." because that is not the way life works, no matter how much we want it to. But this book seems to be more about assessing your spiritual walk to see what needs to be worked on. And books can be a valuable tool in doing so.

 As Wilson started going through the stages I was trying to guess about which one I would fall into. I guessed there wouldn't be too many, after all we like to break things down into 3's or 4's, so when I read that stage four was "The Journey Inward" I said AHA! this must be the stage I am at! And I felt pretty good about that. After you have recognized that you are in need of a Savior, have been discipled, and done outreaches or other 'good' things, then you begin to look deeper into your life. So I was quite sure this was my spot. To my dismay the next sentence was something like this, "And this is where many Christian stall." Crap. Alas, there were more than 4 stages. I read on and tried to convince myself I was at stage 5 or 6, because there is no way I was a "stalled" Christian. But as I continued to think about it, and no matter how much I wanted to be on a later stage, I settled that stage 4 was a good assessment of where I was.

Stage 5 and 6 are "The Journey Outward" and "The Life of Love". But something is supposed to happen in-between stages 4 and 5 that perhaps isn't happening, and that's where many Christians get stalled. Don't worry about which stage you may or may not be on, that is not really what is of importance. Pete goes on to say(and maybe int he book too, I haven't read it yet.) that in-between stage 4 and 5 there is a transformation that takes place. I would guess that most of you, like me, are comfortable with how you live your life. You don't want to change anything. Or maybe you just don't know what to change. I see this part of the journey as being where 'the rubber meets the road'. Will our everyday life reflect how important Christ really is? Will the way we do business, our actions,  & our words leave a pleasant aroma? What will our spending habits say about us? What will our planner say about us? Are we actually going to give God the place he deserves in our life?

I think its all too easy to get stuck in this spot. God ends up getting the back burner. We get embarrassed to say that we aren't going somewhere, or aren't doing something because we believe God has called us to a higher standard. We don't want people to think we are crazy, or weird. Or, heaven forbid, actually letting our beliefs dictate how we live!

I plan on reading this book when I can get my hands on it. Not so I can work through the stages, because that is not what life is about. Its not a spiritual ladder we have to climb. Its just a tool to use to assess our lives and have the Lord look into our heart and see what needs fixin'.

What about you? Are you stalled? Are you shying away from God because of unexpected events? Pain? Have you even acknowledged you need a savior? Have you started down the discipleship path? Where are you & where are you headed?