The Road Not Taken

The Road Not Taken



Two roads diverged in a yellow wood,
And sorry I could not travel both
And be one traveler, long I stood
And looked down one as far as I could
To where it bent in the undergrowth;

Then took the other, as just as fair,
And having perhaps the better claim
Because it was grassy and wanted wear,
Though as for that the passing there
Had worn them really about the same,

And both that morning equally lay
In leaves no step had trodden black.
Oh, I marked the first for another day!
Yet knowing how way leads on to way
I doubted if I should ever come back.

I shall be telling this with a sigh
Somewhere ages and ages hence:
Two roads diverged in a wood, and I,
I took the one less traveled by,
And that has made all the difference.

 

Robert Frost

 

I've been thinking about this poem a lot since going hiking at Fort Harrison Park. Sometimes I feel that my life continually plays out this poem that I memorized in 6th grade and can still quote (thank you Mr. Howell!). I've learned in life that it's not always easy to discern the best or less traveled path. Sometimes I wish I could take the easier more worn path with less tree roots and rocks in the way. There have been a few downed trees in our path as of late. God has always been faithful to take us through. When Lori and I received a calling to missionary service what seems so many years ago I never thought it would take this long to start to realize that calling. We have taken a long path that has led us to ministering to children and their families. Now that we are so close I pray we follow God down the path he has chosen. 

So much to say with so little time!

If I were more consistant at blogging I wouldn't feel the need to compress 2 months into 5 minutes! I'll start saying that Collin is in an amazing therapy that is a gift from God! It's called Mind's In Motion and is pretty cutting edge stuff. Right before this his diagnoses was changed to something more severe than ADHD and we were determined not to play medicine Roulette with Collin. That said I do believe ADHD drugs have a place (a very small place) in treatment but we didn't like the effects on Collin and where they were leading him. He has already lowered his dose of medicine and school performance and overall confidence continues to improve! We are in week 5 of a 10 week intensive program. This has been a huge sacrifice on our family time and schedule. We have also strictly limited tv, computer, and video game time to 15-20 minutes a day with 1 movie on the weekend. We actually play games and read with the kids and talk. What an amazing concept in our digital age! God is definitely not done with Collin or our family for that matter.

On the spiritual front God has had me focus on the moment and leave the future to Him. I'm a big picture sort of guy and that is very hard for me. What's funny is that I finally start to concentrate on serving God and being Jesus to the lost on a daily basis and he starts to lead with some of the long term stuff. I do believe God has a big sense of humor especially in my life! I've got such a long way to go but I'm following as closely to Jesus as I can.

One last thought is that if you have trouble "getting into" the Bible ask God to give you a hunger for His Word. He will! I've been just eating up scripture as of late. God actually showed me something in the Old Testament in Exodus today speaking about all the minute details of the priests garments. I'll be honest I found this part of the Bible a chore to read in the past and usually skipped over sections. It struck me that Aaron had to wear this special breast plate and a turbin on his forehead simbolizing the burden of the sin of Israel he was carrying so that their sacrifice would be acceptable. These garments also covered his sins so he could approach a Holy God. Jesus wore a crown of thorns not a garment made of gold and jewels and shed his blood so that we could be forgiven of our sins and approach the throne of the Almighty God with boldness. No longer do we need a priest to intercede for us because Jesus sits on the right hand of the Father interceding on our behalf. We have the great priviledge to pray to the Creator of the universe and he takes the time to listen. Wow! That's the super condensed version I really need to get to bed. Thanks for taking time to once again read my ramblings! Your prayers are always coveted.

It's Been Too Long!

So I'm a terrible blogger! Living life just gets in the way of blogging about it. I'm sitting here watching the snow falling pretty fast now. God's creation is truly amazing. It saddens me that so many people miss the creator when they look in awe at the creation. It is my prayer that someone looking at His wonderful creation would wonder who could make such a beautiful snowy scene. Let me be faithful in giving the answer. We as Christians have the answers and so often keep it to ourselves. Why? In the name of tolerance, complacency, fear, or...... just fill in the blank. I know I am realizing just how many decisions I've made based on fear. Thankfully God has used my choices for his good purpose and brought me to my knees. "For God did not give us a spirit of fear and timidity, but of power, love, and self-discipline" 2 Timothy 1:7 I am so excited what God is doing in our family and how that spirit of fear is being cast off. I've finally excepted what direction God is taking me in. I will share at a later date. Right now I think God is still revealing the details and I don't want any confusion. Just pray that I sense His leading correctly. I don't want my desires or pride to get in the way. More life to live today so I better quit blogging about it. Until next time.

In Christ,
Adrian

The Daniel Fast - Day 1

So my friend Chris suggests a fast might be a good idea. The Holy Spirit soon convicted me and I heard about the Daniel Fast. I suggested it to my wife and she was in agreement. The fast is for 21 days starting today. We are giving up any animal products (meat, eggs, milk, cheese, ....ect), any kind of sweetener including honey, artificial preservatives (will my body survive!), bread with yeast, white rice, white flour, and I'm sure I've not named everything. Yes I know what does that leave to eat you may ask?! Fruits, vegetables, nuts, whole grains, beans, and brown rice (yeah beans!). Oh and only water to drink. My wife will not be able to drink her oh so precious coffee. I love milk and meat and am hoping God knows what he's doing. ;-) We are only supposed to eat reasonable portions at meal time and 2 small snacks a day with 500 gallons of water each (maybe that's exaggerating but it feels like it).


So day 1 has come to an end. It's weird to eat and not be completely full. As an American that's a "privilege" we enjoy to eat until we feel like we will explode. I also gave up facebook since it was taking too much of my precious free time that should be spent with God and my family. I'm definitely feeling the physical effects of the food change. I know it's a good process but it doesn't feel or smell that way. I have found myself talking to God much more today than I have lately. I feel like God is definitely wanting to show Lori and I some things during this time. No the kids aren't fasting with us. That would be cruel and unusual punishment for them although Collin is quite fond of beans and liked the rice and bean dish we had tonight. I am thinking about some sort of fasting (not necessarily food) for the kids. Maiya is a little young but I think Collin could really benefit. I'm sure he will fight it but we shall see.

More Ramblings

I really do need to get better at updating. Chris pointed out(Thanks Chris) that I hadn't updated how God had provided for One Heart Many Hands. I last reported that God had provided the registration fee through a family member and us somehow having extra money at the end of the month. (that never happens!) You have to love God's math. Well Lori was especially ready to give up and prayed that if God wanted us to go he would provide someone we trust to watch the kids. Not even and hour later good friends called and said God wanted them to watch Collin and Maiya. Wow! God is definitely growing our faith. Now we still have to come up with the remainder of the funds before June but that should be an easy one for God! ;-) I can't imagine if God is providing for this "small" trip how he will provide when we are called overseas. Lori and I seem led more and more toward Eastern Europe. Albania and Hungary have been brought to our attention as of late. The plan is unfolding much slower than I would like but God's timing is perfect. Our call to teach children and to reach the lost through them is clear.

As I sit here on this nameless Saturday between Good Friday and Easter, I wonder at the despair the followers of Jesus must have had. Everything they had hoped for, believed in, and witnessed was gone. They watched it all die on the cross with Jesus. What glorious hope tomorrow brings! Jesus is risen and I am so thankful that he is Lord of my life. Happy Easter to all my friends and family out there. Thanks for your continued prayer and support.

Blessings,
Adrian

Confirmation

I'm going to have to post everyday to fit all my thoughts in. Lori and I were both set to go to One Heart Many Hands and really feel God leading us to go. We even had a family member provide most of the registration fee for us which was a huge blessing. Now suddenly we don't have someone to take care of our children while we are gone. We are trying to discern if this is God closing that door or Satan trying to keep us from going. The registration will be due Sunday so there's a bit of a time crunch. I was needing some confirmation and went to the Our Daily Bread devotional and today's devotion was on Phillipians 2. See my previous post. That was the passage that God led me to for this trip. The whole situation got me feeling down and questioning our calling to missions when my son's devotional tonight referenced Hebrews 11:8 By faith Abraham, when called to go to a place he would later receive as his inheritance, obeyed and went, even though he did not know where he was going. I feel more strongly than ever that God is bringing us much closer to going overseas. I had several people bring to my attention that we could just be "missionaries" to people around here because there are many people needing help. In a sense they are right. We are all called to be missionaries in our own neighorhoods and jobs. God has just called my family to go to a different culture to tell them the good news of Jesus. We are still not totally set on what to do about our mission trip this summer but will continue to pray.

Stepping Out of the Boat

Where do I start. My last post was starting the new year and so much has happened since then! To start I'm being "reassigned" to a lower paying position at work. Needless to say that has caused a lot of concern and worry. Lori and I have been in the waiting for a few years now and God seems to be pushing us out of the boat. (a reference to Peter walking on the water to Jesus) We have been trying to see what God is trying to tell us in this situation. We are solely leaning on him right now. My insightful music pastor asked if God might be telling us that it's time to go into missions. The signs seem to be pointing in that direction. We have been looking into teaching English overseas and that is probably the route we would go. The question is how soon.

On another note we are possibly going to One Heart Many Hands in Orlando Florida. It is a giant Work and Witness program that the church of the Nazarene puts on before their General assembly. About 3,000 people will complete almost 200 service project in some of the poorer areas of Orlando. I can't wait to see how God will use this. I am helping to make plans for our church group to go. I was drawn to Phillipians 2:1-4 while praying about it.

¹If you have any encouragement from being united with Christ, if any comfort from his love, if any fellowship with the Spirit, if any tenderness and compassion, ²then make my joy complete by being like-minded, having the same love, being one in spirit and purpose. ³Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit, but in humility consider others better than yourselves. ⁴Each of you should look not only to your own interests, but also to the interests of others. This year will definintely not be a boring one!