Some anniversaries aren't fun to remember

This past weekend we remembered an anniversary. It’s hard to say we “celebrated” because that certainly wasn’t the tone, but we definitely remembered. Some anniversaries are, after all, hard to enjoy. The moment in recall was the day I lost my job, January 16th, 2015, and the day our family began a year like none other we’ve experienced. In the 12 months since the afternoon I took my last walk from the office to my house, we’ve experienced the life of faith like never before. Traci and I have felt the love of friends and family like at no other time in our marriage, and we’ve felt some of the highest highs and lowest lows. It has been a wild journey.

The first seven months after that departure were filled with many couch-surfing adventures (with our family of five!), thousands and thousands of miles on the road (two trips to the West Coast and back) and many tearful nights and tension filled days. We had to make tough never-been-here-before decisions, and trust in God’s hand to take care of us. We made some great memories along the way, including the time we spent on road visiting friends and family.

I remember vividly, the August 5th morning that we were returning from our six week, 11,000 mile road trip to the West Coast. We were still uncertain about the details of the future, but confident that God wanted us to stay in Michigan. We were driving in from a couple night’s rest in Galena, Illinois, and we literally didn’t know where we were going to stay that night (or any night thereafter!).

Some dear friends texted with my wife asking about our living situation, and they assured us that their home would always be available to us, and for the next two nights we would rest in their hospitality. As Traci and I fell asleep in their camper (not even joking when I tell you that it was the absolute best night of sleep I had experienced in months!), I became profoundly aware of how much God had taken care of us. How much He had provided for us along the way.

By that night in August, I had lost track of the number of different beds we had fallen asleep in (well over 30!), and the number of times financial gifts came in to bless us at “just the right moment” of need. Two trips to the West Coast had gone off without a hitch, literally, without a single problem from our 280,000-mile-old vehicle. Hundreds and hundreds of emails, FB messages and posts, texts and phone calls had come our way from people who just wanted to encourage us along the journey. Truly, in the midst of being homeless and jobless, I had never had a more profound sense of God’s work in my life.

So this weekend, on the one year anniversary of watching God change things up as only He can do, I remember, somberly, that His ways are not mine. I remember that He holds the future in His hands -- He already knows tomorrow better than I know yesterday! While I was experiencing (perceived) injustice, hurt, uncertainty and far more questions than answers, God already knew where the path was leading, and He was directing me -- the whole family! -- with the patience, grace and mercy of a loving father.

Ultimately, the goal of living the Overboard Life is that, through an active faith in God and His work in our lives, we are becoming more and more like His Son. That transformation is worth all the uncertainty, hardship and challenge that God directs our way and that this world throws at us. I am praying that 2016 is vastly different than the year we just put behind us, but even more, I am praying that the seeds of change God planted in our hearts and minds last January, take full root and began to blossom and produce fruit in this year.

When I think of the past year with that perspective, I have no choice but to celebrate this anniversary.

What about you? Do you have a painful anniversary that you need to see in a different light? It’s not easy, but it is freeing. After all, since becoming like Jesus is the goal, we must learn to embrace the process that gets us there.

Go ahead and take the plunge, life -- even your painful past -- is better on the water!

How much can you be bought for?

A few weeks ago, one of my friends posted an interesting scenario on her facebook page. She had stopped by a store on her way home from being out, and paid for a couple of energy drinks using a $50 bill. The clerk however, gave her change as though my friend had given her $60. The clerk had probably just hit the “6” key, instead of the “5” key when typing in the amount given. By the time my friend got home and counted the money, she realized she had $55 in her wallet where she once had $50!  

So she posed the question on facebook: what would you do if you were given the wrong change?

The responses were varied, super interesting and at times incredibly humorous. Some people thought she should give the money back, even though a trip back to the store was 25-30 minutes round trip. Other felt like the mistake of the clerk was foolish -- who gives change for $60 when only one bill was given? (Oh c’mon, you’ve never heard of a $60 bill?) Several others were divided, feeling like a call should be made to acknowledge the mistake, and change given if it was convenient. Still others were somewhat undecided.

What about you? Would you return the change? What factors would influence your decision? Would it matter if you had to travel 30 minutes to return it? Would it matter if there was some inherent risk in making the trip? Would the dollar amount influence your decision?

A few years ago Traci and lived across from a Safeway super market. After we checked out and got him, we realize the clerk had given us change (on a $100 bill) and two brand new, crisp twenty dollar bills had gotten stuck together. The result was that we were $20 richer. We realized right away what had happened, so we walked back across the street, got in line with our teller, Demetrius, and returned the change.

He was so thankful. He has to count his register at the start and end of his shift, and any discrepancies in the money can result in either him having to pay back the shortage, or him potentially losing his job if there were repeated mistakes and/or a large sum missing. He was not a repeat offender, but he was so thankful he wouldn’t have to explain a missing $20 to his manager. And honestly, he was a bit surprised that someone would return $20 of his mistake. As he pointed out, “There is no way of knowing who got the extra $20 and if it had been me, I probably would have bought a case of beer and a bag of chips with the extra money!”

All of us face decisions like this in our lives. Whether it’s about getting back too much change at the grocery store, receiving credit for work that wasn’t ours, passing the blame onto someone who wasn’t at fault or hiding the facts of a situation from a spouse, or child, a boss, a legal authority or even the IRS. All of us face these types of decisions that are asking the same basic question: What is your personal integrity and character worth?

Living the Overboard Life demands integrity. Money is one of those areas where many of us can compromise our integrity in order to save a few bucks, make a few bucks or, like in our example today, to keep a few extra dollars that were mistakenly given to us. But turn the tables, and almost all of us would long for people to treat us with integrity and character. If you were responsible for the register and made a simple mistake, wouldn’t you be thankful for an honest customer who returned the extra money?

I’m notorious for leaving my wallet places. Traci and I were vacationing at the beach in Oregon one time, when we went shopping at a local mom and pop grocery store. We bought our stuff, drove back to the condo where we were staying, fixed dinner and started watching a movie. Suddenly my cell phone rang with a number I didn’t recognize. When I answered, it was the local grocery store calling to let me know they had found my wallet and were holding it at the front counter. When they searched inside they found a card with the name of the company who owned the condo we were staying at. They called the front desk, the front desk gave them my cell number, and they called to make sure I knew where my wallet was.

Traci and I drove to the store and realized that, unlike most days, I actually had cash in my wallet that day -- closet to $100. And when we picked up the wallet, every dollar bill was still in there, and nothing had been taken. I found out the name of the young man who discovered the wallet and turned it in, and gave him a $10 tip for his honesty. He wasn’t going to take it, so I gently jammed it in shirt pocket knowing that any 16-year-old kid is happy for an extra $10.

Would you have turned in the wallet? Would you have made the effort to find its owner the way that store manager did? Both the young man who found it, and the manager who took time to find me, demonstrated something really important: Their integrity was worth more than $100. What about you, what is your integrity worth?

Have you ever lied about your child’s age in order to save a few dollars on your child’s ticket at the movie theater or at a theme park? Would you return the money given to you, incorrectly, by a clerk who had made a mistake? Would you leave a bill unpaid when a clerk made a mistake on your order and gave you your meal for free? (This just happened to me recently, and you should have seen the expression on the manager’s face when I returned the receipt and offered to pay the amount in full!)

What is your integrity worth?

I long to keep my integrity in tact, and believe me, I face challenges ever day (as I know you do, too!). I wish I could tell you I had a perfect track record, but that doesn’t give me an excuse for falling short in the future. Solomon said it well, “A good name is more valuable than great riches” and your integrity is your good name. I don’t want to give mine away for a stuck $20 bill, a mistaken return of $5 or for saving a few bucks at the movie theater. My integrity is worth more than that. After all, if I’ll compromise myself for to save a few dollars on a child ticket, what message am I sending my children?

Your integrity is one of your greatest assets. Hold the course now, and it will pay great dividends down the road later.

Go ahead and take the plunge, your integrity is stronger on the water!

My turn to weigh in on Richard Sherman

Four days after Sunday’s big football games, and everyone is still talking about the action on and off the field. Of particular conversation are the words and actions of Seattle Seahawk’s player, Richard Sherman after finalizing the Seattle’s win over the 49ers. As a passionate sports fan myself, I had to laugh at the divide that happened instantly between fans. Seattle fans quickly defended Sherman as being caught up in the moment, getting even for past grievances, and 49ers fans called his actions “classless” and “embarrassing”. Whether you think he is a Stanford grad using his IQ to stir up controversy and keep his name in the media, or a man ranting like a child, this much is true: he sure got us talking.

 Then interviews started happening, video clips were circulating on youtube and facebook, and apologies were issued and fans' entrenchment was even stronger! Was Sherman starting something or was he the victim of bad sportsmanship? I listened to a solid hour of talk about the series of events surrounding the Sunday interview and subsequent words, and this one thing I know -- it will continue to be a major piece of conversation leading up the Superbowl.

As I scrolled through my FB feed after the game, I was struck by how much the one moment evoked so much emotion on both sides of the debate. After reading a great blog that was written rapidly in response to the incident, I started putting down my thoughts. And really, it boils down to just one key Overboard concept:

Character is tested AND proven in the big moments of life.

Whatever you think about Richard’s comments and actions -- whether they were uncalled for, or a justified part of a trash-talking game and sports culture -- the reality is that his character was revealed in what he did and said. And the same is true for you and I when our emotions or reactions overflow into outward expression. Whether it’s because of sheer joy and elation, or because of frustration and anger, your “moments” of expression aren’t the building blocks of your character, they are the reflection of the character that has already been formed.

Many years ago I was driving around town with a pastor when we were blatantly, and somewhat dangerously, cut off in traffic. Instantly my friend threw together a series of profanities. In the moment, he got caught up and let the offending driver know that his actions were unacceptable. I couldn’t really blame him could I? He immediately turned to me and said, “Sorry for that…I don’t usually lose it like that.”

Maybe he doesn’t normally use profanity in such instances, but the reality is that in the moment of that driving day, he did lose it, and what was revealed was a glimpse into how he handles his anger. And I don’t have to look to my friends or acquaintances to see such examples, my own life overflows with moments that reveal what’s going on in my own heart. We all have opportunities to see our character revealed in moments where life throws a curve, justice slaps us in the face or where we overcome great opposition and experience extreme waves of joy!

Jesus said it this way, “Out of the overflow of the heart, the mouth speaks” (Matthew 12:34). In other words, the character that’s being formed inside of you and me will evidence itself in the moments of life.

How is your character revealed in the moment when...

* An unlikable employee is the recipient of praise, or raise, you don’t think they deserve?

* You get cut-off in traffic?

* You beat out a competitor for a contract bid?

* When the waitress messes up your order…again?

* Your team wins?

* Your team loses?

* The house doesn’t look like you think it should after a busy day at work?

* Your spouse shuts you down?

* Your kid’s report card is way better than your friends’ kids?

* You’ve just won the NFC championship?

* You’ve just lost the NFC championship?

* Someone writes an FB post that makes you outraged?

* Your politician gets dumped on?

* You least favorite politicians gets their way?

I believe character is forged in the day-to-day grind of how we try to live our lives. Then, in moments, sometimes special, sometimes fun and joyous, sometimes filled with anger and frustration, the character we’ve forged emerges clearly for all to see. I’m definitely not proud of some of those moments in my life, but I know this: what came out wasn’t an accident. Whatever words or actions came from me were rooted deeply in the character that had been forged in the hours, days and weeks when no one was paying much attention.

What is revealed about your character in the moments of life?

Are you intentionally connecting with God each day, so that your character is developing with His help?

What areas of your life often reveal aspects of struggle for you? How can you game plan to create wins in those moments?

Go ahead and take the plunge, life is always better on the water!

Obedience when it hurts...

A few weeks ago our pastor was preaching through the Old Testament book of Judges and he came across the peculiar story of Jeptha’s daughter in Judges 11. If you don’t know this Bible story (and not many people, do!), let me summarize:

1. Israel was in trouble again. That’s the story of the whole book of Judges, and the saga that unfolds in these pages (definitely a strong PG-13 rating throughout the whole book). Israel kept rejecting God, and God allowed them to experience the consequence of their disobedience.
2. So Israel finally repents and asks God for help, and God raised up a man named Jeptha for a great victory. Jeptha was an unloved step-brother who should have been killed as a young man, but barely escaped with his life. Many years later, ironically, God brings him back to save the very people who tried to kill him.
3. After God assures him that he will have a victory in battle, Jeptha promises to give to God the first thing that comes out of his house when he returns from victory. This seems odd to you and me, but in his day, Jeptha most likely kept his animals with him in the house. I’m sure he was thinking that a little goat would wander out after battle, and that little guy would find himself as a sweet offering to God later in the day.
4. God follows through, Jeptha conquers the enemy, but on his return home his sweet victory was turned bitter when his daughter came out of the house first! Now what would Jeptha do?

And that’s where the story gets particularly interesting. Jeptha’s daughter realizes that she somehow ruined her dad’s victory celebration, and when she inquires as to what has happened, her dad tells her about the vow. Then look what comes out of this sweet girl’s mouth:

“My father, you have opened your mouth to the Lord; do to me according to what has gone out of your mouth…” (Judges 11:36)

What?!?!?

Now I don’t believe Jeptha physically sacrificed his daughter to God; God is appalled when children are murdered, and this would have been no exception. Instead, I feel fairly convinced that Jeptha’s daughter entered the service of God -- maybe in the temple -- in a capacity where she would never be allowed to marry (a heartbreak for a Jewish girl of that day).

Whether or not that’s the right action, and setting aside societal norms etc… I’m blown away by the obedience of his daughter! She followed through on her dad’s commitment, even though it was at a great cost to herself. And as I read that story I had to ask myself, “How much will I obey God, if the cost of my obedience is deep personal pain?”

It’s easy to obey God, or the law, or our boss, or our parents when there is no personal pain at risk. Living in northern Michigan, I’m in big-time hunting country. There are very strict laws about when and where you can hunt, and steep penalties for disobeying those laws. I’m not tempted to break any of them. I don’t even know them. I’m not a hunter, and obeying these laws costs me nothing.

But what if my family depended on hunted meat for our food source? What if it had been a really bad year for hunting and suddenly a trophy Elk walked into my yard, one day after hunting season had ended? What if shooting him was going to be the difference between having meat this winter or not? Suddenly my obedience to the law takes on a whole new meaning.

The point is that it’s easy to obey when the law doesn’t personally impact me. But to hold on to my integrity when it hurts -- that takes true character. And that character isn’t forged in the moment that it’s required, instead, it’s forged in the day-by-day moments as we live out our character and conviction in the small stuff. The moments when no one is looking. The hours that we work on our own, faithful to the tasks even when the boss isn’t check up on us. The weeks or months (or years!) of faithfully honoring our marriage, even when it feels one-sided.

I want to have the kind of character Jeptha’s daughter had when the moment of obedience will cause great personal pain. In order for that to be true, I have to be willing to grind it out today, intentionally living with integrity in my work, thoughts, conversations and interactions. Every opportunity to display true character matters -- and overlooking any of them will most certainly prepare me for failure and not future success.

What about you? Is your obedience costing you today? Are you feeling the pinch to cut corners, to cheat, to take the past of least resistance in order to lessen the personal cost of your obedience? Let me encourage you to stay the course, and to hold true to what God wants! Obedience may be costly, but it is always worth it. And whatever you may lose in this life, will be restored fully in the next.

Living the Overboard Life isn’t easy. In fact, I can almost guarantee that getting out of the boat will require some painful obedience. But I know that obeying God is always the best life I could live, so no matter how much it hurts now, I’m willing to pay the price for what it’s in store for the obedient life. How about you?

Go ahead and take the plunge, life is always better on the water!

Have you ever heard of...

Have you ever heard of Brother Matthias of St. Mary’s? How about this: have you ever heard of Babe Ruth? If you pictured a pear-shaped baseball player with a big upper body and disproportionately small ankles, then you know of baseball’s greatest, and most-famous, player. If you started thinking of a chocolaty candy bar, then you are thinking of the candy bar named after the pear-shaped baseball player with a big upper body and disproportionately…

Babe Ruth was a legend in baseball, was an icon of sports greatness and was a superstar known all over the world. He was the first mega-athlete in history. After baseball’s tumultuous early years that included rampant gambling, fighting on and off the field and a world series scandal that almost removed baseball as America’s pastime, baseball needed a hero. That hero’s name was George Herman Ruth -- the Babe.

George’s early years, however, would be no reflection of his future baseball greatness. By the time he was five, he was already prone to drunkenness (yes, at age 5!) by stealing sips of whiskey from patrons in his daddy’s bar, and was a well known thief with local shop owners. His parents tried to beat him into obedience, but he was a big boy, and only grew larger and more mischievous in the years to come.

By the time he was seven, his parents were done trying to raise him, and they legally released him from their custody and handed him over to a well-known catholic school for boys, St. Mary’s Industrial School (for boys).

It was here that George met the one man who changed his life course. You see, the school George was dropped off at was an Industrial School for Boys -- it prepared young boys to be productive in society by giving them trade skills that would allow them to work in the booming American industrial economy. By age 12, George was actually doing pretty well in school, and was on his way to working in some large-scale assembly line.

But while school was going relatively well for George, he was excelling in his favorite extra curricular activity -- baseball. Brother Matthias had seen a potential in George Jr, a potential that no one else seemed to notice. He redirected the young man’s anger, his feelings of worthlessness and abandonment, into a place where that energy could be channeled for good. And what did he find? The world’s greatest baseball player.

After being drafted, a “babe” in baseball, he became the Great Bambino, the original Sultan of Swat -- Babe Ruth. To this day, his 1918 pitching performance in the world series is still considered one of the greatest in baseball history, and his home run hitting prowess literally changed the face of America’s pastime. He hit home runs like no one had done before -- like no one even thought possible! In fact, it is quite likely the great Yankee teams of the 20’s and early 30’s would be relatively unknown, if Brother Matthias hadn’t invested in George Herman Ruth, Jr.

What a difference one man made.

So often we cruise through life, taking care of the details of life, even being involved in important work (remember, Brother Matthias was working in an orphanage!) but miss opportunities to invest in people that are near us. It’s especially easy to pass those people that seem to require a little extra help. But how many ‘Babe Ruths’ are just waiting for one person to believe in them? One person to give them a chance? Just one person to smile, extend a hand of comfort and offer words of encouragement? Here at Lake Ann Camp we call those children, “opportunity campers” -- not problem campers!

Jesus spent a lot of time investing in some people that we might think weren’t very worthy of having God’s Son invest in them. Remember the woman at well in John 4? She was a social outcast, had been divorced and remarried 5 times and was presently living with her boyfriend. Jesus overcame social and cultural barriers to engage this outcast and giver her new life. Not unlike how He connected with the lying and cheating tax collector (that became one of His 12 disciples!), a dying thief, a blind beggar and a crazy, demon-possessed, naked man running wild in a cemetery! Jesus took time for the unlovely, and lives were radically changed.

Is there a “Babe Ruth” in your life that might need just a little encouragement? Could you give a little investment that might pay out a massive return? As you go through life, even doing great work, don’t forget to ask God to show you whom He might want you to believe in, offering hope, love and encouragement. You never know, you might be giving the next Babe Ruth a chance.

Go ahead and take the plunge, life is always better on the water!