A Day at the Park

Sunrise over the Platte River

Had to use my old steeplechase skills on this one

Had to use my old limbo skills on this one

So simple and beautiful

Best running partner ever

Benjamin fell three times

The flowers at home: post-run

Time

Sunday's Column...Today

I remember holding a chubby baby yesterday. Or at least it seems like yesterday. He had some fuzz on his head that reminded me of a peach. His eyes were blue like water in a lake. I would touch his soft forearm and softer cheek. His laughter and smile made me laugh and smile. I wondered what his voice would sound like when he began to talk. I wondered what his personality would be like when he matured. 

It doesn’t seem possible, but in just two weeks we will be dropping the boys off at their respective schools. We just picked them up from the last day of school yesterday. Or at least it seems like yesterday. They won’t be allowed to stay up late and sleep in. No more lazy afternoons at the pool. No more early morning runs at Platte River State Park for Benjamin and me. Spelling tests, soccer practices, and schedules too full will be the order of the season.

The Greeks have two words for time: xρόνος (khronos) and καιρός (kairos). The former has to do with calendars and clocks. We can’t do anything about khronos. Nothing. It is predictable and relentless. Kairos is different. It is a moment or a season when something special happens. Kairos has to do with quality. 

The sun will set tonight and rise again tomorrow. That is the khronos. The sands passing through the hourglass. The tick of the clock. The turning of the calendar. It’s going to happen whether I like it or not. 

When I get home this afternoon or early this evening, one of the people I’ll be greeted by is a six-year-old boy. His eyes will be filled with excitement and I’ll receive a challenge to play Mario Cart or an invitation to go swimming. Hopefully I’ll be able to be his dad and nothing else. Not having a care in the world besides loving him and being loved by him. If David and I can pull if off – it’s kairos – the moment when something special happens. Otherwise it is just khronos – each individual sand passing through the hourglass. 

John the Baptist was speaking in Mark 1:15 – “The time promised by God has come at last!” He didn’t use the word khronos. He used kairos. 

Sometimes I feel life is passing by too fast. And then I remember God’s promise of kairos. Life isn’t about the number of years we live, but the life that exists in those years. So take time today to create those special moments that will never happen again. Enjoy God’s sacred and blessed gift of kairos. 

The best is yet to come… 

Craig

Vlog: Burying the Past and Managing Time

Summer Vacation: Losing Your Baggage

50 Days of Prayer Introduction

Vacation Bible School, 50 Days of Prayer, and Losing Your Baggage

Sunday's column...today.

It’s Sunday, July 21st. Today is a big day at The Water’s Edge! A really big day!

Anyone who welcomes a little child like this on my behalf welcomes me. –Mark 9:37 

Tonight is the beginning of three days of fun, friends, family, and faith. It’s Vacation Bible School! At press time on Wednesday afternoon, we had over 160 kids registered. We expect lots more registrations. As long as the child is between the ages 4 and middle school – he or she is welcome. We can always use volunteers as too! You can register on Sunday morning at Millard West or on Sunday evening at Russell Middle School. Vacation Bible School runs from 6:15 to 8:30 Sunday, Monday, and Tuesday evenings.

Devote yourselves to prayer with an alert mind and a thankful heart. –Colossians 4:2 

Today also marks the beginning of our 50 Days of Prayer campaign. We mailed the booklets in the middle of the week and will be passing them out in worship this morning and at Vacation Bible School tonight. And you will also have access to it wherever you are - online. 

We will have individual time with God. We’ll pray for our church. And we’ll pray for our city and world. Couples and friends and families will be encouraged to pray together. You will read a short Scripture and have a thought or two to ponder each day. I believe this is one of the most important things we will do as a church in 2013. I also believe these 50 days can be a real spiritual breakthrough for individuals and will help families begin praying together and talking about some of life’s most important and essential issues. 

I focus on this one thing: Forgetting the past and looking forward to what lies ahead. –Philippians 3:13

One of the things I’ve been praying a lot about is our worship experiences this morning. We continue our sermon series Summer Vacation. The message is Losing Your Baggage. As people we unnecessary hold on to life’s baggage and are burdened with our past. My prayer is that, this morning, we lose the baggage that is holding us back and get past our past. God wants us to trade our baggage in for something else. 

• Our failures and our fears will become faith, forgiveness, and freedom. 
• Our brokenness and our boredom will become belief, blessings, and bravery. 

Serving and loving kids, praying and depending on God, and putting our past in the past…I really do believe the best is yet to come… 

Craig

Vlog: 50 Days of Prayer, Losing Your Baggage, and Vacation Bible School