Category Archives: Family/Life

What Goes Down Must Come Up

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The world is big and I want to have a good look at it before it gets dark. – John Muir

What I learned, Day 8:

I learned how to embed videos!!  Now you’ll get to see what I’m talking about instead of relying solely on my description.

FullSizeRender 122 What goes down, must come up.  Our first stop of the day was Grand Canyon of Yellowstone.  It was probably the one thing I couldn’t wait to see in Yellowstone.  Sure, you can see it from above.  But why when you can see it from below?  So down we went the Brink of Lower Falls Trail.  Here again maps fail you at scale.  The trail didn’t look too bad.  And several times we thought we were nearing the end.  Why not?  The water was right there!  We could hear the falls!  But switchback after switchback down we went…. down down down.  No one warned us about up up up.  They did look winded coming up.  But they were all so unhealthy looking.  Nope.  All of us look unhealthy coming back up.  The air is thinner too so everyone is breathing heard.  Fortunately it was well worth the effort.  It was one of those moments when you get down to the bottom, your knees weaken, you grasp the handrail with white knuckles, and maybe say a choice word in your head.  It was magnificent.  One of my favorite things I’ve done so far. FullSizeRender 127 FullSizeRender 123 IMG_0347 FullSizeRender 124 FullSizeRender 131 FullSizeRender 125 FullSizeRender 130 Yes, it really is that color.  Every time I saw pictures of the Grand Canyon of Yellowstone, I thought, “Why do they have to put that old timey filter on it?”  It just has an appearance of an old photograph.  But it really is that color!  These photos have no filter.  The whole canyon looks like it is oversaturated, over contrasted, and over the top.  It is breath-taking.  By far the best spot in Yellowstone. FullSizeRender 128 This guy is an idiot.  That’s all I have to say about that. FullSizeRender 120 FullSizeRender 116 The elk don’t care you are there.  These females were just enjoying their morning.  What you can’t see is to the left a baby elk romping around.  The bull we saw at the Canyon.  If you see a traffic jam, its probably elk… or maybe these… FullSizeRender 119 FullSizeRender 118

The bison don’t care you are there either.  Just don’t get too close.  That big one in the picture was grunting a lot as we passed by.  I just figured it was best to keep moving.  I love the candid moment in the video…. “What’s nursing mom?”  Another discussion for another day. FullSizeRender 129 FullSizeRender 117

Blue means hot.  The center of these pools are around 198 degrees.  Some of them can be more acidic that stomach acid.  And they all usually smell.  But they are so beautiful to look at.  Deep blue colors that look like the ocean waters of the caribbean. IMG_0374 IMG_0382 Fishing is good for the soul, even if you don’t catch anything.  A majority of Yellowstone is fly fishing only.  We have spinner rods.  What I learned is that a fly is too light to cast.  That is why fly fishing uses the weight of the line and the whipping action.  So to fix the problem they sell you little clear bobbers.  Worked like a charm…. except we didn’t catch anything. Kids could have cared less.  And I have no idea why Wyatt is ducking.

Route/Itinerary: Yosemite National Park.  West Entrance to Canyon.

  • Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone
    • Inspiration Point
    • Artist Point
    • Brink of Lower Falls
  • Noris Basin

Yellowstone Day 1

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One touch of nature makes the whole world kin. – John Muir

What I learned, Day 7:

Sometimes you just need to rest.  We’ve been going hard since leaving Fredericksburg on June 5.  And Thursday morning we set no alarms, made no plans, and just took it easy.  I was able to piddle around the camper and fix some things the rough roads had knocked loose.  Found a great hardware store that was super helpful in getting me what I needed.  The boys road their bikes.  Played Mario Kart.  We cleaned a little.  It felt very much like a Saturday.

West Yellowstone is not a thriving metropolis.  The grocery store is really non-existent.  Imagine Armageddon has taken place and you walk into a grocery store to get your bare necessities only to find it has been wiped clean.  No bread.  $10 chicken.  $5 milk.  It was no bueno.

FullSizeRender 110It is good to have family!  When we began planning this trip, we asked my in-laws and my parents if they wanted to join us at any part of the trip.  My mom and stepdad chose Yellowstone.  After bailing us out at the supermarket where they were staying, they rolled in around 1PM and we took off to Yellowstone.

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Maps are a poor representation of what you are about to experience.  Yellowstone is HUGE.  I got a glimpse of this driving in on Wednesday.  It is very big.  Very very very big.  Its hard to comprehend its size when you see a little square box up in the upper left hand corner of Wyoming.  And within that little square box you have the wildest of geological changes.  One moment your in a canyon with a river, then a valley with grass as far as you can see and buffalo grazing.  Then you are up into a pine forest.  Then you have steam all around you.  Such wild diversity.

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Yes, Old Faithful is faithful – and very cool.  You worry that the blind are leading the blind.  You see a crowd gathered (very large crowd) around the circle of Old Faithful.  Maybe they are mistaken.  Maybe no one has actually looked to see when the next eruption will be.  Because you wait, and wait, and wait.  You have some teasers of abundant steam.  Then nothing.  Finally, when the steady plume of steam has lulled you to boredom – BOOM!  Old Faithful proves its worthiness of a must see.  I hate I can’t figure out how to upload video onto a WordPress site.

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In only half a day you can see things that will amaze you.  Mud pots.  Crystal blue springs. Geysers.  At one point, we were looking one direction at a geyser.  Then Wyatt noticed something making a bunch of racket behind us and we got to see Jet Geyser show off for us.

The sun, for some reason, is different here.  71 degrees doesn’t feel like 71 unless you are in the shade or have a breeze.  Its dry.  No humidity.  But the sun is intense.  Many times I feel its in the 80s.  Not sure why.  Maybe we’re closer to the sun.

Route/Itinerary: Yosemite National Park.  West Entrance to Old Faithful.

  • Fountain Paint Pot
  • Firehole Canyon Drive
  • Old Faithful

Over the Mountains

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One day’s exposure to mountains is better than a cartload of books. – John Muir

We pulled in late Wednesday night. Also our campground’s wifi is super slow. So tonight I’ll be a day behind.

Day 6 – Over the Mountains

What I learned:

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My wife is not part of the Audubon society. Before we left the Black Hills, Jennifer was wondering what alarm was going off. It was loud and it happened at regular intervals. She didn’t believe it was a bird until I showed her. Noisy sucker.  If you want to hear it click HERE.

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11 hours with windy roads is harder that 14 hours with straight roads. The last bit of our treck was through Yellowstone. It is 2 lanes. Slower. Lots of cars. It winds. And it has some fun decents. I was exhausted by the time we got to our campsite.

Pull-through sites do not mean easy sites. I pulled into the site and realized one of my hoses didn’t reach. I corrected and realized my kitchen slide-out was too close to the picnic table. I moved, hooked everything up, and realized I couldn’t extend my awning because of a tree. Not a fun 20 minutes.

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Pictures aren’t immersive. I realized that the reason a picture doesn’t communicate, is that it doesn’t show you what is on the left and on the right. It seems futile to try to explain to everyone how incredible the scenery is. Every time you turn a corner it is something new. Every bend in the road reveals some amazing formation. Every horizon holds a new treasure. And that was just on the road. It was amazing! Our favorite part of the drive was easily crossing the Bighorn Mountains. Majestic is a good adjective. And just when you thought it couldn’t get any better, you got to descend into an amazing canyon.

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People get worked up over silly things. I was reading whether to use Hwy 14 over the Bighorns or Hwy 16. My initial research was avoid Hwy 14 because the descent can be treacherous. I had Jennifer look it up one more time just to make sure and she found a post of someone who claimed to be an experienced RVer griping about how Hwy 16 was so bad and that they would never do it again. I just didn’t see what the big deal was. And honestly I’m so glad I did it. It was breathtaking. You climbed this incredible ascent, into peaks, pine forest, and snow pack. Then on the way down it was a pretty smooth 6-7% grade. I barely had to use my brakes. I assume it all depends on your rig. If you have good exhaust or transmission braking you are fine. My Allison uses transmission braking and I rarely had to use my brakes. Very smooth ride. I checked and had 6.6 MPG at the top, 10.6 by the time I hit the bottom. Is it colder at the top. YES! I was a little too giddy the entire time. Honestly, the descent into Yellowstone was way more stressful. For some reason the National Parks don’t seem to think they need to put up a sign that says “Hey! Curves ahead!”

Taco Johns is not Taco Cabana. We saw a place called Taco Johns that claimed ‘West-Mex’ food. So we figured what the heck. Think Taco Bell and down grade it a bit. I wasn’t a fan. We miss Taco Cabana of Texas. It’s what Taco Bell could be.

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Pictures don’t capture smell. I know I’ve said this before, but it becomes even more evident when driving into Yellowstone. Wyatt and Weston were bickering about who passed gas. Of course, it was the sulfur rising from the vents in the park.

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The land is VAST!!!  In Wyoming we saw beautiful mountains, a whole lot of nothing for a very long time, and then beautiful mountains again.  If you want to disappear off the face of the planet, move to Wyoming.

Lastly, GPS’s aren’t always so smart.  Mine refused to take us through Yellowstone.  Even halfway through the park it was trying to turn me around and route me up through Montana.  Finally it figured out what I was doing.

Route: Custer, SD to West Yellowstone, MT, via Hwy 16 and through Yellowstone

Campground: Grizzly RV Park

Time: Left 8:00AM CT.  Arrived 7:20PM MT 11Hrs 40Mins

It’s Only a 5% Chance

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Everybody needs beauty as well as bread, places to play in and pray in, where nature may heal and give strength to body and soul alike. – John Muir

What I learned, day 5.

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Sometimes things don’t go as planned.  Where do I start?  First, I was planning on doing Iron mountain highway because it has several amazing tunnels that frame up the faces of Mount Rushmore.  But they closed part of the road and cut off 2 of the 3 tunnels.  At least we got the first one in.  Then, we were going to do the needles highway on the way back.  Road construction prevented us from following our schedule and made us push it to the evening.  We did the Wildlife Loop.  Most of the wildlife was on a coffee break.  The biggest unforeseen was, well read on.

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Mount Rushmore really is remarkable.  However, we felt it was ‘take a picture and go.’  We did watch a 15 minute film on how it was made.  But that was just to beat the heat.  It was so hot today!  We got our pictures and got back into the A/C.

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Pictures are deceiving.  We may look like we are having fun.  But I think at this point we were all spent.  Too much in one day.  The ATV seemed like a good idea.  But after about 15 minutes, 20% of your hearing gone, and your face windburned, you realize you’d rather be in the air conditioned truck.  Great picture though.

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5% chance of rain means that there could be rain, not there’s a 95% chance it won’t rain. After driving in the ATV through the Wildlife Loop, we headed into Custer to top off the tank and get a blizzard from the DQ.  I just happened to look out the window as I was throwing away some trash and said “We got’s to go now!”  There were dark clouds on the horizon.  Keep in mind, we have no windshield.  We have no doors.  We have no windows.  We only have a fabric roof.  And we are about 10 minutes from our campground.  About half way back it started hailing – little pea size hail.  Not that bad if you were looking out the window.  But not too pleasant if it is hitting you while you are doing 30 mph.  Ouch!  At least the kids had helmets.  The wind kicked up.  The rain started.  And I am sure the temp dropped from 85 to 65 in a hurry.  It was cold!  We could not stop laughing the entire way back.  Soaked to the bone we turned the heat on and let the kids eat dinner in their underwear.  Of course, none of this was in my spreadsheet.

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Needles highway is a must see.  I’m so glad we made ourselves go back out and see it.  The rock formations are unreal.  I have just too many pictures to post!  At one point I thought I was Matthew Mcconaugheyn a Lincoln commercial because we had a buffalo staring us down.

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You can’t take a picture of smell.  Pine.  Mist.  Streams.  Wildflowers.  Clean.  When we went through needles it had just rained.  It smelled amazing.  Too bad I can’t share that with you.

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Route/Itinerary: Custer State Park – Iron Mountain Hwy to Mt. Rushmore.  Wildlife Loop.  Needles Highway.

Bad ain’t so bad

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What I learned:

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Sleeping in isn’t what it used to be. Last night I was tired. Jennifer was tired. The boys were tired. We hosed them down, put them to bed, and set no alarms. I mean, come on! Just the other morning we couldn’t get them up! Surely they’ll sleep in?  Nope. 6:30 rolled around and you could feel the camper moving. Its like a jungle gym to them. Another thing I learned is the tooth fairy visits you no matter where you are. We’ve told Weston there isn’t such a person, but he doesn’t care. He still pretends.

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The National Parks system is such a gem.  Jennifer wondered allowed if people drive by what we are seeing everyday without thinking about it.  I’m sure they do because we do the same.  But if you have a chance, get to a National Park.  Go visit a memorial in DC.  Go to Shenandoah.  Go somewhere!  There is a National Park or Monument close to you. I’m sure of it.  And they are there for you to enjoy!  I think that is why I love Teddy Roosevelt so much.

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The Badlands aren’t so bad. It was really remarkable to be driving in such flat country, and to top a horizon with these formations in your view. I truly felt I was riding through an attraction created by Disney, but so much better. You could spend a day in there letting your kids climb everything in site.

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Rattlesnakes are shy.  I was hoping to snap a picture of a rattlesnake, but they resisted. I did get a prairie dog. They were running around everywhere!

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Everywhere is God’s country. I used to say Tennessee was God’s country because it is so beautiful. Everywhere I have driven has been just as beautiful. The Badlands? Their own unique beauty. Then drive into the Black Hills. They are simply breathtaking. Tomorrow is Mount Rushmore, Iron Mountain Highway, Needles Highway, and Wildlife Loop.

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Chevy makes a mean truck. Everyone thinks my truck is new. “Is that a 2013?” “Nice truck! Is it new?” Um…. No. Its not new. I bought it with 113,000 miles on it and it’s a 2008 Silverado 2500HD with a Duramax Diesel and Allison transmission. I put on some airbags myself for added support, brake controller, and the fifth wheel hitch. Today we crossed the 1700 mile mark for our trip and we did some serious climbing. Up, down, around, up again, turn the corner, transmission brake going down. The truck just kept taking it. My transmission got hotter than I’ve seen it at 195. But according Allison I have till 270 to get worried.

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Boys will look at anything you ask them to and then some if you give them a pair of binoculars. They look at the hills. They turn around and look at the truck. The turn and look at each other. You want to keep your kids entertained, give them some binoculars.

Route: Kennebec, SD to Custer, SD via Badlands Loop Road

Campground: Custers Gulch RV Park (Spotty website)

Time: Left 9:18AM CT.  Arrived 2:30PM MT 6Hrs 12 Mins

Dark Skies

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Today was another very long haul.  What I learned:

You can get ready in a hurry.  We woke up around 6AM, looked at the weather, and saw a line of storms headed our way.  It was a mad dash to hookup and get out before getting drenched.

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Us easterners don’t see too many windmill farms.  We went crazy!  There were windmills everywhere!  And as far as the eye could see.  We rolled down the windows and took at least 50 pictures.  To the left.  To the right.  In front of you.  Across the horizon.  Minnesota loves its windmills.  And that was just the first farm we saw.  You could tell we were from out of town.

Minnesota may love their windmills, but they hate their roads.  At first it was pleasant, then it got hellish.  I’d have to rank them down in the pits with Ohio.  I would have loved to pay a toll to clean that mess up.

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There is some beautiful country out there.  First, Wisconsin.  If you imagine Wisconsin as the stereotypical rolling green hills with red barns, well you are right.  I told Jennifer that I hate the fact that a few years from now my mind will forget what I’m looking at.  Then we were into Minnesota.  More beauty.  Especially when you cross the Mississippi River and climb up out onto its plains.  More rolling hills and country.  South Dakota was a surprise.  Yes it’s flat.  But nothing I’ve seen is just straight flat.  Everything has a little bit of up and down to it.  But after you cross the Missouri River it completely changes.  You would think you were in Ireland with all of this short stumpy hills surrounding you, green with grass.

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Its not a good thing when your GPS alerts you to tornado warnings.  Tornado?  The sky is blue?  What in the world could it be talking about.  But one look at our weather app and we knew we were in for some rough stuff.  We tried to outrun it, but to no avail.  Ended up pulling over for a bit.  Then pushed through to Mitchell, SD.  Which brings me to the next thing I learned.

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We miss Culver’s!  In Texas, Jennifer and I learned about this Wisconsin restaurant called Culver’s.  It is the home of the ButterBurger.  Yes, of course it is completely healthy.  And they have AMAZING custard – maybe my favorite.

Wind is a drag.  Literally.  I learned over spring break from my Step-dad that by slowing from 70 to 65, I will cut down on drag and gain some fuel mileage.  That tip got me from 9.5 mpg to 11.5.  Not too shabby.  I also didn’t force myself to keep speed going up hills and let the truck do what it needed to.  So far I’ve been pulling 11.5ish mpg’s.  Today, not so much.  A 15 mile per hour headwind was the equivalent of going 80 all day.  At one point while trying to outrun the storm, I looked down at had 8.8.  BLAH!  Can’t wait to see the number when I’m heading back east!  I felt all day that we would top the hill and see the birthplace of all wind.

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You can watch Lifepoint anywhere!  We caught our Sunday service this morning somewhere around the Illinois and Minnesota border!

Route: Morgengo, IL to Kennebec, SD

Campground: KOA Kennebec

Time: Left 7:15AM CT.  Arrived 9:00PM CT. 13 Hrs 45 Mins

Radical Sabbatical

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FullSizeRender Sabbatical.  It does roll off the tongue a bit funny.  Though it is a funny word, it means a lot to me.  At Lifepoint Church, even though we work very hard, we play very hard, and we talk a lot about Sabbath rest among the staff and even through volunteer ranks.  We want that for our people.  We strive for it.  We may not be perfect in achieving Sabbath rest.  But it is built into the need of every human body as God designed it, and we choose to obey him, and ask for forgiveness when we slip. As I have told people about what I am about to embark upon, I have had many different responses.  Many are bug-eyed at the idea, most likely horrified at the thought of traveling so long.  Many are perplexed that I would have a job that would allow such nonsensical rest.  And many are excited.  My guess is it is something they either did as a child, or have always dreamed of doing. My reaction has been one of gratitude.  I am grateful for a Pastor that would invest in me in such a way.  I am grateful for a church that loves its leaders.  I am grateful for amazing staff and volunteers that even make the idea possible.  And I’m grateful for a wife that would even agree to such a crazy idea. Many have asked if I am excited.  I say, “as excited as I would be jumping out of a perfectly good airplane with a parachute.”  That simply means, yes I’m a mix of excited and scared.  I would say the excitement was more in the planning than in the days leading up to today.  But leading into this trip, in recent days, I have begin to think a lot about a lot of things. First, will I be able to turn off my mind.  The church has done what it can to help me with that.  I have a new phone number and I have a new email address.  Will I call back and see how things are going.  Yes.  Lifepoint is in my blood.  But the daily engrossment that I’m accustomed to, the running into people out in public, the late phone calls, the early mornings, the genuine concern for all things Lifepoint – what will it look like to lay that down for a time?  Will I be able to?  Will I go through withdrawals? Second, who will I be at the end of this venture?  Six weeks is a long time.  It is longer now than it seemed a year ago when I was planning.  A one-month sabbatical with two weeks of vacation tacked on is the same length of time I was graded on in school.  Six week grade periods.  A lot can happen in six weeks.  What will God teach me?  What will I see? Will I think differently from what I experience? Third, all of the details are a little overwhelming.  I am towing a fifth wheel.  There is a lot of things in that camper to keep up with.  The truck has to stay in good shape.  The route is complicated.  There are tons of things to do at each stop.  But, I find solace in taking it one day at a time. There are a couple of things I have vowed to do.  One is not get worked up over things.  Things can go wrong.  I can’t let that throw me or my family off.  But I am happy to say I passed my first test.  We had a bulge in one of our tires on the camper before I even left town.  No big deal.  Kept my cool and had it fixed in under an hour. Two, I want to soak it all in.  I believe whole-heartedly that you don’t get a full view of God until you get a full view of His creation.  We are his handy-work.  But he also created this earth for us to live in and enjoy.  And I plan on doing it. Third, connect with my family.  Jennifer, Wyatt, Weston, and I are very close.  We eat dinner together every night.  We pray together every night.  We love being together.  I’m not naive enough to think those boys will always want to hang around me.  But for the next six weeks they will!  And they will get to do it without me looking at my phone or checking the internet.  They get me uninterrupted. The Details Screen Shot 2015-06-05 at 10.29.33 PM So what in the world am I doing?  Crazy stuff.  Like driving 6800 miles across country with my wife and two boys, ages six and eight.  I will either want to sell my camper when I get back or never get rid of it.  I have learned some funny things about fifth-wheels.  They first grab attention.  I have so many people craning their heads watching it go by in town.  Its a beast.  One guy was giving me thumbs up in approval.  They don’t maneuver well through parking lots.  Curbs are the bane of fifth-wheels.  They weigh a lot and thus require a lot of diesel.  They take a bit of setting up and tearing down.  They also have their own ‘wave.’  If harley riders acknowledge each other in passing, so do fifth-wheelers. Now to the order….

  1. Badlands, SD.  Just a drive-by.  Going to hit the loop on the way to the Black Hills of SD.
  2. Mount Rushmore.  Not even a National Park, but going to be great.  It is what Wyatt wants to see most.
  3. Yellowstone.  Weston is a little concerned this is a supervolcano.
  4. Grand Tetons.  Just a drive-by again.  But I had to wave to the Tetons
  5. Yosemite.
  6. Sequoia/Kings Canyon.  This was my one non-negotiable.  I wanted to see the big trees.  And I cannot wait.
  7. Grand Canyon.  Jennifer wants to make sure they don’t fall off the edge.  We’ll also be riding a train on this stop.
  8. Zion.  For some crazy reason I was thinking we’d be hiking Angels Landing.  Youtube that and see what you think about those possibilities.
  9. Bryce Canyon.  Going to ride some mules!  Also has some amazing stargazing.
  10. Moab.  Here we’ll hit Arches and Canyonlands.  The most exciting thing about this stop is a 4×4 trip we have planned.
  11. Dinosaur, CO.  Just a pit-stop on the way to the next destination.
  12. Rocky Mount.  Last stop till the long drive home.

Stop 1 – June 5, 2016 Made it to Bedford, PA and Friendship Village Campground.  I am so glad I chose to go up 29 and 522 through Winchester.  It was a beautiful drive.  The short bit through West Virginia was gorgeous.   Still, I hate the PA turnpike.  Glad we won’t be on it long tomorrow.  Tomorrow will be a bear.  We will be driving between 8-10 hours (before stopping for fuel and food).  Needless to say prayers would be great!

The Art of Going to Bed

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I once heard a Pastor say that the trick to keeping a strong marriage was only 2 things – 1. Love God  2. Sleep naked.  Writing that makes me want to have t-shirts made with that slogan.  Love God & Sleep Naked.  But I digress.

What happens when you get married?  If you aren’t careful you can fall into a rut.  Before you know it you have a roommate, not a spouse.  Why?  Because you fail to set priorities to connect.  I always counsel in my pre-marital appointments to PRIORITIZE time together.  Set a date night.  Find time to just be together – without the kids, dog, iPhone, iPad, or iAnything.

One way you can accomplish this is simply by going to bed together.  I didn’t realize how unique it was to do this in a marriage.  We didn’t know any better!  Jennifer and I have always gone to bed at the same time.  But undoubtably, the night owl marries the ‘early to bed and early to rise.’  You are polar opposites trying to do life together.  But this simple act of going to bed together does a few things:

  • Promotes conversation.  I know I’m always trying to fall asleep and Jennifer decides to tell me her whole day.  But wives NEED this time to share.  Now you’re a captive audience.
  • Prevents separation.  I think it keeps you from becoming roommates.  Separation is not really great for a marriage, despite us saying that ‘absence makes the heart grow fonder.’  Continual absence does not, however.
  • Protects purity.  There’s too much crap on TV now.  And if you are like most people you don’t have the computer in the bedroom.  Going to bed together keeps each of you from looking at smut while the other is asleep.
  • Prompts intimacy.  Its kinda hard to be ‘together’ when you’re not together!  I’m going to refrain from being too descriptive here.

I think this is one simple revolutionary idea that could really transform your marriage.  I know it requires a change in schedule.  But just commit to it and create a regular routine.  And start doing life together – including sleeping.  That whole naked thing is up to you.

God’s Math

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You can’t out-give God.  Sorry for the cliche, but it’s true.

Before Jennifer and I got married we had ‘the talk’.  Not the sex talk the money talk.  And things didn’t add up.  Too much month at the end of the money.  But after much weeping and nashing of teeth we proceeded with the wedding – and with tithing.  10% right off the top.  No questions asked.

Now my wife and I made a whopping 45K a year, maybe that.  And while in TX we paid off her student loans, a car, bought an old beat up pickup with cash (which I’m still bitter we sold before moving), all of our credit cards, and a partridge in a pear tree.  Trust me it was a lot.  But we were paying off stuff like mad.

Fast-forward to 2007-2008.  Each year we would try to increase our giving by some amount, 1/2%, 1%, something.  Then we started having babies. :0)  And babies cost money.  We thought, ‘well God would want us out of debt first, right?’  So we decreased our giving so we could sock it towards debt.  It wasn’t a lot.  It just took us back to 10%.  Funny thing happened.  Money felt tighter.  So we re-evaluated.  And decided to go back to God’s math.  Guess what.  Money doesn’t feel as tight as before.  Oh trust me.  We still budget, and shift, and shuffle, and pinch pennies.  But in the end we realized that when God is first in the finances everything else falls into place.

If you’re not giving 10% off the top I challenge you to START there.  Sure its a jolt to the system.  But when you do it as long as I have it seems normal (and you’ll swear by it to all of the doubters).  I promise the math doesn’t make sense.  But is it supposed to?  Instead, maybe God’s math is supposed to do just that – make you look at God.