One of my deepest desires is the pursuit of warrior arts, like martial arts, but more than just the fighting.  I love the culture of traditional warriors – Lipan Apache, Japanese Samurai and Ninja, the Shujaa of the African plains, the Strongheart warriors of the Lakota nation, the Scottish highlanders and our modern Special Forces men and women.

Well, in the pursuit of this desire through training and studying, I was fortunate enough to meet a man by the name of Michael Jaco.  Mike was an instructor for me in a class I attended in 2002.  In 2005 I invited him to instruct us here for a weekend.  In 2006, he came again with allies, for two weeks.

Mike shared with us what Hollywood leaves out of the Special Forces – service, love, outreach.  All the while, he pushed our limits beyond what we might have first thought possible.  He shared stories of his time in combat in various places in the world and his discovery of the power of God in the life of humans.

And, this spring, Mike published his book “The Intuitive Warrior”.  This prompted me to contact him and, on a phone call over the seas, we arranged this interview which I’m happy to share with you now.

In this interview, Mike shares his experience and perspective on love and combat, fear and love, intuition and “the small, still voice” of God in each person.  He also shares his counsel and consolation for our military families in Canada and their members serving in Afghanistan.

I pray you will hear this with clear ears and an open heart.  Experience like this is hard won and so valuable for each of us.  Thanks Mike.

Press the “PLAY” arrow below to start the interview.

Leave a comment below and finish this sentence.

“The perfect church….”

COURAGE

“Be strong and bold; have no fear or dread of them, because it is the Lord your God who goes with you;

he will not fail you or forsake you.” – Deut. 31:6

I sat to pray and talk to God this morning.  Man, my heart is so full right now.  Full with worry, excitement, impatience, desire, frustration, ideas, heartache, Vision.  SO much of me right now wants to just lay down and rest. To STOP. Everything. Except Judy and the kids. I just want all the time and energy I have to go there. But I feel the drive, the pull, to our Wild at Heart trip for men in November, to a Vision of the ranch, to our growing online business, to building a true community, to getting in top physical shape.  So deep.  I feel God’s call to all of it.  I love it.  It’s incredible to be tapped into that wellspring.  But, like hypothermia, as the cold drains strength, the desire becomes strong to just lay down and rest.  Give up and give in. But give in to what?  The slumber is the kiss of death.   It’s a resignation.  A false contentment.  Dispassionate and apathetic.   It is a giving of life over to death.  And like the hypothermic slumber, life can go cold.  We fall asleep.  We become falsely content with chasing mediocrity.  There is a strong likelihood that we haven’t actually ever been really awake.  Or we’ve known moments of “awake-ness” but haven’t had the strength or the people around us to maintain it.  So we long to go back to sleep.

Like Cypher in “The Matrix”.  He was wakened by Morpheus and was called into a titanic struggle for the hearts and minds of other people.  Their mission, as a crew, was to pull people out of the Matrix and invite them into a real existence, in a community that was truly alive.  But Cypher became jaded.  Watch the clip in the sidebar to the right.  Or click here to watch it on YouTube.

Surrounded by wine, steak and a fine cigar, Cypher makes a deal to go back to sleep.  “I don’t want to remember nothing.  NOTHING.  You hear me?”

Let the Matrix take over again.

But I can’t.  (Actually, I can.  You can too.)  We can choose sleep.  (In fact, we need to choose rest.  But they are two different things.)  We can choose mediocrity.  We can choose all those things that we think give us life but actually keep us asleep.

Grandfather spoke about those things that stir our hearts awake to the reality of an unseen and eternal life.  From his native language to English, he translated it as “Inner Vision” or “The Voice of God”.  He said the Voice of God gives us Vision for our lives, our true purpose.  And then he said:

“A person who is not living their Vision is living death.”

And I remember.  I begin to remember why I can’t fall asleep.  Because it would mean death.  It would mean ignoring Vision.  It would mean ceasing to live for others.  Death by selfishness.  Death by numbness.  Death by mediocrity.

I can’t do it.  I won’t do it.

One foot in front of the other.  Stay awake.  Stay alert for the needs of others and rise up to meet them.  Fight.  Live.  Pray.  Listen.  Laugh.  Love.  And wake up the next morning to do it again.

Little Jonathan has come through yet another malady with flying colors. Thank you so much for your prayers. Not only did the followup appointments go swimmingly but God used the time for Jonathan and I to really connect and love each other. He was completely comfortable and satisfied that it was “dad” doing the loving and holding and soothing. This is an important thing for me and for so many fathers. Sometimes it seems the only attention the kids give is to their mom, especially while still feeding. I’m loving the way this has all drawn me and my boy closer.

And, it was a time of journaling and letting God speak. We are so eager to fill our quiet time or waiting time with something. Car rides, bus rides, waiting rooms, lineups.  We pop in our ear-buds and let so many “false prophets” and “God-wanna-be’s” fill our ears. Twice now in the past couple of days, I have turned on the radio or picked up a magazine to fill some space or kill some time. And both times the hollowness has rung out like a bell. Drivel. Meaningless pish-posh. Pablum. All I wanted, all I craved, was to hear God’s voice. I didn’t want to pray or request or complain or give thanks. I just wanted to listen and allow him to come for my heart. The Psalm response I heard so often as a child echoed in my head. “Lord you have the words of everlasting life.” And come God did. These past months have been filled with instances of being romanced and cared for by our Creator. Miracles big and small. Words of affirmation and comfort. Reassurance.

And as I reflect, I see me holding Jonathan through his needs and whispering into his ear words of comfort, stroking his hair. And, I see God holding me through my needs, providing for everything, giving in abundance and whispering words of life into my ear.

“Our Father, who is in heaven, blessed be your name.”

Going where called,
Doing what is asked,

Doug

Beginning in the fall of 2009, our team of people, including me (Doug) and my wife (Judy) want to begin hosting a morning gathering for adults in their 20’s and 30’s – college, university, working or otherwise.  Throughout the past years, we have been fortunate enough to see so many incredible high school teenagers grow into young adults, leave high school and begin a new life.  And, through this transition, we have had many of these fine people – maybe even you – sit with us in our living room, backyard, supper table or over a cup of java, and tell us that you need something.  You have expressed a true desire to talk about the great things happening your life, and feel supported by others when things aren’t so great.  You still want to talk about issues of life and faith, your careers and hopes and dreams, your deepest longings.  You still want a place where you can really be yourself.  And, more than ever, you want to be connected to others who are in the same kind of life space as you.

Our mission has led us to share this possibility with you and seek your input.  Ultimately, we can have a whole lot of great ideas but if they don’t meet your needs, they are vain.  We need you to answer a few questions for us.  If the need we have heard from you is real, they we are putting ourselves at your complete disposal to help you create and connect and begin something truly life-giving for all of us.

Would you, if you are interested IN THE LEAST, send us an e-mail with these questions and your answers?  Be totally honest and straightforward.  We will hold your answers in complete confidence.

Copy and paste the question in blue into your e-mail and send them to:

java-at-intothewilderness-dot-com (remove the dashes, add the @ and .)

Describe the closest community that you feel a part of.

What are some things you wish you could talk openly about?  Examples might include relationships, faith, money, pressure, busy-ness, etc.

What part of your life do you really need support right now?  Again, total honesty and in total confidence.

If you were to name the three things in your life that you spend the most time, thought and energy on, what would they be?

If time, money and life allowed no restrictions, would those three things change?  What would they change to?

Would you like to have a time once each week where we would reserve a coffee house and you could gather with other adults like you and have a coffee (or tea or Italian soda) and just enjoy talking and connecting and being supported?

If you answered “yes” then the only other thing we want to know is what time of the week would be your preference?

We truly look forward to hearing from you!

P.S. This is a collaborative effort of Judy and myself, along with our current mission team, Oblate Youth Ministries.

Sincerely,
Doug and Judy

(Mike, Dan and Dana!)

Watch our video and send me an e-mail!

I look out my window on the foggiest morning of the Winter. The meadow is shrouded in a veil of mist. The frozen moisture holds on to each twig, blade of grass and spider web.

As I sat in prayer this morning in the woods, in the grey light of pre-dawn, I could hear the rustling of the snowshoe hare under the willows. The boughs of the black spruce tree hung just above my wool cap, each of them detailed with a fine frost. From one icy needle hung an invisible thread of a spiders web, left over from the warm days of late Autumn. On the very end was suspended a treasure to put the finest jeweler to shame. The strand of silk was collecting crystals of its own. A feather of frost, nary the size of snowflake, drifted and floated in the cool drafts of the East breeze. Before my eyes hung the fragility of Creation we so often hear of. With a warm breath, the passing of a sparrow or a sudden gust of wind, this suspended gem would be gone. It won’t be there when I return tomorrow. I will never see its uniqueness again. There will be other wonders, other marvels. But none the same. As it is with the rest of Creation; humans, animals, plants. We must evaluate each act as life-giving or life-taking.

Were my words in that conversation life-giving or did they destroy a piece of that person?

Is my lifestyle making this world a better place for my children’s grandchildren?

Does my family know I love them? What have I done this week to restore myself?

Have I gazed upon the face of my children with the same awe and wonder as this moment?

With the flick of a switch, the utterance of a word, the toss of a wrapper, this suspended gem could be gone.

It won’t be there when we return tomorrow. Let no moment pass with lack of attention to the detail that was poured into it at the time of Creation.

Going where called,
Doing what is asked,

Doug

Good morning! Oh my Lord. There is SO much in my little ol’ pea brain right now! Right now, I wanted to share with you that if your group, company, church or other organization is in need of some renewal, focus, vision or bonding, Judy and I are available for a very limited number of speaking and facilitation engagements in the next year!

We want to hear from you and see if there is a place we can serve you and your mission. From one hour consultations to three day retreats.

Please contact us and book early!

We can cover any number of topics. Have a look around the blog and you’ll get an idea of our vision and mission.

E-mail me at intothewilderness@gmail.com.

Looking forward!

Doug and Judy

I know (KNOW!) that this title got you curious. Part of you said “EWWW…no way! I do NOT want to know!” But a part of your brain, tucked backed in the primitive recesses of your ancestral urgings forced your finger to click on the link to find your way here. Perhaps it wasn’t even completely conscious but suddenly, you found yourself staring at this potentially scandalous post.

Yes, I know. Six kids. Who’s got time to talk?!

Well, Judy and I do. And it’s the nights where we put sleep off just a little longer so we can share some of our deepest thoughts from the day.

And the other night was just such a night.

I couldn’t even tell you the context of the conversation or what it was all about. But I know we were talking about the grind of day to day life and the choices we get to make. Sometimes those choices, while completely ours, we make them nearly unconsciously. Or we make them in such a fit of frenzied activity that we give them little attention.

We choose how we react to the latest cup of spilled milk. We choose to spend our evening surfing Crackbook. We choose anger over patience. We choose hurried-ness over attentiveness. We spend a large portion of our day choosing by reaction rather than decision.

And it was in the midst of this conversation that Judy dropped this one simple statement.

“How we live our days is how we live our lives.”

And it hung there in the air. Like a delicate down feather. Perfectly quiet and yet full of presence.

And at the end of our lives, we have all lived them one day at a time.

I’m going to go give my kids a real kiss goodnight.

For you all,

Doug and Judy

(My wife is a wise women. She is a blessing to me, day in and day out.  I love you Judy.)