Sep

Precious

Posted by : Judy | On : September 29, 2011

Category: Living an Epic Life, Reflections of a Mother, Reflections of a Wife

I love when God says the same thing in multiple ways until you just have to listen!! It had been a roller coaster week, both busy wise and emotion wise. Last Thursday, I was at my end emotionally and a teddybear kleenex commercial could have sent me to tears!

As I was leaving for a BBQ, my very good friend Melissa shared that I was precious to her and she would always have time for me. Well, let me tell you, the waterworks opened up! I hadn’t realized the depth of that statement. I had been feeling anything but precious that day and that spoke to my heart like nothing I had ever heard. As I reflected on that statement, I thought of how God was also telling me:

“Judy, you are precious to me and I will always have time for you.”

“Wow! Really God, you do?”

“YES”

Then the God moments started happening. First,I found an Easter reflection that talked about the precious gift of time. In the same moment, a devotional book sharing that we, as members of a family, are jewels to our Father and are precious. I then found a card given by a lovely friend of ours, written years ago that called each of the children precious. It was so cool! I then came to the third layer of this gift in that not only had my friend called me precious, and God called me precious but I now need to find the preciousness in others around me, my husband, children, friends and even strangers. That is our calling as Christians, is it not? Keep the hearts first, those precious hearts!

This morning I was given yet another layer to this gift (when will it end ) I was given a powerful YouTube video by my Mom for Mother’s Day. It talked of the preciousness of every day. Yesterday, the day flew by with me living in what I wished to be and what had been done wrong, losing all sight of the preciousness of the everyday. Now I look back. “Why did I not stop and enjoy that moment? That was a good moment.”

I vow today to live in the moment and enjoy its preciousness. For one day the ordinary will be no longer.

The power of a word…

You are precious. God thinks you are precious. The people around you are precious. This moment is precious.

Oct

“It’s Your Call” – The Glory of Your Story, Desire and Journey

Posted by : Doug | On : October 22, 2010

Category: Living Alive, Living an Epic Life

Tags:calling

There was a dark time in our life, centering on our role (Judy and I) in ministry. Rejection. Betrayal. Dismissal. All these became unwelcome companions on our journey and our calling.

And then there were people who, from beginning to end, have been both personal and anonymous allies and true friends in that journey. They have illuminated our calling. They oriented us to who we are, where we belong in God’s great story and what our journey is about. One man, Gary Barkalow, is only just learning how he impacted us. Gary impacted us by fully living his own calling.

In our work with the hearts of so many teens and adults, we have so often heard the question “what is my purpose?”. Or “why am I here?”. Gary, in his newly launched book “It’s Your Call” has dove deeply into leading you and I to become intimate with who God created us to be and the role God’s given us in the Greater Story of the Gospel.

I’m so grateful for Gary’s three main pillars that have been incredibly meaningful as we have pursued our call.

Story

There is always more going on than meets the eye. Most of us live under the impression that this world is fairly benign and we are limited in our impact and role. When in actuality there is an incredible legend being lived out and part of that legend is each of us becoming who we were created to be. We are in a process of overcoming and becoming. Overcoming brokenness, insignificance, dismissal and becoming glorious, extraordinary and desperately needed.

Desire

It seems like such a simple answer. Actually pinpointing our calling is only a matter of uncovering our truest desires. As Gary puts it, “What you were created to do is revealed in the form of your desires”. Not your desire for a tub of rocky road ice cream on Friday night. The deep desire, those things that were true and real to you when you were little. Those things that you get lost in for hours, where people watch you and say “She was in her glory!”. THAT desire. God reveals our calling through our desire. You were created to DO what you truly LOVE.

Journey

“If we fail to remember there is a process, a progression, a journey that every person must take, we will misinterpret and misunderstand life. We are on a pilgrimage – a long journey to a sacred place for a sacred purpose.” Right from the book. We are meant to grow. God is after our progressive transformation. We are no longer who we were and we are not yet who we will become, but we are well on our way.

When we keep these three pillars as our means of measurement, our determiners of whether we are living our call, we come to realize that God is not sitting there waiting for us to “get it right”. There are no “divine expectations”. Only that we stay facing Him.

I have read no better book on calling. Most are a weak attempt at giving you “10 steps” or “tips and techniques”, heaping on the to-do list all the things that you need to get right. Gary breaks it all open and shares clearly that this is a story and you were created for an incredible, world-changing role.

Buy a copy of Gary’s book at http://www.thenobleheart.com/store.

Oct

Go With What You Know – Finding Your Purpose

Posted by : Doug | On : October 7, 2010

Gary Barkalow is a man with a deep calling. I consider him a friend and ally. He’s written a book entitled “It’s Your Call”. I’ll be one of the first to review it in the next few days but in the meantime, Gary wrote a post on his blog that hit me square in the heart. If you’ve ever wondered what you’re doing wrong in life with your purpose or if you feel like you are missing out on your calling, this post will encourage you and give you permission to go easy on yourself. Have a look. Thanks Gary.

For the full post, click here:

http://thenobleheart.com/2010/10/go-with-what-you-know/

Over the years I have met many gifted, aware, devoted people who felt lost, stuck or paralyzed in the pursuit of their calling. Then, of course, I have my own paralysis. Every story and conversation about this issue has caused me to ask “why”.

We have all acted out of what we have believed (be it falsehood or truth) or what we have owned about ourselves at a deep heart level. So, I have scribbled down a few ideas that I will think will help to counter the debilitating ideas that float around concerning the issue of calling.

Go with what you know. You are only responsible for what you currently know, keeping in mind that what you know is partial and incomplete. Walk in the clarity that God has given you – only then will He give you more.

Let go of what you don’t love. Coming to grips with what you don’t love is valuable – it’s not wasted time. We waste a lot of time and energy feeling guilty and condemned over the things that we are not passionate about.

Live like an artist. Develop and create your art simply because you love it, not for a paycheck, approval or promotion.

Keep income and calling separate in your thinking. Don’t complicate things by putting these two together. At some point, they may merge, but one must not be dependent on the other.

“Don’t let what you cannot do interfere with what you can do.”-John Wooden. Start creating and offering what God has put in you with whatever resources you have in terms available time, technology, contacts, and opportunities. Don’t wait for someone to endorse or “anoint” you, for “large” audiences, a paycheck, position, title or a degree.

God is simply asking us to live honestly and generously in the place we are already in. We must offer the brilliance, strength, beauty, abundance, and splendor God has given us. Walking in our calling does not often require a big transition or life change like quitting a job, starting something new, or living somewhere else.

The development of the weightiness of our life is of utmost importance. Growth always includes knowledge, experience/experimentation, being mentored / coached / modeled, time for assimilation and maturing (fermentation).

Don’t wait for things to be “ideal” – Don’t wait for a job or position offer, endorsements, a certain amount in savings or an inheritance, or a close community of friends and allies to begin walking out your call.

God is comfortable with your trying. God is not afraid and you are not in great danger…if your idea has passed the “moral” and “ethical” filter and you understand your role (husband / wife, father / mother, employee, etc.). Get the perspective of others. Just ask – people are always willing to lend their insight to you.

1 Samuel 10:6,7 The Spirit of the Lord will come upon you in power…and you will be changed into a different person. Once these signs are fulfilled, do whatever your hand finds to do, for God is with you.

There is a difference between waiting on God and procrastination, between moving in faith with an assurance of God’s love and striving.

Trying to understand the difference and living on the right side,

Gary

***********

Note from Doug – Gary Barkalow is releasing his new book “It’s Your Call“. I’ve been privileged to preview this breakthrough book. Look for it in my next post. For now, you can order it from his site at http://www.thenobleheart.com/store.

Mar

Interview with a Warrior-Poet

Posted by : Doug | On : March 24, 2010

Category: Living an Epic Life, Reflections of a Warrior

Tags:interview

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.

Jan

Finish this sentence…”The perfect church….”

Posted by : Doug | On : January 28, 2010

Category: Living an Epic Life, Real Life, Real Faith, Uncategorized

“The perfect church….”

Jan

Live this…

Posted by : Doug | On : January 19, 2010

Category: Just Wanted to Say..., Living Alive, Living an Epic Life

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

Jul

Don’t Fall Asleep

Posted by : Doug | On : July 15, 2009

Category: Living Alive, Living an Epic Life, Uncategorized

Tags:are you alive or just living, hearing from God, Living Alive, Walking with God

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.

Jul

On Earth As It Is In Heaven

Posted by : Doug | On : July 5, 2009

Category: God Through the Seasons, Living an Epic Life

Tags:busy-ness, hearing from God

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

Jun

Journeying Alive, Vital and Awake

Posted by : Doug | On : June 26, 2009

Category: Living an Epic Life, Real Life, Real Faith

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!)

Jun

Would you consider investing in our youth ministry?

Posted by : Doug | On : June 9, 2009

Category: Living an Epic Life, Uncategorized, Walking with God

Courageous Movie Review

Precious

“It’s Your Call” – The Glory of Your Story, Desire and Journey

Go With What You Know – Finding Your Purpose

Interview with a Warrior-Poet

Finish this sentence…”The perfect church….”