The Prayers of David....

There is a followup here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b64Xz9QWb44&feature=related

David - The Power of Prayer

Courage Hangs by a Thread

Theoden: Look at my men. Their courage hangs by a thread. If this is to be our end, then I would have them make such an end, as to be worthy of remembrance.

Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers

The Closer we are to Danger...

Pippin: The closer we are to danger, the farther we are from harm. It's the last thing he'll expect.
Merry: Are you mad? We will be caught for sure.
Pippin: Not this time.

Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers

Dawn

[to the Orcs]
Saruman: There will be no dawn... for men.

Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers

This is not our war

Treebeard: We Ents cannot hold back this storm. We must weather such things as we have always done.
Merry: How can that be your decision?
Treebeard: This is not our war.
Merry: But you're part of this world, aren't you?... You must help... please.

Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers

What Do You Fear?

Aragorn: You have some skill with a blade.
Eowyn: The women of this country learned long ago, those without swords can still die upon them. I fear neither death nor pain.
Aragorn: What do you fear, my lady?
Eowyn: A cage. To stay behind bars until use and old age accept them and all chance of valor has gone beyond recall or desire.
Aragorn: You are a daughter of kings, a shield maiden of Rohan. I do not think that will be your fate.

Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers

Courage Hangs by a Thread

Theoden: Crops can be re-sown, homes re-built. Within these walls... we will outlast them.
Aragorn: They do not come to destroy Rohan's crops or villages. They come to destroy its people. Down to the last child.
Theoden: What will you have me do? Look at my men. Their courage hangs by a thread.

Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers

Open War

Theoden: I will not risk open war.
Aragorn: Open war is upon you whether you would risk it or not.

Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers

Look to the East

Gandalf: Look to my coming on the first light of the fifth day, at dawn look to the east.

Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers

Fear

Frodo: I know what I must do. It's just... I'm afraid to do it.

Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring

Into the Wild

Frodo: Where are you taking us?
Aragorn: Into the wild.

Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring

Do You Fear the Past?

Arwen: Why do you fear the past? You are Isildur's heir, not Isildur himself. You are not bound to his fate.
Aragorn: The same blood flows in my veins. The same weakness.
Arwen: Your time will come. You will face the same evil, and you will defeat it.

The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring

The Edge of a Knife

Galadriel: The Quest stands upon the edge of a knife. Stray but a little, and it will fail, to the ruin of all. Yet hope remains while the Company is true.

The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring

A Pity

Frodo: It's a pity Bilbo didn't kill him when he had the chance.
Gandalf: Pity? It was pity that stayed Bilbo's hand. Many that live deserve death. Some that die deserve life. Can you give it to them, Frodo? Do not be too eager to deal out death in judgment. Even the very wise cannot see all ends. My heart tells me that Gollum has some part to play yet, for good or ill before this is over. The pity of Bilbo may rule the fate of many.

Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring

The Fellowship

Aragorn: If by my life or death I can protect you, I will. You have my sword...
Legolas: ...and you have my bow...
Gimli: ...and my axe.
Boromir: You carry the fate of us all, little one. If this is indeed the will of the Council, then Gondor will see it done.

Free Hugs

Free Hugs

Humility

Humility is confidence property placed.

Neil Anderson, Restored

Daily Audio Bible

Visit www.dailyaudiobible.com

Coach Carter

The Call - 07/07/07 Nashville - Daily Audio Bible

Boys to Men

I came to coach basketball players, and you became students. l came to teach boys, and you became men.

Carter, Coach Carter

Our Deepest Fear

"Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our darkness that most frightens us.' We ask ourselves, Who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented, fabulous? Actually, who are you not to be? You are a child of God. Your playing small does not serve the world. There's nothing enlightened about shrinking so that other people won't feel insecure around you. We are all meant to shine, as children do. We were born to make manifest the glory of God that is within us. It's not just in some of us; it's in everyone. And as we let our own light shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same. As we're liberated from our own fear, our presence automatically liberates others." (A Return to Love: Reflections on the Principles of "A Course in Miracles", by Marianne Williamson, Harper Collins, 1992. From Chapter 7, Section 3])

• The famous passage from her book is often erroneously attributed to the inaugural address of Nelson Mandela. About the misattribution Williamson said, "Several years ago, this paragraph from A Return to Love began popping up everywhere, attributed to Nelson Mandela's 1994 inaugural address. As honored as I would be had President Mandela quoted my words, indeed he did not. I have no idea where that story came from, but I am gratified that the paragraph has come to mean so much to so many people."
• The film Akeelah and the Bee includes this quotation without citing its source. Some viewers have inferred that the source is W.E.B. Du Bois. There is a later scene in the movie in which Akeela reads a passage from The Souls of Black Folk written by Du Bois ("He began to have a dim feeling that, to attain his place in the world, he must be himself, and not another”).
• The film Coach Carter includes a variation of this quote: “Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our darkness that most frightens us. Your playing small does not serve the world. There is nothing enlightened about shrinking so that other people won't feel insecure around you. We are all meant to shine as children do. It's not just in some of us; it is in everyone. And as we let our own lights shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same. As we are liberated from our own fear, our presence automatically liberates others.”

Coach Carter

In 1999, Ken Carter, a successful sporting goods store owner, accepts the job of basketball coach for his old high school in a poor area of Richmond, CA, where he was a champion athlete. As much dismayed by the poor attitudes of his players as well as their dismal play performance, Carter sets about to change both. He immediately imposes a strict regime typified in written contracts that include stipulations for respectful behavior, a dress code and good grades as requisites to being allowed to participate. The initial resistance from the boys is soon dispelled as the team under Carter's tutelage becomes a undefeated competitor in the games. However, when the overconfident team's behavior begins to stray and Carter learns that too many players are doing poorly in class, he takes immediate action. To the outrage of the team, the school and the community, Carter cancels all team activities and locks the court until the team shows acceptable academic improvement. In the ensuing debate, Carter fights to keep his methods, determined to show the boys that they need to rely on more than sports for their futures and eventually finds he has affected them more profoundly than he ever expected. Written by Kenneth Chisholm (kchishol@rogers.com)

Finishing What You Start

Jason Lyle: [to Coach Carter as he walks into the gym] Sir, they can cut the chains off the door, but they can't make us play.
Damien Carter: We've decided we're going to finish what you've started, sir.
Worm: Yeah, so leave us be, coach. We've got shit to do, sir.

What's Your Deepest Fear?

Coach Ken Carter: What's your deepest fear?
Worm: Why he keep saying that? What's your deepest fear? What's that mean?

Our Deepest Fear

Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our darkness, that most frightens us. Your playing small does not serve the world. There is nothing enlightened about shrinking so that other people won't feel insecure around you. We are all meant to shine as children do. It's not just in some of us; it is in everyone. And as we let our own lights shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same. As we are liberated from our own fear, our presence automatically liberates others.

Timo Cruz - Coach Carter

Book Review s- Epic

Below are some links to some reviews to the book Epic, by John Eldridge. Not all of them are favorable, but I think they're worth reviewing and taking into consideration.

http://www.challies.com/archives/book-reviews/book-review-epi.php

http://mcdanell99reviews.blogspot.com/2007/11/epic-story-god-is-telling.html

Ransomed Heart Books

Click here to view the books published by ransomed heart, of which Epic is one. There are several books focused toward a general Christian audience, and others focused toward men, women, adults, etc. Epic is a good example of one of the books that fits almost any generation from youth on up, I believe.

Epic Church Curriculum Kit

The gospel has been called the old old story. In Epic, John Eldredge has re-cast the ancient truth of the gospel in a new light. He has captured a freshness and vibrancy in his message that resonates with young and old alike. Using imagery from contemporary film and literature, Eldredge distills the essence of the gospel into a six-part message. Epic is an evangelistic tool that will catch the heart of the searching soul on fire.

Now Epic is available in a Church Curriculum Kit. The resources included in this kit will enable you to use this unique re-telling of the gospel to bring renewal to your congregation. It also can be used to reach your community with the message of redemption.

Epic Church Curriculum Kit contains:

• Epic softcover book
• Epic Study Guide
• Facilitators Guide on CD-ROM
• Quick Start Guide for jumpstarting your church experience
• Youth Facilitators Guide on CD-ROM
• 1 DVD containing two live Epic presentations by John - a 1 Hour Full Length Version and a 38-Minute Version
• 1 DVD containing the Epic Six-Part Curriculum Version
• CD-ROM containing additional marketing materials and fully-reproducible small group materials

Epic

Epic... that's the book on my heart right now for using for these "outings" - if you can call them that. This blog label is here to give me space to jot notes, thoughts, and ideas about the book, as well as quotes and other things I might want to use from it.

Logo

I'm working on a logo for this site. Trying to brainstorm some ideas and them put them together...

• A set of reins
• A leaf
• A compass
• Water
• Bread
• Hearts
• Life

Just some ideas...

The Journey Begins

Well, well, well... my first real post for this site. I don't know where this will go, or if anyone will ever even come across it. If you do, well... this is the beginning. This is the first visible root this place will see, the first piece of the puzzle... and I have absolutely no idea where this is going to go.

And I DO NOT CARE, one little bit. It has to start somewhere.

This site is here, for the moment, for a concept I want to develop, as home base for a passion on my heart, one I want to share with others, and one I need help with from others to make happen. I am not going into this alone. I may start here alone - but there are already several behind me lifting this ministry, my passions, and the direction of this up in prayer. And if you made it here, I guess it did something.

Here is my dream. It may grow. It may change directions. It may totally change. But this is it, NOW.

I am a hunter. I am a hunter of hearts. I love finding fresh hearts, damaged hearts, hurt hearts... hearts much like my own... and seeing them come alive. Seeing them come alive for the first time - yes - but also seeing what may be simply a candlelight have fresh fire breathed upon it into a roaring flame. As someone once put it, I long to help people quit trying to become who the world asks them to be. I want to see them, to help them, to go with them, as they find what makes them come alive, and see them go do that. I believe that the things that make us come alive, when we really get down to it, are things with eternal significance - not things that matter "in the afterlife" - but things that matter now, and will affect us - and others - from now into eternity. This means things like purpose, meaning, destiny... we are each put into this universe with those things, and I think so many of us, myself included for so, so long, simply forgot, or were never told.

I am beginning to experience this fresh flame myself. And it's time to start sharing.

My heart lies in two places right now. First, I love to equip leaders. For me, at the moment, that means playing the role I have in my local church. I have a leadership team of about 8 people I lead, and from those eight people, we lead about 20 other people, who in turn lead about another 100 people. It's small right now... a big stagnant, even a bit rough and hard to figure out from time to time. But I am beginning to see my team come alive in their roles, from leading preschool teachers to captivating adults with new styles of learning... I see visions being formed, lofty goals being set, and it is a thrill to be on this ride.

Secondly, I love the hearts of youth. I love teaching them, love hanging out around them, love seeing them try to figure me out (and doing the same with them). I'm not all that hip on the churchy youth group thing - I can do that, but Sunday Morning Sunday School in the teen room is not so much my thing as a free-for-all Wednesday night when we can just sit back and let our hearts run wild. When we can talk. When we can laugh, when we can maybe even disagree some... but where we can talk about what matters, to us, and to God.

As I see those to places where my heart is at - youth, and leadership - I come to where I am with this site today. I need some comrades. I have some ideas for this, which I'm sure I'll eventually get written out here, that are bigger than me... much, much bigger than me. I could attempt them now, but if I did, I am sure I'd fall flat on my face, and probably give up. But that is not stopping me from starting what I need to do, now.

Here's the short version. If you have ever read anything by John Eldridge, you'll know where a lot of this comes from, but this is what I love, how it's a different story each time. I recently read the short book Epic while on a solo camping trip in an Indiana forest. It's a quick read - easy to do in a few hours, and there's apparently a youth leadership kit that you can get with it as well, complete with plans, DVD's, all that... That is where I think this may start.

• A couple men.
• 2-3 teenage guys.
• A pickup truck.
• A horse trailer.
• Some horses.
• Some adventure ideas.
• Maybe a couple mountain bikes.
• Some navigating stuff.
• Some trust games.
• Some discussion time.
• Some reading time.
• Some quiet time - as in TOTALLY quiet time.
• A teensy bit of sleep
• A campfire.
• Some water.
• Some food.
• Very scant cell phone coverage... maybe.

Get the idea? If you do - and if you'd like to be part of this - in person, or in prayer, please.... email me. Leave feedback here. Do something. I need comrades in this. I want to be a comrade in this. Maybe someone else already is doing this around here and I can add to what they have... fine. But this is where my heart is, where God is taking me, and this is now the first post on a website I've been longing to start for quite a while.

Camping Trip

I went camping last Friday. Started off as a little getaway, turned into quite an adventure. I'm writing this down partly for myself to go back to, and partly because I wanted to share it, because I think it's a neat story. :)

I left the house around 7:00. I'd invited a few friends to go with me, but none of them could, so this was going to be a solo trip. I was checking out a state forest about an hour from my home.... 6000 acres of woods, horse/bike trails, and a primitive campground. I left the horses at home as I don't have tags for them yet, plus I wanted to scope it out a little bit first before I brought them somewhere new.

...and now, for a little background that leads into this story. I've been talking to some friends recently about giving things up. About letting go of things we hold too dear, idolatry and all that. I have grown up in a nice Christian home (and I mean that, but at the same time, there are times where "nice", "Christian", and "home" can come together to create a little bit of naievety when you hit the real world where lives and eternity is TRULY at stake). Anyways, I've never dealt with the occult, with witchcraft, or any of that stuff. But as I read this book with my friends and thought about it, the same thing kept coming to mind. Food. Food? Yeah, I'm overweight. Yeah, I get a tad angry at myself because I don't seem to control what I eat or do so spontaneously way too much... but Food? Is that it????? I had no idea how that was going to play into this trip, and wasn't expecting it to, all. I had packed up some food - granola bars, bananas, good energy food, and all that, along with a bunch of water, and off I set...

...minus all the food. (OOPS!)

When I arrived at camp and put my tent up, I went through my bags and realized I'd left all the food at home on the kitchen table. I'd brought the water, but the food... nope, no food. I figured, OK, I can handle that. It's just overnight, and then maybe a quick hike in the morning. I can deal with a little hunger. Besides, maybe it'll be good for me.

So anyways, I finally got the fire going (I am not good at that yet - wound up doing something you're not supposed to do, but it definately worked, and I didn't burn any hairs). I sat down with a book I wanted to read and ... ring, ring...

Why did I bring my cell phone? It's my wife, she knows to call only if it's important.... Oh, the baby has a fever? Would I mind if you called me at 5:30 in the morning for me to get up, break camp, and come home early so you can do what you had planned to do with him but now might not be able to? Oh yeah, this was a good conversation, if you know what I mean. Things wound up OK, but it was definitely tense for a while. Everything wound up OK with my son, also, and what you read here is really brief and just my side of the story, but I honestly believe this was some real opposition we both had to overcome - we made it through it, but there were a few battle wounds, but they're healing quickly.

Anyways, worked my way about 2/3 of the way through the book, and then hit the sack under the stars. It was a good night. I woke early the next day, before dawn, and finished the book, and then got up and had to decide what do to. I had a few options.

1. Pack up and head home.
2. Go for a hike. I could either do a small loop or walk out and back on the same trail.
3. Go for a ride. I had my mountain bike and had heard it was a pretty good place to ride. I could do a 3 mile or a 6 mile loop on the bike.

I wound up deciding to go for a 3 mile bike ride. Remember, no food, plenty of water. :) I've got this silly phrase from a friend of mine about time with God being "better than breakfast" running through my head, and the connection with the thoughts on food are beginning to come through. So I head off, map in pocket, to explore this forest.

This is my first time to ever mountain bike in a real forest, on a real trail, with real hills, creeks, and mud bogs. It was stupendous! I was loving it. When I got to the place I thought was the turn off for the 3 mile loop, I decided to go ahead and continue and do the rest of the 6 mile loop instead - plenty of water, not feeling hungry, it was still early in the day and cool. So I went on.

Come to find out, I was probably about 3 miles into the trip, but not on the 6 mile loop, at least not where I thought I was on it. I honestly have no idea, even after the fact as I've reviewed better maps, where I went. Right turns here, left turns here, they don't seem to match up. But it was a trail, I had water, I had a cell phone & coverage, and wasn't worried. It was some good times.

I finally got to the part of the loop where the markers changed from saying "you're going away from camp" to "you're heading back towards camp." Great!, because I'm starting to get tired, and my water is going to work out just about right.

Yeah, right!

So I finally come up to this gravel trail that sure looks like the trail I'm supposed to turn right onto to head back to camp. Great! Yes! So I do. I pass familiar landmarks, keep going, and then I hit the first sign of the next phase of this journey... my own tracks, going in completely OPPOSITE direction I thought they'd be going. You see, I haven't seen another person on this trail all day long, and even if I had, from what I now know about this trail, it's a much better horse trail than a bike trail, and these are definately my tracks. I fully expected to hit camp BEFORE running into my tracks, and here are my tracks...

Did I miss the trail?
Did I mix up a direction?

Ok, let's head back... so I do that, for about a mile and a half or so. By now I'm hungry. I'm running low on water. I'm to tired to ride the bike and afraid that I'd bounce off it from being worn out so am pushing it along. But I've still got my water. This is the time where the lesson really began to hit home.

Food is strength. Water is life. That's all so basic and true, I know... but right now, right here, it means something to me. Words start hitting me all over.

Food is strength. Jesus is the bread of life. He is my strength.
Water is life. You can't live without it. Living water. Abundant life. It's all right there...
Compass... you need direction, even when you're on the trail. (and I didn't have one)
Fire... cleansing... Rain... Rest... Sleep... Conflict... Patience... Trust...

My nerves are 100% on alert now, and so it's with a bit of a laugh and a sigh that I turn a corner, round the bend, and run into a sign I've seen before... and was not at all expecting to see again. I find my tracks again, once again going in a direction I don't expect.

I am starting to run out of options now. Is there a difference between being lost and being on a trail you know but not knowing how to get home? I don't know... symantics.... words.... I was lost. Making "the call" to my wife starts becoming an option, and then she actually calls me, wondering if I'm home yet. "Uh, no. Not quite." She says she'll pray for me to get out safe, and to be careful. I've still got the phone and a signal, and plenty of daylight. And I'm on a marked trail... even though I haven't seen anybody all day, I'm sure someone could find me with GPS or triangulation from the cell phone, couldn't they? It's only a 6,000 acre forest, right? :)

So, what to do now. Do I ditch the bike, turn around, and keep going? Do I hang onto the bike, turn back, and look for something I missed? That's what I wound up doing, starting to think of one possibility that halfway makes sense - maybe I need to continue on PAST where I interested my tracks last time, and maybe then I'll get where I think I need to be... maybe I missed something when I left camp this morning or something...

So I do that. By now my 3 mile hike has turned into a 9 mile trudge. Half of one of my pant legs is missing from getting caught in my bike. My map has fallen out of my pocket. I haven't eaten in 16 hours. I am out of water. My throat is getting try.

I finally get back to the tracks (this is the 4th time I've walked this one section of gravel trail one way or another), and this time, press on past my tracks from earlier in the day. I climb a small hill, and there's my truck. Not 100 feet away from where I gave up and turned around earlier. Not a hundred FEET! Did I know where I was and 2nd guessed myself once too many times? Did I do something wrong? Or was this really just part of the adventure. A bit of a test. A bit of understanding what it's like to wander, to rely up on water, and not just food?

I crashed on the picnic table when I made it back to camp. Called my wife, and prepared to leave.... and then.... the rain starts falling. Not a downpour, not a storm, just a refreshing, cool, sprinkle.

Absolutely PERFECT timing. The whole thing. Perfect timing.

And so that is how I turned a camping trip and a 3 mile hike into an adventure of dealing with opposition, truly spending time with God, riding like a madman down steep hills like I've never done before, crashing just once, braking with my feet, crossing creeks, running out of water, and wandering almost aimlessly into one of the most exciting adventures of my life.

So that's my story... it was fun to retell to myself. Thank you for sharing it with me.