Wow it must really seem like I have fallen off the face of the earth, or maybe that’s just ow it seems to me. I’d like to think that there are people out there waiting for my latest missive with baited breath. That may not be the case, but I still hope you’re blessed by something here.
It’s been hectic around here lately. Most everything is good, but it’s busy as all get out these days and yet I feel blessed. Last weekend I got to travel with my wife to Delta Lake Bible Conference to speak at their Haven Camp for adults with special needs. What a great time. Then on Monday and Tuesday I got to volunteer with Bob Lenz’ ministry as he brought great anti bullying messages to a few local schools. What a phenomenal ministry. From there I worked at my church for a few days, led Bible Study, prepared our worship service, led a MASTERpiece paint party for my former church, had dinner with my niece and her husband talking ministry and life, preached our Sunday Service, preached a second service at a local retirement home, spent some time with my son, daughter in law and grandson went to a class on enriching the lives of older adults and today I find myself back at my church. That’s a lot of stuff in just over a week. All great stuff.
And then there’s tomorrow. October 25th. It’s notable for many reasons. First of all it’s the birthday of one of my favorite artists, Jon Anderson of Yes. Secondly it’s the birthday of one of the world’s favorite artists, Pablo Picasso. It’s also been declared International Artist’s Day, probably because it’s Picasso’s birthday. I also read somewhere it’s National (or international, I can’t remember) Pasta Day and since Pasta is my favorite thing in the entire world to eat, that makes me happy. Of course the reason it’s notable to me is because it’s also the birthday of a lesser known artist, me. Yep, I share a birthday with Anderson, and Picasso and I was born on International Artist Day. All coincidental, and yet kind of cool for me. Why does any of this matter to you?
Well here’s the thing, it matters because it matters and it matters because it almost didn’t happen. Tomorrow I will be 54 years old but I almost didn’t make it past 22. You see at 22 I was broken and without hope, without faith and I just wanted to die. When I was 22 I tried to take matters into my own hands, but somehow, God stepped in and instead of dying, I cried out to God and He rescued me. It doesn’t seem possible that it’s 32 years, but those 32 years I almost didn’t get.
I’m working on a project (in the very early stages) called The Bonus Life. These 32 years have not all been easy, but man have they been worth it. In those years, I became a husband, a father, a grandfather. I became a professional artist, a professional writer, a professional speaker, and a minister of the Gospel. I have spoken in around 200 churches in 15 or 16 states (I’m starting to lose count). I’ve published books, published articles, published art, I’ve made friends all over the world. Not bad for a person who was so broken and hopeless. I call it the bonus life because I don’t deserve it and I almost missed it. I almost missed this beautiful, chaotic life. The most important thing that happened in all those years happened when I became a Christian. That is what has made all the difference.
I write this in case any of my readers are feeling broken or frustrated or hopeless to let you know the best may very well be yet to come. God is good and He has a good plan for you. Believe it.
So tomorrow, have a plate of pasta, make a piece of art and praise God with me for another trip around the sun. Then think about your own life and look for the places where love broke through and made all the difference. Speaking of which, here’s a song from a guy whose birthday was just a few days ago. It’s about as fitting as can be for my story.
AMOKArts 