This has to be the funniest fire safety drill I have ever seen.

I have to admit, there have only been a handful of times over this past year where I have come to God hopeless, worn out, and on the brink. In two simple words: broken down. Monday was one of those days for me. Asher and I were on our way back home from Phoenix and we were on our first of two flights. We were both exhausted, fussy, and grouchy from a weekend visiting with the family.

During the flight (to Memphis) Asher did not want to play quietly nor did he want to play with his games. Basically, he did not want to be on the plane at all, and he let me know it constantly. Likewise, I was not being the gracious father. All I wanted to do was to have him remain quiet so that we would not disturb those around us. And with short little outbursts, I did my best to keep our noise to a minimum.

Asher and I were heading toward a meltdown and I knew it was going to happen on the second flight. I knew I could not handle our situation anymore. I also knew I did not have the patience to handle Asher and I could not take care of him on my own.

So, it was as the plane was on approach (for our landing) that I prayed to the Lord for help. It was a simple prayer asking the Lord to give me patience and help so that we would make it through the rest of our trip. For me, it was most definitely a prayer of desperation!

And there it was. As our second flight lifted off the ground I looked next to me and was overwhelmed by what I saw: Asher asleep. Now, before you dismiss this as a common occurrence, I will tell you that it is a rare moment when Asher sleeps on a vehicle. For me, it was an overwhelming relief that I cannot describe. It was more than Asher just lying there asleep. For that entire flight, it was my temporary place of refuge, where I could finally rest. It was my answered prayer.

And so, Psalm 142 comes to mind as I reflect on this moment from a few days ago:

I cry out to the Lord; I plead for the Lord’s mercy. I pour out my complaints before him and tell him my troubles. When I am overwhelmed, you alone know the way I should turn.

Then I pray to you, O Lord. I say, ‘You are my place of refuge. You are all I really want in life.’”

Psalm 142:1-3 & 5

Sunday was all about the family. My mom lives in Jackson, Mississippi; my brother lives in Phoenix, Arizona, and my sister lives in Fairbanks, Alaska. So it is always nice when we can get together. (Side note: My sister, Alicia, was not able to come down for Nick’s graduation, but we Skyped her early Sunday evening.)

Nick, mom, Heather (Nick’s girlfriend), Asher, and me we were able to spend some quality family time together. Our last day of the visit consisted of

• checking out some of the water fountains throughout Palms Resort (where we were staying)
• Nick and Heather taking Asher to a sprinkler park near one of Phoenix’s lakes
• hanging out and talking a lot
• eating some sushi

Here are some photos:

 

Saturday was all about my brother, Nick. He made his degree “official” and participated in his university’s graduation ceremonies. Mom; Asher; Nick’s girlfriend, Heather; and Nick’s friend, Jared, joined in celebrating this great day.

Here are some pictures of the graduation ceremony, lunch, and other activities while we were celebrating together.

 

Asher and I are away on a four-day adventure in beautiful Phoenix, Arizona. For me, this is a fun trip for a few reasons:

• While this is not technically Asher’s first airplane ride, this is the first one where he actually understands what we are doing. That means this is a whole new experience for him.
• This is our first lengthy father-son trip away from Michele. Men, men, men.
• This is Michele’s first real time alone and with few responsibilities since Ashe was born. I pray that she is getting the relaxation time she needs.

Even with all of that, Ashe and I miss Chele and vice-versa (or so I have been told on the phone). I thought it would be fun to capture a few moments during our trip and let Michele (and you) catch a glimpse of what we have been doing.

Day 1: Friday
Basically, Friday was a travel day. Ashe and I flew to Detroit, Michigan for a brief layover before finally arriving in Phoenix.

Here are a few of our moments:

 

Quiet trust in God is the basis for our contentment. (NLT, Tyndale)

Ask yourself a couple of questions as you read Psalm 131.

• Is pride getting in the way of your God-based contentment?
• What worries you? Are some of those worries out of your control where only God can handle them?
• Do you trust in God? Who do you put your hope in when things become a bit stressful?

Psalm 131
Lord, my heart is not proud; my eyes are not haughty. I don’t concern myself with matters too great or too awesome for me to grasp. Instead, I have calmed and quieted myself, like a weaned child who no longer cries for its mother’s milk. Yes, like a weaned child is my soul within me.

O Israel, put your hope in the Lord - now and always.

I enjoy reading the F Minus comic strips by Tony Carrillo.

Here is one I found funny that is relative to today’s economic times.

Photo courtesy of the Space and Astronautics News

I have seen quite a few shuttle launches over the years. In fact, I think I have seen so many launches that I now come to take them for granted. I imagine most people do the exact same thing. Nowadays, shuttle launches have become pretty commonplace. However, over the past couple of days I have come been reminded of the awesome power of these launches.

Asher’s First “Space Ranger” Launch
I thought Asher would enjoy seeing Sunday night’s launch. I showed him the video on YouTube and he has been asking to see it three or four times-a-day ever since. Each time I watch the Discovery launch I am just more amazed at the pure, raw, and awesome power of a shuttle launch.

The narrator helps to provide some startling statistics.

• Thirty seconds into the flight, the shuttle is traveling at 365 mph and is 1.5 miles in altitude.
• One minute and twelve seconds into the flight, the shuttle is traveling at 1800 mph and is 10 miles in altitude.
• At liftoff, the shuttle, external tank, and two boosters weigh 4.5 million pounds.
• At liftoff, the total thrust equals 6,425,000 lbs.
• The twin boosters alone provide 5.3 million (of the 6 mil.) pounds of thrust.

Those are mind-boggling numbers! To be honest, I cannot wrap my mind around them.

The Video
Here is a video found on YouTube that shows the launch. I hope you enjoy it as much as Asher and I have.

As usual, I have found another great video on Dan Byron’s blog. This is Colplay’s music video for ‘Life In Technicolor ii’. It is awesome and is incredibly imaginative.

Thanks, Dan, for finding this!

I have been reading A.W. Tozer’s book, The Pursuit of God, over these past few weeks. This is my first venture into the vast array of Tozer-authored books and I am glad to have found him. Tozer’s words flow out of the book like poetry. In that way, he reminds me of C.S. Lewis. (As a side note, maybe you have to use the initials to become a incredible author. Perhaps I will start going by L.C. Wurschmidt and see what happens.)

Tozer brings up a “dramatic story in the Book of Numbers [where] faith is seen in action.” After a series of events, God instructed Moses to create a bronze replica of the poisonous snakes that were killing the Israelites. If any Israelite was bitten by a snake they only had to look upon the bronze replica and they would live (Numbers 21:4-9).

Jesus then aligns this passage for us with how we can be saved (John 3:14-15).

14 And as Moses lifted up the bronze snake on a pole in the wilderness, so the Son of Man must be lifted up, 15 so that everyone who believes in him will have eternal life.

Tozer continues by stating that looking and believing are synonymous terms.

‘Looking‘ on the Old Testament serpent is identical with ‘believing‘ on the New Testament Christ… [and] while Israel looked with their external eyes, believing is done with the heart.

Through this, here is one definition of faith: it “is the gaze of a soul upon a saving God.”

Wow, what a great description of faith! Based on the aforementioned text, faith is not something we do just one time and then let it rest. Faith is continually looking at our saving and merciful God and Savior with fixed and adoring eyes.

This is a great definition of faith, but I know there are more definitions. What are some that you have discovered? If you do not have a good working definition of faith then would suggest checking out Hebrews 11.

Until next time, may the Lord be with you and give you continual peace and joy. - LW