Morning Prayer

A funny story for you cat lovers.  For years, Tami and I could not have cats due to my allergies.  However, close to seven years ago I came home to discover two little abandoned kitties in Tami's arms fighting for their life.  Tami, the quintessential cat rescuer, responded to my shocked demeanor, "Randy, this is how it is: these cats are going to live here & you'll just have to get immune to them!"  Really...well, those two cats eventually multiplied to six cats at the Ponder house and, must confess, I've become a cat guy and thoroughly enjoy them (and yes, I'm now immune!).  Currently, we have three of the original six left (two...well, coyotes took them & the other, Shadow, was given to a neighbor...).  Okay, with that background, one of our cats is in serious need of therapy, for more reasons that I have time to write.  Just yesterday morning, during Tami and my prayer time, I was on my knees on my side of the bed, praying & agreeing with Tami as she interceded for our children.  I looked up and there was Rafiki, kneeling on the bed licking Tami's face as if to say, "...hey, let me in on this conversation - you're ignoring me...again!"  Well, we both had a moment of laughter and concluded our time together with the Lord with thankfulness & gratitude for the little things that bring us joy!  My point: take a moment and yes, Thank God for your salvation and for Jesus - but also, take a moment and thank Him for those little things we sometimes take for granted - and yes, even cats!  See ya...

Evening Walks on the Beach

There's just something cool and romantic about walking on the beach with my wife.  At least three nights a week, Tami and I take the 3 minute drive to the ocean to simply chill, be together and gather our thoughts.  The peaceful atmosphere that chills our stress, the light breeze off of the ocean that tickles our ears, the scent of sea weed & salt water that refreshes our sense of smell, the sand between our toes that reminds us we really do live at the beach, the cold water on our feet that feels like ice water & the sounds of the birds that's music to our ears all add to the ambiance of these intentional moments.  I have to be the most blessed guy around to have a God who loves me, a wife who tolerates me, children who put up with me and a church that allows me week after week to share my heart from God's Word.  And, to live in a place that I unquestionably cherish.  Not sure if it could get better that this; in fact, as I'm writing out load, if you will, I think of the Lord's Prayer, actually the Lord's Model Prayer, which has a phrase in it that resonates with me, "...thy kingdom come, thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven."  Here's the connection I'm thinking through - getting away & and being alone with God, alone with my best friend and simply existing in solitude is part of what the Lord means when He states in His Word that we're to come to Him and He'll rest us.  And you know, its different for all of us.  I have friends who are refreshed by working on a ranch with horses, others who get alone with the Lord by taking a ride on their Harley!  All to say, wherever that place is, go there and hang, rest and connect with the Lord.  Moses did it!  Daniel, Isaiah, Jeremiah and yes, even Jesus got away to rest.  And, if they needed too, so do we - so, how about it, can you etch time in your schedule to go to that place of refreshment and enjoy?  I hope so...I know I need to often, and I get to do so with my gal and best friend!  Have a great day...

The Tyranny of the Urgent

It's a sad day when my schedule is so packed that I have to get my daily Bible reading in at the gym; God should be more important to me than to be reduced to a StairStep machine and an app on my Blackberry at Morro Bay's finest workout facility...seriously!  So many times we get caught up in the moment we forget about what's really important (at least that seems to characterize my day from time to time).  I think you know what I'm talking about - the early morning meeting, the responsibilities at home, the bills, the afternoon commitments...oh, where does all our time go?  I heard a famous Bible Teacher once say, "Don't allow they tyranny of the urgent to preempt the important!"  In other words, don't get so stinking caught up in getting things done that you don't stop and smell...that rose called relationship!  A buddy of mine once told me that focus = power and the things I focus on have power over my me (...a paraphrase from Matthew 6:21)!  If I focus on the 'ToDo' list and literally blitz through my day, well, I'm going to miss out.  If I purpose to take time out and kick back, from time to time, then I will begin to rest in that mode of relationship that God intends for me.  This picture is so typical of a stressed out person; I love it.  The sad thing, I submit, is this is what we look like when we're so focused on getting things done.  Rather, let's take the example of Jesus & as the scriptures say, "...often He withdrew to be alone and pray!"  You know, if the King felt it necessary to take time away to recharge, how much more do we, I, need to! 

My Staff - Amazing!

Check out our Worship Leader Gary Lyons and his two sermons at http://www.rockharborcf.com/media.html Gary is doing fantastic, his growth as a Worship Leader is a blessing; his sermons are really awesome too (...many RHites tell me I'd better be careful, he's really good...)!

If you have time, check out our Children's Director Brandie and enjoy her heart through her blog at http://brandiebledsaw.blogspot.com/ Brandie's heart for Jesus and her passion for purity is second to none. Brandie has been on staff over two years and many, many kids have come to know the Lord through her ministry!

Our accountant, Danielle - dude, amazingly precious to us at Rock Harbor. She has not only cleaned up our books, she has put us on a track of fiduciary respectability that is most impressive! Seriously, her insight and practical wisdom has been such an encouragement to an old guy like me.

Our office manager: no question the best looking gal on the planet - yes, Tami's my wife. Tami's heart for people and her way about her is so attractive that she truly emulates Jesus in the front office. TP also keeps us guys in check with her purity for the Word and practical approach to living!

All of staff bio's are at http://www.rockharborcf.com/ under the leadership section. Oh, bye the way, you can meet my Leadership Board - greatest group of leaders I've had the honor of working with...

The Power of Velcro

Tami and I have a new phrase in our marriage relationship; simply, it's Velcro (...we borrowed this from Ron and Miss Debbie...).  The idea behind Velcro, in the marriage relationship, is a bonding that links together two to create one.  We just returned from a week long trip to Wisconsin & were blessed to be resourced in our ministry as husband and wife; and, just yesterday, I had the privilege to teach on Husband and Wife at our church.  All to say, when I think of the physical properties of Velcro, I'm reminded of a statement from Moses that said "...and the two shall become one!"  This is the great mystery, the great miracle - if you will!  Namely, God taking two totally different people, with distinct personalities, gifting and temperaments...and making them one: just like Velcro.  Allow me one more thought, its the idea of clinging.  Let me introduce you quickly to our cat, Rafiki (...in Swahili: the friend!).  Rafiki needs serious therapy...he's clingy, he's needy, he's high maintenance - and, wherever Tami goes in the house, Rafiki must be touching her.  Check out this picture of Tami getting some shut eye the other day and notice how Rafiki molds his body to hers:

Notice his look, "...Randy, whether you like it or not, I'm going to nap on Tami's hip; please leave us alone, we're resting!"  All joking aside, along the lines of Velcro, I believe, in the marriage relationship, there's a necessity to cling to one another, to lean on one another, to totally give ourselves to one another so that this oneness, this Velcro, will solidify, bond and interlock more and more over time...all for the purpose of our interdependence upon one another for the unity of our marriage as we depend upon the Creator of this union for our very existence in our marriage.  Wow...that's a lot of words; I know!  Let me suffice to say, marriage is without a doubt the greatest blessing I've experienced, next to my salvation, in my stay on this earth.  My hope and prayer is for marriages to experience Velcro, a oneness that simply will not be tore apart. 

"Father, do what You do best and save the marriages that struggle and are broken.  Lord, heal them for Your glory and their blessing; thank You God for this wonderful institution called marriage that You've created!"

Love - Love - Love

For just a moment, can we shy away from our religiosity?  Can we put our traditions on the shelf and contemplate what I consider one of the greatest quotes of all time?  My wife and I are concluding our week long trip in Wisconsin; we're here on a Leadership Conference for couples in ministry (...we're having a great time, by the way!).  Tami, known in some circles as TP WonderWoman, read to me a quote from Rock Harbor's Daily Devotional.  It said this: A day lived NOT loving people is a day NOT worth living!  Love that; in fact, when my wife read me the quote it reminded me of a time in Ethiopia.  Dr. Tim, a buddy of mine, took us to one of Mother Teresa's orphanages.  Before we toured the facility, Dr. Tim told us to take off our Protestant Glasses and look at this facility through the lens of love.  You see, there were over 400 children in this particular orphanage - every child was abandoned, every child had HIV, some of which had gone into the last stages of Aids; and, every child was a unique gift to this world that simply needed...love.  What Dr. Tim asked us to do, specifically, was to notice the nuns and their dedication to be the hands, the feet, the eyes, the heart of Jesus.  Yes, that's right - these precious, selfless and humble servants not only committed their lives to service, these amazing women devoted their lives to societal outcasts.  Well, needless to say, within 10 minutes, tears began to well up in our eyes as we witnessed Jesus at work through the lives of these women, and, these outcasts of society were validated, affirmed and encouraged into relationship with a God that was and is madly in love with them.  These heroes, the nuns, took literally the quote of their leader to heart...and, every day, they purposed to LOVE...

What I find refreshing, back to the quote my wife enlightened me with, is that you and I, every day, have the same opportunities, the same potential and the same privilege to love people!  And you know, to quote from Zig Ziglar, "People don't care how much you know until they know how much you care!"  Or, my paraphrase of the above, "...people don't really care about my take on doctrine, my bent on theology or my interpretation of the deep truths of the Bible; they simply want to know and SEE that Jesus is real..."  And you know, they will know and SEE that Jesus is real if I embrace Mother Teresa's heart; namely, A day lived NOT loving people is a day not worth living!  May we, me, us live with intentionality tomorrow and be proactive in our pursuit of loving people with the love we've been loved with!

Prayer Works – Really, It Does!

I just wanted to share with you a quick story that will bring tears…good tears! Tami and I are in Wisconsin at a Leadership Conference and we just received one of the most precious emails of our life. Roughly twenty years ago we met family in Temecula. A nice family – mom a Christian, dad a non-believer! They have a son and two daughters. For years, the wife encouraged her husband to come to church with her, to explore the claims of the Jesus she loved! All three children enjoyed a personal relationship with God. However, the dad wanted nothing to do with the church thing. Eventually, the husband/father alienated himself from his family and became a hermit of sorts. Literally, for years, communication was at nil. Well, a few months back, my old acquaintance was informed he had stage four, incurable cancer. This death sentence was a wake-up call, if you will. He asked his wife to forgive him, as well as his children, for being absent for all those years! He began attending our old church down south, questioning the validity of the Bible & the claims of Christ. Well, today, the email said, “_____asked Jesus in his heart; _____is born again! Thank you for praying with us.” And, in parenthesis, the elated wife said, “…even after 29 years!”

You know, this totally blesses my heart; and, of course, all of heavens heart! The most important thing in life: one’s eternal destiny – is now secured. Lesson to be learned: never quit praying, ever. The Bible says quite clearly that we are to pray without ceasing. In other words, don’t stop – keep knocking on the heart of God and ask for His mercy and grace, compassion and love to spill onto your loved ones. Even if it takes years, yes – even 29!

Amazing story about God’s grace, the persistence of a precious woman and the salvation of a dear man! Thank You God for this fantastic glimpse of heaven…

Mr. Lincoln

I love word pictures, descriptive language and yes, I love metaphors -- especially when the symbol speaks to my inadequacies and serves as a challenge to change. Below is a picture of a flower in our front yard. The flower is called a Mr. Lincoln and wow, the aroma that emits from this beautiful rose is simply heavenly, no question about it. Well, I read the Scriptures recently that encouraged me to live in such a way that my life is a sweet smelling aroma before God. Get the picture? Lately the rose called my life hasn't been a Mr. Lincoln, but rather, a Mr. Crabface. Check it out: recently I had an encounter at the airport that made me most irritable; the other day I was frustrated with an arrogant store owner and almost told her so; and, just today, I had disdain in my spirit toward a knucklehead that would drive anyone bonkers.  Now - this is my take, their side of the story most likely indicts me as the bum - in each situation! Well, as a Jesus follower, my life is intended to smell good, emit grace and send forth an aroma that blesses the socks off of others. Or, as my wife calls it: we're suppose to be a fragrance of loveliness (doesn’t that sound beautiful?).  All to say, as I was just outside getting our suitcases for an upcoming trip, Mr. Lincoln screamed at me with the scent of, "...Randal, clean up; you my friend are to be that perfume of life that makes wanting to know the God you represent irresistible.  Take a lesson from me and be that bouquet of odor that draws people rather than repels people!"  All to say...lesson learned and grateful the Lord uses the little things in life to communicate profound truths!

Mr. Lincoln