Halftime

Most team sports, minus hockey (which as a Texan does not make any sense to me), have a halftime.  Halftime can simply be a chance for players to catch their breath and get a drink.  Often it is a time for the coach and the team to adjust the game plan and prepare for the second half of the game.  Many games shift at halftime.  Last night the momentum shifted for Arkansas as they played Ohio State in the Sugar bowl.  I was asleep by this point, but apparently Arkansas played a much stronger game in the second half.

This year, 2011, is my halftime.  I will turn 40.  Assuming an average life expectancy, I am right at the halfway point.  I have been a stay-at-home dad for the last 15 months.  This has been an incredible time for me to stop, catch my breath, and adjust the game plan for the remainder of my life.  During this time, Tammy and I have worked on being the husband and wife we both deserve and who God has created and called us to be.  We also have set out ways and means for us to continue on a more healthy road in the days and years to come.  I too have been thinking about what am I going to do with the second half of this game called life. 

Well, I know somethings will change for sure.  In December, I withdrew from the ordained ministry of the United Methodist Church.  It was time.  It was not an easy decision, but it was the right one.  Currently, I am preparing to take the LSAT in February and apply to law school.  I have discovered during my halftime I love weekends and evenings with my family.  So, that will remain a priority in the second half. 

I am still working on my resolutions and goals for the new year and second half.  Look for some of those thoughts next week.

Watching

We are at that time of year when as parents we will start saying things like, "Santa is watching."  We even teach our children songs that go something like:

He sees you when your sleeping.

He knows when you're awake.

He knows if you've been bad or good,

so be good for goodness sake.

Yep, that my friends is GOOD parenting. 

In the past, I have worried about who might be watching.  I was not always the best example, and probably, if my life were played out on a screen and I had to account for every moment of the day, I would have many times where I would not be proud of the scene playing out before my eyes even today.

This morning, however, it became obvious I was being watched.  My seven-year old has been watching.  He knows how to use my i-pad, my i-phone, and the remote.  Let's for the sake of arguement call those neutral.  But this morning, I was proud that he was watching.

I was helping him get dressed this morning.  We were sitting at the table that sits in the corner of Tammy's and my bedroon.  My son pointed to a leather-bond book on the table and said, "Bible?" 

"No.  That is not a Bible, but there is a Bible on the table.  Do you want to read a story from the Bible?" I responded.

"No, thank you," he said.  Then after a moment, he said, "Bible.  Pray."

I looked up from his shoes, "Yes.  Mom and I read a devotion and pray most mornings."  (Tammy and I made it a practice in our lives to have about 10 mins of devotion, discussion, and prayer every morning after I moved back into the house in September of '09.)

He said, "Travis pray?"  And he pointed to the TV, and said, "Off."  (He knows we mute the news when we do our devotion.)

So, I muted the TV.  He sat where Tammy normally sits and we prayed.  When Trav and I pray, they are simple, amazingly honest prayers.  We thank God for special people in his life.  When we finished, he kissed me.  (Tammy and I kiss when we finish our devotion)

Yep, he has been watching me.  He knows when I am sleeping, running, being good, wasting time, or even praying.  I am just glad that he sees something good.

Armistice Day

So on the eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month the guns on the of the War to End All Wars fell silent. That was in 1918. Since then the world has not known a year without the reality of war. The War to End All War fell at the beginning of the bloodiest century in human history.

So where does that leave us now? We have come 92 years since "the guns fell silent." We have passed two millennium since the coming of the Prince of Peace and still a day does not pass that we do not hear or war or the rumors of war. Surely, there must be a better way.

What if on the eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month of the eleventh year the guns finally fell silent forever? What if in 365 days we did not raise up arms in violence? What if in one year it could be that no one took the blood of another in hatred, anger, or violence? Is this even possible?

Honestly, I do not know if it is possible. I do know it would not be easy, but here is an option. What if every person of faith, or even those who read these words, began to pray daily that peace would breakout? What if we all began to act in small ways that 11:00 on 11/11/11 violence would end? What if we began as individuals and groups to live and believe that all bloodshed could end?

Here is my proposal, my request, and my promise: pray daily for the next 365 days that the guns will fall silent forever; to try and speak only peace and not hate or anger or revenge; to ask God to show us how to love our neighbors, pray for those who persecute us, and to turn the other cheek.

If you would join me, let me know. If you believe in peace, pass this along. If you believe that with God's help this can happen, pray.