Sunday Reflections

What a great spirit in worship on Sunday. Thanks for singing with your heart to our Lord.

I am so proud of you, Gateway, for your response to the challenge to sponsor a child through Compassion International. Compassion said the normal response is 3 to 5% of those who are in attendance will sponsor a child. We had one of the highest responses ever -- over 15%! That does not include those who were already sponsoring a child or those of you who sponsored a child online. It also doesn’t count the many of you who signed up yesterday to sponsor a child. You did awesome. Your generosity will make a difference in the lives of so many children. Thank you!

• Remember our Harvest Festival this Friday night. It’s a great time to invite a friend and neighbor. The kids are going to love it... even the adults love it.
• Thanks for praying for me this past week while I was on my spiritual retreat. I will share more with you in the near future about my time alone with God. But let me share for the moment that He has me very excited about His plans for Gateway. I believe we are going to see a fresh pouring out of His Spirit in our fellowship... so let's get ready for all the He has for us! Let's decide that we want to see those far from Christ to come to know Him as Lord and Savior!
• This Sunday we began a four Sunday series on Worship. Our worship team has been working diligently on this series. Jeremy Kingsley will lead in our first message. I always look forward to hearing Jeremy.
• Come with your hearts expectant on Sunday. I look forward to seeing you!

My Big Adventure – Learning the difference between Facts, Faith & Feelings

I’m a firm believer that every twelfth-grade guy needs a big adventure before he heads off to college. That’s why each spring I take some of Gateway’s twelfth-grade guys on a big adventure. This year we went to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, Cedar Point Amusement Park and the Dayton Airshow. The preceding years I have taken them to NYC to visit our church plant and tour the city. It’s always a great adventure!

Now imagine this. You are in the 12th grade, you are 17 years-old, and you get this crazy idea that to a teenager seems perfectly rational. You ask your mom and step-father if you can rent a plane so that you and your three best friends can fly from High Point, NC to Washington DC to “hang out.”

Now imagine that not only did your mom say yes, but the parents of your three best friends said yes. That means eight rational, sober, non-drug users, had a good nights sleep adults, made a conscience decision to let their four sons crawl into a four-seat Cessna 172 airplane and fly to the Nation’s Capital with a 17 year-old pilot who has had his license for only 5 months!

You are probably thinking – “Not in this life time!” Most parents wouldn’t even let their sons drive on such a trip.

Well, that was me back in 1971. I’m on the far left; then Doug, Jimmy and Mike.

The photo was taken early on the morning of December 29th, 1971. After doing the preflight of the plane, fuel check, weather check, filed the flight plan, we crawled into the plane. Before I started the engine, we had a prayer for a safe flight. I always did that. On this particular day, it was a really good thing that I had prayed.

So we were heading to our big adventure in DC. All the check points were exactly where they were supposed to be. It was a beautiful day with unlimited visibility. Little did I know that the big adventure would begin before we reached DC.

One of the guys asked, “So how are we getting from the airport to downtown DC?” “I have no idea, but something will work out.” was my confident response. There was a quiet moment in the plane. “So where are we spending the night?” “Well, I think we can stay with this girl I met last year at a flying event. I wrote her about us coming to Washington.” It got quiet again.

After convincing my friends that they can trust me, it suddenly hit me, I’m not really sure where I am! This was long before GPS. One of the guys asked “How much longer? I need to go to the bathroom.” After a really long pause, I finally said, “I’m not sure. I have to figure out where we are.” It was dead quiet.

This is when the lesson began in learning the difference between faith in facts or faith in feelings. A pilot has to trust his instruments, not his feelings, especially if you get disoriented. Your feelings can tell you one thing, while the plane is doing something completely different. The air had been very rough and I was attempting to find a smoother altitude for the guys. I was soon flying by feelings, not facts. I was focused on the rough air and not my navigational instruments. I was putting my trust in what I thought was the right course instead of keeping a trusting eye on the instrument panel.

For the safety of my three friends, I had to set aside my ego. I began looking for a place to land in order to get my bearings. How embarrassing! I noticed some pasture land that looked like it had a dirt air strip running in the middle. That was good enough for me. I had learned to fly at a very small airport, so landing on a small, short dirt field was second nature to me.

I checked for other airplane traffic and headed in for a landing, no sweat. There were also no buildings, no phones, no nothing. My three friends bailed out one side of the plane and went straight for a line of trees to answer the call of Mother Nature.

As I got out of the plane, I saw a guy in his car at the end of the field. I walked over to him and with all the confidence I could muster I asked, “Do you know which way Washington is?” Without judging, or at least not to my face, he said, “let me get my road map.” We studied the road map on the hood of his car along side of my flight map. “I see where I made a mistake. I know where I am now. Thanks!” With the four of us back in the plane and all of the cows off the runway, we took to the air with new confidence. We were only 20 minutes away from the airport I was looking for. Potomac Airfield (PG Airpark back then) was just southwest of Andrews Air Force Base and directly south of Washington.

I can only imagine the conversation that man had with his wife at dinner that night! I gave him something to talk about for the rest of his life. “Did I tell you about the time these four teenagers flying an airplane landed in a field and asked me how to get to DC?”

Twenty minutes later, we landed at Potomac Airfield. Okay, I found the airport, now I need to find a ride for the four of us. As I walked into the airport lounge, standing right in front of me was Mike Brooks. We both immediately recognized each other. Mike was my age and we had met a year ago at a flying event. He lived in the area and was hanging out at the airport. We talked for a moment. I asked him, “How far is it to downtown?” “About 20 or 30 minutes,” he said. So I made a deal with him. “I will take you up and let you fly my plane if you drive us to DC.” Done deal.

We ran around DC seeing the sights. It was awesome. We laughed and enjoyed every moment. Later that day I called my other friend – which I had met only once. She had already made arrangements for housing and was coming to pick us up near the Washington Monument. She had also made plans to get a group of her friends together, and they had a party for us! Way cool.

After the party we headed to another friend’s house to spend the night. Now get this, the only available bed for us was a king-size water bed. Image 4 teenage guys on a king-size water bed (or maybe you don’t want to imagine that). We laughed all night long.

We woke up early the next morning with bad news on the weather. There would be some strong winds and storms hitting the east coast, so we would have an even rougher ride home. No sweat.

Another recently made friend drove us back to the airport. We jumped into the plane and soon we were heading home.

The winds were tough. One of the guys was watching the interstate below us. He said, “Don, I think the cars are passing us.” “No way,” I said. But he was right. I called the weather station on my radio and discovered that we were flying into 50 knot headwind, but it was smooth air. So if you are flying 120 and heading into a headwind of 50, your ground speed is 70… so cars were passing us!

On the return trip home, I trusted my flight instruments completely. I set aside all my feelings. I made course corrections for crosswinds. After avoiding much of the thunderstorms, we landed safely at Midway Airport in High Point, NC. When the wheels touched the runway, we all began singing Handle’s Hallelujah chorus… awesome trip!

Everyday you have a choice. You can put your faith in the facts of God’s Word or you can put your faith in your feelings. Your feelings can be deceptive because of your ever-changing circumstances. Your feelings can be unreliable. Your feelings can contradict the truth of God’s Word. But your feelings do not negate the truth of God’s Word. Choose to put your FAITH in the FACTS of God’s Word. You will find that your FEELINGS will eventually catch up.

Your word is a lamp to guide my feet and a light for my path. Psalm 119:105

JESUS: “Those who accept my commandments and obey them are the ones who love me. And because they love me, my Father will love them. And I will love them and reveal myself to each of them.” John 14:21

Sunday’s Reflections – ReThink Compassion

Awesome day of worship.

• Cory and Judd do an excellent job in leading us into the presence of God each week.
• The choir blessed us today.
• Reggie Boan challenged us with his testimony of his personal involvement with Compassion International.

Of the 6.7 billion people that live on this planet:

1. 1.1 billion have little or no access to water
2. 2.6 billion lack basic sanitation
3. 1 billion people use 80% of the world’s resources
4. The USA accounts for 4.6% of the world’s population and we consume 33% of the world’s resources.
5. There are 2.2 billion children in the world
6. 1 billion children lives in poverty
7. 25,000 children die each day due to poverty

I challenged you to make a difference by considering:

1. Sponsoring a child through Compassion International – we will have packets next Sunday.
2. Become a Foster Parent – there are 443 foster children in Lexington and Richland Counties with only 207 foster homes to serve them.
3. Adopt a child in the United States or Internationally.
4. There are 143 million children that need to be adopted world-wide
5. There are 100,000 children in the United States waiting to be adopted.
   
   Pure and genuine religion in the sight of God the Father means caring for orphans and widows in their distress and refusing to let the world corrupt you. James 1:27 (NLT)

My First Leadership Lesson

In 1971, I was elected president of our service club in high school – the Junior Jaycees. We had formed the club a year earlier when I was a junior. Like most schools, “service club” was code for “party club.” The only service projects actually being done was cleaning up after the parties!

There was a gang of us in high school who did not drink plus we actually wanted to do service projects. So we formed a new club with a major rule. You could not use alcohol or drugs – at any time or at any place. Students responded.

Service clubs were limited to 50 students. We quickly had 50 students. Also, we were the only club that had a long waiting list of students who wanted in. Our club was soon the “cool” group to be part of. Athletes, preppies, band members, smart students… we attracted all kinds. We even accepted some of the nerds! (I think that is how I got in.) The teachers and school administration respected us and appreciated our stance.

Our nickname was the wombats. Why? I have no idea. A wombat is a small Australian bear that we assumed was vicious… but I don’t think so. I saw one while in Australia a few years ago – not too impressed.

There were times we had to confront guys in our group… we even had to remove a few. But for the most part, all the guys enjoyed the accountability and appreciated being a part of a safe group of guys.

There was one thing that did make us like all the other clubs, we had initiation week. We would choose our allotted students… then we would… well, let’s just say that we made sure they earned the right to be a part of our group. The last night of initiation week was on Friday. There were various names for this night… none that I can share. We were out most of the night. It was usually more talk than action. We would cover the guys in a bunch of yucky, smelly, homemade stuff… make them do stupid things… made them do things for us… but other than that it was pretty mild. We soon got bored of the pranks and just sat around a fire-pit and laughed.

The night was over and we headed home. As I pulled up to my house (remember this was long before cell phones) my mother was waiting at the door. She said, “One of your guys is hurt and is at the hospital. You need to get over there.” I could tell she was worried.

As I arrived at the ER I saw a dad that I knew. He came up to me and asked what happened. I said, “I’m totally in the dark, but I will find out.” He told me that his son had 3rd degree burns on his back. My heart sunk and my mind raced.

I talked to some of the guys who were in the waiting room. They told me that a few of our guys had taken three of the pledges to the lake. They decided to have their own little initiation separate from the rest of the group. They poured some really smelly, homemade concoction on the students and then had them get into the lake to wash off. When one of the students hit the water, he began to scream. “My back is burning! My back is burning!!”

They rushed him to the hospital. The physician found that he had 3rd degree burns about the size of a grapefruit on his back. It was not good. He would later have plastic surgery and a skin graft to repair the area.

The dad said, “Don, I don’t blame you because you were not there.” I said, “But I am responsible because I am the leader of the group. I will find out who did this and what they did.”

I got our guys together who were at the scene. I asked them what happen. Everyone told the same story. It seemed that one of the guys brought some stuff from home, he poured it on this one particular pledge. We later found out that he didn’t like the pledge and had singled him out. “Do you know what you put into it?” I asked. “No.” he said. “Well let’s go to your house and you show me.” When we went to his house, he began pulling out all this stuff he had put together… then he pulled out one container that I couldn’t believe. “This is Drano! You put this in?” “Yes,” he said. I could not believe it! I don’t remember all the names I called him, but somewhere in that process I said, “Don’t you know that Drano is activated with water?” The original Drano was made up of small crystals. You would put the crystals into a clogged drain then add water to active the solution. The smell was horrible. When the pledge got into the lake, the water activated the Drano and began burning him. The more he washed it off, the more it burned.

An ill-conceived, stupid, practical joke gone very bad. No charges were brought by the parents. They were very forgiving towards the club and me. They realized it was a single student who perpetrated the attack on their son. The conversation that would take place would be between the two sets of parents.

But our High School principal was a different story. He held me responsible and pulled the charter of our club for a year. I could appreciate his position, but I did try to convince him he should not punish an entire group because of one individual. In reality he was probably trying to avoid a lawsuit. He did the right thing in order to protect the school.

Funny thing though… we were stubborn. We decided to continue as a club just not at school and not school sponsored. The principal agreed that he could not stop us. We continued to do community projects. That next spring, the unofficial Junior Jaycees Wombats received the “Service Club of the Year” award by the High School Student Council.

Just a few years ago, I got a phone call. It was the guy who had been burned. He kept up with me over the years through mutual friends. He was in Columbia on business and wanted to visit. We had a great time together. We laughed about High School. We talked about our friends. We talked about his faith. And we talked about that fateful initiation night. He had made a decision to let it motivate him, not defeat him. “Let me see your scar,” I said. He didn’t hesitate. He pulled up his shirt and there it was. It was still the size of a grapefruit. He had more plastic surgery procedures, but it would always be a big, ugly scar.

Funny ending… he works as a fire prevention consultant! And he loves his job. I laugh every time I think about it.

So what did I learn? I learned that when you are the leader… you are responsible. I feel this even more as pastor of Gateway. I know that one day I will stand before a Holy God and give an account of my role as leader of this wonderful church. That’s why I must make sure we are asking ourselves the right question… are we fulfilling God’s purpose and plans for Gateway? In the end, that is all that matters.

Totally Out of Control – a Great Place to Be!

It had been a long day. I left early last week on Tuesday morning to drive south of Raleigh, NC to visit an inmate in prison. We spent more than an hour together talking about life, the Bible, and Jesus… it was a good visit.

Then I headed to the Baptist Hospital in Winston-Salem to visit a church member who had just come out of surgery for a very serious form of cancer. Which, by the way, the doctors have now declared her cancer-free from a form of cancer that has no cure! It is a God thing!!

After visiting, praying, and meeting other family members… I headed to my car. I had told them that it was just a few miles away at Old Salem where I first kissed Mary. She was attending Governor’s School… I think the historical marker is still there!

I was driving west on Interstate 40 heading towards I-77 which would lead me home. I had just passed exit 182 outside of Winston-Salem. The signs told me that there was road work ahead and to be prepared to slow down. For just a moment I thought about taking an exit to find a way around the construction. The traffic slowed to 35 miles per hour. It didn’t look like it would be too bad.

I was paying very close attention to the car in front of me. I didn’t look in my rear view mirror, which was a good thing. Otherwise I would have seen the car coming towards me at 85 miles per hour making no attempt to slow down. A 24-year-old was talking on his cell phone to his girlfriend. He did not realize that the traffic had slowed considerably. If I had seen the oncoming vehicle, I would have stiffened every muscle preparing for the impending impact because I had no route of escape. That body reaction would have increased my injuries many fold.

Instead, I was simply looking ahead. I heard the initial impact… but was not sure what had happened. After my Ford Explorer spun around two times, it hit the guard rail facing into the east bound traffic which was about 30 feet away. I’m very thankful for the person who invented guard rails… and seat belts!

I do remember feeling completely at peace and calm. I felt no jarring or banging. I knew I was out of control, but at the same time everything was under control. Later, at the hospital, I was praying and thanking God for protecting me. He told me that he had placed a team of angels around me during the accident. I believe Him! That explains the calmness I felt the protection I had. Other than a bump on my head, there was zero pain.

I remember someone coming to my car. I have no idea what they said, but I think I did what they told me to do. I got out of my car. I saw that the car in front of me had been hit as well… either by me while I was spinning or by the other car. There was an older couple in the car. I asked them if they were okay.

Then all of a sudden it occurred to me that I had no idea where I was and why I was there. I didn’t know what day it was or what I had been doing for the past 24 hours. “Why am I standing in the middle of the interstate? Why is the back of my car gone?” Someone told me where I was. “So why am I in North Carolina?” My next thought was, “My brother, Elliott, is a Captain with the High Point Fire Department. He is the closest family member.” I called him. “Hey. I’ve been in a wreck on I-40. Can you come?” “Be there in a moment,” he said. Ten minutes passed and I was still confused. I called my brother again. “Did I call you earlier?” He said, “Yes and I am on my way.” “That’s great, because I don’t remember calling you.” He told me later that after the second call he drove much faster to get to me.

I called Mary. Her first words were, “I’m talking to Molly, I will call you right back.” I simply said okay. Mary was talking to her sister about her dad. He was having some serious health issues and Mary was getting an update. If I had said “I’m in trouble,” she would have given me full attention. But at that moment, I didn’t even remember being in a wreck, so I didn’t say anything. She felt horrible when she found out what was going on… but it was not her fault. I wasn’t able to communicate anything. (We are working on a new system of communication!)

Okay… I’m in North Carolina. My brother is on his way. So why am I here? Where have I been all day? I could not remember anything. About that time an EMT asked me if I was okay. “I don’t know. I know who I am, but I don’t know why I am here.” He asked, “Do you know what day it is?” “No,” I admitted with great embarrassment. They took my blood pressure… it was high. “Do you want to go to the hospital?” he asked. “I’m fine,” I said. Remember, I’m a guy and we don’t like to admit we need anything… (I think that the “male ego” was a little joke by God on man.) The EMT said, “Sign here that you don’t want to go to the hospital.” I signed and they moved to the others.

Why I did the following, I have no idea, but it made a difference. I was sitting on the guard rail in the middle of the interstate. I took out my Blackberry and began twittering. That sent instant texts to cell phones and Facebook. I thought if I could start writing about what is happening my memory would come back. I began to tell people what was happening. Within in five minutes I received over 50 text messages and multiple phone calls. I didn’t answer the phone because I was too confused. But the peace that overwhelmed me was reassuring… people were praying! Over the next 30 minutes I had more than 100 text messages and phone calls. More peace and calmness!

The people in the car ahead of me told me that they saw everything. They saw the car coming; they saw my car spin twice; they saw their car get hit by the other car. The police said I was going 35 mph and the at-fault car hit me at 85 mph.

I looked across the road and saw my brother. He talked to the fire fighters and made his way to me. I knew I would be okay. “You okay?” “I’m not sure. I can’t remember anything.” “Where is the EMT?” he asked. “They left.” He got mad. “You need to go the hospital. I’m not taking any risk.” “Fine with me,” I said.

Somewhere in all that process, I gathered all my stuff out of the car and put it into a garbage bag. I have no idea where I got the bag from. I had a feeling I wouldn’t be driving that car again. “Is it totaled?” I asked the wrecker guy as he was pulling my car onto his tow truck. “Oh yeah,” he said.

I noticed that the driver seat was completely flat and the back of my driver’s seat was laying into the back seat. “How did that happen?” I wondered.

I finally talked to Mary. “Are you going to the hospital?” she asked. “I’m okay, I don’t need to go.” “YOU ARE GOING TO THE HOSPITAL,” she informed me. “I can tell by your voice that something is wrong.”

Elliott got me to his car. We drove the five minutes back to Baptist Hospital. We walked into the ER. It was packed. I was taken to triage. I was with a nurse for five minutes. They took me straight to an examination room and within a few minutes I had my first exam by a physician. “I think you are okay, but let me talk to someone else.” A few minutes later he came back with another physician. He examined me. I still don’t remember much from the day. “I think we should do a CAT scan. Do you want to do that?” He knew I was a pastor and I said “You don’t tell me how to preach and I won’t tell you how to practice medicine.” He laughed and said we would do the scan.

While I was waiting for the scan, a nurse came in. “Are you Mack Brock?” “Yes.” She shook her head and said, “Let me look at your wrist identification. We have you classified wrong,” she said as she left the room. Elliott looked at my id. “They have you listed as a black female.” We laughed. The nurse returned to change my id bracelet. I told Elliott, “I’m going to have fun with this. This will let everyone know I’m okay.” So I twittered the news. I noticed on my phone that I had another 100 messages. I had messages from friends all over the country. I love technology.

The physician reported to me “You have a concussion with amnesia. Your memory will come back and you will be fine.” A third physician came in to give me one final check. They were awesome.

Mary was on her way, so Elliott took me half way to meet her. Elliott told her that he was finally glad that he was able to take care of his big brother. It was reassuring that he was there. It took a great deal of pressure off of Mary as well.

Well, I’ve been examined three times since being home. I still have some fuzziness and trouble concentrating… but all is well. God has been very good to me. I have to take a short break from preaching because of the inability to concentrate.

God taught me that the reason I was calm during the wreck was that the outcome did not matter. If I survived, then I get to remain with my family and friends. If I did not survive the wreck, then I get to be with Jesus in heaven. It was a win-win situation.

As for my brain, I am claiming Romans 12:2

Don’t copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will learn to know God’s will for you, which is good and pleasing and perfect. Romans 12:2 (NLT)

I need God to renew my mind. This kind of work is done by the Holy Spirit as we become consistent in our study and meditation on Scripture and through prayer. So my prescription for recovery is to take a break from the internet, television and movies, and give my full focus on God’s word and prayer.

Let me say again, thank you for the outpouring of your love and prayers this past week.

I love you!

A Labor Day That Lived Up To Its Name

So I think my wife deceived me. She convinced me that Labor Day was actually a day set aside to have a contest to see how much work you can get done in a 12 hour period. AND I FELL FOR IT! For some reason I could not sleep Sunday night. Great day at church; wonderful worship; loved preaching Galatians 5; had lunch with great friends… but for some reason I just could not go to sleep. Maybe it was the thought of 83 year old Jerry Lewis staying up all night for his kid’s telethon. (I use to watch it every year.) Imagine… he has collected over $1.5 billion dollars since he began the telethon.

Anyway, after not sleeping most of the night, we were in the yard by 9:00 on Monday morning and we finished at 9:00 that night. We cleared the area between the road and back yard; measured for the line of the fence along the back; cut down trees; pulled down thorny vines from other trees; dug holes; placed timber for the fence; moved concrete bags that had harden from our lovely humidity; busted up the hard concrete with a mallet to make it usable; set the post; somewhere in all that we split a subway sandwich; Mary went to rehearsal at the church; then we closed off the day by moving 2 large pallets of 8 foot 2 X 4’s from the garage to the back yard. If there was a contest – then we won… and I want my prize!

One bright moment… we had two baby squirrels playing on our back deck. They were not afraid and came right to me… and no we are not making them pets.

During the day, God reminded of some truths in his word.

First were the thorny vines. They covered the trees along the road in our back yard. When you first see a vine growing, it is a small vine just a few inches long with a few leaves; not much to it and certainly nothing to take serious. But left unchecked it will quickly make its way up the tallest tree… and it will invite all of its siblings and cousins to climb along. It was not easy removing those things. My legs and arms look like I got into a fight with Edward Scissorhands. I did get some cool cuts on my legs. One looks like the mark of Zorro. Then there is the triangle and an upside down 7. (I know I’ve got a weird sense of humor.)

Sin is like that. It may start out harmless and small, but it will soon overwhelm your life. It will affect everything. Once it has weaved itself into your thoughts and your behavior – it affects those around you. It’s not easily removed and sometimes takes the help of others… maybe you have the scars that prove this to be true.

The other truth was revealed through a couple of baby squirrels. As I was going to get a drink, this very small squirrel was looking for something to drink on our porch. As I approached, he wasn’t nervous, nor did it run off. In fact, it crawled right towards me. I got a saucer of water and he got his fill. Soon his sibling showed up. Then I remembered… last Thursday, we found a dead squirrel at the bottom of the tree the babies were in. So they are probably orphaned. God reminded me that if He is aware of even the smallest of his creatures, certainly he is aware of my needs.

(Jesus) What is the price of two sparrows—one copper coin? But not a single sparrow can fall to the ground without your Father knowing it. Matt. 10:29

(God) I know every bird on the mountains, and all the animals of the field are mine. Psalm 50:11

Soaring with the Eagles

I flew my first glider when I was 16 years old. I will never forget the drive to Chester, SC to a glider school located at the airport. It was amazing. After an orientation by the instructor and the pre-flight check of the glider, I crawled into the front seat – the instructor into the back. A tow-line that looked like a ski rope was attached to the tail of the tow-plane was also attached to the nose of the glider. After getting the slack out of the tow-line and checking my controls, I gave a signal to the line-boy who held my wings level. He signaled the pilot of the tow-plane. He began his take-off run. After about 20 yards, the line-boy was able to let go of the wing since the glider had enough lift under the wings to stay level.

Within just a few moments, I was 10 feet off the ground. WOW!!! It was thrilling. I had just gotten my driver’s license and now I’m flying a glider. The instructor taught me how to stay within the “box” behind the tow-plane. After a series of turns, we made our way to 3,500 feet. Then it happened. I pulled the big red knob in the center of my instrument console. The rope disconnected from the glider; the tow plane dove down to the left and I took a steep turn to the right. After having my flight determined by the tow-plane, I was now free to fly as I desired. It was freeing, exhilarating, and very quiet. All I heard was the air rushing over my canopy and wings.

Because there is no engine in a glider, forces of nature have the primary affect on the flight. One force – gravity – pulls you back to earth. The glider began its decent. Within 20 minutes I would be back on the ground. However, I did have an alternative. I could find a thermal. A thermal is like a tall smoke stack of warm air that is rising from the ground. If you find one you can make tight turns within the column of warm air and the heat will cause the glider to rise. When you gain the altitude you desire, you simply fly out of the thermal. If you can continue to find thermals, you could literally keep a glider in the air all day.

The thing about thermals is they can be very bumpy. That is one of the many clues that you have found one. You feel the disruption of air around the glider. But unless you are willing to go through the bumps, you will never get the altitude.

Another clue I look for is a hawk or an eagle. If I spot one in a tight circle, there is a chance he has found a thermal and is seeking to gain altitude. Once when the kids were very young, we were visiting Mary’s brother on Signal Mountain in Tennessee. As we stood at a cliff looking over the city of Chattanooga, I spotted an eagle about a hundred feet below us. He was circling. I told the kids “Watch this eagle. I bet he will circle; never flap his wings; and will soon be higher than we are.” Sure enough, just as if we had planned it, the eagle stayed in a tight circle and quickly rose to hundreds of feet above us – he didn’t flap his wings once! Then he tilted his wings, flew out of the thermal and headed off into another direction. Amazing.

My glider flying and that eagle reminded of this verse:
But those who trust in the Lord will find new strength. They will soar high on wings like eagles. They will run and not grow weary. They will walk and not faint. Isaiah 40:31 (NLT)

We have reached our two year mark on our new campus. What I thought would be easy has been hard and what I thought would be hard has been easy. Go figure. We have seen many dear friends make their way to other fellowships. (I was told by countless pastors and consultants that this would happen.) I know many of you have been hurt as your friends have left. I have hurt. Even though I knew it was coming, it still hurt. I was their pastor and I loved them… I still do. Being a relational person made it sting even more.

However, I had to be obedient to the Lord. I answer to Him and Him alone. I have no doubts that we are heading in the right direction. Although I will confess that I have not executed everything correctly, I have no doubts of God’s vision for Gateway. He has planted us into a sea of people who do not know Him.

But when you go through some bumpy air while flying… you don’t ever get out of the plane! You keep flying and let the Lord give you the lift you need under your wings. When you are flying at 35,000 feet in an airliner and you run into some very bumpy air… you stay in your seat, tighten your seat belt and trust the pilot! Well, I have put my trust in the Lord.

In the last two years, over 200 people have joined our team. As you have, they have bought into the vision for this church. We have baptized ninety-five new believers. We have many more waiting for baptism. God is great!

I want to thank the Gateway family for believing in our Lord and the vision He has given Gateway. I want to thank the Gateway family for believing in me as your pastor and your leader. Your prayers, kind words, and notes of encouragement bless me more than you will ever know. Never, never, never stop praying for me!

I want to thank the Gateway family for allowing me to build a great team of staff who believe in the vision God has given Gateway. I love working with this team!

Now let’s soar high for the Lord. Let us continue the race and not grow weary of the journey. Let’s ask God to give us hundreds of new believers this fall. Let’s believe God for that which seems impossible to us. Let’s put ALL of our trust in the LORD!!! You are going to love the view when we soar high together!