Treasure Your Failures

Last week I played golf for the fifth time in my life. Once when I was a kid with my dad, three more times at different men's events we've had at church through the years, and then last week while we were on vacation together with my brother's family, my parents, and my grandmother at the Alisal Ranch in Solvang.

Wow... I was really, really bad (i.e. I more than doubled par on each hole). I knew I wasn't any good at golf before we went, but I had imagined a different experience. This definitely led to some frustration.

But if we're not failing, we're not growing. Think about Jesus... He let his disciples fail over and over again. He purposefully put them in situations that they weren't ready for.

When I fail:

• It helps me know that I'm really learning and growing. It's part of how I sense that I'm on track with what God wants me to do. If it's too easy or routine, I start to get suspicious that maybe I'm following my plan instead of His.
  
• It increases my courage. In other words, I learn that the pain of failure is not nearly as bad as I imagined that it would be, and that it's far better than the pain of regret that comes with missed opportunities.
• It makes me a better leader. I'm more able to identify with people and encourage them to take risks too.

Here's an excerpt from the email I sent my dad as we reminisced about our golf adventure:

Still recovering from a few blisters. Definitely hoped that I would be a bit better than I was... That said, it was an incredibly beautiful moment to share with you and I’m glad we did it. I’ll treasure that memory.

Willingness to Fail

A few of you enjoyed the post a few weeks ago when I went dirt biking. Welllllll... Sam Courtney and Dave Osland invited me to go again this past Monday. Schweet!!!

I got a lot better this time, but still couldn't hack some of the hills. Here's a short video of one of my (many) falls:

If you wonder why I post videos of myself crashing, it's mostly because it's funny. But there is a spiritual element to it, as well. I think one aspect of faith is that it makes you willing to fail. You become willing to try new things, to go out on limbs, to go for it because God promises that He's with you no matter what.

In my heart, before I took the job of leading the Coastlands, I had accept the fact that I might fail. I imagined what it would feel like if everybody left the church because of my leadership. There's a downside to every promotion: the potential personal humiliation. Once I resolved that I was OK with that prospect (i.e. such an event would not cause me to hate myself, God, or others), the next step became possible. Only then did I know that I was doing it because God was asking me to and not because I was guaranteed "success."

Don't read into this that I think "faith" justifies recklessness. With dirt-biking and ministry, I believe that being a good steward involves thoughtful consideration of the risks involved (i.e. "count the cost"). While we're not called to live in fear, we are called to be sober-minded, considering what we're doing and why.

A couple other pics...

One of the main cool things about dirt-biking are the outfits.

Note the dirt on my forehead and the smile on my face... It was truly a great day.

Sweets & Treats - Numbers & Photos

Here's the link to our Sweets & Treats photo album. Enjoy!

I just found out that we had 401 adults and 488 kids come through the building. That doesn't include all of the adult volunteers who came in before we started counting, or the other volunteers who didn't come through (i.e. the dinner crew, parking crew, etc.).

Numbers don't tell you the whole story... In fact, in many ways, numbers can often distract from the real reason we do anything as a church. It's not about how many come, but about what happens in the hearts and lives of the people who are there. That said, numbers are part of the story, and it's fun to celebrate a job well done.

Thanks again, everybody! It was definitely our smoothest and best attended and (I'm praying) most impactful Sweets & Treats ever.

Sweets & Treats!

What a night! I don't have the final attendance count... but I know that it felt like there was more life, more joy, more kids, more costumes, and less chaos than ever before.

The people I talked with who realized I am the senior pastor profusely thanked me for what we do each year. "It's safe" and "it's fun" were the most common comments. I love that! Those are two words that really ought to epitomize church every time we're together!

To the hundreds of you who gave your time, energy, and creativity to make this event such a tremendous gift to our community: THANK YOU!

To the hundreds of you who came to enjoy the event: THANK YOU! It's an honor to get to host your family here on our campus. Thanks for making our family tradition your family tradition. Life is really best when we live it together...

One final thought... If you're not yet part of our church family, I want to encourage you and welcome you. The kind of life you felt around here is available to you all year around. Yeah, we crank it up a few notches a few times a year to host our community here... but the feeling you felt... that's here every day. It's not really about Sweets & Treats, the Easter Egg Hunt, or VBS (Vacation Bible School). It's the spirit of God that enables a group of strangers to become a spiritual family.

The friendliness you feel around here is evidence that God has made a place for you. So jump in! We have lots to learn from each other and lots to do together.

One parting shot:Asher being generally cute... Ethan practicing his roar.