happy 3rd birthday destin
three years ago today destin came into this world as a bouncing baby boy. tears filled my eyes as i beheld flesh of my flesh and bone of my bone. childbirth has to be one of the greatest miracles that almighty God has ever performed. it ranks right up there with parting the red sea and other great miracles of the bible.
fatherhood is without a doubt the greatest responsibility a man will ever have. any male can make a baby but only a man can take care of a baby. i am often overwhelmed at the thought of God trusting me with the task of partnering with him to rear our male child into a godly, respectable, responsible man.
here are seven things i don’t ever want my son to forget:
- God is not an option in our house. i agree with joshua who said, “as for me and my house we will serve the lord.” i promise to lay a christian foundation for you to build on and use as an example. i will use every teachable moment as an opportunity to show the ways of Jesus Christ; we will bless our meals before we eat; pray before we fall asleep; meditate on the Word of God; acknowledge Him in all our ways… when you are older you will have a choice but as long as you are dependent on me, God is not an option in our house.
- i will always respect and honor your mother. i am well aware that you would not be here were it not for your mom. for that reason i honor her. i honor her because she carried you for nine months in her womb; nourished you when you couldn’t do it for yourself; cares for you when you are ill; prays for you constantly; teaches you your letters, numbers, and colors; sacrifices time, energy and even sleep. i guess you get the point. there will be times when we will not agree or see eye to eye but there will never be a time that i don’t honor her as your mother. i expect the same from you.
- destin i want you to know that i love you with an unconditional love. the fact is you will never be able to imagine how much i love you. the interesting thing is you don’t have to do anything to earn this love. i want you to be a good boy; make good grades; be nice to your friends; honor your parents; realize your God given purpose but none of that has anything to do with my love for you. how can i say it more plainly? I LOVE YOU DESTIN!!!
- i believe you are destined for greatness. your name, “destin”, suggest that God has a ultimate plan for your life. i believe you can do anything you put your mind to. never accept mediocrity or average as the norm for your life because it is not. always attempt to do your best. you don’t have to be “the” best. but i fully intend for you to “do” your best.
- choices not chances determine your destiny. remember every choice whether good or bad has a consequence. i have certainly made my share of both good and bad choices. i hope you will follow my footsteps that lead to success and avoid my missteps that led to potholes. i am convinced of this scripture, “all things work together for the good of them that love God…
- i will always have your back. did i say always? time nor distance nor age nor issue will ever distract me from watching out for you. it is my job that i take very seriously. when you are right i got you and when you make mistakes as we all do, i got you. let the record show you can count on your daddy.
- i will discipline you because i love you. make no mistake about it, i am old school when it come to discipline. there will be times when you will not understand why i am correcting you; punishing you; and yes spanking you. but trust me you will appreciate it later on in life. it was the same for me when i was a child. i am a better man today because of the discipline i received as a child. i owe you that in the name of love.
love ya son,
daddy
blessed are the flexible…
i have often preached in sermons, quoted in conversations and counseled people using the phrase, “blessed are the flexible for they shall not be bent out of shape.” another statement i’ve used has been, “the only thing that is certain in life is uncertainty.” now i am at a place where i have to digest those sayings for myself.
our intown location has for three years has used the ballroom at twelve in atlantic station for it’s sanctuary. it has been a great location for us. we were the first church to have service in atlantic station. it was birthed from atlantic station’s motto, “live, work, and play.” we have for three years added a fourth and most important dimension, “worship.”
however on May 3, we are going to be relocating to the fabulous loudermilk center on edgewood street in Atlanta. this facility was almost dropped in our lap. it offers to us some unique opportunities that we did not have in Twelve such as: additional space for children’s ministry, room to do mid-week bible study/small group sessions, increased visibility, it allows us to direct money to ministry and not just maintenance. in short it gives us room to be a little bit more creative in what we offer.
on top of that my lead pastor, business partner, protege and most of all friend, tyson moore, has been offered a tremendous promotion with his job that requires relocation to arizona. wow!!! i must admit i hate to see him leave. he has literally taken the lead of our intown church and run with it. his leadership skills honed in the boardrooms of corporate america has been invaluable in providing leadership to our intown location.
not only is he a ministry colleauge, but a business partner. we have literally started ventures together that made us smile on the way to the bank as well as caused us to wonder what in the world have we gotten ourselves into? lol!!! in addition, he has been in the truest sense of the word a FRIEND. tyson, haiston and i have developed a great bond between us. we have traveled together on vacation; broken bread together over dinner; played each other on the golf course; prayed for each other during difficult times; laughed with each other at the comedy club; cried with each other at the renewal of vows (those who were there remember). LOL!!! i guess you get the point- we are gonna miss this dude and his family. yet we are happy for the opportunity that God has given him. you deserve it doc.
if i am 100% honest, i am a lil nervous about the move from atlantic station and tyson moving to arizona because i have become comfortable at Twelve and with his leadership. but when i reflect over my life, i was nervous on my first day of high school; nervous on my first day of varsity football paractice; nervous taking the ACT (old school); nervous when my folks dropped me off at Grambling; nervous when i moved to Atlanta for seminary; nervous about becoming pastor of mt. sinai in ’93; nervous about getting married; nervous about parenting; nerovous about starting businesses, etc.
i think every now and then God shakes us up to remind us that He is our source and strength; He is the Author and Finisher of our faith; transition is never easy but it is so necessary and unavoidable in life. i’m learning to sit back and enjoy the ride of life. i’m standing on tip toe anticipation to see what God’s next move is. i hope you are also…
trusting in transition,
wtp3
high school hoops
Tonight, the family and I went to a Douglas County Basketball game. It was way cool just hanging with no schedules, deadlines or sermon series to do. We have several young ladies from DWC who play on their team. Much love to all of our students at all of our schools but this one just happens to be around the corner from where we live. Shout out to Krystal, her sister Kristina, and Christian. All of them had a great game.
I’m almost ashamed to talk about our eating at the game. Two popcornbags for Chrissy and Destin; Hot dog for me; Lemon peppered wings for Kim; French fries for everybody and a sprite that we all drank from. LOL!!! Got to support the booster club 
,
Been sitting next to Orlando who is the statistician and booster club president. Mentioned to him that we like the warm-ups of the team. Last nite he presented Kim and I with our own personalized warm up with our numbers on them. Everybody knows I was number 85 in the class of ’85. Kim says, “she was number 00 on the basketball team”, but she also kept the stats. huh???
Most importantly, I enjoyed just being there with the family. Nothing gives me greater joy than seeing smiles and hearing the laughter of my family. I am addicted to trying to create lasting memories with my folks. And it only cost us $14 bucks and the food of course. But it was worth every dime…
Decisions, Decisions, Decisions…
Just sitting here playing over in my mind today’s headline news stories. In particular, I’m thinking about the O.J. and Plaxico debacle. I must admit that I was saddened to see these guys who are sports heroes and icons being escorted around in handcuffs.
I have been guilty of saying that the system was doing these guys wrong and putting too much emphasis on a sad situation. Honestly I still believe it a lil bit. BUT, the truth is both O.J. and Plaxico shot themselves in the foot or leg (Couldn’t resist). The worst kind of pain is to carry is from a self-inflicted wound.
Let me hurry and say that I’m not in any way being judge nor jury against these gentleman. I am well aware of my own humanity and it’s proclivity to make a wrong turn. I agree with someone who said, “If I could kick my worst enemy in the rear, I wouldn’t be able to sit down.” We all whether we are on the highlight reels of ESPN or not have to be responsible for our decisions and actions.
We are all but a decision away from creating havoc or hoorays in our lives. Isn’t it sobering to know the power of a decision. First, we make our decisions and then our decisions makes us. Life is indeed full of decisions. Any boy or girl can make a decision but it takes a man or woman to own up to that decision.
Here are a couple of points to ponder about decisions:
1. Not every good idea is a God idea.
2. Our decisions ultimately not only affect us but also the people we care about.
3. Never make a decision under the advice of your emotions.
4. Sleep on the the decision before actually pulling the trigger. (Oops that’s my last time)
Men Let’s Talk
Went to our Men Let’s Talk meeting last nite. This is a session where all men of our church age 18 and above are invited to come out in an informal setting where we to the surprise of some ladies open up and talk about what’s on our heart and mind..
I was encouraged to see so many men who felt comfortable with sharing their personal testimonies of both trial and triumph. I reminded the men that our story (the things that we’ve experienced) is for someone else glory. While this is a cliche it is so powerfully true.
I left the meeting with a renewed passion to make sure as a pastor/teacher that I am applying the ageless truth of God’s word to real and relevant questions that people have especially men. Jesus said, “I will make you fishers of men.” Every fisherman knows some fish are more difficult to catch than others. Some people say that men are not involved in church but I am thankful that God has given us a unique ablility to reach and impact men.
A leader’s climb up the leadership ladder is determined by who’s holding the ladder. Got that from Dr. Samuel Chand’s book, “Who’s Holding Your Ladder“. Great read by the way.
Let me shout out a few guys who are holding our men’s ministry ladder: Dennis (passionate about men stepping up to the plate); Deacon Fred(aka-”the whistle blower-likes to praise God with a whistle, encourager, voice of wisdom); Ricky (behind the scenes kind of guy; few words but full of action) Elliot (leader of our usher’s ministry- big heart with hands willing to serve wherever)
Praying that every pastor and church will see an increase of ladder holders and male participation.
Honored and humbled to be called pastor by so many great guys.
