Freedom: Lessons from 2 Years of Being Debt Free
- on May 17, 2013
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My wife and I are celebrating two years of being debt free. It has been an incredible journey of ups and downs, but I want to share with you some of the ways we went about it as well as the lessons we[...]
Prayers and Thoughts…….
- By Rhett Smith
- on October 31, 2005
- 2 Comments
Kyle is on the left
Last night, one of my friends living in Waco, TX called me to tell me that he was on his way to a prayer service for pastor Kyle Lake who was electrocuted while getting ready to perform a baptism. Kyle was the pastor of UBC in Waco, which is the church that most of you know most likely, because the David Crowder Band leads worship there.
Brian McLaren reflects on the death of Kyle Lake.
Tony Jones has some thoughts on Kyle Lake.
Emergent asks that you keep these people in prayer
Please be in prayer for his wife and three kids, as well as his church body.
Thoughts on the Connection Between Passion, Limits and Vocation....
- on May 15, 2013
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There is a deep connection between what we are passionate about and our vocation. But part of finding true vocation is also acknowledging the limits that our passion brings us up against.
Putting Down Our Masks: Living Authentically So Others Can See God in Our Lives
- on May 14, 2013
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When we put down our masks that we hide behind, we are able to live an authentic life where our true self emerges. And when we live out of this true self we are examples that allow others to see God i[...]
Eugene Peterson is absolutely brilliant on the intersection of running and spiritual reading...
- on October 19, 2006
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I absolutely love Eugene Peterson. Few theologians have the insight or writing ability of him. Right now I am reading through his book, "Eat This Book." And there is a beautiful passage in there ab[...]
"emerging churches" continues....what do you think?
- on November 26, 2005
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This post is a continuation of this post and book from a few days back I know that as soon as some read the quotes below they will state that, "Isn't this already what we are doing in churches and as[...]
When the poor are always with us...
- on April 4, 2008
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The poor you wil always have with you (some provisional thoughts) Peter Rollins is so articulate and right on target here: There is an intriguing verse in which Jesus is recorded as having said, “The[...]
I had not heard about this until Pita and I were just out trick or treating with the boys (uh, I mean "reformation day-ing..) and my neighbor told me because Lake had been their daughter's youth pastor.
Our prayers definitely go out to his family and congregation.
Brent
This event has been hard, real hard for me. On one hand I understand where he's gone and I know he has received he gift that we all long for. But, on the other hand I'm overwhelmed at time with grief and anger. I either want to laugh about the jokes and stories Kyle used to tell over a burger and shuffleboard at Crickets, or cry, no sob, over the loss of perhaps one of the most influential people in my past, or I get so pissed off I cuss at God and want to give up this whole damn thing we call religion. Why would our God allow something like this to happen to a man of God who is doing His work?? Just makes no sense to me...
I think what pains me most is that I never took the opportunity to tell Kyle how much he meant to me and how much he influenced me. It's funny how we don't realize those things until something tragic happens.. We get so wrapped up and caught up in ourselves, and our own pursuits that we forget to pause and thank the ones that got us here. So, I want to take a moment and publicly thank Kyle for what he was and is to me.
Thanks for being a free spirit.
Thanks for making me laugh and laugh alot.
Thanks for being the one back when we started the 2nd or 3rd married couples group at UBC to break the backward silence when topics got tough (and by breaking the silence I mean breaking wind at times!)
Thanks for being there for Lisa and I after our first miscarriage, with a smile on your face and a casserole dish in hand!
Thanks for letting me yell at you and your God.
Thanks for letting me get angry and not telling me I was going to hell for telling God to fuck off.
Thanks for healing me and showing me how to trust in God again.
Thanks for being at the hospital at our 2nd miscarriage and making fun of Lisa's socks as she went under anesthesia.
Thanks for your prayers.
Thanks for the lunches at Cricket's and for letting me whip you at pool a few times, although I think you always won at shuffleboard, too much of a girlie sport like soccer for me!!
Thanks for letting me cry on your shoulder, snot and all.
Thanks for buying me breakfast at Barry's Bagels one morning so we could discuss me getting into youth ministry.
Thanks for telling me it was ok to mess up and just be me, the kids will appreciate honesty instead of political correctness.
Thanks for being my reference as I applied at churches and putting your reputation on the line for me (although at the time your reputation wasn't that good! It was 1999 afterall!).
Thanks for crying with us as we left UBC, our home, to pursue what God had in store for us.
Thanks for wearing those goofy zip up padded vests. I thought only my trucker dad wore those, somehow you made them look cool.
Thanks for being just a phone call or email away when I wanted to catch up every couple of months.
Thanks for preaching from your heart.
Thanks for not taking yourself seriously at all.
Thanks for showing all of us that pastors aren't hypocrits.
Thanks for being honest.
Thanks for being an author.
Thanks for being a movie watcher.
Thanks for wiping a booger on me once during a prayer!
Thanks for being a husband and for showing young college students how to love your wife.
Thanks for being a dad, I wish I could have seen you with your kids, I know you were great...
Thanks for being my pastor.
Thanks for being my friend.
Thanks for being you.....
I'll miss ya man, enjoy Heaven, and save a place for me at the pool table.. I get winner...
Grace and Peace,
Scott Ayres
Minister through Sports and Recreation
The PARC @ SLFUMC
www.theparc.org
[ Lisa and I started going to UBC, less than a year after it started, in early '96. The church grew so fast in that first year, that during the Baylor school year it had to meet at the Hippodrome (an old civic theatre seating close to 1000). Now when Baylor was out, we went back to reality and met at this tiny, old church house with maybe 25-40 of us there. Kyle came on staff shortly after this (maybe a year or so) and fit right in with us. It was an exciting time when we bought the building on Dutton and started renovating it and making it our own. Lisa and I went to church there for 4-5 years and left the church maybe 6 months after Kyle took over for Chris (Chris moved back to Houston to start Ecclesia). It was hard for us all, but Kyle filled his shoes well and didn't miss a beat in pastoring the community there. Lisa and I had a hard time leaving in late '99 as God called us into youth ministry at this small country church out in the sticks, but it was what God wanted for us. And I remember Kyle being so supportive of it and helping me through it. We got to know Kyle and Jenn well the previous year or so in our married bible study group. Kyle and Jenn were a part of our 3rd year of meeting and were freshly newlyweds, man they would make me sick!!! I can't think of any other couple besides Lisa and myself that were more in love..]