Fireworks at 40

In less than twenty-four hours I was able to celebrate two amazing moments. One with fireworks and one without.

I've never been a big fan of weddings. My own being the only exception. Last night my wife took me to a friends wedding. It really was a beautiful wedding. I'm not sure if that's because the food was good or the ceremony was short. Aaron and Sarah really did make a beautiful couple. I sat there in that moment with my daughter in my lap and my wife seated next to me. In those moments, I love to be a husband but I'm terrified to be a dad.

Then came the fireworks. The light of the fireworks sent a beautiful glow over our seats. I sat back and watched my wife again as she held my daughter tight. These are great times. Aaron and Sarah celebrated their first night with fireworks. It was a beautiful night.

Today held no fireworks. In fact, there wasn't even a sparkler. If it wasn't for my wife the moment might have been missed. A simple cookie that said "Happy 40th Anniversary" marked the occasion and moved this moment from ordinary to extraordinary. My in-laws have been married for 40 years. That takes a moment to sink in. 40 years is a marker. 40 years is a legacy. 40 years is an inspiration. 40 years demands respect. 40 years deserves some fireworks.

So night number one gets fireworks and 40 years gets a cookie. Seems a little backward if you ask me.

I know this...when I hit 40 years of marriage...I'm getting fireworks. I want the kind that make the neighbors run out of their houses with lawn chairs in hand. I want the kind of fireworks that make my friends wonder just how much I spent. I want husbands all around the street to glare at me for the standard that just got set. I want to have fireworks. I want fireworks to celebrate the most amazing woman in my life. Fireworks to thank her for the simple moments when she makes us coffee and brings it to me when I get out of the shower. Fireworks for the time she laughed at my jokes. Fireworks for the moments that I won't write. Fireworks to commemorate every fight that we outlived and every debt we paid off. Fireworks to tell cancer a couple of choice words. I want fireworks that glow bright and make her gray hair sparkle. At 40, I want to sit next to my bride on a blanket in the grass and I want to hold her hand. I want fireworks that scream I love you.

If the Lord allows, ...I want fireworks at 40.

It's coming

Two weeks and counting until CIY Summer Conference 2006!

You know that expression about seeing the light at the end of the tunnel. Well...I think it might be a train coming straight at us. We've passed the 17,000 mark this week, and the amount of lives to be impacted is still growing. This is going to be an amazing year. I can't wait to get started.

I've been hammering out my Friday night sermon for the summer. Paul is kicking my tail in Eph. 6:19-20. That text has just overwhelmed me lately. His humility in asking the church to pray for him is powerful. Where has that humility gone? I know that I need more of that in my life. I love how he puts on the armor and then asks for prayer. I think that there is something about having a sense of urgency that makes our prayer a little more fervent. It's kind of like my youngest son and baseball. We work and work on his swing...and I can't get him to focus. The funny thing is that when he is walking up to the plate he has this tendency to look over at me in the stands with this little look of panic on his face. It's that...oh crud...how do I do this? I think that prayer takes on a whole new significance in our lives when we strap on the armor and stand at the plate. No one wants to strike out.

The family