"I will not take my love away..."

Beethoven's 9th. such genius.



it's time to unpack. by this i mean firstly that i feel that i have been living out of a suitcase since early May, and this is mostly true. more specifically, though, there is a certain amount of emotional and spiritual unpacking to be done.

OK, so i was in Oklahoma for roughly seven weeks (if you're clever there's a nugget in that sentence).

1. Quiktrip. For those of you who have not had the pleasure of spending time in a location which houses these "gas stations," then i must explain. First, the term "gas station" should never be used to describe QT. Perhaps "store which has everything you could possibly want in the form of refreshment and eatery within hand's reach as you simply pay for your gas". Or, "Four Seasons of convenient stores." Picture this, 49 cent 32 oz. fountain drinks. Anything you could possibly want. Fresh fruit. Wraps and sandwiches. Arizona. at least 4 attendants working. etc. etc. etc. etc.

2. Rodeos. i like them.

3. Tulsa has bad roads, but we shall not speak of them here.

4. i made a trip to the promised land. AKA Norman, OK, home of the Sooners. This was quite the emotional experience. i felt as if a piece of my heart and soul belonged there.

5. dangerous driveways. such an oddity.

6. The Oklahoma City bombing memorial is breathtaking. for some reason this seems to be an event in our nation's history that is often forgotten. After seeing the memorial, i shall not soon forget. If ever given the chance, please go see it and be awed.

7. i helped audit a pageant. this means i got to meet and talk with Miss Oklahoma. Whatever the stereotypes may be in regards to "pageant girls", she certainly did not seem to fit them, and it was a very pleasant opportunity to talk with her, to say the least.

8. i was reminded yet again how much family means to me, and was just blown away as always to realize the heritage that has preceded my time here on Earth.

9. these were in no particular order.


after this time in Oklahoma, i was fortunate enough to be a leadership consultant for the Martha Guy Summer Institute, something talked about in my previous post. i returned from that experience today, and although i am quite tired, i am sad to leave those kids. They really were an immense joy in my life for three weeks, and i hope to have made friendships that will last a long time. Never did i imagine what kind of opportunities the program would bring to me. Never. i am still in a way incredulous over all that i got to do in such a short amount of time, and although i won't mention anymore specifics of the trip, i will say this: during the last three weeks, the overriding theme that has presented itself to me is that people are by far the most important of all the created things this world contains. Sure, it's so simple, but how often do i live as though it were true? In the business realm, where i have lived for the last three weeks, this idea of the importance of people is the foundation of success. Having knowledge is absolutely nothing if you cannot work with others. Knowledge never becomes wisdom without people. Opportunities do not materialize without interactions with people. But this is only a microcosm of what is true not only in our Americanized society, but indeed, throughout the earth. If people are not your priority, you will fail. This is never untrue. Never. People are the reason Jesus came to this dirty world in the first place. They are the object of His love. They are the purpose for which His crucifixion was allowed to take place. They are the beneficiaries of His resurrection.

So what about people? They come and go "as the winter wind as it breathes". They enter our lives and make an impact, instantly. How we choose to interact with people will ultimately shape our lives here. Some are hardly lovable. or so we say. Others seem to be worth the highest price we could pay. However, the price has been set at a reserve that no earthly being could ever pay. That is why people should be the concern of our lives, because God has created us to run to Him. Because many are running away. Who will lead them back? Certainly not a people who care not for their own.