It starts early

I've never been able to wrap my head around the enigma that is female gotothebathroomaloneaphobia.
Lest you were deceived into thinking only adult women succumb to this peculiar trait......... I give you my daughters, who also refuse to go alone:) Addy usually just sits on hers to show her moral support for Ava without actually going herself. I wonder if that's also true when my wife and sister go together at the restaurant? Maybe some of you gals could comment on this and let me in on what really goes on behind bathroom doors while your husbands are alone at the table.
Is everyone peeing, or are some of you strictly in a support role? I guess maybe I should just be happy none of my guy friends ask me to go with them...........In the words of Dr. evil, "thats not something one dude should say to another dude.....creepy."

unbelievable

If your anything like me, you probably are still wondering if what you just witnessed is for real..........It is. These are real people and this is really happening. As I sat in somewhat disbelief watching this, two thoughts came to my mind. (well three really, but you already can see they are somewhat crazy so I won't list that one.)

1. people cannot live in the absence of purpose. Why did Rick Warrens book sell ninety gajillion copies? Because every one of us was designed by God to live out a mission bigger than ourselves. This video is an example of what happens when human beings do not pursue the mission God designed and gifted them for and accept a substitute.

Jesus, as He was about to be executed, (John 18:37) told Pilot, "for this "cause" was I born, and for this "cause" I have come into the world. That I should bear witness to the truth."

Just like our savior, we need to realize we are living for a cause. Our mission in life is to represent Jesus. We live as a new kind of human being, used by God in the redeeming of His creation back to Him, one lost person at a time. It's the only thing that is eternal. Being a good steward of the environment is important, but its not why we are here. Lets not drift thru life thinking our only calling is our job or family (both important things) and miss the "cause" God has for us on earth. 2 corinthians 5 tells us we are his ambassadors sent to represent Him to our world! Ask yourself, what does that look like for me?

2. the second issue I have is that these people mourning the loss of forest in America, tend to be ultra liberals who will fight to the bitter end for the rights of women to abort a fetus at any time, for any reason. I can;t speak for these specific people, but generally they feel any restrictions on abortion is a trampling of the "rights" or privacy of women. This is one of the most tragic ironies on earth and another example of a misguided mission. I admire their passion, but when did trees become more important than children. I will never get it. Where is the wailing for human lives snuffed out?

Enough ranting, remember what we do on earth, echoes in eternity. People, far from God and hurting, are what really matter.

Teachers aid

Yesterday was my big debut as the parent helper in Ava's preschool class. I was in charge of bringing the snack and juice, as well as making sure it began with the letter "c". Lot's of pressure I know, but I finally went with care bear fruit snacks, (I was going to go all healthy with carrots or cauliflower, but I didn't want the kids to hate me)

My tasks included getting the snack ready, putting all the papers in the kids backpacks, as well as going thru all of them first to check for playdough that good preschool parents make at home (not us) or money for field trips. I felt like airport security as I'm in the back rifling thru everyone's bags. I only found a few weapons and some suspicious looking powder that I was pretty sure was just arsenic, but I took it to the principle anyway. A few kids might be a little short on field trip money, but that's what their parents get for sending cash.

I then took each child one at a time into the hallway to test their knowledge of colors and shapes. I assured them that if they couldn't identify a rectangle, it was only 20 lashes and not to worry. In all seriousness, I was quite surprised how many knew almost all of them. Grey was a tough color for some and oval was the toughest shape. Most guessed either circle or egg:) It was interesting to see how different children responded to not knowing them. Some would just guess, some would shrug their shoulders, but most would just kind of look at you blankly with sort of a shy smile while repeating um, um, um, um. It was very sweet.

All In all it was alot of fun and I just love interacting with and observing kids at that age. God bless Mrs. Thomas and all other teachers called to pour into our generation and we'll see how Kendra fares when its her turn!!!

The Stand

Here is a short video that show the vow ceremony last wednesday at youth. Thanks to Austin and Ben for their filming/editing prowess:)




The Vow 08 from BW Roberts on Vimeo.

Taking the "VOW"

Last Wednesday was the final night of our "live out LOUD" series at youth. We have been discovering what it means to be a fully devoted follower of Jesus and our key verse was psalm 116:18 "I will fulfill my vows in the presence of your people"

We talked about the difference between saying your a christian, and Living that way in the plain view of others. We are entrenched in a culture where if you aren't living loud, you won't be heard.

The live out loud vow consisted of this,

L=longing for God
O= overcomer
U=uncompromising life
D=diligent prayer

These are the components of a follower of Jesus that is serious. Jesus told his disciples in Luke 5, to "launch out into the deep", and they would experience a "catch" of fish. I believe the reason so many christians are frustrated in their walks, is because they stay in the shallow waters of their relationship with Him. In order to "catch" what Jesus has for your life, you can't treat Him like an add on accessory that will hopefully make your life better. You have to be willing to go deeper. Jesus did not come to be an appendage attached to your life, he came to be the source of it.

We will not see this generation fulfilling its God given destiny until young people experience the real presence and power of God. No one can argue you out of your "faith" once you have tasted the presence of God. I believe that wednesday night was a glimpse into that. My prayer is that instead of a one time event, living LOUD becomes a journey towards the heart of a loving God that each of us will choose to take. There is no substitute.

We ended the night by handing out blue bracelets that simply say "live loud" on them. I tied this in with a chapter in exodus that speaks of the priests of that time, tying a blue ribbon onto their ephods in order for everyone to know they had been set apart as holy unto the Lord. We are now new testament priests (1peter 2:9) and we will also wear blue to signify our separation unto the lord. I pray that each time students look at their wrists, they will remember that night.

Many thanks to Ben and my incredible volunteers for making it go so smoothly and for their prayers leading up to it. Thanks to my friend Bradi for hooking us up with the awesome letters on the wall, and most importantly I thank the Holy Spirit, for showing up in a powerful way. If you want to take the vow, or just learn more about it, please check us out at
www.lolfyi.tv and click on the "vow" tab. (be sure to check the rest of the site out too, its sweet:)

Lastly, here is the song Kurt and the band did, I love it and chose it especially for this series. i want you to imagine all of the student holding their vows high and singing this to their king. I'm getting goosebumps again thinking about it:)

Dancing with the other stars

I don't know why I keep posting these things. I think its kind of like a car accident, you don't want to look, but feel yourself somehow being drawn to it. The last video I posted (Jesus is a friend of mine) was certainly out of touch for today, but it least it was a good 25 years old. This video was produced by "the way" international and was copyrighted in 2007!

the fact that this dance routine and performance was performed live less than a year ago is astounding and you will not want to miss these moves. If you can't bear to watch the whole thing, at least make it to 1:50 so not to miss the amazing dance solo!!

Enjoy if you dare and I promise not to make fun of "christian" videos for a while:)

8 is never enough:)

Today marks the 8th year that I have had the honor of being married to my beautiful wife Kendra. Almost ten years ago we gave our lives to Jesus and vowed to live for His glory any way we could. God has been so good to us. Two beautiful daughters and the opportunity to invest our lives into seeing people experience the same liberating and loving God we encountered together. I could not imagine a more godly wife, mother, encourager and soul mate.

Included are some pics of our weekend excursion which included shopping (of course:), dinner at the bistro in GR, (thanks to my friend brad the manager who had flowers and candles at the table and always takes good care of us:), followed by a surprise ride in a horse drawn carriage downtown. Kendra could not believe it was for us when we walked outside so it felt good to know that after eight years I still have a few tricks up my sleeve:) (better start planning the ten year huh)

It was a beautiful day made even more special by being with my best friend.

I love you Kendra

Here is a link to the song we played at our wedding that made the moment last forever. ( I love 1:44, It's classic)