Just a thought

I was thinking yesterday. That was a mistake. I nearly hurt myself... smoke coming out the ears and everything. None-the-less, I think I thought some pretty good thoughts. So here they are:

1. There is a God.

2. I'm not Him.

Now, I can't claim that I came up with these thoughts on my own. Our Pastor up here in PA, Pastor Joel, has used these two statements numerous times in his messages. For me though, I never really took the time to apply what that meant on a daily basis. I often think to myself, "Self, what would you like to do today? Do you want to work today? Maybe watch a movie? Catch up on season 2 of Lost? Ooh, I have an idea, how about a bike ride? Or a walk with your wife? Maybe a nice dinner out? Self, what do you want to do today?" You see, I know there is a God - a big God in the heavens that keeps an eye on us, cares about us, loves us. I know that I am not Him. I know that I'm not in charge of the universe. All too often though, I think I am in charge of me.

I make plans. I set goals. I pursue dreams. I eat. I sleep. I eat some more. I take jobs. I leave jobs. I offer jobs. I meet people. I talk to people. I ignore people. I make decisions. I avoid decisions. I ask other people to decide for me. I worry. I complain. I exercise... ok, I just threw that one in to make myself look good.

I

am

me.

Sadly, I often look to me for direction.

An interesting thing happens though when I start asking God those questions. I find that as I look for his direction, I lose weight. No, not physical weight. I wish. That would be the best diet plan ever. "Just follow God's direction and you'll be skinny and attractive!" No, when I say that I lose weight, I mean that I lose the heavy burden of wondering what comes next. When I trust God for direction, I lose the weight of my priorities, my goals, my expectations and recognize that it's all in His hands anyway. I can rest in Him and pursue His goals for my life. I can rest in Him and pursue His dreams for my life. I can rest in Him and take jobs, make decisions, love my wife, watch movies, take walks, eat, sleep, run, even exercise... ok, let's not get too carried away.

So, I guess that for me, I need to add a third point to Pastor Joel's mantra:

1. There is a God.

2. I'm not Him.

3. I'm better off this way.

The sooner I recognize that the life best-lived is the life lived according to God's plan, the better off I will be. When I look to Him for guidance every day in every moment, the burden of my mistakes, my misdirections, my miscalculations, comes sliding off of my shoulders. I find true peace in following Him.

Matt

Moving from Sacrifice to Significance

Mad props to PBJ for his first message to SRC yesterday. Laurie and I are believing with you that this church will be a significant church. God is going to use us to reach this area. We feel fortunate to get to partner with all of you in this plant. We are looking forward to the time when we will not have such a long commute to get to church so that we can really get involved in what God is doing in and through all of you at SRC. Please pray for us as we will most certainly be praying for you! See ya next Sunday!

Pretty sweet...

So, I feel like it's official now... we are a part of the SRC family. This Thursday night, sometime after 2000 hours, the first-ever SRC Fantasy Football Draft took place. And I have to say... I love my team. My wife also has a team, along with six other SRC peeps. So thanks for including Laurie and I in this most crucial of SRC activities. What better way to form a bond than through intense competition, creative smack-talk, and post-Sunday depression, adulation or excitation? (I think I made some of those words up.) Are you ready for some football?!?!?

Thanks to our Family at SRC!

We had a lot of fun with all of you this past weekend. Thanks for always making us feel "at home"every time that we come down. Laurie and I are looking forward to the "soft-open" next week. I think it will be cool to finally see this thing in action! We've all been praying about it and focusing on it for the last nine months or so... it will be great to see this dream become a reality! It is awesome to be enjoying this journey with you and we're believing that God is going to do incredible things. Love you all!

Matt and Laurie

Looking Forward to the Weekend!

Can you believe the commissioning service for SRC is only a few days away? This is exciting! As Laurie and I prepare for the move to Maryland, we are energized by our thoughts of each of you that we've met so far and the others we have yet to meet. Since I'm a sports guy, I often relate events in my life to sports. Maybe a few of you are the same way. After a summer of training, I feel like this Sunday is the coach's pep talk before we charge out on to the field for the first game of the season. Except we're gonna have three coaches motivating us! That's three times the confidence we'll have going into our first season of ministry! I think it's going to be awesome!

Loving the Crabs

There is nothing better than a crab feast... that is, of course, unless it is a second crab feast. I will be at work once again this Saturday when the crabs are laid out on the table. That Old Bay is calling my name. My only regret is that we won't be the ones hauling in the crabs this time. I have been thinking that I should probably wear a bib as I messed up my polo at the last crab feast. So, if anyone has any ideas on where I can get a nice adult-size bib for a good price, let me know. Preferably, one that says "Kick me when I turn around" or "Competitive eater in training" or even just a crab or a lobster on the front. Or how about this? A blank one and we'll see who can come up with the most creative slogan to have on it. Entries will be accepted until Saturday morning. I'll select my fav and put it on the bib!

See ya Saturday,
Matt and Laurie

The Blogger's Prayer

Now I sit me down to blog,
with a can of coke and a pecan log.
If I should die before I post,
That's one less page they'll have to host.


An Apology is in Order

Alright, alright. I deserve what I've been getting. My unexplained absence from the Blogging Nation has gone on long enough. My apologies to all of my fellow bloggers out there that have been anxious to hear some more from the author of such greats as "Top Ten Things Not to Do When Blogging" and "Fire + Jesus = Good Times!" I think that my prolonged hiatus requires an exceptional effort on the SRC Student Ministries page today. That is why I offer to you my newest Top Ten effort.




Top Ten Reasons I'm Unattractive at the Beach

10. The apparent inability of my wife to EVENLY apply suntan lotion on my back. (No that's not a birthmark underneath each armpit nor is it a red tattoo of Italy down near my waistline.)
9. My inability to walk away from an all-you-can-eat buffett. (Even the guy at Philip's was amazed by the time I was finished -- in his words, "I didn't know if you were ever gonna stop!")
8. The amount of gear that I have strapped to my back as I stumble through the sand. (I don't even have kids yet and already I've turned into the old guy toting the family gear across the beach.)
7. My insatiable desire for chocolate-dipped cones from Dumser's Dairyland. (Can I get an amen??)
6. The only "six-pack" I've got is the Diet Dr. Pepper in my cooler.
5. I don't get tan, I just get more freckles. (My 5-year-old nephew summed it up best, "Uncle Matt, why do you have those brown pimples all over you?")
4. Two words -- Caramel Corn.
3. Three words -- More Caramel Corn.
2. An "innie" belly button combined with an "outie" stomach. (I haven't seen my belly button in years.)
1. Digital Cameras. (If I didn't have any actual physical evidence of me being unattractive at the beach, I think I might be able to convince myself that I still look good!)


A Bit Road-Weary

On July 29, Laurie and I went to Ocean City, MD for a nice little beach getaway with some of her family. We were there from Saturday until Sunday and got back home late Sunday night. After we both worked on Monday, we packed up again and headed down to King's Dominion with the college ministry here at Daybreak. It was awesome! There was hardly any lines and we got to ride my favorite coaster in the known universe, The Volcano, 4 times! But what's the deal with the Outer Limits - Flight of Fear indoor coaster being closed? That's our second favorite ride in the park. (Any other KD enthusiasts out there??) We spent all day Tuesday at the park before we drove home again late Tuesday night.

6am Thursday, I was boarding a flight to Chicago which continued on to Missouri where I spent an extra long weekend with my mom, my sister, her husband, my two nephews, my brother, his wife, and my three nieces. Meanwhile, Laurie was away again for the weekend for her older sister's bridal shower. Last night was the first night in over two weeks that my wife and I actually spent a night together at home. Granted, I'm not complaining, I love the beach and my family, but nothing can beat a night at home with my wife. And you know I'm not just kissing up 'cause I can't get her to read my blog! :)

Our excitement is continuing to grow for the church plant and hope to join you this weekend for the prayer walk. If not, we will definitely be there for the commissioning service the following weekend. Can you believe that we are only a few weeks away from the launch?? Please pray for Laurie and I as we continue to dream for what God wants to do in and through the students at SRC. Also, if you have anything that you've been thinking would be cool to do, this is a great forum for you to bring up your ideas! I'll be looking for your comments.


Closing Thoughts

"I thank my God every time I remember you. In all my prayers for all of you, I always pray with joy because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now, being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus. It is right for me to feel this way about all of you, since I have you in my heart..." Sound familiar? That was Paul writing to the church in Philippi a few thousand years ago. Yet, those words are exactly what enters our hearts when we think of each of you that have chosen to partner with SRC in this new adventure.

Thanks for your partnership in the gospel from the first day that we met you until now. We look forward to the day when we can be with you permanently in Maryland for the work that God is doing at SRC. Until then, we will continue to thank God every time we remember you.

In His Service,
Matt and Laurie

Why we can't rent...

"Real quick answer.....the homeowners MUST live in the house. You may "allow" other people to live with you but the owner of the home must be in residence.Your exact proposal / model was in place next to my townhouse for over 2 years with Ashley living in it with 3 girlfriends from Messiah and charging them rent.It worked because the home owner was in residence and the township never found out......the association was always "against" wholesale renting such as you are proposing...especially with an eye to prevent Messiah college students ect from making group homes. Upper Allen twp has..likewise...provisions against groups of students renting off campus. There are several landlords with students that are apparently being Grandfathered and continue to rent to students but this is kind rare...FURTHER complicating your idea is a township ordinance already in place for a couple years stating that groups of students cannot be within 400 feet of another rental or group of same. I am quite sure there is just such a townhouse just up from yours near the corner of high street. Again....in a nutshell.....I think you may encounter resistance from the township for sure......"

This is the explanation that our association president gave us for why we're not allowed to rent. We are considering selling the place and buying something in MD or perhaps buying another house here in PA to rent out. Here's where you guys come in...

Do you know anyone that could keep an eye out for a fixer-upper that we could buy at a lower price tag and make improvements on? Maybe a realtor or just someone that has a good eye for houses? It doesn't even need to necessarily be "liveable" to start off with. We could live with my mom while we made the needed improvements to the house before we actually moved in. Or if Laurie takes a travel nursing job, they will pay for an apartment for us until we can make it liveable.

The only thing that we would want is to make sure the house is structurally sound, no bug infestations, etc. and that it is in an area that has the potential to increase in value. We have found a few townhomes in downtown annapolis (not the historic district) that are within our price range. We also found a few places on the other side of the Bay Bridge that are also in our price range and have a decent amount of land to them. That would require $2.50 every time we crossed the bridge but if we could get a house for a more affordable price, it might be worth it.

So, anyone have any comments, connections, or advice on what to do?

Matt and Laurie