Jon Stolpe
Jon Stolpe
You Are Here
As I think about the sign, “You Are Here,” I think it’s a good reminder for me. Sometimes, it can be easy to get stuck in our past – where we dwell on either our victories or defeats. Let’s face it, we often like the way things were just because that’s what we’re used to. Does that make sense?
On the other hand, sometimes, it can be easy to get caught up in the worries (and hopes) of the future. I think it’s good to have hopes and dreams and to go after them. But sometimes, we deal with anxiety because we’re so focused on what might happen in the future. We are crippled by questions which have answers that are out of our control.
As I think about this, two passages come to mind:
He says, “Be still, and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth.” Psalm 46:10
“Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothes? Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? Can any one of you by worrying add a single hour to your life?
“And why do you worry about clothes? See how the flowers of the field grow. They do not labor or spin. Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these. If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, will he not much more clothe you—you of little faith? So do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.” Matthew 6:25-34
These offer great reminders to rejoice in today – this moment in time when the past is in the past, and God holds the future in His hands.
I am here. Where are you?
Filled Up With Bread
This morning on my way to the office, I was listening to a podcast from Mosaic, out in southern California. In the podcast, Hank Fortener, was speaking about Jesus being the Bread of Life (found in John 6:35 – Then Jesus declared, “I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me will never go hungry, and whoever believes in me will never be thirsty.”).
Hank shared the following:
“You see. I think there are these times in our lives where you go through these spaces where you feel like you’re spread out. Spread thin. Where you wonder if you’ll ever get back to normal. Will I ever get back to better? Will I ever get to good? Will I ever be at awesome? Will I ever get to the amazing part? You see this is the part where Jesus says, ‘This is where I step in.’ Because one of God’s sweet spots is His ability to meet us at our weakest. One of His sweet spots is His ability to be more powerful than our temporary circumstances. So when Jesus says, ‘I am the bread of life,’ He’s saying that ‘no matter what you’ve done up to this point, no matter what you’ve experienced up until this point, it’s still going to perish. You’re still going to die. But I can give you something that gives you life – that fills you so full that you can barely breath.’”
As I listened to these words, I could relate. Over the past year, I have wondered if things would ever return to normal. I have wondered if things would ever get back to better. I have wondered if I would ever get to the amazing part.
But I have also experienced relief – despite the chaos around me. I have experienced healing – despite unanswered questions. I have experienced a peace that comes from knowing that ultimately everything will be okay – despite the fact that life often seems to be swirling around me. I believe this comes from knowing and depending on my “Bread of Life” – Jesus Christ.
Do you know Him? Are you hungry? Are you unfulfilled? Are you thirsty for more?
Then Jesus declared, “I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me will never go hungry, and whoever believes in me will never be thirsty. John 6:35
Let The Gardening Begin!
Yesterday, Isaac and I planted our first seeds of the new year. We planted a flat of Bunching Onions or scallions. We planted a flat of coriander or cilantro. And we planted half a flat of chives and half a flat of lavender. It will be exciting to watch as the seeds germinate and turn into small plants. Then bigger plants. We should be able to put these outside around St. Patrick’s Day.
I’m looking forward to gardening again this year. We ordered our usual seeds along with some new things like okra, rhubarb, sweet potatoes, artichokes, and scallions. This year we will expand our garden from last year. We will be trying some new gardening methods and also trying some new deer prevention actions.
Along with this, I’m considering the possibility of retiring the current batch of chickens and getting a new “flock” – maybe some Rhode Island Reds and some other varieties. We may put up a fence to keep the chickens out of the garden and flower beds.
I can’t wait for spring. It was so refreshing to see the snow starting to melt away and the signs of warmer temperatures and grass.
Do you garden? What are your favorite things to plant? What do you do with your produce? I’d love to hear how you live out your passion for gardening.
What’s On My Night Stand? (What Am I Reading Right Now?)
As a kid, I was never a huge reader. I mean, I could read, but it wasn’t my first choice for spending my free time. Over the past few years, I’ve actually learned to enjoy reading some when I have some down time. (You may have figured that out with some of my previous book review blog posts.)
At any rate, I thought I’d give you a glimpse into what I’ve been reading lately.
For fun, I’ve been reading John Grisham‘s latest suspense, The Confession. I won’t give it away, but the general story is about an innocent man who’s about to be executed for a crime he didn’t commit while the real killer comes forward to confess his actions. I’ve read several Grisham books, and this one as always has kept me on the edge of my seat. I’m about half way through, so I’m excited to see how it ends.
For personal growth and challenge, I’ve been reading two books by Dave Ramsey, The Total Money Makeover and The Money Answer Book. In both these books, Ramsey shares tips for helping people to “live like nobody else now, so you can live like nobody else” in the future. He shares financial tips that he says came from this Bible and from your grandmother. He dispels the myths about debt and get rich quick schemes. Both of these books are great tools for anyone who is trying to figure out how to handle their money, how to get rid of debt, and how to save for the future.
Finally, I’m reading a book by Randy Alcorn, If God is Good. This book addresses questions that many have about evil and suffering in the world. “If God is good, how could He allow evil and suffering?” This book is pretty deep, and it’s been a challenge to make consistent progress in this book. I think it’s extremely relevant to anyone – especially those who have experienced pain in their lives caused by evil or suffering. I have found the book helpful as I am sorting through my own thoughts, feelings, doubts, and experiences. I am convinced that God is good, but Alcorn’s book has been helpful in my processing.
Oh yeah, I usually have a few Runner’s World magazines by the bedside as well for quick reference and lighter reading.
So…what are you reading?
2011 – New Volunteer Opportunity – Welcome Center
Over the past year, I’ve been struggling to figure out where I fit in at our church. For a long time, I was active in grouplife leadership at our church. Events a couple of years ago (that I really don’t want to rehash) left me somewhat scarred and feeling out in the cold related to this ministry area. Grouplife remains a huge passion of mine, but it’s been a challenge to jump back in after a couple of years. Some of the challenge stems from other commitments at home and at work. Recently, family circumstances have left me hesitant to jump back in full force. But mostly, I believe it’s been my pride that has kept me out of the game.
Leanne has been encouraging me to find an area where I can serve. I’ve looked at the volunteer opportunities that appear in our weekly church program, but nothing really jumped out at me and said, “This is for you!” Leanne and our kids have been serving regularly in our children’s ministry. On these days, I often find myself hanging out in the lobby while they are serving. Pretty lame, huh? Well, as it turns out, there is a ministry opportunity for people who like to hang out in the lobby. Starting next week, I’ll be serving at our Welcome Center. It’s an opportunity to help people who have questions about our church, and it’s an opportunity to point people towards avenues that will help them get plugged into our church.
I’m excited. I know this may not seem like a huge deal, but I believe it’s a positive step forward for the new year.
If you’re in the lobby on the 4th Sunday of the month be sure to stop by and say hello. I’ll be the tall guy over at the Welcome Center.
(By the way, I have been so excited to see what has been happening with Grouplife at our church over the past year.)
Creating Community – The Power of Poker
A guy at our church has been “leading” a monthly Texas Hold ‘Em Poker Group connected with our church’s grouplife ministry. For some of you, this sounds sacrilegious and not quite right – after all, doesn’t the Bible discourage gambling? I guess I understand this viewpoint; however, I would argue that this is the type of group that Jesus would promote. From what we read in the gospels, Jesus hung out with prostitutes, cheaters, and punks. I’ve attended this poker group a few times, and it draws all kinds of people – people who are part of the church and people who are not part of any church. The group’s goal (besides playing cards) is to create an entry point for people to get connected with people from our church. From here, the hope is that they would come to our church and check out other opportunities to get connected and to grow.
Today, I was blown away when I saw one of the group’s attenders file into church a few rows in front of me with the group’s leader. He quickly received a hand shake and hello from one of the group’s regular attenders who was sitting right in front of him. I’ll be honest, I never expected to see this guy in our church. I guess I shouldn’t have been so surprised. This is the group’s goal, and it’s working.
So what do you think? Would you consider this a valid part of your grouplife/connection ministry? What other types of groups might serve in this same manner?
I’d love to hear your feedback!
2011 – New Hobby – Geocaching
As we start 2011, our family has jumped into the world of geocaching. “Geocaching is a high-tech treasure hunting game played throughout the world by adventure seekers equipped with GPS devices. The basic idea is to locate hidden containers, called geocaches, outdoors and then share your experiences online. Geocaching is enjoyed by people from all age groups, with a strong sense of community and support for the environment.” So far our family has had a blast with the new hobby. We’ve found out about former baseball pitcher Nellie Briles. We now know that there are six windmills that can be seen just east of the Somerset service plaza on the Pennsylvania Turnpike. And we’ve found parks that we never knew about – like Brown Street Park in Spring City, PA.
So far, we’ve found 31 caches. And we’re looking forward to many more discoveries.
The best part about geocaching is that we can enjoy it together. It’s so much fun to see our kids walking ahead of us in search of the next hidden cache. It’s fun to be together outside away from all the other distractions. Each time we go out to find a new cache, we are creating memories that will last a life time.
We’re still learning a lot about this new hobby. If you’re a geocacher, we’d love to hear from you. What is your favorite find? What was one of your most challenging caches? Do you have any good tips for newbies like us?
I can’t wait for this weekend when we can get out and do more treasure hunting TOGETHER!
Happy Friday!
Remember 2010
2010 was a pretty tough year for me. I’m just being honest. There were many unexpected bumps, bruises, and blockades. Despite all the downs, disappointments, and detours, I can also honestly say that I’m thankful for 2010. Here are some of my highlights from this past year (in no particular order):
– We now have a teenager as our daughter turned 13 in November.
– We had a wonderful unexpected vacation with our immediate family to the green state of Vermont. This will clearly sit as one of the best memories of our year.
– We had a visit from my folks all the way from Texas. I so much appreciated their visit, and I know now that the timing couldn’t have been better.
– My job has been great. I love what I’m doing at Siemens (most days), and I’m extremely thankful for the people I get to rub shoulders with everyday. It has truly been a blessing to have a job that I love. (This week, I will be celebrating my 15th anniversary with the company – hard to believe.)
– I am blessed with such a wonderful wife. This year has brought us more than our fair share of challenges, but I’m convinced that we have grown tremendously despite the struggles of this past year.
– I am blessed with fabulous kids. Our daughter is such a wonderful example of kindness and thoughtfulness. She is super smart. And she has a great group of friends. Our son is so talented. He loves music. He enjoys hoops and scouts, and he is so caring. Both our kids made a huge step this summer when they made the decision to follow Christ and be baptized. There is no greater joy for a dad then to see your kids make this decision. (I’m grinning from ear to ear as I type this.)
– I have been blown away by the support that we have experienced from our church family, friends, and family in the wake of our challenges this year. My words cannot fully describe my gratitude and awe for the support we have received.
– I have experienced growth especially in my faith this year. I never would have wished for some of the things that happened in our family this year, but I can honestly say that I’m thankful for how these events and challenges have cemented my faith.
I’m happy to see 2010 in the rear view mirror, but I’m also thankful for a year that brought so many blessings. Having said this, I am looking forward to a new start as we enter 2011 (I’ll share more thoughts on the upcoming year in a future post).
Happy New Year!
Clearing the Bases by Mike Schmidt
I’m a big sports fan. My favorite teams are the Eagles, the Bears, the Cubs, the Phillies, and the Bulls (I guess I’d throw the Flyers in there as my hockey team). My favorite players of all time are probably Walter Payton (football), Julius Erving and Michael Jordan (basketball), and Mike Schmidt (baseball). So when Leanne gave me Clearing the Bases by Mike Schmidt as part of my birthday gift, I was clearly looking forward to hearing what Michael Jack Schmidt had to say about his playing career and about his thoughts about the current state of the game of baseball.
I wasn’t disappointed.
Schmidt talks about the ups and downs of his playing days from his insecurities to his 3 MVPs and World Series Championship. Schmidt also shares about his feelings about the Steroid area, free agency, and Pete Rose. (The book was written in 2006, so I would be curious to know if Schmidt’s views on the Steroid era have changed as more information has been disclosed since then.) It was interesting to get his perspectives and each of these, but this wasn’t my biggest takeaway.
I was first of all surprised by Schmidt’s expression of his faith. Growing up, I can’t remember hearing anything about his faith, so it was refreshing to hear this. I’d love to sit down over a cup of coffee or lunch with the legend and talk more about our common bond.
The other thing that had a big impact on me was Schmidt’s discussion about managing. Obviously, he was talking about managing baseball, but one paragraph in particular spoke to me as a manager and leader:
“The sixth and most important attribute of a good manager – and this one’s a straight fastball right down the middle – is the ability to communicate. To be a good manager, you must be a good communicator. That means being able to talk to your players, not at them. You need to work at relating to them, but at the same time, you need to keep a respectful distance. Show you care about them personally. You can’t just stroll out of your office into the clubhouse one day a week and fake it; you have to have a consistent presence.”
I’ll be hanging this one up in my office.
If you’re a baseball plan, I’d recommend this book.
Supernanny Parenting Discussion Guide – Recap
It took a little longer than I had planned, but I finally posted all of the content from the Supernanny Parenting Discussion Guide that we had put together a few years ago. To tie it all together, I thought it would be helpful to post the links to the previous posts. As always, I would love to hear your feedback about the discussion guide, about parenting, or about anything else that you think is pertinent. Happy Parenting…!