faithrunner

I'm headed out to Wichita Falls, TX tomorrow for the HH100 , a 100-mile bike ride across the plains of North Texas. (I love the man-made waterfall the townspeople built in the middle of the desert. That's like a ski slope in Dubai --just doesn't fit.) This will be my second time to ride the course, and I'm looking forward to it. Jim, Keith, Daniel and Ray, who ride together from Legacy Church on Sunday nights, will all begin the ride together on Saturday morning. How we end up will be up to our cardio strength (big word for lungs and legs), weather conditions, and a little luck to stay out of any crashes among the 9,000 plus riders. The weather is supposed to live up to its reputation--although the forecast of scattered thunderstorms could make it interesting. 100 degrees F out there on the asphalt feels like 110 degrees here. The good news (and bad) is there is usually a wind to provide some sense of being cooler than the conditions around you. The ride also has exce...

I attended the Willow Creek Association's Leadership Summit this past weekend. Okay, I sat at the remote broadcast at First Baptist, Lewisville . (By the way, I really can't gripe about the whole multi-site church movement. I sat and watched broadcast and video taped speakers for two and a half days and didn't think twice about needed to be in the room with the speaker. I hate it when my experience destroys my thoughts! I still believe live, in-the-room speakers are best...Until, of course, we open our first multi-site venue ;-) I must admit that while all the information was awesome, my serendipity was the Bono interview . Yes, U2's lead man is doing more to call the church to global issues than any other religious figure at the time. This will sound strange, but he is Billy Graham to the younger generation, and they trust and join him. He really believes we can stop poverty in our time, and he has put the church on notice that we must join him or lose the trust of ...

In the midst of all that has been happening at Legacy Church and in my life, another story has begun to unfold I want you to know about so you can pray for Kenny Zheng and me. My first workbook, Jesus On Leadership , has been translated into Chinese (by Kenny when I visited him in 2003) and is currently being printed by the Chinese Baptist Press in Hong Kong. As I was running earlier this year, I was prompted to go to Hong Kong and take the books to our outpost on the mainland, giving them the gift they gave me when I went there two years ago. I told Kenny about God’s prompting in my heart, and he said he would love to accompany me, but he didn’t know if he could get off work and that they were going on vacation there in June. I sat on the idea for a while, when one day out of the blue, a long time friend and consultant with the BGCT (he was LDBC’s “Sunday School Consultant” back in the late ‘80s), Lavern Plett, sent me an email. He told me that he had been through a divorce after ret...

I have been riding off and on a 1988 Dave Scott Ironman bike for the past four years. Jim Schuchard loaned it to me, and I have loved the bike. It has served my purposes well and took me through the 2004 Hotter 'n Hell 100 mile bike ride and two sprint triathlons. It was a great steel bike with a good ride with excellent components for its age. If I rode up to a group of seasoned riders, they would comment on the bike like a group of guys would a 66 Mustang. But, if I rode up to young riders or the uninitiated, I would get nervous looks for riding a "pink" bike. Add the spandex shorts, and my wife really is worried about me. I have begun to ride more this year after a heavy year of running last year, and I finally was seduced by a group of riders to buy a new bike. (I think they were nervous about my comfort with pink, also.) I took the big plunge and got a Specialized Allez Elite Double from Richardson Bike Mart . Woody Austin fixed me up. He was excellent help. If yo...

On Saturday, July 8, I gave my daughter Storey in marriage to Graham Cook. The day was filled with every emotion from elation to grief, each one appropriate to this event in a family's life. You can read about how Storey and Graham met at their wedding website . Truth is stranger than fiction. No one could have orchestrated such a love story that began with Graham living in his future wife's room and house before he every met her. So many friends and family members joined us for the celebration, and Kim and I, as well as Storey and Graham, were overwhelmed by the generosity and prayers for all of us. Our prayer is that the wedding was truly a celebration of Christ's love in this marriage. Here's a picture of Storey and Graham coming into the wedding reception at the Texas Sports Hall of Fame . The guys loved the Hall of Fame. When the food and small talk ran out, you could tour the facility. (One of my high school team mates, Louie Kelcher of Beaumont French HS, was in...

After 14+ years of owning lap dogs, we finally got a real dog! She is mostly yellow lab. She's about 3 years old. We got her from DFW Lab Rescue , a class organization that we would recommend to anyone wanting a lab. This morning Summer and I took Madison, "Maddie," to the Chisholm Trail and dog park and then home for a swim. She took to the water immediately. As for running, she was on crate rest with heart worms for a month, and her foster home was an apartment. Running is not part of her routine yet, but she is strong and healthy (thanks to her foster, Carol). She shows signs of endurance, and I am looking forward to extending her walks/runs in the future. Only one thing I have trouble with: she gravitates to the concrete paths and doesn't like the grass! That's got to change!

On April 22 I made an effort to run the Ouachita Trail 50 Mile run . I had driven up with 3 other runners and was even able to see Grant and Amy English and their family the night before. Grant was an intern at Legacy before landing in West Little Rock. The Start/Finish of the run was less than 15 minutes from the Grace Church parking lot where Grant serves on staff. I had not trained hard for the 50 miler, but I felt I was rested and strong enough to take a second run at the Ouachita National Forrest trails. I had heard the course was rugged, but I had no idea how rugged until I had begun the run. Here's a picture of the approach to Pinnacle Mountain . That's the peak in front of us. Also, this is about 3 miles into the run. As we approached the "mountain," I found myself climbing the face of a boulder field. I definitely was not trained for this...Still only 6 or 7 miles from the start! But, like with every hard climb there is a beautiful sunrise to view from the ...