Labor Day Auction -- Thank You!

Well my 6th Labor Day Auction at the Auburn Auction Park is complete. I am sitting at home staring at the clock thinking I don't have to get up tomorrow at 5am. I don't have to haul 6 coolers of Ice. I don't have to stand out in a dusty field and park cars in the 90+ degree heat, get  soaked by a rain shower, get yelled at for telling someone where to exit or that they are not a VIP.  I get to enjoy the evening and an early bed time. I get to go to my grand daughters birthday party tomorrow and I am going to enjoy it.

I am sure my sentiments are shared by many an athlete and parent through out the GKB school district. Tomorrow will truly be a day of rest. So many people deserve a great big thank you for going beyond the expected this weekend.  My wife Stephanie is the first. I am sure when we got married 33 years ago she never expected to be following me around being the "assistant" athletic director parking cars at an auto auction. No one else spends as much time making sure this 5 day event happens without a problem. She also has to deal with my grumpy stressed out mood for days before and after this event. My other "Assistant", Becky Blotkamp, also is so valuable in making this whole event happen. While I'm out parking cars, she is hard at work single-handedly running the entire athletic department. (I may have the title, but she IS the Athletic Director!) What would I do with out Stephanie and Becky!

My hat also goes off to all the parents, players, coaches, and Railroader supporters who worked more than their share of time slots this week. Kacy Schultz (who doesn't even have a high school student) helps out every year to make sure our workers get fed, hydrated, and where they need to be. SHe is such a great supporter of our school. Mike Andrews also spent more than his share of time working plus he brought Kelly and her fiance to help as well. Every time I would turn around Mary Baker, Sandy Lanning, Tom Stafford, Sue and Tim Marshall, Chris and Tonya Hoeffel, Tim and JoEllen Knott, Deb Argast, Chip Gunion, or Mike Andrews would be reporting for work and working multiple shifts. Tracy Martin who doesn't have any students left at GHS also signed up to help out on the hottest day. He is awesome.

I also can't say enough about the students. Trey Obran gets injured in the Football game on Friday night. He spends most of the evening in the emergency room, but still shows up to work two days with his team mates. Raya Booth comes back from college to help. (OK, Connor Meehan may have had something to do with it.) The Garrett Learning Center Kids, Bulding Trades Students, and the staff also were extremely helpful on Friday. Our kids work so hard but they also find a way to make it fun, even when it pours down rain or we have a heat index over 100 degrees.

Thanks Everyone for a job well done. You are all awesome and GHS is better because of all your work.

Quiet Leadership!

Romans 2

 ⁵ But because of your stubbornness and your unrepentant heart, you are storing up wrath against yourself for the day of God’s wrath, when his righteous judgment will be revealed. ⁶ God “will repay each person according to what they have done.”^[a] 7 To those who by persistence in doing good seek glory, honor and immortality, he will give eternal life. ⁸ But for those who are self-seeking and who reject the truth and follow evil, there will be wrath and anger. 

Self Help, Self-starter, self-centered, self, self, self! Today's society is full of Me, Me, Me, Me. They are out for one thing and this is "themselves." What ever happened to self-sacrifice. What ever happened to serving Christ regardless what YOU get out of it.  People are so proud of themselves. Major accomplishments should be about the team of people around you and not YOU! Selfishness fills our every day lives. We want fame, fortune, and recognition. No one wants to work behind the scenes. No one wants to provide "quiet leadership", giving the credit for success to everyone else and keeping nothing for self. When you can develop a sacrificial role as  leader, when it becomes difficult to tell the employee from the employer, or the Ordained Church Pastor and the volunteer church worker, the committee chairperson and the committee member, then you are providing leadership WITHOUT regard to self.

If we are going to focus on "self" let's focus on selflessness. Take self out of your decisions. Jesus is the perfect example. He gave up life and everything he could have had, for us. He gave up his kingdom to die on a Cross for our sins and our selfishness. He never focused on self. He always focuses on us, even though he no longer walks this Earth in human form. Our stubbornness and our unrepentant hearts are prime examples of our selfishness. So, the best way to change from your selfish ways to selfless ways is to repent and turn your heart to Jesus. Do it now. Do it for your self!

We all need Encouraged!

Romans 1

 ¹¹ I long to see you so that I may impart to you some spiritual gift to make you strong— ¹² that is, that you and I may be mutually encouraged by each other’s faith. 

I have been worn out and frustrated quite a bit over the last month. Being exhausted and frustrated are not a good combination. But, I am ENCOURAGED by my friends. When things aren't going well you can always tell who your real friends are. They encourage you and they jump in and help.  Without the encouragement of my wife, daughters, secretary, my CMA buddies, and some wonderful co-workers, I would be a wreck! 

These people have done wonderful things to make me stronger. They have pitched in to help. They have listened. They have encouraged me to move forward. As Christians this may be one of our highest callings. It is not always easy to live in a sinful world. It is not always easy to deal with people who do not share our own values and convictions. It is not easy to stand up for what is right. God has sent us fellow christians to help us through these times. He has sent us to encourage and to be encouraged. We all need to work together in this life. It's not a one sided transaction. It's mutual. We need to provide mutual encouragement. 

Lift someone up today. Pray for them. Listen to them. Offer a kind word. Thank them. Lend a hand. What ever it takes to help a fellow believer, do it! 

Smash mouth Football

Acts 1 ⁸ But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.”

If God were a football coach he would play smash mouth football. What I call smash mouth football is about using your power to run over the opposing team. I think football is meant to be played in the trenches. I think all lineman should wear high top black shoes, all games should be played on real grass, and it shouldn't be illegal to hit someone hard. That is smash mouth football. That is pure football.

God sent us the Holy Spirit so we can witness using "smash mouth witnessing". (I think I have coined a new term). He gave us the spirit and his power so we could go through all the world and witness to his love and saving grace. He doesn't want us to use flowery language, he doesn't need us to be great orators, he doesn't need us to have a degree in theology. He just wants us to tell it like it is. He wants us to share what the love and saving grace of Jesus Christ has done in our lives. Not only does he want us to do that, he has given us the power to do it and be good at it. We don't need to have cute slogans or quaint sayings. We don't need to be fluent in "Christanese". We don't need to be ordained. We just need to be ourselves. Being ourselves with God's power backing us up, is more power than we could possibly ever need. Old fashion, smash mouth witnessing, is about being on the offensive. It's about looking for the opportunities and attacking with everything we've got. It's about throwing away all inhibitions and letting the spirit give the words to say and the actions to do.  People need to know God. They need to be saved by the power of Christ. They can't and won't do that unless we go! Go! Go! Go!

Words aren't enough

Psalm 150

 ¹ Praise the LORD.^[a]

   Praise God in his sanctuary;
   praise him in his mighty heavens.
² Praise him for his acts of power;
   praise him for his surpassing greatness.
³ Praise him with the sounding of the trumpet,
   praise him with the harp and lyre,
⁴ praise him with timbrel and dancing,
   praise him with the strings and pipe,
⁵ praise him with the clash of cymbals,
   praise him with resounding cymbals.

 ⁶ Let everything that has breath praise the LORD.

   Praise the LORD.

This chapter gives us a variety of ways to praise God. All sorts of instruments and even with our bodies (dancing). One of the things is doesn't say is praise God with our mouths. Now don't get me wrong. We should certainly praise God with our voices. But it is not enough to Praise God with our words. 

Sometimes our words are not enough. We can tell someone we care but it's more important that we take action to show them. We can tell someone we love them, but what way do we actually demonstrate that love. Sometimes words aren't enough. Sometimes we need to act. When we act to back up our words, the words mean so much more. 

You've heard "Actions speak louder than words." Well I think this chapter does a wonderful job illustrating that Praising God is more than just words. Actions speak louder than our word when it comes to praising the Lord of the Universe.