3 Lessons from the Potty

While I learn from books, teachings/sermons and conversations, many lessons come from real life events, moments when you experience an event and then realize it has application to a greater truth. One such lesson came for me yesterday.

Potty talk.

We had been talking about potty training for a while but had never really committed to the challenge. On Thursday, Polly finally decided that it was time to commit. After Genevieve's nap, we began the concerted effort to potty train Genevieve. This meant putting her in underwear instead of diapers. For the remainder of Thursday, Genevieve didn't tell us when she needed to use the potty and experienced accident after accident. The whole day Friday brought more of the same. The potty remained unused

Neither Polly nor I were instilled with confidence that Genevieve was going to use the potty any time soon. While we knew that it wouldn't likely happen overnight, we were hoping for progress. It was feeling a little hopeless. Then Saturday came.

Genevieve told us each time she needed to potty when she was wearing her underwear and used the potty each time. What a difference a day made! I know there will be more accidents to come and that we still have a ways to go in this journey, but Saturday brought hope!

The truth is that we knew she would eventually use the potty all by herself. But it took her actually doing it to bring hope. Up to that point, we were simply acting in faith. Here are 3 lessons this taught me:

You need to take that step of faith.

The positive results of Saturday would not have happened unless we finally took a leap of faith and put Genevieve in her underwear. Most things we are wanting and waiting for will not happen until we first step out and take action.

Today's results don't dictate tomorrow's results.

Although things seemed hopeless on Friday, we knew that it was only a day and a half and that the positive results would come. She was going to use the potty eventually. It would have been unreasonable for us to quit based on Friday's results. Tony Palow, pastor at Assembly of God in North Providence, RI had a great quote in his sermon today. He said, "We often give up instead of press in." That's true in many areas. When we're ready to give up, that's the time to press in.

Momentum is important.

There is a lot be said about the power of momentum. Positive results start multiplying quickly. It's exponential in growth. Some call this the snowball effect. What starts as a little snowball gets big rather quickly with a little momentum. And the bigger it gets, the more momentum there is. It's a great cycle.

The application.

We began raising our budget for Costa Rica last April. Over the first 9 months, we raised 17%. It would have been easy to be discouraged. But we knew the results of the first 9 months didn't dictate what would happen in the months to follow. Sure enough, 2013 kicked off with our best month yet. In fact, from January through April, we raised an additional 25%. The snowball was rolling.

Recently, with an eye toward leaving for Costa Rica in August of this year, we kicked off the 100 Days Campaign. We knew that we would need the 100 day period starting May 8 to far surpass our fundraising to that point. With over half our budget to raise, we recognized the need for a big miracle. We took the step of faith and pressed in. Things have started off strongly. After 18 days, we had already raised an additional 11% in new commitments. If we keep up that pace, we will be leaving on our target date.

So, we need to keep pressing in and keep that momentum going. Would you consider helping to keep that snowball rolling? A monthly commitment of any amount will do exactly that. You can set that up at http://s1.ag.org/brown or by clicking the "Partnering with Us" link above.

100 Days Campaign

"When are you leaving for Costa Rica?"

That is probably the most commonly asked question that Polly and I have experienced over the past year. Unfortunately, it's a question with no simple answer. In fact, I feel as though we can never answer the question without first qualifying the answer. An answer that itself has been a bit fluid during that time. So, I thought it would be helpful to answer that question here on the blog, with qualifiers of course.

One of the factors that makes the question a tricky one to answer is the fact that for a time, we only had a vague answer. When Polly and I responded to God's call on our lives to go to Costa Rica, the timetable for it was one of many unknowns. Pretty early on in the process we narrowed it down in our hearts and thinking to spring or summer of 2013. That was as close to an answer that we could give for a number of months. We usually began that answer with something along the lines of, "Probably..." or "Well, we're thinking maybe..."

We thoroughly enjoyed our experience of spending two weeks in Springfield, MO for Pre-field Orientation last June. Beyond learning and wisdom about missions in general we also became aware of an extremely important piece of specific information. We learned that due to the tourist visa situation in conjunction with the importance of being present for the first day of the semester of language school, there are only three dates during the entire year that a first time missionary to Latin America with Assemblies of God World Missions (AGWM) can travel to San Jose, Costa Rica. Two of those three dates immediately jumped out to us -- May 8, 2013 and August 28, 2013 -- as those were the two dates that fell within the parameters of us leaving in the spring or summer of 2013. We felt strongly that we would leave on either of those two dates. Our answer had narrowed down a little more. We usually began that answer with something along the lines of, "Either..." or "Depending on how things go..."

We remained confused about which date to truly target for quite a few months after narrowing things down to those two. I put both into our calendar. The first I called "Target Date" and the other "Alt Target Date." We were clearly undecided. This actually made things tougher for us. Answering ambiguously with spring or summer of 2013 was easy. Having two dates nearly four months apart was tough. When we were leaving depending on how we were feeling that day. We listed May 8, 2013 in our written materials only because it was the sooner. If we were going to be wrong, we would rather have been wrong being ambitious than being conservative. I figured it would be better to have to wait four more months than rush everything for four more months.

I'll never forget the first time I booked a church service for a date after May 8, 2013. In making that decision, I was acknowledging that I felt that the August 28th date was the one we should target. In fact, Polly and I both felt agreement and peace about this. Of course, this didn't mean that the answer became more definitely. We usually began that answer with something along the lines of, "Hopefully..." or "At the earliest..." Then came the conversation that changed everything for us.

We were Skype-ing with John & Dina one night. We were telling them about our latest campaign we were calling the "Cup of Coffee Campaign" (still ongoing). We got into a conversation about our goal and the need to raise our budget at a quicker pace. I don't remember the exact words that John used, but I remember him saying how there just came a point for them when they had to just pick a date (for themselves to get to Costa Rica) and stick with it. They needed to change their language to express their earnest faith that they were going to leave at the time God put on their hearts to leave. I felt challenged.

Let's be honest, faith can be tough. Since generalizing is not normally a good practice, let me speak for myself here (though I'm sure I'm not alone). It's scary to take the leap of faith. All the doubts start creeping in: "What if I'm wrong and look like an idiot?" "If I don't leave in August people will think that either God doesn't care or that we weren't listening to Him." I dealt with all those questions. In truth, I still deal with them. But I come back to this: I'd rather take the leap of faith and find out that I was wrong than not take the leap at all. The one thing that I am certain of is that God does care and that we will get there at the exact time we should. He's not going to be the one to mess up or make a mistake. If a mistake is made, it will be my mistake. My pride might be a little hurt, but my trust will still be in the Lord. And I'm thankful that God is there with me even through my mistakes.

So, I'm done with the qualifiers. From now on, when people ask when we're leaving, I'm going to answer them that we are leaving in August!

Now, let's discuss a simple reality: We cannot leave until our budget is raised. You know what then, I guess we're just going to have to raise our budget by August then. This is where our latest campaign comes into play: the 100 Days campaign.

It occurred to me on Tuesday, May 7 that the following day was to be the "other date" we had considered for leaving for Costa Rica. After doing a little simple math, it also occurred to me that there were about 100 days from May 8th until the time we would need our budget raised in order to leave for Costa Rica on August 28th. A little more simple math (very simple math) brought to my attention that to raise the additional roughly $2,500 in monthly commitments, we would need to average $25 in new monthly commitments every day over that 100 day period. That's a big need. But it's not bigger than God's ability.

Two days into this 100 Day Campaign, we have received $100 in new monthly commitments from a total of three people (1 at $50/mo, 2 at $25/mo). That's obviously an excellent start. We need to keep that momentum rolling though. Will you considering partnering with us by joining our sending team and making a commitment to give $25 every month so that we can go and serve the people of Costa Rica? You can't do $25/mo? That's okay, can you do $5 or $10 or $20? You can do more than $25/mo? That's okay too. You can choose any amount up to the $2,400/mo we need. We're just looking to reach the average of $25/mo per day. And I have a goal of never being more than three days behind, so that a $100/mo commitment would catch us right back up. Don't wait until tomorrow to set this up...jump on board today!

You can set up a commitment attached to a credit card or set up the commitment without it being attached to a credit card (Acct# 2713097). That's your choice. If you want to know more about what we'll be doing in Costa Rica, please feel free to check out the Engage CR or FAQs pages by clicking the links here or at the top of the page.

As always, you can email us at mikeandpollybrown@gmail.com if you have any further questions.

30 in Thirty: 29 - Fishing with Pop

For today's 30 in Thirty celebration, Polly and I went fishing. Considering the fact that we've been fishing together on numerous occasions, it's easy to see how that could seem like a pretty simple, mundane event for a celebration activity. And if it were just another day of fishing, I would feel the same way. But today wasn't just another day of fishing. Polly and I were joined by her cousins (unfortunately Chris got called into work and couldn't stay), Aunt Penny and Pop (Polly's grandfather)! To understand how special today's event was, you first have to understand something about Polly's family.

Pop has been fishing for a very long time. He even used to work for the New Jersey Fish & Game. And he taught all 3 of his daughters (including Polly's mom) and all 9 of his grandkids how to fish. It is impossible to get together with Polly's family and not hear stories of fishing. It's a significant part of who the family is. And for me, that's all it's ever been...hearing the stories. I mean, sure, I've been with Polly's family fishing while on vacation at Thousand Islands. But I've never been fishing with Pop. So today was an very special day. I was honored to be a part of it. Even cooler was that Rosedale Lake, where we fished, is one of the lakes Pop used to stock when he was working for the Fish & Game. And better yet, today was Pop's 86th birthday! So when Polly's brother Leroy began contacting all the grandkids to arrange this event, we were so excited that we had this weekend free on our calendar (that is not often the case these days). I didn't catch any fish (in fact, Polly's cousin Stephen was the only one to catch one), but that didn't make the day any less special. Someone took a picture of Polly and me fishing on either side of Pop. Unfortunately the camera's memory card was apparently full and the picture did not make it. I wish I could share that moment with you because it's a moment that I will cherish for the rest of my life. Here are a few of the pictures that did make it today:

The chalkboard at Gram & Pop's house

Genevieve wanted to help Pop blow out his candles

The grandkids

Stephen holding his rainbow trout with Pop

Sometimes, it's the simple activities that have the biggest impacts. I'm so glad that I finally got to take part in this amazing tradition that I've heard so much about for the last 9 years!

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God is Faithful

Two movie titles. One chapter in the Bible. One central theme.

Dr. Wave Nunnally, my professor for the History portion of the Old Testament History and Literature class at Central Bible College in Springfield, MO referred to it as "Back to the Future." Matt Travnik, a friend of mine from CBC referred to it as "School of Rock." They each used a different movie title to refer to the events of Joshua 4, but the central theme of their message was the same: God is Faithful!

For whatever reason, having heard thousands of sermons and lessons over the years, these two have always stuck with me. In fact, I've preached a sermon on the chapter on a number of occasions myself. With Matt's permission, I also title my sermon "School of Rock." But clever titles isn't what caused me to hold on to these two teachings over the years; the truth of the message is. Because through my life, God has made something abundantly clear to me over and over again: He is and will always be faithful.

Contrary to what I thought I was going to speak about on both occasions, this is the sermon I've taught from each of my last two services. And while it's a great truth that I think people need to hear, I also think that it's a truth that God has been wanting me to hear again too.

Joshua 4 happens at a time when the Israelites are miraculously crossing through the Jordan River as they are about to finally entire into the Promise Land after 400 years of slavery in Egypt and 40 years of wandering in the desert. God commands Joshua, the new leader of the people after Moses' death, to take 12 stones from the middle of the Jordan and set up a memorial at the place where they would be camping. They do exactly as the Lord commands and set up the memorial. In fact, it seems that they set up two: one in the middle of the Jordan and one at the place where they were camping. I think there are three valuable things we can learn from these piles of rocks:

1. The rocks were a sign of obedience

They obeyed everything the Lord instructed them to do surrounding the event of crossing through the Jordan and the event of setting up the stones. The act of setting up the memorial was a sign of obedience. I believe that the Bible is quite clear that God expects obedience from us. We must know God's voice, listen when He speaks and be quick to obey. What does God's voice sound like? I can't answer that for you. But what I can say is that if you spend time talking to God and reading His Word, He will speak to you. It may not be an audible voice (I've never heard one) but it will just make sense in your heart. It's one of those things that you'll know when it happens. And we must listen. Prayer is not simply us talking TO God, but it's us talking WITH God. It's a conversation. God may be giving you the answer to your prayers but you're not listening to hear what it is. And we must obey. Knowing what God says to us is not enough. We have to act on it. Why are Polly, Genevieve and I leaving our families and moving to Costa Rica? Because we feel so certain in our hearts that God is calling us to. And we know from experience that we're always better off when we listen to God AND do what He says! We would rather be no other place than in the center of His will for our lives.

2. The rocks were an evidence of the supernatural

They didn't have SCUBA equipment back in the days of Joshua. Have large stones from the middle of the Jordan would have provided solid evidence that a supernatural event took place. We all have testimonies of God's faithfulness, whether we realize it or not (if you're alive, you are a miracle). We can't hide those things. We need to display them as evidence for others. I've had more than one friend attempt to challenge the existence of God. And I've even known of some Christians that would deny His ability to perform miracles. But if you have never seen or experienced a miracle, I believe you're just ignoring the evidence. Miracles have made incredible believers out of even the most staunch of atheists. God is faithful!

3. The rocks were a reminder of God's faithfulness

The rocks served as a reminder of God's faithfulness to those who weren't able to participate in the event itself. But they were also a reminder for those who did. Why do I trust that God will provide for my family? Because He always has before. I can rattle off stories and stories of times where God has provided for my family. I have shared those stories before and I'm sure I'll share them again. Sometimes they were simple; other times they were much more intense. Regardless which they were, they serve as a reminder to me that He is able and that He is faithful. I'm not going to tell you that God will give you a sports car if you pray for one. And I'm not going to tell you that if you pray enough and live the right way, you will become rich. But I will tell you that God will supply all of your NEEDS! We become so focused on our own plans that we forget to ask God what His plans are. And His plans are always better! Let me share one example of God's faithfulness in my life. When we stepped down from the church last July to focus on itineration, we lost income; income that we had become dependent on. It's not like we were sitting there rolling in the dough and blowing tons of money. We were already living paycheck to paycheck. Yet through this time that we've made less money, we have paid every bill, been able to pick up new missionaries to support (yes, missionaries support other missionaries too!), and even had times of extra. Mathematically it doesn't make sense. Find the financial advisor out there that will tell you the best way to have more money is to reduce your income. You will not find it! I wouldn't recommend it myself. But that's what has happened to us. Why? Because God is faithful!

Polly and I are currently at 36% of our monthly budget officially (we're at 45% if you add in the amounts that churches and individuals have pledged which haven't been submitted or gone through yet). Our goal is to be at 50% of our budget by the end of March. That is a lot of extra commitments that we will need over the course of the next week (as well as movement in some of the pledges that haven't been submitted or gone through yet).  Our goal is to leave for Costa Rica in August. And even though it may not seem possible in the natural, we don't live by the natural. Are we being naive? Absolutely not! You see, we have a memorial that is made up of a pile of rocks representing God's faithfulness to us throughout the years. We we look back at what He's done for us in the past, we have hope for the future. That's what Dr. Nunnally meant when he called it "Back to the Future."

We are confident that God will once again show His faithfulness and that God will provide. We will not do it alone though. We need people praying for us and with us. Please pray that God will provide favor in this. Also please pray if you might be a part of the solution. This brings us to the second thing we need: we need people who are able and willing to partner with us through a monthly contribution (it can be $5/mo or $50/mo or $500/mo or $5000/mo or anything in between). We don't seek to manipulate or guilt anyone into giving. We're simply putting the opportunity before you and asking you to consider if you might be a part of the solution. God is faithful! And the cool thing about God's provision is that it doesn't always have to come out of nowhere; sometimes, in fact often time, He chooses to use people...ordinary people. How cool is that?!

Will you consider partnering with us? You can read more about partnering by clicking the "About Partnering" link at the top right or set up that commitment by clicking on the "Make a One-time or Monthly Donation" link or by clicking here.

Regardless of whether or not you will be joining our Sending Team today, I hope that this blog post may have encouraged you for your own life.

In Christ,

Mike

Because We Were There

I was talking with a friend who leads a local college ministry the other night after all the students had left the Bible study. We were having a good conversation about ministry and what the world might look like if Christians lived out what we say we believe. The whole conversation was actually very good, but one thing keeps sticking out from the conversation.

A student attended the Bible study for the first time. My friend was telling me that he had the opportunity to have a two hour long conversation with that student earlier in the day. I don't know what the conversation was about as it was a private conversation, but I could tell that it was a great, deep conversation. My friend had an intern with him at the time. After the conversation was over, my friend asked the intern, "Do you know why that conversation happened? Because I was here." What a simple, subtle reminder of such a critical truth.

Polly, Genevieve and I cannot wait to share testimonies of people we will get the chance to meet and interact with in Costa Rica. We cannot wait to share about at-risk teens and children whose lives we will be able to invest in. We cannot wait to share about changed lives. And do you know why we'll be able to share those things? Because we will be there.

Are you willing to help us be able to have "Because we were there" stories and testimonies? We can only have them if we get there. We believe that we have purpose in Costa Rica. We believe there are at-risk young people who need hope. We recognize that we are no more special than anyone else and that anyone else could satisfy that purpose because we do not supply the hope, Jesus does! But we believe that God has called us to this work. Are you willing to invest in that cause with us and partner with us through prayer and finances?

At this point, some might say, "Whoa, whoa, whoa! Slow down there...I was right there with you until you brought up the 'f' word: finances." Here's the thing. We cannot go for free. Life costs money. We cannot make money while in Costa Rica, so we must go on faith through raising our budget. Isn't it cool that you can play an integral role in sending us there...in helping us get those "Because we were there" stories and testimonies? I think so too.

For the month of March, we have decided to promote something we're calling the March to 50. Because our goal is to reach Costa Rica in August, we want to be at 50% of our monthly budget by the end of the month. The amount that we needed to reach that goal at the beginning of the month was a large chunk of money: $905.50. You may be sitting there and saying, "I wish I could afford to commit $905.50/mo but I couldn't even come close." Well, I have good news. You don't need to commit that much. You can commit whatever amount you feel that you can do (or perhaps commit in faith believing that you will be able to even if the numbers don't add up). Some people have committed $200/mo to us. Some have committed $5/mo. Do you know which ones are helping us reach our goal? All of them. Please consider what amount you can partner with us financially at on a monthly basis. We will appreciate whatever amount you set.

You can set up an ongoing monthly commitment through our giving site. You can also do it by mail if you prefer by downloading our commitment form. Please note that our account number is 2713097. If you have any further questions about what our budget is for, please view our "Partner" page found at the top of this page or by clicking here. And, of course, you can always email us at mikeandpollybrown@gmail.com.

Imagine the twist on things from your perspective. While we will be sharing "Because we were there" stories and testimonies, you will be retelling those stories and testimonies saying, "Because I helped send them."

In Christ,

Mike

Not All Fun in the Sun

Polly, Genevieve and I took the craziest journey we have had to make during our itineration this past Wednesday. The first leg was a 1h50m drive to Falmouth, MA where we parked our car. The second leg was a 15m shuttle bus ride to Woods Hole. The third leg was a 45m ferry ride across Vineyard Sound to Martha's Vineyard (or as we locals call it, the Vineyard). The last leg was a 10m ride in the pastor's car to the dinner and ultimately the church. We arrived at the Vineyard just in time too as the remaining ferries for the night were canceled due to the high winds. This was my first glimpse into the reality of life on the island.

Having grown up in Massachusetts, I have always been familiar with the existence of the Vineyard. I knew that it was not a cheap place to live and that it was a popular vacationing spot for presidents. I also knew that it was full of beaches. In my world, it was the quintessential vacationing spot...one we would never visit. And this fantastical (and common) viewpoint of the Vineyard was completely fine with me...I never cared to think any deeper on the matter. Then we sat down for dinner with Pastor Joseph Dockter and my perspective was completely shattered.

Of course he had heard it from other pastors...you know, the exact types of things you would expect, like: "Wow, pastoring on the Vineyard...there's a tough job, huh?" or "How'd you get a gig this sweet?" or other things along the same line. If I was being completely honest, I would say that the same thoughts had crossed through my mind. But reality is a funny thing...when it's discovered, the fantasy is ruined. So the more Pastor Joseph spoke, the more my childhood thoughts were destroyed.

Did you know that the Vineyard has 15,000 residents in the winter months, but 120,000 during the summer? Did you know that the Vineyard does have the highest cost of living in Massachusetts but the lowest median income? Did you know that there's not really a whole lot to do on the island...especially in the winter? Facts like these have seemingly brought about high numbers of depression and suicide. And did you know that every time the church wants to attend a function on the mainland, there's a lot of extra planning involved that most pastors don't have to deal with? The women missed part of last year's Women's Convention because high winds put the island on lock-down for 2 days...no ferries in or out. Pastor Joseph mentioned an occasion he had heard of but had not experienced himself when the ferries were shut down for 2 weeks! Pastor Joseph and his family have to travel back and forth every day as the children go to a school on the mainland. This can get pricey and probably old pretty quick. Due to high winds yesterday, he almost missed a special event at his kids' school (we got off just in time as the ferry before and next couple ferries following were canceled). And, of course, in over 3 years, Pastor Joseph has only been to the beach of couple of times. Vacation spots aren't vacation spots for the people who live there!

So, why am I sharing all of this? What does it have to do with Costa Rica? Well, because I think people have similar thoughts when they hear that we're going to be serving as Missionary Associates in Costa Rica. Believe me, I've already heard it: "Tough place, huh?" "Ministry to the Beach People?" This is why I was more amazed that I made the same err in my mind with the Dockters and the church on the Vineyard.

Will we go to the beach while we're in Costa Rica? Sure we will. But we won't be living at the beach. We will be in a city of nearly 2.5 million people and will be getting our hands dirty with ministry. It's not going to be all work, but it's not going to be all play either. Perspective is a funny, funny thing. And I'm thankful that Pastor Joseph gave me some yesterday. And I ask that you please keep this in mind when you're praying for or thinking about us too...we're not going to Costa Rica for vacation, we're going to serve. We're going with a purpose...we will be bringing the good news of who Jesus is that it may be cold water to thirsty souls (see Proverbs 25:25).

In Christ,

Mike

Finishing What I've Started

The email came in on May 7, 2012. I was at an off-site meeting for my secular job in Scottsdale, AZ. I remember this trip well because I flew out on my birthday and celebrated alone in the hotel restaurant. They were kind and gave me a free dessert to make the moment a little less sad. Anyway, the email was short and concise. It was from Missionaries John & Dina Mussachio and it went as follows:

Hey, Guys.

How are you doing? How was your weekend?
Maybe you've read it, but if not, I want to invite you to download a free book on ibooks: George Müller - Answers to Prayer.
Powerful.

We love you guys,
John & Dina

That's right, a simple email...a book recommendation. I love reading and am always looking for a good book. I used to read suspense novels and true crime books but I had given those up on account of them being a waste of my time ultimately. But this seemed like an awesome suggestion. We were just beginning our journey of itineration and fund-raising, so it was great timing. I had my iPad with me at the meeting so I downloaded it and began reading. Of course, I got distracted with work and other things so I didn't really read a whole lot. Then I did as I always seem to do: I forgot about it. I apparently remembered about it on June 3, 2012 because that's when I downloaded it to my Kindle app. Apparently I had also forgotten that I had downloaded it on iBooks. I'm sure I read a little more. Then, again, I forgot about it. I bought other books and started reading them. Of course, I'm not sure I finished any of them either. I am notoriously bad at finishing books.

If you were to look at my bookshelf, you're likely to see a number of partially-read, bookmark-sticking-out-of-them-somewhere books. It's not that I've never finished a book...it's that I rarely finish books. Why? Honestly, I'm not sure. Sometimes I don't like the book, but that's not usually the case. I think I just get easily distracted and lack motivation at times. I bring a book to work nearly every day. And nearly every day I don't crack it open once.

My secular job gave me the week of Christmas off paid. With the extra time off, we decided to spend extra time visiting with Polly's family. I packed my iPad and some books into my briefcase. We were already about an hour away from home when I realized that my briefcase was still on our couch. As Genevieve would say, "Oh no." So now we were going to be at Polly's parents' house for 5 days and I had no reading materials. This was not good. I mean, I love spending time with family, but not all day long. Relief finally came on Christmas day when Polly's parents gave us a Kindle. I know, we're slow to move on getting this stuff. I never really wanted one before but decided that it would be a good way to read books while in Costa Rica. Of course, I didn't know I was actually getting one, so I was incredibly happen when I saw it. After opening all of Genevieve's toys and putting things together, I finally sat down and set up the Kindle. I was going to try to find a book in the Kindle Store to read when I saw it... Answers to Prayer by George Müller was already on my account from when I had downloaded it for my app. I decided to pick up reading from there.

I didn't end up getting a whole lot of this pretty short book read during the rest of our stay. In fact, I was about 33% done with it (couldn't tell you in pages) when we left. Why? Well, we spent the next day watching movies which took up a lot of our free time. So once again I put it down. Then came that time of year that everyone looks forward to: New Year's!

Why do people like New Year's? Because they like the feeling of a fresh start, a clean slate. It's a time many people make New Year's Resolutions (the #1 resolution each year is weight loss). I loosely make resolutions each year. I use it as a reflection time to think through positive changes I should make. I mean, don't get me wrong...if I determine a positive change I need in my life during the middle of the year I don't wait to enact it. I'm just more likely to think of those changes when I take time to reflect and I'm more apt to take time to reflect around New Year's.

During my time of reflection I thought of a number of personal improvements I could afford to instill in my life. One of them: to read more. And the best place to start for me: to finish where I left off...in the books I've already started. Here's my goal:

I want to read at least 1 book a month this year. And the first book of each month much be a book that I've already started and have yet to finish. So if I want to start a new book, I must first finish one I've already invested some time in.

One week into the new year, I can happily say that I'm starting well. I've already finished Answers to Prayer. It was a great book to read. Simple, yet powerful! John & Dina were right. I highlighted a number of things throughout the book, but let me share my favorite thing which came from an appendix and agrees with my philosophy in reading (this seemed appropriate given the topic here):

"If any believers read this, who practically prefer other books to the Holy Scriptures, and who enjoy the writings of men much more than the word of God, may the be warned by my loss. I shall consider this book to have been the means of doing much good, should it please the Lord, through its instrumentality, to lead some of His people no longer to neglect the Holy Scriptures, but to give them that preference, which they have hitherto bestowed on the writings of men. My dislike to increase the number of books would have been sufficient to deter me from writing these pages, had I not been convinced, that this is the only way in which the brethren at large may be benefited through my mistakes and errors, and been influenced by the hope, that in answer to my prayers, the reading of my experience may be the means of leading them to value the Scriptures more highly, and to make them the rule of all their actions." (Page 119)

I encourage you all to read, but first to make a habit of reading the Bible. And then to read things that are beneficial.

Well, reading one book doesn't satisfy my resolution. So next on the docket to finish: The Hole in Our Gospel by Richard Stearns. As I said, I have started well. But real success in this quest will be measured not by how well I've started; it will be measured by how well I finish what I've started!

In Christ,

Mike