I was listening to a podcast of one of my favorite pastors the other day - Francis Chan of Cornerstone Church Simi Valley at www.cornerstonesimi.com

This post is less about my thoughts of that message and more about something I heard that I really liked. You see we have been wrestling with these thoughts about God's plan - are we hearing it correctly? Why cant we just get out of this desert place we are in... I just want an "easy" season of life to come along.

Then along comes Francis talking about the prayers most Christians pray. We pray that the season will end. We pray for clarity. We pray for whatever that struggle we are facing to go away... we pray for our circumstances to change. His challenge: What if we prayed instead for God to change us? For God to transform us through this, to build character (I never like that verse, but it is there).

I want to close this post with the lyrics of a song by Kendall Payne. She sang this song during the church service - it is called, Pray

I will pray for you now for you have been my faithful friends
While the road we walk is difficult indeed
I couldn't not ask for more than what you've already been
Only that you would say these prayers for me

May your heart break enough that compassion enters in
May your strength all be spent upon the weak
All the castles and crowns you build and place upon your head
May they all fall come crashing down around your feet

May you find every step to be harder than the last
So your character grows greater each stride
May your company be of humble insignificance
May your weakness be your only source of pride

What you do unto others may it all be done to you
May you meet the one who made us
And see him smile when life is through

May your blessings be many but not what you hoped they'd be
And when you look upon the broken
May mercy show you what you could not see

May you never be sure of any plans you desire
But you'd learn to trust the plan he has for you
May your passions be tried and tested in the holy fire
May you fight with all your life for what is true

I have prayed for you now all of my dear and faithful friends
But what I wish is more than I could ever speak
As the way wanders on I'll long to see you once again
Until then, would you pray these prayers for me?
Oh that you would pray for me.

Think about those words.

I was on facebook recently looking over some profiles when I stopped at the section titled "Favorite Books". One friend (who I believe is completely honest with there answer) listed The Bible.

Oh, good answer I thought to myself, I better update my profile. You see I grew up in church and one of the not so good things I learned in the "Christian Community" is the value in image management. Answer questions they way you are "supposed to" answer.

Before going to change my profie I stopped to think about this for a bit. Is the Bible really, truly, honestly one of my favorite books? I want it to be, but before all two of you readers I have to confess... unfortunately I cannot say it is one of my favorite books. It is hard to write that. I feel shame in writing that... but better to be truthful than dishonest right?

Clearly I have something to work on because God's book to us is amazing, it is invaluable, it is any and all positive adjectives you can think of.

I leave you with this... is the Bible one of your favorite books?

$4.06 - What is this all about?

Well last night I had dinner with some friends. The fixed a fantastic meal... and then they offered me dessert. I had my choice of ice cream or a variety of popsicles - both of which I like. But I declined. I was full afterall.

As I got ready to leave, I decided I was going to treat myself to something from the Dairy Queen. Earlier in the day I had found a dollar in the pocket of my shorts and rounded up loose change. Off I drove to get my treat. I was going to get one of those cones dipped in chocolate, but as I stood there waiting to order I just couldn't help myselt - "A medium butterfinger blizzard please" I told the girl behind the counter. You see while I was standing there looking at the menu, that blizzard took me back to Kalamazoo when my parents would bribe me with a treat if I went with them on some errand. You guessed it, my favorite treat 24 years ago was a butterfinger blizzard.

Back to last night... I gave the girl behind the counter $4.06, took my blizzard and headed home. Ahh, it tasted so good for about the first 5 minutes on my way home and then it hit me - $4.06! I just paid $4.06 for this when I could have had ice cream for free at my friends?!

I finished it (because I didn't want to waste it) but all of a sudden, all that joy was gone. Oh, it tasted good, but I couldn't stop thinking about those people around the world who didn't taste anything last night. I couldn't stop thinking about what else $4.06 could buy. In many parts of the world, $4.06 is more than the average person earns in a week.

I am not trying to be a downer here. I am not saying that it is wrong to indulge sometimes. I guess I am just asking you to be aware of how you are spending your money.

The next time you turn into McDonalds, or Starbucks, or Dunkin Donuts, or wherever - think about how little it takes to help others who have nothing. Maybe God will prompt you to turn around, or maybe He will simply prompt you to pray for those who don't have $4.06

I used to always be amazed when I would hear pastors use movies and music as illustrations in their message. I have watched many movies, and listed to a lot of music but I never seemed to get a spiritual lesson out of any of them. Their examples made sense, but I figured my brain must just be wired differently and that process of discovery just wasn't in my genes. Until recently that is...

Two nights ago I watched National Treasure 2 with Nicolas Cage. I enjoyed it - not as much as the first one, but I still enjoyed it. I turned the dvd player off and went to bed, not thinking about any hiden messages or how realistic (or unrealistic) the story was. Just entertainment.

Everything changed the next day. I don't know what trigged this change. I can't recall purposefully thinking about the movie. But something happened while I was weeding the flower bed - What if we pursued God the way Benjamin Franklin Gates (Nicolas Cage) pursued the treasure?

If you haven't seen the movie, Ben is searching for something. He is essentially a historian/treasure hunter. He is willing to go to any length to find the next clue which eventually will lead him to the treasure. Read that again - He is willing to go to any length...

He risks his life, his credibility, his family - he even kidnaps the president.

I realize this is just a movie, but many of us live our real lives chasing our own set of treasures much the way Ben chases his.

Eternal life with Jesus is the most amazing treasure you will ever find.

What treasures are you seeking? What would your life, your marriage, your relationships, your work... look like if everything about you was fully devoted to pursuing (honoring/glorifying) God?

For those of you who have been visiting here, you have quickly realized that I started off quickly... but then quickly faded. This reality is probably true of many people who start writing. But I don't want it to be true of me any longer.

Traveling to Turkey marked me in many ways. One of the more subtle ways was rediscovering my desire to write. I love to write. I communicate best when I write (I am not saying I am a master writer), and I am best able to express my feelings this way.

So, this is a short entry to basically say: If I am ever going to become a better writer, I better actually start writting.

So here is to a new beginning. Starting today (counting this blah entry) I am going to commit to regularly writing.

I hope to hear from you soon.

Having grown up going to church, I imagine I have heard pastors talk about "shining" a hundred times. "We are to be salt and light... shine like a city on the hill...". Or as I child I remember singing:

This little light of mine
I'm going to let it shine
This little light of mine
I'm going to let it shine, let it shine...

Do you ever really spend time thinking about what it means to shine? Or better yet, based on how you are living your life, what does your life shine with? You see, the abscence of God's glory does not mean the abscence of influence.

To explain my point, we need to go back to an experience I had in Turkey.

Turkey is a country of over 70 million people of whom 98%-99% are muslims. It is one of the least evangelized countries in the world. In fact, Turkey has more mosques than any other country in the world. I am not sure of the number, but in a country with only 3000 - 4000 Christ followers... I wonder if there are almost as many mosques as evangelical believers?

This leads me to my first night in Istanbul. We were staying in this great little hotel in European Istanbul. It was centrally located to the famous mosques, the grand bazaar, and the waterfront - all of which could be seen from the hotel's rooftop terrace. With my body's internal clock still adjusting to the 7 hour time difference, I awoke for good around 3:40am.

I decided I would take advantage of this quiet time and go to the terrace and pray for my soul, and for the city. This city of nearly 15 million people was asleep and its streets were empty. I enjoyed the stillness until I realized that nearly as far as my eye could see, the city was dark... except for one shining light - The Blue Mosque.

That was the moment I "bought-in" to the urgency of strategically investing in Turkey. Light provides guidance, it is a sign of hope, a sign of life. Picture this - 70 million people looking for hope, searching for healing, desiring eternal life... where do they go?

Turks are seeking from a distance (sometimes in secret). They have spiritual questions, but they live in a culture with few alternatives. Turkey needs more light. Although my focus so far has been Turkey, you can be certain that whichever country you call home is in need of your light.

Where is your light leading people to?

We arrived in Istanbul around noon (April 17). What an incredible city. The beauty, the history, the people... and since Chicago has had such a long winter, the weather. I don't know if I could ever grow tired of eating breakfast and sipping apple tea on the terrace overlooking the city. Or enjoying a late dinner at one of the many cafes lining the cobblestone streets. But as special as these times were, they were not the highlight of my journey.

My journey to Istanbul started some time ago. God had really been at work in my life. He grew my heart for the poor and the oppressed, for people who were treated unjustly and were enslaved by their oppressors. He grew my faith, my heart for community, and my passion for the local church.

After experiencing such growth, I was ready to rest and wait for God show me the next step. There are times when God speaks directly to us, but at other times He speaks to others and uses them to deliver His message; Weaving together the strands of His plan to redeem and restore the world.

I want to invite you into my trip to Turkey - at times that will be more fact based such as what we did, but for today, I want to spend the rest of my time sharing lessons I learned about God from observing Persian Rugs (trust me here).

I had planned on purchasing a Perisan Rug while I was in Turkey. I didn't really know anything about these rugs - what to look for, how they were made, how much I should expect to pay - but I had planned on coming home with one.

Our first day in Istanbul we where "taken" to a Persian Rug wholesaler. And during the rest of our time in Istanbul, every vendor tried to take us to their shop - "I give you good price". Many of these rugs were beautiful, but it wasn't until a few days later that I began to appreciate the true beauty, the intricacy, the labor... the art involved in making hand made Persian Rugs. On this particular day we ventured off the main street and came to a shop where a woman was weaving a carpet. We spoke with the shop keeper and learned more about how these rugs are made.

I was amazed to learn this woman would spend an entire year working on this one rug alone. I could not believe that by hand, she could craft this large rug - day after day after day - and have the completed rug look so perfect.

When I got home, I did some more research on Persian Rugs. The rug maker will come up with a design and convey that in their rug. Rugs made with silk require the weaver to use a knot count of at least 1000 knots per square inch. Some of these larger silk rugs will take a lifetime to creat.

As I may have mentioned, God was leading me on this journey. I was hoping that while I was in Turkey, He would reveal my next step. When I returned home from Turkey, in fact, one of the most asked questions went something like this: "Did God Reveal What He Wants You To Do?".

At first my answer to that question was pretty much a non-answer. However, as time passes and I reflect on my trip, I am reminded of the weaver.

God has created this incredible universe. Sin altered that plan, but the results of the fall are only temporary. God has designed a new plan to overcome sin, to restore the broken, and redeem creation.

We are part of His redemptive plan. So when I think about God, I now think of Him in terms of the weaver. I cannot see the full design (His plan), I can only see small parts that have been completed or are being worked on now. I cannot grasp the full labor of love He pours into me. I cannot see the details of His work. And it may even take a lifetime before I see the completed plan He has for me.

... but for now, I will trust in the Weaver. Trusting that with every strand of thread there is a purpose in the greater purpose. Trusting that He is weaving trials, and patience, and people in and out of our lives to produce His work of art.

The Today Show had a segment on this morning that I (and I think you will to) found interesting.

"Where In The World Is Matt Lauer?" If you guessed he was in Turkey, you are right.

Check out this link to see where I was. If you have trouble, just cut/paste the link into your browser.

www.msnbc.msn.com/id/21134540/vp/24402968#24402968