Posted by Addis Andy on Sep 15, 2009 in
Leadership Journals,
Spiritual Growth For those who are not geographically aware of this bloggers location, the following statement won’t mean much:
It’s State Fair time!
Living three blocks from the fairgrounds is a good or bad thing depending upon what you think of the fair.
The Addis from high atop the Weenie Wheel.
The Addis from high atop the Weenie Wheel.
I get most of my fair jollies just sitting on the front porch. Watching the parade of happy people walking to the fair early in the day as they park somewhere beyond my house.
And, then, I am blessed with the occasional treasure of seeing the exact same people coming back later that night… transformed.
Tired, broke, sun burnt or freezing (it’s Kansas, you know) and almost always “less happy.”
This people watching is a little thing I have learned to enjoy in the last seven years of living here in Hutch. I do it every year as I listen to the concerts from the comfort of my porch swing.
You know what else doesn’t change? The Fair!
That’s amazing to me.
Tags: Air Supply, Bible, change, fear, growth, Mark 2:21-22, maturity, obedience, Phil 1:6, Spiritual Growth, State Fair
Posted by Addis Andy on Aug 26, 2009 in
Uncategorized Exactly 15 days after brain surgery… it’s time to blog. Thanks God for answered prayers, His love and compassion and my faith community’s support.
I decided to write this blog for three reasons:
Many people have been asking for an update on the physical well-being of this blogger
God has given me some new insight into a familiar passage through this experience, and personally I feel that being productive is healing
My medical authorities have given me permission to write despite the fact that I am well inside the “DO NOT WORK” time parameters, or more simply put Kathy said it was OK
Tags: Bible, Chiari Malformation, fear, growth, Matthew 6:25-34, maturity, obedience, responsibility, Spiritual Growth, surgery, worry
Posted by Addis Andy on Aug 7, 2009 in
Philosophical Ramblings Fear is a funny thing. Some of it is good for you. God gave it to you as a way to protect yourself.
For example, when you’re walking down the street and massive pit bull with foam dripping from its mouth comes running at you, your typical response isn’t, “Nice, puppy!”
It’s fear… run, kick, scream. That’s a good thing.
However, the vast majority of our fears aren’t pit bulls. They aren’t collies, or even kittens. Truth is a good chuck of our fears are like that noise in the basement we imagine is a serial killer whose been hiding there all day and is waiting until 3:46 AM because of some sick ritualistic obsession of his to come in and pounce on my entire family!
When actually it’s just the sump pump.
I’ve got some potentially scary days ahead and I just wanted to offer you this camp moment as a reminder to Fear Not.
2 Timothy 1:7 For God did not give us a spirit of timidity, but a spirit of power, of love and of self-discipline.
Tags: 1 Timothy 1:7, Bible, Camp, courage, fear, Great Wolf Lodge, kids, strength, Westside Family Church
Posted by Addis Andy on May 5, 2009 in
Philosophical Ramblings I am not a natural optimist. In fact, my natural propensity for fear, tends to lead me the…er, other way.
So, trying to have a positive expectation is not the norm for me. If I am getting ready for travel then I think about every nightmarish movie scene of plane, train and automobile disasters I have ever seen and simply overlay my face into the scenery… fun!
If I get a mysterious phone call and need an urgent reply, then I am sure that the person on the other end of the phone message has had their life completely unraveled or hates me… or their life has completely unraveled because they hate me… super fun!
If I have a soar throat, it’s never sinus drainage, it’s always some precursor to cancer, a rare disease in its final stages that will only be discovered in my autopsy, or the final mutation of the swine flu that has evolved to its pristine killer form within me… uber fun!
Tags: Bible, Chiari Malformation, fear, hope, inspiration, Psalms, trust
Posted by Addis Andy on Mar 12, 2009 in
Leadership Journals So what are you afraid of?
Financial issues, health concerns, family matters, ending opening sentences with prepositions…
The only people who really have anything to worry about as it relates to their fears are the ones who say they aren’t afraid of anything. Take it from me, I’m an expert in fear as one who is afraid of a multitude of things (not a positive, of course, just a statement of fact)… everyone is afraid of something.
The problem is our fears tend to camouflage themselves. We see the obvious ones:
· “I’m afraid of dogs” – Well, you were probably bitten as a child
· “I’m afraid of getting pulled over by the police” – Well, slow down genius
· “I’m afraid of tornados” – Well, you’re not an idiot
· “I’m afraid of those creepy sounds downstairs in my house at night” – Well… Well, actually, I agree. Do you mind going down to check? Thanks.
The obvious fears we get. They are easy to spot, label and either accept or deny. The problem is many leaders are leaders because they have learned to wrestle these obvious fears to the ground and knock’em out with the classic sleeper hold!
Tags: Bible, courage, family, fear, Great Wolf Lodge, leadership, risk, trust
