The past several years have been both significant and quite a blur for me personally. I’ve often referred to it as the ‘perfect storm’ of my life. The storm has included heavy winds in the area of family and relationships, not to mention dealing with a worldwide pandemic. In the eye of that storm God has done some amazing things in my life!
I was interacting with some old friends recently and realized I haven’t communicated very well to keep everyone up to date on these things in my life. There are several reasons for this…
First, I don’t use much social media (or consume much media). So until now my updates are via personal correspondence and conversations. So I’m sure what you are about to read is a great reason Mark Zuckerberg created Facebook and why I should use it more. That path might be a bit more efficient than an old school blog, but hopefully this blog will bridge the gap for now.
Second, the past several years have been such a blur. It feels like my memory is slipping more these days. I’m often not sure who has what updates. My kids are often telling me that I’ve either told that story too many times and forgotten I told it or that I’ve never told them something they wanted to know.
Next, I live so much in the moment, often to a fault. This is a quality I like about myself. But it also hinders my ability to stay current and connected with a very large, disparate network of family and friends. So in the spirit of “better late than never” I thought I’d communicate some of these things that have been going on in my life.
One last important reason I’m posting a blog. I have people who are directly in my life (example close friends from college, work colleagues, etc.). And then via my wife, 5 children, son-in-law, and daughter-in-law I have many who are indirectly connected to me. Sometimes I’m saying something or doing something that might make it hard for my son to relay to his teacher, or my daughter to a man she’s dating, or my new daughter-in-law to her family. So, if that applies to you, I thought perhaps sharing these things directly might connect some dots for you.
Here are the basic headlines for my blog
Reflections: things I see, feel, and experience that make me think, write, and process. these thoughts are raw, vulnerable, and unbaked. But I love sharing them with others to provoke better thoughts and great conversations.
Relationships: I have a huge family of origin. Many I’m close to you, many I’ve never met, some I remember, many I need to remember more. I have a growing family myself with five kids, an awesome son-in-law, an awesome daughter-in-law, and two wonderful grandsons. I’m blessed with a host of special friends across personal and professional lives, across cross cultural boundaries, across many Christian denominations and faiths. I’m investing more than ever in these relationships and how I can honor them.
Redemption: Jesus has been drawing me to Himself and his church more than ever in my life. Since 2018 I have been in full fellowship with the Catholic Church and remain in fellowship with my brothers and sisters in Christ across many other denominational lines. I’ve been collecting these experiences in a book that I’m writing call Journey Home. I’ve also written several devotionals and a book series called A Walk to Emmaus. Posts in this section are often answers to questions my family and friends have posed. Others are to share things I experience and learn.
If you’re curious and want to read more. Check out this post on why I named the blog wgmb.info.