Vacation

We had an interesting experience last week on vacation. We were in Maryland with Heather’s parents and we took Reagan to a small amusement park on the beach. We ended up having one of those moments. You know, one of those moments when reality reaches down and taps you on the shoulder and you will be changed forever. It all happened at the cars that go in the circle. We decided to allow Reagan to ride (deep down neither of us thought that he would do it). As we put him in the car and gave the tickets something very unexpected happened. He got behind the wheel and a sense of freedom came over him. He did not ask us to ride along. An offer would have been nice. As the ride started there was this incredibly surreal moment. Reagan’s shaggy hair began to blow in the wind and we only got an occasional glance as He passed us by. This moment may not seem that significant, but in a very real way I began to evaluate life and consider the future of our family. IN that moment I realized the freedom circle will continue to get bigger as Reagan gets older. One day we will watch him leave for school, spend the night with a friend, begin to drive a real car (man, what will gas cost then…), graduate, get married!? All in that moment it became very apparent that we are training him to live on his own. I was a little relieved when I looked at Heather and noticed that she too was impacted. I watched the tears run down her cheeks. Our little boy is doing exactly what he is supposed to be doing and there was not a thing we could do about it. For the record, I was not crying, I just simultaneously got something in both of my eyes. I was reminded again at the brevity of life. It seems like ust yesterday we celebrated Reagan’s birth and tomorrow (Lord willing) his circle of freedom will expand even more. I hope that we can do a good job!
Brad

Boating

We had a good time boating yesterday. Heather, Reagan and I went out with my nephew Blake. I love being on the water. My nephew decided that he wanted to try his skill at slalom skiing. This was interesting since no one in the boat had ever done it before. I am not even real sure where the ski came from. At any rate, it was quite a process that was not too successful. It is a good reminder that someone with experience can often be helpful. If not there is a tremendous amount of time and energy wasted.

Brad

Mission Team This Week

We wanted to ask everyone to specifically keep us in prayer this week. We have a mission team of 25 people from North Carolina who will be arriving tonight. They will be spending the week with us and working hard to help us get the name of Bridgeway Community Church out into the community. We will be passing out information, prayer walking, doing random acts of kindness, etc. We also have two activities planned in the park where will be giving away free food, prizes and games. We are hoping to make contacts with people who would be interested in learning more about Bridgeway. One night we also have a small group who will volunteer at our local shelter by serving there. We have faced many obstacles as we prepared for this week, but pray that God will use all of us in a big way. Thank you for remembering us this week as we work to meet the needs in Dickson City, PA.

Brad, Heather and Reagan

The Dentist

I had a tooth pulled the other day (if you are single you may not want to use this as your opener-unless she is an oral hygienist). I chipped a tooth on a bacon sandwich before Christmas and decided that it was time to get it pulled. Mainly because of the tremendous pain I experienced each time I ate something cold (and man I love ice cream). As he numbed me (by the way, what is that glue like substance that they roll on your lip with the huge cue tip before they stick the needle in? I ‘m not paying for that!) I began to think about what was about to take place. A man was about to stick a pair of pliers in my mouth, tighten them around the tooth and begin to yank, turn, crank, wince, tug and capitulate until the tooth was “extracted”. If that was not bad enough a lady was going to sit beside him and stare at me (mouth hung open) as he did this. How sick as she? How sick am I to pay for this type of treatment? I would like to hear her dinner conversations with her family! I asked the doctor if I could get a reduced cost since it was only a half of tooth (but I Digress). The doctor (I can confidently say that he is a doctor because I studied his diplomas on the wall quite thoroughly as I waited) finally entered the room for the task at hand. As fate would have it the tooth did not come out easily. I believe at one point the doctor pressed the palm of his hand against my forehead in order to create resistance. He worked and worked to remove my dead chipped tooth in order to relieve any future pain (quite ironic when you think about it). He was finally able to get the tooth removed in pieces and two days later I am glad to say that I am pain free (ok, the pain pills helped!- and the ice cream!!).
This did remind me of a life principle that we all experience at various stages. Sometimes we need to endure the focused pain now in order to relieve the continuous pain later. Those dead areas of our lives need to be extracted (which is extremely painful) in order to provide a healthier future!
Brad

My New Bike

I bought a bike at a garage sale this week. I have wanted a bike for several years now. I think that I got a good deal. I paid $25 for the bike and $6 to replace the tubes. As I repaired the bike and took my first ride it took me back to being a kid (over 20 years now…man that makes me feel old). I figure at $4 a gallon for gas that a bike would be a good alternative mode of transportation. Well, I took my first bike ride in a long time. It all came back to me relatively quickly-although the hills are a little tougher to climb than they used to be. The beginning of the ride was almost flawless-although a family almost caused me to wreck into some bushes. I faced the dilemma of taking out a 4 year old girl on the sidewalk or crash into a parked car. As I was contemplating my decision her older brother, probably 10, pulled her out of the way. I did find some satisfaction in the scolding that he gave her afterwards for being in the way. He was a good spokesman for me. As I cruised the back streets I felt a certain freedom that comes from riding a bike. It felt good to be out in the summer air and pick up some exercise along the way. It was nice to sightsee and appreciate some of the old architecture that exists in Northeast Pennsylvania. What a beautiful summer day. One thing that I had forgotten was how fast a summer thunderstorm could develop. As I was about 2 miles from home a major thunderstorm started to blow through the area. I had a decision to make. Do I call Heather and have her pick me up and live with the humiliation and ridicule, or do I man up with reckless abandonment and face the storm (fully recognizing that death could be a possibility). I decided to drudge ahead (mainly because I forgot my cell phone and had no way to call Heather). As I began the 2 mile trek back to the house the weather began to worsen. I kept my mental toughness as I watched the storm develop and move toward me. I meditated on the victory that I would feel as I would ride through the storm and return to my Bride. She could speak of my valor and it would be a good teachable moment for Reagan, my 2 ½ year son. Vision of a knight returning from war began to go through my mind as I switched to higher gears and avoided potholes on my quest for survival. As I encountered the storm head on the wind was so strong that it almost pushed me backwards, but I committed to preserving through the storm and making it home. As the rain pelted my face I continued to press forward. I finally made the turn to my house and pedaled the final leg of the tremendous adventure to conquer my quest and receive praise from my family. Apparently, Heather had moved to our front porch in anticipation of my arrival. To my dismay, she was not anticipating the knight in shining armor as I had expected. Further conversation revealed that the motivation to move to the front of the house was not to greet me with applause at all. One could not help to notice her uncontrollable laughter, her desire to tell people what happened… I was surprised (not really) at her glee for her rain soaked husband. It may be worth mentioning at this stage that I bought the bike from a lady who had originally bought it for her daughter. For the record it was not a girl’s bike, I believe that they call it a unisex bike. Granted this does not help with my masculinity. One of the great things about being married for almost 12 years is that you do learn to laugh together about things that may happen. I may not have been a knight in shining armor this day, but it was great to feel like a kid again.

Brad