2013 Monument

Sunday, I had the opportunity to preach in our Sunday services at NMC.  We came out of Joshua 2-4 in what I called "Review/Preview."  The focus was on taking time to Review 2013 in the same way the Israelites paused after crossing the Jordan.  I gave a bit of an "assignment" at the end encouraging people to build their own monument  as they recount the events, trials, triumphs, people, lessons, and milestones of 2013.

Here is my personal monument.

In it,there are a lot of people.  Wherever you see initials, that represents those who I was able to invest in or had a major investment in me.  There were some great trips (ministering at Camps and two trips to Disney with family).  There was a major loss in the death of Brad Hollar.  There were some key lessons and transitions throughout the year, and some major ministry wins.
As I look back on 2013, it was a different year for me.  Missing in my monument may be the significant amount of time focused on being a dad and being home during this season in the life of my family.  Also, there has been a major learning curve on just how selfish I can be, just how much I rely on my own strength and skills to get by, and just how much those things will not work for me in the long run.