I'm on vacation this week, between the super-fun 5th Grade Adventure Trip we completed last week, and VBC coming up the end of July. No real plans for this week, just relaxing with my family, moto-riding down to my parent's place at Oconee, and getting a few much-needed things done around the house.

The other night, I took a late-night walk down my long driveway, and laid down near the end of it. I spent some quiet time on my back, just staring up into space. Teddy sat down next to me, sniffing the air. A cool breeze blew up, and wafted over us. Suddenly, within moments of each other, two shooting stars streaked across the sky. It was amazing. Then a firefly hovered over me, and lit up several times before drifting away. It was all perfectly quiet, and perfectly peaceful. The breeze, the shooting stars, the firefly, my little furry friend by my side- a true "God moment", to linger in. This passage out of the Bible came to mind, out there under the stars-

"When I consider the heavens,

the work of Your hands,

the moon and stars

which You have set in place-

What is man that You are mindful of him?

The son of man that You care for him?

Yet You made him a little lower than the heavenly beings,

and crowned him with glory and honor." Psalm 8:3-5

Every time I hear some evolution-pushing "mad scientist", every time I see commercials on tv for shows peddling evolution propaganda ("The Missing Link-This Changes Everything", "Life After People", etc.), every time some so-called "scholar" screams into a camera, "we are all just cosmic accidents! We came from nothing, and we will go to NOTHING!" (BTW- that came from a scientist on the DVD "Expelled", about anti-creation bias in science & education)- I am reminded of these verses. There is a God who created all, who dearly loves us, who came for us in the form of Jesus Christ, and yes, has a purpose for our lives, here and beyond. Evolutionists can keep their cold, hopeless, depressing view of mankind, the world, and the universe. I know the God in control, and He will get the last laugh. In the meantime, I'll keep reading His words of life in the Bible, and I'll keep visiting with Him on star-filled, cool-breeze, meteor-streaked, firefly-lit, beautiful nights. Its an honor to know Him and enjoy Him.

I recently purchased online a DVD of the 2007 Isle of Man TT motorcycle race- one of the oldest, fastest, and wildest motorcycle road races on the planet. 2007 was the 100 year anniversary of the famed race, which takes place on the Isle of Man, a small island off the west coast of England. The course winds 37.74 road miles around and across the island, through small towns, over wide open spaces, along the coasts, and up over the mountains. The TT takes place each May, across a week, with multiple motorcycle races and many festivities. Its quite a spectacle! I'd love to visit one year. Check out the highlight below-

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gNxJrB_8gHk

The riders race their bikes for multiple laps around the small island, racing against the clock as much as each other. There are long straightaways, and its amazing the speeds they reach on their 2-wheeled rockets! One particular rider, John McGuinness, is considered a legend of the TT. By the time the 2007 TT was over, he had achieved 2 milestones- he became one of the winningest riders in TT history with 13 career wins, and he broke the all-time lap average speed, topping 130mph lap average in the final race. And best of all, he is my age! Hey, who says you have to slow down with age??

As I watched these races, I was mesmerized by the speed, control, focus, and determination of these human rockets. The greatest riders showed a precision and fire that carried them to great achievements, and to the few best, the winner's stand. I noted as well those who faded and failed. There were men who lost focus and fell behind, those who messed up and crashed, some who failed to calculate fuel usage properly and literally "gassed out", and others who had too slow pit stops or mechanical failure, failing to place or even finish.

I was reminded of how similar a long race like the TT is like life in Christ. Many start "out of the gate" strong and fast, but slow down, get distracted, make wrong turns and poor choices, and "crash" their lives, or just pull over and quit. It seems like so many I've known over the years have wound up this way. As I travel life's road, I see the wreckage of lives that had so much promise, but self-destructed. I see lives just coasting along, not aiming at anything, much less winning. And I see those who have quit, and walked away. They all break my heart, but make me more determined to ride hard, stay focused on Christ, and finish strong. The writer of Hebrews said it well in chapter 12:1 & 2- "...let us run with perseverence the race that is marked out for us. Let us fix our eyes on Jesus..."

I don't want to end up a "wreck". I don't want to just coast along, aimless. And I certainly don't want to quit and walk away. I want to live my life by those verses, and so many others in the Bible, that challenge me to follow Christ, hard and fast, all the way to the finish line. And there, I want to see Him face-to-face, and hear him say, "Well done, My son! I'm proud of you", as I stand with all the hosts of Heaven, celebrating in the "winner's circle." (2 Timothy 4:8)

That keeps me going.

Last week, the father of one of my life-long friends passed away somewhat suddenly. It shocked and saddened me to hear the news. I went down for the viewing, and stayed the night to attend the funeral. It was a great tribute to a great man. Lyle has been my closest friend since we were both 12 years old, and growing up, we spent a lot of time at each other's homes. I always loved and respected his parents immensely, and my parents always loved Lyle like another son.
Lyle's dad was always very encouraging and supportive. Lyle and I both participated in several sports, and Mr. Branton never missed an event, it seemed. He was always in the bleachers, cheering on his son, and me as well. In fact, I remember many wrestling meets where he and my dad would sit together, yelling all through Lyle's match, then all through mine! They would both be hoarse the day after. Fun memories.
"Mr. B" was also a great man of God. The times I spent the night at their home, I sat in on their nightly family devotionals. He apparently held these daily or nightly, until all 3 kids had moved out on their own. That's convicting to me- I'm in the ministry, and I feel so inconsistent in pulling my own family together for Bible/prayer times!
Mr. B not only walked the walk, he talked the talk. Everywhere he was- whether at the family store, out on business, at a restaurant, or in the prisons he so often chaplained in- Mr. B found a way to share the love of Christ with people. It was not uncommon for him to help lead a person to Christ, right wherever they were! And being a Gideon, he always had a Bible to give. Even in his waning years, in and out of hospitals with various health issues, he shared the love of Christ with people, in word and deed.
That heritage has been passed on to his family. Lyle is a strong Christian, as are his sister and brother. In fact, all the grandkids are now believers as well. All due in no small part to the life and witness of Mr. Lamar Branton. He followed God, and brought others along.
May I always strive to leave a legacy like that- in my family, and anyone God brings across my path. In the end, it's all that will really matter.