Preamble - or Pre-Ramble, take your pick.

Many years ago a co-worker introduced me to a simple prayer based on Ephesians 2:10. Harold, our church custodian, began a prayer time together one morning by quoting this verse. For him, it was more than a verse – it was an expectation, and an invitation to see God throughout the day in surprising ways. That prayer and that verse have become very much part of my own life as well in the past 24 years of inviting God to surprise me each day. He knows the things that he has laid out for me. And I get the daily joy of walking with God and inviting him to show me what each day holds. I love his surprises and I am learning to trust in God for the journey.

I invite you to share in this journey. I don’t have a lot of preconceived notions about what will find its way into this blog. I have a wide variety of people, things, and ideas that interest me. They may not interest you, but I hope that there are some things that will bring you back here. Not so much to see what’s interesting to me, but rather, to learn a bit about how you God is at work in your world too.

Many of you know me as a pastor. Some of these posts will be pastoral in nature. There are many, many things each week that I wish I could share with you but don’t have the venue or the time. Even though I use all of my 35 minutes (or more!) with you there is always something else that I wish I could share. Some of those things might find their way here.

I am also a husband, father, brother, cousin and so forth. I am deeply rooted here in Minnesota and to family around the country. One of the most precious gifts family has ever bestowed on me is my faith which is sort of symbolized by the gift of my Grandfather’s Bible. When he passed away I became the trustee of his Bible. This year (2011) I plan to read through this Bible, his Bible, and comment on words and thoughts that he found valuable enough to highlight, underline, or comment on.

I am also a continual learner. I love books, thoughts, fascinating words and their histories. I love to see how connected things are to one another. I hope to share some of those in days to come.

There’s a lot more to say and even now I’m chomping at the bit to begin. So I will. Thank you for stopping and peering into the process. My hope and desire is to continue to see God at work around me, to feel his smile and approval, to sense his anticipation that I will delight in his presence and surprises, and to enter into the good deeds that he has laid out in advance for me to walk in. Welcome to my view of this great adventure!