Tangles LOVING Ice

Even though it looks like snow, this was ice. It is snowing hard right now. Pics of that tomorrow perhaps.

Pursuit

I left off the other night with a bit on the "Pursuit of the Holy". This phrase is alive in me right now for the reasons I mentioned in the last post, but there is some behind the scenes stuff going on too. For starters, Pursuit of the Holy is the name of the ONETHING-KC even here at the end of December. I would LOVE to see young people I know come to his event. (sis, can my nephews come? Or even the one that looks like me? ) Take a look at THIS. The fella singing the song is named Tim Reimherr. He is a singer in Merchant Band and I have known him since we were kids.

The second thing going on is a book was released from Forerunner Media Group (where I work) today . Guess what the title is. Yup, Pursuit of the Holy. It is by Corey Russell. He is not well known, but I am telling you as sure as I am typing this, he is a great speaker. He is teaching our Eternal Glory of an intercessor class. THIS CLASS ROCKS! For those of you reading this that are thinking about coming to IHOP-KC and going through INTRO to IHOP, not discounting anything else, but this class makes the whole experience over the top. I heard several people say that the session yesterday was the best session of the past 3 month long journey. You would think that we planned for the title of the book to be the same as the big event of the year later in Dec. but I can assure you it didnt work that way, God is just too cool to let us make that happen. It is way more fun looking back at it and seeing how it "just" happened.

There are so many thoughts going through my head and heart right now that I hardly know where to begin. For starters though, there is so much more to life than big screen Tv's flashy cars, and big houses. To think that we are on this rock, floating through space for no reason at all, or that we came out of some sess pool of slime and billions of years later we became human are ideas I cant grasp. How could it be that we are here, right now, without a reason? How could it be that everything before this moment was meaningless? Could it be that we are here now and that everything before was for such a time as this? Taking it one step further, if we are here for such a time as this, then why? I propose that it is for the Pursuit of the Holy, or to say it another way, to attain the knowledge of God through an intimate relationship with God by praying and dare I say fasting! I leave this with a bit of scripture.

PROVERBS 2:1-8
1 My son, if you receive my words,
And treasure my commands within you,
2 So that you incline your ear to wisdom,
And apply your heart to understanding;
3 Yes, if you cry out for discernment,
And lift up your voice for understanding,
4 If you seek her as silver,
And search for her as for hidden treasures;
5 Then you will understand the fear of the LORD,
And find the knowledge of God.
6 For the LORD gives wisdom;
From His mouth come knowledge and understanding;
7 He stores up sound wisdom for the upright;
He isa shield to those who walk uprightly;
8 He guards the paths of justice,
And preserves the way of His saints.

Defining Happiness

Disclaimer - I don't believe in disclaimers, but in this post I am giving my observations and opinions. I am open to debate and comment, especially after you read the whole entry. I wrote this post this evening in my journal and thought it would be great for you two readers :-)

Oh what a sweet weekend topped off with a sweet day. Holiday extended weekends are flat out awesome. Being the 4th Sunday of the month, there is no class at church for our kids so our options are having them in the 4-5 yr. old room while we teach, or finding someone to teach for us and going to the service together. Today we were afforded the opportunity to attend the Forerunner Christian Fellowship (FCF) service as a family. This is extra special because we haven't been able to attend an FCF service since July.

As is the case with 99-100% of churches, the service began with worship led by Derek Loux. Derek did an excellent job. One great part of his leading is that his brother John Loux played electric guitar in the band. John looks happy when he plays. His head bobs, his foot taps, and his hips even shake. You can tell when John is in the groove of worship. He looks happy.

After the worship set, while the offering is being taken, there is what is known as a "special". The special consists of IHOP artists singing/playing a song while the buckets are being passed. Today was truly SPECIAL! Today's special was performed by Forerunner Music Academy. There was probably 100 choir members, an orchestra and the worship band. They performed a song by another IHOP worship leader, Justin Rizzo, "Glory Will Cover the Earth". They did an incredible job. The power of the song brought tears to my eyes.

Mike Bickle then took the stage and delivered a message on the 8 Beatitudes found in Matthew 5. The message was great. He challenged people to live a lifestyle chasing perfect obedience to the Beatitudes. One of the key points of the message was that living this way is the ONLY way to be truly happy. Even that statement sparks spiritual violence in the core of the soul. But is he right? Could it be that if we lived wholeheartedly pursuing this lifestyle that we would be happy?

After having only a few hours to ponder this, I was done with the evening chores and sat down to unwind with Sunday Night Football, however the game wasn't on yet. I came across 60 minutes and a story about a child prodigy composer. Not a child prodigy pianist, or painter, or something else...a composer. His professor at Julliard says to him, this is the rarest of prodigies because of the complexity of understanding a composer must have of music. This kid was amazing. At 2 years old he was drawing pictures of a chello before he even knew what one was and then when his mom took him to see a miniature version, he could play it! By 13 he had composed his 5th symphony, an accomplishment most composers only dream of. The 60 Minutes piece showed the boy with the London Symphony in the same studio that the Star Wars soundtrack and The Beattles albums were recorded in. Remember, this boy is 13!

The interviewer asked the boy what would make him happy. The boy responded non-chalantly, I don't know, there is no definition to happiness. I may not have the quote exact, I wish I did, but either way I was stunned by his empty response. This boy, prodigy or not, has a gift many people would give anything for, and he is on top of his game before life has really even gotten into full stride.

I remember as a boy, or even as a young man, singing lyrics to songs (look here for a quick interesting read on lyrics) with words like "gimme something to believe in". I admit freely I am no Bible scholar, but I am pursuing knowledge of God. A friend of mine once said that knowledge is the one thing you can take with you. Amazingly, this guy wasn't a "believer", yet he believed in some sort of life after death and somehow figured out that knowledge is what you get to keep in eternity.

I have come to the conclusion that it is as "simple" as this: My Bible, prayer and living a life that is wholly pleasing and acceptable to God. The pursuit of a lifestyle that strives to live out a Sermon On the Mount/Beattitude existence is NOT easy. What I do know is that by living this way, the "Pursuit of the Holy" and thus, being in God's will brings true and eternal happiness!

The Haircut -REVEALED

Well folks it has been a great wekend here on the Pleasants' farm. We have done very little except eat and hang out. As promised I have taken pictures. Here is a before and after of the bird. And FINALLY.. the haircut.

My List of Thanksgiving

Here is my list of things I am thankful for. I hope all 2 of you readers are taking the time to reflect on what you are thankful for.

• God Without Him, I wonder how life would be. I am thankful that I am not searching for fulfillment in life. I amy not have earthly riches, but I have joy in my heart and a growing knowledge of why I am on earth at such a time as this.
  
• Family My family brings great joy to my life. From my wife, to my kids, to my parents and in in-laws, to my sister and her family to all the cousins and aunts and uncles out there, they all bring joy to my life and I am proud to be aprt of this family tree.
• Church Not just the one I am a part of here in KC, but Door of Hope in Fairbanks. I am thankful to be aprt of these congregations and to have relationships with people that will last a lifetime.
• My "Job" Being the financial manager for Forerunner Media Group is an unbelievably satisfying place to work. In reality it is more of a ministry than a job and the team I work with are tremendous in what they do and as friends.

Now some fun ones:

• Smoked Salmon We just finished our first course of Thanksgiving which was homemade rolls with Sockeye (Red) salmon that I caught in the Copper River, Alaska, then smoked myself and processed in jars.
  
• It's Not -40F In Fairbanks, it is forecast to be near 40 below tonight. No wind, just temp, or lack thereof.
• Chiggers Are Dormant Coming from Alaska, my family had never experienced these pesky critters. This summer the kids and I all got bit a bunch by them and I still have the scars to prove it.
• Secada Locusts Are Dead If you dont know what these are, count yourself fortunate! Tey are so loud, it sounds like a alarm for several hours every afternoon. The only saving grace is that it is about 10,000 degrees outside so an Alaskan is not likely tot be out there having to endure them.
• Sweet Potato Recipe From Ms. C The recipe is divine. The friendship that provided the delectible delights, is even better than the tasty treat.
  

So leave a comment and tell me a couple things you are thankful for. Happy Thanksgiving everyone. Have a great weekend.

Travelling

Today begins what some consider to be the busiest travel week of the year. Thanksgiving is right around the corner and families are gathering to enjoy the festivities and slumber under a triptophan enduced haze. Over the past couple weeks, I have been taking note of what I am most thankful for. Occasionally, I find it to be a great excercise to take stock of all the good stuff in life.

I'll save my list for later in the week, but I will give you a couple freebies:

I am thankful for these three guys, they inspire me, make me laugh, and two of them are great friends. Go check out their blogs, one of them is on a trip of a lifetime. You figure out which one I mean...in no particular order...

Randy Bohlender

Josh Motlong

Brian Zahnd

The Haircut

For all of you grandparetn types, youa re going to have to wait for the big reveal. The little princess was too preoccupied playing in leaves and fighting off knights with shining sticks to be bothered with things like getting hair done and a picture taken. But never fear, her highness will be pictorally worthy for church tomorrow and yours truly will be ready with a camera. Until then, here is a great photo to hold you over:
This was our sleeping arrangements when we were stuck in the DFW airport for 20 hours after our flight was cancelled. Ah, to be face down in a teddy bear :-) God bless you all!

Changes in Attitude

A couple of friends of ours returned last night from a trip to the mountains. For one of them, it was her first time ever seeing mountains. I was slightly amazed to hear this, but Iwas even more happy for her.

Yesterday I told a friend and co worker at IHOP that the weather reminded me of an early morning waking up in the high country of Alaska. Cool, crisp, clean, sunny. Almost frosting , but it would probably be abot 50 by the end of the day.

Today is starting out about the same. It is cool out now, mostly celar and promises to be a glorious afternoon. All this said, how often do we spoil starts like these? We immediately begin to think about all the pressures of the day, the issues at work, the chores to be done around the house, the shopping for the big meal meal next week.

Say this outloud to yourself, "This is the day that the Lord has made, I will rejoice and be glad in it!" If you can say that, and not break out in the tune that goes with it, you are a strong willed person and need to go back to the beginning of the paragraph. TRULY, this is TGIF! Thank him for it, and have a great attitude and a great day!

Thoughts for Today

This morning, I awoke to the alarm at 6:30. I am still batling this cold and not really feeling all that healthy at all, but I am beginning to think that I may make a go of it today. Rachel got up with me in order to take a couple friends of ours to the airport for their anniversary trip. As she left at abot 7:30, the kids got out of bed and we all had some snuggle time on the couch before breakfast. I love the fact that my kids still like to snuggle at 10, and almost 9.

We turned on the radio and found the All Christmas All The Time station. With a chance of snow and rain in the morning, it sorta puts us in the right mood. It has been a great morning with the family. We could use a few more mornings like this.

Pray that all goes wel and I make it back to work and class. I am missing everyone and tired of being sick.

On with the day!

Its SNOWING!!

I was lying on my couch last nigt, fighting off a fever and head/chest cold when the kids came in from the Friday night church service screaming, ITS SNOWING! Sure enough, the first flakes of the year were falling. Granted, they weren't accumulating, but for kids (including Rachel and I) that come from Alaska, it was great to see.

I think I am actually on the mend from the cold. It came on fast on Wednesday afternoon. By Wed. night I was done for. Here I sit Saturday eve. upright for te first time since Wednesday. I have to give MAJOR props to by beautiful and wonderful wife who made a pot of homeade chicken soup. She even went out of her way to find barley "just like mom used to make". All you other husbands missed out. I have the best there is. :)

Tonight, at our church, Rick Joyner is speaking. I am interested to hear this fella. I read one of his books a while ago "The Call". It was a recount of a series of visions he had. I dont know how to take those sort of things, but I will say that even 'if' the book was fiction, it was a great read and provided an interesting persepective into all things of a spiritual battle nature.

Please continue praying for us. You can be praying for health as fall is in full swing, for financial breakthrough, and for wisdom and revelation. We appreciate all the prayers more than anything on the earth. While finance makes things happen in the natural, prayer and faith can move mountains!

Come Monday, It'll Be Alright!

It's Monday and am I ever thankful. It has been a weekend of acticity around here. We attended a Leadership Summit, cared for a sick daughter, taught 30 4&5 year olds how "Love is not rude", and even squeezed in time to make a pot of chicken and dumplings, watch 2 football games, have a fire, do some laundry, and thankfully take a shower.

This is the pace of life these days. It is similar to the Nascar race I watched some of yesterday. We fly around the track of life at 180 MPH, let off the accelerator a tad and 'slow' down to say 165 in the corners, only to mash the pedal to the floor about 2 seconds later as we enter the next straight away.

When I was in Alaska, I thought I was busy. I now realize that I had no clue of the definition of busy. We are so busy in life these days. Not just Rachel and I here in KC, but western society as a whole. We live a drive-thru lifestyle. Drive up, place our order, drive to the window, get our order and drive off. Instant gratification at its finest, only with little nutritional value.

So lets stop and look at that a little more. sometimes it is great to be busy. Things can actually get done. However, all too often it seems that we get so caught up in being busy more work is created in our haste. Details get forgooten that have to be fixed later. Plans are made without the full consequences being considered. Big decisions are made in a snap instead of going thorugh the proper sequence of garnering the counsel of wise people, praying over the decision and examining the heart of everyone connected.

Then there are priorities? Do you even know THE or A correct priority structure? Here is mine:
GOD FAMILY CHURCH
Sounds simple huh? It's not. Throughout my marriage, even in the beginning when i was such a jerk it is a MIRACLE Mrs. Pleasants stuck by me, we made family first. I have left jobs paying great money, because the demand on my time crossed the line of time with the family. Family comes first. Time and time again I see business people and ministers giving themselves to her things than their family. Then they wander why their kids are getting into trouble, why they seem aimless, why their marriages are falling apart. If priorites are straight, things seem to work out. It wont be easy and the battle will rage for what sems like eternity as people attempt to impinge on your priorities. However, in the end, the reward is huge.

Here is my challenge to my WHOLE family, mom, dad, and sis, this means you (the rest of you join in too). Go find a bible. Then read Matthew 5, 6, 7. Do it right after you read this. IT wont take long, and I promise it wont hurt you. Then for the rest of the week, or longer if you can, try and live like those chapters talk about. This isn't about being a "holy roller". It is about living life well and treating others the same. Exactly the way my father raised me to be!

For Ms. Anonymous

It is 6:30 AM and I am about to go have coffee with some fellas. We call it The Gun Club. It really is just fellas talking about life over a cup of coffee.

As for Intro, it is clicking right along. I really cannot recommend doing this enough. I have been a Christian pretty much my whole life, but I can promise you, this aint your run of the mill place. 24/7/365 live worship and corporate prayer is a reality I still am hard pressed to wrap my head around. As for the classes taught by Allen Hood, Dave Sliker, Correy Russel, Dale Anderson etc., they are amazing.

For anyone else out there, that can make the trip if even for 3 months to go back home, I can't say enough about Intro. It is life changing, intense and glorious. Not to mention just plain fun getting to know people from all over the world...of course no where near as cool as Alaska.

Bless you Ms. Anonymous. I hope to meet you and Mr. A soon. May God meet your needs and lead you on a journey you will never forget!!