by Andy Wood on February 23, 2010
You came into the world a bit sooner than you were due, but no sooner than you were planned by your Heavenly Father. And I can’t imagine a more beautiful baby has ever been born, or to more loving parents. While you are our second grandchild, you are our first grandson, and will always be the firstborn of your mama and daddy. For them, this has been a day of labor and risk, of waiting and prayer. And today, February 23, 2010, you have made it worth it all.
You entered a family who has seen its share of joys and sorrows, laughter and tears. But through it all, your family walks with a faith in the heart and love of the living God. Your name means “priest,” and it was well-chosen. You will live as an ambassador between God and humanity. As you trust your life to the Lord Jesus, you will be part of a kingdom of priests – and you will be one of its standard bearers.
Your middle name, David, reflects both a noble family heritage and the Sweet Psalmist and Shepherd of Israel – the man after God’s own heart. I pray that you will spend a lifetime discovering what that means.
You were born into a world filled with change and challenges, and no shortage of opinions. In many ways the world you inherited is not kind. [click to continue…]
by Andy Wood on April 8, 2009
“Something’s wrong with your work.” The conversation eventually landed there.
A member of the denomination’s hierarchy delivered the critical review to a faithful old pastor during a prescribed periodic evaluation.
“Only one convert has been added to your church this year, and he is only a boy,” the boss said.
Later that same day, the pastor languished alone in his study, praying with a heavy heart, when someone walked up behind him. [click to continue…]
by Andy Wood on August 20, 2008
LifeVesting is about creating a compelling future and leaving a legacy long after your life here is done.
How do you want to be remembered? Here are a couple of ways I don’t recommend. One is pretty funny – the other, painfully sad.
The Man Who Got Shot and Arrested for Robbing a Drug Store with a Caulking Gun
The Midland (Texas) Reporter-Telegram reported on August 15 that a 24-year-old man, John Wilkinson, of Big Spring, walked into a West Texas pharmacy carrying what looked like a gun wrapped in a dark cloth, and demanding Xanax and hydrocodine.
After getting the drugs from the drug store, Wilkinson tried to make his escape, but realized he had locked his keys in his running car in front of the store. So he took off running on foot.
He was shot by police.
He’s not dead, though.
Just under arrest for suspicion of armed robbery after being treated for the gun shot.
Oh, and John’s weapon of choice? A caulking gun.
Not sure what he would have done had the druggist challenged him. I guess he would have waterproof-sealed him to death.
The World’s Most Honest Obit
The following obituary was posted a couple of weeks ago in the Napa/Sonoma Times Herald. It was confirmed to be real here. Brace yourself…. [click to continue…]
by Andy Wood on July 15, 2008
Our family keeps an oral tradition of famous lines spoken by somebody. Today’s edition comes from Joel, when he was about seven or eight:
“Daddy, when you die, can I have all your tapes?”
++++++++++++++++++++++
I want to be like Abel.
Not so much the rock-upside-the-head part. I’m talking about legacy.
Hebrews 11:4 contains a fascinating description of Abel’s life: “By faith he still speaks, even though he is dead.”
Here’s a guy who could be famous for the things he never did:
He never preached a sermon.
He never started a church.
He never wrote a book.
He never engaged in an argument to defend the faith.
He never had his name plastered on the side of a building.
He never had a wife or children, much less succeeding generations.
He never was elected to any office.
He never fought for a cause or a nation.
He never was on TV, or interviewed by the press.
He never had God give him a song (all rights reserved, of course).
He never made a YouTube video.
He never made a financial fortune, that we know of.
He never rescued anybody in distress, except maybe for a sheep or two.
Yet long-dead, Abel still speaks. And so can you and I. It’s what the LifeVesting Principle of Legacy is all about:
[click to continue…]
by Andy Wood on June 5, 2008
I never knew Bill Hyde.
I will one day.
Bill was a church planter. I know a little about that; I planted a church five years ago. Bill planted six hundred, and just before he died, he hosted a then-record 3,700 participants in a Pioneer Evangelism conference. His vision: to plant 3,000 churches. He took what people were adding in the Philippines, and began multiplying their efforts ten-fold.
I never heard Bill’s deep bass voice, singing or otherwise.
I will one day.
Bill gave up a career in music or teaching because, as one person put it, he wasn’t content leading a quiet, happy life teaching music. Instead, he and Lyn, his wife, chose the frontlines of the battle. They were appointed as missionaries in 1978.
I never hung out, played golf, argued, or even shook hands with Bill. I sure hope I can one day.
Jim Cox, his former co-worker, said that Bill was a big guy:
Big in stature, big smile, big laugh, big hands, big heart. Bill was a musician, a teacher, a planner, an organizer and a doer. He had strong opinions, enjoyed a good argument and a game of dominos. Bill and I played golf together weekly. He was my perfect golfing companion because he was as bad a golfer as I—not that we kept score anyway.
Bill and I have met in one way. [click to continue…]
by Andy Wood on May 12, 2008
We welcomed you into the world today after a lot of prayer and waiting, filled with joy and anticipation. You didn’t disappoint! Other little girls have been and will be born. Other grandchildren will surely grace our family. But you will always be our first. And your arrival will always be a memorable moment in our lives.
On this day, May 12, 2008, it’s a crazy world. But I guess people would probably have said that on the day I was born 49 years ago, too. It’s an election year in America. Here in Lubbock, our mayor just lost a reelection bid two days ago. Soon the Democratic party will choose between Hillary Clinton and Barak Obama for their nominee for president. Either one will represent an unprecedented step in American politics. Republicans already have their candidate – John McCain. An earthquake hit China today. American soldiers are fighting in Iraq in an unpopular war.
We worry about the world you are inheriting. But we don’t fear as those who have no hope. We know in whom our (and your) hope lies.
For a short time, I get to be your pastor. That’s really cool. But I’ll always get to be your grandfather. And that’s even more cool.
Your parents are wonderful people. [click to continue…]
by Andy Wood on February 29, 2008
(updated September 29, 2009)
Please enable Javascript and Flash to view this Flash video.Okay, if you aren’t one of the millions of people who has seen this three-year-old’s stunning summary of Star Wars (Episode IV), let me be the first to introduce you. This little girl had seen the movie only once, and her dad spread it over three days so it wouldn’t be too much all at once for her. She started retelling the story to him in much more vivid detail even than here, but alas, he says, the camera wasn’t rolling. So he got her to start over. He says:
She wasn’t coached to say anything, nor was she forced to make the video. She rarely stops talking. Those of you with children understand this: sometimes it’s harder to turn the faucet off than to turn the faucet on.
This isn’t about Star Wars. I really don’t care whether you are a complete fool for Luke, Chewbacca and the gang, or whether you think the series is completely evil, or even whether you’ve seen it. It’s about something much more profound.
[click to continue…]
by Andy Wood on December 18, 2007
I’ve done reunions badly, if at all. Never went to a high school reunion. And while I do have my share of sentimentality, somewhere in my brain is a switch that flips with life changes. “Move on,” it says, and typically I do.This year was different. Somehow in one of those once-in-a-lifetime periods of alignment, I had two reunions in exactly the same location within a week of each other. [click to continue…]
