Charlie Wear’s Notes

The trip from Tucson to Moreno Valley, CA was not uneventful. Just about 30 miles from Quartzite, Arizona we blew a tire on the trailer holding our minivan. U-haul came to the rescue and two hours later we were back on the road. We pulled into our new home and were asleep on the air mattress by 9 p.m. We had about 9 hours on the road that day!

I spent yesterday working with a client. This morning it is RAINING! Good for the wildfire problems, bad for moving in! Ah well, this is life…

We are leaving Las Cruces, NM. Tonight in Tucson!

Leaders of all types need to be careful in the days ahead. The fall of Richard Roberts and accusations being leveled at megachurch pastors for overspending and lavish lifestyles are just the tip of the iceberg. The media likes nothing better than to make Christians look bad. Don’t be surprised if Rick Warren and Joel Osteen are the targets of multi-day investigative reporting into their finances.

Anything that will make Christ-followers look bad is fair game. Lesson to be learned here? The next time you fly first class or step into a chartered airplane, realize that the cost of such "luxury" items will eventually come under close scrutiny.

If all goes well we will leave Texas today. Not that I don’t like Texas. It just seems to go on and on forever. Compared to the rest of the journey, New Mexico will be a blink of the eye. However, I don’t think we will be through New Mexico before we stop for the night. It won’t be long now and we will hit the road.

On any trip cross-country by car or truck one thing for sure that you learn is that Texas is a big state! We have had rainy weather since leaving Sulfur, LA and on into San Antonio, Texas last night. We replenished our wardrobe at Wal-Mart (underwear and T-shirts, didn’t pack enough for a seven-day trip!). Had a great Mexican meal and then retired to Hampton Inn for the night.

This morning we got on the road in good time and crossed over into snow-covered territory about 100 miles outside of beautiful Ft. Stockton, Texas, where, surprisingly enough, there is another Hampton Inn. This is our fifth night in this Hilton-owned franchise and we are enjoying them very much. They are nearly all pretty new, so that is a plus, and they serve a passable breakfast. Here are Loretta and Ben in the truck parking area outside the IHOP in Ft. Stockton.

California Pizza Kitchen…bliss!

It nearly took all day, but just a few miles out of Pensacola, FL we stopped for Thanksgiving dinner at Cracker Barrell. Then it was onward to Mobile, Alabama and a Hampton Inn for the night. I have discovered that I really don’t like to drive after dark. Must have something to do with my advanced age! Ben and I just finished breakfast and we are going to wander back up to the room to see if Loretta is ready to face another day sitting in the spacious and comfortable seats of our U-Haul truck.

Ridiculously dumb husband that I am, I didn’t take into account that my sweet wife would want to clean the house within an inch of it’s life! That was fine because I spent the last couple of days loading our minivan so that it looks like the excess inventory of a traveling caravan of gypsies! No offense intended to the gypsies. We got on the road this evening and pulled into our first stop in Gainesville, Florida.

This is an enormous accomplishment that couldn’t have happened without the help of a lot of people including my Dad and Stepmom, my friend Scott and new friend Blayne and our extra special next door neighbors Mark and Z. My luggage was lashed to the roof of the minivan by an authentic Ranger. I have a scout’s honor in knots, but all that means is that I can remember sheep shank and bowline.

I know that there are many friends who pray for us regularly and I thank each and everyone of you as well. Tomorrow, Cracker Barrell turkey and onward to Alabama or wherever we can make it.

For those of you trying to keep up on the adventures of Charlie Wear, a lot has happened since you last tuned in. I started my brand new law practice in Redlands, California on November 5, 2007. Signed the contract on our "new" home in Moreno Valley, CA. just last week. I have the U-haul truck in the driveway and hope to hit the road tomorrow night or Tuesday morning for our 4th cross-country trip since July 2006. I also had a chance to visit Steve Sjogren’s pre-launch Church gathering this Sunday morning. Great fun! Stay tuned for infrequent updates…

From the Merriam-Webster online Dictionary: an attitude of superiority manifested in an overbearing manner or in presumptuous claims or assumptions.

I have come to a moment of self-realization this past week. I don’t like to be employed by other people, especially when I am working in a subordinate role where those I am working for don’t know what I know or what I can do for the enterprise.

Frequently, in these situations I am accused of being arrogant. This comes up fairly often in my interactions with others. I realized this past week that I have been in the subordinate role since November 1995 when I agreed to accept the interim pastorate of a church in Southern California. In that role, even though you may not be collecting a salary, everyone who attends the church thinks they are "the boss of you."

You can see how this would give a person with my makeup a hard time. This is why I have pretty much vowed to never have the word pastor connected with my name again. I was starting to make that mistake as I labored in Florida, but now I am truly committed. I may be a senior. I may "pastor" someone by accident from time to time. But I will never let anyone call me a "senior pastor" again.

Leader, consultant, the guy who does that thing, these roles all suit me better. In my tent-making trade I am a laywer. Let me ask you: Do you want lawyers who are inferior, subordinate and do not claim to know the law and how it applies to your situation? Do you see what I am driving at here? Don’t we want our lawyers arrogant? Especially if they are championing our cause? In the church however, we seem to adopt some kind of group-think where everyone in the room has a bright idea and no idea is better than another. Can that really be true? And if so, how are we going to accomplish all of those ideas and plans?