Charlie Wear’s Notes

We are trying to use positive reinforcement to modify behavior with our soon-to-be 7 yr. old. Sometimes it seems to work, sometimes it doesn’t. We have a chart with a place to mark when we think Ben has been “caught being good.”

If I had a chart like this for pop culture, I would award a check mark to the new Sandra Bullock movie, The Blind Side. I might modify the category to read, “Caught showing us what Jesus is like.” If you don’t know by now, the Blind side is the story of a white Memphis family taking in a Black homeless boy, and their journey together. Without beating the viewer in the face the film tells the story of violence, poverty and addiction was well as the power of redemption that comes with unconditional love.

One of the bonuses of seeing the film was that I got to watch it with my oldest son’s family which includes my daughter-in-law and two grandsons. Ben and I joined them for an early showing on Thanksgiving day. I don’t know if the film will do a lot of box office business, but it should. It is a powerful story. Watch the Trailer

Woke up with this song on my mind:
Oh Lord, you’re beautiful,
Your face is all I seek,
For when your eyes are on this child,
Your grace abounds to me.

Two years ago at this time we set out on our fourth cross-country road trip in about a year and a half. We were on the road on the Thanksgiving holiday and had a turkey dinner at the Cracker Barrel restaurant near Pensacola, Florida. Lots of things were up in the air. We had just moved into a “new” house. I was starting a new law practice. We were recovering from the whirlwind of moving to Florida and then moving back to California.

My youngest son, Benjamin, was born on Thanksgiving day, 2002. He celebrated his birthday that year on the road. This year we will continue the tradition of a Chucky Cheese birthday for Ben.

From the perspective of two years, things have calmed down quite a bit. Our fixer-upper house is a little more livable than it was when we moved in. We still have two showers and 1 bathtub that don’t work. We have learned how to handle heating our non-centrally air conditioned and heated all-electric home. We haven’t seen any $1000 plus bills this year (when we moved in, our first utility bill was over $1200!). Benjamin is in first grade at the local Christian school and loving every minute of it. We will be spending Thanksgiving with Loretta’s daughter and our grandkids. My two-yr. old law practice is going pretty well. I spend a lot of time trying to help people with financial trouble get a fresh start or save their homes. We have a lot to be grateful for this year. Life is not perfect, but it is pretty good.

I have been learning to develop an attitude of Thanksgiving that I can carry with me every day. I don’t mean I want to eat left-over Turkey and cranberry sandwiches every day. I want to learn to be grateful for the daily blessings that come our way, the things that money can’t buy, love for my family and love for my God.

With feel-good gurus urging us to find the secret and live in the moment, I want to learn to get rid of anxiety through an attitude of prayerfulness and thanksgiving. Last year that was one of my New Year’s resolutions and I think it is beginning to seek in. I frequently remind my clients that they can survive their financial and other legal troubles.

Blessings to you and your families in this Thanksgiving season.

Verge is a “Missional Community Conference” in Austin, Texas, Feb 4-6, 2010. “Hard to resist because church planting guru George Patterson is one of the speakers. And Austin rocks!” according to Andrew Jones.

I got an email from a very good friend of mine this week. He and I haven’t talked much, or emailed much, in the last several months. In his email he was apologizing for the lack of contact. While it’s true that relationships need contact and communication, have you ever noticed that some relationships are so connected that you can be out of contact for months, or years, and pick up right where you left off?

About six months ago I renewed a friendship with someone I knew very well more than 30 years ago. Since then we have been meeting pretty regularly once a week for a long and leisurely lunch. These lunches have grown into my “church” gathering. We talk about spiritual issues and what’s happening in our everyday lives. I’m looking forward to Monday afternoon because we’ve missed the last two weeks.

I emailed a reply to my friend as follows: “There are some people that are such good friends that time can pass, and life can roll on, and the friendship is always there…Sometimes I like to think about Jesus that way, because I tend to stumble through life, sometimes, weeks and months at a time and barely remember that Jesus is my friend, or even talk to him. I remember when I first heard the song, Draw Me Close to You…It has a line, “To hear you say that I’m your friend.” The first 20 times I listened to that song, I cried.” Continue Reading »

My friend, Jim Henderson, really knows how to put on a conference! So that’s the reason for my question? Are you going off the map? I had the privilege of attending one of the first OTM conferences around 2000 and got to hear Brian McLaren and Len Sweet speak for the first time. Jim has a great lineup for this year’s conference in Seattle. One of my favorites, Todd Hunter, will be speaking. The thing about Off the Map Conferences is that there is no chance to get bored. They are interactive and fast-paced. Beg, borrow, or steal and get a ticket and make it to Mirrors & Maps.