Starting 5

My buddy Jason recently posted his spiritual starting 5. It got me thinking about mentors and friends who have shaped my Christian faith. Obviously my Mom and Dad are the first people who modeled Gods love to me so they get a big high five. These are the folks to took that foundation and built upon it. Start the fog machine and cue the music below to get the full effect.



1) Steele Harmon. Former teacher and football coach Steele was the State director of the Fellowship of Christian Athletes in Ky. I met Steele my freshman year of college at the FCA state convention. He built an amazing ministry and is responsible for raising up more pastors than anyone else I know. I literally once saw him give the shirt off his back to a custodian who mentioned that he liked it. He gave the man his shirt. I will never forget that. Steele was one of those people who would urge you into leadership before you thought you were ready and somehow God would actually use you. He was and remains a force for many people. Steele always said, "a hungry dog hunts best." Steele was hungry for the souls of athletes in Kentucky to find their identity in Christ.

2) Jeff Lanham. Jeff was one of my basketball coaches at Union College. He is the one who made me go to my first Fellowship of Christian Athletes state convention. At that convention I learned that God not only loved me enough to give his son for me but that He desired an ongoing relationship with me. That moved me. Jeff had a relationship with God that was genuine and full of joy. Jeff sponsored our campus chapter of FCA. He became more than a coach to me. He became a friend.

3) Don Joy. Don taught Human growth and development at Asbury Seminary. He loved his Christian Ed students and invited us to his office for what he called brown bag lunch groups. We literally sat around in his office and talked about the challenges of being a Godly man. He introduced a sane accountability among the group which allowed for vulnerability and graceful redemption. Don would greet you with a holy kiss. The man kissed me and it seemed OK.

4) Mark Devries. Mark is the Minister to Youth and Families at Nashville First Presbyterian church. Mark and I struck up a conversation many years ago after he spoke at a youth ministry seminar I attended. Mark became a spiritual director for me and later he invited me to assist him as he consulted churches with struggling youth ministries. Mark is the CEO of Youth Ministry Architects and youth ministry consulting firm and author of two of the most profound books about youth ministry...Family Based Youth Ministry and Sustainable Youth Ministry. Mark is incredibly humble and is tireless in his effort to raise the level of effectiveness of Youth ministry around the world. Mark's focus and intensity are inspiring.

5) Debbi Dehart Akers. On my team Debbi would be the center. Debbi knows me better than I know myself. She speaks truth to me daily. Mark (above) once told me that if I ever needed to clearly hear the voice of God that I needed to start by listening to Debbi. For many people that would not be true, for me it is true. Her tattered, note scribbled Bible is proof of her ongoing love affair with Jesus. She inspires almost daily and I am blessed beyond belief that she is on my team.

Sixth man award goes to the countless youth and college students who have challenged me and my faith as often as I hoped to challenge theirs. Their questions, joys and pain have been a constant source of motivation to seek God and to grow in understanding and in relationship with Him.

The Big 4-2

42 as a birthday is pretty uneventful, so I thought that I would take some pictures throughout the day to document it. Seems now that I look back on the photos that even an uneventful day can be filled with a ton of blessings. Start from the bottom and work your way up. Don't look for a picture of Debbi, she wouldn't let me take one! No complaints from you miss Dehart...


Hannah at the game.



Maddi and Ella at Sam's basketball game.


Birthday call from Mom and Dad.


Mandarin Orange cake. Debbi makes this once a year for me because I eat the whole thing. It tastes like a huge twinkie only sweeter and fluffier and gooder (yeah, that is a word).


Homemade cards from the kids...my favorite!


Supper-Pork Quesadilla with mandarin orange salsa! Very tex-mex day!


Joy gave Debbi and me a washer and dryer-Our dryer died. She had extras. It is amazing what happens when we make our needs known!


#4 beef. I highly recommend.


Lunch with the program staff at Rosies...Amy bought my lunch.


My boss Amy, working hard.


At the office. Youth associate Amanda working hard.


Maddi in car rider line


Sam in car rider line.


Sam begs me to stop taking pictures.


Breakfast of champions!


I wake up Sam.


Maddi is up awake and straightening hair...a morning ritual.


I read morning devotions


I get Hannah


5:55 a.m. We hear Hannah say, "mommy, mommy, mommy" over the monitor.

In Defense of Dodgeball

One of our youth leaders, Larry Lowe took this photo of our youth group playing dodgeball

We play every Sunday night.

We use special foam-core, non-stinging dodgeballs.

It is fun.

A Tale of Two Phones

Before Christmas Madison and I were in the mall. As we rode the escalator to the top floor a man in front of us started patting his pockets rapidly. I knew at once what had happened...he had lost his phone. When we reached the top I approached the man and asked him if he wanted me to call it for him on the chance that someone would pick it up and answer. He was grateful for the offer and took me up on it. I called and I got his voicemail. He thanked me sincerely and we departed. He called me later that day to tell me he had found his phone and to thank me again. On Christmas I got a text saying, "Merry Christmas!" It felt good to help and it was really no big deal, but I got the impression that people being kind was not something this guy took for granted. He was genuinely thankful.

A couple of days later we were in the mall again. We (being all of us) were picking up some last minute gifts. When we got home not soon after and Debbi began looking for her cell phone. She couldn't find it. We hunted for a couple of days around the house and I suggested that she might have left it in the mall. I called the phone and guess who picked up? The VERY SAME Man had found Debbi's phone!!! Not really, but that would have been a great story... When Debbi's phone rang I got "hold" music (Hold music is not Debbi's style) I knew immediately what had happened. Someone had found her phone at the mall and made it their own! Debbi called t-mobile and they confirmed numerous unseemly downloads...$50 worth as a matter of fact. We deactivated and luckily Debbi got to keep her number but she lost her entire phone book. Debbi was told we were responsible for the downloads and had to pay for them. When Deb complained they said we should be thankful that it was only $50. They said they regularly see bills for $500 plus on stolen phones.

Now isn't that a curious set of circumstances? One phone story brought strangers together and good feelings prevailed. The other phone story led to cynicism and hurt my wallet.

Is it too much to ask to scroll down a menu and call the number listed as "home"? What causes a person to see opportunities like that as license to take advantage of it and another person as an opportunity to help? Our phone thief got their three days of free phone service and now they have a useless phone.

John Wesley, the founder of Methodism had several great quotes, but one I thought about regarding this situation was...

“Do all the good you can,
By all the means you can,
In all the ways you can,
In all the places you can,
At all the times you can,
To all the people you can,
As long as ever you can.”

I pray our felonious friend sees the light and catches a vision for the simple pleasure one can experience when they do the right thing.