Imagine the view: The sun is rising over the ocean. The waves are crashing on the beach below. Your beachside home is hundreds of feet above the water on the cliff side. You step outside on the deck of your beautiful home to drink your morning coffee and enjoy the beauty of it all. Can you see it? It is peaceful. It is awesome.

Suddenly, you feel a shift. The coffee on the table spills liquid over the rim. You hear the sound of rock falling. Your view has tilted down ever so slightly. What is going on? The foundation is wearing away.

The scene above is from a story in the Los Angeles Times that I read last month. It is a billion dollar view that is about to be lost because the rocks holding up the cliff are falling away. The foundations of several beautiful homes are crumbling down.

It doesn’t matter how beautiful the house is. If the foundation is no good, it renders the structure unlivable. The view may be amazing, but if you can’t stand there safely it is worthless. The benefits of living on the cliff are all negated by the eroding foundation.

The same is true for my life. I could have amazing relationships, own lots of stuff and be involved in amazing things, but it could all be gone in an instant without a solid foundation. What is the foundation I am referring to? I am glad you asked.

My relationship with Jesus Christ is the foundation of my life. I accepted him into my heart and life when I was a young boy and I have been His since then. He forgave me for my sins and saved me. He has forgiven me countless times since. I have seen Him work in my life over and over. He has carried me through and loved me consistently. He is my foundation.

How does this help me in my daily journey? If you read my list yesterday you will notice my first point is Bible study and prayer. I choose to start every day by reading God’s word and connecting with Him. It centers me. It keeps me closer to Him. It helps me be the person I want to be. It is my daily foundation.

What is the foundation of your day? What habits do you practice to keep you on track?

See you on Day 3. Topic – Take The Next Step

The Start of a Journey

I stood in front of the mirror this morning and took a long hard look. I have been here before. I said I wouldn’t come back, but here I am. It is time to make a change.

Do you know that feeling too? It’s the first day. It is the first step of what could be a long road ahead. It is the choice to make the change you know you need to make, even if you have tried to make it before. It is the choice to be different. It is the choice to live Every Day Strong.

You’ve been down this road too, haven’t you? Keep reading.

Let me introduce myself. My name is David. I am a Christ follower/husband/father/creative/and lots of other things that will get unpacked in the days ahead. Like most of us, I have a ton of goals that I want to accomplish, but have let a lot of years go by and am not as far as I want to be. That’s ok to admit, right?

It is not that I haven’t achieved a fair amount in my life. I have. I’ve done many things that I am very proud of. I have SO much that I am thankful for (My relationship with God, my marriage, my son, my health journey, etc.). You will hear about that in the days to come as well. However, there are things that need to change.

It is time. It is time to cast off fear and procrastination and see what I can really get accomplished if I put my whole self after it. Have you felt that way before? That’s what I thought. Keep reading.

I am also finding that the older I get…I was born in the late 70s…the harder it is to get it all done. It has nothing to do with the things that need to be done, but everything to do with allowing myself to go on autopilot. The times I have coasted for too long, I have missed opportunities to be more and do more. For myself and for the ones I love.

To combat this, I have a plan. A roadmap of the days to come. What will I be doing? The road ahead will consist of the following 7 things daily/weekly activities.

1. Bible Study/Prayer – This is the foundation. It helps me be a better man, husband, father and friend.

2. Exercise – Weights/Walking – The older I get, the more I hurt if I don’t move. I have a lot to get done and I need to be in top shape to do it.

3. Diet – Track Food/Water – It is hard to run a motor on poor fuel. If I am to accomplish step 2, step 3 will be essential.

4. Learning – Reading/Courses – God created an amazing world full of awesome things. There is so much to learn and discover. I never want to stop learning.

5. Creating – Writing/Posting – The first things the Bible tells us about God is that He creates. It is what He does. It also says man was made in His image. We are creators too.

6. Gratitude – I am convinced that grateful people live happier lives. I want to take every opportunity I can to express how thankful I am for the life I have and those who share it with me.

7. Photos and Weight – Weekly – How do you know you are getting anywhere if you don’t know where you’ve been?

I will be posting the journey here. I am doing this for two reasons:

First, I need the accountability. There are a few things on this list I can do well and don’t necessarily need the support. The other items on the list are a little harder. I need to put them out into the universe so I know that I am on the hook.

Second, one of the things that is core to who I am is taking care of people. I want to help. I want to be a source of encouragement and, if possible, motivation. I want to be a light for the world around me. If I can do that by sharing my struggles and successes, I am going to do it.

This is my new journey and I invite you to come along with me. It will not be perfect or pretty, but it will be real and full of accomplishment and overcoming obstacles. It will be real.

Will you join me?

See you on day 2. The next topic? Setting the Foundation

We recently attended a family reunion, and it’s interesting to see how things have changed as we’ve grown older. There’s now a whole crowd of younger participants, which is both cool and strange at the same time.

During the reunion, I was talking to a cousin who is currently in college. I mentioned to her that my bride and I have been together for 25 years and will be celebrating our 25th wedding anniversary next January. She did the math and realized that I was her age when it all began.

The next question she asked was, “How did you know she was the one?” My answer was simple: she was my best friend, and spending the rest of my life with her was what I wanted most.

As I have reminisced about those days in 1998, I pondered what it was about her that made me so certain. Was it just one thing or a combination of factors? Let’s delve into that for a moment.

At the time, I was 19 years old, fresh out of my sophomore year of college, and sporting a rather ridiculous-looking earring (which she soon talked me out of). She was a couple of days away from turning 20 and was the most refreshing person I had ever met.

When did it all begin? Our official date is June 17, the day we went on a white water rafting trip with our college group. We sat next to each other in the van and played 20 questions. She answered honestly, and I wasn’t afraid to share my answers either. It was an awesome experience.

Throughout that trip, we made every effort to spend as much time together as possible. We would have spent even more time together if it weren’t for our van driver, who got a little too crazy with the brakes on Pike’s Peak. That kind of ride can make you sick in no time, and boy, did it make her sick. But even that couldn’t keep us apart for long.

We quickly discovered that we genuinely enjoyed each other’s company. Being together was simply fun and felt so natural.

On one of the days, I found myself behind the wheel of the church van, although I’m not entirely sure if I was old enough to drive it at the time. She and I were in the front seat, engaging in conversation when somehow we started discussing the kind of weddings we would like. It was all hypothetical, of course. I answered one of her questions by saying, “Yeah, we should do that for ours.” The moment those words left my mouth, I realized what I had said. I glanced over at her, but she didn’t seem to have heard me.

I thought to myself, “Dude, what was that?” I knew I liked her, but where did that declaration come from? Interestingly, one of the guys on the trip later told me it was pretty obvious that we were falling hard for each other. And he was right.

When the trip came to an end on June 20, which also happened to be my new girlfriend’s birthday, we drove back from Colorado and sat together again. During the van ride, we talked more and more until we found ourselves holding hands. She claimed that we hit a bump which conveniently place her hand into mine, but she didn’t let go once the bump was gone.

After we returned, I had to go back to my parents’ house in southeast Oklahoma before heading to a camp where I was working for the summer. It was less than a day since we had been apart when it hit me. I felt like there was a hole in my chest.

You know that Shakespeare line, “parting is such sweet sorrow”? Yeah, I call bologna on that one. There was nothing sweet about it. It felt like a part of me was missing, and I soon discovered that she felt the exact same. We expected to miss each other, but this was something else entirely.

Looking back now, it is all very obvious. I had just spent time with my wife to be. How did I know she was the one? All the signs pointed to the same place. Us. Together. Married. Now here we are 25 years later and I wouldn’t change a thing. I love her more today than ever.

I shaved my beard a few days ago. I will be honest, it shocked me a bit. I haven’t seen my face in over 5 years. After I finished chemotherapy the beard was my return to normal and I have wanted to keep it that way. I am in a musical in a few weeks and my character has to be clean shaven. So, I am being a team player and the beard is on pause for a few weeks.

What does this have to do with candor David? Hang with me, I am getting there.

After I shaved the beard my wife and son both expressed their displeasure. It reminds them of a time where I was not doing so well. But, I see it as a time to create a new memory with a face that I am not used to seeing. In giving me feedback on how I looked, my son told me that he had a comparison in his head that he didn’t want to say out loud. I invited him to share his thoughts. He told me I looked like Brendan Fraser in the Whale. Ouch.

In the past I would have been hurt by these words. I mean, come on. Brendan Fraser was playing a character who weighed 600 pounds. Really? That is what you think I look like? But, that is not how I responded. I knew what my son meant. I don’t look like I weigh 600 pounds. However, my face is full and I am still on my journey to be healthier.

I love that my boy can be honest with me. I want candor in my life. He was honest with me. I agree with him. I prefer the beard as well. I also love that he wanted to be honest with me and didn’t want to hurt my feelings. He is honest and kind. A good combination.

Do you embrace candor? What are your thoughts on how it should be handled?

I read this verse this morning and had to pause. God doesn’t just care about us. He doesn’t just notice when we are in sorrow. He collects our tears. He writes our sorrows down in His book. Why would He do this? The only thing I can think of is Revelation 21: 1-4 where He wipes ever tear away. Even those collected in the bottles. God is good and His love endures forever.