Letter to my son

Today is my son, Caleb's, birthday. I wrote him a "birthday" letter and Kelli thought I should share it here with all of you. He's a special kid and I'm truly a blessed Dad.

Dear Caleb Andrew,

Today, December 30th, 2010 is your fourteenth birthday. Last year, at this time, you and I got to go to Florida and hang out together. I sorta wish I could go back in time, because that was truly awesome for me. It was a memory I’ll never forget. Now you are one year older. You’re not just “becoming a teenager”, you ARE a teenager! It seems so strange to me to see you getting older.

Of course, like all parents, I wish I could freeze time and make you stay small forever. I miss you being a little guy that I carried on my back and wrestled with and threw 15 feet in the air to watch you belly-flop into the pool. Now you could carry me on your back, kick my butt in wrestling, and push me into the pool whenever you wanted! Well,… almost. =)

Anyway… I want you to know how proud I am of you. I think you are a great person and you’ve grown into an awesome young man. You probably don’t know this… but I watch you… a lot. I see you talking with your friends. I see you playing with children that are way smaller than you. I watched you be an awesome brother to Maria, even though she was hard to relate to at times. I watch you with your brothers and Michaela and Merci.

I watch you Caleb… and I’m really proud of you.

When Mom and I were thinking of a name for you, we chose Caleb Andrew for a reason. Not necessarily because those two names mean something cool, but because of those two characters in the Bible.

Caleb was a spy. Actually, there were 12 spies that were chosen, out of all of God’s people, to sneak into the “Promised Land”. They did and they saw some killer stuff, including lots of food and water… and scary giants. Caleb and Joshua were the only ones, out of the 12, that told the leadership that they should definitely go into the Promised Land. But the other 10 spies all said, “No way! The giants are way too big! We’ll all be killed if we try and go in there!” Because of these 10 guys’ report, God’s people chickened out and didn’t do what He wanted them to do. However, Caleb and Joshua will always be considered studs for being brave enough to do whatever it takes to obey God. We chose Caleb, because he was a stud… a radical for God.

Andrew was one of Jesus’ disciples. He is one of the guys that doesn’t get mentioned very often in the Bible, however, when he is mentioned… he’s bringing people to Jesus! For example, he brought his brother to Jesus, and the kid with the lunch of fish and bread too. We think this is something that God is going to do with you.

When you put these two names together: Caleb Andrew – I get the picture of a radical guy, who doesn’t care what anyone else may think, all he cares about is what God thinks. A guy who is brave and doesn’t mind being quietly in the background, as long as he can be a part of helping someone else see Jesus. This is Mom’s and my prayer for you Caleb. That you would always be different than the rest of the crowd (all the other wimpy spies who call themselves God-followers, but are too wimpy to ever really take a stand for Him). You are definitely becoming that kind of person. I see it in you and the way that you are. This is why I am so proud of you.

I love you more than anything, son. I hope you know that.

As always, you must remember that I am always here for you. If you are going through something, or if you ever need to talk, I hope you’ll come to me. I love you 5, buddy… and I ALWAYS will.

Happy Birthday,
love Dad

Best Ever

Why is this commercial voted the best commericial ever?
Click here to watch Best commericial ever

What is it about the father/son relationship that tugs at the heart every single time?

Jeremiah 3:19 - "How gladly would I treat you like sons..."

For Posterity's Sake

Psalm 37:35-40
"I have seen a wicked, violent man spreading himself like a luxuriant tree in its native soil.
Then he passed away, and lo, he was no more; I sought for him, but he could not be found.
Mark the blameless man, and behold the upright; For the man of peace will have a posterity.
But transgressors will be altogether destroyed; The posterity of the wicked will be cut off.
But the salvation of the righteous is from the Lord; He is their strength in time of trouble.
The Lord helps them and delivers them; He delivers them from the wicked and saves them, because they take refuge in Him."


What is life all about? Who are we to look up to as an example? Who are to be our heroes? Our culture exalts the ones with the most wealth, the most power, the ones with the most fame... regardless of how it came to them. Yet, if we are patient and stick around long enough, it seems we become witnesses of these very ones falling from grace, being soon forgotten... and simply being 'no more'. What exactly is the legacy that they leave?


My son, Caleb, has one of those red-laser pointer thingys. He likes to hide in another room (or across the worship center!) and point that thing at my chest while I'm talking to someone. They start snickering and giggling... and pretty soon I realize that I need to introduce my son to the wonders of duct tape once again (that was a joke, please don't call DFS). He's obviously using that laser-pointer for something that it was never intended for. It is meant to be a tool used in lectures to direct an audience's attention to the speaker's main points. It was originally found only on certain types of guns and used for the purpose of targeting something. In both cases, it's purpose is to 'mark' something.


We are admonished to keep an eye on the lives of others in this passage, to literally 'mark' them. The writer speaks of how he watched a bad, violent man who was successful in life, but when he died, he was no more - simply forgotten. However, when we watch the blameless, upright and peaceful man we'll find a very different story. He'll have something called "posterity". "Mark the blameless man, and behold the upright; For the man of peace will have posterity" (Psalm 37:37).

• The dictionary says that "posterity" is a noun meaning: 'Generations or time to come. The body of descendants from an ancestor.'

The idea of 'posterity' is what I'll call a 'legacy'. It is something that a person hands down to the next generation when they die. However, it is really more than that because 'posterity' speaks of more than something, it speaks of the very people themselves!

Let me re-set this: We are to 'mark' those (watch them, look up to them) that are blameless, upright, and peaceful, because THEY are the ones that, rather than just fade away, will leave a lasting legacy, which is the people that carry on their righteous way of living.

We are a culture of hero worshippers. And the heroes we choose to lift up and 'mark' are all too often undeserving. They exemplify greed, materialism, lust, and selfishness. This passage in Psalm 37 ends by stating that those we should be watching are ultimately the ones that "take refuge in God". In other words, they may not be perfect, wealthy, or even have all their 'stuff' together, yet "He is their strength in time of trouble".


Do you know someone like that? Maybe they aren't the perfect picture of 'success', as far as this world might define it. However, they live lives of total dependence upon God. They are peaceful. They are upright. They are simple, but they are blameless. If you are lucky enough to be around someone like that, then point your laser at them. Mark them. Watch them. Do it for posterity's sake. Keep your eye on them... understanding that you too are being watched.

I look down... I see a red dot... I realize that my son has marked me.

What will I pass on?

What will I leave him?

What's important today?