Kevin DeShazo

I say I believe in a faith that can move mountains…though I’m not sure I could move a mustard seed.

I say I believe in a faith that can raise the dead…though I’m not sure my faith can raise even my head.

I say I believe in a faith that can walk on water…though I’m unsure I can even take a step.

I say I believe in a God of love…though right now all I can muster up is anger, frustration, disappointment.

I say I believe in a God of hope…though doubt runs through my veins.

In Pete Wilson’s book Plan B, he asks a question.

What would you do in your life if you were absolutely confident that God was with you?

I have hated that question for the last 2 months.  Hated it.  I will tell you day and night that I think God is with me.  I’ll write about it.  I’ll sing about it.  I’ll meet in small groups about it.  But I won’t dare live it.  I won’t dare believe it.  The last 18 months have been pretty ridiculous.  Without going into detail, let’s just say it has been tough.  Tough for a person who, for 26 years, nothing in life ever went wrong.  Literally, ever.  Everything I touched turned to gold.  I’m not being boastful, I’m just being honest.  For 18 months, everything I’ve touched has turned to death.  I had an employee about 4 years ago tell me, “Kevin, I hate to say this, but something bad is going to happen to you.  We don’t go through life without difficulty.”  Those words ring in my head every day.  Every.  Single.  Day.  And anger builds.  I wish I could run out on some bridge, yelling and screaming at God like I’m in some Hollywood movie, and he would magically show up.  That would be easier, I think.  I’d like to say that through trials I’m learning more about my faith.  And in some sense I am.  More than that, I’m waiting.  Waiting to see if He is ever going to show up.  If something is ever going to give.  If at some point this God that moves mountains, calms seas and raises the dead will show His face.  In the meantime, I’ll keep telling you that I believe it while thinking, “do as I say, not as I do.”

photo attribution

John Robert Wooden.  Coach Wooden.  The greatest coach ever.  Pro, college, any sport.  Nobody compares.  Not Lombardi, not Bryant, not coach K, not Belicheck.  John Wooden passed away last week at the age of 99.  10 NCAA Championships.  7 in a row.  Countless players mentored.  Never made more than $35k in a year.  Never asked for a raise.  Greatest coach ever, but an even better man and husband.

In my last job I went through some leadership training, part of which included reading one of Wooden’s books.  Growing up a basketball fan, I always admired Coach Wooden as a coach.  This book gave some serious insight into his wisdom, his faith and who he was as a man.  He was, admittedly, a man of faith.  One quote that sticks out to me of his is this, “I have always tried to make it clear that basketball is not the ultimate. It is of small importance in comparison to the total life we live. There is only one kind of life that truly wins, and that is the one that places faith in the hands of the Savior.  If I were ever prosecuted for my religion, I truly hope there would be enough evidence to convict me.”  Not exactly the type of words we are used to hearing from today’s coaches.  He is a man that you would die to play for.  To learn from.  His leadership lessons will go on for years.  On the day he died, tons of quotes of his were flying around the internet.  It was pretty amazing to witness.  Out of all of his inspirational quotes, one sticks out to me the most.  I read it during my last job and it pops back into my head on almost a weekly basis.

Don’t mistake activity for achievement.

Pretty simple.  I could write an entire post on just this quote, but to be brief, it helps me to be deliberate about my actions.  Being busy doesn’t mean I’m actually doing anything.  Having my calendar full doesn’t mean I’m having an impact.  Be deliberate about your actions.  Think before you do.  Don’t mistake activity for achievement.  Thanks Coach.

What is your favorite Coach Wooden quote?

I’m loving this song right now.  It’s called Skeleton Bones and it’s by John Mark McMillan.  He might be my new favorite artist.  Enjoy:

This is the same guy that wrote How He Loves (made famous by Crowder, but I think I like John Mark’s version more).  It’s a beautiful song with an even more beautiful story.  I saw one video of him explaining that his friend that died in the car crash had prayed that very morning, “God, if my death could cause a revolution in the youth, then I’ll die.  Take me.”  Less than 24hrs later, dead.  God accepted.  John Mark wrote this song the very next day.  Seven years later, I’d say this song is fulfilling the second part of the promise.  Causing a revolution in the youth.  Crazy powerful.  Check it out:

What are you listening to today?

Sorry for posting so many videos lately.  Except for this one.  This one, once they showed it this weekend, I couldn’t wait to throw up on the ol blog.  This lady, Leonie Webster is, well, a modern day Mother Teresa.  I’m going to go out on a limb and say that I’m not sure I’ve seen faith like this.  Or it could just be her English accent.  Kidding.  Sort of.  If I could have 10% of this woman’s faith, dang.  I don’t even know.  Leonie is a missionary in Honduras, originally from Yorkshire, England.  And she straight up dominates.  Her story is incredibly powerful.  The confidence she speaks with, confidence in God and what he’s doing through her is, literally, awesome.  It’s stories like hers that give me hope.  Hope that I don’t have to have a certain set of tools to be used by God.  Hope that God really is at work in this crazy world.  Hope that I don’t have to do it…that I can’t do it.  But He can.  And does.

My favorite quote: “I can run this ministry and it can be successful in man’s eyes.  But if I’m not being who God wants me to be, then I ain’t impressing anybody.”

Inspired much?

I have a grandpa.  Well, I have two really, but I’m specifically talking about one.  I love this man.  He is, without debate, one of the greatest men I’ve ever known.  I can’t describe the respect I have for him.  He worked tirelessly, served in wars and was an entrepreneur (running a family hardware business for many years).  He is a sports enthusiast.  When I was little, we would spend hours talking and watching sports.  Most of that revolved around his beloved Arkansas Razorbacks.  I remember the joy he had when Scotty Thurman hit the shot against Duke in the 1994 NCAA Final Four Championship game, securing the title for the hogs.  I remember him saying that Chipper Jones of the Atlanta Braves would be “the next Mickey Mantle.”  Though underrated, Chipper does have a better career batting average and more hits than The Mick.  We sat at the beginning of the 1999 NCAA basketball season, when he predicted that UCONN would win the championship.  And they did.  My grandpa (Papa as we called him growing up) is a good man.  I love him.

The one thing he has never taken a liking to is technology.  He didn’t get a cell phone until last year, when we got it for him as a gift.  He didn’t really need it, considering he lives in a town of 1,000 people.  He can head down the street, on foot, and be anywhere he needs to be in 5 minutes.  He didn’t get a DVD player until about 3 years ago…again, a gift.  Needless to say, when it comes to technology, I am cooler than my grandpa.  Not that it takes much effort.

This father’s day, that all changes.  My 80 year old grandpa will, in a matter of seconds, be cooler than me.  Because he’s getting this:

I can’t explain how I feel about this.  My aunt e-mailed me yesterday to inform me that she had bought my grandpa a 3G iPad for Father’s Day/his birthday and for me to e-mail any pictures or video I wanted to her to put on it.  I still haven’t responded to the e-mail.  I’m still in shock.  Oh, and I am to e-mail their e-mail address, because she has set them up a Gmail account.  This for a man who has never owned a computer.  Hates that my cousins and I are always on our iPhones.  Just wants to watch the news, play some golf and call the hogs (the team, not the actual animal of course).  I’m hopeful that, come Christmas, he still hasn’t used it and I get to unwrap this “used” little beauty.  Pray with/for me.

How would you respond if your grandparents got an iPad…before you?

About six months ago I met a man named Ken Surritte.  We had connected a few times on Twitter, then decided to sit down and have coffee.  I had initiated the contact to share some ideas I had with Ken, but walked out of the coffee shop completely blown away by the passion and dedication to the cause he’s been given.  Ken has a “job”, or as would say, “something that puts the beans on the table.”  But what he “does” is an organization called WATERisLIFE.  Follow them on Twitter and “like” them on Facebook.  Ken started WiL 3 years ago, based here in OKC, after a trip to Nairobi, Kenya.  He saw that, even after drilling water wells, kids were still getting sick due to the fact that the “drinking fountain” at school was a stagnant pond.  Seeing a need for kids to have a way to get clean water at school, he came up with this incredible straw.  A straw that allows kids (or anybody) to drink from any water source, for one year.

By giving people clean water for one year, Ken and his team have time to come in, develop long-term water solutions and provide hygiene and sanitation assistance  in villages around the globe.  Here is their 3 step process.  Incredible.

Ken is headed to Haiti next week with a team to distribute straws and set up partnerships for future trips – trips that I’m hoping to be a part of.  I got to spend the afternoon with him, packing up boxes of straws – 3,000 are going on this trip and I believe that close to 10,000 are already on the ground.  The stuff that they are doing is really incredible and is going to change the world (that seems to be my new phrase) – they are currently in 27 countries.  Here’s the deal.  $10 gets a straw.  Gets somebody clean water for a year.  Whether they are drinking out of a toilet or a disease infested pond.  Clean.  $10.  Donate.  They are also in the midst of a one year campaign called “Change iT”, where they hope to raise $1 from each person for the year.  Seriously, just one dollar.  360 million Americans, $1 each. Game, changed.

Here is a video we shot yesterday before we got to work.  I’m no journalist, so don’t judge me.  In the video Ken talks about their plans for Haiti and some of the incredible things they are doing.  So check out the video, but more than anything, give.  Whether it is $10 or $1.  Also, check out this video of what the family of my friend Brad is doing for WATERisLIFE.  Beautiful stuff.

This morning at church we heard from a mother that, along with her husband, have adopted 4 kids from the Indiana foster care system. Two of these children are from the same mother. This particular mother is heavily involved in drugs and has a total of 5 kids from different men. One of these men, the father of one of their adopted boys (lost yet??), is now in jail, indicted for first degree murder (shot a man in front of a 12 year old) and drug trafficking. Janice (birth mother) sued Sandy (adoptive mother), dragging her and her family through an 18 month court battle littered with a web of lies. Sandy and her husband, in the end, were able retain custody of their adopted child. Sandy, amazingly, chooses to be a part of the lives of these women. The women that birthed her children. The women whose DNA is woven into her children. The women that loved their children enough to let Sandy take care of them. The woman who sued her. Lied to her. Hurt her. Betrayed her. She doesn’t have to do this. It isn’t easy. But she does it. Four things Sandy said stuck on me this morning:

I can judge her (Janice) for finding love in the wrong places. But I’ve come to this point: I am fortunate enough to have never been in her situation. Desperate for love. Taking it in whatever form I can find it.

Adoption is the result of a broken and messy world, and it breaks God’s heart. Mothers weren’t designed to choose whether or not to take care of their babies. Fathers weren’t designed to abandoned their children. Relationships weren’t meant to been to be so fleeting. Adoption breaks God’s heart, yet he loves it.

I want Janice to be my friend. Not my service project or my outreach project, but my friend. To dine at my table.

Many times in life I choose not to follow Jesus, strictly because of the company he chose to keep. When it comes down to it, what do I have to lose (in having relationship with the drug-addicted, lying, homeless, abused birth mothers) other than my pride?

Pretty heavy stuff. Pretty incredible morning.

What are your thoughts?

I was extremely excited to read this book – and even more thankful that BookSneeze’s servers went down, allowing me time to get home and get a free copy! I found Pete Wilson through Twitter (technically, he followed me first…just sayin) and quickly became hooked on his blog and podcasts (sermons). Pete is the Senior Pastor at Cross Point Church in Nashville. He’s one of those guys that you’d love to hang out with and learn from (though his blog and book will do just fine). I really enjoy Pete’s transparency (even more admirable given that he is pastor – generally a guarded profession) and his way with words. He has a great sense of humor and some unique insight and wisdom that was evident in this book.  Buy the book here. (Amazon).

Plan B is a book about faith. Faith when things don’t go according to your plan. When your marriage falls apart. When your business that you’ve been planning and praying about for years goes bankrupt. When that promotion doesn’t happen. When your spouse gets diagnosed with cancer at age 30. What then? Where is God in those situations? How do I trust God with my Plan B if he didn’t give me my Plan A?

This book will speak to literally every human on the planet. We’ve all had shattered dreams, unforeseen changes in circumstances, plans disrupted. We’ve all faced situations that forced us to ask, “Why?” and, “What now God?” If somehow this hasn’t happened to you, it will. Pete, in acknowledging that our Plan A’s will undoubtedly be changed, challenges us to not only look for God in those circumstances, but to expect him to show up in the Plan B. In reality, our Plan B is his Plan A. He is with us in the pain/confusion/frustration/anger/depression. We are dealt more than we can handle in order to increase our reliance upon Him. It isn’t easy, but we aren’t promised easy. As Wilson says, “we must rest in God’s identity, not his activity.” That is huge! Page 82 was my favorite page in the book. It perfectly sums up this notion of a Plan B and the roles that we, and God, play in it.

He’s the God who is faithful. The God who keeps his promises. The God who is with us every moment and is in the process of working all things for good. Even in our whiplash moments. Even when the bottom seems to be falling out and bad news sets our head to spinning.

Even in the midst of a Plan B, you really only have one task, one calling.

And that is to do what you would do if you were confident God was with you.

I would highly recommend you read this book. It will challenge your perspective and, hopefully, your faith. More than anything, it will give you hope that, even in your Plan B (or C or D), God is working. He is faithful. And He keeps his promises.

What Plan B are you experiencing right now?  How can you see God working in your Plan B?

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from Thomas Nelson Publishers as part of their BookSneeze.com book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255 : “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”

Last year, on October 18 (one day before my birthday) U2 invaded Norman, Oklahoma.  I really can’t describe it.  I still get chills thinking about it.  I have to admit that I wasn’t a huge U2 fan before the show.  I liked their stuff, but they weren’t my favorite band on the planet.  Now?  Huge fan.  Massive fan.  My friend Lance describes the show beautifully here.  All I can say was that it was the best church service I’ve ever attended.  Here’s a taste (no, these were not my seats, unfortunately).

Have you been to a U2 show? What was your experience like?

This video is of some friends of ours that adopted a little boy from Ethiopia (it was shown this weekend at church).  Get your Kleenex ready.  You can read about their story here.  The cliff-notes version is that they had tried, unsuccessfully, to have a baby and eventually felt called to adopt.  They both had a heart for Africa (both came from missionary families), and it seemed a natural fit to adopt from there.  Ethiopia, at the time, was the only country allowing US adoptions, so the choice was an easy one.  Malak has now been home (US) for about 2 years, and is the cutest kid not named Gabe that you’ll ever see.  Serious stud.  Megan and I plan to adopt at some point in time, and being around these types of stories makes us that much more excited.  (side note: some of the pictures in the video were taken by my uber-talented wife).  It really is an incredible story and shows, clearly, the heart and character of Jesus.

I will not leave you as orphans; I will come to you. – John 14:18 (ESV)

Have you adopted?  Have you thought about it? Do you know anybody that has?  Share stories/thoughts