I had a good day yesterday. 

First, my family got to go to church.  That’s right.  I got to.  I live in a country where I can make that choice if I want to make it.  No one can stop me from worshiping God.  I can’t imagine being in a country where I might have to watch someone drag away my wife and children because they claim the name of Christ. 

Do we take that for granted?  I know I do at times.  And while we argue back and forth over style and meaningless, pointless things (I’m just as guilty,) many of our brothers and sisters worldwide are regularly beaten and killed.  I wonder what a father from Korea would say to us here in America after he’s been jailed and beaten and separated from his family for preaching the gospel. 

Those were random thoughts I was having as I watched my four younger children go smiling and laughing into their classes and then sat in worship with my wife and two older kids. 

I think it's worth repeating.  I got to go to church. 

Anyway… continuing… later that evening something happened that sort of freaked me out.  My wife and I took our 14 year old son and his… girlfriend… I can barely say it… out on a “date.”

It was sort of unplanned.  My wife and I volunteered to work the Holt International booth at a Christian concert in Charlotte last night.  Holt is a worldwide adoption agency and works to get orphaned children sponsored by people for $30 a month.   Bands like Hawk Nelson, Steven Curtis Chapman and Jeremy Camp were playing at the event.  So my wife and I thought it would be nice to give my son and his friend a chance to hang out and for my wife and I to spend a bit of time getting to know her. 

By the way, not that it really matters, but when did I turn into an almost 40, glasses wearing, minivan driving dad who’s taking his 14 year old son and girlfriend out on a date??? 

“Dear God, help me not feel old.”

We all had a good time and I saw my son in a way that somehow I’ve not noticed before.  I could tell that he really cares about his friend and it struck me that I’m about to enter a new phase of fatherhood.  Hopefully, if he lets me stay involved, I’ll be mentoring a young man as he begins planning his adult life.

There was one bad part of the night.  I shed a few tears looking through the children’s’ information packets on the Holt International table.  You would too if you had seen them.  Holt knows how to get you – a close up picture of each child is on the cover of their packet.  Near the end of the night people were no longer coming to the table to sign up to host a child.  And there were hundreds left.  Maybe it’s because I'm a father to young children, but all the sad, hungry faces that were left got to me.  And I’ll have to admit that I felt a bit discouraged too.  10,000 Christians were rocking out praising Jesus while a couple hundred kids were left uncared for. 

I know we get hit from all sides for worthy causes.  And money is tight.  But the next time you get frustrated in your walk or discouraged with life or angry about something your church is doing or the preacher said, go to the Holt International website.  Or Compassion International. (Thanks for the help with the link!)  Look at the faces of the kids.  Praise God for the life we have and the opportunity to make a difference in the lives of so many others.  Forget about the meaningless dribble.  Help a child. 

I’ve found that the best way to get out of a rut when I’m feeling down is to lift someone else up.