It is no secret that blog readers slow down their reading on the weekends. However, what are we all slowing down our reading to do? I know that on this Saturday I am going to slow down and eat breakfast with a friend from half way around the world at Rise n’ Dine. I am going to slow down and hang with my girls and probably play the wii, chill outside, and cookout. I am going to curl up with THE WIFE and watch a movie and then probably fall asleep before I really need to so I will be rested to bring the noise from the Word of God tomorrow morning at Compass Roanoke!!!

So what are you doing to slow down today?

(Laura and Ella- First day of 1st Grade)

This week has seen major changes in the DeVage household. This past Monday was the highlight and the saddest day all in the same and all for the same reason. At 7:50am Monday August 23, 2010 my little girl Ella started the first grade. What does that mean? That means she is at the big kid school now. She is a lamb in world full of wolves (extreme I know, but she is my baby). Monday we walked her to her class and bid her goodbye. Monday was not hard for me…Tuesday however, destroyed me. I went to walk her in and she said, “Daddy, I’m good. I know where to go.” It was in that moment that I knew I had to begin letting her go just a teeny tiny bit. A tear may have entered the corner of one eye for just a second, but so did a bit of pride in my soul for the little girl that my baby is becoming. I am so proud of her and how she keeps growing up.

How did you handle the first day of school for your first child?

A few months ago I read Donald Miller’s book “A Million Miles in a Thousand Years.” Very rarely do I read 200 hundred plus page books in one sitting, but this was one of those rare moments. Every page I turned was full of highlighting and underlining. I wrote things in the margins. I was transformed by the words and thoughts that Mr. Miller had brought to life for me. It provoked thought about my story. The entire book was about just that. It was continually asking,

“What kind of story are you living?”

I got to the end of the book and that question lingered in me for days, maybe even weeks. But I did what I normally do with a book that I am finished with. I closed it, glanced one last time at the cover and then put it on the shelf with the countless other books I have finished. This book that was so impacting on me was now just a distant memory. The thought of living a better story was just that…a thought. And now that very thought was fleeting. That was until a week ago. I had a friend sit down and share with me a vision that he had about bringing peoples true stories to the forefront within the church. Not the kind of stories that we try to fool people into believing that we are living, but the story that we are actually living. In essence he was saying that it is not until we get honest with the story we are actually living, that we can live out the story we were meant to be living. As I listened to him share this I was jarred back into the reality of that question that rocked me months ago.

What kind of story am I living right now?

I immediately directed him to Mr. Miller’s book. He admittedly told me that he was not a veracious reader by any stretch, and I told him he would not be able to put it down. I was right and three days later he was done reading it and had found the same challenge I had found. So with all that said, I picked it back up and am currently re-reading it. I am again confronted with the question mentioned above. The difference this time is that I am not satisfied to just ask and wrestle with the question. I am not content with letting the question linger on a shelf and no further. My desire is that I would actually live a better story. That the chapters and the content would have lasting meaning and impact on my wife, my kids, my ministry, and the Kingdom of God that I serve. Not only do I long for a better story, but God longs for us to have a better story. In fact he created us for a better story. So today as you read this and wrestle with your story ask yourself this…

WHAT KIND OF STORY AM I LIVING RIGHT NOW?

Now lets conversate…

“IF THE POINT OF LIFE IS THE SAME AS THE POINT OF A STORY, THE POINT OF LIFE IS CHARACTER TRANSFORMATION.”

-Donald Miller in A Million Miles in a Thousand Years-

This week I am at staff retreat with the greatest team ever assembled. Our lead pastor Drew Sherman shared what I would consider some of the greatest and most impactful leadership thoughts I have ever heard. Here are the notes that I took today and if you want more please contact me. I promise you will not be disappointed.

LEADERSHIPTHOUGHTS

This past week I shared with our Compass Roanoke people a story about the cuteness of my Natalie singing about wanting to be a sheep. Here is your dose of cuteness tonight. I thought we could all use this in our Tuesday night lift tonight. Your are welcome in advance.

Your brilliance astounds me.

Your heart for others blows me away.

Your integrity is unmatched.

Your love for our children is unfathomable.

Your faith in Christ is admired by me as your husband.

I love falling in love with you again everyday!!!

12:15pm, much like most Wednesday’s, was time to go to the elementary school and mentor the 3rd grade students our staff has the privilege to pour into each week.

Lunch with Jeremy Peterson followed as we ate quesadillas and burritos to commemorate Cinco De Mayo.

The rest of the afternoon was spent writing, preparing and getting ready for some great meetings with some great people the rest of the week. I knew that time was going to be tight the rest of the day due to the fact I was going to have another meeting with some AWESOME people again last night.

4:00pm I went and picked up my girls from school and headed home to spend an hour and a half with them.

One of the things I love about my girls is that they love art in any form and they really love listening to music on vinyl. So we did what any person needing to relax did…

We pulled out Ella’s art set she got for Christmas. Now this is not just any art set, this is a professional art set with drawers of charcoal, pencils, blending pencils, erasers, clay and paints.

I put on the Dead Weather Album first. The girls went silent, as did I, and we began to just draw and create whatever came to mind. Then we switched the vinyl to Led Zeppelin.

Ella and Nat are now bobbing their heads to “Good Times, Bad Times.” As a result I had a very therapeutic hour of sketching, drawing, and silence with my two little girls.

Not sure why, but I ended drawing something that started quite dark and ended up having color and glimpses of life. I MUST DO THIS MORE!!!

Laura came home and began to make dinner. What followed was a great salad with orange peppers, cheese, nuts, chicken and crasins in it. As we sat an ate the record finished spinning and the needle made its way back into the locked position. We sat in silence as a family and ate. It was relaxing for the few moments we got to do so yesterday.

What creative thing makes you relax and think better?

How so you may be asking? Yesterday I took the day off and spent the day pouring into my little girl on her 6th Birthday.

The day was unreal…

Where do you want to go Ella? That was the question…

“PANERA…for breakfast…”

So off we went!!! We laughed, giggled and talked…

Now where sweet heart?

“Lets visit mommy at work…”

Great…mommy was surprised and we laughed, giggled, and talked…

Now what baby?

“Can we go to the mall and shop?”

Absolutely!!!

“Can I get a new pair of shoes daddy?”

Yes baby!!!

“Can we eat lunch at Gehngis Grill?”

Sure beautiful…lets rock it.

“Can we watch Alice In Wonderland in 3D?”

Lets do it.

“Daddy, can we get popcorn with butter and good stuff on it?”

Rock n’ Roll baby.

“Daddy…this was THE BEST DAY EVER!!!”

You have no idea baby…daddy has been completely and utterly wrecked by your beauty, innocence, love, and affection. I gave up a day for you to see how much daddy loves you and you showed me that I should do that more often to realize how much you love me. I am utterly in love with you and thank God for you each and every day.

TREASURE HUNT!!!

THE TREASURE

THE BIRTHDAY DINNER. SHE WANTED MOM’S HOMEMADE PASTA