Life's Stuff-flood and Me

It's a flood. Stuff, I mean. Tides rise, so do rivers. So does stuff. They all ebb, too.

Let's do life's stuff-flood for a reflective moment.

Mine is a crowded life suddenly. So, I'm taking time over a quick PBJ to reflect. Nevertheless, heart beats fast and axienty crowds my focus.

Go over to the blog--we call it a DIAblog--soninlaw, Matt, and I are building for our book. You'll love the two latest posts: "Generational Hike or Death March?" followed by today's "The Soon-to-be-man Son, His Dad, and Dad's Dad Are Actually..."

We are actually going on our 100-mile, five day mountain hike. Full day packing, shopping. The last week in 4-mile test hikes. I'll turn 70 somewhere in the mountains near Moab. "Imagine," Carolyn said, gleelessly, "IF you return, you'll be 70!"

For all the effort, our www.GENDADS.com DIAblog has been a long, hard struggle, but not quite ready for prime time. It's needed these days for publishing.

Then there is the madness of five grandkids next door (we're parked in their long gravel driveway for the summer).

What's my point worth reflecting? Thanks for asking.

Busy, sure. But the priority is my grandchildren. (Sure, God and wife and country, etc, but I'm talking about where I put my time, energy, and those persistent little daily sacrifices). Of the four older than 1 year, I can see basic personality pieces that will be with them the rest of their lives. Personality pluses and minuses we all have. That's what being filled with the Spirit of God addresses. You know, "Love, Joy, Gentleness..."(that's the one I pause on the most) to offset the character flaws that emerge from untransformed personality inventories.

Ready for the point? Almost there.

I was wondering what makes so many grandfathers disassociate from their grandchildren. I think I see it in the basic personality. Some, raised in strong families, especially Christ-centered ones, will have a ready platform for future family focus all the way to grandparenting. Others must need that transformation of character that is willing to make the significant sacrifices required to fulfill the fathering role and needed to build the legacy of good and godly children.

I'm about to write the whole book here. So, let's stop withthe point: Are you, young dad and older dad, prepared to do now and in the future what is necessary to extend godliness though your life-blood (or, as they say so crassly and clearly in Scripture, "your loins")? Are you prepared or preparing for the initiative, energy, commitment, sacrifice to make your children (or, there we go again, "seed") the models of godliness for future generations

Strawberry--M&M--Oreo Shake...and 12.5

Ok, we're keeping the wild and gray for this old Goose, but let's pretend the Challenger heading up to rescue the GENDADS site still floating in the blogosphere is serving Strawberry--M&M--Oreo shakes on the way up. That's the hook for the date I conned my grandson, Taylor, in to for going with me for that generational fathering chat. I'm a contributor on the Legacy Dad blog and decided to put my story there while awaiting the premier of Matt's and my GENDADS blog in a week. Hurry. It's a bit long, only 1000 words, and a test of the length blog readers will accept for a story-telling. www.legacydad.com. Comment back if at all possible.

CHALLENGER, WERE SENDING UP A SOLUTION

Stay glued to your screens Wild Gray Goose fans. New plan. Matt and I are opening an entirely separate blog, we call it a "diablog," to be the active platform for our book, Generational Fathering. GenDads will feature discussions, ideas, musings, and surveys. And, we hope, lots of dialog. We think we have something to share with you out of our lives about fathering--together. We need to hear stories and ideas and those revolutionary (ok, "outlandish") concepts of parenting from you. It'll keep our book real. And, we'll listen to the struggles you have that are common to fathers. We've been there and Matt makes his living rescuing families at the residential ranch for, well, "challenging" teens.

When? Houston is sending up a rescue ship. Should reach us in yet another week. GenDad diablog hopes to premier August 1. Yeah!!

And the Goose? Still wild and a little grayer and filled with the Wild Goose. Gary will blog here weekly or more. Idea is to engage others in their walk with God. Learn a little, prod a little. You might read a subtitle as Wild at Heart Redux.

PROVERBS, TUFF LOVE, MODELLING, PRAYING

I just have to toss something out to you from early morning reflections. It’s simple and has been prodding me all day. Caught an email reply from Don who I had saluted in an email for the powerful interview I had with his son, now 21 and a front line missionary in his second year of Arabic language learning.

His father is a poster dad for creating intentional legacy. He is one of today’s most effective business-as-missions leaders. Son, Pete, says that dad was there lots in the young years (they all lived overseas), less in dad's more vigorous world-changing years and as the father-shaping need grew less. But, he said, around age 17 just before he left for college in the States, the sit-down chat included a reference to The File. It was finished. Pete never saw The File but knew it existed. It was his mom and dad’s organized plan for principles, activities, and truths of living they wanted covered before releasing the two sons. The File had transformed the hearts and the flesh of two young lives. But now it was finished.

Here’s what’s for us dads and grand dads who recognize the legacy we hope for is not alone in sound doctrine or proper church manners, but in holy lives imparted intentionally with care, caution, love, and prayer.

Here is Don’s response back to my question about the secrets to his successful fathering. This was nearly his entire email reply, in true laconic form:

"Not sure what to write on fathering. I spent a lot of time in Proverbs with the boys, was tough on them, but always explained my actions. The rest was just modeling. And praying."

Gary
(site) www.generationalfathering.com , (blog) www.newseason.us