Never Alone

 Today is my dad's 70th birthday. Doesn't look it does he? I will never love and respect any man more than I do my father. Here's a little story that shows why.

I remember the day my little boy brain bonded with my dad...permanently. I was at Foothills Camp in Alberta with my family for Camp Meeting. I must have been 8 or so. I don't remember having many friends as a kid. I've always been introverted and found it difficult making friends all the way up until high school. But this camp meeting I was hoping to make some new friends.

During the week they were having an exciting opportunity for this. They were taking a bus load of kids to a nearby lake to go water skiing and tubing. I was excited and nervous at the same time. 

When the time came, I grabbed my swimming trunks, my towel and my sunscreen and set off for the meeting area where the bus was going to pick us up. It took me a few minutes for my little legs to carry me there, my little heart pounding with anticipation and nervousness. 

However when I got there there was no bus. 

So I waited. 

And I waited. 

But I soon realized I had missed the bus. 

I'll never forget the total crushing of my spirit that I felt that day. It was more than the disappointment of missing out on the opportunity. I'd met a few kids who knew I was coming. But nobody told the bus driver to wait or came to grab me. Maybe not a realistic expectation, but it was another reminder of my loneliness. 

So trudged back to our camper. Mum was at a meeting, so through tears I explained what happened to my dad. He consoled me, but he did more than that. 

He didn't know where the bus had gone, but not far from Foothills there's a place called Red Lodge Provincial Park. So my dad told me to get my trunks, my towel and my sunscreen. We went and found a nice bit of beach along the river and I spent the afternoon playing in water and the sand. It wasn't the original plan, but I was no longer alone. I was with my dad. 

It was a profound experience for my little mind. I had gone from feeling abandoned to feeling accepted and "with" someone. 

To be with my dad when others "abandoned" me left me with a deep abiding sense of security in my Father's love. I realized that with his love in my life, I was never alone. He's been my most trusted counsellor and friend ever since. 

Jesus had an even deeper connection with His Father than I ever will have with my earthly Father. But there came a day where the Heavenly Father had to leave His Son alone, on the cross. And He did it, so that death could finally be conquered and all of us could claim with total confidence, that even if our earthly father can't be with us, because of Jesus, we will never be alone. God is always with us. 

Who's brought security to your life through their love? Thank them today. 😀

The Root of Love

This is Mason my nephew. He's taught me so much about love. I remember the first time I held him. I'm not his dad, but even as an uncle I was overwhelmed by a pure sense of love, of devotion and care for this little life. I wanted to be a better man, for his sake. 

But why? What brings that out?

I didn't create him. He'd done nothing for me. But here I was finding new depths of desire to care for and mentor and protect this little life. 

Some of it I chalk up to him being simply born into my family. He's one of us now. But I think there's a deeper part connected to it. I believe we've been designed to love. And a child in our family brings it out in the strongest sense possible. I believe this because I see how God has treated me, His child. He did not directly create me. But I'm born into His family. And as I've gotten to know God and understand the terrible price Jesus paid so I could be saved from myself, I see the same love (in part) in my own heart for Mason. What parent or uncle wouldn't give up their life for their beloved? 

So I believe the love I have for Mason is a well spring that comes from God. I recognize it because I've received it. Maybe you will too!

““How can I give you up, Ephraim? How can I hand you over, Israel? How can I treat you like Admah? How can I make you like Zeboyim? My heart is changed within me; all my compassion is aroused.” - God anguished over diobedient, rebellious children. 

Hosea 11:8 NIV

http://bible.com/111/hos.11.8.niv

““Jerusalem, Jerusalem, you who kill the prophets and stone those sent to you, how often I have longed to gather your children together, as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, and you were not willing.” Jesus anguished over rejection by those He came to save. 

Matthew 23:37 NIV

http://bible.com/111/mat.23.37.niv

"But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.”

Romans 5:8 NIV

http://bible.com/111/rom.5.8.niv

Prism: Love

This Sabbath we're trying something new at my church. It's called Prism. It's based on the idea
the idea that as a prism refracts pure light into all the creative colours that lie within it, in the same way, God reveals his creativity when his pure light shines through the inspired artistry, experiences and writings of His creation. Prism is a “show & tell” time to share and receive inspiration from God.Sometimes we lose sight of the wonder of God and I hope this can be a time to reconnect with our amazing Creator.

We'll be looking at the theme of love this Sabbath. Here's some examples of God's love that inspired me today.

Image: A Hand of Love

I love this picture of Grama Letniak and my Dad. Love can be an abstract, elusive thing. But it becomes very tangible with a touch. I'll always remember Grama's touch and her loving kisses. She passed away this Christmas but left a very tangible legacy of love behind.




 
 

Song: His Eyes
The first Christian audio-cassette I owned was "Real Life Conversations" by Steven Curtis Chapman. I wore that tape out. I re-listened to this song today and was struck by the breadth and tangible beauty of descriptions of God's love in Steven's words.

Bible verse: Rom 5:8
I read Romans 5 today and verse 8 jumped out to me as it always does. "While we were still sinners, Christ died for us". Being a recovering perfectionist, it's easy to try and wait to "get good" before seeking God but this verse reminds of the tangible proof that it is God who is sacrificially seeking me. Love to meditate on.

Image and Verse: Poured out Love
I've always considered this one of the most beautiful waterfall pictures in the world (other's agree). The beautiful emerald water pouring out over the rocks reminds me of God's constant love pouring into us. "Now hope does not disappoint, because the love of God has been poured out in our hearts by the Holy Spirit who was given to us". Romans 5:5

You Need a Friend like Scott

What fills your blank?

Traits of true friendship = ______________

What separates good friends from true friends? What bumps a friend to the top of the trust list?

I know.

You need to know Scott. Then you'd know too.
 

Scott

Scott probably considers himself a pretty ordinary guy. He's good with his hands, likes a good steak, spoils his three dogs and loves his beautiful wife. But I consider him extraordinary. A true friend.

It's because of light. Lasers to be specific.

Consider this metaphor. Communication, vital to any relationship, is like light. It can be clear and bright or diffuse and weak. It can clarify or create confusing shadows. It can blind you or show you the way.

I love communication. But sometimes I complicate it. Like beams of light, people's words, inflections, actions (and inactions) enter my brain and refract through my internal “analytical prism” into a spectrum of multiple possible meanings. I'll often attempt the impossible task of trying to address all possible meanings in the first shot with bloated “full spectrum” responses, so as not to offend, mislead or confuse...which ironically often confuses, sometimes misleads and occasionally offends.

Scott's not like that. If I sometimes communicate like a diffuse full spectrum light bulb, he's a focused laser. If he's confused, he zaps back with straightforward questions until he's clear. And once he's zeroed in, he'll give it to you straight. With Scot I'm never confused, seldom misled and often my pride is offended.

And that's why you and I need a friend like Scott.

I really believe that selfish pride is the root of all pain, suffering and evil. So anyone who's willing to help address it in your life is invaluable. In my pride, I like to maintain a certain perception of the type of person I am.

Conversations with Scott can be exhilarating sometimes for a “perception manager” like me. He says the things I'm thinking need to be said, but am afraid to say. He daily shows me that it's possible to be real, to say what's truly on your mind in an appropriate, honest way.

Sometimes honesty, like a laser...can burn or even cut deeply. But I find Scott's laser is more often like surgery; any cutting is focused on fixing and healing.

For me, Scott's a friend who represents Jesus' disarming (or sometimes alarming) straightforwardness, his concern for truth over perception (or even political correctness).

Jesus said he came to be a light to the world. He came to communicate clearly, to do heart surgery with words. Excruciating to the proud, revealing and healing to the humble.

I pray you each have a “Scott” in your life. If you don't, it's OK, you can start with Jesus.

Traits of True Friendship: #1 Loving honesty

The Blessing of Loss

Up until recently, I’d never experienced the death of someone very close to me. I often wondered how I’d react. Now I know. My Grampa, James Letniak, passed away at the age of 94 on August 15, 2012.

James Stephen Letniak was a character…with character. I wish I remembered him better.  In his later years, I saw him too little. What I remember always makes me smile though.

I’ll miss his hearty laugh, it was a wonderful laugh, full of life and earthiness.

I’ll miss the stories he loved to tell, the crooked index finger he’d use to emphasize his points. I’ll really miss those stories. They always reminded me of the tenacity and perseverance that pervaded his every waking day. When I think about the difficulty he faced in his life through the Great Depression and many other struggles that farmers face, I’m always encouraged by the strength and creativity he used to overcome each obstacle.

I learned what real intelligence was from Grampa. It’s not something you get at school. It’s how you live. It’s unrelenting curiosity. A mind fully and completely engaged with life.

I remember sitting in his living room listening to his mind work out loud, marveling at the intensity of his intellect. If he had an idea in his head, he was like a dog on a bone. He often said he couldn’t sleep because he couldn’t turn his mind off. I’m like that sometimes. Maybe that’s where it comes from.

I remember the pride and awe I felt when I first saw Grampa’s tractor-mounted post-pounder. I’d read about inventors like Thomas Edison. But now, I had one in my family. It wouldn’t win any industrial design awards, but in my little eyes, seeing fence-post heads submit to the weight of that hydraulic-powered guillotine as the old tractor bounced back and forth was a sight of beauty and grace.

Grampa was creative in the shop and on the farm but also in music. He was a guitar player and when I took up the guitar he immediately pled with me to avoid “tearing at the strings” like modern guitarists. Instead he suggested I learn the melodic picking-style of Wilf Carter his favourite guitar and yodeling virtuoso. I will Grampa, that’s a promise.

Grampa didn’t seem concerned with what others thought of him, but he was always concerned what his family was thinking and doing. I always knew that talking with Grampa wouldn’t be idle conversation. He would want to know what I was doing with my time and where it would take me. Those conversations weren’t always comfortable, but they were always valuable. I always knew he did it because he cared. He wanted the best for me and wanted me to make wise choices.

I’ll always remember his favourite question for me: “so….have you found yourself any two-legged deer?” I’d often respond that I was still looking and his smiling response was “Oh, well perhaps I need to get you some better binoculars to see with!” That whole conversation sums up much of what I love about Grampa. He was purposeful, he was creative and above all, he cared. He always wanted the best for me.

So how did I react to Grampa’s passing? Honestly, I was most emotional when I considered the joy of seeing him again. I’m a Seventh-day Adventist Christian, so that means when I think about death, it’s simply a sleep. And people who sleep, are at peace…which can only make me happy. Also, when I think about death, it’s temporary, to be overcome when Jesus returns to earth. 

And now it’s personal. 

At the funeral, the picture below was enlarged, framed and sat on a pedestal at the front of the church. As I stared at the image, it transformed. Grampa’s smile remained, but the skin smoothed, his back straightened, his muscles rippled, his arms flung wide as his long, strong legs ran towards me. My tears were real then, though it was an image. My tears will be just as real again when the image becomes reality.

 

To End All Wars (and Hopelessness)




Get it at Amazon!

  Despite my love of hope, I still have dark days. We all do. I had one a while back, had to spend half the day in bed recovering. I was looking for a story of hope and found it in the book To End All Wars. Ernest Gordon wrote his experiences in WWII in Japanese POW camps (Death Houses) in Thailand and Burma. (He helped build the "Bridge over the River Kwai"...you may have heard of the movie, it's based on his story).
Basically it's this amazing story of how despite brutal conditions, backbreaking work, constant debilitating sickness, and seemingly hopeless conditions, he and those around him were able to keep hope alive. And it came from a willingness to look beyond themselves and their current situation. Ernest is a Christian and was forced to come to terms with the evil surrounding him and his idea of a loving God. After reading the stories of Jesus in the Bible, he summed it up this way.

I see that the victory over the impersonal, destructive and enslaving forces at work in the world has been given to mankind because of what Jesus has done. This is the good news for man: God, in Christ, has shared his suffering; for that is what God is like. He has not shunned the responsibility of freedom. He shares in the saddest and most painful experiences of His children, even that experience which seems to defeat us all, namely, death. He comes into our Death House to lead us through it.

To read the stories of the little acts of hope (making a special meal for a prison-mate by blending lime juice with their rice ration) becoming entire industries of hope (they created an entire factory to make prosthetic limbs from scavenged tin, leather and bamboo for amputees). He was moved to several camps. In each one, it would feel hopeless, despondent. He would begin with kind, encouraging words and regular contact with people in need. Other men began to see the joy of serving others. One man who was the most despondent Ernest had ever met, ended his time in the prison by making it his daily duty to clean and collect the pus-and-maggot-infested, putrid-smelling dressings of men with major infection. He'd be seen whistling the day away, carrying his bucket of putrid purpose.

Ernest ends his book with words that were particularly striking for me, living in a privileged easy life in Canada.

Being forced to face life in the raw may help one to understand the nature of the Debate (between good & evil, health and suffering etc), but that isn't necessary. Every person who uses the talents God gave him so that he is not afraid to live as a sensitive human being among the impersonal forces at work in society is participating and will be conscious of its only possible conclusion.

So what is that only possible conclusion? He goes on to write about Jesus in the paragraph I quoted earlier. And I would summarize it with Paul's words: "Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.

Faith and hope to you all.

Hope

I'm taking a graduate class called "Hope and the Helping Relationship". Fascinating to see how the academics look at hope and how much Jesus fits all their lofty wonderings ; )
After my initial readings, this verse just popped into mind

John 16:33
'These things I have spoken to you, that in Me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation; but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world."

The entire Christian gospel is wonderfully, completely encased in this little pearl...
a) peace - we all want it, whether it's peace in the middle east or peace in our hearts: So Jesus addresses our greatest felt need
b) you will have tribulation - this is not an airy-fairy, Tony Robbins, one-sided positive message. It addresses reality: this world sucks, it's evil and you'll get hurt.
c) but be of good cheer - in my reading I've encountered a new phrase that encapsulates what Jesus is saying here "have hope as your orientation". Let hope be your compass.
d) i have overcome the world - Why should I choose hope when doubt makes oh so much more sense? Because Jesus has beat the evil, He's faced it before you, He's won and thus HE IS YOUR HOPE. He is your true north. He is your inspiration, and His loving arms are your final destination.

Lisa Hwang

Bada-bada, ding-ding, ding-ding, ding!
That stereotypical Chinese "jingle" is what I would bellow into the phone everytime I talked to my friend Lisa Hwang. I've since realized the cultural crassness of this, but it's a testament to her good naturedness that she'd simply laugh at my white insensitivity (or maybe it was just my poor "jingle skillz").

I was always blessed by Lisa's sense of adventure. I don't remember where we met, I just remember the adventures. The epic hike down (and back out in 40C heat!) to Havasupai Falls near the Grand Canyon, tubing down the epic North Fork of the Walla Walla River, and of course the epic "jig-moshing" parties we'd have with Great Big Sea & Cotton-eyed Joe blaring. If you're doing something fun and epic, she's there.
Thanks for the laughs and showing me how to let out the dance in all of us Lisa! You'll be a blessing and an inspiration to all your patients!

Mike Adams

I love all things about India. Their curries, colours and culture. Their family focus, their friendliness and food. Yes I mentioned the food twice, it's the best! So it should be no surprise that I love Mike Adams (sounds Indian eh?) Here's the picture to prove it.

Awesome. Lovin' the Indi-Urkel thing you got going on bud.

This one shows him all growd up and sarcastic. That's one of his defining traits, his withering sarcasm. Don't EVER get into a war of words with him, he'll ace you.
But beneath that veneer of sarcasm is a heart of gold. I visited Edmonton a lot before I moved here. I often crashed at Mike's house I always appreciated the awesome hospitality he and Bev gave me...and the MOST AMAZING FUTON EVER! Thanks bud.

The real blessing Mike's given me though is a model for someone who really loves the youth of this world. He's been tireless in his youth activities at his church, and is always seeking to bring the kids closer to God. I spend a lot of time with the youth at my church and I've learned alot from Mike's approach of being fun, real and relevant.

He's a teacher at Coralwood and it appears he has found that balance between fun and authoritative. Point in fact...two comments from students on his facebook pics page.

"`wow i can't believe you r my teacher"

"Oh mygosh. i showed my mom this and i said. this is the guy whose teaching me every week" (hopefully not english, eh Mike ; )

Anyway, just wanted to send a shout out to Mike for all his love he's shown to the kids at school and at church. I know many of your students...they love you and they're blessed by you...and so am I.

The Little Engine That Could

When I was a kid, one of my favourite stories was The Little Engine That Could. He had a mantra that got him up a seemingly insurmountable mountain pass. It was "I think I can, I think I can, I think I can...". And he did.

So did my friend Nikia Furman.

Tenacity. That's his word.



Never
Give
Up.

I met Nikia in video production classes at Walla Walla College. He was quiet, strong, passionate when he spoke and just a bit different. He believed in the power of story more than us. He believed in the possibility of story to change, for the collective good.

That tenacity led him to create an outdoor adventure documentary series called Escape. The idea was to get people outside. View their adventures. Hear their story and insights along the way.
Under very trying circumstances, he turned it into an internationally broadcast and award winning show. He started with "I think I can" and he did.

Since then he's gone on his own with Furman Pictures, producing films, corporate promos, ads and a show similar to Escape called Beyond Adventure. It's taken him all over USA, Canada and even Patagonia in Argentina. And as far as I can tell, he's still the same strong, quiet, quirky guy.

God bless ya bud. Keep chugging away. It's a blessing to me and those around you.

Bouquet of Blessings

I just want to say thank you. Thank you to TJ for his persistent, God-filled friendship and encouragement. Thank you to my mother for wisdom, deep caring and never-ending love. Thank you to my father for understanding, listening and leading me down the paths of discovery our brains share. Thank you to Keith for smiling and laughing. Thank you to Kibbee for being himself. Thank you to Nyater for being Jesus' greatest witness. Thank you to God for pain, for letting me face it, for always being there, for carrying me when I couldn't walk anymore.

My kind of party

So I turned 32 yesterday. To be honest, I wasn't feeling great, couldn't really explain it, just down. But I'd been invited to supper by my former colleague to supper and the only night it worked was my birthday night. Totally random. My friend Suresh Joshee is from Nepal (which I visited for 1.5 days) and he's got a wonderful happy outlook, a wonderful happy wife and a wonderful happy son...and by the end of the night I felt wonderful and happy too!
I wasn't expecting any birthday festivities, but here's what the Joshee family did for me. They bought me a nice new shirt (which fits perfectly), they cooked the most delicious vegetarian pakora (fried veggie patties), butter korma (cheese) curry, lentil soup and best of all...for the vegetarian...they bought me a carrot cake!!
Their son Samyog and I ended up playing hockey for an hour too. I found that rolling around on the floor in your business clothes is incredibly freeing and indeed confirms I'm still young : )

Artist of All

Holy Sculptor of my heart
in loving labour, man your crowning art
Life's greatest organ, tireless fist - first flex?
Began when Your breath did bless

From dust we came and dust we use
in various textures, layers and hues
Dabbing, stabbing, splashing, stroking
till the offering's altarized, drying

The greatest lens of all
resides inside our eyes
Yet with self-made lens, we scan your sights
Optic truth, our precious, never-realized prize

Earth cracking thunder
inspired kettle drums smashing nonchalance asunder
Wall of sound? A waterfall
Brooks and streams, variations on Your theme.

Holy Sculptor of my heart
This temple walks and talks, hope's others gawk...
but the only form that's truly pleased
is humble, broken, on its knees.

Mother's Touch

So, I've finally succumbed. All my life, my precious mother has been trying to get me to cook. I've resisted with valiance and great success. She's at times said, half-jokingly, half-sadly, that's "she's failed as a mother" because of my culinary dullardry. Well my mother is no failure. She's simply persistent, and her persistence has finally won out Praise God!
She's spent the last two days at my place cooking and teaching me to prepare food that I may cook on my own, and I'm incredibly excited.

I've recently discovered the joy of eating as healthfully as possible, the way God intended, and mother's recently discovered how to cook this way at a new level. Lucky me! See, too often veggie or even vegan dishes are....well....food you "choke" down. Sweet goodness, it doesn't have to be that way!

I'm telling you, I've never eaten better, and never felt better. Well prepared vegetarian or even vegan food is so incredible, it's like my tongue's discovered a new country. Okay, okay...but I'm lovin' it and I'm lovin' my mum for her time and perseverance. Tomorrow we're making apple pie...

Pillars of Thanks

'Tis been awhile since I've memorialized the blessings in my life. And it's a shame because I forget so easily.
I was talking with my buddy Keith tonight about just this situation. He mentioned how the Israelites used to erect altars and stone pillars to remind them of God's blessings (like crossing the Jordan, crossing the Red Sea). The times that God came through, when they clearly couldn't. And I've had a number of those moments in the recent past, so it's time to erect a virtual pillar of remembrance to God.

I truly wanted to attend a conference on Friendship Evangelism in April. Couldn't afford it. So God whispered to my life coach Debbie these words..."tell people your dream and tell them your dilemma". Within two days I had the money, it was waiting for me already. And my dream of finding a ministry that fits me was realized.

I've begun to see the countless situations that God puts me in where I can be that sliver of light, He's given me hope for my own faith, seeing it blossom under stress. He's helped me accept the process of knowing Him, accepting that I don't have to have it all figured out, He continues to lead.

I've been struck in the last month how blessed I am to have friends that truly, deeply, love God. They also love fun. And the outdoors. These two joys combined with one of those life-altering friends of mine, James. At our last camping trip, on the descent from the view pictured above, we began "freeruning" at full tilt down through the forest...leaping logs, dodging branches, bobbing and weaving. The freedom of that moment, the joy in nature...that's good stuff.

I preached my first sermon last weekend...and saw God absolutely rewrite my sermon the night before. Amazing to witness a clarity of thought that comes after deep prayer.

I could go on, but enough about me, what about you? What pillar of thanks would you erect to God right now? How's He come through for you?

It's always a blessing when we remember.

Milestone

So when I started writing this, it's about 30 minutes before I turn 30. I used to think birthdays were unremarkable, not worth too much fuss or time. But my bud Karel figures it's one of the most worthy times to celebrate and tonight I realized he's right.

Have you ever had one of those moments when you actually glimpse the depth of what it means to live? It's like getting a sliver of what God sees. Like when you're able to imagine Heaven and actually SEE it, consider the mind-blowing intricacies of a human body, or understand and experience what love -true, selfless, intoxicating, fulfilling love -is actually like.

A birthday is an invitation to experience those sorts of thoughts. One day, 30 years ago, the most wonderful woman in the world gave birth to a squalling miracle of life. I couldn't feed, move or clean myself, yet now I do all that (with varying degrees of success :) and oh so much more. And that development has less to do with me and more to do with those around me.

A God who designed this miraculous body that grows, develops, changes, each cell with a purpose...simply because He said so.
A father who's given me balance, strength and true comradeship.
A mother who's bled love and devotion.
A sister who's inspired determination and my love of a cackle.

An extended family that's been a pillar of strength and support.

A friend, a Nubian king, whose deep thoughts and authentic heart propelled me to late hours and the dawn of my spiritual awakening.

A friend whose leap of faith hangs on my wall. He's felt the fear, did it anyway and inspired me to do the same.

A friend with his own country and a list of things to do before he dies.

A friend of true authenticity, who I call one of my closest, despite only several days spent in person.

A friend of astounding vocabulary, her stories having unparalleled hilarity and sublime, sardonic wit.

A friend who beckons to the great outdoors, lives and breathes the nature God's set before him.

A friend, a mentor, a man of artistic passion, zealous joyfulness and one with whom I experienced my greatest moment of happiness.

Friends that I've hurt, yet received forgiveness and wisdom.

A friend who showed what true love meant, and "laid down His life for [this friend]" that I may know Him now, and thank Him for eternity.

Truly...I am blessed.

Brothers

I had a spiritual retreat with these brothers of mine in Lethbridge last weekend. It wasn't planned, but then God's blessings are often surprises. And it was more than religious discussion. It was belly-aching laughter, hearty food, and the open, frank discussions of men. God nourishes us in many ways, and we were filled.
To my brothers Yual and Job, I say thank you. It seems that some of the people who most often strengthen you in life, often must leave you. But I believe it's so that they can bless others, and so that you can learn to move forward on your own. It's then we realize that distance can never erase the bonds of friendship.

Thankfulness . : . THE Reason

So it's taken me a month to come full circle since my last post. It's been a struggle to let God work in me. Yet today I had a breakthrough.

I've been convicted the last several weeks that my focus is off. I realized I didn't know Jesus. I know OF Him, but I've let my friendship with Him completely slide. And today, I got a greater glimpse of Him. Pray that it lasts!

Have you ever considered what it would have been like for Jesus to be born? Here's the Creator of all things, giving up an audience of angels, for a painful, bloody birth. Imagine all of those first experiences at birth. His first pain, His first chill, His first yell. The one that stuns me is His first smell.

Jesus was born in a barn, laid in a feeding trough. The King of Heaven volunteered to save our world, and his very first introduction to the earth...was the smell of animal feces. No parent on earth today would wish such a birth situation as that...but God chose it and it humbles me.

"The heart of the human father yearns over his son..he trembles at the thought life's peril. He longs to shield his dear one from Satan's power, to hold him back from temptation and conflict. Yet...yet...To meet a bitterer conflict and a more fearful risk, God gave his only begotten Son , so that the path of life may be made clear for OUR little ones".
~ Desire of Ages, p 48-9

I'm not a father, but I am a brother to a beautiful, wonderful sister. And I know what it means to pray and fear for her well-being in a world that's bent on the abuse of women in all forms. So when I consider what it meant for God to send His most precious child, to send Him to "meet life's peril in common with every human soul, to fight the battle as every child of humanity must fight it, at the risk of failure and eternal loss" (DA, 49)....I don't really know how to deal with that. The risk was huge, Christ could have failed, but the reward was worth the risk.

After reading this, I asked God for a simple principle that I could apply to remember this.
And the answer came quietly, but quickly - "Be thankful and receive".

So thank whomever deserves your thanks today, it's all you can do to repay them.