the    sides

This week in our spiritual formation group one of our possible “practices” is to write a letter of encouragment to someone.

So this week - every day, I’ll do an encouragment post.

Today - Steve Boehm.

Dearest Steve (but not in a gay way),

You are the biggest goofball in the world.

That might not sound like encouragment but it is. I’d never imagine an engineer dressed in drag, quoting movie lines by the dozens, who can’t carry a tune in a bucket but praises God anyway could give away more time and money to teens than entire churches. I’d never imagine that anybody could have such a sensitive gag reflex that the mention of “sour milk and apples” starts the heaving.

That’s topnotch goofball material there.

Oh yeah, you’re terrible at Halo as well. Why do you even bother playing the game?

I’ll tell you why - because teenage boys play it and it doesn’t matter that you couldn’t hit an ant with a rocket launcher. It matters that you were there on Friday and Saturday nights, staying up late, eating junk food, laughing, talking trash, taking trash, and showing a bunch of boys how to grow up to be a man.

Here’s the short list of how you’ve made me a better lover of Jesus:

It’s more important to implement a plan that HAS to trust Jesus, than to have an incredibly thought out plan that never gets feet.

Mission trips are more fun when students are in charge.

It’s good to be called “off-balance” for the King.

Lost teens don’t need another “cool adult.” They need Jesus. So love them to him.

It’s okay to be smart. It’s better to be honest.

Trust God and do the next thing. Even when you feel like you are lost in the weeds, desert, fog, or storm.

A dry time is half as dry with a friend.

Some things you just don’t need to pray about.

I love you Steve….(but not in a Brokeback kind of way…)