We met in Bible College (some called it Bridal College). She was returning to school to do her fourth year. I was in my final year. I fell in love at first sight. She … not so much. We began dating a few weeks into the school year. For the first few weeks, she would tell her roommate that she was going to break up with me the next time we got together. But, I’d win her over with my charm. After a few weeks, she gave up and the rest, as they say, is history.

I remember some of the talks we had before getting married. We dreamed about doing ministry among those who were rejected by the church. We talked about what it would be like to be in a community among drug addicts, prostitutes, outlaws, and the homeless. What would it be like to reach the “unreachable” for God?

It took a lot of years to see those dreams realized, but here we are. It’s truly incredible.

We’ve experienced so much together on this journey. Incredible victories, heart-wretching defeats. Unbelievable joy, indescribable pain. We’ve been blessed with an amazing family and wonderful friends. We’ve seen so many lives transformed over the years.

And yet, in all of it, I sit here today, simply in awe of the gift I’ve been given in my wife. Heather has been there at my best and at my worse. There are times when I was there for her. There have been times when I’ve failed her. I don’t deserve her and yet she continues to stand at my side. She is an incredible mother to my children. She’s a phenomenal supporter of my calling. She is the perfect partner to live life with.

So, on this 20th anniversary, I want to tell the world that I love you with all my heart. I look forward to the journey that is before us, and I am so very grateful for the path we have taken so far.

Happy anniversary, Heather.

My Family

This may be Brit’s last year living at home. In June, she’ll graduate from high school and in September, she’ll enter college. She’s applied at three different colleges, only one of them is here in Ottawa. Even if she gets into the Ottawa school, she may consider living on campus. Still, her first choice is one of the schools a few hours away.

Christina is growing up quickly and I love seeing her begin to focus more on her own areas of passion. In many ways, she is very much like her sister, but in other areas, she is clearly her own person. I love that. While Christina has already spent a year without her sister around (when Brit was in Costa Rica), it will still be different for her to experience teenage life without her big sister around as much.

Heather headed back to work this morning and will slowly get back into the swing of things. During the later part of 2009, she really saw her faith and her focus go to the next level, and I’m excited to see what will happen in her life in 2010. Much of the Extreme Faith theme for 2010 is a result of her, and I believe she will play in integral part in Bikers’ Church as we move forward.

Extreme Faith

Speaking of Bikers’ Church, I am truly excited about the theme we have for the year. This isn’t just a one month series, but a year long focus. What does it truly mean to live a life full of faith? What would happen if we lived each day believing in God’s ability to accomplish his will through us? What would it be like to have an authentic faith like that of the First Century Church?

I’m not sure I can fully answer those questions, yet. However, I look forward to the journey that the entire church will take over the course of the next twelve months. I truly believe it will change us dramatically.

And so, I sit here, looking at my monitors, asking God to lead me through this year. I feel inadequate. I feel unworthy of the task. Without God, we will fail. I will fail. But with God … well, all things are possible.

I’m ready. Are you?

Many people don’t like the story they are writing. And so, they ignore the book. They pretend the words aren’t really be written. They dive into some kind of make believe story and imagine their life differently. They go online and create a persona that really isn’t them. They watch movies and imagine themselves the hero, or the villan.

And yet, each day, another page is written in their own story. What are you writing?

There are a few things that have caused me to think more about this question. If you’ll indulge me, I’d like to share them with you. I’ll try to do this quickly, because I know most of you are pretty busy getting the final things done before Christmas. But, if you take the time to read this post to the very end, you may discover the best Christmas present you could give yourself.

Let me share three things.

First, I was struck yesterday by a tweet that came across my twitter account. A pastor wrote, “can’t imagine the pain of launching a church, watching it grow, stepping down in shame, & seeing a new pastor step up. Praying 4 ______”. I didn’t know the name of the person he was praying for, but I clicked on their twitter name and then went to the blog linked to his account. He planted a church eight years ago and was seeing amazing things done. And then, a six week affair brought everything crashing to the ground. Yesterday, that church announced the name of the pastor who would replace him. As I read his blog, I found a man who was trying to get his life back on track. It’s been six months since his actions became public. Today, he inspects roofs for an insurance company. He is separated from his wife and children, but his focus is to repair the damage he has caused to those relationships. He doesn’t want people to feel sorry for him. His wife and children are the victims. Still, yesterday must have been an incredible day of mixed emotions. On his own twitter account, he celebrated the announcement of a new pastor and wished him and the church nothing but God’s best, and yet still … it would have been a tough day. This pastor wakes up each morning and faces a blank page. He is writing a story that hopefully will describe how God can raise up a broken man. God is the God of Second Chances.

His story struck me because I often hear people tell me that they’ve given up on their own story. They failed miserably. For thirty or forty years, the pages of their life have been fill with failure. Broken relationships, missed opportunities, crushed promises. Rather than see the blank page in front of them today, they see the mess of a page from yesterday. Again, God is the God of Second Chances.

The second thing has me thinking about story took place a year ago. As many of you know, I have to amazing daughters. One is seventeen, the other is eleven. I’m still enjoying being a dad. That’s my focus. Most of my closest friends are in that stage of enjoying parenthood. However, a little over a year ago, a little baby boy was born. His name is Landon. Landon’s mom and dad are like adopted kids to me. Landon’s grandparent’s are some of my closest friends. Heck, I’m even known as “Papa Rob” to Landon (not that he really knows that name yet, he’s only one after all. But, he will.).

This morning, I was thinking about Landon’s grandfather, John. Actually, I was thinking about Landon in twenty five years. I imagined him sitting on a couch, cuddling a cute girl. They are in love. They’re talking about the future. And then, the cute girl asks Landon about his family. And for a minute, Landon is quiet. He is thinking. Memories flood his mind. He starts to share about his parents, and how amazing they are. He laughs as he talks about his grandmother Chantal. How she still spoils him rotten. How her face lights up every time he comes to visit. But then he gets quiet again. I imagine him almost whispering to the cute girl he is cuddling with, “Do you know who inspires me the most? My grandfather.” The cute girl hasn’t met his family yet, so she cuddles in a little closer and says, “Tell me about him.” And Landon does. He talks about his Dutch grandfather who taught him what it’s like to be a strong man. He tells stories that I can’t share, because … well, they haven’t been written yet. But they will be.

You see, John is writing on fresh pages. He’s writing a story that will live on through grandchildren, and even great-grandchildren. The story he writes will be up to him. What he wants Landon to tell that cute girl cuddling him on the couch is up to John.

Finally, this whole idea of the story we write has been sparked in my mind thanks to a book I’m reading right now. Don Miller has written a number of books, but his latest, A Million Miles In A Thousand Years is an amazing book. I encourage you to pick it up. Make it a gift to yourself this Christmas season. And be inspired to write a good story rather than a tragedy.

Look, each of us is writing a story. This is non-negotiable. Whether you like it or not, you’re writing a story. The question is we must ask is what kind of story are we writing?

Today’s page is blank before you. What will be written on the page at the end of the day?

If you have Facebook, you can vote by clicking here.

This is her video:

Heather and I tried our best to match Brit’s flight, but were only successful in traveling as far as Houston with her. From there, we headed to Cincinnati and then to Montreal. We arrived a few hours before Brit and waited for her.

Going through four different airports in one day is rather interesting. One thing really jumped out at me. And that was how different the level of service we found.

When we arrived at the airport in San Jose, we were greeted by a friendly person who processed our boarding passes with a smile on their face. It was 4 am, but you wouldn’t have known it by the attitude of everyone working at the airport. Signs clearly directed us where to go to get on our plane.

We experienced the same level of service when we arrived in Houston. The airport was so beautifully laid out and the staff so friendly, that we assured Brit that there was nothing to be nervous about as she ventured off for the rest of her trip without us. “Just find a friendly face if you are unsure where to go.” We told her.

Cincinnati (and Chicago for Brit) introduced us to more friendly faces and detailed signage. It was great.

Then we landed in Montreal. The gate used by our plane was at the far end of the airport, in an area still under construction. While there were a few signs, they were not clearly visible to us. There was no one greeting us. In fact, as we walked the five minute walk from our gate to customs, we saw not one airport staff member. All we had going for us were small signs that were not very clear.

After we picked up our baggage, we wondered if we could take the luggage to our vehicle and then come back into the baggage area to wait for Brit. Her bags were quite heavy (she had been living in CR for a year, after all), and I wanted to help her get them. I looked around for a staff member to ask if we could come back into that area, and still had trouble finding someone. Finally, I noticed someone walking quickly through the area. I rushed over to her and began to ask her my question, but she simply kept walking. I had to walk beside her in order to get her to even address my question. Her response? “Don’t be crazy, you can’t come back through customs.” And with that, she sped off, not waiting to see if there was something else I needed.

Are Canadians that pathetic when it comes to providing good service? The contrast between the airport in Montreal and the American and Costa Rican airports was startling. Heather and I spent two hours sitting in the baggage area, not wanting to leave customs until Brit arrived, watching people deplane. Over and over we saw puzzled faces, confused people, and no one – not one single staff member there to assist.

What’s your experience with this kind of thing?

It was quite the experience.

We started out stuck in Syracuse overnight, when our flight was cancelled (without any notice from the airline). It turned out not too bad, mind you, when they put us into Business Class for the trip. A guy could get used to Business Class!

Costa Rica is a beautiful country. We rented a car so that we could enjoy things first hand. Note: renting a car in CR is not for the faint of heart! Traffic laws are really just suggestions … it took me a few days, but soon enough, I was driving like a local! Well, close, anyway.

We spent the first few days in San Jose, and then headed out to explore the rest of the country. First, we drove through “Cloud Forest” … interesting, to say the least. Imagine driving through dense fog, on a narrow highway, on a road that has no shoulders, and cliffs that drop hundreds of feet. Fun. We spent a few days at the foot of the world’s second most active volcano. Yes, it spewed lava. Yes, it was awesome to see.

From there, we headed to the Pacific coast for a few days of R&R at an all-inclusive. I was amazed at how warm the ocean was. I was also amazed at how greedy the ocean is … when I lost my $350 prescription sunglasses in the waves. Yeah … fun.

The best part of the trip? Bringing home my little girl. Having her back here in Ottawa with us. I missed her. I missed her laugh. I missed hugging her.

It’s good to have family home.

I learned that she has a sister who is battling cancer. The sister is in grade six. That would put her around twelve or thirteen years of age. Battling cancer. Not sure what her future holds. How long her life will be. Cancer.

I enjoyed the movie, but found myself constantly thinking of a Grade six girl battling cancer. I realize she isn’t the only one. I know that every day grade six girls lose their battles with sickness. And yet, it put life into perspective once again.

Would you take a moment today and pray for a grade six girl battling cancer? Simply ask God to be with her.

Thanks.

So, if I’m that pathetic in finding the time to communicate with my own family, you can imagine why I’m becoming more and more useless with blogging! In a sense, this is my place for sharing thoughts with all of you … and as you can see, my posts are becoming less and less frequent.

There have been some things keeping me busy. Once again, I’ve done a complete redesign of the Bikers’ Church Website. I like the new look, and it will save me hours of time in keeping it up to date. We are also going to be introducing a new blog over at the BC website, so keep your eyes peeled on it. You can easily subscribe to the BC website and get updates in your RSS reader, same as with this site.

I think blogging has changed. The blogs that have a specific purpose will survive, the others will slowly fade into irrelevance. Why? Because Twitter has taken over blogging (and Facebook). And while some day (probably sooner than we think), something will take the place of Twitter, for now, it seems to be the social network gaining the most attention.

I plan to keep blogging, but over the next few weeks, I need to really figure out what direction to go with robdale.ca. In the meantime, keep an eye out at the Bikers’ Church site, and consider following me on twitter.

Here’s an interesting article I read at tonymorganlive.com about twitter and blogging:

Last Thursday was a milestone day. For the first time since I’ve started using Twitter, the number of Twitter followers exceeded the number of people who are subscribed to my blog.

What’s amazing about that is how quickly Twitter useage has caught up with and then surpassed blogging. I’ve been blogging for 4 years now. I’ve only been on Twitter for about 18 months. Most of the growth on Twitter has happened within just the last 3 months.

The big question is why? Why is Twitter growing so rapidly? Here are a few theories I have:

• Twitter is easier to scan. Less is more. People gravitate to shorter messages.
• Twitter is more social. It’s easier to engage the crowd around a brief shot of wisdom or a story or a question.
• Twitter is more viral. It’s easy to grab an insight and share it with friends.
• Twitter is more intuitive. To follow someone, I just click “follow.” Blogs still require a bit of an understanding of RSS feeds.

I love to blog because I enjoy writing. Honestly, though, I’d rather Twitter. Part of the reason is that it’s more of a natural flow of what I’m experiencing, learning and processing. Part of the reason I prefer it is because the haters haven’t figured it out yet. People are friendlier and less divisive on Twitter than they are with my blog. I’m not sure why, but that’s currently the case.

What are your thoughts? Why do you think Twitter is growing so much faster than blogging?

Christina Joy has always lived up to her name. Christina, means anointed one, and Joy means … well, Joy. She is anointed with joy. When she was a newborn, she would wake up in the middle of the night, not crying, but laughing. All through her childhood she has had the ability to go with the flow, to laugh easily at just about anything, to love life. Her eyes are often wide with amazement as she takes in all that is around her. Her older sister is her hero, and there is no one she enjoys playing with more. She is blond – in every sense of the word – and yet is able to laugh along with all of us when she shows it. Yes, she certainly lives up to her name. Anointed with joy.

As I sit here today, remembering the day she was born. Thinking over the past 11 years. Thinking ahead to her teen years and beyond, I find myself excited at the woman she is becoming. There is so much potential that I see in her, so much that I believe God can use to see her fulfill all that he has called her to be.

I am a blessed man. When I consider my daughters, and the amazing women that they are becoming, I am humbled at the thought that I have had a role to play in their lives. They have shaped my heart far more than words will ever be able to express.

And so, Christina, as you read this on your new iPod Touch, know that I love you with all my heart. You are a beautiful girl and I am so proud to be your daddy.

Oh, and tonight – she and I go to her first ever Sens game! That’s right, my youngest will sit in awe of the “show” that happens at Scotiabank Place … she is so pumped at going, and yet really has no clue what she is about to experience. It is going to be a blast … oh yeah, and there’s a game on too.

I get it all set up just as Chrstina comes down the stairs (PD Day today). She is excited. She wants to tell me about something she wants for Christmas (a doll or some thing like that). I wait for her to be done telling me, and then I tell her my good news: I've set up a new account for her including her own domain name (www.christinadale.com).

She's excited, she screams with joy, she passes out with delight.

Actually, she doesn't. What she does do is something that every guy has experienced a member of the female persuasion do to them: she humours me. She goes, "Oh, that's really neat," in a tone that is meant to pretend she cares. Then, she goes back to telling me more about the thing she wants for Christmas (again, I have no idea what it was).

Not exactly a "connecting" moment for father and daughter.

She'll learn.