Special Thanks

Who do you surround yourself with? What kind of people do you call friends? Do you have those especially close to you whom you can count on to encourage you, lend you an ear, stand in the gap and help raise you up?

One of my best friends, as well one of my small group shepherds, Mike Yates, once told me how he likes to surround himself with people who will build him up and encourage him. You know, that's such a simple yet very profound thing to do...yet how many of us do this? Think of how much better our outlook on life would be if we all surrounded ourselves with positive people who have a special knack for building others up rather than tearing others down.

Mike is one of those guys who does just that for me. We try and get together at least a couple times a month for lunch or a Sunday dinner out with our spouses (he's even so gracious to let us bring our kids with us, engaging Kaitlyn in several fierce battles of thumb wrestling and hoisting Jake up in the air with a few well placed tickles for good measure). He's also had a great deal to do with my recent conversion from an almost life-long obsession with the Chicago Cubs to seeing the light and rooting for the team from the town where I was born, St. Louis. We even took a 3 day weekend up there in September to see the Cubs & Cards for the very last series at the old Busch Stadium. Talk about an empty feeling as we left that night, realizing there'd never be another great rivalry series like that played at the ol' girl. Sad...yet exciting when you think about the new Busch Stadium slated to open in a few short weeks.

Anyway, back to Mike. He's got this innate ability to make everyone around him feel at ease and after you meet him for the first few minutes, you feel like you've known him for that last few years. He & his wife Sandy are so warm, so giving, so caring and so open. To know that they've been there for me & my family anytime we've needed them, whether it was when I thought I was having a heart attack and checked myself into the hospital (Mike rallied to class together to make sure people would be there to care for Jennifer and the kids) to running the ONLY working key to our SUV up to us at the airport when we got back from Disney this past November...these are people we want in our lives. We've seen how God has blessed them and how God has ministered to us through them.

The other shepherd from my small group is Julio Echegoyen. This dear brother in Christ is so in tune with what God is saying to him. I have no hesitation in ever saying that this man is truly annointed by the Holy Spirit. In fact, I give out an open invite to whomever reads this blog to see for yourself and join us this Sunday at the FBC Springdale as Julio leads our small group, Young Professionals. I would almost bet your life will touched in a positive way by the Holy Spirit after engaging in one of Julio's lessons.

He and I get together for lunch as often as we can and will spend much of that lunch hour digging deeper into several topics from the Bible. As I'm still probably a "toddler" in terms of Christian maturity, Julio is widely responsible for guiding me and teaching me so many truths I may not have noticed by just reading the Word, much of it for the first time. We often have to jump quickly from topic to topic, verse to verse but I always feel so rejuvenated after meeting with him. His insight into things is astonishing.

He and his wife Vivian, their daughters Kayleen & Brightly, as well as Julio's brother David and his wife Ana have become so precious to us and we love them with a deep, Christ-centered love. When I think of how 15-20 years ago, we were all scattered across the world and maybe had no intentions of ever ending up in Northwest Arkansas, it was by God's divine purposes that He brought us all together as a group at FBC Springdale. I can attest that my life is so much better because of it.

I honestly believe God continues to bless men like Mike & Julio because they have put God first in every area in their life. By allowing Him to have first place, He continues to use both of them for His intended purposes. Thanks Mike & Julio for being obedient to His Word, for having an impact on my life and for being my friend.

How about you who are reading this today? Who's had an impact on your life? Who's made a difference to you? Maybe a better question to consider is what kind of impact are you having on those around you? Will you be known as someone who tore down constantly, was negative and a pain to be around...or will they remember you as someone who raised people up, stood behind others and supported them through discouraging times?

I'm hoping they'll remember me as someone who had a positive impact on others, who let the light of Christ shine through his life and whose lasting legacy points ultimately back toward the Father.