guest blogger: my brother Dave!!

My brother Dave is a guest writer on my blog today! Check him out:

Everyman's Everest
My favorite thing about Ironman triathlons is the simple fact that anybody can do one...seriously. It doesn't take a unique skill or ability like throwing a 95 mph fastball or being able to dunk a basketball. You don't have to be strong, tall, fast, smart, or even very coordinated. All it really takes is an attitude that says, "I will not quit." Let's face it, none of us are going to get called up to the major leagues. We'll never play in the Super Bowl, or get drafted into the NBA. But there's almost nothing keeping you from becoming an Ironman! I've personally seen a blind man, a woman in a wheelchair, an amputee, and a 74 year old man cross the Ironman finish line! It's a larger-than-life moment that anyone can accomplish.
Last Sunday I crossed the Ironman finish line for my second time. It was a completely different experience in many ways from the first Ironman I completed in 2009. This time around there wasn't any curiosity or sense of wonderment. I knew exactly how long and difficult the day would be. This time it wasn't a question of "Can I do this?". It was now a question of "Can I do this faster?". And I knew that finishing the bike ride didn't really mean that I was almost done. Being my second-time around didn't make it any easier. My feet cramped up on the bike, my legs tried to quit on me during the run, and at times it took everything I had just to keep from throwing up.
But as I swam, biked, and ran through Louisville this year, the biggest and best difference was the fact that my wife, Kerry and our two sons were there to cheer me on. When I first became an Ironman in 2009 we lived in Okinawa, Japan, and they weren't able to travel with me to Louisville for the race. They were such a huge part of my training and support that I knew something was missing as I crossed the finish line 9,000 miles away from them. This year was different though; they were right there with me! Yelling and ringing those signature Ironman cowbells, my family encouraged and fueled me throughout the race with their cheers. The road trip, the race, and the room service brought us closer together as a family. I doubt that my kids will forget staying up way beyond their bedtime to stand in the streets with the cheering crowd and hear the announcer declare their dad an Ironman. But more importantly, I hope they learned that they don't have to be the fastest, or the tallest, or become all-star athletes to accomplish something great. All they really have to do is never give up.

David Mills is author of The Distance: An Average Joe's Path to Balancing Family, Work, & Triathlon available now on Amazon. To find out more visit www.TheDistanceBook.com

in a bind, up a creek, and worth the risk!

I'm in a bind! I've been there before, and I bet you have too! I am in so deep that if God does not come through, I will be in trouble. It's funny. I felt this way when I had kids, when we started West Ridge Church. It's uncomfortable and risky and bigger than me, so much so that I know when I get out of it, I would be crazy stupid to take the glory for any success. Aah. That sounds like where God likes us to be.

When we get in deep, we have to trust God, take a deep breath, and ask Him to guide us. "Trust in the Lord with all your heart, lean not on your own understanding. In all your ways, acknowledge him and he will make your paths straight." Proverbs 3:5-6.

I'm counting on that. Life is risky but it's worth the risk because at the end of the day, we can say that God brought us through and we can give him all the glory if it turns out ok--if your marriage succeeds, if your kids love God, if your business survives, if you pass the class, if your church grows and thrives, if your neighbors come to know the Lord, if your team wins, if people approve, if you inspire or encourage. It all comes from God who likes risk, who likes it when we have to depend on him, who loves it when we need him, call on him and give all the glory to him!! He will bring us through!

How do I know that God is real?

How do I know that God is real? I've never seen him. I've never heard his voice, yet I know.
Having never seen the air, somehow we have experienced it, breathed it in; and it has given us life.
I have seen the air move things, the trees blowing in the gentle breeze. And powerful gusts that require our respect.
I have observed a balloon take on a new shape, a new identity when filled with an invisible air.
I have exercised my faith in scientists I've never met that tell me about the molecules in the air I cannot see.
Certainly they are right in their beliefs.
If I were to deny that air exists, I would still breathe it and require it to survive.
In fact, the more I do, the faster my pace, the more I gasp for air and am reminded of my need for it.
I have seen God move, fill and satisfy.

My eyes have been witness to things that only God can do. People that he has drawn to himself, Secret wishes that only he and I knew about, fulfilled to overflow. Coincidences that no one could orchestrate.

Peace in the storms of my life, Calm in my panic and rest in my weariness. Joy in the midst of trouble, and perseverance during darkest times. God has given understanding during times that lack human explanation. My soul had a God-shaped void that no man, job, status or wealth could fill. A perfect Savior for an imperfect me. A sure future. A heavenly home because of a cross I have never seen, an empty tomb that filled my emptiness. A non-wavering, never-changing God that engages my ever-changing life and fills it, satisfies it, loves it and has always kept every promise.

The ocean, the mountains, the spinning solar system. Someone out there is bigger than me. He is not tired or impatient when I do not believe him. He will never cease to exist and his love will never end. I have seen too much!

captain crunch

I ate Captain Crunch for breakfast this morning. I know. It's not very healthy and I am too old to be eating sugar cereal. Here is my story: When I was two years old, my parents took me to Baltimore to visit relatives. Ok, this is about to date me for sure. My great aunt in Baltimore had a milk man that delivered milk to her house, and the milk man left samples of a new cereal on everyone's porch. Great marketing idea! Because we were visiting, my aunt thought I might like to try the new Captain Crunch cereal sample. I was hooked! Not long after we got home, we found my new cereal on the grocery shelf! All it took was a taste, and now I've been a Captain Crunch fan for life!

So many people just need a taste of God, His love, and His goodness. If they could get a sample taste of how great He is, they would be hooked for life!! "Oh taste and see that the Lord is good!" Psalm 34:8

Bandaids

Brian and I were staying in a rented house out of town last week, when I dropped my toiletries bag on the floor. I bent down to pick up all of its contents, and accidentally sliced my finger on my razor! Ouch! It seems like a little thing, but it bled for over half an hour and would not stop!! It was after midnight, and I was getting concerned. After trying to stop the bleeding with wads of toilet paper and ice, I thought eventually I could use a few bandaids. There was practically nothing in the little medicine cabinet, but almost as if someone had anticipated my need, a box of bandaids stared back at me.

Now this may seem silly to you, but I knew that God had allowed those bandaids to be left in that cabinet because He knew I would need them. In the quiet, away from home, I felt loved. Ephesians 3:19 has become one of my favorite verses. It says, "May you experience the love of Christ, though it is too great to understand fully. Then you will be made complete with all the fulness of life and power that comes from God."

That means that we can have fullness of life when we experience how much God loves us. I want a full life, don't you? Sometimes, I am sure that I miss God's expressions of love for me, but now I am dead set on trying to grasp just how much I am loved!!

training your kids to be leaders

we heard there was a cow in the outfield and a horse near third base. something like that! taylor went to the dominican republic on a baseball mission trip. two days ago they played a pick-up game against a pitcher with one leg. new experiences. mom's not there. probably the best thing for my sixteen year old!

when taylor was a toddler, i learned that i would never be able to take the credit if he turned out to be a good kid. i was in way over my head in parenting this wild child, but i knew that if he became a great man, i would humbly admit that it was God working in his life. with that disclaimer said, i will humbly tell you that we are trying to do things that create leadership in our kids. allow your kids to do difficult things that stretch them. maybe this mission trip is stretching us too!! i want our boys to learn to depend on God, not just mom and dad. let your boys be warrior men and let your girls be strong women!! let's give responsibility to our kids and allow them to learn leadership.

"rice and beans pretty much everyday." taylor

RUSH camp

Seventeen years ago, when we lived in Virginia, Brian and I brought a group of high school kids to camp in Toccoa Georgia. I was pregnant with Taylor. The next year we brought a ton of kids, and I pushed Taylor in his stroller! God did some amazing things at camp.

I remember praying with a girl named Leah, as she trusted Christ. A guy named Nate accepted the Lord at camp and is now a student pastor. I remember the boys in our group dominating in sports competitions; and I remember where I was sitting in the lobby when my sister-in-law told us that they were going to have a baby!

Years later, after moving to Georgia and starting West Ridge Church, Brian and I talked about having a camp experience for West Ridge kids to bring their friends. Our amazing student ministry team began the tradition of RUSH camp, a West Ridge camp for high school and middle school students and all of the friends they could invite!

This year, for the first time, RUSH camp is in Toccoa, where I pushed Taylor around in his baby stroller. Over 530 In nine chartered busses! I can't begin to tell you how amazing it is to see the same auditorium filled with all of OUR kids. We can tell stories of God moving in the lives of teenagers years ago, and to have our boys be a part of something so powerful in the same facility is just especially cool :) I did not expect this to be emotional for me, as God has been at work in the lives of teenagers for years, but I can't help but be amazed and humbled at what He is doing. I am so amazed at the ways that God reminds us of where we have been, where He has brought us and all that He has done. Sometimes I think I get a glimpse of what He may be doing in the future--who knows the impact of camp in the lives of these incredible kids?! God is at work for sure. It's been a great week!!!