I am a Real American

“When it comes crashing down, and it hurts inside,

ya' gotta take a stand, it don't help to hide,
Well, you hurt my friends, and you hurt my pride,
I gotta be a man; I can't let it slide,
I am a real American, Fight for the rights of every man,
I am a real American, fight for what's right, fight for your life!” – Rick Derringer

So, those of you that know me (as I doubt to many strangers stumble upon this blog) know of my inherent geekiness. I have enjoyed comic books and video games going back as far as I can remember. However, growing up one of my favorite televisions shows was always professional wrestling. The reason you've won't hear me mention it much is that I stopped watching it a good 10+ years ago for reason I will save for another post.

Now this was in the 80’s before there was a WCW or WWE. I would watch NWA & GCW that would eventually combine and become the WCW. Ric Flair, Sting, The Great Muta, The Four Horsemen, Dusty Rhodes, the Rock n Roll express. It was good times. This was back when wrestling was small enough to be hosted at the Dorton Arena. 

However, if you were to jump into your Tardis and ask elementary age Glen who his favorite wrestler was well that was easy. The one, the only, the immortal, Hulk Hogan.  Every Saturday, Sunday & Monday I would tune in to see if I could catch a glimpse of the Hulkster. I would jump up in excitement at the start of his theme music. 

The music would hit, the crowd would go crazy, and then Hogan would march down the aisle waving an American flag. Soon he would enter the ring, strike epic poses, and then rip his shirt off in a slow intimidating fashion. Hogan would be easily winning the manage then the heel’s manager would distract the referee allowing the heel to cheap shot the hulkster. Then he would start to lose and Gorilla Monsoon would say something along the lines of “Oh No! Could this be the end of Hulkamania?” Terror would grip my heart! 

Could this be end of Hulkamania?

NEVER!

The heel would then put Hogan in a sleep hold. Hogan would appear to pass out and the referee would go to check him and then right as he was about to be counted out he would slowly raise his arm and then break out of the hold and get that crazy look in his eye. That look that meant that Hulkamania was about to run wild! Then Hogan would defeat the bad guy. Win the match and save the day. All was right with the world. 

In some off chance Hulk reads this. Thanks for the memories!

   
Every couple of months the announcers would start talking about the upcoming pay-per view. This was back when they were only 4 times a year. Royal Rumble, Wrestle Mania, Summer Slam, and Survivor Series.  I can still here Mean Gene Okerlund saying “Kids, tell your parents that you don’t want to miss Wrestle Mania!” Of course during my childhood the number of pay per views my parents ordered after my begging amounted to 0. Wrestling was fake and I could rent it once it comes out on video they would tell me. So I stopped asking for them sometime around 5^{th -} 6^th grade. 

As soon as they were available to rent and I had earned $2 (for good behavior/chores/etc.) I would rent them and spend my Saturday watching them on this tiny TV/VCR combo that my dad had. Yet, it was still not the same thing as being the cool kid who spent all Monday talking about how awesome the Sunday night pay per view was. 

Sometime in high school I stopped watching wrestling consistently, but I can’t remember why I did for any particular reason. Just got out of the habit I believe. Then in 96-97 I started watching off and on again hearing guys talk about the NWO. Soon I was hooked again but this time almost exclusively with the WCW since they were now in direct competition with the WWF. Yet, still no access to pay per view since they cost $60 and I worked most Sunday evenings they were still not in the cards. 

Then came the glorious day October 26^th 1997. My friend Nick was over at my house hanging out. Nick has become a Christian in the last year or so and had been repeatedly inviting me to church which I for the most party casually ignored but I did like hanging out with him. So we were hanging out and I asked if he wanted to stay for dinner and he couldn’t because he was going somewhere with his friend Jared and we had the following conversation. 

Me: You wanna stay for dinner?
Nick: Can’t I’m going somewhere in a bit with Jared.
Me: Where to?
Nick: Some wrestling thing? I don’t know Jared keeps trying to talk me into watching wrestling with him.
Me: HALLOWEEN HAVOC?!?!?!?!?
Nick: I think so…..
Me: Can I go? Pretty pretty pretty please? I’ll even pitch in towards the cost!
Nick: Let me check. It’s not at Jared’s house but this guy named Robert whom we go to church with.
*At this point Nick had to appreciate the irony of me begging him to attend an evening with friends of his from church.*

So, Robert allowed Nick to bring a random guy into his house to watch a wrestling PPV. Seemingly, not that big a deal. It was my first real interaction with anyone from Antioch other than Nick. I met several people that night and they all were pretty cool. Very warm, welcoming and inviting and I had a good time. This was not a big deal to Robert. This was a huge deal to me. Shortly after that I was invited to watch wrestling at the home of another Antioch member. A guy named David and his wife Missy whom had recently celebrated their 1 year anniversary. I went excited to have people to watch wrestling with for a change. 

Meeting people from Antioch that were cool I finally attended a youth event since those other people had been so nice. A youth event lead to a Wednesday night and then in Feb of 1998 I finally attended a Sunday Service. The rest as they say, is subject for another post.

1 Cor 1:27-29 “But God has chosen the foolish things of the world to put to shame the wise, and God has chosen the weak things of the world to put to shame the things which are mighty; and the base things of the world and the things which are despised God has chosen, and the things which are not, to bring to nothing the things that are, that no flesh should glory in His presence.”
 
Of course now at Antioch Robert is the chairman of deacons, David is the senior pastor and I am their forever grateful Associate Pastor. Bet you didn’t think that’s where this story was heading did you? I didn’t either at the time. :-)

Maybe we can’t or aren’t all called to do some huge thing for the Lord like the great work my friends Dean & Melissa are doing with RadicalLife Outreach Ministries. Perhaps though we’ve lost focus and gotten so caught up in the spectacle of others lives and ministries that we forget how powerful a small act of kindness can be. 

Glen

 P.S. Be sure to train, say your prayers and take your vitamins!

Now He's 34

Now He’s 34

So it’s been a while since I last posted. A lot has happened. 

We sold our house in roughly 3 days. We had the sign in the yard on a Saturday morning, an offer by Monday and a deal on Tuesday. That was how we started our August. We spent August on the three P’s packing,  painting & paperwork. We also are temporarily living at Lindsey’s parents who have very graciously taken us in while we are in between houses. Also, amongst all of this I turned 34 (Sept 1^st) and my family celebrated with a trip to the beach for a couple of days. That is the sweetened condensed version of everything since I last posted. 

How’s it feel to turn 34? 

Friend: So how’s it feel to be getting old?
Me: Sore & Fabulous. 

The week before my birthday I managed to crack a rib trying to catch Ramsey after he had gotten loose over at my in-laws. My father in law caught by standing still and having Ramsey just walk up to him and sat without a word. 

It’s been 5, er 3, make that 0 days since I’ve injured myself:

Based on the last 2 weeks I feel I should carry around one of those work place injury signs or at a least a white board that I have to keep erasing and setting back to 0. I cracked a rib, not to long after that I managed to singe a good portion of hair off of my arms, hands, eyelashes and eyebrows. I was lighting my grill for the first time since we moved it here. I was having trouble with the igniter. I fixed it to the tune of a giant fireball in my face. I feel very fortunate that I escaped all of that with just some signed hair and a funny story. 

I also discovered there is a biological limit to how many salonpas strips you can place over a cracked rib. Once you exceed that limit you manage to put a really nice chemical burn over your cracked rib. Not as pleasant as one might imagine. I also managed to cut myself pretty good while shaving earlier in the week. It bled for about an hour or so.

Ironically, since I first started this section I managed to stab myself opening a box. Oh well back to 0!

These are my reflections:

There are two particular times in each year that I choose for personal reflection, focusing on areas of growth, areas of improvement and counting my blessings. Ideally, this is a running tab with all of us, but life as we know it is less than ideal. 

These 2 times for me in particular are my birthdays.  My regular birthday on Sept 1^st and my spiritual birthday, which I have placed in mid Feb for reasons that can be explained in another post. It was ironic for me to spend my 34^th birthday at Myrtle Beach (technically surfside but its 10 minutes away so close enough) as the last time I was at Myrtle Beach I was 17 and it was graduation week. As one might imagine a lot has changed since then seeing as I’m double that age now. 

I actually spent half of senior week trying not to have a social anxiety based panic attack. Every morning I would count the days until it was time to get back home. I spent the other half of the time being unusually loud and obnoxious even for me. I also spent more money at senior week (by myself in 1997) than I did the entire trip we just got back from and that was for a family of 5 some 17 years later.  I did the math and $1 in 1997 is $1.47 in 2013. Also, $12 could fill my truck with gas. As an example of my spending spree when we stopped at south of the border on the way home (of course we stopped there!) I spent roughly $200 on fireworks. What happened with those fireworks is a post for another time which may have inspired certain scenes from the Matrix.

I have one really good memory of senior week. Well make that two. 

1) A night or 2 before we left (the group of girls we hung out with had gone home already) we (there were 8 of us) went out to one of the many putt-putt courses you find at myrtle. I’m not even sure if all of us went. However, I remember me and Jeff being a bit separate from the rest of the group and after the first hole (and we were and probably still are terrible putters) declared a $5 per hole hole-in-one challenge. The finally score was 6-5 but I’m not entirely certain who won but since it’s my blog I will say that I did. It was the best I have ever played and both easily had the best scores of the group for that night. 

2) The ride home was nice, at least for me. I remember it being quiet and peaceful as everyone was asleep but me and the driver and he let me play I CD I had bought that week. Lynyrd Skynrd’s Twenty. It would be the last truly peaceful moment I would have in 1997. The rest of the year was all down here from there and it did not stop until Mid Feb 1998. 

That kid has never left me. That kid that came back from the beach with his entire life ahead of him and slowly watched everything he had built his life around crumble into nothingness. That kid that turned to gin, porn, and online relationships with people that may or may not have existed to somehow numb the pain. That kid that really was just trying to survive until the next day and desperately desperately wanted someone to love and someone to love him. When I read verses about the old self in Corinthians or when I sing “Count your blessings” that is who I picture. I see him in the back of my mind shivering in a cold lonely corner. 

I’m going to let you in on a little secret. Every sermon I have ever preached has been at that guy. Every lesson I have ever taught has been with that guy in mind. Every theological debate I have ever been in has been with that guy. As I face the ups and downs of life. The pains, the frustrations, the anger, the fear. I wonder what God is doing. I wonder why I continue to pastor, the preach, to teach. I wonder if it is worth the cost, the time, the effort. In those moments of doubt I remember that guy and how complete strangers took the time to share Jesus with him and how radically that changed his life.

How it changed my life. 

Now at 34, thanks to the gospel of Christ. I am not a lost, scared, confused 17 year old. I am a happily married man with three wonderful healthy kids. I see the change in my life and the blessings because someone took the time. I see the Savior who died for me and I realized that I keep going not for the sake of the heathen, but for the sake of the savior who died for them.

Enjoy your week beloved!

 Glen