Leaders Need To Get On Belay

One of the coolest experiences I’ve had was a recent ice climbing excursion to the upper peninsula of Michigan. The time was spent with a great group of guys all looking for adventure and finding it in the great outdoors. Not only that, it also taught me a valuable leadership lesson.

Image by Laurel Fan

Image by Laurel Fan

A term often used in climbing, whether it be rock climbing or ice climbing, is belay. For those of you who don’t know what belaying is, belaying refers to a series of techniques climbers use to exert friction on a climbing rope so their climbing partner will not fall far. The climber on belay does this by applying friction through the use of a belay clip and keeping the rope taut.

A Different Kind of Friday Night Lights

Today, I am writing as a contributor to the Christian Writers Blog Chain. The theme for April is “Joy.” If you are a Christian author or writer, be sure to check out Christianwriters.com to network with others.

Friday Night Lights is a term that has come to describe Friday night High School football. But this past Friday night I saw a different kind of Friday night lights.

Friday Night Lights: Football

Image by Ed Schipul

Our church’s band had been invited to play at a youth rally at a nearby church. They agreed and it was decided we would bring the students from our youth group to the rally.

Seven of our students showed up expecting to have a great time of fellowship and singing songs. Little did they know what was about to happen.

During the praise and worship set, the students were actively participating. Whether it was doing the hand motions to the songs or actively entering in, they were doing it.