Is this how Jesus sees us?

I'd like to share a text with you that Kim sent me yesterday.

"Epic morning with Kelsi this morning.  I love that little rascal.  She is amazing, she loves me so good and she is fun to love.  Unlike everyone else, she sees no flaws in me.  The older girls don't see me like she does.  One day, things will change.  But for now, she is my princess and I am her favorite queen."

 All of my life, I've loved the scripture that says "I tell you the truth, anyone who doesn't receive the kingdom of God like a little child will never enter in" (Luke 18:17 NLT).  I've always associated this with faith.  It takes childlike faith to be able to accept and believe the Gospel.  

Romans 14:17 tells us that the Kingdom of God is "righteousness, peace, and joy in the Holy Spirit". I don't think that is the only definition for the Kingdom of God.  Graeme Goldworthy  summarizes the Kingdom of God as "God's people in God's place under God's rule."  I like that summary, especially when I think about it in terms of Christ.  Jesus is saying that if you don't receive God's people like a little child, you can't be a part of God's people.

Back to Kim and Kelsi (mother & 4-yr old daughter).  Kim's text about Kelsi is exactly how Jesus looks at (receives) Christians that have been covered by his blood.  Kim has never done any wrong in Kelsi's eyes.  Not only that, she is Kelsi's favorite person...favorite queen!  Every meal Kim makes Kelsi is the best she has ever had.  Every moment Kelsi spends with her mom is spent as though it would be her last.

I was blown away when God revealed this to me.  Jesus is all-knowing, all-powerful, omniscient, and omnipresent.  He created everything including you.  Yet when he sees us, it's not through judgmental eyes wondering why we act this way.  He sees us with eyes of acceptance like a child.  He wants every moment that you will give him.  And like with our children, every moment you give Him will never be wasted.  But we can't stop here.

This is also how God want's us to look at and accept others.  He wan'ts us to ignore flaws as though we can't see them.  He wants us to forgive trespasses like he forgives us.  He wants us to give like we own it all anyway.

God loves us so incredibly much.  He desires a personal relationship with all of us.  He want's to be with you at home and at work, not just at church.

God loves you and I do too!

John Knight

What Dad's and Husbands want to say

As a father and husband, I too often don't have the words to express my feelings.  It's too easy to get caught up in budgets, work, chores, activities, and everything else that I let steal my attention.  I have a very loving family and they are very accepting of my shortcomings because they love me.  They deserve better.  

Today, while listening to "106.7 The Light", I heard something that every husband and father wishes they could convey to their wife and daughters.  This is my message to my family.

Kim, Kassi, Kalli, and Kelsi this is for you.  Watch the video below to see what I want you to hear from me every day.  I love you!!

You are AWESOME!!!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uWi5iXnguTU

God loves you and I do too!!
John Knight

My Dad...

For the past 12 days I've wanted to write a new post to my blog so badly.  But each time I've thought about it all that would have came out is pure emotion, the kind that just comes off as being a whiner or victim or attention-getter and that's not who I am.  As most of you know, my dad died on 10/25/13. 

If you didn't know my dad and you spent some time with him, you would have thought that he was a bit harsh, sometimes rude, but always joyful.  I know that sounds like an odd combination but my dad was a simple man.  So simple, in fact, that he just didn't know better than to tell you what was on his mind.  He didn't mean anything by it, he just thought that the unadulterated truth was best.  Once you knew this is how dad was, it was enlightening to his behaviors.

You see, mostly what was on dad's mind was Jesus and he was going to tell you about it.  Dad loved Jesus with all of his heart.  He was so thankful that God had healed him from cancer (dad was cancer-free when he died, he died from a brain bleed).  Anyone dad met, he told them about his miracle.  If he knew you didn't go to church he would tell you that you need to go to church.  If he thought you may not be a Christian, he would ask you if you were going to heaven or not.

Dad is the only person that I've known to not have an agenda in his relationships.  What I mean is that he didn't love people expecting a benefit.  He had no ill will or malice in his heart so he just assumed no one else did either.  Dad taught me how to give people the benefit of the doubt.  

You had to be close to dad to understand this but dad just loved.  He loved every person that walked through his door because he knew they had came to see him.  He often cried when I got there and cried when I left.  Not because he was sad but because he was so happy to see me.  We enjoyed each other's company and we talked a lot but often we just sat.  So often, we (not just me but my brother Jody and our wives) would just sit.  Dad would sometimes doze off for a few minutes and when he woke up he would always say "I wasn't asleep, I was just resting my eyes".  We loved to watch football together.  We are both huge UT and Cowboy fans.  No matter how good or how bad our teams were, we loved watching them together....together.  If UT got down by as much as a touchdown, you could be guaranteed that dad would say "It's over, UT is beat".  Kim and I always got a good laugh out of that.

I miss my dad.  A couple of people have asked me if I would bring him back from heaven if I could.  To their surprise I said YES!!!  Are you kidding?  I would absolutely bring him back if I could.  Oh yeah, he would be mad at me because I took him away from Jesus but the way I look at it, he would get to go back.  I want him here with me.  I want one more fishing trip with him.  I want to hear him say "We're gonna catch us a whampus" one more time.  I'd like one more heaping bowl of ice cream with him.  Just one more time, I'd like to look at him sitting in his Lazy-Boy with his dog on his lap and him say to me in the most sincere voice "love you son".

I love you dad, see you soon.

John

The One Who Sins Will Die!! What??

As unexciting as it may be, I've been reading almost completely out of the Old Testament for the past few months.  You can't beat the Gospel in the New Testament but I love going back to the stories that I learned in Sunday School as a little boy.  Most of them came from the Old Testament.  Many scriptures are jumping out at me as I read but the ones that are really resonating with me seem to be those of redemption and forgiveness.  

Today, I was eating lunch and reading Ezekiel, when I got to chapter 18 the heading said "The One Who Sins Will Die".  

Now I don't know about you but that got my attention...real quick!  It's funny how the editors of the different Bible editions know exactly how to catch someone's attention.  It's funny because that really isn't the important message, it isn't what Ezekiel 18 is about at all.  Yes, Ezekiel 18 spends a good deal of time focusing on a sinner.  But it also focuses on the righteous and, more importantly to me, the the repentant sinner.

For some reason lately, I've really had repentance and forgiveness on my mind when I've been reading the Bible.  Partly, I'm sure, because of Prison Ministry.  So anytime I get to read a verse that backs up what I believe, I think it's awesome.  Maybe I'm the only person that the devil still tells during those tired times that "you aren't saved".  Or "none of this would have happened if you were really saved".  Of course I know better but that still doesn't mean that the devil doesn't come at me with that crap.  Ez. 18:21 (NIV) says;

 "But if a wicked person turns away from all the sins they have committed and keeps all my decrees and does what is just and right, that person will surely live; they will not die".


That verse really excites me.  When I read it I just said to myself "that's me".  I was a wicked person but I turned away from all the sins that I committed and I keep the decrees of the lord.  I do what is right and just.  I have repented.  That's me!

Is it you?  Are you the new man in Ez. 18:21 or are you the man depicted in Ez. 18:24in which God says;

"But if a righteous person turns from their righteousness and commits sin and does the same detestable things the wicked person does, will they live?  None of the righteous things that person has done will be remembered.  Because of the unfaithfulness they are guilty of and because of the sins they have committed, they will die".

The great thing about God is that he always makes provisions.  If you happen to be the person described in Ez. 18:24 (righteous turned wicked), God sent His son Jesus to die for your sins.  Simply turn from sin and do good and seek forgiveness from Christ and you will be the person described in Ez. 18:21.  As for me, I've been wishy-washy like the Ez. 18:24 man in the past but my commitment to God is to never be like that again.  Our walk with Christ and our eternal fate is much to important to ever turn back on God.

If you live for Christ today then tomorrow, you won't regret what you did yesterday.
God loves you and I do too!

She thinks we're just fishin

Kassi

Kelsi

Kalli

Over the years, I have had four really good fishing buddies. Although dad and I fished some when I was a kid, I was more concerned with football than fishing. So really, Kim was the first person to really turn me on to fishing. Since that day on Fontana when I got hooked (pun intended), I have loved to fish. God has blessed me with a big pond in my front yard so I get to go anytime I want to. The really fun thing though is when one of my girls goes with me.

Kim was my original fishing buddy (and is still the prettiest) but once Kassi could hold a fishing pole, she would come out and fish with daddy. She once caught a Blue Gill with only a hook, no bait!  Kassi stuck with it for a little while but once basketball came along, she kinda lost interest in fishing. Then came Kalli. I gotta give credit where credit is due, Kalli has been my good-luck-charm fishing buddy. For some reason, I always caught more fish with her than with anybody. Kalli would also handle the fish more than most girls would. And now, there is Kelsi. She is going to be a really good fishing buddy. She started last year but she really couldn't manage her sponge-bob fishing pole then. This year, she is holding her own.  She is the most patient out of all of my fishing buddies.

Last night, she caught her first fish and I wish I could have caught her reaction on video. She was so excited, once she could see the fish at the bank she almost through her pole down.  She actually froze she was laughing so hard.

Over the years, I've had a lot of nice evenings with my girls just fishin. I'd love to tell you some emotional, tear jerking story like Trace Atkins' song 'she thinks we're just fishin' but I don't know if I have any. What I do know is that when we go fishing, shoot basketball, throw softball, play with Lego's, go swimming, or whatever we do together, I'm fulfilling God's word by bringing my kids up the way that they should go. I'm letting them know that they are important. They know that dad is busy with work and chores but I always should let them know that I'm not too busy for them.

I'd love to tell you that my years have including hundreds or thousands of evenings spending quality time with my daughters but unfortunately, that would be a lie. Fact is, I'm an imperfect father. I tend to get caught up in the "rules" and "discipline" side of fatherhood and I let mom focus on the "loving" and "nurturing" side. But as a Christian father, it is so important for us to truly live one day at a time. Yes, we have to plan for the future but some day, she's not going to be my little girl, she's going to be my young lady, then she's going to be my grown woman.  

When my little girls are grown what have I taught them? Right now, who cares! Life's lessons will happen on their own, we don't have to make them happen. I just need to make sure that when they do happen, I'm there to help and to love them. I have to make sure that my girls will trust me and know that I care.

I hope you take time to cherish those "little" moments with your kids. They are the moments that they don't recognize today as being significant but someday they wouldn't take a million dollars for them. I know I'll always cherish my time at the pond with each of my girls and if I play my cards right, some day, they will too.

Live for Jesus completely today so that tomorrow you won't regret what you did yesterday.

I love you and God does too!

Happy Birthday Little Brother!!

Regret!!!  Life is full of it.  In it's simplest form, regret is just the mindset of wishing you would have done something different, usually because of the outcome of a decision.  I try to teach my children to not have regret in life because it is very hard to fix.

My life is full of regret; I wish I would have tried harder in school, I wish I would have been closer to my grand parents whom are all dead now, I wish I would have insisted on playing Line-Backer full time instead of Defensive End, I wish I would have had short hair, I wish I would have tried contacts sooner, I wish I would have taken my relationship with God seriously, I wish I would have maintained friendships...... I think you get the picture.

Now what does all of this have to do with wishing my brother (Jody Knight) a Happy Birthday?  Well its simple, I have a lot of regret when it comes to the way I handled our relationship as children.  Anyone who knows us knows that we have completely different personalities and we always have since birth.  Basically, his personality was good and mine was bad.  I loved my brother but I was jealous of him because he was "cuter" or "nicer" than I was.  When you couple that jealousy with the fact that I was mean , I was more of a bully than a brother much of the time.  

Now don't get me wrong, we had a lot of fun.  We played football, baseball, and Nerf-hoop in our bedroom all the time and we played in the woods, swung on muscadine vines, played in the creek in the woods, went swimming, and rode our bikes a lot.  But for anyone who has ever been in a bad relationship, the memories that tend to stand out aren't the good ones, its the bad.  It would be too easy for me to tell too much about the negative so I think that I will just leave it at "I was mean to my brother, too mean".

After all these years I love my brother very much and I always have.  I have always been very proud of him.  I have the utmost respect for my brother.  He was a great athlete in school, he was was always smarter than me, and he beat me at every video game we ever played.  Now, he is a strong, reliable, Christian man.  He is a loving husband and loving father.  Like me, he isn't perfect but I think he is a lot closer than I am.  I've done what I know to do to let him know that I love him and I know that he knows that I love him.  The problem is that word "regret".  I just can't help but wonder how things would be today (for both of us and our families) if I would have let the love of Christ overshadow my relationship with my brother.

And you?  Do you have any regret like me?  You can't go back and undo what has been done but you can ask for forgiveness and then move on. Maybe you were on the other end of the stick and you are harboring hard feelings because of the way you were treated.  You must forgive.  

Regret isn't healthy but it is a fact.  All we can do is live our lives from this point on with no regret.  If you live today completely for Jesus, then tomorrow, you won't regret what you did yesterday.

I love you and God does too!

It's never too late

A few weeks ago, pastor Brad used Jeremiah 18:1-4 in a message series that he preached.  Since then, that scripture has been echoing in my mind.  The NLT version reads like this:

The Lord gave another message to Jeremiah. He said, 2 “Go down to the potter’s shop, and I will speak to you there.” 3 So I did as he told me and found the potter working at his wheel.4 But the jar he was making did not turn out as he had hoped, so he crushed it into a lump of clay again and started over.

Verse 4 is what resonates with me.  God specifically was telling Jeremiah that Israel had not turned out as he intended, so like a potter does clay, he was going to crush Israel and start over.  This verse makes me think about my personal life and testimony.  I can see myself on the Potter's wheel and things are spinning and He is molding me as planned.  But then a flaw comes out of the clay that messes up the pot.  As long as I am willing to accept being crushed, the Potter takes me back to a form he can work with and starts again.

Sometimes, the Potter has to completely crush me because the flaw is so big that I just have to go back to the beginning.  Sometimes, he just has to use a tool to dig out an imperfection.  This may leave a scar but that will become part of my testimony.

Obviously, I use this verse when I do prison ministry because everyone knows that a felon needs to start over.  But how about us?  How willing are we to let God crush us into a lump of clay so he can start over with us?  Too often, I'm afraid, we tell God "not yet, let me finish here and then you can have me".  Or just as bad, we see other flawed jars and we tell God that our flaw isn't so bad, especially compared to our neighbor.

Probably the saddest situation is the person that thinks that their flaws are too bad for God to want to fix.  Or maybe they think they aren't important enough for God to fix.  I know this sounds crazy but after talking to the people that I have over the years, you should never be surprised how someone may think or feel.  I have met so many people that just didn't feel worthy to be saved or "fixed".  There are so many hurting people that don't realize that what they have done just doesn't matter to God.  All He cares about is whether you are a willing vessel that is willing to let Him mold you.  Are you?

God loves people, period!  He may hate sin but he loves people.  He loves drunks, drug addicts, child molesters, adulterers, homosexuals, murderers, and liars...to name a few.  He will forgive sins and THEN put you on the Potter's wheel for him to mold.  God is ready to forgive sins and accept you as you are, we just have to be willing vessels.

God loves you and I do too!

Childlike Faith

Well its been a while since I've posted anything.  OK, its been forever ago.  After my last post about my dad my emotions were just way too deep.  Although I enjoy sharing on this blog, there are just some things that I prefer to keep private and after much discussion with Kim I decided that I'd hold off for a while.

Back to Childlike faith...

I was talking to Kim last night about dad's faith.  Kim made the comment "your dad has such great faith" and he does.  I truly wished that I had his faith but I have yet to concur my cynicism, skepticism, and pessimism to have that great of faith.  But after thinking about it and trying to figure out why I don't have the faith that he does it really just boils down to one thing....TRUST!

Dad, like a child, trusts in God.  The Bible tells him "ask and ye shall receive" (Matt 7:7, Matt 21:22), "if two of you agree on earth concerning anything that they ask, it will be done for them by My Father in heaven." (Matt 18:18-20), and "Therefore I say to you whatever things you ask when you pray, believe that you receive them, and you will have them." (Mark 11:24).  

When we put our hands on a loved one and pray, do we think; "I hope God heals them" or "I can't wait to see God heal them"?  I know which one that I unfortunately lean toward.  Jesus said “I tell you the truth, unless you turn from your sins and become like little children, you will never get into the Kingdom of Heaven." (Matt 18:3).  This is a very broad statement but it is as simple as Christ was saying it...to adults; "your children trust in you, you must trust in Me" is what Jesus was saying.

My dad has this kind of trust and faith.  And his reward?  He has been cancer free since the tumor was removed in December.  I specifically spoke with two neurosurgeons that both believed that even after the tumor was removed, he would only have 12 months to live and that he would probably start deteriorating after 6 months.  Dad has had one clean MRI and he finds out the results of the second tomorrow.  His statement to Kim was "I don't know why they keep wasting their time and mine because they aren't going to find anything".  That's faith.

Find ways to practice your faith, that's right, practice.  The bible is quite plain that we are all given the same "measure of faith" (Rom 12:3).  It's up to us to learn how to use it through practice and prayer.

God loves you and I do too!

Love and Babe Ruth

I ripped off Dennis Rainey yesterday so I thought I would do it again today.  Here is something that I read last month and it has resonated with me ever since.  One of my favorite scriptures is 1 Pet 4:8 "Above all, keep fervent in your love for one another, because love covers a multitude of sins".  I know in my life and my marriage, I have counted on the love of others toward me to cover my sins to offer forgiveness so I try to be careful to do the same.  The story below from Mr. Rainey is a great example of what Jesus was talking about when he said we must accept the Kingdom of Heaven like a child (Matt 18:2-5).
 
I can’t attribute this story to its source, but a number of years ago I read a story about Babe Ruth. At the end of his legendary baseball career, the Babe had become obviously overweight. During one of his final contests, he bungled several fly balls in the outfield and struck out weakly with every plate appearance. Fans who had seen or heard about his once-proud exploits were now quick with catcalls, mocking this man who had hit twice as many home runs as anyone else in baseball.

But as the jeering got louder and louder, a little boy leaped over the railing and onto the playing field. With tears streaming down his face, he ran to the Babe and threw his arms around the legs of the fading athlete. Babe Ruth reached down, picked up the boy and hugged him tight. Then setting him down and patting him on the head, they walked hand in hand toward the dugout, while the jeers turned to cheers. Hardly an eye remained dry in the whole place.

The crowd had been correct in their assessment, of course. The Babe had let much of his athletic prowess go to seed. Yet a little boy had remembered him for who he was . . . and had covered over his errors with love.

This is not unlike what marriage was established to be -- two people saying to each other, "I know you've failed me and disappointed me at times (as I have you), but I'm still going to put my arm around you and tell you, 'I love you.'  i'm on this journey with you one way or the other."

Love covers a multitude of sins...Period!  It isn't pride and it isn't something you earn.  God is Love (1 John 4:8) and this love allows us to forgive.  Love allows us to over look someones mistakes and see them for who God sees them.  God's love is what allows me to see my kids and my wife the way that Jesus sees them.  Like I said to Kassi yesterday, my nature is for everything to be black and white, no gray area.  It is God's love working in me that helps me to get past my human nature and see my family the way God sees them.  It's God's love that lets me know that God has laid hold of (apprehended) them for a reason (Phil 3:12) and I should always do the same.

Judge not lest ye be judged (Matt 7:1)

I love you and God does too!

The good and bad of AAU

The Good: I want to start this by saying that I am a full supporter of AAU basketball. I thoroughly enjoy watching Kassi play against VERY good competition. She has certainly became a better player because of her experience in AAU. She has played with and against some of the top tallent in the country. Unfortunately, I don't get to see all of her games because I work.

The Bad: I miss my girls! Because I don't get to go to all of her tournaments, Kim goes. That means that I have to be without my wife, my cook, my care-taker, and my best friend for days. Kim is the best wife ever. I think one of the things I like best about her is she laughs at all of my jokes. Any body that knows me knows that I have a hard time being serious AND I have a very dry sense of humor. Kim knows my jokes and even when they may seem untimely, she laughs. Not only does she laugh, she smiles. One of my favorite things in the world is to make my wife smile. She has the most beautiful smile in ever.

The Bad: I find myself not disappointed if Kassi's team gets beat early so they have to come home early. This week's tourney in Nashville was a Sunday-Wednesday tourney so they pulled out at 8:20 am on Sunday. Kassi lost their first game so they will be home tomorrow. I hate that I'm not disappointed but when it comes to my time with my family, I am very stingy.

The Good: Kassi loves basketball like I love ice cream. She can't get enough. Last week, she was shooting every night until after 11:00 pm (she started each night around 8:00). AAU gives Kassi an opportunity to play against great competition almost every weekend (my diet doesn't let me have ice cream as often). She gets so excited before every game. I wish I had been as dedicated to get better at football when I was her age.

The Good: AAU provides Kassi exposure that she wouldn't otherwise get just playing High School basketball. She is already getting letters from D1 schools that saw her at AAU tournaments. I am very proud of her.

Summary: AAU is great but I'm jealous of the time I'm away from my girls. This week is the last tournament and I'm glad. I'm glad I won't have to be without my wife again until next year and I'm glad that Kassi will get a break...whether she wants it or not.

I am first and foremost the spiritual leader in my family. I am their protector and provider and I don't like being in positions where I can't protect them. I miss you Kim and I can't wait until I get to hold you and make you smile tomorrow!

I love you and God does too!

Missing my girl

Kim is away with Kassi at a basketball tournament and I'm missing her.   Last week, I was away from her for one night so I drove to Nashville to be with her.  This week, its Cincinnati and three nights instead of two.  It just wasn't possible for me to be with her...I'm dying without her.

Why am I'm telling you this?  Well, I don't know, other than it seems to make me feel better to write it down.  I miss my girl.  When she is away, I'm lost.  I have sat around all day with Kalli and Kelsi not knowing what to do.  The only thing I know to do is play with them outside and with the heat today, that just wasn't possible with a 2-year old.  Kim would have known what to do today.  Heck, if she were here, I probably would have too.  Without her, I'm just lonely.  Kalli is good company and she and Kelsi are fun but it just isn't the same without Kim.

I hope she and Kassi are having fun.  As for me, I started counting down the minutes until she gets home as soon as she pulled out of the garage yesterday.

I love my baby!

My cool daughter Kassi

Our internet connection was down the other day and Kassi saw Kim's computer on so this is what she did.  She opened Word and commenced to typing.  I was laughing pretty hard by the time I got finished.  What do you think?

So our wireless was down so I got bored and started writing. And now you’re reading. Let us ask ourselves, why? Why am I writing and you are reading? Why are you reading this in my voice? Why are you not creeped out yet? 

What is our place in the universe? Why can’t you wear white after Labor day? What is wrong with my font? what is this witch craft? There, much better. 

Oh gosh now it’s red. Why is it red? Red is the color of blood, what sign is this? Is there an ax murderer waiting for me in my shower? 

Doesn’t matter, I always check first. Why do girls that wear no clothes get more likes on facebook than cute puppies and babies? Why can’t I get my braces off yet? WHY ARE YOU STILL READING? 

Why am I even asking questions in the first place? Why do I have no life so I sit here and type things to no one? Is it because I can’t run or play basketball and my mind is starting to go? Of course it is. 

What if I took up knitting? Does this hurt your eyes? Hahaha I bet it does! Burn baby burn! This is the type of thing I would do if Meghan were here. But I don’t have friends over because I’m a hermit. Why am I a hermit? What is a hermit? Who came up with the name “Hermit”? It certaintly wasn’t a hermit, he never would have unzipped his full-body sweater long enough to explain it. 

Why don’t I go do something productive? Why don’t YOU go do something productive instead of sitting here reading this? Huh? 

DOES IT SOUND LIKE I’M YELLING NOW? I BET IT DOES. WAAAAHHHH. 

You know, punctuation is a beautiful thing. It saves lives, it does. It’s the difference between, “Let’s eat, Grandma!” and, “Let’s eat GRANDMA!”  Poor grandma. I would never treat my grandmother like that. Would you? I bet if you’re still reading you would. 

Grammar is a cool thing too. It’s the difference between knowing your crap, and knowing you’re crap. Yeah, I went there. 

You know what gets on my nerves? No you don’t so I’m about to tell you. DON’T EX OUT OF THE PAGE NOW I WANNA TELL MY STORY. YOU’VE BEEN READING THIS LONG. KEEP PRESSING ON YOU WIMP. 

Anyway, what gets on my nerves is the people who tlk lyke diis and Xpect u 2 take dem siriusly.

Like dude, warn me next time before you have a seizure on your keyboard and I’ll go offline. You are not gangster. You are not ghetto. You are not “she knoww she bhadd” or whatever that is, so yeah. 

Why are you still reading this? Are you not bored yet? Oh, wait , I told you to keep reading didn’t I? See I’m just too lazy to use the backspace bar. Yeah, so I’m going to go do something productive now. Hope you enjoyed reading what went through my head for the past 10 minutes. 

These are random thoughts from Kassi.  Not a lot about Jesus here but this is what my kid does when she's bored.  I'm pretty proud of her!!

God loves you and I do too! 

She's coming home!

Kim and Kassi have been gone since Friday. Kassi had an AAU tournament in Suwanne, Ga this weekend. I couldn't go because we had a huge upgrade going on at work so I had to stay home just in case there were problems. I hope we don't have to do this again!

Don't get me wrong, I've gotten some good Kalli/Kelsi time in. Friday, Kalli stayed the night with a friend so it was just Kelsi and me. She is a lot of fun and all we did was play until she went to bed. Saturday, I took Kalli to Bass Pro Shop and then we went on the hill behind Smokies park and watched an inning of baseball...for free! Kalli thought this was the coolest thing and I enjoyed it too. Kalli was the cutest, she thought we were really getting away with something. But nothing, I repeat NOTHING compares to Kimmy time.

When we are apart, I have the hardest time going to bed. I sleep OK, I just can't seem to make myself go to bed without her. Its funny, we are appart over 10 hours everyday but as soon as I knew she was gone on Friday morning I was missing her and I've missed her ever since. I may be different than others (I hope not) but I don't look at this time as "me" time. I look at as I'm mising out on "we" time. But now, she is on her way home. She should be home by 7:30 and I can't wait. I miss my baby when she is gone but oh how I love the feeling of her embrace as soon as she gets home. There's nothing like that hug knowing she has missed me just as bad as I missed her. I'll love Kim forever no matter what but she sure makes it easy to love her because the way she loves me.

No matter how great your kids are, and mine are pretty darn good, your world has to revolve around them. Kids are just needy by nature. Kim is selfless. She puts me ahead of herself so that just makes me want to put her needs ahead of my own even more. I love my beautiful wife and I can't wait to see her. Two hours and counting!

I love you and God does too!

Coach K(im)

I came home from work on Monday to the cutest and most beautiful sight. Kim and Kelsi had been working in Kim's flower garden. I can't tell you how cute it is to see your gorgeous wife in work gloves with dirt on her face. Funny thing is that the first thing I noticed was her big smile. I don't know if it was becuase she was happy to see me or because she was having so much fun planting her flowers with Kelsi. You just have to picture an almost two year-old working as hard in the dirt as her mom, it was priceless. With Kassidi, Kalli, and coach K's basketball schedule I don't know how she found time to plant flowers but she did.

I changed clothes and me, Kassi, and Kalli all pitched in either helping with the flowers or watching Kelsi (thanks Kass!) and we had a great family night. As the sun was fading and I was weeding another flower bed, I hadn't noticed that Kim disappeared. I was disturbed from my work by the smell of frying bacon. Kim had made us BLT's. Now I don't know about you, but I really enjoy a good BLT, ESPECIALLY when someone else makes it.

As I was eating, I looked over and there Coach K was folding clothes. Now Kim had been working outside longer than any of us and she had made dinner so if anyone deserved a break it was her. Nope! There was work to be done and a family to take care of.

Flowers, dinner, and laundry. I'm not saying Coach K is perfect, but who is? But heaven knows that she is as close as it gets as far as I'm concerned. God has truly blessed me with an amazing wife. More importantly, He has blessed my children with a remarkable mother. She sacrifices more for her children than any other mother that I know. I pray for Kim daily but I also pray for myself. I pray that God will teach me and help me to love Coach K the way that she deserves.

Husbands, I encourage you to stop and think about what your wife does for you and your family. Please take the opportunity (besides her b-day, anniversary, or mother's day) to remember her and thank her. She may not be perfect but she is your wife. Love her the way that she deserves....the way Christ loves the church.

Thank you God for giving us Coach K!

I love you and God does too!

Sheep or Goat?

This past weekend, Kim went with some folks from our Church (RIO-180) to feed and give clothes to homeless people. It was a great experience for her because she has such a big heart. She is really good at this kind of work because she doesn't judge anyone based on their circumstances. She really does love unconditionally.

I know this kind of work isn't for everyone and I'm sure when you read the first paragraph you thought "I'd like to do this" or "I could never do that". Have you read Matt 25:31-46 lately? You should. We know that works DO NOT get us to heaven but this passage is a reminder that a) faith without works is dead and b) Love is an action. In this passage Jesus is telling us that if we truly have Him in our heart we will do something for Him while doing something for others.

The question I would like you to ask yourself is am I a sheep or a goat? Do you take action to look after others or do you live your life to yourself? I will follow this post up with another later to back this up but just know that being a Christian and finding your place in the body of Christ means doing work for God. I encourage you to take opportunities to love others by doing something for someone.

God loves you and I do too!

I met a Real American Hero

In this life, there are little moments that just happen to us and we don't know why, but when they are over you sure are thankful for them. I had one on Monday, the day before Valentines day. I was eating lunch at Ryan's (great for the low-carb & cheap eater) in the back like I always do. I like eating in the back because there is usually no one back there, I guess because its not as close to the buffet as other spots. When I went to my usual table, there was one old man back there by himself. I said "hello" and sat down to lunch.

About five minutes went by when this man, Mr. Miller, came and asked me if I was with the POW meeting. You see, he thought Monday was the day for the area POW's to get together. Apparently he got the wrong date because he drove all the way from Kodak for this meeting and he was a bit disturbed that no one else was there. I told him no but I sure was thankful for his service in WWII and I was happy to be in the presence of a real American hero. I asked him if he would join me for lunch and he did.

I didn't have to worry about making conversation, Mr. Miller was happy to tell me all about his life. He told me that he had been taken captive in Italy and he weighed 188 lbs. When he was liberated 14 months later he only weighed 71 lbs. He told me that after just a few days in the camp he decided that he didn't want to come home at all. He said that if he didn't want to come home, he wouldn't look forward to being rescued and his time would be a little less miserable. He told me that when his ship landed in Boston, he kissed the ground because he was so thankful to be back on American soil.

I loved this story but for me, it just got better. He then proceeded to tell me that he just buried his wife of 65 years in November. This was my chance to talk to him about Jesus. I asked him if he was saved and he told me "ohhhhhh yessss". He said he wasn't perfect but he did the best that he could. I said, "I bet you sure loved your wife a lot, didn't you"? His eyes got very misty and he said with a whimper "ohhhh yesss". He then told me how they started.

He met his wife in N.C. right after he got out of the Army. He said that he was "hitting the bottle pretty hard" when he met his wife. After they had been dating for a week, he picked her up to take her home and she told him that they needed to talk. He said that she was so beautiful that he just knew that she was dumping him for someone better. Instead, she told him that her father was a baptist minister. He told her that if she was going to keep dating that boy he had to quit drinking. Mr. Miller said he had just bought a 6-pack of beer and he had already drank one. When she told him that, he said "I can still take you to the very spot on the side of the road where I pulled over. I grabbed the five beers that I still had left out of my '36 Ford and I flung as far into the woods as I could and I haven't drank a drop since".

Mr. Miller knew what love was and knew that it was sacrificing his vices for. We continued to talk about his wife and her burial and all that he had to go through. He told me about the three trips he made to N.C. the week she was buried. I was truly blessed to have gotten to spend an hour of my life with this 88 year old American hero. He reminded me that love can be forever if you are willing to compromise. He also showed me that after 65 years of marriage, you can still be in love.

Thank you Mr. Miller for sharing a meal with me. I hope that all of my friends that read this are lucky enough to meet a Mr. Miller.....before they are all gone.

God bless Mr. Miller and God bless the U.S.A.

God loves you and I do too!

A Valentine for Kim

Words can never describe how I love my wife. Well, there probably are words but I'm not a poet or a song writer that can put my thoughts into words that describe my emotions for and my commitment to Kim. Words always fail my true feelings for her. I think today if I had to pick one word to sum up my entire feelings it would be GRATEFUL. Grateful to God for giving her to me and grateful to her for loving me. I live in the country so if I went outside and screamed "I LOVE KIM KNIGHT" no one would hear. So, if you decided to read this blog, I'm gonna scream it to you and here goes:

Kim,
It seems like yesterday when you saved me. That's right, you saved me. You saved me from the man I was and the man I was becoming. I had just came out of a failed relationship that I had hung my hopes on. When I was let down, I decided that I could never give my love, my trust, to any woman ever again. I was content to play softball then go play basketball with Jon Sweet until all hours of the night until I had to go back to an empty house where I was alone. Alone. Alone. Alone. That's all I felt and I was content with it. If I was alone, I could not be let down. And then, when I least expected it God sent me you.

You weren't looking for anyone either when God sent you to me. But when you found me, you had compassion on me. You had patience with me until I could learn to trust you. Even though I was just a shell of a human with nothing left to give, you gave me everything you had in hopes that I could return it. I'll never forget the 7th inning of the Atlanta Braves game, sitting in right field when you leaned over with a simple whisper "I love you". I remember melting inside at that moment. I had such an inner turmoil because I had told myself that I would never love again, yet all I wanted to do was grab you and tell you that I love you too but I didn't. Even though I waited a few hours, you understood. You have always been so patient with me.

Your patience and love taught me how to love. What I thought was once love wasn't love at all. It was merely respect and endurance but there was no love. You are the only woman that I've ever loved and I couldn't have loved if it weren't for you. I am so grateful that you saved me many years ago. I am so grateful that you have taught me how to love unconditionally and without reservation.

After all these years that moment in Atlanta seems like yesterday and yet even today, I still have that melting feeling inside, that "I'm in love with this woman feeling". Yes, we've had our ups and downs but that is what helps us to grow even closer. We hang on too each other through the downs because of love and we are rewarded with tremendous ups. There is one thing that is and always will be constant in my life (besides Jesus of course) and that's Kim Knight. I know that you will always love me and I want you to know that I will always love you. That's right, ALWAYS. We have learned to accept our differences and forgive each other no matter what. I know that your strengths compliment my weaknesses and vice versa.

You are truly the woman of my dreams and I promise to spend the rest of my life loving you. Every day with you is a new experience, even if we are doing the same-old-things. Thank you so much for loving me and saving me from myself.

Your loving husband,
John

God loves you and I do too!

Thrive or Survive....marriage

Men, at what point in time do you stop looking out for your wife? I'm sure you answered with a resounding NEVER! We should never stop looking out for our wives. We should never stop considering their feelings.

Starting in February, I hope to be leading a men's Life Group at my church (rio180.com) which will focus on marriage. In preparation for the class, I'm thinking about certain topics we need to cover and what I've learned about them in my own marriage. I'm not the best husband now, but I used to be a lot worse until Kim taught me how to be a good husband (btw...I'm still a work in progress). Early in our marriage I had behaviors that Kim tolerated for a while, hoping I would change on my own. Finally, she let me know that my behaviors hurt her feelings. Over time, I had built a wall between us that had to be tore down. I created hurt, on accident, that had to be mended. Not only was the wall between Kim and me but also between God and me. I had to tear it down, and I did. Now that I treat Kim with the respect she deserves, my marriage is flourishing and we both are happy. My former behavior was a habit, the way I had always been. I acted this way without knowing it. Now, the respect I show Kim is a habit. I would never hurt her.

As I research and think about my class and I observe husbands at work it is clear that A LOT of men don't always think about their wives feelings. Unfortunately, I'm talking about men that profess to be men of God. I witness occasions where talk may be a little too friendly....but no harm. I see men taking a second look at an attractive woman and then make the comment "I'm married, not dead". Have you made that comment? If you have, you were in the wrong. I've heard men say that they would do the same thing even if their wife was there because "she wouldn't care". That's even worse. Men, if you think your wife doesn't care if you talk friendly to another woman or that you take a second look, you are a fool and are fooling yourself.

Ask yourself, why would my wife not care that I look at another woman with the same look that I do or used to look at her with? God said have "no other gods before me". Your wife should say "have no other women before me". Men, it is time that we stop settling for a marriage that survives and start working toward a marriage that thrives. To do this, you must make your wife the #2 focus of your life behind God.

#2 focus in your life doesn't mean that she is #2 when she is around or when she may be watching. That means that behind God, she should be where your affection and thoughts are all of the time. If as men we will focus on being good husbands when our wives aren't around, that will certainly make us better husbands when they are around.

Here are some simple rules to put into place to begin working toward a marriage that thrives:

1) Don't ever let another woman catch your eye....EVER!
1a) This goes for TV too.
1b) Even if your wife isn't around.
2) Don't have a conversation with another woman that you wouldn't have in front of your wife.
3) Don't share your marital problems with another woman.
4) Don't let another woman have your thoughts.
5) If your wife tells you that she doesn't mind you breaking these rules, she is lying.

This list isn't all-inclusive but it is a good place to start. Now start thriving.

God loves you and I do too!

A Love Note to Kim

This blog is just for Kim. So if you aren't Kim Knight you probably won't get much out of this.


Kim,
I'm so sorry that you were sick this week. I wish that I could do as good of a job taking care of everyone the way that you do. You have the biggest heart of anyone that I have ever met. You love everyone so good, especially your family. Watching you fight through your pain so you could take care of Kelsi was so inspiring to me. It's little things you do like this that make me want to be a better man.

As I watch you, day in and day out, take care of us it reminds me so much of Christs love for us. He sacrificed everything so that we could have it all. That's the way that you are. You sacrifice your time and energy taking care of me and the kids and it does not go unnoticed. You made sure that Kassi and Kalli could read before they got to kindergarten and I know you will do the same with Kelsi. You give your time coaching AAU not just because you enjoy it but because our girls have always wanted you to.

I wish I had the capacity for the love for others that you have but I don't because I am not a mother. But one thing I do know is there isn't a man on earth that could love you more than I do. You are always on my mind. I try to pray without ceasing and when I'm making specific requests they are usually for you because you deserve to have everything that you desire.

You and I are definitely soul mates. We love the same things. No one could appreciate a sunset with me like you do. No one could understand my excitement and disappointment with University of Tennessee sports like you. We are always thinking the same thing at the same time. You make me feel like the best husband in the world even though I know that I'm not even close. No one I know would peel, devein, and cook shrimp for their family even though that the thought of shrimp makes them sick...except you. Only I can understand and appreciate your love and excitement for dolphins when we go to the beach. Only you could appreciate a first date at the river.

I love everything about you. I love your sweet voice. I love your beautiful blue eyes. I love how you snuggle next to me every chance you get. I love how you include me in every part of your life. I love how we are best friends and I can tell you everything. I love that you know the worst thing about me and you love me anyway. I love how you laugh at all of my jokes. I love how you feel safe with me. I love how you make me feel stronger than I am. I love how you make me feel smarter than I am. I love how you make me feel more handsome than I am.

You are the most perfect wife in the world and I promise I will always love you the best way that I know how.

God loves you and I do too!

Just for men, Part 2

Last week I made the mistake of telling Kim that for a moment I was feeling selfish and was wanting some "Me" time. Today, she had taken the girls shopping and told me that I had to stay home. I had some things I wanted to do like cutting up a tree that fell during the storms last summer so on the surface this seemed like a good idea. But yesterday, as my "Me" time grew closer, I wasn't liking the idea. We woke up today to rain so I can't do what I had planned on doing. OK, I decided to clean the garage. Well, that hasn't panned out either because I miss Kim so much that I have found myself mopping hoping it will please her.

Men, what do you do with your free time? Is it spent being selfish, glad to have some "time away from her"? I'm no saint and I'm certainly not a perfect husband or father but over the last year I have made God truly #1 in my life. By doing this, I have found a new-found love for Kim. I find myself thinking about her more and more every day. How do you think about your wife? Is she a nag to you? Do you dread time alone with her? Do you find yourself working over at work not so much for the money but just to be away?

It is time that Christian men stand up for what is right in their family and start loving their wives like Christ loves the church (Eph 5:25). Jesus didn't take a day off. If He ever had "Me" time it was to get away and pray for the church (John 17:6-26). How often do you get away just to pray for your wife?

Men, I encourage you today to take a long look at your relationship with your wife. Do you argue with her? Do you stop at nothing to please her? Do you admit you're wrong and say you're sorry even if you know you're right? Men, your marriage goes as you go. If you want a Godly marriage you must be Godly yourself. If you want your children to be Godly, you must be Godly yourself. I'm not saying you have to be perfect, God knows that I am far from it. It is just so important for your wife to see that you are trying to be.

My wife is awesome! She takes care of me better than anyone else could. But in the last year, since she has saw a change in me, I have saw a change in her. She doesn't let me lift a finger around the house anymore. Laundry has been my chore the entire time we have been married. In the last 6 months, I have washed no more than 6 loads because she wants to take care of me. Is that a big deal to me? You bet it is. Kim has always been an awesome wife doing everything imaginable to take care of me. Laundry is the one thing that I did that she didn't do. So it's the one thing that she could take off me.

If you change will you see changes like this? Yes! Your wife will love you so much better when she sees you trying your best to love God and her the best way you know how. And if you don't know how to love her better, ask her. Ask her sincerely what you can do to show your love to her more. 1) If you truly are loving her more, it will come to you and 2) if it doesn't come to you, she will be happy to tell you once she sees you being a better man

I'm not trying to brag or make myself out to be an expert because I'm not. I am only giving you my testimony and my personal experiences. It's up to you whether you want to take my advice. I dare you to ask God his opinion.

God loves you and I do too! and Kim, if you read this, please hurry home :)