Tongue Tied

From time to time I will be speaking and the words I want to say are overruled by other

thoughts in my head and the whole thing comes out a big jumbled mess.  I will think to myself,"Boy I was tongue tied on that one!"  In reality I just mixed up my thoughts and words, but I wasn't tongue tied.  Tongue tied is actually Ankyloglossia, also known as tongue-tie, is a congenital oral anomaly which may decrease mobility of the tongue tip^[1] and is caused by an unusually short, thick lingual frenulum, a membrane connecting the underside of the tongue to the floor of the mouth.^[2] Ankyloglossia varies in degree of severity from mild cases characterized by mucous membrane bands to complete ankyloglossia whereby the tongue is tethered to the floor of themouth.  We have a variety of that same malady in the church today.  It's called gossip.  Gossip occurs when we have our tongue tied to the wrong thing, our own agenda and our own perceptions.   Here is Websters definition of the word gossip.  Gossip - idle talk or rumor, especially about the personal or private affairs of others.  So by definition it is making up stuff about the personal affairs of other people.  There are tv shows devoted to gossip (tmz) and probably most of the news on tv is stuff that has been blown out of proportion, which is another word for lies.  Most gossip is lies.  It really is.  Those gossipping know that but they want to believe they have the scoop on some juicy info that someone else doesn't know.  The tongue is something scripture talks about  in very serious terms.  James called the tongue many different things like: big problem -  James 3:5 So also the tongue is a small part of the body, and yet it boasts of great thing.  Fire  James 3:6- And the tongue is a fire, the very world of iniquity; the tongue is set among our members as that which defiles the entire body, and sets on fire the course of our life, and is set on fire by hell.  Untamed - James 3:6  But no one can tame the tongue; it is a restless evil and full of deadly poison.  Peter  warned about the tongue when speaking about believers  1 Peter 3:10 - For, the one who desires life, to love and see good days, must keep his tongue from evil and his lips from speaking deceit.  Wow!  Where is your tongue tied?  To evil or to God?  A tongue tied to God and His great ways is a tongue that will encourage and uplift others in their lives and speak good to those around you.  When your tongue is tied to God and His purposes He restricts the idle gossip that destroys and releases that same tongue to speak good to others.   This makes Matthew 4:4 even more important where Jesus says, "Man shall not live on bread alone, but on every word that proceeds out of the mouth of God."  Words are very important and what comes out of our mouths should be filtered by what comes out of God's mouth, or the Word of God.  What is God speaking to you?  If you don't read His Word then you may never know.  If you do read His Word, then all you need will be realized.  Many religious people try to speak for God but fail miserably in the area of keeping their tongue tied to God's ways.  A person who is led by the Holy Spirit is a person who understands the importance of their words and what they can do, so they give control of their tongue to the one who is ready to use it for good. They tie their tongue to God's Words and God uses it for His glory.  Here is a good lesson to go by.  If you are about encouragng others you will have a hard time gossipping about anyone because you are for them as God is.  The writer of Hebrews said it like this.  Hebrews 3:13 - But encourage one another day after day, as long as it is still called "Today" so that none of you will be  hardened by the deceitfulness of sin." Wow, that is huge!!  If we will be about spreading good things and good words, we will not fall into the sin of gossip.  So get this:  Offensive Spirit filled living makes us be for others and causes us to encourage each other and the end  result is no gossip!!  I'm for that.  So, you are tongue tied.  Just, where is your tongue tied.  To the evil that a sinful tongue can do, or to God who gives much encouragement and grace to all who listen?  Once again, it's your choice.  Which will you choose?  I choose God!   I hope you do to.  If you get tired of speaking encouragement to others then read 1 Thessalonians 5:14 "We urge you, brethren, admonish the unruly, enourage the fainthearted, help the weak, be patient with everyone."  That's probably how we want people to respond to us isn't it?  Of course it is.

The Pilgrimage continues...

David Warren

Are You Thirsty?

The body needs about 3 quarts of water a day to operate efficiently. It helps break up and soften food. The blood, which is 90 percent H2O carries nutrients to the cells. As a cooling agent, water regulates our temperature through perspiration. And without its lubricating properties, our joints and muscles would grind and creak like unused parts of some old rusty machinery.We moved to Northern California in 1984 and served on staff at First Baptist Church, Pleasanton, California.  The town was in the valley just 40 miles east of San Francisco, California.  We were like fish out of water, when in reality we were Missourians in California.  But it was in California we met some of our dearest friends and to their credit they were real about their Christian faith.  No pretense, no act, just real believers.  I became very good friends with one of our church members.  Oh, we were friends with them all, but this man became a very good friend to me and a true brother in Christ.  His name was Pete Iversen and Pete liked to mess with your mind from time to time. He was very mischievous and loved to laugh and make others laugh.  Pete played tennis and we became tennis opponents in the first few weeks of our friendship.  Pete was a member of a local indoor tennis club and I would bum off of his membership once a week.  Our weekly tennis match got pretty heated from time to time and his mind games made me want to play mind games back at him.  Instead of stopping for a water break when we would switch sides,  Pete would walk on by and say,"I haven't work up enough of a thirst yet."  So I wouldn't take a water break either.  Now my body and Pete's body had two totally different levels of sweating and my not taking a water break affected me much different than his.   After playing two sets with no hydration, I was starting to feel some dehydration pains, but I was not going to admit it, and I was winning.  We finished the last set and Pete said, "You look a little pale David.  Are you feeling ok?"  To which I replied, "Oh yeah, no worries."  I loaded up my tennis gear, got in my car and started home.  When I got home, I walked in the door and this cramping feeling put me on the floor writhing in pain.  As I was moaning and groaning, Andra said, "What's wrong?"  I told her I hadn't had much water and I thought I was dehydrated.  The lack of water was not only making me thirsty but denying my body of important liquid in order to function properly had taken it's toll.  Of course, after drinking some gatorade the pain subsided and I was ok.  Hydration was vital to living and the discomfort of not hydrating was unbearable. Lesson learned.  To say the least, I took my water breaks from there on.  Our bodies need water, so does our heart!!!  Jesus in John 7:37-38 speaks to the matter of thirst.  John 7:37-38 37 On the last and greatest day of the Feast, Jesus stood and said in a loud voice, "If anyone is thirsty, let him come to me and drink. 38 Whoever believes in me, as the Scripture has said,streams of living water will flow from within him."

Streams of living water?  Not liquid, but water for soul satisfaction.  We need that water for the heart, the water that quenches the thirst of a dry soul.  But also, the water that supplies nutrients for a soul that is totally dependent on God.  Here is a further explanation of the difference between water for the body and water for the heart in John 4. 13Jesus answered, "Everyone who drinks this water will be thirsty again, 14 but whoever drinks the water I give him will never thirst. Indeed, the water I give him will become in him a spring of water welling up to eternal life."   The thirsty heart is a heart that longs for the deep fellowship with the Heavenly Father that can only be realized by those who have found new life in Christ.  Without that fellowship, all those who desire to have their life thirst quenched will be left wanting and without.  Jesus told the Samaritan Woman that if she drank of His water, the water of the Spirit, she would never thirst again.  That same promise is true for all who call Jesus their Savior and Lord.  Here is the thing.  When you have Jesus, you don't pass the opportunity to drink from that water that satisfies your heart's dryness.  Why?  Because you know you cannot live without it and you begin to feel the heart pains of dehydration when you ignore the Spirit's thirst quenching water.  But we still do it don't we?  We let minutes become hours, and hours become days, and days become years, and we go through time without being refreshed and then we start to feel the pain of spiritual dehydration, when we should never, ever have to feel that pain.  Where are you at right now in your walk with the Lord?  Are you passing by chances to refresh yourself of spending time in God's Word and time in deep, heart changing prayer?  Then it is time to realize that you cannot continue to deprive yourself of the soul satisfying water only Jesus can give.  Are you thirsty?  Then drink, and drink some more, until you are filled again and again.  The lack of spiritual moisture only makes for dry bones and you know how useful dry bones are. Not much!!  Allow the Holy Spirit to refresh your heart and quench your thirst by spending time with God throughout your day and ask Him to show Himself to you.  He will do it.  Then that living water you have will soon be flowing through you like a stream to be realized and accepted by others so they can be refreshed as well.    We need to be water bearers and live lives that show what spiritual hydration looks like.  What does it look like?  It looks like Jesus.  Enough said!!  

The Pilgrimage continues....


David Warren

Living Legacy - Fatherhood Part 4

Today I will write about our last, but not least, child Jessica Warren Hollis.  When Jessica was born we had considered the 3 child maximum, but never really seriously wanted to stop at three.  Andra was great at having children and taking care of them so we knew we could have more and be responsible to raise them as we should.  Really we just wanted God's Will in the whole thing and one more child fit His plan and we were, and are thankful for the extra joy Jessica brought into our home.  As you have read in my other blogs Jessica had some pretty big shoes to fill with those who had come before her.  So, instead of filling them, she put on a new pair and her originality started blessing us as she grew from a funny little child who made up dances (and performed them all) and made the funniest faces that have us still amazed to this day.  From time to time Anda and I would look at each other after a "Jessica moment" and just laugh and say how much joy she added to our lives.  Once again, Andra took the lead with the girls, because she was so good at it and Jessica took on the wonderful grace that only God can give to a young lady.  That grace is even so much more evident today as Jessica raises her blessing, called Leeland.  Leeland also has the funny personality and funny faces, and is as sharp as a tack.  Since Jessica was the baby of the children I could relate to her easily in that I was also the baby and I wanted her to know she was going to get our full raising and support and not shortcut her in any area because we had already parented the others and we were tired.  Nope, we experienced it all to the max with Jessica and we are blessed because of the journey.   On this journey I had a little girl who played baseball with a boys team, and not only baseball, but she played shortstop. She had the best arm on the team and really caused the other players to play harder so they wouldn't be outdone by a girl.  Jessica was a natural athlete and her arm muscles were "cut" and developed when she was 2 years old.  It was fun to watch her compete and naturally do things, and amazed us, and others.  In the midst of doing something very strenuous and challenging she would look up with that wonderful grin and show it was just a game and it was fun.  She played girls basketball on the middle school team at Hillcrest Middle School in Tuscaloosa, Alabama and I remember in one game one of the bigger girls

popped her in the nose.  She came to  the bench and looked in obvious pain and I gave her our family signal (thumbs up) which meant, "You stay in there and tough it out."  She went back on the court and turned around and came back to the bench with blood pouring out of her nose and looked up at me and shrugged her shoulders as if to say, "I can't help this."  Other parents in the stands  probably thought me to be a task master parent, but in reality I knew Jessica was tough and that she could play no matter what the obstacles.  Her blood spurting out of her nose stopped her play though, and then when it stopped she went back in.  That's Jessica.  She started as a Freshman at a new school when we moved to North Carolina, and in reality we were just glad she made the team coming into the area brand new.  We went to the first game and out came the starting five and one of them was Jessica!!  I couldn't hardly get through the gym door after that night because my head was swelled up so much with pride for my "baby girl."  She continued to show great athletic ability and the track coach asked her to try out for the track team as a sprinter.  She went out and ran the 100 meters in street clothes and ran fast enough to be our top sprinter and so we got to watch her run and it was so much fun.  I remember her running the 400 meter run (one lap around the track) and standing at the end of the race as she made the last turn into the homestretch.  She had  not trained to run this race, but they needed her to, so she ran it. She was doing great and I yelled out to her, "'C'mon Jess, you can do it!"  To which she responded by ducking her head and running even harder and finished with a great time.  Probably the most impacting thing Jess ever did in front of me, her  dad, was when we moved to Alexandria, Alabama.  She had started all three years in North Carolina on her basketball team, and with her Senior year coming up we accepted a call to come back to Alabama.  Bad timing for anybody, but she took it in stride. We went in to get her signed up for school and the coach had heard about her basketball skills and he came to the counselors office and told Jessica how much he was looking forward to her playing on the team.  He asked Jessica what position she played and she said, "a 2 guard, or wing.'  The coach said he needed a point guard and wondered if she would be willing to learn and play that position.  To which she replied, "sure."   So she came into a totally different school her senior year and a totally different position and led their team in steals and led them to defeat a cross town rival that they hadn't beaten in years.  That's our Jessica.  Literally, one in a billion.  One time I was in our great room in our home in North Carolina, and in  walked Jessica with a guitar.  She had self taught herself guitar and she said, "Hey dad, you want to hear a song I wrote?"  To which I replied, "sure."  She proceeded to play and sing a well crafted song and left me speechless, but not so speechless to keep me from saying, "awesome!"  Her music ability is so natural and effortless because God blessed her with a great heart, a wonderful warm voice, and a great ability to sing harmonies better than anyone I know.  Her love for Jesus is so evident when she sings, and her desire to live for Christ just blows me away again and again.  In fact, she is so much that way that it is almost a burden at times and the enemy tries to keep her from being as confident as she needs to be in God's power.  Her humble spirit is refreshing to see as Jessica always wants to give her best for her Heavenly Father and that driving force in her life is a strong witness in the world in which we live.  I wish more young ladies would take time to learn from Jessica about what it means to be a well rounded spiritual woman of faith.  Her husband, Caleb Hollis came to me after asking Jess

to marry him and said he would do whatever it takes to allow Jessica to continue to sing for Jesus and he has done just that and more.  Together they lead worship at their new church in Knoxville, Tennesse and that church knows they have added some special people.  But I believe the best is yet to come for Jessica.  Seeing God's wonderful guiding hand on her life and the enthusiasm she has in living life to the fullest is going to come back to her in blessings in the days ahead.  She will see her child or children continue to grow in the Lord and live a life of excitement that will impact even more people than Jessica has impacted and that will be her "living legacy."  In John 5 Mary, mother of Jesus had asked Jesus to help them supply wine for a wedding in Cana. 5 She went ahead anyway, telling the servants, "Whatever he tells you, do it." 6 Six stoneware water pots were there, used by the Jews for ritual washings. Each held twenty to thirty gallons. 7 Jesus ordered the servants, "Fill the pots with water." And they filled them to the brim. 8 "Now fill your pitchers and take them to the host," Jesus said, and they did. 9 When the host tasted the water that had become wine (he didn't know what had just happened but the servants, of course, knew), he called out to the bridegroom, 10 "Everybody I know begins with their finest wines and after the guests have had their fill brings in the cheap stuff. But you've saved the best till now!" 11 This act in Cana of Galilee was the first sign Jesus gave, the first glimpse of his glory. And his disciples believed in him. She believed so much in Jesus that she told the servants to do whatever Jesus told them to do.  A modern day miracle occurred as Jesus turned the water into wine before their eyes.  I believe Jessica is the kind of servant who does whatever Jesus tells her to and I believe she will see many miracles performed by her Lord through her life.  Miracles of changed lives and hope for others like never before.  Jessica Warren Hollis, God's blessing to not only her mother and I, but to the world.....  Thumbs up Jessica and stay in the game.  You are doing great!!

The Pilgrimage continues....

David Warren

Living Legacy - Fatherhood Part 3

Today I will write about our third child and second born son, Seth Joshua Warren.  When Seth was born we lived in Livermore, California and I was serving at First Bapist Church, Pleasanton, California.  It was an emotional time for both Andra and I as we rejoiced over Seth's birth ourselves with no family but Ty and Natalie with us.  A lot of tears were shed at that time and the intense events around the birth could not have been handled without the presence of God in the whole situation.  Seth's umbilical cord was wrapped around his neck and had he not been born when he was would have suffered much brain damage, if not death.  Looking back on it I can see God's hand protecting Seth and I have always thanked God for His saving, healing hand on Seth's life.  After a traumatic experience like that it makes you extra  protective for the one it happened to and that is how I have been with Seth.   With the realization that Seth is a lot like me it further causes our relationship to be very special.  I don't love any one of my children more than the others, but sometimes connections, because of special circumstances, cause you to respond to them in different ways.  When I was told of the near tragic result in Seth's birth it touched me deeply and drew me to want to make sure he was safe.  That attitude and desire stayed with me throughout his childhood and now into adulthood.  It's just the way things worked out.  I think of my sin affliction and the special care God has taken to make a way for me to live eternally and His ongoing watchful eye on my steps and the extra care He takes to protect me and it overwhelms me.  He is my Father!!  At times when I was all alone, God was there. When no one else noticed me, God was there.  When I felt overwhelmed in life, God was there.  God passed that heart to me and I passed it on to Seth.  I look forward to Seth becoming a father in July.  I fully believe he will feel those same things I felt when I was protecting him.  That part of fatherly love I will never regret giving to him and I will always remember the impact those experiences had on my life.  As I was fathering Seth during those difficult times, God was fathering me and giving me strength, and kept my heart on track in parenting.  What more could a father ask for?  Nothing!!  

In the midst of much adversity Seth excelled as only a believer can and God gave him a a heart of a dreamer.  His dreams  have been trampled on many times by life's circumstances and the attacks of the enemy, but something given by God cannot be quenched and Seth has kept that dreamer's heart and mind.  Seth had the great privilege of having two great siblings who cared for and loved him through his early years.  He has a great admiration and love for his older brother and sister and continues to enjoy the affirmation they give to him to let him know he is doing good.  Job in the midst of all his trials said in Job 34:21  "For His eyes are upon the way of a man, And He sees all his steps." I believe God has supernaturally equipped Seth to do great things for Him.  He has given Seth the heart of a dreamer and Seth is trying to pursue the dreams God has put in his heart.  God is directing Seth's steps and the path has many potholes put in it by the enemy, but Seth will persevere with God's mighty hand and continue to follow the path set before him touching lives for Christ as he goes. I am sure of that one thing.  Now that Seth has joined the military it has been hard for me to hand off his care, believe it or not, to God.  That has been a point of contention between me and my heavenly Father, but I do trust Him and want what is best for Seth and not what  is best for me.  God is his mighty protector and does a much better job of it than me.  So it is what it is.  You may read this and think, "what's the big deal." Just let go.

Fatherhood is much different than that for me.  You see, my heart is connected to all my children and I believe that is what is supposed to happen.  I learned from the best on that one.  I learned that from my heavenly Father.  So I say to Seth, dream on.  Live your life to the fullest and be the one many times misunderstood.  It's ok.  People don't understand me much either or my heavenly Father.  That doesn't minimize what you are called to do and the heart God has given you to do it with.  I pray Psalm 18:36 over Seth's life.  The scripture says, "You enlarge my steps under me, And my feet have not slipped."  When your dreams come true Seth, remember God, the one who gave you the dream.  He will keep your feet from slipping and keep you on track.  Live for Him alone. He is your loving Father and He is protecting you and guiding you.

The Pilgrimage continues....

David Warren

Living Legacy - Fatherhood Part 2

Today I get to write about my second child and first born daughter Natalie Warren Askew.  

We were living in West Plains, Missouri when Natalie was born and her birth brought much joy to our lives from the beginning.  Natalie was such a beautiful baby and I remember holding her for the first time and thinking, "God, you have great plans for this girl."  So I am not surprised at how much God is using her today as a servant for Him.  That memory of  holding Natalie in that moment affected me so much that when her daughter Esther was born and I held her, I couldn't control my emotions as I looked into the beautiful eyes of Natalies daughter.  I remember thinking, "the legacy is continuing" and of course, Esther has been a true blessing and seeks God with her heart.  For me, having a daughter was a totally different experience as so many of her needs were "mom centered."  But one thing I always loved doing was sitting in an old canvas chair we had at the time and holding Natalie until she fell asleep in my arms.  I felt like I was holding a precious girl that God wanted to bless for His purposes and that's exactly what I was doing.  From the time Natalie could understand words and then read herself, she has been seeking God.  She accepted Christ as a child, but doubted her salvation as an older teen.  During that time of turmoil a friend of mine, David Nassar had come to speak at our youth conference and Natalie was feeling unsettled and David talked with her and seemed to put it all into focus when he said, "I just think she wants to serve God so much, she is constantly wanting to be closer and closer to God.  That desire is what is driving her and causing her to feel less than adequate."  He said, "she just has a true heart for God."  After that time of explanation and some prayer she was able to qualify her feelings and use it for pursuing God.  Natalie showed great potential for singing when we lived in California and shined as a child with a beautiful voice and a heartfelt way of singing.  When Natalie would sing, she would just let it fly and God would use it.  She began to show interest in making this calling a career and I started letting her sing in larger applications and her largest audience at that time was in a student conference called Student Renewal where she and three friends had put together a  Point of Grace type singing group and they were just teenagers.  That year we had a large group of about 1,500 attendees and Natalie got up with not a thought about  it and  belted out a beautiful song with the other three girls. It was a hit and they left the stage to thunderous applause.  I began to pursue ways to get Natalie where others could hear her sing and thus transition her to pursue her dream.  I had three friends who were a singing group called Brother's Keeper.  We  had become close friends through youth activities I had them sing at for me.  These guys were the best and I called in a favor to get them to help me promote Natalie.  They believed in Natalie like I did and helped me set up a time for Natalie to get to sing in front of Dana Key, A and R guy for Ardent Records in Memphis.  They had started letting Natalie be the warm up act for their band, where she would sing a couple of songs before they performed.  So we set up the "audition" at Union University in Jackson, Tennesse and Dana was going to come and hear this new talent.  She sang her song and then we talked with Dana afterward and I talked numerous times with him after that.  I told him, "Dana, you know she has talent, but I know that  God has a purpose for that talent.  If you will trust  what I'm saying you will sign her and let the world hear her sing."  Dana agreed and set up a recording session, and he, being a Grammy Award winning song writer was going to write a song for her and then promote her.  Natalie and I traveled to Memphis for her recording session where she sang some tracks, but due to artist changes (like them signing Todd Agnew because they wanted a male artist ahead of Natalie) all of that was put on hold.  But we knew that if Dana Key believed in Natalie's ability, we were on the right track.  This only spurred her on to greater levels in singing and she went on tour with Brother's Keeper on the Jam Tour, and began to be promoted by Halo Productions.  She toured on the bus with them and took one of her female friends as you should do when you are a female  touring with an all male group.  She got to see the inner workings of touring and the music business and it further gave her wisdom about God using her in the music business.   God was good to Natalie a little later to allow her to meet David Askew, who also had a love for music and they started dating on a regular basis, got married, and the rest is history.  Today Natalie and David lead worship in numerous applications and serve God with hearts that want to lift up the name of Jesus.  God was faithful to take the little girl I held in my arms and put her in a position to serve Him and hold her in His arms.  He has

been a constant source of love and direction for Natalie and her living legacy is the love and care she is entrusting to her girls and the new baby on the way.  As a father, I felt I could be a part of putting her in a place to realize her dream and follow a much more precious Father than me, her heavenly Father.  I continue to marvel at how much God has done in her life and eagerly watch to see what else is on the horizon for her.  It is my prayer that her steps will always be led by God and  her  path will be full of the great adventures God promises to those who seek Him.  Matthew 6:33 says, "Seek first His kingdom and His righteousness, and all these things will be added to you."  I trust Natalie will keep seeking and she will find a life that is full of God showing her His great treasures of wisdom that she will pass on to her children.  I know I have no regrets in pointing Natalie to our Heavenly Father because He will not disappoint.  Romans 5:5 - "And hope does not disappoint, because the the love of God has been poured out within our hearts through the Holy Spirit who was given to us."   What a wonderful journey of truth we have with Natalie, and God using her to serve Him.  That truth is the foundation of who she is and what she does and will be the guiding light of her and her children.  That is something you can bank on.  Natalie, our precious daughter who loves God with all her heart is a blessing to Andra and I and all our travels in guiding her have helped us develop our faith walk.  Praise God for all He has done and is yet to do.

The Pilgrimage continues....

David Warren

Living Legacy-Fatherhood

Fatherhood is an amazing thing and as we approach Father's Day I thought it only right that I should write about the fatherhood subject and I'm going to do this by telling about each of my children individually.  When I rededicatd my life and realized God had a great plan for each area of my life, God filled me with a lot of wisdom from His Word and from things I had learned in my daily walk as a believer.  I want to write about my oldest son Ty today and then write about each child in order over the next few days.  Of course, Ty being our first born brings to mind all the misakes new parents can make and I know I made plenty of them, but with an attitude of trying to do the best for his life. Ty's full name is David Tyler Warren and now he puts a Dr. in front of that name and I am so proud of his accomplishments.  I made a commitment when Ty was born that I would encourage and undergird all of my children and help them pursue their dreams.  Ty had a very calm and loving disposition and was an easy child to parent.  When he was 10 years old he said, "I want to be a doctor when I grow up."  To which I said, "Then you will be a doctor!"  As Ty grew he became a good student and showed an inclination to really research and know things.  His search for truth and answers is what I believe is a strong part of his makeup and it continues to drive him in his faith today.  Early in his school years Ty had a problem with reading, and after going to an extra class to bring him up to speed, he took off and reading became a resource for finding those truths he longed for.  When Ty was in high school, he said "I would like to play division 1 football, to which I said, "then you will play division 1 football." At that point my responsibility as a parent kicked in and I started making ways for his desire to come to completion.  I began to analyze and devise drills we could do to make him the best football player he could be and it started paying off as he took the field and immediately made an impact.  He wanted to play defensive back and wide receiver, so I took him out to the trampoline in the back yard and had him jump as I threw passes to him.  It trained his brain to be able to think of two things at once and respond accordingly.  When  he got to the place he could lift heavier weights we would go to the weight room and do extra lifting with one thing in mind, play Division 1 football.  If he wanted to do it, then I wanted to help him do it.  Some of our best times as father and son were made in our working together to complete his goal.  I believe those extra efforts further made it able for him to complete a very tough medical school at UAB.  He learned the discipline from one goal and it transfered to another goal, to be a doctor.  I was in a position at that time in my life to be able to go to no less than 95% of his practices and 100% of his games, whatever the game might be.  I wanted him to know that I was there for him, cheering him on, and giving him support.  The coach of the football team came up to me when Ty was a sophomore and said, "I'm thinking about starting Ty over a senior", to which I replied, "If you do that you will get his best and you won't regret it.  He is a coach's dream player."  That coach agreed with me and a few years after Ty had graduated admitted to me that his playing Ty was the best move he had made that year.  He said, "Ty is steady and driven."  To which I replied, "I told you so!"  So, Dr. David Tyler Warren, my oldest son, is now a father himself.  I love the interaction I see him have with his children and pray that he will pass on the legacy of believing in his kid's dreams to further the legacy of fatherhood.  One point of direction change in Ty's dream of being a doctor was realized when he was playing for Division 1aa Murray State University(dream accomplished!).  His coach, Houston Nutt, had hired a new defensive coordinator, and like so many other cases, that coach had a plan that was already in place and developed around other players and Ty was frustrated.  After talking with me he decided that football was putting a strain on his premed studies and after meetings with the coach and much prayer, he decided to quit the team.  I knew he had accomplished that goal and a much larger goal loomed ahead in the medical field.  It was a super smart choice and I backed him fully and trusted his judgment in that decision and the rest is history.  But it was not getting to play on that team that I believe was the pinnacle, it was the journey together that made me thankful for the extra time spent on realizing the dream.  Another big part of Ty's life, was of course, the development of his faith.  It was always my desire to teach Ty to trust God, not man.  To live a primary, not a secondary faith. In other words, don't live your faith through your parents, but one on one with Christ.  He has taken that to heart and has high expectations about what church to attend and what preacher to listen to.  I believe he will never let some man sway him away from the pure truth of the word, and I hope he will always be a person who doesn't take anything for granted, but with prayer will always follow God alone in his life.  I believe he will train his children to be the same way and that is where the legacy will be seen even more as they grow up under Ty's direction. The writer of Proverbs wrote in 22:6  Train up a child in the way he should go, even when he is old he will not depart from it.  There is no doubt in my mind in God's Word being true, so the legacy of Fatherhood WILL be passed on and for that I say, "Praise God."  Our first born, Dr. David Tyler Warren.  I am so thankful to God, and proud of Ty for all he is doing in his living legacy.  Ty.  I am well pleased, and I believe our heavenly Father is too.  Your heavenly Father loves you and I do too.

The pilgrimage continues.....

David Warren

Dream Big!!

"American history shall march along that skyline," announced Gutzon Borglum in 1924, gazing at the Black Hills of South Dakota. In 1927 Borglum began sculpting the images of George Washington, Abraham Lincoln, Thomas Jefferson, and Theodore Roosevelt on the granite face of 6,000-foot Mount Rushmore. Most of the sculpting was done by experienced miners under Borglum's direction. Working with jackhammers and dynamite, they removed some 400,000 tons of outer rock, cutting within three inches of the final surface. When Borglum died in March 1941, his dream of the world's biggest sculpture was near completion. His son Lincoln finished the work that October, some 14 years after it was begun.  

I've always been a dreamer.  Those dreams have at times been good and sometimes bad.  Whatever the case, most people have a hard time dealing with a dreamer.  Why?  Because they didn't get the dream.  But for the dreamer, he only wants others to see what he sees and his frustration is found in trying to make that happen.  Truth is, they probably won't see it, until it is accomplished.  But what should we do?  Quit dreaming?  I don't think so, and I think God  continues to give us dreams to accomplish, and fight for, and that which He gives us has purpose and worth.  When I was 10 years old I was sitting at my piano writing a song, yes, a song at 10 years of age.  I suddenly had a dream of giving my songs to the world to help people find hope and comfort, and direction.  It was all there in my mind, as clear as day.  I could see it.  Oh, it wasn't Mount Rushmore, but it was a dream that I believe I had to pursue.  So I started playing my piano more and more with a fresh intensity that honed my talent and made it possible to come up with more and more songs.  They just rolled out of me.  Ten, then twenty, and more and more until I just had to quit because I thought my brain was going to explode.  Not silly little kid songs, but songs with heart, emotion, and freshness.  I started sending those songs to record companies, not knowing all the legal things that could happen if they were accepted.  Not knowing that they could be stolen and used for someone else's profit.  I just wanted to share them.  To see my dream come true.  Little by little my dream became a weight around my neck that I felt had imprisoned me.  I could dream, but I still had to live my life!!  I must get this under control.  So I put my dream on hold and on the back burner and came down to earth.  "Time to grow up David and get your head out of the clouds."  As I surrendered my life to serving the Lord it all seemed to make sense for me and my journey of ministry began stretching from coast to coast as I followed the Lord wherever He would lead me.  But, in the back of my mind I knew that this dream was still there and continued to develop the talent the Lord had given me as I also ministered through the church.  I had one guy tell me that my dream was too big and that I needed to get my feet on the ground and forget the dream.  I tried to do that until I realized that God was the one who gave me the dream, so that wasn't going to help.  Then I read the parable of the talents in Matthew 25:14-30 and realized that I was given this dream for God's purpose and not only my own.  I went to a conference this past week and the speaker, John Eldredge, spoke to the dreams we have and that we must pursue them.  After much soul searching I realized that I was on the wrong end of the parable of the talents and that my dream was real, and if left unpursued, would be sinning to not complete what God had put in my heart at 10 years of age.  That is why I have taken three of my songs and sent them to Nashville to a big time producer to help me arrange them and polish them for a new project.   If these three songs do what I believe they can do, the end result will be a larger audience getting to hear them.  THE DREAM IS REALITY.  Looking back, this dream seemed so big and out of reach, but God is everlasting and He is still working on me and will complete what He started in me years ago.  Please pray for me and realize that this has been 49 years in the making and it won't be easy, but with God's help, it will happen.  When the songs are completed I will put them on itunes and see where it goes from there.  I appreciate the encouragement from family and friends and the constant reminder that I am not done yet.  More dreaming ahead, so dream big.  God's still active and working.  Remember, Mount Rushmore started with chipping the first rock and the end result was fantastic!!

The Pilgrimage continues....

David Warren