Peter Gowesky – Page 6 – Peter Gowesky

In Faith in Real Life

Identity Crisis

May 18, 2012 No Comments

Artwork Image of Thomas a Kempis A friend of mine recently told me this, “It is none of your business what others think about you.” I thought that was pretty insightful. It felt freeing to me. I don’t need to care what you think of me, because it isn’t my business anyway. It’s true right?

Then I read what Thomas a Kempis wrote in his book The Imitation of Christ. He writes, “Place all your trust in God; let Him be your fear and your love.”

Too often we place our trust in what others think of us. Or what we can do for others. In fact we allow ourselves to be defined by what others think of us. The reality is that we need to place all of our trust in God. That includes trusting God with our identities. When we allow others to occupy the place in our mind that is rightfully God’s we do ourselves and God a huge disservice.

So what do you think? Who is shaping your identity? Do you have an identity crisis on your hands?

~Peter

In Family & Parenting

Day in the Park

May 17, 2012 No Comments

Last Saturday, I decided to take the kids to the park for a picnic. This was no small undertaking since Momma was gone for her mother’s day trip. We had a blast! We picnicked, and the kids played in the park and then played in a stream. It was wonderful.

I found my self being rejuvenated by the time that I was spending with my kids. I laid with my back on the blanket, holding my 1 year old daughter above me in the air. She was cooing, laughing and drooling all over me. It was incredible, and I loved every moment of it.

I was on the phone the night before talking with a mentor buddy of mine and he asked me how my soul was doing. We had a long conversation about that and then he challenged me to make sure that I was playing well too. He was concerned that I was finding rest and joy in life as well. This picture was the moment I realized that this was exactly where I needed to be. In this moment I was so keenly aware of how much God has blessed my life. I am so thankful!

What a day. I brought the camera along with me to snap some pictures of the kids. We had a blast with that. It turned into a little mother’s day present too! Here is what we gave her.

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GoseoMrkIIE&feature=youtu.be]

What did you do for Mother’s Day? Even more importantly, how do you refresh your soul?

~Peter

Here’s my only issue… Why is it that the picnic basket I had looks like this? Couldn’t we find one that was a bit more manly? Maybe looked more like this?

In Uncategorized

You complain about WHAT???

May 15, 2012 1 Comment

While I was in Israel, one of my favorite places that we visited was the garden of Gethsemane. This is the recognized location where Jesus went to pray on the night that He was handed over to the authorities to be killed. There was something amazing and beautiful about this location. The garden was well taken care of, so that added to the beauty. But there was something even more beautiful that cannot be captured in an image.

It was incredible to think of what the Bible tells us happened here some 2000 years ago. The Church has placed a church on this location and inside of this church there are some incredible mosaics depicting the time that Jesus spent here that night. Can you even imagine what Jesus was thinking, and going through that evening?

Thomas a Kempis tries to help us think about what that would have been like for Jesus. What I appreciate most about this is that he tries to help us get a better baseline on our own condition too.

When Christ was in the world, He was despised by men; in the hour of need. He was forsaken by acquaintances and left by friends to the depths of scorn. He was willing to suffer and to be despised; do you dare to complain of anything?

~Thomas a Kempis – Imitations of Christ

I have been commuting 90 minutes each way for the last two months to get back and forth from home to Liquid’s office. It has definitely taken a toll on me. I loose three hours a day to my car. Let me tell you, this is not fun. I find that I can slip into periods of lengthy complaining and think nothing of it. I may grow agitated because I hit traffic on the way home, or the price of gas puts a death grip on my budget. Kempis provides a new baseline for me. Jesus was willing to suffer and die for me, and He did not complain. What basis do I have to complain about traffic being slow? It certainly puts things into perspective. My Lord was crushed so that I could be spared. It is time for me to pony up and quit complaining so much.

Okay, there you go. I spoke first. Your turn. What do you need to stop complaining about?

~Peter

bonus… Here are some pictures that I took at the Garden of Gethsemane and in the church.

[slideshow]

In Uncategorized

The Three Stages of Impatience

May 14, 2012 No Comments

Impatience, Funny Chicken Egg

The other day I went through the drive through at my local Starbucks. It was the afternoon and I was really thirsty for an iced black tea lemonade. I pulled in, placed my order, and pulled ahead to the window like I was asked to do. I love this Starbucks. I used to go there all the time to work and read. They have great Barista’s that know how to give great service.

However, this particular afternoon, I sat there and watched my iced tea sit in the window while the five Barista’s hustled around in their coffee haven all looking at me through the glass. I found it very odd at first that the individual who made them didn’t just hand them to me and scan my phone for payment. That was stage 1. Then I entered stage 2. I began to notice the time. I said things to myself like, “THIS IS TAKING FOREVER!” Frustration began to eek out at this point. Then stage 3 welcomed it’s way into my little car. Stage 3 is the full on temper tantrum, including looks to the Barista’s on the inside. Finally someone came to the window and apologized and just gave me the drinks for free.

Had it not been for their exceptional customer service, I would have been hot to trot. Right?

Chances are you’ve been hot to trot too!

Okay, maybe not at my corner Starbucks waiting for iced black tea lemonade, but maybe it was at your favorite restaurant. Maybe it was this morning waiting for your kids to get their shoes on. Maybe it was waiting for your husband to mow the lawn. I don’t know what your particular flavor of impatience is, but I do know that we all experience it.

One of the hardest things for me is to be patient in the midst of felt pressure. I didn’t need that iced tea right away. In fact, I wasn’t even in a rush. I just felt that I should have had it quickly.

Do you want to know something funny? I caught myself writing this in a paper for seminary the other day. Take a look at this screen shot…

Read the last line again.

Can you believe that? It is true. I long for the experience that leads to understanding, but I am so stinking impatient. I need to slow down, take a deep breath and enjoy the journey that I am on and pick the fruit along the way that will lead to understanding.

What about you? Have you ever struggled with having patience? What was the last thing that made you feel impatient? Let’s help each other…

~Peter

In Leadership & Calling

My Axioms (just slightly less cool than Bill Hybels’)

May 11, 2012 3 Comments

One of the best leadership reads that I have laid eyes upon was a book by Bill Hybels called Axioms. I would highly recommend that you pick it up and read it. It is a great read, it is quick, short chapters. (I like that!) They may be short, but don’t be fooled. Those babies are chock filled with tons of wisdom.

After reading his book of axioms, I decided that I would write a few of my own. I give you, a few of my own axioms. I’ve come up with/collected these over the past several years. They probably aren’t all original thoughts, but they have been adapted and tweaked to fit my life.

People matter more than process
There will be times when I need to give up the right to be right
Love the way that I have been loved (1 Jn 4:19)
I usually find out my wife is right two months after she speaks
View present ministry with a lifetime perspective
It is more about being with God than doing things for God
When conflict arises, relationships must rise more

What pearls of wisdom do you have? Let’s hear some of your axioms.

~Peter

In Uncategorized

Climbing into Sheep Pens…

May 10, 2012 No Comments

When we were in Israel we went to a place called the Nazareth Village. Nazareth Village is a re-creation of what Nazareth could have looked like during the times that Jesus walked the earth. It was pretty cool! I’ll tell you that it was far better than I originally imagined it would be. One of the first things that we bumped into while we were there was a sheep pen and two shepherds. Our guide stopped us there and shared some facts about shepherds from the days gone by.

Did you know that the shepherds would pen the sheep up? Of course you did. But in your mind what did you think that the pen would look like? In my mind I think of Sean the Sheep… (can you tell that I have little kids?) What I mean is that I think that the sheep are kept in a large, open field. Like there would be a wall around the field, but for the most part those sheep could graze and go crazy in their pen. I viewed it a bit more like the way that the shepherd boy David penned them up in the old sunday school flanel graphs. But that’s not the way that it worked. They would’t do that! They kept the sheep in a tight little pen. “Why” you ask… Great question. It was so that there was less area for robbers to break in and steal sheep.

We were told that the shepherd would sleep laying down in front of the gate to this small pen. Why? Another great question! It is because you can’t very well lift a sheep over the fence without making a really loud noise. This loud noise would in turn wake the shepherd. That was a quick way to get a fist in your face, or a stone thrown at your head. You can however avoid all that by opening the gate and letting them out pretty quietly. Sleeping in front of the gate was a safeguard against loosing sheep to thieves. Smart stuff right?

This pen, may have looked something like this:

Pretty cool huh? Especially when you think of what Jesus said:

Truly, truly, I say to you, he who does not enter by the door into the fold of the sheep, but climbs up some other way, he is a thief and a robber. But he who enters by the door is a shepherd of the sheep. To him the doorkeeper opens, and the sheep hear his voice, and he calls his own sheep by name and leads them out. When he puts forth all his own, he goes ahead of them, and the sheep follow him because they know his voice. A stranger they simply will not follow, but will flee from him, because they do not know the voice of strangers. ~John 10:1-5

What do you think? Does this change anything you’ve thought about what Jesus was saying?

~Peter

In Uncategorized

The Domes of the Rock

May 9, 2012 1 Comment

Recently I was in the Holy Land with my cohort from Biblical Theological Seminary. I was sent this picture from a friend of mine who went along with us. I couldn’t help but share it with you. I like to call this one the domes of the rock.

(That’s some good seminary humor for you… For help in understanding why, figure out what my name means.)

That’s the best I could do. Maybe you have a better tag line. Let’s hear em!

~Peter

In Family & Parenting

My Little Newscaster

May 7, 2012 No Comments

This weekend Tiffany and the kids came along with me to Morristown for Church on Sunday. We went up on Saturday and had a great time hanging out, swimming in the hotel pool and even catching a movie. Sunday’s are an incredibly long day for me, and because they were tagging a long with me, it was a long day for them too! So, last night I gave Noah my iPhone to play with and pass the time while he was waiting patiently. During dinner, he proudly showed us his “NBC 10 News Broadcast script”. It was too cool not to share. I’m proud of this guys mind. He is so creative. I’m excited to see what God does with his life. So, Enjoy! Can you understand it? Or do you need a transl8tor? ~Peter

In Uncategorized

Caves, Hideouts and Tree Forts

April 23, 2012 No Comments

A Psalm of David, while he was in hiding.

“Let those who fear the Lord say, “His steadfast love endures forever.” Out of my distress I called on the Lord; the Lord answered me and set me free. The Lord is on my side; I will not fear. What can man do to me? The Lord is on my side as my helper; I shall look in triumph on those who hate me. It is better to take refuge in the Lord that to trust in man. It is better to take refuge in the Lord than to trust in princes.” Psalm 118:4-9

We traveled to Ein Gedi to see the land and all of the mountains around. We are traveling through an extremely arid climate where everything went from being lush and green to being sandy and dry. We pull into the park and we begin to hike up the mountain towards the source of a waterfall. Along the way we are looking all around us and are noticing the caves that dot the mountainsides. These are the same caves where David came to hide from Saul in 1 Samuel. King Saul is ticked off at David and he has come to hunt him down. He wants him dead. Where does David go? To Ein Gedi. He and his men are hiding in the caves there when all of a sudden Saul comes along. Saul enters the cave that David and his men are hiding in to “cover his feet”, or “use the facilities”. David cuts the corner of King Saul’s robe and lets him live.

These are the caves where David was hiding. This is the same location that it is thought that David wrote Psalm 118 from. It gives a new perspective to the thought “It is better to take refuge in the Lord than to trust in __________” Here is David hiding in these unbelievable caves and yet he cries out from the depths of his soul, it is better to take refuge in the Lord! Those rocks are so strong, and protective. That is why David was there after all. Yet, those rocks do not hold a candle to the strength, the power, nor the refuge that our God will provide for His children.

Here’s the crazy thing. Many of us turn towards our own caves, hideouts, tree forts or safe places when we enter into times of trouble. Can you say along with David, “It is better to take refuge in the Lord than to trust in _____________”

I am learning to…

~Peter

In Uncategorized

Food Poisoning, Hospitals, and Waiting

April 22, 2012 No Comments

You will have noticed by now that I have had to drop the day number from the title of each of these posts. I was afraid that this trip would become so overwhelming that it would make it nearly impossible for me to continue to keep a current blog diary of what is happening while we are traveling in the Holy Land. Unfortunately, this fear came true. We have had a very busy schedule these past 6 days. Each day we have been getting going early in the morning and often do not finish dinner till very late in the evening. This is wonderful, because there have been a lot of places that we have had an opportunity to stop and visit and spend some meaningful time processing through our thoughts there. I will attempt to have some follow up posts with pictures that allow for further explanation of some of the sights, and thoughts.

While we were traveling here in the Holy Land, somewhere in Nazareth, our group ate something that was not good. We ate something that was not only not good, but it wasn’t good for us! All but 3 of us got sick with food poisoning! That means, 20 people were sick. Crazy right? I got so sick, that it put me out of commission for a night and a day. I ended up having to go to the Israeli hospital to get med’s and also have some fluids pumped into me.

While I was laying on my side (going in and out of heat stroke) I sat there wondering why God? WHY is this happening to me now? At one point in time while I was on a ridiculously bumpy and curvy bus trip, I think that I even verbalized, “Why is this happening?” I have been looking forward to this trip for a period of 7 months now. The last thing I want to do is miss out on any of it because of illness. But there I lay. Waiting to feel any better. I was waiting for the pain to subside, and the nausea to pass. WHY…

Today I encountered a culture and a people group who are asking the same questions. Why God? When will the pain subside, and when will the pain pass. When will we wake up from this nauseous feeling? I spent some time with Arab Christians who are being persecuted. One of the statements that he shared with us I found quite profound. He said, “Suffering is part of the story.” How different my western mindset is than that, right? We work hard at eliminating suffering from our story.

I walked along the wall that divides Palestine and Israel, the wall that divides people from their homes and their lands. I listened to stories of people who long for peace but see a giant monument of oppression in front of them everyday. They wait. They wait. They wait some more.

Ridding our lives entirely of suffering will never lead us to a place of perfection. In fact it is through the suffering that our lives are hammered, shaped, and refined. My Arab brother was right. Suffering is part of the story. It should be.

I am ashamed at how poorly I handle myself when I go through the mildest form of suffering. God works richly in times of deep suffering. Do not turn up your nose at those opportunities that lie ahead of you in your story. I am not seeking out suffering… (It’s like praying for patience right?) However, I want to be found as faithful and steadfast as my friend in the midst of it.

There are too many emotions right now to even put words to. Below are some of the pictures that I took while we walked along the wall today.

~Peter