I am Living MLKs Dream

"I have a dream that one day, down in Alabama, with its vicious racists, with its governor having his lips dripping with the words of "interposition" and "nullification" -- one day right there in Alabama little black boys and black girls will be able to join hands with little white boys and white girls as sisters and brothers.I have a dream today!"

Our country has a long way to go, but we are living the dream today. Our three kids are growing up in a world where this is possible because of this man's dream, which is actually Jesus' dream.

Thank you, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. for living your life above fear and the cruelty of systems and choosing the way of Jesus. Thank you for courageously choosing love. Our family thanks you.

My Writing Process

If you're a writer by any definition, I wonder if we can stand in solidarity with one another? This season of life has included a lot of speaking for me. I've done this speaking stuff now for my entire adult life, but nowadays the content, circumstances, audiences, and number of people is different. I'm exercising and growing some new muscles these days.

This week I had a couple writing deadlines for upcoming speaking gigs. I was writing, re-writing, and editing three versions of the same talk (all centered around the vision of my book) and I found myself in my typical "process"...<that's a loosely used term>. I wonder if you can relate to my actions and inner conversations?

It's finally time to sit down and write a talk.

1. Check email and Facebook ... just in case anything life-changing has happened in the past 30 seconds that I must know about.
2. Clean up the kitchen. I mean, how can you actually be virtually productive when your real kitchen is a mess???
3. Start the dishwasher. Maybe the white noise will tune out my racing thoughts.
4. Vigorously wipe off the counters.
5. Make a cup of coffee. One must stay caffeinated while writing.
6. Get a cup of water with a slice of lemon. One must stay hydrated, too.
7. Open up the message on my computer and read through what I've done so far. Is that really all I have done? Mercy.
8. Go to the bathroom.
9. Check email and Facebook again. Cuz, it's been about 10 minutes. You never know.
10. Sit down in my most productive writing chair and take a sip of coffee. There is hope.
11. Stare at my computer screen. Stupid blinking cursor.
12. Beg God to let the words pour off my fingers and onto the page.
13. Wonder why the organizers at this event have even asked me to come. Clearly, I'm a mess.
14. Become overwhelmed at choosing between all the things I will NOT say and the few things I MUST say. Jesus, help!
15. Check email and Facebook again. Message prep is just too hard.
16. Check to see if the mail is in the mailbox. I wish I didn't have ADD.
17. Focus on the talk for about 15 minutes and I'm actually making headway! God DOES love me.
18. Crap, the kids woke up from their naps. Guess writing time is over. Only an hour nap?!?!
19. Scold myself for not using nap time more effectively. I know better. #fail
20. Pray like crazy...and stress some too. John 3:30...maybe a little outta context.

...this is real, folks. It all JUST happened this week.

And then I show up and give the talk. And God does his part (it's questionable if I've really done all of my part) and it's awesome. Preaching and teaching God's Word is an absolute privilege. Speaking on behalf of Kingdom issues is an honor.

When I'm not at my worst, a healthier writing process includes the following practices:

• Not Procrastinating. Yes, there are real limits and time constraints that don't always allow me to work far in advance. But not writing at the 11th hour is always best. The ability to continually pray through a message, research the text or topic, discuss ideas with counsel, winnow out ideas and illustrations, and re-work a talk is always beneficial for the audience.
• Set an Appointment. Writing is one of those "important not urgent" tasks, (unless you procrastinate, then it's urgent). Therefore, emails and dirty kitchens will always mentally trump the writing process, unless you determine a meeting time. Treat that time like an actual meeting. You wouldn't NOT show up to a real life meeting. People are depending on you to show up. The same is true for writing, except the people are invisible until you preach it.
• No Fear in Love. Some of the best counsel I've ever received about speaking is that perfect love casts out fear. Love for the audience casts out any self-absorbed fear. Love also honors the listener and may change the way you talk to them.
• Create the Environment. Coffee and water do help my process. Depending on the message, being alone in a quiet space is best. Other times, going to Starbucks is the best space to create. The key is knowing your content and knowing yourself. Then, make it happen.
• Clear the Clutter. There is something very real about clearing the clutter from my brain and my writing space. Sometimes that means wiping down the counters. Other times it involves responding to a pressing email (not ALL emails!). Most of the time, it involves some prayer and meditation to get centered and clear the flow of conversation with God.

What are your writing struggles and best practices? Let's stand in solidarity with each other - not just in our craziness but also in our healthiest. Preach on, brothers and sisters.

Diaz Year in Review

This year has been an epic year of adventure. I don't think we'll fully appreciate and understand for many years the tectonic plate shifts that took place in our lives this year. In 1 Samuel 7:12, a priest and judge named Samuel, raised an Ebenezer. It says,

"Samuel took a large stone and placed it between the towns of Mizpah and Jeshanah. He named it Ebenezer—”the stone of help”—for he said, “Up to this point the Lord has helped us!” —1 Samuel 7:12, NLT

That stone wasn't magical but it served as a symbol, a reminder for the people. That Ebenezer represented a fresh beginning for God’s people. It also said something important about God: his mercies are everlasting; his covenant is forever.

We've had that kind of year where fresh beginnings were prominent and God's mercies were needed new every morning. Therefore, in a valiant effort to raise an Ebenezer for 2014, here is our year in review.

A YEAR OF TRAVEL.

Our family literally began 2014 on the sugar-sandy beaches of the Dominican Republic with 30+ of the Getz family. Once again, my uber generous Granny and Gramps swept us all away to spend 7-days in Paradise. Paradise was only slightly twarted by the virus of the century when all but 3 of us got massively sick...on the way home. To this day, Addise lovingly refers to that trip and airplanes as "when we all puked so many times". Yes, baby girl. That's what happened.

Three weeks after we got home from Paradise/Puke-fest, Brian and I headed to Hawaii for a week-long work/birthday celebration trip. Rough start to 2014, right?!? After a few days in Kona learning from YWAM global leaders, we took a quick jaunt over to Maui to celebrate Brian's 35th birthday. We stayed in the lap of luxury and enjoyed our first extended time away together since becoming parents. Thanks, Mom, for making it possible!

In April my man and I got to take another trip to New Orleans where I officiated a most spectacular wedding of a southern belle and a South African at a plantation. It was a most beautiful picture of love and reconciliation.

In May we took a quick trip to San Diego to spend a couple days with Brian's sister's family. We finally got to meet her hubby and 2.5 year old kiddo. Super great.

Of course Brian took his annual trip to mecca - aka Comicon - with a 150,000 of his closest friends. How my introverted husband loves this is so beyond me, but I love that he gets his nerd tank filled every July.

In August the Diaz Cinco took a 2-week, 3,000 mile road trip up Pacific Coast Highway (breathtaking views!) to San Francisco, up to Albany, OR, to Seattle, WA, to Vancouver, Canada, back to Albany, back to Monterey, CA. All along the way we spent time with dear friends and a mentor. It was an epic way to decompress from our recent ministry transition and get uninterrupted time with one another. Our kids LOVED the road trip and we soaked in the sights and ate spectacularly at the best spots along the way.

In Brian's words, "all the vacations were pretty great, the rest was pretty much hard." Truth.

A YEAR OF TRANSFORMATION.

This year our one and only girl, Addise, turned 4, then our "baby", Asher turned 2, and our first born, Judah, turned 6. That's just impossible. They are growing in every way beyond our ability to catch it all. Nearly 4 years into being a family, we felt like this year we moved past survival mode and realized "we're gonna make it" ... and enjoy it a bit along the way. Judah and Addise LOVE preschool and we are crazy grateful for their school, teachers, and classmates. We've found quite the little community there as they partner with us in raising our kiddos to become all God created them to be and do in this world.

In March Judah asked Jesus in his heart on Good Friday while driving in our minivan to the park to play with friends. What a reminder that total transformation is still possible in the most ordinary of places. This little boy has simple childlike faith and exudes Jesus' love.

Perhaps one of my most significant transformations this year was completing my first half marathonin L.A. with Team World Vision.What it did for me physically was powerful, but what it taught me about my mental, emotional and spiritual capacities still astounds me. And running with Team World Vision expanded my great love for our brothers and sisters in Malawi. I literally sobbed in the last 250 yards as I ran into the finish line with Brian pushing our three kiddos. (Hey! I'm running again this year and would love your support. $50 provides 1 person clean water for life!)

June 30th marked the end of a decade long journey for us at Newsong. The transition was a painful and intense because of the depth of love we have for the people we've walked through life with. That community became our family and walked with us through the lowest and highest moments of our life. We are forever grateful even in the midst of loss.

The Summer was dubbed the "summer to remember"! And it was all about reconnection, healing, recovery, and recalibration for what's next for our family. I read books and listened to endless talks on transition, leadership, and spiritual formation in mass proportion. It went entirely too fast and was exactly what our family needed.

Asher potty trained himself on a Tuesday afternoon in September. (He's a total third child.) I'm not kidding. Bless him! We are diaper free and pretty much loving it.

Brian got Lasik. Addise and I got glasses. Whatever.

I traveled 17 times in the Fall while Brian valiantly held down the fort keeping 3 kids alive and working his part-time job whenever he could get a spare minute. My greatest joy was the ability to work with remarkable churches and youth workers from all over the country. Brian's greatest joy was me coming home after every trip ... and knowing that one of us is almost always caring for our little ones. I'm also pretty excited that I earned a new airline status to make travel a little easier in 2015.

Seriously, though, it's not the easiest of things to move from a 17-year local church / pastoral vocation into the world of independent contracting. I'm really grateful for the work I've done this year with Slingshot Group, The Youth Cartel, and Fuller Youth Institute - and the myriad of other churches and leaders I was able to serve and (hopefully) strengthen for their mission. It's been really transformative to see great people doing great work in a variety of great ways.

A YEAR OF CHALLENGES.

Change always means loss, but it can also meet a longing. Most definitely leaving a 10-year job that I loved was filled with loss for us but it also opened us to a myriad of opportunities we never would've dreamed of a year ago. The challenge of letting go allowed us to cling more to our God and each other, while opening ourselves to new, undiscovered dreams and longings. We are challenging ourselves daily with living those dreams and taking risks to become all we are meant to be. 2015 will present a new set of challenges, but we are stronger now than we were a year ago and we are ready!

While on vacation in August, Addise and I were in a car accident with our dearest friends, Emily and Erin. Getting rear-ended lead us to massive pain, 30+ chiropractor visits over 3.5 months. It wasn't until mid-December that we really recovered. Chronic pain is no joke. We're grateful for great treatment (yay Dr. Dave!) and healing (yay God!).

Raising three little people challenges us daily. Brian and my conversations are often lamenting, confessing, processing, and questioning how we can raise them better. Going from zero to three kids in 15-months has pushed us heart and soul. We finish our days exhausted and grateful for the grace to be their mom and dad. We desperately depend on new mercies every morning.

In whatever state this Ebenezer-of-a-letter finds you in, we wish you a Merry Christmas and the Happiest of 2015. And when you find yourself in unhappy moments, may the JOY Jesus came to bring meet you there, too.

Here's to all kinds of adventures in 2015!

Much Love...

photo by emily bell