HopeForYourFamily

   Click on the image to watch part 1 of “The Lorax” a television presentation of the classic Dr. Seuss tale of being a friend, rather than an enemy, of planet Earth.  (Parts 2 & 3 are also available from this YouTube video page - the whole show is about 35 minutes or so.)
Here are just a few helpful “Green” links to help you celebrate Earth Day and hopefully begin some lifelong, life-giving, Earth-renewing habits:

Earth Day 2008

EPA Earth Day

Earth Day EnviroLinks

Geaux Green

Recycle Rouge

Earth911

Kids Page - Recycling

Do Something

Christian Environmental Organization Links

Your Green Partner,

Dr. Roger Butner

(Friday morning) Just a little preview for this week’s post.

Tomorrow I am going out with my best buddy to a big stretch of woods, and we are going to shoot our shotguns. It isn’t any particular hunting season right now, so we’ll just shoot pine cones and dead limbs and such. I got my Remington 870 12-gauge for my 33rd birthday in February, my first ever real gun (the Daisy BB gun of my boyhood wasn’t too dangerous, except to the occasional backyard security light). I was inspired to get a firearm after reading through “The Way of the Wild Heart” by John Eldredge. I still haven’t even fired it once! My friend, on the other hand, grew up hunting in the woods of North Louisiana. So, we’re going out together for a manly experience of shooting harmless forest debris to enjoy our friendship and to give me the feel for firing my gun…

(Sunday evening) Well, my friend and I both survived our testosterone adventure firing lead shot at inanimate objects in the woods on Friday afternoon.  I’ve had a busy weekend, and not much time to offer deep reflection on our experience, and so offer any particularly rich life lessons to my website readership.  Sorry, that’s life sometimes.  For now, I will simply note three important rewards of the little gunpowder excursion:

1. We had a blast!  (actually 50 of them)  The whole gun experience and the conversations we shared driving out, in the woods, and driving back - all very enjoyable.

2. I found out I am a pretty darn good shot.  That was very meaningful to me, as my father was an excellent shot in the years of his early manhood as a soldier and officer in the United States Army.  I never really seemed to inherit any of his skills or know-how with tools and such.  This turned out to be a very important connection for me to my Dad.  I wish he could have seen me.  I can’t wait to tell him about it and show him a couple of my “trophies.”  (No, we didn’t shoot any animals.  I don’t think the piece of paper or empty shotgun shell felt a thing when I obliterated them.)

3. Call me a redneck or whatever you will - I feel a bit more manly today, knowing I can handle a shotgun with no problem.  Thanks, John Eldredge.  I needed that.

Last Friday I had an opportunity to take the son of some good friends of ours with me for an afternoon at the Bluebonnet Swamp. They are basically family to us, so he is like a nephew to me. I was looking forward to the afternoon for several weeks, since we first discussed the possibility. He is always a lot of fun. He is a very smart boy, and, frankly, you never know what he is going to say. However, the truth is, I really felt like I was doing something for him more than he would be doing anything for me. He loves bugs and critters and wildlife, and had never been to the Bluebonnet Swamp. This was an opportunity for me to share something with him that he was sure to love. Little did I know how much I would learn from him!

Even though I love casually strolling along the path through the swamp and woods when I go by myself, for some reason I felt compelled to move along more quickly with my buddy there. I guess I wanted to be able to show him all there is to see. To put it simply - he went at a much slower pace. At first, I felt a bit frustrated. As Willy Wonka put it, “There’s so much time and so little to see! Strike that. Reverse it.” (more…)

My wife and I recently spent a weekend away together at the Parish Hermitage. Our time there was all that we hoped it would be. God’s Spirit breathed into us just what we needed at this time in our lives. And it all started with a storm.

As we stopped for an early lunch of burgers at Riverside Patty on the way out to St. Amant, we knew the dark, foreboding cloud-cover meant a big storm was on the way. We had barely made it through the doors to place our order when the bottom fell out and we got a downpour like nothing I’ve experienced in years. We both agreed it was fitting for our mood - somber, heavy-hearted, weary, and burdened. The storm really seemed the perfect way for us to begin our retreat. We made it safely to the Hermitage, dashed into our guesthouse, and sat out on the patio, taking in the fury and the beauty of the storm. As we sat together, considering and discussing what God might be preparing to teach us, I realized He was already speaking to me through the storm. I heard several important life lessons about storms as I sat there with my wife and God:

1. When the storms of life rage intensely, it is good to have shelter with someone you love and trust.

2. Storms don’t just bring danger. They also bring new life.

3. Storms have a way of cleaning away trash and debris from our lives.

4. Storms are very good at interrupting our plans and making us stop and just be.

5. Storms never last forever.

6. Storms make us aware of our own weakness and God’s power.

7. Heavy storms never leave the landscape like they found it. Some things break and fall, while other things are uncovered and rise up.

8. There is a time for seeking shelter, and a time for stepping out to face the landscape.

As you encounter the storms of your life, I sincerely hope you will reach out to God and receiving His loving shelter and guidance. Sometimes that reaching out includes reaching out to another person God has provided for you. If you need someone to be there in your storm, feel free to call on me.

With Hope - Roger

ps - Click here to read my previous post, “Surviving the Storms in Life.”

Well, I knew Earth Day 2007 was coming this week, but I didn’t realize it was yesterday. When it dawned on me today, I felt a bit disappointed I had done nothing to officially mark the day - although I continue to work at being mindful of caring for our planet, people, and resources on a daily basis. But then, I realized my family actually celebrated the day about as effectively as anyone could. On Saturday and Sunday, my wife and son and I were gathered with a group of other families from our church, having our annual family retreat at Camp Smiling Acres. And if you ask anyone who attended, they will tell you where my son was the whole time - on the big pile of dirt. So, I guess we really did have a great Earth Day awareness activity. With no television in sight, out in the natural beauty of camp, we celebrated with him as he conquered the “mountain.” And it gave me a deep sense of hope and contentment, knowing my son is more enthralled by a big mound of earth than by the latest toy and gaming gadgetry. All it cost us was a couple pairs of socks! (Trust me, anyone who could have brought those socks back to whiteness deserves their own infomercial.)

Today in Baton Rouge is glorious!  The temperature is balmy.  The sky is blue and clear.  The breeze is gentle.  What a delightfully refreshing Sabbath!!!  As I write, hundreds of teens and adults are gathered at our church’s facilities experiencing an annual youth rally, appropriately titled “Renewal.”  The weather being so amazing as it is, I finally got around to setting up my new hammock in the backyard yesterday.  My in-laws gave it to me for Christmas, and I have been eager to spend time relaxing in it and soaking up God’s blessings.  I spent about a half hour in it yesterday, reading the first chapter of an intriguing novel given to me by a brave young woman as a way of saying “thank you.”  After finishing the chapter, I decided a nap would really be the way to go.  I had finished my day at the office on Friday at about noon, as is my general practice.  It was now 2:30, and the hammock and overhanging arms of the oak tree were gently lulling me into slumber.  Aaaaaahhhh.  Two hours of tranquility gently swaying to the breeze on my new hammock wrapped in my old LSU blanket.

Today my son, a delightful three year old with pale blonde hair, adorable dimples, and an irresistable twinkle in his eye, invited me to go get on the hammock with him.  We got in and out, pretended to sleep and snore, swung and tickled and had fun.  But my son, in his innocent wisdom, found the real treasure in the backyard today.  It wasn’t the hammock, great as it is.  He figured out what makes the hammock great - the creation in which it is surrounded.  The leaves!

He began to frolick about in the leaves, scooping them up and kicking them around.  As fun as it was watching him, I still didn’t get it.  I thank God He sent my son to help me out of my slumber and into the wonder of life.  My son grabbed my hands, began tugging on me, chanting “Pull!  Pull!”  He wanted me to dance and play and experience the wonder with him.  I did.  It was great!  But, he’s three and the moment passed quickly.  He was on to his swingset and slide, which are set up under the outermost branches of the oak.  However, now that he had invited me into the wonder of God’s creation, I wasn’t going to miss this opportunity…

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