If there’s one idea that I want to demonstrate, if there’s one principle I want to communicate, it’s this:
FATHERS, turn your HEARTS toward your CHILDREN.
Wherever they may be, whatever they may be doing, turn your hearts toward them – your prayers, your thoughts…. Seek out their good, and be strong for them.
And that’s what I want to do. I want to turn my heart toward my children.
Fathers, turn your hearts toward your children.
Y’know, I’ve had not just one, but a series of amazing careers: US Army soldier, military contractor, security consultant, reality TV star, goatherd….
But being a Father is my most important job. That’s what I want to be best at, what I want to be all about.
Our family had rules amongst ourselves when we were filming for Raising Wild – no sharing of each other’s secrets, no tearing each other down, no fighting on camera (we broke that one once or twice.)
What we wanted to demonstrate on TV, and what we try to live out in our ongoing life, is that we are committed to being there for each other, to having each other’s backs – no matter what.
The Bible promises that at the very end of this age, there will be a restoration of all things; and that the hearts of the fathers will be turned towards the children, and the hearts of the children towards the fathers.
Notice that the fathers take the first step.
So once again I exhort you fathers: turn your hearts toward your children. They need us during these times, whether they know it yet or not.
But we fly, sail and drive to help other people in an instant.
We blow money and share it irresponsibly; but we feed billions.
We love the big things and the big ideas.
We’re sentimental to a fault.
We help out wherever we can, and we often overstay our welcome. But wherever people of the Earth encounter us, we change their lives forever, and they want to come here.
We’re a country of goodwill. We’re a country of good people.
God bless America.
God bless Americans.
And God bless you.
Each and every day…it’s a new experience. But it’s our purpose.
And if we can do something in accordance with our purpose every day, it helps propel us forward.
We all have purpose, but we think mostly in terms of generalization: You know, “I aim in this direction.” and “This is where I want to be in ten years….” Or whatever. Your daily moment-to-moment purpose is what drives your real behavior – what you want right now….
Proverbs says that a fool’s empty belly presses him on. And that’s pretty logical. Everybody will work for food.
So, find your purpose, and then everyday commit yourself to one act toward your purpose.
It will be less complicated. It will be less hard.
And you will have more courage because you know you’re doing Right.
I know that there’s a lot of anxiety right now in our country.
And I know that a lot of people have seen these things coming and have anticipated – gone out and bought land and so forth, maybe even moved out there – but one of the things I want to stress to everyone: there’s no finish line. You’re as prepared as you are today, when it comes to prepping, and preparedness. And the more you can prepare for each day as it comes, the better off you are, but anything can happen.
Don’t feel bad if you haven’t moved out in the woods yet. Just be forward looking. Try to be like that Heisman trophy, dodging all the chaos and all that uncertainty, and don’t let fear drag you down.
Focus on the mission.
Focus on going where you want to go, and living how you want to live. And then backwards plan all the means that you would have to have to do that.
But don’t be discouraged. And if lights go out in your area, don’t panic. Assess. See what you have on hand.
And I guess from now on out, don’t do anything hasty. Don’t do anything impulsive.
I think from here on out… It’s like Winter up here: You can’t just dash out your front door. You have to think about what has to happen.
And I think being impulsive, can waste resources and put you at risk, lead to misunderstandings… Because if there’s ever a time for understanding, it’s now.
And look, don’t be hard on your neighbors if they’re in an opposing political party. We’re all in this trap, ok?
Hang in there America.
And one-day-at-a-time it.
Just one day at a time.
Consider the goat.
He lives for this day, and he doesn’t worry about tomorrow at all. In his conceptualization of reality, this is everything. And it’s very similar to our situation. The past is over and cannot be called back, and the future is absolutely unknown.
What do you do when you have a reality TV show – and then you don’t?
Well, you get up the next day and do the chores. Feed the animals. Water the garden. Teach the children. And you do that again the next day. And the next.
Taking care of (and talking to) the animals doesn’t change much regardless of whether or not there’s a TV show. The day-in/day-out activity requires an unshakeable commitment but also bears an intangible reward. An intrinsic goodness that enriches our lives in immeasurable ways.
On May 28, 2004, while I was working in Afghanistan, a bullet forever changed my life.
As part of my therapy, I was asked to write a poem showcasing the highlights of my career.
This is the result of that exercise:
The LORD is My Shepherd
I watch the Sun rise over the Mojave Desert before she begins her torture. I dig into ancient seabed with hot metal and bare hands.
I sweat and hump a rucksack up and down the mountains of Central America. I receive Baptism in her clear streams and dig deep in her earth.
I climb the Tae-bek Mountains in Korea and peer into the Demilitarized Zone. There, where the men Stand Alone.
I welcome the Rising Sun of Japan awakening in the Pacific and watch her sleep again in the Yellow Sea.
In the dark, I silently marvel at the Southern Cross in the Australian sky.
I witness paralyzed the rising and falling of machetes in Haiti amid the great screaming of the multitude. I watch from a distance Voodoo Bokers invoke Unclean Spirits and loose them into the night.
I observe the teeming crowd part like the Red Sea for the naked and shambling Zumbe’ walking out her emaciated Living Death.
She doesn’t see me.
She sees no one.
I see her and my jaw hangs open.
There, on Death’s Island, in the Heart of Darkness, the Lord carries me.
I freeze all alone in Alaska beneath Denali’s Brow and the coldness of the Moon. Death is only a few sweet minutes of sleep away. The Lord lifts me to my feet.
I ponder the Aurora Borealis as it plays over the black and white Canadian night. The Lord’s Voice tells me to “Stop” and wait for just one moment, and I am saved.
I swim the tepid and oily waters of the Persian Gulf.
I drive past the Ziggurat of Ur listening to airstrikes on the radio.
In the land of the Chaldeans
In the land of Abraham
I stand on the banks of the River Euphrates and wash my hot feet in the Tigris.
Babylon the Great is on fire.
Columns of smoke reach toward Heaven like angry fingers.
I lay down my submachine gun on the roof of the Palace of the Ruler of Babylon.
I face Jerusalem and pray like an exile The Lord delights me with visions of lambs following their gentle shepherd through the green pastures of Kurdistan.
There, East of Eden, with Nineveh on the horizon, in the belly of Assyria. His Righteous Right Hand preserves me.
Yet the Sun tortures.
I pump my legs up the Hindu Kush and gasp for breath at the footstool of the Himalayas.
I stand as ruler’s guardsman in another palace in another kingdom in another war.
The Right Hand of the Father deflects the bullet from my Mortal Vein. As He corrects it’s path, it forever corrects mine.
God dwells in that intersection of bone and metal and pain and space and time.
I plead to Him under the thin blue sky of Afghanistan and bleed into her sand.
He hears me.
He sees me.
There, where Alexander was halted. There, in the Graveyard of Armies.
I slip into coma as the Sun goes down on me and I lose her light. But in the Dark, He is there and shows me many things.
I awaken to the tearful kisses of the Wife of my youth and the embrace of my children.
I am home. The Sun also rises…
Because He lives, I live. Because He walks with me, I still walk the Earth.
The Lord is my Shepherd…I shall not want. He restores my soul…for His Name’s Sake.
Surely Goodness and Mercy shall follow me all the days of my life, and I will dwell in the House of the Lord
And I was reading in Proverbs this morning. And the verse out of Proverbs 3 just struck me over and over.
Do not be afraid of sudden terror or the desolation of the wicked when it comes. For the LORD will be your confidence and will keep your foot from being caught. When you lie down you will not be afraid and your sleep will be sweet.
I wait on the LORD. My soul waits. And in His Word I do hope. I wait for the LORD as those who watch for the morning.
So watch. And wait. Be ready. And pray. And don’t be afraid. Don’t be afraid.
Shabbat Shalom. May Peace be upon you.
I feel peaceful. I feel a little anxious. I mean if you’re not anxious you’re not taking it seriously. But I’m not afraid – “oh my gosh, what’s going to happen?” I’m going to see what’s going to happen.
When I was in Iraq and Afghanistan, myself and everyone I knew had to learn how to not think about dying tomorrow. We had to put that out of our minds. Thoughts of death and failure impeded our ability to function. It impeded our confidence and our capability and our performance.
Fast forward to today. There’s a lot of fear. There’s a lot of hurting going on. But we still have a very important job to do, even if we’re not getting paid to do it.
People are watching us. People are counting on us. And we have to perform.
So, I suggest you create something. Compose poems and songs. Write an article. Be creative. Be expressive. Make a video.
Be positive, because we’re going to get through this.
Anybody that’s on a path of Wisdom, or a path of Truth…you have to go through Proverbs to get there. Proverbs in the Bible is the gateway to Wisdom. It covers everything – economics, marriage, relationships with neighbors. It covers the Creator. Every situation you can find yourself in as a human can be covered in Proverbs.
Our lifestyle is changing before our eyes. Now is the time. Now is the time to study wisdom literature – ancient wisdom literature. Now’s the day.
So get Wisdom, and with all you’re getting get Understanding. Read Proverbs. You can read Proverbs 1 on the first day of the month, and by Proverbs 31 you would have covered a 31 day month. So it’s something that can be very habit forming in a positive way.
And don’t have any fear. No fear. There will be Light and Love and Life.