to honor you, who have impacted me and made me who I am - the better part of me

There are four men in my life whom I truly love, respect, admire, and wish to emulate when I am an adult. They are all very different, but have one quality in common - make that two qualities. One is wisdom, and the other is a love of God and sincere desire to grow in Him every day, even in the small things. There names are John, Mike, Nick, and Roger.

John is a missionary in India, where he lives with his Indian wife and a little Indian girl they adopted last year - the apple of his eye. He's much older than his wife, but with his age has come great wisdom. In a culture of 'late risers' he gets up early every morning, before the rest of the house, and spends time in prayer, worship, and Bible study. He is a naturally gifted photographer who has taught himself all the tech stuff that doesn't come so naturally. He was my team leader while I was over there, and a great mentor, spiritual guide, and friend. I remember our team Bible study times, which usually started about nine and would go late into the night, while we listened to John "sermonize," and take our small topical chapter much farther than we had imagined, quoting scripture like a pastor, convicting and challenging each of us. We never realized the time until he was done. When I took the 10-hour train ride with him to another city for two days, he was my guardian. While my mom and the team leader were worried about my rest, my health, and like concerns, he said "let her get sick, she needs to do this." I'm eternally grateful to him for saying this, because I did need to do it; my mom needed to let me go too. And I saw some amazing things I might not have gotten to see otherwise. John also has a great sense of humor, and loves telling stories. Among other favorite things he likes to do are eating aloo paratha (potato-stuffed bread) for breakfast, taking to his 3-year old on the phone, and buying saris for his wife. He doesn't like saying goodbyes.

And yes, John is the one I'm hoping to stay with next time I go, if it all works out.

My next favorite man, Mike, also figures into the India part of my life. He's the pastor of small groups at the church I went to India through, and coincidentally his first trip to India and mine was the 2006 trip, and we both skipped 2007 and had our second trip in 2008. I think because of this we processed a lot of the culture and how we reacted to it in the same way. Of course I was always more impulsive and adventurous, and not always smart (it's a bad idea to try going on a tour just a few hours after an 18-hour plane ride), and he had more wisdom, and wasn't quite so fast-paced as me. But I believe in our minds we saw things in a similar light. This last trip something kind of clicked, and Mike was sort of a surrogate dad to me during those three weeks together. He had a rough childhood and came to God in a long, drawn-out process (which included an encyclopedia bought from a traveling salesman), but his faith is firm and he's had a long time to build on it. When I visited a school for untouchable children Mike was there, and we each wrote an article about our experience - what we both left out was me and the kids trying to teach him some Hindi words, and him rather failing. One of my favorite days of all my life was the day we both skipped one of the seminars at the conference and sat in the sun, just the two of us, and he told me his testimony, and I talked about my life, struggles, school, the crossroads I faced. We just talked and talked, like we'd been friends forever. My whole team was like that - like we'd been friends forever. Mike has a laugh that is usually caused by one of his own jokes, stories, or ridiculous experiences he instigates. His laugh reminds me of Tigger sometimes, when he really gets going. He's fantastic at telling stories, and something was always missing when he wasn't at the dinner table. Some of my favorite memories are: how he fit five bags of chips into the "ministry bag" for our Superbowl party; the interesting (to say the least) experience at the western-style coffee shop, trying to figure out what coffees corresponded to the American version; a long debate over whether the palm trees in the LA airport are real or fake, which culminated in him climbing into the planter and pulling some of the leaves off to find out. Mike likes running and spending time with his wife, now that they are empty nesters. He doesn't like instant coffee or chicken (with no beef) for days on end.

Nick is an old co-op dad, and though we're no longer in co-op, he and his wife (and their four amazing kids) have become good family friends. He's another one of those people who just kind of exude wisdom and passion, and sometimes we just listen to him talk for hours on end, late into the night, before we realize what time it is. He's a model dad - fun but with discipline when it's needed, a great husband to Michelle (one of my mom's best friends), and a good worker and friends. And one of the most faithful and generous Americans I know. Nick's been unemployed for many almost a year now (he's training for the State Patrol, which is a really long process), and has started and quite I think two jobs, because he overwhelmingly knew it wasn't where God wanted him. They've lived by faith the whole time, and what especially touched me was their donation to our mission trip even when they were going through a hard time financially. God continues to bless them for their faithfulness to Him. One of the things I like best about Nick is his willingness to admit, and then fix, his own flaws, and grow into a better husband, dad, and Christian through that. He's extremely humble, and inspirational to me in my own walk with God. Even though we don't get together a lot, we've enjoyed a hike with them and the occasional dinner/games/conversation....turning into late night deep discussions usually, which always end up having Christian relevence and leaving me in awe of this man, who I wish to be like someday.

Lastly we come to Roger, who is the worship leader at my church, and my adopted "favorite uncle." Roger is another one of those figure-out-the-flaws-and-fix-them kind of person. Come to think of it, he's a pastor of small groups too. What I love about Roger is that he NEVER EVER EVER tries to sugarcoat things, step around problems, or avoid uncomfortable conversations. He goes straight to the heart of the issue and deals with it in a loving, nurturing way - he was born for counseling. And he isn't condescending, because he bares his own heart and reveals his own struggles and vulnerability, taking a huge chance of getting hurt somehow, all in order to grow Christians in their walk with Christ and with each other, building an Acts church one person at a time. He'll probably never know the impact he has on some peoples' lives. And he never seems to run out of energy to do what he does......maybe because he knows when to say "no" to something. He's a family man at heart, and doesn't book up his family time for anything (I really don't know where he gets the time to meet with all the people he does and still be home every evening). Roger is a realist though, at heart, and is the first to admit it. I think he embraces who he is, and runs with it, in a race to fix his flaws and use what he can't fix in a way that honors God. He has a smile that is for real, and I don't think I've ever seen him fake-smile; his smile lights up his whole face, and it usually makes an appearance when he sees someone he loves (which is most people) or hears something that gladdens his heart. As for those minor flaws that just seem to be part of character.....well Roger is rather forgetful and his calendar doesn't always remind him of what it should - it's best to call and confirm an appointment the day before. :)

So these are my four favorite men - a little about them, why and how they inspire me, the whole glorious, holy mess that they are. Who inspires you? Who has made a really big impact on your life in some way, just by being who they are? What person do you truly want to be like, and why?