H.L. Hussmann's Blog

I lived in a slum.

Well, maybe not a slum, but a house with 5 bachelor guys and a 70 lb shed-factory dog.We'd run an extension cord into the backyard, take the thrift store furniture outside and watch TV by a campfire, partly because the interior of the house was so funky.

About that time I attended a furniture auction with my mom. Not sure why we were there because we were both flat-broke, or, as my mom would say, "I'm flat busted. And besides that, I'm broke."The furniture store was going out...

I don't remember whose funeral it was. I've been to a bunch. I just remember he was an old man. Maybe a family member. Maybe a pastor. The memory is faded. I just remember a phrase that made me think, "Would people say that about me?"




It was this:




"He always saw the good in people."




Even before I followed Jesus, that phrase stood out to me, "That's right. That's good." I knew that was a trait to be admired. And now that I'm chasing Jesus-ness, I want it all the more. He was the champ a...

Many of you know that after 22+ years in Murray, KY, my wife and I are taking our 4-year-old son and moving to Louisville, KY to plant a church.




I know it isn't exactly Sudan or Indonesia, but it carries a ton of "What ifs."





What if ...




I fail?




What if all my inadequacies show up and I'm exposed: lazy, self-absorbed, uncaring, lustful, ugly-at-the-core?




What if there isn't enough money and we have to shut the doors?




What if people don't like the church? Or worse, don't like ... me?



...

I love chicken lasagna.




I mean, I love it.




Loooove it.




I love it so much I'd marry it. But that would just be an elaborate plot to eat her entire family at the reception. *




And chicken lasagna is better as a leftover. I don't know what it is, but re-heated, somehow the tomato sauce has become less "saucy" and more "pastey." The cheese is less runny and more ... substantial. Man, leftover lasagna is good, good, good.




One nice thing about lasagna is it comes in trays. Not servings, helpi...

A couple weeks ago I had one of the most beautiful moments a man can ever have. I watched the tiny spark of life growing in my wife's belly. An ultrasound.

The little heartbeat ... a pin-sized star flashing on the monitor, pulsing away. Life! I could see it. Tears of joy.

We had been trying for a few years. Seen doctors. Hired a nutritionist. Prayed. Cried. Prayed some more.

It was a little girl. We were convinced.

Andi Rae Hussmann - maybe.

But this morning ... a different story.

N...

I was at the front of the church responding to an "altar call."

For those of you that don't speak Christian-ese, an altar call is when the preacher says, basically, "Come to the front of the church and do something with God." It might be pray, sing, receive prayer from others, whatever.

In this case there were about forty of us who had come forward and were standing around worshiping God. The band was playing. People were raising their hands. I was lost in thought when the preacher, Jerry Hendl...

It seems surreal that I'm writing this ... don't know that I've ever been more nervous about a blog post ... not sure why.

The title pretty much says it all.

Kara and I are moving to Louisville, KY. We're planting a church - Daylight Church.

There. I said it.

It's officially officially official.

I've sent it "out there."

*swallows hard*

I've been in Murray, KY for coming up on 22 years, working with Chi Alpha Christian Fellowship at Murray State for 17 of those. It's been home. Our friends are here....

Let's talk about three worlds.

World #2 is the one you're most quickly able to grasp. It's the sensory world surrounding you ... what you can touch, smell, see, and hear. It's planet Earth, the cosmos, the thumping of bass when a car drives by, and the smell of Mexican food that clings to your clothes. It's what most would call the "real" world.

But is it?


I think World #1 is the real, real world, and I think there's good reasons to believe in it. It's an invisible world to the senses ... may...

My wife and I solve a lot of problems with our good friends Rock, Paper, and Scissors.




"Sushi sounds good."




"Yeah, but what about Mexican?"




"Okay go ...." and we slap our fists on our hands.




One, two, shoot. (For the record, it's "one, two, shoot" not "one, two, three, shoot." The game was meant to be efficient.)




Defying all odds, she beats me about 80% of the time. No joke.




I think it's because she can look at my eyes and probe my thoughts. She peers into my brain and sees what's goi...

The movie Changling starring Angelina Jolie contains a scene that I've never been able to forget.




Gordon Northcott has been sentenced to death by hanging.




He stands with hands cuffed and a guard at each side while the warden reads his sentence.

Thirteen wooden steps lead to the noose on a raised platform.




"Do you have any last words?"




"Nuh." Gordon says, trying to half smile. A nervous crease forms on his brow. His hands are shaking.




As the two men push him forward he says something...