What Does an Evening with Bob Goff Look Like?

An evening with Bob Goff looks EXACTLY like how you'd hope and expect it would look like!

Joy...

It Looks A Lot Like Joy!

If you are not new around here, then you already know that I love Bob Goff!  I read through Love Does a couple of years ago and it seemed to break off layers of lies that I didn't even realize I had been believing... Lies that caused me to live safe and quiet... small and relatively risk-free.

Yeah... Bob changed all of that.  

Well, you know --Bob and Jesus! 

They make a pretty good team!

When our friends mentioned that Bob was coming to speak at our local Christian school, I knew I would be going!  They surprised us with an early Christmas gift (because they knew we would buy tickets ourselves!) and we had high hopes that spending an evening with Bob would do exactly what his book did: Inspire and encourage.  Stir up radical hope and crazy joy... and a little audacious faith, too - because, why not?

My friend Laura wrote a book called Playdates with God and she has a link up every week to share about a playdate with God.

And oh my goodness, this is exactly how Bob Goff lives his entire life! 

His whole life seems to be a playdate with God!

He preaches reconnecting with that childlike faith that carries no heavy burdens and believes for impossible things. 

But there's more!  He doesn't just preach it... he actually goes out and lives it!

His mantra is Love God. Love People. Do Stuff.

Easy peasy, right?

Well... the way he tells it, it should be!  

We just make it so much harder!

Listening to his stories and simply being near his contagious joy stirs you up to believe --no, remember, that we can do crazy things, --amazing things,  --impossible things, even!

He talked of Charlie, of his office on Tom Sawyer Island at Disneyland, of running into a man with a machete in a hostile land and asking to take a selfie with him... He talked about loving his neighbor --as in, for real... he talked about loving all people. Even (or especially) the ones who creep you out or are just not like you. He talked about loving your enemies, and choosing your words carefully... He talked about being present and childlike and not fighting to be right, but instead, just be love!

Sound familiar? 

Speak Life. Be Love. Shine On.
Yeah... let's do some more of that!

***

So, I forgot my camera and I forgot my journal... but as Bob was sharing, we realized that his book is a huge reason why Dave and I said a crazy yes to starting Dad's House church last year.  We were so thankful that we got to share that with him and thank him for Loving and Doing so joyfully and boldly!

I jotted a few quotes from his talk on my phone... here are a handful that really stood out to me:

"Love is its' own Return Address"  

On your worst day, Jesus calls you Beloved!
We are so distracted by who we were
that we don't see who we are becoming!

"Extravagant Love will outlast you!"

Say: Who you are... Where you are... and What you want.

"I see what you are becoming and you are becoming Love!"

Under the banner of Christ, it changes everything or it changes nothing. It can't change just a few things!

"Jesus never asked any of us to play it safe."

Instead of just praying with people in power, play with people in power!

"God calls us to build a Kingdom not just a castle. Castles have motes and Kingdoms have bridges."

Don't stay stuck! Stumble in Grace and Go Love Everybody!

"We are never shooting blanks with our words! Our words are costing us so much more than we realize. Be picky with your words!"

Follow Loves lead!  If it doesn't lead you to the poor and downtrodden, it's not Love leading you!

"Kingdoms have grace and it starts with you! God doesn't fold up messages on paper. He passes us each other."

Classic! Bob with my friends: True Joy is contagious!

Here's the thing about Bob... 

(Resisting urge to quote What About Bob here!)

He is a gift.  He is Present and fixes his attention fully on you when you speak with him. His joy is genuine and not fake or put on, and best of all --it truly is contagious!

It's not that hard things don't happen to him, or that he ignores or denies them.  He talked of some of the hard things too. But he chooses to let Love have His way and Love always overcomes... always comes through... always pours out... 

And it seems Love and Joy and Peace all sort of like to hang out together. Bob just gets to hang out with them!

The Good News is so can we!

So thankful for Valley Shots Photography. They do a lot of Community events and love and serve our Valley well. They also do family and senior portraits, weddings, and other special occasion events.  They do amazing work! Check them out HERE. 

P.S.  I'm linking up with these lovely writers:

The Community over at #SmallWonders

Laura Boggess over at #ChasingTheBlueFlower

Holly Barrett for #TestimonyTuesday

Kelly Balarie for #RaRaLinkUp

Jennifer Dukes Lee for #TellHisStory

P.S. I told Bob I was hoping to see Sweet Maria with him and he said that seeing her is like seeing a Unicorn -it's rare and magical!  He also whispered that, just maybe, there will be  a 'unicorn sighting' at If this year!

Have you read Love Does by Bob Goff or heard him speak?  I'd love to hear your thoughts or some quotes or stories that stood out to you!