"Crabtree Adventures" The Story Behind the Name
If you have been following us and watching the amazing progress God has blessed Vanessa with over the past year and a half, you might have wondered why on earth we named our updated video channel on YouTube Crabtree Adventures.
If you are reading this and haven't yet checked out the channel, please do and subscribe if you would like to stay up to date with our adventures (https://www.youtube.com/@CrabtreeAdventures)
We initially named the channel Crabtree Adventures based on an inscription that Vanessa had on her high school ring, which read "On to Adventure." This tagline might be familiar to you if you have watched any of our videos.
One of the first songs that I found after inpatient rehab, "Adventure" by Matthew Parker, dealt with themes of finding an adventure through difficult circumstances. It is a song that we have used in a few of our YouTube Shorts and one that is a bit of an anthem for us during this phase of recovery.
Here are a few of the more impactful lyrics that we have clung to from this song:
Pre-Chorus
Life is black and blue
Happy then it's sad
Just call it an adventure
Then it ain't so bad
Verse 1
You and me
We found adventure
I never dreamed that you would change my world forever
But here we are (But here we are)
I'm ready to conquer
Ready to fight injustice like I'm fighting monsters
Verse 2
You and me
We found adventure
In a land of buried mines and buried treasure
This could be-ee-eee
My last adventure
But I will take it
Whether it be pain or pleasure
We knew that the idea and theme of adventure would be integral in pushing us and moving us into this new stage of life.
Seeing that I am in seminary and have been in ministry for most of our married life, I have struggled to help communicate a deep truth God has shown me over the past year and a half without making it sound overtly "Churchy."
I have struggled to phrase what God placed on my heart early on in our new journey until this morning's sermon titled "Keep Your Eye On The Ball" by Pastor Rustin Rossello from Scottsdale Bible Church (July 21st, 2024).
Early on in the process, God placed it on my heart that things would have to change, and I would be miserable if I tried to cling to our pre-injury life "entitlements."
There have been many times that I have struggled to let our pre-injury life go. I have fought hard to "cling to" this is who we are, and that has chained us at times. But over the past year, God has helped bring us so much more joy by saying, "That was a part of us, but now God has this new adventure for us to travel."
For a while now, I have understood that for us to learn, grow, and rejoice even today, we would have to let go of a part of who we were... which is a terrifying process. But the reality of life with a spinal cord injury is that we are not able just to forget and move on. There is a constant reminder in our lives that we cannot overlook our new reality. We cannot just leave the wheelchair behind and walk away. And the reality is our lives will never be the same again, which isn't bad. In fact, it has been a blessing from God in many ways.
“We cannot just leave the wheelchair behind and walk away. And the reality is our lives will never be the same again, which isn’t bad. In fact, it has been a blessing from God in many ways.”
Amid the trial and struggle, I am amazed at how good God is. Even in our trials, struggles, and fights with insurance companies... God is good, and He has things in His control.
Even on the worst of nerve pain days... God is good, and He has things in His control.
Even when we are not able to go into a business together because it is not wheelchair accessible... God is good, and He has things in His control.
Even when we have to fight with our landlord to make things accessible... God is good, and He has things in His control.
Even when we struggle to understand each other and how mannerisms and affection have shifted due to the injury... God is good, and He has things in His control.
Even when we struggle to see God’s goodness…God is good, and He has things in His control.
The part of Pastor Rossello's sermon that got to me the most was this idea:
"And I [God] want to take you on an adventure, which, by the way, is going to bring so much life and so much excitement. You can't imagine what you and I will do together in these exploits."
Even in a tragic situation, God is good if we are able and willing to say, "Let's go on this new adventure together. I will leave behind things that are hurting me and cling to God, the leader of this adventure."
This idea is a large part of our spirit when developing the channel called Crabtree Adventures. We quickly knew that life would not be the same and that our attitude toward our new life mattered a lot. We can try to fight reality and cling to old things that will continue to harm us, or we can live out a new path and adventure with God.
"We were made to go on an adventure with God. We were made to cling to the side of our heavenly Father and to say, 'Where to next?'" - Pastor Rossello
“We were made to go on an adventure with God. We were made to cling to the side of our heavenly Father and to say, ‘Where to next?’”
So today, I want to remind you to find your adventure, in particular, to find your adventure with the creator of the world. God is good, and you can trust His goodness.
On to Adventure!
The following is a more extended quote from the sermon this morning to help add a bit more context.
"Entitlement says, I get this much time, I get this much money, I get to do this thing when I want to do this thing. And the only problem is, what if the Lord says, hey, I want to take you over here, and we're standing there clinging, going, no, these things are mine, and they don't go; you're now chained to that thing.
It's going from helping you to hurting you. Because what if the Lord, and he's done this many times in my life, goes, hey, but that thing's not helping you? It's hurting you. And I want to take you on an adventure, which, by the way, is going to bring so much life and so much excitement. You can't imagine what you and I will do together in these exploits.
But those things have to be left behind. And then we have to walk in a new direction with the Lord and entitlements chain us to places rather than to the person of Christ. Adventure and exploits with the Lord are what we're made for. We were made to go on and Adventure with God. We were made to cling to the side of our heavenly Father and to say, where to next?
Is that our heart when we wake up every day? And if not, what do we got to do to get back there?"
If you are interested, click on this link for the entire sermon. It was a blessing to me, and I hope it will also blesses you (https://www.youtube.com/live/iZ3Hl-eacv8?si=Q10aP0ekJ5zzgkGl&t=1851)