What?

I just heard on Fox & Friends that Tony Blair, former British Prime minister, became a Roman Catholic yesterday.

That's interesting.

Sweet Relief

Ok, the semester's over, I survived finals and am now in a recuperate mode.

About midway through the semester I was diagnosed with pneomia. I eventually got over it, sorta. I did start to feel better but have had cold symptoms almost constantly since. I would feel better for a day or two but then go back to feeling bad again. Well, I think my body was just doing what it had to to survive the hectic schedule I was keeping. Since finals were over last Thursday I think my body said, "ok, now I CAN be sick!"

I have been terribly sick since finals. I am starting to feel better though, for now. So anyway, send me your accolades for surviving the semester (yes that's unabashed self-promotion) and please pray that I would get all better by Christmas. I'd like to be well Christmas morning.

Oh yeah, wait till I tell you about Christmas. Our God is good. That's all I can say for now.

Remember, He (Jesus) knows when you've been good or bad, so be good for His sake.

'Till next time...

5 Days left

Whew... This is it, down to the wire. Five days left in this semester. On a previous post I wrote:

Before the end of the semester I need to write a 10 page research paper, a 4 page opinion paper, a couple 5 page journal article reviews, three lesson plans, four sermons, conduct two interviews and whatever else I can't remember right now. Whew, I better get busy.

Well, the 10 page research paper is done, One of the journal articles is done, one of the lesson plans is done and three of the sermons are done. I still have the 4 page opinion paper, one of the journal article reviews, two lesson plans, two sermons ( I realized that I had another sermon to prepare), both interviews and a couple other small papers to write.

I still have a lot to do and a short time to do it in.

... So I'm gonna get busy.

Later

We would have made the pilgrims proud...

I know it's now two days after Thanksgiving and this may not be the most timely post, but I am just now able to write about it. Yes, I am all turkeyed out. I have had my fill and we have not even eaten half of that humongous 20 lb. turkey. I do love turkey though, and will be ready for some more in a few weeks or so. I sure am glad turkey freezes well.

We did have some healthy choices this year. Along with the turkey and normal stuffing, Robin made this rice and something stuffing as a healthy alternative. She also made her cranberry salad with no sugar added and no marshmallows and I think she put four or five times the amount of apples in it to add some natural sweetening. It was pretty good even if a little sour. It was even better after I doctored some with a little sugar and Sweet'n Low but please don't tell Robin I did that. She also made a kinda cashew and arrowroot gravy that had a good taste but was a little slimy. Dinner was great however, and the time of thanksgiving afterwards was even better.

We all took turns going around and saying what we were thankful for. We have much to be thankful for. God has really been good to us. I am amazed at His constant provision and protection on our lives.

It is my prayer that you all had a great Thanksgiving day and made some lasting memories.

I'll try not to wait until next Thanksgiving to write another post.

Until later,

It's Almost Over...

This semester is almost over already. I know it's a little late, but I feel like I need to update everybody on what's been happening at school.

I signed up for these classes this semester:

1. Algebra
2. Cross Cultural Communications
3. Methods of Bible Teaching
4. Homiletics
5. Missions Strategies
6. Christology
7. Soteriology
8. Missionary Life and Work

I know, that's crazy. They are all two hour classes except Homiletics, which is a three hour class. That's 17 hours. I couldn't handle it. Algebra was taking me four hours a week outside of class and I wasn't even keeping up. When I came to the realization that I was trying to do too much Algebra was the natural choice to drop. So now I am only in 7 classes, which is still a lot but I am much more able to handle the load. I think I am on track to get 5 A'a and 2 C's. We'll see in a few weeks.

I am really enjoying my classes this year and I think I am learning a lot. I am; however, ready for a break. I get a few days off for thanksgiving, which will be a great relief, although I still have much work to do during the break to complete the last bit of projects before the end of this semester.

Before the end of the semester I need to write a 10 page research paper, a 4 page opinion paper, a couple 5 page journal article reviews, three lesson plans, four sermons, conduct two interviews and whatever else I can't remember right now. Whew, I better get busy.

I guess I should go now and get to work.

Later

It was a great summer

A few posts ago I wrote about taking my oldest daughter, Crysta, to CEF's Christian Youth In Action training camp(that was in the middle of May). Her training went well and she really applied herself and learned a lot about ministering to children.

Kayla went to the two day Junior CYIA training.

Here are the results of that training and their hard work.

Back Yard Bible Clubs

The girls, along with two other young people, held about nine Back Yard Bible Clubs this summer. They were able to lead about 16 children to the Lord through these clubs.

County Fair Ministry

Our family participated in the Fair Ministry through our church and CEF and we were able to see 13 children come to the Lord. Crysta and Kayla led most of these children to the Lord.

After School Good News Club

Our whole family, along with about ten other people from our church, also ministers to the students at Campbell Elementary School through a Bible club we hold on Monday afternoons in the school. Crysta and Kayla are instrumental to the success of this club and teach in all areas of the club. The Lord has blessed tremendously with six of these public school children accepting Christ so far this year. By the way, Campbell Elementary is in a tough area of town. The residents are very transient and are mostly in the low income bracket. We have seen God do a great work through this club.

The training our girls received through CEF was instrumental in their success this summer. God used them greatly and they really put a lot of hard work to help change the lives of many children this summer.

By the way, Serena was too young to participate in the training and the clubs this summer but she has a real heart for serving God and while she couldn't participate in the training she is learning how to share the gospel through the wordless book and is actually pretty good at it.

Please pray that God would continue to use our girls and they would continue to want to be used of Him.

Why am I blogging?

I started blogging last year for two reasons. One, to keep my friends and family up to date on my goings on and stuff. Two, because I wanted a medium to help persuade me to write more.

While I have enjoyed blogging, I feel like I have badly neglected keeping it up to date and I'm just not sure if I should continue. It wouldn't be a big deal except I feel guilty about going weeks or months between entries.

With all that said, I'm going to try to bring the blog up to date over the next week or so. Only time will tell how successful I am.

Let me know what you think. Do you mind coming here only to find there are no new entries or should I just shut it all down?

Am I whining? I feel like I'm whining?

Ok, so I was surfing around this morning...

...and I followed a link on Hall Young's blog to Scott Brown's blog and found this article:

The Success of Youth Ministry

Over the years many studies have documented the staggering number of youth who leave the church after their high school years. I know many who have concluded that the failure of modern youth ministry is no longer disputable.

Mike Yaconelli, one of the founders of the modern youth ministry movement, and founder of Youth Specialties stated it this way just before his death in a 2003 edition of "Youthworker" magazine,

"The success of youth ministry in this country is an illusion... So let's be honest. Youth ministry as an experiment has failed. If we want to see the church survive, we need to rethink youth ministry."

I found this interesting because when our oldest daughter was approaching junior high age, we made the decision to keep her out of the youth group. There were many reasons for this, one of those reasons was because, while the youth department said their job was to support the family, we felt they were going about it all wrong. In fact, it seemed as though their unintentional results were actually fragmenting the family.

This was evidenced by the fact that almost without exception, within a few weeks of graduating into the youth group, we witnessed a marked change in those young people. Some of those changes were:

1. A radical change in their dress style trying to conform to pop culture almost without regard for Biblical modesty or appropriateness.
2. Going from sitting with their parents in church to sitting with their peers and a lack of interest in the service.
3. A change in their character from sweet approachable young person to someone who didn't want to have anything to do with adults.

We were not about to accept this. Instead, we got Crysta involved in ministry to teach her the importance of serving others and God. She did a great job and does not regret not being in the youth group.

Here's the rub:

It's not the youth pastor's job to train your children in Godliness. It is the parents job to disciple and train their children. Now, this means you must have the kind of relationship with them so they will listen to you. This comes partly from training and discipline but mostly from spending quality time building your relationship bit by bit. There is NO substitute for time spent with your children. The all-to-common excuse of "it's not quantity of time but the quality" is a lie of Satan. There, I said it. If you're offended, well, take that as a hint.

By the way, Crysta is now in a youth group. Although she doesn't just do everything they do. In order for her to participate in her youth group activities the activity must be in line with our goals for her life. Oh yes, and partly as a result of our teaching her the value of ministry and serving God, she has spent this summer teaching neiborhood children about God and salvation and has had the blessing of leading many children to Jesus this summer.

That's enough for now.

Which one are you?

As much as I dislike forwarded emails, this came to me the other day in a forward. I think it's pretty cool. Instead of forwarding it on, I thought I'd just post it here.

Enjoy-

A woman in a hot air balloon realized she was lost. She lowered her altitude and spotted a man below. She shouted to him, "Excuse me, can you help me? I promised a friend I would meet him an hour ago, but I don't know where I am."

The man consulted his portable GPS and replied, "You're in a hot air balloon, approximately 30 feet above a ground elevation of 2346 feet above sea level. You are at 31 degrees, 14.97 minutes north latitude and 100 degrees, 49.09 minutes west longitude.

She rolled her eyes and said, "You must be a Conservative."

"I am," replied the man. "How did you know?"

"Well," answered the balloonist, "everything you told me is technically correct, but I have no idea what to do with your information, and I'm still lost. Frankly, you've not been much help to me."

The man smiled and responded, "You must be a Liberal."

"I am," replied the balloonist. "How did you know?"

"Well," said the man, "you don't know where you are or where you're going. You've risen to where you are, due to a large quantity of hot air. You made a promise that you have no idea how to keep, and you expect me to solve your problem. You're in exactly the same position you were in before we met but, somehow, now it's my fault."

Is it really June 21st?

There have been a lot of things going on but I have not been feeling very bloggy lately. In fact I started a new post the other day only to discard it before finishing. Sometimes I guess I'm just not in the mood to share with the world (however small a part of it actually reads this) what is going on in my life. Well here it is.

My New Job

As I stated in my last post, I started a new job. I am the night Front Desk clerk at a local hotel, the Springfield Inn. I work from 11pm to 7 am five nights a week. It's taken me a while to get used to the hours. Staying up through the night was not the problem; what I did have a problem with was sleeping. The first week I could not sleep very much during the day. I guess I had to train my body how to sleep when it was light out. I've got that whipped now and I sleep very well.

My Baby's Growing Up

Two Sundays ago, the 10th, Robin and I drove Crysta to Hannibal Missouri to attend the Child Evangelism Fellowship's(CEF) Christian Youth In Action training camp. This is a two week training camp where they teach young people how to conduct the CEF's 5 day camps (also known as back yard clubs). Now this is not your average youth camp. In order to go to this camp, you need the recommendations of two spiritual leaders (other than family) in your life, like your pastor and Sunday school teacher. You need to memorize two whole pages of Scripture verses before the camp starts. You also have to make the commitment to conduct at least 9 Five Day Backyard Clubs during the rest of the summer. It's a pretty big commitment, but, then again, it's excellent training.

This last school year, Robin, Crysta and the girls have been doing the after school CEF club at the elementary school by our church. This is a great time to teach kids about Jesus and reach them with the Gospel. Did you know the CEF actually won a Supreme court case to guaranty them access to the public schools. If a public school opens it's doors to any outside group, they must also, by law, allow religious groups in also. You need to check this out. If your church isn't getting into the public schools this is the way to do it. Go to their web site and check it out at www.cefonline.com.

Anyway, it was very difficult for me to leave Crysta at this camp for two weeks. We have been training her for this her whole life though, so this is really just the next step in learning to walk on her own two feet spiritually. I think the reason I had such a hard time with this is because it reminds me of that day when I am going to have to say goodbye to her permanently, possibly in as little as 5 years. That's almost impossible to imagine, but it's not too far off. Lord help me, please.

I Got Another Year Older

Yes, it's true. I turned 38 this month. That means only two years to the dreaded 4-0, Over-The -Hill and all that. You know, I still think of myself as 18 until I look in the mirror, or climb a flight of stairs, or get out of bed for that matter. It makes me that much more dedicated to getting in shape and getting healthy. I don't think it's going to get any easier as I get older. Wow-this post turned sour real quick, I'm getting off this subject now.

I guess I'll go now. Please keep Crysta's father in prayer. I really need it.

Love you guys...

Whew...

Here it is the middle of May already and I've neglected my blog yet again. I can't say it's totally without cause though. I have had to finish up projects for classes, study for and take finals, and attend the BBFI fellowship week activities. It's been a rather busy time. We got to see one of our pastors from Mid-Way in Raleigh, Brother Bob. It was nice to make that connection again and get to visit and fellowship with our pastor. O yes, I've also started a new job. It is as a front desk clerk at a local hotel called Springfield Inn.

All in all it's been a busy but enjoyable month so far. I am looking forward to a great summer. I am planning to work as much as I can and enjoy summer activities with my family. I'm looking forward to doing more fishing than I've done in the past few years and maybe a camping trip or two.

Gonna go for now. Be good.

Do You Freecycle?

What?

What in the world is freecycle you ask? Well, it is the ultimate form of recycling. When you freecycle, you not only keep stuff out of the landfills, you also save the energy it takes for industry to recycle that stuff.

Keep Your Britches On

Now before you go thinking I've gone to the other side and am running with the tree hugging and frog kissing crowd, think again. Being good for the environment is only one of the good things about freecycling.

• We all have things we don't need or want. Right?
• We all need or want things we don't have. Right?
• We all love to get things for free. Right?
• We all love to give things away and bless people. Right?

Freecycle gets the people who have things they don't need or want together with the people who need or want the things other people have so the haves can give freely to the have-nots and that just makes everybody happy and giddy inside.

From The Freecycle Website

How does it work?

When you want to find a new home for something -- whether it's a chair, a fax machine, piano, or an old door -- you simply send an e-mail offering it to members of the local Freecycle group.

Or, maybe you're looking to acquire something yourself. Simply respond to a member's offer, and you just might get it. After that, it's up to the giver to decide who receives the gift and to set up a pickup time for passing on the treasure.

Our main rule: Everything posted must be free, legal, and appropriate for all ages.

Non-profit organizations also benefit from The Freecycle Network. Post the item or items you want to give away and specify that you wish the gift to go to a nonprofit cause. It's entirely your choice! It's a free cycle of giving. The Freecycle Network is incorporated as a nonprofit organization and is tax-exempt under the IRS 501(c)3 ruling.

Cool Huh?

Robin and I have been Freecycling lately and I gotta tell you, it's a blast. It's for a good cause, and it's free. Can you beat that? I don't think so.

Go check out the national Freecycle site and get involved today. It's fun! Do it now. Come on, you can read the rest of my stupid blog later, go check out Freecycle now.

VT students returned to classes today

OK, I have held my toung, err...fingers, for a week on this. I've tried not to be reactionary and wait to see what happens, but now it's time to speak.

While I'm admittedly a bit disconnected from the everyday news, there are a few things I've noticed.

It wasn't the gun's fault

So, I haven't watched that much news about this event, but I have seen numerous stories about the guns and how easily available they are. The stories seemed to highlight the fact of the high capacity magazines available for the 9mm pistol and the fact that you can buy one with an instant background check without a waiting period. They almost seem to blame the gun for the horrific things that transpired that day.

The fact of the matter is this: bad people do bad things. This wasn't the gun's fault, it was the gunman's fault. It wasn't the universities fault, it was the gunman's fault. It wasn't the professors fault, it was the gunman's fault. It wasn't the security officers fault, it was the gunman's fault. It was the gunman's fault!

I know I said a few...

...but that's all I want to discuss now. Maybe more later.

Thank you for reading

Calling all prayer warriors

I just found out that a friend of the family, Marlene Travis, has been diagnosed with cancer. It is in multiple places including her brain. She is getting chemotherapy treatment. Please pray that God would heal her and that the doctors will know the best course of action to take in her treatment.

Until next time...

Would you see this in USA?

Guess where this picture was taken? Let me just say that this is one of the reasons we want to go to Ecuador. They are a people who need Jesus to make a difference in their spiritual lives as well as their physical lives. We want to go and introduce these people to the life changing power that only Jesus can give.

Would you please pray for us as we prepare to go and help these people; and would you also pray for the Ecuadorian people that they would realize their need for Jesus and his life changing work on their souls.

Until next time...