Keep Your Eyes on the Soldiers

This week we are having a Vacation Bible School experience at our local park. Our church, along with 8 or so others are holding our joint Bible school at the park in hopes of attracting other children and families that might not have a church home. It's called Marketplace and simmilates what life might have been like at the time of Jesus. There are shops where the children can make things (like clay pots, jewelry, dreidels, etc.), there are tribal families where the children learn about Jewish traditions, there is Synagoge school where the children learn about Jewish traditions. And then there are the Roman Soldiers. When we were at home over the weekend we saw a float in the parade that had the three crosses and Roman Soldiers walking behind it. Jake then began to be leary of the soldiers as my mom made some comment about the soldiers killing Jesus. Jake took that statement into himself and is still leary about the soldiers to this day. Everytime they walked by he'd hide behind me and watch them the whole time. Things escalated a bit when we learned last night that Jesus had been arrested...now Jake is really aware of the presence of the soldiers around us. We'll see if the rain and severe heat holds off tonight whether Jake will ever take his eyes off the soldiers or not.

Am I This Old?

This weekend we are back home for the annual Celina Lake Festival...a weekend full of fun, fireworks and the Grand Parade. Throughout this weekend I have also had the pleasure of seeing a few people that I went to high school with. And boy have we changed. Now in my work with college students I begin to think of myself as one of them...a 20-something fun-filled person with lots of energy and few years. But when I look at some of the people that I remember from the good ol'days I can't help but be reminded when we were in our prime and youth. It's hard to picture some of the real jocks of the football team being overweight and balding...some of us with our gray/white hair coming in. I guess that's why The Boss wrote that song about Glory Days...

I Survived Tomb Raider the ride!

For the past two days, I have been in Cincinnati with our college students from church. We took a trip to Kings Island and what an adventure we had. I was talked into riding a few rides that I just, frankly, wasn't sure of but was assured I would be ok. The worst of these was the Tomb Rider ride....which included going upsidedown several times and hanging upsidedown for a little while...enough to have someone encourage me to open my eyes to see what was around me. See, the ride is base, of course, on the movies so you are in a "cave" and spinning around and around...you see stalagmites and then you are rotated again and are in a lava pit...the freakiest things about the ride were feeling your bottom come completely off of your seat and then seeing the folks around you with their hair above their heads. I kept thinking that I somehow was going to fall out of the safety harness. But all was well, or so I thought. I didn't realize that as we were on the ride I must've held exceeding tight to the harness...I was shaking as I got off and both of my wrists ached so bad. Today I woke up and my biceps on both arms ache and ache. Well, at least I can say I did it so I never have to ride it again. Lara Croft? I am NOT!

Fired Up for the Fourth

Over the weekend we got to see a great fireworks display in Cincinnati. The colors were brilliant and the music that went with them was wonderful. One thing that I did find ironic, though, was the company that put on the fireworks was for cleaner air. What's cleaner in the air than the sulfur smells of fireworks? Anyway, the show was wonderful.

Second to Last Common Grounds

In mid January, our church began this new contemporary worship service called Common Grounds. For a while now I have been saying that our church needed some kind of service that was not too formal and that involved some contemporary worship music. Throughout these past six plus months we have reached out to new people in the community and until the weather got warm and people began to go somewhere else. We're now going to take a little break...for about 6 weeks or so so that the worship team and all those who donate their time and talent to help us put this service together can rest and relax and revive. We're hoping to work up some new and different music for the fall...hoping to get more volunteers to make things easier for those involved. Trying to figure out new and different ideas for the worship, presentation and the music. Looking toward a time of renewal and new ideas.

Summer Continues

Yesterday I wrote about the beginning of Summer as the gill was lit. Today we went to a friend's house to swim in her pool. Jake had a lot of fun as he splashed around and squirted us with these fish that spit water. He tried to get me to climb into the pool, but that was when I froze. I don't like ladders...period. And I hate worse to climb up a ladder, change direction and climb down into a pool or any other thing I might climb into. So, I tried to get in...I got up to the top and froze. Jake kept yelling, "Come in mommy. It's not cold." But I couldn't move. Needless to say I enjoyed the rest of the afternoon from a chair at the side. So now my friend as well as my son think I'm some kind of freak that can't climb a simple stupid ladder. But ever since my knee surgery I've been scared to climb something like that....I'm sure this will be a story told and told at my expense...Summer continues

Summer's Officially Here!

For the first time this season, we fired up the grill tonight. Brats on the grill...with potato chips...and strawberries with dip (Jake's favorite). Sitting on the back deck enjoying good food is one of my favorite things of summer. I am sure this is just the first of many meals enjoyed out at the picnic table on the deck. Good food with friends and family...one of the best things of Summer. Happy Summer!

Hands Off!

I just got a phone call today from one of my friends...it seems as though when she was on vacation someone got into her house and took some stuff. This comes on the heels of someone (well, actually a group of people or small army) breaking into our church and stealing loads of stuff. In that break in they took 3 guitars (one of which was mine), a 27" TV, a VCR, DVD player, our maintenance man's tools, his computer, they tried to break into our pop machine but when it didn't open as they thought it should they broke the glass in the top then just left it. 'Course it was in their anger that they left their only fingerprint. They also took a boom box, some Veggie Tale videos and a cheeseburger with a pickle that they chiseled from a block in the freezer oh and who could forget the pea salad made for our Thursday night dinner. Then in the next few days proceeded to break into several other churches in the area.

So I'm just wondering, why can't people just keep their hands off of stuff that's not theirs? Why do they feel compelled to take what other people have...it's not that things can't be replaced, but when you take computers and other things that have files that can not easily be replaced. Anyway, just wondering.

What Candy Are You?

discover what candy you are @ quiz me

Way to go Sue! Way to go God!

Over the past few months I have been praying for a friend who was diagnosed with ovarian cancer. She received a bone marrow transplant at the end of May and has been battling to gain her strength and her immunity back ever since. Throughout her latest battles we have heard wonderful news. After the initial tests her doctors have determined that her CA (I think it is called) is lower than the level where it is diagnosed no cancer. Second, I received an email today saying that after 37 days in the hospital she's actually out in the pseudo-real world. It's amazing what prayers, faith and God can do. God is good all the time...all the time God is good!

I'm a Starfish

You're a Starfish!
To others, your presence seems to denote greatness, or at the very least something celestial. You're enthralled by the heavens above and seem to always be looking to them for guidance. Once you decide to stick to something, it's very difficult to get you away from it. You really don't seem to mind other people, even strangers, touching you. We can't all be you; someone has to applaud.

Take the Animal Quiz at the Blue Pyramid.

The Book Quiz

You're The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe!
by C.S. Lewis

You were just looking for some decent clothes when everything changed quite dramatically. For the better or for the worse, it is still hard to tell. Now it seems like winter will never end and you feel cursed. Soon there will be an epic struggle between two forces in your life and you are very concerned about a betrayal that could turn the balance. If this makes it sound like you're re-enacting Christian theological events, that may or may not be coincidence. When in doubt, put your trust in zoo animals.

Take the Book Quiz at the Blue Pyramid.

OK so I had to try this

Well, I finally got into the whole idea of the blogspot. It seems as though I'm one of the last people to begin a blogspot. So, here's my start...not real great, but it's almost midnight and I'm getting tired. More later.