SILVER ANNIVERSARY TRIP: THE ROAD TO SUSANVILLE

My wife and I are on vacation. What's the occaision? Wellllllll....(drum roll), this week marks our 25th wedding anniversary (trumpets sound, cherubs sigh, fluttery paper hearts drift lazily downward, doves ascend into the blissful sunshine.....you get the idea).

A lot of married folks say, "I wouldn't change a thing." I have to confess...I would change some things. The times of doubt and the times of frustration. Seasons of poverty. Mis-managing priorities. Yup, I'd change all of that, because, personally speaking, my wife deserves a whole lot better from the last 25 years. And that folks, is the heart of the matter: there's plenty I wouldn't mind changing, but the one thing I wouldn't change is the companion I chose to go through it with.

Okay...my allergies are kicking in a little, so let's move on. By the way...I always looked at silver anniversary couples as "old." That tradition stops here, because we are most definately not old.

Our first stop was Susanville, California, a short three and a half hour drive from southern Oregon. I snapped some pics along the way for your enjoyment.

Lassen Peak now....(above)

....and then. According to the display, Lassen (a volcano) erupted in 1915. Gulp.

What's wrong with this picture?A section of Highway 44 is undergoing major repairs. We were stopped for about ten minutes while waiting for a pilot car to escort us through the rough, torn-up dirt road. Being on a long interstate trip means always looking for ahem means to satisfy one's uhhhh well....you know. I glanced over and saw a typical construction site "porta-potty." There's only one problem. Did you spot it yet? That's right....one of the wheels isn't even touching the ground!

Our evening in Susanville was a pleasant one, with a very nice dining surprise. More on that in the next entry. Until next time...

A TYPICAL WEEK FOR A NOT-SO-TYPICAL CHILDREN'S MINISTER

Somebody once asked me, "What is your typical week like?"

I bristled.

Actually, I didn't bristle, but I do have a certain disdain for the question. I presume that the reason is curiosity: what does a "children's ministries director" really do? It's a hard question for me, because, proverbially speaking, I wear a lot of different hats. If you want to be really technical about it, I have two paid jobs at my church, neither of which is "children's ministries director." That's right--the thing that occupies a great deal of my time, thoughts, energy, and creativity is, in reality, a volunteer position! I'm fortunate, though, in having a paid job that gives me a certain amount of flexibility in carrying out the children's ministry. But to divide my week into what segments fall where? Uhhhh, that's a little hard to do.

6:15 a.m. Open the facility for the church DayCare. This includes retreiving messages, unlocking doors, getting out toys, double checking the schedule, etc. I also make the coffee, which is Biblical (there's a whole book in Scripture about it: He brews!). By 6:30, the kiddos start trickling in.

8:45 a.m. Teach one of the 4 year 0ld classes. Sociologists call this a "contra-typical career position." They've obviously never watched Kindergarten Cop or Daddy Day Care, otherwise they would realize that early childhood education is just bursting with near-middle aged bald guys who know the names of the four Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles and three Power Puff girls.

11:00 a.m. Class over. Time for what I affectionately (delusionally) call "me time." In the next 1.5 hours, I will eat lunch, catch up on the news, maybe go online, do some yard work (maybe), get a quick "power nap," run errands, etc. This isn't absolute...sometimes, I am needed later at the DayCare, sometimes I choose to just jump right into something else. And some days, when there is no class, I'm off even earlier, giving me even more "me time."

12:30 p.m. Job #2 is "Administrative Assistant." This is where the flexibility comes in. My mission is to serve the needs of the pastor and the church. For my pastor, it is a matter of removing obstacles and distractions (like screening phone calls, visitors, helping drop-ins, etc.). As part of my duties, I also handle publicity and promotion (the church newsletter, press releases, etc.). I carry out "missions" for the church adminstrator (finding out if any of the pile of old keys fits into any existing doors).
But the rest of the afternoon is pretty much up to me. When I'm not handling "official duties", I'm free to study, prepare, pray, call, research, and otherwise carry out things like children's ministries, sermon and lesson prep, etc. It's such an incredible blessing to have the time and freedom to do these things each day.

Weekends, of course, are a whole different animal. Obviously, it's a time to recharge, spend time around the house, dialogue with the occaisional cult member who chooses Saturday morning to come to my door, and so on. I enjoy the time with my wife. But at some point, I run down to the church to put together last minute items for Sunday and to set up the room for our children's program. Since we meet in the fellowship hall, everything we have is moveable. A lot of items are stored on the stage, so we have to take it all off the stage to put in its various places.
If all goes well, the process is fairly quick. If we run into trouble (such as the sound board not producing sound), then it takes a little longer.

And that brings us to Sundays, a day which deserves its own post. I try to arrive early (about 8 a.m.) to do any last minute chores. Our "Celebration Small Group" meets at 9 a.m. I gather the kids and dismiss them to their classes. Then I "hightail" it to the other side of the building to teach an adult Bible study.
At 10:00 a.m. is "Celebration Large Group." I facilitate and teach the kids during this time, unless I'm filling the pulpit for the pastor when he's away. After it's over and the parents have retrieved their children, we put everything back on the stage again.

And then Monday, it starts again.

That's it...a typical week. But not so typical. Every day the Lord gives a fresh batch of mercies and grace to meet whatever challenges come up. It is indeed an adventure! I get to work with kids..how cool is that!!!

And next week? Well, I'm taking a break from my "typical week" to celebrate our 25th wedding anniversary. As I have the time and free wireless, I'll probably blog about the sights. In the meantime, the adventure continues (cue Indiana Jones music and fade.....)

REAL LIFE POLICE DRAMA (sort of)

There I was, in the church office, doing my church office stuff, when our church DayCare Director (who doubles as my wife, incidently) called and said, "We have a situation here, we're going into lock down! I'll explain later!" Even though the DayCare is located on the other end of the facility, I went ahead and locked the outside office door. When looking out the window, I counted three sherriff's vehicles zipping by. I made my way to the back and asked what was going on. Apparently a highly agitated young man had entered the facility and asked to make a phone call. He then asked for a ride...right before leaving the building. His behavior prompted us to call the police, who informed us that they were looking for him and that we should go into lockdown!
Sooooo....the kids were herded into their safe areas, all the doors were locked, and all of the drills we've done for this scenario paid off. A half-hour later, the police called back with an "all clear," and the kids got to tell their parents about their adventure.
The local paper had a passing reference to us, stating the suspect "hid" in the church. It's more like he "passed through" the building. At any rate, here's the link if you want to read about it right here.

ALIEN AUTOPSY?..OR SOMETHING MORE SERIOUS?

I kid you not...the above photo is completely authentic and not the subject of photographic trickery! But what is this image, dear reader? Could it be the evidence of a yet undisclosed crash of a UFO in southern Oregon, a crash that resulted in a government cover up and a terrible autopsy on its alien pilots? Or is it something far more weighty, far more serious, with implications for the health and safety of adults and children alike?

Actually, it's the latter.

As part of my responsibility as a member of the DayCare staff (at least part time), I am required to be re-certified in pediatric first aid and CPR every two years. And because most of our staff''s cards expire about the same time, the trainer comes out to our church and does the whole class on-site. And, of course, she brings a dozen of her closest friends to help...hence, the picture above. This is a CPR dummy, with a head that tilts back and chest that rises and falls with each rescue breath and a remarkably solid torso that accepts the appropriate number of compressions. The instructor (whose name is Lisa) happens to be a firefighter/paramedic. She's also a believer and active member of a rather larger church up the highway from us.

The neat thing about this certification is that this is something that goes beyond the few hours I'm at the DayCare. It applies everywhere...from my responsibilities as Children's Ministries Director at the church to simply walking down the street. In a way, it's Christianity in motion. I don't ever want to use it, but it's good to know that, if one of God's kids is in trouble, I can respond with prayer and action.

And that, dear readers, beats an alien autopsy any day!

MARCH: IN LIKE A LION AND OUT LIKE A...LION?

A long time ago, when I lived in southern Colorado, it was not at all unusual to have a sunny January morning with highs in the mid-6o's, followed by a foot of snow that evening. This led to the expression, "if you don't like the weather, just wait a minute and it will change."

I don't know who coined that term or if Colorado can lay claim to it, but surely, southern Oregon is a close second in the changeable weather pattern category. This week is a prime example. It's spring break here in our region...and boy, did it look it. The flowers are starting to bloom. You can smell fresh cut grass in the year. Gorgeous sunshine. It's spring...it's spring...it's spring.

And then came Tuesday....

The above shots were taken from one of the porches of our church. It snowed and rained all morning. At times, the flakes were as big as dollar pancakes! Fortunately, nothing stuck to the roads, but this and the afternoon winds made this a very chilly spring day.

March came in like a lion. But with only three and one-half days left, it remains to be seen if the month will truly go out like a lamb.

I FOUND A NEW GAME

Okay, I like games, but I'm not what one could call a devoted game player. That, plus the fact that I was very tired the afternoon of my mother-in-law's birthday picnic, caused my dear family to say, "you could take a nap in the motor home while we play games at the picnic table." I thought that sounded good...plus I brought a book and some studying materials with me.

Well, it was cold outside and leftover winter snow had buried any chance of picnic table games (see previous post for details). So the family had game time inside the R.V. Since sleep was impossible (and after a little coaxing), I participated. The game: Charoodles!

I don't know how long this game has been around (knowing how much I follow games, it's probably been blogged about a dozen times in the past decade!), but I was pleasantly surprised. It is played like charades, only the participants are given four objects to use as props: an orange foam ball, a tube like thingy, a cup, and square piece of foam. You announce the category and then you have a short time to act out as many items on the list as possible. For example, the category could be "things to do on the beach". Items would be surfing, volleyball, swimming, eating, etc. Some of the categories require you to use a specific prop, while others are open. But a prop must be used and, just like charades, you cannot say anything.

What I liked most about the game is that it reminded me of and reinforced an activity from a children's workshop I attended; namely that as children's ministers, we can look at ordinary objects in extraordinary ways. A stick becomes a sceptre. A yo-yo becomes a pendulum. A couple of paper tubes becomes a pair of binoculars. Those of us who work with children are used to "thinking on our feet" with this stuff. Of course, there's a larger lesson at work as well: we need to have the imagination and courage to think outside the proverbial box, to see things not as they neccesarily are, but what they may become.

I'm very seriously considering taking Charoodles to our next staff meeting. It'll be fun!

EARLY PICNICS IN THE WOODS

Getting out for picnics and camping trips is always a bit of a challenge for us. We enjoy it...but it seems like we get to the end of the summer and wonder if we should have done more.

Well, spring has no sooner taken hold then we have already had two..count 'em..TWO picnics in the woods. Who knows? This could be the summer of the great outdoors for our family. Here's a couple of pics from a couple of pic-nics (hey nifty play on words, there!

This is our dog Drea, half lab, half retriever, and all attitude. She likes the great outdoors...and whatever it is that gets her attention and stops her in her tracks (not sure what it was!)We ate at a campsite called "Four-Bit Ford." Technically, the campgrounds are not even open yet. The winter debris was all around, the trash cans weren't set up, and there was not a soul around. But as the afternoon sun shone through the forest, with the smoke from our hot dog fire drifting along, it was a very pleasent outing.

A week after our Four-Bit Ford adventure, we headed up Highway 62 to some of our favorite spots. We were celebrating my mother-in-law's birthday, so she took us all in her R.V. for some picnicing fun. But we encountered sign after sign that announced the campground was closed (such as Union Creek above). We finally found a spot near a campground. It's called "Wayside" and it is mostly a big parking lot with a nice restroom. An amphitheatre and meeting gazebo are mere yards away, making this a great place for meetings and get-togethers. It was too cold to eat outside, so we had lunch and played games in the motor home. All in all, a nice relaxing time.One of the issues at the campsites was snow. Here is the meeting gazebo, surrounded by about a foot (maybe a little less) of snow.Snow or no snow, southern Oregon mountains have some incredibly tall pine trees to admire! As one kid said, "God sure must be big to make something so big." Yup!

CPC 07: IT RAINED ALL NIGHT THE DAY I LEFT...

(Sorry...the title of this post is a little misleading, for I do not actually leave until tomorrow. At any rate.......)

See...I really was here!

CPC '07 has come to a close. I have a confession to make: the last day is always the hardest for me. Being in the midst of 1700 brothers and sisters who share your passion for children's ministry, who have worshipped alongside of you, who have sat and learned next to you, who have not only shared a table for meals with you, but shared their ministries and their challenges and their visions as well...and then it's time to say goodbye. The resource center is dismantled, the stage comes down, the CPC staff boxes up supplies, and in a matter of hours, it's over. The Town and Country Resort becomes, well, another luxury hotel instead of the nerve center for impacting the lives and hearts of children across the country and around the world.

But I finally got to see the stage close up!

A continental breakfast was held in another room, so they had chairs set up for our closing general session.

And I guess the weather decided to highlight a few of my emotions:

It never rains in southern California...

Yup, there's a part of me that's feeling a little dreary right now. A little sad. But underneath, there is an excitement and readiness to take concepts, principles, and resources back to the kids at EPCBC. I leave tomorrow (I choose to skip the chaos of checking out the last day of the conference!), so in the meantime, I have the opportunity to let the lessons of the weekend settle in my mind.

So unless something dramatic happens or I just feel like making another entry, this will be my final report from (deep breath) The International Network of Children's Ministries' 2007 Children's Pastor's Conference. Wooo-hoooo!

Teacher Tim, signing off

CPC 07: WHAT DO JACK BAUER AND DAVID HAVE IN COMMON?

Children's Pastor's Conference 2007 is hurtling toward the home stretch! And again, the learning experiences have been fantastic. This morning, we heard from the one and only Phil Vischer, the creator of Veggie Tales. He spoke about how God has taught him to lay his dreams and pride on the altar. This evening, we heard from prolific author and pastor Max Lucado, who painted a verbal portrait of the story of David and Goliath. To say it was a blessing is to use a word that I've used over and over again, but it was!

I haven't gone into a lot of details about other sessions...not that they were not good--just the opposite, they were spectacular. It's just that there is so much to absorb and a few typed words just can't sum it up. Tyrone Williams, Latika Garth, the fun of Dennis Lee, the incredible musical talent of the Annie Moses Band, Tommy Toombs...it's just all incredible. As things settle down a bit in my heart, I may share more. But for now, just take my word for it...it has been quite a weekend.

To get an idea of the dining hall where our general sessions have been held, here are a couple of pics:


The neat thing is the creative lighting, using projections on the walls. And the hang down screens at various locations help bring the action on the faaaaaaarrrrrrrrr away stage up close, along with professional camera work. The key word is "atmosphere."


Tonight wrapped up with the "Organized Mass Chaos" games. No, I did not jump in the fray (being the shy, reserved kind of person I am), but I did get a pic of the action:


Finally tonight, a company donated Biblical action figures to the conference. I know they are being sold at the CPC store and I've seen them in various ads, but this is a very generous gift from the folks at one2believe. The key feature of these action figures? They quote Scripture!

Only a doll named David

What is amazing to me is that David sounds a lot like Kiefer Sutherland, the actor who portrays federal agent Jack Bauer on the hit TV thriller 24. I'll resist the temptation to draw some comparisons between Jack and David (and for those who want some spiritual analogies from 24, I direct you to the book Jack Bauer's Having a Bad Day by Tim Wesemann).

Tomorrow is the final session. And if you've been reading along, please drop me a comment or two on this or any previous posts--I'd love to hear from you.

CPC 07: GENERAL SESSION AND MEETING JANA

General session one is over...and what an incredible way to kick off the conferences! Professional story teller Stephen James kicked off the theme of "More Than a Story" with a dramatic telling of the story of redemption. Then the kids' group GOD ROCKS rocked the house with incredible Scripture set to music. Sadly, my poor little camera is not that good at capturing a stage from waaaaaaaayyyyyy in back. I'll try to get closer next time.

The session really kicked into gear with the worship team from Gateway Church in Texas. There is something about singing with a few thousand of your fellow kid servants in worship and praise. It's not that I don't worship when I lead kids...I do. It is still very meaningful and deep. But there is a level of worship that comes when you don't have to do anything except praise His name in song, along with others who are probably feeling the same way. I freely admit to suffering from allergies during the worship set (as did a few folks around me).

The keynote address was by Susie Shellenberger, who created the Focus on the Family publication BRIO. She spoke on the blind man healed by Jesus and pointed out how this man was now confronted witht the reality of Christ...no longer a story. She emphasized nailing down the basics of Jesus' lordship and salvation, and then trusting Him for the rest. It was a great message.

Afterwards, I toured the Resource Center and ran into an old friend

I first discovered Jana Alayra's music at my first CPC in 2003. Our church daycare loves it! So I was determined this year to get some more Jana Alayra music for our ministry and who should be working her own booth? Jana herself. She was kind enough to pose for a picture (and in reality, this is only the second time I've met Jana). I'm looking forward to listening to her new album.

CPC 07: THE CHURCH TOUR

Here I am, reporting from San Diego, California for the first official day of the 2007 Children's Pastor's Conference. Though weary in body, my soul is soaking in the many blessings of this trip.

Before the first general session begins, CPC offers a variety of pre-conference seminars and activities. My favorite is the church tour, in which we get to travel to different churches to glean ideas about decorating, set up, and procedures. I especially was looking forward to this year's tour because it included a stop at Shadow Mountain Community Church, home of my alma mater! It was great seeing the place. My last visit was three years ago, when the children's building was still being constructed. Of course, when I attended college there, the sanctuary and many of the buildings were open lawns. But it was still neat being able to point out stuff.

Here are pictures of the church tour to the three churches we visited this morning:

21oo Greenfield Drive...my home for nearly four years!

Shadow Mountain Community Church

Mountain High Kids Building...next to sanctuary

The main stage in the lower level of the MHK building

Colorful hallways invite kids

This is the exit to one of several slides located inside and outside of the building. Just drop yer' youngin's in the chute and zip...they're there! Just kidding...

A talking, animatronic bear keeps watch from on top the ranger station

The inside of the ranger station, where visitors can get badges and other info.

One of the Mountain High Kids classrooms

Next stop: Skyline Church

Neat props decorate hallways. They looked like the same props that were in the main children's church room last time I visited. They are! The main children's church room is undergoing some decorating and renovation...so the previous props are being used elsewhere.

A Skyline classroom (note paintings on wall)

Check in counter (security is very tight)

The entrance to Skyline's children's church area (under new design)Our final stop on the tour was likely the most impressive of all: Mission Valley Church of the Nazarene. This is a mid-size church that is in the middle of a construction project. They are meeting in their fellowship hall while their sanctuary is being built (above)

Several of the classrooms have murals and paintings with a creation theme...cumulnating in the children's church room that says, "And then, God made us!" The impressive thing? This mid-size church, with the aid of paint, creativity, and volunteers upgraded their entire children's area for less than $5000!

So the CPC tour ended. I came away with some fresh ideas and also some common truths: no matter how big the church, problems of getting enough volunteers, organization, and flexibility are universal! We're all in the same proverbial boat.

CPC 07: GETTING THERE IS HALF THE FUN

Here I am in beautiful San Diego, California for the 2007 Children's Pastor's Conference! As I shared in a previous post, I've been looking forward to this for some time. And my journey to southern California just makes my presence here all the sweeter.


No, the above pics are not San Diego. They are pics of what we woke up to on Thursday in southern Oregon. Like all good travelers, I checked on my 9:00 a.m. flight before arriving at the airport two hours early. And all was good....until I got to the airport, where the nice lady at the United counter put up a placard that said all flights were cancelled for the morning

Rogue Valley International Medford Airport, where construction barriers are second only to snow and ice for pedestraian obstacles.

God is awesome and still in control...I not only got to spend a little breakfast time with my wife, but there were two very important, time sensitive matters I needed to attend to...I would have missed them if I had left on schedule. Praise the Lord!

The very nice lady rescheduled my flight for the afternoon on whatever was available. Unfortunately, it included a five hour layover in San Francisco! So I read, I wrote, I watched people, I walked (not exactly a chipper walk when you're carrying a briefcase and laptop), and I waited, and waited, and waited.....

When I finally got to my destination, it was after midnight (only eight hours later then my original itenerary!). After a quick call to let my wife know I had arrived, I got ready for bed.

The next day, I was reminded why this was San Diego:

Town and Country Resort...my home for the next few days.

Just outside my room...partly cloudy and blue

After finally figuring out how to set up the wireless connection for my laptop (which is way cool) and taking a walk around the humongous Fashion Valley Mall, it was time to sign in to CPC.

The banner says "Welcome Home." For the last two years, the California CPC has been held in Anaheim (I think because of renovations to the Town and Country). Now the CPC has returned to San Diego. It's like I never left!

The theme this year is "More Than a Story." And if getting here was half the proverbial fun, I look forward to what's more!

I look forward to your comments as this adventure continues.

BEFORE CPC '07...MEMORIES OF CPC'S PAST

The countdown has begun! In a little over 30 days, I will be in sunny San Diego for the annual (deep breath) International Network of Children's Ministries "Children's Pastors Conference" (CPC for short). CPC is, in my humble opinion, the rolls royce of conventions.

I whole heartedly believe that those who minister to kids should take advantage of training, refreshing, and equipping opportunities. Every year, most of our church's KidServants attend a regional "Children's Ministries Conference" in southern Oregon, where we are blessed by a variety of workshops and top-notch general sessions featuring impressive and motivating speakers (Craig Jutilla, Thom Shultz, Dick Gruber, and others have come to southern Oregon for the RVCMC). Dozens of regional seminars, workshops, and conferences are held throughout the country--I would encourage those of you in children's ministry to check them out.

But the CPC is, well, incredible. I've had the privilege of attending twice (2003 & 2004) and I'm still gleaning information and concepts. I haven't been able to attend the last two years, but I'm finally getting back to San Diego for the 2007 CPC in February. It's somewhat of a homecoming for me (in more ways than one...I'll explain shortly).

My very first Children's Pastor's Conference was in 2003 and it was partially a family affair. At the tme, my sister-in-law lived in Oceanside, California (just north of San Diego). So we took the whole family down--wife, 3 kids, and mother-in-law. We left early on Super Bowl Sunday, drove straight through, and arrived late that night. I remember the sight of bumper-to-bumper traffic between L.A. and S.D. and wondering why it was so thick late Sunday night. Then it hit me...the Super Bowl was played at San Diego that year....these were fans heading home! I was glad we were going the other direction.

Because my wife's sister's place was so small, we pitched a tent in the back yard.

Villa Oceanside

We stayed a couple of nights before my wife dropped me off in San Diego for the conference. But before the conference itself, we took a side trip to El Cajon to visit my alma mater: Christian Heritage College (now known as San Diego Christian College). It was there that I met the woman who would be my wife. Oh yeah, and get a degree and all that. My degree was in Counseling Pyschology, which is interesting given that I entered pastoral ministry for a number of years and then finally children's ministry. Following the CPC, my wife picked me up, we spent the night in town, and then attended the morning service at the church where the college is located (a tiny little congregation known as Shadow Mountain Community Church...yes, the same one where the radio and television ministry of Turning Point originates.). During our visit, there was a major construction project going on next to the main sanctuary. I learned that this project was to be a new children's building. This will become significant later on....

CPC '03 was like getting hit with a fire hydrant of the most refreshing water known to humanity. From the moment I entered the registration area to the general sessions to the workshops, I felt like I was in another universe.

"Building His Kingdom, Reaching His Kids"...the theme that keeps giving!

Not only did I get motivation and inspiration, I discovered a whole new world of Christian resources and artists that I never knew existed. I took the church tour, in which we saw Saddleback Church's children's building and the facility at The Crossing in Orange County. I met some amazing folks and discovered something I guess I knew intellectually, but didn't realize deep down: I was not alone! A thousand others shared my same desires, my same hopes, my same frustrations, my same doubts and fears, and my same joy. It was unlike anything I had ever experienced before.

The following year, the church sent me to CPC '04. This time, I flew solo. I arrived a day early to take advantage of some "me time" before the conference. It was the first time I got to do absolutely nothing important in a long time :-).

"Making Him Their Hero" C'mon everybody, all together: "Stand up and shout...HEY..."

Like last year, my conference experience started with a church tour. Our tour facilitator this time was the indescribable Karl Bastian, aka "The Kidologist". We returned to Saddleback and then over to Skyline church in San Diego. Mr. Bastian took a ton of pictures of both places (I'm even in a few of them). I'm sure they've since been removed (I couldn't locate them on Kidology), but they give an excellent sense of both facilities. My other memory of the church tour is having a ton of granola bars left over...Karl kept offering me more and more (I guess he had a lot left over).

And like last year, the experience was nothing short of overwhelming. I ran into a man who used to emcee the regional children's ministries conference I talked about earlier. I also got to sit at the same table as some folks who work with children's ministry at a church not far from where I live. It's a small world after all! The workshops and general sesssions were all top-notch. (My only regret is that somehow I missed "BibleMan!")

And now that brings us to CPC '07. After a two year absence, I will be returning to San Diego. I said this was a homecoming of sorts. First of all, I'm coming "home" to the Children's Pastor's Conference. I look forward to seeing old friends and new friends. If I can figure out how to do it, I intend to blog and send photos from San Diego (first, I need to replace my digital camera).

My second homecoming involves the aforementioned "Shadow Mountain Community Church." I discovered early last year that SMCC was one of the stops on this year's church tour! The building that was in the throes of construction back in 2003 is now finished and functioning. So I get to return to my old stomping grounds...not only to see this building I've heard so much about, but to be "on campus" at my alma mater once again (of course, if I had the extra time and extra money, I could attend homecoming the weekend before CPC. Maybe next year....).

Anyway, thank you for bearing with my rememberances of CPC's past. I'm excited and eagerly anticipating more challenge and blessing. Stay tuned....

FINALLY....SNOW!

We've had a strange winter in southern Oregon. A bout of freezing fog made the landscape look like snow...only it wasn't. A few mild temps and then it was good-bye freezing fog!
Then came our famous ice storm last week. Rain during the day, freezing temps and a sprinkling of snow the next morning and wow......snarled traffic, slow going, spin-outs. It was a sight to behold. Unforutnately, due to an involuntary appropriation of my camera (ie, it was taken from my house when I wasn't home), I was unable to get some pics of either the gorgeous freezing fog or the ice capades.
However, our children's ministries secretary snapped some pictures of our first major snowstorm that hit this week. It started falling Tuesday afternoon. It was so intense that the schools shut down early. Wednesday was a snow day. Today was a two-hour delay. The good news is that this snow event was not nearly as dramatic as what my friends and family in Colorado got clobbered with. The pavements are clearing and drying and the snow drifts are receeding. But the wintery weather did make for some neat pictures, which my secretary has allowed me to share (thanks, 'Net...you're da bomb!)

Wintery tree at night....

and a good old fashioned Oregon palm tree by day, both claimed by the snow!

Snow ball fight (note the snowball in mid-air!)

A little angel making a snow angel