Here's a youtube video I saw on Brad Leach's blog. It reminded me of the fact that so many times in the church we're not speaking the same language as the people we are trying to rescue in the world. Unless we learn to speak their cultural language we risk losing an entire generation to a sea of sin.
Sunday, May 18, 2008
Saturday, May 17, 2008
A Real Fun Day
Saturday, I decided to head out and enjoy a bit of Grand Haven's culture and sights. I started out by heading to the lake (i.e. Michigan) and checking out a kite festival I heard about. After waiting in my car for about 15 minutes to get through the line into the parking lot I found a spot.
When I left the house I'm staying at, it was warm calm day so I was confused when I found my spot and saw others pulling out their jackets, wind breakers, sweaters and such. Then it dawned on me. Not having been back to the Lake shore for such a long time I had forgotten how much colder and windier it can be just a few miles away on the Lake. Stepping out of my car in jeans and a t-shirt the cold blustery wind hit me like a slap in the face. I knew it was going to be a short outing to check out the kites, but I was determined to take in some of the sights.
As I walked along the beach (filling my shoes full of sand with every step) I marveled at the number and variety of kites. Immediately I thought of dad-he has always loved kites. They had animal shaped kites, stunt kites, traditional kites, and I even say 3 or 4 people "kit surfing". Kite surfing is when you attach yourself (via a harness) to a parachute like kite and allow the wind to pull you and lift you as you surf on the water. Very cool to watch. I seriously thought about trying to get into this sport, until I saw the price tag on just the surf board ($400-$600) not to mention the dozen other pieces of equipment.
Anyway, here's a picture or two of the kites I saw. Sorry the res. is so poor, but what do you expect from a free Razor phone?
(Notice the octopus kite!)
Here's one with 5 kites stringed together!
After taking in my fill of kites and cold wind I decided to head back to the warmer climate inland and stroll down the main st. in Grand Haven. I walked through the historical museum which was surprisingly interesting. It's a very small museum, but what it has is very interesting including a traditional 19th C. home interior you can walk through.
I stopped in a touristy clothing sore and saw this funny t-shirt.
If you can't read the print, it says, "The beatings will continue until morale improves." That's a great saying I've actually used on multiple occasions. Unfortunately, I didn't feel it was worth the $20 sticker price...
About that time I started getting hungry and had heard rumors of a bread company that gave away free slices of bread as "samples." Feeling the need for a "sample" I made way over there. Not wanting to look like any ordinary street beggar, I stayed back to watch the locals so I would know what I was doing before asking for my own free bread. After surveying the situation, I eyed a loaf of cinnamon swirl bread that seemed to beckoning me forward. I stepped up and simply asked, "could I sample the cinnamon swirl bread?" Fully expecting I looked like a darn tourist I waited to be thrown out on my ear but to my amazement the lady behind the counter cut a thick tasty slice of the cinnamony goodness and handed it to me. I gratefully accepted the boon and immediately took a small bite and thoughtfully chewed the scrumptious morsel hoping to give the impression I actually intended of buying a whole loaf- which of course I had no intention of doing. Next, giving my best impression of man impressed, but not impressed enough to cough up $7, I quietly made my way out the door smiling triumphantly having secured my free bread.
In fact, I felt quite confident and proud of myself for my great theatrical and slightly clandestine
performance ... that is until I followed by three jr. high girls walked out giggling with not one, but two pieces of cinnamon swirl bread...each!
I also took some time Saturday to enjoy some truly picturesque scenery. Two pictures I took with my phone are especially nice. The first picture is taken of the Coast Guard park over looking the bay (which directly to Lake Michigan about 200 yards down). I like this photo because it captures the serene beauty in Grand Haven. The next picture is taken from a place called Five Mile Hill. Supposedly, from the top of this hill you can see for 5 miles on a clear day. The picture does not really do justice the beauty, but it gives you an idea and a look at the tri-city area.
Overall it was a gorgeous day and a lot of fun. Make you sure you get out here soon and enjoy yourself with us!
Friday, May 16, 2008
Don't Be a Hata'
So the longer I stay here, the more convinced I am about how absolutely gorgeous this area is. I love to just go for drives and take in the very natural beauty. West Michigan has done a good job (or so it seems) of avoiding a clear cutting approach to development. The dunes, the lake, the woods, it's all here in one package. I'm very fortuante to be here...now all I need is my wife!
I've been quite busy getting things together here. I've found an apartment (yeah!) in Grand Haven (GH for short) for Julie, the dogs, and I. I've also had my first youth service this last week. It went well for the most part, but there is deffinitely room for improvement.
We're getting ready for a family service on Memorial Day weekend if anyone wants to come out. We have an entertainer/comedian turned children's missionary coming named Jay Risner (he's spoken to over 3 million kids so far) and we're going to have two bounce houses, balloons, candy, and hot dogs for everyone. Activities start at 9am and go until 1:30 if you want to head out here.
So last night I went to go see Prince Caspian at Midnight! It was great. Of course it wasn't exactly like the book, but that's ok-as long as you take it on its own merit, it's a great movie.
I'm not sure the did as good a job on this one as Lion Witch... it could simply be the fact that the initial "WOW" factor Lion Witch had was dependant on the excitement and anticipation for the first production of a Narnia book with a substantial budget. Still, it was a great movie and worth seeing a couple times I think.
I'd really like to see The Silver Chair done next. That said, Voyage of the Dawn Treader is one of my favorites in the series, but I think it would make a lousy movie honestly. So much would have to be changed to keep the pace going that it would not resemble the original too much.
Long Live Aslan!
I've been quite busy getting things together here. I've found an apartment (yeah!) in Grand Haven (GH for short) for Julie, the dogs, and I. I've also had my first youth service this last week. It went well for the most part, but there is deffinitely room for improvement.
We're getting ready for a family service on Memorial Day weekend if anyone wants to come out. We have an entertainer/comedian turned children's missionary coming named Jay Risner (he's spoken to over 3 million kids so far) and we're going to have two bounce houses, balloons, candy, and hot dogs for everyone. Activities start at 9am and go until 1:30 if you want to head out here.
So last night I went to go see Prince Caspian at Midnight! It was great. Of course it wasn't exactly like the book, but that's ok-as long as you take it on its own merit, it's a great movie.
I'm not sure the did as good a job on this one as Lion Witch... it could simply be the fact that the initial "WOW" factor Lion Witch had was dependant on the excitement and anticipation for the first production of a Narnia book with a substantial budget. Still, it was a great movie and worth seeing a couple times I think.
I'd really like to see The Silver Chair done next. That said, Voyage of the Dawn Treader is one of my favorites in the series, but I think it would make a lousy movie honestly. So much would have to be changed to keep the pace going that it would not resemble the original too much.
Long Live Aslan!
Sunday, May 4, 2008
First Day
Well it was a good first day here in Grand Haven. I say Grand Haven because I'm not sure what else to call this melding of a semi-metropolitan area. There a number of small towns that kind of all meld together. Spring Lake, Grand Haven, and Ferrysburg make up the bulk, but there are other areas around as well. The church is technically in Spring Lake, but its closer to the heart of Fruitport then Spring Lake, and near Muskegon Co. more than Ottowa Co. So it's hard to say where I'm at because I've been all over today.
Church went really well. I showed up 10 minutes late for my first day though, but at least I didn't hit any cars this time (another story for another time). The service went really well. Pastor Ben is doing a series on giving and I think it's really connecting with people. Offering was taken at the end as a response time and the response was really encouraging.
Afterward I went to the Vegh's house (Pastor Ben and Jessica's) for lunch. Logan, their son, just cracks me up! I bet that's exactly what Pastor Ben was like when he was a kid. Reagan, their daughter who is 8 I think (sorry Reagan if that's wrong) is adorable and sweet as can be.
After lunch we went in the backyard and the kids played with some neighborhood children on the trampoline while Pastor Ben and I bounced them. At 3pm there was a kids ice cream party as reward for something, I'm not sure what. Lots of kids turned out (10-15?) and we had a blast. I took pictures of all the kids to help me remember names and to email to Julie.
At 5pm the party was rolling to a close and I headed off for a park in a neighboring town where people form the church were going to meet to hang out. At first the turn out seemed a little disappointing, but more turned out latter. We played sand volleyball and had a blast. If Julie were there, I'm pretty sure I would have gotten one of my "tone it down a notch" looks, but as it was I probably embarrassed myself more than I realized. Oh well....I'll always be the rambunctious silly kid. It's no accident that Peter Pan is my hero--he never grew up. I don't want to either, and hope I never do.
Dont' get me wrong, I want to mature and grow wiser, but not at the expense of being able to enjoy life one moment at a time. I never want to lose the ability to gain boyish pleasure out of simple things that others might find trivial or unimportant. Too many people grow up and lose their sense of awe, wonder, and naive enjoyment of the moment. They're too busy thinking about their image, their promotion, the opinion of others that they miss the thrill of an unhindered laugh of a child. As we get older our laugh becomes more reserved, more respectable, draws less attention, and certainly seems more "grown up" whatever that means.
As I get older, I hope I learn how to use self control, how to manage my emotions, how to glorify God in my attitude, how to discern the time to laugh and the time to cry, the time to speak and the time to remain silent. I do not hope, and will fight against, the societal tidal wave that seems to swamp so many people until they are lost in a sea of worry, anxiety, and the fear of other's opinion. May I always be a child who understands the richness of unhindered laughter.
As one very wise man once said, "Bring on the clowns!"
Church went really well. I showed up 10 minutes late for my first day though, but at least I didn't hit any cars this time (another story for another time). The service went really well. Pastor Ben is doing a series on giving and I think it's really connecting with people. Offering was taken at the end as a response time and the response was really encouraging.
Afterward I went to the Vegh's house (Pastor Ben and Jessica's) for lunch. Logan, their son, just cracks me up! I bet that's exactly what Pastor Ben was like when he was a kid. Reagan, their daughter who is 8 I think (sorry Reagan if that's wrong) is adorable and sweet as can be.
After lunch we went in the backyard and the kids played with some neighborhood children on the trampoline while Pastor Ben and I bounced them. At 3pm there was a kids ice cream party as reward for something, I'm not sure what. Lots of kids turned out (10-15?) and we had a blast. I took pictures of all the kids to help me remember names and to email to Julie.
At 5pm the party was rolling to a close and I headed off for a park in a neighboring town where people form the church were going to meet to hang out. At first the turn out seemed a little disappointing, but more turned out latter. We played sand volleyball and had a blast. If Julie were there, I'm pretty sure I would have gotten one of my "tone it down a notch" looks, but as it was I probably embarrassed myself more than I realized. Oh well....I'll always be the rambunctious silly kid. It's no accident that Peter Pan is my hero--he never grew up. I don't want to either, and hope I never do.
Dont' get me wrong, I want to mature and grow wiser, but not at the expense of being able to enjoy life one moment at a time. I never want to lose the ability to gain boyish pleasure out of simple things that others might find trivial or unimportant. Too many people grow up and lose their sense of awe, wonder, and naive enjoyment of the moment. They're too busy thinking about their image, their promotion, the opinion of others that they miss the thrill of an unhindered laugh of a child. As we get older our laugh becomes more reserved, more respectable, draws less attention, and certainly seems more "grown up" whatever that means.
As I get older, I hope I learn how to use self control, how to manage my emotions, how to glorify God in my attitude, how to discern the time to laugh and the time to cry, the time to speak and the time to remain silent. I do not hope, and will fight against, the societal tidal wave that seems to swamp so many people until they are lost in a sea of worry, anxiety, and the fear of other's opinion. May I always be a child who understands the richness of unhindered laughter.
As one very wise man once said, "Bring on the clowns!"
Tuesday, April 29, 2008
Why is moving so difficult?
So I get ready to move in about 3 days. S C A R Y ! ! ! I knew this day would come, but just not so fast. It kind of feels like I'm starting all over. I thought it would feel more natural to move back to Michigan. Having grown up in Detroit and all, it just seemed like it would be a home coming. Nothing is further from he truth. I'm leaving behind 11 years of history, friends, memories, difficulties, frustrations, and familiarity. These things tie you to a place you know? Rather than a Michigander coming back home, I feel like a Minnesotan leaving home.
That's not to say I'm not totally excited about what's in front of us. I'm going to be less then 4 hours from any one member of my family, I get to live in one of the most beautiful places in Michigan (can I say the country?), work with a Pastor I have already grown to love and respect personally and professionally, get to know great new people, be part of growing and building an amazing church and more!
I just wish I could somehow take hold of what's in front of me without letting go of what I have now.
And that's the problem I guess. Moving on means letting go. Israel had to leave Egypt to get to the promise land. Egypt wasn't always a land of slavery, it started out as a land of supply, provision, and God's plan. It's not too hard to understand why, even though they were headed for God's will, the Israelites longed for Egypt after they left. They too had a hard time letting go.
I think if I were to stay here, what has been God's provision and blessing would become a place of slavery. God has a plan for Julie and I in Michigan, and it's a land full of milk and honey, (or at least sand and water....) but in order to get there we have to let go and literally move.
I feel like the Israelites in the desert--the place of limbo. We're not yet where God wants us, but we've left where we were. I find myself asking, "God have you called us to leave Farmington so we can die in Grand Haven?"
The nagging question in our conscious and subconscious minds is, "if we let go, what will we hold on to to keep us safe and secure while we wait for God's plan to be fulfilled?" "What about our friends, what about our house, what about Julie's job, what about our dogs, what about our future? If we let go, what else can we hold on to?"
I guess there's always Jesus--but for some reason he never seems like enough.
That's not to say I'm not totally excited about what's in front of us. I'm going to be less then 4 hours from any one member of my family, I get to live in one of the most beautiful places in Michigan (can I say the country?), work with a Pastor I have already grown to love and respect personally and professionally, get to know great new people, be part of growing and building an amazing church and more!
I just wish I could somehow take hold of what's in front of me without letting go of what I have now.
And that's the problem I guess. Moving on means letting go. Israel had to leave Egypt to get to the promise land. Egypt wasn't always a land of slavery, it started out as a land of supply, provision, and God's plan. It's not too hard to understand why, even though they were headed for God's will, the Israelites longed for Egypt after they left. They too had a hard time letting go.
I think if I were to stay here, what has been God's provision and blessing would become a place of slavery. God has a plan for Julie and I in Michigan, and it's a land full of milk and honey, (or at least sand and water....) but in order to get there we have to let go and literally move.
I feel like the Israelites in the desert--the place of limbo. We're not yet where God wants us, but we've left where we were. I find myself asking, "God have you called us to leave Farmington so we can die in Grand Haven?"
The nagging question in our conscious and subconscious minds is, "if we let go, what will we hold on to to keep us safe and secure while we wait for God's plan to be fulfilled?" "What about our friends, what about our house, what about Julie's job, what about our dogs, what about our future? If we let go, what else can we hold on to?"
I guess there's always Jesus--but for some reason he never seems like enough.
Thursday, April 24, 2008
Some pics
I wanted to try out adding photos, so here's a couple to start.
This is my nephew Nate: We often lock him up in his cage...but I think he likes it.
I'm waiting for his senior year of high school to pull this one out again and embarress him in front of all his friends. Aren't I a great uncle?
This is Nate's big sis Kaleigh. She's quite the performer and always ready for a photo op. She was helping Grandma Hawthorne make the stuffing for Thanksgiving. Someone forgot to tell her you're suppose to stuff the Turkey, not your cheeks.
This picture is from two Christmases ago at our house in Farmington. Our dog Moxie was only about 4 months old. We now have Jack, but I couldn't find our recent Christmas photo. Just imagine another dog like this one and add a even sillier grin and a tongue sticking half way out. There's a reason we affectionately call him, "the village idiot." :-)
So there you have a few photos....I'll add more latter.
This is my nephew Nate: We often lock him up in his cage...but I think he likes it.
I'm waiting for his senior year of high school to pull this one out again and embarress him in front of all his friends. Aren't I a great uncle?
This is Nate's big sis Kaleigh. She's quite the performer and always ready for a photo op. She was helping Grandma Hawthorne make the stuffing for Thanksgiving. Someone forgot to tell her you're suppose to stuff the Turkey, not your cheeks.
This picture is from two Christmases ago at our house in Farmington. Our dog Moxie was only about 4 months old. We now have Jack, but I couldn't find our recent Christmas photo. Just imagine another dog like this one and add a even sillier grin and a tongue sticking half way out. There's a reason we affectionately call him, "the village idiot." :-)
So there you have a few photos....I'll add more latter.
Monday, April 21, 2008
First Posting
Well, this is sort of a maiden voyage of sorts for me. I'm not on the internet. My thoughts, my life, my sense of humor will be posted for the whole world to see, that is, at least those parts I want them to see.
I've fought establishing a web presence/identity (i.e. blog, facebook, myspace etc...) for sometime for all kinds of reasons.
1) It seemed like such a waste of time. I have lots of things I would rather do then sit in front of a screen and pour out my sad life's story to the world... like spending hours in front of a tv to play violent video games and pour out my wrath and anger on helpless aliens, terrorists, and helpless bystanders.
2) Do I really want total strangers to know my favorite breakfast cereal is Cinnamon Toas Crunch and if I could be any teenage mutant ninja turtle I would be Michaelangelo and other deeply personal details of my life?
3) By starting this, will I become an addict? Is there a OAA (on-line addicts annonymous)?
4) Finaly, the reason that initiated the need to come up with other reasons to hide the real reason: keeping these things up to date takes way too much commitment and energy, I have FTC disease.... Failure To Commit. I'd try to change, but that would take too much commitment.
SO--- Here I am world, come to my virtual doorstep and get to know me...that is the pseudo-real on-line me that I portray in order to hide the real me behind a virtual wall of technology and inpersonal but semi-relevant information.
See ya' around
I've fought establishing a web presence/identity (i.e. blog, facebook, myspace etc...) for sometime for all kinds of reasons.
1) It seemed like such a waste of time. I have lots of things I would rather do then sit in front of a screen and pour out my sad life's story to the world... like spending hours in front of a tv to play violent video games and pour out my wrath and anger on helpless aliens, terrorists, and helpless bystanders.
2) Do I really want total strangers to know my favorite breakfast cereal is Cinnamon Toas Crunch and if I could be any teenage mutant ninja turtle I would be Michaelangelo and other deeply personal details of my life?
3) By starting this, will I become an addict? Is there a OAA (on-line addicts annonymous)?
4) Finaly, the reason that initiated the need to come up with other reasons to hide the real reason: keeping these things up to date takes way too much commitment and energy, I have FTC disease.... Failure To Commit. I'd try to change, but that would take too much commitment.
SO--- Here I am world, come to my virtual doorstep and get to know me...that is the pseudo-real on-line me that I portray in order to hide the real me behind a virtual wall of technology and inpersonal but semi-relevant information.
See ya' around
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