D.R. Trip Updates... Day 4: Tuesday (March 31)

My sincerest apologies for not getting these blog posts up about the D.R. trip quicker. (The last post was HERE.) My life lately... between preaching, school and everything else... has been sucking me dry of all of my extra energy lately.

But I am committed to getting a post up for each day. So, here is Tuesday, March 31.









Tuesday was a day all about work. We thought that we worked hard on Monday, but we didn't know anything yet.

Luis, pictured here, introduced me a few others to his good friend, the sledgehammer. We spent a lot of the day knocking down the walls of the old cistern and...



And then digging out the dirt and rocks. It was a long and hot day. Fran is shoveling here with me. He was an incredibly powerful worker and I was a wimp. He could work for hours... me, only minutes.












But our day's labor's earned us a trip to get ice cream at Bon. And it was good. Here, Brittany and Kathryn are enjoying their's. It was fun getting ice cream, but somewhat difficult because none of the employees spoke any English...

Ah the difficulties of serving in a country where you don't speak the language.

Jim

Sermon from the weekend...

Hey all...

Those of you who keep up with my life, especially through Twitter, know that I preached over the weekend last minute in adult worship. If you want to listen, and I will warn you that the audio is not good at this point (Monday, May 5, 2009) and we are hoping to get it fixed in the future, that would be great. For some reason the audio on the recording was "way" up so it sounds like I'm yelling... but I wasn't.

I felt good about the content and delivery (although the delivery may not come through until we've had some time to 'fix' it up a bit). So I enjoyed it.

So... without further adieu, you can listen to the sermon on Romans 12:2 (check out Romans 12:2 HERE) HERE.

Jim

Apple to buy Twitter???

I saw THIS come across my blog-reader today from several sources.

Here's a snipet:
"TechCrunch's Michael Arrington is reporting that rumors beginning to float around the blogosphere are stating that Apple is interested in purchasing Twitter for US$700 million in cash. Twitter, in case you've been off of the planet for the last two years, is the magical "social networking" tool that has you answer the question "What am I doing right now?" in 140 characters or less."


In thinking about, it's got me wondering what Apple has up it's sleeve... They don't typically buy things just for fun and to offer $700 million in cash means, to me, that they want it pretty bad.

Personally, I really enjoy Twitter. (You can find me HERE.) My wife, not so much.
I enjoy that it lets me keep up with friends from around the country over the course of the day and week... friends that I wouldn't be able to keep up with otherwise.

But part of me wonders what Apple is planning to do with it if they get it (if they even want it)? And all of me hopes that they haven't figured out some way to charge for it or add advertisements or something crazy like that.

It will be interesting to see what transpires between Apple and Twitter. They've got my attention for sure.

Jim

Starbucks' New Ads...

I saw these new Starbucks ads (over HERE) and this one made me laugh.

I love my Starbucks... Just about everyone I know knows that about me.

Just thought I'd share.

The second picture is actually a picture of my desk. I got ready to post this blog, turned around planning to go make a cup of coffee and was struck by this image in relation to what I was blogging...



So I thought I'd share more...


Jim

P.S.: And yes, I am a Starbucks Coffee junkie... :-)

Susan Boyle - Britain's Got Talent

You've probably seen this video... but in case you haven't, what a powerful illustration of gifts coming in unusual packages.

Jim

Check it out HERE.

Simply Junior High catalog online... SWEET!!

I have to say, THIS is pretty sweet. It's Simply Junior High's latest catalog, viewable totally online...

I saw this on Josh's little blog HERE and I had to check it out. My first thought was, "This is sweet... I should spread the word." So that's what I'm doing. Go and check it out.

Now, I'm going to check it out...

Jim

Miss California... Carrie Prejean

So you may have heard some of the flack over Miss California, Carrie Prejean and her run in with Perez Hilton.

Thinking along some of these lines, I read a blog post by a buddy of mine... Nick Carnes... and man: does he nail it in my opinion. (READ HIS POST HERE)

I was thinking about posting on the topic. But I decided why to waste keystrokes when Nick nailed it. So, go read his article.


Way to go Nick... Keep it rolling!

Jim

Apple "Get a Mac" ad: Time Traveler

Several new Mac vs. PC commercials are out...

Here they all are on Apple.com.

Enjoy

Jim

Watch it HERE.

D.R. Trip Updates... Day 3: Monday

Sorry that these updates are coming a little slower than I had hoped. This weekend I was at Believe with our middle school students... but I'm committed to getting these up... and I will.

Monday came quickly and we got down to work.

And we had no idea how hard the work was about to be. In the first picture, Paige is helping bring in tools and supplies for the day. Monday was the first day that we saw the school, the "Fly" where we would be working, the total poverty that characterizes the area and the cistern that we would begin to work on.









One of the first things that we had to do was take all of the water out of the 5 x 5 x 5 cistern that existed and put it into anything that would hold water. There is no sense in wasting the water. So we filled up drums, water jugs and the tank on the roof. Jackie's job was catching the buckets that Isaias tossed back from the roof... and she was so good, Randy Moss would be jealous.





Several members of the group had the opportunity to feed the children who were going to school at the site where we were working. Here Kathryn is serving them lunch.

Shortly after their eating lunch, we ate lunch.

After lunch, the work really began. That's when the sledgehammers, shovels, pick-axs and buckets came out. We destroyed the roof of the cistern and began the next 3 days of long, hard digging.











The brighter side of Monday for me was that it was my birthday. I turned 32 (and yeah... you probably forgot to send your present... :-) ). That night, we were invited over to the Gabriel's for dinner. While we were there we heard stories from Gabriel, ate some incredible dinner and I was surprised by a birthday cake (which was awesome!!!)

But maybe the best part of the whole day was that I got my suitcase for my birthday!!!! 3 days late!!! Shortly after returning from the worksite that afternoon, my suitcase arrived. Opening that was like opening Christmas presents. I was so happy to see it.

All in all... it was an excellent way to spend a birthday!!


Jim

10 years ago today... Columbine

Ten years ago today, Columbine High School and two high school students, Dylan Klebold and Eric Harris, became the center of attention and forever changed the way that schools operate.

I was talking yesterday with a former student who works with me on the weekends (who consequently has a little blog now (HERE)) about Columbine. I have been working with students full time for about 9 years... and so I have never worked with students outside of the shadow of that terrible tragedy. This tragedy forever changed the way that schools operate and how they view their students. There had been tragedies before... but none seem to carry the weight that Columbine did.

Today... I took just a moment and thought about that tragic day... those students who lost their lives... those students who took life... and the teacher who lost his life as well. In some respects, 10 years doesn't seem that long ago. But in other ways, it's hard to imagine our world before Columbine.

Jim

Dominican Republic video 2009

Here is the video... the sound is messed up. But you can enjoy the pictures none the less.

Believe!!!

The group is ready for the morning of Believe!!! It's gonna be
awesome!!!

Books for sale... Word Biblical Commentary Series

Hey all...

I'm doing a little shelf cleaning in my office. For a while now, I've got tons of commentaries that sit on my bookshelf for the most part unused. So I've decided to sell some of them off and replace them with Logos/Libronix resources. (If you're into Bible Study at all... I mean even a little bit... this is well worth the investment).

If you are interested in commentaries that are all in good shape, feel free to comment away and maybe we can work something out. But notice that I'm not giving them away... I'm selling them.

I have volumes from the Word Biblical Commentary Series (Matthew, Mark, Luke, John, Genesis, Romans, Ephesians, and Philippians... several of which are multivolume sets) for sale currently. Tomorrow I will have volumes from the Ancient Christian Commentary on Scripture series and the Bible Speaks Series.

If you are interested, comment and we'll go from there.

Jim

Thomas Campbell in Guernsey County... Success!!!

Well...

I had an interesting day. I started off in Zanesville looking for a piece of land. I had a deed that showed a piece of ground being transferred between a Garrett McCain and Thomas Campbell. I spent time tracking it down.

BUT... it turned out to be a bust.

I found the ground. But I'm pretty confident that it was a different Thomas Campbell than the one that I was looking for.



So...

I went back to Cambridge and back to square one. And by the end of the day, I found success. According to what I found in Cambridge today, Thomas Campbell and his family living in a house that sat on this corner in downtown Cambridge, on the corner of Wheeling and 7th street. Obviously this isn't the building, but it once stood here and the school that he started was here.

I have enough documentation to make a presentation (I think). Tomorrow I will visit the Guernsey County Maps Dept and see if I can find an old Cambridge map that will show me the original lay of the land.

After that I'm planning to head over to Quaker City. According to the material that I have, Guernsey County's oldest Restoration movement church is here... Central Christian Church (Central Christian Church).

Fun fun... and now more fun that I've found what I'm looking for...

Jim

Goose chase... Thomas Campbell in Cambridge

I'm currently in Ohio for a couple of days.

Here's what I'm doing.

According to Robert Richardson (personal friend and biographer for Alexander Campbell), Thomas Campbell, father of Alexander Campbell and one of the four founding members of the Restoration Movement of which Fox Valley Christian Church (Church of Christ, Christian Churches and Disciples of Christ), spent 3 years living in and around Cambridge, Ohio. Cambridge is 15 minutes north of where I grew up.

There isn't much information on Thomas' time in Cambridge. But we know (according to Richardson and A. Campbell) that he owned land, started a school and church.

So I'm here to see if I can track that information down. I want to see if I can find the land that he owned and see if there is anything remaining of it. Maybe the school became something... Maybe the church still exists... Maybe the house is still there as part of another house... Maybe nothing is remaining...

Those are the questions that I'm hoping to answer. Plus... It's for credit.

Wish me luck and here's hoping that I find something...

Jim

D.R. Trip Updates... Day 2: Sunday (March 29)

Sunday morning arrived...

The team decided to join several members of the G.O. Ministries team at the first ever 10K run/walk in Santiago.

Brittany and Kathryn decided to run. The rest of us decided to walk. Brittany made the entire 10K... which we found out later was actually 11K. Kathryn made a valiant effort, but only completed 5K.



The rest of us enjoyed a nice walk (5K) around Santiago.











Here is the whole group after the run walk. We all got medals for completing the run/walk in less than an hour. We also got T-shirts (mine however didn't fit... only a "L").









Following the run/walk, we returned back to the Casa. Instead of joining some from the ministry to play softball, we decided to watch some of the locals play bottlecap baseball (it actually has a name... but I can't remember it0. It was pretty interesting.









Following the bottlecap baseball, we visited the new site for the Gabriel's church. We also joined Gabriel as he baptized a member of his church.

Following that and dinner, we joined the church for church. It was a fun experience. We recognized some of the songs... sung a few with them... and listened to the message. (We didn't understand much about the message... but we know it was about Zacchaeus.)

Sunday was a fun and relaxing day. Monday wouldn't be.

And if you're keeping score... I, still as of Sunday, do not have a suitcase...

Jim

D.R. Trip Updates... Day 1: Saturday (March 28)

Well....

We are officially back from the D.R. If you are following my Twitterfeed on this page or in general, you know that.

We got back on Saturday night... April 4. Since I had very little access to the Internet while in the D.R., I didn't get a chance to blog any pictures or any experiences from the week. So I will blog from hindsight... post some pictures and a blog for each day.

You know our difficulties in getting out of Chicago on Friday. If not, click HERE.


Saturday morning, we arrived at the Atlanta airport to a zoo... literally. There were at least 150 people waiting to leave Atlanta through the International gates. And with a similar thunderstorm on the horizon as had canceled flights on Friday looming, everyone was looking to get out quickly.

We got rechecked in, through security and to our gate. We had vouchers left over from the previous day, which we used at the airport for breakfast, coffee (one last Starbucks for me before leaving) and other assorted items.

Only to find our flight delayed.

We ended up being delayed for about 2 hours. There was a problem with the plane that we were supposed to take. So they off-loaded all of our luggage, in the pouring rain, and replaced our plane with another. So we arrived in Santiago 2 hours later than we expected.

One nice thing about the flight to Santiago was that it wasn't crowded at all. So there was plenty of room to spread out.

After arriving in Santiago, getting through immigration, customs, and other assorted lines, we discovered that my luggage hadn't arrived with the rest of the groups. (BUMMER!!!) All that I had in my backpack was a pair of shorts, a pair of underwear and another T-shirt.

More on that later...

After filling out the necessary form, we piled in the bus to head to Casa de Gabriel. On the way to the Casa, John informed us that we would be doing the VBS that we had been planning to do immediately after getting off the bus. This was a little stressful to say the least, considering that we had not done any assigning of roles or much specific preparation.

We managed to pull off the VBS. It didn't go as well as we would have hoped, but it worked. Following the VBS, we got settled, ate dinner and then headed out for some ice cream.

It was a very busy day. The three above pictures are from the VBS. The last photo is the team photo after we arrived.

Jim

Stuck in Atlanta

I'm trying today to focus on a verse...
"And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose." Romans 8:28

That's the verse that I'm trying to focus on. Jackie and I were just talking and in the midst of the talking I said, "This isn't how I envisioned this trip." And it's not. We're currently stuck in Atlanta until the morning. Officially weather in the Atlanta area had the airport shut down for almost an hour this morning. Forcing us to sit on the runway at Midway (not a fun experience) for about 2 hours waiting to leave. Even after they got the airport in Atlanta open, we still had to wait over an hour to get clearance to leave.

The long of it is that we missed our flight to Santiago. Our hope, upon leaving Midway, was that the ripple effect of the airport being closed and flights being delayed would delay our flight enough to catch it. But alas, it did not. In fact, our flight to Santiago left only 6 minutes late and we missed that by over an hour.

Luckily we ran into an incredible man... whom you can give praise for... Marvin... who set us up with airport vouchers in a Red Roof Inn nearby (which he didn't have to do). So here we are.

And I'm trying to remember that maybe God wants us on the Saturday flight into Santiago for a reason. For His reason. (This flight was the initial flight we should have had when we did our initial booking back in September, but overcrowding forced us to try to leave on Friday.)

So that's where we are.

Trying to remember that God works all things for good for those who love Him. We're trusting. Praying. And trying to be flexible. But for tonight, we're thankful for a shower and a bed.

Pray for our:
-Flexibility
-Frustration
-Changes to our schedule
-That we can continue to minister in the midst of where we're at

More hopefully in the morning. But it will be a mobile post from my phone.

Stuck in Atlanta

Leaving on a jet plane...

Dominican Republic trip this week!!!

The much anticipated D.R. trip is coming up this week. It's difficult to believe that it's already here. Paige, one of the students who is going, blogged about it HERE. I will post some thoughts later on... I just wanted to draw attention to her post.

Pretty excited... but I've got a pretty full to-list before I roll.

Jim

wow... Student Suspended For Passing Gas

This story kinda made me chuckle a little bit...

Here's a snipet:
"School officials said the teen repeatedly passed gas to make other children laugh. They said the smell also made it difficult to breathe."

HERE's the whole story.

Jim

Something very cool...

I was pretty stoked about a little something that happened this morning with our middle school church.

I was teaching. And we are teaching through a series called "Closer." This morning we were talking about hearing God's voice in the midst of the noise of our world and we were talking about different voices that have/should have an impact in our lives. In the midst of this discussion, I said what I usually say when we talk about the importance of the Bible and Bible reading... namely that "if you don't have a Bible, I'll put one in your hands today before you leave."

After the service was completed... two students came up and requested Bibles!!! For one of these students, this was the first time she's walked through the doors of FVCC!!! I was a little blown away!!! Hopefully I'll have a chance to give away a couple more Bibles tonight as I'm getting ready for high school church. But that just blew me away a bit!!!

Thought I'd share!

Jim

Back in the saddle

I'm back in the saddle from my Restoration Movement Trip... if you were following my Twitter Feed (HERE), then you have a pretty good idea of what I have been up to.

But I'm back... rested up... and ready for Sunday.

I've got a Restoration Movement blog rolling in my head... but don't have enough time to post it now. But be watching for that.

Jim

On the road again...

Willie Nelson's "On The Road Again" is playing through my mind right now.

I'm heading out of town on leg 2 of the monthly travels (check out leg 1 HERE, HERE and HERE). This week, I will be traveling to many of the sites of the Restoration Movement's founding. Those of you who have been following my blog know that I did this a couple of years ago. That time, I traveled as a student. This time I am traveling as a "Teacher's Assistant." I will likely be posting some pictures of what I'm seeing and what I'm thinking as I go.

But I'm on the road again... maybe I should make a playlist of this song and "Rambling Man"... these trips are founding like one...

Jim

Poll... Which conference is for you?

I thought I'd try something new...
Never done this before, so we'll give it a wing...

Create interactive meetings at Poll Everywhere

Jim

I just...

...blogged over HERE.

Here's a snipet:
"I feel...

…refreshed!!!

I’m a couple of days back from Group’s/Simply Youth Ministry’s National Youth Ministry Conference (which is in Chicago… my town… next year!!!) in Columbus. And right now I’m feeling pretty refreshed. Here’s a couple of reasons why:

1. I got some hang time with some friends..."

Read the rest of the article HERE. Enjoy!

Jim

I've Seen It All Music Video (HD) from NYMC

This video is great... Thanks Josh and Jake for putting it together!!

Jim

Check it out HERE

Ramblin Man... this month...

This month... or at least the month of March... is the month of the "Ramblin Man." (If you aren't familiar with the Allman Brothers Band classic, shame on you...)

But today starts a month of travels.

I'm about to walk out of Starbucks (where I'm getting a little coffee, Internet and time with my wife) to head to Columbus for the weekend for the National Youth Ministry Convention. I'll be live-blogging from there this weekend... so look for more posts about that, what I'm thinking and learning and rolling around.

Then March 9th - 13th I'll be on the road as a professor's assistant for Dr. Rea's annual Restoration trip to visit all of the Restoration sites (i.e.: Cane Ridge, Bethany, etc).

And finally, March 27 - April 4 I will be in the Dominican Republic with 6 high school students serving the people there.

So it will be the month on the road, living out of a suitcase and sporadic blogging.

Now... it's time to hit the road...

Look for live blog posts coming soon from NYMC!!!

Jim

D.R. Update

Over the weekend, we had two incredibly articulate members of our D.R. trip team speak to the FVCC congregation. Both Paige and Elisabeth did an incredible job sharing some of their heart and excitement over the upcoming trip.

In the course of Paige's talk, she mentioned her blog. I just wanted to link it in case some from FVCC or others were hunting for it. So, you can find it HERE.

Jim

Coldplay - Life In Technicolor video

I saw this video today... It cracked me up.

Now, this is the way to do a puppet ministry...

Jim


Check it out HERE.(all you iPhone and iPod touch readers...)

TobyMac's... Lose My Soul video...

I was just checking out TobyMac's new video... Lose My Soul. (The video is a little choppy... but this is the first time that I've seen the video out anywhere...)

It's pretty sweet. Check it out HERE.



Jim

Pandora Radio

Those of you who have been around here for a while know that I love technology (don't get me started singing... you won't like it... but I will sing from Napoleon Dynamite...). But I really do. I love my laptop... I love my iPhone... I love finding new things that work and are cool.

Right now, I'm sitting in Starbucks (the one my wife works at). Starbucks, in my opinion, is notorious for having some pretty crappy music (most of the time). But I'm listening to Pandora Radio right now instead.

Basically, if you've never heard of it before... and I've been listening to it off and on over the last couple of months... it is an internet radio station. You tell it a band, artist, song, genre, etc and it live steams music for you. It starts with what you suggest and then builds a playlist of similar items. If at some point you don't like their choice, you can "vote" a song down (meaning that they won't play any more like that) or if you like it, you can "vote" for a song (meaning that they will play more like that). You even have the option of buying songs that you like directly from iTunes or Amazon.com.

It's great.
And they have a mobile version that I listen to on my iPhone all the time. (App HERE.) In fact, the app is so strong that it works well over the "edge network" and even in places where signal is low.

If you've never heard of Pandora, it's worth checking out. By the way... I'm not getting paid for this recommendation... I use it, I like it and I thought maybe you would too. Check it out!

Jim

Just posted...

... a new blog entry over at the PDYM Community blog.

Check it out HERE.

Jim

Blogging dryspell

I'm really having a blogging dryspell...
And it's actually making me feel a bit guilty. Tonight, I've got some time and I'm sitting in front of my computer thinking, "I should really blog... since I haven't since Valentine's Day."

But honestly, I've got nothing.
No incredible thoughts...
No funny YouTube videos to post... (I looked already)
No insightful humor...

It's kinda weird.

But one thing of note, I did meet one of my unknown-to-me-blog-readers today. I attended a local youth workers gathering at Willow Creek Community Church today. And in conversation with a local (to me) youth worker, he said, "Oh yeah, I read your blog." It kinda caught me off guard. It is always interesting to me how my blog gets around to different people in different places and most of the time I don't even realize it. (Maybe that's what's making me feel guilty right now... I know that I have an audience out there.)

So I guess... keep reading readers...
And I'll keep trying to think of something interesting, insightful or humorous to post for you...

Jim

Happy Valentine's Day!!

It is, of course, Valentine's Day.



(If you didn't know that, glad that you just woke up from whatever it was that you were sleeping in...)



I just didn't want the day to pass without a good wish to you and your Valentine.


Jim

National Youth Ministry Conference

I just registered for this great convention in Columbus, OH!!!

It's the National Youth Ministry Conference.

It is Feb 27 - March 2 at the Great Columbus Convention Center. Which is great for me for a couple of reasons. First, I can drive. That's gonna save me some money. Second, I have family in the area... that's gonna save me some more money.

But it is a great, great weekend conference. Plus some of my friends at Simply Youth Ministry and Saddleback will be there. It's always great to see some friends.

If you are planning to be there, throw a comment on the blog. It would be cool to meet up.

Last year there was a contest here on this blog. Hopefully there will be again. I'm looking forward to this weekend!!! Hope to see you there!

Jim

Man... My blogging...

is struggling right now.

My apologies to those of you who live and die by what and how often I post here on my blog. If you're living by how often I post, there's a good chance that you aren't reading any longer (or living for that matter). Lately, I haven't been blogging much. My apologies.

There really is no good excuse. I just haven't. Not having Internet at home (still) isn't helping. But that's not the only reason. (But we have been talking about it and hopefully will be able to get it after we get our taxes filed... that would greatly increase the blogging... for sure!)

But I promise that I will try harder.

Jim

This looks like fun...

Somehow I missed this during the Super Bowl.

But it sure does look like fun...



Jim

A Game Of Hope

I saw THIS over on MercyMe's blog...

It's pretty incredible.


Jim

"Finally Home" by Mercy Me

This is a great video. I love Mercy Me and they have a great new song...



Jim

Cadbury Eyebrows

I saw this on YouTube and Corey Mann's blog and it cracked me up. Check it out.

Jim

View it HERE.

Blown away... AGAIN!!!

Over the weekend, we (a group of 6 high school students and 5 adults who are headed to Santiago, Dominican Republic over Spring Break) hosted a Chili Dinner/Student Auction Fundraiser.

Part of our hope was to get the congregation of FVCC energized about our upcoming trip. And part of our hope was that we would raise some funds to help us go on the trip.

You can check out a picture HERE.

I blogged last week (HERE) about being impressed with the number that signed up. I had no idea how good God would be in this situation. Everything from the weekend was finally counted up yesterday. That included the money from the dinner, other donations, student auction payments, loose cash that was placed in our water jug collection bin and other cash and checks collected independently by the students...

And the total came to: $6246!!!!!

I couldn't and still can't believe it!!! It put us over the top. It put us over the top by about $500 and we still have some checks coming that have been received but haven't been processed. It was really an impressive weekend.

We have 192 people at the Chili Dinner and most of the students went for $100 or more. It was really a great weekend and it's great to be fully funded for the trip 2 months early.

Just thought I'd take a moment and share!

Jim

Great Night Last Night!!!

We had a great Chili Dinner last night. The unofficial numbers aren't in... much less the official numbers.

But...
The worship center was full the whole night. Initial reports were that just on door take and donations (not counting the student auction and other donations) that we raised about $1500. There are several other things that need to go into that. So we won't know official numbers until Monday.

But I do know this: It was a great!!!

Folks are excited and we're getting closer to being fully funded!!!!

Jim

The Sanctity of Life...

Several years ago, I marched in the "Right to Life" march on the anniversary of Roe v. Wade in Washington D.C. The "Right to Life" march is a pro-life, peaceful march at the Nation's capital to oppose legislation that legalizes abortion.

It was a great experience. I had never participated in something like that before and it was really quite an experience. Especially seeing all the different groups of Christians come together as one for a common cause.

Yesterday was the anniversary of Roe v. Wade. And last night I was reminded about the march as Fox News in Chicago reported on the march.

I was saddened today to hear that President Obama officially lifted the ban on federal funding for abortions around the world. (See HERE for a link to the story.)

When are we as a country going to wake up to the reality that we are murdering millions of babies every year? And now providing funding for millions more to be murdered?

36 years now killing an innocent life has been promoted in this country as a choice... and now we are encouraging others around the world to join us.

Jim

How Rick Warren wrote his prayer for President Obama's Inauguration

Man!!! I wish I could go.

If you can, you should. It's awesome. And everyone who knows Saddleback knows that Doug is the brains behind it.

Enjoy

Jim

Check it out HERE!

Back to class...

It's back to class for me today.

Today begins another semester of 6 hours at Lincoln Christian Seminary. I'm taking a required "Turning Points in Systematic Theology" class with a prof that I had last semester, Dr. Castelein. I'm also doing an Independent Study with my adviser in Restoration (Church) History. So, it should be an interesting semester.

But I'm sure... like every semester... right now I'm excited about the semester. Give me about 45 minutes and I'll be thinking "what did I get myself into?" again!

Jim

Blown away...

By the generosity of God's people!!!

This weekend we received close to $2850 in donations for our upcoming Dominican Republic trip!!!

I am totally blown away!!

So, if you're coloring along with me, that takes us to close to 59%!!!

That's awesome. And our big fundraiser is coming up this Friday night. It's a Chili Dinner/Student Service Auction/Family Game Night. And we have 204 people signed up for that already!!!

Awesome!

Jim

Boring?

Someone a while back turned me onto Seth Godin's blog. Seth writes about marketing and business strategies. For me, there are quite a few crossovers for marketing (Starbucks for instance) and Youth Ministry.

This morning, I was reading his post on boringness. (You'll find it HERE.) There are a couple of things in there that got me thinking. So, I printed it out to think about it over the course of the day.

Here's what got me thinking:
"If people aren't discussing your products, your services, your cause, your movement or your career, there's a reason. The reason is that you're boring... You don't get unboring for free. Remarkable costs time and money and effort, but most of all, remarkable costs a willingness to be wrong. Remarkable is a choice."

Some of the questions that I'm thinking about... obviously no answers here/yet...

• Are we boring?
  
• Are people talking abou our student ministry and we aren't hearing it?
• Are we boring?
• If so, what can we do about it?
• How do we make that choice to be 'unboring'?
• What is involved in making that choice?
• What is the difference on that occasion between hype and health? (I can draw a crowd with free pizza or free Starbucks, but does that draw the right kind of crowd and will they stay if there isn't something 'hype-worthy' to stick around for?)
• Are we boring?

Again... Just questions...
Maybe later I'll post answers... if I find some...

Jim

-15!!

There is a real solid chance that this is the coldest temps that I
have ever experienced...and I'm not outside yet.

D.R. Short Term Missions Trip Interviews

Here is a little video that we showed this weekend in our worship services about our upcoming Dominican Republic Trip for our high school ministry.

Enjoy.

Here it is as well.

Jim

Hanging with the podcast crew...

Hanging with the PDYM Podcast crew...

I've missed THIS. Check it out.

Jim

So much time @ Starbucks...

Since we don't have Internet at home yet (and probably not for at least a month)...



I spend so much time at Starbucks. Most of it is using their free Wifi. And it's funny to me how I feel when I show up and someone is sitting at the table that I usually sit at.

Just thought I'd share.

Jim

P.S.: Welcome to Jim's randomness if you aren't familiar...

Dominican Republic for Spring Break

We're currently working on a missions trip with our high school students.

Those of you who are FVCC members will be familiar. Those of you who aren't, aren't. For those who aren't, we are planning to take 6 high school students and 5 adult leaders to the Dominican Republic for a Spring Break Missions Trip. I've wanted to do a student ministry missions trip for a while. But the time has never been right. This year, the pieces fell into place and we're currently making plans. We had a little meeting this afternoon and I'm really excited for the trip and these students. They are full of great ideas, enthusiasm and motivation.

In years past, FVCC has taken trips to the DR. But they haven't for some time. And I don't know for certain if anyone has ever done an International Student Ministry Missions Trip.

We've got a fundraiser coming up on January 23rd (Chili Dinner, Family Game Night and Silent Student Service Auction) and they are coming up with most of the ideas. It's great to sit back, provide some direction and watch them go.

They are working hard at raising the funds to go. The trip is costing (airfare, trip, food and accommodations) about $1650. They are expected to help raise the $13,750 required for the trip expenses. At this point, they have already helped raise 30% (a little over $4,000) without any major fundraisers.

In fact, one of the students started a blog about her adventures. It's here:
Paige's blog!!

It's exciting to see what God can and will do. The trip is being bathed in prayer and everyone is very excited. We're even working on a little promo video. But what amazes me are the raw ideas and enthusiasm that comes out of each and every meeting.

Way to go guys!!! Alyssa, Brittany, Dylan, Elisabeth, Kaithryn, and Paige (along with myself, Cheryl, Glen, Emily and Jackie). Pray for us. We're going to need it!!!

Jim

Happy 2009

Hey all...

I thought I would drop a quick line on here and let everyone know that I'm still around.

And more importantly, wish everyone a Happy New Year!!!

I'm still working on a list of resolutions for the new year... so once those 4 or 5 things are solidified in my mind, I'll post them here. But chances are that one will have to do with weight (doesn't it always) and one with reading (again... usually there) and one about spending time on the computer (although this has been better since we haven't had Internet at home).

But I want to take a second and:

Wish you all a Happy 2009! May this year be a blessed year for you!

Jim

Great Time Catching Up...

I had a great experience a couple of days ago. While I was in Meadville, where I worked with students for five years before moving to Batavia, I had a chance to grab some breakfast with some former students.

Jackie and I went to the candlelight service, but there are always so many people there. It was great to sit and chat, have some laughs and some great eggs benedict. It was great to look around the circle... one of these students is getting ready to graduate from Yale Divinity... one of these guys works for me leading worship for our students... I'm always amazed at what the incredibleness God can bring out of faithfulness. It was definitely encouraging breakfast.

Jim

Christmastime!!!

We've offically arrived at my parents in Caldwell...getting ready to
unwrap the loot. Got wifi do there will be some blogs to come!!

Merry Christmas!!!

Hey all...
I wanted to take just a few minutes before leaving the office for the last day until 2009 and wish you all a safe and Merry Christmas.

Today is my last day of work (at least office work) until 2009 and it is also my last day of reliable Internet until after the holidays.

But I hope and pray that you and your's have an incredible Christmas and a wonderful New Year. If I don't blog before, see you in 2009!!


Jim

Playing Rock Band...

With my volunteers. We're having a little Christmas Party this
afternoon and playing a little Rock Band!! So halarious!!!

Monty Python on YouTube

Monty Python finally has it's own channel on YouTube...

Some pretty seriously funny stuff HERE.



Jim

Song of Solomon Pick-up Lines

This made me chuckle this morning. I saw it on Marko's blog. It was especially humorous because I've been listening to Mark Driscoll teach through the Song of Solomon over the last couple of weeks.

Jim

Check it out HERE

Fire in the fireplace and a Christmas tree

My folks and sister had a great weekend out here. We journeyed into Chicago on Saturday and had some great shopping time on State Street and Michigan Ave, we watched the skaters in Millennium Park and enjoyed the lights of the city.

They flew back home last night.

So after they left, Jackie and I had a little relaxing time... courtesy of the fireplace... where we enjoyed a little fire.









And then we put up the Christmas tree. It was fun because we haven't put one up in about 4 years. Living in the apartment didn't afford us the room for the tree, plus where do you store it when you're done in a 1 bedroom apartment.



But the house feels a little bit more like home. And the cats love the tree (when I can keep them from climbing it and trying to knock down the ornaments).


Jim

Early morning Bible study...

It's been a while since hanging out at Panera Bread after Bible Study.

First, it's been a while since we had study. We took a couple of weeks off for Thanksgiving. I missed a couple of weeks before that for school and various things. Before that, I've been pretty swamped with church and church stuff, with school and school stuff... so I haven't felt the freedom of time to hang out for a while.

I did this morning. I read. I studied for a test that I've got to take later this morning or early afternoon. It was nice.

(Until some loud talkers and loud cell phone callers moved in on me.)

But now, it's off to the office. Good start to the Thursday morning.



Fun, fun this weekend... My parents and sister are flying in for the weekend!!!

Jim

Update!!!

Hey all you faithful blog-reading friends...

I wanted to shot out a little update. Jackie and I moved into the house on Saturday. Got a lot of the stuff put away... but if you've moved, you know that it takes a while to get it all put away (and find your socks). But we'll get there.

Everything went great.

But one downside for those of you who are faithful readers here... we currently don't have Internet at the house (yet) and likely won't until after the first of the year. That means that I won't be able to blog as often as from there, my only blogging option will be my phone. I'm not sure my thumbs can handle that.

So if the blog posts slow down over the next couple of weeks it's not because I don't love you all... I do... but I just can't blog as often.

But thanks for all the prayers and support and the readership. Keep swinging by... posts will happen.

Jim