Curt's Blog

Bowman Family Slideshow

2008-10-10T23:53:00.000-04:00

France Trip: Day Three / Travel to Toulouse

2008-10-02T14:58:00.004-04:00

On Tuesday, I got a break from the construction as I traveled down to Toulouse to see the progress of a recent church plant. Paul took me to the train station that morning and I had my first real train ride. I rode the BGV, called a bullet train, which traveled about 120 mph. The scenery was a blur. I sat next to a black fellow who was heading back to Toulouse to the university. The ride was much more enjoyable than flying in a plane. The trip still took about 4 hours. I spent much of the time reading and trying to sleep. I got off the train and Brad Reynolds met me. He is a phenomenal guy. He drove me around the city and we got acquainted. We went to the local mall and ate a place called Flunch. Great food. Fairly inexpensive.

We then drove around the city and he gave me a historical perspective. We traveled to the International church (English speaking) where his French speaking church holds afternoon services. We then went to see his church's new building. It is actually more of a large room in a large mini-mall type building. It is basically a shell.

There are external walls, a concrete floor, and an open truss roof. To use the building, they have to do the plumbing and electrical, finish the ceiling and floors, finish the existing walls, put in partitions for other smaller rooms. And they are renting this space. They hope to own but cannot afford to at this time.
I spent about four hours with Brad then it was back on the train for another 4 hour train ride. Actually, I had a quick break as I had to switch trains about halfway through. I had a 12 minute window, which became eight, to switch and I barely made it. My heart was pounding for a few minutes. The train ride gave me time to process what I had seen. I also slept some, read some, and even worked on an upcoming message. I got back to Poitiers about 7:30 pm. I ended up waiting a short while for my ride. Joby and Al Clason met at the train yard and we headed back to the church to check on the progress of the other guys. They were just wrapping up a long day as we arrived. We then headed back to Norbert's home, ate dinner, talked a bit, and then some of us went to bed. I ended up staying up until Midnight with Mike as he was working on putting together a PowerPoint presentation. Another good day.

France Trip: Day Two / Arriving at Poitiers

2008-10-01T16:09:00.008-04:00

Like I said in the previous entry, we arrived in Paris on Sunday (September 21) about 6:30 am Paris time. We got through customs and security in about an hour. Paul Keidel was scheduled to meet us and pick us up. He had the wrong information so he was late and he also went to the wrong terminal. So we turned the tables on him. Instead of him greeting us with a sign, we made a sign and greeted him. I think he was somewhat amused when he arrived around 9:00 am. I had called his cell phone 3 times earlier and also got a hold of his wife so that made our eventual meeting possible.

We left the airport and headed to his home in a suburb of Paris. We saw some incredible buildings as he pointed out where the people of royalty used to live. We stopped for a couple of minutes to take some pictures.

We then went to his home, got cleaned up, had a wonderful lunch, and then drove about four hours to the city of Poitiers. I tried to stay awake but my attempt was in vain. I and the other guys slept most of the way there.

We arrived at the church about 30 minutes before 5 pm when their church service started. They had scheduled their service to be in the evening that week especially for us. We met the pastor, Norbert, his wife Lucy, their two kids, and some other folks who were getting ready for the service. We were able to scope out the work at hand.

The service was great. The other guys sat in the back while I sat with Paul in the front. He gave me the play by play so I could know what was going on. The music was good. The people sang with great energy. Some of the songs I even recognized.

I had the opportunity to share a message with the people. Paul translated. My message was about being on God's team and about teamwork. I didn't realize then how appropriate that message was going to be.

After church, we shared a meal with the folks. Their church is very diverse, people from many different backgrounds. Norbert is actually Swiss and Lucy is Peruvian. There was a woman from Columbia there. There were two female university students who were Dutch. One white Frenchman was married to a woman of African descent. Another guy, John Noel, with whom we developed a great friendship, was born in the Congo. There was also a Japanese woman and her daughter there. The diversity was beautiful to see. We had many unique foods there, some I had a hard time getting down, but I did not want to offend the people.

After dinner, we all went to Norbert's home, relaxed a bit, and then went to bed to get ready for our first day of work.

France Trip: Day One / Travel

2008-10-01T15:55:00.003-04:00

From the latest blog entries, you will discover that myself and three other guys from our church went on a short-term mission trip to France. The following entries will chronicle that trip. Some of the info will be detailed and as such not very exciting. Some hopefully will be more interesting.

We (Jeff our chauffeur, myself, Joby, and Mike) left the church on Saturday (September 20) around 7 am and headed to meet Arturo in Story City. From there, we traveled nearly 4 hours to the Minneapolis airport. We arrived around 11:30 am. Jeff dropped us off and headed to his son Josh's football game at Crown College. Our flight was not scheduled to leave until 3 pm so we had plenty of time to get through customs and security. We got through all the checkpoints without nearly a hitch. Joby did get his carry on bag searched and was relieved of a few liquid items that were too large to be considered acceptable. Other than that, the waiting was fairly uneventful. We spent time watching football, getting some food, strolling the airport, and catching up on some reading. I mainly read and guarded the bags as the guys were doing the other things mentioned. I took my wonderful air sickness prevention medicine (Bonine) just before we boarded so I was good to go. We boarded about 40 minutes before the flight took off.

The flight was a mere 8 hours. I had hoped to sleep but to no avail. So I watched three movies and tried to endure the trip. We got into Paris at 11:30 pm our time and 6:30 am Paris time. As we arrive in Paris essentially on Sunday, I will continue my thoughts in the next entry.

facebook

2008-08-06T20:12:00.003-04:00

I joined the phenomenon that is facebook a number of months ago. I love it. I have caught up with old friends from elementary and high school. I have found long lost friends from other times in life. I have kept in touch better with my many cousins. I have been able to share my life (like my family and kids) with those who care about me (and with those that would probably say they do). It has reunited me with people I will probably never see again (and many that I never really want to). I have even come across old girl friends (no worries Kendra I only have eyes and one bank account for you). But then again, it's kind of scary. It's like some weird social web that is connecting us all (like the Force in Star Wars) or like some global monster seeking to brainwash us all into some future (or not so future) one world government mentality. Maybe it is harmless, or maybe it could potentially be quite dangerous. Food for thought.

vacation

2008-08-01T15:04:00.002-04:00

The word "vacation" is supposed to imply fun, rest, relaxation, and the like. All it implies to me right now is work, lack of sleep, and stress. We vacated from our home in Iowa to return home to Michigan. I knew it wouldn't be incredibly relaxing as we now have two young sons, one who never sits still and the other who always wants to eat. But it has been more draining than I anticipated. We have bounced back and forth between my sister's house in Tustin and my in-laws house in Newaygo. Staying in Tustin has been the best. Staying in Newaygo has been much more difficult. I already do not look forward to coming back for Christmas. And yet our trip was not so much to get away as it was to reconnect with our families and to show off our new addition. Mission accomplished...sort of. Maybe when we get back, we will be able to relax again.

still alive

2008-07-22T15:25:00.002-04:00

It's been almost a month since my last post. Life has been pretty busy, although some things have changed a bit, so life has been a little less than insanely crazy. We welcomed home Kenan Joel a week ago. He is doing well and so is Kendra. Javan like his little brother for now. Within the week that he arrived, I performed a wedding, preached at both services, and had my sister and brother-in-law visit from Michigan. They were a big help, so no added stress there. Currently, they are on their way to Michigan with Javan. We will be heading there as well after church on Sunday to visit both of our families for about 10 days. After we get back, we will be moving and then we will be busy adjusting to new surroundings and our larger family, as well as getting ready for some big tasks this fall. Life is good. God is great. And we are enjoying the ride.

insanely busy

2008-06-27T22:08:00.002-04:00

We all have times in life when life is just plain crazy. It seems as if everything is demanding all of our time and all of our energy all at once. July is going to be that for me. I don't write this for anyone to feel sorry for me. Actually, most of what is going to happen is really great. Kendra is due with our 2nd son in about three weeks. Too bad we can't schedule that. My wonderful boss (in case he reads this) is going to be gone, so I will be preaching twice and performing a wedding in his place, in addition to making sure things continue to run smoothly. I also have to complete a licensing course for our denomination by August 1. It involves writing four 8 page papers and a lot of reading. It would have helped if I had started working on it sooner. We are planning on moving into the parsonage at the end of the month. We have family coming around that time as well and then we are going on vacation back to Michigan. We will definitely need that. Can you relate!?

flooding

2008-06-15T20:33:00.006-04:00

Anybody watching the news lately has no doubt heard about all the rain and flooding in Iowa. Living in Boone, we have not been affected too much, but many areas nearby have. Des Moines, which is less than an hour away, has experienced tremendous flooding and has even had areas evacuated. Highway 30, which travels east and west, and runs just south of town, has been partially shut down. The highway crosses over the Des Moines River, well...it used to. Now the river crosses over the road. We went and checked it out a couple of days ago. It was a pretty amazing sight.

The 1st picture was taken from the west bound lane of Highway thirty facing toward the west.

This 2nd picture was taken on the west bound lane facing the east. It's cool to see the road just disappear.

This last picture shows the lines on the road submerged under water.

Javan Plays Baseball

2008-06-02T19:53:00.001-04:00

Javan got a bat and ball for his birthday. He wasn't very interested in them at first, but now he loves to hit the ball. I would like to take credit for teaching him, but actually Kendra helped him figure out when to swing.

Javan Sings

2008-06-02T14:13:00.003-04:00

We go a web cam this past week. Here is Javan singing Jesus Loves Me.

it's been a little while

2008-06-02T13:56:00.002-04:00

I haven't posted in a few weeks. I've been busy, but not really too busy to blog. I've just been unmotivated. Things are going really well for us here in Boone, Iowa. We are getting acclimated to the church and community. We really like it here. The people are great and we are even enjoying the Iowa landscape. It's much more beautiful than I could have ever imagined. If you are a regular reader of this blog, there will be more to come.

moms

2008-05-13T00:02:00.002-04:00

Yesterday was Mother's Day. I have three special moms in my life. My own mother gave birth to nine kids and is still mostly raising five. She stands just under five feet tall, but she has always been a strong woman. She has helped me to become the man I am today. My mother-in-law is also special. She is a prayer warrior and almost always has good advice, even if there are times I don't fully appreciate her advice. Kendra is also a very special mom. This was her third Mother's Day. Being a mom has come so natural to her. She has so much more patience with our son than I do. She makes me want to be a better father. I am so blessed to have these three moms in my life.

following directions

2008-05-07T19:50:00.002-04:00

I have spent the better part of the last three days working on my office. With a little help, I got the office painted, put together two desks and two book cases, and got my computer set up. Each desk and each book case came with the necessary parts (albeit a few screws were missing) and relatively easy to follow directions. If I had just pulled out all of the pieces and went to work without following the directions, my office would be in shambles. I was glad to have clear directions. In life, we need clear directions. I'm glad God has given us the Bible, His blueprints for life, to follow. We can either ignore His directions and try to figure out life out on our own, or we can do it His way. It's our choice. I think I'll do it His way.

Iowa

2008-05-04T22:46:00.003-04:00

Contrary to popular opinion, Iowa is much more than just corn fields. Certainly, there are corn fields a plenty, but where we are, there is an abundance of trees as well. Actually, just south of Boone, there is a beautiful wooded state park. On Saturday, despite the cooler weather and strong wind, we enjoyed a hike through the woods on one of the scenic trails in that park. Tonight, while Kendra was enjoying ice cream with a new friend, Javan and I took a back way to Ogden and I marveled at the Michigan-like scenery. I guess the Lord knew it would be hard for us to leave Michigan and put us in a place that very much looks like home...except for all the corn fields.

our first Sunday

2008-05-04T22:38:00.003-04:00

Today was our first official Sunday at Cornerstone Alliance Church in Boone. We were greeted with a beautiful spring day and many smiling faces. In each of the two service, I had the opportunity to speak for a few minutes and share our appreciation for the warm reception we received and about our excitement for the days ahead. During the Sunday School hour, I shared a little as well. Actually, it was more of a Q & A time. The folks at Cornerstone genuinely seem excited about having us here. There is a great spirit here and we are excited to be a part of this church family.

moving

2008-05-03T19:48:00.003-04:00

We moved from Michigan to Iowa this past week. It literally felt like a week. We actually only traveled one day, but if you have ever moved, you know it involves much more than just traveling. We spent a lot of time packing and finishing up little projects at our home in Michigan, then (with the help of a few people) we loaded the truck, then we did the actual moving / traveling, then (with the help of many more people) we unloaded the truck and then (with the help of Kendra's parents and brother) we unpacked many items for our new home in Boone (which will actually only be our residence for about three months, until we move into the parsonage). What an exhausting ordeal! But we are here. It is a new place with many new faces and many new opportunities. It will take a while to adjust but soon we will acclamate and Boone will feel like home. Now we can relax...sort of.

saying goodbye

2008-05-03T19:34:00.003-04:00

Last Sunday, we said goodbye to our church family, many close friends, and some of our favorite relatives. It was a special time as we got to share with everybody where we were going and what we were going to do. We felt very blessed to have so many people show their appreciation and care for us. It was hard saying goodbye. While we will return and visit, it will never be quite the same. But we will continue those friendships and we will begin new ones. Friendship is such a great gift from God. We may have friendships that last only for a season and some that last a lifetime. We may have friends that we see nearly everyday and some that we see once a year or so. But each friend and each friendship is special. Each one adds something of value to our lives. I thank God for the many friends I have made over the years and I look forward to making new ones. And the beauty of Heaven is that one day, I will be reunited with all my friends that share my faith in Jesus.

pacman

2008-04-28T21:48:00.003-04:00

In amongst packing and fixing things up around the house, I have been playing pacman. I discovered that my son finds it very entertaining to watch me. He will actually sit on my lap and watch me play until I lose or he pushes a key and messes up my game. One game he tried to catch pacman. Every where pacman went his finger followed. He thought that was pretty funny. There are not many things that will get him on my lap for an extended period of time (that being more than 5 seconds), but pacman is one of them (for now). So, when I have a spare five minutes or so, we can do some father-son bonding with a classic game.

broken glass

2008-04-24T16:04:00.002-04:00

Yesterday I handled a lot of broken glass. In my garage, I had a number of large pieces of glass and a large mirror. All were cracked, or chipped, or just not worth keeping. So, I broke them up into a number of small pieces. In addition to many other bags of garbage, I had four bags (triple layer) of broken glass to get rid of. I used my winter gloves to handle the glass and as such I did not get even one single cut. That task made me think about the pain of getting cut. I have experienced that a number of times in the past. When we get cut, it hurts. We bleed and our wounded appendage needs attention. None of us like the pain we feel, but it is actually a very good thing. It is our bodies' way of telling us we are injured. Without pain, we would cause greater harm to our bodies because we would not realize the extent of the injury and we might not give attention to our wound. That could lead to an infection and even death. So, the next time you cut yourself and you feel like yelling or swearing, don't get mad, be thankful. That pain may very well save your life.

the "F" word

2008-04-22T15:49:00.004-04:00

My son says the "F" word, not because we say it or because he hears it on tv, but because he is only two and has trouble saying words like fork and frog. So, it sounds very much like he is saying that awful four letter word. The first time I heard him say it, I was a little surprised. And then I laughed, not at him saying the word as much as the innocence he has. My laughter made him say it even more. I try not to laugh anymore. The reason that him saying it is not offensive to me is because he is not trying to say that word and he doesn't even understand what that word means. When someone else says it though, it is very offensive. Years ago, I worked in a factory and one of the workers said that word like it was going out of style. He used it as creatively as possible. I think he used it as about every part of speech. It was very offensive. When you think about it, there is nothing wrong with the letters in the word, and really not anything wrong with putting those letters together, it is what those letters mean when they are put together in that way and are then spoken to someone. Words mean something. They can be used to tear down and to build up. I realize the power of my words when I compliment my wife and she smiles back at me, and then when I say something unkind and her face drops. Our words are powerful. Remember that the next time you hear the "F" word. Too bad that we will all hear it again all too soon.

feels like the 80's

2008-04-18T18:13:00.005-04:00

I don't remember too much about the 1980's. I was a kid wrapped up in playing with my friends and trying to stay out of trouble. I can't remember specifically any particular shows I watched, or movies I saw, or music I listened to. I apparently lived a rather sheltered life. I do remember watching basketball though. My dad grew up playing baseball, so basketball was not really his thing, but he did like the Boston Celtics. Perhaps because they had the same colors as his Alma mater or because he admired the skinny, homely looking white guy from French Lick, Indiana. In the 80's, the powerhouses of the NBA were the Boston Celtics and the Los Angeles Lakers. From 1981 - 1990, the Celtics were in the NBA Finals five times and the Lakers seven times. The Celtics won the championship three times and the Lakers four times. Then the Bad Boys of Detroit finally emerged from their shadows. And that is when I began watching basketball. In the 1988 playoffs, a changing of the guard took place. The Pistons defeated the Celtics in the conference finals and then took the Lakers to seven games, ultimately coming short. The next year, they would have their revenge. After defeating the upstart Chicago Bulls, led by Michael Jordan, the Pistons took on the Showtime Lakers in the Finals. They showed no mercy as the swept the Lakers in four games. The next year they went on to defeat the Portland Trailblazers for a Back-to-Back title. This year, 2008, nearly twenty years after watching my first game, the Lakers, Celtics, and Pistons are all in the hunt again. The Pistons have been solid the last few years, making the conference finals five years in a row. The last couple of years have not been good for the Lakers as they have not gotten out of the first round in their last two tries. They were dominant early on in this new century as they were NBA champs in 2000, 2001, and 2002. The Celtics, on the other hand, have not been in the playoffs since 2005 when they were knocked out in the first round. Now, in 2008, the Lakers are #1 in the West, the Celtics are #1 in the East, and the Pistons are close behind at #2. It sure feels like the late 80's. Maybe the Bulls will reemerge in a couple of years.

flying

2008-04-17T17:23:00.005-04:00

On Tuesday and Wednesday, I experienced the joy of flying again. I hadn't flown since our honeymoon almost 3 1/2 years ago. I really do not enjoy flying, and yet it was a necessary evil this past week. I had four flights, which in total, lasted less than four hours. I spent about six hours waiting to fly. I felt sick on the first three and then I bought some air sickness prevention medicine for the last. It tasted awful, it made me drowsy, but I felt much better on my last flight. It was wonderful stuff. Actually, the flights were not that bad. Every flight was on time and my layovers were rather short, although long enough for me to figure out where I needed to go. As I was at O'Hare, that task can sometimes be daunting. I also had the chance to do some reading and just watch people. What is amazing to me, and somewhat tragic, is that there were hundreds of people around me and almost all of them were ignoring the people next to them while talking on a cell phone to someone likely many miles away. What a crazy world we live in.

There was a good reason for my flights. On Tuesday, I had an interview in Iowa with three men who made up a sub committee for the MidAmerica district of the Alliance. All three are pastors and one, named Ray, is a pastor of another alliance church in the Boone area. They are all great guys and did a great job interviewing me. I was a little nervous, but I really enjoyed the interview. And I passed with flying colors. (Where does that phrase come from I wonder?) So, now we have jumped through the final hoop. Now, we can move out there and begin our new ministry. Actually, we have one more thing to work out. We will be living in the parsonage in the near future, but for the first two or three months, we will be living somewhere else. That still has to be finalized. When that is determined, then we can move out. We are very excited. While it will be hard to say goodbye to our families and our church, we are ready to take this next step.

a busy weekend

2008-04-14T09:44:00.003-04:00

This weekend was slightly busier than normal, although all of our weekends are usually chocked full with activity.

On Friday, Kendra had a doctor's appointment. Everything checked out fine and the baby is looking good. Her mom met us in Big Rapids (where her appointment was) and they went shopping and out to eat while I went to the local Christian bookstore and and got caught up on some reading. Javan hung out with his aunt Nicole so we got a nice break from him for a while and she got to spend some time with her favorite (and only) nephew.

On Saturday, I went with my dad, two brothers, and another fellow to a men's conference in Gaylord. I had to take off from working for Cadillac News that day, but it was worth it. The speakers were pretty good. Steve Chapman (successful musician and avid sportsman), Luther Ellis (former player for the Detroit Lions), Newell Cyrak (associate pastor at the church and co-author of Mistaken Identity), and a guy named Michael (who was on the second season of Survivor) all spoke. Each speaker has some great things to share. Even though I'm not really a Steve Chapman fan (he's older than my dad), I enjoyed him the most. Maybe I can even learn something from hunting stories.

Yesterday, of course we went to church and afterwards we went out to eat and enjoyed a drive through the countryside.

Well, life is about to get even busier. I fly out to Iowa for a couple of days for my last interview. If that all goes well, we should be moving out in a couple of weeks. We have been busy packing and making small improvements on our house.

I'll be sure to keep you posted on our transition. Thanks for reading and praying.

i am legend

2008-04-10T20:39:00.009-04:00

Kendra and I watched the latest Will Smith flick tonight and we were not disappointed, okay maybe just a little bit. The film is inventive, creepy, choppy (camera work...on purpose), and intellectual, at least in my humble opinion. The film basically shows the life of a lone survivor living in New York City. Why does every film (maybe I'm exaggerating) have to be in the Big Apple?! Will Smith's character is all alone, except for his dog. And the world...the half-dead, vampire-like, can't be out in the sun, rabies infected people...are out to get him...and his "little dog too." His mission is to stay there and figure out a cure for the very creatures out to get him. Toward the end of the film (spoiler warning), he discovers two things, that he's not alone and that he has found the cure.

Many times in the Christian life, we feel like we are all alone and that the world is out to get us. We are not alone. And while the world (in a spiritual sense) is out to get us, we don't have to face it alone. Remember that the next time you see a mannequin. Don't understand, I guess you'll have to watch the film.

answered unprayers

2008-04-09T14:33:00.003-04:00

Garth Brooks has a song about thanking God for unanswered prayers. I don't think there really are unanswered prayers. I believe God either says yes, no, or wait. But I do believe there are answered unprayers, prayers that we should have prayed but didn't, and yet they are answered. Yesterday, we sold our Chevy Suburban. It has over 250,000 miles and only drives in 2nd gear. It has been parked in our driveway all winter. As we are very, very, very likely moving to Iowa in a few weeks, we really needed to get rid of it and we really needed some extra money. I have been praying about a number of other things, but I did not really pray to get our truck sold. I praise God for answering a prayer that I should have prayed.

allegiance

2008-04-07T17:33:00.006-04:00

I pledge allegiance to...Kansas, for the time being. Tonight I will watch the last college basketball game of the season. The Kansas Jayhawks and the Memphis Tigers play for the national championship. Almost every year, I root against a team more than I root for a team. Here's the progression. In 1989, my first year watching the tourney, I rooted for U of M. Of course, I'm from the Great Lakes State. I also rooted for the Wolverines in '92 and '93. The Fab Five and company were defeated by Duke and UNC. To this day, I will always root against those Carolina teams. The next year, I rooted against Duke and for Arkansas. I can't remember the nest two years, but I believe I rooted against Kentucky in 1996. In 1997, the year I graduated, I rooted against Kentucky and for Arizona. I may still have an Arizona Wildcats t-shirt from that year. The next year I believe I rooted for Utah against Kentucky. In 1999, I of course rooted for UConn as they battled and defeated Duke. In 2000, my allegiance shifted from Ann Arbor to East Lansing. I know that's borderline treason. I rooted for the Flintstones as they defeated Billy Donovan's Florida Gators. To this day, I loathe Florida. In 2001, I again rooted against Duke to no avail. In 2002, I pulled for Maryland as they played Indiana. Sorry Nathan (my cousin who lives in Indy). In 2003, I rooted for Syracuse to beat Kansas. In 2004, I didn't really care who won, but I believe I rooted for UConn again. In 2005, I of course rooted for Illinois and against UNC. Bummer. In 2006 and 2007, I rooted against Florida both years and was very disappointed. This year, I don't really care. Florida is not in it. Duke lost early. And UNC got whipped by Kansas. This year the team I despise is Memphis. 1. They dismantled my team, MSU. 2. They are one of the most arrogant teams I have ever seen. So, even though in 2003 I rooted against Kansas, this year I am pulling for the Jayhawks. Can I really be wrong 4 years in a row?

running

2008-04-07T10:50:00.004-04:00

Today I went running. I have never enjoyed running, unless it involves dribbling a basketball or kicking a soccer ball, but I know I need to start exercising again. I was somewhat inspired by my own message yesterday. Sometimes that actually happens. My message was about running the race, based on Hebrews 12:1-3. We were challenged to think about those who have gone before, those all-stars of the faith and to imagine them in the stands of a great arena cheering us on. We were challenged to put off the things that weigh us down and the sinful choices that trip us up. We were challenged to run with endurance and to keep our eyes on Jesus, the one who finished his race. We were also reminded that we are running together. That passage is filled with plural pronouns. We don't have to run alone. So after the message was over, I jokingly challenged everyone to go out and run. So, I guess this morning I responded to my own challenge.

Javan's Birthday

2008-04-06T22:49:00.005-04:00

We celebrated Javan's birthday yesterday. Most of Kendra's family and most of my family got together to celebrate his two short years of life. He is the first and currently only grandchild and nephew on both sides, so he is very spoiled. He received some great gifts. He got some new clothes, a few toys, a blanket made by his great grandma, a special basketball hoop that counts in both English and Spanish, and a red tricycle. He also got to ride on a horse. He loved that. He was truly the center of attention.
It's no wonder that kids and grown ups struggle with pride and a sense of entitlement throughout life. We start out being the center of attention and then we have to grow up and realize that there are other people on the planet. Some people never actually do that. Well, in a couple of months, Javan is going to have to share the limelight with another little person.

remembering names

2008-03-21T10:35:00.004-04:00

Like most people, I have a hard time remembering people's names. Yesterday, I was in a restaurant and ran into someone I used to play basketball with. I couldn't remember his name. I think his name was Clinton, or was it Clayton? It was one of those two. I have found that writing people's names down helps. When I see Jesus face to face, I know he will remember my name. He wrote it down. It's written in a very special book.

our trip to Iowa

2008-03-12T13:34:00.004-04:00

We got back from our trip to Iowa on Monday night. We were exhausted and glad to be home. We had an awesome time in Hawkeye country.
We began our trip on Thursday at 6 am EST. It took us a little under 9 hours of driving time to get to Boone. We arrived around 3 pm CST. We had expected to get there later in the day, but we made great time. We settled into our hotel and then went to see Pastor Jeff at the church. We met with him for a little bit, got the tour of the church, and then went out to dinner with him and his son Josh. That evening we enjoyed the pool and a little tv.
On Friday, we met Jeff and his wife Cindy at McDonald's for breakfast. We had already eaten at the hotel, so we just chatted with them while they ate and Javan enjoyed the play place. We then went to look at some apartments. After that, we had lunch with Jeff, Cindy, Zach (their oldest son), and Josh. They gave us the tour of the parsonage, our future home. In the evening, we had dinner with some of the couples of the church. We met with the first service worship leaders and a couple of the elders and their wives.
On Saturday, we met back at the church and met a couple of other folks from the church. There was a lot going on there as one couple was doing some remodeling in the bathrooms. We again looked at some more apartments. We had lunch with Jeff that afternoon and then he and I met together for some philosophy of ministry discussion. At 4 pm, we had our interview with the board / elders. We then had dinner with some more couples from the church. They were an older group, but we had a great time meeting with them. After dinner, we went back to the church and enjoyed ice cream with about 30-40 people from the church.
On Sunday, Kendra and I shared our testimonies in both services and I shared my heart for ministry and my vision for my future position. The worship time was great in both services. The second service has a band and they really rocked. It was great. We greeted almost everyone there and we received a warm welcome. The people really seemed excited about having us come. After that, we went to dinner with Jeff and Cindy, some of the second service band members, and most of the youth leaders. After that, we took a few pictures and headed home.
We had a great time and are looking forward on moving out there in a few weeks.
We have do go through an application process through the Christian & Missionary Alliance before we can be officially offered the position. After that is submitted and reviewed, then I will have to meet with an interview committee. If that all goes, well we should be headed ou there. So now we mainly wait and pray.

Boone Cornerstone Church

Looking into the auditorium

Pastor Jeff and Cindy in front of the parsonage

traveling to Iowa

2008-03-05T17:46:00.003-05:00

Tomorrow morning we embark on our trip to the Hawkeye state. We have been looking forward to this weekend for a few weeks now. We will get to see the people we have talked to and heard about for some time and they will finally get to meet us. We already believe that this is the place God is leading us to, but this weekend with affirm that belief, or drastically change it. Either way, I'm sure this trip will be a great experience. We will be sure to blog more about our trip and let you know what our next step will be.

a love for basketball

2008-03-05T10:48:00.002-05:00

My son slept longer today than normal. I actually went in and woke him up. I said "Good morning buddy." He answered back with a "Morning" of his own. He rarely wakes up grumpy. He is almost always ready to face the day head on. I picked him up and brought him out to the living room. We sat on the couch and he instantly got down. He had yet to discover mom was sitting on the other couch. He dropped the stuffed lion he was holding and grabbed his b-ball. Actually, it is a blue rubber ball with Tigger on it. He let it fall to the ground (his way of dribbling) and took a shot. He missed, but he didn't care. He just loves b-ball.
I don't know if Javan has ever seen me play. I don't have very many opportunities to play basketball, but he has attended a number of his uncle's games. He must have been paying attention some. I do watch a game on TV any chance I can, but even those opportunities are slim, at least until March Madness starts.
Somehow it seems inherited though. By osmosis, he knows how much I love basketball and he loves it too. A child after my own heart. It seems silly, but it brings me incredibly joy to see him shoot basket after basket, never caring if he makes it or misses.

settling for artificial

2008-03-01T15:33:00.003-05:00

I really like French Toast. It's amazing to me that you can dip a piece of plain bread in an egg and milk mixture, cook it, and get a golden brown delight. Sprinkle on some cinnamon, spread on some butter, and pour on some syrup and you have yourself a great way to start the day.
My topping of choice is syrup (is topping the right word?), unless I can get my hands on some homemade strawberry jam. I grew up on the artificial stuff. We rarely had pure maple syrup. Maybe it was too expensive or just not available. Either way, we had some generic knock-off of Aunt Jemima at our disposal, and we never complained.
As I kid, I remember helping a man in our church haul partially frozen gallons of sap from the tapped trees and fill up a couple of 55 gallon drums. We had so much fun running from tree to tree carrying the precious juice back to the wagon. As a reward, we were given some of the syrup.
So when we sat down to eat our French Toast, we tasted some of our hard earned maple syrup. I didn't care for it. I preferred the artificial stuff.
Sadly, this is true of Christianity. So often, we have consumed the artificial, the fake, the unauthentic for so long, that we have lost our appetite for real Christianity.
This is true of worship, prayer, our interactions with other believers, and our witness to nonbelievers. We are afraid to be real. We are hesitant to be transparent. We are willing to settle for some generic, artificial brand of Christianity when we could be enjoying the richness of true Christianity.
Maybe this is why so many people reject Jesus and His people. They are tired of being sold a generic knock-off.

tragedy

2008-02-29T14:25:00.003-05:00

A little boy died this week. This statement is relatively easy to cast off when the child is just another name in an obituary column, but I knew this little boy...and I know his mother. His mother is my cousin. Her innocent child was killed. This little boy didn't deserve to die.
This tragedy makes me angry. It makes me sad. I makes me appreciate my own son more who is the same age as this little boy. It makes me feel sick to my stomach. It reminds me of another innocent life that was taken.
Jesus didn't deserve to die. And yet my sin put Him on that cross. I killed an innocent person. This little boy didn't deserve to die. And yet the sin of another put him in that coffin. An innocent person was killed.
My heart goes out to my cousin and her family. My heart goes out to the family of the boy's killer who is indeed grieving as well.
Jesus died for me. He died for this little child. And He died for this little child's killer. Jesus didn't deserve to die.

getting knocked offline

2008-02-27T17:16:00.005-05:00

We have DSL internet at our home and yet we get knocked offline everytime our home phone rings. It didn't used to be that way, but now we deal with the same annoyance that dial up users do (although out internet is still much faster). It is really a minor inconvenience, and yet I get so easily frustrated. It makes me wonder if we can get knocked offline spiritually? Are there times when we cannot connect with our Creator? I believe that nothing can sever my relationship with God, and yet there are a number of things that can disrupt my connection with Him. The Bible says that if I regard iniquity (or sin) in my heart, the Lord will not hear me. I know that God will never abandon me as His child, but if I live in direct disobedience to Him, He won't listen to me. I will, in a sense, be offline (or at least out of line) with God. I'm not okay with that. I want to be online with God at all times, so I will seek to take care of sinful disruptions as soon as possible. I challenge you to do the same.

finishing strong

2008-02-25T23:49:00.005-05:00

My favorite time of year is almost here. No it is not the beginning of spring. No it is not my son's birthday. And no it is not tax day. My favorite time of year is March Madness, the insane time of year where I can literally watch over a hundred hours of college basketball (and I will if my wife will let me). I know, for being a pastor, that doesn't sound very spiritual at all, but I must confess that I LOVE watching college basketball. There is just something incredible about watching a number 14 seed defeat a number 3 seed. Buzzer beaters, overtime, upsets, David vs. Goliath, storied programs and dark horses. What more can I say. Okay, I do have something of value to say here. At the end of every season of a sport, there is a final tournament. All that happened before doesn't really matter (It only really helps to get a team a higher seed or perhaps home court advantage). What matters is, not how the team started (think the New England Patriots), but how the team finished (think the New York Giants). Every team but one ends the season a loser. One goes home with the trophy. When I think of March Madness (here's the spiritual part), I think of Paul in the Bible. He didn't start off right, but he finished strong. At the end of his life, he said, "I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith." Paul started off rough, but he ended well.

getting junk mail

2008-02-25T12:29:00.006-05:00

I have three e-mail accounts. I have a work account (I rarely get any e-mails there), a gmail account (Most of the people I know contact me with that one), and another personal account that I have used for years. If I sign up for something, I usually use that one. Sometimes we refer to reading the Bible as getting e-mails from God. Not a terrible comparison. He uses His Word to communicate with us. Like most people, I get a lot of unwanted mail: junk mail, forwards, and chain mail (in which I almost never participate). I am glad though that God's e-mails are never junk mail. There is tremendous value in every book, every chapter, every verse, and every word. This is an admonition to me as much as to everyone else. Let's make sure we open and read God's e-mails as often or even more so than we read our regular e-mails. We are assured not to get any junk mail.

viewing an ultrasound

2008-02-22T17:22:00.002-05:00

Today Kendra had her second ultrasound. It took an incredibly long time as the ultrasound technician looked at every conceivable part of our unborn child. It was truly amazing to see the little hands and feet, the spine, the pumping heart, the dark spots of the kidneys, the skeletal look of the face, and the male genetalia. Yes, we found out that Javan's soon-to-be little sibling is a boy. The image of his boyhood was unmistakable. As I was sitting in that room, I was thinking that God has really had the monopoly on this whole seeing the unborn child in the womb thing. Up until the 1960's, only He had the pleasure of seeing a tiny baby move inside of its mother's womb. I just imagine it puts a smile on His face as He sees the smiles on ours as we view the miracle of His handiwork.

being a dad

2008-02-21T12:22:00.005-05:00

This morning as I was sitting at my computer, my son got into his normal amount of mischief. He used the slightly open drawers of my dresser to climb up to reach the top of my wife's and to consequently reach one of her containers of beads. As I moved toward him to get the beads away, he instantly dumped the hundreds of tiny beads all over the floor. That is his normal reaction when we go to take something away from him. Can any other parent relate? So I began to pick up some of the pieces. Isn't that like our heavenly dad? Always picking up the pieces to the messes we make in life. I'm just glad He responds with much more patience and grace. Note: my wife actually did most of the work picking up the tiny beads.

starting a blog

2008-02-21T12:08:00.001-05:00

It seems the hardest part of starting a blog is actually starting a blog. It reminds me of writing term papers in high school. I could write the entire paper in about the time it took me to come up with the first sentence. I suppose though that most people who actually read the blogs of others don't ever even read the first posting. With that said...written...this is my first entry. I trust that the following entries will be more...interesting.