Jon McLaughlin

Seriously... two posts in 2 days about 1 guys album.

I wanted to give a quick update. Jon's album "Indiana" is currently 5th on i-tunes top albums list. Keep the love coming... it would be really cool to see him climb to the top of the list (remember, it's only $7.99). Also, I ran in Target for a minute with my lovely wife today and saw Jon's album on the new release rack for only $9.99.

Go here, here, or here to check him out.

For listening pleasure, I recommend the tracks: Industry, Human, and the single Beautiful Disaster.

Sweet Sounds and Shameless Plugs

You may not know this about me, but I love music. I'm quite eclectic in my tastes, so don't be surprised when you hear me recommend albums that are quite different... although that is not reflected in this current entry.

A couple times per month I'll throw some albums / artists out there that are currently on my "Hot List".... okay, I don't really have a "Hot List", but it sounded right so I just let it flow.

1.) Jon McLaughlin - Indiana : This guy is actually a quasi family member by marriage. We've hung out together, we were in the same fraternity (at different schools), etc... Bottom Line: if you don't go buy this album, I will be personally offended! You can pick up Jon's brand new album "Indiana" on i-tunes right now for only $7.99. That is a steal for a beautiful, full, 13 track album! GO BUY IT!

2.) Dashboard Confessional - Dusk & Sumer: I listened to Dashboard a lot in high school in college. While Dashboard is the the king of the emo genre, their latest album proves to be much happier and does a great job attracting new audiences. I think you'll enjoy their tunes... check out the tracks "Stolen" and "So Long, So Long". *Note* I refer to them as Dashboard because that is the band name, but in reality it is one guy named Chris Carrabba.

3.) Jimmy Eat World - Bleed American : Classic. Tough to beat Jimmy Eat World. They always get me pumped when they shuffle through while I'm on a jog. If you've never heard them, check out the tracks "Bleed American" and "Sweetness".

That's all for now... more to come later.

Great Feeling

It's a great feeling when I finish a book. I start a lot of books... very seldom do I finish a book, and if I do it's likely months later.

This past Thursday on the flight home from Orlando I finished the final 2 chapters in an unbelievable book by Rob Bell entitled: Sex God: {Exploring the endless connections between sexuality and spirituality}. I've already decided that this book will be a "mandatory" element of my pre-marital counseling sessions. I already have my first two guinea pigs lined up (thanks Billy and Po).

Rob is a great communicator and a top-notch author... I highly recommend either this book or his other book: Velvet Elvis. If reading isn't your thing, check out his series of short films: Nooma.

Here are a few gems from "Sex God". Soak them up, then go by the book to get the full story.

"The author of Genesis makes it clear that there is something different about humans... something of God has been placed in them. We reflect what God is like and who God is. A divine spark resides in every single human being. Everybody, everywhere. Bearers of the divine image" (pg 19).

"How you treat the creation reflects how you feel about the creator. When a human being is mistreated, objectified, or neglected, when they are treated as less than human, these actions are actions against God. Because how you treat the creation reflects how you feel about the creator" (pg 28).

"It's possible to be married to somebody and sharing the same bed and be very disconnected. It's possible to be married to somebody and sharing the same bed and even having sex regularly and still be profoundly disconnected" (pg. 45)

"As human beings, we take part through our actions in the ongoing creation of the world. The question is: What kind of world are we going to make" (pg. 63).

"God constantly commands his people to remember who they are, where they've been, what they've seen, adn what's been done for them. If we stop remembering, we may forget. And that's when the trouble comes" (pg 74).

"Sleeping with lots of women gives a man the feeling of being a man without actually having to be one" (pg 126).

"The failure to understand the infinite depth of the human soul is often why people who are married have affairs. They stop exploring the person they married. They find somebody who appears more interesting" (pg 159).

"Sex... in its greatest moment is free from power and coercion and manipulation and agendas and fears, when it is simply two people giving all of themselves to each other, holding nothing back" (Pg 166).

The Back of Class

The cool kids always sat in the back of class didn't they? I showed up a few minutes late to the main session today with Dave Ferguson, so I decided to sit in the back.

Here's a snapshot of the "cool kids" I discovered upon sitting down..

















If you are unaware, the back row warriors pictured here are Ben Arment and Mark Batterson (Left to Right). It's been really cool to be able to put some faces and handshakes with bloggers this week. Looking forward to the final day tomorrow. Bill Hybels will close the conference out for us. Not bad as far as closers go....

Conference Notes

Still having a great time here in sunny Orlando. Did I mention yet that my rental car is a convertible (no, I didn't ask for it... they just handed me the keys), and it's 85 degrees here?

Today was a full day. I'm worn out, and about to lay down in this extremely comfortable hotel bed, watch SportsCenter on the plasma screen and take a nap. But first....

Breakout Session this morning with Darrin Patrick at The Journey in St. Louis was excellent. He's a great communicator, and a high level leader. Too much to post all my notes, so here are the highlights from his session on "Team DNA":

"There is nothing greater than working with a great team. However, working with a bad team can kill you."

• Adam had a team.
• Moses had a team.
• Throughout the Bible we see God calling people to build a team before they accomplish a task.

Team is overrated! (If YOU are not qualified ... See qualifications in I Timothy 3)

YOU (Lead Guy) are the greatest resource in your ministry.

Character of the leader = Character of the team

When you are the leader, people imitate you. They photocopy how you do your marriage, raise your kids, and treat others.

*Big Takeaway* "People will come to your church because of your gifts, but they will stay because of your character."
_____________________________________________________________

Team is underrated! - Choosing a good team

See Mark 3

• When picking a good team, there is no replacement for spending time with God.
• When you spend time alone with God, he is developing your gut, increasing your discernment.
• Chemistry is important - Hire people you like, and can have fun with
  
• Do Stuff - They can't just be fun, they have to have a skill, passion, place to serve, etc...
• Every church should have an internship program.
  
• It helps the church distinguish what kind of people they want to hire without making long term commitments / mistakes.
• It helps develop the young leader.
• Be open with you staff - "Believe the best about one another, and wade through the worst!"
• Hire slowly / Fire Quickly
• Ministry is not about getting stuff done. Ministry is about getting people done.
• Your job as a leader is to create an environment where people can survive and thrive. To create a community where other leaders can excel.

Mark Batterson

I am currently sitting in on a session by one of my favorite bloggers / authors: Mark Batterson. This is actually the 2nd breakout session of his that I've attended. Here's a picture of the one yesterday. Fellow blogger Ben Arment actually snapped the photo: look forward 4 rows and you'll actually see me (and my computer bag).

I'll post some notes from the current session later, but in the mean time, here are some highlights from Mark's talk yesterday on: Maximizing Environments

"Below the level of consciousness the human mind is always processing environments."

• Leaders know how to send subliminal and intangible messages.
• Leaders create culture.
• Leaders are environmental engineers!

7 Keys to creating the right church culture

1.) Be Yourself - Culture starts with knowing who you are and who you aren't.

• A lot of our church cultures are unhealthy because we are unhealthy.
• Life is too short and leadership is too challenging to be two people: The person you are, and the person people want you to be.
• "You can please all of the people some of the time, some of the people all the time, but you can't please all of the people all of the time" - Abraham Lincoln
• You have to choose what kind of people you are going to offend. *Hint* - Jesus offended the religious people.

2.) Stay Positive

• Sharing wins creates an energy and momentum that reduces the size of the looming problems / issues we are facing.
• Church should be the most enjoyable hour of the week (people should feel better when they leave)
• Ministry should be fun (Who you do ministry with determines how fun your ministry will be)
• Pray & Play retreat with staff & leaders (create a fun team culture).

3.) Establish Boundaries

• Family must come first... at the end of the day, a church can find another pastor, but your kids can not get another father.
• Mark gives NCC one evening per week. Evenings are for family.... he'll make an exception once per week.

4.) Little things are Big things

• When Rudy Guliani was elected mayor of NYC, he went after the petty crimes: jaywalking, graffiti, fare jumpers, etc.... The result was that serious felonious crime was decreased drastically.
• Broken windows create subliminal messages (Broken windows are little things that reflect on big things about your church culture)

• ⁃ Misspelled words on worship slides
• ⁃ Unevenly folded bulletins
• ⁃ Typos, dirty floors, messy stage, etc...

• 1% of what you do makes 99% of the difference

5.) Think like a guest

• Unintentional blindness: When we become so absorbed in our culture, we develop blind-spots. These blind-spots cause us to miss out on things that we are doing poorly.
• Do reconnaissance missions: Get out of your culture a few times a year... go to other churches and absorb their culture to expose your blind spots.
• **Book Recommendation** - The Art of Shopping by Paco Underhill
• Paul said that he would become all things to all people, in order that he might reach some.

6.) Exceed Expectations

• Good is not "Good Enough"
• When NCC started Ebeneezer's, they knew that needed to be to pass the "Starbucks Litmus Test". The #1 goal was for people to say "WOW" when they walked through the doors.

7.) Cast Vision Like Crazy

• Most church problems are not Sin problem. Most church problems are Vision problems.
• If the mission and vision are big and important enough, you will not have the time or energy to dip down to the level that will bring you down.
• If you aren't careful you can begin doing ministry from memory... because you are good at it. We stop doing ministry from creativity, and start doing it from memory. We stop creating the future, and start repeating the past.

Best Practices:

⁃ Invest in your leaders
⁃ Take your leaders on a vision casting retreat once per year
⁃ Church planter in Residence
⁃ At NCC they always have a church planter on staff doing a utility role... they have them do a little bit of everything for 18 months - 2 years... Then they send them out and support them for 1-2 years.
⁃ This ensures that a culture of church planting is always around NCC!

Arrival and Session 1

Having a great time in Florida so far. Fun day yesterday.... my flight came in Monday morning, and the conference didn't start until Tuesday around Noon, so I had the opportunity to head down to my Alma Mater to see some old friends and former professors. Got to eat at 2 of my favorite college dives: Fat Boys Bar-B-Q and All Star Grill! Love it.

Day one of the conference was very solid. Had the opportunity to hear from Wayne Cordeiro, the Lead Pastor at a really cool church in Hawaii in the opening session. He shared some great principles in regards to listening and learning from the Holy Spirit, especially in regards to sermon crafting. My big take aways were:

• "You can teach what you know, but you ultimately reproduce what you are!"
• If we want tomorrows church to be men & women of deep devotion, then we (pastors) must be people of deep devotion (same with marriages, parenting, hearts for others, etc....)

How do you gain wisdom?

• Through personal consequence or experience (walking into a wall)
• Through other people's personal experiences (let others walk into the wall & learn from them)

OR

• You can gain wisdom and skill in the art of playing guitar by sitting in a class about guitar, or you can have a one on one session with a great guitar teacher... a master.
  
• You can gain wisdom & skill by sitting in a conference (or a church service) about Jesus, or you can sit with the Master and learn directly from him, about him.
  
• Luke 10:38-42 - Mary & Martha had the opportunity to sit before the Master and learn from him... only one took advantage of the opportunity.

5 Things to bring with you everyday when you sit down with the Master to learn from him.

1. Bring a Bible
2. Bring a pen
3. Bring a reading program to assist you in journeying through the Bible
4. Bring a journal (and a plan to Journal)
5. Bring a daily planner (to eliminate distractions when they come in your mind... just write them down, and forget it)

Back With A Bang!

Rumor has it that there are some people checking this blog for updates. Thanks to those encouragements, I have decided to jump back on the horse. I'm going to dial down the expectations this time... I won't blog daily, or twice daily, or even 5 times a week. My goal will be to post 3 new posts each week; no less, and anything beyond that will be *bonus*

So, to kick things off, I'll be doing some live blogging from the Exponential Conference in Orlando, Florida. Sitting in a beautiful auditorium for the first Main Session right now. I'm really looking forward to soaking in the wisdom that will be shared by some of the top leaders in the church planting world. I would encourage you to follow some of the links on the right side of this page for some updates from some other attendees and presenters (Arment, Batterson, Ferguson).

Stay Tuned....

The Chaos of our Lives

I am currently about halfway through a great book called "In a Pit with a Lion on a Snowy Day" by one of my favorite bloggers. There have been several things thus far that are blog worthy, but I want to wait to share most of them. I plan to compile all of my personal highlights together when I am finished, and do a quick book summary/review.

This however, could not wait. When I read this, it stopped me in my tracks... not because it was so deep or theological, but because it was so simple and so true. Mark is talking about how God is a 4-dimensional God. He is everywhere, all at once. God knows no space or time. He goes on to quote Genesis:

Now the earth was formless and empty, darkness was over the surface of the deep, the Spirit of God was hovering over the waters.

Mark then responds:

In the beginning, the Spirit of God was hovering over the chaos. And nothing has changed. God is still hovering over the chaos. The creation story is a microcosm of what God wants to do in your life. He hovers over the chaotic situations ready to create order and beauty. He wants to fill the void.

Do you feel like there is chaos in your life? Surely you do... don't we all sometimes feel like things are spiraling out of control? It's a beautiful thing that we can find peace in the fact that our 4-dimensional God is hovering over the chaos of our lives, just waiting for us to give him permission to restore order, and create something that is whole.

What's in an event?

In youth ministry it is easy to get sidetracked with events. Whether big or small, events can consume our time, energy and creativity. Sometimes we do events and we aren't even sure why we are doing them... maybe it's a tradition, maybe it's something you were pressured to do, maybe it just sounds fun.

At BIG Student Ministries, we want to be intentional about the events we do. We try not to do an event unless it accomplishes a specific purpose. I like to see special events as equipping tools for our students. We have two events coming up soon that could be powerful tools for the students involved in our ministry to bring their friends.

1.) Super Bowl Party - This Sunday night we will be opening up our house from 5-10 PM for Junior and Senior High students. I told our students last week at our Sunday night service that I did not want to open up my house for them. I wanted to open up my house for their friends.... What better opportunity to introduce a teenager to our Student Ministry. We are having food all night, playing video games like crazy, playing ping-pong, giving away door prizes, and of course watching the BIG GAME in HD! We equipped our students with these tickets to pass out to their friends.... we set a goal of 50 students for the Super Bowl party! I hope we get there... I'm all about opening up my house for 50 teenagers!

2.) Ski-Trip - On February 9th-10th, we are going to Mad River Mountain for an overnight ski event. We will be leaving from Lakota East Friday at 5:00, and returning Saturday at Noon. This trip is going to be a blast... on Friday night when we arrive we will be hooking up with several other student ministries for a worship gathering. After that we are headed to the mountain for a midnight ski/tube session. When we are finished at 3:00 a.m. we will be going to a families house in Middletown to spend the night and have breakfast the next day. E-mail me if you have any questions, or want to confirm your attendance! luke@cincyjourney.org

iThoughts....

Two things.

1.) I was leaving a local business today when I saw an elderly woman coming in the next set of doors (just down from the ones I was coming in). I did what I thought was the normal thing and walked over to open the door for her. She looked at me with a face of pure shock and joy and said with a tone of disbelief: "Well, I guess chivalry is not dead".

2.) Tonight the Journey Church men's soccer team played its inaugural game at Wall2Wall indoor soccer complex. At the beginning of the 2nd half we were killing the other team like 10-1. I was sitting out to start the half watching the guys move the ball around like it was a pre-game drill when the referee walked by our bench and said: "You guys must really like each other, you sure know how to share the ball." To which I replied: That's what happens when you get a couple of years outside of high school... you begin to realize that it can be a lot more fun to pass the ball around as opposed to trying to take the whole team on by yourself". Now, this might sound funny coming from the guy who scored four goals.... but like I said, it was a particularly easy night for the Journey Fellas!

Now some thoughts...

Is it really so rare for a guy to hold a door open for an elderly woman? Forget that... is it really so rare for a person to hold a door for another person? Are we so consumed with ourselves and the agendas for our day that we can't take 3-4 seconds out of our rush to stop and think about someone else? As I look around at the culture we live in, I'm not sure that I want to know the answer to that question....

Driving home from the game I began to think about the interchange between the referee and myself. Was it really so rare for a sports team to actually pass the ball around in order to maximize your chances of scoring a goal, or winning the game? As I sit on my couch watching SportsCenter and see the box-scores roll through, I believe the answer to my question is a grim one.

Is it really so rare for me to not be the focus of my own life? I wish there was a pill that we could take to eliminate the selfish gene in our systems. There was no mistake when Apple Inc. decided to change the world of consumer electronics with a simple marketing campaign. iPod, iWeb, iLife, iWork. They took something that was active within each of us and encouraged us to indulge in it. "Your life is already about you, why not make your electronics about you as well?" It all makes perfect sense....

My goal everyday is to live my life in such a way that whether I am walking out of a store, or playing a game on a field, people take notice of my actions. Not because they are noble, outrageous, or bizarre. Rather, I hope they take notice because it is something that runs against the current of their life... I hope it creates a "glitch in their Matrix" that causes them to re-asses the way they run their life.

If Jesus word's in Matthew 20 are true (which I have no doubt that they are), then count me as one who wants to "be great".

The Power of One... or Two Coaches

While I was admittedly rooting for a Saints-Colts Super Bowl, simply because I thought that would be more fun to watch, I am as equally pleased with the Tony Dungy / Lovie Smith Super Bowl Matchup.

I think it's a great thing that an issue we hear so much about in life, and especially sports has taken another step in the right direction. If you haven't heard, this is the first time that an African-American coach will be coaching in the Super Bowl... in fact, there are two. I appreciated Tony Dungie's answer when asked if it was a big deal or not. He said, "Yea, of course it's a big deal. I'm proud to be able to say that I joined Lovie in this achievement, but in my mind it will be a big deal when we stop talking about it, and it's just something normal."

Besides their race there is another attribute that links these two guys together. It's hard to read or listen to anything about either coach without the topic of their Christianity or faith coming up. (Click here for an example.)
It's good to see two guys who aren't backwards about the fact that they are followers of Christ. They are both open to not only discussing, but proclaiming their values and faith. Wouldn't it be cool if one day this was the norm and we no longer discussed the fact that this guy, or that guy was a "Christian"?

You have to wonder about the degree of influence these guys have on their players, and on other coaches in the league. They have a great platform to share from. It would be easy to say that our position in life doesn't allow for such influence.... It would be easy to say: "But I've only got..."

It's way to easy to say things like: "But I've only got...", or "I'm Just...".

The truth is, if you call yourself a "Christian", then you have something to share. You have something powerful to share... You have a story... You have a message... You have the hope of a Savior. Each of us has a lifeboat.... are you rowing away from the shipwreck alone, or do you have a boat full of friends, neighbor's, teammates, and co-workers that you are doing your best to drag to safety?

This is a challenge that I have received the past couple of weeks at Journey Church as we discussed the power of one: One Church, One Year, One Life... I plan to implement some changes in my life in order to put myself in situations where I can leverage my influence for the Kingdom.

Click Here to download some great content from our One Series

All of that said... GO COLTS!

What If?

Q: What if three leaders of a new church in West Chester all begin to blog again?
A: Go here (where you are now), here, and here
to find out.

Q: What if a former athlete gets some sweet new gear that inspires him to run 40+ miles in less than a month?
A: Well, if you mean Luke got the Nike+ kit and some sweet new shoes (See my toys on the right), then you've got some serious runners addiction on your hands!

Q: What if a great team of adults spend a year with a group of great students building relationships and having fun, and then launch a rockin' weekly worship gathering?
A: Show up at Adrenaline S&F any Sunday night at 6:00 pm, to see what it's all about. Worship, Relevant Teaching, Fun & Games, Give-Aways.... It's pretty sweet!

Q: What if every post on my blog was like this?
A: Well, I imagine that it would get old real fast, so we won't make a habit of this...


Looking forward to blogging here more often. Read and Enjoy!

We Have A House...

I am living the “American Dream”.... at least that’s what everyone keeps telling me. Jenessa and I purchased a home about two weeks ago and we could not be more excited about our situation.

We live in Liberty Twp. at 8027 Serenity Lake Dr.... I know, I know... it’s an awesome street name huh? The picture above is our house, minus the two white vehicles and all of the landscaping (long story that I don’t actually know).

I have determined that moving is not fun. I don’t enjoy lifting boxes, carrying couches, or doing work on new houses. Nonetheless, it is all done (mostly), and we are able to enjoy our home to the fullest extent.

If you are a friend and live in the area, I would encourage you to stop by anytime. It’s always been a conviction of ours that when we had our own home, we would have an “Open Door Policy”. Come on over....

This is awesome...

I know I haven't posted in a really long time. I am going to begin to fix that, and make this a more regular habit.... However, I have something far more important to share with you!

The David Crowder Band was in town last on Saturday. Jenessa and I took a few of the Journey Students up to the concert. We met up with a bunch of other folks, and ended up with quite the Journey contingent.

What I am about to share with you is something that is very rare... it is not often that two people so identical and yet so different are gathered in the same area. Nonetheless, I give you Will + Crowder:

Nice Day

I had a really nice day today. For starters, the Bengals weren't picking in the top 15-20 of the NFL draft for the first time in a decade or so... that was nice. The Reds have the best record in Baseball... that's nice!

Moving on to something of substance... This evening Journey had its first ever Marriage Dinner/Seminar. Jenessa and I attended, and had a really great time. It was wonderful to hear some teaching about marriage and intimacy. We talked a lot about how we might better notice and fulfill certain needs in each others lives!

One of the more "non-marriage" related points that caught my attention was the statement that "Strong churches don't make strong families... rather, straing families make strong churches." What a true statement... As I look around Journey Church, there is no doubt that we are a strong young church because we have strong, solid families who lead the charge!

After the dinner, Jenessa and I headed over to Kidd Coffee, where we ran into what turned out to be a Journey Young Adult party. We had the pleasure of introducing them all to a wonderful game called "snaps". It was great to see the range of emotions on their faces: confusion, frustration, displeasure, hope, more confusion, understanding, success!! What a fun game... good times were had!

Back on the horse....

What a strange expression that is... We don't ride horses, why are we getting back on them? 

Life has been a whirlwind the past couple of weeks (seee below posts).... It feels good to be on the otherside of everything though. I have spent the past couple of days just getting back in the groove of things around home and office. I have some critical tasks that I need to get in order for BIG Student Ministries.... that is currently priority 1! 

The funeral was Saturday... it went as well as can be expected. I am so glad that my brother and I did it... I hope that we paid a fitting tribue to my Grandpa. Grandma is doing okay... she has her moments, despite her constantly being around people, I can see the loneliness in her eyes... that makes me sad. 


I am utterly excited that the weather has turned the corner here in Ohio. That week in Florida nearly made me want to move back! But alas, Ohio has come through with beautiful sunshine and warm days. What does this mean... well, several things: Golf, Softball, Cookouts (1 already), SWOA Camps.... just to name a few! 

Looking forward to all of these things, and much much more... 

Plans...

We spent the better part of this morning taking care of the final arrangments for grandpa.

Here are the details:

The visitation will be on Saturday, April 8th from 10:30-1:00.

The funeral will immediately follow the visitation. Both events will be held at . Breitenbach McCoy & Leffler Funeral Home

My brother and I will be officiating the services. Please pray for us that we will be able to deliver the message that both grandpa would have for us, and that God has set in our hearts. A lot of people have asked why we are doing it, and if we can handle it. I am confident that we can... God will give us strength and courage! As to why: Grandpa wouldn't have it any other way.... he constantly told us how proud he was, and how he never could have imagined having "two grandsons that grew up to be ministers".... I hope that we continue to make him proud!

Lost for words...

I can't believe that I am even about to type this. It doesn't seem real yet... how can it be?

My Grandpa, Jack Bowling, passed away this morning at 9:20 a.m. His heart grew weaker throughout the evening following his surgery, and he went to sleep in peace. I have no doubt that my grandpa has transitioned from this temporal life to one of wholeness with his Maker... for that, I am thankful.

There is not a fiber in my body that is not one of the following: sad, angry, confused, bitter, exhausted, or in denial. It just doesn't seem fair... I am unable to imagine: Life without grandpa, Mary without Jack, family functions without our patriarch.

I can not believe that this picture was just taken last Friday. We were all in Daytona Beach eating at one of our favorite little fish places right next to the ocean. We spent the whole day out on the town.... gift shops, the mall, dinner, etc... I will be eternall grateful that Jen and I were able to go to Florida last week.

I beg each of you to focus your prayers on my grandma, and the rest of the family. They have known each other since they were 16 years old.... I can't imagine knowing someone that long, let alone losing someone you've known so intimately for that long. Our family is very close... I have no doubt that the love and nurture will be there for my grandma, but it will not make the pain go away. We spent the whole evening with the family... it was so hard, everyone is devestated. Please pray for us.

Deep Breath....Exhale....

Welcome back to the blog of Luke Dooley... we hope that regularly scheduled postings will continue soon...

Remember that time in church a few weeks ago when I asked everyone to take a deep breath? I need that deep breath right now! It has been a whirlwind couple of weeks. Allow me to expand that thought....

I am currently working on a Masters degree from Anderson University (although at a snail's pace). It is an online degree and requires an on-campus component for each class. In the Spring this on-campus component happens to be held at my Alma-Mater. The class was only 2 days, so I didn't see the value in going all the way to Florida for such a short period. Therefore, Jenessa took a week off work, and we decided to make a mini-vacation out of it. We ended up being in Florida for about 5 days....

We had a great time... it was wonderful to spend time together. We are together a lot, but we don't spend a lot of time together (does that make sense). We are both just so busy, it is hard to disconnect, and give each other quality time... so it was definitely nice to do that. We also had the opportunity to see some friends from college. It was really cool to tell stories, and catch up on the lives of our friends. Adam, Maggie, Jacob, Tina, Evan, Bobby, Trisha... you are all sorely missed!

After our time in Lake Wales, we headed over to New Smyrna Beach where my grandparents reside for the winter months. We had a great time with them; ate way too much, laid out in the sun for way too long, and perhaps spent a little too much money. Somehow though, when you add all of those up, it equals a great time. Until the drive home... A 14 hour drive turned into 16.5 hours as a result of crazy traffic (and maybe an ineffective "shortcut")...

We arrived safe at home in West Chester around 7:00 Saturday evening. We unpacked, prepped for church in the morning, set our clocks forward an hour, and got some good rest. Church came, it was solid... I must say though, I will not miss meeting in that gym! Following church we spent 2 hours at Don Pablo's... perhaps the last 2 hours I will spend in there for quite sometime. It was not the most pleasurable dining experience. The next few hours where a whirlwind that went something like this: I dropped off the lights (which I had previously broken) in Middletown, we cancelled softball practice, uncancelled softball practice, I began to prep for small group, I got a phone call, I left for Southern Tennessee.

That brings me to now... My afformentioned grandparents were making the commute home from Florida with my Father, who rode down with us earlier in the week. While at a rest area stretching their legs, my 84 year old grandfather fell and broke his hip. The ambulance took him to a "hospital" to receive care. Turns out they couldn't really do anything, so they transported him to a hospital in Knoxville, Tn. so that he could have his hip operated on. So here I sit: In a hotel in Knoxville, without my wife, typing this post on my brother's Dell laptop (which reminds me of the fact that my i-book has passed away... truly a sad occasion)...

All that to say that I need to take a breath. My whole family is gathered here... each one of us is at the end of our rope due to the following: lack of sleep, extreme stress, fear of death, loss of employment, or ALL OF THE ABOVE.

Do I even have to ask you to say a quick prayer, or have you picked up on that? Thanks already!

Say a prayer for my Grandfather (he is 84, in relatively good health, but a broken hip and a tired heart can be a bad combination...) Pray for my Grandmother... She loves him dearly, and has done so for 58 years! Pray for my family who is gathered here... my Mom who will now become a primary care giver, my Aunt who will do the same, my Uncle who must deal with all of this from hundreds of miles away. Pray for my Father who is being a support to my Mother Pray for my brother and I who must be strong for all parties involved.

Surgery should be in the morning, I'll do my best to keep you updated... even if it means typing away on this Microsoft Monster...