Back Home

I'm back in Indiana now and trying to get back into the swing of things after my vacation. It always takes me a day or two to get back into a rhythm after a vacation.

Tammy and Shelby are still at "Grandma J's" until Friday; in the meantime James, Tonya, Sydney, and Lucas are staying at our place until their furniture arrives from California. I'm enjoying catching up with them and laughing... lots.

Back Home

I'm back in Indiana now and trying to get back into the swing of things after my vacation. It always takes me a day or two to get back into a rhythm after a vacation.

Tammy and Shelby are still at "Grandma J's" until Friday; in the meantime James, Tonya, Sydney, and Lucas are staying at our place until their furniture arrives from California. I'm enjoying catching up with them and laughing... lots.

Vacation Report 5

Well today is my last full day in Iowa. I will be flying back to Indiana tomorrow afternoon. I take off from the Mason City/Clear Lake Airport (note the "p.s." from this blog in January) I'm looking forward to my layover in Minneapolis tomorrow - two words - Caribou Coffee!

I spent my final day just relaxing at Grandma J's; we enjoyed watching the FFC 10:30 service on the internet this morning. Ryan McAllister did a great job of preaching today and "nailed it". At noon we enjoyed a little picnic out back and we will probably do some grilling this evening.

I didn't blog yesterday but here are some pics of what we were up to. After doing a little shopping we headed over for the annual "Up in Smoke" rib fest at East Park in Mason City... Yummy!

We followed up our lunch by enjoying some of the new play equipment at the park. They did a great job on this playground and Shelby loved it. It was a great day; a gentle cool breeze, fluffy clouds in the sky, sounds of children playing, the smell of barbecue, and jazz music in the background... I forgot how great East Park in Mason City is.

Vacation Report 5

Well today is my last full day in Iowa. I will be flying back to Indiana tomorrow afternoon. I take off from the Mason City/Clear Lake Airport (note the "p.s." from this blog in January) I'm looking forward to my layover in Minneapolis tomorrow - two words - Caribou Coffee!

I spent my final day just relaxing at Grandma J's; we enjoyed watching the FFC 10:30 service on the internet this morning. Ryan McAllister did a great job of preaching today and "nailed it". At noon we enjoyed a little picnic out back and we will probably do some grilling this evening.

I didn't blog yesterday but here are some pics of what we were up to. After doing a little shopping we headed over for the annual "Up in Smoke" rib fest at East Park in Mason City... Yummy!

We followed up our lunch by enjoying some of the new play equipment at the park. They did a great job on this playground and Shelby loved it. It was a great day; a gentle cool breeze, fluffy clouds in the sky, sounds of children playing, the smell of barbecue, and jazz music in the background... I forgot how great East Park in Mason City is.

Vacation Report 4

Today is our 16th wedding anniversary. 16 years ago Tammy and I were married at the Disciples of Christ Church in Charles City, Iowa (about 20 miles from where we are this evening in Osage).

I thought I'd post some pictures of our adventures today:

We started off by taking Shelby to the North Iowa Fair Grounds -

We followed our trip to the fair with a visit to Great Grandpa Sorensen's house -

Finally, this evening we went to the school playground in Osage -

Vacation Report 4

Today is our 16th wedding anniversary. 16 years ago Tammy and I were married at the Disciples of Christ Church in Charles City, Iowa (about 20 miles from where we are this evening in Osage).

I thought I'd post some pictures of our adventures today:

We started off by taking Shelby to the North Iowa Fair Grounds -

We followed our trip to the fair with a visit to Great Grandpa Sorensen's house -

Finally, this evening we went to the school playground in Osage -

Vacation Report 3

The highlight of my day was seeing my first Ford Shelby GT in person! Check it out -

I love this muscle car!! The sticker price on the window is $40,000+. These babies are a hot ticket and many times they are selling for way over the sticker price. We saw it sitting on the car lot yesterday as I was salivating over it I told Tammy (who loves this car too), "If they would sell it to me for sticker price, I'd buy it." I spoke with the salesman on the lot this afternoon and guess what he told me? Yep, he told me he'd sell it for the sticker price.

I almost passed out =). I started doing some quick math in my head and realized if I sold both my cars, took a second job, and sold a kidney, I could almost swing it. For now I'll have to keep dreaming...

Vacation Report 3

The highlight of my day was seeing my first Ford Shelby GT in person! Check it out -

I love this muscle car!! The sticker price on the window is $40,000+. These babies are a hot ticket and many times they are selling for way over the sticker price. We saw it sitting on the car lot yesterday as I was salivating over it I told Tammy (who loves this car too), "If they would sell it to me for sticker price, I'd buy it." I spoke with the salesman on the lot this afternoon and guess what he told me? Yep, he told me he'd sell it for the sticker price.

I almost passed out =). I started doing some quick math in my head and realized if I sold both my cars, took a second job, and sold a kidney, I could almost swing it. For now I'll have to keep dreaming...

Vacation Report 2

Early this morning I got up and jogged around the fine town of Osage, Iowa. These folks know how to take care of their homes and streets, it was a beautiful run. This afternoon we piled into Grandma J's car and took about an hour and half drive up to Rochester, Minnesota and the ladies did what they enjoy most - shopped. I followed that excursion with a nap =).

Other than that it has been a rather uneventful and relaxing day. So I thought I'd borrow Tammy's camera and take a picture of the patio that I am blogging from this evening, here it is:

Vacation Report 2

Early this morning I got up and jogged around the fine town of Osage, Iowa. These folks know how to take care of their homes and streets, it was a beautiful run. This afternoon we piled into Grandma J's car and took about an hour and half drive up to Rochester, Minnesota and the ladies did what they enjoy most - shopped. I followed that excursion with a nap =).

Other than that it has been a rather uneventful and relaxing day. So I thought I'd borrow Tammy's camera and take a picture of the patio that I am blogging from this evening, here it is:

Vacation Report

We arrived at "Grandma J's" (Grandma Janssen) in Iowa today... just in time for me to hook up a wireless router for her so that all 3 of us could be on her internet at the same time... isn't technology great?

We are enjoying our vacation so far. We had a good time strolling down memory lane at the Adventurland amusement park. I didn't take very many photos though; here are a couple of Tammy and Shelby enjoying the ferris wheel and the tea cups ...

We also had a blast camping in the RV. I almost hate to call it "camping" because to me camping means roughing it a little bit. We don't rough it in the RV! I nearly froze to death sitting in the air conditioning - while eating my Haagen-Dazs ice cream bar - that had been chilled in my freezer - as I watched TV and worked on my computer - right after my shower... I LOVE IT!

I plan to post more this week and update ya'll on our adventures in Northern Iowa!

Vacation Report

We arrived at "Grandma J's" (Grandma Janssen) in Iowa today... just in time for me to hook up a wireless router for her so that all 3 of us could be on her internet at the same time... isn't technology great?

We are enjoying our vacation so far. We had a good time strolling down memory lane at the Adventurland amusement park. I didn't take very many photos though; here are a couple of Tammy and Shelby enjoying the ferris wheel and the tea cups ...

We also had a blast camping in the RV. I almost hate to call it "camping" because to me camping means roughing it a little bit. We don't rough it in the RV! I nearly froze to death sitting in the air conditioning - while eating my Haagen-Dazs ice cream bar - that had been chilled in my freezer - as I watched TV and worked on my computer - right after my shower... I LOVE IT!

I plan to post more this week and update ya'll on our adventures in Northern Iowa!

A Stroll Down Memory Lane

We have a new plan in our week of vacation; rather than heading straight to Tammy’s mother’s house we will be staying the night near Des Moines Iowa. I will be taking Tammy and Shelby to an amusement park called Adventureland. There’s a story behind this. It was 16 years ago this week that Tammy and I went to Adventureland on our honeymoon, (July 27th 1991). Now, Adventureland is not the kind of place a young lady dreams of spending her honeymoon, this is not a world class resort, and it’s near Des Moines, Iowa! This is not some place tropical, scenic, historic, or romantic.

Here’s how Adventureland became our honeymoon destination; after Tammy and I got married we had less than 2 weeks to pack our belongings and move down to Pittsburg, Kansas where I was going to go to college. Since the time was short we didn’t have much of a chance to go very far… oh yeah… I’m also a tight wad. For 16 years Tammy has not let me live down the fact that I took her on a very lame honeymoon. If I knew then what I know now we would have gone to Hawaii/Alaska/Europe. So my words of advice to any young men out there – “don’t make the mistake I did shell out the bucks and make it memorable.”

This time around to Adventureland it’s a little different, we get to enjoy it with Shelby, and it will be a little stroll down memory lane for Tammy and I… I just wish it were a stroll through Hawaii/Alaska/Europe =)

A Stroll Down Memory Lane

We have a new plan in our week of vacation; rather than heading straight to Tammy’s mother’s house we will be staying the night near Des Moines Iowa. I will be taking Tammy and Shelby to an amusement park called Adventureland. There’s a story behind this. It was 16 years ago this week that Tammy and I went to Adventureland on our honeymoon, (July 27th 1991). Now, Adventureland is not the kind of place a young lady dreams of spending her honeymoon, this is not a world class resort, and it’s near Des Moines, Iowa! This is not some place tropical, scenic, historic, or romantic.

Here’s how Adventureland became our honeymoon destination; after Tammy and I got married we had less than 2 weeks to pack our belongings and move down to Pittsburg, Kansas where I was going to go to college. Since the time was short we didn’t have much of a chance to go very far… oh yeah… I’m also a tight wad. For 16 years Tammy has not let me live down the fact that I took her on a very lame honeymoon. If I knew then what I know now we would have gone to Hawaii/Alaska/Europe. So my words of advice to any young men out there – “don’t make the mistake I did shell out the bucks and make it memorable.”

This time around to Adventureland it’s a little different, we get to enjoy it with Shelby, and it will be a little stroll down memory lane for Tammy and I… I just wish it were a stroll through Hawaii/Alaska/Europe =)

Busy Week

Next week is really sneaking up on me. This weekend I have another wedding to perform (It is going to be a beautiful outdoor wedding). Immediately following the wedding tomorrow evening I need to make my way to our Saturday night service which will already have begun. We celebrate our 125th anniversary at church this Saturday and Sunday and the service is filled with guest speakers and videos. On Monday bright and early Tammy, Shelby, and I take off for Iowa to stay with Tammy’s mom and drop off the RV (our final trip in the rv :-( Early this coming week the Pinkerton’s will be rolling into East Central Indiana and staying in our home while we are away and as they await their belongings to make it here from California so they can then move into their newly rented home. It will be a busy but fun filled week!

Busy Week

Next week is really sneaking up on me. This weekend I have another wedding to perform (It is going to be a beautiful outdoor wedding). Immediately following the wedding tomorrow evening I need to make my way to our Saturday night service which will already have begun. We celebrate our 125th anniversary at church this Saturday and Sunday and the service is filled with guest speakers and videos. On Monday bright and early Tammy, Shelby, and I take off for Iowa to stay with Tammy’s mom and drop off the RV (our final trip in the rv :-( Early this coming week the Pinkerton’s will be rolling into East Central Indiana and staying in our home while we are away and as they await their belongings to make it here from California so they can then move into their newly rented home. It will be a busy but fun filled week!

Couple of Blog Links

I'm not feeling very inspired this evening so I thought I'd point you to some pastors who are more inspiring...

I loved this blog the other day by Craig Groeschel.

I also enjoyed this one by Perry Noble.

Couple of Blog Links

I'm not feeling very inspired this evening so I thought I'd point you to some pastors who are more inspiring...

I loved this blog the other day by Craig Groeschel.

I also enjoyed this one by Perry Noble.

Dreams and Faith

This evening I spent a little bit of time putting pen to paper and started dreaming about the future of the church - I mean big dreaming. At moments I caught myself thinking, "I don't know that this could happen here." I pushed through thoughts like that and kept dreaming, it was a lot of fun just to dream big and let my faith build.

I began to envision environments within the church where people were being challenged by God's Word creatively, environments where people were interacting with one another, I could picture smiles on faces, laughter in hallways, and children playing. It made me long for what I was putting on paper and I could see it happening...

We serve a big God who can make the impossible possible. I have no doubt that He will allow the dreams and visions He's placed in my Spirit to happen.

Hebrews 11:1, "Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen."

Dreams and Faith

This evening I spent a little bit of time putting pen to paper and started dreaming about the future of the church - I mean big dreaming. At moments I caught myself thinking, "I don't know that this could happen here." I pushed through thoughts like that and kept dreaming, it was a lot of fun just to dream big and let my faith build.

I began to envision environments within the church where people were being challenged by God's Word creatively, environments where people were interacting with one another, I could picture smiles on faces, laughter in hallways, and children playing. It made me long for what I was putting on paper and I could see it happening...

We serve a big God who can make the impossible possible. I have no doubt that He will allow the dreams and visions He's placed in my Spirit to happen.

Hebrews 11:1, "Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen."

The Plan

God is up to something in this world and no one can stop His plans. God’s sovereignty is all encompassing; and unbelievably you and I get to be a part of what God is doing in this world! He has a plan and a purpose for our lives and if we pay attention to that plan and purpose we fit precisely into the bigger picture of what our God is doing.

Psalm 33:11, “The plans of the LORD stand firm forever, the purposes of his heart through all generations.”

Since the beginning of time God has been on the move, and generation after generation have fit perfectly into what God wanted to accomplish. The invitation goes out to you and me to join in what God is doing. You may say, “What is God up to?” God is looking to reconcile and rescue people from their sin. God has a plan and a purpose and now we get to participate in the plan; we get to play a part and we can influence generations to come.

And so from generation to generation Christian’s have been passing along the truth that God is up to something and that something is the reconciling and rescuing of mankind through Jesus Christ. Nations come and nations go, leaders have come and gone, whole cultures have disappeared, but God will not be denied He will accomplish what He has set out to do. And you and I have been invited to be a part of His multigenerational eternal plan.

The Plan

God is up to something in this world and no one can stop His plans. God’s sovereignty is all encompassing; and unbelievably you and I get to be a part of what God is doing in this world! He has a plan and a purpose for our lives and if we pay attention to that plan and purpose we fit precisely into the bigger picture of what our God is doing.

Psalm 33:11, “The plans of the LORD stand firm forever, the purposes of his heart through all generations.”

Since the beginning of time God has been on the move, and generation after generation have fit perfectly into what God wanted to accomplish. The invitation goes out to you and me to join in what God is doing. You may say, “What is God up to?” God is looking to reconcile and rescue people from their sin. God has a plan and a purpose and now we get to participate in the plan; we get to play a part and we can influence generations to come.

And so from generation to generation Christian’s have been passing along the truth that God is up to something and that something is the reconciling and rescuing of mankind through Jesus Christ. Nations come and nations go, leaders have come and gone, whole cultures have disappeared, but God will not be denied He will accomplish what He has set out to do. And you and I have been invited to be a part of His multigenerational eternal plan.

125 Year Anniversary

This weekend Farmland Friends Church will be celebrating 125 years of ministry; that's weekend number 6,500! We are going to take some time and celebrate the past, present, and future of our congregation. I'll be sharing the message this weekend with some wonderful folks; we will hear from some of the current elders of the church, a former pastor, and a testimony from an individual that you don't want to miss.

125 Year Anniversary

This weekend Farmland Friends Church will be celebrating 125 years of ministry; that's weekend number 6,500! We are going to take some time and celebrate the past, present, and future of our congregation. I'll be sharing the message this weekend with some wonderful folks; we will hear from some of the current elders of the church, a former pastor, and a testimony from an individual that you don't want to miss.

2nd Annual Picnic & Baptism

Jesus said, "Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you." ... Our response, "OK."...

This year we had 220 people show up for our picnic and baptisms, and we baptized 11 people. There were several times that I just had to stop and thank God for the blessings he has given to this body of believers. To see so many cars pulling in, conversations going on, people laughing, kids playing, ... just blessed me so much. Add to that the testimonies that were shared on the shore and it made for a very memorable day.

2nd Annual Picnic & Baptism

Jesus said, "Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you." ... Our response, "OK."...

This year we had 220 people show up for our picnic and baptisms, and we baptized 11 people. There were several times that I just had to stop and thank God for the blessings he has given to this body of believers. To see so many cars pulling in, conversations going on, people laughing, kids playing, ... just blessed me so much. Add to that the testimonies that were shared on the shore and it made for a very memorable day.

Special Day Tomorrow

Tomorrow afternoon is a very special day for me. Tomorrow after church I will have the opportunity to "break bread" with some awesome brothers and sisters in Christ. I will also have the privilege of taking part in the baptisms of some folks who want to publicly be identified as followers of Jesus Christ.

Witnessing individuals make their professions of faith through baptism is always such a moving time for me. Hearing their testimonies and watching them go through this symbolic act touches me deeply. I've waited all year for this.

Tomorrow I may be able to post some pictures of the picnic and baptisms and share a few thoughts about the day.

Special Day Tomorrow

Tomorrow afternoon is a very special day for me. Tomorrow after church I will have the opportunity to "break bread" with some awesome brothers and sisters in Christ. I will also have the privilege of taking part in the baptisms of some folks who want to publicly be identified as followers of Jesus Christ.

Witnessing individuals make their professions of faith through baptism is always such a moving time for me. Hearing their testimonies and watching them go through this symbolic act touches me deeply. I've waited all year for this.

Tomorrow I may be able to post some pictures of the picnic and baptisms and share a few thoughts about the day.

Pictures from Pastor's Retreat

Most of our pictures from the retreat were of Shelby... actually all but one of our pictures are of Shelby, and that one is rather an unflattering picture of me. Since this is my blog I won't be posting that one =)

Shelby had a good time playing in Dewart Lake



Shelby was a formidable foe on the tennis court


Part of our campsite

Pictures from Pastor's Retreat

Most of our pictures from the retreat were of Shelby... actually all but one of our pictures are of Shelby, and that one is rather an unflattering picture of me. Since this is my blog I won't be posting that one =)

Shelby had a good time playing in Dewart Lake



Shelby was a formidable foe on the tennis court


Part of our campsite

Back from Pastor's Retreat

We made it back from our Pastor's Retreat late this afternoon. We had a good time catching up with some of the other pastors in the denomination, I ate way too much food (gained 4 pounds!), played a little tennis (not enough tennis, considering I gained 4 pounds), hung out with Pastor Marggy & Pastor Debi, and enjoyed our speaker.

This year our speaker was Glenn McDonald, the Senior Pastor of Zionsville Presbyterian Church . Glenn's most recent book is, The Disciple Making Church: From Dry Bones to Spiritual Vitality. I really enjoyed what he had to share regarding discipleship in our churches and discipleship in our personal lives. Glenn is an engaging speaker and very knowledgeable; ZPC is fortunate to have such a great pastor.

It will be nice to sleep in my own bed this evening. I had to sleep on the "shelf" in the RV; Shelby seems to think that the queen bed in the RV is just right for her and Mommy. The small bunk "shelf" bed is a little uncomfortable, but Daddy is willing to sacrifice for his little girl's happiness... sometimes =)

If I get a chance, tomorrow I will post some pictures from our retreat.

Back from Pastor's Retreat

We made it back from our Pastor's Retreat late this afternoon. We had a good time catching up with some of the other pastors in the denomination, I ate way too much food (gained 4 pounds!), played a little tennis (not enough tennis, considering I gained 4 pounds), hung out with Pastor Marggy & Pastor Debi, and enjoyed our speaker.

This year our speaker was Glenn McDonald, the Senior Pastor of Zionsville Presbyterian Church . Glenn's most recent book is, The Disciple Making Church: From Dry Bones to Spiritual Vitality. I really enjoyed what he had to share regarding discipleship in our churches and discipleship in our personal lives. Glenn is an engaging speaker and very knowledgeable; ZPC is fortunate to have such a great pastor.

It will be nice to sleep in my own bed this evening. I had to sleep on the "shelf" in the RV; Shelby seems to think that the queen bed in the RV is just right for her and Mommy. The small bunk "shelf" bed is a little uncomfortable, but Daddy is willing to sacrifice for his little girl's happiness... sometimes =)

If I get a chance, tomorrow I will post some pictures from our retreat.

Offline for a Few Days

I won't be posting for a few days; Monday morning I'm heading out to a pastor's retreat for a few days. I look forward to this retreat each year; I enjoy the time up at the camp and interacting with some of the other pastors in our denomination. This year Marggy, our Pastor of Administration and Debi, our Pastor of Congregational Care, will be at the retreat as well.

Tammy, Shelby and I get to take the RV up and stay in it. However, this will probably be the last trip that we will be taking with the RV :-( The Winnebago actually belongs to Tammy's mother and she has found a buyer for it. At the end of this month we will drive the RV back up to Iowa to Tammy's mom.

I'm going to miss the RV (I won't miss the upkeep, or paying for the gas, or paying for the storage, or paying for oil changes...) We've had some fun trips and good memories with the RV. Shelby has a blast in it. This evening I spent a little extra time and wired the TV and DVD player so that the girls could watch movies on the TV as we travel down the highway.

I'll give you the low down on the retreat when I get back.

Offline for a Few Days

I won't be posting for a few days; Monday morning I'm heading out to a pastor's retreat for a few days. I look forward to this retreat each year; I enjoy the time up at the camp and interacting with some of the other pastors in our denomination. This year Marggy, our Pastor of Administration and Debi, our Pastor of Congregational Care, will be at the retreat as well.

Tammy, Shelby and I get to take the RV up and stay in it. However, this will probably be the last trip that we will be taking with the RV :-( The Winnebago actually belongs to Tammy's mother and she has found a buyer for it. At the end of this month we will drive the RV back up to Iowa to Tammy's mom.

I'm going to miss the RV (I won't miss the upkeep, or paying for the gas, or paying for the storage, or paying for oil changes...) We've had some fun trips and good memories with the RV. Shelby has a blast in it. This evening I spent a little extra time and wired the TV and DVD player so that the girls could watch movies on the TV as we travel down the highway.

I'll give you the low down on the retreat when I get back.

7/7/07

Evidently today was a busy day for lots of pastors like myself. Some estimates say that triple the number of weddings were performed today as compared to a “normal” Saturday (65,000 weddings today). Superstition played a large part in so many weddings today. I just pity the people that married on 6/6/06 (fortunately it was a Tuesday so I don't think there were many weddings)

7/7/07

Evidently today was a busy day for lots of pastors like myself. Some estimates say that triple the number of weddings were performed today as compared to a “normal” Saturday (65,000 weddings today). Superstition played a large part in so many weddings today. I just pity the people that married on 6/6/06 (fortunately it was a Tuesday so I don't think there were many weddings)