I came home today and made an amazing discovery in my laundry room…. There is a counter top! with a nice pattern on it! and no clothes everywhere! Even the machines were clear! wow, grandma must have come over for a visit! :)
Man, am I getting old! (You are welcome to talk me out of this conclusion!) Today, Sara and I went downtown to Moody Bible Institute where both dated and graduated for the Gary Chapman conference, Toward a Growing Marriage – first let me just say, it was a GREAT seminar and exceded even my high expectations. I would highly recommend his books and seminars to anyone who is married whether you think you need it or not. :) But as great as the conference was, the HIGHLIGHT of the day (sorry Sara) was going to MR. G’s! That’s right! The burger joint on Clark Street just North of Chicago Avenue: Mr. Cheeseburger in front of his favorie burger joint! I have not been to Mr. G’s for about 18 years! (That’s why I’m feeling so old) Has that much time gone by? Were the student here really babies when I was here! Yikes!! SO MUCH has changed in the buildings around MBI but I was soooo happy to discover that my favorite place for a burger run in college is still there! This little burger joint, just a block away from Moody holds many memories! All ya have to say…
Luke and Dad hangin’ out and roaming around the conference. Well, it was a crazy weekend but a lot of fun. There are still lots of pictures to go through, but since Luke was so excited to go to his second Kid U, I thought I’d post some pictures of his adventures. I had NO idea how many of the attendees would be greeting him by name as they arrived. I guess more people read my blog than I knew! So, by popular demand, here are some more Baby Luke pics: Too Sexy for my Shirt! (Kid U morning at the hotel) Me and My New Bear! (Gift from Pastor Kim!) Awana be in Awana! (Awana my diaper changed too!) As you can see by Baby Luke’s Awana Uniform, he is a big fan of Awana. (This Commander uniform was hand made for him by Commander Teri at Village Church!) I think he signed up at least three new churches for Awana while working their booth! Star Struck with Mary Rice Hopkins. (or is it the spotlights?) Mary Rice Hopkins held him while singing a beautiful song about babies. He got a little star struck – it was rather funny…
And now for our greatest source of joy in life…. Baby Luke! By popular demand, here are some recent pictures of our little boy. Enjoy! Mr. Smiles greets every day enthusiastically! Luke newest feat…. sucking on his feet! Yech! Must have been some lint between my toes! Daddy likes to torture me with poses HE thinks are funny. I’d be cute even if I was a girl, or a Bible character! Daddy let me listen to a little of Star Wars Clone Wars on his video iPod! Now the video iPod is MINE! MINE! MINE! What’s better than one of me? FIVE of me!! Hey! This is MY DEW!! Git yer own!! YYYYYEAH! DO THE DEW! Cowabunga DEWd! Please continue to pray for Luke’s adoption proceedings. We’ve now had Luke for over five months and as you can see, we’re crazy about him! The adoption is not yet final, and while there are some good signs, there are also some significant needs for prayer this month, so please lift this little guy up in your prayers! Luke appreciates it! (and we do too!)
“Be still and know that I am God” is the advice of David in Psalm 46:10 – but how do you find the time to be still when you are in very full time Christian ministry… or more honestly, when you do not know how or when to STOP and listen to God? I am guilty of doing MUCH for God, but much less with God. God tried to get my attention many times over the past several years – through family, friends, and circumstances… but I was too busy doing ministry to hear that still small voice, or simply too exhausted to hear it even when it was yelling at me. So, this past week was a week to finally listen. My wife and I (and Luke) headed to Tennessee for a place with no Internet (yes!), no phone, and barely cell reception. (Yes, I’ll admit holding my phone up at strange angles to see if I could get one bar… I’m not healed yet!) The place was Fairhaven Ministries, and I highly recommend it (and the burgers at the White Way Grill at the base of the mountain) to anyone needing some time away in a place where…
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