One Week of School Post-Spring Break

The school week went well. I do have to admit, I extended my Spring Break on Tuesday morning by skipping my 8am. I has been a delightful week that brings the start of a new softball season. Formerly the Kingsmen, and now just simply First Lockhart Baptist Church, we open with a double header tonight at 7pm. I am sure it will be a time for us to knock the rust off. School is going well, my writing is much improved over last semester and seems to be pulling me through two of my classes (I had a professor last semester who beat writing into everyone, I am thankful). Bundle up if you are coming out to the game cause it is chilly! Have a great evening.

Spring Break, Here and Gone

It was a great spring break. It ended with a trip to Wonder World with Kari, Kari's little sister and Stine. It is a cave beneath the Balcones fault line. It is very interesting to see how this plate has pulled apart and created an area of exploration and intrigue. My mother was in town this spring break as well. I was able to have dinner with her on Wednesday and Friday night. On the way home Friday night, a DPS officer decided he wanted to have a word with me, so our trip home was delayed. Saturday night JMob and I worked at the Six Lounge in the Warehouse District of Austin. It was an easy night, but very interesting. The opening act was an urban cowboy act based out of Los Angles, CA called King Straggler. One of the members was actor Brentley Gore. He was recently in a film entitled Zoe and a Saved By the Bell knock-off entitled California Dreams. He was a laid back guy and easy to work with. The second and last act was a one man band named Bob Log III. He shows up with two guitars, a kick drum, a kick cymbal (for lack of better names), two drum machines, and a helmet. This helmet was retrofitted with an old phone receiver that served as his microphone which he ran through an amp. The vocal was distorted and the clanging cymbal was the majority of his show. I have posted a picture above. I would never recommend Bob Log III to anyone looking for good music, but maybe for a good laugh. That concluded my Spring Break.

Kansas Aftermath and More...

We made it safely home from Kansas and than proceeded southeast to Galveston. In Galveston Kari and I meet her grandparents, mother, and sister. For those of you who do not know, I am not a seafood eater, but it turns out crab maybe good. We had dinner at the Rainforest Cafe and rode the super scary ride that is in the restaurant (really, some fake spider drop down and scare you!). The next day was an exploring day, we hit some souvenir shops and went to the strand. The Strand is the old Main Street of Galveston. These buildings withstood the hurricane of 1900 and only took small amounts of water damage on the lower floors. One old advertisement painted on the side of the buildings stated 1866. We ate a restaurant called Shrimp and Stuff, and after much search, I did not find much "stuff". With much hesitation, I ordered a Crab Poboy. It was excellent. I still claim I do not eat seafood, cause it is so darn expensive. Kari and I than made a day out of the Kemah Boardwalk. We rode many rides, a speed boat, and got a really sweet happy hour deal on dinner. These tales just about cover the first part of my Spring Break. I need to study for Sunday School now...tune in next time.

How to get to 287 8th Road, Clyde, KS?

At first glance, it seems simple enough, street name with the block number and town name. Yet, it turns out this address is deceiving. As Kari, Bonnie and I arrived in Clyde, Kansas, we were surprised to not find 8th Road. I hopped into a local bar (cause it was the only thing open) and inquired from the locals, "Do you know where 8th Road is?" I told them I was looking for a for a wedding and they told me where the three church were in Clyde. We checked all three churches and all the parking lots were empty. We came to the conclusion that there could be a possibility that we had the incorrect address. We made a phone call to an informant and learned that the brides hometown was Clifton. After flagging down a couple in a red jeep cherokee, we were told to take KS HWY 9 east about 12 miles. We found Clifton and the only two churches in the town were deserted. It had been a while since we had stopped for a restroom break, I insisted we go to the local store. I walk into the store first and to my right are about 10 elderly folks. We had found the old folks hangout. Kari bursts into the door behind me and seems to announce to the entire store, "Does anyone know where 8th Road is?" The man behind the counter thinks a moment and says you mean Eight Mile Road. He than say, "You all are looking for the wedding." We are taken aback and heave a sigh of relief, "YES!" He explains that 8th Road means eight miles down another road. We are confused, but he continues to explain, we are to take a right at a road in between Clyde and Clifton and go eight miles. The church was on the left down an eight mile gravel road, we walked in as the preacher pronounces them husband and wife and watched them kiss. That is how we got to 287 8th Road, Clyde, KS. Have a great evening.

Free Wi-Fi is Great!

Kari and I made it to Chickasha, OK safely. We have had a great trip so far, and an added bonus...I am stealing Wi-Fi from someone at Bonnie's apartment complex. Bonnie took us to Wal-Mart to check the Gift Registry and the machine froze up. Bonnie decided to take us on a tour of Chickasha, once we left Wal-Mart, she said the tour was over. We have a five hour trip ahead of us to Clyde, KS that will take us through Oklahoma City. We were informed that Oklahoma City is simply referred to as "The City". Neither Kari, nor I have ever been to Kansas. I know that is farmland and no trees is not anything to jump up and down about, but it is a new state that we can add to the checklist of states. Happy Trails.

Change of Plans

It was brought to my attention that Kari and I have mutual friends getting married this weekend. After some consideration and mulling over my non-existent Spring Break plan, I decided it would be fun to go to the wedding...in Kansas. We will start the first leg of our journey and stay in Oklahoma with Bonnie. Bonnie will navigate us through Oklahoma on to Kansas. We will attend the wedding and make our way back to Oklahoma. After resting in Oklahoma, we will be heading back to Central Texas on Sunday morning. Much thanks to Kevin.

Spring Break, but One More Class

It seems like forever that I have had anytime to sit and type personal thoughts. School is about go on break and I have a 3:45 this afternoon and I will officially begin my Spring Break. I just completed my second paper in less then 24 hours and will be turning it in shortly. I am looking forward to some time to relax and begins reading the third installment of Harry Potter. What began as a children's story, is beginning to read as a adult book. I have since found the first "bad word" in the 3rd book. I am excited to try something new this Sunday, police officer Steve has asked me to teach his adult Sunday school class. I am looking forward to some "adult" conversation and try my hand at an older crowd. Police officer Steve said it would be easy, just throw a question out there, they will do all the talking. Well that is all I have today. Have a great Spring Break for those of you in school.

John Piper Quote

I found this in a John Piper sermon given on September 26, 1999 entitled Faith: In Hope, Against Hope, for the Glory of God. "So even today after the coming of Christ, our faith is still future-oriented. Justifying faith trusts God for all he promises to be for us and do for us. This is why faith glorifies God. Believing that God has done things in the past glorifies God somewhat. But believing that God will do what he has promised to do in the future before you see him do it -that glorifies God even more. It honors his present and future trustworthiness. So faith is future-oriented because that gives God the most glory."

As the spring semester continues, I find myself facing many decisions and I was blessed to have find these encouraging words. I pray that my faith increases and I learn to listen more closely to what God has in store for me. I ask that you would pray for me.

Wednesday Night

This evening was an exciting night for the youth. Our church has been without a Youth Minister for about a year and a half and it seems the Lord has a man hand picked. The pastor let the youth know that he would be coming to meet them soon. Some of the younger kids have not even had a chance to get to know and learn from a youth pastor, so it will be such a blessing to have a man he will be growing the young people of FLBC.

Kari joined me for church this evening. She has not been feeling well the past few days, but let some smiles shine this evening. The evening went well with a last minute stop at the DQ with JMob. I had a banana split, Kari had a vanilla cone, and JMob had a chocolate milk shake. Hum...and I just listed off everything we ate!!! I will stop there and wish everyone a good week.

Hot Hearts...Cold Outside, Brrr!

We finished up a weekend at Highland Lakes Encampment at an event called Hot Hearts. Jericho Sound had the pleasure of working with the Jeff Berry Band, Wes Hamilton, and Jonathan Curtis. All three of these acts offered more ways than one to worship the Lord this weekend. Kari, JMob and I travelled up to Highland Lakes Thursday night to prepare for the weekend. Brrr! The weather changed, again. It is no longer 80 degrees and sunny in Central Texas, but rather it is rainy and cold now. That is one of the perks or downfalls of living in Texas, as many put it, if you do not like the weather, stick around it will change soon. This Saturday, Kari, JMob, Kari's friend Dorie and I will be seeing Chris Tomlin live in Austin. This will be the same venue Tomlin recorded his recently released Live Austin Music Hall and the second time JMob and I will have seen him play at Austin Music Hall.

I thank you for your prayer for my Grandad. I talked to my father today and hear that he is doing a lot better. I plan to make a surprise visit to Lockhart later this week and drop in on Granny and Grandad. The Word of God says, "Be joyful always; pray continually; give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus" (1 Thessalonians 5:16-18).

And the Crowd Listened Attentively

The Justin Cofield Band brought six songs this evening at worship. They closed the set with a vocal rendition of I Love You Lord leaving the young people quiet in prayer. As the Spirit among the crowd moved, Pat, the speaker sensing the mood made an alter call immediately. Pat's topic was about finding self worth in Jesus Christ not yourself or others and compared us to an original painting by God. We read from I Corinthians 12:12 and talked about how God made us a unique body. It was a blessing to see these young people resond in such a positive way to the spirit of worship and the Word of God. Descisions were made this evening, so prayers for these new brothers and sisters in Christ will be lifted up. Have a blessed evening.

It's Raining in Austin...And Everyone Forgot How to Drive

On the way to Pflugerville for a Disciple Now Weekend at First Baptist, I encoutered two ambulance in route to accidents. In addition, I saw at least four fender-benders and sat on Interstate 35 for thirty minutes in downtown Austin (that is pretty normal though!). I heard a great joke on talk radio though...the announcer said,"If you have a child under the age of seven, take them outside and show 'em what rain is!" Just a sidenote to the drivers in Austin: It's just rain...slow down a little bit.

Jericho Sound is working this weekend and we are staying at a La Quinta, which I don't think anyone really knows what that word means. We had some trouble setting the PA up, but once we got it running well things went smoothly. We checked into our room and rode the elevator upstairs to learn that room 221 only had a single king size bed. Now for the three guys pictured above, that would be some close quarters. We went down stairs, explained our situation to the lady and she was very understanding. Sleep time awaits.

Tuesday Evening

It is a mellow evening, hanging out at the house and thinking about doing homework. I have to get to work on that paper due Thursday. I am planning a trip to the library tomorrow to begin my research. I decided to research the town Xi’an located in China (sadly, I figure that is the city I am more likely to find the most information on). My other options were Krasnovodsk, Ashkabad, Nukus, Aktyubinsk and a few others, but I have not heard of these cities. I was reminded by a text message minutes ago that I had planned a lunch appointment, but I will have to break it. Not to mention writing the paper, I will need to study for Wednesday night bible study. I am looking forward to seeing the kids and talking about the Word. Have a great evening.

Chili Bowl 2006

The Chili Bowl was played on Saturday, and sadly in my coaching debut, I was handed my first loss. I will survive because much fun was had by many, at least 80 people showed up, and I didn't see to many angry people. I put together the footage late into Saturday night in order to have a DVD made for the Super Bowl party hosted at the church (we edit the commercials out and play music videos and chili bowl footage). My mother was in town this past weekend, as well. She and I visited Saturday evening and ate grandma's home cooking. It was a great time to visit with her, my brothers, my grandparents, aunt and uncle, and cousins too.

On a prayer topic, I would ask that you keep my Grandad Hellums and Granny in your prayers. Grandad is not doing well and I would appreciate it if you would pray for them. Also keep in mind my aunt Gail, Lana, and father Denis. God tells is in his word, "And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose" (Romans 8:28).

Racquetball and More...

I have only seen the tennis ball sized blue ball, but never really knew how to use it. Apparently it is known as a racquetball. You get one blue ball, a racket, and you enter a room with six walls and do not have to worry about putting out a light. It is a wonderful game. Kari is taking Beginner Racquetball this semester and I get to learn it as well. If fact, along with fencing, racket ball was on my list of "things to learn." Now, she and I both do not know if we have any of the rules right, but basically if I do not get hit by the ball or run into a wall, I think I am doing pretty good. School is going well. I completed my first five page paper and will be working on another one due next Thursday. The upcoming paper sounds intriguing and I am looking forward to it. The assignment it to find three buildings built in different decades in a town in Central Asia. With this descriptions of the buildings we build a small history and profile of the town. It should be an interesting project. I am looking forward to Saturday's Annual Chili Bowl. It is a flag football game where the adults face-off against the youth. The youth won last year and hope to extend the one game streak. It is a time of good competition and fellowship with many members of the church body (although anyone is invited). Sidenote: Reading a few things of note...for class Muslims in Central Asia, finishing up Velvet Elvis by Rob Bell, started Harry Potter #2, and also picked up Future Church by Jim L. Wilson from Bro. Randy's office. That is all...Off to meet Randy, JMob, and Stanley for lunch. Have a great Friday.

What is Going On?!?

School has began again and the New Year is almost a month old. I have some interesting classes this semester and plenty of reading to do. One of note is the Central Asian History course. It is basically the area in the middle of the Silk Road, including the post-Soviet "stan" states. Today is Wednesday, and in addition to studying tonight's lesson, I am going to go help Will (or Big O) move his belongs into a storage area. The project should take about 3 hours. I just completed the first Harry Potter book. I have not seen any of the movies or read any of the books till now. After completing the first, I called the person who loaned me the first book and said, "I am ready for the second." I don't consider it an addiction, but it is a catchy tale and easy to read. That is about it for now. Tune in next time.

Last Official Day in NYC

Day Four: In planning the trip weather was to be great the first three days of our visit, but rain was predicted for the fourth day. Typically, according to residents, the first three clear days were a rarity. Considering this information, we had planned to go to The Metropolitan Museum of Art (MET) on the rainy day. We packed up our room and took our bags downstairs to be checked and headed to the MET. Along the way, it was decided we needed some breakfast and just and escape from the rain. We found an old fashioned soda bar (for lack of better titles). We sat at the diners bar and eat a meal that was cooked in front of us. It was a wonderful experience. The rain continued, but it did not stop us. We drugged onward to the MET. Upon arriving at the MET, I quickly realized that many people had thought similar about the "rain day" and the lines of people out the front steps was evidence enough. There was a special display of Vincent Van Gogh's drawings which I would have loved to seen, but the two hour line would not allow for me to see them. Instead I was able to see some Assyrian wall art, Turkish pottery, American paintings, and some medieval armor (swords too!). We rushed out of the MET back to the hotel to catch a cab to the airport. We caught a cab and headed to the airport. After checking in we found out there would be a delay. I am uncertain of the specific, but the airport told us we would be staying in Chicago that night. With no desire to stay in Chicago, we did our best to get to Houston. About three hours later we found a flight to Houston's Hobby Airport. The twist is we flew out of George Bush Intercontinental and our luggage was headed to Chicago. We arrived at Hobby at about 10pm and rented a car to go to Northwest Houston to stay the night and retrieve our baggage in the morning. We ate some Taco Cabana and crashed. The next morning, we went to George Bush Intercontinental in hopes of getting our baggage. Thankfully it had arrived and was still there. We headed back to Milano and that concludes the highlights of our NYC trip.

*If you are trying to catch up, please read The New Year for Day One (just scroll down).

Day Three in NYC

Day Three: The first item on the agenda was the memorial to Ulysses S. Grant. He was the commander of the Civil War and also the President of the United States (remember I am getting a History degree). The memorial contained the tomb of General Grant and his wife, Julia Dent Grant. Before arriving at the memorial, to the Southeast of Grant's tomb is the Riverside Church of New York City. It's tower reached up towards the heaven caught us by surprise. Next on the agenda, was The Cathedral Church of Saint John the Divine. Along the way, we crossed the Columbia University campus and a Theological Seminary. After a few blocks South we arrived at the massive Gothic church which begun in 1892 and is still unfinished with one-thirds of the construction still pending. After viewing the massive church, we went North to the Bronx to see Yankee Stadium. As a baseball fan, it is necessary to pay baseball respects even to the Yankees. We snapped some photos and headed back to the island. We went to Rockefeller Center to see the ice skating and live Christmas tree. After pushing and many "excuse me's", we made it through the crowd and headed North to our reservations at Tavern on the Green. On our way to Tavern on the Green, we stopped by and viewed Saint Patrick Cathedral. After walking many blocks we arrived at Tavern on the Green. The atmosphere was wonderful and it was a beautifully decorated restaurant. Central Park is somewhat famous for it's carriage rides, so I thought it would be sweet to take Kari on a carriage ride. We boarded the carriage at Tavern on the Green and enjoyed a romantic carriage ride through Central Park. The evening concluded with a subway ride home to the hotel and a last stop at a Korean grocery store for some essentials (we stayed in Little Korea).

Bad Blogger!!! NYC Stories

I have been a little busy with the first week of school under my belt and other adventures. I am taking nine hours this semester at Texas State. I attended Kari's sister wedding in Cameron, TX this past weekend and have successfully assisted Kari in her move to San Marcos. Now to the NYC Stories...for those who just happen upon my page or don't check it often, I went to NYC Dec. 26-29 and have only wrote about Day One. Sit back and enjoy another of my NYC tales...

Day Two: Our first stop and first full day in New York City was Battery Park. It is the southern tip of Manhattan island. On the West Side of the island overlooking the Hudson River, we looked at and took pictures of the Statue of Liberty. Moving north, we encountered a hot dog stand and ate a late morning breakfast. Continuing on foot, we passed by the Trinity Church on our way to Ground Zero. The area is completely fenced off, but on the East fence is a timeline of the events that took place on September 11th and the names of those lives that were lost on that tragic day. Prior to September 11th, the subway stop was in the World Trade Center, so subway traffic needed to be re-established in the area. After clean up, construction yielded a new World Trade Center subway terminal which we gladly took a train from Downtown to Uptown. Arriving at Columbus Circle, just Southwest of Central Park, we took a look at the new Time Warner Center. With plans to eat at the Tavern on the Green and than go see the Rockettes, we hiked our way North to the Central Park restaurant. Unexpectedly, we were informed that we needed reservations, so we found a little restaurant that did not need reservations. After dinner we made our way to Radio City Music Hall to see the Rockettes. The show was wonderful, Santa was late for Christmas and the Rockettes did some high kicks and somehow Santa delivered all the presents. I think the wonderful part of the show was after the conclusion of the show and live nativity and the presentation of the birth of Christ was presented. It was delightful to see the Lord Jesus honored at Radio City Music Hall. To end the night we went to Ellen's Stardust Diner for shakes and chili. Much to my surprise, the wait staff performed Broadway music in between serving their tables in a dramatic fashion. Not too forget, on the walk back to the hotel we went by Time Square. That concludes Day Two adventures, tune in for more stories from NYC.

Sarah's Story from New Orleans

Sarah is a resident of New Orleans how lost everything. We had an opportunity to serve Sarah and her seven year old son last week by cleaning out her damaged stuff and ripping the sheet rock out of her home. I am going to try and re-tell what she told us.

Her and her son were able to get out of the city and fled to Texas. Eventually they ended up on Waco. Through some Baptist organization, (I would guess a local Baptist church) she got a teaching position at Baylor. Sarah enrolled her son in a local school and began living out of a hotel. A lady by the name of Doris from the Baptist organization encouraged Sarah to find a home. Sarah insisted she did not have the time, nor the desire to even make a new home. Doris offered to apartment shop for Sarah. After viewing 40 different apartments Sarah narrowed it down to 3 apartment, but told Doris she would just take the smallest. Sarah told Doris that she did not want anything bigger because with the items she had the apartment would seem empty. With this in mind, Sarah went to move in and upon arriving at the apartment she was meet by several men with trucks full of furnishings. Couches, lamps, beds, and food were among the items given to Sarah. In tear, she thankfully accepted the items. Uncertain if she is a Christian, these people stepped in at a moment when she most needed it. Sarah earned $9000.00 and she told Doris she would like to tithe to the church. Doris told her if Sarah wanted to tithe to do it at her home church because Doris explained Sarah was the churches offering to God. Sarah commented that if she was God's offering that she should be a better person. She is going to remain in Waco for the end of the school year, but is already trying to rebuild in New Orleans. She contacted First Baptist New Orleans and the Texas State BSM went to her house willing to serve. She sat on her front steps of her destroyed home and told this story. She was overwhelmed by the way God was taking care of her and that we were standing in her front yard ready to help her some more. It was so awesome to see how God had provided some many Christians to help her along her journey. She expressed her thanksgiving of us being there and felt no anger towards God, but blessed by His protect and blessings bestowed by generous Christians.

I will leave you with this thought, helping someone, smiling at someone and any loving action to your fellow neighbor comes straight from God and with this love we can share the love of Christ. NYC stories to come...tune in later.