Napping!

7/30/14

Started off the morning with a staff meeting.  We had quite a bit to talk about so we went nearly to 11:00.  Still getting through this cold but slowly but surely getting better.  Much less coughing today.  Now just a couple minor things to work through and before you know it I will be back to tip top shape.  Spent the time before lunch working on my blogs and journal and getting my to-do list up to date.  I have a couple things I need to get to after lunch.  After I came back from lunch and a nap I got to work emailing about PYROS stuff as well as getting some reports all done for Kevin and the academic half of what I am doing.  Sometimes I forget that this is technically a class and still in school because I am doing so much out in the field and learning that way.

Also after lunch I got back to find that Michael had gone home.  He wasn't feeling well either.  So I guess there was something going through Redeemer.  I pray that he gets over it much faster than I did.  I did some reading of my two books and then headed home a bit early to try and take it easy and get some good solid rest in to kick this cold as quickly as I could.  I spent the night just reading and playing some games and went to bed early.  It was a nice easy day especially being sick.

Today I learned that it i okay to take a bit of extra time for myself when I am not feeling so well.  When we aren't quite so busy I need to take advantage of that and really let my body heal up.

Back at Work

7/29/14

I came back to work today.  I had a bit of a coughing bought early in the morning but it subsided to just now and then after I got some medicine and fluids in me.  I got to work and started working on my blogs.  I was very behind on those as well as my journals.  I got a couple done before Michael and I had our meeting.  We talked about what I had  missed the day before.  Then we went over the Peer ministry retreat and he gave me some great constructive criticisms about my teaching as well as some compliments I was not aware of.  It was nice to hear and even better to see where I can continue and improve.  We also decided to start a new devotion by going through the book of Acts.  I am very excited for where that will take us.

After that I worked some more on journals as well as blogs posts.  Then headed home for lunch.  I had some coughing spurts at home but calmed down as I came back to work.  Then I worked on my agenda for the meeting tonight as well as my report for August.  Michael gave me an example of what I should do and helped walk me through some things I should put on there.  Then up to the meeting I kept working on posts as well as my journal.  About 15 minute before my meeting I got caught up with posts and my journal and felt very accomplished.  It was nice to be caught up as well as having out there for people who like to read what I am doing.

We had the second ever official meeting of PYROS and it went very well.  There was mainly adults at the meeting with a couple youth which is okay.  I have to figure out some way to get more youth at the meetings and helping the direction that PYROS is going.  However the people who attended were just right for getting us on track and asking the tough questions that need to be answered.  I was very happy with the way it went and the direction we are going.

Today I learned how very appreciative I am of people who do ask those tough questions.  They get to you to think and really consider and be intentional about what you are doing.

Sick Day

7/28/14

Today I thought that I should get into the clinic or somewhere to get checked out.  I asked Michael where I should go and he said to maybe start at an express clinic and go from there if need be.  I got there and after figuring out some Mayo stuff I got in to be seen.  She said that it was probably just a viral cough.  I only had one symptom of pneumonia so it probably wasn't it.  She said I was still at risk for it but the cough could last a couple weeks.  She gave prescribed me an inhaler as well as some cough suppressant medicine.  Had an interesting situation getting my medicine but eventually figured out that I had an older insurance card and got it all straightened out.

I won't bore you with the details of my easy day off.  Basically I just took it easy and tried to drink a lot of fluids, get some naps in here and there as well as get plenty of sleep that night.

Today I learned a lot of differnet things about medical care in Rochester with Mayo.  I learned how nice the express clinics can be and make life very easy for those from out of town.    

Peer Ministry Retreat Day 4

7/28/14

Started off the morning getting all packed up and ready to go.  I had all my stuff downstairs before most the youth had started to move.  Then Michael came up and made sure they were all moving.  We started putting everything we could into the vans and getting ourselves all moved out of the retreat center.  We went to breakfast that morning and had a good nourishing meal.  Then we came back and did some clean up of our area.  We like to leave places cleaner than when we first arrived.  The only thing we couldn't do was vacuum since they have a staff that does that.

After that we had our worship time.  We sang a lot of good songs.  I suggested a song I remembered from elementary school.  When Michael sang it it was a bit different from what I remembered.  It was great through and worked out beautifully.  We then had a time of confession and absolution.  The weather worked out perfectly for us to burn the pieces of paper we had written earlier on during the retreat.  It was definitely a God sighting.  Then we did our last candle time where we made images out of playdough that had huge meaning to us.  There was a lot crosses which just shows how important everyone's faith is to those who attended.  We ended in a circle prayer and with that headed out from Camp Omega.

I spent the rest of the day at home just taking it easy so I could start the healing process.  I've been drinking lots of water, taking some cough medicine, as well as sucking on some cough drops.  Overall it's been getting better but when you cough you just want it to end.

Today I learned about different ways to sing songs.  It is cool to see how different people and congregations sing the different songs and make them their own.

Peer Ministry Retreat Day 3

7/26/14

Woke up for breakfast that morning.  This morning we had our session before our small group time.  We talked about decisions and values.  Micheal did an exercise where we had to give up three decisions in our lives than could only keep three decisions.  It was very interesting and got the youth to think.  After that we did an exercise where we rated values.  We did them for the world, our parents, ourselves, how we actually live out, and finally God.  We did the top three and the  bottom three for each.  It got some good conversation and some good critical thinking going.

After that we gave them some more small group time to talk.  They were a lot better with time and really started to explore some of the stuff we presented to them.  Then we headed off to lunch.  After lunch we had our last activity of the weekend which was canoeing.  The weather at first looked like it might storm.  However it cleared right up into a beautiful day and the sun came out.  I stayed on shore for this one because I was feeling a bit drozy from the medicine I had taken.  It really helped my cough but I did some reading and took a little nap on a bench outside.

After our canoeing we had our second and last session of martial arts.  I taught them the rest of the kata.  Kathy saw it for the first time and seemed to catch on pretty well.  They had fun with it and we had a bit of time after for me to say a little about martial arts in general.  Then we moved into Dawn's session.  She talked about prayer and devotion.  She shared her own anxiety from having to be in front as well as praying out loud.  It was great for the youth to hear that because praying out loud and in front of a group of people is a scary thing for many people, even those who do it on a regular basis.

We went to supper after that and had our last session of the day and weekend.  Kathy taught this one and it was on sensitive issues.  This was working on talking with people about issues that they may not realize and could be very touchy, such as someone who constantly blames others for their own mistakes.  It was a very good ending session and the youth really started participating and opening themselves up in the exercises.  We ended the night with playing some more Ga Ga ball.  Lastly we went out to the point and did some star tipping.  For those of you who do not know what it is you need to experience it.

Today I learned that resting sometimes and taking some time out is good, especially when you are not feeling well.  The time off during the canoeing was very good for me.

Peer Ministry Retreat Day 2

7/25/14

We woke up that morning and got ready for brunch.  It would be our latest morning so it was nice to sleep in.  After brunch the youth had some small group time to talk and discuss about the stuff they had learned up till that point.  After that we moved into Paul's session.  He brought us to a point about diving deeper into discussion.  We learned that about different ways to listen and get more free information from people.  A huge concept we talked about was making new interpretations.  This is a way for us to help someone see their issue from a different set of eyes and maybe start thinking along a new track in relation to that.

After that we went swimming in the afternoon and although it looked originally like bad weather it turned out to be great.  After swimming we did some martial arts stuff.  Micheal said that this weekend would be a great time to bring in some of that and I could do some teaching.  So I taught them the first kata we teach our students.  We learned the first half and they seemed to be having a lot of fun with it.  After that we went into my first session of the day.  I talked about listening to understand.  Basically it was about deeper listening and how to really hear what a person is saying.  We talked about how you need to get into someone's world and attempt to experience what they are experiencing.

We stopped for dinner after that and had some more small group time.  They would get off topic here and there but overall they were really good with that time.  Then we had another session lead by me.  This time it was focusing on non-verbals.  For this our main exercise was sharing a heartfelt concern while one person listened and another observed the non-verbals of both other people.  I did an example for them and then had them break off into groups of three to do their own.  I felt that it went very well and a good majority of people stepped up to the plate and really shared some heartfelt concerns.

That night we spent the time playing Ga Ga ball.  It is a game where you are in a waist high enclosed wall.  There is one ball in the area.  The goal is get the ball to touch the other people's feet or below their knee.  Once it does you are out for that round.  You can hit the ball with your hands.  It is so much fun and pretty quick so you don't realize how many games you have played until you are very sweaty and gross and it is late.

Today I learned that mastering silence is a very useful skill.  I am getting there but sometimes the silence even gets to me and makes me uncomfortable.  It is a great tool and I love it.

Peer Ministry Retreat Day 1

7/24/14

Today was the first day of the retreat.  I got there around 7am and started helping where I could.  Although unlike Chicago there was less paperwork we had to go through because it was our own event.  We did do the same thing with cars though.  Each driver drew sticks for who would be in their car.  I rode with Michael on the way there along with Lily, Olivia, and Maggie.  The drive to Camp Omega is not that long at all but we still had time to talk.  Near the end they took some time we called interrogate the Intern.  It was fun to answer some serious and silly questions.  Also after awhile we decided that any question they asked me everyone had to answer.

We arrived at Camp Omega and unpacked and got our orientation.  Our counselor for the weekend was an old colleague of mine from Concordia.  Eli is younger than me and I had worked with him through the Junior High Youth Gathering.  Also his sister was my age and we had gone through many DCE classes together.  It was cool to see all the different connections I really had out there as I went to different places.  We then had our first session in the morning for the peer ministers.  It was about what a Peer Minister was and why everyone had been invited to this weekend retreat.

In the afternoon we went to the archery range.  There they learned how to string a bow which was a good lesson in team work.  Everyone got many chances to shoot and they were having a great time.  My first round was not so good.  But I kind of got a rhythm in my second round and landed all the arrows on the target with some in the yellow center ring.  After that we headed back for our next session.  The next session was taught by Lynora and Michael.  Lynora talked about welcoming people and getting to know them.  Micheal talked about WHEAT and how great a tool it is.  It stands or where, hobbies, events, acquaintances, and travel.  It is a great way to get free information from people by asking questions.  

We had dinner after this session and after dinner moved into our last session for the day.  Micheal ran this section.  It was working through the WHEAT stuff again.  It was meant to really solidify this concept and how to use it.  He also went into open question versus closes questions.   He did this by working through a hobby, in this case it was boulder scrambling.  They asked questions and then looked at the questions they asked and did some meta-thinking.  We attended the closing fire that night with the other campers and then headed back to the retreat center for the night.

Today I learned that connecting with junior high youth can be a bit more difficult than younger kids.  I need to give them time in order to trust me and for us to get to know one another.  

Double Header

7/23/14

Started off the morning with a staff meeting.  I keep feeling more and more at home with the staff.  As I get more on my plate I get to talk about more and know what others are talking about as well.  I am so blessed to be a part of the staff here at Redeemer and could go on for pages about how awesome it is here.  However in the interest of you reading I will move on.  :P  I spent the rest of the morning doing some smaller things here and there and checking off stuff on my to-do list.  This might be the way to go for me.  Having it physically in front of me and adding to whenever something comes up seems to be working so far.  A true test will be when I am very busy and making sure things are done in a timely manner as well.  So far no problems so one of my biggest fears about internship is slowly growing into a controlled habit.

After lunch Michael and I did our devotion.  We are going to save the last three for the last three days of the retreat for peer ministry.  We are hoping to invite the kids and see what they do with the material.  The rest of the afternoon I worked mainly on my lessons for the peer ministry retreat.  I am mainly teaching straight from the information but having it written down in my own words and a format for me helps me understand it better.  Also reading it over again I can look at headings and know what I want to focus on in that particular area.  I am very excited to see what the youth will do with the stuff I will doing in my lessons.  There are a couple places to really open up and share some deep issues.  I hope they step up and really get into this training.

After that I went home before the double header for softball.  I got there to find a very large crowd there already.  As I was watching I finally asked the question about two strikes and three balls.  Michael said it was to speed the games up so they didn't last so long for the sake of the kids.  That made a lot of sense and we all agreed that professional baseball could benefit from that rule.  Redeemer won both their games that night although the second game was a close one.  It was fun to cheer for them and able to cheer some names of people as they went up to bat.

Today I learned that just being present at something can be the best ministry sometimes.

Busy busy busy

7/22/14

Started off the with posting my blog from the day before and filling out my journal for yesterday.  I spent the majority of the morning on little projects here and there.  I was able to get a chapter read in each of the books I am in.  Make Him Known is going well and I am really enjoying what it has to say.  Also The Pursuit of God is getting better and better as I get further into it.  Today was about God's voice and how He is a speaking God.  I loved it and found it really enlightening.  We tend to think God only speaks through His Word but Tozer argues that God speaks through anything He wants to.  I believe this is true and that sometimes God speaks to us in the most unusual ways imaginable.

I did some talking with Lori and April about the upcoming trip to Lake George.  Lori and I talked about Bible studies and devotions and what that would look like.  I was very glad she brought this to my attention because I had completely forgot about that aspect of the trip.  I then also talked with April about ways we could get music for worship up there if Connor or someone musically talented was not with us.  Lori had asked if April would be able to make a CD or something for us.  April had an awesome recording device that I might be able to put the recordings on my iPad which would be awesome and very convenient for using up there.  After that I basically just read and did small things until lunch time.

Before I came back from lunch I made a stop to Hyvee.  There I got some cough medicine, cough drops, and cepacol.  I am not going to have another coughing fit like last night.  I want to get better as soon as possible and hopefully all this will help for my throat to heal and get back to being able to speak with a normal voice.  I came back after lunch and Michael and I did our devotion and had a very long conversation about Lake George but also random topics we would get on from conversation.  Then after that I set about getting a sigh up sheet done and reading over my peer ministry topics for this weekend.  I am very excited about what I am talking about.  I am speaking on listening which for me is a passion.  In our culture today we like to talk a lot but not listen very often.  I worked on a few more Lake George items and headed home for the evening.

At home just still trying to get better.  Coughing has been annoying but getting better day by day.  Can't wait till I have the night again when I am cough free.  Will be the most amazing thing so far.

Peer Ministry

7/21/14

The first part of my morning was getting caught up on my blogging.  I didn't realize how far behind I had fallen until I started writing.  It is nice to chronicle my day and I expect I will be very happy when it comes to writing my final paper to look back on all that I did during internship.  Then Michael and I took some time to meet together.  We did the devotion and some talking about my journal.  We also went over our goals and roles again.  I took the little bit of time before lunch to get caught up on my journal up to today.  Then headed out for lunch and stopped at Snappy Stop.  I did some reading over lunch and came back in to work.

We had a meeting with Delayna and Paul about the Lake George trip.  We really hacked out some details and got things done on paper.  It is going to be a great trip and I can't wait for it to continue to develop and eventually happen.  I have to come up with a info and sign up sheet for the youth.  I spent the rest of my afternoon before going home and the other meeting tonight doing some journal work as well as getting some time management and task management stuff working.  I am going to try using Google Tasks again and see if it works for me.  I am not having trouble getting stuff done it would just be nice to have it all done somewhere when more tasks come my way.

I headed home a bit before I had the Peer ministry meeting later that night at the church.  I did some gaming and different things to get my cold on the downward spiral.  I came back for the meeting and it was a good time.  I actually knew all but one person in the room so I am making progress in getting to know people.  I am very excited for what this trip will be like.  I've never seen a peer ministry program outside of college so I am very excited to see what it looks like how the kids participate as well.  After the meeting headed home for the night.  Drinking lots of water and tea.  Had a bit of a coughing fit in the night but was able to limit it quite a bit with some water, tea, honey, and elevation.

VBS Closing Worship

7/20/14

Well didn't get a good nights sleep.  I finally fell asleep around midnight but woke up at 1.  I couldn't really fall back asleep until 3 and then my alarm went off at 6.  So it was going to be a long day but I could go to bed earlier tonight.  I got into church and Michael and I took a look at the VBS closing service PowerPoint.  The main thing we had to do was darker the backgrounds and lighten some photos.  It was all little stuff and I was happy there was nothing major that I forgot or didn't do correctly with it.  Then it was off to first service.  There I did my children's message and it was well received by the kids and the congregation.  I heard Pastor Koglin's sermon this week for the first time.  I really enjoyed it.  Then we had second service and even though it is outside my comfort zone I am staying out of the sanctuary, sitting down that is, and talking to people until service starts or no one is really in the Narthex anymore.

I did my children's message the second time for the day.  I could hear that my voice was starting to waver a bit and prayed it would last until at least during the VBS service.  After service started getting people moving for the VBS stuff and making people aware of when they would be talking and what they were talking about.  The kids started to arrive and we had a very good portion of those who attended.  We heard the final number for how much we had raised during the week.  It was $649.  That is incredible!  The service went very well and many of the families and other adults were getting into the songs with the kids.  It was an amazing sight.  Pastor Koglin gave a sermon on keeping the momentum going with the kids and teaching each other the different things we can.

After that we had a potluck downstairs.  There was so much good food.  Then outside there were games being held.  Conner was in charge of that and as I came outside it looked like a lot of fun.  He had filled 100 water balloons thinking that was enough.  We filled probably 200+ after the first 100 went away in like half an hour.  Several kids threw them at me but they would bounce and explode on the ground.  Finally Tom threw one at me and got me wet.  Then after that it was mainly popping them over people's head or throwing them hard enough.  Most everyone that was outside got wet in some way.  We cleaned up at the end and I headed back to my apartment.  There I just relaxed and focused on getting better for the coming week.     

Bringing Back the Jungle

7/19/14

Today was my day to relax and start to feel better.  It was by this point I was pretty sure I had a cold of some sort.  So sleeping in today felt very good.  I got some breakfast in me and just took my time in the morning.  I took a walk down to Games by James hoping to get some paints and brushes to start my miniatures.  However they didn't have any brushes or any black or white base coat.  I got the blue I needed and ordered some brushes and cutters off amazon.  There is my fun purchase for this paycheck and moving on to other things for the day.  Got back home and cranked the AC up.  I took a shower and worked on the VBS closing service while doing some gaming before resetting up for VBS and service that night.

I arrived at church at quarter to 4 and we started to bring out the decorations that we had set aside for today.  We put them up in the sanctuary making a mini jungle compared to what was there for the week.  Pastor Koglin was there and was able to tell us where to make pathways and where we could fill stuff up.  That was extremely helpful.  Then I got all my stuff ready for service that night.  I did my best to stay in the Narthex and "work" the crowd.  I talked to several couples as well as people here and there.  It was good and was able to see how many kids were going to be there.  Thank goodness for the Baptism that night otherwise there would have been no children again.  That isn't a terrible thing because I know I get a lot from children's messages as well.  I hope that the adults get something from my children's messages as well.  I was able to give my message for three kids and the whole congregation also participated.

I went home and finished up both of the PowerPoints and did some gaming along with it.  They both turned out very well.  Lori had several photos that I could add to the photo PowerPoint.  It really helped to fill out the missing spots and show the whole week.  I talked to Michael tonight.  It was nice to connect up and get a couple things figured out and ready.    

God is Provider

7/15/14

Came in to VBS for day two.  I got there early and watched the skits getting rehearsed and got my activity ready for the opening time.  Then we started and Michael gave me the idea to introduce Pastor Jim as he had introduced everyone else that had come up to do stuff.  I went with the cliche of talking about him doing Toucan Jams ever since the 1st centrury.  It got a good laugh.  They enjoyed the activity of guessing the animals that the helpers were imitating.  Then at the end I had them guess that it was Pastor Jim as the weird silhouette on the screen.  Then we headed off to our first station.  Today in crafts we made stamps of today's symbol, a bird, to bake into necklaces for tomorrow.  Then we headed up to music with April.  We practice some new songs and sang some of the songs from yesterday which the kids really got into.

After that we had outside time.  We played clothespin tag.  Meredith in our group won by going after everyone's clothespin systematically.  For the second game the helpers got her out first.  We went downstairs then to snack and had a bird food buffet.  We had popcorn, chocolate chips, raisins, crasins, cheerios, and banana chips.  Then we went into Bible time and the kids got to act out the story.  They acted out the story of Elijah being provided for by the birds and helping the widow and her son.  The kids had a lot of fun dressing up and saying the lines after Paula.  Lastly we went to Ginger and counted seeds.  We had a competition to see how many seeds they could pull out of their bowl of sand.  We sang some songs and got started on a cross that they are supposed to give away to someone at the end of the week.  

After I had taken Cassidy and Dylan home I came home for lunch.  I was going to have Arby's.  However I had forgotten by wallet and so instead I had leftover pizza.  Then back to the office where I got down to work.  I got the announcements and the take it home all ready for next weeks bulletin.  Then did some blogs and just miscellaneous work that needed to be done.  I did some practicing and started to write some music that I had started while in high school.  I came home and did some gaming and reading as well.

God is King

7/18/14

The next day came to VBS and started getting all the tech stuff set up.  April was amazingly nice and brought Amy in with her and Adelaide (Sorry if I misspell her name).  There I introduced her to all the helpers in the 1st and 2nd grade group.  They all immediately clicked and were ready as the kids came in.  I only had one moment where I called Michael but couldn't get a hold of him.  He did call me back but Pastor Jim had already solved the problem.  In order for the sound to work you had to turn on the main system in the back.  :P  Who knew? The morning went very well and I was able to keep the PowerPoint going through both openings.

That day the kids made streamers in craft.  They were for singing and giving praise to the King of everything: God.  Amy fit right in and had the kids singing songs when they were done with craft.  Then we headed over to music.  April had them sing a couple of the songs they would be singing for the service.  She also had them practice how they would turn around and sing to their families in the sanctuary.  The 1st and 2nd still struggle through music but they did a good job today of listening and participating.  After that we headed out to game time.  For today we had the, apparently, annual tradition of drip drip splash.  I have talked about this earlier while we were in Chicago.  It is duck duck grey-duck but instead of that you drip for duck and you dump the cup of water for grey-duck.  The kids had a lot of fun with that and were pretty wet afterwards.  After game we headed downstairs for snack time and had bananas, tangerines, and grapes.  We had to make a scene of palm trees with them.

Then we headed out to Bible time and there we learned about John and his dream of heaven and end time.  We learned how glorious everything is going to be and how God is king.  It was a very well done lesson for a broad and tough subject.  We then went right next door to our mission area.  I didn't get a chance to see exactly what they did there because I had to get upstairs and work on the photo PowerPoint.  Lori and I worked on it and got a chunk done but not everything as the kids started to come in.  There were photos rolling as they came in so it was good.  Closing went great and I even had the song they were singing queued up ahead of time.  We reminded the kids several times of the worship on Friday and with that we sent them home.  We started cleaning up the area for the funeral that was happening on Saturday and we had some pizza for lunch.

After that Amy and I headed to my apartment and watched some Netflix and napped.  About sixish we went out to Denny's to eat and decided to hit up a movie.  We thought Transformers would be good since neither of us had seen it yet.  It was a good movie however it was very long.  They tried to tie up every plot hole at the very end with a hugely extended fight scene that was almost too much for me and way too much for Amy.  On a whole a good movie though.  Then with it being about 9:30 we went to Target to print off a registry for Amy's friend's baby shower and decided what gift we were getting.  Then helped her get all her stuff at my apartment and said our goodbyes to a fun time but too short.  

God is Savior

7/17/14

Had VBS again today.  However today was a bit different than the other mornings.  Today I was running opening and closing for the whole day.  I was excited and a bit nervous to take on the task.  I had had a little bit of a sore throat the night before and my voice was sounding a bit weird this morning.  I figured I would pass it off as something about singing all the songs all night to get a laugh out of the kids.  The opening went really great and even though my voice sounded a bit weird the kids had a great time.  The pre-k and k students had fun as well and are super awesome at stopping with we put our hands together in a gesture that Michael has taught them.  Also that morning Michael gave me 50 cents to get some caffeine in my system and something cold down my throat.

After that I joined my group at craft.  They were making a poster saying God as Savior.  Another group was sitting in the chairs.  They had two options at craft today.  They could either color the sign or they could sit and sing songs with Lynne and Kate.  They were having a blast.  That is where I got  my buddy for the day.  Aiden was clinging to me all day.  We talked and here and there I got him doing stuff away from me.  It was cool to have that connection with someone.  He kept saying that I was his favorite which really bumped me up :)  Then we headed up to music.  They sang several of the songs they would be for the service on Sunday.  After that we went out for game time.  We played another water game which was great.  They had to pass a cup of water back and fill up a bucket.  However there were holes on the bottom of the cup so they got wet as they passed it.  They love it and had a great time.

We had our break and went to snack.  Today we had a mini donut, a grape, and a gram cracker with marshmallow creme and green sprinkles on it.  We had to make a snail out of it.  The creativity of the snack people is super awesome.  After snack we went to bible time.  There we learned about the story of Jesus and how He saved us.  We got pieces of linen to wear as bracelets to remind us that Jesus was not in the tomb.  Our last stop was to the mission station.  There we made bird feeders with peanut butter and bird seed.  Two of our kids have peanut allergies so they made bird feeders using marshmallow creme and cheerios.  We went up for closing and it went well.  We had raised over $300 for our offering to help kids in South Africa.

I went home for lunch and came back to work.  There Michael and I talked about what needed to get done and what things I could do while he was away.  I know he feels bad about all the stuff he is giving me but I am grateful.  He explains things very well and I know he is more than willing to answer all my questions.  I got my children's message ready and worked on a couple blog posts to get caught up with.  I headed home in before service and Amy was almost there.  Then we headed off to church together and she finally got to see me do a children's message.  That day we basically hung out before she headed over to April's for the night.

God is Protector

7/16/14

Started th day out with opening at VBS.  Today we learned that God is our Protector.  We saw in the skit that bad things still happen but God is always looking out for us.  Then my group headed to craft. We made a jar that we glued tissue paper to and would put Bible verses in later on.  After that we went up to music.  It is one area that my group struggles I to get through.  However they did good today and sang some new and old songs.  With that we went outside for game time.  Outside we played a game with our feet.  They had to take off their socks and shoes.  Then in two teams they had to race to buckets and pull stuff out of the water with their toes.

Being all tired from the game we went down for snack.  Today at snack we had stuff to make a lion.  It was really I cool and the kids had fun.  They also got cupcakes and transformer rings because it was someone's birthday.  After that we headed to Bible time with Paula.  There they got to act out the story again.  They acted out the story of Daniel in the lion's den.  Everyone was able to partipcate whether they were upfront or doing sounds for certain names in the skit.  Last we heeded over to Ginger for the mission time.  There they continued working on their crosses and learned about POBLO.  We came up to skit and were left in a cliff hanger.  Charlotte feinted and we will find out why tomorrow morning.

After VBS we surprised Chris by taking her out to lunch for her birthday.  We went to Applebee's and had a great time of fellowship.  Then it was back to the office to get some work done after having a full morning with VBS.  I caught up on my blog and did some other work before an afternoon filled with meetings and picnics.  The first meeting was with family ministry.  There I saw the family booklet they are putting together for the different beginning parts such as 10 Commandments and the Apostle's Creed.  I'll be helping out there with the Lord's Prayer.  I'll be putting some material together for families to go over with their children about the Lord's Prayer.

After that we had the meeting with the adult education board.  There our main goal was to get the classes set up for this next school year.  It was a lot of fun and exciting to get those things set up.  I am very excited about several studies we will be offering.  I will get the chance to teach two areas.  One is adult catechism and the other is a class on Islam.  I am very excited to teach and learn along with anyone who attends my class.  We got out pretty late from that meeting and I headed home.  Did some reading and had Jimmy Johns for supper.      

God is Creator

7/14/14

First day of VBS!  It was an awesome morning.  I got connected with all my helpers for the 1st and 2nd graders.  I have a great group and the kids are lucky to have them as helpers.  I talked with Michael and Pastor Jim about how we were doing openings.  I was going to be running the large group game that morning which Pastor Jim quickly explained.  It was going to be a lot of fun.  During my introduction Pastor Jim said I had a lot of experience as a guide.  I had three separate 40 year experiences guiding people apparently.  So even though I looked young I had 120 years of guiding experience.  The kids loved the game and got really excited about it.

Next we saw the skit and it was great.  We learned that God is our creator and that he has created us all for a reason and we are very special to Him.  It was a great day 1 lesson and they explored it in every station.  Our first station was craft.  There we made drums out of coffee tins that the kids could use at music.  After that we moved to music and they brought their drums with.  We sang several songs with April including We are Marching in the Light of God and the call and response song Hallelujah/Praise Ye the Lord.  We headed out to game after music to play swamp racing.  The kids put on Kleenex boxes on their feet and had to run down, around a cone, and back again.  They were laughing and smiling the whole time.  Then we went downstairs to Parakeet's Picnic Perch for a snack.  We even got to play with our food to make a picture on our plate.  After we headed to Bible Time with Paula.  There we learned the creation story and helped work on group murals.  Lastly we visited Slug a Bug S.W.A.M.P. with Ginger and learned about the mission we would be doing this week.  We came back upstairs for a closing time and the kids headed home with the knowledge that God is our creator.

I came back to the office for some office hours after lunch.  I got caught up on my blogs and just assembly lined them out.  It is nice to get those out and not have them on my plate anymore.  After that Michael and I had a chance to catch up.  It was a good time of discussion and questions.  I didn't realize how much I had missed that during the week he was on vacation.  There are a few things, few mind you, that I feel comfortable doing on my own.  However still many things, being new, I like to be able to ask questions and make sure I am doing things the best I can.  The rest of the day just hung out at home and got some rest and time away to recharge my batteries for tomorrow.

VBS Kickoff!

7/13/14

Started with an early morning getting to church.  I saw Micheal sitting at his desk after having the office to myself for awhile.  It was nice to get a little time to chat about what had been happening and going on that last week.  I did each service that morning for the children's message and reading the Gospel reading.  I felt the best about these children's messages as well as how I read the Gospel.  I try to put some inflection in my voice when I read certain parts and emphasize other areas as well.  I pray that it is working and maybe helps people to focus on the reading.

After church I had VBS training and I was running it.  Paula and Michael would not be there but Paul would be which is very nice.  It went very well although we went a lot shorter.  Both Paula and Michael told me that is just fine and would probably happen since I don't have the background of previous Redeemer VBSs.  After that I stayed a bit to help decorate and eat with everyone then headed home before I had to come back for the kickoff.

That night I came back around 5:30 for the VBS kickoff.  I got to meet some of my students and help out in small ways here and there.  The church looks awesome and completely transformed.  I got to see some practice of the skits and I am super excited to see them all week as well as talk about them with the kids.  I love the material we are using and it is going to be a blessed time.  I pray that I get opportunities to connect with kids and hear them share their faith and see them grow in their faith.  It is going to be a very exciting time this next week.

Parakeet's Picnic Perch

7/12/14

I spent the morning doing some laundry.  I had four loads in total and had to do it a bit differently since someone in the apartment had left their load in the dryer.  I was able to figure it out and get them all done over the course of the day.  Now I just need to put them away at some point.  At least I am in the habit of folding them right out of the dryer.  During that time I did some more gaming and reading and had a pretty good morning.  Then around 2:30 I headed to the church for our second PYROS (random act of kindness) event.  Today we were helping Paul decorate his area for VBS and the craft area if we had time.

Unlike the day before we had only two people show up for this one.  We had Maggie and Johanna (Tabitha).  Along with them we had Paul, Delayna, and myself.  It was a great group for what we needed to do.  The smaller numbers was actually just perfect for decorating.  We had a great time looking through the decorations and finding creative ways to use what we had.  There were Parakeets everywhere, which is the area that Paul is in charge of.  It is called Parakeet's Picnic Perch lead by Parakeet Paul.  After we had finished Paul's area we moved into the craft area.  Johana and Maggie had to leave pretty quick after that and I had to get ready for service that night.  Paul and Delayna finished decorating the craft area and it looked awesome.

Service that night went good.  My children's message went very well although I figured a couple more areas that I wanted to touch up a bit with what I was going to say on Sunday but it was coming along great.  After service Pastor Jim gave me a couple pointers with how service works outside a sharing service which is what I was use to.  I found out where the sound adjustment is for my microphone and we bumped it up a bit for Sunday service hoping that would help out.

Ceiling Tiles

7/11/14

Spent a good majority of the morning hanging out a home.  It was nice to have a morning to myself.  I played some games.  The Sim Weyers are doing very well.  Finally got the parent's lifetime wishes.  Have to see if I will play each individual child.  I also did some reading.  I am continuing to read the rule book for Warhammer 40k.  I can't wait till I can find a group and play and start to make my own army and all that.  I hope I find some people who are willing to put up with a new guy for awhile and show him the ropes of how to play.  Lastly I cleaned up a bit around the apartment.  I put some stuff away and did the dishes.  It was a nice relaxing morning.

That evening I had the first random acts of kindness meeting and event.  We were putting in ceiling tiles in the downstairs Sunday School rooms and the hallway as well.  As I was waiting a couple showed up.  However as time went on we got a good number of people.  When all was said and done we had a total of thirteen people which was awesome.  I honestly had no clue how far we would get in putting up the tiles but by God's help we were able to put in all the tiles they had downstairs for us.  We had to skip any that needed to be cut or that went above the lights.  Scott and Dave would cut them and Scott was going to put in new lights down there as well.  It was an awesome time and still can't believe how much we got done.  After that we had some pizza and came to the deciding of our name.  It came down to the wire but we eventually went with PYROS: Passionate Youth Revealing Our Savior.  I am very excited about all we can do with this name and to see what else they will do.

Slower

7/10/14

I had a very slow morning.  I did some blog writing to pass the time a bit.  Then I did some reading of the two books I am working on at church.  They are Pursuit of God and Make Him Known.  They are very good books.  One is about our own passionate pursuit of God after He has already pursued us.  It is by A.W. Tozer and presents a very interesting and real Christian life that we have strayed from.  The other book is from Lutheran Hour Ministries.  It is mainly directly towards lay people and was given to me by Pastor Koglin.  It is a book we are looking at while taking a look at our theme.  It has some very good information and really stresses the idea of being fed before we go out to make disciples but that making disciples is still a huge goal of the Christian.

After lunch I came back and went to the sanctuary.  There I practiced my children's message quite a few times.  There were some phrases I was having trouble with.  When I said them out loud I began to get better ideas of what I wanted to say and how I wanted to say it.  It is a weird and uncomfortable experience to talk out loud with no one there in the sanctuary.  However it is extremely helpful when trying to get phrases down and weed out a message.  I am glad I am doing it and will continue to do it with my children's messages even when I get more comfortable down the road.  After that I took some time to practice my saxophone.  I played downstairs and worked a bit more focused on a couple pieces.  I want to get my playing ability back to where I was at the end of high school and into college.

I came in for service later that night to do my second children's message at Redeemer.  Well technically 5th but second theme one.  It went very well but we need to look at changing the mic for my voice at some point.  Probably when Michael gets back.  Then after that we had the second VBS training session.  It went very well and Paula is ready to hand it off to me this Sunday.  I feel pretty good about doing it.  I had some time at the end to talk to Marcia, Paula, Ginger, and Paul which was good.  It feels so good to get getting names down and really have stuff to be a part of and know what I am doing.  Played some Sims after that.  Finally have the 5th kid for Sim Amy's goal and working on Sim Brian's goal of becoming a grand master in Sim Fu.

One of the Staff

7/9/14

I started off the day with an all staff meeting.  However with Michael off this week it was just Lynora and me from the youth side of things.  It was cool to have something to say at the meeting and really start to sound like a staff member here.  I like being involved and having stuff to do.  This morning also brought it's first call directly to me.  I talked to Ginger about the missions part of VBS.  She had left her book up at their cabin and was wondering to get another one.  At this very moment still working on that particular problem.  However I did do the announcements for the bulletin this week.  Also I did some blogging to catch up and get everything current.  I think writing it down as I go and then posting it the next day works out really well for my schedule.

I came back from lunch with a bit of a writers block for my children's message.  I did nearly everything else I could think of to try and jog  my brain into thinking.  I practice my saxophone in the youth room.  April came down and said I should play for the Valentine's dinner.  Also she gave me a version of come thou font of every blessing I am excited to learn and play some more.  While I was done there Amy was texting me and I told her of my writer's block.  She then came back with an awesome idea of using an older and newer Bible to illustrate that the Word is not out of date no matter how old it is.  I liked that a lot and added my own twist and wrote up a pretty decent message.  I am going to practice tomorrow so I have a bit to do rather than grasping and what to do with my time like I sometimes do towards the end.

With Lynora's help we were able to find the cd that had what Ginger needed and I printed it off for her.  It has been a really great day at the office.  I've gotten a lot done and really took charge on some things.  It was a great opposite to the morning before.  Then later that night I headed to the softball game.  Wink and his family was there.  Wink was at Chicago and got to know him a little bit there.  Redeemer won the game but the other team played very well as well.  Julie helped to get the word out about the random act of kindness this Friday and hopefully we will have a large crew there.

At Home

7/8/14

Started off the morning with a killer headache.  I took two Advil and then headed to church.  It had been about twenty or so minutes and it hadn't touched the pain.  I took two more hoping that would help.  Don't get mad at me nurses.  I ended up going home because I started to feel very nauseous.  At home I drank some water and laid down to take a nap.  A good while later I woke up and was starting to feel much better.  I stayed at home for the rest of the day just to make sure it was really passing and not like stomach flu or something.  By about 4ish I felt 100 times better.

I was able to attend the youth board potluck that night and the youth board meeting afterwards.  Luckily I had meet nearly everyone on the board from RSE or simply after services.  It was good to have some names under my belt and remember a few more of faces I recognized.  After that we had our meeting.   It was very cool to see all the different stuff the youth board was doing.  I was able to share about the random acts of kindness as well as the college age events ideas for summer and breaks.  After that we also planned another event and got some other things settled.  It was a very good meeting and a good observation for me getting to know everything at Redeemer.

At home I played some Sims and just hung out a bit.  I would tell you all that happened with Sim Brian and Amy but it froze up on me in the night and I lost a good chunk of what happened.  Luckily I had saved a few times in between but lost the a lot in between the last save and the game crash.  Anyways I had a very good end to a day that could have been a lot worse.      

On the Phone

7/7/14

Another day in the office.  Took a good chunk of the morning to get caught up on my blogs.  For some reason the internet from the hotel was acting up last night.  I probably shouldn't complain since I am getting free Wi-Fi.  I am going to be looking at my own internet pretty soon.  Probably with my next pay check.  Have to get Adam to come down and set it up for me to promote his business.  I was able to make a pretty cool VBS document that hopefully can be used for a quick reference this next week for those who need it.  After that I did some upkeep on my journal and took off for lunch.  I made myself a salad, which I am growing quite attached to making, and headed back to church.

In the afternoon my biggest job was to call families of children old enough for VBS who had not registered.  For those of you who know me this is very much outside my comfort zone.  However I made it through, leaving mainly voice mails, and did a pretty good job.  It was nice to start to get some names down.  I may not have seen the faces but I can start to get those names inside my head and that is a good start.  I also started an official document keeping track of my different ministry contacts.  Thinking back to the first weeks was hard considering I am only barely over a month here.  After that I took some time to practice my saxophone.  I think there might be some leaky pads but it could just be the reed.  Tried several but still can't exactly tell.  Might take it sometime when Conner is working.  Chris was playing name that tune while I was playing downstairs.

After that I headed home.  I made myself a salad and then did a bit of gaming on Sims 3.  Sims Amy and Brian are doing well.  Luckily you make crazy amounts of money in Sims which if that were true in real life it would be awesome.  I mainly just hung out the rest of the day.  Amy and I said our prayer that night and I called it a early night around 10ish.  I am turning into an old man and going to bed and early hours even though I could stay up a bit longer and still get enough sleep.

Sims!

7/6/14

Started off very early.  I had to get to church around 7:00 to practice our songs for Chicago again.  With different people coming at different services we had to make sure everyone was aware of the songs and knew how we were singing them.  There was a few new people with a core of regulars at both services.  At the Sunday morning service I had April and Bryce with their little girl, and one other girl.  Then at the later service I had a whole mess of kids which was great.  I got good participation as well as good reactions from all the different services with the children's message.  Don and another gentleman were looking for me after service.  He had wanted to tell me that he really liked the children's message and it had really spoken to him.  He said keep up the good work and keep being clever.  It was an amazing affirmation that stuck with me all day.

After that I was a part of a VBS meeting.  There I took on two roles.  I was going to help with opening and closings as well as being the primary adult for the 1st and 2nd grade class.  Luckily I would be working with Sam and Krista which was going to be very helpful.  Then after that I meet with Dawn and had her follow me to my apartment.  She was providing a desk for me.  It was partially assembled but I had a lot to go to get it all put together.  So for about two hours or so I started putting the desk together.  I did a couple things differently but was able to get everything fixed and working properly.  It is really awesome to have the desk so I can keep stuff on the table and eat there and put all my office supplies somewhere rather than lying around.

The rest of the day I spent just hanging out and played some Sims 3.  I made Amy and I and started playing through them for fun.  I had forgotten how much fun Sims was.  Besides that I made myself hamburgers and didn't break the tip off my knife this time.  Prayed with Amy that night and went to bed.  It was a pretty good day.

All the Family!

7/5/14

Well woke up a bit later which was nice.  Amy headed over from April's and Adam and Kristi came up from their vehicle.  Kristi promptly told us that Adam was a Prius hog.  We then took a walk down to Dunkin Donuts.  Since it was the first one to open in Minnesota we had to visit it.  We passed my favorite mall with the intention of coming back.  We all got some breakfast there and half a dozen donuts to which we asked them to surprise us.  We got a nice variety and each had one except Kristi who needed something no filled with sugar.  Then we headed to the mall and stopped by Games by James.  There I got a Warhammer set, some playing cards, and some magic cards.  Hopefully I will get some adhesive and paint and get my first miniatures all ready to go.  After that we visited the coolest Barnes and Noble in the world, to which they all agreed.  We took a funny wedding picture but found out we aren't supposed to take pictures with the merchandise, to which Kristi accidentally posted it to Facebook.

After that we headed back to my apartment and I showed the little of I know of Rochester to them on our walk back.  Then we took a trip to Hobby Lobby so that Kristi could find some tye dye kits.  Amy found a lot of future stuff we could use for the wedding.  Then we headed back yet again.  At my apartment we then started a game of Firefly.  I am very glad they enjoy the game because it is a lot of fun.  My next goal is to get them to play the role playing game because that sounds like a lot of fun.  While we were playing my family was on their way from Hudson with extended family from Tennessee.  They all got there around 1:30.  I did some introductions and showed them all the apartment.  It was good to see everyone.  Then we convinced them to go to lunch at Twigs and try out the cooking rock.  Most of them had it and everyone who did loved it.  My family came down: Mom, Dad, and Danny.  Also my extended family: Toni and Mark, their two kids Sarah and Beth, and my aunt Kim.  After that Amy and Kristi and Adam headed out.

The family took a walk down to Soldier's Field while I got ready for service.  I meet them down there and we talked, looked at the memorial, and took some pictures.  Than we headed off to Redeemer.  I gave all those who had not been there before a nice tour of the place and then I had to get with the Chicago group to practice our songs.  Service started and it went very well.  The children's message was starting to click more with a couple things I would do differently but it was mainly wording and such.  My family loved the message and thought it was very clever.  I said goodbye to them as Kim wanted to get home pretty quickly once they got back.  I went back to my apartment and it was quiet there.  It was kind of weird for no one to be around.  It had been an awesome day.    

4th of July

7/4/14

Well the biggest news today is Amy came over.  She got there around 10 ish or so.  It was awesome to see her and we just took some time to be with one another for awhile.  Then we did some shopping.  She and I were apparently going to be doing some cooking projects.  We made the tuna and noodle and mayonnaise salad she makes every year and I have had it a lot as well.  Then we set about making red white and blue cupcakes.  We used yellow cake mix so the colors were a bit off but we baked them off nonetheless.  Then when they were done we had to check to see how they looked.  They actually came out quite nicely.  Maybe Amy will post a picture somewhere but I'll look for one.

Then a bit later Adam and Kristi showed up.  We all took some time to talk and just catch up.  Then we played a game they had brought with them.  It is called Space Alert.  It is really fun and you work as a team trying to beat the game rather than each other which is fun.  After that we headed to Twigs across the street for some dinner.  They have a really cool option for food there.  It is a rock they heat up to 650 degrees.  Then they give you raw meat and you cook it right on there.  It was a lot of fun and really tasty.  They have several different kinds of sauces you can dip your meat in afterwards.  I told Adam he needs to bring the idea to Savage and open another business.

Then after that we went back to my apartment.  We played a game of pirates but the girls soon retired to wedding talks while Adam and I played some Firefly.  We were all laughing and talking and having a great time.  We saw some fireworks over the trees but that was about it.  We were thinking of getting up for the sunrise but when we realized it was one in the morning we decided against it.  So Amy followed me over to April and Bryce's house.  I gave her the tour and then I headed back to the apartment.  Adam and Kristi were super excited to try out sleeping in their Prius.  So I settled down in my apartment having the best day off I've had in awhile.  

1st Children's Message

7/3/14

Started off the day with a meeting with Michael.  We got caught up on our devotions and did some checking in which was really nice for me.  We had some time to figure out a bit of direction where we want to go in the next couple of months.  Then I spent a good majority of the morning working on the power point for the Chicago sharing services.  Luckily Jorgen had done a lot of the ground work.  I mainly cleaned out some photos and put in text to tell a bit of story.  I pray that it will communicate a bit of what we did and spur questions from others for those of us who were able to go on the trip.

After lunch I cam back to finish up the power point and I am quite satisfied with it.  Then I took some time to get my blogs updated and started for the day.  After that I began to do some revisions on my Professional Planning Report for Kevin.  Michael and I had talked about my goals and he gave me some great advice on directions where to go with them.  Now just getting ready for service tonight.  The closer we get the more nervous I get.  It is a good nervous though.  I am not afraid of talking or saying the message, just the waiting before it happens sort of thing.

I spend the majority of the afternoon before service just doing some odds and ends.  I got ahead on some assignments for Kevin and also some stuff for work as well.  It was quite a productive day at work which is very nice.  It's nice to have time to get stuff done during the day rather than cramming in stuff at night after I would normally have class.  Then came service time.  I was getting a bit more nervous as we got closer to the children's message.  When it finally came to the time there was only one child: Aaron who is Pastor Koglin's oldest.  It was a nice starting audience at two years old.  I gave my message and already started thinking of different ways of saying things.  Talking to Michael afterward he said that there was no major or minor issues he saw just little touch ups we could talk about after I had a couple more times to give the message.  He said that I looked extremely comfortable up front and that I wouldn't have problem giving children's messages and stuff of that nature.  That was a huge compliment and really helped me to feel at ease.

Good Direction

Woke up and showed up to church earlier today.  We had a staff meeting and we were meeting earlier to continue our discussion for the next  year that we had started before Chicago.  We made some really good progress and things are really starting to take shape.  I am very excited to see what will happen with our theme and ideas in the coming year.  I have some ideas for ways to use Facebook as well as the random acts of kindness to exemplify that theme and bring it outside worship.  Then after that I sat down and wrote down my children's message.  This will be my first one with Redeemer and I am excited and nervous at the same time, which is a good thing.  I am very excited about the idea I got and hope it brings some laughter but more importantly the Word to those listening.  

I was able to practice my message in the sanctuary.  It was nice to say it out loud and really work some different sentences out.  I changed a couple phrases, added some, and took others away.  I think it is a really good idea.  Now I just need to find some football jerseys around town.  I bet I can find what I need.  I was able to read another chapter in the book I am reading, Pursuit of God by A.W. Tozer.  It is a very good book.  Sometimes I have to read a couple sections over again to get the meanings of words or simply to understand what he is saying.  However that really helps to me hear what he is saying and not just gloss over it like we do when we read sometimes.

I headed home a bit earlier because I was going to attend a concert Nikki had heard about with her parents.  She had heard about it through Nancy: the woman her group had helped at RSE the year prior.  There I met Mark Smeby, the artist, and talked to him a bit.  He had some very great music of his own and sang some classics as well, including Let it Go from Frozen.  During the mini concert, it was held in someone's house, he told us about people he had gotten to know who were in prison.  He had addresses and would love it if people would mail them.  Nikki suggested it would be a great activity for the random acts of kindness.  Finished off the nigh going to my apartment and doing a load of laundry so I had my Not A Fan shirt all clean and ready.

Back to Business

7/1/2014

Got up for my first day back to work since Chicago.  I am actually very excited about it.  I came in and got caught up on my devotionals.  Then I started working on catching my blogs up so people can read about my experiences and whatnot.  I was able to complete the second part of my Chicago trip and get up my day of rest post as well.  It was nice to be on a schedule with getting those done again.  I did miss blogging and talking about my experiences everyday while I was in Chicago.

Nikki stopped by when Michael came in.  She had an awesome idea she wanted some help on.  She wanted to start up random acts of kindness here in Rochester on a regular basis.  It would mainly start out with the Chicago people but hopefully grow to include many different people.  I thought it was a great idea and agreed to help get it started.  My prayer is that I will mainly be a faciliator and she and others would own the whole idea and project.  We have our first meeting after service on Thursday.  Also Michael and I talked about missions work in the church with her.  She has a calling to do some sort of mission work and we are showing her the many different options out there.

After lunch I returned to work and mainly worked on little things here and there.  I would work on some blogs and other little mini projects that I remembered or wanted to get a head start on.  It is really nice to not have to worry so much about bringing stuff home.  Unlike school where there was always homework to be done I really get home during internship and it is my own time.  I am absolutely loving it here so far and can't wait to see where things go from here.

Day of Rest

6/30/14

It was weird to wake up in my own room and not in the library of the church in Melrose Park.  I got some much needed sleep and felt a lot more rejuvenated and rested.  I started off the day by unpacking my stuff and just kinda taking in being at home.  I did some gaming and catching up on stuff I had not been able to look at or do while I was gone.  Luckily I was still able to go through my email while I was there so I didn't have a huge mass of emails to go through.  Then I took a shower in my own shower which was an amazing feeling.  I decided I was going to take a walk again to Games by James.  There I purchased some books so I can play the game I had talked about earlier.  The guy there is also into that game and had some great advice.  I am hoping to find some places to play and he is willing to order in anything I need which is awesome.

I took some time after to grab a bite to eat.  I stopped at a place in the mall called zpizza I think.  I had a chicken and spinach flatbread pizza.  It was very good.  Then on my way back it was raining but thankfully it isn't that bad of a walk to my apartment from there.  Then back at home I took some time to read and do a bit more gaming.  After that I decided I really wanted to see Maleficent.  So I looked up theaters and decided to go to the 5:10 showing at Cinemagic Hollywood 12.  Made my way out there and got my ticket.  Was happily surprised to find I was still in Matinee times so it was only $5.  Watched the movie and there were a couple people in the theater.  I quite enjoyed it and recommend it to anyone who likes new looks at the older fairy tales.

Then I headed home.  I began the work of blogging my experiences at Chicago.  With Amy's help I decided that putting it in two parts was the best idea.  So I started on part 1.  Then I called my family and had a long conversation just catching up.  I told them some stories from Chicago and let them know who I had met in Chicago that we both knew, Steve Vera.  Then I took some time to Facetime Amy and we chatted for a long time as well.  It was a pretty awesome rest day and just getting back to Rochester and keeping in that spiritual high that I am on right now.

Today I learned that just getting out of my apartment, even by myself, to do something fun really helps.  I can't stand being in my apartment for the whole day and getting out and about is very healthy for me.

Chicago Pt. 2

6/26/14-6/29/14

Thursday we were back to our normal schedule for the work day.  We woke up to have breakfast and make our lunch for the day.  Than we moved into worship and our morning speaker.  That morning it was a shorter message.  It was a message of dying to ourselves every day.  Carissa spoke very shortly about the tornado that went through Washington county.  Frank, a native of Chicago, got out and felt the Spirit moving to show that he had chosen to wear his Washington strong shirt that day.  It was an awesome God sighting to start the day off right away.  Then after worship we headed out to the work sites for the morning.

We had started a bit of a rotation schedule with the kids.  We would have three stations: crafts, outside time, and Bible time.  It was going very well and it did so on Thursday as well.  They were into what was going on and having a great time.  That morning Serenity came up to me and Kaitlyn, separately, and told us she was sorry for forgetting her Bible.  We both said that was no problem and then she proceeded to tell us everything she had read the night before.  Hearing the creation story as well as the story of Noah from her was an awesome moment.  She was so excited and loved sharing what she had read.  After lunch we had some fun time at the park with the kids.  It was a lot of fun to see them run and play.

We then headed back to the church earlier because we were taking a trip to Concordia Chicago.  We had gotten a corner on our way back that we gave out a lot of our tracts and food.  It was great to see their faces as well as say God bless to them as we drove away.  We got back and got ready for the trip.  We traveled over there as work teams.  There we ate supper and got some more time to hang out with the Redeemer folks.  Then while many people went on the tour we played a game of forks and knives (no spoons available).  After that we had our worship service at the chapel.  We had communion that night and Pete talked about love and the love that Christ has for us.  It was very good.

The last day of Chicago had finally come and it was a bittersweet day.  That morning Austin spoke about his life and what he had gone through.  He had lost his mom at a young age it was an amazing story of faith and trust.  We then headed out to our work site for the last time.  It was an amazing day and the kids were great.  At one point I had lost something and after looking I prayed with Eugene and looked up and saw what I was looking for.  We ended our time with playing drip drip drop (duck duck grey duck with water).  We then headed out the the park we had been with the kids the other day and started picking up trash.  We got some great conversations with people and prayed with them right there in the park.  For sake of time I will not go into great specifics but feel free to comment or ask me questions if you are curious.

That night Pete talked.  He talked about how we are on a Spiritual high right now.  Also the real mission was going to start when we headed back.  We had to make sure that we didn't loose all that we learned even though we would come off the high.  We had a time of worship and than a later curfew time that night so people could hang out and also write affirmations.  I wrote a second set of affirmations with my name on them unlike my first ones.

The next morning we packed up and cleaned out the church and did some work around their property.  It was nice to give back to them for all they had done for us.  That night we had a message from Pastor David recapping everything and had an awesome moment where he lifted the white sheet that they had put our shredded sins before.  Underneath it was nothing, which is exactly what God has done with our sins.  It was a great recap message and just what we needed to continue on.  With that we got in the vans and headed to Portillos for some food and last goodbyes to a couple groups.  After that we were on our way to Madison to see the House on the Rock the next day.  My drive back I rode with Cassidy and Brandon and we had some fun moments with Paul's driving and Grayson's fan.

That night we had an amazing time of worship.  We sang songs on the beach and then had a time of sharing.  There were things shared there that had never been talked about before.  God was really working on our hearts there.  It was amazing and humbling to see.  I thank God that I got to know these kids so well and pray that they will continue to trust and lean on God just like they have been.  We ended the day with a couple of the young adults and me swimming in the hotel's pool.

In the morning I rode with Michael, Tabitha, and Samhill.  Then on Sunday we headed to the House on the Rock.  We were worried that the youth might not like it as much as the adults would.  However they all said it was awesome and had a great time.  We all loved looking at his house and the second section of the tour.  However we all agreed that the third section was a bit creepy and weird and we were all probably overwhelmed at that point.  Then we were off on our way home again.  On our way home I rode with Julie, Jorgen, Conner, and Cassidy.  We arrived at the church, said a prayer with the parents, and all went our ways.  It was an amazing trip and this little short summary doesn't do it justice.  Please feel free to ask me questions or posts comments on here with things you would like to know.