Month: August 2007

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thank you

while it was an uncomfortable night for me it was still a very much appreciated night. tonight control of “the view” was stolen away from me. jessica, eric, and some others took control of “the view” and turned it into a “let’s roast robert” night. while i was real uncomfortable with everyone talking about me for 45 minutes i was really moved by much of what was said and done. i am very appreciative of every one that was there and what was said. i also can’t thank you enough for the jambalaya cooking equipment. it will be well used and loved in wisconsin.

my last request is that you all give me a sandwich bag with a little soil from your home in it. pam and i would like to mix a little part of each of your homes with our new home. we will take the soil from your homes and mix it with the soil from our new home and plant a small piece of the youth ministry ginger plant in it. you will always be a part of our lives and this way a little of your soil will be with ours.

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a few days more

my time at parkview is winding down quickly. sunday is my last day. it’s all pretty freaky to me. not just because i’m leaving people i love nor the fact that about all i have done this week is pack up my study at the church. not just because of all the changes involved in moving to wisconsin nor the thought of having to start over again. all of those are important and a wee bit stressful but the thing that is freaking me out is that i am about to be through with my direct involvement within ministry to and with youth for at least a few years. working with teens is fun and challenging.

it’s fun because what other group would be cool with and connect with such a wide range of things? what other group would have thought an mp3 worship service was awesome? or be okay with a labyrinth and a food fight at the same retreat? ministry with teens is just plain fun.

it’s challenging because adolescents haven’t learned how to politely leave their questions unsaid. teens aren’t afraid to challenge you when they don’t understand or agree with you. they haven’t learned what adults have that sometimes you are just supposed to fain interest. so if you say something that doesn’t make sense or you teach in a boring manner then they will have no problems whipping out their phones and text messaging people or passing notes during your well prepared message. when you’ve hit it with teens then you’ve treated GOD’s word well.

for the next several years we will probably not have many teens in tapestry other than my own. that’s not youth ministry, it’s parenting (which i also love). i’m going to miss working with youth for awhile.

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johnnies pizza

clint barron has been bragging about johnnies pizza for seven years. first he did it when he was a youth ministry intern and then he did it as my friend. he swears it is the best pizza in the world. since my family and i will be moving in two weeks clint decided that we had to take a trip to taste this manna of all pizza’s. it took two hours of driving one way to get to the restaurant and then another two hours to get back home. this means while the pizza cost $20 the fuel to get there and back cost $30. a complete waste of resources but a fun day.

the pizza was ok.

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a great benediction

ian posted this franciscan benediction on his blog. it’s great so i decided to post it with a hat tip to him. here it is:

A Franciscan Benediction

May God bless you with discomfort
At easy answers, half-truths, and superficial relationships
So that you may live deep within your heart.
May God bless you with anger
At injustice, oppression, and exploitation of people,
So that you may work for justice, freedom, and peace

May God bless you with tears
To shed for those who suffer pain, rejection, hunger, and war
So that you may reach out your hand to comfort them and
To turn their pain into joy.

And may God bless you with enough foolishness
To believe that you can make a difference in the world,
So that you can do what others claim cannot be done
to bring justice and kindness to our children and the poor.

Amen

once we move to wisconsin i will begin work on stealing another idea from ian and that is building a shed to act as a study. i figure it will take me a year to collect the supplies and finish it.

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almost done

good news – the inspection came in on our house and there were only minor things in it.
great news – our buyers already knew about the items that were brought up in the inspection report and therefore they are not asking for us to do anything to fix them. this means we don’t have to fix several small things that would just be time stealers. HEY!

the inspection on our house in wisconsin is tomorrow. hopefully all will go well with it tomorrow. if it does the game plan is that after going and spending some time with my parents we will pack for two days, sell our baton rouge house on the 17th, sleep somewhere in baton rouge for the night, travel up to stevens point/plover, close on our new home in plover on the 20th and start moving in.

i’ll probably move my blog this weekend. i think the new domain will be www.stevenspointtapestry.org

clint barron is a freak. he has bragged about johnny’s pizza for six years. earlier this week clint asked if i would be willing to drive two hours to eat some pizza and then drive back. so friday clint and i are going to travel a total of 5 hours (2 hours there, 1 hour to eat, and 2 hours back) so that i can taste this pizza. of course, no matter how good the pizza is i’m going to say that it’s not that great.