Great Friends

We had many enjoyable times while we were out in Oregon. When we are there, we really miss being in the Pacific Northwest. The smell of the evergreens, the sight of the Columbia River, and the availability of coffee are reminders of why we loved living there. Iowa has it's own beauty, but the smells of GPC cover it up sometimes.
We got to see a lot of great friends in Oregon. One (of several) highlights was spending our anniversary with some of the best friends we have ever had. Brad, Kim, Buddy and Susan spent the evening with us enjoying outdoor dining at the Grand Lodge in Forest Grove.
What I love about our friends is that we have always had the ability to speak to the hearts of each other. It true with our friends in Iowa as well as Oregon. On our evening at the Grand Lodge, I was truly thankful for the conversation. It was a confirming reminder to me of the life I choose to live every day. Even when events I deem as unfair present themselves to me, I must be reminded of who I am and how I live. Brad challenged me on that on this particular evening. Brad (or heavy G, as we sometimes call him) asked questions about the notion of being a servant leader and what that means in today's world. Even when things don't go my way and I think I am getting screwed, I need to remind myself of what it means and what it is to be a servant leader. I will constantly have to remind myself of I Peter 5 and understand that it is God's deal and not my own.
Thank you Brad for your words. You mean a lot to me and am grateful you are a good friend. I will strive to continue my quest to further understand what servant leadership is and what it looks like in a world or community that could care less...

In Oregon

We will be in Oregon from August 7-19th. Rene' and the girls get there on the 24th of July and I will follow about a week later. We would love to see as many of you as we can. Call the Whitehead's if you want to get together sometime.

Plan B

Well we weren't able to pull off Road Rage this year so we went with Plan B. It was a time that 50 of us spent at Rathbun Lake and hung out by the lake and in our familiar camp. It was one of the best retreats I have been a part of. We looked at our lives and the life of our ministry through the words of the prophet Jeremiah (chapter 7 to be exact). We spent the days on and by the lake and the evenings by the campfire; through all of it we had a lot of fun and hopefully we were challenged by what we heard.
I have to say that I was a little amazed... that I can still do a back flip off of an inflatable island in the middle of our cove. I remember doing back flips off of the rafts in the Deschutes River, nearly 20 years ago. I thought I would ache the next day, but I was fine. I also showed the camp my Jedi powers by answering just about every question concerning music hits of the 80's. I think I showed that I had absolutely no life.... and.... that I am a wealth of useless information. I have added the pictures from our time together, enjoy.

17 seconds of sheer terror!

We recently went to Cedar Point in Sandusky, OH for our annual "Possum Run." What we do is load 50 High School students and 7 adults into a chartered bus at midnight, drive all night from Iowa to Ohio, arrive at Cedar Point at 10:00 AM, then ride roller coasters all day, get on the bus at 10:00 PM, and drive home arriving at 7:00 AM. It sounds like a lot, and it is. I am usually exhausted at the end because of no sleep, or at least a deprived sleeping schedule.
The 17 seconds of terror happen on the roller coaster known as "Top Thrill Dragster." The ride only lasts for 17 seconds, but it is an intense 17 seconds. The coaster starts out rushing you from 0 to 120 mph in the first 4 (that is not a typo, 4 is the correct number) seconds. You then catch your stomach in enough time to realize that you are headed 420 feet up at a 90 degree angle. You come to the top of the coaster and realize that what comes up, has to go down, and down you go; 90 degrees again, only this timein a corkscrew. You flatten out and come to a smoothly jerky stop and try and process what happened. It is an incredible ride.
If you want to see more, go to www.cedarpoint.com.
I will put some pictures up of the trip.

I did it!!!

After 3 long years, I finally graduated from graduate school with an MA in Transforamational Leadership.
People often ask me what the degree actually is. Here is the best way I know how to explain it....
Take the theology courses of a Masters of Divinity and the Leadership courses of an MBA and smash them together, you will get an MATL.
It was a great ceremony at graduation. I have put some pictures up to prove I have actually done it. Although, I have a few more little projects to get done, but for the most part, it is complete.
I now wonder what I will do with all of my free time.... fix the house, read a non-required book, watch tv again, and the list goes on and on...
For any of you interested, I will be in Oregon around the 17th-21st of June. I am taking a group of seniors from here in Iowa out to Oregon to go (I can't believe I am saying this) whitewater rafting on the Deschutes River. I thought after RR of '99 I would never raft again. It shows the sense of humor God has....