We had last night off so we basically cruised down to the grocery store and back. Some bought a few items they craved like Doritos and Oreos while some of us took the opportunity to stock up on Blue Mountain Coffee for the trip home.

We also had a very moving devotional time last night. I think almost everyone is really growing and I think we are really coming together as a group. We wish we had the whole church down here to experience this.

This morning we had another delicious breakfast consisting of a dish based on franks and another based on Ackee. Ackee is a Jamaican favorite and is usually served with salt fish but Francis dropped the salt fish since very few Americans care for it. Thank God for Francis.

Once again we got to the work site about 9 AM and everyone went different directions to get working. The painting is really looking good and they were doing the trim today. We are making great progress on the plastering and we also had another large pour of concrete to cap the walls. The mason in charge told Kevin that we are far ahead of where he thought we would be by now.

One of the things we worked on today were the “cages” for inside the cap. This is the re-bar that is used and consists of four ½ inch bars held in a rectangle by smaller pieces of wire. We have to set up a production station to wire everything together. Once they are done they will go in the forms just before they are filled with concrete. It isn’t really hard work from a physical standpoint but it is extremely tedious and there is always the possibility of getting a good poke from the wire. Not fun.

The churchwomen cooked us another fine lunch today. We had rice and peas again with chicken. This time they had some out-of-this-world potato salad. Every lunch we also have some of the best tasting punch you could ever imagine.

Right now several of the group are down at the market. It is very busy place where the Jamaicans buy and sell just about everything. It isn’t nice and clean so it is usually a culture shock for Americans. Tomorrow we are trying to arrange a little sightseeing tour over to the campgrounds at Malvern and then maybe on to “lovers leap”. I think it will give our group a better idea of what life is like in rural Jamaica.

Tonight we are going to the watch night service at Salem, New Green. They are kind enough to let us check out early so we will not stay for the full 4 hours. We are on our own for supper tonight so we will head down to a restaurant and see what we can find.

By the way, I would be remiss if I didn’t mention the driving. A lot of the drivers here are just plain maniacal. The fact that they drive on the left hand side of the road here makes it just that much more frightening. Fortunately there are no straight-aways for them to build up even faster speed. Please pray for us as we travel.

I’m not sure if I will be able to post tomorrow since it is New Year’s Day but I will try. On Friday morning we will head back to Montego Bay and I’m not sure if I will find access there or not. It has been fun writing these posts and I appreciate those of you who have left comments.

I'm posting a little later today so some of you might have thought I forgot. But let me begin my update from last night.

We went to the Richmond Church for service. This time we traveled in one van and 2 cars. Yes, all 23 of us. Richmond is way up a hill and the van had to park at the bottom. That means a hard walk up a steep hill just to get to the church.

When we got there the singing was in full swing. It was high, high energy and I think we found the song that we will be bringing back to ZUB from this trip. After several songs they turned it over to us and we sang a few songs with the worship team. Then Kristi took over with her clowning and was a huge hit again. After she was done the quartet sang a couple of songs and then we finished with a few more from the worship team.

The major obstacle was the keyboard. Only a few of the keys worked and so Sharon gave up on it and joined the singers. We are off tonight but will participate in the watchnight service tomorrow night at another church. I think they have a better keyboard so we should be good to go.

We started this morning off with another great breakfast of scabbled eggs and fried plantian. Thank God for Francis. We got to the work site between 9-9:30 and everyone kind of drifted off to their various jobs. We also got some paint and several people painted a new addition to the church.

Others went back to rendering (plastering) the walls. This involves getting some mortar on a trowel and flinging it at the wall. The hope is that some of it will stick. They keep doing this until they get it to the right thickness. It is quite hilarious watching first timers giving it a try. They finish it off with a smooth coat and it turns out quite well.

The other main task today was pouring a binding on top of the block walls. They put forms on top of the walls and then put reinforcing iron in it. After that we fill the whole thing with concrete. It is probably between 12" high so it takes a lot of cement. We got it done by having some guys mixing the concrete on the ground floor. A huge task! Then we used a bucket brigade to get it up to the second floor where it is needed. Everyone is tired tonight.

The women of the church cooked us another fantastic lunch and we had a great supper when we came back. Thank God for Francis!

The weather was a little warmer today but there was still a nice breeze and it is very comfortable.

We also received some sad news today in that Jason's grandfather passed away on Monday.

Thank you for all your prayers. Please keep praying for us and especially for Jason.

Last night the worship team and Kristy (as a clown) had the service at Battersea church. The worship team was well received but Kristy was a huge hit. The kids loved her and i think the adults had a pretty good time as well. After the serivce we stopped off at McDonald's for a bite to eat and then headed home for bed. What a great night's sleep!!

This morning we got up and had breakfast at 8 AM. Thank God for Francis! Then we headed to the worksite at about 8:30.

Bob says that two years ago they were laying block and a lot of mortar was falling on the floor. Bob asked about it and was told not to worry about it because someone would clean it up later. Well, we started the day cleaning up that mortar.

We had an interesting day at the work site. Some helped plaster (Rendering, they call it here.) the walls while others helped clean up debri. Some also did some painting. The rest spent most of the day keeping everyone supplied with concrete or mortar. This involved mixing large quantities by hand and then carrying it up to the second floor in buckets. Hard work!!

The ladies of the church provided lunch which consisted of rice and peas, chicken, coleslaw and punch. it was delicious.

We quit about 4 - 4:30 and headed back for a cold shower. You would think it would be refreshing after working all day but it still feels a little too cold. But it's great to be clean so I'll stop complaining.

The weather has been great. A few clouds passed over today but I don't think there was anything more than a brief mist. it has been reasonably cool.

Tonight we are off to Richmond church to sing and so Kristy can do her clowning. We miss all of you back home so see you later.

Well we are off on our big adventure to Jamaica. It started out with an uneventful trip from Zanesville to Detroit Metro Airport on Saturday morning. We unloaded all of our bags at the international terminal and marched inside only to find out we were in the wrong terminal. Rick & Shane, who brought our luggage, had already left so we had to load all of our bags into the remaining vehicles for the ride over to the other terminal. As Derrick sings “Always look on the bright side of life.”

The next shock came while I was standing in line and had a lady tell me that I needed a signed and notarized letter from Kim saying that it was okay to take Ben out of the country. Feeling that there was little chance of success I tried to call Kim hoping she could find a notary on a Saturday and fax the letter. I got Rachel at our house who said Kim was at my mom’s. Fortunately, just at that moment the lady came back and said I didn’t need the letter after all. “Always look on the bright side of life.”

The rest of the trip through the ticketing process was uneventful but boring. The plane was late arriving and therefore departing. However, an incredible tailwind got us to Montego Bay on time. (That was the first time I have ever been in an airplane that reached a ground speed, as opposed to air speed, of over 600 MPH. Wow!) “Always look on the bright side of life.

The march through customs and immigration was also uneventful. The customs officer did hem and haw a little bit about the guitar amp I brought but then decided to let us through. We had no idea what to expect for transportation for the 3 hour ride to Mandeville. We didn’t recognize anyone there to meet us but a gentleman walked up to Brad and said he was there to pick us up. He then pulled up a big 40 passenger bus that would accommodate all of us with ease. We began to wonder if this was all on the up and up but it seemed to be okay so we got on. About 3 hours later he delivered us to Mandeville at approximately 12:30 AM. “Always look on the bright side of life.”

We got very little sleep last night. The sun came up about 5:30 here so it was difficult to sleep in. We also need to get accustomed to the dogs barking all night. We are staying in the “big house” (those of you who have been here before will no what I am talking about) and accommodations are great. The shower is cold though and we had an interesting morning listening to everyone shutter as they took they’re showers. Francis (The wife of Owen Gordon who is the principle of the Jamaica Bible College where we are staying.) cooked a wonderful breakfast for us. Thank God for Francis! “Always look on the bright side of life.”

The van came to pick us up for church at 10 AM. It took two trips but we all made it safely. We had an excellent Sunday School then enjoyed the church service. I was asked to give a greeting and then I introduced the quartet who sang a couple of songs. The service got over at about 1:30 and we had dinner at 3:15. Thank God for Francis! We had rice and peas, chicken, fried sweet potatoes, salad, pastry and guava punch. “Always look on the bright side of life.”

Tonight we are going to lead the worship service at the Battersea Church. They seem to be excited to have Kristy do her clowning. I think she is getting nervous. I think I’ll try and catch a short nap then get ready to go. The weather has been absolutely wonderful. In the 70’s and not a cloud in the sky. “Always look on the bright side of life.”

Two days until Christmas! What a big week. Christmas on Thursday and then off to Jamaica on Saturday. Hard to get much sleep these days! Very exciting!!

100 years ago today the Wright brothers made their historic flight. Today a team of aviation enthusiasts tried to reenact that flight. Unfortunately their replica flyer ended up in a mud puddle at the end of the takeoff rail never making it into the air. All they were after was a 12 second flight. They had spent an enormous amount of time and energy (not to mention money) to try and replicate that flight only to fail

I think one reason is that they hadn't learned the subtle nuances that the Wright brothers did as they prepared for their flight. Preparing a reenactment skips several of the steps that the Wright brothers needed to take. Those steps seem simple at first but experiencing those steps probably taught the Wright brothers valuable lessons they never realized they were learning. Little things like exactly how to position your body just right to maintain control would have been valuable.

Churches also have this problem. We look at those around us and try to reenact what they are doing in our church. When it fails to produce similar results we look up from our mud puddle asking why it didn't work. To some degree we all have to discover our way on our own. We balance this with the fact that because others have gone before we don't need to start from scratch. Finding that balance between learning from others and using our own experience is the key.

Well, I'm back to blogging again in preparation for the Jamaica trip. I hope to blog during our time there. I've found an interent cafe not far from where we are staying that charges $3.45/hour so I hope it works out. Until then I'll try to get back in the blogging habit.

Enjoyed last Sunday's party very much. Good to just be with people. Kids all had a blast too. We need to do that more often. Very cool.

I WON!!!! HA HA HA. I won an ebay auction the other day but didn't meet the reserve so I actually lost it. But the seller lowered the reserve and reposted it. I bought it right away for the same amount I had bid the first time. Saved $10. These things never work out for me so I am thrilled!!!

An article in USA Today featured an interview with conductor Lorin Maazel. His tips for leading -
- Earn respect. Remember how difficult it was to follow someone you couldn't
respect.
- Strike a balance between confidence and humility.
- Don't be nice to curry favor. Be nice just to be nice.
- Speak when you have something valuable to say. Otherwise, shut up.
- To lead, energize.
- Don't demand perfection. Demand passion.

I like the last one the best.

I've really appreciated all the "appreciation" we have received this month. The best card.......(front) You're someone I can confide in. (inside) I stole this card. Thanks to everyone.

I have enjoyed all the cards and letters we have received this month. We love this church so much and they do a great job of making us feel loved too.

Well, I am currently fighting a full blown head cold. I have tried tea with lots of lemon and honey but it has had little effect. I started taking my vitamins again but Kim says its a little late now. I also try to get lots of rest and drink lots of fluids. I hate colds but with a family of 6 it seems they are inevitable.

Great day at church yesterday! It is great to see people so excited to worship. It also looks like some of your youth group ideas are going to pan out which is good.

The one thing I didn't like was having to shut the blinds to see the video clip. It kind of puts a damper on a bright sunny day. We really need to start thinking about a bigger projector.

Once again I've let this go for a long time without blogging. Maybe life was going to good. We had a couple of great worship services the last few weeks and then tanked it last Sunday. The music wasn't very good and I think everyone would have been better off with a few more hours sleep.

At times like this it is easy to get discouraged but I try to look at the big picture and see what God is doing. It is amazing how He works in times like this. It is a good reminder that it is all about Him and not about how talented we think we are. I get frustrated, thinking we can do so much better, which we can. But it is a short jump from that mind set to thinking that when things are going great it is simply because of what we have done instead of what God has done.

People are starting to get excited about the mission trip. We are nearing the end of our fund raising activities and we have now set a date. That seems to make things more concrete. We have a big group but it should be fun!

I enjoyed the worship service yesterday. Denny did a great job tying in 9/11 and the story about the plane that crashed in his yard a few weeks ago. God is working and we need to wake up and be aware of what he is doing.

Lynn & Ked poured a cement pad for the new steps and ramp for the back door. It looks great.

I'm back. Once you stop blogging it is really hard to get started again. I keep saying I'll do it tomorrow. I haven't blogged in a long time because the soccer pre-season took up my time and whatever time was left I spent working on the church web site. I think I'm back to my normal routine now!

Great day at worship yesterday. I know, I know, the pastor always thinks that. But I thought we really got into a worshipping mood and I think there was a strong sense of community. I think most of my church is going to be on vacation the next two weeks so I'm trying to prepare for a more intimate worship service while the numbers are low. Though I hate to see everyone gone it allows for some unique opportunities.

I have a plan to get America into shape. We have been bombarded recently with how fat Americans are getting and there are tons of programs offered to help you slim down. If this is truly a serious problem, however, I have the perfect solution. There should be a law that the name of every food item, whether in a grocery store or a restaurant, must begin with the amount of calories that are in it.

Think of the impact. Imagine standing in a fastfood restaurant and trying to decide between the 350 calorie milk shake or the 600 calorie version. No more biggie sizing. You would be asked if you wanted the "500 more calories Biggie size". Wouldn't we make better choices if we had to choose between the 450 calorie cheeseburger and the 800 calorie deluxe burger? At the grocery store you could choose between the 400 calorie chicken or the 5 million calorie batter dipped chicken.

One draw back would be finding enough space to put all the zeroes one would find in the snack aisle. Grocers may need to start putting a bag of chips next to carrot sticks to make sure there was enough room for the signage. In fact some fast food joints might go right out of business once customers learned how many calories were truly in the food.

Lynn, Ked and a few other guys started working on the ramp and steps to the back door yesterday. I'm glad to see that going. We have talked long enough and it is now time for action. Lynn is so good about getting things done. I really appreciate that.

We also got the new amp for our sound system plus a few other goodies yesterday. It all sounds good so I can't wait to try it out tonight at worship team practice. We also got a new direct box for our keyboard so we have opened up a line we can use for another in-ear monitor. Not sure who will use that one though.

Okay, let me do a little catching up. Softball is over. We lost the first game in the bottom of the 7th inning to get relegated to the losers bracket. Then we one our first game there and then got clobbered in the second. Fun season but I'm getting to old for this stuff.

Kim & kids made it back safe and sound. Great to have the house full again.

Yesterday was a good day at church. Had Paul here to share about his ministry with the Navigators. We had a few technology problems but it all worked out. Ben did an admirable job filling in for Ryan on Drums especially considering how little he has played. I broke my G string again during the last song. I'm going to try a heavier guage string to see if that will help. The medium I will use is .02 bigger so that may keep it from breaking. If that doesn't work maybe I'll switch to all slow songs. Maybe that will end all the jokes about the pastor breaking his g-string at church. Oh Yeah, the salad bar/sunday bar carry-in was a brilliant idea. Thanks Kathy & Kevin!

Kim and the kids left to visit her sister in Michigan yesterday so I am home alone. It is extremely quiet and peaceful. I hate it! They will be back late this afternoon. I bought a couple of new fish for the aquarium while they were gone. I wonder how long it will take them to notice.

I've been thinking this morning about the tension between adapting to the culture and being different from the culture. In other words, if our culture promotes the individual we have two choices: We can be individual focused in order to be familiar or we can be community focused to provide alternative. I suppose we can share the message of Jesus in both contexts but I think we often overlook the positive aspects of offering an alternative.

Wow! That was confusing.

Well, we won the first softball tournament game last night. It was embarassing being late for the start but I was more embaraased because we played kind of slow even when we were holding up the next game. Hopefully things will go better tonight.

One of the problem's with softball is the tension between being competitive and letting young or inexperienced people play. It usually has a big impact on offense. I would rather let everyone play.

Softball Tournament begins tonight. It has been an interesting season. Lots of testosterone induced passion with some decidedly unChristian moments. A lot of people are apalled at some of the behavior that we have been exposed to this year. The concern is about our Christian witness. But I think it is good for us to have to confront these situations. It lets us know where our weaknesses are and where we need to change. I want us to have a good witness but I don't want us to be something we're not. There's a show on the BBC called "Faking It" where people have four weeks to learn a new occupation and see if they can fool the "experts" into believing they are experienced in the chosen field. They often get quite good at making a good first impression but the judges usually find flaws as they dig deeper. A lot of Christians are faking it.

Oh Yeah. "Losers Gain" played last night. Their lead singer/rythm guitar player was grounded so he couldn't come. First time I've heard that one. They did all right though. The music was well done. They need some seasoning but it was a fun time overall.

Heading to camp this morning to pick up the kids. The best part is grilling the kids about their home life. "So...who has the worst temper? Mom or dad." The ride over is great because I'm alone and can crank the radio. The ride back all depends on how much sleep the campers got last night!

A Beautiful Morning. Watching the sunrise is such a powerful experience. It's as if God is releasing His glory on the world right before my eyes. Not too many people are out yet and the world seems to be absorbing His glory for the moment. Soon people will begin to enter that glory, many without even being aware of it. How many of us will begin to mess it up today. From our perspective we soon will have a harder time seeing what we see so clearly now. The messiness of sin will clutter our view even though His glory will still be there. Good thing it starts all over again tomorrow.

Woa. Did I really just write that? I need my coffee!

Slow Down, Slow Down, Slow Down. I am getting better at this but every now and then I catch myself. It is kind of like when I tell people standing up in weddings not to forget to breathe. Sometimes you can tell when they remember that because all of a sudden they'll take a long deep breath. Likewise, I sometimes remember that I need to slow down and it kind of stops me in my tracks.

I am working on adding a comment option in case you want to comment on something I write here.

I woke up at about 4:30 this morning and couldn't go back to sleep so I read awhile. One of the books I'm reading is about Cuba. The thing I find amazing is how the relationship has stayed the same for so long now.

This is the first time I have blogged since January. I guess I don't have "brain twitches" that often. In the last months a few people have kidded me about my lack of blogging so I am going to try to pick it up again.

Having just got back from California Wednesday evening I'm spending a lot of time catching up and putting out a few small fires. Makes me wonder why I ever go away. I guess it was worth it though.

I've almost finished Dostoyevsky's "The Idiot". It has been probably 15 years since I read it last and I'm really enjoying it.

Well, here goes my first blog! Can't think of a thing to say. How pathetic.