Faith Quest in December?

For about the last 10 years I’ve spent my Labor Day weekends singing at Faith Quest. Faith Quest is a 4 day youth event held at Camp Yamhill. To say that what happens at Faith Quest is amazing would be an understatement. Some of the most powerful moments of my life have elapsed there.

The corporate worship times at FQ are inspired, praise-filled sessions of joy and devotion that rival any worship experiences I’ve ever had. For starters, God shows up and hangs out with His kids. Next I get to sing on mic with some amazing musicians who recognize when God shows up. Then, there are about 500 worshipers jammed into a space made for about 450. It is an incredible combination and it never ceases to amaze me.

I’ve often wanted to duplicate it, but never felt called to organize such an event outside of Faith Quest. Recently the teens at Metro asked us to try. So, I’ve called my friends who sing up front at Faith Quest and they have agreed to meet at Metro tomorrow at 6pm. Now all we need is 500 worshipers to join us. How ‘bout you? What are you doing Sunday night? Bring your small group. Bring your family. Bring yourself.

I’ve already invited God, and He said He’d come.

Pot-Luck at 5.
Worship at 6.
All at Metro.

Turn it up

Its that time of the year when I start calling the snow phone every day, I pay attention to the weather, and I listen to a mix tape my brother and his old roommate Adam made. They designed this mix to be played while driving to the mountain. To this day it still gets me cranked up to ride the pow. If you like, take a listen:

Snowboard Tunes*

And remember 90% of the time, speed is your friend.

*The song Get On Top by The Red Hot Chili Peppers is not available for streaming play from Rhapsody and has been omitted from this playlist.

**While I consider snowboarding to be a sport that should enjoyed by riders of all ages, some of the content on this mix may not be appropriate for younger listeners. If you are enjoying this with young ears, be warned that Click Click Boom contains mild profanity (although the lyricist is appropriately calling out those who spend their time complaining that they are victims instead of doing something about their situations--a lesson that is very appropriate for young ears). Also Fight for Your Right contains themes that I do not condone without an understanding of the sarcasm intended.

***This playlist is offered as a service of Rhapsody and is completely legal. You will, however, be required to download their app to listen. I can assure you that is it safe. They will offer you the opportunity to purchase a subscription, but these songs can be enjoyed as part of their free 25 songs per month plan. You might consider signing up for an unlimited free month which will get you through the holidays as I plan to share some Yule-tunes in the next few weeks.

In Case You Were Wondering...

If Johno and I had fun during thanksgiving.

Made with a Mac

You Can’t Make this Stuff Up

After a platelet donation at the Red Cross the other day I was offered refreshments by an older gentleman. When I sat down to drink his OJ and polish of a rejuvenating Krispy Kreme, he joined me.

He told me he hadn’t worked for money in 24 years, and that he had been a volunteer at the Red Cross for 20. He retired from the City as a manager in charge of issuing various business licenses. As I stuffed doughnut in my face he explained that he and his wife raised 2 sets of twin grand-kids. It seems his daughter was not fit to be much of a mother and could not care for her 4 children, so he took them in.

Now this is where he got me. One pair of twins is girls. One of the twins from this set lives here with 3 kids and the other lives in Florida. Recently the Florida twin had her 2nd miscarriage, so the Portland twin went to visit. Apparently after a miscarriage there is a procedure to clean out the uterus and the Florida twin postponed the procedure due to the Portland sister’s visit. When she eventually went in for the procedure they did a pregnancy test and found that she had been pregnant with twins and that only one had miscarried.

It was his understanding that the second, surviving child may not have been detected if the procedure had not been delayed. She is now looking forward to her first baby and expects her grandparents to be in Florida for the birth.

I guess he won’t be offering me juice this summer.

Righting Wrongs

The last picture of my dog on this site was more than 40 images ago. That is just wrong.

I shot this with my friend Johno's 70-200 f4 L lens a few months ago. You can see a few more from the same shoot here.

Risky Business

So remember a while back when I was talking about my new van that was going to be the perfect roadtrip rig? And how upon returning from the sweet roadtrip to Wyo and Montana I was going to sell it? Well, I still have it. Yup, it’s been 2.5 months and that 4-wheeled, piece of family-toting joy is still in my driveway.

But, weren’t you just going to drive it for 2 weeks and then come home and put it back on Craigslist? What happened?

We hit a deer. Yeah, one night while finishing a monumental day of hiking to Porcupine falls, trekking up to Medicine Wheel, and then heading to Cody for some famous Montana beef; a deer ran out in front of us and committed suicide on my van. We were driving a stretch of road than connects Powell to Cody—a drive that my family has driven hundreds of times with nary a swerve to avoid a deer—when I came high beams to antler with what can accurately be described as a deer-in-the-headlights.

He jumped out, I hit the brakes and swerved slightly (remember the road has on-coming traffic), he froze, and then turned my perfect investment into a liability. No passenger was hurt, the van is still drivable, and I guess my day ended better than his. However, the van’s hood and fender are dented severely enough to require replacement. Don’t forget that this purchase was all about saving money, so I am carrying a $1000 deductible on the van. Meaning: I’ve spent the last 2.5 months saving for the repair.

And even after all of this, I’d do it again, hopefully without the deer.

Remember Aron Rolston? You know, the guy who hiked into a Utah canyon and got his arm pinned beneath a boulder? I read a few excerpts from his book a few years ago and I’ve adopted a bit of his philosophy. Everything has risk. When he chose to hike alone into the canyons without informing anyone of his whereabouts, he took a risk. And, at the time of his choice, he determined that the reward for hiking that canyon outweighed the risk of becoming trapped and not being rescued. So, when he became trapped and realized that no rescue was coming he was not surprised, nor was he upset-for he had accepted the risk.

Before I bought the Sienna, I knew there was a risk. I understood, and even considered that a mishap could render it unsellable. I accepted that if that happened I would value it as a trade for the reward of driving my very own mini-van on a cross-state roadie. I have no justification to feel cheated, I made this choice fully understanding the risk.

Friday Fun

CJ is from my hometown of Powell, WY and is often running some wacky contest on his blog, usually with real prizes! He's got one up there now, so go try your luck--you could win a song from iTunes.

The Marathon that Ate My Lunch

And a friend who beat it up and took my lunch back.

Today was the 2006 Portland Marathon. It started at 7 am just as the sun was stretching into the sky. I don't know exactly how many participants joined us downtown for the start, but I think it was somewhere between 6 and 8 thousand.
When my training for the marathon started to lag a bit I enlisted my old running partner Shawn to join my on this journey. His steady pace and faithful spirit have been a joy on many long runs and I sure needed him today.The first few miles of a marathon are a kick. Thousands of people, fresh legs, and cool weather make it hard to stick to a slow pace. We were constantly reminding each other to keep the pace down. At mile 1.5 we got our first encouragement from our very own cheering section, Anne & Brian Diedrich, Darren & Stephanie Nielan, and Christa Hill. (Later we would see Nancy and Cameron Jones.)Seeing friendly faces in the crowd is like being greeted at the airport after a long trip.
We made a loop and came right past the same spot 3 miles later and surprised the photographer.Next, the crew moved to a spot near 12 miles and waited for us to appear. We spent miles 6 through 11 on a dull out and back in NW industrial Portland. Our pace was lightened as we passed a praise band: Hallelujah, hallelujah, hallelujah, Your love makes me sing!
The next section took us past Montgomery Park and then out highway 30 to the St John's Bridge. We passed the time by convincing each other that we could certainly run 2 more miles. And at one point, Shawn had to break it to me that my math that had figured there would only be a 10k-to-go after we reached mile 18 was wrong, and the 10k-to-go mark didn't hit until mile 20.
After the bridge we got to see our crew again, this time with Nancy and Cameron. We stopped and stretched briefly.
Our old running buddy Jimmy Young appeared in a few miles and ran with us for about 3--not bad considering he had to run back to his car! His energy was appreciated. It was during this section along the bluff, and leading to the Steel Bridge for the finish, that wheels came off. All of the major muscles in my legs began to cramp. Quads, hamstrings, and calves all let me know that I was pushing them well beyond their ability to perform. I was forced to walk much of the last 4 miles. Shawn choose to sacrifice his finish time to stay with me. I cannot think of a more self-less gesture and I am touched by his friendship. His encouragement and patience meant a lot to me out there.



We finished in 4 hours 22 minutes and 5 seconds.

Here are the mile splits:

1. 10:18
   
2. 00:00, (never saw the marker)
   
3. 20:47
   
4. 8:57
   
5. 8:15
   
6. 8:57
   
7. 9:20
   
8. 8:34
   
9. 9:00
   
10. 10:17
    
11. 8:58
    
12. 9:49
    
13. 9:35
    
14. 9:37
    
15. 9:14
    
16. 9:39
    
17. 9:28
    
18. 10:04
    
19. 11:26
    
20. 9:50
    
21. 9:52
    
22. 10:59
    
23. 9:50
    
24. 11:32
    
25. 12:41
    
26. 12:30
    

I was carried home and I soaked in a cold tub and then took a long nap. Later we got the whole crew back together for some post-race replenishment at El Indio's.

I'd Like to Play

Got tagged by a couple of friends for this little quiz.

A book that changed my life besides the Bible:

The Magic of Thinking Big by David J. Schwartz. The part about choosing to listen to the positive broadcasts in you mind over the negative ones shaped who I am today.
Joshua, the Homecoming by Joseph F. Girzone. This book really changed how I thought about Jesus. (Ike handed it to me in 1992.)

A book I’ve read more than once:

Children in the Night by Harold Myra. I've probably read this book 4 times. Ike loaned me his copy in college.

A book I would take with me if I were stuck on a desert island:

Foxfire Book by Eliot Wigginton, (editor) and Students of Eliot Wigginton. This was my Dad's choice as well, what can I say? He learned me right. A book about Hog Dressing, Log Cabin Building, Mountain Crafts and Foods, Planting by the Signs, Snake Lore, Hunting Tales, Faith Healing, and Moonshining? Perfect.

A book that made me laugh:

Marley & Me by John Grogan. A gift from my wife.

A book that made me cry:

A Walk Across America by Peter Jenkins. When his dog died, I cried so hard I had to put the book down.

A book that I wish had been written:

Doing Things Early, How Not to be Last Minute J

A book that I wish had never been written:

I honestly cannot think of one.

A book I’ve been meaning to read:

The Jesus Creed by Scot McKnight
The Divine Conspiriacy by Dallas Willard

I’m currently reading:

Animals in Translation by Temple Grandin
Messy Spirituality by Michael Yaconelli
Coder To Developer by Mike Gunderloy

What are You Reading?

• Mom
• CJ
• Chris

Signposts

I pass this sign on my way to work. When I notice it, I usually do my
best Homer-thinking-about-doughnuts voice and say to myself "mmm, Meth
Church". I wipe the drool from my lip, get quite a giggle, and then
hurry on my way. Could the sign-makers have known that in 2006 the abbreviation would have such a connotation?

On a more serious note, it’s probably where Jesus would be. I’m not ready to call meth users the lepers of today, but I’m sure He’d spend His time with them.

I’m really trying to be a student of Jesus, so that gets me to thinking about my church and if He’d spend any time with us.

A while back RMW asked about churches and Adam wondered how to define them. I didn’t comment on either post, but I’ve been thinking about it and I’ll tell you about something that I dig at my church.

It is hard to miss and it used to kinda bother me, but now I hope it never leaves. You see, there is this little trashcan, the same size as the ones that are under the desk of every office cubical in America. It's tan and has a black liner curling over the edges. What makes it notable is its assigned post.

It sits on the floor of our auditorium along the front wall right next to the stage.

Now our stage is dwarfed by the size of the auditorium’s front wall, so don’t think that because this trash can sits off to the side of the stage it is not front and center—because it is. Right up there in the front, this dumpy little trashcan sits poised for that moment when a speaker has some trash that must be immediately discarded.

Once I moved the trashcan, but before a week passed, it returned. You see, behind this modest trashcan is a hole in the wall. That’s right; an eight inch square hole has been left by some long-since-removed, sound equipment panel. I’m pretty sure that the hole was left by the building’s prior occupants and only became visible a couple of years ago when we downsized our stage. One of our elders, who works part-time as a janitor at the church, put that trashcan there to hide the hole.

For me, that trashcan sits as a reminder that the church should be doing stuff that has nothing to do with the physical appearance of the building. We could spend the money to get it fixed, but our leadership chooses to spend money on ministry—to the detriment of the upkeep of the building.

I like that I worship in a humble building because our money goes to other things like missions and counseling and teens. There are blood drives and abuse support groups and addiction groups and housing challenged people who all use the building. Just this Sunday a representative from the benevolence group stood not 12 feet from that trashcan and with tears in his eyes talked about the people who he had seen blessed by the stuff we spend money on.

Could we do more? Sure. Will somebody volunteer to patch the hole one day? Probably. But I think our priorities are in the right place when a hole goes unpatched and a food box gets filled.

Breaking the "More to Come" Curse

I didn't even know it was happening. But, look at this text from my very first post:

Been thinking about keeping a blog for a while. I'll see if I'm interesting enough to keep this updated. Mostly I'm avoiding some work that needs to be done. Ouch, self-guilt in my first post [sigh], more to come...

After that ill-fated posting I went silent for 13 months.

Then a few weeks ago I penned that treacherous phrase again. Confused by my silence, I've lighted on the explanation, "More to Come" is a curse. I'll try not to say it again.

More to Come

Photo by Christa Hill

We've got lots of stories from our trip, but I haven't penned them all yet. So as a teaser, here's me and the pooch enjoying a waterfall deep in the Wyoming backcountry.

Get Your Own, This One's Mine

Guess what all the cool kids are bumpin’ in the summer of ’06? That’s right the van is makin’ a comeback and it starts in my driveway. We couldn’t see rippin’ cross-country in the LC for 2 weeks, so we bought a used Toyota Sienna. After the roadie, we’ll put it back on Craigslist for the next cool kid.

*Disclaimer: The author of this post is desperately trying to seem cool by overusing apostrophes.