Didn’t have time to blog yesterday, so I’ll do it now. We headed off for church at around 10am. When I arrived we were greeted by several folks from the church, many whom I had met last year while here on my missions trip. One person I was glad to see was Babs – an 80-year old woman who knows my grandfather. After an opening liturgy and some worship, I gave a talk I called “Faith, Fellowship & Fruit.” After church we had tea, and the people bought me out of the 10 books I brought with me. We then headed off for lunch with Clare, Angela, Abigail, Sue, and Nikki at Nando’s. Good times! Following lunch we hopped on the bus and went to Hillsongs Church in the Dominion Theatre. It was a typical Hillsongs service, and the worship was great. After taking the bus back to Battersea we grabbed kebabs for dinner and ate them at the flat. Very yum! Definitely want to have them again before returning home.
London Saturday
Last night we went to bed by 10pm. We were quite exhausted from the jet lag. It didn’t take the girls but two minutes to be sound asleep. Claudia and Ady slept like babies, but Natalia kept waking up and freaking out. She would sit up and shout strange things, get up to leave the room, and kept pointing at the window. Ady and I kept laying her back down and she would conk our again. I woke up at 3am and couldn’t get back to sleep. I decided to listen to my iPod. Before leaving I purchased two audio books: Mistaken Identity and 25 Ways to Win With People by John Maxwell. Mistaken Identity is about the identity mix up of two students involved in the Taylor University van accident in 2006 when my dad worked for the school. I listened to several chapters of each book before going back to sleep around 5am. At 10am we all got up feeling much better than the day before. After breakfast and some reading, we watched a movie. After that I went into the bedroom and took another unexpected nap. I got up around 1pm and we hoped on the bus and went to Battersea Park. It was wonderfully relaxing to just stroll through the park and allow the girls to play on their wonderful playground. The girls did a small zip line as well as a tire swing. They both did so good and demonstrated tremendous bravery! We were very proud of them both. We also walked along the Thames River. I love that place! It’s the park I jogged in almost every day last year during our missions trip. After several hours in the park, we took the bus back. We went to the grocery store and picked up a few items after which we grabbed some fish and chips for dinner. It was delish! After dinner we walked down the street and got some ice cream. Now we’re just hanging out. It’s been a fun and relaxing day.In London!
We arrived safely and on time to London at 7:30 this morning London time. Claudia got about 2 hours of sleep on the plane. Ady and I caught a little nap. Natalia stayed awake the whole time despite our pleas for her to sleep some. After getting through Immigration she was a live wire when we saw our friends Clare and Angela with whom we’re staying, running through the airport and joking during our ride on the tube to their flat. However, as I told Ady, she crashed hard after her jolt of energy. We all hit the wall at about 1pm which was 8am our time, but we went out to eat. Natalia didn’t make it. She was out in the restaurant. We came home around 3 and took a three hour nap. We’re exhausted, but we’re making ourselves stay awake. Well, Ady and I are making the girls stay awake. Natalia especially is having a difficult time. She keeps dozing off and whining when we wake her. She’s trying her best, but it’s so tough on her. Clare has just made some Shepherd’s Pie for dinner, so we’re looking forward to that! Planning our time together and enjoying one another’s company. Well, I shouldn’t speak for the London Ladies … perhaps they’re not having fun having us crash at their flat. I think they are, though.
Moment of Solitude
Today I took about an hour and a half and just headed into the woods with my Bible, a journal, and The Imitation of Christ by Thomas a Kempis. I wanted to just settle my heart before the Lord and give him space to speak to my soul. There were a few things that I felt Him impressing on me, but one that I meditated on and wanted to share here is from Psalm 46:10 which says, “Be still, and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth.” The thing that struck me was how often we think that God is exalted when we are active and busy. Yet this text seems to suggest that the opposite is true. It is when we are still before the Lord that He moves and makes Himself known. This is so that He receives all of the credit. The principle that I wrote down a while back considering this is: When we work, God rests. When we rest, God works. Selah!
Roller Coasters Bore Me
I’ve decided that roller coasters are too far below me. I’ve simply become too mature for them. I much prefer to read while the kiddies scream in horror and/or delight. HA HA HA! Now for the truth … I collect a few things as mementos from my youth ministry adventures. One such thing that I began collecting about 7 years ago is pictures of us on roller coasters. On most roller coasters there are cameras stationed along the ride which snap pictures of you in moments of hysteria. These pictures can then be purchased with the blood of your first-born child. No, I mean for a large sum of money [since they don’t get enough from you for entry]. Each time I tell everyone to do something creative. I’ve reached back and rubbed one of my youth worker’s bald head for a pic. One time our entire group of guys pulled our shirts over our heads and put our shoes on our hands. Sometimes (as in the picture to the left) we just tell everyone to go no-hands. But yesterday at Six Flags Great Adventure in New Jersey I pulled off a new one. I snuck a book onto the ride, and as we were traveling on the world-record-breaking Kingda Ka — the tallest, fastest roller coaster on Earth — which shoots you 45 stories high (that’s 450 feet) at 128 mph, I decided to play it cool and just read while everyone screamed and held on for dear life. The picture was awesome! (There is a video of our ride for you to see … it’s the tall green one in the background.) My group also went on El Toro and Nitro. I had a great time getting to know my small group of students better. I pray that they enjoyed hanging out with this not-cool-anymore-but-thinks-he’s-too-cool-for-roller-coasters-youth pastor guy. May the Lord use this shared experience and the interactions that took place to inspire them to love and serve Jesus!
I Would Rather Do It With My Mom
Rachael Ray. She’s my 10-year old’s cooking hero. She loves watching the cooking channel after school. This summer she has been watching even more cooking shows. And now she is wanting to cook more. A few weeks ago she brought my wife and I eggs at 6 in the morning. We are so not morning people, but I got up and ate them anyways.
With each meal she makes, she is becoming more and more emboldened and confident. Lately we have had to harness her enthusiasm some because she’s getting into stuff in the kitchen and using the stove, and we have been working with her in understanding our need to be present to provide her with appropriate supervision.
Yesterday she decided she wanted to make brownies. My wife was around but didn’t really feel like cooking. After some pleading my wife said she could make them, but she needed to follow the directions very carefully. When the brownies came out they had a strange look and consistency. They were dry and had a strange taste to them. Claudia insisted that she had followed the directions. My wife was not convinced, so she grabbed the box and began going through the instructions step by step asking Claudia if she had done each step accordingly.
When she got to butter, she asked Claudia if she had used butter. Yes, she replied. Did she use 2 cups? No. She couldn’t figure out how to get two cups out of the butter container, and besides, she couldn’t find the measuring cup. So she put in 5 teaspoons of butter. That explained the look.
Eggs? “Well,” Claudia said, “I decided to take one egg out. It seemed like too much.”
Cocoa? “I decided to add more because I thought it would taste better.”
My wife sat Claudia down and explained to her that this was why she needs mom’s assistance as she is learning to cook. She also talked about the importance of measuring and following directions. Claudia said that the cooks on TV don’t measure. My wife explained that they had lots of experience and expertise and she cannot copy their techniques.
Here’s the part that was most beautiful to me. I did not know that this had happened. I came home for lunch yesterday and found a note in the kitchen. I took a picture of it and it is below. My favorite part is the last part that says, “I would rather do it with my mom.” It just underscored the truth that parents have far and away the strongest influence in their kids’ lives. It also was a beautiful picture of the mentoring relationship that should exist between parents and children. It’s also a foundational aspect of youth ministry.
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