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Bring Back the Joy --- B B t J . O r g
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For newer journal entries see Virginia's Journal 2004Q3. Updates for 2004Q2 appear below with the latest information at the top. Wednesday, June 30, 2004 6:43 pm It's still raining. I had the opportunity to drive our Geo Tracker to the gym this morning. I don't think I said it is a 5 speed. Mark taught me to drive one in Alaska. Then we sold his Dodge Colt in about 1993 so I haven't even been exposed to one lately. My family always had automatics. So far, so good. The only time I've killed it was when I rounded a corner on the way to the library and there was a delivery truck in the middle of the street with someone coming around him from the other direction. Of course, my natural instinct was to put on the break but I didn't think about the clutch. My tomato plant has 9 little tomatoes on it. They say it's pretty hard to grow tomatoes here in Colorado Springs. The nights cool off. I had a tomato earlier but it disappears--I suspect a squirrel took it. So hopefully a few of these will survive. I may need to get some sort of cage. I did move it to the barbecue stand which is harder for squirrels to climb up; although they might be able to leap that high. We can't plant in the ground but they do allow us to have plants in pots. Since my neighbor, Wanda, gave me this plant, I would like to have plenty to share with her. My neighbor, Melissa Garren, and I went to Cafe Latte today to enjoy some girl-talk. They moved here in May and haven't had much opportunities to get acquainted. They believe they have a ministry to the homeless or otherwise walking wounded. We have enjoyed "talking shop" in a place with wonderful ambiance. Monday, June 28, 2004, 7:00 pm We've had a busy day. Between the two of us, we went to the gym, got the oil changed in two cars, washed my car, bought car care supplies at Wal-Mart, went by the school to deliver a copy of our mission statement, returned a video to the rental store, and consumed more calories than we needed. My car needs a little more TLC. There's sap spots from the trees that didn't come off in the wash. I've started wiping the car inch by inch with my new Microtex (by Calderon Textiles) micro fiber towel. Mark boned up on the web about micro fibers so we chose a towel version that has fibers that are 100th the size of a human hair. Don't ask me how but it's supposed to absorb water and clean. I was quite happy with the trial run. With fingernails and the towel, I erased a number of the sap spots. Saturday, June 26, 2004, 5:49 pm It's been a long week. Tourist season is at full tilt despite the rain. Our park is "full" every night. With 4th of July coming up, our next 4 days on should be super busy. Kind of like Wednesday. We were so busy that I didn't get to the bathroom during the entire shift. Fortunately it's only a short walk to our RV from the office. As we've been preparing for our future travels, one of the considerations is what vehicles we need and how to tow them. Mark has been graciously planning to sell his van and keep my Mazda Miata convertible as our "only car" because I love it so much. For several weeks, the Holy Spirit has been reminding me that in 2000, I had said that I'd be content to have the car for a season and get rid of it when there was a need for something more practical. Mark's wish was to get a short 4wd vehicle which is towable and less than 12 ft long to fit into our box van for long distance hauling. This would be something like a Chevy Geo Tracker or a Toyota RAV4. We found that they've stopped making the 2 door model which is shorter. I finally told Mark that I thought/think we should sell my car first and look for a replacement. I had been praying about it; asking God to help us find something that would fit Mark's requirements and make me happy, too. God sure answers prayers! Just call us Barbie and Ken! Thursday, a couple checked into the Park; when they gave the info on their car for registration, I said we're planning to look for a vehicle like that. They said that they were interested in selling. So they talked to Mark who agonized and looked up stuff on the web all night. It was a little older than we'd wanted but has a rebuilt engine so that's still fairly new. The former owner is an aircraft mechanic and bought this vehicle with the new engine in it. Since then he's been carefully maintaining and fixing all sorts of things including a brand new soft top. The soft top can be rolled back so I get the sun roof I had asked for. Plus I had hoped for an unusual color; this is a sort of light metallic blue/green color. And the size is perfect--it's small like me. So instead of a Barbie convertible, I'll be driving a Barbie jeep! (Chevy Tracker). So even though my eyes mist a little when thinking of the Miata, I certainly see the goodness of God in providing a replacement that fits our requirements and makes us happy. We have reasons for hanging on to Mark's van for a little while longer but hopefully by the end of the summer we'll be ready to sell it, too. Please pray for buyers for both vehicles as we get them ready for sale. Thursday, June 24, 2004, 10:37 am Mark and I have been working on projects during our time off. We work on a four days on/four days off schedule. This afternoon is when we start again. Since the rain stopped, the temperatures have risen again. We're working on our mailing list and next newsletter. Wednesday, June 23, 2004, 3:59 pm We had a number of days with rain. More was forecasted but yesterday was beautiful all day. Today so far we have blue skies without any clouds. It'd usually mid afternoon when it clouds up but it hasn't so far. This morning, Betsy who apprenticed at school this past year came to visit us. After visiting with Mark a while, we ran a couple of errands and then took ourselves for the KFC $1.99 special. It was a special morning. As you have probably figured out, I have been taking further interest in health and diet. Working on my general health (through diet and exercise) along with my doctors' input can only be a good thing. I've been reading the Fat Flush Plan by Ann Louise Gittleman. While I and not tried the diet and do not make any claims about this plan, the physiological material is informative. The idea of this plan is to cleanse the liver, whereby it works better and will help process toxins as you diet. Yesterday, Mark went with me to the Aqua Moves class. Men don't usually attend but the ladies took it in stride. Mark tried to stay in the deeper water so he wouldn't swamp anyone with big waves. The Tuesday evening class is a more intense workout; I noticed the age level was slightly younger as well. However, I do have to applaud the older ladies for coming out to exercise. I've been using my bread machine quite regularly. I've consistently had problems with the bread rising nicely and then falling. The last couple of times I cut down the amount of yeast. I've been using quick rise yeast in a jar with the recipe calling for two teaspoons. So I spooned it up where I can just see the edge of the teaspoon. Although the loaf didn't turn out quite as large, it also didn't fall. Saturday, June 19, 2004, 7:06 pm Time during this week sure has flown. I've thought all day that it was only Friday. Mark and I have been working during this second half of the week. He returned on Wednesday as scheduled. We had time to heat up some lunch and then dash to work. It was hard for him after being up all night. We had lots of new guests to the Park on Thursday and Friday. Not a moment to slow down. Thursday, they kind of dribbled in but yesterday everyone came in clumps which is always confusing. We've had some wonderful rain after days of dryness. We really need it here in Colorado; however, if is hard on tourism. One thing of note: I called to Pikes Peak this afternoon. While it was raining here, they reported that it was clear and beautiful at 14, 110 feet. Last week, our neighbors who moved here in May and work at the Park went to church with me. Melissa just told us she'd like to come with us again tomorrow. Her husband is gone on a quick trip since they are off this current shift. So I hope she enjoys the service as much as last week. I've been going to the Aqua Moves class at the gym. It's amazing how active a workout it can be. The teacher today told us various things about water resistance training and its benefits. I do enjoy the water classes; however, I prefer to go to the gym in the early morning when less people are there. It also kills the whole morning when one considers driving time, and interrupting whatever one is doing. Tuesday, June 15, 2004, 5:25 pm I haven't heard from Mark to the contrary so I expect that means he'll be on a plane this evening to arrive back here tomorrow morning. I'm sure he's been busily getting things together. We have communicated a number of times. Yesterday was a wonderful day. My friend, Connie, came down from Aurora to visit. We caught up on everything that has happened since March when I visited her. We took a tour of Patsy's Candy Factory and then went to lunch at Wines of Colorado Creekside Dining. It was so wondering relaxing on the patio overlooking the babbling brook. We could have stayed there all afternoon. It was a perfect day to be in the shade; warm enough not to be cold. However, we decided we needed to exercise after all the calories we consumed during the tour and over lunch. Therefore, we sauntered through Manitou Springs. After doing a couple of my errands, then we walked down Colorado Ave to see some of the shops. One antique tea shop offered us iced peach tea and key lime tarts. That was a pleasant surprise and sold Connie on buying. I have to say that the only thing I bought that day was a pin with my name on it. I plan to wear it to work; I like having a name tag. I've been doing paperwork today. Mark and I just drown in paper. I just sorted through the mail that came this week. If we don't keep on top of it, mail stacks up. I've been working on filing today. We've been having a long although light rain this afternoon. It usually clouds up every afternoon but usually we have about two minutes of rain which doesn't serve our needs. I hope it will rain more this evening. I took a walk around the Park; the temperature is just right. Saturday, June 12, 2004, 1:39 pm It's been a great day. I got up this morning fixed breakfast and then cut my hair and showered. The I decided to have an outing to the Will Rogers' Shrine of the Sun. It's included in the price of the zoo. I arrived two late the other day to take in both activities so they graciously gave me a rain check for the Shrine. This exhibit about the life of Will Rogers and the Penrose family (original settlers of Colorado Springs) is the best kept secret of Colorado Springs. The drive to the top of Cheyenne Mountain is stupendous. It was a perfect morning for sight seeing. Well, actually there was one things that wasn't so great today. I went next door to see my neighbor and the chaise lounge collapsed when I sat on the end instead of the middle. It was totally my fault and I have a bruised bottom to show for it. I just sat there in a fog for a while and let Melissa talk until I recovered. I kind of hurt all over. This evening I will attend the House Church started by friends from CBC. I have made cole slaw and a tuna macaroni casserole as my contribution to the meal. Our study tonight is on the Parable of the 10 Virgins of Matthew 25. I expect to hear the variety of opinions plus insights on the scriptures. I have been reading during my time alone and have completed three book reviews that you might be interested to read: The Gospel of the Kingdom by George Ladd, Living in the Balance of Grace and Faith by Andrew Wommack, and How to Keep Healthy & Happy by Fasting by Salem Kirban. Thursday, June 10, 2004, 6:59 pm I received an unexpected reprieve from work today. Our boss came along and said he'd redone the schedule and given me the rest of the week off since Mark wasn't here anyway. We're on the schedule again starting next Wednesday. So I've been answering email this afternoon. I also have bread in the bread maker. Mark is working hard meeting with people about the property access. He had to hire a surveyor. One nice non-work thing is that he's made contact with various people he knew. Our church was close-knit and he has some life long friends still in Alaska. The unexpected holiday has caused a kink in the works. I've been putting Liquid Gold on the woodwork inside the RV. Our humidifier quit earlier this spring and we're going through some dry weather. We noticed one of our walls is looking a little dry. So one of my projects has been to go over the woodwork. Today the "house" smells like bread with an underlayer of almond. Tuesday, June 8, 2004, 5:16 pm I guess I've done the last of the tourist things--at least on the host weekend pass. Yesterday I visited the North Pole/Santa's Workshop which is at the foot of Pike's Peak. It is a cute little amusement park for children with lots of rides. I really enjoyed the train; the narrator told about the settling of Colorado and of course, about the facility. A number of the rides were quite twirly so I mostly rode on the tame ones that wouldn't upset my head/stomach. In the middle of the visit, I had to go to the car to get my water; I realized I was becoming dehydrated. The North Pole has a post office; too bad I had already put my outgoing mail in the box at the RV Park that morning. It was one of the hottest days we'd had so far. So I came home to rest for a while before going to the zoo. I was glad I did. I hiked all over the Cheyenne Mountain Zoo. It is literally on the side of the mountain so it up and down. But I really enjoyed it. I had a good chuckle when I overhead a small boy come out of the animal houses saying "it really stinks; I'm about to throw up." I wish I could remember which location; I have to admit that my stomach had to agree with him. I wasn't aware that the Will Rogers Shrine was connected with the zoo. Since I was there late in the day, they gave me a week's rain check note saying that I could go to the Shrine another day. Today, I went to Miramont Castle. This was built in 1995 for a priest and his mother who came from France. They were connected with the Sisters of Mercy Sanitarium. The Castle is a four story house that was built against the side of a hill. At first it was a private resident but later the Sisters moved in after the sanitarium building burned. At one point it was used as an apartment building. The Historical Society has been restoring the building and furnishing it c1995. The Tea Room opened today. Although it was tempting, I opted to skip eating at the Tea Room since I was by myself. This has been one of those lovely domestic days. I did a load of wash and have been polishing the woodwork of the bus. We have beautiful oak cabinets and walls. I've neglected them during this past year. It's dry here in Colorado so my walls are showing dryness. I've gotten about half of the woodwork wiped down. My afternoon was interrupted when I had to go buy another can of Liquid Gold. We're having our strange weather where it gets overcast and rains for about two seconds every afternoon. On Saturday evening we had high winds and a light rain. The ladies in the laundry room were discussing how dusty everything got during that wind storm. I had noticed that I was encountering a lot of dust in my cleaning today but I've been so busy that I hadn't thought where it was coming from. Tomorrow Jo and Chuck Reynolds (friends from school) invited me to lunch with them. I'm waiting for a phone call this afternoon with details. The only other "excitement" was a phone call asking if we could come help some people move on Friday afternoon. I felt bad that I had to say that Mark is out of town and I'd be working. Sunday, June 6, 2004, 6:00 pm Just got home from a long day. Mark left Saturday morning; I worked in the afternoon. I realized during my shift that the Garden of the God's Visitor Center is now open in the evening. Since I was "footloose and fancy free" I ran up there to see the center and the film as part of the host weekend activities (see June 1). The film had good material except it had a lot of flying over mountains and water tricking. Those type of films make my head swim so I didn't feel too good when it was over. But I did enjoy the gift shop. They had a lot of "made in Colorado" items. I have to say that even if I wasn't interested in buying, it was kind of nice to be able to putter and look without worrying how bored Mark was. The Visitor Center had a number of pictures from the early days of Colorado Springs. So overall, I really enjoyed my evening there. The Charis Christian Center picnic was this afternoon after church at Bear Creek Park. The youth group had made Barbecue and the rest of use brought assorted side dishes and desserts. After things wound down, I used the host pass to go to the Fine Arts Center which is a museum. They had a lot of tapestries and pottery. From there I went to Ghost Town. That's a neat place to visit. It's like a little town set up in their building. By punching a button, one hears about the store/building. They have taken actual buildings and items from many Colorado towns. Their film telling about the settling of Colorado was very good. I was tempted to watch it a second time. However, I was pretty tired so decided to come home and tell you about it. Friday, June 4, 2004, 8:05 pm We're busily getting ready for Mark's trip to Alaska. He's needing to go check on our property up there. They cut off access when the subdivision went in and naturally it became a problem to the people on our property. He'll leave tomorrow. I have plenty to keep me busy while he's gone. A long list of chores plus some fun stuff. I had a checkup for my blood pressure yesterday. The current medication seems to be working well. We're still hoping that I can get my weight down , exercise, etc. I've been wrestling with the same five pounds for a month (with all the special activities). I've also been trying to work through some issues that I believe are causing excess stress in my life. The clinic agreed to order the tests my oncologist wants since they are just general things to see how my body is holding up. It's better to do it through the clinic here. So I'll get the blood drawn next week. It has been very hectic at the park the last couple of days. We didn't work over the Memorial Day weekend so we missed that rush. We had several people come in to inquire for the future plus a lot of people checked in. If you ever wish to come to Colorado in your RV, reservations are highly recommended. Apparently we really fill up during the summer in comparison to parks in other states. Wednesday, June 1, 2994, 2004, 8:56 pm We've had a fantastic few days. Pikes Peaks Attractions Association has a special promotion to let people from the tourism industry into attractions for a limited time. The idea is that we can enthusiastically recommend that visitors to this area visit different tourist attractions if we've actually gone and enjoyed it. Friday evening we went to the Flying W Ranch. It's a barbecue dinner and Show. On Monday we took the day off (nothing was scheduled) to go to Royal Gorge (RG). It's about an hour away from us. The RG is one of the many scenic spots in Colorado. We took advantage of most of the things to see and do in the area. We started the day with the Royal Gorge Route Railroad. Then to Buckskin Joe's and the Scenic Railway. Then the Royal Gorge Bridge and Park which included the Air Tram over the Gorge and the Incline Railroad. We saw the RG from every angle except actually in the water and had our fill of "trains." We saw everything from Magic Shows to music to shopping. My great shopping buy was a mood ring with Mark's tip money. The first day Mark worked he was given tips (none since--but none are expected). We'd put them aside for doing something fun or laundry (whichever came first). I've wanted a mood ring ever since they were popular in the 70s. It appears to me that they don't cost any more now than they did then. After our return to Colorado Springs, we decided to finish off the day by going to Cave of the Winds and the Laser Canyon. Our free ticket was for the basic tour through the caverns. We heard all about stalagmites and stalactites. It was a good tour. They offer three different tours. This one was the easy one but a person still had to be able to walk a half mile and crouch in spots. We didn't have any problems but some people moved slowly. We didn't get home until past bedtime; we were bushed the next day. Yesterday we went to the Pro Rodeo Hall of Fame. It turned out to be quite interesting. I especially liked the Bronze statues of all sizes. We enjoyed the film on Rodeo history. Because of time we didn't stay for the film of current rodeos. Another place we visited this week was the Manitou Cliff Dwellings. Apparently indians lived in the area for a number of yours in the late 1800s. The Cliff Dwellings have been a tourist attraction since 1907. It's interesting to think that a hundred years ago people were going "site seeing" just like we do today. We spend part of this evening getting acquainted with our new neighbors. They'll be working here at the park as well. One set of our workers is leaving shortly to go to our RV park near St. Louis. The Garrens are their replacements. Robert and Melissa are also Christians and have a ministry connected with rescue missions. They just came here after several months of working in missions in Arizona. Melissa's son just returned from Iraq so they've come here to spend time with him and his family. Sunday, May 30, 2004, 4:45 pm We just got back from sauntering down the street to Territory Days. As expected it was mostly a bunch of "booths" with various things to sell. We managed not to buy anything except an ice cream at the Colorado Creamery. That's a regular ice cream store on W. Colorado Ave. We had pistachio plus peanut butter chocolate. A very good combination. A Country Western Band was playing in the band shell at Bancroft Park. We witnessed a "gun fight." While at the Park we ran into some friends from CBC. That was neat to see some familiar faces. Friday, May 28, 2004 11:04 am Today is our last day of work for this week. I anticipate that it will be a busy one because a lot of people are coming in for Memorial Day weekend. Old Colorado City is having its Territory Days celebration. Colorado City was the original capital of Colorado and the original portion of what has become Colorado Springs. Rocky Mountain Christian Center in Green Mountain Falls has been having their Word Explosion. Pastor Jerry Meston brings in guest speakers and there are morning and evening services. He likes to have additional speakers so all teaching does not come from him. Ron Wilburn from Oklahoma was the speaker on Monday night when we attended. He spoke about prosperity. Pastor Jerry was the teacher of our Counseling class. It was interesting to see him in the pastor role. We also attended the Explosion on Wednesday evening. John Bayley gave a reggae concert which was well received. Several people from CBC were there on Monday evening. We saw Lesley Decker and her daughter Mary on Wednesday. Tom and Lesley are moving to Coventry, England to be the directors of the UK CBC. Tom left Tuesday to go house hunt while Lesley starts to shut down their farm. They plan to leave after the CBC Family Conference in July. On Tuesday I had one of those unnecessary accidents. I had a paperback book in the hand which I used to open the microwave door. I didn't take into account the space taken up by the book so smashed the book into my face. Fortunately it missed by pupil but I have a paper cut. We've taped my eye shut so my eyelid won't keep going up and down over the rough edges of the cut. It feels better today. However, I'm feeling a little out of balance from seeing through only one eye. Wednesday was our eighteenth wedding anniversary. I'm looking forward to 20 as a biggie milestone. Tonight we're going to the Flying W Ranch. Our park manager says that's the "best bang for your bucks" in Colorado Springs. We've actually been given free meals as part of a promotion for people in the tourist trade to know about their services and recommend them to visitors. On Tuesday afternoon. Saturday, May 22, 2004, 1:02 pm This coming Wednesday is our 18th wedding anniversary. Hard to believe so many years have passed. Probably because we don't have children to watch change. Although many of our friends are sending their kids off to college. This evening we have the House Church again meeting at Sarah Boor's home this time. I've decided to make garlic mashed potatoes and biscuits. The potatoes are boiling. I'll have to get started on the biscuits soon. Friday, May 21, 2004, 11:05 am We've been working every afternoon this week but have today through Monday off. We're enjoying being able "to just stay home." Although I did get up and go to the gym this morning. I'm still trying to maintain my getting up early schedule; however, it sure is nice not to have a deadline of 5 am for dashing off to the gym. Mark volunteered to change a tire on our older neighbor's motor home. He's been trying all week to get the lug nuts loose after 5 years of sitting. Last night we went to Home Depot and bought a long heavy duty pipe that he could put in the handle of his tool and get more leverage. He tried again this morning and found this new method worked. This evening we're going to work on a friend's computer and have dinner. That's our deal for friends. We'll come spend an evening of socializing and he'll work on the computer for a couple of hours instead of charging. Monday, May 17, 2004, 6:05 am We took the bus for a drive yesterday. It had been too long since we'd taken it out. We have several things we need to do this morning. We have work this afternoon. Our neighbor Wanda gave me a tomato plant. I got a pot yesterday so got it transplanted. We can't plant things in the ground but can have potted plants in the park. It will be interesting to see how tomatoes do in Colorado Springs. We were always successful with them in Aurora. This is a nice Beefsteak tomato. Well, I'm off to the gym this morning. I woke up at normal time but have been doing other things since getting out of bed so need to dash out the door. It'll be nice not having the deadline of school hours so I don't have to rush. But I do want to keep getting up early since my body does better on an early schedule. Saturday, May 16, 2004, 9:30 pm We graduated!!!! Have a beautiful diploma and a Certificate of License to do ministry. It's been an emotional but fantastic week with all the end of school activities. We left the house before 8:00 am this morning to head to the Promotional Breakfast. We finally left about 6:30 pm. They had to sweep Mark and me out. During the day, we had lots of time to introduce our family to our friends and meet their families. It's often awkward for families to be in a strange setting having to talk to people they don't know. Andrew Wommack made the rounds of each table to meet people. Since he's from Texas, that gave him some common ground with Daddy. The speeches at both graduation and the promotion breakfast were uplifting. The common thread was you've been here at school; now it's time to go out and put what you've learned into practice. Ken Ziembo and Jill Reece represented the students. Ken was very funny yet had a point about the courage it takes to leave the familiar to come to school. Jill included her testimony as part of her speech. She's pregnant with twins which is a miracle because she had tubal ligation which could not be reversed. We were in the group that was recognized for serving at the Helpline this year. Three of the students sang Be Thou My Vision a capella. It was beautiful. It got very hot in the room with all the warm bodies. Mark was wearing his suit under his robe so was sweltering. In the morning I'd worn a long dress I've had since 1998; it was nice to be able to pull out something something people haven't seen. I wore a light cotton dress under my robe was wasn't too uncomfortable. One of the apprentices got Mark some ice water when she saw him about to pass out from the heat. It was a relief when everyone could begin moving around again. Corinne's daughter came down from Leadville this afternoon. They went off to have some mother/daughter time which gave us time to be with alone with Daddy. Thursday, May 13, 2004 9:57 pm It's bedtime but I wanted to write a quick note. We just got back from Denver where we've been for a business appointment and to check out a seminar given by our friends at Pleasant Valley Church in Thomaston, GA. We ran into Pat Brandt (and her husband) who used to work for us. Also saw several other friends. So that was a nice bonus in addition to being able to see Pastor Henry and his wife Donna. We got there two late to catch the afternoon session; since we got to see people, we decided not to stay for the evening session of the seminar. During our absence from Colorado Springs, my father and Corinne arrived. We did talk on the phone. They took a tour of Van Briggle Pottery. It'll be nice to have them here. Tomorrow morning they plan to go to Garden of the Gods while we're having our graduation rehearsal. Then we'll see about what to do in the afternoon. By the way, our Good Samaritan Skit went well during the entertainment at the end of the year party the school had today. The actors hammed it up so made it a comedy with a message. I was the narrator which meant I read the passage from the Bible. Mark was the Jewish Man that was beat up. Our friend Larry originally played that part; he was in another skit plus Praise and Worship so begged off from being in our skit too. Personally, I don't blame him. Sunday, May 9, 2004, 1:25 pm Another busy weekend. I've been cleaning the carpets yesterday. You will recall that I spilt a mug of strong hot tea and dribbled beet juice. I'm happy to say that the beet juice came up and the tea stain has lightened to the degree that a casual observer would never realize it is there. Mark got the propane tank installed. In addition he spent time on the computer so the April/May 2004 online newsletter has been posted. In the evening we went to the House Church (referred to in my May 2nd posting). My phone rang more times during the evening than it normally does in a week. My family called and a friend who wanted me to bring something to school on Monday. The food was great. Everybody seems to be going out of their way to be creative. I took a tortilla/ground meat dish; the recipe was given to me by my friend Dahlia Abraham about ten years ago. Mark said the thought it was the best dish there. Which was quite a compliment considering who good the other food was. One of the men led a discussion about Hearing from the Holy Spirit. It was one of the best discussions in which I've ever been involved. People were honest and vulnerable. I have been so excited about a couple of books that I have been reading. I have posted reviews on The God Chasers and The Precious Blood . This afternoon, we are headed to a cookout at the home of second year students. They wanted to have one last day with friends. I've got a crock pot full of beans. Friday, May 7, 2004, 2:46 pm One more week until school ends. Hard to believe this year is over; the time went too quickly. Many have wondered what are our future plans? As I said on April 28th, we agreed to work at the RV Park this summer. The manager, David Fisher, rearranged the training schedule so we'll start this coming Monday and work for three days before my family arrives from Texas. I am so excited. We have several tentative trips planned for the summer. David indicated that he will help us in swapping shifts. The main thing is to get in the hours. We plan to use the non-working hours of the summer to go through our storage and continue refining our BBtJ web site. In addition, we have ordered CDs of the first year classes that are now offered that we didn't get via correspondence. So we want to spend time listening to those classes. We had a little excitement today. Wayne gave Mark grace to turn in a paper this afternoon (instead of this morning). So after he finished it up, he ran it over to the school and locked the keys in the car with the motor running. That's the problem with wearing shorts without pockets. So he called to ask if I could come with my keys. So I got on my bicycle and sped over to the school. I think it's a little over a mile which isn't a bad jaunt. My thighs protested a little because I've been doing resistance training for legs. I had a cramp this morning so did arms instead--for which I'm glad since my muscles were calling me while on the bicycle. The other positive note today was that the missions director gave a review of the Team Project presentations. She said she thought our Team 6 Women's Ministry was the best overall presentation. We had thoroughly done the assignment and had turned in all the required paperwork. I was really gratified since I worked hard on my part of it. Wednesday, May 5, 2004 5:11 pm It seems like something always is going on to keep us off balance. While I was in the middle of proofreading Mark's paper of I&II Thessalonians, we decided we were getting sewer smell. When Mark went out to open the tanks, he realized it was propane smell, not sewer. Evidently our external tank has gotten low enough that it's letting stuff out since we don't have the internal tank put back in. Mark wants to make sure we have no more water leaks in the water system which is behind where the propane tank "lives." The long-armed friend who has helped us re-install the propane tank the last two times was joking that he went to Russia to keep from having to help us. Mark has been studying on this for months and hopes to be able to do the work himself this time. The problem is the bolts are on the back side of the propane tank so one has to hold up the tank (Mark uses a jack) while reaching under, back and up to screw on bolts by the Braille method since the tank obstructs vision. It take someone with fairly long arms. We want to make sure the air inside the bus is clear before we turn on any fires. I plan to revise certain dinner foods so I can do it all with the toaster oven and the microwave instead of the propane stove. We've got the doors and windows open. For your information, I have posted the
Good Samaritan Skit
and my What I Learned
in Church Planting this Year
paper to this site. Tuesday, May 4, 2004, 7:32 pm We thought we were going to start work at the RV park today. However, when we arrived, we discovered that we'd not gotten a schedule and our training has been put off until next Monday. We were glad since we have plenty to do this week. Yesterday afternoon we went to the dentist and received a clean bill of
dental health. Sunday, May 2, 2004, 5:00 pm The Children's Ministry sponsored picnic went well. The crowd wasn't as large as we had hoped. However, everyone who attended seemed to enjoy their time. Mark and I did a tug of war with some little people and some big people. The "girls" were afterwards comparing muscles. I was gratified to see that even though I have a soft layer of fat on my arm, my muscle was bigger than the younger girls who should be in their prime. Saturday evening, Mark and I had the opportunity to attend a House Church
being started by some CBC students as their Team Project. Their
group was a church plant in America. So they decided to do it.
They are meeting on Saturday evening at the homes of the students.
The format is focusing on fellowship and worship. Each
time will vary depending on the leading of the Holy Spirit. I
counted 15 adults, 12 children and 2 "babysitters." So that was
a pretty good crowd for a House Church. They need to clarify and
solidify a little before growing. Thursday, April 29, 2004, 3:31 pm We have nine days of classes left. We're being given final assignments and schedules for testing. Grades have to be in next Friday. The last three days of schools are freebies, three days of learning without pressure to remember for a test. Saturday is the picnic sponsored by the Children's Ministry elective class. I haven't figured out what I'll take yet. It's not a potluck; we take what we want--usually people share. Then next Friday evening the Women's Ministry is having an evening covered dish dinner. There's a baby shower on Saturday the 8th that I'd like to go to if I'm not working. Mark and I are starting work on Tuesday, May 4th. That gets us through
the picnic and dental appointments for which we already have commitments.
Everything else will just have to be worked in around the
"job." Presumably I'll be working in the office doing registration
while Mark gets to do things like pick up trash and guide incoming
guests into their allotted spaces. You may ask why we don't look
for job more fitting our abilities? This time we are wanting to
go where God pleases. We can't be doing ministry if our time is
consumed with full time secular jobs. Wednesday, April 28, 2004, 5:00 pm I finished the Baby Afghan I was crocheting. Sharon Patrick, one
of our CBC apprentices has befriended a single mother-to-be. Therefore,
she asked the students if anyone would contribute to gifts for her.
I've been wanting to start crocheting again. I thought
this was a good way to start. I did a basic ripple with variegated
yarn with the colors being blue, purple and pink. I thought
it looked nice when I finished. Donna Hodge, my neighbor in
the park and fellow CBC student explained how to make the final knot and
weave in the places where I changed yarn. Monday, April 26, 2004, 6:52 pm Friday evening we visited a church to which we'd never gone before, Creative Faith Ministries . The pastor spoke on healing, a topic in which I'm always interested. He told of his healing over a period of time of Multiple Sclerosis. He encouraged us to listen to God and step forward in obedience; this will create a unity with God and open ourselves to healing. I know I've worded that so it sounds sort of New Age. But it wasn't that way at all; I just don't know how to better explain it. This afternoon we had a meeting with the head of Discipleship Evangelism. We've been interested in using many of the teachings and materials in our ministry. As yet, it is undetermined as to if we will be receive permission to post the DE materials to our web site. However, we were able to explain a little about our ministry and the desires of our hearts to our readers. All this past week I've been losing the weight I regained from pigging
out on the wonderful meals they served at Snow Mountain Ranch.
It took me all week but... A few days ago, I finally
connected with a personal trainer at the gym, 24 hour Fitness. During
a weight loss clinic I attended in March, they said they would be willing
to do a fat test periodically. I'm happy to say that I'm lost
almost 2% body fat from all my exercising. Unfortunately, I've
still got a number of percentages to go. I was given a beautiful
dress that is only slightly tight around the middle that I'd like to
wear to graduation. So I have an incentive. Friday, April 23, 2004, 1:55 pm A number of us arrived at the school at the usual time. We'd had a guest speaker, Greg Fritz, for the past two days and many of us didn't want to miss his last message if he showed up. Mark called the Dean of Students just as the Administrator showed up. Kay and Wayne agreed that if Greg agreed to come on over from his hotel, she'd open the school and let us have our special lecture. People started calling other students on their cell phones. Probably about a third of the usual amount was there--but it sure was worth it. Greg has been teaching us about Old Testament prophesies that were fulfilled by Christ (the Messiah). I have to say that even though I've read those scriptures, I've never seen it put together like that--into an easy form that could be understood by anyone. I'm anticipating a busy weekend. This evening we plan to visit a church we heard about; they have a Friday service as well as the Sunday service. We've regularly been attending Charis Christian Center. Although we like it, I still enjoy visiting other churches. Tomorrow, I plan to do a Discipleship Evangelism study with Colleen from Nebraska. Hopefully I'll get the rest of the graduation invitations ready to mail. Somewhere in there I should fit in a load or two of laundry. I also should mentally prepare for an impromptu speech that is coming us. Except for final tests, Mark and I are pretty well finished with projects.
With the exception that I volunteered us to be in the entertainment
committee for the end of school party. Mark and I want to
pull out the skit we did in Mexico and do it for the group. There's
extra stuff we could add, depending on how long our time slot will
be. Wednesday, April 21, 5:00 pm Is there any way to get tea stains out of pale green carpet? I tried
one of the popular brands of stain remover as well as OxyClean
without major results. I dumped a large mugful of hot
tea on myself so I not only have a light burn on my arm but spots all
over my kitchen floor. Any ideas? Monday, April 19, 2004, 4:50 pm Thanks for those of you who have sent donations toward the Mission Fund in response to the Spring Walkathon letter we sent out. It takes time for them to process and get the info to us. I apologize if the delay has made me seem negligent in contacting you. We had a wonderful time at Snow Mountain Ranch in Winter Park. Jo, Abi and I arrived early on Thursday since Jo was working with sound. The young man who does sound at the school needed to set up so he could get back to his afternoon job. The majority of the women arrived in the early afternoon; we weren't able to access our rooms until 3 pm. However, we managed to entertain ourselves. The first meeting was after the evening meal. I have typed my notes of the conference. It was awesome for those of us who were there. It's hard to summarize the topic. Both speakers, Kay LeFever and Karen Duncan, more or less encouraged the women to get close to God and follow his purpose for our lives. The most awesome things was that on the first day I met a woman I'll call Doris (to maintain privacy). She confided to me that although she had dedicated her life to God some years ago, that she had never been and had a strong desire to be water baptized. I told her that we should be able to do it while there at the conference. She was excited to hear this. I spoke with Kay, who was heading the conference, who graciously authorized us to proceed without supervision. Therefore, on Friday afternoon, Doris and I went through some scriptures regarding the meaning and symbolism of Water Baptism. Geri Betts joined me and Doris in the pool for the "ceremony." This was a learning experience to be able to put what we learned in school to practice. They had taught us that there doesn't have to be a specific formula for a baptism; however, there are specific points/ideas one should cover. So we did... It was an awesome experience to be part of this. I trust that Doris will view this as a turning point in her life. To read more about the events of that day. ...I'm excited to have been able to put our learning to practical use. Obviously, our school believes that everyone is a minister. And that we women can perform clerical tasks. In this case, there weren't any men around. Most of the time we defer to the men, simply because that's the norm. We do recognize that men are our leaders. However, this doesn't mean that women aren't authorized to do things even if men are around. In case you are wondering, this paragraph is a reaction to a friend having written me that the Bible says women can only minister if a man is not present and then only to other women and to children. Each of us has to decide what our beliefs are on this subject and to what extend we do or do not feel comfortable to do in ministering. Wednesday, April 14, 2004, 7:57 pm We had water coming out from under the bus again this morning. Mark will have to get under there tomorrow to verify it's just a hose. He thinks it is probably the hose he replaced last time; that he should have used a different kind of hose. Something about pressure. We started our "10 minute talks" today in the Teaching Interactive Group.
This is the class many people dread because one has to give
two speeches. I didn't get called on today for which I was
glad since I wasn't as prepared as I would have liked. I'll
finish writing it up over the weekend. The first speech can be about
any topic. The second one is an impromptu (which is what people
dread) from a list of possible topics. However, they give a scenario
so one has to tailor what is said to that scenario. (You are speaking
to a group about healing whose pastor's wife just died so they doubt that
God heals anymore.) One can prepare a little by thinking about the
topic; but it's not like the speech can be written out. The good news
is that they give people a good grade if they say anything since the impromptu
scares people so much. The lesson is that in ministry, many times
one is needing to respond to what is going on at the time rather than being
able to give a prepared topic. Tuesday, April 13, 2004, 4:16 pm Our Children's Ministry presentation was a success. At least the teacher was nice enough to say that we did as well or better than people who have had experience with children. One of the apprentices has his 4 year old with him at school today. And the Dean of Student's 11 year old daughter was there for some reason. So we had two real children in the regular class had a good time behaving like children. Our classroom is rimmed by offices. I could hear the registrar giggling at the antics of our "grownup children." At the end she came out and said she was amazed at how quickly we all reverted to being children. Our last meeting for our team project is tomorrow. Our presentations begin next week. Guess tomorrow we'll iron out the final details. I'm looking forward to being able to do a final print. The team project is where they've divided the second year class into groups (such as Planting a new church, Missions, Adult Studies, Women's Ministry); we're supposed to research and write up a plan for achieving a scenario. I'm doing Women's Ministry and Mark is in Para-Church. The other ladies in my group wanted to put on a seminar. I'm just glad we aren't actually having to do it. Planning is hard enough Monday, April 12, 2004, 10:45 am We had a lovely Resurrection Day yesterday. I got up early and went to Dorchester Park for a post-sunrise service sponsored by Liza's Place, a gospel home for Women. Since it had snowed the day before, attendance was lighter than expected. Volunteers had brought breakfast burritos, ham, fruit, and an assortment of other goodies. Two students from CBC provided the music and sermon. Then Mark and I decided to check out Cowboy Church . One of our acquaintances attends there and we've been intrigued by the concept of having a church that ministers to certain hobbies and lifestyles. People were dressed primarily in Western Wear. We found a group of people who were natural and unassuming. In general, it was a comfortable place to worship. I picked up a copy of The Case for Easter by Lee Strobel. I read
it yesterday in honor of Christ's death, burial and resurrection.
This book gives concrete arguments from history and logic
that support Christ having really died and been resurrected. I
have done a Review of
The Case for Easter
. I need to finish up my project for Children's Ministry today. It's
due tomorrow. I've been learning how to play Jesus Loves
Me on the piano. Mark and I are going to do a puppet skit
about Jesus loving children and then sing several of the various
verses of Jesus Loves Me. Saturday, April 10, 2004, 7:00 pm I brought home part of my meal but still ate almost my day's allotment of calories. I've gotten serious about cutting out sweets and other things I shouldn't be eating with my health conditions. Even though I'm not religiously following a diet, it has been interesting to use the online program at FitDay.Com . It has helped me with the decision making process when preparing meals and making the shopping list. I have lost weight as a result of cutting out so much junk foods. Not that I ate horribly but one doesn't always consider how much bread, butter, sugar in the tea, the extra cookie, etc.. that goes into the mouth. Today is my father's 78th birthday. I hope it is an enjoyable day. My sister is planning to drive down this afternoon to spend the night with him. I'll call in a little bit. Friday, April 9, 2004, 7:24 pm On Tuesday, we had the pleasure of getting to have lunch with Andrew Wommack and Don Krow. Andrew and Mark had had a conversation last week that didn't go as well as it could have. In further prayer about it, he said that God revealed to him that Mark has a good heart. So he wanted to talk with us so things could be clarified and further communications opened. It was a rather strange discussion but it was neat to spend time with him and Don, talking about some of the things we've been doing this year inside and outside of school. The weather has been alternately coolish, wet and windy this past week. However, our prayers were answered and it was a beautiful day on Wednesday, April 7th, when we had the CBC Spring Walkathon 2004 . Our groups seemed to have a good time; it was rewarding to pray for our friends and family in the beautiful setting of Memorial Park and Prospect Lake. I've begun making arrangements for next week's outing to Snow Mountain Ranch (YMCA of the Rockies) at Winter Park for the CBC Women's Weekend Fellowship. I plan to room with Jo Reynolds, one of the first year students. She's working with "sound" so has to go early-early. Alas, I had looked forward to a leisurely morning. But that's okay. We'll have a lovely drive and hopefully be able to check into our room early and take a nap if needed. I don't have any big expectations. I just want to go and have fun with my friends and absorb more about God and His Love. This weekend is supposed to become colder. It was snowing when I
was driving home this evening. We'll pray that it will
be clear and warmer on Sunday morning for the many Easter Sunrise
services. Sunday, April 4, 2004, 3:52 pm Saturday, April 3, 2004, 11:33 am Last Monday we had the opportunity to attend the dress rehearsal of The Thorn. This is a play is billed as a "powerful, realistic and innovative depiction of what happened to Christ during his final week on earth." While actually beginning with Christ's birth, it quickly surveys Christ's life, giving the viewer an affinity for Jesus as a person. His sacrifice was meaningful when seen a few feet away. If you would like to read play review, see Play Review of The Thorn . I have also written a Movie Review of The Passion of the Christ . Yesterday, we had a knock at the door. Ray and Sharon who attend the Bible Study we facilitate came by to tell us that the prayers we'd prayed with them the week before had been answered. They have been approved to purchase a larger Motor Home. And as an additional blessing, they were told of someone who is looking for a RV about the size of the one they currently own. So there is a possibility that they will be able to sell it quickly which will certainly ease the move. It is raining with occasional snow/sleet this morning. I'm certainly
not going to complain. We desperately need the moisture.
Mark has gone to Office Depot to buy the tax software we
need to do our taxes. He's also hoping to work on our generator
this weekend. When we took the bus to be washed the other
day, we were running the generator. The man with the water
hose wasn't thinking and sprayed the running generator which caused
sparks. Some of the wires and things were fried. We just
hope that once Mark gets the electrical repaired that the generator
will still run. We don't use it much but will need it if we get
to travel this summer and do dry camping. Friday, April 2, 2004, 5:14 pm Speaking of the DE study... The creative team has been working hard to produce new lessons in brochure form. Mark and I don't have those yet in document form. However, today we received copies of the new questions and answers to go along with the current DE lesson books. We have been testing these new lesson plans in our Discipleship Evangelism class; everyone is enthusiastic. Mark and I will begin using these new lessons in our study next week. Mark has been commissioned (volunteer, not pay) to work on a web site for Discipleship Evangelism. DE is an arm of Andrew Wommack Ministries. One of our CBC teachers, Don Krow, came up with the concept and has been perfecting the method for several years. Now is the time to take this to the world. Materials have been sent to Africa with our mission team; another group is headed to Russia next week. I will let you know more about the program as information is available. Above is the Journal for 2004Q2; here is the previous Journal |
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