Today is the last full day of camp, and it brings with it a range of emotions from sadness to joy. We are joyful for the work we have done and are going to get to do today, and we are sad, because soon we will leave this place and these people, but we know that God is not done here. We are a small part of his greater plan to let the people of Canada know that is the Lord of their nation and lives. I am thankful for our youth, they have given sacrificially of their time, effort, and money to be here this week. They have worked hard and played hard and I am proud.

Last night we spent some extended time in downtown Kingston, where a street festival is going on, a street festival that some of our teens will be at today doing street ministry (witnessing on street corners). Going through the streets and being amongst the people of this place was truly a powerful experience, and I pray that today God will give me the words to say if I get the opportunity.

I wanted to share some pictures from last night. In the morning we will be leaving Kingston at 7:30 a.m. headed for Niagara Falls and then Cincinnati. This is going to be a very long travel day but also a day of fun and bonding for our group. If you are reading this, please stop and pray a moment both for our work day today as well as our travel tomorrow and Sunday. God is moving, decisions have been made that we can’t wait to share with you, and there are even more pictures than I can put here, though there will be some below.

To God be the glory, forever and ever!

Today is our next to last full day of camp. Yesterday went great, including Mega Relay, which is always fun. Our group seems to be getting affected by tiredness a little bit, so pray for rest and good sleep at night. Tonight we will be going out in Kingston to see some sites and enjoy a meal at the Copper Penny, which is a local favorite. We are also going to go to the shores of Lake Ontario so we can get some pictures. Please pray for a good day at site today as well, and that doors will be opened to share the Gospel. Once again, here are some pictures from yesterday:

Well, it’s the end of another day. It seems like a long day, but it was a great day. From what we hear from our students, it seems like they feel the urgency of being on their sites and that the work they did today was productive. We started our morning off with breakfast and then Bible study, where we talked about the faith that Moses had to trust God. After that was Morning Celebration and then we went to site. I am in the Creative Ministry Track group and today, our group (Richard, me, Kristal, Abby, Anna, Logan, and Ebbie, along with others) went to 2 nursing homes and sang, played, and fellowshipped with them.

We returned for free time (Wal-mart) and then evening worship, where we talked about true unity and what that looks like, from the prayer of Jesus in John 17. After that, church group time and Night Life….I am ready for bed! But, I wanted to share some pictures first, so enjoy!

I can’t believe we are finally here. 12 months of planning and prayer, 19 hours of driving, and a lot of faith and here we are. It still hasn’t sunk in. I’m sure when we wake up in the morning and we are still in Kingston it will finally hit us.

This is a really small camp this week, only 135 campers counting adults, and sadly it is also the last year that M-fuge will be offering international locations. I know that God knew exactly what He was doing by having us come this year, both in having us wait and telling us to come now. There is an amazing urgency behind our work now, knowing that this camp is only here for 2 weeks. What a responsibility and calling!!!

I believe that God has called each and every teenager and adult here and that they are to be commended for answering that call, for whatever reason. Each person here has a purpose and plan and they are supposed to be here.

To let you know about our trip here, after all was said and done Sunday, the trip to Warren, MI took about 13 hours. We arrived at the church and unloaded, went to find some food, then came back for bed. We had to make several stops, some of which were caused by a tire with a slow air leak, but that problem will be fixed tomorrow by a mechanic.

Monday morning we were supposed to leave at 6, but trying to find air for the tire kept us until 7. A quick breakfast and more adventures for air put us to 8:30 getting to the border crossing, which was no sweat and took about 10 minutes. The drive to Kingston, though, is another story.

Most of what we saw early today was flat farmland with just a few houses or stops. It wasn’t until after lunch that we got our first look at Lake Ontario and major cities like Mississauga and Toronto. We arrived at the college at about 3:45 and now here we are. To finish up, here are some pics from the last two days:

The other day, I suddenly realized that I hadn’t updated my blog in awhile, no thanks in part to fortunecity, who holds the domain that redirects to mine, being unable to let me log in to renew my redirect to this blog. But, I could blame most anyone, but the truth is that I’m lazy and I neglect my writing and my creative side often. So, let me take this time to update you on what has been going on for almost two months of my life.

1. Annaliese turned 1. My baby girl is getting so big and is growing up so fast. Even now she is trying to walk, which blows me away. It’ll be just a few weeks and we’ll have two walking children. Wow.

2. I went on a mission trip to Memphis. While there, we worked with Highland Heights Baptist Church, doing VBS and also doing some yardwork and minor construction while we were there. It was a great week and I hope to post some pics from their as well as the rest of my summer travels soon.

3. I went to Centri-Kid camp in Jackson, Mississippi. Just last week, I and 3 other adults took our children’s ministry to camp, and one child was saved and one recommitted his life to Christ. It was amazing and humbling to be a part of this.

4. Saw Transformers 2. Meh. Except for robots fighting. That was good. The rest….meh.

That’s pretty much been my summer, except for one big thing – I’ll be leaving for Canada in 2 days with my youth group. This is a trip that’s been about 4 years in the making, and I’m pretty excited to go and see what God’s going to do. We are driving, a total of 17 hours one way and about 2400 miles round trip. Tune in this week as I do my best to blog Canada!

I want to be a good father. I hope my kids and wife know this. Every day since April 9, 2007, I have agonized over whether I’m doing the right things, saying the right things….basically making ever effort to be the best example I can be for my kids. Time pass by so quickly, and though they are my family, I know even now that before I know it they will be gone, and that fact breaks my heart. As I watch them play or sleep I know that the moment that I have there with them is just that, a moment, and that I may never get the opporunity to see them do it again.

It’s to that end that I want them to never question things about me, or Erin. I never want them to wonder if I love them, or if I support them, or if I pray for them. I never want them to wonder if I love my wife unconditionally, or that I have pledged to stick with her through good and bad. I never want them to wonder if I am a Christian, or if I love the poor, or if I will go where no one else will to see God’s work done. I never want them to wonder about any of these things, which is why I get so frustrated with parents I see who neglect their kids, who put their lives over their children, who yell at them constantly or beat them down. And don’t get me started on abuse.

It really makes me wonder what type of person you have to be to do these things. It must take an incredibly selfish, wicked person to harm a child, to let their needs go unheard over yours…..because I know that even if my child “needs” a bite of ice cream or more juice, or a hug or kiss, my heart melts….my world is them, and not in a way of making my children an idol, but that my focus is helping them grow into people that honor God and are decent to their fellow man and this world.

Sorry if this has just seemed rambling, but something just set me off this morning.

Have you ever done something, or said something, and as soon as you did it, it seemed like the world slowed down? All of a sudden, you’re in the Matrix, or time stops like you’re Hiro Nakamura and you instantly realize two things:

1. You’re an incredible idiot.
2. This is going to be bad.

It’s in times like that that I wonder why God didn’t make life with a reset button, someway we could restart our day and erase those bad moments that make us look bad and hurt the people we love. Life would be so much easier if, when I noticed I’d done something stupid, I could just whip out the reset button and start over. But…..I don’t think that’s really living.

Maybe that’s why God didn’t make a reset button, because we need to live with our mistakes, feel the pain of what we’ve done, and let it transform us into different people, ones who no longer act the way we did. Inevitably, every time I do or say something stupid and have the face the consequences of it, I always try to not be in those situations again. I make a conscious effort. Pain is our way of learning, of correcting. There is always a lesson to be learned, even when we bring the pain on ourselves. If we had a reset button, what lessons would we learn?

We’d learn that it’s ok to break rules, to duck consequences, to shift blame even more than we do now. We would develop a God complex where each day had to be perfect and no one made any mistakes…and those that allowed mistakes….what would happen to them? Would they become the new low class? Would we shun them, casting them into exile and turning them into pariahs? Or would the reset button eventually cause us to destroy ourselves?

I guess I’m kinda glad we have to live with our mistakes.

If I’ve ever hurt you…..I’m sorry…but I’m becoming a better person. I don’t have a reset button, I don’t want one. Hopefully you can forget about what I’ve said or done and life can move on. Thanks.

Today, I started a new site with a little bit of different direction than this one. It’s called A Deliberate Attempt, and it is my take on presenting you with something creative every day. It might be a poem, it might be art, it might be a story, but I am going to do my best to update every day. So, go check it out!

A Deliberate Attempt

Seeing things like this make me think: If she can do it, then surely I can! Way to go, Susan Boyle!

It seems like just yesterday that we were bringing you home. I thought my life was over. I didn’t eat for two weeks, I was so nervous. I didn’t know what to do then, and I’m learning I still don’t know what to do, but I’m also learning that you don’t care if I know just what do to, you love me anyway. You are growing up so quick. Today I heard you say more words then I knew that you knew and I had to laugh, because while I used to wish you would grow into this stage quickly I now wish I could freeze you in time just as you are. And now that you’re 2 as of yesterday, I’m finding that time is going by so fast. Everyone I know says that before I know it you’ll be graduating, and that fills me with dread. Happy Birthday Isaac, here’s to many, many more.