A Volume Ends A New One Begins

To you who are reading this blog, whether for the first time or for the umpteenth time, I appreciate your interest in my writing and for the comments you've shared whether on a post or in person over the years. I started Administering Grace on August 18, 2005 as a backdoor look into who I am, the thoughts I was contemplating and the reasons behind some of the policies of Grace Church. That was three years, close to 500 posts and over 16,000 unique visitors ago.

Your appreciation for my style and wit has paralleled the joy I've discovered in writing. Both are noteworthy for though English was my first language, I learned Tagalog at the age of four. And while that paid dividends during High School language courses, it messed me up grammatically and phonetically. I was in remedial English and grammar classes into High School. English composition, grammar and spelling were never my strong suit. But through Administering Grace, I've found a previously undiscovered joy in expressing thought in writing and based on your comments a style that has some appeal. I have no idea where this may lead in the future, but as time allows and thoughts worth sharing come to mind, I hope to continue.

While Administering Grace has been my personal blog, it's inception and the underlying focus has been on my administrative duties at Grace Church. As such, it seems only appropriate that with the cessation of my employment at Grace Church, that this volume should come to a close as well. As this volume ends a new one begins.

Thank You

Dear Grace Church,

I believe God has great things in store for Grace and will continue to further His Kingdom in the greater-Lititz area through the fellowship.

I cherish the opportunities and experiences that God has given me through serving the fellowship at Grace Church over the past ten years. I was honored to serve Pastor Young and Pastor Distler and to contribute in discussions and meetings that far exceeded the rudimentary elements of my job description. The indirect opportunities to care for the fellowship, which I did not anticipate initially, became a great source of personal fulfillment and joy. I hope I leave Grace Church in better standing than when I found it and likewise, that I leave a more devoted follower of Christ than when Grace Church found me.

Thank you for trusting me with the administration of Grace, for your encouragement and for showing up at each year's business meeting.

Forever committed to His service,

Andy

Behind-the-scenes: Sarah Palin on SNL

Links for 2008-10-21 [del.icio.us] Posted: 22 Oct 2008 12:00 AM CDT Lorne Michaels talks Sarah Palin - EW.com How Saturday Night Live got Sarah Palin to appear on their show and how they now handle most candidates.

Going 1 and 9 against Michigan doesn't warrant a t-shirt!

I'm thrilled that Penn State finally beat Michigan.

I'm ecstatic that they not only beat them, but pummelled them.

But producing a t-shirt of the winning score, when it was the first win in ten tries, seems a little presumptuous.

Let's save the t-shirts for a Big10 Championship or better yet, a National Championship.

That said, my 66-10 Coastal Carolina t-shirt is nicely framed and hanging on the wall in the family room... tongue in cheek.

College schedules affect rankings

Penn State's ranked third in the first release of the BCS standings, due in large part to their soft "pre-season" schedule. I know Joe and the AD have the challenge of balancing a challenging schedule with one that allows the team to build confidence, but they appear to have erred a little too much on the soft side in recent years. Granted, the overall weakness of the Big 10 conference hasn't helped. That said, you'd think they could raise the bar. College football is a different matter, but when faced with similar choices when I was in college, I aimed high.

When faced with selecting courses and professors, I purposely sought the toughest profs sacrificing a cakewalk 'A' with a soft prof in exchange for sitting under the best and busting my tail for a 'C'. I figured it was a better investment of my tuition dollars. The challenge of surviving, Ryrie-roulette (which, BTW, I did not) or doing more than "nodding-your-head-yes" for Cawood and publishing top-notch 10-pagers for Master, only enhanced my Bible education. They were men who were so notorious they're reputations, consistently applied over years, decades and generations, had become legendary. Like alligators, defending the Faith, they could sniff errant theology down the hall and each of them could shrink an off-base student in a matter of sentences. In a sick way, it was entertaining to see them chewed to pieces. And even in one case, once aware of another prof who was off base... the prof was gone mid-year. These men were tough and they were good. Everyone knew it and in some cases, their legend had been passed down from earlier generations.

Without regard for the transcript, I subjected myself to the highest standard and though my BCS rank suffered my overall education was enhanced. I'd hate for Penn State to be the only undefeated team in the nation, but still be ranked 3rd in the BCS.

2008 Campaign Airplanes

Links for 2008-10-18 [del.icio.us] Posted: 19 Oct 2008 12:00 AM CDT 2008 Campaign Airplanes Gov Palin's 2008 Campaign Charter Tucson-based company delivers campaign jet to Palin Sarah Palin’s Private Campaign Plane

Links for 2008-10-14 [del.icio.us]

Links for 2008-10-14 [del.icio.us] Posted: 15 Oct 2008 12:00 AM CDT The Best Time to Buy Everything at SmartMoney.com Obama Hasn't Closed the Sale: Both candidates continue to tinker with their strategies

Count Your Blessings...

• I've been able to see Dad when it suited his schedule best and adjust my schedule as needed
• Since the nursing home has cable (we dropped it back in late July) and Dad's become an avid Phillies fan, he and I are able to enjoy Phillies games together... so long as he stays awake
  
• We now have the opportunity to care for the other parents in a different context; when their need surfaced in the past week or two we were able to respond without hesitation
  
• I've been able to help a close relative process their job loss
• I've been able to help others search for God's next assignment for them
• I've been able to power up my network to 100% and they've been encouraging and helpful
• I've been able to pursue searching for FT care options for Dad in case he's unable to return home
  
• I've lost weight, not that I needed to, but having not played soccer this summer...
• I've been able to experience the C3N ministry of LCBC
• I learned about the book, The Tale of Three Kings by Gene Edwards
• I've reconnected with old friends and contacts
• I've never experienced my awareness of God's leading, and confidence in His living up to the Jehovah Jireh that He is, to be as strong as it's been
• Though it's not definitive and I remain open to whatever He wants, the exit polls could be interpreted to foreshadow that His next assignment for me may not involve church ministry and that's okay
• I'm still in the analyzing phase of the decision making process, but I may get a new suit. That would be the first one since 1993 - a teal, double-breasted wonder
• I have a greater appreciation for what it's like to have a loved one go through surgery
• I've had an opportunity to be introduced to many nurses in Lancaster County as "my eldest son"
• I get to see God's fine-tuned orchestrations in every conversation, wrinkle and development

Count your many blessings, name them one by one; count your many blessings see what God has done (is doing)!

Assignment Searching - C3N

I learned that one of the larger of the local churches in our area, LCBC, has a ministry for the un-employed, the under-employed or the mis-employed called C3N for Christ Centered Career Network. A group gathers every Monday night at 7pm to work through the 6-stage process of figuring out what you want to do, how to go about finding those types of jobs and assessing which is the right job. Each week's session is a facilitated discussion where you can absorb a lot of information yet contribute your own knowledge base from past and present experiences.

The ministry is part of the Crossroads Career Network, which is a national organization that's produced the Crossroads Career Explorer Training Guide to help individuals to trust in the Lord for direction and guidance in their job search. The weekly get togethers supplement the Crossroads training information with the professional guidance and experience available from our Leadership team which includes local HR professionals and career consultants.

I can't say enough about this ministry if you sense God may be leading you to something new, as He has with me. And my network, who referred me to C3N, couldn't say enough about it either.

Checkout the LCBC - C3N website

Assignment Searching - Ministry

While there's always Monster, CareerBuilder and others for all kinds of jobs, I discovered several handfuls of sites devoted specifically to church ministry or Christian organization postings:

Church Staffing.com

Willow Creek Association Job Exchange

Simply Hired Ministry Positions

Staff Your Church

Pastor Search Network

Ministry Search.com

Ministry Jobs

Christian Jobs - MinistryEmployment.com

Kingdom Careers

Intercristo

MinistryList.com

Christian Career Center

Christianet.com

ChristianJobs.com

Christianity Today

Christian Employment Resource

Bethel Seminary

Manhattan Christian College

Christian Leadership Alliance

Gallons and Liters

The Coke Zero bottle caught my attention over lunch today. It was a 2-liter bottle.

I've seen 3-liter bottles of soda on the grocery store shelves, but never 4. Are we too wimpy a people group to be able to carry 4-liters? Why don't you see gargantuan sized soda bottles in the bulk section of the store? There's huge cans of pudding, why not soda?

The sizing in general is noteworthy when compared with the soda bottle sizes I grew up with. In the Philippines, at least in the 1980's, the largest soda bottle available on the market was a 1-liter. We'd buy a case of 12 at a time. The standard size was 350ml, (that's milliliters for you non-Canadians) and it was a big deal, a huge marketing bonanza when the bottle makers introduced the 500ml. The standard aluminum can of soda is around 350ml I believe, but I don't think I've seen anything that gets to the 500ml size, 20oz maybe. Those were all glass bottles by the way. And the thrifty stores, to recoup the refund for returning the empty glass soda bottles, would give you your soda in a cellophane bag instead of giving you the bottle.

Speaking of all this, has anyone ever seen USA milk packaged in metric containers? Why is milk always in quarts, pints and gallons? How would it sound to yell up the stairs, "I'm heading down to Weiser's to get a liter of milk"? Or to ask the dairy stock person for a 3-liter bottle of milk?

It must be because the US cows can't squirt in metric.

Who is the wealthiest person you know?

Who is the wealthiest person you know?

While reading Internet coverage of the financial woes of our nation, the graphic on one of the articles was a TV screenshot of a financial expert who attends the church I served in back in Princeton. Having always respected the individual, I Google-ed to see what information I might find about their take on the current financial environment. One of the links was a Forbes.com page that reported, assuming I read it correctly, that this person earned $23M in 2007. Maybe it was just a good year, but that's got to be one of the wealthiest people I know, at least when it comes to financial wealth.

As I thought more about it, I know a lot of wealthy people when the definition of wealth is broadened. I know a lot of people who are wealthy by way of their family. God has blessed them with generation after generation that share a deep love for God and are serving Him faithfully in ministry and non-ministry positions alike. I know a lot of people who are spiritually wealthy, men and women, who through time in His Word and prayer investments have gained a love and relationship with their Saviour that forms a solid, unmovable foundation. God can bestow wealth on us on many different ways and I hope I don't miss out on it because I'm only looking at it through a human perspective.

So who is the wealthiest person you know and based on what definition of wealth?

Beyond the wealth, I've been negligent in playing my part during the current stresses. I need to be praying for our government and financial leaders alike. Like the individual I've referenced here, God has His agents strategically placed throughout our country and the globe to do His bidding. As in the past, He gives them the wisdom they need to make the decisions before them. I could be doing a better job supporting their efforts and asking God to protect their families through prayer.

Dinner with Oma: Opa's cars

My grandfather, Opa, as he's affectionately referred to, had a sweet spot for cars. While talking with Oma the other night, she got to reminiscing about all of the different cars in the family. And while others will likely be able to give a more accurate encyclopedia of the family vehicles - I after all was on the other side of the Pacific - I thought a car tribute would be in order.

The 1967 Chrysler Imperial was Opa's toy. From what Oma shared, Opa dreamed of a convertible, but practicalities must've reigned the day. Fortunately, the '67 Imperial didn't have a side door post between the front seat and rear seat windows which meant that with all the windows down there was maximum airflow as if it was a convertible. Chance would have it that I went with Opa when he picked up his new-used toy. Power everything, V-8 Chrysler power plant. It was a ride and one that Opa enjoyed every moment he was in it.

A 1966 Chrysler New Yorker was the family auto for a decade or more and was passed around to various aunts and uncles depending on the needs. In the late '80's my family had use of the beast of a thing. That was unfortunate for the two college students on an all-night road trip back to college in their little Mazda. The New Yorker had a dent in the bumper. The Mazda was totalled. And I had breakfast with two college-aged strangers the next morning.

This was Oma's car. It was a white, mini limousine, electric everything with plush leather and wood interior. Even as a middle school-er, it was regal to ride in that car. Oma added some perspective however, being a diesel engine, she was often stuck having to fill up at truck stops since they were the only service stations to carry diesel.  She also shared about a time when Opa had Oma take him to the City Line station only to announce as he exited the car to catch his train, "Oh, you're out of gas" and only for Oma to run out as she was crossing the bridge.

Dinner with Oma

At 86, get-togethers with my Oma are more and more precious. After living for so many years thousands of miles from grandparents, I've been fortunate to be within 25 miles of Oma for the past 10 years. And while I haven't leveraged it to its maximum potential, we have shared some special times together. My greatest joy with Oma is listening more than talking, especially when she gets going on stories from the old days like she did Saturday night.

Most of Saturday night's stories centered around trains...

There was the time when one of my uncles, as a young lad, became sick to his stomach while on a train trip. While feeling bad and hopeless for her sick son, Oma shared that she was glad there was a Pennsylvania Railroad porter who took care of cleaning up the train car.

Or when she noted that the Lancaster stock yards, which according to her, were once the largest stock yards east of Chicago or the Mississippi, would be torn down, Oma recalled passing them on western-headed train trips. "We would usually be enjoying dinner in the dining car by the time we reached Lancaster."

She also complained about having to share the upper birth with her youngest daughter, who would sleep soundly on the trip while Oma slept but a few winks.

Oh, to live during the glamorous days of railroading! And to see my aunts and uncles in their childhood days :)

Maybe it's because so much of my immediate ancestry revolves around railroading, a particular interest of mine. Maybe it's because so many of my childhood years were spent separated from family. Maybe it's both of those things combined with an appreciation and respect for the earlier generations, for the examples they've led, the foundations they've laid and the wisdom that is packed within their minds just waiting to be tapped. Whatever it is, I relish the opportunities to listen to the stories of yesteryear.

Links for 2008-09-23 [del.icio.us]

Links for 2008-09-23 [del.icio.us] Posted: 24 Sep 2008 12:00 AM CDT The Associated Press: Design changes unveiled for Lincoln penny So long as this proposal won't cause any delays in the Fed printing more money, I guess I'm okay with it. While fun to collect, I wonder how much it costs to do special commemoratives like this.

Overheard in the dinner line at a retirement community...

One retiree, waiting in line said to another, "Did you get your t-shirt?"

Instantaneously, I knew the topic of the question.

I'd considered heading out in time for the 9am opening, but decided a laid-back Saturday morning was more valuable than a free t-shirt. And as the men would confirm for me as we awaited our seats for dinner, the t-shirt was indeed devalued for the gentleman arrived at 9:45 only to find them plum out of t-shirts.

They of course, had trekked out to Park City for the opening of the new Apple Store this past Saturday. I was intrigued that a new Apple Store caught the interest of a 30-something year old and 70-something year-olds alike. I seize such opportunities to share conversation with strangers and when I asked for his assessment of the new store... "It's like a can of sardines, there's no room to move around!" I anticipate my next trip to Park City to check it out for myself.

Here Am I, Send Me in map form

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My Strenghts: Connectedness

Tom Rath describes the Connectedness theme in Strengths Finder 2.0, p. 73 in the following manner...

"Things happen for a reason. You are sure of it. You are sure of it because in your soul you know that we are all connected. Yes, we are individuals, responsible for our own judgments and in possession of our own free will, but nonetheless we are part of something larger. Some may call it the collective unconscious. Others may label it spirit or life force. But whatever your word of choice, you gain confidence from knowing that we are not isolated from one another or from the earth and the life on it. This feeling of Connectedness implies certain responsibilities. If we are all part of a larger picture, then we must not harm others because we will be harming ourselves. We must not exploit because we will be exploiting ourselves. Your awareness of these responsibilities creates your value system. You are considerate, caring, and accepting. Certain of the unity of humankind, you are a bridge builder for people of different cultures. Sensitive to the invisible hand, you can give others comfort that there is a purpose beyond our humdrum lives. The exact articles of your faith will depend on your upbringing and your culture, but your faith is strong. It sustains you and your close friends in the face of life's mysteries."

My Strengths: Belief

The Belief theme, as defined by Tom Rath, p. 57 of Strengths Finder 2.0...

"If you possess a strong Belief theme, you have certain core values that are enduring. These values vary from one person to another, but ordinarily your Belief theme causes you to be family-oriented, altruistic, even spiritual, and to value responsibility and high ethics -- both in yourself and others. These core values affect your behavior in many ways. They give your life meaning and satisfaction; in your view, success is more than money and prestige. They provide you with direction, guiding you through the temptations and distractions of life toward a consistent set of priorities. This consistency is the foundation for all your relationships. Your friends call you dependable. "I know where you stand," they say. Your Belief makes you easy to trust. It also demands that you find work that meshes with your values. Your work must be meaningful; it must matter to you. And guided by your Belief theme it will matter only if it gives you a chance to live our your values."

My Strenghts: Learner

More from Tom Rath's Strengths Finder 2.0, p. 133...

"You love to learn. The subject matter that interests you most will be determined by your other themes and experiences, but whatever the subject, you will always be drawn to the process of learning. The process, more than the content or the result, is especially exciting for you. You are energized by the steady and deliberate journey from ignorance to competence. The thrill of the first few facts, the early efforts to recite or practice what you have learned, the growing confidence of a skill mastered -- this is the process that entices you. Your excitement leads you to engage in adult learning experiences -- yoga or piano lessons or graduate classes. It enables you to thrive in dynamic work environments whre you are asked to take on short project assignments and are expected to learn a lot about the new subject matter in a short period of time and then move on to the next one. This Learner theme does not necessarily mean that you seek to become the subject matter expert, or that you are striving for the respect that accompanies a professional or academic credential. The outcome of the learning is less significant than the "getting there."

While this description, as with most of the others, appear to fit me well, I'm not planning to start taking yoga classes anytime soon. 

My Strengths: Strategic

From Tom Rath's Strengths Finder 2.0, he describes the Strategic theme on p. 165...

"The Strategic theme enables you to sort through the clutter and find the best route. It is not a skill that can be taught. It is a distinct way of thinking, a special perspective on the world at large. This perspective allows you to see patterns where others simply see complexity. Mindful of these patterns, you play out alternative scenarios, always asking, "What if this happened? Okay, well what if this happened?" This recurring question helps you see around the next corner. There you can evaluate accurately the potential obstacles. Guided by where you see each path leading, you start to make selections. You discard the paths that lead nowhere. You discard the paths that lead straight into resistance. You discard the paths that lead into a fog of confusion. You cull and make selections until you arrive at the chose path -- your strategy. Armed with your strategy, you strike forward. This is your Strategic theme at work: "What if?" Select. Strike.

My Strengths: Responsibility

As defined by Tom Rath in Strengths Finder 2.0, p. 149...

"The Responsibility theme forces you to take psychological ownership for anything you commit to, and whether large or small, you feel emotionally bound to follow it through to completion. Your good name depends on it. If for some reason you cannot deliver, you automatically start to look for ways to make it up to the other person. Apologies are not enough. Excuses and rationalizations are totally unacceptable. You will not quite be able to live with yourself until you have made restitution. This conscientiousness, this near obsession for doing things right, and your impeccable ethics, combine to create your reputation: utterly dependable. When assigning new responsibilities, people will look to you first because they know it will get done. When people come to you for help -- and they soon will -- you must be selective. Your willingness to volunteer may sometimes lead you to take on more than you should."

Links for 2008-09-16 [del.icio.us]

Links for 2008-09-16 [del.icio.us] Posted: 17 Sep 2008 12:00 AM CDT Crossroads Career® Services, Inc. Network - Hearing and Following God's Calling National career networking organization; local group meets every Monday night at LCBC

My Strengths according to Strengths Finder

After reading Marcus Buckingham's Now Discover Your Strengths, I took the web-based Strength Finder assessment (you need to buy the book to take the survey). My top five strengths according to the assessment are listed and defined below. I'll devote each of the next five posts to each strength area.

RESPONSIBILITY

People who are especially talented in the Responsibility theme take psychological ownership of what they say they will do. They are committed to stable values such as honesty and loyalty.

STRATEGIC

People who are especially talented in the Strategic theme create alternative ways to proceed. Faced with any given scenario, they can quickly spot the relevant patterns and issues.

LEARNER

People who are especially talented in the Learner theme have a great desire to learn and want to continuously improve. In particular, the process of learning, rather than the outcome, excites them.

BELIEF

People who are especially talented in the Belief theme have certain core values that are unchanging. Out of these values emerges a defined purpose for their life.

CONNECTEDNESS

People who are especially talented in the Connectedness theme have faith in the links between all things. They believe there are few coincidences and that almost every event has a reason.

Copyright © 2008 Gallup, Inc. All rights reserved.

An Apple Store at Park City

I just received a special notice from Apple that they're opening an Apple Store at Park City on September 20 at 9am.

Come to the new Apple Store, Park City, and bring your curiosity. It's the place to test-drive any Mac or iPod, experience iPhone, and catch free workshops to learn all the latest tips and tricks. When you get there, find our Concierge in the orange shirt. The Concierge is your guide to everything from checking in for an appointment to instant checkout. And if you're one of the first 1000 visitors, you'll get a free AppleT-shirt.*

Searching... all in the family

It was surreal to find myself at a networking meeting Monday night with my father-in-law on one side and my brother-in-law's, father-in-law on the other. I consider myself fortunate to by in my mid-30's searching for God's next assignment, while they're in their late 60's and 50's respectively. But there the three of us where, looking to network with others who are seeking God's next assignment. All in the family.

Links for 2008-09-14 [del.icio.us]

Links for 2008-09-14 [del.icio.us] Posted: 15 Sep 2008 12:00 AM CDT NFL TV Distribution Maps A site that tells you what NFL games will be on TV in each local TV market and what commentating teams will be calling each game. Welcome :: Karl Rove As a Josh Lyman wanna-be, this site is great. Of course, so is Karl. Track the 2008 election in-depth.

Links for 2008-09-11 [del.icio.us]

Posted: 12 Sep 2008 12:00 AM CDT Scheffey Integrated Marketing - Lancaster, PA Marketing and Ad Agency A very impressive, Lancaster-based, marketing company that offers the full breadth of marketing services (print, advertising, branding, logos, websites). When they say integrated, they mean integrated.

Conduncting a God-centered assignment search in a me-centered world

To stay true to a whatever God wants me to do, wherever He wants me to be mentality as I seek His next assignment is proving to be quite challenging, but not for the reasons I would've expected.

Every opportunity as a possibility, when the register at McDonald's has a message that says, "Now hiring managers" my immediate reaction is contemplation. Maybe that's where God wants me. When I hear of positions that are slightly beyond my qualifications, I don't move along right off the bat, I consider whether God may somehow be able to use me in that assignment. I'm not taking anything off the table until it's clear that God's taken it off the table. And I'm open to anything, because I want to be completely usable to Him.

That's proving to be a challenge as I network with people, they want to know what it is I want to do. The networks are accustomed to me-centered job searches based on prior experience, training and personal pursuits. Following that path limits me to a select field that I only want to focus on if that's what God wants.

Jesus appropriately identified that several men who were trained fishermen had skills that were transferable to being fishers of men. I wonder what the resumes of Andrew, Peter, James and John contained prior to the day Jesus strolled up to them on the beach? On paper, did they have experience relating with people? Had they had opportunities to develop strong communication skills and a chance to speak to large crowds?

I am open to God taking me from what He's had me doing for the past 14 years and doing whatever His next assignment for me will entail. Communicating that desire in a way that others can figure out is a challenge, especially to those who don't share a common bond in Christ.

Seeking God's Next Assignment

As I look over the years God has given me in my lifetime, there are stacks of evidence of how God has revealed His purposes and ways through prayer, His Word, circumstances and the church. It is based on that evidence that I have confidence that He will make His next plan(s) for me known in His time. I am exploring what His next assignment is for me and Beth. If God places an organization on your mind or the name of an individual in relation to our exploration, I'd appreciate hearing about it.

My desire is NOT to do something big for God. I am solidly focused on only doing what He wants me to do. If He chooses to assign me to something big, that's His decision and I'll follow. If He wants me to wash dishes, that's what I'll be doing. As Beth and I have talked about it, that's our heart's desire. Additionally, we want to be only where He wants us. If that's in Lancaster County, here we will stay. If that's in Kabul, Afghanistan, that's where we will be going. Our confidence is high that God will reveal our next step when it's His time, we just hope we will have the faith and the guts required to take those steps.

In the meantime, we are exploring every conceivable opportunity, looking for signs of God's leading in every conversation and development. While my experience to date has focused solely on church ministry, we are open to whether God wants to use me in a ministry/non-ministry situation alike. And while I've been involved in leadership/management, that too we aren't using to limit what God might have in the future. We are open to whatever and wherever.

Having sensed a possible leading toward being a bush pilot, we went to Missions Fest Lancaster a few weeks ago and talked with a missions representative. There we learned that we're too old, mid-thirties mind you, for the mission organizations to be able to make use of us in that line of ministry. Mechanics of any age are welcome, but unless the Holy Spirit comes upon me in a substantial way, I think I'd do more of a disservice to the spread of the Gospel as a mechanic than I would be adding help to it. :)

One thing God has confirmed for Beth and me, until He takes my Dad home, caring for Dad is one of His assignments for us. Lancaster County is of course an area well equipped for caring for an aging parent with dementia, but we don't see that as limiting where God wants to place us. If God wants us in Kabul, He will provide a way for us to continue to care for Dad.

If God places an organization on your mind or the name of an individual in relation to our exploration, I'd appreciate hearing about it. Otherwise, your prayers that our ears would be delicately tuned in to God's leading, that our faith would remain strong and that we would have the guts to respond when He reveals our next step, your prayers in those regards will be greatly appreciated.

Lord, find us faithful.

Assignment Complete - Part 2: The Final 9

God gave me the privilege of serving nine others that weren't listed in the last post: Joan, Karen, Elaine, Charlene, Megan, Cindy, Jodi, Jay and Marlin. While I had a role in bringing seven of them onto the Grace team, they too are following God assignments, I was just a pawn in what He was doing.

These nine servants of God and thereby Grace Church, do so, for that very reason. Each of them has a deep love for God and giving Him their very best each and every day. They felt led by God to serve Him at Grace Church and are being obedient to those assignments. As God gave me the chance to get to know each of them and serve side-by-side with them, I came to appreciate their love for God. In addition to being good people, I came to admire and respect the work they do. In my pre-Grace God-given assignments, I had the opportunity to fill the roles each of them fill.

Believe it or not, I was the facility person. When the furnace didn't fire on a wintry Sunday morning, I was the one crawling into the furnace rooms to diagnose and get the thing re-fired. I created the weekly Sunday bulletin, printed it, folded it and stuffed it. And one week I was the one that forgot to insert the clip-art images and instead published a bulletin with empty boxes. I processed the purchase vouchers and cut the weekly checks. I did the monthly payroll. I answered the phones. I was the computer troubleshooting guy. I accomplished a lot in each of those areas and also my share of mistakes. Having these experiences gave me a tremendous understanding, respect and admiration for the work each of my team members did.

Few of us were/are professionally trained for what we do, but that's nothing new in the history of God's creation, the local church. The first church staff's weren't professionally trained either. In addition to being individuals who love God and people I admire and respect, I valued their contribution to my ministry.

My strengths lie in analyzing problems/situations and breaking them down. When not in check, I over-analyze which adds a challenge to decision making. Working with this team, I came to value their opinions and intuition. I trusted what they could bring to the table to guide me. We would not have been as effective as we were had it not been for what each of them brought to the table.

I thank God for the opportunity to have impacted their lives and more importantly, how God used them to impact mine. So closes my almost 10 years at Grace.

Assignment complete - part 1

Like an elementary student, my God-given Grace Church assignment is complete. I've accomplished everything God wanted me to get done during my time at Grace Church, the workbook's been turned in. That portion of my journey is complete.

As I reflect on my Grace Church years, I praise God for all that He accomplished in me and through me during my tenure. And while I have many gratifying memories to cherish, I think my greatest joy focuses on those whom God brought through Grace for me to serve.

My contribution to the history of Grace Church is more apparent in what God did in and through my team than anything else. They were the ones who invested significant energy into serving the body of believers commonly known as Grace Church. My job was just to release them to do God's work. They are the people who deserve the credit for what God accomplished. As best as my memory can recollect, here are the wonderful people that God gave me the opportunity of serving on my Grace Church team...

Nancy Mitchell and her cleaning team

• Karl Mitchell
• Devon Mitchell
• Rachel Mitchell
• Aubry Kilby
• Justin Lehman
• Phyllis Willard
• Amanda Rohrer
• Renee Weaver
• Kaley Keener
  
• There are several if not many others that I'm not remembering

David Bernhardt
Tim Enderle
Bobbie Kissinger
Chris Willard
Mona Graham
Lucy Snow
George Bailey
Khyle Keener
Steve Weaver
Eric Leisey
Nathan Imhoff
Justin Bitner
Andy Schell
Ty Getz
Andrew Spotts
Gail Crouse
Ken Ecker

There are nine people I intentionally left off the list.

Doing what God's prepared me to do

I didn't notice it until this week, but it appears that God has been preparing for these moments most of my life.

I was raised in a culture that valued the elderly and in which the family unit stayed together. In the Filipino culture multiple generations lived together, at times in the same house, with the grandparents assisting in raising the grand kids with the younger generations caring for the grandparents. I have vivid memories of being with my Filipino friends and helping them do tasks for their grandparents etc.

Though only in grade school, I observed both my grandparents, parents and aunts and uncles care for my great grandmother who in spite of a stroke or two lived to be a hundred and something years old.

I also observed my parents, aunts and uncles care for my grandfather when he was diagnosed with Parkinson's. That was followed by watching my parents, aunts and uncles care for my grandmother as she suffered from poor health.

Through Pastor Young's preaching through the Timothy's, one of the last messages series he preached at Grace, God made it clear to Beth and me that we needed to apply Paul's instructions to Timothy for us to care for our family.

Though I didn't see it at the time, the progression is clear to me today. And as I've visited Dad in the hospital over the past week, on more than one occasion, as I've been feeding him or making conversation with him, the thought that's crossed my mind is, "This is why I am here and what I'm supposed to be doing." I didn't take notes as I watched my parents, aunts and uncles care for our extended family, but somehow I'm recalling what I observed and applying it in caring for my Dad. It's truly God's work that I can recall what they did, let alone have the grace and patience to apply it. Our motivation is solely out of obedience to what Beth and I feel God has called us to do.

Until God directs otherwise, this is what I'm supposed to be doing right now and it's something God's been preparing me for over most of my lifetime.

Karen celebrates 20!

This week, Karen celebrates 20 years of service at Grace Church. Like many of the behind the scenes staff, her professional training is in areas other than what she's been doing for the past two decades. Her formal training and early career were invested in teaching English in the public school system. But after kids and other twists and turns, God brought her to Grace and plugged her into an accounting role. It's an everything in it's place and a place for everything type of role for Karen in that her personality, strengths and weaknesses are well matched for the role she plays. She looks for the rights and wrongs on financial matters and applies a Scripture-backed above reproach mentality to direct the day-to-day handling of the church's money. In 20 years, you process a lot of purchase approvals and payrolls.

Congratulations Karen on 20 years of service at Grace Church!

My Rally Cry

I wonder what all contributes to impact which choruses make it into mainstream church and which ones are left for other contexts. For example, Passion-Jesus Lover of My Soul has a very similar theme to For the Sake of the Call, but Passion's the only one I've sung in church. For the Sake of the Call is my rally cry...

We will abandon it all for the sake of the call
No other reason at all but the sake of the call
Wholly devoted to live and to die for the sake of the call

Nobody stood and applauded them
So they knew from the start
This road would not lead to fame
All they really knew for sure
Was Jesus had called to them
He said "come follow Me" and they came
With reckless abandon, they came

Empty nets lying there at the water's edge
Told a story that few could believe
And none could explain
How some crazy fisherman agreed to go where Jesus went
With no thought to what they would gain
For Jesus had called them by name
And they answered...

We will abandon it all for the sake of the call
No other reason at all but the sake of the call
Wholly devoted to live and to die for the sake of the call
The sake of the call

Drawn like the rivers are drawn to the sea
There's no turning back, for the water cannot help but flow
Once we hear the Savior's call, we'll follow wherever He leads
Because of the love He has shown
And because He has called us to go
We will answer...

We will abandon it all for the sake of the call
No other reason at all but the sake of the call
Wholly devoted to live and to die

Not for the sake of a creed or a cause
Not for a dream or a promise
Simply because it is Jesus who called
And if we believe we'll obey

We will abandon it all for the sake of the call
No other reason at all but the sake of the call
We will abandon it all for the sake of the call
No other reason at all but the sake of the call
Wholly devoted to live and to die for the sake of the call
For the sake of the call

A Bird's Nest with a Cauldron

From the first pictures I saw of the Bird's Nest in Beijing, I wondered where the Olympic cauldron was though I didn't hear any commentators talking about it. When it appeared just in time, I wondered what went on behind the scenes and found this article.

Now I wonder if they had a backup plan if anything had failed.

A walker on my birthday

It seemed ideal, Missions Fest Lancaster and the Wings of Freedom tour were both scheduled for August 23-24 coinciding with my birthday. A weekend an airplane dreamer would love.

That all changed Friday morning when Dad inexplicably fell while at his daily day services program. With Dad's self-confidence to stand, let alone walk shattered and his right hip bruised, the weekend plans were altered. Fortunately, Dad's injuries aren't any more serious. Full of irony, on my birthday, Beth bought a walker!

I could never have predicted that this would've been the way I'd celebrate this birthday, but I enjoyed today in spite of it being God's plan for the day and not mine.

Four-fold Franciscan Blessing

One of the speakers at a conference I attended recently concluded his challenge with the following Franciscan blessing that I wanted to keep on file (I use my blog as a personal filing cabinet in addition to other uses).


May God bless you with a restless discomfort about easy answers, half-truths and superficial relationships, so that you may seek truth boldly and love deep within your heart.

May God bless you with holy anger at injustice, oppression, and exploitation of people, so that you may tirelessly work for justice, freedom, and peace among all people.

May God bless you with the gift of tears to shed with those who suffer from pain, rejection, starvation, or the loss of all that they cherish, so that you may reach out your hand to comfort them and transform their pain into joy.

May God bless you with enough foolishness to believe that you really CAN make a difference in this world, so that you are able, with God's grace, to do what others claim cannot be done.

And the blessing of God the Supreme Majesty and our Creator, Jesus Christ the Incarnate Word who is our brother and Saviour, and the Holy Spirit, our Advocate and Guide, be with you and remain with you, this day and forevermore.

AMEN.

Leaving talents on the shelf

I have a sincere question for which I am truly requesting your interaction. The question is, can you recall or find any scriptural foundation or an illustration from The Bible that supports leaving identified and known God-given talents/abilities/gifts on the shelf for a period of time?



There's profound evidence supporting the opposite of that question, that God strongly endorses the use of talents, and Christian leaders among many others, highly promote that range of thinking. If God's blessed with you a set of skills, even spiritual gifts, He's given them to you for a purpose and for them to be exercised. Not exercising said gifts, in many cases, could be classified as quenching the Spirit. Scriptural support for this line of reasoning can include the parable of the talents among others. Scripturally, it's solid. From a human perspective, it's a logical thought process that, frankly, stokes the soul.



God gave you the gifts to use them. Orient your life around them, leverage your spiritual gifts the way God has put them in your life.



The popularity of the notion raised the question in my mind as I don't recall hearing anyone else explore the opposite line of thinking. Is there any evidence in scripture that God equipped one of his children with multiple gifts which for some period of time intentionally remained on the shelf? And I'm not talking about undeveloped gifts, I recognize that God may have blessed an individual with a gift that has yet to show itself or be exercised. I'm talking about an identified gift/talent/ability that produced fruit that is conscientiously limited, shelved for a set period of time. Can you think of any scripture that would support such gift sabbaticals?


Even though I know my readers don't usually chose to comment I'm asking you this one time to step out of your comfort zone. I'd really appreciate your interaction by leaving a response, comment or answer to the question. I thank you in advance for your participation.

Olympic predictions

The TiVo is set and will soon be overloaded with Olympic coverage, even though we've dropped Cable TV. I'll leave you with two simple predictions...

1. Watch Spain during these Summer Olympic Games. Matt Laurer mentioned it during the coverage of the opening ceremonies, Spain's been on a roll this summer and it wouldn't surprise me if their success continues.

2. Though it won't occur during the next 14 days, I'll state now that I will be surprised if Rio de Janeiro isn't awarded the 2016 Summer Games.

Enjoy the games!

Drinking from a fire hose

I didn't realize it but Wednesday night of this week I managed to fit my mouth around a fire hose. That was a feat in and of itself. Mid-morning Thursday, someone snuck in and turned the thing on and it's remained on for two straight days. Whether actual water or figuratively for information, I have a lot to process.

For starters, there appears to be a movement of the Spirit that exceeds that which I've witnessed in my three-and-a-half plus decades on this planet. I've made such statements previously, that I sense God doing things I've never seen before. I do not write these words flippantly.

In several conversations with key individuals I've come to respect, admire and have sought to emulate a theme rapidly emerged today. To a person, each shared, without my prompting, collaboration, that their hearts and minds were being stirred in ways they were still trying to understand and comprehend. I too felt it.

When I correlate these conversations with people of influence with the resources God has placed in the storehouse of Grace Church, I believe we are on the cusp of seeing a calling of God unfurled.

Are we ready? Am I ready?

Decorating the children's wing

Since visiting churches during our trip to Creative08 that was hosted by Fellowship Church in Grapevine, TX, we've been talking and planning to redecorate the children's wing. The concept is a Noah's Ark theme with murals on the walls and identifying each room with a different animal. Each room would then have the animal at the door so each room is easily identifiable from the hallway.

Up until this week, we've been thinking of these concepts being applied in a Disney-esque style. Think The Lion King.

That was, until this week.

I had an epiphany that we're presented with an opportunity to go where few churches have likely gone before, based on the inherent creativity at Grace combined with the number of hunters. Instead of the flashy, commercially-over done Disney style, why not use the real thing, taxidermy-ed giraffes, monkeys, hyenas and the like adorning the children's wing hallway like an Elk Lodge or something?

:)

Don't let our teens survive re-entry

Sunday, our teens return from the Momentum Youth Conference. Like the many camp and spiritual emphasis weeks of my youth, they too will likely be coming off of a week of intense spiritual highs and will face the challenge of not riding the pendulum in the other direction. In that vein I found Josh Griffin's post today thought provoking in regards to ways we can engage our teens at Grace Church. While several of his ideas revolve around the weekend worship services, what if you applied them to your ABF, future small group or even your social groups (have families over for pizza, include the teens, and as part of the conversation, ask the teens questions about what they're learning, dreaming, etc.).

Let's not let the teens merely survive their return from Momentum, let's help them excel and keep moving closer to Christ!

Keep Up Momentum

It's not too late to keep up with the annual Youth conference, Momentum. Doug's blogging from Cedarville, OH on the Grace Student Ministries Blog.

Gym Renovations - No longer tracking the day

Though I regret I don't have any visual documentation, the floor has been glued down this week. Yesterday the subcontractors spent the day preparing the templates for the line painting and when you enter the building you can tell that the painting has been completed over the last 12-16 hours; the fumes are rather intense.

From what I understand, in addition to what will now be a full, regulation sized basketball court (it wasn't apparent at first glance, but the old court was a few feet short of a regulation sized basektball court), the floor will also be lined with two side-by-side volleyball courts and a center volleyball court.

It's unclear whether there will also be lines marking a tennis court, AWANA circle, badminton, water polo, indoor track/field, NASCAR short track, four square, Olympic-sized swimming lanes, crabwalk... okay, time to get back to work.

Bikes and Cadillacs

I've been tracking the 2008 edition of the Tour de France and wondered recently, when professional bike riders take a beach vacation, do they enjoy riding bikes with their family on the boardwalk or is the thought of getting in the saddle again repulsive?

On a completely different note my day today has consisted of finalizing the June 30 financial reports and searching the internet for a 1959 Cadillac... all official church business. Seriously, if it all comes together it'll make more sense come September.

Forget Church Softball, Grace Church Should Field a Football Team

While Manheim Central's football team has suffered through some "delayed successes" over the past two years (I know better than to use the slump word in these parts), the Warwick football program has been over-achieving. Several of the Warwick players regularly attend Grace. With that kind of talent, maybe we should enter a church football league instead of a softball league.

In fact, Warwick's feature running back was interviewed by LNPNews' Jeffrey Reinhart recently and featured on Reinhart's blog today.

Having trouble getting teenagers to talk to you? I do. But everytime Eric checks me out at Bombergers, I ask him about football. How's he training over the summer, when does pre-season camp start, or how I saw parts of the game on TV. I try to find something they're interested in and suprisingly find them very engaging in return.

Outdoor Worship

Photo courtesy of Tim Reedy

I just came in from the worship service outside under the tent. Recognizing that I was able to sit where I wanted, able to find a seat that would be in the shade throughout the service, able to locate myself on the edge of the tent to catch the breeze as it blew across the soccer field... acknowledging that I didn't have to preach for 30+ minutes or lead in singing... taking into account that it was the first service which started at 9 before the intensity of the day's sun had started to take hold... it was actually very delightful to be outside this morning. And it got me thinking that there are a lot of advantages to holding worship outdoors:

1. Anyone who has a complaint about the temperature, need not bother voicing such complaint on their Connections Card, for man has nothing to do nor any control over the day's temp.

2. Anyone who has a complaint about the lighting, too dark, dim, bright or otherwise, need to not take the time to voice their concern for it's beyond our control.

3. The electric bill of a church with regular outdoor services would be much lower than an indoor facility.

4. The cost of a tent as compared to the cost of bricks and mortar is much less of an expenditure.

5. It's almost impossible to run out of room in an exterior environment, so space is less of an issue.

6. Those neighbors who've never been in our facility to see what it is we all show up for every Sunday, got a firsthand taste of what it's like. In many ways, you could classify today as an informal, non-threatening evangelistic tool.

Of any church I know, I think Grace would be crazy enough to attempt a year-round outdoor service. Dress cooly in summer, dress warmly in winter. Think of the amount of resources that could be diverted toward other aspects of our ministry. Seasonly, we would embody Scripture as the Hot & Heaven Bound during the summers and the Frozen Chosen during the winters. Being in the controlled environment of a building affords many comforts, but this morning exposed some of the things we give up for those comforts.

Appointment Cancellations/Schedule Flexibility

I'm on a roll of late, in the span of two weeks, I've had three appointments postponed due to emergencies. Fortunately, all of the meeting topics were non-urgent making rescheduling easy and pain free.

I was to meet with someone to work on some items related to the addition of a third worship service, but a day or so before the meeting, I was notified that their father passed away unexpectedly and the meeting would have to be rescheduled.

My Dad was to have a Dr appointment yesterday, but the office called to reschedule because the Doctor had been in surgery most of the day throwing his appointment schedule all out of whack.

I was to have a meeting about health insurance this morning, but that got postponed yesterday because the father of the guy we were to meet with had a heart attack this week.

Three separate cancellations from three different contexts caught my attention and seemed noteworthy. One of the things I appreciate about church work, is the freedom we have in a life perspective. Our day to day work is important, but I'd much rather each of these individuals spend time with the loved ones in the midst of crisis than still maintain an appointment to discuss building signage or health plans. And though they're simply handling the logistic of cancelling an appointment, they don't realize they're activating a prayer line. Nothing outstanding about that, just a quick prayer as I think of them and what they might be experiencing. We'll eventually make up the appointments and keep the work of the church moving forward, signs, health plans and all.

Gym Renovations - Day 11

Thankfully, the glue arrived this morning and plans were already in place for Sunday's worship services to be held outdoors as there's no way the gym could be usable this Sunday.

The tent is up on the soccer field and the chairs are being set up this morning, all in preparation for the worship services on Sunday. Bottles of water will be available for hydrating.

Meanwhile, on the other side of the property, the sidewalk was extended from Fellowship Hall around to the Young Chapel entrances this week where previously you had to walk in the driveway.

Gym Renovations - Day 9

The flooring material arrived from Colorado on Wednesday. Unfortunately, the glue didn't arrive with the rolls of flooring, so the project's been in a holding pattern for the past two days and I don't have any pictoral documentation.

Gym Renovations - Day 8

DAY EIGHT

Flashing and holes for the volleyball net standards were drilled into the cement. Whereas formerly two volleyball courts were side-by-side, a center volleyball court in the middle of the gym is being added with the new floor.

Gym Renovations - Days 6 & 7

Following the Genesis example, on the sixth day, we rested and on the seventh, we worshipped.

Gym Renovations - Day 5

DAY FIVE

The floor was swept and vacuumed as best as possible before setting up the chairs for Sunday's worship services. As many discovered, there was still a lot of residual glue dust left on the floor.

Several people thought the cement floor looked beautiful and thought it was the finished product. I guess that reveals how bad the carpet looked.

Gym Renovations - Day 4

DAY FOUR

Floor joists filled and conducted moisture tests

Gym Renovations - Day 3

DAY THREE

The track for the curtain along the back of the room was extended out beyond the Mezzanine so it will enclose the bleachers that will be installed in a few weeks.

Gym Renovations - Day 2

DAY TWO

Once the carpet was removed, all of the old glue had to be sanded off to get down to the original concrete base. More about glue dust later...

The walls were primed for painting.

Gym Renovations - Day 1

Alas, I've been remissed in documenting the on-going facility changes around Grace Church over the past two weeks. So here's to catching up...

DAY ONE

The carpet was taken off the floor...

and promptly relaid on Rick Bernhardt's driveway

Practical Joking Accountants

It's financial audit week at the Grace Church office. For the next few days, the 12' conference table, that usually plays more of a decor function than practical function during the work day, is occupied by sometimes six accountants. The table is covered by laptops, printers, external number pads, external computer mice and cords everywhere. A prime setup for a practical joke.

So before the crew arrived this morning, I switched the external number pads by connecting them to the laptop opposite them so when they go to enter numbers, they'll be entering data on someone elses computer. Hee hee.

Pastor Young Returns Again

Some observations from another visit and sermon from Pastor Young yesterday...

Interesting that he seems to show up, sometimes planned, but this time by coincidence, for hallmark moments in Grace Church life... celebrating paying off the mortgage and yesterday, the Auditorium renovations.

I'm amused by the families that no longer attend Grace regularly but who return only on the Sundays when Pastor Young is preaching. Says something about their relationship with Grace and also about relationship with wherever they attend when Pastor Young isn't preaching.

Though the style of delivery is quite different than most other Sunday's at Grace, the content is always dead on and like the ace on a baseball team's pitching staff, a change-up can be equally effective to a fastball in hitting the target. Did you leave encouraged like I did to daily pursue active dependence on God instead of passive dependence?

I missed his introduction and beginning of his message, but I wanted to note whether Pastor Young received another standing ovation yet again. Email me if you can help me out on that one. Over the past four years I sense that our church body has changed substantially and that the balance has shifted. That today there are more attenders who never knew Pastor Young as Pastor than there are attenders who attended regularly under his ministry. Just my guess.

When was Scripture inspired?

Since God apparently didn't deem it newsworthy to include in His Word, it's irrelevant, but it crossed my mind recently...

I find some of my best inspiration for blog posts and other ideas occurs as I drift off to sleep, when I awake in the middle of the night or just as I awake in the morning. So much so that I'm often caught in a dilemma of determining whether attempting to clock more minutes of shut eye outweighs the benefits of capturing the thoughts my mind is generating at the time. Which, one evening or early morning in the past few days led me to contemplate...

I wonder when God inspired the authors of Scripture to record His Words?

Knowing You're Capabilities/Limitations

A component to my definition of maturity, is knowing what one is capable of. Not to say I personify my definition of maturity, I am aware of my capabilities or limitations in several areas. For one, I have limitations in the area of house projects. My bloodline in that department is strong, one of my grandfather's was a skilled woodsman and taught shop at Wildwood (NJ) High School for years. My other grandfather, an engineer by training, also possessed skills that would put any craftsman to the test. I unfortunately, have yet to uphold the family reputation.

While my lack of opportunity to hone such skills may be a light factor, I'm much better at the demo phase than I am at the building or finishing stages of any project. Last week, in an effort to address a toilet that would run constantly from time to time, I embarked on replacing the internals of the toilet tank. It was the second time in a year or so I tackled such a project, so I should've had the knack of it. As I learned the first time around, getting the rusty bolts that attached the tank to the base was the hardest part of the project. Unlike the first project, this second project literally went down the toilet when, in an attempt to dislodge the rusty bolt, the porcelain tank broke apart rendering the tank worthless. I'm just not made out for this type of stuff.

Likewise, I can tell that I'm getting close to crossing the threshold whence others will be better suited to take care of my Dad than I can. I know it, my wife knows it and Dad recognizes it. We've started the exploration process to assess what options are available. I have to accept my capabilities and my limitations.

You Don't Want To Be An Astronaut

I received the following annonymous response to my last post that I found intriuging...

You don't want to be an astronaut because of the no negativism allowed group think in NASA. The primary reason they have had so many failures is that dissent isn't allowed. You have to be really positive in that organization. Thus, when it was pointed out that a mostly oxygen atmosphere in the Apollo capsule was a fire hazard, it was ignored, until they barbecued three astronauts. Thus, they wouldn't believe that a major test of the Hubble mirror was important, until it's myopia blurred the stars. They wouldn't believe that independent systems integration was necessary until the Mars lander tried to fly below the surface, because it didn't occur to them to use a consistent system of measurement units (meters vs. feet). They couldn't believe that foam fragments flying off the shuttle tank could be a problem until they scattered Columbia all over Texas.

My Month in Space

My class' version of the Beloit College Mindset List would include, "Man has always visited the moon." Neil and Buzz's small steps and giant leaps occurred several years before my own earth landing. But from what I recall, I first became aware of space exploration in July 1979.

The occasion was the unfortunate demise of NASA's SkyLab. Living in a provincial town in the Philippines, my friends and their families were distraught that refrigerator-sized pieces of SkyLab would be falling from the sky and destroy their life's possessions. Though I didn't want anyone or thing to be harmed, I was VERY disappointed when my parents informed me that the debris field was limited to the Indian Ocean.

Other than such doomsday predictions we received no other information about the achievements in exploration, so my fascination was flying with the rockets when I was introduced to the Space Shuttle during home service. I was a Shuttle wanna-be through and through and have ever since Walter Mitty-ed through many a day making go/no-go decisions as if I were at the Flight Director's console in Mission Control or flipping switches and declaring "We're venting something into space" as a Command Module Pilot in full problem solving mode. Having dreamt of filling such roles, the past month of so may be the closest I'll ever come to space.

I pulled the book, Apollo 13 off the shelf for the umpteenth time back in March or April and after I got through a couple of chapters I decided to go find the accounts of other NASA personnel. I started with Gene Cranz's book, Failure Is Not An Option. That was closely followed by the Discovery Channel's series, When We Left Earth and then In The Shadow of the Moon. And just this week, I finished Michael Collins' Carrying the Fire. All of these accounts made the Mercury, Gemini and Apollo missions as real as the Shuttle missions I often monitor live via NASA TV's web stream.

Their reality contrasted with my fantasy exposed me for the astronaut God never intended me to be. And while weightlessness always sounded like a freeing sensation the few seconds I experienced it during a recent flight made it very apparent that I'm very comfortable with my feet on the ground and in the confines of a 1g environment.

It's been a fun month in space. From the early risk takers to seeing the latest module, Kibo, added to the International Space Station. I eagerly anticipate my next visit to the Air and Space Museum.

If Church was a Sesame Street Episode, Who Would the Pastor Be?

Based on this post, I'd suggest Count Von Count.

Facebook can create problems

Facebook, or any other social networking sight for that matter, can create problems for organizations that care for children. The neat thing about Facebook is sharing pictures with people - some you know and some you don't. And from the Facebook pages I've visited, many like to capture pictures of their regular activities, so when you work with children, it's logical that you'd post pictures of you and the kids you take care of.

In many cases, before any photograph can be published or distributed publicly, unless it's a large group photo, the individuals pictured need to sign a consent form authorizing the distribution. I think Facebook and other social networking sites get too close to that line of demarcation. One can argue that Facebook isn't a public distribution of a photo. We need to place ourselves in the shoes of the parents.

So while I won't state that it's definitively a problem, it's too close for comfort for my take on the matter. I think paid and volunteer staff should be trained that they need to be highly protective of the pictures they take while serving/caring for children, if they take pictures at all.