Saturday, June 20, 2009

Father's Day Weekend 2009

What a weekend it's been so far. Even though my wonderful daughters and their husbands can't be here, they have blessed me with gifts and the knowledge that they love me. Thank you, Jennifer and Rob and Jon and Ashley for being so great. And thank you to my wonderful wife for being such a blessing. She is absolutely the best. Thank you, dear friends, for an evening of good food and fellowship. You know who you are. Conversations about speed dating while driving in a car with "extra weight" causing the breaks to do weird things made my night. Thank you, God, for the blessings of life and ministry! Of all men, I am most blessed!

Monday, June 15, 2009

Great Things!

Sorry it's been so long since my last post.Things tend to get busy this time of the year. But God is doing great things at Southside and in my life. Church is going well -- new members, great Spirit/spirit, people excited about what God is doing, VBS, youth missions.... As a pastor, there aren't many things that could make me happier. Well, maybe a few. But this is not the place to talk about those. I will say that in the last few weeks I have witnessed some of the most supreme acts of Christian love, witness, and service of my entire ministry. Thank you to the greatest church I've ever had the privilege of being a part of -- thank you for allowing God to use you in the ways that you do.

On a personal note, God is blessing, too. I am going to be a grandfather. I know. I know. I am much too young and good looking to be a grandfather, but I have always been an early achiever. Sonya asked me to marry her at age 12, and the rest is history. I'm just kidding. I was 19 when we got married, and I didn't know Sonya until I was 18. And just so you know, I was 21 when my first lovely daughter, Jennifer, was born. She is the one gifting us with this grandchild. I'm told that her husband Rob had something to do with it, too, but let his father write about him on his blog. Just kidding, Rob. You are a great son-in-law. I am so excited that we got to spend the weekend with this fine young couple as they went from store to store to store to store to store signing up for their "Baby Registry." Actually, it was just Target and Babies R Us, but it seemed like sooooooooo much more. It was a chore to keep Rob from scanning things like barbecue grills and quesadilla makers, but he made a good argument that he needed to provide healthy food for the child. Anyway, we are excited. The big date is in the first part of December. Pray for us all, especially me. If these first few weeks are any indication, I'm going to have to take on a second job just to afford this pregnancy. Who knows what it will cost after the next great future "whatever he or she is going to be" is born. So just call me Grampy.