Sunday

As I wrote this last night, we had just put the boys down for bed after returning from our second church service of the day. We went to Sanctuary this morning and were challenged by Pastor Efrem to find our Kingdom assignment in this world. We then had a nice picnic with several families from church (the women all get together for a mom's prayer group). My sister stopped by on her way back to Des Moines to see us, and we enjoyed the lovely weather in the park.

Our evening plans with our neighbors ended up getting postponed, so we decided we'd check out another church that we've been feeling a drawing to recently. They were supposed to have a picnic worship service, but it had been raining on and off all afternoon, so they ate and worshipped inside then went outside for dessert, community outreach and a game of kickball.

It's a church that we felt right at home at on our first visit (it probably helped that we spent the weekend with many of the members at Covenant Pines last weekend). It's a very small church (about 50 people, I'm guessing). They operate on Benedictine principles and are very community-focused. The children are incorporated into worship: they're very liturgical, and when they have a responsive reading there is usually lines for the children to read. They sing the Lord's Prayer with actions, and Anders gets into doing it. And has the connection of the community come across in this? They're pretty intentional about community. And despite the fact that they're more monastic/liturgical/introverted in their practices, they also incorporate outreach into the community into their worship gatherings. I think for us, in our world where my wife's schedule changes day-to-day, that living in the church calendar and praying the hours and other such practices could give us a little more sense of having some rhythm in our lives--in addition to connecting us more to each other, the community and God.

So, we'll see what comes out of this (in some ways, it complicates things for us, but in most ways it's freeing to find community).

School's Out for the Summer

Today was Anders' last day of school. His class went on a field trip to ride the street car between Lakes Harriet and Calhoun. Nils and I got to go along. They enjoyed riding the rails (though after the first time up and back on the track, Anders was ready for something else).

We're grateful that Anders has had a great first year. He had a great teacher (thanks, Miss Lehman) and made a lot of good friends (which are going to be hard to leave when we move--thankfully we're still really close). And we're grateful Anders has had a good experience so that Nils is interested in school and education.

Work & Worship

We spent our Memorial Day weekend at Covenant Pines Bible Camp in northern Minnesota for their Work & Worship Family Camp. Basically, you go free (paying a little for meals) in exchange for helping the camp get some work done before their summer camps start. We worked all day Saturday. I scraped and painted a cabin while the boys and Beth picked up sticks (Beth traded off at the end).

On Sunday we had chapel in the morning followed by a "hay" ride. The rest of the day was free time.

I got in on a rousing game of human foosball.

The boys and I went out on a boat and some some loons.

And the boys spent plenty of time playing on the cable ride, play center and other places with their new friends.

On Monday we had a flag raising and Memorial Day. Many people in attendance had family members or friends who had given their lives in the armed forces, served or are currently serving.

I think the part we enjoyed most were some of the relationships we developed in the few days there. We enjoyed the company of several families--most were from the same church, and we got to join them in their own prayer times before meals.

Of course, any time on a lake in the north woods is a good time.

General Mills and Nils

Nils and I biked over to General Mills corporate offices today and had some fun exploring the sculptures on their grounds. He found his harmonica in the bike trailer, so we had some music as we biked on the way there (you can see him playing it in the first picture).

It was a nice day--better than the 90 degree days with high humidity that we've had lately--and we enjoyed the bike ride and the time together. He's been going through this phase of checking boundaries (by that I mean constantly pushing them); it was a welcome reprieve to have some time with him where he wasn't disobeying or jut not listening. Maybe he just needed some focused attention. Maybe we all do.

Cattails and Playgrounds

These are from a couple recent trips to the nature center near our house. One thing the Minneapolis area does well is preserve a lot of natural areas and parks.

Whitsunday

God created Adam by shaping the dirt
Then breathing His own breath
Into the artwork made
In His image.

Millenia later,
After Jesus returned to Heaven,
God breathed life into His people again.
He sent His Spirit,
Like tongues of fire,
Like a rushing wind,
Upon people from many races
Gathered together to celebrate Shavout,
Marking the 50 days after the Exodus,
When Moses received the Commandments
From God upon the mountain.

As Jesus was "Immanuel"--
God with us--
God is still with us
As the Holy Spirit has been poured out
Upon all believers.

God's breath in us,
He guides us, directs us,
If we allow ourselves to follow Him,
Choosing His will--
His good, pleasing, perfect will--
Over our own.

The Spirit did not just descend
Upon one person, however.
It descended upon the nations.
Together we must do His will.
Together we display His image.
Together we are the church.

Less than a Month

We're just under a month away until we move into our new house. We're very excited about it--at a bit nervous yet. We still have to decide upon insurance and look into a few other things, but everything is coming along.

Things I'm excited about:
Not having to maintain a stash of quarters for doing laundry
Being able to compost instead of having to throw away
Garden space
More room to move about and not having to store things in our garage
Room to invite people over

Things I'm going to miss:
A good sledding hill next door (thankfully, we've still got a park practically next door)
"Utilities included"
Anders' school and his friends
The convenience of our neighborhood--we're easy to get to, right off the interstate, near a few shopping areas, near a nature center, etc.
And most of all, good neighbors

But we're only moving 7 miles, so it's not like much has to change. But, still, even after just two years here, we've grown fond of this place and the people here. And I know that can happen wherever we go--we'll make more friends and connections.

And Then there Were Two (Wheels)

Last Sunday I had to replace a tire on Nils' bike. It had worn through. Tires that small are impossible to find. Thankfully, a good friend from church had some extras. While replacing the tire, Nils asked if he could have his training wheels off; Anders was already expressing interest in trying to ride without his. Anders had tried last summer, but I had pushed him into it a little too much, and he wasn't confident enough to try it.

Now, they both seemed to be ready. Admittedly, I had expected Nils to be able to ride without training wheels before Anders. He moved up to a two-wheel scooter this spring and has great balance. He has the potential to be a great gymnast if he was born in a family who could afford it.

Anyway, they were both ready to try without the training wheels. And they both did remarkably well on their first attempt. Nils was actually riding down the side walk with me walking beside him, not holding on to him, as Beth drove home from work. The neighbors were impressed and thrilled that Beth got to see it. They've both been practicing some all week, and I'm trying not to push it too much with them. Nils requested his training wheels put back on this morning so he could ride without someone having to help him start and stop all the time. That'll give me more opportunity to work with Anders, anyway.

Riding a bike requires two things: confidence in yourself and trust in the person who's helping you. I suppose it requires protective gear, plenty of practice and persistence and a bike, of course. But confidence and trust are good lessons to work off.

To accomplish or succeed at anything, we need confidence in ourselves. That confidence comes when we root ourselves in the knowledge of who God created us to be. We need to build ourselves up in the fact that God loves us more deeply and more passionately that we can ever know. That keeps us humble, preventing overconfidence, yet bold, knowing that God gives us the strength to do whatever He calls us to.

We also need to trust the One who will help us do what He calls us to do. That goes without saying, but sometimes we forget (I'm including myself in this) that He empowers us to do whatever is in His will for us to do.

With practice, following God is like riding a bike, so take off your training wheels.

(And I totally have to give credit to Amy Mingo on the photos as I'm always running alongside and can never get a picture of my own taken of the boys)

Community

I try (rather unsuccessfully at times) to limit the amount of television I watch. There are much more productive things to do with my time; there are better ways to grow my marriage and myself. But sometimes I get sucked in by compelling characters, good story-telling or just something that gives me a few laughs in a day.

A popular new-comer this year was Community. It's season finale airs tonight, so I admit I'm a bit late in talking about the show which is about an eclectic group of students at a community college who band together to form a study group for the Spanish class they find themselves taking together.

The show features a cynical ex-lawyer trying to get an authentic bachelor's degree to practice law again, a feminist atheist struggling with direction, a Muslim Palestinian-American pop-culture junkie, an evangelical African American single mother, a repressed Jewish former Adderall addict, a former high school athletic star Jehovah's Witness, and a racist and sexist retired business tycoon who belongs to a quasi-Buddhist cult (through which Chevy Chase make s a wonderful comeback in his career).

The group's only common bond is Spanish class. Their eccentricities and differences often lead to misunderstandings, heated arguments and hurt feelings, but they also have developed deeper friendships and even a greater love for each other. Though initially joining together over a need to do well in Spanish class, their community is formed as they learn to tolerate each other's differences, stand up for each other and even unselfishly make sacrifices for each other.

With such a mixed group, moral behavior isn't going to always be present, of course. But the group has reminded many in our culture of a need for something most of us have been missing out on: community. We all belong to communities of various natures, but we seldom experience true community. We need relationships that build us up, take us out of our comfort zones, love us and accept us.

Donald Miller reminds us that we need to be intentional about creating this relationships. We're probably not going to end up in a study group that facilitates the relationships we need. Our friendships must be intentional (they always are on some level as we decide who to invest in or not). And those relationships also require a commitment. We must decide to intentionally get together regularly for fellowship. We must be purposeful about building relationships up outside of group times. We must look beyond ourselves to the needs of others (hmmm, this is beginning to sound like the ideal church).

Interestingly, almost every person in the group on Community has been forced out or chosen to get out of the group for a time, but they always come back and are welcomed with open arms. Forgiveness and acceptance are always present. Indeed, the group comes to realize that they need each and every person in the group. Cheers reminded us years ago that "sometimes you want to go where everybody knows your name." Community is reminding us that we have a deeper need beyond just being known. We need to feel accepted and connected.

Streets of Golden Buildling Bricks

Anders: What's heaven like?
Me: It's a wonderful place. God is with us. There is no more crying or tears . . .
Anders: Are there Legos there?