Purity

Lately I have been working on putting together some sheet music and songs on CD for our band to listen to and prepare to play. My friend Stephanie has been asked to talk at a Purity program, that a church in Charlestown is putting on. When she was asked about this, she mentioned that she sings, and that she has a band that can play for her. This lady got really excited about this idea, and she even postponed her program for two weeks to give us time to put something together. In that time, Mike, Stephanie and I have picked out some songs, and tomorrow the band will get together and decide which songs we will do and practice them. The program is on the first Saturday in November, which is about a week and a half away. We are all very excited about getting to do this. Hopefully we will be able to get the teens excited about praising and worshipping God, as well as give them encouragement and a good message about being pure, and dressing pure. I will try to actually get some photos from the program and post a blog after we do it...however, it is kinda hard to take pictures while I am playing the drums. Maybe I can get someone to do that for me..

If any of you have a teenager, teach a teenager, or just know a teenager, and want more information about this program, let me know and I can get it for you. I still don't know the specifics about where this is, but I am sure it will be a great program for any teenager, hopefully making them more aware of the importance of being pure, and well as learning to dress in a Godly, pure and appropriate way.

What a Wreck!

Well here it is.......my poor little red car. Many know by now, but I wrecked it this week, on Tuesday. I am ok, except for a yucky cut on my toe and I was pretty sore, but am mostly over that. OK, so now you are all saying, "Well, what happened?".



I was driving down Paoli Pike Tuesday morning around 10:30 and I hit an oil spot. I did not know at the time what happened. I was actually driving very carefully, because I have wrecked on that hill before, and I have much respect for the dangers it presents, especially when wet. I was driving along, and all of the sudden I was swerving and I did a 360 in the road. I was just doing my very best to get back in control of the car, and avoid the oncoming traffic. I did manage to avoid all of the traffic, by the Grace of God, and finally I went sideways into the leading edge of a guardrail. I was very shook up, but unhurt except for the toe cut, and that was done by my pedal, which is metal and not covered by one of those rubber covers. I was wearing sandals and I guess during the fancy footwork I banged it up a bit.



I called 911 and when I got out of my car a guy was there, who had been going the opposite direction and I asked him what happened and he told me about the slick spot in the road. As it turns out, the cop that came had already responded to 4 other calls in nearly that exact spot that day. Also, during the time I was there, I saw 4-5 others hit the same spot. A couple almost lost control as well, but fortunately none of them completely lost control and came crashing into my car or me.



Now, my car is at the shop. The damage is bad, but not as bad as it could have been. I am ok, I did not hit anyone else, and the car is fixable. That is huge for those of you who know me, because I love that car!



So, that is my week. Oh, and if you read Mike's Blog, you will see that God really provided and His timing is cool. I was still upset about the wreck on Wednesday when he found out that the VA is going to come through with some compensation for the "ailments" he has as a result of being in the Army. You can click on his name and read his blog for more details on that.

See the sad sad sights below.......

A Trip.........down memory lane

In my last blog.........which I posted about 10 seconds ago, I mentioned going to a cross country meet to see some of my teens from church run. Well I mentioned that it brought back memories, so I wanted to blog about that as well, and I even scanned in some old pictures to give everyone a nice laugh.

I did not like high school much at all, but the one thing that I did enjoy was running cross country. Many times I get asked, how can you enjoy RUNNING? Well it was not so much the running part as it was being part of a great group of people. Our cross country (cc) team was a family. I got involved with this cc family when I was in 7th grade, and my brother was in 10th grade. He was in cc as well. Although this "family group" changed throughout the years with kids being added and with others graduating, it was still a great family of folks. All of the teams, boys, girls, junior high, and high school did things together. Of course, our meets were not always together, but when we did extra stuff like cc camp in the summer, summer conditioning, special trips, we all did them together as one large group. This really helped foster the family atomosphere as well as strengthen us as a team. Another great thing about our cc family is that it was not only the runners. The parents of the runners were totally involved, as well as the spouses and families of the coaches. My mom was awesome! She was there for everything. She came to cc camp in the summers and she was always there at every meet. In high school, we had out of town meets almost every weekend, and we would usually go the night before and spend the night somewhere, usually in a church. There were several parents that went along, and my mom was always one of them! Many kids might not like having their parents that involved, but I absolutely loved it, and am thankful still today for her involvement in my life as a teenager. THANKS MOM! I LOVE YOU!




I could go on and on, but I think you get the picture. I loved cc and everything that went along with it. I really think that the discipline and training that I went through then has helped shape who I am today. So for those of you who are in cc or other demanding sports like that........keep up the good work. It will help you throughout your life.

Ok, so back to my team. Just a few highlights.......

My freshman year, my team got 2nd in the state finals. My sophomore year we got 3rd, and then in my junior and senior years we were the state champions. That was a thrill to be a part of that. I personally was 26th in the state in Indiana my senior year. It was a ton of fun, and I have to say I worked very hard and was pleased with my accomplishments.





Sometimes it is hard not to want to "live in the past" when you have such great memories of it. I know that life goes on, but it is fun sometimes to take that trip down memory lane and re-live it through those memories.......and to share those memories with others. I have added a few of my favorite pictures. The quality might not be great, because I had to scan them in, due to the fact that nifty, neat digital cameras had not been invented at that time. I will leave them for you to look at and figure out which one is me in the group shots. If you cannot figure it out though, just ask. It should be pretty obvious...........and a little hint, I am in the same position in both group shots.



Just a fun note.........the picture where we have blue ribbons around our necks is a pic from my senior year when we won the state title. The other group pic is from the same year, and the 5 of us in the front row came in 1st, 2nd, 3rd, 4th, and 5th, and for those of you who know how to score cross country that was a perfect score! That was at the regional meet of my senior year. And to make it even better, to round out the team, the other two got 9th and 10th, so our whole team was in the top 10! (Ok, I still like to bask in the memories and even brag sometimes...forgive me)

Thanks for bearing with me as I took this fun trip down memory lane..........

Blog, blog, blog..........

I guess it is about time I put something new on my blog page. I always enjoy looking at everyone else's blogs to see what they write, and when they have not written I always wonder when they will write again........hmm..........I guess they might be wondering the same thing about me, huh?

I have had a lot going on, but for some reason, I just have not sat down to write about it.

My two biggest enjoyments here lately have been my time I spend with Mike and my time I spend with the teenagers at church. Mike and I have been kinda limited on what we do lately due to money. Everything costs so much to do these days! We have had some nice evenings here lately though, just hanging out and watching movies or some of the new TV shows. I know Mike blogged about his new "stories" that have started this fall. The one that I have gotten into with him has been The Bionic Woman. It is a really good show so far. I want to learn to fight like her. She is awesome! I have a black belt in karate, but I did not really learn as much as I would have liked. Maybe someday I can afford to go to a different karate school and start over and hopefully learn more in debth stuff this time.




A few weeks ago, Mike and I went to see Carly perform in a band competition. That was fun. I enjoyed watching her do what she enjoys and what she has put many hours into practicing. I was never into band when I was in high school, so this is a new kind of experience for me. I am sure that she will read this blog, so...Carly, you did great, and I hope that you all do well at Regionals and get to move on up to STATE!! But...even if you don't make it that far, you still have done wonderful, and keep up the hard work. I love ya "little sis!"




Last week I went to a cross country meet. Three of the youth group kids ran in that. It was Kyle Jackson, Rachel Manius, and Adam Manius. Since cross country was my sport of choice in high school, going to the cross country meet was not only enjoyable, but it brought back a ton of memories. They were running at Pekin Eastern, and I have run that course many times myself. Being there, watching the kids run and really put their hearts into what they were doing brought back so many memories and emotions from when I was in high school. Life does go on, but it was nice to take a trip down memory lane for a while.

The Campout

Last weekend, some of the other youth coaches at church and myself took several of our teens from the youth group on a campout. We had an excellent time. We got there and set things up, and then played several rounds of dodgball. That was fun, as it had been years and years since I had played dodgeball! Then one of the teenagers, Rachel, taught us a game called human pinball. That might sound painful, but actually it was not bad at all. It is basically a different twist on dodgeball, and it is always cool to learn new games. After several rounds of dodgeball and human pinball, we changed it up, and got a game of kickball going on. Again, it had been years since I played, and it was fun. Of course, it made it even better that my team won. I think it was something like 10-14. I am still having fond memories of those games.......for the first three days after that, I was so sore I could hardly walk! And still now....a week later, I have a rather large, purple bruise on my left leg where Jeremy beaned me with the ball twice in the same spot! Thanks Jeremy for the fond reminder of the lovely time we had at the campout!







Most of the Thrive band was at the campout, so we all decided to bring our instruments, and we set them up in the barn there on the property. We had a good time jamming....just for fun on Saturday night, and then we put together a bit of a musical worship time for our Sunday morning church that we had out at the camp. That was quite enjoyable also. I even took my new guitar and got to play around on that and learn a few new things.



Saturday night and again on Sunday morning we played yet another new game...again, with Rachel leading the way. It is sort of a card game, and it is called Mafia. It would take forever to explain it on here, but just suffice it to say, it was a ton of fun. It is only the luck of the draw as to who is the Mafia for each game, but out of I believe 10 games, I was mafia at least 7 times! It was crazy! I had a good time though, and have already told several others about that game.












I could go on and on, but I am sure my readers are getting quite bored by now! So, I will say, the food was great...thanks Angelique, the Sunday morning worship and lesson time was nice....well I was kinda in charge of that, so of course I am going to say it was nice! It was indeed fun teaching out there in the open around the morning campfire though. Quite a difference from being in Sacred Grounds (our teen meeting spot at church). Listening to a varitey of teens and adults sing karokee....well....it was........not too painful I supposed. haha! And just spending quality, uninterrupted time with some of the most wonderful teenagers around....priceless!

the latest UPDATE...

Well I just wanted to drop in a little update for those I have not told yet. I have received enough donations so far to buy my plane ticket to Guatemala. So, I have my ticket, have my passport and am ready to go! Now I just have to wait until January....bummer. I guess that is good though. I still need time to raise money for my accomodations, food, and travel within Guatemala. I was concerned about having the money quick enough to get my ticket before prices went up, and God did provide, and I know He will provide the rest as well. He knows my heart, and knows that I am doing this for His glory and not mine, so I believe that He will help make it happen.

the BIG trip

For those of you who don't know, and many of you do, I am heading out to Guatemala in January to work in some orphanages and show love to the kids who have no home and no parents. I will be going to an orphanage called Hannah's Hope. I will do crafts and play with the kids there, and visit with and do Bible studies with the young ladies in the House of Hope, which is a place connected to Hannah's Hope where young mothers learn how to care for their child and also learn work skills so that they can go out and get a job to properly care for themselves and the baby.

I will also be going into the Guatemala Ghetto and take sack lunches to the very poor children, and just try to show them some of the love that Jesus has for all of his children. Then I will also go to another orphanage, much poorer then Hannah's Hope, where at the present there are around 96 kids and 1 adult! Can you even imagine a ratio like that? I am sure there are days and days at a time where those poor kids do not have any kind of adult interaction at all. I long to be there for those kids, to hold them, to show them that someone cares........and ultimately if I could, to bring a few of them home with me!!

Now, in all reality, I know that I cannot bring any of them home, which is a huge part of my decision to go down there. Most folks know that I want to adopt very badly, and yet cannot, so I have decided that since I cannot take in a baby who has no home, I can at least go and be the best Jesus to these kids as I can.........and hopefully, even if this is the only glimps of Jesus that they get, that it will be enough to bring them some joy, and when they are old enough, to remember this joy, and seek out who Jesus is, and come to a relationship with Him.

So, there ya go............I have been wanting to share about this in my blog for those of you who don't know about it. Also, for those if you who do, maybe this gives you an even better glimpse into why I want to do this, rather than just the fact that I am doing it.




About Guatemala - for anyone interested:
Fast Facts...
Full Name: Republic of Guatemala
Capital City: Guatemala
Time Zone: GMT/UTC -6 ()
Languages: Spanish (official)
Religion:
Roman Catholic
Pentecostal
Mayan-Catholic fusion
Indigenous Mayan beliefs
Currency: Quetzal (Q)
Geographic coordinates: 15 30 N, 90 15 W
Area: 108,890 sq km
Area - comparative: slightly smaller than Tennessee
Land boundaries: total: 1,687 km
Border countries:
Belize 266 km
El Salvador 203 km
Honduras 256 km
Mexico 962 km
Coastline: 400 km
Climate: tropical; hot, humid in lowlands; cooler in highlands
Terrain: mostly mountains with narrow coastal plains and rolling limestone plateau (Peten)
Elevation extremes: lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 m - highest point: Volcan Tajumulco 4,211 m
Natural resources: petroleum, nickel, rare woods, fish, chicle, hydropower
Natural hazards: numerous volcanoes in mountains, with occasional violent earthquakes; Caribbean coast extremely susceptible to hurricanes and other tropical storms
Environment - current issues: deforestation in the Peten rainforest; soil erosion; water pollution Environment - international agreements: party to: Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements
Geography - note: no natural harbors on west coast
Population: 14,655,189 (July 2005 est.)
Age structure:
0-14 years: 42.4% (male 3,185,037/female 3,033,947)
15-64 years: 54.2% (male 4,019,052/female 3,928,984)
65 years and over: 3.3% (male 226,745/female 261,424) (2005 est.)
Median age:
Total: 18.47 years
Male: 18.25 years
Female: 18.71 years (2005 est.)
Birth rate: 34.11 births/1,000 population (2005 est.)
Death rate: 6.81 deaths/1,000 population (2005 est.)
Total population: 1.03 male(s)/female (2005 est.)
Infant mortality rate:
35.93 deaths/1,000 live births
Life expectancy at birth:
Total population: 65.14 years
Male: 64.27 years
Female: 66.04 years (2005 est.)
Total fertility rate: 4.53 children born/woman (2005 est.)
HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate: 1.1% (2003 est.)
HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS: 78,000 (2003 est.)
HIV/AIDS - deaths: 5,800 (2003 est.)
Ethnic groups (2001 census):
Mestizo (mixed Amerindian and Spanish - in local Spanish called Ladino) and European 59.4%
K'iche 9.1%
Kaqchikel 8.4%
Mam 7.9%
Q'eqchi 6.3%
Other Mayan 8.6%
Indigenous non-Mayan 0.2%
Other 0.1%
Languages:
Spanish 60%
Amerindian languages 40% (23 officially recognized Amerindian languages, including Quiche, Cakchiquel, Kekchi, Mam, Garifuna, and Xinca)
Literacy: definition: age 15 and over can read and write (2003 est.)
Total population: 70.6%
Male: 78%
Female: 63.3%