It's been a crazy week, here on the coast. The weather is trying to change into spring, slowly, but trying to change none the least. Things are getting super busy on the campus. Seems like each of the professors are keeping our students overwhelmed for the remainder of our semester. I understand the need for the 'sense of urgency' for the class requirements, I'm just sad that it seems to occupy so much of our student's thought processes that they don't have time (or think they have the time) to slow down and spend a few quality moments with the Creator of the Universe. Pray for our students. God has so much planned for them.
Thursday night was insane at h2o! We hosted The Mighty Underdoggs, a 'somewhat' local Christian band in concert. They were very good, and our students loved them! We had our highest attendance yet at our h2o worship gatherings! And afterwards, the guys in the band just wanted to hang out with our students for a while...great night!
Friday night, was a needed night of relaxation. Denise and I watched some of the NCAA games on the tube, in the meantime, I was doing some research & studying for the weekends Bible Study and messages. It ended up being a very late night...after 2am before I made it to bed.
Saturday was definitely not our normal Saturday. Spent the day studying and working on PowerPoint for Sunday night's church service. But that night was fabulous! Denise and I attended the World Student Association's International Dinner at TU. I stood in amazement! We have a very large international population on campus, and this is our way of celebrating with their native food, dress and entertainment. Tabitha and the Concert Choir performed, along with numerous international performances. The food was fabulous. And it was great to spend some time with several of our international students that are a part of our h2o campus ministry. During this time, the Kappa Kappa Psi fraternity was having their annual Silent Auction. Yes, we got in on some of that too. But, I DID get a new coffee maker...an MP3 player...and a few other goodies out the deal. What was funny, was that our h2o students that were part of the KKPsi, was calling me during the International Dinner, keeping me informed of the bidding! Too Funny. Afterward, the Student Government Association put on a casino night for the campus, and for the guests of the International Dinner. Under normal circumstances I would have stayed away from that stuff. But the SGA designed this so that NO ONE spent any money...NO ONE won any money. Everyone was given free chips and tokens to play the different games. Everyone was also given tickets to put into drawings for free gift packages. We had a great time...and I hadn't played Black Jack in YEARS! In addition, this gave me phenomenal opportunities to begin relationships with students that I had never met before. Another 2am night!
Sunday was chalked full of stuff! The day started off with the beginning of our new Sunday Morning Small Group. We had 8 in attendance! We followed that be having lunch with several of our students in the cafeteria on campus. We then attended a Martial Arts Competition that was held on campus. Several of our students were entered in the different type matches. Services for The River Church got started at 6pm, and again, we had our largest attendance yet. God is truly amazing.
If you can't tell by now, we love our students...
After work tomorrow, I've got to speak at Heidelberg College, beginning at 9pm at their collegiate ministry. This is a great opportunity for me to share with their students and to also tell them about our new church plant.
Oh, and I really can't forget to share this...last Sunday, Easter Sunday, we were the guests at Lakeshore Community Church in Huron, Ohio. The pastor had an emergency trip out of state, and I filled in for him in the Sunday morning service. We were overwhelmed with how warm their congregation was...it was a great, great day...and the most exciting part, was that 2 ladies accepted Christ as their personal Savior. Now that's how I like to spend Easter.
OK, time to go for now...hopefully, we'll get some extra rest this week...in the meantime, Denise is keeping the coffee hot...
Monday, March 31, 2008
Tuesday, March 25, 2008
Sunday, March 23, 2008
Moving Day...
We're excited to announce that we have purchased domains for our h2o Campus Ministry and our church plant. I would like to invite to drop by both of them and check them out!
Our new Campus Ministry site is: www.lifeath2o.org
Our new church plant site is: www.tiffinsriverchurch.com
Enjoy!
Our new Campus Ministry site is: www.lifeath2o.org
Our new church plant site is: www.tiffinsriverchurch.com
Enjoy!
Monday, March 17, 2008
Church Ignorance...
Knowing that I could write volumns about this subject, I'm going to stick with one incident in particular.
A few weeks ago, one of the larger SBC churches in our state, (somewhere near 1000 in attendance on Sunday's), was influenced and led by the INTERIM pastor, who by the way is in his 80's and has been at the church for over a year, to bring before the church a change in the churches constitution that would no longer allow any church member under the age of 16 the right to vote in the churches business meetings. The Motion PASSED! Now, this church only recognizes members 16 and over in the voting process.
What does that tell those students...it tells them that 'they don't matter anymore...your input...your thoughts...your ideas...and I can go on and on...are useless.' 'You are not needed here.'
And we wonder what's happening to the youth in our churches! We've already succeeded in alienating the collegiate group...those between the ages of 18 and 25...from the church body, now we're doing the same thing to the next generation.
This has got to stop...
A few weeks ago, one of the larger SBC churches in our state, (somewhere near 1000 in attendance on Sunday's), was influenced and led by the INTERIM pastor, who by the way is in his 80's and has been at the church for over a year, to bring before the church a change in the churches constitution that would no longer allow any church member under the age of 16 the right to vote in the churches business meetings. The Motion PASSED! Now, this church only recognizes members 16 and over in the voting process.
What does that tell those students...it tells them that 'they don't matter anymore...your input...your thoughts...your ideas...and I can go on and on...are useless.' 'You are not needed here.'
And we wonder what's happening to the youth in our churches! We've already succeeded in alienating the collegiate group...those between the ages of 18 and 25...from the church body, now we're doing the same thing to the next generation.
This has got to stop...
Saturday, March 15, 2008
We're Moving...
Just to let you know, during Spring Break week, we're moving our h2o web address...stay tuned...
Friday, March 14, 2008
Thawing Out...
For three straight days of almost 50 degrees...THANK THE LORD...the frozen tundra is beginning to disappear! There were moments that I honestly thought we would NEVER see the groud again. But with the warmer temperatures and the rain today, the ground is emerging!!! YAY!!!!
What we're hearing is that this was the LAST, hopefully, major snow for the season. The locals are talking about a possible light dusting of snow if a week or so, but for the most part, spring is so close!!!!!! I don't have to tell you how much we're ready for warmer days.
It's spring break at Tiffin University! Which means a week off for Tabitha, and somewhat of a break for Denise & me. We will not be meeting on campus until Easter Sunday night at the The River.
However, we do have quite a bit of traveling during the week. We'll be at Woodsfield, Ohio this coming Sunday, sharing about our ministry with the congregation of First Baptist Church - Woodsfield. Woodsfield is about a 4 hour drive for us, so we will have to be on the road by 6:15am. TOO EARLY!!!
Then on Easter Sunday morning, I've been asked to bring the morning message at Lakeshore Community Church in Huron, Ohio. LCC is a contemporary style church, that's located on Lake Erie, just outside of Cleveland. We're looking forward to worshipping at LCC.
At h2o, we've got so much going on for the remainder of the semester, it's unreal! Check back here for details.
I think that's about it for now...
What we're hearing is that this was the LAST, hopefully, major snow for the season. The locals are talking about a possible light dusting of snow if a week or so, but for the most part, spring is so close!!!!!! I don't have to tell you how much we're ready for warmer days.
It's spring break at Tiffin University! Which means a week off for Tabitha, and somewhat of a break for Denise & me. We will not be meeting on campus until Easter Sunday night at the The River.
However, we do have quite a bit of traveling during the week. We'll be at Woodsfield, Ohio this coming Sunday, sharing about our ministry with the congregation of First Baptist Church - Woodsfield. Woodsfield is about a 4 hour drive for us, so we will have to be on the road by 6:15am. TOO EARLY!!!
Then on Easter Sunday morning, I've been asked to bring the morning message at Lakeshore Community Church in Huron, Ohio. LCC is a contemporary style church, that's located on Lake Erie, just outside of Cleveland. We're looking forward to worshipping at LCC.
At h2o, we've got so much going on for the remainder of the semester, it's unreal! Check back here for details.
I think that's about it for now...
Tuesday, March 11, 2008
Saturday, March 8, 2008
Nightfall On The Frozen Tundra...
As night fell on the frozen tundra of Antartica, we had managed to get a snowblower on part of our driveway. As you can see, be barely made a dent in the vast amout of snow that we have. Most of these pictures are somewhere near our driveway, giving you different views around our vehicles.
This first pic is a great shot of our home. Notice the 2 small lights burried in the snow...that is decorator yard lighting that is over 2 feet tall! Tonight, it nothing more than a 'glow in the snow'!
It's 10:00pm, EST...the blizzard has sub-sided, the clouds are gone...and the stars are out. Time to go, I'm making fresh snow ice-cream. And there's a good fireplace and a cup of coffee waiting on me inside...
I'm standing in the road looking back in our driveway...can you tell where the road stops and our driveway begins....
Before the snowblower arrived, our vehicles were literally burried in snow!
This is attempting to get to our front porch.
This first pic is a great shot of our home. Notice the 2 small lights burried in the snow...that is decorator yard lighting that is over 2 feet tall! Tonight, it nothing more than a 'glow in the snow'!
It's 10:00pm, EST...the blizzard has sub-sided, the clouds are gone...and the stars are out. Time to go, I'm making fresh snow ice-cream. And there's a good fireplace and a cup of coffee waiting on me inside...
I'm standing in the road looking back in our driveway...can you tell where the road stops and our driveway begins....
Before the snowblower arrived, our vehicles were literally burried in snow!
This is attempting to get to our front porch.
Snow Pics From The March Blizzard..
These pics were taken on Saturday morning, March 8th!
Where is SUMMER?!
Blizzard Video of March 2008
This video clip is shot from inside our garage on Saturday morning, March 8th. We already had 3-4 inches of ice, along with 4-5 inches of snow, when this crazy blizzard hit. As of right now, we're at a Level 3 emergency in our county; white-out conditions (as you can see); we had our driveway cleared with a snowblower earlier in the morning, but to no avail. This storm should end by tomorrow morning, with us getting at least 12 more inches of snow!! UNREAL!!
Saturday, March 1, 2008
Updated Randomness...
It's 1:06am on Saturday morning, and my mind is running like a merry-go-round out of control. The past couple of weeks have been a non-stop roller coaster for us. Lot's of travel...speaking engagements...and just general stuff!
I've tried to spend the evening tonight, trying to knock out a to-do list that is long past due. One of the entries on that list is 'blog...blog...blog'. I somehow find it harder to do one of the things I love, which is blogging. Please forgive me for my momentary lapse of timing.
Last Sunday, Denise and I had an awesome time at FBC-Newton Falls. We were part of their Missions Sunday that was sponsored by their Ladies WMU. I had the opportunity to speak to their youth group in the Sunday School hour about life after high school, and the many opportunities to be involved in a campus ministry at their next level of education. Had a tremendous time! There were 20 teenagers in that group, and each of them were super cool. Then I spoke during the AM service about our Campus Ministry at Tiffin University, and about the many opportunities they have at reaching the Emerging Generation. Pastor Steve Spurlock and his congregation were incredible hosts. Thanks so much FBC-Newton Falls.
On Monday & Tuesday, Denise and I were at the Ohio State Evangelism Conference at Cedarville University. We were responsible for working at the Collegiate Ministry booth for the Ohio State Convention. Got to meet so many new people, and also to see our new friends that we have made around the state. I did manage to slip in the hear Ed Stetzer on Monday afternoon. He was exactly what I thought he would be...unbelievable. If you ever get the chance to hear him speak...don't miss it.
We left Cedarville University on Tuesday afternoon just in time before the blizzard hit around the Dayton area. Our drive was about 2 1/2 hours home, and the closer we got to home, the worse the snow & wind was. By the time Wednesday morning got here, we had an additional 9" of snow! Too crazy for me!
I had to work the rest of the week at my 'day job', for those of you who don't know, I'm a pharmacy tech for one of the local pharmacists in Tiffin. To say the least, we've been trying to catch up on much needed rest...I haven't caught it yet...
Our ministry on the TU campus is growing at a very scary rate. Not only in sheer numbers, but in the life-change that we're seeing in the students. We have a group of young ladies that have started their own weekly Bible Study/Prayer Time in their dorm...student leaders are beginning to emerge, a thing that I have been praying about for weeks! After our spring break, we will be putting many of our students who feel led to serve in a leadership position through a series of 'leadership exams'. I honestly believe we will be greatly surprised at the number of students who will be willing to make the commitment necessary to grow this ministry and the reach our campus for Christ. We have a young lady who is from Puerto Rico who speaks & reads fluent Spanish. I'm working now to get her involved in sometype of Hispanic-type missions in our local association. We have a smaller group of students (around 12) that are wanting some type of a small group Bible Study on Sunday mornings. Just today, I received permission from our Student Activities Director that we can have use of a private dining room in our cafeteria every Sunday morning for this. My plans are to begin the Sunday after Easter. Please be in prayer for this new small-group. This past Thursday night, we had 27 at h2o. So if we combine the Thursday night group and the Sunday night group, we're averaging somewhere between 45 & 50 each week. God is so good!
We have already reserved our facility, Chisholm Auditorium, for Thursday's and Sunday's for next year! We were told last week that our campus group is the largest group on campus! Even bigger that any of the Greek organizations. This is a testament to the work of a Holy God that is calling people...students...unto Himself! We're just amazed to be in the midst...
I'm meeting with the Director of Admissions this week about the possibilities that exist with the incoming freshmen. Our goal is to have information about h2o in each of the incoming freshmen's hands BEFORE they arrive in the fall. We are also excited about the chance to speak to each group of freshmen and their families that we be participating in our Freshmen Orientation weeks this summer. God continues to open all kinds of doors for us...and we keep pushing forward.
Please continue to pray for our family...and our work at Tiffin University. God is busy, and I just love to watch Him work...
I've tried to spend the evening tonight, trying to knock out a to-do list that is long past due. One of the entries on that list is 'blog...blog...blog'. I somehow find it harder to do one of the things I love, which is blogging. Please forgive me for my momentary lapse of timing.
Last Sunday, Denise and I had an awesome time at FBC-Newton Falls. We were part of their Missions Sunday that was sponsored by their Ladies WMU. I had the opportunity to speak to their youth group in the Sunday School hour about life after high school, and the many opportunities to be involved in a campus ministry at their next level of education. Had a tremendous time! There were 20 teenagers in that group, and each of them were super cool. Then I spoke during the AM service about our Campus Ministry at Tiffin University, and about the many opportunities they have at reaching the Emerging Generation. Pastor Steve Spurlock and his congregation were incredible hosts. Thanks so much FBC-Newton Falls.
On Monday & Tuesday, Denise and I were at the Ohio State Evangelism Conference at Cedarville University. We were responsible for working at the Collegiate Ministry booth for the Ohio State Convention. Got to meet so many new people, and also to see our new friends that we have made around the state. I did manage to slip in the hear Ed Stetzer on Monday afternoon. He was exactly what I thought he would be...unbelievable. If you ever get the chance to hear him speak...don't miss it.
We left Cedarville University on Tuesday afternoon just in time before the blizzard hit around the Dayton area. Our drive was about 2 1/2 hours home, and the closer we got to home, the worse the snow & wind was. By the time Wednesday morning got here, we had an additional 9" of snow! Too crazy for me!
I had to work the rest of the week at my 'day job', for those of you who don't know, I'm a pharmacy tech for one of the local pharmacists in Tiffin. To say the least, we've been trying to catch up on much needed rest...I haven't caught it yet...
Our ministry on the TU campus is growing at a very scary rate. Not only in sheer numbers, but in the life-change that we're seeing in the students. We have a group of young ladies that have started their own weekly Bible Study/Prayer Time in their dorm...student leaders are beginning to emerge, a thing that I have been praying about for weeks! After our spring break, we will be putting many of our students who feel led to serve in a leadership position through a series of 'leadership exams'. I honestly believe we will be greatly surprised at the number of students who will be willing to make the commitment necessary to grow this ministry and the reach our campus for Christ. We have a young lady who is from Puerto Rico who speaks & reads fluent Spanish. I'm working now to get her involved in sometype of Hispanic-type missions in our local association. We have a smaller group of students (around 12) that are wanting some type of a small group Bible Study on Sunday mornings. Just today, I received permission from our Student Activities Director that we can have use of a private dining room in our cafeteria every Sunday morning for this. My plans are to begin the Sunday after Easter. Please be in prayer for this new small-group. This past Thursday night, we had 27 at h2o. So if we combine the Thursday night group and the Sunday night group, we're averaging somewhere between 45 & 50 each week. God is so good!
We have already reserved our facility, Chisholm Auditorium, for Thursday's and Sunday's for next year! We were told last week that our campus group is the largest group on campus! Even bigger that any of the Greek organizations. This is a testament to the work of a Holy God that is calling people...students...unto Himself! We're just amazed to be in the midst...
I'm meeting with the Director of Admissions this week about the possibilities that exist with the incoming freshmen. Our goal is to have information about h2o in each of the incoming freshmen's hands BEFORE they arrive in the fall. We are also excited about the chance to speak to each group of freshmen and their families that we be participating in our Freshmen Orientation weeks this summer. God continues to open all kinds of doors for us...and we keep pushing forward.
Please continue to pray for our family...and our work at Tiffin University. God is busy, and I just love to watch Him work...
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