Catching up

I am back!!!! I don't know if that is good news, or if it should constitute a warning.

Blogging takes time and brain power..neither of which I seem to have alot of. But today, I have a litte of both, so I am going to catch you up a bit.

Health- GOOD! The blood clots have cleared up and the tests seem to be encouraging. More scans in 8 weeks, and go from there. My energy level is up and down, which I am learning to accept and manage. The foggy feeling I have comes and goes. It seems to be related to stress and energy...It is not overwhelming like it used to be. I keep being reminded that the Dr's said, "This is a 2-3 year process" Its been 18 months.

Church- On the one hand it is really good. The people are amazing, encouraging and challenging. I could never imagine a better group of people. On the other hand, it is a real challenge. With the building on North Garnett coming along, we are knee deep in transition planning. ( kind of feels like quicksand) It is like going into a tunnel and seeing a bright light come right at you. ( Yup... that is a train!) This whole process has given new meaning to the "tunnel of chaos." But we have a good staff team and building team. I ask lots of questions and keep saying, "We need to be creative problem solvers." That is good advice, but I sometimes fall into the mode of "Let's sovle the problem" rather than, "Lets pray about this and see how God solves the problem."

Family- All are good. Pam has been going to lots of Volleyball, and I have been tagging along. I enjoy watching Abigial play, and she is really good! Joel is living here while looking for a job in his chosen career field. Lizzie and Nathaniel are gearing up for basketball, which means he is coaching 6 days a week. Lydia and James had a great launch at their church in Joliet Ill. She is doing pretty well.

What have I learned in the past 6 weeks? Good question. I have learned that I am predisposed to say "yes" to almost every request and I have to change. I have learned that what I think I am saying to people is not neccesarily what they always hear.( Especially true when people have requests or demands...) I have learned that with me looking better, people assume I am back to normal and I am not. As a matter of fact, there is a new normal, which I am not even sure about. I have learned that if I don't take the time to replenish my soul, my heart shrivels up. ( Nothing new there... but I need the reminder). I have learned that the future is bright in God's kingdom, but that I ought to enjoy it more, worry less, slow down even more than I am and work better, not neccesarily harder.

I am reading alot more. Good books on the shelf include, "The Big Idea" by Dave Ferguson, "The Truth War" by John McArthur, "The Simple Church" by Thom Rainier, and "Communicating for Change" by Andy Stanley.

Oh, I have noticed something else... I read too much "Church stuff". I am branching out into some fiction ( Pam brought home "Playing for Pizza" by Grisham), a biography or two and see if I can broaden my horizons.

I want to promise that it will not be 6 weeks between posts again...but I can't. My supsicion is that I will pick it up.

later

Charlie