homemade toys:: amanda pig

jane's favorite character is by far amanda pig. she has all of her books, she draws pictures of amanda, writes books about amanda, records videos about amanda, tells stories about amanda- she is amanda's number 1 fan.

unfortunately, amanda pig is a fairly obscure book character- there are no new books about her, and certainly no toys. we have made amanda pig dioramas out of scans of the book, but recently I decided to make an amanda pig out of pieces of wood from the craft store, paint and a ton of wood putty. I think it turned out pretty well-

being a dad is fun.
-rob

fantastic-friday

last friday was fantastic.

deanna, jane and I went camping at our favorite KOA in santa cruz, then we came home and I worked on one of my home made toys for jane, then we went out to eat. as we rolled into our parking lot, I got a call from my friend dave. he said that he locked his keys in his car and needed a ride- I told him I'd be right there. then he called again and needed some help moving some stuff. I rolled my eyes.

I met him at the church, grabbed the chairs that he needed to move and walked into one of our church's main rooms, venue 2. as I walked in, I noticed my ministry's logo on the screens. I thought, "who left these screens on?! who is using my logo?!" and then the lights flipped on and a crowd of friends jumped up and yelled "SURPRISE!" I thought, "did I just mess up someone's surprise party?" and I saw that all these people were MY friends! this party was for me! they had all gathered to celebrate my ten years at the church. they totally got me good! the place was filled with the faithful 678 volunteers, parents of students, former students, current students, and my former college students. best of all, deanna and jane soon joined the crowd. I couldn't belive that they would go to such an effort for me- and that they all kept it a secret from me!

what followed was one blessing after another. there was a video with photos and touching testimonies from students and former students-
leanne shared many meaningful memories- niki did as well. the words that they shared were so deeply encouraging that I haven't fully taken them in yet. jeff got up and played a version of "where the streets have no name" with a new title, "our super-pastor." so cool. it was definitely one of those "this is your life" moments.

Dave asked me to get up and I shared what I could remember of an earlier blog post of what I might say in this situation.

I received many thoughtful and gracious cards, notes, and gifts- the thoughtfulness and generosity of these friends was overwhelming. this was one of the most humbling and beautiful experiences that I can remember.

everyone kept telling me about how long they have been planning this and how hard it was to keep it a secret. just the other day I was talking with Dave and noting that no one had noticed my ten year anniversary at the church. he just giggled.

it made me think that God must giggle like that to Himself quite a lot. down here, we lament and complain about all kinds of things, and I'm sure that He is up there thinking, "you have no idea how I'm going to bless you! I've been planning this for so long! I have gone to such great lengths to prepare an amazing surprise for you!" and He must get such a kick out of seeing us react to the amazing blessings that He brings into our lives. I wonder if He has a sense of excitement as we are about to discover something new from Him.

"for I know the plans I have for you,” declares the LORD, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future." -jeremiah 29:11

"No eye has seen,
no ear has heard,
no mind has conceived
what God has prepared for those who love him." -1 Corinthians 2:9

"And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose." -Romans 8:28

all of you blessed my socks off. I can't thank you enough for the effort that you went to to make me feel special; and I can't thank God enough for allowing me to have all of you as friends.

God is love.
-rev-rob

wonderful-wednesday

last wednesday was wonderful.

it started out in the morning with my daily weigh-in. I had been hovering around -48 pounds for weeks. some days it was -48.5, others it was -49, but never-50. but on wednesday morning, I saw that number on the scale that I had been looking for for weeks: -50lbs! nothing could wreck this day after seeing that.

my wonderful wednesday continued when I got to work. I have been out of an office for almost 4 months (more on this later). there was a lot of remodeling going on, and I was displaced. I had heard that I might be landing soon. I heard that a specific office was picked out for me, but it was occupied by another worker- they still needed to move out. for days I peeked into the window and saw that nothing had moved, but on Wednesday, I looked in the door and saw that the office was empty! it was mine to claim- a blank canvas to fill- I was elated.

my wonderful wednesday continued when I went to a big meeting with our family ministry team. we did one of those SWOT analysis talks where we went through each ministry and discussed the Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats. I felt a little nervous about what people might say were the weaknesses of my ministry. When it was my ministry's turn to be discussed, my boss asked, "what are the strengths of the middle school ministry?" and my peers said the kindest, most gracious and most encouraging statements about me and the middle school ministry. I have often wondered how they saw the work that I do, and hearing their kind words encouraged the socks off of me.

after that meeting I drove to another meeting and on the way, I called my wife and told her the wonderful-wednesday that I was having. she was very excited for me as well.

when I got home, I walked up the stairs of my condo and saw a big CONGRATULATIONS banner hung on the stairs. I unlocked the door and walked in, but didn't see or hear Deanna or Jane. I did see more banners as well as lots of colorful balloons. just then, Deanna and Jane jumped out from behind the couch and yelled, "SURPRISE!!!"
"what is all of this for?" I asked.
"we just wanted to celebrate with you your great day." they said.
jane handed me a wrapped present- it was a drawing of our family that she made and had framed- for my new office.
after that, we all went out to dinner and had chocolate fondue for dessert!

what a wonderful-wednesday-
and what a wonderful-wife and daughter.
I've got no complaints- only thanks-

life is good.
God is good.
God is love.
-rev-rob

fall vacation 2011

last week, deanna, jane and I took what we think was our best vacation ever-
we went over the hill to a place that I have often taken students- the santa cruz koa.

I knew that jane would love this place- they had a jumpy-pillow-trampoline, bikes to rent, and little cabins with bunk-beds. I wasn't sure how she would deal with the bathroom building and the outdoors, but she loved every minute of it- and so did deanna and I.

while we were there, we did a lot of relaxing, a lot of book-reading, swimming, beach-combing, and a lot of game playing. each night there, we made a fire and had family-game-night. one night we went to the beach and watched the sun set into the pacific ocean while we sat next to a fire-pit.
what made things even more relaxing is that we were basically the only ones there.
we're already talking about visiting there again-
here are some of the memories that we captured with our blackberries:

 this is a picture of jane playing her nintendo DS, and me reading my kindle out in front of our cabin.

on the second night we were there, jane tried something brand new and slept on the TOP BUNK!

being a dad is fun.
-rob

lectio divina:: 2 chronicles 20

I was reading in 2 Chronicles today at lunch and found something that I haven’t found before- it’s a story about king jehoshaphat- and he has a big problem-

verse 2 says: “Some men came and told Jehoshaphat, “A vast army is coming against you from Edom, from the other side of the Sea.”

that’s a big problem. what does king Jehoshaphat do in response?
I guess the bigger question is, “what do you do when you have a big problem?”
what do I do?

I usually freak out for a bit- worry, feel sorry for myself, and think about how I’m going to get out of the big problem. sometimes I try to just work and work until my problem is fixed. some people talk about the problem or throw money at the problem (unless money IS the problem). look at what Jehoshaphat does:

verse 2 says: “Alarmed, Jehoshaphat resolved to inquire of the LORD, and he proclaimed a fast for all Judah.”

Jehoshaphat first response was to pray about the problem. I need to develop this habit. Jehoshaphat resolved to pray about the problem- and he invited everyone else to pray about it too- because it was their problem too. I love what it says in verse 4: “The people of Judah came together to seek help from the LORD; indeed, they came from every town in Judah to seek him.”

I love that! even though it must have been really scary, everyone got together and prayed and sought God and His help. this is a cool moment.

as a leader- I really appreciate jehoshaphat’s humility here. as leaders we want everyone to think that we know what to do in every situation. we want everyone to feel like we’re the best person for the job because of how smart we are.
but in this situation, Jehoshaphat doesn’t know what to do- or maybe he does.
the best thing to do is not to preach or teach or administrate or delegate, the best thing to do is to pray. even his prayer are pretty cool.

verse 5 says, “Then Jehoshaphat stood up in the assembly of Judah and Jerusalem at the temple of the LORD in the front of the new courtyard and said:
“O LORD, God of our fathers, are you not the God who is in heaven? You rule over all the kingdoms of the nations. Power and might are in your hand, and no one can withstand you.  O our God, did you not drive out the inhabitants of this land before your people Israel and give it forever to the descendants of Abraham your friend?”

he doesn’t start his prayer with a big “HELLLLLPPP! fix my problems! get me out of my mess! be my magic genie!” he begins with worship- and reminding God (but really himself) just how powerful that God is.

then he gets to the requests:

verse 10 says, “But now here are men from Ammon, Moab and Mount Seir, … coming to drive us out of the possession you gave us as an inheritance. O our God, will you not judge them? For we have no power to face this vast army that is attacking us.”

verse 12 is my favorite part: “…we do not know what to do, but our eyes are upon You.”

I love that prayer! it represents so much humility and wisdom-
and I think it was the tipping point that urged God to act. what happens next is pretty amazing:

verse 13: “All the men of Judah, with their wives and children and little ones, stood there before the LORD. Then the Spirit of the LORD came upon Jahaziel … as he stood in the assembly. He said: “Listen, King Jehoshaphat and all who live in Judah and Jerusalem! This is what the LORD says to you: ‘Do not be afraid or discouraged because of this vast army. For the battle is not yours, but God’s.”

how wild is that?! they were all just standing there, waiting for God to answer, and this message bursts out of this guy Jahaziel- wouldn’t that be amazing if that happened every time we prayed? I think I would pray a lot more! and I love his message to the people: “for the battle is not yours, but God’s.”

when are motives are right, and our cause ir right, God has the freedom to step in for us like a big brother and say to us, “I’ll handle this…” and He is so much better at handling our problems than we are. there have been several situations that I can remember where I have been stressed over a problem and God just seemed to handle it for me. I didn’t need to get in an argument or confrontation, God stepped in and made it all better.

verse 17 says, “You will not have to fight this battle. Take up your positions; stand firm and see the deliverance the LORD will give you, O Judah and Jerusalem. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged. Go out to face them tomorrow, and the LORD will be with you.’”

that will give you confidence- the LORD will be with you- and we can have that confidence if our cause are our motives are right.

I love what the Israelites did as they stepped into this battle:

verse 18: “Jehoshaphat bowed with his face to the ground, and all the people of Judah and Jerusalem fell down in worship before the LORD. Then some Levites from the Kohathites and Korahites stood up and praised the LORD, the God of Israel, with a very loud voice.”

they didn’t get overconfident, they just kept on praying and worshipping.
I wish I could say that I did that too in every problem that I‘ve faced-

verse 20: “Early in the morning they left for the Desert of Tekoa. As they set out, Jehoshaphat stood and said, “Listen to me, Judah and people of Jerusalem! Have faith in the LORD your God and you will be upheld; have faith in his prophets and you will be successful.” After consulting the people, Jehoshaphat appointed men to sing to the LORD and to praise him for the splendor of his holiness as they went out at the head of the army, saying:
“Give thanks to the LORD,
for his love endures forever.”

how is that for leadership?! “you guys are in charge of the singing and worshipping!” somehow jehoshaphat knew that prayer and worship- and really humility, were the keys to winning this battle and getting on the other side of this problem.
God loves humility- and its amazing how people are drawn to it and want to work with humble people.

God did defeat their enemies just like He said He would. Jehoshaphat worshipped his way into this problem, and then he worshipped his way out of it-

verse 27: “Then, led by Jehoshaphat, all the men of Judah and Jerusalem returned joyfully to Jerusalem, for the LORD had given them cause to rejoice over their enemies. They entered Jerusalem and went to the temple of the LORD with harps and lutes and trumpets.”

I love it. what a model of humilty, faith and leadership-

I don’t know what problem you’re facing today, but before you talk to your friends about it or seek advice from the internet, talk to God about it. before you act and start fixing it, stop and tell God that He is big enough to step over the obstacle that is in front of you. take time to say to God, “I do not know what to do, but my eyes are upon You.”

God is love.
-rev-rob

a brand new me-

a few months ago I started counting calories, and I have now lost 35 pounds! that's kind of cool!

its fun to have my clothes fit loosly on me and to get good news from the scale in the morning.

I miss a lot of the junk that I used to eat- especially starbucks and mcdonald's- but I'm really grateful for skinny cow ice cream and KFC grilled chicken!

I've got some weight-loss resolutions- or things I've seen other people do when they've dropped weight that I don't want to do:

• I'm not going to judge what people eat or how they look. you won't catch me saying "are you areally going to eat that?" I can't stand that.
• I'm not going to start flirting. I've seen a bunch of guys lose weight and think that every lady out there is after them. its sad and it does a ton of damage to people.
• I'm not going to give people unsloicited advice on how to be healthy, how to eat right or what they should or shouldn't be eating. ugh. 

so many of my friends have inspired me with their own healthy choices- my friends chris, adrian, niki, marc and my wife deanna. thanks for modeling for me how to make good choices and how to get results. I'm hoping to drop a few more and to keep it off for a long time just like all of you have done.

-rob

ministry-artist

a friend of mine gave me a copy of eugene peterson's book, the pastor- I just finished it this morning. it too awhile to finish- but its not a book that you want to read too quickly. its very similar to his translation of the bible- every word is chosen carefully, and each sentence takes time to digest.

peterson introduced a concept in the book that has had my mind spinning- the pastor as artist.

artists work for art, and they work for art for free- because they love art. they are compelled to create. they don't do it because they have to or even expect to be paid for it- as a matter of fact- many artists work a job to pay the bills- but that job doesn't define who they are or what they do- who they are and what they do is art. their jobs may be menial, but their art is serious.

artists would love to make it big and get paid for their paintings, their sculptures, the acting or dancing, but even if they didn't get paid, they would still do it, because being an artist is a vocation, not a job. its a calling, a burden, a service to the arts itself.

peterson writes: "Being a pastor is a vocation, not a job. But when I became a pastor, I soon learned that I was living in a culture that didn’t know the difference between a vocation and a job. Artists were the first men and women who gave me a way to discern the difference."

there are thousands of pastors around the globe who function as artists. they do a job to pay the bills, but they aren't defined by that job- they are defined by the mnistry that they create- they are pastors. they don't do their ministry to get a paycheck, they do it out of service to the Good Pastor- the Good Shepherd Himself. what they do is a calling, a service, a burden, a joy, a vocation.

the prophet jeremiah said,
"But if I say, “I will not mention him
or speak any more in his name,”
his word is in my heart like a fire,
a fire shut up in my bones.
I am weary of holding it in;
indeed, I cannot."

he was an artist.

I'm an artist too. although sometimes I forget that. sometimes it doesn't feel like art at all. I don't want to become one of those artists that made it to the big time and started getting paid for their art- the ones who care more about the pay than the art.

peterson asks, "how do I keep the heart of an artist? how do I keep myself from thinking that what I do is just a job? How do I keep my calling and my vocation from becoming just a job description?"

I don't have an answer. but I think that his words have got me on the right path-
or maybe back on the right path.
I need to remember that whether paid or not, I'm an artist serving the Creator-
the ultimate artist.
and I need to remember that when I began this journey- it wasn't about pay or a title, or a status or an image, it was all about the art; and the exhilaration of creating something that would endure forever. in the end its not about a job, its about a vocation.
being a pastor is a vocation, not a job.
"never be lacking in zeal, but keep your spiritual fervor, serving the Lord."

God is love.
-rev-rob

 

10 years

well, I did it.
I made it 10 years as the middle school pastor at my church.
I've been looking forward to this milestone for a long time. when I first got to the church in 2001, I had heard a stat that most youth pastors only last about 18 months- so for me, a decade is pretty cool.

the day came and went without any big deal, which was fine for me. we had saturday night service that night, and most of the students were focused on the fact that it was my birthday (and that I had brought a pinata full of candy).

I don't think I would ever draw attention to this milestone in public; but for you, my gracious blog readers, I'll share what I might say if I was asked to talk about this in some sort of public setting-
it would go something like this:

"first I want to thank this church for believing in me and for trusting me with their students. thank you for hiring me, for investing in me, and for having hope that I could make a difference. thank you for giving me my dream job- I absolutely love working here.

thank you to every parent who trusted their student with me and my team over the last 10 years. thank you for your wisdom, your support and your grace. being a voice in the life of your student has been an incredible honor and a privilege for me.

thank you to every volunteer that has ever served with me on the middle school team. thank you for using what God gave you to invest in the life of a young person. thank you for the countless hours that you have given to these students. thank you for your wisdom, your attitude, your joy and your patience. thank you for all that you have taught me.
thank you especially to niki sterling, who has faithfully served with me on this team, all 10 years that I have been here. she is a gift from God to this ministry.

thank you to judie christensen, my admin and partner in ministry for the entire 10 years that I've been here. your steadiness, organization, and care and concern for families has shaped the culture of the middle school ministry and the entire student ministry department. thank you for your friendship, your wisdom, your endurance and your enthusiasm. I'm so proud to be on a team with you.

thank you to my amazing wife deanna, for your love, support and wisdom all of these years. I love you and am so grateful for our life together.

most importantly, I thank God for the amazing privilege it is to serve Him vocationally and to represent Him to others. I thank Him for His grace in allowing a quiet farm kid from Modesto to be a leader in anything, let alone His Church.

finally, thank you to every student who has walked through the doors of the middle school ministry. you have brought so much joy into my life. working with you has been a dream and an adventure. I want to remind you that I love you, and that I'm so proud of you, and that I'm so excited about who you are and who you're becoming!"

its been a great run; and I feel like i'm just getting started. my passion for doing this work is greater than its ever been.

God is love.
-rev-rob

last night-

last night I got home after 11pm after a very late night at youth group. I walked in the house and deanna says, "did you get my text about the shower?"
"uh- no- what's wrong with the shower?"
"it won't drain. it's plugged up."

so I went into the bathroom and there was standing water in my bathtub. gross.
so I got the little plastic-zipper-unplugger and tried to fish out the plug, but I couldn't even get it to go do wn the drain. this was a serious plug.
so I got my shoes back on, went to the 24-safeway and got some draino.
on the way back I remembered that I have a super-plunger and that would surely do the trick.

when I got home, I got the super-plunger and started pushiing water in and out of the drain. it wouldn't budge. it seemed like something solid had getten into my drain!

I dropped the draino in and nothing happened.
it was really late and I didn't want to use a snake on it (we live upstairs in a condo, and I didn't want to make noise for my downstairs neighbor), but I thought I would take apart some of the hardware on the tub to see if I could at least get the plastic zipper down the side pipe.

as soon as I got the plate off of the stopper on the tub off I heard a CLUNK, and all of the water started gushing out. I groaned.

my wife rushed in- "what happened?!" she said-

"you had the tub stopper on."

she laughed so hard she started tearing up.

I told her I would get back at her for going viral with the story.
I can't be too upset- I didn't figure it out either. at least we didn't call the plumber!

God is love.
-rev-rob

update on your pal, rob; july 2011

its so cliche- but "wow! its been so long sonce I've written on my blog!" I've been getting some kind comments on some of my "lectio divina" wrirtings, and I need to get some of those on here again soon.

a couple of big things have come up since I last posted:

:: I went and saw my favorite band U2 in oakland with my friend mark! we had an amazing spot on the floor in front of the stage. the band had these bridges that floated over the audience, and at one point bono, the band's lead singer was right over my head, within reach!



:: my daughter has become quite the ballerina:





:: and quite the illustrator!



:: and she went to her first ever VBS at church. she loved it- and I loved seeing her get excited to go to church.



:: at work, we just finished up our first camp of the summer- the next one is in 2 weeks.

:: and for the first time in 15 years of working for churches, I don't have an office! I moved out of my old one, and my new set up won't have offices! when its completed it will be a starbucks-stye youth facility where you can work wherever you want, but no one owns anything. sounds crazy, but it will be amazing. until then, I'm fully mobile.



:: I started counting calories about 7 weeks ago, and so far I have dropped 27 pounds! I'm so excited about this- none of my pants fit anymore and my belt is on the tightest loop. I'm really hoping that this is more than just a fad for me and more of a whole new lifestyle.

:: probably the biggest thing I'm excited about is that July 1 marked the 10 year anniversary of our move to San Jose. I love this city. July 9 was my first day of work and will mark the 10 year anniversary of my work with middle schoolers at the church. this is a milestone that I have been looking forward to for a long, long time!

there is so much in my life that I am grateful for right now.
God is love.
-rev-rob