Well yesterday was an awesome day! We had a great time with our Sleigh ride with Santa. Bob Buxton does an awesome Santa. Actually I think down the line somewhere Bob and Santa might actually be related, it's kind of eerie, but cool!
We had tons of people from the community show up for pictures, I am so thankful to God for what He is doing through our events, I really see good things happening so many new families in our neighborhood coming and seeing what we are all about. Good stuff!
Hayden wanted nothing to do with Santa. Not interested. No matter how many cookies and crackers you coaxed her with, sorry. I'll try and throw up a picture of "the battle of Hayden and Santa" later.
After our "Santa time" we did our first ever, very small scale Christmas show/cantata/notsureofatermthatproperlydescribesit. It's not really a show I just don't know what else to call it. We called it Christmas in Song. It was fun, we had a group of singers get up and sing some Christmas songs and do some other entertaining stuff. We sang this one song called "Dozen Days of Christmas" - it's hilarious. It was a neat experience, it is so exciting to be on the ground floor at Port City. Even though there are days when I wish we were doing "this or that." I know I will look back in just a couple of years and say, "Wow, God look how far you've brought us." Next year we are hoping to actually do a real show - BST, should I start the planning now? Yikes, help us (me)!
That was the reason we did what we did this year. We have people who were surprised at the fact that we had people singing from the stage. One of our singers came up to me later and said, "I don't remember you telling us we were going to do this chorus style. My Daddy would turn over in his grave if he knew...No he wouldn't he was cremated." I almost fell out, she then went on to say - "Thanks for continuing to stretch us." Words I never thought she would say to me, but I really appreciated them.
My weekend overall was very busy, actually I spent all of Saturday working with a couple of other men to get our auditorium switched around, from shot-gun style to fan shaped, we were at the building until 3:30AM Sunday, hanging screens and projectors and ugh! Welcome to life in a small church, with no moola. It was worth it though, I cannot explain the feeling of community that we have now. We had the same feeling before we moved in to our building but lost it when we went shot-gun style, thanks be to God it is now back and so encouraging.
One final note. Today Bruce and I went to Tiny Diny for lunch, this place is a treat, we love going there. The service is OK, the food is OK, but there is just something about it. I think it has to do with the fact that when I first came to Mobile, it was a PV/UB tradition for many years every Tuesday Brother Simmons took the entire staff to Tiny Diny for lunch. I missed that when I left UB ( I actually just miss Brother Simmons)
When Bruce and I sat down I noticed that the man behind us kept staring at us, it was strange, he just wouldn't quit staring and I just couldn't figure out why. So, I just went about my business, and then with a loud "I am not going to be quiet for anyone" he starts saying "I just don't know what we are going to do with these darn liberals, they are ruining the church!"
So now I get it, the stare that is. It didn't end there, he went on.."I tell you we need get some folks out in to the mission fields like at Pepperdine and Lipscomb to handle this stuff, the church is going to be ruined." Bruce and I just went about our business, talking about how excited we were about where were going and where God was leading us. I had never seen that man before, but he obviously knew us, and that's OK. I just pray that we were the only ones that heard him. He wasn't directing to us, he was directing it at us. He made some other sad comments that show immaturity in his relationship with God and his understanding of scripture, some so amazing they don't deserve to be repeated.
As he left he and his friend (they were police officers) just kept their eyes on us as they exited. I am sure some people thought we were criminals the way we were looked at. I will pray for those two men, that's all I can do.
With that happening though it made me think, it actually made me thank. I was thankful to God that we were making enough difference that people around us were upset about it. It kind of sort of reminded me of this:
Acts 17
1When they had passed through Amphipolis and Apollonia, they came to Thessalonica, where there was a Jewish synagogue. 2As his custom was, Paul went into the synagogue, and on three Sabbath days he reasoned with them from the Scriptures, 3explaining and proving that the Christ had to suffer and rise from the dead. "This Jesus I am proclaiming to you is the Christ," he said. 4Some of the Jews were persuaded and joined Paul and Silas, as did a large number of God-fearing Greeks and not a few prominent women.
5But the Jews were jealous; so they rounded up some bad characters from the marketplace, formed a mob and started a riot in the city. They rushed to Jasons house in search of Paul and Silas in order to bring them out to the crowd. 6But when they did not find them, they dragged Jason and some other brothers before the city officials, shouting: "These men who have caused trouble all over the world have now come here,
This was an answered prayer in some ways, because I have found out over the last few months that Satan attacks the most when you are doing something right. I am not sure if that could be considered modern day persecution or not, but I would gladly endure it every day if it meant God's work was being done. God bless!
JD said...
Keep up the great work, Chris. Pepperdine? LOLOLOL I guess you couldn't find any of those "darn liberals" at Pepperdine! Police officers? Perfect. Law keepers anonymous. I used to carry the card. I burned it up in the fire of Grace.
CL said...
JD,
I am slow about the police officer reference, nothing like the old truth police. God bless!
k2 said...
wow! i wish i had been there with my co-worker. i knew that a lot of leo's (law enforcement officers) went there. i would've liked to know who i might run into at work.
i've only been to the tiny diny once, and it was like you said. the food was ok, the service was ok, but the atmosphere is supposed to be what makes the tiny diny what it is.
let me know the next time you go. i'd like to see those guys. maybe even ask them what is their deal. not to start a rucus, but to just know what we are doing "wrong."
