Complicating the Simple

Have you ever seen a simple idea become grossly complicated as it goes through the "organizational process?" This video is a great reminder of how we all can get distracted from our core message. Ever been in one of these meetings? Pretty funny stuff.

Crying at Wedding and 50 Push Ups

After not being able to run my normal routine this week, I had a really great run this morning. Maybe the rest was good for me. I have fought acute sinus allergies most of the week. Had the "big yucks." It's nice to be feeling better today.

Went to the wedding of Derek Allen and Rebekah Bischoff this afternoon with Macy. Macy cried. I didn't. It reminded me how different men and women are. At no time during the wedding did I ever even feel the urge to cry or even think that might be a possibility. Even though I didn't come close to shedding a tear, it was a very nice service and I am very glad for Derek and Rebekah as they start their new lives together.

I did 50 push ups a little while ago. I'm only halfway to my goal of 100 push ups and I only have 2 weeks left in the program. I'm thinking I won't make the 100 in 2 more weeks. But then again, I could not have come close to doing 50 push ups 4 weeks ago. That's progress.

Powerful Day

Wednesday of this week our church hosted the funeral service for Fort Myers Police Officer Andrew Widman, who was killed in the line of duty this past weekend. Simply put, it was a very powerful service. It also was an awesome reminder for all who attended or watched live on all the local TV affiliates that life is short and our only hope comes in Jesus Christ.

The experience of seeing well over 1,000 Law Enforcement Officer at the service from Lee County and all over the state of Florida was impressive. The funeral procession from our church to the Graveside was amazing.

But the most powerful moment of the day for me came was when Susanna, Officer Widman's wife, spoke for just a few minutes during the service. She talked about getting caught up in the "sheer force" of her husband's vision to make a difference in the world for Christ. Very moving.

I am praying for Officer's Widman's family.

Links to stories and pictures:
Article on Funeral Service
Transcript of Wife's words at Funeral - this is powerful

Sunday Afternoon Reflections

It was a fun week at a camp, a quiet weekend, and an awesome morning at church today.

• I loved spending the week with the children at camp. Their energy and zeal for life and fun is contagious. I also loved the fun with the other camp leaders.
  
• I'm missing Macy like crazy. She is up in North Carolina with some other women from our church for a long weekend.
• I've taught 9 times in the last 7 days!
• I had the privilege to speak to our Connected Single Adult Ministry this morning. I taught on Nehemiah and his prayer for success. The Big Idea: success is being used by God for His glory. That's my prayer - God use me!
  
• Just got off the phone with Macy and missing her even more. It's been almost a week now since I've seen her!
• Ordered a RoadID braclet for running yesterday. I started thinking if something happened to me while I was running, nobody would know who I was. I know, pretty weird thought, but it's true. Plus, I know it will make Macy feel better.
  
• I'm into week 4 of my hundred push-ups program. Not sure I'll be able to 100 push ups in a couple of weeks, but we'll see. I know I'm feeling a lot stronger and can do more push ups now then 4 weeks ago by a mile.
• Hits to my blog tripled this past week! Could it be all those parents checking out the pictures of their kids at camp?
• Have I mentioned how much I miss Macy?! Can't wait until tomorrow night!!!!

Got to go do some push ups!

More Camp Photos (for those interested)

Here's some pics from last night's Talent Show and some water activities this morning:

Camp Update - Thursday Morning

I just finished a good run and am now uploading pictures from camp yesterday for your enjoyment. Yesterday was a good day at camp, although still a little wet.

These are the faces and the fun times of McG's Children's Camp. Enjoy.

Camp Update - Tuesday Night

When will it will stop raining?

We have not seen the sunshine here at Camp McG since Monday evening. And for most of the day today it has been raining. And it rained really hard right before our Evening Worship time tonight. We had a lot of wet kids in there. It's an interesting smell when you get a bunch of wet kids in a pretty warm room. I'll stop there and leave the rest to your imagination. But hey, what's camp with out a little funk?

FYI: I added more pics to my post from yesterday (including pic of the "Big C" at the top of this post). There are now pictures from AM and PM (over 60 photos).

I'm having a blast doing the messages during our worship services, both morning and evening. Three down and only four to go. So far we have covered character, calling and courage. We looked at the character of Stephen, the calling of Peter and Andrew, and the courage of Joshua. Pray that God will challenge the kids through His Word this week in a powerful way. Pray that their commitment to Christ will grow deeper. Pray that they will establish strong relationships with our adult counselors and with other children. Pray that it will stop raining!

Miss Dawn - we miss you!

Camp Pics - Tuesday

Updated: All pics now from Tuesday (AM & PM).

Camp McG is Underway!

I left yesterday to head up to Tampa, Florida for our annual McG's Children's Camp. And we're off to a great start. 82 children, 3rd-5th graders. Talk about energy! Our worship last night was hot! I mean...the room was like 100 degrees. But even with the AC not working right, we had a great time.

This morning we started with the Morning Show and another time of worship/Bible study. The AC is working much better this morning. The highlight this morning was seeing Pastor Steven dressed up like a pirate - Captain Nobeard.

Kids having fun, adults having fun, camp is good. I'll try to bring some pic later today.

It gonna be a great week!

Crazy

Yesterday I saw the craziest thing - a duck chasing an alligator!

That's right. We spotted about a 5 foot alligator in the lake behind our house this weekend. He begin to swim across the lake towards our house. At the same time I was watching the gator, I also spotted a duck (common moorhen) with her 3 babies (probably more like teenagers). As the gator got closer to land, momma duck started squawking and squawking.

The gator disappeared underwater about 30 feet from the shore and then re-appeared about 7 feet from the shore. It was at that time that the gator started to swim parallel with the shore line and from the shore the duck started chasing after the gator, still squawking at the top of her lungs. Macy then spotted one of momma's little ducks in the reeds. The gator swam right past the little duck, probably trying to get away from one very loud mouth and persistent momma duck. Momma kept going out of our sight, chasing after the gator. That's one brave and very crazy duck!

I never thought I would see a duck chase a gator! Crazy.

Week 3 of Push Ups

I'm into the third week of my "hundredpushups.com" program. Week three turned up the heat a little on me and I had a hard time completing all the reps on day 1. It's hard to believe that supposedly in less than 4 weeks I will be able to do 100 push ups in one shot. Even if I can only do 80 after 6 weeks, that would be a pretty good thing. After completing week 2 I was able to do 31. I got a long way to go!

Had a good run this morning. My times are getting a little better, but still not where they use to be pre-foot injury. I am up to 4 miles on my long day each week and running 3 miles the other 3 days. The humidity and heat however take their toil on my body. I can't wait for a little cooler weather.

Speaking of things I'm looking forward to, next week is Children's Camp. For the last 3 years I've had the awesome privilege of being the camp pastor for our church's Children's Camp. I love being around the kids in this kind of environment. This year, instead of just speaking each night, I am also speaking during the morning sessions. Much more prep this year, but I can't wait! I'll keep you updated through the blog on how the week's going.

Map Your Run

Here's another cool web site I discovered a few weeks ago called MapMyRun.com. It's pretty ingenious, especially for the person who likes to run, bike or walk for their exercise/recreation.

The site allows you to map your runs/rides, calculate your mileage and even log your workouts. The site actually offers a whole lot more and its all free. Below is my normal 3 mile run. You can use map view or satellite view on all your courses. Give it a try and let me know what you think.

New Restaurants

During our "staycation" a couple weeks ago, Macy and I tried out several new restaurants in the Fort Myers area. Here are my observations.

Blu Sushi (Gulf Coast Town Center) - food wise this was my favorite. I love sushi and this was done with perfection. It was also the priciest of the four. But for a special occasion and for the person who really digs sushi - highly recommend. By the way, Macy is really warming up to sushi and actually ate quite a bit of fish this time with me!

Bice's Grand Cafe (Coconut Point Mall) - Macy had eaten here before, but this was my first time. Very nice place with really good food. Italian and a whole lot more.

Pagelli's Cucina (Coconut Point Mall) - My favorite for the combination of atmosphere, food and service. I can't wait to go back to this Italian restaurant. Macy said it was the best lasagna she has ever had, and the few bites I got I tend to agree. And it's priced very reasonable.

Fire Pit City Grill (Gulf Coast Town Center) - my least favorite of the four, but not bad. I just didn't get excited about the food or the environment. However, it was packed when we were there. This restaurant is owned by the same parent company as Pagelli's.

Let me know your thoughts on any of these four places.

Bon appetit!

Wishing You A Happy 4th of July

I hope you have a great day and a wonderful celebration of Independence Day. I've already got my morning run in and now getting ready to go out and do a little yard work. Later this afternoon Macy and I will head over to some friends house for a little celebrating and fun with couples from our Bible Study Class.

A few 4th related links for you to enjoy today...

• Nothing says the 4th like a grilled hot dog. Hop on over to Hot Dog City for some Hot Dog fun and totally useless info. I love the song!
• A little more serious, here is a post by Mark Batterson (In A Pit with A Lion on A Snowy Day author) with some cool info on several of the signers of the Declaration of Independence.
• Want ideas for things to do with the family, especially the kids? Then check out this site that is loaded with crafts, games, recipes, activities and tons of info.

Celebrating the day with gratitude for all those who have sacrificed for the freedom I enjoy today!

The "Staycation"

Last week I took off for what has become our annual anniversary week vacation. However, this year was a little different...we didn't go anywhere. We stayed home. This is becoming known as the "staycation."

Urban Dictionary defines staycation as "a vacation that is spent at one's home enjoying all that home and one's home environ have to offer." First, let me say there are several positives to the staycation...

• No time spent (wasted) traveling
• Little to no travel cost (usually some cost unless all you do is sit in your house)
• No travel headaches or stress
• No packing and unpacking
• No hotel bills

But there are also some downsides to the staycation. And while I loved our staycation last week, for me, it's not quite the same as "getting away." I ended up doing some work around the house (yard work in very hot and humid conditions) that I would not have done if we had been away. And the only other negative for me was it didn't have the feel of getting away and some of the excitement that comes with that.

But Macy and I had a great time together last week and we used some of the money we saved to try out several new restaurants in the area. I'll post about some of those later.

Bottom line: A "staycation" can be a cost-saving alternative for a fun vacation. Just be careful and try not to do too much work.