Outside the Pigeon Holes

Nothing really going on to write about...So I thought I'd throw out some random pictures... This is a chalk drawing of a classic painting. Denny did this at the recent Sayler Park Harvest Festival. I took this picture at Kings Island this past summer. I liked how the flag looked translucent in the mist from the fountain. Me and my beautiful Mommy! I'm not sure if maybe this was a costume party? I have a vague recollection of this day. :) Just kidding...Those are my two bestest friends, Lori on the left and Gina on the right. I have known Lori since high school (and she still loves me!) and Gina since the 2nd grade!!! She is like my sister. I barely remember life without her! These politically incorrect salt shakers were at the "Nostalgia Store" in Missouri. I didn't know whether to laugh or be offended. Bentley...A ball of cuteness.

In obedience to my blog mentor, Reverb, I offer some stuff from my old days... My favorite movies from the 80s...Starting with 2 Brat Pack classics: OK, this next one isn't from the 80s - it was released in 1973. But I didn't see it until I was 12...The thing I always say about this movie is that the point of it is so often missed...Everyone gets wrapped up in the demon-possession of the little girl. But the story is really about a priest who has lost his faith...And in the end gives his life for the girl, living out the very faith he was questioning...Deep stuff! My best friend Gina and I used to get together yearly to watch these 3 films - the 80s musical movie festival. Boo for the poor sexual values that they all embraced, but yay for the themes of pursuing your dreams! Speaking of dream pursuing...This book kept me from ditching my dreams in senior year when I almost walked away from my ambitions to be an actress/writer/director. The last line in this autobiography is ...

Inspired by this book: I went with a group of friends tonight on a treasure hunt that was unlike any other...It was one led by God! It was not a mission to get people to come to church or to preach at anyone or to talk theology. No info cards or mention of church was allowed. It was simply about finding people that God wanted to bless. Ingredients for successful Treasure Hunting: A creative, fun-loving God... A group of people willing to risk looking foolish (Being a bit off-kilter helps, too!) A list of clues provided by God (he is always talking to us!): And a destination: Before going out we met at the House of Horgan where Kevin put on his thinking cap... (Oh, wait...That was a different night...) Back to tonight... We took 10 minutes to quiet ourselves and listen for God's voice to tell us, individually, clues that could lead to someone He had prepared for an encounter with Him. Taking longer than a few minutes gives you too much time to overthink things. The object is to writ...

Today we played hookey from church and went to the Ohio Ren Fest. It was a great day for it - after it warmed up! I was glad I had the cloak that my mommy made for me...Here are some photos and video from the day. For more check out Steve's Blog! Carol was attracted to the shiny things. Here she admir ed s o me hand made crystal ornaments. I wanted to get a set of the elf ears that the girl has o n the ri ght. But they were a bit pricey. And I figure my own ears are pretty elfin on their own and d on't need much help. Steve and I were forced into a dual using what were called "Safer Swords". It was fun! But somehow Steve sustained an injury on his finger. So maybe they aren't as safe as they say! Falsely accused. That's all I have to say... MUD SHOW! The guy who owns this hand has been doing mud shows at the Ohio Ren Fest for 19 years. This guy was a riot! He made a bologna sandwhich with his feet and here he is juggling swords while standing on a hobby horse...

I work with some great kids. Many of whom struggle everyday in a world of spiritual attack they know nothing about. And it's heart-breaking. There's the 4 year old girl who is so anxiety-ridden that she talks rapidly incessant when in a stressful situation. She will also avoid being comforted when she is hurt or scared because if she lets her guard down she will disintegrate into a mess of tears. Last year her parents split and now she is caught in the middle of a horrible custody arrangement. One day while I was helping her change her wet clothes she broke down and started wailing that she didn't like her family. Just the other day she told Katie that she didn't love her mommy anymore because she loved her daddy. Somehow in her mind if she loves one she can't love the other. Then there's a boy so starved for physical affection that he misbehaves just to have human touch. In his home it's probably the only time anyone lays a hand on him. There have been a nu...

Apology This is from the blog of Joe Boyd , one of the pastors at Vineyard Community Church . It is a courageous piece and one that should be shared with the world. It confesses the sins of those of us who call ourselves followers of Christ (We are "The Church" - it is not any particular denomination or physical place). But it also speaks the truth about what the Church SHOULD be, has been and can be when God is at the helm and not humans in their own "wisdom." ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- I've had lots of requests to post the "apology" that I read this weekend at church. It's from a page in my prayer journal over ten years ago, dated 9-2-98: I feel the need to ask for forgiveness, whether it is forgiveness from God, or from or from the millions of people who have been offended by the church I am unsure: I need to ask forgiveness for the ongoing corruption of the church at large ...

Every Monday a group of us gets together to dig into the things that Jesus has given us authority to do as His followers. Things like healing and deliverance. It's cool because it's a safe place where we can dig into Scripture and really take an honest look at it; searching out things that we are bothered by, blessed by and unsure about. We don't have to worry about offending anyone or feeling like our questions are dumb. Often we discover that we're not alone in our questions. A couple of weeks ago we dug into something that seemed on the surface to throw a monkey wrench into a truth we hold dear - that God's will is ALWAYS to heal. And that he does not make us sick or use illness to teach us lessons. This is the foundation that we minister from. Jesus was and is the perfect revelation of Who God is and what He desires for us. And he brought healing and deliverance. For God to use sickness to teach a lesson would be child abuse. Yet, there are places in scripture w...

Our church meets at a movie theatre on Sundays. It's a pretty decent little place. At least it's a roof over our heads. But we do have interesting things that happen sometimes because of our environment. Today we had a little visitor...He looked something like this: Trying to catch a mouse is quite a fiasco...This one kept teasing us. He would run out when no one was behind the candy counter (where we serve coffee from), then disappear behind the popcorn maker...And I do mean, he disappeared... He ran under here, but was nowhere to be seen. 5 minutes later he appeared behind us, and started to crawl up a power cord. He was quite an acrobatic little guy! Finally, Jonah and I had him cornered. ...And Jonah had a plan... Score! Here he is! Since we're a kinder, gentler church, we released our little friend. Did I tell you he was quite an acrobat? We do wish our friend well. We asked him not to come back to the theatre because not everyone is as nice as we are. Next time he mig...