Christmas

Heidi and I kicked off our Christmas weekend on Saturday night. We met up with Kent and Sally (my sister) and the boys at Maplewood Mall. After some pseudo-Asian food in the food court, we rode the Carousel. Chase and I sat in a Tilt-A-Whirl type of seat and spun in rapid circles the entire ride. Afterward I felt awful, but he had a good time. We made our way to Savers where we played with the toys and Heidi and I scored a half-price steamer trunk.

After saying our goodbyes to them, we headed to Rogers for 48 hours with my in-laws, the Battens. Heidi’s brother, Dan, was in town from law school in Spokane, WA, so got some quality time with him and his fiancé, Ellen. Lyn made us some great food and I enjoyed watching football with Don. I am blessed to enjoy spending time with my in-laws.

In other news, the Broncos got an early Christmas present when the Bengals missed the extra point to tie the game at the end. I guess it is better to be lucky than good. The Broncos indeed got lucky. They must be living right. Everyone who follows football knows that the Bengals are not.

I still love Heidi more than I love football.

Here we go a caroling. . .

Last Thursday Heidi and I went with the Lost and Found (young adults) group at church to go Christmas caroling. What a blast. There were ten of us that sang at a nursing home in St. Paul. A few of the residents seemed to really enjoy our singing and the staff assured us that the others did as well. After we finished at the nursing home we headed over to sing for Paul and Cara who were sick and could not join us. They gave us candy. We finished the evening at Emily, Brenda, and Candace’s apt with refreshments and a White Elephant gift exchange. Heidi and I scored the two best gifts. It was a great evening.

The Broncos finally won a game on Sunday. They put a butt kicking on the Arizona Cardinals. With that win and losses by the Bengals and Jaguars, the Broncos are back in the playoff mix. If the Broncos can win the next two games, both in Denver, they are in the playoffs. In related news, I failed to make the playoffs in all four fantasy football leagues.

I have been to the Mall of America three times since Thanksgiving. What a crazy place. MOA is great for people watching and walking around, terrible for anything else. The sheer volume of people is astounding.

My Sweet Baboo will be on a silent prayer retreat the next two nights. That means I will be back to living the Bachelor life for 48 hours. She made me a pan of lasagna so I do not either starve to death or spend all my money at Wendy’s. I will miss my sweetie while she is there, but I am glad she gets this experience.

Fathers

The two years that I spent working at Rawhide Boy’s Ranch were valuable for many reasons. One of the important lessons I learned while working there was the importance of fathers. The boys at the ranch were all juvenile offenders and every single one, without exception, had fathers who were absent either physically or emotionally. In American society as a whole, there are men who sire children, but few fathers.

I have been thinking about this since two of my good friends have become first time fathers recently. Noah Orton Schurr was born to Matt and Denise last month and Glorie Claire Herder was born to Peter and Elizabeth last week. (Props go to Denise and Elizabeth for doing the hard part.) I am comforted to know that these children will grow up with fathers who will love them and nurture them. These children are in good hands.

My father (and mother, too) was there for me while I was growing up and I am grateful. God made the family to rely on both parents and we can see what happens when that system is broken down. Kudos to fathers!

A foggy, wet Tuesday

Heidi and I had a good time in Colorado, but the trip was too quick. It was nice to see family again. The Navigator’s HQ, Glen Eyrie, is like Rivendell at Christmas time. Beautiful. We got to spend some time with our future teammates in Senegal. Both of us enjoy the people of Mission: Moving Mountains, especially our team. We are excited to get to Africa!

The Broncos have gone from one of the elite teams in the NFL to a middle of the road team that is weak in all phases of the game. To make the playoffs, the Broncos have to win all three remaining games. They’ll have to play better than they did on Sunday.

Our support raising is going well, as far as we know. We are grateful for the support we have received thus far. We are kept pretty busy with appointments, but it is fun.

I am confident that I found a Christmas gift for Heidi that she will love. I accidentally found out what she was getting me but I am excited about it. It was a good choice. I sure do love my sweet baboo!

Family

- Today is my (Tim) Dad’s 70’s birthday. Happy Birthday, Dad! Maybe the Broncos will win a game in honor of your birthday. I love you.

- Thanksgiving was family time. Amy came up with Christi and Tim (or TJ as he is known to the family, but no one else) and we all hung out with Sally, Kent, Chase, and Carver. Tim’s fiancé, Amanda, also joined us. We had a great time. The last night we all just hung out and ate pizza and talked and it was really nice. Chase drew and colored pictures for everyone that Sally put in frames. Pretty amazing that he came up with the idea and put it together by himself. Carver amused us by just being one of the cutest kids I have ever seen in my life. (He gets it from the Chase side of the family.) Heidi and I got to spend a little time with Amanda and we both agreed that Tim should thank God every day of his life that he gets to marry her. Christi gave us some thoughtful t-shirts that Heidi and I have already worn. We also saw Kent’s family on Thanksgiving Day. It is always nice to see them.

- On Sunday we ate lots of food at Heidi’s parent’s house. Time always flies when we hang out with them. I am blessed to have such great in-laws. I enjoyed watching football with Don and getting to all pray together. As usual, the food was fantastic.

Where is my hope?

On Sunday night, when the Broncos were leading the Chargers 24-7 in the middle of the third quarter in Denver, I (Tim) looked over at Robbie and Jer and said, “I am allowing myself to believe that we are going to win the game.” From that point on, the Broncos scored 3 points to the Chargers 28. The final score was 35-27 in favor of the Chargers. My hopes were dashed.

Many of life’s disappointments are caused by unmet expectations. I expected the best defense in the NFL to keep a 17 point lead at home; therefore, when they folded like a cheap suit, my expectations were unmet. To hope in something is to risk that it will not happen. The more hope you have, the more risk there is, and therefore, the most disappointment when things do not work out. On the other hand, when you risk big and things to do work out, it feels awesome.

In football, my hopes are often dashed. Most often it comes in the form of a Plummer interception. In life, my hope is in something better. I do not always see my expectations met, but my hope in God does not depend on that. There are struggles, but I know that God is good. I am reminded of the words of the great hymn:

My hope is built on nothing less
Than Jesus' blood and righteousness;
I dare not trust the sweetest frame,
But wholly lean on Jesus' name.

On Christ, the solid Rock, I stand;
All other ground is sinking sand,
All other ground is sinking sand.

An ugly win is still a win

- The Broncos sure did have an ugly win on Sunday. My friends who are Vikings fans reminded me that they would be ecstatic to have any ugly win sometime soon. Perspective is everything.
- Bethel University, my alma mater, did pretty well in Cross Country this year. The men finished 10th at the Regional meet, with their top guy making nationals. That is way better than when I was on the team. Bethel’s football team beat St. John’s in Collegeville for the first time ever. They won the MIAC and earned a trip to the NCAA DIII tournament. Couldn’t happen to a nicer coach.
- As far as we can tell, the support raising process is going well. This keeps us busy, but it is fun to see people.
- Thanksgiving is coming and that means food, family, and football. Life is good.
- Heidi looked extra cute when I left for work this morning. She always does, though, so it was no surprise.

And now, for The Big Tamale

Our costumes!! I hope you can forgive the distastefulness of my costume and enjoy the humor factor of it........we won prizes! Tim is a nerd (white and nerdy - weird Al) and I am a prego prom queen :) Happy Halloween everybody!

Catching up on posting pictures...

We took a cog train up Pike's Peak one of our days in Colorado Springs and here is a view from the train on the way back down.

This is on a little hiking adventure on some of the grounds at the Navs castle, Glen Eyrie.

Sorry, these are out of order, this is a the top of Pike's Peak. Aren't we cute?

More pictures

I never finished posting pictures from our trip to Colorado....up there is the little "living room community" I created out of Play-Do during one of our training times. It's hard to see, but there is even a vase of flowers on the coffee table! And that thing on the "floor" is a bear-skin rug that our coach contributed! Thanks T-Rex!

This is our awesome training group! We had a fabulous time getting to know these guys and they are both headed to do campus ministry with the Navs, one on each coast. So much fun to hang out with them, they were a treat to get to get to know!


Here is a picture of us doing a little song and dance about fundraising that Mike and Joanna wrote. I actually volunteered Tim and I to help them out....me? What? I know. I don't know what I was thinking. But we sure got a lot of laughs!

Worst football weekend ever (and other thoughts)

- Last weekend was the worst possible football weekend for me. The Broncos lost at home to the Colts on a last second field goal, the Vikings got destroyed at home by the Patriots, and the Raiders, Chargers, Chiefs, and Packers all won. To add injury to insult, I lost in all four of my fantasy football leagues. I am now dead last in three out of four leagues.

- On Monday, when I went running after work, it was 65 degrees. I ran in shorts and a tank top. On Tuesday, when I went running after work, it was 30 degrees and windy. I ran in long pants, a sweatshirt, hat, and gloves. Such is life in Minnesota.

- Heidi and I watched the Benchwarmers a couple weeks ago. I meant to review it but never got around to it. The movie had a great setup, a couple funny scenes, and some funny actors, but never quite put it together. Kudos for the anti-bully message, but overall it was nothing special.

-The costume party for the young adults group (Lost & Found) from church was fun. Heidi was a pregnant prom queen (perhaps inappropriate, but funny!) and I was a nerd. (Insert your own joke about how it must not have been too hard for me to pull it off.) There were some creative and funny costumes and a good time was had by all.

-I sure do love my sweet baboo. She’s pretty.

Shout Outs!!

Just wanted to post some shout-outs to some great friends and loyal readers of our blog.

One goes out to Kari and Danita - great house ladies! We had an awesome time at your open house and it was great to see some old friends.

Second one goes out to our ninja friend Laura L. - you know who you are. Mom keeps me posted on you, thanks for reading our blog and for your prayers!

Third one goes out Am. Just b/c you rock and I miss you. Post another entry girl, we want to know how you're doing!

Man Laws

These are laws of life that most men inherently know. If these laws are broken, awkwardness always follows.

- When two or more men go to a movie there must be a buffer seat in between them. The only exception is when the theater is packed or at least one woman is present. (The woman then needs to sit between the men.)
- When watching football on TV, a man must cheer for the team for which his friend is cheering. (This is especially important when the friend is hosting the game. You do not want to run the risk of never being invited back because you cheered against his team when they were losing badly.) The exception is when his team is playing your team or if his team is a division rival to your team.
- If a man enters an empty restroom and there are three urinals, it is never okay to use the middle one. One of the two side urinals must be used, but not the short one. If a man is already at the middle one, the man entering the bathroom must use the stall. If the stall is in use, the man must pretend to use the mirror until the urinal is free. Only when the bathroom is busy is it okay to use a urinal that is next to an occupied one.
- It is perfectly normal for two men to play an hour long round of disc golf and talk only about that round of disc golf the entire time.

Feel free to leave comments on these Man Laws or let me know if I have missed any.

Movie Review: Flags of Our Fathers

I (Tim) love movies about World War II. The men who fought in that war were ordinary men who knew that if the United States did not defeat Japan and Germany, it would be the next to fall to the Axis powers. War movies can be great (The Great Escape, Saving Private Ryan, Band of Brothers) when they take an interesting story and make you care about the characters. They can be mediocre (Windtalkers, Pearl Harbor) when they take an interesting story, but tell it poorly with characters that are too shallow or just unrealistic. Finally, they can be awful (The Thin Red Line) when there is an incoherent story with characters that have no meaning to the viewer.

Flags of our Fathers, a new movie directed by Clint Eastwood, seemed like a can’t-miss to me. The American invasion of Iwo Jima and the famous picture of six marines raising a flag after taking the mountain is a fascinating story. (I have that picture on my wall.) The main problems I have with this movie are that the characters were not totally fleshed out, the story felt incomplete, and the directing seemed choppy. I had a hard time truly feeling for the characters, which is odd since Eastwood’s Mystic River did such a good job of fleshing out those characters. Aside from the main three Marines, the other characters were not developed at all, which is essential for this type of film. When a soldier was killed in battle, I had made no connection with that character and thus the emotional impact was lessened. Next, the scenes depicting the fight for the island (especially the scenes with the ship and aircraft bombardments) were great, but we never understood the full picture of what was happening. We saw the start of the battle and a few glimpses as the battle continued, but we never found out what happened later. Finally, the directing was hit and miss. The constant flashbacks were distracting and made it hard to follow the story. Also, there were scenes where the son of one of the Marines was interviewing survivors, but we never knew who they were and if we had seen them earlier. In all, the whole film felt like an unfinished story.

To be fair, I must say that the acting was solid and the film looked great. Also, Eastwood is making a follow up film to this movie called Letters from Iwo Jima, which is from the Japanese perspective. Perhaps that film will fill in some of the holes that Flags of our Fathers left. Overall, this is not a bad film, but I expected it to be much better. I guess I have a high standard for WWII films.

What Tim is thinking about today

-My Sweet Baboo is feeling better today. It tears me up inside to see Heidi in pain. Thanks for praying for her.

-Last night’s episode of Lost was interesting. Poor Locke is not a good judge of people. I did like the way that he was taking charge of his mistakes and making things right.

-The much loved Denver Broncos need to find their Offense soon. The Defense cannot win every game for them. Sunday’s game against the Cleveland Browns should provide an opportunity to get on track. It would be fun to see Plummer connect on some throws this time. (I won’t get to see it, so he’ll probably have the game of his life.)

-That awful stench is not just the Oakland Raiders, but also my fantasy football teams. I am either dead last or next to last in 3 leagues. The only league I am doing well in is the one nobody cares about. I guess you cannot always get by on your looks.

Update

I have a praise report and a prayer request.

For about two weeks, I was almost completely pain free!! No major headaches!!! Praise the Lord, it was a tremendous experience to have no pain for so long.

Prayer request: As of Monday, these headaches have returned with a vengeance. I am a little discouraged, but doing ok overall. Just in a lot of pain. Please pray for me! I have faith for healing and I know this victory is the Lord's.

White and Nerdy

One of the funniest things I (Tim) have seen in a long time is Weird Al’s new video, “White and Nerdy”. Paste in this link and enjoy: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-xEzGIuY7kw I have to admit that it gives me flashbacks to my years at Aurora Central High School.

The Broncos pulled out a win last night in a closely contested defensive battle on Monday Night Football. The offense needs work, but the defense is amazing. Plummer should get back on track next Sunday against the hapless Raider defense. Few things bring joy to my heart like seeing the Broncos give a beat down to the Raiders. Sunday should be fun.

The prayer time for Patrick on Sunday night was good. I feel like something amazing is on the verge of happening. God likes to blow our minds.

Tomorrow marks the three year anniversary of the blind date where Heidi and I met. Best three years of my life. Chris, I owe you big time.

Tim's thoughts on a sunny October day

- Heidi and I finished Season 2 of Lost on Sunday night. Wow. What an entertaining show. We watched the premier of Season 3 on Wednesday night and were treated to another mind boggling revelation about the island. Might as well face it, we’re addicted to Lost.
- Our fundraising process is off to a good start. We have a couple more meetings this weekend. It is a good excuse to get together with friends.
- Patrick Showers is my hero. Sunday will be one year since his accident. He has shown tremendous grace and strength in this process. Few people would handle something like this as well as he has.
- I pulled out my old Guardian “Fire and Love” CD the other day. What a great disc. Old school heavy metal rules.
- We got to hang out some more Mission: Moving Mountain missionaries this week. The Ketchums were at our house on Monday night and we met Andy Emmert (spell?) for Chipotle last night. Both of us always comment on how cool everyone from MMM is every time we meet someone new. All the missionaries to Senegal that we have met are amazing people.

More pictures

ok, these pictures are a little out of order, but that's ok. the day before our conference/training began, we did some sightseeing in Colorado Springs. Here's the kissing camels at Garden of the Gods. That place is SO beautiful!

Later that night I got to visit with my dear friend Brenda (Bunny!!!) who I know from my time in West Africa with YWAM. I only got to see her for 45 minutes but it was wonderful to give her a hug. She was in CO Springs for one night and we were able to connect!

The day before we headed to the Springs we hung out with more friends from Tim's youth. This is Jess and Kristi's darling little boy Bohden with his mini recliner and mini dvd player. everything mini - I love it!!

this is us right outside Garden of the God's. The kissing camels and Pike's Peak are behind us and the Navigators campus is a little ways off to the right...I think.

Tim is the gardens

Pictures from Colorado

Our first night in Colorado we had the priviledge of hanging out with our good friends Kyle and Mandy on lookout mountain, it overlooks Golden, CO

The four of us

mandy and me

mandy and kyle
after hiking around a bit we had a great dinner in Golden. It was really great to see them.
thanks for making the drive you guys!!

the next night we met some of Tim's friends from youth group for dinner at Chili's. here's a picture of the guys.

Belated pictures

Quite some time ago we took a little trip to Red Wing, MN but we never posted the pictures. So here they are. It was a really fun weekend and we stayed at a GREAT state park. Red Wing is full of all these enormous shoes. Kinda weird.

Oops....didn't see the sign

Me enjoying my fave coffee in my fave French press. Good times. I love coffee. Especially around the camp fire.

Oh, this is also the trip where I scored this sweet ring at an antique mall.

A return to MN and a marathon

Heidi and I returned to MN on Saturday from our Colorado adventure. It was a time of great encouragement and fun. Every time I am in the Rocky Mountains, I am amazed by God’s creation. My parents were generous with us and hospitable and we appreciate it.

We are now in the process of inviting people to partner with us financially in our quest to get to Africa. The Navigators fundraising training was helpful and we have our first supporting church and a handful of individuals. We are excited and feel blessed already.

On Sunday I ran the Twin Cities Marathon. It was my fifth marathon and by far the hardest. The weather was unseasonably warm and I had dry heaves at mile 15 and cramped up around mile 19. The last 7 miles were awful. In all my years of running I have never had a side cramp like that. My time was around 4 hours and 4 minutes. I was disappointed, but still glad I did it. Heidi and The Candace cruised around and cheered for Eric Unger (who finished around 3 hours 38 minutes) and me. Heidi’s parents also came for the finish, which was great. I was very, very glad when it was over. It will be a while before I do another one.

back to the midwest

Well, our time in CO is winding down. We are having dinner tonight with some of Tim's friends and then heading home tomorrow. Tim runs the marathon on Sunday and then it's back to the grind! It will be sad to say goodbye to family, the beautiful mountains and all the perks of staying with Tim's parents. They have been incredibly gracious by letting us have the master suite upstairs and letting us drive their sweet ride all over town. Nothing like cruising in a Buick! :P We are grateful for their hospitality.

life in CO

Hey ya'll! We are still alive out here in CO. We had a fantastic time at the Glen Eyrie Castle (Navigator land) and met a ton of terrific new friends. Even performed a song and dance at one point. Had a chance to make it all the way up Pike's Peak yesturday and chilled out at the summit house with some tasty doughnuts. We took a cog train, it was cool. Will post pics when we get home. We have our very first fundraising appointment tonight!!! Yikes! We are excited though, it will be fun to share our hearts with Tim's folks friends. Hope you're all doing well!

touch down

If any of you saw the reports of the storm that hit out in the western suburbs on Sat night, you saw my parents neighborhood. A tornado touched down in Rogers, MN this weekend and completely destroyed many homes in my folk's neighborhood. Fortunately, their house sustained pretty minor damage and they were both ok. I was pretty freaked out though when I couldn't get ahold of them right away! We are overwhelmed with thankfulness to God that they weren't injured.

Trip update: so far so good. We have had a wonderful time visiting with friends that we haven't seen in a long time. I will post some pics when we get home, but we saw the Irby's on Sat, which was lovely and lots of fun and last night we had dinner with a bunch of Tim's friends from high school which was also really fun. Tonight we will be wined and dined (minus the wine) by the Rectors who always feed us way too much amazing food! But we're not complaining! We even skipped lunch to have more room for their incredible cooking! (Just kidding, we ate lunch)

Jucy Lucy

I had a jucy lucy last night for the first time and it was amazing! That is truly an incredible burger. Tim and I went to Matt's bar with Zach "the hurricane" Thompson and we all enjoyed the wonder of molten cheese encased in greasy burger.

I would also like to add that we took another bike ride tonight and I managed NOT to run into a pole. I'm growing.

t minus 3 days

We leave for Colorado in three days! We're pretty excited for the break from "real life." We have been so busy lately. Obviously our training will be intensive, but hanging out with some friends and family will be great. The first weekend we're there we'll get to see the Irbys - hooray! And then a friend of mine from Canada that I haven't seen in years will randomly be in Colorado Springs for one day while we are there. So that's pretty sweet. She can meet Tim! A new friend of ours will be watchting our house so it'll be nice to have a male presence here while we're gone. We still have a few things that need to be done before we go but we're pumped to be going!

Colorado here we come!

Football season is upon us!

The start of the football season is upon us. Soon I will be spending time in my John Elway jersey sweating blue and orange in front of my TV. Already I have been through three fantasy football drafts and my marriage has stayed intact. Early on in our relationship I established that I loved Heidi more than football and that she does not have to like football, she just has to let me like it. So far that system is working out okay. I also make it a point to let her know well in advance when the games are and I have needed to sacrifice a few games for the greater good. (She knows that she is the greatest good I will ever have.) I will miss the Broncos first game on Sunday because of a church event, but should be able to see the next two in Colorado. I wanted to score a ticket to see the Chiefs get destroyed at Mile High, but the cost was too much. I am getting excited just thinking about it.

On a sad note, one of my all-time favorite Broncos, Dwayne Carswell, got cut by the team last week. Carswell was an undrafted tight end turned offensive lineman from Liberty University. He was trying to return to form after being critically injured in a car accident on the way to practice last season. (The accident was not his fault.) I am still holding on to hope that somehow the team will bring him back for another season or two. He is a good player, but a better person. I will miss seeing him on the field.

i fell off my bike...

So last night Tim and I biked around Lake Calhoun a couple times and then got some ice cream. It was dark by the time we rode home. We were about 3 blocks from our house and were riding on the sidewalk near the old Honeywell building. Well, the sprinklers were on and I was too busy looking at them to notice where I was going (b/c I thought they were pretty) and I ran into a pole. I hit it with my right handle bar, my bike went one way and I went the other. Tim was mortified when he saw me in a heap on the sidewalk, but I was so embarassed that all I could do was laugh!

I have a few scrapes and I'm limping around due to a swollen ankle, but other than that all that is truly damaged in my pride.

Can you imagine? A grown woman looking at silly sprinklers runs into a pole on her bike. Ridiculous!

The Fair

For some reason I really like to talk about food from the State Fair. I went with some friends last Friday while Tim did some silly futbol thingy. And boy did I have some yummy food. First I have to say that the way to enjoy the MN State Fair is to resign yourself to spending a lot of $ and eating a lot of food that is really, REALLY bad for you. Once you get over that, which can be especially difficult for the ladies, then you will have a blast. And I did! I started off the evening with some mini-doughnuts and then moved on to some Dole whip. Marlyes got a pretzel and that was tasty too. At that point we were joined by 10 others friends and the food fun really began. We got a blooming onion, french fries, cheese curds and deep fried pickles. Later came the chocolate milk, cotton candy, lefsa, chocolate covered frozen bananas and more mini-doughnuts. Obviously I wasn't able to try everything, a stomach can only permanently hold so much, but I will say that the deep fried pickles were nothing short of amazing. I definately recommend them. Perhaps you can only eat one though. Tim and I are going on Saturday and I am looking forward to garlic fries and perhaps a deep fried candy bar. Afterall, the Fair only comes once a year!

The Weekend in Review

Friday night:
Heidi and I did different things. I went to my annual Fantasy Football draft with the 8 Christian Guys league. This league has been in place for a long time and the drafts are always enjoyable. This year was no exception. We actually had two drafts and I think I did okay in the first and better in the second. Right before the draft, I lost to Brian in disc golf by one stroke at the White Bear course. Heidi went to the MN State Fair with people from church. She had a good time. Our church has some quality people.

Saturday:
It was a long day for both of us. Heidi was at work from 5 am to 1:30 pm. Right after she left for work, I went for a 20 mile run with Eric. Candace rode along with us carrying our supplies, which was a huge blessing to us. The day was beautiful with temps in the low 60’s. The run went well, but we were happy when it was over. Candace continued to bless us by whipping up some scrambled eggs, which tasted amazing. Then Eric and I left with Robbie and Michael to play some disc golf. We met up with Chris, Dan, and a friend of his at Kaposia Park. As usual, the course kicked our tails. Dan did well, Robbie and I did better than last time, but the others did not fare so well. We then proceeded on to North Valley Park for round 2. Dan and his friend needed to leave early and we struggled trying to find each hole as we went through the course. At the end, Chris came on strong, Robbie did well, Eric didn’t finish the last few holes as he searched for his lost disc in the water, and Michael and I fell apart. My legs were so tired from running that I had trouble with my drives. Heidi and I ended up getting home within a few minutes of each other and heading out again for a cookout for our friend, Yvonne. We got to enjoy some good food, some interesting people, and a beautiful day. After that we pretty much just came home and flopped right into bed. I have not been that tired in a long time.

Sunday:
We enjoyed a typical solid service at Bethel Christian Fellowship. Pastor Harrison filled in for Pastor Jim and preached with zeal. Heidi had to work in the afternoon and I mostly hung out there reading and drinking coffee. It was nice for me to not need to be anywhere. After our run to Super Target, we ended our evening with a little TV. It was a good weekend.

update letter

Most of you received this letter by mail, or will shortly, but for those of you who read our blog and didn't, here's an update letter we just sent out:


Greetings Friends and Family!

We pray that your summer has been a great time of connecting with loved ones and enjoying God’s creation. We just wanted to send out a little update to catch you up on how we’re doing with the process of going out as missionaries with Mission: Moving Mountains (MMM).

As most of you know, we were accepted to go to West Africa as full-time missionaries with MMM (www.movingmountains.org). Since then we’ve plunged into an intensive schedule of training and preparation; in addition to daily life of course! Tim is still working at the National Marrow Donor Program and Heidi at Starbucks Coffee.

So far our training and preparation has included lots of reading and study guides (everything from marriage to agriculture!), participating in a rigorous mentorship program called Sonship, sponsored by World Harvest Mission, meeting regularly with MMM staff and with our spiritual mentors.

Next month we will make the trek out to Colorado Springs for a seminar on support raising that’s being taught by The Navigators. We will be out there from September 16th -30th and would love to see those of you who live in the area! It is our goal to be in the full swing of raising support by October/November. Once we enter into that phase, we hope to be able to leave for Africa within the year – very exciting!! There is a lot that needs to be done before that, but we are filled with great anticipation.

We are still getting plugged into our church, Bethel Christian Fellowship (www.bcfnations.org), where we’ve been attending for the past year. Tim leads a monthly missions/prayer event for the young people and Heidi is involved with the prayer/counseling ministry. Recently, we took on a new leadership role working with the young adults and we are very excited about the possibilities of this and look forward to ministering together as a team.

We want to encourage you to check out our web-log at www.chaseus.blogspot.com for updates on how we’re doing, pictures, prayer requests, and to see and where we’re at in this process of preparation. We covet your prayers and want to reciprocate, so please let us know how we can be praying for you!

Please pray:
o That we would be diligent in this process of training and preparation
o For continued faith for Heidi’s full physical recovery
o Our focus would be entirely on God as we prepare to shift our lives overseas



As a further update on my physical health, this past week has been pretty hard and I'm in a lot of pain. Though the headaches persist I am persevering and looking forward with great anticipation to a complete healing. God is able! We still greatly desire your prayers and intercession and really appreciate those of you are praying.

Frontenac Nights: the Adventures of Heidi and Tim

Heidi and I made a pleasant discovery this past weekend. We like the little river town of Redwing, MN and Frontenac State Park is a great place for camping. Redwing, where Redwing shoes are made, sits in the Mississippi River Valley surrounded by trees, rolling hills, and bluffs over the river. The town has a cool little main street with shops and restaurants and a large city park on a point in the river. There is also the Cannon Valley Trail, a former railroad right of way that has been converted into an asphalt biking/walking trail. Heidi and I rode it for a while on Saturday and had a great time. (Chris Heng and I once stumbled upon that trail during a mountain biking adventure a few years ago. It was fun to ride more of it.) After our ride, we headed east of Redwing about 10 miles to Frontenac State Park. Our camping site was really nice with tree cover and bathrooms close by. There were miles of trails for hiking and we took one down the bluff to the river. It was beautiful. There were also some incredible overlooks a short walk from our campsite. We give Frontenac State Park two thumbs up. At the end of our adventure we did a little shopping and Heidi scored a sweet ring at an antique store. It was a great trip.

Gretchen taught everyone a new hobby

the slackline

Some pictures from our camping trip.

Some of the guys. Looking good fellas!
Nice job kids, just keep on paddling. These people were NOT from our group.

Some "seasoned" canoeists.

Noonie! The trip mascot, aka Nudie or my personal fave, Butchy.
Hanging out by the fire pit.

A weekend at the Wilderness

Our weekend at the Wilderness Fellowship with friends from church was great. The weather was fantastic, the surroundings were beautiful, and the people were a blast. Some of my (Tim) personal highlights included the intense Bocce Ball game that ended in the woods, going running while Nick rode along on my bike, sitting by the fire and disclosing information about ourselves, swimming and diving off the old pontoon, and Sunday morning worship by the lake. While Matt, Nick, and I were swimming, we reverted back to being 12 year old boys by jumping over each other into the water, pushing each other off the pontoon, and doing Cannonballs. It was cool to see a group of people that did not really know each other come together in God’s creation. I felt like I had made a connection with everyone there and now can count them among my friends.

The people that came were Heidi and I, Matt and Sierra Hegstrom, Michael and Emily Sparling, Gretchen Chamberlain, Angela (Gretchen’s friend), Nick Culp (who just moved to MN and attended BCF once), Matthew Carlquist, Tiffany, and Marlyse. What a fun group of people.

Heidi and I are excited to take a more active role with the young adults at our church. We will have a kick-off after church on September 10. Tell your friends! The group is for both married and single people in their 20s and 30s.

Random thoughts from Tim

 The last 2 times I have played disc golf have been the worst rounds I have played in years. On Tuesday, Eric Unger and I played Kaposia Park and I hit every tree I possibly could and missed most of my putts. At least I found a disc on one of my many trips into the woods and it throws really nice. Somehow I have to get my game back.
 I am excited for the camping trip with the young adult group from church. There is a great group of people coming and I know we are going to have fun.
 My marathon training has been going fairly well. The unusually hot temperatures have been messing up my runs. Last weekend I started a 13 mile run at 5 am and it was already 86 degrees. I do not run well in heat and my training is suffering a little, but I am confident that I’ll be ready on October 1.
 We have not blogged about Africa prep in a while, but it is coming along just fine. There is so much to do and we are feeling a little overwhelmed, but we know that it will be worth it once we are there. Kim and Paul McVety have been fantastic in helping us with the process.
 I love Heidi.

trip West

OK, plane tickets are purchased. We will be in Colorado from September 16th - 30th so all you westerners, mark your calendars cuz we wanna see you!

A FREE Saturday!!

So I get to work and look at my schedule and I'm not scheduled for Saturday! Score! I am ALWAYS sceduled for Saturday. Not that it's a huge deal, I don't really mind, but it sure is nice not to have to work it. So anyway, with our FREE weekend (since a free Saturday basically frees up an entire weekend) we are looking for something vacation-y to do. We won't be able to take a vacation this year so it would be fun to squeeze in a little trip when we can. We were actually hoping to go to New York City and see some freinds, but flights are too much dinero. We don't want to drive very far....which narrows things, but does anyone have any stellar ideas?? We were thinking Duluth for the weekend? Please share your thoughts with us! If we are going to miss a Sunday of church we want to make it worth it's while!

Oh, the pain!

It was time for the July disc golf adventure. Dan, Brian, Robbie, Michael, Grant, and I found ourselves at Acorn Park on Saturday morning. With so many of us, we needed to split into 2 groups. Grant, Brian, and I played together, with some great shots, some bad shots, and a lost disc. At the end of that round, Dan was way out ahead, as usual. Grant and Michael did well for not having played much, Brian did not play as well as usual, and Robbie was 2 strokes ahead of me. Brian headed home and the rest of us hit up Disc Golf Outfitters. When Robbie, Michael, and Grant finished buying their discs, we headed to White Bear Lake for round 2.

The second round of the day provided some drama. Dan continued his dominating play, Grant and Michael continued to learn the game, and Robbie and I had a neck and neck race to the end. When we reached the final hole, he was one stroke ahead of me. My drive was nearly perfect and left me with a long, but makeable, birdie putt. Robbie’s approach shot hit a bush, leaving me with a golden opportunity. My putt barely missed, leaving me with an easy putt to tie Robbie. I tossed my putter, it hit the chains, and bounced back out. It was a horrible sight to see my disc laying on the grass while Robbie danced in victory. Oh, the pain!

Please let me know if you want to join us for the next disc golf adventure in August. The date is still to be determined.

missionary stories

Last week we spent an evening with some M:MM friends and a couple who are home on their first furlough. They are a young couple from Chicago, about our age, who just finished their first term working with the Mandinka people in the southern part of Senegal. It was great to share a meal with them, get to know them a little bit and ask lots and lots of questions. They had their first baby over there in the hospital in Dakar (capital of Senegal) and Eden said the experience was great - as great as giving birth can be anyway! That was encouraging for me to hear. Pregnancy and childbirth seem scary enough to me without throwing in the added stress of a foreign setting. But she said she wouldn't have changed a thing about it.

I don't know what Tim and I expected, but the more M:MM missionaries we meet, the more impressed we are with this agency. Everyone is so normal and down to earth, easy to talk with and very cool. Though I think our hearts are still hoping for a placement with the northern Senegalese team, working with the Wolof people, we are excited to get to know the southern team as well. Everyone is just so cool, we want to work with all of them!!

It was also encouraging to hear conversation about the work in Senegal. It's easy to get bogged down with all the training we are in the midst of and to lose sight of what we're training for. Casting the vision is important. We want to be intentional about starting to think according to the African style of life.

It was a great evening with great food and great friends. We love M:MM!

Movie Review: Pirates of the Carribean: Dean Man's Chest

Three years ago I was surprised by the first Pirates of the Caribbean film. It was amazing, especially since it was based on a theme park ride. The sequel came with anticipation. Heidi and I saw the movie with Kent and Sally at the only theater in Fergus Falls. Unfortunately, an eight foot man sat in front of me, so I needed to move around to see the whole screen. Aside from that, I enjoyed the movie. There were some new characters, clever lines, great sight gags, and an undead monkey. Since the movie is a second in a trilogy, there were some open story lines and a cliffhanger ending, which sometimes feels a little unsatisfying. This movie will enter my DVD collection, which is about the highest recommendation I can give a film.

Sweet scenes: Jack Sparrow’s entrance
Jack’s payment to the fortune teller
The fight on the island at the end
Any scene with the 2 pirates from the first movie

Great line: Tia Dalma: I require payment.
Jack Sparrow: Look.
[shoots the monkey]
Jack Sparrow: An undead monkey! Top that!
Tia Dalma: The payment is fair...

Turd in the punchbowl: Having to wait almost a year for part 3

Heading up north

Tim and I are not really the cabin-every-weekend type but we sure love it when people invite us to their cabins every now and then. We were going to go camping with Tim's sister and fam this weekend but since the forcast calls for blazing hot weather we are going up to Fergus Falls to chill at Kent's folks cabin for the weekend. They actually live there now so it's more of a real home (with A/C for the men) on a lake. We're pumped to go!

As Tim blogged already, the BBQ was great, a lovely mix of new friends and old friends. Very fun times and we got to break in our new grill, which is pretty sweet.

Here's a little shout-out for Amberly who just returned for a "summer furlough" from her ministry in Osaka, Japan. She's been there 2 years and is going back for another. Can't WAIT to see you sister!! Lot's to catch up on.

For any of you out near the CO area, we have to be in Colorado Springs from September 17-25 for orientation to Navigators (MMM is merging with Navs) and a support raising training. If anyone would care to meet us for a little vaca that would be stellar! We are planning to take about 2 weeks off of work plus weekends to be out there, so mark your calendars. Hoping to do a little camping in the mountains either before or after. This announcement is especially for the Rectors, Irbys, Herders, and possibly the Manarys. We miss you guys!!

Tim's thoughts on a July day

 The Ghetto BBQ was great. People that did not all know each other mixed well, the weather was perfect, and we enjoyed some tasty food. We will likely do another one before the snow flies. Matt Carlquist gets special recognition for bringing a fancy salad with homemade dressing.
 We rented two movies from the RedBox in the past week. The first, Firewall, starring Harrison Ford, was a rip-off of The Fugitive and a complete waste of time. The script was lame and Ford is getting too old for these kinds of movies. The second, Glory Road, was kind of like Remember the Titans, only with college basketball. It is an interesting story, told in a family friendly way. Both Heidi and I would recommend it. If you rent it, be sure to watch the bonus documentaries. They are short and include interviews with the actual players and coaches.
 Heidi and I met up with her family for a cookout at Lake Nokomis on Sunday afternoon. Her parents found a quiet spot with some picnic tables and we had an enjoyable time. We finished the afternoon by walking around the lake. It was a beautiful day, too.
 I applied for a job at Habitat for Humanity that would be totally sweet. I would appreciate y’all to be in prayer about this.
 Heidi and I love our church. Bethel Christian Fellowship is a unique church and not so much seeker-sensitive, and we are blessed by it every Sunday.
 Heidi is the best. I totally love her. She is the cutest of all time.

ghetto barbeque

Got plans next Saturday night, the 8th? Well if not, we would love to have you at our very first ghetto barbeque! We scored a charcoal grill/wood burning stove at Patrick's benefit last weekend, as well as a nifty Magic Bullet (as seen on TV), so we're having a little BBQ. If we can find some wood to burn it may even morph into a bonfire at some point in the evening as well. We are going to set up in our cement driveway, aka the "patio." BYOM (bring your own meat) and something to share. And bring chairs if you have them, we only have 3 I think. No need to RSVP. Hope to see you there! Let's say 7pm or so!

Looking for a place to live?

Some dear friends of ours are looking to rent out their Maple Grove townhouse. If you are interested, email me and I will send you the flier. (I couldn't figure out how to post it....) :)


Hello Minnesota friends! David and I still have our townhouse up there - and we are once again looking for renters. I've attached a flier with some of the details. It's a great place in Maple Grove off Bass Lake Road about 2-3 miles west of 494. For the right tenants the rent could be negotiable and pets are definitely okay with a deposit. Please feel free to forward to anyone who might be interested.

If you are ever in Chicago, let me know. I would love to see you!!

-Kris M.

my "little" bro

me and Dan

little smooch for my lil' brother before he heads off to law school, what a smartie!
doesn't he look happy?

Father's Day with a GREAT Father!

We played mini-golf with my family for father's day and Tim whooped us all.
Sadly I lost both rounds, big surprise! it was great fun though!

Fun with fam

Tim's sister Amy was here to visit for a few days.

Tim and his sisters havin' fun.

Here's a picture from our camping trip!
Tim making me breakfast.

A Call to Prayer

I (Heidi) would like to encourage you to take a moment and pray for someone. Maybe you already have someone on your heart and you know they need prayer. If no one comes to mind, ask God to bring someone to mind for you. Either way, I encourage you to intercede on the behalf of another. While it's possible that you may never know how things pan out in the circumstance you're praying for, you can be sure that God hears your prayer and that it's powerful. When we pray, we affect the heavenlies. When we pray in the name of Jesus, darkness has to flee. The enemy is pushed back and strongholds are broken. I was praying for a friend last night that God brought to my mind and it was good; something was happening. Maybe not in the physical realm, but definately in the spiritual realm. In that last three years, many of my prayer have been self-focused due to my circumstance, but last night I was reminded of the importance of pressing into the Holy Spirit on behalf of another. I know there are intercessors pressing in on my behalf. I know this b/c if they weren't, I wouldn't have the strength to keep going every day. I am thankful that God reminded me once again to lift up my brothers and sisters.

Patti M. and Jes S. - I don't think you read this blog, but if you do, know that I am praying for you! God desires for you to be healed!!

Benefit for Patrick

In the weekend paper there was an article written about our friend Patrick, who fell off a roof last October. The full article will be available on the Web for a limited time at http://www.twincities.com/mld/twincities/living/14839453.htm

Please check it out and please continue to pray for the Showers family. There is a benefit at Woodland Hills this Friday night (article gives information) and we'd love to see you there!

Tim's thoughts on redemption

Redemption is a powerful concept. The idea that something that is bad or evil or something that has been lost could be redeemed blows my mind. Obviously the greatest story of redemption of all time is Jesus’ death and resurrection. Nothing can compete with the fact of a world that is saved through His redemptive act. However, I do believe that God gives us everyday examples of redemption as a reminder of what He did. The medium of film can communicate redemption in a unique way. Here are some of the films that stand out to me as redemptive: (and reasons why)
- The Shawshank Redemption – an incredible movie, heck, redemption is even in the title
- Saving Private Ryan – they risked (and gave) their lives for someone they did not know
- Napoleon Dynamite – the school dork commits a self-less (and funny) act for a friend
- The Mighty – his best friend shows an awkward kid his potential
- Schindler’s List – a selfish man saves thousands in the Holocaust
I got to thinking about this after watching Jarhead, a film with no redemptive value. It is not that I think that all films need a happy ending, but I do not like films that are needlessly hopeless.

Please leave a comment on your favorite redemptive films.

An epic disc golf adventure

On Saturday, there was an epic disc golf tournament. Brian Schrader, Jer Melander, Eric Unger, Robbie Cape, and myself (Tim) arrived at the Lakewood Hills (I think that is the name) disc golf course ready to play. We started slow, with a little too much time spent looking for our discs in the tremendous overgrowth. After a couple lost discs, we made it out to the more open holes and Robbie jumped to a commanding lead. Jer made a long approach shot on hole 4 and Robbie’s approach game was unstoppable. After 9 holes we headed into the woods with me bringing up the rear having had some terrible drives. As we started throwing through the trees, everyone’s score came a little closer together. Brian and I started to catch up and everyone else started having a little trouble. On the last hole (#11) in the woods, I threw a perfect long line drive that gave me a birdie and kept me in the game. When we reached hole #18 (it is a 14 hole course, so we played the last 4 twice) Eric and I were leading Robbie and Brian by one stroke. My drive went wide right and it took me 4 shots to finish. Eric’s drive was perfect, but he missed two putts to finish with a 4. Brian and Robbie made par, so we all finished with 14 (with a Jer right behind). It was tense.

The day was not over, though. After some Wendy’s burgers, Brian left and the rest of us headed to Acorn Park. Keeping our previous scores, we continued playing. Eric must have had his Mojo stolen when he missed the last putt at the previous course, because his play never reached the level he enjoyed earlier in the day. Robbie and I kept a tight race, but I prevailed in the end by 1 stroke, finishing with a 9 at that course.

It was an amazing day of disc golf. Let me know if you want in on the next tourney.

A camping weekend

Heidi and I enjoyed our first solo camping trip this weekend. We went to St. Croix State Park, north of the Twin Cities and next to the WI border. The weather was awesome and we enjoyed hiking along the river, biking on the paved trails, and sitting by the fire. Both mornings I got up and went running on the trails through the woods. (I was really glad I did not encounter a bear. This city kid isn’t used to stuff like that.) We got to relax, eat good food, and sleep without the sounds of the city. I can’t wait until we get to go again. I am so glad that my sweet wife loves camping, and I am also glad that we camp so well together. I sure do love my wife.

Movie Review: X-Men 3: The Last Stand

Anyone who knows me (Tim) knows that I am a big dork and that I love comic books and superheroes and stuff like that. The X-Men have held a special place in my heart since Jr. High. They are the fringe heroes who often are shunned by the society they risk their lives to protect. I am always nervous when Hollywood gets their hands on something I like, since too often they mess it up. I liked the first two X-Men movies, but felt they were a little slow moving. My fears that the third movie would be bad were unfounded. I loved it. The pacing was great and I loved the special effects. The new characters were well done, especially Beast and the Juggernaut. I recommend this movie. (Heidi liked it, too.)

Sweet scenes: Kitty Pryde vs. the Juggernaut
Wolverine vs. the Sentinel
The final battle

Great line: Pyro: (to Juggernaut) Nice helmet.
Juggernaut: It keeps my face pretty.

Turd in the punchbowl: There was no fight between Colossus and the Juggernaut (I know, I am a dork.)

Keep your hands where I can see 'em

Last night as I came home from church I pulled into the alley and a cop car was blocking the way into our driveway. Not really what I expected to see. I quickly realized that nothing was wrong concerning Tim or our tenants, but apparently the two suspects had pulled into our driveway with the cops hot on their trail. Tim was out working in the yard and actually had to duck under the outdoor stairs b/c the police had their guns pulled! The suspects were between Tim and the police right in our yard! Crazy. Nothing "exciting" was going on by the time I got home, so I went inside. Another day in the Phillips neighborhood I guess!

world of opportunities!

I found out yesturday that in a couple weeks I have a Saturday morning off and I didn't even need to request it. Not having to get up at 4am to make coffee on a Saturday morning is like Christmas! So I think we will maybe go camping since it's like a "free Saturday." Hooray!

Roni had her baby, Nolan Jacob and he's super cute! Long and lean like his parents. Yay - I'm an auntie!!

Museum Exhibit Review: Body Worlds

Body Worlds is cool. If you have not heard of it, Body Worlds is an exhibit that travels around the world and recently came to the Science Museum of Minnesota. Heidi and I went with our friend Tammy last Friday night. I was not sure what to expect. Seeing real dead bodies up close has never interested me, but the exhibit was extremely interesting. (I did resist the urge to shout out “I see dead people!” when we entered the exhibit.) The most amazing part for me was witnessing the brilliance of God’s creation. Seeing how complex the human body is and how one missing part could cause the entire thing to cease functioning was awesome. After seeing this exhibit, there is no way you could believe that life happened by mere chance. It is far too complex and wonderful. I recommend taking in the exhibit. It will be in St. Paul until September.

I do have to mention this, however. The entire body is shown. Even parts usually covered by underwear. Children under the age of about 13 probably are not ready for something like this.

Body Worlds

If anyone wants to join us to see the new Science Museum exhibit, Body Worlds, we are going this Friday! I can't wait!!

Just another night

Last night as we were falling asleep around 11pm, we heard shouting from the street and about 7 or 8 gunshots go off very close by. Tim ran to the window in time to see a dark sedan drive away and a few people run off on foot. I called 911 and reported it and in about 10 minutes there were cop cars and we could see them looking around with flashlights on the corner. We heard some shouting and then they jumped back in the car, drove a little ways down and camped out there a while. Eventually an ambulance came. Someone was definately hurt. The whole thing was a little crazy.

update

Let me just say that I (Heidi) am very thankful that our bodies forget what pain feels like. Someday this pain will be nothing but a vague memory and a reminder of God's goodness!

It has been ages since I've blogged and I wanted the world to know that I am still alive. We have been so busy with finishing up with our Perspectives class and I haven't had time to do things like clean or shave my legs, let alone blog! But here I am, taking a break from cleaning the house to say hello.

Some news: my brother got engaged a few weeks ago and we are so excited for them! Ellen will be a great addition to the family! We are having a little engagement party for them tomorrow night. Also, Tim and I were trying to plan a trip to Las Vegas (weird I know) but no one wanted to come with us, so we decided to wait and maybe try to go somewhere else next year. After all the talk about vacationing with another couple, or two, we opted to wait until it would work out better. The more the merrier! So if anyone has any good ideas, let us know. And last but not least, my good friend Roni is bursting with child and due any day now and I am THRILLED to be aunt Heidi once again. Yay baby Sheck! I would post pics of my cute prego friend, but unfortunately that could take me all afternoon and I don't have that kind of time! Maybe once the kiddo is born I can.

That's all, have a great day.

Oh, I almost forgot, if you could keep me in your prayers I would love you for it, it's been a rough week. Thanks!

You forget what it felt like.

The human body is amazing. It forgets pain. Try to remember exactly what something painful felt like. You can’t. You can remember that something hurt, but you cannot remember the exact pain. That explains how women agree to give birth again. They forget exactly how it felt. While no where near as painful as giving birth (or so I’ve heard), running a marathon is painful. Still, I keep doing it. I (Tim) signed up for the 2006 Twin Cities Marathon. I forgot about the pain and just remembered the good parts of my last four marathons. This time I roped Eric Unger in to be my training partner. It should be fun, or at the very least, interesting.

Movie review: Doom

I (Tim) rented Doom for $1 at the McDonald’s Redbox on Saturday night. When you rent a movie based on a video game, you do not expect Shakespeare. However, I did expect it to be better than it was. Doom is dumb and boring. Most of the movie was spent having underdeveloped characters (Marines) wandering around in the dark with a blond woman giving pseudo-scientific answers to why everyone is turning into an evil monster. The audience of this movie wanted to see one thing: monsters being blown apart by big guns. There was one sequence where they showed the first person shooter perspective and that was super cool. Unfortunately, it was three minutes long and was about the only cool part of the movie. Otherwise, there was hardly any action in this action movie. Do not bother with Doom.

Sweet scene: First person shooter perspective

Turd in the punchbowl: The rest of the movie

Tim's thoughts on a beautiful April day.

These are my thoughts today.
• The new Plumb album, “Chaotic Resolve” is amazing. Out of the 4 Plumb albums, this is easily the best. It has the rock of the first album with the real life lyrics for which Plumb is known. This is as good as anything on mainstream radio, and if there is any fairness in the entertainment industry, this album should receive awards and airplay. Do yourself a favor and pick up this album.
• Heidi and I watched two movies recently. Both were terrible, but for different reasons. The first, a Sixth Sense rip-off called Stay was well acted and directed with style, but made absolutely no sense. We watched it with Chris and Zong and when the movie ended, we all said, “what the heck?” It was not even like Memento where everyone would talk about it afterwards, we just agreed “that was dumb” and moved on. The other movie that Heidi and I saw at the cheap seats was The Family Stone. If this movie was supposed to be a comedy, then it was not funny. If it was supposed to be a drama, it was not dramatic. It succeeded in being a chick flick, in that all the males cried the whole movie and everyone that was single at the start was dating someone at the end. Please do not waste your time with either film. (Heidi does share my opinion of both movies.)
• I forget to put on the blog that the HR position that I really wanted went to someone else. It bums be out, but life goes on. Work has been more interesting lately, so that is good.
• Yesterday Heidi and I enjoyed the good weather by running on the Greenway. We did not stay together the whole time, but it worked out well. Running with Heidi is the most fun way to go running. I sure do love my wife.

Dog People

The past few days Heidi and I have been watching Sully, her brother's dog. He is a nice dog and it has been fun to walk him and have him around the house. The only problem we have encountered so far is sleeping. We stayed a couple nights at Heidi's parent's house with Sully and he insisted on sleeping on the bed with us. Mostly at or on my feet. That would not be a problem, except that he is a big dog. Big enough to hog a section of the bed and keep us from a decent night's sleep for several nights in a row. Aside from that, he is a big dog trapped in our upstairs apartment, and he kind of reminds me of the dirty polar bears at Como Park. I feel bad for a big, strong animal reduced to freaking out at the squirrels he can see through the windows. All in all, this has been a good experience to help us realize that, at least for now, we are not dog people.

Birthday party!

Hey everybody, we are having a little, spur-of-the-moment birthday party for ourselves this Friday at 7pm. Would love to see you if you can make it - everyone is welcome! Call for directions :)

Spring

Today is officially the first day of Spring. And my birthday. (Heidi's) Happy Spring and happy birthday to me :)

winter blues

Ugh, Tim and I are both sick. Full-fledged colds, yuck. I even went out and bought a thermometer. Too bad we don't believe in calling in sick. I don't work today, but Tim is at the office. This time of year is the worst, it's cold, grey, snowy, and everyone is sick with something. And it's tax season!

I am ready for spring. Technically, the first day of spring is Monday, my birthday. Tim's bday is next Friday. Who thinks we should have a party?????

Snow Day!

Living in Minnesota with the brutal winter normally have, you would think there would be the occasional snow day. We have not had one in years. Today we finally got one. At least I (Tim) did. I woke to about 8 inches of wet snow covering my car and everything else. Heidi had gone to work a couple hours earlier. So I called the office several times and there was no message about the office being closed. After cleaning off my car, I ventured onto the extra slow freeway and somehow made it to the office without incident. Upon entering, the first person I saw informed me that the office was indeed closed. (Information that would have been helpful earlier.) I headed back out to my car and made my way carefully to Starbucks to see my wonderful, beautiful wife. When I walked in she had just started her half hour break. We hung out during her break, then I settled in with a coffee and did my perspectives homework. On the way home I swung by the McDonald's Redbox to return Walk the Line and pick up a couple more movies. Heidi came home and is taking a nap now. I already watched The Longest Yard and tonight we'll watch The Island. We plan to hit the Y for a little exercise as well. What a great day. There are real benefits to living in the great white north.

reflecting on the week

We had a quick (and yummy) dinner with some Youthworks friends tonight (thanks Kari and roomates!) and now Tim is at Park Avenue to hear auther Ron Sider speak. So I am taking a few moments before I dig into some homework to reflect on the week.

This has been an extremely rough week for me. Lots of homework, some family stuff and a few commitments in the midst of some severe headaches. At some point this week, I realized that I have been living each day in survival mode. Just trying to get through the day, the week, the month, etc. When I get up in the morning, my first thought is ok, I just need to get to work and make it through my shift, then I can close my eyes and rub my temples.

Well, as I began to think about this pattern of "functioning," I could see it for what it really is, a way that I was working in my own strength and giving up my joy b/c of the trial of my circumstance.

I'm not very good at asking for help, but I need some help right now. Please pray for me. Pray that God would strengthen me and give me what I need to "show up" for my life right now. To get out of bed in the morning and go to work. And to praise Him for His goodness to me. This week has been a heady (no pun intended) reminder that I am still in a battle. I know who wins, but I could use some reinforcements right about now.

Too small?

So I'm checking out at Super Target this afternoon and the checker, in her thick Indian accent (always funny), comments on the good deal I found in a sweater for $3.75. I respond with "yea, it was such a good deal that I didn't even try it on!" She says, "what size did you get?" I answer "a small." She says "oh?" and she looks me over and says, "you might need a medium."

What?! I don't believe I asked her for her oppinion on that matter! Well, miss checker-lady, it's fits just fine, thank you very little!

So next time you're at Target be careful what you converse about with the checker b/c they just may subtely call you fat! Or at least fatter that you think you are!

Tim's thoughts for today

• My interview for the HR position went well. I feel good about my chances. Thanks for praying.
• I watched The Second Chance again last night with my Guy’s Group. My hopes for this film to be a sleeper hit like Napoleon Dynamite and propel the director, Steve Taylor, to stardom will probably not be realized. However, it is still a darn good movie and I cannot wait for Steve to make another one. If you have not seen it yet, I would encourage you to check it out.
• Three of my favorite Broncos players gut cut from the team yesterday. Mike Anderson, the former Marine and 27 year old rookie of the year was one of my all time favorite Broncos. Trevor Price, the defensive lineman who mauled the Chiefs on Monday Night Football and was a popular player. Last, Jeb Putzier, the tight end who caught passes in the middle of the field and got hit more than anyone else. I’ll miss them.
• The class that Heidi and I are taking, Perspectives on the World Christian Movement, sure is good. There is a lot of homework each week, but I am learning a ton and Heidi and I have had some great conversations from the reading. I would encourage you to check it out.
• I love my wife. She is the greatest.

I need a craft fix

Ugh! We have been so busy lately. I hate being busy. I like down time and I (Heidi) haven't had any time to do anything even remotely crafty in ages. I need a fix! So the next time any of you has a craft party, invite me and maybe, just maybe I can go. But probably not. At least send me photos of your own craft projects and I can live vicariously through that. If any of you know my sweet and wonderful old roomate, Am, you know that even if I didn't have time to be crafty, I could live vicariously through her amazing mad skills in that dept. She's even better than jailbird Martha Stewart!

A sweet opportunity

I (Tim) have an interview on Thursday, March 2, for a transfer to a position with Human Resources at my present employer. This would be a great career move and allow me to use my gifts more. I am excited for this and want it bad. If y'all could be in prayer for me, my interview is at 1 pm cst. Thanks.

Why they always gotta mess with me?

Last Tuesday while I (Heidi) was hard at work training someone in on the espresso bar, some guy snuck into the back room and stole my credit card and some cash from my purse. He went into my locker, into my purse and into my wallet and then put it all back as it was, minus the goodies. Then he snuck back out and tried to steal our tip jar, which we caught. But after that he spent a good minute trying to explain to me that he had done nothing wrong. Ugh. Why do these crazies always seem to show up in my life? Fortunately Starbucks reimbursed me for my loss and I cancelled my credit card. Crazy. Just another Tuesday.

Movie review: The Second Chance

When I (Tim) heard that the multi-talented Steve Taylor was making a movie, I got excited. He was an innovative musician for many years and one of the more creative people in the world of Christian media. His debut as a feature film director did not disappoint. It is a gritty, realistic portrayal of urban ministry and complacent mega-churches. So gritty, that I am sure some Christian audiences will be offended by it. (There is a moving scene that deals with people who have an attitude like that.) The acting by Michael W. Smith was passable, but jeff obafemi carr was outstanding. I expect to see more of him. Steve did a nice job in the director’s chair, as well as one of the writers. It is so nice to see Christians portrayed as flawed people seeking God’s will and trying to do the right thing. This is a powerful film that deserves our attention. I hope it does well in the box office and that Steve makes more movies.

Sweet scenes: the basketball clinic “Oooo! Larry Bird!”
The staff meeting
Pastor Jake’s speech at the Rock

Turd in the punchbowl: A few subplots needed fleshing out more and the acting was a bit weak in a couple places

What made her different

Before I met Heidi, I went on a lot of first dates. Not many second dates, though. In fact, I was rapidly losing hope that going on dates would result in finding a wife. There were plenty of good Christian women in my life, but nothing ever worked out. I told people that all the women I had gone out with were missing one essential element. That, of course, was her liking me back. I realize now that I was wrong about that. The missing element was her giving me a chance. (Rent the movie Hitch for an in-depth study of this concept.) The thing that made Heidi different was that she did not just write me off right away for one reason or another. She let me hang around long enough to win her over. I am grateful for that.

Since today is Valentines Day, I wish to declare on this blog how much I love my Sweet Baboo and how fortunate I feel to be married to her. Life is indeed good.

Letter to the Editor

Below is a letter to the editor that I (Heidi) sent to Christianity Today Magazine. We subscribe, but I'm not a big fan of this usually watered down publication. This is, of course, only my humble opinion. Let me just say this is a very mild responce in comparision to my initial reaction to reading the report from Luis Palau. I needed about a week and a half to simmer down enough to write it! If any of you have read my entries, you know I have a special burden on my heart for the persecuted church. I'm a stickler for fact when it comes to what Christian brothers and sisters are facing around the world for their faith. I'm not usually one to complain, or seek to make my piece heard in situations like this, but I could not stay silent. So for what it's worth, read on:

"I was shocked when I read the report of Luis Palau’s visit to China in the February issue of CT. I don’t question the validity of Palau’s experience at the registered church he visited, but I’m concerned that his comments may serve as further justification for the majority of the Western church to remain inactive in response to the persecution facing the body of Christ in China. Palau’s experience is in direct contrast to that of thousands of believers there who are counting the cost daily of living for Christ. I hope we can take this opportunity to remember our family in China (Hebrews 13:3), and educate ourselves; that we might bear witness to their testimonies of faithfulness. Please pray for the Christians in China; they pray for you!"

A rock star's heart for Africa

Normally, when a rock star speaks out on an issue, I roll my eyes and make a snide comment. Not so with Bono. In my humble opinion, the U2 frontman, despite his rock star status, has earned the right to speak. This speech was at the National Prayer Meeting and he was sharing his heart for Africa. My heart for Africa has increased greatly since Heidi and I committed to moving to Senegal for full time ministry. Bono said some great things and I would encourage you to follow the link and read the transcript of his speech. I would love to hear your thoughts on what he had to say.

Here is the link: http://www.data.org/archives/000774.php

Talking about the weather

Minnesota is a place of weather extremes. It can be miserably cold here in the winter and miserably hot in the summer. The one nice thing about the weather is that you always have something to talk about. No matter where you are, you can always start a conversation with, “sure is cold, huh?” That, and “the Vikings sure did choke something fierce on Sunday, huh?” I have no idea how people in places like Florida strike up conversation. I guess there is always, “the Jags, Dolphins, or Bucs sure did choke something fierce on Sunday, huh?” But how do you start a conversation when it is not football season? The nice thing about growing up in Colorado was that the weather changes incredibly fast so you were guaranteed something to talk about. Of course, there is always, “the Broncos sure did put a beat down on the Raiders, huh?” I guess God gave us weather so we have something to talk about. And football.

Time for a blog about something other than football!

I'm not sure where all my time goes these days, but things have seemed incredibly busy lately. I'm still adjusting to my new 5am schedule at Starbucks and I usually end up sleeping an extra 3 or 4 hours on my day off sleeping in order to have the strength to make it through the week. (prayer point: please pray that God would continue to provide me with adequate energy. I am so thankful that His power is made perfect in my weakness!) We're also taking a class called Perspectives which requires a lot of additional time. While this class is a part of our training for M:MM there is still a lot that needs to be done, or at least started!

Life gets so busy and it's easy for me to get overwhelmed, especially when I am tired and not feeling well. I have been meditating on parts of scripture where Jesus calls us to cast our cares upon him and take up his burden, while laying our own at his feet. In the midst of the crazy lives that we have built for ourselves, God wants us to set ourselves to seek Him, to dedicate time each day and focus on nothing but Him. I pray that today, we would all be able to enter into this.

Tim's thoughts on the much loved Broncos

Only one team can win the Super Bowl. That means that 31 teams do not win it. Only 4 teams play in the conference championship games. That means that 28 teams watch from home. A true fan of an NFL team is only truly happy when his/her team wins the big game. Nothing else is good enough. I need to remind myself that the Broncos had one heck of a great season and that I should not think about the awful game at the end. For most of the season, the much loved Broncos had everything go their way. Opposing defenses dropped interceptions, fumbles rolled into Broncos player’s hands, Broncos defenders were in the right place to make a pick, and running lanes opened at the right time for most of the season. During the AFC Championship game, none of those things happened. Everything went wrong for the Broncos on that day. Our defense left receivers open all over the field, our offense never found a rhythm, and Plummer had his worse game of the year. Sometimes you just cannot put your finger on why things happen in football. Maybe this was payback for the Patriots having their worst playoff loss in 5 years in Denver the week before. Oh well. After all, it is just a game. (Did I really just say that?)

How about those Broncos?

With hardly anyone noticing, the much loved Denver Broncos are playing at home in the AFC Championship game against the Pittsburgh Steelers on Sunday. With my Elway jersey on and several friends with me, I cheered my much loved Broncos to victory against the defending NFL champions last Saturday night. It was a game where the Patriots made many mistakes and the much loved Broncos made few. Now all the much loved Broncos must do is win the game on Sunday to reach the Super Bowl. I must thank the Steelers for an entertaining game against the Colts last Sunday and also ensuring another home game for the much loved Broncos. I had almost forgotten how much fun it is to have the much loved Broncos win in the postseason. Almost, but not quite.

Go Broncos!

pass the tissue

Ok, in between various projects this morning (I have been very productive today!), I finished Safely Home and I was all tears. Funny thing was I was crying at a really happy part.....what a great book. Seriously. Read it.

Safely Home

I am near of the end of a book that is rocking my world and my worldview. It's Safely Home by Randy Alcorn. While it's a novel, I would consider it a work of historical fiction, very relevant to these times. Alcorn did a lot of research before writing. Without giving anything away, it's about two friends, one American, one Chinese, college roomates from about 20 years ago. They are reunited and have some big decisions to make. It takes a close look at the persecuted church, international relations with China and how the two are related. It is phenomenal. I read a lot, but this is one of the best, most challenging books I have read in a while, except for the Bible! I'm not going to get on my soapbox about how the American church is in a deep slumber regarding the present day persecuted church, I don't have time for that tonight, but I want to strongly encourage you to check this book out. Well worth your time and a very quick read!

my real review

I feel that I must clarify on the review that Tim said I gave this film, Serenity. (His review below.) While it could be considered a form of entertainment, I would never watch it again. First of all, the cast all had weird southern-redneck accents and apparently none of them knew how to put together an acceptable sentence for the English language. It was quite annoying to have to listen to them butcher their words for two hours. Seriously, it was ridiculous. Maybe some would consider the creatioon of cowboy space-guys a success, I found it a little strange. So watch at your own risk! You've been warned!!

DVD review: Serenity

The movie, Serenity, is a unique science fiction film in many ways. First, it was a cancelled TV show that never even made it to the second half of its first season, yet somehow became a feature film with the same cast from the TV show. Second, there are no aliens, an old west feel, and traces of Chinese culture. The cast works well together, the pace of the film is well done, and the special effects were pretty nifty. The Reavers, who are one of the groups of bad guys the Serenity crew must face, were extra scary because the director wisely decided to never quite show them. (If you watch an M. Night Shyamalan film, you know that what is not shown is far scarier than what is shown.) The film’s climax did remind me a little bit of the Doom video game, but that is not a bad thing. There is even a Christian character that the crew stops by to visit for advice and respite and he is done pretty well. While not being theologically correct, Shepherd Book is a deep character who strives to do the right thing, and for Hollywood, that is a step in the right direction. I only saw one episode of the show on TV, and you do not need to have seen it for the movie to make sense. Overall, if you like sci-fi, action type movies, there are worse ways to spend two hours. As Heidi said afterward, “that was an entertaining bit of fluff.”

Sweet scenes: The space battle - “I am a leaf on the wind.”
The Doom inspired fight scene at the end.
The chase scene on the hovercraft.

Turd in the punchbowl: the movie has a disordered view of sexuality that is so prevalent in Hollywood these days

Great line: “Shepherd Book always told me, if you can’t do something smart, then do something right.” - Jayne

A brief rant by Tim

I realize that criticizing the Trinity Broadcasting Network (TBN) is a little like fishing for carp with a shotgun, but I have to rant for a moment. They have a show in its 2nd season called “Exalt Him”, which is their Christian version of American Idol. (Probably without snarky judges.) The winner of the contest gets a contract as a Contemporary Christian Music (CCM) artist. As Christians, why do we settle for the Christian version of something instead of creating something new and exciting? Does the world need a new CCM star or another Left Behind movie or cheesy Christian romance novel? Christians end up looking like a bunch of idiots. I hope no non-Christians ever watch TBN. It is just so embarrassing. Am I being too harsh?

Why can’t the Church be on the cutting edge of creativity? I get my hopes up when musicians like Project 86 and Sixpence None the Richer hit the scene and put out something truly creative. Why can’t this be the norm and not the exception? I am holding out hope for a film coming out next month called “The Second Chance”, which is directed by Steve Taylor and stars Michael W. Smith. If Steve Taylor has proven anything since his first album in 1983, it is that he is not willing to settle for mediocrity. My hopes are high.

I would love to hear your thoughts on my rant.

Fantasy Football 2005 review

This was my (Tim’s) best season of fantasy football. I played in four leagues this year, none of them for money. Just pride, baby!

In the YouthWorks! league, I finished the regular season in 3rd place. In the first round of the playoffs, I beat Jeremy Monteith by less than one point to advance to the championship. Then Jim Rogers destroyed me by almost 100 points. I ended up in 2nd place.

In the experimental league with my college buddies and some former co-workers, I finished the regular season in 1st place. In the first round of the playoffs I got knocked off by the 4th place guy, who won the whole thing. I ended up in 3rd place.

My longest running league is a 2 player keeper league with the same guys from the experimental league. I usually finish dead last in this one, so I was excited to finish the regular season in 2nd place. I lost 2 straight in the playoffs and finished in 4th place. This was the league I cared the most about, so I was a little disappointed. At least I am not the #1 pick any more.

My last league was with Matty D and a bunch of people I don’t know. I destroyed the league in the regular season and rolled into the playoffs feeling pretty good in first place. Then I got beat by a girl and finished 3rd. Pride comes before a fall.

I also want to take an opportunity to point out that the much loved Denver Broncos have a first round bye, a home game, and a tie for the 2nd best record in the NFL. All you Broncos haters (yes, Zach Thompson, I am looking at you) can live in bitter jealousy.