Craig Groeschel interviews Satan

Walking Tacos

Have you heard of this?

I love Walking Tacos! Basically, you just take some scissors and cut open the side of a bag of Doritos, then you stick in some chicken, lettuce, tomatoes, cheese and sour cream and you've got yourself a Walking Taco!
SO AWESOME! SO DELICIOUS!

The Big Ticket Festival

Last weekend a couple of my friends from vox got to go up to Gaylord, MI with me for The Big Ticket Festival. It was awesome! Katie and Tony were a blast to travel with. Thanks for hanging out guys! So fun!
We had some trouble on the drive up, including not being able to turn off the seat heater and needing to stop in Cadillac because the company car seemed to be in need of an oil change. Once we got there, it was smooth sailing!

The Stand Strength Team was there, so after they finished ripping some phone books in half and blowing up some watter bottles like balloons I got called out of the crowd - of course.

First they put these 4 little kids up on this lift and the power team guy squat thrusted them while this other Power Team guy talked about how little kids need Jesus and that God loves little kids. The crowd went nuts as Bruiser lifted the kids up and down with his legs. Then they had 4 teenagers get up in the lift and talked about how Teenagers need to lean on God and trust in God. It was at this moment that I noticed that only 3 other people were left in line with me.

Then the power team guy reached his hand out to me to help me into the lift and was talking about how even "Huge Old Adults" need the strength of Jesus in their lives. Yep, I am officially a "huge, old, adult". Of course, the crowd could not believe that some guy could possibly squat thrust all of us "huge, old, adults" so they went nuts as we were lifted up and down.

Then, to top it off, they had JCKHMMR get in the lift with us...which added 295 pounds...and the guy still squat thrusted us! I was amazed, as you can see by my face.
Have you heard of the band Waverly? Well, I'm not really the head-banger type, but you should have seen me by the 4th song I was going nuts just like the rest of the crowd. Awesome! They are one of my new favorite bands.

I also got up-close to the main stage for Leeland, Newsboys and David Crowder. My friends Sean and Kelli were there too - so I got to hang out with them a little bit, which was awesome. Sean ran the spotlight for Newsboys and TobyMac like a pro. Nice work Sean!

Over 10,000 people were at TBTF this year. YOU SHOULD GO TO THIS FESTIVAL NEXT YEAR!! It's family-friendly! The festival is not just for youth groups or teenagers, but for families to go all together. I think it's a neat niche. They even had a petting zoo with some tiny white bunnies!

Shirtless Guy

Its summertime again, the weather is warm and people are out and about
...all night long
...yelling the F word.

It's true. Last summer I actually called the cops because there were some guys outside of our house at 3am having some huge loud heated argument. When the GRPD answered the phone I said, "Hi, I live downtown, its 3am and some guys outside are yelling the F word"

Apparently this is not a good enough reason for the police to intervene.

So last night it happened again...but I didn't call the cops. There is this old guy (we'll call him "shirtless guy") who recently moved in on our street. A couple of nights ago Shirtless Guy was out on his porch, shirtless (of course) drinking and stumbling around by himself while singing along to country songs as loud as he could.

When I got home from work last night he was out there again, talking loudly and drunkly to no one specific about how when he got out of prison his step kids got taken away and put into foster care because his girlfriends parents were too old? I don't really know what it meant, but he was very passionate and animated in his story telling.

Last night I got woken up by the sound of Shirtless Guy yelling and screaming and banging stuff around. He seemed really upset about something, and he was yelling the F-word a lot! I was a little worried that he might hurt himself or someone else - so I just laid there praying for him while I listened to him rant.

Do the cops want to know that this guy is crazy or disturbing the peace or publicly intoxicated or do they only care if I call once it's too late and he has already hurt himself or someone else?

I feel bad for this guy. I think he has made a lot of bad decisions and now he is stuck. He has no one. It's really sad. What would you have done?

Facebook Casualty

As a quick follow-up to that last post about being on the planning committee for my Hope College 5 year class reunion I'd like you to know that I completely agree with the following post, even though I was the creator of the Hope College 'o3 Facebook Group and love that so many people have joined.

High School Reunion: Facebook Casualty

by David Fallarme

For many, it’s a beautiful fantasy.

For the lovelorn, ugly-duckling B-listers in high school who’ve changed their fortunes, the high school reunion is a spectacle of ego, triumph and redemption.

Those stories make fantastic TV! Jenny Jones knew it with her Geek-to-Chic shows…Artie Zif and Marge Simpson…Romy and Michelle, you get the point.

Unfortunately, Facebook is quickly destroying this ritual. We live in times of hyperconnectedness, where you can keep tabs on family, friends, long lost friends, family friends of long lost friends, and so on.

There are no more surprises. When you add your entire class year to Facebook, you rob yourself of the beauty of vindication. People can see the incremental changes in you, your model wife, your chiseled six pack. Thanks to Facebook, the element of surprise is quickly vanishing.

The high school reunions of the future — if they will exist — will be supremely boring. You’ll know exactly what everyone’s been up to, you’ll know the places they’ve been, how many kids they have. You can’t ask “what have you been up to all these years” …because you will know the answer.

So true
...So true

I guess the best thing to do is join 122 of your friends in the Hope College class of 2003 group on Facebook!

pet peeve

Dear Hope College,
Hi. My name is Amber and I am helping to plan the 5 year reunion for the class of 2003. I'm on the committee. I wish you would have spelled my name right on the letter FROM THE REUNION COMMITTEE to all of my former classmates. I'd be happy to proof-read your documents next time.
Thanks!
Amber BEESON Cox

Daley Hake is coming soon!

Dear Everyone I know in Grand Rapids, Granger, South Bend, Indianapolis, Nashville, Atlanta and Dallas!

I wanted you to know that one of my all-time favorite photographers DALEY HAKE is coming to your town really soon and he is booking photo shoots for a great price! Only $300 (usually they start at $500) and he is letting you download the images you want for free - which is insane.

Check out his PROMO HERE

Check out this awesome shot of my friend Los and his family!
So now that you're really amazed and interested, here are the dates from Daley:

• I fly into Grand Rapids on July 21st
• Arrive in South Bend/Granger Indiana by the morning of the 23rd. Idealy, we can do a full day of shooting in the South Bend/Granger area and get in everyone who has expressed interest.
  
• We would like to make it to Indianapolis by the night of the 23rd.Shoot all day on the 24th with the goal being…
• Arrive in Nashville the night of the 24th.
• Head down to Atlanta sometime around the 27th - 31st
• Next would be Dallas (around the 2nd) and Phoenix (4th) - ish

As you can see…this is not a rest and relaxation trip. We are trying to move someone across the country with gas at $5 a gallon, which brings me to my next point: I’m offering photo shoots for significantly cheaper than usual: $300 (i usually start at $500) for family photos/engagement shoots/simple band shoots ect. This basically covers the cost of the shoot + having your edits uploaded to an online gallery where prints can easily be ordered and delivered to your door. From this gallery you will also have the option to download the digital copies of the photos for free (something photographers never do - and I will no longer do after this trip).
That said, despite the tight schedule, if you would like to take advantage of such an offer, please feel free to email Julie at: Booking(at)Daleyhake(dot)com
We would love to get everything confirmed as soon as possible.

peace
-daley

So there you go! Check out DaleyHake.com to see his work!
HERE is Kem
HERE is Los and his fam
HERE is someone I don't know
HERE is some other cool family

The Next Time You Fill up Your Tank

...Think about how many miles per gallon you get out of your coffee.

Your 87 Octane Gas costs about $4.00 a gallon, that “tall” Starbucks coffee in your hand costs about $18.00 per gallon. Your mocha?… Closer to $30 a gallon.

Think About It

HT: YoungandFrugal

Get Guest Blogers Outta My Face.

Want to know something interesting about me? I don't ever read "guest blogs"

If I subscribe to your blog, it's because I want to hear what YOU have to say! If the first thing I see on a post is featuring "so and so guest blogger" I click out immediately.

So there you go.

I would rather your blog be silent for a week than have a daily post from guest bloggers while you're away.

Olympic-size faceplant

Jib Jab Square Dance

Try JibJab Sendables!

Stop Talking. Start Doing

Watch the trailer for INNOVATE

Friends at Cox Cottage

Last weekend Ryan and I had the opportunity to take a few of our friends from Hope to Cox Cottage for a couple of days. Fun times were had by all! I think it's so funny that all 6 of us met each other and our spouses at Hope. Thanks Hope College!

Luke, Lindsey, Joel and Faye - thanks for coming to the cottage! You guys are awesome!

Fun Times at Cox Cottage

Food at Cox Cottage

First Light and Fishing at Cox Cottage

On Blogging

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Katie

My beautiful friend Katie came to visit tonight. I took this picture of her after dinner and it turned out quite nice, don't you think?

Katie and I have been friends since the first time we met - in Mrs. Wetzel's Kindergarten class. I stamped her library card...she dumped the sandbox on me. We went through elementary school, middle school, high school, college (she was at Calvin while I was at Hope), and our friendship has grown stronger every year since we were 5.

She is my oldest friend - the friend I've had for more years than any other friend. Katie and I grew up going to youth group together, serving on mission trips together, being counselors at Camp Adventure together, she even stood beside me at my wedding!

I love you Katie and I cherish our friendship. Thank you for being my friend all these years!

"Two are better than one, because they have a good return for their work: If one falls down, his friend can help him up! But pity the man who falls and has no one to help him up!" - Ecclesiastes 4:9-10

Camp Adventure

My mom and dad are hanging out with a few hundred middle school students at Camp Adventure this week. DC Curry had something to say about the fact that my dad is at camp again this year. There is something really special about following a leader who leads by example instead of just telling you how to do stuff. I think DC said it well:

I love that I can sit out here, at camp, with our Senior Pastor, and learn from him. He doesn’t do mini-conference sessions, or sit me down in front of a white board, or say "DC if you do these 10 things, camp will rock!" NO, it's by watching him that I learn all the lessons of ministry that will be helpful for me as a young leader, leading a ministry underneath his umbrella.

I LOVE HAVING PAPA B. OUT HERE AT CAMP WITH US!

(If you can't tell, I'm extremely grateful to have a senior pastor who cares about our students as much as I do!)

Camp Adventure is really special to my family (I wrote about that HERE) and to thousands of Granger's students who have been campers, and counselors at Camp Adventure. Pray for the team of counselors this week as they lead by example 24/7 saying "Follow me 'cuz I'm following Jesus" to a bunch of potential world-changers.

I'll Be There! Wahoo!!

One Prayer

Over 1,400 churches from all over the world are joining together for 4 weeks for One Prayer. Last weekend I had the chance to go down to Granger for the kick-off of One Prayer. Craig Groeschel from Lifechurch.tv preached an incredible message "Make Us One" and challenged all of us to fast, pray, and serve this week. I'm excited to be involved in this huge movement!
By the end of June 2008, four weeks of varied sermons on one prayer will have unified half a million Christians, around the globe, in thought and action. And now for the action: week three, each participating church takes a special offering. The combined money goes to four international organizations that work locally to build 500 new churches where building churches is particularly tough: Sudan, India, China, and Cambodia.

You can watch Craig's message HERE for the next few days.

This is the lineup for the next few weeks

• June 14/15 - Mark Beeson, Granger, Make Us Courageous
• June 21/22 - Wayne Cordeiro, New Hope Christian Fellowship, Make Us Wise
• June 28/29 - Dino Rizzo, Healing Place Church, Make Us Generous

You can read more about One Prayer from these guys:

Craig Groeschel
Rob Wegner
Jeff Bell
DC Curry
Tim Stevens

Daley Hake

Daley Hake has been taking pictures in Granger! How did I miss this!?!?!

Neighbors

...having a hair cutting party
...on the front porch

Yes. That is a squirrel sitting on Ryan's chest...

Hope College Pictures

One of the favorite things of our life is that we happen to live in a place where a lot of our friends from Hope College are close by. It makes it easy to get together for a BBQ every now and again...Joel and Sarah live right next door, Luke and Linds are just a few hour drive and sometime Bryant and Becky even make it from Colorado!

You know those times when you really wish you had a camera handy? Those "life moments" that will slip by and may be forgotten? Well, while Ryan was in college he did a great job capturing pictures of his friends and their shenanigans. If Ryan hadn't taken those pics, this moment of everyone enjoying those memories 5-8 years later would have never happened. They might have forgotten that time they tied Bryant to that tree in the pine grove.

A digi cam is a great investment - but only if you take it with you!!

GCC and the Wall Street Journal

Granger Community Church was mentioned in an article about Financial Peace in the Wall Street Journal! It's so great to see people looking to their local churches to get support and find out what God says about money.

Do you hear that local churches? People are looking to YOU to show them the way! I believe with all my heart that the local churches in this country need to look outside of their walls to identify the felt-needs of their communities. What are the issues that are causing strive and division in marriages, families, churches, communities? The Churches should boldly tackle the tough issues. Churches should offer support and help to the hurting, Things like Money, Sex, Addiction, Divorce, Fear - what is your church doing to help people get back on track? Do people have to get back on track BEFORE they can come to your church?

Here is an excerpt from the Wall Street Journal:

On a recent Tuesday evening in Granger, Ind., the nondenominational Granger Community Church drew 375 people for "Financial Peace University." In its second year at Granger, Financial Peace is a sort of weekly group confessional for debtors who follow the live-within-your-means teachings of Dave Ramsey, a nationally syndicated radio host.

Fishbowls and Scissors

The church keeps fishbowls and scissors up near the stage for anyone inspired to cut up the credit cards on the spot. One who took advantage was Paula Frederick, a cheerful 42-year-old order manager at a phone company, who says her husband ran up to try to stop her from chopping up her Best Buy card. "I about took his finger off," she says, adding that she eventually succeeded in cutting up the card into pieces.

With church volunteers passing the microphones, Richard Rice, a burly, 37-year-old medical technician, rose to testify. Although he makes $70,000 a year, Mr. Rice said he had barely been able to save. Buffeted by a divorce last year that forced him to move and outfit a new house, he built up $20,000 in card balances.

"Back in January, one day, I had $30 to my name," he said. But now Mr. Rice said he has knocked $2,000 off his card debt and put aside $1,000 in an emergency fund. "I finally made a decision I wasn't going to live like this anymore," he proclaimed, drawing applause and a few raised fists from the crowd.

"I'm proud of you, dude," said Dave Dewey, a church volunteer who led the meeting. "A thousand may not be much, but it's $970 more than you had before."

Poor Decision Making

Do you really love Rachel Ray that much?

HAPPY ANNIVERSARY MOM AND DAD!!!

I love how you love each other - and I love how you looked in 1976. HILARIOUS!

What would you have done?

Ryan was on call last night so I was home alone. I drove home from work around 8pm and as I rounded the corner of the alley behind our apartment where my parking spot is I saw these two ragamuffin-looking men sitting on the ground by the trash can drinking beers. They seemed quite intoxicated, so (being the smart girl that I am) I just drove right past my parking spot back out to the road and parked my car on the street. When I got into my house I set the alarm - which is what I always do when Ryan is on call, and I walked into the kitchen where the windows overlook the alley and my parking spot. The guys were still there, but a cop car had also arrived.

I got kinda excited...wondering what was going to happen - so I inconspicuously opened the kitchen window so I could hear the exchange.

Basically, These guys apparently had never heard about the "public intoxication" law, and had quite a few things to say to the cop - who called for back-up. Two more cop cars arrived within a few minutes. There I was, looking out my kitchen window at 5 cops, 3 cop cars, two drunk guys and a trash can.

The guys didn't get in trouble, the cops just told them "don't drink in public" and sent them on their way...which was a bit disappointing for me. They just walked up the alley back over to the park across the street.

______________ But wait! There's more!______________

I can't figure out how to get the air conditioning to work in our apartment. I thought I got it before I went to bed last night, but I woke up at 3am all sweaty, so I got up to open all the windows in the house. When I got to the kitchen window I looked out and there was a different guy than before and he was PEEING ON MY HOUSE!!!

For real.

I considered poking my own eyes out from utter disgust, but it was 3am, so I just laughed and went back to bed...

What would you have done?

Who wants to go for a hike? I do! I do!