Letting go...

On June 29th my friend Patti and I drove our son's to Albright College for 2 days of rehearsals before their trip to Europe.

Maybe I should back up and give a little background. In October of 2007 Andrew's band director selected several students to participate in the American Music Abroad Honors band. This was an opportunity of a life time. Not only had he been selected for the band but he would be able to explore a whole other world.

Andrew and his best friend Matt decided to take this opportunity to spend 18 days touring France, Germany, Austria, Belgium and Luxembourg. They would perform 8 concerts including one on July 4th at Omaha Beach - how cool is that!

They saw the Eiffel Tower, the Palace of Versailles, and Dachau. They took a gondola ride to a glacier in Rattenberg, had a dance party in Westendorf, and had a day at Europark in Strasbourg. They took guided tours at each new city and had time to explore on their own.

I am not sure what kind of em0tions my son went through but I certainly went through many. I was excited, nervous, scared and proud.

The thing that took me totally by surprise was how much I was affected by his leaving. I knew it would be hard to send him off, but I wasn't ready for over a week of tears every time someone asked me about him. My heart ached and in some way felt empty. Someone asked me if this was so hard what is going to happen when he goes off to college. I am not sure but maybe I should by stock in Kimberly Clarke.

I started thinking about how God feels when he watches his children leave his arms. Does he cry, does his heart ache and feel empty? Does he run after or wait patiently for us to return? The parable of the lost son best answers that - even though the son left, the father welcomed him with open arms. God's love is patient, and He is waiting for us with open arms.

Christ in Youth - MOVE

My second "event" of the summer was CIY's summer conference MOVE. On June 23rd we loaded 4 fifteen passenger vans with 37 students, 10 adults and enough luggage for 50 people for a 10 hour drive to Milligan College in Tennessee. We got off 10 minutes late but that is a record for us.

About 1 hour into the trip we needed to make an unscheduled stop. One of the students was ill and decided to place the contents of her stomach all over the lead van. Glad it wasn't mine! We decided that the lead van would wait until the student's mother arrived and would then set off to catch up. The way we figured it they would catch up to us sometime during our lunch stop and they did.

The rest of the trip was uneventful and we arrived at Milligan College in time for registration, dinner and unpacking.

The week was an unbelievable experience for the students as well as the adults. Every day started with a main session that was followed by Encounter time - a time to spend alone with God. It is an awesome sight to see all those students spread out on the campus, silently reading, praying and thinking. The worship band incredible, the food - well college food need I say more, the speakers thought provoking and this years mission - Rapha House. Words can not describe the video that was shown - dry eyes were far and few.

The week included intense ultimate Frisbee games, a dodge ball tournament in which our two teams faced each other in the 1/4 finals, a hike to a beautiful waterfall (Laurel Falls), four baptisms - one in the falls and one in the snake creek during a storm - two back home, a student making the decision to go into missionary work, lots and lots of stairs, laughs and tears and a time for the students to bond.

On the way home we got stuck in traffic and I mean stuck. I-81 was closed for 45 minutes due to an awful accident. So being on a youth ministry trip what do we do - park the van and "play" in traffic.

CIY summer conferences are always intense but I wouldn't miss them for anything. The only bad thing is they have to come to an end.

Still

I spent the day doing something I haven't done in - well - let's just say I don't remember the last time. I was still.

Being still doesn't sound like a hard thing to do but I never seem to find time to just be. There is always something to do, something to think about, something someone wants or needs, words I think I need to say. Life always seems to get in my way.

When I let life stand between me and being still I am the one who loses! I can't hear what God is trying to say to me. I put Him on hold and go about living, thinking that I'll get around to listening later or that I already know what God has to say.

Lucky for me God is patient. He knows I will run dry. He waits for me to just be and that's what I did today.

I floated on a raft in my mom's pool for over an hour. Not talking, not thinking, just laying there feeling the warmth of the sun, hearing the birds singing, being rocked by the gentle waves ... listening.

I was reminded that life goes on with out me - that no matter how much stuff I cram into a day the only thing that can refresh me is to be STILL and let God talk to me.

One of my favorite songs says it better than I could. I invite you to check it out - "Still" by Watermark.

1st summer happening - Ben and Katie

When Ben and Katie asked me to host a party to help them celebrate their wedding I was thrilled, honored and humbled. See Ben is like a son so I guess that makes Katie a daughter-in-law. Ben and Katie were married in Hilton Head, South Carolina. Many of us were unable to attend and they wanted share the joy of their marriage with friends here in PA. I couldn't provide sand or surf but we did have plenty of sun and heat!

Of course I didn't have to think about saying yes, that was a given, but shortly after saying yes I realized the date they picked was 2 days before CIY. Not to mention the fact that my oldest was off to Europe as soon as we got back from CIY. Yikes - can you say STRESS! All the food, planning, cleaning, decorating, evites, did I mention food and cleaning?

It all came together. Everyone brought their favorite side dish and I am currently working on a cookbook for the newlyweds! I promise Ben and Katie I will finish sometime before your 1st anniversary.

There were intense volley ball games, good eats, great conversations and plenty of fun. I think the day was a success.

I love you guys!

Busy summer!

Where does time go? I can't believe I haven't blogged for 2 months. Shame on me. Time to change that!

What a summer so far! It all started with a party to help to two awesome friends celebrate their marriage. Sun, sand, fun, food - ok not sand but lots of sun, food and fun.

Two days later I set off with 37 high school students and 9 other adults for a week at Milligan College for MOVE - Christ in Youth's summer conference. It was an amazing trip. Five days full of worship, discipleship, quiet time for prayer and fun.

Less than 24 hours after we arrived home I finished packing for Andrew's American Music Abroad trip to Europe and took him to Albright College for rehearsals before leaving. They left on July 2nd and arrive home this Friday! I miss him!

While Andrew was having fun in Europe I was helping to prepare for Christ's Church of the Valley's annual middle school conference - STRETCH. This year's theme was Full Circle. We had 600 plus students over the three day conference. When I have the DVD I will post it.

That brings me to today. A day off to try and catch up before I begin helping with Kids' Camp Big Top. I know it's going to be BIG!

Look for future posts about each event - complete with pictures and great stories.