Spring Break

Hey, this week I'm on Spring Break so I'll be taking the week off from blogging. Next week I should have some good stuff to add when I return, until then...

Gangstas

Me & my boy "Skippy" in a NYC subway tunnel just before the gang war went down. We were gonna join the Latin Kings but Skippy's Spanish wasn't quite up to par, so we started our own gang called "Hollister" and just hung out in the subway looking like gangstas and singing for subway fare back to the hotel. I was kinda disappointed that my bling didn't show up more in the pic, but that's what you get when you ask a tourist to take your photo. :)

P.S. This photo was actually taken in the Crowne Plaza Hotel, thanks to Skippy for the photoshop expertise!

Return from New York

OK, so I took a few days off from blogging while I was visiting the Big Apple...here's a few random thoughts about the trip.

Top 10 things to know about NYC
10.NYC is wonderful & exciting.

9.Kentuckians have more fun in NYC riding the glass elevators of the Marriott Marquee(up & down, up & down) than going up to the top of the Empire State Building! [and the Empire State Building looks a lot like Wendy's!]

8.Radio City Music Hall rocks, especially when Aretha is in the house doing a sound check.

7. The Broadway show Chicago is really an advertisement for Victoria's Secret, only the secret is out and it's not too pretty! (should've paid more attention to the "sin is in" poster before entering the theater!!!)

6. HBO is a regular channel on the cable TV line-up...sex shows and all!

5. The people in Chinatown are multi-lingual...mostly speak Chinese, Chanel, Tiffany & Co.,Dolce & Gabanna, Gucci.

4. Backroom stores in Chinatown sometimes include tunnels & trap doors!

3. The security officers at the Federal Reserve Building will arrest you for having a nail file in your purse, but you get to touch real gold bars with your pinky if you're sneaky!

2. The "Naked Cowboy" charges $ when you take his picture, maybe that's how he became a millionaire!

1. When you walk too much ...[using my newly discovered NYC lingo]...your "dogs start barking" and sometimes your "cows start mooing", especially if you've been "schlepping" stuff all over the city! But it's never too cool to "kvetch" about it, instead you should just be a trooper and "forget about it".

That's all for now, more details to follow....

NYC Here We Come

Close your eyes.

Imagine the Beverly Hillbillies all loaded up in their broken down truck with Granny sitting in her rocker as they roll into "Beverly - - - Hills that is!".

Flash forward to Wednesday March 19, 2008, 1:30 in the afternoon...50 "Hillbillies" from Berea, KY all loaded up on the "Mayes Bus lines" from Knoxville, TN rolling into "New York - - - City that is!"

Oh my, what a picture! NYC will never be the same!!! Pray for us as we head out on our journey, but most of all pray that we don't lose anyone or do something crazy like join the "Rockettes", get Big Apple tattoos on our backsides or get arrested for spitting loogies (sp?) off the Empire State Building...oh yeah, and pray for the kids too!

Manic Monday

OK, so it was back to work after 5 wonderful days away, not to mention 2 of those days down South with my church family at an awesome conference with some awesome weather.

So - back to reality!

Today I really enjoyed reconnecting with the kids I teach...we had lots to get caught up on (not to mention lots of paperwork, ugh!) and I really do miss them when I'm gone. Overall it was a good day, but in the haste of it all it seemed like my Monday went spinning out of control and before the day was over I was worn out, dejected, did I mention worn out?, hungry, frustrated, excited (NYC tomorrow!) and emotionally drained.

After some stressful and tension filled moments (from dealing with some pretty serious situations and adults) at the end of the day, I forgot what a wonderful day it had started out to be and was left with a bad taste in my mouth. On my way home I started thinking about that old Bangles song "Manic Monday" (oh, woh wish it was Sunday!) and wanted to pull a "Groundhogs Day" back to yesterday.

Don't we all wish it was Sunday - everyday? Think about it: when do we feel closest to God? Sitting at church on Sunday? Listening to our Pastors preach a message of good news and hope? Sheltered from the storms of life by our church family and the comfort of knowing you are in the house of God?

Well -after a little nap (and pizza too!), and a lot of sharing my frustrations of the day with God, I heard Him speak loud and clear...

He said:
1. Everyday is Sunday if you stay connected to Him.
2. God is God no matter what, just turn your troubles over to Him and let it go.
3. Life here is rough, deal with it and go on! Know that your Father is there to help you through,
you can lean on Him for everything! This life is temporary, what really matters it yet to come.

I said;
"OK God, I get it!....it's not about me, it's ALL about you." My puny little problems are nothing in the scheme of things, what really matters are the "God-matters" and I should be more concerned about those than the little things in life that can get in the way.

So, I gave Him all my frustrations of the day and am looking forward to another opportunity to go about His business tomorrow...it'll be my "fun-day" knowing that I don't have to worry 'cause He's got my back!

Unleashed: 3 Challenging Questions

While in the main session of the "Unleash" conference at NewSpring Church in Anderson, SC the keynote speaker, NewSpring's Senior Pastor Perry Noble, challenged us with these three questions:

1. What is it that God wants to do in my church?
2. What are the barriers that stand in the way?
3. What do we as a church want to celebrate?

These questions have resonated within me and I will be thinking and praying over them in the coming weeks. As I wrestle with the answers to these questions, I will post what I hear God saying to me and what I will say back to God. If you have any thoughts, ideas or answers to these questions...feel free to share.