The Throne Zone ~ Part 2

Tom Smith, our architect with CDH Partners, returned on Monday and Tuesday to continue to revise and refine our master plan. Gordon Parker and Joe Fay from Rinderknecht Associates sat in on the meetings in order to get a better understanding our project. You can click on the picture above to see a short slide show.

We are starting to wrap up the master planning process but a lot of very important decisions remain. Terry Biglow from CDH Partners also traveled to Cedar Rapids with Tom Smith. Terry spent all day Monday talking to consultants and the City of Robins engineers to try and get a handle on traffic and utility issues.

The Relocation Team met later Monday evening to debrief. We are working on several issues simultaneously that can impact the size, scope and cost of the first phase of our relocation project.

Here are some issues that need specific prayer:

• The master planning process and wisdom regarding how to phase the project
• Attendance and cash flow projections
• Cost estimating regarding the building cost and value engineering decisions
• Site development issues such as sewer, water, natural gas, electricity, and traffic flow

We are right in the middle of the "throne zone," the place where we have to trust God. This is a God-sized project and we need God-sized answers to prayer. We need His wisdom, His provision and His empowerment. This is His project, for His people, for His glory.

A Growing Family

We had a great Membership Weekend on Friday through Sunday with 50 people in attendance. Many of the people are new to our church and seven are in our current Starting Point class. You can click on the picture above to see a slide show of the weekend.

Bob and I just love sharing New Covenant's mission, history, structure, and doctrine with new members. How exciting it is to read through each testimony after the Friday evening session, getting a glimpse into what God is doing in each persons life.

It's an awesome privilege to be involved in what God is doing in peoples lives. It's an awesome privilege to be involved with a community of people who extend grace to one another. Please join me in welcoming these new members to our family!

You Are Only As Old As You Think You Are

New research is coming out that indicates that the human brain can actually generate new brain cells. This is the kind of news I've been waiting for!

Dr. Paul Nussbaum, an Adjunct Associate Professor in Neurological Surgery at the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, says that "new brain research indicates that the brain continues to develop in humans in their 20’s and that we continue to be able to help our brains well into later life. Other studies have shown a relationship between creativity and advanced age,” he said.

For those over 50, Dr. Nussbaum acknowledges that one’s ability to remember names, retrieve information and multi-task diminishes with age and is not necessarily a disease. He encourages learning throughout the lifespan to maintain mental acuity.

Dr. Nussbaum says that a healthy lifestyle characterized by socialization, physical activity, mental activity, spirituality, and nutrition leads to improved brain health. Individuals should reduce their caloric intake to 80% of what they intend to consume at each meal because overeating and obesity do not contribute to brain health.

Dr. Nussbaum discourages television viewing, encourages ambidexterity and challenges the traditional concept of “retirement”, indicating, instead, that older people should continue to be engaged and productive. People who isolate have a higher risk of dementia. He reports that chronic stress has been demonstrated to accelerate aging.

So there you have it. Do you want to stay mentally sharp? Then turn off the TV, take a walk with a friend, enjoy a good conversation, read a book in order to learn something new, pray and eat healthy. You are only as old as you think you are. Now, if I could only remember where I placed my glasses!

A Taste of Community

The Sojourners had dinner together this evening at the Osaka Japanese Steak House. We had 21 people in our party so we were able to get a private room. It was an awesome evening. The food was excellent, prepared right at our table. And Chef Yogi kept us entertained with a variety of tricks and routines. You can click on the picture above to see a slide show of our evening.

Cindy Howard and Adele Booysen joined us for dinner. It was fun to be able to share this experience together with them. It was quite an international evening. Around the table we had Adele, a missionary living in Africa; Cindy, a missionary living in Czech Republic; Gary and Patsy Hoobler who are making plans to travel to China for an adoption; and Richard Kramer, a native Canadian.

But tonight we all found ourselves sitting around a table at a Japanese restaurant, enjoying a good meal and one anothers company. Tonight we experienced a taste of community.

Welcome Lunch

We had a great Welcome Lunch yesterday with around 100 in attendance. We had over 40 guests in attendance including a family with triplets! We never quite know how many to plan for but God always seems to work out the right mix of guest, table hosts and food! On Sunday we had guests and hosts at all ten tables.

A special "thank you" to Ken Owens, Heidi Fisher and the Kitchen Team who prepared and served us a great meal including home made chicken noodle soup. We couldn't do our Welcome Lunches without you. It's truly a team effort. You can click on the picture above to see a slide show of the lunch.

Our next Welcome Lunch is scheduled for March. You can email Brenda at Brenda.Gadd@newcovenantbible.org if you would like to attend. We'll keep a spot open for you. There's always space for one more person!

Entering the Throne Zone

We spent the entire day with our architect, Tom Smith. We met with a variety of staff and ministry leaders as we continued working on the master planning process. Tom Amosson and Gordon Parker from Rinderknecht Associates joined us for the entire day in order to get up to speed with our project. You can click on the picture above to see a slide show regarding some of our planning sessions.

This evening we had another session with our Relocation Team, reviewing the progress that has been made to date and refining our time line. During our evening session we presented Tom Smith with one of our "Team Hats." I was reminded again today regarding what a great team God has assembled for this project.

We have now reached what our architect calls the 'groan zone." The "groan zone" is where your wants exceed what you can afford to build and you have to make the hard decisions regarding what to defer to a later phase. We have decided to call this the "throne zone" phase. That is, we are asking God to give our builder, architect and Relocation Team wisdom regarding what He wants us to build and what we can afford. This is not just about bricks and mortar, it's a spiritual endeavor. And it requires supernatural wisdom.

Please pray for this process. For Tom Smith, our architect as he puts his pencil to the paper in an effort to reduce the square footage of the facility. For Gordon Parker as he begins to do cost estimating and value engineering in several months. For our staff and ministry leaders as they do program planning and meet with the architect to do needs assessment. And for our Relocation Team as they set priorities and make important decisions regarding the recommended size and scope of this project.

We have entered an important phase of our relocation project. During the next several months vision and reality will brought together into a phased master plan that will be presented to our entire church family. We are now entering the throne zone.

Stick Together

We had a great Leadership Community this morning with 120 in attendance. We used the Red Green theme this month complete with the Glory Lodge, the Servant Leaders Prayer, and duct tape give away! You can click on the picture above to see a slide show of the meeting.

We had Lighting Round presentations from Jeremy Bushlack (Men's Retreat), Glenn Schlinger (HD Youth Center), Jay Schlichting (Perspectives), Randy McCright (Men's Fraternity) and Steve Jenkins (Halftime Summit). Pastor Bob showed the Handy Man video segment from the last episode where Red Green tries to build a perpetual motion machine. He used this clip to illustrate that all of our plans and efforts are in vain if we aren't connected to our power source.

I have to admit that I just love gathering together with other leaders. How exciting to think what God can do with a group of people who are seeking to accomplishes His purposes. To think and dream what God can do with simple people who are surrendered to His will. Leaders who get to serve. Leaders who stick together!

Time To Celebrate

We had a wonderful Wedding Reception this afternoon for Ryan and Natalie. We had a great turnout in spite of the snowy weather. It was so good seeing and spending time with friends. We need more excuses to celebrate like this! You can see a slide show of our time by clicking on the picture above.

We would like to give a special "thank you" to Frank and Barb Stephen, owners of Dostal Catering, who provided the great spread of food! Frank and Barb met Ryan when they were both serving on the Logos II together.

It was a great afternoon. It was a great Wedding Reception. It was a great time to celebrate!

A Reason To Celebrate

We are pleased to announce that our Relocation Team and Elder Board have both voted unanimously to utilize Rinderknecht Associates as our general contractor. Several representatives from our Relocation Team delivered the good news to Tom Amosson and his team this past Wednesday morning.

It’s always fun to be bearers of “good news.” And that’s our prayer, that God would use our new property and facility to help us share the Good News of the Gospel with more people. We know that seeing lost people found puts a smile on God’s face. Now that’s a reason to celebrate!

Bring the fattened calf and kill it. Let’s have a feast and celebrate. For this son of mine was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found. Luke 15:23-24

How, then, can they call on the one they have not believe in? And how can they believe in the one of whom they have not heard? And how can they hear without someone preaching to them? And how can they preach unless they are sent? As it is written, “How beautiful are the feet of those who bring good news!” Romans 10:14-15

An Awesome Team

Josh and I went down to the Eastern Iowa Airport this afternoon to help send off the Poland Team. There was a good turn out with over 40 friends and family present. The team consists of Kitty Cahill, Anna Rustebakke, Lindsey Paulson, Mark and Lexi Forstrom, Austin Spooner, Cailey Kettelkamp, Amber Allan and Garrett Purdy.

Their flight was delay four hours but the airline was able to get them on another flight out of Cedar Rapids that actually left a few minutes earlier than scheduled. You can email Gina Kaufman at Gina.Kaufman@newcovenantbible.org if you would like to receive email updates from the team. You can also see pictures from the trip by going to their flickr account.

Pray that God would use our team to demonstrate and communicate the love of Christ to those attend the winter English Camp. And pray that each person on the team would grow in their dependency and trust in Christ.

We are sending an awesome team. We serve an awesome God. We are trusting God for awesome things!

Step Up To The Plate

You knew that is was bound to happen, that it was only a matter of time. Sports talk radio and television was a buzz today regarding the news that the baseball writers slammed the Hall of Fame door into the face of Mark McGwire. He fell a whopping 281 votes shy of enshrinement! And the reason for the snub? It's the fault of the Baseball Writers Association of America. It's a version of "slay the messenger."

The most incredible thing I heard today is that McGwire's problems are due to "moralistic sports writers and journalists." Excuse me, did I hear that right? Moralistic sports writers and journalists? You have to be kidding me! The words moralistic and sports writers don't even belong in the same sentence.

You know, your friendly, neighborhood moralistic sports journalists. The ones who help little old ladies across the street; who call their mothers every Sunday evening; who attend mass, synagogue or their local church twice a week; who volunteer at the soup kitchen on the weekends.

I know, you thought you saw them hanging out at the local bar, cigar in hand, cussing up a storm while complaining about the officiating. But that wasn't really them. They were all attending a Peace Rally and Global Warming Conference at the local college campus!

So blame the moralistic sports writers. They're the ones who encouraged Mark to take performance-enhancing drugs. The moralistic sports writers are the ones who told Mark to "not talk about the past" when questioned about steroid use at the congressional hearing in 2005. This entire "misunderstanding" could have all been cleared up by Mark while under oath if he were to have said, "I never took a performance-enhancing drug." Instead he said nothing, refusing to "talk about the past."

So blame the sports writers if you must. But please don't suggest that Mark McGwire is only being kept out of the Hall of Fame for moralistic reasons. 409 hard-core journalists don't get "religion" overnight and vote in lock step with one another. People are much too intelligent for that.

During his playing days, Mark McGwire loved to come up to bat in the bottom of the 9th with the game on the line. He was a feared, clutch hitter. Someone needs to tell Mark that it's now time to be a man and to take personal responsibility. It's time to stop blaming others for personal indiscretion and poor judgement. Mark, it's time to step up to the plate.

Claim To Fame

The ballots are in and the votes have been tallied. Congratulations Tony Gywnn and Cal Ripken, you have just been elected into the Baseball Hall of Fame! Ripken was picked by 537 voters and appeared on 98.53 percent of ballots to finish with the third-highest percentage behind Tom Seaver (98.84) and Nolan Ryan (98.79). Gwynn received 532 votes for 97.61 percent, the seventh-highest ever, also trailing Ty Cobb, George Brett and Hank Aaron.

There may never be two greater players inducted in the same year as Gywnn and Ripken. They are all star players in every regard.

Ripken spent 21 seasons with Baltimore, hitting .276. A 19-time All-Star, he won the AL Rookie of the Year award in 1982, the AL MVP award in 1983 and 1991 and was a two-time Gold Glove shortstop. Ripken played in a major league-record 2,632 consecutive games to break Lou Gehrig's ironman mark of 2,130 and set a new standard for shortstops with 345 home runs (431 for his career) and 3,184 hits.

Gwynn broke into the majors in 1982 and won eight batting titles to tie Honus Wagner's NL record. He made 15 All-Star teams and won five Gold Gloves as an outfielder. Gwynn, who compiled 3,141 hits and a .338 batting average during his 20-year career with the San Diego Padres.

The statistic that my be the most amazing is that in this day and age of free agency and "hired guns," Gwynn and Ripken each spent their entire major-league careers with one team. They will be inducted during ceremonies held July 29 at the Hall in Cooperstown, N.Y.

Gywnn's and Ripken's baseball achievements are only overshadowed by the strength of their character. They are both outstanding gentlemen, role models, team mates and citizens. The only surprise in the voting was that they were not unanimous picks.

The same cannot be said today of Mark McGwire. He is the first player to seek election from the so-called "steroid era." I wrote about him earlier in a blog titled Character Counts. You won't hear many journalists or sports writers talk about it, but the ballot says a player's record of achievement, contribution to the team, the game, their character, longevity and sportsmanship should be considered. The baseball writers considered the character question and McGwire received only 23.5% of the vote, far shy of the 75% needed for election.

But this cannot in anyway tarnish the incredible careers and achievements of Tony Gwynn and Cal Ripken. Today, they can both hold their heads high, unashamed of their past accomplishments. Today, Tony Gwynn and Cal Ripkin received the highest award bestowed upon any baseball player. Their names and their achievements will forever be memorialized and remembered at Cooperstown for as long as the game is played. Tony and Cal played the game the way it's meant to be played. And they played it with class and dignity. This is their true claim to fame.

Don't Mess With Pluto

Pluto is fighting back. You will recall that on August 24, 2006 the International Astronomical Union met in Prague and decided that Pluto no longer met the criteria for a planet. I wrote a blog titled, Who Speaks For Pluto, and apparently someone has stepped up to show Pluto some love.

The American Dialect Society has chosen the word "plutoed" as the 2006 word of the year. The society, at its annual meeting Friday decided to define "to pluto" as "to demote or devalue someone or something, as happened to the former planet Pluto when the General Assembly of the International Astronomical Union decided Pluto no longer met its definition of a planet."

My favorite quote from the Press Release announcing the Word of the Year winner:
“It was good that the society focused on a genuine scientific concern,” Professor Glowka said. “Though I believe the nomination came in from outer space.”

You gotta love Pluto. Pluto may be small, but it's a true winner. Pluto has been kicked around, demoted, and devalued, only to rise from the ash heap to international prominence.

The moral of the story? Don't mess with Pluto!

You Are Invited!

Everyone in my "reader blogosphere" is invited to a special Wedding Reception on Saturday, January 13 to meet Mr. and Mrs. Ryan Pagel. Ryan was married to Natalie Davis in Stillwater, Oklahoma on November 18.

You're invited to stop by New Covenant Bible Church anytime between 1:00 and 4:00 PM to meet the newlyweds! Food and beverage will be provided. We hope to see you there!

Hot

Several of us went over to Buffalo Wild Wings tonight to watch Mark Forstrom take the BWW Challenge to eat 12 wings with their famous Blazin hot sauce in six minutes. You need to understand that Mark loves hot sauce, jalapeno peppers and anything spicy. But we all wanted to see him tackle the Blazin sauce which is made with cayenne red pepper, habanero chiles and jalapeno peppers!

Mark didn't let us down. He woofed down all 12 wings in 5:29! Quite an accomplishment. You can click on the picture above to see a slide show of the experience.

One thing I love about Mark is that he is always trying something new. Mark lives life with gusto! I'm reminded of Revelation 3:15-16:

I know your deeds, that you are neither cold nor hot. I wish you were either one or the other! So, because you are lukewarm-neither hot nor cold-I am about to spit you out of my mouth.

Mark reminds me that life is meant to be lived one day at a time. He is a person who refuses to live a "lukewarm" life. And tonight, in more ways than one, Mark was hot!