Vacation Church Visiting
Growing up as a PK (pastor’s kid), I had countless opportunities to attend worship services at churches around the country. I’ve been to Catholic masses, Episcopal services, Jewish synagogues, Baptist churches, Lutheran…, Presbyterian…, Assemblies of God…, CMA…, and I could go on and on. In general these were great experiences for me. It permitted me to see things from other perspectives. When we were on vacation, we would often pop in at a church that was local to where we were vacationing.
Well, we just got back from a week of vacation to Pittsburgh to pick up my in-laws motor home (hence the previous post), to Aurora, IL to stop in on my Aunt Elaine and Uncle Max, to Batavia, IL to spend a few hours with my Grandma, to Pike Lake State Forest in Wisconsin to spend several days with my parents, my brothers, my sister-in-law, and my nephew and new niece. Then we returned to Pittsburgh to drop off the RV, to Vienna, VA to attend the wedding of a college friend of Leanne’s, to Darlington, MD to drop Isaac off at Indian Lake Christian Service Camp, and finally home.
During this week, we had the privilege of participating in the worship services at two churches. First, we went to my brothers church in Milwaukee. Milwaukee Mennonite Church is a fairly new church, and it is quite a bit different than the church I now attend. It was special to get a different taste of how others worship our God. Today, we attended Journey’s Crossing church in Gaithersburg, MD. This church is similar to our own church. Through visits like these it’s great to walk away with new ideas for your own church as well as a renewed appreciation for what your church does. We’re certainly looking forward to returning to our home church (Christ’s Church of the Valley) next week.
If you happen to be away on vacation, I would encourage you to look up a local church that looks interesting. Check it out, and bring back a bulletin and your thoughts to your own church.
Until the next post…
Carnegie Museum of Art and Natural History
Part of our holiday time off has included a trip out to Western PA to visit with Leanne’s family. We’ve had a great time together – playing pinochle, playing music, eating great food, etc. One thing that we decided to do was visit the Carnegie Museum of Art and Natural History. This is kind of ironic when you consider that I have been working on the Perelman Building for the Philadelphia Museum of Art for the past 2 1/2 years. At any rate, we had a great time. The art museum had a great exhibit of art work from then to now. I especially enjoyed the abstract modern art portion of the exhibit. I think Leanne enjoyed the impressionist works of art. The natural history museum had a great dinosaur exhibit that Isaac especially enjoyed. If you’re ever in the Pittsburgh area, it’s worth a visit.
Until the next post…
Spanish English Church Service
While on our vacation to Dallas, TX we went to a special Thanksgiving service held at in the building of my parents’ church (Central Christian Church). What made this service unique was that it was held by a Spanish speaking church, Vision Mundial Para La Familia, which meets at my dad’s church. The service was mixed between Spanish and English, and a translator patiently translated back and forth between the two languages. It was truly awesome to worship God, share praises and thanksgivings, partake in communion, and hear thoughts from the pastors in both languages. Experiences like this help us understand how Christ came to seek and save the lost of the world – not just of English speaking United States of America. I am thankful for this experience on our vacation.
Until the next post (and always), la alegría del Señor es nuestra fortaleza!!!
The Trains at Northpark
While Hannah was celebrating her 10th birthday at the new Dallas American Girl store with Leanne and Mom, Dad took Isaac and I to a fun train exhibit (The Trains at Northpark) that was set up to raise money for the Ronald McDonald House in Dallas, TX. We really had a great time seeing all the trains. They had the trains running through famous places including Mt. Rushmore, Washington D.C., New York City, San Francisco, and Dallas. If you’re in the Dallas area this season, check it out.
Afterwards, we enjoyed a true Texas lunch at Sonny Bryans Smokehouse. It probably wasn’t the best for the cholesterol, but it sure was delicious.
Until the next post, nothing beats the smell of BBQ brisket…