Yes, I'm still here!

I'm back from my adventures in Middle-Earth.  I enjoyed my visit with Bilbo and Frodo, but now it's time to get back to work.  Gandalf says Hi, by the way.  Seriously though - the lack of blog entries is entirely due to everyone else and is not my fault.  Talking about Middle-Earth, though, has reminded me that years ago when I'd just "launched" my Billy Bob character, I created a Powerpoint presentation for one of our staff retreats called "Billy Bob of the Rings".  It was just after the first Lord of the Rings movie had come out and I felt inspired -- so I put my graphic designer hat on and re-created all of the main characters in the movie in the form of Billy Bob.  Kind of hard to explain, so I'll just show you.  The first picture is, of course, Billy Bob.

The rest is self-explanatory.

The original - never to be imitated

 Wow, the wonders of Photoshop!  When I showed this power point the first time, there were literally people in the audience who fell off their chairs they were laughing so hard. I've never had quite the same reaction since; I wonder why?

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We've thoroughly been enjoying a long, relaxed visit from Daphne's parents Felix and Valerie.  They arrived on December 6th, and they're scheduled to leave on February 3rd.  We'll be very sad to send them head back to Jolly Ol' England early next month.  Because so much of our lives take place at our church building, they've come right along with us and they'll sit at the diner literally for hours, chatting with anyone who comes along.  We're planning to take them up to Estes Park on Monday to show them some more of this beautiful state, and to visit our dear friend Sharon McElwain.  They've handled the altitude amazingly well, and

they've only needed to use some oxygen at night to help them sleep.

The church is growing by leaps and bounds, and that kind of growth brings lots of great excitement and plenty of challenges.  Last Wednesday evening I spoke on the topic of spiritual warfare, and it seemed literally the next day - and the following days - the devil came out with his claws unsheathed.  Family problems, health issues, broken appliances... the good thing is we weren't surprised, and I believe half
of the battle is won simply by our alertness to who is behind the problems.  He prefers to stay hidden and make us believe his lies.  Once his schemes are revealed, he tends to back off and wait for a more "opportune time."

Last night did the second in the "Believe It Or Not" series, this time on character.  It was snowing outside, and even though we live in the mountains and people are used to driving in the snow, only three people showed up for the service.  I confess that I get a little discouraged when so few show up, because I try to put a lot into what I teach.  However, all the sessions are recorded, and you can listen to them online if you go follow these steps:
1. www.journeyfoothills.com
2. Click on the image "Midweek @ Journey" on the right side of the page
3. Click on the link and listen to the message on your computer.

Got to run - we're invited out for dinner.