Desperation...Colorado....

Desperation......what a worth while trip and conference. So much happened in everyone. God moved in so many ways and everyone has a different testimony. We went White Water rafting on the Arkansas river, played football, kickball, frisbee and hiked into the hills and what a glorious view it was! God's handywork for all to see. We stayed up until the wee hours of the morning talking, laughing, sharing, playing cards and games, checking email and just bonding. We downloaded pics every night to my laptop and started fresh each day, which is why we ended up with over 400 pics and video's. Matt man made a great video from some of the shots and clips. We attended breakout sessions for Youth Leadership, praised and worshipped the Lord, had our picture made with an archangel, jumped on beds, struck a pose in the wee hours of the morning. I can honestly say this 8 days brought everyone that went closer and created new friendships and strengthened old ones. We had a time of prayer with everyone in a circle the last night after the conference and it was an amazing time to watch God use these kids in praying for one another and praying for their Pastor. God started a work there that is just the beginning, you are going to see wonderous, amazing, fantabulous things out of this Youth group like never before. It was an awesome group to be with for 8 days, no fights, lots of sharing and laughs. I would go to the ends of the earth with these guys.........in a heartbeat. Love you guys so much!

We're Back!!!! Where do I start?????

Where do I even start! Man.......this was such an amazing trip to Colorado. I think it met and exceeded everyones expectations....I know it did mine. I have so much to blog about that you will see several post over the next few days. We came back with over 400 pics between Pomai and myself! United is in the first pic here and then the second is a pic of the audience, there were 6000 people there! All rockin' and worshipping the Lord with United, Watermark and the Desperation Band, and there was such a Freedom! Total, no holds barred, surrendered worship to our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ! We jumped and shouted and cried and poured our lives out in total surrender. I wish everyone of you could have been there. Our Youth, as well as the entire Youth Staff lives were changed and so many testimonies are coming out of this conference. God took us to the next level and challenged us to move forward and do more, be more, to fulfil our Destiny! Who You Are was the theme. I want to blog about John Bevere next and what a huge impact his message had on me. Oh yea.........the guys at the United table gave me a T Shirt! Oh yea! Love it! More to come...................................

Words to Live by........Have the Courage............

Have the courage to appear foolish, because it is sad for those who never attempt anything. Have the courage to make mistakes, for they can teach you like nothing else can.
Have the courage to take action. For even though your actions carry the possibility of failure, if you never act then you are certain to fail.
Have the courage to live each day fully, with enthusiasm and a generous spirit. Though there are many problems in this world, there are a whole lot more positive possibilities.
Have the courage to do what is right instead of what is easiest or most convenient. It will earn you the respect of others and, even more importantly, the respect of yourself.
Have the courage to see and accept things for what they are. That will put you in position to make a real difference.
Have the courage to love, to speak your mind, to follow your curiosity and your passions. Have the courage to give of yourself, for the goodness you give will come back to you over and over again.

Author: Ralph Marston

Friends, Family, Moving

Hi everyone! It has been a very busy week. I was blessed to be able to help some friends from church pack to move last week, and then went to my parents in East TN over the weekend to help them move and unpack, and then came back to help my friends unpack from their recent move. Many of you called me to check on me over the weekend since I was not at church and I love an appreciate all of you so much for that! My church family is my family and I don't know what I would do without you all. You are the best!

We will be heading to Colorado in a few days with our Youth and there will be lots of pictures and stories to tell when we get back. It is going to be an amazing time! Be blessed my friends...........be blessed!

Pirates, Pirates, everywhere Pirates!

We went to see "Pirates of the Caribbean" and it was great! Johnny Depp was very funny. Here is one scene from the movie which is actually towards the end, and then..........wait a minute.............where did those other guys come from?! I almost didn't recognize them with those eye patches! Why it's Pirates III.............The Next Generation!!!!!!!!!!

Sumner Life Cookout.............Great time!

It was hot..........but it was fun! Our church went out to the Montgomery's farm to grill hamburgers and hot dogs with lots of great side dishes! We played volleyball (with the megaball), and some threw the frisbee, the guys played football and there were fireworks to top it all off when it got dark! Everyone had a great time! You should have been there!

"We are the Champions................"

Well, the softball season officially ended for our guys on Tuesday night and they are all truly CHAMPIONS. They played the best game ever and the fans were out in great number to support them! An award was given to Sumner Life Loyal Fans for their awesome support for our team this season! It was an amazing night. We screamed, we danced...........Thanks for an awesome season guys! We are so proud of you! Now what in the world are we going to do on Tuesday nights...........!?

Volleyball, Softball.....Sports, Sports, Sports....

Hey everyone, tonight is our last softball game! Come out and see our team finish their Softball Season with a bang! Trust me, we will all have a blast no matter what! Volleyball in the sand.........great exercise for sure! It has been so much fun! My friend Ke'o made a magnificent cross court dive this past Sunday...everyone was very impressed! Aloha! :-)

The Palace Girls...............

Once again we had an awesome Girls night! Cindy hosted this one and the pool in the backyard was great fun! Coco the wonder dog got right in the middle of it all and there was a huge sugar buzz from all of the candy! Everyone passed out on the floor during the movie, didn't even make it half way through! You girls are great!

"A Battle to Fight: The Enemy"

I just wanted to share with you some things that I have been learning from reading "Wild at Heart", just like I shared when I was reading "Captivating". I have been in the refiners fire, as I 'm sure you all have too, and now I know more about the enemies attacks (see the quote at the bottom by William Gurnall-when silver is refined in the refiners fire, it is not ready, or perfected until the refiner can see His (God's) image in the silver (the silver being me and you). Thus when the enemy see's His (God's) image in you, the attacks are on). I quoted directly from the book from this point forward and it is amazing, eye opening knowledge and confirmation about how the enemy works.

In Chapter 8 there is a section called "The Devil". Since we all have recently studied on "Know Your Enemy", it was a great addition to this teaching John is talking about an incident that happened between him and Stasi: "My wife and I were driving home the other day from an afternoon out and running a bit late to get to our son's last soccer game of the season. I was in the driver's seat and we were enjoying a lingering conversation about some dreams we have for the future. After several minutes we realized that we were caught in a traffic jam that was going nowhere. Precious moments slipped by as tension mounted in the car. In an effort to be helpful, Stasi suggessted an alternate route." "If you take a right here and go up to First Street, we can cut over and take about five minutes off the drive." "I was ready to divorce her. I'm serious. In about 20 seconds I was ready for separation. If the judge had been in the car, I'd have signed the papers right there. Good grief--over a comment about my driving? Is that all that was going on in that moment?"

"I sat at the wheel silent and steaming. On the outside, I looked cool, inside, here is what was happening: Geez, doesn't she think I know how to get there? I hate it when she does that. Then another voice says, She always does that. And I say (internally--the whole dialogue took place internally, in the blink of an eye), Yeah, she does...she's always saying stuff like that. I hate that about her. A feeling of accusation and anger and self-righteousness sweeps over me. Then the voice says, John, this is never going to change, and I say, This is never going to change, and the voice says, You know, John, there are a lot of women out there who would be deeply grateful to have you as their man, and I think; Yeah--there are a lot of women out there........You get the picture. Change the characters and the setting and the very same thing has happend to you. Only, you probably thought the whole thing was your own mess."

"The devil no doubt has a place in our theology; but is he a category we even think about in the daily events of our lives? Has it ever crossed your mind that not every thought that crosses your mind comes from you? What I experienced in the midst of traffic that day happens all the time in marriages, in ministries, in any relationship. We are being lied to all the time. Yet we never stop to say, "Wait a minute...who else is speaking here? Where are those ideas coming from? Where are those feelings coming from?" If you read the saints from every age before the Modern Era--that pride-filled age of reason, science, and technology we all were thoroughly educated in--you'll find that they take the devil very seriously indeed. As Paul says, "We are not unaware of his schemes." (2Cor 2:11). But we, the enlightened, have a much more commonsense approach to things. We look for a psychological or physical or even political explanation for every trouble we meet.

Who caused the Chaldeans to steal Job's herds and kill his servants? Satan, clearly (Job 1:12, 17). Yet do we even give him a passing thought when we hear of terrorism today? Who kept the poor woman bent over for eighteen years, the one Jesus healed on the Sabbath? Satan, clearly (Luke 13:16). But do we consider him when we are having a headache that keeps us from praying or reading Scripture? Who moved Anania and Sapphira to lie to the apostles? Satan again (Acts 5:3). But do we really see his hand behind a fallout or schism in ministry? Who was behind that brutal assault on your own strength, those wounds you've taken? As William Gurnall said, "It is the image of God reflected in you that so enrages hell, it is this at which the demons hurl their mightiest weapons." There is a whole lot more going on behind the scenes of our lives than most of us have been led to believe."

PLAY BALL!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Hey everyone! Meet us at the Softball game tonight to support our Sensational Sumner Lifers (we never really named the team:-) Wear your baseball hats, bring your noise makers, and put on your best cheering voice! The guys are goin' to the playoffs! Their holding nothing back............their fierce, their ready, they can taste the victory! Will this be the night that we play "We Are the Champions!" Oh Yea! Besides, you don't want to miss the "battle of the boomboxes." See you there!

Youth Spaghetti Dinner-Huge Success!

Hey everyone.....the fundraiser spaghetti dinner was a huge success and a blast! We had over 17 youth participate in serving and performing. The food was great, and we have some "stellar" talent in the group! From a dance team of 3 that took us down memory lane with songs from every era, to duets, magic tricks, skits, and "Ode to Spaghetti" which included interperative dance! It was classic! A Great time was had by all Photo #1 me and part of the dance team, #2 say's "I'm thinkin' Arby's" #3 Chelsea and Ciara doing "Beauty for Ashes" and #4 why it's "Samson and Delilah" and "Ode to Spaghetti" boy! If you didn't get to be there you missed a great night!

'It's a Wonderful Life' Most Inspiring Film

This is one of my very favorites! It has my vote!

George Bailey's brother proclaimed him the richest man in Bedford Falls. Now the story of the despondent businessman, who got a chance to see how ugly the world would be without him, has been proclaimed the most inspiring American movie.
Frank Capra's “It’s A Wonderful Life”, starring James Stewart as the disillusioned George, led the American Family Institute's list of inspirational films revealed Wednesday in the group's annual top-100 TV special that aired on CBS.
"We all connect to that story. We may not all connect to the story of a fighter from Philadelphia or a singing family in the Austrian Alps," said the TV special's producer, Bob Gazzale, referring to two other films on the list, “Rocky” and “The Sound of Music.”
"But there's no way to get away from the inspiring story of George Bailey. It relates to us all."
The 1946 classic "It's a Wonderful Life" is the story of a man who dreamed of escaping his dreary town and making a mark in the world. Circumstance traps George Bailey in tiny Bedford Falls, where he runs his family's penny-ante building and loan and battles the town's miserly overlord.
One Christmas Eve, facing scandal and criminal charges after his uncle misplaces $8,000, George is driven to attempt suicide, but an angel steps in to show him all the good he's done and what a harsher place the world would be without him.
As family and friends rally to his rescue, George learns to embrace the life he thought he loathed and receives a heartfelt toast from his sibling: "To my big brother George — the richest man in town."

Steven Spielberg's “Schindler’s List” starring Liam Neeson as a German businessman who saves his Jewish workers from extermination by the Nazis, was No. 3.

The View from the Cheering Section!

We have the best cheering section ever! This is the view from the "stands" as we watch our awesome Men's Softball team! I think our Cheering section will take first place for "Most Supportive, Most Fun, Best Music Ever!" Which reminds me, now the 3rd team has decided to bring out their Boom Box and play for their team! It is now a battle of the boom boxes! We just might have to set up the church PA System for the playoffs and "blast" them out of there! By the way, if you look in the backround, in the dugout, laying down, is our new mascot.......Super Sumner Sammy (#4). The crowd was chanting "Put #4 in the game, put #4 in the game!" You got to come and see for yourself!

Me and My Guy!

......and what a guy he is! That's my Mr. Lincoln getting a plane ride and just "hangin' around"!

A Call to Purity Psalm 51:10

For the past 2 weeks this scripture has been in my heart and has been part of my prayer. David said "Create in me a clean heart, O God; and renew a right spirit within me." KJV "Create in me a pure heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me." NIV Some of you may know about the Pure Life Revolution (www.pureliferevolution.net) What a time we are living in. There is so much coming at us on a daily basis, and these guys have been standing outside the Hustler store on Church street, silently praying for themselves, the church, this city, this country. A repentance and prayer movement, a stand for purity and justice, starting with us....the church. I pass by them every afternoon on my way home from work, I pray for them and those that are going into that store. I spoke with them today and told them we were praying for them and were thankful for what they were doing. But it has to go farther than that. It is no accident that we were born for such a time as this. As we heard on Wednesday night, you are not an accident. The Potter has formed you, for such a time as this. To be an amazing witness and light to a world without Jesus, as only we can be. It's easy to go with the flow; float downstream with most everyone else; go the way of least resistance. But it takes guts to take a stand for Jesus, for God's word, and love them that are lost and be an example that they can follow. 1 Corinthians 11:1 "Follow my example, as I follow the example of Christ." NIV I just wanted to share - I love you guys

Lights, Camera, Action! Softball Rocks!

In honor of 6/6/06, Mike and Jeremy proudly displayed their team shirts! Here are some shots from last night. The games were great! The guys are playing better and better every game! We were actually ahead 2 to 0 until the 4th inning of our second game! Chaz on the Pitcher mound, Matt on the move, JJ off and running to first and the guys coming in to..... Batter Up! We rocked to Queen, Journey, The Darkness, and of course..........Chuck Norris! Softball games will never be the same now that Sumner Life is there! The other teams brought their version of a Boom Box and some songs..........which pales in comparison to ours I might add! We set the standard and forged the trail! And our guys have the best cheering section ever!

Take me out to the Ball Game

OK, You all have to come out to our Softball game tonight! Matt man and I (mostly him) worked on a whole new "Game CD" that you don't want to miss. For those of you that don't know what I'm talkin' about, we don't have just ordinary softball games! No way! We carefully choreograph everything! Like a wonderfully executed Fireworks show (yeah, right!)You have to experience it to know what we're talkin' 'bout! This pic is what you look like after you've been working on a CD for 4 hours! :-o

Workin' at the Carwash.....yea!

The Youth did a car wash fundraiser Saturday to raise money for our upcoming conference. It was really hot, but we had an endless stream of cars all day! We worked hard but it was worth it! You guys are awesome! We even washed a boat and a Flower Delivery Van! We had great music to rock to and thanks to everyone that supplied us drinking water! At 92 degree's we needed it!
 

Girls Rule #2

OK, our second girls night was so much fun! "I believe in a thing called love" will never sound the same now that I have seen Pomai and Elise perform it! This time we pulled out Footloose, and took our turns in the dance line! We laughed so much! You girls are great! Love ya!

A Good Time was had by ALL!

The Palace People were here on Saturday; after we rode Go Carts, played Putt-Putt Golf and took on the Batting Cages, we had some great food, awesome fun, and there was even a "Star Performer" on hand. The "Mighty Ducks" were out of their element at the track and a random Samurai put in an appearance for some old fashioned "Family Feuding" and one or two Roundhouse kicks! Ice cream sandwich's ruled and Zena kept everyone in line! You shoulda' been there! : - )

Girls NIght!

We had such a ba-last last month that we are going to do it again! So much food, so much fun, so much laughing, such great movies, so much dancing to Shania Twain! OK, the pics are for our eyes only ;-) We are going to do this again on Friday night the 26th at my house so come one, come all for an awesome time of fellowship! I love you guys!

Reflection

Reflection: You know every year we have a birthday, off with the old, on with the new. It is always a time of reflection for me. I found myself going back to the first chapter of Captivating, to renew what I have learned about myself. You know it is so easy for those old thoughts and feelings to crop back up, and it is important for us to remind ourselves what God is and has done in our life. There is a quote in the section called "A woman's journey" which is where I am right now and wanted to share it - maybe it will help others too:"Then the time came when the risk it took to remain tight in a bud was more painful than the risk it took to blossom." Anais Nin Maybe I am a late bloomer, but no matter, I am blossoming nevertheless. It makes you very open and vulnerable, which is actually freedom. As I have blogged to you all before, and I do again here today; don't retreat from life! Live it to it's fullest everyday, experiencing everything God has created you to experience! You only get one life and a life without risk is no life at all. Love as if there is no tomorrow and if you are made fun of, laughed at, then that has to be their problem, not yours because you are not guaranteed tomorrow. I don't ever want to look back on my life and say "I wish I would have, I wish I could have, I should have done more of this or that, I should have not been afraid to share my heart, to laugh more, to be a greater blessing to others.............." Life is too short to have regrets. Cherish it, embrace it.Don't allow the enemy to revive those thoughts that you and God worked so hard to put under the blood "I am not enough, I am too much; I am not pretty enough, not thin enough, not kind enough, not gracious enough, not diciplined enough. I am too emotional, to needy, too sensitive, too strong, too opinionated, too messy." All that does is bring shame and the enemy tries to haunt us with that and play on our deepest fear that we will end up abandoned and alone. Don't allow him to make you feel unseen, unsought and uncertain. For the women reading this you are Captivating and God made you that way! With His attributes that He placed specifically in you - Woman. How amazing is that! You are amazing! We don't have everything figured out - life is one adventure after another, but we do know our God in whom we believe and we can do all things through Christ (the annointing) who strengthens us. Be a blessing to your husbands, to your friends and your family and love them as you want to be loved. I love you all - Tam

This was taken yesterday off of Airport Road. Many of our families from church and so many Youth went out to this neighborhood to help these families clean up any way we could. This is the area we worked. Everyone was just pulling together and asking what else they could do. We were so proud of the Youth for their willingness to get out there and get started. We have such an awesome church and the best Youth Group in the world!