I have been enjoying a few weeks of very welcome vacation. Ronda and I spent the first week in beautiful Vancouver, Canada, where we had the warmest weather they had in years. We hiked, biked, ate great food, and enjoyed the awesome scenery – mountains, coast, and parks.

We started out in the town of Victoria on Vancouver Island. What a quaint and relaxing city to kick back in. Our bed and breakfast was the best with great hosts and very nice accommodations. Butchart Gardens with high tea was a delightful part of our visit to Victoria.

High tea at Butchart Gardens - lovely!

On our way to the city of Vancouver we visited Whistler, the mountain village site of last winter’s Olympics. A highlight was dinner on Whistler Mountain after a 20-minute gondola ride to the top. While the food was not the greatest, the site was breathtaking. And we ate with a local couple who told us all about the Olympics and life in the village. (The gal is 68 and still skies downhill at over 60 miles per hour!!)

Dinner at the top of the world - Whistler Mountain

Vancouver city was a great stop for four days. Since we took up biking recently, we decided to tour the city by renting bikes. We got to see a lot of the local sites over a couple days while exercising off some of the delicious calories we consumed.

Biking in Vancouver – notice the jaunty angle of my biking helmet

Beautiful Vancouver

Time at home has involved some work projects on our house and several days at our own Elkhart County 4-H Fair, where I helped in our Kiwanis concessions, took in the fair activities, and kept up with our family, which is heavily involved in the Fair.

After this extended time off, I am eager to get back to work. My time has been restful, encouraging, and even challenging as God taught me some important lessons. And all this in the middle of a very warm and sunny Indiana summer.

It's a Great Day to Be Alive

“I am so excited about our church – about what is happening and where we are headed.”

I have heard something like this from a number of people over the last few months. And it’s both awesome and humbling to realize God is the reason for the excitement. There is such a strong sense that he is at work in our ministries, meetings, and everyday lives.

While we have great people doing really important stuff, the reason that there is such momentum is that God is in what they are doing and blessing the outcome. They are living their lives in God and enjoying the fruit of such a dynamic relationship. People are getting set free from bad lifestyle choices, lost people are being found, and others are finding brand new ways that God is making a difference through them.

So while we are in the midst of summer with different ones on vacation each weekend, I am eager to see what God has in store next. Let’s get rejuvenated, build some great family memories, grow our relationship to Jesus in new ways, and look for more God moments every day.

God’s Kingdom isn’t boring, because he isn’t boring. What a great day to be alive!