A long time coming

I can't believe the month of May has slipped by me without the chance to update you on what's going on in my life and ministry. In May we had 2 major events happen that soaked up a bunch of our time and energy. On May 2nd we had our 15 annual Mexico Missions Trip Auction that raised over $14,000 for our Summer trip to Mexico. Each year I take a group of Youth to Mexico through Amor Ministries to build homes for underprivileged families. This year we will be building a double house for a family in Rosarito, Mexico.

On May 6th Emily and I took off for a much needed vacation to the East Coast. Doug Fields, a veteran Youth Pastor once said that in ministry, the only vacation worth taking is a long one. In his experiences of taking short vacations he said he spent the first few days recouping and worrying about everything he left behind, then a few days of relaxation, and then the last few days worrying about what you were going back to. I like his vacationalogy.
For this very reason, Emily and I decided to take a 10 day vacation. We started our trip with 5 days in Washington DC. We were able to visit many awesome sites and really enjoyed the city. We stayed with some family who lived in the suburbs surrounding DC. We then took a 4.5 hour bus ride north to the great New York City. We stayed in a hotel in the heart of Times Square and were even able to see a few shows on Broadway. (Phantom and The Lion King). Above is a picture of Emily and I on the Empire State building. What a view.

After this trip, I realized that breaks from life are really important. We go and we go and we go, and sometimes we don't realize how warn out we are until we remove ourselves from the grind of life. It's no reason why so many of us leave for vacation tired and weary.

Now that we are back, my mind moves toward the activities of the summer time. Summer in Youth Ministry has it's perks, but also has its drawbacks. The perks..? Warm weather, Fun activities, summer camps, rest. The drawbacks...? Sticky and sweaty, have to plan activities, a week in a bunk with a middle schooler...(the list shall stop there). But really, I enjoy summer very much. It brings new life to all things. Relationships, maturity, personal strength, outlook on life. Summer is coming and I am ready.