Virginia Baptist State Convention

This past week I went to the Virginia Baptist State Convention. They are having a hard time getting younger leaders to attend. I was one of the youngest. I don't know who they expect to come with it being during the week. It was basically a room of bald or gray heads. The only people who are able to coem are retirees and ministers. Now I believe that those people should be able to come but we can't whine about never seeing young people (then deciding that they just don't care because they are "postmodern") and not make it available for them.

Tony Campolo spoke. He is always 3 things...challenging, funny, political. I thought what he had to say was appropriate for our setting except when he laid out his political strategies/policy suggestions to a bunch of non politicians. Nothing we do can get those ideas in place, it has to come from politicians and let's face it, how many politicians care about what's the right thing to do more than how to get re-elected? My cynicism is coming out there.

There also was a "worship leader" there. She spent her time talking about her fans and singing songs like " If I get to heaven". She really didn't lead in worship and I don't think they meant for her to either, we just should not have listed her as a worship leader. Semantics.

Do I have hope for the BGAV and the SBC? Yes, but we have to find a way to include some new voices, some younger voices or else we'll fade away in to a business meeting for old people.

New Hampshire

I went to New Hampshire this past Tuesday/Wednesday. We were on a sort of pre mission trip trip. We scouted out a few places that the ministries of our church might be able to help. We have teams from all ages and that are skilled in virtually everything that take part in our trips. This is a potential destination for the Youth Choir/Mission Trip. 2% of people in New Hapshire designate themselves as Evangelical. That's the same number used when talking about "unreached" people groups. There certainly was a feeling of emptiness there, not so much oppression but just nothing spiritually. Whenever we do go I imagine it will be an eye opener for everyone that goes and I am looking forward to that time.

Unless it's during an election. Tuesday we spent some time in Medford's small downtown area. It's set up like a round about traffic circle, a big one, and cars are able to circle as many times as they want. Several people were out with their signs inside of the circle, an area that includes a war memorial, gazebo, and grass area. As we sat in the gazebo talking about the needs of the people in New Hampshire cars would drive by people holding the opposition's signs and scream obscenities at each other and flip each other off! Such intensity from a state that basically has no significance in determining the outcome of the election.

No Heroes

So Colleen and I sat down together to watch Heroes only to remember it was pushed back so Saturday Night Live could make fun of every single political person. What a waste of time. Someone has lied to Lorne Michaels for years, SNL is well past its prime. It has turned from a funny skit show to a weekly roast of the latest headline. There's a reason it's on so late at night and not in prime time...it's not prime television viewing.

My surgery is set for November 29th. Glad it's soon because our new little one is due at the beginning of February and I didn't want to be on crutches when she came.

Hopefully Heroes will be back next week and SNL will go back from whence it came.

Yep, I can read an MRI of the knee

So my ACL has completely pulled off my femur, I have a torn medial meniscus, and a bone bruise. ACL ruptures cannot be repaired only reconstructed. The reconstruction is done with part of my patellar tendon (and bone fragments), a hamstring segemnt, or the same from a cadaver. Just goes to show that you never know what they will use when you die and give your body over to "science". I have another appointment with the Dr. who will do the surgery to talk about which to use and when. Poopy.

This afternoon

is when I hear the news about my knee. I have no idea what the real damage is in there. I have never had this kind of knee injury (I have had more than a couple knee injuries) so I figure it is worse than it has ever been. The doc said it could be 3 different problems. A patellar dislocation (knee cap) is the most likely, an ACL rupture, and or meniscus damage. I have some symptoms of the ACL tear but I am hoping not. I am just hoping to avoid surgery. With the baby due at the beginning of February I won't want to have the surgery close to that time and it won't happen (if it needs to) in the next month I am sure. So that leaves a potential March surgery time frame which puts recovery at about this time next year. I can't imagine not being active in any way for a whole year, that will kill me. I guess I'll find out in a few hours.

The "Healing" Process

So my MRI is Saturday but I can't get a follow up appointment until October 27th. So unless my leg is about to fall off, I won't get any answers to this injury until almost 3 weeks after the fact.

It's annoying that a pro athlete can just go back to the locker room and virtually get an MRI at halftime.

It's scary to think how long it would take if we had a government run health care system like Canada. We have pretty good insurance and still have to wait on things. It seems health care needs some reform but I can't imagine that the government would do a better job organizing health care...it doesn't seem like that have done a great job organizing other things like welfare, social security, etc. That's all the politics you will get out of me though, sorry if you was hoping I would say something to stir the pot.

Dislocated Knee Cap

I went to see the orthopedic doctor Monday and he said that I likely dislocated my knee cap for a second and then it went back in to place. He drained 60cc of blood from my knee and it pretty much got rid of teh swelling and now I am able to walk fairly normal. It still doesn't feel right. I have an MRI set for Saturday morning to really determine the damage. All I want to know is what do I need to do to get back to playing soccer and how long until I can. Typical guy I guess.

LIgaments

So it looks like I have at least 1 torn knee ligament, I have an MRI on Monday. Happened while playing soccer. I made a cut to change direction and my whole body went left while my right leg from the knee down stayed right where it was. A pop followed by a loud grinding noise which was followed by me on the ground. I knew it was bad, I just hoped there weren't any bones sticking out. So the ER did an x ray and found that the ligaments didn't pull off any bone fragments but that it did look "mangled", yes she used that word. So in order to see the ligaments clearly they have to do an MRI, which I can't get till Monday. I still love soccer and look forward to getting back on the field, no matter how long it takes. Good thing I am not in my contract year!

So no Dog

So we wnt with no dog, at least for a while...like maybe 10 years.

Maybe I don't understand how the economy works, but I have doubts that giving all taxpayers an additional 700 BILLION dollar debt to pay off is the best we can do. We, America, are a dumb college student who applies for a credit card and uses it to get everything they want only to find out that you actually have to pay it back! So who will do the collecting on us? I say just let the people who benefited the most on these houses pull a little out of their enormous pockets and bail out the million people who are unable to pay for their house. Could we just spend a billion or 2 and have the gov't buy those houses and then resell them or rent them out? Well, either way this "bailout" seems like we are doing all we can to ensure the safety and well being of the very people who got fat on those crazy loans. The proposal won't sell my house, it won't raise the value of it (which is now less than when we bought it 3 years ago), and it won't give us any money to cover whatever awful amount of money we'll have to pay to get it sold. Maybe I can convice the gov't to bail us out of our debt too?!

New little girl

We found out that we are having a little girl. And we found out that potty training isn't over after a week of success. Joseph mentioned that I haven't updated my blog in a while so this one is just for you Joseph, if you actually read it.

To say that I want a dog would be an gross understatement. After having to give up our 2 dogs prior to moving here I have had to take a break from dogs, too many memories. The topic came up agin this weekend in our house. Colleen likes the security a dog provides on nights I am out later or gone and I like the companionship and fun factor that comes with a dog. So there is a remote possibility that we will be dog owners again. Remote because there are lots of obstacles. Puppy or no puppy...that is potty train a toddler and a puppy or just a toddler. You also have the added difficulty of finding places to rent that allow pets, this is further complicated because we want to have a German Shepherd which is looked on about as highly as a pit bull, mostly by people who have never owned one. German Shepherds are brilliant dogs and gentle, but you wouldn't want to see what would happen if you kicked one. Naomi was born in to a home with a 100 pound German Shepherd and loved him. Her first word besides mommy and daddy was Dodger, his name. So we weigh the benefits and the challenges. Your thoughts?

Back in the flow

We spent most of August traveling. First we went to Michigan to be with my parents and my brother and sister and all our families. We had a great time at Niagra Falls and at the Tiger game. I learned that the best route to Canada includes lots of U turns, well maybe not the best way. 

We also went to Seattle for Colleen's sister's wedding. It was a perfect day for an outside wedding and I thought the service was great. This past weekend I was at a Labor Day Retreat with the students. I am finally back home now for a while, no more long weekends or week long trips, at least not the rest of this year.

Naomi continues to amaze me. She understands so much and has really added to her vocabulary recently. If you haven't met her, come out to the DC area and you can!

In case you don't have a 2 year old

Then you need to know these things:

-They move all the time
-They touch everything
-They want their way all the time
-They don't understand it when you explain to them why throwing stuff at the TV is not ok
-They use their smiles and giggles to get away with ALOT
-Sometimes when they do something not so good but its really funny you laugh even though you don't want to encourage them to continue to do it

Recession?

Colleen and I were at a fancy mall in Tyson's Corner this weekend seeing a movie and eating at California Pizza Kitchen and that mall was packed. It looked like it was December 23rd. No parking spaces to be found, traffic in the walkways, and we even had to wait to get in to CPK (which we usually don't). It sure doesn't seem like people's disposable income is disappearing, at least not this past Saturday.

Quake in CA

So I hear there was a quake in SoCal this morning. Hmm, nothing shaking here. One thing I like about this area is that we really do not get the natural disasters that other areas do. We only get moderate amounts of snow, no earthquakes (normally), no hurricanes, no tornadoes, just humidity. There's a lot to be said for feeling safe.

Babies everywhere

Naomi now knows where our new baby lives, in mommy's tummy. There are several of us who are expecting right around the same time next year, I can see a very busy child dedication season next year! Naomi goes back and forth about if it is a boy or a girl. Either way I think she will be a great big sister. In just a couple weeks we head off to Michigan to my sister's house. Everyone from my side of the family will be there, a full house indeed. We have lots of stuff planned but we will enjoy being all together for the first time in more than 2 years.

Back from Blog Fast

The fast is over. Between the Choir Tour/Mission trip and our week at Centrifuge blogging lost its importance.
I continue to learn how important it is for students to trust me. Most of the issues students have with the leadership revolve around trust, at least as the core issue. The students here have had as many as 5 or 6 different leaders of the Youth Ministry in their 6 years, tough to handle. I realize that a key component for the success of the work here lies in gaining the trust of the students and their parents. Unfortunately the only way I can assure them of our staying power is to stay, so time is a key component too. The other area I need to build trust in is with my decision making. Students need to trust that the decisions I make are made with their spiritual best in mind, even the decisions that don't turn out to be the best, they need to know that it was my intention for it to be outstanding. Again this will take time and a few meaningful experiences for them to fully trust me on this.
If I wasn't ready and willing to take the time to earn their trust, I wouldn't be here. This is ministry, this is what God has called me and my family to be a part of and we are thrilled to be doing it.

Oh yeah, in case you haven't heard, Colleen is pregnant with our 2nd child!

Working for a living

So I really have a good reason I have left this blog unatended...Hawaii and Tennessee. The Youth choir is going to Hawaii for 9 days, leaving Sunday and just a few days following that we will be in Tennessee for Centrifuge. Basically I have had to have everything done for all of those trips and all of our regular weekly programs for the next month by today. Busy but not burnout busy.

In case you haven't heard, the Cope family will be growing by one sometime in February! Yes, Colleen is pregnant and I am having a hard time not hoping that it will be a girl, Naomi has been so awesome, I can't imagine having a son. Obviously there will be no disappointment with a son, after all, what if Naomi doesn't like soccer or fantasy baseball?! We'll get more info out soon.

Conversation with a 2 year old

Naomi: Where'd go?
Dad: Mommy went to the store.
Naomi: Oh...why?
Dad: Because she is shopping.
Naomi: Why?
Dad: Because she needs some clothes.
Naomi: Oh...why?
Dad: Because she does.
Naomi: Why?
Dad: Because.
Naomi: Where'd go?
Dad: She went to the store.
Naomi: Oh...why
Dad: Wanna watch Winnie?
Naomi: Yeah!

Movie Review

I've seen a couple movies these last few weeks that I hadn't seen before, so I thought I would give you a non spoiler review of them.

The first one was Cloverfield. I didn't go see it in the theatre because I didn't think I could handle the hand held camera action. It was tamer than I thought and the movie was interesting, which means it was better than I thought it would be. It is not, however, Godzilla 2 just in case you thought it was or are expecting it to be.

Another new movie we saw for our anniversary was Ironman. Good movie. Great action sequence and Robert Downey Jr. actually was believeable. I'm already looking forward to the next movie in the series.

May is a great movie month. This weekend we are taking about 100 people from church to see Prince Caspian. It's funny because there are more teenage girls interested in this one (Prince Caspian is "hot" and British) than were interested in the first one.

Swim class

Colleen's mom is leaving this week on Wednesday. It's been a good visit. We get along fine so there is none of that weird mother in law stuff.

I went to Naomi's swim class this morning. Of course this was the week we dunked them. She did great until I dunked her, she didn't really like that. It was pretty much a nightmare after that. She just screamed for mommy (who was sitting poolside). Figures, the one time I get to go with her to this time I have to be the bad guy. I hope this isn't the beginning of a pattern!