One of my favorite places

As you know, from a previous posting, I continue to struggle with "blogging" but I've been encouraged by many of you to continue. I made a list the other day of topics I could blog about, so that when I'm feeling I don't have anything to write about, I can refer to my list and find some impetus to write something. One of my topics is "Places I've visited in Spain." Since I just took a few new ECA staff members to Segovia on Saturday, I thought I would share a few photos with you.

It was a cold, rainy day but the others were game so we set off for the day and prayed we wouldn't get too wet. We started out at La Granja de San Ildefonso which is very close to Segovia. For many years, these were the hunting grounds for the kings of Castile. In 1721, Philip V commissioned the construction of a palace here. The gardens were modeled in the style of those of Versailles. It was a very nice time of year to see the gardens as many of the trees are beginning to change color.

We drove from La Granja to Segovia

where we saw the Aqueduct and visited the Alcazar (castle) and the Cathedral.

(If you'd like to see more photos, you can go to my Picasa albums. Because I've been there several times before, I didn't take very many photos this time. But you can find more in some of my other "albums" from 2009 and earlier.)

We were able to do most of the walking without getting wet. And it was fun to show some new friends one of my favorite places in the Madrid area.

If you come visit, I'll take you too!

Is the Word of God enough?

That's the question the pastor asked in church yesterday. He then proceeded to tell about a group of believers that live in an Asian country that have to meet in secret. They all gather in a small room with nothing but the Word - no sound system, no PowerPoint, no worship team, no beautifully decorated worship center, nothing but their Bibles, if they even have one. It made me think about the things we argue about in our churches and the reasons people give for leaving one church to go to another. I think we're spoiled and have focused on the wrong things for too long. I hope we can experience revival and get back to the most important thing - our love and devotion to God and for each other. May God have mercy on us.

October and the Internet

Strange title, I know. I started out thinking about the fact that October is here and how time seems to fly by faster every year. And that reminded me that in a little over 2 months I'll be home for Christmas. And that led to a feeling of homesickness (something I've been struggling with a lot lately). So I went to the internet (because that's how I keep in touch with the folks back home).

Email, blogs, Facebook, Skype - these are all amazing blessings to those of us who live far from family and friends. But I know they can have their negative side, too. Sometimes they consume way too much of my time. I admit that I check Facebook several times a day to see the most recent updates from friends. But a friend here in Spain reminded me this past week that FB is not enough. She wrote that she felt like her friends were relying on her status updates instead of really communicating with her so she was going to stop putting status updates on FB for the rest of the year and asked them to contact her via email or Skype instead.

Those of you who read this blog (all 5 of you) know that I don't write posts here very often. I struggle with whether or not I should continue this blog. Partly because I'm convinced only a few of you read it and partly because I think blogs may be going the way of the dinosaurs. Well, maybe not yet, but soon. Most of the people I know that still "blog" are missionaries or writers or public speakers. Facebook seems to have taken the place of "blogging" for most folks. Because I know that at least one of you is not on Facebook, I'll probably continue this blog for the present. And I'll probably still struggle with posting consistently.

Enough rambling for the present. I hope you're enjoying the Fall. It's my favorite time of the year. I love the cooler temps and when I'm in Colorado, I love the changing of the leaves. So Happy October!

Until next time...

Fiesta

This past week has been Fiesta week in Camarma. There are a lot of events that take place during the week - carnival rides for the kids, a medieval fair, bull runnings, dancing in the square and parades. (They've cancelled some of the other events because of the economic crisis, including the fireworks that normally end the fiesta.)

I wish I could say I enjoy this week, but it's actually one of my least favorite weeks of the year. Our normally quiet little town takes on a whole different persona - drunkenness, loud parties that last all night long, petty vandalism and trash everywhere. I guess it's just another reminder that these people need Jesus and I need to be praying for them and being salt and light where I can.

Back to School

We had a good beginning to the school year. Just a few photos (borrowed from friends) to give you an idea of the first few days.

Fourth and Fifth grade class

Opening assembly on the first day of school

Students getting to know one another at a special event in the afternoon.

The Middle School and High School students went to camp for three days during the second week of school.

Class of 2011 with their sponsors.