Flashback and Fun Friday

Yes, that's me on the right, 

a flower child of the 70's.

That's the blue and white dress!

circa 1970

Some of my favorite characters

in real life and fiction:

Pippi Lockstocking

Please pray for Melana.

She's having some health problems

and they are still doing tests. 

Spider Man 

Snow White

There were so many princesses, 

and these were two of my favorites.

Cat Woman?

Is she not the puuuuur-fect kitty!

Ariel, my favorite

 Disney princess!

This is when Halloween is fun!

Bonnie:)

These are characters anyway,
with or without costume.

Scary! Creepy!

See, I told you!

There was even a guy with dreads walking around.

Fun Friday!

Youth, Braves Baseball and Newsboys

We did absolutely nothing on Labor Day.

Guess what we did on Sunday?

After church we boarded the church van

and went to the Braves game with a

rowdy bunch of teenagers.

Not really rowdy.  Just teenagers.

Some of the best days of our lives have been spent with youth.

Anyway, Mr. H is the biggest kid of all.

My mind says YES, my body says NO!

I can tell you, I don't do cramped up, 

hot and thirsty and humid on a bus.

It didn't seem to bother these guys one bit.

There was a great breeze up top.

And I can tell you we were up top!

The guy on the right?
Our new youth pastor, James Pendell.
YEY!

An Atlanta school choral group sang the National Anthem. 

It was absolutely the best I have ever heard. 

Simply beautifully done!

We had nosebleed seats, and

I was scared to death!

I could hear the crackle of knees and the pounding of my heart.

Can't you see a big blur of red, white and blue

rolling into the first base line?

I am hyperventilating just thinking about it.

The Faces of the Game

The Crazy Kids

The Other Bunch

Sane?  

Naaaa!

I love these guys. 

So sad that they are back in the real world of college

and employment. 

SIGH!

Thankful for the ones who will stay and will miss the ones who go.

The Post Game Concert 

featured 

NEWSBOYS!

It was awesome to see at least 20,000 youth

worshiping and singing praises to our Lord Jesus Christ.

The 90's crowd rocked the stadium as

Michael Tait writer and singer

 for the former DC Talk sang

JESUS FREAK.

I stood with chills as I watched the entire 

stadium proclaim 

I believe in God the Father

I believe in Jesus Christ

I believe in the Holy Spirit 

and He's giving us to new life.

I BELIEVE!

Wow!  What an experience!
What a way to end the summer!

Glad I went, 

Bonnie:)

Oh yeah, we hit a deer on the way home.

Teach Your Children Well

WARNING:
LONG POST
NOT ADVISED FOR THE ADD OR ADHD ADULT.


I love the line in Hook when the little girl tells him,

"You're just a mean old man without a mommy."

I think that goes for children too.

When my children were little and they were picked on
by the "bad" kid in class, 

I'd say, 

"She just needs a mommy to love her,"

or

"He just needs a Daddy."

The relationship that a wife has with her husband 

is often a reflection of the relationship she had with her dad.

In the College/Career Class we have been learning 

The Five Love Languages 

by 

Dr. Gary Chapman.

The Love Languages are:

Affirmation

Quality Time

Gifts

Acts of Service 

Physical Touch.

Child psychologists affirm that every child has certain

emotional needs that must be met if he is to be emotionally stable.

Children who feel loved by their parents, whose parents 

have invested time and energy and are involved 

in the activities of their lives are more likely 

to succeed in their adult lives.

I've often heard it said,
"What we expect our children to be, they will become."

When a child hears from his parents,
"You will never amount to anything,"
most often, the child will meet that parent's
expectation and will live with an unhealthy view of himself.

Word are Important!
Words are Important!
Words are Important!

The important thing about a father playing ball
with his three-year-old, is not the activity itself,
but the emotions that were created between
the father and his child.

Some simple ideas for quality time with your child
may cost little or nothing.
But without quality time, it may cost everything!

Ride bicycles together.
Throw the football.
Shoot baskets together.
Walk together.
Have a picnic in the park.
Put a bed sheet over the kitchen table,
add some pillows, a sleeping bag,
grab a flashlight and camp out together.

I was once asked,
"How did you manage to have such well-adjusted children?"
Oh, there were some tough years.
Ask my children.
Our home was far from perfect.
However, doing some things didn't hurt.

First, we kept them involved in an active children
and youth ministry.

Second, we did everything together.
As youth directors,
we sacrificed money and time, but never our children.
The youth were made to feel like they belonged to our family,
not that our children belonged to them.

Last, we sought out their talents, believed in their abilities
to accomplish anything they wanted to accomplish
and were involved in everything they did.

You know, we can do our best and our kids may
walk a different path than we have chosen for them.
They may walk away from the very values that
we built our lives upon.

But when we know that we've done our best,
we can give the results to God and rest.

One Christmas morning we were up
early going to Grandma's, when we noticed
what looked to be a homeless man walking the streets.

In his drunken stupor, he fell on his face.
Tears rolled down my face and
my daughter said,
"Mama, he's just a man without a mommy."

We must teach our children well.

“If a child lives with criticism, he learns to condemn . . .
If a child lives with hostility, he learns to fight . . .
If a child lives with fear, he learns to be apprehensive . . .
If a child lives with pity, he learns to feel sorry for himself . . .
If a child lives with ridicule, he learns to be shy . . .
If a child lives with jealousy, he learns to feel envy . . .
If a child lives with shame, he learns to feel guilty ... 

BUT

If a child lives with tolerance, he learns to be patient . . .
If a child lives with encouragement, he learns to be confident . . .
If a child lives with praise, he learns to be appreciative . . .
If a child lives with acceptance, he learns to love . .
If children live with approval, they learn to like themselves..
If a child lives with honesty, he learns what truth is . . .
If a child lives with fairness, he learns justice . . .
If children live with recognition, they learn to have a goal.
If children live with sharing, they learn to be generous.
If a child lives with security, he learns to have faith in himself and those about him . . .
If a child lives with friendliness, he learns the world is a nice place in which to live . . .” 
― Dorothy Law Nolte, Children Learn What They Live

A Labor of Love

I know this sweet little place

in this sweet little town

just oozing with cuteness.

It is the home of some of our best friends

who are our directors of youth.

You are welcome here anytime, 

day or night, and you will feel right at home.

The home was built with old lumber

by the man of the house and his father in law

before the daughter became his bride.

It was definitely a labor of love. 

The chimney stood alone on an old piece of land

and was taken down and rebuilt brick by brick.

Each small detail has some significance.  

The cross was made by an uncle. 

.

A closer look at the front porch, 

and you'll see the beauty in the old wood.

You will be welcome to rock for hours

or chat with friends in the Adirondack chairs

as long as you'd like.

I prefer the swing.

You may want to grab a seat on the deck, 

or enjoy the best seat in the house, 

the old glider.

The brick path is open-ended

and everyone is welcome. 

Yes, the place is oozing with hospitality, 

and the porch light is always on.

I left an hour and a-half ago

and they were still going strong.

The kids are home for the summer 

so the place will be open as long as they want to stay.

I will share fun, food, and the tour of their home 

in my next posts. 

Bonnie:)

Find Us Faithful

Before I write my blog post,
I want to ask you to say a special prayer
for my daughter.

She is very emotional and afraid.
She is on her second week of shots
and has had 2 sonograms and will have
another on Friday and then another on Monday.

Next week will probably be the egg retrieval and implantation.
Then the waiting begins.  Her husband is out of town this week.
She's got a busy weekend, almost too busy to deal with
all she is dealing with.  Prayers please...

She will sing again.

I shared earlier with you about our

35 year-old journey with young people

and the dream of a Christian Life Center.

This is the JELO (J. Emory Lindsey Outreach) Building.

No longer the NazShack.
it's the LOFT,
(Living Our Faith Together).

The chairs were donated.
The teens designed the room.

Chat corner.

Our Youth Director's wife and her group of girls

painted and covered the seats. 

Activity Wall

Chalkpainted Prayer Request Wall

Platform

In the NazShack we signed the wall.
Now, it's a table.

The Pool Hall.

No Cellphones during Bible Study

A peak from above to make sure the kids are all in!

 Youth Today.

What??? No food in the LOFT?
You have got to be kidding.

Zac's mom, my cousin, caught the vision
and was chairman of the JELO committee.
The JELO name was her idea.

Richard is sharing his testimony tonight.
He leads the Sr. High Praise and Worship Band.

See the guy in the cast?
We taught his daddy.

The girlies were hiding.
I said, "No WAY! Not when you post selfies all over Facebook!"

Girls just wanta have fun.

Gotcha!

We have gone through several decades of youth.

I want to show you some of our first groups.

Current Youth Director, Monty Sanders

This sweet 12 year old was in our second youth class.

That was then.

I think it's pretty cool that the hands of Jesus are reaching out behind Monty.
We are the feet and hands of Jesus.

This is now:)

He came to us after losing his daddy in an accident.

David took him under his wing.
After graduation from high school,
he became a youth leader.

Three years ago, David stepped down as Director 

and Monty filled his shoes.  

Youth of the 70's and 80's.

Sometimes kids get lost in the shuffle.

God gives them to us for a season

and we don't see them again until they're grown.  

Youth from the late 80's.
Anthony, the guy on the left was killed the week after this photo was taken.
He was saved the month before.

This was the most difficult time in our youth ministry. 

I will never forget my daddy's words at the service, 

"Satan meant it for harm, but God used it for the saving of many souls."

It was a year of rapid growth.

It was the year of my Ann Kiemel crusade. 

Every youth in our youth group was saved that year. 

We have more pictures of the kids from the 90's than 

any group because our kids were teenagers. 

Afterglows, almost every Sunday night after church.

Volleyball every Sunday and Wednesday.

Youth Softball every Monday and Friday.

White water rafting

Team Building

Always another generation to come behind. 

The millennium, early 2000,

was a strong group, following in the footsteps of 

those who came before them.  

 It was this generation of youth who saw the fruits of our labor

and had their own youth house, 

the Naz Shack.

The church purchased a house and rented it 

out until it was paid for and it became their hang-out.

This is our son's best friend.

We adopted him from the First Baptist Church.

Chad went with him, he came with us. 

We called them both Bazarenes.

He is now a youth pastor near Atlanta

and recently spoke at our youth retreat.

My daughter works for Trevecca Nazarene University.
My nephew is now a youth.
My niece will follow close behind.

He plays bass and keyboard for the Jr. High Praise Band. 

They won 2nd at Top Nazarene Talent at 

Trevecca Nazarene University 

against 11 other districts in the Southeast, 

including South, Central, North Florida, Alabama North and South, 

Kentucky, Mississippi, South Carolina, North Carolina, East Tennesse,

and Tennessee.

He won first in Early Youth Keyboard and 2nd in graphic design.

The Early Youth Mime Group won 3rd.

This event is held every year with talent in all sports, 

music, drama, puppets, speech, prose and poetry,

math, painting, drawing, multimedia, graphic design

and as many categories as you can imagine. 

It's a busy three day event.

God continues to grow the church.  

Our youth now enjoy their own space

and a gymnasium that has been operational since September. 

My parent's vision lives on.

May All Who Come Behind Us Find Us Faithful,

Bonnie:)