Luke’s Notebook

Every now and then, it just gets to me.  I just have to wonder, “Why?  Why me?  Why here?”  I have a hard time understanding why exactly I get to be where I am, get to do what I do.

I know I’ve said this before, but I think it bears repeating:  I am so thankful to be in this spot.  Somehow, I am part of this amazing family.  And I’m not just talking about the size; it’s the character makeup of the family that is so striking.  Sure, it’s cool to have 12 siblings, but that’s not it.

From Mom and Dad, to the older guys, on down to Mary-Elizabeth and the youngest guys, there is just so much character — responsibility, maturity, discretion, integrity, and plain fun.  There is so much individuality, so many different personalities, so many talents and hobbies, yet a very common core of principles.

Life gets so busy, but every now and then I just stop and find myself in awe with what is going on around me.  The family is a beautifully-run machine, yet nobody is “all business.”  People know how to work hard, how to be serious, yet there is such personality and such sharp wit.  Everybody is so full of life.

The softball team is something else that amazes me.  Here we are, Dad and 10 sons, playing in some extremely-competitive men’s leagues.  And we are actually beating some of the best teams around!  It’s just amazing.  We have an Arndt at every position on the field.  Our lineup, all Arndts.  An all-family team is a novelty, sure.  But to actually have a respectable showing out there?  Incredible.

I just couldn’t imagine life without any one of the guys or Wizzy.  Everybody brings something so unique to the table.  It really is such an awesome blend of personalities, talents, and tendencies.

I always feel like I’m bordering on bragging when talking about all of this.  I still can’t completely understand why I am privileged enough to be here.  But, I’m not going to argue.  Instead, it’s just “Thank You, God.  Thank You so much for letting me be part of the team.”

“FamTeam” really is the perfect descriptor for what we do and who we are.  We’re a family team, in countless different ways.  The obvious, of course, is our softball team.  But much more than that, we are a team with virtually everything going on.  It’s really a “one-for-all and all-for-one” approach, where everybody is truly in it for the good of the team.  So many heroes, so many people who aren’t just in it for their own good, but are genuinely looking out for the other guys.  I’m so proud of everybody.

It is so exciting to think about where we are going to be in the future.  For example, how is the family going to evolve once we introduce daughters-in-law and grandchildren into the mix?

This is a fun time, and all I can do is thank God for the privilege of being able to be a part of it.  There is so much to look forward to, and I cannot think of a better group of people to be on this journey with.

Psalm 37:4

Delight yourself in the LORD and he will give you the desires of your heart.

Our 2010 softball season is just a few weeks old.  We started at the beginning of this month, and we will likely be playing all the way to October.  Consider that we’re playing four or five games a week, and you’ll see that this comes out to a LOT of ball!

I typically play outfield.  In fact, in years past I would pretty much exclusively play in left-center field.  However, this year I have already played four different positions — left-center, right-center, second base, and catcher.

The reason I haven’t stayed with the outfield is because my left arm, my throwing arm, has been giving me some problems.  For the past couple of years, I have had some pain in the left arm as a result of throwing from the outfield.

I remember once specific game in April of 2008 where I felt a sharp pain after throwing a ball in from the outfield.  The pain at that time was where the biceps muscle meets the shoulder.  It would hurt when throwing, and was especially worse when throwing overhand versus sidearm.

Fortunately, I was able to play all of 2008, with only some minor adjustments.  I would play infield occasionally, and would try to avoid throwing hard when I could.  I was hopeful that the arm would heal up over the winter.

In the 2009 season, I had more problems with my left arm.  This time, the pain was more focused on what I would call the inside or the crease of the left elbow.  It might be the other end of the biceps muscle; I’m not exactly sure.

2009 was largely the same as 2008, except I made an effort to play in the infield a little bit more often, as my arm would get to hurting pretty badly after a couple of games in the outfield.

When the 2009 season wrapped up last fall, I really was wanting to set out on a mission to find out just what was wrong with my arm.  I wanted to have a “whatever it takes” attitude towards getting this resolved, even if it meant something a little more drastic.

I had a few doctor visits and several physical therapy appointments, but unfortunately I more or less ended up where I started.  Nobody quite knew what the problem was, and could only give good, but general, advice on how to proceed.  After an x-ray and MRI that didn’t show any particular problem, the doctor gave me a cortisone injection in my elbow, and indicated that possibly the shot would do the trick and help the tissue heal up.

I was hoping to have some sort of game plan to take into the 2010 season, but before I knew it, April was here, and it was time to play again.  I figured that I might as well try to play like normal, in case the shot took care of things.

The first few games of softball, my arm was okay.  But it wasn’t more than a week or so before I started feeling the sharp pains when throwing overhand.  To try to give the arm a rest, I have been limiting my time in the outfield.  More recently, I have played a lot of infield, and I am starting to settle in at second base.

Now that we are in the middle of the 2010 season, and we likely have 60 or more softball game remaining, I’m trying to figure out what the wisest approach would be here on out.  Here are the options, as I see them:

A.)  Continue to play outfield, just like normal.

B.)  Play the outfield, but always softly toss the ball in.

C.)  Play second base.

D.)  Play catcher.

E.)  Don’t play defense at all.  Be the team’s extra hitter (EH).

Right off the bat, I don’t think D or E are very likely.  Even though I have trouble throwing, I still can field decently.  Since I am one of the older and more experienced guys on the team, it’s probably a good idea to have me play somewhere.

By the way, first base might seem like an obvious choice, as first basemen rarely have to make any significant throws.  That actually would be a very ideal position for me, except that is James’ spot right now.  He doesn’t have much experience in the outfield, so me playing first would displace him.

Option B is one that I have thought about, but I just don’t think I can do it.  I guess I get to be too competitive or aggressive, but I have a very difficult time refraining from throwing the ball as hard as I can when it matters.  So if there is a close play, and I have a chance of saving a run or getting an out, I just can’t see myself intentionally holding back.

Option C is looking like a front-runner.  I’m fairly good at second base, and the throws at that position tend to be much shorter than those from the outfield.  Perhaps Option C with a little bit of A mixed in would be a realistic approach to take.

I’m not so worried about this season and what approach I take, because I know that soon enough — even if it is five or six months away — we will be through for the winter.  I know I’ll find a way to make it through this season okay.

What gets me worrying, though, is trying to figure out what approach to take from here.  I would be thrilled if I could find a way to solve this once and for all.

One sort of obvious solution is to stop using it.  And to be honest, I haven’t tried that fully in the past two years.  See, when softball season would end, I would start playing volleyball again, and I would start lifting weights again.  When volleyball season would close out, it would be softball time again.

So while I HAVE gone months without throwing a softball, my arm has still been fairly active.  I do have to wonder what would happen if it was immobilized for six months.  The trouble is, since the pain isn’t that bad — especially when not playing softball — it’s really hard to leave the arm alone, because that would mean me curtailing volleyball or weight-lifting.

Anyway, as you can see, I don’t quite have this all figured out.  I’m asking God that He would give me wisdom.  I want to be smart about how I approach this.  I don’t want to be overly sensitive, but I also want to take good care of this, especially if there are long-term implications.

What’s rather odd is that these arm annoyances are really only a significant issue when playing softball.  So I’m very thankful that the problem isn’t much worse.

It will be very interesting to see what the solution is.  I’ll feel kind of silly if the fix was simply some quality rest for the arm.  But, I’ve never been here before, so I’m learning as I go.

The good news is that I’m still able to play softball with Dad and the guys!  This “problem” could end up having some unforeseen benefits, such as forcing me to learn how to become a good infielder!  Ya never know…

From Isaiah 1:

Hear the word of the LORD,
you rulers of Sodom;
listen to the law of our God,
you people of Gomorrah!

11 “The multitude of your sacrifices—
what are they to me?” says the LORD.
“I have more than enough of burnt offerings,
of rams and the fat of fattened animals;
I have no pleasure
in the blood of bulls and lambs and goats.

12 When you come to appear before me,
who has asked this of you,
this trampling of my courts?

13 Stop bringing meaningless offerings!
Your incense is detestable to me.
New Moons, Sabbaths and convocations—
I cannot bear your evil assemblies.

14 Your New Moon festivals and your appointed feasts
my soul hates.
They have become a burden to me;
I am weary of bearing them.

15 When you spread out your hands in prayer,
I will hide my eyes from you;
even if you offer many prayers,
I will not listen.
Your hands are full of blood;

16 wash and make yourselves clean.
Take your evil deeds
out of my sight!
Stop doing wrong,

17 learn to do right!
Seek justice,
encourage the oppressed. [a]
Defend the cause of the fatherless,
plead the case of the widow.

18 “Come now, let us reason together,”
says the LORD.
“Though your sins are like scarlet,
they shall be as white as snow;
though they are red as crimson,
they shall be like wool.

19 If you are willing and obedient,
you will eat the best from the land;

20 but if you resist and rebel,
you will be devoured by the sword.”
For the mouth of the LORD has spoken.

I just can’t help but think of churches or individuals who will give up something for Lent — be it eating meat on Fridays, giving up chocolate, giving up soda — but they might be living a life that is clearly offensive to God.  So those folks could feel proud of themselves, and think that they are racking up brownie points with God, when instead they’re almost digging a deeper hole for themselves.

God will not be mocked.  If on a regular basis we are living a life that insults Him and offends Him, do we really think He is going to be happy if we say, “Hey, I guess I’ll not eat ice cream for a few weeks”??  Of course not.

Wouldn’t you feel the same way, though?  If somebody you knew was making fun of you or disrespecting you constantly, but then would give you lip service every now and then, how do you think you would feel?  If they mock you Monday through Saturday, are you really going to appreciate it if they say a few nice things about you on Sunday?

I guess what I’m concerned about is people who think that they’re being a “good Christian” by sacrificing something during the Lenten season, but without yielding their lives to God.

We can’t throw God a bone.  In Isaiah 64, we’re told “all our righteous acts are like filthy rags.” And those are our RIGHTEOUS acts!  Imagine then what God thinks about the things that we know are wrong, that make US squirm.

The point is, we won’t impress God with what we do or what we sacrifice.  He wants US.  He wants our love, our affection, our obedience.  We can’t buy Him off.  We can’t pay somebody else to do it for us.

I do think it’s a fine idea to sacrifice something this season, so long as it’s done out of love for God and not out of guilt or as an effort to make up for some other aspect of our life that isn’t in line with Him.  A sacrifice made with love is a beautiful thing.

Back in September of 1999, the four oldest guys (that’s Paul, John, Mark, and myself) drove south to meet up with a couple of our aunts who had rented a condo in Destin, Florida, and had invited us to join them for the weekend.

That trip was extremely memorable, for a number of reasons.  For one, it was the first time any of the Arndt guys had visited the ocean (technically the Gulf).  It was also my first time in Florida.

One really sweet memory I have from that trip is, very simply, the purchase of a CD.  I believe I was given a little bit of money to spend while down there, and we stopped by a Christian book store.  For some reason — and I really couldn’t tell you why — I found this CD and wanted to buy it.

I can’t even remember what reason, if any, I had to buy the “Better Is One Day” CD.  I don’t think I had heard of Passion before, and I’m pretty sure that was my first time seeing that CD.   Something just drew me to it.  It could have been as simple or nondramatic as the attractive cover art and the neat “P.”  I really don’t remember why I picked it up in the first place.

Well, that was my introduction to Passion music.  Since then, I have come to learn about the Passion conferences, how they are gatherings geared towards college kids in order to have them fall more in love with Jesus.

I fell in love with that album.  I listened to it over and over.  Back then, our music library was pretty sparse, so this CD got a lot of playing time.   Even though it didn’t have a tremendous amount of competition at the time, it was by far my favorite CD.  It just had some beautiful songs on it, such as “Knowing You,” “You Are My King,” “To Speak Your Name,” “Better Is One Day,” “The Heart Of Worship,” and “Agnus Dei.”

As the years went on, and as I could afford it, I would buy the newer Passion offerings — “Our Love Is Loud,” “Sacred Revolution,” “The Road To OneDay,” “OneDay Live,” “How Great Is Our God,” “Everything Glorious,” “God Of This City,” and even their “Hymns” project.

If you were to ask me to pick a favorite out of those albums, I don’t think I could do it.  I love “Better Is One Day” not only for the songs I listed but because it was my first Passion CD, my introduction to their music.  But each new CD would come with a fresh batch of worship songs that I would quickly love and come to know by heart.  Each album has its own flavor, but there are just beautiful, passionate songs found in all the recordings.

I think what hooked me on the Passion CDs is that I didn’t feel like I was listening to a performance, but was instead joining the worship of God.  And that really can be kind of rare.  There are a lot of great songs out there, and a lot of great performers, but this is the type of thing that shouldn’t be performed.  It’s not a “Hey, look at us” type of approach.  It’s people who passionately love God and who want to glorify Him singing, and there just happens to be a microphone present.  I mean, obviously they recorded this intentionally and there is production value, but my point is that the feeling I get when listening to most of these songs is one that makes me think of God and how awesome He is, rather than how talented the performer is.

I’m sure part of the reason I rave so much about Passion is sentimental.  I was 14 when I bought the first CD, and their music has been around during some major parts of my life.  But I think there is something special about the albums.  I don’t want to romanticize it too much or try to overspiritualize it.  I’ll just say that these albums have played a key role in me growing in Jesus, in cultivating a heart of worship.

They kind of work as a great tenderizer, so to speak, to keep me from getting too hardened or stale by ordinary, everyday life.  They work as almost a fail-safe method to get me back to Square One — to fall in love with Jesus, realizing who I am and who He is; marveling over God’s incredible — just incredible — love for me, despite my sin; and trying to comprehend His majesty.

It’s stuff that blows my mind, to think of how great He is.  And then to learn that He loves me — and even likes me!  I pray I never lose this passion!

My baby sister is a teenager.

I can’t believe that!

Could it really have been 13 years since she was born?

It is so hard to believe that here we are.  Wizzy is a teenager.

While all of the chubs are special and very loved, I have to admit that Mary holds a very special role.  People always ask me if she is spoiled or if she doesn’t fit in.  I answer that while she is definitely not spoiled — that is, she has jobs and responsibilities just like everyone else — she is most certainly treasured.

I always have loved my little brothers, but I’ve got to admit that Wizzy did something special to me.  I guess she softened me up quite a bit.

Now that she is turning into a young lady, it is a little bittersweet.  It’s sad to see the “baby” Wizzy fade, but it is amazing to see what kind of beautiful young lady she is turning out to be.  She is so mature, so selfless, so sweet.  She really is a leader.  I’m so proud of her.

I’m so thankful that God allowed me to be this close with the family for this long, because I get to witness these milestones and the once-in-a-lifetime transitions.

One unexpected side effect of having Mary around is that she has helped me keep a high standard in what kind of girl I would be interested in.  See, I realize that whoever I would marry would be several years older than my sister, and I would love to be able to encourage Wizzy to look up to her, where I could confidently say, “Go ahead and dress like she does, act like she does, watch what she watches,” and so on.

So I am really praying that if I get married, God will provide someone who would be a perfect role model for Wizzy, where I can safely tell her, “There!  Be just like her.”  I have got to believe there are such women out there!  There may not necessarily be an abundance of them currently, but all I need is one.

And, in the interim, my goal is to try to personally live up to the standard of the kind of guy that I would recommend for Wizzy.  That is a challenge.   I love Wizzy so much, and I only want the best for her.  Whoever I would marry would also be somebody’s little girl, somebody’s sister.  She would also be a treasure, and I need to work hard to be worthy of her, just like I would expect a guy to meet a high standard in order to deserve Wizzy.

We’re still a ways off from all of that, thankfully.  She is only 13, so we needn’t get too worried just yet. But bottom line… she’s my Number One girl.  The Arndt Family has never been the same after January 5 of 1997.  I’m so blessed to have such a wonderful little sister.  Even though she may technically be a teenager now, I have a feeling that she is going to still be my baby Wizzy for quite some time.

I wanted to make sure to wrap up the posts about the family trip, as 2009 is nearly over and I don’t want to be too far behind!

I left off on Week Two, where Mark and I were home covering some work.  At the beginning of Week Three, Mark and I drove north towards Chicago as the rest of the family left the home in UP, Michigan, to drive through the mainland of Michigan.  As they were driving southeast through Michigan, John drove due south towards Chicago, and the three of us met up — at Six Flags!

Conveniently, Six Flags was almost the precise halfway point between our home and the vacation house in Michigan.  So the three of us met up in the Six Flags parking lot, spent a few hours on some of the rides there — specifically, the Raging Bull, the American Eagle, King Chaos, and the Iron Wolf.

After a few hours at Six Flags, we all drove over to the nearby Golden Corral in Gurnee and ate supper.  When finished, Mark and I said farewell to John, and we drove east towards Michigan, while John continued south in order to get home.

Mark and I met up with the family late that night, and we all stayed in Milan, Michigan, just outside of Ann Arbor.  The next day, we caravanned up to Penn Yan, New York, which was where we would stay the rest of the week.

While in Penn Yan, we did some canoeing, some biking, and worked a lot on a few long jobs that we had to take care of.  At the end of Week Three, Mark and I would hit the road again, while the rest of the family would drive over to the Gettysburg, Pennyslvania, area.

On our way home, Mark and I decided to swing by Pittsburgh.  We had never been there, so we decided to take the small detour in order to drive through it.  I’m glad we did, too!  It’s a very nice-looking town, and I especially liked the Pirates’ ballpark, PNC Park, which rests on the riverfront.  Unfortunately, we didn’t have time to stop in Pittsburgh, but it was nice to drive through it and get a very brief tour.

We arrived home in the early-morning hours of Saturday, November 7th.  Later that day, I had a wedding ceremony/reception to film for a client of ours.

John was still home at this time, and the three of us spent the next week taking care of business-related duties.  Towards the end of Week Four, though, John and I drove back up to Penn Yan, New York (by way of Bellville, Ohio, where we stayed a night), and rejoined the family for what would be the final week of the trip for everybody.  Mark stayed back home to man the business.

Everybody left the house on Keuka Lake in New York on Thursday morning, November 19.  Most of the family headed home, while Jude and I drove over to nearby Buffalo, as we just happened to have some deposition work come in for a couple of days over there.  We spent all day Thursday working, and after pulling a near-all-nighter (working on transcripts until 3:00 AM or so), we got to sleep.  We woke up around 11:30 in the morning, checked out of the hotel, and headed for home.

We finally pulled into our driveway early on Saturday, November 21st.  Finally, everybody was home from the trip, from all different directions, safe and sound.

It was a very busy trip!  Lots of work, but lots of fun also.  It was a relief to get back home, to sleep in my bed, and to get back to everyday duties.

We had many different surprises while on the trip.  Plenty of unexpected work, which is always a good thing, but it had left us scrambling to cover things.  Thankfully, we managed.  We also saw on multiple occasions how impeccable God’s timing is, in very practical ways.  It’s almost like He was giving us a thumbs-up for taking the trip.

It really was an amazing experience.  To be honest, I was thrilled to be back home, as things are so much simpler when you are in your own house.  Plus, I needed to get away from the tempting junk food that was so easily accessible during the trip.  Extra snacks minus regular workouts equals a bad result!  So it was nice to get back to eating better and getting back in the habit of working out.

The 2009 Family Trip is definitely one that will be very memorable, for many different reasons!  It’s funny how each trip has its own distinct flavor.  You can never predict what the story of a trip will be beforehand.  It makes things really exciting, because you just never quite know what to expect.

Week Number Two of the trip was pretty interesting!

Mark and I left the home in Michigan early Sunday morning (October 18th), and we started south.  This trip home was very memorable for a few reasons.  One, we drove through Green Bay, Wisconsin, and decided to hop off the highway in order to drive past Lambeau Field, home of the Packers.

It was really awesome to see Lambeau!  Green Bay is not very large, and we didn’t even see anything that looked like a city — that is, anything of substance — so it is quite a bit different than most other professional sports stadiums.

We also saw thousands of people tailgating all around the stadium, as we were  there a couple hours prior to kickoff.  In addition to the tailgaters, we drove by a nearby neighborhood, where dozens of people were offering parking in their driveways or on their lawns!  Some houses had up to 10 or 20 cars packed into a front (or back) yard.  It was really funny to see!  I guess it’s a good idea, really.  Brings in a little bit of extra money on game days for the homeowners.

As we continued south, we drove through Milwaukee, and ended up stopping at Six Flags Great America just north of Chicago, in Gurnee, Illinois.  We spent a few hours there, although we only managed to get on two rides during that time, as it was pretty crowded.  We did fit in two of the best roller coasters, though — Superman and the Raging Bull.

The rest of the drive home was pretty uneventful.  To help pass the time, Mark and I listened to an audio book, “The Red House Mystery” by A. A. Milne.  It was actually very, very good, and it helped pass many of the hours on the road.

We arrived back home a couple hours after midnight on Monday the 19th.  On Monday, Mark had an early-morning deposition in St. Louis.  I spent most of the day taking care of assorted business-related tasks.

The rest of the week was pretty much a blur, as Mark and I both had an abnormally-large amount of work.  Mark had eight depositions to report, and I had six video depos that week.  That’s pretty much unheard of!  Also in that week back home, we played in a softball game, and had dinner with both sets of grandparents on two different nights.

On Sunday the 25th, we were back on the road, driving northward in order to rejoin the family.

Stay tuned for Week Three!

When weight-lifting, one of the more common exercises we tend to focus on bench-pressing.  It’s a real good workout for the chest muscles and the upper body as a whole.

With bench-pressing heavy weights, it is always a good idea to have a spotter who will be ready to help you lift the barbell in case you aren’t able to push it up on your own.  It sure beats the alternative of being pinned on the bench under a heavy weight.

Sometimes, I will get a little too ambitious, and try to lift something that I have no real chance of putting up.  Before long, I chirp “Help.”  I might not even get the weight up five or 10 percent of the way.

There are other times, though, when I am so — so close – to pushing the weight up, yet I need assistance to get me over the top.  I might be 95 percent of the way there, yet I just don’t have it in me to close the deal.

Those second times end up being the most frustrating, because I was extremely close to having done it all on my own, without help from anyone.  It’s sad to have to get help at that point, because I am just inches from accomplishing it on my own.

While this is a good approach when it comes to weight-lifting, often I find myself starting to use the same way of thinking when it comes to my sin and God’s mercy.

It’s easy to assume that I’m just inches away from perfection.  If only I could be a little more disciplined, a little more patient, a little gentler.  Patch a couple of occasional holes, and we’re good to go.  I’d be totally perfect, and wouldn’t need help from anybody!

But what I fail to realize is that, even on my absolute best day, I am STILL falling well short of God’s standard.  I’m never even CLOSE to where I should be.

It’s not that I’m just an inch away from getting that weight back on the bar; instead, the weight is an inch away from squashing me completely.

Isaiah 64:6:

“And all our righteous acts are like filthy rags.”

Even on a record day for me, it’s still pitiful compared to what God has required of me.  It’s like trying to leap across a canyon.  I may jump five feet on one day, eight on a better day, but either way I’m not landing anywhere near that other edge.

So this could be discouraging, to realize that I’m actually much, much worse than I thought.  But it actually is very freeing for me, because it forces me to cling to Jesus for everything.  I realize that I just have absolutely no chance without His help.  I’m not even close on my own.  Without the blood of Jesus covering my sins, I’m toast, even on my very best days.

While perfection still is and still should be the goal, remembering this does help me deal with all my imperfections.  This doesn’t cause me to want to relax the standard at all.  Instead, I am so thankful for all that I have been forgiven of and the great mercy I’m experiencing every day, and I just want to show my gratitude by striving to please God more and more.

This also reinforces just how patient God is with me.  He doesn’t constantly remind me, “Hey, Luke, now just remember:  You are a wretch, and don’t you forget it!”  No… instead, He is always reminding me how much He likes me.  He’s almost saying, “Relax.  You weren’t ever even close.  But I still love you anyway!”  It helps me not beat myself up too much whenever my human tendencies or weaknesses start to show.

This, obviously, is no Get-Out-Of-Jail-Free card or an excuse to sin.  I still want to do all I can to be obedient in every way.  But it is very reassuring to know that, on my own, I never even had a chance to begin with.  It’s mercy, it has always been mercy, and that’s my only hope in the future, is more mercy.

Our 2009 family trip began on Sunday, October 11.  The entire family, minus Paul and John, hit the road and started driving north around noon.  The destination was a rental house near Iron River, Michigan.  We had about 600 miles to drive in the day.

We took a brief drive through downtown Chicago, which was about the halfway mark.  We stopped by Wrigley Field, which was pretty special!  Along the way, we also stopped at a few lighthouses.  In the early-morning hours of Monday the 12th, we arrived at the house in Michigan.

This was the first time any of us had been to the Upper Peninsula, and it was very interesting!  A very scenic area, and not much in the way of big cities.

I spent many hours at the McDonald’s in Iron River, as we happened to be in the midst of transferring FamTeam to a new server.  The Internet service was extremely sketchy at the house, and McDonald’s was one of the nearest places that had wireless Internet, so it became the go-to spot.  I would have rather have taken care of all of the FamTeam stuff back home, but the timing just worked out to where it had to be taken care of while we were on the road.  Thankfully, the FamTeam switchover went pretty well.  Honestly, I was amazed at how smoothly it all went.  What a relief it was to have all that taken care of!

On one day trip, we drove to the northern shore and spent some time on the beach of Lake Superior in Marquette, Michigan.  We had a gorgeous sunny day, and we had a good time moseying up and down the shore.  We also spent another day visiting a waterfall, and yet another day trip visiting the scenic Porcupine Mountains.

Paul and John rejoined the family early Saturday, October 17th.  They had spent the week back home in order to take care of some work, and they had hit the road at the end of the work day on Friday and drove through the night.  They had actually stopped at Six Flags Chicago for about an hour during their drive up, and were able to ride a few roller coasters before getting back on the road.

October 17 was a very special day, because it ended up being the only day in which the entire family was together, because Mark and I would soon head back home in order to take care of things back home for the second week of the trip.

On that Saturday that John and Paul had arrived, all 16 of us drove northeast to Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore.  We didn’t get to stay there very long, as it was a seven- or eight-hour round trip.  We did, however, get to view a few very pretty lookout points, and John and I had a chance to run down a mile-long trail that led to the beach.  It was a tiring run, as we were hurrying there and back in order to not keep the family waiting too long.  We were out of breath quite a few times during the sprints, it was a worthwhile trip!

Saturday night, Mark and I spent our final hours with the family before driving back home early Sunday morning.

And that’s… where we stop for now. The drive home was quite fun!  That will be covered in Part #2.  For now, though… this concludes Week Number One of the 2009 family trip!

Colossians 3:15:

“And be thankful.”

Where can I start?

God has given me so much to be thankful for that it’s almost embarrassing when I start to think about everything.  First, I am forgiven.  Jesus has taken my sin; God sees me as pure.  God loves me.  And He likes me.  God is providing and leading, day by day.  I’m so thankful that He is trustworthy.  Unfailing — unable to fail.  Just amazing!

On top of that, I have this family.  I mean, how in the world could I have ever earned this?  It’s not fair.  I don’t deserve it.  But I am so grateful that I somehow find myself in the middle of it.

I have a two-pronged plan.  One, to THANK God for the blessings, the provisions, the mercy, the guidance — everything that He has done and that He continues to do.  Secondly, I’m praying that God would help me not lose this thankful heart.  It is so easy to take things for granted.  I do it way too often.  If I could only be wise enough to see everything around me, and really appreciate the countless things that I tend to overlook most of the time.  I really should be constantly overwhelmed in realizing just how good I have it.

Happy Thanksgiving, everybody!