next mozart

(1) Annie played beautifully yesterday at her piano recital. She finished the year with 32 perfect practice weeks. that's a lot of practicing. she is on her way to greatness!

(2) we got to hang out with some friends this weekend who had moved away from BG a few months ago - Bart & Ashley Patterson. They are expecting a baby boy in 3-4 months. please pray for him because he has some complications with his stomach and intestines. He needs God to do a Miracle!

(3) i am playing softball in a city league on a team called WT Games. we are 4-1 this season and i get to play catcher! there are several guys on our team who need Christ! please pray that i can be a good witness to them. FYI - i was 3/3 in hits last night and tagged a guy out at the plate.

(4) i think some applesauce got in my phone while we were camping this past weekend. the sauce is under the screen. just like when you are driving and you think you will clear the mist off the windshield with the wipers, but the mist ends up being on the inside of the car! maybe it will go away over time.

(5) i am preparing for XLR8 Youth Service tonight and a wedding this weekend so i must go.

peace

(1) this video is pretty funny. we were out to eat and Kaitie and i were having a great time. i love my kids. they can be so much fun!

(2) we are back in Bowling Green after a pretty crazy weekend. i ate my fair share of cook-out food. i did enjoy some corn hole and got to read some. (current book = Fred Factor)

(3) Annie's 2nd piano recital was tonight. she was amazing as always. she is definitely our musical, artsy, creative one. i love that about her. she keeps things real and fresh.

(4) today, our church staff started the day with prayer and worship. i love the prayer focus Pastor Scott has brought to our meetings and our weekly agendas. he is a man of prayer and i proud to be serving with him! he is also having us share stories about our faith journeys. i must say, hearing the stories does bring a greater sense of connection amongst the staff!

(5) we are recognizing our high school and college graduates this Sunday in our main service. i enjoy these moments because the church prays for and commissions these grads as they enter the next season of life. i have had this happen to me several times in my life (high school and college graduations and ordination stand out the most.)

(6) i am so thankful for the Godly men and women God has put in my life. anytime i need prayer partners, i have several people i can turn to. knowing these people will seek God on my behalf and lift me up on prayer means more to me than words can explain. if you are praying for me and my family, thanks . . . a lot!

peace

family camp

we are at Heartland Conference and Retreat Center for Dayspring's annual family camp. we had a campfire last night with great food (including smores), played scum before bed, and enjoyed a quiet night. (lol) ok, so it was quiet from 11-2:30am. nash was up at that time and both he and kaitie were up at 4am. kait was up for good at 5:15am. the joys of family camp!

(1) katie is so adventurous. name it and she will climb it, jump over or off it, or attempt it, but she won't ride the purple dinosaur at Meijer. go figure!

(2) i am hanging out with some students from XLR8 at Dayspring Family Camp. i love these times b/c they force relationships. i enjoy learning about students. XLR8 has so many great kids and the potential is off the charts!

(3) God is really teaching me to listen closely for Him. i admit, I am too usually too busy and would love to simplify. i think you can be busy and still hear from God, you just have be intentional about it. i am looking for Him more and more in life and circumstances. i am trying to catch His message to me. if i miss that, i will miss it all.

(4) did i mention i am not much of a camper or outdoors person. amanda just laughs at me. i like my creature comforts. i am actually a little mad that my wireless connection here in the lodge is too weak to check the score on the Blue Jays game. hopefully, i will be able to post this!

(5) speaking of Jays, they are 25-25, and looking decent in spite of major injuries this year, AGAIN! we just need to put a run of wins together. hey, we are still in it at this point, so i am happy!

peace

good will

(1) i finally took a load of clothes, toys, and other stuff to good will today. the guy inside, Jason, was very helpful and very thankful for my donation. why do we keep stuff that we aren't using when someone else could benefit? Amanda was emotional as we gave away some old baby clothes. it must be a girl thing. i don't attach emotions to clothes. i respect that she does, though, because they represent to her some powerful moments in life. i love you honey for the sweet look on your face as you let me take the clothes away.

(2) i love the spring weather. i love opening the car windows and airing out the house. what bothers me about it? the random fly over my head that i know i won't be able to kill until he/she wears down in a few days.

(3) last night in XLR8 (part 1), we talked about ways that God speaks to us. every student was given a postcard size paper and told to sit quietly until God spoke one thing to their heart. they weren't even allowed to talk to God until He spoke to them. why don't we spend more time listening. I WANT TO KNOW WHAT GOD SPOKE TO YOU, SO E-MAIL OR FACEBOOK ME!! i know if i only ever talked and never listened to my wife, we would have a very strained relationship.

(4) last night in XLR8 (part 2), before service even began & during our pre-service prayer, God laid on my heart that we must purify our hearts as individuals in order for His blessing to be on our group. i challenged students to come forward if they had at least one area of sin in their life. 80% of the 30 there came forward and our leaders prayed for God's power to break the hold sin had over them. IT WAS POWERFUL & set the stage for a great night.

(5) tomorrow is the Dayspring Family Camp-Out at Heartland. the Valantines will be "roughing it" in the lodge with a fridge, microwave, and soft bed. i'm not much of a camper, especially not with 3 kids. i hope to play some corn hole, sand volleyball, and scum (great group card game!).

(6) it costs $40 to buy diapers and wipes at the store - just wanted to throw that out there

(7) my parents bought a condo in Naples, FL. they are there right now, luckies! i can't wait to go down and enjoy it.

peace

short & sweet

(1) milkshake has been rescued (one of our two hamsters). she was living in the couch for 3 days, but now is free and reunited with the other hamster (don't know her name).

(2) annie was funny yesterday. her and Kait and I were outside playing and she said in regards to Kait on the swing, "when i was a kid, i used to love to swing like that." she is 6. When I was a kid? very cute.

(3) things are coming together for X-Treme Days. i am very excited about Wednesdays in June and July 2. if you can make it to XLR8, you won't want to miss these 5 weeks of X-Treme games and X-Treme Worship! bring friends and get crazy mad points!

(4) i have one of those meetings/appointments that i need a lot of prayer for today at 9:30am in case you read this before then.

(5) we won our softball game last night 16-3. i was catcher again and got on base 3 out 4 times. i scored the first run of the game! catcher is ok because i get to talk with the umpire a lot. i keep offering to wipe off the plate for him when someone gets dirt on it, but so far they haven't given me their brush yet.

(6) tonight in XLR8 is part 3 of the series God's Text Msg. we are focusing on the ways God speaks to us. i can't wait to see hear what God will say to us!

peace

a new week

(1) i had a great weekend. we had a lot going on at church and i still felt like i saw my kids a lot too. amanda was under the weather and trying to rest some, so i stepped in and pulled extra duty. scott estep was officially installed as our pastor, thanks to Wayne and Kathy Benson joining us on Sunday for that. the young adult married couples gathered for a cook-out at our place Sat. we had an amazing game of corn hole. it was like X-treme Corn Hole because of the wind. my team emerged victorious. the men's breakfast sat morning had about 90 guys. scott challenged every man to look at his work as a mission field. instead of the 10/40 window, we have the 9 to 5 window.

(2) sunday was a pivotal day in XLR8. for the first time under my leadership, a student spoke during School of the Bible hour. Emma Wilkerson shared with her peers some of what God has been teaching her over the past several weeks. she challenged them to live for God right now and to make a difference. she said, "we pray for opportunities at school to share Christ, but instead of waiting for them to fall in our lap, we should initiate them. go up to someone and tell them about the hope we have in Jesus." i was so proud to hear her sharing. another student told Jeremiah (teacher) that students should speak every Sunday, so Jeremiah told him to be ready to speak next week. i love it!

(3) my 2 yr old, Kaitie, is an amazing kid. she is our loud one. she is our bruiser. she has passion for life that i have not seen before. i love being with her. this weekend we had some fun moments. she likes to take the cushions off the couch and jump on the frame. weird! she also likes to put a hamster on the couch frame and watch it run around. well . . . the hamster previously known as milkshake (jk), found her way into the guts of the couch and we haven't seen her since about 4:45pm Sunday. never a dull moment. Milkshake . . . where are you?

(4) some of you have been wondering what is going on with my fitness program. why haven't i blogged about running lately? well, in order to blog about running, you have to be running. o well, i have the desire to get in shape and run consistently, but i have 2 major issues. #1 - amanda is not much of a morning person. she likes to sleep as long as possible. so, my morning running time often gets displaced by taking care of the kids if they wake up early. i don't mind, because i love starting the day early. #2 - my knees have been hurting a lot lately. i know it sounds lame, but when i hit 3 miles or so, i start to feel it. my sister, a licensed MD told me to take it easy. i have to listen to the DR. o well, maybe one day, i will get in shape!

(5) in light of Mother's Day, which has come and gone, and my mom's Birthday being today, i wanted to share some special memories about my Mom. Happy B-day mom!
*my mom is very caring and patient. she rarely raised her voice to us kids growing up. i don't know how she did it b/c i barely have a day when i don't raise my voice with my kids. it must be b/c i was such an angel.
*my mom has this upper lip thing that is so cute when she laughs. if you really get her going on something, look at her top lip, it'll make you laugh more.
*i used to love staying home from school sick as a kid. staying home = going to the dr. and then to McDonalds for lunch. of course, i'd have to take a nap if i stayed home. and what was up with the vacuum while i was trying to nap, mom? you couldn't wait till i woke up?
*my mom loves beach vacations! i love beach vacations. therefore, i love my mom! thanks, mom, for getting dad to spend all his money so we could enjoy some pretty sweet vacations growing up!
*my mom is so generous. she gives to so many people. she has blessed my family so much over the past 8/9 years. i believe she has the spiritual gift of giving. i believe God has blessed her and my dad because they understand that what they have is from God and they should give it when He tells them to give it.
*my mom has a disease called lupus. her joints can be pretty weak and she tends to get sick a lot. we joke that since she is sick so much, she will probably outlive all of us. she pushes through a great amount of pain and keeps trucking along. i am proud of her for that. i have never once heard her question God. what a lesson for me to learn! please pray that God cures her of lupus and gives my mother an extended period of great health!

well, that is a glimpse of my mother, if you haven't met her yet, your loss! i hope you can all spend time with her one day! Happy 60th B-day mom! (jk) i think she turned 35 today.

peace

snaps

(1) annie discovered how to snap her fingers yesterday. remember when you learned how to snap or whistle or skip? she wore her little fingers out by snapping so much. i think we'll need to ice them down today.

(2) i want to plug one of the books on my must reads . . . carry-on. my youth ministry mentor, SCOTTY GIBBONS, is the author and the book is a gold-mine. if you are new in youth ministry, a veteran of working with teens, or a non-youth person trying to be effective in ministry, this book is for you. check it out @ scottygibbons.com.

(3) yesterday, the Valantine family took a break. no meetings, no work, no get-togethers. we spent the day at home, lounging in comfortable clothes and racing our karts in the new Mario Kart for Wii. i am a big fan of Mario Kart! that's one game i am guaranteed to get my $$ worth.

(4) the next several days for XLR8 will be planning days for the summer and fall. i have sermon series to work on, X-Treme Days, and our big fall push (still need a good name for this if you have an idea)! i have learned, even more as of late, to pray like crazy before planning anything. i will be spending a good amount of time today in prayer. i want God to direct me and XLR8!

(5) i don't get much time to watch movies. i enjoy the moments i can sit around and experience a good flick. anyone seen a good movie lately that i could rent at the movie store? e-mail me or comment on this post if you have.

today could be the day that God does the thing you've been waiting for Him to do!

peace

sorry

i have not had internet access the past few days. i know some of you wait on this blog and struggle to make it through the day without these words (lol).

(1) we are in Dublin, Ohio at the 63rd Ohio District Council. the business that has taken place over the past few days is part of our A/G History in Ohio. Doug Clay has served as District Superintendent for the past four years. His leadership skills have elevated the Ohio District and him to the position of General Treasurer for the A/G. John Wooton has been voted in as our new District Sup. Please pray for him as he makes the transition from District Secretary to his new position.

(2) i miss my kids. we dropped them off at Amanda's parents on Monday. breaks are nice. as parents, you often need some time away from the stress of raising kids and the responsibility of making sure they don't hurt each other or themselves. each break i have from kids reminds me how much i love them. i have the best kids. i cannot wait to see what God has in store for them as the become personal participants in the kingdom of God!

(3) tonight, in XLR8, Youngstown Master's Commission will be leading our students closer to God. i am thankful for ministries that exist to prepare young adults for future ministry. it is a burden off my shoulders that they can lead the service tonight on the heels of being gone for 3 days. the past several weeks have been so amazing in XLR8! God's presence has been so real and we have experienced some great moves of His Spirit. come and check out XLR8 tonight at 7pm and see what GOd has in store for you!

(4) God has really been teaching me that prayer is the answer in every situation. i have been in the A/G (church) for 29 years. i have heard that prayer is important. i have seen it's effects. i know that i need top pray, and yet i don't pray enough. why? i have no answer except that i still don't get it. i am committing to pray like crazy over the next few weeks. i am not testing God, and yet i want to see what He can do through my prayers.

a few of my prayers:
(a) the salvation of my grandfather - Jim
(b) the future of Dayspring - under the direction of newly appointed lead pastor, scott estep
(c) a technical coordinator for XLR8
(d) my wife (she does so much and needs God's strength hourly!)

(5) i love coffee. i never used to drink it, but now i cannot get enough. i don't drink much regular coffee, but i love what i can get at Starbucks, the Flying Bean, etc. i really don't like the coffee taste, but i love sugar, flavored cream, chocolate, and whatever makes it taste so sweet. my drink of choice is: hot - vanilla chai latte, cold - raspberry mocha frozen drink.

peace

sun shining saturday

**the days i wake up and the sun is shining on me are my favorite. i am much more of a sun guy than a cloudy, rainy day guy.

(1) i am in Lexington, KY with out Teen Bible Quiz team. they had a good day yesterday, winning 6 out of 10 matches. if they do well today, they will be headed to Green Bay, WI for Nationals in July. I used to be quizzer. never made it to nationals, but was part of the 1997 State Champion team in Ohio.

(2) today, i was reading Daniel. Can you imagine if someone like Hillary Clinton were president and God gave you the interpretation to a dream she had. Would you have the boldness to tell her the meaning if it was bad news for her? daniel did that for the king, and he wasn't sharing good news with him. i pray i would have that kind of boldness.

**and what about the king's response. how many times did he have to see God do something before he started acknowledging that he was the one true God? seriously, the guy just didn't get it.

(3) X-Treme days will begin in 25 days in XLR8. i love the excitement that surrounds teams coming together, creatively planning their next big thing, motivating, encouraging, and competing for an ultimate prize. i like competition, let's not lie about it. however, when students play hard, they also pray hard. ever been to camp? i am believing for 50 new faces over 5 weeks, salvations, unity, and God to be God!

(4) Nash will be turning one on June 7th. i have a hard time remembering his birthday because he his due date was June 12th. anyone else have problems remembering dates? he is standing up leaning on tables and chairs. scooting around pretty good, and starting to say words. (first word = da da)! he is my favorite son!

(5) i have more to say, but am being pulled away for more Bible Quiz competition . . .

all time catcher

(1) last night was my first softball game of the year. actually, we played two games. i have been given the great honor of being the team catcher. in softball, this is the position for the guy on the team with the least talent. please keep all comments to yourself and stop laughing. i actually enjoyed it. 13 innings behind the plate. i got the chance to talk with the umpire, Woody, a lot. i got to know some of the batters on the other team. i actually made three outs, which is more than some of the other guys. today, i am sore! we won both games by the way and my batting avg is .625!

(2) an update on the pastoral search is that we have a candidate, Scott Estep, who preached this past sunday, is meeting with various ministries this week, and will be voted on this coming sunday. please pray for God's will at dayspring t be accomplished!

(3) tonight is the 2nd week in a row that XLR8 will be shortened (due to the town hall meeting with the pastoral candidate at 8pm). i am still believing for a great hour of worship with a guest missionary, Christina Miller. we will be talking about her adventures on the field and the impact prayer has had on her life. if you are coming tonight to XLR8, don't be late! the worship will be powerful. join us at 6:30pm for pre-service prayer!

(4) annie is back home after spending 2 days in Columbus with her cousins. she is growing up into a beautiful young lady. i believe God has big plans for all 3 of our children. last night, at the softball games, they were filthy after playing in the dirt. kaitie has a pony tail in and just looked adorable. nash has been sleeping through the night for over a month now. praise God!

(5) i am going to be starting a spiritual challenge in the area of resisting temptation this week. i believe God has greater things in store for me and i hold the key to unlock His blessings. the reality is that sin is everywhere. no matter what boundaries you set up, if your motives and desires are of the flesh and you allow yourself to entertain them for just a moment, you will fall into the enemy's traps. i am declaring an all out spiritual war for my soul! i am going on the offensive and i will win! please pray for me to be on guard 24/7, to resist the flesh and to become more like Jesus!

***If you need prayer in this area, please let me know! if you are not a blogger or if you don't want your comments to be publicized contact me by clicking on my profile and you can e-mail me direct.

new season

(1) dayspring is about to experience a new season of ministry. God orchestrated a powerful service yesterday with guest worship leader Lisa Ancira & Scott Estep, our pastoral candidate. the youth and young adults did sit together in the center section. some people were launched into panic when they showed up for church and found students in "their" seats. i loved it! scott estep loved it. he said, "get used to it!" maybe we will make i a regular seating arrangement.

(2) i was praying that my friend, Rich, would be able to attend church yesterday in light of his recent hospital stay. well, he was there! God answered our prayer, thanks, God! one phrase that God keeps giving me for Rich is, "you're gonna be okay." when i hear that phrase, a sense of peace comes over me. knowing that God is saying those words to us encourages me to make it through anything i face!

(3) my renewed passion for blogging has led me to some pretty skilled bloggers. why do i spend time reading other people's blogs? why would anyone do that? (lol - i think you are right now!) i do it because i respect some friends and leaders so much that i want to glean something from their lives. i want to hear what God is doing in them. i want to grow intellectually, ministerially, and spiritually . . . EVERY DAY! hopefully, you will grow in some way when you read my blog.

(4) okay, i have spared you a daily sport item in my blog, but i cannot resist any longer! many of you know that i am a die hard Toronto Blue Jays fan. WHY? well, when i was 5-6 yrs. old, i played t-ball for the jays. it stuck with me. last night, we met with our small group leaders and the entire family was dressed in Blue Jays gear. it makes me so proud! by now, you are wondering how the Jays are doing this year, right? well, we are in last place in our division, but we have won 4 in a row! baseball experts are saying that we have the BEST pitching staff in the MLB (all of baseball). WOOHOOO! Here we go blue jays, here we go!

(5) speaking of small groups (SG) . . . last night was everything i hoped and more from our SG leadership training. i want to share 5 items that students need from you if you are leading a small group (or working with students in an y capacity):

(A) students need CHALLENGED
*they need someone to push them out of their comfort zone in areas like: relationships, giving, time spent with God, leadership, and making good decisions

(B) students need you to BELIEVE IN THEM
*tell them this! look them in the eyes & tell them you believe in them. prove this to them by your actions. remember when someone believed in you?

(C) students need to KNOW YOU ARE REAL
*don't be fake and pretend you don't make mistakes or have struggles! allow them to see you are human too. don't take yourself too seriously. laugh at yourself and share embarrassing stories. this will earn you credibility!

(D) students need to hear TRUTH
*don't water it down. shoot straight and give them the truth, it "will set them free!" in a world where truth is relative, we still believe in absolutes. set the bar high and lead them to choose truth. we should show grace at times, but too much grace leads to students who don't set Godly standards.

(E) students need to KNOW YOU ARE IN FOR THE LONG HAUL
*people come and go. you need to persevere! students need you to hang with them even if they reject you are what you have to say. they will not forget the investment you make in their life. don't take things too personally. pray for them when they walk away and love them when they come back. stick it through. my mentor says, "ministry flows out of relationships, and relationships take time!

i hope that gives you some insight as you work with the students God has entrusted you with. if you are a youth worker, what other things would you say students desperately need from us?

not as easy as it seems

blogging daily is not that easy. sorry i missed a few days. i had the privilege of being in dublin, OH for the Honduras boot camp. i was away from an internet signal, so no chance to share the love.

(1) kids can be pretty amazing. i asked annie to ride with me to pick up some food tonight. she seemed so happy just to be with me. she was laughing and smiling at me. it made me feel like a million bucks! then a song came on the radio and we belted it out. it was one of those memorable moments.

(2) i am going to Honduras this summer and until this weekend, i have not thought much about the trip personally. i know God will do something in my heart on the trip, i just don't know what at this point. please pray along with me that God will show me what my purpose is for Honduras.

(3) tomorrow is a big day for our church. our pastoral candidate, scott estep is speaking and all the youth and young adults are supporting him by sitting in the center section together. i can't wait to see how the older people respond to this! (if you read this and are a part of youth or young adults at Dayspring, join in the fun tomorrow!)

(4) i visited with a man who attends Dayspring on Friday in the hospital. he had just been diagnosed with cancer, and yet his attitude was great. he was totally trusting God and his outlook challenged me. he believed, as he should, that God was in control and that he would gain nothing by worrying. God was truly taking him through a growing moment, a trial . . . and he was passing with flying colors! i was blessed to spend a portion of my day with him. Thanks, Rich!!

(5) yesterday, on the way to the boot camp, i drove the 15 passenger church van through the worst conditions i have driven in a long time. the rain was so loud, i couldn't hear people talking on the van, and the radio wasn't even on. i am just thankful that we made it.

well, off to bed . . . anticipating an amazing day tomorrow.