Scenes from an orchard...

Below are pictures of the apple orchard we went to back on October 10th. My computer prevented me from posting them sooner, but check out the fun that we had and who went!

Joey & Pam along with Christopher holding pumpkins. 

The first baby of The Journey - Mylee Grace Trombley. 

Pastor & his kids on the hayride. 

The Trombleys take a break to feed the kids. 

Tim & Flo and family at the orchard on October 3!
 

Kayla Willis and Silas Thompson pose for a picture

Kayla Willis and Silas Thompson pose for a picture at the orchard.

Kyle & Amber with the kids at the orchard. 

The Kesselring crew posing for a picture at the orchard. 

The Greenes at the orchard.  

Lee & Joanne and their son Silas at the orchard. 

The Willis' family at the orchard

Sunday, November 28, 2004

Today I preached the first message in the series, From Humbug to Hallelujah - a sermon series celebrating Advent and the Christmas season. This year we are making a concerted effort to not wait until Christmas to celebrate the coming of Jesus to the earth. It is so typical for us as Baptists to neglect anything that remotely resembles Christian tradition for fear of being too "Catholic", but the fact is that the early church and the church throughout the centuries has established the Christian calendar with Advent, Epiphany, and Lent (to name a few) to help us remember what God has done and give us a calendar to celebrate with. So we used an Advent wreath (the first time I have ever seen one used in a Baptist church) and celebrated the first week of Advent, which is preparing for the coming of Christ. It was good. The music left much to be desired because of some confusion with the power point. The music was selected well, dealing with preparing for Christ's coming (Come Thou Long Expected Jesus and O Come, O Come Emmanuel), but the execution was not good. Oh well - these things happen, right?!

This was the completion of the Thanksgiving weekend, and we were WAY down in attendance because of vacations as well as illness. We only had 46 (which three months ago would have been a great attendance!), but the Spirit was present. We had Christine, Joey's sister with us, and she seemed to be moved by the message. Kim and Andy were with us again, and I think Andy is ready to make a commitment to us beyond the occasional attending. Rod and Elizabeth have done a tremendous job in ministering to them. I have to meet with Andy and Kim on Thursday evening, and I am looking forward to fielding some of their questions.

So while it was a below average day attendance-wise, we had a good day this first week of Advent, and God continues to bless The Journey.

Sunday, November 21, 2004

Today was a historic day for us, as we celebrated our second annual Thanksgiving dinner at The Journey. We had 94 people join us for a homestyle, sit-down meal, and all of the guests were friends and family of our people. It was great to meet so many new people (Grant, Lisa, Pam to name a few) and I pray that God uses that time as an impetus toward growth for us. I will post pictures when I get them later on.

But our morning service was also great. We had 71 people with us, including some visitors from Floyd Harris' family - his daughter Katrina and (husband, boyfriend?) Ricky, along with her daughter Margarita. Katrina and Ricky were in the service as I preached on Celebrating Thanksgiving, in which I did present the gospel. Both Katrina and Ricky indicated that they prayed with me when I led in a prayer of surrender and salvation to God, and Katrina came up to the altar afterwards. It was great. Now they are from Rhode Island, and Floyd is trying to get her to move back up to New Hampshire, so we will see. But God continues to use The Journey to change lives!

After the baptism on 11/14/04, Rod led our congregation in a time of prayer with Sergeant James Smith of the US Army. James is currently serving in Afghanistan, but his wife, Candace has been with us for several months. We prayed for James' safety, and we hope to have him back with us again soon. 

Baptizing Ralph Johnson on 11/14/04. Ralph has been a Christian for awhile, and today decided along with his wife to get baptized. He is energetic and desiring to do whatever he can at the church. 

Baptizing Mary Johnson on 11/14/04. Mary was saved back in August (although I don't remember exactly when), and she has been faithful to The Journey and a blessing to me. 

Baptizing Floyd Harris on 11/14/04. Floyd got saved one week after his wife on October 24th (see blog), and Floyd enthusiasm and desire to get involved have encouraged me so much.  

Baptizing Julie Harris on 11/14/04. Julie became a believer back on October 17th (see blog from that date). Julie's excitement about what God has done in her life has been wonderful to witness. 

Baptizing Chaz Trombley on 11/14/04. Chaz became a Christian on September 19 (see previous blog for that day), and I am thrilled with how God has been working in his life. 

Baptizing Shay Bennett on 11/14/04. Shay was saved on November 8th, and her life has experienced a dramatic turnaround. She is excited about God working in her life, and is eager to serve God.

Baptizing Cheri Cocco on 11/14/04. Cheri was saved last year, and has been pretty faithful to The Journey ever since. She decided to get baptized today, and is eager to serve God more at The Journey.

Baptizing Lydia DeBenedictis on 11/14/04. Lydia is the daughter of Tim, and is a sweet young girl. She wanted to obey the Lord and so she got baptized.

Here comes trouble - Krista and Donna share a moment. 

Flo and Cheri (front), Pam and Sue (middle), and Audrey are all smiles during the retreat. 

Cheri, Amber and Karla talk during a break. 

The whole Journey ladies group at the ladies retreat 2004. What a great bunch! 

Krista and Joanne chum it up.