Madison and the Temple of Doom

Here's Madison on our stage today - we're still working on the upcoming Summer Xtreme.  Those stone ruins are all styrofoam, of course.  When asked to do a pose on stage, this was her best effort.  I love the hand going up, as if she's a fashion model in the Temple of Doom.

Here's another picture of Madison helping with the balloons.  She's done quite a bit of work helping us set up, and we're awfully proud of her.  This is pretty much all there is to write about lately - just more Summer Xtreme set-up.  Mommy is getting the costumes together, while Madison is working on balloons, sorting things and having a good time.  Here's another mini-message, a devotional entry related to our upcoming Wildfire theme:

     Are you a Fire Starter? Many times throughout the Old Testament, the people of Israel had lost that warm relationship with God.  They had other gods to worship, and other things to do that weren’t pleasing God at all.  

     Today, things aren’t so hot either.  We have new idols – television, video games, music, and more.  Anything that takes up more of your time – anything that takes you away from God – can be an idol.  These things can be okay on their own, but be careful how much time you spend with them.

     The people of Israel weren’t careful, and things were getting pretty chilly. Fortunately, there was a fire starter on the way.  His name was Elijah, and he was about to light things up and change the world.

     If you want a fire like that, it took three things:  sacrifice, kindling, and a spark.  The sacrifice was there on the fire, but behind the scenes, Elijah had been sacrificing for quite some time with fasting and prayer.  He was preparing the environment, getting ready to set a blaze!

     The kindling was beyond simple dry wood though.  Can you believe Elijah added water of all things? That sort of kindling takes a whole lot of faith, doesn’t it?  But that’s just what we need:  faith is the kindling that gets God’s attention, and gets things ready to catch fire.

     The final step was the spark.  Can you imagine the boldness Elijah had, challenging all those priests on Mt. Carmel, and putting his life on the line?  The spark of wildfire started that day:  Elijah’s boldness stoked things up when he told the people to choose this day who they would serve.  Soon, news of his amazing story blazed a path all over Israel.  

     Elijah got a fire roaring in Israel, no doubt.  But you can be too, with sacrifice, faith and boldness.  Just like Elijah, you can be a fire starter!

     Madison has been out of school for a week now, and here we are officially in Summer break.  Of course, it's not officially summer yet.  But Spring Xtreme just doesn't have that same sound to it, now does it?

     Anyway, it's a busy few days we have left.  But it's neat to be working together as a family towards this big goal.  We're all in it together, helping set up a great weekend for a lot of kids!