I looked at the notice in a summer Christian Century. Walter Brueggemann and Barbara Brown Taylor were going to be speaking at at 3–day event in Georgia. Brueggemann’s topic was Jeremiah, and Taylor’s was about spiritual practices.
I remember being intrigued by the opportunity. They are both favorites of mine. But the distance and time made it prohibitive in my mind. So I had dismissed it as an interesting but impossible event.
In August Bev and I celebrated our 39th anniversary in San Francisco. We exchanged gifts to commemorate the event. Her gift came in a shirt box. It was very light, so I had no clue what was in it. When I opened the box I was surprised to find the paperwork and all reservations for the Florida event. So all I had to do was pack my bags and go.
As I write this I am sitting in the airport in Jacksonville, Florida waiting for my connector flight to Houston. The conference is over, and what is left are some notes and a warm glow. The conference was a delight to the mind. Eight hours of lecture gave me much to think about.
More comments will follow in subsequent blog entries. However, the last three days reminded me of the need I have to receive occasional, self-indulgent refreshment like I just received at the feet of Brueggemann and Taylor. It is impossible to provide meaningful ministry on an empty tank.
At LifeSpring Church we believe that everybody should be able to participate as fully as they would like. So we give people ample opportunity to volunteer to lead congregational prayers, read scripture, and provide the Lord’s Supper meditation, which we call the “table talk.” 
Our California grandsons had never seen snow, so our son suggested a family trip up to the mountains. We didn’t know how far we would have to go. At Mariposa we asked some locals at Burger King where we should go. “Go to Fish Camp,” they said. “Tenaya Lodge has a groomed sled run on their property, and it’s a great place to take kids.”
Today, December 1, was the day of Merced’s annual Christmas parade. The parade route went down Main Street right past Playhouse Merced. LifeSpring was invited to put up a table inside the Playhouse entry way, right next to the sidewalk. We all thought that was a good idea, although we didn’t know what to expect.
When our daughter was in high school and feeling omniscient, she had a phrase that she used to repel any attempt to enlighten her or explain some idea. The word was “whatever,” and it was guaranteed to stop any further conversation as she served notice that she had no interest at all in what was being said by her parent. “Whatever” was the ultimate definition of indifference or scorn. Fortunately, she outgrew this.
I found out last Friday that a friend had died. I knew her at a previous church for which I worked. She had been an insulin dependent diabetic since age 3. I was always impressed by her personal discipline. Had she not been, I doubt she would have survived until her late 50’s.
MonoLogue 