skim boarding and sewer tunnels ...

my family and I just walked the Pier in downtown San Clemente ...

every year, we spend a week of family vacation on the beach ... we eat Pedro's tacos, build sand castles in the sand, and sit around in glorious hot tubs ... life's a beach ... tonight, we took a family walk on the Pier ... we watched surfers and ate pink cotton candy ... my kids nail cotton candy like champions ... pure sugar rush to the head ...

last night, Sean Gafner talked me into a late night skim boarding adventure (Sean always has some crazy idea) ... we hopped in the car around 10 o' clock p.m. and went searching for the nearest Walmart to buy a skim board ... since most of the beaches are closed at night, we parked in a dark parking lot and walked through a sewer tunnel to the ocean ... we finally arrived around midnight ... we didn't have board shorts, so we skimmed in our boxers ... late night boxer midnight moment with Sean ... priceless!

we skimmed the night away in the moonlight ... I'm hooked!

a long day ...

woke up late this morning (saw Coldplay at Sleep Train last night) ...
spent a few hours at Starbucks drinking coffee (reading Acts & Ephesians & 1st Samuel 30) ...
ate pizza ...
met with Emily and talked about the Stirring Kids ...
signed a few checks ...
responded to almost 130 emails (grateful for typing class in high school) ...
Red Robin with Matt and Erica parsons ...
life group at the Gafner's (steak & potato salad) ... I love our church ...
met with Darby Anderson about 'the Way' ...
called my wife in Sacramento ... (I miss my family) ...
watching a film about a cop who chases down bad guys with a gun ... (yep) ...
keeping up my blog reputation ...

poets, prophets, and preachers ...

I just spent the past weekend in Grand Rapids, Michigan, soaking up the Poets, Prophets, and Preachers, a conference hosted by Rob Bell of Mars Hill, Shane Hipps, author of Flickering Pixels, and Peter Rollins, author of How (Not) to Speak of God. When I found out about this conference, I knew I had to be there. I bought a plane ticket the next week. Sometimes, you just know you've got to be there.

The heart of the conference: Reclaiming the Art of the Sermon

Here were some of the session titles: (provoking to say the least!)

The Original Guerilla Theatre (Rob Bell)
The Story We’re Telling (Rob Bell)
Returning to the New: An Introduction to Tranformance Art (Peter Rollins)
How Technology Shapes the Sermon (Shane Hipps)
The Fig Tree and the Failure of Language (Rob Bell)
Fumbling Around with Your Radar (Rob Bell)
For Those With Ears to Hear: Parables and the Lost Art of Provocation (Peter Rollins)
You are the Medium (Shane Hipps)
The One Thing I’ve Never Heard Someone Talk About That Has Changed Everything For Me (Rob Bell)

I took 15 hard core pages of notes ... I leaned forward in my chair 3 days straight ... my head hurts, but my spirit is alive ...

More than anything, I have a wider lens through which to read the Scriptures ... I have a new set of questions as I approach theology ... I have a new passion for teaching and preaching ... I have a renewed love for God's story ... (and I have a great idea for our Fall series) ... just wait and see ...

my girls ...

here are few new pictures of our girls ... Alicia (4 months), Adiah (4), and Ava (6) ...