Philippines or Bust Pt.3
travel
The Philippines or Bust Pt 2
Made it to New York. Preparing to fly into the future.
All About the People…People…People!
Well this week has been a week of preparation for our 10 day journey to the Philippines for my son’s wedding. It has run like most trip prepapration weeks I have experienced. You know what I mean, I got all the bills paid up to date. I have written the “how to operate the Vicarage manual” for Amanda and Melanie. I have done the grocery shopping for the time I am away. I have made sure Mom’s meds are ready for the time I am gone. I filled the sand bucket in case of snow and bought a new shovel to replace the one I broke. I stocked up on dog food and bird food. I have packed ans repacked for the trip. I schedule blogs ahead for the time I am gone….and…and…and….Anything that is not done at the house at this point is just going to have to wait.
Getting ready for this trip though has been different than prepping for others I have taken. In times past it was all about the jobs I had to get done before I left. This time it has been about the people I had to reach out to before I left.
There were the post Christmas letters I had to write and the thank yous. There was the dinner I had to have with the deacon and the friends I had to have coffee and prayer with before I took off. There was the show I needed to go to and the people of the church I had to enjoy it with. There was the stop off to see my friends at Special Touch Ministries and then of course there was coffee with the staff one last time before I hit the blue skies. Finally just this morning as we went up to Keene to put my son’s wedding money in his account there was the final coffee with my daughter at Starbucks.
Over the last two years something in me has changed. Maybe it’s my age or the time of life I am in. Maybe it is my spiritual growth. I am finding that the jobs I do are not as important as the people I do them with.
As I head off on this little adventure, it is not the job I am going to miss. It’s the people…people…people. The preparation I have done has helped me to be able to take them with me in my heart.
Rushing Headlong!
Well the count down has begun! We are now just over two days from our trip to The Philippines to take part in Kristine and Joe’s wedding.
The preparation to leave has our heads spinning. I typed out the list on how to manage the house for Amanda and Melanie who will be caring for Mom Jacopo, Mercedes and the Vicarage while Brenda and I are away. I have sat with the families from the church who will be helping them out during our away time. I picked up Mom’s meds, did some grocery shopping, got money out of the bank for their needs while I am away, bought the dog food and the bird food and the cat food. I still have to clean my car, do the bills, pack and clean my office.
But as the time approaches Brenda and I are reminded that our leaving for there does not mean life stops here. So much is going on this weekend and in our absence.
Brenda’s show debuted last night to rave reviews! It is a powerful show folks. If your church or community would like to book this show you can contact Brenda at Brenda J. Lillie For the Netherlands on Facebook.
Meanwhile our church is getting ready for 21 days of fasting and prayer. I feel like this is one of the most important moments in our church’s history.
Today after we open the 24/7 prayer and fasting I am heading off to Special Touch Ministries for our monthly gathering in Westminster. Then I have the 11P.M. – 1A.M. shift at prayer
Tomorrow, Brenda is preaching in Taunton MA and I am leading worship at Cornerstone and then Amanda, my Nephew Tyler and I are heading off on a little journey to wrap things up before Brenda and I take off on Monday for…
Run the Earth and Watch the Sky
The ministers of the Vicarage have definitely been running the Earth this Memorial Day weekend. I cannot speak for Brenda and Amanda, but I think I shirked my responsibility to watch the sky these last few days. That is never a good thing.
Friday began with grocery shopping and then a day of admin work at the church. I got a bit carried away with accomplishing tasks. It felt good to be making headway on paperwork (one of the banes of my existence). I was doing so well I kept putting prayer off until it was too late.
Brenda and I had a 4 P.M. engagement with friends from church to go see Shakespeare.
It was a great night out in Worcester! Thanks Ken and Betty, Brenda and I had such a good time!
By the time we pulled into the Vicarage I was ready to just collapse into bed. I did and then proceeded to sleep through my alarm which was set to give me time to pray before Amanda and I had to hit the softball fields in Baldwinville MA for Cornerstone’s annual softball tourney.
My job at the tournament was to call “Play Ball!” For each game, to keep time and then call end of game. Then I had to collect all the score sheets and fill out the master round-robin double-elimination chart so everyone could see where they stood in the ranks.
Amanda’s job was to stamp the hands of everyone as they got their free ice cream from the concession truck.
She got a pretty good sun burn during her two hours of duty, even though she was reapplying sun block every 30 minutes.
While we were having a blast at the softball tournament Brenda was driving to Onset MA for the first of three services and a picnic she was attending with The Bridge Onset and The Bridge Carver.
By the time Amanda and I got home from the softball tournament it was time to walk the dogs and answer all mom’s questions about the family’s coming and going. She was pretty confused about where everyone was and why they had gone.
After supper and walking the dogs for their final time, I was so tired I again just plopped in bed. I awoke at 3:30 A.M. and realized I was not just physically tired. I was spiritually depleted and in deep need of spiritual refreshment. I jumped into 2 and 1/2 hours of prayer which I needed just to get my head on straight before church. Running the Earth can be fun for a time but when it is not coupled with watching the sky it can cause some real internal issues which take time to work through (at least for me by Sunday morning my attitude was pretty bad).
After a few hours of preparatory prayer I was ready to lead worship at Cornerstone. After service Amanda and I paid a visit to one of our parishioners in the hospital. Then we went home so Amanda could finish packing for her trip to South Carolina.
I dropped her at Logan airport this morning at 2 A.M.. She is off on the next adventure!
The Gauntlet Begins
The gauntlet began yesterday for Brenda. She preached at Living Word Assembly of God in Worcester MA. Her original plan was to preach, have lunch and then hit the road to get as far South as she could by 8 P.M. She was heading to the Appalachian District Council in West Virginia.
When she got to Worcester though she realized she had forgotten an essential bag of supplies for the council. So after lunch she traveled the hour back to the Vicarage for the bag.
She finally hit the road about 4:30 P.M. last night and made it as far as Bethlehem PA before stopping for the night.
She got a fresh start this morning and was to her venue sometime around 5 P.M. She has a suite!
It looks like a nice place to rest her head for the next few days. Be praying that she is able to make some connections with new supporters for the ministry.
If you would like to help Brenda with the building The Bridge Artist’s Ministry you can contact her at gonetherlandsag.com
Notes From the Vicarage 