woo hoo! finally made it!

it is finally here, the last day in september. somedays i thought that it would never come, and other days i just decided to act like it was october so i didn't have to blog. oops, my bad. i know that i missed a few days here and there, but some months only have 28 days so i figure i'm good.

and you would think that since this is my last blog of a blog every day i would have some profound new knowledge about life or the blogging world. sorry to burst your bubble, but i don't. blogging everyday is just like any other discipline. you just have to do it. even when it is the last thing you want to do, or you are really tired.

and i think that goes along with anything in life that is worth doing. sometimes you just have to do it. stick with it, endure whatever is going on, and one day you will be done with it, and you will have emerged changed. maybe not in some drastic way, but you will still be changed.

our relationship with God is like that, our relationships with others, things in our lives that we have to do, things that God calls us to do.

we must make it a discipline, something that we do no matter what happens. unless it's blogging then you can have exceptions.

see you in october.....

Mile 12 of the Blogs

I feel like I'm in mile 12 of a half-marathon of blogging. It's day 29 out of the 30 days of September. I'm so close to finishing this marathon of blogging, yet it still feels so far away.
But I guess I'll push on and make these last two blogs count.
I can't say today was incredibly eventful. Just another full day of life and ministry and all the little things that come up unexpectedly. Planning ahead is great and all, but real life never looks like the plan. Maybe that's more true of being a Pastor than of a 8 to 5 job. It was good day though. A few unplanned events, a guitar lesson, a game of battleship during supper, work at the church and now hopefully a good movie and a good nights sleep.
I'll write my finale blog tommorrow so be sure to catch it!

Until then .... Bye!

Pinedale Half - Marathon

Audrey and I ran in our first Wyoming half-marathon this last Saturday. We ran one in Mason City, IA last October. The race on Saturday was in Pinedale, WY. We had to leave Kemmerer, at 5:30 a.m. drove for 2 hours and ended up at the race start at 7:30 a.m. We picked up our packets, which at races you get all kinds of good free stuff. So we got a really nice long sleeve t-shirt, chapstick, sunscreen, a water bottle, and lots of other little goodies.

There were about 80 or 90 people signed up to do the half-marathon, and Audrey finished 6th out of the women and I finished 20th out of the men. She was 16th overall and I was 32nd overall. She finished with a time of 1 hour 53 minutes and 54 seconds, and I finished in 2 hours and 1 minute.

We split up at mile 8, and after mile 12 is what killed me. We hadn't trained too long for this race, and the farthest we went was 12 miles in training and i could tell. The race course was pretty hard as well, lots of hills, no food, and only water at intermitent stations.

I had my new shoes on and my insole moved up on the inside of my right foot at about mile 4 and half, and i got the hugest nastiest blister from running on it the rest of the way. they had a free barbeque for anyone there after the race. it was a good day, and i'm still sore today! Here are some pictures that Audrey's mom and dad took. We will be getting more later, and there should be more pics soon at www.pinedalehalfmarathon.com.

The home stretch. Coming towards the finish line!

I'm not really sure what I was looking at here, that's where the food was going to be served though.

After the race was over, stretching with Audrey and Rich.

This is coming back down a road that goes up above Fremont Lake, which we ran partly around. The trees are changing colors and it was georgeous.

bible instruction course

audrey and i started a bible instruction course tonight in rock springs with the e-free church there. it was a lot of fun, and we have a whole text book, with tests, syllabi, and the whole "college course" shebang.

i think it will be a really good thing, and we are learning more and more about God's Word, that is eternal and will last forever.

it's late, and i'm exhausted... so sorry for nothing really long. but the point is that i blogged today!

Remember My Toe Story?

as i said last night, i would try and deal with my blood blister thing/deal if it hadn't gotten any better by today. so i wore flip flops all day hoping that might make a difference. but it didn't. so this afternoon when i got home, i clipped my toenail and stuck a needle underneath it! and here is the final result of what happened!

it didn't even hurt!

and hopefully now i will be able to run the half-marathon on saturday pain free (well at least on that toe anyway).

september is coming to a close...

not sure if i said anything about it or not, because my memory isn't that great, but audrey and i ran 12 miles on sunday in preparation for our half-marathon that is coming up on saturday. just thought you'd like to know. and i have a huge blood blister thing/deal under my second toenail on my right foot. and maya chewed up my other running shoes, so i had to buy new ones when we were in provo for the football game. i think running the 12 miles in the new shoes had something to do with it. but i tell you all this as a precursor to the good part of this story. i got to play basketball tonight with a bunch of guys. they play every tuesday and thursday night at 8:00 p.m., and it was a blast. it totally felt like i was back in haviland playing pickup games. but my basketball shoes are packed away in who knows where, so i opted for wearing my new asics running shoes, which destroyed my second toe even worse. needless to say it is incredibly tender this evening, and if all is not well before saturday i'm going to have to get a hot needle and poke my way through my toenail to let out the blood.

i thought it was an interesting story....

Football Game

Audrey and I got to go watch UW play BYU this past Saturday down in Provo, UT. It was a blast, even though Wyoming got destroyed. The whole atmosphere of college football is a lot of fun. We sat in the Wyoming section so we weren't total outcasts. I bet the percentage of UW fans there was less than 10 percent. And on our way out, we saw the UW semi where they load all of the gear, so we took some pictures in front of it. People were looking at us like we were crazy, but it was fun.

exhaustion settles into your bones like the cold

these past two days have been extremely busy. thursday audrey and i drove 2 hours into utah, for an intermountain west district board meeting. we went to logan, ut... and the only way to get there is to drive through this massive canyon, which is beautiful but also very hard to manuever a vehicle through.

so we were at the meetings from 11:00 a.m. until 5:00 p.m. with a 2 hour drive home. needless to say we went to bed last night at 8:30 p.m. reason number one was we got up stinkin early, spent all day driving, sitting, listening, etc... and reason number two is that i subbed at the high school all day today.

it is now 8:30 p.m. on friday night, and i'm laying in bed... feeling old because i'm ready to go to sleep at 8:30 p.m. on a friday night. but tomorrow is another big day with the UW football game!

i'm going to sleep by 9:00 p.m. on a friday night and i'm proud of it!

Making Up For Last Wednesday

Today was a pretty busy day. But one of the highlights of the day was a little guitar lesson that I had this morning with a guy from our church named Don. I am borrowing a guitar and wanting to learn so that I can play on Sunday mornings and at other services. So I now have a few guitar books, a tuner, a stand, and my first lesson.

Don used to be a band director, and he is a great teacher! It was such a blast, I totally forgot about everything else going on in life and just had fun learning something new. We are working through a Hal Leonard Book, and it comes with an cd that has the songs on there as well, so you can play along with the songs.

Anyway, it was a lot of fun... and my fingers hurt.

Looking Forward At Things To Come

Since it is the middle of September, I have seem to run out of things that are incredibly exciting to blog about, and since I made a pact that I would try and blog everyday in September the task is becoming more difficult.

Yet, I am looking forward to a few things coming up that I know will be fun to blog about. The first one of those is that Audrey and I are going to the UW vs. BYU football game on Saturday in Provo, UT. I am stoked to watch some college football live and in person. And root for the Cowboys, even though they aren't doing so hot.

The next big thing is our half-marathon on Sept. 27. Our training is going okay, there are some days where I sure don't want to go (today was one of those days).

So those are the next 2 big things that i'm looking forward to.

you will have to wait in anticipation for the blogs about them!

Public Restrooms

I was in a public restroom this morning, and there were 4 stalls. Two were occupied, one was being cleaned, and the one at the very end was open. So I started for the open one only to be cut off by the cleaning dude. He had just finished the one he was in, and was ready to clean the open stall that I was going to occupy. I obliged to his request being the nice person that I am, and I was going to use the stall that he just came out of.

Only I was cut off by some other guy who had just walked in! So now I am stuck standing in the public restroom waiting for a stall. Then this other trucker guy comes in, looks at me, looks at all the stall doors that are closed and he yells, "Standing room only! Let's hurry up and get out of here!" In his best raspy trucker voice... Then he left!

Anyway, I thought it was hilarious, and blog worthy.

the 14th

here we are just about half way through september. it is crazy to think that time has gone that fast. it seems like august was yesterday. and now fall is definetly on its way. here are some random things that happened today:

i had corndogs for lunch

i took a hour and a half long nap

i wore my bass pro shops hat

at maverick they have buy one fuze get one free

the moon rising up over oyster ridge was beautiful tonight

the t.v. show wipeout is hilarious it's on abc

maya was eating ramen noodles (she's my dog)

and last but not least, i had some ice cream for dessert tonight

Saturday Night Fever

you might think that i will be blogging about dancing or something like that... sorry to disappoint.

i actually got sick tonight, not sure what it was or why it happened, but my stomach has been in massive turmoil ever since lunch. i'll put the circumstances together and let you be the "doctor". it's like one of those mystery diagnosis shows on TLC or something.

I had cereal for breakfast, a granola bar for a snack and then i ran 8 miles. came home, picked up dog poo in the yard, and then had lunch (a chicken sandwich with some cauliflower) then my stomach began it's opposition to my body.

so there you have it... you be the judge, was it the 8 miles? was it the sandwich? was it just a case of the 24 hour flu? i sure don't know... but it is getting better.

goodnight

Here Goes Another Entry Into September

I subbed for the first time in the High School today at Kemmerer. I was in the automotive/welding/trades class. Good thing that all I had to do was make them watch a video on the computer, and explain a worksheet that they had to do. It went pretty well, and I will actually be subbing for the same teacher all day next Friday. And I only had to take one cell phone away today.

As I announced earlier Audrey and I are running in a half-marathon on Sept. 27th in Pinedale, WY. Tomorrow marks the farthest that we will have ran so far since our last half-marathon in Mason City, IA in October of last year. 8 miles on Saturday, 4 miles on Sunday, 5 miles on Monday, 6 miles Tuesday, 7 miles Wednesday, Rest Thursday, 12 miles on Friday, rest on Saturday... and then working our way back down for recuperation the next week before the race. It didn't sound as bad until I just typed it all out, and now it seems like a lot! But it should be a lot of fun, our last one was anyway. I just need my parents to come out and support us like they did in Iowa! Hint, Hint, mom and dad.

Ecclesiastes Ch. 4:1-8 is lined up for Sunday. It's a good passage of Scripture that deals with real things in life. Envy, wanting what someone else has; Money, always wanting more; Oppression, bad things happening to innocent people... good stuff to think about.

See you tomorrow... if you're lucky

My Sincerest Apologies

To all of my faithful blog readers, I apologize; i did not blog yesterday. i had the fullest intentions, but time seemed to slip through my fingers yesterday. it was a busy day, and i was going to blog after our Wednesday night Church service a.k.a. Nooma Night, but Audrey wasn't feeling so hot, and I was pretty tired, so I forgot.

I subbed at the Kemmerer Middle School today. I got paid for 2 hours of work and only had to teach a class for 45 minutes. it wasn't too bad. Tomorrow I'm subbing at the H.S. for an automotive and welding class. Wish me luck.

signing off until tomorrow

The Best (Sarcasm) Movie I Have Ever Seen

last night i went to watch a movie with audrey, and a couple of our friends lia and alyssa. now i know what you are thinking. those are all female names, and jadon you are a male. and as you read this right now you are thinking something else, three girls vs. one guy, what kind of movie will be watched?

well, you are right, it was a chick flick. don't get me wrong, there is nothing wrong with "girly" movies, unless you are a guy. but i haven't disclosed the worst part. you are probably wondering what movie it was, and that my friends is the worst part. not only was it a chick flick, it was also a musical!

MAMMA MIA! ahhhhh... yes, i admit that i watched it. in a theatre where others could see me.

i just think that they should make a manly musical. that would be sweet. throw in some hard rock, some screaming, drums, electric guitar. and have the plot be about some singing cop who is chasing a world-class thief who is also in a rock band. obviously the world-renown rock band is his cover up, and it's the singing cops job to go undercover and get a part in the rock band and discover how they are stealing everything.

now that would be a great musical....

committed by default

on september 27th there is a half-marathon (13.1 miles) in pinedale, wy. pinedale is about an hour and a half away from us. and last night audrey and i decided that we would sign up to run it. we have 3 weeks to get ready, and the farthest that i have ran since our last half marathon in october of last year is probably 6 or 7 miles.

so needless to say it is going to be interesting. we have a running plan scheduled, and hopefully we are ready by then. since we signed up and already paid the money i am committed by default to run.

our last half-marathon we finished in just over 2 hours. so we will see what we can finish this one in!

sunday, sunday, sunday...

today was a big day. audrey and i were down at the church at 9:00 a.m. getting everything ready for our 10:30 service. audrey lead our worship time, and we needed to go over and practice the songs, i had a powerpoint presentation to put on the computer, and we needed to get everything ready for communion. i spoke on ecc. 3:12-22.

the service went really good, and i totally believe that God was there amongst us. i am pretty sure that it was the most people that we have had at church so far. it is really exciting to see what God is doing and how He is working in people's lives. It is all about Him, and i'm praying for miracles to happen here in kemmerer.

so far, so good on my blogging everyday in september. i am actually amazed that i have remembered to do it everyday. i almost forgot today until just now. but i guess its good to do later at night sometimes because then you have more to write about that has happened to you during the day.

night....

gone all day long

audrey and i were in salt lake city all day today. we left at 5:23 a.m. this morning because audrey ran in a 10k race. it was an all women's race, and she did awesome. there were around 600 participants and audrey got 2nd place overall.

she won 60 bucks for a running store gift certificate, and also got some spending money at the nike outlet store.

we received some money from a couple in the church to go out on a date, so we ate lunch at ruby tuesday's and had ourselves a great date! i got baby back ribs and they were stinkin good. after lunch we headed over the the outlet stores and shopped around.

it was a great day, incredibly fun, and completely draining. oh, yeah. we also stopped by the hospital and saw a newborn baby of another couple in the church. it's their first baby, and he was beautiful. it's amazing what God can do isn't it?

Finally Friday

i just dropped off maya at a boarding place. audrey is running a 10k race in utah tomorrow, and maya would have been a nuisance so we get to forget about her for about 24 hours which is a nice break. i totally understand how parents can't wait for a babysitter sometimes. we will actually get to go into stores tomorrow and eat somewhere besides fast food because we won't have to worry about maya.

i am also completely ready for the weekend. even though it's been a shorter week with labor day and all, it feels really long. i'm ready for a break, and salt lake city will be a nice little getaway. i'm also excited about church on Sunday. excited what God is going to do in the service, and to hear how people have seen God throughout the week.

good friday, good bye...

Here It Is...

We had our first Wednesday Night Small Group Study last night here at Valley Evangelical Free Church. We had a good turn out, and some great discussion. One person said, "It gave them a lot to chew on for the rest of the night." Thanks to Alyssa for babysitting the kiddies.

All in all I think it turned out really well. Everyone who came said they enjoyed the laidback format (we had coffee and dessert), and the fellowship.

I am preaching on Ecclesiastes Ch. 3:12-22 this week. We are slowly working our way through all of Solomon's thoughts on life. So I'm preparing for that today, lots of reading, praying and studying and trying to organize all of my thoughts.

That's all I got for today. Have a great Thursday. Adios.

Sept. 3 - Wednesday

Three days down, only 27 more days to go. This morning Audrey and I were reading a devotional with thoughts from C.S. Lewis. He was talking about war, and how we as humans continue to go about our "normal" routine while a war is going on. That if we would wait until there was peace to search and discover new things, that the search would never start. Yet at the same time he said it was different with animals. Bees make sure their hive is secure and protected before they start to search for flowers and nectar, and make honey. While we as humans sit around and talk about mathematical equations while our city is getting bombed, or combing our hair while marching to battle. So I'm not totally sure what his point was. Either 1. We are supposed to continue to do things during "war" times in our lives, which seems like a lot. or 2. We are supposed to take care of the "war" first and then do the other things in our lives.

Spiritually it seems that if you are in a battle, it would be wise to put the "battle" at the front of your to-do list. Because if you went on with life while the battle was still raging on, 1. You wouldn't be fully in the "battle" and 2. All the other things in your life would be directly affected by the "battle" so the other things in life wouldn't be as good as they could be without the "battle".

It's like trying to constantly live with a big hump on your back. You can have surgery to get it removed, or you can try and go about your daily tasks with it still attached. At first it might seem okay, you can adjust your lifestyle for the big humps sake. But after a while, it would get very burdensome and tedious. You couldn't sit down right, you would have to sleep on your stomach or side, everytime you went through a door you would have to duck. Cutting it off would be painful, but in the end, totally worth it.

just a few thoughts....

Cutting Down Trees

well, i didn't blog the past few days before september started because i wanted to have something interesting to write about for the first few days at least. this past saturday audrey and i went up into the mountains with a family from our church (the brewers!) and we helped them cut down dead trees, chop them up, split up the wood, load all the wood in a trailer, haul the wood back down to kemmerer, and then unload all the wood so that they can be nice and warm this winter.

it was a lot of fun. i got to cut down a tree, and it didn't land on top of me which was good. i don't think anybody got hurt too bad with the whole tossing of logs and things. maya got to run around like crazy all through the woods, she loved it.

and the crazy thing is that it snowed a little bit here on labor day, yes, sept. 1st. snow. but today it is supposed to get up to 70 and sunny, so that's nice. but labor day is over and it's back to work. it's going to be a busy week, and it has already started. so i better go for now.

adios

first blog of september

This officially kicks off my one blog per day per one month per one year endeavour. Audrey and I are in Rock Springs today, visiting family. We were able to go to the RSEVF Sunday evening service last night which was a good one. Pastor Larry spoke on Nehemiah.

I am going to pace myself with a few things that have happened as of late so that I have something to write about at least for the next few days. The other day Audrey and I went to Bridal Veil Falls, which is on the way to Salt Lake City. It is right off the highway, and you can hike about half way up the falls which is pretty cool. It was a nice stop on the way down to SLC.

So here are some pictures from that trip, and you can tune in tomorrow same website, same time, to hear about what Audrey and I did this past Saturday.