A few odds-n-ends…
I haven’t been able to blog for the last couple of weeks and wanted to check in and let you know that I’m alive and well and to offer some pathetic explanations or two.
This is a beautiful time in South Florida and before all the heat and humidity bears down on us in the next couple of months, I’ve been trying to do some “family things”. When I 
made a decision, just under two years ago, to change some things about how I approached ministry, one of the things I determined was that I would spend more time with my children. In the end, people that demand you sacrifice your children and family time for the ministry won’t be there for you when you need them, so it’s important to keep your priorities in order.
So…we’ve been to the beach, we go to breakfast, I take my kids on “dates”, we visit Florida sites on day trips, Julie and the girls enjoy “girl days” and the boys and I enjoy hanging out as well, we go to fairs, we hold alligators and you know….at the end of the day, I still have plenty of time for ministry, extra work and even watching “24″ on Monday nights.
So….if you notice a little bit of a break in the blog from time to time, just assume I’m spending some time with one of the kids and that we’re walking along a gorgeous Florida beach, or buzzing across the everglades in a airboat or sitting in our backyard with a fishing pole in our hands and watching the parrots fight at our bird feeders. I’ll be back at the blog soon…just maybe not that day.
For excuse #2, I had a nasty virus or something hit my harddrive and it had to be reformatted, so I lost all my passwords, etc… and it took me a little while to get everything re-book-marked and reconnected.
But all-in-all, life is good and God is gracious. My fairly new Sunday School class is booming and we’re hitting new record attendances about ever 3-4 weeks. They are a super group and we have great discussions. Right now we are studying the Seven Churches of Revelations and you’d be amazed at how our class discussions go all over the place as we look at these churches.
We’re going to take a week and enjoy North Carolina during Spring Break at our lake house in the Blue Ridge Mountains. We look forward to seeing some friends and I have a little business to conclude in that neck of the woods. I’m hoping that the dogwoods will be blooming while we are there.
I’m teaching seven courses for Liberty University’s online program right now and loving every minute of it though it means an extra 3-4 hours of work every night when I get home. I meet some really wonderful students from all over the world through this venue and I often learn as much as they do.
We’re winding up our school year in ministry and as a family. Megan is graduating in nine weeks and I’m looking forward to being a chaperone on her Senior Trip in a couple of months. Nathan is getting his certification from Microsoft in a series of classes over the next few months which means he’s having to cut down on his basketball time significantly. Josh and Katie will be thrilled for summer break to arrive and have been working really hard in school this year.
My “boss” and pastor, Dr. Dino Pedrone, very graciously allows me to preach quite frequently and I appreciate the opportunity to “scratch that itch” from time to time and occasionally filling the pulpit here and speaking in other places for conferences and special events is a helpful “outlet” for me.
I’m hearing from some of you asking about my annual “March Madness Bracket Challenge”. I’m not going to use the ESPN hosting site this year, but am doing one on my Facebook page instead. So if you aren’t on Facebook, get with it and get on. If you are and haven’t received an invite. Hit my page and join or send me a message and I’ll send you the link. I’m giving out a copy of “Disciplines of a Godly Man” to the winner this year.
I’m behind by about 200 emails as of today, so I hope this post will let those who think I’ve dropped off the map know that we’re doing well, keeping busy and enjoying life.
I’ve got several things to blog about in the coming days, so keep checking in. I’ve noted with gratitude that even when I take a break, several thousand of you “check in” each week to see what’s going on. So, keep doing that and I’ll rattle your thinking from time to time with whatever is on my mind.
More soon…
Les Ismore said,
March 16, 2009 @ 12:47 pm
Glad to have you back, Dan. With your conspicuous absence I was beginning to wonder if YOU were the one in jail instead of your “boss!”
Steve Walton said,
March 17, 2009 @ 3:11 pm
Hey Dan. You talking about Florida makes me really miss it. I really like it down there. I’m lovin’ the gator pic by the way. And oh, those coconuts. So me and my friend spent a good 15-20 minutes with the whole ordeal. It took a while to find something to crack it open with (ended up being a Black and Decker drill along with a series of house-hold serated knives). I’ll have to get myself a machete next time. Anyway, we cracked it open and I’m pretty sure it wasn’t ripe…or good… or something. Haha. It was very mushy and didn’t taste quite like the coconut meat i’ve eaten before. Oh well. It was fun. You’ll have to tell the Romera Barconas (?) family I appreciate their contribution.
Ros Horton said,
April 1, 2009 @ 8:27 pm
Be wary of bees when you’re out and about in the wild having fun. It’s pretty much a given that the feral population in your area is all africanized. The last thing you want to do is make those girls angry.