Fourth of July 2010

This past Sunday was very special indeed.  My brother David gave the morning message, and we were all blessed throughout the time of worship.

After church, we went to Crystal and Shawn's house in Ontario nearby for a Fourth of July barbecue.  The hamburgers always taste better when grilled outside!  Little Bailey is always fun to have around, and we had a wonderful afternoon there.

That night, there were fireworks displays at multiple locations close to us.  The biggest fireworks show was being held at the Fontana Speedway not too far away.  We did not want to get caught up in the traffic jams and the expense of going in, so we drove a couple of blocks away from the Speedway, put down the top of the convertible Sebring and had a blast watching the fireworks from our car.

Later that night, it was fun to watch the Fourth of July celebration on TV that was held in Boston.  Last year, we were in Boston for the Fourth and had a very memorable time there.  It did bring back some very special memories.

Yesterday (Monday, the holiday observance), I took two of our high school youth to the Ponderosa Pines Christian Camp up near Big Bear Lake.  It's about 40 miles away going up into the mountains near us.  It was an amazing set of circumstances.  I got a call late last week from the camp, asking for us to send youth campers this week because they did not have a full camper turnout planned.  Because of a friend of our church giving our name, we were offered the opportunity to send our youth for free for a five-day camp.

Because of short notice, only two were able to go, but I was excited.  I took two young men (going into the 9th grade) to something they had never attended previously.  Neither had attended a Christian camp, and the parents were about to burst with excitement and joy as well for their kids.  God continues to truly bless us with his favor!