Back after a week away...

This past weekend, I spent a grace filled and spirit enriching weekend with some wonderful people from our Southern Arizona churches. Camp Thunderbird was astoundingly beautiful, and the weather was as good as it gets. Nights around the fire, s'mores, bingo, volleyball, and hiking were all on the agenda. And Sunday morning, we worshipped outdoors and shared communion at the table of our Lord. Here just a few pictures to capture a feel of what that worship was like. The last of these is a picture of the Rev. Dr. Wally Ryan-Kuroiwa, Interim at Valley Community church in Silver City, this year's host church for the annual Family Camp:




Before I got to Camp Thunderbird, I spent the early part of week with my brother and his family hiking through Mount Ranier. Here he is with his youngest, Holly, and his son, Peter at Comet Falls. Pretty spectacular. I will try to post some more pictures of this soon.

Ordination

Craig Henderson was ordained Wednesday night at his home church, Scottsdale Congregational UCC.

It was a marvelous evening.

Here is Craig getting ready before the service:



And here he is being awarded his Ordination Certificate, having just been declared Ordained to ministry on behalf of the United Church of Christ.



Craig will soon be leaving with his family to Denver - Iowa, that is. He has been called to serve a church in Northeast IA with about 350 members.

We wish him well and send him off with our love.

Two Things of Which I Am Proud....

Two things happened to me today that make me so proud.

This morning, we met Andria Davis, a young woman from the Beatitudes church and a recent grad from Smith College. She is headed to Chicago Theological Seminary. After examining her, and hearing her pastor, the Rev. Nancy Elsenheimer, and a mentor, Dana Bender, share with us the gifts they see in her, the Committee on Church and Ministry gladly and enthusiastically granted her Privilege of Call.



When I returned to my office later in the afternoon, I found a facebook posting from the pastor of the church Mimi and I attended while we were in St. Louis. He wanted to share with me what the sign in front of the church looked like today. Well, here it is:



It does make one proud.