May 2006

On "The Edge"

Is theology important? Many say no, thinking that theology leads to arguments and division. But theology is simply an attempt to understand our infinite God and how he relates to his creation. To fail to study theology is to guarantee misunderstanding about God. To misunderstand God leaves open the danger of not knowing him at all and leading others down a path that does not lead to a knowledge of him. So, a careful study of theology is very important that we might truly know our incredible God.

Because of this, I am excited to help run The Edge this summer in Fort Collins, Colorado on the campus of Colorado State University. Students from around the country will come and take part in Bible and theology classes taught by seminary professors from leading evangelical seminaries. They will also spend time interacting with each other over class material and thinking about how to incorporate this knowledge back on campus in the fall.

So what does theology have to do with the Rocky Mountains? Nothing! But the mountains do give us some cool stuff to do when the students are not in class—including hiking and white water rafting.

This will be my third time helping to run this project, though every other time I’ve done this in conjunction with teaching Bible Study Methods at New Staff Training. Because this is my only summer assignment and because it is only three weeks long I am going out to Colorado without my family. It will be the longest I’ve been away from them ever, and I know I will miss them a lot.

Since I won’t have my kids to take care of I’ve decided to live with the big “kids” in the dorms at CSU. Pray for me!

Running Man

A year and a half ago I decided that I needed to get some exercise, but it had to be cheap and not take a lot of time. Because I had lost a lot of weight over the past few years, I felt like I could give running a chance, hoping my body could now handle it. Well, my body has handled it and on April 15 I was able to run my first race. It was the Striders Saturday Classic 10 mile run in Grand Rapids. You can see the race results at www.stridersrun.com/web.txt. Look for me in the male age 30-34 category. As you can see, at 1:21 I wasn't really competitive with the field, but I did enjoy myself. I also ran with Kurt and Paula from our staff team. Next up...the half marathon!

Kids' Column

I went to my first Ohio State football game! Daddy, Papa Ardle and I went with a friend and her daddy to the scarlet and gray spring game. It was so much fun! The scarlet team won, and there were lots of people. It was nice and warm that day. Now it’s colder. I like to keep track of the weather by looking at a little weather window that Daddy keeps on the computer screen.

I got to have my first tea party a few weeks ago. A friend got me a tea set for my birthday and it was so much fun to use it. We also used plates that used to belong to my Grandma Remick. We dressed up in our princess dresses. We are learning how to cook this summer. We’ve made an orange jell0 salad and surprise cupcakes already. I’m not sure what is next.

Andrew and Lauren have told me that I will really like the zoo where we will go while Daddy is in Colorado. I will get to feed the giraffes! I am learning to change my babies’ diapers. We cleaned out our toy room for the church garage sale and I have found toys I didn’t even know I had!

You know, when you smile at people, they smile back at you. That is what I am learning right now. I am even attempting a few giggles.  I still think Mommy needs to be up during the night. Sometimes it’s fun to keep her up until 1:30 in the morning, too. She doesn’t seem too happy at those times, though. Hmmm…… I’ve heard rumors in the nursery that sleeping through the night really isn’t too bad. Maybe I’ll try it this next month.

Caleb

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