New Summer Intern

You may see a handsome young man around the sound booth sometime this summer. Caleb Wanzer is here from Oklahoma to intern in our tech department. He runs the sound for his Mennonite Brethren Church in Collinsville, OK. He's going to be a senior in high school. I have a picture of him and will give more details later so stay tuned...

We're Off to Southern California

There are about 25 of us from SBC leaving on Monday for Rick Warren's church, Saddleback, for the Purpose Driven Worship Conference. That's a lot of people to schlep around in vans and all end up in the same place! Pray for protection, insight and refreshment for the group. I'll give details when we get home. Right now, it's time to cook extra meals, arrange for all the kids to get picked up and dropped off at the right time and place, make sure the clothes are clean, pack for myself and make sure everyone's wedding clothes fit (and can be found!), blah, blah, blah. I think it's going to be a long night!

Eagle's Wings

If you were in church this morning you heard Joe read Isaiah 40:28-31. It tied together the song "Everlasting God" and the prayer time to follow. I've been thinking how the song "Everlasting God" is a perfect theme song for SBC right now: strength will rise as we wait upon the Lord." We're waiting upon the Lord for our new senior pastor and I hope we can say our strength is rising! Here's a devotional written by Kim Shoup to go along with those verses.

Read Isaiah 40:28-31 and Habakkuk 3:17-9

Once upon a time, there was a man who found himself in a very mountainous region of the world. As he trekked through this region, he came to a very long, very narrow valley which had many perils along its path. The man’s ultimate destination was at the opposite end of the valley and the only way to get there was on the perilous path. Having no desire to trudge this path, and yet having no other choice, the man began his descent deep into the valley
Not too far down the path, the man encountered a thick, swampy mud bog that seemed impossible to walk through. Only a few steps into it, the man could barely drag his legs in small, mincing steps. Hours later when he finally escaped, he was so weakened and weary, he could barely go on. But the lure of his destination kept him going. A little further down the road, the man realized the terrain of the valley was changing into a hot, arid desert. The heat from the sun was beating down on him so fiercely that he knew he would probably faint before ever reaching the other side. All he could think about was a bubbling spring of crystal clear water that he knew which he knew must be at his destination. The farther he dragged himself down this path through the valley, the more weak and weary he became.
Finally, he reached a point where he could have sworn he must have reached the other side. And yet, when he looked up, the valley seemed longer than ever and the path harder than before. He knew the destination was worth the effort, but he just didn’t think he had it in him to finish the course. The despair that gripped him at this realization was overwhelming and all he could do was sink to his knees and cry out to the God who sent him on this journey in the first place.
“Lord, I can’t walk, I can’t even crawl. I have no strength left. But I want to finish the course and reach the destination of my journey. How can I pass through this valley when I can’t even move?”
Groaning, the man fell face down thinking about the trials he had just passed and what was to come. Slowly, his thoughts turned back to God and the purpose of his journey and the joys he had find despite all the hardships. As the thoughts of the joys in his life became more prominent, he felt a cool breeze begin to stir, growing stronger by the minute. The breeze increased and so did his awareness that he had not been abandoned, but instead he had every reason to rejoice. With a mighty surge of joy, the man prepared to leap to his feet and shout his praises. Just as he began to push up, the breeze caught him up and he found himself winging high above the valley and all the perils it held. He held out his arms and soared effortlessly on the thermal winds of heaven. And then he knew he had been caught up by the hand of the Almighty One who never wearied or grew faint.

Click here to continue the story.

Nixon News

This is a little belated but I know the Nixon's would appreciate continued prayer for several situations.

• Doug's foot has not really improved much. Emotionally this is being a real drain on him as the possibility of losing this leg is staring us in the face. He really has to stay off of it and that is quite boring.
• Shelly is in a Behavioral Health Facility on the west side of town.
• Nancy's back is still causing discomfort.
• They are facing an uxpected move out of their condo on July 21st and are weary of planning these details in light of the health problems.

Doug and Nancy are great warriors of faith. Could we all lift them up in this next month so they experience God's overwelming peace and encouragement?

One of Our More Athletic Members

In May, Matt Rich went on a mammoth physical outing. I will post another more detailed write-up but here are some specs he sent me:

Hike was great. Approx. 47.6 miles, Over 20,000 feet of elevation change. I burned about 10,000 calories. We hike for 10 hours the 1st day and 10:15 the second day. It was 70 degrees on the south rim, 41 degrees on Sunday morning on the North Rim. It was 96 degrees on the bottom on Saturday and 103 on the bottom on Sunday - It was HOT.

Stay tuned for more details...

Correction on the Johnsons

Sean and Cate Johnson did not bring their girls home on this trip from Haiti. Somehow I got the wrong information in my head--I think I just made it up. They were so excited to go that I think I just assumed this must be the big trip. You can check out the latest pictures and story from their trip:

http://cateandsean.blogspot.com/

Summer Schedule

Sunday, June 17 - Men’s choir leads Father’s Day services
Rehearsal on Wednesday, June 13 at 7 p.m.
Contact Tammy (treimche@sbcaz.org 480.824.7321)

Sunday, June 24 - Sounds of Praise choir

Sunday, July 15 - “Y’all Come” choir
Contact Leah (lpowell@sbcaz.org or 480.824.7317) if interested
Rehearsal will be at 7:15 a.m. on Sunday, July 15

Sunday, July 22 - Sounds of Praise choir

Sunday, August 5 - Family Choir
Includes children who completed grade 1 and older
Rehearsal details TBD

Wednesday, August 22 - REGULAR REHEARSALS RESUME for choir and orchestra

Chuck Bush

Just heard from Marsha Bush:

Received word today that the insurance company has approved the lung transplant process for Chuck. The hospital they have chosen is USC in L.A.

That's the only word we have but it's good news! Please continue to pray for Chuck and Marsha as they maneuver these details for the transplant.

Our James is a Winner Again

Awhile back I posted some pictures of James VanFossan's paintings. A year ago on Memorial weekend James won the top award for cowboy art from the Phippin Family at the Cowboy Artist's annual convention in Prescott. This is the highest award from this organization. Well, this year, James won second place for his cowboy drawing out of 150 entrants who were chosen from a pool of 1000 artists. That's pretty impressive, isn't it! Here is some of his recent artwork. Make sure to congratulate James next time you see him on Sunday morning.

Willy and Marilena

Willy and Marilena just returned to Malaysia from a 3-month furlough in Argentina. For more photos of Timoteo you can go to their blog:

http://www.fotosdetimo.blogspot.com/

Desert Bells Group THIS SUNDAY!!!

Check your calendar quick to see if you can make a 2 pm handbell concert this Sunday, June 10th in the choir room. This touring group of ringers will join us in the 3 morning services for Courtyard and call to worship. They will then present a concert in the afternoon. Sorry for the late notice--we've had a little trouble coordinating with them. You may remember Lyn Haberstock talking about one of these groups at Christmas. Her daughter, Kara, is in the Bronzeworks group. The concert is free but an offering will be taken to cover expenses.

Click here to view the Desert Bells website for more information.

June Birthdays

-6/4, Leah Powell
-6/6, Susan Blair
-6/9, Shawna Noyes
-6/9, Jean Lukens
-6/11, Kelli Taggart
-6/13, Don Pipher
-6/14, Bill Curry
-6/15, Sandee Coppola
-6/19, Jacque Surrett
-6/21, Paula Smith
-6/22, Sean Allen
-6/23, Kathy Fox
-6/23, Linda Peterson
-6/27, Annette Johnson
-6/28, Benn Smith
-6/30, Dale Zimmerman