Monday, December 11, 2006

Benedict Castle



We had a very busy weekend of traveling and speaking. I was asked by Joshua's school to represent the military as they remembered Pearl Harbor. So, I started off Friday morning by saying a few words about why we remember Pearl Harbor. All the children met at the flag pole to raise the flag, say the pledge of allegiance, sing the Star Spangled Banner, and hear a little about Pearl Harbor. It was an honor to explain the price of Freedom to all the children at Hawthorne Elementary.
After that we drove down to Riverside to speak at a volunteer appreciation dinner hosted by Teen Challenge. It was held at the Benedict Castle on Friday and Saturday night. Edna and I gave our testimonies and shared how God had blessed our lives. We spoke both nights and were blessed to meet so many wonderful people. The Castle itself was like something out of a fairy tale. The pictures don't do justice to all the work the men at Teen Challenge put into all the Christmas lighting and decorations. But, by far the most beautiful thing was the change that God has made in the lives of the men going through the Teen Challenge program. I was touched by their stories and the new hope that was in their eyes.



Everything was so beautiful and we felt really blessed to be there.



Sunday morning we started our trip back home. We knew we wouldn't make it back in time for church at Calvary SLO, so we stopped by Calvary Chapel Costa Mesa.
We enjoyed hearing Pastor Chuck and Edna was mesmerized by all the selections in their book store, but we missed home. The four of us soon piled back into the car for the trip home. We finished our weekend by making it back in time to see the Christmas performance at Calvary SLO. It was a beautiful celebration of God's love and a perfect ending to our weekend travels.

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