The End of the Beginning // September 30, 2007
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Its cool this morning.
Amazingly enough, its actually, kind of, just might feel a little like Fall... here on this last day of September. Sara is running around the School Age Services building with a jacket on, getting ready for children's church. Since it's the last Sunday of the month, her usual helpers are in their own service for a Youth Sunday, and I am here helping my wife.
On the way to the Chapel this morning, Sara told me that it's the beginning of the end. Today marks the start of the Third Trimester. I toasted the event with my coffee. Yesterday, at a church yard sale, we bought our first baby stuff - some outfits and a infant bathtub.
In that instant, it got real... and I got excited.
Our family is having a baby. How awesome is THAT!?
Its ironic how this pregnancy has matched our deployment. The baby will be born in January and I demobilize/PCS at the same time. Our time at Ft. Stewart is gauged by my wife's growing belly.
Things have been heating up at work as well. Just about the time I start checking out, we couldn't be busier. As the holiday season looms closer, so do our big projects. There is the massive Brigade Combat Team mobilization coming down the pike. That's a ton of work! There has not been a National Guard BCT mobilization out of Ft. Stewart since the 48th BCT (the unit I went to war with in 05) came through. So, there is a TON of work to do for that. My brain has been uplinked to MS Office for the last month writing SOPs (Standard Operating Procedures), UMT Training classes, Staff Evaluation Procedures and blah blah blah... The Matrix is killing me!!
There are a couple very exciting ministry events coming up - There is our very first (my first AND the Brigade's) Marriage Enrichment Retreat! We are taking about 21 couples from the BDE down the St. Simon's Island (Epworth By the Sea) for a Friday night - Sunday lunch retreat. Its going to be great! We have all the couples signed up - even through (my bad) I scheduled it on Veteran's Day Weekend! Know this - Four Day Weekends are sacred cows in the military - they are not to be disturbed!
We have some great seminars in store for them. We are doing some "Strong Bonds" and I am teaching two classes I am very excited about - Boundaries in Marriage and the Five Love Languages. Both of these books have been more help in my marriage than really anything else. On Saturday mornings for the last month Sara and I have been reading "Boundaries with Kids" for our personal growth time. It's a fun tradition we started while I was gone, we read a book together. Lately, the best time has been on Saturday morning after brunch. We sit out on the deck with coffee and a cigar reading and enjoying each other. Its better than a date night... though we have that too...
The other event is Ch Clark's (My BDE chaplain) baby. It's a family day scheduled in conjunction with a Commander's planning conference the Brigade is putting on. I, by virtue of my age I guess, got stuck with the game planning. Uggh, I have never really enjoyed doing that sort of thing. I love putting together educational plans, curriculum and that sort of thing - but fun stuff?? Not really my cup-O-tea I'm afraid...
Across the street from the School Age Services building, the Post Sunday School program is heating up at the Elementary School. Parents are dropping of their children and young soldiers are headed into their respective classes. "More Love, More Power" is droning out of my Macbook's small speakers. I have always thought that the lyrics of that song don't match the music. Just one of those things I guess.
The beginning of the end - or is it really just the end of the beginning and now the real work starts?
Its cool this morning.
Amazingly enough, its actually, kind of, just might feel a little like Fall... here on this last day of September. Sara is running around the School Age Services building with a jacket on, getting ready for children's church. Since it's the last Sunday of the month, her usual helpers are in their own service for a Youth Sunday, and I am here helping my wife.
On the way to the Chapel this morning, Sara told me that it's the beginning of the end. Today marks the start of the Third Trimester. I toasted the event with my coffee. Yesterday, at a church yard sale, we bought our first baby stuff - some outfits and a infant bathtub.
In that instant, it got real... and I got excited.
Our family is having a baby. How awesome is THAT!?
Its ironic how this pregnancy has matched our deployment. The baby will be born in January and I demobilize/PCS at the same time. Our time at Ft. Stewart is gauged by my wife's growing belly.
Things have been heating up at work as well. Just about the time I start checking out, we couldn't be busier. As the holiday season looms closer, so do our big projects. There is the massive Brigade Combat Team mobilization coming down the pike. That's a ton of work! There has not been a National Guard BCT mobilization out of Ft. Stewart since the 48th BCT (the unit I went to war with in 05) came through. So, there is a TON of work to do for that. My brain has been uplinked to MS Office for the last month writing SOPs (Standard Operating Procedures), UMT Training classes, Staff Evaluation Procedures and blah blah blah... The Matrix is killing me!!
There are a couple very exciting ministry events coming up - There is our very first (my first AND the Brigade's) Marriage Enrichment Retreat! We are taking about 21 couples from the BDE down the St. Simon's Island (Epworth By the Sea) for a Friday night - Sunday lunch retreat. Its going to be great! We have all the couples signed up - even through (my bad) I scheduled it on Veteran's Day Weekend! Know this - Four Day Weekends are sacred cows in the military - they are not to be disturbed!
We have some great seminars in store for them. We are doing some "Strong Bonds" and I am teaching two classes I am very excited about - Boundaries in Marriage and the Five Love Languages. Both of these books have been more help in my marriage than really anything else. On Saturday mornings for the last month Sara and I have been reading "Boundaries with Kids" for our personal growth time. It's a fun tradition we started while I was gone, we read a book together. Lately, the best time has been on Saturday morning after brunch. We sit out on the deck with coffee and a cigar reading and enjoying each other. Its better than a date night... though we have that too...
The other event is Ch Clark's (My BDE chaplain) baby. It's a family day scheduled in conjunction with a Commander's planning conference the Brigade is putting on. I, by virtue of my age I guess, got stuck with the game planning. Uggh, I have never really enjoyed doing that sort of thing. I love putting together educational plans, curriculum and that sort of thing - but fun stuff?? Not really my cup-O-tea I'm afraid...
Across the street from the School Age Services building, the Post Sunday School program is heating up at the Elementary School. Parents are dropping of their children and young soldiers are headed into their respective classes. "More Love, More Power" is droning out of my Macbook's small speakers. I have always thought that the lyrics of that song don't match the music. Just one of those things I guess.
The beginning of the end - or is it really just the end of the beginning and now the real work starts?
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Chaplain Jon Fisher
I am also not a huge fan of game planning, but after 7 years of youth ministry I found a great resource: www.thesourcefym.com. If you've never used it before, I hope it helps. Thanks again for your blog. I've really enjoyed it as I prepare to start ministry as a Chaplain.