Yosemite Summit 2010

Well, this is it, we are off to YOSEMITE finally! No more Facebook, no Twitter, no e-mail, no cell phone, no work! I’m disconnecting for an entire week. I’ve been praying, planning and preparing for a year and its so exciting to see the eight guys that God brought together for this amazing week in Yosemite. They’ve been coming in over the last two days, and tonight we all gathered for our first meal all together before hittin’ the road in the morning.

Steve, Matt, Tom, Scott, Karl, Scott, Marc, Brent, Pat
(Canada, TX, PA, SD, IL, CA, VA, OK, OH)

Please pray for each of these guys that God would really do a work in each of our lives during this next week. We each come from a different state and one from Canada. Each is leaving family and ministry behind to focus on their walk with God. Each understands that the best thing for their ministry isn’t another idea or resource but a closer walk with the Lord. Pray for safety and for an openness to what God has in store for us. I can’t wait to get started! So time for me to sign off and shut down. No worries, I’ll be blogging pictures and stories afterward! Until then,

Over and Out!

The Yosemite Summit 2009 Prayer Poster is here! These are the guys headed to Yosemite next month for a four day encounter with God and His creation!

Please DOWNLOAD THE PDF and pray for us, not only during this important week, but as God prepares each of us for what He wants to accomplish in our lives on this retreat.

A personal message from Kim:

Interested in joining us for Kidology’s women’s retreat, Unbridled? Have we got a deal for you! Thanks to a donor, 2 scholarships for $50 off are available on a first-come, first-serve basis. We’ve only got 4 spots left, so act soon!

This “Unconference for Children’s Pastors” takes place at 3P Ranch in Circleville, Ohio, from May 18-20. We will be learning about horses, saddling up, hiking, spending time in the Word, having bonfires, enjoying nature, laughing, and bonding together.

Inquire about the $50 scholarships today!

Yosemite Summiteers 2009

It’s official! The 2009 Yosemite Summit Unconference for Children’s Pastors has been filled. The 9 guys above will be setting aside ministry for four of the best days of their life in May. I’ll introduce you to them more in the weeks and months ahead, but for now I just wanted to let you know this event is now full. (There are still four openings in our women’s Unconference, however.)

For those of you who were considering this event and were unable to attend for one reason or another – let me encourage you! Yosemite Summit can still bless you in one of the two following ways:

1) Right NOW, mark ALL of May 2010 off on your calendar as a sabbatical month. Not only might it help you come with me next year, it’s still a good idea. I know take two ’sabbatical’ months a year. Does that mean I get off work? Nope. It means that I plan two months out of the year where I block out the entire month for no out of town trips or large events that don’t absolutely have to be during that month. I have learned the hard way that if you don’t MAKE TIME to be home more with your family, life won’t let you. YOU are the only one who can control your calendar and the demands placed upon you. Look ahead to the future, and block out a month where you will not travel or do any large events. A month where you go home very evening. For me, it has been May and December for the past two years. For you it may be different, but I can’t tell you strongly enough how much you NEED to do this. If you doubt me, just ask your wife. So whether it is May 2010 (so you can come to Yosemite Summit) or any other month, right now, look far ahead and block off a month. I can tell you, if you don’t do it, no one else will!

2) Right NOW, (well, after you do the one above), look not quite as far ahead, perhaps within the next 4-6 months and look for a time when you can take at least two, if not three full days to spend some concentrated time with God. Not enough vacation time? You might be surprised at how willing your SP or boss might be willing to grant the time as work time – if you sell it right. You want to spend time praying, listening, evaluating, and re-aligning your heart and mind and plans with what God has for your ministry. Most senior pastor’s will grant this time. If not, be creative and make the time. There IS a way, if you want it bad enough, and I bet God wants it bad too and will help you find it. One day is NOT enough! Find a place you can get away to. Your wife and kids will survive, and besides, they might like you better when you return.

Bottom line: You don’t need Yosemite Summit to benefit from what this event is about: Detaching from the busyness of ministry to spend focused time with God. If you were not able to come to Yosemite Summit due to cost, calendar conflicts, or other constraints, the good news is, you STILL have have your own summit with God. What are you waiting for? Schedule it now! And I’d love to hear about it too.

The Happiest Place on Earth?

or

Disneyland or Yosemite?

As I was reflecting on Yosemite today I got to thinking how much better Yosemite is than even a Disney theme park:

It’s enough to make you reconsider just what is the happiest place on earth.

(original source)

Know what might be the best thing for your ministry right now?

A new resource?

A new program?

A new book?

A new curriculum?

A new conference?

A new idea?

A new volunteer?

A new senior pastor? :0)

This may surprise you – but the best thing for your ministry right now may be to get as far away from it as possible – and to get a close to God as possible.

That is what Yosemite Summit is all about. It is about focusing on what matters most to your ministry: your walk with God. Your soul. NOTHING is more important and nothing will impact your ministry more than your private walk with God. Come join a few other children’s pastors and walk with God for a few days and let Him speak you directly. Through nature, though worship, through fellowship, through the Word, through the quietness you may only find at a sun rise at Glacier Point or in the midst of a thousand foot water fall.

You will never be the same after meeting God here. Cast off the excuses, and allow God to provide if He is hinting in your spirit that He wants you to get away with Him soon.

And it is about full for 2009 with only two spots left, and one nearly already spoken for – so you might as well consider it only ONE spot left!

What are you waiting for?

Guys, we’re at the critical spot – there are ONLY THREE spots left for Yosemite Summit. If you have thought about this retreat, prayed about it, perhaps dreamed about it – don’t let it slip by! Register ASAP as it will soon be too late to join us for 2009, and there is no guarentee of next year. I hope to do this every year for the rest of my life, but I can only promise one year at a time.

There are not words to describe just how incredible this week is. Of course, I have tried on the Yosemite Summit site many times to describe both the natural and supernatural impact of this trip. But with only three spots left, let me share with you what some of last years guys wrote to me after getting home from Yosemite Summit:

It was great to begin new friendships and gain valuable ministry perspective from the stories of those in our group.  Furthermore the times I did get alone with God were especially rich and meaningful.

I needed a vision for the finishing of our new Children’s Building, God gave it to me on this trip.  I had a couple of other unanswered prayers and areas I needed direction on and I got them on this trip.  It gave me time to get out of the business of ministry and listen to what God had to say to me.

If you are having a hard time spiritually and personally, you need this trip.  It is a great time to be forced to get away from the business of ministry and life to listen to what God has for you.  We get so overwhelmed with the work/business of the ministry, doing it under our own power, we forget about relying on God.  God is our source of power, and strength.  There is no place better the Yosemite to see God’s power, strength and creation.  And there is no better group of people to share this with than guys who share your pain and blessings!

When I got back and met with my Senior Pastor he said he could see a level excitement and new enthusiasm.

The Yosemite Summit, exceeded everything I dreamed. As I walked through God’s creation, I could sense his presence more and more. Taking time away from everything and focusing on my spiritual health will only strengthen my daily walk, my family, and my ministry. It was a financial investment for my family to attend, but they have already said it was well worth sending me on. I cannot put into words how grateful I am to have been a part of the first Yosemite Summit. I know in my heart I will never really leave it.

Perhaps it will be YOU soon describing what an incredible week you had. Register today!

I can’t shake it. I can’t help it. I can’t stop thinking about Yosemite.

It is the most amazingly spectacular place in all of the United States of America (if not the world) and I will be there in just four months again joined by at least three other children’s pastors who will bask in the glory of God’s magnificent creation with me. There are still five spots left… I wonder who will be joining us. You?

I just can’t stop thinking about it – there is no other place like it. The range of climates experienced in one day (from walking through shady snowy passes to through warm sunlight on bald rock), the breathtaking vistas, the roaring waterfalls, the wild life that is at ease with its human visitors, the expanse of sky and mountains as far as the eye can see, sheer cliffs that boggle mind, and the ability to almost tangibly feel God’s presence.

Last year exceeded even my wildest expectations… and I’m so glad to be going back soon for more. I just can’t help it, I keep day dreaming about it.

Yosemite, here I come!

There is just something powerful about hiking. about exploring. about going where few have gone before. And while Yosemite may be a place visited by many, many more never bother to take the time to plan to get away, and even fewer leave the valley to hike to more remote trails that offer the most spectacular views of God’s creation, in a place I often say is where, “God showed off.”

Came across some good quotes on hiking/exploring today that I wanted to save here – not all directly relate to Yosemite Summit (we do stick to the trails and do intend on arriving at the end!) but they are good quotes on the power of getting out of the routine and setting out!

“A good traveler has no fixed plans, and is not intent on arriving.” -Lao Tzu

“He who does not travel does not know the value of men.” – Moorish proverb

“Do not follow where the path may lead. Go instead where there is no path and leave a trail” – Ralph Waldo Emerson

“I travel not to go anywhere, but to go. I travel for travel’s sake. The great affair is to move.” –Robert Louis Stevenson

“The world is a book and those who do not travel read only one page.” –Saint Augustine

“Never go on trips with anyone you do not love.” –Ernest Hemingway

“The two roads diverged in a wood, and I – I took the one less traveled by, and that has made all the difference.” –Robert Frost

Yosemite Summit is a chace for a few men to take the road less traveled, to leave behind the normal trail and spend some time in a place where arriving is not the goal, the journey is. It is a time to fellowship with men you will love because they will share your love for God, your passion for ministering to kids, and your need for a break to reconnect with the Creator.

Yosemite Summit isn’t for everyone, but it just may be exactly what YOU need. Don’t miss this awesome experience that you will reflect back on for the rest of your life.

For all the wives out there who are hesitant to send their husbands to Yosemite Summit because you fear for the safety of your husband if he is alone with a bunch of other guys in the wilderness – I have some good news for you! I just picked up the following book:

Granted, I haven’t read it, and probably won’t have time to – but I plan to bring it along and keep it in my backpack “just in case” So now worries!

Seriously, however, I do get some e-mails from guys whe mention their wives hesitancy with this retret due to the high cliffs and drop offs at Yosemite. My wife had the same concern when I first suggested doing this retreat alone. Going with a group of guys was her requirement, and as I prayed about it, Yosemite Summit was born! But let me assure you Yosemite is a very safe place. We stick to the trails and they are very clear and safe.

There are deaths at Yosemite, but in each case they involve people doing foolish things and often drinking was involved.

Millions of visitors visit Yosemite every year and have a fun and safe time by applying common sense and following the rules.

My wife asked me to encourage the guys to make sure I didn’t do anything crazy for a picture, and soon they were heard saying, “WWSS?” (What Would Sara Say?) We all came home safely without even a remotely close call. (We took the picture above as a joke for her… don’t worry, it was perfectly safe!)

I can’t even begin to describe what the hiking in Yosemite is like. You will pass through warm areas on bald rock and then through wooded areas where the snow is 2-3 feet thick and the towering trees make it almost like you are walking through a tunnel. You will hear water falls in the distance and other times be walking through the mist listening to the deafening thunder of tons of water falling hundreds of feet and crashing on rocks. You’ll see view after view after view that rivals the one just before it.

If you are even remotely considering coming to Yosemite Summit – don’t miss out on what could be a once in a life time experience! It is such an amazing place, and we promise to be safe wives!