plant and run

DFW | June 6, 2009

So, I’m in DFW with Lawrence and Alf and it has been a great trip thus far.

The hilights include:

• -Meeting with Glen Brechner and John Stanley at Chase Oaks to talk about the vision of the church plant. It was really great to hear John [Community Impact Pastor] talk about the impact NOLA trips has had on their body. We are excited to see how our partnership with them will continue and deepen.

• -Staying with the Brechner’s. Haven’t seen them since I left Dallas 7 years ago. Their life has changed as Glen has taken on new responsiblities at the church and their children are now teenagers. I’ve enjoyed hanging with their kids. I am gonna miss being a youth pastor.

• -I met Damien [my brother] and Trey Backes [friend from high school] for lunch at Cafe Brazil [i miss that place]. They both live in the Dallas area. I haven’t seen Trey since high school. We were on the cross country team together. Trey was a BEAST back then. Now he runs…oh…about 3 marathons a year. He told me about Team in Training. Looks pretty cool. I’m gonna check it out, especially for while I’m in Little Rock. He told us lots of running stories. My fav had to be his experience as a guy running the Nike Women’s Marathon in San Francisco.

• -We visited DTS. It really didn’t look that different. My favorite moment was walking into the student center and it still having the same musty smell it did 10 years ago. It is funny how your memory is linked to your sensory experience. That was probably the most nostalgic moment of the trip. Lawrence [my suga daddy] bought me a new book to read from the DTS bookstore. yay.

• -Speaking of books, Alf and I checked out the massive Half Price Books store that was right next to where we both used to live in Dallas. I bought some used books this time around.

• -Attended the Friday night service at Chase Oaks. Glen took us on a tour of their new building. I was impressed. The building is really nice. I was afraid it would just be too much and that would [honestly] turn me off. It was intentional, focused, simple.

• -This morning we had breakfast with Jay O’Brien. He will be in the FA residency program with me and is planning on planting in Columbus, OH. Great guy. I am looking forward to hanging out with him in Little Rock. We ate at the Original Pancake House. Another place I miss.

• -Lunch was with Kenny & Allison Courtenay. They are former Bereanites who now live in the area. Kenny works for Stonebriar in Frisco doing graphic design. He offers to lend us his sweet skills to help us out. Yay. It was great to catch up with them and to hear some good feedback from some natives that have intimate knowledge of where we will be planting.

So, our big meeting with the Chase Oaks folks is tomorrow [Sunday] morning at 11 am in the Legacy Room [their large adult meeting room]. If you live in the metroplex, we would love for you to come by. If not, please pray for us.