General Assembly 2011

Oh, wait! I just realized I forgot one of my very favorite parts of IYC! Another life-changing part that was just so, so, so good. On the last morning we had a Mission Teams presentation. It included personal testimonies and slide shows from young people and not-so-young people who have been on mission trips, mothers of young people who've taken trips explaining how it affected and changed their children, Overseers speaking of how the Mission Teams helped and were a blessing to their areas, and other Overseers speaking of the need in their countries and how marvellously a visit from a Mission Team would bless and help them. It's another one of those things that I can't find the words for, but you could tell by the response from the campers at the end of it all that it had touched something in all of us. I have always had a willingness to go wherever God might ask me to go, but for the first time I found myself with a DESIRE to go. Instead of finding myself willing I find myself hopeful. We'll see what the future holds. I asked James about getting a passport, just in case. Want to be ready, you know. :-) I've always thought of Africa when I've thought of missions--and it would be amazing to be able to go anywhere with The Church of God--but my heart was especially drawn to South America during the IYC presentation. Brother Luna's plea was so sweet and sincere and I don't know how anybody there couldn't have been thinking, "Okay, when's the next flight to Peru??? I'm in!"

When IYC concluded on Monday we drove to Ridgecrest and got all moved in, then Jamey and I made a trip to Wal-Mart to pick up some things we needed for the week, mostly snacks and drinks for our rooms--and I got a clothes rack since the one in our room was tiny and we had way too many Assembly clothes to fit on it!

That night we met up with Mom & Dad and Jon & Em and their crowd. It was so great to see them! We had a little mini-party for Zeke's 5th birthday and just hung out in the lobby of one of those buildings.

That night we put the kids to bed, then Brother Dustin, Sister Jamey, James and I all sat out in the hallway and played I Buy. :-) Our rooms were across from each other at the very end of the hall, so that was our hang-out for the week. It worked great, though by the end we were plenty tired of the floor and really happy to get somewhere with a table and chairs!

Tuesday morning James went to the Presbytery Meeting and I sent all the kids to play with their cousins while I made a run to the grocery store to pick up all of the things I’d forgotten to buy at Wal-Mart the night before! Then it was time for the Presbytery Luncheon, which seems to be getting better and better every year. I remember the first one we went to. It was completely miserable. At least I was completely miserable! I felt sooooo dumb being there. We were so young and I just felt like we were a couple of kids busting in on a fancy dinner for all of the old and respectable leaders of the Church. Not that I ever had a "they are above us" mentality of Church leadership or anything like that (!), but it just felt so awkward going to "the Presbytery Luncheon." Besides the fact that we had to sit up at the head table. And things were a lot more... formal, I guess you could say, at that time. Things feel so much more relaxed now. Besides that, there are more and more people at the Luncheon each year that are closer to our age and maturity level--and that doesn't necessarily mean that we are maturing. HA! The O'Dells are there, as of last year the Hays are there, and as of this year the Clarksons, too. The Esteps couldn't make it because if the impending birth of their son, but there's still a good crowd of not-so-old-and-respectable folks. ;-) We sat at a table with the Clarksons and the Hays. I'm sure Mom was jealous, up there at the head table. She kept coming to join us. :-) My favorite part was when Brother Ogunmola was having his picture taken with Dad at the end of the luncheon. He had on this sort of pointy hat from Africa. Sister Shanda said that if my Dad wore the hat he'd look like one of those little garden gnomes. Ha! Ha! Ha! Ha! Ha! We laughed sooooo hard--because it was true. :-)

Uh-oh. I thought I had taken notes all throughout the Assembly. Apparently I didn't. That's so not right! It was soooooooo good, but I'll never remember all the details now! One day we'll get DVDs of it, so maybe as I watch it session by session I'll be able to remember how it affected me at the time. Ha! Let's see what I can remember...

On Tuesday night my pastor preached on "The Effectual Fervent Prayer." He did a great job and we enjoyed a wonderful time of prayer--the first of many in this Assembly.

On Wednesday I was especially blessed by Sister Shanna's message, "A Unified Church." Most specifically, I was blessed by the analogies she made with Canadian Geese. (I know it's properly supposed to be "Canada Geese" but that sounds dumb. And it's my blog. Ha!) Joe Hill preached a great message about the cross, and I was so blessed--as always--by Brother Byers' CPMA program. I love to hear him preach. He just has a way about him, and his age allows the liberty to say things that are so good and so pointed and so true--but that a younger guy could never get away with! I just love it and I'm always so blessed by him.

Thursday morning was Brother Kelley's message, "Unto a Perfect Man." The part that immediately comes to mind is the story he told about the young man who called his girl and said, "I love you so much I'd climb the highest mountain for you. I'd swim the wide ocean just to be with you," then followed up with, "And I'll be over to see you Wednesday night if it doesn't rain." He said that's how some folks are with church attendance. They'll proclaim how much they love the Lord and how committed they are to Him and His Church, but they don't have any problem skipping services. It's hypocritical and reveals the lack of love and commitment in their hearts. If you CAN be in service but choose not to, it's evidence of a problem--a lack of true love and devotion to God. And that's a serious problem, though the "skippers" would believe that "it's no big deal." Just like the guy full of lovely words for his girl but not enough genuine love to follow through, the words are just a bunch of baloney. He had some excellent thoughts.

After that message is when Vicki Williams gave her testimony and sang. What a blessing that turned out to be! It was one of the most beautiful times of worship during this Assembly and turned into an altar service that overtook Brother Dupre's BTI time. It was glorious. Not that we missed out on Brother Dupre... ;-)

That afternoon Michael Jernigan's topic was "There is One Body." He preached about Elijah and Elisha. He had lots of good, heartfelt things to say. That night was the Mission Program and Parade of Nations, Brother Hawkins' first service. It was strange to not have Brother Ard up there for that program (or hear him sing--or threaten to sing if the offering wasn't large enough) and he was certainly missed, but Brother Hawkins did an EXCELLENT job and was such a wonderful blessing, as always. I love that program.

Friday morning was the one session that I had a hard time in. There are always a few times during the Assembly when I have a hard time staying awake and seem to spend most of my energy fighting sleep instead of really being able to take in all of the things that are going on. I never felt incredibly tired, but I did have a horrible time focusing during that Friday morning session. Terrible timing. It means I don't have a clue what Brother Werkheiser OR my Dad preached. (Is it wrong to admit that??? HA!) That's not true--I do remember a few things, but I know I missed a lot. I'm most anxious to see the DVD from that session once they're ready!

By Friday afternoon I had regained control over my mind or body or whatever it was that had been rebelling that morning (!) and I thoroughly enjoyed brother Buford Cox's message, "Seeing Eye to Eye." I have never heard him speak before and didn't know what to expect from him--he's such a quiet and reserved man. It was excellent. That's another message I look forward to hearing again once we get the DVDs.

One of the coolest thing EVER about this year's Assembly was the business! Can you believe I'm saying that??? Everything went through super quick, no hitches, no objections, not even a single question! Whoa!!! I know that questions are sometimes necessary, but I LOVED it that there was such unity and one-mindedness that we were able to do without them this year. We went through the Q&S stuff, then Brother Grimes came up to lead a song--which broke into another time of worship and praise and all manner of blessings which, in turn, lasted through the time-slot allotted for the W&M report. It had to be squeezed in the next day, but it was over with in a painless matter of minutes as well. :-)

Friday night was the healing service and Brother Acosta preached a fantastic message! It was just so, so, so good. He has such a beautiful spirit and a wonderful sense of humor. He shared the Word of God and a personal testimony that was just perfect going into the healing line. I never heard how many were healed, but I saw plenty blessed. :-)

Saturday was the Ordination service (always beautiful) and ABM program, then the WMB program was Sunday afternoon. Sister Bishop had James and Sister Ricker (she named them the Alabama Trio) sing "Well Done, My Child" and they had way, way too much fun doing it. ;-) Sister Leist also sang a song we'll never forget, then Sister Bishop's message was inspiring, as always. She had the Powells share about the call of God and it, too, was excellent. Brother Powell is such a cute little old guy (I suddenly realized that they will probably be reading this and was tempted to take that part out, but I can't make myself! Ha!) and he's so quiet and low-kay, but has so many witty and profound things to say. What he shared was so poignant and stirring and just such a blessing to the Assembly.

That night was the VLB Program and it, too, was excellent. For starters, we had a VLB march this year instead of a repeat of the VLB stand-still from last year. HA! We had two lines instead of one and they kept moving until we were all in place. Sister Amy Anders did a great job leading the worship. Brother Dustin had lots of good things to say about being "Unmoveable, Unshakeable"... though it took him an HOUR to do it. *ahem* ;-) As always, the young people filled the altar and received great blessings from the Lord. I was thrilled to see the two Dudley boys in attendance in the altar. Jonathan got saved and Joshua prayed all the way through to the Holy Ghost, I heard. So exciting! I pray that each and every young person there holds firmly to what God did in their hearts that night.

Sunday morning Josh Farthing preached an outstanding message on sanctification. He talked about tension in the Church existing because of the lack of true, genuine sanctification, as well as all the other things that will be remedied by it. It was powerful and challenging and led into another impromptu altar call. This one may have been my very favorite one simply because of the nature of it. The Holy Ghost was certainly moving in hearts and bringing conviction--I can't imagine a single person being there and NOT feeling the need to pray and check their heart and make sure they were really and truly sanctified wholly. The prayer lasted for a good long while, but remained somewhat subdued and just felt deep and effective. Sometimes we end up with exciting "shouty" things going on--and we're blessed by that--but it felt like there was something deep and changing that was going on there. And we need that a lot more than we need a shout that may or may not affect us once we leave. There was a message and interpretation that said, "I see you hiding" and gave a sober warning. Then my Dad spoke some words of caution that seemed to me to be very much led of the Lord. He said he feared that there may be some among us that would shout and speak in tongues and rejoice here at the Assembly who next week may go out and wear their shorts, or watch something ungodly, or... and he mentioned another trap or two of the devil. It felt like a "fearful" time and there was much sincere and humble prayer in response. I love self-examination times like that. There were several people who felt led to go to others and make apologies and be assured that everything was right. Thank the Lord! May He continue this work in His Church! We're headed the right direction and it's so exciting.

I was blessed by the Children's Assembly Program this year. The Lord really blessed and moved in the kids' Assembly sessions this year and it was a blessing to see some pictures and video clips of it--along with that little Cox girl singing. Of course, it came on the heels of that sanctification message and powerful prayer time so my heart was still tender and ready to be blessed some more.

Brother Strong had some outstanding things to say in his Sunday School program. I don't remember ever hearing him preach before, except the partial message I was able to watch online when he preached at the Mexico Convention a few months ago. What a blessing he is! ~sigh~ Have I mentioned how much I'm looking forward to the Assembly DVDs this year so I can experience the whole thing all over again? We've been having great Assemblies, but this one seemed to go to a whole new level. Of course, I think that's what I said after last year's Assembly, too. We really are moving "from glory to glory," aren't we?

Sister Griffin's message about the Holy Ghost that afternoon was soooooo good. The 212th degree. I've heard it mentioned time and time again since then--it was obviously a great blessing to most everyone who heard it. It was excellent and led into (you guessed it) another time of prayer. I LOVED all of the time spend in the altar this year! And I loved how open this Assembly was to letting the Lord have His way throughout the entire thing. If the Lord began moving and blessing during a song, the program was set aside and we'd sing a little more and take our time worshiping and seeking the Lord. It felt so relaxed, not rushed, and so FREE in spirit. It was an interesting dilemma to consider the possibility of not having time for the appointments because of the prayer time lingering on! Ha! In the end, there was just enough time to get that in before the crew showed up to start packing up all of the media equipment. Perfect. It was a GREAT Assembly.

Of course, along with all of those spiritual blessings, we so loved being with everybody in between sessions! I loved it that Jon & Em AND all of the kids were able to be there this year. Nathan is suddenly a young MAN instead of a boy (freaky) and others are growing up so fast, too--even little Zeke. He's still so cute and so funny. I loved seeing Sam & Tammy and Jeremiah, as well as finally being able to meet Abraham--who is way too cute. I wish we could have had more time with them. It always goes like that. Tammy and I have been close for years, but we NEVER spend time together at functions--it just never seems to work out for us! I loved being able to be with the Clarksons again and being able to meet little Simeon--what a cute little guy he is! Keven & Michele Lewis, all of the Hatch folks, the VanDeventers--oh, just everybody. It's strange. I never feel "homesick" for the west. I feel perfectly settled and happy and content here in Alabama and am so thankful for the friendships the Lord has blessed us with here already. But it was sooooo good to see the western folks at the Assembly--AS IF we are homesick and dying without them! It's like the best of both worlds: contentment where God has placed you and thankfulness for the new relationships He's giving you... but being able to appreciate the old friendships to a greater degree than you ever could before. :-)

The Assembly is always exhausting, but even moreso for those who don’t have the good sense to go to bed when the evening service is over. We seldom saw them during the day, but since we were able to stay across the hall from the Hays they were our late night crowd. We spent way too much time sitting on the floor in the hallway and never did make it to bed before midnight—some nights shamefully later than that. One of these days we may get too old for that kind of foolishness, but I'm glad we're not there yet. Ha! We played at least a partial game of I Buy most nights and thanks to Jamey and her operatic rendition of a particular song, we have some GREAT new memories. Ha!

Okay, I've got just a few Assembly pictures to share before I go...

Joe was really blessed by the other guys helping him pray in the altar. He told me that they asked what he was praying for and then got their Bibles out and started looking up scriptures that applied to it. "They knew right where to find them, too, Mom--I was really impressed!"


Sam always crashes hard after a day or two...
I love seeing Dad praying with the little guys...
And these are a couple of my favorite pictures of Dad. Here he is PLAYING THE GUITAR (who would've thunk it?!) with the Presbytery Choir. Yes, the choir that my husband directed... and chose to have "We've Got the Power" sung... by all of the Overseers! HA! Oh, the irony...
Is this not just too cute? I love it. :-)
I LOVE having our General VLB guy lead the march himself. I think it's one of the coolest things ever. He's a good leader and example for our young people.
I only meant to post one of these since they're so similar, but somehow they both ended up here. Oh well--they're good pictures. I LOVED how much black and red I saw during the VLB program this year! I don't remember there EVER being so much of it--it's so cool that it's sort of being revived and our young people (and not-so-young people!) are wanting to get back to wearing VLB vests, or at least the colors.

Joe was dying to get Brother Ogunmola's autograph. Ha! When he finally did, Brother Ogunmola got our e-mail address so he could write to Joe (and he did, just this past week) and then wanted a picture with him. :-)
And last but not least, here are the hall kids, making the best of the week's party location. HA!