I was asked, "Marty, what are you praying today?"

Earlier today, I received an email that asked me what I was praying for today. It made me think and encouraged me to write it out. Journaling is a good way to help you focus your prayers and stay attentive as you talk to God.

If you are like me, sometimes prayer can be a challenge of focus. Yes, I pause to pray and then a thousand other things come into my mind. One solution is to have a note pad. Write down the things that you need to do (get an oil change, call the doctor for child's check-up, and so forth). Also, you may use that same note pad to write out your prayer.

So, what does my prayer journal look like today. On a broad scale, my prayers are often focused on my family and my work. I am sure that I am no different than most.

I pray that God will touch my children, Stuart, Sarah and Samuel and help them find their purpose. I pray that they are filled with the Holy Spirit in a way that captivates their attention and ignites a passion for Jesus and His church.

I pray for Patty that she would be able to inspire church leaders and encourages stewardship at the churches that she serves across America. Practically speaking, I ask the Lord to help her technically ... that the software remains secure, that her programmers complete the transition to the new server farm, that the integration with Fellowship One be completed this week, that God will protect her as she negotiates new contracts and expands her work here and potentially into Canada.

I pray for Stevens Creek Church ... that our hearts would be burdened for lost people, that we would be open to a greater move of God's spirit, that we would be passionate about creating healthy systems for people's spiritual growth. I pray that God will bring the right staff members so that our church, our Grovetown campus, and future campuses can be spiritually vibrant and healthy.

I pray that God will raise up tithers so that His work can be fully funded and that Stevens Creek becomes the most generous place around.

For me personally, I pray that my heart remains tender and that I keep the passionate fervor that I had as a 14 year old when I was called into the ministry.

I pray that God will help me be the best Dad possible and not take myself too seriously. Help me to balance work and home-life.

I pray that God will give me discernment so that I will be able to see what He sees and lead accordingly.

I pray that increases my ability to lead.

I pray that God allows me and Stevens Creek Church the opportunity to shape the future of the Church of God denomination.

As you develop your own list, please remember that prayer is a two way street. It involves you talking to God, but mainly God talking to you. Be quiet before the Lord and listen to His voice. When you do this, you will take your next step in faith.

Staffing a Church for Effective Ministry

As most of you know, the fuel of any effective local church is the people in the pews. People, who are filled-up and overflowing with the energy of God, create excitement which often leads a church into new seasons of growth. So, as pastors, how do we equip and inspire people? We do this through staffing whether paid or volunteer.

Staffing a church for growth is one of the most important responsibilities of any lead pastor. People often marvel at the growth of Stevens Creek and wonder what's the secret. Well, you got to know that The Creek is not an "over night" success story; it's close to being twenty-two years old. (Whew ... I must have been a kid when we started it ... Ha. Ha. It seems like yesterday.)

What's the secret? Vision is always key. You have to know what God has called you to do and then learn to communicate it in a way that people with grasp it.

Your first group of people that you have to train in visionary leadership would be your key influencers...Elders, then your volunteer and paid staff. You do this by painting a picture of what church-life could be like. You take them to see life-giving churches with life-giving systems (you can't grow a large church without a system).

I am sure that some folks look at our church and say, "Marty, if I had your staff, I could grow a large church." That's probably true. I am an average “Church of God-Joe” from a mill town in the Upstate of South Carolina. We have been able to grow, because I have surrounded myself with people who can do things that I cannot do. The church outgrew me a long time ago. Without great volunteers and staff members, we would not be where we are today.

So, how do you staff your church for effectiveness? First of all, you need people who are called by God and anointed in their work. There is no substitute for the anointing of God. The anointing is what turns a performance into a ministry moment where God breaks in and touches someone’s heart. If a person is not called or anointed to do the work, then the conversation about joining our staff is over. I believe that a person needs to be called to carry out the vision of your local church. A staff member should never join the team with his or her own agenda. They are there to carry out the larger vision of the ministry. Calling is key.

Next, a person must be competent in what they are called to do. Like I said, I hire people who can do what I cannot do. If two people can do one thing, then one person is not needed. Granted, when we were small, I helped lead the music. In those days, the Lord’s anointing made up for some of my vocal inability. Several years ago, Todd Sturgell, our Creative Worship Pastor, was preparing to go on vacation and he could not find a fill-in. I casually told him that I led the music before he came and that I could lead it when he was gone. He laughed and said, “Marty, you led the music when we were running a hundred people. If you start leading again, we will run a hundred people.” We both laughed … because it was the truth. A person may feel that he or she is called to a certain ministry, but along with that calling they must have the skills to carry forth the ministry for that particular congregation. Needless to say, the music ministry at The Creek outgrew years ago and I am so glad it did.

A person has to be competent, but along with competence, there has to be chemistry for a staff to be effective. This is huge for me. If you do not have chemistry with me, you will not be on my staff or Elders. Chemistry is the building blocks of unity. When a church has unity, it opens the door for the power of the Holy Spirit to move. Don’t ever underestimate the power of unity. In the early days of our church, I had an elder that was working against me. I sat him down with another staff member and confronted him and ultimately removed him. His response was simple: “I did not think that you had the guts to do it.” Those people who are not with you are against you. You can’t move a church forward with leaders who are against you. Someone has to go … either you or them. Life is too short to live and work in conflict. I honestly believe that the effectiveness of Stevens Creek flows out of the love and unity that is present in our leaders. There’s a great chemistry because we have the same vision … to love God, love people and serve the world … and we enjoy being with each other.

Having chemistry does not mean that you will never have conflict. On occasion we have conflict, but the love and respect that we have for one another pushes us to resolve the conflict. Todd has been on staff with me for 15 years. We have struggled through some tense meetings before. There have been days that he probably thought, “Would you let me run my department.” Okay, I’ll be honest; he probably thinks that more than I want to admit.

Recently, we have both been passionate about a few areas. We both want to see progress, but our solutions have come from two different spectrums. On more than one occasion we have closed the door and said, “I know that we have different ideas about this issue, but are we together?” Real chemistry does not mean that everyone has the same views, but that we respect each other as we work out the details. Chemistry is so important. Don’t underestimate it’s value.

When I was in graduate school, there was a line of thinking that said that the Pastor should not be “friends” with his staff. He is the leader, not their friend. That, my friend, is the way to grow a small church. Real friendships enable tenure and tenure provides a stable foundation for growth. Like I said, I have chemistry with the people that I work with, but in these days, I don’t work side-by-side with everyone on staff. How do we accomplish the chemistry aspect? We pass it down. Each department must strive to keep harmony in their work groups. Stevens Creek has grown past the point where I personally work with every staff member.

A funny thing happened on a recent Sunday night. We had a staff and families dinner at my house. I was running late to the dinner because of an Elders meeting. When I walked in my house, it was packed with staffers and their kids (around 60 people in my house). Sitting on my sofa was a staff member that I did not know. That was so strange for me. I thought, “Oh well, this is a different day. Let’s eat.”

One more thing about chemistry and that is, if someone would say to me that I am here to serve God and not you. I would respond immediately, “Clean out your desk. Your ministry here is over.” The staff and volunteers must rally around a common dream and a common vision. If someone tries to develop a vision outside of the Pastor’s vision, then he must go. I know this to be true in two ways. First of all, when I was a kid and was serving at another church, I thought I knew more than I did. I made life for Stephen Conn challenging. He let me go. Ultimately God’s will was done, but the process of it all was not honoring for me or him. I apologize to Stephen for any of my stupidity. In the last twenty-two years, I have learned from my mistakes and hopefully created an environment that is life-giving and one that produces long-term team members.

Today, the challenge of adding staff members at Stevens Creek continues. We have been in hiring-mode for some time. We are staffing for our new campus that will open up on September 13, 2009. Please say a prayer that God will provide the right team members that will train our members to do the work of the ministry.

Quick Ways to Destroy a Friendship

Do you regularly have friends "grow away" from you? You know they are friends for a while and then you never see them. I am sure that it must be "their" issue and not "your issue." But, what if it could be your issue? Maybe you have been communicating in a way that pushes people instead of drawing them in. Here's a top ten list of guaranteed friendship busters from Nancy Beach.

Guaranteed Friendship Busters

10. Always forget your wallet.

9. Ask, “Have you gained a little weight?”

8. Talk loudly and often about your political beliefs.

7. Tell them how to raise their kids.

6. Come down with a sudden “24 hour stomach flu” on the day that you were supposed to help them move.

5. Invite them to a pyramid scheme.

4. Request a lot of airport pick-ups….at Atlanta.

3. Send a lot of email forwards insisting that they send them to ten more people or bad luck with strike.

2. Limit all your conversations to Twitter.

1. Only communicate through email.

Can you relate to any of these? Now, remember after you read this, if this shoe fits, it's time to get another pair.

Life Change Celebrated at The Creek

Baptism … there’s nothing like it. The tradition seems weird for some, but those who are followers of Jesus Christ it is an act that dates back to the time that Jesus walked on this earth. The very word baptism comes from a Greek word that means to dip or to plunge. It was initially used to describe someone as they would dip garments or pieces of cloth into dye. Think about it. The garment would be one color and then it was baptized in the dye and became another color.

The common act of baptizing garments became a way to describe how one’s life can be changed through faith. When we were sinners, we were headed in one direction and then we repented of our sins and turned and walked in a new direction. As a result of our repentance and the forgiveness of our transgressions, our lives have been changed. We were dead in our sins and through Jesus Christ we given a new life. To symbolize that the fact that we died to sin, we go down into the waters of baptism and are lifted up in new life to announce the fact that we are born again.

On Wednesday, August 12, 2009, twenty people went public with their faith during a baptism service at Stevens Creek Church. This service was a spiritual marker in the lives of these people and it will be an event that they will always remember. With the August baptism service, Stevens Creek set a new record of baptisms in one year. We are living in the midst of a revival. Don’t miss a service because there is more to come.

California Vacation ... Final stop...Home at last.

Here it is the final round of the California Vacation 2009. This last stop is the real reason that California was chosen as the Baker family vacation. You see to begin with, I did not want to go to the West Coast for vacation. I did not want all of the traveling from site to site. I wanted to go to the beach and sit on the balcony and drink coffee in the morning and then go read by the pool. Yes, I wanted to do nothing. I heavily considered the island of St. John because Jim and Allyson Campbell have been there and they highly, highly recommend it. You can rent a house for a reasonable amount and then I thought that we could use our airline miles to get us there. Great plan, right? Yes, it was, but Patty did not wholeheartedly endorse that plan. She said that you could use those same airline miles to get our entire family to California and we could use Hotwire and Priceline to keep the hotel expenses at bay. I knew she was right, but the real issue for Patty was that she had to be on the West Coast for a business conference whether we vacationed in St. John or in California. Patty’s logic won out. We decided to build the vacation around her conference / trade show and then work backwards.

As most of you know, Patty runs a business called SecureGive. She provides the technology for churches and non-profits to receive bank card donations through a giving kiosk in the lobby of the facility. It’s been interesting to see the business expand. She currently has close to 150 accounts that involve around 100 organizations. She has become a specialists in helping churches reach their stewardship potential. She never dreamed when she graduated with a sociology degree that she would be leading a software company, but today she serves several of the largest churches in America and notable non-profits like the Pearl Harbor Foundation. Yes, if you visit the Arizona Memorial at Pearl Harbor you will see one of her units.

Patty travels to between five to ten trade shows a year. Within a twelve month period, SecureGive has been at shows or will be in Chicago, Atlanta, Dallas, Jacksonville, Long Beach, Orlando, South Bend, and Charlotte. I don’t travel with her all the time, but there’s one conference that I don’t want to miss and that is the NACBA, the National Association of Church Business Administrators. This is the premier conference of the year because you have the decision makers from America’s largest churches. This year’s conference was in Long Beach, CA so now you know why we ended up in California on our vacation.

The NACBA conference started on Thursday. As we were walking over to the exhibit hall, I looked up and saw a familiar face, Ann Williams. Ann was sitting out on the veranda enjoying the 70 degree California weather. Ann attends the NACBA event every year as a part of her continuing education. The conference provides attendees with some of the most up-to-date information available.

After a short visit with Ann, we continued setting up the booth. People always say that in real estate it’s location, location, location. Well this year, unlike previous years, we were blessed with one of the best spots in the exhibit hall. We were on an end of the aisle one row over from Bank of the West near the entry way. That was great because I hung out with the Bank of the West team and could still be close to Stuart, Sarah and Patty at the SecureGive booth. I have to keep an eye on them to make sure that they stayed busy. Just kidding.

The SecureGive booth always gets a lot of traffic because the technology is new and Patty and Sarah are truly the best looking folks on the trade show floor. Seriously. Think about it. Most traveling sales teams are made up of middle aged men, especially if you are marketing software. To turn the corner and have two smiling women, with their freshly painted nails, to demonstrate a new software application, is a welcomed sight. Then you add a sweet Southern drawl people line up just to hear them talk and boy do they talk. Then you add Stuart into the mix. It's a combination for success. For most of the time, I am on the opposite aisle looking at a party that I was not invited too. Oh well. The conference went well. Trade shows are long and they are hard work. By the end of the day, you are ready for a good meal and a soft bed.

After the show closed, we ventured across the street to PF Changs. It was very, very good. I am not sure if the food was that good or that we were that hungry. You know that food always taste better when you are hungry.

When the sun rose on Friday, we were eager to take on the day. We had lunch that day with a couple from Canada, David and Blossom. They were very kind folks and we enjoyed getting to know them. I have to say that she is the first person that I have ever met with the name Blossom. Her middle name is Honey. She told us that her dad wanted to name her Honey Blossom, but her mom vetoed that and they settled on Blossom Honey. We can add her to the list of notable named people that we friends with. For instance, at The Creek, we have Jesse James (recently featured on Who Wants to Be a Millionaire notable name week) and Fig Newton. Fig is one of our greeters at the church. Needless to say, when you meet someone with a notable name, it’s an easy way to begin a conversation.

On Saturday, I covered the exhibit hall trying to find the latest and greatest stuff for local churches. It’s interesting for me to attend a show like this because you hear what other effective churches are doing to reach their community. I landed at the Fellowship Technologies booth and hung out with Steve and Jeff. F1 is an up and coming church management company that serves 33 of the top 100 churches in America.

In the church management market, there over three hundred players, but only a handful of companies that lead the church: F1, ACS, and Shelby are the leaders. Shelby Systems has a newer product called Arena and one of our church members, Christopher Rivers, is a sales representative for them. These three companies go head-to-head with each other with each one having their niche. All of them are loaded with kind and resourceful team members. Conferences like NACBA give me an opportunity to see the newest gadgets and gizmos.

The final day of the exhibit was Sunday. I let Bank of the West handle their booth and Patty, Stuart and Sarah handle SecureGive while Samuel and I went to church. People laugh at me but I seldom miss a Sunday whether I am in town or out of town. Kevin and Todd will often say, “Marty, you are on vacation. You can miss church.” Sunday is the Lord’s Day and I want to be with his people. Now, I am not saying that all those church administrators are not His people. I am just saying that I love to go to worship with fellow believers. Samuel and I logged onto the net and found a Church of God within driving distance. We actually went to the Living Waters Church of God in Fountain Valley, CA. Dan Moore is the pastor of this congregation. When Patty and I were first starting out, I preached at this church in the mid 1980s. It was located in the same spot so it was easy to find. Dan was on vacation and the Youth Pastor spoke. He did a fine job.

After church, we grabbed lunch in Fountain Valley and headed back to Long Beach. We helped them pack up and then dropped by FEDEX and we were done. Whew. We drove to Irvine, checked into the Hyatt, had dinner at On the Border and then to a movie. On Monday, we started the day at the pool. This was one of the only times that we had our swim suits on. During most of our trip, the weather was too cold for pools and beaches. We were finally south enough to enjoy some sunshine. We had lunch at the Claim Jumper, enjoyed a few moments at the South Coast Mall and then headed to John Wayne Airport to board a plane for Dallas. We spent the night in Dallas and then on to Atlanta. We arrived in Atlanta on July 21^st, nineteen days after we had departed.

This was the longest vacation that we have ever been on. It was memorable. When you have two kids in college and one in high school, you learn to treasure the moments that you have all of them together. We treasured these moments and are very thankful that they love one another and enjoy hanging out with their parents. Like I said, we arrived in Atlanta, but our luggage did not. It was still in Dallas. Oh well. It made getting through the airport a little easier. American Airlines flew our luggage to Columbia where Stuart picked it up later that day.

For those of you that have taken the time to read this blog, you have a little snap shot of our lives. We have been blessed by the Lord and consider it an honor to have each other and to have a wonderful church family at Stevens Creek.

California Vacation ... fifth stop...almost done.

We arrived at the San Jose Airport for a mid-morning flight to Long Beach. It was my first time to ever fly JetBlue Airlines. We had been packed into a Buick Enclave for 10 days so this flight was a welcomed ride. It was great for me because the flight from San Jose to Long Beach was $39.00 plus tax so all five of us flew for less than $250 total. When we boarded the plane, one of the first things all of us noticed was that JetBlue offers DirectTV at each seat. How cool is that? Catching up on ESPN made the trip pass quickly. We landed in the Long Beach airport and discovered that it was about the size of Bush Field in Augusta. We rented a van and headed to Anaheim.

Once in Anaheim, we stopped at a local Mexican Restaurant for lunch. This place had been in business for nearly 50 years. It was clean and very nice, but the food had a similar taste as the Mexican Restaurant in Oakhurst. So, it dawned on me that California Mexican food tastes different than Tex-Mex or good old Pablano’s or Veracruz back home. I prefer Tex-Mex. After lunch we made an agreement that said, “No more Mexican food on this trip.”

When we checked into the Embassy Suites, the boys rushed to find out if the television had input capabilities. It did … whew. Input capabilities provided Stuart and Samuel the ability to connect the X-Box and play NCAA College Football 2010. Yes, we took the X-Box from Augusta to California. I know a lot of parents complain about X-Box and so forth but not us.

It was neat that the boys could play MLB game with San Francisco Giants verses the San Diego Padres on X-Box and then go to ATT park and see it live. MLB is great, but nothing is better than NCAA College Football. One reason that we live this game is that Samuel has mastered the game much to Stuart’s chagrin.

What does it mean for Samuel to have mastered the game? It means that the University of South Carolina typically wins the National Championship every season. The graphics in this game are amazing and also with a little ingenuity you can download the actual rosters, so when South Carolina plays UGA, the quarterback is Stephen Garcia. We know that the game is fictional but when you are lost in the moment, you get that championship feeling.

While the boys were playing Xbox, I took the girls to have their nails done. We found a salon in Anaheim where the stylists declared that Patty was Sarah’s sister and not the mother. I think that they walked out with mixed emotions. Patty left thinking, “All that money that I have invested in high dollar skin cream must be working.” Sarah left thinking, “What? Are they blind? Can they not see? So, that’s what happens when you sniff nail polish for extended periods of time?”

While the girls were in the salon, I made my way over to the neighborhood Wal-Mart. It was here that I decided that over all Californians are friendly. I think that I went to California thinking that it would be like New York, but I was wrong. The managers in this store were helpful, the cashiers were talkative and the customers were considerate. Seriously, I thought that Southerners were the friendliest people in America. Well, that may be true, but those folks on the West Coast are close behind.

As I think back over my shopping excursions, the week before this nail salon experience, we were in Wal-Mart in Arcadia, CA and a lady asked me to help her reach some Vanilla Wafers on the top shelf. I was glad to help and I said, “You are not making banana pudding with those wafers, are you?” Of course, when I say the words, “banana pudding” my Southern accent kicks in. She said, “Yes.” I responded, “I did not think that people in California knew how to make banana pudding.” She said, “I’ve got Southern roots.” We both laughed and went on. Later that evening, we had dinner that evening in Downtown Disney at the Rain Forest Café. It was a great evening and got us mentally prepared for the next day at Disneyland.

On Wednesday, we got up early and ate breakfast and headed to Disneyland. It was the perfect time to visit a theme park. By this time, we had seen a lot natural beauty and had experienced a little sports and some culture. Now, it was time for a roller coaster. We bought a park hopper ticket and started the day at California Adventure. Our first ride was a simulated ride that made you think that you were flying over the state of California. Patty, Samuel and I had ridden this ride two years ago when we vacationed in Southern California and loved it. We wanted Stuart and Sarah to experience this ride too. It’s phenomenal especially since we had just visited Yosemite, San Francisco and the like. As you flew over the orange groves a scent of oranges was released in the room. It made the flight seem so real. We left there and hit the Ferris wheels and the roller coasters. We had lunch and then headed across the way to Disney. Disney was great. The Disney Corporation is a notch above most companies in America. They play at the top of their game. They know how to create experiences that allow people to make lasting memories. We enjoyed our day at Disney. Thanks Micky, Minnie and all the gang!

We made it back to the hotel exhausted and ready for a good night’s rest. We were all in one room that night which meant that we got to go to sleep with the sounds of X-box or ESPN Sports Center playing in the background. At the Baker household, we don’t need many channels, only a few ESPN, ESPN2, ESPNU, ESPN NEWS and ESPN Classic.

On Thursday, we traveled down to Artesia where we toured the Olea Kiosk and Exhibit Company. This company provides Patty and SecureGive most of the units that they market. The owner, Frank Olea, gave us a personal tour and showed us their process. They were in the middle of producing 1200 units for one deployment, but in the middle of that deployment we noticed two units that had church names on them and that meant that they were headed to SecureGive churches. It was funny because the IT guy heard that I was there and came down and said, “Since you are here, I am having a problem with a Pin Pad on a church kiosk. Can you take a look at it.” I agreed. As I was going through the software setup and so forth, this thought hit me, “I am working on a computer on an assembly line in a warehouse in Southern California.” I never thought that I would be doing that. Well, long story short, after twenty minutes or so, I could not figure it out. I said to myself, “No, I am on vacation.” I agreed to remote back in later if a solution came to my mind. I later found out that it was not our fault, nor was it Olea’s fault, but the bank did not set up the account for PIN debit. Oh, the details.

We left Olea and drove to Long Beach where we checked into the Hyatt Regency. If you have never been to Long Beach, you are missing out. It was one of the nicest places on the trip. The hotel was on the small harbor there. The shore was lined with a beautiful walkway and several restaurants. It was great, but when we arrived there, it was a reminder that our vacation was coming to a close and that we had to change gears.

We were staying at Long Beach because that is where the National Association of Church Business Administrators Annual Conference was being held. The NACBA is the grand-daddy of all church business conferences. Patty had a booth for SecureGive at the conference and she, Stuart and Sarah worked that booth. I, on the other hand, hung out at the Bank of the West booth. This bank, who holds the mortgages for Stevens Creek Church, is the leader in church lending. They stepped in two years ago and provided us with funding that local banks could not touch. We are deeply appreciative of their kindness and their willingness to fund our expansion. So, once or twice a year (maybe three times this year) I am a non-paid representative for Bank of the West at trade shows.

Well, there’s a little more to the story. Bank of the West is a Business partner with SecureGive. They sell giving kiosks with the Bank of the West branding on it, but the machinery and the software is powered by SecureGive. It’s nice to have them on your side. Here’s a side note. Two years ago, the President of Church Lending for Bank of the West, Dan Mikes, submitted the giving kiosk in their parent company’s most innovative products contest. Bank of the West is owned by a French Bank that is one of the top five banks in the world. They flew Dan to Paris to receive a second place award for the most innovative product of the year. It would have been nice to have the inventor of the giving kiosk on that trip, wouldn’t it? Oh well. That’s life. We are almost done. Stay tuned for one more round.

California Vacation ... fourth leg.

The trip to San Francisco featured a swing in temperatures. We were in the lower 70s in the mountains and as we drove toward the bay, it quickly went into the 80s and then upper 90s. Then as we checked into the Hyatt Regency in downtown San Francisco it was in the upper 60s. Californian truly has it all …especially when it comes to the weather. One of the first things I noticed as we cruised into downtown is that it has a similar feel of New York City. In fact, I told the kids that this was the New York of the West. We stayed near Union Square close to the financial district and within walking distance to Chinatown. Sarah, the only experienced Chinatown shopper, said that New York’s Chinatown is far superior to San Francisco’s.

For dinner we walked to Little Italy and had a tremendous meal at a family-owned, small Italian Eatery. On the way back, I was sensitive to my surroundings for safety reasons, but over-all we felt very safe as we walked the streets of the city. San Francisco has a reputation for being tolerate of alternate lifestyles. We, however, did not see an unusual amount of homosexuals. I was expecting it and bracing myself for it, but it did not happen. It was no different than walking the streets of Atlanta. Well, there were some differences. San Francisco and San Jose has a large Asian population. I guess it makes sense. They are closer to Asia than Georgia. Also, stereo-typical Asian is very smart and the Silicon Valley is the home of some of the brightest people in the world outside of Augusta.

On Friday, we took the double-decker bus for a tour of the city. I know that some folks consider this cheesy, but it was really cool … I mean freezing. We were in the upper deck of this bus with a temperature of 67 degrees with a 35 – 55 mile per hour wind. I quickly decided that I could see the city from the lower deck where it was comfortable. Stuart followed me, but Patty, Sarah and Samuel braved the cold weather. As the bus drove over the Golden Gate Bridge the temperature / wind-chill dropped significantly. Instead of running down the stairs proclaiming that Stuart and I were the wiser folks in the group, they stayed on top and froze. Sometimes stubbornness can be painful. Well, after they crossed the bridge, they brought their nearly frost-bitten bodies down to the lower deck to thaw.

We got off the bus at Fisherman’s Wharf and had lunch there looking over the bay. It was incredible; truly a memory that we will have with us for a long time. My goal that day was to end up at Ghirardelli’s Chocolate Store and get ice cream. I have had their ice cream in downtown Chicago before. It’s almost worth the price of an airline ticket for a taste. So, their headquarters is in San Francisco and there is a retail store just steps away from where we were. I could taste it, but it did not happen. We were stuffed from lunch and had to give up on the ice cream idea.

After the city tour, we ended up at Orpheum Theater around 5:30 PM for their nightly lottery for the show Wicked. You see, tickets for Wicked are around $100.00. If you multiply that by five family members , then you get a little indigestion. The concierge at the hotel told us that every evening at 5:30 PM they have a lottery for unsold tickets. You can put your name in the hat for a chance to win an opportunity to buy tickets for $25.00. Thankfully, we won the right to by four tickets and then the winners could buy an additional ticket for $40.00. So, we bought five tickets to see the show Wicked for $140.00. That’s a good deal but my conservative nature said that we need to take it easy at dinner so we grabbed a sandwich at the local Subway Restaurant and then headed to the show. That evening was truly a highlight. In most of the conversations that we have had after coming home from California, the night at the Orpheum Theater comes up.

On Saturday, we had lunch at the Cheesecake Factory and shopped in Union Square. We also stopped by the local Best Buy and replaced Sarah’s digital camera (under warranty thankfully). Then we went to ATT Park to see the San Francisco Giants play the San Diego Padres. Everything about that night was cool…the stadium looking over the waterfront, the players, the people, the atmosphere and so forth. After the game, we loaded up and headed to San Jose. We had dinner at Marie Calendars and then checked into the Embassy Suites.

It was Saturday night and it was my job to find a place to worship on Sunday. First of all, I looked for a Church of God congregation to attend. I am a loyalist. I found several COGs, but none of them had websites or if they did have a website, they did not have a compelling site. In today’s market place, if a church does not have a website, then go at your own risk.

I landed on Jubilee Christian Center with Pastor Dick Bernal (http://www.jubilee.org/). We arrived at their 11:00 AM service and sat down. People were very friendly and the church was large but welcoming. The female worship leader stepped on to the stage and started to sing. She was a female version of Israel Houghton. Wow! As she sung, I knew that I was in the right place. She was anointed and the singers were passionate. It was a great experience. Pastor Bernal did a great job too. I had heard of his ministry through the years and I appreciated the opportunity to hear one of the prominent voices of the charismatic renewal of days gone by. He has stood the test of time and transitioned that church through various seasons. My hat is off to Pastor Bernal. Your integrity is evident. May God continue to bless your work.

After service, we had lunch at Longhorns and hit the mall. What an experience. I felt as though I was in a mall in Southeast Asia. Seriously, I looked at these people and wondered what Silicon Valley company did they work for. I saw a man pick up an Ipod Dock at Marshalls and the thought hit me, “Does he work in Cupertino? Does he write code for Apple?” I know that you think I am crazy, but if you drive down the streets of San Jose, Mountain View, Cupertino, etc, you see all of the major internet players. I was amazed at the number of buildings that had the name Cisco on it. Whew. They have some serious real estate. Then, Google has building after building, then Yahoo, then Verisign, then EBAY, then AOL, then Salesforce and on and on and on. If you have seen it on the web, then they probably have a presence in the Silicon Valley. I loved it. I was getting rush just being in the epicenter of so many brainiacs. Okay, I am a little weird.

Later that night we went to see the movie, “My Sisters Keeper.” If you have not seen that movie and you are looking for a good cry, then go. It’s a tear-jerker. The next day, we visited a East Valley Pentecostal Church. This congregation was one of SecureGive’s first churches on the West Coast. We walked in and talked to Cheri. She said, “Since you are here, one of our units is not working.” I smiled and started working on a kiosk for a few minutes. I realized that I could not fix it there so I sent word to Brennen, our trusty technical support guru, and between the two of us, we had them up and running within a day.

After that stop, we ventured over to Macaroni Grill and then to the outlet malls in Gilroy. While in Gilroy, we stopped by another SecureGive church, South Valley Community Church, but there offices were closed on Mondays. San Francisco was cold; Gilroy was hot. It’s just about an hour and a half from San Francisco. The temperature was in the upper 90s; it felt like home.

Later that evening we checked into the Crowne Plaza near the San Jose Airport so we could be ready for our flight to Long Beach on Tuesday morning. Stay tuned.