Survey Says...

Yesterday concluded four services at Christian Life Center in Minneapolis. The numbers: Two people received the Holy Ghost and two people were baptized in Jesus' name. A few folks who had not been to church for a while and some first-time visitors came out for the meetings.

Pastor David and Susan Kent are doing a great job. They came to Golden Valley (an area of Minneapolis) a few years ago as metro missionaries. They started the work here and continue to reach out to people in this great city.

Brother Kent and Brother Ferrin had planned to go out into the community Saturday and give surveys to people. The surveys are a great way to get an idea of what people believe about God, the Bible, and God's interest in their lives. The final question asks the surveyee if he/she would like to receive a free home Bible study. This is a great way to meet people you would not otherwise meet.

When we showed up at the church Saturday Brother Kent had a surprise for us. He said we would not be doing surveys, but we were going to take the day off. I think they had noticed my fatigue and wanted to give us a little break. I suppose it is okay; even Jesus withdrew every once in a while.

(Today, I feel even worse than last week and I think we have discovered the problem. I have never suffered much from allergies, but I must be allergic to something here. This morning, I have been outside a lot and I can't stop sneezing, plus my eyes are itchy. I am physically fatigued and have been for a couple of weeks. I suppose it is good that we are heading to North Dakota tomorrow. Maybe they don't have the same allergy-causing substances that are on this campground!!)

Anyway, the Kents took us to a New York style deli. I tried the matzo ball soup and Bill had a reuben sandwich. We went for a wonderful walk around Lake Calhoun. On our way there, we saw the most fascinating treehouse I have ever seen. It is several stories tall, quite unique. After our walk, we talked Brother Kent into stopping at the Vitamin Shoppe and Whole Foods on the way back. (We needed to buy a homeopathic for Bill's case of shingles. Another story.) Then, Brother Kent took us through a few Minneapolis neighborhoods. One is mostly Somalian. (The Minneapolis-St. Paul metro area has the largest population of Somalians in the United States.) At days' end, we were all relaxed, but good-and-tired too, so we parted ways to get a little rest for the Sunday service.

I suppose the moral of the story is that sometimes the survey says, "It's okay to take a break." Between Brother Kent's endless sense of humor and Sister Kent's incredible sweetness, it made for a memorable day, a little time of physical refreshing sandwiched between several nights of prayer, praise, and spiritual renewal.