Eric's Beijing Diary

Went to church with Melissa in McMinnville this morning. They happened to be having a special "Worship in the Park" at Wortman Park. The guest preacher had worked with Child Evangelism Fellowship at one time, and it showed. He presented a very simple gospel message, followed by a short invitation. It was uniquely suited, I thought, for a family-oriented picnic Sunday. After church, we had a picnic. They had an old ice cream maker. That thing had been obviously been around for quite awhile. it reminded me of what we used up in Nojiri to make ice cream, except that it was quite a bit bigger. A few of the men were taking turns cranking the mixer. I decided I might as well help them, since Melissa was busy talking with the other church ladies. Hard to beat ice cream from a hand-cranked mixer.

This evening, Melissa hosted a gathering for some my friends from college. It was her idea, and it turned out to be a good one, because with all I had to do, I probably would have settled for a few phone conversations. It was nice. Interesting how we have all changed, yet there is a certain something about each person that remains the same. This is especially true, of course, for those who are of the household of faith. It's been over 30 years, now, since I graduated from college.