Hello

Just a little catch up for everyone.  The Snider's are alive and well.  I have just finished my sabbatical - in fact today is my first day back "on the job."  We have had a great holiday.  A lot of time spent around the christmas tree loving on family and just regular old hang time. 

I did get away to Sun River - my parents have a house there.  I took some time to do a personal retreat.  It was a good time.  Nothing to incredible to point out.  I do feel a little bit more grounded than normal.  I guess that is a good thing. 

Here is a picture of the family at Thanksgiving in Spokane. 

Anyway back in the saddle again, a lot going on.  Doing what I know to do to build His Kingdom and not my own.  More later. 

Currently Watching The Bourne Identity (Widescreen Extended Edition) By Matt Damon, Franka Potente, Chris Cooper, Clive Owen, Brian Cox see related

What in the world am I doing up?

It is late 12:09am to be exact.  I am still awake.  Wide awake.  I have not sat down and looked at this site in so long.  So I thought I would fill you all in on my life a little bit.  The family is doing well.  We are just ready for that break that is coming our way.  We normally take a month off (well I do anyway), from BridgeTown responsibilities and take some time to refresh and all of that.  So we are down to our last few weeks until that happens. 

I don't really know what I am going to do.  I know that this year I am going to take a personal retreat time.  What is a personal retreat?  Glad you asked.  It is a time where you go by your self and retreat from the war the battle that you are fighting in and just rest and relook at stuff and God and all of that.  I have never done one and feel that God is calling me to do one.  To be honest it is pretty weird cause I am not really wired to be by myself.  It is not that I am afraid of what God might say to me, when I am quiet and all of that.  I just love people and being around them and with them and all of that.  You could say that I am a people person.  It is what draws me closer to God than anything.  I was talking to a friend who really helped me to see a couple of things, thought I might share them with you: 

1)  Your prayer life coninsides with the way that you are wired.  I thought that was great and it really helped me to understand why I am the way that I am.  I love to talk to God, but I have always struggled with the whole "devotional" thing you know sit down early in the am, cup of coffee, bible and all of that.  I can do that every once in a while but I tend to like to mix it up.  And as far as a "set" time not on your life.  Honestly, I have struggled with that at times as I am supposed to me one of those "professional" religious types.  So in the last few years I have really grown to know that God loves me and knows me for who I am and what I am.  He loves to talk to me whenever I want to talk, and even gets a word in edge wise with me.  LOL

2)  Contemplativens - maybe your one of these peopel that needs to be alone in the woods and all of that (and that is great for you) but you must find what works for you.  And shame on us for putting what we think should work for everyone when it doesnt.  Be who you are, find that way that you connect with God and then dive into that.  I sometimes have felt that cause I am more of a extravert (duh really?)  that I am seen as shallow and all of tha stuff.  I am not shallow, just very verbal and I think outloud.  The way I process is verbal and that is okay.  Anyway - So I am not sure what this retreat will be like but, I will let you know.  My friend said that it could just be that I fall asleep a lot. Well we will see. 

BTown is doing great a lot going on!!! Check out the new web site www.bridgetownministries.com

Wandering with purpose

Marshall

Yes I am Alive!!!

Is this really me? Is that really you?

I have been writing in this blog "world" now for some time.  I have been thinking about some stuff.  I have been thinking about if most people are who they really are in their blog?  Are they more vulnerable in the setting of the blog living room (if you will) then in real life?  If this is true then it is truly sad.  Do we do life with people?  Do we have people that can ask us the questions?  Those questions that are important to answer.  Do we really know what accountability is all about?  Is this place "community"? 

It is funny as we live in this "virtual reality" world.  Watching things that are protrayed as "real"  but are they?  Or are they just facades that help us to answer our own question?  Or keep us from answering it.  Words like vulnerability and openess and safe and dialogue and conversation come to mind.  Just wondering........

Do people hide in here?  I know that they hide in other places. 

I know that you are the only one that can answer this question.  For the most part it is me.  But then you know when you start to think about it, "is it really me?"  then you wonder.  Oh well..... 

Spring has arrived and so has my snot!!!!

Oh boy do I have allergies. I can feel it coming on - I sneeze a hundred times a day.  My street is littered with white cherry blossoms in front of every house.  This is not an exageration - the houses on my street each have trees in full white blossom.  I think the that builder had a trademark or something in the area of white trees.  They are as far as you can see. 

Two week of passions starting this week.  That means that they are with us from Tuesday until Saturday.  We just finished 4 teams last week 1 from Mout Hood Community College, 1 from Central Point, Jacksonville and Tualatin.  They did a great job.  Out teams this week are both from Washington, Seattle and Richland.  There schedule will kinda go like this: 

tuesday - 7pm they arrive in downtown portland and we then give them a tour and orientate them at Pioneer Square. They then go to their sleeping arrangements down at the Liberation Street Curch on 2nd and Burnside.  This is a great experience as it is alive down there all night long. People shouting and music and all of that.  People usually get a couple of hours of sleep. 

Wednesday - up at around 8:00am for a quick breakfast and then they are kicked out onto the streets of Portland for about 8 hours.  They are only given a doller and they have to walk the streets and eat in a mission and all of that jazz.  It is a great experience for them.  They then come back to the ministry center in N. Portland where we get them ready to go to the Salvation Army where they will sleep for the evening.  (They are usually pretty wiped out after this day) 

Thursday - BFast and then they are off to the "Real Life" exhibit - this is a great tour sponsored by the International Medical Team (formerly NW Medical Teams)  they have their main warehouse in Tigard and they have designated a whole portion of it as an exhibit of what they do in that great ministry.  What and incredible thing that is.  You walk through real exhibits that help you to see the things going on in our world.  It is all in actual size.  They have videos that show what is going on - it is really an epic deal that all people should go through.  They then come back to prepare for the love feast that we do:  this kinda goes like this.  The teams are split into 2 teams and one team goes to Liberation Street Church to decorate the church.  The other team stays back and prepares a gourmet spagetti dinner.  We then take it down and invite people to the dinner.  We share a small "very small"  appreciation for them and let them know that we are doing what we think Jesus would do if he were with us today.  We then let the servants eat and serve at each table.  The conversation is great and the particpants are challenged in a big way.  Then back to a debrief of the day and off to bed another day done. 

Friday they are all over the place serving in different ministries throughout portland.  We have partners with different ministries throughout Portland.  They help these ministries to do what it is that God wants them to do.  When they come back the help to prepare for Night Strike - which is our ministry to the down town area.  This is usually a very long day. 

Saturday they will be up early and in the summer months working at our BTown kids sites.  These sites focus on the children of the Portland area.  We do a side walk sunday school program with them and feed them lunch.  It is a great time.  They then come back and do a street sweep on the Lombard area and then we do a short service for them that inspires them to greatness.  It is really great.  That is what we do most weeks in the summer and spring season.