With Friends Like These...

So, it was Day One at the Shepherds' Conference, and I was settling into my seat in the Grace Community Church Worship Center for Tom Pennington's session, when I felt my phone vibrating in my pocket...

I pulled it out, and read this:

@Phil_Johnson_
Phil Johnson
Glad @Shinar_Squirrel made it to the conference. #ShepConf

I chuckled, amused at Phil's tweet, and happy that my picture with John MacArthur was entertaining folks so much.

I had just started to return my phone to my pocket, when I felt it vibrating in my hand. (Yes, it was on "vibrate." I was in church, after all.) I flipped it open again, and read this:

@DrOakley1689
James White
@Phil_Johnson_ I warned him about the charismatic stuff. He doesn't listen well. Throw him some @Chick-fil-A

Okay, this was getting funny. Before I'd even started to put my phone away, it vibrated again...

@Phil_Johnson_
Phil Johnson
@DrOakley1689 He'll get an In'n'Out burger for lunch tomorrow. That'll help, too, I'm sure.

Now I didn't even try to put my phone away, at this point. I knew there was going to be more to come. Sure enough...

@DrOakley1689
James White
@Phil_Johnson_ I just feed him nuts, after all. Maybe that's why he's with you, not me? :-)

@Phil_Johnson_
Phil Johnson
@DrOakley1689 Are you in SoCal yet? You should come over on Friday. Lunch or dinner; your choice.

@DrOakley1689
James White
@Phil_Johnson_ No, not there till Friday afternoon. I'm speaking Friday evening, too.

@Phil_Johnson_
Phil Johnson
@DrOakley1689 Bummer

Okay, even I didn't see what was coming next...

@DrOakley1689
James White
@Phil_Johnson_ Hey, if you offered me a real delicacy, like, I don't know, deep fried Squirrel? Might try to make that! :-)

At this point, I have no choice but to reply...

@Shinar_Squirrel
Gene Clyatt
@Phil_Johnson_ @DrOakley1689 I feel kinda picked on :-)

And, now, everybody had to get in on the act...

@ralphprovance
Ralph Provance
@DrOakley1689 I eat squirrel. You need six for a pot-pie!
@Phil_Johnson_ @Shinar_Squirrel

@DrOakley1689
James White
@ralphprovance Six? Well, that would depend on the SIZE of the @Shinar_Squirrel. I've seen one really big sample of that species!

@ralphprovance
Ralph Provance
@DrOakley1689 Pennsylvania squirrels are smaller than the ones they grow in Montana! :-) @Shinar_Squirrel

Gladly, it ended there. I was trying to prepare my heart to worship, y'know...

The next day I got to meet Phil in person. He said he had been prepared to continue tweeting and tell James about some barbaric place where they eat squirrel brains, but he didn't want to offend me. Well, at least someone tried to take my feelings into account...

Shepherds' Conference - The Accounting

Since so many of you so graciously donated to my travel fund, which made my trip to the Shepherds’ Conference possible, I believe that it is only right and fitting that I give you an accounting of my expenses.

In some areas I went over budget, but in others I was under budget. Fuel prices were higher than I expected, but my car got a lot better mileage than I had anticipated, so that worked out well. I had the good fortune of having my friend, Tony Bartolucci, a pastor from New York, as a roommate & split the hotel costs with me. He also bought some of my fuel, as we were using my car for running around in.

Here’s how it all worked out:

	Budgeted	Actual
Conference	$300.00	$300.00
Fuel	$300.00	$267.75
Hotel	$400.00	$291.50
Food	$180.00	$214.60
Books	$0.00	$149.60
Total	$1180.00	$1290.16

As you can see, I spent $149.60 on books, which I had not budgeted for. I hadn’t figured on the incredible bookstore that Grace Community Church provided for the pastors who attend the conference. I had heard about the free books that are provided to conference attendees, but nobody warned me about the bookstore… where all the pastors received credits and huge discounts… and I’m afraid I gave into temptation, buying commentaries and other books for my study, including the complete 4-volume MacArthur Pastor’s Library. My church family has graciously allowed me to submit this expense for reimbursement also.

Through your donations, I raised $1208.00 towards these expenses. With actual expenses of $1290.16, my church has only had to cover $82.16. This is a wonderful blessing for such a small church! There is no way the church could have sent me without your help!

Being able to go to the Shepherds' Conference was a fantastic! A dream come true! I cannot thank you all enough for making it possible for me to attend!

The Shepherds’ Conference – or – What I Did During My Spring Vacation

It was a great joy and blessing to get to travel to the Shepherds’ Conference at Grace Community Church two weeks ago. – I am so very grateful for God's providence through the generosity of His people – Especially you and you (& you know who you are!) There is no way I could have made this trip without your help!

I had intended on doing a bit of blogging each day I was there, but, wow! Did they keep us busy! From early Wednesday morning until late Friday night, the schedule was pretty well packed full.

I had been told that they really took good care of the pastors who attended the conference, and boy, were my sources right! They really gave us 5-star treatment the whole time. It was a hot week for early March, and there was cold water available at stations all around the Grace Community Church campus. They had breakfast available for us every morning and snacks between each session. And, everywhere, there were smiling faces. It was plain that they were very glad to have us all there. My thanks to the conference staff and volunteers who worked so hard and treated us so well!


There were a lot of seminar sessions available to attend. Here are the ones I went to:
Day One – Wednesday

General Session 1 - Phil Johnson
The Forgotten Field - Alex Montoya
General Session 2 - Tom Pennington
General Session 3 - John MacArthur

Day Two – Thursday

General Session 4 - Rick Holland
General Session 5 - John MacArthur
Exegesis and the Powerful Pulpit – Bill Barrick
Exposition and the Powerful Pulpit – Rick Holland
General Session 6 - Al Mohler

Day Three – Friday

General Session 7 - Nathan Busenitz
Delivery and the Powerful Pulpit – Alex Montoya
General Session 8 - Steve Lawson
General Session 9 - John MacArthur

Saturday, I had the pleasure of spending most of the day with Fred Butler. I was treated to breakfast at his home, and enjoyed spending time with his lovely wife and their children (to whom I am now known as "Mr. Squirrel".) After breakfast, Fred and I drove out to Semi Valley and toured the newly-renovated Reagan Library. Considering how much I admire Reagan, it was a very moving experience. Then, after lunch at Chick-fil-A, Fred gave me a short tour of the Grace to You offices.

Afterwards, we drove south to Bellflower, stopping in Van Nuys to pick up Tony Bartolucci (my roommate for the week), to attend James White's lecture on Conducting Debate to the Glory of God.

After a late-night nosh at Olive Garden, Tony and I drove Fred home and got back to our hotel after midnight -- and that was the night that the time changed! After a good, solid 4 hours of sleep, it was time to get up and go to church. Tony and I met up with Fred and his wife again, and attended GraceLife Fellowship, where Don Green preached on The Pastor, His Pulpit, and His People. In the main service that morning, John MacArthur preached on Paul's Philosophy of Ministry.

After church, Tony and I made the drive to Phoenix, where we met up with his family for dinner at Famous Dave's BBQ. After dinner, it was straight to bed - without setting an alarm clock!

Monday morning, after breakfast (at Chick-fil-A!), I was on the road home! I got home Tuesday night around 11pm. (And, no, I didn't sleep in my car. I got a motel room in Beaver, Utah.)

All I can say is that it was a fantastic trip! I heard some great preaching and teaching, made a lot of new friends, and got to eat at IN-N-OUT Burger twice and Chick-fil-A four times!

That's the big picture, anyway. I'll post a few stories from the trip soon.

(There are more pictures here.)

Shepherd's Conference - The Trip Down

Well, I made it! I'm typing this in my hotel room in Los Angeles, and the Shepherd's Conference begins tomorrow.

The trip down was fairly uneventful, with two exceptions. One good and one not so good.

The good part was getting to enjoy my first Chick-fil-A sandwich in over 25 years!

I've always loved Chick-fil-A. Unfortunately, we moved from Atlanta, GA, to Missoula, MT, when I was eleven years old. Back then, there were no Chick-fil-A restaurants outside of the south-eastern states. But, every time I'd travel to Atlanta, I'd always make sure I got to eat at Chick-fil-A at least once. But, the last time I was in Atlanta was 1985. 26 years is a long time to go without Chick-fil-A, let me tell you!



Well, yesterday that dry spell ended, as I enjoyed 2 original Chick-fil-A sandwiches, with Waffle Fries and a sweet tea. It was Wonderful!


The second event was less enjoyable. After leaving the Chick-fil-A in Ogden, it started raining. The rain soon turned to snow as I made my way through Salt Lake City during the 5 o'clock rush hour. South of the city, things seemed to clear up, and I made good time until just south of the I-15/I-70 junction, when it began to snow again. Hard. So hard, in fact, that I-15 was closed for two hours (approximately 10 pm to midnight). There I sat, part of a long line of cars and trucks, motionless on the freeway. By the time they got us moving again, all I wanted to do was find a place to nap. I spent the night in a rest area north of Cedar City.


But, morning dawned sunny and clear! I drove to Los Vegas, fueled up, grabbed some breakfast, and headed on into LA.

And now it's bedtime again. Conference starts in the morning! Looking forward to it!

Shepherd's Conference - On My Way!

The bags are packed, the car is loaded, the coffee thermos is full. I'm sure I've forgotten something, but, that's just the way traveling is! By the time you read this, I should be on the road, heading for the Shepherd's Conference. The route I'm taking is 1,279 miles and will take approximatively 20 hours to drive (not counting naps and stops at Chick-fil-A, of which there are eight along the way!)

I'm really looking forward to this trip. Not only am I going to get to hear some great preaching from men I respect and admire, but I'm going to get to finally meet in person some friends I've made these last few years over the internet.

Then again, I get to stop a multiple Chick-fil-A's on route...



Here's a map of my route, if you want to come out and wave as I go by!


View Larger Map

Thank you again to all who have made this trip possible! It wouldn't have happened without your generosity. I am humbled and so very very grateful.

Thank You All!

The goal has been met! Today at church, the church treasurer informed me that, in the last week, checks totaling $500 had come into the church earmarked for the pastor's conference fund. The Superior Baptist Church Pastor's Conference Fund has received a grand total of $1208!

Well, you did it, and I am so very, very grateful! This puts me way over the top, exceeding my fundraising goal of $1000 and covering the entire cost of the trip to the 2011 Shepherds' Conference. I can't tell you how much this means to me! I will, of course, do daily blog posts from the conference (with pictures), although I don't think I'm talented enough to live-blog it.

I also want to meet as many SquirrelFans as might be attending. So, if you read A Squirrel in Babylon and you are going to be at the Shepherds' Conference, let me know.

The Squirrel Still Needs Your Help!

I am so very grateful for the support I have received towards going to the Shepherds’ Conference in March of 2011! As of today, I have received donations totaling $608 towards my goal of $1000! Thank you so very much to all who have so generously contributed!

These donations are tax deductible donations to Superior Baptist Church's Pastor's Conference Fund, and there's still time to get yours in before 2010 ends.

If you would like to help, please send your check to:

Superior Baptist Church
Pastor’s Conference Fund
PO Box 850
Superior, MT 59872

Make sure that you write "Pastor's Conference Fund" in the memo line on the check, or you can click the PayPal link in the sidebar.

My Budget:

• Conference – $300
• Fuel down and back – $300
• 5 nights hotel – $400
• 9 days food ($20/day) –$180
• Total est. cost = $1180.00

Thanks!

Help Send Squirrel To The 2011 Shepherds' Conference

I hesitated to blog about this, but a friend of mine told me that people can’t help when they don’t know what the needs are.

The church I serve as pastor is very small, and for most of my time as pastor I have been bi-vocational, working an outside job to help pay the bills. Unfortunately, recent economic conditions have affected things around here, as they have everywhere, and I have not had work outside the church in almost a year now. We are getting by, and all the bills are current, but most (all!) “extras” have been severely curtailed.

I have long desired to attend the Shepherds’ Conference at John MacArthur’s church, and so I am asking for your help. My church as set up a pastor’s conference fund, and I need to raise $1000 in order to attend the conference next March.

If you would like to help, please send your check to:

Superior Baptist Church
Pastor’s Conference Fund
PO Box 850
Superior, MT 59872

Thank you, and I’ll keep you updated!

Update #1

People have asked if they could donate with PayPal. There is now a PayPal button on the sidebar.

Also, several folks have asked “Why so much to go to a conference?” Good question, and here’s the breakdown:

• Conference – $300
• Fuel down and back – $300
• 5 nights hotel – $400
• 9 days food ($20/day) –$180
• Total est. cost = $1180.00

(This assumes that I sleep in my car on the two-day drive down and the two-day drive back.)