theMarcus

This weblog is shut down, so if you come, please visit our website www.coloradocarlson.net.  It will have a link to my space as well as any other blog(s) I may or may not start.

Surprised

God is full of surprises, so always be ready to embrace them no matter what they are and what they do to and for you.  Jessica and I received a surprise in the form of expecting our second child and so we are excited about this divine surprise.  We are looking to buy a house here now and really get settled, so please be praying for us in the midst of all of these changes on top of having a 15 month old, working full time in teaching and ministry and for me to finish my masters.

Things I am excited about

-First formal family picture today
-First ever mountain lion sighting in person
-the name, "The Marcus"
-Micah Walking
-New youth service, Koinonia
-Routine
-Hiking

Things are great, I miss lots of people that do not live in Colorado, and I wish there was more time in the day.  Check out our family website at www.coloradocarlson.net

Ministry is going well, although life is out of balance for sure.  I am hoping to get caught up on sleep after a long week at work and a week of class and a mission trip.  I sense God wanting me to be better about boundries and rhythm and I need to see my family more.  I am doing well though because I sense the presence of God in the midst.  I need a vacation becuase I am tired, but hopefully I will survive August.

Long Time

Its been a long time since I have posted.  It is harder to keep up with my blog and with our website during the summer.  This week I am taking a class for my masters after taking three months off.  It is hard to adjust, but my goal is to take two classes each quarter in the fall, winter, and spring so I can graduate in May.  I am looking forward to getting done.  Jessica is finishing her master this week.  I also just got back from my first ever middle school mission trip.  It was absolutely amazing as we were in Rapid City.  I thought it was a great trip and I really sense God moving in the Student Ministry.  We are gearing up for fall which will be interesting and exciting.  I have had some difficult situations at work, and have learned a lot from them.  Micah is doing very well, he likes to hug a lot and is developing a lot of personality.  His first birthday was so much fun and I am hoping to post some pictures on our website (coloradocarlson.net) soon.  I am getting back into shape and have been doing a lot of hiking lately.  I need some more prayers that I can get into a better rhythm and not work too much.  Well, thats the summary for now!

Home

Everyone is now home from Mexico which is wonderful.  I missed my staff, Jessica, and the kids a lot so it is so nice to have everyone back.  It is also nice to see a trip go well without me, although I would have loved to be there.  It is a cool time in life becuase God is doing some really amazing things in the Student Ministry and in my own life as well.  I do have a difficult situation with a volunteer to deal with, so I need prayer for that.  I am going to STOMP tonight with Jessica for our anniversary which is next week.  Micah is standing for more than a minute on his own, so walking is soon the follow.  Well, those are my ramblings.

Marcus

Wandering thoughts...

It's Thursday, so its my day to catch up with websites and internet.  Things are well, Colorado weather is so wonderful and my ribs are finally really healing.  Jessica is in Mexico with a mission trip so I miss her dearly.  It is good having time with Micah and nice to catch up at work and home.  Not much else going...

Something different

For this weeks post (and yes it has been lots of weeks and so I need to catch up) I posted on the my space page I have.  Check it out at : http://www.myspace.com/themarcusj

MAY!

I am thankful that May has finally arrived.  March and April were so incredibly crazy and full, it is nice to see life quiet down a little bit now.  I am getting ready for my summer interns which I am excited about.  Summer will be a nice change of pace and I will get to work on a lot of big picture stuff.  I am almost caught up at work and hope to be caught up by time we go on vacation to Indiana May 19-21.  It will be nice to be there and to show Micah off.  I finally feel like I am connecting with the students here and feel that I am really using my gifts.  My new staff is also such a blessing, and construction in the youth area at least is almost over.  Micah says "hi dada" which just melts my heart.  Still struggling with the broken ribs, and other health stuff, but I am trusting God to make that better soon.  Also having our house in Indiana rented is a huge stress off of our backs.

Today

Today was way too busy, but I am glad to be going to Indiana for a day or so just to get away a little bit, although I really need to polish my sermon for Sunday.  I have updated our website with a new flickr link with lots of great Micah pics.  I also updated myspace which you can get to from my personal page. 
Visit www.coloradocarlson.net to check it all out.

Broken

Its been a crazy month of April so far, and it is going to keep busy.  I am looking forward to May, nicer weather around here already, but I will be visiting Indiana, will turn 28, and will start three summer interns as well.  Things will die down a little besides the two mission trips this summer and Jessica will be out of school and almost done with Grad school as well.  On Good Friday we had our month game night for the students at the church.  I was playing a tackle game when I got tackled by two students and a thrid jumped on me.  I heard a crunch and could not breathe.  After a while I went to the ER and found out that I have a series of rib bruises and stress and hairline fractures.  So I got broken.  I guess I am not as young as I think I am.  It was interesting on Easter to be leading and preaching at two services with broken ribs....now I can say that I have preached two different sermons in one day, I have preached with broken ribs, and I have preached on percoset!  Easter was amazing and I am getting so excited about ministry at Sunrise.  We are going through a lot of changes and it can be stressful, but it is so incredibly exciting for me.  I hired two new staff people and selected three summer interns last week as well.  Micah is crawling and eating a lot and is pulling himself up and walking with support.  He now says mama, a dada and daddy.  He is so wonderful and we had such a good family Easter.  My old church in Indiana hired a youth minister, his name is Jeff and I really like him and so I am excited about that.  He and his family are going to rent our house in Indiana that we have not  yet sold for a couple years and may even buy it after that.  God has really answered prayers in this area and we were able to cut them a good deal on rent which is great because we feel like we are helping his family, the church in Indiana and ourselves all at once.  I think God's creative solutions are awesome.  We will visit Indiana May 19-21, which will be nice.  I am getting back in shape and dropping some pounds (although the broken ribs are a setback) and that is so incredible as well.  I am training to hike Pikes Peak and do more of that type of stuff.  Our business is starting to pick up and I love that because the business has really helped us to be healthier as well.  We are going to spend the summer and fall working out of some debt and hope to start looking for a house at the end of this year or the beginning of next year now that we have the Indiana house figured out.  I feel myself growing spiritually, mostly in my prayer life and understanding of prayer and feel that my job at Sunrise is really starting to maximize my gifts.  Well, this is a lot of stuff, so I have to go for now....leave a note and check out our website at www.coloradocarlson.net.  We try and update it weekly!

Marcus

Easter

It is Holy Week, which means we have the blessing of focusing on the life of Christ.  Of course being in ministry, it is hard to do this with all the 'stuff' to do this week, but as I enter probably the busiest week  I have ever had in ministry, I find that Christ is very present in and around me.  Its a busy month at church, but things are great, and we are going back to Indiana to visit in May, so we are excited about that as well. 

Craziness

Life has been immensely crazy over the past three weeks.  Part of me still thinks it is the end of February, which is not a good sign.  It is not bad craziness, but mostly good, just very busy.  Things at Church have been hectic mostly dealing with big picture issues and shifting paradigms.  I love my job because I feel like I am on the edge of something great and I also love being able to use my mind, skills and gifts to deal with big issues instead of petty issues.  In the midst of all of that I did not see Micah much which made me sad, but I get to watch him all to myself tonight and next week Jessica has spring break so we are going up to the cabin in the mountains for 3 or 4 days and then going to see Chris and Sara in Longmont.  It snowed hard on Sunday night which made for a great and quiet Monday.  Our numbers are jumping at youth events, but more importantly I think we are past chaos and really moving forward.  My diabetes is still giving me some trouble, but I see lots of possibilities for solutions.  Just going off the one medicine made me lose 15 lbs in a month without even trying.  Jessica and I are doing well, I think we are finally in enough of a routine to survive and even though we are busy, we love Colorado and have more time on the weekends together.  I am getting ready to hire 4 new staff including 2 summer interns which is a new, exciting, and wonderful experience for me.  I feel like I am starting to really get to know the kids which is a big help and rearranging the office was fun too.  We have made lots of friends here, but of course miss our friends in Indiana and around the world.  We still have not found a way to sell or rent our house in Indiana, so we need prayers for that.  We are all doing and feeling well and I was able to work on our personal website today.  Jessica is finishing up grad school with some major assignments due soon, so it is a little crazy, I just finished another quarter and decided to take the next 4 months off.  All is going well and moving forward....Micah is truly the joy of our lives.  We are excited about our business and getting that moving forward more quickly.  Well, that is a lot of stuff, be sure to check out our personal website, just updated it-www.coloradocarlson.net.
Blessings
Marcus

Stuff

Things are going well, still recovering from having holes in my mouth.  I finally feel caught up at home, with grad school, and even at work (although not completely so).  My friend Tim is here, he was my intern last summer and it is so great to have him in Colorado Springs.  We are driving up the mountain today although it is a little cloudy and windy.  Big middle school retreat this weekend, and of course I am keeping busy.  Micah is doing wonderful, he is crawling like crazy and I am having lots of fun with him.  Its neat to see him developing his personality.  Our business is going a little slow, but we are still excited about it and hope it will pick up soon.  We have not sold our house in Indiana, so we are looking in to renting it even at a monthly loss which is better than just having it sit there....please pray for that for sure.  Hope you are all doing well.  Check out our website at www.coloradocarlson.net

Nicknames

I think nicknames are funny.  I have never had a good one, sometimes I call people by their nickname, and other times I come up with them.  I have never come up with one that has really stuck, except for Sunshine, and that makes me happy.  Somehow here in Colorado I have become "The Marcus" in some ways to some people.  I am not sure if it is really a nickname, but I kinda like it....but I mostly wanted to ramble about nicknames.

My face hurts

So today I had this bright idea to stop taking the vicadin and stick to ibuprofen.  Bad idea....my face really hurts and I am a wimp.  I actually miss work which is a good sign, I am still home tomorrow but at least I get to get out to the eye doctor.  I have a paper to write that I got an extension on, so hopefully that goes well.  I did get a lot done this week, read a lot, did some planning for work and worked on my personal website (coloradocarlson.net).  I feel mostly caught up, that is until I get back to work, but it will be fine.  Next week Tim the intern comes to see me so that will be much fun and we are getting ready for our middle school retreat at the church.  The phone has run at home today roughly three times as much as it normally does in a week.  Kinda annoying, but I think it is only annoying becuase I am going stir crazy....enough rambling.

Peace out

First Post

This is my first post on my blog.  Welcome to my blog, I hope to keep this up to date with information about me so that all my friends and family can keep tabs on me.  Today I am sitting at home for the thrid day in a row after having my wisdom teeth taken out.  I am not sure which is worse, going stir crazy or the pain in my mouth.  I have been working on my personal website, www.coloradocarlson.net.  You should check that out.  Thats it for now....
Marcus