Lots of Learning...

Hello again. Well things have been going really well here, I'm learning a lot and growing a lot. Here are some salient points:

*I went to a Dodgers game a few nights ago, and they stomped the Phillies 10-3. It was a blast. The first of many games to come.
*The Cafe is coming along, although there are lots of things to do still. We put three mac computers in the cafe on desks and got them locked in there. Dion installed the sound system and that sounds great. I'm finishing some painting on some trim today. We still have a bunch of stuff to do (cash register, menu boards, some more furniture, I need to learn how to actually make coffee, credit card stuff, and so on...) but I am learning that I don't have to worry about everything, I just need to trust God. I need to seek him daily and live in his presence and be obedient, and then God will take care of the results. There is a tremendous amount of confidence and freedom in this perspective. I can be confident that God will
*I braved the California DMV and got my license yesterday. It actually only took an hour, which wasn't bad. I still have to go back and get my car title transferred, but baby steps. And I was kinda nervous about the written test, but I only missed three, so that's nice.
*A couple of guys and I started doing an accountability group (Sam, Chris Waters, and Dion). We met for a little bit a couple days ago, so I'm looking forward to that because I know how important it is to have good strong fellowship/accountability with peers.
*My prayer life and general spiritual life feels like it has been rejuvenated. I am learning what it means to live by the Spirit. I have been constantly reminded of the fact that I need God's help and mercy/grace/power/strength all day every day, or else I try to do things on my own and that sucks. I've done that too much of my life. It's like I need to be retrained, because I have had so much practice living on my own strength and will. It's a slow process, but it's been great. I have been just trying to trust God and surrender to him as often as I can. It is so crucial to try to live in God's presence, to practice his presence. If anyone wants to hear more about what's going on, feel free to give me a call because it's easier to explain that way.
*Sam and Christy and I are convinced that we need a day off, a Sabbath, and we are going to try to do that either Saturday or Sunday every week. It is so important to maintain a healthy balance and to obey God's call to rest periodically, so I'm excited for that.
*This weekend we are having a church camping trip to a lake and we are spending Saturday at Six flags Theme Park, so I'm looking forward to hanging out with everyone and getting to know people better. We leave Friday evening and get back Sunday evening I think.
*For those who don't know, we have been looking at renting the church out to other people because we don't need the facilities on Sundays, and there has been a great response in the past week, so thank you for any who have been praying for that. We're not sure who's going to rent, but it will probably be figured out in the next week or so. God has been so faithful in answering prayers!
*God is good, and he's working. This is definitely a time of transition, but I'm excited to see all the God's doing and I'm excited to just be a part of it and be obedient. Thank you so much for your prayers.

Til next time
Doug