Elkton and Debary, FL

This last weekend consisted of two disc golf courses and around 68 holes.

Moccasin Creek - Saturday afternoon started fairly slow and I was the only one on the course to start.  After a few holes of the 25, I meet David and played around with him.  He was surprised that I was carrying a Bible.  Finishing that game, Andrew and Levi pulled up and played a partial round with them. 

The previous day I was at the bookstore and finally found a small ESV Bible that fits into my back pocket.  I have been looking for one of these since last year when I gave the Bible I usually carry on the disc golf course away.

River City Nature Park - After church Sunday, I continued on towards Orlando to play River City.  I joined a group that was getting ready to start.  Among the group were Randall, Eric, Jeff, John and his wife.  Randall mentioned heaven and when asked about it he quoted Proverbs 3:5-6.  Eric up to this point seemed somewhat hesitant to have let me  join, but after talking with Randall I asked him what he believed.  Somewhat surprised at his answer as he responded "open".  At the end of the round, I gave him one of the knowing God booklets and my champion blizzard boss disc as a reminder.

Here are a couple of quick snapshots from my phone of the park.  The weather as you can see has been great and God continues to surprise me in meeting people to play disc golf.

 

Two trees and a ninja

A couple things I have learned so far on this trip...

Do not park under holly trees.
Do not park under palm trees.
Buy a ninja.

Thankfully the weather of Florida allowed me to wash my car, get some nice runs outside, and relax to the sounds of the ocean. 

 

Daytona Beach, FL

Palm trees eat discs.
Swamps drink discs.

Or so it seems.  This past Saturday I made my way down to sunny Florida and settled into the place I'll be staying for a bit.

Tuscawilla Park in Daytona Beach, FL.  This course is scattered with Palm trees, lakes/swamps, and a zip line of all things.  I usually don't play water holes, however this time I gave my Boss disc a try because it is advertised to float due to it's extreme light weight (which makes it really hard to control as well).  After a careful throw directly into the swampy pond, I found out, it does in fact float.  There was another group of guys playing, but they were in a strange order. 

There was not a large amount of time before dusk, but decided it might be a good idea to locate the other course in South Daytona.  Reed Canal Park looked like a nice park and since I was already there, why not play through it quickly?  I caught up to Chad about halfway through the course and played the remaining course.  He was a great guy to play with and helped knock my disc down from a hungry palm tree.

Many people ask me how I start conversations about the gospel and my answer is usually, it depends on the situation.  Great consulting answer...  For this case,  Chad mentioned that Tuscawilla usually has a doubles round Sunday mornings.  Segue!  I was not out on the course that early on Sundays because I was at church.  This comment can be naturally followed up with, do you go to church anywhere - what do you believe?  From this point it is a normal conversation (if they are open to talking about God) by asking why they believe what they believe, how they came to their conclusions, and to clarify what they agree or disagree with. 

Towards then end or at the end, I try to follow up asking if there is anything I can being praying about.  Interestingly enough, Chad's response was that there were already many people praying for him.

Flagler Beach Pier

Well, the time has almost arrived for the next weekend of courses.

Martin Luther King Jr. Historic Site

Here are a few pictures from the road taken at the Martin Luther King Jr. Historic Site in Atlanta, GA.  The visit seemed fitting since it was Martin Luther King weekend and I was in Atlanta.  Randomly enough, I briefly spoke with a group of women visiting from taking their picture in front of Martin Luther King's house (and vice-versa).  One woman who was most interested in what I was doing (driving around the US sharing the gospel on the disc golf courses) wanted to make sure I believed in God, not only God, but the redemption that came through Jesus Christ...encouraging to hear.

 

Peace up, A-town

I have arrived safely in Atlanta after a day's drive from Kalamazoo.  The weather conditions were decent for driving.  Decent as in no snow or ice, although there was on/off rain and fog.  On my way, I had the wonderful pleasure of lunch with Josh and Christa in Louisville for a delightful bite and great conversation.

Arriving at Atlanta the temperature was a refreshing 70F and warranted some relaxation time on the large and cozy front porch of the farmhouse where I am residing for the week.

Sunday I visited All Souls Fellowship on a recommendation from my friend Marissa.  The church started a series on Daniel and started with the topic on living in the world but not being of the world.

Onto the mission of this trip...Sunday late afternoon I drove through some interesting neighborhoods, only seeing one completely burned down house, and located stop number one: Redan Park.  There was a single player that started right before me and so I planned on catching up to him to play.  However, apparently it has been long enough that my game is far from decent at best.  Not having caught the guy that started before me I only briefly greeted some players on different holes.  Best quote from a guy (with no shirt on) as he picks up a shirt from the middle of a fairway, "Awesome, I found my shirt!  I lost it about 14 holes ago."

Finishing up the course, I watched a guy who was impressively flying a RC helicopter.  Out of the conversation, Demetri is between churches.  I left him with the encouragement to seek a church where he can serve and also grow.

With the weather in Atlanta consisting of "cold" and rain, I have not played any other courses here in Atlanta.  One other opportunity I did have, however, was talking with Marcy at a Mexican restaurant.  A good discussion, to say the least, as she was raised going to a Jewish day school. She was willing to hear the gospel but had her concerns as to the importance of Jesus.  She further explained to me that she could not believe what I shared (the gospel) simply due to the fact that she would stand condemned before God.  We parted ways after dinner, however pray that the Christians in her life would clearly demonstrate God's love.


Thanks again to the brothers and sisters in Christ: Josh, Christa, Marissa (and roommates) for their hospitality and the meals I was able to share with them.

Yeah!

A Chicago New Years

After Christmas I packed a suitcase of clothes and drove to Chicago, IL to hang out with Bryan, a friend from college (much appreciation for letting me crash at his place).  All in all it was a great time of relaxation, conversation, attempting to park like a native, acting like a tourist, and plenty of walking.

This past weekend contained a trip to Ann Arbor, MI to visit two more friends, Jon and Ben, who I have not seen in nearly a year. 

Now, I have scheduled this weekend to meet a friend in Louisville, KY and arrive in Atlanta, GA for a week, immediately followed by the last leg to Florida. 

Pray for safe travels and opportunities!