The PF Women Team at our Annual Team Retreat ~ 2018 Today on Seth Godin's blog, he said: It's tempting to decide to make a profit first, then invest in training, people, facilities, promotion, customer service and most of all, doing important work. In general, though, it goes the other way. Yes, it does. If you are waiting to make a profit before you do these things, in my experience you're not going to make a profit. So many organizations, ministries and churches are struggling with financial issues. I know your pain. As anyone who follows our story knows, our ministry was in a ton of debt four years ago when I came on as director. Since that time, we've gotten out of debt and turned a profit every year. God has done amazing things through out team, for which we give Him the glory! I find that what Seth is saying here is absolutely true, with one disclaimer. For Christian leaders, spiritual disciplines must always be first. Before we started i...
Yesterday was an amazing day!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! It was the day I was getting the results back from a recent biopsy. Yeah, that on top of the recent crp test and all that...I was dealing with this. When it rains it pours. I haven't posted about that here on the blog. But, it was just one of the realities I've been dealing with lately that I have to push through to do what God has called me to do.
Last year Candy got me an amazing gift in honor of Pastor Appreciation Month (October) -- a series of spa treatments for her and I to do together. It includes a WHOLE BUNCH of them, including massage, facial, manicure, pedicure, laser hair removal, and a bunch of other stuff. We can only do two of them at one time, so we will be going back quite a number of times to do everything covered in the package. Although she got this for us at the end of 2009, we have only just synched our schedules NOW to go to the first treatment.
Yesterday morning we started the day with a facial and massage. We were on two massage tables side by side the whole time. Although I hadn't gotten my biopsy results back yet I was determined not to worry about it or even think about it. I just laid there and let my mind float off in total peace and just soaked in the moments. I chose to celebrate the victory ahead of time, knowing the answer was on the way.
We left the spa and it was lunch time. We went for Indian food to Bombay Masala which is my favorite place in Tampa for that cuisine. It was yum, oh so yum. Then admist much laughter and the usual talking non stop we were driving home from lunch and my phone rang. It was Larry who had just gotten a call from my doctor and she gave him the news and asked him to call me. The biopsy was benign! Of course! Candy and I were doing the happy dance in the car.
We were going to get a fat free ice cream to celebrate and head home however, as we were driving down Nebraska Ave we saw the Salvation Army Store. Candy and I are both kind of addicted to thrift store shopping and she says, "QUICK! PULL IN!" So, I did. I immediately saw a big item I just had to have - but I knew I could never bring this home without talking to my husband first so I had to call him. I said, "Ugh, Candy I don't want to call him. He's going to wonder why I'm here." (He knows I'm a sucker for thrift stores and can lose myself in there for hours, much to his chagrin. But of course Candy and I only intended to be in there "for a few minutes...") She said, "yeah, you're right, he won't be happy. He's going to say, "Sassy! What are you doing there?! I thought you were just going to the spa and lunch and coming home!!" I said, "you're right. I dread calling him." But I did. Amazingly it didn't phase him that I was there. He was totally cool with it. So I asked him about bringing the item home (actually it was a huge bed...) and he said, "get Candy to talk them way down on the price and I don't care." (Candy is AMAZING at doing this.) So we get a wonderfully charming salesman named Eric and Candy talks him down and Larry called Eddie to bring the truck over to help us get it. Meanwhile as we go through the store we find more stuff we want and Candy talked Eric down again to rock bottom prices and I am not even kidding you -- we end up taking a truckload of stuff. LOL Now, please keep in mind this is the Salvation Army and you can get a whole truckload for practically nothing especially when you have Candy Rivera shopping with you!!!!
Not only did we get all this stuff but we became friends with Eric, invited him to church and became friends with him on facebook. No kidding. He's promised us he would be showing up at Celebration and said we were definitely "his entertainment for the day." I think that might have something to do with us hopping up on the bed and giving him our camera and asking him to take a picture hile we laughed ourselves silly.
We took the stuff home and by that time a few minutes had turned into four and a half hours that we had been there. ::sigh:: Yes, I know. We're crazy. Eric thought we were out of our minds,s but our husbands didn't even flinch at this, bless their hearts...they just unloaded the truck and started putting stuff together. We are blessed.
The guys were hungry and wanted our families to eat together. It was a wonderful day that I chose to look at a three fold celebration: pastor appreciation gift, celebration of awesome test results, and the strengthening of friendship.
We have more spa treatments left and one of them will be getting our bikini area lasered!!! No, I'm not kidding. I ask you -- what pastor in America besides me is getting lasered for pastor appreciation?! No one, but then again no other church has Candy Rivera in it, and when they made her they broke the mold! She says to me, "P.D. -- for pastor appreciation we're getting you laser hair removal!" She says this with the same excitement that she would say if she were saying, "P.D., for pastor appreciation we're getting tickets to London!!!" So when she says this, I say, "wow, what am I supposed to say to that???
"Praise the Lord"?
"Thanks for thinking of me"?
"Your gift is so touching"?
All kidding aside, I am blessed by her creativity and giving spirit. On the other hand, I have told her to stop posting about getting lasered on my facebook. Yeaaaahhh. After all I am fb friends with my presbyter.
Here's another thing other people in ministry probably don't experience for pastor appreciation...
Exchange yesterday at the spa...
We get undressed as instructed by the massage therapist and I quickly hop underneath the covers on the massage table and lay down. A second later I realize, I have left my scrunchie in my purse and my hair is down and I really want it to be up and out of the way for the massage.
"Um...Candy...I left my scrunchie over there in my purse...can you get it for me?? You don't have to bring it over here naked or anything like that..."
[she laughs profusely]
"Oh thanks, I'm so glad you've made that clear..." she says, and brings scrunchie over...
Pulling my hair up and laying there staring at the ceiling I say to her, "Who the heck does this for pastor appreciation besides us?"
Nobody -- and that's what's so wonderful about my life, and about Celebration Church.
Thanks, Candy, for an amazing day!
Yesterday morning we started the day with a facial and massage. We were on two massage tables side by side the whole time. Although I hadn't gotten my biopsy results back yet I was determined not to worry about it or even think about it. I just laid there and let my mind float off in total peace and just soaked in the moments. I chose to celebrate the victory ahead of time, knowing the answer was on the way.
We left the spa and it was lunch time. We went for Indian food to Bombay Masala which is my favorite place in Tampa for that cuisine. It was yum, oh so yum. Then admist much laughter and the usual talking non stop we were driving home from lunch and my phone rang. It was Larry who had just gotten a call from my doctor and she gave him the news and asked him to call me. The biopsy was benign! Of course! Candy and I were doing the happy dance in the car.
We were going to get a fat free ice cream to celebrate and head home however, as we were driving down Nebraska Ave we saw the Salvation Army Store. Candy and I are both kind of addicted to thrift store shopping and she says, "QUICK! PULL IN!" So, I did. I immediately saw a big item I just had to have - but I knew I could never bring this home without talking to my husband first so I had to call him. I said, "Ugh, Candy I don't want to call him. He's going to wonder why I'm here." (He knows I'm a sucker for thrift stores and can lose myself in there for hours, much to his chagrin. But of course Candy and I only intended to be in there "for a few minutes...") She said, "yeah, you're right, he won't be happy. He's going to say, "Sassy! What are you doing there?! I thought you were just going to the spa and lunch and coming home!!" I said, "you're right. I dread calling him." But I did. Amazingly it didn't phase him that I was there. He was totally cool with it. So I asked him about bringing the item home (actually it was a huge bed...) and he said, "get Candy to talk them way down on the price and I don't care." (Candy is AMAZING at doing this.) So we get a wonderfully charming salesman named Eric and Candy talks him down and Larry called Eddie to bring the truck over to help us get it. Meanwhile as we go through the store we find more stuff we want and Candy talked Eric down again to rock bottom prices and I am not even kidding you -- we end up taking a truckload of stuff. LOL Now, please keep in mind this is the Salvation Army and you can get a whole truckload for practically nothing especially when you have Candy Rivera shopping with you!!!!
Not only did we get all this stuff but we became friends with Eric, invited him to church and became friends with him on facebook. No kidding. He's promised us he would be showing up at Celebration and said we were definitely "his entertainment for the day." I think that might have something to do with us hopping up on the bed and giving him our camera and asking him to take a picture hile we laughed ourselves silly.
We took the stuff home and by that time a few minutes had turned into four and a half hours that we had been there. ::sigh:: Yes, I know. We're crazy. Eric thought we were out of our minds,s but our husbands didn't even flinch at this, bless their hearts...they just unloaded the truck and started putting stuff together. We are blessed.
The guys were hungry and wanted our families to eat together. It was a wonderful day that I chose to look at a three fold celebration: pastor appreciation gift, celebration of awesome test results, and the strengthening of friendship.
We have more spa treatments left and one of them will be getting our bikini area lasered!!! No, I'm not kidding. I ask you -- what pastor in America besides me is getting lasered for pastor appreciation?! No one, but then again no other church has Candy Rivera in it, and when they made her they broke the mold! She says to me, "P.D. -- for pastor appreciation we're getting you laser hair removal!" She says this with the same excitement that she would say if she were saying, "P.D., for pastor appreciation we're getting tickets to London!!!" So when she says this, I say, "wow, what am I supposed to say to that???
"Praise the Lord"?
"Thanks for thinking of me"?
"Your gift is so touching"?
All kidding aside, I am blessed by her creativity and giving spirit. On the other hand, I have told her to stop posting about getting lasered on my facebook. Yeaaaahhh. After all I am fb friends with my presbyter.
Here's another thing other people in ministry probably don't experience for pastor appreciation...
Exchange yesterday at the spa...
We get undressed as instructed by the massage therapist and I quickly hop underneath the covers on the massage table and lay down. A second later I realize, I have left my scrunchie in my purse and my hair is down and I really want it to be up and out of the way for the massage.
"Um...Candy...I left my scrunchie over there in my purse...can you get it for me?? You don't have to bring it over here naked or anything like that..."
[she laughs profusely]
"Oh thanks, I'm so glad you've made that clear..." she says, and brings scrunchie over...
Pulling my hair up and laying there staring at the ceiling I say to her, "Who the heck does this for pastor appreciation besides us?"
Nobody -- and that's what's so wonderful about my life, and about Celebration Church.
Thanks, Candy, for an amazing day!
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