March 26, 2008

Latest News from Minnesota

"There's no place like home. There's no place like home."

Those famous words, spoken by Judy Garland, in the Wizard of Oz, are so true. I have had the great opportunity to travel allover the United States in the last 3 months, but no matter where I go, or how amazing and scenic (and warm) those places are, it is always nice to get home, sleep in my own bed, kid my kids goodnight, and eat cereal in my pajamas. There really is no place like home.


My good friend, Greg Phillips, from Melbourne, Florida, made the trek up to Minnesota for a 4-day Kid's Crusade at Willmar Assembly, and then did a great lecture for the MN chapter of the Fellowship of Christian Entertainers. It was good to see him again, this time in Minnesota.


On March 19th I did a program at Bethel Church in Owatonna, Minnesota as a community outreach event. The comment cards indicated that as many as 13 people gave their hearts and lives to Christ that night during the message invitation. God still works his wonders every day.

My Easter program that was scheduled was cancelled at the last minute, so this actually turns out to be the first Easter that I spent at home in over 7 years! It was a busy weekend too. On Friday, our son, Dale, celebrated his 12th birthday by having 7 other boys sleep overnight through to Saturday. The boys headed home around noon, just in time for the relatives to arrive and celebrate Easter, and the birthdays. You see, on Sunday, was our daughter, Deanna's 15th birthday. So, we celebrated that too. Easter, plus our 2 kid's birthdays, equals some of the best reasons to celebrate.

This weekend I am heading to Albuquerque, New Mexico, for a Men's Outreach Breakfast at Sandia Presbyterian Church. Pastor Mike Molony invited me to be the entertainment/speaker at this 1st Annual Event for their church. And, because of the airline's goofy pricing policy, I get to/have to stay in the warmth of Albuquerque an extra day. I'm hoping to ride the Sandia Peak Tramway to the top of the 10,378 foot Sandia Peak while I'm there too.

Finally, I ask that you pray for me during the month of April. As busy as the first part of the year has been, April drops off to almost nothing in regards to shows. Income will be a little tighter, and with the production of the DVDs, pray that we use our finances correctly, and in a way that is God-honoring. Or, simply pray that a flood of shows comes flowing in for April. Or, pray for both. Either way, I thank you for your encouragement in this ministry work. I wouldn't trade it for any "job" in the world.



Happy late Easter to you all,

DonB!

March 11, 2008

Times fun when you are having Flies

I can't believe it has been so long since I updated this page. So much has happened.

I did two great shows at Groves Academy in MN for their Jump Rope for Heart event. While there, I happened into the wife of the Campus Life director I knew in high school. She recognized me, but couldn't think of where from. Hi George.

I then performed for the fundraiser banquet at Trinity Lutheran in Minneapolis. The senior highers used the banquet as a way to raise $$$ for their missions trip. What also amazed me about the event is that over 135 items were donated for the silent auction. I bid on 12 items, and won only two: a clear glass chess/checkers/backgammon set for my son, Dale, and a nice wooden clock for my office. I've heard that the fundraiser raised over $3000.oo towards the trip. What a blessing.

I then spent 8 days in northern California travelling with my good friend, illusionist Toby Travis. The shows went great, but the part I really loved was running around in a part of the country that expresses the beauty of creation everywhere you look. I've heard that northern CA was beautiful, but it was breathtaking in many places. We performed in El Sobrante, San Andreas, Bass Lake and North Fork, California. I'd do it again in a heartbeat. The last night was spent with my good circus friend, Nicole Portwood, and her family. We didn't get enough time to visit, but it's always good to meet up with them. Timmy, keep practicing that unicycle!

I then started my Upward basketball programs for the year, with the first one in Minooka, Illinois (say that one 3 times fast). I had a huge stage, and an audience of about 600 people, all of whom enjoyed the show, but also responded to the message. God is REALLY good!

I headed over to Bloomer, Wisconsin for another one, and again, had a great response to the message. It was great that even though the program was sponsored by the Lutheran church, they had families from all denominations involved with the basketball camp. I love it when I get to see different denominations uniting for the greater cause of Christianity, rather than using it as a dividing factor. Bloomer did a great job in their community!

March kicked off with business, doing a Cub Scout dinner, 4 days of office work, and then flying down to Pace, Florida, for another Upward event. On Saturday, I performed for 600 people for their Upward awards night, and then Sunday I had an hour to share some various messages in the Kid's Church ("SuperChurch") at Pace Assembly of God. This was their first year involved with the Upward program, but they did a fabulous job of organizing the season, and sharing the Gospel with players and families. I feel so honored to be a part of the ministry of church like this around the country. I not only get to perform, but I also get to share the simple message of what it means to me to be a Christian. How many people can honestly say that they love their job? Well, to make it official, I LOVE MY JOB!!! There, I said it.

I still have 5 more events this month, and then next month I begin the filming for my 3 new DVDs. I am hoping they are done by September, so watch here for the official announcements.

I have a lot of pictures from this last month, and I will try and post them here as soon as I can.

Thanks again to all of you that make it possible for me to travel around sharing the Gospel. Thanks for your prayers, the opening of your homes for me to stay in, the sharing of your time, and finally for your $$$ gifts. I don't know if I could do it without knowing all of you are out there supporting me in your thoughts and prayers.

Life is good for me, sop take a few moments this month and pray for someone you know that could really use an uplift at this time. Prayer can work wonders, even if we never see the final outcome of some of it.

Talk again real soon...

DonB!