Youth Day at Glendon Christian Church

Chipper always likes "Top Billing."

Ken and Chipper present "Loyd Homeplace" to the church

Many of my readers may not know where Glendon is. If you're from Moore County, go north from Hardee's in Carthage, turn left on the Siler City Road, and left again on the Glendon-Putnam Road (near the old Glendon Pyrophyllite mine). I had the opportunity to speak to their youth group (pre-teens and teens) this morning as the kick-off for a Back-to-School/VBS/Youth Rally rolled into one. I was pleased to see some old friends I wasn't expecting: Wayne, Joyce, daughter Jamie, and new granddaughter Sarah.

I introduced my audience to Chipper the monkey, my old classroom mascot, and showed several of my favorite fake snakes: the baby rattler, sidewinder, coachwhip, and black racer (eraser). As I shared my more serious message I spoke to some of these themes:

• When in doubt, PRAY. When not in doubt, PRAY. (Thanks for the T-shirt Amanda and Stephen)


• Our lives must have a purpose, and that's not the same as "what will you be when you grow up." We can't fully understand our purpose until we have Jesus in our life.


• Knowledge can come from man, but wisdom originates with God.


• Jesus is the Way, the Truth, and the Life. It's harder and harder to find truth in the world, but you can depend on God's unchanging truth.


• A simple formula for life's purpose is "To know Him and to serve Him." (That's not an original motto by the way)
  

I donated a copy of my book Mystery at the Loyd Homeplace to their church library after giving a little background. My dedications always refer to finding life's true riches in God's Word. The youth were having hamburgers and hot dogs for lunch and plenty of outdoor fun, including a dunking booth, later in the day. As I left, I was thankful for the invitation to share and meet some new friends as well as see a few old ones.