Surprised by the Dawn
This morning, along with most people in Michigan, I awoke to a winter wonderland. Many inches of heavy snow had fallen through the night and now covered the world. The beauty was spectacular. But for those of us who were up before the dawn we were able to see this incredible scene slowly unfold before our eyes.
Every morning that I experience an incredible sunrise or the surprise of new fallen snow I’m reminded of the faithfulness of Christ. Night always turns to dawn and with dawn comes the hope and anticipation of all that a new day brings. It seems that any good idea or moment of inspiration I’ve ever had has occurred during these moments as the dawn has appeared.
So for me, to see the day arrive as I pray and read the Scriptures, is a deep spiritual, life renewing experience. As much as I appreciate a romantic sun set, it’s the dawn that stirs my soul and sets the course for the day before me.
Vulnerability and Transparency
Vulnerability and transparency are both valued but different qualities
Vulnerability means to open oneself up to potential harm. So I recommend a trusting relationship as the best place for vulnerability. When vulnerability is part of a trusting relationship it will build more trust. This is why vulnerability is essential in interpersonal relationships.
It’s also why we should not display vulnerability outside of a trusting relationship – consider what the University of Michigan head football coach, Rich Rodriguez, has endured over the past two weeks when he was vulnerable in the presence of the media he obviously does not have a trusting relationship with.
For all of vulnerability’s excellent attributes it doesn’t serve organizations nearly as well because, by their nature, organizations are public. Since it’s impossible to have a trusting relationship with all of the public displaying public vulnerability puts an organization at a high degree risk.
So being vulnerable, no matter how good it is for individuals in trusting relationships, it’s not good for organizations or public figures because you cannot have a trusting relationship with everyone.
Transparency on the other hand is the better road taken by both public individuals and organizations. Transparency is different in that it doesn’t require lowering the defenses as vulnerability does. Yet transparency lets “the light in” so others can see what’s really there. It’s being honest and forthright without being vulnerable and thus open to harm.
As a leader I believe strongly that for public people and organizations, such as SpringHill, transparency is a mandate. Transparency builds trust with the public without putting the organization at high risk of harm.
My Favorite Nutcracker Dancer
Watching my daughter Christina dance is one of the great experiences I have as a dad. She is a ballerina who loves to perform and it’s obvious when you see her on stage.
This weekend her dance company performed the classic Christmas ballet the Nutcracker. She and all the other dancers were great. It was truly an incredible show especially in light of the fact that all but a few of the dancers are students still learning their art. The staff at Dance Arts Academy manages the show with a high level of professionalism giving these young dancers a taste of what it’s like to be a part of a professional ballet.
And of course, as beautiful as all the dancers were, I have to admit when Christina was on the stage dancing I really didn’t notice them. My eyes became glued to Christina. She is just beautiful and can dance and spin and fill the stage in a way that makes her dad proud.
Christina as the “lead Spanish” (photo by Betsy Carr)
Changing the World – A Perspective
As I’m reading Andy Crouch’s “Culture Making – Recovering Our Creative Calling” I came across a quote that is instructive about won’t lead to long-term positive change in our culture.
Crouch says “So hope in a future revolution, or revival, to solve the problems of our contemporary culture is usually misplaced. And such a hope makes us especially vulnerable to fashion, mistaking shifts in the wind for changes in the climate. Fads sweep across the cultural landscape and believers invest outsized portions of energy and commitment in furthering the fad, mistaking it for real change. The mass media, which are largely driven by fashion, can amplify the effect of a fad – for weeks, everyone is humming the number one song, the band is on Saturday Night Live and talking with Leno, the video is in heavy rotation. If the song or the band has Christian affinities, websites will spring up overnight celebrating a new victory for the gospel in the culture. The short – term effects may be startling. But the long – term effects are negligible” p. 59
As I read and re – read these words I once again committed myself not to fashion but to doing the long and hard work, on behalf of Christ and by His grace, that it will take to make deep and lasting impact both on the lives of individual people and our culture in general.
A Night to Celebrate.
What do you get when you combine SpringHIll Camp staff and volunteers with a Christmas party? You have lots of fun and celebration. And our Michigan based staff and volunteers along with their spouses had a blast this week at our annual Christmas get together.
Joel Hamilton proud of his plate.
Dina Wetters, our HR Administrator, along with some other staff and volunteers (and I think her husband Aaron get’s roped into it as well) organize this event every year. Every year it’s a bit different. But a few things have remained the same, every year it is fun (have I mentioned that all ready?), we play at least one game (remember we are camp people), we sing at least one Christmas carol and of course we celebrate the birth of our Savior Jesus Christ.
Eric and Amanda Woods and Andy and Kate Hust competing for the price.
Craig and Sarah Soderdahl singing their hearts out.
We also hand out years of service awards to staff that have crossed a 5 year threshold of service. This year we celebrated:
5 Year Awards (nice SpringHill Staff fleece)
Bill Dinsmore – VP, Indiana Camp
Nate Parson – Manager, Michigan Guest Services
April Gann – Director, Day Camp West Michigan
10 Year Awards (a very nice SpringHill Staff Winter Jacket)
Nancy Hooker – Finance Assistant
Craig Soderdahl – VP, Day Camps
I love Christmas and Christmas celebrations and I especially love this one because of who I am celebrating with and how much fun we have together. How long till next year’s party?
Clarence Hogan, Elizabeth Wing & Melissa Wilke enjoying the moment.
Volunteers Dave and Sue Schildhouse with Hostess Dina Wetters and her husband Aaron.
Thanks to Amanda Thompson for providing the great photos. Connect with the SpringHill Facebook page to see more great photos.
Thankfulness List – Part 5
As I finish this Thanksgiving weekend and begin preparing for work tomorrow it’s appropriate that I complete my “thankfulness” list by thanking God for the work He has allowed me to be a part of. I am extremely humbled by the opportunity God has given me to work in a ministry such as SpringHill Camps. I’m thankful for both its mission and its effectiveness.
Indiana summer staff getting ready for campers.
But the reality is God has risen up many great ministries that are doing effective and important work. So what makes me most thankful for SpringHill is the people I have the privilege to work with. Starting with our incredibly committed and talented staff. It’s our staff that make the SpringHill Experience a reality on a day-to-day basis. I often tell our team there is no other people I’d rather be in a foxhole with than them.
SpringHill leadership team
Next is our board that faithfully fulfills their role as trustees of SpringHill in a professional and visionary manner. The SpringHill board encourages, challenges, prays and supports the staff and me in countless ways. They are a part of a larger group of volunteers, prayer partners, ambassadors and donors who I have a privilege to serve and work with. SpringHill is SpringHill because these folks give their time, talent and treasure to assure we have the resources and visibility needed to carry forth the mission and vision God has called SpringHill to.
Joe and Allison volunteering for a week of summer camp.
Finally there are the campers, their families and our summer staff we serve every year. Having the opportunity to be a part of their lives gives my work significance. I love being with them as they are experiencing SpringHill. I love it even more when I know that Christ has used SpringHill to transform their lives.
So after a long weekend am I ready to go back to work? You bet I am and I’m very thankful for it.
Thankfulness List – Part 4
I attended my 30th class reunion a couple of weeks ago and yesterday we toured the neighborhood I grew up in on the way to our traditional day after Thanksgiving Mexican lunch at the Beltline Bar. These nostalgic moments reminded me of how thankful I am for being blessed with so many friends throughout my life.
Some friends from my 12 years at SpringHill.
Some are friends for a season such as the friends I reconnected with at my class reunion. Life has moved us in different directions but that doesn’t diminish my thankfulness for what we shared. It’s clear the value and importance of friends isn’t in how long we’ve been friends but the impact and difference we’ve made in each other’s life when circumstances brought us together.
Reconnecting with old friends at my 30th class reunion.
At the same time I can’t imagine life without those long time friends. These are the people that I’ve grown up with and anticipate growing old with. These friendships are deeper than seasons or circumstances. There is a level of commitment that accompanies these friendships that allow them to last long beyond the normal seasons of life. These friendships make my life rich.
My college friends and my brother on our annual Canadian fishing Trip.
As I near the end of my “thankfulness” list I will continue to look at the friends I’ve been blessed with and be deeply appreciative of all that the experiences we have shared together.
Thankfulness List – Part 3
Sitting Down to Thanksgiving Dinner.
While I’m on the subject of kids, I too am a child and a sibling. As I continue down my “thankfulness” list I thank God for all my extended family especially my parents, brother and sister. There is no doubt that the value I place on my marriage to Denise, the responsibility of being a dad to our kids and the importance of family comes from the example set by my parents.
My parents created a solid foundation for my life by being appropriately involved and loving parents and modeling a loving marriage. They set the standard high for my brother, sister and I on both fronts and as a result have influenced the next generation of Perry’s.
My brother Rich carving the turkey.
Part of what my parents did was to create a loving, supportive family which continues today. Our family is still close even though we don’t all live in the same city and we are all battling the craziness of life. Today, for example, we are celebrating Thanksgiving together starting with grandpa, grandma, my brother and his wife and all the grand kids. There is something powerfully secure about multiple generations of family being together to celebrate. It is a reminder of the incredible gift family is.
So I’m not only thankful for the “head start” in life I received because of the family I was born into but I’m even more thankful now for the foundation this family is helping to lay for my kids and future generations of Perry’s.
Grandpa having a talk with MD and Mitch.
Thankfulness List – Part 2
Mitch, MD, Jonathan and Christina
If the roles we have in our lives are the “hats” we wear than one of my favorite hats is my “dad hat”. This week as I continue to thank God for the life He has given me the privilege to live our kids continue to bubble up to the top of my “thankfulness” list.
We have four kids – MD, Christina, Mitch and Jonathan, who are living their lives in ways that make Denise and me proud. But I’m not just proud I’m also humbled as I watch our kids grow up and become the people God created them to be. I’m humbled because even though I love my “dad hat” I know that I haven’t always worn it as well as I could. Yet God has stepped in and filled in the gaps where, as a dad, I may have fallen short.
So my thankfulness for our kids extend to those God has put into their lives and have had a positive impact on their growth as people. They include grandparents, aunts and uncles, teachers, coaches and dance instructors, youth pastors and leaders and many of Denise’s and my friends. These people have prayed for, invested in and loved on our kids in countless ways.
Though my time of wearing my “dad hat” is not done (happily so) during this season of thanksgiving I continue to be thankful for the people who have invested in our kids and more importantly for our kids – who they are and who they are becoming.
Thankfulness List Part 1
Over the last few days, as Thanksgiving approaches, I continued to thank God for many things in my life. But always at the top of my “thankfulness” list is my wife Denise. We’ve been married over 26 years. It seems like yesterday when we met at Central Michigan University when she was living in Woldt Hall and I was living in Emmons Hall. As the saying goes “time flies when you are having fun” and we are a testament to that truth.
Marriage for many people is pain and heartache, for me it has been blessing upon blessing. I’m not sure I ascribe to the “God has only that one person we’re supposed to marry” line of thinking but its hard not to land there when I look at Denise and our marriage.
We’ve gotten here first and foremost because we are best friends who share the same faith in Christ, the same values about what our lives are to be and how we are to raise our children. It’s everything a true partnership should be and for that I am so thankful.
During this season of Thanksgiving Denise will continue to be my first prayer of thanks.
