Those annoying,journey-interrupting speed bumps are everywhere.  During a recent family vacation,four of us set out for an early morning hike to Lion Gulch located a few miles east of Estes Park.  To get back to nature,we unzipped the side and rear windows from the jeep and Sarah and I climbed into the backseat,buckled our safety belts and prepared for the short,brisk ride to the trailhead.  I,of course,had a fresh,steaming cup of coffee in hand.

 As we zipped down the road,I was enthralled by the sound of gravel crunching beneath our tires.  I was captivated by a sapphire sky perfectly painted with wispy,white clouds.  I was fascinated by a family of ducks paddling across Willow Lake and I openly mused at the inexpressible beauty of God’s creation.  And then,out of nowhere,“Bam!”  The tranquility of my morning moment was rudely interrupted by the ill-timed onset of an ill-placed speed bump.  You’ve got to be kidding! When did they start putting speed bumps on unpaved,mountain roads? 

 That question was immediately replaced with a more pressing one:What’s about to happen to my steaming cup of coffee?  As my body was leaving the seat,my coffee was leaving the cup.  It’s true,what goes up must come down and that includes hot coffee.  Within a millisecond,my morning brew was raining down into my lap and I was wondering how my pristine morning could be changing so rapidly.

 My first reaction was to fix blame and to assign fault for my current state of affairs.  Should I blame the driver,who said he never saw the speed bump coming?  What about the Jeep Corporation for a faulty suspension? What about the speed bump manufacturer for overkill? Or,should I blame the dim-wit that decided a speed bump was needed in that location?

To my surprise,I decided not to waste time assigning blame.  Instead,I determined to make the best of things by laughing along with everyone else in the jeep,including the driver,who was still insisting he never saw the speed bump coming.  Laughing about the situation was an unusual response for me as I’m usually more interested in determining guilt when it comes to life’s unexpected speed bumps.

 Life is filled with speed bumps —big ones,little ones,expected ones and those we never see coming.  Sometimes they come in rapid series while,at other times,they are far and few between.  But one thing is certain – in life,speed bumps WILL happen.

 How do you handle life’s speed bumps?  Do you get angry and blame your spouse,your parents or God?  Do you resign yourself to the fatalistic notion that life is just one big speed bump and there’s nothing anyone can do about it?  Or,do you respond with a confident,laughing faith knowing that while speed bumps are inevitable they are powerless to change God?

Life doesn’t always work out the way we’ve planned and a certain number of jaw-jarring,speed bumps are to be expected.  They may come as a business failure,a painful divorce,a personal disappointment or an untimely loss. But,no matter their form,speed bumps can’t separate us from the amazing love of God.

 By the way,Lion Gulch was beautiful and the coffee stains washed out.  What about that ill-placed,speed bump you may ask?  It’s still there but now I just practice my laugh each time I drive over it.  Remember,speed bumps don’t have to win and that’s an encouraging lesson we can all take down the road.

Yes!  The counselors are once again volleyball champions of RockQuest Camp.  I won’t go into detail but our secret weapon,and she knows who she is (we call her “The Powerful Pivot”),helped us easily march to another victorious season.  Let me note the scores for all you sports fans. 

In Match One,we prevailed 15 to 1;in Match Two we annihilated the competition 15 to 3;and in the final match,while opposing the campers’best hope,we trounced and pounced to an easy victory of 15 to 5. 

Needless to say,the students were dumbfounded by the brilliance of the adults and the coaching strategy of Jammin’John.  Lisa the “G”Gebhardt showed flurries of greatness as she set the front row spikers on several occasions and provided many on-court antics to the delight of the onlookers.  David Maxfield,also known as “The Colonel,”donning his trademark combat boots,glided across the floor with laser-like precision to intimidate his foes.  Allen Garrett,aka “Leviticus,”racked up multiple saves and assists and,of course,kept score with Old Testament precision.

Lisa Shrum added numerous ace serves to her illustrious career and,as is her style,silenced her boisterous critics on the other side of the net with her take-no-prisoners,teacher voice.  Don Nelson,the quiet strength of the team,went about business with a steely demeanor that stirred trepidation in his opponents.  As is Don’s style,he doesn’t say much but then with his incredible skills he doesn’t have to.

Nurse Vernia Finn,aka “go- with- the- flo” Nightingale,was the team’s powerhouse.  Like a surgeon she sliced and diced the competition with precision sets and missile-like serves.

Debbie Maxfield,Cindy Garrett and Sarah Page cheered the team on as the other fans sat in what could only be described as bewildered silence as the counselors literally mowed through each of their opponents.

It should also be mentioned that Adam the “Crusher” Canote was on his game.  Early in the battle he uncharacteristically missed several opportunities to dig the ball but after time returned to his true form.  Adam was obviously a crowd favorite.

What about Pastor Jamie you may ask – the story is best left untold.  Suffice it to say,even at fifty years old,he has not lost his form,his grace,his speed,his gazelle-like agility or those booming,terrifying,earth-shattering serves.  But since he’s writing this article he will just leave it at that!

We’ve had a great time and will be leaving Logan Valley in about one hour.  See you when we get home.  We’ve made some great memories and have numerous stories to tell.

Check out the new photos under “RockQuest Camp 2009.”