Cease Fire

The AP is reporting that Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert has accepted the proposed cease-fire agreement, the Israeli government is expected to do the same on Sunday. YEAH!!!! It sure doesn't mean that the shooting is over, but it is a step in the right direction.

It has been a while since I have written, and I thought I would take a few moments to fill you in on what I have been up to. First, I have put a more current schedule on my web site: www.smconger.com/Schedule.html. I will try to keep it up to date, and as I get closer to leaving for Israel, I will put a more detailed itinerary online. Second, I have done some updating to the rest of the web site and will try to do that every couple of days. Until I leave, there is not a lot of excitement to report.

I have been reading quite a bit. Finished a couple of novels: Labyrinth by Kate Mosse and The Templar Legacy by Steve Berry. Both are in the style of the DaVinci Code, but neither reaches that level. I would recommend Berry's book, but Mosse's was too long and drawn out. I am also reading Who Killed Jesus?: Exposing the Roots of Anti-Semitism in the Gospel Story of the Death of Jesus by John Dominic Crossan. He says that it is not a "scholarly book" but one written for the masses. If that is true he needs a new editor who will tell him to quit writing in such a technical style. There were words in his book that I had to look up (and I think that I read at a higher level than most people --- especially when it is a religious book). It is an interesting look at how he believes the arrest, trial and crucifixion took place; and more importantly, how the early church understood those events. Good book, but too technical.

Earlier this week I went to Plymouth Indiana to the United States Golf Academy at the Swan Lake Resort. When I was the pastor of Pretty Lake Trinity UMC just outside Plymouth, I would play this course quite often. Today it is 36 holes of championship golf, with a teaching academy. I was the only student at this session, so I ended up with 5 hours of personal instruction. I also got to play quite a bit of golf.

The lessons were excellent, and I know that in the long run they will help me get my handicap into the teens, but for now, I expect my scores to soar as I try to remember all that I was taught. It was a great time and I am really glad I did it --- Thanks Nancy for really encouraging me.

I have received my flight info for Israel. I will fly to Atlanta and then travel directly to Tel Aviv. Educational Opportunities has seven people going on a pilgrimage and I will be traveling with them.

Pray for peace!