10 Most Popular Posts of 2012

Note:  Photos and blog links will be added to this post tomorrow evening, January 1 [Update: photos added, with links in blue].  Tonight we're heading downtown to get our New Year’s Eve on!

All good things must come to an end.  Parting with 2012 is such sweet sorrow.  A bird in hand… well, enough of the clichés.  2012 was our best year so far!

The overseas journeys (some of which were not even mentioned here on Garth’s Blog), the growth and development of Baby Lena, the unforgettable time spent with God, family, ministry partners, and amazing friends… 2012 has been a banner year.  Thus, I’m taking a different approach to choosing the year’s highlights.

It has been humbling to see the readership (aka, page hits) of “Garth’s Blog” grow exponentially this past year.  In honor of both our loyal and newly discovered BlogSpot audience, it seemed best to let you, the readers, pick the highlights of 2012.  In order of page rankings, here are the most popular “Garth’s Blog” posts of 2012 (links are in blue): 

Runner-up:  Twitterfied

A reluctant blogger’s leap aboard the Twitter bandwagon

10.  The Face of Fear

 A silly throwaway teaser for my upcoming skydiving post, which has yet to see the light of day.  Early 2013, anyone?

9.  (TIE) Tokyo Drifting, Part 1

This post from Japan fared slightly better than my sequels:  Tokyo Drifting 2: Senso-Ji Temple, Tokyo Drifting 3: Fleeing Sumida, and an educational encounter with a Japanese toilet.

This was just one of my many brief overseas trips to sample the Japanese (and many other countries') nightlife in 2012.  In early 2013, I'll try to blog about some of my other previously unmentioned 2012 international trips.

9.  (TIE) Thankful for Lena

 A Thanksgiving-themed update on Baby Lena, brimming with photos

8.  Tomato Battle: Portland

Portland’s biggest, rowdiest, messiest food fight

7.  Happy Halloween from Delta Airlines

Absurd, nonpartisan nonsense from failed VP nominee Paul Ryan and the A-Team

6.  Coldplay Put a Smile Upon My Face

  A taste of Para...Para...Paradise from Coldplay’s final Portland show before announcing their three year hiatus

5.  Belgium- Spring Break in 

the Low Countries, Day 3

  The most popular of my Benelux countries travel series with my dad, which also included stops in Amsterdam, Luxembourg, and EuroRail purgatory

4.  Backpacking Elk Meadows

An example of the many types of outdoor adventures that we provide for our students

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Before we reveal the top 3 “Garth’s Blog” posts of 2012, here are the two other most highly read E.P.I.C. student ministry updates from this past year:

International Youth Convention: Denver

 A rare appearance by guest blogger Kathy, who puts to shame my earlier post about this year’s IYC trip with high schoolers

E.P.I.C. Student Ministry Update- Feb 2012

 Serving the homeless, worshiping God, boating, camping, and shaving cream fights

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And now,

the Top 3 most popular posts of 2012:

3.  Intermission: Banks Lake Wakeboarding

 This was the Hamilton family's annual Banks Lake camping trip in eastern Washington, a.k.a. an excuse for a week of wakeboarding, waterskiing, kneeboarding, and white-knuckled tube riding.  Lots of great action photos in this post!

2.  Behind the Scenes in L.A., Pt. 2

 Decisively trumping March’s blog post about Lena’s first ever plane ride to Los Angeles, this 2^nd chapter of the making of our “Delta Wanderland” holiday video focused on the music video shoot itself.  Part 1, technically #8 on this 10 Most Popular countdown, shared the blood, sweat, and tears (okay, maybe just the sweat) that we dancers shed at the International Dance Academy on Hollywood Boulevard.

I milked the video shoot’s ridiculously lax policy (compared to the countless other film sets where I've been shot) on cell phone cameras for all it’s worth, and these posts are the result.  A brief, professionally made behind the scenes video was also added here last week, including some all-too-brief clips of our Soul Train dance-off.

1.  Lena’s First Christmas

 Was there ever any doubt?  Lena starred in the first “Garth’s Blog” post of 2012 and also tops your year-end Top 10 list!

Sadly, that cute little 15 ½ month old is currently ill for the first time in her life.  The promised Christmas 2012 update will be rolled into a Lena retrospective, and it’s coming in early 2013.

So there you have it.  Some of my personal favorites didn’t come close to making the Top 10, but that’s life.  Note that this list excludes those oft-viewed posts from years past which refuse to die:  Touring London, Kathy’s baby announcement, Banks Lake, randomly popular ministry updates, the Black Crowes, and boogie boarding.

Addio, 2012!  It’s been another riveting year!!

International Youth Convention: Denver (feat. Kathy)

Skydiving for my birthday last Saturday was incredible!  Stay tuned for some stories and pics from a birthday weekend filled with rock wall climbing, hiking in the Gorge, go carts, laser tag, worshipping with our church family, a party, multiple coffee/lunch/dinner get togethers with friends, a Los Lobos concert, and jumping out of an airplane from 12,000+ feet!  I can’t wait for my friends to send me some pictures from last weekend so I can post them here.

In the meantime, my wife Kathy has graciously agreed to give me a much needed break from blogging this past week.  In a rare appearance on BlogSpot, Kathy has picked out some photos and written a follow-up to my earlier Intermission: IYC Denver(From the road) post—Check out that link for more exclusive stories and photos from our IYC trip.

Dedicated readers are probably aware that I intentionally keep my BlogSpot as secular as possible, but I’ll occasionally break loose with a student ministry update.  And who better to write about what God is doing in our young people’s lives than my amazing wife?

Take it away, guest blogger Kathy!

IYC, Day 4- Impact: Denver Service Project- Students partner with other churches to restore a rundown playground and beautify a public park, on the second day of International Youth Convention.

July was the month we had been anticipating and working towards for two years:  International Youth Convention-Denver!    In July and August, we are dedicating two separate posts for IYC stories and pictures on www.garthhamilton.blogspot.com.

The theme for IYC this year was Free, Awakened, Empowered, and Connected, encouraging us to live out Romans 8.  Sunday night through Wednesday afternoon were our days to relax in Denver:

We visited Elitch Gardens theme & water park and explored the city of Denver.

On Wednesday night, Matt Papa led worship and snowboarder Zane Black opened the conference with a talk on being free in Christ and learning to let go of the things that hold us back.

On Thursday, we had the opportunity to give back to the city during the IMPACT Denver project.

Our group, along with a couple of other churches, cleaned up a park in downtown Denver.  There was playground equipment to seal, trash to pick up, and debris to be swept away.  The lady from the Parks Department was so thrilled that we were there.  She said that due to cutbacks, the playground hadn’t been sealed in over 10 years and they couldn’t afford to have people pick up the trash.

We were so proud of our students.  They worked hard and didn’t complain, even though it was the hottest day in Denver that week.  

That night, Margaret Feinberg shared what it means to be awakened.  We each have a unique purpose in the body of Christ and being free in Him allows us to be awakened by the Holy Spirit. 

On Thursday and Friday mornings, there were different conferences for the students to choose from: understanding Islam, sharing Christ with and loving Muslims, having Christ-centered relationships, and having a powerful prayer life (just to name a few).  The youth pastors had the privilege of hearing Steve Fitzhugh, a former Denver Bronco.  His encouragement to us was to live for the prize.  Ministry can be tiring and discouraging, but we need to keep our eyes focused on the prize as we run this race.

Friday night, Harvey Carey shared with us on living empowered by the Holy Spirit.  It is the Holy Spirit who can empower us to make a difference for the Kingdom.  The closing service was on Saturday morning.  We had another awesome worship time led by Charlie Hall, with the final message from Francis Chan on being and staying connected to God.

This is just a snippet of a fun, life-changing week in Denver.  We believe that God was at work in our lives and the lives of our students.  Thank you so much for all your prayers and support for us.  And for those who are wondering:  Lena did come along with us, and she charmed everyone!

Thanks for sharing, Kathy!  Here are a few other pics from IYC Denver that Kathy wanted to include here:

Day 2- The group relaxing in between rides at Elitch Gardens theme and water park

Denver IYC, Day 2- The evening before International Youth Convention kicked off, baby Lena and Will kicked and flailed together on the girls' bed in our Grand Hyatt hotel room.

On Day 3, we had lunch at Johnny Rockets on the opening day of International Youth Convention.

And our lunch on Day 4 was at Bubba Gump Shrimp Co.

Day 4- Impact: Denver Service Project- Garth took turns performing acrobatics with a member of an outdoor wedding party to knock down a moldy, maggot-ridden burrito from the roof of a park shelter.  Nasty!

Coming soon on BlogSpot…

Skydiving stories, photos, and other assorted birthday excitement from last weekend!

Japanese Potty Training

Now that we have Tokyo Drifting 1, 2, 3, and some summery fresh updates from IYC Denver and wave riding in Banks Lake WA (links) behind us, I have a small clarification:  

In my first “Tokyo Drifting” blog post, I had mentioned the utter lack of English signage in my Tokyo neighborhood.  That wasn’t completely true.  The more touristy shops and restaurants in the area sprinkled their Kanji displays with a Yankee phrase or two, and English instructions were ubiquitous throughout the Hostel Kawase Tokyo and Capsule. 

In fact, my capsule/hostel went the extra mile and added a helpful illustration to their posted English instructions for using their Japanese toilet:

Don’t laugh.  Odds are, countless American college backpackers have welcomed said instructions as they opened the WC stall door and found themselves staring down at this:

You just got learned.

Coming this Tuesday night on BlogSpot… Photos and tales from the trenches of Portland’s biggest ever food fight:

TOMATO BATTLE PDX!!!

Intermission: IYC Denver (from the road)

We’re all in Denver through this weekend, but check back here next weekend for the conclusion of my Tokyo travelogue.  I’ll throw in some pics from the touristy part of my quick visit to Japan.

We made it!  Since Monday, a small group from our E.P.I.C. student ministry has been breathing mile-high air here in Denver, Colorado.  International Youth Convention 2012 officially kicked off last night, but we flew in a couple days early for a little fun.

A wet and wild day at Elitch Gardens water/theme park got our adrenaline pumping on Tuesday.  Aggressive water slides like the mind-scrambling Tube Top and the various speed slides kept us cool for most of the day.

That evening, our bravery was tested on the rickety wooden roller coaster Twister 2 (seen in the background of the photo above, which, if you look closely, features me and Will hanging on for dear life in the 6^th car)… and especially on the up-down-forward-backward-upside down-sideways G-forces of the notorious Boomerang.  I lost all feeling in my face.  Is it possible for internal organs to liquefy?

The opening session of International Youth Convention was last night.  Thousands of teenagers sang along with Matt Papa’s passionate worship set, followed by a message from skater/boarder/surfer Zane Black. My conversation with Zane after the late night Group 1 Crew concert convinced me that he is a man of authentic faith who has truly been called to speak into the lives of teenagers.

Zane’s message led into an intimate time of reflection, response, and sharing with our students outside of the auditorium last night.

This morning, our students selected various breakout sessions to attend while the adult leaders were encouraged by energetic former Denver Bronco defensive back Steve Fitzhugh at the Youth Ministry Institute conference.  The IYC High School Band led an unbelievably gifted time of worship before the session!

In a few minutes, we’ll be leaving the convention center for our Impact: Denver service project.  Partnering with some other youth groups from across the U.S.A., we’ll be restoring and beautifying an inner city playground and public park.  It’s time to do some good!

E.P.I.C. Student Ministry Update- July 2012

DSC_0050_edited-1.JPG, a photo by gkhamilton on Flickr.

From Violetta Guthier’s camera: Brandon graduates from Beaverton’s School of Science and Tech!

International Youth Convention in Denver is right on top of us! Our Aloha Church of God students are excited for the upcoming IYC trip, and we’re thankful for the success that God has blessed us with through our fundraising efforts:
  Our church and neighborhood families turned out in full force as we partnered with Aloha Christian Preschool for our spaghetti dinner night.




Most recently, our students helped welcome and direct visitors at Skyline Memorial Gardens throughout the three day Memorial Day Weekend. We also helped clean up the grounds by picking up flowers, etc. the following Saturday.
During breakfast on Day 3, Will paid Lena a visit with “Porque Pig.”  Bueno!






Earlier this spring, our middle and high schoolers had an opportunity to showcase their hospitality and relational skills with families and young children during our Easter Eggstravaganza community outreach event.


Our students’ involvement in each of these events were all great examples of the unique talents that we regularly see on display in our church, bringing to mind the spiritual gifts that Garth preached about in “Big Church” while Pastor Tim was away on Sabbatical this month.

Garth’s “We Are the Body” sermon series, based on 1 Corinthians 12, highlighted how each member of our church family (including those of you who haven’t even visited yet!) plays a valuable role in the body of Christ. Our diversity makes us stronger. Our passion for Christ gives us unity. And our unique spiritual gifting enables us to boldly serve others in love.



Last, and most definitely not least… we want to send out a larger than life congrats to our graduating high school seniors!   Several young people from the Class of 2012 have been involved in our E.P.I.C. student ministry throughout the years, but we especially want to honor graduates Brandon England from SST and Derek Gade from Aloha High School. Our church family has watched these two young men grow physically (now they’re both taller than Kathy and I!) and spiritually. We are grateful for their deep involvement and commitment to our student ministry over the years.


 To all of our graduating seniors, we scream at the top of our lungs:

CONGRATULATIONS CLASS OF 2012!!!!