Kingdom Bound (Darien Lake, NY).

So, the blog has been a little quiet for the last week or so – and I apologize for the lack of notice – I was out of town…but didn’t really want to broadcast that for the entire world to know. I know, I know, my audience consists entirely of fine upstanding individuals – but on the off chance that some creeper was out there looking for a chance to break in, I figured it would be best not to disclose. That said, I’m back and its time to start writing again.

Today I’d like to talk about Kingdom Bound (where I’ve been for the last so many days). Kingdom Bound is an annual Christian festival held at Darien Lake in Darien Center, NY. Darien Lake is a pretty amazing place in and of itself – a gigantic amusement and water park with numerous rides…and when you are attending Kingdom Bound you get free access to all of these for the entire multi-day festival:

• The Predator – A huge, old wooden roller-coaster that still delivers serious thrills as it shakes and rumbles along the track.
• The Viper – With its multiple loops and underground tunnel has not decreased in excitement with age.
• The Mind Eraser – Legs dangle free, flips abound, and once in a while a poll or the ground feels just a little too close – an exciting and breathtaking ride.
• Ride of Steel – Want to drop around 208 feet and reach speeds exceeding 70 mph? This is your ride.
• Tornado – Affectionately nicknamed by some “The Toilet Bowl” its a fairly crazy water ride for two to four individuals on a water tube that drops into what appears somewhat like a giant toilet bowl – whirling you around the sides and then down and out into a large pool of water.
• One could go on and on to mention the Big Kahuna, Grizzly Run, Shipwreck Falls, OCC Motocoaster, and the Boomerang…but you get the picture.

Now add onto this a seriously unbeatable and diverse lineup of Christian musical artists that in and of themselves are worth the price of admission and you have a must-go event. When I attended this year I saw Skillet put on perhaps the best live concert I have ever seen. I listened to Hawk Nelson getting everyone hyped up with their bouncy, upbeat tunes. I was there when Michael Tate led the Newsboys in an absolutely amazing concert and was joined by the original lead singer. Ahh, but that is just the start – other bands I personally saw include Salvador, Family Force 5, Pillar, and Relevant Worship. Other awesome artists included Matthew West, Francisca Battistelli, Natalie Grant, Israel Houghton, and on and on. While I’m not a hip-hop guy myself each day there was four solid hours of hip-hop!

Finally, there are the speakers and seminars. Kingdom Bound always brings in several high quality speakers who present on important issues of Christian faith. This year the highlight for me was David Nasser, an individual who during a regime change in Iran needed to escape with his family or risk the death of his father (a formerly high-ranking general). Nasser has an amazing and convicting message of his pursuit of happiness in the world and God’s eager pursuit of him.

Various seminars are available on a number of topics – including numerous seminars are various aspects of leading musical and drama ministries as well as topics such as personal modesty and a compassionate engagement of those who disagree with conservative Christians on gender identity topics.