He has been using his gift of laughter at churches, conventions and conferences around the globe. David frequently tours with fellow clean comedians Ken Davis and Chonda Pierce. David also spearheads “David Dean’s Mission Possible”, a ministry that leads 5-6 short term mission trips a year to the Dominican Republic. David and his wife Betsy are the parents of Alex (18) and Hannah (15). http://www.davidpdean.com/   www.facebook.com/davidpdean  www.twitter.com/daviddeancomedy�

We just posted brand new dates for the month of December. Please check them out and if you happen to live in the area, feel free to stop in and enjoy a night of clean comedy. I would consider it an honor to either meet you or re-connect. You can also follow my posts and thoughts at www.facebook.com/davidpdean

I miss you a lot, especially when I remember that last tearful good-bye, and I look forward to a joy-packed reunion.-2 Timothy 1:4 The Msg.

Our family received a rare phone call from Alex on Saturday. He is almost through basic training with the Army at Fort Knox, Kentucky. When he called, we didn’t know the number that came up on caller ID. But here is what we discovered after we picked up the phone.Toward the end of every platoon’s time at basic training, a nearby country church opens their doors to these young men. The Army transports in these young soldiers for a short time with “civilians” which includes pizza, homemade cookies, games, some college football and basketball in the church gym. Then, members share their cell phones with the soldiers to call home. The break concludes with a short time of music and a message in the sanctuary.

Alex could not stop talking about how nice it was to be able to spend time with the people of this church and for the love and prayers that they offered. He shared with us, “Dad..for a short time, it made me feel like I was back home with my OWN family.”

I sent an e-mail that night to my “extended” family at Stithton Baptist Church thanking them for making our son feel at home. And for the phone call, the food, the love and most importantly…loving him like he was their son.

We live in a time where its trendy to tell people we attend a Mega-Church. 3-4 services on Sunday morning and maybe a couple on Saturday night. Our church is also opening a sister church across town, we say with pride. As I travel across the country speaking at churches, I hear these kind of statements from staff all the time. And I am truly happy for them.

But the fact of the matter is, if you don’t live in a metropolitan area, how can you call your place of worship a mega-church? In Boonville, Iowa? And how many people does it take to be called a mega-church? Isn’t that like being called a “super-model”? Isn’t being a model good enough?

I’m not beating down the guys who want to see their church grow. I’m all for it. However, I’m cheering on the thousands of tiny churches across the country who will always be under the radar yet still obeying God’s commands.

Here is what I love about Stithton Baptist Church: You’re talking about a small country church that will probably never boast of having a best selling author/pastor and will be lucky to have 300 members. But they opened their doors and loved on strangers. That stranger was our son.

We will visit Alex the first weekend in October and I plan on stopping by this church on the way home. I want to meet the individuals who make this “Soldier Ministry” possible. I want to see them face to face. I want to look them in the eyes and thank them for remembering the purpose of the church: Loving people. Not numbers.

http://www.stithton.org/