{"id":195,"date":"2007-10-13T01:01:48","date_gmt":"2007-10-13T01:01:48","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blog.beliefnet.com\/markdroberts\/2007\/10\/my-new-haunts-in-kerrville-texas.html"},"modified":"2007-10-13T01:01:48","modified_gmt":"2007-10-13T01:01:48","slug":"my-new-haunts-in-kerrville-texas","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/markdroberts\/2007\/10\/my-new-haunts-in-kerrville-texas.html","title":{"rendered":"My New Haunts in Kerrville, Texas"},"content":{"rendered":"

I’ve just finished my second week as the Senior Director of Laity Lodge. Though the retreat center itself is out in Hill Country near Leakey, Texas (population approx. 350), my offices are in Kerrville, a town of about 22,000 people on I-10, an hour west of San Antonio. (Check this map for details<\/a>.)
\n\"heb-foundation-office\"I thought it might be fun to show a few pictures of my new haunts in Kerrville. The first photo is the view from the street as you approach the H.E. Butt Foundation offices. The campus includes several quaint old homes that have been reconfigured for offices, along with other buildings. The sign to the right, which has been around for a while, includes “Laity Lodge” on the bottom line.
\nHere is a close up of the house in which the Laity Lodge team and I have our offices. This fine team includes: Steven Purcell (Director), Tim Blanks (Director of Operations), Dave Williamson (semi-retired Director and advisor), Ann Jack (Registrar), and Liz Wyall (Administrative Coordinator). We get lots of help from other Foundation employees who are housed in nearby quarters. My office windows are the ones farthest to the right in this picture.
\nHere’s a view of the inside of my office. I love the light streaming in through the windows. Plus, right outside of the French doors we get visiting deer. Didn’t have that in Irvine! I’m not complaining, though, because I had a wonderful office at Irvine, one I’m proud to pass on to the next pastor. Nevertheless, now I feel blessed to be housed in such a verdant, pastoral setting. It sure helps the creative juices to flow!
\nBut, every now and then I still feel the need to get out into the world. The Starbucks in Kerrville has one of the best outside seating areas of any Starbucks I’ve ever visited, and that’s quite a few stores. This particular Starbucks lies along the Guadalupe River, which passes through the center of Kerrville. Nothing like sipping a latt\u00e9 while sitting on the porch and enjoying the view! A fine spot for morning devotions.
\nIn case you’re wondering, yes, there is a McDonald’s in Kerrville, and also a Chili’s. No there is not an In-N-Out Burger (sigh!). But Culver’s is represented, and their burger comes close to In-N-Out’s. Culver’s burger is called the ButterBurger, which doesn’t exactly sound like health food. No sign of ButterBeer in Culver’s, however.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

I’ve just finished my second week as the Senior Director of Laity Lodge. Though the retreat center itself is out in Hill Country near Leakey, Texas (population approx. 350), my offices are in Kerrville, a town of about 22,000 people on I-10, an hour west of San Antonio. (Check this map for details.) I thought…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":214,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[18],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-195","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-texas"],"yoast_head":"\nMy New Haunts in Kerrville, Texas - Mark D. Roberts<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/markdroberts\/2007\/10\/my-new-haunts-in-kerrville-texas.html\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"My New Haunts in Kerrville, Texas - Mark D. Roberts\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"I’ve just finished my second week as the Senior Director of Laity Lodge. Though the retreat center itself is out in Hill Country near Leakey, Texas (population approx. 350), my offices are in Kerrville, a town of about 22,000 people on I-10, an hour west of San Antonio. (Check this map for details.) 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Roberts","description":"Mark D. Roberts: Thoughtfully Christian Reflections on Jesus, the Church, and the World","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/markdroberts\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/markdroberts\/#\/schema\/person\/1ff094a57b7e41f534434b1723df3d73","name":"Mark D. Roberts","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/markdroberts\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/markdroberts\/wp-content\/wphb-cache\/gravatar\/f2d\/f2ddf5f080861f66ea230384f9d1bab2x96.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/markdroberts\/wp-content\/wphb-cache\/gravatar\/f2d\/f2ddf5f080861f66ea230384f9d1bab2x96.jpg","caption":"Mark D. Roberts"},"description":"The Rev. Dr. Mark D. Roberts is a pastor, author, retreat leader, speaker, and blogger. Since October 2007 he has been the Senior Director and Scholar-in-Residence for Laity Lodge, a multifaceted ministry in the Hill Country of Texas. Before coming to Laity Lodge, he was for sixteen years the Senior Pastor of Irvine Presbyterian Church in Irvine, California (a city in Orange County about forty miles south of Los Angeles). Before his time at Irvine Pres, Mark served on the staff of the First Presbyterian Church of Hollywood as Associate Pastor of Education. (Thanks to Janel Pahl for taking the photo to the right.) Mark studied at Harvard University, receiving a B.A. in Philosophy, an M.A. in the Study of Religion, and a Ph.D. in New Testament and Christian Origins. He has taught classes in New Testament for Fuller Theological Seminary and San Francisco Theological Seminary. Mark has written several books, including No Holds Barred: Wrestling with God in Prayer (WaterBrook, 2005), Dare to Be True (WaterBrook, 2003), Jesus Revealed (WaterBrook, 2002), After \"I Believe\" (Baker, 2002), and Ezra, Nehemiah, Esther (Word, 1993). His most recent book is Can We Trust the Gospels? Investigating the Reliability of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John (Crossway, 2007). He is currently working on a commentary on Ephesians that will be published by Zondervan in 2014. Mark writes a devotional for The High Calling of Our Daily Work, a website associated with Laity Lodge. His \"Daily Reflections\" can be viewed online or sent as a daily email. If you wish to receive this email, just visit TheHighCalling.org and sign up. Mark serves on the editorial board of Worship Leader magazine, where he publishes articles and reviews, including his regular column \"Lyrical Poetry.\" Additionally, he has published dozens of articles in leading magazines and journals. He often speaks for churches and other Christian groups, and has been interviewed on over seventy-five radio programs nationwide. Mark is married to Linda, who is a Marriage and Family Therapist, a Spiritual Director, and a retreat speaker. They have two children, Nathan and Kara.For Publicity Photos and Bio Statements for Mark, please check here. Mark's Dossier Professional History: Senior Director and Scholar-in Residence, Laity Lodge, October 2007 to present. Senior Pastor Irvine Presbyterian Church, June 1991 to September 2007 Adjunct Assistant Professor Fuller Theological Seminary, 1994 to 2007. Courses: New Testament Theology and Exegesis. Adjunct Instructor San Francisco Theological Seminary, 1995 to 2001. Courses: New Testament Greek and Exegesis Associate Pastor of Education First Presbyterian Church of Hollywood, 1987-1991 Teaching Fellow Harvard University, 1980-1983 Education: Ph.D. in the Study of Religion. Harvard University, 1992. Area: New Testament and Christian Origins M.A. in the Study of Religion Harvard University, 1984. A.B. magna cum laude in Philosophy Harvard University, 1979. Phi Beta Kappa; Danforth Fellowship Books: Can We Trust the Gospels? Investigating the Reliability of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John. Crossway, 2007 No Holds Barred: Wrestling with God in Prayer. WaterBrook, 2005 Dare to Be True: Living in the Freedom of Complete Honesty. WaterBrook, 2003. Jesus Revealed: Know Him Better to Love Him Better. WaterBrook, 2002. After \"I Believe\": Experiencing Authentic Christian Living. Baker, 2002. Ezra, Nehemiah, Esther in the Communicator's Commentary Series. Word, 1993. Contacting Mark: You can reach Mark at: E-mail: mark@markdroberts.com mroberts@laitylodge.org Phone: Laity Lodge: (830) 792-1216 Address: Laity Lodge 719 Earl Garrett Kerrville, TX 78028","url":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/markdroberts\/author\/mroberts"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/markdroberts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/195","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/markdroberts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/markdroberts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/markdroberts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/214"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/markdroberts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=195"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/markdroberts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/195\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/markdroberts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=195"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/markdroberts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=195"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/markdroberts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=195"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}