This Past Week in Warsaw

There has been a a couple of awful occurrences in our community recently. Yesterday, a man shot and killed another man at a gas station and then went home and shot and killed his wife. This family has a child at our school--Warsaw Christian School-- and a relative is one of the teachers.

Last weekend, a young man who was set to graduate from high school was killed in a car accident. That funeral is today. Tough things to swallow.

I trust that these horrible circumstances will be used by God to see great things happen. Maybe it will wake up our churches and youth groups. The question really isn't WHEN we are going to die or even HOW we are going to die. The really important question that I hope we are going to be more diligent in asking our friends, classmates, co-workers, and relatives is this: "What's going to happen to you AFTER you die?"

Let the discussions begin.

My Time Frame

I'm a doer. A pusher. Usually, I'm a "let's get it done yesterday" kind of guy. I like to know what needs done, get on it, and finish it well and as quickly as possible so I can move on to the next important (or not so important) project. I'm that way with work at the CE office. With the lawn at home. Doing construction. (Okay, maybe I don't finish all of the new construction projects as quickly as I have just described, but you get the idea...)

I was thinking the other day: While I may like to work this way, God doesn't work in this kind of fashion. He has His timing, in His way with whom He will. Here is what made me think about it:

Were were just at The National Institute Cross Cultural module last week at Urban Hope Training Center in Philadelphia. Tim Clothier was the TA. He and Zach, after the Friday night youth meeting our class was a part of, started talking with some guys from there in Philly. One of the guys was a Christ follower. Together, the three of them talked with this other guy who has been coming around UHTC for a while about the need to know Jesus. Long story short--this young man prayed and asked Christ to save Him and change his life. Very cool! Lots of things had been talked about with this young man at other times at UHTC. But it took one more conversation. And that prompted him to say he wanted Jesus to run his life. In my timing, he should have responded the first time. But that's not God's timing.

Courtney went on the trip as well. She helped drive the bus and took care of logistics and meals. Same story. Started talking to two girls on that Friday night. They had been at UHTC for about 6 weeks hearing really good stuff. They both said that they have heard this before and they wanted Jesus to run their lives. How incredible is that!

My son, Nick, and I left Philly and went to CA to see my parents for a few days. I got to speak at my old home church--to the youth group--on Wednesday evening. I didn't know many of the kids there that night. But I shared and at the end, I asked if there was anyone who wanted to have Jesus forgive them of their sin and run their life. One gal responded and the youth staff followed up with her immediately. That was really neat.

My time frame idea works like this: everyone should respond to the gospel the first time. But that isn't God's timing--it's only my idea of what timing should be. In looking back at it, I guess it encourages me to keep talking to people I know who have not yet responded to Jesus yet. For some , it takes 6 weeks, for others less time, for others a little more. But I'm trying to shift my thinking from my idea to God's perspective on the subject. I guess I just have to keep talking and bringing the subject up to them and to God.

What a Week It Will Be!

I get to do some really enjoyable things this next week. Tonight, my son Nick and I will fly to Philadelphia to join the National Institute Cross Cultural Youth Ministry class at the Urban Hope Training Center. We get to stay for a couple days and then fly out to CA for four days to see my parents.

This will be great Dad and son time as well as a chance for Nick to connect with his grandparents in a special way. Grandpa is not doing that great in the convalescent home and it will be good for a ten year old boy to have time with his grandfather. Now Bekah is not that thrilled that her little brother gets to go to UHTC (where she says she wants to live and minister when she gets older) as well as to CA...

I'm looking forward to Nick getting stretched by going to the inner-city and seeing spiritual and all kinds of other needs. He'll do great and enjoy the experience. Plus he'll look forward to a little time at the beach too.

Guess this will be my last posting until the end of next week when we return to IN.

Gifts That Keep On Giving

God blesses at the most unusual times and in the most unusual ways. A few months back I had a couple of friends who wanted to invest significantly in the Operation Barnabas high school ministry training program. They wrote a check for $10,000 to put a down payment on a new 1997 bus we need for this summer. That is quite a financial investment.

This entire spring I have been intending to talk to OB alumni, former leaders, parents of OBers, etc about the remaining need of $7,500 to get this bus rolling. We just obtained this new vehicle and are currently putting the racks in the back. Next week I will help transport it to IN from PA to get it registered and painted. (Of course it will be painted OB blue) then we pack it up and drive with a group of leaders to OB orientation in Lititz, PA.

Just this week I received a check in the mail for $7500 to finish paying for this OB bus. The gift was from parents of a gal who was on OB last summer. While that is a very large contribution, what amazed me is that I really hadn't done much to ask for it. We had included the need in a letter about OB as well as in our spring things to pray about listing.

I should not be surprised by this kind of thing, but I always am. God supplies, in His time, through His means. And there will be a lot of teens and people in communities and churches that will be blessed because of one family's obedience--not to what I or anyone else asked of them--but to what God laid on their hearts. This is a gift that will keep on giving.

And now I need to write a letter asking for funds so that these 91 OB teens and their 16 adult leaders will have finances to do Hurricane Katrina relief in Mississippi at the end of their summer tour. Or maybe someone will read this, have God tug at their heart, and they will write a check to cover the whole thing. It's all good. God does it in His way and through His means.