Well, after yesterday’s dramatic adventure, it was nice to have one more night of good sleep in our own bed and some time with our daughters and my mom before heading out. Also got another workout in the morning, so that was nice as it will be difficult to be consistent while on our trip, although I will try. I did good last year in London, but after my back surgery I am limited in terms of the exercises I can do. Praying everything goes smoother today. Off soon.
K
Believe it or Not, We’re Home Already!
Yes, it’s true. I am sleeping in my bed tonight. Click here to read the details of our adventurous day: http://planetimpact.blogspot.com/2008/07/so-were-back-home-safe-sound-week-early.html
Last Minute Stuff
Got up. Packed. Worked Out. Took a Shower. Running to the Office to Take Care of Last Minute Details. Going to Kiss My Girls a Whole Bunch & Pray Together. Then We’re Off to the Airport. Yeah!
Gearing Up for Mexico
Tomorrow I am heading off leading a team of 28 to Mexico City where we will be working at an orphanage and doing street ministry. I am very excited about returning to the country I love so much! It’s been too long – 5 years since I was there last. So looking forward to the Lord doing good stuff through us and in us.
Craziness & Miracles
It’s been a slamming last few days. I am actually about to run out to watch the UFC fights, but let me briefly explain. On Tuesday I went back to work after having a fun day off on Monday. On Tuesday evening my wife went out with a friend, so I just stayed home and chilled with the girls. At around 10 pm my wife returned home. When my 6 year old heard the car pull in, she got excited and went running to hide so as to surprise mom. All of a sudden I heard a loud, crashing thump, and I knew she had fallen. Immediately I heard that blood-curdling scream that says, “This one is for real and I’m not going to just brush it off.” I jumped out and ran into the hallway as did my wife who was coming up the stairs, my 10 year old, and my mother-in-law. When these things happen I usually have to take over because the rest operate in quite a panic. I picked up my daughter and saw a pool of blood. I quickly got her into the bathroom and we began trying to calm her down and clean her now bloody face and clothes. When she was finally able to tell us what happened, she explained that she had tripped over her pajama pants and fell smack on her face on our wooden floor. Her lip and gums were bleeding and very swollen, and her new adult tooth in the front was loose. We were able to get the bleeding to subside for the most part, applied some ice to her lip, and she was able to fall asleep. After she was asleep I was able to get a little bit of a better look at her injury, and her tooth was still loose. I was hoping it was just that initial looseness, but it was not. So I called our dentist in the middle of the night and left a message that she needed to be seen right away on Wednesday morning. They were fantastic. They were on the phone to me before 9 am, and asked me to bring her right in, which I did. After an x-ray confirmed that the tooth had not been fractured, they determined that she needed a splint which would need to be done by a dental surgeon. They said I would have to schedule an appointment. When I explained that we would be leaving town on Monday, they said they would see what they could do. After a few minutes they came back and said that they had a surgeon in the office, and that he would try to get her in. He did so, and we were done in less than an hour. (Miracle #1) My daughter sat so still and did so good! I was very proud of her! We then went out for a steak lunch. No! Just kidding! We went out for McDonald’s, and she was able to eat some nuggets.
When we returned home, I decided to grab the mail on the way in. I noticed that we had a letter from Homeland Security. I was so exited to see this, because my wife has been waiting for a notice to come and take her oath for citizenship for over 2 1/2 years! I thought surely this was the letter! When I opened it, it stated that she needed to report next week (while she will be out of the country on a missions trip, of course) to have her biometrics (fingerprints) done. She had already done her biometrics two years ago. Why were they asking her for them again? It also stated that if she did not report, her case would be considered abandoned, and she would have to begin her citizenship process all over again. Yikes! We couldn’t believe it! We got on the phone right away, and after 3 frustrating phone calls pushing buttons in response to an automated voice system, she finally got through to a real person. The person explained that there was not much she could do except mail a letter explaining her situation and asking them to reschedule her. She asked if this was a guarantee that her case would not be thrown out, but he could not affirm. She hung up and was about ready to cry. I told her to call back and try to talk to someone else. She gave me the phone to call. After a few prompts, I got someone on the line and gave her the phone. She explained that she had received this letter – to which the officer said, “Oh, this is really good news! That means they’re ready to move your case forward.” She explained that she had already had her biometrics done – to which the officer said, “Well, that’s because they’re only good for 12 months.” She then explained that she was going to be away on the day of her appointment – to which the officer said, “Well, you can go on any Wednesday when they take walk-in’s.” This was Wednesday at 2pm, mind you – the only Wednesday we would be here before her scheduled appointment. When we told her we were about 45-minutes away, she said she would suggest that we go for it, and just hope that the line was not out the door and that they could squeeze her in. We immediately thanked her, rounded up the kids, jumped in the car, and began the race to the location. When we arrived, my wife jumped out and ran to the office while I looked for a parking space. When I finally found one, I put a quarter in the meter and waited. It was not 10 minutes before my wife called me asking where I was parked because she was done. When she got in the car, she said that there was not one person in the usually jam-packed office. (Miracle #2) It was a stressful day, and, of course, as always, it was on a Wednesday which is the biggest day of the week (a couple of years ago, I was walking out on stage to start youth group when my older daughter was brought to me with an obviously broken arm, and I had to give the service to my team and take her to the hospital). It was amazing to see God’s providence in the midst of these two crisis on that day.
Thank You, Lord, that my daughter was not more seriously injured, and that you got us to that office at the exact moment on the exact day that the surgeon was able to get her into his busy schedule. And thank You that I opened the mail (which my wife was intentionally not doing (unbeknown to me) because she was fearing that they would call her when she was going to be gone), and that we had that 2-hour window of opportunity to get her immigration issue dealt with. You are so amazingly faithful! Amen!
Rockin the Bronx!
I took today off and spent the entire day in the Bronx with my family. My intern and one of my students also came with. We went to the Bronx Zoo until closing and then hopped a few miles down to Yankees Stadium for a game against the Texas Rangers. It was a close game, but the Rangers won 2-1. The thing that I was most excited about was that we got to meet up with two of my childhood friends whom I hadn’t seen in 17 years. They flew out from Nebraska to take in a series at Yankees’ Stadium since this is the final season that the Yanks will be playing there before moving into their new stadium in 2009. The last time I saw them they were 7 and 2 years old! Crazy! Their dad and my dad were best friends when we lived in Texas. Their mom was my first grade teacher. They also have a brother in between them – Bryan Frew – who was unable to join us because he was drafted a couple of weeks ago by the Phillies, so he is actually playing baseball in the minor leagues. The most awesome moment during the game was when my daughters made it onto the jumbo tron! That was fantastic! (See Picture!) It was a 14-hour, fun-filled family day. Even the traffic was almost eerily smooth.
Layin Down the Law!
Perhaps I should do this at youth group when students talk during worship or while I’m preaching.
AHHHH!
It was one of those all-too-familiar bitter sweet nights at youth group tonight. I had a couple of kids blow off my assistant and check out early from a mandatory missions meeting. I had to call their parents. Sucked. Attendance was a low – normal for this time of year – so that is always a bit of a bummer. The message went fairly well, but I still had a few kids with the mindset that during the message is the best time to catch up on the week. Then, during worship, I was pulled out three times to deal with kids who were causing trouble. Two kids were teasing another kid in the bathroom, and the kid got upset. I had to address them. No sweat. It went well. I figured it was over. Nope. A few other boys decided that they needed to use the bathrooms on the opposite side of the building because they can’t poop in the bathroom that they’re supposed to (that was literally their excuse). Repeat offenders whom the janitors constantly bring to us. A few minutes later I was called out again because two boys had been caught climbing on the roof and on the steel of our construction site. Repeat offenders. Had to call their parents too.
Are you sure being a big-people pastor is not easier than this? Ahhh! Youth Ministry! Gotta Love It! Thank You Lord that your grace is sufficient!
Tree House Fun
Today I was on vacation at home. It was a fun day painting the tree house with my daughters – a long anticipated project they had been asking me about for months. We completed the inside with girlie camouflage, and we’re going to do regular camouflage on the outside later. I also went and picked up a picnic table for our new patio, and we had dinner outside. I have lost 6 pounds on my new diet so far, so pray I’ll continue to stick to it. I’m shooting to lose another 30 pounds. Wow! What a long road back to the college days! Never again! lol
Back 2 Bloggin
Wow! What a crazy busy week! It seems like I didn’t have five minutes to sit down and blog. Let’s see … here are some highlights.
Monday night my 10-year old daughter had a concert. She was in the tamborine piece as well as in the chorus. She has great rythm and a great singing voice and uses her talents to worship Jesus! She did so great!
Wednesday I had our last student leader meeting of the year. Very good discussion about teamwork. After the meeting we had youth group. I preached the final message in my year-long series on the one another’s of the New Testament.
Thursday my wife and I went out for coffee with my Jr. High coordinator. She has just finished college and is now applying for teaching positions, so we spent some time talking about her future. In the afternoon spent more time with Josh the intern. In the evening we went shopping, came home, I grilled some chicken and made a salad for dinner. A couple of students came over, so we hung out with them. 
Friday was my day off. It was the girls’ last day of school, so I went to my 10-year old’s award ceremony. I was so blessed! She got a character award and it stated on her certificate that she was always caring and seeking ways to include others. That’s a huge value for me, so I was super proud that she has embraced inclusiveness at such an early age! Had physical therapy, got my windshield replaced (a couple of pebbles from a passing truck), came home, worked out, cleaned up. The girls then came home from school, so we went to the mall so Eun Ji could get a gift for her friend. In the evening we took Eun Ji to the airport to return to Korea. Very sad for us!
Saturday went to our missions teams’ dance practice. Prepared for our worship team party. Spent the afternoon grilling, swimming, and sharing a special time with the worship team. Rushed home and cleaned up, then Ady & I went to see a former student in a dance performance. There were 60 dance routines over 3-hours. We stayed for 2 1/2 hours and saw him in 4 routines. He’s an incredible dancer in their senior troupe. Afterward we went out for Applebee’s where Ady shared that she wants to go back to school in the fall. It’s so perfect for her, so I told her to go for it! More to come on that!
Sunday went to all 3 services at church, ate lunch, grabbed a quick nap, then it was off to our small group finale party. That was the highlight of my week! We had 45 kids for a pool party and BBQ! For our first year in small groups, that was a huge win to have 45 kids at the finale party. We jumped out quickly, but I knew we would dip and then settle in. We had up to 80 students during the first few weeks, then it dipped down to about 60, and we settled in to an average attendance of about 55-60 between the 6 small groups. I was thrilled with how they went. We have learned a lot, and will take the summer to evaluate and improve them for next year. Super excited! http://planetimpact.blogspot.com/2008/06/celebrating-small-groups.html
OK, I have the next two days off, so I am really looking forward to some fun times with the family! Tomorrow (now today) sleeping in, going out for breakfast, probably going to watch Kung Fu Panda, and painting the tree house. Tuesday we’re going to the Bronx Zoo weather permitting. Yeah!
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