Wade's Christmas Stockings

Meanwhile, the moment we get tired in the waiting, God's Spirit is right alongside helping us along. If we don't know how or what to pray, it doesn't matter. He does our praying in and for us, making prayer out of our wordless sighs, our aching groans. He knows us far better than we know ourselves, knows our pregnant condition, and keeps us present before God. That's why we can be so sure that every detail in our lives of love for God is worked into something good. Romans 8:28 (The Message)

Details. I often find myself, as I’m sure lots of us do, getting caught up in details. How will we…? What if…? When "this" happens, what do we do? Often times I get so far ahead of myself that I’ve created a situation that couldn’t possibly happen, yet I’m already preparing myself for the details of some crazy, fictional situation. One that will most likely never even happen. Have to tell myself not to over think things all the time. Let God handle the details. It’s His plan anyway, right? Why in the world would I think I could manage the outcome of any given event?

A while back, I met a fellow who went by the name of Wade. Now, I’ve written about Wade a few times here because of the significant things that have happened involving Wade. Met him quite a while back. Saw him off and on, as is fairly customary with lots of the people we meet on that downtown corner. And this past summer Wade left us. Had an untimely accident in a lake in Council Bluffs, Ia. Right across the river. And when I heard the news I was shocked. It really bothered me that maybe we hadn’t done enough to try to help Wade. Again, I’m not sure what I think I could have done? But I often wondered what if? So after Wade left us, as God is apt to do, a really strange and very cool thing transpired. God began working in the details. I wrote a blog about his passing. In doing so, I had no idea what was to come. And how his death would impact so many. In so many places. Especially on our downtown street corner. Through it all, I’ve met his family. Lots of them. And they are a great family. They come from hours away to honor their son, their brother, their father, their husband. It’s not like they live right up the street and want to come help. In most cases they literally drive for hours to get here. And yesterday? They came with an abundance. You see, Wade’s niece told me some time back that she wanted to do something to honor her uncle. She wasn’t quite sure, I don’t think anyway, what exactly she wanted to do but she knew she wanted to do something. As if I am in any place to do so, I offered her a simple piece of advice. Whatever you decide to do, pray about it, take the first step or get started and let the Lord lead it. I was just sure if she did that, she’d not have to worry so much about the details. God would indeed provide, as He has for us on so many occasions. I sit back and marvel at how He provides for this ministry, His ministry, on a regular basis. I absolutely cannot believe the amount of stuff in my garage. It’s to the point anymore that I have to decide what to take and what not to take on any given Sunday.

So Wade’s niece, Mercedes, sends me an email saying that she wanted to gather Christmas stockings and distribute them in Wade’s honor. So, as I understand it, she sent out letters and used other means for gathering things to put in the stockings. And people responded. To the tune of 200 stockings. And they decide to bring Wade’s Christmas Stockings yesterday to distribute them to our friends downtown. They show up. With a trailer full of stuff. These weren’t just ordinary Christmas stockings. They had so much stuff that they had to actually make them Christmas bags! Boxes and boxes of things for our friends. For Wade’s friends. And all in the name of Christ. Want an amazing young lady. Gifts for Christ’s birthday, to honor and glorify Him, and all the while bringing it down to a level that our friends downtown could relate to. Lots of them knew Wade. Lots of them now know Wade’s family. And I met his wife yesterday for the first time. I have no idea how difficult this must have been for her? No idea the feelings she must have been experiencing? I only hope that she saw that he didn’t die in vain. I kind of know how she feels. To a degree anyway. I lost my oldest sister to cancer 10 years ago. Anyone who has lost someone close to a sudden death or an unexplained illness knows that it is literally mind numbing to try to explain it or to reason or rationalize it. There simply are no answers. And the old ‘time heals all blah blah blah…" is true to a degree. But we are always left wondering? Why? What if? Again with the details. And there simply are no real answers. Except one. God will absolutely work in the details. If we let Him. For me? My sister’s passing all those years ago brought me to a faith that I’d never known. Watching her witness, especially in the final weeks, days and hours of her life, made it clear to Robin and I that we’d better get our act together. We weren’t necessarily living a bad life. We just weren’t following Christ. We believed. We simply hadn’t taken the next step in the journey.

So yesterday, God worked in the details. Wade’s family showed up. And in doing so, they once again honored his life. But in doing so, they also honored God. This young lady made an impact in ways that probably will never be able to be measured. I think I remember her Mom being somewhat concerned when she first brought the idea to her. It was a big project. I mean 200 stockings? And if it were me, I’d wonder what exactly do we put in these things to make them significant? Again with the details. :) But Mercedes and the rest of Wade’s family made it happen. God blessed it for sure. I’ve seen it happen so many times on that corner. A need is presented and God meets that need. Or someone or a group of someones decides they want to help out in some way and God blesses it. It’s so simple. Yet so profound. I stood and watched the boxes come out of that trailer yesterday and was simply awed at how God does indeed care about even the smallest of details. It was an amazing thing to see. I had someone ask me a few weeks ago if we were going to bring Christmas presents downtown. One Sunday, out of the blue, this person asks me this. I remember kind of laughing and my initial thought was something along the lines of "uh, I don’t think so…how in the world would we supply gifts for that many people". But my response to her was I guess we’d just have to see. And really that was just my safe response. Non committal. :) That’s me mostly. Just ask Robin. But as God continues to work on me, one thing has become profoundly evident to me in all of this. I don’t have to worry about details. I need to be aware of logistical things, obviously, but I absolutely do not have to over think things. God is so much better at it than me anyway. My feeble brain cannot begin to comprehend such things.

It was a great day and a great week. And such an eventful week. Monday Robin cooked for Mosaic’s Life on the Brick. We were able to hang out with our friends at this weekly, Monday meal. Yet another relational touch point. Tuesday we had dinner with a few friends at a shelter in Council Bluffs. It was our first time there. What an amazing job these folks do at this shelter. It’s called MOHM’s Place and it was a great evening for my family to spend some time with a few friends we first met on a downtown street corner in Omaha. And of course it was a great Christmas for our family. And we topped it all off with a Sunday afternoon gathering in the park on what turned out to be a really nice day, considering it’s late December and we are in Nebraska. Again, God working in the details. He allowed us to have great weather on a day that was set aside to honor Him and in the process, a family was able to do something to honor one of theirs. I believe this young lady made a difference yesterday and I’m quite sure her uncle looked down and smiled. I know I did. Amazing.

For to us a child is born, to us a son is given, and the government will be on his shoulders. And he will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. Isaiah 9:6 (NIV)

Peace, have a great and blessed week and make a difference.

…it matters to that one… :)

Redonkulous?

Redonkulous (Adjective) Significantly more absurd than ridiculous to an almost impossible extreme; without possibility of serious consideration.

So I picked this word up from Christian this week. I think it came from some movie he saw recently. I’ve heard it about 1000 times or more, give or take 100. But for some reason it stuck with me. Especially this morning. When I went outside and realized exactly how cold it was and just exactly what we were in for today. Redonkulously cold. The weather forecast was for temps hovering just below zero. That’s the dreaded negative range. And with the howling winds out of the northwest, the “feel like” temp was around 25 or 30 below. Say again? 25 or 30 below? Now I’ve mentioned before what freezes in this kind of weather, so I won’t go there again. But I will tell you this. I’m pretty sure that it was so cold today that flatulence froze. Now I don’t have first hand knowledge…or do I? :) No I don’t. But I’m sure it does. Good grief it was cold. And there were people without gloves. I swear I’m going to figure out a way to tie a string to the gloves and run the string up the sleeves of our friends’ coats. Just like Mom did when we were kids. There must be a lost glove convention happening as I write in some corner of the Sienna Francis House.

St. Vincent DePaul’s Youth Group was back to help today. What troopers! Man they brought enough homemade Christmas cookies to feed a small army! What an amazing group. We are so blessed to have them come and help. I mentioned that the home school group helped last week. It’s so cool to see people help. Especially the young folks. What a blessing they are and we’ve been blessed to have them come often. A couple of kids from the home school group were assigned to write about their experience last week. With their permission, here’s what they saw:

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On Sunday, December 14th, 2008, at 12:00 p.m. we drove to down town Omaha, Nebraska to feed the hungry. The name of the ministry is Starfish Ministry. You can bring food or help serve food. There were various foods and drinks for the hungry to choose from. Lesley and I had a challenging task, separating paper plates with gloves on! We finally braved the freezing cold weather and took our gloves off; one second later we decided we should put our gloves back on and keep trying to get the plates apart. My Mom and Dad poured the turkey noodle soup into cups and handed the soup to the line of hungry people. Four or five buckets were sitting out on the cold cement ground, filled to the brim with clothing, shoes, coats, and other items. Seeing how hungry and cold these people were made me think how blessed I am. I live in a warm house while others are living in the cold on the streets or under bridges. After seeing how blessed it makes the people feel, I want to help serve the people every weekend.
Ashley age 11


The bitter wind stung our cheeks as we stood behind a row of tables at Gene Lahey Mall. Downtown near 14th and Douglas, every Sunday at noon, no matter what the weather, Starfish Ministry serves the people gathered there. Handing out paper plates and spoons, we helped serve the hungry people on this frigid, Sunday afternoon. Every so often a volunteer would go running after a stray plate or cup as it was carried away by the wind. On this exceptionally cold day we could see our breath in the air. We shifted trying to keep warm while people shuffled by to receive soup, bread, clothing, and many other items. As a result of the freezing temperature, fewer people than normal were gathered to obtain a warm meal. Although it was a cold day the people were cheerful and extremely grateful. Everyone had a smile on their face and was quick to say ‘thank you’ upon receiving their items. Even though my family didn’t stay long, our cheeks were red and we were shivering by the time we got into the car. I am extremely grateful to have a roof over my head and a warm house to live in, instead of having to live outside. I am also thankful for a car so that I don’t have to walk everywhere. I enjoyed being able to serve the hungry people, and look forward t doing it again.
Lesley age 15
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I got a Christmas card from one of our friends last week. Pat is a fellow I just recently met. He needed a coat a few weeks ago and a pair of boots. So I happened to have just what he needed that particular week. We’ve handed out literally hundreds of pairs of boots and too many coats to count. So sometimes I forget how much a pair of new boots and a warm coat means to someone. When I gave Pat his a few weeks ago, I was reminded how much it means. And sometimes I think it’s just that simple act of kindness and love. That someone would have just what a fellow needed at just the right time. That’s how God so often works in this thing. All in his time. Just in time. His amazing time. So Pat hands me a homemade Christmas card last week, written on a plain white sheet of paper. The front simply said Merry Christmas and Happy New Year. Inside were the following words. “Aren’t you glad it only comes once a year? So bless us all while we are here. Still wish you the best of luck. And Hope that 2009 doesn’t suck. Signed, Pat.” :) I just laughed. I did again when I reread it just now. But I think in some strange sort of way, he really meant it.

So it was redonkulously cold today. I mean, stuff just doesn’t work in that kind of weather. Exposed skin will be frostbitten in minutes. Mechanical stuff just fails. But people? They are able to work through it. We saw that today. We showed up on the corner and there were only a couple of people waiting. But as we got things set up, people started showing up. And before we were done, we’d prayed together, meals were served, new coats were passed out, lots of new gloves were distributed and God once again showed up. He always does. Doesn’t matter how redonkulously cold it gets. He sends us. And He shows up. And we were blessed today to be in His presence. I’d guess He wasn’t quite as cold as us. But He was there. And we were able to share. And I tell you there’s a little satisfaction in hearing people say thanks for showing up no matter the weather. I tell them we have to. If He’s going to be there, we’ll be there.

Merry Christmas and a blessed New Year!

Peace and have a great and blessed week.

Make a difference.

…it matters to that one… :)

God Rocks Hard!

It’s days like these that seriously remind me of the harsh realities of this crazy state that we live in. No, not the bizarre state of cornfusion. The bizarre state of Nebraska. Where it can be almost 60 degrees one day (yesterday) and today is a mind blowing 10 BELOW zero!! Now we knew it was coming but that doesn’t prepare us anymore than knowing not to step in front of a city bus. When it hits you, you know you’ve been hit. When a guy drops a cup of hot chocolate and it’s frozen seconds after hitting the sidewalk. Well, that’s cold. And I mentioned last year what happens in this kind of weather. Christian reminded me several times on the way downtown today. He asked me if it was cold enough for snot to freeze. After getting downtown and seeing several of our bearded friends, I’d have to say the answer is a resounding yes. No doubt. Homeless dudes just aren’t quite on top of things sometimes when it comes to the hygiene thing. I guess they have bigger fish to fry. So after seeing several of our friends with moustache icicles, I’d say that today qualified for snot freezing weather. It was just downright cold. But there’s something about days like this that make it more interesting to me. For one, we have a bit more of an intimate gathering. I’d guess maybe 50 or so today. But considering that it was colder than a well digger’s you-know-what, that’s probably a pretty impressive turnout. I’d still like to pull up someday and not see a soul, but not because of the weather…

So today a home school entrepreneur group did all the cooking. That’s 2 weeks in a row that we didn’t have to cook a meal in our house. Come to think of it, I don’t think that has happened in over 2 years. So because of that, we tried to plan ahead so that we could attend a church service this morning. I did all my normal Sunday morning stuff yesterday afternoon. So this morning, the workload was very minimal. No college football yesterday either, so my time was pretty productive. :) So we headed out to Papio Creek Church this morning. Now these guys have been a blessing to us. We kind of partnered up with them a while back and they often send folks down to help in various ways. It’s been amazing to see different churches use the opportunity God provides on a weekly basis on that corner. And like I said, Papio Creek has been a blessing. So we were able to go to church this morning and see the pre-school kids in their Christmas performance along with a good worship service. It was good. And the thing that allowed that to happen for us was the entrepreneurial group that stepped up to cook the meal today. Yet another way that God has used that corner to minister to people. A home school entrepreneurial group? Are you kidding me? And the young man whose mother is the driving forced behind the group, gave me money to buy boots for one of our friends. And the money came from his business. He sells soap. Starfish Soap. Imagine that! What an amazing kid. And what an amazing God we serve. Where we can stand on that corner and watch God work through us, through this home school group, through various churches and through young children. What an unbelievable thing we get to be a small part of.

I saw something today that almost broke my heart. Someone came over to me asking about help for a young lady. He was trying to point her out in the crowd. After scanning the crowd, I spotted her over by the wall on the south side of the park. In a pair of light, lime green colored Capris. Did I mention that it was well below zero today? I think I pretty much covered that. So it was most definitely not Capri weather. Just for reference, I’m talking about the pants that cover just below the knee. So there was a considerable amount of skin exposed to the elements. And from where I was standing, about 100 feet away or so, her calves looked to be bruised. They weren’t. I believe she was in the beginning stages of frostbite. I immediately grabbed some blankets for her. She seemed to be oblivious to it all at first, but when I handed her the blanket, she broke down. She confirmed it was frostbite. She just absolutely broke down when I gave her the stuff. Cried hard and hugged me hard. She’s living in a tent with her husband on the river. Well, I happened to have a couple pairs of sweatpants for a different lady that asked me to hook her up. Guess who didn’t show up today for her sweatpants? Guess who got them? And as I was getting the sweatpants from the van, a fellow comes up to me with an armful of coats. And guess who had the size she needed? A 3X long winter coat just happened to show up just as I was heading backing in her direction with the sweatpants. Coincidence? Not hardly. All I had to do was be there. He does the rest. I’m convinced God was at work in so many ways today. Even in the details. A couple young ladies from St. Vincent DePaul Catholic church were there to witness the whole thing. In fact, they were there talking to her before I got there. I pray for this young lady’s situation. This is no time to be living in a tent on the river. Not here. Not in this state in the winter. No way.

We were blessed last week with an email from a fellow who wanted to help buy some coats. Heavy winter coats. We usually get lots of coats. But not necessarily the bigger sizes. You know, XL and larger. And not necessarily new ones either. Those are the harder ones to get. And guess what sizes we need the most? So when this fellow emailed and said he wanted to help, man I just praised God. So through his generosity and the fact that the Menard’s store in Bellevue was willing to work with us on the price of coats, we were able to get 50 brand new coats!! Large, XL and XXL. As Robin, Christian and I drove home that night with the back of the van loaded with new coats, I just laughed back at the days of dealing with the Goodwill devil. Trying to get those folks at Goodwill to work with us on the price of a coat that was given to them! The irony was a little too much. I used to spend my Saturdays going from thrift store to thrift store trying to find coats and whatever. And here we were with a van full! What an amazing God!

I know this is a little long this week, but I’d be remiss if I didn’t mention one last thing. A fellow asked me last week if we could help him get back to his family in Oregon. That’s always a tough one for me. Are we sending someone off to something that is really a better situation? And then I realize that it’s not really my call. If God blesses us with the resources, who am I to judge. I mean we have to be good stewards, but we have to have a little faith also. So I call this fellow back on Tuesday and tell him it’s a go. He says to me " are you serious man?" Me – "As serious as a heart attack bro." Him - "You rock hard man." Me – "God rocks hard man." You see, I have to get him to understand that we do nothing. It’s all about the glory of God. No other way this thing works. I couldn’t manage my way out of bed in the morning without my faith in Jesus. No way. So I make sure I tell him that. So today he shows up. Wants to know if I’m for real on this thing. I tell him several times, the Lord willing, it’ll happen. Now I have no idea what tomorrow will bring, but this fellow wants to know what will happen 3 weeks from now. I assure him that I’m as sure as I can be. The funny thing was his unbelief. You could see it in his eyes. I told him several times not to thank me. Ain’t about me bro. Just praise God. And thank Him. So he helped us clean up today and get everything loaded. As he was getting ready to leave, he hugged me. Hard. And he asked me again if this was for real. Now he knows where I come from. For me, it’s all about doing whatever I can to honor the Lord. So when he asked me for the final time, I just looked at him and told him maybe this was going to be a test of his faith. :) I love doing that. Because I have a pretty good idea of what the outcome will be. After a few weeks, I may never see this fellow again. And that’s ok. I simply hope that a seed was planted and the results honor God.

I am so stunned sometimes that we get to be involved some pretty good transactions in the name of God. Relational things that just blow me away. And they may be fleeting, but that’s ok. As long as we go there. In whatever crazy weather this crazy state may send our way. I heard people today actually say, in a knowing way, that they knew we’d be there. That is so cool to me. That they know we’ll come. No matter what. We’ll be there. The Lord willing…and snot freezing. :)

But godliness actually is a means of great gain when accompanied by contentment. For we have brought nothing into the world, so we cannot take anything out of it either. If we have food and covering, with these we shall be content. 1 Timothy 6:6-8

Peace and have a great and blessed week.

Make a difference.

…it matters to that one… :)

Selfless Acts and Blessings...

I was doing some reading this morning and I just happened to open to Numbers 6:22-27:

The Priestly Blessing
The LORD said to Moses, "Tell Aaron and his sons, 'This is how you are to bless the Israelites. Say to them: " ' "The LORD bless you and keep you;
the LORD make his face shine upon you and be gracious to you;
the LORD turn his face toward you and give you peace." '
"So they will put my name on the Israelites, and I will bless them."

So according to the reference section in my Bible, a blessing was one way of asking for God’s divine favor to rest upon others. Apparently there were five parts to the ancient blessing in this verse. Stay with me here. I do have a point. The five parts conveyed hope that God would (1) bless and keep them (favor and protect); (2) make his face shine upon them (be pleased); (3) be gracious (merciful and compassionate); (4) turn his face toward them (give His approval); (5) give peace. So when we ask God to bless others or ourselves, we are essentially asking Him to do these five things. The blessing we offer will not only help the one receiving it, it will also demonstrate love, encourage others and provide a model of caring for others.

My point? I was extremely blessed today by two acts. Both of them came from children. 11 and 8. One belongs to me, the other a friend from Knoxville. Our friends were coming to visit for a few days and their young daughter decided to donate a substantial sum of money to this cause. It was substantial in my eyes. And in the eyes of and eight year old? It was a lot of money. It was enough for us to grab several pair of winter boots, lots of socks and winter hats, and various other necessities that are so important at this time of year. I was amazed that a child so young could be so caring and giving. We could all learn a lesson. I’m pretty sure God gave his approval and was pleased.

And then there was Nick. It makes me pretty proud as a father to see my kids perform a selfless act. There’s lots of that happening on Sundays on a regular basis with lots of different people down there on that corner. But when I can stop and see one of my own kids do it? Well it’s then that I can be proud before God. You see, I met a fellow named David a couple weeks ago. Older fellow. He just kind of hangs around. Today he needed boots and gloves. I just happened to have both for him. And later on, as he was getting ready to leave, he came over to the van and asked for a second pair of gloves. For his 11 year old grandson. All I had was men’s gloves. And as much as I know something is better than nothing, it still didn’t seem right to give him men’s large gloves for an 11 year old. That’s when Nick spoke up from inside the van. He says, "Dad, did he say his grandson is 11? I’m 11. He can have my gloves. You can’t give him men’s gloves for an 11 year old Dad!" Well, you’re right Nick. But something is better than nothing, right? So the Nickster whips out his gloves and hands them over. Practically brand new. Only a couple of weeks used. And he gives them to me to give to David. And says he still has his old gloves at home and he can use those. A very selfless act. A blessing to be sure. And pleasing to God? I’d guess. Compassionate? Mostly.

And as a dad, that’s one of the things I hope my kids get. That if we have something, especially if we have more than enough, that it’s a blessing to give. That we are pretty much commissioned to do so. To love others in whatever way. And if that means giving up a pair of gloves or showing up every week with a meal and whatever else, then so be it.
The great folks from St. James church were back today. Cooked the whole meal. And brought bags and bags of stuff for our friends. I am simply amazed at the people that show up to help. God just keeps sending them. We’ll definitely keep thanking Him and praising Him for all that He does. Because short of Him, none of it happens anyway. Right? Blessings for sure.

Peace and have a great and "blessed" week.

Make a difference.

…it matters to that one… :)