Blizzard

Well, the blizzard hit and we got at least 16 inches of snow.  It’s hard to measure because the way the wind was blowing it varies from place to place.  We had some drifts at our house 2-3 feet deep.  It was one of the most beautiful snows I’ve ever seen.  It just kept snowing and snowing.  Everything basically shut down for the weekend.  I don’t know about everyone else, but it was a great change of pace for our family.  We were basically snowed in and couldn’t go anywhere, and loved every minute of it.

I will have to say that we have some of the greatest neighbors in the world.  We were all out helping each other on Saturday.  While I was helping the neighbor across the street clear his sidewalk, one of the other neighbors came along with his snowblower and cleared half of our driveway.  It was great to see neighbor helping neighbor.  Of course, after that I could get to the end of the driveway, but couldn’t go on the street because it was too deep.  Later two of the neighbors in 4 wheel drives drove up and down the street to pack down the snow.  By today it was really melting well.

So, after helping the neighbors, we built a snow ramp going down the steps to our deck and the kids took turns going down on their sleds.  We had a run with a jump at the bottom, and the kids had some serious hang time a couple of times.  It was fun to have them laughing and coming back for more.

We had to cancel church this morning because the parking lot wasn’t clear.  So…  I got the idea this morning before everyone else got up that we would have “pajama church.”  Our oldest daughter looked up Scriptures that I gave her, our next oldest was the worship leader, our youngest daughter was the prayer leader, our son played the drums (plastic Folgers container with a John Deere hammer for a drum stick), the harmonica, the xylophone, and danced around, and I preached the “sermon.”  I’ll have to say that it was a bit more charasmatic than we normally experience.  My wife was in charge of the fellowship meal afterward (fantastic baked oatmeal).

In the afternoon, we got out and cleared some more snow for one of the neighbors, removed the rest of the snow from the driveway and some from a flat part of our roof, and then it was time to play again…  We made some improvements on our sledding slope, and the kids were really flying off the ramp today.  A few of the neighbor kids came to join in the fun.  I wish we could find the cord to our camera so I could post some pictures here.

This weekend was a complete surprise and a total gift from God.  And although I’ve never shoveled that much snow in all my life (and I’ll be sore for a week), it was still a good break from the crazy schedule that we often have and just what our family needed.  We laughed a whole bunch together this weekend.  All of the kids really got along well for the most part and we just flat had fun.  I think we’re all looking forward to getting back to normal, but will remember this weekend for a long time to come.

May God bless you with great family time!

Seeds of Encouragement

I woke up about 4:30 this morning, my wheels started turning and I couldn’t go back to sleep. I laid there listening to the wind howling outside. We are in a blizzard warning until sometime tomorrow, though the snow hasn’t started yet. One of the stations is now saying we could receive up to 16 inches of snow by noon tomorrow. I was hoping to get a call to substitute teach today, but it didn’t happen. God must have something else planned for my day.  I don’t normally post on Friday, and it’s been awhile since I’ve posted three days in a row.  However, God has really been teaching me a lot lately, and I want to pass it along.

Anyway, back to why I couldn’t go back to sleep. I am so excited about a leadership workshop that we are going to present on April 18. Three of our staff have teamed up with three Christian football coaches from the local community college to present what we are calling VIP training. This stands for vision, inspiration, and people. The coach I’m working with loves Jesus and has a lot of energy and excitement, along with some good ideas, which is getting me all fired up. Our portion to teach will be inspiration. We met yesterday and came away with some points that we want to present and expand on. We will be talking about how to inspire, encourage, and build others up. As it usually happens, God is teaching me so much through my studies that I will probably learn more from this than those who come to the workshop.

That gets me back to the fourth question that I asked God the other day: “What does it look like to be a people builder?” I’m not going to share all of my thoughts right now. I want to make sure and get them all in order before we present on April 18th. However, this morning I was thinking about our country and the shape we are in right now. I believe much of it has to do with attitude. We are letting the media and others affect how we view life. We are being bombarded with negativity. Well, if I’m learning one thing from my studies on people building, it’s that negativity spawns negativity and positivity spawns positivity. A bad tree cannot bear good fruit and a good tree cannot bear bad fruit… We reap what we sow.

Folks, the turnaround is not going to begin in Washington, because we have a government for the people, by the people. The government cannot bail us out because we are the government! Therefore, the “bailout” is going to begin on Main Street before it happens on Wall Street. It’s time to pull up our boot straps and get to work. We all have a responsibility for positive action beginning on the grass roots level in our own homes, spreading to our churches, to our neighborhoods, to our cities, to our counties, to our states, to our region, and spreading all across this great country. This nation was not built on negative, sour attitudes, but on the desire for freedom and a better way of life. I’m not talking about the power of positive thinking but the power of positive action! Brave men and women sacrificed their very lives for the freedom we enjoy, but often take for granted. Entitlement and laziness was not in their vocabularies. Our forefathers weren’t thinking of themselves, but of future generations.

We need to live wisely and responsibly, sacrificing where necessary to get this country back on her feet. We need to take personal responsibility for our own lives, and care for those who cannot care for themselves. Notice I said cannot and not will not! It all begins by changing our attitudes. So, let’s turn off the television, from where many of the negative seeds are being cast into the “fields of our hearts”, and let’s open our Bibles, where we can find abounding seeds of positive encouragement. Let’s spend time in the mighty presence of God, Almighty. Do not dismay, but rejoice because this is the day the Lord has made. God’s Word tells us to humble ourselves, repent and cry out to Him, and He will save our land. I believe Him. Do you?

May God plant seeds of encouragement in your hearts that will grow to produce abundant fruit full of more seeds of encouragement for those around you!

Being Intentional – An Illustration from My Life

Those who know me would say that I think way too much, and I would tend to agree with that. My wheels are constantly rolling. In fact, in any movie I watch, I’m trying to find out what the lesson is that I need to learn. Yes, that includes kid’s movies, and yes, I know there is probably medication for my condition…

So, I was thinking about my blog entry from yesterday and about the question that I asked God regarding how to be intentional. This illustration / story from my life came to me, and I want to pass it along.

I went to college with the vision of becoming a veterinarian. So, I chose the degree plan for pre-vet majors. It was pretty well lined out for me, and I knew what I needed to do to make it happen. It was like having a road map. After my first year, I decided to change my major to animal science (emphasis in meat science). The degree plans were similar enough that I didn’t lose any hours since I wasn’t that far into the process. My advisor (who became my mentor and very good friend) helped me to plan the next three years accordingly. We had to make sure that I took classes in the proper order and also planned according to when the classes were offered. Not rocket science, but very necessary to my success. After that, I decided to stay around and get my Masters Degree. Same thing – there was a plan that I needed to follow.

After a lot of blood, sweat, and tears, all of the requirements were fulfilled, and I walked away from college with my B.S. in Animal Science and my M.Ag. in Animal Science, both with an emphasis in meat science. I had a job secured in El Paso, TX before I actually graduated. Life seemed to be continuing down a path to success.

Then, reality hit. I was part of a research and development department that had no real direction. We lived day to day, doing any project for any customer that came along hoping something would sell. I worked for a very difficult boss, and was thrown in without much training for that particular job. I guess they assumed my degree meant that I knew everything… I struggled for about 14 months trying to find direction.

I was transferred to Kansas to a position where I was more of a facility manager for a research and development pilot plant. I learned a lot from that position, but definitely wasn’t using my degree. Within a year, I moved back into product development. I was still at the same facility that I was transfered to, but had a similar situation that I experienced in El Paso. We were still doing any project for any customer that came along, no matter what the volume potential was or if it even seemed feasible in real life. That eventually changed as the company grew and the vision seemed to be clearer.

However, my wife and I began our ministry to single parent families at our church, and I soon sensed the call to ministry. I felt like I finally knew my purpose. I was seeking God’s direction in a mighty way. Although most people were encouraging me to pursue it, a few people tried to discourage me from going that direction because “there was no money in it.” I read a quote by Ron Bell the other day that fits well: “They said I’d never make any money, but I told them I had something better than money – a mission.”

I found myself thinking about ministry all the time. I no longer wanted to climb the corporate ladder. I finally got to the point where the company could have had the greatest vision in the world, but my heart wasn’t in it because I wanted to be in ministry so bad. I didn’t know how or when, but I knew God wanted me to be in full time ministry. I was spending some awesome times with God and was reading all kinds of books. I felt like I had a great vision, especially for single parent family ministry. Then, God gave me the opportunity to be in ministry (this is, of course, the short version).

Then, reality hit again. My goal had been reached. Now what?? My job description was pretty diverse, especially for a guy with no formal ministry training. I began to jump into everything I could. I was working long hours and was just doing, doing, doing… I was not leading well. I was just trying to do everything myself. I was so eager, and I think I was trying to prove myself.

As God would have it, our Senior Minister has done a good job over the past year and a half of helping me to recognize this. He has done a great job of developing a vision and mission statement for our church, and has encouraged me to find my gifts and lead in those areas I best fit. I’ve also been encouraged to build some skills sets that I need to do my job well. I am really enjoying where I am in ministry right now, and am especially excited about how God will answer those questions I shared with you yesterday.

As I focus on being intentional, I believe I will eventually have a road map (much like the degree plan) that will detail out a vision for my personal growth, for my family, and for each of the ministries God has entrusted to me. In order to see this through, I must abide in Christ. Apart from Him I am nothing!

May God bless you as you seek His direction for your life!

Being Intentional

That seems to be the area where God is teaching me right now.  My spiritual mentor mentioned the idea of living intentionally a few weeks ago, and it has come up several times since then.  In fact, it goes right along with my post a few weeks ago, Stay the Course.

As some of you may have read on my blog awhile back, I am totally enamored with dog sledding, especially with the Iditarod, which officially ended yesterday with rookie Timothy Hunt blowing out the “Widow’s Lamp,” signifying that all mushers and their dog teams are safely off the Iditarod Trail.  This took place 15 days, 14 hours, and 6 minutes after the race started.  Lance Mackey won the race several days ago in an incredible 9 days, 21 hours, and 38 minutes.  This year, 52 out of the 67 mushers finished the race.  Unfortunately, my friend and rookie to the Iditarod, Kurt Reich, who I committed to pray for every Friday (and way more often during the race) was not able to make it to the finish line.  I’m anxious to talk to him to learn about his experience.  My guess is that being a Christian, he learned more in his 400 miles on the trail about himself, about his dogs, about life, and most importantly, about God than many of them learned in the full 1150 miles.  I believe just to compete in the Iditarod takes incredible courage and perseverance.  This is not a walk in the park.  It is known as the Last Great Race On Earth for a very good reason.  Here is how it is described on the Iditarod Official Website:

You can’t compare it to any other competitive event in the world! A race over 1150 miles of the roughest, most beautiful terrain Mother Nature has to offer. She throws jagged mountain ranges, frozen river, dense forest, desolate tundra and miles of windswept coast at the mushers and their dog teams. Add to that temperatures far below zero, winds that can cause a complete loss of visibility, the hazards of overflow, long hours of darkness and treacherous climbs and side hills, and you have the Iditarod. A race extraordinaire, a race only possible in Alaska.  From Anchorage, in south central Alaska, to Nome on the western Bering Sea coast, each team of 12 to 16 dogs and their musher cover over 1150 miles in 10 to 17 days.

Doesn’t that just make you want to begin training right away???  Okay, me either.  I would die, no questions asked…  However, there is something about it that just gets my heart to racing. 

Now, I give you this information to preface what I want to say about intentional living.  The mushers who enter the Iditarod know that they must be intentional.  This could mean life or death for them and their teams.  I read a blog entry not long ago that said the mushers who are totally focused on Nome will usually fail because they don’t focus on the day to day details that will get them to Nome.  Yes, they must have a vision for making it to Nome in order to condition themselves and their dogs properly and to prepare for the supplies they would need.  It would be complete foolishness to only take enough supplies to make it to the first checkpoint.  There is a lot that goes into the planning, including making sure the funds are there to see them through to completion, which I’ve been told is over $20,000.  I’m guessing that doesn’t include the cost of feeding and caring for the dogs throughout the year.  However, once the race begins, they must take one day at a time, one checkpoint at a time.  They have to be intentional about when they run and when they rest.  They have to strategize when they will take their mandatory 24 hour layover.  They have to plan how they will feed the dogs and when they give them snacks, etc…  They must plan well, including preparing for things that might happen.

It is much like life.  Our lives are full of checkpoints, and we must live intentionally to make it to each checkpoint in good condition so that we will have a glorious finish to the race.  We must also be intentional in making sure those we are leading make it there in good condition.  For instance, I as a husband and father, must never leave my family out in the cold and unprotected.  We must all make it to each checkpoint safely.  As leaders, we must be prepared for things that might happen along the way, but not live in worry of them.  Each of us will finish the race at different times, but each will finish.  Some will have shorter races than others, but they still must plan because we never know.  I ‘m sure you’re like me, and you want to finish well.  It’s not how we start the race that counts, but how we finish.  We can start living intentionally this very minute.  Again, if Kurt takes with him what he learned in his 400 miles and applies it to the rest of his life, it will all be worth it.  For him, this was just a segment in the great race of life, and I commend him for having the guts to give it a try.

Yesterday, I took my spiritual retreat day to spend time with God and listen to Him.  Since I have sensed God teaching me about intentional living, I decided to ask Him four questions at the beginning of the day.  I’ll share three of them with you here that are relevant to this post.  I’ll share the other one in a different post.

1.  What is Your vision for my life:  for me personally, for our family, and for the ministries you’ve entrusted to me?

2.  How can I live intentionally in order for these visions to become reality?

3.  What do I need to keep doing, start doing, stop doing, or change the way I’m doing?

I’ve heard it said that on every tombstone there is a “date born” and eventually there will be a “date died”.  Every tombstone has a dash in between the two dates, and that is what’s important.  It’s what we do in that “dash” we call life that really counts.  It is in the dash where legacies are formed because the end is too late.

Let me close with this passage to encourage you today:

Hebrews 12:1-3 – Therefore, since we have so great a cloud of witnesses surrounding us, let us also lay aside every encumbrance and the sin which so easily entangles us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, fixing our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of faith, who for the joy set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.  For consider Him who has endured such hostility by sinners against Himself, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart.

Much like the Iditarod, life has it’s share of hostility and things we must endure.  However, if we can look past that, there is an incredible beauty that God has given all around us.  Let’s keep our eyes fixed on Jesus and run with endurance the race that is before us, and do so intentionally. 

May God richly bless you, as you live intentionally and for His glory!

 

Heart of a Warrior

The other night, I laid down with my three-year old son to read him a couple of tractor books, tell him a few “dad-made” stories that included him, a “giant”, and a few of his friends, and to just have our time together before he drifted into dreamland.  Well, he was wound up tight that night and had a hard time going to sleep.  He commenced to tell me about his day.  I swelled with pride as he told me how he had kept one of his sisters “safe” from the neighborhood boys.  There were a couple of boys visiting their grandparents for Spring Break.  Let’s just say that I had to tell my kids that they can’t play with these boys.  They have filthy mouths and attitudes that I don’t want my kids to pick up on.  Anyway, it was cool to see the “warrior spirit” come out in my son.  God has engrained it into men to be providers and protectors, and it was being manifested in my three year old son, as he talked about keeping his sister safe.

Yesterday morning in chapel I talked to the kids about Benaiah, who was in charge of King David’s bodyguard.  He is described as being a man who killed a couple of Moab’s best men (the NKJV describes them as being “lion-like” heroes), killed a lion in a pit on a snowy day, and killed an impressive Egyptian soldier with the soldier’s own spear.  We are told that he had a name as well as the three mighty men of David and was honored among the thirty.  For David to have him in charge of his own bodyguard, he must have been one tough dude AND trustworthy.  David must have had the utmost trust for him because there weren’t too many who were as close to the king on a daily basis as his bodyguard.  Later, we see that David trusted him not only with his own life, but also that of his son, Solomon.  Benaiah did not take that lightly, and honored his commitment.  He was rewarded for his faithfulness and trustworthiness by later being put in charge of the army.

As I have learned from guys like John Eldredge, Robert Lewis and Emerson Eggerichs, God created us to provide and protect.  Actually, they just put words to what I already knew deep inside me.  We will die for our families, no questions asked.  We will work long hours and even multiple jobs to make sure our families are cared for.  It’s who we are.  As I read stories like this one about Benaiah or as I watch movies like Braveheart, something stirs inside me.  Something in me wants to be a part of a bigger, more adventurous story.   God created us to be strong, courageous, and trustworthy, and that is what America needs right now.  That is what the world needs right now.  We don’t need soft men who are selfish, and who waver, but men of integrity and true grit who are willing to do what it takes.

This country was built on faith, hardwork, sacrifice, and just plain ol’ John Wayne-style grit.  There was a time when  the country and the government were formed through personal sacrifice.  In fact, many gave their whole life savings and died broke in order to build America.  Now, we are heading down the slippery slope of entitlement, laziness, and greed.  Just like a caged lion, if we aren’t careful, we will lose our will and incentive to fight and work for everything because it is handed to us.  We will lose the warrior heart, and will begin to take handouts (aka welfare and government bailouts).  No longer will sacrifice be part of our vocabulary.  At that point, we will lose our identity.

Courageous, trustworthy and wise men seek God wholeheartedly.  I think of men like Joshua and King David who sought God and found their strength and wisdom in Him.  I’ll leave you with these two passages:

Exodus 15:2-3 (NASB) – “The Lord is my strength and song, and He has become my salvation; This is my God, and I will praise Him; My father’s God, and I will extol Him.  The Lord is a warrior; The Lord is His name.”

2 Chronicles 7:13-14 (NASB) – “If I shut up the heavens so that there is no rain, or if I command the locust to devour the land, or if I send pestilence among My people, and My people who are called by My name humble themselves and pray and seek My face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, will forgive their sin, and will heal their land.”

We need God’s healing for our land.  Our government is not the answer, Wall Street is not the answer.  The answer still lies, as it always has, in the strength of our God.  When Jesus returns, will He find us faithful and trustworthy?

May we humble ourselves, pray, seek His face and turn from our wicked ways today!!

Stay the Course

I had a very interesting experience as a substitute teacher last Friday.  I took the assignment of going to the juvenile detention facility.  Contrary to what you might think, it was one of the easiest days I’ve had yet as a substitute.  I was there along with two other teachers, and we had twelve students.  In addition, there were three guards with us to make sure nothing happened.  With it being a Friday, the students wanted to be on their best behavior so they would have weekend privileges.  In many ways, it was much easier than being in the regular classroom.

I couldn’t help but wander about their stories.  Why were they there?  What was their home-life like?  Do they have dads in their lives who care?  How can I help?  My heart was breaking for them. 

One of the guys told me that between 5 and 10% of the youth who came there listed the father as “unknown.”  He also told me that well over half of them came from single parent families.  I’m guessing that 90% or more of them don’t have a good relationship with their dads, no matter if they are from a single parent or two parent home.  I felt like I was witnessing another consequence of fatherlessness in a very up-close way.  I really believe that most of them would turn things around if they had a good mentor, a father figure… at least someone in their life who cared.

Now, let’s spin the globe to the other side.  This morning, four of us met to talk about the trip to Thailand in October.  I learned more information about the village of Tee Po Kwah.  This is the village I spoke of awhile back that consists mostly of single parent families and widows.  I had assumed that the men were dying at the hands of the Burmese army, couldn’t get out of Burma to be with their families, or were trying to find work somewhere.  Unfortunately, much to my dismay, I learned that a great many of them had abandoned their families to find new wives and had succumbed to many of the same temptations that the men of America have.  It is a grim reminder that fatherlessness is a universal problem.  

I feel like God has placed me here for such a time as this.  I want to be used by God to stand in the gap and help hurting families, and to be on the frontlines of the battle against fatherlessness.  I often marvel at how He has brought me from a career as a meat scientist to being a minister and has giving me my heart’s desire of showing Christ’s love to people.  I have the greatest job on earth, as far as I’m concerned.  I get to carry out my life mission of ministering to single parent families locally, and it looks like I will get the chance to do this in Thailand in October, as well.  At the same time, I have opportunities to help strengthen marriages and minister to men, so maybe there will be fewer single parent families.  Not to mention, I have been given the privilege of leading and helping lead other ministries, such as the Small Group, Outreach and Shepherding ministries.  I pretty much get to minister to people of all ages at one time or another in the church and in the community.

If that wasn’t great enough, God has allowed me a unique way to minister to my own children, as well.  I get to teach chapel two days a week at the school where my daughters attend.  I can walk downstairs three days a week and have lunch with them, and I even get to substitute teach in their classes from time to time.  I know each of their teachers and see them daily when school is in session.  While we often have a busy schedule, I’m still home more than I was when I worked in the meat industry, and I’m at least home most evenings to help put them to bed.  This is so important to me because if I don’t father my own children and take care of my family well, everything else will be for nothing.   

Now, I say all this only to add this:  I’m thrilled where God has me, but I don’t want to just settle here.  I want to continue to grow.  I want to get more education in counseling so I can minister to people more effectively.  I need more ammunition for the battle, and I’m seeking God’s wisdom and guidance in how to do this.

Yesterday morning, in my time with God, this phrase came to my mind, “Moving from rhetoric to reality requires resolve.”  I don’t think I’ve ever heard this phrase before, but it sounds too complex to actually have come from me, so I’ll just give credit to God.  We need to get past fancy and glittery words and move toward actions.  It’s easy to say we will do something, but it takes resolve to make it happen.  We must be purposeful and intentional, and remember it won’t happen overnight.  Of course, it won’t happen at all, if we don’t come up with a game-plan and stick with it.  Just like with my Ten Key Moves.  If I write them down and don’t act on them, they will go down as more useless rhetoric.  Rhetoric doesn’t change lives and make a difference, action does.  With so much to do, I often get distracted from staying the course.  It seems like good things keep popping up that I allow to keep me from the best things.  That’s why it’s so important to put God first and listen to Him constantly.  When the children of Israel listened to God and obeyed, amazing things happened.  When they didn’t, disaster occurred.  I don’t know about you, but I want God’s best, not what I think is the best.  Let’s stay the course…

May God give us all the resolve to stick with the gameplan He has given us!

Ten Key Moves – Dating My Wife

Well, here is the ninth move on my list of “Ten Key Moves” from Men’s Fraternity.  I believe it is one of the most important moves, but has been the most difficult to implement because of our busy schedule and and to a lesser degree, financial restraints.  It states, “<My wife’s name> and I will have a regular date night and at least one get-away per year without the children.  We will set aside time most evenings to talk.  I will let her know at all times that I love her, not just when I’m “feeling” loved.” 

Part of knowing my wife is to know her primary love language.  Without a doubt, her love language is “Quality Time.”  I’ve also learned in Love and Respect that one way to speak love to a woman is through closeness, which means face-to-face time.  God has blessed me with the gift of listening, so it is not hard for me to do.  We just find it difficult to find an uninterrupted time to spend talking.  We really need to set aside a regular time for this, but for now we just take advantage of whatever time we can.  For instance, this morning worked out for us.  We had some great “talk time” about all the deals she has been finding using her coupons.  She is also excited about a class that she and a friend are going to begin teaching on couponing and deal finding.  So, while talking about coupons is not my favorite subject, I am excited to see her excited and I care about the things she cares about.  I want to know what is going on in her world.  I’m also excited and very appreciative over the fact that she has already cut our monthly budget by $100 and has a goal of cutting it by $100 more.  I’m sure some of the things I get excited over don’t really interest her, but she is interested in me, so she listens.  I think that makes a huge difference for both of us. 

Anyway, not only will this be fun because we truly enjoy spending time together, it will continue to strengthen our marriage and will be good for our children.  If our relationship is strong, our children will have a more solid foundation for their future relationships.  Besides, when they are long gone, we will still have each other.  I don’t want to wake up one day with the kids all gone and realize she and I have no relationship anymore.  She is my best friend, the love of my life, and I do not want to neglect her.

So, I purpose to put God first and my wife next in priority

May God strengthen marriages in our fast-paced world, as we seek to put Him first.

Friends in Need

I want to take the opportunity to use my blog to help a couple of friends. 

My wife and I have been friends with Elsa Kok Colopy for several years now.   We first met her while attending a national conference for leaders in single parent family ministry.  She taught some of the break-out sessions, and is incredibly inspirational.  She speaks from the heart, and has such an incredible love for God.  Talk about contagious Christianity – she has it!!    We grew to love her more and more as we would see each other at the yearly conferences.  We have had her speak at our church, as well.  Although it has been awhile since they’ve had one of those conferences, we still stay in contact.  Recently, I’ve learned that her stepson, Sean, is in need of a kidney transplant, and his dad will be the donor.  They are trying to raise funds to make it happen.  Please go to Elsa’s website for more information:  www.elsakokcolopy.com and click on the tab labeled “Sean’s Kidney.”

The next one hit me really hard for some reason.  I also met Ron Deal through the single parent family ministry leadership conferences, though our friendship didn’t go much beyond those conferences.  He is a very gifted speaker and counselor and specializes in step family ministry.  In fact, I receive his monthly newsletter.  I received his newsletter yesterday and learned that his twelve year old son, Connor, died suddenly.  Here is the tribute that his parents put together for him, www.rondeal.org/go/Connor, including some videos and a link to the CaringBridge site that tells more about how he died.   They are needing help with expenses that occurred as Connor battled for his life.  If you would like to help this family, please send your contributions to:

‘Deal Family Fund’
P.O. Box 30370
Amarillo, TX 79120

May God bless you as you reach out to the hurting.