God is the good Father

Ministry Update

-We have successfully completed our 6th year of the after school program.  If I'm honest, it was the most difficult year of ministry so far. With a majority of our kids being new to the program and on the young side, it felt like in a lot of ways we were starting at square one.  However, as the year progressed, relationships and trust were able to take root in even the most challenging children. It was very difficult to pray for particular kids but it allowed me to check my own heart and my own expectations for ministry.

-We held our annual Vision Dinner where we invited people within our circles to hear about 2nd Mile's vision for the Brentwood neighborhood, many for the first time.  Although this was our main fundraising event of the year, what I found to be extremely valuable in our efforts to connect people with our ministry was our Come and See tour. Folks that attended the dinner had the opportunity to come to North Pearl Baptist Church (where our programming is) on a Saturday morning and get a ride throughout Brentwood in our big white 15-passenger van.  I could write or tell you about what Brentwood is like but being able to see it up close just puts this Pearl World in perspective.

-Last Saturday, we held our 10th Annual Rummage Sale in order to raise funds for our Summer Day Camp. Many churches and volunteers came out to donate their stuff, help out at the event itself, and even some shopped as well.  This was by far our most efficient year in regards to setting up, organizing, and cleaning up, and we nearly reached what we raised last year.

-We have a new website y'all.  Check it out! 2ndmilejax.com

Maximus Update

-Born at 1 lb 6 oz, Max is now over 7 lbs! His feeding and breathing tubes were in his mouth to begin with, but now they are in his nose (don't worry, they cleaned them) in order that he can start practicing bottle-feeding. He is very wiggly and more expressive in his face. He'll cry one moment, smile in the next, and then yawn and go to sleep.

-He is on a low amount of oxygen, only when he needs a little extra help. If he comes home on oxygen, he is currently on the amount he would be on.

-He has a hernia. He gets surgery Thursday morning so please pray that all goes well on that tiny body.

-His due date was originally June 7th so he is officially a developed 40 week old baby. His homecoming date is and always has been a mystery. It kind of depends on how well Max progresses with his bottle feeding. He takes a full bottle on occasion, yet has times he is asleep or just too tired to suck. There is a chance if he regresses in feedings or doesn't increase at a satisfactory rate, he could get a temporary g-tube for when he comes home (more surgery).

-We've loved to get to love and hold Maximus when we can. I love bonking foreheads with him (gently) and letting him grab at my face. Missi loves seeing how many kisses per second she can give him.

Me Update

-With Max coming home soon, the ministry has allowed me to take paternity leave for the summer. Despite not knowing exactly when he'll be home, I have just this week started this leave in order to prepare for whenever he comes home.  That said, this will be maybe the first time in five years that I won't be a part of summer day camp.  As I always enjoy the excitement on the kids' faces and all that they get to experience and learn, I am truly grateful for this time off in order to practice being a dad.  I know not all places of work have paternity leave, so I realize how extremely lucky/blessed I am.

-Also, this completes my first five years of full time ministry with 2nd Mile.  It just so happens that after five years, staff members are encouraged to take a sabbatical in order to take a step back, pray, meditate, and analyze our place in ministry.  With how God's timing has worked, I plan on taking this sabbatical almost immediately after paternity leave.  I don't plan on becoming a hermit. I still live in this great neighborhood and get to see students who live nearby. I'll occasionally take some kids to the park and just have fun.

Here are a few honest things I'm feeling entering the next few months:

-I sometimes feel guilty in having so much time off from work, especially with paternity leave and sabbatical so close.

-I worry about whether or not I'm fit to be a dad. (I'm sure this is normal for first-time fathers, but still).

-With Max in the hospital, being taken care of by doctors and nurses, I realize that as soon as he comes home that my "me-time" will be diminished. Knowing this, sometimes I selfishly would rather go to the beach, hang out with friends, or just sit at home and do nothing rather than drive to the hospital to see Max. It could be fear of giving those things up or fear of being a good dad.

-In regards to ministry, I sometimes imagine what life would be like if I wasn't in ministry. The comfort seems appealing and I would get less headaches. I haven't really found a niche in ministry, bouncing around from program to program, task to task, sometimes unsure of what exactly God wants for me.

-With a baby coming home, and Missi being off of work, I think a lot about needing to raise more support and sometimes it just seems too difficult to ask people for help.

Please pray that during this time off that I would grow in my knowledge of God, that I would seek him with all I have, that my selfishness, guilt, pride, and fear would be washed cleaned. Pray that all that Max's hernia surgery goes well this week, that he continues to take his feedings in his recovery time, and that the transition home would be smooth.

If you do happen to actually pray, thank you so much. There are times in life where we can feel so weak and frail and alone. He is a good Father who hears your prayers.