March 2022 - Created creators

" 'Then God created man in his own image, after our likeness. And let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the birds of the heavens, and over the livestock, and over all creation, and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.' So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them."  Genesis 1:26-27

Even in the room I'm sitting now I see the life of man-made things. The wooden table I sit at now was once sent to a furniture store, built in some factory, cut down from a tree that grew in some forest, first created by our Creator. The curtains above our windows were once sent to a store, woven and dyed in some factory, used from some thread from somewhere in nature, first created by our Creator. Our printer, our microwave, the TV, couch, floors, roof, all made, constructed, manufactured, built and bought by man. Thinking about mankind as miniature versions the ultimate builder has been a beautiful thought. Why do we make unless it was in us to make? If we have been made in his image, and he created all things, we too have it in us to create.

I've enjoyed my March at 2nd Mile. Normally we have mission teams from colleges come for their Spring break, which I really do enjoy, but this year we had the year off from college visitors. With no after school program, I took that time to indulge in an alternate life as what I'd imagine an architect or a landscape designer does. We've received a couple grants this year specifically for improving our garden. A couple improvements we are looking to make our updating our old and rotting raised garden beds, creating a walking path with cement pavers, and as well as adding a few unique touches (a grill, a little library, a water fountain). Where these would be placed was up to me and I got to play around with locations best fit for these additions to the garden. It makes me wonder what the Garden of Eden would have looked like at the very beginning. It was probably perfectly planned out, everything in bloom/fruit, no rotting, no death, enough food for all creatures, enough shade when it was hot, enough open space for the sun to shine down. Needless to say, in the upcoming months, we hope to improve not only the functionality of the garden, but also its aesthetics.

Back in early February when the BLOCK Middle School program was painting our picnic table completely white (to be later spray painted), Devaric, an 8th grader, was painting some of the basketball court lines and his mind was working. "We should paint more of the basketball court." Why hadn't I thought of that before? With permission from the church's pastor and a lot of paint, we made plans to execute this vision from this middle school aged young man. Originally, we were going to just paint the lanes one solid color. Not if Devaric could help it. It was great to give him and the others creative freedom (within the boundaries of the "paint", the area under the free throw line). He sprinkled every color of paint we had onto the unusual canvas, like he was a chef adding a little salt and a little pepper to his masterpiece. It's fun to think of how God knitted us in our mother's womb, perhaps with a dash of joy, a pinch of compassion, a sprinkle of wonder. That will be an unbelievable conversation one day. (More pictures are on instagram at block_brentwood.)

Be on the lookout in the future for how we will use our creativity on an even bigger canvas, hopefully in the next couple months. 

Prayer requests (because God responds to us):

-That the relationships being made and built continue to grow towards a love for God and others.

-That all the programs, and fun, and activities would not distract from the importance of knowing God, ourselves, and others.

Praise report:

-We ordered a van!! A huge thank you to anyone who donated over the new year to help us upgrade. Our old 2010 Chevy Express has had many issues in the past few years and a generous donor picked up a big chunk of our remaining costs. Hopefully by June, we will be finally enjoying some working AC in the hot and humid Florida summer.

It will look something like this

February 2022 - Building Bricks

Well, February came and went didn't it? Already March, Jacksonville weather already wanting to act like it's summer, and this school year will be over before you know it. Despite the seemingly speedy month, it was packed with lots of memories. Max turned 5 (we went to Disney), Missi finally got surgery (she is currently recovering according to plan), and students have been getting creative with music and art at 2nd Mile. BLOCK's February verse of the month was Matthew 22:37 which says, "And Jesus replied, 'Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.'" We learned that we can praise God and show love many different ways, the obvious ways being praying, going to church, and reading the Bible, but also in everything that we do. We can praise God for all the colors, for all the plants and animals and all His creations.

Two:fiftytwo - Out of our closet at home, I brought our dusty unused keyboard to the church. The plugs didn't work, but luckily there was a battery option. After cleaning and installing a bunch of AA batteries, the lights came on, and out came sound. With nearly 200 instrument, rhythm and song options, kids have been requesting to play the keyboard during their free time. Seeing them work out different rhythms and made-up songs reminded me of times I would do that growing up. I often forget how sponge-like these kids' brains are for knowledge and new experiences.

BLOCK - One of my favorite things I've learned to use in the last decade is spray paint. You can get a much brighter, cleaner, and expressive product in a much quicker time frame. I saw street artists knock out quick futuristic outer space paintings effortlessly in 5-10 minutes and my curiosity was peeked. What I love about my job is that there are so many opportunities to not only lean into the things that I love, but I can also pass down those passions to others. Last month, we painted on canvases using tape and acrylics. This month, we painted one of our two picnic tables outside completely white, then followed it up by taping and spray painting it with many vibrant colors. I think the kids may have enjoyed it too much. There were so many layers of spray paint by the end of the evening, but it turned out pretty well. Stay tuned for next month to see how this taping and painting style progresses, as one of our 8th graders got to fulfill a vision he had for our basketball court.

Check out block_brentwood on instagram for more pictures of the completed table.

Open Court - This night is steadily becoming one of my favorite each month, the night that the courtyard lights turn on, and we play. A majority of the people that come are former students at 2nd Mile or people I've seen walking past the church that ask relentlessly about getting to come play. This past month, there were even some unexpected people who showed up to hang out. Braylon, a former after school program student who has moved in recent years, and Challah, a high school senior who also happened to be our flower girl way back in 2014. I'm reminded of the 75th Anniversary of the NBA (of course) and how at the halftime show of the All Star game, the team of the 75 best players in history gathered in one place. Interviews of some of the players afterwards depicted this momentous occasion as "heaven-like" and a culmination of all they have loved and worked towards in their careers. I'm not saying that seeing a few students from the past is exactly like this, but each time I see someone unexpectedly come back through those church doors after many years, there is an incomprehensible joy and sense of purpose in what we are doing in Brentwood. I took many videos of Open Court, but not many pictures, and I am not skilled enough to figure out how to put them on this blog. The only picture I managed to capture was our basketball net obliterated by all the shots made in our pickup games and knockout tournaments. I gotta get a new net. 

Max update - For those who've been along for the ride the past 5 years, I'm happy to share that Max is beginning to willingly try a variety of foods and is eating more quickly and in more abundance. The next step will be counting calories and making sure his weight stays in a good place. Hopefully we can begin to reduce tube feedings before the next school year. Keep him and us in your prayers.

Anticipation of his 1st Disney trip

January 2022 - Picture Stories

Divide a piece of paper into four quadrants. Find an object to draw. Top left corner, you have 10 seconds to draw it. Top right corner, draw the same object for 1 minute. Observe three details you were unable to draw in the previous pictures. Bottom left, you have three minutes to draw the same object. Observe three more details you were unable to draw in the previous picture. Finally, bottom right, you have 10 minutes to draw that same object. A 7th grader, Daiyona, drew this picture of one of our ping pong paddles and I think you'll agree, this activity does a great job demonstrating that the more time you take doing something, the better the result. Last week during the NBA All Star game draft, LeBron James was asked what charity he was playing for. He said, "I am very proud to announce that I'm playing for the Kent State I Promise Scholars Program. These are my kids that are now at Kent State that started the I Promise program in 3rd grade and now they're in college. They've been awarded full time scholarships, their room and board is taken care of, and these are kids that come from the same walks of life that I came from in Akron, Ohio. For them to have an opportunity to graduate college, to be on a college campus, for them to have an opportunity to have dreams that they didn't even believe or their families believe, this is something that I've envisioned for a long time and for it to become a reality. Now that I'm up here playing for my kids that've been a part of my program for so long, it makes me extremely happy." Seeing a vision that will take a long time and then executing it, man! What a feeling that must be for him.

These simple canvases are part of a larger vision. As the middle school students learn this specific style of painting with tape on these small 8 by 10s, they are being set up to use this experience to transfer this style of painting to spray painting onto one of our picnic table outside, which will eventually, hopefully lead to painting an entire fence at our Nutritional Garden. We taped the canvases first, with straight lines, curved lines, thick, skinny. What I love about this project is that even students who declare to themselves that they stink at art, the results turn out pretty well. We only had about 30-45 minutes to work on these, but they turned out great! I can't wait to see some of the middle school students begin to realize that they can make a difference, even a visual difference in their community. Students have a greater capability of igniting change than we may realize or give credit for. I want to shout out what the Evac Movement has been doing lately. They are in Jacksonville, made up of young black men living for change. Please take a few minutes and watch how they made national news by getting creative with NFTs, Evac Movement NFTs.

Back in 2016, 2nd Mile would meet once a month for Walk it Out at a local track, encouraging others to get out and live physical and  healthy lives. This transitioned in 2017 to Open Court which would meet at Brentwood Park to catch more families and kids in the community. Come 2018, this transitioned to Open Court at North Pearl St. Baptist Church (where 2nd Mile is located). We open up the space once a week in the summer time to anyone who wants to play basketball outside or games inside. There's music, food, and the atmosphere of competition. During the school year, we aspire to have Open Court once a month, depending on the weather and scheduling. January's Open Court had a small attendance, due to the fact that it was in the low 40's and was raining pretty hard. Regardless, we held a Connect 4 tournament inside. I'm pretty good at strategy games, but it was a tall task to get past Ernest (left) and 8th grader Devaric (Daiyona's sister). I can see maybe three steps ahead, but they can see like five or six. This pic is the championship game, of which Ernest made quick work. Ernest has been around 2nd Mile since the beginning (2003) as a teenager. With a steady full-time job, we shouldn't see Ernest around as much as we do, but he always makes a point to stop by and make sure the staff and students are seen (and maybe to take down the occasional kid in a game). Don't ever change Ernest. You are loved bro. I had the privilege (and some luck) of seeing the Packers play the Saints for game 1 of this NFL season with Ernest.

Our garden has a very special place in my heart; however, it is not always in the condition that the eyes of my heart can see. I close my eyes and I see garden beds overflowing with ripe fruits and vegetables, leafy greens that you could pluck off and make a salad right then and there, places to sit, relax, and meditate. I can see many colors of food so diverse that you can't help but be drawn into it from the outside. When I open my eyes, especially in the wintertime, I see many empty beds, lots of leaves scattered, fallen from the neighboring trees, collected over months. A few weeks ago, I was invited by Ms. Brenda, a participant in our As We Gather program for the older people in our community, to come visit a community garden being run in Springfield, a neighboring neighborhood to Brentwood. Created in the back alleys to some nice houses, I couldn't believe what I saw. In January, I saw so many plants growing. Every plant was either good or great, no runts, no rotting, no disease. My eyes weren't shut, they were open. It had seating, it had shade, it had strung lights, it had life! It also had a couple people devoted to caring for the garden as their full-time job, but still. It reminded me of college when our viola professor would occasionally bring in a famous violist to our class to play in front of us. I was equally in awe and embarrassed. I was in awe that a viola could sound so good and slightly discouraged at the difference in our skill levels. I loved the viola after all and it brought me a lot of joy the way I knew to play. This well-maintained garden was equally as inspiring as it was daunting. I didn't know a garden could be so "fruitful" and I wonder if 2nd Mile has the ability to be just as devoted and rigorous with our garden. Thankfully, we've received a couple grants recently that are 100% for using in our garden. Hopefully I will have updates in the future for how our garden will slowly transform into something not just in our minds and our hearts, but in reality.

Me + game with dodgeballs = happy me

Music demonstration at 252

 

Life grows in the winter (December 2021)

You're 8 years old. You're given a $100 bill and told you get to spend it on anything you want in Walmart. What do you get?

We had the privilege of getting invited by a Cops and Kids initiative where a cop walks around the store with a kid or two and helps them picks out presents for themselves. $100 (including tax) was their budget. We arrived in the Walmart parking lot, the kids got their names checked in, they were given a juice box and a snack, and waited in line as patiently as they could to be escorted by a cop to pick out gifts. In my group, I went with an officer and three of our After School Program students. Jon, a 5th grader whose football team made it to the championship tournament in all of Florida, went straight for the football gear (an arm sleeve, mouth guard) and some nice new headphones. Philipp went for some nerf toys. Victor, a 3rd grade boy, had a difficult time thinking of what he wanted. Jon and Philipp had almost already maxed out their $100 before Victor got picked anything.

Me: What kinds of things do you like?

Victor: I want to get a gift for my mom?

Me: That's nice of you. What do you think she might like?

Victor: A pancake maker.............and a candle.

Philipp: Oooh, I'm gonna get a candle for my mom too!

I see this a lot in this neighborhood. When given an abundant supply of fill-in-the-blank, generosity is almost second nature. It was very touching to witness, and he did find that pancake maker and a lavender-scented candle. Naomi, our 5th grader, took the longest time because she used that $100 to do her Christmas shopping for her mom, dad, sister, and two brothers.

This is the first time we've taken a field trip to a store to have the kids pick out toys. It was encouraging to me to see a few of the kids in the beginning of the shopping a little tense being walked around by a stranger, let alone a cop. Philipp's first words when we started were, "I don't really like cops, they're scary." I've gained a lot of empathy for this response over the years and hope and pray the kids are given the right wisdom and instruction on how to behave around cops while being black. I pray they understand their rights, they understand the fear that cops may have just because of the way they look and also the power that few may use to keep them down. I grew up seeing cops as all nice people that will hand you baseball cards if asked. I understand that my experience is very different than others here, and I definitely have no right to tell them that their experiences, history, or defense mechanism is wrong, or less than.

Another cool partnership we've had over the years has been with Zaxby's (a chicken restaurant for the non-southern readers). They've given us laptops in the past and this year they hooked us up with basketballs and kickballs (pictured below).

We had another Action Day in December and it was unusually warm (yes, I know Florida is normally warmer in the wintertime than other places, but this year it's warmer than normal). If you have any experience with gardening and enjoy it a lot, you get to plant things all year round. The types of things you plant will vary, but there are things that can grow in Florida in the wintertime including onions, kale, collard greens, and many types of herbs. We had about 20-25 people come out to help weed, plant, and clean. We are hoping to do more neighborhood events in the future to encourage the neighbors to use, enjoy, plant, meditate and know that they own this garden, they can come enjoy it as their greenspace. Studies show that well kept green spaces have a positive effect on mental health and have a ripple effect of less crime near these places. Pray we receive this grant we applied for that will allow us to build new garden beds (ours are rotting after many years of use) and make it look even more appealing to passersby.

For those wondering, our big ask for $30,000 to help towards purchasing a new van is at around $26,000. Thank you for those who have donated! God is faithful!

November - Building Rhythm

" 'A child, a child, shivers in the cold. Let us bring him silver and gold.' How 'bout a blanket?!? How 'bout some soup?!?" -Tim Hawkins

I don't know about you, but I have some major pandemic fatigue. It's easy for me to feel emotionally and mentally numb and want to withdraw from people, responsibilities, as well as the push to get back to normal. I don't know if it has do to with getting older, but I get more sensitive to changes that happen, no matter how small. I like to get in a rhythm with life, but the metronome always seems to be broken.

It was an adjustment to get used to Max going to "big school" as he calls it. After a few months of rhythm, there was a teacher shortage at his school, requiring his awesome PreK teacher to move up and teach 1st grade instead, thus combining the PreK classes into one.

It was an adjustment to get the after school program back in person. After a month of rhythm, three high schoolers were hired through Goodwill to help volunteer. After a month or two of this new helpful rhythm, their work program suddenly and unexpectedly came to a close, which will leave us with less help (hopefully only for a time).

I've always been a "look before you leap" kind of guy, but also a "do we even need to leap?" guy. Needless change feels counterproductive and foolish at times. I think I'm just desiring something to stay the same, something to build off of, to look back and go, "Yes! That was worth it!"

This year of the two:fiftytwo After School Program has felt very similar to that first year we ever did the program back in 2011. The program director is new. Most all of the kids are new. It feels, in a way, like a blank slate, starting over. The program can take shape in a new way and most assuredly will form into a product from all the good days and bad days to come.

The BLOCK Middle School Program, however small, has been very enjoyable thus far. Most of the students started the year very shy, quiet, and very much in their own shells. As they've played games together, had discussions about God together, and even volunteered together, true friendships have been developed and I'd like to believe that leadership is taking root and starting to grow.

Pray for the Christmas break to re-energize us on staff at 2nd Mile. We see God working in our lives and using us to impact others. With all the things life brings us, please pray for our hearts to dwell on his word (Colossians 3:16), to be strengthened by him (Isaiah 41:10), and for the work of our hands to be established (Proberbs 16:3).

I shared this last December and thought it'd be a good idea again.

Easy way to help us this holiday season: Do you shop on Amazon? Did you know that if you designate 2nd Mile Ministries as your charity of choice, Amazon will donate to us a small percentage of the amount you spend? It's no cost to you and it helps us out in a big way!

How to set it up is just a few clicks.

1. Go to Account & Lists and look for AmazonSmile Charity Lists

2. Click Get Started at the top or bottom of the page.

3. Type in 2nd Mile Ministries and select the one located in Jacksonville, FL.

4. Boom! All done.

It's important to note, IF YOU SHOP ONLINE AT AMAZON.COM, THE DONATION WILL NOT GO THROUGH. YOU NEED TO SHOP ONLINE AT SMILE.AMAZON.COM AND THE DONATION WILL AUTOMATICALLY BE GENERATED. You'll still be able to purchase the same exact things as before, only now Amazon knows to designate a little of their money to our ministry through your purchases. Easy peasy.

Lastly, if you haven't received a newsletter in the mail or an email, we are also trying to raise money for a new van. Our old one is just that....OLD. You can make a donation at our website, 2ndmilejax.com, or just click HERE to go directly to the giving page.

If he's this excited for fake snow, just imagine if he saw the real thing!

Here are a few replies from my question of the month.

Question: "What Bible verse do you find yourself going back to again and again?"

Colossians 3:1-4 "If then you have been raised with Christ, seek the things that are above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. Set your minds on things that are above, not on things that are on earth. For you have died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God. When Christ who is your life appears, then you also will appear with him in glory."

Ephesians 3:20-21 "Now to him who is able to do far more abundantly than all that we ask or think, according to the power at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, forever and ever. Amen."

Philippians 4:6-7 "do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God, and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus."

 

Oooh this is getting good!

Only one month ago: apple sauce, goldfish, cheetos, and apples.

In the past month: bananas, carrots, apple juice, yogurt, pears, blueberries, pancakes, pumpkin bars, potatoes, peas, broccoli, meatballs, and of course apple sauce, goldfish, cheetos, and apples.

These are the foods Max has been willing to eat or try. We are hoping this will translate to the beginnings of calorie-counting and slowly removing the amount of milk he needs via food pump. Keep him (and us) in prayer.

BLOCK Middle School Program - We've had a small number of kids coming so far this year but the connections and relationship building have flourished. Out of the kids, I'd say most are soft-spoken, shy, and introverted. However, after a few weeks of playing games, their friendships have been forming and growing. Who knew it would only take a little Wipeout on the Wii. In connecting with the Young Life coordinator, we were invited to attend a showing of Hamilton downtown at the Times Union Theatre. Despite being late on a Wednesday night and getting the students back home around 11pm, we had a blast. It was long, yes, but the kids couldn't stop talking about their favorite songs and characters. King George was a favorite for sure.

We have also started doing some Bible lessons while watching The Chosen. The free tv show takes a deeper dive into the disciples of Christ. Spoiler alert about the first episode. You can skip down below the picture of "Jesus" if you don't want to know. Episode one follows Mary from Magdala and how Jesus met her at her lowest point. We only see Jesus for maybe the last couple minutes of the episode, but with the music swelling and her life about to change, one of our students said, "Oooh this is getting good!" The show has been very powerful in my recent life. It is not a replacement for the gospels, but it does make the people from the Bible feel more accessible and relatable to us today.

Family Fall Festival - We were able to have our Family Fall Festival this year! Last year we cancelled it due to covid and we were debating whether to give it another year, but with covid cases trending downward in our area, we gave it a shot. With social distancing practices in place, we had about 20 trunk or treat games and 20 health/community vendors come out to hand out candy and connect the people with different resources in their community. At the end of the day, we had over 500 people attend! Although it was smaller than previous years, I saw so much joy from the first-time volunteers, from former students who came to help out, and from the families who came to dance to the music, collect some candy, and have a great time. The Jacksonville Free Press even wrote an article about the event! You can click the link below to check it out.

https://jacksonvillefreepress.com/fall-festival-reignites-community-transformation-and-empowerment/

Unfortunately I was very busy the day of the festival and did not take many pictures of the event. If you want to see pictures of the event, you can either go to the 2nd Mile Ministries page on facebook, or you can follow 2nd Mile Ministries on instagram.

Follow block_brentwood on instagram to see this cup stacking competition play out.

Here We Go!

two:fiftytwo After School Program - New kids, new director, new safety protocols, and of course, new challenges. We hired a brand new After School Program director who is new to 2nd Mile. His name is Holden and he has previous experience as a middle school teacher. It seems that each new week of school, he has more students signed up to participate in the after school activities. As we get to know and learn about the new students, there are already some good signs as far as the value of this program. Each day, the students journal about their feelings, energy level, and a gratitude for their day. Some of the students ask for the spelling of the adults' names that help out to put down as their gratitude, others write down "being here" as their gratitude. There's no doubt that having safe spaces where students receive extra attention and love is highly valued by kids and their families. Pictured below is an activity where students made paper rockets that would be launched off of a straw with their breath. Pray for Holden as he adjusts to 2nd Mile, adjusts to more and more students, and prepares for a long but fun-filled year of smiles, tears, and laughter.

BLOCK Middle School Program - Back in the building in person, I'm excited to invest a lot of time in these kids, growing them into leaders and giving them a greater understanding of who they are and who God has made them to be. So far we have a solid five students and the years they've been a part of 2nd Mile are 7 years, 5 years, 4 years, 3 years, and 2 years. It's been great to see the kids in person. Our current project has been constructing a new ping pong table we got for the program. The kids learned about different tools, tool safety, and working as a team. One of the kids who is obsessed with Legos has really taken to working extra time on it. Hopefully, when it gets finished, the kids will have much more appreciation of it knowing they had a hand in building it. In a few weeks, three of these students and I will be going to see the musical Hamilton as a part of a potential new partnership with an organization that I'll share more about below. This past month I had the privilege of celebrating Jabarie's birthday at Top Golf. Jabarie has been with 2nd Mile since he was in 2nd grade. He is now in 7th grade. He is a perfect picture of resilience and has got a good heart. I'll just say he's been through a lot more than any kid his age should have to go through. It's good to see him still smiling.

Young Life - Pray for this to be a good partnership for 2nd Mile. Because of our small staff, the number of events involving high school students is down. Doing virtual programs during the pandemic and having nothing in person was a major blow to being in touch with those students. Thankfully, we had a meeting with someone in charge of the Northwest Jacksonville region of Young Life. I know Young Life is a Christian organization all over the country. As of right now, they have students, staff, the program, just no physical space to operate due to restrictions with extra curricular activities in the public schools. Rather than 2nd Mile reinventing the wheel, we are hoping to help be a part of something God is already doing with this organization, hopefully being able to provide the space for high schoolers to have fun, grow, and be safe.

Exciting things coming up - We are having our Family Fall Festival October 23rd! We missed last year due to COVID, but we're hoping to bring back the excitement in community with lots of trunk games, candy, food, music, and raffles. One thing we definitely could use help with is candy. If you would like to donate candy to 2nd Mile, you can ship it to:

1650 Margaret St. Suite 302, #339, Jacksonville, FL 32204

Or, you could make a donation on our website at 2ndmilejax.com and in the comments write, "candy for Fall Festival".

Other ways to get involved or even see more of what's going on with 2nd Mile.

-Check out our facebook page (2nd Mile Ministries)

-Follow 2ndmileministries on instagram

-Follow block_brentwood on instragram (our middle school program)