So we had some neighbors who Chris had talked to a few times and a we had helped out by loaning a screwdriver and given them a couple of trash bags. All very general neighborly things to do. Then I notice Wednesday morning of this past week that they were gone. They lived in the house when I went to bed on Tuesday night. I'm not sure if this is something that is common in KP or if it was just the family. I was praying that we would be able to build a relationship with this family as there were all kinds of issues that were apparent just from what I could see from across the street and the conversations that Chris had with the oldest daughter. I know that we will not be able to save every family, but that doesn't mean that we are not going to at least try to speak some truth into those families lives.
Ephesians 4:15
New International Version (NIV)
Last Sunday we had a Back-to-School block party for the neighborhood at KPC. We got to see our church being "the church". It was an awesome experience to see all the people that came through the gates and that we got to talk with and build relationships with. I got to do one of the things I love most and that was feed people. I grilled at least 250 hot dogs and loved every minute of it! Chris was helping out with the distribution of the backpacks and just trying to love on people. Anissa also helped out as some of the girls from the neighborhood decided to do a bake sale to help raise money to fight sex trafficking. KPC has decided to focus on sex trafficking and is coming behind International Justice Mission. It was exciting to see the girls baking Saturday night and really taking ownership of the bake sale and coming behind a cause greater than themselves. On Wednesday evening we hosted the last Community Dinner for this summer. It was great to have our church family over for the first time and get to know everyone a little bit better. We are excited to be able to host more gatherings in the future.
Chris and I also were presented with opportunities to help out with different ministries that will be starting up after Labor Day. We have talked about what we would like to do well before we actually got here so we both knew what the other would like to do. Chris is going to be doing tutoring on Wednesday nights through Homework Club which is headed up by Joel Boehner. She will be paired with one student for the entire school year to help with homework on those nights. This is also a chance for Chris to do some one on one mentoring with the student she is paired up with. After having coffee with Kory Lantz (http://www.kptransformation.com) two Fridays ago and going over some different opportunities that would be available I choose to become a tutor/mentor for a male student in the ISI program. You can read more about the ISI program on Kory and his wife Alison's blog. The following day Carrie Badertscher presented me with chance to do something else while helping out the ministry of the neighborhood. On Tuesday nights The Crew meets, which is the weekly youth group. Carrie asked if I would cook and plan the meals for these nights. Now as for anyone who has been in one of my small groups can attest to, cooking and preparing meals is something that I love to do. With my current work schedule I will be able to prepare the food every other Tuesday and will need help from within the church on the other weeks. This is something that excites me as it's the best of both worlds for me.
This past week also allowed for the privacy fence and the lattice to be put up. On Wednesday morning 6 guys for Teen Challenge in Elkhart showed up at our house to help put the fence up. Once I explained that I didn't get as far as I had hoped we got going on pouring the concrete and setting the post. Nick, who was the supervisor, asked if I would need help on Thursday to put the fence panels up? Well it of course I said yes to having help on this project. I can't tell you how blessed we feel with the help we got from Teen Challenge. It was also great to spend some time with the guys and get to hear their story and how things are going and I also shared our story so they could understand how we ended up here and how the help they were providing was actually helping. It's so great to hear stories of God's redemption and grace. I got chills from a lot of the conversations!
Chris and the kids started school last week. There were many nervous moments and a lot of twist and turns. The school situation in its self should be a blog post. After a bad first day for Anissa they all seem to be getting along just fine. We continue to pray that we made the right decision for both kids.
Last week we got to meet the Bethel students that will be living in the neighborhood for this year. There are four guys and four young ladies living in two houses. It has been great to get to know them and to see their loving hearts. We are excited to spend the year with them and get to know them all better.
This scripture seems fitting for the journey that we have been on. Thanks to Pastor Dave Engbrecht for a series on this a couple of years ago.
Jeremiah 29:11-13
New International Version (NIV)
