Ministry Weekend
Wow, lots to write about from this weekend.
First - had lunch with one of my student leaders from when I led a dteam. MG was a senior when my guys were freshmen and he helped me lead that whole first year. Wow, was that bumpy... MG also helped me lead our team to SEMP in 1999. He is now getting ready to graduate from college, wow how time flies. Anyway, he is involved with Navigators and UMCP and excited about the future, working, and helping out at GCC with Young Adults. Very cool. He is also going to come back and help with the CpR sunday teaching team. It's a great opportunity for him to help and also figure more about his gifting. He is contemplating some ministry future, I predict it will happen.
One thing about MG - I've never seen a guy with such a compassionate heart. I always wondered how a ministry cultivated that. I've come to realize that a ministry doesn't, but parents do. I think the SPACE crew is probably a good example of that.
The SPACE launch was on Saturday. We had 49 students and leaders. Like whoa. We went to our nursing home with some pretty good plans and it was working out ok, I thought. But it wasn't. So they asked us to leave. Don't get me wrong, they were really nice about it, and if it isn't working out for the hosting ministry, we really do need to leave. So we left. Before we actually left, I sent KC up to another nursing home to see if they could use us, one within walking distance. Since we had about 2 hours to kill. And no way to transport 49 people. They said we could come and pass out valentine cards so we did that. In the meantime, we had lunch outside, in 30 degree weather, at the Village Center. About half of us were wearing beach clothes - sandals, skirts, shorts, etc. Very funny. One of our students did some worship, and Leslie did her talk anyway. Seeing all those kids out there, worshipping, not caring who was watching or what they were thinking, better than any Launch I could have planned on my own. We then went up to the 2nd nursing home and the kids handed out about 175 valentine cards. Really worked out pretty well...
Had lunch today with TP. TP is an 03 dteam guy, who has had significant battles with substance abuse since 10th grade. It's sad because before that, he was pretty sold out to Jesus. His life has since been a downward spiral, including a ream of counselors, outpatient therapy, inpatient therapy, expulsion from public school, and most recently, a very bad car accident while he was intoxicated which could have easily ended his life. His overall temperament today was 'tired.' Part of him is tired of fighting this battle, part of him cannot give it up. I'm at a loss on how to help him anymore. It's sad. Did we fail him as a student ministry. Do student ministries fail students? Or have families failed students long before those students enter our ministries?
Went to a parents meeting tonight with some LC leaders that are taking some LC kids to feed the homeless next Saturday in DC. It was a good turnout, and the kids and their parents are some solid people. Interesting to consider how the future of CpR will change as these kids enter high school.
Wow. A busy ministry weekend.
PS - D and I had a good time for VDay, in case you thought I didn't do anything. The girlies went out with Grandpa and Granny. Their first words to us when we came to pick them up were, 'Go away.' And to think we actually got bored at the Mall by ourselves...
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