New Blog

I'm now blogging at www.bovinetheology.com.

The New Life

"Change is the only constant" seems to be our life motto as of late. We are adjusting to our new life with The Daddy Day Care in remission. This past week, Les was very sick and we went to see the doc on Friday night. She tested postive for the flu and was given bedrest for five days. I've never seen her this sick before. Tomorrow she heads back to work and I think she's finally feeling better today. However, I do think it will be several days before she feels normal again.

Thanks to Mimi for all her help the past few days. She has come over and stayed with Les while I went to work and she has kept the kids, cleaned house, done laundry, etc... We've certainly gained a deeper appreciation for family during these few months here.

I began my new job at MTW on Monday and have been in training so far. It's like drinking from a fire hydrant, but it's good stuff. I find it exciting to learn of all that is going on around the world. I've also enjoyed making new friendships and renewing old relationships. It is a small world!

The kids continue to do well in day care. It's still hard for me to think of someone else spending time with them all day. I'm learning to cherish the few moments we have each evening, listening to their accounts of the day and working to balance my attention between the three of them. They constantly amaze and delight me, even in moments that are trying. Keep us in your prayers...

Trucking Along

Another week is ending and we're getting ready for more changes with the start of my new job in a week. Many friends and family have encouraged us with emails but are also wondering about me completing seminary. It's a tough situation that we're in. Not tougher than anyone else who has gone before us, but tough none the less. It was tough to leave Birmingham, but it was a decision we thought necessary.

I must say that I did not pursue a job for the sake of working. When we were in Birmingham, we watched my two jobs, a growing family and just the stage of life we were in edge my seminaries out with each passing day. In the last year we were there, my studies dwindled down to nearly a standstill. A change was necessary. We prayed for a job, just one job, that would allow us to survive and me finish my M.Div. The Lord answered that prayer in the form of Les getting a teaching job and our moving to Georgia.

We soon realized that I would have to work in some fashion too. I tried to get an evening job by applying to a number of places. But the Lord shut all those doors. I was a bit frustrated. But for reasons unknown to us no job door opened. Then we got word about the opportunity at MTW and the doors started swinging open. We weren't looking in this direction, but the Lord made it clear. We are going to do this as long as is necessary but hope soon that Les will be able to stay home.

Sometimes I wonder why God didn't just send us a large check (or that lottery ticket!). Why do we both need to work when He owns the cattle on a thousand hills? But the bottom line is that we need to recover financially from our time in Birmingham. Looking back we can see all the "should haves" and "wish we hadn'ts." But none the less, this is where we are and this is what we need to do to move forward.

I do plan on finishing seminary. I'm not sure how. It's not going to be easy. But we haven't given up and we're not going to. Staying in the situation we were in in Birmingham wouldn't have gotten me through seminary any quicker. We decided that a change was the only way to move forward. And so we think we are going to move forward now. I hope that in the next two years I'll be done. We'll see...

Doe, A Deer, A Female Deer

This is what I saw first this morning after the sun started coming up. I went to the kitchen window and looked out to see a young doe standing just a few feet from our deck. By the time I ran downstairs to get my camera and then back up she was further away. I just wish McGrooter had been here with me. He would really have enjoyed that!

It's now official that I will begin my new job at MTW on February 6th. I'm excited about the work and new opportunities. I'm still a little disappointed in our family structure (both of us working). But we'll do this for now. My work will involve helping people who have shown some type of interest in missions decide what the next step should be. For some it will be a short road to getting on the field and for others a bit longer. Some will see they're not ready or equipped for the work. Basically, I'll counsel and help people understand more about the process. I'll have a chance to get to know what is going on around the world so as to better pair prospective team members with the right team. The word "coach" was used to describe the position to me. I guess it will be easier to communicate once I start. I will get to travel some. I think it will be enough to be enjoyable but not so much that I'm away too often. The big appeal to me is that it has many pastoral attributes, which is what I've missed so much over the past four years.

Many friends and family have asked why I pursued something like this instead of going back into the pastorate. There are a number of reasons, but the main one is that in our denomination I must have my M.Div. completed. I could go into a church outside our denomination, but there would be certain challenges involved in that (based on my convictions theologically). So when I first submitted my resume to MTW in August of last year, I thought that it might provide an opportunity that would be the next best thing. Nothing was available at the time and then we switched courses and Les began looking for work. When all that panned out I kind of dismissed working for a while (wanting one of us to be home with the kids). But in December I ran into a friend from MTW who said "I was just talking about you this week and gave your resume to someone in our office." He then arranged to have lunch with me and introduced me around. Right away the job seemed like a good fit. But the formal interviewing and such couldn't begin until January. So although the timing of this whole thing hasn't been exactly how we would have planned it, we feel somewhat confident that this is where we need to be and what we need to be doing.

Once I'm able to finish my seminary degree then new opportunities will be available to us. But I have to get that done too. Many friends ask "how long?" I don't have an answer really. It does help to understand that by "seminary degree" people mean many different things. Some people go to seminary and earn a 1 or 2-year degree that can range any where from 30-60 hours. These are typically Master of Arts degrees and have a specialty such as Christian Education or Counseling, etc... The Master of Divinity degree typically around 100 hours. It's 102 at my school. I've completed about 70 hours, so I'm about 2/3 done. But this last 30% may take much longer than the first part simply because of our family situation. But I DO plan on finishing. Some way, somehow. Of course if we win the lottery and neither of us have to work then it will go much faster! :-)

One thing I've really pondered quite a bit through this whole experience is how churches handle, help, encourage, and spur young men on into ministry. It's something I'll have to write more on later, but something I think needs a lot of thought and prayer. I have become more convinced than ever that the local church is the place to "entrust these things to faithful men." I still believe solid theological training is essential, but the entrusting has to take place on the local church level. Then, when local churches send their young men off to seminary, they (the church) is the vehicle God uses to support, encourage, and protect these young men from heresy. But when men just head off (as is what happens in most churches, denominations, etc...) they are at risk of becoming discouraged, feeling alone, struggling to support themselves, and unknowingly receiving false teaching. I've seen some churches do this well. I hope one day (if I do end up back in the pastorate) that I will lead in such a way. But my experience in our denomination so far has been that most churches do little beyond bringing young men under care of the Session. It seems to mean very little. But more on that some other time.

Okay all you deer hunters. Our deck seems like a good place to come and perch if you like!

Closed for Renovations

The day has finally come. Actually, it's come and gone. The Daddy Day Care officially closed a week ago when I received a verbal job offer just in time for us to accept day care positions at the school Les teaches at. The kids all began last week and have done very well. They actually wake up excited about going and come home excited to tell me how their day went.

I've learned a lot through this experience. I must say that some of the things I've learned about myself, I really would have rather not known. I know, it's better that I do know, that I may deal with my own wretchedness. But ignorance was kind of bliss when it came to my own selfishness and such. Staying home all day with three small children will certainly bring such a problem to the surface...and rather quickly I might add.

But I've also learned (once again) to never say "never." I remember saying that my kids would never be in day care. In my own smugness I would look down on those who would put their kids in day care. I always thought that they were either trying to attain more stuff or simply hadn't planned well enough. But I've now come to understand the plethora of reasons parents might have to put their children in day care. For us it wasn't about moving on up to the Eastside. It was simply about surviving. I thought that an evening job was the solution. Les would come home from work and I would leave to go to work. Although our kids would always be with one of us, what exactly would that accomplish for us regarding family life. They wouldn't know such a thing. So here we are, with them in day care, both of us soon to be working, and hopefully some time and energy left to be a family. It's temporary, as I'm learning all things are.

So what about the blog? I think I'll keep blogging. Maybe not here, but maybe I will since I already paid for the domain. And some of my favorite things to write about are my experiences with the kids. As for the job, more to come on that later since everything is still not official yet (just verbal). I will say that it's with a ministry and that it's a place I sent my resume to long before Les ever began looking for a teaching position (while we were still in B'ham). God's timing is always perfect so I won't second guess it. I think it will be a good thing if/when it all pans out.

Until next time...

MLK Day

Today was a holiday for Leslie so we had a long weekend. Actually, she only worked half a day on Friday, so we got a lot done. Rob & Stacy kept the kids on Friday and Saturday to give us some time to get some things done around here without any interruptions. They had lots of fun and when I went to get them Saturday afternoon (on the way back) Micah said, "I already miss Aunt Stacy." It was cute.

Sunday morning we met some folks at church our age. That's coming along. It just seems to take longer in bigger churches. The kids are doing better, including McGrooter, who's really enjoying Children's Church. After naps we got the house ready for Mimi, Grandad, Uncle Wil, & Aunt Kristin to come over. We all ate brunswick stew together. Nannie & Poppie couldn't come because Nannie is still trying to get over an ear infection. After dinner and getting the kids to bed, we talked everyone into watching Napoleon Dynamite. Mimi acted like she didn't get it, but when she and Grandad left he was imitating different lines and she was laughing (kind of). I think it grows on you the more you watch it. I remember the first time Les watched it, she acted as if she hated it. Sunday night she was begging everyone to watch it with us!

Yesterday was the celebration of Martin Luther King, Jr.'s birthday. It's kind of a strange day because I think most people don't really think about it other than a day they might have off and the mail doesn't run. Kind of like President's Day or Columbus Day. I think especially for us white people, most just don't get it. We have no clue the sacrifice that King made standing up in the face of hatred and prejudice. I always seem to hear how he wasn't perfect (morally) from white folks. But neither were any of our Presidents or Christopher Columbus. Yet we "celebrate" those days and what they represent. I know I don't get it either. I was born in the early '70's so that by the time I was growing up in the '80's much had changed from the '50's and before. Plus I had parents who were probably a little more intentional about rejecting racism than many in the South. And I grew up in a church that started as a result of a stand against racism in the late '60's. But I still don't get it. But I do know that I hurt and grieve to think how blacks were treated. To think that they were regarded as sub-human is heart-wrenching. I watched the parade in Gainesville yesterday down on the square. As the marchers approached, the singing of "Amen" grew louder and louder. It was almost surreal. Then, like watching a film from the 1960's, I saw a group of a few hundred African Americans (and a few white folks) march by, singing, some smiling, some somber. In the midst of the crowd were two young children (maybe a brother and sister, 8-10 years old). They were lively, like children are, kind of playing. I thought, "they don't even know what this is all about. I wonder if they will ever understand." Then, from behind them came someone who might have been their grandmother. She knew. She was old enough to remember. This was not something to take lightly. She lovingly buth firmly put her arms around them and whispered something. I thought, "that will help." We still have a long way to go; a long way before all men are treated equally. Racism is not a political issue, but a heart issue and the only way it can be dealt with successfully is on the heart level. Sure, legislation is a guide and a guard in all matters moral (all legislation is in some ways moral), but it won't make racism disappear. Only individuals, of all colors, changing their hearts, or rather begging for God to change their hearts, can really bring about change. It will first change homes and families, then communities, cities, states, then the world. Dr. King's dream wasn't for a black America in one corner and a white America in another. His dream was for "all God's children - black men and white men, Jews and Gentiles, Catholics and Protestants - will be able to join hands and to sing in the words of the old Negro spiritual, 'Free at last, free at last; thank God Almighty, we are free at last.'" I hope that my children will live their lives a little more free than I am. Free from prejudice, bigotry, and hatred.

Flood!

Tonight we experienced our first flood. In the house not even two weeks and we found ourselves mopping and vacuuming up a washer full of water. Evidently the hose came out after during the spin cycle and filled much of the downstairs with an inch or more of water. We were amazed at all the places it went. But we have much to be thankful for. I had just borrowed my father-in-law's shop vac last week and I still had it. It is more powerful than mine and has a squeegie (sp?) on it. It worked beautifully. Plus, when Leslie's folks heard, they came straight over to help. It cut the job time in half. Finally, in the midst of it all, we thought of what folks must have gone through in Katrina, finding their entire homes gone or submerged. Yes, we have much to be thankful for.

Yesterday we had some surprise visitors. JK and Becky Pell came by for an hour or so while they were up visiting Susan. We had such a good visit. Too bad it was so brief. Plus, Becky worked the entire time she was here, folding clothes and washing dishes. The kids loved Mr. Pell, especially the Munch. He's always called Susan the same nickname (which is where we got it from).

I finally got the rest of the rental house emptied out and cleaned it last night. That's always a bigger job than I think. I was satisfied though, when it was done, to have one more thing off the checklist. Now to get this place cleaned and settled!

The kids were great today. We played a lot as we now have more toys in the house. The highlight of my day was when Aggie came over and said, "What are you reading?" I told her it was the Bible. She asked to read it with me. She would flip through the pages and scan and scan, mumbling as if she knew what all those letters meant. Finally, as if she were reading, she said, "God loves you SOOO much." She did that over and over after that. I thought, "Well, that's pretty much the gist of it." We have the next few years to fill in the rest.

Of course there was a small disappointment too. When McGrooter found his cowboy hat he needed me to tie his bandana around his face (which he calls a handana). Anyway, it wouldn't stay so he went back to the room and came out with a toy noisemaker from an old birthday party. The paper part had been torn off so it was just the straight plastic piece. I asked him what it was and he said, "A fire thing." I asked him, "What kind of fire thing." "You know, just a fire thing," was his reply. So I guess at 4 he's already interested in smoking. Do you think I could get some of that class action money from the tobacco companies? I'm sure some liberal would agree that they're to blame.

Now it's late and I must get some rest. It's a big day tomorrow with Mimi coming over early in the morning to keep the kids while I go take care of some "things." I'll fill you in on that later...