What a week it has been! As I sit down to write this, I think back to 7 days ago, and what I know and have experienced now as opposed to then. I will try my best to write into words all of my thoughts and feelings from the previous week.
Sunday night we came on/started our first work week with the girls at 9pm. All of the girls were already up in their rooms, alarmed in, but it didn't take long before Betsy and I would have to confront our first obstacle on the job. To put it briefly, a few of the girls, with connecting rooms, thought it would be a good/fun idea to play hide-n-seek/tag in their rooms. This quickly turned into a pushing match and one of the girls getting hurt. After diffusing the situation, we got the girls off to bed told them that we would be handling the situation first thing the next morning. The next morning, the truth of what happened came out and consequences were served accordingly.
Besides dealing with the incident that happened the night before, Monday morning brought the stresses and the mounds of paper work that we had learned about and heard about in the prior two-weeks of training. But with each day, the paperwork and work load did seem to go smoother, and both Betsy and I seemed to pick up the routine and the work load that will be required of us. This past week was also a week where a big missions group from San Antonio came. Betsy's blog, has some very interesting observations from being on the recieving end of a missions group.
As if we needed anything else to keep us busy, Wednesday was the day of being in the doctor's office. I think that between both Betsy and I, we spent at least 6 hours of our day in waiting rooms. Two of the girls in our home have physical training, in the morning, for their knees. (As a side note, while they were working their knee's out, I caught up on the latest duck hunter outdoorsman magazine. It was quite entertaining and I learned a lot about how to modify and make a shotgun shoot better. Who knows when I will ever need to know that information!) Another girl, had a doctor's appointment at noon, for a roller skating accident, few weeks ago. A third girl had a counselor meeting in the afternoon. By the time, all of this they day was pretty much gone, and it was almost time for our evening meal with the missions group and church service.
Friday came and our first week with the kids ended at 3pm. I remember driving around town, running some errands with Betsy a little after 3 and commenting on the fact that it felt weird to be off and not around the girls. I guess what felt weird about it was that while there were stressful situations with the girls, the girls became so much apart of my life already, it felt like something was missing. But with anything, I know the importance to getting rest and recharging the batteries. And I look forward to all the great adventures and lessons that God has planned for me.
This past week was anything but ordinary. And Betsy and I found our selves sitting in our bed late at night laugh histerically at the many things that the girls have done or said to us or the other girls. But I look forward to getting to know the girls more each day, and ministering to them encouraging them on their walk with God, where ever that is.
(Side note: Two of our girls will be leaving us at the start of this week. This should provide interesting experiences that I plan on sharing with you all next week.)
Sunday, July 17, 2011
Saturday, July 2, 2011
The whirlwind
Greetings all from southeast Arkansas!
As I sit down to write this out, I think back to everything that has happened in the past week!
Saturday
A week ago today, Betsy and I pulled up with the Focus and the UHAUL truck to an eager group of students and staff members ready to help us unload our stuff. After a quick unload of our stuff and a first glance of our new dwelling, we headed off to lunch and a little driving tour of the new town that would now be considered home. The rest of the day consisted of upacking the essentials first so we could find some sort of normalacy while we continued the unpacking process over the next week.
Sunday
We started our search for a new church at Second Baptist Church. While this was a good church, I believe Betsy and I have some more looking to do before we call a church home. The thing that I had to keep reminding myself, while there, and while Betsy and I discussed our thoughts later that afternoon, was that no church is going to be like FCC, so I shouldn't compare how things were done at FCC to how they were done at that particular church.
Monday through Friday
During the regular work week, we started the HUGE process of going through all that consists of our job in training. This brought both a feeling of excitement and an overwheling sense of inadequacy. But through the several lunch meetings, obseravations of other houseparents, and strength and encouragement from God, I know that this is not only a job that I can do, but it is something that God has called both Betsy and I to do.
Both Betsy and I have one more week of observations/practice before we become OFFICIAL, and start our first week as Family Teachers. I am exicited and look forward to sharing all of the crazy experiences of what this job will intail.
As I sit down to write this out, I think back to everything that has happened in the past week!
Saturday
A week ago today, Betsy and I pulled up with the Focus and the UHAUL truck to an eager group of students and staff members ready to help us unload our stuff. After a quick unload of our stuff and a first glance of our new dwelling, we headed off to lunch and a little driving tour of the new town that would now be considered home. The rest of the day consisted of upacking the essentials first so we could find some sort of normalacy while we continued the unpacking process over the next week.
Sunday
We started our search for a new church at Second Baptist Church. While this was a good church, I believe Betsy and I have some more looking to do before we call a church home. The thing that I had to keep reminding myself, while there, and while Betsy and I discussed our thoughts later that afternoon, was that no church is going to be like FCC, so I shouldn't compare how things were done at FCC to how they were done at that particular church.
Monday through Friday
During the regular work week, we started the HUGE process of going through all that consists of our job in training. This brought both a feeling of excitement and an overwheling sense of inadequacy. But through the several lunch meetings, obseravations of other houseparents, and strength and encouragement from God, I know that this is not only a job that I can do, but it is something that God has called both Betsy and I to do.
Both Betsy and I have one more week of observations/practice before we become OFFICIAL, and start our first week as Family Teachers. I am exicited and look forward to sharing all of the crazy experiences of what this job will intail.
Wednesday, April 20, 2011
A place soon to be home
Besty and I are excited to announce that we have accepted a position at Vera Lloyd Presbyterian Home. Betsy's blog answers a lot of questions about the place and how we came to the decision. I was able to find a picture online of the home that we will be working and living in. More pictures are soon to come as we move there and settle into the home.
My two cents worth on the Vera Lloyd organization is that it is truely an amazing organization with some amazing people. We were welcomed with open arms the second we stepped on campus, and it was probably the thing that really made us fall in love with the place. Most of the other family teachers have numerous year of experience that both Betsy and I can learn from and grow in the this new adventure together. Another thing that stuck out to both Betsy and I was that all of the supervisors/evaluators have been family teachers for a number of years before moving up to their current position. This allows us to draw from their infinite wealth of knowledge as opposed to someone that has never done the job before.
Please be in prayer for the home and the girls in the home, that the spirit of God might be at work in the house and that the girls might come to know Him who is the greatest comforter, healer, and restorer of all. Please be in prayer for all of the decisions that Betsy and I have to make in the next few months as we are getting ready to move, the move itself, and our first few weeks there.
 |
| This house is Barton House. This is the house that both Betsy and I will be working and living in . |
Besty and I are excited to announce that we have accepted a position at Vera Lloyd Presbyterian Home. Betsy's blog answers a lot of questions about the place and how we came to the decision. I was able to find a picture online of the home that we will be working and living in. More pictures are soon to come as we move there and settle into the home.
My two cents worth on the Vera Lloyd organization is that it is truely an amazing organization with some amazing people. We were welcomed with open arms the second we stepped on campus, and it was probably the thing that really made us fall in love with the place. Most of the other family teachers have numerous year of experience that both Betsy and I can learn from and grow in the this new adventure together. Another thing that stuck out to both Betsy and I was that all of the supervisors/evaluators have been family teachers for a number of years before moving up to their current position. This allows us to draw from their infinite wealth of knowledge as opposed to someone that has never done the job before.
Please be in prayer for the home and the girls in the home, that the spirit of God might be at work in the house and that the girls might come to know Him who is the greatest comforter, healer, and restorer of all. Please be in prayer for all of the decisions that Betsy and I have to make in the next few months as we are getting ready to move, the move itself, and our first few weeks there.
Tuesday, April 5, 2011
Through God's Timing
This past weekend left both Betys and I feeling very frustrated at times. But only after the fact, did we see God working in the mist of all of it for the greater good. Here is what happened:
Prior to this past weekend, we had completed a phone interview with one of our two top places, Vera lloyd. They called back the next day, after the phone interview, and wanted to schedule an on-campus visit/personal interview. They set up flights for us and we were eagerly waiting for the weekend that we would go and visit, to arrive. Jump to this past weekend. On Saturday, Betsy and I were traveling around town (Salina) doing a few erronds before we had to leave for our interview. As we were driving around town the car started to make a funny clanking sound. Before long, the car had lost almost all of its driving power. Knowing what little car knowledge that I know, I knew this wasn't going to be good. (Turns out that if we had driven another mile with the car the way it was, we would have had to buy a whole new engine.) We left the car in a bank parking lot, and walked to a friends house for a ride back to our house. Not knowing what to do, since that was our only means to get to Kansas City Airport, both Betsy and I started to problem solve and try to come up with another way to get to KCI. Through a firends sincere kindness and generosity they lent us one of their two vechials. So we were still on our way.
Sunday morning came, and Betsy and I were eager to get to the Kansas City, get on our flight, and meet all of the people. Our original flight was supposed to leave at 2 pm with us landing in Little Rock, Ar around 5:30. Thirty minutes into our drive to Kansas City, we get a phone call from the Campus Director saying that our first leg of our flight, that we were supposed to take that day, was cancelled. This was stemmed from the Friday's incident with a Southwest airplane losing cabin pressure and being forced to make an emergency landing. He called back, several minutes later saying that he had rescheuled us for a later flight in the day. We continued our journey towards Kansas City. After a long lunch at the Legends, we headed towards the airport. Once we arrived at the airport, we found out that our rescheduled flight was also cancelled, and that there was no way we were going to be able to get to Little Rock that night. Once we knew this, we called the Campus Director at Vera lloyd back, and he was more than gracious and willing to reschedule for a different weekend.
On the way home, Betsy and I both processed all the events that had happened that weekend, and took a step back to see the whole picture. And as we processed this whole picture we saw that God was working in the midst of all that was going on and that it was God's working in helping us slow the process down. The reason I say slow the process down is due to the fact that several days before we were scheduled to leave, we finished and sent our applications to our other top choice. (Unlike Vera lloyd, this second place was not willing to proceed with conversations until they had an application on file.) Both Betsy and I felt that if we had gone to Vera lloyd and after the whole time there had offered us a job, we would have had only a week or so to not only pray about the decision, but also talk with, possibly meet with, and compare are top two choices.
Through all of this, both the good and the bad, probably the big idea or theme that sticks out to me that really excites me and makes me look forward to is the that fact that while God was using things to frustrate me. he was using those things to get us to slow down, so that He can show us and lead us to something really BIG planned for the both of us.
Prior to this past weekend, we had completed a phone interview with one of our two top places, Vera lloyd. They called back the next day, after the phone interview, and wanted to schedule an on-campus visit/personal interview. They set up flights for us and we were eagerly waiting for the weekend that we would go and visit, to arrive. Jump to this past weekend. On Saturday, Betsy and I were traveling around town (Salina) doing a few erronds before we had to leave for our interview. As we were driving around town the car started to make a funny clanking sound. Before long, the car had lost almost all of its driving power. Knowing what little car knowledge that I know, I knew this wasn't going to be good. (Turns out that if we had driven another mile with the car the way it was, we would have had to buy a whole new engine.) We left the car in a bank parking lot, and walked to a friends house for a ride back to our house. Not knowing what to do, since that was our only means to get to Kansas City Airport, both Betsy and I started to problem solve and try to come up with another way to get to KCI. Through a firends sincere kindness and generosity they lent us one of their two vechials. So we were still on our way.
Sunday morning came, and Betsy and I were eager to get to the Kansas City, get on our flight, and meet all of the people. Our original flight was supposed to leave at 2 pm with us landing in Little Rock, Ar around 5:30. Thirty minutes into our drive to Kansas City, we get a phone call from the Campus Director saying that our first leg of our flight, that we were supposed to take that day, was cancelled. This was stemmed from the Friday's incident with a Southwest airplane losing cabin pressure and being forced to make an emergency landing. He called back, several minutes later saying that he had rescheuled us for a later flight in the day. We continued our journey towards Kansas City. After a long lunch at the Legends, we headed towards the airport. Once we arrived at the airport, we found out that our rescheduled flight was also cancelled, and that there was no way we were going to be able to get to Little Rock that night. Once we knew this, we called the Campus Director at Vera lloyd back, and he was more than gracious and willing to reschedule for a different weekend.
On the way home, Betsy and I both processed all the events that had happened that weekend, and took a step back to see the whole picture. And as we processed this whole picture we saw that God was working in the midst of all that was going on and that it was God's working in helping us slow the process down. The reason I say slow the process down is due to the fact that several days before we were scheduled to leave, we finished and sent our applications to our other top choice. (Unlike Vera lloyd, this second place was not willing to proceed with conversations until they had an application on file.) Both Betsy and I felt that if we had gone to Vera lloyd and after the whole time there had offered us a job, we would have had only a week or so to not only pray about the decision, but also talk with, possibly meet with, and compare are top two choices.
Through all of this, both the good and the bad, probably the big idea or theme that sticks out to me that really excites me and makes me look forward to is the that fact that while God was using things to frustrate me. he was using those things to get us to slow down, so that He can show us and lead us to something really BIG planned for the both of us.
Monday, March 28, 2011
The Starting of Something New
The past three years, have been AWESOME. The blessings that God has given me have been more than I can count. He has given me an amazing wife, one that loves me for who I am, even when I screw up. He has given me a job that I have interests and passions in. He has given me a wonderful place to live, one that I can come home to at the end of the day and throw off the worries and the stresses of this world and find comfort and relaxation. He has given me a ministry with the youth, in school, at the XCEL program, and in my churches youth ministy, which has given me a chance to be a mentor to many youth and to grow closer to Him as I encourage and lead other students to grow in Him.
BUT, just like anything other thing that God has called me to do, He sometimes can have a much different agenda than one you might have ever thought. Over the past year or so God has been laying on my wife's and I, hearts to reach out to the least of these children, in particlar foster children. We took a class through a local organization, and were on our way to getting licensed. We continued to follow God in his leading down this new adventure, but it always seemed like something was stopping us from completing the list of tasks that needed to be done before being licensed. Through prayer and discernment, we soon discovered a whole new different opportunity called houseparenting/teaching parents that gave married couples a chance to live and work with foster children full time. While this sounded great, we both were in postiitions where we still felt God was calling us to continue working in.
Fast forward several months and through only ways that God can control, he has brought us to the place, in both of our jobs, where we feel that God is calling us to step away from what we are both doing and to follow Him down this new adventure. Is it scary? You bet! Is is exciting? You bet! All I can do is just trust in Him, and have a willing and open heart to go and follow where ever he says to.
BUT, just like anything other thing that God has called me to do, He sometimes can have a much different agenda than one you might have ever thought. Over the past year or so God has been laying on my wife's and I, hearts to reach out to the least of these children, in particlar foster children. We took a class through a local organization, and were on our way to getting licensed. We continued to follow God in his leading down this new adventure, but it always seemed like something was stopping us from completing the list of tasks that needed to be done before being licensed. Through prayer and discernment, we soon discovered a whole new different opportunity called houseparenting/teaching parents that gave married couples a chance to live and work with foster children full time. While this sounded great, we both were in postiitions where we still felt God was calling us to continue working in.
Fast forward several months and through only ways that God can control, he has brought us to the place, in both of our jobs, where we feel that God is calling us to step away from what we are both doing and to follow Him down this new adventure. Is it scary? You bet! Is is exciting? You bet! All I can do is just trust in Him, and have a willing and open heart to go and follow where ever he says to.
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