Tag: family

Posted in Uncategorized

I’m giving this one up. (a youth ministry post)

Posted on by Wick

There are a lot of ideas and programs I come across as a youth pastor.  Some of them inspire me, some of them challenge me, and many of them don’t interest me.  But some of them are so incredibly good that I want to take a time set aside with our youth group and gather as many teenagers as I can around it.  I want to infuse so much about who we are, and what we’re doing with that resource, and enjoy the fruit of what can happen from it.

But not this time.

This time I’ve found a resource that is too great for me to shape a youth ministry night around.  Something that you should be upset if I stole these moments from your family.  It comes from what you might consider a surprising source…me being a 32 year old cynical yet starry-eyed youth pastor.

That source?  Billy Graham.

In advance of what airs tomorrow night (Thursday, November 7th, 2014) as “My Hope America“, Graham has pre-released several smaller programs that present invitations to Christ.  I’ve only watched one, so it’s the one I’m recommending today.  But I’m sure there’s great content in many of the other programs, and the primary show being aired tomorrow evening.moment

My challenge to you as a parent is this:  If you’ve got kids….or grandkids….aged 11 or 12 or above??  Watch this together.  Watch it first yourself, and then think of what questions God might want you to ask, to connect to their hearts.  It’s a short program…only about 24 minutes.  Also plan on having at least a half hour afterward to talk about each of the 3 characters, and close in prayer together as a family.

This short video, combined with you communicating how important this moment is to your family…can be used by God to do something very important.  Both in connecting your heart with the hearts of your children, and especially connecting the heart of your family to the heart of God.

Simply put: This is an amazing youth group moment that I’m giving up – because I believe it was meant to be even more amazing in YOUR home.  Please, please please…..take it.  Whether you think your kids are doing fine….or you and your family have nothing to do with God….these are still important conversations to have.

“But what about the kids in our youth group without parents who will do this?”  I’m glad you asked.  As you put this night together, ask your kids/teens if they have friends who they’d want to invite to watch a short message from God with.  Or ask your youth pastor if there are any teens who’d benefit from coming to watch this with your familiy….I’ll bet they could offer a suggestion or two.

So there’s your assignment.  You can stream the video live from here.  Or you can download it quickly and easily and watch on your own/burn to DVD.  (Or ask your youth pastor to give it to you on DVD…I think he’s making a few copies…)

Posted in Uncategorized

asking for saints.

Posted on by Wick

“Daddy, “dead” means “died”.”  My 4 year old was talking to me from the back seat of our mini-van.  She’d just internalized a basic truth about the end of life, and was repeating it back to me.  She said it confidently, but still with a slight question mark waiting for me to confirm what she’d said.  So why was our 4 year old talking to me about such a weighty topic?

The girls had helped me get the candles out for youth group this past week.  They asked me what it was all for, and I told them I’d explain after evening services.  So as we gathered in the minivan after church and kids programming, I explained.

“Tonight I invited the teenagers to come and light a candle.  They would each light a candle for someone they wanted to remember, who had died and gone to be with Jesus.  We talked about the people we loved, who were not with us anymore because they were with God now.”

It’s true.  For our monthly scheduled “prayer experiment” this month, I offered our teens almost an entire night where we gathered chairs in a circle, and just remembered together.  Some chose to remain quiet, but obviously reflecting on someone meaningful.  Others may have been bored off their rockers, but at least they were respectful of the moment.  But several chose to step out and light a candle, and share with us a memory of someone who’d made an impact on their life.  I’d been nervous and not known what to expect…but felt God was smiling on the idea.  (probably even gave it)  We thanked God for these people, and closed in prayer that someday, someone might remember us as having made an impact on their life for God.

The good news is…I was way ahead of schedule.  We’ve got an “All Hallows Eve” party next week with pumpkin carving and what-not.   So you’ve still got plenty of time to ask the people/youth group/children in your life:  “Who is someone you’d like to remember, who’s gone to be with God?”

For my kids….it was Grandpa Nicol.  They knew his smiles, his laugh, and how much he loved baseball.  Then, they went through a short list of relatives they haven’t seen in a while….and I confirmed they weren’t dead yet. 🙂  Here are a few words that might make you thankful for someone…

Posted in Adoption Journey, Uncategorized

a blessed update.

Posted on by Wick

If you’ve been following our story, you know we’ve been all over the map so far emotionally.  God has been using the journey to transform our home, and stretch both us and those near to us in many great and uncomfortable ways.  In July of this year, after much waiting and prayer, we received a referral.  We were so excited to finally begin pursuing our daughter, and learning more about her.  Unfortunately, almost 2 months later as we were sending her first “package”, we were notified the orphanage had been lied to.  Her parents had come to bring her home.  This was great news, although difficult, as her family could actually care for her and had gotten through whatever obstacle had previously caused them to give her up.

Thankfully, we’d previously planned a little “family getaway” camping together.  It was great medicine.  Little did the world know of the news we received the first morning of camping…

I love to get up early when camping, with the sun.  To quietly tiptoe IMGP9111out of the tent (that zipper is evil), and grab a nice book.  I grabbed my phone to check the weather for the day, and saw I had an e-mail.  The title was “Potential New Referral“, and I knew I couldn’t open it without my wife by my side.  There was my dilemma.  We were camping (read “up really late with kids who didn’t want to sleep”), my wife was still asleep (read “a couple more valuable hours were left where our kids would actually rest”), and I was sitting in a quiet wooded morning with a good book.

But I couldn’t resist.

I quietly unzipped the tent, and crawled in next to my wife.  As the kids slept tight in their sleeping bags, we opened the e-mail together and saw the information and picture of this beautiful little girl who needed a family.  It was such a blessing to us, to begin to know the next part of our story.

But wait, you may be thinking, that was August 30th.  Why are we just now hearing about this?

It’s true.  My wife and I have had pictures, and talked personally with someone who has held this little one in her arms.  But it has taken an unusual amount of time to secure her medical records, etc.  Now that we’ve received information that she passes the conditions we’ve been approved for, we can finally tell you.  “We have a new referral.”  We’ve begun the process, and hope that in 9-12 months we can travel to bring her home.

Already, our children have prayed with brutal honesty, “Dear God, help us to keep her picture.”  They’re aware of the things we don’t like to mention aloud.  This is all taking place in the midst of a country filled with brokenness.  But from the midst of brokenness, we’ve been blessed.  We continue to move forward one step at a time to bring that blessing home.

There are more things we know, and obviously a picture….that we do not want to share online at this point.  If you know us, and want to connect….give a holler on FB or in person.

It’s a very exciting place to be, and so good to be learning about her, praying for her, and seeing that face as we trust in God moving forward.  Thank YOU for your continual support, love, and prayers.  Certainly there will be fundraisers coming up, and you can still give through our “Both Hands” project for tax credit.  $17k in 12 months seems dauntingly intimidating….but we look forward to looking back and saying “Wow….God made this possible….”