Breaking the silence

First day of summer break.
Morning snuggles.
Whole grain waffles.
Godtime with boys.
Half-block walk.
Swing by church.
Playdate with friends.
Drive-thru lunch date.
Home-owners again.
Housewarming gift.
Laughter with a friend.
Chat with a sister.
Reading to the littlest.
Floor covered with toys.
Happy playing and resting.
Celebratory entertaining dinner.
Exterior paint samples.
Quiet. Rest.

But I am like an olive tree flourishing in the house of God; I trust in God's unfailing love for ever and ever. For what you have done I will always praise you in the presence of your faithful people. And I will hope in your name, for your name is good. ~ Psalm 52:8-9

Transition

It already feels like a dream. Just three weeks ago, we moved back home to New Orleans after living in Little Rock for 10 months. In some ways, it feels like we never left. In other ways, the adjustment and transition we are experiencing as a family feels monumental. Besides reoccupying our neighborhood and our home that we believed would have sold before now, it’s our first transition to “summer vacation” as Zach finished Pre-K and Sam graduated from kindergarten the day before we left Little Rock.
Transition is a close friend these days. We eagerly anticipate yet another transition when God provides a buyer for our home in Algiers and a home for us in Gentilly. We’re delighted about the impending transition for our boys as they enter Morris Jeff Community School in August. Most obviously, transition surrounds every element of the ministry of NOLA Church Plant as we work together as a team in one city, as we develop our core group, and as we interact with volunteer teams virtually every week.

No routine. No normal. I am challenged by His desire for me to enjoy His presence every day. Oh how I crave my time with Him. When every human part of me wants to know the rest of the story with our house, our church, our school and even Eli’s journey out of diapers, I rest in what I do know: God knows the rest of all those stories. His plans are the best for me. His plans are the best for our family. His plans are the best for Gentilly. I can’t help but be grateful for all He has done. I can’t help but be grateful that I get to be a character in His story to make His name great in New Orleans today.

Thanks for praying for us.


*written for the NOLA Church Plant weekly e-newsletter

Goodbye, Little Rock

In the final days of Little Rock life ... fantastic service at FBC this morning. It represented a big part or our journey here ... my life has been transformed from a long-timer to a late-comer. May I never forget what He has graciously given. May every day be dependent on God's grace and compassion, pouring onto others what I've been given so lavishly for no other reason but love itself. The song below hits me as my heart's desire for this transition ...



We arrive in New Orleans on Wednesday late afternoon. We would be delighted to see you ... if you want to help us unload the truck, give Doug a call. You could meet us at that little pink house along the River.

Preparing my heart to move back home

Elisabeth Elliot wrote, Waiting requires patience -- a willingness to calmly accept what we have or have not, where we are or where we wish we were, whomever we live or work with.

To want what we don't have is impatience, for one thing, and it is to mistrust God. Is He not in complete control of all circumstances, events, and conditions? If some are beyond His control, He is not God.

A spirit of resistance cannot wait on God. I believe it is this spirit which is the reason for some of our greatest sufferings. Opposing the workings of the Lord in and through our "problems" only exacerbates them. It is here and now that we must win our victories and suffer defeats. Spiritual victories are won in the quiet acceptance of ordinary events, which are God's "bright servants," standing all around us.

Restlessness and impatience change nothing but our peace and joy. Peace does not dwell in outward things but in our heart prepared to wait trustfully and quietly on Him who has all things safely in His hands ... Jesus had perfect trust in His Father, whose will He had come to accomplish. Nothing touched Him without His Father's permission. Nothing touches me without my Father's permission. Can I not then wait patiently? He will show the way.

This is so timely for me. April is over i.e. the tax credit opportunity when purchasing a home has expired. We are less than a month from moving back to New Orleans. And while the desire "to know" where we will live when we return has laid dormant, it has boldly resurfaced in my mind. However, I am slowly getting my heart wrapped around the idea of moving back into the home that we "own" in Algiers. We put our house on the market last spring. We left NOLA in August hoping to sell it even after we moved out. We rented it out for a time over the winter. Our tenants moved out in February. It was back on the market in March after a new coat of paint inside and out. We celebrated the first of May as the last month to carry a mortgage and rent at the same time. God has provided. There's no doubt about it. 

While I could list valid and selfish reasons of why I don't prefer to move back into our little pink house in Algiers by the river, the bottomline is all of those truths in bold above are what have been floating through my mind since I read them last week. John 14:25-27 has been profoundly on my heart as well ... Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid. 

If I say that I am getting my heart ready for this move and I'm not to allow my heart to be troubled or afraid, then I have to ask, What am I afraid of? My initial fears of the boys having to transition extra moves and the never-ending mental game of managing five people's stuff in 1050 square feet top my list. And then, there's the part of me that just doesn't want to do it. But, honestly, when I search my deepest longings, I realize that I am really afraid that God has forgotten about this detail. I tell Him in my mind that if He really loved us, He would have taken care of us better. This house business would have gone more smoothly. What entitlement! How selfish and ungrateful I am! And the honest thing is that I've felt His love and peace more through lessons learned while having it (and not living in it) than ever before, and I have so quickly forgotten how much He really loves me in my self-absorbed, pitiful, ugly, natural state. Lord, forgive my mistrust of your love. Forgive my unbelief of Your best for our family. For me. My way is not better. You will show the way.

And after all that, I realize that it won't be all that bad. Yes, we'll have more stuff than can fit into the house (especially when we're still trying to show it). So what? We'll rent a storage unit temporarily. Nothing will be as expensive as paying two housing bills every month. And yes, the boys will have to transition a couple extra times because we will move to Gentilly eventually, but they love our house (especially their friends next door) and our yard. And, really, we all do. We love walks/runs on the Mississippi River levee. We love our fig tree in the backyard. We love our yard. We love our quiet neighborhood. We love being a mile from Mimie's house. Who knew it would be so hard [for me] to embrace something I've already said good-bye to? Silly. Now we will get the opportunity to spend more time with our friends/neighbors. Now we will get to maintain new habits that we've developed here in our old environment. Now we will have a home that we love to live in immediately. Honestly, none of "my guys" will be bothered by this, it's all about me and my heart. He loves me. He knows best for me. I have to trust Him. Mostly because if things had gone my way, I would have never known His love in the first place.

I invite you to speak truth to encourage, exhort me ... as I venture into this next transition. I would love to hear how God has shown up for you or what God has taught you in your waiting or in your impatience. 

A couple things to note:

1. Because of the kind of loan we currently have, we can't rent the house. We have to sell in order to move permanently. 

2. Even if we had sold it by now, we still need to acquire a downpayment as well as a month's worth of "new employer paystubs" before our bank will write us a loan. A temporary transition would have been in order anyway. 

3. It will remain on the market while we're living in it. It is still our desire to live in the Gentilly community, the church's permanent location. 

FA Church Planters Reunion

Suddenly, it's the first of May and we're heading straight for the finish line in Little Rock. Fellowship Associates celebrates 10 years of the residency program for church planters and with it came a big reunion. They invited all the former residents  (40+) back for the weekend to truly see what God has done. It was amazing to meet these other couples (well, mostly the wives) and stand in the midst of this crowd of courageous leaders who are all in different stages of a similar journey to plant a new church in order to proclaim the name of Christ. Surrounded by these and our coaches/mentors from the year, Fellowship Bible Church ordained Doug and commissioned us as a couple to NOLA Church Plant. God has used this program, this city, this church, and these people to reveal Himself to us in bigger ways that we could have dreamed. Throughout the year, we've learned more about ourselves than we thought possible to know. We feel so honored and privileged to have been given the pieces of our puzzle that were missing until this time ... pieces related to our knowledge of ourselves, our marriage, our role as parents, and how we can minister those around us in a healthy way. We are forever grateful. 

You can find more pics from the weekend and a link to a video of the service online at our fan page on facebook. Thank you for praying for us, following our journey this year, and dreaming with us about how we can be a small part of truly restoring New Orleans in a way that matters most.

Today's school news

It seems like more news is rolling in all the time on the school front. Tis the season. I'll give you it all to you in the order it was received ... 


ISL is a clear no. It's a language-immersion school so it would have come with its own set of difficulties and blessings. We didn't rule it out, but it's nice not to have to make a decision about it. This was the "test" that Zach took in NOLA two weeks ago.

Morris Jeff is a GO!! They called today to let us know that the boys have been accepted. While it's nice to know that they have seats, my heart doesn't feel settled quite yet. It's a brand-new school (PreK-2nd) spear-headed by the community to be an open-access school. Its academic program is respected internationally but new to the area. In this whole process, I've learned that I can get excited about a school when I've been on campus, felt the vibe, met teachers, and pictured our family getting involved. That hasn't happened yet with Morris Jeff, so I'm cautiously optimistic. Their future permanent location (ready in 3-4yrs) would be good proximity to Gentilly.

Alice Harte will hold their lottery on Friday morning. Both boys are in the lottery. I learned today from a school official that there are basically three tiers: 1. siblings of current students, 2. Westbank Orleans parish residents, 3. Eastbank Orleans residents. This is the school very close to our home in Algiers, so we'd be in the second tier. Not sure that location-wise it's where we want to be long-term, but might work for this year. However, there is only one definite seat available in 1st grade but possibly 3 at least at this stage of the summer. I can call on Friday afternoon to find out the results.

Lusher will hold their lottery for the extra 2 kindergarten classes they are opening at the JCC on Thursday afternoon at 2pm. Zach is in the lottery. We're sending a letter of appeal for Sam's application to Lusher tomorrow. Who knows? Just trying to be faithful in each of these rides.

Audubon may open up later in the summer since our waiting list numbers are pretty low. Zach is 10 in tier 2, while Sam is 2 in tier 2. Could be a real possibility. I will probably try to tour a montessori school here in LR just to get a feel for that program since we haven't been able to schedule with Audubon while we were in town recently.

So, to recap ... Hynes is out. ISL is out. Applied to Gentilly Terrace (just for fun!) and Dibert but haven't been on their campuses. They never were top picks. We've cut our options really down by half ... which isn't so bad. And, maybe, just maybe ... we'll actually have a decision to make in the end between one or two of them. Wouldn't that be cool? But if not, that will be cool too.

Riding roller-coasters simultaneously

We are quickly coming to the end of our time in Little Rock. Next Sunday marks the culmination of the residency with Fellowship Associates as Fellowship Bible Church commissions us as couples to our new ministry assignment. That weekend is a reunion  for all the previous and present residents and wives ... as FA celebrates 10 years of intentionality in training church planters. It's a beautiful legacy and network.

Doug has been travelling frequently throughout the year, but will even more in the next six weeks before we land permanently again in New Orleans. It's been a joy to reconnect with folks all over the States who have been impacted by their service in New Orleans post-Katrina. God is providing for our future needs in amazing ways and we continue to trust Him as the rest of our financial needs are met.

Our plan is to head for NOLA with our packed moving truck on June 1st after we celebrate kindergarten graduation with Sam. Where we will go with our stuff is still to be determined. Our house in Algiers is priced to sell yet we've had no offers. If it is still ours, we will move in while keeping it on the market. As most of you know, our heart's desire is to live in Gentilly, where the new church will be. (Gentilly is across the river and about a 20-minute drive from Algiers.) We covet your prayers as we continue to trust God's loving plan for our family about where we need to be for the first several months ... even if our house is sold by the time we return.

Regarding schools for Sam and Zach (see previous post), we are still on separate paths with 7 different schools in locations all over the city. This article about Lusher opening 2 more kindergarten classes gave us a measure of hope for Zach. Last weekend, the boys and I were in NOLA so that Zach could complete his entrance observation for ISL. We wait for a letter about admission for him before we pursue securing a spot for Sam. Our best waiting list numbers for both boys are at Audubon. We are optimistic about Alice Harte after we took a tour over spring break. We've submitted applications to several others on recommendations from friends, but haven't even visited the campuses. Upon the recommendation from a Lusher representative, we'll send in apps to one more school this week, Morris Jeff. Where they will go is still a mystery. We feel called to public schools, and this ride has already been a challenge. I smile at the thought that this is only a pre-cursor to how God will use our boys in public education as a way to deepen our dependence on Him and Him alone. This is really just the beginning.

While seemingly big pieces are still missing to the puzzle ... where we will live, how we will live ($), where the boys will go to school ... one thing is certain. He loves us. We love Him. He's given us a passion for New Orleans and a calling to help plant a church in Gentilly. We love the city and its people. I trust Him as we seek to walk faithfully. But it is only by His grace and work in my heart that I'm not going nuts. We would really appreciate your prayers as we again adjust to the "new" in the midst of some "old"  ... and with most of it being still unknown to us.

Adjustments

Several weeks ago, the fun part of the newness of living in Little Rock and doing what we're doing had shrunk in the midst of all the many new things we were encountering as a family. Let me give you the laundry list ...

• New home
• New city
• New church
• New friends
• No family
• New job for Doug
• New part-time job for me
• New doctors
• New weather patterns (i.e. allergies)
• New public school experience for Sam and Zach
• New caretakers for Eli (while I'm working)
• New schedules all-around

I've mentioned that I struggle with the new before, but this is the first time I've encountered it as a parent. To be emotionally aware of the adjustments of our three sons to the "new" around us had taken priority over taking care of myself. The week that my normal schedule was kicking off for the fall, Sam and Zach got sick. I had to call in sick on my very first day of work and miss a special lunch meeting with other pastors' wives. All the "new" was wearing me thin, and frankly I was angry at how I was dealing with my circumstances. The fun-loving, adventurous, adaptable part of me was depleted and I was ready for familiar. Ever found yourself in a state of mind that you've recognized is ugly, but you just can't get out of the funk? Now, several weeks later and after a couple awesome conversations with Doug, I'm thankful to say that life looks, feels, and is better.

My prayer for this year is to learn to depend on Him for each day, and He's already given me the challenge to do that. Oh, to walk in His spirit and not on my own reasoning or strength. That is my desire. What a gift it is to be here. The opportunity to reflect on our past ministry experience (our joys and our regrets) and focus on making personal changes (as individuals, in our marriage, in parenting, as leaders, etc.) with the mentoring and help of others before moving into the next season is not a typical perk of a lifetime of full-time ministry. I'm grateful. God is here, working, and showing Himself new regularly as we trust Him more fully. May we embrace the changes and feel His spirit preparing us for what lies ahead. We long to be different when we return to New Orleans, only because of Him.

One of the perks of this residency for me is the privilege to meet with a seasoned church planter's wife every other week over lunch with the other residents' wives. We're reading through the book High Call, High Privilege: A Pastor's Wife Speaks to Every Woman in a Place of Responsibility by Gail MacDonald. Its chapters are the backdrop for conversations surrounding what we might encounter as a church planting/pastoring family, and specifically as it relates to us women. MacDonald's words are resonating with me in uncanny ways as I process where we've been and what we anticipate. Another gift to treasure. I'd recommend this book to any woman who wants to learn from another older woman. The pic to the right is the 09-10 resident's wives and our mentor before we went on a retreat at the end of August. (left to right) Leslie - Phoenix AZ, Angela - Columbus OH, me - NOLA, Carolyn - FBCLR (our mentor), Marron - Little Rock AR, Megan - Columbus OH

Routine begins

As we anticipated and prepared for our move to Little Rock, I often wondered if we had waited too long into the summer to settle in Little Rock. Since everyone knew of our plans to leave NOLA back in January 2009, it was easy for some friends to "check us out" of their lives to some degree earlier than we actually departed. Not that any of that is intentional, it's just what we do as we all process good-byes differently. Sometimes I was thankful for the fair warning of moving (when I was de-cluttering all our stuff), and sometimes I wasn't (when the anticipation of the next was great in the midst of the in-front-of-our-face responsibilities).

Tomorrow marks two weeks since we arrived in Little Rock. We've unpacked. We've seen some sights. We've spent a ton of time as a family. We've even met and hung out with the other resident families a lot. It's been interesting territory to navigate being the newbies in everything again for me and Doug. It's been a while (seven years since our last move to NOLA but i'm not sure it counts that we did it together since he grew up there) since we did the "being new" thing together. And, we've certainly never done it with three kids in tow, which is a fun new dimension. I'm certain that this year will pull our family even closer together as we don't have the opportunity to enjoy the extended family relationships that we have had at our fingertips since we became parents. More snuggles, more tickles, more together time is par for this course, and we're up for it. No worries, NOLA fam, we'll be ready for reinforcements with every visit back home.

So, tomorrow marks two weeks since we arrived in Little Rock. Right now, I'm thinking that two weeks was just enough time to get acclimated before we all jump into our year here. Routine (whatever that may actually look like) begins this week. We are ready.

Terry Elementary

As of Wednesday, Sam and Zach will be official Terry Tigers as Sam begins his academic career as a Kindergartener and Zach enters Pre-Kindergarten. Both classes are all day from 7:30am-2pm. Wow! As much as it will be a huge adjustment for me as at stay-at-home mom and for them since they've never attended "school" of any sort, the time has come for all of us to take the plunge. The timing couldn't be more perfect as we adventure for a year in a new city.

At school registration two days after we arrived in Little Rock, we became members of the Terry PTA and learned of a special relationship/partnership that Immanuel Baptist Church (located literally across the street from the school) has with Terry Elementary. IBC recently gave Terry a large donation to renovate the school yard. Zach and I went to help out on the PTA Work Day (a week ago), and found many volunteers there from IBC. How neat that God could place us in a public elementary school and be recipients of such a partnership ... while yearning for our new church in Gentilly to be partners with the public schools in that community! It's not a mistake; it's purely God's grace and plan.

Last Thursday night, we took our school supplies and the boys (and us) got to meet their teachers for the first time. I think there are 6 classes of PreK and 6 classes of K. Each of their classes has 20 students. We had been told to expect a very diverse population of students and that was true of the landscape at Terry that night. It was amazing and will definitely prepare our kids for what lies ahead in New Orleans when we return. First, we met Mrs. Jackson who is Sam's teacher. She immediately engaged him and he played a little shy, but I believe they are a good match. As I talked with her, I learned that she is a pastor's wife and could directly relate to our mission here in Little Rock. Yes ... more of God's amazing sovereign plan. Then, we went to find Zach's class and met his teacher, Mrs. Piazza. Zach likes her name since it has two z's. We call her "Mrs. Pizza" for fun so that he'll correct us. Smile. She told us that Zach will get two recesses a day and an hour rest time. Besides that, lots of centers (painting, kitchen, blocks, sand/water table, etc.). Zach is most excited about painting. I can't wait to see what he brings home for me.

I'm really looking forward to the new freedom and independence they will learn as they operate as an extension of our family on their own in their own environments. I'm excited to have conversations about the other kids, their habits and actions, and even some of those hard topics that we might shy away from as parents if not given opportunity to discuss with our boys. Because of my own Christian subculture kind of upbringing where I didn't really know anyone who didn't believe in Jesus/Bible until college, it's a personal venture of faith to embark on this journey with them. Yet, I have utter dependence on God that He will take care of my kids, that His sovereignty is perfect even when it's difficult, and enjoy an incredible amount of peace that He will show up for them in big ways as they experience more of life outside of our home. It's not going to be easy and I'm certain that I'll read back over these words and other promises from His Word many times when Satan allows doubt and fear to creep in, but it will be worth it. For His glory.

As I worshipped this morning and the pastor spoke from Daniel 3 about trials and going through the fire, I reflected on my journey to this place of peace in regards to this. Flashbacks of the days surrounding Hannah's life and death (scroll down to the bottom and read up if you don't know the story) within me came flooding back as I realized it was through that "fire" that I completely entrusted all my children to Him knowing that His ways are best always. I didn't get a chance to hold Hannah or even hear her cry, but I'm confident that God loves her more that I ever could. Days don't pass without missing the dynamic of what that little girl would have brought to our family. Thus, I'm reminded often that there are no guarantees that I will get to watch all three of my children graduate from high school let alone marry or have kids of their own. Every day is a treasure knowing that God has allowed me to play a significant role in their lives for whatever time we have with them. I love that His timing is perfect. I rest in that. As my emotions poured out this morning as the pastor spoke about difficult times, I couldn't help but praise Him even for that difficult time in my own life so that I could walk away with confidence that depending on Him is worth it. He does show up in the darkness. I know it. He is trustworthy. I will continue to trust Him. May I be found faithful of His good gifts.

Moving

It's done. What has been planned for, anticipated, and run through my mind for almost six months is done. We've moved our belongings from our 2-bedroom, 1-bath home in Algiers to a 3-bedroom, 2-bath home in Little Rock. Our house in NOLA is still on the market and we're in conversations with two different friends who have family members who are potential buyers or potential renters. We've lowered the listing price to under 100K with the intent of reaching a new pool of lookers.

With all of that still heavy on our minds and keeping us on our knees, we're delighted to settle in here for our 10-month residency stay. Two of the other resident families with children live in our same apartment complex and we've already connected with them nearly every day since we arrived on Monday. It's beautiful to immediately have friends to call to hang out with and who are going through similar circumstances as us.

The boxes are unpacked. Pictures are yet to be hung, but moving into just a bit bigger place than what we've had was priceless. This place fits our family very well and the extra 150 square feet that our new apartment possesses has been put to good use. Doug described it well when he said that it just feels less cluttered than our house. Those couple extra feet in every room are making a big difference to us. As much as I loved the big kitchen and living room we had, I really dig being able to cook and see what's going on in the living room because of the open floor plan.

Two of the biggest living space perks have been a master bath for me and Doug and a playroom for the boys w/all their toys in one spot. We had dreamed of adding these two spaces to our house in NOLA knowing that we could be more comfortable for a longer period of time if we had, so it's fun to live the reality of that. A couple other perks are a dishwasher and garbage disposal which far surpass the downside of less storage space in the kitchen. More counter space here and a bigger frig makes me happy. I'm missing my front-loading washer and dryer that we left in storage in NOLA since we didn't have gas connections here, but I love that we have been given (yes!) a washer and dryer that will suit us for our time here.

The boys are adjusting to not having a yard. This summer they had really enjoyed the freedom of coming in and out as they'd like and especially going to the next door neighbors' home to ask their friends to play. I find them playing on the front porch/stairs and asking to hang out on the patio some. With a silly grin, Sam asked the other day, "Can I go over to Gavin and Gage's house?" He knew full well that we didn't live next door to them but it was great to hear him ask knowing that it's okay to be sad about that. The huge perk is the daily walk we can take to get the mail near the front office as well as the POOL!! We've been swimming twice so far with our friends. It will take them no time to be comfortable again in the water since we'll have easy access to it. I'm hoping they'll be comfortable swimmers by the time we leave.

Overwhelmingly, Doug and I share a strong confidence that our family is exactly where we are to be right now. Of course, we miss New Orleans, family and especially the friends that have recently moved there, but we are so certain that all those people need to be without us for a short amount of time to tighten relationships with each other and that we indeed need to be here. Knowing that we are returning to the city we love in just 10 months causes us to jump in with both feet here in Little Rock. I can't wait for church tomorrow morning.

Final weekend

Doug returned earlier than expected last night. He has been in Tennessee on the youth summer trip since Sunday. The boys and I hunkered down at home literally as we all got sick with various flu symptoms which lasted most of the week. In spite of all that, my plan for packing the house on my own went pretty close to schedule, especially since the boys spent several mornings hanging out on the couches with PBS.

Last night, we enjoyed a nice dinner at Chili's to catch up on the events of the week. We're staying at Mimie's house for the weekend. [Funny that we haven't done this since when we lived in Dallas from 99-02. Even though it's a new house for her, it's nostalgic.] We pick up the truck this morning and have a couple errands. Breaking down furniture and getting everything ready to load is the plan of the day before an evening meeting on the Northshore with friends. Tomorrow is our last morning at Berean with a farewell lunch following the morning service. After that, packing the truck is top priority. We pull out early (hopefully) Monday morning for Little Rock.

And, the real reason I even thought of my blog on this crazy morning is ... this classic line from Zach. This morning, he anxiously comes up to me and says, "Mom, I left something in the car!!!" I ask, "What is it, Zach?" He says with a sheepish grin, "Home." I love that kid.

As to how we're all feeling ... Sam and Zach are excited and ready to help pack the truck tomorrow. Eli missed his daddy this week (I didn't realize it with all else that was going on, but could tell by the way he reacted to seeing him again!), still feels punky. I'm especially grateful for the familiarity of Mimie's house this weekend for him. Poor guy! Doug is super-tired from the trip with barely any down time, but I know he'll dig deep and tackle it all then crash next weekend. I'm still feeling strange symptoms from the flu stuff (last night was a stiff neck), and just praying hard that we make it to Little Rock without anyone throwing up.

Still need a buyer for the house ... really don't want to rent. Pray for wisdom with next steps. Neighbor's sister/fiance seem interested but haven't asked to see it yet. So curious to read the last chapter of the story of this house in our lives.

The end of life as we know it

And so commences our last full week as a family in Algiers.

• Last youth group.
• Two nights of dinner guests.
• Packing up Doug's office.
• Lunch date with Doug.
• Haircuts for everyone.
• Lowering the listing price on house again.
• Final run-through of the van by our mechanic.
• Passing on of church library responsibilities.
• Last community group meeting.
• Serving dinner at the N.O. Mission.
• Hanging out with a couple youth girls.
• Two last playdates.
• Eating as much as possible from the frig and pantry.
• Using those last bits of toiletries.
• Packing more boxes.
• Giving more stuff away.
• Setting up appointments in Little Rock.
• Preparing to close bank accounts.
• Eating "last suppers" with Daspit family.

Next week ...

• Praying for youth on summer trip.
• Helping Emily settle in NOLA.
• Visiting with my sister Joy.
• Arranging outside stuff to be moved to other "storage" places.
• Playdate at Monkey Room for the boys.
• Closing bank accounts.
• Eating the frig and pantry empty.
• Packing last boxes.
• Cutting off internet.
• Arranging utilities in Little Rock.
• Late night dessert/prayer meeting with friends.

July 30 ... last night to sleep in our house

August 1 ... get the moving truck and maybe pack the truck

August 2 ... say goodbye to everyone and pack the truck

August 3 ... say goodbye to NOLA and hello to Little Rock

August 4 ... check in boys for school ... get settled in our home away from home for 10 months.

Please continue to pray for a buyer for our house. We are certain that God knows the plan and trusting Him (moment by moment).

Anticipation at its finest

Now that the big family vacation road trip is over, we can focus on what lies ahead this fall as we relocate to Little Rock at the beginning of August, while finishing up summer activities here in NOLA.

Several things have fallen into place that we're excited about ...

1. We signed a 10-month lease at Shadow Lake in Little Rock. We had to upgrade to a bigger home (from what we have now) because of living in multi-family housing with a family of five. I'm pretty excited about having a dishwasher (again!), decorating a kid-friendly bathroom, and having a guest/playroom.

2. If you check out the link above, this place is by far nicer than anywhere we've lived in our 10 years of marriage. The funny thing is that it was the cheapest 3 bedroom we could find in the area and it's still almost $200 more than our current mortgage. Imagine that.

3. We feel great about the location. It's less than 4 miles to the FA offices, and only 2 miles to the district public school.

4. Speaking of school, we received our confirmation letter that Sam is registered for Kindergarten, while Zach is #2 on the waiting list for PreK (4 year olds) at the same school. It seems we can expect Zach to have a desk at Terry in the fall. Wow! Going from 3 kids all day to just 1 will be a huge adjustment for me, but I'm wrapping my head around it and am confident that they'll both do well. Oh, and I'll survive too ... beautifully.

5. We also received more information from FA while we were on vacation including a calendar of our time there. It was exciting to see our lives mapped out for 10 months. Second weekend of the program is wives retreat ... I like these people already. Seriously, I'm anticipating amazing and enriching experiences at Fellowship Bible Church Little Rock through the residency with FA. It's an incredible blessing to be able to do this thing.

6. Another fun thing ... we've learned a little about other families that are in the residency with us. One family has chosen Shadow Lake as well and they have 4 year old twins (boy and a girl). Nice! Another family has two children and their oldest is starting Kindergarten this fall as well. How cool is that? Several of the others have finished at DTS so Doug was able to meet with one of the other residents while he was in Dallas this weekend. Neato.

7. I'm working on a little scrapbook of Little Rock for the boys to help them get excited about what lies ahead of us. My friend (who was in the residency this year) took some great pics of their favorite places and sent them to me. I know it will be a special year for our family.

A new season

God is so good. I'm still amazed that He has provided such a unique and significant opportunity for our family to serve Him in New Orleans long-term. We are humbled at how He created this path for us yet excited and dependent on Him for our future. In many ways, it's more than we could have imagined. Below is the letter that Doug read to our church body this past Sunday morning.

January 25, 2009

My Dear Brothers and Sisters,

I am a New Orleanian. I was born here and this is where I expect to die one day. I’ve lived here my whole life apart from my time away for school, and even then, I ached to return. The Holy Spirit wooed me home seven years ago and I’ve never looked back. This city courses through my veins. It has become part of me.

I am also a Bereanite. I limped through the doors almost twenty years ago as a wounded little kid bleeding with the fresh wounds of a broken family. You took me in and literally changed the course of my life. I learned to fall in love with Jesus from you. I watched in awe as men and women opened the Scriptures and unleashed the very words of the Almighty. I’ve taken life-changing trips around the world with you by my side. I wept with you as we tried to grasp hold of the reality of broken levees.

So as a New Orleanian and a Bereanite, I come to you with exciting news. In the midst of our prayers asking God what is next for Berean and for New Orleans, God has opened a door.
In order to help us all understand the significance of what God is doing, let’s reflect on of a couple of facts.

First of all, we have always believed that the needs here in New Orleans are way beyond the capacity of one local body. For that reason, Berean has embraced a vision that dreams beyond filling our own pews. In words taken from our mission statement, we have always desired to be disciples who are “reproducing themselves in individuals and new churches in South Louisiana and in all the world.”

Secondly, God has somehow worked things out so that a small church on the Westbank has been able to multiply its efforts and impact the lives of hundreds of Eastbankers. When the opportunity came to host short-term mission teams in response to Katrina, we unhesitatingly walked through that door. We didn’t know what the long-term consequences of such a decision would be. Frankly, it didn’t matter. What mattered was that fellow New Orleanians had their lives wrecked and we could do something. So we did. But now we bear the responsibility of turning this short-term plowing and planting ministry into a long-term reaping one.

Finally, we have survived the firefight of Katrina, and now is when we sit back to survey the battlefield. We are searching for our identity and trying to determine what role we play in God’s future plans for New Orleans. What is God calling us to become as we stand almost four years removed from the worst natural disaster in our nation’s history?

Thus, I stand here to announce to you that God has opened the door for us to multiply our efforts again. We have been approached by an organization called Fellowship Associates. Fellowship Associates is a church planting organization started in 1999 by Fellowship Bible Church in Little Rock, AR, a church known for their team leadership and community involvement.

Crystal and I have been asked to enter Fellowship Associates 10-month residency program so that we can be trained to help plant and lead a new church on the Eastbank of New Orleans. In many ways, this new church will be an extension of the ministry that Berean has carried since Katrina as we have sought to love and serve those affected by the storm. It will be a Bible church that in some ways looks very similar to Berean, yet is focused on a specific community with very unique needs. We believe that Fellowship Bible Church Little Rock’s model of community involvement and team leadership is exactly what is needed to reach the lost on the Eastbank who need the holistic gospel message of Jesus Christ.

Therefore, my time as an Associate Pastor of Youth and Community here at Berean will end in August of this year. At that time we will be temporarily relocating to Little Rock for the residency program after which our family will move to the Eastbank. We are very excited to be part of the physical, emotional and spiritual renewal of New Orleans.

We want to express our gratitude to you for the time you have allowed us to serve and lead here at Berean. We covet your prayers and support as we embrace this new chapter in our life. Over the next six months, we will do everything we can to assist you as my duties here at Berean are transitioned to others. And thinking beyond August, we are excited that our relationship with you, while transitioning, will continue to be strong.

We also want to thank the elders of Berean as they have spent the past couple of months thinking, praying and dreaming with us as God has unveiled His Will. We believe that this is not only a new chapter in our personal lives but also in the life of Berean. My story is your story. My dream is your dream. This is all part of God’s plan as He uses us all to reach and renew the city of New Orleans.

To God be the glory.
Doug Daspit

Not a newborn anymore

In the past week, I noticed that my sweet adorable newborn had become cranky and not so flexible to take anywhere and anytime. After some basic adjustments, I think we're back to easy-going, wonderful baby again. Just for the record and for my memory, here's what I did:

1. Start feeding on both sides at every feed, starting w/side last administered (that just makes me laugh). I always start with single-side feedings, but I've noticed a lot less spit-up lately and less poopy diapers as well as erratic nighttime wakes. Now that I'm nursing longer at each feed, it seems like he's more satisfied and poops more often.
2. Get back to the basics of my late friend, the Baby Whisperer, with her Eat-Activity-Sleep flexible schedule, taking the time to stop and listen for cues. I'd gotten lazy and was waiting for the cries to let me know what he needed instead of anticipating it. Much more happy baby!
3. Only offer pacifier when it's time to sleep. And, now he is back to falling asleep in the cradle w/no fussing. We had gotten into the habit of giving him the paci pretty much all the time. He drools so much that it helped keep him more dry ... well, we're just dealing with the "spilling" (as Zach says). I need to find some bibs w/a waterproof back and cloth front. Is that possible?
4. Dream feed no less than 2 hours after put down for the night. Sometimes the dream feed (nurse while sleeping) would interrupt his sleep patterns because I'd be too lazy to do it until we went to bed, which sometimes was 3-4 hours after his bedtime.

Just for fun, within the last week I was ready to purchase a Bumbo seat for the little guy since he loves to watch his brothers play, but I can't hold him on my lap all the time. I figured he'd like a little independence. However, I wasn't feeling good about dropping $40 for something I could imagine him only using for several months. So I checked out craigslist. Then, I emailed my mom friends. Lo and behold, a friend had been given one and they didn't like it. We picked it up this morning ... and he LOVES it!! And, you guessed it, Sam and Zach like it too. Before dinner, they were pushing him around in it (carefully) on the kitchen floor. After dinner, Zach turned down going outside so that he could "play with Eli" while he sat in the Bumbo. Love it. Love it. Hooray for friends who don't like Bumbos that save me $40.