Uplift Homeless Ministry

Last night I listened to a beautiful poetry reading by an intelligent and encouraging woman, and discussed our purpose in life with a depressed man who had lost his way. I called a young man named Mays a ninja and made him smile. In our van we fed 74 homeless people and I literally got to speak to each one of them because my job was the record keeper. They were dirty and high and hungry and beautiful. They had visible wounds and hidden wounds and pain. And they were humbly sincere in their appreciation when we gave them food and clothes and candles and medicine because it was survival to them, and an undeserved and unrequested hand up.

It's a picture of us and God. He offers us life, we just have to recognize our need for it, humble ourselves enough to step in line with the other broken people and accept what He offers. Maybe that's why I love this ministry so much. It's a way for me to remember my own brokenness and connect with my Savior who sees beyond my brokenness to who he created me to be.  

Hart Ministry is a ministry to the homeless in Kansas City.  If you want to get involved you can find information at this address: http://www.uplift.org/

Waiting

In our world, it's normal and encouraged for life to be convenient and easy.  I'm reminded of stories my grandmother used to tell me of a different time when things weren't as easy.  Waiting, patience, and endurance were common.  It took all day to do the laundry.  Water  had to be brought in from the well, then heated on the fire.

There was this walking preacher man of theOzarks that she liked to talk about.  He used to literally walk from town to town to preach.  He didn't know where he would stay or who would feed him along the way. Grandma proudly tells of how her daddy used to put him  up when he came to town.  Can you imagine, the patience that preacher had, trusting God to literally meet his needs daily?  That is so different from what my world is like.  And I'm sure it always didn't go well. I imagine that some days he was hungry or uncomfortable, cold or afraid.

In contrast, I think my needs have to be met immediately.  Fast food had better be fast, and hot, and perfect. We have instant entertainment, cozy homes, and are surrounded by people to influence us, both good and bad.  At any time I can play a podcast or listen to a spiritual speaker, send a text to a friend to encourage, or call my pastor for a word.  Spiritual support is readily available to me.  I can find a church that is conveniently located, comfortable, and molds to my preferennces in teaching style, dress, and music. Yet we still sometimes feel spiritually dry.  What if we had to wait?  What if I had to walk miles to meet with my Christian brothers and sisters? What if we didn't have a different translation of the Bible in every room of our house, a brilliant sermon every Sunday, wise Bible study teachers on Wednesday night, Sunday morning, and even Sunday night?  

What excuse do we have for spiritual dryness?  Perhaps if I had to work harder at my faith I would apprecite it more and grow more.  Perhaps our "convenient Christianity" is hindering our faith; God isn't always speaking the language of convenience.  God sometimes wants us to want, to persevere, to endure, to be patient, to work.  We are not always going to find our fulfillment right away.  See Hebrews 11 for a picture of faithful waiting.  

Sometimes the "convenient" things in our lives are getting in the way.  Pray for eyes to see.  Pray for patience.

"The Most Memorable Days End Usually End Up With the Dirtiest Clothes"-Laundry room re-do

Our laundry room is right off of my kitchen (the center of every home) and the place where we keep the trash can (thanks to our very hungry dog, Sammy). It's also part pantry. Our laundry room is a room where everyone is always in and out!  This room was in desperate need of attention.  The builder's grade paint wasn't holding up to the splatters of trash on the wall (house full of boys).  I painted it a bright yellowish-orange color, the perfect color of cheddar cheese!   It's a very happy color!  Just a little surprise when someone opens the door to throw away some trash!  I used highly washable paint and added some red tubs to help keep it organized.

But the final touch that really makes me happy was to paint some words and add some pictures of my kids when they were little.  It helps to keep me with the right perspective.  Laundry can be exhausting, mundane, frustrating!  But looking back, this is true:

The most memorable days usuallly end with the dirtiest clothes!

Baseball games, fishing trips, days at the park, or even time together cleaning the garage.  I'm glad I didn't worry about getting dirty!  As I send my youngest son away to college this year, I'm glad for the time I had to spend in the laundry room.  It meant we were getting dirty! Making memories, and growing up together!  

To create this I started by cutting out the letters on  my Cricut machine, using 2 different fonts.  The letters are 3-1/3 inches tall and cut using the BOLD feature. I used card stock to make a sturdy stencil.

Next I determined the center of the space where I was going to paint the words.  Using a level and tape, I mapped out where the letters were going to go.  I didn't use a chalk line because I was worried about it coming off clean when I was finished.  Probably not a real concern, but also I was working by myself and didn't want to wait for someone to help me (I can be impatient when creativity strikes!).

Then, using the stencil I created I penciled in the lettering.  I used a fine point paint pen to outline over the pencil marks and to color in the skinny parts.  I used a medium point pen to color in the thicker parts.  I chose to use the paint pens over stenciling or using an actual paint brush because I'm a chicken when it comes to paint brushes and I don't think my paper-stencils would have held up to stenciling.  This process went very quickly and I think easier than cutting out vinyl letters and adhering them.  I'm not sure what the vinyl would do in a laundry room due to the heat and humidity from the dryer.

To complete the design I added some flourishes from a different cartridge to the top and bottom, being carful to keep it centered.

Some things to consider when completing this project:

-Use the stencils one letter at a time.  My cricut didn't cut them out with the right spacing to use the words as a unit. 

-Be aware of where dangling letters such as "g" and tall letters such as "h" will be placed.  You don't want the letters to overlap with the upper and lower letters.

-Start in the center and work out.  This way you can make minor adjustments as you go. Be sure to double check your spelling, especially when writing the words backwards.

-Use a "Magic Eraser" to erase any stray lines.  Wait plenty of time to make sure your work is dry.

As a final touch I added some pictures of each son at 1, covered in food! Making memories and getting dirty! They are 18 and 20 now, so this is especially sweet to me.

Here's the final product!

                                       

I bough some very inexpensive red tubs and used them to organize the cleaning products.  I wrote the labels with a permanent marker.  This would be a cute place to put some special labels, but at this point my creativity had run out for the day and function won!  This organization has proven to be very helpful and time saving when I'm cleaning since I can easily find what I'm looking for!

Supplies for this project:

Cricut to create stencils (you can buy stencils in all different lettering styles and sizes if you don't have access to a Cricut)

sharp pencil 

fine and medium point paint pens

ladder

level

painter's tape

canvas prints 

tubs

permanent marker

Now, every time I step into the laundry room I am greeted with a happy reminder of what really matters!  

~Stacey

What I Would Do if I was Attacked by a Mountain Lion

by Stacey Adamson  on Monday, December 12, 2011 

It was a brisk winter evening much like tonight, in fact it was tonight. My husband Sid, you've met, asked me if I wanted to go for a run in the woods with him. I obviously didn't want to go for a run, but a walk I would enjoy. The sun was setting and I knew it wouldn't be long before it was too dark to be in the woods. We arrived and left the car, me first to get a head start while Sid harnessed the dog, and I met a woman on the path. She proceeded to tell me a not-so-short story about how she had seen a large cat up the way. By the way she said "cat" I knew what she meant. Soon Sid caught up and I made her tell him the story. He was certain by her description that it was a bobcat, or at least a mountain lion, and we went on our way. Sid really does run on these walks, so he was getting ready to take off and and I asked him, "Exactly how would you think a mountain lion would attack its prey?"

"In the back of the head," he said as he took off running with the dog, "You won't even hear it coming." When he got to the corner he yelled,"If you are attacked, FIGHT! Don't play dead, FIGHT!!!" And he was gone.

Along I was walking in the woods, pondering the situation. I had just been given instructions on how to fight off a mountain lion, in the woods alone, at dusk, by my husband, and then left to take a 2 mile walk by myself. I chuckled. I chuckled the way you do when you are in a very strange situation.

The walk continued somewhat as it always does. Squirrels crumpled the leaves as they played and looked for nuts or whatever squirrels do. Birds swooped. Invisible animals climbed around in the woods. And I heard every single thing. It occurred to me to pick up a stick, and I imagined what action I would take if I had an encounter with a big "cat". "I'll go for the eyes or throat," I thought. Geese or turkey or some bird made their noise in the distance and I wondered if they were giving a signal as birds do. No praying, no contemplating life, no composing. Just listening closely, and walking at a much faster pace than normal.

At almost the halfway point I heard Sammy-the-dog around the corner. They had caught up with me and he was barking at some animal in the woods. When Sid reached me he saw the stick and said, "Good idea" and "I saw it just around the corner". He told the story of seeing the mountain lion cub and how the momma had come out of nowhere and growled at him, and Sammy chased it, and he had a blurry picture of the baby he had taken before the momma cat had shown up. Then he ran off again, yelling that he'd see me in the car.

This was exciting! And by "Exciting" I mean "really scary!" He had actually seen the mountain lion! It had growled at him! I knew what to do if it came at me...FIGHT! And I had a stick. I found a bigger stick, more of a club actually.

And it was getting too dark to be in the woods, by myself, with my stick. And my husband had run off and left me alone...again!

At this point I actually did some contemplating. I contemplated choices I had made, and choices I would make in the near future. How would I use this club if I survived the Mountain Lion attack? What lessons I would need to teach my husband? And then silently from in front of me I see my husband and dog coming towards me. "I saw it again," Sid said in his excited, wide-eyed way. "It must have circled around. The baby was down in the river bed, and the big cat was at the edge of the woods up ahead. I thought I'd better come back to you."

"Really?" I thought outloud. "You really thought I wouldn't want to be out in the woods by myself when you've seen a mountain lion just behind me?"

"I don't think it would attack you. There are plenty of deer around if it was hungry. They usually only eat people if their natural food source isn't available. But we probably ought to get to the car anyway."

"Thanks for that," I again thought outloud. And we talked about what might be happening, where the Mountain Lion might have come from, how many there might be in the woods right now. I wasn't aware before of how informed he was about the habits and population of big cats in Missouri.

We made the final bend of the walk and approached the car. It had been a good walk for me. I made better time than ever and I suppose that's good for my fitness. We talked about that too. We realized that the cat had been there all along on every walk. I was a little disappointed about not seeing the Mountain Lion myself, now that I was safe in my car, although I really didn't want to get my face eaten. It was a good day. All had ended well.

On the car ride home I was looking at the picture again with the light on inside of the car. "What are you doing?" he wanted to know. "I'm going to send this to some of my friends," was my reply.

"Wait," he said with a funny look.

Turns out, it was really a blurry fox.

And I left my club behind in the parking lot.

Good Friday

Today is Good Friday.  It's gone somewhat unnoticed by the secular world; no bunnies, jolly men, or candy on the market for this occasion.  Yet it is my opinion that Good Friday is the most significant and holy day of the year.  This is the day we remember that Jesus died for us.  We have lots of images to help us conceptualize it.  We have Mel Gibson's hand in "The Passion of the Christ" and  other movies that help us understand.  But I doubt we get it.  We can somewhat understand the pain, although when one reads the account in the Bible of the torture Jesus endured I'm not sure most people have anything to compare it to. But I don't think we can understand the other part of the suffering the Christ endured.  What happened to Jesus was punishment, not only from men, but from His Father.  The punishment that brought us peace was upon Him. (Isaiah 53:5).

If Good Friday is the day that Jesus was tortured and punished for our sins (though He had no sin of His own), what's so good about it?  Why call such a day Good? Perhaps it ought to be called Black Friday, or Blood Friday.  Jesus begged His Father to avoid this day and He sweat drops of blood as He prayed (Luke 22:42).  There is nothing good about this day for Jesus.


Good Friday is Good because of what it means to us, God's created ones.  Because of Good Friday, we can have peace with God.  Isaiah 53:5 tells us that "...he was pierced for our transgressions,he was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was on him, and by his wounds we are healed."

Healed.  No longer separated from God because of our sin.  Someone took the punishment for us. Someone that God himself provided.  That person was God himself; God in flesh took the punishment that His own creation deserved.  That is Good.  I can think of nothing better.  "Thank you" seems quite inadequate for such a gift.  Singing a worship song isn't enough either.  I'm not sure there is any way to adequately appreciate it.  But the Bible tells us how to respond.  It's pretty simple actually: receive it.  Believe that "He is the Christ, the son of the living God" (Matthew 16:16) .  The book of Acts says “Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved—you and your household” (Acts 16:31).


If you are having trouble with any of this, don't ignore it.  Instead seek God!  The Bible says that if you seek Him, you will find Him (Acts 17:27).  Pray.  Read the Bible. Find a friend and Christian mentor (Christians live for this opportunity!).  Find your way to a good Christian church (this is really not scary!  Any Spirit-filled church will welcome you warmly!).  Learn how to live a life that reflects your thankfulness for this gift, the gift of Good Friday.

As for me, today I spend the day near tears, knowing I don't deserve the freedom I live in, but also filled with joy in knowing that I am dearly loved by my my Creator, demonstrated by Good Friday.

For further study

Isaiah 53 

11After he has suffered,

he will see the light of life and be satisfied;

by his knowledge my righteous servant will justify many,

and he will bear their iniquities.

12Therefore I will give him a portion among the great,

and he will divide the spoils with the strong,

because he poured out his life unto death,

and was numbered with the transgressors.

For he bore the sin of many,

and made intercession for the transgressors.

Luke 23:1-49

Then the whole assembly rose and led him off to Pilate. 2And they began to accuse him, saying, “We have found this man subverting our nation. He opposes payment of taxes to Caesar and claims to be Messiah, a king.”

3So Pilate asked Jesus, “Are you the king of the Jews?”

“You have said so,”Jesus replied.

4Then Pilate announced to the chief priests and the crowd, “I find no basis for a charge against this man.”

5But they insisted, “He stirs up the people all over Judea by his teaching. He started in Galilee and has come all the way here.”

6On hearing this, Pilate asked if the man was a Galilean.7When he learned that Jesus was under Herod’s jurisdiction, he sent him to Herod, who was also in Jerusalem at that time.

8When Herod saw Jesus, he was greatly pleased, because for a long time he had been wanting to see him. From what he had heard about him, he hoped to see him perform a sign of some sort. 9He plied him with many questions, but Jesus gave him no answer. 10The chief priests and the teachers of the law were standing there, vehemently accusing him. 11Then Herod and his soldiers ridiculed and mocked him. Dressing him in an elegant robe, they sent him back to Pilate.12That day Herod and Pilate became friends—before this they had been enemies.

13Pilate called together the chief priests, the rulers and the people, 14and said to them, “You brought me this man as one who was inciting the people to rebellion. I have examined him in your presence and have found no basis for your charges against him. 15Neither has Herod, for he sent him back to us; as you can see, he has done nothing to deserve death. 16Therefore, I will punish him and then release him.”

18But the whole crowd shouted, “Away with this man! Release Barabbas to us!”19(Barabbas had been thrown into prison for an insurrection in the city, and for murder.)

20Wanting to release Jesus, Pilate appealed to them again.21But they kept shouting, “Crucify him! Crucify him!”

22For the third time he spoke to them: “Why? What crime has this man committed? I have found in him no grounds for the death penalty. Therefore I will have him punished and then release him.”

23But with loud shouts they insistently demanded that he be crucified, and their shouts prevailed. 24So Pilate decided to grant their demand. 25He released the man who had been thrown into prison for insurrection and murder, the one they asked for, and surrendered Jesus to their will.

26As the soldiers led him away, they seized Simon from Cyrene, who was on his way in from the country, and put the cross on him and made him carry it behind Jesus. 27A large number of people followed him, including women who mourned and wailed for him. 28Jesus turned and said to them,“Daughters of Jerusalem, do not weep for me; weep for yourselves and for your children.29For the time will come when you will say, ‘Blessed are the childless women, the wombs that never bore and the breasts that never nursed!’30Then

“ ‘they will say to the mountains, “Fall on us!”

and to the hills, “Cover us!” ’

31 For if people do these things when the tree is green, what will happen when it is dry?”

32Two other men, both criminals, were also led out with him to be executed.33When they came to the place called the Skull, they crucified him there, along with the criminals—one on his right, the other on his left. 34Jesus said,“Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing.”And they divided up his clothes by casting lots.

35The people stood watching, and the rulers even sneered at him. They said, “He saved others; let him save himself if he is God’s Messiah, the Chosen One.”

36The soldiers also came up and mocked him. They offered him wine vinegar 37and said, “If you are the king of the Jews, save yourself.”

38There was a written notice above him, which read: this is the king of the jews.

39One of the criminals who hung there hurled insults at him: “Aren’t you the Messiah? Save yourself and us!”

40But the other criminal rebuked him. “Don’t you fear God,” he said, “since you are under the same sentence? 41We are punished justly, for we are getting what our deeds deserve. But this man has done nothing wrong.”

42Then he said, “Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom.”

43Jesus answered him, “Truly I tell you, today you will be with me in paradise.

44It was now about noon, and darkness came over the whole land until three in the afternoon, 45for the sun stopped shining. And the curtain of the temple was torn in two. 46Jesus called out with a loud voice, “Father, into your hands I commit my spirit.”When he had said this, he breathed his last.

47The centurion, seeing what had happened, praised God and said, “Surely this was a righteous man.” 48When all the people who had gathered to witness this sight saw what took place, they beat their breasts and went away. 49But all those who knew him, including the women who had followed him from Galilee, stood at a distance, watching these things.

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