A Plea for Prayer

I posted recently about the feeling of unrest I have sensed in the neighborhood. It's amazing how you can sense the demons that are at work here. Since that post in October, things have only gotten worse. I wish I could describe the feeling that I have, but I guess we'll just leave it at discernment. It's sort of like a blanket of sadness...you just know that things aren't right. There's a sense of grieving there too, although not for one specific person. Instead, it's for hundreds of people. It's grieving about life, rather than death.

Since the last post, Marshall and I had our tires slashed over Thanksgiving. No reason that I know of as to why, other than an attempt by Satan to discourage us. There have been two shootings this week, the first was a young woman who was shot in "rear end," and thankfully only had minor injuries. The second was a man who died as a result of his injuries (in the article, he's the one who was shot on Gregory St). Just before Thanksgiving, one of the boys I have spent time with in the past was shot, most likely as a result of gang violence. While he's not in our direct neighborhood, he's less than a mile away.

So, now I am asking you to please pray. Pray for our neighborhood, pray for the safety of the people who live here. Pray that the Lord would shower love on the men and women who would do evil. I don't want them to leave, I want them to be transformed. And I believe it can and will happen. Please join us in praising God for our neighbors, and praising Him in advance for the amazing change that is to come in Glenwood.

A Day of Reunion

As I got out of my car today I heard the familiar call that I have missed so much for the past several months - -“Hey there young lady!” It was *Bob! Bob is a homeless man who stays in my neighborhood quite often. He used to greet me with this, often yelling it from half a block away, several times a week. I looked forward to my chats with Bob. He used to tell me that even he could be a preacher! He’s always been one of my favorite people, mostly because of his constant joy, even in the midst of his heartbreaking situation. Today, we chatted about life, about his long family history in the Masons, and how the female counterpart to the Masons is a group called the Eastern Stars. He updated me on some work he’s been doing. Somehow it came up how old he is. Now, I’ve always assumed Bob was in his mid-50s. Turns out he’s only 43. It’s amazing how much the street can age a person.

True to form, Bob brightened up my day considerably. I don’t know that it was any one thing he said…just his presence.

Lord, I praise you for my dear friend Bob. I pray that he would know how much of a blessing he is to me. I ask that you would give me the opportunity to tell him. In a society where the poor and homeless are terribly mistreated and ignored, I pray that you would instill a sense of pride in Bob. Show him what it means to be adored and cared for by you, his Father. I thank you, Lord, for your unfailing faithfulness.


*Bob is a pseudonym

Boys of Baraka

I'm a little behind the boat on this movie...but now that I've finally seen it, all I can say is "Yep." It's an outstanding movie, but is nothing new to me. In each of the boys followed in the movie, I saw one of my boys. Boys of Baraka is the story of several inner-city boys chosen from Baltimore to go to school in Kenya, the transformation that takes place while they're there, and the struggles of coming home to the projects.

Here's a video clip of the first 5-6 minutes of the movie...a nice teaser for you!

all is not good in the hood

My last two posts have been about deaths, and I'm afraid that death is exactly what this one may end in. A shooting occurred today at 3:20pm (broad daylight!) outside a convenience store in Glenwood. Fox 8 News was a little dramatic tonight, calling Glenwood "one of the most dangerous communities in the Piedmont" (with their best dramatic voice...), however they had the most complete story of any of the other news stations, for the time being at least.

The young man was only 20 years old. I wonder if he was involved in some shady activity, or if he was just the unlucky one to stop by Andy's Pantry today. Neither is a reason for someone to get shot in the head. He is in critical condition, so your prayers for the Lord's will would be appreciated. We can rest assured that God is present -- we can prayerfully hope that the young man and his family would recognize that.

---------------------------------------------------------

In light of this post and the previous two, it seems that there are a lot of things being shaken up right now. There seems to be a lot of unrest in the neighborhood, even beyond the mourning felt by several families. Lord, I pray that your peace would be restored to this state, to this city, and to this neighborhood.

Another loss...

This young lady is a member of one of the largest families in my neighborhood. While I don't know her personally, I know at least 10 of her cousins, as well as many other family members. Your prayers for her family are greatly appreciated, as they try to grapple with the reality of the death of their 8-year old baby.

A Beacon in the Neighborhood

Wednesday night a few folks in Glenwood had a meeting with Grace's mission pastor, Will Dungee, to do a "status check" of sorts. It was nice to sit with him and just talk about how the neighborhood is doing, how we're feeling, what our vision is, etc. Diane shared that one of her missionary friends came to visit recently and made the comment that our house (and other believers' in the neighborhood) was truly a beacon in the neighborhood. I have definitely seen this to be true on a variety of levels, the most important one being that people always know where to come when they need something -- be it food or a friendly face. This rang true for me this week.

I saw a good friend Thursday night while on my way to UNCG for an InterVarsity Christian Fellowship meeting I was speaking at. My topic for the night was Dependence on God (more on this later), and I was definitely reminded of that during my conversation with my friend. While driving, my friend flagged me down. We made small talk for a few moments, then he turned to leave. As I started to pull off, he came back. He asked if I had heard about the woman who got shot in the head at the hat shop recently. I told him that I hadn't, and he informed me that it was his sister, the last one he had left. I asked him how he was doing, and he immediately responded, "Oh, uh, yeah. I'm fine. Don't worry about it." Then switched gears to how he wanted to tune up my car. It breaks my heart that he lost his sister, but even moreso to know that he's not depending on God to help him through it. The "I'm okay, no worries" response is one I know all to well, one that basically means "I'm just going to pretend that it didn't happen because it's easier that way." So, instead of depending on the one who can truly love and support him through a time like this, Jesus, my guess is that he'll turn to alcohol.

Lord, I pray that you would bless my friend. You know him, and you know the pain he's in. Help him to mourn, and to turn to you when it seems unbarable. Help me know how to support him, and place some men in his life who can speak love and life into him.

Urban Youth Worker's Institute 2008, Baby!

Let me just tell you...I'm already super psyched about this!

Injustice in the form of a Youth Choir

I recently met a new student at UNCG and was excited to hear that she had hooked up with a church in Glenwood that was starting a youth choir that would be open to neighborhood kids. Shortly after our initial discussion, she recruited volunteers to hand out flyers at InterVarsity. After IV, she asked me if I thought it was safe to go door to door. I assured her that it would be fine, and gave her a few pointers (i.e. avoid stray dogs, etc.). I asked her if they would provide transportation, as many of the parents either don't have cars or work various shifts, so might not always be able to drop off/pick up their kids.

That's when she shared something that broke my heart. The pastor had instructed the group of volunteers to go to the "nicer looking" houses in the neighborhood. He went on to justify this by saying that the church doesn't currently have the resources to help the members of the community that, prompted by their invitation to the kids, would flock to their door in need of assistance. While I understand their concern, I think it's a poor excuse that is ultimately cheating the kids who need extracurricular activities the most. The church can always refer people to organizations in the community who require referrals, or even just offer a friendly face to hear someone's story. I can't judge too harshly -- I'm sure the comment emerged from some underlying fear.

It just breaks my heart that a youth choir, with a mission of reaching the kids in the neighborhood, has plans to discriminate against those whose houses don't look "nice." I could get off on a whole other discussion about absentee landlords that leave tenants with nasty looking houses, adding yet another layer of injustice to both the families and the kids, but we'll save that for another day. For now, we'll just pray that God's heart for the Glenwood kids will be revealed to this church body in a completely unadulterated fashion.

Holistic Ministry for Kids (A Case for the 40 Developmental Assets)

One of the sessions I attended at the Urban Youth Worker’s Institute in May was “Whole Ministry for the Whole Kid and the Whole Church,” led by Kara Powell, Executive Director of Fuller’s Center for Youth and Family Studies and Curt Gibson, Pastor of Neighborhood Student Mentoring at Lake Avenue Church. This was an excellent seminar, based predominantly on the 40 Developmental Assets, which were researched and compiled by the Search Institute, an independent nonprofit organization with a mission of providing research to help promote healthier children, families, and communities. I’d encourage you to take a look at the Assets – there are separate lists for adolescents (ages 12-18), early childhood (ages 3-5), and middle childhood (ages4-6). The following is an overview of the session – it’s helpful for both urban and non-urban kids.

Take a look at the assets real quick, so the rest of the post makes sense.

What problems do kids have today?

What possibilities do these same kids have?

Do you see your kids as half full or half empty?

Kids are not problems to be managed.
They are resources to be developed.

Assets are the developmental building blocks that enable kids to thrive!

External assets
= ecological assets
= resources embedded in surrounding environment or community

Internal assets
= individual assets
= personal resources
= qualities or attitudes of a person

Assets are about people not programs.

31 assets seem to be an important benchmark. The average kid has 19. The average urban kid has 17.

Faith communities increase assets. The assets can help us have holistic ministry that touches kids spiritually, emotionally, psychologically, intellectually, and socially.

The 3 asset factors in which urban kids score higher on average than non-urban kids are social conscience, personal values, and connection to family.

Research has consistently shown that females have more assets than males. Older kids consistently have fewer assets. The gap between urban and non-urban was greatest in middle school.

What assets does your ministry already build?

What would it mean for each adult to view themselves as an asset builder?

What else can our ministry do to build assets?

Question #1: What assets do my kids have?
Question #2: What assets do my kids lack?
Question #3: Of the assets they lack, which would make the most difference?
Question #4: Of the assets they lack, which would be the most do-able to provide?
Question #5: Given my answers to questions 1-4, what 3 assets could and should I focus on?
Question #6: What can I do to develop those 3 assets?

Glenwood Summer Camp!!!

Well, camp is less than a month away -- so your prayers would be greatly appreciated. The plans are coming along quite well, and the kids are very excited. I have been pleasantly surprised at how responsible they have been regarding all of their requirements.

If you'd like to give some money to help us close the gap in our fundraising goal, you can do so online by visiting this link. Donations are tax-deductible through a partnership with InterVarsity Christian Fellowship; you'll receive a statement at the end of the year as you would for any other donations.

For more information about camp, you can visit the camp website.

More on camp later, I'm sure, but now it's time for church!

From the mouth of babes...

I took two of our neighborhood girls to see the movie Are We Done Yet at the $2 theater last weekend. The movie was surprisingly clean, although kind of cheesy; however, that's not the point of this post.

On the ride to the theater, the girls were goofing off and making up titles of what the sequels to this movie would be (this one was a sequel to Are We There Yet). Here's the progression of what they came up with:

1. Are we married yet?
2. Are we pregnant yet?
3. Are we divorced yet?

WHAT?!?! I mean, I was glad that they got married and pregnant in the right order, but was deeply saddened that divorced would just be par for the course in a relationship.

What makes me sadder is that I know that this is not just a ghetto issue.

In California!!!

Well, Kat and I finally made it to California 12 hours after our scheduled arrival time -- but the important thing is that we are here. We are attending the Urban Youth Workers' Institute 2007 Conference. Today was our first workshop and general session, and both proved exciting and challenging. I have a lot that I want to post, but I'm about to fall over right now -- it's almost 2am Greensboro time!

Oh, as a super-exciting side note, it looks like Kat and I are going to go see The Hip Hop Project in LA on Saturday night -- it's only been released in a few cities, and we just happen to be in LA at the same time -- WooHoo! Take a look at the site. I hope the movie proves to be as wonderful as it looks!!

I picked up an interesting book at Barnes & Noble a few days ago. My initial hope was that it would be helpful for camp, but so far it’s been more intellectual than hands on and practical. Either way, there’s lots of food for thought in this one, so I figured I’d share some quotes and ideas that I’ve encountered so far.

You always hear women rant about how they are objectified, and I suppose that I have agreed with that to some extent in the past…I really haven’t paid it too much attention, though, to be honest. After reading the sections of the book that I have so far, it’s startling just how far hip hop has taken that when you really look at it. As sad as it is, it’s not even surprising to see exposed flesh in the media anymore…it’s not controversial any more (esp. if it’s a woman). We truly are a desensitized nation…or perhaps over-sexualized. I suppose for people who don’t care to see nudity, it’s desensitization…I mean, it’s in there for a reason – sexual gratification.

“Women are the weaker sex. …women’s bodies are made to attract and to please men. …now that women are equal, they should be able to accept being told that they aren’t, quite.” --Harvey Mansfield, Manliness

Regarding a Q&A session Russell Simmons held at Hamilton College…he tried to “keep it real,” and it went all wrong.

“Riled by … the rapper Nelly’s sexually provocative video "Tip Drill" female students swapped volleys with Simmons. … He [suggested] that students just “turn off their television sets,” an increasingly used line by corporate representatives when directly confronted by critics of such programming. Simmons’ argument had the effects of identifying him more with his lucrative financial interests than with his audience. The students, of course, could have easily turned off their television sets. But they were more concerned about the millions of other television sets (79,999,998 to be exact, given BET’s recent market penetration) that were left on, and the unpleasant gender politics and sexual provocations that continually flowed from them.”

And if Russell hadn’t burned himself enough yet…

“He suggested that after acquiring the requisite material trappings of success – cars, houses, jewelry, and “all the p****” they wanted – many rappers still quite unfulfilled. … Audible gasps could be heard in the auditorium, almost filled to capacity. Simmons [had] exemplified for many the role that hip hop has carved out for young women. They were either “hot p**** for sale” – and hence Nelly swipes a credit card through a young woman’s buttocks in the now infamous “Tip Drill” video – or they were “p**** for the taking,” as Louisiana rapper Mystikal explains in “P**** Crook.”

Thoughts from the author:

“The list of social ills and sexual contradictions confronting the hip hop and millennium generations boggles the mind. The hip hop generation in particular is attempting to explore and affirm its sexuality in an era rife with pornography, the mainstreaming of strip clubs, and the sexualization of everything from blue jeans ads to prime-time television. They are also simultaneously running up against chronic unemployment, mind-numbing poverty, affirmative action backlash, police brutality, the growth of the prison-industrial complex, the HIV/AIDS pandemic, the continued war on drugs, and increasing suicide rates, violence, and despair. It is no wonder that irreverence, that old standby of youth, and “girls (and boys) gone (sexually) wild” appear to be the hallmarks of hip hop."

And a last thought, because I know this is a lot.

Regarding hip hop groupies:

“Of the many roles young black women play in hip hop, one of the most rapped about is the groupie. … Mass media and the mainstreaming of hip hop culture have teamed up to expose young black women’s willing participation in sex escapades. Lying prostrate or on bended knees, black groupies are an essential cog in the “playa-pimp-ho-bitch” gearshift of hip hop culture. Like wet wipes, they are convenient and disposable. Indeed, our generation has witnessed the steady emergence of a hip hop groupie culture as a crucial part of the larger hip hop culture. Unfortunately, many of these young black women see their versions of “girls gone wild” as the fruit of women’s sexual liberation.”

The sad reality is, I know that a lot of my girls would kill to be one of the video-ho “wet wipes” Sharpley-Whiting describes.

The prodigal blogger...

I've always been bad about starting blogs then abandoning them, only to come back 6 months later. And here I am again. :) I have more time on my hands now that summer has rolled around, and intend to use some of it to upload my thoughts for you all to peruse. Hopefully I'll be a little more diligent this time around!

Oh, and I'm in the process of going back and tagging posts...so keep an eye out!