This just makes me laugh. A lot.

Thoughts on Impact and a Book Recommendation

Where has this month gone? On Monday, I leave for Richmond where I will spend two weeks planning and prepping for the rest of the summer. Here is my itinerary:

June 8^th (Monday) - Arrive in Richmond

June 21^st (Saturday) – Depart for first Impact Virginia! week in Wise

June 27^th (Saturday) – Depart Wise for Bluefield

July 4^th (Saturday) – Return to Richmond

July 5^th – 8^th – A little break – if you leave Richmond you will need to return by the evening of the 8^th.

July 9^th – 10^th – Prepare for next projects

July 11^th – Depart for Impact! in Abingdon

July 18^th – Depart for Impact! in Eastern Shore

July 25^th – Return to Richmond

July 26^th – 30^th – Become staff for Impact Metro! project in Richmond

July 31 – August 3^rd – Clean up, pack up, debrief, go home!

I'm really excited about everything God has planned for me this Summer. In a very strange way, it feels like Summer hasn't really officially started because I haven't left for Impact yet. Sometimes I get a bit nervous thinking about all the unexpected parts of Impact and the fact that, since I've never done Impact before or even participated in it, what if I am woefully ill-equipped to handle challenges? I don't want to let my fellow staffers down or any of the youth and most importantly, I don't want to disappoint God in this task that He has set before me. I think my best kind of ministry is one-on-one so that is how I'm going to do it; just look for the most down-trodden kid there and make them feel important and loved.

I first learned this strategy from one of my favorite books, Christy, by Catherine Marshall; Christy is a schoolteacher in a rough backwoods mountainous region and one of the young girls, Mountie O'Teale, has a speech impediment. So Christy just does little things for her like sew buttons on her jacket and read to her and give her a red scarf. These tiny bits of attention help her to overcome her speech impediment. Also, I can't help but think of the passage in scripture that instructs us to not give the rich guest any special attention when he enters our house at the expense of the poor guest. We are to honor the poor guest as much, if not more than the rich guest. So, while financial success is not an issue among youth, being rich in talents and appearance can lead to favoritism. Something I refuse to succomb to.

Dear reader, if have time between reading Christy and my blog, please drop me a note this summer! I would love to hear from you, even if it's just a few lines.

My address in Richmond. Of course most of the summer I'll be elsewhere in Virginia but it will get to me!

2828 Emerywood Parkway, Richmond, VA 23294

P.S. I also would appreciate prayers for our ministry and for us to focus on others outside ourselves entirely.