Recalibrate

Recalibrate... That's what my MAPS APP has to do when I miss a turn. The little blue arrow tries to get me back on course. Recalibrate...It's a word I've heard the Holy Spirit whisper over my soul lately. So, it's been nearly 7 months since we started wearing masks and social distancing due to Covid19.  I really can't believe we have been walking this journey for this long. As a mom, a wife, a daughter, a friend and as a pastor - I've had to recalibrate several times over the past several months. We have had to learn to adapt while recalibrating schedules, school and finances. During this season, I have seen Covid19 cause much heartbreak as people I know and respect highly have died from the virus. Early on, the virus made its way from China to our street - our neighborhood here in Louisville, Kentucky. One of our neighbors was on a ventilator for several days due to Covid19 and we weren't sure that he would make it.  But, he did. We are thankful. In addition to the heartache and stress COVID19 has caused, the racial unrest in our city has literally broken so many hearts. The Breanna Taylor shooting, along with the death of George Floyd, has led to over 100 days of peaceful protesting in our city. In a few cases, the protests have turned violent and people have died and businesses destroyed. Downtown Louisville is boarded up and a few businesses in East Louisville, including Dicks Sporting Goods and Meijers in Springhurst, are boarded up as well. Political unrest is high as well.  Just this morning we heard that President Donald Trump and the First Lady have been diagnosed with COVID19 and the President is now in Walter Reed Hospital according to many sources. 

Through all of the heartbreak and chaos, I have been trying my best to live out Matthew 6:33 - Seek first the Kingdom of God! I have been reminded to not worry but seek first the Kingdom of God.  I have been reminded to not store up treasure here on earth but seek first the Kingdom of God. I have been reminded to not pray like the hypocrites but to seek first the Kingdom of God. I have been reminded to not announce my good deeds like the hypocrites but instead seek first the Kingdom of God.  Yeah, Matthew 6 is a pretty good chapter of the Bible. But it's not just about seeking the Kingdom of God but God's righteousness.  As Christians, in all situations, we must seek the RIGHT thing.  And, the right thing is not always popular.

Today, I'm very thankful for how the Holy Spirit helps me recalibrate!

Attacking Pride with Humility

 

Lord, have mercy on me a sinner! Today, I confessed my sin of pride.  Being vulnerable is not easy for me but by God's grace, I was able to share 4 ways in which pride has manifested itself in my life.

1.  Envy

2.  Critical Spirit and Harsh Tongue

3.  Caring what others think

4.  Attitude of independence from God

Envy has required a double cure for me in that I must practice contentment and I must practice love.  I practice contentment by being satisfied in God's goodness to me and I practice love by rejoicing in God's goodness for others.  My critical spirit and harsh tongue must learn to be kind and tenderhearted toward others. When I begin to care what others think about my faith in Jesus Christ, I am reminded of the Holy Scriptures which tell me to not be ashamed of the Gospel of Jesus Christ.  And, when my attitude of independence rises up, I must remember that life apart from Jesus cannot produce "a part" of Jesus.

Lord, have mercy on me a sinner.

We must attack our pride with humility. Pride is our enemy and humility is our friend. 1 Peter 5:5 reminds us that God resists the proud but gives grace to the humble.  We must confess our sin to God.  And, when we have behaved badly, we shouldn't run away from God but rather, we should run toward God. 

Hebrews 4:14-16 reminds us that we have a God who can empathize with us and we can approach God's throne of grace with confidence knowing that we will receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need. 

Amen and Amen!

Wear Your Mask!

Are you there, God?  It's me, a parent in a pandemic and a city filled with racial unrest. 

I could really use

your help!

We know this season requires sacrifice

Help us be gentle with ourselves

As we show up

In unexpected ways and in unexpected days

We need Your help, O God.

We don't know how to hold

The weight of expectations

And we feel our limitations

As we navigate pressures

And parenting (NTI Instruction, Online School)

And politics (& Racial Unrest & Violence)

And a pandemic

We need Your help, O God.

Meet us here in our humanity

For your power is made perfect in weakness

And may the gentleness we give ourselves

Pour out in our interactions

With our families

And our neighbors

And even those who leave us scratching our heads

We need Your help, O God.

(Prayer by Liturgies for Parents)

I'm doing my best!

T

Trust - The Secret Art

Psalm 63:3-4 CEB My lips praise you because your faithful love is better than life itself. So I willbless you as long as I'm alive; I will lift up my hands in your name.

It’s been about 6-8 weeks that we have practiced social distancing and the quarantine thing. I miss people. I don’t sit still well. I like routine. I like being “on the go.” Before Covid 19, I enjoyed my daily routine. I liked waking up early, having my early morning quiet time and going to the gym. [I miss you Iron Tribe Fitness.]  I enjoyed my daily Panera coffee (sometimes with friends) and taking Max to school. My days at work always had an element of surprise or challenge and I enjoyed it.  Afternoons sometimes involved picking Max up from school, having the soccer car pool, taking a walk or preparing dinner. Now, it feels more of the same and only by God’s grace have I once again learned the importance of contentment. 

When all of this social distancing started, we had one big change in our house. Elliott came home from college to study remotely. It seemed things changed so quickly.  I heard my boys say to me early on, “Mom, stop freaking out.”  And I would say, “Me, freaking out.  Why are there shoes all over the floor? Why are there dirty dishes always in the sink? Why does the dog’s food bowl always seem to be empty? And, why are there candy wrappers laying all around the house?”  Then I would have to stop and take a deep breath and press the reset  button. I would have to say a prayer of confession. “Lord, I am so sorry. These things are so trivial right now compared to the suffering, grief and hardship that our community and world are facing right now.” A quote that has given me a lot of encouragement recently is one by Lysa Terkheurst:  

"Trusting in God’s plan is the only secret I know to the gentle art of not freaking out."  

Yes. Trust. It’s always easier in theory. Here in Psalm 63 we see that David wanted God more than he wanted life. He was in the wilderness in Judah fleeing for his life. He was social distancing and for good reason. It’s interesting how social distancing is starting to feel a little like I anticipate the wilderness feeling – lonely and uncertain. However, in his wilderness David didn’t spiral down into self-pity but instead chose to praise and trust God. He knew that the never-failing loving kindness of God was more to be desired than life itself.  

This scripture “because your faithful love is better than life itself” has been so convicting to me this past week.  If I want God more than I want life, then I want God more than I want all the joys of this life—watching my son play soccer, visiting Elliott at the University of Cincinnati, celebrating milestones, traveling with my family, visiting state parks, watching University of Kentucky Basketball, waving my scarf at the Louisville City soccer games, enjoying dinner with friends and the list could go on. When David says that the love of God is better than life, he is not denying that all these good things come from the love of God. He is warning us, rather, that if our hearts settle (even gratefully) on the beauty of the gift and do not yearn for the infinitely greater beauty of the Giver, then we are idolaters and not worshipers of God.

This is why we cannot do without the wilderness experiences of life. If all of life were complete bliss, as so many people think it should be and as so many try to make it, then would we not much more often become addicted to enjoying the gifts of God rather than God?  For me, God has used this social distancing [the wilderness] to remind me that the faithful, steadfast love of God is truly better than life itself.   

What you know...

"I want to KNOW Christ - yes to know the power of his resurrection and participation in his sufferings, becoming like him in his death...." Philippians 3:10

During the coronavirus pandemic, it's essential to remember -- "What you know has to take over what you fear."  God has seen me through doubt, uncertainty, anger, grief and much more. Maybe God has seen you through through the same feelings. Do you know enough of God to know God will get you through this time?

Remember that FAITH grows in unfamiliar places.

We will get through this together.  And, by God's grace, we will get through it in a way that makes us better people and better Christ followers.

Toilet Paper & Lysol

Clapping for Toilet Paper and Jumping for Lysol

As communities across the country are grappling with the spread of COVID-19, people experiencing homelessness (in shelters and unsheltered) face serious threats where the virus is spreading through the community.  Those experiencing homelessness have higher rates of acute primary health care needs, including respiratory disease and homeless individuals can be at much greater risk of

Homeless Camp: Photo by Led By His Love

infection.  

While our church, Northeast Christian Church, does its best to focus on development in materially poor communities, we are focused on relief during this unprecedented time.  Northeast Christian Church has been a hub for snack packs and food pantry items for the past three weeks.  While calling various NGOs last week to learn of their needs, we discovered the homeless shelters had an urgent need for toilet paper and cleaning supplies. Last week, our PB&J ministry dropped off toilet paper to St. Johns Center for homeless men and they started cheering when they saw the toilet paper. Today, I dropped off four cans of Lysol (limited on purchase) and various cleaning supplies to Wayside Christian Mission. The gentleman receiving the donations at Wayside was wearing a black mask and black gloves. He was soft spoken until I handed him the lysol and cleaning supplies. His voice became louder as he started jumping up and down saying, "thank you!"  He then ran inside yelling, "Look what we have." 

Let's continue to love on our most vulnerable populations during this COVID-19 Pandemic.

Love! Pray! Serve!

During this coronavirus pandemic, I'm proud to be part of a church staff that stays focused on loving our neighbor, praying for others and serving those in need. In the midst of the craziness, the highlight of my week was hearing a new friend at church tell me that he was ready to give his life to God and be baptized!

Food Pantry at Northeast Christian

Hard times build your character over the long-haul. We must allow this challenging time to build our character. Times like these not only build your character but reveal what's inside of you. And, I love what's inside Northeast Christian Church.

Over two weeks ago, we converted the lobby at Northeast into a food pantry as a way to meet the needs of the most vulnerable in our city. We pray that the most vulnerable in our city feel the peace of Christ and have been encouraged to make it through one more day knowing that God cared enough for them to meet their needs. 

Kylee Dropping off Snack Packs

UNBELIEVABLE SNACK PACK & FOOD PANTRY STATS

•served 24 zip codes 

•served 25 schools

•served 33 NGOs

•served multiple surrounding counties 

•94 food pantry orders for non-profits/food-banks

•15 food pantry orders for individuals

•50 food pantry orders for families at partner schools

If you are looking for encouragement, meditate on these 5 principles from Tyler McKenzie to help you navigate this challenging time. 

Snack Pack Attack

“5 Life-Giving Ways To Get Through a Pandemic”

•Disciplines of Disengagement:  Use unanticipated margin to pray, study, and rest.

•Defiant Worship
Faced with fear, anxiety, uncertainty, disappointment, and suffering, choose to worship.

•Spiritual Conversations
Look for opportunities to share the hope you have.

•Total Surrender
Surrender your life into the sure hands of Jesus.

•Breath-Taking Compassion
Love your neighbor like Jesus loved you.

COVID-19 Pandemic Update

Things can change quickly.  There's no time better than now to be people full of grace and Good News! But, I miss my people. I'm concerned for friends and family who are at high risk for contracting the virus. These past two weeks have literally seemed like two months to me. We are now living during the Coronavirus Pandemic, also knows as Covid-19.  Just over three weeks ago, we found out Elliott would be moving home from the University of Cincinnati so that he could study remotely. Max hasn't had school for two weeks but is set to start NTI (Non Traditional Instruction) on April 7.  Spring break plans canceled. Professional and College Sports (March Madness, NBA, etc.) canceled. Kentucky Premier League canceled. Louisville City Soccer Canceled.

'Social Distancing' is the new word and is key to stopping the spread of the Coronavirus. Non-essential retail stores have been closed. Restaurants offer drive-thru only.  Last week, Kroger didn't have bread or meat in-stock and they still don't have toilet paper. People are filing for un-employment like crazy. Executives are taking major pay cuts. It's unprecedented times. It's a season.

The internet helps, even as we distance from each other socially. I am becoming well acquainted with Zoom calls and Google chat. I had my first zoom call with Lisa and Julie. We pray together most every Wednesday morning at 10 am and I'm glad we were able to pray together via Zoom. Wally and I had our first Zoom call with our small group on Monday night. Wally is still working. I am still working.  Northeast Christian Church's Compassion Initiative for the most vulnerable in our city has kept me really busy. In addition, our staff at Northeast has tried our best to care for the healthcare professionals on the front lines. We've set up a resource line to help people navigate challenges during this time. For the past two weeks, we've had Church Online. Elliott and Max bought two new board games for us to play and in addition we have played the Wii together. Who knew I still had our Wii? Elliott did. He found it. And, he has crushed us all in Just Dance. 

We miss our schedules. Max really doesn't miss his school schedule. He's enjoyed a break. Elliott misses the college life. I miss the energy from Iron Tribe Fitness.  It's hard to do lots of burpees without peer pressure! We miss our distant family members and just hanging out with friends. Elliott isn't able to visit his grandparents as to not pass along the virus. On another note, we've talked more to our neighbors than ever before.

I'm wondering if we will choose to live differently as a result of this pandemic. Will our values change? What will we learn about ourselves? Will we allow this challenging time to make us better?  Better citizens? More Faithful Christians?  Better spouses? Better parents?

One thing I do know is that I need God's wisdom in navigating this "new normal."  Lord, hear our prayers and grant us wisdom.  

Be A Good Neighbor

Today I attended the 2020 Violent Crime Summit at the Attorney General's Office in Louisville, Kentucky. The United States Attorney, Mr. Coleman, brought together a room full of community leaders with varying political beliefs to begin to imagine how we could reshape the narrative around violent crime. I heard the heartbreaking testimony of a mother, Krista Gwynn, whose 19-year was killed walking home from dinner in the Shawnee neighborhood just days before Christmas. He was a brother to 5 and was full of ambition and life. His parents and siblings are dealing with unimaginable grief. This is not okay. The children in our city deserve better. His death marked the 93rd homicide in Louisville in 2019. It's not okay that children do not go outside and play after school because they are afraid of gun violence.  It's not okay for children to sleep under their beds because they are afraid of being shot in their own home. Our city is better than this. We are better than this.  

In addition to hearing first hand stories of violence in Louisville, we also heard from LMPD Chief Conrad about the Synergy Project to build trust with the public and new LMPD initiatives. We also heard about the positive community developments from non-profits such as The Urban League of Louisville, The Family Scholar House, The Metro United Way and the Pivot to Peace Program. Professor David Kennedy, a noted national public speaker and author, closed out the summit with proven strategies of preventing homicide and gun violence.

What do we do with this information?  I'm not sure yet. I have to be honest. I think many of us who are white east end residents of Louisville need to learn about redlining. We need to make sure we are supporting educators as they teach children who have been traumatized by gun violence. I know it's important to support and pray for our LMPD and continue to come together to have conversations about how we bring about policy change for the under-resourced neighborhoods in our city. Personally, I want to begin to discover the assets of neighborhoods that many of us are scared to visit. It's not us and them. It's us.  We are community. We are the city of Louisville.

I'm curious how many of you who may read this have traveled west of 9th street.  If you haven't, I encourage you to travel west of 9th and you'll meet some amazing people. I'll go with you! Ask me about Priscilla sometime and I'll tell you how resilient she is! Ask me about non-profits in West Louisville who are sharing the HOPE of Jesus as they are living in solidarity with families and children.

Never been west of ninth? Once again, you can start by visiting restaurants in West Louisville or by serving with non-profits in West Louisville.

Let's continue conversations about poverty and racism.  Let's continue learning even when it makes us feel uncomfortable. Let's continue getting to know people different from us.

I have to give a special shout out to the #LOVETHEVILLE Family at Northeast Christian Church for traveling with me to West Louisville this year.  We've learned a lot and there's more to learn!

Read the story of The Good Samaritan and figure out to whom you need to have mercy! Be a good neighbor.