The Gathering Place - reflecting the heart of God

The Gathering Place is a ministry in Lancaster City that works with people who have HIV or AIDS. This year, they are commemorating their 20th anniversary. Water Street Rescue Mission partners with them in meeting the needs of hurting people and is grateful for how God has used them to His glory in such a vital and redemptive way. The following is a letter from honoring their anniversary:

When I think of the Gathering Place …

I am reminded of many things when I think of the Gathering Place.

First I think of who God is and how Jesus came to this earth most purposefully to meet the broken and hurting, those who carry labels like poor, homeless, addict, and HIV-positive. That these people - who are truly most invisible to most of society – are treated with respect and dignity by the Gathering Place reflects the very heart of God.

I think too of how the Gathering Place embodies faithfulness as the staff and volunteers remain true to the founding vision of always being ‘there for’ the clients most especially when their situation is most dire and their suffering most great. This too reflects the heart of God.

And I am reminded of how trustworthy God is but also how unpredictable. Who could have predicted His choice of a construction guy to receive the vision for this ministry and His use of this same guy to flesh out the vision every day in such a redemptive and compelling way? Who He chose to lead this ministry reflects the wisdom of His heart also!

So to Bob and Melanie and to all the staff and volunteers of the Gathering Place we thank you for your colleagueship, your heart, your vision, your mission, your service, your compassion, your love for the least and the lost. May God be glorified as you embark on the next twenty years.

Truly, thank you.

All our love,

Steve Brubaker
Director of Residential Programs
Water Street Rescue Mission

Thank you to leaders...

We're doing something a little different at Teen Haven Camp this weekend.

Usually during the school year, camp runs a 3-1 schedule. 3 weeks of Teen Haven Camp - kids from Philadelphia, York, and Lancaster come to camp and Teen Haven staff run the program; and 1 week of an outside church rental - church runs their own program and Teen Haven staff provide background support (facilities, meals, etc).

During the "Teen Haven Camp" weekends, anywhere from 5-15 teenage leaders from our city ministries serve various roles to make the camp run smoothly, and to minister to the campers. The teens serve as cabin supervisors, junior counselors, kitchen staff, and occasionally maintenance assistants.

By the time a young teen with leadership potential is 16 years old, they may be done with their years of being "just a camper."

Well, this weekend is just for those special teens who have given of themselves to serve God, to serve Teen Haven, and to serve other youth from their communities. This weekend is a special leaders retreat. No campers to watch, no scheduled activities to supervise, not even any training seminars or workshops to make them better leaders. Just a weekend of fun and fellowship. A weekend of "Thank you for giving of yourselves to help others."

Please pray that all the teen leaders who attend this "Thank you" weekend will have a safe, restful, and fun weekend at Teen Haven Camp.

Our ministry would not be the same without their selfless service.

-Jack Crowley, Teen Haven

Where there is a will...

Sometimes We need to think outside of our normal programs in order tomeet the needs of those God brings our ways. Here is another example of with from our Teen Haven ministry in Philadelphia:

Last month three girls finally attended camp from the Hill family. For months they were trying to come to camp but other church activities the children were involved in forced them to cancel.

After attending in January the girls had a great time and went back and shared with their parents. The girls were really interested in attending our Bible Study on Tuesday nights, but they lived outside of our normal boundaries. After talking with their mother about different options, and trying to make it work, we concluded that the girls would not be arriving home until well after 10pm which would not work for a school night. Needless to say, the girls, their mom and I were all disappointed.

Their mother was still determined. She is concerned that their youth group is more focused on games and social time and isn't helping the girls to grow spiritually. I offered to mail four quiet-time books and four notebooks to her and her girls that they would be able to be doing what we do at Bible study. She was so excited that she said she would pay for the postage by sending in a donation. I also suggested that I would be willing to come to her home once a month with some girls from Bible study and do a lesson with her and her girls and have the leaders check her girls quiet-times. She thought that would be great and said she would provide lunch for us.

We are excited for the start of this new relationship and for the ooportunities to connect not only with this family, but even their church as well. God is making a way even outside of our normal way of doing things.

-Oddet Mears, Teen Haven Philly

Superman, Batman... or Jesus?

So, who's your favorite superhero?

As a kid I always liked Spiderman and the Incredible Hulk. Maybe you're a Superman fan, or Batman, or maybe you were into the more obscure superheroes like Green Lantern, Captain America, or Dwight Howard (you NBA dunk contest fans know what I'm talking about).

Nikki, one of our Wonder Club teachers, recently shared with me a great story about the new superhero that is capturing the imagination of her pre-kindergarten students:

During free play time at school one day, two of her students ended up sitting a table having a pretty intense discussion...

"So, who is your favorite superhero?"

"My favorite superhero is Jesus!"

"Really, Jesus is my favorite superhero, too!"

"No way, are you on Jesus' team, too?"

Superheroes can be great role models for young kids, they can teach us about character, justice, and courage. How exciting to see these 4 year-olds recognize a role model even greater than Superman.

Staying connected

Working in youth ministry anywhere can sometimes be bitter sweet: you invest and care deeply for a teen, watch them grow, and then either they graduate and slowly drift away or they move and it is hard to know whether all you taught them and all that God has shown them really stuck. This can be especially true in the city where transiency and sudden changes in life circumstances are the norm rather than the exception.

This uncertainty of urban ministry makes it especially sweet when we are able to stay in touch and watch God continue to work in the life of a former Teen Haven "kid."

Once a week I get a phone call from EC (pronounced "Eee See"). Believe it or not, that is the actual name on his birth certificate. EC is 20 years old and is attending school at York Technical Institute. He will be graduating this summer and there might be wedding bells following that.

He calls me and often we will chat about scripture and what he is learning. Right now he is going through 1&2 Corinthians. We recently spoke about the headship of Jesus Christ in our lives and being a man of prayer.

What an encouragement to know God has built up our friendship based on the God of the Bible.

-Alex, York Teen Haven

Ministering grace to one another...

One of the blessings of working at WSRM is the staff realizes that we are just one of the venues through which God might choose to work in the lives of those he brings here. He works just as often through fellow residents to minister to those who need to feel his touch. A slice of life at WSRM from 2007:

We had a very interesting chapel this morning. I was sharing excerpts from Philip Yancey's book "What's So Amazing About Grace?". We started out talking about what we think grace is, where it comes from, what to do with it, etc... moved into things that prevent us from either accepting grace or showing it to others. For example, we spent quite a bit of time talking about a Ben Franklin quote about pride, and then went into guilt and shame, in relation to how these effect our ability to show grace.

I read a quote in the book that talks about "the three common sources of crippling shame", which are: secular society, a graceless church, and unaccepting parents. I said that I knew I had been affected by all of these and asked if anyone else felt that they had. Many hands went up at that point, but as they went back down, Stewart's hand stayed up. I said "go ahead" and as he started to speak, he completely broke down sobbing and shaking.

Some of the guys were encouraging him and one got up and put his arm around him and brought him some kleenex. Jerry (another gentleman in our program) jumped up and asked if we could come around Stewart and pray for him, which we did for some time. As we debriefed after chapel, it came out that Stewart is dealing with some very heavy stuff from his childhood and struggling with the idea that he can be forgiven.

-Scooter, Director of Operations

Systems and Relationships

I have been thinking recently about relationships and helping someone who is homeless. Specifically, I have been thinking about relationship and systems. I think humans are pretty good at designing systems, including systems to help people. In my world of caring for homeless individuals we call them “continuum of care systems” or “the social service system” or the “health system”. I am proud of some great systems of care that our community has developed to help people in need. There are people and processes ready to help where needed.

I was wondering though what role relationships have in the success of those great systems? In working with homeless individuals, relationships of trust are incredibly important. It is not unlike the relationship of a business with a customer. Without the trust of its customers, a business will not succeed. Without trust an individual—a homeless person—may not choose to access available services simply because they don’t know and therefore don’t trust the people in the system. All the great intentions and best systems fail if not interwoven with relationships of trust.

I think we need to regularly guard against allowing really good systems of care to push out relationship. Relationships can be hard work. Creating and managing systems often seems easier and, to be honest, it is. I think the key variable is that in a relationship we don’t have as much control over the outcomes.

I think when we value the system more than the relationship, caseworkers get weary. The daily work becomes managing the system instead of helping the person. When we push relationship out of the provision of care, a homeless person becomes discouraged, disillusioned and even more frustrated with life. I know this because, ashamedly, there are times I catch myself focusing more on ‘systems of care’ than on the people for whom they are designed to care. I must remind myself that systems without relationships are simply inhumane.

-Jere Shertzer, WSRM President

God at work (in big and small ways)

It is incredible what God can do in a minute, in a day, in a month. The Lydia Center is Water Street Rescue Mission’s long-term recovery program for women. The following stories are examples of some of the things God has been doing there recently!

--The staff had been praying that God would provide workbooks for Beth Moore’s study Breaking Free as well as volunteers to lead the study with the ladies. God provided both!

--One lady who enrolled in the Lydia Center was not engaging in the program for the first 3 weeks of her commitment. She seemed shut down emotionally. She didn’t feel she really needed all the program had to offer. Finally after several weeks, she has shown a willingness to look inside at what’s going on in her heart. She has been honest about her heart struggles. She shows a willingness to receive input from others. She loves to worship the Lord, and she talks about wanting to do things that please Him.

--In the last few weeks, another client has really come out of her shell. We have seen her looking happier, engaging more in the community, and taking more responsibility for herself. She is more conversational, enjoys the company of others, and allows her true colors to show. God has brought this dear woman a long way in her view of herself and what she offers to others!

Perfection - this side of heaven

I used to believe that work in a Christian organization would be a bit like heaven – no tension, problems, or disagreements. I no longer operate under this delusion. I’ve come to see that any association comprised of flawed people can never approximate the perfection of a future paradise. An organization conceived, constructed, and controlled by men is destined to be characterized by relational rifts and conflict.

And this is to be expected. Sin is alive and well and saturates everyone’s heart.

I also see something else that contributes to the persistent capacity we have to hurt and sin against each other. Everyone with whom I work is insanely passionate about what they are doing! I can think of no one who works here simply because ‘it’s a job!’ Each of my colleagues is deeply zealous about what he or she does. Each believes they are ‘called’ to minister here. And each is striving to make Jesus the Lord of every aspect of his or her life, to not compartmentalize. So when conflict happens it feels like a personal attack and it really hurts! Disagreement, though actually inevitable, feels so personal because it threatens the essence of ‘what I do, how I think, and who I am.’

Where does this leave us? Are we to walk in fear of messing up? Are we to be consumed with making sure we stay in the lines as we color? Is inoffensiveness our ultimate goal? Are we to walk on eggshells with each other and withhold what we think or who we really are in order to maintain the peace? I’m not exactly sure about all of this but am reminded of something Martin Luther wrote in a letter to his friend, Philipp Melanchthon. Luther was quoted by others after his death as saying, ‘if you sin, sin boldly.’

Here is some of the context around what he really said:

If you are a preacher of mercy, do not preach an imaginary but the true mercy. If the mercy is true, you must therefore bear the true, not an imaginary sin. God does not save those who are only imaginary sinners. Be a sinner, and let your sins be strong, but let your trust in Christ be stronger, and rejoice in Christ who is the victor over sin, death, and the world. We will commit sins while we are here, for this life is not a place where justice resides. We, however, are looking forward to a new heaven and a new earth where justice will reign (2. Peter 3:13). It suffices that through God's glory we have recognized the Lamb who takes away the sin of the world. No sin can separate us from Him, even if we were to kill or commit adultery thousands of times each day. Do you think such an exalted Lamb paid merely a small price with a meager sacrifice for our sins? Pray hard for you are quite a sinner.

Another explains Luther’s comments this way:

“Luther was making the point to Philip Melancthon that God's grace calls us to live boldly. If you are going to do something do it with confidence. Know that if you screw it up, God's grace and forgiveness is mightier than your efforts to screw up. No he is not calling us to go out and sin to get grace flowing (though he has said that if you cannot find a sin in your life go and commit some small sin so you can know that you are a sinner); he is saying that we are not going to get thrown away by sinning. Go out and proclaim God with confidence... you are a sinner but God is not ever going to be outdone in His ability to forgive a sin.

Think of this analogy ... if you are in high school on the football team and the coach tells you that if you make one mistake he is yanking you out of the game for the duration, then you are not going to play good ball because you will be too worried about making a mistake. But if the coach tells you to go out and play as hard as you can, to give it all on the field, and not to worry about getting yanked, then you will play a much better ball game because you are free to go out and play without worrying about mistakes. Go and sin boldly, live boldly is the same thing.”
So when you’re in the game, play as hard as you can. As a coach always says, ‘don’t leave anything on the field!’ Press onward!

-Steve Brubaker, Residential Ministries

Joy in the flood

Urban ministry is not always fine dining and caviar (oops, is it ever) or even a bed of roses - sometimes it smells a bit different. The story below is from Alex Mikusow, our York Teen Haven Field Director who lives in our TH Center in the city of York:

Last summer my basement flooded due too a raw sewage backup of the city sewer. Because I'm the lowest point on the block I had about 20 inches of water in my basement. It wasn't pleasant or joyous.

But then the Lord sent his saints to my rescue and encouragement.

Daniel, my next door neighbor who attends my Bible study and is a cabin supervisor at our camp, came over to help. My brother Vinny, our camp director, also arrived with bleach, brooms and brushes to help me out. By the end of the evening the city came and helped pump out what they could as well. They were also able to unclog the blockage.

But the real joy was remembering what James said, "Count it all joy when you encounter various trials, knowing that the trying of your faith produces patience". My brothers in Christ helped me to remember what I already knew.

-Alex

The $75 Adventure

Here's our first attempt to include a video clip on our blog... hope you like it (you may have to click the "play" arrow twice to get it to run). This comes from a friend of the Mission who created a unique opportunity to teach his daughters about sharing with others:

The last time I worked for my Uncle I picked up lunch for his workers, but forgot to give him the change back—it was a $75 mishap. The next day, realizing my mistake, I called him up. He joked with me a little bit at first, but then told me to keep the money and spend it on my children. My uncle and aunt, although very generous and kind do not know the Lord. We pray for them continually and seek out opportunities to “show” them how a follower of Christ lives.

My 3 daughters, ages 6, 4, and 1 have plenty of toys and clothes. We have a tight budget but we make it work every month.They were in need of nothing, so we decided to give them an opportunity to give the money away.

After some family discussion, I took the $75, added $25 of our own, grabbed my two eldest daughters and jumped in our van. On the way to Amelia’s Grocery Outlet, I called Maurice and asked him what he needed. He told me the kitchen needed juice, so the 3 of us filled up 2 carts with 100 containers of juice. We nearly cleaned out Amelia’s juice aisle. The best part was we videoed the entire experience from start to finish. It was an incredible opportunity to model for my children the value of giving to those in need. We talked about why the Rescue Mission exists and how they love people It was a $100 lesson that was worth 10 times that amount. The next day I edited the video, which we entitled “the $75 Adventure,” burned it to a DVD and sent it to their house. My Aunt and Uncle loved the video and were thrilled to see their money at work.

- Jason, friend of the Mission

Allowing Christ to use you as He sees fit

This past fall, the pastors at my church gave a series of sermons related to Stepping Out in Faith: being willing to allow God to use us in ways that we have not permitted Him to use us before. The following account is a great example of stepping out in faith!

One day recently I sat down for lunch with "Robert". He mentioned that the past sixteen months have been the longest he has remained in one location for a long, long time. I asked him where he had lived before he came to Water Street and how he came to be living here. He told me that he had been picking watermelons in North Carolina and decided that he would move on to Florida to visit some of his relatives there. As he walked along the highway heading south, a trucker pulled off the road and called out to him, “Are you broken down?” "Robert" was confused about what the trucker was asking him, until the trucker pointed to a rig parked along the road. The trucker thought that "Robert" was the driver of that rig, and that he was walking to get help. "Robert" explained that he just happened to be walking in that area, on his way to Florida. The trucker invited "Robert" to ride with him, as he was delivering his load to Jacksonville.

As the two men headed south, the trucker evidently realized that "Robert" needed an important change in his life, one that only the Lord could provide. He offered to take "Robert" to a place where he could get his life straightened out, and told "Robert" that he didn’t need to make an immediate decision, but to think about it as they traveled together for several hours. The trucker was from Lancaster County and explained that he himself had gone to the Water Street Rescue Mission about five years earlier and had become a new person in Christ.

As "Robert" thought about this offer, he imagined that this trucker was an angel of the Lord, holding open the door of Heaven for him. How could he refuse such an opportunity? He decided that, “Yes! I will accept this offer.” After visiting his relatives in Florida, "Robert" was picked up by the trucker, and together they headed to Lancaster. The rest is history. "Robert" is now walking with the Lord in newness of life. He is engaged in the Christian Life Development program and recently started a new job.

The Lancaster trucker, although out on the road all week long, occasionally checks in with "Robert" to see how things are going. He has invited "Robert" to visit in his home and has taken him along to his church. "Robert"’s life is definitely headed in a different direction than it was the day that he met the trucker along that North Carolina highway! And that’s because of the Christ that he met at the foot of the cross!

Praise the Lord for the trucker’s willingness to step out in faith and allow the Lord to use him in an unexpected way!

-Ron Pawling, Business Office

We're back!

Here's hoping 2008 will be a little more consistent here on our little blog...

Look below for a brand new glimpse at life on Grace Plateau.

Wise me up, too...

I love how God knows what I need and doesn’t think inside my box.

Several months ago, “Maria” became my client here at the Lydia Center. Because of her simplicity, short attention span, and difficulty comprehending, I was not sure how I could help her. I whined and got upset at people who had sent her my way. Several months ago, I made a referral for her for housing and to my shame, was getting excited that I wouldn’t have to deal with her anymore.

Well, God is using “Maria” to teach me how to love well. I have seen her blossom so much from when she first entered here b/c she knows that she is loved and belongs. She recently stole the show at our Lydia Center talent show. She has such a kind heart and simple faith. Her mannerisms and the things she says are so endearing. I have come to enjoy my time with “Maria” so much, and now I will probably cry when her housing comes through and she spreads her wings to fly.

I am still not always sure how I can help "Maria", but I’m beginning to think that God may have sent her this way to teach me a few things:
1) to love others as He loves
2) to enjoy life and not take it so seriously
3) to laugh at myself
4) not to judge others on appearance or ability
5) to teach me patience and to enjoy the moment
6) and just to bless me.

The other day in counseling, “Maria” prayed this sweet prayer, “Keep an eye on all of us up here on this mountain…Give Lorene wisdom, and wise me up, too, to be kinda like You. Amen.”

Lord, I’m sorry for my selfish, judgmental ways. May I be more like You and love as You love. I thank you for teaching me through this precious woman. Bless her, as she continues to know You more and goes her way in life. May her life be as sweet to You as it is to me.

-Lorene, counselor at Lydia Center

My Resignation

For so many years,

I kept running from fears.

I kept living my way,

In search of fun everyday.

I took for granted all my responsibility,

All stemming from denial of my ability.

When the landlord knocked at my door,

The words I heard, I heard times before.

Thinking again I've been down this road before,

I turned to leave and shut the door.

I kept living a life, Oh, what a mess,

If only I had God would I surely be blessed.

I must have walked 10 miles or so, and

What came to mind was "Footprints in the Sand."

Oh what a blessing, walking that night,

Jesus was watching, I was in his sight.

I had blisters on my feet at my destination,

But my thanks to God, Satan received my resignation.

Written Testimony by Jeff - Men's CLD program

Check us out this Sunday...

Hey - This Sunday is our Fall Open House!

This is second Open House since our big renovations were completed this Spring. Try to stop by between 1-4pm to see what things look like today. Above are some pictures from the beginning of the Renovation Process - the change is amazing... come and see!

If you can't make it on Sunday, give us a call to set up a tour at your convenience.

Thank You God...

I used to drive past the Water Street Rescue Mission and think to myself, “Boy, I’m sure glad I’ll never end up there”. Well, here I am! The worst thing I thought could never happen…turns out to be the best thing that ever happened in my life. Don’t get me wrong; I don’t like being here but without the help of all the good people here, I would never have had the courage to surrender and accept Jesus Christ as my Lord and Savior. Thank God; He gave me this chance.

I have learned a lot since coming here…so much that I didn’t think my brain could accept anymore information. Well, I kept stuffing it in there and some things started making sense…like doing things the easy way, just to find that it usually makes everything else difficult. It’s hard being a Christian but in the long run, with the help of the Lord everything seems so much more bearable.

There are two good teachings that really stick with me: #1. There is nothing I can do to make God love me less. And there is nothing I can do to make God love me more (Thanks, Scooter); and #2. Real growth comes when I learn to trust God at the hardest possible time (Biblical Life Management).

Thanks to everyone here for opening my eyes and letting me know I am worth it. Thank You, God!

--Mark, resident - Christian Life Development program, Transition phase

Serving Water Street... and Haiti

A group of volunteers recently replaced the ceiling tiles in our men's emergency shelter. Needless to say, we were quite grateful. As they emailed Chuck, one of our chaplains, with the rest of the story, we were amazed by God's goodness and timing in blessing not only us, but a ministry in Haiti as well.

Hi Chuck-

... Here is what God has done.

My husband, Ken, and I planned a spaghetti dinner to raise money for Good Samaritan Mission School in Beaufort, Haiti. It took place on Saturday, May 5. We had spaghetti, salad, and bread left over and took it to WSRM on Sunday, May 6 after church. Our friends, Claudette and Michael Austin were with us. We did not know that on that day there was an Open House. We decided to stay and take a tour. The medical and dental facilities and the women's shelter were beautiful. Then we arrived at the Men's Emergency Shelter. It had not been renovated. Ken stated that he thought that we should do a fundraiser and raise the money to replace the ceiling tiles in the Men's Emergency shelter. It was decided that we would.

On Saturday, July 7 a yard sale and aluminum can drive was held. We raised $850.00. We approached building supply stores to ask for a discount to purchase the supplies we needed. The Home Depot responded with a 20 percent discount. Our bill for the ceiling tiles, light defusers, and a bathroom fan came to $721.00 exactly.

During the time we were preparing to do the work at the mission, we went to the PA Haiti Benefit Auction. Ken and I have gone to this event for many years and have developed a friendship with Leon, a missionary that drills wells in Haiti. Since I am a school nurse, he asked if I could find some uniforms for a soccer team that he was forming in Haiti. I said that I would. After searching for a good price, Ken and I decided that we would order the shirts and shorts from a local apparel printing shop. The sales person offered a discount. When we recieved the bill we found that the amount due was exactly $129.00. The exact amount left over from the fundraising.

God reminds me always that we have nothing to worry about. He has ALL things taken care of.

Thank you, Chuck. I hope to see you soon when we hang the new curtains and the shower curtains.

With Love, Ken and Kathy Wall

Everyone deserves a second chance...

Solomon aptly said, “Many waters cannot quench love; rivers cannot wash it away…” Song of Songs 8: 7

Like most of our serious clients, Russell could barely stumble through the doors of the Water Street Rescue Mission. He had sold his life off for a steady handful of pills; a price that could no longer purchase relief. Dark shadows haunted Russell, reminding him of his life’s most painful memories; memories of a wife who now belonged to another and of a daughter and granddaughter who had grown up, without him; memories of countless broken promises.

On Russell’s first day with us, he met Chuck (men’s counselor) who simply began loving him to our precious Jesus. Imagine my joy, when Chuck called to share the news that Russell had accepted Jesus, flushed the pills, and was going to join our Christian Life Recovery Program (to change his life). For nearly 1 ½ years now, Russell has been following Jesus, “by faith”. He has surely relished the tender moments, when God would touch him in a deeply personal way, but mostly Russell has trusted Jesus, as he takes “one more” painful step of Recovery.

In September, I was blessed to attend a wedding with Russell. His daughter had invited her changing dad (and me) to share in her day. Imagine the immense Joy on Russell’s face, as a long line of relatives and friends from his past (relationships he thought were utterly destroyed) came up to shake his hand and to hug him, welcoming him back into their lives. And imagine a beaming Russell, as his daughter came with a welcoming hug saying, “Daddy, I have always wondered if you would be at my wedding but you came and you’re doing so well. I’m so proud of you”. Now imagine a happy man being hugged by a lovely little granddaughter (who he only held as a baby).

It was interesting to note that the scripture Russell’s daughter chose for her table gifts was the very first scripture Russell memorized, “Love is patient; love is kind…” How apt are the words of his former in-laws, “Everyone deserves a second chance, Russell”.

--Norm Lowry (Learning Center Coordinator)

It's not fair that...

I was asked to assist my Pastor with a presentation at church relating to "justice and longing for God," so I decided to take a little poll of some staff and residents. Here are the results:

Please complete the following sentence:

"It's not fair that..."

…some people are homeless while others drive $80,000 cars past them
…some of us are allowed to work just one bad decision away from being homeless
…millions of children are undernourished and many of us throw away sinful quantities of food
…life is hard
…those who choose to live a healthy life free of smoking, alcohol & drug abuse, etc. still get cancer.
…young people die
…Some get over, others don’t
…Good things happen to bad people
…Bad things happen to good people
…Children suffer
…The rich get richer, the poor …
…I was born in America and … someone else was born in poverty
…my poverty disrupts my family
…people don’t know Jesus
…when we get wisdom it’s too late to stop what we shouldn’t have done
…when you commit to following Christ, you are not exempt from being emotionally & physically abused by Christians.
…Christians harshly judge others by their political choices
…I am the one who sinned, and Jesus is the sinless One who became sin for me, and gave me His righteousness instead.
…the Lord gave us the Love Commandment, and the Holy Spirit to enable us to do it, and yet we treat each other as if we were not even His children.
… I have parents that love God, each other, my siblings and me, while so many of my struggling brothers and sisters in Christ do not know what it is like to be in a nurturing environment like I was.
…we got off the hook at Jesus’ expense
…some couples try unsuccessfully for years to have children they would love, while other couples breed like rabbits to produce children they don't want
…there are millions of children without parents, and adoption costs tens of thousands of dollars and years of red tape
…the biggest disease on the planet is loneliness
…the burden (and often, cost) of raising children too often falls to the mother.
…grown children disrespect and disregard their parents and/or grandparents.
…I have been wrongly accused by another
…I was grounded this weekend
…I don’t have his office
…you have more money than I do
…so many people live in poverty and I live in abundance
…some of us had opportunities for education and advancement, while others were stuck in situations of merely striving for subsistence
…I sit here with a full stomach typing on the computer, while people have just died from starvation

- Debbie Miller, Administration