Scared enough to change?

We have recently started a second girls' group. It was by the grace of God that this group formed. I did not go out seeking them, but God started sending these older girls to our teen group. Recognizing that their needs are vastly different from the 12-15 year olds I work with, we decided to form a new group. This one is for older girls, still or their teens or early twenties. Some of these girls are moms of one or two kids. We were blessed to have two women at Contact step up and agree to mentor these girls. The group is still in the early stages - just one or two young women each time - but I feel a stong sense that God is working here.

Last Tuesday I had a chance to visit with one of the young women. She has two small children, is living on her own, dropped out of school, no job...a hard situation indeed. She was very downcast all evening. She confided that her brother was recently shot "over colors" (gang stuff). He is recovering, but she is too scared to return to her apartment. If she had been home, she believes the shooting would have happened there. "What about my kids?" she worried. Later she also told me that her babies' daddy was sent to jail last week. She is staying in a crowded house with his family, trying to figure out what to do, where to go... We prayed together. I said things I hoped were helpful, praying all the while that God would put words in my mouth. How hard it is to respond to a situation I can barely grasp, a hopelessness I have never felt!

Later a visited with one of the mentors for this older group. When I told her how discouraged this young woman was on Tuesday, her response surprised me at first. "Good, that's good...maybe she'll be scared enough to make some real changes now". The more I thought about it, the more I heard the wisdom of her remarks. This young woman has had plans before - school, job training, new apartment - but they all fizzled. Now she is at a place to make some real changes. It's no small thing to change your friends, your apartment, your environment, but I believe that is what she needs in order to step out of the life she is in and into the life God is calling her to. Sometimes being scared is a good thing. Thankfully, this young woman has some people who really care about her, who want to help her make changes, who love her where she is, and seek to offer her a hand of hope. Please pray for this young woman and pray for the wisdom of those who seek to offer both truth and grace.

Contact Teen Girls Need Your Help!

Many of you may have received the following letter via email. I'm posting it here so that anyone I missed can read about our needs. Please pass this information along to other people you think may be able to help the Contact Girls. Additionally, we are having one more car wash this Saturday, June 28th, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at Park Plaza church of Christ.

"For the past three months our teen girls have been working to raise money for a trip to Houston. The purpose of the trip is to provide an opportunity for the girls to have new experiences, learn something of the world outside of Tulsa, and open their eyes to new possibilities. The girls, along with their chaperones (Dalene Lawrence, Cathy Gotcher, and Devin Dupree) hope to visit NASA’s Houston Space Center and the Holocaust Museum, as well as journey to Galveston to see the ocean, something none of our girls have ever seen before.

We have had car washes, bake sales, and a big thrift sale to raise money. The girls have worked hard to earn their way to Houston, and God has definitely blessed their efforts. However, we are still several hundred dollars short of what we need to make this trip. This is where you can step in and help! We are having a “No Bake, Bake Sale”. Instead of donating baked goods for us to sell, we are asking you to take the amount of money you would spend on sugar, eggs, butter, etc… and donate that to us. We are grateful for any amount you feel you can give.

Please mail all donations to:
Contact Church of Christ
ATTN: Teen Girls’ ministry
1529 W. 49th St.
Tulsa, Ok 74107

The girls leave on July 10th, so we need to wrap up our fundraising as soon as possible. Please mail all donations by this Friday, June 27th; however, we will continue accepting donations throughout the rest of the summer. Thank you for caring about these girls and helping to make this trip happen for them. We also ask that you offer up prayers for this trip and these very special girls. We especially ask for prayers that this trip will provide them with a new vision of how God can work in their lives."

Best Sermon Today At Contact

Today I was scheduled to preach at Contact. I had my notes and even a hand-out ready to go. I asked two boys to pass out the hand-out, and then the message changed.

An older lady and her son stood before Contact with Ron, a minister at Contact. She was ready to stop living a lie and be baptized. Her adult son confessed that after being baptized at ayoung age, he had wondered off like the prodigal son. He was ready to be baptized again to start a new life with Christ. He was baptized first. Then he baptized his mother. After she was baptized, she said to the standing crowd, "I'm so thankful that my family (Contact Church) could be here."

During all of this, I'm thinking, "Maybe I've got time to deliver the message. I'll shorten it a little."

Well, one of the teen girls that Sarah has connected with, came up to her, wanting to be baptized. Sarah came up to me with tears in her eyes, telling me the good news. I talked with her, and soon enough we were able to grab her dad. She wanted him to baptize her. A normally very talkative man was speechless before Contact Church. This father got to baptize his daughter, the first person that he has ever baptized. While in the water, he repeated outloud what he heard from the sidelines of the baptistry on what to ask and say. "Do you believe that Jesus is the Son of God?" "Because of that confession, I baptize you in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit."

What powerful moments all in one day! God's breaking in! People get ready...

And...I get to preach the same message next week!

Carrying a Heavy Load at age 4

Today a little boy at a one-day VBS came up to me and asked for a Band-aid. I got one for him and then asked what was wrong. He showed me his finger. A large wart had grown on the side of one of his fingers. Our office manager D talked with him about asking his mom to get him some wart removal band-aids. This four-year old's first response was the following: "She doesn't have money for that. Can you go buy some?"

I am amazed and saddened by how much baggage our youth have to carry at such a young age. They already know the financial situation of their homes at the ripe age of 4. They are so resilient, so tough, so courageous, and so insecure. To all who help lighten their load, grace and peace from our Father in heaven.

Family update

Here are couple recent pictures of Miriam. Summer is in full swing around here. We are enjoying our backyard, the park, and especially the pool. The summer heatwave has already begun!


I'm babysitting a couple school age kids again. They are wonderful helpers and two of Miriam's favorite people. It's a win-win situation for everyone. Bob is headed to camp next week - always a fun week for him, and a long week for us! Please pray for camp, for Bob, and for the two of us waiting at home. We hope your summer is off to a great start too!

Mother-Daughter Tea

In May the teen girls hosted a mother-daughter tea for their moms and grandmas. We were a small group, but it was an encouraging time for the families who were there. One mother said she could't remember the last time she and her daughter had time alone - just the two of them. She is a single mom with 3 other children. Quality time of any sort is hard to come by. But that day they did get to sit together at the same table, drink tea and eat cookies, play a game (which they won), and even play a little basketball. The picture is of a couple of our teen girls. Beautiful, inside and out. It was a rare treat to see them so dressed up! Thanks for praying for the girls and their families, especially the many single parents we know.

Karate and Basketball

As I took my four teen karate partners home, I was trying to make conversation with a guy who just started. It was his second time, and I am just not sure if he is interested. He loves basketball and is very talented in that sport. So...I ask a question that I think will motivate him in this new endeavor.

Me: "So do you think there is anything in karate that could help with playing basketball?"

Teen: "Naw. In karate, you learn how to kick and punch and stuff like that. You don't do that in basketball."

Great answer. Let's hope not.