Our Housing Stuff

Our housing situation has recently become unfortunately complicated!

4 years ago we moved into this house right next to campus.  Cornell University actually owns this house (166 Pleasant Grove Rd.)  and we rent it via a third part management company.  

 We love being close to campus for a lot of reasons.  The whole endeavor of our ministry here at Cornell is to make the good news of Jesus Christ as accessible as possible.  

Ever since my first international mission trip in the summer of 1997, I have been convinced that the best way to connect  people with God's gracious love is to go and live among them. God originated this idea; walking with Adam in the garden, dwelling with the Israelite's in the tabernacle and then sending Jesus to earth as the ultimate missionary. Jesus lived as a man, with men in order to reconcile men to himself. He came to earth and gave his life so that we could have a personal relationship with him forever. And he has invited us to participate with him in this same mission.

This house has served us very well in our ministry here; it has enabled us to live very close to the students we minister to and with.   But it seems now we must live somewhere else!  Please pray for us as we look for another house that will serve our family and our ministry like this one has.  

If this stuff is interesting to you, you can read on.  

Gospel Driven Student Leader

Two summers ago, Kelechi Umoga went back to Nigeria and began building a health clinic in the village of Abuja, Nigeria.  He hopes to go to med school and be a doctor, but he’s already begun to transform  health care in his home country!   

The Cornell Chronicle wrote a fantastic article about his work that you can read here.

Cru at Cornell is literally one of the largest student organizations on campus because of leaders like Kelechi.  He is a very committed leader in our ministry here and what that means is that he’s a contributor who shows up  week in and week out to work alongside others in an effort to serve his fellow students and work in ways that make Cornell more joyful.  To me that’s incredibly important.  I know that Kelechi can bring people together to work on something great in Africa because I’ve seen him do that here on campus.  

As a desk receptionist at Anabel Taylor Hall, one of Kelechi Umoga’s duties includes locking up Cornell’s Sage Chapel on the nights when he works.  A couple of weeks ago when he walked in after 11:00pm he saw a solitary student sitting in a pew quietly staring forward; deep in thought.  Kelechi hesitated a moment, not wanting to disturb the guy, and then politely asked him if he would mind shutting off the lights when he left.  The student obligingly said ‘yes’ and Kelechi was going to leave, but he felt prompted by the Holy Spirit to walk over and engage the student in conversation.   They ended up talking for quite a while and I have no doubt Kelechi was able to be of considerable comfort to this new friend who was struggling over the recent break up with his girlfriend.   In the end, they exchanged numbers and made plans to meet again.    Kelechi is a caring, helpful, compassionate person who makes time for others not just when he’s doing something spectacular, but even late at night when no one is around to see him. 

Kelechi hosts a Community Group, gives guidance to our student prayer team and sings in our Cru Cornell Gospel band. This guy has integrity and it’s a beautiful thing to witness.  When he sings there is a power that flows not just from his strong vocal chords but from the authentic, blood earnest faith that he has in Jesus Christ.  His conviction is evident and there’s just something right about a person proclaiming that “God is good all the time” who actually believes that!   

In the spring of 2013 Kelechi accompanied our group on a service trip to Haiti where we work with an orphanage.  Kelechi is fluent in French which was incredibly helpful and he was certainly a natural with the kids.  I have this image burned into my mind whenever I think about Kelechi of him dancing with the orphans one evening at the house.  He told me once that back in high school he was really into partying and his dance skills were somewhat notorious.  So much of that party scene was destructive and self-promoting and so when he became a Christian he was very cautious about getting involved in that type of scene, and so he really doesn’t dance as much.   But he brought out the moves that night, and the kids were all about it!   And for me, that scene really captures so much of who Kelechi is.   He’s a man in motion, engaging with others, bringing joy and blessing to those around him.   When you think about it, that’s pretty much what dancing is really supposed to be about anyway.  So for me his skills are still notorious! 

When it comes to motivation, drive, initiative and even big vision, you could say that there are a lot of guys like Kelechi at Cornell.  But to me, what sets him apart is that he’s such a team player.  Kelechi has plans that’s for sure, but he’s unusual in that he’s not out there trying to just do his own thing by himself.   He lives life connected with others, and he has good friends.   For any grand endeavor to really work in this world you need capable people who can truly lead others, motivate others and  mobilize their friends.    Kelechi is adept at joining together with others and getting other people involved in whatever he is doing. 

  

Kelechi spent this last summer studying  for his Medical College Admission Test (MCAT) and in the end, his score wasn’t that great.  He will need to keep studying and retake the test in order to gain admittance into med school and that was discouraging for sure.   But as long as he feels called to be a doctor I am absolutely certain that he will strive and persevere and overcome in order to achieve that goal.  And even though the scores weren’t as good on this round as he would like, I feel confident that he will make an incredible doctor some day because he already does so many of those things that great doctors must do!  He actually cares for people, he serves others, he lives a life of consistency and conviction.  He passes his classes here at Cornell, so I also know that he’s academically capable, it’s just a matter of time before he improves his MCAT scores and proceeds to med school.  But in the meantime, what he’s going to do is trust God and live his life doing all kinds of wonderful things, and so there will be no time “lost” that’s for sure! 

Either way, Kelechi is planning to take a gap year and  this past weekend, he was with me in Rochester, attending Cru's intern preview weekend.  He is seriously considering sticking with us next year as an intern which would be absolutely incredible!  

In case you haven’t read this article about him, please check it out:

http://www.news.cornell.edu/stories/2014/01/cornell-junior-brings-change-home-nigeria

Pressed but not crushed

Some of you have been “in the loop” so to speak, and many of you have not really.  I wanted to give you a brief synopsis of some medical/health challenges that have recently been a part of our life, so that you can join us in prayer more specifically. 

A couple of years ago Stephanie suggested that I go in for a routine physical.  The standard blood tests revealed a low white blood cell count, and so my physician asked me to have a second test run.  I eventually got around to that, and again, had a low white count.  Last March when I was getting a prescription for malaria meds for Haiti, my doctor and I talked about my results and set up another test and an appointment with a blood specialist etc.  Long story short, I ended up having some more blood tests and eventually a bone marrow draw!  That was intense, but not as painful as you might imagine.

A few weeks after that we had this really terrible Doctor visit where the doctor told us she was concerned that I might have a pre-leukemic disease called Myelodysplastic Syndrome (MDS). (google "leukemia and MDS and you'll find it.)  She explained that MDS always becomes leukemia and told us the facts about how relatively unsuccessful bone marrow transplants are.  That was a hard day.  Although she considered me a definitive 'rare case' because of my age etc. she was preparing us for the worst.  "By the numbers" she said I might only have 10 years to live.  WOW!

I am extremely grateful that I had read John Piper and David Paulison's article titled "Don't Waste your Cancer" years ago!  Seriously!  Everybody should really read that article, because statistically, everyone's gonna have a doctor appointment like that at some point!  

  

Our kids knew I'd been getting tests and we had been told that leukemia was an option even before that day.  We came home and shared with our children that the doctor thought I might be on a slightly faster track to heaven than most daddy’s my age.  We read some scripture and tried to convey to them some of the intensity in a way that let them into what was going on but also wasn’t completely alarming or anything.   Together, we spoke of the reality of God’s goodness, sovereignty and love for us. 

In July I went to Columbia University to what is arguably the best MDS lab in the world.  There, my new Doctor –Dr. Raza checked me out and determined that at this point, I do not technically  have MDS.  She cannot conclude at this point that I have it, but, given the blood and marrow readings, it’s quite possible I am headed that way –but not  for sure.  That day was actually quite encouraging because my blood levels were actually normal!  Yeah!  I truly consider it all an answer to prayer.  My white blood cell count was in the normal healthy range for once! Praise God. 

I’m scheduled to visit Dr. Raza in New York city every two months now.  After conducting an expensive genetic screen they’ve determined that I’m in a grouping that’s slightly less likely to end up with MDS – Leukemia!  (I DON'T have a certain genetic deformity which virtually ensures you'll end up with MDS.)  And that's awesome!  But again; it is still a very real possibility that what we are looking at now is the early stages of this thing called MDS.

I rest knowing that Jesus is the good shepherd and my life –which James reminds us is a “vapor” is truly in the HIS hands.  Every day is a gift from HIM, and I want to live it for his glory and his purposes.  We have joy in the midst of trial because of who God is.  We rejoice in the Hope of the Glory of God. 

Not only that (as Paul continues in Romans 5:3-5) but we rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance, and endurance produces character, and character produces hope, and hope does not put us to shame, because God's love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us.  

Please pray for 1. Healing and Healthy blood!  2. Faith as we walk through the difficulty  3.  Wisdom. I want to know what the Lord has for me in all of this. 

How do I feel?  I feel perfectly normal.  I've never had any "symptoms."   I feel great.  There is literally nothing "physical" that seems noticeably compromised.  In fact, even though the White Blood Cell count is "low" the doctors have told me that my Immune System is technically healthy and fully functional.   

So what are we doing?  Praying.  Thanking Jesus for every day. Eating lots of Kale and all kinds of green stuff.   Trying to exercise more regularly and pretty much keepin on keepin on.   (Dr. Raza has given me a specific diet recommendation.)  

Read "Don't Waste Your Cancer" online here.  http://cdn.desiringgod.org/website_uploads/documents/books/dont-waste-your-cancer.pdf

Check out Dr. Raza on youtube here https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ndY6maI032M

Seasons Matter

     Continuing with agricultural metaphors that I use when talking about campus ministry.....

My grandfather Betts was a verifiable "green thumb."  He worked that Tucumcari (New Mexico) dirt faithfully and always had fresh beans, tomatoes and squash etc.  He passed the gene along and although my dad didn't get a garden planted every year, he certainly gave it a go on and off throughout my life.   I've never planted a garden, but as I get older (and get more kids to feed!) I've felt this desire to get into it.

Have you ever heard of planting potatoes in a trash can?  This spring, I watched a few videos about planting potatoes in barrel.  With any kind of barrel or bin or even some type of cylindrical fence wire and some straw, you can plant a whole bunch of potatoes in an upright arrangement.  "Container Gardening" is a fantastic urban gardening technique, and it's also good for keeping the deer out of your crops!  (Go on youtube and search for "plant potatoes in a barrel" or check out this link.)  I was inspired reading about harvesting hundreds of pounds of potatoes!  What a great idea!

Then I went to Wildwood, NJ for our Cru Summer Mission.

When I came back, I still wanted to plant some potatoes, so I found my friend Teddy at church.  Teddy is a masters student who studies potatoes!  You couldn't find a better helper!  I told him what I wanted to do.  He wasn't too familiar with the barrel technique, but he had heard of it.  I asked him where I could get some good seed potatoes and he said he'd talk to one of his professors.  We both acknowledged that it was a little late to be planting.  

A whole week passed by and the next week, I saw Teddy at church and here's what he said.  "My professor said you would need to plant some very specific (fast maturing) variety of potatoes if you wanted to have any yield planting at this time of year.  And even then, you would really need some ideal growing conditions.  Without a greenhouse, you really can NOT count on the elements to help you out.  And besides that, you don't have access to the seed potatoes that you would need even to have a chance.  It's not going to work out for you this year."

Shut Down!  

Here's what happened. Growing crops takes time, and it's critical to get seeds in the ground at a certain time of year.  It doesn't  I matter how good your soil and your compost is if you aren't planting at the right time of year!  It doesn't matter how carefully you place the seed or how nice your irrigation system is.  It won't matter how much care and "love" you give your garden -you have the plant in the spring!  I could've found the nicest barrel, procured the finest soil and fertilizer, but at the end of the day, I was just too late! Even with the help of an Ivy League student who majors in tubors at Cornell, you just don't plant potatoes outside in Ithaca in the middle of July.

Planting crops is a "time critical" endeavor.  There are times of year when you must do certain things if you want to have things to do the rest of the year!  Every field has it's seasons, not all seasons are the same, and you've got to act accordingly.

In campus ministry, there are also seasons that are special, and there are things that must be done in the summer and in the  fall or things will be very very hard.  (I would say "impossible" but we know that with God all things are possible!)

The fall is a time to meet tons and tons of new people and help them get plugged in.  We must get out on campus to welcome as many new students as we can.  We must labor  to make campus ministry visible, tell people that we exist, inform them about our on campus fellowship.  We talk to people about Jesus and explain the necessity of life in gospel-centered community.  We invite them to check out our small groups where they can connect with others study the Bible and gather around the gospel.  The fall is special because the weather is good and the school year has just begun.  The "climate" is literally "right" for making new connections! People actually  have time to hang out and talk more than they will in about a month.  Everybody wants to meet new people and make new friends.   And people are just forming up the "rhythms" of their year.  They are making decisions about how they will spend their time, and who they are going to be hanging out with.  Campus ministers and student leaders must engage as many people as they can in the fall because that's when students are settling in.

In essence, this is our planting season!   As the year goes on, life on campus gets more hectic, frenzied, and here in Ithaca -cold!  Students schedules become more settled and rigid.  Habits have been formed and if a student hasn't made Christian fellowship a part of their life, it will be harder to integrate it in the middle of the year.  But if we will put the work in during the first few weeks of the fall, we can see a new "crop" of leaders raised up.

Everything we do is dependent upon dedicated, Jesus exalting student leaders.  In order to do what we do and make the gospel as accessible as possible on campus, we need as many student leaders as we can get.  The new students we connect with in the fall are the leaders of the future.  And if we fail to connect with those students in the fall, we will be lacking man-power in the spring and going into next fall.

This dynamic really affects our Community Group leaders.  They understand that if they don't work hard in the fall, their Community group might be about as big as my potato harvest.  Nothin!   The beginning of the year is when you have to make the majority of your new connections.  You can go walk around the dorms in November, but you won't find tons of students willing or even able to modify their schedule to help you launch a new missional Community Group at that time.  But if you work hard in the fall, you'll have a group ready to minister to those around them for the rest of the year.   You've got to get your hands dirty in the first few weeks of the fall!

"Calving Season"

There's really nothing quite like the beginning of the fall semester!  It's a time of year that is truly special and unique.  

    

Most people have never seen the 7 part documentary called "The Last American Cowboy."  It's about 3 different Montana cattle ranches and the families that own/run them.  It's thoroughly interesting to see how all three ranches really do things a little bit differently based on their size and resources. 

I reference that movie often at the beginning of the year as I'm coaching our student leaders because  I compare the beginning of the school year to "calving season."  Calving season on a cattle ranch is an extremely important, extremely busy,  and unique time of year.  It's an "all hands on deck" season where the normal rhythms of life are disrupted by the critical work of delivering  the baby calves.  The whole years work and the  financial future of the ranch is dependent upon live, healthy cows, so the key is to see as many calves "hit the ground" safe and ready to thrive.   Everybody is "on call" and life looks different during calving season.  

Normally the cowboys and ranch hands don't stay up all night -but during calving season, that's not rare. The work is exhausting, and although normally the hands don't sleep in the barn -during calving season they might.  The workers are on a round the clock schedule and where on a normal day, no one would ever have to sleep in the truck -during calving season they will!  Everything is different during calving season and the "routine" or lack thereof is informed by the mission during this special time of year. 

And that's how it is during the beginning of the fall semester on campus.  Diligence is the name of the game, especially at a place like Cornell.  Together with our student leaders we labor in ways and at a pace that is unlike any other time of year.   We spend more money on food -both as we host kick-off events, but also as we spend time eating in the north campus dining facilities with new students.   I eat fewer meals with my family during this time of year, and our student leaders also eat less at home.  We stay up later -attending glow in the dark dance parties, hosting late night sports events and planning for the next days activities.  We get up early, to spend time in prayer, we're sending tons of emails, texts and facebook messages to new students who are interested in getting connected to the body of Christ.  We spend hours standing at tables in all sorts of strategic places on campus welcoming people, handing out information packs and inviting people to our small groups.   The first few weeks are different, they are definitively more hectic and they require more energy than usual.  

A campus ministers life looks very different during the first month and a half of school the same way a cattle ranchers does during calving season.  You simply cannot treat that time of year the same as any other.  The pace slows down around October, but right now, we're still in the midst of our "calving season."  

"Right In Our Own Back Yard!"

Two of our kids were downstairs riding skateboards and the rest of us were in our apartment when after a quick rap on the door, a girl from China walks right into our house with a confident "hello."  It's 9:15 in the morning, and  even though we have never met, she's standing in our entry way, exclaiming at the cuteness of Juniper and wandering down the hallway to the living room! 

"Hello!"  I greet her back.  We all introduced ourselves and began to talk about apartments for rent in the area.  I ended up walking around the neighborhood and helping her and her friends find some living accommodations for the summer.

It's not that that was a daily occurrence by any means, but I tell you that story to highlight just how involved we are with the international student population in Wildwood!  The students are everywhere -even walking right into our living room!  

So often it's merely sentiment to say "there are people from all over the world right in our back yard." But on the Wildwood Summer Project, it's actual fact!   Throughout the week and with increasing frequency we and our students hang out in the backyard of the project house talking with new friends from all over the world.

I was hanging out one night talking with a guy named Alex from Romania along with a couple of other guys including a guy I'll call "G" from China.  We were talking about original sin and I was explaining the Adam and Eve story which was actually brand new to "G."   Alex, had grown up around the Eastern Orthodox tradition, so he was at least familiar with the narrative.  As we talked about the effects of the fall in the world and in our lives Alex exclaimed grievously "Awww Adam!  Why did you eat that F****** apple!?"  (I think he speaks for all of us.)  As we went on, I was explaining that Jesus is the only one who has ever lived a perfect and sinless life.  So that the gospel was not confused as being simply another moralistic tale, I told some other stories from the Bible, explaining that all of the characters in the Bible are actually sinful, fallen human beings, and only the God in the flesh, Jesus can save us.  As I told different stories, I dialed em up using BibleGateway on my iPhone.

It was a great conversation and everyone was really engaged.  "G" said, "I am really interested in the Bible right now!"  I explained that he could read the whole thing online in his own language!  He said, "yah, but how long would that take?"  I said "Probably a couple of months."  He said  "Don't they have a movie or something?"  I said "well, actually...yah.  They kind of do!  Just this past year the History Channel made a movie!"  I said "I'll buy it and how bout next Thursday we can start watching it!"

Here's what's cool.  "G" actually went home and downloaded the full miniseries on his computer!  But then, someone stole his laptop!!  NOOOOOO!  But he came out on Thursday, and towards the end of our International Cafe, we set up a screen right in the driveway and about 10-15 of us watched the first episode of the Bible movie.  

There were guys literally getting their first exposure to the Biblical narrative!  And they were into it!

  

F.A.T. Volunteer

F.A.T. stands for Faithful, Available, and Teachable.  Dan Seo is definitely FAT!

The truth is, Dan Seo wasn't planning on staying at Cornell for a whole semester after he finished school, but thankfully God was!  Dan rocked out his Electrical/Computer Engineering degree in just 3 1/2 years and was dutifully applying for jobs throughout the fall of '13 but nothing panned out!  Dan had seriously considered staying at Cornell and volunteering alongside our interns, but in the end he and his family had decided it would be best if he went straight into engineering.  BUT, surprisingly, he just wasn't getting the offers!  The situation was actually very stressful.  Dan is certainly capable and qualified, but the discouragement compounded each time he would do an interview and fill out an application only to be passed over.  And not only was Dan himself getting unnerved, but his father and mother were increasingly distressed which put a lot of pressure on him. When January of 2014 arrived, Dan decided that -without another job available, he would hang out in Ithaca for the semester, and spend time serving our ministry with his free time.  

Dan was able to have a God-centered perspective on it all.  Relaying his experience to our movement he said; "I ended up without a job and I like to think that it was by God’s grace that I didn’t get a job [last semester]."  It's been a faith challenge for sure, but those of us who have been involved can affirm that Dan has fought hard to believe truth in the face of adversity. (In fact, at the time of this writing, Dan is still applying for jobs, and is even now trusting God even with the future so uncertain and out of his control.)

As a student Dan was a real servant leader who was a big part of leading Community Groups in Collegetown.  Dan also acted as the functional "secretary" of our ministry, helping to ensure that notes were taken at every one of our leadership meetings and typing up 'minutes.'  He would typically post the minutes right after the meeting thereby enabling anyone who was unable to attend to "catch up" on all the stories and business that had been covered.  Numerous leaders benefited from that contribution!  Doing that, also enables us as staff to look back on over 2 years of leadership meetings to keep track of what we have covered in the past and help us be more effective going forward.  As a volunteer, Dan was able to keep doing those things and even more.  

Dan's friends would tell you that he is truly one of the most disciplined and organized people they have ever met.  I knew that his strengths would be a wonderful compliment to our staff team.  Explaining his experience working with us he said  "I don’t think J, Will, or Mercy will take offense when I say they are not logistical/administrative masters or necessarily detail driven. They just weren't made to be people sitting in front of a computer screen typing all day....or to discuss logistics for hours on end.  Instead they... communicate, direction set, build relationships with people, teach and lead.   But me, with my personality and disposition, I’m an organizer!  I like figuring out logistics, planning and thinking about the details."

Especially as we organized and orchestrated the logistics and finances of our 3 spring break trips, Dan and his spreadsheets enabled us to send students to New York City, Guatamala City and Port-au-Prince, Haiti. And because he didn't have any coursework on his plate, Dan was able to be very available to fill in holes and help with almost anything at all! And it certainly wasn't all business! We enjoyed his company and appreciated his friendship.

I will say that for my part, I was extremely grateful that Dan was able to stay with us!  And I know that the rest of our staff team loved it as well! He certainly finished his time here at Cornell in a way that was definitively non-traditional, but it was so, so helpful.  (In fact, I truly hope that others will follow his example and do the same in years to come!)  Sharing at our last weekly meeting, in his matter of fact way,  he encouraged others to consider staying as an intern or volunteer staff. 

"I wouldn’t ever want people that serve as a volunteer staff, much less intern, to have not thought this over. [Going to] work immediately, taking a vacation, a celebratory trip somewhere fun, or just bumming around and relaxing (after graduation).....none of those are the wrong choice to make.

But I do believe there might be a better choice. Like a lot of thing Cru advocates, Fall Getaways, Summer Projects to name a couple, it may not always, in every situation be the best move, like when you need to be studying or working at a job, but like a lot of thing Cru advocates, staying and serving is something you will not regret doing. For me, it's been a blessing and helpful in my walk, and I hope that makes staying a bit more appealing."