The Change and Healing of Fall

Most of the time life at Shelterwood is defined by the unexpected and unusual.  I often find myself unintentionally dominating conversations with church friends and neighbors with unending Shelterwood tales.  Would this week be any different?  I had a chance to speak during our chapel time on Thursday. It was a cool October morning and we met in the Girls Lodge with a nice fire brewing.  The view behind the fireplace is the picture I placed next to this Post.  Anyway, I shared about Jonah and the life of change God brought him through.  You see, we have a unique and, possibly a one-time situation here at Doulos:  ALL  have  experienced change. Usually it's just the Residents or Leadtimers but this time it includes everyone.  Staff has relocated, Leadtimers have committed to a blind-year and the Residents are placed by parents without warning.  The point is simple: God has brought me (and everyone else) to this point in His relentless pursuit of our hearts.  Yeah sure, lots of big-picture "ministry" takes place around here but it is always about the individual.  Your life is no different.  Don't miss it. 

The Leadtime class meets each Friday morning for about 90 minutes to worship.  This week it was my pleasure to join them and lead worship. It was an amazing time.  Our young adults are truly here to serve and it shows in the way they worship.   One of our young ladies is from Israel (isn't that cool?).  Anyway she has been struggling all week with back pain to the point of scheduling a doctor visit on Friday afternoon.  Well...God inhabits the praises of His people and on Friday morning during worship she was completely healed of her back pain. Yeah, really. We didn't stop to pray it just happened while the LT'ers were praising.  I saw her this morning in the dining hall and we chatted while sharing some coffee.  She was still beaming from God's grace and told me that she had followed up on the doctor visit Friday afternoon.  Doc had no explanation.   

Jena and I have been blessed with a beautiful home here in Independence and we love to have company as evidenced by the revolving door in our home.  This past week there were no scheduled events or parties in our home but the following folks passed through:  Tom, Cindy, Nick, Pam, Leah, Jason, Luis, John D., Dusty, Kenny, Myles, Carter, Nate, Pam's parents and little sister, Heather and McKenzie.  If you ever come to KC, let us know and add your name to the list.  

Fall Parents Weekend

We just wrapped up another amazing Parents Weekend here at Shelterwood.   Even though the weekend was shorter than normal by one day, the impact on the families was just as real.  After experiencing 6 parent weekends in Denver over the past 3 years, I am still amazed at how God works in spite of us.   God reminded me this past weekend why I moved my family from Denver to Kansas City.  I learned that whether it be Denver or KC, God's Will prevails.  God doesn't seem to mind the construction zone filled with tractors, scaffolding and mud from the recent rain.  When my focus is on settling into a new culture, building community and working with new staff and families, God's focus is still marked by forgiveness, healing, confession, and hope. 

About the property...we moved into the Girls Lodge on September 19th.  It was a minor setback from the scheduled move in date of September 1st; however, we were blessed to stay at a local camp near St. Joseph while waiting for clearance to move it.  As of now we have a Dining Hall and Girls Lodge completed while the Boys Lodge and Field House are scheduled for completion in November and February.  We moved 5 residents from Denver to Kansas City.  As of this morning, we have 8 boys and 5 girls for a grand total of 13.