Penny Peddling... The Next Generation!

Hello, friends!

If you are new to this blog, you may not know that back in the day, I had another blog to go alongside this one, called Penny Peddling. I had purchased a bike and wanted to see how long it would take me to "make back" the money I spent on it via not having to pay for gas or parking. A few years, a few stolen bikes, and one kid later, I did eventually end up "in the black" but decided to retire that blog for the sake of time. I still ride and it's still awesome, I just don't write about it.

Honestly, I have no intention of starting the blog up again but what IS really exciting to me is that earlier this week, as part of a father-son outing, Ezra and I got matching bike helmets. Here's the photo.

Don't we look great?! In the summer of 2015, Ezra was first born, so of course I wasn't going to take him riding with me yet. In 2016, he wasn't quite one yet, so his neck control wasn't the greatest. He was still crawling and could just barely take a step or two.

THIS year though, Ezra is as rough and tumble as they come. He's nearly 2 and can run and jump with the best of them (so long as jumping doesn't require having both feet leave the ground at the same time). With Baby #2 on the way, I figured it'd be a good idea to get him a helmet so we can go riding when Meg needs a break. I'll be doing the heavy lifting (or pedaling) and he'll be riding in the trailer. 

We bought the helmets (it was his choice to have the yellow ones) and on Monday he went for his first trailer ride. I was concentrating on the road but Meg said that he had a mesmerized look on his face. He was definitely a fan.

My hope is that Ezra will become as big of a fan of biking as I am. I love the efficiency of the bicycle and the feeling of the wind on my face as I'm riding. I love being able to travel where cars can't tread. I love not having to pay for parking downtown. Here's hoping that Ezra and I can enjoy some of those joys together. 

So, if you're around CoMO this summer and you see a father and son in matching bike helmets, there's a good chance that it's Ezra and me. Make sure to wave... and give us plenty of space. =0). 

Have an excellent day!

~Adam

Final Preparations!!!

Hello, friends!

Any day now, Meg and I will welcome our second child into the world. Meg's due date isn't until Star Wars Day (May 4) but we have a feeling our daughter will be coming early. Because of that, we are in full on nesting mode, trying to get everything ready before she arrives and everything gets all sorts of crazy.

Honestly, I needed until the turn of the calendar to April before it really felt like this birth thing was going to happen. When Meg was pregnant with Ezra, someone told me that women feel like mothers as soon as they find out they are pregnant. Men, on the other hand, don't feel like fathers until they actually see and hold their babies. I know that was mostly true with Ezra. I knew in my head that I was a father before he was born but it didn't really hit me until after he was actually out and in my arms. Because of this phenomenon, I'm a little late to the nesting game. Meg has been preparing for months; I'm not getting around to my part. It's led to a few reflections.

Like I've said in a previous post, Meg and I definitely nest differently. When she came up with the list of things that need to be done before our daughter is born, I didn't understand why a lot of the things were on the list. Once explained, they made a lot of sense though. In my mind, I said, "we have enough money to pay for the birth, the bills are paid so we won't have to worry about having the utilities shut off, and we're going to be recycling the birth plan we used for Ezra. We have plenty of clothes and we'll be buying diapers soon. We're ready for this baby!" How very wrong I was. =0).

Can I also say that nesting for your second kid is WAY harder than nesting for your first? You'd think in some ways it was easier. You already have some sense of what you need to get and you already have a lot of it from the last kid. But there was one thing I hadn't taken into account... Ezra.

Understand, I love my little boy to death. I would do anything for him and spending time with him is always the highlight of my day. Still, that doesn't change the fact that he is exhausting and actually not all that helpful in terms of nesting and getting the house ready for the baby. Instead of just focusing on the tasks at hand, we also have to make sure that the little guy doesn't run into the street or jump off the couch. It makes for some interesting adventures in multi-tasking. There's some stuff we just can't do while he's awake, so we have less time to do stuff too. Of course, he's totally worth it, but it does make things harder.

So, friends, if you have a moment in these next two weeks, please be praying for us as we make these final preparations. We are working on relying on Jesus in the midst of these preparations, while also trying to get as much stuff done as we can. Also, if you live in CoMO and want to watch our kid (or clean our house!) for a few hours, we wouldn't automatically turn you down. =0).

Have an excellent day!

~Adam

The Ladder Theory...

Hello, friends!

I was on campus at Lincoln yesterday, eating with a pastor friend of mine and some students. One of the female students was talking about how there was a guy who was interested in her but she wasn't interested in him. The pastor asked, "did you tell him that you're not interested?" Her reply was, "I told him that being friends is really great." He turned to me and say, "you should tell her about Ladder Theory." From there, I proceeded to share with the students Ladder Theory and subsequently blew their minds. The women at the table looked at me like I had just unlocked the mysteries of the universe. The men at the time shook their heads in kind of sad understanding. It was a pretty beautiful thing.

OK, what is Ladder Theory? I'm glad you asked! In a nutshell, Ladder Theory is a helpful analogy I like to use to show that men and women think about the opposite sex differently from one another. I don't remember if I developed it in high school or college. I don't remember if it was told to me or if I came up with it on my own. If someone knows the answers to these mysteries, please let me know. What I do know is that ladder theory has helped me explain to many a student that men and women are very different creatures when it comes to relationships. Let's dive a little deeper, shall we?

Women have 2 internal ladders when it comes to men (note: I am using hetero-sexual men and women in my explanation for the sake of simplicity). Ladder One is the friend ladder. On this ladder is every guy she knows who she would never consider dating or being in a relationship with. Men can move up and down the friend ladder based on their actions (or lack of action) but the woman will only see them as a better or worse friend. Ladder Two is the potential partner ladder. This is the ladder where she puts the men who could possibly be her partner. Again, men can move up or down this ladder based on their action or inaction but if you're on this ladder, there's always a chance. Women have the full power and authority to move a man from one ladder to the other ladder and to do that as many times as they please. It's their ladder. If a man tries to make the jump from Ladder One to Ladder Two, he falls into the Abyss, where his best case scenario is that he goes back down to the bottom of Ladder One. See Jason Chu's video "DTR" to see this in action.

Men have one ladder. It's the "yeah, I could see it happening" Ladder. Every woman they've ever met is on it.

Conflict and confusion arises because men and women don't know that they are operating with different ladder structures. Men don't know that there is a friend ladder. Women don't know that there isn't. Here's a common scenario: Gal is nice to guy. Guy sees this as evidence of attraction. Guy talks to all his guy friends who confirm this and encourage him to pursue a relationship. Guy goes for it. Gal is blindsided. Awkwardness ensues. Why does this happen? Ladder Theory.

There are a few caveats to make here. The first is that once a man gets married, he may be able to develop a friend ladder. I haven't worked out the mechanics of this quite yet but I do know that once Meg and I got married, the prospect or desire to be with anyone else went away and it won't be coming back ever. I should also note that it's just a theory and that I'm sure anecdotally we all know a guy or gal who has more or fewer ladders than the theory suggests. And, it should also be noted that this theory does not take into account members of the LGBTQ community. I could see some potential nuances and differences but I haven't explored them in great deal. Finally, this is just a fun theory of mine. I have no real scientific evidence to back this up. =0).

Either way, it was fun to share with students one of my crazy little theories. I've found it to be helpful for students. Feel free to take it as your own.

Have an excellent day!

~Adam

More Workers for the Harvest

Hello, friends!

Last night, Mid-MO had its first ever Volunteer Recruitment event. Our staff team invited people that we know that love Jesus to partner with us by donating their time and expertise to joining us in the work that we're doing on campus. We had a student testimony, a panel discussion of current volunteers, and tons of great food. As I was reflecting on our whole process today, I had a few thoughts:

The Calendar Matters: We had a fundraising dinner last year and we put it in June, which was too late in the year because we had a lot of people travelling during that season. This year, we decided that if we were going to do something, it needed to be in April. Because of other calendar conflicts, we chose April 1, which happened to be Spring Break in CoMO, meaning a lot more people couldn't make it because of scheduling. We'll definitely have to be more aware of these things in the future.

The Team Matters: I was telling our team this before the event got started, how excited I was that I actually had no intimate knowledge of the fine details of the event besides my own small portion, and that I was totally excited by that. Everyone did a great job on the team and it was great to see us all working together. Even just a few years ago, an event like that would have probably meant me being in charge of every little aspect. Instead, everyone had a role, everyone did their job, and the night went on without a hitch.

The Vision Matters: My job was just to give a 10-15 minute overview of what InterVarsity is and then do the pitch for folk to consider volunteering with us. As I was putting together my piece, I was reminded of how much God has done already in Mid-MO and yet how much He is still planning on doing. I could have gone in a bunch of different directions for the talk; the hard sales pitch, the "we need you desperately" line, the "this is so much fun" train, or something else. Instead, I felt like God was saying to remember that He was the one doing all this, and to tell the people of His great works, inviting them into that process. We'll see how it worked.

If you're someone who is living in CoMO and are interested in maybe being a part of the work that we're doing, even if just for an hour a week, we'd love to talk to you! You can email me here and we can set up a time to connect.

Have an excellent day!

~Adam

Our volunteer staff panel! Hooray for volunteers!

Giving Away the Word...

Hello, friends!

One of my favorite things to do in ministry is to give away bibles. There's something really fun and spectacular about meeting a student who is interested in reading the Word but doesn't have the Word to read, then being able to fill that need for them. I know that there are tons of Bible reading apps and they are all great; I use one myself. Still, there's something really beautiful about having the Word in your hand and flipping the pages. It makes the reading experience that much more real.

Yesterday, at Lincoln, I was able to give away my Bible. I've been meeting with a student for the past few months, after she became a Christian at Lincoln. It's the Lent season and when we last spoke, she said that she wanted to spend the Lent season hanging out with Jesus more. I checked in with her to see how that was going and she said it was hard over Spring Break because of all the time with family. We then talked about how she connects with Jesus, she talked about how she liked to pray and that was her main form of connection. When I asked her about reading the Bible, she said that it was hard for her because the Bible she had was hard to understand. I'm not sure if she meant because it wasn't a good translation or because it's just a tough read but I asked her if she wanted a Bible. Then, I pulled out my trusty "giveaway" bible and showed her my quick guide on how to spend some time in the Word in just a few minutes.

When I say, "my Bible" what I really mean is my giveaway Bible. This isn't a Bible that I received as a gift for my baptism or that I've had since I was a kid. These are Bibles that I buy especially to giveaway. I always carry one with me when I'm on campus because you never know when the opportunity to arise.

I've learned that while you can't judge a book by its cover, the cover can still matter a lot when giving away Bibles. I like to give away Bibles that look nice, usually imitation leather and small. I have cases of those big paperback bibles that say HOLY BIBLE on the front and the words are the exact same but I've found that when the Bible looks good and is small enough to fit into a backpack, students are much more likely to carry it around and actually read it. I once had a student who, every time he saw me on campus, would come up to me and say, "guess what I have in my backpack." The answer, of course, was the Bible I gave him.

Reading the Word isn't hard to do but can be intimidating at times. When I'm teaching students how to just get into the habit of reading the Word, I teach them two quick methods: the 4 R's and the 3 Q's.

The 4 R's:
- Read: Pick a passage and read it. Using the subheadings found in your bible is a great way to start.
- Repeat: In your own words, summarize what you just read
- Reflect: Think about what questions you had or any thoughts and emotions that came up in you as your read
- Respond: In light of your reflection, how do you want to respond to what you just read?

The 3 Q's:
- What does this passage say about God?
- What does this passage say about me or humanity?
- What is one thing I can do to put this passage into practice?

Usually, being able to break down reading the Bible into quick bites and a system helps students get over their fear of reading the Bible. It's always great when they come back to me later and talk about what they're reading and the questions they have. In fact, after giving this student my Bible yesterday, we did 2 mini Bible studies where I showed her the 4 R's and 3 Q's and she responded to it really well.

Friends, if you're interested in helping me buy some new Bibles to give away, I'd love to partner with you in this endeavor. Because I get nicer looking Bibles, the prices range from $15-$20. If you're like to help me buy more Bibles for students, you can click the link here, and donate!

Have an excellent day!

~Adam

So long, Auntie Serena...

Hello, friends!

A few days ago, Auntie Serena Lam passed away. Most of you don't know Auntie Serena and to be honest, when I look back, I'm not sure that I knew her super well either. I don't know how old she was when she died. I remember her and Uncle Paul being in the jewelry business but I would be wrong about that one. I was informed, but not intimately so, about her health issues. It'd been months since I last spoke to her in person.

Still, when I heard that Auntie Serena had passed, I felt a deep sense of loss and a need to really mourn. I'm not a really emotional guy, so this struck me as odd. What was it about Auntie Serena? As I spent some time reflecting, I realized that Auntie Serena played a subtle but important role in many of the most important developments of my life. Through those times, she actually revealed to me a lot more about who she was than I realized at the time.

I don't remember the exact date, so I can't tell you if it was before or after Uncle Paul (Auntie Serena's husband) died, but at some point, Auntie Serena gave me his old golf clubs. It was a small gesture and maybe she just wanted them out of the house but it was a big deal to me. They were old clubs but they were a matching set and they were MY clubs. I don't use them anymore but it was having my own set of matching clubs that got me a little more interested in golf, to the point that up until Ezra was born, it was a very regular part of my week.

Auntie Serena's house was always open and was always the place for the after party. When my dad and Auntie Serena were both on staff for the church youth group, every beach party was followed by an after party and Auntie Serena's. It wasn't just those parties though. There were many other youth group sleepovers and pool parties and things of that nature that happened at Auntie Serena's. I don't think I pulled my FIRST all-nighter at Auntie Serena's but I know there were more than a few. I had my first significant conversation with my first girlfriend at Auntie Serena's. I made connections with some of my friends that last to this day. Auntie Serena's house will always be a place of hospitality and good memories.

When I first started my journey with InterVarsity, I had to raise what felt like an impossible amount of money. In my second year, I moved from an internship to being full-time staff and that number DOUBLED. I was confident that the money could be raised but also knew that it was going to take a lot of work. When I switched to full-time, Auntie Serena was one of my very first "no-ask" donors. I just looked at my account and there was a donation. It showed up the month after that too. And it was there the month after that. For the past 9 years, Auntie Serena has been a financial ministry partner. We never had an appointment. She just started giving.

But it wasn't just giving. She was also an advocate for me on the church mission committee. Whenever I came back to report on the things that God was doing in Missouri, I knew that I could count on her smiling and supportive face being there. I knew that I was always going to have an advocate and someone who loved and supported me in the room.

What does this say about Auntie Serena? It says that she was someone who was kind, generous, loving, giving, and serving. I don't know anyone who ever had a bad thing to say about her. She lived her life with grace, poise, and love. She will be surely missed.

Have an excellent day!

~Adam

Zero's and One's...

Hello, friends!

Oftentimes, when I talking with other staff, I joke about how students only see the tip of the iceberg when it comes to the work that we do. They think that all we do is hang out with them, buy them food, talk about Jesus, and be on our way. It must be the easiest job in the world. I know that when I first came on staff, I was astonished at how much "other" work there was to the gig. There were the reports to write, the travel to various meetings, the ministry partner development, and dealing with rejection on a pretty consistent basis.

For the past few semesters, I have been working at Lincoln using our proxe stations. I've shared various stories about students becoming engaged with the Gospel through these interactive Gospel displays. I've seen students make decisions to follow Jesus. I've had really good conversations with students as they've wrestled with the question of whether or not Jesus is real. I've had the opportunity to share the Gospel with as many as 6 students all at the same time because a single friend group came by to see our display. I've seen students make strides in leadership because they lead their friends through the proxe. Overall, it's been a really fruitful experience.

But, not lately.

The past 2 weeks, as I've set up my proxe, as I've waited for the in between class rush to make their way to the cafeteria, I've had evangelistic conversations with exactly 0 and 1 person during the time that I've been out there. I'm not sure if I need to switch up my displays or if folk are just tired of seeing me out there but it's been an odd experience. Questions and displays that just a few months ago gathered entire groups of students all at once now are passed by without so much as a second though. The conversation I did have was a good one but for the effort that goes into setting up and tearing down (not to mention dealing with the wind), I'm wondering if it's actually worth it.

When I was an undergrad, I was told by a mentor of mine that I would make a really good engineer because of the way that my mind worked. Some of my best friends are engineers and I certainly can appreciate the beauty of engineering in all of its forms. I don't know much, but from what my computer science friends have told me (and from watching lots of Futurama), I know about binary code. Binary code is just a bunch of 0's and 1's, that, when strung together, make up letters, words, phrases, and commands. The joke is that there are 10 kinds of people in the world; those who can read binary and those who can't. (10 being the binary code for the number 2).

As I've reflected on the past few weeks at Lincoln, my thoughts went to binary code. The idea that all these 0's and 1's can come together to create something great has appeal. I'd like to believe that when you take all the rejections and the low fruit moments in ministry and string them together, God is still doing something. I may not be able to see it now but there is a story being written. In the moment, it feels just like a 0 or a 1 but I have to have faith that something down the road is going to make sense.

If I'm honest, I had to get myself hyped up to even set up the proxe yesterday. I had a feeling that it was going to be a 0/1 kind of day. I turned out to be right but that's OK. I'm going to trust that all these 0's and 1's are going to turn into a really great story once all is said and done.

Have an excellent day!

~Adam