Helping Students Keep Warm and Stay in School

Tulsa, Oklahoma - I would like to introduce you to Sarah W. Sarah is one of our High School students at Highland Park. She is actively involved in HPyouth. She is smart, athletic and a follower of Jesus Christ. And she is doing something extraordinary.

Last summer, we took our students to a CIY Move conference in Macomb, Illinois. Move is a week-long conference that aims to change youth and change the world. Sarah, along with many of our students, was challenged throughout the week to advance her faith and grow stronger in her commitment to follow Christ.

One video and challenge in particular hit her hard. The story of Ruby. Ruby is a High School student that chose to give up her birthday to raise money for a family to have a new house in South America. At the end of the week, we challenged our students to consider what they could do this next year that God was laying on their heart. Sarah decided that she wanted to do something like that.

After returning home, she shared with her parents what was on her heart and in her mind. Together they decided on a plan. Sarah would use her birthday in January 2015 to impact many poor underprivileged children in the Tulsa area. Project Elf is an amazing organization dedicated to helping children get the basic things they need for life and school. They provide them with coats, pencils, toothbrushes, combs and more. Sarah wants to help them.

So, in January 2015, Sarah is attempting to get many donations to help Project Elf be an even bigger impact than normal. The Children’s Ministry at Highland Park has already gotten behind her. The Middle School students of HP took time out of their Christmas party to go shopping for donations to surprise Sarah. Maybe by this point, you’re wondering how you could partner with her too? On Sunday, January 11, there will be a box next to the HP Caboose (the student information table in the downstairs lobby). In that box, bring any of the items in the list that follows to help support Sarah and Project Elf. This will also underscore to our students that they too can change the world for Christ.

 

Items needed:

• Tennis Shoes
• Socks
• Underwear
• Backpacks
• Heavy Coats
• Winter Hats and Gloves
• Composition Books
• Pencils
• Binders (2 in)
• Markers
• Pocket Folders with Brads
• Tri-Fold Science Project Boards
• Toothbrushes
• Money and Wal-Mart Gift Cards can also be given.

December 2012 Newsletter

Here's our December 2012 Newsletter. Right click on any of the pics below and choose "save link as..." to download the pdf.

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QR code scanning info -
* What is a QR code? It's kind of like a bar code but it can contain much more data, contact info, web addresses, etc.

* How do I scan this on my device?

• Windows 7 Phones with 7.5 (mango) update can use the bing vision search. [if you don't have this update try PhraseMeme Scanner (found on the windows marketplace)].
• Android phones/tablets try QR Droid (found on the Android marketplace).
• iPhone/iPad try QR-Reader (not tested personally).
• Blackberry try QR Code Scanner Pro (not tested personally).

* How do I read it on my device? You'll need a reader with pdf support (PDF reader).

A Mind Divided

As you've read in my previous post, I am in the middle of a transition. Angie and I have been vocationally part of Team Expansion for thirteen and a half years, now I am starting as the Youth Minister for Highland Park Christian Church in Tulsa, Oklahoma. This month, I am playing double duty. I am still full-time with Team Expansion (but also planning to use some of my remaining vacation days) until December 31, 2012, but also beginning my role at HP. Some days, I feel like my mind has multiple compartments in which my neurons keep racing back and forth. My day may start with me working on Team Expansion transition tasks and then I move onto planning for HP. Then after lunch, I might go to a meeting then finish the day working on administration/financial details for the eventual closing of the books for Team Expansion.

Because my time with Team Expansion has meant so much, I do want to make sure I live in the moment of my exit as a vocational member of a great missions organization (you might remember I'm staying on as a volunteer to continue some of the projects I've been working on). I don't want to wake up in February and think, wait...it's already over? So, I am trying to remember the years and milestones of which we have been a part.

Of course, certain things come to mind readily....the first stages of planning for the work in Ancona, going through the arduous task of learning another language (and yes, I still practice it from time to time), the first gathering of believers in Ancona, the first outreaches, the first short term group, seeing a church formed in Ancona, the planning for the work in Verona, the survey trip to several potential and spiritually needy cities in Northern Italy, working on several creative resource projects for different countries around the world and on and on.

Other things, less monumental, stand out too, eating panserotti at Etrusca in Perugia, going to my first soccer game in Perugia, eating pizza by the slice at Pizzeria Centrale, watching the American style football team "The Ancona Dolphins" play in a 2000 year old stadium in Ancona, laughing with various team members over the years, fellowship with Italian Christians, walking down ancient alleyways and taking literally thousands of photos. Our memories cannot be contained within one post, short or long. I keep thinking of more like, going to the beach in Ancona, eating at Desiderio (all time favorite restaurant)

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As I paused writing this post and walked into the kitchen, I was happy to learn that Angie was making homemade pizza! She had already made the pizza dough earlier and was rolling them out. While this isn't Desiderio, it's pretty close. I miserably tried to help her throw/roll one of the pizza doughs, but apparently I need more practice and Angie fixed it for me.

With pizza prepping to go in the oven, and us getting ready to watch the DVR'ed Survivor finale, I'll close this post. Throughout the month, you'll continue hearing from us and seeing changes on our website and social media. Thanks for reading and caring about us.

The Mingling of Immortals

A couple days ago, I was running some errands and popped into a local store. I found what I needed and went to the checkout. There were three people in front of me. There were two girls in their twenties, who were checking out at the register and a young Muslim woman was directly in front of me. The girls' dresses were very short and skimpy. Almost instantly, the contrast between their short short dresses and modestly dressed Muslim woman was striking. One was modestly dressed and the other two weren't.

As the girls in front left, I felt compelled to say something to the Muslim woman. I wanted to tell her thank you for dressing modestly, but wasn't sure what was the best way. Then her husband came in. He was also of Middle Eastern descent and dressed in a sort of casual European soccer outfit.

When they were about to leave, I stopped him and said, "Could I just tell you that as a Christian, I appreciate that your wife is dressed modestly."

He seemed happy, yet thought maybe that I was confused. Thankful for the gesture, he gently said, "But we are Muslim".

I replied, "I know, but I still appreciate her modesty."

At that point, he was visibly pleased. He told me that she is from Bahrain and when she first moved here two years ago, she found it very difficult because of how she dressed.  The cashier then interrupted us to get my signature on the slip, which abruptly ended our conversation. We exchanged smiles, as they left and I finished my transaction.

I wanted to keep talking with them. I wanted to tell them that my wife and I understand dressing different in a different culture. I wanted to ask them what burdens they have faced living in a new place and share our cultural mistakes and success. I wanted to reach out to them. I have no idea how many friends they have here, they may have many or none. In that brief meeting of three souls, I wanted to do my best to represent Jesus to them. I may not ever see them again. I can only hope that any other Christians they meet will treat them as Jesus would.

In me it was the stirring of the Spirit.

Every time you come in contact with another person, it is a meeting of souls. Souls are eternal, either spending eternity in Heaven with Christ or condemned to separation from God in Hell.

And now, I am kicking myself a little. Not because of talking with them though, the only regret about that is the conversation wasn't long enough. I'm kicking myself, because I don't listen as intently every time I meet someone to hear what plans God has for me with them. Each missed opportunity is lost and I pray that God keeps my eyes open and uses me every day in every situation, whether gassing up the car or paying a bill. 


The interchanges we have as we go through each day are not important. Oh they may seem important at the time, but in reality they are only important inasmuch that each soul is moved closer to God in that moment.

Coffee at Doubleshot in Tulsa

At the beginning of March, I was extremely busy putting together our brand new display and booth for Edmond Christian Church's World Outreach Sunday. I needed a boost of caffeine and a place to work that was close to the hospital where my mom was having her first round of dialysis, so I went to Doubleshot at 18th & Boston in Tulsa, Oklahoma. The atomosphere makes it easy to create and the solitude makes it easy to concentrate. The bonus is the great coffee, some of the best in America that actually reminds me of coffee in Italy! Maybe it's because they have an Italian coffee roaster and espresso set-up? Here's a pic of the latte I had that day.

Has It Been That Long?

Eleven years ago today, we arrived in Italy to start a phase of ministry that went on for another eight years. We were privileged to be part of a church plant in Ancona, then followed God to Verona to help launch a new team there with the goal of another church plant in that city.

A couple years ago, we moved into a creative arts role based out of Tulsa, Oklahoma after a car accident in 2009 left my brother minimally conscious with traumatic brain injuries and in need of home care.

When we boarded that plane back in 2001 we had no idea what the future held. We had been raising support for one year and ten months and that flight was the culmination of much waiting and prayer.

Here's some pics from the days surrounding when we left Tulsa (March 6th) and the day we arrived in Italy on March 7th. From Rome we went on to Perugia where we would spend the next nine months in language study prior to moving to Ancona.

March 5th (Night before we left at Chili's for a Going Away Party)

Our nieces and nephews on the Crosser side (back row from ltor: Matt, Taylor and Angie; middle: Kohl and Brittany; front: Brandon and Jacob)

David, Mary Ann and our niece Shelby. Macy wasn't born yet!!

Angie with her dad, Steve

Matt, Angie and Angie's mom, Elaine

March 6th (At the Airport for our long awaited departure flight)

With Matt's parents (from ltor: Bill, Matt, Angie and Jeanne)

Brothers and Cousins (from ltor: Todd, Kevin, Matt, Kirk, Greg)

Best Friends (from ltor: Anita, Angie, Erin)

All our nieces and nephews (with the exception of the yet to born, Macy) (from ltor: Jacob, Taylor, Brittany, Brandon, Kohl and Shelby in front with the bottle)

March 7th (Due to a 7 hour time difference and length of flights, we arrived the next day in Italy, tired but happy)

Surprisingly couldn't find any pics from the day we arrived. Guess we were too tired.  I'll have to check with the Casey family.

Newsletter - August 2010

Here's our August newsletter.  Make yourself up a cup of coffee or warm tea and enjoy reading!  Let us know if you want to receive a paper version of our newsletters.

Newsletter - July 2010

Here is our July 2010 Newsletter. If you want to get this in your postal service mail, let us know and we can add you to our mailing list!  Check out the new look as well as the new Project Showcase on the backpage!

Newsletter - April 2010

Here is our April 2010 Newsletter. If you want to get this in your postal service mail, let us know and we can add you to our mailing list!

Three Days To Go

How do I explain the veritible swirling of thoughts and emotions. "To-Do" lists keep flying through my mind. I do one task and then another while making sure we've got time with family and friends too. In three days, we leave for Italy. We'll be gone for over two years. All the things that I love about Tulsa and the USA in general, will out of reach and sight for those two years. We are looking forward to being in Verona, but time is sooo crunched right now it is hard to wade through the feelings.

We heard from the landlord of our storage in Ancona. He has been graciously making sure our car is up to speed for us. This is way above and beyond any repsonsibility he has. He had a nearby mechanic check the fluid levels, the shocks need work and the tag is out of date, all of which the mechanic is doing before we return.

Also, our rental agents in Verona have gone the extra mile for us. They already have our electric and water running. They were going to have it painted and cleaned for us too, but the cost was more than we were willing to pay right now.

We spoke with the manager of our apartment in Tulsa and she said everything looked great and we would be getting our entire deposit back within the next 30 days.

Last night, I found out our first flight had been changed which in turn didn't give us enough time to change planes in Chicago. So this morning, our travel agent got our new reservation for a few hours before. So, now we leave earlier, but still in America the same amount of time. We have a layover in Chicago for four hours!

We found out that excess baggage prices have almost doubled since we last flew internationally. So, we will be going through our previously set aside stuff to determine its "weight in gold" and therefore take it with us.

Lots to think about. Lots to be emotional about. We are metaphorically straddling two continents. My mind bounces back and forth like I'm watching a tennis match in my head. In a week.....things will again begin to sharpen in focus.

Team Expansion Meeting

So, we spent the day helping facilitate a special Team Expansion meeting in downtown Tulsa. It took place at the Centennial Park Community Center around 6th & Peoria. That is a really nice facility! It was a great day seeing some familiar faces and meeting some new people. It was a good start to lead into the National Missionary Convention that starts tomorrow.

Ice Storm in Tulsa

So, we had only been in our new apartment in Tulsa for a week, when a major ice storm hit. It has been pretty bad, with up to half of the Tulsa residents being without power for one to three days. We have been very fortunate that our lone apartment complex has managed to keep its power on throughout the entire process. Our apartment has only had a few blinks off and on of our electricity and internet, other than that it has been great. Angie's sister, Mary Ann, and her two kids have been staying with us, while her husband, David, has been getting extra time making sure cable stays on for the homes that have electricity (he works for Cox Cable). My parents, and one brother lost their electric, so they went over to my other brothers house and he has two fireplaces....which ended up coming in handy since his electric finally went off today. At Wal-Mart today (my first journey out for two days) I picked up some more items in case the electric still does go off, like three cans of self-heating soup, a bag of beef jerky, several candles and heat bags, that once popped will provide small amounts of heat for 10-24 hours (depending on which bag you use). At Wal-Mart several of the food shelves were low or completely empty....my cashier has not had electric since Sunday. It's bad, but hopefully getting better. Here are some pictures.

Check out the thickness of the ice on these branches (above and below)!

Below you can see one of the many trees that fell in our complex...this one just happened to fall on one of the townhouses...ouch.
Below you can see the icicle beard along the truck we have been driving.

You wouldn't want one of these icicles to fall on your head.
This was the hot dog section at Wal-Mart (for all those using fireplaces and outdoor grills for cooking, I imagine).

The section below looks like it was part of the dairy section. Not sure if this was because it was shopped over, or because it went bad when Wal-Mart lost electricity.

And here you can see the empty pizza shelves, with one lone DiGiorno pizza left behind. There were more around the corner, but this sight was pretty shocking to see.

Moving Again???

So, here we are on the eve of yet again, another move. Tomorrow, Angie and I are moving from my brother's house into an apartment. Staying with my brother has been good and I'm glad we had the opportunity. Moving into an apartment however, will give us some routine, family space, stability and normalcy. Starting in January we will be travelling and speaking at several churches to promote and communicate about our ministry, and when we aren't travelling the apartment in Tulsa will be a great homebase to return to. Also, we are planning on inviting over family, friends and supporters to the apartment and providing them with some great hospitality.

Tomorrow will be busy, but good. In the morning we will get to the apartment, clean up after the bug bombs, and straighten what few things we already took over this evening when we got the keys. Then from 10 AM to noon, the cable guy will come to install internet and cable. Sometime after 10 AM several guys from Highland Park Christian Church will be coming over with all the furniture that many at the church have so selflessly loaned us while we are in the states for Home Assignment. We are awed and overwhelmed by the support our churches give us, and this is a great example. Later in the afternoon, we will work on the apartment, unpacking and moving things into their permanent position, then that night we'll come back over to my brother's house to watch OU play Missouri for the Big 12 football championship. Great stuff. I can't wait.

Moving Day...

Things have been a little crazy and abnormal since we moved, but still good. We have been able to bid farewell to most everyone that we wanted to before we left. We are thankful to the Casey family for allowing us to crash and work at their house during our last week.



Our moving day was very frenetic at first. The movers arrived at 7:30 AM on the dot (which if you know me is earlier than I like it) and they immediately installed the electric ladder. It is a ladder with a platform that raises and lowers. Check out the pics below.



Jason, Brian, Heather and Heidi all helped us throughout the day, which really helped the process happen. Jason wrote a great article describing many of our feelings at his blog found here: http://marchegiansun.blogspot.com/2007/10/moving-day.html.



We are not homeless. Tomorrow we head out to America where will be staying with family and traveling until December 1st. At that point we will move into a small apartment in Tulsa that we will stay in during our Home Assignment.



It has been hard these many months as we prepared to leave. We went through many different goodbyes throughout the months. It seems we are always saying goodbyes. Fortunately we only have a few more before we leave Ancona and then we won't have to say goodbyes like this for some time. See you on the other side of the ocean.