Restoring our Relationship with Creation...

At the Restoration House we deeply believe that at the Fall not only was our relationships broken with God but it was also broken, with self, others, and the rest of the creation.  Today is Earth Day and my guess there are a lot of Christians out there that don't get it or they just think of tree hugging hippies.  Well to catch me in a tree hugging video below is one for you viewing pleasure. 

But regardless of what you think about hippies, tree hugging, or Earth Day, God calls us to care of and to be good stewards of his creation.  I know I am continually wrestling with the practical realities of that.  This has been a twist in my journey that I never expected but I know God is pleased when he sees us taking care of His creation. 

Recently, I have been able to participate in and help teach a four week workshop called God is GREEN.  We have been recording each session for pod-cast and all four will be posted next week.  Also there is a great book by Matthew Sleeth, MD entitled Serve God Save the Planet. 

Check back then and I will included a link from the blog.  In the meantime go plant a tree or something...

Tree Huggers Unite

The Joy of Work...

Have you ever known someone who always complains about work?  Not their job, but work in general.  Have you ever seen good hearted people consistently prevent those they're helping from work because they end up doing it for them?  Have you ever known someone who is just completely lazy and does everything they can to get out of work? 

Well I've definitely known a person or two like that, but as a follower of Jesus I must remember that work is not a curse.  God always intended that we work.  In Genesis before the Fall ever occurred, Adam had a purpose; a job.  It was only after the Fall that work became toilsome. 

Today I had the pleasure of dropping and picking up our second mother at The Restoration House for her first day of work at her new job.  She has only had a job one month out of her life and that was more than six months ago.  Her new job is at a local kids consignment shop where you spend the whole day on your feet sorting clothes and putting things into its proper place.

You should have seen her incredibly joyous smile when I picked her after seven hours of being on her feet with nothing to drink or nothing to eat (by her own choice).  She loved it.  She felt needed and that she was able to provide for herself and her daughter.  Don't get me wrong, its not the job she wants forever but she finds a new sense of dignity and worth in the work. 

Now that is the way God intended it to be!!!

LUNAFEST is coming to Knoxville...

LUNAFEST is coming to Knoxville April 29, 2008, a national traveling film festival of short films made for, by, and about women. Award-winning films are pulled from the top festivals across the nation, and range from quirky animation to touching documentaries. All the films celebrate women in our local and global communities. LUNAFEST is a fun and inspiring way to connect with other women, raise awareness for women’s issues, and nationally support The Breast Cancer Fund.  Stroller Strides, Knoxville is hosting the local LUNAFEST film screening to raise funds for The Restoration House of East Tennessee in addition to The Breast Cancer Fund. LUNAFEST will take place at the beautiful Two Rivers Pavilion in Louisville, TN. Tickets are $20 before the event and $25 at the door. Tickets may be purchased at all Stroller Strides classes, or online by visiting www.therestorationhouse.net.  We are so excited about Stroller Strides and The Restoration House working together to help restore single mothers and their children.  See you there!

Stroller Strides and Restoration House Partner Together!

Lights, camera, action!

A Day at DHS...

Today I had the privilege of spending two hours at the Depart of Human Services (this is where people go to get food stamps and such) with one of our mother's at The Restoration House. 

2700 Middlebrook Pike . Knoxville, TN . 37921

When you first enter it is a larger room with probably 80 to 100 chairs where people wait to be called (sometimes up to 3 hours, so I've heard).  There is a very small unsupervised play area for smaller kids to play while their parents wait.  Then there are clerical workers lining both sides to help check people in for their appointments and to answer basic questions.  Once you are called back by your case manager you enter cubical world.  They are very small and extremely packed it.  There is enough room for the case manager, a computer, and the client.  Because there was no room, I had to sit outside of the cubical in the hall.  There are a few dirty toys lining the walls to help distract young kids.  

It was amazing to sit there with her, her daughter, and two different case managers.  The first one concerning food stamps didn't take any time.  The second case manager handles her Families First (TANF) case.  This was a whole other story.

As I chased her daughter up and down the hall (she is only one and this is to be expected) I was able to interject into the conversation and help unscramble some of the coded language being used. 

I have to trust that the case manager's heart is good about what she does but it just seems that every explanation and every answer was so canned.  There were times where there were grouse misunderstandings happening all because the case manager wasn't taking the time to really listen and process what the mother was saying to her.  It really was all very sad. 

I know the case manager sees all kinds of people come through there and has probably been working there for years.  When she was hired she probably had incredible visions of helping to rescue people from their negative choices and desperate situations.  Over time it seems she has lost most of that original passion and desire. 

So here's my question, "How do we protect ourselves from that?"  I mean Mandy and I currently have that original passion, drive, and vision for our families, but how do we keep it over the next year, five years, ten years???

I don't want to wake up one day and find that though I'm still doing the job, I really don't have the relationship...

Getting here...

I often look at where I am today and think how in the world did I get here.  There are so many reasons that my life shouldn't be as good as it is.  I could have easily been some statistic somewhere feeling stuck and trapped with no one. 

There are some people in my past who are just there.  I can't  remember or see any real difference they made on my future but then there are others who influenced the direction of my life in ways that can't adequately be explained.  Elwood, Tina, Eli, Evie, and Mary Lou McAllister are some of those people in my life.  I truly could not imagine where I would be today without them stepping into my life as a very impressionable 15 year old over 14 years ago.  They have now known me for almost have my life but I have had very little contact with them (except for Eli) over the past six years.  Elwood and Tina have lived in Florida for a while now and we just don't get down there and Evie and her husband lived in northern VA for much of the past six years.  Not since Eli's wedding, seven years ago have we all been in the same room together until this weekend. 

This weekend we all converged on Evie's house in Johnson City on the campus of Emanuel School of Religion.  It was only 24 hours but it was like we had never been apart.  All of the same personality traits were present and all of the good feelings abounded.  It was the first time that Elwood and Tina had met our kids.  It was so cool to experience them bonding. 

After my junior year of high school the McAllister's opened up their home to me in a way that is hard to imagine.  I lived there my whole senior year of high school and whenever I came home for the holidays in college I stayed at their house.  They were there for me at very rough time in my life and their love and guidance helped encourage me toward a better future. 

In the end they helped me believe that I had value and worth and I had something to give back. 

Thank you...Thank you...I can never repay you...

You Can't Hide...

I learned this past week that you can't hide from the flu.  You know in 29 years I don't think I've ever had it until now, but when it catches you it just doesn't let go.  It put me down for a solid five days; even with the $8 per pill medication my doctor had me on. There were too many symptoms to list but the worst symptom was having to watch me wife take care of the kids all week while I just lay there hopeless and dying. 

It really reminded me just how much my wife does.  She is an incredible family advocate for the families of The Restoration House but more than that she is a terrific mother and a caring wife.  Don't get me wrong; she wasn't all smiles when she heard me say I had the flu right after being away for two days in Chicago with friends.  But she did take care of us and she did it in a way that displayed her love for our family. 

How beautiful? 

Mancation

This is what my wife called the trip she sent me on to Chicago this past weekend.  Actually she joined up with two of her friends who also sent their husbands as well.  We had an incredible time. 

When I travel I usually have my laptop but this time it stayed home.  This was definitely the right move on my part. I'm so thankful I didn't find myself in front of the computer screen in Chicago.  If I had I probably wouldn't have found, free bratwurst, deep dish Chicago style pizza at Gino's East, ESPN zone, the view from the John Hancock building, U2 3D, the Jimmy Johnson band at the B.L.U.E.S. bar (the oldest blues bar in Chicago), the free Lincoln Park Zoo, the many samples of chocolate, the Chicago hotdog, The Mix (cheese and caramel popcorn mix at Garretts), Ed Debevic's Diner, and much much more. 

Its hard to say what I enjoyed the most but high up there was Chico Banks of the Jimmy Johnson Band.  This guy was completely amazing on the guitar. 

In my life I have been exposed to very little of the blues.  What I've heard I've liked but have never really understood why.  After listening to Chico and the rest of the Jimmy Johnson band for an hour or so I think I know the draw.  There is a repetition to the music and

Chico Banks

the lyrics.  It's simplicity becomes complex with each layer of creativity added to the underlying pattern of each song.  The songs touch a part of life that is often closed up in each of us.  You find yourself identifying with the soul of each song in a way you couldn't have fathomed before you sat down to listen. 

As you listen the thing that becomes evident is that the song never really ends no matter which blues song is being played.  Not only does it never end but hope never enters.  The sun never comes out.  This is where the blues leaves me short.  I hope to be able to lament like the blues but eventually I want the song to end. 

If we learn to despair with the blues where can we go to learn joy?

Families First?

Some of you may realize this already but the former welfare system is now called Families First in Tennessee.  Great name, isn't it?  Trouble is families aren't always first.  Let me explain. 

You see in the new welfare system there is a time limit on the services you receive.  A person benefiting from the system can not use services for more than 5 total years in a lifetime.   This was the big change when the old system was overhauled.  That part I love.  It encourages people to move toward self-sufficiency if they have the capacity. 

Another piece of this new puzzle is that now, if a person is capable, he or she has to be working, looking for work through a program provide by ETSU, or be doing community service at least 30 hours per week. 

Now don't get me wrong, I understand why this is in place.  If people are capable they should be working.  God always intended us to work.  It wasn't a part of the curse it was a part of the plan from the beginning.

My problem is that if a mother is working toward self-sufficiency with The Restoration House but is not yet working full-time, participating in ETSU's 4 week full time job search program, or doing 30 hours of community service assigned by the state then they can't receive benefits.  And the benefits are substantial. 

The greatest benefit for single mother's is the childcare subsidy.  This subsidy provides the means for a mother to get childcare while she is getting back on her feet. 

Our mother is working to be self-sufficient.  She has a part-time job, has received a scholarship to a CNA training program she is starting in May, is applying for a second part-time job, and is now stuck because her Families First runs out in March and she won't have access to a child care subsidy to take advantage of the opportunities mentioned above. 

Tell me how that is putting "Families First"?

Gettin' on a Jet Plane...

Have you just ever needed to rest?  Rest is one of the things that escapes most of us and at the same time is something most needed by all of us.  God designed it that way.  For us to truly rest is to take Sabbath and Sabbath leads to restoration.  How can we ever fully be restored if we're killing ourselves trying? 

My wife knows this and that is what makes her the greatest wife ever.  That and she bought me a plane ticket to go to Chicago on an overnight trip with two of my friends.  All that just 'cus she loves me and know that if she doesn't help me with Sabbath, I may not take it.

Honey, you're the greatest!!!

Incarnational...

So I've really been struggling with something.  Since about October of 2006 we have been searching for an apartment complex to purchase in order to expand our capacity and to have place to build a sense of community among the single mother families we work with.  In December of '07 a good friend of mine made us aware of the building in the center of the map below.

The address is 2510 E. 5th Ave and it is located in the historic Parkridge Community right outside of downtown.  The neighborhood has a tremendous association with a lot of renewed interest in the community.  The property is just what we have been looking for.  It is 8 units for $119,000 with around another $300,000 to rehab.  It's history is rich and was originally used as rental property for women who's husbands had died in the war during the '40s.  It is 5 feet from 5th Avenue Baptist Church which has a 3 star state recognized childcare rate for 60 kids.  This would be a huge asset for our family's.  Also the same friend who told us about the property is putting an offer in on the house right beside it and a friend of their's just purchased the house right across the street.   So you may be asking, "What's the problem?"

Well, although Parkridge is on the upswing, the southeastern corner of the neighborhood (where this building is located) is way behind.  It has the most criminal activity including drugs and prostitution.  Also this district has the worst schools in the whole county. 

So here's my issue.  Even though I could make the decision for my family to live their can I really make that decision for the single mother families we work with?  When we say God is restoring all things we really believe that.  He is restoring us, the families we work with, our schools, our communities, our world, everything.  So we know he is at work in that community and we would love to join him there, BUT how is it ok for us to expect the families of The Restoration House to be working toward their own restoration in that environment?  Is this an opportunity to be incarnational or is this when you say this is for someone else at another time?  I'm not scared but I want to do what's best for our families on their journey of restoration.  What would you do???

Creative Ways to Give...#3

Just the other day, I heard about this exciting new way to support your favorite cause.  It is called Giveness.com. By shopping your favorite online stores like Amazon, Ebay, Itunes, and many others you can have a portion of the purchase price donated back to your favorite charity.  For instance every time you buy a song at Itunes for $0.99 they will donate $0.05 to The Restoration House.  Or let's say you buy a new Mac at Apple.com for $1,000 they will donate $10 to The Restoration House.  Get start by going to www.giveness.com or by shopping below.  Have fun!

Creative Ways to Give...#2

Do you like to read? Or do you buy books as gifts for others?  You can make a difference by making your book purchases count. Abunga.com will donate 5% of all revenue from your purchases to you pre-selected FAN (Favored Affiliate Nonprofit) on the Abunga site.  Choose The Restoration House as your FAN and you will be supporting single mothers and their children. The donation comes from the low pricing you receive from Abunga. There is no up-charge, ever! With Abunga you know what you’re getting.

Creative Ways to Give...#1

Many of us are interested in supporting good work but often aren't able to directly give to every cause we value.  Starting with this post I will be sharing some ways that you can creatively give to the causes you believe in including supporting single mother's and their children through the Restoration House. 

Every time you use GoodSearch to search the internet, you can be raising money to for your favorite cause.  The site is powered by Yahoo!, so you'll get the same quality search results that you're used to. Each search generates 1.3 cents which really adds up over time. By using GoodShop to buy things on the internet you can also be supporting your favorite cause because up to 37% of your purchase will be donated back to the cause of your choice, including the work of The Restoration House. Click one of the two graphics above to get started today.  Once there you can download the GoodSearch toolbar for your internet browser and starting giving back with every search.

Happy searching and Happy shopping!

 

Lack of Separation...

Well the holidays have been great; celebrating Christ, seeing family, sharing laughs, the food, and all the rest.  But as I'm sitting here writing this I can't tell whether to be sad or overjoyed that the lines of separation in my life have blurred so much that I can no long compartmentalize my life into family, church, work, worldly, spiritual, etc.  Since my last post on December 21st, I've spent time with Mandy, the kids, Mandy's mom,  sisters, brother-in-law, soon to be brother-in-law, her granny, aunt, uncle, three cousins, father, step-mom, my sister, her new husband from Morocco, my niece, my nephew, my mom, her new boyfriend, my older brother, my younger brother, and my cousin, and all this took place over many different visits within three different cities in two states.  Over this time I've worked on different things for the Restoration House at various times which led me to travel differently than Mandy and the kids both to and from Virginia.  Mandy and I also provided childcare for a two month old for one of our Restoration moms for two nights and three days as she was in the hospital for a gall bladder which included multiple hospital visits and phone calls, while we also started caring for two horses from some friends while they're out of town. (this overlapped my sister's family and then my mother's family staying at our house over New Years). 

Through all of this I've experienced joy and laughter, as well as sadness.  I've made my wife happy at times and disappointed her multiple times.  We all need rest from our rest but I know all of these experiences have been valuable.  I'm so thankful our life is an adventure and it isn't easy, but it's worth it.  Jesus really holds all this together and we would be lost without him. 

A Brother's Love this Holiday Season...

We wish all of you the very best this holiday season.  Hopefully this will be a time of restoration for you and your family. 

This past year has been hard for me concerning my father and his side of the family especially when it comes to my younger brother.  About 7 months ago we had bit of a falling out and we haven't spoken since.  I think we have just been waiting on the other to make the first move.  He's only eighteen and we haven't had a lot of time together over the years because we lived with different parents.  When we have been together I've always considered it time well spent and always wished I would have been able to be more of a brother to him growing up.  The last time we spoke he told me I was never there for him as he was cussing me out.

He happened to be my cashier at the Burger King drive through today.  We said a few words and as I was driving off he told me he loved me.  That will likely turn out to be my greatest Christmas gift this year.  I hope he and I are able to continue to be restored with one another.  We all need to be loved...

I'm thinking...

that most of us forget God created us to be whole and complete.  We were meant for so much more than we sometimes limit ourselves to.  Over the month and a half we have been working with our first single mother.  She has many strengths; she is responsible, trusting, sincere, as well as many others.  Though she has many strengths she also struggles to herself as a person who can do incredible things with her life.  All too often the people in her life have told her that she can't do it or she's not worth.  It's so hard to see people broken in this way and just when I want to feel pity I remember my own struggles in this area.  The Fall not only separated us from God but it also separated us from our true selves.  I'm so thankful that Jesus came to rescue us.  He is our hero who sees us for who we really are. 

Where the Rubber Meets the Road...

Well, here we are, 27 months after God laid this incredible vision on our hearts of helping to restore single mothers and their children back to His good intent for their lives.  It has been such and adventure but unsurprisingly, Mandy and I feel like the adventure has just begun.  This past weekend CBS did two local news stories on The Restoration House, one for our Open House & Dedication and the other when our first family moved in the next day.  This is when theory becomes practice and we begin to see if we have been traveling in the right direction.  At our dedication I spoke about relationships; all the relationships it has taken to get us here and all the relationships it will take to help the families here grow into the families they always hoped to be.  Mandy and I are truly are amazed by all those God has brought in our path to encourage, support, and educate us a long the way.  This truly is a ministry in partnership.  We love you all.

- Daniel

So You're 501(c)3...

Sounds scary doesn’t it?  We’ll that’s what we are, 501©3 (a tax exempt organization).  I am remembering the many newsletters in which we updated you about the status of our 501©3 application. The pile of papers filled with IRSese, if you will, was finally sent in right at five months ago. We were so relieved, and in turn celebrated the seeming victory of completing it. Well, this month we are so proud to announce that The Restoration House of East Tennessee is officially a 501©3 organization! Ssshhh…can you hear the Hallelujah chorus playing in the background? This short turnaround time was greatly unexpected. We believe God has his hand on those papers and on us as we completed them with the help of our dear friend and lawyer Kelli Thompson. Thank you to all of you who, during this time stayed up to date, asking questions and praying for us throughout the process. We are so excited!

It's All Good...

Last week was incredible.  The Restoration House (TRH) received another grant from a local foundation for $31,000, a church is considering supporting TRH with a gift of $10,000, TRH was accepted into Knoxville Leadership Foundation’s Center for Communities, a local Boy Scout is building a playground at the first TRH site for his Eagle Scout project, and a car was donated for the first single-mother family TRH will begin partnering with this this fall.  God is so good.  Its as if he has this all figured out…

Denver and Back in 4 Days...

This past week Mandy and I traveled to Denver, CO to receive some consulting from Warren Village (www.warrenvillage.org).  It was an incredible trip and we learned a ton.   I really appreciated the openness of their organization.  There was no sense of competition that you sometimes find in the nonprofit world.  They have been serving low-income single parent families in the Denver area for over 30 years.  They have a 93 unit apartment complex and they use a model they developed called ‘transformational housing’.  We were able to meet with most of their staff one on one for a couple of hours each.  There were many things we learned that we will replicate into The Restoration House and their were others things we saw that just doesn’t fit our context.  They gave us a copy of their 370 page replication manual as well as host of other tools.  Their volunteer coordinator, who has been there for almost 20 years, was extremely helpful.  Please be in prayer for us as we take all of what learned in and begin to translate it to our context.  We are so thankful to our board for encouraging us to take this trip.