PERSIST..

How do I even begin to write about 2020?

I started out this year picking a one word resolution like I have done the last couple of years. For some reason the word that kept coming back to me was Persist. 

I felt good about the accomplishments of 2019 and I just wanted to keep it up. I had no idea how much that one single word, PERSIST, would mean to me, to all of us, in 2020.

In addition to the challenges of the pandemic our family has had ups and downs personally as well, but through them all, I have heard the Lord whisper this word, PERSIST. A challenge to our family to not give up or veer from the course, to firmly place our eyes on Him and to feel his Peace through it all, trusting Him to work out the details of our lives. 

I have started and stopped, and started and stopped again many times on this post. Partly because life is so crazy and all over the place these days, but partly also because I am still somehow trying to process all that has happened to us in these last six months. 

First of all, if you did not hear, I had Covid-19 in late May and early June. It was by far the worst experience of my life. (If you want to read more about it in detail you can do so here) 

Living through something like that changed us as a family in many ways. Several times in these last few months when storms have come our way friends have asked how it is that we are remaining so calm and my answer each time has been this, "Because I did not die in June; God kept me here for a reason and we trust Him to lead and direct our path no matter what comes our way."

In late June we were told, along with three other couples on campus, that our cottages were going to be converted into College and Career Housing as the Pandemic/economy has caused us to make some hard changes as a campus. This was not easy news to swallow as it would mean that our boys would each be moving to a new cottage and that Cliff and I would be helping out as relief parents wherever we were needed on campus.

But again, we resolved to trust God! None of this, we told ourselves, was a surprise to Him and if He kept me here, he must not be finished yet with our mission at BGC. We told our team here at our beloved home that we were up to the task, whatever that task might be!! 

In late June and July we worked with our friends in Cottage 11. The very same cottage where we started out five summers ago as singles when we first came to BGC. They have a few new guys in there but some of the young men are the same ones we cared for as boys all those years ago. One young man, Alton, with whom Campbell shares a birthday, is still here in that same cottage and so we were able to celebrate this summer with him, God planting the seeds in summers past, that we were able to watch grow right before our eyes. 

Alton and Campbell this year on their 15th and 8th birthdays 

Alton and Campbell five years ago when we were singles in C11 on their
11th and 3rd birthdays. 

And then in late July we were asked by the College and Career manager to start helping out his team. This was wonderful news to us! As many of you know, if you have followed our journey, we actually felt called to work with these kids and on this campus about three years ago. We left our cottage of girls and moved to C&C with heavy hearts, telling our girls that this was not goodbye, but see you soon as we hoped to mentor them again when they graduated on to the next phase of their education. 

We worked with the C&C team for about five months before unexpectedly being asked to rejoin the main campus in Cottage 6 with a group of boys in need. At the time we did not understand what God was doing. Why had he called us to C&C just to quickly move us away again? Back then we fought hard. We questioned. We debated. We prayed. And finally we let go, and let God, and settled into life in Cottage 6. 

This time, when we were asked to rejoin the C&C team we said, "Oh! We get it now, God!" 

We needed to be here on this campus for the five months we were here in 2017, we have seen the relationships we built back then continue to grow, but we needed to go back to the main campus, too, some of those relationships needing to be nurtured further. I am reminded of the scriptures about Esther and her cousin's famous quote,  "And who knows but that you have come to your position for such a time as this?”

Cliff and I surely feel that verse applies to us now. We see God's hand at work through all of this, not just this summer but throughout all our time here at BGC and we know that He will continue to work in and through us if our answer to Him is always, yes. 

Life is in full swing as time marches on despite pandemics and changes. We enjoyed the last lazy days of summer with the college kids, celebrating our 2020 seniors with a little drive-by parade, 

 hanging out poolside for a late night swim, 

and eating family style dinners together.

 But as the month has come quickly to a close so has our summer. 

We loved being able to be a part of the celebration with Tracey, our recent graduate from Texas State. 

And enjoyed getting to visit with Mark at his new home at UTSA.

And today most of the rest of our kiddos, including Campbell, started school as well.

We have more kiddos to deliver to school this week, too. 

And remember our C3 girls that we left telling them we would see them soon when they graduated? Well, they are now seniors in HS, and here we are, back where we were before, waiting for them to join us at C&C!

God is Good. 

We have learned you just have to PERSIST and trust Him to work out the details in His time. 

Please pray for all of us we head back to school.

Please pray for our new journey at C&C.

Please pray BGC, our beloved community and home to all our amazing kids.