PHILLY EATS!

Who loves food?!!

ME TOO!!

You're in luck; N. Philly has compiled a collection of our favorite recipes that will fill your belly without draining your wallet!

I know you want one!

You won't regret it.

Letting Go.

One of my lovely roommates shared this spoken word during devotions last week. 

What are you scared of?

In what areas of your life do you need to slow down?

What in your life do you need to let go of?

In what areas of your life do you need to be more faithful in prayer?

“To say that ‘prayer changes things’ is not as close to the truth as saying, ‘Prayer changes me, and then I change things.’ God has established things so that prayer, on the basis of redemption, changes the way a person looks at things. Prayer is not a matter of changing things externally, but one of working miracles in a person’s inner nature.”

 – Oswald Chambers (My Utmost for His Highest)

Snapshots.

I realize it has been far too long since I last posted on here. So if you are reading this, I thank you for continuing with me on this journey. 

Here are some snapshots of my life for the past few months. 

we tie-dyed shirts.

i went to New York.

we celebrated birthdays.

we made Emily our personal hairstylist.

i skyped with a turtle.

i went to Michigan for spring break.

we went to the art museum. and enjoyed the city lights.

we indulged in oreo-filled cookies topped with brownie batter.

i enjoyed talking to my mom on May 4th.

Emily came to work with me. she is practically the Principal.

we appreciated meals with fruits and veggies.

we grew a sting ray. 

And in the midst of the all the small things there is always so many things to be thankful for. 

Many, Lord my God,    are the wonders you have done,    the things you planned for us.None can compare with you;    were I to speak and tell of your deeds,    they would be too many to declare.

Psalm 40:5

The Justice Conference

The Justice Conference came to Philadelphia, the City of Brotherly Love, from February 22-24. 

We had the privilege of volunteering at the conference and as a result we got to participate in the sessions and peruse the exhibits. 

Here is a glimpse of my experiences on the weekend:

I listened while Ken Wytsma told the crowd of 8000 people that we may not be able to fix the world, but we can change it. People were convicted when he said the temptation of this age is to look good, but not be good. And for those who cannot wait to pursue what is right and what is just he assured us, it is not about being heroic, it is about being faithful.

I agreed with Noel Castellanos when he told us we need a paradigm shift. The poor should not be our “target” of our mission.  Instead we need to embrace the poor as the launching pad for reaching the world for justice he said. 

I was challenged by Brenda Salter McNeil’s “messy” theology. She walked us through Luke 10, the story of the Good Samaritan and a man in a messy situation. She asked us: What do we think about God when we find ourselves in messy situations, that we may not even understand ourselves? While reminding us that Luke 10 does not address how or why the man ended up in the messy situation that he was in, she encouraged us to find a new theology. A theology that does not blame “messes” on people, or on God or one that exonerates us from getting involved.  In looking at all the reasons the other men may have walked by the man on the side of the road without helping, McNeil voiced many people’s greatest fear. Part of us fears that we are not good enough. But she assured us, while we can’t do everything, we can do something. 

I was convicted when Eugene Cho (like Ken) told us we might be more in love with the idea of changing the world, than actually changing the world. There is always a cost to justice, he said. But there are also many tangible things ordinary people can do every day. Be generous, he said. Bless others with your blessings. Carve out time to pray and listen and fast. Look people in the eyes. Be responsible in your story telling (Africa in not simply a continent that can be characterized by swollen-bellied children; it is so much more than that). Go deep. Be informed. Be tenacious. Be committed for the long haul. And no one can take your place in self care. 

I sat exhausted yet comforted by Gary Haugen’s words about love and justice. He told us we need a love that overcomes monotony, fear and tediousness. Because justice is a long and tedious work. If we are to have any hope, he said, we must not only recover justice, we must recover prayer (out of desperation more than discipline). 

I shouted with Stephan Bauman and Cyprien Nkiriyumwami, strength and together. (do-coon-may, zon-yah)

I was reminded of the importance of forgiveness when it comes to justice by Dr. Nicholas Wolterstorff.  Forgiveness is going beyond what justice requires. 

I mourned the loss of 60 million missing females in the population today along with Sheryl WuDunn.  Women and girls are not the problem, she said, they are part of the solution.  

I found hope in Shane Claiborne’s words about non violence. He said, when Jesus disarmed Peter, he disarmed all of us.  And while there may be things worth dying for, there are not things worth killing for. Because grace has the power to dull even the sharpest swords. And even during those times when we buy into redemptive violence it is important to remember that none of us is beyond redemption and none of us is above reproach.  

I rejoiced with Chai Ling when she exclaimed “God is so awesome” despite her heartbreaking past and journey.

I was encouraged and motivated by the wise words of John Perkins. He once said, our mission, as a church, is to open the doors and invite pain and suffering in. 

Give a man a fish he'll eat for a day. Teach him to fish he'll eat for life.--That's a lie! We have to think about who owns the pond. They determine who can fish!

love, N. Philly

I am truly blessed.

Valentine's Day.

Valentine's Day is a unique and special day. Romantics run around full of joy and excitement, pink and red find their way onto every food, flower, and candy bar in the grocery store, and (together) friends mourn their singleness (often not realizing that while they may not have a "date," they are not alone).  

Overall though, Valentine's Day brings people together.  People begin to think about the things they love. And the people they love.  

Love is great. It is important. It makes life worth it. 

"Love is patient and kind; love does not envy or boast; it is not arrogant or rude. It does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful; it does not rejoice at wrongdoing, but rejoices with the truth. Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. Love never ends."  (1 Corinthians 13:4-8a)

This year I loved getting to witness those around me acknowledge the things and people they love.

I loved hearing the stories of a couple exchanging sweet gifts; I loved receiving a cute Spider-man valentine with an awesome tattoo from a kindergartner; I loved wearing all black, eating ice cream and watching sad movies with my roommates.  I loved being reminded to love the small things. I loved being reminded to appreciate the big things. I loved being reminded that there is SO much to love. 

And as I am constantly reminded by a dear friend: God is love. And love is real.     

Love well my friends. (Even when it is not Valentine's Day).

Confessions of a Contemporary Christian Colonialist –by: Josh Kaufman-Horner

Confessions of a Contemporary Christian Colonialist – By: Josh Kaufman-Horner

I've always wondered what Jesus said to Zacchaeus during their visit recorded in Luke 19. Whatever it was must have been good, because Zacchaeus got excited. “Look Lord,” he said, “half my possessions I give to the poor, and if I have defrauded anyone of anything I will pay back four times as much.” Jesus’ response was simple and joyful. “Today salvation has come to this house.”

I bet Zacchaeus was even more excited after that.

But what if Zacchaeus had said "no" to Jesus? What if Zacchaeus kept on defrauding people until he died, and then left his wealth as an inheritance to his children? And then…what if Jesus had dropped in to visit Zacchaeus’ children after their father's funeral?

Would Jesus have said, “Look, your father accumulated some of his wealth through unjust means. I told him how he and his household could be saved from this sin, but he refused to repent. But don’t you worry about all that. By inheriting unjust wealth it is cleansed of the fraud by which it was acquired. Enjoy your good fortune.”

Or might Jesus have let the children know that his continuing invitation to salvation involved their use of some portion of the inheritance to set right Zacchaeus’ wrong doing? Might Jesus have told them that true reconciliation with their father's victims required they produce fruits in keeping with repentance? 

I’m guessing the latter. I’m guessing Jesus would have invited Zacchaeus’ children to offer restitution to their father's victims. Moreover, I’m guessing that if the ill-gotten wealth was passed down to the next generation, Jesus would have offered the same invitation toZacchaeus’ grandchildren as well.

At no point do I imagine Jesus saying to a member of Zacchaeus’ family, “We both know some of your fortune comes as the result of fraud, but don’t let that trouble you. Your awareness of Zacchaeus’ misdeeds doesn’t make you responsible in any way. Live it up! Today salvation has come to this house.”

I can’t see it. When ill-gotten resources fall into the hands of an innocent person, that person does not become responsible for their benefactor’s fraud or injustice. However when a Christian becomes aware they are the beneficiaries of prior wrongdoing it certainly becomes their responsibility to do what they can to set things right. Neither Jesus, nor common sense, could allow them to ignore their legacy or offer them cheap grace.

Moreover, instead of grudging personal reparations that only do justice, Jesus calls his followers to the irrational-without-resurrection joy of generosity that surpasses justice. Jesus, as the embodiment of God's justice-surpassing generosity (a.k.a. grace), incites Zacchaeus to go beyond justice and joyfully give half of his possessions to the poor!

Of course, as a white American, Jesus' invitation is both an opportunity for joy and a big headache for me. After all, it requires little education in United States history to realize white Americans are generally the beneficiaries of at least two monumental injustices. First, this land I live on was often taken from the Native Americans by means of broken promises and military force. Second, African men, women, and children were brutally enslaved in order to provide cheap labor for many of the new landholders. Unsurprisingly our secular government has never offered a formal apology for these abuses. But, as a Christian, I live with an awareness of needing to seek to make right the reality that some inestimable, but not insignificant, portion of my resources are the legacy of these injustices. I'm hereby not overlooking the significant part of my resources that are the result of generations of hard work and thrift, nor am I seeking to grovel in disabling white guilt, instead I'm trusting that amidst the struggle with these truths Jesus will set me free. Like he did Zacchaeus.

So I've taken to recognizing myself as “The Child of an Unrepentant Zacchaeus.” 

This is the third phase of my adult scriptural self-identity. For years I sought to follow Jesus while only giving out of my abundance (Luke 21:1-4). Then growing awareness of Jesus' message about caring for the least of these led briefly to my heroic identity as a good Samaritan intervening to save the day (Luke 10:25-37). Now Zacchaeus has helped me recognize that part of why I get to play Good Samaritan is because my forbearers were such efficient robbers. It has been humbling to embrace this more honest identity and struggle with what it means for me.

Like an unrepentant Zacchaeus, white Americans – our parents and grandparents, and their parents and grandparents – generally turned away from the complex costs of doing justice with our unjust wealth. They, and I suspect we as well, often feared Jesus' invitation to conversation. As much as we want to hear Jesus say, “Salvation has come to this house”, we resist wrestling with the origins of some portion of our resources.

This legacy of resisting Jesus now falls to this generation. Will we pass it to another? Will we ignore what we know to be true? Will we act as if this is all the government's responsibility, rather than wrestling with personal repentance and restitution? Will we continue to build upon these foundational injustices by enjoying new luxuries provided largely by the corporate exploitation of people and resources under authoritarian governments?

Still I look around our home and find I am unrepentant. Like those who came before me, I daily choose to treat the privileges and resources I have inherited as though they were entirely untainted by my nation’s original sins. I carelessly enjoy the endless array of cheap consumer goods produced by the victims of oppressive governments to whom we've outsourced slavery. I overlook unfair labor practices if they make my retirement portfolio rise. I prefer discussing racial reconciliation and poverty exclusively in the legitimate terms of personal responsibility while setting aside the consequences of these legacies.

I want to walk with Jesus today while holding on to unjust privileges the past affords me.

But then I remember. I remember Zacchaeus did repent, and I remember he celebrated his salvation with Jesus.

I want that too.

Jesus, please show me the way.

-----

- Jesus sat down opposite the treasury and watched the crowd putting money into the treasury.  Many rich people put in large sums.  A poor widow came and put in two small copper coins, which are worth a penny. Then he called his disciples and said to them, “Truly I tell you, this poor widow has put in more than all those who are contributing to the treasury.  For all of them have contributed out of their abundance; but she out of her poverty has put in everything she had, all she had to live on.  - Mark 12:41-44, NRSV

- Just then a lawyer stood up to test Jesus.  “Teacher,” he said, “what must I do to inherit eternal life?”  He said to him, “What is written in the law?  What do you read there?”  He answered, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your strength, and with all your mind; and your neighbor as yourself.”  And he said to him, “You have given the right answer; do this, and you will live.

But wanting to justify himself, he asked Jesus, “And who is my neighbor?”  Jesus replied, “A man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho, and fell into the hands of robbers, who stripped him, beat him, and went away, leaving him half dead.  Now by chance a priest was going down that road; and when he saw him, he passed by on the other side.  So likewise a Levite, when he came to the place and saw him, passed by on the other side.  But a Samaritan while traveling came near him; and when he saw him, he was moved with pity.  He went to him and bandaged his wounds, having poured oil and wine on them.  Then he put him on his own animal, brought him to an inn, and took care of him.  The next day he took out two denarii, gave them to the innkeeper, and said, ‘Take care of him; and when I come back, I will repay you whatever more you spend.’  Which of these three, do you think, was a neighbor to the man who fell into the hands of the robbers?   He said,  “The one who showed him mercy.”  Jesus said to him, “Go and do likewise.” - Luke 10:25-37, NRSV

- Jesus entered Jericho and was passing through it.  A man was there named Zacchaeus; he was a chief tax collector and was rich.  He was trying to see who Jesus was, but on account of the crowd he could not, because he was short in stature.  So he ran ahead and climbed a sycamore tree to see him, because he was going to pass that way.  When Jesus came to the place, he looked up and said to him, “Zacchaeus, hurry and come down; for I must stay at your house today.”  So he hurried down and was happy to welcome him.  All who saw it began to
grumble and said, “He has gone to be the guest of one who is a sinner.”  Zacchaeus stood there and said to the Lord, “Look, half of my possessions, Lord I will give to the poor; and if I have defrauded anyone of anything, I will pay back four times as much.”  Then Jesus said to him, “Today salvation has come to this house, because he too is a son of Abraham.  For the Son of Man came to seek out and save the lost.” - Luke 19:1-10, NRSV

Epic Egg Drop

Every Sunday as a house, we have a Family Night and do something together.

This past Sunday, Aaron planned an awesome evening.  He walks into the girls room with 7 empty peanut butter containers and a carton of eggs. He says we have 15 minutes to do whatever we want to the inside or outside of our container (the new home of our raw egg).

We all scatter as we search for things to protect our eggs.

After 15 minutes we tested our newly enhanced "Egg Homes" by dropping them from three different locations (and heights) of our house.

Aaron and Mitch then made a great video of the night.

Enjoy!

So Much To Be Thankful For.

While many of my close friends may know that "Grinch Megan" often surfaces around the winter holidays, it may also be common knowledge that Thanksgiving is my FAVORITE holiday. 

And this year was no different. 

Here are a few reasons I love Thanksgiving:

I love food. I love being reminded to be thankful. I love being with people I care about. I love dining with friends. I love eating food. I love knowing I am surrounded by people who care about me. I love eating. 

This year was a special treat. Our whole house was invited to the worship director at our church's house for dinner. We not only got to eat delicious food, we also got to meet her generous family, caring mother, and hilarious and friendly mother-in-law. It was such a blessing. 

In the short time I have been here in Philly, I am already noticing all the little things I am blessed with and thankful for. 

I hope your holidays were delicious. 

Children's Prayers

Yesterday at HPCA was our Day of Prayer. During chapel in the morning the students learned how to pray in the ACTS format [Adoration (I love you), Confession (I'm sorry), Thanksgiving (thank you), Supplication (please)]

Every hour or so a student would walk through the halls ringing a bell, signaling specific times throughout the day to stop and pray.  Each time the bell rang the students would focus on a different aspect of the ACTS prayer. 

During the supplication time of prayer the older grades partnered up with a younger grade and students would pray together. And instead of simply just asking God for things that they wanted, the students focused on praying for our leaders in our nation.  They prayed for our re elected President. For those in government. For their principal and teachers. For their pastors. 

I loved walking through the halls and not only hearing the whispered prayers of students, but also reading some of the students written prayers.

I pray for homeless people and familys

I pray for our President

I pray for people who are homeless and who are sick and who are dieing in the name of Jesus. Amen

Can you prey for my grandma because she needs medicen almost every week. I am very serios

I pray for hope

Dear Heavenly father. I pray that I can be nice with my sister.

I want to pray for my grandpa, because he's not feeling good & he's living alone, by himself in a bad neighborhood, so I want to pray for his safety & protection and I want to pray so I could do better in science.

Dear God, I pray LORD that my father would come back to church.

May we learn to pray like children. May be we bold in our prayers. Fearless. May we be honest. May we repent and love. May we be learners. May we write our prayers down. May we pray together. May we be intentional about loving God and loving people.

Dear God, As you draw me ever deeper into your heart, I discover that my companions on the journey are women and men loved by you as fully and as intimately as I am. In your compassionate heart, there is a place for all of them. No one is excluded. Give me a share in your compassion, dear God,so that your unlimited love may become visible in the way I love my brothers and sisters. Amen
[With Open Hands- Henri Nouwen]  

I LOVE: you.

I LOVE:

.. north Philly.

..the beauty in the midst of the brokenness of my neighborhood.

..the Golden Dragon.

..receiving leaves to put in my hair from neighborhood kids.

..impromptu late night epic roommate bonding sessions in the kitchen.

..getting snail mail from people I love.

..having communion as a community and committing to each other and this year together.

..witnessing things lost being found.

..the Giants. And my father.

..learning from neighbors.

..seeing this city at night. And the people who live here.

..witnessing a dear friend find beauty and joy in the little things.

..silliness. (awesomeness) 

..sleepovers. Brought on by Sandy (Frankenstorm).

..us. 

..them.

I love many things.  I love learning and growing. I love being pushed and stretched. I love seeing God protect and provide for me in the moments that I am most fearful, uncomfortable, and weak.  I love knowing that I am loved. And that I am cable of love because God is so gracious to us.  I LOVE everyone who prays and supports me and my team.  

I love ..you. 

PRAISE. 

Reaching Out to God

“Don’t we use the word “prayer” mostly when we feel that our human limits are reached? Isn’t the word “prayer” more a word to indicate powerlessness rather than a creative contract with the source of all life?

It is important to say that... feelings, experiences, questions, and irritations about prayer are very real and often the result of concrete and painful events.  Still, a spiritual life without prayer is like the Gospel without Christ.  Instead of proving or defending anything, it might be worthwhile to simply bring all the doubtful and anxious questions together in this one question: ‘If prayer, understood as an intimate relationship with God, is indeed the basis of all relationships--to ourselves as well as to others--how then can we learn to pray and really experience prayers as the axis of our existence?” By focusing on this question, it becomes possible to explore the importance of prayer in our own lives and in the lives of those we have met through personal encounters of through stories and books. 

Prayer is often considered a weakness, a support system, which is used when we can no longer help ourselves. But this is only true when the God of our prayers is created in our own image and adapted to our own needs and concerns. When, however, prayer makes us reach out to God, not on our own but on God’s terms, then prayer pulls us away from self-preoccupations, encourages us to leave familiar ground, and challenges us to enter into a new world which cannot be constrained within the narrow boundaries of our mind or heart.  Prayer, therefore, is a great adventure because the God with whom we enter into a new relationship is greater than we are and defies all our calculations and predictions. The movement from illusion to prayer is hard to make since it leads us from false certainties to true uncertainties, from an easy support system to a risky surrender, and from the many “safe” gods to the God whose love has no limits. ” 

- Henri Nouwen

I Need Wisdom and Grace.

As a team we read and discuss books about culture, race, urban environments and God. Currently we started reading "Why Are All the Black Kids Sitting Together in the Cafeteria" by the Psychologist Beverley Tatum, PH.D. 

I find her words very powerful. Growing up in a predominately White community it can be easy to distance myself from issues of race and even to unknowingly perpetuate passive racism due to being unaware of certain advantages I may possess simply because I am White and privileged.

Tatum writes: 

"The impact of racism begins early. Even in our preschool years, we are exposed to misinformation about people different from ourselves.  Many of us grew up in neighborhoods where we had limited opportunities to interact with people different from our own families. When I ask my college students, "How many of you grew up in neighborhoods where most of the people were from the same racial group as your own?" almost every hand goes up.  There is still a great deal of social segregation in our communities.  Consequently, most of the early information we receive about "others"--people racially, religiously, or socioeconomically different from ourselves--does not come as the result of firsthand experience.  The secondhand information we do receive has often been distorted, shaped by cultural stereotypes, and left incomplete. 

Some examples will highlight this process. Several years ago one of my students conducted a research project investigating preschools' conceptions of Native Americans. Using children at a local day care center as her participants, she asked these three- and four-year-olds to draw a picture of a Native American.  Most children were stumped by her request.  They didn't know what a Native American was.  But when she rephrased the question and asked them to draw a picture of an Indian, they readily complied. Almost every picture included one central feature: feathers.  In fact, many of them also included a weapon--a knife or tomahawk--and depicted the person in violent or aggressive terms. Though this group of children, almost all of whom were White, did not live near a large Native American population and probably had had little if any personal interaction with American Indians, they all had internalized an image of what Indians were like.  How did they know?  Cartoon images, in particular the Disney movie Peter Pan, were cited by the children as their number-one source of information.  At the age of three, these children already had a set of stereotypes in place.  Though I would not describe three-year-olds as prejudiced, the stereotypes to which they have been exposed become the foundation for the adult prejudices so many of us have. 

Sometimes the assumptions we make about others come not from what we have been told or what we have seen on television or in books, but rather from what we have not been told.  The distortion of historical information about people of color leads young people (and older people, too) to make assumptions that may go unchallenged for a long time.... 

Stereotypes, omissions, and distortions all contribute to the development of prejudice.  Prejudice is a preconceived judgment or opinion, usually based on limited information.  I assume that we all have prejudices, not because we want them, but simply because we are so continually exposed to misinformation about others" 

Tatum continues the discussion about racism defining it as a system of advantage based on race. She writes:

"Understanding racism as a system of advantage based on race is antithetical to traditional notions of an American meritocracy. For those who have internalized this myth, this definition generates considerable discomfort.  It is more comfortable simply to think of racism as a particular form of prejudice. Notions of power or privilege do not have to be addressed when our understanding of racism is constructed in that way....

Frequently someone will say, "You keep talking about White people. People of color can be racist, too." I once asked a White teacher what it would mean to her if a student or parent of color accused her of being racist. She said she would feel as though she had been punched in the stomach or called a "low-life scum."  She is not alone in this feeling.  The word racist holds a lot of emotional power.  For many White people, to be called racist is the ultimate insult. The idea that this term might only be applied to Whites becomes highly problematic for after all, can't people of color be "low-life scum" too?  

Of course, people of any racial group can hold hateful attitudes and behave in racially discriminatory and bigoted ways.  We can all cite examples of horrible hate crimes which have been perpetrated by people of color as well as Whites.  Hateful behavior is hateful behavior no matter who does it. But when I am asked, "Can people of color be racist?" I reply, "The answer depends on your definition of racism." If one defines racism as racial prejudice, the answer is yes.  People of color can and do have racial prejudices.  However, if one defines racism as a system of advantage based on race the answer is no.  People of color are not racist because they do not systematically benefit from racism.  And equally important, there is no systematic cultural and institutional support or sanction for the racial bigotry of people of color.  In my view, reserving the term racist only for behaviors committed by Whites in the context of a White-dominated society is a way of acknowledging the ever -present power differential afforded Whites by the culture and institutions that make up the system of advantage and continue to reinforce notions of White superiority.  (Using the same logic, I reserve the word sexist for men. Though women can and do have gender-based prejudices, only men systematically benefit from sexism.)   

Despite my best efforts to explain my thinking on this point, there are some who will be troubled, perhaps even incensed, by my response.  To call the racially motivated acts of a person of color acts of racial bigotry and to describe similar acts committed by Whites as racist will make no sense to some people, including some people of color. ... At moments like these, it is not agreement that is essential, but clarity. ... 

For many White people, the image of a racist is a hood-wearing Klan member or a name-calling Archie Bunker figure.  These images represent what might be called active racism, blatant, intentional acts of racial bigotry and discrimination. Passive racism is more subtle and can be seen in the collusion of laughing when a racist joke is told, of letting exclusionary hiring practices go unchallenged, of accepting as appropriate the omissions of people of color from the curriculum, and of avoiding difficult race-related issued. Because racism is so ingrained in the fabric of American institutions, it is easily self-perpetuating.  All that is required to maintain it is business as usual.   

I sometimes visualize the ongoing cycle of racism as a moving walkway at the airport.  Active racist behavior is equivalent to walking fast on the conveyor belt. The person engaged in active racist behavior has identified with the ideology of White supremacy and is moving with it.  Passive racist behavior is equivalent to standing still on the walkway.  No overt effort is being made, but the conveyor belt moves the bystanders along the same destination as those who are actively walking. Some of the bystanders may feel the motion of the conveyor belt, see the active racists ahead of them, and choose to turn around, unwilling to go the same destination as the White supremacists. But unless they are walking actively in the opposite direction at a speed faster than the conveyor belt--unless they are actively antiracist--they will find themselves carried along with the others. ... 

It is important to acknowledge that while all Whites benefit from racism, they do not benefit equally.  Other factors, such as socioeconomic status, gender, age, religious affiliation, sexual orientation, mental and physical ability, also play a role in our access to social influence and power" (3-12).

While I have never thought of myself as an active racist, I do think that I have become too content with how things are in the world when it comes to issues regarding race. Like Tatum suggests, I have probably been standing on that conveyor belt, not making an active enough effort to walk in the other direction.  

I pray God will give me (and everyone) wisdom and grace in this area as we seek out justice in a broken world. 

Hunting Park Christian Academy

This year I am so blessed to be able to work at Hunting Park Christian Academy (HPCA).

HPCA's mission is to provide a quality, affordable, Christian education that celebrates a diverse community and leads children to know and serve the Lord. They serve approximately 200 children (pre-k- 8th grade) who are primarily at-risk children who also come from low income families. HPCA maintains a very low tuition and has a great scholarship program so quality and Christian education can be available to the poor in their community. 

As found on their website, the HPCA community is in great need of education:

The high school drop out rate is 53.4%, and only 3.3% of community members have a college degree.  According to the neighborhood middle school's report card, only 6.5% of the students graduating 8th grade in 2003 were proficient in math and 18.6% were proficient in reading. The 19140 zip code has the highest rate of domestic violence in the city, and the third highest rate of murders. In addition, drugs and prostitution have taken over the neighborhood park, making it unsafe for children.

At HPCA, I work for the Director of Development. I help with all things donor, contribution, receipt, fundraising, event, organizing, planning, newsletter, and administrative related. I love it.