playing the game

Well, this process of placing a bid on a house has been interesting. Our initial offer was for 14k below their listing and they countered with 2k below listing. We came back and offered 10k below and they countered with 3k stating they felt that was as low as they could go because they don't have a lot of equity in the house. I am comfortable with their latest counter but really want to get it down a little more. We split the difference and tonight offered 6k below listing. Their comment was that they didn't think they could go that low but would talk about it. Didn't hear from them tonight so well let them sit on the offer over the weekend. They haven't had renters for 3 months and have had no other offers so I hope they will agree to our latest offer which would give us some room to finance a little more than selling price so we can do a few little things when we move in. If they don't budge, I will probably accept their counter of 3k below.

weight....loss and gain

It's official, I went to LA Weight Loss yesterday and got the news that I have lost 30 of my 35 pound goal since the beginning of July. It's pretty cool not having clothes that fit and hearing people comment on the weight I've lost.

My wife figures she will be gaining about as much as I have lost due to the pregnancy. That should be interesting. I recommend LA Weight Loss to anyone looking to lose weight.

bid on a house

Big news for today is that we made an offer on the house we saw over the weekend. Was a little scary as we realized we are really going for it. No idea how the seller will respond although we know she hasn't received an offer before ours. Will deliver the check for the earnest money tomorrow. We are still excited about the possibility and hope it works out to be the house we buy. We would ask for your prayers that we have favor with the seller and she decides to work with us easily.

Also had a prayer and planning meeting for the launch of The Gathering Place Church (www.gatheringplacechurch.us) tonight. It went well and we are beginning to formulate teams of people to fulfill certain necessary jobs as we aproach the launch date of Feb. 5, 2006. If you are interested in finding out more about the dream, vision and mission of The Gathering Place Church, please send an email with your interest to pastor@gatheringplacechurch.us and we will be sure to share with you how you can play a signficant role at this crucial time of the church.

Charis has continued to have some nausea but less today than yesterday.

I have really enjoyed picking up the saxophone again after several years and really enjoy playing with our church band on Wednesdays and Sundays. Feel that it is slowly coming back to me. We have a great team, led by a keyboard and lead vocalist from Ghana Africa, two excellent drummers who rotate between drums and percussion, myself on saxophone, a great bass playing attorney and 4 gifted vocalists. We have a great time and our church is blessed with a quality music team that always gets positive comments from those who hear them for the first time.

Guess I'll hit the bed now, peace out.

first ultrasound

After looking at houses today, we went to the doctor for our first ultrasound. We were told that we weren't 8 weeks pregnant but instead were 6 and a half weeks. We also had the opportunity to see the heartbeat which is pretty phenomenal as the ultrasound technician informed us that the baby is essentially the size of a grain of rice with a heartbeat. It just goes to underline the amazing miracle of God that is the process of a child being created. The doctor called back to inform us that due to some past complications we have had, she spoke to a high risk doctor who feels they should keep a close eye on us throughout the process and that they will be taking the baby at about 37 weeks. We are very excited about the process and ask your prayers for health and safety throughout the process.


Our babies development at this stage is as follows:

The brain is forming three separate parts: the forebrain (memory and reasoning), the midbrain (translates messages from the brain to organs and limbs) and the hindbrain (regulates breathing and muscle movement). At this point the embryo is now three-dimensional and completely enclosed in the amniotic sac.
Your baby's heart is now beating and blood circulation is evident. The kidneys and liver are growing fast, and the neural tube, which connects the brain with the spinal cord, closes.
The placenta is rapidly developing, however, it will not take over hormone production until about week 12.

house hunting

Just came back from looking at a few houses. Very excited about the possibilities of one of the houses. Need to wait until October for pre-approval. Really hope the home is still available at that time but we know God has our best interests at heart and if it isn't available, then in the right timing there will be something that better suits our needs.

morning sickness and media sickness

Well, Charis had no morning sickness with the first two, but it has begun now. 3:00 in the morning sickness to be exact. I did better than usual though and was able to help her without getting sick myself. I informed her this morning that she can't do this for 9 months lol. I have also informed my television that I can't take another week of finger pointing and blame game concerning Katrina and who is to blame for this and that. IT WAS A HUGE STORM AND THE DEVASTATION COULDN'T HAVE BEEN AVOIDED!!! Response was slow because of the flooding that began after the hurricane. Response was slow because idiots were rioting causing those bringing help to retreat, because people were stealing tv's that they can't plug in anywhere because there is no electricity. I fully understand looting grocery stores for food and water, I would do the same to take care of my family if I was there, but tv's??? Response was also slow because people were running around with guns being stupid. SHOOTING AT THE ENGINEERS REPAIRING THE LEVY????????? How stupid is this. Why didn't the government respond faster, why didn't the government have buses and helicopters and airplanes to evacuate people before the storm? Because this kind of devastation wasn't expected. If it was, why didn't the mayor who needs to be quiet, (and is beginning to refrain from blaming a little more) yell as loudly before the storm as he has after. And PLEASE stop talking about the country and government not being concerned with poor people. This country spends so much money and policy on the poor (and thankfully so as I have been the beneficiary of government programs in the past) that it is an invalid argument to say the government doesn't care about the poor.

This was a tragedy that we can learn from. It was precedent setting and we always learn how to respond better the second time. We all need to stop blaming one another and help. The media can begin to pat themselves on the back and report on how much they are helping and how much money they are raising and give that equal time with the tragedy and negativity. After all, I'm assuming that since they have the inside scoop and the details of the tragedy which causes them to feel they have to help. Right? they have to be doing something and all of America hasn't heard about it yet. Lets all stop blaming, myself included, and pray and help.

Pray for the officers who have been forced to shoot those they should be protecting, for the first responders who have seen enough death to last a lifetime, for the families of those officers who commited suicide because it was too much for them to bear. Pray and find an organization through whom you can help.

Peace out

first blog

This is my first blog, interested to see how I keep up with it and chronicle our life. We just came back from a two night camping trip with the boys. Had a good time cooking over the fire and sleeping in the tent. Josiah did fall from the jungle gym and cut his eye....but that happens when you have boys. I imagine this blog will be a hodgepodge of topics. Our efforts with helping my father build a new church, The Gathering Place, (www.gatheringplacechurch.us) in the north suburbs of Chicago. Our 5 yr old sons first year in kindergarten and the struggles he may or may not have with some minor disabilities he has. The crazy and cute things my 3 yr old son does as well as thee updates on our third child currently in the oven. The continuing and ever changing walk with God in our life and where his callings take us as well as news on our family developments. Will probably share some of my insights during my devotionals as well.

With that in mind. The Gathering Place Church began about 18 months ago with 8 people. During that time we have grown to about 30-40 people and lease a Lutheran Church building. We have learned a lot during this time, gotten close to one another and suffered the grief of losing a beloved and integral member of our church to pancreatic cancer. We have come to realize that we have grown in to a good core group of people and are ready to do a launch that really puts us on the map in the area. We are currently praying for God to supply a large amount of money for this purpose and praying that a church planting group we have begun to build relationship with will partner with us and match funds and give us key insights into strategy and solid church planting strategies. Please pray with us to this end. We are targetting February 5th 2006 as our official launch date. This is a date that coincides with a call to fast and pray for 6 months. This also marks the one year anniversary of our dear friend's death and it seems especially poignant that this be the date for our launch.

We are expecting our third child, will see the doctor tomorrow for the first ultrasound and exact due date. We are also going to look at houses tomorrow and are excited about the possibility of buying a home and getting out of our cramped apartment.

For a brief update for those of you who know me and wonder what is going on with us. We moved to Chicago in 2002 to be youth pastors in a local church. 6 months after arriving, the pastor moved to Florida. We had some disagreements with the direction of the church after his departure and felt it was time for us to resign after being there for one year and a half. We still dearly love the members of that church and are in contact with many of them. We had the opportunity to go to churches in Delaware, New York, Alabama and Florida but felt God wanted us to stay in this area. I began working at Bank One/Chase about two years ago and have been blessed with promotion and success. I now do personal banking with an emphasis on investments and hope to move into a position as a financial advisor within months. Please pray that this will work out for me. Charis and I feel strongly that God would have us plant a church in the city of Chicago in a few years. We know that our calling right now is to see The Gathering Place become a successful life-giving church in the north suburbs of Chicago.

Sorry for the long blog, in the future they will be more succinct.