As I sit in Brooklyn Tabernacle and praise God for being a Redeemer, a Messiah, a Healer - I am overcome with how gracious He is. He has done exceedingly and abundantly beyond what I could ask or imagine in the hearts of students this summer. Stripped fear and depression from those who seemed paralyzed by the unknown and uncertainty. He has brought resources to those never thought any help would come. He has brought listening ears to those who just wanted to be heard.

I don’t even know where to start. I don’t even know where to begin puzzling
in every single God moment that is going on. Did it start this morning when
we were feeding the homeless? Or during dinner when we were trying to plan
out where to go after. By some coincidence it was Niki, Charlie and I who
ended up together after dinner. By some coincidence, we didn’t go play pool
like we said we would and we didn’t watch the movie because the theaters
were full. By some coincidence a metal bar fell on a lady’s toe right

To my Almighty Father in Heaven,

Sovereign Lord of All Creation, you who takes away the sins of the world

You alone have the power to change the world, you alone can soften a person’s heart, and you alone can save

Hear the cry and pleads of my brothers and sisters who are being wronged by the evil of this world and the darkness of man’s heart.

Come swift like a thief in the night and bestow peace and mercy on their frail and broken souls

My “backyard” is the urban streets of the Bronx, it is the wide open greenery that I’d play in, and it is the collection of buildings that hold the secret to the knowledge of this world. It consists of people, trees, grass, dogs, benches, sand, blacktop, and buildings. It is where I was born, where I grew up, and where I found myself. There are many faces there, faces of generations of old, of different color, of youth, of compassion and friendship, of wisdom, of courage, of brokenness, of bitter anguish, of beauty, and of love.

It’s not every Sunday morning you wake up and it’s the end of a life changing experience.  When my alarm went off, I subconsciously denied it and stayed asleep, not wanting to face this day and having to say farewell to 11 of my favorite NYCUPers and our awesome staff.  But you can’t stay asleep forever.  We woke up in a house that didn’t feel like home anymore.  All the cleaning yesterday transformed 1800 Grand Concourse into another building, ready to be another house to a new community in God’s Kingdom.  Throughout the last few weeks