I haven’t written here much lately. My apologies. I’ve become a father…to eight teenage guys. It’s a bit weird to say the least. Before you laugh too hard, one of the guys (who’s still in high school) has invited me to the Father/Son lunch at his school on Father’s Day. My first one! I just started to write that I’m too young to be the father of a 16 year old….but then I did the math. So…when did that happen exactly? I used to be too youth…

So what’s it like being a parent? My week has consisted of pretty much constant driving from here to there. Registering and paying for classes…buying school supplies…buying furniture…buying groceries…trying to figure out how to feed eight teenagers on a tight budget…

I also helped the guys get their possessions moved to the house. Most of the guys don’t actually have that much…one of the guys showed up with everything he owned in a small carry on sized suitcase. Last night we drove out to where one of the guys was renting a room to get his bed and clothes. He warned me that it was “muy lejos” (“very far”) and that the road was “muy feo” (“very ugly”). I just laughed and confidently said, “Cuatro por cuatro” (“four wheel drive”).

I should have listened more closely.

First of all, let me just say that, once again, my truck served me well and we made it safe and sound. But it was pretty nasty going there for awhile. With all the rain we’ve been getting (by the way, another bridge washed out on the highway to the boy’s home today…that makes two…) many of the areas surrounding the city are mostly under water.

Where this fellow was living wasn’t very nice. It was one room…damp and musty with just bare cement walls. His bed was a mattress balanced on two big truck tires. He had a little cooker, a pot and a few dishes. I would have been happy just to grab his clothes and a few personal items, and “donate” the rest to his landlord (especially the rusty old fan that I’m sure hasn’t worked in a while)…but we dutifully loaded it all up into the back of my truck and hauled it back to the house.

The reason I’m mentioning this fellow, is that we almost lost him. Earlier this month, after I had talked to him and explained what was happening with the new place, he’d thought about it and decided that it was a good opportunity for him and that he wanted to join us. But then a couple of days before we moved him, he went with me and another of the guys to the big market near our house to buy some things. I bought each of the guys a new set of sheets…a pillow…a towel…and a plastic hamper for their dirty clothes I think. I could see him getting tenser and tenser as we walked around with this stuff, but I wasn’t sure why exactly.

The next day as he and I were driving in my truck, he told me that he didn’t think he could move in with us. He didn’t feel right about it. I told him that for sure, it was his decision. But maybe he could help me understand why he was feeling that way. I asked him some questions, and eventually understood what was going on. He didn’t feel worthy to be receiving the things I had bought the day before. He didn’t think he was good enough or deserving enough. He started to cry as he told me that he really didn’t see a purpose to his life and even why he should continue.

I explained some things to him about his relationship with God and who he was in Christ. That so much of what he was feeling and believing were lies. Then I figured there was no time like the present, so we pulled over and I prayed for him. He told me the next day he’d changed his mind and was going to stay and try to see if things could change. So far it’s been good I think. He definitely has some difficult moments, but I can see God working in him. But once again it’s clear, the spiritual battle that’s raging for these guys.

Just as a side note, this fellow is studying computers with two of the other guys, and they had their first exam yesterday. He got 26 out of 30. He was kind of annoyed that it wasn’t 30 out of 30, but I told him he did fine. One of the other guys got 27…which kind of annoyed him too. =) But he beat the third guy, so that helped the situation…

Anyhow…I’m just telling you this to help you understand where some of these guys are coming from and to ask you to continue praying for them. This is new for all of us (myself included!) and there’s an adjustment process we’re going through. It’s a good group of guys, but it’s still a challenge at times. We all bring baggage to the table, and these guys more than most. But like I said, God is clearly at work…so that’s encouraging.

As a random side note, we bought our appliances the other day. It was all good until Ken forgot that his new gate has a roof over it and perhaps the fridge standing upright in the back of the truck might be a mite too high to go under said roof. After a slight bang and many yells (after the fact) from the guys working on the house and a few random neighbors who were watching the dumb gringo try to back his fridge into yard…it was fine.

Styrofoam is a wonderful invention. And I wasn’t moving that fast…