With the Katrina Relocation Plan/warehouse complete, we have to move on into the next phase of our ministry here in Kokmo. This week I have not only made a presentation to Grace Church on Sunday, but on Wednesday I presented the Kokomo Urban Outreach Plan to the Kokomo Kiwanis Club. I have worked this week with Ruth Lawson at the Daytime homeless shelter(CAM), visited all my parishioners in the nursing home, spent the afternoon with a good friend who is homebound for several weeks due to a leg injury, today Chris and I are taking a battered/abused neighbor to the bus station to return to Chicago to live with her mother. I will then be at the church working on a party that we are having during Sunday School on Sunday after we have a blessing of children. Later today I will be traveling with a friend to Lafayette. Tomorrow I am meeting another friend that is going through some difficult times. These times with friends are important to me as I find encouragement and strength through the meetings. These times are gifts from God. In the early evening tomorrow I will be helping a homeless family unload their belongings into the warehouse we used for Katrina Relocation. Saturday I have to finish cleaning our warehouse, we have a handful of stuff left but need to find a truck to get it out. Pray that we find a truck.
Jonathan has found a job at the hospital. He is a Mental Heath Tech he works there from 11PM-7 AM. He really likes it. He is a sort of a nurses helper and monitors rooms via TV camera. He is also attending school full time and plays in a Christian Band that travels almost every weekend, playing at different venues.
Andrew just finished marching band and loved it. He is now on a speech team and is in the ecology club. He likes both. He grew several different sizes of pumpkins, still cares for his rabbit and found a lizard at the warehouse which he made a pet.
Chris and I are job hunting. Nothing seems to be working out. I have put my name in to substitute teach(no calls at all), I am still waiting on an interview to be a hospice Chaplin but that doesn't seem to be happening, I also have visited all the funeral homes in town hoping to be of help of families without pastors(no calls),
Chris has applied at the school to work with special need children, but did not get the job. She has had three very promising interviews at Buena Vista(work group for special need s serving over 800 people) . They seemed interested but have yet to call back. She is applying at a place called CASA to monitor supervised visits of parents with their children. It is a Sunday afternoon job for about three hours a week. She is considering making crescent Rolls and selling them through her sister at the factory.
I really don't have time to have another job but we both need jobs now. Please pray we can find jobs.
The church is a good church,however, years of downturn has caused it to hit rock bottom. For the past three years it has spent 10,000 dollars more than it has taken in and all savings are gone. The church has little money. At the rate it is going it can only survive for about 1 more year at the most. We are going to have a meeting on Sunday in which we are going to have to make some hard decisions and the budget will need to be cut by 1/4 since it is a bareboned budget to begin with it will have to be salary cuts. I expect my salary in the church to be cut in half. There really isn't any other options at this time. We will have to cut office supplies first, meaning no bullentins, copy ink, or paper. We will cut curriculum too, along with Upper Rooms,
and music. Anyway please pray for the future of the church.
While this post seems negative, I am, however, positive we are where God wants to be and I know He will provide. God did not say it would always be easy but He promised He would be faithful. Thanks for the prayers. Jeff
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