Kurt's homecoming

Chris is on his way to the Clocktower here in Rockford to pick up Kurt. Kurt just finished AIT. He will be the addition to the house who will make us 4 people total. We have been waiting in anticipation to get him back for good. There will be some partying tonight for sure! Woo woo!

Conditions of Discipleship

"Whoever loves father or mother more than me is not worthy of me, and whoever loves son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me; and whoever does not take up his cross and follow after me is not worthy of me. Whoever finds his life will lose it, and whoever loses his life for my sake will find it." Matthew 10:37-39

Chris, Matt, and I reflected on this scripture last week Thursday. I think we all got different senses from it.

This passage reminded me of a sermon given a couple weeks ago a mass. Holding our hands out to God, but with the palms open not with a clenched fist. Looking at everything there is, and seeing it as God's to take and give as he pleases puts the whole verse together. When we give our lives over to God to control we "lose our life for his sake", which involves taking up the cross he gives us. I know being able to keep my hand open and not clenching down to hold on to certain things is a HUGE cross for me. I will not give up the fight.

Sledding, pizza, beer... life can't get any better

The guys and I went out to Sandpark to go sledding last night. Aaron and his son Josh went as well. None of us had sleds so we went over to Walmart to pick a few up. Matt, Chris, and I also picked up a can of spray-on Canola oil for the sleds so we would go faster. It ended up being a short-lived fun time. We ignored the weatherman's warning of -30 wind chill, drifts, and snow. Going down the hill meant sledding into the wind, which made things even worse. We ended up staying out for only 30 minutes, then going home. We passed Pino's on the way home and ordered a large pep. with extra sauce, and picked up a case of beer. It was a nice night of just hanging out with the boys. I am hoping the weather will be better on Monday, so that we can go sledding again.

House update

Kurt is back in town. It has been wild around the house lately. We had a meeting last night to discuss some areas that each one of us has been neglecting. Most of the issues have to do with things that should have been done from the start. I am going to setup some rules for the house, so it is clear what is inappropriate and appropriate. Chris, Matt, and I are going to start having household meeting weekly from now on to keep caught up on what is going on with each other. Daily prayer in the morning will also help us with our spiritual growth.

Busy Busy

Kurt is in town for 5 days. He called on Friday saying he was coming. Saturday PM through Sunday AM were spent by me on the phone with him and Dan D. trying to figure out what to do to get him here. Originally we were going to pick him up from the bus station, but Kurt didn't know which one it was. So, I was trying to figure out what time the train that goes out to Harvard starts at on Sunday, only to find out it starts at 7am. Kurt was in Chicago at 3:15am sitting with some people on the bus station bench on West Harrison st. So I figured he could take a cab to O'hare then a bus to Rockford. No go. He only had 10 dollars on him. No ATM in sight. I went as far as calling Justin W., who used to live in Chicago and knows people that live there right now. I figured he may possibly know what to do. He didn't answer though, I am not suprised. Usually calls from me at that time are "drunk Eric calls." I got on Western Union's website and find out they had a shop setup at the bus station he was at. I was getting ready to wire some cash over to him, but then figured he can just get cash from them directly. He got the cash and then got a cab. ETA for Rockford 7am. Woo hoo.

Chris moved in yesterday. It was pretty short and sweet. Although we still need to get all of the stuff that is still in the room adjacent to Chris' room moved out. Minor job, just a matter of getting the right "parties" to get the job done which has proven to be a job in itself.

Logan's stay at his parents has been extended. There has not been a whole lot of news with that. We are all praying for him though.

Matt is working on getting his job apps together. He also "volunteered" to work on the monthy menu, in order to get our spending for food back in control.

As for me, read my other blog if you want to know. I have been posting comments on other people's blogs rather than my own. So my blog seems a little bare from the past week. Here are the other people's blogs though. Some interesting conversations: Justin and Emily . Hopefully they don't mind.

Things change...

We had Carl stay with us for part of the week. He needed a vacation from his mom's house! He went back yesterday though. Logan went out with him and Matt to help them find jobs. I am praying that God's will be done for them.

Logan is moving out for at least a month. He needed to regroup. I am glad that he had enough insight to see that he needed to make a hard descision and was able to go through with it. It shows a lot of maturity.

I need to sit down with Matt and talk. It feels like I have not talked to him in ages. At least we have been able to have group prayer together when we are at the house.

Chris, one of Kurt's friend's is moving in next weekend upstairs. He is a fun guy to hang out with. Him and I drove down to Ft. Leonard Wood, Mo a couple weeks ago to see Kurt graduate. On the way home we talked about faith and theology for 5 hours straight. I honestly can't wait til he moves in. He is figuring out what he believes right now. I love to talk to people that are at that stage in life. It is fun to learn what they think about things. Chris really picked my brain on all kinds of things and got me thinking too.

Dan Delpra and I are going to sit down and talk to Mark D. about his father's house that is right around the corner from mine. From what I understand they are putting it up for sale soon. Another house with 4 more bedrooms would be really nice to have. We just need to make sure that we can afford to pay for it. Matt's brother David is graduated this year from HS so he is looking for a place to stay. Carl is wanting to move in too. Kurt will be back from AIT in Febuary. And Dan D. is wanting to move closer to work. So that is Me, Logan, Chris, Matt, Kurt, Carl, Dan, David. I don't think that 8 people will fit in my 2 bed, 1 bath bungalow. Even if we finished the basement and put in a new bathroom it would be too crazy. So Dan wants to buy this house with me so that we have another 4 bedrooms. I would like to talk to Mark about renting it to us for a while, so we can see if we really need it.

The start of something great

I figured I should make a separate blog for the household so that people can cut past the "personal stuff" and get to the "household stuff". Logan, Matt, and I have been a part of a group of younger guys of the People of Praise (POP) of Rockford who have wanted to try to get a place together. A few of our group have come and gone, but at this point it is the three of us. I bought a house in July this year right after graduating and so began our journey.

A younger guy, Kurt K. ended up moving in with us previous to leaving for bootcamp in a month. I agreed to let him stay with us. A good guy, he was planning on joining POP after AIT in Febuary. At this point in time I am not sure of his status unfortunately. A disagrement has caused some problems over the past few months. I am hoping and praying that everything works out for the best.

Matt D. the quiet type. He is currently in school, finishing his associate's degree. This guy is a thinker. Has probably read more books that the Rockford Public Library has. He has a way with kids too.

Logan G. reminds me of my Opa(German for grandfather). He is the kind of guy who can walk into a crowded room and within an hour and not only know everyone's name, but be able to tell you what they do for a living and tell you intimate details about their families.

And me? Well go to my "It's a lot like having a job.." blog and you can find out more that you would ever want to know about me.