Roommate Ministry

I've found myself in a bit of a bind financially these past two years. Begrudgingly, I rented a room out in the winter of '08. Keep in mind I have two spare bedrooms, but it was quite a step out for me to rent even just one out since I have lived by myself for the past 12 years. I tried out ol' Craigslist and found a nice guy named Glenn who helped ease me back into roommate mode. Glenn was a self-employed handyman with a girlfriend living about 15 minutes away here in Katy. Glenn took jobs all over Houston, spent quite a bit of time with his lady friend (she also helped him find jobs) so, consequently, our paths did not cross a whole awful lot. It wouldn't be uncommon for me to go several days without seeing my new roomie. Unfortunately, I was still feeling the pinch financially, so in June, I posted an ad for another roommate and met Don.

Don's been living in Katy for a couple of years now. He moved down from Dallas and was taking classes at Prairie View with hopes of becoming a secondary math teacher. Soon after Don moved in, I remember asking him about his religious affiliation. When he answered "agnostic," I thought, "Oh, boy, this could be difficult trying to reach him spiritually." Don stocks groceries third shift, so, like Glenn, our interaction has been rather limited. However, several weeks ago, Don surprised me one Saturday by out of the blue asking me if I would be going to church the next morning. When I answered yes, he asked if he could come. Of course, I said yes. Within the first couple of Sundays, Don met the minister at my church and was able to set up a weekly Bible study. From what I can tell, it's really challenged Don to open the Word and find out for himself what God's plan is for him rather than just to rely on conjecture and speculation.

Soccer Hopes

The soccer season is about halfway over. We had a German student play with us during the first semester who was living with aunt here in the Houston area. He was really a blessing to the team. The other guys on the team accepted him as one of their own, and he was very fluent in the language. Of course, the fact that he's a pretty good soccer player came in handy as well. We lost 12 players from last year's team, and Robin filled in a sorely needed position. We've made enough of a dent in the district schedule so far that we most likely will make the state playoffs. I think it's been eight or nine years since the boys soccer team here at school made the playoffs. Both the girls and boys basketball teams have been very successful year in and year out. I've told the boys that people won't take notice of them and give them the respect they want until they produce something impressive on the field. I've always believed in my ability to encourage and motivate others. I don't think the playoffs is something they can wrap their minds around since they've never been there. It's foreign to them. I need to start instilling in them a sense of purpose. Last year's team came within one game of making the playoffs. My task is helping the boys understand that this goal can be reached.