Beginning of School

These past two weeks have been pretty busy around the BCM. It all started with our international student furniture giveaway two weekends ago. We gave donated furniture to about 200 international students who are new to Virginia Tech and typically have nothing to sit, sleep, or write on. We had people sleeping on the sidewalk next to our building starting at 1:00am to wait in line for furniture, and didn't have enough to give everybody something. It was exciting to be a part of - having the chance to meet so many interesting people and help them out in a very practical and needed way. I hope that we'll continue to be in relationship with some of these students as the year progresses.

This past weekend, we had our leadership retreat with all of the student leaders at the BCM. We went down to Claytor Lake for a night to plan and prepare for the semester, hang out, and spend some time drawing close to God as a group. For April and me, it was a first chance to meet a lot of the student leaders. We are so excited about the group of Bible study leaders that we'll be working with - they are ready and excited to lead their groups and share God's love with the campus and community. This semester, we will be going through a study on the book of Acts and looking at how the church should look and God's plan to love the whole world.

We've also had a couple of events where we've met a lot of freshmen: helping with move-in, basketball, dodgeball, and an open house on Saturday night. Although it's a bit overwhelming for somebody like me who is naturally introverted and sometimes uncomfortable around lots of people, it was really cool to get to meet and talk to so many new people. I remember how intimidating the whole process was for me when I was a freshman, so I hope that we can be welcoming and helpful in any way we can for these new students.

Yesterday was the first day of classes for everybody here in Blacksburg except for April and me. It's a little odd to see all the students headed for the academic buildings, knowing that we have no class and no homework to worry about. Tonight is our first Tuesday night worship service of the year, and we are really hoping to see people come, feel welcomed, and connect to the community at the BCM.

It's Official

One nice thing about working for a campus ministry at Virginia Tech is that you get the hook up from the university. A great example of this is the fact that we get Long-Term Visitor parking passes. This means we can park in any spot on campus - Resident, Commuter, or Faculty/Staff. And it's free. Living right across the street from campus makes this not as big of a deal for April and me, but I'm going to use the pass at least once just because I remember how difficult the parking situation could be when I was a student.

We also got these today:


Somehow, this seems to make everything that we're doing a little more official. It's just so obvious now that I work in Campus Ministry.

It's funny because I was thinking about this idea when I was reading my Bible this morning. I was reading a story where Jesus was hungry, so he approached a fig tree that looked from a distance like it should have had some figs on it. Unfortunately, when he reached it, he realized that it had no fruit. Jesus said to the tree, "May no one ever eat fruit from you again." Later, Jesus and the disciples walked back by the tree and it was withered and dead.

Getting my Campus Ministry ID card made me think about this again, because I fear being like that fig tree. It showed me a picture of somebody who looks like they're living the kind of life God would appreciate from a distance. However, I want my life to bear real fruit - the kind that stands up to Jesus' close inspection. The kind that remains when all of those external things are stripped away from me. I can flash my new ID all I want, but God is not impressed with such things; in fact, Jesus calls the people he runs into who do these sorts of things hypocrites.

So I asked myself, what is this fruit? I think there are a lot of answers to that question, but the ones that I thought of this morning were the "fruit of the spirit" (love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control). I thought of a life that is lived in service to others. I thought of a life that shares the love of God freely and does not discriminate. I thought of a life that loves Jesus and is satisfied in him alone. I hope these are the things that Jesus sees when he gets close to my life.

Hanging at the Lake

As of right now, April and I are homeless. All of our stuff (except for some clothes to wear) is in the basement of our new apartment building in Blacksburg, and we're living with family for awhile. Fortunately for us, that includes spending a week at the Uebel's lake house on Indian Lake in Russell's Point, OH. It is a beautiful drive up here, through the corn and soybeans in the heart of Ohio. I'm even lucky enough to be able to get (steal) just enough wireless internet sitting on the back porch every once in a while to check my email. The ducks in the lake are driving Mabel crazy. She'll run to the end of every dock and bark at them, but can't seem to muster up the courage to jump in the lake and chase them. I don't think she's relaxed for a second since we arrived due to the constant duck hunting.

The move to Blacksburg went well for us. Thanks to the Travises and our friend Mike, we loaded up the U-Haul and cleaned the apartment in what seemed like no time, even though it was an exhausting day. 8 hours and about $350 of gas later, we arrived in Blacksburg in one piece.

Even though we've been looking forward to this move for a long time, April and I both had a weird feeling walking the streets of Blacksburg again. It's going to take us a while to get used to living there again. I guess I felt a little out of place being back in a college town and not being a student. Or maybe Philadelphia has claimed more of my affection than I'll admit and I'll have to learn to embrace small town life again. Whatever the reason is, I'm looking forward to getting over my awkwardness and embracing the community. I didn't do that much as a student, and I've learned in the past couple of years just how important it is for me to be a part of the community around me.

The rest of our vacation plans will take us back through Cincinnati and then down to Nashville to hang out with my brother and the newly married Reuters. Then our break will be over and we'll be starting our new jobs at the BCM!















The view from the back porch here at the lake house.
















Mabel stalking the ducks.















Swimming with Mabel.

No Turning Back

The last day of work here in Philadelphia finally arrived today for the Uebels. For me, it was filled with paperwork, HR, debriefings, and handshakes as I bid farewell to my coworkers and left New Jersey for the last time in the foreseeable future. I will miss my work at Lockheed Martin and in the government software field in general. I've met many great and intelligent people in my line of work, and have been challenged and satisfied intelectually. It's odd to me that my work will no longer revolve around for-loops and algorithm efficiency calculations, logical constructs that I can wrap my mind around, but will instead focus on the intangiables of people, relationships, and God. My logical, engineer brain does not feel as confident with those tasks.

I tend to be very dramatic (at least in my head) on days like this. I find myself thinking things like "This is the last time I'll check in code" or "This is the last time I'll drive over the Ben Franklin Bridge". I guess it feels like today should be monumental, so I try to build it up, but it ends up feeling like just another day where I got off work early and took an afternoon nap.

So now the boxes are mostly packed, the aparment is painted completely white, April's parents are on their way here on a plane, and all that's left to do is pack up the U-Haul tomorrow and make the trek to Blacksburg with our stuff on Friday. Mabel has been beside herself with all of this business and rearranging things around the apartment. Little does she know that the patterns of life that she is so used to are about to be turned upside down.

There ain't no stoppin us now.

The Big Decisions

I've had to make a few choices that were sure to define the next few years of my life. Where should I go to college? Should I ask April to marry me? Should I take a job in Philadelphia? The decision making process for me usually looks like this: think and pray about what I want to do, look for opportunities in the direction I feel is right, take a few small steps in that direction, and repeat. Eventually though, I come to a point of no return where I must make a definite decision, regardless of the fact that I have no assurance that what I'm about to do is right. This always makes even the most simple of tasks seem like a nail biting experience like pacing around the fax machine that holds my job acceptance letter, trying to talk myself into hitting the send button. When April and I started feeling a desire to work full-time with college students, the process was very similar.

Due to the positive experience we had being a part of a collegiate ministry as students, April and I have a shared passion for seeing God work in the lives of college students that led us to talk about working full-time in college ministry from even before we got married. After taking a few years to just be married, we decided to start pursuing this passion. Many small steps later, we had the opportunity to either accept the position at Virginia Tech or push it off and stay here in Philadelphia for at least a little while longer. We had no guarantees that we would like this, be good at it, or not regret the decision for the rest of our lives, but we did know that God had put this desire in both of us and that he had brought us this far already.

So it was with a very shaky voice that a few months ago I told the director over the phone that we accepted the position, a decision which will certainly define our lives for the next few years. We are now in the process of preparing everything for our move to Blacksburg, and even now we have seen God provide for us in many ways in response to pursuing the desire he put inside of us. We are still scared and at times unsure of this next step, but excited to see what God will do through us in the lives of college students.

Life Update

I can't really think of a good way to introduce our next bit of big life news, so I'm just going to dive right into it ...

The big news around here is that April and I have decided to leave Philadelphia and our jobs here to move back to Blacksburg, VA and join the staff of the Baptist Collegiate Ministries at Virginia Tech. Actually, we made this decision almost 4 months ago now, and the whole process of thinking about the move started sometime last fall. There are still details to work out, but our goal is to be down there sometime in July or August, ready for the start of school in the end of August.

Working in vocational ministry on a college campus is something April and I have talked about for a long time. Being involved in a college ministry during our time as students at Virginia Tech was a big deal for both April and me. When I arrived at college, I was in the beginning stages of my relationship with God. The BCM was a place where I first became part of a community of people who had a passion for God and weren't afraid to share it with me. I found opportunities to be mentored, to serve other students and the community, to go on mission trips, and to take my first steps in leadership. It honestly changed the direction of my life. Our passion is that every student would have that same opportunity to hear and respond to God's love and to be part of a community that supports, loves, and encourages them.

The first big steps we've taken in the process were a visit to the campus over Easter weekend and a trip out to Colorado two weeks ago for a training conference. Part of the Colorado trip included a chance to explore Denver and the surrounding mountains, so I've put a few pictures from that trip below. We are sure that it's going to be a difficult transition, especially since we are leaving the friends it took a long time to make here in Philadelphia and the church that we love so much. But we're also really excited about the opportunity that God has put before us, and we can't wait to see what great things are going to come of it.





By a waterfall outside of Boulder, CO.















View from the top of Red Rocks. That place is amazing.

Holiday Time

We just got back from a nice long Thanksgiving weekend down in Chatham, VA with April's parents. It was great to escape the city, enjoy a delicious home-cooked Thanksgiving meal thanks to April's grandparents, and spend some quality time with the family. Even Mabel enjoyed having some open space to run and getting spoiled by the Travises. Another highlight of the weekend was watching the Hokies beat up on UVA on Ronald's beautiful HD-LCD-TV while enjoying the company of Megan Redd perhaps one last time before she moves to California (like everybody else we know, it seems).

After a surprisingly easy drive up through VA and then up 95, we got back, unpacked, cleaned up a little bit, then didn't waste any more time before putting up the Christmas decorations. This was of course accompanied by listening to the two greatest Christmas albums ever created, "Snow Angels" by Over the Rhine, and the Beach Boys Christmas Album (I still know about 90% of the words to this album from the millions of times the record was played in my house in my childhood Christmases). I've always said that you need to wait until at least after Thanksgiving to start putting up Christmas decorations, listening to Christmas music, and getting in the Christmas mood, so the timing was perfect tonight. Here's a shot of our tree and stockings in the living room:

Vick

I recently read this article from ESPN.com about Michael Vick and found it to be a good look at the situation that surrounds him from a couple of different angles. The following quote from the article got me thinking:

People's opinions about every new situation are formed by the totality of their experiences. Animal rights activists think it's about cruelty. Soured Falcons fans think it's about tragedy in multiple ways. African-Americans in Atlanta, according to prominent black leaders, think it's about Vick not getting due process because of the color of his skin.

Having heard all the news surrounding the allegations, I have come to the conclusion that Vick is most likely guilty. I stopped to consider what the connections I have with the situation are and how they are affecting my opinion. Here are the different factors that I can recognize:

• As a fellow graduate of Virginia Tech with Michael Vick, I long to see him bring a good name to the university that I love. He is, after all, the most well known attendee of the university (I'd say that his closest competitors would be Frank Beamer, Bimbo Coles, Bruce Smith, and Homer Hickum, so he wins this one by a long shot). When Michael's brother Marcus got in repeated serious trouble with the law that led to his dismissal from Virginia Tech, I was always glad that even though Michael seemed to have a shady air about him (especially when he was around Marcus), he had kept a fairly good public image.
  
• As an NFL fan (and specifically a Bengals fan), I have watched a lot of players get arrested and suspended for things ranging from DUI and drug possession to weapons charges and assault. I can't say that it would shock me to find out that another NFL player was engaged in illegal activity.
  
• As a dog owner, I am sickened by the practice of forcing dogs to engage in this sort of thing and either killing or abandoning the ones who don't perform. We adopted Mabel from one of many shelters in southern New Jersey that is filled with stray/abandoned dogs that people say were results of dog fighting, or at least intentional breeding and training of aggressive dogs. I think it's easy to allow yourself to have a very emotional response to this issue and be quick to assume guilt.
  

So I guess that Michael Vick's guilt or innocence will be determined by a hopefully unbiased court, regardless of what the public opinion of him is. I would still love to see this all end up to be false accusations, but my gut feeling is that Mike will end up in jail for at least a little while and see his NFL career ruined.

A Year

Nic has been hinting at my lack of blogs lately, so I guess it's about time I get down to it. A lot has happened since the last blog. I realized yesterday (why it didn't register till then I'm unsure) but I've been out of college a year now. Wow! Nic and I have almost been married a year, wow again, we've been in Philly a year now too, my goodness.
And don't get me wrong there have been moments over the past year when time seems to move so slow, but for the most part my mom was right, time flies. I was reflecting today about my time out of college and I've discovered there's so much I miss about it. I miss the people, Blacksburg, having my summers off and surprisingly enough I miss learning. Now make sure you read that sentence well, I don't miss tests and papers and writing lab reports, but I do actually miss learning. I remember listening to a sermon once in college about enjoying the moment you're in and not always dreaming about how much greener what to come will be. Now don't get me wrong there's nothing wrong with getting excited and dreaming about the future, but we have to learn to experience the joy of the present and what God has given us now. I feel like I'm learning to live that out now. I'm loving being a newlywed, having the freedom of no kids =), and believe it or not living in Philadelphia (including our church and new friends, Wissahickon Gorge where we take my wonderful puppy hiking and swimming, and so much more). So as I close I'm reminded of what John Piper says "God is most glorified in us, when we are most satisfied in him."

Hokie Pride

People associated with Virginia Tech really love the university. That has been clear to me over the past two weeks as we have interacted with others and watched the community through the lens of the news media. People who have been interviewed on TV (including President Steger and other officials) have represented the spirit and pride I've always felt among the Hokie community. I feel proud to be a part of that.

It's good to know that Virginia Tech will survive despite the horrible act of a student who was hurting and dangerously disconnected from reality. Times like this seem to make our community even stronger. Sometimes I wish that feeling of closeness could last, but it is already starting fade as the wounds heal and things start to return to normal. I spoke to a close friend about the incident on the phone the other night. It was the first time I had discussed it in a couple of days, and the feeling of heaviness returned, making me realize that it had already started to dissipate in the midst of my normal routine.

I don't want to be misunderstood - Virginia Tech is a special place, but it isn't any better than any other university out there. With all of the attention that was focused on us, I don't want people to get the feeling that we are better or more important than anybody else. The support I've felt from members of other university communities has shown me that there are many places out there that could overcome and grow from an experience like this. Even schools like UVA and WVU who have at times been our bitter rivals have shown us love - I have a lot of respect for that. It shows that all of us understand what is truly important and what is merely different colored shirts that we wear.

So to all my fellow Hokies, be proud of your university. Support it and talk about it as you go through the process of grieving and healing. But don't let your pride turn into superiority or condescension. We needed our time in the spotlight and the attention and support of the nation, but don't feel like the rest of the world owes you anything more.

And to the rest of you, thank you so much for your support. We need it. We appreciate it. Know that if you go through trying times (and we pray that you don't), you will have a nation full of Hokies on your side. You aren't our enemies or rivals when it comes to the things that truly matter. But don't think that we'll take it easy on you if you bring your football team to Lane Stadium.

4-16-07

Until a few days ago, all of my memories that involved both great tragedy and Virginia Tech were focused on one day in the beginning of my Sophomore year. I remember coming back from breakfast at Dietrick to my dorm room in Pritchard hall to news of disaster involving an airplane and the World Trade Center. The residents on my hall and I watched CNN as another plane slammed into the other tower and the two buildings eventually crumbled, throwing our whole country into a state of terror and confusion.

Now, five and a half years later, I am dealing once again with an unimaginable tragedy happening a couple of hundred miles away from where I currently am, but involves a place and a community that I love and feel deeply connected to. Again, all I can do is watch the around-the-clock news with undivided attention, hoping for just another clue to figure out why somebody could feel so much hate toward something I hold so dear that it would drive them to murder and destruction.

At first, I didn't think this would affect me very much. I graduated almost three years ago, and I thought that maybe my ties with Virginia Tech were starting to loosen. Even though I visited often in the two years following my graduation, I've only been to Blacksburg twice in the past year. I only keep in touch with a handful of people that still live in the area. Then I found out that Brian Bluhm, a friend that I knew through church and the BSU, was among the victims. I started to read the biographies of the other victims on the news websites. The effect of each one of their deaths is felt far and wide. I mourn their early passing, and grieve for the family and friends that are left behind to deal with the loss.

I remember once making fun of Michael Vick when he came back to a football game to receive some sort of award. His acceptance speech consisted of about three poorly formed sentences, the last of which was "I'll always be a Hokie in my heart." Let's face it - public speaking isn't the reason he'll be remembered as an important alumnus. I remember mocking his words in the days following, and even now I'm not sure if he was being genuine or just trying to get some words out to please the crowd, but today, they resonate with me in a new and deep way.