HOSEA! (And a "Streaky" Blogger)

First off, the Gates family is now a family of four!  Hosea Daniel Thomas Gates was born at 2:48pm on Monday, July 6.  He was 8 lb. even, and 21 1/2 inches long.  Pictures are forthcoming.  For now, let's just say we love him lots.  And lots.

In baseball, there are a lot of people who are characterized as "streaky" hitters.  They look like MVP's for a few weeks, and look like career minor-leaguers the next.  

In my own blogging, I am very streaky.  As the circumstances of my life change, my blogging frequency ebbs and flows.  Since I've started full-time ministry again, with weekly sermon writing, pastoral visits, and a whole list of other things, I haven't felt the need to blog so much.  

But, as you can tell, I'm blogging today, and I feel like there will be more to come soon.  So be ye forewarned.  Grace and peace, my friends.

I'm a Pastor!

As of about an hour ago, I am officially the Pastor of Bretton Woods Covenant Church in Lansing, MI. My first day in the office will be Monday, February 9 and my first Sunday will be February 15. It's incredible. Marcie and I (and a whole lot of our friends and family) have been praying for this moment for years, and now it's here. It's surreal, it's exciting, and it's sacred. I can't wait to get started. So my days as a stay at home dad are numbered, and I will enjoy them to the best of my ability.

It's truly humbling to be living into this call, a call which I first sensed a little more than 10 years ago and now am able to realize as the pastor of this wonderful little church in Lansing. I'd refer you to the website, but it's not currently functional. I think the pastor should get to fixing that right away.

So thank you to all who pray for us. We sense that God has made this happen, and we know many of you have prayed for just that. We look forward to life in Lansing, and thank God that it's only an hour away from where we live now.

Now it is with great enthusiasm that I now say "Go Lugnuts!" (the single-A baseball team in Lansing), and with slightly less enthusiasm, yet endless respect for Tom Izzo, I say "Go Spartans?!?" I'll have to work on that.

Headed to Washington

Marcie and I will be in Washington (the state, not the district) for the next few days. First to Seattle, then to Centralia. Our dear friends Ryan and Devyn will be wed there on Saturday, and I will be an usher. I take my role very seriously, and have been practicing at local restaurants. Aside from a few awkward glances and that one guy who punched me in the face, people seem to be satisfied with my ushering skillz (yes, that's skillz, not skills). Maybe I can get some more practice in at the airports on the way...

And for those who take listmaking as seriously as I, there was a glaring omission on my top albums list. I mistakenly omitted the wonderful album "Parc Avenue" by a band called Plants & Animals from the list. I would put it at number eight. There, I feel better now.

Lately I've been spending a lot of time with Addison, enjoying reading Walter Brueggemann's classic "The Prophetic Imagination," and working toward preparing a sermon on 1 Corinthians 3. The peace of Christ be with you all.

Ends and Beginnings and Celebrations and Et Ceteras

Okay, so I haven't been around the last couple weeks.

I know.

I've missed you too.

I simply had a hard time justifying spending time writing things that were not my last few assignments for seminary. And now they're done. They're all done. What a time of life, right? Marcie and I are going to have another child in July-ish, I'm done with seminary, and I'll be a pastor at a church sometime (hopefully) soon. It's been crazy ,but here are a few things I've been thankful for in the past couple weeks:

• A Very Rosie Christmas Concert - On Friday night, Dec. 5, Marcie and I went to the Rosie Thomas Christmas concert hosted by Calvin College at the Ladies Literary Club in downtown Grand Rapids. It was fun, and one of those shows that both Marcie and I can enjoy in equal measure. Rosie is ridiculous, hilarious, utterly unpretentious, and her singing voice is simply beautiful. Rosie T is a paradox, and I think that's why I like her so much. Also it was most excellent to hang out with the Zabel's.
• Call + Response - The very next night, we went to see Call + Response, a rockumentary about human trafficking and the contemporary slave trade. Cornell West's insight into slave music and The Scrolls' performance of Radiohead's "Exit Music (For a Film)" were highlights of the film for me. Some of it was really hard to hear, but it was well worth the watch. Kudos to Justin Dillon for taking on the project.
• My Seminary Friends - I won't necessarily miss the drive, but I'll miss the people. I'm pretty confident we'll see each other around, but with a lot less regularity.
• My Last Night on Earth (or, rather, in Chicago) - A small gathering of my aforementioned seminary friends went to the Chicago Ale House for dinner on Tuesday night to celebrate my last night in Chicago, my last night on campus as a North Park Seminary student. It was nice to just sit back and enjoy the moment, even though all of us had large assignments and finals looming over our heads. Also, mad props to Tommy for giving us a discount.
• The Corner Landing - There's a little place in Ionia, MI that serves all you can eat prime rib on Thursday nights, and it's called the Corner Landing. Marcie asked if I wanted to meet her parents out there for dinner Thursday night. I still had a paper to finish, so I was hesitant, but the reality is that I will do anything for prime rib. When we got there, I found out that it was a surprise party for me! There was a whole mess of family there, and they had balloons, cards, presents and many congratulations for me. I'm so lucky to have a wife who does those sorts of things for me. Also, my father-in-law gave a toast that brought me to tears. It was good.
• Marcie's birthday - Marcie had a birthday on Friday, and Addison and I had a blast getting ready for it: buying presents, wrapping presents, baking a cake and practicing singing "Happy Birthday" with the guitar. Unfortunately Marcie wasn't feeling very well, so it was pretty "chill." Thankfully, the first trimester is almost over, and with it (hopefully) the nausea.

Over the last month or so, I've been reminded over and over of some words from the (only) hit song by Semisonic, "Closing Time." The lyric is, "Every new beginning comes from some other beginning's end." It rings true in so many ways in my life right now, as I grieve some ends whilst (yes, whilst) anticipating new beginnings with great joy.

In the meantime, I'm just trying to take it all in.

In An Attempt...

...to be more disciplined in other areas of my life (running, housecleaning, parenting, husbanding, personal hygiene, etc.), I have neglected blogging. Yet blogging is something I love, so I will hopefully be returning to the discipline sometime soon. For now, I'll just let you know what I plan on blogging sometime in the near future.

I have quite a few distinct thoughts rolling around in my brain on the topic of Eco-Theology. I've been doing some Eco-Theology in various forms lately. I have some of the thoughts down already in the form of a theology paper, but it wouldn't make a very good blog as is. I did some Eco-theologizing when I set up recycling bins at our house and posted some scripture texts in our garage from Psalms and Revelation as a reminder why I/we recycle.

In other news, I'm an uncle for the first time. Carter Charles Fedewa was born very early Sunday morning. It's amazing to see a little baby now that Addison's so big (almost 14 months). It really does go stinkin' fast. It's not all just gross exaggeration. I've been off all week for fall break, which has been great, and tomorrow morning we head to Rockford to see my family. It's been awhile and I miss them.

I am blessed by Marcie and Addie all the time. Despite our awkward travel/living situation, life is really good. Praise to the Father, Son and Spirit who love and sustain us in each moment and throughout each season of this messy but beautiful life.

Happy Birthday, Darlin'

It's Addison's first birthday today. It's hard to believe that it has been a year already, but it has been a great year. I can't imagine the past year without her. She went from being our new baby that we didn't really know what to do with to being a wonderful, exciting member of our family. Our lives have been enriched in new ways that we would have never known but through Addie's presence. Here are a few of my favorite pics from Addie's first year.




This picture is from the first day of her life. Shortly after her birth, they washed her off and wrapped her up, and this is what she looked like. It looks like she's already smiling, and she hasn't stopped since. She's a lot like her mom in that way.


I love this picture. Every once in a while, she seems to be engaged in some really deep thought, and we captured it perfectly in this pic. She was only a few months old at the time. What a beatuy.


On the day of the Super Bowl, we did our part to cheer on Da mighty Bears. Though the outcome was less than ideal, it was still great to see the Bears most beautiful cheerleader in action.


We went out to the east coast over the 7/7/07 weekend for Jake and Karen's wedding, and one of our outings was a trip to Manhattan with the Gustines. We thought of going to the Empire State Building, but thought it was too touristy, so we went to Times Square (that's a joke from The Office, in case you missed it). Addie liked all the people and flashing lights and million inch tv screens everywhere.




Here we are on our last day in Indy (8/5/07). Right after church, we got our pic taken all gussied up in our Sunday best. Almost all of her first year of life was spent in Indy, and our Hope church family really embraced our little one. She was loved there, and surely misses playing with all the Hope kids (big and small, old and young).



And now she's one. Switching from formula to milk, facing forward in her carseat, moving up in the world. Everyone was right. It does go stinking fast. But we've been blessed to not have missed much. Marcie and I both have gotten to spend a lot of time with Addie this year, and I pray that we continue this trend, even as our situation will be quite a bit different this year.



Her middle name is Grace, for she is truly a gift from God. Thank you, Father, for entrusting us to raise your daughter. Continue to stand by her and touch her life with your Holy Spirit. May we love her as you have loved us, and by doing so, show her a glimpse of your kingom here on earth as it is in heaven. Amen.

Reflections on Home

We now have internet at the new house. How convenient. Jena, my sister in law and our housemate, just so happened to have an wireless router, and so I have the luxury of posting from bed as I drift off to sleep. Hopefully my sleepy state doesn't lead to posts I'll regret in the morning, but I doubt it...not this time, anyway.

We've been in G-Rap for two full weeks now, and it's been a good settling process. The first week was difficult, but this week was much better. I've had plenty of tasks to take care of during the days while spending time with my beautiful baby Addison. I got my licence switched to Michigan, along with the van title and some nifty new license plates. I ordered all my books for the semester (four of them came today). I had to buy a new modem to get the internet running at the house. I called a ton of day care places to check on rates and details. And we continue to put the house together, box by box, room by room. We have a lot of stuff. I wish we didn't, but we do. At least we're trimming the fat (vis a vis an upcoming garage sale). And I need to buy a car this week, so I've been looking into that as well.

It's been interesting. Transition is always a difficult and exciting thing. For the last seven years of my life, I've pretty much constantly been in transition. Dorms (202D), parents house, dorms (104B), parents house, dorms (104B), Little Pine Island Camp, apartment at Trinity, apartment at North Park, house in Indy, house in G-Rap. The only place we stayed long enough to call home was Indy, and just like that, we're gone.

There are so many things we'll miss about Indy. It's our daughter's birthplace, and where she spent the first year of her life. It is the home of some great dining establishments: Squealers, Yats (Cajun Creole Crazy), Bub's, King Kabob, La Margarita, Rick's Cafe Boatyard, Claddagh's Irish Pub. I'm salivating just thinking about the goodness. We lived 1.5 miles from the Monon trail, where we walked and ran regularly. We were a mile from the bank, post office, and public library. Downtown was clean, easy to get around, and beautiful.

And of course there are the people. The people of Hope Covenant, the people of the Hollis Adams lunch bunch, some dear, dear friends who I got to meet with regularly to encourage and sharpen each other and talk ministry, music, life and everything in between. It's hard to even think of some faces, because it rips my heart to be separated from them. We haven't had very deep roots for over seven years, but they dug in pretty far in Indy. Just when it began to really feel like home, we left.

But duty calls. Seminary calls, and I'm actually in a good place right now. Though I miss Indy, I'm loving getting to know G-Rap. We live dangerously close to a Best Buy, a restaurant with excellent falafel called The Pita House, a mall, and Baker Book House. We are close to Marcie's family, and as I mentioned before, her sister even lives with us. I've gotten to meet some of the neighbors, and our next door neighbor gave us some fresh produce from her garden. Our house is very nice, a perfect fit for us, and it's starting to feel like our house finally.

But what makes everything go 'round are those constant and intimate relationships I share with my Lord, my wife and my daughter. Home is a nebulous concept, and is not bound in all facets by geography. I feel at home when I am with Marcie and Addison, no matter where that is. They are my family, they love me and allow me to love them. Yet ultimately, none of us can feel fully at home until fully present with Christ (2 Corinthians 5), and I know not when that day will come.

So for one more week, I am a full-time stay at home (home, get it?) dad looking for a car and continuing to put a house together. After that, let the weekly commute to Chicago begin. Thankfully the Cubbies are getting their act together to get ready for my arrival. Thanks, boys. Heal up good, Alfonso.

Vacation

Marcie, Addison and I are leaving for vacation in a few short hours. We'll be going to Boston, New York City, Cape Cod, and on Saturday, will witness the marriage ceremony of a great friend and his fiance (who's probably much greater than he, but we don't know her nearly as well).

We'll be back on Tuesday the 10th. Probably won't be much internet access over the trip, but we'll see. We're stoked. We'll be mostly camping, but we're gonna sleep in an actual bed a couple nights, too. I've never been that far east, so I'm anxious and all that.

And, it's Addie's first family vacation. All trips she's been on until now have been to visit family.
Until next time.

We're Moving...

...from the birthplace of the late Kurt Vonnegut to the birthplace of the late President Gerald Ford. You can read my wife's terrific description here. What follows is a modified version of the letter we sent out to our friends here at Hope Covenant Church. We appreciate the prayers of many of you who knew of our quandry before today. This was a tough decision, but we definitely sense God's peace about it now. Some adjustments to this letter were made for the protection of the innocent.


Beloved friends,

When we moved here to Indianapolis on July 28, 2005, we thought we would be here for a one year internship, an integral piece of my studies at North Park Theological Seminary. Thankfully, we had the joyous opportunity to extend our time here another year, affording us the privilege of building stronger friendships with many of you and getting involved in more areas of ministry than we would have dreamed.
After weeks of wrestling through our options for August 2007 and beyond, we have determined that in order to continue my seminary education we will no longer be able to serve at Hope Covenant Church.
I must for a variety of reasons go back to seminary full-time this fall. North Park has graciously allowed us to stay here for two years, but at this point, a move is inevitable for us.
In considering our options, we tried to figure out a way to stay here and go back to seminary full-time, but nothing we came up with seemed like a healthy option for us or for the church. As a full-time student, commuting to Chicago three days a week, half-time pastor here and full-time husband and father, I would not be able to give my best to all three. In fact, in trying to give myself to all three, I would have to fail in one area, and that is not something I am willing to do. Being a full-time student and investing in my family are non-negotiables, and in order to do those things well, we were forced to move in another direction.
After our final Sunday at Hope on August 5, we will be moving to the Grand Rapids, Michigan area. As some of you know, this is where Marcie is from, and basically her entire immediate and extended family lives in the area. This will allow Marcie to go back to work full-time, while having the support system to place Addison into trusted and reliable care during the days that I am in Chicago at school. Though the commute to Chicago is almost as far as from Indy, this option will free me from having to work, giving me the ability to focus entirely on schoolwork and family.
We cannot overstate how difficult this decision has been to make. Every time we look at your faces we see dear friends who have journeyed with us through these past two vital years. We have felt loved and supported amid joyful and difficult times. We have received encouraging words and have felt free to be ourselves in ministering to you and your children. The ministry experience I have received here is truly rare, and I thank you for your patience in letting me try new things and figure out how to do ministry. Looking back, Addison may not remember a lot about the first year of her life, but we will with joy be able to tell her stories of the great people who wrapped their arms around her and us…you.
God has been continually faithful to Hope Covenant Church for over 25 years, and will continue to be faithful after our departure. Though it is hard for us to leave, we know that He is in control and will provide for all your needs. We are humbled to have made any impact on your lives, and we pray for God to continue to guide you into his love, truth, justice and grace.

Blessings,

Andrew, Marcie and Addison Gates

The Skinny, The Wager, or Perhaps More Appropriately, Requiem to a Beard

On January 3, 2007, I stepped on a scale. I sensed that I was larger than ever before, and I though that I was perhaps 235, a very high number for me. When the scale looked back at me with that ugly three-digit atrocity, 250, I was shocked.

So we decided to get healthy. Since January, Marcie and I have been eating much healthier than ever before, and we're seeing results!

Marcie admitted to me that she didn't like my beard anymore, and especially the adjoining mustache. I told her that if I made it down to 225 again, I would shave the beard.

So with great mourning, last week, I began the four stage process of shaving my beard. It was simultaneously bitter and sweet, binding and liberating (loosing). Here is the photographical chronicle of the dying breaths of my beard.

This was stage one. To bring joy to the heart of my bride, I shaved the mustache, leaving the traditional Amish, or Abraham Lincoln beard. I kept the Lincoln for 24 hours.

Next, I decided that it would be rather easy for me to shave the rest of a traditional goatee out of my remaining beard, leaving a tee-goa. I explained that a reverse mohawk is a hawk-mo, so a reverse goatee is a tee-goa. Gross. I kept the tee-goa for 24 hours, even wearing it out in public...wow.





Next, I went for the chops and neck patch. It was so gross. I did keep it for approximately 12 hours, even sporting it at my favorite local dining establishment, Squealers. Want a better view?

Nice. After I was done with the neck patch, I decided to go wild and check out the stripes. I kept these for all of 30 seconds.

And finally I settled on the mutton chops. I've never had good chops before, so I'm actually happy with them. I'm sure the beard will rise again one day, but until that day, consider this your requiem, beard. I shall remember you fondly.

By the way, I had Addison watch at each stage of the beard shaving so that she would still recognize me after it was gone. She misses being able to grab my chin hairs, but overall, I think she still likes me.

Quick Update

A dear friend visited us this weekend. It was great to catch up, philosophize, theologize, randomize, etc. Next time, maybe we'll get to see both Bookers.

I preached again this Sunday. I'll post my sermon manuscript/outline again if there are requests, but it takes up too much space if nobody's going to read it. I'm almost finished with They Like Jesus, But Not the Church, and would recommend it to anyone like me, with a heart for people, yet feeling bottled in a Christians-only world against your will.

Marcie had the flu (or food poisoning?) yesterday and is recovering today. Thankfully, it seems that Addison and I have avoided the bug. It pains me to see Marcie in agony. What an amazing family I have been given. I am truly undeserving.

The new Arcade Fire album is great. I am really glad I chose it (out of the many discs I had in my hand at one point or another during my audio purchase quest).