Bick's Quicks

Olivia Update: Saturday

Happy to see our little girl smiling today for the first time in a while.  The labs are back and the Drs confirm that this was most likely Brown Recluse spider bite that began all the excitement of the last few days.  

As of noon today she's fever free, the rash is subsiding and vitals are normal.  The bite area continues to be painful and we are seeing some migration of the swelling.  She is switching pain meds and will be monitored over the next few hours to determine how she'll do at home and if she can be released today.

We are so very thankful for our many friends @TheJourneyStl and beyond who have prayed, messaged, tweeted and commented on FB to let us know they have been praying.  Also, we are grateful for those who have checked in on the Big Kids, dropped by for a visit and provided us with meals and encouragement.  I can't begin to tell you how much that means to have a supportive extended family.

 

Olivia Update

This morning Liv let us know that she wasn't feeling well.  She had a sore spot under her arm on her side and was experiencing some nausea and had a high fever.  One of our good friends, a peditrician, was able to check her out and recommended we go to Children's Hospital as her symptoms indicated an infection of some type.

Barb and Liv arrived around noon and she began tests and was later admitted to the ICU for observation as her blood pressure and heart rate were causing concern.  As of 9:30pm this evening she is stablizing, enjoying her first meal of the day and looks to be improving.  It's likely the symptoms are due to some sort of toxic reaction due to a spider bite, a strep infection of the skin or toxic shock as a result of either of those.

She is receiving high dose antiboiotics and lots of fluids which are doing their work and helping her feel better.

We appreciate all the prayers and messages.  It's great having many of you as family both near and far. We will mostly likely be here a few days as they wait for both the tests and the toxins to work their way out of her system.

Liv is in good spirits, entertains the many doctors, nurses and students who visit her and is all in all a plesant patient.

We'll keep you posted.

Tornado Relief: Helping You Help Them

The response in providing support and aid to our friends in Joplin has been incredible.  As of Wednesday 5pm, close to 15K has been raised to provide Mystery Church with a strong foundation for their continued work in caring for their city in this time of devastation and disaster.  To donate go here: Joplin Tornado Relief

Many of you have indicated a desire to provide practical aid in the form of supplies, and man power. We are currently in the process of coordinating workdays for all of you who wish to go and will be informing you via twitter @A29midwest.  We appreciate your patience as we work with Steev Inge and his church in getting the logistics taken care of prior to your site visit.

I wanted to pass along some updates from @SteevInge via twitter that are helpful in creating awarness of the aid required at present.  

FEMA meeting. "We need to have people stop just showing up. If u dont u will have a volunteer disaster to deal with alongside this disaster

Please don't go and buy any more supplies donate the same amount of money it will accomplish more right now 

City is asking that teams please refrain from coming until AFTER memorial day. Rescue & recovery by professionals continues thru this week.

Agencies r saying that storage of donations r at or over capacity. Financial donations are & will be the greatest need. 

As you consider providing support please let those who have been on the ground, who are working diligently in these initial days, tell us how we can help them best.

 

 

 

Graduation

Last night we experienced a milestone-Alex graduating from Webster Groves High School.  We piled into Roberts Gymnasium with all the other parents, siblings, grandparents and misc. extended family to celebrate the accompilshment of completing 13 years of public education.  

Thriteen years represents a lot of carpooling, signed permission slips, school pictures and sack lunches. Toss in a few trips to the Principal's office, a ton of games, several progress reports and three girlfriends and you are just beginning to scratch the surface of our "parental" experience.

If you don't know us what you'll miss is that our kids have been in four different schools since they began their formal education.  Corpus Christi, Dallas(Richardson/Garland) and now Webster Groves.  Part of the drill when your Father's occupation is ministry.  

It's not easy being the new kid once, let alone four times.  

The move to STL last year was the most difficult one we've made to date-lots of tears, frustration, questions and anger.  In the last two years we've seen all of our kids grow, mature and find their footing.  Alex especially.  

As a Cross Country runner he had great success, exhibhited mature leadership and was on track to achieving his personal bests-only short cut by a late season injury.  In Tennis, he found his game winning with grit and poise in a few singles matches and always in doubles.  He was recognized as a "Statesman Award" winner last year for his character, integrity and example to all.  He found music in A-Men and played a few gigs with his band, Flood-The-Wall.

All of the above would have never happened if we had not moved to the good Ole' WG.

He's moving on from here and I'm sure he will find continued success.  Can't wait to see what's up next for him.

I love you Alex.

 

 

Surviving the Snowpocalpyse--Part 1

With all the hype about the potential upcoming winter storm here in the STL I wanted to pass along helpful tips that will not only equip you in surviving a Snowpocalypse they may actually help you enjoy it.

 First it’s important to define what we are talking about:

                  Snow + Apocalypse = Snowpocalypse

                  When weathermen predict large amounts of snowfall in a short period of time

 This can be done with great style as Jim Kosek demonstrates in the video below.  

 

You may laugh, you may doubt the accuracy of the forecast of impending doom but whatever you do don’t dismiss this opportunity to prepare for what could be a major meteorological event and an opportunity to demonstrate your ManSkilz in protecting and providing for your family in the face of wintery danger.

Getting prepared: The initial steps

• Take a casual, confident and measured approach: do not panic or buy into the hysteria, don’t freak out those who depend upon you for guidance and direction. 
• Take careful inventory of the necessary supplies required for survival during a snowpocalypse:
  • Appropriate food items (full explanation below)
  • Coat (anything from a hoodie to a wind breaker or your H.S. Letter Jacket)
  • Flashlights/Batteries
  • Candles
  • The 1954 Boy’s Life Magazine Guide to Outdoor survival (Dads still led most of the scout troops then)
  • Your high school football jersey (used for layering)
  • The family dog
  • Summer Sausage
  • Your BBQ grill
  • Whole House Generator: sure it's expensive but you can recover the cost through an appropriately handsome cover charge levied on neighbors and news crews who come inside your fully functioning home while everyone else’s power is out for 10 days.
  • Do not fill your vehicle with gasoline-doing so is a rookie mistake, you do not want to under any circumstance have enough gas to drive to the grocery store, work, or anywhere else during the snowpocalpyse.  People who moved to your city from warmer climates without snow will be driving, as will every sleeveless shirt wearing, mullet sportin, jacked up 4x4 driving, redneck who lives for this kind of weather so he can show everyone how nice he has kept his 78 Chevy Silverado since HS.  Plus, he is itching to use the winch he got for Christmas from Harbor Freight Tools to pull some soccer mom mini van driving dude out of the ditch.   Stay put-do all supply gathering and provisioning prior to the storms arrival.  If you have to, let your soccer mom mini-van idle in the parking lot in order to dump fuel before the storm hits. 
  • Do not refer to or quote any lines from the movie “The Shining”

Food-follow this and you will be good to go-ignore at your own peril.  Use the following questions as a guide when considering if the food item is on the approved list for snowpocalypse consumption. 

1.  Could I have brought this food item to my 8^th grade summer church camp?

2.  If I found this food item in its original unopened wrapping/container in my gym bag could I still eat it?

3.  Did I subsist on this food item during my Sophomore through Junior years in College?

 Know these, learn these and live these.

 Approved Food Categories

 Protein

• Slim Jims 
• Summer Sausage 
• Deer Jerkey
• Spam

 Dry Stock

• Chips-any flavor except Funyuns and SunChips
• Andy Capps Hot Fries
• Chick-n-Biscut Crackers
• Cheez-it’s

 Breakfast

• Hostess Fruitpies, Dingdongs, Twinkies
• Honeybuns
• Fruit Loops-Dry

 Beverages

• Soda
• Mt. Dew-it deserves its own bullet point.
• Beer-NO it does not qualify per question #1
• Gatorade-classic flavors only (Green/Orange)

 Once the snowpocalpyse hits I’ll be providing further instructions via TXT.  Hit me.

Peace Bro’s

 

 

Haiti: burdened, buried but not broken

A lasting impression I have from our trip to Haiti is not the broken buildings or the piles of rubble on nearly every corner-it is the passionate worship of the Haitian Christians.  It's easy for me to view another person's circumstances thru my own personal lens.  I'm accustomed to living in a sturdy home with running water and electricity.  I'm accustomed to traveling on paved even streets, I like and prefer  air-conditioning.

Take these things away for a while and I am inconvenienced, take them away for a time and I'm annoyed.  Take them away altogether, and I'm struck by what I've come to worship-my material possessions and personal comfort.  And worship of the lesser things leads to neglect in worshiping God, who is everything.

When God peels away that which is unnecessary, that which is convenient or comfortable, what and who we worship is exposed for all to see.

 

 

 

 

 

Haiti Debrief-The Beginning

Over the next few days I'll be unpacking some of my experiences while in Haiti where I toured and served alongside of Pastor Jean St. Cyr of the Compassion in Christ Baptist Church, located in the largest tent city in Port-Au-Prince, Petionville Club.

Haiti's earthquake was and is one of the worst natural disasters in modern history. Recovery efforts continue but overall progress is difficult in this resource challenged country. At present 1.2 million remain in tent city camps.

Spiritually, the country is experiencing a revival, thousands are coming to faith in Christ.  These new believers are amazing in their faith and hope.  Their stories bring glory to God.  

The level of physical destruction and decimation unimaginable, the hope and optimism of those Christ followers, inspirational.

 

 

Questions to Ask Guests

We opened our West County Campus three weeks ago; today is our grand opening.  Our creative team did a great job in developing creative elements to introduce The Journey to our new community.  Today many of our guests attended because they received a personal invitation, a postcard or saw the new signs on our building.

Our teams did a great job of making our guests feel comfortable.  I had the opportunity to interact with several guests and found out a lot of great information through asking simple questions.

• How long have you been attending The Journey?
• How did you hear about us?
• Do you live in the area?
• Are you new to Church?

Ask your guests questions.  They'll be happy to talk with you and you'll learn from what they have to say.

Don't Say No

In the world of leading volunteers we will always need to engage more people in leading and doing.  When we consider making the "ask" sometimes we are tempted to answer for others before they answer for themselves.  

Saying "no" for someone else limits your ability to lead well, and it lessens the progress of the area you are responsible to lead.

Saying "no" before asking may be saying no to God.

Some of the people that come to your mind are people who God wants to use for His Kingdom purposes.  I meet leaders of volunteers who are praying that God will bring the right people to their ministry.  Before He brings them to your ministry He will bring them to your mind.

 

Sunday Seven

1. Great day at The Journey , first Luminary preview service, second weekend in our new West Co. location, and we put the wraps on the Jonah series. 

2.  The 3 NFL teams from cities I've previoulsy lived in or currently live in won today: KC, Dallas and STL.

3.  It's a priveledge to pray with people after our services-I love being a pastor.

4.  I'm battling a sinus infection-first of this year, hoping to kick it quick before our trip to Seattle.

5.  I love fall weather-looking forward to more cool evenings and time around the firepit.

6.  Fed our puppy "Active Mature Dog" food-he's been extremely hyper all day--Fail

7.  Liv had a blast at Girl Scout Camp-she will be selling cookies-I'm counting the days.