Awe and Wonder

How do you describe an event as full of awe and wonder as the birth of your first child? Wednesday night little Adeline Michelle Russo came bursting onto the scene of our lives around 11:04pm in the most amazing of ways!

This last Monday, three weeks before our original due date our doctor was concerned about our baby girls growth (IUGR) Intrauterine Growth Restriction. When she told us she wanted to induce I was thinking some time later in the week. Then the doctor said we needed to go on home to pack for our hospital visit that afternoon. A bit of shock and excitement filled us. We were overwhelmed that this was going to happen so soon.

We headed to the hospital bags packed  and hearts full of anticipation. Monday night passed quickly and Danielle began to receive Pitocin early Tuesday. By 5 that afternoon it became apparent it was not yet Addy's time. Another sleepless night and then wednesday morning the Pitocin began again. 

Danielle began labor that afternoon as small contractions grew into greater one's. At 10:30 pm after two days of waiting, the nurse said it was time for Danielle to begin pushing. Over the next 35 minutes I watched as Danielle worked. What unfolded was the most amazing thing I've seen with my eyes. Adeline was leaving the world of my wife's belly and entering ours! 

At 11:04 with a squeal and a deep breath of air, Adeline joined us! I gazed at her little body so frail and shaky. Watched her gulp down a big drink of air as her little lungs whirred to life. After some time with her momma I had the privilege of putting on her first diaper, picked her up in my arms, and experienced a glimpse of the "new life" of heaven right there in that hospital room.

My heart and mind burst with the significance and transcendence of that moment - the thin places where heaven touches earth. I was full of awe and wonder.  God's creative power! 

 "For you formed my inward parts; you knitted me together in my mother's womb. I praise you for I am fearfully and wonderfully made. Wonderful are your works; my soul knows it very well. My frame was not hidden from you, when I was being made in secret, intricately woven in the depths of the earth." (Psalm 139:13-15)

On Turning 40!

Just 4 short weeks ago I came to a mile marker in life that can serve as the impetus for challenge and change or for disappointment and denial. Yes, I turned 40. The funny thing is I didn't ponder this striking reality the week of my birthday. Call it denial or busyness but while dodging trees and cutting corners today on a magnificent trail run, it hit me like a brick.

I was winding in and out of the crowded beauty of the forest, soaking in the cool breeze and the playful songs of the birds when I began to think about where I want to be headed in life. On the precipice of parenting and at a stage in life where I'm considering the second chapter of my vocational story, my mind felt clouded with options, questions, and unknowns.

So this is a mid-life crisis!!! Well, not really! I'm just in a place of wondering. Wondering about the coming year as a father, a husband, and a man who sincerely desires to lead others to know and enjoy the Lord! I find myself wondering about the trajectory of the next 4 to 5 years of my life. I think of personal and ministry goals and how I will continue to move forward with the Lord, trusting Him each day for daily bread and for His Kingdom to come.

As I write this I look out to see the setting sun washed sky. Beauty stretched out all around me. I'm reminded that God is real - God is Sovereign - God is active and involved in the here and now. And not just active as a transcendant deity far removed from human experience, but involved as a father in the lives of His children. This thought of God as Father is riveting! This truth gives me courage to consider the coming chapter of life and ministry. This truth motivates me to pray, seek, ask, and knock.

Rest Assured that even at the age of 40, or especially at the age of 40, I still have only to look to God as Father - as good - as Sovereign - and there I find peace!

Clean and Comfortable

"On belay", "Belay on", "Climbing", "Climb on". The challenge begins. Heart races - eyes focus - muscles tense as I reach for the first hold.  Here in the bold beauty of the Linville Gorge, begins our Quest Men's weekend with 3 friends from church. The first experiential learning activity is rock climbing.  My breathing slows as I reach, step, pull up, reach, step, pull up. A mixture of adrenaline, courage and fear wash through me as I ascend the rock face. I reach the top and turn to look back, overwhelmed by the vast depth and reach of the Gorge below - the unending sky of blue above.

That evening around a camp fire, nestled in the Gorge, enveloped by the sound of the river rushing by our campsite, we considered the question - "What do I want to happen for me this weekend?"Pondering the question, what came to me was, "I want to be uncomfortable". Articulated another way during our last conversation before hiking out on Sunday I shared a response to the question - "How have I been doing life?" My response - "I like life clean and comfortable".

My reticence in seeing my backpacking gear dirtied by rain and mud reveals my aversion to the "unclean" in life - the messy things - the disorder - what feels out of my control. The frustration that accompanied our experience of camp life in the rain- sleeping in a cramped tent on a thin sliver of an air mattress, reveals my avoidance of the"uncomfortable" in life - things that require more energy than I want to give - the unplanned turns, the inconvenient relationships and conversations - what doesn't come with ease and pleasure.

Out of the beauty of our surroundings - out of the misty mountains - out of the dark of the subtle evenings - out of the power of the rushing water of the racing river - the Lord spoke to me about how I  approach life. My approach founded in doing life on my terms - with my expectations - hoping for my pleasure and joy - all with the smallest cost in effort and with the smallest amount of discomfort on my part.

Jesus speaks into this approach to doing life - and says, "Come, follow me", "Therefore I tell you, do not be anxious about your life...But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness", "Whoever finds his life will lose it, and whoever loses his life for my sake will find it", "Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing."

A compelling invitation away from my life of self sufficiency, self dependence, self preservation. These things I am challenged to consider as I continue to pray and ask the Lord what it will look like to continue to follow Jesus. Deep in my heart I know that "clean and comfortable" must be transformed by the Spirit of Christ to more increasingly center on "true" and "trust". Jesus wants to interrupt our approach to life on our terms and offer instead, "Life more abundant".

This never gets old!

A joy "inexpressible" filled my heart as I listened to the video of Allison, a Winthrop exchange student from Australia who was telling her story about how she had come to trust in Christ and the life change that she was experiencing as a result!

This never gets old! Hearing about how Jesus is showing up in students lives is an incredibly compelling motivation for our ministry with Cru that I have served with for over 11 years.

As we finish up the school year Danielle and I are extremely motivated for the coming fall both with the expected birth of Adeline Michelle in early August, and the beginning of the Fall 2013 semester.

Building our ministry partner team and preparing our home and lives for the arrival of our little baby girl will occupy our time, thoughts, and energy through the few months of the Summer.

Thank you for investing in our lives and ministry through your prayers and giving!  It has been quite an exciting first year of marriage (1st anniversary - May 19th) and we are so grateful for the opportunity to be a part of the significant work that the Lord is doing on our campuses!

Grateful,
The Russos

A most significant week!

As students were walking solemnly out of the theatre having just viewed Mel Gibson's "The Passion of The Christ", I was startled to see the tear soaked eyes of Eric, the Sigma Phi Epsilon president that I had invited to the showing.  The year was 2004. The event was a movie outreach at the University of Tennessee. We had packed two theaters with over 500 students, many who were Christians that had invited non Christian friends. Not knowing Eric's spiritual background, I had invited him and given him 10 tickets to bring a few of his fraternity brothers.

Having been a follower of Christ for almost 15 years at the time, I was moved by the stunning depiction of Christ's last hours of life and death on the cross. Yet I was equally struck by how moved this 20 year old student was in response to what he had seen. I'm not sure what all transpired in Eric's heart that night in relation to defining his beliefs, but I knew that he was gripped by the display of Christ's death that the scriptures declare was a demonstration of God's extraordinary love for us. (Romans 5:8)

During the coming week I am compelled to re-read the Gospel accounts of Christ's suffering, death, and Resurrection. I want to take time to marinate on the depth and significance of these events and what they actually mean to and for me.  A great passage to consider this week is Philippians 2; "Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus, who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, but made himself nothing, taking the form of a 'servant', being born in the likeness of men. And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross."

This charge is then followed by one of the grandest statements of the victorious reality of the Resurrection. "Therefore God has highly exalted him and bestowed on him the name that is above every name, so that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father."

This Easter season I pray that each of us will reconsider the life changing realities that God in Christ has given to us, as those whom He deeply loves.  May we make much of Him as He has made much of us.

The Power of Perspective

"Something just didn't seem right" I thought to myself sitting at home late last friday night.  I just had some good guy time with men from our church; grilling, inventing smore's with Samoa girlscout cookies, and just catching up on life. Now I was laying in bed acutely aware of how different home is in light of the absence of my wife Danielle.

Danielle had journeyed to Valle Crucis for a women's retreat and I was home alone for the first time since our wedding last May. The house sounded silent as I wrestled to fall asleep. As I lay there, thoughts of my wife's sweet smile and laughter drifted through my mind.  I was missing her. 

"Getting Perspective" is the phrase I think best describes the process taking shape in my mind and heart that night. In my experience of the absence of my wife's presence and personality, I was keenly aware of the significance that her presence and personality play in my enjoyment of life. 

It was great to listen to her voice the next day as she detailed her experience of the retreat. She was particularly struck by the passage from the Friday night talk. "He (Jesus) is the image of the invisible God... For by him all things were created, in heaven and on earth... And he is before all things, and in him all things hold together." (Colossians 1) Danielle shared how she longed to live with this perspective of Jesus, more consistently.

An idea behind perspective is seeing things rightly.  Seeing things the way they truly are. An intriguing facet of human nature, is our bent towards taking things for granted. Our tendency to overlook the significance and value of things or people that we know are incredibly significant. I see this as a remaining residue of our depravity and brokenness as humans. Our inability to see things rightly - to see truth.

This morning I woke up to sunshine and the joy of knowing that I will see my wife today. This morning Danielle woke up to sunshine and a growing desire to dwell on the magnificence of Jesus, the creator and sustainer of all things.  Although Danielle and I were miles apart we both had pondered the power of perspective. 

Ice Cold Camaraderie

We were sitting around a table at the beach rental when Jackson, my friends 13 year old son uttered the words I was hoping not to hear; "I want to get in the water." There was a moment of silence and then guys slowly got up to get prepared for the experience that lay ahead.

Nothing unusual about getting in the water any other time of year,  but this was a freezing February night and snow had begun to fall. This was a polar bear plunge rather than a quick dip in the pool. We rounded up for a quick picture as masculine energy filled the air.

Something was stirring in the hearts of this group of men as we walked the short distance to the water. It's somewhat hard to explain but there was a growing sense of camaraderie.  A growing sense of, "we're doing something crazy - together!" 

At water's edge we stripped down and laid out our towels and clothes for a quick retrieval. Then with yells and shouts reminiscent of a scene from "Braveheart", we ran headlong into the water as the icy cold swallowed our shouts and our bodies. 

It was a quick in and quicker out as we hurried to our towels, clothes and warmth. In our fast paced return to the house, we laughed, shared, and celebrated our experience like a team of men who had won a national championship. We had experienced something significant together. In those quickly passing 15 minutes we had bonded in a way that few men do after their college years. 

Men created in God's image, long for connection and camaraderie with other men. This is what gets men involved with soft ball leagues, running groups, and drinking buddies. An experience of camraderie is a significant part of how God grows men in the "grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ." (2 Peter 3:18)  This is how men grow God shaped lives.

Men will often do together what they wouldn't be motivated to do on their own. That night we saw a glimpse of God's design. We were reminded that we were created for more. More than success, material wealth, and self accomplishment. We were created for God's Glory, for each other, and for Ice Cold Camaraderie.