Baltimore -- A More Positive Side : Helping Our Youth

Baltimore -- A More Positive Side: Helping Our Youth

The picture is of signing day at St. Frances Academy, Baltimore, Maryland

With the events of the last twenty four hours attention has been focused on some of the challenges Baltimore faces.  Social media has been ablaze with posts.  Some ask for prayers, some make political statements, some provide news updates and some wonder what they can do to help.

First we must define the challenge which is not easy.  There are issues that could fill a treatise.  There is mistrust and a lack of understanding by many on all sides of the issue.  Much of the mistrust is understandable, but that is not the focus of this post. 

The issue I will focus on is one that is close to my heart.  The lack of proper mentorship and development of young men.  It is not a problem that just touches Baltimore but one that touches our entire nation and it is not a new problem but one that has existed for generations.

The past June I wrote a series on Fatherhood and one of the most popular posts in that series was about the sad reality absentee father.

In that post I quoted former Maryland Governor Robert Ehrlich who shared some of his experience.  Governor Ehrlich observed “During my tenures as Governor, Congressman and Legislator, I visited many of Maryland's juvenile and adult correctional facilities. Often, I left in a melancholy mood. These are no places for the faint of heart. The scenes are right out of "Scared Straight" and disturbingly predictable: jails full of mostly young men with little formal education. Dropouts are plentiful. Many are alcohol or substance abusers. Some suffer from mental illness. Few possess marketable skills. And a majority come from fatherless homes.”

Governor Ehrlich’s observations are supported by Department of Justice statistics which reveal 90% of all prison inmates are males.  The lifetime chance of a women going to prison is 1.8% while it is a staggering 11.3% for males.”

The reasons for this are way too many to discuss in this blog post.  Some leave their family alone voluntarily and others involuntarily.  For the purpose of this blog we are just concerned with the fact that way too many young men do not have a positive male role model in the home.

There is a bright side.  There are some people in Baltimore who are working to bridge this gap.  One such person is Messay Hailemariam and the team at St. Frances Academy in Baltimore.  St. Frances is a small private Catholic school which was founded by Mother Mary Lange in 1828 as the Baltimore School for Colored Girls with the mission of teaching children of color to read the Bible, which at the time was illegal.  In 1850 the school was renamed St. Frances Academy and is currently a coeducational institution serving students at risk in Baltimore City.  Messay wears three hats at the school.  He is the Director of Admissions, Assistant Athletic Director and Head Football Coach.  In a recent discussion with Messay he shared with me that he had no clue what true hardship was until he came to St. Frances.  Some of the students have come to St. Frances after missing school more days than the attended with college not even on their radar screen.  Over the past two years twenty six of the students earned full athletic scholarships for college.  Ten of these students clearly did not have college on their radar screen when they joined the St. Frances family. 

At St. Frances they are not only taught academics and coached athletically but they are also taught responsibility, accountability and team work. They are mentored by their coaches, faculty and alumni. For the first time in their lives they see a way out of poverty.  They have a purpose. There are many ways you can help St. Frances students but because many of their students come from underprivileged families a pressing need is scholarship funding. Donations can be sent to St. Frances Academy c/o Messay Hailermariam 501 East Chase Street, Baltimore, Maryland 21202.  Checks should be payable to St. Frances Academy Memo: Football/Tuition Donation.

Our next post will discuss SADD Students Against Destructive Decisions and what they are doing to help the young people in Baltimore.

Good Friday & Resurrection Sunday: All is forgiven

Good Friday & Resurrection Sunday: All is Forgiven

 "He is not here; he has risen, just as he said. Come and see the place where he lay." 

Matthew 28:6

The weekend is the weekend we remember God's amazing and unconditional love for us.  It is a weekend of grace and redemption.

On Friday, we remembered how God sent His one and only Son to die for us on the cross, so that our sins could be forgiven and today (Sunday) we remember Jesus' resurrection.  I have chosen to use the term Resurrection Sunday, not because I am on any mission to change the more common name of Easter Sunday, but in order to emphasize what Christians celebrate today and not the celebration of spring.  

To fully understand this importance of this weekend we must go back to the Book of Genesis and remember that we are a fallen people.  When Adam & Eve chose to disobey God, sin entered the world.  

God is all good and can not tolerate sin but the bottom line is we all sin. Sin is so offensive to God that there is nothing that we as humans can do to make up for our sin.  All the good in the world does not erase sin.  Heaven is the perfect place and sin can not be allowed to enter Heaven.   Therefore, we humans are not able to enter Heaven on our own and on our own we would be destined for eternal separation from God.

This created  a problem because God truly wants all of His children to be with Him in Heaven. There was one and only one way for human sin to be forgiven. 

The only path to forgiveness is for someone sinless to take on the sins of the world and make a blood sacrifice.  That someone was Jesus Christ, the second person in the Trinity.  He took on human form.  During His time on earth Jesus was both Divine and human.  His Divinity allowed Him to be remain sinless but is humanity allowed Him to feel pain and loss.  

We see the human side of Jesus several times in the Bible.  Two examples are when He learned of the death of His friend, Lazarus and He cried and another is when He asked God to let Him be spared Crucifixion.   

We see His Divinity by the miracles He performed, His understanding of scripture, His relationship with the Father and His teachings.

There are approximately 61 Old Testament prophecies concerning Jesus' birth, life, death and resurrection. Twenty nine of which were fulfilled in one day.  The day of His Crucifixion.  For a list of these prophecies and where they were fulfilled in the New Testament please click on this link.  

Resurrection Sunday is the day that Jesus was resurrected fulfilling a significant prophecy that confirmed He was truly the Messiah.  Jesus appeared not only to His Apostles.  He appeared on multiple occasion and these appearances were witnessed by approximately 500 people. For a listing of Jesus' post resurrection appearances please click this link.

This is the weekend we focus and remember God's grace and redemptive nature.  While we should take time each and every day to thank God for this great gift, this weekend is when we need to take time from our busy schedule and focus on it.  Let's praise and glorify God and remember this most gracious and wonderful gift.  

Watch for my next blog which will appear later this week "Just a Christian".  God bless each and everyone of you.  He is Risen. He is Risen, Indeed.

Movie Review: Do You Believe

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St. Patrick: More than Corned Beef & Green Beer. He was the Greatest Missionary (2015)

St. Patrick: More than Corned Beef & Green Beer.  He was the Greatest Missionary.  (2015)

We all realize that St. Patrick’s Day is a very popular holiday celebrated worldwide.  Many think of St. Patrick’s Day as a day of parades, parties and green beer, not about who St. Patrick was and what he accomplished.  My goal today is to let the world know about St. Patrick and the great way he carried out Jesus’ Great Commission by converting a country of pagans to Christianity.

It is widely believed that Patrick was not his birth name but a name he assumed when he became a Priest.  It is thought that his birth name was Maewyn Succat.   Imagine celebrating St. Maewyn’s Day?

Saint Patrick is universally recognized as “The Greatest Missionary”.  Legend has it that St. Patrick drove the snakes out of Ireland.  However, it is unlikely Ireland ever had snakes and it is often believed that the story is symbolic and the snakes refer to the pagans.

Now let’s examine the Great Commission and how St. Patrick’s answered Jesus’ call.

First, what is the Great Commission?  

After His Resurrection, Jesus charged His remaining eleven Apostles with carrying out the Great Commission.  The Apostles went to a mountain top in Galilee and Jesus presented them with one final command.  This command is found in the Gospel of Matthew 28:18-20.  Let me share Jesus’ words with you.

“All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me.  Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”

I suspect that His Apostles were surprised.  They most likely expected Him to transform the earth himself but He did not.  He left that work for them and now us.  Many Christians today have a similar expectation.  Sharing the good news cannot be the job of “ordinary” Christians.  That is the job of Pastors and missionaries but as we will learn this is not the case.  It is the job of each and every one of us.

Before we examine how St. Patrick was able to carry out the Great Commission like no other since the Apostles, I want to take a moment and unpack what Jesus told His friends when He gave them this command.  First, He said that He had all authority in heaven and on earth.  In other words,  He has the same authority as God the Father.  Then He went on to delegate the responsibility of spreading the word.  Notice He instructed them to make disciples of all nations.  This made clear that He expected them to leave the comfort zones of their home towns.  He wanted them to share what they have experienced and learned with the entire world.

Who was St. Patrick?

I would now like to transport you back in time to St. Patrick’s birth in approximately 387 AD and introduce you to him.

There is little known about St. Patrick but it is commonly believed that he was born in the late fourth century in Britain to Roman parents of some economic means.  His dad was a Deacon and his grandfather a Priest.  This was a time when Priests could marry and have families.  As a teenager Patrick was rebellious and despite his family background was not at all religious.  

When he was about 16 he was captured by pirates, taken to Ireland and sold into slavery.  As a slave he was a shepherd and tended to his master’s sheep.  During this time he began to pray and developed a vibrant and loving relationship with Jesus. 

In his early twenties God spoke to him in a dream and told him to flee his master and a boat will be waiting to take him home.  He followed God’s direction and incredibly traveled 200 miles on foot and avoided capture before reaching the boat.  When he returned home he entered the seminary and became a Priest.  God then commanded him to return to Ireland, preach the Gospel and plant churches for the pagans.

Now let’s put this in perspective.  In those days the Irish were widely considered to be illiterate drunks who engaged in wild orgies and would worship anything.  They were known to be violent, lawless, and were even known to run naked into battle.  Now that is a visual that I did not need, but it is what the history books tell me and I wanted to accurately relay Patrick's story.

In spite of the danger, Patrick did not question God’s command to return to the Irish isle where he had been enslaved.  In fact, Patrick renounced his family’s wealth to live a life of charity and poverty as an itinerant preacher.  He sold all of his possessions including his land to finance the journey so that he could share God’s word with those who held him in slavery.  

Once he got to Ireland, he had to pay large sums to Irish tribal chiefs so that he could safely travel though their lands and preach the Gospel.  Think of the fear St. Patrick must have felt and the willing sacrifices he made to comply with God’s will.

He had, what at the time was a unique strategy, to convert the masses.  He would begin by converting their leaders, praying for the sick, and casting out demons.  While we do not know a lot of the details concerning St. Patrick’s ministry we can assume he was a humble man of service and unconditional love.

St. Patrick was also a gifted teacher.  He used visual aids to convince people to put their faith in Jesus.  His most famous visual aid was a Shamrock which is a three leaf clover that grows in Ireland.  He used the Shamrock to explain the trinity.  The Shamrock, as you can see, is one leaf but with three parts just like the Trinity is one person with three parts --- the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit.  This simple visual aid was able to plainly explain one of the most difficult concepts of Christianity.

As Patrick continued his ministry he built simple churches, baptized converts, trained Pastors and moved on.  In his life time he planted 700 churches, ordained 1,000 priests and converted an entire country.  Imagine the enormity of that task. 

The foundation that Patrick built still stands today almost 1,800 years later.   In 2006 over 90% of the Irish population identified themselves as Christians and in 2009 46% of Ireland attended weekly church services.  

Most of us are not going to be able to make the sacrifice that St. Patrick made and we are probably not equipped to convert an entire country, plant 700 churches or train and ordain 1,000 Pastors. At least I don’t think I am.  But collectively Christians together can successfully carry out the command.  

Let’s examine how the church is growing today in places like, Africa and Latin American.   In the year 1900 there were only 9 million Christians in Africa, in 2000 there were 380 million.  It is estimated by 2025 there will be 633 million Christians.  In Central and South America 93 and 89% respectively are Christians.

In his book, Multiply, Francis Chan noted that “[t]he Pastor is the equipper, and every member of the church is a minister.”  God is calling upon each and every one of us to be a minister, a minister who humbly serves their neighbors.

God created each and every one of us to play a role in His plan.  He provides for us.  It is important for each of us to identify the gifts which God has equipped us with and then to use these gifts to carry out the Great Commission.

Carrying out the Great Commission is a lifelong process.   It is not something we do once and cross it off the “to do” list.  It is something we must do every day.  Most of the time we will serve others in very simple ways that we do not even realize.

Each of us must remember that we have God given gifts and abilities and what we do with these abilities is our gift back to God.

Reaching out and sharing our faith is not limited to preaching the Gospels in a formal way.  We can share the Gospel and our faith in the way we live our lives, how we serve and love others.  Today on St. Patrick’s Day might be the perfect opportunity to take a personal inventory of our God given gifts and assess how we can better answer Jesus’ command to carry His message.

God bless you and have a very happy and safe St. Patrick’s Day.

Service Before Self: The Four Chaplains

Service Before Self: The Four Chaplains

It was 12:55 a.m. on February 3, 1943 when four Army Chaplains aboard the USAT Dorchester demonstrated what service before self truly means.  As we approach the 72nd anniversary of their sacrifice I thought it might be a good idea to share the story.

On January 23, 1943, The USAT Dorchester, an Army transport ship, left New York Harbor with 904 aboard.  The ship was destine for Greenland.  

Wednesday February 3, 1943 began as a quiet day on the Dorchester. Nothing seemed amiss, the ship was only 150 miles off the coast of Greenland.  But that all changed at 12:55 am,  when a torpedo from the German U-Boat 233 struck the ship.  Six hundred and five men were lost.  This was the worse single loss of American personnel of any American convoy during World War II. Two hundred and twenty nine survivors were rescued by U.S. Coast Guard Cutters Escanaba and Comanche.

During the twenty minutes it took for the Dorchester to sink, the four Chaplains aboard exhibited extraordinary courage and service.  They were Reverend George Fox  (Methodist), Rabbi Alexander Goode (Jewish), Reverend George Poling (Dutch Reformed) and Father John Washington (Roman Catholic).  The four were Army Chaplain Lieutenants who met a few months earlier while attending the Army Chaplains School at Harvard University and are now remembered as the Immortal Chaplains. .

The torpedo severely damaged the transport causing the boiler room to lose power.  There was inadequate steam to sound the signal to abandon ship and the crew could not send a distress signal.

In the twenty minutes following the strike the Chaplains worked together to calm the crew, comfort the injured, direct others to safety and distribute life jackets.  When they ran out of life jackets to distribute they removed their own and gave them to crew members. As the ship sunk the four Chaplains stood arm in arm praying.

The United States Congress attempted to posthumously award the Chaplains the Medal of Honor. But because of the stringent requirements that the heroism be performed under fire the attempt was blocked.  In 1961 Congress created the Four Chaplains Medal with the intent that it carry the same weight and importance of the Medal of Honor.  These four Chaplains demonstrated "service before self in the time of crisis."    Let's not forget the courage displayed as they served their fellow man.

Praying: A Conversation With God

Praying: A Conversation With God

I grew up in a traditional Roman Catholic family.  We attended church most Sundays, my brother and I attended Catholic school for part of our education and when we did not we attended Confraternity of Christian Doctrine (otherwise know as CCD or to non Catholics Sunday School) each weekend. 

We were Baptized as infants, participated in the Sacrament of Reconciliation  regularly, celebrated First Communion and were Confirmed.  We also memorized prayers, many prayers, including the one that most Christians pray "The Lord's Prayer" also known as the "Our Father".  This prayer was taught to us by Jesus himself and is fund twice in the New Testament, Matthew 6:9-13 and Luke 11:1-4.  

I have prayed and still do pray the structural prayers of my youth daily but there came a time in the late 1990's when I learned that I could also have a conversation with God.  

If you want to watch a short two minute video about how I learned to have a conversation with God please click on this link https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AabAbkWSamI.  But I will also share the story here.

It began as an ordinary trip home.  I was traveling on the recently opened Route 100, which travels from Ellicott City, Maryland to Gibson Island, Maryland.  I was traveling westbound and close to home when I noticed an eastbound car which went out of control.  It then crossed the median and entered the westbound  flow of rush hour traffic. To make matters worse I was going about 15 miles an hour over the posted speed limit.  

In a matter of less than a second it became clear that I might be meeting my Savior face to face in the very near future. The eastbound traveling car jumped the median and cross directly in front of me.  I felt there was no way to avoid my fate.

I closed my eyes and said something to the effect of "God help me".  I am not sure what transpired in that short period of time but the next thing I remember was being on the side of the road shaking but safe and my car was in one piece.  

The two cars behind me also pulled over and later as we were talking to a State Trooper the woman in the car behind me told me if it was not for my quick reaction we all would have been killed.  She then told a story of how I skillfully maneuvered my car to avoid hitting the oncoming out of control car.  Still shaking I looked at her and said without thought "Jesus took the wheel".  There was no other way to explain it because I shut my eyes and froze. There was no skillful maneuvering on my part.  The credit clearly belonged to Our Lord.

As I went home I looked at the pictures of my two children, sat down and cried.  I thanked God for allowing me to have more time with them.  It was then I had my first honest and open conversation with God.  I spoke from the heart. I was truly grateful for His mercy and grace. 

This experience was not the end of my journey but simply the beginning.  I had always had God in my life but now I began to truly have a relationship with him that has grown and is still growing. 

My life was about to be shaken up.  A lot of life changing events were about to occur, some good and some bad.  I have come to believe that God allowed me to connect with Him in a more personal way just before this series of events to help me grow. I learned He has a plan for me and it is still unfolding.

The events began to unfold. I lost a home.  I was ordained. I became Chaplain for a large county wide fire department. Lost a legal career due to untreated major depression.  The depression then resulted in several in patient hospital stays.  I also had the honor of become a grandfather three times. Talk about ups and downs but my ability to have conversations with God help sustain me during this challenging period. God gave me strength and hope.

In the midst of this my daughter in law introduced me to a large non denominational church, Grace Community Church in Fulton, Maryland. Grace has been my church home for the past ten years and supported me through some of the most difficult times in my life.  I don't know if she knows how grateful I am to her for that introduction. Not long after I began to attend Grace my untreated major depression began to reveal itself and ravage my life.   I wrote a five part series on this experience which can be found at http://pastorbobtousey.blogspot.com/2014/08/depression-my-story-part-1.html

While my life is not perfect now, it has stabilized and I have been blessed to serve families during difficult times.  My relationship with God has also grown.  My major depression has been in remission for five years.

I now feel closer to God than ever before and I feel that with Him I can withstand any challenge thrown my way.  

I still offer up the structural prayers of my youth. They help settle my mind and prepare me to open up my conversation with God.  As I end my series of structural prayers I begin my conversation by thanking God for all the things He has done for me. I specifically thank Him for those things that I can recall.  I also thank Him for the that I am not aware of because I know He is always acting in my life and I can not know everything He does for me. But I want to let Him know I am grateful. After giving thanks I just talk to God as I would a friend.  I rejoice over the good things that have happened.  I ask for the Holy Spirits guidance in all things I do and I ask Him to help me face any challenges that may come my way.

I have found myself praying and talking to God throughout the day and yes as much as I hate to admit it sometimes in frustration, when things are not going the way I would like them to, I do throw up my hands and say God why?  Why God?  It is important to realize that God understands human frustrations.  But as I would with a friend after I calm down I do say sorry about that God, my frustration got the best of me.

God always answers my prayers.  Maybe not with words.  Maybe not the way I want.  There are times the answer is No or I have better plans for you.  The answers might come in a bible verse, an event, just a thought that comes in my head or through others.  

Here is an example of how God answered prayers through others.  Last year, I had a time where I was going through some tough financial difficulties.  I honestly had days where I did not know where my next meal would come from. Each time that happened I prayed and God used others to help me without me even asking them. There would come an unexpected opportunity to earn some income and once a friend just walked up to me and handed me some money and said I just felt I should give this to you.  It was just enough to get me the two meals I needed before I was to receive a check I was waiting for.

There are times it might seem like God has forgotten you but He has not, just keep your faith.  Keep praying and keep talking to Him.  God loves each of us and wants to hear from us.

As I close I would like to share with you a prayer I learned in a 12 step recovery group.  Every time I pray I close with it.  It is called the Serenity Prayer and I am sure some of you pray it regularly.

"God, grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change,

The courage to change the things I can,

And the wisdom to know the difference."

Overcoming Adversity: From Homeless to Adjutant General Maryland National Guard

Overcoming Adversity: From Homeless to Adjutant General Maryland National Guard

The information contained in this post came from an article on Fortune.com and the Maryland Army National Guard website.

The picture above is Brigadier General Linda Singh on the day her promotion was announced with outgoing Adjutant General, Major General James Adkins.

"The back story of many successful leaders is heart break, sleepless nights and overcoming adversity."  Brigadier General Linda Singh 

Those of you who know me or read my blog regularly know I just love a great story about overcoming adversity and today (December 23, 2014) when Maryland's new Governor Elect announced his appointment of Brigadier General Linda Singh as the new Adjutant General of the Maryland National Guard I knew I had to write about it.  General Singh's story is a compelling one and one that I am sure will impress everyone who reads it. 

When you think of a successful Army General you normally do not think of someone who as a teenager was a high school drop out and homeless, but that is General Singh's story.

As a child she suffered abuse at the hands of relatives and after an argument with her mother when she was 15 was asked to leave home and she did.  She made ends meet working at a Burger King and a pretzel stand in Frederick, Maryland.  She rented a room for $65 a month but eventually she could not even afford that.  Having to give up her room she began to sleep on the porches of friends' homes or in the office of the pretzel stand.  Initially she was able to maintain good grades and play varsity basketball but eventually the stress if being homeless took it's toll.  Her grades drop and she did not have the money to take the SAT required for college admission so she dropped out of  high school.

Then one day she spotted a recruiting stand for the Maryland National Guard.  She decided to join but she was only 17 and had to get her parents permission.  She eventually persuaded them and joined the Maryland National Guard on June 3, 1981. This was a life changing decision for "young" Linda Singh.

She served as an enlisted member of the Guard prior to her being commissioned in 1991.  She began working her way up the commissioned ranks.  She served in Kosovo from July, 2006 to October, 2007 and more recently in Afghanistan from September, 2011 until July, 2012.  She was then promoted to the rank of Brigadier General and in the fall of this year was tapped by outgoing Maryland Governor Martin O'Malley to serve as Assistant Adjutant General for the Maryland Army National Guard.  Just a few short months later the incoming Governor, Larry Hogan recognized her talent and nominated her for the top job, she will now serve as the Adjutant General of the Maryland National Guard.

The National Guard is not General Singh's only career.   While serving in leadership in the Guard she was working her way up in a civilian career as well.  She is a Managing Director for Accenture, a large consulting firm.

General Singh is a great role model for young people facing adversity.  She proves that you do not have to accept adversity.  You can fight back and prove that you are better than that.  You can use the gifts and talents that God has given you and rise above any adversity you face.  Congratulations General and thank you for being a role model.