...pursuing presence

…love this photo of Sosi and I.

Sun, 28 Feb 2010 10:05:26 -0600

…love this photo of Sosi and I.

…these are the moments that our little girl, Sosi Elle,...

Sun, 21 Feb 2010 06:31:00 -0600

…these are the moments that our little girl, Sosi Elle, came home from Ethiopia. We had a little party at the airport to celebrate!

Link to Sosi’s Homecoming

"Community is no longer a word. community is a story. We are not stories by ourselves"

Sat, 20 Feb 2010 15:03:08 -0600

“Community is no longer a word. community is a story. We are not stories by ourselves” -...

…Lent & Preparation the Christian tradition of Lent is...

Sat, 20 Feb 2010 07:48:00 -0600

…Lent & Preparation

the Christian tradition of Lent is underway and I’m really pleasantly surprised to find so many of the “less traditional” Christians I know who are returning to this very traditional practice. However, for them this is not just a return to a tradition or a practice for the sake of simply doing it. This is a return with incredibly deep & very personal meaning.

If you are not familiar, Lent is a time of preparation for a believer. It is a season of penance, reflection, self-denial and fasting in order to prepare us for Christ’s Resurrection on Easter Sunday.

And, I’ll be honest. For most of my life, I wasn’t really someone who thought “tradition” was really very useful. My family wasn’t one that attended a traditional church where Lent was practiced, so I didn’t really understand it either.

As the relationship between some people within faith communities has intersected with the world around, it has caused tradition to sometimes be set aside in the name of trying to be relevant (true I am guilty of this, but don’t get me started - that’s a post for another day). As a result, seasons of life and traditions within the Church, like Lent, have fallen from importance.

Today in our culture, I see this changing.

I once heard Shane Hipps describe how elements of self-denial (a tradition within a Christian faith community) can be practices to help move one’s heart closer to God. He explained it through a short story from his childhood when he would ride his bike to the swimming pool in the summers. However, there was one very large & busy road that had to be crossed in order to reach the pool. As a boy, he would become angry at those cars because they caused him to wait and prevented him from reaching the pool He didn’t see their value. However, when he turned 16, these cars suddenly became of great value. These cars that once seemed like a barrier were actually now a great way to get to the swimming pool in the summers.

His analogy was this - as we grow and mature, those things that don’t seem to have value at some point become valuable. The things we once thought were barriers can actually be the vehicles that take us to where we desire to go.

But they don’t have value for what they are, but for what they can do.

In Joel 2:12-18, I found this story of a time of preparation by the nation of Israel as they sought for their God as a community of people.

“Even now,” declares the LORD, “return to me with all your heart, with fasting and weeping and mourning.”

Rend your heart and not your garments.
Return to the LORD your God, for he is gracious and compassionate, slow to anger and abounding in love, and he relents from sending calamity.

Who knows? He may turn and have pity and leave behind a blessing—
grain offerings and drink offerings for the LORD your God.

Blow the trumpet in Zion, declare a holy fast, call a sacred assembly.

Gather the people, consecrate the assembly; bring together the elders, gather the children, those nursing at the breast.
Let the bridegroom leave his room and the bride her chamber.

Let the priests, who minister before the LORD, weep between the temple porch and the altar.
Let them say, “Spare your people, O LORD. Do not make your inheritance an object of scorn, a byword among the nations. Why should they say among the peoples, ‘Where is their God?’ “

Then the LORD will be jealous for his land and take pity on his people.

Today, for me, these ancient practices we find in the liturgical calendar are becoming alive again.

Not for what they are, but for what they can do in my heart to cause me to move closer to the heart of God.

Not for the sake of the tradition, but because the tradition began with people just like you and I.

People who were seeking a car and not a bicycle.

…wow, pretty crazy past couple of weeks, but seems like...

Wed, 17 Feb 2010 05:42:00 -0600

…wow, pretty crazy past couple of weeks, but seems like this may be the new normal of which I’m not sure I’m ready for. It’s almost like we’ve strapped ourselves to a moving train and we’re just holding on…

I commented a few days ago that having 4 kids is approximately 857% more than having 3 kids and I really was surprised at the number of responses by people who are just as tired in life as I was that day. Don’t get me wrong, absolutely love the kiddos, but we have been in constant motion for a while now.

…I do think that these past two months of crazy busy Christmas, preparation for Ethiopia, the return and a new normal that has followed has shown me a couple things.

First, it’s time to make some hard choices about priorities and where I spend my related time. Maybe I’m thinking about this because it’s 5:00 a.m. and it’s the only time it’s quiet in my house. Maybe it’s because I turned 37 yesterday and I’m really close to tipping closer to 60 than to 20. Maybe it’s because I started reading Andy Stanley’s book “Choosing to Cheat” & within the first few pages I find the statement “my kids have never said, ‘okay dad, that’s enough playing for the day, maybe you should go do some more work.’” This point was reinforced the other day when I was talking with a friend about scheduling some travel, and he said that he had made a commitment to his kids that he would only be away from home for a certain number of days at a time (very nice). Or, maybe all of this comes into focus because I’ve known for a long time that the pace of life has been quickening and I just want to slooooowwww down a little.

Either way, whether I want to make a few changes or because I need to make a few changes…I’m going to.

First, went out for my first early morning run yesterday for the first time in maybe four months. Within just a few moments of realizing it was 20 degrees outside (I should have picked a better day) that I awoke and began to rediscovered that it really isn’t the running as much as it is the fact I can let my mind escape through the headphones of my iPod to be recharged. I have a lot of podcasts to catch up & I’m really looking forward to taking it all in.

Second, I must be present more with my family. It hasn’t been uncommon to have a coffee & lunch meeting scheduled every day of the week, and while that’s productive for a number of things, it’s not productive at home. So, mornings are going to be returned to my family as much a humanly possible. Not to mention it’s February and I still haven’t gone to my kids school to have lunch with them (super dad fail on this one).

Third, the phone will spend a lot more time in my car at night, during dinners or lunches, etc. This means it may take a week to email people back; I’m sorry in advance. After returning from Ethiopia and having couple hundred emails to look at, I just started calling people. Wow, I never knew how much more productive a phone call is vs email (I think I’m on to something). If I’m really bad at getting back in touch, feel free to call Corrie as she can always find me. :-)

And last (for now), I’m going to fight the internal pressure to feel like I have to be at everything I truly want to be at. Sometimes I may win, sometimes I may fail, but I’m going to pick a fight with my constant need to feel like I have to be at everything incredible that is going on. And, with the friends I have, they are constantly doing some pretty amazing things. However, when I’m there, I want to be there with the free space in my mind that allows me to truly be there.

Okay…enough of this mindless rambling. Just some 5 am thoughts that I’m sure I’ll delete later.

Right now, my family is incredible in spite the fact that while in Ethiopia I acquired the amazing ability to fall asleep within 2 minutes regardless of the surroundings. Sosi is a true gift that has moved my heart so far; I just can’t miss these moments with her. More on all of this later, but there’s my mind dump. Hopefully this leads to some accountability & grace from the three people who may actually have read this far (and that includes my mom).

Grace and peace…and come run one morning with me (I may need some help getting back into a rhythm).

…where to begin to say thank you? at this point, we have...

Sun, 31 Jan 2010 08:56:00 -0600

…where to begin to say thank you?

at this point, we have been home with Sosi for just over a week. Hard to comprehend just that very fact. However, very easy to understand that life is now very different than it was just two weeks ago prior to our travel to Ethiopia.

I think right now is really the first moment that I have had to sit in the quiet shadows of a morning & reflect on just what has taken place. I am finding that reflecting is still far too overwhelming. I try and boil it all down into words, and I fail.

So I sit…

but I sit knowing that…

there are still a thousand photos and hours of video to go through with each moment spent causing me again to reflect and try to understand…

there are still hundreds of messages & thank you cards to return where I will humbly try to express what has been done for us…

there are still memories and experiences from our trip that may never be fully understood but will never be forgotten…

…however, at this moment, I can attempt to express my deep gratitude to all of those who have made this journey possible…who have helped to bring my little girl home.

…to those that have prayed for us, our hearts have been filled to capacity because of you.

…to those who have listened to our longing hearts for these past 20 months, you have given us the power to be real in our lament that has now been turned to joy.

…to those who have embraced us & welcomed us into a new community of fellow travelers, we feel at home.

…to those who have given their resources to us, you have truly purchased treasures in heaven that we will repay here on earth to others who have begun their journeys of adoption.

…to those who have begun their adoption journeys over this past 20 months, we are now here for you, and we watch with eager anticipation the gospel story unfold in your lives

…to our friends and family (we have a hard time differentiating), you embraced this little girl before you knew she even existed. You have shown us the love of a God who loves without condition or measure. You have lived out the prophecy here on earth that the kingdom of God will be made of those from every nation, tribe and tongue. You have given much, endured greatly & loved richly. What joy ahead we have!

…to my bride, our life is definitely not what we dreamed about 13 years ago…and for that I rejoice! Never could I have imagined that God would have taken us down this path, but this is why I am not in control :-). Our life will be forever different now, and I would choose no one else to share it with. You have given me strength by showing me there is no corner of this world you will not go for our family. You have sacrificed greatly, toiled sometimes in vain, but through it all you never lost hope. I am humbled to be loved by you, and I can not wait to share where God will take us next. I love you deeply.

…to Sosi who is asleep upstairs. Thank you for waiting for us. You are now home. Know that for the rest of my life you will know that you are loved, accepted, wanted & needed. There is simply no life ahead for me that does not include you. You have been in my heart from the moment you were born, and that is far more important that the date of when I first held you. In you I see my rescue, and in you I see who I am in the arms of a loving father. You have changed me forever… There is nothing I can do that will ever compare with what you have given to me… I love you…

…to those parents who still wait for their children to come home, do not lose strength for a day is coming when you hearts and hands will hold the same thing. We pray that day comes quickly.

…and one final thing (for now).

…to everyone who has been a part of this story, one thing is true.

It is far from over.

Our little girl is home, but this is a new beginning for many others. Follow their stories, learn from them & watch the Gospel story unfold before them.

this list is not finished, but now the story continues in the lives of…

I pray that Grace & Peace may abound in your lives as it does in mine…

"God is in the slums, in the cardboard boxes where the poor play house. God is in the silence of a..."

Tue, 26 Jan 2010 06:56:00 -0600

“God is in the slums, in the cardboard boxes where the poor play house. God is in the silence...

Ethiopia (Home… part 8)

Mon, 25 Jan 2010 10:45:00 -0600

Ethiopia (Home… part 8)

Ethiopia Day 6

Fri, 22 Jan 2010 07:00:00 -0600

…today we leave Ethiopia.…we say good bye to new friends with stories left...

Ethiopia Day 5

Thu, 21 Jan 2010 23:50:00 -0600

…5:30 a.m. and a little more sleep than the night before. My mind, heart and emotions are at...

the fourth part of our Adoption story is up… Ethiopia...

Thu, 21 Jan 2010 09:46:00 -0600

the fourth part of our Adoption story is up…

Ethiopia (Being… part 4)

Ethiopia Day 4

Wed, 20 Jan 2010 21:30:00 -0600

…it’s 4:00 a.m. again and this time change is starting to wear on me. Yet, our time here is...

Ethiopia Day 3

Tue, 19 Jan 2010 23:30:00 -0600

…4:00 a.m. and sleep has escaped my grasp.My mind & heart are alive because just a few...

…so many thoughts, so many much to share. For now, here is...

Mon, 18 Jan 2010 23:18:00 -0600

…so many thoughts, so many much to share.

For now, here is a little bit about one of the best days of my life…

Ethiopia (Being… part 3)

Ethiopia Day 2

Mon, 18 Jan 2010 10:00:00 -0600

…a quiet city of 3 million people wakes us after a jump forward in time that causes us...

Ethiopia Day 1

Sun, 17 Jan 2010 08:00:00 -0600

…we have seen very little in the 12 short hours we have been in Ethiopia; however, one this...

…and away we go. Next stop Ethiopia! Follow along on...

Sat, 16 Jan 2010 09:31:00 -0600

…and away we go. Next stop Ethiopia!

Follow along on whrrl.com/mikerusch

Ethiopia (Preparing… part 1)

Ethiopia (Going… part 2)

I’m pretty much at a loss for words right now as 24 hours...

Fri, 15 Jan 2010 08:27:00 -0600

I’m pretty much at a loss for words right now as 24 hours from now our plane will be lifting off to carry Corrie and I to bring Elle home

For so very long, I knew this moment would come, but I never really let it enter into my day to day life, thoughts or prayers. Why? Well, partly because emotionally I’m not sure I could, and partly because I knew God has been walking both in front and behind me and my family.

It’s been a conflicting week as we have great joy for what is ahead, but we also weep with the families who are adopting children from Haiti that will not know this moment for a very long time, if ever.

For us, like so many before us, life will change forever once that plane lifts off the ground, and for that I am excited beyond measure. However, there is still that small voice inside me say “you really think you’re ready for this?” and “you realize this is the easy part, right?”

Thoughts that cause me do one thing alone…

…turn and trust that the God who has brought us this far has already written the story that we are about to explore.

…turn and trust that the people surrounding us would do anything should we only let the words slip from our mouths.

…turn and trust that the purpose of my life is to be the foreshadowing of a coming kingdom where every right is made wrong, every heart is filled and peace reigns. A kingdom where Elle will someday be in the arms of her birth mother again.

…turn and trust that regardless of any difficultly that is ahead, my God will be there.

…turn and trust that there is healing for a child, my child, who needs the arms of her father and mother.

…and that’s pretty much all I can do.

…next stop, Ethiopia

There simply may not be a better advocate for Haiti’s...

Fri, 15 Jan 2010 07:38:00 -0600

There simply may not be a better advocate for Haiti’s children than Aaron & Jamie Ivey.

Despite the unspeakable tragedy currently taking place in Haiti, their son Amos is safe and hope is rising because of Aaron & Jamie.

Thank you to CNN for sharing Aaron & Jamie’s story of their family, their hope, their children & our God.

CNN video interview: Family’s Adopted Son in Haiti

We had the incredible opportunity to meet Aaron, Philip, Bush & Jimmie while they were in NW Arkansas for their house tour, and our hearts will be forever connected to their story, to Haiti and to Amos.

Aaron’s song “Amos Story” has been an inspiration to Corrie and I, and now the meaning of those words are truly the hope of so many parents waiting for their children to come home.

We pray Amos is home so very soon & are in awe of how God is using them.

Help End Local Poverty "Orphan Care & Human Trafficking"

Mon, 11 Jan 2010 08:49:23 -0600

Help End Local Poverty "Orphan Care & Human Trafficking"