Perspective Through a Telescope

After filling Veggie with new oil he began to run better, but it was getting late and we decided to play it safe and bunker down for the night in Ft. Wright, Kentucky.

The next morning we drove Veggie over to a local diesel mechanic who was going to check out his nuts and bolts and make sure everything was running properly. Like any vehicle you take on a summer road trip, it’s important to get a tune up from time to time. When the mechanic was unable to look at Veggie on Saturday, we found out we were going to have to leave Veggie at the shop until Tuesday because of Memorial Day. Luckily, we had no meetings planned in Nashville yet, but this did leave us stranded in Convington, Kentucky.

Enter God.

A woman who was at the service center renting a moving truck happened to overhear our discussion with the mechanic and realized we were stuck. Without a moment’s hesitation, she offered to give us (two complete strangers) her vehicle for the afternoon. She would simply pick it up later that afternoon at whatever hotel we found. Nick and I were completely stunned with her generosity and trust. As she was leaving with her moving truck, Nick offered to help her move and she gladly accepted.

Over the course of the afternoon, we found out that she was in a very difficult situation and that she and her two kids needed to move out of her house in a hurry. Nick and I, with our strapping physique, eagerly played the role of the movers. In just a few short hours, we had placed everything she owned in the moving truck and were ready to go. We headed over to her new house where we unloaded the moving truck and helped her set up her new home.

Before we left, she tearfully explained to us that her mother, her rock, had died just six weeks ago at the young age of 54. With her mother’s death, she lost her faith in God and refused to go to church. She then asked us if we would like to go to church with her on Sunday. We eagerly accepted and took the opportunity to simply talk to her about God’s love for her. Like Leon had told us the night before, we took the opportunity to be a witness for Jesus Christ.

The next morning she picked us up and we went to a beautiful little Baptist church, the same church where her mother’s funeral service was held. I can’t imagine how difficult it had to be for her, but she took on the challenge with incredible strength.

This woman has definitely been on our hearts and in our prayers over the past two nights. Seeing the multitude of struggles she faces on a daily basis has really made us appreciate the blessings in our own lives.

In addition, it has reaffirmed my notion that God pokes. How does God poke? He can take really crappy situations and actually use them for good. We were stranded without a ride. This woman had to move but had no help. In addition, her faith was at an all-time low. I really feel like God poked us and helped our paths to cross. This woman not only provided us with a vehicle, but she really reminded us why we started Next Step Ministries in the first place – to help people take the next step in their faith. I pray that our chance meeting meant as much to her as it meant to us.

If our summer trip has taught me anything, it is that we humans run through this life with a very narrow perspective. It’s like looking at Georges Seurat painting with a telescope. All you can see are seemingly random dots of color, unable to view the grander image and design.

Nick and I set out this summer with the goal of promoting Next Step Ministries and recruiting students to go on our trips. What we didn’t realize is that that God had other plans. I hope we can get back on the road tomorrow and head down to Nashville, but if that isn’t in the cards, I won’t resist. My perspective is limited. God’s is not.

It’s All About The Bacon

Friday afternoon started brilliantly. We had left Cincinnati and we were cruising down interstate 71/75 towards into Kentucky, when Veggie began to get a little sluggish. As mentioned before, Nick and I are far from being mechanics, but that doesn’t mean we are short on ideas. We figured Veggie needed oil. Why? I’m not sure. Nonetheless, we stopped at the nearest gas station, bought the cheapest oil we could find, and poured it into the engine. It didn’t help. In fact, it seemed to make the situation worse. Now we were smoking a little more then usual. Little did we know, diesel engines require special diesel oil. Whoops.

Nick and I then headed for nearest Auto Zone to try to rectify the situation. This is where we met Leon, a cheerful Auto Zone attendant. Leon was an older man, full of interesting stories that were made all the more interesting when told with his thick southern accent.

He spoke of a recent fishing trip to Michigan with his son, the same place his father took him as young child. It was on this trip that he was finally able to catch that pike that had eluded him for years. He told us about the various Christian ministries that he has started. How he develops teaching outlines from the Bible and sends them all over the world, to places like Chile and Slovenia. He pulled out his wallet and showed us two pictures of his grandsons and explained that they were going to be preachers some day.

Most fascinating, Leon told Nick and I about his time as a young man traveling much of the country with a Christian quartet. He recounted one story in particular. Their tour bus had broken down in some rural town. As it was being fixed, Leon and his quartet set up shop on the sidewalk and began to sing. Pretty soon, a large crowd had formed that monopolized the street corner and blocked traffic. Eventually the police showed with the intention of dispersing the crowd. But God had other plans. The police officer that showed ended up being the first person saved that evening and dozens more followed. This story reminded us that buses will break down, but that doesn’t mean that we have to.

Leon left us with a saying that you would only hear in Kentucky. “It doesn’t matter how many curls are in a pig’s tail, you still end up with the same amount of pig.” We can be the best-looking organization out there, but in the end, what really matters is if we are being a witness for Jesus Christ.

Nick and I filled Veggie up with diesel oil and headed on our way. Our meeting with Leon seemed divinely orchestrated, but we wouldn’t find out just how poignant a meeting it was until the next morning.

The Pick Two Menu

There are many things I enjoy in life. Frozen Ice Pops. The Gravitron at carnivals. Harrison Ford in a Fedora. But there are few things I enjoy more than the Pick Two Menu from Panera Bread. It is a simply brilliant concept. Instead of simply getting a sandwich, a bowl of soup or a salad, you can actually get two of these items, albeit smaller portions, for almost the exact same price. So not only can you indulge yourself in a juicy Asiago Roast Beef sandwich, but you can couple it with a tangy Fuji Apple Salad and not break the piggy bank. Not only does this provide for a multitude of tastes during one’s meal, but it also gives one reason to rejoice after hitting all six food groups in a single meal. I was experiencing this exact feeling of illation last Friday afternoon as I chomped into my delicious sandwich. But this wasn’t the only reason I was excited.

Nick and I were currently in Cincinnati, Ohio. We had spent the previous night with our friends Bill and Justine. They were totally awesome. Not only did they let us crash at their apartment, but they had also recorded the season finale of “The Office” which we eagerly watched until 1 in the morning. Their hospitality was amazing and we really appreciate their help!

The next morning Nick and I headed over to Panera to get some grub and use their free wireless. It was Friday, which for youth pastors, is the beginning of their weekend. So with no meetings lined up, we tried to catch up on other work we’ve been forced to ignore with our busy schedule. It was during this time that Nick started up a phone conversation with Chris, a regional manager of K-Love, the largest Christian Radio Network in the country with over 600 stations. Chris really dug what we were doing and wanted to talk more in person. Being that we were already at Panera, Chris decided stop by for some lunch. Which as you probably have gathered by now, lead to a scrumptious Pick Two combination that I’m still dreaming about.

We had a really exciting meeting with Chris and his wife Leigh. Chris had previously been a pastor for a number of years, but had recently changed careers and become involved with K-Love – positive and encouraging. K-Love isn’t only radio station, but a real ministry tool that has led thousands of people to Christ and averted thousands of possible suicides. The K-Love team is doing some really amazing work.

We talked with Chris about Next Step Ministries and how we could possibly team up with K-Love to promote both of our ministries. Music has always been an incredibly important aspect of our organization. Every night on our mission trips we have some really talented musicians lead our students in worship. It is during this time that students begin to stop seeing themselves as individuals and start to see themselves as one under Jesus Christ. In an effort to provide the best worship experience possible, Next Step Ministries has teamed up with Quick Artist Agency, a Christian music label, to bring professional Christian bands to Hancock County, Mississippi. These bands will lead worship throughout the week work along side the students. We thing it will be a unique and inspiring experience.

We also talked with Chris about the long-term vision of Next Step Ministries. In the coming years, we hope to start a Christian festival with bands and speakers. This would provide another opportunity for students to strengthen their faith and bond in fellowship. Chris was really into our vision and had a number of awesome ideas for us.

Nick and I are very thankful that Chris and Leigh took the time to meet with us and we are super excited to see where God will take this relationship in the future.

After Chris left we packed up belongings, waved goodbye to Panera and hit the road for Nashville, Tennessee.

The American Dream

Tip of the day for all you waste oil users: veggie engines do not like cold grease. When waste oil is cooled, it becomes thicker. Filters don’t like thick waste oil. Engines like filtered oil. Therefore, engines don’t like cold waste oil. Solution – head south. And that is exactly what we are doing. Currently Veggie is steamin’ down I-77 to Cincinnati, Ohio, where the weather forecast for tomorrow is a pleasant 72 degrees, almost twenty degrees warmer than what it has been in northern Ohio. From there we are heading to Nashville, Tennessee, where Veggie is going to indulge himself in 85 degrees of engine happiness.

But even the past couple days of coldness could not get us down. Our time in Cleveland and Akron has been a ton of fun.

We met with some truly inspiring youth pastors in Cleveland on Wednesday and even more in Akron on Thursday. It is wonderful to see the passion people have for youth ministry, and no place was this clearer than at Cornerstone Free Methodist Church. Gordon, the church’s youth pastor, is completely dedicated to his youth program and works incredibly hard to see that his students have every opportunity to live for and experience Jesus Christ. Our hats are off to you Gordon.

Last night Nick and I stopped at an Econolodge in Akron to get some rest for the evening. We had slept on Veggie the night before, but after spending an hour filling up on waste oil, we were in desperate need of a long shower. Side note: if Nick and I were Leprechauns (a stretch of the imagination with Nick’s 6’4’’ frame), Chick Fillet’s grease bin would look like a glistening pot of gold. Simply perfect waste oil – but back to my story. After checking into the Econolodge, we walked across the street to Akron’s favorite date spot: the Olive Garden. Nick and I were seated in a quaint corner of the restaurant with five other couples. Awkward turtle. (That’s for you Ross) Much to our stomach’s delight and our waiter’s dismay, we saved a few bucks and went with the all you can eat house salad and breadsticks. I never knew I could get so full by eating foliage.

However, not much could compare to the meal we were generously treated to tonight. I’ve been dating Katherine Spittler, a grad student at the University of Michigan, for a little over a year now, but being that we live in different states, I haven’t had the chance to meet many of her extended family. So when Katherine told us that we were passing through her aunt’s hometown of Hudson, Ohio, we decided to stop for a visit. She treated us to a delicious meal at the Tomato Grill and even got to experience filling up Veggie on waste oil. Nick and I are truly blessed to have met some truly generous people on our cross-country trip.

I’ve promised myself I would only get sentimental on this blog three times, and I’m going to use one of my times now. Almost twelve years ago to the day, a scrawny thirteen-year-old kid with a mouth full of braces and a face overcome with acne, was sitting on a windowsill in Ducktown, Tennessee. On that humid summer night he starred up at the stars and for the first time in his life, he talked with God. He prayed that this new feeling he felt wouldn’t disappear; that he wouldn’t forget this night and how he felt right now. He prayed to God he barely understood, but a God that he desperately wanted to know. And while he didn’t hear a voice come thundering down from the heavens, he felt a quite peace and a warm love that has never left.

I wonder how different my life would have been had I not gone on that one-week mission trip. I wonder who I would be and what I would be living for. I look around me and see so many young people losing themselves to the pressures of our world. Drugs. Alcohol. Image. Money. Depression. There are so many. While these pressures are not new, with the growing influence of media in our daily lives, they are becoming harder and harder to avoid.

As I travel across America with one of my best friends, meeting with hundreds of amazing youth yearning for something more, I pray that we can give them what my first mission trip gave me. I pray that they can stare up at the stars and feel the amazing love that Jesus Christ has to offer. That is my American Dream.

OHIO, OHio, ohio…

Today we ventured into the state of Ohio. This previously lesser-known state was put on the map after being featured in the opening credits of the Drew Carey Show. Just kidding. Next Step Ministries loves Ohio, and apparently, so does Veggie. It was smooth sailing all the way into Toledo where we met with some more youth pastors. After a few hours, we packed up shop and are heading to Cleveland for tomorrow’s meetings, but not before stopping at Nick’s very own diner.

So far the trip has been pretty awesome. Veggie is drawing some big crowds and a lot of questions. Which I suppose is pretty natural. I mean, who wouldn’t be curious about a big black bus that runs off waste oil? The number one question we get is: where do you fill up? This question is actually pretty complicated and is affected by a number of variables.

First, where we fill up is dependent on the quality of waste oil a restaurant produces. For example, McDonald’s waste oil does to Veggie what its Big Mac does to our arteries. If you happened to get a glimpse at McDonald’s grease, you would see a thick, white substance sprinkled with the occasional chicken nugget. If we filled Veggie with that, we’d be waiting on the side of the highway with our thumbs up. On the flip side, Veggie is a huge fan of Chinese buffets and Mexican restaurants. Their waste oil is a dark, transparent liquid that looks similar to the oil you would put in your car. This is the good stuff.

Second, where we fill up is dependent on whether the restaurant lets us or not. Some restaurants have contracts with grease collection companies and don’t let us road trippers have access to their waste oil stash.

Third, well there really is no third.

Having said all this, I have decided to provide a public service to those of you reading this blog. We will update you daily as the quality of grease from different restaurants. This way, we can promote the restaurants that are gracious enough to let us use their waste oil, and even more importantly, we can hopefully add a few years on to your lives by deterring you from chomping down a Big Mac (sorry McDonalds).

The bus driver, Nick, just altered me that we are close to Cleveland, so I have to jet. He’s doing an awesome job driving. Only hit three cars and one cat so far. Yahtzee.

P.S. Expect a video entry soon!

A Little Hick-Up

An adventure wouldn’t be an adventure without a little hick-up from time to time. Our hick-up just happened to occur a little earlier than anticipated.

We were planning for a quick six-hour drive from Milwaukee to Ann Arbor, but what we got was a tiring twelve-hour journey. For some reason Veggie was not shifting into 4th gear. Now while Nick and I feel like we are pretty adept at a number of things: golf, Tiger Wood’s Golf, watching reruns of the Office; one thing we do not pride ourselves in is our mechanical know-how.

We tried everything (well almost everything). We ripped off pieces of cardboard and stuck them over the radiator to try to heat up the engine, we changed out the filters and we even tried tinkering with the governor. None of these worked, so we were relegated to going 40 mph the entire way to Ann Arbor.

The next day we gave Bryan a call and discovered a wonderful product called transmission fluid and before we knew it, Veggie was cruising at a very healthy 65 mph.

In Ann Arbor, Nick and I stayed with some great friends who helped us finish decaling our bus and let us crash at their apartment.

Having the opportunity to sleep on couches and take warm showers is going to be a luxury on this trip. We also had the chance to visit three churches in Ann Arbor and visit with their pastors. Be sure to check out pictures from those meetings in the picture section.

We stay in Ann Arbor one more night and head out to Ohio tomorrow morning. We’re ready, the question is: will Veggie be ready?

The Adventure Begins

It’s official – we are on the road! It’s taken a lot of sleepless, greasy nights to get to this point, but it was worth it. Our tour bus (Veggie) is currently going 60 down I-94 just outside of Chicago, hitting every pothole the highway can throw at us. So you might be asking yourself, what is Veggie and why are we on this road trip? Let me give you a brief synopsis of how we got to this point…

As many of you already know, Nick, Todd and I started a mission organization called Next Step Ministries about two years ago. We have been diligently planning and building an awesome team of support around us to make sure that our kick-off summer in 2009 will be a huge success. About 6 months ago, we came up with the idea of taking a summer road trip to recruit students and spread the word about Next Step Ministries. We didn’t know how we would be getting around or where we would go, but we felt called. We really wanted to meet face-to-face with hundreds of pastors, youth directors and students around the country to find out what they wanted in a mission organization and how we could help them. With that goal in mind, we set out to make it happen.

We decided that Nick and I would be the ones taking the road trip as Todd held down the fort in Wisconsin. Now as much as I like Nick, the idea of being crammed in a single car with him all summer wasn’t the must appealing idea, but that was our plan. We would take one of our vehicles across the country, staying with family and friends at night and the occasional Super 8. We wanted a bigger vehicle to travel in, but with very little money and the rising cost of gas, our options were limited. If we were to get better travel arrangements, it would have to be a God thing.

Enter Bryan Rutkosky. Bryan was part of the first response to Hurricane Katrina and has been working in Hancock County, Mississippi for almost three years. Hancock County was the official ground zero of Katrina and the most devastated area. Houses weren’t only flooded, they were completely obliterated for miles and miles. We had been working with people in the area planning to run trips there in 2009, when Nick happened to run into Bryan. The two quickly hit it off and much to Nick’s excitement, he found out that Bryan ran an organization called Dream Fuel International that provided alternative energy sources for vehicles and homes. Bryan owned three buses that he had converted to run 100% on waste-oil and before Nick could even ask, Bryan offered to give us one of the buses to travel in during our summer road trip. In addition, he had some friends at a company called Signs and Wonders that would provide decals for our bus. All of a sudden we had a bus plastered with our organization’s logos that ran on free gas. That was definitely a God thing.

Nick and I continued to work hard to get everything in line for our summer trip, juggling finals and work in the background until the final day came. It was five in the morning on May 17th when Nick called and told me to look outside. Driving up was jet-black bus, honking the entire way up the driveway. It was time for our road trip to begin.

After saying goodbye to our friends and family, we left Madison and headed up to Milwaukee for a brief appearance on Today’s TMJ4. Click here to check it out! We then took off to make the long trek out to Ann Arbor, Michigan for our first set of meetings, which is where you will find us now, crusin’ down the interstate.

This is going to be an awesome summer and we couldn’t be more thrilled. Keep checkin’ this blog for pictures, videos and more stories from the road.

Blog Coming Soon!

Starting in the next two weeks, we will have a summer blog that will follow our summer tour. Check back soon!