It’s Ruth’s birthday! We’re entering a new era, and I’m not talking about Ruth’s age. When I announced at 2:30 after a late lunch that we would reassemble at 4:00 for birthday cake, Benjamin said he would be on hand for dinner. He’s already cleaned up most of the leftovers in the fridge. Actually, I suppose it’s more like returning to an era we left three months ago when he left for college.
Rewind to last Sunday. Ruth and I raced out of church and drove to Newark airport for our flight to Atlanta. She worked on her classes in the hotel while I met with the other coordinators on Monday and Tuesday. We could have spent several days discussing all that’s going on in RUF, but we did take time out to pray for each other. We worked on some policies that will help us work more smoothly and began a discussion comparing how we each do our work. That is a long, deep, and very profitable topic. To be continued. We got home late Tuesday night.
On Wednesday I drove to Dover for a quick visit with Daryl Wattley. I have decided that Delaware State is my favorite campus. Two students complimented me on my necktie! One student Daryl had met only once joined us for lunch and seized the opportunity to hit two pastors with questions like, how do you stay married? It was a fun visit.
I got to Newark, Delaware, in time for a workout before dinner with Nick and Erin Owens and two student leaders. Nick’s ministry is taking off faster than we anticipated. On Thursday Nick and I discussed how to manage the growth of this ministry and all the students showing interest. We had lunch with a freshman, then I took Nick and Erin out to dinner. They have been tremendously busy this fall, and a baby is on the way in January. There was a lot to talk about!
On Friday I stopped by Glassboro, New Jersey, for a quick lunch with Phil Henry. Phil is planting a church there and is spearheading the drive to start RUF at Rowan University. We’ve decided to wait until 2017 to start, so we have some more time to round up support. I was able to leave in time to beat the Philadelphia rush hour traffic!
Benjamin is home from college all week. His roommate is from Seattle, so Benjamin brought him home, too. I’m facing two days of office work and chores, then on Wednesday most of the relatives start arriving. We’re expecting at least 24 for Thanksgiving.
David Green 