cow tipping: wrestling with youth ministry

Top 5 Reasons Why I Financially Support Stuck in the Middle...and Sean Meade!

Top 5 Reasons Why I Financially Support Stuck in the Middle...and Sean Meade!
5. He is a fellow big guy and I don't feel quite as freakish standing next to him.
4. Stuck in the Middle is a well organized ministry with a great team of volunteers who are dedicated to serving middle school students.
3. Sean has the cutest kids and the sweetest, most supportive wife.
2. Stuck in the Middle loves middle school students and it maybe one of the only ministries fully dedicated to these underserved students.
1. Sean, his family and his crew of supporters are passionately and courageously following God's calling on their lives!

Please READ this newsletter and DONATE $10 (or more) TODAY!

Stuck in the Middle desperately needs your help, and more specifically Jill and I need your help. Three years ago Jill and I sold our home and one vehicle to help raise the capitol to launch Stuck in the Middle.  Since then we've worked hard to fund-raise and build support for this ministry.  Stuck began as an annual event in Kansas City, but in 2008 and 2009 it will go national with events in Dayton, Orlando, Los Angeles, Kansas City, Seattle, Colorado Springs and Honolulu.  Those events will impact the lives of thousands of middle school students, exposing many to the gospel for the very first time.  In addition to those events, Stuck will also be involved with national training events, school programs, summer camps, retreats, and multiple other outreach programs.  From a ministry viewpoint, it's amazing to see what God has done in such a short period of time. From a business viewpoint, the increased activity means that Stuck will finally be able to stand on its own two feet and be financially independent.  But these events are still a few months off, and we need your help to survive until then. 
               
This is the part of the email that is very difficult to write.  It's difficult because it is humbling to admit the great need that this ministry and my family have for your support, and because I've learned that when a ministry struggles financially, many see it as a lack of God's support.  I believe in the work that God is doing and has done through Stuck in the Middle, and I believe in the work that is still to come.  I believe we are following God's will for this ministry, but the reality right now is that Stuck in the Middle is financially running on empty. 

Here's the bottom line:  We have nothing left in our account to pay the bills for April, or to pay my salary tomorrow on April 1st.  The humbling truth is that the Meade family's rent is due on Tuesday, and without that paycheck we do not have the means to pay it.  Nor do we have the means to pay the other bills that the paycheck would normally cover, or the rent and bills that Stuck in the Middle has due at the first of the month. 

For the first three years that Stuck in the Middle existed, I did not receive a salary from the ministry.  In January the opportunity came to take this ministry national, and we felt God's leading for me to go full-time.  Since then I've accepted only 40% of the approved monthly salary that our board of directors voted for me.  Jill and I knew that we could make ends meet if we kept our budget very tight, and we felt that we should not receive full salary until the ministry could fully support itself and was 100% debt free. 

So how can you help?  My answer to that would be to please do something, and please do something right now.  It doesn't matter if you give $10 or if you give $10,000.  If each person reading this email supported the ministry with a gift of some size, the crisis would be swiftly averted.  Stuck in the Middle is a 501(c)3 non-profit organization, and any donations are tax-deductible.  You can donate online right now using your bank or credit card by going to Stuckinthemiddle.com and clicking on the "Support" tab.  You can also mail donations to "Stuck in the Middle, 405 South Sunset Drive #4, Andover, KS 67002". Because of the immediate need, please do email me and let me know if you are choosing to help us out and how much you are contributing.   

This process is as frightening as it is humbling for me. Starting in June we'll have money coming in from summer camps and a few other sources, but in the meantime both Stuck in the Middle and the Meade family don't have the means to survive without your help.  Would you please prayerfully consider supporting us with a one-time contribution?  You'd be helping me support my family as I continue the work that God has called me to, and you'd be supporting a ministry that is making a difference in the lives of middle school students nationwide.  I cannot thank you enough for your contributions and prayers, your support is a great blessing to me, my family, and the lives impacted by this ministry.  Thank you so much for your support. 

In His Grip,    
Sean Meade
Founder and President

Things I need to blog about during spring break

I'm not doing a good job staying on top of my blog, there are so many things that I wish I could take 5 minutes and post about. I'm going to put down some place markers and get back to them during my spring break.

1. My experience at Stuck in the Middle.

2. Our 8th grade retreat to Mars Hill in Grand Rapids last weekend.

3. Helping middle school students tell their story. My review of Donald Miller's "Story" sermon at Mars Hill.

4. My new Blackberry Curve (It's coming in the mail this week).

5. Exploring Project Management. My review of The One-Page Project Manager.

6. My plan to adopt Storying for our middle school program.

7. How to plan for the best Summer Internship experience.

8. My frustration over not being able to find a High School Ministry Director.

9. Why I had a whiteboard installed in my office.

10. My excitement for the Junior High Summit.

I laughed outloud!

Thanks to Brooklyn Lindsey for this great clip.

Can you copyright your ideas on your blog?

So I am going to start posting ideas about my writing project. I'm not sure if it is worth stealing, but I want to know how I can protect my ideas and not have someone take off with my thoughts for thier own best selling book. Does anyone out there know how I can protect them?

Over at the Lost Art of Blogging, they suggest writing a special copyright page. It may be a good idea to make a all new blog page, in which you’ll write all sorts of copyright related stuff and various rules, like what people are allowed to do with your content, what they’re not allowed to and the consequences of disobeying them. Hopefully this will both educate people on what they can do with someone else’s content and discourage plagiarizers.A great example of this can be found at Dosh Dosh.

Yes, an iPhone would be awesome...

...but I just cannot afford it!

I'm thinking about the Blackberry Pearl ($200). Anyone have any experience with Blackberry?

Should I get a Blackberry?

I think it's time to upgrade my phone. I would love to move to a PDA/smartphone so I can simplify my technological world. I'm thinking about going to Blackberry. I want a strong reception, e-mail, text messaging, ability to sync with MS Outlook, and access the internet.

Anyone want to share their experience with Blackberry? Any specific model you would recommend? Maybe you have something better you want to pitch me. My carrier is AT&T - and I'm pretty happy with them - so switching companies is not an option.

I made the ATLA Religion Index!

I am hanging out in the Wheaton College library today and thought I would search my name in the ATLA (American Theological Library Association) Religion Index. It's basically provides citations of journal articles, essays, book reviews, and dissertations in the field of religion broadly considered, and the religious aspects of other disciplines. My journal article is finally listed! Forever available to researchers of youth ministry for decades to come.

Lost Pet (project)

Ever since grad school (2003-05) I have had a pet project. I had this amazing idea for a ministry book. I did tons of research and spent many hours in conversations with friends, family, professors, and even publishers. I think it would be fair to say it consumed me at different points in the past 5 years. I won't go into details, but after a few major mishaps I decided to put it to bed a year ago. This past month I have felt restless, at sometimes even a little burnt out. I have come to realize that I have shut down my creative outlet of researching, reading, and writing. I would love to resurrect my writing project, but there are some wounds attached to the project that I'm not sure if I can reconcile. One of the exciting aspects to the project was a creative partnership - one that is no longer possible. I love creative partnerships - especially when writing - but I don't really have that kind of relationship in my life. I guess that is the roadblock to resurrecting this project, I don't want to do it without a partner, it just wouldn't be the same. I don't know why I decided to write this post today, it just seemed to be on my heart.

When Worlds Collide

In one of my favorite Seinfeld episodes, Elaine befriends Susan (George's girlfriend). George gets very worried that Elaine wants to get to know Susan and that his "two worlds will collide!"

Kramer: That's gunna be trouble.
Jerry: Why?
Kramer: Jerry, don't you see? This world here, this is George's sanctuary. If Susan comes into contact with this world, his world's collide. You know what happens then? (Kramer raises his hands into the air and slowly brings them together in an explosion.)

My worlds collided last week. Two people here at my church found my blog. Not that I ever say anything that I am embarrassed or ashamed of, but it is my sanctuary. I guess people picked up on my blog when Googling the name of our children's pastor who passed away last week. That's probably why it is called the "world wide web". Well, for any new readers from my church, welcome to my world. I hope I don't disappoint you with my ramblings or my support for Barack Obama.

We awoke to a THUD!

Emma, our 23-month old, has been working on getting out of her crib for sometime now. We didn't take her attempts very seriously, she didn't have the upper-body strength to get herself over the railing. Well she must be doing push-ups behind our backs, because today she got up and over. We woke up to a huge THUD and a little whimpering. She didn't hurt herself, but she did scare herself pretty good. I don't think this will be a isolated incident, I think she will only get more determined to stick her landing. It's just a matter of days before she is crawling into bed with us at 4am. I think it is safe to say she'll be in a "big girl" bed before her 2nd birthday (April 13). If anyone would like to contribute to Emma's "Big Girl" bed, please contact me (I'm still paying off her crib).