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How Safe Is Your Family?

Erik Cooper —  May 20, 2013 — Leave a comment

For the last few years, my wife and I (and our three kids) have been involved with a beautiful organization called Safe Families. One of the greatest assets we’ve been fortunate enough to have in our lives is people. Lots of them. An embarrassment of riches.

Family. Church. Friends. Neighbors.

When we have a need, small or great, we have a network to lean into for strength and support. For help. A tapestry of love that feels nearly endless at times, that fosters an underlying confidence and strength as we embrace each day. I can’t imagine feeling completely alone, not knowing where to go or who to turn to.

But as hard as it is for me to comprehend, many live there each day.

That’s where Safe Families steps in to help.

(Click here to watch a great piece from Katie Couric and CBS News)

An alternative to the child welfare system. A temporary respite for an overwhelmed mom. Extended family that many just simply don’t have.

Safe Families has recently submitted for some much needed grant funding, but they need 23 more families to signup by the end of June in order to qualify.

Listen, there are lots of great ways to serve your community. We don’t give from a place of guilt, but from a place of grace. Maybe Safe Families is for you, and maybe it isn’t. But if you’ve been considering ways to share your life with those in need, Safe Families is a great program and now is the perfect time. It’s not a high pressure process, and you can make your preferences known for length of placements and even the age/sex of the children you feel comfortable taking into your home.

It’s messy. It’s beautiful. And it impacts lives. (Especially yours).

How safe is your family? Click here to find out more.

In Family, Life, Spiritual Life
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How To Trust Jesus With No Incontinence Required

Erik Cooper —  May 15, 2013 — 2 Comments

Growing up amongst a charismatic church movement, I was occasionally exposed to things that made me uncomfortable. Expressions I naturally accepted in my youth I began to question as my intellect matured and my personality uncovered its cynical side.

Hyper-emotionalism.

Awkward “prophetic” utterances.

Even a woman who claimed to wet her pants every time the “Spirit fell” on her. (I wish I was joking).

I never openly rebelled against these things, I just quietly severed my heart from the most embarrassing of the chicanery and subliminally embraced a much more sane and sober understanding of how humanity can connect with the Divine. For the most part, I’m glad I did. I mean really, who wants a relationship with God that requires an endless supply of adult diapers?

Gone-crazy

But in my noble desire to avoid crazy, I sometimes wonder if I unintentionally neutered my belief in the Supernatural altogether.

Salvation became about self-discipline.

Strength a product of my will.

And wisdom solely a reward for diligence.

And while no one would sanely malign hard work, persistent preparation, or inner courage, I think we mistakenly look only to ourselves as the source of these outflows. And when we do, we miss out on the powerful promise of the Gospel.

“Answer this question: Does the God who lavishly provides you with his own presence, his Holy Spirit, working things in your lives you could never do for yourselves, does he do these things because of your strenuous moral striving or because you trust him to do them in you?”
–Galatians 3:5 MSG

“The LORD gives his people strength. The LORD blesses them with peace.”
–Psalm 29:11

“If any of you lacks wisdom, you should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to you.”
–James 1:5

His work. His strength. His wisdom. For your job, your family, your community, your ministry. Offered to us as a gift. Just ask.

I long to tap into this life that is so much greater than what I can conjure up on my own. Normal. Everyday. Supernatural. No incontinence required.

In Church, Spiritual Life
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What’s Your Draft Stock?

Erik Cooper —  May 9, 2013 — 2 Comments

My kids have become fascinated with “dad stories.” They love to hear of my heroic exploits as a young child, and what dad doesn’t like to embellish (I mean share) some of his favorite childhood memories with wide-eyed, genetically predisposed fans. So last night, I obliged.

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It was a baseball tale of legendary proportions. The summer between my 5th and 6th grade years found our squad playing for the league championship. Bases loaded, bottom of the last inning, and my number was up in the batting rotation. I stepped boldly to the plate, scraped my rubber cleats three times in the arid dirt, tucked a wad of Big League Chew neatly between my cheek and gums, stared down the wobbly-kneed pitcher like an old west gun fight…

…and went yard!

Grand slam.

Game over.

A hero was born. (Mostly) true story.

But then I had to go and try to play football.

It didn’t even take coach to the end of the first practice to notice my passivity (I would have loved playing football if it wasn’t for all the hitting and tackling). So he devised an ingenious plan for our first game of the season, sticking me dead center on the front line for the opening kickoff of our first game. The ball was sure to fly over my head, I could feign a few touch blocks, and then the real football players would do the dirty work far in the backfield behind me. That is, until the inexperienced kicker dribbled the old pigskin 10 yards off the tee right into my trembling, rookie fingers.

The rest is a permanent fixture in family folklore.

In sheer panic, I began running with the football fully extended like it was a baby with a dirty diaper, until (as my dad likes to recount the story) my scrawny form was violently swallowed beneath a pile of opposing team. The ball squirted upward through the mass of pre-pubescent humanity, was quickly scooped up by our enemy combatants, and returned untouched for a opening play touchdown.

I was forbidden to touch the ball ever again. (And rightfully so).

Lots of lessons in these two little anecdotes – understanding your gifts, responding to failure (knowing when to be a spectator). But the one I really wanted to drive home to my kids last night was perhaps the most profound. You see, I watched my baseball value soar in the summer of ’85, while my draft stock for football dropped faster than Tim Tebow. But my value in my dad’s eyes was never shaken.

And therein lies the powerful truth: Your value isn’t determined by what you can or can’t do, but by who loves you.

“We can understand someone dying for a person worth dying for, and we can understand how someone good and noble could inspire us to selfless sacrifice. But God put his love on the line for us by offering his Son in sacrificial death while we were of no use whatever to him.”
–Romans 5:7-8 MSG

In this life you’ll have some grand slam days, and then you’ll turn around and fumble the opening kickoff. But the beautiful, scandalous message of the Gospel is that you are deeply loved with no earning strings attached. You’re valued not by what you do, but because of what has been done for you.

Your Father already declared your draft stock when He sent Jesus. So what will you do, how will you love, and who will you serve knowing there’s absolutely nothing left for you to earn?

Batter up.

In Family, Spiritual Life
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Mini-Post: New Music Monday

Erik Cooper —  May 6, 2013 — Leave a comment

My seven year old has provided plenty of material for this blog over the years, but this one is a little different (in an incredibly fun sorta way).

In January, my brother opened his brand new music studio and school, and my two youngest kids got the chance to be guinea pigs for the songwriting track. I shared Anna’s song a couple of months ago, but Austin’s single just dropped last week! I know he shares my DNA, but I think this is pretty amazing (especially for a 7 year old).

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So what was my boy’s first original composition all about? If you know him at all, it won’t surprise you (but I promise it will make you smile). Take a listen:

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(Click the link above to listen).

Huge shout out to Justin Alley, who patiently walked the Aus-man through the creative process. And of course, my brother Darren, for his passionate playing and studio work (even on a simple kid’s project).

Summer would be a great time for you to enroll your offspring at Grizzly. Combat vacation boredom with a little creative expression. Click here for more info.

In Family, Random
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Business = Ministry

Erik Cooper —  May 1, 2013 — 2 Comments

“You mean you’re not slumlords just trying to make a buck?”

Conversations about our company are usually full of puzzled interrogatives, and the one I found myself having with a contractor at one of our Muncie apartment complexes this morning was no different. He seemed authentically intrigued.

Honestly, so I am.

We definitely aren’t slumlords, but we are trying to make a buck. And we don’t apologize for that. But we do have some pretty big purposes in mind.

At CRF, business = ministry.

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I’d like to tell you I was the brainchild and sweat equity behind the creation of Community Reinvestment Foundation, but I was just graduating high school when it all began. Like so many other things in life, I now find myself trying to step into the visionary, risk-filled brilliance of an incredible team of forerunners. You see, CRF was started in 1992 by my father, my former pastor, and a few other mega-shrewd businessmen who saw an opportunity for non-profits to enter the housing business.

Twenty years later, we now own and manage 19 affordable, multi-family housing projects all over the state of Indiana (with one complex just over the border in Columbus, Ohio). As a non-profit, our heart is to create and sustain high quality, affordable housing options for lower-income individuals and families. And as a bonus, a large portion of our earnings go toward supporting missions initiatives across the globe.

In fact, we just returned from 5 days in La Ceiba, Honduras with our home office staff. It was a powerful time of walking hand-in-hand with just a few of the beautiful people that are impacted by the overflow of our work. As a non-profit, we don’t have shareholders. But in a sublime sort of way, these are our shareholders.

CRFStaff_Honduras

There’s been a resurgence today of young, passionate entrepreneurs who see business as a way to make a living, earn money, and do good. (In fact, non-profit or not, I must admit I’m rather fatigued by the tired, old stigma that business and capitalism are synonyms of greed and corruption). Perhaps the visionaries that started Community Reinvestment Foundation were just a few years ahead of their time.

Few things could have lured me away from full-time pastoral ministry. I absolutely love the local church! But it’s an honor to bring my passion for God into an organization that is all about (dare I say it?) proclaiming the love of Jesus by investing in housing, and then reinvesting in individuals, families, and communities.

Right here in the Midwest, and all across the globe.

In Business, Family, Life
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