​On August 24th, something magical will happen in Plymouth’s parking lot and front lawn! On August 24th, we will perform a miracle of goodwill and community strength. On August 24th, lives will be changed by the collective efforts of everyone both great and small. 

On Saturday, August 24th, God will use Plymouth to transform unused belongings (surplus stuff, material possessions) into the greatest blessing of all—an affordable, attainable, safe home for a neighbor in our community. It is an additional miracle for Fort Collins, this year, because it is our community’s first ever Multi-Faith Build.
 
In order to accomplish this transformation in our parking lot, your Habitat for Humanity Ministry team needs your help! We are asking for you to drop off your unused and surplus belongings in our Fellowship Hall on Wednesday morning August 21st, Thursday afternoon August 22nd, and any time all day on Friday, August 23rd. We are also seeking donations of baked goods to sell at the sale in addition to the typical garage sale items.
 
The Habitat for Humanity Ministry Team is also issuing a “giving-challenge” this year for everyone to look for one $50 or more valued item to donate that they are not using or do not currently need. We all have these things around. I know I do. In addition to donating low-value items, adding one nice item each can help make all the difference. This will help us meet a higher giving goal and help empower the work God is doing through our Habitat ministry in Fort Collins.
 
Finally, please sign up to volunteer for the collection and organizing days during the week and for the sale itself! The signup is on the bulletin board. Non-Plymouth community members are welcome as well. Turns out that we also need customers (a lot of them) to make this work. :) Help us spread the word throughout Northern Colorado that a miracle will happen at Plymouth on August 24th... and everyone is invited to be part of it by shopping and donating!
 
This is my prayer for Plymouth on the 24th of August—that God will be present in our donations, our volunteering, and sales to help make home possible in this city for one of our neighbors.
 
In Habitat Hope,
Jake
 
More Information About our Partner Family

Last week, I joined with a group of Plymouth volunteers to go down to Sebring, Florida, to help with Hurricane Irma Habitat for Humanity rebuilding efforts. I was honored to accompany Plymouth volunteers dedicated to making a difference while grounded together in prayer and Spiritual Practices. What a gift and a blessing it is to be one of your members of the clergy!

This was our first official team to go on an “International Build.” It was made possible by the Ministry Team leadership of Lynn Wartgow and Bruce Lieurance. As the last officially scheduled visiting volunteer group to go to this Central Florida location before the autumn (when it cools off again), we felt an increased sense of purpose and persistence. Painting and flooring a house built on a “floating foundation” in the sand was a new experience for our volunteers. More than anything, we learned about the ongoing need that sets into disaster impacted regions years after the initial rush of help comes. When the news changes subject and the national attention moves on from the initial impact of the storm, it is Habitat for Humanity that stays for the long haul…bringing with it the love of Christian community (open and accessible to all people) and missional vocation.

At one point, everyone was taking turns looking deep in my eyes with sincerity and concern. You could say that this mission trip was eye opening. They say that the eyes are the widow to the soul, but it turns out it is also the way to detect a concussion! While getting in the van one morning, I aimed too high (carrying two cups of coffee, one in each hand) and hit my head hard on the door of the van. While there was no concussion after all, the world was spinning for a while that morning. The care I experienced touched me deeply and reminded me what church community is all about. Mission Trips, like this inaugural one with Habitat, both allow us to have a material impact in the world beyond our pews and town, but they also bring us closer together in care for one another.

My ultimate reflection on this Mission Trip comes down to three phases: Home for All, Human Family, and Real Connection. That is why The Outreach and Mission Board and I hope that this trip to Sebring won’t be a stand-alone effort. We pray that it might be the catalyst that ignites our congregation sending more and more groups to go deeper in relationship with each other and the needs of others around God’s diverse world.

Here are two additional reflections from Plymouth members who were on this Mission Trip for Adults:
 
Lynn Wartgow, Habitat for Humanity Ministry Team Leader wrote:
“I am so grateful for the group of eight wonderful people who joined me for the trip to Sebring. Everyone was incredibly positive, kind, timely, fun, hardworking and enthusiastic. I loved getting to know everyone and feel as if my extended family has just grown. Habitat building trips are a fabulous way to see new places, meet new people, provide a 'hand up' to a deserving family and have a bunch of fun at the same time.”

And Vanessa Reed wrote the following, entitling it, Benefits of Working for Habitat:

“At the age of 78, I have just gained a new family. No, I did not adopt or get married. I spent a week with eight people sharing, giving, and loving hard work. We traveled together to hot, humid Florida to work with Habitat for Humanity. Even though the work, a five-bedroom home for a mother of nine, was often repetitive with lots of walls to paint and floors to lay; there was nothing but laughter, sharing, hugs, and becoming aware of muscles we have not used in a long time.

Hours of work to help this mother and her family become home owners and giving back to the community gave us all a deep feeling of satisfaction. We gained a sense of pride when the building manager said that he never expected us to complete so much work in such a short period of time. His praise sent us home to Fort Collins knowing we had made a difference in the lives of the people we did not know. Even more important than that, however, is that we created a new family with memories to never be forgotten.”
 
With eyes wide open to the needs around us and the hope for transformation in and through community…let us be Church together.
 
In Hope,
Jake

Dear Plymouth,
 
“Home is where the heart is.” That saying has been around for so long that historians of language and idioms do not even know how long it has been in use, although there are written records dating back to Pliny the Elder (23-79 CE). When I hear this phase, I am brought back to childhood memories of Christmas mornings, Easter Egg hunts (mom hid the eggs so well we would keep finding them throughout the summer months), puppies, and lessons learned in time out. I spent a lot of time in time out. I am sure that many of you have your own stories of home that make this phrase resonate, but we all agree that home is the source of stability, nurture, and health in most of our lives. Public Health professionals universally agree on this point.
 
For an increasing number of people, especially those in natural disaster zones, home is where the stress is. Home is where the uncertainty is. Home is where the instability is. Home was there, but then a hurricane, flood, or fire took it away. This is a place where we can help make a difference, as a church, and return heart to home.
 
From April 28th through May 4th, for a week, Plymouth’s Outreach and Mission Board and our Habitat for Humanity Ministry Team have commissioned our first Adult Mission Trip since the end of our Navaho Mission Trips a half-decade ago. With Outreach and Mission Board member Lynn Wartgow leading, Plymouth volunteers Anne Wuerslin, Jeff Wartgow, Nancy and Bob Sturtevant, Vanessa Reed, Bruce Lieurance, and myself, along with friend of Plymouth Belinda Strickland, will be going to Sebring, Florida to help build houses for hurricane survivors—the same hurricane Plymouth responded to so generously with a special offering two years ago in the immediate aftermath.
 
The fact that we first sent dollars and now are sending a real group of people to make a physical difference is a sign of healthy systems-changing mission rather than just charity.
 
The Board of Outreach and Mission believes that bringing back organized Adult Mission Trip opportunities through Habitat for Humanity helps us fulfill the sending part of our mission as a church and to make lasting change while building relationships. After sending Lynn Wartgow to Minneapolis be trained as an official Habitat Mission Trip leader, we chose Sebring as our first mission opportunity because of our existing connection to that place and the need.  If it goes well, there will be more similar trips every year, and we invite you all to consider going.
 
Moreover, the board feels that having Adult Mission Trip opportunities brings us closer, as a board, to fully living out our mission in Fort Collins and the world to “send” people out of our comfort zone for hope and transformation.
 
Plymouth’s Mission Statement: It is our mission to worship God and help make God’s realm visible in the lives of people, individually and collectively, especially as it is set forth in the life, teachings, death, and living presence of Jesus Christ. We do this by: Inviting, Transforming, and Sending.

I asked some of those going on the trip to share why they felt called to be sent on this particular mission trip. Here are some of their responses in their own words:

Jeff Wartgow: James, the very brother of none other than Jesus, must have possessed the genetic propensity for a desire to do good works.  He certainly talked about its importance and is a good role model for us.  I believe Habitat for Humanity is a reflection of how we can participate in expanding on that model, the realm of God's presence.  I'm going to Sebring with our Outreach and Missions Habitat group to in some small way help rebuild shelter for a few of God's children so badly affected by hurricane Irma.        
 
Lynn Wartgow: There have been times in my early life where I experienced housing insecurity. I hope to help others avoid that painful experience. I love to build and I love to travel, so working with Habitat International (which includes domestic trips like this one) is a perfect fit for me. When you have the opportunity to work as a team doing any kind of mission work, you create "family." I'm looking forward to growing my family at Plymouth through this Habitat trip.
 
Nancy Sturtevant: We feel that Habitat is an important program, and this is a good way to take Plymouth into the community. It allows us to volunteer as a couple for an important cause while getting the opportunity to become closer to other Plymouth members.
 
Bob Sturtevant: Habitat is a great way to be a part of something bigger than ourselves. We can show people that we care through giving our time and energy to help them get back into a home after the devastating hurricane. We can use whatever house-building skills we may have to make a difference in the life of a family.
 
Belinda Strickland: One of my favorite quotes comes from St. Francis, "Preach the gospel at all times,  if necessary, use words." I believe the best way to show the love of Christ is through our actions of outreach. I have just retired, and this Habitat for Humanity trip is the first of my post-retirement efforts to increase my outreach efforts.
 
Vanessa Reed, long-time Habitat worker: Not only do l enjoys getting my hands-on building tools but using my hands to give back to my community or to anyone who needs a helping hand. This is my passion.  
 
A special thank you to Lynn Wartgow for sensing God’s calling to this work of leadership and investing the time in the trainings and certifications that will make this possible, to Habitat for Humanity of Fort Collins Faith Relations Manager Erika Nossokoff for inspiring our potential to see what God will do next with our team, and to the whole Plymouth congregation for your prayerful support of this mission opportunity for adults.
 
Throughout our days in Sebring, I will be sending a daily photo dispatch and written prayer on Social Media and in our email news about what is happening and where we are finding God and transformation in this work. I will also provide an “after” Reflection summery the first Tuesday in May about the mission trip.
 
As we say in Habitat, “Let’s see what God will do!”
 
In Hope and Habitat,
Jake

Dear Plymouth Family, 

I've been thinking a lot about the time we have in life and how we use it recently. Here is what I would like to share along with an invitation (so if you don't feel like reading more... no judgement and just skip to the end): 

The word “hobby” comes from an Anglo-Latin word “hobi”—a 1400s nickname for a small, active horse. As time progressed, the word evolved to refer to a hobbyhorse, which was a children’s toy rocking horse or wooden figure of a horse. The word hobby evolved from that wooden horse toy to today where it generally means an activity that doesn’t go anywhere or is only for amusement. [1]
 
Hobbies are different for different people. Some people rock climb, some go fly fishing, some do yoga, some hike, bike, swim, knit, gossip, or gossip while knitting or hiking (that is probably all of us)! But when people ask me what my “hobby” is, I have to reply as follows: “If by hobby you mean the activity I do with all my spare time and to which I dedicate vacation days and passion and for which I do not get paid, then my hobby is affordable housing advocacy.” Certainly makes me sound like I am riding a high horse, doesn’t it? Words have a way of coming full circle. 
 
While certainly not immobile or only for amusement sake, over the past couple of years my volunteerism, board involvement, and spare time have all been focused into a passion for this much overlooked area of social justice advocacy. It isn’t overlooked because people don’t care, but rather because it is immensely complicated! It is also particularly nuanced because it is not easily categorized as a liberal or conservative interest. While advocating for tax credits and private activity bonds sounds like a "conservative" endeavor, it becomes an immensely important and "progressive" task when talking about them as essential funding mechanisms for developing affordable housing. 
 
Some (including my husband) might call it my “hobby,” but I now see this side of my life as a part of my sense of call. Affordable housing in its many forms and programs is hard work to advocate for because it requires so much learning: vouchers, water tap fee structures, state and federal tax credits, financing, zoning, the difference between non-profit/ for-profit/ housing authority development, LCCC, LCC, partnerships, Fair Housing laws, proformas, gap financing, CDBG, HOME, board development, debt coverage ratios, fundraising… etc., etc. Sounds fun, huh? It actually is fascinating. Just like learning to fish or rock climb, it takes time, vocabulary, and dedication to acronyms. 
 
Late last month, I used some of my vacation time to go to Washington, D.C. with the National Commissioners’ Committee of NAHRO[2]and other commissioners from Northern Colorado's Housing Catalyst to advocate on Capitol Hill for affordable housing and public housing authorities, their funding, and policy needs. I am careful to keep my work hours, time, and continuing education separate from my affordable housing advocacy--and using personal vacation days to attend an advocacy conference and meetings with legislators on behalf of the "least of these," for those who need supportive services, for the homeless, for the housing insecure, for the dearth of affordably priced and attainable housing in our country is the best and highest use of vacation I can imagine. I do come home refreshed from this use of vacation days because I believe this advocacy matters and am refreshed by being around others who care about the issue.
 
What are passion areas or interests outside of what you do for a paycheck? Call them hobbies or advocacy or passions… whatever they are, I encourage you to nurture them. You never know when something might emerge that is fundamentally part of what you know you are meant to be doing. God can emerge in unexpected and important ways from these hobbies we find in life outside of work. One of my uncles found that his love of surfing in North Carolina translated into amazing work as a mentor for local youth. You never know what your hobbies might become when empowered with an open mind and heart. 
 
Additionally, I want to underscore how easy it is to advocate for issues you care about and how important speaking from a faith perspective can be when speaking about funding priorities. If as Progressive Christians we can learn to speak from our faith, we can have an incredible impact. I have found that my voice as a minister is valuable in the affordable housing conversation and welcomed in those dialogues. Where is God calling you to use your voice? 
 
Lastly, as part of this sense of call to affordable housing advocacy, I have been able to turn my 30th birthday into a gift for Habitat! On Wednesday, June 27th from 6 PM to 9 PM, you are welcome to come celebrate my 30th birthday!* Click here to view the Facebook event.

Comet Chicken in Old Town and Fort Collins Habitat for Humanity are throwing my birthday party and donating 20% of proceeds (all food and drink) to Habitat for Humanity of Fort Collins that evening. In lieu of birthday gifts, additional donations to Habitat are welcome but are not necessary. Both the 20% of revenue and all donations that night will me matched $1 for $1 by Thrivent Financial! This all started with a question: "I wonder if even my birthday can be a gift to affordable housing?" Then I just stood back and watched God and community do the rest. 
 
When you find that hobby or purpose that helps make your day complete, always remember to declare, as my friend Erika, the faith community coordinator for Habitat does, “Let’s see what God will do!” 
 
Associate Minister and Aspiring Houser, 
The Rev. Jake Miles Joseph (or just Jake)
 
[1]https://www.etymonline.com/word/hobby
[2] http://www.nahro.org/about-nahro ​