Rhodes to Anywhere – Here We Go!

03 Monday Nov 2014

Posted by kimrhodes in Family, life, mission

Tags

Atlanta, Grace Fellowship, Pawley’s Island

Dear Family and Friends,

A while back we decided to change the name of our family blog from “Fingerprints on My Walls” to “Rhodes to Anywhere.” We did this because we wanted to talk more about being a Family on Mission and what being a Family on Mission might look like—using both our family’s successes and failures to share our journey and encourage others. While Kim had used “Fingerprints on My Walls” as a site to communicate her personal place of expression for our family’s experiences (and she was amazing at articulating that), we wanted the site to evolve into a place that began to express the family journey for both of us and our kids. (Let’s just say that getting that dream to move from pen to paper is still a work in progress as you might be able to tell from the lack of posts.)

What we had no idea of though, at the time, is that this change of name would be accompanied by a change of physical location of where we lived. While we sensed that an ongoing shift or evolution for our family communication and mission was happening, our physical home in Pawley’s Island was to a large degree an assumed staple of life. For three years now Pawley’s Island has functioned as both a learning and sending center and (quite honestly) a heart home of family and friends. God has provided so many friendships, partnerships and so much opportunity that even though we knew we would travel to many places serving others, we believed Pawley’s Island would be the place that we would orbit from.

That is why in some sense we are surprised, excited and a bit sad to announce that we are MOVING TO ATLANTA!

Every day seems to unlock a variety of emotions in us. And often we still struggle to find the right words to adequately describe what is happening in our hearts. So, with that said we would like to do our best to let you in on a little bit of this journey. In doing so, we thought it might be easiest to talk about this journey in three ways. We want to share about where we are going, where we are leaving, and the journey between the two along the way.

Where are we going? We are Moving To Atlanta GA, Snellville to be exact:

Living as a Family on Mission for so much of our life has created a certain lens by which our family looks to the future. We ask first, “Who should we do life with?” and then “What Kingdom opportunity is a part of that?”

With that said, the city of Atlanta and the surrounding area, has long been a location for some of the people that are part of our missional family. Central to that group of people has been a church family named Grace Fellowship. Many of you, have heard of Grace Fellowship and some of the incredible things that God is doing here.

We have long been a fan of Grace–both investing in some of their incredible group of leaders from afar and doing our best to champion this vibrant community of faith in letting others know what God has been doing through them. Specifically, Grace Fellowship has been a place that is leading their community to reach and disciple the NEXT GENERATION, to create a CULTURE OF WORSHIP LEADERS, and to forge a local and global MISSION IN REACHING NEIGHBORHOODS and NATIONS, especially among Muslims.

In short, Grace Fellowship is a community that we have been impacted by and have had the honor to invest in for many years.

That is why our family is incredibly excited and honored to join this team as a continued evolution to this ongoing conversation. With a growing number of campuses that have discipled into the City, the Suburbs, Small Towns and College Campuses, we believe Grace is strategically positioned to continue to be both a formidable force for the Kingdom of God in the Atlanta area as well as a training center for leaders from all over the country.

Our role and responsibilities will revolve around these two things. As Pastor of Discipleship and Movement Initiatives both Kim and I look forward to investing in the Grace Community to help make more disciples that become missional leaders. But just as much, we will also be committed to helping lead teams from Grace to teach and train other leaders in other churches and organizations globally in what we all have learned and are discovering on the ground together.

Where we are Leaving? Leaving Pawley’s Island
Like we said earlier, the past few years in Pawley’s Island have provided us both an opportunity to partner with many US and global leaders as well as a local missional family to do life and faith with. The principle agent of this missional gathering of leaders was 3DM. But joining 3DM was not our first venture into this kind of life. As co-founders of Wayfarer, creating missional family has long been a central part of our DNA. It’s a way of life that we have learned from many and no doubt have learned a whole lot more about these past three years.

Three years ago, our family along with the Reichley family (long-time partners in missional family life) loaded up everything we owned and merged Wayfarer with 3DM. The Berg family followed shortly there after. During our time here, these two missional families (3DM and Wayfarer) have become one. Together we have had the privilege of not just seeing God do an amazing work of the Kingdom but also shared in the every day covenantal life and laughter of becoming one team. Wayfarer took on the 3DM family name and the Reichleys, Bergs and Rhodes became part of the larger 3DM team.

For our part, invited in as partners in this 3DM work, we first joined the team as Director of Learning Communities and then later took on the responsibility of becoming the US Team Leaders. So much of our everyday life has been devoted to creating content, training leaders, and transforming culture through joined mission—long time life callings that we have and will continue to enjoy.

In the process we were also introduced to a vibrant larger community of people that called Pawleys Island home. Pawley’s Island Community Church, Heritage Plantation (our neighborhood) and so many new friendships created a heart home for our family that we have treasured and will always hold close. So many great people and memories will hang in the forefronts of our heart and minds. That is why our departure makes us sad.

We will always be thankful for the family we found here:

The Journey Between the Two: From Pawley’s to Atlanta
The journey from Pawleys to Atlanta brings some shifts, both in our day to day life and our relationships. First, as you can imagine, Atlanta will become our new center of training. Joined with some incredible leaders already on the ground (and more to follow we are sure), Grace Fellowship will provide a local context of ministry that we look forward to serving at and engaging in. Getting the chance to focus our energy in a local church setting we believe will only help us be more effective in discipling leaders in other contexts from all walks of life.

Second, both us, the Reichleys and other team will be using this next season to invest further in Wayfarer. We hope to continue to establish the Wayfarer family and the ministries on-going investment in the next generation of students and families beyond it’s current reach.

Finally, we will also be taking this next season to partner with other leaders and initiatives in the things we have helped develop and learned as part of the 3DM team. New opportunities of partnership with people like Aaron Keyes and his team at 10,000 Fathers and Will Mancini and the team at Auxano among others, we believe will help us further invest in the broad kingdom of God initiatives that serve the church and it’s leaders in fantastic ways. We look forward to this next season of blossoming partnership!

Staying Connected
If you are reading this blog it is most likely because you are part of our biological or missional family, are a family friend, are part of the future work we are called to or because you have been a partner in the work that we have been a part of in the past. As with all transitions, the hardest part will be staying connected. And that is why we wanted to put this post out now. Know that we want to stay connected to you in this transition. We want to serve you, host you, walk beside you, partner with you and imagine the future together. We believe that the best days of life and ministry are in front of us. And we honestly know if that is the case that it is because your presence has been and we hope will be a signpost to the presence of God in our lives.

You can find us both here on our Family blog at rhodestoanywhere.com and by emailing us at these new email addresses:
Dave: dave@gfc.tv
Kim: kim@gfc.tv

Specific Prayer Requests for our Family:

That our house would sell quickly and we would be able to fully transition to Atlanta.
For our kids in this move and all that means for them leaving Pawleys Island and establishing in Atlanta.
That our family would continue to honor our past while engaging our future and we would do this well.

Once again, thank you so much for believing in us through the years, for championing the call of God in our lives, for calling us your friend and family and mostly for just being present with us. We can’t wait to discover the future with you!

In Christ,
Dave, Kim, Emma, Izzie and Frankie

Thoughts from the Battle

11 Tuesday Sep 2012

Posted by kimrhodes in Journey, life

≈ 6 Comments

It’s a Tuesday and for the first time in a LONG time I sit in a quiet house. Dave is off in Dallas, my children have been dropped off at 3 different schools and I sit here as my feet are still a little sandy from an early walk on the beach and some time to “be” and “abide”. I plan at some point to take a bike ride as well and continue to ponder.

It has been just about a year that we have lived here in our new little town. The place my heart now calls home. I remember as if it was yesterday, selling most of our furniture and cleaning our home in prepping it for the next family that would be living in the place we dwelled for the last 7 years. Feeling the grief of lost relationships and hard goodbyes of family. Wondering why on earth I decided to leave most of our stuff with Dave saying he wished he left behind even more of it. But stepping in confidence that we were listening to HIS voice and following as we heard him whisper. And I remember the point of looking in the car mirror. You know how you do that from time to time. But I remember that moment of taking the last glance at what was on the side reflection of the car and then choosing to look ahead into what I know would be. A moment of honoring and celebrating the past but at the same time continuing to walk and take faith ground in the future. It was not an either or for me but a both and…

It’s really hard for me to put into words what has happened over this past year for me personally. I’ve been encouraged and challenged, I’ve seen amazing provision that only he could give and I’ve been asked to sacrifice in ways that only he can sustain. And it has played out like an amazing harmony on this steady playing beautiful note that is called my life. Some days it can sound out of tune or a bit off beat but for the most part I continue to hear this beautiful song and melody that continues on in the sacrifice or the blessing that comes.

So having some time to reflect this morning and hearing his Voice call me back to blog and write today I felt compelled to share something with you that I have staked this past year on and have been processing a bit over the past 3 days. You see, when we made this last move I came to personal decision. I chose to embrace the voice of the Good Shepherd in that I recognized and confirmed that I knew what it was God was calling our family to in this next phase of our Family on Mission. And then I think I did the next thing that has allowed me to walk in the most freedom ever. I acknowledged and surrendered that IT WOULD COST ME EVERYTHING. So to state that even simpler… “I know God has called me, and I know that it will cost me everything.”

I’m smiling a bit right now because when I articulate that to people, especially the it will cost me everything…people get REALLY uncomfortable and look at times as if I’m crazy. And I get that. No one likes to hear that something should or will have to cost you something or everything for that matter. Our natural instinct is to avoid discomfort, loss, pain, sacrifice. We live in a world that tells us on a daily and hourly basis that we should be entitled to things. And people will literally tell me when I share that…But your kids?, But your family? But your time? But Dave traveling so much? And I hear their concern in what they are saying. But there are a few things I’ve learned in this process… In the It will cost you everything… there is the joy of the most amazing blessing that is balanced perfectly with the struggle of the hardest sacrifice that can only begin to be experienced in act of living into it. And at the end of the day there is one thing you need to understand about me and what I am doing and daring to take possession of…

I’m a Warrior. 🙂 I’ve spent the past year and continue to prepare and orient myself first as a warrior. And each day I wake up and recognize that I’m not just living another day of life but that I’m engaging in a battle. I recognize that our King is near and that He wants to do Good things and He wants to Win. So I take on each day putting on my armor, helping my family and children put on theirs and then head out to take possession of his promises and take ground he has given us to take. And he wants to Win and so do I. So everything I do is INTENTIONAL for battle. From our family rhythms, to what I invest time, to how I handle and see Dave being gone, to how I process things happening, to even understanding my capacity… everything is filtered in light of the battle.

The War we are in. And yes it’s a war. There is a battle raging for your time, ability, competence, courage. Many are battling wars of sickness, enemy attacks, bombs going off in our midst here and there. But the WAR….It’s already been WON. God is Good and He WINS. And here is the thing I love about our King and the Kingdom we fight for… It is HERE, as in now. It is NEAR, as he will continue to break into our lives and speak to us and guide us in the battles. It is COMING, one day all debts will be settled. And It’s DELAYED, as we wait we MUST fight and take possession of everything that has been promised to us.

And that is what I am trying to do each and every day. Some days are massive breakthroughs. Other days you can find me wounded on the field with my doubts. Some days I sit in the amazing blessing and wonder and awe of His provision and care and other days the sacrifices I know he requires leave me wondering if I might have anything left to give. But at the end of the day for me, there is nothing more that I want to do with my life than submit and bring honor to the King and go after all that He has for me and our family while we are here on this earth. Anything less than that would be a disappointment for me.

One last thing I wanted to leave with you as I was processing this, this week at the Sr Pastors retreat we had going on here in Pawleys. When waging in a war, It’s those that decide before hand that something won’t stop them will win. Those that find themselves dead already will always win. I refuse to enter battle holding on to things in my hand. I won’t be a casualty of this war because of that. Which is why I always recognize daily that it’s all His, and daily I give it to him. And if I one day I become a casualty in this war, it won’t be because I was not fighting or because I was holding anything back.

So maybe I was supposed to write this today to encourage you or maybe challenge you to ask yourself if there is anything you are holding on to that might be preventing you from having the breakthrough the King is wanting you to have? And what would it look like to take a step in trying to release that from your grasp and see what He can do with it?

And just as I am teaching my kids this week this verse from Joshua 1:9

He will be with you wherever you go.

What you’ve missed

14 Monday Jun 2010

Posted by kimrhodes in Adoption, Dave, Emma, Family, Frankie, Friends, haiti, Journey, life, mission, Uncategorized

≈ 2 Comments

Tags

Camp, Haiti, life, Ministry, Parenting

Oh my. Yes it has been that long. So instead of taking a month to blog about it, here is what you have missed…

We are full on in camp. Dave is with Student Life this week and Rush of Fools at Wake Forest University. I’m wishing I was there. Emma’s with him. I don’t think she slept last night dreaming of camp.
Wayfarer camp. Week one was a great success. It’s amazing what a group of people and can accomplish when you work together. Loved being a team. Met some great new people.
Talking about camp. I thought I’d figured out a way to never do housing or connect groups again. No such luck. Housing was fun and I’m busy into housing this week for our next Wayfarer Camp next week at Anderson University.
Loved knowing Dave and Reichley were able to catch up with 3DM. I was sad I missed them. We are always blown away after having any conversation with them.
Emma lost her front tooth last night. She looks hilarious! I’m happy but sad at the same time. They are growing up way to fast.
Talking about growing up and making some major decisions… we heard Sam Norris was baptised Sunday. So proud of that little man and his life. Brings much joy to my heart.
Trying to figure out a way that our family can start hosting people in our home. No clear pictures yet on how that will happen but it’s exciting. Just need a few more bedrooms.
Frankie is IN LOVE with his daddy. A wonderful but not so good thing when daddy is gone all summer. He had a 1 hr cry fest on his way home from camp missing him.
Talking about camp, Frankie seemed to enjoy his first experience. Not too sure of the loud music or why daddy was on a stage but hey… he’ll figure it out sooner than later.
Izzie won’t stop talking. She wakes up talking and goes to bed talking. She is having a hard time with her “r” sounds so she is constantly cracking me up.
Playing tennis in 95 degree heat is probably not a smart thing to do in the heat of the day. But I’m still so in love with the game. It keeps getting better.
Hot Hot Hot. If you live in the South then you know what I’m talking about.
Pool time is a regular for us. The kids would spend hours there if I would let them.
Excited about some new adventures with this company. Can’t wait to share more soon.
I know a celebrity! Kristen from Rage Against the Mini Van and adoptive mom and friend is heading to NY Tuesday to be on the View this Friday I think. She’ll be talking about blogging and adoption some of my favorite things.
Blogging, oh how I love you. Check out my new blog title in case you missed it. So long Chapter Two. Hoping for good things in store for Fingerprints on my Walls. There is a purpose for the title as the next few years unfold.
I’m missing Haiti. My heart thinks of it everyday.
I miss my Haiti connection friends in Houston, Tampa, Austin, Little Rock and PA and CA and MI. Why can’t we all live in the same town! I guess I’m really thankful for blogging and facebook.
Some people in the Wayfarer Family are expecting… Finally! Will be good to have more babies running around soon.
Tried the Spicy Chicken Sandwich and well, it was too spicy for me. Dave Loves it.
Thankful to DVR Toy Story for the kids. Finally some “boy” themes instead of princess around here.
Everyone keeps talking about their beach trips. Would give anything to take off my shoes and go for a stroll.
I’m making rice crispy treats for a shower tomorrow night… I’ve never made them before. Lame I know. I’m thinking I’ll just buy them!

Blessings Friends. I’m back at it once again.

33

12 Monday Jan 2009

Posted by kimrhodes in life

≈ 2 Comments

I was looking back to this time last year… Jamie was in Haiti and I was getting excited about my trip back there as well after so many years, our friends just got a contract on their house that they were in the waiting of selling, and we were in the starts of revival service at our church.

This year one of my friends was very quick to point out that.. “33, the age Christ was when he died”. Wow, thanks….. And we are once again in revival mode at our church and of course that always throws me under the truck and if it holds true like last year I’m bound to get my life really messed up again in a good way.

33… well would it be weird if I told you that before this weekend I was not sure what age I was turning? Was it 32. 33. 34? You see after 30 my mind just stops thinking about it.

BUT I can’t complain. This year is the year of simplicity for me. Hopefully that will also mean a simple day of a few birthday wishes and then we can all keep moving on. I’m thankful for 33 years on this earth. In some ways the journey has been so quick and in others so long. But this for sure… my birthday ALWAYS reminds me how time is in the play and that there are still so many things I have yet to accomplish or dream to do.

Thanks for all the birthday wishes so far. It’s not even 8am and my facebook wall is already filling up. It’s so great to be loved and thought of by so many people.

Girls Night/Shower Celebrating Kim W.

22 Monday Sep 2008

Posted by kimrhodes in Friends, life

≈ 1 Comment

My computer at home went crazy this weekend so I had no access to emails, blogs etc. Oh my… that was really not good! 🙂

Anyway, this past Thursday we had a “shower/girls night” with Kim Wilkerson. Kim will soon be moving to the upstate and will be officially a part of the Wayfarer Family. Blake and Kim are getting married this weekend and we can’t wait to go and celebrate with them. We had a great time having dinner and showering her with gifts. I am very thankful for each one of these ladies in this picture. They all play a role in making me a better person.!

Mom, no fair.

17 Wednesday Sep 2008

Posted by kimrhodes in Emma, haiti, Izzie, life

≈ 2 Comments

Last night I was tucking Emma into bed. Doing our normal snuggle time before the lights get turned out. All of a sudden she says to me… “Mom it’s no fair!” And I asked her “what is no fair?” She says “it’s no fair that I don’t live in Haiti.” And I asked her “why is it not fair that you don’t live in Haiti?” She said, “They have bunk beds there and a trampoline.”

That was sure out of the blue. Both our girls are very familiar right now about Frankie and where he lives etc.. And at the Maranatha Children’s Home where Frankie is they have rooms of bunk beds and outside in the courtyard is a trampoline for the kids to play on. She see’s those pictures and wants to live there.

Being the smart and wise mom that I am, ha! I fully took the opportunity to grab Dave’s laptop and spend time with Emma talking about the devastation that hit Haiti this past month. I took her to the Real Hope for Haiti site and walked her through the pictures of people in need of water, getting water, damages to the houses there etc. She just sat there and then said, “momma, that is so sad.”

I love these moments with our children. Moments to teach them that the life that we live here in good old Reidville, SC is not the life that other people have the opportunity of living. I hope and pray my children will always be aware of the blessings in life and also the realities of life. This was just one of those moments with Emma that I hope got her mind thinking a bit. After looking at pictures of Frankie before we shut down the computer, we then went on to pray for Haiti and the people there who are in much need of hope and help after the massive rain that has hit them.

I turned out the light and left the room. My heart heavy. There is not a day that goes by that I don’t think about life and the balance of it. To be honest… ever since coming back from Haiti in May I am in constant internal struggle of what is real, what is important, what matters, what am I doing with my life, etc. Each day I enjoy the presence of my girls and my family through laughs, play, squeals and I am well aware that there is a little boy in Haiti who does not even know us and he just finished a day as well that I was not a part of. And that is ok, that is this process but it’s so weird to me. I also think about the ministry struggles of ministering to a generation here in the USA and then I try and grasp the ministry experience that people like Lori and Licia are doing in Haiti. I often wonder if I am doing enough with my days, is there something more I can do to help out in this world etc. I’ll be honest… I’m at a moment/season in my journey where life is taking me at all angles and at the end of the day I really can’t process all that my heart and mind are experiencing…..

Am I the only one who daily struggles with stuff like this? I have to think that I am not alone. The hope is that I know that I am not alone.

To those who lent me a hand this week.

12 Friday Sep 2008

Posted by kimrhodes in life

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So Dave asked me yesterday if I was out of my pit of despair. I laughed and told him I was thinking about getting out of it. I must say it’s very freeing to know that I’m not the only one that has these kind of days. I’ve received so much feedback and encouragement from my last post. If I have not gotten back to you I will. I’m just reminded that so many people deal with the struggle of wanting to make the most of their life and not wanting to waste it on things that don’t matter….. and regardless of what you are doing in your journey it’s still seems to be an underlining tone.

So as I am getting out of the pit I wanted to thank all of those who lent me a hand this week!

I LOVE this man

17 Sunday Aug 2008

Posted by kimrhodes in life

≈ 2 Comments

Dave and I had a wonderful time together up in the TN mountains. We stayed in a cabin just outside of Gatlinburg with friends. It was peaceful, restful, relaxing. We laughed, ate, drank, slept, snuggled, and ate some more. I love doing life with this man. I LOVE this man.

The Latest.

14 Thursday Aug 2008

Posted by kimrhodes in life

≈ 1 Comment

There is so much going on to the point of not even having time to blog right now. Let’s see… what is the latest you ask?

Emma has meet the teacher tonight. This time next week she will be on her way to completing her first week of kindergarten. It’s hard to release your children to the public school system. But we’ve heard nothing but amazing things about Reidville Elementary School so we’ll send her and hope it’s a great experience for her.

Izzie is growing and growing. She’s taking on a whole new vocabulary as well. It’s so much better to be able to communicate with her through words and not grunts and screams.

Dave is home from camp and we made it through our transition days. They are the hardest for us. We are fine when he’s gone weeks at a time but the hard part for us is adjusting when he’s finally off the road. So we had a few fun days that reminded us again why we love each other and on we go. We are actually heading out of town tomorrow for a much needed weekend get away without the kids. We are heading to TN with some friends and are so looking forward to some quality time together.

Me, I’m a to bed by 11 person and the Olympics has done me in. 1:00 are the new numbers I am seeing on my clock when I finally drag myself to bed. I’ve loved watching the gymnastics and volleyball and of course can’t miss a swim by Michael Phelps. It’s just been great TV watching.

And our adoption journey. We just finished our home study and should have that in hand by the first of next week and we are also getting our Physch evaluation done next week as well. Then we are sending papers off to get state certified etc. We should have our dossier ready to send to Haiti I am hoping in the next 6 weeks. I’ve been working on it as much as I could this summer and it’s fun to see things come in and get checked off the list.

Talking about Haiti…. Exciting news as well. We have a potential referral for a little boy who is currently 16 months old. We’ve know about him for about a month now and are hoping to make things official in the next few weeks. I can’t wait to share more but I’ll just have to leave it at that. It’s been an amazing journey thus far and we love each step that this process brings. This little boy has already made his way into all of our hearts and we are so excited about the journey to bring him to be part of our family. The girls are very excited as well. It’s a long journey. We have prepared ourselves for that. Even looking at his picture now, we know that he will be a different child when he comes home. It’s sad that the process is so long but we are so excited to be on the road and moving.

Seems like a Friday since we are heading out tomorrow. So have a great weekend everyone and I’ll post more when there is more to share!

Peace in the midst of questions.

23 Wednesday Jul 2008

Posted by kimrhodes in life

≈ 2 Comments

This has been such a blah week this week. Can’t put my finger on it but to say I feel and am totally un expressional would be an understatement. I’m tired of the summer travel schedule with Dave, nights alone at home are getting old. Don’t feel like starting a project that normally keeps me busy. The kids are eager to get out and about but the 100 degree heat has us not doing anything fun. Blah. That is all it has been. And in that blah is so much “un peace” about everything. Is “un peace” even a word to be typed?

So I’m cleaning up our back patio this afternoon and in floats this gigantic, huge, beautiful butterfly I have ever seen. I’ve maybe seen one that large and beautiful at a butterfly museum but never have seen anything like it anywhere around here. And such peace came over me as I looked at it’s beauty. I sat there a few minutes wondering what it all means… searching for a lot of meaning to things as well these days. And tried to get my camera to get a picture to show all of you but as soon as I returned of course it flew off.

But looking at this butterfly brought so much peace to me in the moment. Peace in the midst of so many uncertain questions.