Family

Wren arrives!

/ kevinpounds / 2 Comments

Christin and I are so excited that our baby daughter Wren is finally here!  Wren Constance Pounds was born Tuesday morning, May 10, 6:38 a.m., weighing in at 7 lb 14 oz.  Below are a few pics with Wren at the hospital and one with Jude swinging his new baby sister.  You can find more pics on my facebook page.

Christin was amazing through the whole pregnancy and especially the delivery.  She went 100% natural- no drugs and no pain killers.  I’m impressed with my wife for many reasons, and this only cemented her status as one of my heroes.

A few people have asked about the name.  Well we chose Wren because it’s one syllable, it’s unique, and we like the sound of it.  We chose Constance in honor of Christin’s paternal grandmother who we fondly call “Nanny.”  She is such a Godly lady and much of Christin’s spiritual heritage is a result of her Nanny and Paw Paw’s commitment to Jesus.

So I’m taking a few days off to hang with the family.  We’re so blessed to have Christin’s mom, Cheryl, in town.  Having her is like bringing in the heavy artillery.  It’s freeing us up to enjoy being parents together for a few days before the rush of life and ministry comes again.  As always, thank you for your continued prayers as we parent our children and as Jude adjusts to a new baby taking over some of his space. 

 

 

Another one down…

/ kevinpounds / 5 Comments

For the second time in two months I’ve heard news of a pastor/church planter having an extramarital affair.  In both cases the guys were well respected by their peers, seemed to have an excellent leadership team around them, were leading fast growing churches that were engaging large numbers of nonChristians, and cheated on their wives with their administrative assistants.  In some ways this makes me sad, in some ways mad, and in some ways fearful.

Sad because of the hurt and havoc that has been caused primarily in their families but also in their churches and communities.  I cannot imagine the pain they are experiencing, but I do know that I never want to be the source of such pain.  When I was a single youth minister in my twenties, my old friend Troy Lindsey would always tell me, “never sacrifice your marriage or family on the altar of ministry.”  Every week God reminds me of those words of wisdom.  The most important ministry I will ever have is to Christin, Jude, and our soon to be born daughter.

Mad because of the black eye their actions have given to their churches and more importantly to the cause of Jesus.  I realize that the message of Jesus will survive the mistakes of messed up messengers, but we all know that our character and actions give credibility to the message we share.  When we say “yes” to serving as pastors, teachers, or any type of spiritual leadership, we should understand the weight of the responsibility we are taking on.  James 3:1 says bluntly that “we who teach will be judged more strictly.”

Fearful because I know that I’m no better than either of these guys.  I know that I am just as temptable and to think otherwise is just stupid and prideful (see 1 Corinthians 10:12-13).  I need grace.  I need accountability.  I need your prayers.

I’m thankful for the spiritual speed bumps God has given me in my life, if I ever try to go down this path.  God has given me an accountability partner I talk to every other week.  God has also provided me with a group of ministry leaders to meet with every Wednesday morning.  At the same time, I remember Erwin McManus once saying, “If you’re not going to be honest and faithful to your wife who you’ve made a life-long covenant to, then you’re probably not going to be honest to the guys who are supposed to be holding you accountable.”   Fortunately, I have a wife who can eerily see right through me.

SO here are some ways you can pray for me…

*Pray that I will never substitute ministry success for finding my satisfaction in Jesus.

*Pray that I will never sacrifice my family on the altar of ministry.

*Pray that Christin and I will continue to grow closer to Jesus and each other every day.

*Pray that I will be honest and accountable to the men I meet with regularly.

*Pray that God will guard my eyes, mind, speech, and feet as I seek to follow Him.

*Pray that if I ever get another administrative assistant that it will either be a guy or a lady old enough to be my mom.

 

New Home, God’s Grace, God’s Glory

/ kevinpounds / 6 Comments

Thank you for your prayers.  As usual, God came through, and yesterday morning I signed a lease for a townhouse/duplex at 406 North Ave. in Burlington.  We are excited and maybe a little anxious as Christin and Jude fly in on Friday, we move in on Saturday, and continue the adventure God has called us to.  This morning God reminded me just how strategic this place is in His kingdom purposes…

I love nature.  From just about anywhere in Burlington you can catch a glimpse of Lake Champlain, New York’s Adirondack mountains across the lake, or the Green Mountains east of the city.  In fact, I can get a glimpse of each from our new home.  Even just a few weeks ago, thousands of leaf peepers flocked to Vermont to see the fall colors across the rolling hills and marvel at the beauty.  It’s not difficult to comprehend from here how God’s eternal power and divine nature are evident in His creation (Romans 1:20).

Nestled in the midst of this natural beauty, just a few blocks from our new home, is Burlington’s Old North End.  Many have described it as Vermont’s most impoverished neighborhood, and it’s home to thousands of international refugees through the Vermont Refugee Resettlement Program.  Honestly, this community does not look like it belongs in Vermont.  Yet God has reminded me that the residents of this community (along with all of humanity) are uniquely designed to worship Him and reflect His glory in a way that far exceeds what the surrounding natural beauty can do.  As God’s image bearers nothing in all of creation has the potential to reflect His glory as they do.

This morning as I read the beginning of Romans 1, I was moved by Paul’s statement in verse 5- “through  whom (Jesus) we have received grace and apostleship to bring about the obedience of faith for the sake of his name among all the nations.”  We have received grace and have been sent out so that the glory of His name will be known in all the ethnic families of this world.  This is God’s purpose for each of us whether a CEO, custodian, entrepreneur, single mom, salesman, pastor, mechanic, or recovering drug addict.

I love how David Platt puts it in his book Radical:

God gave his people his image for a reason- so that they might multiply his image throughout the world.  He created human beings, not only to enjoy his grace in a relationship with him, but also to extend his glory to the ends of the earth.

Simple enough.  Enjoy his grace and extend his glory.

I am so blessed to live in a place where I can enjoy God’s grace and share the gospel with the nations- Somalia, Rwanda, and Vietnam to name a few- just blocks away.

Here are some specific ways you can pray for us:

*Pray for the normal adjustments that come with our family moving to a new community- new friendships, learning our way around, meeting our neighbors, and making 406 North Ave. our home.

*Pray that we will quickly build relationships with families in the Old North End and the groups that serve them.

*Pray for discernment concerning which existing organizations we should partner with who already serve refugees.

*Pray for the Kids Alive ministry, their leader Doug Hoffman, and team of volunteers who minister to almost 70 kids each Saturday morning in the Old North End.

*Pray that God will continue to provide us with needed financial support from churches and individuals.  We have taken a step of faith in moving without our support fully raised.  For more details go to our partner page.

*Pray that God will use this move to strengthen our marriage and family- especially with baby #2 on the way in May.

Hunting for a home!

/ kevinpounds / 3 Comments

Would you mind taking a couple of minutes today and pray for us as we seek God’s direction on the right home? Between yesterday and today I will have looked at around ten rental possibilities as places for our family to reside for the next couple of years- until we can sell our home in NJ and purchase a home in Burlington.  I’m also uploading videos for Christin to view to help insure  I don’t make any major man mistakes in the home selection.  Please ask God to be our wisdom -that we would select the right place to continue raising our children, reach out to our neighbors, and begin a home church.

Look for a more complete post later this week. Thank you for your prayers!

TRANSITIONING

/ kevinpounds / 5 Comments

Calling our lives “in transition” seems like such an understatement right now as we’ve said farewell to New Jersey, are presently enjoying time with family in Georgia, and look forward to moving to Vermont in November. Just four weeks ago we said goodbye to the Point Church and New Brunswick, and it has taken me a few weeks to regain some mental-spiritual-emotional equilibrium.  Leaving the place and people you love is never an easy thing.

At the same time we’re very thankful for this two month break and loving this time with our families in GA .  We’re so thankful for our families, the sacrifices they’ve made for us, and their continued support as we prepare to move even further away.  This makes it especially gratifying to see Jude’s grandparents enjoying this extended time with him.  Jude is definitely enjoying the extra attention.

Here are a few more God stories from our break:

  • Our BIGGEST God story is Christin being pregnant with our second child.  She’s approaching the two month mark with the baby due in early May.  We apparently like packing these major life transitions together =)
  • Last week our renter moved into our house in New Brunswick.  We’re so blessed to have a tenant and Section 8 (federal housing) administrator who love Jesus.  We’re thankful our house can now become a home for Mary and her three daughters.
  • I was invited to speak on Sept. 19 at Wildwood Baptist Church, the church in GA where I served as College & Singles Pastor that sent us out to start a church in NJ over six years ago.   We could not do what we do without churches like Wildwood supporting us.
  • For 16 days in October I’ll be traveling with a team to Southeast Asia where I’ll get to spend several days with my youngest brother and his wife.  (Due to security issues please do not post any comments to this blog with either his name or the country where he resides.)

As we continue preparing to move to Burlington, VT, our most obvious need and prayer request is financial support.  We now have $2708/month raised, leaving $1875/month to meet our monthly salary needs.  Please pray with us for God to bring financial partners- both churches and individuals- to support our remaining monthly salary needs and the additional start up costs for this new church.  You can to the partner page of our website for details on how you and others can support us.

Please also pray…

  • Pray that we’ll continue making the most of our time with family in Georgia before moving to VT.
  • Pray for God to use this break to renew and recharge us as we prepare to dive into ministry in VT.
  • Pray that God will lead us to the right rental house or apartment in Burlington- that this place will quickly become a home to us and a place where we can begin building relationships immediately.
  • Pray for the others on our team who are preparing to move to Burlington: Matt, Tirzah, & Benjamin Mashue, Lance Farrell, and Miles Ean. Pray especially that God will provide jobs and point them to the right home or apartment.

Thank you for remembering us!