As May comes to a close, I can’t help but think about how I graduated a year ago. Did a full year actually pass that quick? In one years time so much has happened, ranging from engagement, to campus ministry, to living away from home, to getting my first car. Overall, my first year of “adulting” can be summarized into being a season of “getting to know,” and honestly I’ve grown so much in simply embracing those three words, getting… to…. know… what it means to be a college graduate, what it means to work a job, what it means to grow up. And with all that being said, as much as I’m “getting to know,” I’ve also been forced to confront the “I don’t knows.” So, as the school year has come to a close, I will end this volume of ministry updates by mentioning some challenging things that have occurred this month, that I’m in the process of moving through.
May 4th, 2025 - Stroke
Well, when it comes to “I don’t knows,” one of the biggest things that I didn’t know before this month was how to support and navigate family during times of stroke.
On Sunday May 4th at 1:42pm while in church, I received a text from my mom that said this…
Uncle Larry is having a massive stroke as we speak. The stroke is on the right side of his brain causing paralysis on the left side of his face. We need a miracle.
Immediately after reading the text, I called my mom and learned that my Uncle Larry, my grandmother’s younger brother, was being transported to Albany to remove a blood clot in his brain; and by God’s grace, the surgery was successful, yet my uncle is definitely not the same as he was in April.
Ever since the stroke in early May, my uncle has been unable to talk, he now has a trake in his neck because he couldn’t swallow food, and according to the doctors he may not be able to walk again; and having never gone through something like this before, you can only imagine how significantly this situation impacted my family (so much so that my grandmother, my uncle’s older sister, had a mini stroke in her eye due to stress from her brother’s situation). And with all that being said, my family continues to pray and hope as we grow in what it looks like to rally around my uncle and trust God in the process.
May 16th, 2025 - Saying Goodbyes
May tends to always be bitter sweet as graduating seniors get tied up with forced goodbyes. This year two of my Impact leaders and friends, David Akoh and Randy Chicoye are leaving UMass and graduating; and quite frankly as I reflect on the upcoming fall semester I’m challenged to admit… I don’t know what UMass will look like without them.
Likewise, stacked on top of those two individuals are four more people who are transitioning out of full-time staff with Impact. Christine Otaluka, Oluwadara Fasipe, Andrianna Watson, and Kesha Wilkinson all have left significant finger prints on Impact as an organization, and once again I’m challenged as I admit… I don’t know what things will look like in the future.
Randy Chicoye and David Akoh at UMass Impact’s Senior Send Off Event
May 18th, 2025 - Georgia
And last but certainly not least, as I am sitting here writing this ministry update, one of the biggest areas of learning this last month has been learning what it looks like to be the fiancé and future husband that God created me to be. Planning a wedding has been a full blown rollercoaster, with twists, turns, and at least 20 different loopty-loops. But slowly and surely we are nearing finish line, and although there’s still some things that we don’t know logistically, we’re trusting God, and I’m sure we’ll get to know sooner rather than later.
Even in as much, as I’m sitting here writing this newsletter, I can’t help but reflect on how I am currently in Savannah, GA with my fiancee and her family. For a week and a half, I’ve experienced nothing but love and embrace from my soon to be in-laws, and that’s an incredible gift, as I didn’t know what to expect coming with my fiancee for the first time. Yet, this seems to reveal again that God is able to show up in the midst of the unknowns.
One of our engagement photos
May 29th, 2025 - Getting To Know
So, with all of this being said, there are many unknowns in my life right now, be it familial, vocational, or relational, yet in the midst of the unknowns I’m constantly reminded of the words from my soon to be father-in-law, being “enjoy getting to know.” And like Solomon’s son in proverbs, my pursuit of “getting to know” has been better than silver and gold (Proverbs 2:1-6). And with that being said, I think that one of the wisest things to do in regards to the uncertain things in my life right now are to take it to the Lord in prayer, knowing that “the Spirit helps us in our weakness. For we do not know what to pray for as we ought, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words” (Romans 8:26).
Therefore, with that being said, in regards to prayer, I have added an optional forum for anyone else who may be in the middle of an “unknown” and would appreciate some prayer as they “get to know” how things resolve. So if that interests you, feel free to submit any prayers requests here!
My Prayer Requests
1. Pray for my Uncle Larry and my family as we navigate things after the stroke.
2. Pray for my summer, as I plan and prepare for the fall semester.
3. Pray for Imani and I as we continue planning for our wedding! Pray for financial favor, wisdom, and strength as we throw this thing together!