Ryan Weaver

storyteller//gospelplanter

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.: my Father…

May 25, 2016 by Ryan Weaver Leave a Comment

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This morning, at 12:54am, my father moved into eternity.

The life he lived, was lived unto God. The legacy he left, lives on in me (and many others who were influenced by his life).

After his diagnosis, Dad battled multiple myeloma with courage to his very last breath.

Because of this, Dad has chosen to gift his body to UT Southwestern Medical Center to serve the medical staff in further research. UT Southwestern Medical Center is the same hospital where his first myeloma tumor was removed in 2008. As I filled out his death certificate and willed body paperwork, I was reminded how important it is for us to memorialize our loved ones in a way that honors God. Dad will not have a tombstone on a plot of land because of his desire to give his body to scientific research. And there won’t be a place for family and friends to visit. So my family and I have decided to capitalize on this beautiful opportunity to honor Dad in a unique way, utilizing the same technology that he championed in the classroom as principal at Honey Grove High School and Whitewright High Scool.

With guidance from Chris McIntosh, we have designed a “digital memorial” to the life and legacy of Kevin Von Weaver.

Our desire is that those who have been impacted by Dad’s life will take some time to reflect upon this and write a story or a memory. The memorial portal for Dad also allows the upload of a photo or video. We invite you share your stories and memories of Kevin Von Weaver at:: kevinweaver.me

The family has one request if you decide to share… please remember that Kevin Von Weaver is not suffering anymore. He is not here. These stories, photos, and videos that we share in this digital memorial are intended to encourage and challenge the living. In a journal entry last November, Dad wrote that he would like those who remember him to be able to simply say: “see you soon.”

May it be so.

I am honored to live a portion of the legacy of Kevin Von Weaver. The love of Jesus the King was so evident in the life of my Dad. See you soon, Pops.

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Filed Under: Family, Storytelling

.: arrivals and departures…

May 16, 2016 by Ryan Weaver Leave a Comment

IMG_8904Remember that scene from Home Alone (the first one) where the whole family is rushing through the airport to make their flight on time? The family running in panic through the terminal… The bags and children being dragged along… The yelling and chaos… The John Williams double-time score speeding things along… Well, that’s what I imagined my first missed flight would be like.

It didn’t really go down like that for me this morning.

Succinctly, a collective series of unpropitious events brought me to gate D-5 as the 747 was taxiing away from the terminal jet bridge with my empty seat. The discompassionate attendant at the counter informed me that I was “five minutes too late” for my Baltimore to Dallas flight. Five minutes.

A few phone calls, a flight reservation change, and a second security screening later and I am now waiting within the bowels of Baltimore-Washington International Airport for another seat, on another flight. I am flying to Dallas in a couple of hours to spend some time with my dad.

On so many of my previous visits, dad and I made plans for backyard croquet campaigns, watching our Texas Rangers, fishing ponds around the Caddo National Grasslands, drinking Shiner, and smoking large cuts of beef. But this time will be a bit different. On this trip I will be joining many who are caring for my dad while his body is fighting sickness.

My dad has endured much over the past 8 years in his battle with cancer. Three stem cell transplants. Numerous surgeries. Countless invasive procedures and tests. I have written about my dad’s story over the past few years; a story that has had so many amazing moments. Dad’s medical care is carefully watched over by a team of doctors, nurses, and professionals who monitor and care for him. In March, the team decided they needed to run a few more tests to sort out what appeared to be a virus. There are many hundreds of acronyms connected to my dad’s medical care, but recently, we have been discussing GVHD and CMV more than any others. Weeks later and the medical team is beginning to see some signs of improvement in my dad’s body.

When I missed my flight earlier this morning, it wasn’t some insurmountable obstacle. And neither is this sickness

And neither is this cancerous sickness that has taken up residence in my dad.

Sometimes we are caught standing in a busy terminal as our seat leaves without us. Flights get missed. Sickness invades. Tension happens because tension is synonymous with life. Arrivals and departures are part of the rhythm God has entrusted to us.

But, I will be arriving soon.

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Filed Under: Family, Storytelling

.: immigration is theological…

April 3, 2016 by Ryan Weaver Leave a Comment

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Immigration is both global and local, and it must be engaged at the most fundamental human level:: in our own neighborhoods.

There is no country in the world untouched by the impact of immigration. According to Daniel Groody, roughly 214 million people throughout the world are now living away from their homeland.

This number translates to about 1 out of every 33 people who are impacted by immigration.

Jesus was born in Bethlehem, displaced with his family to Egypt at a young age, raised in the sheep-herding pastures of Nazareth, and then he lived a migrant life in adulthood.

If the local church desires to fulfill her mission to carry the Gospel to the nations, we must be willing to overcome cultural differences to befriend the migrant in our local context. Americans understand immigration as a social issue. And immigration as an economic issue. And immigration as a political issue. But immigration is more than that…

Immigration is a theological issue.

The time has arrived for Remedy Church to act on this conviction through church planting. Tomorrow we gather for worship in two locations in #DowntownSBY. Remedy HQ at 10am and Iglesia Remedy at 10:30am.

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Filed Under: Church Planting, Gospelplanting, Storytelling

.: Remedy is Multiplying…

February 25, 2016 by Ryan Weaver Leave a Comment

Iglesia Remedy Remedy Church is excited to announce that we are multiplying to plant Iglesia Remedy in Downtown Salisbury on April 3rd of 2016!

Iglesia Remedy is launching with a blended model as a multi-site church campus, and a new church plant. Iglesia Remedy is a multi-site work as an extension of the Go.Be.Do. mission of Remedy Church, retaining the DNA and oversight of the Remedy elders, and sharing resources as a network. Iglesia Remedy will also be a new church plant work, with the strategic vision to reach second-generation Latinos in our surrounding city and region.

Salisbury has never seen a census when our population has decreased.

And through the past two decades, we have become a strong regional center for migrants, who are moving to Salisbury to work and raise their families. We are planting Iglesia Remedy to help meet this need! In fact, we like to think of Iglesia Remedy as an intentionally “Spanglish Church Plant” that will serve Latinos and promote greater diversity in Downtown Salisbury.

We desire to see local expressions of the local church planted to meet the needs of our local context.

Our strategy for this church planting adventure is really two-fold:: we are planting Iglesia in the CC and re-planting Remedy in HQ. Our current 10am worship gathering is relocating into a music venue in DowntownSBY called HeadQuarters Live. We will essentially be re-planting ourselves in this mobile-site only two blocks away from our present location. The goal of this relocation is to shift our present congregational worship gatherings on Sunday mornings so we can create space for Iglesia Remedy to launch in the City Center building with an already established location.

It is no secret that we consider ourselves willing experimentalists at Remedy Church… and this is the next step in the adventure!

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Filed Under: #SBY, Church Planting, Gospelplanting, Mission, Storytelling Tagged With: #Delmarva, #DowntownSBY, #SBY, #weheartSBY, Church Planting, Gospelplanting, Mission, Narrative Discipleship, Storytelling

.: the Bridges to Engagement…

June 22, 2015 by Ryan Weaver Leave a Comment

I was recently invited to share my thoughts in an article regarding the tension-turned-violence last month in Baltimore, and the local impact upon the City of Salisbury. I am grateful for the opportunity afforded me in writing this companion article alongside Salisbury City Council President, Jacob Day. The writing prompt given was inspiring, and the parameters were just wide enough to allow me to roam a bit into a territory in which I am deeply passionate.

I believe that it is the responsibility of every citizen to carry the burden of humanity and awareness among our neighbors. This is especially important for those who are marginalized within the context of our cities by cultural presumption and language barriers in our local migrant communities.

If we desire to build bridges to engagement in our homes and communities and neighborhoods, we must be brave enough to seek out our neighbors whose stories are rarely engaged and whose voices deserve the dignity of being heard.

Here is the link to my article as published by the Salisbury Daily Times.

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Filed Under: #SBY, Gospelplanting, Storytelling Tagged With: #SBY, Baltimore, Gospelplanting, Storytelling

.: the weight of TWTGNJ…

May 24, 2015 by Ryan Weaver Leave a Comment

The paperback version of There was this Guy named Jesus is NOW AVAILABLE for purchase in the Amazon.com marketplace!

The physical weight of the words is what captivated me most when I first held the advance copy from my publisher for final approval. The weightless words (is there such a thing truly?) have been contained within my mind and my electronic writing device for months. This being my first published book, I tried not to imagine holding the words, but rather to simply focus on writing and editing and (finally) sharing them. 

When printed on paper and bound in a jacket, the inked words of TWTGNJ weigh in at 14.4 ounces.

It is quite exciting to actually hold the words… but also quite unnerving to fully realize that these words cannot be edited again. In the physical, analog, paperback form that now sits on my desk in front of me… the words have been shipped. The words are published. They have been written. And this adds more incalculable weight than the tangible ounces.

The pages are now available for you to write upon. I have already written, and now you can add your journey in the wide margins with a highlighter and pen.

The pages are now available for you to mark and fold and tear and spill your coffee upon.

The pages are now yours if you would like to consume them.

In regard to where you can buy the paperback, the publisher has made TWTGNJ available exclusively through the Amazon.com marketplace for the next few weeks. But eventually, we hope that you will begin finding the paperback for sale in other markets as well. 

Locally, we have decided to host a public book signing in Downtown Salisbury in conjunction with our monthly 1st Saturday downtown music festival in the month of June. We will be set up near the corner of North Division St. and East Main St during the music festival event from 5-6pm. And we will have paperback copies of TWTGNJ for sale at a discounted rate. I hope you are able to hold the weight of these words in your hands soon.

 

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Filed Under: #thisGuynamedJesus, Gospelplanting, Narrative Discipleship, Storytelling, Writing Tagged With: #thisGuynamedJesus, Gospelplanting, Narrative Discipleship, Storytelling

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