Today I found out that I got rejected from Stanford! This means that most likely, barring any new direction from God, Amy and I will be in sunny Southern California come this Fall! This has been a stressful yet rewarding journey. I will most likely end my work here at NYCR at the end of May so that I can prepare for business school in the Fall. I would like to do heavy reading and weightlifting in the summer. I would also like to take golf lessons so that I can schmooze with future business partners. I just have to mentally ignore the fact that, indeed, playing golf oozes of elitism.

This is Austin, the Director of the Bus Outreach at NYCR, with his wife and kids. He's a hillbilly born in Arkansas and raised in Indiana. Before he knew the Lord, he went through enormous suffering--his mom's murder, drugs and alcohol, and poverty to name a few. But God's been gracious in his life; he now has an amazing wife and 3 boys and serving the Lord faithfully at NYCR.

I have to tell the world about his amazingly strong wife, Darcy. She has been a supportive housewife, raising 3 kids while Austin has been running the show with the Relief Bus. Coming from Indiana, she's not used to the city life, let alone a tough neighborhood like Elizabeth, but she rarely complains about her living conditions. Last Friday night, she took her three kids to bus site at Newark to minister to the Newark kids. Her youngest son is about 6 weeks old. When I heard that, I told Austin that I can't see something like that happen at my church.

Amy and I have been meaning to get rid of our Acura, especially since we'd be moving and we definitely don't need the 2 cars. I have been meaning to gift it to Austin's family for some time (because I had a feeling he needed a second car) so I decided to tell him last week. When I emailed him, he told me that he and Darcy were talking about getting a second car that same day. God is good!

As a kind favor, Austin decided to help me fix something at my house (since I'm not very handy with housework). After the work, Amy and I took him to Kam Na Mool Kol to treat him to some authentic Korean food. He surprisingly liked kimchi and dolsot bibimbap. Amy and I also bought him some froyo to take home to Darcy and the kids. I thank God for people like Austin who have no pretense and genuinely love the Lord and live out the Gospel.

It's past the 11th hour. I knew I had to have received an invitation to interview at Stanford for me to have any chance at getting admitted. Sadly, I didn't receive it. Amy and I were confident that God was leading us there so it took us by surprise. Over the weekend, we dealt with it and gave it up to the Lord. It's hard when you've been praying about something so fervently and God decides it's not right for you. Regardless, knowing that God knows what's best for us made it easy for us to come to terms with this disappointment.

To be honest, there is a glimmer of hope. I could get waitlisted on the notification date (4/2). Then I would find out if I get accepted late May. However, this is not a common occurrence with Stanford since not many people who are accepted decline. In fact, you would only consider declining Stanford if you get into Harvard.

Going to UCLA is a difficult decision but maybe that's why God is leading us there. I have reservations because I'm not sure how good of a program it really is and Amy would have to quit work. If I had been accepted at Stanford or Berkeley, she could have continued working for her current employer.

Stay tuned and pray for us!