I am feeling anxious this month, and I think I know the reasons why.  High on the list is that my wife and I are about to drive our first-born child all the way across the country to college.  Not only is he is our first child, a boy, but he has a disability.  Even though he's fully capable of taking care of himself, and this is definitely an exciting milestone, I will naturally still worry about him.  And let me tell you, paying for college is something I will never get used to!

Another worry on my mind concerns one of my mentors Joni Erikson-Tada.  Joni, who has done more for the physically disabled community than anyone else I can think of, is battling breast cancer.  If you aren't aware who Joni is, she has an eternally optimistic spirit, even though she's been in a wheelchair with quadriplegia since a diving accident that occurred when she was 17.  (You can peruse Joni's blog at http://www.joniandfriends.org/jonis-corner/

Part of my anxiety also stems from seeing some of my friends, with whom I worked side-by-side at a previous ministry, let go due to a lack of funds. Dozens of ministries, many of them doing incredibly important things for disadvantaged people, are struggling financially.  It's difficult watching them being forced to scale back.  Fortunately for us at Need Project, we have never had enough funds to be anything but scaled back, so we don’t really have to worry about a down economy.

Speaking of which, some of my apprehension might be because of the economy.  It can be frustrating to watch governments on the local, state, and federal levels struggle with a perceived lack of funds; the first programs they cut are the very services needed by individuals and families with disabilities.  Do you think government officials would take a cut in pay to help a family in need?  Call me cynical, but I doubt it.