Spotlight
“Dad, How Will I Know When I’m a Man?”
By Bill Francavilla
While most Christians love to read and quote the book of Proverbs for snappy sayings, we often forget the context in which it was written – a father to his son. It was Solomon’s way of teaching his son Rehoboam the value wisdom can provide in his life.
Unfortunately for them both, Solomon’s words fell on deaf ears, and Rehoboam’s actions caused an irreparable split in the kingdom of Israel that will not be fixed until the day the Lord returns.
Far be it from me to compare myself to the wisest man who ever lived, but I have always seen my children with all the potential to change the world. It’s been my prayer that I can guide them in the right direction.
My father is a great man. When I was growing up, he always made himself available to me. He led me through the journey into manhood with experiences for which I could never thank him enough. So when my oldest son, Liam, was about to turn twelve, he and I had a deep discussion on what it meant for him to be a man. It means new challenges, new experiences, and new responsibilities.
We talked a lot about the Jewish tradition of the Bar Mitzvah, where the entire community recognizes a thirteen-year-old boy’s journey into adulthood. Our church has enjoyed praying over our young people as they turn thirteen, something I intended for Liam, but I could tell he wanted more.
“But Dad,” he said, “how will I know that I’m a man?”
[Liam] would not be satisfied with just a simple prayer, so we came up with something very different. We put together a list of 25 measurable goals for Liam to accomplish before he
turned thirteen. And I have to say, completing this task in 365 days was not as easy as we thought it would be.
The first goal on our list was obvious: Read the entire New Testament and the Psalms. But then Liam expressed a desire to do something physical, so we added Run 100 miles or more (not all at once).
Then we started getting creative: Go camping without technology and Play on the worship team on a Sunday morning. He also wanted to serve others, so we added Volunteer at a food pantry and Teach at youth group.
Of course, Liam wanted to do some fun things, so we included Go indoor skydiving, Hike a trail with the family, and although I didn’t know how we were going to do it,
See three new states.
We felt it would be important to do something – not just nice – but GRAND for each one in our family, so we wrote down for him to do a grand gesture for every family member. Finally, and perhaps most important, we added Ask God to do a miracle through me. And we had finished our list.
On the day he turned twelve, August 11, 2021, we were up at the crack of dawn to run his first mile. When we got home, we did our first devotion on Matthew 1-2 and Psalm 1.
We felt good about the year we were going to have together and decided to knock out a few easy items. Within the first month I taught my son how to make my Italian great-grandmother’s recipe for tomato sauce, and we opened a checking account.
When we saw Plant a tree on the list, we were inspired to ask my wife what kind of tree she would like for the yard. We wound up planting five. I was so thrilled that we were accomplishing these goals above and beyond.
Before the end of September, I was able to take my son to his first concert in Washington DC, and by November, with a lot of practice, he was ready to play guitar with our worship team on a Sunday morning. It was not difficult to find a food pantry in need of volunteers around Christmas, and when we got home, we got to work writing his first song. He had written down that he wanted to learn the dulcimer too, so I told him if he wrote a song on the dulcimer, I would let him cross off both from his list.
We wound up writing a song about the sin of singing Christmas songs when it isn’t Christmas, which made our whole family laugh. And everyone was blessed that the song ended by saying we should celebrate Jesus all year.
All this time, I was preparing for seeing three new states. We decided that it could be possible to drive from Virginia to our youth conference in Ohio, then to St. Louis, Missouri, and finally, to Tulsa, Oklahoma, while seeing Kansas and Arkansas.
Then so unexpectedly, gas prices skyrocketed. I wasn’t sure just how much this was going to change our plans, so we had a serious talk about what this trip might look like on a stricter budget, assuming we could even go at all.
“That’s okay, Dad,” he said. “Maybe it’s time we pray for our miracle.”
I envied my son’s faith as he prayed. That night a $500 donation came through from a perfect stranger who had heard about what we were doing and wanted to make this trip happen. Later that week more money came in from the church, and from then on, gas was nothing we had to worry about.
Our ten-day trip was fantastic, just the two of us on the open road talking about life and what it means to be a man. When I first spotted the St. Louis Arch while crossing over the Mississippi River, I marveled at the number of things on this list that I myself had never done either. I realized there was nobody I would rather share these experiences with than my son.
We saw oddities across the country, but more important, I wanted Liam to learn about leadership and making tough decisions, so we visited the graves of five American presidents, including William Henry Harrison, Benjamin Harrison, Abraham Lincoln, Andrew Jackson, and Andrew Johnson. We learned both good and bad aspects about our nation’s history. The trip was unforgettable.
When we returned home, we realized that although we still had five months left, time was running out. Liam faced one of his fears and went indoor skydiving, and he did his grand gestures for each family member as his year closed.
Liam turned thirteen a few weeks ago and kindly informed us that he wants to go by William now. He plays on our worship team with no fear. He enjoys his running still. He loves the Word. And we are closer than ever. I will never forget my son’s twelfth year on this earth as we prepared him to be a man.
The best part for me is that my daughter Rita turned twelve shortly after William turned thirteen, and she has started her list with her mother. And as soon as my youngest son, Gino, turns twelve, I get to start all over again. He is ten now, but we’re already planning our special year.
I’m not sure if Solomon and Rehoboam were able to walk alongside one another and truly bond. I wish there were more evidence and insight into their relationship. And while I’m positive Solomon was a lot busier than I am, I can’t help but wonder how investing in his son on a more personal level could have changed Israel’s history for the better.
After all, we are raising world changers.
About the Author
Bill Francavilla (shown here with son Liam at the Gateway Arch in St. Louis) and his wife, Jessica, pastor Living Hope Church in Williamsburg, Virginia. Bill has served in many different ministries from teaching middle school Bible classes to serving as a chaplain at a retirement community. He holds a master’s degree in theological studies from Liberty University and has been active in missions to Mexico, Dominican Republic, and Cuba. Bill and Jessica have four children: Alex, Liam, Rita Grace, and Gino.
I am Shane Blackledge, and my wife Amber and I are the founding pastors of Cultivate Church in St. Louis, Missouri. My story is one of transformation and God’s grace, showing how He can use anyone to build His kingdom.
I was born in Colorado at the Air Force Academy Hospital. My father served in the Vietnam War, and while stationed in Taiwan, he met my mother and they got married. When I was six, my parents separated, and my mother moved back to Taiwan, leaving me devastated. As a kid, I faced racism and extreme poverty. I battled depression, anxiety, and thoughts of suicide. I started smoking and drinking at eight years old, joined a gang at age thirteen, and was using meth daily by the time I was fourteen.
At age seventeen, I was arrested and sentenced to thirty years in prison for selling drugs. I found myself in my jail cell wanting to end it all. On my night stand I found a Gideon Bible, and I opened it right to John 3:16. As I sat there reading, I realized I was a sinner, but that God created me and I had a purpose to live. I repented and asked Jesus to forgive me. I felt the Father’s love and the presence of the Holy Spirit in an indescribable way.
After my release, I struggled transitioning back into society (finding a job, paying rent, and finding a church that would accept me). I was discouraged and soon relapsed on meth. During the years of my addiction, I was sent to five prisons and was incarcerated for over six years. In 2006, after nearly dying from an overdose, I woke up from a coma and realized God had saved me from death. That day I fully surrendered to Christ, and that’s when my real transformation began.
In 2006, after nearly dying from an overdose, I woke up from a coma and realized God had saved me from death
God restored what addiction had taken from me. I have now been clean from meth for seventeen years. In 2013, I married Amber. We started attending Waverly Life Church, served as youth leaders, and eventually started a Celebrate Recovery program. In 2022, God called us to plant Cultivate Church in St. Louis, Missouri. We resigned from all ministries and jobs and sold our home. In April of 2023, we started house church gatherings which quickly grew in Christ and numbers. We launched our first Sunday gathering in October of 2023.
Today, we are a church without walls, modeled after the early church in Acts. We have regular church gatherings geared towards discipleship, street ministry, addiction recovery, Christian hip-hop events, prison ministry, and nursing home visits. We work with local treatment centers and recovery programs to support and mentor people. We have partnered with churches and ministries to organize monthly inner-city mission trips.
One way God has used my story is with my podcast: “Kingdom Minded,” which streams into 1000 prisons across the country on over one million inmate tablets. In partnership with the Edovo learning app, the podcast focuses on sharing testimonies and teaching Biblical principles.
Looking back, I am amazed at what God has done. In just a year our church has grown from a small group in our living room to a thriving community, passionate about sharing God’s love. Amber and I are excited about the future. We believe God is just getting started with Cultivate Church.
He can use anyone, even a former addict and convict like me, to build His kingdom.
My story and the story of Cultivate Church are really about God’s faithfulness. He can use anyone, even a former addict and convict like me, to build His kingdom. All the glory goes to Him.
To donate toward our prison ministry and homeless outreach, visit wearecultivatechurch.org or check out our Blessing Bags Gift Registry at HERE.
About the Author
Shane R. Blackledge
Shane R. Blackledge is the co-founder and senior pastor of Cultivate Church. He and his wife Amber started Cultivate Church in their home in 2023. Today, the church is known for spreading the Gospel and being the church without walls. Shane’s podcast, “Kingdom Minded,” is available in over 1000 prisons on inmate tablets on the Edovo Learning App. Through testimonies and Bible principles, the podcast aims to teach, inspire, and equip Christians to live their best life now. Shane is an author and speaker, and his books From Prison to Purpose and Overcoming Codependency are available on Amazon. Shane and Amber have four children and live in St. Louis, Missouri.
When my husband and I married in July of 2019, it was with a firm understanding of our shared life goals and dreams, and kids were a big part of our plans. In our minds we would have our biological children first, and then when we were ready, we would pursue adoption. But the Lord always has a better plan than ours, doesn’t He?
After we had been married for two years and still had not conceived, we discovered that I was having fertility issues. I saw multiple doctors and was prescribed several medications to help with conception. During this time, I remember telling my husband it felt like we were living in “limbo,” not getting anywhere closer to having a family. Because of our powerful desire to start a family soon, we decided to divert from our original plan and become foster parents.
“Had I conceived when I wanted to…we never would have met Noah and Leif, our precious sons.”
After an entire summer of preparation, our license went active, and we took a couple of short-term placements. These were our first experiences as parents and had us seriously questioning our parenting abilities! But in December of 2022 we got a call about a four-month-old boy named Noah. Noah was in the ICU with significant health concerns. We weren’t given any idea how long he would stay with us or what his life would look like, and we were scared to commit to taking on a placement that held so much uncertainty. After visiting sweet Noah in the hospital and spending considerable time talking and praying about it, we decided we wanted to take this baby and give him a loving, nurturing home — something he had not yet experienced in his short life.
Noah joined our family on December 16, 2022, and immediately, I became remarkably busy caring for him and taking him to all his appointments. We were so busy, in fact, that thinking of my own fertility was put on the back burner; it just wasn’t my priority anymore.
On January 18, 2023, after a routine follow-up for Noah at Blank Children’s Hospital, we got a call from a surgeon informing us that Noah’s brain was bleeding and we needed to rush him to the hospital for emergency brain surgery. The surgery was successful, and I stayed with Noah during his recovery in Iowa City, two hours from our hometown. We were finally discharged and returned home on January 22. During my time in the hospital with Noah, I did not have any of my fertility medications or supplements (but like I said, I wasn’t focusing on that so much anymore).
So many children have endured brokenness and trauma, and they need to be loved. If we as the church do not show them the Father’s love, who will?
Little did I know that the Lord had everything perfectly planned. On February 2, just eleven days after our hospital discharge, I found out I was pregnant. We were overjoyed!
But God wasn’t done surprising us. A few short weeks after discovering my pregnancy, we received word that Noah’s biological mother was pregnant as well, due to have a baby boy in a few months. We knew immediately that if this baby also needed to be placed in foster care, we wanted him to be with his brother, so we told our social worker we would care for him. Noah’s baby brother Leif was born in May, and just five months later, our son, Sven, was born in October. Overall, when we brought Sven home from the hospital, we had Noah (fifteen months), Leif (five months), and Sven (newborn).
In December of 2023, we were able to officially adopt Noah and Leif, ending their days of foster care and guaranteeing them a safe, loving family for a lifetime. It has been a crazy and chaotic year, but I would not trade it for the world. At the time of this writing, their ages are twenty months, ten months, and six months. Our days are filled with exploring new things and reaching new milestones, and our home is brimming with baby gear (think three car seats, three highchairs, a triple stroller…you get the picture).
I honestly believe God planned our entire story. I couldn’t see it at the time of infertility, but had I conceived when I wanted to, we never would have entered foster care, and we never would have met Noah and Leif, our precious sons. Going through this experience has given me so much assurance that God’s timing is always perfect.
If you are in the midst of infertility, I know it can be hard to hear “God has a plan!” But as someone who has seen His perfect plan come to fruition, I encourage you to go to God in prayer. Tell Him your desires, your frustrations, and your hurts, but also consider asking God what He wants from you in this season of waiting. Maybe He has called you to foster, adopt, or minister to the next generation through your church ministries.
Perhaps you haven’t experienced the struggle of infertility, but you do have a heart for the next generation. How might God use you to help disciple and love on kids around you? So many children have endured brokenness and trauma, and they need to be loved. If we as the church do not show them the Father’s love, who will?
About the Author
Natalie Larson
Natalie Larson has been a registered nurse at MercyOne in Des Moines, Iowa, for eleven years, working in both pediatrics and surgery. Her primary role now, however, is being mama to her three active sons. Free time has been hard to come by recently, but when Natalie finds a few moments of it, she enjoys baking, reading, and crocheting. Natalie and her husband, Alex, can be found at Journey Church in Urbandale, Iowa, on any given Sunday, where their boys are some of the most popular congregants.
If you walk into the food pantry at Portland Open Bible (POB), you’ll see a beautifully diverse demographic that reflects the neighborhood in which it is planted. Chinese, Russian, African American, Hispanic, and White families all gather on Tuesdays and Thursdays, known in the community as “pantry days.” In addition to receiving food, they’re gifted with joy and a genuine kindness that is unusual for many of them.
“It offers a level of humanity that they might not have had before,” said Pastor Aaron Brown. “People can say to themselves, ‘If I step on site at Portland Open Bible Church, I know that for one – people are going to be nice to me, and two – they’re going to try and help me with what I need.’”
Aaron and the food pantry team are going a step further, striving not only to give their community what it needs but also what it wants. When the pantry was in its beginning stages, the staff realized that too much of what was given away was being thrown away. They would find food thrown on the ground a short distance from the pantry, and knowing their program couldn’t be sustained with so much food waste, they were determined to solve the problem. As they began taking data on who their program was serving, noting the diverse ethnicities, they realized their food options didn’t meet the dietary needs of many of the ethnicities they were serving.
“We’re putting an end to food waste through client choice.”
“Our Asian families don’t necessarily want Ritz Crackers and Fruit Loops,” explained Aaron. The pantry developed a detailed intake form in which clients were surveyed not only on their demographics and family size, but on the types of food they most desire. This data allows the pantry to save money by purchasing only the food that is needed AND wanted by their community. “We’re putting an end to food waste through client choice.”
That’s not all. As of 2024, the pantry has begun a new program called “The Community Table.” In partnership with Providence health care, the pantry now provides weekly cooking classes with two professional chefs. Each meal is cooked from scratch with whole foods (provided free of charge to participants) and follows a recipe that was contributed by a member of the Portland community. They might cook a Russian meal one week and a Cantonese meal the next. “We have people from all cultures cooking foods from all cultures,” Aaron shared proudly. “It’s food they chose that comes with a story.” Classes are filmed, each recipe taught as a unique episode that includes the recipe’s contributor sharing the story of why that meal is meaningful to his or her family. Once all the episodes are filmed, food pantry visitors will have the option of receiving a video link for a weekly episode along with all the ingredients for that “meal of the week.”
“Everyone deserves to be fed, and to be fed healthy food.”
“I was skeptical at first, but the numbers keep growing,” said Aaron. And he’s not kidding: the pantry has expanded from its initial service of 123 families in 2013 to currently serving 84,000 families.
So, how did it all begin? Aaron credits his mother, Betty Brown, with the idea for the pantry. In 2013 the church was experiencing repeated break-ins. Despite there being technology and other valuables to steal, the only thing taken was food. Betty gathered the staff one day and gave them a choice: “We can either keep reporting these break-ins or we can start feeding our community.” They decided to do the latter. What began with a few donated canned food items by church members developed into what is now a widely recognized program funded by million-dollar grants.
“Everyone deserves to be fed, and to be fed healthy food.” Aaron explained that their neighborhood is in an inner-city “food desert,” a technical term for a neighborhood without easy access to affordable and fresh food. These neighborhoods often have plenty of gas stations and convenience stores, but no grocery stores. Imagine being a single mom who must take city transportation to get to a grocery store in the next city over, then find a way to transport multiple grocery bags home, all with her five kids in tow. This is the reality of many families near Portland Open Bible. The pantry’s intake forms show that these families want healthy options; they’re just in a food desert where they can’t get it.
As Portland Open Bible nourishes its community, they are seeing physical nourishment carry over into the spiritual. “We try to be a beacon of light,” said Aaron. “We serve some of the nicest, friendliest people, and when they see you’ll be kind to them, they open up their whole life story. ‘I used to go to church…’ is what they’ll often say. I’ve seen former youth pastors show up, worship musicians, people high on whatever blasting worship music. They’re usually the most humble people just wanting food.” A lot of them showed up addicted, trying to get clean. They come volunteer at the pantry and get free food, then eventually end up becoming employees. “Overall,” summarized Aaron, “we’re here to bring people to Christ. A lot of people who didn’t go to church before now go to church because of the pantry.”
The pantry has expanded from its initial service of 123 families in 2013 to currently serving 84,000 families.
If you visit 92nd and Powell in Southeast Portland, you just might find a homeless man learning how to make Tiramisu. You’ll also find an innovative church feeding bodies and souls with Christ-like compassion.
“Whoever is kind to the poor lends to the LORD, and he will reward them for what they have done” (Prov. 19:17 NIV).
Volunteers of all ages feed people with a smile 
Sorting fresh produce is one of the many jobs of the pantry staff 
So many choices! Selecting the perfect egg 
Pre-ordered food bags packed and ready for distribution 
Portland Open Bible Pastor Aaron Brown, with two nieces 
Pantry volunteers joyfully prepare food orders 
Bountiful pantry resources 
Food education (including how to select quality, fresh ingredients) is part of the pantry’s mission 
Fresh lettuce! 
Members of the neighborhood check in to receive their weekly food 
Pantry days are a weekly highlight for people of all ages Pantry staff hand out fresh produce to members of the neighborhood
To learn more about The Community Table, check out these videos:
About the Author
Hannah Bemis
Hannah Bemis currently serves as the Community Pastor at Turning Point Church in Spokane, Washington. She’s always wanted to do too many things when she grows up, and God has been kind enough to let her do most of them in different seasons. After seasons of mothering, teaching, writing, and staff pastoring, Hannah’s most recent adventures include serving as the Editor and Director of Message of the Open Bible and preparing to plant and co-pastor a church in Newberg, Oregon with her husband, Jordan. After Jesus and all her favorite people, she spends the remainder of her passion on pizza and dark chocolate, in equal measure.
