.frank and bekah.

Meet our friends, Frank and Bekah Burder. We got to hang out with them last night, partially so I could give Bekah some photography pointers, and as usual we ended up on the tennis court in the park across the street from their apartment, with their two rambunctious dogs, talking as the sun went down. We always come away from hanging out with them refreshed and encouraged. They are creative, down-to-earth, passionate, and they dream big about everything from hand-made greeting cards to giving their lives to love and serve. I'm writing about Frank and Bekah (sorry guys :) ), because they inspire me, and maybe they'll inspire you too. The Burders live in an area of Birmingham called Avondale, which, as you know if you're familiar with it, isn't necessarily the place where you'd expect a young, hip, successful, white couple like them to live. The area is predominately black, and many of the apartment buildings surrounding their own are subsidized housing. It may not appear that they are doing anything all that spectacular; their service is not the organized kind that we're used to. Their efforts may not have drastically changed any lives--yet. But they know their neighbors. They can point to every building and tell you about the people who live there. When we walk down the street they make a point to greet everyone we pass. They are not afraid. They care deeply about their neighbors, and have chosen not to distance themselves from them, have chosen to be ok with a little "danger," a few strange neighbors, stretching to relate, feeling uncomfortable, because they really believe the gospel. And I want Jesus to change my heart too as I learn from them.

A slide show of the evening.