God's dirt.

The temperatures climbed into the 100's yesterday afternoon here in Dallas but that didn't stop a small group of little league baseball players,

businessmen, landscape developers,

Mercy Street staff,

West Dallas pastors,

community leaders,

police,

and neighborhood kids

from coming out to break ground on what will be West Dallas' Field of Dreams.

Years ago, this twenty acre piece of land, along with hundreds more acres in West Dallas, was covered by some of the largest single family, barrack style, public housing in the country. Crime was rampant helping make West Dallas a place many wanted to escape from or simply avoid all together.

When the city ordered the demolition of the old projects and the rebuilding of condo-style public housing, this twenty-acres was left empty. And for over ten years, as Trey said yesterday, the land has laid fallow.

Then, a couple of years ago, the Dallas Housing Authority agreed to lease the acreage to Mercy Street for a period of 99 years. At the rate of $1 a year.

And yesterday, after lots of time and energy spent in prayer and by architects, property developers, and the Yellow Rose Landscape Company, we broke ground on what will become a multi-use sports complex for the community.

Bert at the Yellow Rose spent so much time in the city offices getting permits, they've given him his own parking space. And pencil sharpener.

There will be three regulation little league fields, two soccer fields, restrooms and concessions promising to serve the best nachos and dill pickles around. We may even whip up some extra-special Kool-Aid pickles on occasion.

One of the board members of Mercy Street said, "This is God's dirt - has always been God's dirt." It could not be more true.

I've said before that one of my favorite sights is watching baseball players, in their uniforms, carrying their bats and gloves, walking from the public housing to their games on Saturday mornings.

Prayerfully, this land will be used by the Lord to give the kids of West Dallas a place where not only physical skills can be developed but character as well.