Didn't know that!

After spending two weeks in France at an intensive course on leadership developed by Wycliffe, OM and some other agencies, I met up with a good friend, Benjamin, in Paris. He brought me to this square and turned me around to see...

Notre Dame, I had no idea. It was a massive building and then I remembered the gargoyles.

I had always mused as to the reason that Notre Dame had gargoyles shooting out from the exterior walls.

Benjamin helped me discover the reason. It is because they are fleeing from the inside of the Church in which they don't belong. Huh! Such simplicity!

Wisdom of the Navajo

Sally was driving home from a business trip in Northern Arizona when she saw an elderly Navajo woman walking on the side of the road. As the trip was a long and quiet one, she stopped the car and asked the woman if she would like a ride. With a silent nod of thanks, the woman got into the car. Resuming the journey, Sally tried in vain to make a bit of small talk with the Navajo woman. The old woman just sat silently, looking at everything she saw, studying every little detail, until she noticed a white bag on the seat next to Sally.

"What's in the bag?" asked the old woman.

Sally looked down at the bag and, smiling, said, "It's a box of chocolates. I got it for my husband."

The Navajo woman was silent for another moment or two. Then speaking with the quiet wisdom of an elder, she said: "Good trade."

Sabina's Story!

"As a young girl in Bangladesh, Sabina dreamt of helping her family overcome their poverty...One day an Indian woman visited their home. "She told me, 'If you come with me, I'll give you a better job. So come with me, but don't tell anyone.' The idea of having work was tempting to Sabina. 'One day, I told my parents that I'm just going out with this auntie and I'll be back very soon. I was thinking, If I can get a job, I can save money and even marry someone really good in India.'

But when they crossed the border, Sabina's 'auntie' left her with another woman, who locked Sabina in a room by herself. For the next seven days, 12 year old Sabina was beaten and raped repeatedly by as many as 10-15 men a day. When the week was up and her will was broken, Sabina was forced to work in a brothel. 'During the day I did all the housework. At night I was forced to give company to the men who came.'

Sabina endured years of abuse and torture before she finally escaped.

Every year, thousands of girls are tricked, trafficked and trapped into sex slavery. Last year, their plight became the focal point for CMS's Setting Captives Free campaign. CMS missionaries work with the Church of Bangladesh to raise awareness of sex trafficking and offer women opportunities to start businesses, so they aren't vulnerable to those who would sell them to the highest bidder." Inspire Magazine, Iss. 8, pg. 12-13

www.cms-uk.org - ...the privilege of being aware...

Is slavery over?

"Some 200 years ago there were four million slaves. By 2007, there will be over 20 million. Now is the time says CMS (www.cms-uk.org), for British Christians to fight slavery with as much fervour as they did two centuries ago. March 25, 2007 will mark 200 years since William Wilberforce and others gained a major victory in their campaign to end the transatlantic slave trade...slavery is far from over...brothels have replaced cotton fields. Galley slaves have been traded for child soldiers. And many people spend their entire lives in bonded service...most of today's slaves are women and children..." -Inspire Magazine Issue 8 pg. 12. (www.inspiremagazine.org.uk)

The last day George and I were together in England, he took me to a forest preserve in Keston. This is a very important spot in the history of the United Kingdom. It was on this spot 220 years ago that William Wilberforce spoke to the Prime Minister of England to bring an end to slavery. Much has taken place since that day and we owe so much to Mr. Wilberforce and to the great nation of the U.K.

As we stood there George and I reflected on our year together and then had a special time of prayer. It was special spot to end our year together because for me, hopelessness is the one thing that I hate the most. When I asked myself, "what do I love and what do I hate?", I found that I love hope and hate hopelessness. Setting people free from slavery, any form of it - immaturity, actual slavery, compromise, religious hierarchy, extreme poverty, sickness, forced prostitution, pride, injustice, corruption, etc... is at the heart of the Gospel. William Wallace, in the film "Braveheart", knew this reality and knew that freedom was a right that didn't have to be compromised because somebody else compromised (corrupt leaders) at my expense to just pad their own pockets with comfort. I face this struggle in my own life. If I am not growing and facing the sin in my walk and abiding in Christ, then those who will be influenced by me one day - wife, family, people in ministry, etc... will have to deal with the compromises I make. If I do not lead them into the same freedom I can receive from the hand of God, I will be in danger of leading them (by default) into short-sighted compromises with sin and an un-willingness to grow and mature through honesty. This is what I learned from George, to constantly remain vigilant in facing down your sin and pride no matter where you are at in life and who you are responsible for because, in the long run, it will benefit those you are called to love, lead and influence.

We need fathers

My heart is failing me. I have just finished reading postings on the internet for and against the Emerging Church in the western world. I myself find myself keenly identifying with the emerging ideals. It is a clear identification, something that helps me to navigate through a world that doesn't accept me because of my beliefs, the way I spend my money and Sunday mornings. To some of us that is quite a reach. There is too much banter and cutting words being passed to the emerging thoughts and ideals. Both sides are saying good things but they sound just like I did when I was a teenager and my father and I were not understanding each other. I love my father, always have, always will, but we don't always understand each other. That never takes precedent over his overwhelming love and protection for me. I know he would die for me, stand up for me even when I'm wrong and take my side against any enemy of strength, reputation or popularity. I utterly trust him with every ounce of my being and revere him. I need him. He is my umbrella, my home and with him I am safer than with any other in my life right now. I am known and still accepted. I need him. I can go home anytime and will be received no matter my condition.

There have been times when he has hurt me, because he has the ability to more than most. When my hair didn't match up to his preference, my music wasn't really music, my clothing was ridiculous, the things that my small world found great significance in because I didn't know the foundations that really define life as you grow older. I didn't know that fads were passing, I didn't know that what was important at the end of the day for him; bills, mortgages, sickness, cold weather, fear of failure, etc... were hemming him into a world that I wouldn't know or understand until later. I am beginning to understand and I feel like I am at a transition point between being a small world teenager to someday having a family and seeing life through its realistic aging eyes, eyes that understand consequences in a much deeper sense.

I feel the same about these arguments between traditional and emerging generations. They need fathers who love and accept and shepherd this emerging generation of young and misunderstood evangelicals through the maze of what is real and what isn't and in the process is open to learning something new. We don't need you to sit in your easychair that you're still paying for behind your daily dose of reality and peer past it to tell us how ridiculous our new hair color is or how you could've ripped that hole in our jeans for us instead of us paying somebody else to do it. We need fathers, real spiritual fathers, to lead us, to guide us, to listen to us muse, even if we are wrong. The danger is that if you don't, you, being the bigger man, lose the precedent that God has given to you by default to lead, encourage, mentor, teach and affect for eternity somebody that will outlive you. We need fathers who will love us, give us affirmation, be gentle with us in these difficult early years. It isn't anymore easier for a teenager to be a teenager than it is for an adult to be an adult. You should be happy we're even coming to Church, why scold us for how we do it. There is no bad guy in this; just ask a father who's son has left the Church and how he wishes he could take back some things he said. We need fathers. If you can't listen, if you can't live above the milieu of our self-discovery and you can't be patient, and you can't learn, then I feel like asking you to just please leave us alone, but that's not the answer either. What is? Well why not putting down the paper, getting out of your easy chair, coming to our room and knocking on the door and asking to come in. Please don't say anything about the mess, sit down and just start asking us what we think. We're family.

Philippians 2:1-5 "If you have any encouragement from being united with Christ, if any comfort from his love, if any fellowship with the Spirit, if any tenderness and compassion, then make my joy complete by being like-minded, having the same love, being one in spirit and purpose. Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit, but in humility consider others better than yourselves. Each of you should look not only to your own interests, but also to the interests of others. Your attitude should be the same as that of Jesus Christ: ..."

ps - these thoughts are general and do not reflect a personal summation of my father and I's relationship. I love him deeply and we are good friends and he has been a good father my whole life.

Here are some links,

http://www.9marks.org/partner/Article_Display_Page/0,,PTID314526CHID598014CIID2249672,00.html

http://tallskinnykiwi.typepad.com/tallskinnykiwi/2005/04/an_open_blog_po.html

www.theooze.com

http://www.9marks.com/

Somalia!

Please pray for this most difficult of nations as it is the most lawless nation in the world right now. Many are dying, 99.95% Muslim. Christian martyrdom central. Check out the link http://www.gmi.org/ow/country/soma/overvw01.html
for more details on just how bad things are and in light of that what God is doing to bring His light, love, justice and mercy there. God has promised to build His Church.

Mountain Sheep

On a trip with my parents 4-5 years ago, I woke up in the back seat to the fact that we were preparing to stop. You know that feeling when you are riding in a vehicle and the droning hum of the road, the constant rhythm of the engine sing you to sleep. Then it all stops and suddenly you wake up. This is what I experienced as I sat in the back seat laying down, looking out through the window at the bare mountain in front of me. In my dreariness I began to scan the crest of the hill in front of me for any sign of a mountain sheep, known to wander throughout the region we were in. I thought to myself, if I focus hard enough and strain my eyes, moving them slowly across the horizon, I might catch a glimpse of one or two of these magnificent animals. You see as a child we used to pull off the road on the way to our town lake next to a massive cliff face. We’d wait there for a good while to just catch a glimpse of any mountain goat moving around along the face of the precipice. I was certain that if I focused hard enough I might just see something this time. I usually didn’t work that hard to see them, but this time would be different. As I continued to peer, striving to see what I planned to see, I suddenly hear the loud honk of cars streaming past the gas station where we’d stopped. I could hear some of them slowing down immediately and sounding their horns as if to say “Get out of my way”. I shot up from my seat and scrambled out of the vehicle to see for myself what had caused such a fuss. There standing right in front of me waltzing down the road were three massive mountain sheep. They just moved as they liked down the pavement while cars maneuvered around them, honked and sped off. Some stopped to look and admire, others impatiently careened around them. They were there for only a moment and then disappeared off the edge of the road never to be seen again. I was dumbfounded! God spoke into my heart, “What you work so hard to see and accomplish off in the distance, I have placed right behind you, up close and without your striving efforts to do so.” I have been sensing lately that God is showing me and others opportunities that he wants us to take advantage of. My first response is then to prepare myself so that I can go and do this thing and be completely ready for it. I am seeing that, though that may be the right way in some circumstances, many times God isn’t interested in us getting ready but would rather us just step into the action, the obedience, the calling without getting our “ducks in a row”. Sometimes it seems, our steps of faith don’t need as much preparation as we think they do, they just need obedience, a willingness to step out, go for it and be prepared to not always be prepared.

Lyon, France

From October 6th- 23rd I will be in Lyon, France attending a Leadership Matters Course that OM runs for missional leadership. I have had a burden for France ever since one of my professors spoke about it as one of the darkest regions of the world spiritually. In the city of Lyon, France itself there are 1.26 million people and 150,000 of them are Muslim. There is a large Catholic influence from the past and the city has been historically dedicated to the Virgin Mary.

-Protestants make up about 1.75 % of the population
-About 25% of the population place thier faith in astrology and mediums
-Over 15% of the population spend approximately 45 billion euros per yer on occult consultations

It is obviously a very dark region of the world. Please pray with me that as we spend time getting taught that we would not forgo any opportunity to share our faith in the midst of this difficult and dark city.

Turin

On October 5th and 6th I will be in Turin, Italy on a one day outreach with some OM friends and two others from a Church in London. Our reason for being in Turin is simple, we want to hand out 1000 pieces of evangelistic literature and wait for divine appointments to share the Gospel with whomever will stop and share some time with us. We will be joined by some Italian friends who will help with the translation. Apparently Turin is the Occultic capital of Europe. Here are some stats,

-98% of Italians claim Roman Catholicism as their faith/religion (though far fewer attend mass), but perhaps the true religion of Italy is the Occult.

-Italy is steeped in the Occult and Satanism. There are over 100,000 full-time consulting magicians (Occult) in Italy. That is three times the number of Catholic priests and 600 times the number of trained pastors in this nation.

-Evangelicals make up less than 1% of the population; there is only one trained pastor for every 350,000 people. The Italian church is weak and divided.

Please pray with us for fruit and spiritual protection and for those that will join us to be empassioned to continue sharing the message of Jesus wherever they are. Recently, I just heard of the Faroe Islands (between Norway and Iceland) where there is only 48,000 people and over 20% of the population is Christian. A bit of a haven compared to Turin. Thank you for standing with us. There will be five of us going for it. I will be sharing the results later on, so be sure to revisit soon. Keep on keeping on!

Singapore and Malaysia

Before the summer began, George and I made out way to Singapore and Malaysia for our last trip together. As we had many times before, Drena, myself and George had breakfast with one another at the airport before our departure. This would be the last breakfast of its kind, so I captured the moment. Upon arriving to Singapore, we were settled in and began a mission conference at a dynamic Church in the city. I soon found out that Singapore is a very different place than I'd ever been to. You are not allowed to chew gum there at all. It is illegal. There are actually people who smuggle in chewing gum and sell it on the black market - I think that is what you call it. Anyways, Amazing country. Their military is trained by the Israeli military because of thier similar circumstances. I also found out that the "Boogie Man" term came from this region of the world. If you email me, I'll tell you why.

Next we were off to Malaysia to greet the Doulos as she docked into Port Klang. What a privilege to share this experience with George for both of OM's active ships. We ministered together on the ship for a couple of days as George spoke and had a wild book bananza. Then it was our last parting period on a trip together. For me it was the end of a year long mentoring relationship but the start of a lifelong mentoring journey. I will always carry in me the mark that George made on my life and heart and it will grow I'm sure as our year together begins to be unpacked for me. The time on the Doulos was priceless except that I didn't get a chance to work because out of all the weeks that I could have showed up, they were just starting their sabbath week (one week of rest and vacation) and it only ended the day I left to fly back to London. I guess God knew that I needed it. We visited a wasterpark and went into the city and rested a lot while I joined the Americans on board to celebrate the 4th of July. That was special as we barbecued and threw the old pig skin (football) around.