Thoughts and Impressions

Friday morning and the sun is out – it looks to be a beautiful day.  Lots of thoughts running through my head all night (Imagine that!)  For the sake of time, both yours and mine, I am just going to randomly list them:

• ·      Coming out of the airport, you knew you were in the desert.  The land was arid and flat.  Interestingly though, as you approached Amman, you came into the hills and valleys.  You saw how the city was built in amongst the terrain.  The buildings are relatively “short” as there are hardly any over about 15-20 stories – most being 5-7 max.  ALL the buildings are made from concrete/sand and are painted beige or occasionally white.  It is rather strange when you first see it.
• ·      Marriage is a high priority here for the Christians – though not so much for the Muslims.  We have been joking about bringing our daughters here (Jeff and Ruth each have a daughter as well) to get married as the groom pays for EVERYTHING!  Huge engagement party, wedding, the rings – anything and everything.  Engagements are usually at least two years as the groom has to purchase a place to live before they can get married.  A very small flat could cost up to $100,000!  (I am preparing a place for you ...)
• ·      Lots of division amongst the Christian churches and organizations.  The people organizing this conference (Bible Society and Grain de Ble) have seen God’s hand upon it as there are 8 different churches and some other non-profits attending.  This just does not happen here.  Thus trainings are non-existent.  You would never know it as we watch and hear the people interacting with one another.  The people are very engaged and wanting to learn.  Very humbling yet privileged to be part of God's work here.  They totally believe this will be a catalyst for a move of God here in Jordan.
• ·      My prayer is that we will only pass on the things that are eternal and not just what we thought has worked for us – because as we are experiencing in the West, what we thought has worked for the last 50 years is really not.  Our youth are leaving the church in droves – they estimate that 80-90% of youth will leave the church and possibly their faith by the end of their freshman year in college.  Having age-segregated teaching may not have worked as well as we had thought.
• ·      But I have to believe that the Lord reminded me that for many of these people, they are starting new – they are forsaking their families and their culture to follow Christ.  The church is the youth.  Together, hopefully and prayerfully, we will learn from each other and unite together to be The Church.    

      Okay - time to go and teach a session on Bible Storying.  Can't wait to see how they respond here.

First Night In Amman

Sometimes it is hard to believe that I am on the other side of the world - but with some amazing people who are crazy in love with the Lord.  As we flew into Amman, you could not help but notice that there was such a thick haze over the area.  Apparently it was from a sand storm - you could not see the hills which were just a few miles away.  Tonight it seemed to clear up and there was some blue skies.  As we were driving from the airport to the city, there were many shepherds herding all kinds of animals:  sheep, goats, horses, donkeys and yes, even camels!  So weird to see them all just on the side of the freeway with no fences to stop them from walking alongside or into you!  Oh did I mention that everything is white and tan here - buildings, cars, land - it is very obvious.  Well, no there was one exception - the only building that was predominantly all blue glass and higher than all the other buildings was the American University - it really does make a statement.

So how does one experience this new culture?  By going to the mall!  We only had a little bit of time to get something to eat and so it was to the food court we went.  I don't know why we think it should be different, but I gotta tell you it was so weird to choose from McDonalds, Burger King, Sbarros, Tacos, Dunkin Donuts, Kentucky Fried Chicken and Sushi.  The mall itself had 5 floors with bowling alleys, fitness center and movie theaters .

Tonight there were at least twice as many people as anticipated - way over 100 young and old alike, from many denominations.  Amazing to see them all interacting and learning from each other.  This does not happen often in these parts.  It is a beautiful picture of God's church at work.  They are so open and desiring to learn so they can build up the next generation in the things of the Lord.  The church where the conference is being held is actually more of a community center.  The pastor has seen many ways in which the church has been a blessing to the community and not one where the people have to isolate themselves.

 I will post some pics and videos tomorrow and let you see things for yourself.  I opened the first talk letting them know that we are  all co-learners - there is a lot we can learn from each other.  We are having to unlearn many things and we have much to learn from them .  Ruth did a great job of having       them work in groups to figure out what the needs are of the children in their communities.   The people love to engage with one another. 

 Time to head back to the guest house and try to get some sleep - oh yea - we are supposed to get dinner first!  Missions = Flexibility

Thanks for your prayers and support - all are needed for us and our families!

He is already doing more than we could ever ask, imagine or hope for!

Arrived in Beirut

We have arrived safely in Beirut for a quick rest before going back to the airport for our flight to Amman.  Everything went smoothly other than our flight from Portland had a surprise stop in Chicago which we got      in late and had 5 minutes to get something quick to grab to eat and then to the other gate.  If this is coming out funny it is because the connection to the blog is in Arabic and is going backwards!  Don't know how to fix that one.  Wondered if I was having a new teaching from the Lord when the guy behind me in the security check in pushed the tray off the counter that held my computer.  I keep joking how I could lose a lot of stuff but just as long as I had my computer, I would be okay.  Everything is obviously working fine but it taught me once again to be dependent on the Holy Spirit and not my stuff.

No pictures yet but should have some tomorrow as we begin teaching in the evening when we arrive in Jordan.

This Is the Day...

... that the Lord has made - let us rejoice and be glad in it!

Everything is packed and ready to go for our 11:30am departure!  Some have been asking about the different religions in Iraq and Jordan.  There is a great resource called Operation World that keeps track of what is happening in all the countries around the globe.  You can go to  their website for more info:  www.operationworld.org 

IRAQ:  (we will be in country from 10/2-8)
96% are Muslim
1.6% are Christian
.03% are Evangelicals
41% are under 15
We will be in the Northern Kurdish region (the city of Erbil or sometimes spelled Irbil) where the church may be tolerated more than the rest of Iraq, but they do suffer growing marginalization at the hands of the increasingly dominant Kurds.  Economically they are very strained because the Kurds, who left under Hussein's regime, are returning in droves and can't be cared for.  Many participants will come from the other parts of Iraq where there is great persecution.  There is a tremendous amount of unrest and division amongst the various religious and political groups.

JORDAN  (We will be in country from 9/29-10/1)
96.5% are Muslim
2% are Christian
.4% are Evangelicals
35% are under 15
Though there are state laws guaranteeing freedom of religion, and a public presence of the Church, there is still pressure placed on the evangelicals.  Though the number of Christians have greatly increased in the last decade (there are now 50 churches and many more house churches in the whole country), because of the huge influx of Muslim refugees, the percentage of believers has dropped from 6.5% to 2.2%.

I truly believe God has us going for a specific purpose, other than our teachings, which He will reveal to us as we faithfully move forward.  Be praying for our unity, our health, our physical and spiritual strength (I was reminded by the Spirit of how the enemy likes to attack my stomach when going into certain countries!).   Be praying for our families as well as the devil will attack wherever he may find a weak, unprotected spot.  

Hope to get a picture of our dynamic team posted from the airport.  Thanks for your support!  Could not do this without you all!

Preparing for the Middle East

On Tuesday I leave for the Middle East with Ruth Jordan and Jeff VandenHoek to train leaders in Amman, Jordan and Erbil, Iraq.  We will be serving with Grain de Ble based in Beirut, Lebanon.  graindeble.org   What a privilege to come alongside our brothers and sisters and give them some tools to help them reach the lost children in these countries.

We leave on Tuesday, September 27th for 3 days in Jordan and then start ministering in Iraq on October 3rd.  In those 4 days in Iraq,  I will have the opportunity to lead 14 workshops (7 different topics, each one twice).  My prayer is that God will do immeasurably more than I could ever ask or imagine; that He would sustain each of us and that we would be keenly alert to the needs of the people and not just be about the task of teaching the different classes.  I know I will come back with far more than I could ever give - God always works that way!

The topics of my workshops include:

• Bible Storying...Practically Speaking
• 7 Laws of the Learner
• "Puppetually" for the Kingdom
• Spiritual Development of Children
• Building Community Where Every Child Belongs
• Bible Memory Games
• Leading a Child to Christ

Thanks for caring and praying!  We are Touching Heaven...Changing Earth...Together!

It is not that we think we can do anything of lasting value by ourselves.  Our only power and success come from God. He is the One who has enabled us to represent His new covenant.                      II Cor 3:5-6