Arrivals!

The students started to arrive yesterday and it feels so good to finally see some of the faces of those I will be serving here for the next months.

Actually, the other day I asked myself, "what am I doing here?" (Pastor Randy, I think it was you who said I would probably ask myself this question... didn't take long did it?) But then I had to smile at myself, because isn't that how the Christian life should be? Where even we begin to ask ourselves "what am I doing serving the Lord in this crazy and 'non-sensical' way He has called me?" Not that I think I've got the Christian life all figured out. To be honest, so far it has been challenging to be here. Lonely. Confusing. A lot of my not-so-favorite work. But it's becoming a lot of fun too--especially, as I said, with the arrival of the students. It's been a lot of learning what it looks like to trust and believe that God has me here for a reason. A lot of new faces. The beginnings of some new friends. And it's only been two weeks!

As I am meeting the students and really diving into the ministry I've been called to here I am praying for an open heart toward each of the students, for grace and patience with them and with my work duties, for God to work in my heart and in my hands while I am here.

Lord, you are the giver and the sustainer of the fullest life I could ever know. May You be glorified. Amen.

My Spring

My first week here in Austria has been good so far. I have done a lot of cleaning--toilets, showers, rooms, dishes (don't worry, not in that order), and some cooking. The students are not here yet and won't arrive until the 25th, and most of the other staff is on vacation, so it has been quiet. Which has been nice, but also a bit lonely. At the same time it has been kind of nice to settle in here in the peaceful quiet. To get to know those who are here slowly. To think about why I am here doing what I am doing. To watch as the Austrian Alpine Spring season is blooming before my eyes.

Actually, in just this first week the trees have gone from twigs to the beginnings of some really beautiful purple blossoms. Each day I find that I am excited to walk out onto the lawn to see how much the buds have opened up overnight. But in some way I feel a kind of aching, or maybe it's even gratitude in a sense, as I watch Spring taking shape. Even though it is so stunning, there is something that gets me about this unveiling of Spring after Winter. In some ways I suppose I can see myself in the trees. See how before I knew God I was like a withered twig, yet He took me in my ugliness and made me beautiful. Gave me life and started growing me little by little. I dunno. Maybe I am in a sort of Spring season in my life. Where I am finding out what I was made for. And am just starting to show it.

Austria at Last

As you tech-savvy readers may already know (that is if we are friends on Facebook) I made it to Salzburg! My flights went quite smoothly... actually more than smoothly. Before I travel lately I make sure to toss up a prayer letting God know that if He wants me to talk with someone about Him while I am in transit I will do it. Well, this time around I couldn't get on any mode of public transit without some sort of conversation about faith. Actually, that's a lie... on one bus ride I didn't talk to anybody because they all only spoke German, which I as of yet do NOT speak. Anyway, it was really neat. I guess I hadn't expected God to answer my prayer so fervently.

I'll just share one of these convos so as not to have a novel of a blog entry: On my first plane ride I got to talking with a German man about all kinds of things--politics, the German language, philosophy--and then it came around to "religion." Which is a word I really don't like to use especially with non-believers, but if you want to hear more about that ask me sometime. The point is, the conversation came to the point of this guy asking me how it was that I came to believe in Jesus. So, I told him. Right there on the plane. Which is really just an everyday sort of thing when I think of it. But at the same time it's a big step for me to share what I believe. I am not sharing this to toot my own horn. The guy didn't give his life to Christ as I was talking with him. I think he's still fairly set on not adhering to any religion or anything of the sort. But for me it was a neat test of my faith. A good personal checkpoint to ask myself if I really know how to explain what I believe to someone who doesn't know the church lingo. And a good reminder that what I pray for I better mean!

Also I wanna say thanks to those of you praying for me at home. At church on Sunday one of my requests was to listen for God's guidance during my time here. And I've asked other friends to pray for me to be bold about my faith. And, whaddaya know! God is wasting no time! Please keep praying that I continue to listen for and act upon guidance from the Lord. Your prayers are doing big things! And, let's pray for the three people I got to chat with that God would continue to plant little seeds about Jesus in their lives and that they would be receptive to these things.

See To It, Brothers

“Today, if you hear his voice,
do not harden your hearts…

See to it, brothers, that none of you has a sinful, unbelieving heart that turns away from the livings God. But encourage one another daily, as long as it its called Today, so that none of you may be hardened by sin’s deceitfulness…

Today, if you hear his voice,
Do not harden your hearts.”
-Hebrews 3:7,12-13,15

This is something that I long for in the community of believers. I long for us to hold one another accountable for our unbelief. I want someone to come alongside me and to correct me when my actions are causing me to turn away from God—whether that means I am ignoring a homeless person on the street or not doing a job at 100% effort or even not conversing with God on a regular basis. I want people to ask the hard questions “are you living fully for Christ?” “Have you sinned against God or against another person lately?” “Are you turning towards Him today or away?” And I think the Bible makes it clear here that I, we, need this. We need to be asking and to be asked. We need to come together to work against the lures of sin. And we need to be listening for the voice of the Holy Spirit and not ignoring his leading in our lives.

Breakfast Conversations

This morning (Thursday) at the breakfast table, one of the girls sits down next to me and asks me, “It’s true that everyone farts, right?” I love life here.

Surrender

What does it mean to surrender all? What is the everything I can give to God and let Him control?

My money
My time
My clothes
My music
My thoughts
My work
My future
My past
My hopes
My things
My my my my which was never mine in the first place.

New Shoes

Today (Tuesday) I went with one of the other Tias to visit a nearby family and to bring them some items for which they had a need. The family consisted of a woman, her husband, their two daughters and a baby on the way. We were bringing them a mattress, some food and some shoes for the girls. It was a strange experience, but pretty cool too. This family lives in one of the newer developments here in Tijuana, and from the outside the houses look pretty nice. But then this family didn’t even have a bed or shoes for their kids. I don’t get it. And I know the same thing happens in the US. That people seem to have things all together but when you are invited into their lives and into their homes you find that they really don’t have much.
I think it’s kind of a spiritual analogy too. That we are always so focused on being okay, on being and appearing happy and well taken care of, but on the inside things can be in turmoil. And there is a certain aspect of relief and humbling that takes place when we invite others into this interior life that is not so nice as it seemed to be from the outside. Especially when we let God in to give us what we need. And when we can receive from Him what we need and not be too proud to dismiss His overwhelming generosity.
Anyway, the girls were 8 and 10 years old, were beautiful, and were thrilled to have their very own pair of shoes. It’s another good reminder that I have sooo much more than I need and that in my life I really haven’t had a lot of instances when I really had to rely on God to provide for my needs.