I am spiritually refreshed today.
I should make it very clear how unusual a statement that is for me. A earlier entry on this very same blog, written mere months ago, says how I describe myself as more religious than spiritual and how I am OK with that.
But there can be no doubt. I am refreshed in a way that goes far beyond the physical. Let's see if I can explain it in some way that makes sense to you, the reader.
People talk about the spirit a lot here. I have generally listened, pondered and than tried to knock down the idea that I can have any meaningful contact with the spirit within me, let alone the Holy Spirit. It just simply has not been a part of my experience so why go to the trouble of trying if I am already a Christian?
But God has a way of putting things before you in a way you can't ignore. We are doing a unit in our ISOM (Christianity) Class called being Led in the Spirit. A recent lesson in the unit had tons of scriptures talking about the spirit and its role in our lives. If Scripture says it, I can't ignore it so it entered my head. Around this time too I was feeling just a bit sad too. Almost imperceptibly slow I felt like I was becoming more disconnected with the people around me. I felt like I wasn't measuring up, that I couldn't and therefore I was losing interest in trying.
It was a bit disconcerting.
Then last night I played a card game. I never play cards. It was really fun. I felt a lot better. I felt close to the people I played with. It was pretty heady stuff.
Then this morning we had a staff meeting. We have been watching a series by John Bevere mostly about why its so important to forgive rather than be offended. We got into some complicated heady stuff involving salvation which would be impossible to explain here but here's the thing. Rather than walking out confused or frustrated because I couldn't understand something I walked out refreshed. I was confident in my salvation but I knew I needed to pray.
So that's what I did. It was only a few minutes but I just sat down alone on the porch and talked to God for a few minutes. I can't properly retype here what I said but basically I realized I had been in the wrong in many ways and that I needed to let God's salvation refresh me. I hadn't lost salvation but I had disregarded its importance for a while. I had completely ignored any possibility of a spirit-filled life and I was being drained because of it.
I'm not sure what's next. I haven't started praying in tongues or doing mass-healings. But I do know that God is with me and I am willing to hear from him whether that be in a mental way or a spiritual way. Here's to the future.
Monday, June 30, 2008
Monday, June 23, 2008
Random
It's been a while so here's some fun random updates.
Money
My money for my tuition is almost completely in! A couple pledges I received during and after my trip to America will give me less than 200 dollars to raise. Depending on the gifts it could be even less. I've had to be patient and wait on God and pray but he has and is providing. It will be great to officially finish support raising for my internship. To everyone who has prayed and given support thank you.
Painting Hope House.
This will be in my upcoming newsletter (to be sent out in the next week or so, stay tuned) but I wanted to share it with you all on here. A sponsor recently donated paint to the orphanage we visit weekly and this Saturday, instead of chilling on the game reserve and watching DVDs, we went in to paint! We only had one day so it was a bit rushed but we got the entire girl's wing of the building painted. It looks pretty awesome. Hope House is a very nice orphanage though by American standards it perhaps does not quite measure up. In any case it was great to improve the kids living space in a small way and it was cool to get off base and do some more service.
Outreach Staff
Last week we had 16 new Americans arrive for almost 2 months. They are our Outreach staff interns and will be a great help to us as we host many mission teams the next 2 months. Winter(summer for you Americans) is our busiest time so it should get interesting. It's been great getting to know new people and I look forward to working with them in ministry.
So all is well here and South Africa is very awesome, if a bit chillier. I'll let you know exactly how much I have left to raise once I receive my checks. It won't be very much!
Peace and Blessings.
Money
My money for my tuition is almost completely in! A couple pledges I received during and after my trip to America will give me less than 200 dollars to raise. Depending on the gifts it could be even less. I've had to be patient and wait on God and pray but he has and is providing. It will be great to officially finish support raising for my internship. To everyone who has prayed and given support thank you.
Painting Hope House.
This will be in my upcoming newsletter (to be sent out in the next week or so, stay tuned) but I wanted to share it with you all on here. A sponsor recently donated paint to the orphanage we visit weekly and this Saturday, instead of chilling on the game reserve and watching DVDs, we went in to paint! We only had one day so it was a bit rushed but we got the entire girl's wing of the building painted. It looks pretty awesome. Hope House is a very nice orphanage though by American standards it perhaps does not quite measure up. In any case it was great to improve the kids living space in a small way and it was cool to get off base and do some more service.
Outreach Staff
Last week we had 16 new Americans arrive for almost 2 months. They are our Outreach staff interns and will be a great help to us as we host many mission teams the next 2 months. Winter(summer for you Americans) is our busiest time so it should get interesting. It's been great getting to know new people and I look forward to working with them in ministry.
So all is well here and South Africa is very awesome, if a bit chillier. I'll let you know exactly how much I have left to raise once I receive my checks. It won't be very much!
Peace and Blessings.
Wednesday, June 11, 2008
Testimonies From LaunchPad
My trip to America came at a perfect time because the first term of LaunchPad ended right before I left. At the graduation we gave out feedback forms to find out what the students learned and liked in the class. Here are excerpts from what a few students said in the class that my fellow intern, Kaylen, and I taught:
These are just a few students from my class which is one of 7 classes that was taught this past term. God is doing good things in Qwa Qwa and I want to thank you for letting me be a part. Your prayer, financial support, and interest got me here. Thank you so much. Be blessed.
I learned that if I want to live a good life I must follow Jesus. I learned that to live a proper life I must change my mind and my attitude. I have learned about putting aside and being done with my old self. I have seen the Lord Jesus Live through me!
I didn't actually believe in God but this class has made me realize how important Gos is to me. It has taught me to believe in God, have faith and even convince people about God. I now know how to talk to people who are yet to believe that God is there for us and he will stand firm with us to the end.
I have learned about how I can go to God for comfort when I am in need. I have learned how to transform my mind and how not to think badly about others and class has been more like a friend to me because every time I come here I would forget about all the problems I have and all the bad things I come across everyday. Class has taught me that no matter how many times I have wronged God he will still forgive me and that we will always love me. I have taught myself not to think of myself more than others because God loves us equally. God has done good things in my life because without him I would not have learned how to love others and I just LOVE HIM!!
These are just a few students from my class which is one of 7 classes that was taught this past term. God is doing good things in Qwa Qwa and I want to thank you for letting me be a part. Your prayer, financial support, and interest got me here. Thank you so much. Be blessed.
Sunday, June 8, 2008
My crazy trip to America.
So here I sit quite exhausted with my sister's wedding over and I hopping on a plane back to Africa in about 16 hours.
It's been quite a whirlwind of a trip. I arrived in NYC, made my way down to Lynchburg VA for my good friend's wedding, spent a night at the summer camp I have worked at in the past, then went back up to Massachusetts, hung out, and was part of my sister's wedding today.
All in all it was a great time. I drove a car, watched American TV, saw many family and friends and even relaxed a bit. Right now I'm feeling just a bit torn however. I really can't wait to get back to my interns, they are great but also they are who I know. I know they are over there plugging away and I know that I should be over there with them. I know I have about 6 months left in this internship and I look forward to experiencing and finishing them but being back in America is a bit tough.
It is tremendously comfortable here and not just because of mere material things. America is my home, my culture, everything I know is here. Being back made me realize how abroad I really am. It can be disconcerting thinking about the distance. In any case, I should be clear and say again I cannot wait to see my fellow interns. They are fantastic, I feel comfortable around them and I do look forward to getting into my routine again with them.
One last thing is that this week was important because I was going to get my laptop finally fixed. Well, after multiple trips to Circuit City, a fed-ex delivery, and far too much maneuvering with automated phone-lines, here I sit typing on my home desktop, not my still-broken laptop. It is a bit depressing.
All is not lost though. New (hopefully good) discs will arrive on Monday and be sent by my parents to me in South Africa. Receiving them in a week or so I should be able to properly recover my computer. Here is to hoping.
I want to welcome any new readers to my blog that I may have talked to during my visit. I hope you enjoy my entries and feel connected with what I'm doing in Africa.
Finally I must say that my brief trip back showed I have a lovely family (and sister CONGRATS), lovely friends, a lovely God, and even a pretty lovely life. Thanks to all who make it great.
Here's to Peace, Blessings, and Africa!
Monday, May 26, 2008
Making Americans Into Soccer Fans
So one of the things I really like here is that soccer is on TV quite a bit. Tons of English league games that I never get to see in America are on live most weekends. (The season recently ended but it starts up again in August.)
Unfortunately most of my fellow interns are American and therefore do not enjoy soccer. It can often be a battle to get the TV for a couple hours on a weekend afternoon.
So this brings me to last Tuesday when I was having devos with my team (we have devos twice a week). The subject of team time came up and I said I couldn't do anything on wed. night because I was watching the UEFA Champions League Final, a very, very big game. Before I could breath the others said "lets make that team time. Soon there were tons of plans to pick teams, dress up etc. etc. I happened to have a jersey of chelseas, one of the teams playing and who i liked, so i wore that. But as you can see by the picture we went all out.
Watching the game was fantastic fun. It went to penalties and people were talking and having fun the whole time. When goals were scored we celebrated like mad.
So that was a good time in South Africa.
Thursday, May 22, 2008
More than Safe...
Recent headlines about South Africa have not been very encouraging. Stories about violence, xenophobia, and army involvement have probably left many Americans feeling at the very least a bit concerned about South Africa as a nation.
I would like to assure everyone that we here at Thrive Africa are quite safe. Living on a remote game reserve 3 hours from major cities does have its advantages. The violence is fairly contained to poor township areas around Johannesburg and is rooted in complicated issues of poverty and immigration. South Africans do not hate foreigners in a xenophobic sense at all. I personally was in Qwa qwa just the other day and it was as safe and calm as it always is. I plan to return next week with no fear in my mind. South Africa needs prayer (as does every country) but it is by no means falling into anarchy.
In fact we at Thrive are more than safe here in South Africa, we are blessed.
We are blessed to teach LaunchPad classes that disciple youth in seven locations. We are blessed to take part in an amazing Leadership Summit program that helps students at six different schools in Qwa qwa. We are blessed to facilitate mission teams from America that do ministry house to house and village to village passionately and effectively.
Most of all we are blessed by a God who has given us the opportunity to have an eternal impact in a place where no one else is ministering. My prayer is that no one who is committed to coming to Thrive this summer will be persuaded to stay at home because of the headlines on CNN. God is going to do great and amazing things this summer. Come be a part!
I would like to assure everyone that we here at Thrive Africa are quite safe. Living on a remote game reserve 3 hours from major cities does have its advantages. The violence is fairly contained to poor township areas around Johannesburg and is rooted in complicated issues of poverty and immigration. South Africans do not hate foreigners in a xenophobic sense at all. I personally was in Qwa qwa just the other day and it was as safe and calm as it always is. I plan to return next week with no fear in my mind. South Africa needs prayer (as does every country) but it is by no means falling into anarchy.
In fact we at Thrive are more than safe here in South Africa, we are blessed.
We are blessed to teach LaunchPad classes that disciple youth in seven locations. We are blessed to take part in an amazing Leadership Summit program that helps students at six different schools in Qwa qwa. We are blessed to facilitate mission teams from America that do ministry house to house and village to village passionately and effectively.
Most of all we are blessed by a God who has given us the opportunity to have an eternal impact in a place where no one else is ministering. My prayer is that no one who is committed to coming to Thrive this summer will be persuaded to stay at home because of the headlines on CNN. God is going to do great and amazing things this summer. Come be a part!
Monday, May 19, 2008
The Logistics of Growth
I had a little reminder of what growth takes this morning. I'm talking about ministry growth not personal growth.
I am in the LaunchPad department here, which is the after school Bible classes that are taught each week in Churches and schools in Qwa-qwa. Right now we have 7 classes in 7 locations with an average attendance between 15-50+. The current term is about to end with a new term starting in August.
A goal the ministry has is to get more Leadership Summit (Thrive's abstinence and leadership course) students to come to LaunchPad. If we meet our goal this would mean 50-100 more students in each class next term. This growth which would be a blessing, also brings tremendous logistical concern.
With more students, we need to figure out how to make the most of each location. How do we organize the game, how do we break up the lesson? How do we do it all in the 90 minutes that we have? Most crucially we need more people. More interns, more staff, more interpreters. Without the workers their can be no harvest.
I saw these issues come up at my camp last summer. I skipped the summer of 06, but between 05 and 07 my camp experienced tremendous growth. We went from having 125-150 kids be a good week to having over 200 as the norm. This brought with it many blessings but many issues too. Most pertinently the staff seemed more stressed more often because simply put there was just more kids. Office work became more of a challenge because there was simply more paper and computer work to do. I do not think we were understaffed we were simply trying to adjust to more people to deal with.
Growth by every measure is a blessing, but a blessing that brings many challenges. The long-term goal of Thrive is to have LaunchPad classes throughout Qwa-qwa (keep in mind an area of 1.8 million people is not small). Thrive wants to have Leadership summit in every school.
The devil certainly does not want this. But can you imagine? Bible teaching and leadership development classes throughout a township where no other outside ministry currently is working. An entire township revolutionized by the godly generation of leaders that it is producing. A country (South Africa) and region (sub-Saharan Africa)changed because of leaders from Qwa-qwa.
This honestly wasn't a fundraising pitch but now that I'm at this point I'll put it out there. Thrive Africa has been slowly growing for ten years. It appears to me that huge and radical growth will happen in just the next year or so. Will you consider giving now at this critical time to impact Africa in a lasting and meaningful way? Thrive will one day be throughout the whole of Qwa-qwa. Will you be able to say that you helped bring this about?
Thanks for reading, blessings.
I am in the LaunchPad department here, which is the after school Bible classes that are taught each week in Churches and schools in Qwa-qwa. Right now we have 7 classes in 7 locations with an average attendance between 15-50+. The current term is about to end with a new term starting in August.
A goal the ministry has is to get more Leadership Summit (Thrive's abstinence and leadership course) students to come to LaunchPad. If we meet our goal this would mean 50-100 more students in each class next term. This growth which would be a blessing, also brings tremendous logistical concern.
With more students, we need to figure out how to make the most of each location. How do we organize the game, how do we break up the lesson? How do we do it all in the 90 minutes that we have? Most crucially we need more people. More interns, more staff, more interpreters. Without the workers their can be no harvest.
I saw these issues come up at my camp last summer. I skipped the summer of 06, but between 05 and 07 my camp experienced tremendous growth. We went from having 125-150 kids be a good week to having over 200 as the norm. This brought with it many blessings but many issues too. Most pertinently the staff seemed more stressed more often because simply put there was just more kids. Office work became more of a challenge because there was simply more paper and computer work to do. I do not think we were understaffed we were simply trying to adjust to more people to deal with.
Growth by every measure is a blessing, but a blessing that brings many challenges. The long-term goal of Thrive is to have LaunchPad classes throughout Qwa-qwa (keep in mind an area of 1.8 million people is not small). Thrive wants to have Leadership summit in every school.
The devil certainly does not want this. But can you imagine? Bible teaching and leadership development classes throughout a township where no other outside ministry currently is working. An entire township revolutionized by the godly generation of leaders that it is producing. A country (South Africa) and region (sub-Saharan Africa)changed because of leaders from Qwa-qwa.
This honestly wasn't a fundraising pitch but now that I'm at this point I'll put it out there. Thrive Africa has been slowly growing for ten years. It appears to me that huge and radical growth will happen in just the next year or so. Will you consider giving now at this critical time to impact Africa in a lasting and meaningful way? Thrive will one day be throughout the whole of Qwa-qwa. Will you be able to say that you helped bring this about?
Thanks for reading, blessings.
Tuesday, May 13, 2008
Running in the Morning
I ran in the early morning here and it was a good enough experience to share with all who read this.
I woke at 6:45 AM this morning to get a run in. I had been running in the afternoons off and on here but days are getting short (remember winter is almost here) and getting done in the morning is the best way. 6 minutes after rolling out of bed I was off. I was surprised at how loose my legs felt, usually running right after waking up, they feel tight and tired.
It was a bit chilly but the sun had risen and was quite brillant in the east. It was quiet and I like quiet. Being a runner I generally like to be alone in my thoughts when I run. Even the simple distraction of a car going by can be annoying. Being on a game reserve in the early morning hours is probably one of the most serene places I have ever run. I have had similiarly peaceful runs in a few other places but here you have a view for miles and miles. If you have the means, I highly reccomend coming here to visit. It is stunningly beautiful.
The only thing out to bug me were animals and they were hardly a nuisance. There were tons by the main road into the reserve and I caused a few small stampedes as the herds of Blesbok and Lechwe sought to keep their distance from me. It's always cool to see the animals. Its a good reminder I am not in America but Africa.
I hope to do early morning runs twice a week. I love the feeling of being in shape and running here is quite nice. I am considering running a marathon in January 2009 in order to qualify for Boston in April 2009. I have plenty of time to get in shape here so we'll see what happens.
I woke at 6:45 AM this morning to get a run in. I had been running in the afternoons off and on here but days are getting short (remember winter is almost here) and getting done in the morning is the best way. 6 minutes after rolling out of bed I was off. I was surprised at how loose my legs felt, usually running right after waking up, they feel tight and tired.
It was a bit chilly but the sun had risen and was quite brillant in the east. It was quiet and I like quiet. Being a runner I generally like to be alone in my thoughts when I run. Even the simple distraction of a car going by can be annoying. Being on a game reserve in the early morning hours is probably one of the most serene places I have ever run. I have had similiarly peaceful runs in a few other places but here you have a view for miles and miles. If you have the means, I highly reccomend coming here to visit. It is stunningly beautiful.
The only thing out to bug me were animals and they were hardly a nuisance. There were tons by the main road into the reserve and I caused a few small stampedes as the herds of Blesbok and Lechwe sought to keep their distance from me. It's always cool to see the animals. Its a good reminder I am not in America but Africa.
I hope to do early morning runs twice a week. I love the feeling of being in shape and running here is quite nice. I am considering running a marathon in January 2009 in order to qualify for Boston in April 2009. I have plenty of time to get in shape here so we'll see what happens.
Friday, May 9, 2008
Random
So its been a while since an entry so I wanted to sum up a few things.
Ircus!
We went to a South African Circus on Tuesday night. While it was only one ring/tent, it was extremely entertaining. The misspelling above is because of a busted light in the sign at the entrance. Their were lions and tigers, acrobats and even quite funny clowns. Its always nice to get off the base but the circus was a special treat. Fun times!
Weather
My mom said people ask her what the weather is like here. Here are some highlights.
It's getting colder but the sun is usually out during the day so that keeps you warm. Often during the afternoons its quite warm outside. At night it gets quite cold but for the past couple weeks its been pretty mild. Sometimes the weather does get very very cold though. On sunday we had rain and clouds 90% of the day and we even had a fierce hail storm for a few minutes, pretty exciting. It'll get a lot colder sooner but we have already had a very small bit of snow. The mountains around Qwa Qwa had snow on their peaks for a few days a couple weeks ago.
Computer
My computer came back but it needs vista installed back on it to work properly. I return to America in a few weeks so I fix it then. Once I have a computer, things will be a lot better.
Praying for the world.
I'm a bit of a geography geek and a while back the other interns got into my head the idea of making a country list to pray for it intrigued me. It took me a while but I finally made the list a few days ago.
Heres how it works.
Each intern gets 20-22 countries. They were divided randomly and everyone has at least one country from each continent.
Its completly optional but I encouraged everyone to learn a little bit about each country and pray for at least one a night.
Heres the awesome part. If we pray for all 20 in a month we will have literally prayed for the entire world. Pretty cool? I thought so too.
LaunchPad and Hopehouse continue to be a joy and Im so happy to be here. Thanks for your prayers.
Ircus!
We went to a South African Circus on Tuesday night. While it was only one ring/tent, it was extremely entertaining. The misspelling above is because of a busted light in the sign at the entrance. Their were lions and tigers, acrobats and even quite funny clowns. Its always nice to get off the base but the circus was a special treat. Fun times!
Weather
My mom said people ask her what the weather is like here. Here are some highlights.
It's getting colder but the sun is usually out during the day so that keeps you warm. Often during the afternoons its quite warm outside. At night it gets quite cold but for the past couple weeks its been pretty mild. Sometimes the weather does get very very cold though. On sunday we had rain and clouds 90% of the day and we even had a fierce hail storm for a few minutes, pretty exciting. It'll get a lot colder sooner but we have already had a very small bit of snow. The mountains around Qwa Qwa had snow on their peaks for a few days a couple weeks ago.
Computer
My computer came back but it needs vista installed back on it to work properly. I return to America in a few weeks so I fix it then. Once I have a computer, things will be a lot better.
Praying for the world.
I'm a bit of a geography geek and a while back the other interns got into my head the idea of making a country list to pray for it intrigued me. It took me a while but I finally made the list a few days ago.
Heres how it works.
Each intern gets 20-22 countries. They were divided randomly and everyone has at least one country from each continent.
Its completly optional but I encouraged everyone to learn a little bit about each country and pray for at least one a night.
Heres the awesome part. If we pray for all 20 in a month we will have literally prayed for the entire world. Pretty cool? I thought so too.
LaunchPad and Hopehouse continue to be a joy and Im so happy to be here. Thanks for your prayers.
Monday, April 28, 2008
Cornerstone Church
Hey Everyone!
Sorry for no updates since Botswana.
I still don't have my own laptop back. While it is getting fixed for free (which is fantastic) its taking a long time to get sent back. It's not a burden but it is annoying asking someone every time I want to do some work or write an email.
In any case a mission team from Cornerstone Church in Michigan was here with us this past week and were a total blessing. While it was an adult team they had a totally child-like passion for the ministry they were doing and did a fantastic job.
Two days last week I got to go out with the teams in Qwa Qwa and helped them start relationship evangelism.
Going out with them was great and totally fired me back up about being here. Some of the group had come last year and knew/remembered people who they had met from the year before.
One family had two older ladies as well as a crippled brother named Sco (not sure of spelling). We spent a few minutes with them and when they brought Sco out into the room he just smiled from ear to ear. He was so happy to see his friends return. We prayed for that family as well as a number of others. We planted a garden for a woman where she could plant vegetables and gave families bibles in Sesotho (the local language).
I also helped with an afternoon of children's ministry where the team basically led songs, games and Bible lessons for close to 100 kids the entire afternoon. While I was basically crowd control I had a great time just hanging with the kids trying to make conversation.
I feel almost comfortable now with being in Qwa Qwa amongst the people and it is really awesome. Thanks so much for your prayer and support. Lives are being changed here, one by one.
Blessings.
Sorry for no updates since Botswana.
I still don't have my own laptop back. While it is getting fixed for free (which is fantastic) its taking a long time to get sent back. It's not a burden but it is annoying asking someone every time I want to do some work or write an email.
In any case a mission team from Cornerstone Church in Michigan was here with us this past week and were a total blessing. While it was an adult team they had a totally child-like passion for the ministry they were doing and did a fantastic job.
Two days last week I got to go out with the teams in Qwa Qwa and helped them start relationship evangelism.
Going out with them was great and totally fired me back up about being here. Some of the group had come last year and knew/remembered people who they had met from the year before.
One family had two older ladies as well as a crippled brother named Sco (not sure of spelling). We spent a few minutes with them and when they brought Sco out into the room he just smiled from ear to ear. He was so happy to see his friends return. We prayed for that family as well as a number of others. We planted a garden for a woman where she could plant vegetables and gave families bibles in Sesotho (the local language).
I also helped with an afternoon of children's ministry where the team basically led songs, games and Bible lessons for close to 100 kids the entire afternoon. While I was basically crowd control I had a great time just hanging with the kids trying to make conversation.
I feel almost comfortable now with being in Qwa Qwa amongst the people and it is really awesome. Thanks so much for your prayer and support. Lives are being changed here, one by one.
Blessings.
Saturday, April 19, 2008
Botswana Part 4 (Back Home!)
Written 4-6-08
I have returned safely from Botswana! It was another long drive through the desert but we made it. Our trip was a great success. We finished sanding all the floors, painted all the ceilings and walls, and gave the floors and windows their first coat of varnish. One on the interns, Matt Moline, who has significant construction experience, completely re-tiled a bathroom and a vanity.
We worked 9-12+ hour days with our only break being a half-day on Sunday for church. While it still has some minor work to be completed, we did in 10 days what LBOM would take weeks or even months to do. With Matt's and others expertise we also did it properly. While the work was long and hard we did get to use our last day to relax at a lodge in Maun called Audi Camp. This place had a pool and a restaurant and we got to relax and swim the entire day as well as enjoy two fabulous meals.
It is very strange being back on the base in Harrismith and tomorrow we jump right back into term 2 with classes, work and ministry.
It was really wonderful to see and spend time in another country and to see and help another ministry. Stay tuned for my newsletter and photos of my trip.
Here's to Africa!
I have returned safely from Botswana! It was another long drive through the desert but we made it. Our trip was a great success. We finished sanding all the floors, painted all the ceilings and walls, and gave the floors and windows their first coat of varnish. One on the interns, Matt Moline, who has significant construction experience, completely re-tiled a bathroom and a vanity.
We worked 9-12+ hour days with our only break being a half-day on Sunday for church. While it still has some minor work to be completed, we did in 10 days what LBOM would take weeks or even months to do. With Matt's and others expertise we also did it properly. While the work was long and hard we did get to use our last day to relax at a lodge in Maun called Audi Camp. This place had a pool and a restaurant and we got to relax and swim the entire day as well as enjoy two fabulous meals.
It is very strange being back on the base in Harrismith and tomorrow we jump right back into term 2 with classes, work and ministry.
It was really wonderful to see and spend time in another country and to see and help another ministry. Stay tuned for my newsletter and photos of my trip.
Here's to Africa!
Wednesday, April 16, 2008
Botswana Part 3 (Church & Daisy)
Written 3-31-08
Yesterday we got a welcome respite from our work for half a day and we got to go to the church in Maun that LBOM started. While we did not go to the actual service we ending up doing something just as rewarding, we helped with the children's ministry.
All kids from preschool-grade 5 meet separately from the adults. After some singing and talking they split into age groups to do different stations. I volunteered to be at the teaching station w/ Daisy, an awesome older lady who superbly translated for me as I read the story of the Ascension.
After teaching, the kids went to play games and I ended up chatting more with Daisy. She was a fantastic woman who just loved the kids and would randomly pray for the youth as we taught and chatted.
She told me about her life and how God had brought her from South Africa to Maun. She then asked me about my testimony and I told her about my life and how I got to Botswana. Half way through my story Daisy stopped me and showed me her arm, "Look" she said, "Goose pimples." It was at this moment that I realized how extraordinary our conversation was and how God had brought us together for that very moment.
Daisy had such joy and it just poured over into me. Near the end of the chat as I was telling her about my family she put her hand on my shoulder and prayed for me. Her kindness and spirit struck right through me. Her 6 year old granddaughter came over at one point after this and I ended up praying that her parents would come to church.
It was such a pleasure to meet Daisy and it was a great privilege to teach and bless the kids here. God is truly working here across the ocean and I can only stand back in awe.
Yesterday we got a welcome respite from our work for half a day and we got to go to the church in Maun that LBOM started. While we did not go to the actual service we ending up doing something just as rewarding, we helped with the children's ministry.
All kids from preschool-grade 5 meet separately from the adults. After some singing and talking they split into age groups to do different stations. I volunteered to be at the teaching station w/ Daisy, an awesome older lady who superbly translated for me as I read the story of the Ascension.
After teaching, the kids went to play games and I ended up chatting more with Daisy. She was a fantastic woman who just loved the kids and would randomly pray for the youth as we taught and chatted.
She told me about her life and how God had brought her from South Africa to Maun. She then asked me about my testimony and I told her about my life and how I got to Botswana. Half way through my story Daisy stopped me and showed me her arm, "Look" she said, "Goose pimples." It was at this moment that I realized how extraordinary our conversation was and how God had brought us together for that very moment.
Daisy had such joy and it just poured over into me. Near the end of the chat as I was telling her about my family she put her hand on my shoulder and prayed for me. Her kindness and spirit struck right through me. Her 6 year old granddaughter came over at one point after this and I ended up praying that her parents would come to church.
It was such a pleasure to meet Daisy and it was a great privilege to teach and bless the kids here. God is truly working here across the ocean and I can only stand back in awe.
Botswana part 2
Written 3-28-08
I just finished my third day of work here and things are going relatively well. We have quite a job to do. We are completely renovating a house on the Love Botswana Property that will be used for housing for LBOM interns. We are sanding down all the floors, painting the ceiling and walls, and then varnishing the floors. I have become good friends with the power sanding tools, taking care of the edges and corners in rooms so the big sander can come in and do the rest.
We are working long hours so that we can finish before we leave but I feel much better than my first two days working. LBOM looks like a great and established ministry and it is great to help them even in this indirect way.
I just finished my third day of work here and things are going relatively well. We have quite a job to do. We are completely renovating a house on the Love Botswana Property that will be used for housing for LBOM interns. We are sanding down all the floors, painting the ceiling and walls, and then varnishing the floors. I have become good friends with the power sanding tools, taking care of the edges and corners in rooms so the big sander can come in and do the rest.
We are working long hours so that we can finish before we leave but I feel much better than my first two days working. LBOM looks like a great and established ministry and it is great to help them even in this indirect way.
Thursday, April 10, 2008
Back from Botswana!
Note: While I was away I did not have internet access but I did write 4 blog entries to post when I got back. I'm having computer issues here (read I don't currently have one to use) so me posting them will be slightly delayed but I hope to post them every couple days. Pictures will be up ASAP also. Enjoy the blogs and more news to come.
Blog entry written 3-25-08
I’ve made it to Maun, Botswana safely. Our trip took two days, most of which was in a car but it wasn’t too bad. The first day we drove 7 hours to the border and spent the night at a nice, if humble, guesthouse. The next morning we woke at 6 AM and by 7:30 we were in Botswana.
The first thing I noticed about Botswana is that there is not much to notice. Our drive took us past miles of scrubby desert bush and squatty tress. I slept and read off and on but was usually woken by Neil (who drove us) blasting his horn to get animals out of the road. Donkeys, Cows, and goats all were present and all cared little about getting out of the way of fast moving vehicles. We were actually driving through the Kalahari Desert but there was no sand just scrub and nothingness. We did go through a few towns where we got gas, snacks and bathrooms and had pizza for lunch at the Kalahari Arms Hotel in Ghanzi. We arrived in Maun around 6:30PM, made dinner and settled in. All is well and our work starts tomorrow after a tour. Here’s to Africa!
Blog entry written 3-25-08
I’ve made it to Maun, Botswana safely. Our trip took two days, most of which was in a car but it wasn’t too bad. The first day we drove 7 hours to the border and spent the night at a nice, if humble, guesthouse. The next morning we woke at 6 AM and by 7:30 we were in Botswana.
The first thing I noticed about Botswana is that there is not much to notice. Our drive took us past miles of scrubby desert bush and squatty tress. I slept and read off and on but was usually woken by Neil (who drove us) blasting his horn to get animals out of the road. Donkeys, Cows, and goats all were present and all cared little about getting out of the way of fast moving vehicles. We were actually driving through the Kalahari Desert but there was no sand just scrub and nothingness. We did go through a few towns where we got gas, snacks and bathrooms and had pizza for lunch at the Kalahari Arms Hotel in Ghanzi. We arrived in Maun around 6:30PM, made dinner and settled in. All is well and our work starts tomorrow after a tour. Here’s to Africa!
Sunday, March 23, 2008
Leaving for Botswana
I'm leaving for Botswana tomorrow morning bright and early at 7:30AM. Please pray for safe travels and a fruitful trip. It will be a difficult trip doing hard work in hot weather but I'm looking forward to seeing more of the continent.
I will have no internet access for the next two weeks so no updates will be forthcoming but I plan to have tons of pictures posted when I get back and look forward to blogging about it.
Till then happy Easter and God Bless!
I will have no internet access for the next two weeks so no updates will be forthcoming but I plan to have tons of pictures posted when I get back and look forward to blogging about it.
Till then happy Easter and God Bless!
Thursday, March 20, 2008
Thoughts On Easter
It is Holy Week so I thought it would be good to write a message that was back to more spiritual things.
Before we had Thrive Church tonight I was flipping through my Bible. I usually do this at this time because I have nothing else to do. I found myself at Isaiah 58. The section was titled "True Fasting." A couple interns have fasted recently so I was intrigued. I had no memory of this section before.
Basically it goes over a scene of people who want to be closer to God and say "look at the fasting and things we have done, why haven't you responded?"
God replies essentially saying "Away with you!" "You may have fasted but you were still harsh to your neighbor, you have only thought of yourself during the entire time."
God then describes the fast he desires in verses 6-10. Basically he says when you fast don't think of yourself but think of others.
Here is my point. In much of Christendom today we have uplifted personal piety over simple obedience to God.
We do many prayers, and we attend many church events and we buy many Christian books all in the hope of feeling closer to God. We try to be holy at all times and we end up judging harshly the people who do not meet the standard we have set for ourselves.
The problems with this are myriad but can be summed up concisely: they are all me-centered, not God centered.
Christianity is the one religion where God through his infinite mercy and grace has brought himself close to us. He paid the price, he died on the cross, he defeated sin and he gave us the Holy Spirit. Why are we trying to do so much to be close to a God who is already right next to us?
It is also striking how much we uplift ourselves over others. Many Christians, including myself, often act as little more then self-righteous pharisees. We pray loudly and repeatedly, we surround ourselves with only Christian people and we dismiss with a scoff the many people who are literally dying to get some of the truth that has been so generously bestowed upon us. Again we see our faith as only about ourselves, not about God.
God does not want our prayers, our sacrifices, our church attendance. He wants our hearts. He wants us to be completely sold out for him and he wants us to lift his name above every other. I am not saying that doing religious things are bad, they are essential; but to do them with the wrong heart makes them worthless.
This Easter I pray that we look beyond ourselves. I pray that our attitudes will be the same as Christ Jesus (Philippians 2:5) I pray that we see others as better than ourselves. And I pray that we will recognize that while we are completely unworthy of any blessing we have received from God he gives them to us anyway. He made the ultimate sacrifice, he doesn't need anymore.
Let us follow God with all of our heart, soul, and mind this Easter and through that let us change the World, not for our glory, but for His.
God Bless.
Before we had Thrive Church tonight I was flipping through my Bible. I usually do this at this time because I have nothing else to do. I found myself at Isaiah 58. The section was titled "True Fasting." A couple interns have fasted recently so I was intrigued. I had no memory of this section before.
Basically it goes over a scene of people who want to be closer to God and say "look at the fasting and things we have done, why haven't you responded?"
God replies essentially saying "Away with you!" "You may have fasted but you were still harsh to your neighbor, you have only thought of yourself during the entire time."
God then describes the fast he desires in verses 6-10. Basically he says when you fast don't think of yourself but think of others.
Here is my point. In much of Christendom today we have uplifted personal piety over simple obedience to God.
We do many prayers, and we attend many church events and we buy many Christian books all in the hope of feeling closer to God. We try to be holy at all times and we end up judging harshly the people who do not meet the standard we have set for ourselves.
The problems with this are myriad but can be summed up concisely: they are all me-centered, not God centered.
Christianity is the one religion where God through his infinite mercy and grace has brought himself close to us. He paid the price, he died on the cross, he defeated sin and he gave us the Holy Spirit. Why are we trying to do so much to be close to a God who is already right next to us?
It is also striking how much we uplift ourselves over others. Many Christians, including myself, often act as little more then self-righteous pharisees. We pray loudly and repeatedly, we surround ourselves with only Christian people and we dismiss with a scoff the many people who are literally dying to get some of the truth that has been so generously bestowed upon us. Again we see our faith as only about ourselves, not about God.
God does not want our prayers, our sacrifices, our church attendance. He wants our hearts. He wants us to be completely sold out for him and he wants us to lift his name above every other. I am not saying that doing religious things are bad, they are essential; but to do them with the wrong heart makes them worthless.
This Easter I pray that we look beyond ourselves. I pray that our attitudes will be the same as Christ Jesus (Philippians 2:5) I pray that we see others as better than ourselves. And I pray that we will recognize that while we are completely unworthy of any blessing we have received from God he gives them to us anyway. He made the ultimate sacrifice, he doesn't need anymore.
Let us follow God with all of our heart, soul, and mind this Easter and through that let us change the World, not for our glory, but for His.
God Bless.
Friday, March 14, 2008
LaunchPad & Hope House
I thought it would be good to write about my two major ministry activities here. These are the LaunchPad class I teach weekly and Hope House, the orphanage we visit weekly.
Here is some brief information about each and how they are going.
LaunchPad
LaunchPad is Thrive Africa's Biblical discipleship classes. Currently 7 classes are taught each week in different locations in the townships of Intabazwe, Qwa Qwa and the surrounding areas.
The classes are on a few different topics. Some are Foundations of Faith, some are Being a Contagious Christian. The one I teach is called "Christ In you" which I teach with another intern named Kaylen. We teach at the Botisbelo Secondary (High) School in Qwa Qwa.
The classes focus on how we are changed when we become Christians and how we should live with Christ in us. We have a curriculum of 10 different lessons that have scripture and points, but we have to go over each lesson to put examples in and personal stories. It has been a challenge to get used to teaching each week but I think my examples are getting better and my eye contact with my class is definitely improving.
The first lesson we gave the kids a chance to accept Jesus before we started so Christ was really in them. Most of the 11 or twelve there accepted. It is awesome to not only see salvation decisions but to be able to pour into these high schoolers lives with the Word and Spirit. While attendance fluctuates, we have a good core of about ten students who have comes every week. Our last few weeks we have had over 20 students with a high of 29 students.
Pray that these students will continue to grow as we teach them. They are so eager to learn about God and it is a privilege to be able to teach them.
Hope House
Hope House is the highlight of my week. Every friday (today) we go and spending a couple hours with the kids. There are about 40 ranging from babies to high schoolers. We teach them a bible lesson, do a craft with them and play games with them. While we have only been going for just under two months we all know each other well now and have giant smiles when we meet each other. Some of the younger toddlers stand at the fence as we get into our cars to leave.
Last week we led the kids in a salvation prayer. It appeared that most of the older ones were eager to pray. These kids are all so precious and it it awesome to have fun with them.
Pray for them, at least one of the babies has HIV and others do too (we do not know which ones do or don't of course.) Pray that they will grow in love and confidence in order to become the leaders of tomorrow.
Your support is making this possible. I can't thank you all enough. Blessings.
Here is some brief information about each and how they are going.
LaunchPad
LaunchPad is Thrive Africa's Biblical discipleship classes. Currently 7 classes are taught each week in different locations in the townships of Intabazwe, Qwa Qwa and the surrounding areas.
The classes are on a few different topics. Some are Foundations of Faith, some are Being a Contagious Christian. The one I teach is called "Christ In you" which I teach with another intern named Kaylen. We teach at the Botisbelo Secondary (High) School in Qwa Qwa.
The classes focus on how we are changed when we become Christians and how we should live with Christ in us. We have a curriculum of 10 different lessons that have scripture and points, but we have to go over each lesson to put examples in and personal stories. It has been a challenge to get used to teaching each week but I think my examples are getting better and my eye contact with my class is definitely improving.
The first lesson we gave the kids a chance to accept Jesus before we started so Christ was really in them. Most of the 11 or twelve there accepted. It is awesome to not only see salvation decisions but to be able to pour into these high schoolers lives with the Word and Spirit. While attendance fluctuates, we have a good core of about ten students who have comes every week. Our last few weeks we have had over 20 students with a high of 29 students.
Pray that these students will continue to grow as we teach them. They are so eager to learn about God and it is a privilege to be able to teach them.
Hope House
Hope House is the highlight of my week. Every friday (today) we go and spending a couple hours with the kids. There are about 40 ranging from babies to high schoolers. We teach them a bible lesson, do a craft with them and play games with them. While we have only been going for just under two months we all know each other well now and have giant smiles when we meet each other. Some of the younger toddlers stand at the fence as we get into our cars to leave.
Last week we led the kids in a salvation prayer. It appeared that most of the older ones were eager to pray. These kids are all so precious and it it awesome to have fun with them.
Pray for them, at least one of the babies has HIV and others do too (we do not know which ones do or don't of course.) Pray that they will grow in love and confidence in order to become the leaders of tomorrow.
Your support is making this possible. I can't thank you all enough. Blessings.
Tuesday, March 11, 2008
African Church (and other things)
The first mission team arrived (from Desert Springs, Arizona) on Saturday night and that meant we were able to go to African Church on Sunday Morning!
I had never been to an African church so I got decked out. I put on my pair of khakis that I had been saving for special occasions and I even tucked my shirt in which I never do.
We went to New Life Church in Intabazwe, the smaller township that is right next to Harrismith. The Pastor was a big jolly looking man named Mbana who was in a Hawaiian style t-shirt that was loud and proud for Jesus. His bright gold watch and ring was a bit disconcerting to see in such a place of poverty but regardless this guy was completely sold out for Jesus.
The actual church building was barely larger than the one room in my home church that I helped teach sunday school in. However as we walked into to hear the music and singing we knew we were in a place of God.
It was a nice reminder to see people who were passionate for Jesus even though they did not have a million dollar building or even a building with more than one large room.
After singing for 15-20 minutes we had great joy when a bunch of the older kids from Hope House walked in. They seemed as happy to see us as we were them and one even came over and sat with us. Their smiling faces are a great joy for me here.
Singing is generally accompanied by swinging hips here and while I didn't get that far in my worship I did get started clapping my hands and swaying as best I could. I honestly love hearing the combined singing of others more than singing out loud myself. In any case the songs, a mixture of sesotho and english were great.
One thing I must point out is the absolutely crazy interpretation during church. Whoever is speaking is interpreted by someone but they change languages constantly. It is an interpreters nightmare I imagine. One second the speaker is doing sesotho, then english, then zulu. Its fun to behold.
African church was lots of fun and I enjoyed being more deeply in the culture and seeing how they worship. I look forward to returning.
Computer Issues
On a sad note my totally awesome laptop had its hard drive busted during an unfortunate accident by one of my fellow interns. While Ive only had it for a few months so I did not lose much data is it very sad. Right now I am typing this entry on a ghetto laptop that Thrive has as an extra. I hope to get my laptop fixed soon but until then Im stuck with this. I may not be as able to upload pictures as easily but I'll let you know about that. Finally I will probably start writing my monthly newsletter next week. Stay tuned!
I had never been to an African church so I got decked out. I put on my pair of khakis that I had been saving for special occasions and I even tucked my shirt in which I never do.
We went to New Life Church in Intabazwe, the smaller township that is right next to Harrismith. The Pastor was a big jolly looking man named Mbana who was in a Hawaiian style t-shirt that was loud and proud for Jesus. His bright gold watch and ring was a bit disconcerting to see in such a place of poverty but regardless this guy was completely sold out for Jesus.
The actual church building was barely larger than the one room in my home church that I helped teach sunday school in. However as we walked into to hear the music and singing we knew we were in a place of God.
It was a nice reminder to see people who were passionate for Jesus even though they did not have a million dollar building or even a building with more than one large room.
After singing for 15-20 minutes we had great joy when a bunch of the older kids from Hope House walked in. They seemed as happy to see us as we were them and one even came over and sat with us. Their smiling faces are a great joy for me here.
Singing is generally accompanied by swinging hips here and while I didn't get that far in my worship I did get started clapping my hands and swaying as best I could. I honestly love hearing the combined singing of others more than singing out loud myself. In any case the songs, a mixture of sesotho and english were great.
One thing I must point out is the absolutely crazy interpretation during church. Whoever is speaking is interpreted by someone but they change languages constantly. It is an interpreters nightmare I imagine. One second the speaker is doing sesotho, then english, then zulu. Its fun to behold.
African church was lots of fun and I enjoyed being more deeply in the culture and seeing how they worship. I look forward to returning.
Computer Issues
On a sad note my totally awesome laptop had its hard drive busted during an unfortunate accident by one of my fellow interns. While Ive only had it for a few months so I did not lose much data is it very sad. Right now I am typing this entry on a ghetto laptop that Thrive has as an extra. I hope to get my laptop fixed soon but until then Im stuck with this. I may not be as able to upload pictures as easily but I'll let you know about that. Finally I will probably start writing my monthly newsletter next week. Stay tuned!
Thursday, March 6, 2008
Living the African Life, Southern Style
I realized my last few entries haven't given a good idea of day to day life here. Here are a bunch of random details and stuff thats going on that will hopefully feel more connected to my time here.
First I should say that internet is actually quite good considering where I am. Right now I'm typing this halfway up a mountain on the middle of a game reserve. I'm over 2km from the entrance of the reserve that merely opens up to a dirt road. Take a left on the road and follow for probably close to 5k will take you to an actual tar road. Take another left follow for probably 8k and you reach the N3, The Main Highway between Johannesburg and Durban. Harrismith is only about 5 minutes from this point. Harrismith is a nice quaint town that we visit once a week to enjoy. During our town time we buy groceries for the next week, do light shopping, pick up mail and visit KFC (the only fastfood in the town). We have begun to frequent a local coffee shop that has quite good shakes and desert beverages. Its small but a very nice little town.
Running on the base is becoming much more enjoyable. We are close to 6000 ft in elevation and if you have never run much let me describe this to you. Running up a hill at elevation is like taking the worst hill that you've ever hiked up and doubling its gradient and length. Lets just say the lungs aren't too pleased with you when you crest the top. Thinking about it your legs feel like crap too.
It is getting better though and to be honest there is a hill that I have run in New Hampshire that was considerably worst than anything I have run before. Im getting about 3-4 runs in a week and get to enjoy seeing the local game during almost every run. Lechwe are quite beautiful as are blesbok. Look them up if you don't know what Im talking about. I just had my best run here on tuesday. It was cool late afternoon and my lungs felt good and my legs felt even better. Being able to run here is awesome.
Living accommodations here are quite nice but you have to come to terms with the reality of moths. Every night you get used to seeing moths flying around and killing at least a few. They can be annoying but generally aren't too bad to deal with. You also get used to persistent flies buzzing around your head during the day. Again a minor annoyance but not a big deal.
An annoying thing is that two of the last few nights we were visited by a bat in our cabin. Getting them out made for a bit of an unwelcome night-time activity but I'm looking forward to a bat free night tonight.
I'll have an entry about ministry soon. I wanted to tell you all that I leave for Botswana on March 25th. We are going to northern Botswana for about 2 weeks to help out the ministry Love Botswana Outreach mission (www.lovebotswana.com) We will be doing hard manual labor lightly renovating a house as well as anything else needed.
Please pray for me as I seek to prepare my heart for this new experience. It will be hot, hard and tiring but we get to bless an awesome ministry so Im excited for another opportunity.
Launchpad and Hope house are going amazing. Please pray for growth in the students I teach and that they will live out living with Christ on a day-to-day basis.
If you have not done this already bookmark www.thriveafrica.org. They have great near daily updates in their field blogs as well as great pictures of me and the other interns doing our thing here.
Thank you for your support and be blessed.
First I should say that internet is actually quite good considering where I am. Right now I'm typing this halfway up a mountain on the middle of a game reserve. I'm over 2km from the entrance of the reserve that merely opens up to a dirt road. Take a left on the road and follow for probably close to 5k will take you to an actual tar road. Take another left follow for probably 8k and you reach the N3, The Main Highway between Johannesburg and Durban. Harrismith is only about 5 minutes from this point. Harrismith is a nice quaint town that we visit once a week to enjoy. During our town time we buy groceries for the next week, do light shopping, pick up mail and visit KFC (the only fastfood in the town). We have begun to frequent a local coffee shop that has quite good shakes and desert beverages. Its small but a very nice little town.
Running on the base is becoming much more enjoyable. We are close to 6000 ft in elevation and if you have never run much let me describe this to you. Running up a hill at elevation is like taking the worst hill that you've ever hiked up and doubling its gradient and length. Lets just say the lungs aren't too pleased with you when you crest the top. Thinking about it your legs feel like crap too.
It is getting better though and to be honest there is a hill that I have run in New Hampshire that was considerably worst than anything I have run before. Im getting about 3-4 runs in a week and get to enjoy seeing the local game during almost every run. Lechwe are quite beautiful as are blesbok. Look them up if you don't know what Im talking about. I just had my best run here on tuesday. It was cool late afternoon and my lungs felt good and my legs felt even better. Being able to run here is awesome.
Living accommodations here are quite nice but you have to come to terms with the reality of moths. Every night you get used to seeing moths flying around and killing at least a few. They can be annoying but generally aren't too bad to deal with. You also get used to persistent flies buzzing around your head during the day. Again a minor annoyance but not a big deal.
An annoying thing is that two of the last few nights we were visited by a bat in our cabin. Getting them out made for a bit of an unwelcome night-time activity but I'm looking forward to a bat free night tonight.
I'll have an entry about ministry soon. I wanted to tell you all that I leave for Botswana on March 25th. We are going to northern Botswana for about 2 weeks to help out the ministry Love Botswana Outreach mission (www.lovebotswana.com) We will be doing hard manual labor lightly renovating a house as well as anything else needed.
Please pray for me as I seek to prepare my heart for this new experience. It will be hot, hard and tiring but we get to bless an awesome ministry so Im excited for another opportunity.
Launchpad and Hope house are going amazing. Please pray for growth in the students I teach and that they will live out living with Christ on a day-to-day basis.
If you have not done this already bookmark www.thriveafrica.org. They have great near daily updates in their field blogs as well as great pictures of me and the other interns doing our thing here.
Thank you for your support and be blessed.
Sunday, March 2, 2008
Religion versus Spirituality
Being here, an ocean away from the distractions of home and focusing so much on God and Christianity, questions about my own faith are being raised constantly. Here are some thoughts on this subject.
Ready for a bombshell? I consider myself far more religious than I do spiritual. Now I know it is much more fashionable for evangelicals to say they are spiritual and that they hate the word religion but hopefully I can shed light on why I am the opposite and maybe even put forward an argument on why being religious is better for me than being spiritual.
Christians often use the following phrases: “God told me to do this”, “I am waiting for God’s call in my life”
I never use this language because I would be lying if I did. God has never spoken to me in a literal sense or even a more figurative sense, such as a dream or a vision. I can see the many blessings God has given me in my life and I can see how God has led me to this point (see the first entry of my blog) but he does not speak to me in the spiritual sense. Many Christians say “I’m waiting for God’s call in my life” and too often it seems like it ends up being a cop-out in order to continue the status-quo.
Honestly if I waited for God’s call in my life to do something I would have done nothing up to this point in my life. I did not decide to apply and go to South Africa because God spoke to me. I came because it was the best opportunity that was put before me and because I have always wanted to go to Africa and because it was the right thing as a Christian to do.
I am more religious than spiritual. I go to church weekly on my own volition. I read the Bible more or less daily. Rather than have devotions I read straight-through the Bible chapter by chapter. I am almost completed reading the Bible for the second time in this manner. I have studied apologetics thoroughly and excessively. I pray daily and while it has become more spiritual here, it is still something I am not great at. I know Christianity, I know its doctrines and I know why I believe them. Overall, Christianity is as intellectual for me as it is spiritual, if not more so. I do not say this to point out that I am better than anyone (I'm not) but to show how being religious more than spiritual has worked for me.
The other day a fellow intern announced to us that she was going to do a two-week fast from TV, non-worship music, and food. She is doing this because she prayed and God told her to do this fast and during it God would tell him the vision she had for her. Let me be clear, I have no doubt that God spoke to her and this fast is completely genuine. As my friend, I hope God blesses her experience and I look forward to hearing about how God spoke to her during the next two weeks. I believe and am glad for all the spirituality in Christians today, but this is not me at least not at the moment.
In today’s pluralistic Western culture many Christians are trying to win people to Christ by saying it’s not religion it’s a relationship, it’s spiritual. That is all well and good but I think we must tread carefully. Christianity unmoored from its Biblical, historical, doctrinal truths can quickly become little more than glorified New Age feel-good mysticism. (There are examples of mysticism in the Bible, including certain visions, but I mention it here with its negative, non-Christian connotation).
I do not write this to make everyone more religious. I write this because Christianity is so rich, so wonderful, and so true, that it can speak to everyone. It can speak to me as an excessively logical, educated, western American and it can speak to the poor Indian Hindu child who has never owned a thing in his life and it can speak to the formerly New Age pagan who used to believe that everything was spirit. Christianity is the great truth of our existence and I would feel greatly saddened if it was restricted to only one understanding of it.
May God Bless you as you discover how Christianity and its truth is meaningful for you.
Ready for a bombshell? I consider myself far more religious than I do spiritual. Now I know it is much more fashionable for evangelicals to say they are spiritual and that they hate the word religion but hopefully I can shed light on why I am the opposite and maybe even put forward an argument on why being religious is better for me than being spiritual.
Christians often use the following phrases: “God told me to do this”, “I am waiting for God’s call in my life”
I never use this language because I would be lying if I did. God has never spoken to me in a literal sense or even a more figurative sense, such as a dream or a vision. I can see the many blessings God has given me in my life and I can see how God has led me to this point (see the first entry of my blog) but he does not speak to me in the spiritual sense. Many Christians say “I’m waiting for God’s call in my life” and too often it seems like it ends up being a cop-out in order to continue the status-quo.
Honestly if I waited for God’s call in my life to do something I would have done nothing up to this point in my life. I did not decide to apply and go to South Africa because God spoke to me. I came because it was the best opportunity that was put before me and because I have always wanted to go to Africa and because it was the right thing as a Christian to do.
I am more religious than spiritual. I go to church weekly on my own volition. I read the Bible more or less daily. Rather than have devotions I read straight-through the Bible chapter by chapter. I am almost completed reading the Bible for the second time in this manner. I have studied apologetics thoroughly and excessively. I pray daily and while it has become more spiritual here, it is still something I am not great at. I know Christianity, I know its doctrines and I know why I believe them. Overall, Christianity is as intellectual for me as it is spiritual, if not more so. I do not say this to point out that I am better than anyone (I'm not) but to show how being religious more than spiritual has worked for me.
The other day a fellow intern announced to us that she was going to do a two-week fast from TV, non-worship music, and food. She is doing this because she prayed and God told her to do this fast and during it God would tell him the vision she had for her. Let me be clear, I have no doubt that God spoke to her and this fast is completely genuine. As my friend, I hope God blesses her experience and I look forward to hearing about how God spoke to her during the next two weeks. I believe and am glad for all the spirituality in Christians today, but this is not me at least not at the moment.
In today’s pluralistic Western culture many Christians are trying to win people to Christ by saying it’s not religion it’s a relationship, it’s spiritual. That is all well and good but I think we must tread carefully. Christianity unmoored from its Biblical, historical, doctrinal truths can quickly become little more than glorified New Age feel-good mysticism. (There are examples of mysticism in the Bible, including certain visions, but I mention it here with its negative, non-Christian connotation).
I do not write this to make everyone more religious. I write this because Christianity is so rich, so wonderful, and so true, that it can speak to everyone. It can speak to me as an excessively logical, educated, western American and it can speak to the poor Indian Hindu child who has never owned a thing in his life and it can speak to the formerly New Age pagan who used to believe that everything was spirit. Christianity is the great truth of our existence and I would feel greatly saddened if it was restricted to only one understanding of it.
May God Bless you as you discover how Christianity and its truth is meaningful for you.
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