15 December 2008

Fire in the... bins?

As Mosaic was about to get started yesterday, and I was just switching my mobile phone to silent, Jasheen (ill at home) rang frantically, "Chris, the bins are on fire!!!"

The bins she was referring to sit unattractively to the left of our front window.  Due to the increased size of todays' waste bins, the excessive rubbish produced by an average family, and the fact that there are three families that occupy our building, we have three large brown plastic bins for organic garden waste, three large blue plastic bins for recyclables, and five large green plastic bins for other rubbish - scratch that - we HAD five large green plastic bins for other rubbish.

"Chris, the bins are on fire!!!" 
There's pretty much only one response to that phrase, "WHAT ARE YOU TALKING ABOUT??? WHAT BINS?!?!?"
"The green bins.  They're on fire," Jasheen repeated.

What followed was a realtime report of what was happening, from dialing 999 (Emergency), to attempting to douse the 6' flames with a bucket of water (which seemed only to make the blaze spit sparks in all directions), to a description of the trail the fire was blazing, to the arrival of the hunky firemen who finally conquered the inferno.

We were left with a hunk of molten plastic, ash and charred debris.  Remember the Simpson's episode when Bart accidently burned down their Christmas tree and all their presents, and then buried the evidence in the snow?  Well, our bins look like that; one solid piece of melted gunk.

It's oddly funny, actually.  On Saturday we woke to discover that our boiler wasn't working properly and we could not heat our flat - it's winter here and the temperature outside is literally freezing.  Being an old, drafty structure, our flat gets really cold really fast if there is no heat.  We spent most of the entire day in the lounge with a space heater while the rest of the flat was a meat locker.  Needless to say, it was challenging to have a good attitude... especially since we've all been sick.
So we watched TV... and what did we watch?  Extreme Makeover: Home Edition - that show where a disadvantaged family goes from a shack to a mansion in a massive exhibition of compassion, goodwill and free advertising.  It really helped put things in perspective, and by the end of the fourth episode - yeah, it was on back-to-back all day long - we were very grateful for our freezing, drafty, old flat.

Our gratefulness extended through Sunday as we thanked God for the couple who came knocking on our door to tell us that the bins were on fire right next to our living room window. Who knows how bad it could have been if no one was home to call 999?

1 December 2008

St. Andrews Day


Today we celebrated Scotland's main national holiday, St. Andrews Day.  While I won't go into detail about the history of the holiday, I thought I'd share a St. Andrews prayer:

O Christ, our Lord,
Who didst beautify the most blessed Andrew
with the grace of apostleship,
and the crown of martyrdom,
by granting to him this special gift,
that by preaching the mystery of the cross,
he should merit death on the cross;
grant us to become most true lovers of Thy holy cross,
and deny ourselves,
to take up your cross
and follow Thee;
that by sharing Thy sufferings in this life,
we may deserve the happiness
of obtaining life everlasting.

Amen.  (Attributed to Eusebius, 263-339 c.e.)



















Me, teaching on St. Andrews Day Sunday, wearing my kilt.
(the lighting was bad so treating it has made the photo look a little washed-out)

2 November 2008

Halloween: The Holiday of Good & Evil

There are several different takes that people have on Halloween.  Some argue its pagan roots, while others claim its Christian origins.  Either way, I thought I'd share a brief blurb on our first real Halloween to speak of in Glasgow.
Until this year, we really didn't have much reason to celebrate Halloween (i.e. We didn't have kids old enough to grasp the concept of free candy).

Just before going out for some trick-or-treating, Isabelle, our little Angel (costumed and otherwise), decided to projectile vomit all over the hallway of our flat.  Funny... I thought that happened after the excessive candy ingestion.  So Gabrielle and I joined some of the neighborhood kids for a little door-to-door begging.

We discovered, however, that it's not begging at all.  There was none of this ring the doorbell, say 'trick-or-treat,' and get a free handout, no.  The children are invited in - sometimes as far as into the living room, but usually into the entry way - and asked to perform their 'party piece,' which may be anything from a song, a dance, or a joke.  These kids have to work for their treats.

This is really a very cool tradition.  It fosters deeper connection within the neighborhood.  After living in our new flat for exactly a month, Halloween couldn't have come at a better time.  We've already been in our neighbors' flats.  We've met them in more intimate ways than just a passing hello on the street.  And I got to show off my kid... the one not covered in puke, for now.

For a holiday that catches a lot of flack from some, and is an excuse to be a menace to a few (our flat was also egged by some local youths that decided to hit just about every flat on our block), and is just a downright celebration of evil to others, our first experience trick or treating proved to be a great way to meet our neighbors, and have some good clean fun.

27 October 2008

Skateboarding in Scotland: An Enoch Magazine Webisode

This is just a little video some friends of mine made when they came over to Scotland to document a skateboarding ministry here. This was made almost a year-and-a-half ago, but they just sent me the link... I think this is one of several videos made of the trip, and the first one that I'm in.

19 October 2008

Some 'splaining

A little over a week ago I posted an entry entitled "failure."  I've been contacted privately by several readers asking me to explain (or elaborate on) the demise of nieuCommunities in Glasgow.
First off, I must say that I'm not going to write and open-letter addressing this subject.  I am willing to speak personally/one-on-one about it, but I'm not going to publicly address it.  I feel I should also point out that the purpose of the post was not to emphasize that nieuCommunities failed.  I was simply using a conversation that I'd had earlier in the week as a launching pad into the processing I'd begun on the issue of failure in general.
I simply found it intriguing that I had already begun the internal process of evaluating personal and group failures during my time in Glasgow, when the conversation with my friend spontaneously occurred one evening while we were out.

As I mentioned in the post, I can only speak for Jasheen and myself regarding these matters, but to understand what 'failure' meant in this context, one would have to understand and consider the vision, values and purpose of nieuCommunities as a whole.  nieuCommunities endeavored to be a missional community, thus, failure was a collaborative effort.  The operative words there are 'missional' and 'community.'  While 'missional' is not a recognized word in English dictionaries, its generally understood to mean, "relating to or connected to a religious mission."
'Community,' on the other hand is easy to define, and it's key characteristics are commonality, social group, shared location, etc.

The 'failure' I alluded to in the original post had to do with our failure as a community, and the subsequent withdrawal of nieuCommunities from Glasgow.  Despite the end result, Jasheen and I have experienced and enjoyed a flourishing five years of ministry here.  Our place and calling in Glasgow has never been in question, and as the smoke has settled, we remain right where we belong.  We may never fully understand God's hand in what happened during our time with nieuCommunities,  but for now, we can humbly accept that He used it as a vehicle to get us here, and perhaps it will serve further as the vehicle that leads us into further works in Europe and/or beyond.

I'm not sure that this serves as a satisfactory 'elaboration,' but I feel it's the best I can do as a public address.

16 October 2008

New York State of Mind


Here's a little trip that sort of snuck up on me, but Jasheen will be leaving me and the girls this Friday and flying to New York City.  This is all part of the process we're going through to finalize her permanent residence in the U.S. since she married an American.  Although we live in Scotland, this is necessary for future trips to the U.S., and of course, in the event that we relocate there.
   
This trip almost seems like a game show prize.  Airline miles were given to her for the flight; a hotel is being covered by a friend that I went to Westmont with who is a flight attendant, who is also meeting her there and spending a girly weekend in The Big Apple with her... and taking her for a spa day!
The whole purpose of the trip is so that Jasheen can get a stamp in her passport that proves she was in the continental U.S. before 1 November... everything else is just bonus.

This trip to New York caps a month that has brought with it several 'firsts.'  We just made our first move as a family unit into a new flat; we watched our 3-year-old go to her first day of nursery school on 1 October; I built our first outdoor play apparatus - a wooden playhouse - and Jasheen is going on her first trip away from our girls for the first time since either of them was born (Bali doesn't count b/c we did that together).  Incidentally, Jasheen's trip brings with it my first stay-at-home experience with the girls, too.

If  you are of the praying persuasion, toss one up for all of us this weekend.  Jasheen leaves on Friday and returns Tuesday.  I'll have the girls for five days without the help and security of mommy.  Something tells me that Jasheen is in for a more relaxing weekend than I am.

11 October 2008

"failure"

When one door closes another door opens; but we often look so long
and so regretfully upon the closed door that we do not see the ones
that open for us. - Alexander Graham Bell



"NieuCommunities was a complete and utter failure," insists the bloke sitting across from me in The Chip, a local pub on Ashton Lane in Glasgow's west end. More than a year and a half removed from nieuCommunities and I still find myself haunted by conversations like this.
The 'bloke' I'm with is a good friend whom I join down the pub once a week with a few others for some good chat (usually), and to be fair, he's earned the right to have an opinion. I've known him since the first month I moved here, and though he's "not particularly religious," he became quite familiar with nieuCommunities from very early on.
"I could have told you it was going to fail within six months of your arrival," he adds. Oh, I think to myself, it took me a little longer.
"It's not that it wasn't a good plan," he continues, "it's just that the wrong people came."

Hindsight is 20/20.

Thank goodness he regulalrly inserts the phrase, "except for you and Jasheen," otherwise I'd probably be feeling pretty worthless about now. He continued to share with me his thoughts on how and why the organization I originally came to Glasgow with has since pulled up stakes and closed shop - or in his words, "failed." His thoughts are not personal; they're not emotionally charged. In fact, he has little to no personal agenda at all. He's just astute, and afterall, we did come to his town.

The west end is a relatively small place for being home to a couple of hundred thousand people. I would have expected by now that these conversations would have run their course, and Jasheen and I would just be... Jasheen and I, working with Mosaic, teaching piano, etc. But no. In many ways we are still called upon to account for and explain the whos, whats and whys of nieuCommunities.

In any case, the idea of examining 'failure' began while I was in Geneva a few weeks ago at a Coaching Leaders workshop provided by CAI and led by longtime friend, Keith Webb (Creative Results Management). I began thinking of 'failure' beyond the arena of life-coaching. This wasn't an exercise in self-deprecation, but of self-examination; of reflection.

Last week I dropped Gabrielle off at her nursery and adjourned to a little coffee shop down the street to wait. As I sat in Chapter One, I began reflecting on my own personal failures over the past five years in Glasgow - my failures as a husband, as a father, as a leader, and as a follower. My thoughts then turned to the failures of my team... probably because of the previous night's conversation with my friend.

At the coaches training workshop, Keith Webb stated, "Failure is an emotionally-charged word. Discouragement is its constant companion. 'Failure' also has a note of finality or completeness. Black or white. Bad or good. Fail or succeed."

As I continued to reflect on these things, I considered the end result of nieuCommunities in Glasgow. To put it in a black and white context, we appear to have failed, at least to local onlookers. However, while the overall result may not have been what was hoped for, many of the individual actions may have actually moved us closer to our ultimate calling and goal. I can't speak for the leaders or other members of the original team, but I can speak for Jasheen and me. On the way to 'failure,' there were individual successes over the course of our time with nieuCommunities. I mean, we must have done something right, right?
We still have great, ongoing relationships with a large number of the apprentices that passed through Glasgow. In fact, we still see many of them when we're in their neck of the woods or they return to Glasgow. And one mark of success may be the support we recieve from them. Of the three groups of apprentices that we've led, nine of them have supported or are currently supporting us, in addition to some of their parents. We have also continued coaching several of them after their departure. And many of the relationships that were developed while we were a part of nieuCommunities are still thriving.

So yeah, 'failure' happened, but I think it's important to look at every individual step taken, and the success that came as a result of those steps before writing off the entire endeavor as a complete failure.
Although I anticipate more provocative conversations about nieuCommunities, the leadership, and the impact (or lack thereof) it had on the west end of Glasgow, I think I'll be better equipped to shoulder and process my role and responsibility in the whole ordeal by recognizing that not all measures of success or failure can be ascertained by the ultimate outcome of a project.

30 September 2008

On Saying Goodbye


I'm sitting here blogging one last time in what doesn't really look like our flat anymore, before unplugging, packing our computer, and placing it in the pile of things I don't want things stacked on.

...and I'm feeling a bit emotional.

Blogs are used in a range of ways, often unleashing the would-be journalist, the reporter, the contemplative, the theologian, or the philosopher hidden inside the blogger. Sometimes I even write as if there's an internal monologue tracking with hip theme music. This entry will undoubtedly be reflective of the four years Jasheen and I have spent in the only home we have known as a married couple... and the one each of us have lived in for the longest stretch of time... ever.
We both grew up moving around a lot. Our journeys have taken us from Singapore to London to California to Germany to Arizona to Australia, and finally, to Glasgow, Scotland. Between the two of us, we've lived on four of the seven continents, and saying goodbye to each place has never been easy.

Jasheen and I began our married life in this flat four years ago. We've welcomed two additions to our family (Gabrielle & Isabelle), hosted people who have become life-long friends, led leadership, and marriage classes, hosted jewelry launch parties, youth clubs, movie nights, Super Bowls, tea parties, Thanksgiving dinners, Christmas' and birthday parties for literally hundreds of people. We've experienced some of our highest highs and our lowest lows in this flat. We've been a part of discoveries, heartbreaks, celebrations and failures in this flat. We've watched two seasons of Heroes, four seasons of 24, and are in our fourth season of Prison Break in this flat.
And if it were the right choice for our family, we'd stay. We love our flat. It's been perfectly situated in the west end of Glasgow to be right in the middle of where LIFE happens. But as our girls are growing, other needs are superceding this prime location. For one, we're situated on a main road running through the heart of the west end - not ideal for two toddlers eager to run instead of riding passively in the stroller.
We discovered our new flat by chance. I was over at my friend an colleague's flat and noticed that the door downstairs from them was open. Some men were working inside and the flat has been uninhabited for more than a year. I snuck in to take a peak and liked what I saw. In addition to being much closer to my teammates, the flat has a front yard for our girls to play safely in away from constant traffic. It's not as ideally located as the one we've been in, but as I said... new priorities.

While we won't be welcoming any new arrivals to the family in the new flat, we're confident that many new and cherished memories await us.
But still... saying goodbye to the only home our girls have ever known; to our friends and neighbors whom we have grown quite fond of; and to corner shops, pubs, parks and coffee shops, is going to be hard... even though we're only a 12-15 minute walk away.

We've grown so much in this flat, as a family, spiritually, maritally, emotionally, and socially. One of the byproducts of being third-culture-kids is that we love new beginnings, new adventures and new settings.

...but still, saying goodbye is hard.

1 September 2008

Busy... No, Full Week

I won't say it was the busiest week we've ever had, but this past week was the fullest we've had in a long time. I make the distinction because there's a difference between busy and full. Busyness is often a self-induced state; a byproduct of poor scheduling and time management. Fullness, on the other hand, is complete, rich, gratifying, productive.
Although the week was physically, spiritually and emotionally draining, it was also life-giving.

The backdrop of our week is set against preparing for and taking the Life in the UK test that is a prerequisite when applying for permanent residence. Having been here for five years now, we're eligible to apply for permanent residence which will allow me to find part-time work in the marketplace, fostering a deeper connection with locals, as well as providing financial stability for our family. One of the reasons that this is a critical step in our ministry, is that permanent residence is the last step before gaining British citizenship, and by becoming British citizens, we will also be gaining European Union (EU) citizenship. This would allow us to move into countries that are becoming more difficult for church-planting missionaries to move into should the Lord lead that direction in the future.

All of this to say, Jasheen and I both passed the 24-question True/False - Either/Or - Multiple Choice test. The test itself wasn't so difficult, but preparing for it was the primary contributor to our full and draining week. Unlike students that have time allotted for studying, we have our regularly scheduled week that we have to incorporate study-time into.

Throw in a friend visiting from the States, a friend moving down to London this week, and the start of Mosaic's youth group ministry, and that's a recipe for very little sleep. My friend Sharon (former Westmont classmate) was visiting her parents here for a couple of weeks. And our good friend and babysitter (one of the few that refuses payment) from Kember & Jones, Becca, is heading down to London to attend Uni - that's the second K&J pal we're losing in as many months. (For those of you unfamiliar with Kember & Jones, it's our favorite little patisserie/food emporium around the corner). Anyway, between quality time with Sharon and Becca, attending Becca's going away party with her work colleagues, and hosting a youth group pizza & movie kickoff... not to mention squeezing studies into our already chaotic schedule(s)... we had a VERY... FULL... WEEK.

20 August 2008

Pub Theology


You may notice from the On My Nightstand list that I'm reading a couple of new books. It's only coincidence that they're both positioned as 'letters.' Before anyone starts worrying... yes, Letter to a Christian Nation is written by popular philosopher/atheist, Sam Harris. I've been getting together with a guy in my neighborhood lately and discussing faith, religion(s), God/Jesus, and the universe. This certainly isn't a book that I would have pushed to the top of my To Read list, but in the interest of connecting with him where he's at, and furthering the ongoing conversation, I agreed to check it out.
He and I usually get together at the pub down on the corner and share our stories, views and experiences over a pint. Before I moved here five years ago, a friend who'd been a missionary to Scotland for seven years told me that if I wanted to connect with people here I needed to engage the pub culture. So I have been. And to my utter dismay... my fun, relational, fraternal time down at the pub has been hijacked by deep theological conversations lately. Oh wait... that was the idea.

The last few times I've been down at the pub with some guys I get together with weekly, I have been taken aside for some pretty intense chat. I was speaking with one guy that currently lives and works in Africa who shared passionately how much he would love to believe all that I was saying and all that he's heard, but he just can't get past the way he has experienced Christians living/behaving... especially missionaries.
The next guy that cornered me just couldn't get his head around a God that was supposedly "merciful," yet says that 'all these people over here are going to hell.'
And yet another guy had issues with Jesus' claims to be the son of God.

Our conversations generally center around rugby, kids and work, but I found myself fielding the toughest (most common) issues the world has with Christianity: Christians, justice and Jesus. It's taken a long time for the conversations to turn to these topics, but I've discovered that I've grown into the role of the pastor they reference for all their queries and doubts.

I really do enjoy the lighthearted boys-night-out atmosphere that we typically have on a Tuesday night down at the pub, but at the same time, I am incredibly encouraged that these times are becoming seasoned with more depth and authenticity.

7 August 2008

There and Back Again: Thoughts and Reflection from Glasgow to Hungary

There's nothing like returning home from a week away to the shrieks and squeals of, "Daddy, Daddy, Daddy, Daddy!!!" This was a first for me as I recently returned from Christian Associates' CONNECT conference in Sopron, Hungary.
But perhaps I'm getting a little ahead of myself. In the past six weeks I've been commissioned as a pastor at Mosaic, operated on twice, and in Hungary for the conference... and it looks as though things are just starting to get busy.

I've been extended the honor of serving as the shepherding pastor in Mosaic. What exactly does this mean? Are we one of those churches that has a different "pastor" for every area of ministry? No (not that there's anything wrong with that). It simply means that I will be living out my passion, gifting and calling in a leadership role within our missional community. Being a pastor has never been an ambition of mine. Nor is it something that I thought I was coming to Glasgow to do. However, after further reflection, it is precisely what I'm here to do... or more accurately, to be.
A pastor isn't a pastor because of his/her title. And many without the title are, indeed, pastors. There are those that serve as preachers and teachers, or as healers, prophets or servants. And there are those that serve as shepherds. Shepherds exhort, disciple, equip, coach, mourn, lead, etc.
There is one thing that's been confirmed amidst the peeks and valleys of a tumultuous five years in ministry here: People Need Jesus. I need Him. You need Him. Everyone we know needs Him. Whether I have been exalted or maligned, excommunicated or embraced, celebrated or vilified, depressed or encouraged, mocked or respected, isolated or enfolded, accepted or rejected, abandoned or surrounded; the one thing that I can honestly say has kept my eyes forward, is the simple truth that I want everyone I know to know Jesus, or to know Him better.
My (new) title doesn't define me. On the contrary, I hope and pray to live up to what it means to shepherd the people God entrusts to me.

The CONNECT conference in Hungary is the first staff conference I've attended since joining CAI just over a year ago... and it was amazing! With speakers like Greg Boyd (Sr. pastor, Woodland Hills Church, St. Paul, MN) and Alan & Deb Hirsch, how could it not be?
There were so many highlights from the conference, but I think I'll touch on just a few... for now.
One of the best things about my experience was connecting with people doing what I'm doing, but in different parts of the world. In Scotland, it's easy to feel removed at times. We're on an island. We're in a relatively small, humble country. We have a growing, yet small church community. And we are breaking new ground in the areas of church-life and missional living. Sometimes, it feels like we're downright alone. But it was encouraging to get to know and hear the stories, trials, and victories that other teams are experiencing in Paris, Lisbon, Amsterdam, and Brussels (to name a few). I was both ministered to, as well as having the opportunity to share some insight and experience with teams going through some typical team dysfunctions. Hey, the Lord redeems even life's toughest experiences.

Another cool (and somewhat surreal) experience happened during a commissioning ceremony held for all of us new to staff in the past year. A couple of years ago I was assigning a book by Alan Hirsch to a group of young leaders. On this night, I was standing next to Alan Hirsch and his lovely bride, Deb, as we were being commissioned. What a trip!

I can't express how at home I felt among the staff at CONNECT. Although there are people of all ages on staff, it has a very young and energetic vibe. It's a group full of explorers, adventurers and risk-takers.

The next few months are as busy as these past two... if not more so. I have a Coaching Leaders Workshop to attend in Geneva in late September, as well as Field Orientation to attend for Christian Associates in the Hague in early October. And these trips fall just prior to our family moving flats. Hectic times call for fervent prayer.

28 July 2008

London Layover


So I’m sitting here at Caffé Nero in London’s Heathrow Airport at 9:55pm. Thank God they’re open all night because my flight doesn’t depart for another 9 ½ hours.

Wait, scratch that. I was just asked to move to the front, as they are closing the back part of the café… the part with the comfy sofas and electrical outlets. Looks like it’s going to be a long night on marble tile.

That’s right, believe it or not, after all the traveling I’ve done, I’m experiencing my first overnight layover in an airport… and it’s not starting out too well. Of course, the caliber of overnight air travelers does appear to be a little less dodgy than that of rail travelers. ☺

Anyway, I’ve been meaning to submit another entry, but have simply not had the time to sit down and crank it out. And it seems I have nothing but time at the moment. Given some of the things going on in and around our ministry in Glasgow, I found myself reflecting on where I was at about 2 ½ years ago. The common denominator(s): Re-Entry to Glasgow after visiting family in Singapore; the challenges of leaders transitioning out/away from a place of partnership/community; finding myself in the familiar place of leaning on and trusting God to continue to guide and sustain our family as we forge ahead in ministry… often times in uncharted territories.

Two-and-a-half years ago, Jasheen, Gabrielle and I went to visit Jasheen’s folks in Singapore. Leading into that trip I had begun having serious concerns about my fit with the team/organization I was with. It had nothing to do with my specific ministry in Glasgow, but with the direction I sensed we were headed as a team, and how that was beginning to conflict with my vision, values and calling… and my original understanding of what we were doing here in the first place.
When we returned to Glasgow, for the first time since I’d arrived, it felt… unfamiliar. It didn’t feel like home. I remember walking around in a haze – not jetlag – a haze of uncertainty. I felt like I didn’t know my teammates; I felt like I didn’t get my teammates; I felt like I was no longer one of my teammates. In retrospect, I think I missed a pretty big word from the Lord back then. Ain’t grace a gas?!?

Now, for the record, I believe that relational dynamics are so infinitely complex that you can’t pinpoint exactly what makes people gel and what makes them… not. But you can usually ballpark it.
The significant relevance of this story, however, is not to focus on my first re-entry to Glasgow, but on my second, this most recent one.

Without going into too much detail, my experience upon this return was inversely proportionate to the first. I felt as if I was coming HOME… not just to where we dwell, but to where we BELONG. I was diving back into a ministry I’m excited and passionate about. I knew I was coming home to some challenging circumstances within our ministry, but I was confident and hopeful that we would emerge a stronger, healthier, tighter community… and we have.

One of the more difficult things that we’re facing as a community right now is the departure of a colleague and good friend from our leadership team. It’s always hard to say goodbye to friends. Yes, we’re disappointed. Yes, we’re grieving. But we are also leaning into our Father and discovering that His direction has not changed. His desire for relationship is still as strong as ever. He is still on His throne. Mosaic is HIS church, and nothing we do can change that. We don’t serve the perfect model. We don’t worship the perfect community. We serve and worship a perfect GOD!

Amidst the backdrop of a changing landscape for our community, Mosaic has invited and commissioned me to serve as the shepherding pastor. I have been “cut loose” to come alongside folks in our community in the areas of coaching, discipleship, small/home groups and missional living. This is an exciting part of my vision for serving here in Glasgow… as well as an integral part of my calling. I’m humbled and grateful to serve in such a role.

I’ve got to tell you, I feel pretty privileged to be a part of our unique little church. I’ve recently been meeting with a professor from ICC (International Christian College), and this guy is pretty amazing. He’s incredibly dialed-in to the Church in Scotland. At our last meeting he told me that Mosaic is the only ‘emergent’ church that he knows of in the country; the only church that is genuinely modeling church as a missional community. That’s exciting… and encouraging!

Man, there are a lot of messages in this entry: Re-Entry can be good or bad; pay attention to the words God speaks to you; in ministry, friends and colleagues come and go, but God is always the foundation we build our hope on… the list goes on.

I just want to leave Terminal 5 and get the second leg of my journey underway. I need a shower.

7 July 2008

A Return to Blogging (Singapore & Community)

So what do you lead with when breaking such a long period of silence?  Whether it's inspiration, newsworthy events, or simply extra time, I've found that blogging is something I do in spurts.  I wish I could blog everyday.  I always feel like I have something to write about.  I envy those people that blog regularly... either they don't have a family, don't have a job, or blog when they should be working.

Jasheen and I recently returned from an amazing holiday in Singapore and Bali.  While there, we experienced heat like we haven't in a long time, we experienced the joy of life and parenting with the assistance of family, we walked painfully through the loss of a child with dear friends in California, and we celebrated our fourth wedding anniversary.

While I could write pages about our time in Southeast Asia, I'm not sure I could do it justice through written word, and I'm not sure I could hold your interest for very long.  I think I'd rather share some thoughts and observations I had along the way.

COMMUNITY
Many of you have heard my take on community before.  While I see it as a vital part of our Christian life together, I've also experienced the downside(s) of the pursuit of authentic community.  Many, it seems, long for community for selfish reasons - perhaps subconsciously.  It may provide safety, security or even purpose.  Often times, community is manufactured to achieve a goal - usually in a ministry context.  Rarely have I found that community is authentically executed for the sole purpose of living out the Kingdom of God on earth.

One of the things that occurred to me on this trip was that through all the efforts that our generation chases after community, they don't seem to think to research cultures and societies that do it naturally.  I think it's obvious that Western culture does not do community very well.  Our societies foster individualism, boundaries and isolation.  We're consumed with personal time, personal space and personal autonomy.  We've even reduced the gospel to a "personal relationship with Jesus Christ."

In Singapore, and more specifically, through Jasheen's extended family, I discovered that Asian cultures and families live in community effortlessly, without thought, intention or strategy.  They don't map out community values, maxims or behaviors.  Their lives are truly intertwined and they don't rely on permission or courtesy to speak into each others lives.  Whether it's commenting on ones appearance, or sharing approval or disapproval on parenting style or a family member's choice of girlfriend or boyfriend, they engage one another authentically.  Raising children is truly a village's responsibility.

This all may seem intrusive at times, but that's because of our conditioning.  In every other facet of life and learning, people research environments relevant to their field.  It seems incredibly arrogant (in my humble opinion) to pursue and provide community without studying and understanding how to really do it.  Applied theory can't compare with observed and experienced reality.

At Mosaic, we are trying to cultivate a missional community - a community that practices the elements seen in the communities of the Bible, and more specifically, the communities that Jesus was a part of.  By observing societies that live in community naturally, and applying biblical foundations to those models, I believe that we can more effectively achieve the Kingdom-minded communities that we are pursuing.  But simply extracting biblical principals and incorporating them into our western cultures - or making them relevant to our conditioned lifestyles - I think we're spinning our wheels... and doing more harm than good.

We cannot succeed by making biblical principles relevant to our environment.  We MUST make our environment(s) relevant to biblical principles.  Inasmuch as I will make every effort to live in biblical community here in the West End of Glasgow, I remain unconvinced that true community can be done in such a context.  We're talking radical abandonment of conditioned paradigms; surrendering the "personal" in areas of space and time; letting go of expectations afforded us by a modern western mindset.

This does not mean that we eliminate times alone with God.  As Jesus took these times, so should we, for the recharging of our souls so that we can effectively engage the community and world around us.  

27 June 2008

Wedded Bliss

There are a number of things that could bring me out of my blogging silence, but the most important one is my four-year wedding anniversary.
Jasheen and I were able to celebrate our anniversary in Bali (Indonesia), a special gift from her folks. We left Gabrielle and Isabelle in Singapore with my in-laws for four days. It was the first time we'd been away from either of them for even close to that amount of time... and... they... LOVED IT! They never once cried for us or indicated that they missed us in the least (I knew we should have planned on staying longer!!!).

From Singapore to Bali, poverty to being a millionaire, and community to living in HEAT, I have so much to blog about. But I think I'm going to stagger my entries to make them more palatable - I mean, no one reads long blogs, right?

Anyway, Jasheen and I had an amazing time in Bali, soaking up the sun, the sights, the beach and each other. I'll blog more later, but for now... we're ready to start year five.

17 March 2008

Living Room Gig with LDL

Ever heard of a Living Room Gig?  It's pretty much exactly what it sounds like.  Jasheen and I were invited to attend a living room gig at some friends' flat on Saturday night, and I have to say, it was brilliant.
Having shortened their name to LDL, Lies Damned Lies is a Glasgow-based-three piece consisting of two of our friends.  They've released five albums on their own Sticky Music label and have chosen to tour the UK playing the intimate settings of living rooms.
Their dreamy, jazzy, bluesy melancholy offers far more than one might expect.  I found myself quite moved by their thoughtful meanderings about the essence of life, the relationship between man and man, and God and man. It's hard to imagine that one can walk away from one of their gigs without taking on the knowledge that your life somehow has more depth.
During the 20-minute intermission, I chatted with a former Episcopalian minister and mentioned how spiritual I found their lyrics to be. "Well Steve (the lead vocalist) is an Anglican priest," he said.  Steve is the one member of the band that we didn't know, and having discovered this, it all made more sense.
Throughout the evening, in both song and speech, words like, "lamentations, mercy, peace, beloved, walk-on-water, and God," popped up.  Despite the spiritual nature of their songs, their music is less a proclamation, and more an invitation of exploration.
As I surveyed the room, I saw deep contemplation as well as tears... from some I knew not to be Christian.  It was refreshing to witness a different approach to reaching people at a soul-level.  I have seen "gigs" that filled the likes of Dodger Stadium, and gigs that failed to fill the Hollywood Palladium, but rarely have I been so moved as I was in this quaint living room in Glasgow's west end.
If you get the chance to attend a living room gig in your area I highly recommend it.  It may not be U2; it may not be Green Day; it may not even be [insert hometown band makes it big], but the intimacy experienced is unmatched.
For bands resisting the artistic compromise that often accompanies the popular music machine, self-produced living room gigs are the way to go!  

28 February 2008

Book Review: The Jesus of Suburbia


Have We Tamed the Son of God to Fit Our Lifestyle?

I picked this book up off of my dad's bookshelf when I was there this past December/January. It first caught my eye because of the title.
In the Acknowledgments section, Mike Erre states that he is no longer under the assumption that he has ever had an original thought. He attributes all of his thinking and insights to mentors and writers that have shaped his approach to life and ministry. Fair enough. I appreciate that kind of candor and authenticity... mostly because I think that's the case more often than not these days... be it in film, music or academics. I mean really, when was the last time we saw some really original innovations in the world of mathematics??? (I digress).

True to his admission, there isn't a whole lot of new material in here if you've already read the authors' works that he credits in his acknowledgments: Erwin McManus, Rob Bell, Dallas Willard, JP Moreland, etc. Even the title (what grabbed my attention initially) is the name of a Green Day song from the American Idiot album.

I know Mike... by that I mean that I've met him, we've played some pick-up basketball together, and we probably have known each others' names from the pre-Mariners/South Coast Community Church days. I also really like Mike and think he's doing a great job at Rock Harbor.

While the message presented here isn't radically new, it is a radical call to really knowing Jesus, rather than "simply knowing about him." Mike attacks American Christianity as it tends to present Jesus as "the purveyor of the American Dream," a predictable and safe Jesus that has more or less been reduced to the study of risk management.

The Jesus of Suburbia joins a collection of emergent works that are calling the next generation to a radical re-commitment to their faith... and more importantly, to live that faith out in today's culture.

If Donald (Blue Like Jazz) Miller's works focus on Christian spirituality as an explanation for beauty, meaning, and the human struggle, and Erwin (The Barbarian Way) McManus' goal is to maximize the divine potential in every human being, then Mike Erre's message is a call to the American church to begin "demonstrating the message of Christ," not merely explaining it.

This is a simple, straightforward retrospective on what it means to live out our faith in today's society; a good read worth picking up.

26 February 2008

Basic Evangelism

One of the things that I try to be aware of is patterns. If I begin to recognize patterns in ministry, relationships or culture, I tend to take notice, and often times, those are the things that I will share on this blog. However, in the interest of privacy and anonymity, I'll refrain from using the names of people that I encounter.

One of the patterns that I've recently recognized is the challenge that Christians have with evangelism - sharing their faith with people in their everyday lives. I've had no less than six conversations in the last two years with young Christians admitting that this is a struggle for them. The people I've had these conversations with range from new believers to full-time missionaries (if you can believe that).

As best I can tell, the struggle primarily lies in the ability to naturally incorporate their faith into their relationships with non-believers. They either don't know how to share their faith in relation to the Gospel narratives, or they don't know how to naturally engage people who don't share their same beliefs, background or upbringing.

At least two of the people I've talked with simply stated that they don't know how to share their faith without the appearance of having "an agenda," or making the other person feel like a project. The missionaries I've spoken with confessed that they "don't know how to cultivate missional relationships with non-believers." When I heard this, the beast in me writhed and seethed; teeth bared, muscles clinched, knuckles white - missionaries who don't know how to build relationships with non-believers?!?!?

(I'll refrain from addressing the obvious topic of the church's responsibility to train and develop her people for the Great Commission... at least for now).

...The still, quiet Spirit in me, however, wept; broken-hearted, exhausted, defeated - missionaries who don't know how to build relationships with non-believers. Isn't that why we're here? Nevermind the fact that we're ALL called to live out the Gospel and share Jesus... missionaries leave their homes and their families; obedient to a call to go preach the Gospel to a foreign land.

For a long time I didn't understand this struggle. Not that I'm an evangelistic dynamo, but I've never really experienced difficulty in making friends with non-Christians. As Jasheen says, "They're not monsters. They're not mutants. They're just people, like you and me." Here's where much of the rub likely lies: the us-and-them approach. I've even heard missionaries refer to non-believers as "neo-barbarians." I don't know a person here who wouldn't take offense at that. As far as I can tell, there is no us-and-them until judgment day, where the Lord separates the sheep from the goat. There's just US, inasmuch as we are all inhabitants of a fallen world... and we all need Jesus (whether we know Him or not).

Lately though, I think I've discovered what the problem may be. I think that Christians, often times, over-think their approach to evangelism. They consider strategies, systems and methods for connecting with non-Christians. I'm not suggesting that we just float through our days and engage people at random. I think there is purpose and merit to recognizing where God is moving and getting involved. I also agree with being intentional about seeking out relationships with people who don't yet know Jesus.
But instead of operating from a recipe of one part fear, one part ignorance, and one part passivity, I suggest that we look to the people that we observe in scripture. Of course, there are accounts of evangelism in scripture, but lately I've been looking at the people that encountered Jesus personally for the first time.

There is one pattern that I see in almost every account of someone encountering Jesus: they went and told others what they saw, who they met, what they experienced. They just said, "Come and see." Whether it was Andrew (John 1:41-42) who stopped what he was doing and at once, found his brother Simon and told him that he'd found the Messiah, and brought him to see Jesus; or the Samaritan woman at the well (John 4) who left her water jug, rushed from her encounter with Christ and said to the men, "Come and see a man..."; or Mary Magdalene (Mark 16) who after seeing Jesus risen from the dead, went and reported what she'd seen; all of these accounts and more reveal the most basic form of evangelism: I've seen Jesus. Come and see Him for yourself.

People were compelled to share Jesus with others. Aren't we? There were no long discussions about how to tell people about the Messiah. They just rushed out and said, "Come and see." Three little words that leave the rest up to the Spirit and the free will of those sought out.

It's not rocket science. It's not brain surgery. It's not a military surgical strike. Sometimes people may think you're nuts. They may think you're a fool. They may say, "NO! I don't want to," but our job is to simply bring people to see Jesus. It's certainly not the only form of evangelism. There are countless ways to share your faith... through words and action; through apologetics and discourse; through mercy and generosity.
But if you struggle getting to know non-believers; if you have a hard time cultivating missional relationships with people at work or in your neighborhood, perhaps you could apply the most basic approach we know:

OPERATION: ANDREW - Come and see the Messiah! He changed my life... perhaps He'll change yours.

25 February 2008

Sunday Worship


The most valuable thing the Psalms do for me is to express the same delight in God which made David dance. - C.S. Lewis

Early last week my friend/colleague, Stuart, rang me to ask if Jasheen and I would be willing to lead Mosaic in worship that upcoming Sunday (yesterday). Jasheen and I have been on Mosaic's worship team before, but as she, Gabrielle and Isabelle were all recovering from some sort of virus that's been circulating, I told Stuart that we could not commit to that since we had no idea what the week would look like as far as practice and preparation went.

I suggested an alternative style of worship (since there were no available musicians for the gathering). After sharing my thoughts, Stuart promptly asked if I would facilitate it. So I did.

With Easter approaching, and coinciding with the passage this week (Mark 16), I put together a playlist of worship songs with a resurrection theme. Instead of standing and singing together as we usually do, I provided an art station, a writing wall, and the freedom & encouragement to assume whatever physical position people might prefer when worshiping God.

To be honest, I wasn't quite sure how it would go over. As the first song began to play, people slowly began moving about to different stations. One of the highlights of the set was the way it engaged the children in our community. One of our core values in our Sunday expression of worship is including the children in as much of the gathering as possible. Worship is fundamental aspect of our faith and practice, and I love including the children in a way that invites them into the experience.

Some of the artistic expressions and written words were deeply moving and profound (from children and adults alike). As people talked at their tables, I wasn't sure that they weren't just socially catching up with one another, but in today's team meeting and debrief, I was so blessed to hear the impact that it had on several of the people there.

For some, it was a refreshing detour from the conventional style of worship we're accustomed to. For others, it was a completely new and eye-opening experience. One young woman who has been attending Mosaic, but is still very much in a seeking/exploring posture, was at first frozen, unsure of what she was "supposed to be doing." As the worship time unfolded though, she was moved to tears by the words of some of the songs and gained an appreciation for worshiping God in a fresh, new way.
The experience led others to openly discuss worship at their tables and their paradigm(s) of worship were expanded.
Gabrielle blessed and entertained the community by both dancing and praying out-loud during an instrumental piece played during a time of verbal prayer and thanksgiving.

I really wasn't sure how the whole thing came off, but I was so encouraged to hear that it's an experience the community would like to incorporate periodically at Mosaic.

The whole purpose of the alternative worship set was not simply an alternative to not having available musicians, but it was to provide an opportunity for people to connect with God in a new way. I believe that God has designed each of us to connect with Him in unique ways. Some connect with Him outdoors, through natural revelation; others may experience Him best in silent solitude; still others may require a visceral experience, holding a cross or a Bible... or perhaps the smell of incense helps bring them into a posture of worship. Some may even express worship best through giving - a service offering, a word, or a monetary gift.

The important thing is that we take opportunities to experience God in different ways. Corporate singing is good, it may be the best way for some to connect with God, but as each of us are uniquely and wonderfully made, it stands to reason that there are multiple ways for us to encounter Him in worship.

I hope this entry will stimulate your hearts and minds, and encourage you to explore the different ways to worship our King!

17 February 2008

Enough!

For the first time since we moved into our flat, we're lighting the No Vacancy sign. Upon reflection, we have either hosted or been hosts in other homes every month since last September, barely getting three or four nights strung together in row to have with just our family. We're resilient, but not seven-straight-months-resilient.

When we moved into our flat we offered it to the Lord to use as He saw fit. And we committed to be generous and hospitable with it. What followed was the installation of the proverbial revolving door. From people 'coincidentally' popping in around meal-time, to folks camping out in our lounge for free wireless internet, to people crashing in the guest room because it's either too late or too cold (or both) to go home, our flat has become a safe-haven, home-away-from-home for many... and we're happy to provide that. The Lord has blessed us to be a blessing.

Jasheen and I love having people in our home. It gives it flavor and texture and life. But we also understand that it comes at a cost... especially to our still relatively young marriage.

We are thrilled to have Jasheen's dad coming to visit next month... and hopefully my brother (Patch) the following month. That leaves one month before those arrivals to hang the No Vacancy sign and gather in close together to recover and recharge. Our marriage and our kids need this time and we are grateful to God for it.

As Rudyard Kipling said, "Now I lay me down to bleed a while, only to get up later and fight again."














14 February 2008

12 February 2008

So what are we doing now?


We left CRM more than seven months ago to join staff with Christian Associates International (CAI). Technically, that means that we transitioned out of a role in leadership development, and into the role of church-planters.
...but what does that really mean?

A trip back to California this past Christmas season helped me realize something... and may explain why we've had such a difficult time recuperating monthly donations to our ministry that were lost in the transition... people aren't really sure what we're doing.
I'm hoping to share a bit about CAI and Mosaic and perhaps enlighten you as to what it is that the McKenzies are currently up to.

Christian Associates is an organization committed to the movement of establishing communities of Christ-followers all across Europe, who seek authentic relationships with God and with each other.  By extending Christ's love, grace and truth, combined with the deep desire to impact our cities by generating hope, serving needs and seeking justice, we believe that the multiplication of similar missional communities can spread throughout Europe in a grassroots movement.

Jasheen and I are now a part of one such community of faith.  Mosaic is the developing church-plant that we have joined.  Mosaic is an international group that gathers regularly and informally.  As a community, we are committed primarily to engaging the unchurched people of our city.  Our desire is to provide the opportunity for every man, woman and child in the west end of Glasgow to hear the gospel message clearly communicated and to see it dynamically expressed through loving, missional, reproducing bodies of believers.
We share an appreciation for festal and celebratory gatherings in harmony with times of quiet reflection.  One of our core values is learning and exploring ways to live out our faith and express Christian community in ways relevant and practical to the 21st century.  We do this through our Sunday expressions of worship, as well as in the ways we seek to missionally serve those in our surrounding neighborhoods.

As with many young churches, we strive to establish our identity as a community of Jesus Christ.  And as many young churches, we are almost in a constant state of flux - be it growth, mission, or shared, sacrificial roles of responsibility and service to the community.  Jasheen and I are entering Mosaic at a time that seems primed for the gifts and contributions that we have to offer.
  
Jasheen is a natural evangelist, and she thrives in roles of relationship-building with people in our neighborhood.  God has used her personal experience of coming to Christ in a dynamic way to connect with people who have the same questions and skepticism that she once had toward the Bible and 'organized religion.'
My passions also lie in building relationships with those outside the church, as well as in the areas of spiritual formation, discipleship and spiritual growth.  As our roles develop and solidify with Mosaic, we are seeing opportunities to exercise these gifts and passions in several ways that will supplement the work already begun through Mosaic in these areas.  We are wading in to help in areas of discipleship groups, home groups and coaching/mentoring relationships.
As a couple, we seek to strike a healthy balance between body life and missional life in our community - both bringing people to a safe place to explore who Jesus is and what it means to enter into relationship with him, as well as helping those already in relationship with Him discover a deeper, more intimate knowledge of a life in Him.
Growth in the size of Mosaic is not a primary concern for us, as much as growth in depth of relationship with Christ for those already a part of our community of faith.  We know that numbers will increase if we simply endeavor to bring people to Christ in the same way we see people do that throughout the Gospels.  When people encountered Jesus, their first response was almost always to go and tell people who they saw and bring them to see for themselves. We have no overly developed strategy of reaching the world beyond living out God's truth and love and giving people the opportunity to discover Jesus in the same way we have.

One of my favorite expressions in scripture is, "Come and see."  It's the simplest, most basic approach to evangelism.  When Jesus encountered the woman at the well (John 4), she left what she was doing and went to tell those in her town about the man who knew everything about her.  She simply invited people to come and see this man who could be the Messiah.
As Jasheen and I grow into our roles at Mosaic, we continue our ministry of inviting people to come and see Jesus.  And now, as a part of a Christian community, we're also able to take part in helping others discover the depths of joy that can be found in authentic intimacy with our Savior. 

I hope this clears up any questions that may have been out there about our new organization and new roles in ministry.  As always, we appreciate your prayers and support, and we are so very grateful for those of you that have partnered and will partner with us in these areas.

11 February 2008

Book Review: Community 101

"Whether community happens or not may not be left to chance. Christians are under obligation to make it happen, and to make it happen as God intends it to be, not according to their own traditions and preferences, and certainly not according to alien patterns of non-community imported into the church from a world that is itself bereft of the joy of authentic community and yearning for it." -- Community 101 (p.44)

com-mu-ni-ty [kuh-myoo-ni-tee] - noun
  1. a social group of any size whose members reside in a specific locality, share government, and often have a common cultural and historical heritage.
  2. a social, religious, occupational, or other group sharing common characteristics or interests and perceived or perceiving itself as distinct in some respect from the larger society within which it exists.
  3. Ecclesiastical. a group of men or women leading a common life according to a rule.
Community 101, by Gilbert Bilezikian, is one of those books that if you'd asked me if I've read, I would reply, "Parts of it." It's been on my shelf for years and I have regularly referenced it during my experience(s) with community life, but I figured it was time to read it in its entirety.

In essence, Bilezikian is making a rational and passionate cry for the church to fulfill its essential nature and calling. A backwards way of saying that would be, the church is not fulfilling its essential nature and calling in the current conventional model that most of us are accustomed to.

In the past I've groaned a bit about how the word community has become one of those overused (and misused) Christian buzzwords.  Like any word in the English language, it is nothing more than a principal carrier of meaning that we use to communicate or express sentiment and emotion.

Bilezikian states that authentic community is absolutely critical if the church is to fulfill the mission that God intended for it.  The first third of the book focuses on the commutual interrelationship between oneness and community, resting firmly on the concept that the Trinity (Father, Son & Holy Spirit) is the original community of oneness.

Bilezikian does a wonderfully thorough job of laying a biblical foundation to all of his talk on the importance of community.  As stated before, he draws on the centrality of community, as well as siting the story of the Fall when community was lost, how community was once again reclaimed through Jesus Christ, and ultimately the community of oneness created by God - the Holy City, the New Jerusalem (Rev. 21:2).

In addition to the extensive commentary on the community of oneness, Bilezikian goes on to address how community can be expressed within the ministry and leadership of the church.

If you have never given serious thought to what it means to be a member of the bride of Christ; to belong to the body of believers... not just by way of salvation, but by way of obedient, submissive, sacrificial living, I urge you to pick up this book and read it now.  You'll discover that living in community cannot be a side issue or optional for Christians.  It is as important to God as one's salvation.  Without community, there is no Christianity.  Community is central to God's purposes for humankind - not manufactured community; not selective community; not exclusive community; not mandatory community - biblical community, as described, defined and demonstrated in scripture, found at the intersection of the two segments of the cross, where those who are reconciled with God can be reconciled together.

There is a rebellious nature in all of us.  There is no place for lone rangers in the fellowship of the unashamed.  I know this firsthand.  When I have been a lone ranger in my own ministry life, I have found myself apart from the community, isolated and separated from the oneness that God intends for all of us to have.  No one has the right to claim exemption from community for being different (I Corinthians 12:14-16). Nor does the body consist of only one kind of element or one kind of member - sameness is not a prerequisite for membership in the fellowship.

There are myriad examples of unhealthy, imbalanced communities all over the place. Nevertheless, as stated earlier, without community there is no Christianity.  I encourage you to discover the importance of life in community as stated in Bilezikian's Community 101.   

30 January 2008

There and Back Again

When we set out for California in December, I had no idea that it would be so long between posts. I thought I would keep up with my entries regularly, but life happened... and it happened a lot.
When you only return home once every two years or so, there are so many people to see and things to do. We didn't get nearly as much time with some folks that we thought we would, and didn't see a number of folks that we were sure to.

We've been back for a little more than a week now and it seems that jet-lag is finally subsiding. The first few nights were really hard. I once heard someone say that it takes one day for every hour difference in your time zone than the one you've come from. Whomever said that clearly didn't have two toddlers. Gabrielle and Isabelle were waking two to three times a night for a few nights... and when they were awake, they were AWAKE. They wanted to play, sing, etc. Fortunately, our team (of which we have the fewest kids) were very patient and sympathetic regarding how quickly we re-submerged into ministry. Naturally, they've been through this a few times with their own travel-weary kids.

Despite the hectic schedule and unorthodox living arrangements, we had a wonderful visit in California. We had a fantastic Christmas with the family. Last time I spent Christmas in CA with my family, I was single and my sister and brother-in-law only had one one-year-old. Now they have two and we have two and Christmas morning was an onslaught of laughter, excitement, and flying wrapping paper. Along with their cousins (Nico & Molly), our girls had a blast and were showered with gifts from family friends - one of which was a day-pass to Disneyland. Gabrielle was in awe. Her first ride ever? It's a Small World... and she sang her lungs out. Her experience on that first ride was worth the whole trip to California.

One of the best experiences I had while home was sitting in on some of my dad's weekly meetings/groups. I got to step into his ministry for a spell and connect with some great men/pastors. It was enriching sharing ministry stories, experiences, vision and paradigms with these guys... and it was always accompanied with great food and bottomless cups of coffee.

Another cool treat was that we were able to connect with about half of the participants that were over here last year... and even a few that came on brief visits to check out our ministry in Glasgow. It was great to reconnect with them and hear how they're doing, what they're up to, and share about our new life in ministry with Christian Associates.

Sadly, as much as we needed space and relaxation, we had very little. We actually returned more tired than we'd arrived. We've spent the last week catching up on sleep and energy wherever we get the chance. Jasheen has marveled at my ability to knockout at any given moment when the opportunities present themselves. In fact, whenever I become sedentary for even a moment, I'm likely to shut my eyes and doze - reading, watching TV... even in mid-conversation. She's afraid I have chronic fatigue or something like that, but I think my body has just said, "ENOUGH ALREADY - SLEEP NOW!"

One of the other highlights of the trip was living in $US. The dollar is so weak right now and trying to stretch what we have in the UK is always a challenge. For a brief period, we enjoyed paying for the real value of our food and goods, instead of almost double.

As we return to what has become "normal life," we have realized that for the past six months we have either had house-guests or stayed in someone else's home. We have not had a moment to settle in anywhere as a family. We're hosting a friend now, and when she leaves, another friend from Amsterdam is coming to stay with us for a week, and after that we'll be hosting my brother for a week or two. While we love exercising hospitality and each and every person that stays here, we also long for some down time where we can just be a family. Please pray that the Lord would give us strength and discernment when it comes to boundaries for the health of our family and marriage. And pray that as we love on these guests, that we would also be enriched and blessed by their stay.

Oh! There are new pictures up on our flickr site if you'd like to see photos from our trip.
We're grateful for the time we got in CA and for all the love we received from the folks back there. Now it's back to the grind for us. Looking forward to sharing more things as ministry continues to develop here.