Globetrotter

Imminent Return

2006-12-11T03:48:00.000-05:00

This is the first post in over a month. Hardly the regularity of someone who was once a frequent blogger. And even then, it's likely to not be a forth-coming resurgence in thrice weekly posts. But leaving the appologies behind me for my lack of informative posting, I'll move on to the body of the post.

I'm finishing up my time here in Asia, and am well into the final push. I'm finishing my report on the feasibility of a Hope Fund in Nepal today, and beginning the process of good-byes. The return is sure to be quite profound in many ways. Not least because I'll be making it home just in time for Christmas.

Just as a space ship's re-entry into the Earth's atmosphere has the potential to be disasterous if not well calculated & executed, so I've heard is that of someone returning from spending a significant amount of time in the 3rd world. Much different than any of my previous "re-entries" from Europe both in adolensence & adulthood, this one must overcome profound differences between cultures. I stand ready for the task. Ready for the uncertainties, the chages, and the hope of a beautiful next chapter of life.

Until next time, may you be filled with the joy of the Christmas Spirit.

Link to buy Nepali Christmas Cards

2006-11-10T05:45:00.000-05:00

The Nepali christmas cards are now up on the ServLife website...you can order them online and we'll be shipping them directly from Nepal. CLICK HERE to buy yours today!!!

Christmas Cards

2006-11-08T10:54:00.000-05:00

COMING SOON . . .

CHRISTMAS CARDS HANDMADE IN NEPAL (courtesy of Shannon Taylor & Ellen Bender)

Our Nepali friends Bipin and Sarah Sharma have a printing business and this Christmas they are making these really cool batik cards that are screen-printed by hand.

We're in the process of working out details to sell these via the ServLife Store on our website. It's a short-term project that, if successful, provides an opportunity to enlarge their business market, add a little bit of a cause to your Christmas spending, and encourage the vision of this young couple. A portion of the proceeds from the cards will go towards sponsoring outreach in Kathmandu in partnership with a local ministry.

If you haven't bought your Christmas cards yet and can wait a little longer, then buy these! They should be purchasable on-line soon. I'll post here when they are available.

New ServLife Hope Fund Video

2006-10-20T22:59:00.000-04:00

ServLife just published a new short film on the ServLife Hope Fund that I developed in Thailand. The piece is just under four minutes long and explains a bit of how the project works, and shows footage filmed on scene in August. Your's truly even makes a few cameo appearances in the film, although I spent most of the time trying to hide behind the camera. You can read the intro & watch the video by clicking here. Hopefully this will give some of you a better understanding of just what the heck I've been doing over here for the last 8-9 months. Enjoy!

Where in the world is Carmen Sandiego?

2006-10-13T03:03:00.000-04:00

I used to love that show...and the old floppy disk computer game as well. It was an integral part of my childhood computer training.

Anyhow, sorry for the lack of posting these last two weeks. I spent 5 days with a good friend from Butler, named Ed, who came to the US as an international student for college. After we graduated, he moved back to the Phillipines, where he is originally from...or at least where his passport says he's from. He's lived in 7 different countries, and at the moment, his siblings are both living (or headed) the the US, and his parents are living in Japan. He, however, is living in Manila, about a block from his grandparents house. He's doing great things there, and it was a joy to be with him.

It was great to see a familiar face around, and to relive old memories of our college (glory) days. You know, the days when deadlines were meant to be broken, classes were scheduled to be skipped, and there was always a break to look forward to. Now I'm back in Phuket finishing up the training of the committee who will oversee the ServLife Hope Fund here. They're doing a fantastic job, and I'll be handing over the reigns on Oct 23, when I hop on a flight to Katmandu to spend the last 3 1/2 months of my time here with ServLife.

I'll be back in the posting swing of things now that I'm back.

A slaughter of the porky kind

2006-10-01T00:40:00.000-04:00

I stumbled upon a gruesome scene the other day in total disbelief. This post is not for the faint of heart.

I was out running and came across ten guys holding big sticks (that sounds like the back of an old No Fear t-shirt) out front of a small pig farm not far from my house. Being a curious young chap, I had to stop & take a look and find out what these guys were up to. I realized one of the guys had a gun. Now immediately when I say gun you think double barreled shotgun, maybe a Winchester. But this guy (I think) found his buried underneath some soot from a Thai revolution in the 1700's. His gun needed to be repacked with gun powder & stamped down after every shot. It was helarious watching him pack leaves in the barrell before shoving the rod in there to pack the gunpowder down. The objective of the shotgun was to kill one of these pigs. It took the guy forever...and I was totally confused because he seemed to have so many clear shots on these big pigs. Oddly enough though, come to find out, when he finally did let the shot go, it wasn't one of the big pigs that started squealing...it was one of the small guys. This is where the ten guys with clubs come back in. The squealing pig was running all around, and to tame him, the guys clubbed him to stun him. When they finally did, two guys held him down while a third guy came in with a knife & stabbed him until he seemed dead. Then they left for a while & went to smoke, tell jokes, and laugh together back at the house. I left, but I'm sure they came back to pick him up. I found out later that this is not the normal method for killing pigs around here...

It was a really sickening experience. The Thai people were all laughing like this was a normal affair. Even children were looking on like it was no problem. I guess I'm just not cut out for rural life. I told Chelsey when I got back that I've decided to join her in her vegetarianism. Don't tell her, but I slipped up and ate meat a few times already...shoot!

2nd hand presents and farang food

2006-09-27T21:45:00.000-04:00

I spent the day on Tuesday with Chachuan, the pastor at Hope of Takuapa church ServLife partnered with for the tsunami response. He's also one of the ServLife Hope Fund's committee members. I went up in the morning with a truck full of toys, tables, chairs, and other things left from our office & the Vestal's house. We had a committee training meeting in the afternoon, and that evening Chach and his wife Mong had to come to Phuket, so I invited them over for some "farang" (Thai word meaning Western) food. It was a good day. So here's a few pics...

Pics from the Hope Church Farewell Party

2006-09-25T01:00:00.000-04:00

With everyone leaving, the church we have connected with here threw a farewell party for the ServLife team (although I'll still be here another few weeks) last week. Here's a few pics from the evening...

Everyone eating the special food they prepared for us. Notice the coconuts on the table...they're filled with a Thai coconut soup!

My first (and hopefully last) worship leading experience. I know all of you Indy folks with find this laughable!!!

To book a show at your church, my email is: jason.a.foster@gmail.com

Group Pic of those who were left at the end of the night.

Another new house

2006-09-24T23:59:00.000-04:00

This weekend marked a big transition for me. The rest of the ServLife team flew off on airplanes to the US or Nepal; and I moved into a new [temporary] house. With the Vestal's back in America, I've moved into their house for the next month while I finish out my tenure here in Thailand. I lived here for my first week in Thailand before they arrived, but it is a wholly new experience with no one else around!

Over the course of the next month I'll be training five Thai's to manage & oversee the continuation of the ServLife Hope Fund I started here after my departure. As a revolving fund, our hope is that the fund will continue on for years and years to come; impacting hundreds of families here. With my commitment to ServLife only stretching for one year, it was essential that national leadership take over the program. I'm excited about their involvement with the program, and see them doing great things.

Towards the end of October, I'll be moving up to Nepal to join the rest of my team and start ServLife's second Hope Fund in the Kathmandu Valley. Nepal has the 3rd lowest GDP in the world outside Africa, with per capita income around $210. The Hope Fund will look a lot different there, but projects like ours are so necessary there. I'm excited about the opportunities ahead!

Lifestyles of the rich & the famous

2006-09-21T21:41:00.000-04:00

Forbe's magazine has come out with their newest survey of America's 400 richest tycoons. To make the list this year, you need over $1,000,000,000 net worth. No, my zero didn't get stuck, there are nine 0's there...$1bn. One man, Sheldon Adelson, who is in the news frequently in this part of the world for building a new $2bn casino on a Chinese island called Macau, has apparently been making $1,000,000 every hour...for two years!

Living where I live, seeing the things I see, working with the people I'm working with; this kind of wealth is unfathomable right now...indeed I'm sure it always will be. If Adelson could even give away one of those hour's wage each day he could bring entire villages out of poverty forever--each day. Now I don't know Adelson's (or the others save the top two) philanthropic efforts--but I do know that he's worth $20.5bn, and has plenty left to give away.

Now the rest of us may not have billions, and we may not be making a million an hour, but I think seeing the extravigence of some challenges me to be more giving with what I have. It's good to know the top two on the list (Gates & Buffett) have each given over half of their respective net worth's to bring hope in an otherwise hopeless world for many poor, disease ridden Africans. But those two can't do it alone. They need help! And even peons like us making fractions of a penny on the dollar of those ultra-rich can be the vessel that inspires hope in lives around the globe.

Thailand is back to normal

2006-09-21T06:37:00.000-04:00

Click here for the BBC's update on today's political crisis in Thailand. Things are back to normal, no blood was shed, and everyone is happy.

Only in Thailand will you find citizens giving soldiers yellow roses in honor of a coup d'etat that ousts a prime minister & throws the country into martial law for the next few weeks. But hey, I wish they were all this peaceful & carefree!!!

Updates on the situation in Thailand

2006-09-20T00:49:00.000-04:00

Well, after a rather uncanny evening, the morning sun brings relaxation in this part of the country. I drove some teammates down to a pier this morning for a two day visit to the Phi Phi Islands and nothing about the drive was unusual. There were mopeds screaming in and out of traffic, kids running & playing in their uniforms, merchants set up on every street corner, and lots of smiling faces. The Prime Minister is still in the US according to reports, so continue praying for what will happen when he makes his return to the country that is no longer his to rule.

A few quotes from different news sources:

CNN: Some Thais gathered outside Government House in Bangkok to get pictures of themselves with the tanks and troops, AP reported. The coup caused little stir in Bangkok's popular tourist districts, where foreigners packed beer bars and cabarets just a few miles from where the tanks were posted, AP reported.

BBC: Army chief Gen Sonthi Boonyaratglin said in a TV address that the coup was necessary to unite the country. The military had no intention of holding onto power, he added.

BBC: Political gatherings of more than five people have been banned, while state TV has reportedly announced restrictions on domestic and foreign media. "We have seized power. The constitution, the senate, the house of representatives, the cabinet and the constitutional court have all been terminated," he said.

AlJazeera: Thais who trickled out onto the capital's streets overnight appeared to welcome the surprise turn of events as a necessary climax to months of demands for Thaksin to resign amid allegations of corruption, electoral irregularities and a worsening Muslim insurgency. Many people were surprised, but few in Bangkok seemed disappointed.

Coup d'Etat in Thailand

2006-09-19T12:58:00.000-04:00

The BBC's most recent article on the situation in Bangkok, Thailand. Check back for updates as things develop here in the coming days...I will be sure to update regularly.

Coup' sparks Thailand emergency

Tanks took up positions outside Government House

Thai Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra has declared a state of emergency in Bangkok amid reports of a coup attempt.

Soldiers have entered Government House and tanks have moved into position around the building.

Mr Thaksin, who is at the UN in New York, said he had removed the chief of the army.

National television announced that forces had taken control of Bangkok "to maintain law and order", and that they were declaring loyalty to the king.

However, the BBC's Kate McGeown in Bangkok says King Bhumibol is held in high esteem by all Thais, and the declaration of loyalty does not necessarily imply that he backs the takeover attempt.

An army-owned TV station is showing images of the royal family and songs linked in the past with military coups.

The announcement said the troops belonged to the "Council of Political Reform".

Our correspondent says low-level rumours of a possible coup have been circulating for weeks.

Thai media say that two army factions appear to be heading for a clash, with one side backing the prime minister and the other side backing military commander Lieutenant General Sonthi Boonyaratglin.

The general was sacked by the prime minister earlier in the day.

Political impasse

Our correspondent Jonathan Head said it was not clear which faction had taken the initiative and moved into Government House.

He said there has been pressure growing on the prime minister to resign, including groups close to King Bhumibol, following a political impasse in which April's general election was declared invalid.

But it was thought that Thailand was making progress towards holding another election later in the year, our correspondent says.

Witnesses said several hundred troops were posted at key points around Bangkok, including at government installations and major intersections.

At the United Nations, where the annual General Assembly is under way, it was announced that the agenda had been changed to allow Mr Thaksin to address it in the coming hours.

(http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/5361008.stm)

ServLife Hope Fund All-Star

2006-09-15T23:31:00.000-04:00

One of the ServLife Hope Fund's brightest recipients posing in front of the sign he made to publicize his new restaurant to the community. The restaurant officially opened about three weeks ago although construction was still ongoing, and the sign was just hung this week.

Prongtep, the man pictured, will also be serving as the treasurer for the committee I'm putting together to oversee the fund after my departure. We thought it'd be helpful for future recipients to have a previous recipient on the committee to guide them through the loan process.

Peace!

2006-09-15T04:55:00.000-04:00

ServLife's Kathmandu orphanage director & I at a Nepal staff dinner last weekend.

I'm the idiot on the right...he's the guy faking the smile at my antics on the left.

Some things never change

2006-09-14T04:54:00.000-04:00

I got back from Nepal last night, healthy & ready to commence all the training & empowering work of the five Thai people who will oversee the ServLife Hope Fund after my departure. The trip to Nepal was great in terms of helping to solidify ways I can be of use there, where I will live, and when I'll be able to join the rest of the team there. And, it was encouraging to be around a younger crowd, enjoying the amenities of a capital city...even if they're 3rd world quality in many situations.

Some things about Nepal haven't changed much though. The political situation is still somewhat volatile, only now the insurgent Maoists are prancing around the capital enjoying the new found freedoms associated with a democratic peace process. They're able to wreak havoc on the capital city, knowing the under-funded police are too weak to respond with force. As always though, tourists somehow live above the law here, able to come & go freely with now worries of danger. White skin & a blue passport with an olive branch on it has both positives & negatives I guess...you just have to pick your destinations wisely! :)

Here's a few pictures from the trip to Nepal that seemed to catch me off guard since no news of political turmoil really reaches anyone outside Nepal.

A group of army soldiers seemingly just hanging out in the middle of a busy intersection.

A few riot prepared soldiers against a wall in a touristy area of town with Nepal's best coffee shop just next to them. Oh yes, and no protesters anywhere to be found.

Burning tires in the middle of the road on the way to the airport, right across from Nepal's most intimidating Hindu Temple. Nepali's pass by w/o fear.

Nepal News

2006-09-09T12:50:00.000-04:00

I'm studying for the GRE, and have learned that my vocab needs some serious expansion! In order to learn new words, I often employ the good ol' method of alliteration, so my apologies for the alliterated title...but as you probably guessed, I just finished studying!

The last few days have been a really exciting time here. In typical fashion I exited the airport to learn of a strike that was imposed by the transportation union for the day. Fortunately this time it was only a one day event in protest of the government not giving money to the family of a taxi driver who was killed last week--not the total public outcry against an ineffective, power-hungry king. After the shock of the place wore off again, I really started to figure out what my role could look like here.

Our ServLife team spent most of the day in meetings today, both just as international staff, as well as together with our national staff. We talked about our dreams for Nepal & our roles here, about tangible needs we can meet, and present opportunities we can jump into. More details on my specific role to come, but for now, it's important to just have the ideas stirring & know how I could be of use when I eventually make it up here.

One quick story...the newspapers here have been following the story of a school killing in Nepal. Now immediately in our minds we think a school killing would be a human killing story--not the case here--rather, it was a snake. And in fact, it's not really the dead snake they're following at all, but the effect the dead snake is having on people. The snake was killed early in the week, and on Wednesday nearly 50 students went unconscious at the school. Hindu priests were brought in to perform a cleansing and purifying act called a puja. Some people even said that the school needed to erect a shrine to the snake god (one of Hinduism's 33 million odd gods). Either way, the school was closed down after the bizarre incident, yet on Thursday, another 25 students went unconscious in their homes. To this point, no scientists have been called in to check the water or air quality. It's both incredibly humorous, and incredibly saddening to follow the story. This article wouldn't even make it in a tabloid in America, yet here it's front page news. So many people here have no hope, no security, and no God to call on in times of need. Instead, they're constantly working to appease the gods, hoping one day the gods may look down with favor at their works.

Nine Million

2006-09-03T22:52:00.000-04:00

Nine million children are living as refugee right now. There are 20.8 million refugees in need of protection globally. Nike, Microsoft & others have partnered with the UNHCR (United Nations High Commission for Refugees) to help alleviate the suffering by creating awareness, raising much need financial assistance, and implementing sporting initiatives to help the refugee children. The organization is called Nine Million (visit their website by clicking on the link). I first heard about it while I was back in the US last month. Chelsey & I stopped in Chicago on our way back from Wisconsin. Being the athlete she is, no trip to Chicago is complete without visiting the Nike Town store. And being the curious george that I am, my attention was most notably grabbed by the all black t-shirts that just said "nine million." As I investigated I found out what the program was & that many of their stories came from the Thailand/Myanmar border, bought the shirt, and told Chels, "I'm going there when I get back to Thailand. And I'm wearing this shirt when I do!"

Over 140,000 ethnic Burmese (Myanmar) refugees have fled across the border over the past two decades, living in small compounds they cannot leave because the Thai government has been unwilling to issue citizenship to them. After years of living in poor, cramped conditions, the first refugees were given opportunities to leave for Western countries in August. Some 300 of them set out for the concrete jungle of Chicago's O'Hare International Airport on August 18.

As I was finding out more information about the resettling process, I found out that of the 70,000 refugees were resettled into 55 different peaceful nations last year. Of those 70,000, 54,000 of them were given opportunities to gain citizenship in the USA. Hearing that made me proud of our country's willingness to extend a helping hand. More research showed that on top of helping people get into the US, we gave over $322 million to the UNHCR. Now, maybe it's a small proportion, and maybe we could give more. But it feels good to be part of a place that; despite our downfalls, political scandals & unpopular global fighting; really is helping alleviate human suffering around the world.

I'm hoping to visit the Tham Hin refugee camp next week on my way back from Nepal for meetings w/ServLife International. There's 9,500 Karen refugees living there, and as many as 2,700 of them are scheduled to be resettled in America. Perhaps my journey will help raise awareness of these people and their plight back in America. They will be settling in cities all over the country; from San Francisco to Fort Wayne. They may end up in your back yard. And if they do, reach out a hand. They deserve it.

The Future of Energy

2006-09-01T02:50:00.000-04:00

Ok, I admit it. At heart, I'm a big nerd. I read the Economist, I check the news religiously, and I even care about saving the environment. Last week's Economist issue had a pretty amazing ad in it that I wasn't sure what to do with at first. It claimed that a company in Dublin had developed a totally clean fuel source that apparently "violates one of the most fundamental principles in our current understanding of the universe." It would allow you to never have to fill up a gas tank or recharge your cell phone again. They claim it never depletes, it doesn't damage the environment in any way, and there is an endless supply of it. Sounds like a hoax, huh?

But I think they might be serious. And what a beautiful future that would bring. Click here to find out more, or just copy & paste: http://www.steorn.com. And it's ok, go ahead, be a nerd, sing up for the results.

In other environmental news, kudos to California for their recent environment bill that passed today!

The Emergence of Hope

2006-08-30T04:10:00.000-04:00

Yesterday was one of those days you reflect on after the fact with memories of joy. I dispersed three loans yesterday, helping start two small home mini-mart type stores, and help a third person begin a tire repair shop at a local gas station. I received a phone call on Sunday from a woman that works for the church these three people are members at telling me how excited the people were for the first time since she's met them. How the ServLife Hope Fund gave them hope for tomorrow, given all the destruction and turmoil these last 18 months. She said they smiled & joked like never before. Indeed, yesterday proved that this was the case. We gave out the loans, had lots of good laughs, one husband accepted Christ, and saw a lot of encouraged people. It's amazing to be part of such emerging moments of hope.
I think given some of the chaos here and lack of confidence in where these next few months will lead me, yesterday was an important day. It reminded me that I'm a part of a much bigger story than my own life. It reminded me that I will definitely experience challenges, but that God will find a way to bless me (and all of us) in my journey when I need it most. Now, not to say that today is bright & sunny (in fact is dreary & rainy), but there's that speckle of hope, and that trust that I need not worry, because something Good is coming.

Back to the grind

2006-08-26T22:28:00.000-04:00

I made it back to Phuket on Tuesday night after a beautiful 10 days back in the US. Thank you to all of you who I got to see. Thank you for your encouragement and love. It will surely be the spirit of those many conversations that keeps me going strong these next six months.
Now that I'm back, transition time is upon me. I'm in the process of moving this weekend, the Vestal's (the ServLife Director's family) are heading back to the US in 3 weeks, and the rest of the ServLife team has either already moved, or will soon be moving, to Nepal. That leaves yours truly here in Thailand flying solo for the next few months. With the ServLife Hope Fund well established, I cannot pick up and follow my team up there for the next chapter of our commitment here. Through the many conversations I've been having with Joel Vestal over the last few days, it's looking like over the next several months we will spin the Hope Fund off to a committee of local Thai people. The idea would be that they would be able to manage it for the long term without having any of the baggage of being a foreigner. The committee will ideally have 5 or so people on it who will find potential recipients, walk them through the application process, work through business planning with them, determine if the candidate is fit for receiving a loan, and then help buy materials for them. They'd also be responsible for collecting the repayments & managing the bank account for the fund.
I'm excited about the opportunity to be an integral part in spinning the program off to the community. I'm also excited that when I eventually leave there will be a sense of closure to my time here, and the program will be sustainable over the long term; helping dozens, or hundreds of families rebuild their lives, and hopefully making it better than it was prior to the Tsunami. Then, when I feel confident that the loan is in good hands, hopefully by Nov/Dec, Joel wants me to move to Nepal to help start another Hope Fund there that will be managed by other ServLife Int'l staff. So, as you can see, there is big transition lurking real close.

Phang Nga Bay

2006-08-07T04:50:00.000-04:00

A quick trip across Phuket island lands you on a pier fit for Atlantic City, Los Angeles, Miami, or any other huge coastal town with lots of revenue coming in--not an uncrowded concrete jungle with nothing larger than a bamboo restaurant surrounding it. The pier is 500 meters long, and ends well into a famous Bay here in Thailand called Phang Nga Bay. It's home to over 40 seperate islands, many made of jagged limestone cliffs. The featured island in these parts is an island called James Bond Island. It had a cameo in one of the original movies 20 years ago, and has been turned into a major tourist trap. The island is nothing more than a spire sticking maybe 60 feet out of the water, with about a 20 foot diameter. The small outcropping island now has a pier built for big boats to come dock & drop tourists off for a 20 minute visit to take their picture, and take a look at one of the 52 souvenir stalls.
To welcome our last (but not least) team member, we decided to take a canoeing adventure into some caves and go visit the infamous island. The scenery was obviously beautiful, but the thing I'll remember most isn't the lush greenery, the new-moon black of the caves, the nocturnal bats flapping their wings all around, or the rust bucket boat that took us out there; it's the fact that I wasn't allowed to paddle my own sea canoe! In Thailand, the Land of Customer Service, when you pay for a guided tour through sea caves, what they mean is that you pay for not only someone to lead your group, but to paddle your own 3 person canoe!

Here's a picture of an out-take from the original James Bond movie:

Epic Story

2006-08-05T00:35:00.000-04:00

This past week has been rather enjoyable. Our team, which has been rather dispersed over the last month finally came back together over the past five days. Ellen, Mark, and Jennifer all returned after two and three weeks collectively in Nepal, our newest team member, Shannon, arrived from the US to begin her one year commitment on Thursday, and this whole week a friend from Malaysia has been with us as well. It is good to have everyone around again. But that’s just an aside for the real purpose of this post…

I received a couple applications for potential candidates for the ServLife Hope Fund this week, and their stories captivated me unlike any I’d heard before. I’ll only share one of the stories for brevity’s sake, but both were great. So one of the families was a fishing family. When the Tsunami hit the husband and older son were out to sea fishing, and the wife was apparently right along the shore, holding her seven month old baby. When that unforgettable wave came the husband & older son were thrown from their ship as it was destroyed by the force, and were left to float on a mattress in the open water with a large python that somehow ended up on there for four hours until a rescue boat came and found them. The wife, on shore, was washed away in the wave clutching her baby with all the strength she could muster against the strength of nature. She rode the wave for nearly a half mile through her village where the wave destroyed 80% of the infrastructure. She was hit with chairs, tables, even cars & motorbikes went surfing with her that day. She managed to survive, despite the unbelievable odds against her, but at the last minute, something she could only describe as “large” hit her in the back and shook her baby loose from her grasp. She couldn’t hold on, and her baby wasn’t to be seen for two days until the water receded from her village, revealing the horrible truth she has only barely been able to deal with over the last 18 months. Everyone she knows has asked her why she couldn’t just hold on. Everyone except her husband that is, who has been there for her through it all. She’s survived not just the wave, but the deep depression that followed the loss of her baby, and is now starting to attend the church a friend of mine pastors. She said that of all the organizations that came to help, only the Christians are left. She said there must be something about these people worth exploring if they’re the only ones left. She may not be a Christian yet, but it’s obvious that God has been at work in this family for a long time already…he sought all of us first, and we but responded to his grace.

We’ve all got stories. Perhaps you don’t think they captivate the way this family’s does, but we’ve all got an opportunity to speak truth into someone’s life. It wasn’t the Christian’s eloquent preaching, or the Christian’s fancy churches that attracted her to them, but their selflessness, their incarnation, and their love. Those are qualities we can all embody if we will only stick an arm out to help. Would you join me in this epic story of redemption? Wherever we are, whatever we do, let’s join hands & work as one in our countries, our neighborhoods, our offices, and our houses!

Updates on the Hope Fund

2006-07-29T00:02:00.000-04:00

Last night was the "1 year anniversary" for the church that was started after ServLife bought & renovated an old night club just after the Tsunami. After popping in to see the four businesses the ServLife Hope Fund has helped start thus far, we went to the church birthday party & filmed some of the celebrations. It was beautiful to see the transformation of not just the building but of peoples lives since that fateful day 18 months ago. God continues to provide in amazing ways for everyone here.

See a few of the pictures from our Hope Fund recipient's projects below:

Anne & Prit are building a small house for themselves & a floating fish farm.

Pronthep & his wife are building a restaurant on the front of the Rotary International house they just received last month.

Mit driving his new boat that helps him get to the sea and back to grow his fishing business with his wife Anne.

Discouragment

2006-07-24T03:10:00.000-04:00

I got a phone call today from someone who I'd been expecting to pick up an application for our Hope Fund tomorrow. I was excited about the opportunity to impact another person who had lost everything in the Tsunami, and equally as excited that this loan would have been the first loan through a church ServLife had never worked with before. But the phone call today ended that conversation before it started. The pastor called to tell me that he'd found a better option for the people in his church than receiving a loan from us. In a land such as this, why accept an interest free loan when you can get the money for free? The tsunami was such a big catastrophe, organizations lined up to give things away for free--ServLife included--from houses to boats, refrigerators to motorbike sidecarts. Anything & everything people needed to survive was given freely to them--and thank God for it!
Unfortunately though, I don't think we should depend on hand-outs forever. I don't blame those people for finding a better option--I would obviously do the same thing! But my hope is that the people here aren't becoming dependent on the foreign aid. A guy last week just candidly walked up to me and said, "I'd like you to buy me some large ice boxes, they'll cost about $75." And this was a guy selling off the 3rd boat he received for free for just over $1,500. Obviously, he's got the money to buy them himself, but the question is: why would he if he knows he could get them for free?
I pray that my work here is not in vain, and that people are realizing the benefit of being financially independent and self supported. How beautiful it is to have that freedom, and what a blessing it is to be able to provide that for people.

Funny Pics from Singapore

2006-07-19T02:27:00.000-04:00

"Warning! You may be attacked by small flies going after your picnic food, or step on stray dog poop!"

"Mom, Dad, I didn't tell you, but I actually went to....."

"Who knew YL would be here?"

No quote needed. Stupid sign.

The conflict in the middle east

2006-07-19T01:04:00.000-04:00

Friends--pray for the situation in the middle east...obviously things are getting harder & harder in Israel & Labanon. I've been emailing w/a friend from Butler who a lot of you know (Shaden Dowiatt) who's over there right now w/her Israeli mom. Her mother's family is from Haifa, the Northern Israeli town that was bombed by Hezbollah the last few days. I got an email from her last night...see below:

"sup bro. im safe now, and mentally feel safer here in Nazareth. 2 mornings ago i woke up to the sirens and explosions, that lasted throughout the day.... sooo scary. you look at the sea and see all these war ships.. i felt like im in a movie. 007 style. but i insisted on coming to nazareth which is all arab. so that night we took a taxi here and are staying w/family. here life continues, haifa is a different story. i dont want to go back to haifa till its over because the noise of the sirens is something i cant handle. the people in lebanon break my heart. anyways, pray for these sad people."

So let's take her advice & start praying! Our power rests in it. Shalom & peace my friends.

The Devil Lives on Orchard Rd...

2006-07-14T04:36:00.000-04:00

...Ok, not really, but his Consumerist Cousin does!

Orchard road is the main shopping district in Singapore, and I visited towards the end of Singapore's 2 month, mid-summer shoping extravaganza called the "Great Singapore Sale". Having spent the last four months in small markets in Asia, I was a bit overwhelmed with the chaos of Orchard Rd today. It reminded me of the strip in Las Vegas, but replace the multi-billion dollar casinos that trap people, with multi-billion dollar shopping malls that do much the same. It's mall after mall after mall for blocks...on both sides of the road. To find the Borders Bookstore today (where I tapped into my own materialism) I had to walk into three different malls asking for directions, which was rather surprising for this reason: I'm surprised there wasn't a Borders in every mall. Along the road I saw the following: 7 (yes, 7!) Starbucks, 6 McDonald's, 3 Burger Kings, and more 7-11's than I could count. I think I've seen four Starbucks' total in the last four months, so seeing in 7 in a span of five blocks seemed obsurd.

Orchard Road is a marketing microcosm for what's possible. Drawing citizens from the world around to the tax free haven in Singapore, this place is what marketing execs dream of. Being able to support 7 Starbucks stores in less than a mile, enjoying highrise hotels & countless malls draining people's pockets faster than you can say, "Singapore Sling". Oh yes, and not to mention, the cutting edge advertisements drawing people ever nearer to the credit swipe.

This is a picture of one of the cross walks, complete with an endless throng of people from every corner of the globe. The global harmony here is really amazing.

Singapore

2006-07-12T21:34:00.000-04:00

Every 30 days I have to leave Thailand. The routine is a fact of life with the visa I have there. The cheapest and easiest way to do it is head on a bus to the Burma border, which is what I did last month. This month I decided I needed to go to Singapore. It's a quick, cheap 1.5 hour flight south of Phuket, and among other things, it's home to some of Asia's only International Young Life staff. I'm spending three nights in their "fortress" here...a big, beautiful house that has their office in it as well. Here's a link to Singapore YL's website. They're the only staff in SE Asia, but they're doing amazing work!

Being in such a developed, western feeling city, and hanging out with great people has been a huge encouragement to me! You still can't buy gum here...but after stepping back onto the curb to avoid getting caned for jaywalking yesterday, I watched two other people run right across the road and so I eventually followed suit. I guess it's not quite as strict as you hear on the news after all...

My First Independence Day Away

2006-07-06T08:42:00.000-04:00

So Tuesday was the 4th of July. In Thailand, it's just Tuesday. When you try & explain independence day to them, they stare blankly with a confused look. Having never been colonized or oppressed, they don't have much to be "independent" from. But, none the less, we set out to buying ground beef, french fries, making coleslaw, and drinking lots of coke & eating lots of cookies. After that, we found it necessary to shoot off the only kinds of fireworks you can find in Thailand: the kind they use to commemorate Buddhist holidays, and shoot off to bless faithful Buddhists. Hey, when in Rome...

Here's a few pics of the fun!

Me shooting something similar to a Roman Candle off the edge of the pool.

Zayd & his friends playing with sparklers by the pool.

Holding on to the memories...

2006-07-04T04:59:00.000-04:00

I know posting has taken a back seat to hanging out w/Chelsey the past 10 days, but...can you blame me? She's beautiful...and my computer isn't much more than a black box. Plus, it doesn't respond to me very often. So I thought the easiest way to catch everyone up is to do a quick photo rundown of the last week and a half. Chels left yesterday morning, and our time was amazing. Getting back to work is hard...I'm behind...and missing her. Anyhow, here's the pictures w/a little caption for each:

Chels & I on the roof of the hotel all 6 of us stayed at in Bangkok when her & the three people she flew with arrived. I think the picture was taken just an hour or two after she landed...

The ServLife Hope Fund kick-off party was last Monday. This is a picture of Joel Vestal & I with the first four recipients we honored that night. The dinner was amazing...10kg's of crab, lots of fresh fish & thai food. Unfortunately, Chels is a vegetarian, so they had to buy a special veggie thai dish at the market for her! Such a shame...the crab was delicious.

A quick shout out to the Nikcevich's & Arnold's. Their going away present to me was this shirt...on the back is says "We (heart) Jason". Classic. I wore it one of the days Chels & I were on the Phi Phi Islands. I figured, "I can't get much further away from Indiana than this...I better take a picture!". Thanks for the shirt guys...it's always a great conversation starter. Miss you all.

Thailand has this thing called a "First Class Movie". Basically for about $12/person, they feed you an hour worth of appetizers in a plush lounge, serve you milk shakes & non-alcoholic drinks ranging from virgin daquiris to lemon soda, then take you into an amazing theater and sit you at two comfy recliners with a full bowl of popcorn & two ice cold glasses of soda between you. Oh, and did I mention the blanket incase the air conditioning is a bit cold for you? I'd been waiting four months so we could go together...glad I finally got to enjoy it.

Chels & I on the beach near my house on one of our last nights here. We had great weather most of the days we were here...but not once were we able to see a sunset. Big time bummer...but, I think the surroundings speak for themselves, that despite no sunsets, beauty was all arounds us.

I know it's been a while...

2006-06-30T10:56:00.000-04:00

...but Chels is here. What would you expect, right? Anyhow, our computers got fixed yesterday, so I can finally get into password protected sights without any glitches now, so I decided it would only be appropriate to update everyone on the happenings of the last week or so. I asked her what I should write about and her response was this: "If this was my blog, I'd write about chocolate peanut butter pancakes and mango smoothies." Obviously the week has been pretty rough! :)

It's been a huge blessing to have her here. We've had some great times together, and she's been able to experience alot of what my life looks like here...including seeing the celebration dinner for the ServLife Hope Fund, and having a Thai man named Panomsak (a member of the church we had the dinner at) take enough pictures of her to start a portfolio...

I'll have more up, and LOTS of pics in a few days...be blessed my friends.

PS, Chels says hi.

Nepal News Update

2006-06-21T10:13:00.000-04:00

It's been a while since I've posted on the political situation in Nepal. Now seemed like an appropriate time. After a landmark deal was struck last week in which the Nepali Prime Minister agreed to dissolve the current congress and vote in a new one that allowed the Maoist insurgency to participate in return for the rebels laying down their weapons; the Maoists decided they were not ready for such a drastic move today. After ten years of fighting and some 13,000 Nepali's killed, the communist Maoists are not willing to lay down their arms. Many people in Nepal had been jubilant following the decision last week, and are now wrought with fear of further violence. As many of you know, Nepal is one of the poorest countries in the world outside Africa, with a GDP/Capita of around $1400 (less than $4/day), so this kind of continuing pressure from rebel groups totally decapitates a country with no money to launch a resistance fight. You can read more from the BBC here.

The long road to peace will yet encounter many more unexpected twists I am sure.

A happy day tomorrow

2006-06-21T04:52:00.000-04:00

Tomorrow is a big day for me. Not only am I giving a volunteer heading to India & Nepal for a few weeks from Indianapolis a few hour chrash course on what he'll be doing, what to expect & how to get around, but much more importantly, CHELSEY gets here! It's been nearly four months since the last time I saw her...and even as I type right now she is somewhere over the Pacific Ocean on her way here. The next 10 days will be an exciting & joyful time for us. I'm looking forward to having lots of good stories & pics to share in the coming week!

It's Official...

2006-06-20T10:02:00.000-04:00

Well, as the title says, 'it's official'. The last two days have been spent meeting with the first few recipients of the ServLife Hope Fund here in Southern Thailand, and buying the first group of materials for them. We're funding two fish farm business expansions, and one new restaurant. We are excited about these loans, and the opportunity they bring for those who receive them. Seeing the joy on the faces of the two women who came with us to buy materials today was such a blessing. To know how much it means for them to have someone be interested enough in their lives to come help will change you! And for those of you who were wondering...worry not, the celebration is still set for Monday night! :)

I also had a great conversation today with a British friend named Mark Biddell. He's an amazing guy who's even more of a rookie in Thailand than I am (by about 3 weeks). He's a husband and father of four, and has spent the last 10-15 years in Africa & then back to the UK for a while before coming here. Speaking of his efforts here, he said he's struggling to figure out how he connects his work (development programs) back to the church here. I think the line was something like this, "I think it was St. Francis of Assisi that said it, but we need to preach the gospel always, and use words if necessary. But Jason, if we're not preaching the gospel somehow, than we're no different than a bunch of secular business men here are we?" He's a great guy, and I'm thankful for the time we get to spend together. As well as the way he reminds me of my true purpose for being here.

Myanmar...or is it Burma?

2006-06-18T04:29:00.000-04:00

So yesterday I had to do my first "visa run". It may sound strange to you, but to Westerners in Thailand, this is a well established loop hole in the national immagration policy. Since Thailand only lets Westerners in on a 30 day tourist visa without a lot of documentation--and many people come for much longer--they've got a whole industry built around getting people to the border and back as quick as possible. Yesterday was my first of these adventures. From Phuket, you're basically looking at a 4 hour bus ride north to a city called Ranong; just across the bay from Myanmar/Burma (yes, both are applicable).

If you don't know anything about Myanmar, click here, or just know this: it's one of the poorest countries in the world (top 3 poorest outside Africa behind Afghanistan & Nepal), and is ruled by a fierce military dictatorship. In short, it's not a pretty, nor desireable place to visit; but they stamp your passport for a small fee, and let you leave as quickly as you came.

Once you get off the bus, you have to take a boat across the bay, step foot on Burmese soil while your 'tour guide' gets all your passports stamped, then it's back on the boat and back home as quick as you can buy a coke. But not surprisingly...not quick enough to avoid the dozen or so odd hagglers looking for some change to show you around the little port area for 25 cents or so for your ten minute visit. One kid, maybe 10 years old, literally tailed me the entire time, and he never stopped asking for 5 baht to show me around--the equivalent of 10 cents. And get this...he even asked me if I wanted to buy viagra! From the offers made, apparently they're selling everything from liquor, to cigarettes, perscription drugs, and more...and all at 'very cheap price' as they say. One guy on our way back said someone offered him his sister. It's hard to believe that that's what life is like for those guys...day in and day out...waiting on the dock for the next boat of white people to show up for 10 minutes and maybe give you some change. No hope for education, advancement, mobility, or much of anything really.

To me, it's amazing that these trips are an acceptable practice in Thailand. I met a couple who is yachting around the world, and since they're staying in Thailand over the 30 day limit they had to go get their passports stamped, but Thailand yachting rules don't allow them to leave the country without posting a bond on their boat. So before leaving they went down to the public office to bost the bond, and when asked why they were leaving, their response was met with a well worn 'no problem' response, and was laughed off by the authorities. The Thais have a saying, 'mai pen rai'...it means 'never mind'...and I think this is a great example. They encourage people to go ahead and bend the rules, but at least have a good time doing it.

Since I was only officially in Burma for a total of 10 minutes or so, I'm not quite clear as to whether I can count it on the list of countries I've visited in Asia. (Any thoughts?) But either way, I snapped the obligatory picture in front of the welcome sign when there was a break in the rain. Enjoy...

The joys of being a 'missionary'

2006-06-15T10:34:00.000-04:00

I gotta be honest...I don't really like the term. It kinda scares me. I mean I don't feel like I qualify...or that people would take me for who I am if I called myself that. But either way, today I was proud to be a missionary. Proud to be part of that select group of people called to fight for the poor, the oppressed, and the unjust on the ‘front line’. Today I felt like being a missionary might be the best job possible. And it wasn’t even in response to something I did well.

I spent the day with, yes, a ‘missionary’ friend. Another guy who quit his job, like many of us, gave up his comforts and decided maybe it’d be better if he moved overseas. This friend of mine was dedicating a house to a poor family who had been stuck living in a tin shack for nearly 30 years, who’s son had recently been paralyzed in a motorcycle accident. They obviously didn’t have money to pay for surgery, let alone a check-up, so he spent his days wailing in his bed, unable to move. Then the missionary showed up. He felt an emotional response. He raised money to get this man named Ju (probably in his 20’s) some physical therapy (and he’s walking now…albeit with a walker), and he raised money to build them a proper house, with all of the amenities….running water, a toilet, electrical outlets, and a door. Pretty profound stuff. The dedication ceremony was the product of nearly a year of hard labor. Toiling, sweating, and praying for the souls of these people. It was beautiful today. There was a blend of Thais & westerners, rejoicing together at the opportunity for hope these people had for the first time in a looong time. And somehow I managed to hitch a ride there for the day to get to experience it all. Today I felt proud to be a missionary.

This is a picture of the whole group in front of one of the two houses they built on the property.

Celebrate Good Times – Come On!

2006-06-14T11:23:00.000-04:00

With the launch of the “ServLife Hope Fund” in southern Thailand, comes a much needed opportunity for celebration. We have made a formal decision on three initial recipients, who will hopefully be the first of many for our micro-loan program here. All three are connected in some fashion to Hope of Takaupa church; the church ServLife partnered with on many of the Tsunami response efforts. Next week we will officially give out the funds, and on June 26 we’re throwing a little celebration to kick the project off right! We’ve invited all three recipients and their families, as well as other interested candidates. We’ve also invited all the previous ServLife aid recipients (many of whom are of Muslim faith—and people I would love to have connected to the fund), members of the Hope of Takaupa church and their mother church in Phuket, and other pastors and NGO workers from around the area who may be able to propagate our work in their churches or through their networks in the coming months.

We’ve got to find a good reason to throw another celebration in a month or two! :)

We are excited about the next few weeks, and I hope you’re feeling connected to our efforts here. If not, I’ve attached a picture of one of our recipients to help…this is Prit & Anne, you can read about their story on ServLife’s website.

Thomas Merton

2006-06-12T23:46:00.000-04:00

I’ve been reading a book by Thomas Merton called The Inner Experience, and have been very surprised at how relevant some of his conversations are to the “emerging” church story today. Merton died in 1968, and most of his writings come from the late 50’s & early 60’s. He is a student of many of the early Christian leaders—he quotes from Augustine and St. John of the Cross often—yet he is deeply aware that the church may not have had all the answers he was looking for as it stood in his day, just as many of us are unsettled with the institutional church as we know it today. Among other topics in the book, Merton looks to many Eastern religions for help in understanding what it means to encounter the true & living God. It reminds me of some of Rob Bell’s teachings from his book Velvet Elvis, about finding Truth wherever we find it, and seizing it as our own, because in the end, all Good things are of God.

One unrelated passage that’s particularly stuck out to me from the first few chapters is this (a quote from St. John of the Cross):

“Seek Him in faith and love…because faith, which is the secret that we have mentioned, is like the feet wherewith the soul journeys to God, and love is the guide that directs it.”

ServLife News Article

2006-06-08T12:23:00.000-04:00

Click here to read an article I just wrote about our efforts here in Thailand. It's posted on ServLife's website to generate funding & awareness for our newest project here.

The realities of life on a gachang

2006-06-07T23:21:00.000-04:00

Most of us have no idea what a gachang is. In fact, the Thai word doesn't even translate to English--reason being that we just don't have them. Our society has developed differently than the Thais, and more importantly, we're swimming in money they can only dream of. I've spent the last few weeks working on our "ServLife Hope Fund" and have been continually amazed at the realitites of life for some of the people we are working with. A gachang is a floating fish pen that keeps fish in their natural salty waters for up to 8 months while they grow big enough to sell to market. Living in stilt villages along tidal rivers with next to no assets, most of these fishermen's lives are spent in a one room shack attached to the gachang out in the mangroves watching over their precious goods as they grow; feeding them, protecting them, selling them. They move from place to place with only the simplest of wooden boats and a used car engine attached to a long metal shaft with a propeller on the end to send them on their way. I got to visit one of them yesterday, and wanted to post a picture to show you the boat. Enjoy...

My man Nop

2006-06-04T12:36:00.000-04:00

Nop is my boy. He makes me good food on the beach, he rents me motorbikes for a good price when I bargain hard enough, and he even manages a house I've stayed in a few times. I've seen him at nearly every day since I got to Phuket for one reason or another. Him and his wife named Bee own a small restaurant with no frills right on the beach not more than a mile from my house. It's conveniantly called Bee Bee's. Creative, huh? Nop and I have a great relationship...every time I come his staff area always up for a good chat--or at least a few good laughs and lots of miscommunication as we try to get our point across speaking our native tongues that the other doesn't understand! Nop is different though. He's got a good command of English, and because of the tourist industry he's learned a bit of a few other languages as well--my personal favorite is Italian, for obvious reasons :)

Tonight during my routine $2 meal on the beach, Nop and I got to chatting about what I was doing next. It being Sunday night, I was headed to church right after dinner. See, Nop is a muslim (all be it non-practicing), and his lovely wife Bee is a Buddhist. They know a bit about Christianity...enough to laugh and say he's seen those buildings before because they have that (and this is where he crosses his fingers in front of his face to make his point) cross on the top of the building. He called it temple until I reminded him the common English word was Church, not a temple...although I'd argue that it does that job too. I invited him to come with me, but he and his wife gave a polite no, and said "next time"...a synonym with "probably never". The beauty here though is this: I didn't wave a sign, give him a tract, or have to tell Nop that he was a sinner to get him talking about church. He asked questions, he listened, and he respected what I had to say because he respects me and the relationship we've built. Isn't that beautiful? I'm confident that "next time" (whenever that may be) my friend Nop and his wife Bee will be sitting in the Hope of Phuket Church with me, hearing about the God who created them, loves them, and desires for them to worship him as Lord. That's the kind of ministry I want to be involved in. The kind that says, "hey, I'm on this journey that brought me to Thailand and to your restaurant, do you want to join the journey with me?" It's not about numbers or statistics. It's about community, and the relationships we were created to be in.

So pray for Nop & his wife Bee...that they'll come to church with me, and that ultimately their lives would never be the same because of it. Oh yah, and that they'll give me that "cousins" discount too....

Duolos and Friends

2006-06-03T22:53:00.000-04:00

I spent last night aboard the MV Doulos ship. Doulos is a 170meter long ship that's loosely affiliated with an orgainzation called Operation Mobilization that sails the world encouraging the local church, and working alongside them in many projects. They sail with a crew of around 300-500 Christians hailing from nearly 50 countries--a large portion of whom are in their 20's, and have all committed to spending two years on board the ship, sailing from port to port. The ships usually dock in each port for two weeks, then sail onward. A few of my team members and I were invited down for a tour of the ship last night and dinner with the crew before watching one of the many programs they offer for Thai people to come watch, called "i-cafe"...the i standing for international. It was great to see the ship--especially walking on the 18 cylinder, 6000 horsepower engine that took up a three storey room--and the program displayed many of the ships crew in tradional costume from their native land, doing some sort of song, dance, or skit that is popular in their home country.

About half way through the program I had to duck out for a bit. My good friend Katie Hallberg was taking off for Timber Wolf Lake, a Young Life property in Northern Michigan for a month, and I'd planned to send her off with a few words of encouragemnt, and say hi to a few other great friends I hadn't spoken with since leaving for Asia in early March. It was such a blessing to hear their voices and receive their encouragement after many months away. So thanks for talking guys, you're amazing friends! :)

ServLife Hope Fund

2006-06-01T06:21:00.000-04:00

A quick update on our efforts here in Thailand. We've decided to move forward on the implementation of what we've coined the "ServLife Hope Fund", aimed at giving small business loans to unemployed, or underemployed, people in the region around where the Tsunami hit. We're hoping to give out the first round of loans by the end of this month (Happy June everyone!), with more people hopefully coming in the pipeline after the first wave is through. I'm busying myself writing loan applications, business plans, and other materials to get this off the ground. Our newest staff member, a Thai woman named Moo, is doing all of the translation work on the documents for us, and has been a huge asset to our team!

I'm excited about the opportunities we have here, and am looking forward to the weeks ahead as I continue meeting with people & discussing our mission!

Pictures from a sunset two nights ago...

2006-05-31T04:57:00.000-04:00

I got to see what may be the most amazing sunset I have ever seen in my life the other night. I went for dinner hoping it wouldn’t rain on us, and ended up hoping the sun would never go down. I’ve attached a few pictures...check out my Yahoo! Pictures page for more.

More Anne Lamotte

2006-05-28T00:57:00.000-04:00

Although the book (Traveling Mercies) is a bit hard to follow, with unexpected turns & collections of random stories, Anne never fails to throw in a few phrases packed with spiritual Truths in a raw, undeveloped fashion that cuts to the bone. Here's one that captured me the last few days:

"I do not at all understand the mystery of grace--only that it meets us where we are but does not leave us where it found us. It can be received gladly or grudgingly, in big gulps or in tiny tastes, like a deer at the salt."

In a nutshell, I think this is something we all struggle with--understanding the mystery of not just grace, but the identity that we have because of it. It's hard to put words to incomprehensible truths--but I think what Anne is trying to say...and what we should all listen to...is that it's not about how polished we are, or how well we can articulate the idea of grace; but its about the redemptive fulfillment we can receive from it. It's about living freely in the idea that we are not who we once were, and that we don't have to strive to be someone new, because we already are.

A Picture of Commemoration...

2006-05-24T02:26:00.000-04:00

For those of you who remember the article I wrote about Mark & I's first trip to Nepal with his wife Jennifer, you'll know that the journey was not easy. As we travelled into Nepal on day 5 of their strikes last month, the 30km journey from the border to our airport took nearly 6 hours, using our feet, a horse drawn buggy, and two different bicycle taxis. When we finally got to the airport we took a picture in front of the plane to symbolize our victory.

This time, the road could not have been easier. Mark & I had to take another photo to commemorate the striking contrast as Nepal had gotten back on its feet. In fact, just last Thursday parliament voted that Nepal (the only Hindu Kingdom in the world) shall become a secular nation. This will help the growth of the indigenous church, and Christian orginazations like ServLife that are trying to work among the Nepali people a lot in coming months/years. So here's the picture...a commemoration of sorts, to a Nepal that is trying to rebuild from the ground up!

More to come on the efforts in Thailand in the coming days...

New Pics Added!

2006-05-23T01:07:00.000-04:00

Check out the link on the right & click on the new album to see pictures of my time in Nepal & India with the guys from California!

Raju

2006-05-22T11:26:00.000-04:00

On my way back from a coffee shop in Katmandu yesterday I was approached by a man asking for money. My first reaction was the typical quickened pace to try & avoid him, but for some reason the spirit forced me to stop, and hear what this old man had to say. He looked awful. He was probably in his fifties, his body tired and weary from decades of manual labor, and literally decaying with each day that passes as some skin condition ravages his body. The man said he had a small girl at home who he didn't have the money to feed. I decided this was something I couldn't walk away from, so I had the man lead me around the corner to a small vending stand that sold formula. For the equivalent of about $8 I bought him three weeks worth of formula for his baby girl. As we were talking, I found out this mans name was Raju, a member of the infamous Sherpa tribe, the Himilayan tribe made famous for its porters assisting westerners up Mount Everest. Raju had gotten a really bad skin disease, and as he pulled up his pant leg to show me what the effects were, I saw his hamstring literally chipping off the rest of his leg, looking like old paint on a forgotten wall. He was taking medicine (thankfully, there is treatment available for all who can get to a hospital in Nepal), and hoping to be strong enough to get back to work in the next few weeks.

As it turns out, Raju is a Christian man. As I shared with him that the reason I went around the corner to buy him formula was because I believe in God, and that he came for all, Raju turned to me and said, "jemesi". Roughly translating to "God bless you", I knew this tender, broken old man was one of the few in his tribe to believe in God. He came down to the valley from the mountains because his wife had some sickness and couldn't be in a cold climate any longer, and somehow got connected to a church in Katmandu. The next five or ten minutes were a beautiful time of encouragement for me, and as the saying goes, by blessing others, you are blessed. I felt blessed to have met & gotten to experience both the hardship the Nepali people face, and the hope those who believe in the Lord have here. I hope this story impacts you wherever you're at today, and encourages you to reach out. Don't be afraid to listen to that subtle tug from God to step out of your comfort zone to make a difference.

Back in Nepal

2006-05-21T03:25:00.000-04:00

Just returned from ServLife's India facility with the group of men from The Crossing Church. Our time there was great. The graduates of the one year pastoral training school there had their ceremony on Saturday that we were able to be a part of, apart from all the other ways to serve there. My time here has challenged me in many new ways as I felt really moved by some of the poverty & hopelessness that abounds here. Mark Storm & I will be working on getting updated information to ServLife back in the US about all the orphans here...many of whom are not yet sponsored. If you're interested in being a part of the ministry here & helping a child get food, shelter, clothing, and education at a bright light in a sea of darkness, visit ServLife's website. You can sponsor a child for $30/month.

Also, I got an email about some of the human trafficking issues in India & Nepal. I encourage you visit this link and read the article. It says as many as 12,000 young Nepali girls are illegally trafficked into the Indian sex trade every year. We need to raise awareness & feel compassion for these girls!!

Realities of Suffering

2006-05-17T11:09:00.000-04:00

I'm writing from Katmandu, after a long day of helping to host a group of guys from a church in Costa Mesa, California called The Crossing. They're a great group of guys, and all have huge hearts & passions for being global advocates for ServLife's work here. We spent the day at the ServLife children's home here, as well as visiting a few other local ministries: one was an underground bible college, and the second was a ministry to handicapped people in Nepal. Both obviously look very differently than their sister organizations would in the US.

I've been struggling with the realities of poverty, injustice, persecution, and hopelessness here. Please pray for my spirits as we head into India tomorrow, where those realities are even more pronounced and confrontational. Also, continue to pray for safety in travels as our team of 7 seeks to encourage & bless the ServLife projects in Nepal & India.

Godspeed my friends.

All Better..

2006-05-14T12:13:00.000-04:00

Just a quick FYI, I had a follow up appointment at the hospital yesterday, and the doctor said the Giardia is gone! Thankfully the meds worked, and all is back to "normal". I took my last round of the pills this morning, and it was a comforting feeling knowing that I was done having to worry about eating anything but carbs! Thanks for the prayers & concern--they've worked!

Now just pray I don't end up with a bad curry dish again...

Pictures Added to Yahoo! Site

2006-05-10T23:04:00.000-04:00

Pictures from Malaysia & the church there have been added to my Yahoo! Photos link on the right hand side of the page. Check 'em out! The Album is named "Kuala Lampur, Malaysia".

Pictures from Malaysia

2006-05-10T02:38:00.000-04:00

This is the cross that hangs at the Bangsar Luthern Church we visited in Kuala Lampur, Malaysia. If you look closely, all of the pictures are pictures of the sky, sun, & water printed on overhead sheets. They're hung in small cubic boxes & backlit so the beatiful blue & white hues fill the church with the calming presense of God.

I was a big fan of the cross, so I spent 15 or 20 minutes taking a bunch of pictures of it to try & capture its beauty.

Malaysian Rejuvination

2006-05-09T09:22:00.000-04:00

Spent a long weekend in Kuala Lampur, Malaysia; the country directly south of Thaialnd; with a church that both supports and connects with ServLife. Joel preached on Sunday, and I had many good conversations with both pastor and congregation alike. Sivin Kit, the pastor of Bangstar Lutheran Church, and their congregation are very connected to Brian McLaren's Emergent Church movement back in the US, so I felt right at home from my first moments with them. Two months away from what felt like a church home, with very little interaction with people my age had taken its toll on me. I count this weekend to be a blessing from God, and an answer to the prayers I had been crying out for some time. A special thanks to Ray, Claris, James, Esu, and all the other young, engaging folk down there for your incredible hospitality. Part of this weekends joy was connecting with so many of the people down there.

A few of Bangstar's members are interested in missions work, so we had some some great conversations with them about our work here, and begin planning an opportunity for them to come up. They've got a young and gifted group of folks in the film industry there who I'm trying to recruit for a documentary project I've been thinking about here in Thailand. More to come on that, and the growing friendship we've developed down there in the weeks and months to come.

Life Lessons from Anne Lemott

2006-05-06T11:58:00.000-04:00

I'm reading the book Travelling Mercies with Chelsey & have been struck by a few different points in the book. I felt this one was worth sharing publicly:

"Now, in my early forties, I understand just enough about life to understand that I do not understand much of anything."

Poingnant point. And even better use of illiteration in the previous statement. But in all seriousness, I've really found that to be true with my travels & experiences here in Asia. I'm seeing not only new places & new people; but new approaches to life, to ministry, and to being a Christ-follower than I've ever been faced with in the US. Here I am, half the age of Anne Lamott, and I came into this time here thinking I "had it figured out", but what I'm increasingly realising is that what I have are ideas, not necessarily answers. I do not (and in many cases will not) understand life here or at home for a long time...if ever. Life moves is waves & cycles, through rhythoms from age to age. I'm young & although I've experienced much, I have yet so much to learn.

So, my challenge is for you to approach something new today. Find a new route to work through a bad neighborhood, go to a new ethnic restaurant you haven't tried, offer to buy a homeless person a drink & hear their story, go to church at a church you would never otherwise consider going to, or try going to a synagogue or mosque this weekend. I promise you'll walk away from those experiences realizing there is so much to learn in this world. And may we walk away from those new experiences with a desire to begin a new and fresh conversation on how to bring the Good News there with love, joy & peace.

India Orphanage Pics Added to Website

2006-05-05T09:58:00.000-04:00

Click the link on the right & view the "Raxaul, India Orphanage" album to see pictures of all the kids in the orphanage in India. Here's a preview...

Micro-Financing in Thailand

2006-05-05T09:47:00.000-04:00

ServLife is embarking on many new programs in Thailand over the next few months, and my team members and I will be spearheading most of them. Personally, I'll be taking charge of getting a micro-financing program started in some of the areas where devestation is still prevelant from the Tsunami. ServLife gave out many grants right after the Tsunami, but to this point there hasn't been much repayment on the money given out. We're hoping to start a revolving micro-loan system where we can really start engaging the people in the movement. I am excited about the task set before me, and am really looking forward to seeing the Kingdom of God reach out and touch those who have fallen through the cracks of the institutional NGO system.

Since we're starting this program from the ground floor, we've decided to dedicate no less than a few months full time in Thailand to really get this thing going. I'll have to travel a bit with teams from different churches in the US that come out to visit our orphanages, but my primary focus will be in Thailand.

Phuket Prayer

2006-04-30T02:30:00.000-04:00

Friday night I had the opportunity to visit a province wide prayer service put on by all the churches of Phuket. The six pastors stood in front of a crowd of a few hundred who had gathered to hear about the vision, unity & love the church is moving towards here. This island is officially home to over 230,000 people, with a constant influx of short and long term tourists, yet there are less than ten churches on the whole island. Over the course of the next four hours (Thai's have a slightly different time value than we American's do...), we prayed, sang, and listened to different pastors share a unifying vision for how to become of like mind & heart to work together for the betterment of the island & spread of the Gospel. Although the service was done exclusively in Thai, they had an interpreter who spoke into a microphone that pumped out a frequency picked up by headsets worn by all the non-Thai speakers. The way they included their foreign brothers and sisters was something I wish we were more capable of in the states.

As I refltected on that time, I wondered...what would it look like if the city of Indianapolis had a united vision such as this? Or any city/village in the US for that matter? Would people be more likely to be attracted to what the church is offering? I think they would. Jesus preached at length about unity in the Gospel & love for your brothers. Do we have it?

ServLife India Prayer Request

2006-04-27T12:03:00.000-04:00

The facility in Raxaul, India is home to 30 orphans, 11 pastoral training students, a woman's sewing school, a 50+ child primary school, a church, a staff family of 4, teachers, and many other projects. There has been a long history of conflict with the landlords at the facility they've been renting for a number of years. In a nutshell, the original owner died, and his son-in-law who took over the property hasn't been the most cordial of landlords. As many of you know, a land puchase went through a few months ago for ServLife India to have their own facility. Building just got underway a few weeks ago, and although they're hoping to move-in in just a few short months; they're being forced out of the current facility in 2 weeks. Please pray that they will find an adaquate facility to house this huge network of people for the next few months!! The town of Raxaul is dirty, poor, and undeveloped, so the number of places to choose from is slim-to-none, and the pressure is on. Pray for Albert Das, the director of ServLife India, his wife Pushpa & all the children, students & staff...they need direction, comfort & provision from the Lord in this time of GREAT need.

Nepal Crisis Update

2006-04-26T01:49:00.000-04:00

There has been a breakthrough in the political crisis in Nepal. The King made a formal statement yesterday saying he was ready to give back power to parliament. Parliament will be convening on Friday & the Seven Party Alliance has called off the strikes after 20 hard days for the Nepali people--many of whom live on daily wages earned in their shops that closed for nearly three weeks. To read more about the "liberation", here is a link to the BBC's latest article on the situation, http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/4942078.stm. If you are interested in getting involved in the situation, ServLife has many opportunities available. Either email me, or visit ServLife's website (www.servlife.org) and click on the "Nepal Crisis Fund" link.

All is well in Thailand, today was our first of ten days of intensive Thai classes. We're meeting with a teacher for two hours per day, then having some independent study time outside of that as well. The teacher is from the church ServLife is connected with in Thailand, and we're looking forward to some good progress over these next two weeks.

New Pictures Added to the Yahoo Site!

2006-04-22T09:41:00.000-04:00

Click the link on the right hand side of the screen to check out the NEW UPDATED PHOTOS I've posted from my travels this last month. I've added about 70 new pictures, and have many more of the children at the orphanage in N. India that I haven't been able to add yet! Once you're in, click on the "Trip to N. Thailand, India & Nepal" album. ENJOY!

Back in Phuket

2006-04-21T09:21:00.000-04:00

I arrived in Phuket today after an extended stay in Bangkok helping the Vestal's while they got over some nasty virul sickness that got them all. Now that we're back we're looking for some semi-permanent housing here--a place to call "home" for the next 2-3 months. We're also eagerly anticipating the arrival of our next team member, Ellen Bender, scheduled to arrive on Monday morning. Looking forward to her orientation over the next week or so, as we all settle into new places.

Also--I'll be putting pictures up within the next day or two from the last month of travel that I haven't been able to do without access to my computer. Make sure and check those out, as there will be pictures of the situation in Nepal, the orphanage in India, ministries we visited in N. Thailand and a few from Bangkok as well.

Quote on Global Advocacy

2006-04-17T10:07:00.000-04:00

Got this from a Brian McLaren book called, The Last Word and the Word After That. He's quoting a guy named Louis Elvey in the passage.

"To Believe in God is to believe in the salvation of the world. The paradox of our time is that those who believe in God do not believe in the salvation of our world, and those who believe in the future of the world do not believe in God.
Christians believe in the "end of the world", they expect the final catastrophe, the punishment of others.
Atheists in their turn...refuse to believe in God because Christians believe in Him & take no interest in the world...
Which is the more culpable ignorance?
...I often say to myself, that in our religion, God must feel very much alone: for is there anyone besides God who believes in the salvation of the world? God seeks among us sons & daughters who resemble him enough, who love the world enough so that he could send them into the world to save it."

As I've been reflecting on this quote I've been wondering what the world would look like if the Christian community actually got passionate about issues like HIV/AIDS, Environmental Responsibility, Poverty, Oppression & others. As it says in the Lord's Prayer--Your Kingdom Come, On Earth as it is in Heaven. May we be good bearers & stewards of that place while we are here. People are inevitably attracted to the Kingdom if they can only see what it stands for...

Arrived Safely in Bangkok

2006-04-16T11:18:00.000-04:00

We made it safely to Bangkok after a hectic morning in Kathmandu on Saturday. The city was officially closed and all public transport was at a halt--making our trip to the travel agent to pick up our airline tickets, and then to the airport quite a challenge. But, despite the turmoil & unrest we arrived safely & have been enjoying Bangkok these past 24 hours.

A note on Bangkok--they've been celebrating the tradional Thai New Year these past few days (officially the festival runs from April 12-14, although the saying goes, "it starts early and ends late"). The year in Thailand is now 2550, the calendar & number based on the englightenment of Buddha in N. India. They traditionally celebrate by placing scented water on the hands of monks & other elders, but in recent years it has become an out-of-control pandemonium weekend in major cities across the countries. Although officially called Songkran, it is commonly reffered to as the "Water Festival" by foreigners b/c everyone throws water at eachother for days on end--they even closed down a few streets around Bangkok so only pedestrians could enter. It's a pretty nutty experience, but we're enjoying getting to see the action before returning to Phuket in a few days!

Urgent Update

2006-04-14T11:37:00.000-04:00

We booked tickets to leave Nepal today. We'll be leaving tomorrow afternoon--heading back to Thailand. Today is the first day of the Nepali Calendar Year--the year 2063--a calendar based on the rising of the Nepali Kings. In his annual New Years Day speech today, the king spouted similar rhetoric to previous speeches, without agreeing to any change despite all the recent protests againt him throughout the country. Fearing more strikes, curfues, protests & other violent displays of anger we've decided it best to leave the country a week ahead of schedule.

Please pray for safe travels tomorrow & a path to PEACE & JUSTICE to be found here in Nepal. Also, be sure to read the next two posts, as they reveal a bit of the turmoil we've been dealing with since arriving in Nepal on Monday. The journey hasn't been easy, but it has been worth it. Happy Good Friday everyone. May the joy & hope of Christ's death & resurection be with all of you this Easter weekend.

Day Two in Kathmandu

2006-04-14T11:15:00.000-04:00

Our first full day here (Tuesday) was by far the worst. There was a sixth day of gov't imposed curfues to try and curb the protests on the streets. People are continuing to protest for democracy & peace--and have so far been unsuccessful in getting the king to step down. At the end of the curfue hours we tried to take a taxi down to see the ServLife children's home, and have dinner with their staff. As we exited the hotel we immediately came into an angry mob of people--some with bricks & stones they threw at the car. I was with the Vestal's (both Joel & Elise, and their two children ages 3 & 8 months), and even as one of the bricks hit the window we felt the protecton of the Lord. The window didn't break, & we turned back to the hotel right away. It was a stressful, challenging time but even now, three days later, we have felt the call to be here ministering to the people here & advocating peace & justice to the people. We're hoping to start somesort of a response effort to help & assist the people who are suffering as a result of the ongoing conflict here. Please continue to pray for us, the situation here & the people of Nepal!

The Journey to Kathmandu

2006-04-14T10:32:00.000-04:00

The journey into Kathmandu, Nepal began at a small border town in India called Raxaul--the location of ServLife's big ministry center in India. We had booked flights from an airport 20 miles inside the border for the day after the four day, gov't. imposed strike ended on the 9th. When the strike finished, people continued protesting and public transport across Nepal was kept at a standstill. Despite the struggle, we pushed ahead thinking that we'd be able to make it the 20 miles to the border--not too much to ask right? Well as we crossed the border, we were told we could only go ahead if we had plane tickets--which we did. We took a bicycle taxi to the edge of the border town, then hopped on a horse drawn buggy (I know, straight from the 1800s) for the reamining 15 miles or so. As we ventured north into the countryside we passed a large protest down the main bypass, a few burning tires, and some rubble in the road. The further north (and closer to the airport) we got, the worse the situation got. At at some point along the way, the driver got asked to get out of the buggy, and as he talked with a few locals, we realized he was getting threatened and couldn't take us any further. He basically dropped us off, and said to walk the remaining distance. He told us it was only 4km (~2.25 miles) to the airport, but as our angel arrived, we found out it was closer to 15km (9 miles). We were stuck in the wilderness with no way out but a forward march to the airport. A young Nepali guy on a bike (our angel) flanked us the entire way...past a bicycle taxi driver who got pulled out of his bicycle and both the driver & passenger beaten for operating that day, and the taxi's tires slashed; past road barricaded by 3ft. high piles of rocks; past army entrenchments with heavily armed soldiers in place to keep the peace; and past burning tires every few hundred yards. Over the next two hours we pushed ahead with no water or food in 100 degree heat in the middle of the afternoon with 35lb packs on our back that had everything we had for this month journey. When we'd walked about 7-8km we got to a small town--hoping for a chance to get some water at least, if not make a phone call or get some food. As we arrived, we found out the phone lines weren't working b/c of the strike, and the shops were all closed for the same reason. We were forced to push ahead...yet again. Just when we left the town, exhausted and getting dehydrated, we found a guy on a bicycle delivery cart...we tried to bribe him to take us the last 5-6km to the airport, but he stubbornly refused. As we pleaded a group of 20 Nepali men & boys crowded around us, and who we think was his boss told him to do it. The driver was exhausted, and halfway through Mark had to take the pedals while our driver rested in the back. We had to stop every quarter mile or so to go off road around the rockpiles, or simply pick up the bike and cargo trailer & lift it over the rocks. We even passed a huge, burning tree across the road at one point. The last mile or so we were told the protests ahead were too big, so we'd have to take a dirt sideroad (which we had no problem with at this point). The road was pretty rough, so as Mark peddled, I pushed behind to keep the thing moving. Mysteriously our angel disappeared during this last stretch, without really even saying goodbye. We reached the airport (the smallest I've ever been to & also used as an Army airport) 2 1/2 hours after our schedule departure, and as we walked to our ticketing counter, we were told that the plane would be arriving in 5 minutes, and we'd be leaving in 20. As our plane took off, we felt the power & protection of God. One hour after arriving at the airport gate we were in a taxi in Kathmandu, driving to a comfortable hotel, a touristy area, and more water than we could've ever needed. The Holy Spirit was with us that day, and as Psalm 139 says, we were hemmed in by the Lord, both behind and before.

Nepal

2006-04-11T11:45:00.000-04:00

I've arrived in Kathmandu, Nepal. Just got here yesterday afternoon & the situation is tense. Lot's of political unrest & upheavel. I'll share more details later, but for now...please begin to pray. The members of our team that are here, and equally as important the citizens of Nepal need it right now. They need prayers for safety, for empowerment, and for hope. Also pray for the small but growing church here--that during this time of unrest it will emerge as a voice of peace & hope, and that people will be attracted to the sweet aroma of Christ.

Even as I write this I am being told the internet shop has to close early b/c the government has changed their mind about what time the curfue starts tonight (10pm instead of 11pm). All is safe, but the prayers are both needed & felt. Thank you for all of them thus far.

For more info on the situation here, check out, http://www.nepalnews.com/archive/main.htm.

The Joys of India

2006-04-03T12:09:00.000-04:00

India is a hard place to be. It's commonly known as the "Land of Paradoxes". With an economy growing between 8-9%/year, the country can't keep up with it's growth. They can't leave the legacy of the poverty behind...it grows with them into the future. Modern shopping malls sit just around the corner from a slum made of make-shift tents with people living in a dirt field. Huge modern highways are crowded with 35 year old taxis without headlights, a trunk that doesn't close, and no seatbelts (the kind i got shoved into as i walked out of the airport in Delhi). People going to the bathroom along the railway tracks, with the highrise buildings in the distance behind them. This place is undergoing radical changes right now...Delhi is building a modern subway system, they're preparing to host the 2010 Commonwealth Games (and planning to bid for the 2016 Olympics), and foreign investent is soaring, causing Indians to become richer & richer--lured by the sweet voice of the rich west. But India is still a hard place. You can't walk out of a building without someone nagging you to jump in their taxi, come visit their jewelery shop, pestering you to buy their postcards, their knockoff shirts, or their miniature Hindu god statues. It never ends...and it's constant claustraphobia. Delhi is a city of 15 million, with as many as 10 million more living in the city without being counted because they're living in temporary slums. It's huge.

I'm in Agra (location of the Taj Mahal) tonight, and heading back to Delhi tomorrow. We're taking a 22 hour journey across India on a train to get to the orphanage ServLife runs along the Nepali border. Please be willing to pray for these times here, and for compassion on the Indian people. It's very, very hard to be compassionate when the level of depravity is so big. And pray for India, a country of 1.1 billion people, only 2% of whom are Christians, most of whome are living in what Americans would call poverty.

The Global Church

2006-03-26T11:19:00.000-05:00

I've been thinking lately about the characteristics of the global church. One thing I've been able to desipher thus far is that it's different. In many ways, it's pure. It doesn't have 2000 years of baggage. It's new, it's fresh, it's REfreshing, it's beautiful. Only 2% of Thailand claims any sort of Christian faith, but man, those 2% are rock-solid, standing on the only hope they have for this world. What percentage of America can claim that? Sure, there's lots of excuses, but these people are for real. They're not afraid of being persecuted for what they believe--can you imagine being a 2% minority? Can you imagine telling your Buddhist family, who expects you to go into munkhood that you've decided to follow the True Buddha, the God who created the Heavens, the World, and you and I? It's compelling...and so inviting.
Here's two quick lessons I've learned about the Thai church in the past few weeks: first, they're not interested in how much money you have, how big your house is, or what kind of car you drive. Materialism is a big deal in the US, here, money is scarse, and no one is judged based on what they do or do not have. No one has much, so there's not the same kind of drive to have more, as there is in the US. Second, and so important, is that the church here isn't splintered into a million different denominations that have trouble agreeing and working together. The church here is mobilized together--to spread the message of hope found in the Bible to their Thai brothers & sisters. While they may have differences, they recognize that they're united under the common banner of Christ--and that their mission is so much bigger. May we, the Western world, catch a small glimpse of what true unity in the Spirit looks like. It's a beautiful picture, and I pray for those kind of partnerships to blossom in the USA & beyond.

The Tsunami Relief Effort

2006-03-25T06:01:00.000-05:00

I’ve spent this week up in a province of Thailand called Phang Nga; about a 90 minute drive north of Phuket. It is commonly known as the epicenter of the Tsunami damage & death in Thailand. Over half of Thailands 8,000 recorded deaths & still missing people reports came out of this area, and the destruction is still right in your face. Even before you arrive in the touristy area of the province (where most of the destruction happened because of the increased density of the population there), you’ve already driven by a World Vision temporary housing camp, set up immediately after the Tsunami to house displaced Thais. Unfortunately, 15 months after the Tsunami this camp is still full. 100 people are living in 40 small plywood housing units, with little access to clean water, and far substandard living conditions. The work here isn’t even close to done! And that’s only the beginning. People who were spooked by the Tsunami ran into the hills away from the beach, and are only just now returning down, creating these whole villages of refugees, most without land ownership, no opportunity for government support, and no real hope for a job. The tourism industry in this part of Thailand is around 20% of its pre-Tsunami levels. And although that may not seem like that big of a deal, remember that tourism was a main source of income for this region. Its beautiful beachfront brought people to Phang Nga from all over the world. Everyone in the economy depends on the tourism to bring in an influx of money. Tourists provide jobs for many people in the hotels, restaurants and shops; they eat the food caught by the local fishermen; they buy the clothes made by local seamstresses; they buy gas & rent cars from local brokers…in short, they are the fuel that drives the local economy…and until they return, this place is destined to fail in its rebuilding efforts.

Apart from the beachfront, and the struggle the people are having to rebuild their lives, we had the opportunity to visit many of the people that ServLife provided assistance money to for helping rebuild their businesses post-Tsunami. Many of these people were involved in the fishing industry in the region…although it was a perspective on fishing I’d never seen in the US. See, Thailand doesn’t have many of the “modern” business developments we do. The fish sold in the local markets and at local restaurants are the fish bought that day from the local venders, who buy their stock from people who maintain large stocks of fresh fish in nets in the tidal rivers brackish water, and often catch the fish themselves in nets they place out in the ocean. In short—big corporate conglomerations have yet to reach these parts of the world. Most of the people ServLife helped were the fish catchers—the guys who were most prone to property damage & death. Most of these people live in one room shacks on floating devices in the tidal rivers. Their whole lives fit into one room, and their main processions are two outfits, a boat, netting and wood. Seeing the joy on their faces when they saw us (the people they perceive to be those who bring hope for a brighter future than the one they left behind 15 months ago when their whole lives were washed away) was so humbling. Even as a mission worker here, I am filthy rich compared to these people, yet they offered up their best food at every stop, feeding us soft-shell crabs, the most expensive fish they had in their nets (some type of grouper), fresh fruit bought on the mainland (remember, they live on the water…not on land!), and store bought Coke. I can only wish that my heart could be transformed to be as hospitable and welcoming as theirs. We have so much to learn. So much. One family even made us take these two shells they had in their house. The two shells were what they used as decoration on a little shelf in their shack. Words can’t describe the guilt I felt as we got back in the little boat to head back to the mainland 45 minutes away, to get back in my air-conditioned car (it’s 90 degrees here everyday) and drive back to the church we stayed at. Granted, even there living conditions weren’t great—an inflatable backpacking sleeping pad I brought with me on the floor of one of the spare rooms in the church building, but anything sounds better than the wooden floors of a hot and buggy open air shack with your net worth amounting to not much more than the value of the fish you’ve got stored in some netting not more than 10 feet from where you lay your head at night.

The trip was a great introduction to what ‘real’ life looks like for many people in the world. And compared to world standards of ‘extreme poverty’, they live above average—all earning more than $2/day—the measuring stick for extreme poverty. The Tsunami related work will be a big part of my next 12 months here, and I look forward to the challenge of rebuilding, repairing, and providing new hope for people who have lost it all.

Project Update For the Next Month

2006-03-19T19:54:00.000-05:00

The Vestal’s (the lead family) arrived here in Phuket on Thursday, and we’ve begun to discuss the calendar for the next few months. Things are looking pretty good thus far, and we’ve mapped a rough sketch of what the next month or so will look like. Wanted to update all of you as well. We (we being Mark & Jenn Storm & I) moved out of our “beach house” (the Vestal’s home here) three nights ago, and have been sleeping on the floor in an upstairs room of this bookstore in town owned by a woman from the church that ServLife has partnered with here in Phuket. The top floor of this place is vacant, so we’ve been able to lay all of our belongings out and begin packing & preparing for the adventures to come. Our stay in this place is pretty indefinite right now, but it’s free…so we’ve been enjoying it! We’re looking at leaving on Monday for Phang Nga, the location of the ServLife owned building & where most of the Tsunami relief activity is happening. It’s about a two hour drive north of here, and was where the majority of tsunami related deaths in Thailand due to lack of any basic infrastructure among the villages there & their proximity to the coast as many of them were poor local fisher-people. We’re going to be sleeping in the building with a young guy named Chach, who is the pastor of the church there, and runs the facility. We’ll be staying 4-7 days or so and getting a good feel for the relief work that’s happening there, access the ServLife micro-enerprise developments and houses they’ve built & see how we can help. After we come back, we’ll be comparing notes with Joel Vestal & map out some plans for the work & projects to fund throughout the next year. Shortly thereafter, just before the first of April, the Storm’s & I are heading on an adventure up through India, and then into Nepal over the course of 3 weeks to see all of the ServLife facilities, and many of the projects they sponsor in both countries. We’ll fly into New Delhi in India, then take an over night train ride through the heartlands of the Indian subcontinent before arriving in Raxaul, India; a small town (by Indian standards) of about 250,000 people. It’s near the Nepali border, and has often been described to me as, “hell on Earth”. The city is the location where ServLife has an orphanage, English medium school, and pastoral training facility. It is also the location of a recent land purchase where ServLife will be building a whole compound over the next 1-2 years; complete with orphanage capacity of 50, primary & secondary school capacity of 500, outpatient med center, annual pastoral training capacity of 50, and facilities for incoming work teams from the US & other areas. We’ll be helping with the development of that land over the course of the next year. After spending a week there, we’re heading to Kathmandu, Nepal for a week there as well. We’ll be meeting the Vestal’s there for a week to tour their two orphanages there & meet the local staff before returning to Phuket for a debriefing & regrouping in the 2^nd half of April. Around that time we’ll also be meeting up with the final member of our group to arrive, Ellen Bender, who looking to arrive around April 20.

So that’s the update. Thanks for checking the blog. Be blessed my friends.

Updated Pictures Online

2006-03-19T19:50:00.000-05:00

Make sure and follow the link on the right side of the screen to the pictures I've published online. I put up about 50 or so pictures of the first 10 days here. Mostly pictures of the beaches and the houses we've been staying at as we've been transitioning into work. Enjoy!

Patong Beach & the Thai Prostitution Economy

2006-03-15T09:31:00.000-05:00

Patong Beach is the hottest beach on Phuket island, and the center of the islands nightlife. The island itself has a population of 400,000, with a huge influx of tourists every week (although tourism is still significantly lower than pre-Tsunami levels). There’s quite a bit of infrastructure there, and it reminds me of Las Vegas, only without the money to provide a quality to façade to the reality of what’s happening and the destruction to the human condition that happens there. In Las Vegas you can play a round of golf, see a Broadway production, or go to nice restaurants…but we all know that if you walk the streets at 4am, people who have lost their life savings are walking miserably home, unsure how they’ll eat the next day; or you’ll pass a girl trying feverously to make her next buck by giving away the only thing she has worth selling every night. In Patong, the condition of the human soul is no less deplorable. There’s a strip of bars that is unlike anything I’ve ever seen. Each bar connects its own power lines to the main grid, leaving literally hundreds of power lines dangling haphazardly above the street; and even an electrical substation sits dauntingly close to the pedestrians, just a few feet off the road, on top of a bar. The bars are all seedy, not a single one is a quality establishment, and they’re filled with young Thai girls, ready to give their bodies away to any ‘farang’ (the Thai word for Westerner) who’s willing to give her the equivalent of a few dollars. The system is so customary, that its accepted practice. No one flinches when they see an 18 year old Thai girl sitting at a table with a 60 year old ‘farang’; after all, how else would these girls make a living right? WRONG! This system is so sad. There are young girls hustled into this business at such a young age—11,12,13 in some cases—that they never have an opportunity for anything better. And there are others who have been doing this for so long they know nothing else. They can’t perceive a life any better—and they know enough to know that there is nothing that offers as much money for the amount of “work”. I mean what’s the alternative for a 30 year old Thai woman who’s been selling herself for 15 years? Going back to the rice paddy? Selling T-shirts for a portion of the earnings she’d been accustomed to? And if every girl did that, most would be unemployed because there’s not a big enough economy to support all of them. Some have said that in essence, every Thai girl is for sale. And those people probably aren’t far from the truth. Their only hope in life is that a farang will take enough interest in them to take her home, give her a ring, and offer her a better life. The truth hurts. These girls need a new hope, a new dream.

We Arrived!

2006-03-14T10:45:00.000-05:00

My apologies for the belatedness of this post…I’ve only just now received internet access…and dial up at that! But none the less, we’ve arrived safe & sound to Phuket! The Storm’s (another couple that is part of the team to Asia) and I are looking to set up a wireless network in the neighborhood we’re living in at the moment. We’re currently living in the house the Executive Director of ServLife owns, although we’ll be moving in just a few days (don’t know where yet, more to come later), as he’s arriving with his family on Thursday. An American neighbor here has a high speed internet connection, and all the equipment for a wireless system, but no clue how to set it up. We’ve decided it’s a win-win situation! He gets his network set up, and we get fast internet!

The time change was hard—12 hours—but I think I’m in the clear now. The first few days we were up in the middle of the night, and tired before dinner time—zombie like most of the day. We’ve spent these few days traveling around the island of Phuket, getting our bearings on “home base” for the next year. The island has a whole host of beaches—many of which were devastated by the Tsunami in Dec. of 2004, and we’ve seen a number of signs & memorials commemorating the date & time. One restaurant we visited (although rebuilt after having been washed away), even had a high water mark on the wall…about 6 feet above the floor of the restaurant, and around 10 above the ground in front. It has been a memorable few days, and I hope to post pictures as soon as I get the type of internet access that allows it. We also took a ferry boat to the Phi Phi islands, about an 1 ½ hour ride from Phuket, to see the national parks there. One of the two islands, Phi Phi Lay, was the spot where the movie The Beach was filmed in 1999. Quite a beautiful place, but the destruction from the Tsunami is still very evident, as prime real estate along the shore, filled with bungalows prior to the Tsunami is now just grass & sand.

Also, check back over the next few days, as I plan to write a few stories from my initial impressions of the islands, the “economy” (or at least certain aspects of it), and the Thai culture. Until then—thanks for tuning in & God speed wherever you are!

The goodbye

2006-03-06T14:56:00.000-05:00

“May the road rise up to meet you, may the wind be ever at your back. May the sun shine warm upon your face and the rain fall softly on your fields. And until we meet again, May God hold you in the hollow of his hand.” -Irish Blessing

This past week has been memorable, to say the least. Goodbyes abounded, and tears were shed liberally as I packed & prepared for the bumpy road ahead. I leave tomorrow afternoon, on a 36 hour adventure through twelve time zones, five airports, on four planes, stopping in three countries, flying three different airlines, reclaiming my two huge checked bags each time I switch airlines, with one goal: arrive in Phuket, Thailand. Thank you to all of you who mourned & rejoiced with me these past few days & weeks as the time has drawn near. Your encouragement propels me on. Please pray for safe travels, smooth landings, & sleep along the way!

I'll post some pictures & stories once I arrive, so be sure and come back at the end of the week!

Moving Home

2006-02-27T01:45:00.000-05:00

Well, the bags are essentially packed, and it's time to go! I took almost everything left to my name home this past weekend, storing all of it at my grandparents house. The trip was great time with family, but a bit sombering as I organized my belongings back into the now unfamiliar spaces in my old room. Time away has changed me since the last time I used that dresser or closet for all my belongings...it was the summer after my freshman year of college (almost 4 years ago), that I last had everything stored there. My how life is different now then it was just a few short years ago.
I'm back in Indy for the rest of this week saying my goodbyes, and enjoying the company of all my friends for a few short days before I head out. The attached picture is a laughable image of most of my belongings that I'm storing in my grandparents basement. The post says it all..."welp, that's really it, huh?"

Pre-Departure

2006-02-20T12:34:00.000-05:00

Well, this weekend will be the final move for me as I prepare to head overseas. I'm going to Michigan with another car load full of my stuff to store at my grandparents house. That means most of this week will be spent packing & preparing for the trip. I expect to be living out of not much more than what I'll be taking with me to Asia that last week and a half. The time has begun to slip away as I get ready to depart. Please be praying for a safe journey, for meaninful good-byes, and for a heart that is prepared for what is soon to come.

Departure Update

2006-02-13T10:50:00.000-05:00

Well, it's Monday, February 13 and the count down has begun. I bought my plane ticket late last week, along with a one years supply of international health insurance. I'll "officially" be leaving the morning of March 7, flying from Midway International in Chicago through San Francisco, Taipei (Taiwan), and eventually on to Phuket, Thailand. In all, the journey will take over 35 hours to complete. With a racing and nervous heart of the year to come, I'm sure those hours will feel like days. I'll be meeting up with two other members of our team, Mark & Jenn Storm, in San Francisco and we'll be taking the same flight pattern from there. Our first few days in Thailand will be free for us to do as we please--a sort of acclimation time I guess--until the family leading the trip, the Vestal's, arrive on March 13. From there, it's off to Kathmandu, Nepal, the city we'll be spending most of those first six months in, to find a house to rent for all of us.
As the time draws near to leave, my emotions are becoming more somber--in recognition of the weight of what's to come. Goodbyes aren't easy...and neither is stepping into unfamiliar territory to do challenging, and heart-breaking work. Yet that's where I'm at right now...I pray the weeks & months to come are filled with blessings & challenges I couldn't even dream of today!!!

Nepali Political Situation

2006-01-24T12:03:00.000-05:00

In recent days the political climate in Nepal has deteriorated to some extent. With their first election since the king dissolved power in February 2005 coming up this week, there has been great unrest in the country. Many political demonstrations were scheduled, causing the Nepali king to enforce a mandatory curfue on the residents of the capital, Kathmandu. With the strife and uncertainty about safety, we may be forced to spend more time in Thailand the first few months than expected; to allow things to cool off, and time for the new government to get its feet wet. Please pray about the situation, and about our opportunities wherever we are living.

I've attached a few photos, and links for you to read more about the unfolding story:

Jan. 24 Demonstrations
Jan. 22 Demonstrations

Fundraising Brunch

2006-01-23T19:22:00.000-05:00

What a powerful moment it was. Being able to experience "joy" as Mike Gathright so eloquently put it, in its entirety. I was blessed to have the opportunity to participate in a fundraising brunch Dave Binkley & Dave Shellito threw for me, to help me get to Asia yesterday morning at a restaurant in St. Joe called Mansion Grille. To see the love & support people showed was incredible. I was overwhelmed at the outpouring of kindness. I can't help but think that that is how life is meant to be lived. With love, joy, peace, and excitement always on our minds. With a recognition that we are a part of something bigger than ourselves, and bigger than our daily routines. With a hope for a better tomorrow.
Thank you to all who came, participated, planned, donated, and encouraged. Your support means so much to me, and equally as important to my family. I look forward to seeing or hearing from all of you soon! Until then...be blessed!

USPSuccess

2006-01-09T17:57:00.000-05:00

On Dec. 15 a package was sent to me from the Indian Consulate in Chicago. I'd sent my passport there to get a multiple entry Visa to get in and out of India while I'm in SE Asia w/ServLife. The package has been lost in the mail for three and a half weeks...again, coming from Chicago!
I came back to Indy on Dec.3 after a two week stint in Michigan w/my family for the holidays to a stack of mail void of a Priority Mail package from the Consulate. So, like most reasonable people, I started making calls to the USPS & eventually went down to my local branch. After filling out some paper work and arguing for a while I left feeling a bit dejected and without too much hope. A week passed, I spoke with the Passport Agency to find out if you can put a passport on hold or anything, and eventually gave up. Today was the last day...if it didn't come in the mail today I was going to cancel the passport and get a new one made. Here's where the story gets good...
So the mail came around 2:00pm today. I picked it up, went through it & was again dissapointed. I decided to make a last ditch effort...calling upon both the local delivery branch & the branch in Chicago, the Postal Inspection Service, and the Consumer Affairs dept. for Indiana (the governing body of the USPS). Without any luck, and having spent almost two hours on the phone, I went into my room just before four to pray for peace for 15 minutes. Twenty five minutes later I got a phone call from Ms. King at my post office asking if I'd received my passport today. As it turns out, it was delivered seperately later on in the afternoon...but more importantly than what time it arrived...IT ARRIVED! So, it's an answer to prayer, it saves close to $500, and I'm forever indebted to the USPS for a stellar job well done.

The moral of the story is...just pray that the post office does it's job, because there's no way calling anyone is gonna make a lick of difference!!!

2005-12-13T15:53:00.000-05:00

Recieved this quote of affirmation from a friend, Nick Cattin today. Wanted to share it with all of you who may visit this site in coming days. Enjoy the quote, and may it impact you as it has and is impacting me.

"Everybody has to change, or they expire. Everybody has to leave their home and come back so they can love it again for all new reasons. I want to keep my soul fertile for the changes, so things keep getting born in me, so things keep dying when it is time for things to die. I want to keep walking away from the person I was a moment ago, because a mind was made to figure things out, not to read the same page recurrently. Only the good stories have the characters different at the end than they were at the beginning. And the closest thing I can liken life to is a book, the way it stretches out on paper, page after page, as if to trick the mind into thinking it isn't all happening at once. We get one story, you and I, and one story alone. God has established the elements, the setting and the climax and the resolution. It would be a crime not to venture out, wouldn't it? It might be time for you to go. It might be time to change, to shine out. I want to repeat one word for you: Leave.
Roll the word around on your tongue for a bit. It is a beautiful word, isn't it? So strong and forceful, the way you have always wanted it to be. And you will not be alone. You have never been alone. Don't worry. Everything will still be here when you get back. It is you who will have changed."

From Donald Miller's "Through Painted Deserts"

I'm in the middle of fundraising right now, living in Indianapolis, and headed home to Michigan for Christmas next week. I'm learning Hindi, the language they speak in northern India right now, which is a bear of a task, but I'm enjoying it and getting to spend a lot of time studying with my roommates who are studying for the GRE or for finals. Hope all is well, and have a blessed Christmas season.

Dy-nam-ic (adj.)

2005-11-16T00:56:00.000-05:00

Dynamic is the perfect word to describe what our trip to Asia is going to be. The dictionary's first definition defines the word dynamic as, " of or relating to energy or to objects in motion." I personally like the second definition a little better: " characterized by continuous change, activity, or progress". Now that's a forceful meaning. It's never stagnant, it's never constant, it's able to adapt, to mold. It's fluid. Not bound by one specific list of tasks, but able to change and become what the poor, oppressed, and marginalized really need. After all...didn't Jesus say that it isn't the healthy that need a doctor, but the sick. And those are the people he came for...and those are the people we am going to serve.

All that to say that over the past few days I've learned that this next year is likely going to look a little different than it did a week ago. As a few of you know, ServLife has three offices in Asia: Phuket, Thailand; Rocksoul, India; and Kathmandu, Nepal. Our team is going to work in all three locations to some degree...but home base for the first six months may now be Nepal, rather than Thailand as originally expected. Although the location is different, the mission is not: to identify and empower the local, indigenous church in areas around the globe that have a Christian population that is less than 5% of the total population. Our desire is to spread the fragrance of the Love of Christ to people everywhere...and now, Nepal comes first!

These past three weeks of training has been great. I've been stretched & tested in new ways. I've learned a lot, and yet realized I will have so much more to learn. I'm anticipating greatly the day we'll be departing. I pray that you'll continue following & praying for my team and I in our journey!!

Being a Third Culture Kid

2005-11-10T12:36:00.000-05:00

Another way to say Third Culture Kid (TCK) is "Global Nomad". This is the subject of our seminar today...third culture kids. I've learned alot, and the time isn't over yet. As most of you know, I lived in Italy for four years when I was growing up...making me a TCK. Learning about what the products and effects of spending a significant time during your development years overseas are has taught me alot about myself. It's putting words to my feelings, and giving answers to my questions--from the fact that the average TCK moves 8 times by the time he's 18 (i moved 8 times!), to the fact that most TCK's are restless when they remain in one place too long. I think this is really helping me to understand why I struggle with making long-term plans, why I always have the sense of needing to move and be transient, and why I tend to be oversensitive (I know, it's true) at times when most people aren't. The reason, according to this seminar, is because I grew up with grief. I grew up leaving people, places, activities, and everything else I knew behind. They say grief is an adult emotion, but most TCK's experience it as children; and often the grief goes unresolved because the 8 hour plane ride from one country to another doesn't give us time to really resolve the grief before we jump right back into a new culture. Beyond all that, many of the ways I handle relationships with friends, family, and others have been explained to some degree, and really helped me understand myself. Despite the grief & hardships, I wouldn't change the experiences I was blessed growing up with for anything. Let me tell you guys, having someone explain the feelings you've had for years but never been able to articulate at all is a VERY strange and transparent experience!!!

Pikes Peak

2005-11-07T19:15:00.000-05:00

Pikes Peak is apparently the second most visited mountain in the world--getting over 500,000 visitors a year. Fortunately for us, only 15,000 of those actually hike up...the rest either take the train or drive up to the top. Not quite the same feeling of accomplishment when you reach the summit. As one of Colorado's 14,000ft. peaks, it stands as a formidable challenge to anyone coming to visit--especially for those attempting an early November summit push. Our day began, like most who attempt, well before sunrise; at 4:30am. We left our training center at 5:00am to be at the mountain, starting our hike before 6:00am. We got on the trail, and quickly realized we were in for quite a day's adventure. As we climbed over the next hour or so, from 7,000ft and climbing straight up, the weather got colder and colder. Around 7:30am we decided to stop for a quick kodak moment at around 9,500ft (2,500ft above where we started). As we were taking pictures, we caught the first real glimpse of what was to come--a summit hidden in dark clouds, and snow flakes beginning to fall. Within the next 30 minutes or so, nearly 3" of fresh powder had fallen to the earth, and we were still 2,000 feet below the tree line, and 4,000 below the peak. Unfortunately, with temperatures having plummeted to below freezing, and no end of the blizzard in sight, we had to turn around, and begin the long downward march knowing that we hadn't finished the job we set out to do.

But hey--we haven't given up yet. We're determined not to let one snow storm prevent us from reaching the peak!

Also this weekend, we got to go visit the Common Ground church plant in Boulder. I got to see and hang out with Ramin (a pastor friend who came out here to start the church) all day. It was so great to see him and the work that the Lord is doing with that community of people in Boulder. They call their church "Roots"...I like the imagery it illicits, don't you?

2005-11-07T19:11:00.000-05:00

Same place we took the first picture only only one hour later!

2005-11-07T19:10:00.001-05:00

Got caught in a blizzard only minutes later...

2005-11-07T19:10:00.000-05:00

Four of the six team members headed to Asia in January on our Pikes Peak hike.

2005-11-07T19:09:00.000-05:00

Sitting on a rock w/Pikes Peak through the clouds in the background.

Mission Training Conference

2005-11-03T23:02:00.000-05:00

So this is home for now...Mission Training International. I'm here for three weeks, nestled quite beautifully in the foothills of the Rockies in a small town called Palmer Lake (see picture below), about 30 minutes north of Colorado Springs. The setting is beatiful...and not just because of the mountains, the blue sky, or the little lake a mile down the hiking path behind our building. The place is beautiful because of the stories that are present in this place. Everyone here has a story...and they're all captivating. All of the teaching staff has lived abroad doing missions work for a number of years...and with that kind of experience, the stories they have are amazing, and the work they have done for God's Kingdom in their life is ever-present. It's a humbling experience as a 22 year old...tied for the youngest "adult" (i say that because there are a lot of kids running around) at the conference. I'm learning a lot about what it's going to be like to work overseas doing missions work. A lot of the training is about equiping you with knowledge to know how to respond to bad situations...emotional, physical, personal, familial, spiritual, relational, etc. The list goes on and on. Each day brings new challenges and adventures...and each day I wake up excited to learn what this day brings.

What I learned...

2005-10-23T13:47:00.000-05:00

So I spent Friday and Saturday in a town called Tangier, Morocco, just across the straight of Gibralter from southern Spain. I took a ferry across the straight early Friday morning, and had a guided tour through the old part of the city called Medina, had lunch, then kind of went off for a few hours to see other sites...the Kasbah (a famous sea-side castle that housed the first inhabitants of Tangier), through the market, and eventually to the spot where the sun sets over the Atlantic from the north-westernmost corner of Africa. It was beautiful, and the straight is narrow enough that you can see the Spanish coastline from Morocco. There are these beautiful grottoes (underwater caves) that you can tour during low-tide, but the tide was too high. One of the most impressive things about the place is the lack of development. Morocco is still a developing nation, and the coastline remains void of high-rise hotels, expensive condominiums, lavish golf courses, etc. Instead it remains in its created beauty, unfaded by mans construction. About 15 minutes before the sun actually set I had to get back in the cab to go back to Tangier. See, I visited Morocco during the month of Ramadan, a Muslim celebration of the month when Allah (their god) imparted his prophesy on Muhammad (their prophet). Part of the celebration is a fast from sunrise to sunset--and at sunset, the people are overjoyed. They rush home to eat, smiling and laughing the whole way, knowing they made it another day.

I leaned a lot from the Moroccan's about what faith is supposed to look like. I'll give a few examples to illustrate the point. First, I met a street vendor outside my hotel, and give him 50 dirham (the Moroccan currency...equivalent to about $5) to take me down to the old city on his motorbike, and have a few mint teas (Morocco's national drink) with me. As we were chatting, the conversation turned to Muslim faith, the month of Ramadan, and what it all means to him. He told me he is only about ¨half Muslim¨. When I asked him what he meant he said sometimes he tells people he'll meet them and does't show up, and he smokes sometimes. That makes him only half Muslim...being human, falling short, not measuring up...things we as Christians call sin (a condition each and every one of us has), makes my friend Muhammad only half Muslim. I want to have the kind of faith that is OK with the fact that I'm not good enough...but thank God for Jesus who came to tell me that I am good enough just as I am. A second story is this speaker system set up throughout the city. One of the five pillars of Muslim faith is prayer. They have to pray five times each day...each is a regular time scheduled during the day. When the time arrives, a Muslim song is played over this speaker system throughout the entire city, and people stop what they're doing to enter into prayer. The speaker system is everywhere, you can't escape it...but more importantly, you would never want to. Muslim's are confident with their faith in a way that very few Christians I know are. How many towns in the USA play music to remind Christians to pray? And if they did, how many of us would stop selling fruit at our market stand, or stop typing our next email, or stop studying for our test to spend time in prayer? Probably not as many as we'd like. But we can learn from them. My prayer after leaving is that I can have a recklessly passionate faith, confident in what I absolutely know to be true.

All that said--I was ready to come back at the end of the second day. Endless street vendors looking for money or selling you cheap trinkets, a system of kick-backs and commissions where everyone wants some cash from the Westerner´s *presumed* thick pocket book, incessant bargaining from everything from hand-made Moroccan carpet to your groceries, and a male-dominated system with gender equality on the books, but gender seperation on the streets. America...I am ready to come back to you.

It's Sunday night, and I leave tomorrow morning for Indy. My, five weeks have come and gone, yet it seems as though I've been here forever. Feel free to continue checking this as time passes. I've got one week in Indy before I start training for Thailand in Colorado, so I'll continue to post regularly. Thanks for reading, and I hope you've enjoyed partaking in my European adventures with me! :)

Cultural Spaniards

2005-10-21T14:46:00.000-05:00

Spanish culture evokes emotion in even the dryiest & most composed traveler. From bullfights to flamenco dancing, tapas & everything in between, they exude joy & passion from passers-by and locals alike. As I was reading Let's Go prior to coming I didn't believe the line that said Spaniards could go to London or New York City & sayd they were bored. After spending over a week here...I can't agree more. These people live & die by their passion; a quality I thouroughly enjoy. They wake up between 9-10am, work a few hours, take a three hour siesta (every spaniard does, regardless of his job), head back to work, and make it home in time for a 9-10pm dinner. They boast that they sleep less than anyone else in the world. From what I've been fortunate enough to see in Barcelona, Madrid, Seville, Grenada, & Algeciras (where a little kid woke me up merrily making his way to bed at 1:30am last night)...they speak the truth! In Madrid, I came back to an empty hostel room (10 beds in the room) at around 1:45am. In Seville, the live Flamenco didn't even start at the bar until after 11:00pm, and when we left at nearly 2:00am, acts were linin up to get their shot. In Madrid the 7pm bullfight was nothing more than a pre-cursor to warm up the apetite for a 10-11pm Sunday dinner. All along the way I have met incredible people...from Brian (a 9th semester Texas A&M senior studying abroad in Rome for his last semester, spending his weekend in Barcelona), to the three Spaniards Ashley and I encountered in a Madrid pub, watching the Real Madrid vs. Altletico Madrid soccer game, who were dead-set on giving us a piece of their culture. But no matter how many people I meet, the culture is mystifying. I mean...bullfights? Come on, who does that? It's bloody, gruesome, and altogether unpleasant, yet no town of good size in Spain is without a bull-fighting ring & a weekly show. And flamenco, this beautiful blend of guitar, clapping & dance, moves Spaniards to the core! Peering into a guitar-making shop in Grendad I saw the owner and his son getting the first few strums on a brand new guitar...making flamenco music that nobody could hear. Their passion is real, but as an American I can only understand it as an outsider. I don't fully understand or appreciate what it offers. For me, it's a source of enjoyment...for them, it's a source of reckless passion & joy. It's their identity.
Although I understand the mechanics of flaminco, have learned what it means to eat tapas (small portion of food served in cafe or bar), and seen a bullfight in Spain's best ring...I leave feeling unsatisfied. A Baptish church service in Madrid showed me that community is a big part of Spanish culture, and as a traveler, I have no deep roots here. If Spanish culture is to be thouroughly enjoyed it must be done so over time & with people who live it each day. We as Americans have much to learn from the Spanish about how to live passionately & how to be content with who wer are, where we are, and what we have. But no worries mom...I won't be staying here any longer for now!!!

Attn: airport regulations have changed

2005-10-14T02:27:00.000-05:00

So, with a flight departing from the Pisa airport at 7:30am, and the first train arriving from Florence at 6:30am, I quickly realized I was in for a bit of trouble. See, what the schedule doesn't tell you is that although the scheduled time of arrival is 6:30am, Italians automatically allow for at least a 15 minute grace period--a period I did not have. With that in mind I set out on an 11:00am train bound for the Pisa airport...with an estimated arrival time of 1:00am--6 hours before my flight. Remembering back to my days of studying abroad (and sleeping in this very airport one night), I assumed everything would be just fine...I'd find a comfy chair to snuggle up in and make due. Well, all that changed the minute I got to the Pisa train station and waited for the bus to take me to the Pisa Airport. I found myself confronted with two old Italian men...one was certain that the airport was open, the other certain it was closed. The argument that ensued was less about the airport, and more about proving one or the other was right. When the bus showed up (15 minutes late!), I took the 10 minute ride to the airport, hopped off...and started my adventure. I met a 30-something Hindu Indian named Amit, traveling on business who spoke great English as I got off the bus, and we set out to find a way in to the airport together. Finally finding an open door, we walked in, cheered a bit, took a few more steps, and were quickly coralled right back out by the not-so-friendly Italian Police. See, it wasn´t so much that we were being kicked out that bothered us, but that somehow one ¨sick¨woman was allowed to sleep IN the airport all night, while us guys were relegated to the streets. Confused and disheartened we set out to find a hotel, walking past who would eventually become our third stooge that night. Conversation on our strole varied from what a Hindu faith looks like, to what it means to be a Christian, to what living and working in India is like, stories from across the globe, what owning textile factories is like, and everything in between--the conversation was interesting and inspired. Walking in vain for 30 minutes left us at a dead end...stuck at a train crossing with red lights flashing, in the middle of nowhere, at 1:30am. See, signs pointed this way to a hotel...but we think otherwise. After a long, heavy walk to the end of civilization and back, we threw in the towel and agreed to waiting outside until the airport opened at 5:00am. After our ¨would-be¨ glorious march brought us back empty handed, I approached the same guy we saw on the way out. Turns out, he´s a 27 year old Romanian citizen named Giovanni, who´s been living in Italy for six years. He was traveling to Spain to visit his girlfriend...another Romanian who was working in Valencia. His Italian was perfect, and he joined our posse. I liked this guy b/c he was authentic--he held nothing back, spoke with confidence about where he was in life, how he was blessed with what he had, and didn´t take any of it for granted. See he left Romania in search of a better life--with no visa, and no real work...just a brother living in Florence. He´s started working, and three years ago became an ¨official resident¨of Italy, getting the Italian version of a green card. He spoke openly about how he makes 70 euros a day (around $85-90), and thinks it´s a great salary for a construction worker. His girlfriend is a maid in the morning in Valencia, Spain, and in the afternoon she labors away at a local McDonald´s--working 40-50 hours/week to bring home a measly 300 euros a month (around $400)...he likes that she works hard..and said that even though she only brings in about $1,200 total each month, that the amount is pretty good for a girl...and will be a nice suplemental income when they get married someday.

Anyhow, after a frigid 3 1/2 hour wait, sitting on comandeered chairs from the outdoor cafe, the doors finally opened to the airport. We walked in, felt relieved, and tried to catch a few winks of sleep before the plane boarded, and we were off to Barcelona. Life is good, my eyes have been opened even further, and the Lord is protecting me in many ways. Until next time...

Home sweet Florence

2005-10-08T05:02:00.000-05:00

Well, after a painstaking 20 hour train ride from Amsterdam, I finally made it to Florence on Thursday afternoon. A few things I learned along the way: 1, the US will give a passport to just about anyone. I learned this from my 30 year old Chinese-American bunk-mate for the night who has lived in the US long enough to have a passport, but not long enough to learn very good English. 2, No young guy makes it out of Amsterdam without a thorough bag search by the German police...and I had the distinct pleasure of being woken up at 6am for my experience! Knowing I had nothing to hide, however, I got to have a pretty good time joking around with them telling them they were going to try and steal my money while I was still groggy. They didn't find it quite as humorous. 3, If you ever have to rely on Italian trains for anything, rent a car. I was late to my third and final train and ended up having to pay a fine b/c I didn't have time to book a seat reservation as my first train rolled in a solid 20 minutes late, and I ran to board the next one as the train was shutting its doors behind me.
With all that behind me, I made it. I'm staying in Florence at the moment with Ashley Vela, a good friend from school who's studying over here. For all of you who may be wondering why this is a good idea, let me tell you a short story about my finances: they're dwindling, and the cost of staying here is unbeatable. Her and her roommates are good company and gracious hosts.
Here's a not-so-quick story about yesterday's adventure. I went to Pisa first, mostly to snap a picture of the famed leaning tower, then skidaddle. After that I took a train to Lucca, a small medieval walled city that is pretty well known in these parts. I rented a bike for a few hours and had a little ride along the city walls (they've turned it into a park w/a great bike/running path), then went for a walk through the middle of this city. I stumbled across a few great sights. The first was a big, but quiet church. Most churches in this country are filled with lots of loud, photo-taking tourists (much like myself), but this one was different. I sat in there and enjoyed the beauty and splendor of the place for a while...basking in the first bit of silence I'd had in a while. I reflected on Ps. 46:10, "be still and know that I am God..." After a short break, I ventured back out to see the sky opening up from an afternoon storm just in time for sunset. I paid some money and climbed to the top of this medieval tower (thinking it was suerly going to collapse at some point while I was on it) that was a few hundred feet high, and watched the sun make its daily disappearance over the gentle tuscan mountains. It was beautiful as the light reflected off the clouds still lingering in the sky. So, after the sun set I started my march back to the train station to catch the train back to Florence. All was good once the train arrived right on schedule, 15 minutes late. About half way home though, we had a temporary glitch...see the train managed to hit something, and no one really knew what. Some thought it may have been a human (apparently that happens around here...), other were certain this was just an animal...despite the contradiction on what we hit, everyone knew it would be a while. Nearly an hour later the train roared back to life and the conductor came around to tell us we hit a "large animal", but never informed us of exactly what kind of animal this was.

And that was that...quite an eventful few days!

Adventures in Euro-Sleeping

2005-10-03T15:41:00.000-05:00

So budgeting in Europe has its advantages...but like all things in life, the pendulum swings both ways. In this particular case, budgeting has afforded me the privilege (note that I did indeed say this was a privilege) of having a very diverse and unique sleeping arrangement a few of the nights I've been here...keep reading to learn about these excursions.
Night one...sleeping on a wooden floor in Uncle Terry's house in Aberanam, Wales. Feel free to mapquest it, but if population has anything to do with whether Mapquest recognizes a city, this one may not be there. Uncle Terry is Russell's 60yr old VERY Welch uncle who lives in an apt. across the street from his 90yr old parents...Russell's grandparents. I slept next to the bed Russell slept in...sweet.
Night two...sleeping in a Nissan Micra, along with both Russell and Mike. Please google a picture of what a Nissan Micra looks like!!! If you're not so inclined, picture a Ford Focus, then cut half of it off and use whats left. VERY small. We slept in a parking lot of a hotel that was "full"...the sixth of its kind in a row.
Night seven...sleeping on a train from Rome to Nice. Now this may sound lovely and appealing, but points A & B do not factor into this story at all. We slept six to a dorm...bunk beds three hight in a room 8 feet high and with about 2 ft. of space in between the bunks. Oh yah...by the way, we had to fit six peoples luggage in there as well. Now that we've got space figured out, let's talk about the characters. For starters there was myself, Russell, and Mike. Three American early 20's guys who are traveling. Next we have our friend from Algeria...although he happened to be living in Spain, but spoke only French (not coincidently a language between the other five guests only one of us could communicate with). After Mr. Algeria, we had Mr. and Mrs. China. From the Guango (spelling) region, both in their 50's...only the Mr. speaking anything but Mandarin....a few broken words of Engligh. Needless to say, it was quite a melting pot of global cultures!
Night ten...Parisian hostel...Russell, Mike and I are sharing a four person dorm. Assuming we had the place to ourselves for the second night in a row, we had our stuff all over the fourth bed. We were in bed early...we had plans of being first in line at the Louvre the next morning before heading to Amsterdam. Around 12:45am I woke up to one of the employees telling me I had a fourth roommate. Well, come to find out it's a 35 year old German woman who could've beaten me up with one fowl swoop of her stein. In a groggy daze none of us paid too much attention...until we woke up the next morning at 6:30am to a rather strange, unexpected sight and a very awquard hello!
Night eleven...slept in a dorm with 18 people (i think all guys, but one never really is quite sure) in Amsterdam. Given the circumstances and the location, you can imagine that guys were coming in all night. The first of which was asleep before we went to dinner (7pm), and the last of which...well I have no idea, but by 7:15am when we got up, it appeared everyone had made it back safely!

I'm sure more stories are to come...have a great day. I hope the stories brightened your day!

ancestor expeditions

2005-10-01T15:15:00.000-05:00

heres a few new stories from the road...so tonight was going great. one of the guys Im with has ancestors from paris, so this afternoon we were on the trail of finding all the old things, his great-grandmas apartment in the city, his great-grandpas grave, and the church his grandparents were married in before moving to the states. all was found sucessfully, however each required some serious work. the last time his grandpa was here was 1927, so things have changed a wee-bit since the last time he was here. so the road the apartment was on existed, but the apartment building did not. all the other addresses had been re-assigned to new apartments BUT his...#17. as for the grave, we got there as the cemetery was closing (thats right, the cemetery closes at 5pm), so i had to beg the curator at 4:50pm to let us in...which he gratefully did, only to lead us to an unmarked grave he claimed belonged to his relatives. we took the standard pictures of the grave and of course one with the curator guy in front of the place (he actually turned out to be a great guy once i sweet-talked him with the few words of french i speak), but left wondering if his grandpa has been paying for a fake grave all these years! lastly, we went to find the church. turns out the church has both changed na,es, and had a facelift since good the roaring french 20s. after a short (3 mile hike!) walk in circles to find the place, we ended up in what seems to be a french ghetto, and were soon being followed by a pair of french thugs looking for our money and cameras: of course being ignorant tourists we didnt pick up on it until we turned off the main road to what we finally discovered to be the church...which again had changed names so we werent 100% sure until we got there, as no one knew it by its old name. the thugs followed us up to the door, and as we walked in, one stayed at that door, and one circled the church looking for other exits. once he figured out there were none, the two of them sat in front of the door for 20 minutes before leaving! fortunately for us, church was in session, otherwise the joke is now "we were once church service away from a brawl!" so church was totally a blessing in disguise, because i had been thinking all day about how i didnt think i would be able to go this week b/c were travelling this week, and god totally provided...even though a french service was next to impossible to follow.

The Vatican

2005-09-28T12:59:00.000-05:00

So I spent the majority of the day in Vatican City yesterday...not a totally bad place to hang out, right? Well, I did the usual tourist stuff in the morning...saw the Raphael Rooms, checked out the Sistine Chapel to make sure it was still there, and then went into St. Peter's Basilica. Well, after we'd done all of that we thought we'd make an attempt to get down into the grottoes where they bury most of the deceased Pope's...including the recently late John Paul II. We got down there, and I was kind of awe struck as we walked past such holy tombs. Well, as we walked out of the grottoe, it spit us out on the backside of the Vatican...right near some small office. Being the curious, far too antsy person I am, I had to go in and see what this office was all about. Well, as it turns out, there is yet another layer of history below the spot where I was...and that layer is an ancient crypt where the original Roman structures have been excavated. See, St. Peter's was built where it is because in the 4th Century this Roman Emperor named Constantine became a Christian (the first emperor to do so), and thought it would be apropriate to build a church to worship his creator. Well, he chose a spot where it was reputed that the Apostle Peter was buried. He was crucified upside down in a large arena just next to the location of the current church, then buried in a simple grave in an adjoining cemetery of mostly well-to-do Romans who built magnificient mausoleums. When Constantine decided to build his church, he cut the tops off of those mausoleums, filled them with dirt, and built right over them. When Julius II (a pope in the early 1500's) decided to rebuild St. Peter's into the enormous structure it is now, he did much the same thing to Constantine's original church...so what you have is all of these things right on top of one another.

I say all that to say this...I ended up on some private tour by the grace of God that went down to the excavated Roman cemetery. And the centerpiece of this tour was catching a glimpse of the remains of Peter. The Apostle, the Saint, the Rock. What an experience...I felt so close to God. I mean Peter KNEW Jesus well...and there I was, looking at his grave, only feet from where he was lain after suffering martyrdom for that same man. Wow...what a day.

Defining Moments

2005-09-19T16:42:00.000-05:00

I stand on the cusp of a defining moment this week. Two days before my departure to a foreign yet friendly land, and more importantly two days before the deadline for my decision on going to Thailand with ServLife. As I meditate on the next two days I am constantly reminded that the hope I've been given extends beyond what I will accomplish in the advancing months--regardless of any decisions I make or any places I go. I am but a small piece in the colossal puzzle of humanity. May I be ever-mindful of the work that is happening around me all the time. See you on the other side of the pond my friends.