All that and a bag of chips

A dear friend told me a few months ago that I had a chip on my shoulder, but I don't think it was a very fair observation. Truth is, since she pointed it out, I've found a pile of chips on my shoulders, and they've been weighing me down and smothering me.

It started toward the end of last year's trip to southeast Asia. After witnessing the imbalance in the global Church and experiencing the needs of our ignored brothers ans sisters, I was faced with the question of "What do I do now?"

But I'm afraid my empathy for one continent turned to bitterness toward another, and my longing to do the right thing turned in to an ego driven determination. "Brother, I'm on a mission of love from God, so don't stand in my way or I'll calmly attack you, your lifestyle, and your worldview with scripture and statistics that will make you cower to my wisdom and humble perspective."
Somehow in my pursuit of justice, I became the judge.

02. Nuisance The Boy vs The Cynic by John Reuben

Lyrics: So here we are in this same old spot Knowing something needs to happen but our mouths are locked Tongue tied closed tight sealed shut yup I tried hard but it just wouldn’t come up It’s on the tip of my tongue it’s in the front of my mind Yet the words were still so hard to find Finally the reality of things to come pushed me to the edge I jumped off the cliff into the abyss as I said chorus I’m not trying to be a nuisance I just think we can do better than this that was simply my two cents you can you can take it or leave it The conversation lingered on and on and Before I knew it night had turned to dawn and Were we searching for the truth in all of it Or are we debating just to win the argument Cuz none of us want to hear about where we go wrong This song could easily be from me to you or me to John Cuz I have the potential to be the guiltiest My greatest strength is also my strongest weakness (chorus) Let’s think about this path that we’re taking Let’s think about this future we’re creating Let’s think about this life that is fading Think about it, come on think about it now Let’s think about this time that we’re spending Investing in monetary things that are ending Let’s think about it and let’s think together And let’s think about what we can do to make it better (chorus) We can and we will do better than this

I'm not into the hip hop or rap thing at all, but my friend Aaron Ward (aka A.ward) has the Word that makes me want to get up and shout. This kid was a fellow student at the Kansas City College and Bible School. So he didn't fit in the traditional "holiness" mold, he is a man of God, a world changer.

Rock on A.ward. Preach it in rhyme, even if it's a crime, 'cause we've got limited time.


Here's a free link to his last album.

We're not in Kansas anymore, Todo

I think I'm in the land of the poppy fields. It's that place in OZ where the witch has cast her spell, and it slows our journey as we stop to do nothing. It feels like I've been watching grass grow for weeks. I'm so bored, so trapped. We're waiting, waiting on money mostly. We aren't currently involved in any real ministries and have virtually no social life, and it's killing us. It's like cabin fever to the max.

I know, I should live in the moment. Seize the day! Life is ministry! Be in the now! But my heart and mind just aren't here. I never really left Thailand. God has shown me where He wants us. I am only physically here taking care of physical things. Watching the clock, watching the calendar, waiting for the sale on the house to close, waiting for the tax return, getting things in order.

There's also something about being back in your parent's house. Even though they don't live here, I still feel like a dependent. Often, when I sleep, I am a child in my dreams.

Is there a fast forward button we can push to get through this transition time?

Update from Ahtapa

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ,
January 15, 2009

Greetings to you in the name of Jesus Christ. I hope you all are doing fine as our good Lord is watching over you. Leah and I are doing fine. The Lord has blessed us so much this year. Our kids have grown up and we praise God for their good health. We also thank God for watching over us and providing us everything we need and reminding always that He is the source of life and sustainer.

We pray for you and think of you very often. We enjoy reading every letter you write to us. We are excited to hear about your family and your activities and the changing of seasons. You have very beautiful seasons. White snow in the winter, green in the summer, and beautiful falls. We can just think and have picture of your beautiful countryside. We remember driving through miles and miles beautiful farms. Sometimes we saw buffalo standing out in the field; we thought they were just statues but they were not. It was good that we did not stop and go out to pet them. I do not know how much snow you have this year. I hope you all had good Christmas. Leah and I hope you had great time with your family and friends in celebrating the Lord Jesus. I think you are the happiest people of God with the Love and Joy of the Lord in you. We pray for you that you have good health.

We thank God so much for the brothers and sisters in Christ we have and knowing that many people are praying for us all the time. That gives us so much encouragement. We also realize how much God loves all of us and hears our prayers. He has opened opportunities for us to serve Him and to see His Great Kingdom and many, many people being added into His Kingdom. We met Doctor Garry Weedman of Johnson Bible College the other day at the Golden Triangle Christian Leadership seminar. It was my privilege to meet him in person and to serve him as his translator. He is a man of God and he is a humble man but filled with spiritual wisdom. Leah and I also were blessed to meet Jose Garman. He is known as missionary to the prisoners.

It was a good seminar and it was a real blessing for me to meet Brother Ken Odor, a son-in-Law of Lavern Morse, a long time missionary in Asia. Ken is following the steps of his father-in-law in that he personally is getting very active in the mission work, with deep passion. It was a very big honor for me to translate the greetings he brought from Laverne Morse to brothers and sisters who came from the countries around Golden Triangle. Laverne is father to these mountain evangelists. Laverne is father to many national Christian preachers. Hearing words from him brought back many good memories. This is a man of faith and a man of Love for the Lord and for the lost souls out there. He would go to bring the gospel out to people caring less about circumstances and cost. His name in Lisu is Joseph. He has lived the life up to that name. He is a man of vision and he is a man of good planning and strategy. He cares and will work until his last breath to bring the gospel out to the lost, and he is making sure that God's flock gets fed with spiritual food. There are many missionaries and great preachers but there is only one Laverne. LAVERNE is loved and respected by many. I am one of them.

Up there I also met with brother Russell who is so gifted in language. He is speaking Burmese and Thai as well. He is a new Missionary from Las Vegas working with the unreached people in Burma. He and I became friends very quickly. We both have the heart for spreading out the gospel. We love languages and cultures and we love organic farming. This was a God appointed time and place to meet these men of God, the ordinary priests of God.

Leah and I pray that we will be able to come back to visit USA again in this coming May. We will come to our son Christopher’s high school graduation in Alabama. We look forward to seeing you again and Pray that we will a blessing to you. I hope to visit you while passing through and ask you assist me on my journey after I have enjoyed your company for a while.

God has been so good to us with our work here. The kids are learning the Bible very well, and the home school is going well. We are calling ourselves the Asian Gospel Academy. We have eight kids that study English every day. They make A’s and B’s with very few C’s. The smaller ones are going to public school. There are many kids who want to come to enroll already. We are working on the school status right now. Please keep us in your prayers.

We hope to send two more young men to the Philippines for supervisor training. They will be going on February 28, 2009. The training will last for two weeks.

We will be very busy from now on with our outreach program, and God knows what we need. Our two trucks are getting in bad shape and God has blessed us with brothers and sisters in Christ who donated money toward a new truck. We got $9000 dollars last Sunday from the Church in Roger Heights, Michigan. We are praying that we will get another $20000.00 for a new 4x4 Toyota pickup truck. For the kind of work that we are doing, we need a truck that we can depend on in season and out of season. We have to go on mountain roads where it is very muddy, slippery, and steep. We are still helping people out in the delta area of Myanmar where thousands and thousands of people are still in need of food. There are 72 kids who are under our care right now. Most of them do not have parents. Some have a mother but no father. Family members and parents were killed by the storm. I looked at pictures of dead bodies and my heart was torn. I do not like to send pictures to friends because they look so bad.

I have to stop for now. I pray that God will continue to bless you all with his wonderful blessing. Mercy, peace, and love be yours in abundance.

With Love in Christ,
Your brother and sister
Ahtapa and Leah

Please pray for our new missionary Brian Menefee with his preparation. Brian and family are from Kentucky, USA and Racky Burgos is from the Philippines.

God has already called us; now we need to call on God

The AG magazine, "TPE," published a great article of an interview with Greg Mundis, the Assemblies of God Regional director of Europe.

"We need a sovereign act of God, an outpouring of the Holy Spirit,... These things are not generated out of a strategy room in some missions agency, but out of the very throne room of God."
"[Such a move] must come from God, but man works together with God as He moves. We need a church that is praying, a church that is humble, and church that is repentant, and a church that is reaching beyond its own paradigms and borders to touch the lost."

the breastplate of Patrick

I know, it's not very upbeat, and it seems I have my holidays mixed up, but I found this today as well. ~~Good Stuff~~

"He [St. Patrick] was ordered to appear before the King, and as he made his way there, began to chant a hymn now known as the breastplate of Patrick, or the lorica or Deer's Cry..."
http://www.faculty.de.gcsu.edu/~dvess/ids/medieval/celtic/celtic.shtml

St. Patrick's Breastplate

( the Lorica or Deer's Cry)

For my shield this day I call: A mighty power: The Holy Trinity! Affirming Threeness, Confessing oneness, in the making of all Through love ... For my shield this day I call: Christ's power in his coming and in his baptizing, Christ's power in his dying On the cross, his rising from the tomb, his ascending; Christ's power in his coming for judgement and ending. For my shield this day I call: strong power of the seraphim, with angels obeying, and archangels attending, in the glorious company of the holy and risen ones in the prayers of the fathers in visions prophetic and commands apostolic in the annals if witness ... For my shield this day I call: Heaven's might, sun's brightness, Moon's whiteness, Fire's glory, Lightening's swiftness, Wind's wildness, Ocean's depth Earth's solidity, Rock's immobility. This day I call to me: God's strength to direct me, God's power to sustain me, God's wisdom to guide me, God's vision to light me, God's ear to my hearing, God's word to my speaking, God's hand to uphold me, God's pathway before me, God's shield to protect me ...

From evil enticements, from failings of nature, from one man or many, that seek to destroy me, anear or afar .. Around me I gather these forces to save my soul and my body ... Against knowledge unlawful that injures the body, that injures the spirit. Be Christ this day my strong protector against poison and burning against drowning wounding through reward wide plenty Christ beside me Christ before me Christ behind me Christ within me Christ beneath me Christ above me Christ to the right of me Christ to the left of me Christ in my lying, my sitting, my rising Christ in heart of all who know me Chirst on tongue of all who meet me; Chirst in eye of all who see me; Christ in ear of all who hear me. For my shield this day I call a mighty power: The Holy Trinity! Affirming Threeness, Confessing oneness, in the making of all Through love ...

the journey inward

A friend recently suggested I Google "Celtic Monasticism." I'm glad he did, and though it has put me to sleep several times today, I'm finding the study quite intriguing.

"...the Celtic saints were travelers who journeyed far and wide, leaping into their tiny coracles and setting sail on the sea, often without oars or sails, and often without a specific destination, content to let God take them where God would...

Their love of travel was motivated by their love of God; their journey was undertaken in order to come closer to God. Theirs was a journey in which oars or sails were not necessary, for that for which they were searching was to be found not without, but within: It has been said that, "The longest journey is the journey inward" (Dag Hammarskjold). The peregrinations of the Celtic saints were ways of expressing outwardly a journey which they wanted to undertake inwardly...

This journey was a journey in which one achieved stability of soul, a constant striving after God in which one might remain in a single place while nevertheless being constantly on the move. On the other hand, one might stay in a single place and nevertheless be on a journey of intense transformation. Celtic monasticism is a world in which journey and stability of place are not at odds at all, but expressions of one spiritual ideal...

...the constant peregrinations of the saints were not an effort to find God, as the hymns tells us that if you can't find God where you are, there's no need to go anywhere else looking for him. The Celtic saints were deeply aware of the omnipresence of God, beside us, beneath us, above us, all around us and within us and all creation. Celtic monasticism full of such peregrini who, in their constant wanderings, spread monasticism throughout Ireland, to Scotland, and Northumbria, and later to continental Europe."

http://www.faculty.de.gcsu.edu/~dvess/ids/medieval/celtic/celtic.shtml