the journey home

Pearl and I are now safely home and resting from a wild 10 day trip to southern California / Northern Mexico. We co-lead a team of 20 down to El Centro, CA. where we partnered with a local church in building a pastor in Mexicali, Mexico a new home. The Pastor from Mexico emotionally shared with us on our last day that he had just seen a miracle before his very eyes as a 20-year-old prayer was just being answered. See, the Pastor married when he was 18 and shortly after started in vocational ministry; God was using him in his community but the community, due to cultural issues, had not stepped out to support him with their money. This left him finically in a tough spot. He was able to find a “5th wheel” RV where he, his wife, and their 4 kids have lived for the past 20 years. Through random “God events” this pastor became friends with our pastor friend in Southern Cal. and through more “God Events” our student ministry was able to adopt this project as one of our summer trips. A father of one of our kids organized a truck of lumber to be shipped out, a team of students and adults formed, and before long a team of 20 was heading across country on what would soon become a modern miracle. The trip and construction went great, wonderful progress on the home took place, but all that is not the point of this blog.

On the plane ride there and back I was able to read “the Organic God” by Margaret Feinberg. This is a wonderful book and would recommend it to many. The Chapter that has sat in my mind the longest is chapter 7 titled “outrageously generous.” Margaret, who I have had the honor of meeting is a feisty little woman who can’t be much taller then 5’ 1” and despite social awkwardness married a 6’8” Norwegian named Leif, centered the chapter after great humor and story around the idea of God loving a cheerful giver. But instead of heaping on the guilt of me being materialist and selfish focused on a lifestyle of giving; giving money, things, time, love, patience, life, etc.

So here I am, recouping from a wild trip, seeing the financial disparity of our brothers in Mexico and on the verge of signing a 30-year mortgage for a new house. I’m looking at my abundance of wealth trying to pack it all into a 24 foot truck, which by the way is larger then most of our Mexican Pastor’s neighbor’s homes, but I still would label myself poor in the context of my community, and trying to figure out how to be a cheerful giver. How do these worlds coexist? How can I look at the needs of the world around me, look at my “vast” wealth, look at my increasing wish list, and then find harmony around the idea of being a cheerful giver? How do I balance my wish list and “basic” needs of life and live knowing what needs are screaming for attention in the world?

May I as a liver of the faith learn to co-exist in multiple worlds. One leg in the world of my “rich” community being a living example of Jesus, yet one leg in the world of reality, the world of the needy, the world that I often try to forget.

May I as a liver of the faith inspire my rich brothers and sisters to remember our brothers and sisters who do not have as much as we.

May I as a liver of the faith give. Give when it’s comfortable, and give when it’s not. May I give smiles, hugs, kind words, time, energy, skills, things, money, and whatever else may be asked for that I can release.

May my life be a source of life, a giver of life.

keeping the mystery

So, where does the magic of life go? What sneaks into our days that zaps the mystery the wonder, the awe. The dreams of a child is replace with the worry of an adult, the playful love of teenagers become the nagging of a spouse, the grace of God’s embrace becomes the law of religion. How do we as practiceners of the Faith help to keep faith living, swirling, moving, mystical. We long to find our ourselves caught in a adventure, a mission, a story that has evil yet good, despair yet hope, failure yet victory, a place that I can see myself in my worst and myself as I was created to be, and the bridge of hope to join the two worlds. How do we spin stories that invite, that engage the imagination, that makes us see something beautiful and long for that day to come near?

May I as a co-reader protect my heart, my mind, and my soul as I interact with this story, never letting the mystery become boredom, the adventure become proofs, the beauty become law.

May we as teachers protect the hearts we care for, the minds we help shape, and the souls we fight for.

May the story live? May the words of Scripture be as a movie screen before our eyes, vivid with color and movement.

The renewal of an OEA

Now that it’s starting to warming up, we’re able to play Frisbee Golf a little more. So here’s a couple of pics of us playing last week.

OEA's - gotta love um

In life I think we each have our different things that bring us an odd sense of joy. You know, those things that for some is boarder line torture but to others it’s euphoric. For example, the grandma who simple loves crossword puzzle, or like my own grandma 5000 piece puzzles; putting together a 5000 piece puzzle would kill me, I’d get tired, and end up forcing pieces in and ending up with a new rendition of Picasso’s art. Another example is the guy who just can’t get enough time sitting in the middle of the woods, boarder line freezing to death all for the hope of that “Golden Buck” walking in front of his line of sight. In the south it’s guys working hours on their truck so they can go mud bogging, up North it’s guys waxen skis so they can fall off the side of a mountain just a few seconds faster.

For my wife it’s scrap booking, working in the garden and running. All of these things she excels at. She’s very creative with her scrap booking and I enjoy being able to relive the past with her. She’s also wonderful with plants, she can make what I think is a dead stick bloom into a beautiful rose. She’s very tender and loving with her plants; just a word of advice, as you guys visit the house watch were you step, that so call blade of grass my really be a soon-to-be flower, and believe me she knows where their at. She’s also a good runner. Much more dedicated then I am, she seems to simply enjoy the freedom she feels, for me I simply feel the pain of my body screaming “Matt you weigh 250 pounds what in the world are you trying to do to me.” I really love my wife, over the last day I’ve been reminded of how wonderful she is and how deeply blessed I am to share life with her.

And now it’s time for me to share with you my odd euphoric activities (OEA). I think I have a couple. One being a good cup of coffee while sitting in a favorite chair in a peaceful environment, if there’s snow falling or a nice rain it makes it all that much nicer. Another one of my OEA’s is cutting grass or working with my chain saw. There’s something about knowing you’ve done a good days work. Is it the rush of testosterone you get as you man-handle a large oak, making it move as you desire, or the sense of pride you feel as you deeply inhale the smell of fresh cut grass with that slight hint of gas as you reflect on the beautifully trimmed yard, with parallel lines, nicely edge sidewalks, and blown drive way? My last OEA is road biking. This is a OEA from high school that over the last years I’d slipped away from, but over the past few months have rediscovered. This morning I went for a wonderful ride, cruising the roads feeling thankful for the ability to ride and also enjoying the amazing landscape that we live in here in PA.

Well, this blog has yet again became a rather length on, so to those who have finished reading, thanks, and I hope this weekend God blesses you with the chance to enjoy some of your OEA’s.