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Enjoy following the Rabboni!

Overwhelmed

I told someone today that if I did not have such a good God, today would have been terrible. Still now, though the day is over, I feel funny. There is part of me that wants to cry, overwhelmed and ready to cash in, and the rest of me is saying, "This is just starting to get good! God is great, so onward, ho!"

Location: J.'s apartment in Sighisoara, Romania, the 2nd of April.

The above is a quote from Yours Truly just earlier this week. I sat down to journal about the day, got interrupted by a phone call which was cut short by the Holy Spirit overwhelming me with His power, and I ended up spending time at the feet of Jesus before going directly to bed. So the post never got written.

Yes, I know it has been quite some time since I last updated my blog. I might add that I have not made much time to write lately either. It has been difficult to keep up with emails, too. Why? After all, these are all things I enjoy!

Well, as you know, life happens. Relationship is always my priority, because I see that it is God's priority. Everything in the Bible screams "relationship!" Everything in Christianity is founded upon relationship: Relationship with Jesus, relationship between Father and Son (and Spirit), relationship between Christians (the Church), relationship between believers and non-believers (the world) . . . Thus, the Christian's life is naturally focused on relationship. And relationship cannot be scheduled, tamed, controlled, organized, pacified, or faked, which means that it tends to "interrupt" schedules and plans and life in general--in a good way!

Maybe you, too, feel overwhelmed by the relationships around you. Maybe it seems like you are needed by too many people with too complicated problems. Maybe you cannot love all the people who love you, or you cannot minister to all the people who come to you. Maybe you have too many friends, or too many enemies. Maybe you cannot reciprocate the love God gives you. Relationships can certainly be overwhelming!

That is why I have not written so much. Often, I choose to spend time at the feet of Jesus instead of writing. I spend a lot of time with my wonderful girlfriend, enjoying the friendship God has given us. Several times a week, I lend a hand to a friend that needs something, happy to help even though it costs me time. Sometimes it is just work, plain and simple, that fills up my schedule.

For example, U. (whose family has blessed and helped me so much!) has been suffering from very bad back problems lately. Yesterday I joined him and a couple of his boys in some logging work in the forest. It was the first time I did something like that, dragging felled trees with the tractor and wench and with the horse, and then cutting them into meter-long sections. I enjoyed the hard work in the beautiful spring weather except for fighting a rotten headache, and I know U. appreciated the help. It was a good investement in his son, D.'s life, too. D. is the 15-year-old boy to whom I teach French and English, and I have become a bit of a mentor to him. He does not know Jesus, but I pray that he will someday!

Speaking of D., a lot of my time of late has gone into planning a special trip to France with him this summer. Shh...it is a surprise! I bought the plane tickets now, and things are falling into place.

Planning a trip takes a lot of organization time, and not only am I planning France, but also the visits of a couple of other Christians to Romania. I will be hosting them for a good bit of their time here, and I am planning our time together in July and August. I am getting excited about it, and about visiting different places in the area where my Father is at work!

Another friend helped me this week by lending me a car (yes, a Dacia!), and then I did him a favor by taking it to town for him, to pass it on to someone else who needed it. Unfortunately, as I was on my way, the gearshift broke clean off in my hand, while I was driving! We had to tow the car (another new experience for me as I sat in the back car--without a gearshift--fixated on the brakelights of the car in front of me so I would not rear-end it!).

Sadly, I am not the only one who had a mishap this week--my brother in America broke his ankle skiing. However, that resulted in an impromptu family reunion via Skype, which was a huge blessing in my week.

So you understand why have not written; thank you for forgiving me.

Do you know what the trick is to avoid being overwhelmed by our workloads, by misfortune, burdens, pain, and deadlines? We need to be overwhelmed by God's goodness, love, grace, and mercy. His peace is wide enough to hold us all, in every situation.

You see, this morning I was tempted to be overwhelmed by the future. It feels like I have a lot of decisions to make and things to work on and plan. Some of them seem impossible, and some of them seem like hopeless jigsaw puzzles. That is why I came to town today, to work on all of this. But as I stood by the road hitchhiking, the Lord reminded me very clearly, "Don't worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow has enough worries of its own. Bring me glory today."

That is right: tomorrow might never come. So how am I glorifying my Father today? How are you glorifying Him today?

You probably do not have the same mentle struggle I have: I often struggle against the idea of being a professional missionary or minister. I do not feel called to be, nor do I want to be, a professional minister or missionary. Why? It goes back to the point about relationships. While it is true that God calls some to be professional ministers and missionaries, I believe that we often are better positioned to enter into relationship with our neighbors when we have a "normal," simmple life. Think about how powerful of a testimony to God's goodness it is to have the same life as your neighbor's except for one thing--your life is overwhelmed by God's grace and goodness.

Whatever your role is today, whether it seems meaningful or not, I want you to surrender yourself once more or for the first time to the grace of Jesus Christ. Then I want you to let that grace overwhelm you so much that every person you meet will know that we have an awesome God. Maybe your emails will not get read, nor your patio swept, nor your favorite program watched on T.V., but God will be glorified. And after all, isn't that your job?

Cold Spaghetti

Location: J's apartment, the 19th of March 2011 at about 7:45pm.

Probably cold spaghetti will taste about as good as it sounds, but I will have to tell you later. You see, I left it on the stove waiting for J., expecting him to walk in the door at any minute. Then I just got a call from M., who is with him leading a day-trip for the American students, and a "shortcut" put them an hour behind schedule.

Have you ever waited for something that seemed to never come? Or someone?

Today has been a productive day in the "office," but I still did not get everything done I hoped to--for instance, I never even touched my personal emails, just the work-related ones. I am planning out a bit of my summer when I will be hosting some visitors, and juggling all of our schedules and contacting people we hope to meet with takes a lot of time. In addition, I am planning a surprise trip to France for a friend of mine. I am blessed to be alone in J.'s apartment today, with a full day of internet access. Yet after a while, my eyes start to dream of yesteryear when they did not stare for hours at a computer screen!

What makes it worse is that I have come down with a cold, only days after answering my father's question with the truth that I was healthy. Still a bit tired from last week's tour to Germany and back, I guess my immune system could not withstand an invasion. So I am glad that I declined the invitation to join my friends in Hunedoara today, because I probably would have been miserable there!

You may wonder why I would not join my girlfriend and a good American buddy on a mostly-free day-trip. The main reason was the amount of work I had to do. Now before you begin to pity me, let me tell you that I pushed my workload back to today so that I could be spontaneous yesterday. I was in my village cutting wood and working on my bike and preparing to do this summer planning work when I received a call from my beautiful girlfriend saying that her neighbor had invited us out-of-the-blue to go to Odorhei, which is a Hungarian-populated area of Romania about an hour away. At first I said "no," then realized that it was from God and called back with an affirmative answer. So yesterday we visited Odorhei (my first time), and believe it or not, I found shoes in my large size (the first time I have found them in Romania!). Back in Sighisoara in the evening, I had the privilege of joining M. at a special worship service of a group of Christians who have a heart for the nation of Israel. We sang several songs in Hebrew and had a message and a prayer time.

I had a headache yesterday, but only today did the cold hit. But I count my blessings. I was able to sleep last night (and will again tonight) here at J.'s apartment, and to spend a working day alone here. I did not get to go to V. for the Bible Hour this week, for the first time in a long while, but I got to have some high-quality conversations with some of you on Wednesday instead. I am battling a cold, but people in Libya and Japan and New Zealand and other places are fighting for their lives. After my full day of computer work and a runny nose, I was looking forward to seeing my girlfriend an hour ago, and to serving my buddy J. with a meal of spaghetti I made him. But the blessing is that I have a girlfriend who calls again when she is running late so I will not worry, and that I have food that can get cold, meaning I have something to eat and something to make heat.

Life is about perspective. Today I fielded a call from a local missionary struggling with some interpersonal relationships. We talked about the idea of a rich man who has a lot of valuable property, and how he stresses himself out with fences and alarms and guards and dogs, trying to keep his property from being stolen (and not realizing that his joy and peace has been stolen!). Compare that to the poor man next door who has no fences, alarms, guards, nor dogs, but who neither has anything for someone to steal. And he does have joy and peace.

How do you look at your life? If you are a Christian, can you surrender yourself so completely to Jesus that you have nothing left for someone to steal or hurt. If so, you will have abundant joy and peace! Do you have friends who are worth waiting for, or do you always eat your spaghetti as soon as it gets hot? What is important to you?

Speaking of friends and blessings, my friend J. has been a special blessing to me. I have a key to his apartment and a standing invitation to sleep here. I have clothes here, and even my violin while I wait to find someone to repair it. He leads our Bible study, he has often served me dinner, and has gone out of his way to help me in other ways. I know I cannot repay him, and I do not want to cheapen his friendship by trying. However, I do want to bless him, and I never feel like I succeed in blessing him very well. Cold spaghetti: case in point.

So here is my idea. Will you please stop right now and pray a blessing over J. He is a single young American who serves as a long-term missionary with a discipleship focus. Sometimes he needs encouragement, rest, joy, friendship, and love. May the Lord hear our prayers and lavish His love on J., blessing him far more than I could ever do. I really do mean right now. Did you stop and pray?

Thanks!

I bless you, too, in the Name of Jesus. Pofta buna! Enjoy your cold spaghetti!

Back from Germany

Location: M.'s living room in Sighisoara, Romania (4pm on the 15th of March)

It is hard to explain how it feels to be "home" after our weekend trip to Germany with our Gospel Choir. I arrived at my house at 3:30 this morning, had trouble getting the fire started for some reason, and finally went to bed at 6:00am. I woke up at 8:00am, did a load of laundry (yes, by hand), and taught French and English lessons. Then I caught the last bus to town, where I came to M.'s house (even though she is at work) to take a catnap. Soon I will head over to Bible study.

I just found out that one of my beloved mentors in Indiana had a serious heart attack and is in the hospital. He has been sending Bible study lessons to me via email, and M. and I read them together. Please pray for Pastor B. and his family. That comes on top of the news that I learned last week when I called my former small group leader in Indiana, having heard he was battling health problems: his wife had died the day before I called. Please also pray for T.

Spiritually speaking, the atmosphere seems unusual. I have faced my share of spiritual attacks lately, and I am hearing of them in the lives of other dear Christians, too. Plus, there have continued to be international crises and tragedies. To some extent, all this is normal; nevertheless, we need to be waiting upon the Lord to see what He has in mind!

Our trip to Germany and Austria resulted in many blessings; sorry I did not get to update you from there. There were many frustrating surprises, but the Lord has taught me to watch for the blessings. Some of the blessings were in the people we met, and the conversation we had. I did a lot of the driving, too. Unofficially, I served as a chaperone for the younger members of our group. We were an odd mix, singing and juggling (!) at every rest stop!

Now I am catching up on "normal"! Oh, and I have some pictures for you, I just have to figure out how to get them to you. A friend pointed out that I can purchase more space; I just hate to on principle. I will do a little research, and then I will show you life through my eyes again! Thanks for being a part of it! I pray that you are being richly blessed! I bless you in the Name of Jesus!

My Heart Broke Twice

(Location: In D.'s house, sitting next to him while he takes his French test. It is Women's Day here in Romania, the 8th of March, about 9:00am.)

(Would you believe that in the evening, after I wrote this, when hitch-hiking to my men's group, I caught a ride on a horse cart? How great is that!?)

After I posted my previous blog post, a lot happened quickly. First of all, I discovered that I cannot post any more photos because I used up all of the memory space for photos. When I have time, I will figure out how to resolve the problem; sorry I cannot post pictures right now.

Sunday's sermon was powerful! A visiting American pastor told a story about loosing his five-year-old daughter in a foreign crowd for an hour, and then the three years of trauma that followed. He preached about the difference of demanding that Jesus come into our mess and fix it (i.e. Come heal my daughter!) versus Jesus inviting us to come out of the mess and come to Him (after all, He has already borne the weight of all the mess and sins and has conquered!). He gave the examples of Zacchaeus, Peter, and Lazarus, who were called to come out of the tree, the boat, and the grave to come to Jesus. In the end, during prayer, the little girl recalled that Jesus had been in the scary situation like a "cloud by day," and that she had been so busy looking for her parents that she had not come to Him. That begin the healing change that restored her to being a joyful little girl. I can attest to the power of God's Word and Spirit that reached into our lives as we worshipped on Sunday. I was so glad I had gone to church with M. that day!

After church, I ran into a former collegue on the street, and she had something for me--my blue fleece sweater that I was certain I had left on a train a couple of months ago! I had left it where I was working at the time, and someone found it and recognized it! Not only that, but I also received back a special pen I lost! I was so excited, I wanted to call my friends and have a party like the people in the Bible that celebrated finding their lost coin and lost sheep!

It has really been a great week so far, and now I am trying to ready for a day in V., and then a trip to Germany. However, my heart was broken yesterday.

I took the garbage out to the dumpster for a friend, only to find to little girls digging through the dumpster. It is always hard to know how to best love beggars on the street, how to help them in a way that really helps them and respects them. It is often tempting to just brush them off. However, I cannot tell you how many times I see the same beggars on the street digging through dumpsters for anything they can find. It shows their desparation, and it shows that they are not just living easy off of someone else's dime.

When I found these two little girls, one ran and gave me a hug and asked when I would be in her village again. I was in her village doing children's programs during the fall of the past two years. It talked to her for a bit, and then said goodbye with a broken heart, only to found out that I had been seen by a woman I know.

The woman chided me, "Why didn't you send those girls away!?" It broke my heart (again) that she could not see through their grime and poor manners to the desparate life that caused them to shamelessly dig through trash looking for scraps of food.

The woman is someone I care about, as are the little girls. But it is all too common here for people to hate and despise Gypsies, simply because they have been taught to hate for years, even for generations. Their compassion is not free to reach out, because they have believed satan's lies that "people like that" are at fault for the life they are living, so it is okay to hate them. Hardening your heart to someone else's problems is always easier than remembering how it feels to be hated.

Maybe where you live, you do not run into Gypsy beggars very often, but I am pretty sure you run into people groups that have been hated for little or no reason. The devil plays the same game all over the world. How do I know? I have been there all over the world. And I have recently been reminded through films. One was about William Wilburforce fighting the slave trade in the British Empire, and one was about Steve Biko fighting aparteid in South Africa.

Who do you hate?

Who hates you?

How does it feel?

Who does Jesus hate?

I bless you in the love of Jesus.

Another Winter's Day

(Location: My house in C., Romania, on Sunday morning at 9:30, the 6th of March)

Spring-like whispers and birdsongs have been teasing me with a few days of gorgeous sunshine, but now it is snowing again. I do not mind; I like both. Nonetheless, I will not complain when it warms up enough that my house stays above 10 degrees Celsius (50 F)when I am going for a day or two.

My life is more relaxed right now in the day-to-day routine, and I like that. Cutting wood, doing laundry by hand, and preparing food take a significant amount of my time, but I am still finding some time to write and sing and dance. You never dance while doing laundry or washing dishes? Where is your joy?

However, I must say that time in general seems to be flying. Monday begins Lent in the Orthodox Church, which will catapult us forward into Easter (the same day this year as the Western Church's Easter). So it is already March, and this week we will be leaving for our special choir concert at a music festival in Bavaria, Germany. Meanwhile, teaching French and English keeps me busy, along with Bible study and church involvement. Yesterday, I helped out again with the children's program in C. Each Wednesday, I continue to go to V. where we teach the weekly Bible Hour.

What has God been teaching me? So much that I cannot do it justice here. He continues to teach me about obedience, which I know will be a life-long lesson, as it is the Christian's number one job. He teaches me again and again to trust Him more, and to surrender myself and my plans and my doubts into His loving, capable hands. He shows me how to better enjoy Him, and how to let Him delight in me. And each day I am anticipating more and more Christ's return!

Last week, I was delighted to receive emails from several people I had not heard from in quite some time. Several people also emailed me good news, which is fun to receive. Thanks!

So what am I working on for the coming months? I am going to be hosting a couple of European friends who want to know more about ministry in Romania, and together we will visit several ministry sites in the area. The preparation is fun for me, and I am particularly excited to make the visits, because it will reveal to me in increasing clarity the big picture of what God is doing in this area of the world. At the same time, I am feeling the spiritual shaking in all parts of the world right now, and I am privileged to join you in prayer as God works in your areas of the world.

So, this does not seem like a very exciting post to me, but I wanted to update you. I have been spending more time with Jesus lately, more time with M., and more time writing other things, all of which equals less time to write a blog post. But I am also laughing more, smiling more, singing more, and rejoicing more. Isn't God good?

Oh, I wanted to tell you that after being sick several times this winter, I am pleased to announce that I went through the whole month of February without being sick once!

Ok, I am off to town for church and choir rehearsal. Have a wonderful day, and even better week, and a fantastic life (if you know Jesus, it will be!). I bless you in the Name of our Jesus!

Read On!

Location: M.'s apartment on the 1st of March, a little after 2:30pm.

Just a quick note to tell you there are three new posts below; enjoy!

I have been very productive this week, and this morning I even successfully changed my rear bike tire, and put it back together so everything works! When you look at my busy little one-room house, maybe you see a simple life without plumbing or electric heat. I, on the other hand, see wealth! You never know how rich you are until everything you have is in one room!

Delight in the Lord today, and give thanks to Him, for He is good!

Ready?

Location: My little house in C., Romania, Sunday afternoon the 27th of February, about 4:30.

There are so many exciting things happening! I just returned from an 8-year-old's birthday party; today is also the birthday of an American missionary in our church. My computer was attacked by malware last night, but with the help of a lady from my church in Indianapolis, everything got sorted out. I had a great conversation with my parents via Skype, and I am so excited to see God at work in their lives, and in the Church in Indianapolis! I am also in conversation with a few people in Belgium and Switzerland about ministry visits this summer, as well as with some folks in Greece and France and America about working with adolescents and the fight against human trafficking. Meanwhile, the world seems to be unraveling as political riots and revolutions shake Africa, as American legislators act like toddlers, as New Zealand shakes after a devastating earthquake, and as religious violence burns through Asia.

Jesus was reminding me today to be ready. Is there any more that I need to be or do to be ready for Him to come back?

In light of that mindset and the Spirit's moving, we had a great worship service today. My buddy R. returned (I gave him his car back before I could destroy it!) and preached a powerful message on Genesis 1:1-5, God as Creator. I translated quietly in the corner of the congregation for a couple of ladies. We had several visitors in our midst today, including a group of street kids that I often encounter begging. Today when we met on the street, I did not give them anything, but I prayed with them. Then they wanted to come to church with me, and they were so well behaved! I had not planned to invite them, because we have already been challenged by people offending others by begging in our midst on Sunday mornings, but I am so glad that they came!

I am convinced that another reason worship was so powerful today was that I have been observing the Sabbath more carefully. The Lord had been convicting me about it for a while, but I wrestled with the idea, trying to figure out the freedom we have in Christ who is Lord of the Sabbath, and the idea that the day of rest is holy. But in the end, I elected to have a "date night" both of the last two Friday nights. Not with my beautiful girlfriend, but with my beautiful Lord. Each time, I turn my phone off at sundown, and just spend time with Jesus: in prayer, in the Word, in rest, in writing, in singing. I composed a simple poem the first Friday night (M. teases me that I took the main idea from one of her songs) and a song this past Friday. Then I go to bed very early and rest easy, not having anything I have to do on Saturday morning. Resting with the Lord on Saturday definitely prepares me for the Lord's Day on Sunday!

I have more to tell, but your attention span is probably about exhausted. There are some more pictures on my Picasa site (the link is to the right), but that site is almost full, so I need to look into new options. Maybe I will post the poem and song for those of you who are interested. So, I will tell the rest of my stories another time, like the one about the elderly hitchhiker who did not seem to plan to get out of my car after I prayed for her, or about helping with the children's program here in C. yesterday, about babies and orginal sin, or about February being the month of "giving." When you do have more of a desire to read, read the Book of Romans in the New Testament of the Bible. It is not about Romanians, nor Romans for that matter. It is about you.

Are you ready?

Steadfast Love (Psalm 33)

Your steadfast love never fails!
I will put my hope in You!


1. Rejoice, you Righteous! Rejoice!
Praise the LORD; sing a new song!

2. For His Word is upright, His work, faithful.
The earth is full of His steadfast love!

3. With His Word He made the heavens and the deep;
Let all the earth stand in awe of Him!

4. The counsel of the LORD stands forever;
Happy is the nation whose God is the LORD!

5. God is watching over us;
We are not saved by our strength!

6. The eye of the LORD is watching to deliver
The one who hopes in His steadfast love!

7. Our soul waits for the LORD!
We gladly trust in His holy Name!

You Listen to Me (Isaiah 9:6-7)

Wonderful Counselor, you are wonderful
You counsel me, you listen to me
With you I am safe

Mighty God, you are mighty
You are God, you listen to me
With you I am safe

Everlasting Father, you are everlasting
You are Father, you listen to me
With you I am safe

Prince of Peace, you are Prince
You bring peace, you listen to me
With you I am safe

Come, Lord Jesus, you are Lord,
You come, Jesus, you listen to me
By you I am loved
By you I am saved
With you I am safe

Careening into Blessings

Location: J's apartment in Sighisoara, Romania, at nearly midnight on the night of February 20 (almost the 21st).

My buddy J. is on a work-related phone call with America right now in the room next door, but since it is his apartment, and I rarely stay here on Sunday nights, I cannot complain. Instead, I will make uses of the time to explain why I am town still tonight.

Today was a day full of blessings; it was one of those days when God's plans looked very different from mine, so living according to His plans was a wild ride--literally.

Yesterday found me visiting Sibiu with some of the American students. The rainy day hampered the tour a bit, but we had a nice day, especially when I got to introduce M. from Sighisoara to M. from Hunedoara--two of my friends who are very similar and whom I had been wanting to introduce for a long time. Last night though, the rain turned to snow. Last night, I thought it was pretty. This morning, I thought it was a shame I had to go pick up people for church, because it would have been a good day to stay in the village. I had no idea . . . .

I hopped in the Dacia a little later than I wanted to leave this morning, so I drove a little faster than I should have on the very snowy road. I knew it was fast, but I thought it was still a safe enough speed; after all, a lot of the rural roads in Romania get better when it snows. So I was singing a song from Deuteronomy 6:4 when the car started sliding. As usual, I stayed calm, and corrected a bit to the right. As the car continued to slide, I corrected back to the left thinking, "Don't over-correct." By the time I had to correct back to the left, I knew I was in trouble. Praying the whole time, and still calm, I realized I was headed over the embankment. I told the Lord I was ready, and hung on, thanking Him that the car did not flip when it went up on two wheels. I was surprised at how smoothly I slid down the hill; I was not whipped or thrown around at all. The car came to a stop in a muddy field with the hatch up against the bank--there would be no going backwards!

I sat in the car feeling stupid that I had crashed (I am a veteran driver with many miles under my belt, even in the snow), thankful that the Lord had been so gracious, and guilty that I was in my friend's car, who already thinks I break everything. On top of that, I had just had the brakes repaired! Figuring I had destroyed the car, I called the people I was supposed to pick up, and then called my neighbor to come help me out. Actually, I scoped out an escape route and tried getting it out myself, but to no avail. You see, I found out that not only was I not hurt in any way at all, but the car had very little damage and was still driveable.

While my Swiss neighbor, U., and his family were on the way, another car stopped, and a couple of guys helped me. We managed to get the car out of the field and back on the road, but I felt bad that one of the guys got sprayed with mud as he pushed! As I told you, I was praying the whole time, and I remained calm. After I was back on the road, I went toward home far enough to meet U. and tell him, "thanks anyway," and then turned around and headed to town. Not only did I make it in time for church, but I was hit with blessing after blessing today: God is SO good!

One highlight . . . last night, God asked M. to pray for a young couple we know who have been going through a rough spell in their marriage. We wanted to visit them today, and would you believe that I found them at my church when I got there?! They usually go to another church. So I cornered them and told them they had lunch plans; the four of us had the most amazing lunch fellowship discussing all of the good things God has done in our lives. When was the last time that you spent your time conversing with other Christians about the good things God has done in your life? Too often we spend our time whining or complaining or joking, and we do not talk about the most important Person in our lives, and all of the blessings He has given us!

That is why I am risking worrying you by telling you this story: I have to boast in the LORD! How good is God! God blessed me with a car to drive for a month. Then, not only was I able to drive the car out of the mess I got it in, but I was completely unscathed myself. (If you do not believe me, my entire church and my friends M. and J. saw me today, so they can vouch that I am not hurt in any way. Mom and Dad, this is especially for you; thanks for your prayers.) I am staying in town to have a mechanic friend look it over in the morning, but there was no serious damage because the Lord sent me between the telephone pole and the tree that I could have hit, and cushioned my two-meter descent with snow and mud. I had friends I could call to help me get unstuck, yet God even sent strangers to help me. The temperature was right about at freezing, so it was not nearly as cold as in past weeks, and my "incident" happened just before I would have lost my cell phone signal, so I was able to call for help. Then I was able to drive safely to town and to church, to bless others, and to be overwhelmed by amazing blessings in a wonderful day!

(Here is a post-script written on the 21st of February... I am very happy I had the accident! Not only was it a great reminder of God's grace, protection, provision, and power, but it also spawned bunches of blessings. I thoroughly enjoyed meeting with my mechanic friend from the Baptist church and talking about life with Jesus. And would you believe it if I told you that I threw a car over a two-meter drop-off into a field, and there is nothing wrong with the car? The right side turn-signal cover had been knocked loose, but I had retrieved it from the snow and threw it in the trunk; today we were able to put it back on. Two screws was all it took to put the fender back in place, and a little bending of the hood made it close properly again. If you looked at the car not knowing what happened yesterday, you would never guess! So I had to buy no parts, and the brake repair before the accident was more costly--time and money--than the accident itself! And yet, when I arrived home today, U. told me that when he saw where I had gone over the edge, he could not believe I was still able to drive the car! What a miracle!)

We have a great God. Thanks be to God for His mercy and grace! And I want to thank you for all of your prayers. In fact, one man I was supposed to pick up for church told me that God had told him to pray for me and the car this morning, right at the time I was diving off the road! Our God is so faithful, that I cannot begin to convey the idea clearly enough!

Next time you are having a bad morning, I want you to remember that the same day that I planted a car in a field in the morning turned out to be one of the most blessed days I have had in a long time. God's plans are not ours! May your days be blessed, even without car accidents. But if bad things do happen, stay calm, trust God, and keep praying. There are people praying for you, and there are blessings to come! Best of all, Jesus loves you! Do you believe it? Live like you do!

Money Talks

Location: My house in the village of C., Romania, just before noon on the 18th of February.

I have to fight to protect my quiet village life; it is hardly that! I find myself in town nearly four or five days per week, which is not typical of a villager. Lately, the blessing of my friend's car is what has been taking me there, both literally and figuratively.

Many of you did not know that I was shopping for a car last autumn. I did not write about it, because I was shopping on faith. I thought that the plan the Lord gave me required a car, and so even though I did not really have money for it, I shopped for it, praying the Lord would provide. I did not mention this endeavor, because I only tell the Lord my needs, and He then provides for them how He wants. I do not want to get in the habit of mentioning a need on my blog, and then pretend to be surprised when some generous-hearted person meets that need. Like George Muller, I take my praises and petitions only to the Lord; He knows when I have need and when I have plenty. No one else needs to know.

So, twice I found suitable cars; twice the Lord clearly prevented me from buying them. I am very thankful that He did, because I see that I did not need a car. That season of almost daily commuting is over, and God provided the transportation in a variety of ways. Now he has provided me a car on loan for a month, and it has been a great blessing, but it also reminds me why I am blessed not to own one. This car has been expensive, requiring both time and money.

Gasoline in Romania is about 5 RON per liter (a little less than $2, or a bit more than 1 Euro). For you Americans, consider that a liter is roughly comparable to a quart, with four quarts in a gallon, and we are already talking about 20 RON per gallon, which is just under $7 a gallon. And my British friend tells me that Romania's gasoline is still far cheaper than the rest of Europe's!

On top of that, I wanted to bless my friend by getting his brakes fixed, because driving without breaks is scary enough for a lone adventurer like me, but when I have his family in the car, it is just plain dangerous. To do so, I took the car to the garage where they put more brake fluid in, and then they send you to go buy parts and come back another day. I had to go buy parts at two shops, and the same part (I needed two, one for the left and one for the right) was 20 RON different in price between the two places (roughly a gallon of gas)! Surprised, I questioned the guy, but there was nothing I could do about it, so I bit the bullet and walked out--only to realize later that he had not given me my change (or I dropped it somehow, though I think not).

Then I took the car to the garage, and they told me they did not have time to fix it: come back tomorrow! They told me, though, that I had bought the right parts, and that the job would take around three hours. I rearranged my schedule accordingly, and made an appointment for nine in the morning. Actually, a date. My poor girlfriend came with me, and you know she is a blessing if two of our first dates were babysitting four kids for Valentine's Day and then hanging out at a Dacia repair garage!

So we showed up at 9:00am, and it was not long before two wheels were off the car, lying on the ground. That is when the mechanic came and told me that one of the parts was wrong (he needed the front instead of the back), and that he was not sure if he could get the car done before they close at 4:00pm. A seven hour job is a lot different than a three hour job! We had already prayed about the whole process, and I trusted the Lord to work everything out right. I was happy to learn that they had the needed part for purchase at the garage, which saved us time. Then I told the mechanic that I would wait and watch him work, and we would see how things went. Pretty amazing that he got everything done in under three hours, don't you think?

On the way home, we ran a few errands, and I ran into a village kid I know. He asked for a ride into town, so we took him with us. Meanwhile, M. reminded me that I wanted to stop at the part store to try to get my money back. She ended up running in, while I stayed in the car with R. R. and I chatted, and we talked about God's provision, and we even prayed together. We had a very nice time, and when M. came back without success, I told her not to worry about it. I had invested a few RON and some extra minutes in what resulted in quality time with a young man who needs Jesus.

Please pray for R.; he often comes to my church with several of his peers for the kids' program before service. Normally, they go home before service starts.

One time, though, one of R.'s peers sat next to me during worship, and when he saw me put money in the offering plate that was more than the 1 RON note that most Romanians drop in, he began to tell his friends. We then had a little chat about giving to the Lord, and about giving quietly.

I always try to give quietly, however much or little the Lord asks of me. I believe that giving tithes or offering to God through the Church is symbolic of us as we give ourselves completely to the Lord. Thus, sometimes when the Lord does not lead me to put cash in the offering basket, I put my hand over the basket and metaphorically give myself all over again to my God. At other times, I give generously, recognizing that all I have is my Father's, and that it came from Him, and that it is to be used for His glory. I can never pay Him back for all He has done for me, nor can I give Him what He deserves, but I can give obediently and gladly, showing Him that He is my master, not my money nor my possessions nor even my own welfare.

Yesterday, I was dismayed to learn that my giving (even the sum) had become the subject of gossip. I am neither ashamed nor sorry of how I give; in fact, I pray that others could learn to also give freely. However, it is a good reminder that people are watching us, and that they need to see Jesus in every part of our lives, including in our wallets and purses.

What if your giving suddenly became public? Would you pray for others to give like you do, or would you be embarrassed to find out if they do? Does your giving communicate to Jesus that He is First in your life? Do you feel free to give large sums, or do you just through in your spare change? Do you feel free to let the offering plate pass you by, or do you feel obligated to give, worried about what others might think or trying to pay off the debt that Jesus paid for you?

I am an American, and many people think that all American's are rich, which is a stereotype I hate. However, as much as I try not to live as a rich American, I hope I always live like a rich Christian! You see, if you know Jesus, you are rich! The fullness of God dwells in Jesus, and to those who have surrendered themselves to Him, Jesus puts His own Spirit in them to dwell. Everything in heaven and on earth belong to Him, and it pleases Him to bless us. So even if my wallet does not show it one day, I can always know that I am rich in Him! He is my provider, and He loves me! So wherever I am in the world, I will live as a rich Christian. I will give my love, my time, my money, and myself extravagantly to Him and to the people He puts in my path. Some people will think that my week has 8 days in it; others will think I am a millionaire. Some might think I am a saint; others might think I have infinite strength. The truth is, I am connected to the Vine, to the Source, to Jesus. He holds time in His hand, owns the cattle on a thousand hills, invented supernatural love, and gives me His joy as my strength.

Do you know this Jesus?

If so, do you realize how rich you are, no matter what is in your pocket?

Do others see you as rich and blessed, or do you whine pathetically because life is hard?

Christian, you are rich! May you use of your riches reflect the abundance of life we know in Jesus!

Happy Valentine's Day!

Location: Sitting at the table next to D. while he takes his English test in C., Romania. It is about 9:15am on the morning of the 14th of February.

Valentine's Day is not huge in Romania, but there are a lot of people that take advantage of the occasion to make a buck or to wink at a pretty girl. In the States, I have a lot of friends who boycott the day, recognizing that it is about ninety percent sillly, nine percent tolerable, and one percent based on the truth of God's love. However, my friend M. and I decided it was a good occasion to have some fun. Choosing Sunday afternoon the day before, we volunteered to "family-sit" for our Swiss friends who have four kids, and we helped the husband arrange a secret get-away date for his wife. When they headed off to their surprise destination, we stepped in with the groceries we brought, made pizza from scratch with the kids, and watched Ice Age 2 with Romanian subtitles. We had a really fun evening, and I submit it to your analysis, guessing that no matter how you feel about Valentine's Day, you will approve of the way we chose to enjoy it!

Maybe you are in love, want to be in love, have never been in love, or hate being in love. But wherever you are on the love spectrum, whatever you think of Valentine's Day, I encourage you to settle for nothing less than God's true love. It makes Hallmark holidays fade into yesterday as it stuns you with hope for something real and fresh, something worth celebrating. God's love for you is so real, so strong, that because of it Jesus gave His life for you, to sweep you off your feet and to set you on His path, for His glory, forever. Have you ever been pursued by love? You have, even if you have not recognized it! I pray that you will allow yourself the privilege of being loved by God! God's love is not "gushy" or "girly" or "chocolates and flowers," it is like a sunrise wrapped up in victory, the grand finale of perfect peace eagerly rushing into the glory of tomorrow's adventure!

Yes, Jesus loves you . . .

Boring WITH Brakes!

Location: You won't believe this--I am sitting in a gas station parking lot in R.'s Dacia with the computer on the steering wheel; it is Sunday, the 13th of February, a little after 2:30pm.

(The meat of this post is four paragraphs below, so skip there if you are in a hurry to know why I am waiting in the Dacia. Scroll down to the next post or look on the side column for a picture of a Dacia.)

I know, a laptop in a Dacia is like an oxymoron. The dash board is taped together, and I found a wire on my floorboard today, which I hope did not come off of something important. However, the steeringwheel is shaped just right for this little computer, and so here I am typing while I kill a bit of time.

I took this Dacia to the garage on Friday, and now I have brakes. I have to admit, driving with brakes is a bit more boring than driving with out, but I feel safer, especially when I have other people in the car--which is most of the time. For instance, I picked up four women who were hitchhiking out of my village together on Friday. They asked where I was going, and I mumbled something about taking the car to the garage because it needed some attention. However, they wanted to stop where I had not expected it, and when I could not stop, I had to admit that I had no breaks! As I downshifted and used my handbrake, I apologized that I could not stop right where they wanted, and that I had no brakes. I said, "I didn't want to tell you before, but now that you are getting out, I will tell you that I don't have brakes!"

There have been many surprises this week, and changes in schedules. Yesterday it poured, then snowed, and then the sun came out, all while I was cutting firewood. I was working on firewood yesterday instead of Friday, because Friday I had to go to town to get the brakes fixed. Thursday I was in town, too, because I had to pick up a package, which can only be done on Thursdays between 10am and 12pm. Now the guy at the post office has my cell phone number so he can call me when I get a package, saving us some of the trouble we have gone through. Most importantly, though, I met with my men's group on Thursday night, but please pray for us. It is going so well, but the other unofficial leader now has something at church each Thursday, and we might not be able to find a time during the week when we can all meet. That would be a great disappointment for me, because this group has been a huge blessing, but I trust the Lord; He knows what is best!

But enough about that, because I need to tell you about what just happened. I just came from A., a village in the Sighisoara area. We have a couple families from there who have been coming to our church, and it is a long way away; more than an hour's walk. These people have been coming faithfully every week, but they also beg every week, often going from one person to another. They are not bad people, but it is hard to feel welcoming to them if you know that they will ask you for something each time you talk to them.

I had run into the man earlier in the week, and I was praying for him the past few days; I could not get him out of my head. Finally, the Lord gave me a plan. I picked up groceries for them this morning--before they could ask me for anything--and volunteered to give them a ride home--again, before they could ask. Then I asked if I could come to the man's house after church for a cup of coffee, knowing that his house was in a very poor state and that he had little, if anything to offer me. He agreed, and I paid him a visit.

How wonderful it was! He is in a desperate situation, and it is true that his house is literally falling down around his ears. It is true that his wife died last year, and that he does not have much work because no one is hiring people to install new gutters at this time of year. It is true that they have almost nothing, and that they are using the second hand clothes they recently received. But it is also true that until he and his twelve-year-old daughter (who is sick and does not go to school) moved to this area, he went to church for eight years straight, never missing a Sunday! He gave up alcohol a long time again, and he trusts the Lord to provide.

I asked about his wife, and they showed me pictures. We chatted and laughed together, and then we prayed together. As we sat in their cold, fireless house, he did not offer me anything. But I was finally able to get behind the beggar to meet the man who loves Jesus, who wants to care for his daughter, and who is trying to get by best he can.

I am so glad I went. We have been praying together at church to know how to involve and help this and other families. We have several families who are coming regularly, who have enormous need, and who come from a little too far away to be very involved. Our church does not have the resources to help them much of the time, and we are trying to teach them to depend on Jesus.

So now I am killing time before I need to pick up R.'s family and take them home. Please pray for this man (G.) and his daughter (L.) Please pray for our church, as we stuggle with knowing how best to be the hands and feet, as well as mouth and heart, of our wonderful Jesus.

I bless you in His Name, in the Name of Jesus!

Save the Date!

Location: Home! (My house in the village of C., Romania.) It is nearly 8pm on the evening of February 7, 2011.

Why did I put an exclamation point behind "home"? It feels good to have a place to call home, and to be there. This has been my home since last May, even if I often stay in other places, and I am so blessed to have a space to myself. Thank You, God, for all Your blessings.

Though I finished my commuting schedule a month ago--the one that required me to spend the night in town several nights per week--I still sleep one or two nights in town on a regular basis, at my second home, J's apartment. (Please continue to pray for J., not because anything is wrong, but because we all need prayer. The Lord has used him to bless me greatly, time after time, even though I have often inconvenienced him. Thanks to your prayers, his heating system finally got fixed last week, which he will celebrate the rest of the winter, but do please continue to pray for him, that He might be blessed as much as he has been a blessing. Thanks!) It works nicely for me to stay there on Tuesday nights; that way I can participate in our small group that evening, and I am already in town Wednesday morning for my weekly visit to V., where we do our Bible Hour. Add in the fact that I find myself traveling sometimes, and you can understand why it feels so nice to have a quiet evening at home in the village. This weekend was fairly "chill" as far as my agenda was concerned, but it included a lot of unexpected travel. At the last minute, I made plans to visit some friends in Brasov with M., meeting her there after a course she finished on Saturday afternoon. On my way, I stopped in the village of A. to visit my buddy I. Unfortunately, I did not get to visit with him very long during that short visit, because he also had some other plans. However, I got to spend the majority of that day with my French friend, J., who is I.'s brother-in-law. J. and E. are back from several months in the States (he was the one I was covering for last fall on the child evangelism team), and we had a lot of important things to discuss. He is also one of my favorite people to pray with, and we made sure to pray together.

After that relaxed time in A., I hopped on a second train and met M. in Brasov, where we went to meet her friends. I especially enjoyed playing with their little baby. She is less than two, and though my Romanian is better than hers, her German is better than mine, so I was able to use her kiddie books to learn a few words, too. We had a good time with them, and I especially enjoyed taking a walk downtown Brasov with them. I had been there before a couple of times, but it was fun watching the baby chase the pigeons in the square.

So, except for teaching this morning (we have a French test tomorrow!), this has been a quiet day at home. I just finished some laundry after dinner, having spent a good portion of the afternoon . . . writing! It is such a joy to be writing! I do not know if what I am writing is good or not, but at the moment, I do not care. I am one step closer to some of my dreams just by being a writer, and since I am writing, I am a writer now! The more I write, the better I will get, and the odds are that something I write will be worth reading! I have had to be very intentional about sitting down to write, because I found that my habit was to try to get everything done first (like laundry, cooking, tidying up, emails, etc.) and then to write when I got done. However, that meant it was always late before I had a chance to write, and I was usually tired by then. Now that I have made it a priority, it works! Please pray for me in this, that I would prioritize my time in a godly way, being a good steward of it, and please pray that I would only write what the Lord gives me to write. He will direct my paths!


I do have a priority that is greater than writing, and that is spending time with my Jesus. Outside of teaching, that is how I spent the majority of my morning: in prayer and Bible study. Some people think I am a missionary, simply because I moved to a foreign land and am involved in ministy. Those folks might be okay with the idea of me spending time in prayer. However, I think there are a lot of people who wander what I do, thinking I am squandering my youth chasing adventures and not working. It is those kind of thoughts I have to battle when I set aside time for prayer. The truth is that it does not matter what people think: there is no better way to spend my time than in prayer and Bible study with my Jesus.

I have a question for you. Is your time with Jesus like my writing time was? I mean, do you try to get everything done that needs to be done, and then, by the end of the day, you might manage to find a few minutes of time to open your Bible or to recite a bedtime prayer through your fatigue? Or is it a priority? Do you schedule things around your time with Jesus, or do squeeze it into blank spots in your agenda?

It helps me to think of it as a wedding--not just any wedding, but my wedding. I do not know if or when I will get married, for that is all in God's hands. However, I imagine that should I get married, there would be very little that would be able to prevent me from making it to that wedding. If I am marrying the girl of my dreams, no storm, no catastrophe, no unexpected guest, no car problem, no attack, no challenge of any kind would keep me from getting there. And when I do arrive, and I am saying my vows or listening to hers, I would not answer my phone even if it is the president of a nation or a pope or a famous person of some sort. I would not run out halfway through to grab a burger, nor would I try multi-tasking, cooking lunch or trimming my fingernails for example, while I am at the altar tying the knot. Would you?

Think of your wedding, or some other extremely important appointment with someone you care about, someone you cherish. What would you allow to keep you from that date? What would you allow you to distract you from that time, or to cut it short?

For me, that is prayer time. I have made it a priority in my life, and even a phone call from a beautiful girl can wait if I am face to face with my Savior, the Jesus who died on a cross to set me eternally free.
Maybe you think I am slacking when I spend a whole morning in prayer instead of going out to "put my hand to the plow," but I have learned that every moment of my life is more productive through prayer than it is through my own strength. I would like to challenge you to set a date like that with Jesus. A date that you would not interrupt even if your friend in Romania called you. A date that you would keep everyday, even if it meant sometimes rearranging the rest of your schedule. A date that would convey to your Lord just how much you really love Him, that nothing else on the face of this earth is more important to you than Him.

I am praying that you will do that. Valentine's Day is coming up in America: who is your First Love?

If I may borrow an idea from Francis Chan, matched with a photo I took this weekend: Is this what your walk with your Abba, your Father, your God looks like? I hope so!

Meanwhile, thank you for your prayers for your friend in Romania. He is happy and healthy, and making some important decisions about the coming months. He has the responsibility and privilege of driving his friend's Dacia for the month, and of dating a beautiful Romanian Saxon gal from Sighisoara. He is investing in the life of a fifteen-year-old boy in the village of C., and he is preaching in the village of V. while learning wisdom from his choir director/mentor who leads and translates for him there. Most importantly, he is growing in faith and the Word as he walks with Jesus. He is honored that you pray for him, and that one of the churches in Indianapolis recently took a moment to present information about his life in Romania. Thanks for your prayers, thanks for your love, and thanks for reading this blog.

I bless you in the Name of our First Love, Jesus!

In Church, In Love

Location: Happy February (today's the 1st) from my little house in C., Romania

Before long I will drive my Dacia into town. No, it is not mine, it is R.'s; he had to leave town again and left it in my care again for the month. It is a blessing to have wheels, though it is even better to have him around. Please pray for him, and especially for his family while he is away. Our men's group will not be the same without him, either, and G. is also out of town this week.

Nonetheless, I am looking forward to men's group on Thursday; again last week it was a huge blessing! The Lord knew I needed something like that in my life. In fact, I have things each day of the week that I look forward to now . . . After Thursday comes Friday, my last day of language lessons for the week, often meaning my time is freer during the weekend. Saturday is my Sabbath day when I have no weekly plans, especially in the morning (and you will recall that the morning is my favorite time of day!). Sunday brings the opportunity to gather with people I love to worship our great God together. Monday represents the return to village life, a day when I can get caught up on things that need to be done, and if D. has done his homework all week, we watch a movie on Monday as a reward. Tuesday brings with it our young adult small group, and Wednesday is the day I head into the village of V. and help teach a Bible Hour there. Life is good, because God is so good, and so generous with His blessings!

Naturally, many of these days dawn on frustrations that, like weeds, need to be pulled up. But we can expect that in this life on a sin-cursed Earth, groaning until it is restored by our Creator. For instance, Sunday morning was extremely frustrating for me, and it was everything I could do to hold myself together. I wanted to fall apart, to surrender myself into God's arms and cry or sleep or sit quietly, but I could not for a variety of reasons. I had to chauffer many people to and from church, but I nearly went home in between, just wanting to isolate myself in my misery.

Do you know why I did not? Everything inside of me screamed to retreat, nurse my wounds, and recover in a peaceful place. Had I done that, though, the devil would have won that battle. Do you realize that? Do you recognize what a privilege it is and how important it is to gather with brothers and sisters in Christ to worship together? Even if you church is not perfect? Even if your frustrations are coming from your church! I remind you that the devil wants to isolate us. It is not a sin to not go to church . . . but it is unwise. When we do not fellowship with other believers, we give them no opportunity to encourage us. When we do not gather in worship with other believers, we short-change God, because we fail to bring Him blessings through corporate praise and devotion. When we do not gather as the Body of Christ, we avoid the very blessings we are praying for, the very help we are seeking, the very protection we need! So on Sunday, I went to church to scorn the devil.

It will not surprise you that the Lord blessed me. I did not enjoy service, I sat in the back and the whole time I did not want to be there. Yet because of that, I was able to pray more deeply from my heart when I was suddenly called to lead the congregation in prayer. And then the Lord blessed me through the attitude of a visiting friend who usually attends another church, one who came because another obligation had made her miss her own worship service, but her desire for Christian fellowship pushed her to come to another church to find it.

Do you ever want to go to church so badly that you will do everything in your power to get there? Or this: do you only obey God and resist the devil when you feel well, or even when your emotions assail you and your body threatens to shut down? God is always our God. Do you appreciate that fact? Do you show Him your appreciation? "Blessed is the man who perseveres under trial, . . . (James 1:12).
While I am preaching from the Word that God has been pouring into my heart (James 1:25), I want to say something about romance.

Some of you may know, and others of you may be shocked to learn that I am dating a beautiful young lady here in Sighisoara. She is a great blessing to me, and I pray that the Lord's will may be done in our friendship, as well as in every other aspect of each of our lives. We are leaving everything in His hands.

Meanwhile, we like to hold hands. Of course, people notice when we hold hands, and we smiled when we spent some time with the teenage girl who lives across the street from me. As soon as she got home, we learned that she ran to call her best friend, another teenager in our Gospel choir, to tell her the exciting news about M. and J. You see, everyone likes romance, or, more accurately, everyone likes someone else's romance.

Why?

Because watching a young couple with dreamy eyes and silly smiles is like watching a movie. Their happiness is contagious, and their optimism brings hope to veteran couples whose marriages have lost some of their fire, and to unmarried singles who are dreaming of their own true love! It gives gossips something to talk about, gamers something to bet on, and poets fodder for their rhymes.

Now you know as well as I do that so much of what we call "love" turns out to be fleeting infatuation, and that "true love" is not as magical as it appears to the bystander. True love is hard work! True love is a decision that involves commitment, time, and effort. It requires grace, grace, and grace, plus forgiveness. It needs more time to listen than to talk, more time to understand than to analyze, and more time to be than to do. True love is build upon Jesus Christ as the cornerstone, but the rest of the bricks in the walls are conflicts that were defeated and covered over by mortor and plaster of forgiveness and grace.

That is us, Church. Is that what our Romance looks like?

I want us as the Church to be so in love with Jesus that everyone is talking about it--that everyone is excited about it! I want the gossips and the games and the bystanders to be so awestruck by the relationship they see us in, that they forget all of their whining and scheming and criticizing and demoralizing. I want to feel like I am walking on clouds because I am constantly receiving reminders from my Lord that He loves me, and I want to hold hands with Him as I walk through the cold and darkness or dance in the sun. I want our relationship with Jesus to give hope to those who have never allowed themselves to fall in love with Him, and to revive the fire of those who are barely hanging on to the faith they once had.

Certainly, on the inside, there will still be conflicts and tension in the church. But God's grace is sufficient to cover them, and if we set them on the cornerstone of Christ, they will become even stronger walls, cemented together by grace, showing beautiful mercy and lovingkindness to all who pass by or come in.

In America, it is nearly Valentine's Day. How about it. Would you be willing to fall in love with Jesus again? Or for the first time? Forever? He is waiting at your door with a bouquet of blessings--please do not keep Him waiting!

Speaking of waiting, I should get ready to head to town. However, I have been making a conscious effort to set writing as one of my highest priorities, because otherwise this passion of mine never finds issue. Please pray for me as I write. I want to write only what God puts in my heart, only for His glory. I trust Him to make plans for me that will organize the more mundane parts of my "to do" list, and that will also give release to the gifts and godly desires He has planted in me.

Thank you for your prayers; I am praying for You, too. I am delighted to watch your romance with Jesus unfold!

Recognizing a Man of God

(Below this, I just posted photos and an update called "A Free Lunch." Enjoy your meal! But I also wanted to share with you a little bit of what God has been teaching me about being a man of God. Our men's group has been talking about this, and my goal for a long while has been to be a man of God--not more, not less. Here is an excerpt from my prayer journal, as well as some research I did for our men's group. I pray that it blesses and challenges you, too! By the way, a friend of mine took this photo. Pretty amazing how beautiful a simple light in the sidewalk can look, huh? May, we, Christians, also be beautiful as the light of Christ shines from us, even when we are tread upon or cold and covered in snow!)

Here is what I wrote in a prayer before I did some Bible research:

"If I understand correctly, Abba, a godly man is one who no longer lives his own life, for his life has been crucified with Christ, and Christ's life lives in him. He is a man of integrity, living above reproach. He is humble and gentle, led by Your Spirit. He walks in the authority of Your Word, speaks with wisdom, and listens with patience. The fruits of the Spirit are manifest in him, and he encourages and edifies the people around him. He is righteous and holy; he disciplines in love but does not condemn. He exhorts with grace, using his spiritual gifts for the good of the Body of Christ. He thinks of others as better than himself, but it is the LORD who is the center of his thoughts and life. He resists the Enemy and temptation, and he blesses the people he meets. He does not envy or boast, but he is kind. He keeps no record of wrongs, but always trusts, always hopes, always protects. He cares for widows and orphans, and prays according to Your will. His life reflects Your glory; he lives in You."

Then I did some Bible research, and here are some lists I made about a godly man:

1 Timothy 3 suggests that a godly man is...
living above reproach, tested and proven blameless
the husband of one wife
temperate
sensible
respectable hospitable
an apt teacher
not a drunkard, nor indulging in much wine
not violent, but gentle
not quarrelsome
not a lover of money, nor greedy
an effective head of his household
known to have a good reputation among non-Christians
serious
not double-tongued
clinging to the mystery of faith with a clear conscience
prayerful (1 Timothy 2:8)

Titus 2 suggests that a godly man is...
prudent
sound in faith, in lvoe, and in endurance
self-controlled
a model of good works
teaches with integrity, gravity, and sound speech that cannot be censured
submissive to his authorities
giving satisfaction
not talking back
not pilfering
showing complete and perfect fidelity
an ornament to the doctrine of God

1 Corinthians 13 suggests that a godly man is...
patient
kind
not envious or boastful
not arrogant or rude
not insisting on his own way
not irritable or resentful
not rejoicing in wrongdoing, but in truth
bearing all things
believing all things
hoping all things
enduring all things
full of faith, hope, and love

And finally, Exodus 34:6 lists some of the qualities of God that a godly man must exhibit. He is...
merciful
gracious
slow to anger
abounding in steadfast love
abounding in faithfulness
keeping steadfast love for thousands
forgiving iniquity, transgression, and sin
not clearing the guilty

Wow, just typing this challenges me, and makes me want to grow! I want to humble myself more so that God pours more of Him into me, making me turn out more like Him!

May you and I both allow God to make us into men (and women) of God!

A Free Lunch

Location: J's Apartment, 11:00am on the 22nd of January, Sighisoara, Romania

Here is an inside look at a Romanian school. These photos are from our Christmas outreach, one of the wildest programs we did! We had permission to use a school classroom, but upon our arrival, the principal told me NO children would come. As you can see, we had to barricade the hallway until we were ready in the classroom, and then we did the entire program standing on tables in the middle of the crowd! It was the closest to stardom I will ever feel, but it was fun!


I chose these pictures because again on Thursday of this week I was in Romanian school in the Hunedoara region of Romania. You may remember that I have been a guest in their English classes a couple of other times, and we had a blast again as I participated in 8 hours of English instruction! I was asked if I was an actor, if I had thought about being a teacher, and if all teachers in America "play" with their students! I taught them songs and jokes and expressions, like "Golly!" from Gomer Pyle, USMC. I also taught some history and geography and math--you name it, we did it! It was a good day.

In fact, my whole visit to Hunedoara was nice. I got to visit with the three good friends that I particularly wanted to see, and I also met and stayed with an American missionary family there. I was shown great hospitality everywhere I went, and the Lord provided for all of my needs.

As will not surprise you, I had a bit of an adventure coming home, because there are few direct routes between Hunedoara and Sighisoara. So I rode in a car with a couple of my friends how were going to leave me in a train station halfway; from there I could catch a train sooner to Sighisoara. However, somehow we missed my stop, and I ended up going all the way to Cluj-Napoca with them, which is not at all on my way home--it is northwest of Sighisoara, where Hunedoara is southwest! The blessing was that I got to see two friends in Cluj whom I had not seen in a long while, including a Scottish friend, G., I had met last summer when I helped with their camp.

All is well that ends well! I arrived "home" to Sighisoara last night, and had a nice visit with J. I am very happy, because I am so blessed. I have particularly been counting my blessings because of some of the frustrations that assail me ("us" is more correct, because my friends and collegues are included, too). I am blessed to be healthy again, but sorry to see several of my friends battling illness and stress. I am blessed to have gracious hosts and places to stay, but J.'s heat and hot-water is not working properly, leaving us aware of the chill. I am blessed to have R.'s car in my possession for the week, but I have to get it running again today to pick up his family tomorrow. I am blessed to have the Bible as my source of wisdom (I read the book of Proverbs twice in the past few days), but I have a lot of decisions to make. I was thinking last night how life would certainly be easier if I was still living in my apartment in Indianapolis, or even in my bedroom at my parents' house.

But you know me! I do not make choices based on what is "easy," I do not counsel you to do so, either! There is little value in an easy life.

Let me tell you what I mean. I have been particularly encouraged lately by two of my friends here, one Romanian and one American.

The other day, my American friend became a bit exasperated when I replied to his query about my popcorn preferences by telling him it did not matter to me; I do not really like popcorn.

He said, "You don't like popcorn, you don't like movies, you don't like parties...!? You don't like anything!"

I calmly replied that he was exaggerating, that plenty of my likes were things that he does not like. Before I could give examples, though, he shot back, "What do you mean? I like to pray, too. I like Jesus. I like to read the Bible!"

That stopped me in my tracks. What a compliment! Some of my friends have joked about the only way to get me to a social gathering is to invite me to a "prayer meeting." But do you know what I told me friend? I said, "I could die happy right now. What more could I hope for than for people to know me as someone who loves to pray, who loves to read the Bible, and who loves Jesus?"

That is my desire--that my identity be wrapped up in the fact that Jesus is my Lord.

But it gets better. I found out last night that this friend called me a "saint," in the same sentence as he identified our humble and gentle pastor as a saint, too. I have a humble question for you. Would your friends describe you as a saint?

What an honor it is for me to hear that my friends are seeing Jesus in me, rather than just seeing me. The truth is that if you have surrendered your life to Christ, letting the Spirit of Jesus live in and through you, than you are a saint. You were a sinner, but now you are a saint. In other words, the holy life of the Most High God is living through you, to His glory. A sinner sins, and a saint is being sanctified by the Holy Spirit, everyday. The Bible calls us "saints," we who have been redeemed by the blood of the Lamb, whose life now lives in us. I pray that the people outside the Church will look at us and see saints! I pray that your friends and family will look at you and see a saint--a son or daughter of God being made holy by the work of the LORD in you, not by your own power.

Let me tell you about another saint; her name is M., and she is my friend with whom I taught in Hunedoara on Thursday. I know many saints, but I want to tell you how this one encouraged me this week.

I already told you that the Lord provided for everything I needed this week. You probably recall that I pray every morning for Him to meet my needs; for example, each day I ask Him to provide me with my daily bread--my food for the day. On Thursday, I was not in a position to take a lunch to school, and neither did I know the plan. I left on faith, and when I met M., I found out that she had generously made me a couple of sandwiches, too. Whether we would have time to eat them or not in our busy schedule, that was another story!

Finally, between two of our classes, we pulled out the sandwiches to eat as we walked to the other building. As we entered, two small children ran up to give her big hugs, and she saw that they had no lunch with them (she told me later they come from a very poor family). She bent down and gave them my lunch! Actually, our lunch. A couple of sandwiches and some cookies. They were very happy, and started to eat them right away.

I, too, was very happy, proud to be friends with such a saint! Here she had worked hard to make sandwiches for both of us, even though she only slept ONE hour the night before and had lots of work to do for other things, and then she was bold enough to follow her heart and give away my sandwich without asking me. How I praised the LORD!

Do not worry; she had made four sandwiches, and so we still had enough to eat. But again I want to ask you--would your friends do that? Would someone who cares about you have such an enormous heart to risk disappointing you in order to give your blessing to someone in greater need of it? Would YOUbe willing to do that?

M. apologized to me, of course, but I hope she already new that there was no reason to apologize, and that I was not at all sorry she had done it. I know she is far from perfect, but I also see how beautifully the Lord reflects His mercy from this girl. There was another time in the past when a drunk street kid was getting beat up by other kids in the middle of the night; I will never forget M.'s eyes as we marched across the street to break things up, not knowing what we were getting ourselves into. Do you know why I am so thrilled to have friends like that?

Because that is the kind of friend that Jesus is, and they remind me of Him!

Jesus marches into the fray with a look of such determined love that wickness flees with a yelp. He gives boldly and abundantly to people in need, blessing them beyond their need, for their joy and His glory. He looks at His imperfect, human friends (us!), and instead of seeing our flaws, He calls us saints, because He sees His Spirit at work in us.

I have a challenge for you this week:

1., if you have never invited the Spirit of God to enter you and live His holy life through you, do it! He will make you holy, for the glory of your Father, God!

2., if the Spirit lives in you already, ask Him to make you so clearly a saint that your friends see you as a saint, that they see Jesus in you more than they see you!

Sinners, I pray that soon you will accept the grace of Jesus, so that you will experience the freedom and boldness of His great love for you. Saints, I pray that you, first of all, and then all of the world around you, will see that you are not your own, but that you are being made holy by the Living God at work in you! I bless you in the Name of Jesus the Christ!