Just a quickie to let you know that as a blogger, I make a great plumber! I haven't stopped pastoring or helping refugees, it's just that doing those two things has cut way back on the time I have to keep the old blog updated.
It's obvious that blogging hasn't had the priority in my life and in my time management that it could or even should have. But for now, I'm convinced that immersing myself in the lives of the folks that I'm here to serve face to face must take precedence.
As the governor of California once said in a previous role.....I'll be back. Just not sure when.
Thanks for praying.
Tuesday, June 17, 2008
Monday, April 21, 2008
Helping more refugees... "Chin" up!
I've been spinning a number of plates the past few weeks....maximum multi-tasking, which I really do enjoy. I've gotten a number of estimates from different construction type companies for everything from re-doing the flooring to replacing plastic stained-glass type windows and going from very old wooden doors to a few hollow metal doors and some more secure wooden doors. I've driven more than 400 miles in the last two weeks, all in Phoenix, helping Karen refugees in varous ways. I could go on, but I'll spare you.
We've had two Sunday mornings at the new time and although it "feels" a little awkward, I believe it is proving to be the good move we thought it would be. For those of you that pray for what we're doing, please keep the worship aspect of the church in prayer. I REALLY need someone to not only lead worship, but to also lead us from doing all hymns read directly out of hymnals, to more contemporary worship using a projector and worship software. I've been working with a few Karen young guys, teaching them songs and so forth, but it just isn't my gift and thus consumes way too much time for me and creates way too much frustration.
This past Sunday a different group of refugees from Burma began using our facility and I believe eventually will become part of our church. The Chin people are also an ethnic minority group that have a rich Christian heritage. They too are on the list for extermination by the government of Burma, (Myanmar.) But, different than the Karen, the majority of them fled south and were living in refugee camps in Malaysia before being re-settled in America. As of now, there are a total of about 70 Chin people living in Phoenix now, and the majority of them are now meeting at our facility. The Lord has blessed them with a pastor of their own too, just like the Karen. Their language is completely different than Karen, but they can communicate with each other because both groups speak Burmese fairly well and as both groups learn English, that will also provide a greater ability for them to communicate with each other.
We've had two Sunday mornings at the new time and although it "feels" a little awkward, I believe it is proving to be the good move we thought it would be. For those of you that pray for what we're doing, please keep the worship aspect of the church in prayer. I REALLY need someone to not only lead worship, but to also lead us from doing all hymns read directly out of hymnals, to more contemporary worship using a projector and worship software. I've been working with a few Karen young guys, teaching them songs and so forth, but it just isn't my gift and thus consumes way too much time for me and creates way too much frustration.
This past Sunday a different group of refugees from Burma began using our facility and I believe eventually will become part of our church. The Chin people are also an ethnic minority group that have a rich Christian heritage. They too are on the list for extermination by the government of Burma, (Myanmar.) But, different than the Karen, the majority of them fled south and were living in refugee camps in Malaysia before being re-settled in America. As of now, there are a total of about 70 Chin people living in Phoenix now, and the majority of them are now meeting at our facility. The Lord has blessed them with a pastor of their own too, just like the Karen. Their language is completely different than Karen, but they can communicate with each other because both groups speak Burmese fairly well and as both groups learn English, that will also provide a greater ability for them to communicate with each other.
Monday, March 31, 2008
Senior pastoring again..and the changes involved
Lots has happened since my last post. I was installed as the senior pastor of the church and stepped into the many responsibilities that entails, not the least of which is teaching Sunday morning services again week in and week out, for the first time in more than 5 years. I LOVE IT!
We will be making some radical changes in the next few months in order to begin fleshing out the vision the Lord has given us. Beginning Sunday, April 12, the English service will move from 11:00 a.m. to 9:00 a.m. and thus, the Karen service will now be held at 11:00 a.m. There will also be a change in the format of the Sunday morning service to make it a little more contemporary and by God's grace, more appealing to a younger group of people.
We'll also be changing the name of the church from West Dunlap Baptist Church to Cross-Connection International Fellowship. The name is really an expression of our vision to have a multi-cultural, multi-generational church and our recognition that true unity from diversity can only come by connecting through the Cross and as a result of the ultimate Connection with our Creator that is available through what Jesus has done on the Cross.
This past Sunday, March 30, I had the opportunity to teach the Sunday morning service at Calvary Chapel North Phoenix. A 20 person Karen choir came with me and blessed the congregation with their unique and God-honoring style of worship. If you'd like to hear the message I did about the Karen based on Eccl. 3:11, you can check it out at: http://www.calvarynorth.org/ and then click on RECENT SERMONS.
Lots going on. More later.
We will be making some radical changes in the next few months in order to begin fleshing out the vision the Lord has given us. Beginning Sunday, April 12, the English service will move from 11:00 a.m. to 9:00 a.m. and thus, the Karen service will now be held at 11:00 a.m. There will also be a change in the format of the Sunday morning service to make it a little more contemporary and by God's grace, more appealing to a younger group of people.
We'll also be changing the name of the church from West Dunlap Baptist Church to Cross-Connection International Fellowship. The name is really an expression of our vision to have a multi-cultural, multi-generational church and our recognition that true unity from diversity can only come by connecting through the Cross and as a result of the ultimate Connection with our Creator that is available through what Jesus has done on the Cross.
This past Sunday, March 30, I had the opportunity to teach the Sunday morning service at Calvary Chapel North Phoenix. A 20 person Karen choir came with me and blessed the congregation with their unique and God-honoring style of worship. If you'd like to hear the message I did about the Karen based on Eccl. 3:11, you can check it out at: http://www.calvarynorth.org/ and then click on RECENT SERMONS.
Lots going on. More later.
Wednesday, February 27, 2008
4 out of 25...an accurate picture?
I've received approximately 25 phone calls in response to the article that appeared in the paper on Monday. Of those, 4, (approximately 15 percent of the calls,) have been venomous, displaying ethno-centrism at it's self-centered finest. I'm thinking that's probably a fairly accurate picture of the percentage of people that live in the U.S. and who for whatever reason, just can't see any reason why anybody from another country should ever be permitted to come and start a new life in America, (which is what almost everyone of THEIR ancestors did!)
But hey, God is SOVEREIGN, and based on what I know about Him and His love for all people, I can't help but see that those from other countries that end up living in our neighborhoods are surely another one of His methods of gathering some from every tribe, tongue, people, and nation, to Himself. As it becomes more and more challenging for outsiders to get in to many countries to live, work, serve, and tell about Jesus, He has seen fit to bring them right into our local communities. Another incredible display of His glory and goodness. What an awesome God we serve.....eh?
I pray the Lord gives His people the ability to see things through a kingdom of God perspective first and foremost, not an American perspective, as important as some think that is.
Let's keep our eyes not only on Him, but on the end-game scenario recorded in Rev. 5:9 and 7:9, which is where all of human history is headed.
But hey, God is SOVEREIGN, and based on what I know about Him and His love for all people, I can't help but see that those from other countries that end up living in our neighborhoods are surely another one of His methods of gathering some from every tribe, tongue, people, and nation, to Himself. As it becomes more and more challenging for outsiders to get in to many countries to live, work, serve, and tell about Jesus, He has seen fit to bring them right into our local communities. Another incredible display of His glory and goodness. What an awesome God we serve.....eh?
I pray the Lord gives His people the ability to see things through a kingdom of God perspective first and foremost, not an American perspective, as important as some think that is.
Let's keep our eyes not only on Him, but on the end-game scenario recorded in Rev. 5:9 and 7:9, which is where all of human history is headed.
Monday, February 25, 2008
Who'd a thunk it? Piggybacking on the new Rambo movie
When I saw the new Rambo movie a few weeks ago, I was so stirred by the fairly accurate way the movie portrays the treatment of the Karen people by the Myanmar, (Burma) military, that I wanted to stand at the end of the movie and yell to the crowd as they departed that many of the suffering people depicted in the movie now live here in Phoenix as refugees. I was ready to do it, but I forgot that at the end of movies these days, the volume of the music is increased as the credits roll...for more than 10 minutes!
So, I thought I'd take a shot in the dark and call the Arizona Republic, the largest newspaper in the state, and tell them that their readers might be interested in knowing about the people that are referenced in the new Rambo movie...especially since about 500 of them are now living in Pheonix as refugees.
Surprise, surprise, they thought it was a great idea and so last week, Pastor Ramey, Pastor Tha Hgay, Say Pwei, Htoo Wei, and myself were interviewed by a reporter from the paper and a photographer came and shot pictures during the Sunday morning service.
The story came out in today's paper, (Monday, February 25, 2008.) Although it is inaccurate in a few instances and includes a statement from me that I didn't make, the main point comes across. And my phone has been ringing off the hook.
If you'd like to see it, here's the link:
http://www.azcentral.com/arizonarepublic/local/articles/0225refugee0225.html
Finally, believe it or not, a few hours ago I answered a call from an obviously older woman who started out by asking me the difference between an illegal immigrant and a refugee. I explained the difference quite thoroughly, and then she proceeded to tell me there's no difference and that these are the kind of people who are ruining America, and I'm helping them do so. Being the feisty sort that I am, I asked her if she was descended from the American Indians. She said no, that her ancestors were from England and of course, "that's completely different". I then told her as a Christian, I am called to help the poor and the oppressed and before I could finish the point I was going to make, she yelled an expletive in the phone--at which point I said "goodbye" and hung up.
Then, about 45 minutes later, another call came in that I couldn't answer because I was out helping a refugee with some governmental things. On this one, a woman who sounded like she was in her 40's, said that she saw the article and that she thinks it's wrong for me to help them, that if I had kids, she hoped my kids would be adversely affected by the gangs that this group of people would produce, and that my motive really was to just use these people to raise money for the church! She concluded by saying that I needed to get a "real" job and stop using helping people as an excuse to not work.
YIKES--these responses were shocking, but I guess not surprising.
Please keep all of this in prayer, especially the continued need for the Karen to learn English, find jobs, and hopefully have no contact with the kind of people I mentioned above.
So, I thought I'd take a shot in the dark and call the Arizona Republic, the largest newspaper in the state, and tell them that their readers might be interested in knowing about the people that are referenced in the new Rambo movie...especially since about 500 of them are now living in Pheonix as refugees.
Surprise, surprise, they thought it was a great idea and so last week, Pastor Ramey, Pastor Tha Hgay, Say Pwei, Htoo Wei, and myself were interviewed by a reporter from the paper and a photographer came and shot pictures during the Sunday morning service.
The story came out in today's paper, (Monday, February 25, 2008.) Although it is inaccurate in a few instances and includes a statement from me that I didn't make, the main point comes across. And my phone has been ringing off the hook.
If you'd like to see it, here's the link:
http://www.azcentral.com/arizonarepublic/local/articles/0225refugee0225.html
Finally, believe it or not, a few hours ago I answered a call from an obviously older woman who started out by asking me the difference between an illegal immigrant and a refugee. I explained the difference quite thoroughly, and then she proceeded to tell me there's no difference and that these are the kind of people who are ruining America, and I'm helping them do so. Being the feisty sort that I am, I asked her if she was descended from the American Indians. She said no, that her ancestors were from England and of course, "that's completely different". I then told her as a Christian, I am called to help the poor and the oppressed and before I could finish the point I was going to make, she yelled an expletive in the phone--at which point I said "goodbye" and hung up.
Then, about 45 minutes later, another call came in that I couldn't answer because I was out helping a refugee with some governmental things. On this one, a woman who sounded like she was in her 40's, said that she saw the article and that she thinks it's wrong for me to help them, that if I had kids, she hoped my kids would be adversely affected by the gangs that this group of people would produce, and that my motive really was to just use these people to raise money for the church! She concluded by saying that I needed to get a "real" job and stop using helping people as an excuse to not work.
YIKES--these responses were shocking, but I guess not surprising.
Please keep all of this in prayer, especially the continued need for the Karen to learn English, find jobs, and hopefully have no contact with the kind of people I mentioned above.
Wednesday, February 20, 2008
Refugee 101....almost complete
I mentioned a few weeks and posts ago that a "pilgrim-mentality" produced by the worldview of a pilgrim was essential for effectiveness in ministry to the refugee community. Well, it's that mentality, produced by that worldview, that has caused me to not keep this blog as updated as I'd like to.
One of the many practical consequences of living with a pilgrim's worldview is the ability to priortize time and expend energy in an effort to accomplish that which is really essential--for the glory of God and the true good of other people.
I'll get a bit deeper in to this very soon, but for now, please know that refugee ministry 101 is nearing the end. Because of an incredible amount of time, meetings, thought, and driving, I'm feeling like I have a fairly good grasp of the bigger picture in this unique ministry.
One of the many practical consequences of living with a pilgrim's worldview is the ability to priortize time and expend energy in an effort to accomplish that which is really essential--for the glory of God and the true good of other people.
I'll get a bit deeper in to this very soon, but for now, please know that refugee ministry 101 is nearing the end. Because of an incredible amount of time, meetings, thought, and driving, I'm feeling like I have a fairly good grasp of the bigger picture in this unique ministry.
Friday, January 11, 2008
Refugee ministry's "domino" reality
The plunge into refugee ministry in the good ole U.S. of A. has been interesting. I already knew, at least intellectually, that they were facing some incredible challenges, but now that we're in the midst of it, the reality of what they face daily has been driven from my head down into my heart and soul. When a refugee encounters an urgent problem it doesn't just effect them indivually or their immediate family. A "domino effect" is initiated that hinges on the willingness of others, sometimes many others, who are open to being inconvenienced.
Here's one example: Yesterday, while talking with Pastor Ramey about the vision for the church and some planning issues, we interrupted by a phone call. A young woman named Eh Wa was on the phone and it was obvious she was very upset and had been crying. In her broken English, she told Pastor Ramey that her 22 year old brother Daniel, (many of the Karen have been assigned English names for the ease of the non-Karen congregation members,) had been having very severe epileptic seizures, was vomiting regularly, was bleeding from his tongue after biting it, and had a headache so bad he was incredibly lethargic. She was in a panic, neither she nor Daniel, nor her Karen neighbors drive or have a car, and so we stopped what we doing and drove over to the apartment where they live.
We knew Daniel needed medical attention immediately, but which hospital should we take him to? Which hospital takes the type of insurance that refugees have? We had Eh Wa call his social worker to find out, and as you can imagine, that wasn't a quick or easy conversation. We decided to take him to Phoenix Baptist hospital, and knowing that he wouldn't be able to answer the questions the doctors would ask and Eh Wa's English wouldn't be sufficient to translate, we had to call Tansy to see if she could come and help translate. Well, she needed to pick up her daughter from pre-school about 45 minutes after we were scheduled to meet her at the hospital, and that was across town. So, her husband had to leave work around 11:00 a.m. to go and pick up her daughter so she could meet us at the hospital.
It's a much longer story, but suffice it to say that after a brain scan and blood tests, it was determined that Daniel didn't have enough of the prescribed medicine in his blood--the medicine that keeps the seizures at a minimum. Turns out that he had put medicine he had recieved in the refugee camp in Thailand into an empty prescription bottle from the medicine he had been given here. And somehow, he hadn't ended up taking the right medicine, and thus the huge seizures had come upon him. He should be fine now that we know what the cause was, but it would be great if you could keep him in prayer.
This episode, along with a few others, has convinced me again that I need to get serious about learning the language. With all that has gone on with the move and getting established, I have put language study on the back burner and it's clear it needs to be moved to the front. Additionally, I need to move more intentionally in getting English as Second Language opportunities set up for the Karen. I'd very much appreciate prayer for these two things--my learning Karen and them learning English.
Here's one example: Yesterday, while talking with Pastor Ramey about the vision for the church and some planning issues, we interrupted by a phone call. A young woman named Eh Wa was on the phone and it was obvious she was very upset and had been crying. In her broken English, she told Pastor Ramey that her 22 year old brother Daniel, (many of the Karen have been assigned English names for the ease of the non-Karen congregation members,) had been having very severe epileptic seizures, was vomiting regularly, was bleeding from his tongue after biting it, and had a headache so bad he was incredibly lethargic. She was in a panic, neither she nor Daniel, nor her Karen neighbors drive or have a car, and so we stopped what we doing and drove over to the apartment where they live.
We knew Daniel needed medical attention immediately, but which hospital should we take him to? Which hospital takes the type of insurance that refugees have? We had Eh Wa call his social worker to find out, and as you can imagine, that wasn't a quick or easy conversation. We decided to take him to Phoenix Baptist hospital, and knowing that he wouldn't be able to answer the questions the doctors would ask and Eh Wa's English wouldn't be sufficient to translate, we had to call Tansy to see if she could come and help translate. Well, she needed to pick up her daughter from pre-school about 45 minutes after we were scheduled to meet her at the hospital, and that was across town. So, her husband had to leave work around 11:00 a.m. to go and pick up her daughter so she could meet us at the hospital.
It's a much longer story, but suffice it to say that after a brain scan and blood tests, it was determined that Daniel didn't have enough of the prescribed medicine in his blood--the medicine that keeps the seizures at a minimum. Turns out that he had put medicine he had recieved in the refugee camp in Thailand into an empty prescription bottle from the medicine he had been given here. And somehow, he hadn't ended up taking the right medicine, and thus the huge seizures had come upon him. He should be fine now that we know what the cause was, but it would be great if you could keep him in prayer.
This episode, along with a few others, has convinced me again that I need to get serious about learning the language. With all that has gone on with the move and getting established, I have put language study on the back burner and it's clear it needs to be moved to the front. Additionally, I need to move more intentionally in getting English as Second Language opportunities set up for the Karen. I'd very much appreciate prayer for these two things--my learning Karen and them learning English.
Monday, January 7, 2008
Pre-dawn view of Sheriff's Joe's tent city
I'm sure most of you have heard about the hard-nosed, no-nonsense law enforcer, Sheriff Joe Arpaio of Maricopa County in Arizona. Turns out we now live in his county, and so do the Karen living here in Phoenix. VERY early last Saturday morning, (3:30 a.m.), I accompanied Pastor Ramey and a Karen man who had gone awry from the law and had to surrender himself to serve 15 days in Sheriff Joe's tent city. I now know where Sheriff Joe's county jail is located, that he doesn't make anything easy for those who break the law under his jurisdiction, and that at least the few deputies we met were all-business, probably like their boss if you know what I mean.
A few hours later, Helen and I played limo drivers with our two cars in order to get a number of Karen children and teenagers to a local park for their soccer league picture day. About 45 Karen kids play in a soccer league of about 200 kids that is sponsored by a large Baptist church. Self-less servants of God go out of their way to make it possible for not only the Karen kids, but many refugees from African countries to play in this league. It was a joy to serve in this way and to see this type of ministry in action. This type of thing is CRUCIAL for refugee kids in particular, helping their acclimation to life here in America, obtaining English skills, and avoiding too much free time--where trouble is usually found.
On Sunday, I was blessed to teach at the Karen service and then the English service. I shared from Acts chapter 2 on the three foundational reasons for the existence of the local church, and the response was very positive.
And finally, we unpacked our last two boxes today and even put a couple of pictures up on the walls. And believe it or not, I've even been doing some handy-man type things and I haven't injured myself yet or done damage to the apartment--which is no small thing!
A few hours later, Helen and I played limo drivers with our two cars in order to get a number of Karen children and teenagers to a local park for their soccer league picture day. About 45 Karen kids play in a soccer league of about 200 kids that is sponsored by a large Baptist church. Self-less servants of God go out of their way to make it possible for not only the Karen kids, but many refugees from African countries to play in this league. It was a joy to serve in this way and to see this type of ministry in action. This type of thing is CRUCIAL for refugee kids in particular, helping their acclimation to life here in America, obtaining English skills, and avoiding too much free time--where trouble is usually found.
On Sunday, I was blessed to teach at the Karen service and then the English service. I shared from Acts chapter 2 on the three foundational reasons for the existence of the local church, and the response was very positive.
And finally, we unpacked our last two boxes today and even put a couple of pictures up on the walls. And believe it or not, I've even been doing some handy-man type things and I haven't injured myself yet or done damage to the apartment--which is no small thing!
Thursday, January 3, 2008
Headline: Asian street gang unloads Pastor & Wife
Today, (Thursday, Jan. 3, 2008) marks the culmination of our first week in the Phoenix area! It is definitely strange to be back in the "big city" and have so many stores, restaurants, and gas stations less than 10 minutes away, along with literally millions of people...and I absolutely LOVE IT!
We had about 10 guys help us load in Mesquite, and it took us right at one hour. When we drove into our new apartment complex here in Glendale, there were so many Karen young people hanging out waiting for us that it looked like an Asian street gang gathering. I'm fairly sure that's what many of our neighbors were thinking as they peered out their windows towards the parking lot here in the complex. Of course, that would have been what they thought until we arrived and they observed all these Asian kids joyfully unloading the Budget truck of the tall, slightly overweight, gray on the sides, goofy looking white guy and his good looking wife. There were at least 20 of them, along with Adam and Tansy, and believe it or not, we had that 24 foot truck unloaded and everything into our upstairs apartment in 45 minutes!
The reality of what we've actually done is smacking us in the face pretty much everyday as we arrange furniture and unpack boxes in this apartment that really is spacious compared to most apartments but seems so confining compared to the large home we've been living in. Everything has to be put in just the right place in order to maximize the space we have. And sometimes, much to Helen's dismay, something can't be placed where it would have the most visual appeal because to do so would be to not adequately make use of the limited space we have in the most efficient way. In contrast to our house in Mesquite, functionality in this small apartment many times must take precedence over the placement of things in the way that is most pleasing to the eye.
Finally, the Lord has impressed upon me afresh that it's time again to seriously resurrect the "Pilgrim" mentality and worldview that we had when we went to the mission field. I'll explain what I mean in my next few posts.
Thanks for praying for us...He responded to your prayers.
We had about 10 guys help us load in Mesquite, and it took us right at one hour. When we drove into our new apartment complex here in Glendale, there were so many Karen young people hanging out waiting for us that it looked like an Asian street gang gathering. I'm fairly sure that's what many of our neighbors were thinking as they peered out their windows towards the parking lot here in the complex. Of course, that would have been what they thought until we arrived and they observed all these Asian kids joyfully unloading the Budget truck of the tall, slightly overweight, gray on the sides, goofy looking white guy and his good looking wife. There were at least 20 of them, along with Adam and Tansy, and believe it or not, we had that 24 foot truck unloaded and everything into our upstairs apartment in 45 minutes!
The reality of what we've actually done is smacking us in the face pretty much everyday as we arrange furniture and unpack boxes in this apartment that really is spacious compared to most apartments but seems so confining compared to the large home we've been living in. Everything has to be put in just the right place in order to maximize the space we have. And sometimes, much to Helen's dismay, something can't be placed where it would have the most visual appeal because to do so would be to not adequately make use of the limited space we have in the most efficient way. In contrast to our house in Mesquite, functionality in this small apartment many times must take precedence over the placement of things in the way that is most pleasing to the eye.
Finally, the Lord has impressed upon me afresh that it's time again to seriously resurrect the "Pilgrim" mentality and worldview that we had when we went to the mission field. I'll explain what I mean in my next few posts.
Thanks for praying for us...He responded to your prayers.
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