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11 December 2012
08 December 2012
Our December Update Letter--click to see in HTML
Hurried Humbug!
Christmas songs lilted on the air and trees twinkled with lights. Christmas is here! Oh, wait, it began in October. I was very tempted to complain about the commercialization of Christmas and the long wind-up to the event, and about how we miss so many important moments of life by starting Christmas essentially as soon as summer ends. Convicted.
How long did God prepare mankind for Christ’s birth? Since the beginning of creation we have been told about God’s plan of redemption—look at all the prophecies! I guess complaining about Christmas coming too early is not really fair. God desires that we live every day in expectation of His coming! The caution is to ensure we are enjoying the moments of today while we look forward with eager anticipation.
It feels like our family has spent an eternity planning and preparing for life. We have been nearly a whole year in this deputation process. Some days it feels like forever with our move nowhere in sight, while others feel like the year has flown by. As we have been able to see more extended family over the holidays it seems to come in a rush. We are marking all of the “lasts” for a while and really striving to live each moment here fully, not always planning and wishing and thinking about arriving in Bolivia.
Our much anticipated arrival is soon we hope, but it doesn’t end there! We continue to look to Jesus’ example in this aspect as well. The story of Christ doesn’t end with His arrival and ours won’t end there either. Jesus spent time learning the language and culture of Israel well before beginning His official “ministry.” That is what we plan to do as well—language and culture acquisition are critical to our effectiveness. Wise men from far away lands came to visit Jesus during this time, so hint, hint, you can come visit us too. (You don’t have to bring frankincense, but some baking soda would be appreciated!)
Enjoy the preparations as much as the event! The decorations and arrangements don’t have to be perfect (Jesus wasn’t a planned c-section at the best hospital in town), so enjoy time with people celebrating relationships more than perfect decorations and meals.
Pray with us that this Christmas will bring opportunity for all of us to share the joy of Christ with others.
We are progressing steadily in our budget raising process—please pray for our patience in these preparations. We want each meeting with people to bless them as well as us and the Bolivians. Pray about partnering with us on a regular basis. Pray too for our family as we begin our goodbyes over the next few months.
We wish you a joyous Christmas!
Hurried Humbug!Christmas songs lilted on the air and trees twinkled with lights. Christmas is here! Oh, wait, it began in October. I was very tempted to complain about the commercialization of Christmas and the long wind-up to the event, and about how we miss so many important moments of life by starting Christmas essentially as soon as summer ends. Convicted.
How long did God prepare mankind for Christ’s birth? Since the beginning of creation we have been told about God’s plan of redemption—look at all the prophecies! I guess complaining about Christmas coming too early is not really fair. God desires that we live every day in expectation of His coming! The caution is to ensure we are enjoying the moments of today while we look forward with eager anticipation.
It feels like our family has spent an eternity planning and preparing for life. We have been nearly a whole year in this deputation process. Some days it feels like forever with our move nowhere in sight, while others feel like the year has flown by. As we have been able to see more extended family over the holidays it seems to come in a rush. We are marking all of the “lasts” for a while and really striving to live each moment here fully, not always planning and wishing and thinking about arriving in Bolivia.
Our much anticipated arrival is soon we hope, but it doesn’t end there! We continue to look to Jesus’ example in this aspect as well. The story of Christ doesn’t end with His arrival and ours won’t end there either. Jesus spent time learning the language and culture of Israel well before beginning His official “ministry.” That is what we plan to do as well—language and culture acquisition are critical to our effectiveness. Wise men from far away lands came to visit Jesus during this time, so hint, hint, you can come visit us too. (You don’t have to bring frankincense, but some baking soda would be appreciated!)
Enjoy the preparations as much as the event! The decorations and arrangements don’t have to be perfect (Jesus wasn’t a planned c-section at the best hospital in town), so enjoy time with people celebrating relationships more than perfect decorations and meals.
Pray with us that this Christmas will bring opportunity for all of us to share the joy of Christ with others.
We are progressing steadily in our budget raising process—please pray for our patience in these preparations. We want each meeting with people to bless them as well as us and the Bolivians. Pray about partnering with us on a regular basis. Pray too for our family as we begin our goodbyes over the next few months.
We wish you a joyous Christmas!
Caleb and friends enjoying a chilly hike
08 November 2012
Draw him in
He drew a circle that shut me out-
Heretic, rebel, a thing to flout.
But Love, and I had the wit to win:
We drew a circle that took him in!
Edwin Markham
Caleb and I have been working on poetry this week. I thought I would post about Rudyard Kipling's "If", but I figured everyone memorized that at one point. I think we will work on memorizing it next week. So, instead I found this great one by Edwin Markham.
How well do we use our wit emboldened by Love (notice the capital in the poem) to draw people in? Christ calls us to do just that! Together with Love (Christ), we do win and are able to share with people the incomprehensible joy that we have in Christ.
We are called to love one another, even if we are shut out--pray for those that have called us names (Matthew 5:11-14) and find a way to draw our circle around them.
Heretic, rebel, a thing to flout.
But Love, and I had the wit to win:
We drew a circle that took him in!
Edwin Markham
Caleb and I have been working on poetry this week. I thought I would post about Rudyard Kipling's "If", but I figured everyone memorized that at one point. I think we will work on memorizing it next week. So, instead I found this great one by Edwin Markham.
How well do we use our wit emboldened by Love (notice the capital in the poem) to draw people in? Christ calls us to do just that! Together with Love (Christ), we do win and are able to share with people the incomprehensible joy that we have in Christ.
We are called to love one another, even if we are shut out--pray for those that have called us names (Matthew 5:11-14) and find a way to draw our circle around them.
03 November 2012
Cleaning out the junk
We are nearly completely moved out of our house and in to our snug little apartment! Today we spent cleaning out the hay loft to create a "hideout" for Caleb and his buddies. After that Caleb decided he wanted to cook. We baked baguettes and made ratatouille--yum!What does this have to do with our lives and ministry? Well, it is just the next stage of our life I guess. We have cleaned out all our sentimental things and random things of life. Finally, there is the spiritual insight we have been waiting for!
What worldly baggage do we take before the throne? Have we taken the time and emotional energy to sort through it all? As we toss out, yard sale, recycle things we have clung to for years (do I really need a sweater from high school or bank statement from 1993?), I wonder how many idolatrous ideas and pointless things clutter my brain like our basement! Pray that God will help us all to pare down our lives to keep Him first in everything!
Pray for us tomorrow as we have a luncheon at our church and present our ministry needs. Also, pray for more opportunities to share our story and encourage partners.
01 October 2012
Avengers as a cultural communication model
Iron Man is the Ugly American! We have been at the Center for Intercultural Studies for 2 weeks now and boy, does it change your perspective on life. David and I watched the Avengers last night with a classmate and the whole time I kept noticing all the blunders we have learned about in class. Tony Stark may be the most noticeable and stereotypical "American" with his post-modern philosophy, loud music, and incessant movie references (to people frozen in ice or from other planets that would NOT get them). In other words, after 2 weeks of diligent work in class, I think it is time for a movie day--I'd even be willing to write a paper on it!
Actually, this class is really interesting. We live with 34 other adults and 20 kids on campus and are having a blast during our free times watching the kids play and developing relationships with other missionaries from many sending organizations. There is a lot of critical thinking homework, but it sure shows how amazing God is!
I am excited, but won't bore you with the details! Looking forward to applying all this in Bolivia ASAP!
04 September 2012
The fishermen's sheep
At CVM Shortcourse >100 veterinary and related folks gathered for worship and learning about long-term, short-term and workplace ministry. Wow! Always a great time. There was also a workshop on some tools used in poverty alleviation by Dr. Ravi Jayakaran-great speaker and man!
One of the teachings that stuck with me though is about Peter with Jesus after the resurrection. You know, "Feed my sheep...take care of my lambs...feed my sheep." What did Jesus ask at the beginning of His ministry? "Come, follow me and I will make you fishers of men." Jesus met them where they were, at the sea and spoke in metaphors they understood (fishing) and then developed them into the men he wanted them to be--shepherds. If He had started talking to them about sheep in the beginning, would they have listened?
Take-home message? Meet people where they are and find a redemptive analogy that applies to their lives (this applies to our neighbors in the US as well as a new tribe). Don't speak churchese to them! Fishermen don't understand sheep!
Wow, I have been terrible at this blogging thing this summer! It has certainly flown by. To recap our adventures, we spent 4th of July at Yosemite, the rest of July and August working like crazy while Dr. Oller had a beautiful baby girl, then a quick trip to Kansas City to visit Hollie and attend CVM Shortcourse (more about that in a minute). Tomorrow we head to Seattle to the Christian Veterinary Mission home office for a board meeting and our psych eval. We'll be home for a week, then off for a month to CIT in NC for cultural training. Whew! Oh, we are getting some homeschool done in that timeframe too.
One of the teachings that stuck with me though is about Peter with Jesus after the resurrection. You know, "Feed my sheep...take care of my lambs...feed my sheep." What did Jesus ask at the beginning of His ministry? "Come, follow me and I will make you fishers of men." Jesus met them where they were, at the sea and spoke in metaphors they understood (fishing) and then developed them into the men he wanted them to be--shepherds. If He had started talking to them about sheep in the beginning, would they have listened?
Take-home message? Meet people where they are and find a redemptive analogy that applies to their lives (this applies to our neighbors in the US as well as a new tribe). Don't speak churchese to them! Fishermen don't understand sheep!
Wow, I have been terrible at this blogging thing this summer! It has certainly flown by. To recap our adventures, we spent 4th of July at Yosemite, the rest of July and August working like crazy while Dr. Oller had a beautiful baby girl, then a quick trip to Kansas City to visit Hollie and attend CVM Shortcourse (more about that in a minute). Tomorrow we head to Seattle to the Christian Veterinary Mission home office for a board meeting and our psych eval. We'll be home for a week, then off for a month to CIT in NC for cultural training. Whew! Oh, we are getting some homeschool done in that timeframe too.
29 May 2012
Why so many birds?
After the birdfeeder post, I began to wonder what we could learn from the birds and the great variety of species. I realized I needed to know how many birds man has classified (I'll bet there are some species we have never even seen). So from www.birding.com here are the stats:
"There are over 10,000 species of birds in the world. About 925 have been seen in the U.S. and Canada. About 1,000 have been seen in Europe. By far the largest concentration of bird species are found in South America. Over 3,200 species have been seen there. In Colombia, Bolivia and Peru the species count for each country tops 1,700. Here are some very general figures for the species count for each continent:
3,200 South America
2,900 Asia
2,300 Africa
2,000 North America (from Panama north + Caribbean)
1,700 Australia + surrounding islands
1,000 Europe
65 Antarctica"
Wow! Mindboggling, isn't it? I am no orinthologist, but really, 65 species in Antarctica? I wonder if I have seen 65 species in my life (excluding zoos I guess). Last week I proposed that it was all about God's creativity, but I wonder if He didn't mean for us to learn from the birds, beyond Matthew 6.
God desires worship from every tongue and tribe and nation, that's the Great Commission and numerous other texts, right? What does that really look like in heaven or when the new heavens and new earth arrive? Are we all singing English from the hymnal in our pew? Ok, there is the house sparrow lending its song, but what about those other 10,000 birds?
If we compare people groups (tongues, tribes, nations) to the bird species...Wow, can you imagine all 10,000 birds singing at the same time? Overall, I'll bet it is a pretty wonderful sound. Sure there are a couple of birds whose songs I don't like as much, but I am humble enough to know that when our church sings, the overall sound is pleasant even if I am off key or on the wrong stanza!
The Joshua Project seeks to document and quantify people groups and our progress toward fulfilling the Great Commission. They list nearly 10,000 (9,978 in 2008) people groups in the world (these are ethno-linguistic and ethnocultural groups regardless of political boundaries). Striking similarity to the birds, eh? Of these people groups it is recorded that around 40% have are among the least evangelized and unreached peoples. That makes some 2.7 billion individuals!
God desires to have every people worshipping Him and singing, and uses so many ways to reach these people. We put out bird feeders to attract birds to hear their songs, God sacrificed His Son to enable us to draw near. How do birds know there is a full birdfeeder? Probably their birdy friends tell them, even across species! How will these other 4,253 people groups know? We must go and make disciples!
Looking forward to praising God with you now and always!
Kim
"There are over 10,000 species of birds in the world. About 925 have been seen in the U.S. and Canada. About 1,000 have been seen in Europe. By far the largest concentration of bird species are found in South America. Over 3,200 species have been seen there. In Colombia, Bolivia and Peru the species count for each country tops 1,700. Here are some very general figures for the species count for each continent:
3,200 South America
2,900 Asia
2,300 Africa
2,000 North America (from Panama north + Caribbean)
1,700 Australia + surrounding islands
1,000 Europe
65 Antarctica"
Wow! Mindboggling, isn't it? I am no orinthologist, but really, 65 species in Antarctica? I wonder if I have seen 65 species in my life (excluding zoos I guess). Last week I proposed that it was all about God's creativity, but I wonder if He didn't mean for us to learn from the birds, beyond Matthew 6.
God desires worship from every tongue and tribe and nation, that's the Great Commission and numerous other texts, right? What does that really look like in heaven or when the new heavens and new earth arrive? Are we all singing English from the hymnal in our pew? Ok, there is the house sparrow lending its song, but what about those other 10,000 birds?
If we compare people groups (tongues, tribes, nations) to the bird species...Wow, can you imagine all 10,000 birds singing at the same time? Overall, I'll bet it is a pretty wonderful sound. Sure there are a couple of birds whose songs I don't like as much, but I am humble enough to know that when our church sings, the overall sound is pleasant even if I am off key or on the wrong stanza!
The Joshua Project seeks to document and quantify people groups and our progress toward fulfilling the Great Commission. They list nearly 10,000 (9,978 in 2008) people groups in the world (these are ethno-linguistic and ethnocultural groups regardless of political boundaries). Striking similarity to the birds, eh? Of these people groups it is recorded that around 40% have are among the least evangelized and unreached peoples. That makes some 2.7 billion individuals!
God desires to have every people worshipping Him and singing, and uses so many ways to reach these people. We put out bird feeders to attract birds to hear their songs, God sacrificed His Son to enable us to draw near. How do birds know there is a full birdfeeder? Probably their birdy friends tell them, even across species! How will these other 4,253 people groups know? We must go and make disciples!
Looking forward to praising God with you now and always!
Kim
21 May 2012
Bird feeders
Ah, the perfect cartoon sunrise with chirping birds and happy music in the background. Songbirds in the spring are such a wonder to behold. Robins, doves, chickadees, bluebirds all sing along happily and then a jay or mockingbird swoops through with his cacophanous call. Stillness prevails for a few moments, then the sweet melody resumes.
Do you have a birdfeeder still?
In our small group study, Emily Smith remarked that she continues to fill the bird feeder even now in this season of plenty just so she can see the birds and hear them outside her window. As she spoke of this small extravagance, I was reminded of how much more our Heavenly Father lavishes on us. I don't mean a prosperity gospel, but gosh we sure are a blessed people! Why does He do it, even when we don't deserve all these blessings? He desires to hear us sing! Just like Emily with the birds, He desires us to draw near to Him and sing for joy (Psalm 100).
Look outside, all you people in the northern hemisphere. See all that glorious spring variety? God is a a god of creativity and beauty, creating an intricate world just to enjoy. While these things are functional, I surely wouldn't call this extravagance a strictly utilitarian system. Evolutionists may say there is redudency in pants and animals to ensure survival and a continual food source, but I counter that if it is strictly utilitarian, why is there so much variety? Why would there be so much extra, unexpressed DNA that evolved and remained? My answer? God is a great artist. He put in lots of extra details so that over time, the fulness of His creation would be expressed. It is rather like a sculpture that developed a beautiful patina as it ages--it isn't exactly how the artist made it at first, but he knew that it would change and mature into an enduring work of art. I mean, can you imagine a gleaming and shiny Thinker? Rodin understood how the bronze would change after casting and make the exquisite form into a subtler, individual piece. The 20+ castings of this all look a little different depending on their atmosphere. Wow, just think, a sculpture out of a single alloy can change and look vastly different from the same mold and same materials in just over 100 years. What then can we expect from God's creation with so many complex materials--look around! We can see the vast imagination of God and know that we are made in His image. We look at the art of the Masters or on our own refrigerators and see remarkable creative expression and know it is only a foretaste of what God has in store!
Why are there 20 different species of birds at Emily's feeder? It is a beautiful sound to hear so many different songs intertwined. More in a few days about this!
Do you have a birdfeeder still?
In our small group study, Emily Smith remarked that she continues to fill the bird feeder even now in this season of plenty just so she can see the birds and hear them outside her window. As she spoke of this small extravagance, I was reminded of how much more our Heavenly Father lavishes on us. I don't mean a prosperity gospel, but gosh we sure are a blessed people! Why does He do it, even when we don't deserve all these blessings? He desires to hear us sing! Just like Emily with the birds, He desires us to draw near to Him and sing for joy (Psalm 100).
Look outside, all you people in the northern hemisphere. See all that glorious spring variety? God is a a god of creativity and beauty, creating an intricate world just to enjoy. While these things are functional, I surely wouldn't call this extravagance a strictly utilitarian system. Evolutionists may say there is redudency in pants and animals to ensure survival and a continual food source, but I counter that if it is strictly utilitarian, why is there so much variety? Why would there be so much extra, unexpressed DNA that evolved and remained? My answer? God is a great artist. He put in lots of extra details so that over time, the fulness of His creation would be expressed. It is rather like a sculpture that developed a beautiful patina as it ages--it isn't exactly how the artist made it at first, but he knew that it would change and mature into an enduring work of art. I mean, can you imagine a gleaming and shiny Thinker? Rodin understood how the bronze would change after casting and make the exquisite form into a subtler, individual piece. The 20+ castings of this all look a little different depending on their atmosphere. Wow, just think, a sculpture out of a single alloy can change and look vastly different from the same mold and same materials in just over 100 years. What then can we expect from God's creation with so many complex materials--look around! We can see the vast imagination of God and know that we are made in His image. We look at the art of the Masters or on our own refrigerators and see remarkable creative expression and know it is only a foretaste of what God has in store!
Why are there 20 different species of birds at Emily's feeder? It is a beautiful sound to hear so many different songs intertwined. More in a few days about this!
18 March 2012
Priesting the Gospel
Well, I promised some insight from Perspectives, but it is hard to distill down such an amazing first 2 weeks to a blog short enough to read! What strikes me this morning is one short line to "priest the gospel" not just "preach the gospel."
What's the difference? You've known some great preachers, right? Highly polished sermons, great theatrics and stories, perfect TV face? Were you impressed? Did you really feel Christ's love from them?
Now remember a really great priest or pastor. I really like the term pastor since I understand about sheep and shepherding. It takes really getting in the muck with your flock to be a good shepherd. Good pastors are the ones who cry with you when you talk about losses, work shoulder to shoulder with you on things and listen when you need to vent. Through this building of true relationship, not merely preaching at us does one really understand the difference.
God calls all of us to "priest" the gospel. From our abundance of joy in God's glory we should overflow with the desire to share this with others. This means our sharing or evangelism doesn't come from a sense of duty, but from a love of God. When we share our faith and joy of salvation with someone, especially if we don't know them well, it springs out of our love for God as much or more than our love of the person.
Whew, much more to come, but there is a lot of reading and writing and thinking in Perspectives, though I highly recommend it! It has already caused a bit of paradigm shift in our thinking about missions. www.perspectives.org.
What's the difference? You've known some great preachers, right? Highly polished sermons, great theatrics and stories, perfect TV face? Were you impressed? Did you really feel Christ's love from them?
Now remember a really great priest or pastor. I really like the term pastor since I understand about sheep and shepherding. It takes really getting in the muck with your flock to be a good shepherd. Good pastors are the ones who cry with you when you talk about losses, work shoulder to shoulder with you on things and listen when you need to vent. Through this building of true relationship, not merely preaching at us does one really understand the difference.
God calls all of us to "priest" the gospel. From our abundance of joy in God's glory we should overflow with the desire to share this with others. This means our sharing or evangelism doesn't come from a sense of duty, but from a love of God. When we share our faith and joy of salvation with someone, especially if we don't know them well, it springs out of our love for God as much or more than our love of the person.
Whew, much more to come, but there is a lot of reading and writing and thinking in Perspectives, though I highly recommend it! It has already caused a bit of paradigm shift in our thinking about missions. www.perspectives.org.
02 March 2012
Perspective
Wow, nearly a month already! Where does the time go? Somehow we have gotten terribly caught up in the busyness of life and haven't communicated in a while. After 2 Real Life Real Impact student weekends, 10 days in Nicaragua, and a CVM Board meeting in CA I feel like I am on spiritual overload! God is so good, but it took me a while to recover.
We are now officially in our third month of deputation and I think the Lord is teaching us patience.... It seems like it will take forever to have our monthly budget coming in or pledged.
God is blessing us through many of you and your gifts though! We are glad you are enabling us to be the conduits through which your ministry to God's people can be carried out. Keep praying for the people of Bolivia and us as well as about your role in this ministry.
We are beginning the Perspectives on the World Christian Movement course this week--wow! This is a bigger undertaking than I realized, but I have been blown away in the first chapter already. Look for some insights from this course in the upcoming weeks.
We are now officially in our third month of deputation and I think the Lord is teaching us patience.... It seems like it will take forever to have our monthly budget coming in or pledged.
God is blessing us through many of you and your gifts though! We are glad you are enabling us to be the conduits through which your ministry to God's people can be carried out. Keep praying for the people of Bolivia and us as well as about your role in this ministry.
We are beginning the Perspectives on the World Christian Movement course this week--wow! This is a bigger undertaking than I realized, but I have been blown away in the first chapter already. Look for some insights from this course in the upcoming weeks.
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