Friday, May 27, 2005
another good book...
i've been readin' alot lately. haven't read much since i've been on the road. but this tour i've had a bit more time alone and reading's been a good way for me to find solitude as well as cultivate my relationship w/the Lord. Today is our "Sabbath"-- our day of rest on this team. it's a discipline we've been pretty good about observing this tour and i don't think it's hampered our productivity at all. (It is a discipline for us because it's very easy to become a workaholic in this ministry-- the work never ends as w/most ministries).
anyway, i just finished a book by Henri Nouwen (any Nouwen fans out there?) called "The Return of the Prodigal Son". it's really quite fascinating and insightful. Nouwen was immensely impacted by a painting by Rembrandt called -- you guessed it-- "The Return of the Prodigal Son" based on the parable of the Prodigal Son. He stood in the Hermitage Museum in St. Petersburg staring at the painting for hours and it's taken him years to be able to realize and verbalize why he was so impacted by it. his focus is not so much on the prodigal son as it is on how our vocation (call) is really to become like the Father-- whose image we were of course created in. i found it to be really enlightening-- his identification w/the prodigal son who was on a search to find a place of belonging and satisfy his longings which ironically took him away from his true home. then there's the elder son who we'd rather not identify w/but if we're honest we might actually see some of his resentment and lack of gratitude in ourselves. We might see how we reject our Father's invitation to His banquet table and refuse to believe that "all that I have is yours" b/c we'd rather wallow in what we think we lack. And though our real call is to become more like the Father, we run from it b/c it's costly-- it's a selfless love that pours itself out when nothing is given back in return. It's a love that gives and gives without end. amazing, huh?
i've been readin' alot lately. haven't read much since i've been on the road. but this tour i've had a bit more time alone and reading's been a good way for me to find solitude as well as cultivate my relationship w/the Lord. Today is our "Sabbath"-- our day of rest on this team. it's a discipline we've been pretty good about observing this tour and i don't think it's hampered our productivity at all. (It is a discipline for us because it's very easy to become a workaholic in this ministry-- the work never ends as w/most ministries).
anyway, i just finished a book by Henri Nouwen (any Nouwen fans out there?) called "The Return of the Prodigal Son". it's really quite fascinating and insightful. Nouwen was immensely impacted by a painting by Rembrandt called -- you guessed it-- "The Return of the Prodigal Son" based on the parable of the Prodigal Son. He stood in the Hermitage Museum in St. Petersburg staring at the painting for hours and it's taken him years to be able to realize and verbalize why he was so impacted by it. his focus is not so much on the prodigal son as it is on how our vocation (call) is really to become like the Father-- whose image we were of course created in. i found it to be really enlightening-- his identification w/the prodigal son who was on a search to find a place of belonging and satisfy his longings which ironically took him away from his true home. then there's the elder son who we'd rather not identify w/but if we're honest we might actually see some of his resentment and lack of gratitude in ourselves. We might see how we reject our Father's invitation to His banquet table and refuse to believe that "all that I have is yours" b/c we'd rather wallow in what we think we lack. And though our real call is to become more like the Father, we run from it b/c it's costly-- it's a selfless love that pours itself out when nothing is given back in return. It's a love that gives and gives without end. amazing, huh?
Tuesday, May 17, 2005
fun host stories...
(this is the fuller version...the original entry wasn't quite as complete. Enjoy!)
i realize i hardly ever capture in writing, stories of the wonderful & wacky people i stay with! so i thought i'd share about the last two homes i've been in...
thursday and friday night i stayed with an older, single woman. we had a nice time together. she took me to see the bluebell woods (woods with fields of bluebells scattered everywhere) and also to the north sea coast. (we were in Norfolk, England if that means anything to anyone.) anyway, friday was our sabbath and usually by the time we get some time off i need some time to just chill and be on my own. i didn't exactly get that so i was going kinda crazy. but at the same time i was really convicted about spending time w/her b/c i think company can be a very practical way of ministering to people. she was very good to me. but anyway, here's the funny part... her toilet wasn't working properly. it was ok if you went number 1. but if you went number two...well, here's the instructions: "Come and tell me if you poop [i can't remember the exact term she used] and i'll bring a pot of water and flush it down for you. Don't be embarrassed. Just come get me." I tell you, I didn't want to go at all but i finally did have to. so i asked her if i could just bring a pot in with me but she insisted on doing it for me. blech. as if not being able to flush down my own poop wasn't enough...
my next host REALLY pampered me. she took a liking to me right away--said God sent me to her. she was an older lady from Germany with a heart of gold who lost her husband less than two years ago and misses him a lot. i became a surrogate grand-daughter to her. she even told me to go have a bath while she ironed clothes for me and made really good coffee w/real cream and gave me orders to put on her grand-daughter's robe after my bath and just sit with her. so i did. and then she said i couldn't just let my hair dry on its own. she insisted on blow-drying it for me. it was kind of weird. she kept saying "your hair's so lovely and beautiful and think" as she blow-dried. (by the way, she has really severe rheumatoid arthritis and it was killing her but she really wanted to do it.) the truth is that i did have a good time w/her and i think she's absolutely wonderful. however...
i've decided THERE IS SUCH A THING AS BEING TOO PAMPERED. i used to think i was a bit on the princessy side. nope, i'm not. i tell ya, it was so good to be w/our next hosts (who've been housing CP for years and years). they could hardly believe me when i told them i was actually really glad they let me wash their dishes. made me feel like a normal human being again.
with all that said, i must say that i really do appreciate all our hosts. we couldn't exist as a ministry w/o them. each host is different. some do smother you w/love while others just let you be. some have a natural gift of hospitality, others may not necessarily have a gift of hospitality but bless us by opening their homes anyway. while it does sometimes get tiring going from one place to another-- averageing 3 or 4 homes a week-- host home ministry is something i continue to love. it's a very real way of experiencing blessing and being blessed.
(this is the fuller version...the original entry wasn't quite as complete. Enjoy!)
i realize i hardly ever capture in writing, stories of the wonderful & wacky people i stay with! so i thought i'd share about the last two homes i've been in...
thursday and friday night i stayed with an older, single woman. we had a nice time together. she took me to see the bluebell woods (woods with fields of bluebells scattered everywhere) and also to the north sea coast. (we were in Norfolk, England if that means anything to anyone.) anyway, friday was our sabbath and usually by the time we get some time off i need some time to just chill and be on my own. i didn't exactly get that so i was going kinda crazy. but at the same time i was really convicted about spending time w/her b/c i think company can be a very practical way of ministering to people. she was very good to me. but anyway, here's the funny part... her toilet wasn't working properly. it was ok if you went number 1. but if you went number two...well, here's the instructions: "Come and tell me if you poop [i can't remember the exact term she used] and i'll bring a pot of water and flush it down for you. Don't be embarrassed. Just come get me." I tell you, I didn't want to go at all but i finally did have to. so i asked her if i could just bring a pot in with me but she insisted on doing it for me. blech. as if not being able to flush down my own poop wasn't enough...
my next host REALLY pampered me. she took a liking to me right away--said God sent me to her. she was an older lady from Germany with a heart of gold who lost her husband less than two years ago and misses him a lot. i became a surrogate grand-daughter to her. she even told me to go have a bath while she ironed clothes for me and made really good coffee w/real cream and gave me orders to put on her grand-daughter's robe after my bath and just sit with her. so i did. and then she said i couldn't just let my hair dry on its own. she insisted on blow-drying it for me. it was kind of weird. she kept saying "your hair's so lovely and beautiful and think" as she blow-dried. (by the way, she has really severe rheumatoid arthritis and it was killing her but she really wanted to do it.) the truth is that i did have a good time w/her and i think she's absolutely wonderful. however...
i've decided THERE IS SUCH A THING AS BEING TOO PAMPERED. i used to think i was a bit on the princessy side. nope, i'm not. i tell ya, it was so good to be w/our next hosts (who've been housing CP for years and years). they could hardly believe me when i told them i was actually really glad they let me wash their dishes. made me feel like a normal human being again.
with all that said, i must say that i really do appreciate all our hosts. we couldn't exist as a ministry w/o them. each host is different. some do smother you w/love while others just let you be. some have a natural gift of hospitality, others may not necessarily have a gift of hospitality but bless us by opening their homes anyway. while it does sometimes get tiring going from one place to another-- averageing 3 or 4 homes a week-- host home ministry is something i continue to love. it's a very real way of experiencing blessing and being blessed.
Thursday, May 05, 2005
"GOD CHASERS" by Tommy Tenney...
if you're looking for a good book to whet your hunger for the Lord, this is it. it's been a long time since i finished a book. i've not been very good about reading while i've been out on the road. but three years ago when i toured in the U.K. i picked up this book at one of my host homes in Wales and it really grabbed my attention and i couldn't put it down while I was there. but i never bought it. so this time, back in the U.K., i remembered my experience w/that book and i was determined to buy/read it. and i have. and i hope i never go back to being the same again. it really met me where i was and has propelled to want even more of God. last wk w/my host jane was like a divine appointment. it awakened in me a spirit of intercession and longing to see revival throughout the world. we watched three videos in a series called "Transformations" which shows/documents different revivals that took place throughout the world-- as recent as 2001-- and as close to home as Hemet, CA. i wanna see that here in the U.K. where so many historical revivals took place-- and i wanna see that back home in Monterey Park-- in CEFC. i hope the "Purpose Driven Life" study is going well back home. i hope it propels people to want more in life-- more of God in their life.
i took a really long walk tonight (1 1/2 hours). i'm wondering if the Lord wants me to stay in the U.K. a little bit longer. it's a question i don't even really want to ask, to be honest. but it's one that's come up b/c He seems to have woken in me a new burden to see His glory here. jane (my host i was writing about last time) told me that it's actually pretty scary b/c the Muslim population is really escalating here and taking over other countries is actually part of what's taught in their Koran. many Muslims already consider England as being "taken". So pray. pray that God alone would "take over" the land.
if you're looking for a good book to whet your hunger for the Lord, this is it. it's been a long time since i finished a book. i've not been very good about reading while i've been out on the road. but three years ago when i toured in the U.K. i picked up this book at one of my host homes in Wales and it really grabbed my attention and i couldn't put it down while I was there. but i never bought it. so this time, back in the U.K., i remembered my experience w/that book and i was determined to buy/read it. and i have. and i hope i never go back to being the same again. it really met me where i was and has propelled to want even more of God. last wk w/my host jane was like a divine appointment. it awakened in me a spirit of intercession and longing to see revival throughout the world. we watched three videos in a series called "Transformations" which shows/documents different revivals that took place throughout the world-- as recent as 2001-- and as close to home as Hemet, CA. i wanna see that here in the U.K. where so many historical revivals took place-- and i wanna see that back home in Monterey Park-- in CEFC. i hope the "Purpose Driven Life" study is going well back home. i hope it propels people to want more in life-- more of God in their life.
i took a really long walk tonight (1 1/2 hours). i'm wondering if the Lord wants me to stay in the U.K. a little bit longer. it's a question i don't even really want to ask, to be honest. but it's one that's come up b/c He seems to have woken in me a new burden to see His glory here. jane (my host i was writing about last time) told me that it's actually pretty scary b/c the Muslim population is really escalating here and taking over other countries is actually part of what's taught in their Koran. many Muslims already consider England as being "taken". So pray. pray that God alone would "take over" the land.
