The Sholl Family in Mexico

Confession Time

2011-10-07T08:49:00.000-07:00

OK - so I need to make a confession.

After three years of travelling in Latin America to various conferences, classes and meetings in quite a range of countries, you'd have thought I'd have the knack of entering foreign countries down by now.

Well, as yesterday's events prove, not so much.

I'm preparing for my final trip, there are about 5 hours left before I head to the airport for an overnight flight to Santiago Chile and then onto São Paulo in Brasil. I'm checking the status of my visa for Chile (which you get at the airport on the way in - like every other country I have visited - except the US) and I wonder what the situation is in Brasil. So I check.

At this point, things start to turn bad.

Multiple websites say that Australians need a visa to enter Brasil - tourist or business. That's OK - I'll do the paperwork at the airport, pay my money and it'll be fine.

Ummm - no.

There is a complicated process that you need to follow and it take 5-7 days!

So I start making some calls. First to the Australian embassy in Brasil - yes, that is true, no exceptions.

Then to the Brasilian Embassy in Mexico - nobody answers the phone until 12:50pm and their office closes for the day at 1pm.

Finally, I call the Brasilian Embassy in Santiago - because in a stroke of genius I think I could have an 'amazing race' moment. Get off the plane in Santiago - dash into the embassy in the city - get my visa (which they will issue instantly out of deep mercy and compassion) - dash back to the airport and get on the connecting flight to São Paulo.

All a great plan - except they don't make exceptions.

So I can't go. Really frustrated and feeling dopey that I didn't think of it before.

As a result I've had to cancel and re-book flights to Chile (leaving tonight and at some expense to the management - sorry).

I guess the only good thing is that I realised while I was at home and could easily make phone calls (very cheaply thanks to skype), rearrange flights etc. The other option might have been that I got deported! (Now that would have made for a good story)

But - I'm looking forward to a great week of teaching, networking and promoting MOCLAM in Chile.

Moral of the story: Don't assume everything will work like it has in other places!

Slow and steady wins the race

2011-08-30T15:56:00.000-07:00

I had a great day last weekend with a group of pastors in Tampico, a coastal city on the Gulf of Mexico. I spent the day teaching an 'intensive' class for 'Creation to New Creation', the first course in the Moore College ThC course. It was fantastic - we worked in detail through 3 chapters of the book, and they will complete the remaining 7 chapters in regular meetings (without me) over the next couple of months. My friend from Tampico who organised the day did a fantastic job and the students are enthusiastic and engaged.

At one stage we got talking about the 'pace' of theological education, particularly compared to other 'vocational' training. We were talking about the difference between a 'skills based' course and a more 'education based' course.

In the case of skills, you go to a course and learn how to do something better - whether it be strap a sprained ankle, cook a curry or preach a sermon.
In the case of education - it is often more about learning a body of knowledge that is going to shape your thinking and so inform your skills and application somewhere down the track. You might about the physiology of muscles and swelling which will better inform your practical treatment of sprains, or you might think about the doctrine of scripture which will inform your practice of preaching.

In this discussion, one of the students made an interesting point (and he wasn't an older guy just saying 'back in my day things were better.) He said that the in his opinion, one of the consequences of a very much 'instant results' generation was that the 'education' side of things seemed to be slipping down in priority. Now it was more about learning a new skill, being able to report on some concrete outcome at the end of the one hour class - and therefore, the instant, practical training was being valued more highly.

That's an interesting comment, because I think the process of theological education needs to be seen as a long, steady process. Sure, we need to keep thinking how we apply the things we are learning in our churches, lives and pastoral situations. But in the long run, if we are totally skills based, then we won't have much to say, will have trouble giving counsel in difficult situations and I think will be much more open to the trendy waves of 'new doctrine' that come through once every few weeks.

I suggested that the process of theological education was a bit like learning a new language. Day to day its actually pretty hard to see progress. Sometimes you'll have moments of 'A-Ha' (not the late 80's band) when you realise you have to use the verb estar when talking about location, but more often than not, progress will be slow and steady. You need to compare where you are now with where you were six months ago, not 2 days ago.

Of course all of that means that you need time and patience.

I'm encouraging my students to take a long view, to develop perseverance and godliness for the long haul, and understand that is a process that will take time.

Hospitality matters!

2011-06-17T11:26:00.000-07:00

I've been travelling a fair bit lately, and as a result have experienced a lot of hospitality. In the vast majority of cases it has been fantastic - in fact many times, one of the highlights of my trip is the time I get to hang around with people, in their homes, over meals etc.

I think as Christians we hold, and need to continue to hold hospitality in very high regard. Being hospitable is a characteristic required of overseers in both 1 Timothy 3:2 and Titus 1:8. It is something we are all commanded to do in Heb 13:2 (because you never know who you might be looking after!) and we are to do it without grumbling (1Pet 4:9).

Implicit in these exhortations is the fact that hospitality will be costly - and of course, that is reality. You'll need to pick up your guest from the airport or the station. They'll probably need driving around somewhere which will interrupt what you normally do. You might need to rearrange bedrooms for the duration and of course there'll be extra washing, cleaning and feeding to do.

But its interesting, it seems to me apart from the comment in Heb 13:2, the benefits of hospitality aren't much spoken about in the Bible. But there are many benefits.

You and your family will get to make a new friend. Most guests are usually really interesting people who really appreciate time with other people rather than sitting by themselves in a hotel room. My kids still have very fond memories of visitors we've had over the year. One particular visitor (who will remain nameless - but think England, well known, evangelism course) has entered our family folklore with regard to his enthusiastic brownie consumption.

It is a great way to expand your horizons. You learn many things about the world we live in and its different cultures by hosting a guest from a far off land.

If you're in a situation where there are kids in your house, its a great way to model kindness and generosity to them. When they see Mum and Dad being open and welcoming to guests - it is sure to rub off later in life.

So - be hospitable!

(Today's photo is me high up in the Andes outside Santiago in Chile - where I enjoyed wonderful hospitality!)

Advantages of a church calendar

2011-04-25T06:02:00.000-07:00

I'm not exactly what you would call an apologist for the prayer book, the lectionary or any of that stuff. But - this Easter I have been reminded of what a great heritage some sort of order of church worship gives us.

This Easter weekend I was in the south of Chile, teaching a MOCLAM subject in intensive mode. We had 12 hours of class a day for 3 days - and the students will be doing their exam later this week. It was a pretty full on few days!

Each morning and evening session began with a devotional, and given that the days included Good Friday and Easter Day, I kindof assumed that we would be thinking about the death and resurrection of Jesus.

But we didn't. In fact, during the whole weekend, not one word was mentioned about Easter.

I wondered whether that might be a Chilean thing, so I asked around a bit. No - for most people, Easter is a big thing and many of the churches were having special events, public celebrations etc. But not this group. It made me wonder why? Why was it that we could spend a weekend together as a group of Christians, and not mark the most important date in our calendar?

My theory is something like this - and I haven't asked whether there is any truth to my theory, because I didn't want to come across as accusing or superior.

Everyone on the group was from a freechurch, or independent church background - contexts where they prided themselves on their flexibility and informality of churchmanship. In many cases they are reacting against the cold, repetition of prayers and utterances which they have seen bore countless generation - they want to be new and fresh and engaging. And so they have done away with the old forms.

Now I'm all for new and engaging (as long as the Bible is still there) and have no particular love of old things because they are old, but it raises an interesting question. If you are going to get rid of something, it is worthwhile thinking about what you are going to replace it with. In some cases I think with these folks, lots of thought has gone into the 'getting rid of' part of the process, but not so much into the 'replacement' part.

It is possible that one of byproducts of this 'out with the old' feeling, is that some of the observance and remembrance aspects which are so clear in the prayer book and fixed liturgies have been lost - including in this case, a careful observance of Easter.

Thats a shame I think - because I wonder if we lost a great opportunity to reflect together and encourage each other on what is a joyful and important time in our Christian life.

Another cultural insight

2011-02-22T07:14:00.000-08:00

I was chatting with a friend yesterday and he mentioned a difficulty his small group was having with a passage in Acts.

The passage was Acts 13:1-3 - where the church in Antioch send out Barnabas and Saul. I read the passage, thought 'it looks like a pretty standard 'missionary commissioning' sort of thing' and wondered what the problem was.

The problem the group was having was this. 'What happened to the church in Antioch?' As the story continues in Acts 13 the missionary journey of Paul and Barnabas is followed, but we don't hear much about the 'sending church'.

I was kind of - oh well, doesn't matter, I guess it carried on as normal, just with a few less members who might have been missed for a couple of weeks but life went on.

But no - and here was the cultural insight. This was a great concern for my friend's group, because here in many cases the identity of the church is very, very closely bound with the identity of the pastor. Saul (son to be Paul) and Barnabas were clearly very important pastors in the church in Antioch (they had been there for a year Acts 11:26), so for them to leave, in the mind of the group here, was an almost unimaginable thing.

Not only that, but they didn't just leave, the church sent them out!

Because of the strong link between the church and the pastor here, that was a very difficult concept for the group to get their head around.

And so I asked - what happens when a pastor leaves a church? I mean, surely it happens.

Well, yes, it does, but often it is the source of great disruption and division in the church. It depends a bit on the circumstances, but sometimes a significant number of the congregation will leave and go with the pastor to his new position, or sometimes they will just leave. Sometimes it precipitates a huge power struggle, because the church / identity / pastor link is so strong the vacuum needs to be filled. Sometimes the position can never be filled, because the new guy can never be as good as the old guy.

But I asked - what about sending missionaries. If it is so difficult for a pastor to leave, what hope is there for the congregation to send him off as a missionary.

'Not much' was my friend's reply.

I'm very thankful for the 'sending' culture of our churches in Sydney. To be sending the pastor away to serve away from 'homebase' short-term or long-term is seen as a great thing to do, not a threat to the health and identity of the church. That is a wonderful reflection of God's concern for the whole world, not just the bit of the world inside our own parish boundary.

(By the way, the picture is of the church Friday night men's group I am part of)

A quick update on courses

2011-01-24T18:34:00.000-08:00

Just wanted to let you know of some good things that are happening at the moment.

Last week, and this week, there is an 'intensive' class running for staffworkers of COMPA - the Mexican IFES group. 10 staffworkers have gathered from all corners of Mexico here in Monterrey, at the house of our friends John and Jan to have a 'mini-sabbatical' of study and fellowship while the uni students are on holidays.

The aim is that each student will complete (including doing the exams) 3 MOCLAM courses in 2 weeks. Last week I taught New Testament 1 to one group, while another group did Old Testament 2. This week, I'm John and I are teaching Old Testament 1, while one of the more experienced students is teaching Creation to New Creation to a couple of newbies, and two others are helping each other through Reformation Church History. In their free time they are reading Doctrine 1 by themselves.

Its been a great time so far, and promises to continue this week. Amongst the study there is plenty of time for discussing other issues, eating and mucking around.

So - good things happening here.

CMS Gift catalog

2010-12-20T06:05:00.000-08:00

Just in case you're madly rushing around doing Christmas shopping and can't work out what to get. CMS has some great ideas - including a way to directly help the work we are doing here in Latin America.

http://www.cms.org.au/product/gift-catalogue

The northern hemisphere calendar

2010-12-11T07:05:00.000-08:00

It's that time of year when everything's finishing up. School's finished for another year, work Christmas parties, kids are beginning the transition from primary to high school - or is it??

One of the things which is really striking us at the moment is what a difference being in the northern hemisphere makes to the way you view December and Christmas. While our southern hemisphere friends are rushing about madly doing having their school parties and farewells and Christmas functions and looking forward to a long summer holiday - we're not. I'll be working on Christmas eve and will start again after a few days break - back to normal.

We have the Christmas stuff - although here it all happens on the night of Christmas Eve, but we don't have the associated feeling of 'the year is ending' - because its not!. We get 2 weeks school holiday (after an 18 week term!), and then the year continues as normal. It really puts quite a different spin on Christmas.

(Of course long term northern hemisphere readers are thinking - of course, what are you talking about!)

But as the days get shorter and colder and we hear of the Christmas holiday stories floating our way over the Pacific - man, would it be nice to be on the beach at Valla this Christmas!

Catch a wave or two for us.

(By the way, the photo is of Grahame and Patty Scarratt and I at Bulli Anglican Church in November, at the 'festejo' to celebrate 30 years of Scarratt ministry in Latin America, and me being handed the 'poncho' to be the Director of MOCLAM)

When worlds collide

2010-10-22T12:18:00.001-07:00

There are two big events coming up in Mexico in the next few weeks that make us ask of few questions about what our involvement should be.

On the 31st of October there's Halloween, and then on the 2nd of November its 'Day of the Dead'.

You can easily find good summaries of the history of Halloween, but it basically seems an adaption of a pagan festival from times past. In most cases I think the dominant theme now is consumerism with a 'ghosty' twist.

Thanks to our proximity to the USA, Halloween is becoming very popular here. At the moment there are quite a few decorations up around the place and yesterday at the supermarket I stood behind someone buying a plastic battle axe. (I assume it was plastic!) On the night of the 31st there will be groups of kids wandering the streets asking (or in most cases demanding) lolllies.

The whole thing seems to tap into the growing interest in spiritual 'other wordly' sorts of things which is being reflected in TV, movies and literature.

Day of the Dead is a bit different. Its more tradition than commercialism, more about family than lollies, more religious than fantasy. Its a great example of how the catholicism of the conquistadors has been mixed up with some of the beliefs and practices of the early inhabitants of Mexico. On the day, many people will visit the grave of loved ones, for all sorts of reasons. Some to reflect and mourn, others to celebrate, others to spend time touching up the grave and repainting the headstone.

In the classrooms at school and altar (thats what it is called) is constructed and the kids are invited to place pictures and favourite things of dead relatives on it, and the classroom is decorated in traditional stuff.

This of course presents quite a challenge for the Christian kids and families in the school. Halloween is a bit easier - the simple 'we don't do that' seems to suffice, but when its in the classroom its a bit more difficult.

Also, the altar and the stuff that goes with it is a bit more 'problematic' - if I can put it like that. We can largely ignore Halloween saying its American commercialism - but there is clearly a lot of feeling and belief going around on the day of the dead.

What to do?

Do we encourage the kids to just sit and observe and learn from the culture, or should we be more active that that? Should we say something to the school about what we believe and make a 'stand'? We know we are not of this world and therefore there are going to be things that challenge what we hold true about life, death and resurrection, so how do we respond in this sort of circumstance?

One of the greatest things I've seen recently is a friend who set up a table in her garage with the Two Ways to Live gospel tract displayed on big pictures. When kids came trick or treating, she invited them to take a leaflet, and a lolly, and read through the pictures. Great idea.

I wonder how you might apply this sort of thing in a more public setting, like a school.

We'll go and visit a cemetery on Day of the Dead - its an important part of the culture here and it gives us a great insight into the way people think - but the question of what to say / do / think at school is still churning in my head.

A bad day in Monterrey

2010-10-05T19:18:00.001-07:00

Today was a bad day for security in Monterrey - probably made worse for us because the violence was in our area and had a personal connection.

This afternoon there was a major shooting incident very close to our church. Details are still being reported but there are lots of pictures of squads of heavily armed police, helicopters and cars with bullet holes on the TV. The nearby campus of the University which is across the road from our church was locked down for a while and then students were advised to go straight home. I was on the bus going into class to teach for the night when people started talking about it. Most students didn't make it to class - which was completely understandable. Apart from anything else, the traffic was shocking.

But also, it appears that one of the young men from a family at our church was kidnapped on Sunday afternoon (after being in church on Sunday morning) and was found dead this afternoon. I have no idea of the circumstances - but it is of course a terrible thing for the family and our wider church family.

We had hoped that things had quietened down a bit - there hadn't been much violence in September, but it seems things are getting bad again. There were 3 grenade attacks in public places over the weekend, and now this.

As usual - we don't feel threatened and are taking advice for the local people who we know and trust, but overall it wasn't a happy day in our city today.

Why I've changed my mind on how to support missionaries.

2010-09-26T18:12:00.000-07:00

Why I've changed my mind on how to support missionaries.

In the last three years a lot has changed for me. I've gone from being a parish rector in Sydney to being a missionary with CMS in Mexico. I've gone from being comfortable and confident in my surrounds, to being way out of my depth, struggling with language and culture. I've gone from someone who talked a lot and gave direction, to someone who needs to sit back and listen to the directions of others. And, I've changed my mind on how churches should be involved in supporting missionaries. (Of course, this change has been prompted by me seeing things from 'the other side of the fence', but that’s not necessarily a bad thing, nor does it make my change of mind illegitimate.)

Three years ago, if you'd asked me what I thought the role of the local church in supporting missionaries and mission organizations was, I think I would have said something like this.

Following the mission imperative of the gospel going to all the nations which is clear throughout the Bible, local churches need to be active in their promotion of cross cultural and overseas mission as a normal part of the everyday Christian life. Its important for churches to have particular missionaries they support in prayer and care for - for example through the CMS system of missionaries being linked to particular churches which they visit when on home assignment. The missionaries have a responsibility to keep link churches and other supporters up to date with prayer points and news, and the churches have a responsibility to regularly pray for the missionaries and their work - both in Sunday gatherings, small groups and personal prayers. The church as a gathering should model personal involvement with the missionary, and encourage individuals to contact and care for missionaries. The local church also needs to be active in recruiting and sending new missionaries to the field - usually through a society like CMS. In the matter of finance, the church needs to encourage all its members to become a member of the mission society and to be individually active in giving money regularly and generously.

Today, in answer to that question, my response would be 90% the same. I still whole-heartedly believe the local church has a critical part to play in the promotion of mission as a normal part of the Christian life, in encouraging people to pray for mission, to care for missionaries and to ask the question of going. The difference would come in the last sentence. I still agree that the local church needs to encourage its member to become a member of the mission society and to be active in individual giving. However, I now think that the local church also needs to be actively supporting mission financially from its own budget - having a 'mission support' line in the budget right alongside 'staff salary', 'building repair' and 'electricity'.

A number of factors have been influential in my mind change.

1. I think giving money 'as a church' reflects the scriptural model.
Generosity and giving to those in need and in ministry is a clear Biblical principle. (2Cor 9:6-15) In Acts and several of Paul's letters we get snapshots of the money that is being given from one group to another to aid the growth of poorer churches. (Acts 24:17, Rom 15:25, 1Cor 16:1-3) Paul himself benefits from the generosity of the Philippian church (Phil 4:15-16). In each of these cases, it seems it is the 'organised church' that is providing the material aid, rather than individuals.

I am in no doubt that Paul received aid from individuals as well (Acts 16:15) but also at times refused this aid, both 'personal' and 'institutional' so as to remove potential stumbling blocks (1 Cor 9:1-18).

2. Being a model
The local church plays an incredibly important role in providing a model of Christian life to its members. The things that the church thinks is important, it demonstrates and models to its members. Through the way we read and engage with the scripture in our public meetings we want to model serious and contemplative Bible reading that requires a personal response. In our public prayers, we want to model that prayer is important, how to pray and what to pray for. We want to model love, community, compassion, generosity, willingness… the list is almost endless.

Perhaps a question worth asking is 'How is my local church modelling partnership in cross-cultural mission?' We host a visiting missionary from time to time. Maybe we have a missionary prayer and support group. We encourage people to attend missionary conferences, like CMS Summer School.

As I thought through that question, and I thought about the church budget, I wondered if saying 'we are a church that supports mission' while not significantly supporting that mission through the church budget was something of a disjunction.

3. The role of mission society membership
Because Christian mission is a normal part of Christian life, rather than an 'add-on' for the really keen, I think it should be a normal expectation for all Christians to be involved in some sort of mission organization. In the case of CMS, that is seen in the form of being a member. Other organizations have partners, sponsors, givers - but the principle is the same. The individual is committed to the organization, prayerfully, financially and personally.

One of the great advantages of making this mission involvement personal rather than 'institutional' (ie: our church is involved in supporting mission) is that it encourages long-term involvement and more personal consideration. If you rely on your church to 'do' your mission involvement for you, and you move churches to a place that doesn't support mission, your mission involvement potentially ends.

Three years ago I would have said the model of giving needs to follow this model of membership, ie: its personal. I still believe that mission involvement needs to be personal, but I'm not sure that takes the local church out of the equation, particularly in the area of giving.

4. Missionary work is costly business
I recently heard a speaker say that his study had concluded that of every $100 earned by a church member in America, $0.025 goes towards cross-cultural mission. Even if that figure is out by a factor of 10, or even 100, the amount of money that is given to mission is relatively small, particularly in comparison to the amount of money that is given to local church ministry.

And, let's face it, missionary work is expensive. Relocating families, training them in language and culture, caring for their pastoral needs and helping to provide the resources they need is a costly exercise, but its an exercise that the gospel requires of us. Perhaps the burden of this expense needs to be shared by both individuals and churches.

I am not suggesting for a minute that most local churches are rolling in cash and spending without thought or careful consideration - I know from my experience and the experience of my peers that nothing could be further from the truth. Also, the budget figures of CMS clearly indicate that there are a large number of very generous members who see mission as a high priority and that priority has translated to their wallet.

But I do want to ask the question, in the context of the annual church budget, is the figure for mission support generous and adventurous? When the budget is increased for the salary of the next staff member, or when the building fund appeal is launched and the minister and treasurer make excited and 'visionary' presentations to the congregation, is the cross-cultural mission budget equally being raised?

Of course, it's not fair to say it's all up to the local church at this point. The missionaries need to be active players in the local church - missionary partnership, ensuring regular prayer points are sent, deputation times are well prepared and presented and that they are praying regularly for their partner churches.

Conclusion

My mind has changed over the last 3 years. The thinking behind that change of mind has been largely prompted by the fact that I've moved from being the guy who thinks about giving the money to the missionary society to the guy who asks for it. It would be easy to say "I've changed hats and therefore my perspective has changed." Yes - I've changed hats, but I think that has been the catalyst, rather than the reason for my change of mind.

So what's my request. I'd like it if all Christians were an active member of a missionary society. Praying for, caring for, giving for and sending missionaries. CMS is fantastic but by no means the only one. But I'd also like it if all churches were an active partner with a mission society. Regularly and publicly praying, actively caring, generously and adventurously giving and excitedly and regularly sending.

It's a real dud being sick

2010-09-17T14:36:00.000-07:00

It's a real dud being sick - as I'm experiencing at the moment. Nothing serious, just a heavy head cold and a sore throat that makes me sound like I smoke half a packet before breakfast each day.

But there's something about being sick in a foreign country. I don't know what it is - its just different. The doctors and medical staff here are great (if you are fortunate to be able to afford them, which thanks to CMS we are). They have some slightly unusual customs and when I was recently giving blood for a test and asked the nurse 'Is it red?' she just kindof looked at me. But apart from that, everything is fine.

I think what it is, is that when you are sick, you want everything to be just that little bit easier and more comfortable. You'd prefer it if some of the hassles of everyday life just went away for a few days while you got back to normal. And the reality of our life here is that life isn't as easy and comfortable as what it would be if we were in Australia. Again - nothing dramatic - just the vibe. We have security considerations in our mind here which we wouldn't have in Australia. We have language issues, we have fewer friends and different relationships.

When you're sick, I reckon those differences become a bit more apparent.

By the way, the photo is our 'official' CMS snap for 2011. We took it two weeks ago in a canyon not far from here.

Security

2010-08-21T14:17:00.000-07:00

In our latest newsletter we're briefly mentioned the security situation here in Monterrey. Here's a few more details.

Over the last couple of years the level of violence has increased in Mexico generally, and particularly in the north. This violence is almost exclusively related to drugs. There are several cartels that operate major trafficing routes through Mexico into the US, and hence the northern borders of Mexico tend to be the places where they have their power struggles.

In the past there has been violence, but the violence has either been gang on gang, or gang on police / military. News of armed police raids and gang reprisal attacks were common. However, because it was all gang related, there were only ever a few unlucky everyday citizens who got caught up in the crossfire. It happened, but it was extremely rare.

On a personal note, on the way home from Bible study one night last year, I was stuck in a traffic jam, the cause of which was a gang vs army shootout.

However, in the last year, or even less, the violence has changed for the worst.

The gangs are still fighting each other - but the complete disregard for anybody else seems to be increasing. Just last week, a person was shot in the carpark of the supermarket we often use. The wounded man ran into the supermarket, around the checkouts (this is a big place, maybe 35 checkouts) and the gunman followed him in and shot him again - wounding a 14 year old girl in the process. Again, the injured man ran, this time into the carpark again, where the gunman caught him and put a bullet in his head. This all took place at 2pm on a Tuesday afternoon in the last week of the school holidays!

This is very disturbing, but the violence is also changing in that it is now taking a political edge. It would appear that the gangs are trying to 'get at' the government by making life more difficult for ordinary citizens, which will in turn create more political pressure.

This is done in two ways. First, government officials are becoming more of a target. Just last week the mayor of Santiago (a pretty town of about 20,000 30 mins south of here) was kidnapped and 2 days later found executed on the side of the road. I have friends who worked with him on various projects and they say he was a good man. Apparently the reason for his execution was that he refused to cooperate with those who wanted to bribe him. Of the six arrested in connection with his killing, 5 are policemen.

My friend who lives in this town says all the police and officials have left - presumably in fear of their personal safety.

The second event which is happening more often around the city is a blockade. These is where gunmen hijack some cars - usually between 5 and 20, and create a roadblock which either just creates a nuisance traffic jam, or blocks up an area so the police are unable to enter and the gang can 'take care of business'.

Last Sunday afternoon, in a gang incident, 3 teenagers were executed in a suburb not far from here. As a result, between 7pm and midnight on Sunday night, there were 39 blockades across the city, causing huge disruption to traffic. Keep in mind its school holidays and Sunday afternoon / evening is out visiting families, enjoy the long evenings etc.

As a result, the local government has formed a new, heavily armed 'flying squad' with orders to respond to such incidents. Last night as I drove in the city there were many more groups of police parked on corners, on streetsides etc.

So how do we feel about all this?

Well, its terrible. We feel sad because the whole society is being affected here. In many ways what is happening is a form of terrorism and everyone is feeling and tension it causes. Everyone talks about it.

We don't feel personally under threat, although we're being a bit more cautious around the place, and tend not to go out at night if we can possible avoid it. We do what we can to keep a low profile. Thats been a bit easier because its been school holidays and our routine has been flexible, but school starts again this week so we'll see if there is any change.

Please pray for our city and the country of Mexico. Please pray for justice and incorruptibility in the government. Please pray that God would hold back the hand of those who want to be violent, and that those in positions of authority would make right and wise decisions.

The impressive work of a small local church

2010-07-09T10:17:00.000-07:00

We've had a dramatic week in Monterrey this week. On the 1st of July, Hurricane Alex struck, dumping about 600mm of rain on our area in 24 hours. As a result, there was much flooding, destruction, homelessness etc. We were without power for 3 days and without water for 5. But our problems were pretty minimal compared to those living in neighbourhoods close to us.

And here's where the impressive actions of a little local church come in.

The pastor of this church (not our church, but a friend) lives in a house on the river which he moved into a month ago. On the night of the hurricane he had a foot of water and mud running through his downstairs rooms. That's all gone now, and has been replaced by a small army of people providing food for people in the area who have lost everything.

Three times a day, people from church gather to cook and then distribute hot meals around the neighbourhood - door to do. Kind of like meals on wheels, but its actually meals on gumboots - there is so much mud. When I joined the team last night, we walked carry meals through mud, twisted cars, rubbish and stormwater to reach people sitting in wrecked houses with no power and no water. What's more, it was pouring with rain and the river was starting to rise again - people were pretty tense.

The group from church has been doing this for a week or so, and they will continue to. I asked where the food comes from and he answered 'people just bring it.' Others in the area have realised what is going on and are dropping off bags of rice and other food. Its really quite amazing.

What they are doing is so valuable, because the infrastructure for helping people in relief centres or whatever doesn't really exist here - so its up to groups of individuals to make things happen. Its a great way for the local church to be taking an active, caring role in the community.

Reflections on preaching

2010-06-20T17:53:00.000-07:00

I preached my third sermon in Spanish today (on Deut 6:24-25 and 2 Peter 1:1-11 for the record).

Preaching in another language, especially a language which you are still very much a beginner in is a difficult process. For me, I do my usual work on the passage, work out a main point, application etc from which I construct my sermon outline. Then, I write the full text in English and make sure it makes reasonable sense. Then the fun really begins.

I then translate the sermon into Spanish - the dictionary and and verb book get a good workout, practicing pronunciation along the way. I then deliver the sermon, paragraph by paragraph to Lillian, our Spanish tutor who gently, but firmly takes the red pen to it. She points our grammatical errors, helps with with idioms that I might have missed and generally gives it some sense. In my first sermon I think my correction average was about 5 per sentence, but now I am down to about 2 I think.

That correction process will take a couple of hours.

Then, after all that, I need to do some practice - so I can speak the words clearly, with a reasonable accent, acceptable intonation and timing, and even the odd pause or emphasis.

And so, Sunday morning comes and I deliver the thing. I think it goes alright.

So here's the reflection. When I preach in English, I write and use a full text, but I don't need to use it all that much. I know the material, I know how I want to say it and so I do. I can have a lot more eye contact with the people I am speaking to and hence get a much better feel for how people are responding.

But in Spanish - things are so much different, and difficult. I'm so busy concentrating on the words, and what comes next and taking notice of the pronunciation notes I've made, that I hardly have time to look up from my notes. Someone could be having a heart attack in the second row (they actually sit in the second row here) and I might not notice!

And as for having a question or comment time - something I used to love back home - forget it! I am so exhausted by the time I've finished I couldn't put an answer together - and that is assuming that I can understand the question (which I usually can't).

I'm hopeful that in a couple of years I might look back on this and think 'Ah yes - I remember those days' - in a fond kind of 'do you remember that camping trip we went on and it rained the whole time and it was horrible' sort of way. But right now, well, the camping trip is well under way!

The value of solid teaching

2010-06-04T15:38:00.001-07:00

For many of you, solid and understandable Bible teaching is a meat and potatoes kind of thing. You have it, its normal, its good for you and it keeps you going. But, its kind of dull - in an inoffensive dull kind of way.

If that is you - can I encourage you to reconsider.

Largely because of the language barrier, meat and potatoes Bible teaching has been missing from our diet for the last 15 months. (Yes, we listen to mp3s, but its not the same). We miss sitting with people and discussing a passage in Bible study. We miss hearing the word expounded to us systematically and carefully and in a way which challenges.

One of the things that has made me realise how much I miss this was that last weekend we went to Dallas for what was basically a church weekend away. It was a small church (50 people or so) but they are committed to careful preaching, and so run a little conference each year. The speaker was excellent, the talks were careful and brilliant and the fellowship outstanding.

We did a round trip of 2100km for the joy of it - and it was worth it.

So - can I invite you dear reader, if you are in a situation where the preaching is meat and potatoes, and Bible study seems like a bit of a grind because 'we just keep reading the Bible' to not feel like it is boring or unimportant and therefore look for something more 'important' or a 'magic bullet'. Keep going, keep working, keep listening and growing - its the way God grows his church and his people.

If it feels to difficult to go to Bible study after work - please reconsider. Its an opportunity to serve and an opportunity not to be missed. If the drive to church feels a bit long, I reckon its not. If you feel like your programs at church need a bit of a spark - fair enough, but don't look for some magical technological fireworks - look for solid food in the taught word.

A report from Spain and England

2010-05-06T06:05:00.001-07:00

I've just spent the last two weeks in Spain and England on MOCLAM business. It was a great trip - very busy, but also very productive.

Its always great to meet people who are enthusiastic about providing training resources for Christians, especially in places where the scope of materials is fairly limited (for example, Spain). The friends I met in the north of Spain (Gijon and Bilbao) are keen to be sharing the gospel with people in a very materialistic and 'style conscious' society, which makes their work very difficult. Coming from Mexico I really noticed how expensive everything was, how glamorous most people were and how few kids there were around the place. Apparently the national birth rate (children per couple) is about 0.4. I asked a few people why this was so low, and the basic answer was 'kids get in the way of the life we want.' Hmmmm - no wonder its such a hard field to plough in Spain.

One of the interesting problems we face providing resources into Spain is that Spanish in Spain uses a different word for the second person plural pronoun. This means we need to produce a new edition of our materials, with vosotros rather than ustedes. Fortunately this is relatively straight forward and hopefully can be done quickly.

There is also something of a 'snob' problem providing materials to Spain from Latin America. I'm not sure Spanish people are all that thrilled about being taught by the 'colonies' but hopefully producing the materials locally can give things a more 'home grown' flavour.

In England I had a refreshing time hearing the Bible taught brilliantly at St Helen's Bishopsgate and at Christ Church Durham. It was so nice to sing songs in English - I found myself having tears in my eyes singing 'When I survey' at St Helen's. I'm not sure the trainee sitting beside me quite knew what to make of that!

I had productive meetings with publishers and distributors, as well as meeting some people who are very keen to give money to help the work of MOCLAM!

To top it all off I had 3 days with some great friends in Durham. Just hanging around, playing with their kids, being 'normal' was so refreshing.

My project for the next two weeks is to prepare my teaching notes for a Summer School intensive on Old Testament 1. I have a group of 4 students who I'm going to meet with 4 hours per day for 5 days to do the whole course. Sounds intense? Well, get this. They have 10 days between the end of their exams and the beginning of their summer classes - and they are going to spend 5 of those days with me studying Old testament. I think thats pretty impressive!

Thanks as always for your support and prayers.

CMS Global Vision

2010-04-16T15:18:00.000-07:00

Twice a year CMS publishes 'Global Vision' - an online magazine covering topics concerning mission, partnership with CMS, creative ways to be involved in mission - things like that.

The latest edition even has a review of blogs by CMS missionaries!

Can I suggest it would make worthwhile reading??

www.cms.org.au/globalvision

A week in Chile

2010-04-08T18:41:00.000-07:00

I've just returned from a great week in Chile. It was a two part trip - each part being quiet different.

I began at a rural conference centre just outside Temuco, about 600km south of Santiago. It was a beautiful spot - a bit like being in rural Tasmania. Green, cold, really nice! I spent the Easter weekend there with the Scarratts and about 35 students studying 'Introduction to the Bible'. Most of the students are doing an Education Degree and this was part of their accreditation so they could formally teach 'religion' in schools (Australian readers - this is the equivalent of School Scripture). It was a great class, lots of questions and discussion and because it was a residential conference there was plenty of time for personal discussion as well (as well as a couple of games of table tennis!)

On Sunday afternoon I returned to Santiago and spent two days visiting various people within the Anglican Diocese in Chile to discuss the ways they are using the Moore College material and learn from them. I stayed with our good friends Michael and Jo Charles - and it was a great time of catching up with them. I also got to feel my first earthquake! It wasn't a very big one, only 4.9 but the epicentre was only 45km away so it was actually pretty strong. Enough to make me put out a hand to rest on the wall and make the glasses clatter.

Of course Santiago suffered a big earthquake a few weeks ago and some of the damage is obvious. In the photo I've included you can see how one bridge shifted. The guide rails you can see used to join up and now are separated by about a metre (horizontally) and about 40cm (vertically).

As always, thanks for your interest and support.

Two worlds in Mexico

2010-03-07T13:26:00.000-08:00

Here in Mexico, we live in a country of two worlds. The haves, and the have nots. Depending on which report you read and on which scale they measure, something like 70% of the Mexican population lives in poverty. For example, the between our house and the school the girls are at there is a large 'informal' settlement made of bits of tin and wood where a large number of people live.

But then on the other hand, there is a significant middle, upper middle, and upper class here. Big houses, flashy and frequently washed cars (you can guess who does the washing), pampered children, designer clothes - the whole bit.

Last week I was travelling through Mexico City airport and had a really clear demonstration of the two different levels of living in Mexico.

Like many airports in the world, in Mexico City its hard to tell sometimes whether you are in an airport, or just in a shopping centre with arrival and departure gates. The terminal is wall to wall shops, selling all those travel essentials like large bottles of alcohol, 1.5kg toblerones, designer clothes, sunglasses and watches.

While I waited for my flight I was reading my book (ironically on the topic of money and wealth) and noticed one of the airport cleaning staff emptying the bins. Pretty standard stuff - expect for the fact that she wasn't just emptying the bin, she was sorting it and keeping any scraps that were useful. A half eaten muffin here, a couple of ketchup sachets there. The remnant chips from the bottom of a McDonalds bag and an untouched tortilla. Into her personal bag all these things would go.

Into another bag would be the PET bottles, the cans and any reasonable piece of cardboard - presumably for selling later on.

But what really caught my eye was that as I watched this process, the backdrop was the precisely arranged and brightly lit display window of a top end clothes outlet - full of customers trying on items which if push came to shove, I doubt they actually needed.

It was as if the cleaning lady was a performer who had somehow wandered onto the wrong stage.

Living in Mexico is forcing me to think a lot about questions of wealth, poverty, greed and economics - and scenes like this are certainly adding material to the thinking process.

I've run out of patience!

2010-02-09T18:47:00.000-08:00

Language learning is like climbing a mountain that just rises higher and higher into the clouds. You work hard, and you make progress, but the mountain just stretches ahead of you, and you still can't see the top. Sometimes you have times when the path is not so steep... it may even have a gentle down hill and you get to relax and enjoy view. They're the bits when you can see the progress that you've made and you can enjoy the way that you can communicate. But other times it's just hard slog and you can't see the progress at all.

I'm in one of the "hard slog" phases at the moment, so that colours everything that I say.

I'm frustrated and cross that I'm not understanding Spanish as well as I expect to and want to. We've been here for almost a year, and I've run out of patience with not understanding.

Those who know me will know that I'm a firm believer in solving problems. One way to solve the problem is to learn Spanish! Now given that I'm working on that, but the problem remains, I need another solution.

Today I realised something for the first time. My frustration is due to poor communication, but also, due to wrong expectations and unmet wants. If I change those wants and expectations, I can reduce my frustration, and that's got to help.

If I really trust God, I will trust that he is equipping me to do the job that he wants me to do. If I'm not able to converse easily in Spanish at the moment, it's because that's the way God wants me right now. God's ways and God's timing won't always match what we think is best, but they will always be best.

I need to pray that God will give me patience. Patience to trust in His timing. Patience to throw out unrealistic expectations and accept the way has God has equipped me now. Patient when I don't understand people. Patience to trust that he we use me with all my inadequacies in Spanish. Patience to keep working hard at learning and practicing. Patience to keep looking for ways to love and serve people just as I am now.

And courage is needed for all those things too!

By Sarah

What do you think about singing at church?

2010-02-08T19:43:00.000-08:00

I don't know about you, but I like singing at church. I particularly like singing in Spanish at church. Often words just seem to work better in Spanish and with accents and rrrrrolling our rrrrs it feels more 'musical' than English. Its also good for us as we learn Spanish because song words are usually slower and often repeated, so we can understand whats going on a bit better.

But, you'd be well aware that songs and their words can be a bit of a battleground in church. The 'we want hymns vs the 'we want a drum kit ' discussion will continue for the years to come I expect.

But there is another question that does the rounds from time to time - and thats 'What are we doing when we sing?'. Is the activity we are engaged in 'worship' (as the description of the time of singing and of the person who is leading us in the activity often suggests), is it teaching, is it edification, is it a mix of all? And what about the musicians who are playing. Are they performing, helping us to worship or just making it all sound better and more enjoyable?

I don't want to go into the ins and outs of the debate here - I just want to reflect on a practical example of how what you think you are doing when you are singing comes out in practice.

In most churches these days the song words are projected onto a screen. Song words have evolved from hymn books to overhead projectors to data projectors. My personal favourite was the overhead projector - there's nothing quite like watching the operator get flustered when he can't seem to get the words up the right way - no matter what he does they seem to be upside down or backwards - great stuff!

Anyway - here's the question. What do you do when halfway through a song the projection method fails? The second sheet of words is lost or the bulb blows or the computer dies or whatever. For whatever reason the congregation can't see the words anymore. The musicians and the singers can - their music is in front of them, but the congregation can't join in any longer.

What do you do?

I think your reaction to that situation is a good indication of your theology of singing in church.

There are basically two options. Stop, or keep going.

If you stop then you are saying singing is for the congregation. If they can't sing, then we'll stop until they can.

If you keep going, I think you are saying singing is something we observe and join in if we want to, but its essentially a spectator sport.

For mine, I'm with the first option. I don't think singing is an 'act of worship' any more than washing up the coffee cups is. I don't think singing brings us into the presence of God - the blood of Jesus does that. Singing is about encouraging and teaching one another, expressing our joy in Christ to one another and reflecting on who God is.

So should we stop when the projection fails? Absolutely. Should we break out the hymn books instead? Maybe - or maybe just have a spare bulb handy!

Decisions decisions...

2010-01-24T17:56:00.001-08:00

One of the difficult decisions a 'one off' preacher needs to make is 'Which text will I preach from?'

I have such a decision ahead of me in the next couple of days. I've been asked to preach at our new 9:30 service next Sunday, and as usual its the 'your choice' direction from the organisers.

But wait - I also have another choice. Which language?

If I preach in English (I will be translated) its so much more straight forward. Preparing is quicker, speaking is more natural and I can concentrate more on delivery and emphasis, rather than being tied down to my text and wrestling with pronounciation.

But then again, I need to preach I Spanish - because thats what I need to learn to do. It means many more hours preparing and practicing - and even then people might not understand what I'm saying??

So what to do?

Actually I think the decision has a lot to do with what happens tomorrow. Monday afternoon could be a big preparation time for me, or it could be a time when I meet with a guy to start working through of the Moore College courses.

We'll see how it goes.

Supporting missionaries

2010-01-12T07:11:00.001-08:00

Over the past year several people have asked us how they can best support us and other missionaries.

Mark Rogers from the Gospel Coalition (a group of like minded friends in the US) has come up with some helpful guidelines here
http://thegospelcoalition.org/blogs/tgc/2010/01/06/10-ways-to-encourage-a-missionary/

(Careful readers might get a laugh at point #10).

Death and Life in Mexico

2009-11-16T18:38:00.001-08:00

Two weeks ago we celebrated 'Day of the Dead' in Mexico. Its a day when people gather at the grave of their loved ones to remember, think, touch up the grave and have a picnic.

Perhaps this snap that I took sums up death and life in Mexico?

How important is the bit of paper?

2009-10-27T13:55:00.000-07:00

We've been in Mexico for a bit over 8 months now, and have learnt stacks of things. In some ways living here is a bit like living in Sydney - apart from everything being in Spanish, but there are some (in fact, quite a few) profound differences.

Take for example the question of qualifications.

When I was teaching a PTC course to people in Sydney, I'd regularly say 'Remember, this course is not about the mark you get in the exam or the piece of paper that you will be awarded. This course is about your godliness and equipping for ministry.' And everyone would nod and get on with it.

When I teach PTC here is Latin America the reaction is very different. Its not that the students are not interested in the subject matter or growing in godliness and being equipped for ministry - far from it. The difference is, for many of them, the piece of paper, the qualification that comes as a result of completing this course is a really big deal.

Why the difference?

From (only) 8 months of observation, here are some preliminary thoughts and reflections.

1. For better or for worse, the system of education here is much more respectful of authority. Teachers are held in the highest regard, their opinion carries great weight and therefore the qualification that they have as teacher is of great importance. Of course this can have all sorts of outcomes - ranging from a less than encouraging pattern of education to an inability to ask questions and process information. But, thats the way it is.

2. Because of this high view of authority, qualifications are an essential component in a resume when you're trying to get a job. And often we're not talking the quality of the qualification, but the quantity. The more certificates, diplomas, short courses and recognitions you have in your folder the better, because it makes you better at your job.

3. Jobs are often hard to get, especially ministry jobs where money is tight, so the more 'qualified' you are the more likely you are to get the job.

These factors, and I'm sure many more, lead to two very common questions being asked here when I talk about PTC.

(a) What degree or qualification will this work towards?
(b) Who will recognize / accredit the coursework I have done?

In my years of teaching in Australia I don't think I have ever been asked this question, and yet everytime I taught in Africa or start talking with people here in Latin America, it is raised almost without fail.

At the moment we have one option for counting PTC subjects towards a bachelor's degree - through FLET, a University based on Miami, USA. However this is an expensive option and not particularly accessible or satisfactory.

And so there is a great challenge ahead, and many questions being raised.

Australia has a great reputation when it comes to education - right up there with England and the USA (in fact often better). Should we be aiming for accreditation from an Australian institution?

The coursework as it stands is pretty much right for a degree level course, but what about the readings and assignments. Many of the required texts are not available in Spanish.

If an institution is going to award degree status, what will be the effect on other degrees offered by the institution?

These are important questions that do need to be thought about. The PTC is a world class 'product', and as more translations are completed, the questions of accreditation and recognition are going to keep coming.

Don't forget the gospel

2009-10-22T18:32:00.000-07:00

I've just finished reading CJ Mahaney's book 'The Cross Centred Life' (Lifechange Books : 2002). I read it mainly because its been translated into Spanish and I wanted to know whether its one to recommend to folks here.

Its a good little book - 85 little pages - and on one hand isn't all that profund. The message of the book could probably be summarised by the phrase 'In all the stuff that goes on in your Christian life, don't forget the gospel.' There's some snappy discussions on issues of justification, sanctification, legalism, guilt and a couple of other bits and pieces which are quite helpful.

But on the other hand, its a very profound book - because here in Latin America it brings a message that desperately needs to be heard. Don't forget the gospel.

It's not that people are deliberately forgetting the gospel (sure there are those who deliberately want to change it and water it down to take out all the 'yucky' bits like sin and judgement and salvation and those people need to remember the gospel as well but I don't think who CJ is writing to.) He's writing to the people who are being so weighed down with programs and fads and trying to imitate the latest guy and denominational politics and getting the music and technology just right - that they don't have time for the gospel any more.

Over the Christmas break I'm heading to a big student conference and I'll be interested to see how the gospel fares. The promotional literature is very schmick, very appealing and 'applied' with all the buzz words you need in this day and age of Christian conferences, but in the midst of that, I wonder where the gospel will be. I'll let you know.

But its easy to criticise others, point out their shortcomings and see how it 'should be done'. But aren't we all in danger of falling victim to being weighed down with Christian stuff, that we forget the gospel? It was a good reminder and challenge to me.

This week's photo comes from Cuatro Cienegas - a small desert town about 350km NW of Monterrey where we spent last weekend. One of the highlights was being in the midst of the annual monarch butterfly migration from Canada to central Mexico.

What is successful mission?

2009-10-08T10:21:00.000-07:00

What makes successful mission work?

I guess its a question most missionaries, mission agencies and mission supporters will find themselves asking at some stage. We're very early on in our time here in Mexico, but we're starting to think more about the shape of our ministry here, and of course the question of 'whether it will be successful or not' is coming up.

Fortunately we had a visit last week from a couple of wise and godly friends, and in the context of our meeting we read some of 1 Thessalonians - and as God would have it, there's a lot in there which helps answer this questions.

Here's a few quick thoughts about what Paul thinks (I think) makes a successful mission. (from 1 Thess 2)

Successful mission has happened when:

1. The gospel of God has been boldly declared. (v2)
Throughout Paul's mission trips in Acts and the letters he writes, there is no question that he wants to clearly and boldly declare the gospel of God - that is the reason he is there. Of course this sometimes brings him into conflict with the locals and therefore puts him in danger, but notice here that whether he gets beaten up or not isn't a mark of success or failure (if anything, it seems to be a mark of success!). Success is determined by the bold declaration.

2. The gospel declaration is pleasing to God, not men. (v4-5)
Successful mission happens when the desire to please God in what is said overturns the desire to please the human audience. Sometimes this will mean the suffering mentioned in v2 will happen, but you can hear Paul saying 'so be it.' Hollow promises are not make, untruths are not spoken, shallow and short term fixes are not proposed. The gospel is preached faithfully, fully and truthfully.

3. The missionaries don't look for glory (v6)
Because true ministry is God-glorifying, not self-glorifying, successful mission happens when the hearers give glory to God rather than rave on about how great the missionary is. It doesn't mean the missionary can't be appreciated, but it will change the motive for mission. Am I doing this to boost my own ego, or for the sake of the kingdom?

4. There is gentleness, caring, openness and a sharing of life (v7-8)
Successful mission happens not just in a one hour preaching spot or a week long intensive teaching class, but in the whole life of the missionary. In their home, over meals, in ongoing concern and love. With gentleness and compassion. For us here in Mexico as we struggle to learn Spanish, this is a very good motivation for us to keep going in our language work - it is very difficult to love people as a mother loves her children if you can't talk to them or understand their lives.

5. The conduct of the missionary is blameless (v10)
I have to admit this is a tough one, but it is true. Success is measured by the impact the gospel of God makes on the life of the missionary. If we as missionaries are not prepared to be challenged and transformed by the gospel, why do we think others should be?

6.An exhortation to a godly walk (v12)
Just as the missionary needs to live a godly life, so he or she needs to call on others to do so, afterall, the message of the gospel is a message that needs to be responded to in repentance and obedience. If we are not asking people to change, we're not faithfully preaching the gospel.

7. There is a response, and glory is given to God (v13)
The interesting thing about this survey is that the only 'result' so far is that of the life of the missionary himself. There is no mention of conversion numbers or the legacy that is left or anything like that. Success is much more about the way the missionary conducted himself and what he did.
In verse 13 there is talk of 'results' - but notice that the thanks and glory goes to God - so it is his success, rather than the missionaries.

The bottom line - if we're looking to be successful in mission, we need to look at ourselves, our methods and our motivations, rather than the numbers and spectacular stories (encouraging as sometimes they may be).

Some musings about money

2009-09-16T18:29:00.000-07:00

There's some pretty big building projects going on in Sydney churches at the moment. Even from the other side of the world the constructions seem impressive and I'm sure there are many people who are going to benefit. But as I read about 'state of the art audio systems', 'cutting edge cinema quality video' and 'up to the minute podcast and vodcast facilities' - and how much all this sort of stuff costs - it has got me wondering a bit about the Christian dollar and the worldwide perspective.

For example, I've just spent a week in a county where the most up to date teaching aid was a handheld whiteboard and the climate control was a couple of fans to push the humidity laden hot air around. Pastors have to have a 'day job' because there's hardly enough money in the economy to eat, let alone pay someone to minister in your church. The course I was teaching cost the equivalent of 1 month's average wage - which of course they could not pay. Some donors in England raised the money - at the cost of an average sandwich and coffee in London per student.

Clearly there is a great disparity here. On one hand christians in one part of the world are spending millions on dollars on new buildings and facilities, while in another part they are scraping together a few bucks to buy paper for weekly hymn sheets.

I know I'm not the first person to identify this disparity or to think about it - but here's a few questions its got me pondering about.

- When we spend megabucks on new buildings and the latest equipment that goes inside, are we being good stewards? Should we be going for something a bit more 'plain' and sending the difference overseas?

- Do we sometimes convince ourselves that the latest and greatest is needed because that is what the non-Christian world is used to and therefore won't give us a hearing if we don't have it? Are we putting too much confidence in technology at this point, rather than in the power of God's word?

- Is there a problem with the way the Christian community gives money? Will we readily give to local projects and buildings - but less so to offshore projects and people?

- Should we be asking similar questions about staffing levels in churches? When we want the money for that new assistant minister / youth worker / kid's minister / .... do we look at the money that is going to our missionaries and see a disparity. If so, should we consider that?

- Are we serious about supporting worldwide mission when it comes to $$?

I certainly don't have the answers to all of this - but I think they (and other similar questions) are worth thinking about.

Today's photo comes from Mexican Independence Day celebrations in the town of Allende, about 1hrs drive south of Monterrey.

Exciting opportunities this week

2009-09-04T07:12:00.000-07:00

In the last week we've had some exciting opportunities to be teaching the Bible.

Last Friday Sarah read Colossians with a friend. It was refreshing for Sarah and the friend described it as "like water in the desert". We read 14 verses in Spanish and then talked about it (in English and Spanish) using the light bulb, question mark and arrow framework.

On Sunday Pete met with a leader from church who is keen to be running something to train the uni age people. After discussion it was decided that Pete will teach the Moore College Introduction to the Bible course regularly on Sunday nights.

Yesterday Pete went to the leaders meeting for the Christianity Explored course which is due to start this week. He discovered that he was leading the meeting as he was introduced. But it was a great time encouraging 20 leaders to be leading groups to help people read Mark and let God's powerful word do it's work.

Pete has also been preparing his teaching notes for a course in another Latin American country next week. He'll be teaching Intro to the Bible to 12 pastors who will then train other teachers. Lillian (Sarah's tutor) checked his translation of some of his notes, and he was pleasantly surprised by how impressed she was with his Spanish. It will still be necessary to use a translator for much of the time.

It's exciting to see the way that God is opening doors for us, and then equipping us to step through them. It's also exciting to see people around us asking for help to understand the Bible and grow as Christians.

"It's almost impossible to be a missionary from America"

2009-08-04T19:46:00.000-07:00

"Its hard being a Christian in America, its almost impossible to go out as a missionary from America"

So says John Piper, speaking in his annual 'Missions Week' address at Bethlehem Baptist Church in Minneapolis.

The strange thing was, I was listening to the talk, sitting in a bus driving down the interstate from Idaho Falls to Salt Lake City, where we were catching a plane to come home from holidays.

We'd just spent two weeks with dear friends in comfortable, organised, 'everything works' middle America. We'd enjoyed fantastic national parks in the Grand Tetons and Yellowstone, eaten great food, enjoyed warm fellowship and appreciated the wealth of our surroundings.

But now it was time to go home. Back to chaotic, grungy Mexico. And here I was listening to these words.

Pastor Piper's point was this. To be Christian in America is difficult because the lure of comfort and materialism and money is very strong. To put all that aside and go to another country for the sake of the gospel is almost impossible.

I'm not commenting on this so you feel sorry for us or put us on a pedestal - neither of those things are appropriate (especially the pedestal one!!) But I do want to say - after seeing what we saw and experienced what we experienced in the US, I think he is absolutely right.

Where we were in Idaho was a great place to live (in Summer at least!!). In some ways, it had a 'shire' feel to it (Sydney-siders will know what I mean). It's beautiful, why would you want to leave? In fact, I can see how all over America, there are great temptations to think that God is truly blessing people because of their comfortable houses and efficient transport and giant shopping malls and all that.

But he calls on us to give all that up for the sake of following Jesus.

We found it difficult coming back to Mexico. Our Spanish brains took a while to reconnect, it was hard to get re-adjusted the pace of life here and we missed being with our close friends. But we're back into it now - and going pretty well.

Thanks again for your interest and support.

The cat performance

2009-06-26T08:03:00.000-07:00

This is it... I did it...I performed as a cat in Spanish!

As part of the celebrations of Day of the Child at Miriam's school, a group of mothers (and one father) performed a play about a cat and some mice, and I was the cat. I learnt all my lines in Spanish (and it was not just miow!), but was not looking forward to wearing a huge foam and fur mascot costume (complete with enormous foam head, gloves and foam feet) in 35+ degrees.

And just to make things even more difficult, the head only had a tiny opening for the cats mouth for me to see, hear and speak through. This meant, I couldn't see very much, I could barely hear the other dialogue, and for anyone to hear me, I had to shout. But wait there's more: the mice actors were in the room - their mouse house - with the audience, but the cat stays outside. So the difficulties that I faced were trying to work out where the other actors were up to without being able to see or hear them properly, trying to manouver my enormous cat body in a small space to look into the mouse house, and delivering lines in Spanish, correctly pronounced at shouting volume, all while sweating copiously and smelling everybodies sweat who'd worn the costume before me!

However, moments before the opening curtain, someone had the brilliant idea that I could act, but somebody else could say my lines so that they could be heard! I breathed a sigh of relief (amidst the stink of the cat head) and the show went on.

The kids loved it, the cat was their favorite, the teachers and parents were very sympathetic with my sweaty state, and full of admiration of my performance and that I got involved when it was so difficult, and I had a great time. I'd forgotten how much I love to perform, and it was fun to be involved and work with the other mums.

Sarah

The end of the school year

2009-06-25T11:11:00.000-07:00

Tomorrow marks the end of the 08/09 school year here in Mexico. There are various class parties etc on, although with 2 days to go K and L are still getting homework to do! School starts again some time in late August (although we're not exactly sure of the date), so the girls have about 2 months off school. We're going away for 2 weeks, and then we'll be at home, getting stuck into language learning. K and L will have 4 x 1hr lessons per week, S will have 3 x 2hr lessons per week and I'm going to intensive mode for August, 4hrs/day x 5 days per week for a month!

Hopefully this will be a big step up in ability for all of us.

On the 'work' front it looks like I'll be going to a large island south of Florida for a week to visit with the Creation to New Creation course in September. There is a seminary there that wants to take on the courses for their students, and I am going to go over and share with the students and faculty the details of the first course. It is a great opportunity. The biggest challenge will be that the whole thing will be in Spanish - so I really have to get cracking. I will have a translator with me but it is much better if I can try and do things myself.

This week's picture comes from my trip to Mexico City last month. It's the main cathedral in the Zócalo (the main plaza) in Mexico City. Construction of the cathedral began in 1573 with the Spanish making a point by building it right on top of an Aztec temple!

God prepares good works

2009-06-17T19:37:00.000-07:00

I had one of those moments when God very clearly showed me that he is the one who prepares our good works in advance (Ephesians 2:10).

I was sitting in Bible study feeling very grumpy, and like I didn't want to be there. I'd had the token greeting with the people beside me, and then sat uncomfortably in silence. The conversation went on around me, but it was too fast and I had no hope of understanding, let alone joining in.

But as the group went on, I remembered that at times I'd had similar feelings about my Spanish Bible study group in Melbourne. And that was one of the most valuable groups I've been part of. So I worked hard at humbling my attitude, and prayed that I'd be patient, and kept listening out for the occasional word that I understand.

At the end of the group I helped to serve dinner, then sat with a lady away from the rest of the group. She is the mother of the host and I'd spoken with her once before. In an attempt to make conversation, I asked her (in English) what she thought of the course that we had just finished. She was full of admiration for all that she'd been hearing about and the transformation of her son since he'd become a Christian. Then she said, "But I am a catholic. I am too old to change". I desperately wanted her to know Jesus, and I wanted to respectful to this kind, older lady. So as the conversation went on, I shared with her a conversation that I'd had with Miriam a few days earlier.

"Mummy do good people go to heaven and bad people go to hell?"
I replied, "Do you think you're good or bad?"
"I don't know."
"Do you think you're good enough for God?"
"No".
"Is there anyone who's good enough for God"
"Jesus is."
"That's right. That's why when Jesus died, his death was good enough to pay for my punishment."
"So how does anyone go to heaven?, I asked Miriam.
"By trusting Jesus", says Miriam with a smile. "So does that mean that if a bad person trusts Jesus they can go to heaven?"
"That's exactly right!" "What about if a good person doesn't trust Jesus?" I asked her.
"They go to hell."
"Yep", was all I needed to say.

I think it's easier to say hard things clearly out of the mouth of a 5 year old.

But the lesson that I learnt (again) is how much God prepares our good works for us. I was feeling like it was a complete waste of time being in the group. But God has his plans, and I just need to be patient to see how he will use me.

Sarah

Sunday school camp and Moore College news

2009-06-14T14:47:00.001-07:00

As graduates of Moore Theological College, Sarah and I were both really encouraged to read the latest 'Moore Matters'. There is a particularly good spread on where Moore graduates are serving around the world.

If you haven't read it yet, can I encourage you to do so.

http://www.moore.edu.au/fileadmin/publications/latestmoorematters.pdf

On the home front, we have two weeks of school left before the long Summer holidays. I (Pete) finish my current Spanish course at Universidad Autonomos de Nuevo Leon this week, with a final exam. I'm still working out what my next step in language learning will be. Hopefully an intensive during the Summer period then another Uni class.

Last weekend the we joined 50 or s0 4-12 year olds on our Sunday school camp. It was 40+C and exhausting! We camped at the 'weekend house' of a family - and as you can see, they had a pool. I became the lifeguard as most of the kids overestimated their swimming ability and there wasn't much supervision. As you can see from the picture though, the big danger was not drowning, but being squashed!

It was a real cultural experience for us. The first kid's talk started at 11:45pm on Friday night, and we charged around all day on Saturday - in Spanish of course. We were absolutely exhausted , but it meant that the girls were able to connect a bit with some of the kids in their Sunday school classes.

Oh, and by the way, did we tell you that we are expecting?? The latest additions to our family should arrive in the next week or so, as the hummingbird that has taken up residence in our tree hatches her eggs. We think it will be twins! Very exciting.

My first 'work trip'

2009-06-01T14:43:00.000-07:00

I (Pete) have just come back from my first 'work trip'. Once I start doing more MOCLAM work I'll be doing quite a few of these, so it was a good taste of what is to come.

I went to Mexico City (called D.F. by Mexicans) for a 2 day conference promoting the 'Christianity Explored' course. The course author, Rico Tice has been travelling around Latin America for 5 weeks with Grahame and Patty Scarratt promoting the course and encouraging people to evangelise their friends using Mark's gospel.

Last week the roadshow came to Monterrey and I then joined in on the trip to D.F.

It was a great couple of days for quite a few reasons.

1. I got to hear some really encouraging talks in English (Rico spoke in English and was translated). It was refreshing to be fed in my own language!

2. I had a great couple of days of fellowship with Rico as we compared notes and enjoyed a massive steak at an Argentinian steak house.

3. I had a great time staying with fellow CMS missos Charlie and Kathryn Fletcher. Charlie works with COMPA, the Mexican IFES group. It was encouraging and refreshing to spend time with them, hear what is happening in COMPA and be a sounding board for some exciting developments concerning their long-term staffworker training.

4. Perhaps most of all, it was great to meet a whole lot of Mexican people who were keen to take God's word seriously and put in the hard yards of teaching it to others. I was able to discuss ways in which the Moore College courses could be used in various scenarios - including as the base syllabus for a new seminary which is being planned for Mexico. This was a long conversation and would never have happened via email or phone. It was one of those classic cases where you have to hang around with people for a while, and the conversations arise.

The only down side to the whole thing was that I came home to find everyone sick with runny noses. It seems to be an affliction which is hitting many people in Monterrey at the moment (no - its not the swine flu, just a common cold) so I am awaiting my turn.

By the way, many of you will know that we are here because CMS is supporting us. I hope you can see that even though it costs them a fair bit of money, trips like this and the positives that come of it are well worth it. Of course CMS needs supporters so they can look after us, so can I remind you of the current CMS appeal http://www.cms.org.au/catch-vision

Getting back to 'normal'

2009-05-19T14:42:00.001-07:00

After 2 weeks of swine flu lockdown and a week of 'all over the place', we feel like we are slowly getting back to normal. (Just in time for the summer holidays which are rapidly approaching!)

As you can see by the picture a new item has been added to the school uniform, although most of the kids take it off after walking through the front gate. Swine flu is still a big topic of conversation here, and many end of year school events like concerts, presentations and sports finals have been cancelled due to the government restricting gatherings of people.

School has been extended by a week to try and make up for lost ground, and I (Pete) am having extra classes at Uni to make up for the ones that were lost during the lockdown.

At church we have stated the Rick Warren '40 days of purpose' program, which means small groups have been formed for the 6 week period only. Sarah's group is on Monday night, starts at 9pm and finishes with a massive meal! Mine is on Tuesday nights - and our pastor makes a guest appearance each week via video! Its been interesting to see how they 'do' small groups here in Mexico.

Tomorrow we welcome Grahame and Patty Scarratt to stay with us for a week or so, and we'll also be hosting Rico Tice (of 'Christianity Explored'). The course has been translated into Spanish and there is a conference here this week promoting it, and the Moore College courses. We're really looking forward to having the Scarratts here - it will be great see have some familiar faces around.

We're also getting back to 'normal' in that we're both feeling overwhelmed and inadequate in our language proficiency. Its going to take a long time!

The terror of hospitality

2009-05-11T14:54:00.000-07:00

In my Ashbury days, this was a completely foreign concept. What could be terrifying about hospitality? Well now I know.

Inviting someone to do something with me is the scariest thing in my life at the moment. Who will I invite? What will I invite them to? What time should I make it? What food should I serve? What are the right snacks and drinks to get? What will my kids do? What will their kids do? How can I help the kids to play together when their languages barely overlap, let alone knowing each other as friends? Will it be too unpleasantly hot to feel comfortable sitting and chatting? Should I try and speak in Spanish, and have this awkward, frustratingly slow, superficial conversation, or do I try and build the friendship more and use English? And how do I arrange it - am I brave enough to use the phone?

Can you see why I find hospitality terrifying?

Fortunately, God in His kindness has shown me a way through the terror. Notice I said "through", not "around". I still experience the terror, but I can do the hospitality as well. The way through has been in small steps, and to trust that being obedient to God is the right way to go. I know that hospitality, and serving people, and building relationships with people to love them, is what God wants, and so I do it.

Apart from hosting a birthday party for Miriam (which kept me awake at night!), the first thing I initiated was an activity outside my home. Then I invited a school mum to come for the afternoon. This gave me confidence to invite another mum for the afternoon. She and her whole family ended up staying for a spontaneous dinner. This gave me confidence to invite another family for lunch (which ended up being dinner at their brother's place with a pool).

I still feel the terror. I still feel that I get lots of things wrong. But I do it. And I'm learning as I go. And God has never let me down.

Still in lockdown

2009-05-07T06:32:00.000-07:00

The school closure has been extended to Monday. The vibe in the home school is getting a little strained and hot nights making it difficult to sleep is not helping.

Pete goes back to his language school tomorrow (Friday) and Sarah is very thankful that her language tutor is brilliant. After two lessons I'm starting to feel like I'm making progress again.

God is kind.

A week on...

2009-05-03T18:46:00.000-07:00

We've been in 'lockdown' mode for a week now. Each morning has been school at home for the kids, then various activities in the afternoon - none of which include going and seeing people. Sarah and I both feel like our Spanish is suffering, because we're not seeing anyone.

Today we had family church at home. Each of the girls presented a Sunday school lesson, then we prayed for our fellow missionaries around the world. Good fun - and we even got to do some craft.

We are expecting that in the next 24 hours the government will announce whether we all go back to school and Uni on Wednesday, or whether the lockdown is extended. My hunch is it will be back to work, as the number of cases here is leveling off and I think the economy is suffering as well! Its all very well for the government to say 'everyone just stay at home for 5 days', but in a country where a lot of people are on the breadline, that's a tough ask.

Its also been a tough few days because its starting to get really hot. Over 40C every day now, and the nights don't cool down much. We do have a/c in the house, but only in the bedrooms, and electricity here is pretty expensive so we can't run them on and on. We're drinking heaps of water - about 20L between us every two days. We know that because we have to go to the shop and keep buying it. Fortunately, water is cheap - about $2.50 for 20 litres.

So now we wait - to see what the government will say.

A word from Sarah

2009-04-28T20:04:00.000-07:00

We are feeling well sustained by God through people's prayers. It's wonderfully amazing to notice the number of times a day that God provides just the right strengthening, provision, language skill, friend, helper etc, at just the right time. Even trivial things like today i went to find a clothes shop that Karina had won a voucher to. I found the address, but it just looked like a suburban house. I was about to drive away when someone pulled up who clearly looked like the owner of a dress shop. Sure enough, she caught my eye, spoke to me in English, and in I went. It didn't really matter if i never went into this shop, but God takes care of the details.

There are far more valuable ways that God is caring for us, but I think the trivial demonstrate the breadth of God's care of us as individuals.

I had my best and worse language experience last week. On Tuesday I climaxed by bursting into tears on Miriam's teacher when she asked how I was. On Friday I walked along the river to talk to a stranger to practice my Spanish. The first lady said no, but the second was perfect. (There was much terror and prayers between the first and second!) She spoke to me clearly and slowly, was patient to correct me and help me to get things right, and she only used English to help me over a hurdle every now and then. We walked and talked for 40 minutes - and it was in Spanish all the way. I'm sure God gave me the gift of tongues just for the morning to give me a lift, because he knew I needed it!

The swine flu is having a huge effect on Mexico and Monterrey in particular. To cancel all schools, unis and public gatherings, for almost two weeks, in about 6 states (more than 30million people) is a huge deal. The streets here are very quiet like very early on a Sunday morning. Shops are open, but there's just about no-one in them. Some people are wearing face masks, but not everyone.

We are perfectly well and are trying to make the most of the time that we have. We're being proactive in home schooling the girls and helping them progress in English, Spanish, maths, violin, basketball and art. Although this afternoon we all went to a friends house and sat around chatting and eating icecream in the back courtyard while 6 kids played in a huge paddling pool! (A good option when it's 32.)

Thanks again for your prayers. They are a delight to God, and sustenance for us.

Latest on the swine flu

2009-04-26T20:10:00.000-07:00

Hi everyone,

I guess you've heard about the swine flu outbreak by now. It started in DF (Mexico City) but has now made it here to Monterrey. There have been 10 cases and 1 death so far (although that lady had come from DF).

Now, at 10pm we have just heard that schools will be shut for the next 2 weeks - including Universities - so there will be no language school for me. I think that decision will be reviewed in a couple of days but we have to wait and see. We are being urged to not gather in large groups, have personal contact etc.

There doesn't seem to be a great deal of worry amongst the people around us - I think they are looking forward to a bit of a holiday from school - but we'll see how that mood changes as and if the situation gets worse.

We'll certainly be praying that things don't get worse here in Mexico - perhaps you could join us in that.

Pete

The calm before the storm...

2009-04-19T08:43:00.001-07:00

We were woken by a very unusual sound today - thunder, accompanied by rain! This is very unusual for Monterrey - at this time of year the maximum temperatures are around 35C and the humidity is around 20%. The dust blows in from the desert and its generally hot and dry.

We've been enjoying a week off from school and all the usual routines this week - but it all starts again tomorrow. The girls will go back to school and Sarah and I are starting at a new language school. We'll be in class for 2 hrs, 3 times per week and will be trying to find regular conversation partners outside these hours. Sarah will be in the Level 1 class to try and get some grammar basics cemented to complement her growing conversation skills, and I'll be in Level 3, building on the intensive month class that I completed in March.

School, and language school will go until mid-June, when we have the long end-of-academic year holiday - almost two months. This is when it gets seriously hot in Monterrey, so we don't know what we'll be doing in that time.

If you have spare prayer time, perhaps you could be praying for us all as we get back into the routine of early mornings, driving to school and classroom work. It's been a luxurious two weeks of sleeping in and enjoying some rest.

Back from a week in Guadalajara

2009-04-12T18:36:00.000-07:00

Hi everyone,

Happy Easter (it's still Easter here). We've just returned from a 2100km round trip to Guadalajara. Here's a few pictures, some thoughts, and some prayer points.

The front of the main cathedral in Zacatecas

Yes - there were lots of cactuses (ii?)

It wasn't all hard work.

Jan Kennington (grey hair) at the MOCLAM stall.

We went to Guadalajara for VIVE09, a missions conference run by COMPA, the Mexican IFES affiliated group. It was kindof like MYC with a missions twist (if MYC means anything to you!) with about 700 people there.

Each day there were talks, seminars, meals, fun and lots of singing - which was good for us because it really helps us in our Spanish learning. There were a number of speakers, speaking on a range of topics from themes in John's Gospel to Being Christian in the professional workplace.

All sorts of things struck me, but one particular one was that there was a great emphasis in being a Christian within your profession, God has led you into that profession - make the most of it as a 'mission field'. It was interesting to hear that, whereas in Sydney we often hear the call to leave the profession you are in and become a 'professional' minister. I don't think I heard that issue raised once.

The conference was held at a hotel owned by the University of Guadalajara, situated about 30km from the city - so it was quite nice. As you'll see from a couple of photos, it wasn't all hard work.

We came back through the colonial mining town of Zacatecas (8,600ft) which was a great insight into some Mexican history.

Today is Easter Day, so we thought before we went to our own church we might go into the Catholic Cathedral in town and have a look at how Mexican Catholics 'do' Easter. And what did we find? Well, nothing really. There were lots of crowd barriers and extra seats seat up - but it was all for Friday - 'Black Friday' as it is called here. Their emphasis on Easter is on the death of Jesus - its almost as if the resurrection doesn't rate a mention. But while we thought about it, thats exactly what we see in all the religious art here - Jesus is either a baby (usually in the arms of Mary), dying or dead (often in the arms of Mary). He is practically never portrayed as risen or glorious - I'm sure there are lots of theological themes to chase through there.

Anyway - its been a big week. I (Pete) have been quite unwell along the way (heavy flu, then side effects from antibiotics) but am getting better now.

Here's a few prayer points.

Thanks

- for a smooth trip and a safe time on the roads

- for a good opportunity to meet up with some old friends and make some new ones

- for a great insight into COMPA, how and where they are operating

- for the safe arrival of our boxes from Australia while we were away

Requests

- for a good week as a family this week - the girls are off school for another week

- for progress in Spanish, and for good decision making in terms of what language learning option to use next.

- that we'd be gracious and gentle as we seek to proclaim the news of the risen Jesus.

A few photos of normal life

2009-03-29T14:52:00.000-07:00

We're now getting settled into our new house. Our stuff hasn't arrived yet, but we are hopeful it might happen this week.

On Friday we're going on a 2000km road trip to Guadalajara - across the other side of Mexico. We're going to VIVE09, a student missions conference run by COMPA - the Mexican IFES group. It'll be a week with 700 students doing Bible study, singing, praying, doing seminars and mucking around. Should be fun, but also exhausting for all.

Meanwhile, here's a few snaps of our house and surrounds.

This is looking up our street. Our house is behind the blue bin.

A couple of weeks ago we went to a waterfall where they had kids rides and picnic stuff. This is a twisty, deep fried potato with sauce!

This is the view across the valley - taken just down the hill from our house.

Karina washing the car. Because we're on the edge of the desert, its very dusty so we have to do lots of cleaning!

Updated prayer points March 19 2009

2009-03-19T13:58:00.000-07:00

We are very grateful for the large number of people we know are praying for us as we settle into Mexico. Its been a great encouragement to have requests for additional prayer points and information - so here are some up to date points.

* Sarah has been quite sick over the last two weeks. She has been suffering from a very heavy flu which kept her in bed for a week, and meant she had no voice for 5 days. We are thankful to God that he has healed her and she is feeling much better, although would still like an afternoon snooze!

* Lucy has been struck with a lesser version of the same disease so had to take two days off school (including her birthday yesterday). She went to school today but is about to head off to the doctor.

* Everyone else is well!

* We are moving into our new house tomorrow (Friday). This is a great answer to prayer and we will enjoy the new space this will give us. Its also a little closer to school so the morning routine will be shorter.

* We are thankful that we have been able to start assembling the furniture we need and are praying that deliveries will come as promised.

* We still don't know when the goods we shipped will arrive - however we now have confirmation that they will be arriving in Monterrey - not a port 550km away! (It has taken a while to arrange this!) Pray that our goods would arrive soon.

* We are very thankful to God for answering our prayers about school for the kids. All three of them are really enjoying FORMUS, have great teachers and have started making friends. They are not too phased by the fact that everything is in Spanish, and have said how it is starting to 'seep' into their heads.

* Pete has been at fulltime language school for 3 weeks - and while has learnt a lot and made good progress, is feeling very overwhelmed. Next week he will have a 1-1 week with the teacher reviewing what has been done so far.

* Sarah has been out of action for a while in terms of language, but is getting back into it now. You could pray that she would find someone who will be a good language helper.

* We have decided to join a large Presbyterian church here, and people have been very welcoming. Pete has been invited to join the men's group (but due to family illness hasn't been able to go yet), Sarah has been to the house of one lady, and the kids have started going to Sunday school. There is a good kid's program at the church, which is good because church goes for 2 hours.

* We are very thankful for a couple of Mexican people who have been amazingly helpful to us. David and Claudia, and Vicente and Adriana have spent many hours helping us with jobs, getting things sorted out. Please thank God for them.

* Please pray that as we move into our new house that we would establish a godly household and not get too caught up in getting things sorted out. We've already met one of our neighbors (when he ran into our car) and they have kids the same age as ours - so we are hoping we will develop a good friendship there.

Thanks for your prayers.

You might also be interested to see a short movie I have made. You can download it at

https://www.yousendit.com/download/UmNLZEUrcTI4Q1EwTVE9PQ

The ICC agree with my last post!

2009-01-14T19:20:00.000-08:00

It would seem that the ICC (International Cricket Council) agree with my last post. They are putting pressure on Channel 9 to drop the constant references to betting rates. I suspect the ICC are motivated by issues of match fixing and player integrity rather than a social conscience, but at least they are doing it.

Watch the cricket... without the gambling

2008-12-25T20:57:00.000-08:00

Christmas holidays in Australia brings all those certainties of life - the Sydney to Hobart, the threat of bushfires, crowds at post-Christmas sales and of course, cricket.

I love the cricket. I love the ebb and flow of the game, the personalities, the careers that develop and wane, and the long-lasting tension. I even love some of the gadgets that Channel Nine come up with to 'improve' our viewing. The 'hot spot' is great.

But unfortunately this year a new feature has crept in which, although popular, is at best unhelpful, and at worst, downright dangerous.

It seems that Channel 9 has stitched up a deal with a major online betting provider, and as part of the deal, they seem obliged to regularly mention the current market on who is going to win, what is going to be the score etc. Apart from this being annoying, it is yet again an invitation for people to throw away their money, thinking that they might gain a quick and easy reward.

Australia clearly has a problem with gambling - the basic statistics of $/head gambled, number of poker machines etc demonstrate that. But the problem is far greater that an economic one - with major family and social dislocation resulting in the vast majority of problem gambling cases.

Please Channel 9 - get a social conscience and drop the deal. Please everyone, enjoy the cricket - but keep your credit card in your pocket.

(By the way - do you think we are witnessing Hayden's last series??)

'Tis the season for ... ridiculous gifts!

2008-12-04T18:44:00.000-08:00

Well, the mailbox is filling with Christmas junk mail again - so it's time to play that favourite game 'Spot the most ridiculous Christmas gift!'

Its the game where the marketers try to convince you that you really need something you don't need, and we all prove that in fact our society has a lot more money than it really needs.

As usual the early running has been made by the 'superfluous kitchen gadgets' page in the Myer catalog. Alongside such seasonal regulars as the Popcorn maker and the donut maker - this season there is a new gadget that I think just could win the coveted 'Most ridiculous Christmas gift' crown.

Its the Sunbeam 'Eggo'. It "hard boils or poaches eggs and tweets when ready." Thats right, for only $37.95 you can buy a machine that will .... wait for it .... boil an egg! Call me old fashioned, but when I was a lad, we used a saucepan to do that.

Apart from the craziness of buying such an contraption and having it take up bench space in your kitchen - what does it say about our world, that Sunbeam thinks its worthwhile spending time and money developing such a product. You've got to assume they have done their market research and thinks this little baby will sell.

Is it possible that our consumerism has made our mind go a little runny? Have we allowed our sense of what is necessary to become a yolk? Are our priorities getting scrambled?

If you're tempted to buy someone something totally useless this Christmas - stop! Don't do it! Either think carefully and buy them something they need, or, failing that, buy them something someone else needs (like an item from the CMS gift catalog www. cms.org.au).

As we bear fruit, lets boil our own eggs the old fashioned way!

Being anxious and distressed because of our friends

2008-11-19T01:25:00.000-08:00

We're working through Philippians in Bible study at the moment, and last night came to 2:12-29. As expected we spent a lot of time working through 2:12-18, thinking about how we might shine as lights in the world etc - good stuff.

Then we got on to v19-29, where we hear about Paul, Timothy and Epaphroditus, the relationship they have with each other and the way they struggle and content for the truth of the gospel. We talked about being fellow workers and struggling for the gospel in our lives and contexts, but then spent some time talking about v26-28, especially the anxiousness and distress that the Philippians are having because they have heard of Epaphroditus' illness.

It got us wondering, would we describe what we feel for our friends when we hear of their illness or bad news as 'anxiousness' or 'distress'. Probably not - was the answer we came up with. We might feel sorrow, sympathy, compassion or worry - but probably not anxiousness or distress.

Of course we do feel these things when its our wife or our kids or our parents who are suffering, but not our mates at church.

So what does that tell us? Well, presumably the depth of the 'anguish' we feel when we hear of a calamity falling upon someone we know is directly proportional to the depth of our relationship with them. The closer we are, the more we feel it. An extreme example is if our child is sick we get worried, even anxious. If a child in Africa is sick - there is not effect on us whatsoever.

But for the Philippians, for Paul, Timothy and Epaphroditus - news of illness brought distress, sorrow and anxiety. Why? Because their relationship was one of Father and Son in the faith, because they were fellow workers and fellow soldiers in the gospel.

I wonder if this is a challenge to us? Perhaps the fact that we feel concern and sympathy rather than distress and anguish for our fellow workers is a sign that we need to deepen the relationships we have together? Perhaps part of that deepening of relationship comes in the mutual contending for the gospel, rather than just chatting over morning tea and having meals together? Should we be deepening our relationships with one another not just socially, but 'gospelly'?

Two encouragements to bear fruit

2008-11-16T18:48:00.000-08:00

I heard two great sermons yesterday - one 'live' and one on the radio. Each one had a point that really struck me as we live in the world that we do.

Sermon 1 - a 'state of the union' type address at one of our link churches.

There were lots of good points made by Phil, but the one that really struck me was that "a little religion is good for you in this world, but in the world to come it is useless".

We were looking at Matthew 10:34-39 and we were being encouraged to think that in Jesus' mind there weren't 'full on' Christians - just Christians. To have a little bit of religion, get a few of the moral bits or learn a few religious platitudes is actually in the long run useless.

He suggested that as Christians we can be tempted to become a bit 'flabby around the middle' rather than the lean mean Christians that Jesus wants us to be. Instead of being radical followers of Jesus, we can make Jesus 'a priority'. As we face more pressures at work and on the wallet etc, this was a great reminder to keep bearing fruit.

Sermon 2 - on the parable of the prodigal son.

Simon encouraged us to think about the older son, the one who works diligently and home and gets really angry when the foolish younger son comes home and gets a big party. So often we can kind of sympathise with the older son - actually it does seem a bit rough that he gets to work all day and receive nothing, but then his idiot little brother comes home and gets the full royal treatment.

Simon's word to us as we think about that - repent of that thinking! The older son is ungrateful, he doesn't understand the love of his father, he doesn't understand the joy of being in a secure, accepting and loving relationship, and he doesn't understand the magnitude of the lost one being found!

Again - a great encouragement to know the relationship we have with God, praise him for that, and praise him when other people come to be part of that relationship too.

A change in society on some of the issues of life.

2008-11-07T19:59:00.000-08:00

I'm wondering if there has been a change in our society? I think I noticed this in the recent American election campaign, but a few national issues and a couple of conversations that I've had the past few weeks have confirmed my suspicions.

My suspicion is that being what the Americans would call 'pro-life', is now seen as a radical, right wing, fundamentalist position, whereas in the past I think it would have been seen as a mainline view. Sure, the view may be disagreed with, but it would be an acceptable view to hold.

Take for example the recent debate in Victoria leading the legislative change that now allows late term abortions. In all the press coverage surrounding that debate, the 'pro-life' view was presented as being out of touch, last century, conservative, disempowering of women etc. 'Of course this change should go ahead' was the general view. To disagree, to argue for the preservation and value of life was to be a radical fringe thinker.

That in the legislative realm, what about personally. I was talking to an old friend in the pool today (while we watched our kids splash around) and he said that he had found himself keeping silent in a couple of 'water cooler' conversations about abortion recently, because he didn't want his workmates to think of him as a fundamental 'evangelical right' American-type nutter. Now this guy is articulate and carefully thought out. He's the sort of guy who would, and does, speak out regularly on issues of Christian living around the water cooler. And yet here he felt himself staying silent. Have we seen the tide turn on a major social issue so much that we feel the need to keep silent?

With all that in mind - I reckon what the current Moore College students is a great idea. Because they are all poor and the government wants poor people to have more money and spend it to stimulate the Australian economy, in December they are giving poor people with kids $1,000 per child. The Moore College crew have decided that to support families, and particularly to support mothers who are feeling the pressure to abort their babies but don't really want to - they're going to give half of that money to Anglicare and other organisations that care for these women. Good on you!

Have a look here for more details. www.freemoneyfornewlives.com.au

The Melbourne Cup - just say no!

2008-11-02T15:53:00.000-08:00

Tomorrow is that iconic event in Australian sporting history, 'the race that stops a nation', the Melbourne Cup.

It seems that while it may stops us thinking. In 2007 in the order of $150million was wagered on the race, most of which of course went to the government and the bookies. Frankly - betting on anything is a dud investment, betting on the Melbourne Cup is a real dud - with 24 horses in the race the odds are stacked against you.

Apart from the obvious problem of probability and the well documented social evils associated with gambling, the main problem with the Melbourne Cup is that it hooks into our senses of greed and materialism. Normal, rational- and often godly people suddenly become greedy for the win, desirous of the latest fashion and spend vast amounts of money on over-rated food. (Am I sounding grumpy??)

Can I make a suggestion? As people who are aiming to live godly, content lives, lets say 'No' to the Melbourne Cup. Lets not let it stop us. When the office sweep comes around say a polite 'no thanks'. Perhaps if refusal will make too much of a scene - thats a good thing. Or maybe, buy the ticket, but give the same amount of money to the Christian ministry of your choice - along with any winnings that may come your way.

On the importance of relationships

2008-10-30T21:58:00.000-07:00

It's less that four months until we leave for Mexico - in fact today I was in at the CMS office and saw bookings made in our name! (That brings home the reality of things).

One of the questions that is coming up regularly as we visit churches is 'What are some of the cultural differences between Mexico and Australia?'

Of course there are many, but one big one is the importance of relationships - especially face-to-face relationships. Whereas in Australia we might be happy to send emails or speak on the phone to a work colleague or a friend, in Latin America it seems that face-to-face counts for much more than it does here. Of course this can be pretty inefficient, but it also means relationships that are formed are much deeper and perhaps can tolerate more??

A good example of this importance of personal relationships is seen in what I'm doing in a couple of weeks.

One of the groups MOCLAM (the organisation I am working for/with in Mexico) will provide training materials to is the CIEE - the Latin American coalition of IFES (International Fellowship of Evangelical Students). The CIEE has staffworkers and student groups scattered all over Latin America on hundreds of tertiary campuses. They want to use the MOCLAM courses to train their staffworkers - which is really exciting and a great opportunity.

In November, the national secretaries of each of the CIEE groups are getting together for a week-long meeting in Panama City - to discuss, among other things, training.

Grahame Scarratt and I are going to the meeting to get to know the people and talk to them about the courses and how we can help. Now Panama City is a long way away (8hrs flight from LA), it costs a lot to get there (especially with the $ the way it is) and the entire meeting is going to be in Spanish (which I don't speak). And yet it is really worthwhile me going - because face to face relationships are so valuable.

The fact that I'll only be able to participate in broken conversation and certainly won't understand the finer details that are being discussed doesn't matter. I'm told just the fact that people will get to know me and put a name to my face and all that sort of stuff counts for heaps.

If you're a praying type - perhaps you could pray that this would be a productive meeting, and that I'd have the energy I need to meet lots of new people. Also, please pray that many of the Central American folks will be able to get there, because their currency situation is very bad.

Sholla! Oct 08 is now online

2008-10-28T21:15:00.000-07:00

The latest edition of Sholla! is now online.

www.sendmefile.com/00655012

Sydney Synod mission hour

2008-10-20T19:29:00.000-07:00

I was one of the guests of the Sydney Anglican Synod last night - during their missionary hour.

You can read a report of the presentations here

http://www.sydneyanglicans.net/sydneystories/cheque_out_mission_hour/

A great Christmas gift

2008-10-16T21:15:00.000-07:00

If you're starting to think about Christmas (and hey, who isn't.....) then can I suggest a really great gift idea. The CMS 'Perfect Gift Catalog' has just been released, and its full of great gifts like

$5 for clothes for street kids in Ethiopia

$10 for training pastors in Egypt

$15 for training leaders in Cuba (my personal favourite!)

$25 for breakfast for 90 kids in Cambodia

$50 for training Aboriginal brothers and sisters in the Northern Territory

and there's stacks more.

If you'd like to get a copy and starting your shopping, go to www.cms.org.au and download the catalog.

Connect09 - an unexpected problem??

2008-10-10T21:30:00.000-07:00

Connect09 is a fantastic initiative being promoted among churches here in Sydney. The idea is to encourage people to 'connect' with people around them - most of whom haven't yet heard about the great saving news of Jesus. Its a great idea - and seems to be taking off all over the place. From what I hear, churches, small groups, individuals are coming up with ways to share Jesus with their neighborhood. It'll be an exciting time next year - I'm disappointed that I won't be around to see it.

But I wonder if there is a slight problem (and certainly unintended by the organisers) with Connect09 that might be worthwhile thinking about? That is, with all the effort going into local evangelism, is there going to a forgetting of the world beyond our parish boundaries? Is the 'bucket of effort' going to be poured completely on our neighborhood, leaving nothing for those who work beyond our borders?

Perhaps this raises a bigger question as well? Is there a sense in which we build up our own churches, grow our staff teams, build better buildings and fit them with flashier technological gizmos - but forget about supporting mission?

Maybe there needs to be a clause in the Connect09 project briefing papers somewhere about the connections that are being made overseas and the need to support that work as well?

Of course if Connect09 'goes off' (and by the sounds of it that is quite likely in many places) there will be a whole lot of people who are keen for evangelism and service and who have found that if they give things a go, they might be able to do it beyond '09!

It'd be a great thing if that 'giving things a go' extended for some beyond our borders.

10 Ways to make life miserable for your new minister

2008-09-24T23:57:00.000-07:00

Mark Layson, the new senior minister at St Matthew's Ashbury started recently (replacing me - and doing a fantastic job.) A couple of weeks before he started, I preached a sermon '10 ways to make life miserable for your new minister' (hoping that the irony was suitably apparent!)

Here they are.

1. Expect that he will be an expert in everything and get everything right the first time.

2. Don't let him use his particular gifts.

3. Assume he'll be the same as your previous minister.

4. Assume his wife is exactly the same as your previous minister's wife.

5. Expect him to remember your name after the first time he meets you.

6. Expect his kids to fit in perfectly straight away - afterall they are the minister's kids!

7. Have the attitude that he will solve all your problems.

8. Don't encourage him to be a godly leader.

9. Don't do anything he suggests.

10. Do everything he suggests.

The sermon is available at http://www.ashbury.anglican.asn.au/content/category/6/25/97/ Look for the sermon on August 31 labelled 1Timothy.

What to do with your 'giving dollar'?

2008-09-23T16:46:00.000-07:00

We had a great discussion at Bible study last night about living the Christian life, social and economic justice and money. Great stuff!

One of the questions that came up related to the priority of giving money to Christian organisations - whether they be our local church, mission, social action, child sponsorship etc. Should we as Christians show a preference to where our 'giving dollar' goes?

I think the answer is clearly 'yes' - but I wonder if the order I came up with is based on pragmatics rather than scripture? One of the arguments put forward was that there are a whole lot of people in the world who will give to various aid groups that are not Christian (Amnesty, Medicines san Frontier etc) and so therefore as Christians we should concentrate on the Christian organisations and projects. Afterall, your average bloke walking down Martin Place is unlikely to give money to CMS! Thats not a bad argument, but I always get a bit nervous arguing from pragmatics, so can we do a bit better?

Galatians 6:10 encourages us to do good to everyone, and especially those who are of the household of faith. I'm sure this isn't just talking about cash, but surely it includes cash.

We know that the early church certainly put a high priority on collecting and giving money to other churches (1Cor 16:1-3) and that the local church workers had the right to be paid (1Cor 9:8-12).

And so surely the ministry of our local church and our fellow Christians around the world must figure highly in our giving pattern, which perhaps means when it comes to our giving dollar, groups that are not involved in gospel work should fall to the bottom of our list, or even off the list all together.

Here's a little observation for what its worth. I think most Christians do pretty well at supporting the ministry of their local church. Sure churches could always so with a bit more money and there are always new projects to be done, but on the whole when it comes to the local budget, there are a lot of very generous people around.

But sometimes thats where the giving dollar can stop. The attitude can be 'I'll spend my dollar in my patch and thats that.' I wonder if sometimes we need another reminder of the spirit of 'doing good for those outside our parish boundary'. Whether it be AFES, CMS, MTS or whatever - we need to ensure that our definition of 'the household of faith' is not limited to those who we see at church on Sunday.

Its another way we can work at bearing fruit.

Sholla! is now online!

2008-09-22T00:27:00.001-07:00

If you are interested, our monthly newsletter (1 page, with pictures!) is now available online. Its called 'Sholla!' which of course is a pun on the Spanish word for hello.

Go to http://www.sendmefile.com/00648900

There is a password for the download - just to add a very minor level of security. The password is the title of our newsletter (no capitals, no punctuation)

Enjoy.

Overcoming apathy towards mission

2008-09-18T17:28:00.000-07:00

I have to admit that I'm pretty new at this mission education game, but even in our fairly limited experience we've noticed a significant trend. That is, the major battle we need to fight against as we go around visiting churches and different groups encouraging people to become partners with us in mission - is apathy.

We haven't yet met someone who has said 'I am dead against what you are doing, I think its a stupid and fruitless pursuit!' We've met only one person who has said 'I'm glad you're doing it because there's no way that I'll be going.' We've met lots of people who have said 'what you're doing is great, we'd like to be partners with you!' (which is fantastic). But we've also met a significant group who have said... well... nothing.

Its not that they're against mission or against us, it's just that they're apathetic towards the whole thing. Its as if mission hasn't made it onto their horizon.

For some, it seems that this is the result of the natural self centredness that comes with being a typical person in a certain generation (ie: read: not being able to see beyond one's own iPod).

For others, its that life here is really busy. What with work and the kids and getting study and helping out at church and all the busy stuff of life ... its hard to allow anything else into my head space.

For others its a bit more sinister than that. Their apathy is a result of a comfortable life. Whether its the pursuit of material success or basking in the already achieved success, it just seems that looking beyond to a world beyond, let alone the world of mission is a vista too far.

And so one of the things we're trying to do as we visit churches is to work out how awaken the apathetic.

We've found that easily the most effective method is to have personal conversation. The up front presentations, the flashy powerpoint and video extravaganzas, the snappy and witty interviews (OK- so more snappy than witty) all have their place, but in one sense they are just teasers for the personal and small group conversations that will follow around cups of tea and meals.

So if you are reading this and having us at your church in the next few months - we look forward to visiting your church and to showing you 'our wares', but most of all we're interested in talking to you personally and lifting your eyes from your immediate concerns, to the global concerns of God around the world. Be prepared!

Hearing from God

2008-09-07T21:06:00.000-07:00

Frankly, there are a few bits of the Bible that are a little bizarre! Yesterday at church we read one of them in Ezekiel 1.

As Ezekiel stands on the banks of the Chebar Canal with his fellow Israelites in the Babylonian exile, he has a vision - and what a vision it is!

He sees terrifying and powerful creatures, weird and wonderful mechanics and magnificent views. He hears the sounds of the Almighty and the sound of an army. It is a wonderful sensory overload!

Verse after verse we hear of the awesome and terrifying vision that he has - and all the while we are left to wonder 'What does it mean?'

Ezekiel I'm sure would have had the same sense of wonder and amazement, and perhaps a little bit of confusion - just like us. But there is no doubt about what he understands is happening, and what is the appropriate response.

"Such was the appearance of the likeness of the glory of the Lord. And when I saw it, I fell on my face, and I heard the voice of one speaking." (Ezekiel 1:28 ESV)

Ezekiel knows that as he has his vision, a window is being opened for him, a window to the glory of God. And he knows what is the appropriate response to the opening of such a window - its to fall down, and to listen. As we read on we also learn that Ezekiel obeys what the Lord says to him - yet another appropriate response.

The point is this I think. To be in the presence of the Lord, to experience his glory and majesty, and to hear him speak - is no small matter.

How often do we hear the saying 'I'd believe in God if he just showed himself to me' by which is usually meant 'I'd believe in God is he would do the party trick which I demand of him.'

Ezekiel didn't demand any party tricks, he didn't put any conditions on God's appearance, he didn't define a box for God to fit into. He let God be God, and he bowed down before him.

Is that sometimes what we need to do? To remember who is God and who has been created by him. To realise his majesty and his glory and to acknowledge him not by demanding things of him or putting him in a box, but by doing what Ezekiel did - bowing before him and listening to him.

I'm about to be replaced!

2008-08-31T18:08:00.000-07:00

I'm about to be replaced!

The nominators have done their work, the induction service is all planned and ready to go and the rectory is looking spick and span.

Which has got me thinking - what should we be looking for in our leaders. I guess this is specifically aimed at church leaders, but US readers might like to keep it in mind as the presidential elections come up soon.

As I thought about being replaced, and thought about Mark (who is replacing me), my mind turned to 1 Timothy 3, and the qualifications for overseers that Paul lists there.

"The saying trustworthy. If anyone aspires to the office of overseer, he desires a noble task. Therefore an overseer must be above reproach, the husband of one wife, sober-minded, self-controlled, respectable, hospitable, able to teach, not a drunkard, not violent but gentle, not quarrelsome, not a lover of money. He must manage his own household well, with all dignity keeping his children submissive, for if someone does not know how to manage his own household, how will he care for God's church? He must not be a recent convert, or he may become puffed up with conceit and fall into the condemnation of the devil. Moreover, he must be well thought of by outsiders, so that he may not fall into disgrace, into a snare of the devil." (1 Tim 3:1-7, ESV)

'Leadership' is one of the big buzzwords amongst Christian training institutions - especially in the developing world. Everyone thinks leadership is a good thing. Everyone thinks leadership is something worthy of spending time training for. Everyone has got their own theory and set of key elements of leadership.

Its interesting as you read the briefs of leadership schools or courses, its often about equipping a person with a set of skills. Skills like problem solving, strategic thinking, targeting and marketing, getting people to do what you want them to do, mediation and motivation.

And yet when Paul lists the characteristics he wants in a leader, its character, not competency that comes to the fore. Before they can set the vision and run the committee and raise the funds, Paul wants the leader to have a character that is shaped by the gospel. He wants people whose hearts have been transformed by the gospel - because the position of gospel leadership requires a gospel shaped life.

Did you notice that in that passage, only one of the categories that Paul lists is a competency? 'Able to teach'. The other dozen or so are all character issues.

We all know of leaders who have failed. Often when we think of them and the ministries they were involved in - its a point of great sadness that they are no longer leading that ministry. But nine times out of ten, their failure in leadership has not been a competency issue, but one of character. They have failed to be hospitable, self controlled, not a lover of money or the husband of one wife. Over and over again we see that if you want to be a gospel leaders, you must first and foremost have a gospel heart and a gospel shaped character - because if you don't, it will quickly be exposed.

As we head off to the mission field in Latin America, and into a position of leadership with MOCLAM, its really important that we reflect on these character requirements. We can spend so much time on language study and developing skills in promotions and leadership and resource management - its easy to get caught up in all of that. But if we get all those skills, but don't have a gospel shaped character, then its all going to come crashing down pretty quickly.

I guess in the end it comes down to the fact that as Christian leaders, we need to make sure we're not 'in it' for our own glory, but for God's glory. We need to make sure that people don't notice what a great leader we are, but notice what a great God we serve.

If you're in Christian leadership - keep working on your character. If you're under a Christian leader (and we all are at some stage), lets keep doing what we can to encourage our leaders - to be the leaders God wants them to be, not the leaders the world says they should be.

Competing for the imperishable wreath

2008-08-19T17:13:00.000-07:00

The Olympics are great - but its a good thing they are only on once every 4 years otherwise my average yearly productivity would certainly drop. My favourite moment so far was the Handball game between Denmark and Russia. Denmark scored after the final bell to snatch victory - really exciting. I'm looking forward to the men's marathon - it'll be the stuff of real legends I'm sure.

We were deputising at St Andrew's Cathedral this week and had a great time. On Sunday night we visited the FIX congregation, and I was reminded of these verses from 1 Corinthians 9.

"Do you not know that in a race all the runners compete, but only one receives the prize? So run that you may obtain it. Every athlete exercises self control in all things. They do it to receive a perishable wreath, but we an imperishable. So I do not run aimlessly: I do not box as one beating the air. But I discipline my body and keep it under control, lest after preaching to other I myself should be disqualified." 1 Cor 9:24-27

One of the things that emerges during Olympic competition is the sacrifices that the athletes have made to get to where they are. While those sideline interviews with parents and friends of athletes are a bit irritating, they are also revealing, because the friends will tell us what its really like for the athletes. The crack of dawn training, the pain, injury and frustration, the extended periods away from home and the personal criticism that comes when expectations are not met.

And why do they do it? For the victory. For the medal. For the chance to become a household name. For the wreath. Of course all of these things will fade away and perish.

At FIX on Sunday night the name 'Dean Lukin' was mentioned. People my age and above remembered the South Australian tuna fisherman who won gold in the superheavyweight weightlifting in LA in 1984. But there is now a whole generation who has never heard of Dean Lukin. In the years to come there will be a generation who have never heard of Michael Phelps, Libby Trickett and Stephanie Rice, let alone the people who get knocked out in the early heats.

In 1 Corinthians 9 Paul uses the athlete as a model for the Christian. Its a 'how much more' sort of argument. They are disciplined and self controlled for a perishable wreath, for momentary glory - how much more should we be disciplined and self controlled for eternal, imperishable glory.

Just as the athlete trains hard and is disciplined in what they eat and going to training and all that - we are to be disciplined in godliness.

For some of us, the Olympics provide that spark of enthusiasm we need to get out and run around the park or swim a few laps or get the bike out of the garage. That's great - I'm partial to the odd bit of physical exercise myself. But Paul wants the Olympics to take us not just onto the physical training track, but into the godliness gym as well, and be disciplined in our godliness.

Yodeling and sin .... is there a link?

2008-08-05T21:24:00.000-07:00

I have been forced this week to consider if there is a link between yodeling and sin?

Perhaps I should explain.

On Monday night I was watching 'Enough Rope' (www.abc.net.au/tv/enoughrope) where Andrew Denton was interviewing Mary and Melinda Schneider. I know you know this, but Mary Schneider is Australia's (and perhap's the world's) Queen of yodeling. Melinda is her daughter and is a country singer.

It was an excellent interview - lots of really good thoughts about parents, daughters etc.

To close the show, Melinda sang a song she had written called 'Be yourself, everyone else is taken.' It was a song about, well, being yourself, not letting anyone else tell you what to do or what you should be.

On Tuesday night I went to Bible study. We've been working through 'The Blueprint', an excellent series of studies on basic Christian doctrine. This week, we were doing 'Sin'. As we looked at the classic 'sin' passages like Genesis 3, Rom 8:5-6, Eph 2:1-3 it made me think again of that phrase 'Be yourself, everyone else is taken.' And I wondered if that in fact is the very essence of sin?

When Adam and Eve disobeyed the command of God in the garden, isn't it them saying 'I want to be myself'. When the Israelites rebelled against God and turned against him, despite his constant and loving provision for them, weren't they saying 'we want to be ourselves'?

But as Christians, we have been redeemed, bought out of this desire and need to be ourselves. As Christ dies and rises again, he redeems people for God so that they are no longer slaves to individualism and self expression, but are now slaves to godliness and righteousness. No longer do we want to be ourselves, instead we want to be Christ's.

"But now that you have been set free from sin and have become slaves of God, the fruit you get leads to sanctification, and its end, eternal life. For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord." Romans 6:22-23

Its a great challenge isn't it. Our society says self expression, following your dream, being yourself is a great end (I'm sure we'll hear all about it during the Olympics), but as Christians we're not to pursue our own self, but our fruitful slavery in God.

Now, lets see if Mary Schneider is on iTunes......

What is deputation?

2008-07-22T23:40:00.000-07:00

For the next 6 months or so, Sarah and I are involved in 'deputation'. So what is this 'deputation'?

Deputation is the old word for what we now call 'mission education'. As missionaries of the Church Missionary Society (CMS) (www.cms.org.au), one of the privileges we have is to be involved in education - especially the education of people in Australia about what God is doing all over the world. The idea is that as we talk about the work God is doing in Mexico, in Latin America and in all four corners of the globe, our hearers will for moved to pray for the work, care for their missionaries, give to support what CMS is doing, and perhaps consider going.

We have two majors areas where we are responsible for mission education.

First - we have six link churches. These are churches that have said they would like to specifically support us as their link missionaries. They will take a particular role in caring and praying for us, our prayer points might go in their weekly bulletins and on their websites, they might direct some of their church budget to CMS to support us - that sort of thing.

We will spend a week (or two depending on the size of the church) at each of these link churches. We'll be meeting as many of the church members as we can in situations from Sunday services, to small group Bible studies, dinners, morning teas - whatever they organise for us to do. We're really looking forward to this opportunity and the new friends and partners we're going to be meeting.

Second - we go to various one-off events - either organised by CMS or by someone else to which CMS people have been invited. Sometimes these are big events, like campus midyear conferences, sometimes they are smaller - regional CMS support groups and prayer meetings. Sometimes we'll be asked to talk about the work we're heading to do in Mexico, but other times it might be something a bit different - like how we became missionaries, or the training strategies of CMS.

Wherever we are, we're really keen to answer questions, share what God is doing in our lives and invite our hearers to become partners with us.

The importance of the word of God

2008-07-17T16:45:00.000-07:00

Have you ever wondered why it is that Christians seem to talk about God's word so much?

I've joined the Men's Bible study group at St Matthew's Ashbury, and we've just started doing the Matthias Media 'Blueprint' studies - a series of 9 studies that look at Christian doctrine. This week's study was on God's word.

There were all sorts of great things we were reminded of, like the fact that God created the universe by his word, he inspires his word, he has made his word available to us in a language we can understand. But the point that particularly struck me was the fact that as we read God's word, not only do we hear about the things that God has done in the past and a bit about what he is like, but we come to know God himself.

For many of us, we don't need convincing of the need for regular reading and thinking about God's word - but I wonder what we think is happening as we do that? 2 Tim 3:16-17 talks about us being corrected, rebuked etc - and that is true. We must look to the word of God for all guidance in matter of faith and conduct.

But I think we need to be reminded that we can go one step more. Not only can we know what God wants for us as we read his word - but we can know God as well. What a special honour that is!

Now before we get too puffed up with our own self importance and we think we can read God's word and 'work him out', we need to make sure that we understand the part the Holy Spirit plays in or understanding.

"We have received not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God, that we might understand the things freely given us by God. And we impart this in words not taught by human wisdom but taught by the Spirit, interpreting spiritual truths to those who are spiritual." 1 Cor 2:12-13

The Holy Spirit allows us to know God as we read God's word. Again, what a special honour.

If you are like me, sometimes (OK - more than sometimes) Bible reading can drop off, get squeezed out by those important things like sleeping or watching 'The Amazing Race'. But I was reminded at Bible study as we thought about God's word to again read it to be corrected and instructed, but also to get to know God.

A first attempt at blogging...

2008-07-15T22:49:00.000-07:00

Well, this is it. My first attempt at blogging.

My good friend Peter Orr, on his last day in Australia convinced me that blogs are 'the new books'! We'll see Pete - but hopefully this will help me stay in touch and share some thoughts as we head overseas in 6 months or so.

The family and I are currently about to start deputation with our CMS link churches - which will be an exciting experience I'm sure. Its a great thrill to be traveling around the place talking to people about what we are praying God will be doing throughout Latin America.

We start at St Andrew's Cathedral on August 10th, and have many visits following that. We'll also be speaking at various one off events around Sydney, in Canberra, the Southern Highlands and in Newcastle. If you are around it would be great to see you at one of them.

I'm aiming to update the blog about once a week - hopefully with things a bit deeper than this! But there you go - this is an introduction.