still a pastor

Well, i'm down to the wire... tomorrow morning we leave Ireland, the land of some of my forefathers... It has been a wonderful trip. These free travel deals with CIEE (Judy's company) that we get for placing and supervising students, are great!!! Ten days to reflect on what I'm involved in in Cincinnati. Ten days to contemplate the goodness and difficulty of "planet life" as one of God's freshly adopted kids... Ten days to practise Johnny Cash songs on my Martin Backpacker Guitar (a lifesaver to replace TV on this trip). Ten days to consider life and direction in family and ministry...

So... I'm still a pastor. An "unemployed", "unemployable" pastor. "Street Level". "Inner City". grubbykupp... not perfect... workworn... distinguished by use... distinguished by the consumption of wear through daily, common use; especially in manual labor and "dirty work".

I haven't decided to change my life direction and "go corporate", or anything; even though I'm utterly surrounded by folks who live by the rules and have sharp portfolios to show for their days...

I haven't any plans, either. The house deal fell through clearly upon our departure... The folks selling it were 10,000 dollars behind on the mortgage and it's being processed by the bank, now. It could be a year before it comes to market (a year of that roof leaking the ceilings off). That is a mercy to me, even though it puts to death an aspect of physical measurement. I am glad that my Father is training me through small setbacks. I am sure tha t there will be more training in the future through much greater setbacks--i need discipline...

well it's 620am and i have to help some people get on the bus before we start our last day here...

Love.

Spanish Arch in Galway

The Spanish Arch, located on the banks of the river Corrib, was built in 1584. It was originally an extension of the famous city walls, designed to protect the quays. It is in fact a misnomer. There is no proven association with the Spanish in Galway and the building of the Arch. Historically it was known as The Blind Arch and it was located on the site more appropriately known as the Ceann na Bhalla (The Head of the Wall). The Arch also features a wooden sculpture, entitled Madonna of the Quay.

Galway walkabout

We went on a walk around town, here in Galway. Just walking around is a great experience here... I enjoy walking in almost every European city I've visited, because there's so much History! In America, we have what? 250 years in some places? maybe 300 some places? maybe 500 somewhere? As for the native Americans, their culture has little to do with our towns and cities, eh? But here, there are places that reach back past the days Jesus walked the earth... it's wonderful...

Here's some of the graffiti I have seen in town... notice a strange lack of profanity, here... anti-corporate head-blowout is an interesting one, too... These were found next to the Spanish Arch, whose history I haven't retained... but it's really famous...

Galway Bay and the Cliffs of Moher

Ireland, the land of many of our ancestors, fills me with an appreciation for all we have today. This is the land of the famine, the land of Cromwell's advance, the flight of three million starving people...
Here, they used to burn down your house and put you to flight if you couldn't pay your rent, back in the 1600's and after... Here, the real christians who trusted God and died like lambs were the Roman Catholics, being persecuted by Cromwell and the Crown. here is a history of blood and perseverance... Please enjoy these pictures of the rocks (the whole place is nothing but rock and thin grasses. The cliffs are awesome. You feel like you'll be swept off!
The stone edifice is a grave/tomb, in which the remains of several people were excavated. There was no where to bury people, so they used to expose or burn remains and interr the bones and ashes... they mostly exposed them, letting the birds and animals pick them thin and clean, to maximize space...

I'll be back with more highlights, so please enjoy. I've maxxed out my flickr account this month, so all i have there are some of my Dublin shots. But I'll keep posting highlights here...

And John Leyendecker, we love you and Lisa, Max and Ana... we are with you...

first days in dublin

Some photos from our Trip to Indianapolis

We went to Indy just a little while ago... i may have blogged about it, but I really want to say thank you to Micah and Marla and all the saints at Family Fellowship in Franklin for hosting those of us who needed a place to stay... You all refreshed our spirits!

And thanks to the Gurka house group from Common Grounds Church, Indy. You guys (Aaron) really loved on us. We also love you, Arsene!

Morning Wakeup

Good morning! (who knows how to say that in Irish...Gaelic) (Gaelic is everywhere, here.)

This morning was wonderful! Even though I only got about 4 hours of sleep, and the alarm was WAY too quiet, I awoke right on time! 7am I popped open my eyes!

What's more, i went to sleep listening to Worship music and Scripture on my iPod Shuffle, and when I awoke, it was on the very most reassuring of lyrics. It was Keith Green Singing,

KEITH GREEN lyrics

Such a soothing word to my spirit... My Father often wakes me up like this, assuring me that I truly belong to Him, that I am His son, that I am loved...

Another thing--when I awoke, I was THIRSTY. It felt so good to just drink cool water...

How great the Father's Love for us, beloved ones! 1 John 3, this morning!

About 10pm in Dublin, Ireland

Welcome to Dublin... about an hour's drive from the airport, through a town that obviously lives at a slower and more human pace than Cincinnati, we find ourselves at the hotel.

More than a hotel: an old mansion renewed into a Versailles-esque campus, Seth and I just got back from a night time "fountain-stomp".

Seth and I go outside after dinner to blow off "travel steam". The flight was great. No sleep, but the kids were great. And now we're jet-lagged, but installed for another 9 days of Ireland...

I'm so glad there's a good laptop internet connection, too. Now you can all skype me very easily... click here to phone free

Richest Blessings, all.

Ireland

Judy, Aaron, Seth and I will leave for Dublin, Ireland, this Thursday.
As many of you know...

We get these trips as part of our work with CIEE, a foreign exchange agency. We spend a while abroad each February. It's off season, a bit cold, but really great! Because of the free trips, our kids have seen Prague, Bavaria, Paris, Mexico, Vancouver, DC, Chicago, etc...

So... we'll be out of town from thursday until sunday night of the next week...

slug

you know what? i've become kind of a slug. but i see this because i'm "unbecoming" it.
my fervor and my intensity in prayer have been lame for years, now...
my study of the Word has been much less intense and faithful than it could have been...

i've been seeing this because of the times that Ryan, Smitty and i have had in the Bible... it's like "the old days". And i'm just grateful and amazed at it.

i'm seeing this because of the times that JP and Zach and I spend in prayer in the mornings. It's bringing me "back"--to life.

I'm sensing this because of the Tuesday night men's time when brothers laid hands on me and prayed for me and i was changed that week. Joy and patience and believing trust, where i'd been slipping in unbelief...

i see slug falling off me. we're all getting changed around, here...

Last night, there was no official meeting of our community and EVERYONE was here, singing, talking, praying, eating... it is wonderful what a little "family" does to church.

Thanks to God.
Thanks to all who love us so much... Keep praying for us!

inundation of kids

yesterday, we had a flood of kids come in after school... i may have written about it. it was great, but too short. we sent the kids off after hot chocolate and popcorn.

this morning, we had a meeting with Jesus... it seems that He and the guys at corporate are moving toward a more "long-format" daily involvement with our local kiddos...

we're scrounging up all our crayons, dusting off the songs about Jesus, and "going there"

all this on the verge of Lew and Judy, Aaron and Seth, all going out of town for 10 days... Pray for them... Pray for all of us...

Hell

you know, i really believe in hell... i think it's straight from the book... it's radical how it makes simple sense... it's just right inthere... what? why sophisticate?

How can we thank God enough

you know, i've scanned through the "next blog" thingy on Blogger so many times and there are a Ton of xian bloggers out there... kudos to all who give kudos to Jesus...

freinds, romans, countrymen

we're stretching beyond the limits to get the house across the street... we are so grateful for the arena to put our faith to the test and the community of love around us to support us as we adventure with Christ in a fairly radical direction.

Time of prayer

We have been attempting to buy the house across the street. It is our hope to provide our community with a shelter there. It's a stretch, but many are coming together to make it happen. Thanks to Jan and all the folks who are pulling with us in prayer. Please pray pray pray.

It'll take miracles to get us to April, when the lease is up for the community folks at their house across the way; when we'll want to be moving them in...

Please pray that all the work on the new house gets done well. roofing , drywall. carpet. stuff like that


could anyone come and help us? where are you all? we know you're out there. we're only a little ways away, in Cinci. I've seen your pastors going to guatemala, india, africa... won't you all come here? we need you, too.

Been thinking

It's been a wonderful couple of weeks. a group of the grubbykupps went to indianapolis to visit Family Fellowship, last weekend. There was wonderful snow, good time with Micah's church, adn a visit with Aaron from Chris' church house group... We also spent quality time with Arsene. It was great to share the Gospel in Micah's chuirch on sunday mornign, too.

Chris really shared from his experience of deepening faith here, having been beaten by our local friends, and welcomed into the life of christ here in Northside with violence... He has gone from a visitor to a true resident. It's wonderful to see Jesus building the Church here.

We love Arsene, who is applying for political asylum. He is from the Ivory Coast, where a violent rebellion has cost the lives of many who are dear to him... please pray for him. He is an olympic athlete, and has suffered a setback in his career that could jeopardize his application for amnesty. it is really our hope that he can have a quiet life here and see his sisters arrive insafety from Ghana, where they are refugees.

Please pray for their recovery from cholera.

thanks to all who pray with us for the redemption of this cracked rock we spin on.

i've been off the blog for a while. sorry to those of you who get bored by my request for help over here... as you may have read, we're making an offer on the house across the street, trying to establish homebase for loving this corner of the world...

the people of grubbykupp...the folks who have moved into this corner with us...we're all feeling a really intense time here.

we've emerged from the fire of discovering violences here that we had only heard or read about before coming here. some of us have strong resolve, some have a new committment, but most of us are holding our breath, waiting on Father for his next move...

i am appalled at my recent exposure to folks in the church who disdain concern for the poor. i am disappointed by the inaction that characterizes the regional church's application of its wealth..
i am guilty...

but i am confessing! would you join me? Let's put it out there that our wealth cries out against us, as we spend it on priorities that the Lord hasn't ordained... yeah, i'm talking about how the cincinnati churches are willing to move 10 million dollars into neighborhoods that they would never move into themselves... that is a far cry from transforming the city by the actual, living, presence of the PEOPLE of God, as neighbors, in the city...

this is dead wrong. we've been retreating too long.

i pulled this post from a guy's site... i'm not tech-savvy enough to put the link here, but i'll give him credit as best i can. Here's his site's address: http://www.xanga.com/shertzaik

i loved what i was reading, because it's true. we can't allow ourselves, as Christians, to be taken in by the hypocrisy of what's going on in the churches of america, now.

We have to return to the ancient ways of Jesus, who taught us to leave violence behind.

Yesterday, I was inspecting the house across the street. we're writing up a contract today. I was with a man who graciously donated his time and expertise to help us.
He is a banker, realtor, construction dude, and inspector and appraiser. He's the bomb--a real mover and shaker.

...and he asked if i had guns for protection in this neighborhood... i told him about how i have left behind violence and self-defense...how i believe in laying down my life...

and it made me sad that i'm not more like that...more meek. Last year, i broke up a fight in the backyard by taking two boys by the ear... now, i wish i had been kinder.

read what the guy had there on his site and please consider the need of the poor today... maybe you could save a lot more lives by DOING something RADICAL...

The Two-Part Christian



“Why do you call me ‘Lord, Lord,’ and do not do what I tell you?”

Luke 6:46



It’s no coincidence that this verse comes just after the section ‘Love for Enemies’. We know what Jesus tells us to do…feed the hungry, cloth the naked, love our enemies…basically “Do to others as you would have them do to you”.

But why don’t we do these things? We may give $30 a month to World Vision but is that enough? Isn’t Jesus asking us to get our hands dirty? Is the American Christian living up to Jesus’ standards?

If I wouldn’t want bombs dropped in my backyard, then would I support an administration who is doing this very thing in a far away land? Should I turn a blind eye to those companies who produce weapons of mass destruction? Should I teach peace and nonviolence in my Sunday school class knowing some parents may disagree? Should I not denounce all who participate in war and war making? Should I be silent about it or shout from the rooftops? If I was a single mother of three, barely able to make ends meet, and suddenly my insurance premiums skyrocketed because of legislation, would I not want someone to speak up for me? Should I be silent about budgets that tilt heavily to war and forget those who are poor? Should I continue to be a patriotic American or a worldwide Christian? Who is my savior, George W. Bush or Jesus Christ?

I believe every Christian needs to be involved in some kind of ministry. Whether it is a homeless shelter, youth ministries, or prison ministries, a Christian who is able (which includes just about everyone) should be involved.

But it doesn’t stop there. Jim Wallis draws a vivid picture about this. He says we should pull those out of the water who are drowning. Also though, we should be going upstream and see who or what is pushing them in. This is the activism part for the Christian. This part may be the hardest because it draws enemies. It judges those who lead and calls them on the carpet. Leaders, both politically and religiously, need to be held accountable and this is our responsibility.

Dorothy Day is a great example. She worked endlessly day and night, caring for the least of these. But she also was very vocal against war and social injustice. In her newspaper, The Catholic Worker, she wrote article after article denouncing war. She saw the correlation between monies spent on war and monies spent on the poor. She drew ire from the Catholic Church, but she never wavered in her commitment to Jesus’ call of love for all.

It’s called a two-part Christian. Pulling those out of the water and then running upstream to see the causes and making them stop. It will bring condemnation, persecution, and ridicule. But those who read the words of Jesus and take them seriously know the calling they have received. They will know they are doing the things Jesus asked us to do. Amen.