The Problem with Politics

I had a nice long walk and talk with a friend yesterday - in beautiful sunshine surrounded by the serenity of Hamlin park. How I love those woods and the joy that I get from watching our dog, Bentley, bounding from one scent to another. We talked over Hannah's health, our families in general, my trip and eventually our talk turned to politics. We both have strong opinions and feelings about the candidates and, because we're in agreement, our emotions were spurred to ever increasing fervor. As we parted, I realized that there is so much unknown and so much potential for fear. Again fear. Always lurking around the corner, fear. I continue to stand on the promise of God that I do not need to fear. Perfect love casts out fear. I am not God and do not know the ultimate GOOD for myself or my family let alone the nation. So I continue today to "trust steadily in God, hope unswervingly, love extravagantly. And the best of the three is love."(ICor. 13:13b - The Message Bible) So I went home and prayed and let Love cast out fear.

Dark Dot on the Horizon

This weekend was absolutely glorious - perfect fall weather in Seattle; sunny, crisp in the am but pleasantly warm in the afternoon. I had an early morning bike ride with my traveling partner, Leigh, and I just got back from a 90 minute ride with Ben. So full of life and joy. So why do I feel like Elijah's servant (IKings 18:41ff) looking at the dot on the horizon and anticipating a storm?

Hannah has been feeling tired for a year and complaining that she can't run. I took her to the doctor when she first told me about it and after tests and a preliminary diagnosis of "exercise induced asthma" I thought we'd figured it out. Or that she just couldn't run because she psychs herself out. Fast forward to this season and her coaches tell me that they're really concerned about her. After running 300 miles this summer, they think she should be doing so much better than she is. So back to the doctor we go and this time we ask for blood tests (I'm kicking myself that we didn't have them done last year, but instead I just trusted the doctor to do what's best.) It turns out that she's severely anemic and her red blood cells are low. Since she's not a heavy bleeder, she's now being tested to see if she's bleeding internally. I'm choosing not to give into fear but I do feel that there's a speck I keep wanting to check on. Every time I run to the hill to see if it's getting bigger, I open my hands - trust her to God and remind myself that standing on faith is the only place I want to be found.

Leigh says this happens every time one of the teams gets ready to go overseas. Some sort of crisis pops up and puts the trip into jeopardy or makes the mom think she shouldn't be leaving.

I appreciate your prayers as we prepare and as we watch the dark dot. Elijah was praying for the storms to come. I'm praying that they don't.

Laugh Your Abs Off

In flipping through the news this am I came across a video of laughercise. Wow - what a trip! It lit up my morning just to watch it. If you'd like to see it for yourself just google youtube and search laugh your abs. I've always been intrigued by Norman Cousins claim that laughter heals (see Anatomy of an Illness) and this may be just what our country needs right now. A little laughter, to take ourselves and our obsession with money a lot less seriously. And get some exercise! I'm seriously going to try it (or maybe I should try it hilariously, or casually, anything but seriously.) Maybe laughter really is the best medicine.

The State of the World

The news is a black hole these days - how do you go in and not come out with at least some fear clinging to you? At the same time I do believe that to be a follower of Jesus means having no fear. The financial meltdown of our country looks to be the worst thing that could happen to us but is it really? Did we really think that being 20% of the world's population consuming 80% of the world's resources would go on forever? Yet I would be lying if I said I didn't want to have more, even after seeing images of extreme poverty around the world. I think the wake up call for me was when we started developing biofuels so that we could continue our independently convenient lifestyles. That led to further shortages of food around the world. In my mind I finally connected that my need to drive our van was causing people to starve to death. So I finally started riding my bike or walking to the grocery store. I can't buy as much since I can't carry as much so I'm learning to buy only what we really need. Let me tell you, Costco is a whole new experience when you have to limit yourself to what will fit in a backpack (once I took a duffle bag but it wasn't very comfortable to wear home.) Little changes but at least it's a start.
I think God is doing something very big in our world today and a financial reorganization may be the most gracious thing that happens to us Americans. We might learn to consume less and share more. But only if we don't give into the fear. Don't give into the fear.

Patience and Flexibility

The latest news is that we're going to Rwanda and Burundi but not Malawi. This is due to time constraints as well as the cost of tickets in Africa. Since plans are still fairly fluid I'm finding great joy in trusting God. I was reading today about the Batwa people that we'll be visiting in Burundi and if you'd like to watch a video please go to:
http://www.brianmclaren.net/archives/blog/project-batwa.html I'm amazed at how little these people have and yet how joyful they are. It reminds me of calendar quote I read two days ago: "If you don't enjoy what you have, how could you be happier with more?" Indeed.
So today I'm very grateful that my pot has roast in addition to potatoes and that my children will have plenty to eat.

Where in the world are we going?

I've been avoiding writing on this blog - even though I really want to. I guess I'm struggling with the potentially public aspect of it and that worries the performer part of me. What if I don't do it right?!! Oh brother. So pushing those fears aside, I need to start communicating about this journey to Africa.

Well..., I thought I was going to the Philippines to work in an orphanage and also with victims of sex trafficking. I started raising my support and it turns out that no one else was called to this particular mission. Just me (and Leigh who is one of a dynamic duo who lead Global Support). Since the trip to the Philippines needed at least 5 team members, Leigh asked me if I'd be willing to shift gears and go on a reconnaisance trip to Rwanda, Burundi and possibly Malawi. WHAT???? Africa? After I had prayed, I talked to Hallack and suddenly I remembered how something similar had happened to me when I went to Thailand in 1980. I went with Food for the Hungry to serve in a refugee camp for six months. After going through the training, the directors asked me if I'd be willing to serve in Bangkok instead of one of the camps. As "Visitor and Personnel Assistant." Not exactly what I'd signed up for but I finally realized that serving includes being willing to serve wherever I'm needed. And it was an incredible experience that I cherish. Even in Bangkok.

So now I'm going to Africa. Since this is another shift I'm pretty sure that God is continuing to grow me in the area of flexibility, servanthood and, oh yeah, letting go of control. I get it God. Maybe I really will get it this time.