Yesterday I heard from World Orphans that they have postponed their international trips until 2013, including my planned trip with them to South Africa in December. It's good news both ways, as now I can concentrate on local ministry, and international kindness-spreading in 2013.
Beginning next week I'll begin doing home visits to clients of the Peoples Resource Center food pantry in Wheaton, bringing them food items to those who are shut-in, or have no transport. I've heard many of them are elderly (and very lonely) and just waiting for a kind soul to pay any attention to them. They feel the world is passing them by, leaving them in the dust, while on their way in the constant pursuit of more.
I'm enjoying attending at Wheaton Bible Church, and am slowly getting plugged in to a community there, For the past couple years I thought of myself as a wayward pilgrim, a minimalist, someone content with what I have, which is a lot compared to many impoverished villagers in the Third World. Now I feel like a part of a community once again.
This Sunday I'll again head to Willow Creek's downtown Chicago campus. Just can't get enough, or get away from there. Will still plan to attend there once a month.
Sometime in mid-late October I'll join WBC's Hunger Team, their version of Meals on Wheels. It will be similar to what I'll be doing with Peoples Resource.
Remember to choose kindness!
Friday, September 21, 2012
Saturday, September 1, 2012
Last weekend, tropical storm Isaac formed in the Atlantic, roared through the Caribbean Islands, Puerto Rico, Hispaniola (including Haiti, dumping tremendous rains and caused mudslides) and emerged into the Gulf of Mexico. Isaac ate some Wheaties and became a hurricane just prior to slamming into the New Orleans area late Tuesday night. It wreaked havoc along the Gulf Coast for a few days, drenching the area with rain and even spun up a few tornadoes. Now, on September 1 at 11:33AM CDT, Isaac is making his presence felt here in the Chicago area, disrupting many Labor Day weekend festivals. Isaac will continue to hang out in the area today, this evening/tonight, and into tomorrow, before continuing onward.
The rain is so desperately needed here, after this past summer's drought.
Right now, even through I was sort of in a "drought" this past summer, my life now is anything but a drought. In fact, it's becoming the "hurricane" that Isaac was just 5 days ago down on the Gulf Coast. I have been in contact with World Orphans, a Colorado-based missions organization that specializes in reaching out to orphaned children in poor countries worldwide. I even applied for an opportunity to travel to South Africa with them last week, and on September 20 I'll find out if I made the team to head out in December to South Africa, ministering in the Durban and Pretoria areas.
Beginning in late September I'll begin doing "home visits" to clients of the Peoples Resource Center food pantry in Wheaton, who are shut-in, or have no transportation. Many new opportunities are opening up at this time. The past couple weeks I've communicated with folks I have not heard from, or spoken to, in 3 months. Even went down to Parkview Church last Saturday evening, then went to Willow Creek Chicago last Sunday. I'll attend down there again on September 9.
Stay tuned,,,lots happening.
As always, remember to choose kindness!
The rain is so desperately needed here, after this past summer's drought.
Right now, even through I was sort of in a "drought" this past summer, my life now is anything but a drought. In fact, it's becoming the "hurricane" that Isaac was just 5 days ago down on the Gulf Coast. I have been in contact with World Orphans, a Colorado-based missions organization that specializes in reaching out to orphaned children in poor countries worldwide. I even applied for an opportunity to travel to South Africa with them last week, and on September 20 I'll find out if I made the team to head out in December to South Africa, ministering in the Durban and Pretoria areas.
Beginning in late September I'll begin doing "home visits" to clients of the Peoples Resource Center food pantry in Wheaton, who are shut-in, or have no transportation. Many new opportunities are opening up at this time. The past couple weeks I've communicated with folks I have not heard from, or spoken to, in 3 months. Even went down to Parkview Church last Saturday evening, then went to Willow Creek Chicago last Sunday. I'll attend down there again on September 9.
Stay tuned,,,lots happening.
As always, remember to choose kindness!
Tuesday, August 7, 2012
This upcoming fall/winter ministry season could be one of my biggest and best yet. I'm waiting for this summer to end (yes, I know it's twisted and backwards for anyone reading this) and then can immerse myself into the many ministries of Wheaton Bible Church, where I've been attending since July 8. I know the next Hunger Team (their version of Meals on Wheels) training is at the end of this month, and then can officially join the team about 1 month from now. Also am planning to travel internationally with them, or with World Relief, their largest ministry partner.
For the last couple weeks I've been cutting back on a few of my serves, and hoping to fill up my kindness tank, which honestly, has been running close to empty since just after Memorial Day. I sort of took these last 2 months off from international travel due to that. I'll be fully back at it in a month.
Possible trips to South Africa, Haiti, and maybe Kenya are in the works, but not definite yet.
Maybe God has given me these last 2 months to re-focus a bit. Being an others-focused person, I many times tend to neglect myself, and my own needs. More than one friend has reminded me of that in the past couple months. I'm now finally realizing that.
It has been a roller-coaster summer of change and transition.
This Sunday I'll attend the service downtown at Willow Creek Chicago. That is one thing that will not change, attending there once a month
For the last couple weeks I've been cutting back on a few of my serves, and hoping to fill up my kindness tank, which honestly, has been running close to empty since just after Memorial Day. I sort of took these last 2 months off from international travel due to that. I'll be fully back at it in a month.
Possible trips to South Africa, Haiti, and maybe Kenya are in the works, but not definite yet.
Maybe God has given me these last 2 months to re-focus a bit. Being an others-focused person, I many times tend to neglect myself, and my own needs. More than one friend has reminded me of that in the past couple months. I'm now finally realizing that.
It has been a roller-coaster summer of change and transition.
This Sunday I'll attend the service downtown at Willow Creek Chicago. That is one thing that will not change, attending there once a month
Sunday, July 22, 2012
I've attended Wheaton Bible Church for 2 weeks now, and am taking steps to get plugged in there. I participated in their newcomers class for 2 weeks, and now will start checking out different classes, groups, etc. This definitely seems like a place where I can use my gifts. They are a missions-focused, outreach-oriented church. They have missionaries serving worldwide and have many local partners. When you make change, you make friends. Hopefully that's true
Wednesday, June 27, 2012
I'm now on the cusp of some big changes, including a church change too. I'll begin attending at Wheaton Bible Church (Wheaton/Carol Stream area) beginning on Sunday July 1. I actually visited here once back in March, and immediately liked it. They are an outreach-oriented church, which is perfect for me.
I'll also be building a new community of folks, from the ground up. Being kind of a "nomad", this will be a change for me, to be rooted and grounded in community by the time fall rolls around. They also have a group of folks called the "Hunger Team", who travel all over DuPage County bringing food items to people who have fallen on hard times, and others who are shut in. Sounds like a great fit, to take my local ministry to the poor to a whole other level. The next chance to join this group of kind souls will be in mid-late August, so not much will happen between now and then. In the meantime I'll begin attending WBC regularly, meet some folks, get my feet wet there, etc.
I'll also be building a new community of folks, from the ground up. Being kind of a "nomad", this will be a change for me, to be rooted and grounded in community by the time fall rolls around. They also have a group of folks called the "Hunger Team", who travel all over DuPage County bringing food items to people who have fallen on hard times, and others who are shut in. Sounds like a great fit, to take my local ministry to the poor to a whole other level. The next chance to join this group of kind souls will be in mid-late August, so not much will happen between now and then. In the meantime I'll begin attending WBC regularly, meet some folks, get my feet wet there, etc.
Wednesday, June 6, 2012
I've been back for almost 3 weeks now and have got back into the rat-race pace of life of Chicago, but minus the self-indulgence of our culture. Yes, the traveling in the Third World has had that effect on me, a good thing, a great thing. In the last 4 years or so I have lived out a counter-cultural lifestyle, the best I could.
On Sunday I rose early and headed downtown to attend Willow Creek's Chicago campus.
On Monday I served at the Crystal Lake food pantry in the namesake city in the afternoon, and then served at the Bessie's Table soup kitchen later that afternoon/evening.
An interesting side note, I was just made aware that many school-aged children in our area are most hungry during the summer months. Food pantry visits everywhere I am are on the rise, and (this true for inner-city children) the summer can be a dangerous time of year, school is out, the hot weather, kids are bored, and crime goes up. To combat this, Willow Creek Chicago is sponsoring a week-long "day camp" for children on Chicago's south side in July.
Summer has now officially arrived. Enjoy it!
On Sunday I rose early and headed downtown to attend Willow Creek's Chicago campus.
On Monday I served at the Crystal Lake food pantry in the namesake city in the afternoon, and then served at the Bessie's Table soup kitchen later that afternoon/evening.
An interesting side note, I was just made aware that many school-aged children in our area are most hungry during the summer months. Food pantry visits everywhere I am are on the rise, and (this true for inner-city children) the summer can be a dangerous time of year, school is out, the hot weather, kids are bored, and crime goes up. To combat this, Willow Creek Chicago is sponsoring a week-long "day camp" for children on Chicago's south side in July.
Summer has now officially arrived. Enjoy it!
Saturday, May 19, 2012
On Monday I returned from spending 10 days down in South Africa, in the Port Shepstone area, about 2 hours south of Durban next to the Indian Ocean. Beautiful country down there, and awesome weather too, even though they are heading into their southern hemisphere winter.
The first item on the docket was a church service at the Norwegian Settlers Church, in the community of Marburg. The service was awesome! A vibrant Willow Creek Association church that is reaching out in their community. Feel I've made some friends here, despite my rather brief time with everyone here. Later that day was a trip to the nearby Indian Ocean.
On Mon, Wed, and Fri mornings we headed up into the mountains, and the poor community of Khula. Every day nearly 100 children (age 2-5 yrs) converge on the Khula Cresche, and participate in story time, sing songs, do crafts, and receive a meal. A simple meal, just a bowl of porridge. Even at the young age they are experts on sharing what little they have.
On Mon-Thu afternoons we made our way back down the mountains into the impoverished community of Murchison, located just outside of Port Shepstone. The Murchison Community Center reaches out to many schoolchildren aged 4-13. Many of them swing by here on their way home from school, and a few may not attend school at all. They would rather come here than go home, just to hang out and forget about their circumstances at home. Child-headed households are in abundance, and AIDS is prevelant. This facility hosts a reading room, a music academy, a gym/weight room, and a few other activities. The gym is a really cool outreach tool, daily devotions go on while the men are pumping iron. I got a chance to participate in many of the reading room activities, and also serve these kids probably their only meal of the day. Most are not fed at home.
On Monday evening I sat in on a short meeting with some rural Zulu pastors, and heard some of their amazing stories of ministering to the poor.
On Tue and Thu mornings I spent at the Genesis Care Centre, an AIDS hospice facility located behind the Norwegian Settlers Church. It's home to around 40 AIDS patients. Also those same mornings they host a "Chapel Service". A local pastor comes in, accordion in hand, and totally loses himself in the Lord as he ministers love and kindness to these victims of AIDS. It was a cool experience. The staff here are some of the most caring folks I've met in a long time. They give the patients the quality one-on one time they need.
On Wed evening I went to a small group led by the pastor, very nice to meet some more of the NSC congregation in a relaxed setting.
Friday's lunch was eaten at Leopard Rock, located high above Oribi Gorge, in the mountains.
The finale of our ministry was on Friday evening, at Youth Alive. Held at the NSC, over 100 Zulu teenagers make their way here, some from the community, some from nearby squatter camps. Loud, vibrant worship blended with relevant teaching makes this a favorite Friday night hangout for them.
On Saturday, our ministry was officially over, and time to de-compress before the entry back into the fast-paced self-indulging culture of the US. This morning we went on a 2-hour game drive at Tala Game Reserve, just NW of Durban. Yes, saw animals in their domain.
Later on Saturday we headed into downtown Durban to witness a professional rugby game, and ate borewors. This was South African culture at it's finest. Our Sunday afternoon departure loomed nearer and nearer, and tried to take in the local culture as much as possible.
Now, we're back in the States, adjusting to time-changes and culture shifts. This was one of the most impactful trips I've done. Maybe do it again next year? Still too early to tell.
The first item on the docket was a church service at the Norwegian Settlers Church, in the community of Marburg. The service was awesome! A vibrant Willow Creek Association church that is reaching out in their community. Feel I've made some friends here, despite my rather brief time with everyone here. Later that day was a trip to the nearby Indian Ocean.
On Mon, Wed, and Fri mornings we headed up into the mountains, and the poor community of Khula. Every day nearly 100 children (age 2-5 yrs) converge on the Khula Cresche, and participate in story time, sing songs, do crafts, and receive a meal. A simple meal, just a bowl of porridge. Even at the young age they are experts on sharing what little they have.
On Mon-Thu afternoons we made our way back down the mountains into the impoverished community of Murchison, located just outside of Port Shepstone. The Murchison Community Center reaches out to many schoolchildren aged 4-13. Many of them swing by here on their way home from school, and a few may not attend school at all. They would rather come here than go home, just to hang out and forget about their circumstances at home. Child-headed households are in abundance, and AIDS is prevelant. This facility hosts a reading room, a music academy, a gym/weight room, and a few other activities. The gym is a really cool outreach tool, daily devotions go on while the men are pumping iron. I got a chance to participate in many of the reading room activities, and also serve these kids probably their only meal of the day. Most are not fed at home.
On Monday evening I sat in on a short meeting with some rural Zulu pastors, and heard some of their amazing stories of ministering to the poor.
On Tue and Thu mornings I spent at the Genesis Care Centre, an AIDS hospice facility located behind the Norwegian Settlers Church. It's home to around 40 AIDS patients. Also those same mornings they host a "Chapel Service". A local pastor comes in, accordion in hand, and totally loses himself in the Lord as he ministers love and kindness to these victims of AIDS. It was a cool experience. The staff here are some of the most caring folks I've met in a long time. They give the patients the quality one-on one time they need.
On Wed evening I went to a small group led by the pastor, very nice to meet some more of the NSC congregation in a relaxed setting.
Friday's lunch was eaten at Leopard Rock, located high above Oribi Gorge, in the mountains.
The finale of our ministry was on Friday evening, at Youth Alive. Held at the NSC, over 100 Zulu teenagers make their way here, some from the community, some from nearby squatter camps. Loud, vibrant worship blended with relevant teaching makes this a favorite Friday night hangout for them.
On Saturday, our ministry was officially over, and time to de-compress before the entry back into the fast-paced self-indulging culture of the US. This morning we went on a 2-hour game drive at Tala Game Reserve, just NW of Durban. Yes, saw animals in their domain.
Later on Saturday we headed into downtown Durban to witness a professional rugby game, and ate borewors. This was South African culture at it's finest. Our Sunday afternoon departure loomed nearer and nearer, and tried to take in the local culture as much as possible.
Now, we're back in the States, adjusting to time-changes and culture shifts. This was one of the most impactful trips I've done. Maybe do it again next year? Still too early to tell.
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