Walk It Out

There is a car part that reaches between the front and rear axles.


That part no longer reaches the front axle.

Therefore, we will not be driving for the time being. The fix should not take too long, once we call the peeps to fix it, and once they get to the house, and once they have their proper tools. The End.

What happened, you ask? I ask it, too.


I went jogging again earlier today. Earlier, as in earlier than last week's jogging, as in at 3:45 rather than 4:45 ante meridian, I left the house to walk a mile so that I could jog more than a mile with a group of Youth from the Global Evangelical Church. Yippee. We went farther this week than last week, and I was in pace setting line this time. We travelled quite a ways ('quite a ways'; is that the way you say it?), and after the cooldown we went to eat breakfast...because we finished before 8 a. m. Breakfast was quite heavy, but tasty, after which we walked back to my house to chill for a little while and get out of the heat.

Also today, the first session of Youth leader teaching took place. Out of the three leaders who agreed to come, one made it. We talked about observation as a biblical study tool. Observation in this context is surface-level sight. It is studying that begins and ends with the gramatical aspects of verses, passages, and whole books. Repititions, connecting words, writing genres, and transitions all help us to understand the way the Bible flows, even before getting to the interpretation of the texts.


Here is the deal: I am writing this a few hours before I normally go to sleep, and yet I am as tired as...a very tired person who woke up at ZERO O'CLOCK IN THE MORNING.

On that note, I will take my leave.

posted from Bloggeroid

Networking Trouble.... Shoot.

Community: I NEED IT.

So, instead of griping (learned that word in 7th grade!), I will go and find it. First ping pong table I come across, someone is goin' down!

Maybe it is "Shirls'" fault that I even use that word, but at this point, I realize the truth of her words even more. Last year I wrote that it had taken 4 months from the time I arrived in country to realize that I needed to find some sort of outlet. That was when a friend of mine started taking me out, the times my family travelled down to the capital. At the 6-month mark, I supposed that I should start finding or creating some networks in the local area, here around Nkwanta. Well, this is the 8^th month.

I am trying to find my way into the mainstream young adult culture, but feel instead like I have found myself in a tributary leading to some large, ambiguous pot. I know who I am, mind you, just not where I would be going should I join the twenty-somethings in this town. Maybe I am timid in part, because I do not know how to engage people, given my own hesitation coupled with the obvious barriers that exist. Part, too, is due to the avenues through which I have been trying to connect to others.

I have come to find out that the youth leaders here are not connected. Period. I have found three. Finding others, even as I here that there are roughly 45 congregations in the area, is like catching up with a longtime friend after an extended absence, for hours on end; it is a laudable management of time, but you feel the effort you have expended afterward, nonetheless. I will have to do more grunt work, as it were, than I once thought. I have not done much grunt work, really. I was just hoping against hope (Is that the saying? Why would anyone want to do such a thing??) that I could develop a network easily and move here and there within a relatively short time.

What do I wanna do? Develop genuine relationships, so that I can chill with a group of people at a local _anything_. Work comes as part of the territory but, though I am passionate about what I am doing here, I am still feeling imbalanced overall. I just want to be able to recharge somewhere where peers (plural, mind you) know me, and I them. That is not too much to ask; I know that much. Is it too much to find, though?

This feels more stream-of-consciousness than usual. Thanks for putting up with it, if indeed you have.


One last, unrelated truth: Nigeria won the CAF African Cup of Nations. Not Ghana, but I suppose it will have to do.

And Pope Benedict XVI has resigned; the first time a pope has done so in 717 years.  He will now have time to read books and pray, according to some news sources.  As per others, he intends to join a convent.  Thoughts on a pope from Latin America?  How about Cardinal Peter Turkson of Ghana?

I am through now.  Live in Love.

posted from Bloggeroid

(Re}Cap and Update

I have brief update on the Youth leader search but first, I forgot to fill you in over the weekend, so I offer my apologies. I was focused on a sermon I was preparing for this past Sunday morning. I had the opportunity to preach to high school in the area. The passage was 2 Peter 1:3 & 4, and the focus was on sharing in God's divine nature. I can give you a summary:

2 Peter 1:3-4 ESV

His divine power has granted to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of him who called us to his own glory and excellence, by which he has granted to us his precious and very great promises, so that through them you may become partakers of the divine nature, having escaped from the corruption that is in the world because of sinful desire.

Echoing the prayer of Jesus Christ for his disciples, "I do not ask that you take them out of the world, but that you keep them from the evil one. They are not of the world, just as I am not of the world. Sanctify them in the truth; your word is truth. As you sent me into the world, so I have sent them into the world. " (John 17:15-18). We have been sent into the world, not to escape the world's corruption, but to fulfill the purposes of God while we are here.

It is necessary, then, to live life in the reality of God's promises, conducting our daily affairs as if everything that God has pledged is true. The problem here is twofold. For one ,we do not know God's promises. God guarantees his people many things, including assurance of his direction for life, peace with him, being accepted by him, and answered prayer according to his will, to list a few. Life in the reality of God's promises is participation in divine nature and made available by his glory and excellence, and is our escape from the corruption that is in the world because of sinful nature.

Counting on those promises as true is the other problem. How do we trust someone we do not consider to be trustworthy? And if we consider God to be worthy of trust, then why do we hesitate to believe his word? Perhaps we need to question how well we know God. The point is to know God personally, rather than only propositionally. Know more than facts; know the person of God through firsthand experience.

All of this, which is summed up in partaking of divine nature, includes all that pertains to life and godliness. You can receive all of this by the divine power of God. However, not all people have access to that power. Though God's power is inexhaustible, it is available for the fulfilment of his purposes, and to strengthen those whose hearts are fully committed to him...which brings us back to the importance of knowing God.

Amen.


An update on getting together with Youth leaders here in Nkwanta: Our first meeting was last Friday! The three Youth leaders (I would be the fourth) and one Youth music director had a very fruitful discussion. I got to hear some of their frustrations as leaders of young people, with issues including mistrust, misunderstanding, disunity, and communication.

We also talked about biblical training!! I brought up my passions for Youth and identity formation, and asked after the leaders' thoughts of letting me teach them the basics of biblical training and/or the implications of having one's identity in Christ. They responded positively, and we all voiced our desire to bring more Youth leaders into the future meetings. We just have to find out where they are....

Live in Love.

posted from Bloggeroid

En curvatus se (sp?)

This is cricket season.

Now, to the best of my understanding, humanity is really struggling. I speak especially of the Youth.

I watched a show today. In this show, a young lady informs the cameraman (thus, all of the nation) that she and a certain young man have been best friends for a number of years. The young lady also intimates that she has had romantic feelings for him. So, she organizes this whole shindig: she sets up a fake blind date, aiming instead to surprise him by asking him on a date. What is her goal? To get out of the Friendzone.

That is the premise. She gets prepared to meet her fake date through the episode, picking out clothes and getting tips and advice from trusted friends and, of course, their best guy friend turned romantic interest. Just as they pull up to the restaurant is to take place, and the best friend begins to walk away, the young lady stops him and reveals her intentions. Obviously, she hopes that he says yes, but that is not always the case. Sometimes the guy is seeking only friendship, not romance. There you have it. Friendzone.

As it turns out, less than strenuous discernment is necessary to decipher the cultural undercurrent of this program. Each of these young ladies is attempting to craft their own most desired realities, even to the point of timing the start of their romantic relationship, if possible. They seem to be motivated by only one thing: their own desires. It seems odd to me that the most powerful basis of someone's search for a romantic relationship should be that same person; that selfishness should be the motivating factor of a life shared with another person. Might as well be a sitcom, with such a premise. Or a sitragedy.

Please, keep the TV world behind the screen! Even as I make this request, I fear it may be too late for prevention. The remedy is in the person of the Savior (or Saviour, if you will), because he would surely rid us of our tendency to choose self over other in all venue, especially that of love.

The crickets are coming. The birds are coming, too.

posted from Bloggeroid

Pastor Holy Ghost

When the rains come, double rainbows are not an uncommon sighting from the bedroom window. When the rains end, airborne dust prevails mightily over the land.

The rains are beginning to end.


Sunday, we attended the Full Gospel Church International. As it turned out, Sunday was also Children's Sunday there. The congregation had a chance to encourage the kids as they led worship through song ministration, choreography, a skit (the Good Samaritan), and even the preached word. It is this latter happening upon which I would like to comment briefly, because the kid had been nicknamed "Pastor Holy Ghost." After he prayed, he moved right to the Bible.

What was his text?

Matthew 19:14 ESV

but Jesus said, "Let the little children come to me and do not hinder them, for to such belongs the kingdom of heaven."

His points:
1. Children are important.
2. Children are not a burden, but a blessing.
3. Teach children
4. Teach children
5. Teach children everything they need to know

He quipped, "I think in Christ we are all one, but I will say that children are more important."

Then he took his seat.

All of 5 minutes were consumed, most of which passed in utter surprise and humor at the straightforwardness and brevity of Pastor Holy Ghost's message for us that morning. I will admit that I was also initially apprehensive about the child getting up to preach. I then noticed that he had a single sheet of notes, on which was presumably written his five points.

So, that was Sunday morning.


In other news, I will be teaching some students at the Evangelical Presbyterian school during their Religious Knowledge period tomorrow morning (7:30 - 8:30 a.m.). I will likely let them know of the Importance of Wisdom, as I did with the students at Adom School.

Other than that, I am beginning in earnest to network with the Youth Pastors in this and the surrounding areas. So far, I know 3 Youth Pastors, and only one on a deeper level than acquaintance. Still, we are making progress.

posted from Bloggeroid

Life's Aul

Haven't we been changed by the life, death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus the Christ? What is there to be said concerning the presence, power, and promises of God Almighty? Are they ineffectual? Is the Divine Love in vain? Where is the change in my life? In yours?

Or is it the appropriation of this God's life onto, into, around, through our own existence? Is it propositional knowledge, or is it relationship? The difference between the two is worth noting. On the one hand, the intellect reigns, without solid footing; mindless speculation abounds, leading to high-sonding nonsense and "ownership" of the infinite. On the other, intellect is fed by experience; hope is not seen, but the evidence of said unseen awaits to enwrap us all in an unforseen-yet-expected. A serendipitous embrace. O, that I might attain unto the loftiness of the plans for me by my Infinite Benevolent.

Today, we worked. I would upload a photo of our progress but, alas and alack, I reside in Nkwanta, Ghana, where picutres swallow bandwidths whole. Perhaps you could keep up with the progress by clicking on the picture of the sky at the top of the page. To keep you updated, we have begun to fill the first part of the Nkwanta Leasership Empowerment Center. Jeremy, David (my cousin), Evans, and I all worked together to shovel sand into the first of many holes, and mark the beginning of the foundation-filling journey. Worked about 5 hours, and I've actually just woken up from a nap [that I will be resuming soon enough, and with great pleasure] to fill you in (get it?) on what's happening with WorldVenture Ghana. To add the cherry ont top of an already sumptuous pretty please, we have our own truck! I know, you're like, "Yay," in that uncertain-of-what's-going-on kind of way. With the truck, we can cut down on the cost of transporting goods (eggs en masse, dirt, etc), which means that we can put more money directly towards the ministry with less heartache! God has provided yet again; feel free to get in on the action if you aren't in already. How? Click on that big picture at the top of the screen. It is so cool.

I have also been given the privilege of teaching one of the local Youth groups tomorrow evening. The topic is "The Renewal of the Mind," Which spans passages in Philippians chapter 2, Ephesians 2 and 4, and Romans chapter 12. I'm always excited to speak to Youth, and this is another time when I will get to incorporate my passion, Identity in Christ, into the lesson. I plan to teach no longer than 30 minutes, and then to field questions, as per the pastor's request. I hope and pray that all goes well, and that I treat the Word of God appropriately.

Keep answering those questions put forth in the "To Begin" blog and following. Who are you? Why does it matter? What does it mean? Write down the reason that God has placed you on this planet. Take your time. Pray. Again. and Again. Live in Love.

posted from Bloggeroid