Amsterdam Trip - Day 5

It is early Sunday morning in Amsterdam. Most of Serve the City is behind us now; it has been a full and fulfilling three days. Today we attend worship services at Crossroads Church and then have a party for kids in one of the parks of Amsterdam.
       Yesterday we spent the day with elderly folks who are in assisted care facilities. Some of them have forms of dementia, many need to be pushed in wheelchairs. They rarely get out of their group home, so we packed them up and brought them to a nearby park and had a picnic lunch together. Sounds simple, doesn't it? It is. It was also profound for all of us. It's often the little things of life which are most most poignant. It was a beautiful scene seeing our team pushing wheelchairs with elderly people into the park. (photos forthcoming in tomorrow's blog)
       I am up early to look over my sermon notes; I am preaching at Crossroads today. Very much like coming home for me. Looking forward to seeing many dear people to my family.

Amsterdam Trip - Day 4

TEAM: You never know how a group of people will gel and live together for a week on a mission trip. We are half way through the trip and this has been a great mix of people, talents, personalities. Just a wonderful time!

     There are 11 of us, and it has been a meeting of our family's worlds of Europe and America (Amsterdam and Denver). We have been privileged to have three people on the team - Joe, Betsy, and Gail - who we journeyed with us when we lived in Amsterdam. Joe and Betsy live in the US now, Gail still lives here. It has just felt so natural to have them as part of the team.
       The rest of us (8 people) are from our church in Denver. Relative newcomers to the church - Chris and Kelda - as well as old-timers (who will remain nameless!). Extroverts and introverts, life-of-the-party and wall-flowers.
       We have walked the streets of Amsterdam together, served people together, laughed and cried and prayed and pondered together. There have been some easy times and some harder times. We have enjoyed great meals together, slept in cramped quarters together in a hostel, been a bit overwhelmed by the sights and sounds of Amsterdam culture. We have done it together, and it is a great privilege for me. Thanks, team!
  

Amsterdam Trip - Day 3

We have had a great first day of Serve the City. Our team divided into two groups and painted two people's apartments.

Amsterdam Trip - Day 2

Life is a blur at the moment, due in part to jetlag and feeling "foggy" in my head. We have had a great first day in Amsterdam. This afternoon we visited the Corrie ten Boom house in Haarlem and afterward met as a team to discuss shalom.
       It's a spectacular day here in Amsterdam - sun is shining, people are out in numbers at cafes. I am meeting a good friend for a coffee at Leidseplein in 20 minutes, then the team will be with Brigitte (Serve the City coordinator) for dinner. Projects begin tomorrow. We will be painting two people's homes/apartments all day.
       More later ... with photos, as soon as I can get them downloaded onto my computer.

Amsterdam Trip - Day 1

At the moment I am sitting in a United Airlines lounge at Denver Airport looking at a flight board, waiting for our flight to Philadelphia and onto Amsterdam.
       I go on auto-pilot (no pun intended) on travel days. I have done the travel thing long enough that it's kind of old. This trip is different because Susy and I are traveling with 4 others from Denver and meeting up with 5 more people when we arrive in Amsterdam.     Our 11-person team is an awesome mix of people! I am looking forward to being with them for the next week.
       We travel for the next 16 hours and arrive in Amsterdam at 9am local time. Then it's off to The Shelter hostel in downtown Amsterdam to settle in. I'll write again once we arrive in Amsterdam.
       Thanks to all of you who are part of the Serve the City project - people in the U.S. who are supporting the projects, people in Amsterdam who will be volunteering, people around various places who are praying! We are grateful for all of you.

I haven't been blogging...

As you can tell, I have not been blogging this week. It's a prep week for our Amsterdam trip. The combination of the logistical part and the teaching I will be doing next week has kind of "swamped the canoe."
I will be back to blogging next week when we leave for Amsterdam.

Monday: One Week to Amsterdam, No Plumbing at Home!

We head to Amsterdam a week from today to work with Serve the City and to be with some of the dearest people in our lives! Can't wait, it will be a great trip indeed!
       A special thanks to everyone at Lookout Mountain Church who participated in the Silent Auction yesterday. More than $2000 came in for the trip, which is a huge blessing and help to the team.
       As much as I am looking forward to our Amsterdam trip, today I am living in the mundane of life. The plumbing in our house has been blocked up all weekend and I am waiting at home for the plumber. It would also be great to have a shower today! Ah the joys of life! HA.

Well That Was Awkward!

No further comment.

A Kingdom Theology for Isaac-Ishmael

People have rightfully asked me about the theology upon which the Isaac-Ishmael Initiative is founded. I find myself a bit lonely in my assumptions, as I mentioned to my friend Rob today while we were hanging out at a cafe. Rob happens to be the big cheese (president) of Christian Associates and is one of the few people who track with me on these assumptions.

       This has got me mulling over the people and books which inform me the most. They are all focused on a "robust Kingdom theology," to quote Rob from this morning. Here's a short list:
     * George Eldon Ladd, The Gospel of the Kingdom
     * Lesslie Newbigin, Foolishness to the Greeks, The Gospel in a Pluralist Society, and a lot of his other writing (found in The Reader)
     * Dallas Willard, The Divine Conspiracy
     * Henri Nouwen, In the Name of Jesus
       Ladd's thinking on the Kingdom of God is foundational/seminal for me. I re-read his little book, The Gospel of the Kingdom every year. It is profound and insightful while being written for the mission practitioner.
       Here is where I find myself in regards to the Kingdom and the children of Abraham (Isaac and Ishmael). If I truly believe that Jesus inaugurated the Kingdom of God on earth and that Isaac and Ishmael both have a place in that Kingdom (see Isaiah 59 and 60), then I am called to be part of co-creating that diverse community here and now. What that means is that Jesus does not give me the option to hate and be punitive toward people who would naturally be my enemies (such as the children of Ishmael).
       I dream of the Kingdom of God so permeating cultures that Jews and Arabs will worship God together through Jesus Christ. In every place where people despise each other (Hutus vs. Tutsis in Rwanda, Catholics vs. Protestants in Northern Ireland, Kurds vs. Turks and Iranians and Iraqis, etc.) the gospel of the Kingdom penetrates and turns those despised into the beloved. Sounds crazy, doesn't it? It may just be crazy enough to be true.

Summer Plans

Summer begins in Colorado right on Memorial Day weekend. Students finish up school right after the weekend and the pace of life change

Here's an update on some places I will be and dates I will be there:

• 30 May - 7 June: Amsterdam (Serve the City team)
• 5 June: Speaking at Crossroads Church of Amsterdam
• 10 and 17 July: Speaking at Lookout Mountain Community Church in Denver
• 16 July: Islam, Terrorism, and Jesus seminar with Crescent Project in Denver
• 23 July: Islam, Terrorism, and Jesus seminar with Crescent Project in Fort Collins, Colorado
• 29-31 July: Raquette Lake, New York retreat with Cortland State Alumni Association Board
• 1-3 August: Visit friends in Cortland, New York
• 4-9 August: Visiting universities with Steven in New Jersey, New York, Maryland, and Washington D.C.
• 10-13 August: Family vacation and wedding in Virginia
• 14-16 August: Drive from Virginia to Denver visiting friends along the way

Serafina Turns 20 This Month

My cousin Susan owns a couple of wonderful restaurants in the Eastlake area of Seattle. The first one, Serafina, has its 20-year anniversary at the end of May. I just LOVE this video of my cousin speaking about the restaurant. Priceless!

Why I Don't Want the World to End on May 21st

Some folks are predicting the world will end on May 21st. This is pretty wacky if you ask me. It also flies directly in the face of Jesus' own words in Matthew 24:36: “But about that day or hour no one knows, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father."
        So before we are so presumptuous and build a website called wecanknown.com let's take Jesus' words very seriously.
       I was at a cafe with some guys the other day and one of them brought up this prediction about Judgement Day being on May 21st. Another guy did not miss a beat and said, "Oh shoot, that ruins my Memorial Day barbecue plans!" Everyone laughed at the comment. I chuckled also, but it got me thinking ...
       I know that Scripture encourages us to pray for the return of Christ. John's closing words in the Revelation are "Come, Lord Jesus!" I want to hold onto this deep longing and desire to "be with Christ which is better by far," as the Apostle Paul said.
       But if I could be a bit on edge, I have pondered why I DON'T want the world to end on 21st. Here's a few:

1. I want to grow old with the wife of my youth. Ya, I know that we will spend an eternity together in heaven and it will be WAY better than earth. But Susy and I have known each other more than half our lives and I really look forward to being old farts together!
2. The mandate/commission is not fulfilled. Jesus said that the gospel would be proclaimed everywhere and then the end would come. I'm holding home to that. There are millions and millions of Jews and Billions of Muslims who do not yet know Jesus personally. I'm holding out hope for them;
3. The world is incredibly fractured in our time (politically, socially, spiritually) and we may be close to a breakthrough point where people throw themselves on Jesus out of desperation from the mess they are in. It seems closer than ever! (at least from my limited vantage point)

Jorge, can you spare 4,000 bucks?

Our mission team heads to Amsterdam to be part of Serve the City two weeks from today. Ten of us are on the team to serve a variety of people in challenging life situations - single parents, orphans, refugees, the homeless.
       We still need to raise $4,000 to pay for the trip. Jorge Posada of the New York Yankees is paid $79,000 per game of baseball he plays. I wonder if Jorge could spare a mere 4,000 bucks from his paycheck from today's game? What do you think? Anyone got Jorge's email address?

I'm a Yankees Fan, but ...

I am a lifelong New York Yankees baseball fan. I grew up in the era of Thurman Munson (I remember where I was on that August day in 1978 when I heard that he had been killed in a plane crash), Roy White, and Bobby Mercer.
       I have endured the early 1970s when the Yankees were not very good, and before Steinbrenner made them into a powerhouse. I live with their inflated payroll even as I love the team.
        But after my post of the other day about CEO compensation, my friend Roger rightfully asked about salaries of professional athletes. And, lo and behold, now there is new drama in the Bronx with one of the beloved Yankees - Jorge Posada.

       It is just plain disgusting about Posada's little tantrum yesterday in which he refused to play. Posada is paid $79,000 per game (@!$#%) to hit a little white ball and to run around a diamond. That's $13.1 million for playing a 162-game season.
       I cannot find words to describe how distorted and warped a culture is where someone is paid $79,000 for 3 hours of playing a sport. Sorry, it's just morally wrong.
       Now I'm not just picking on Jorge Posada, with the exception that he needs to grow up and play the game he is employed to even if his batting average is horrible (which it is this year). But it's not just about Posada - it's about what we Americans believe to be worth our time and energy and money. And simply put, our priorities as a culture suck.

Salary Scales and the Moral Fiber of a Culture

I think there is a direct link between economic equity (not equality) in a society and its moral well-being.
       Earlier this week the Wall Street Journal had an article about CEO pay in 2010, specifically the compensation of CEOs in the oil and gas industry. The article stated, "CEOs of oil and gas companies had the highest median value of total direct compensation at $13.7 million in 2010, up 17.3% from the year before."

       The highest paid Oil exec is R.W. Tillington of Exxon-Mobil. His total direct compensation for 2010 was more than $21 million.
       It seems to me that political liberals tend to be on the side of condemning this type of inequity in our culture, while conservatives tend to say little about it, or they applaud it as the way capitalism works.
       Liberals see this as some kind of moral or ethical issue while many conservatives do not. What is most puzzling to me is that Christians often have little to say about the matter, with the exception of quoting a few biblical passages which seem to say that acquiring wealth is a good thing (there are many more passages in Scripture which warn of the dangers of great wealth).
       I am concerned about what this kind of inequity does to a culture, and why Christians seem to be unable or unwilling to find a voice in society to advocate for a simpler lifestyle. Should it not be the Christians in a culture why\o work for equity and a breaking down of socio-economic groupings (classes)?
(more on this topic tomorrow)