Teaching Myself

So right now I'm on a boat. No really, I'm actually posting this while on a boat. A ferry, to be exact; between Ireland and England. We have successfully completed the specifically 'ministry' side of our trip and are now on the homestretch. Just a few more touristy things in England before we hop on a plane back to the States. Over the next couple days, we will walk around London, most likely spending time in the British Museum, Westminster Abbey, potentially Buckingham Palace and the Olympic village, as well as other notable London sites. On Sunday, we'll go to church in Birmingham with members of the Globalscope campus ministry located at the local university. On Monday, we'll ferry back to Ireland and spend another night (like last night) at Bonnie's friends' house in Drogheda. Then it's off to Dublin airport for home.

I'm excited for London, but really, I'm just sad to see our time with the kids go. The three days we spent with the children and teens at Lissara were wonderful. Sure, the kids are crazy and the teens are initially shy, but that's par for the course isn't it? We shared a lot of laughs over how the church advertised us: we were called 'The Indiana' and were there for a 'Three Day After School Special'. For our VBS (or 'Kid's Club'), we divided our team into three groups - one taking crafts, another games and the third, teaching. Mikala was part of the crafts group (big surprise!) and our two guys and I were part of the teaching group (even bigger surprise!).

As the base for our crafts and lessons, we used materials they gave us, which were based out of the Gospel of Mark, but the lessons were pretty much original. Our three lessons were on Jesus calling the brothers to be fishers of men, Jesus walking on water and the parable of the four soils. For our first two lessons, we created a boat out of two benches (the deck), a boom-mic stand (mast) and a large piece of poster board (sail). Yeah, we're pretty brilliant. Of course, the older kids think we're ridiculous, but the two younger groups really seemed to enjoy it. I hope our lessons made some impact, or at least were interesting enough that the kids don't hate church forever, but what I loved was how much I was moved by the stories we told. One of the primary rules for a preacher (or any Bible teacher really) is to let the lesson own you; to let it sink in deep and affect you in a real way. It's not likely to impact other people if it can't reach your own heart. I've taught each of those lessons before, with much more theological depth, yet as we sought to distill these stories down to their core points in order to transmit them to kids between the ages of 3 and 12, I was struck anew by the power, connectedness and simplicity of the Gospel. Jesus loves you. He doesn't care if you're the smartest or the lowest in the class, He wants you to use your gifts, talents (well, life) for Him. He wants you to take your earthly calling (fishing, perhaps?) and turn it into something dynamic for His Kingdom. Not only that, but He promises to go with you. Sometimes we think He's given us a calling and then just sent us into the storm of life, all alone and forgotten. But then we find Him walking through the storm with us, easily conquering the waves that so terrify us. Finally, we know He's called us and that He promises to go with us, but ultimately, the response is up to us. The question is: "What kind of heart do I have?" and, "am I willing to believe and act on Jesus' claim to love me?"

These were the truths we desperately tried to give to these kids. Maybe it got through. Maybe not. Maybe they'll only remember the goofy Americans that pretended to be on a boat. Maybe the teens we hung out with in the evenings will think more of us than as just another church group. I don't know. Ultimately, I don't have control of their responses, but I am incredibly grateful for the opportunity to know these amazing kids and to see the powerful work of God, even through the humble efforts of a small Presbyterian church in a small village in Northern Ireland. Thank you for your support, through prayer and money. This experience has been life-changing on many levels and there is so much more I could say. If you have any questions on our experiences, please contact us and we'd love to tell you more.

Blessings,

Josh and Mikala

VBS And Sunday Roast

We have a guest poster today: my wonderful wife Mikala! She will be informeing you about our experiences yesterday as we attended church at Lissara Presbyterian in Crossgar and of our first day doing VBS at Lissara for the local kids.

Hey everyone! I guess I am getting the privilege of talking about our host church. Yesterday morning we attended a very formal communion (this only happens twice a year) at Lissara Presbyterian church. We had met the minister and a few congregation members a few days earlier, so the Reverend had us come up front and introduce oursleves to the whole church. The service was something that I had never experienced. We sat in very old stiff-backed benches, I am sure this was to keep us awake and sand all of the songs out a hymnal. We actually sang straight from the book of Psalms as well, that was very new to me! Reverend Ian preached on Revelation, which was refreshing, as that is something rare in todays churches. Honestly the church was a great experience, but not exactly what I would've picked. This church has many things going for them, but the best are the people. We've been showered with love and hospitality right away. After church we got split up into groups and were given lunch by different families. Bonnie, Josh and I went to the Reverends and his family's house. We enjoyed "Sunday roast" and great conversation. When "Tea time" came around we headed back to the church and had more food! Then we helped with an informal worship service. We got interviewed, helped with music and explained what we would be doing this next week at the church.

Our first day at our after VBS called "The Indiana," yes they named the program after us, was a success! We had 49 kids and plenty of fun. We had music, story, games and crafts (with my mad pinterest skills I got put in charge of this area). The kids were very willing to talk with us and I admit they were just flat out adorable. I was told by the Reverend that most of these kids do not come from a church background, so their parents bringing them to us was a big deal. After eating Tea we got ready for the teen drop by time. This time was a challenge for me. I LOVE little ones but talking to a bunch of giggly 13 year girls is not my thing! Luckily we pulled out the volley ball net and well my team destroyed Josh's team, enough said. We played a wonderful cheesy ice breaker game afterwards which made the teens tell us a little about themselves. I do think most of them will come back tomorrow night and we will do another cheesy game!

I will say that even though we got this program thrown at us just this weekend, we handled it very well! I am very proud of the team and all their hard work today!

Love, Mikala

Sightseeing Ministry

There is one certainty when it comes to short-term mission trips: Your expectations on the trip will be broken.

We came to Northern Ireland expecting to jump right into ministering with youth. This means we expected to spend all our time talking and hanging out with young people, being made to look like fools on the 'football pitch' with young people, having our American-ness made fun of by young people, and generally, well, just being with young people. However, up to this point, we have only spent one afternoon and evening with them. Rather, our time has been spent together: planning for next week's VBS, eating, drinking tea, and walking or riding to one of many sightseeing locations. I already mentioned our literal first stop after arriving from Dublin: Monasterboice. Since then, we have seen multiple incredibly interesting sites, plus taken in the flavor of some of the local villages. The most memorable and picturesque destinations included Downpatrick Cathedral and cemetery (the site of St. Patrick's grave and one of the more active locations of his ministry), Tollymore Park (one of the places the great C.S. Lewis found his inspiration for Narnia), Castlewellan (which included a real hedge maze, a beautiful castle overlooking a lake, and a large garden, full of exotic plants and trees), the rope bridge at Carrick-a-Rede point, and especially, the Giant's Causeway.

First, it should be noted for posterity that I finished the maze first. Not only that, but I was well ahead (by about 10 and 30 minutes) of the following two groups.

No, really, I was!

Okay, now that anyone who actually knows me has regained a sitting position, I should add that I split off and tackled the maze alone, rather than attempting to run it in a group, meaning I had much less discussion to deal with on choosing the correct route, so take that for what it's worth.

Anyway, I wish I had space to truly do justice for all the beautiful places I have seen the last couple days, but I'll stick with the one that was by far the best.

The Giant's Causeway lies nearly at the 'top' of the island, where the Irish and North seas meet. It is, without a doubt, the single most breathtaking thing I have ever seen in my entire life. The sheer beauty of the Causeway – the stone formations, the bay, the cliffs – is still a little too much to take in. After walking the 1/2 mile trail to the famous hexagonal stones, we continued up the criss-crossing path on our way to the top of the cliff. The final stage was 162 stone steps known as the 'Shepherd's Path', which, after having walked all day and then taken the steep trail to the steps, was quite the workout! Finally, we found ourselves on the edge of grass-covered cliffs overlooking the Causeway and bay. The sun was beginning its descent through the clouds just to our left while the slate-colored sea went out endlessly before us. I took pictures, but I almost wish I hadn't, just so the innocent sacredness of the moment might live on forever in my memory alone.

(Okay, I'm going to stop trying to describe it because I'm not getting anywhere near the mark. Suffice to say we all could've easily stayed upon that ridge until every last ounce of light had vanished behind the horizon.)

Back to that in a minute.

After the return drive and dinner at The Galley (N. Ireland's best fish and chips three years running... no really, the spuds were brought in that day from nearby farms and the fish was caught that morning in the bay across the street), we made it back to Murlough and had a short 'de-breifing' time during which nearly every one of us expressed our utter wonder at God's creation, our enjoyment in the few short hours we have spent with the kids, and also our frustration at the (so far) lack of 'real ministry'. Again, expectations were that sightseeing would be mixed in with our ministry, or else held off to the end, but this seemed to be the opposite – a sightseeing trip with ministry mixed in. "When will the real ministry begin?" we all asked.

First, I should say we were assured that the 'expected' ministry will begin, officially, tomorrow (Sunday) when we attend the church in Crossgar where we'll be doing the majority of our work next week, but perhaps more to the point, I realized that the ministry has already begun. I found myself face-to-face with an unsettling challenge to a truth about the Christian life. A truth I hold very dear and have hertofore spoke of with such confidence: "Everything is ministry. Everything is worship." Yes, there are definitely times when it is more overt and planned, but a Christian's life is meant to be lived in the world, worshiping God and ministering to the needs of others in every situation, not merely visited for official God-business. Although the relationship-building with the youth in N. Ireland has yet to begin in earnest, I kind of came to the realization that I have been building relationships this entire trip – with everyone from the Campus House, with our hosts at Murlough, with our hilarious driver, Paul.

Not only that, but I have had some serious alone time with God this last week. It seems everywhere I turn, I find another place meant specifically for me to have a brief moment of worship. As soon as we arrive at a destination, such as Monasterboice, the maze at Castlewellan, Downpatrick or the Causeway, I make a beeline for the most seculded spot and just start conversing (talking and listening!) with God. Maybe that's the ministry I've needed to be participating in – God's ministry to me. Yes, I am very excited for the relationships we will be building this next week, but I can't allow myself to believe that's when the 'real' ministry begins. The most intense ministry I may ever experience happened not in the church building but in the few moments when I ran to the edge of the Causeway and looked out at the sea that was washing the stones at my feet. It was when I paid the price of sweat to walk the path up the cliff and have the sheer majesty of God literally throw me to the ground in reverent awe.

Ministry is everywhere. Worship is everywhere. We're not bringing it with us, we merely have the opportunity to join in with what has been going on for all eternity. May I have eyes to see what's always all around me. May you see the ministry (and the worship) all around you, wherever you may be.

Blessings,

Josh

Jet Lag And The Extra Mile

Day one of mission trips are always so weird. There is this pervasive feeling of complete lost-ness. Airport customs procedures, even at their best, are stressful. You have no feel for the time or place, you're attempting to acclimate to new food and languages (or in our case, accents/vocab) and you're meeting new people who are forming their first impressions of you. Of course, this is all happening while you desperately attempt to fight off jet lag. In case you've never experienced this wonderful side-effect of modern travel, it basically feels like a mad scientist has given a highly-caffeinated, under-slept toddler full control of your body, but not your brain. You find your thoughts are able to process at normal speed, but your speech and actions go between moments of hyper-active behavior and complete meltdown.

And these changes occur instantly. Without warning. To nine people. At different times.

Yeah.

Plus you're still getting to know your hosts and they're getting to know you. In the background of all this is the truth that this relationship (at least in its present form) will only last a week or two. Your group and its experience, so on the forefront of your mind, to you will be no more than a memory the moment you return home, and to your hosts is merely a drop in the bucket to a ministry that sees scores of people just like you come and go on a weekly basis.

And yet, through all that, the first day or two here at Murlough House has been pretty good. On the way from Dublin airport, we were able to stop at Monasterboice, an early Christian settlement dating back to the 5th century. Aside from the cemetery, the ruins of the two churches and the tower, this site also includes a few of the most important (and complete) of Ireland's many stone crosses. I had to restrain myself from simply taking pictures the entire time; i definitely want to remember this site, but I also wanted to truly see it, to take it in. I could have stayed there all day - looking, reading, thinking, praying - but alas, we needed to continue our trip into Northern Ireland. So we piled back into the van and sped off down the narrow, winding Irish back-highways. Our primary contact and host, Richie, drives, or rather flies, this wide vehicle down the road like he could do it blindfolded (which he probably was) with someone chasing him (which he probably did). I believe the term he used for his driving was 'slinging' the van down the road.

So that evening we did a little more sightseeing in the nearby bay-town of Newcastle, plus we took a tour of the actual house (built in the mid-1800s) and the grounds, which are part of a state 'trust' (state park). Today, i went for a run in the chilly, beautiful Irish dawn, with the green fields and mountains on my left and the sea on my right. Later, we settled in and spent a few hours chatting with a group of elderly people who have lunch here every so often, then, while everyone else either took a nap or played a game, Richie took me, the only 25+ year old who can drive a stick, for a quick UK/big van driving test to see if I was fit to transport us when he couldn't. I'm proud to say I passed and only got confused with the drive-on-the-left thing a couple times, mostly when turning right (which all of a sudden is much more dangerous than it is back home!).

The only other thing we've experienced is the hour we spent listening to John Moxen, the founder of Murlough House's ministry, share his testimony. John is a wee, 77 year old man with a great sense of humor and surprisingly spry step. When I say he's a 'wee' man, I mean I can see over him. The guy literally chooses his seat based upon which one allows his feet to touch the floor. Anyway, his life is a tale of unflagging commitment to God's Word (which, as he says, "is not black ink on white pages, but the living Jesus") and a willingness for God to move and act, even if he feels he is neither worthy or clever (as a dyslexic, he didn't learn how to read till 27). Aside from his quote about the Word, the other memorable thing he said almost right out of the gate, was that God allows life to be hard, not beacause it's fun for Him but because "He wants to see if you've got any second mile in you." "Most people" says John, "aren't willing to go the second mile. They quit as soon as it gets tough." Then he proceeded to tell his life-story; one that has been full of second miles.

I think of John and I look at my life. How often have I quit too soon and stunted the work God had for me simply because I went into this thing thinking it would only be one-mile jogs followed by recupperating rests? How often do I find my testimony full of 'what-ifs' and wasted potential because I was ill-prepared for the 'dark night', for mile #2, for doubts, fears and unmet expectations? I refuse to allow that to become my testimony. Ministry will be tough and it will include many unsavory moments, but I want to be a man that savors it anyway. A man who pushes through the hills rather than walks up (or off) them. My story will look different than John's, but I refuse to let this wee man outmatch me in devotion and endurance! I am grateful to have the opportunity to meet him and Richie and the rest of the Murlough House staff, and am excited for the upcoming week of service and new experiences. Let the miles come!

Thanks for reading and I'll be sure to post some of Mikala's thoughts in a couple days.

Blessings,

Josh