Birmingham Summers

Okay so maybe my title is a little off since nothing is really happening right now in London but I, coincidentally, am listening to classic U2 tracks and it just seemed appropriate. Well for starters, I survived my first attempted terrorist attack. I know, seriously, don't worry I'm fine. I was actually only a couple blocks away from where they found the first car before 2 a.m. I was seeing a couple local bands that were being showcased in an event called London Calling. The music was really good and all the bands seemed really excited just to have people show up. Kinda different from what I'm used to in the music world. Another highlight for me, I was able to see the glass chandelier hanging in the rotunda lobby of the Victoria & Albert Museum. It's by a glass artist named Dale Chihuly and I have been completely enamored with his work ever since my dad and I caught a special on PBS about one of his installations in Venice. It was absolutely breathtaking (note the pictures.)
In other news, I am back at a beatiful house in Highbury for the next couple of days. It's a little out of the city but only a short way away from the tube so I can get around pretty easily. Well I do believe I'm off to Chelsea to go see Stamford Bridge, also a personal dream of mine. Pictures should follow shortly. Cheers!!

0 Comment

Well a couple days ago we had our last family dinner with the International students and I started to wonder to myself, just how fast did this month actually go by. Well the answer was way too quickly. It feels like just yesterday I was sitting in an airport for five hours waiting for the rest of the team, that I had never met or seen, to get there so i could have a ride to Asbury House. Then it literally feels like minutes ago I was at table with Naomi teaching English and Bible stories to Hitomi and Saloiva. I think it really hit home when Hitomi handed me a present that she had made for me. The note said thank you for talking about Christ in such a clear way so that she could understand it even though she doen't know English very well. The thing is that I really didn't know what I was doing at that table. I stuck with Naomi because she had a background in Japanese culture and relating the gospel to Asian people and I figured I could just sit back and learn from her. But then I get this note that say's even in my feeble attempts to communicate Christ with someone, He used it to impact her life. I was blown away and I really didnt know what to say about it all. It's been a fantastic month and I'm in London now doing debreifing and a bit of sightseeing with the rest of the team. Just to know that God used 9 students who had no clue what was gonna be happening really makes me smile. We serve such a great God and even when we don't expect much, He gives a lot.

0 Comment

Well the last week has begun and I don't really know how I feel about it. To tell the truth, parts of this trip have been completely exhausting but on a whole it has been one of the most amazing experiences in my life. Tonight is our second to last family dinner where we are able to invite students that we have met so that we can build a deeper relationship with them and hopefully share the gospel. Yesterday Zack and I had lunch with a Chinese student named Jerry. He is a really awesome guy that the Lord put in our paths a couple weeks ago who believes that everything is controlled by fate and luck. he just isn't ready to believe that there is a God out there who loves him and is directing his steps. He showed me how to write my name in Chinese characters which was pretty cool. The rain has started once again so it's back to typical British weather. I've learned to always carry a rain jacket with me no matter what I'm doing because the chances of it raining can gofrom 0 to 100 in a matter of minutes. Well I'm gonna go get ready for our Bible study time but I would just ask that everyone pray for the students that we are meeting with tonight. Some of them are on the edge about Christianity and maybe tonight someone will be able to clearly share the love of Christ with them. Cheers!!

0 Comment

I don't think that words can even begin to describe just exactly what, and how much, God taught me today. In all honesty, I have never been really comfortable around people who don't speak the same language as me very well. It's easy to just nod and say hello but that usually doesn't involve any type of personal interaction, therefore no relationship. Well today the Lord literally pushed me out of my box and onto a field with a large group of Asian students that wanted to learn how to play American football. The fun that we had on that field can only be summed up by saying that everything I thought about international students up to today was left on a field in Selly Park. I walked away with friends from a complete opposite part of the globe and the cool thing was that I didn;y even have to try. These students just wanted to be accepted, much like I want to be accepted by my friends. Another thing that was totally revolutionary was how to easily share my faith with someone of a completely opposite religion without causing confrontation. i went knocking doors in Selly Oak with my friend Pete and I was in awe of how easily he just asked questions to people and casually shared his faith in Christ like it was the only thing he really knew how to do. He was polite, honest, and sincere in his love for Christ and the person he was talking to. I was blown away. For so long I always skirted around the fact that my friends that don't know Christ would probably laugh at me if I started talking about God. But for Pete, it was just a natural outpouring of his faith in Christ. On a sad note, Nancy, our project leaders wife, faced the death of her mother today. She was a believer but it is still hard when that moment comes. I would just ask that you would pray for Nancy and G.P. as they head back to the states to deal with the funeral and family. Also for Zach and Naomi as they stay behind and lead the rest of the project in England. i would also just like to end tonights note by saying thanks to Roger, Jerry, Hitomi, and Nick for helping me realize that we aren't so different from each other and that even those differences shouldn't ever keep someone from being a friend. Cheers!!

0 Comment

So today is our first official day off from doing anything project related and it just so happened that it was pretty much the most sunshiney day that we've had yet. Over the past week we have been making contacts on campus and just trying to really make friends with some people that are a) international students and b) people that don't know Christ. For the first half we we're all leading up to the family dinner where we invited everyone that we had met to just sit down for a free meal and talk some more. jake and I met an amazing guy named B.B. who ended up coming to the party and it was a complete blast to get to know him and just talk and hang out for the longest time. We're gearing up for what is known as Project PETE (Post Exam Training & Evangelism) next week. Basically it gives students a place to learn practical skills about evangelism and then they spend the afternoon going out on campuses in town and putting that knowledge to use. I'm gonna be leading the worship time so I'm really stoked about that. The British students that I have met here are just so full of passion and life. It's really hard for their passion to not rub off on everyone around them. I guess in short, next week is gonna be amazing an I am really looking forward to it. Cheers!!

0 Comment

okay so I know I said that I would update at least every two days. My bad. This has been our first week of really heading out on campus and meeting international students. Sunday's church service was really amazing. ChurchCentral meets in an auditorium of King Edwards School and the history in the building itself was kinda overwhelming. Scholars dating back to the late 1800's were adorned in plaques on the walls. The church service was rather like many that I had been too in the U.S. but afterwards some fellow students invited us out onto the back cricket lawn for a picnic. It simply amazed me how everyone would just pack a lunch and sit together after the service and visit for hours. They also had a baptism in the school pool. Honestly, it felt more like a celebration then a baptism. We sat in the bleachers and cheered after the two girls were brought out of the water. Very refreshing.

So we've been on campus for two days now and I am finally getting used to talking to strangers about the gospel. It doesn't sound hard but when you have no clue where the person is from or if they even speak English, it can be very intimidating. My first day on campus Kate and I were accompanied by Lois, a local staff member of Agape, who really helped us refine the technique of how to engage the students in conversation and then start pointing towards spiritual subjects. The students here are exceptionally friendly and I haven't found anyone who isn't open to talking about their religous beliefs, or disbeliefs. Today we're heading back out on campus for more conversation starting but later the England vs. Estonia football game is on so a few of us may find a small pub to go watch the game with some real British footballers. It shall be jolly fun. Cheers!!

0 Comment

So the one thing about Stratford-Upon-Avon that struck me as odd was the fact that William Shakespeare was buried inside the local church. I was under the impression that people buried inside these elaborate churches were usually of some large importance to the church community. I may be wrong but I didn't think that Shakespeare was a priest or viccar or anything. Anyways, Holy Trinity Church was absolutely beatiful and was an inspiration to see. I got a bit sunkissed but thats only because I'm a really white person and I forgot to bring sunscreen. Well tomorrow a couple of us are attending Church Central which meets right across from Birmingham Uni and also is right next to the school where J.R. Tolkien went to school as a boy. The students that invited us were really awesome so I am really excited to get to know them more and find out what church in the U.K. is like. The weather has been absolutely gorgeous for the past two days, which is an answered prayer since we had a BBQ for the international students. That was also a great thing getting to meet and just hang out with lots of the Chinese students and the British students that we will be working alongside. Well there's soo much to do tomorrow, including a Barn Dance British style which should be very interesting, so I'm gonna head to bed. Cheers!

0 Comment

So I'll admit it. I'm not that great at meeting new people. I really enjoy meeting new people I just feel really weird doing it and sometimes I think that the other person is picking up on that so then I get even weirder. Yeah I have a bit of a rock star in me but that still doesnt make me the shyest outgoing person that I know. So I figured while I'm sitting watching the British version of blind date in a room full of people that I don't know too well that I would tackle this problem. On my blog that is. Well tonight we went to a Christian Union meeting on campus. It was amazing. Very simple and full of people who had a genuine love for Christ. The only person in their group that wasn't at University was the guest speaker. A quick side note. In America we have everything we could ever want, and then some, so why don't we ever talk about social issues as a church. AIDS/HIV, Fair Trade, Debt Relief, Feeding the poor. These aren't terms you hear in most churches. Why is that? Didn't Jesus feed people before He ever tried to teach them? Is it right to say we love Christ and all that He has made and not try and stop bad things from happening in His world. Some Third World countries are caught in a cycle of debt payment that will virtually never allow them to raise up above the poverty line. Is that right or even ethical? Here in Birmingham we meet in the mornings at a Methodist church right down the street. This morning I took a couple minutes to look around at some of their literature and flyers hanging around. They had an entire board dedicated to Fair Trade and information on the Jubilee campaign, which works to get governments to forgive debts to Third World countries. I don't know many churches in America that would ever think about putting things up like this. I'm not trying to condemn people for not bettering their world, all I'm doing is saying that as Christians I really believe it's our responsibility to help those who literally can't help themselves. Think of how much the love of Christ would be shown by just helping out a little. Sure we may never see who we are helping, but that's not the point. God is the point. He see's everything and by helping others it is simply another act of obedient worship to Him. Well thats enough on that for now at least. I absolutely loved the people at CU and I'm very much looking forward to getting to know them all more personally throughout PETE week and just around on campus. This was an amazing day.

0 Comment

So I'm still wondering why my domestic flight was on a bigger plane then my flight from Newark to Birmingham. That's gonna puzzle me for a while. Well I found out the airport is nice and cozy and doesnt have too much to do, especially when your carrying a lot of bags. But I made it safe and after a brief wait in the lovely T1 terminal, I met up with the rest of our team and began the somewhat horrifying ride on the wrong side of the road. The phrase look both ways before crossing the street has literally saved my life three times already today. After unpacking, Jake and I decided to take a walk around our neighborhood to get a feel for who, what, and where we would be living. The Selly Oak side of Birmingham that we are on is absolutely gorgeous and full of people. While I was in the airport today I had the chance to talk with a lady waiting to pick someone up. Coming from the Bible belt I was suprised when she didn't have any clue what kind of religous organization I was going to be working with. She was a very helpful and pleasent woman but she had no clue about Christ. Sitting there, and later walking around Selly Oak, I realized that even in the country where great revivals were sparked and the Word was spoke loudly by many countless faiths, people still didn't know Jesus and what He could do in their life. The freedom that He offers is right there in front of them but they just can't see it. I'm really excited to get to know everyone here better and then to start reaching out to others in our community so that they can see who Jesus really is.

0 Comment

Yep that's right. Only 3 more days until I hop onto a plane headed for the U.K. So this is gonna be where I post all my thoughts and random stuff that happens during my 4 weeek excursion into British life. I'm not sure what the internet connection's will be like where we're staying but I'm hoping to update no less then every 2 days so check back often to see what the Lord is doing in my life and those of all the students we'll be reaching out to. Oh and since I'm from Texas y'all will have to forgive me for lots of contractions and the use of the word y'all in itself. It's been almost 4 years in Missouri and I still can't get rid of it. So thanks for everybody's prayer and support. I'm going overseas!!

0 Comment