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After getting back from Ireland last week, Dan and I have been non-stop busy. Today we spent most of the afternoon running errands and then finally this evening the relaxation began. Dan and I got pedicures at 6:30 (yes Dan did go after I twisted his arm several times...and his feet have never looked so good) which is a tradition we began last year when kicking off vacations. It felt really good to be pampered and it got me relaxed and ready to spend the next five days in New York.
We leave in the morning and are coming next Tuesday. I am really excited because we're spending the time with my mom and step-dad who are flying in to meet us from Chicago. Out of the four of us, I am the only one who has been to New York before so hopefully I won't get us lost and turned around. Dan has already done a good job preparing routes and setting up a rough itinerary. Yeah public transportation! This is also serving as an early celebration of our fifth year anniversary.
We won't be blogging while we're there because Dan is not taking his computer but we will fill you in on all the events when we get back.
Life has slowly been returning to normal for Megan and I since we got back from Ireland earlier this week. Here's what's currently going on with us:
* Megan is working quite a bit over the next few days (since Wednesday night she is scheduled to work 6 out of 7 nights...). If you think about it, pray for her. Those twelve hour shifts can be quite overwhelming when there are that many of them at one time.
* I have come down with some kind of cold. My throat hurts and my ears are kind of goofed up. This sure made worship practice last night a lot of fun. I hope I get better soon.
* We leave July 31 for a five day trip to NYC. We're meeting Megan's parents who are flying in from the Chicago area. This should be a lot of fun!
* Speaking of NYC...anyone have any tips on how to get cheap Broadway show tickets?
* It looks like I am going to be working some hours with RTS Virtual campus this fall. Since this upcoming semester will be a bit easier than what I am used to, I have been thinking about picking up some hours somewhere. I've been praying about it lately and then last week my buddy Dave (who works for RTS Virtual) gave me the head's up about the position. The job is a good fit for me and I can get at least 8 hours a week in (mostly on Friday). This should help with all the recent unexpected bills!
* I am still trying to finish up a couple of summer projects for Uptown Church as well as get these classes done. Time is slipping away fast...
* We've added a couple of trips to the fall/winter. We'll be in Southern Illinois over Labor Day weekend for Megan's father's wedding and in the Chicago area the first weekend of December for Megan's sister's wedding. If any of you Illinois people want to hang out and catch up a bit let us know.
That's all I can think of right now. Stay tuned for some more reflections from our week in Ireland we are working on getting done.
Saturday morning we had the priviledge of hearing from Paudge Mulvihill who heads up a group called Calvary Mission which has a vision to reach the west coast of Ireland. He shared some amazing statistics with us regarding the state of the church on the west coast. For example, there are 11 towns of at least 20,000 people, 11 towns of at least 15,000 people, 45 towns with at least 10,000 and 63 towns with at least 7,00 that have no evangelical church presence. This is absolutely staggering and we were moved to pray for God to send more workers into the harvest there.In the afternoon, the women had a luncheon where the ladies sat at tables with different women involved in ministry and then heard from a guest speaker who is the wife of a church planter in Trim. Megan sat with a woman who heads up a prayer ministry called Lydia International. This group of women gather to pray not for personal concerns but rather for their country, their
churches, and their communities. The men, on the other hand, split up into two groups and I headed with the group led by our good buddy Luke down to Dun Laoghaire Evangelical Church where Al Breen told us about the work there. After a season of prayer with him we packed up and headed back to Greystones.
After returning, Megan and I took some time before dinner to discuss what we had learned throughout the week and to talk about how God was moving us to respond to the events of the week. They had given us these response cards that we were to turn in during the evening service and I was glad to see that we were in full agreement right from the beginning. It will be a delight to continue to pray for these folks over the next year!
After dinner with our small groups, we went to the evening worship service. This was a sweet time of singing, communion, and prayer for one another. It was neat to see and hear how God had been working in the hearts of other participants throughout the week and to lift them up in prayer. Following the service, we said our goodbyes to the interns and some of the staff and we all headed down to the pub for one more time of fellowship. What a privilege it was to get to know these folks and we are so thankful that God drew us close to several people to form friendships that we already deeply cherish. It was bittersweet saying all the goodbyes, but just maybe we'll all see one another again soon!
Hey all...Megan and I made it back to Charlotte safe and sound today. We're still processing everything that we learned/experienced last week and we look forward to sharing that with you in the coming days. In the meantime, don't forget to check out our pictures here: http://gallery.me.com/thelaymans.
Friday morning came way too quickly and we were hurrying up to get ready for the daily worship at 9:00 (that is 4:00 AM for all east coast folks). Worship was always followed by a devotion and this morning's devotion was by far one of the best. It was given by Cindy Hylton who along with her husband heads up the MAP team here. She spoke of waiting on the Lord in times of barrenness and it was especially appropriate given the fact that her family is packing up and heading to the states after several years of service. They long to come back but Ireland's new immigration laws are making that seem impossible (more on that to come later..).
Our Irish ministry speaker for the day was Mick Breen. He is the pastor who has recently handed over his congregation to an associate so that he can go and plant a new one. This man had a remarkable testimony and his vision for church planting in his county is just as remarkable. We were definitely inspired by him and all of us delighted to minister to him with a sweet season of prayer (that is why we were here after all...).
In the afternoon, we took a long trip to the north side of Dublin and met one of the most amazing Christian women we have ever met - Emma. Emma runs Grandma's Ireland which is a ministry that focuses on caring for families who are affected by HIV. She leads a group of volunteers who offer practical help to families by loving on kids 3-4 hours a week in the children's home. She feels that her ministry literally acts as the hands and feet of Jesus by offering help in a very practical way. She has an amazing testimony of God's goodness and provision. Her ministry does no fundraising (she doesn't mind if others do it for her - she just wants time with the kids) and works entirely off of donations that God's people are moved to give. She has no guaranteed salary (although she is full time) and when asked she said she is glad she doesn't and actually can't picture having one. She loves being blessed by God's provision. This woman was one of the most genuine saints Megan and I have encountered. The joy and delight that she found in knowing God was absolutely evident and contagious.
What in the world is a prayer walk? That was our question when we were told we were going to be doing one Thursday morning in Dublin city. It's so easy to be skeptical about such a thing, but we just have to say it was awesome. In fact, it was one of Megan's favorite things from the whole week. We were in a group of about 10 people and we paired up and walked a set route stopping at various places to pray for various things. So, for example, we stopped in front of the Parliament building and prayed for the government and their impact on the people, we prayed for a church and its leadership when we passed by, we prayed for university students at Trinity college, we prayed for the people and their obsession with materialism in one of the busiest shopping centers, and many more. Now so you don't think we were crazy, most people had no idea of what we were even doing. We prayed as we walke
d - about things that came to mind or things that we saw - and when we stopped at particular places we looked like a group of friends having a conversation (and we were - with Jesus!). Again, we were really blessed by doing this and its one of things that really smacked us in the face and caused us to wonder why we don't do it in the community we live in now.
One of the funny things that came up during the prayer walk was the reality of the saying they have here in Ireland: "If you don't like the weather just wait ten minutes - it will change." Oh how that was true! It had been sunny/partly cloudy most of the week but on Thursday it would rain for ten minutes every 60-90 minutes or so. Good thing I had my rain jacket with the rolled up hood - too bad the hood was too big for my head. :-)
On Thursday night, Eric Brauer, the field director here in Ireland for WHM, gave us an update on the vision and various ministries going on in Ireland. Oh, how we wish he would have done this earlier in the week! This seems to be the moment that everything fell into place for us. Its so easy to wonder why this or that thing is being done the way that it is but there is always a reason. And just let us tell you, their method of ministry is brilliant. WHM is committed to shrinking into the background as facilitators and allowing Irish people do ministry in their country in their way. It was so encouraging to hear how God has not only moved among Irish folk in the last twenty or so years, but how he has given humility to the American missionaries who don't get much recognition and public credit for all the work they do behind the scenes. But their reward comes later in heaven and you can tell they really delight in doing what God has called them to do.
And of course the evening ended at the pub with a pint and a good conversation with new friends. And to make things even better, I got to smoke my brand new pipe that I bought from Peterson's!
The Dublin prayer conference kicked off on Monday afternoon with a scavenger hunt. We were placed in a group and were given a set of questions. Our goal was to walk through town and ask locals to answer these questions for us. This was a really good way to get us interacting with Irish folk and to step out of our comfort zones a little bit. We were paired up with another couple, Tom and April, who we became fast friends with. In fact after the hunt, we all went for coffee and I am told by Megan that it was the best iced latte she had ever had. I don't remember what my coffee tasted like, but it helped keep me awake for the rest of the night. Then after some welcome comments, etc. from the World Harvest (WHM) team, we went to bed at 8:30.
We are staying at Carrig Eden Theological College (pictured above). It's been a very accommodating place for our group and any fears that Megan had of European bathrooms and showers have been eased quite a bit. We sort of scored a coup when we realized that we were actually had a double bed in our room - a luxury which several other couples we have talked with don't have. The college sits right on the Sea and the views are awesome.
The last two mornings, we have enjoyed a time of worship and then hearing from some Irish people who are involved in ministry here. Jacob, the principal of the Irish Bible Institute spoke on Tuesday morning and Joe and Sharon spoke this morning about their community outreach in inner city Dublin. We were both quite inspired by their presentation and challenged by their depth of insight and desire to minister according to the cultural environment they find themselves in. For instance, only one half of one percent of the people in the Republic of Ireland are evangelical Christians. On top of that, seventy five percent of the population is under the age of 28. Those factors along with the recent affluence and subsequent immigration into the country, have made ministry here slow and challenging. It is so refreshing to be with these saints who truly understand what it means to be patient for the Lord's working in his time. They also realize in a profound way that it is the Lord who works and that we are only his instruments. As Americans we are naturally Mr. and Mrs. Fix-its - not so here. They view the world a lot differently than we do and its refreshing to see their perseverance and godliness.
Tuesday afternoon the whole group went on a walking history tour in Dublin (some street performers on Grafton Street and the cathedral at Dublin Castle are pictured to the left). Our subset of the group had a very good guide and she actually made the whole Northern Ireland stuff make sense (but don't ask us to repeat it). We're returning there tomorrow for a prayer walk and some rec time in the afternoon (WE'RE GOING TO ST. JAME'S GATE!!!!!). This afternoon we went with a small group of folks to visit with a church here in Greystones. We heard from the staff there what challenges the church faces and what their current needs are. We spent some time in prayer and now feel a little bit more connected with the people on the ground doing gospel work here.
Tonight we sit in the Beach House Pub drinking Bulmers and Beamish and blogging thanks to some free WiFi. Incedentally, we were here last night too, but we think that is pretty normal for this culture. :-)
Hopefully we'll be able to blog again soon. In the meantime, feel free to check out some picture that we have posted here: http://gallery.me.com/thelaymans. We'll be updating this throughout the week and when we get home. Enjoy!
Everybody loves to fly, right? Think about it: what used to take weeks, months, or days can now be accomplished in a matter of hours thanks to engineering and aviation. Well, before we continue with this story, we want to definitely say that we still prefer flying to sailing.
Our day Sunday started with a nice, breezy trip through the ticket counter and security at Charlotte airport. That whole process probably took 20 minutes. Our flight to NY took off right on time and we even landed a few minutes early. We then expected a five hour layover as our flight to Dublin did not leave until 7:30. This is when chaos ensued.
At about 6:30, waiting patiently at our gate, we were informed that there was a mechanical problem with our plane and it would be delayed about a half hour. Not more than ten minutes after that, they announced that it would be delayed until 11:00 PM. At this point there was a loud grumbling amongst the peoples and Delta replied that they would give us a $7.00 per person meal voucher (which, incidentally buys a ketchup packet at JFK). As the droves headed off to the food court and we were in line to receive our voucher, the time was updated to 9:00 and then to 8:35. At this point we decided that we would eat a quick meal with the rest of the lemmings and come right back. After stuffing our faces with chinese food, we returned to the announcement that the plane was once again delayed...
At this point, I will stop the play by play and let you peruse the Delta updates that I kept receiving on my phone. Here they are in all their glory:
[13:35 EDT] DL 0112 13Jul departs JFK 7:30PM Gate 14
[18:40 EDT] DL 0112 13Jul departs JFK Now 8:00PM Gate 14
[18:45 EDT] DL 0112 13Jul departs JFK Now 11:00PM Gate 14
[19:15 EDT] DL 0112 13Jul departs JFK Now 9:00PM Gate 14
[19:20 EDT] DL 0112 13Jul departs JFK Now 8:35PM Gate 14
[20:35 EDT] DL 0112 13Jul departs JFK Now 9:00PM Gate 14
[20:45 EDT] DL 0112 13Jul departs JFK Now 10:00PM Gate 14
[22:10 EDT] DL 0112 13Jul departs JFK Now 10:15PM Gate 14
Being the beacon of patience that I am and with the help of my loving, optimistic, polyanne-ish wife, I was thankful that we would board before 10. The somewhat funny thing about the whole ordeal is that we learned the plane needed a battery - ??? - seriously, what kind? I had some AAA's in my bag...
Anyway, we got on the plane before 10 and then we waited some time for a couple of passengers and then waited longer as they didn't show up and they had to remove their bags from the plane. Then things got better when we found out that we were 1 of 80(ish) planes waiting to takeoff. SO, much to our joy, we took off at 12:03:30 AM (yes, I know exactly what time).
It gets better: they actually made the "7 hour" flight in "5 hours and 45 minutes". Brilliant! Why can't they do this all the time. So, we showed up in Dublin four hours later than planned and the lovely interns from World Harvest were still there to meet us. And off we went to Greystones for the conference...
The moral of the story: God is good, we're safe, we got here, and we love it. Thanks for your prayers. And, for the record, we slept really well Monday night!
And here is a picture of us after sleeping roughly 2 hours in 36 hours...lovely, huh?
Time sure does fly...it was just a week ago that we were in Apex visiting with our friends. We had a good time and I had the opportunity to preach God's Word to his people (click here to listen). It had been a while since we stayed over at our friends' John and Kati's house. They have amazingly cute children and they're very good cooks. And, for the record, I am convinced that peach cobbler or oatmeal cream pies are acceptable breakfast foods. Until I saw their son Jack in Meg's shoes I had never 
realized how hard it would be to fill them...but that didn't stop him from giving it a shot. Needless to say, we look forward to living around all these folks again real soon...
On Monday, Meg wasn't feeling real good so she called out from work. This was the first time she called out since her grandfather died a year ago. But after much sleep she felt a lot better. Much to her joy, after working Wednesday, she was called off on Thursday. So, although she only worked 12 hours (instead of 36), she still managed to stay busy and get lots of things done (including hanging out with me and her friend Lauren).
I had class last week at RTS. It was good. The real tribulation came on Wednesday when I went home for lunch and the car freaked out on the way home. We have been experiencing some problems with our transmission and the time had finally come for the car to tell us there really was a problem. After waiting three hours for AAA to send a tow truck, the car finally made it to the VW dealer and a couple of hundred dollars later it runs like new. The real blessing in all of it was the fact that our friend Jonathan was staying with us this week (he was up from Columbia, SC for class) and he let us use his car Wednesday evening and Thursday morning to get Meg to and from work. We never cease to be amazed at how God always works out all of the little details of our life...
So Thursday night after Meg got called off we enjoyed an evening at Brixx Pizza with some friends from the seminary. On Friday I had to take the final exam for the class (I know, its weird to take the final the last day of class but it was open book). Since then we have been busy getting everything in order for our trip to the Dublin Prayer Conference in Ireland. At this moment, I think we are pretty much packed and ready to go. We leave in the morning and after a long layover in NYC, we should arrive in Dublin early Monday morning. Please pray that God would continue to amaze us with his providence over all the little details of life and that we would be open to what he wants to teach us this week.
We're going to do our best to keep in touch while gone. If we have access to the internet we'll update with pictures, etc. If not, you'll just get bombarded here when its all over with. :-)
I came across this site today and I am still trying to decide if I like it or not. It's amusing - I'll give it that much. But I wonder how beneficial it really is. If you have a moment, have a look and let me know what you think.
Happy 4th of July everybody! To celebrate, I give you a healthy dose of randomness...
* The total production of cattle and calves in Texas in 2007 was 6.8 billion pounds. Chances are good that the beef hot dogs, steaks and burgers on your backyard grill came from the Lone Star State, which accounted for about one-sixth of the nation’s total production. And if the beef did not come from Texas, it very well may have come from Nebraska (4.7 billion pounds) or Kansas (4.1 billion pounds). Source: US Census Bureau. Have fun barbecuing that beef!
* How come I can't buy pork steaks in North Carolina? This makes me miss St. Louis-style barbecue.
* I am preaching this Sunday at Ambassador Pres. in Apex. Meg and I are both excited to see all the friends and church family that we love and miss so much! The pastor there, Warren, has recently been doing a series on community entitled, "Life Together," examining various "one another" passages in the NT. I'll be preaching on Romans 15:5-6 and the sermon is titled, "Live in Harmony with One Another".
* Speaking of preaching, here is a link to the sermon I gave a few weeks ago at Uptown Church on Leviticus 22: Holy Priest - Holy Offering
* So I installed VMFusion on the MacBook. This allows me to run Windows XP on a partition so that I can use BibleWorks and various other Windows programs that I already own. Want to know the ironic thing: I have never seen XP run so nicely. Imagine that!
* I have class again next week at RTS. This one is a practical theology class titled "Pastoral Ministry" and it is taught by Rod Mays (Director of Reformed University Ministries). I must say that I am not sure that I am ready for a class again but this one shouldn't be as demanding as the Horton class I took last week. I am looking forward to seeing how God works in my heart through the instruction.
* I don't know about you but I have grown increasingly tired of all the ads that I see on various websites - particularly Facebook. Some of these ads are just downright inappropriate. Well, thanks to a tip from a friend, I found about about Adblock Plus - an addon for Firefox which blocks these ads so that you don't have to see them at all. If you use Firefox I highly recommend that you install this addon!
* Another great Dr. Horton quote from class last week: "The only demographic that really matters for Christians is that they are 'in Christ'." Try putting that down on a survey, etc. the next time they want to know what income, age, or interest demographic you fall into...
* I am planning to read "The Life of John Murray," by Iain Murray while on the plane from NY to Dublin next weekend. I really need to read more biographies...
* I also really need to keep up with my Hebrew vocabulary. I have my exegesis class in the fall and it's amazing how much you can forget over a summer.
* I need a new pair of shoes...
* Don Tomas cigars are fast becoming my favorite. It used to be Arturo Fuente, but these things are good!
Have a great holiday everyone!
I had the privilege of being in class last week with Dr. Michael Horton. He was here at RTS teaching a course titled 'Ministry in the Postmodern Context'. I have to be honest, the course title was a bit misleading. This was definitely not a practical theology class. It was more like an historical philosophy/theology class. I have to admit I got lost a few times in our whirlwind tour from Plato to Ricouer, but I learned quite a bit.
On Tuesday morning, before we launched on the whirlwind philosophical tour, he lectured a bit about technology and its influence on our culture. Undoubtedly our society moves at a rapid pace and things change all the time. Every month there is a new gadget that everyone just has to have. Songs become popular and then 6-8 weeks later something else comes along and replaces them. Television shows come and go. Fashion trends change yearly. We are clearly a data-driven society. Information flows fast and freely and the tides of life are now changing faster than ever.
Then comes Dr. Horton's million dollar question: "How can a culture of perpetual innovation serve a religion in which the God of this religion says “I will be a God to you and your children and your children's children after you?"
I have been thinking a lot about this since last week. Obviously we cannot change things in just one generation. It's not like we can just flip a switch and everything will slow down. But I do think we need to stop and see how this society has affected the Church. Have we not become market driven? As one example, consider how swiftly we introduce new songs and then sweep them out the back door once they aren't "cool" anymore. It's quite striking if you think about it.
One thing I like about Dr. Horton's quote above is that he recognizes that ultimately the culture serves the Church. The logic of mass popular culture cannot be the culture of the church. Rather the Church should strive to stand out while among the culture. Our commitment to the timeless, unchanging principles of the Church should be a beacon of light in this present evil age that we live in. I'm not saying that we cannot introduce anything new and innovative in the church (i.e. songs or technology), but we need to stop and reassess just how much we have capitulated to the culture. Not only for our sake now, but for the sake of the generations to come.
During the last 12 months, although at times frustrated, my husband has been diligent to keep our Dell laptop alive. I had been extremely supportive of such endeavors. He had kept me up to date with it's status and even as the end was coming, I was still in denial ~ "Are you sure there isn't something we can do? I mean really just because the thing is dying, do we really need to pull the plug?"
And as previously mentioned we did end up replacing it with a Macbook. Well, due to my extreme lack of knowledge of the technological world little did I know how fun a Macbook could be!!!! After Dan had played with our computer for a little, he started showing me some of it's features. (I can only take small doses~ little overwhelming for me to understand and use all at once)
One of the benefits (huge benefit) is that I can now actually iChat with my mom and her husband (YEAH!!!) because it has a built-in webcam. I got to speak and see them last night for about 45 minutes! I haven't seen my mom since Thanksgiving so this was a really special treat for me. We are definitely going to have to do more of that!
Had I know about this feature, I may have encouraged Dan to euthanize the old computer a long, long, long time ago!
Another fun thing is the photobooth application! Just wanted to share some of our fun with you.
Yes, for all of you that notice. I did just get my hair cut and yes, I have bangs. I'm not sure how I feel about them yet. I've had them long for seven years~ I'd sort of gotten used to my big forehead :-) Dan's says he likes them though :-) I trust his opinion.
Several years ago, my brother and sister-in-law had given my mother a rose bush for mother's day. As my mother prepared to move from my childhood home and into her new home with her husband she actually uprooted the rose bush and took it with her. At the time, I thought she was a little crazy. I mean it was just a bush, right? Who would want to transport a bush three hours north; and besides, once it got there whose to say that it would take well to the new soil and grow again. Then how would you feel, all of that time and mess for nothing but a dead rose bush. Which, had it been left alone, would have been just fine.
Well, I now find myself in a quandary. Within the first two weeks of living in Charlotte, Dan and my parents purchased and planted a rose bush here. It has grown into a very lovely rose bush. As I type this entry, there are 9 new buds about to bloom. I have enjoyed watching it grow and even how resilient it has been against mold, insects, and a drought. I will look out my living room window and am reminded of my parents and my husband care and love for me. As we think about moving either this fall, winter, and spring, I wonder what to do with my rose bush. My desire is to take it with me. But as mentioned above there are a few logical problems with that solution. Not to mention that I don't even know if I will have a place for it.
It's funny how something as simple as a rose bush can become so sentimental.
Well, it's official. After two-and-a-half years the ole trusty Dell laptop is now on life support. Only father technology knows how many more days it has here on the earth with us...
Seeing how sentimental I am - I replaced it today. I drove up to the Apple store and took advantage of my educational discount (I knew going back to school had some advantages) for a new Macbook. Now, many of you have heard me say how enamored I was with the black one but on further investigation (and some help from the salesman) I was dissuaded. We are now an apple family. Iphones and a Macbook. Life is good.
I also used my education discount to get a free 8gb Ipod touch. We have absolutely no use for it, so I am selling it. It's never even been opened. Any takers? Let me know.
Only 13 days till we head to Ireland for the Dublin Prayer Conference!!!
We are happy to report that we have raised all of the support needed for the trip. We praise God for providing all that we needed.
We were also excited to see the itinerary for the conference. You know us planning types - hard to get too excited before we actually know what is going to happen. Rumor has it we might be exposed to some Irish dancing...
I had forgotten how much fun VBS or Backyard Bible Clubs could be. Dan was a crew leader for the preschool age group (4-5) and he had 6 little beautiful children to shepard around to all of the activity stations. I helped out on Tuesday and was so blessed by the children and their joy that on Friday when the preschool group would be short a leader I volunteered to help out again. I truly loved the three hours I spent with them those days.
One of my favorite things at Backyard Bible Clubs was that the theme for the day was reiterated at each station. For example, on Tuesday we learned about
Jesus healing a blind man with mud so at the first station we had the Bible story, then at the games we played with mud, and then at snacks we ate mud (chocolate pudding and gramham crackers). It was neat and just encouraging to see the children be able to use all five senses while learning about God and the truths of Christ. It actually caused me to reflect on my own learning about God and how I'm sure that I would remember better if I engaged more of my senses in the learning process.
What a blessing to spend time and invest in covenant children and to share the Gospel with the world.
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