SkinnersBlog

Snow and Team Retreat

2010-03-31T10:45:00.002+01:00

Our team is on a joint retreat at Bassenfell Christian Centre in the Lake District of northwestern England. And what greeted us as we woke up on this 31st day of March? Snow! An early April fool's joke maybe, but nevertheless our family marks 16 years in England on the the 1st of April.

Sun and Sand

2009-03-09T14:55:00.005Z

The Indian Ocean off of Turtle Bay (Watamu, Kenya) is wonderful. I don't do hot and humidity very well, since I don't tan (I turn less white instead). We're going snorkeling tomorrow to see if we can see dolphins and little fishies on the coral. Maybe more pictures after that. I'm uploading photos from our time in Nairobi up to the following site. Have a look at my online storage site and look at these photos. Keep coming back as I'm adding photos during the week slowly because of the lack of speedy internet connection. http://www.box.net/shared/0gh5ggkhb8

Breaking Bread

2009-03-08T06:25:00.003Z

I broke bread this morning. It wasn't breakfast. It was a meal of celebration. A meal of friendship. Teammates and colleagues from Thailand, Kenya, China, Ukraine, America, Mexico, and England around a simple meal of some crackers and juice. A meal of remembrance. The writers of the New Testament sometimes call it 'communion' or 'eucharist' (meaning 'thanksgiving') or the 'Lord's Supper'. Both a solemn moment and a joyful moment it was. Jesus was with us.

Kao La Tamaini and the Giraffe Project

2009-03-07T04:09:00.004Z

Tuesday was a 10 hour affair with Japheth visiting three primary schools, one girls secondary boarding school, a few micro-enterprises, vocational training, and visiting the three largest slums of Mathare, Kibera, and Korogocho. Mathare, the largest, has over 800,000 people in an area 1 mile wide by 3 miles long.

At the moment, all I can say, is, 'What an eye-opener!' But wonderful work being done by locals who care for their community. 39 children in a classroom, elbow to elbow in a space some 15 x 20 feet. A mum/guardian caring for children and extended family, sleeping 8 to a bed and 16 in a tin covered shack with tin walls that's some 10 x 12 feet.

My internet access is slow and I'm having trouble picking up e-mails and responding. The schedule is choc-a-bloc and we've been out in Niarobi all day (and again today, Saturday). I may have to wait to provide more update until we get to the Kenyan Coast.....

Nairobi

2009-03-03T17:01:00.006Z

24 hours ago we made our way to BHX in Birmingham. While we waited in the departure lounge, who should we see but Roy from thethirdplace catching a flight to Portugal! We hadn't seen him for several weeks, and it was a serendipitous visit. We also met Rob from the GlobalScope team (campus ministry at the University of Birmingham) who was on the same flight to Amsterdam.

Once in Amsterdam we met up with Jonathan who would be on the same flight to Nairobi. He's team leader for the team in the Ukraine. We flew a KLM plane run by Kenyan Airways, and while I was a bit nervous about the idea of a quality Kenyan airline (yes, I was prejudging), the service was great. Even though my armrest controls for the movies was on the blink, Tam and I managed to catch one movie by switching seats. The rest was less than that, with an overnight flight, as we backed up on a bulkhead and couldn't recline our seats. I did get to eat all of Tam's snacks though!

The four of us were met by Ezekiel, our driver to Brackenhurst, and waited for the team leader from the GlobalScope team in Salamanca, Spain. And then the driving adventure began! Ezekiel pointed out the terminal where VIPs are welcomed into the country, including Barak Obama back in 2006. He also showed us the road works going on from the airport into Nairobi, in anticipation of Obama's visit at some point in the future. We saw Obama posters on the back of cars and buses, some covered by the belching of thick diesel fumes like I've never seen! We almost disappeared down one pothole Ezekiel managed to miss after getting out of Nairobi, and then we followed that by playing 'chicken' with a immense lorry full of gravel that took evasive action to miss a pothole right into our path!

Made contact after arrival with Japeth, at a school in Nairobi. While Tam's in her meeting with other team leaders from across the world, I'm going into the slum area of Nairobi where I'm representing a church from England who supports the school. I have no idea what it's going to be like, but I hope to have some stories and photos tomorrow!

Alan Hirsch

2008-07-26T05:54:00.000+01:00

Tam and I spent last weekend at the Together in Mission Summer School. Tam is working on an MA in Missional Leadership, while I'm a tutor (teacher) on several topics (Church Planting, Church Growth, Missions History, Mission & Empowerment) and was there to attend the Master Class with Alan Hirsch (www.theforgottenways.org).

Alan is originally from South Africa, but has spent most of his life in Australia, planting churches, leading a church planters and leadership training organization. He's written a couple of books, and has recently moved to America. He was one of the speakers at the National New Church Conference in April of this year. He's a deep thinker arising not from academia, but as a practitioner.

I first met him several years ago when he was on a speaking tour in the UK with Michael Frost. I ran into him a couple of years ago while at a class at Fuller (he was teaching, but I was in another class), and we had a couple of meals together with another Aussie who was in the class I was attending. He also did a wonderful job on the Saturday morning explaining some of the finer points of rugby as we watched the tri-nations match between the Wallabees (Australia) and the Springboks (South Africa).

In this Master Class, what was one thing he said that captured my attention? Especially as it applies to what we're doing in thethirdplace? He brought me back to something about the church growth being seen in China. The dynamic there is not "how do we grow?" but 'how do we multiply?" Added to this is the view "every believer is a church planter, and every church is a church-planting church." Why is it the western church is conditioned to think so differently than this? Why can't I think this way?

One other statement by Alan: "Christology determines mission which determines ecclessiology." That is, what one thinks of Jesus then defines what I perceive I ought to do in response to him, and that then shapes what the church looks like in any given culture. What we often do, is have a view of church that we attempt to impose upon other people and cultures; it is a western view and is a kind of ecclesiastical imperialism.

Food for thought!

Bits & Bobs

2008-07-22T17:59:00.000+01:00

A few things that have happened since writing last....

The 4th of July weekend had no fireworks, but I did play in an ice hockey tournament in Sheffield. We came 14th out of 15 teams with a 1 win, 3 losses, and 4 ties. Games were 15 minutes running clock. We obviously didn't do as well as we hoped but we had a great time. Pictured are some of the lads that played. From the left back row John, 'H', Colum, Roger, Chris, then Darren, Gaz, and Maggit, and Matt our goalie. We had two players, Shornie and Aaron go out with injuries. I felt and played better as the games progressed each day, and in the end had a great time. One funny story from the training session the week before the tournament. John, the fellow on the left in the back, said to me, "I can't believe you're a (expletive deleted) vicar and you play ice hockey. You play it well and you're a (expletive deleted) vicar." Thank you John, for the compliment.

The last weekend in June was the delegate conference of the Fellowship of Churches of Christ. The conference was held in Leicester at a school where Lighthouse Church meets. Lighthouse joined the Fellowship last year, and this year the conference was followed by an ordination service for Richard. Richard (and Dan, pictured) was a printer who increasingly sensed a call to leadership in the local church. He was instrumental in Lighthouse joining our network of churches.

The 3rd weekend in June we said farewell to Aaron, Diane, Reece, and Fin who will be stateside until their return to the UK in early April 2009. The going away party for them at Dickens Heath Village Church also marked DHVC being entirely on its own without outside leadership. Our church plant, conceived and birthed earlier this decade, has matured past infancy, toddlerhood and adolescence, and is now a young but independent adult. It leave us full of mixed emotions as does considering our own adult children. God is good. It's not about us, it's about Jesus. We love Aaron and Diane and boys, and they have been great teammates to us in so many ways. We already feel a sense of loss that their next placement upon return to England won't likely be with us.

Family, Friends, & a Bobcat

2008-06-14T16:03:00.000+01:00

2008-06-14
The Thursday drive from Fullerton to Mesa was uneventful, but hot! The temps have been over 100 degrees Fahrenheit, 107 yesterday. We arrived into Mesa and went to see Andrew at his workplace, and was treated immediately to his sense of humour. One of his workmates drew a sketch exhibiting his sarcastic wit, and it depicts Andrew precisely. It says “'Random big word.’ You probably don’t know what that word means!”

Our dinner evening with the small group was fun! Thank you, friends, for your hospitality and generosity to us. One of the couples there were Ona and Ruth, whose daughter Rachel is a sweetie and good friends with Jess. Jess stayed with them the first night, then joined us at Karen and Gary’s last night.

This morning, I had a treat. As I was sitting at the table, tapping away on the laptop finishing preparations for an presentation in the afternoon, a bobcat walked by an arm’s length away just outside the patio window! It walked through the back garden (English term ‘garden’, but actually desert flora and fauna), jumped on a wall and walked along like any alley cat, then jumped into the neighbours front garden. Alas, I tried to talk a photo with my phone, but I hit the wrong button and missed it.

Symposium Wrap-up

2008-06-12T13:09:00.003+01:00

2008-06-12
We’re up early this morning, getting ready to finish packing. We leave Pasadena this morning to drive to Fullerton, pick up Jessica, then make the almost 400 mile drive to Mesa. By 4.00pm this afternoon we should be stopping at Andrew’s workplace to meet him. We’re briefly meeting the owner (click here for the company) who’s helping us with some banners for Dickens Heath Village Church and thethirdplace. After that, we’re meeting a small group from Central Christian Church of the East Valley (http://my.cccev.com ) for dinner.

While my Final Project Symposium is complete, the work is just beginning. My deadline for completing the 150 to 175 page final project is October 2010. This is where all the studying of the Doctor of Ministry (click here) comes together, and there are a number of intermediate deadlines to keep, the first being August 15 for submitting a draft final proposal for review, the next being 15 October for formal submission. While each class has had immediate personal application and in our church planting ministry in England, the final project should have substantial application.

I have two topics in mind, and can’t yet settle on one or the other until I flesh them out further in the final project proposal format. Here’s what I’ve come up with so far.

Possible Topic One: A Strategy for Church Planter Assessment in the Fellowship of Churches of Christ in England. Thesis: The purpose of this ministry focus paper is to present an implementable plan for assessing potential church planters within the network of churches known as the Fellowship of Churches of Christ.

Possible Topic Two: A Strategy for Planting a ‘Simple Church’ Network in the West Midlands of England. Thesis: The purpose of this ministry focus paper is to present an implementable plan for planting a network of reproducing organic or home-based churches in the West Midlands of England.

The first topic has to do with helping produce a more national strategy to support church planting by coming up with a range of assessment means that help potential church planters start planting churches. The second topic is more local, and has to do with establishing and growing thethirdplace network.

Sushi

2008-06-11T06:45:00.000+01:00

I'm supposed to be writing my final project proposal, but an evening eating out with Jess and her friend Katie took priority. We went to my favourite eating place in Pasadena, A'Float Sushi. Well, maybe not my favourite place, but one I visit everytime we come here for one of my DMin classes. As for the Final Project Proposal, since I've been waking up at 2.00am every morning since coming to the States, I'll have a few hours to write before meeting with my small group for mutual encouragement and critiquing of what we've developed.

Los Angeles

2008-06-10T14:58:00.003+01:00

2008-06-09
There is a reason we’re in LA apart from seeing Jess. Tim is attending a Final Project Symposium for his Doctor of Ministry (DMin) studies. This 2½ day course, led by Dr Peace, is designed to help Tim write a proposal for his Final Project. The proposal is a key piece in providing a focus for thought, research, and writing with specific ministry application in mind. While the final deadline is October 2010 (7 years from start to finish), staged deadlines of 15 August and 15 October of this year for approval of the proposal loom large.

Dr Peace (click here for a description of a book he's recently written and here for more info) is a delightful man, and has really set me at ease about the ‘doability’ of the proposal and the deadlines. Two new points of thinking about it gave me a feeling of relief. The first was that the final project proposal is a tool to progress my thought, research, and writing; that is, the finished product isn’t hogtied to the proposal outline for the 125 to 175 page paper. Second, if I can think about the reading, reflection, and writing as a spiritual discipline that is integrated into my life over the next two years, it will go a long way to making steady progress and bringing it to completion.

2008-06-08
Sunday afternoon and being reunited with Jessica was wonderful! We can see her growth and maturity in so many ways. She finished off the semester with top marks, working two part time jobs of 25 plus hours a week and carrying a 17 hour class load. She has a variety of friends (we had lunch with her and Crystal, Miki, Danielle, and Cormack), and can navigate the Los Angeles freeways and traffic like an expert! She’s working full-time this summer in Investigations at Fullerton Police Dept as a police cadet, providing support to the detectives. Where did our little girl go?

Early Morning Travel

2008-06-09T14:34:00.001+01:00

What were we thinking---getting up at 3.00am this morning to catch our morning flight out of Eugene? I guess booking with air miles didn’t leave us much choice, though it was originally scheduled for 8.00am departure instead of 6.00am. The flight changes are a reflection of the consolidation and shrinkage of the industry due to increased fuel costs.

We’ve had a great time the last couple of days. Tammy’s sister (Terry) and husband (Rodney) came down from Seattle with Uncle Bud (Tam’s mum’s younger brother) on Friday afternoon. Sitting around the lounge and telling stories was wonderful! Saturday’s get together with Rick and Margie included a full telling of stories from University days, some of which are even true. Rick was part of our wedding party. Joyce also took part in our meals and memories as a family friend. Joyce made Tam’s dress, cake, and flower arrangement for our wedding.

Speaking of which, we’ve finalised the travel details for Andrew and Jess, and we’re now beginning to plan a renewal of our wedding vows for our 25^th anniversary later in the year. This will take place in England with our Dickens Heath Village Church and thethirdplace family and friends, in December.

Birthday Greetings

2008-06-06T20:05:00.001+01:00

I've been overwhelmed by the number of facebook and e-mail notes I've had wishing me 'happy birthday.' Thanks to everyone who's sent me a note! It was a quiet day without anything special to note, which is quite OK with me. Both the kids remembered and phoned (well done Andrew and Jess!). Tam's still looking for a gift for me that's been on our american shopping list, but hasn't been able to locate it yet.

Last Saturday, after the ice hockey game the Solihull Wolves played against the Coventry Chaos, H (yes, 'H' is what we call him; don't chuckle, I'm called 'Ned' or 'Flanders' from the lads' belief that I resemble the character Ned Flanders from The Simpsons!) had a special request. He wondered if I could find some peanut butter filled pretzels that he once enjoyed on a visit to America. Do you know, I have searched everywhere and can't find anything like this? America has everything but peanut butter filled pretzels! Maybe H will be happy with peanut butter filled cheeze crackers....

The America Trip Begins

2008-06-05T02:38:00.001+01:00

2008-06-04
Mail awaited us upon our arrival in

America

at Tammy’s mum’s. Notable was the Christmas gift we purchased for Tam’s mum. Jess hand carried it back to the USA after her Christmas holiday with us, then mailed it to Tam’s mum over 5 months ago. Thinking it was for us, she simply set it aside. We enjoyed watching her open the digital photo frame, then watch the several hundred photos cycle through that we had loaded on it. A birthday card also awaited me from my parents. Funny how such a card can sum up a person, and both Tam and I enjoyed a lengthy chuckle as a result.

2008-06-03, evening
“We forgot to take photos!” That’s what I said to myself when I realized we had left an evening hosted by our friends Greg and Elvie for friends and supporters without visual reminders of our time together. While I lamented my lapse of memory for pics, I nevertheless gratefully praised God for the precious dozen present who represented significant input into our Christian formation. Greg took me under his wing some 25 years ago to co-teach a course on God’s incarnational mission to grasp people with his love for them. Along with his then wife, Arlene, they loved and encouraged early on as we prepared to move to England. Several days before we moved to England, we spent an evening with Greg and Arlene, Arlene’s last before being murdered the next morning. Some years later, after Greg married Elvie, we receive their mutual care and support.

Most of those present dated back to our days at University Street Christian Church in Eugene. Besides Greg and Elvie, there was Don and Dorothy, keen supporters of cross-cultural ministries such as ours. Paul and Jan, who influenced Tam long before she met Tim. Two of their children were in the youth group we led for a couple of years. One of them, Steve, died in a car accident on the day Tim was ordained at University Street (21 years ago almost to the day), and the events of that day still shape our view of ministry and service to others no matter what the circumstances. Ron and Jacqui (another daughter of Paul and Jan) were in attendance, long-time translators of the Bible in Indonesia. I still remember meeting Ron at Northwest Christian College and seeing in him a kindred spirit of love for Jesus. Mayretta, Ron’s mum, who came to University Street our last year there before we moved to Arizona. Dick, director of the Restoration Campus Ministry, a locally supported ministry to students at the University of Oregon, who baptised and married us in May and December 1983. Joanne, whose son was in our youth group, and had a riotous sense of humor. Oh, last, but not least, Bruce and Sally, with whom 11 of us (including Andrew and me) enjoyed a week of salmon fishing in Alaska in August 2006.

Alas, no pictures, but burned in our hearts are images of these special friends who have loved us, believed in us, encouraged us, and modeled a love for Jesus that still spurs us on after all these years. Our hearts overflow with love and gratitude for you!

2008-06-03, morning
After getting a lift to LHR (Heathrow airport) by Richard, we spent the next 20 hours occupying chairs either in airports or on aircraft. Tam and I arrived at her mum's in Eugene, late in the evening. It was a long day of travel from England, and it was wonderful to get here. I managed to get a meal in me, then retired to the settee to turn on the ice hockey game, which went into 3 overtimes before going to bed at what was the equivalent of 5.00am. A catnap or two in 24 hours isn't much, but while Tim did manage 8 hours sleep, Tam only got three. I'm feeling kind of tired now, and wouldn't be surprised to nod off while Tam and her mum are out shopping.

2008-06-01
After being with Dickens Heath Village Church in the morning, we made our way to Leatherhead (inside the M25, SW of London) for a wonderful evening with our friends Richard, Marian, Laurence and Rosie. Tam and I were so excited to see them! Richard and Marian became part of DHVC in the early days after we had publicly launched the church plant, and Tim baptized Marian not long afterwards. Marian became Tam’s prayer and accountability partner, and it was a sad day when they moved to London with Richard’s employment. The last time we had talked to them was July of 2007 when we phoned them while driving past the St Louis arch---a city they had lived in for a couple of years with a previous job. It was amazing to see how the kids had grown in the 18 months since we had last got together. We rejoiced to see them. What we didn’t know, while we had been stateside, was that they were instrumental in hosting a home group that morphed into a church plant that recently celebrated its one-year anniversary. Well done Richard and Marian, and thank you for your example and faithfulness as apprentices to Jesus.

Friends & Food & Faith

2008-05-24T20:28:00.001+01:00

Anton and Sarah are wonderful friends. We've known them, along with their daughters Laura and Amy, a couple of years before the public launch of Dickens Heath Village Church. Anton is a sound and video expert, great at puns, and has named all the important bits of kit used for worship services (Daphne the Desk, for instance); he records and puts all the messages from DHVC on the church web site. Sarah has the gift of hospitality, hence our visit and meal with them tonight.

I was really encouraged by our conversation, for two reasons. First, we talked about how important it is to not just discern God's voice in our circumstances, but have a posture of obedience just as Jesus did, who said 'I obey my Father so the world will know I love Him' (John 14.31, CEV). Second, the crucial role of exercising trust in this obedience, learning to overcome our fears with a confidence that abandoning myself to God is the safest and most secure thing one can do.

As Tam and made our way home, so that I could make a bid on an eBay auction (and win, YES!), I reflected on a verse from the New Testament book of Hebrews. I used to narrowly think of this verse as simply applying to entering a relationship with the Father, but actually, it describes the ongoing Kingdom of God living one experiences in this relationship. 'Without faith, it is impossible to please God, because those who come to God must believe that He exists, and is the rewarder of those who diligently seek him' (Hebrews 11.6, NIV).

Thanks Sarah and Anton, for loving us, and showing us an example of loving God that we can follow.

A Brief Visit to Prague

2008-05-24T16:17:00.003+01:00

A couple of weeks ago we managed a three day getaway to Prague. A couple from one of our supporting churches gifted us with some funds for use as we deemed fit. Tam did some digging around, and found some discount tickets. We traveled with our teammates Aaron and Diane.

The weather was delightful, and the architecture and history was wonderful. We walked miles and miles. A couple of highlights include explaining to our walking tour guide the Pentecost stained glass window ("I've never heard such a thing" she said) and being sobered by the box of tefillim (Phylacteries) in the Spanish Synagogue collected before Jewish residents were shipped off to camps and executed. Of 83,000 Jews in the region, 77,000 were killed, and their names are inscribed on a wall of another synagogue close by.

Our trip was another reminder of the kindness and generosity we receive that we do not deserve. We are grateful for the love so many show toward us!

2008-04-09T11:14:00.000+01:00

Launch of The Third Place
Six of us gathered on a Friday night at the beginning of March to 'soft' launch The Third Place home-based church. You can read more about it at http://thethirdplacenetwork.blogspot.com/.

Launch of The River
Along with Dan and Amy, we travelled to Gillingham in Kent to assist in the Easter Sunday launch of The River ( http://www.the-river.org.uk/), led by Rob and Vicky who have vision and passion and dozen-strong team.

Nathan Arrives
Late last autumn a team of four arrived to begin Canvas, a new campus ministry to University Students here in Birmingham. Nathan, from one of our supporting churches in Virginia, arrived in March to join the team. Welcome Nathan!

National Leaders Day
On 1 March Trinity Lane Church in Hinckley hosted over 50 leaders from the Fellowship. The day was called by the National Leadership Team of the FCC to reflect on where we've been as a network of churches, and where we're going. The sharing from churches was inspiring; the diversity of what churches are doing in difficult and challenging circumstances to live out Kingdom of God values and be missional was awesome. Feedback from the day was very positive and we're planning for a follow-up in the autumn.

Back in the UK

2008-01-31T18:47:00.000Z

OK, 'back in the UK' is a bit stale. We've been back since the 11th of October! But back we are, and delighted to say so. After some time of rest and recovery from furlough (it took me almost a month before I really wanted to talk to people -- I was 'peopled out' from all our speaking engagements), some painting and decorating of the upstairs bedrooms, reconnecting with many people, it was suddenly Christmas and the kids had arrived.

Andrew and Jess were here for 2 weeks and 3 weeks, respectively, and we had a great time. Their departure was sad, but signaled time to dig into some new projects. Our time prior to Christmas was essential for regaining a sense of the big picture of our work and ministry here, but now we're settling into new responsibilities and routines. In the days ahead I will tell you more.

Counting Down

2007-09-15T13:27:00.000+01:00

Our return date to England draws ever closer. We've been settled into the Stafford, Virginia area for just over a week. Tim has a trip next week to Colorado for a church planters leaders retreat. Tam has a trip to Indianapolis the first week in October. And then just a few days later we're back in England!

What are we missing about England these days? Tam mentions our cats, our bed, and our furniture. Tim starts salivating, when asked, over thoughts of a Lamb Tikka Massala on the evening of our return. But both of us agree that some sense of routine and a return to our friends, where we can live out our call to help people walk in God’s ways, keeps us counting the days.

Where have we been recently? We did enjoy a brief trip to NYC at the end of July. Yes, food was involved, as you can see from the photo of Tim and Ruth enjoying some Malaysian fare. In the middle of August, we were back in Newport News, Virginia for a conference, and saw our friend Teressa -- she's an amazing woman who along with her husband Donnie supports our ministry in England by selling her paintings. At the end of August, after leaving Peggy's 126 acre farm in Salem, Virginia we headed for Pennsylvania and New Hampshire. Our weekend in the Howard area was fantastic, and then we spent a couple of days in Kingston, NH with friends Doug and Sandi from our Oregon days some 22 years ago. Yes, Sandi, your cinnamon rolls are still the best in the world!

Road Weary

2007-07-12T01:50:00.000+01:00

After 52 weeks stateside, we're now getting a bit road weary. The first week in July was our hardest week of travel, with a trip to Kansas and Nebraska from Virginia. We can now say we have logged about 31,245 miles by car (that's 600 miles per week), while having entered and exited 29 states. Fifty-four beds will have comforted our increasingly weary bodies, but only 1 pillow (we take our pillow with us where ever we travel!).

The good news is that our return to the UK is booked! We'll be counting down the 13 weeks remaining until our return to our own bed, our own stuff, our church family and many friends who we long to see and with whom we long to share how God has provided beyond what we could ask or imagine. But not yet.... We have a few more miles to go and more friends to see and more ministry assignments to complete.

One of our recent highlights was a 16 mile bicycle ride down the Virginia Creeper Trail with our long-time friends Ann and Paul. That's the longest we've biked in years, but fortunately it was all down hill. We rented bicycles from a company that took us to the top of Whitetop Mountain, and coasted most of the time. We even had a stop for lunch half-way down!

We're now in Salem, staying with our dear friend Peggy on her 126 acre farm. Yes, it is an absolutely delightful area. Like Abingdon, it's on the edge of the Appalachian Trail. The gentle mountains and ridges are full of wildlife. On the drive into Peggy's land, we saw a young two or three month old fawn. Within an hour of arrival, we watched wild turkeys cross a field. On the way out the next morning, we saw another yearling deer and rabbits. Tim is thrilled because there is grass to mow, and wood to cut with the chainsaw and split for the winter.

2007-05-19T15:32:00.000+01:00

I can still remember Bob Hope specials where he would sing "Thanks for the memories..." On occasion, I’ll start to sing that tune or Barbara Streisand’s "Memories, like the corners of my mind, misty water-colored memories of the way we were." Inevitably, I’ll forget the words apart from the first two or three, and Tammy will beg me to give it up. Then she’ll go on to sing the correct lyrics in a much better manner than I can. Admittedly, Tam's voice is more pleasant than mine, but my version of the lyrics are funny...at least to me.

Anyway, I’ve felt for a long time that family holidays are important because they build important memories together and contribute to family bonding — even if the holiday doesn’t turn out as planned. A decade ago we had a great holiday to Scotland and the Isle of Skye; when we tried to repeat it the following year our car broke down in a campsite we had already visited, and it rained continuously on our too-small tent making it miserable for all of us.

We still talk about it, just as we talk about visiting Longleat House and Safari Park during our first summer in England 13 years ago. When we repeated that visit a dozen years later, just before leaving the UK for our current stateside assignment, we remembered the first visit while making new memories to remember....such as Andrew screaming "Giraffes" and finally getting his skateboard, albeit in miniature. I’m chuckling and thankful even now for such memories and the family bonding we experienced.

And so it was in Orlando last month when we met the kids there for a family holiday together. Whether it was the four of us crammed together (joined by Phill from England for one night) in a small hotel room with copious complaints of my snoring (replaced by Phill’s sonorous sounds for one night), or taking a group photograph around a bowl of fruit for our friend Vicki in Arizona, we built memories. And we bonded. And we were family. Together. And that too is a gift from God.
Photographs bring pleasant memories too. I mentioned in an earlier blog seeing our friend Julie in Dallas, for the first time in 24 years, who was in our youth group in our home church in Eugene. She managed to dig up a photograph from some aged archive and shared it with us. I couldn’t dig all the names up from my memory banks, but some of the youth sure imprinted their mark on me. And maybe we did for them too.

Such is our hope, and our thanks, for the memories.

A Day Off

2007-04-09T23:48:00.000+01:00

How unusual these days, a day off! I managed to convince Tammy that since we were in an area of ports and navy bases, that a trip to the middle of Norfolk and the USS Wisconsin battleship. It was awesome to go on board. You get on free of charge, and there are volunteers all over the deck to tell you about the ship if you're willing to ask a question. You get on by entering through the Nauticus (http://www.nauticus.org/), a building which houses a museum and cafe and so.

The USS Wisconsin was worth seeing, as was the museum. You can find out more at these two sites:

But if you decide to eat in the cafe there, expect chaos because ordering and paying are separate, and you might have to float a loan to pay for the meal because it was overpriced.

Awesome piece of military equipment, still in the reserve fleet, so no going inside.

Safe & Sound

2007-03-28T20:28:00.000+01:00

"Safe & Sound" aptly describes our arrival into Newport News last week. We arrived on 22 March with no problems en route from Mesa, Arizona. It was a long way, but ever so enjoyable because of the several dozen old friends we saw along the way.

There were so many highlights! Julie, from our youth group in Oregon, who we hadn't seen for 24 years. Dan, who graduated from NCC in Eugene with me in 1986, our first visit together in 20 years. Then there was Julie, whose family are friends of ours from University Street Christian Church days in Oregon, 22 years plus since our last seeing one another. And there was Mark, a classmate from high school we stopped and had coffee with in Birmingham, Alabama.

Too many stories to tell, so I'll tell you about one of our favourite food experiences. At least, one of Tim's favourites!

Prior to giving us a tour of New Orleans, the devastation, and the wonderful work being done by Journey Christian Church (http://www.journeyneworleans.com/) and Building Better Communities to help rebuild New Orleans (it will take a long time, 175,000 homes were destroyed, 300,000 people displaced or made homeless), Nathan Hawkins took us to a local seafood restaurant. There, Nathan and Tim devoured a pound of cajun crawfish and a pound of boiled shrimp together. Tam declined and ate another Louisiana delicacy of red beans and rice. For more on the unique history of cajun living and cajun cooking, see http://www.cs.wisc.edu/~jmeaux/cajun.html, from which I borrowed this photo.

Newport News is the locus of military bases, NASA, beaches, and the early history of the New World. In fact, April marks the 400th anniversary of the landing of those first 3 ships, and the founding of Jamestown. For lots more info, check out http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Virginia_Peninsula.

Anyway, we're here for another few weeks. Northside Christian Church has generously provided accommodation for us that has a lounge, bedroom with a king-sized bed that's so big ("How big is it?") I have to use the cell-phone to ring Tammy to see if she's gone to bed at the same time I have. It's so big ("How big is it?"), that I have to use a GPS system to locate her for our last cuddle of the day. The accommodation also includes entry into the gym next door, so we're back to swimming (Tammy) and aerobic work and weights (Tim).

Maybe I can work off a few of those 15 pounds I've gained since we've been stateside. Where are those cajun crawfish, maybe I'll lift a few of those....

Another Departure, More Goodbyes

2007-03-03T00:26:00.000Z

With less than 36 hours before departing Mesa for 6 months of highly nomadic life, I find myself reflecting on departures and goodbyes. Yesterday, Tam and I met with Neil, a friend and leader in the church here. We debriefed the previous 6 months of life and ministry we've experienced.

It seems the nature of what we do involves loads of 'so good to see you again' and 'farewell.' It's bittersweet. We celebrate the embrace of friends old and new, then grieve the loss which distance brings to these relationships. It's one thing that makes me believe in heaven---the eternity of Kingdom living and the everlasting family meal we who are children of the King will enjoy. How could the relationships which have been forged not enrich us into eternity?

Anyway, we embark on the next stage of our stateside journey before we can return to England. This Sunday our Olds Silhouette van will be loaded up with all that can carry, and we'll make our way initially to Atlanta, Georgia for speaking appointments. En route we will see a couple of friends we've not seen in over 20 years! Again, we'll say 'great to see you' and then 'may God bless you and protect you until we meet again.' In Houston, we hope to see a cousin I've only ever met once. In Birmingham, and then in Atlanta, we'll see two families who lived in England and were part of the life of Dickens Heath Village Church. In northern Georgia, we're preparing to see a friend who was in our youth group in Oregon, and whom we've also not seen in at least 21 years. Along the way, we'll be in several churches, renewing old friendships and making new ones.

Does this make me sad? Yes. No. Not a chance. I think you know what I mean. My life continues to be enriched by the influence and treasure these people are to me, and even more surprising to me, the influence and treasure I am to them. Chances are, if you're reading this, you're one of them. Thanks for letting me love you, and thanks even more for loving me.

Until the next time I see you, an old Celtic blessing for you:

May the road rise up to meet you. May the wind be always at your back. May the sun shine warm upon your face; the rains fall soft upon your fields and until we meet again, may God hold you in the palm of His hand.

Odds & Ends

2007-02-11T14:42:00.000Z

January was a delightful if bittersweet month. The month ended with a visit from Tim's parents (see previous post). But the week before that included a last family meal of the four of us (Tim, Tam, Andrew and Jess) and we had a great time together. I guess I must have been having too much fun, because I got caught in a photo by Tam. This is what will happen to you if you stick black olives up your nose--yes, you will end up looking like Tim!!

The day I took Jess to uni, we dropped Tam off at the airport and she flew to Indianapolis. She was part of an assessment centre which helps to evaluate singles and couples who are looking to live and work in cross-cultural settings. She came home exhausted and took a day to recover.

As for me, I went up into the mountains with a group of about 15 for a weekend training retreat for living and working in a cross-cultural setting. I may have missed riding a four wheel ATV in MN and AZ at Christmas, but I made up for it by driving a four wheel drive vehicle in a couple feet of snow up into the mountains at Show Low, AZ, and then on the return through Payson, AZ down to Mesa. I drove a loaner Yukon that was sweet to drive. I would love to go again!

Family Visits

2007-01-31T21:41:00.000Z

We've just said goodbye to Tim's mum and dad who visited from MN. Their trip was a gift from their children (Mike, Diane, Tim and Pat) for their 50th anniversary. It was like a mini-family reunion while they were here. We took a trip to Quartzsite, which during the summer has less than 5000 residents, but swells to upwards of 250,000 people in the winter months. We met Tam's dad Marvin and wife Carolyn as well as Tam's aunt Joyce (Marvin's older sister) and uncle Rollin. It was fun getting Joyce and Rollin and Joyce and Rollie together again, the first time since our wedding 23 years ago. It reminded us of the story of another aunt (Ruby, Marvin's oldest sister) of Tammy's who took photos of the four at the wedding day, but went home only to learn she had been taking photos all day without film in her camera!

We also managed to visit with with two of Tim's aunts and an uncle in Mesa. Shirlee (one of Dad's older sisters) and Mert winter in the area, while Marilynn (Dad's youngest sister) happened to be visiting the last couple of weeks. Unknown to us, Marilynn was also booked on the same return flight to MN, so we took them all to the airport.

I don't think they were too happy to leave AZ and the 70 degree F temperatures for the frosty environs of 9 below F temps of MN!

It was a wonderful visit for 5 days with mum and dad, and we're so glad they were here.

For more on some interesting facts and photos of Quartzsite, click on this link: http://www.nationalgeographic.com/ngm/0101/feature6/

A Trip Across the Border

2007-01-13T21:31:00.000Z

It was a 3 hour trip each way, but we visited Nogales, Mexico with Jesus. Well, not Jesus actually, but Jesús Celaya. Jesús is associate director of Hispanic Ministries here at the church in Mesa, and was actually born and raised (until he was 11) on the Mexican side of the border before moving to the American side.

It was fascinating talking to Jesús about Hispanic culture and his groundlaying work for a new Hispanic church plant in Mesa--He's only been in this position at the church for three months. While we were in Nogales he pointed out the area where he lived (high up on a hill) and the Catholic church where he served as an altar boy.

I asked Jesús why it was so common for families to name their children after Jesus. He explained that families thought having a child in the family named Jesus offered some sort of spiritual protection. Often, it's the firstborn, but Jesús laughed and said he had no idea why it took his parents until the 9th child to do so!

We ate taquitos (little tacos; any word ending with 'ito' mean 'little' -- something Jesús taught us on the day) once we got there in a little hole-in-the-wall place. We wondered the shops and EVERY shopkeeper asked us to come in and take a look at their goods. And if we passed them and came by half-an-hour later they asked again! Some would say, "Come and buy some of our Mexican junk, please. It is a very good price."

Lunch was at the El Hacienda, similarly good and cheap. And it was on Jesús!

Would I go again? Well, I thought this might be a research trip to go again when my parents visit in a couple of weeks, but I don't think they would enjoy it--too much walking and too touristy--just knick knacks and such. Great to visit for a day, but even better to chat with Jesús, Nancy, Melissa on the journey there and back.

Wonderful Family Times

2007-01-02T14:31:00.000Z

We had a wonderful time in MN for my parent's 50th wedding anniversary. First time everyone together in one place, ever! It was great being able to honor mum and dad. Thanks to Ray and Barb for giving us a place to lay our heads at night. Came home with a cooler full of venison--even if it was delayed by 36 hours before getting to our house in Mesa.

Alas, no snow, therefore no snomobiling. Similarly, in our visit to Lake Havasu City to see Marvin and Carolyn, no working ATV, so no four wheeling in the desert mountains this time around. Maybe next time.

Pictured, from left: Front row: Kathy, Diane (Marla sitting), Dad, Mom, Rollie (sitting), Tammy and Mia; Back Row: Jennifer, John, Mike, David, Harley, Andrew, Jessica, Tim, Alex, Pat, Carly.

Christmas Plans

2006-12-20T16:25:00.000Z

Just 24 hours away from departing to MN for Christmas. I'm hoping for a blizzard, about two days worth, on Christmas Eve Day and Christmas Day. We return on the 26th, so no snow then! And no snow beforehand to prevent travelling to MN from AZ, or to prevent others travelling for my parent's 50th wedding anniversary. We'll see my 2 brothers and sister and their spouses, and all the nieces and nephews. That will be cool. Our first Christmas in MN since 1983, the year we were married.

After we return from MN, we'll head to Lake Havasu City to see Tam's Dad and wife for a few days.

I'm hoping that within the time frame of a few days, I'll have gone snowmobiling on the frozen plains of MN and ATV riding in the desert of AZ!

What does it take?

2006-12-07T22:08:00.000Z

Recently we've been reading a book together by E. Stanley Jones called Christ of the Indian Road. Jones wrote it 1925, when India was barely two decades away from exerting its independance from the British Empire. It is a provoking book, choc-a-bloc with amazing insights, deep thought, and profound thinking about what it means to walk a spiritual journey as an apprentice to Jesus in another culture.

ESJ wants people to know that Jesus can be, and must be, seen as 'one of us' who is 'more than us.' So, when he speaks of the Christ of the Indian Road he is speaking of a Jesus who is Indian--not an anglo, blue-eyed and fair-haired, but One who identifies Himself with people of a culture.

At one point, he relates this story:

"A friend of mine was talking to a Brahman gentleman when the Brahman turned to him and said, 'I don't like the Christ of your creeds and the Christ of your churches.' My friend quietly replied, 'Then how would you like the Christ of the Indian Road?" The Brahman thought a moment, mentally picturing the Christ of the Indian Road---he saw him dressed in Sadhus' garments, seated by the wayside with the crowds about him, healing blind men who felt their way to him, putting his hands upon the heads of poor unclean lepers who fell at his feet, announcing the good tidings of the Kingdom to stricken folks, staggering up a lone hill with a broken heart and dying upon a wayside cross for men, but rising triumphantly and walking on that road again. He suddenly turned to the friend and earnestly said, 'I could love and follow the Christ of the Indian Road.'"

The failure we who do love and follow Christ experience in seeing other people come to do so too often comes because we restrict Jesus to a replica of us rather than seeking to be an authentic replica of him. Jones, who knew Mahatma Gandhi personally, once asked him, 'I am very anxious to see Christianity naturalized in India, so that it shall be no longer a foreign thing identified with a foreign people and a foreign government, but a part of the national life of India and contributing its power to Indials uplift and redemption. What would you suggest that we do to make that possible?'

Gandhi replied with four suggestions:

All Christians must begin to live more like Jesus Christ.
Practice your religion without adulterating or toning it down.
Put emphasis on love, for love is the center and soul of Christianity.
Study the non-Christian religions and culture more sympathetically in order to find the good that is in them, so that you might have a more sympathetic approach to the people.

As Jones so vividly states at the beginning of the first chapter, 'Christian service cannot rise above the Christian servant.' Those of us who wish others to love and follow Christ must love and follow Him, ourselves, as One who is worthy to be loved and followed and are accordingly transformed in so doing.

Cars and Drivers

2006-11-12T11:32:00.000Z

The last 2 weeks have been full of adventure and change. Life will never be same. We can't go back. We are destined for it to be different forever.

What am I talking about? The kids are now licensed drivers. First, Andrew passed his test. Two days later. The next day, he drove solo, to work, for the first time. The day after that, Jessica passed her test. She also took her first solo drive the morning after. The day after that, she bought a car, following in her brother's footsteps who had bought his car a month earlier.

Now both kids have cars, licenses, a little money, and independance of a sort they've never had before. Life will never be the same. We can't go back. We are destined for life to be forever different.

A week before Jess passed her test, we had a trip out to Hope International University. Tam and I represented CMF for a missions fair. Along with Jess, we also toured HIU and Cal-State Fullerton. It's looking increasingly likely that Jess will will start university there in January.

On the trip back, I had Jess drive the last 100 miles back on the interstate (her first time) and through Phoenix during rush hour (also her first time). She did a wonderful job. In fact, without having to worry about driving standard transmission cars, both kids picked up on the driving very quickly.

Was I nervous teaching them how to drive? Yes!! I tried not to hold the arm rest without leaving finger marks in it. I certainly left an impression in the floor boards where my foot tried to brake.

But now it's different. Now, it's watching the kids go out the door, with their own cars and independance, and a different kind of nervousness accompanied by pride. Life will never be the same. We can't go back. We are destined for life to be forever different.

Tammy’s Tuppence

2006-10-25T14:15:00.000+01:00

We’ve got geckos! Technically, we don’t really ‘have’ geckos, but a wonderful pair – whom I’ve named Fred and Irma - regularly show up on our back porch and I’ve kind of adopted them. To be honest, I’m not entirely sure whether this pair is monogamous or, for that matter, can actually be described as a couple—for all I know they could be patio crawling mates which would more willingly answer to the names Fred and Ernest.

But I digress. At the moment, this pair is quite a novelty for us and we’re quite enjoying keeping an eye on them. Certainly not a substitute for the Siamese members of our family, they are but one of the many blessings of life in Arizona and a unique reminder of the boundless imagination of our Creator God. For even though we greatly miss our home in England, we are in awe of the majesty and variety of the desert. And to think we get to live here – geckos and all!

For the uninitiated, ‘Geckos are small to moderately large lizards belonging to the family Gekkonidae and found in warm climates throughout the world. Geckos are unique among lizards in their vocalizations, making chirping sounds in social interactions with other geckos. Geckos are unusual in other respects as well. Many species have specialized toe pads that enable them to climb smooth vertical surfaces and even cross indoor ceilings with ease....’ en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gecko.

Thinking about 'Becoming'

2006-10-19T23:55:00.000+01:00

"Becoming what?" you might ask. A fireman when I grow up? A waste processor fertilizing fields? No, I don’t mean that.

Let me get at what I mean in a roundabout way. Listening to a message from DHVC that I downloaded off the internet the other day, I heard Aaron use the phrase ‘conduct unbecoming an officer.’ It got me thinking about this word ‘becoming.’ How did it begin to get used in reference to behaviour?

I recall the old English use of ‘comely,’ as in 1 Samuel 16.18 referring to David as ‘wholesome, and pleasing in appearance.’ I don’t know that there’s any link in this to ‘becoming’ (see the definition at http://www.thefreedictionary.com/comely), but I kind of like the idea if it does. In this sense, ‘becoming’ conduct isn’t perfect conduct, but consistent conduct, conduct that is attractive, wholesome, healthy, and maturing.

As I was thinking about this, I happened to read a chapter in Gordon MacDonald’s book A Resilient Life. He quotes Thomas Merton: "If you want to identify me, ask me now where I live, or what I like to eat, or how I comb my hair, but ask me what I think I am living for, in detail, and ask me what I think is keeping me from living fully the thing I want to live for. Between these two answers you can determine the identity of any person. The better answer he has, the more of a person he is. "

This speaks to having a vision of what life is all about, and how one addresses the obstacles that come along the way. And how one addresses those obstacles is all about becoming.

MacDonald then goes on later to write: ‘In the lives of the disciples, it is clear that there was an invitation to follow, which the disciples accepted. But one sees relatively little attention paid to the beginning and far more attention placed on what the disciples were becoming.’

‘Becoming’ behaviour, then, focuses on a dynamic process rather than a static and lifeless state of being. It doesn’t require a moment of perfection, but a journey of progress where there may well be one step back for every two. It is reflected in the question ‘Am I growing more loving toward God and toward people?’

Am I indeed becoming the kind of person whom God and people would enjoy being with forever?

Catching Up on the Aho USA Update

2006-10-17T21:01:00.000+01:00

From the September Issue:

Welcome everybody to the long awaited 2nd issue of the Aho travel diary!

We have a new lesson we've learned we're calling the '3times rule.' In the past 7 weeks since our first travel update/blog (can't call it a blog, really, since the definition says it must be 'frequently updated'--we haven't done that!), we've learned that everything takes 3x as long as we planned or anticipated to do. E-mail, expenses, researching information, communicating, organising, buying supplies, settling into a temporary residence--it all takes 3 times what we anticipated.
So we're feeling a little more exhausted than we anticipated, and chaos has been our close companion for many weeks. But we've now been 'settled' in Mesa, AZ for a week....just in time to fly out to Virginia tomorrow for a 10 day trip.

Suggestions for the name of this rather boringly titled update came fast and furious--over 55 submissions!! The funniest, as a result of the 'letters from the loo' story I told, were 'BogBlog' (in the UK, 'bog' is another less proper word for the WC) and 'Down the Pan' (an Americanism, for the UK audience, referring to the toilet). We can't say we were really struck with any of the names suggested, so, while boring, 'Aho USA Update' remains descriptive enough to survive the renaming attempt.

In our experiences of the last 7 weeks, I've lost count of the times I've said to myself, 'what I've just observed or experienced would be good for reflection on the blog site,' only to be foiled by lack of internet access or other to-do list items of greater importance.

Still, we're fresh enough on the American scene to note several surface differences from the UK. Everything is BIGGER than we remembered. Streets are bigger. Food portions in restaurants are bigger. Cars are bigger and SUVs far outstrip any other model too. We're reminded that to get anywhere, personal vehicular transportation is required--everything is so far apart and spread out. Oh, and everything is air conditioned too--we nearly froze in Indiana when we first arrived there, then melted when we went outside. We've forgotten or lost touch with proper etiquette in social situations (that's hard to describe how we feel that, but Tim chewing on his toenails while accessing a wireless hotspot at Starbucks definitely generated a few stares).

For those counting (as of 4 September 2006), we put 1507 miles on the 1999 Yukon SUV, given us as a loaner, for the 2 weeks we drove it. The 2000 Oldsmobile Silhouette, which the Weston family (Josh and Jan @ http://www.westonpontiac.com/) so helpfully arranged for us to purchase, now has 3400 additional miles on it since we purchased it on the 9th of August.

The ride continues!

Sleep is Spiritual

2006-10-17T01:11:00.000+01:00

OK, so I’m sleeping more, believing that’s the most spiritual thing I can be doing in the moment. What does that mean? It means I’m trying to be less addicted to adrenaline by giving my body and brain time to rest and recover from life. It means releasing control of the day to God and letting God create in me a hunger for him. It means being a wise steward of my physical being with which my spiritual being always is influenced.

Here’s the essence of what Arch taught. Basically, we sleep in 90 minute cycles. In the first several cycles during a night, the vast majority is for the physical recovery of the body during what’s called ‘non-REM’ sleep. Barely a few minutes of the 90 minute cycle is devoted to REM (rapid eye movement) or dream sleep, where the brain ‘defrags’ information from the day. It is a physical bio-chemical process that only occurs at the end of the 90 minute cycle. However, what’s significant, is that as the cycles proceed, the non-REM sleep decreases, while the REM sleep increases. The last 90 minute cycle of 9 hours of sleep can have anywhere from 30 to 60 minutes of REM sleep—and is the most significant healing/recovery time of the whole night!

So, at least for the last 3 weeks I’ve been getting to bed by 9.00 or 10.00pm, and instead of getting up at 3.30am (though I still wake up at that time!), I’m staying in bed until 5.30 or 6.00 and getting one or two extra sleep cycles in (depending on my bedtime).

For this time in my life, rather than ‘activity’, sleep is the most spiritual thing I can do. It reminds me of a statement I once heard, "There’s always enough time in a day to do what God asks us to do."

2006-10-17T00:59:00.000+01:00

Greetings after a bit of an absence; life for the Ahos in America has been a bit fractured as we’ve settled into more of a routine for our time in Arizona. After a load of travel, we’re now looking forward to several months of being ‘home’ here in Mesa.

My last bit of travel (without Tam) was to Pasadena for my DMin class at Fuller Seminary. The course was taught by Dr Archibald Hart on a minister’s personal health. Actually, the material on depression, sexuality, assertiveness, confrontation, marriage and family, stress and adrenalin addiction, sleep, and burnout was not only outstanding, but applicable for anyone.

Our class was one of the smallest Arch has ever had—just seven of us, but very diverse! We had an Aussie, Korean, Chinese, Anglo military chaplain, and a ‘retired’ couple providing pastoral care in a local church but with decades of experience in juvenile detention facilities. Of course, there was me too, but, some would argue, I’m my own diverse universe anyway!

What’s one thing I’m practicing from the class? Sleep. No, I’m not joking. Arch is a guy who travels the world speaking and teaching, and yet gets 9 hours a sleep most every night. He writes books, lectures in a seminary to grad and post-grad students, and finds time to take a relaxing bath before he starts every day. And he’s smart—he was a civil engineer in South Africa in his 30s before launching into a ministry career as a psychologist and pharmacologist.

After his teaching on sleep and the whole 90 minute non-REM/REM cycle, I realised that the chaos and disruption of the past several months, where it’s been difficult to pray and study, in large part has been because of too little sleep and not enough rest. So, I’m spending more time sleeping. More on this later.

A New Adventure

2006-07-12T16:25:00.000+01:00

Welcome everybody to the first of what will be many stories from the Aho travel diary! If you want to be added or removed from the list, just post a comment and it will be sent to me. At the moment they aren't viewable by anyone but me.

Stating it up front for the benefit of all who read this, whatever else this travel diary will be, it will NOT have the character of a church newsletter. While our (Tim and Tammy's) own love for God and the nature of our vocational responsibilities will spill over into our stories, I am not writing this to regale anyone with how wonderful it is to be a Christian leader or to convince someone to visit their local church. This is simply a kind of blog:

Blog is short for weblog. A weblog is a journal (or newsletter) that is frequently updated and intended for general public consumption. Blogs generally represent the personality of the author or the Web site. (http://www.bytowninternet.com/glossary)

My aim for this journey together over the next 13 months is to be informative, funny, challenging, inspirational, and probably sarcastic from time to time. I hope to educate the geographically and culturally-challenged (starting with me!), while being witty and insightful (just like my hero of all things witty and sarcastically insightful, my son Andrew).

I might push the boundaries on occasion, deliberately or accidentally; in either case I hope you will extend grace to me and gently reply with your comments or correction. OK?

As for the name for the e-mail form of this: 'Aho USA Update Issue 01; 2006-07-12' sounds so institutional! We need a new name! Something better than 'Letters from the Loo' which I used for irregular (no pun intended) issues back in 1997 and 1998 during a similar 7-month stint in America. Rising early one morning as is my habit, I discovered that the only available room in the house for writing e-mails on my laptop was to sit on the toilet seat with the dirty linen basket as my desk! So, SEND ME YOUR SUGGESTIONS FOR A CLEVER AND CATCHY NAME for this e-mail blog!

The journey begins tomorrow: we depart BHX for EWR, make a connection to ATL before getting to IND late in the evening. According to our flight itinerary, we will be about 14 hours in the air tomorrow, traveling some....well, I tried to look to see how many miles, but it's not on the itinerary. Have to figure that later.

So here we go. Let's enjoy this ride together.

Caricatures

2006-04-11T14:38:00.000+01:00

Over the years we've had several caricatures of family members painted or sketched. Before Tam and I were married, we had individual sketches done--playing softball with one hitting the ball to be caught by the other. A few years ago, while in Atlanta, the kids were the subject as they made fun of each other. Finally, I presented this one to Tam for Christmas.

The odd and amazing thing about caricatures is that they both resemble and don't resemble the real thing! Usually, body parts, such as the head, are way out of proportion to the others.

Currently, we're asking the question "Who is this Jesus?" One of our DHVC (www.dickensheathchurch.org.uk) number has written 5 monologues of people who are trying to make sense of Jesus, both before the cross (Palm Sunday) and after the cross and resurrection (Easter Sunday). Chris did a great job in writing them, while he and Sarah, Bernard, Gloria, and Caleb did a great job of presenting them. My job was to tie them all together, and I did that at the end by showing our family caricatures.

The point being, of course, that people need to be encouraged to think about their view of Jesus. Often, it's the case that people have a caricature of Jesus in mind, and accept or reject that caricature. We wouldn't think it fair to accept or reject a caricature of people we meet each day, why should we do so with Jesus?

The Celtic Way

2006-04-05T11:55:00.000+01:00

I'm preparing for my last class of the Missions History topic I'm teaching for the MA in Missional Leadership degree offered by Together in Mission and is accredited through the University of Wales. I teach this topic and the Basic Church Planting topic, when it's offered locally, and on occasion, a little further afield (Birmingham Christian College and north London, 2 different venues, last month). When I took the class with Tim Doty at Northwest Christian College, now over 20 years ago, it was called 'The History of the Expansion of the World Christian Movement.'

Part of the topic has to do with what it would take for a movement to be fostered, such that people come to love, trust, and follow Jesus, and share that naturally and contagiously with others. In the class, we look briefly at the Celtic and Roman models of church. So I was intrigued today when I came across a review of Hunter's recent(ish) book in He@lthyChurch.mag.co.uk, where the reviewer highlights the different model the Celts used as compared to the Romans in their Christian mission outreach. He cites Hunter's view that the Roman model stresses:

Presentation ---> Decision ---> Fellowship

whereas the Celtic model stresses:

Fellowship ---> Ministry & Conversations ---> Belief ---> Invitation to Commitment

I have to say that I really like the approach of the the second, and I think it fits well culturally in the Western world; in fact, I would say it's the crying need of the Western world to see church done this way!

The problem is, the institutional church only knows the Roman model. It will either take a turnaround in most existing churches to foster the kind of church which follows the Celtic model, or the planting of many new churches where this kind of life is experienced and people are then persuaded that Jesus is a leader that can be trusted.

What's the Next Step?

2006-04-04T16:27:00.000+01:00

We often talk at DHVC about people being on a spiritual journey. One thing we're about is helping people think about where they are on their spiritual journey, and helping them take the next step. Over the weekend Tammy and I had over a dozen people round the house, at 3 different times, to reflect together about this.

It was great having our friends here sharing and praying about how each in their own way has come along in his or her love for Jesus. Tam and I are so moved by God's goodness and what we see Him doing in these DHVCers! We can see our prayers being answered, that each will be empowered by the Holy Spirit to move forward, completely confident that Jesus is a leader who can be trusted. And that as each does so, others will see Jesus can be trusted too by their manner of life.

This is consistent with our church theme of 'Steps of Faith' for the year, as Paul writes, 'We live by faith, not by sight.' 2 Corinthians 5.7, NIV.

I kneel before the Father. . . [and] pray that you. . . may have power. . . to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ. . . . Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen. Ephesians 3.14-21, NIV

Decline and Fall?

2005-09-08T06:36:00.000+01:00

BBC Radio 5 the other day was having a phone-in debate about the loss of civilization. After the breakdown into chaos in New Orleans, they asked if the same thing would happen in the UK after a major catastrophe. Good question, but I wonder if there has to be a 'catastrophe' to be a breakdown. It seems to me that there are many signs around that civility, and the codeword 'respect' that is currently being bandied about, is declining. It's my observation that here in the UK, there is an underlying social ethos that if something isn't right, somebody ought to do something about it--which often means the government (national) or local authority ought to do something about it. In major catastrophes such as Hurricane Katrina hitting the gulf states of the USA, no doubt it's the state or national government which provides the infrastructure required to cope. Certainly, then, people of good will or churches (such as Chandler Christian Church (http://www.chandlercc.org/) which gave their entire previous Sunday offering of over $155,000 to the Katrina relief fund (http://www.stadia.cc/) provide support fundamental to the restoration of people. Such good deeds are to be applauded. But what about personal responsibility if something isn't right?

Is the increasing incivility connected to a loss of faith, specifically, Christian faith? At my recent DMin class at Fuller, I met a fellow student who serves as an episcopalian priest in Connecticut, a northeastern state with attitudes towards Christian faith similar to England or Europe. He has a blog site (which got me thinking about doing this one) that provides a perspective on faith here and on the continent which are profound. You can find it here http://www.geoffchapman.blogs.com/ under the 11 August posting. He simply argues that we're in a battle between 2 kingdoms. And one provides the basis for true civility, where people genuinely care for one another, where communities of grace and forgiveness & truth and self-discipline are built. I choose that Kingdom. And I'm responsble for my choice.

Surprises & T-Shirts

2005-09-05T08:35:00.000+01:00

For some time now a few members of the worship team have been teasing me about using the word "paradigm" and the phrase "paradigm shift." Over the summer they've been scheming behind my back, and yesterday they dramatically unveiled new t-shirts designed and imprinted by Phill. On the front they say "Have you shifted paradigms yet?" The Dickens Heath Village Church logo is on the sleeve, and on the back, they say "To find out how to shift your paradigm E-mail: Paradigm-shift@hotmail.co.uk" They presented a special shirt to me that includes "Aho" on the back as well. Great way to take the mick out of me! And I really like it too. It says a lot about the kind of transformation we need to see reality, people, and ourselves from God's perspective. And it takes a paradigm shift. If you don't know what that phrase means, well then, e-mail me at Paradigm-shift@hotmail.co.uk! I'll reply as soon as Anton gives me the password details since he set it up for the t-shirts.

Having a Go...

2005-07-31T08:25:00.000+01:00

Well, if one's going to blog, one has to start somewhere. Will the site look like I want it? Will I be able to edit, input, and design it well? Will people read it? What kind of content do I want? And why am I doing this? In the days and weeks ahead, it will become clear!