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I read a book sometime ago that put some numbers to the amount of words a man can process in a 24 hour period and the number of words a woman can process in that same period of time. As you might guess the man’s number was much smaller than our female friend’s. Maybe that has been my problem lately? I have sat down in front of this computer late in the evening ready to blog – I close my eyes and try to corral the thoughts that are stampeding around in my head – and nothing happens. I must be over my word limit for the day! Maybe I need to write earlier in the day? Or maybe Carrie could use some of her excess word capacity to bail me out? She did not agree with that book at all. She quickly produced evidence (our cell phone bills) that I use more words in one month than she uses in 2 months!
I have been doing a lot of talking & thinking recently. Since the beginning of this year we have been wrestling with the reality that we may need to develop a new way to be involved in missions. For the past 3 years I have worked with I-TEC volunteers in countries like Haiti, Mexico, Bolivia, Honduras, Nigeria, and Papua New Guinea. Typically I try to travel to the project sites one week ahead of our volunteer Teams to make sure everything is ready for them to hit the ground running. I love to experience other places and the people God placed there. His creation is so wonderfully diverse! I wish everyone would venture out to another country- especially a developing nation- at least once in their life. These experiences have torn down old perceptions and build up a whole new outlook on life in my heart. I am no longer a “Proud American”! I have become a “Grateful American” – humbled by the gift that God gave me on my birthday. Citizenship in the most prosperous nation on earth was something I never earned – it was given to me. I have a difficult time talking about some of these experiences because a wave of tears crashes into the back of my eyes and flood out onto my checks. I think this happens when I realize how little I’ve done with this precious gift I’ve been given – life in the USA. This same emotion sweeps over me with twice the force when I think about a much greater gift that was given to me and every person that has ever accepted it – ETERNAL LIFE in God’s presence (Heaven), paid for by Him with The Blood of His Son – Jesus. What does all that mean? My friend Ron explains it well at ronsworld. Check out Free Gift & the Good Person Test.
This relationship with God is about so much more than doing what we are supposed to do and not doing what we shouldn’t do. God opened my eyes to a short passage in the Bible that I had never paid much attention too before. In Mark chapter 14 verse 7 Jesus is reclining at the table of Simon the Leper in Bethany when a woman named Mary (John 12:3) came into the room and poured a jar of expensive perfume on His head & feet as a sign of love and devotion to Him. This did not sit well with one of the men at the table and he let her know how he felt. He argued that this expensive perfume could have been sold to fund the charitable work of feeding the poor. Jesus – the same Jesus that told His Pharisee Host in Luke 14 “When you give a banquet, invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, the blind, and you will be blessed. Although they cannot repay you , you will be repaid at the resurrection of the righteous” - told the indignant objector to “Leave her alone”….. “She has done a beautiful thing to me. The poor you will always have with you, and you can help them any time you want. But you will not always have me”. Jesus could see the true motives behind their actions that day. He knew Mary was giving Him a gift of love and that Judas was just trying to look and sound righteous with his pious complaint. This scene has been re-created more times than the Cinderella story over the years. I confess that I have unwittingly played the role of Judas myself . God has humbled me by using this story to get me to understand that good things can be the enemy of great things. That might not be the point of this scripture – but it’s the point that I got! God knows our motives, and our values. He wants us to go beyond mere charity and service – He wants us to Experience Him, Worship Him, and pour ourselves out to Him like Mary poured out the perfume – lovingly, passionately, sacrificially.
And the poor? He’s got them covered – with or without us! Hard to believe isn’t it – especially when we don’t want to believe He could do it with out us. I’m not trying to diminish the impact of anyone’s ministry, we just need to be careful to avoid the trap of being driven by the sense that no one else could do this work like I do. There are a several job descriptions at home that no one else could do like you do -Husband, Wife, Mom, Dad – which should never take a back seat to any other position we may hold.
In my heart I have always wanted to serve Jesus like Mary – but too often I duplicated the actions of her sister Martha who was “…distracted by all the preparations that had to be made”. Luke 10:40. Martha, like Judas, was frustrated by Mary’s priorities. With all the work involved with serving a meal needing to be done, Mary sits down and Jesus feet and listens to Him talk. Again Mary’s priorities pleased Jesus and He gently encouraged frustrated Martha to join her.
God used these stories and others to open my eyes to the ministry right in front of me – our family. He loves the Vision of I-TEC – HE GAVE IT TO US! But He does not want anyone, in any ministry, to sacrifice their family in the pursuit of Vision Accomplished. He is not honored if we separate Matthew 28:18- 20 from Ephesians 5:25-33 – He gave us the ENTIRE Bible as “…a lamp to my feet and a light for my path”. Psalm 119:105.
So we are making some changes. In August we will be relocating so that I can start college in September. I will be pursuing an electrical engineering degree. Our long range goal is to teach at a technical college. Teaching, like whatever profession you have been called to (please read God is at Work by Ken Eldred) will be our ministry. Teaching will also create something that I never had as a contractor – a significant margin of time to devote to non-profit Missions ventures. For electrical contractors the summer months tend to be one of our busiest seasons. I am looking forward to having a career ministry that will run parallel with our missions ministry at I-TEC.
Jim & I are going to be leaving for Nigeria soon. We will work at SIM’s facility in Miango for three weeks before continuing on to Zambia to perform an electrical survey at the Zimba Hospital. Returning to the States in late May I will be home for just over a month. In July we are heading back to one of my favorite places in the world, Honduras. Check out www.escuelaelsembrador .org to see where we will be working.
God has blessed me with a great wife and a couple of awesome kids. I am looking forward to fewer good-byes and doing homework with my son – hopefully he can help me with mine! I will still be blogging every now and then. I hope something that I have said might be helpful to someone else. It is getting late and I am OUT OF WORDS!
Busy Land, have you every been there? I have been looking forward to sitting down and catching up with you for a couple of weeks. Finally, tonight I have the chance. Carrie and I are hanging out at her parent’s house in Greencastle, PA for a few days this week. She and I had the chance to catch lunch with a friend in Chambersburg today followed up by a nice little coffee date at one of our favorite shops in town. After diner with Carrie’s parents at the Chinese Buffet, we gave the kids baths, and tucked them in bed – what a great day! I love days like today, I used to call it “Down time” until I was scolded by my friend Don. He asked me “Why do you call fun time with your family “Down Time”? ” Don is right, days like today are “Prime Time”!
Last Thursday Jim & I packed our tools and clothes into my Ol’ Red Van and headed for Greenville, PA (about 10 miles east of the Ohio line). We moved in with our friends Norm & Sue for the rest of the week. The purpose of our trip was to install an 800amp 3 phase electrical service on The Fresh Grounds Coffee House and Cafe. Our friends Marty & Martha Johnson are the visionaries behind this non-profit enterprise that seeks to serve the community of Greenville. Marty & Martha have been helping students for the past 12 years with Downtown Ministries, the organization they founded. Fresh Grounds will bring their work up to street level and provide a comfortable place for people to get together and connect over a quality cup of coffee and a delicious pastry. There is a stage where bands will perform in the evenings, and ample space for meetings to be held. I love places like this, where you can feel at home – away from home.
With brick walls that are 2 feet thick and decorative tin ceilings that are 15 feet high the shop has classic downtown character. Built in the 1890’s the building has been occupied by several retailers over the years including J.C. Penny’s in the 1930’s. The Fresh Grounds transformation has been a massive undertaking. Gutting the building and converting it into a modern day landmark has been the mission of an amazing group of volunteers. Funded by donations, driven by vision, they have made great progress.
So when is the Grand Opening? Marty smiles at that question and enjoys the reactions he gets when he answers “September”! There is much to be done. There is much to be purchased. There is much to be gained through it all, and Jim & I are just happy that we could help paint a small part of the big picture at 172 Main St., Greenville, PA.
Thank You Bill, Russ, Norm, Sue, Larry, Jerry, Kerry, Randy, Chuck, Jeff, Todd, Dan, Ed, Byron, Jim, Marty & Martha! I enjoyed working with you – even in the rain!
In 1991 Ray & Leah Hansen founded Rio Bravo Ministries and Casa Hogar Rio Bravo (Rio BRavo Children’s Home). Their story is amazing! It is well worth every cent of the plane ticket required to get you to Reynosa just to hear Ray tell the Hansen family’s story and to see the results first hand. While working in Nigeria in November I found myself thinking about Rio-Bravo each day. When I returned to the states I contacted my friend Ron who serves on staff at Rio Bravo. It turns out that they had several electrical needs. Ron then told me that one of the girls that we have grown close with during our 3 previous trips to Rio Bravo was about to celebrate her 15th birthday, which is a HUGE EVENT in Mexico. Barbara had asked if she could invite me, but Ron explained that it would not be right to ask Matt to travel all the way from PA to Mexico for a one day event. God had bigger plans in mind! I called my good buddy Amp in TN and asked him to could join me for a week at Rio Bravo. Our schedules lined up, the funds were available, so we booked our tickets.
Amp & I arrived on Wednesday and finished our electrical projects just in time to clean up for Barbara’s Party on Saturday night. On Sunday 24 men from Dallas, TX rolled into the campus with 2 trailer loads of tools and materials. The Highland Meadows Christian Church POWER Team (Purposeful Outreach With Eternal Results) planned on building a new playground for the kids on Monday & Tuesday. Knowing that the sun sets around 6:00pm everyday they had purchased (4) 400 watt light fixtures to illuminate the playground each evening. They had the fixtures and the wire – all they needed were a couple of electricians. Hmmm…. seems to good to be just a scheduling coincidence. Ray called a local contractor that sets utility poles, and pinch me I must be dreaming, a line crew showed up in 1/2 an hour to set the poles needed to mount the lights! By Tuesday evening the air was filled with sounds of kids joyfully playing on their new playground – under the lights! Check out this fantastic organization at www.rio-bravo.org .
I was totally amazed by the progress Marty, Martha & the rest of the volunteer Team have made on Fresh Grounds since my last visit. They have, with volunteers, built a 3 story elevator shaft, refinished the beautiful hard wood stair case, began construction of the coffee bar, and finished repairing the brick walls. Now it is time to Power Up Greenville’s next landmark, as it is being referred to around town. God inspired a local church to give generously and they did! The gift they presented to Fresh Grounds should cover the material costs associated with the 800 amp electrical service. Greenville’s Fire Chief and Electrical inspector met with us yesterday. These guys were very helpful. At this time I am planning on returning to Greenville in late February to install the electrical service. Once again I stand in awe as I watch God pull together a project that seems too huge. He gave Marty the vision, provided the building, the funds, the support of the community, and dedicated volunteers like Bill who have invested thousands of man hours into the project. Without making a single phone call I’ve had 5 guys volunteer to help build the service – 4 of them are electricians by trade!
In his book “Life is Tremendous”, Charlie “Tremendous” Jones wrote “You are the same today as you’ll be in five years except for the people you meet and the books you read..”
I’m so glad that my path has crossed Marty Johnson’s. His faith and vision has inspired me to dream bigger and trust deeper. He is the kind of guy Charlie was talking about. How far are you from Greenville, PA? What are you doing next weekend? Give Marty a call at 724-588-8171 to find out what’s coming up at Fresh Grounds.
I am looking forward to traveling to Greenville, PA to help out at the Fresh Grounds Coffee House – “Caffeine for the Soul” this weekend. My friends Marty & Martha Johnson have been providing the students of Greenville a “Great Good Place” (check out Ray Oldenburg’s book with that title) for the past 12 years. They are currently operating the Mustard Seed Jam House in the basement of a bookstore on Greenville’s main drag. God has miraculously provided them with an amazing 3 story building (the old J.C. Penney’s store) with a street level entrance. They are in the process of renovating their new home into a full service (non-profit) Coffeehouse & Cafe.
We are planning on helping Marty & Martha develop their vision by building the 800 amp 3 phase electrical service they need to Power their Mission. Future plans for the building include a recording studio and a stage for bands. They do not have a website up and running yet. Check out our blog next week for pictures of Fresh Grounds.
Marty Johnson – Downtown Ministries Inc. PO Box 724 Greenville, PA 16125 724-588-8171
We hope this blog will keep everyone informed and updated on ourlives.
Meet Dr. Porter! He is the man with his hand on the green sign proudly wearing the color of his home state team – University of Tennessee. His daughter Angie standing next to him has been taking wonderful care of our team in the absence of her mom Ruth. Ruth’s mother passed away 2 weeks ago, so Ruth was in the states with her family. She returned today in time for lunch. Standing next to Angie is Al Vander Bosch, an electrician from Michigan. Next to him is Jim Neagle, I-TEC’s engine Doctor. The Kent Academy is one of 3 ministries that operate on this campus.
Jim, Al, and I (Matt) will be living in this house while we work at Miango. We are quite comfortable in this large 3 bedroom home once occupied by SIM missionaries. Last year Wayne and I lived in this house along with a couple of bats and large spiders. So far we haven’t found any pets on this trip.
Jim is standing next to 300lbs. of tools that he packed in suitcases. Rebuilding engines over seas is no small challenge.
Hang On Jim! It’s time to get to work.
The Doctor is in (at least one of them) and found the problem! Praise the Lord! With some repairs to the fuel system the patient came back to life with a puff of smoke!
Maybe some of you can relate with me when I say the sound of a roaring diesel engine is music to my ears. I know that Dr. Porter strongly agrees with me on that one, especially since this engine is his sole source of reliable electricity. When Jim started the engine Dr. Porter started smiling from ear to ear!
Jim still needs to perform some miscellaneous repairs, preventative maintenance items, and a full engine service. The goal is to wrap up this project by mid-day Tuesday. Please pray with us for this to become reality. Jim will need as much time as he can possibly have on the total rebuilt of Kent Academy’s CAT generator.
If you will look at the pile of tools behind Dr. Porter in this photo you will see 1 of the dozen rolls of paper towel that we shipped with our tools. Doing the type of work Jim is doing they are a lifesaver. Dr. Porter told us that the local guys that helped unload the crates could not wait to see the guy that needed such HUGE TOILET PAPER! They had never seen American paper towels before.
So what have AL & Matt been doing? Obviously not taking pictures of their work! Sorry about that, we will do better this week. So far we stripped the existing electrical panels out of the clinic and prepared the area where the new electrical service will be installed. We still managed to find time to agitate Jim. How much longer until it’s running – are you done yet???
Please Pray:
- Tomorrow we will be back at it! Please pray for safety and clear thinking as we work and live in Nigeria.
- Pray that we can complete our total scope of work in the 3 weeks that we are here.
- Jim’s blood pressure has been elevated for unknown reasons for the past 3 weeks – pray that it will lower and stabilize.
- Pray for Al’s wife, Pat, while she cares for their Grandson at home. He was just diagnosed with Mono.
In His Grip,
Al, Jim, & Matt
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