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Brothers Three

Sometime in 2001, while living in New Zealand, I headed with my elder brother over to Japan where our youngest brother was living for a while. The idea was to catch up with him and check out where he was living as well as get to see some of this fascinating land called Japan.

It was a fantastic time, just us three guys, as we travelled from city to city, and temple to temple. Bush walks with bell-toting-bear-scaring hikers all around us, thousands of steps leading up to temples on mountain tops, and views over nearby highly populated areas. Train travel on super-fast and high-luxury trains from Tokyo to many other cities in the south. Temples and museums and temples and old towns, and temples and parks, and temples and foods. A highly amazing journey through belief systems, cultural diversity, technological marvels, and even the “nostril of Budda” (which was really only a hole in a temple support pole).

During this journey of “The Brothers Three” we stopped in at some of the amazing “fun” centres – a building filled with video games, activities, and photographic booths. Wanting to “capture the moment” of our time here, we all stepped into one of the photo booths. It seemed important to capture some of the fun and amazement we were experiencing in our travels, and with some creative facial expressions we came up with this. The Brothers Three. Amazement. Incredulity. Lost for words.

The Brothers Three
Brodie (youngest), John (oldest), Me

And so we were as we travelled around this amazing country. Faces of wonder, taking in all of the new sights and exploring so many differences. A fun photo. A fun time. The only time we have ever travelled together.

The Brothers Three.

Many thanks to my good friend Jorge who recently found this photo burried in some books I gave him ages ago and went to the effort of scanning and sending me a copy of it.

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The Conference – Day 2

Well this place is certainly a mix of people. I am becoming confused in my languages now. Not that I know Portuguese, but when talking with people to buy food and the shops I am trying to speak something that resembles it. This means that when I go to speak to somebody I have to decide which language to try and use. It does not take too long to find out which language however, but then the difficulty is to remain in that language.

Many times I have found myself starting in Spanish and finishing in English, or thinking I was speaking Portuguese (my version of it) but realised that it was only a slightly different accent on my Spanish. There are many multi-lingual people here and that is not such a problem, but if they only know the one language then they just look at me with a quizzical expression on their face. This has happened to me more than one, especially when turning from one person in one language to another person with a different language. The quizzical face tells me quickly that I am speaking gibberish to them.

The conference itself has been in many ways just like any other conference, but with many testimonies of what people have been doing through YWAM throughout the world. One story involved a man asking the NATO team to stop a bombing raid in Haiti so he could go in an speak to them about Jesus and the Gospel. The stopped the raid long enough for him to go in there and speak to the drug dealers and malitia groups that were there. Some of them accepted Christ. He became the first white man to actually go into that place and then come back out again alive. After he returned, NATO continued with their raid and wiped them all out. Only those who had recently accepted Christ survived.

Another story involved a lady from Brazil who has started working in a very Catholic country. Here the church dominates the place (I am not sure if it is wise to share where it is so I will refrain from doing so in the interests of her safety), and yet she has been able to do some amazing things with her ever growing team of people. They have built many houses for the poor and are in the process of building a school right now. She has been involved in many discussions with the government and the president of the nation, talking about how Biblical principles in leadership. A mutual friend that is a reporter has remarked to her that now, in every single meeting that he is in, the President is talking about YWAM and what they are doing. There is a great deal of influence here.

Well, there are many more stories too… and some are just amazing. But time prevents me from continuing to tell more. Needless to say that the even has been very inspiring and meeting so many people has been great. Tomorrow is a rest day, so I will be taking a break too.

Unless of course there is something that I just have to tell you about.

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Does God Speak?

Here I am at the YWAM International Workshop in Brazil and many things have been happening here. One of the craziest things has been that there have been a number of different people praying for me… and even though they are from different parts of the world (USA, Chile, Argentina) each one has prayed almost the same thing for me.

Now most of them also had no idea who I was or what was going on. Well, that is not completely true. I told them about my situation, but then they prayed for me in this and came up with the same crazy things. I would love to tell you more details about this, but right now I am feeling a little shy in sharing it with the whole world… so you may have to wait a little while for now.

But the thing I want to talk about here, is that if there are these different people from different parts of the world and hence with very different ideas and mindsets… how is it that they are all saying the same thing? God is speaking to me, of that I am sure. How else would you explain it? After all, they are all asking the same God for inspiration and the things that they should pray for me.

So does God speak? I would say: most definitely.

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It Takes Courage

Recently a friend sent me an email containing an actual prayer delivered before the Kansas House of Representatives by Central Christian Church Pastor Joe Wright on January 23, 1996. It was not word-for-word accurate but was a fair representation. I tracked down the original (now apparently missing) and have reproduced it below:

Heavenly Father, we come before you today to ask your forgiveness and seek your direction and guidance.

We know your Word says, “Woe to those who call evil good,” but that’s exactly what we’ve done.

We have lost our spiritual equilibrium and inverted our values.

We confess that we have ridiculed the absolute truth of your Word and called it moral pluralism.

We have worshipped other gods and called it multiculturalism.

We have endorsed perversion and called it an alternative lifestyle.

We have exploited the poor and called it the lottery.

We have neglected the needy and called it self-preservation.

We have rewarded laziness and called it welfare.

We have killed our unborn and called it choice.

We have shot abortionists and called it justifiable.

We have neglected to discipline our children and called it building esteem.

We have abused power and called it political savvy.

We have coveted our neighbors’ possessions and called it ambition.

We have polluted the air with profanity and pornography and called it freedom of expression.

We have ridiculed the time-honored values of our forefathers and called it enlightenment.

Search us O God and know our hearts today; try us and see if there be some wicked way in us; cleanse us from every sin and set us free.

Guide and bless these men and women who have been sent here by the people of Kansas, and who have been ordained by you, to govern this great state.

Grant them your wisdom to rule and may their decisions direct us to the center of your will. I ask it in the name of your son, the living savior, Jesus Christ.

Amen.

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Guarana

A semi-clear liquid, looking more like beer than anything else, sold as a soft-drink. Guarana is an extract of some plant. It is sold profusely here in Brazil. And it is GOOOOD stuff.

Guarana has many of the properties of caffeine but more of a kick and less side-effects. Combine that with a handful of sugar and some fizzy water and you have yourself a very good drink. Oh, it tastes great too which helps.

Why mention this drink? Well, it has been my sustinance for the past six days of conference. When the days grow long and the sleep keeps getting less and less, there is nothing like a large bottle of Guarana to put the “zing” back into life. Two bottles and you not only have the “zing” but there is a “buzz” starting to happen as well. After three, there is no stopping you and it is possible to do things without tiring. I label this one the “zoom” factor.

So every day I have been “zinging” and “buzzing” around the place with the help of my friendly Guarana. Not too much “zooming”, but the term does come from real life experience. Cold and fresh, it is a classical Brazilian drink. If you find it in your country then grab a bottle and check it out.

Great stuff.

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The Conference – Last Day

Well it has been hard to find time for Internet during this conference. There is a huge line of people waiting to use the only internet nearby that is available. The first day I missed it was when I discovered that it closes at 7.30pm at night. Doh. Second day I arrived before then, but a huge hail and thunder storm came through and took out the Internet connection so I had no access. Today was more successful though.

The whole thing has been reviving for me. Hearing amazing stories of people doing impossible things is very encouraging. Learning of the size and impact of this organisation called YWAM in the world is also very incredible. Seeing their vision and future direction is something that perhaps I could be coaxed into joining them in. But then the important thing is to keep going the way God directs me.

More people, more contacts, more information, more late nights. That about sums it all up.

Oh, and great food, great fun, great teaching, great friends. The whole picture.