Camp is behind me, on my way home!

The week up in Rugova was good.  Thank you for praying for me.  My presentation was well received pertinent to my audience.  My colleagues and I spoke on the topics of Servant Leadership, Love, Integrity and Vision.  During free time, our conversations often shifted to the One behind these great topics.  Those conversations covered topics such as grace, redemption, salvation, sacrifice, purpose, & the Creator.  

Each day began with a 7:30am staff meeting then running through to 10pm staff meeting wrap up often ending around 11:30pm with a lights out some time after 12am.  Anyone who has been on a short term team knows there is an all out effort needed and its a strenuous emotional and physical push for a week then a rest is given.  This was no different.  In addition for me, non stop student contact, let alone, in Albanian, was extremely taxing to my brain.

Please pray for the relationships built and the seeds sown.  May he bring eternal fruit from his less than adequate servant's efforts this week.    

Off to Camp

I am up to the beautiful mountains of Rrugova tomorrow.  I am one of the trainers in the annual university Servant Leadership training camp.  We have about 25 students coming from all over Kosova to learn about the principles of Servant Leadership, Integrity, Love and Vision.  Please be thinking of me tomorrow as I am the first presenter so my talk will set the tone for the week.  I and a host of people are praying the seeds we sow this week will bear fruit in eternity.  This is the 8th camp that we have done, the 4th for me.   Pray that discussion in the free time goes deeper than politics, and sports.  We are trusting that the Spirit will soften hearts and minds to seek out the truths behind the principles we are advocating.  Thanks for stopping by, come back soon.  I hope to have an update of how its going mid camp.  

Faithfulness & Fruit

Brad here again. Just a few thoughts from the roof of a friend's here in Peje...  As I sit here the call to prayer has just gone out across the city.  One goes then another and then another.  The "faithful" are now making their way to their respective mosques or so they should be.   

Some of you will have gotten word from me earlier in the week of my frustration and my disappointment about the situation here.  Just to bring you up to speed, much of what I spent my time working on over the last 2 years seems about to be brought to an end, not because of its success but because of its failure.  I arrived 1 week ago with high hopes and great expectations only to find disappointment and discouragement.  Am I alone in my feelings? No! I take some solace in hearing over dinner last night that 3 other colleagues, here for an equal or longer time and investment as I are also facing opposition, undermining of their integrity by disciples and plain hard heartedness. 

This is not the stuff missionaries are supposed to write about.  Fruitlessness, discouragement and opposition are not the topics of good support raising or what sending churches want to hear.  But, be assured, it is the stuff of missionary life, and not only missionary life but of the Christian life.  We are called to be faithful servants of our King.  It is up to him to make the heart of stone turn to a heart of flesh and follow him.  But as one of his sent ones, I often think I have a hand in bringing the lost, the hungry and needy to him.  Its by my efforts that they are so fortunate to hear the good news.  Arrogance, that is all that is.  Who am I that I should turn any one to Christ? Its by Grace alone that any man is saved, not by my works.  What a valuable lesson for me to learn.  I have left my family, I am investing funds and time, I deserve to see the fruit!  What a lie that the evil one has used to discourage me this week.  If there is fruit it is to the Lord's glory not my own that I should boast. 

Am I, are we, called to be faithful? Absolutely!   As I was so apply reminded by a friend recently are we not to feed the hungry, offer drink to the thirsty, welcome the stranger, clothe the naked, visit the sick and imprisoned? Yes we are.  But do we do it to gain the inheritance prepared for us before the foundations of the world?  No, we do it because we are called to a life of compassion as we live out our Christ centered lives.  Do we gain this inheritance, most certainly.  When we are standing at the front of the judgement line are we to rattle off our achievements for him who achieved all for us?  Certainly not.  

I hold out the hope that in my sometimes faltering faithfulness he has used me to make his good news known and that some might stand as a testimony on that last day to his faithfulness in spite of me.  Good night friends and hold to the course you have been called to.  He is using us all, even if we don't see it today or know the results tomorrow.  

Short Term Missions Reading

I just finished Mack & Leeann's Guide to Short Term Missions by Mack and Leeann Stiles, IVP while here in Peje, Kosova.  I would highly recommend it to any one going on a short term mission or church leaders who are sending short term teams whether locally or across the globe. Mack and Leeann address a host of issues from church partnerships to cultural sensitivity, contextualized evangelism to culture shock.  He also addresses the issue of risk in missions, one that seems to be the forefront of most church leaders minds when considering a short term location.  How many times have those of us on the field heard from a potential sending church,"can you give us a risk assessment?" Mack quotes from Frank Furedi's book, Culture of Fear, "When safety is worshipped and risks are seen as intrinsically bad, society is making a clear statement about the values that ought to guide life."  Mack adds his own sentiment when saying, "How true. I, for one, do not want to worship safety over God."  I have to say that I would be in agreement.  I don't know how many times I have heard from friends, family and others when I returned home from an overseas trip to a perceived risky location, "We are glad your back safe.  We have been praying for your safety."  I am grateful for the prayer, I am disappointed by its focus, my safety! why haven't you been praying about my witness, my opportunities to share Christ, the lost souls of those I was spending time with?!!!  Don't get me wrong, I don't go looking for risks or relish in putting my family in harms way, but had we not risked and gone on our first family short term trip to Kosova roughly 5 years ago, they would not have the rich spiritual heritage they have at so young an age and perhaps the kingdom impact would be slightly less than it is today. 

Brad's back in Peje

I have arrived in Peje.  Relaxing at a friend's enjoying the balmy evening and a local drink.  As I sit here the gentle hum of generators can be heard in the distance.  There is a smattering of lit windows in the city.  The power has been out since I arrived at 5:30pm, its now 10:30pm.  The Italian Village, as the NATO Base is called, is let up like a little city on the edge of town and a swank revolving restaurant on top of an apartment building are all that shines to show that life is going on.

As I look over the city and see the few windows warmly glowing by the flickering of candles, I am reminded that even in the darkness the weakest of flames can shed great light.  The darkness will never overcome the light.  Are we not commanded to be that same sort of spiritual light in the darkness that surrounds us in this fallen world?  I am also encouraged to think that in this city dark and oppressed by false gods, the One True God has his lights, however weak, perhaps just  few sparks, that shine like brilliant lights by his power.  

How about you?  Are you shining in the darkness that surrounds you?  Take heart.  Shine brightly you are not alone!

(written on 7/11/08 posted only 7/14/08 due to technical difficulties)

Independence or Treason; Nostalgia or Time Travel?

On the eve of the anniversary of the birth of America, better known in this fair land as Independence Day we enjoyed the fun at the Drive–in-Movie. What is this you might ask? Well if you remember any of those great old 1950’s movies where all the teenagers were parking and “watching a movie” in their cars, well a place like that still exists today in a little town about 20 miles north of us. What a great time we had. We backed our mini-van/people carrier in, opened the tailgate/boot and got comfortable with snacks and sleeping bags to watch the film. The movie starts when the man who owns the venue likes. He aims for dusk but it seems to be a movable feast really. So until the movie starts the kids can enjoy free rides on the carousel and in our case we practiced our baseball skills. It’s a great family atmosphere and all had a good time, even if some of our flock weren’t able to fend off the sand man before the end of the movie.
The following day was the 4th of July, the day our forefathers committed high treason against my wife’s much older and more established nation of Great Britain. This day too was spent in merry making. We started by heading to a traditional small town parade with tractors, old cars, fire engines and floats. The hands of time turned back to days gone by when folks enjoyed simpler pleasures. And it was a pleasure for me to see my kids to enjoying an event that I fondly remember from my childhood. After the parade the kids enjoyed old fashion games and face painting. We went with some neighbors and had a great time. Following the parade we had more neighbors and my parents over for a BBQ, followed by another late night watching a fireworks display at our local park. It was a good day! Very small town and very nostalgic in the best possible way.