megan

a long awaited update

2010-01-22T15:55:00.000-08:00

It's been a while, I know. I've been to Brazil and back, then Christmas, New Years and January happened.

Brazil update: I had a great research trip over Thanksgiving. I met with the Munozes, Pastor Laercio and others at Comunidade de Cristo in Ribeirao Preto. We talked about ministry goals/my purpose for going there for 3 years and I got to experience the life of the church family there. I spent a lot of time building things with Joshua Munoz (he's 3) and also experiencing the life of a single 23 year old with my friend Carol, whose family I stayed with for a week. We had Thanksgiving dinner twice and tried to find monkeys to feed... to no avail. Anyway, I am making the plans and raising the prayer and financial support necessary to return to Brazil sometime near the end of this summer. More details soon (and when I say soon, I mean it this time!).

I am spending the next 2 weeks in Bullhead City, AZ with my dad (Jan 24-Feb 7). His fiancee, Sandy, had a stroke and will be in the hospital for the next month. She has been taking care of him as well as herself for the last few years, so I am going to help take care of my dad and help Sandy's kids get some in home care set up for them. He's not in good health (emphysema) and she is probably going to need more help when she gets home.

On another note- a quote:
"God created us for relationship, and one requirement of any genuine relationship is vulnerability. Living a Christian life is bold and not merely self-preserving, it's about reaching out in love and taking the necessary risks to fulfill our primary calling, to love God and love people."
Lamont Hiebert, lead singer of Ten Shekel Shirt

Brazil Part One

2009-10-20T14:33:00.000-07:00

I'm sitting here amazed by God's timing, once again. I can't tell you how many times I have been reminded (sometimes painfully) that His timing is the best, and really, it's the only way it works. If it's not in God's timing, it's not happening. That's the lesson I've learned over and over (and I will probably never fully learn it).

After a few hurdles (visa issues, mostly), I'm all booked to visit Brazil from November 18th-December 1st! I am excited to spend time with Bel and Joy Munoz (and Joshua, their son) and to meet the church leadership in Brazil where they are serving. This will help me decide the timing, location, and capacity in which I will serve there. This will also give the Munozes and the church leaders and members a chance to get to know me.

Thanks for your prayers over the last 2 1/2 months! Just an update from the last post:

Tanzania: Aug. 9-29
What a great time of serving the Lord with the team from Kingsfield Church! We did a variety of ministry there, including medical, women's Bible studies, Kid's Club leadership training, preaching and teaching. We stayed with Harold and Coni Knepper at Hope of the Nations (www.hopeofthenationstz.org), where they have been doing incredible ministry for over 5 years in Kigoma, Tanzania.

Moving home: September 1st- present
I decided to pack up and go home on the first of September. I am staying with some great friends while I am here and so far I have been blessed so much by my home church family. I've been involved a bit with music and a bit with the young adults. A lot of "here and there ministry." I think I will coin that phrase! I am working at a coffee shop in town called Higher Groundz. What can I say, coffee is my trade! :)

Random:
A couple of book I have recently read-
Leadership and Self-Deception by the Arbinger Institute, not only great for relating to people in business but also in everyday life. One of the "after COAT" books NMSI sent me
Just Do Something by Kevin DeYoung, about finding God's will without a burning bush. Borrowed from a customer at Higher Groundz!
The Narcissism Epidemic by Jean Twenge and W. Keith Campbell, about the rampant spread of narcissism throughout our culture. Borrowed from my well-read and extremely intelligent friend, Carissa Bockhahn.

In my car to be read next-
Crazy Love by Francis Chan, recommended by my friend Brian, who hasn't read the book ;)
Forgotten God- Reversing Our Tragic Neglect of the Holy Spirit, discovered while ordering Crazy Love on Amazon.

Would you pray?
-that visiting Brazil would clarify things for the near future
-that I would remain focused at work
-that God would use me at work and among my friends here as I am helping develop a few things while I am here

Thanks, as always. :)

the latest

2009-08-03T00:13:00.000-07:00

There's been a lot of change going on lately and I thought I'd let you all in on it.

The short story, in case you don't like to read long things:
1. Going to Tanzania from Aug 9-29 with Kingsfield Church (www.kingsfieldchurch.org)- check out the website of where we're going: http://www.hopeofthenationstz.org/

2. Moving back to the Central Coast in September. Part time job TBD. Living situation TBD as well. Not worried about it. (@ Oak Park Christian Church, mostly)

3. Moving to Brazil as a missionary with New Mission Systems International: www.nmsi.org

4. Read the rest, come on!

This is an excerpt from the prayer letter I just sent out to my home church family:

"It was once said that the only constant thing in life is change. In the last six years, many changes have taken place: I've graduated high school and college, moved around California, spent two months in Kenya, changed my plans two or three times, and for the past year and a half, I've “just worked.” It's been quite a ride.

The overarching dream of all this learning and searching has been missions. God laid the burden of the lost on my heart several years ago, and He has been gently guiding me toward full time missions ever since then. He has given me a desire to GO!

God led me to an internship with New Mission Systems International (NMSI) in 2007 to Kenya, and for two years I have been praying about joining them. NMSI is a missionary sending organization that trains, sends and supports over 200 missionaries in 30 countries (and counting), so they can fulfill the vision God has given them. From May 19-July18 2009, I participated in COAT, their missionary training program at their headquarters in Florida. While in COAT, I experienced living in Christ-centered Community, attending Orientation sessions about NMSI's dynamic ministries, Assessment of my skills, strengths and weaknesses, along with practical and theological Training in missions.

I've decided to spend my first term (3 years) in Brazil, where NMSI missionaries are helping a Brazilian church start a mission sending organization much like NMSI. I'll be using my training in anthropology, passion for cultures and gifts in teaching to help any way I can.

The next step is a 2-3 week survey project to Brazil, which I am planning before the end of this year. This will allow me to meet with the church leadership and missionaries to explore what my ministry will look like."

SO.... I'm moving on in a lot of ways and it's always bittersweet. I'm super excited to be finally doing what I've been talking about doing now for at least 4 years, but I'm sad to be leaving a lot behind. I look forward to the relationships that will be renewed as I move home for a few months, and I'm trusting that God is leading me. I'll be back in September!

Prayer requests:

1. For the Tanzania short term project and our team of 9 people: unity, community, sensitivity to the Holy Spirit
2. For planning the short hop to Brazil as soon as I get back from TZ
3. That I will not run ahead of God and plan, plan, plan, as is my tendency
4. Finally, that I will keep surrendering to the Lord and cultivate community wherever I go

Thanks!

haiku

2008-10-18T10:23:00.001-07:00

This haiku is from www.stuffchristianslike.com, when the author is posting haikus in response to a post he made about sound guys/girls at churches:

The band sounds awful
Quick! fix it sound guy. I can't-
talent switch is broke

life's little rules

2008-08-21T14:30:00.001-07:00

life's little rules #1:
Always buy lemonade from the kids on the corner.

life's little rules #2:
Never drink the lemonade you bought from the kids on the corner.

I'm sure there's nothing really wrong with drinking it, but you never know the conditions under which is was prepared. I usually think about the grubby hands squeezing the lemons, and the end result looks like dirty water with a tinge of yellow and either way too much or way too little sugar.

If you live in Orange County, California, the kids don't really squeeze any lemons at all- their parents buy the big can of prepared lemonade and they mix it with water...which seems clean enough until they stick their grubby little hands into the ice and happily pour you a nice tall glass of grubby lemonade.

Regardless of the state of the lemonade, you must buy it- and you should really buy two cups. You know you wanted some extra crap when you were little and if you were lucky enough, your parents had the good sense to tell you to go earn it the hard way. So, if you believe in karma, which I don't, you can get yourself some next life points. Or you can just be a good person.

So, in short, buy the lemonade, gladly pay the kids, hold it 'til you're around the corner, stealthily dump it out and throw your dixie cup away.

Edit: After posting this, I drove to the store and back and sure enough, some kids were selling lemonade, so I pulled over (drive up service- come on, this is Orange County). I handed over my 50 cents, they handed over a 3 oz. Dixie cup of what I though would be lemonade. I pulled away and, sticking to my rules, did not take a sip, but a sniff. Whoa, I have never smelled a beverage so foul! It supports my grubby hands statement, as the grayish-yellow liquid splashed into the flower bed in my front yard (which has been the recipient of 2 "lemonade" ordeals this weekend).

life at the moment

2008-03-16T15:06:00.001-07:00

blog....blog....blog....I have been wondering what to write lately. Well, here it is:

I'm taking the semester off school. It's not the right thing yet, and I am tired of being in school for now. When I did the walk around campus to each department for the withdrawl procedures (I call it the walk of shame), I was filling out my form along the way. As I'm reading through, it asks the reason for your departure. Listing things like financial aid, personal, not what you're looking for, etc, it fails to list (and at Biola none the less) "God's leading." I found this interesting, maybe I will tell them to add the option.

I'm probably going to take Hebrew in the fall (again), becuase I failed it last semester. I don't know if I will continue after that quite yet.

Before you go thinking that I hated Biola or something, I absolutely was impressed with all that Biola had to offer. The program, professors and classmates I had there were all great and I was really sad to leave. I will never forget that each professor I talked to the day I withdrew prayed with me, even the dean of my school (and I didn't expect it for some reason either). In my time there, I decided that I would definitely send my kids or other people's kids there. Considering my experiences with Christian colleges (I've now been to 3), I know not to base my full judgment of a place by the students, because you're going to have the people who give it a bad name everywhere. What really made the difference is the fact that Biola not only claims an unwavering commitment to the gospel of Christ, but from the administration down, they put it into action.

I'm working full time now at the Cup and I got a promotion, so my time is filled 5 days a week. It's good.

That's life at the moment.

one man, two guitars

2008-02-01T23:57:00.000-08:00

I saw Rodney Brantigan tonight at the Neighborhood Cup and he is really amazing. He plays two guitars at once, which is quite a feat. He also plays the tambourine with his foot and drums on his guitar while doing some amazing finger mashing licks on the neck of the guitar. I thought he was joking when he said he lived in his car, but he wasn't. He really lives in a big van, not a bus, but a van, Texas plates and all.

You can see him playing the tambourine like the gas pedal on his house/van. He is pretty charming in between songs, but due to the cold weather, he ended up tuning his guitar a bit too often and for too long. He also didn't come with a set list and was an hour late, so there was much down time. To be honest, even as a musician myself, I think he was way too obsessed with tuning.

beginnings

2008-01-31T23:13:00.000-08:00

This is not a real new beginning, not a new start; rather, it's a refreshing. There's no going back to new, only turning it over and trying again.
I have been relying on myself for far too long and running from God. I should have listened to Jonah when I read it this summer, but it took hearing it again in church the past few Sundays to really sink in. I saw the sermon title on the screen the first day of the series and said, "Great, another sermon about Jonah." As Pastor Chris started talking, I started hearing what I needed to hear. I have two new notes in my little brown Bible on the two whole pages Jonah occupies.
1. "Repentance is not regulation." This is something I have been struggling with. How can I say I struggle with a sin and then tell myself that it's not a big deal sometimes or to a certain degree, but too often and too much is bad. Repentance is not just saying, "Sorry Lord," or even, "Sorry Lord, forgive me," but "Sorry Lord, forgive me, I don't want to hurt you, help me not to do it again." There is an element of a u-turn with repentance. Therefore, how can I go on in a sinful behavior when I decide it's not a big deal one time? Ugh. Anyway, I am struggling with a few issues about this statement, and I'm praying that it resolves in my mind.
2. "How often do I find myself running from the presence of the Lord?" Chapter 1 says that Jonah was running from the presence of the Lord- not running from the Lord, running from his calling, but honestly trying to run from the presence of the ever-present God. Jonah, a prophet, a man of God, would know that God is ever-present (ie everywhere, all the time), so how can he really think he is running from God's presence? It's amazing how we convince ourselves that we can hide from God. Adam and Eve tried, Jonah tried, many other Biblical characters tried, I try all the time. Idiotic.
Having realized that the reason I have been miserable for the last four months is that I was running from the presence of the Lord instead of seeking solice in His presence, I have repented, u-turned right back to the Lord, who was always at my heels, waiting for me to turn around.
Lord, you always accept me back, and for that I am so grateful!