Hiking into Mount Doom...

I can now attest that the 3rd Lord of the Rings movie where they climb up a huge volcanoe...is completely accurate. It is every bit that exhausting and dusty and cloudy and hot. I imagine it's a bit like hiking into hell. Yesterday we climbed Volcan Pacaya which is about an hour and a half away from Antigua. We had been told to expect a steep and strenuous climb...but I didn't expect it to be that hard. Between the altitude and overpacking a bit (we were told to expect cold and rainy weather which it was not) it was the toughest hike I've ever done. To give you a point of reference...it's way steeper than the steepest points of Table Rock and stays that way pretty much all the time. There's about fifteen minutes of a two hour hike that level off somewhat. The hike starts off in the forest and on a dirt trail. But about halfway through (timewise...distance-wise it's almost at the end) the trail turns into basically gravel. It's gravel-sized pieces of dry lava rock. Imagine trying to climb straight up a mountain of gravel. It means that every step you take involves slipping a little further back at the same time. It's pretty discouraging to just see a lanscape of black and fog with no end in sight....knowing you're gonna keep slipping your way up to the top and it's gonna get harder. Because after about thiry minutes of this, the landscape turns into whole lava rock that you have to climb up. But you can't use your hands because the rocks are quite sharp and will cut you up pretty fast. This lasts another half hour until you finally reach the top. Well, technically it's not the top because at the top you can actually look inside the volcanoe. However at the top you can't see the lava...so we didn't go to the top but we got to see the lava flow from mere feet away. We roasted marshmellows and had smore's. But it was so hot that the chocolate had melted into liquid by the time we were ready. After 45 mins or so to rest we headed back down. I should mention that by the time we started heading back it was dusk...and since we were hidden in the clouds it was completely dark within 15 minutes. I had been forewarned about this so I brought a headlamp and a flashlight...however using them was much like turning on a car's bright headlights in the fog...it only makes things worse. So with the headlamp on it was possible to just illuminate your feet and a few steps ahead. That meant that the hike down the volcanoe was not so much walking as sliding down the mountain. Once we got back into the woods we were home free. So now I can mark "climbing a volcanoe" off the list of things to do before I die...and I didn't die doing it!

A fresh lava flow that opened up while we were there.

Prayer requests

So it's been about a week now since the last update and almost 2 weeks that I've been in Guatemala. Not a whole lot has been going on except getting settled and figuring out what life is gonna be like for the next couple of months. But I do have some prayer requests yall can be praying for.

1. My professor is a man named Vinicio. My language study consists of conversing with him one-on-one for 4 hours each day. We talk about a lot of things such as history, econimics, and politics...however since I am a missionary we also spend a lot of time on religious topics. We've talked about differences between the evangelical and Catholic churches (Mariology, purgatory, catechisms, etc) and a lot of other important Biblical issues. He has been Catholic his entire life but he has a son and brother who are evangelical, so he has a clear understanding of both sides. The problem is that he has spent a lot of time listening to others talk about the Bible but very little reading it for himself. He seems to intellecutally understand salvation and grace by faith and the other things that separate us from Catholicism...however it's all intellectual. Pray that in our conversations he would start reading the Truth for himself and that God would speak to him.
2. My host family are basically non-religious. They would claim Catholicism but they haven't been to mass once since I've been here and I haven't seen a Bible anywhere. When they see me reading my Bible at breakfast or during siesta or after dinner, they often ask if I'm studying for language class. They don't seem to have any understanding of reading the Bible to grow closer to the Lord and hence no sense of a relationship. We're going to try to start some sort of Bible study with and invite our host families so hopefully they will get involved. Pray that while I'm here I would have ample opportunities to share with them.
3. Studying Spanish has actually been a little frustrating. I haven't studied Spanish in this kind of way for many years. I've spent a lot of time speaking it and hearing it and so I know how it is supposed to sound...but I usually have no idea why. No I have to go back and remember the rules of grammar and syntax and reapply them. So, while I entered class at a pretty good level I feel like I've dropped down. I find myself stumbling over words and phrases because I'm thinking so much. I know I'll get past this, but since the goal is to move into the fluency of a native speaker it'll take a lot of work and a lot more than studying.
4. One of the other Journeyman here had the idea to start a Wednesday night Bible study with us and some of our host families. The goal is to also get their friends and family coming so that this can continue after we leave. Tonight was our first meeting and it went well. We took prayer requests and prayed, read a bit from the Bible (in Spanish of course), and ended with some Spanish praise songs. It wasn't much...but after seeing what God has done with our little homeless ministry in downtown Greenville...I am praying that He'll bless our efforts here similarly.

The first week...

So it's already been a week since I left home. And as usual it seems like I've been here a month. I thought things would go by slow...what with siesta and all...but there's been plenty to do and there's no sign of that letting up. In fact, there are so many activities going on that I think I'll be saying no to stuff just to have time on weekends to relax. So far, language school has been good. Class for me consists almost entirely of conversation. We talk a lot about history, politics, world events and also a lot on religions. I'm spending a lot of time trying to put my testimony and other thoughts into Spanish. It's not easy to tell someone how to be saved or tell a story from the Bible or many others things using Spanish. The past tenses of verbs are a pain and I'm not to the point yet where I can using the preterite and imperfect tenses without thinking. So between this and learning "street talk" I still have plenty to do. The hard part is to take what I'm learning in class and apply that in the real world. The reality is that people do not speak terribly clearly and I have to get used to different accents etc.

However, we've also had some free time. Most recently, we went to a popular spot that overlooks the city of Antigua. It's called "El Cerro de la Cruz", or The Hill of the Cross. It's quite a hike (especially at 5000ft altitude) but it was worth. Of course, it rained on the way back down so we were soaking wet. But that's the weather around here...storms come over the mountains quickly and you never know when it could pour down raining. So that's a bit about this first week here in school...

First few days...

Well…it’s been a long couple of days. I’ll start at the beginning and fill everyone in on what’s happened. I got up around 4 am Thursday morning to catch my flight at 6:30. I spent more time on the runway that actually in the air in my flight to Atlanta. Then I met up with 6 other Journeymen (and girls) who are all headed to Mexico or S. America. We all flew together into Guatemala City. It was very easy getting into the country with almost no questions asked…in fact, the hardest part was getting all our luggage together and onto the vans. Once we were loaded up we drove about 30-45 mins to Antigua. Where we live is actually just outside of Antigua in a small town of San Juan de Obispo. This is where our language school is located and where our new homes are. It’s a very quiet town and not very big at all. Once we arrived, we met some of the school staff and were introduced to our national families we are staying with. The family I’m with has a husband, wife, 3 daughters (7, 17, and 20 yrs old), and a 11 yr old son. Then we went home to eat and sleep…at least that’s what I did. Ate lunch, took a nap, ate dinner, and then went to bed at 8:30. Since we’re two hours of behind yall here and I hadn’t slept a wink the night before leaving, I was glad to sleep soundly for 10 hours straight.

Language school starts at 8:00 on the dot so I’m getting up around 6:30 in the morning. That’s early but it gives me enough time to read my Bible and pray in peace and quiet before everyone else in the house gets up at 7. Kids getting ready for school is pretty much the same around the world. And to my pleasant surprise I can get a hot shower. This, however, has to be done carefully. As I was warned, the device that heats the water and acts as the shower head is affectionately known as “the widowmaker”. No, I’m not making this up. As you might guess, it has the potential to give a rather unpleasant shock to anyone who might touch while the water is running. Not sure how dangerous it really is but I’m not planning on finding out. After breakfast I walk up a very steep hill to school. Let me emphasize that hill. It didn’t seem so bad coming down…except that it’s cobblestone and a nightmare with rolling luggage weighing 70lbs. But it’s a lot worse going up. Especially when the altitude here is comparable to Denver. So I’m usually sucking wind by the time I walk up the hill with my backpack. But hopefully I’ll acclimate in a couple of weeks and be ready for the 8300ft I’m headed for in Ecuador. Once we all arrived at school we got started. Today was very informal and not typical at all. We had some group lessons while we were given oral interviews one at a time to place us with a tutor. Then we put some vocabulary to good use by swinging at a piñata and shouting words like arriba, abajo, al izquierda, a la derecha, atras, adelante (up, down, left, right, behind you, in front of you). For me, it was fun but kind of like being back in Spanish 101 and not real challenging. But that’s why on Monday we start with our tutors at our individual levels of proficiency. So language school lasted until noon. After that we were all supposed to head to Antigua by bus to check out the public transportation and find our way around the city. However, one of the girls had been bitten by a dog the night before and needed to go to Guatemala city for possible shots. I went with her to keep her company and help interpret if needed. We took a taxi to the city and met up with two other missionaries that live in the city. It turns out that the trip wasn’t necessary as the bite didn’t actually break the skin but just bruised it. So after grabbing lunch, one of the missionaries drove us back and dropped us off in Antigua where we met up with our group. We walked around for about an hour and then took the long, bumpy bus ride back to San Juan. It’s really only about 15 minutes away by bus…but in the evening it stops every five feet for the next person to get on. Let’s just say that if anyone has issues with their personal space…don’t ride public transportation in Guatemala. However, it is very cheap…about 1.5 quetzales one way, which comes to about $0.20 in the States. After that it was time for dinner and to bed early again.

Woke up this morning around 9 and relaxed to read and pray a couple of hours. Then 4 of us met up to ride the bus into Antigua and mooch off of Pollo Campero's internet for a couple of hours. We figured that after buying lunch we could stay for a while. Tomorrow will be our first time going to a national church so that should be interesting. I still haven't found great internet in the town where I live except for the occasional wireless signal that comes and goes. So it might be a few days before I respond to e-mails and such. I'm thinking that I'll come into town on Wednesdays and the weekends. Thanks to eveyone for the prayers! Monday starts language school and I'll be spending 4 hours a day one-on-one with a tutor speaking only in Spanish...then I have several hours of homework each day...plus plenty of extracurricular activities and trying to keep up with e-mails...so it seems there's still not enough time in a day even in Latin America. Pray for opportunities here with the family I live with (I think they have knowledge of the Gospel but aren't believers), teachers at the school, taxi drivers, etc. There are opportunities abound.

Here's my desk in my room. As long as I have my workspace it's home.

Here's our classroom at the school. Nice and open and great views!

Amazing view from downtown Antigua!

That's all for now guys. It's taking forever to post just one blog with pictures so I'll probably update in a few days or so. Keep praying and thanks again!

Tomorrow never comes...

Well it sure seems like that sometimes...but this time tomorrow is coming. And tomorrow in the early hours of the morning I will be leaving Greenville, SC...home for 22 years...and won't be returning for some time. It's been great and full of memories. I'm sad to leave friends, family, and my church behind. But it's definitely time to do this. So...around lunch time tomorrow I should be in Antigua, Guatemala. I'll be there for 3 months doing language school. I'll be living with a Guatemalan family so I don't know what the internet situation will be exactly. If I have easy and cheap (or free) access to high-speed internet then contact will not change a whole lot. I have a Vonage phone that connects to the internet and has a local (864) area code. So if and when I get that up and running ya'll can feel free to call me at 864-335-9496. Of course, I'm also on Facebook and have e-mail. This blog will also get updated more frequently than in the past now that there's acutally stuff to write about and pictures to post. And on the note of new happenings...I'm no longer going to Ibarra but to Cuenca. It's a long story...but the short version is that the career missionaries I was going to serve under aren't being brought back due to the budget problems the IMB is currently experiencing. To my knowledge, there are no IMB missionaries going back to replace them. As a result, I am now going to serve in Cuenca, Ecuador. I don't expect there to be huge changes in the job description and the altitude, climate, etc is very much the same as in Ibarra. The only difference is that Cuenca is in southern Ecuador...about 4 hours south of Guayacil and probably 8 or so south of Quito. Cuenca is also the third largest city in Ecuador so that's a step up from Ibarra. So far I don't know a whole lot about the new job...so more on that when it comes. Hopefully I'll have some pictures from Guatemala to post later this week.

The end...

...all good things must come to an end. These past 8 weeks have some of the best of my entire life. I didn't think that was possible as the past year has been great and God has done so many awesome things...but He did even better once again. The hard part now is leaving. I never realized you could make so many good friends so fast. Being with the same people all day every day for 8 weeks straight has that effect though. And the hardest part is knowing that I probably won't ever see a lot of them ever again...not this side of eternity anway. And so today was commissioning...we were officially sent out...the rubber meets the road and training is over with and now we're on to the real thing. So...of to Guatemala on October 8th!

Mid-training update...

OK...so I know it's been quite a while since I last updated this thing. But there's a good reason for that...I didn't actually expect anyone to be reading it before now. Most of ya'll know I'm not a big blog/e-mail person...in fact I pretty much avoid it at all costs. But since I'm now out of touch with most of you folks back home I'll try to get better at this. I won't actually leave for the field for another month so updates until then will be sparing at best. But I promise to be much more frequent once I'm there. So as for what's been going on since I left SC...

The everyday schedule here is fairly busy. We're generally in sessions from 8am to 3pm. Sessions range from the mundane things about insurance, finances, etc to some excellent ones on evangelism tools. I've learned a lot about church planting in the New Testament model. It's amazing that the book of Acts has so much to offer to us today about planting churches. Everything we need is there for us to find. Yet for so long I've looked at it as history and the past and a purely "moral" model. But it's more than that...God gave us a model for literally every aspect of life...and he gave us more than enough on how to plant churches. We may have developed all kinds of techniques and plans and models...but when it comes right down to it we just need to go back to Scripture and see how the first churches in Acts were started.

Another highlight of the time here has been Chronological Bible Storying. I've known for some years now that a large portion of the world are oral learners. But what I didn't understand fully were the levels of literacy. Just because someone is literate does not mean that they are functionally literate. Many can read by sounding out the words but comprehension may not be there. In fact, even if they can be discipled or evangelized through literate means, that may not be the most effective...and additionally this method may not be passed on from generation to generation. Oral methods are universal. So I've recently learned the fine art of storying the Bible...picking certain stories that resonate with ceratain cultures...portraying them as accurately as possible from memory but presenting them in a culturally effective manner. This may actually be more difficult than you would first think. First, there are hundreds upon hundreds of different stories in the Bible. Although a certain core set may be fairly universal, others must be hand chosen to address specific cultural issues. For example, many people I will meet will have a Roman Catholic background mixed with traditional animistic beliefs. So...stories that illustrate Jesus' power over evil spirits...stories that emphasize salvation by faith and not through sacraments/works...you get the idea. This method ensures that the nationals do not become dependent on the missionary. That is one of the most damaging issues missionaries face. A church planting movement will never explode if it remains under the control of the missionary. It has to move beyond his control and into the hands of the nationals. As Westerners we feel we have to train all the nationals and ensure they have sound doctrine, etc...but that's not quite what the Bible says. It says that we are to show them "how to obey all that the Lord has commanded them." Anything beyond that is the job of the God though the Holy Spirit. But it's so hard for us to take our hands off things isn't it? If we follow Paul's example in the New Testament, he discipled the new believers for a time but then moved on as soon as possible. He would pass back through to encourage them, address sin, or counter false teaching but he stayed out of the picture as much as he conceivably could. Paul also was careful not to baptise the new believers if he could possibly avoid it. He knew that baptizing them himself would cause all kinds of problems in the future. In fact, a dispute erupted in one of his church plants over who had baptized the believers...Paul or Apollos. He wrote how thankful he was that he had only baptized as few of them himself as he did. He knew that baptizing them would cause divisions in the church...believers baptized by missionary often feel they receive a "superior" baptism. It also creates the impression that only the missionary has the authority to baptize. I could go on and on about how bad an idea it is...but I think we would all agree that Paul was one of, if not the greatest, missionary to ever live (not to mention that God thought his model good enough to make it in the Bible). Should we not then follow his example as closely as possible?

So that's a little of the many things I've been learning up here...more updates to come.

"And shall I pray Thee change Thy will?"

"And shall I pray Thee change Thy will, my Father,
Until it be according unto mine?
But no, Lord, no; that never shall be, rather
I pray Thee, blend my human will with Thine.

I pray Thee hush the hurrying, eager longing,
I pray Thee, soothe the pangs of keen desire,
See in my quiet places wishes thronging --
Forbid them, Lord, purge, though it be with fire.

And work in me to will and do Thy pleasure,
Let all within me, peaceful, reconciled,
Tarry content my Wellbeloved's leisure
At last, at last, even as a weened child."

This was written by Nathan Brown, a missionary to Burma in the 1800's. I found it while reading through "Shadow of the Almighty". It was a common prayer from Jim and Elisabeth during their uncertain times before leaving for Ecuador. So much uncertainty, doubt, longing, desire, and on, and on, and on. Lord, that the prayer will be true for my life just as you were so obviously faithful to it in the Elliot's.

"Have I an object, Lord, below?"

"Have I an object, Lord, below
Which would divide my heart with Thee?
Which would divert its even flow
In answer to Thy constancy
O teach me quickly to return,
And cause my heart afresh to burn.

Have I a hope, however dear,
Which would defer Thy coming, Lord--
Which would detain my spirit here
Where naught can lasting joy afford?
From it, my Savior, set me free
To look and long and wait for Thee.

Be thou the object bright and fair
To fill and satisfy the heart,
My hope to meet Thee in the air,
And nevermore from Thee to part;
That I may undistracted be
To follow, serve, and wait for Thee."
--G.W. Frazer

Reading this old hymn this morning makes me realize, yet again, how very distacted and divided I am in my devotion to the Lord. Even more so as I read of Jim Elliot's life in "Shadow Of The Almighty". That man was utterly devoted to the Lord. He had a singleness of mind that I want just a piece of. Comparing my life to his (not that it is necessarily the apogee of the Christian life, but certainly an excellent model to strive for) I find some similarities, some areas where I know I have eliminated distractions from the Lord. But there are so many more areas that must still be trimmed down so that I may devote more and more of myself to Him. How to do this I am still not exactly sure. There is no recipe or easy way to go about it. Everything that is in my life now is important to me in some way or another. But I'm finding that it's a matter of HOW important these things are to me. I love music. I spend quite a bit of time listening to it and looking for more of it. And music has served a purpose. It has spoken to me time and again. And God has spoken to me through it. But more and more I feel that it is now a distraction. And the same for reading history. I love history. I love to learn about it and understand the flow of it and how it has shaped people and events and places. But the time for making it a priority in my life has passed. While I was in school it was necessary; now it is another distraction from time in prayer or the Word. But paring these things down will be difficult. I've spent years and years making them a priority and it won't be easy to reverse this process. But the Lord is showing me that He has other things that I need to be doing to prepare for the future. Jim Elliot's example here is particularly wonderful. I have a Spanish Bible that I need to be reading much more frequently than I am. How much greater could my impact in Ecuador be if I know all my favorite Sciptures in Spanish? As of now I have only memorized a 2 pitiful verses, John 3:16 and Romans 3:23. Elliot was studying Greek and Spanish and indigenous Indian languages years before he ever left for the misison field. And it served him very well once he got there. I could go on and on about this because there are just so many things that need to change in my life, but sitting here discussing the issue is not changing it. It's time to get serious and disciplined and cut all the flab in my life. God has given me the unbelievable privelige of going to another country to serve has His witness; I have done absolutely nothing to deserve this, so how can I do any less than be prepared for the job?

VIII: Styx

"Sunlight is drowning in the halflight
As the feelings return
Stange and familiar, a nocturnal fear
Appearing and disappearing

There is a river running deep
And it is floating through the veins
A nameless dread of the unknown
Temporary sight, an apprehension
Vague yet saddening

Black angels guiding me
The sum of all my fears
Black angels owning me
Whispering through me

Last night I heard the waters dreaming
Stones were fast asleep along the riverbed

Let the waters wash all over me and let me dream again
Of something good

Let me dream of sheltered places, of precious moments
And of long-lost faces, of truthful words that finally do make some sense

Lay out these maps before me
Let me trace again the borderlines of land and sea

Flood the tidepools and wash away the shores
No longer at the mercy of the waves, just let me breathe again

Let me stand and bathe in the healing light
And one more time let me navigate, just let me navigate by the stars

Roads and rivers are winding in a circle
Around the same old headstrong me
Outside looking in time and again
Feeling the heat of a recurring dream"

Wow...so this is one of my favorite songs ever. This song absolutely speaks to me and to who I am. Sometimes I have such a hard time overanalyzing things. I spend way too much time trying to analyze the future and figure out what it gonna happen when I just need to trust God. Just like in the song, I feel that "nameless dread of the unknown". But He has a plan. Instead of letting all the worries beat againt me like the waves in the ocean, I just need to stand up above them and trust God. In the terms of the lyricist, "just let me navigate by the stars". It's all in His hands.