Candy Cane Christmas

Hey everyone! Greetings, Salutations, and Happy Christmas (as the Irish people say)! I just want to take a break from our many Christmas gatherings and give y'all an update on our lives, as well as some holiday musings inspired by the Irish people.

December Updates

First, our day-to-day well-being has been so blessed this month with the addition of Olaf, our new Volkswagen car, as well as internet in our home and furniture from Ikea. To make things even more incredible, my mother, father and brother will be traveling to Ireland to stay with us for two weeks! It will be so amazing to have them bring Texas to Ireland for Christmas as well as introduce them to our new stomping grounds.

Second, as far as financial updates go, we are officially 94% fully funded! Wow. God just keeps using y'all and we keep getting blown away. Thank you.

And finally lets be real, Molly and I have been incredibly busy this Christmas season, which has been so good for us. Something about all of the preparation for Christmas helps the soul appreciate what Christmas really means. The church is decorated, they collected food for charity, had communion service, carol service, had a potluck, and Christmas parties for each lifegroup, children's class, and youth group. And to top it all off we will be gathering tomorrow at 10am, Christmas morning, to worship and celebrate Jesus together, with the children in pajamas with toys in their hands. Needless to say, I am pumped for Christmas day.

Christmas in Ireland

So here is something I am learning: If you want to get to know the heart of a city introduce yourself to lots of random people, try as much of the city's food as possible, and spend a holiday in the city, especially Christmas. Guys, Christmas in Ireland is HUGE. Santa himself came to turn on the city lights in Enniscorthy, after a huge parade. During the parade they handed out mince pies and candy. Kids went insane. And here are a few pictures of the festivities we found in Dublin.

Candy Cane Dilemma

It as been among the excitement of the Christmas season that I realized something, or rather God focused my scatter-brained attention. The realization occurred as Molly and I were handing out candy canes with a card attached, inviting people to our church carol service. We had made about 200 in preparation and planned to hand them out around Enniscorthy in all of the busy places where pedestrians roam. However, try as we might, for the first few hours we only found a few people to take them. Eventually one of the pastors stopped by and advised us to tell the pedestrians that they were FREE candy canes.......We then proceeded to give away the remaining candy canes in under an hour

Apparently the Irish pedestrians assumed that we were either asking for money for a charity, or that the "free" candy cane would have strings attached. When we began to explain that the candy canes were free the people were genuinely shocked, and I was shocked by their being shocked. "This doesn't ever happen", was a common phrase the Irish people would say to me. About a candy cane.

I can be so entitled in my own American culture. Free things are not rare in America, in fact they are annoyingly common. If I had been passing out candy canes in an American mall, it would be assumed that they were free, no strings attached. Whereas in Ireland the people are so used to being taxed for every little thing, enduring a recession, making the best with what they have, and wrestling with financial debt that something given without charge must be a sham. Something given freely cannot be meant for them, it must be intended for someone else, someone who is known to be a good person. Something given freely and generously must be a lie, with stipulations and fine print, with obligations and guilt. 

Now I'm only 3 months new to this country, but what if this is how the Irish people feel about Jesus? Jesus breaks through time and space, God incarnate in human bone and skin, and joyfully presents Himself as the greatest hope for the world, freely given for us to enjoy and finally be satisfied. Yet the Irish people assume this free gift has the stipulations of, or is dependent on, their regular confessions, attendance in church, and more good deeds than bad deeds. A free gift intended to be their greatest joy is twisted into a guilt-ridden device that causes shame and fear.

So what do we do?

How do we combat this lie? Through affirming the truth in words, emotions, and actions. We declare God to be the greatest gift to mankind, for our greatest joy, satisfaction, and fulfillment. That Christ is better than any gift we can imagine or desire. That through Him all other delights in the world are made more sweet, and with Him every storm of life is insufficient to separate us from Him. We do repent of and grieve our sin, but not to earn penance, but to grieve when we fail to place God as the greatest joy and repent to trust in Jesus to change our hearts to know Him more. That by gazing into His likeness we are made more like Him (2 Corinthians 3:18). And we live lives of action, welcoming people into the family of God, giving of our possessions and time generously, and building up the church to make disciples of all nations (Acts 2:42-47, Ephesians 4:16, Matthew 28:19). We preach the gospel of Jesus to ourselves and others to know more fully the goodness of being adopted as God's children (Philemon 1:6). And so many other things.

Isaiah 55 so adeptly states what I am trying to communicate, and what I believe is Jesus' heart for us through Christmas. When I read this, I imagine Jesus talking directly to me and you.

Come, everyone who thirsts, come to the waters; and he who has no money, come, buy and eat! Come, buy wine and milk without money and without price. Why do you spend your money for that which is not bread, and your labor for that which does not satisfy? Listen diligently to me, and eat what is good, and delight yourselves in rich food. Incline your ear, and come to me; hear, that your soul may live; and I will make with you an everlasting covenant, my steadfast sure love for David.

Well I'd love to keep musing by the fireside, but White Christmas and peppermint fudge are calling my name.

Merry Christmas

Tell Me Something Good

Hello Everyone, I hope you all had a marvelous Thanksgiving with friends and families and are enjoying the celebrations of this Christmas season! A few things have happened since we last shared with you all. So if today is one of those days where you just need to hear that something good is happening in this world, that God is moving, here you go.

A week ago we had the chance to join up with other youth groups in Ireland at Open Arms Church in the town of Newbridge. The event was called Mini Pulse and this was the second year they had put it on for youth groups across the country. James and I weren't really sure what to expect, but in hearing how excited our youth were to go again it seemed like it was going to be good. We had the opportunity to take 17 teenagers from our youth group to Mini Pulse.The event was set up with time for the kids to hang out, worship, play games, hear a message, and then receive prayer. During Mini Pulse we saw a lot of firsts happen for our youth...

We looked on as our youth kids met up with around 150 Irish youth and got excited about Jesus together!

We watched our youth group dive into worship together.

We saw our youth group listen intently to a man who spoke to them of being the "Joshua Generation" who are going to take Ireland for the Kingdom in a way that no previous generation has had the opportunity.

We stood in amazement as most of our youth kids went up to receive prayer at the altar. Some even choosing to go alone when their friends wouldn't come up with them.

Our hearts were overflowing with the very real and powerful presence of the Holy Spirit that met our youth group this past Friday night and changed their hearts for eternity.

For all of you that have been praying for us and our ministry here within the youth group specifically, THANK YOU! God is moving in powerful ways but keep on praying for them. As much as we are seeing breakthrough in them we are also seeing all of the lies, attacks, and circumstances the enemy is throwing their way to try to stop them from becoming the men and women they were created to be. So just keep on interceding for our youth and we will continue to share with you what your prayers are accomplishing over here for the Kingdom. It's good stuff!

We also had the opportunity to celebrate our first American Thanksgiving in Ireland, and it was such a wonderful celebration.

One of the families in our church who have become such sweet friends were willing to host it for us due to our guest list being a bit bigger than our apartment.

James cooked his first turkey and it was a succulent success! Everybody was raving about it. Shout out to my father-in-law for providing the equivalent of the Bible for how to cook a turkey well.

We ate, drank, chatted, and enjoyed each other's company for hours. These people have been such an incredible blessing in our lives in the 3 months we have been here in Ireland. It was such a special thing to get to come together with them and share this holiday with those who have made Ireland our new home.

To all our friends, family, prayer warriors, and supporters back in the States, thank you for how you have steadfastly stood by us this past year as we unveiled this call to go to Ireland, walked the road to get here, and now have been here answering the call for the past 3 months. We are grateful from the bottom of our hearts for each of you.

Fanning the Flame through the Fog

I absolutely love the fog.

There's something mysterious about how it settles over a town, up and down every street. It effectively veils everything but the objects in our most immediate proximity, yet we are able to breathe it in and out. You can feel the difference when you walk through it, but no amount of waving your hands will blow it away. It is there, but it won't hinder your travels through it, ......unless you are driving a car, then by all means please adapt how you drive in the fog...

The Fog of Life

Today is an incredibly foggy day in Enniscorthy, Ireland. And though I love the fog, I cannot help but compare it to how I can sometimes read the Bible, or listen to a sermon. I can hear all of these inspiring words, I can be touched by the Holy Spirit's voice, I can be astounded by the truth on a page, yet I have difficulty seeing how to live it out. I cannot see through the fog of life how to put my following of Christ into daily practice. It can be so easy to walk through life, knowing that Christ's mission is to change the world, yet be completely unaware of how to define clear and specific ways to live this out. Maybe I'm just weird in noticing this, but I'm willing to bet I'm not the only one who has experienced this.

A Gathering of Fire

Sometimes the best thing to do is get out of the fog and light a fire.

About a month ago we started two lifegroups at Alive Church, one for youth and one for the adults. Using Acts 2:42-47 as a biblical framework, we have dedicated about an hour each week to gather together on Wednesday nights, living out what we read in the Bible and what we hear in the sermons on Sunday. Last night we were even discussing how we are each learning how to daily fan into flame the gift of God (2 Timothy 1:6) instead of relying only on a pastor every week. That is how I picture our gatherings. We each are bringing the lives entrusted to us by God, like coals burning bright. But God created us so that and by burning in close proximity with each other, we actually begin to radiate more heat. This has given us the incredible opportunity to witness growth in our church through prayer, worship, encouragement, accountability, discussion, and practical steps to live out each week.

The Challenge

So here's my challenge to you. Find a community of believers who run after God with everything and attach yourself to that group. Find those who are farther in their faith than you and watch closely how they live, then set yourself as an example for those who are learning from you. Become loyal to a church that is on fire, and bring yourself as a living sacrifice (Romans 12:1) to burn brightly with them for God Himself.

The Missionary Marathoner

Dearest friends and family, Thank you for your prayers as we put on our first parties at Alive Church this past Halloween weekend. Both parties were a smashing success of fun filled, candy crazed, friendly competitiveness. I have photos below of some of our party fun, sadly I didn't get any during the youth party, but there are a few from the SuperKids Fun Night.

As we approach our 2 month anniversary here in Enniscorthy I was thinking back to the advice that we've been given during these first few months and how it has impacted our beginning here. As I thought back I found that the most quoted piece of advice to me these past 2 months has been this,

"What you are doing here is a marathon, not a sprint."

I'm sure this is something most missionaries know because they live it day in and day out. But it wasn't something I was prepared for nor do I have a natural bent towards it. You see, I tend to like the things in life you can sprint through. Sprints provide beginnings and endings you can see quickly. Sprints don't require as much preparation or recovery. Sprints allow you to see the results on the scoreboard faster. I like to see results, I like to check things off of my list, and I like to get feedback immediately, especially in my job.

But as we come up on our 2 month anniversary of being here in Ireland, working for Alive Church, and praying into this country I see myself in the beginning mile of a marathon. There are some days James and I come home and find ourselves so frustrated because we didn't see any visible fruit after a youth service or after meeting with people. There are days that it feels like we are literally getting NOTHING accomplished. I end the day and not ONE thing has been checked off my never ending to do list. There are days that I don't "feel" this whole missionary thing at all.

Ironically enough, during this time I've felt pulled to go back and read the gospel accounts during my time with Jesus and guess what I found, Jesus' 3 years in public ministry was a marathon too. It wasn't one fantastic highlight reel of every miracle he had ever done, there was some pretty sucky times thrown in there as well. I mean talk about not seeing much fruit, the 12 disciples during the 3 years they walked with Jesus weren't always the quickest or fastest bloomers in the Kingdom. Let's be real. And he had handpicked them for the task of beginning his Church. I mean James and I are hoping to further his church in one small part of the world, Jesus was STARTING THE CHURCH SO THAT THE WHOLE WORLD MAY KNOW GOD. Talk about starting a movement, he was starting THE movement. Jesus though being fully God was also at times fully frustrated when he didn't see the fruit of his ministry either. In Mark 11 he comes across a fig tree looking for something to eat because he was hungry, he doesn't find any fruit and ends up cursing the tree. I would say at the time he was pretty frustrated and "hangry." As I read through the gospel accounts, this time as a missionary, my spirit continues to be refreshed as I am reminded again and again that,

"We do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses." (Hebrews 4:15)

A.K.A. HE GETS ME!!! Not just when I finish my ministry to do list but on the days that I'm wanting to scream and throw a 3 year old temper tantrum because I didn't finish anything on it. So today wherever you are, I just want to remind you that HE GETS YOU. He is able to sympathize with what you are going through, and he wants to help you with it, cause he's the greatest of friends.

We love you all so very much!!! Your prayers and love refresh us here. If you ever want a front seat to some of our ministry here you are always welcome to wake up and watch our lives stream Sunday mornings; where you will see James leading worship and our Pastor Enda Long preaching the word. Here is the link: http://alivechurch.ie/watch-live

Last but not but at all least here's our sneak peek into how we celebrated here at Alive Church!!! Enjoy!

The Worship Project

Hey everyone! The official article I wrote for this week is being sent out on Modern Day's monthly newsletter. Not only do they enable us to provide an online donation option, but they also want to get the word out on what God is doing in Ireland! So click here to check it out.

Financial testimony: By the beginning of October we are 93% fully funded! God has continued to use you, your prayers, and your support to provide for us. Thank you so much! We evaluate our budget and donations every month so in a few weeks we will be able to give you another financial update.

Lastly, be praying this week for Molly and me as we put on three church parties this week. In Ireland the schools close for fall break the entire week of Halloween, so we will be spending lots of time with youth during the day, only to turn around and have lots of parties at night. Our lifegroup party will be on Tuesday, then on Friday we will have a church kid party followed by a youth late night extravaganza. We will probably be on a sugar-induced coma all Saturday, and then crawl out of bed for church on Sunday. Be praying that the parties go well, our sanity remains intact, and that through it all true biblical community begins to take place among the festivities.