A moment snuck up on me yesterday and made me cry.

Many years ago I had a vision of sorts in which I would facilitate African pastors to receive Bible training so they could then in turn go and teach others. But even before that I received my first calling in Mexico to help others know God the way He had made Himself known to me. This would be honed and refined, and yesterday I saw my vision and calling meet.

As my friends spoke in our living room and handed my students paper certificates it dawned on me that this moment in time, this occurrence is a new beginning. It is the start to something God had been doing in me (and through me) for many years, not just 2 ¾ in Mozambique. And I cried.

You see, ever since I was little I knew, just knew there was a God. I saw Him in the wind and trees, I went for walks and heard Him. I had grown up with benefits I see now are beyond the reach of so many. Unfathomable to much of the world in fact. I had (and still do have!) great parents who loved me. Loved me well and led me to Christ. I did not want for food or clothing. I never had a ‘hungry season’ or heard of my cousin or neighbor dying from diarrhea or malaria. I grew up going to church where I actually heard Bible stories and had teachers tell me what they meant. I ran in the woods, I played with friends, played football on the church front lawn every Saturday during summer and fall and hockey on the pond behind my house during the cold winter. I had so much, when I met Jesus on a missions trip in the summer of 1986 I decided to use all I had so others could know Him.

And that is the path I have traveled for the last 20-some years. Years full of highs and lows, personal struggles and loss, joys and pains, moments of epiphany and conviction of sin. Then somehow I landed here in Mozambique. Nampula is now our home and we are so thankful to live here. We have made friends and now God is using us in small ways.

In the past few years I have been studying with and teaching a few groups of men and women. In the last few months with the help of their leadership,a these six have been chosen and are meeting with me in preparation to start their own TEE classes.



Top left to right: Serafim Silva, Elisio Zecua, some missionary, Feliciano Semente
Bottom row: Antonio Rodiguez, Herminio Arlindo, Alberto Castelo

Some of them are church provincial leaders, some are church secretaries or elders but all want to learn their Bible and know God deeper. I have visited their homes, prayed with them, held their hand while they sweated out a malaria fever, I received gifts from them and we have eaten together. We traveled and shared God’s word together in the bush. These are my brothers. But yesterday they became more. Not because of a flimsy piece of paper but because of what it symbolized. It was an vision being realized. Humbly and slowly I have kept pursuing this dream that I could, somehow with all my shortcomings and laziness, be of use to the Kingdom. I have tried to be thoughtful and strategic, purposeful and attentive to what God wanted done rather than what I thought should be done and yesterday I had a moment of accomplishment. I no longer work alone. My dream to teach others has now become the dream of 6 other men.

We spent three days in training with two Mozambican Bible school teachers/pastors from down south and it was good. Some much better than hearing the same words from me. We heard challenges and practical help for the work ahead. They shared their 10 years' experience with us and practiced with the guys. At the end we each thanked the other and for a moment I thought it wouldn’t end. In truth, it will not. This is the beginning for this group…and for me.

SO if you see me crying when I talk about these men, now you know why.

FN-The two trainers come from the Infortem Bible School in Mocuba. They started a similar program 10 years ago and now have over 1200 students, 80 monitors (TEE teachers) working interdenominationaly with over eight different church denominations.

Merry Christmas and Happy New year! and NO, it is never too late to wish well (bless) a person or praise God for the birth of His son....Pretty awesome holiday if you ask me!

SO, I pray all is well with you and yours. We as a family did a road trip to Malawi again visiting friends, car shops, croc farms (the real kind) and dentists along the way. We are so thankful the car performed well on the ruff roads, no one was sick and our cash was sufficient! Praise God for His faithfulness. Finally in the end we met up with friends at a Catholic retreat house on Lake Malawi and had a wonderful time resting , 6 small boys running all over playing, worshiping and simply being together. As we all live many miles apart it is a huge treat to meet up with dear friends.

Couldn't get pics to upload but will try again later...or check here http://camikevinupdate.blogspot.com/ maybe Cami had more luck (or persistence than I!!:)

Cheers
Kevin

Routine maintenance...

Yes, this picture is a car through the roof of a house...apparently they hadn't kept up with their routine maintenance and went off the road which was on a bank over some homes....and they 'dropped by' for a visit!

What exactly is routine maintenance? In the states, at least in Ct, where i hail from it means changing the oil, buying new tires occasionally and flushing the radiator.

Here in Moz. due to the high temperatures, bad roads and unusually heavy loads at times, it means all the above at increased intervals for double the price, AND replacing bearings, joints, radiators completely, inner and outer hub seals, not one battery--but two (because somebody thought your big truck needed two batteries)...and the sorting out of 'issues' BEFORE they find you out in the bush 100 miles from anywhere (or 10 miles from a mechanic--which can be the same dreadful feeling!).

So as i have been struggling through truck 'issues' and trying to get the 'maintenance' done on the truck before Nov. when we have some bush trips and then in Dec. head off to Malawi for our family break...i have been thinking about maintenance of my soul.

What is required to keep me functioning well, healthy and what is it that will enable me to withstand 'high temps', 'bad roads' and 'unusually heavy loads'? I am sure we could find volumes written on the subject of spiritual health and fervor but i am going to give the keys to MY spiritual fervor. Pretty simple really.

1. Keep my focus on Christ. Or in the words of Raggamuffin Gospel guy, "tell yourself the story daily", When i forget of how much in need i am, when i begin to compare myself to others or simply loose focus i fail miserably...kind of like a 4x4 truck with bad universal joints--things just don't work quite right, and although you can drive for quite a while, when you need to avoid that ditch (or temptation), you can't!

2. Kill the killers. We all know we should change the oil in our cars every couple thousand miles. Why, because it prolongs the life of the car....or the other way around, it helps the car live better and longer. So what if i only change half the oil? Or what if i only fix half the bad wheel bearings, is it really going to help? Nope, nada. The killer is still there. Our vehicle will die a quicker death...or will sputter along for years. Personally i do not feel like sputtering along, ask Cami, i like cruising at a good clip! Funny the little things that kill us are seemingly harmless. We need to trust the manual and do what it says!

3. Don't fall for the lie that you are alone. We are only alone if we want to be. Jesus was pretty clear about unity and fellowship be integral in our lives. Without them we are in danger. Like traveling an uncharted road without a map or guide---what is going to happen? If we are lucky we get out alive....

So, take it from me...do the maintenance, saves you money in the long run on your car and saves you endless headaches (or worse) spiritually! (you may have to get dirty...)

'n peace,
Kevin

Big night!

Toby hosted his first international sleepover this last week with buddies from his school. Turned out to be 3 different nationalities...but they all spoke the same language, "crazy"! They seemed to have lots of fun although sleep was not on their agenda. His five short friends were serious about playing as much as possible and to that effect we even overheard them discussing before they retired who would wake them all up in the morning so as to make the most of their time. It was finally discovered that Camille (thanks so much) wakes up at 5am and would wake the rest of them up too.

Strange after they had their pillow-fight they were hot and couldn't settle down...maybe i should not have joined them?

The next morning yes in deed they were up and playing at 5am...as Cami and i lay awake listing to the mayhem. But don't feel bad, i got my revenge! At 8:30 we left our house and picked up some other friends and two Big people to help me and headed for the mountain on which i would torture them! No, not really. It was great, some of them had never hiked before so i brought water for each and we went up a small but impressive mountain outside of town. Only one needed the rope tied around his waste and a few others needed a hand and encouragement, but they all made it!

Then they threw rocks off the top...alas, they failed on the last rock!








Really a great bunch of boys!
Until next time!

Be a MAN!

Ok, so this is more directed at my guy buddies out there somewhere....but i think it can be applicable to ladies as well....

The manly man Jesus; Can we stop being men of the world and men like Jesus?

I was preparing a devotional for a men’s group meeting here in town…actually we went out to a mountain, but anyway, I was thinking about being a man, a ‘real man’, you know, machismo and testosterone and grunting. I was thinking does this really match up with what God expects me to be? Does it really jive with WHO Jesus was…because as far as I know we are supposed to be like Him (conformed into HIS likeness), not like some celebrity, famous person or hero. So here is what I studied and read and what my conclusion is.

If, as my church doctrine and personal belief are true that Jesus was in fact fully human (yet sinless) and fully God (yet experienced exactly what we experience), then I have to believe Jesus was the best example of being a human possible. More than being the best human he was the best example of being a man, a true man. In fact He was the ultimate man. He was the perfect embodiment of what a man is to be. He without fault displayed true compassion, zeal, kindness, self-control, peace, obedience, truthfulness, integrity, purposefulness and grace. So I was thinking of these things and picked up a book by Bruce Marchiano who is an actor who played Jesus in a film. The experience changed him and made him appreciate the person and masculinity of Jesus.

In his book, The Character of a man; Reflecting on the image of Jesus he says, “Grace was the most comprehensive, underlying, over-blanketing constant that spilled from his every miracle and his every teaching. His every drop of sweat and every drop of blood.” P.87 Also that the words Jesus used were not wasted or trite, in fact they were perfect for each opportunity and person. Again Bruce writes, “The challenge…that man would so guard his mouth that no careless words would ever be spoken and no words would ever be spoken in careless way. That no matter the circumstances or the pull of self-interest a man would choose to speak with ‘Jesus’ lips’—lips anointed in grace”. P. 95 (We can see this clearly in the following verses. Luke 4:22--gracious words fell from his lips. In Math. 12:34-36 Jesus says out of the overflow of the heart the mouth speaks…and he wasn’t just speaking of good overflow!) This Jesus was accustomed to hard work, walking long distances, sleeping outdoors, being weary and hungry. He was not pampered, self-interested or isolated from those around him although he did spend time alone, sometimes running away from the masses that followed him and his every word, he wasn’t selfish, more self-aware of his own needs to be with the Father.

Our role model had constant purpose. Bruce again writes, “there is nothing lukewarm about this man. There is nothing halfway, nothing cool, nothing maybe this or maybe that. He is a man who knows exactly what he’s been born for and exactly what it will cost him and he isn’t afraid to march headlong into it. He is impassioned and holy and his manhood drips from it. He moves with purpose and urgency never wasting a moment, never moaning about this difficulty or groaning over that frustration. He just moves forward and passes on and presses through.” P.58 “He wakes every morning- a man who knows who he is and what his life is about. He rises from every challenge that would steal his excitement and beat him down. He stares the enemies of his soul and life’s potential straight in the eye and says ‘I’m a child of the living God and you’re not going to crush even a moment of the thrill’. Refusing mediocrity he rolls up his sleeves and dives into each day. He shakes free of the fatigue and the ache and pains of life lived in a broken creation …he digs his heels firmly into every responsibility and purpose God intends for him. P.65

My conclusion after reading this book, looking up verses and stories of Jesus to support these thoughts and meditating on them was very simple, I have long way to go. This man, this Jesus, this Rabbi, teacher, friend to sinners, guest of tax collectors and buddy to the really disgustingly sick….His standard of who we should be as people is a high mark. As far as masculinity….well, I just think we need to chill about being the toughest, fastest, most handsome, having the most toys and belike HIM. Gracious, compassionate, passionate for that which is right, careful and deliberate with our words, self aware of our needs and who we are. If this sounds too general, sorry but I think it is the best place to start being who we were intended (predestined) to be….LIKE HIM.

He lived 100%....
in every moment.
in submission to the father’s will
guided by the Holy Spirit
free of fear
with purpose
spilling out words and acts of grace
free of indulgence or sinful pursuits

The conclusions are simple.

Philippians 2:5-8 …be like Him in your attitude…humbled and obedience
Mathew 5:48 …be perfect like your Father in heaven
…Be holy (Lev. 19:2) or blameless (Deut. 18:13) or perfecting holiness (2 Cor. 7:1)
John 13:15 …do as Jesus did
Romans 8:29 … be conformed to the likeness of His Son

Everyone who crosses our path should say, “Oh yeh, he must be one of those Christians, he acts, talks and is just like Jesus.”

This is our challenge, our calling and our freedom. To throw off the weights, restraints and demands of this world (no matter what culture) and live as Jesus did, do the things He did, speak words like He spoke, and….do even greater things! (John 14:12!!????---maybe look into this another time!)

Finally my disclaimer/challenge.

“12Not that I have already obtained all this, or have already been made perfect, but I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me. 13Brothers, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, 14I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus. 15All of us who are mature should take such a view of things. And if on some point you think differently, that too God will make clear to you.” Philippians 3:12-15

His
Kevin