Worldly Holiness

A Wonderful Road Trip

Lower Falls, originally uploaded by papalars.

I am nearing the end of a longer road trip that has taken me to Santa Barbara, California, north to San Francisco via the Central Valley of the state to visit family and see the beauties of Yosemite under cover of snow….yes, I took the photo above last week…notice the little stream of water coming off the lower falls. Anyway, this trip just finished up in Chicago for the Covenant's Midwinter conference. I have been speaking in churches to multiple age groups about our ministry to focus people, ranging from a middle school group to a senior citizens gathering at a retirement center. Yesterday, I just finished a 3.5 hour workshop with my ministry partner, Ken S to a gathering of Covenant pastors, leaders and cross-cultural workers.

The time has been very rich. It has been most rewarding as I see people respond to the approach of showing love to focus friends. I have been also amazed at the number of people in our churches who have focus friends. Last weekend in one church over 50 people raised their hands in response to the question of whether they had a focus friend. One of my underlying texts is 1 Peter 3:15. "But in your hearts set apart Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect." I am excited to see this seems to be the predominant ethos and attitude among the people in our broader church community. It seems there is a strong, pervasive desire in our churches to really live this way before focus people.

Well this month is almost over and I am ready to get back home, after a few more stops. I get to take some time to visit a few longtime friends over the weekend. One is a young man I discipled for several years in Mexico who now lives in the Chicago area, with his own family. It will be great to see Chuy again.

Here is a Friday Foto. February should be a better month for pictures and regular posts. Have a great weekend.  

January 31st, 2008 Posted by andres | Daily Journey, Friday Fotos | no comments

An Urgent Prayer Request

Beach Stroll, originally uploaded by papalars.

I was called this morning by Wahab from Pakistan. Remember, he is the son of my friend back in Barcelona. I have asked in a previous post for you to pray for his visa application to study in England. Here is the quick news and follow-up.

The first pass on the application was refused. The British Embassy is suspicious of everything related to Pakistan these days because of recent events as you can probably imagine. So, each visa application is treated with extra scrutiny and this is the case with Wahab's application as well. He is hopeful that the second review will go well and has submitted more important, supporting documents to help his case. He has 28 days from yesterday for a second phase to his application. Please pray that his visa will be granted.

So, please make a concerted effort to pray for Wahab, for his visa application to study accounting in England, and for the entire process to go smoothly and quickly.

Another prayer request. I spoke with Wahab's father, Austin, over Christmas and learned that he had a mild heart attack in early December. He is doing better now but will need an angioplasty procedure to repair a damaged vein in his heart. Wahab was grateful his father was under excellent medical care in Barcelona but also somewhat anxious that he, nor anyone in his family, could be there to be with his father. They have been separated if you recall for over 6 years. So pray for Austin as well, for his health and for the separation from those who love him, his family. Pray for God's abundant comfort, for healing, for good health and for a successful medical procedure. 

I will be visiting Austin in March during a trip to Europe. Thanks for joining me in prayer for these very special friends and partners in the Gospel.

January 22nd, 2008 Posted by andres | Prayer & Praise | one comment

The Samaritans of Our Day

Mission Fountain, originally uploaded by papalars.

I'm on the road currently speaking to churches and groups about our ministry and how to love focus people. I'm also dipping into a wonderful book entitled, "Pilgrims of Christ on the Muslim Road: Exploring a New Path Between Two Faiths." It is a very good read.

The author makes the case for looking at focus people as the new Samaritans of our day, drawing parallels to what we read in scripture about the Samaritans, who were hated cousins of the Jews. They had a particular knack for aggravating the Jews in the time of Jesus because even though they shared the same religious story, prophets, and holy places, they held their own, different interpretation. And yet we need to take note at how Christ related to them.

Jesus refused to wage war on the Samaritans. We must follow this example with focus people. Take the way Jesus related to the Samaritan woman at the well. Knowing full well who she was, an enemy in the perspective of his disciples who marched to the beat of the Jewish hatred toward Samaritans, Jesus none-the-less showed love. He responded to her thirst for God, did not condemn her, showed respect and grace, and lead her to drink living water.

Peter witnessed this entire event and the model of Christ with the Samaritan woman at the well. He must have learned the lesson because we read later in his exhortation to the scattered remnant of Christ followers in that first century. Portions of 1 Peter 3 follow: "To sum up, let all be harmonious, sympathetic, brotherly, kindhearted, and humble in spirit; not returning evil for evil, or insult for insult, but giving a blessing instead; for you were called for the very purpose that you might inherit a blessing…let him seek peace and pursue it…sanctify Christ as Lord in your hearts, always being ready to make a defense to everyone who asks you to give an account for the hope that is in you, yet with gentleness and reverence."

Remember that Christ also used the example of the "Good Samaritan" to answer the question of a certain lawyer that wanted to limit the scope of compassion. The question was, "who is my neighbor?" Remember the parable? Think about it. What would the reaction be if Christ showed up in the typical church today, using the example of the generous compassion of a focus person to rebuke the church for not showing compassion to the beaten up traveler along the side of the road. We too often limit the scope of our love. Christ would push our boundaries, challenging us to reach out even to our enemies, especially our religious enemies, showing unlimited love and compassion. Don't forget.

January 22nd, 2008 Posted by andres | Daily Journey | 3 comments