Fish4Him.org Christian Missions Portal

A little time in Riga
This past weekend our family had the opportunity to travel to Riga, Latvia for a Greater Europe Mission Baltic Regional Conference. The GEM Baltic Region is composed of the Scandinavian countries (Greenland, Iceland, Faroe Islands, Norway, Sweden, Denmark), Finland, and...

More pics of the Kyle Dillard Band
Well, I uploaded my photos about our time in Poland in the Photo Album. Be sure to check them out. Also, Durand with GEM’s CreativeWorks ministry also did some blogging about our concerts and has his photos (and a video) on his blog here. Guys, can’t wait to do it again! (Just next time, I [...]

Donde Esta Mama?
<a rel="nofollow" target="_blank" href="http://bp1.blogger.com/_LtZ7EtKHraM/SB-N4CG8IFI/AAAAAAAAAFs/4727H1tIxJs/s1600-h/group+hug.jpg"><img style="float:right;margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer;cursor:hand;" src="http://bp1.blogger.com/_LtZ7EtKHraM/SB-N4CG8IFI/AAAAAAAAAFs/4727H1tIxJs/s320/group+hug.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5197028488787009618"/></a>We are doing something in my house that hasn't been attempted in 13 years! Seriously, the last successful experiment was over 13 years ago. It was such a near catastrophe, that the authorites have refused to grant us a license to try it again until now. Mama has left the building. The family has been without Mama before for ladies retreats (one/two nights max). They have also done without Mom--but only with Gramdma as a proxy. Now...for the next few weeks..."Estamos viviendo sin Mama" (We are living without Mom). Denise has gone to the States to visit her parents, Seth, and some of our friends. She is also visiting our Home Church. I cannot promise that the children will be in clean clothes...or any clothing at all, when she returns. I cannot promise health or safety. This is a very dangerous experiment. However, I can promise this. We are so pumped that she is sacrificing (it is a big deal to her) and leaving us so that she can see our oldest son and her parents. We hope and pray (will you also) that her time in the States is refreshing and enjoyable. Until then....does anyone know where my youngest daughter is?

Evac Pac
<a rel="nofollow" target="_blank" href="http://bp3.blogger.com/_LtZ7EtKHraM/SB933iG8IEI/AAAAAAAAAFk/nzyXNfB2Hgw/s1600-h/passports.jpg"><img style="float:left;margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer;cursor:hand;" src="http://bp3.blogger.com/_LtZ7EtKHraM/SB933iG8IEI/AAAAAAAAAFk/nzyXNfB2Hgw/s320/passports.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5197004290941263938"/></a>Living in Bolivia has had its share of excitement, the latest of which is going on right now. Yesterday, the Department of Santa Cruz voted to be autonomous. Three other Departments (the equivilent of States in the U.S.) have votes lined up in June. The pro-facto result of this vote is like becoming independent from the rest of Bolivia...not exactly but in a way. It is a lot like the U.S. in the mid 1800's, when some of the States wanted to have States rights pre-empt Federal rights. (I am being pretty vague here on purpose--please research on line to see what is going on). The end result of what is happening here could be like what happened in the States back in the time of Lincoln. As a result of the potential unrest and conflict, we have been instructed to keep what is called an 'Evac-Pac" on hand. This is because in the case of an emergency evacuation, you don't have time to pack. You have to leave everything behind except what can fit in a backpack. You grab it and boogie. In our pack, we have to have some money--not for luxury but to meet the temporary necessities of travel, we have to have our identification (passports and Bolivian I.D.), and then we can put other items that we feel pertinent. For example, I keep a screwdriver handy, and I will take the harddrive out of my laptop because it has all of our medical records, photos, and other personal information. Other than that...it is pretty slim. We have some peanuts, water bottles, vitamins, and a few first aid items just in case we cannot drive and we have to walk to the evacuation point. As I was putting together our evac pac, I thought of another evacuation that is definitely, not maybe, but for certain going to happen. One day, we are going to do an emergency evacuation of planet Earth. Whatever your end-time theology...there will be a day when God says, "Get outta there now!" Are you ready for that evacuation? Will you be called to leave the Earth, or will you miss the call? If you were packing an evac pac for that day, what would you put in it? Definitely you would have to have your identity--which is the fact that you are in Christ and you are a citizen of Heaven. Also, you may want to have some money...but in this case you can't put it in your pack, you have to send it on ahead of you. What else? Good to think about. I have another thought about the evac pac. It is amazing to me how, I can take all of the thousands of dollars of possessions that we have...in the States it would be much more...and I can put the essentials for life in a backpack. The essentials? The things that would keep my family intact, safe, and secure. Also the memories of our relationships. As I was thinking this, I thought...if the only thing that really matters in the case of an emergency is the people that I love...do I treat them like they are all that matter in times of non-emergency? Just a thought. Exercise For My Faithful Readers: What would you put in your spiritual, and physical, evac pacs...and what does that teach you? See You Next Time...and please, Pray for Bolivia.

It’s a Wrap
Well, we finished the last concert today. All of them seem to have gone really well. Several of the prisoners were definitely impacted (talk to the band members for more info about that). More importantly, the local church we have been working with has really been encouraged. Oh, and when I said that Kyle [...]

It’s was Kyle’s fault(s)
Whenever you’re on a short-term mission trip, things are going to go wrong. In an effort to be more efficient, we decided that instead of spending a lot of time figuring out who’s fault it is - a person will be assigned to be the fall guy for each day. To make things even easier, [...]

Swedish quote of the day
Here is a quote from Ingrid Bergman, a famous Swedish actress: "I hope I never get so old I get religious." Hmm....

That's Life...Part Two
As promised, here is an updated version of how we spend our week. You read about Sunday and Monday in the last post. Well, Tuesdays and Thursdays are rather Swedish intensive. On Tuesday, I attend the weekly Elim Church staff...

No picture, not much said because I’m tired
Well, we just got back from a long day of concerts. We did two concerts today, one in a high school and one in a juvenile. Both went off really well with a majority of the teens getting really into what was being sung and said. When the guys get back, you’ll [...]

Bride with an Axe to grind - literally
Ok, she is still in her wedding dress and she already has pulled out an axe to chop off her husbands head. Well, actually, the guy behind them does this improvisational stuff to get money on the streets here in the Old Town of Warsaw and the bride and groom were off to get [...]