Traffic Jams, Fish, and some other things

Driving down I-25 or the “Valley Highway” as my dad likes to call it, I always get caught in traffic. For some reason, the Metro Denver Area thought it would be a great idea to fix the whole highway at once and to take 10-15 years doing it. While stuck in traffic, I usually do one of two things; I get angry or go crazy. And when I get angry I am basically going crazy but it includes shaking the car back and forth, not talking to myself which is the “normal” crazy.

In Amsterdam this week, I found myself stuck in a different traffic jam, but the results were pretty much the same, I became a bit angry and I think I went a bit crazy as well. This traffic jam is quite predictable; it is in the center of the city and lasts from around 9pm to around 3 in the morning. The streets are packed not with honking cars, but with broken men and women. The sex industry in Amsterdam brings in over a US Billion Dollars a year. Most of the girls in the Red Light District remain there as if locked in a prison cell, bars of steal and cells of concrete substituted for a door of glass and a red room with a bed. Many are from different parts of Europe or North Africa and were recruited for hotel jobs. When they got to Amsterdam, the glittery promises fall through, their captors flaunt their passports in front of their face; scared and intimidated, they submit to whatever they are required to do. It becomes an issue of Human Trafficking.

Dutch girls are herded in other ways, with the use of “Lover Boys” who drive into the country in their BMW’s and Mercedes, getting to know girls from 13-17. Soon they know everything about the girls even knowing where they live and befriending their parents. They are whisked away to Amsterdam with their rich boyfriends who also promise them luxurious lives, but when they get here they are hit with reality that things are not what they seem. If they try to get out now, they are reminded of who knows where their parents live and where they can be found. Even the women who enter the “profession” on a temporary basis to pay off debt or similar situations find themselves trapped in a system which is next to impossible to get out.
Not only is it sad to see the women behind their invisible bars, the city is filled with broken people searching for something that is real. They come to smoke blunts, indulge in sexual fantasies, and get lost in both. They come because of a void that is pulling them, but the behavior that they are involved in makes sure that they will never fulfill no matter how lost they get. You see the brokenness in their eyes as they dart from girl to girl, you hear it in their congratulatory (and often times drunken) congratulations to their buddy who just came out of the room to make room for the next one in line. It makes me sad, but it makes me think. I am not so different from them. For a long time I searched as they did for something to fill the emptiness that I couldn’t escape from. I tried to lose myself to forget that I had a void; sometimes even to forget that I was…

The thing is, without Jesus, we all are searching for that something. We all need Him to be okay. He is the only one that satisfies our deepest longings as humanity. We can implement programs and projects all over the world; we can put an end to prostitution, AIDS, and even hunger, but the longing will always remain and will manifest itself as selfishness and greed. I was reading a book recently and found a small paragraph that changed my life forever.
“There is an old adage that says, ‘You can give a man a fish or better still you can teach him to fish.’ Jesus would add, ‘You can teach a person how to fish but even the most successful fisherman has a hunger that fish cannot satisfy.’” – Ravi Zacharias in Jesus Among Other Gods

While Jesus was here, He completely transformed the Earth, no one else is like Him. Unlike the champions of other religions, Jesus was not just showing the way, He is the Way. He didn’t only teach His message, He is His Message. Not only did He proclaim truth, He is Truth. He didn’t just offer the Water of Life; He is the Water of life. We are all made to crave relationship with our Creator, which is the emptiness. Jesus is the Way to a restored relationship with the Father.
We are all weak, yes. Even after a revelation of who Jesus is, we still fall sometimes because we are human and will always take our eyes off of perfection. But in our weakness, He is strong. He is able to pick us up again and extend His Amazing Grace and show us again a glimpse of who He really is.

Not only is He strong in our lives when we are weak, He is strong in other people’s lives when we are weak. I think that we have greatly underestimated the power of our testimony in our relationship with Jesus and our interaction with the world. Our testimony is an example of how God was strong in our lives when we were absolutely weak. His strength moving in our weakness can also move in someone else’s weakness as well. Humans relate to the world around them in similar ways; there is nothing new under the sun. Someone who hears my story or your story can relate to you at basic terms. Even someone across the globe will relate to the basics of your humanity and your need for God.

I hope that this encourages you to share your story, invite people to your house, get to know your neighbors and the people you sit next to week after week in church or class. Maybe God wants to use you to bring change to this world. Maybe it is actually Jesus sitting next to you.

Pray for the Prostitutes; for the Broken; for the Downtrodden and Outcast and the condition of the world that they represent. God sees them and loves them dearly. Pray for yourself as well, that you may have courage to be in the world, but not be of it. That you may show people there is a Spring of everlasting water that gives life to even the most dead. The Light of Life is here and so is His Kingdom.

in Christ, the Way
John Paul

Holy Land, Egypt… then to Ethiopia!

Leaving the Holy Land was a surreal experience. It had been a month, spent almost all in Jerusalem, a haven for tension. A couple trips to Galilee broke up the monotony and opened my eyes to more of what the Holy Land has to offer and a better idea of where and how Jesus lived.

[The Wall of separation from the Bethlehem side]

[Dome of the Rock on the Temple Mount, Jerusalem]

[Palestinian Man in the Old City, Jerusalem]

My head is still wrapped around the whole concept of the Israeli/Palestinian conflict. I don’t think that I will ever understand it; never be able to choose sides. I don’t think that is my job or my place; it belongs to the One who is sovereign of over the affairs of nations. My hope is that all nations go down in flames, not with the physical tongues of fire but with a fire that consumes the monuments of hatred concealed in the hearts of all men. Laid waste by the love of Christ, refined with unquenchable intensity, and transformed into citizens of the Kingdom whose new passion is found in the grace and love that flows from the heart of the King. The wasteland is replaced with streams of light and a garden of life; lush pastureland and abundant fruit trees.

[Looking West from Arbel]

[Area of Tubqa, Sea of Galilee: See John 21]

[Group of Apples in the hallway market outside of our hostel in Jerusalem]

My heart burns for the Holy Land to have this kind of transformation, but I don’t want it to stop there. I want that for Egypt, East Africa, Nepal, Colombia, the United States; any location containing those God made in His own image.

[Laurus (Seagulls) in the Rain, Galilee]

We arrived back in Cairo about a week ago and have been engaged in learning since we landed. I love this city and this country. I have a feeling there may be some more time spent here in the future. We have been learning some more about “Painting with Light” which is the actual definition of photography but also a type of photography which I will give examples of. This week, Luke Moon is back from Kona teaching us about Worldview; he actually leads the Humanities school at the U of N in Kona. He provides some practical and contemporary insight that enables me to think clearly about the world around me and how others think about it as well.

[Pictures that were taken as assignments during the week: Seeing Light, Studio Lighting, Night Photography, and Light Painting]

[Said, one of the doormen/watchmen of our building]

[Minibus driver in Tahrir Square (via sideview mirror)]

[Tahrir Square Mosque]

the Holy Land

[Near Empty Streets in the Old City... Rare for daytime]

Driving through the south of Israel, I couldn’t believe that I was really here. It was incredible, so much history. Our hostile is located near the Damascus Gate of the Old City of Jerusalem and you can frequently find members of the team in getting photos and meeting up with new friends. Its such a different place. The feel of a new city with relatively empty, clean streets, McDonalds, and the Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf (a company I worked for in SB while enrolled at Westmont) meets another world of cramped minimarkets, crowded alleyways, lousy plumbing, and suspicious glances. After it snowed, there were even snowballs hurled from rooftops on the unsuspecting and suspecting alike. I really love it here. I try to imagine it they way Jesus walked it, but I can’t really, cities change and evolve, as did Jerusalem.
Tim, Naphtalie and I had a chance to head to Galilee for a couple of days in the Northern parts of Israel. It was incredibly green, lush with the new grain crops, rolling hills and peaceful valleys. We visited cities like Capernaum and Nazareth, and locations like the Sea of Galilee and the cliffs of Arbel. We even attended the Nazarene Church of Nazareth, which was a congregation made up of Christian Arabs; amazingly beautiful worship. I would love to come back someday.

For some reason, I thought that by my presence in Jerusalem, I would be able to make a stand for justice, find out all the issues of the Palestinian/Israeli conflict, and be able to tell you a specific formula for peace and change in the land… They were lofty expectations, I realize, and now I am crushed because I can’t. I guess the real reason that I am crushed is because that, left to human hands, there can be no peace here.

I had this thought that Israel was right… that the land belonged to them. After all, they need it to fulfill the covenant that God made to Abraham and Moses. But what about the other people that have lived here for hundreds of years before the massive influx of Jews from all over the world began in the early 1900’s? This question was heavy on my heart because it was so easy for me to align myself with God’s “chosen people”… until I started reading the Scriptures for myself and listening to people who are much smarter than me.

As I read, I discovered the whole of the Old Testament points to a very specific moment and a very specific person… Jesus Christ. God promised Abraham that from his descendants would come a Light to the nations; the sacrificial practice so that the people would recognize God’s perfect son, sacrificed for the iniquity of all, and the promised-land? the promised land is the Rule of God… the Kingdom of God. Paul alludes to this in Colossians 2:17 – “For these rules (the Law) are only shadows of the reality to come. And Christ Himself is that reality.” Throughout history, Israel has refused to obey God but He kept bringing them back to Himself in order to ensure that Jesus would be born exactly at the right time. That leveled the playing field, and now we all have the opportunity to be called sons of Abraham. Paul says that it isn’t bloodline that connects anyone to Abraham… it is their faith in God (Romans 9). Jesus gave Himself as the new covenant, that those who would believe and trust Him would be invited into the Promised Land (Matt 26:27-29;Lk 22:20)

As followers of Christ, we must take a neutral ground to the conflict in Israel. Jesus made it obvious (as did the rest of the Bible [Jews were to be the light to the nations]) that salvation is for all people. There are injustices being done on both sides by people who haven’t had a revelation of the love of Christ, and that, is our mission. We can feed the hungry, proclaim freedom for the captives, give a glass of water all in the name of Jesus and remain unaligned to either side. But, we must engage with them and love them because God created them and wants them to know Him in a personal way. CHRIST IS THE ONLY WAY for peace in this land.

I became completely frustrated that I didn’t have some say in the matter, that there was no explanation or method to bring these different nations to stop killing each other; to put down their weapons and embrace each other as brothers. Until all of them come to their knees and acknowledge that Christ is King, they will not. As a human, with all of my pride and arrogance, it was hard for me to accept… So what is my responsibility in the matter? I need to know God in a deeper way, so that I can help others to know Him and His love as well. Then, and only then, will these two religious and ethnic powerhouses come under the reign of the Prince of Peace. Israelis need Christ just as badly as Palestinians do. It is ultimately refreshing to see local Christians here, I have a deep respect for them in their efforts for peace and reconciliation. I hope that we can support our brothers and sisters in Christ and bring change to this world so rich in beauty and history.

Pictures faded in and our as I sat in horror in front of the computer monitor. Images of children barely alive, young men with the biggest scars I have ever seen from machete hacks, and young women who were the object of multiple rapes. I gasped that people could do that to each other. My heart has been broken for three consecutive days over the atrocities that are going on in the “Democratic Republic” of Congo. Since 1998, 5.4 Million people have died as a result of the civil war; the worst humanitarian crisis since the Holocaust… Have you heard about it? I hadn’t until this week.

This made me do some serious thinking. How could so many people be dying while I have just stood by so ignorantly? These are people that God created and that He loves. I even went through a crisis in my faith, whether I trusted God’s sovereignty in the midst of this situation. It seems like every time I find out something else is happening (and has been happening) in the world, I get more sad and depressed. I feel like Solomon when He wrote in Ecclesiastes, “The greater my wisdom, the greater my grief. To increase knowledge only increases sorrow.” (1:18). Have the eyes of God overlooked the suffering of the innocent; have His ears not heard their cries? Where can we find God in the midst of these miserable situations and circumstances?

I will never be able to control the injustices in this world. I will never be able to stop the flow of grief and pain. For who am I? My faith is weak; my trust lacking; my pride hindering. I am ignorant to the greatness of God; His sovereign ability to hear the groans of the anguish across the face of the earth. I want to trust that His grace really is sufficient. I want to trust that He is not deaf and blind to the captives, the hungry, sick, and oppressed; that He has plans to prosper them in the midst of the bleakest situations imaginable; and that even the darkest alleys and jungles cannot hide from the Light of Life.

Is it possible that Jesus was serious when He called us to follow Him? Is it possible that that He weeps for His creation? But is it possible that He wants to bring glory to Himself? Is it possible that He can’s wait until He can say, “Yes, the rescuers are My people; I have commissioned them for this work. The love that they show is My love – their words and My words – their heart is My heart.”? Is it possible that we are His hands and feet and that He desperately wants to work through us? He can still accomplish His will with the hands of those who don’t know Him, but we rob Him of glory when we are complacent and slow to act… oftentimes not acting at all. Is it possible that He wants to use you?

Please visit this website and look for the Crisis in Congo Photostory:

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/3842331/

Some links to get involved

http://www.savethechildren.net/alliance/where_we_work/AE/mapCG.html

http://www.merlin.org.uk/Where-we-work/Democratic-Republic-of-Congo.aspx

I know that so many of you are involved in showing God’s love and telling people about Jesus. Thank you for your faithfulness and I pray that you will remain strong and diligent to the task at hand. May God continue to bless you.

In His love

John Paul

Mom and Dad, what words could I ever say to you to tell you what you mean to me. I love you guys so much; you are so special to me. I couldn’t imagine anyone who would love and support me like you do. You are truly a blessing from the Father.

[The Division between the different quarters of the Old City is remarkably defined]

[View from Arab Quarter to Jewish Quarter]

[In the Jewish Quarter]

[Young Israeli on guard... Thinking about his girlfriend in Tel Aviv]

[And it was]

[The Old City has tombs around half of its walls. Looking toward Mt of Olives]

[Arab Casket]

[Candles at the location some think Christ was imprisoned]

[Popular toys]

[Photo for an assignment. Taken at a bus-stop with 3 completely burned buses. This was the nicest looking one. The Israeli and Palestinian Youth have a choice to stand for Hope and Peace]

[Cliffs of Arbel looking over Magdal... read what happened at the cliffs 100 years after Christ died HERE]

[Some of the tools Jesus would have been familiar with, but He would have also been an expert in stonework]

[Minar]

[Tim and his new best friend... he really wanted to buy one]

[Naphtalie didn't really kiss Petunia (the lamb's name) and didn't want to buy one]

[Millstone for crushing olives at an olive press]

[Oil lamp and scroll]

[Woman at an Arab-Christian Nazarene Church in Nazareth... yes]

[Grain field in front of the disputed Golan Heights]

They say Peter’s house was here… all I could see were rocks with huge buildings built over them]

[At the Sea of Galilee. This is probably the area where Jesus appeared to his disciples and fed them fish and bread before ascending to heaven]

[It snowed in Jerusalem... we got hit with snowballs and so did unsuspecting women and children]

[One man's trash]

[One girl's treasure]

[Streets of the Old City]

Leaving Cairo, through Sinai, Into Jordan & Israel

Off of the busy streets in Cairo, it felt like I was stepping into a different world, a ghost town of sorts. The City of the Dead is a large portion of the city around the Citadel in the middle of Cairo that serves as a large cemetery for Cairo. Tombs are all around, but there is also a large number of people that live in the City of the Dead. Then, we kissed Cairo goodbye for a few weeks while we traveled through some more of the Middle East.

[A Small Section of City of the Dead with Citadel in the background]

[Tombstone]

[Overgrown Tomb]

[unlocked doors]

[Shaping stones to rebuild an old mosque in City of the Dead]

[Young People are still Young People doing Young People things]

Driving through the deserts of Egypt and Sinai, I was overwhelmed by the beauty. I have always had this fascination with the desert, almost as if there is something in me that longs for it. Rugged and beauty, unreservedly rich with earth and sky is basic to understanding makes sense to my mind. My soul wishes for my flesh to be the same; empty of my life so that God can breathe true everlasting life into the wasteland I was born as. I wand to be void, a vast open plain God can send the water of life through and plant lush green pastures. With the emptiness of me comes openness for Him, the Creator and Sustainer.

We crossed under the Red Sea and made our way to the eastern portion of the peninsula to Dahab – diving capital of the Gulf of Aqaba. We used it as a base from which to travel to Mt. Sinai (or at least where they think Mt. Sinai is) and the Bedouin camping trip.

As a school, we have been searching for injustices, hardly noticing that they are everywhere around us. The Bedouin’s have been taken advantage of for centuries by everyone. The Egyptian Government barely recognizes their existence, withholding education for their children and further social betterment for their futures. Their grazing land once extended from the Southern tip of the Sinai all the way up past the Dead Sea. Now, the remnant of Bedouin’s left are restricted to pockets of deserts and instead of being a great presence are now limited to the tourism industry. Most of the Bedouin’s that I have spoken with have been working in the industry since before they were 10, never attending school but learning broken English from all of the tourists. Musa, the guide for our hike up Sinai, has hiked up the mountain every day for 20 years, sometimes even twice a day to ensure provision for himself and his family. A 23 year-old Bedouin, Jamaa (in English means Friday), our guide for the overnight in the desert had been working in tourism since he was 7. He has no voice for his people in the government because there are no ears to hear him. There isn’t anyone to understand that he wants a better future for his family, his children, and himself as well.

It may seem a bit silly to us as a Western Culture, but Camel racing is huge in the Near East, especially in Saudi Arabia, the epicenter of Arab Culture. The Bedouins in the Sinai and up through the mid-east are traditionally nomads and have been using camels for traveling and lively-hood for generations. They still stick to this tradition, oftentimes boys will raise a camel with them throughout their childhood into the adult years. They are small and light, perfect for the races in the Saudi Peninsula. Because of this, they are oftentimes sold or stolen for a short-lived career in the racing business. On these long distance races, most of the children (from 4-10 years old) are trampled under the camel’s feet unable to meet the exhaustive demands of the race. This is something not confined to the Sinai Bedouins, but in Jordan, Syria, Iran, Iraq, Pakistan, and Afghanistan; even as far as countries like Bangladesh. The as of July 2007, The UN doesn’t have a comprehensive report of the injustices done to these children and other trafficked children across these regions. Read a report from the Pakistan Times on this issue and all of the UN articles broken HERE.

Does this break the heart of anyone? Would anyone be willing to dedicate their lives to see this type of treatment of the innocent end? Maybe you are the one God wants to use.

This isn’t about a global movement, but an internal one that stretches across the face of the earth; the internal movement towards the perfect love of Christ. A move spawned from a revelation of the heart of the Father – His love for them – and His love for the world. A love that sacrificed His Godhood coming to earth to be nailed to a cross for us to say, ‘I love You’. Once that love is laid hold of, the amount of love would flood the cities of Denver, Santa Barbara, NYC, London, Addis, Cairo, Dubai, Beijing, Tokyo, and Sydney. Love would lay siege and take captives; captives bound to Christ – lives changed forever by the realization of Grace. He came for you, He came for me, and that is enough for me and all of us to give everything, every breath, to that love; a
love that I cannot fathom the depths of. Love took my life and it died to take yours as well.

[Looking North from Jebel Musa (traditionally Mt. Sinai)]

[Musa, A Bedouin Guide on the Mountain that bears his name]

[We had to get off of the camels to get down the slope... Oasis we slept at seen in the distance]

[On the way to Close Canyon]

[Near the Entrance to Close Canyon]

[Making Tea before Dinner]

[Near the campsite]

[White Canyon]

Next we headed by ferry to Aqaba, Jordan then further by bus to Wadi Musa, the city at the mouth of an ancient wonder of the world, Petra. Driving from Aqaba to Petra was reminiscent of the drive between my hometown of Denver and Santa Barbara during my Westmont days. The moon illuminated the coarse crags of the desert landscape; stars blinking at me, distracting from the monotony of the road in front of me. Clusters of stars on the horizon turn into streetlights from small towns or fruit vendors open late in the summer air.

I see Moses leading 3 million people through this type of terrain. At the night the temperature drops below zero, but during the day, the sun beats down relentlessly through cloudless skies. I might have slept where they did next to a freshwater oasis. The Bedouin’s graze their heard of goats and the occasional camel there now; sometimes entertaining the intermittent tourist looking for the “realistic Bedouin experience”. What a harsh environment to wander in for 40 years. I could spend more time there, I think (but maybe not 40 years… who knows). I enjoyed every moment of it. It is amazing for me to experience.

Walking through the canyons and caves of Petra was amazing, so rich in color and history. We also went to Mt. Nebo where Moses gazed out over the Promised Land, and where the Lord called him home as recorded in Deuteronomy. From the summit of the small mountain we could see the northern tip of the Dead Sea, into Palestine, and if the haze would have cleared, into Israel as well.

[Sunset on the Ferry from Dahab, Egypt to Aqaba, Jordan]

[We had quite the cloud show]

[Part of the Aqueduct through the canyons of Petra]

[Treasury, Petra]

[Treasury, Petra]

[Mt. Nebo, looking over the Jordan Valley]

[Monument of the Snake on Mt. Nebo]

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[One of the Police walking through the canyons of Petra]

[Monastary, Petra]

[Monastary, Petra]

We arrived in Jerusalem late Saturday night. When we awoke Sunday morning, we discovered that the Damascus Gate to the Old City is 100 meters to the left of our doorstep. I can’t say much about the current situation here because I don’t know much about it. I have my ideas and analogies, but I don’t want to say a whole lot while I am still out of the “know” zone. Walking through the old city, I could feel the tension in my chest; two people groups, one divided in their own land – families spread over a tall concrete and iron wall, and another fighting to protect the boundaries declared 4000 years prior. The youth are caught in the middle, some following the example of violence set before them some craving coexistence and peace for an enmity older than both of their presences in this small strip of land.

More pictures of this land to follow.

Thank you for reading and I hope that your days are blessed.

In Christ,
John Paul

From Bulgaria with Pictures and Love

[Standing in front of my Bulgarian home]

Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!

I have written on Human Trafficking in the past, but now, I will make it possible for you to do something about it. A good friend of mine helped with a benefit recently called LOVE 146. Please visit the Website. I guarantee that you will feel something after reading the girl’s story. Trafficking is not far off. Even here around the neighborhoods that I am living in, people are being sold and stolen and taken to other countries to be used as Sex Objects. Read about the projects that LOVE 146 is undertaking, including the one to encourage CRAIGS LIST to take off the ‘Erotic’ tab from the ‘Services’ section of its website. Oftentimes, people offering these kind of services use trafficked people to make them money. I encourage you. Take part in this, it is so close to God’s heart for the broken and oppressed.

Snow, sub-zero, temperatures, and an extension of our family met Tim, Aaron, and I in Bulgaria where we would spend Christmas. Krassimere, Basim (Victor), and Mamma Mitchka have been so great to us here. We are never hungry, always full, and always warm.
We have traveled around to some different villages around Pazardhik, Bulgaria and have spent time here as well, visiting families, friends, and churches. I don’t think that I could have asked for a better Christmas. We leave here in a couple of days, and it will definitely be a sad departure.

[Victor]

[Krassie and Family (Krassie is between Aaron and I)]

[The boys with Mamma Mitchka]

[Speaking in a Roma Church]

[Praying for the sick (Victor's Cousin)]

[The three of us singing Silent Night on Christmas]

Tim and I went to a mountain village called Borovets today and actually got to do some snowboarding. We are both into snowboarding back in the States, so it has been something that we have missed. Last year we didn’t have a chance to go because we were doing a DTS and heading to Africa for Christmas. It was such a fun day and so beautiful as well. Most of the day was spent above tree-line in full view of Musala, the tallest peak in Bulgaria (about 10,000 ft). The pictures included are from a camera phone (which I am so grateful for, since I didn’t have to bring my big one)

[The high lifts at Borovets]

[That's the flag of Bulgaria]

Before we went to Bulgaria, we, and Carla as well, spent a few days in Istanbul, Turkey to take in the sights. The Hagia Sophia and the Blue Mosque were incredible, we spent the entire afternoon in the Hagia taking pictures. I would recommend anyone to visit if you can. The museum (no longer a church or mosque) has some beautiful mosaic work from Byzantine times as well as Arabic Style art.

[Interior of Hagia Sophia... much better than the outside]

[Chandelier]

[Blue Mosque]

[Istanbul. i love this picture]

[Istanbul again]

Over the past couple of weeks, I have had some time to reflect on this last year. At this time in 2006 I was just arriving in Ethiopia. My life had recently changed and I had finally accepted God’s plan for my life. Ethiopia was just the beginning. Most of you knew me before my life was changed, and what God has done with me so far. Its hard to believe all of the people He
has put in my path, the countries He has called me too, and the projects He has enabled me to take part in. I am truly grateful to Him… It is no longer I who lives, but Christ who lives in me. Praise Him for His Amazing Grace.

I added another sidebar element called “Needs”. Please check it out and pray about what you can do; even if what you can do is committing to pray! Thank you so much for reading the blog. I am honored to be able to have the opportunity to share this with you. I pray that you are blessed by it.

In a few days, we go to Athens to fly to Cairo, pray for traveling mercies as well as protection, favor, and divine appointments when we are there!

Rocked by Tragedy, our Global Family Grieves

Blog entries, emails, and skype calls confirm a deep and dark tragedy that unfolded at the end of last week. In Denver, my home town at the YWAM base, 2 DTS staff were shot and killed on base 2 others injured, then the shooter appeared later at a Colorado Springs Church, New Life, opens fire, and kills two more before being injured by a security guard eventually taking his own life.
What do we say to something like this? Please stop reading now and just think about it… I sit and watch my cursor blinking, waiting for an answer, but I have none.
There are no words that can express the sadness that I feel for the families of all involved. I was speaking with my mother around the time the second shooting occurred, still getting impressions from the first ones late Sunday night (9:30pm was 12:30pm Denver). Then next morning, with more news the track students and staff got together to worship and pray. We stood on the rooftop, the sun shining through the crisp air. We raised our voices to the sky and the warm vapors of our life went with them made visible by the brisk winter around us.

I couldn’t sing, I couldn’t speak… I could only cry. I wept… I wept for Denver, I wept for the United States, I wept for the world, and I wept for the lost. My face grimaced in sorrow as I hid it from the group tears flowing freely. I could feel my heart physically stressed as if someone had its hands around it squeezing the life out of it. I acknowledged this pain, but at the same time heard God whispering, with sadness in His voice, “Now you know a little bit about my heart and what I feel.” I instantly thought of the Cross and the fact that Jesus died from a broken heart. From then on I kept weeping, but something was different. I wept out of grief, yes, but I also wept simply because I was overwhelmed by the Love of the Father for Denver, the United States, and the world.

He wants you to be His child. He died for you so that you could be His. You don’t have to do anything to get His love; He loved you before you were born. You can’t do anything to get His love, it’s free. Just like there is nothing you can do to get God’s love, there is nothing that you can do to get rid of it either; it’s always there, He’s always there. He asks us, those who follow Him to show His love to others, to carry His love to the far-reaching corners of the world no matter what the cost.

Love… is it easy to love? Is it easy to stare into the eyes of an adorable child, so innocent, blameless, and dependent? Is it easy to stare into the eyes of someone who sells children to the international sex-trade? It may be easy to love the innocent, but what about the guilty?

Will we love that way? Will we respond to the call to love? It will take everything that you have. But what is really yours in the first place? Every gift is from God and all that we have in this world will pass away. Love in a way that is inclusive, drastic, and even reckless. Love brought Jesus to earth and to the cross, but it didn’t leave Him there; His resurrection bringing Hope to humanity. Tragedy makes us want to cry out for, “Jesus come soon, don’t wait.” But until he does, we know that there are so many that haven’t experienced his love and know that His heart breaks for them too.

What happened last weekend is a dreadful tragedy and we should weep for our family; the body of Christ. Please keep the families in your prayers as well as the staff and students of the DTS and YWAM base in Denver especially.

In Turkey, we are all pretty sick. We were able to host a Photography Exhibition in the city square and named it “Exposing Beauty”. It was a terrific even and some relationships were made with some people who are open for the Gospel. Praise Him! We are all heading our different directions this coming week for Christmas break. Pray that we will all be well and that our travels will be blessed as well as the two weeks we are apart.

I included some of my needs on the right hand column. It is great being here, but there is a cost that comes with it.
I want to thank my monthly supporters for their obedience to God. This is a team effort and as much their heart as it is mine. I honestly wouldn’t be here if they hadn’t responded to His call and vision for His world. It is a beautiful partnership that God has put together. I honor you for your faithfulness.

Love is a Movement

I have this intense desire to be in love. I am talking about that head-over heels feeling that controls every one of my movements. Many of you know that kind of love, but I am not there yet. Every day that goes by, I think about it. I am in love with the notion of being in love. I desire to desire. I long for the passion, emotion, and commitment of it. I am pulled by the prospect and swept away by stories of those in love; how it happened, when were and who…

Let me tell you a little love story I heard recently. It starts out with a statistic that blows my mind. There are over 27 million slaves in the world today; Human Trafficking is the largest slave trade in history. The sheer magnitude is staggering; beyond anything that I can conceptualize. Many of these slaves are children, stolen from (or sold) by their parents into the sex-trade of South-East Asia in order to be able to survive. They are sold to brothels, club’s, and bars for the patrons (mostly from America and the Western world) to do any number of immensely grotesque practices to. There was this lady, an artist who would go and paint portraits of the children, getting to know them a little bit. She found out that some of them were slaves of some bars and clubs in the area. She was overwhelmed with grief that humans could do these kinds of things to each other, especially innocent children. She decided to do something about it, so she would make her way into some of the places and steal the children out of them and hide them. She got away with it for a time, but then was found out and received death threats from the industry because they were losing money… She ended up fleeing for her life to a different part of the country where she now lives, with 125 of the children that she stole…

This is a picture of the love that I want to be in… Not for one person, but for the people who’s God heart breaks for constantly… For those of you who have kids, what if someone stole them and sold them into that kind of slavery. I bet that you would do everything that you could to get them back. I bet that you would willingly give your entire life in a search and rescue attempt. Not only would you do everything that you could, you would ask anyone and everyone to help you… This is your kid we are talking about.

I want to love like that woman who laid down her life for just one of those children. It reminds me of what someone once did for me. It was God… He gave up that status, the Creator of all things with a perfect glorified body, to come down here to a world ravaged by sin and rescue me from this slavery that I was in; to steal me away and take me to a better place; to SET ME FREE…

If God loved me that much, that is how he loves all people. Those he has changed are now his children, but also his followers; that is our confession of faith, a “Follower of Jesus.” How can I consider myself his follower if I don’t do what he did? How can I say that I have love if I don’t give everything to go after those who he loves? Am I alone in this? What are we after in life?

I have been studying the Bible for a month now… I could be studying it for the rest of my life having knowledge of everything in it, but if I don’t have love, it is all worth nothing. Why? Because love is the fire that forces me out of my chair to movement. I could even weep over the atrocities that go on, but if I didn’t have love, I would be only grieving to make myself feel better.

What are we living for? Who are we following? Why do we want what we want from God? Is it all for me, so that I can be comfortable and safe? Is what I do in this life for me or my well-being? Do I have any love? How far are we willing to go to love the people of the world? Yes, it will be hard, and it will cost you… maybe everything, maybe your life. Jesus did it for me, will I follow him if it costs me that much? They are out there, 27 million of them, waiting for us to come and rescue them. Are you up for it? What would you be willing to give for them? What would you be willing to give for your own child? If we really have love, let’s do it.

So many questions… So little time. We can’t be looking around at everyone else, hoping that they will move first so we won’t have to. Love is all that can save them; the perfect, unselfish love of Jesus Christ. There has to be something inside you that pulls you to them. Act on the compassion that is within you and let love be your motivation to be the change you envision for this world. God wants to use you, be open, be willing, be ready. There are too many out there to wait any longer.

In Love

John Paul

Visit HumanTrafficking.Org

"Mars Hill really Rocked…" Last update from Greece!

[One of the most amazing sunsets ever, Porto Rafti, Greece]

Thank you, Dan Shannon, one of our speakers this week, for that lovely quote. As part of our teaching this week, the entire class and our speakers took a trip to Athens to spend the day around the Acropolis area, including the Areopagus (Mars Hill). A couple of us had spent some time there before, but one of our speakers, David Hamilton, gave some stellar background information on the area and the lifestyle of Athens at that time.

[First Olympic Stadium, Athens, Greece]

It was the center of the world for the arts, education, and contemporary thought. The philosophers could gather around the monumental temples in the center of the city and toss around ideas of democracy, science, and life. We read Acts 17 where Paul walks in to the center of town and makes his voice and the Gospel that it carries known. They called him an idiot and threatened him with his life (Socrates had been put to death for introducing foreign gods). Even in the face of them, he spoke to them with the authority of the Holy Spirit. It was the first time the Gospel had been shared there, and he was all by himself

[Acropolis Panorama at Night, Athens, Greece]

To gaze on these amazing buildings and to have insight into their structure and intricacies, there is no wonder that people worshiped those whom the buildings were built for. At one time in the Parthenon (the largest, most prominent temple to the goddess Athena Parthenon), there was a giant statue made of pure gold, diamonds, pearls and other precious jewels. These people held their gods in such high esteem, but why? In polytheistic cultures, people live in fear of the gods. They fashion their lives around pleasing them and bribing them with elaborate sacrifices and practices. When bad things happen, a god is mad at them so further action needs to be taken. The gods were always trying to do bad to them. As David Hamilton so eloquently put it, “Religion was a minimizing of fear not an establishment of hope.” So Paul waltzes in and challenges them by saying that there is an Unknown God, and that is a God that cares deeply about them; enough to send his Son to them to be the last sacrifice. This was revolutionary for them, a God that cared? A God of Grace?

Now, there are many lessons that I took away from not only from the teaching, but my time walking around the Acropolis.

The first is that the idolatry of the Greek culture was immensely beautiful. These buildings brought out emotion and awe, and who they stood for brought awe as well. They were still false gods, but they were, and still are attractive. Even now, there are so many things that are attractive to us, pulling us, but aren’t things of God. We start to worship materialism and set up mere humans in the places of importance in our lives. That’s just the tip of the iceberg with all of the things we place in the high places of our lives… But, just as with the buildings in the Acropolis, the things of this world will come to ruin. No matter how fast we work, or how much we maintain, they will always be temporal, no matter how great the appear. We can use the illustration for idolatry and sin in our lives; it might look great for a time, but in the end, it all turns to dust.

The philosophers must have looked at Paul like he was crazy; pointing to the vast buildings just beside them as testimony of their god’s greatness. But the God that Paul shared with them on that day in Athens is the same God that is alive and well today, dwelling in the lives of his people. He truly does last forever and it has been proven time and time again throughout the history of the world. When our hearts and lives aren’t built on the foundation of Jesus Christ, they will crumble to dust.

The second lesson was just as valuable. Like I said before, the people lived in constant fear because there was no way to please the multitude of manic, compulsory, selfish, immoral, and illusory gods. Paul submits to them that there is a God who actually cares for them and will extend perfect grace to them, not by a manner of bribery, but acceptance and revelation. So many times, even as Christians, we come with this thought of God like the Greek pagans did… If I do this for you, God, will you be satisfied; can I go to heaven? We have this mental block that he doesn’t really want the best for us; that our plans are more effective than his; that our comfort is of utmost importance. We believe the lies of the enemy that God is angry with us and will never accept us with our imperfections…

Well, I felt like this is what God was telling me earlier this week, even before going to Athens…

Then the angel showed me myself standing before the angel of the Lord. The Accuser, Satan, was there at the angel’s right hand, making accusations against me. And the Lord said to Satan, “I, the Lord, reject your accusations, Satan. Yes, the Lord, who has chosen him, rebukes you. This man is like a burning stick that has been snatched from the fire.”

My clothing was filthy as I stood there before the angel. So the angel said to the others standing there, “Take off his filthy clothes.” And turning to me said, “See, I have taken your sins, and now I am giving you these fine new clothes.” [Zechariah 3:1-4]

God is not far off, distant, and angry. He desires to take us as we stand before Him, filthy and unrefined. He cannot wait to extend his grace to us, but it does cost us something. We have to tear down the idols that we have and embrace him as the only Lord of our lives.

Last year around this time in my DTS lecture phase, I finally was able to co
me to this point. I realized that I had built my life on idols and didn’t know God. Those idols came crashing down and I found myself standing before God, afraid, but as my only hope. My clothes were black with sin, charred and filled with the smell of smoke. Satan stood there bringing accusations of all kinds which I had believed for so long. The Creator of the universe silenced him by extending his grace to me and I found myself renewed and clean; now standing before my Father.

If this is similar to your story, I would love to talk about it further. Like I said and my life testifies, God wants us to be in communion with him as His children. And, I want to challenge you all to examine your own lives and see if there are things that, although they may seem beautiful, you have built to unworthy places in you life. We can see from the story of the Greek gods, that they won’t stand a chance.

That’s it for now, until Turkey, may the Lord bless you and keep you

In Him

John Paul

"Midnight on the Beach in the Mediterannean"

[Written a couple of days ago]

“It’s all Greek to me”… Literally. I have been here for almost a couple of days now and I still do not know how to say hello in Greek. If I read it on a sign or something like that, I still wouldn’t know how to pronounce it… Greek is hard. I have a greater respect for the people at Westmont who were studying Greek (even though its not the same type of Greek).

The time here has been amazing so far. We are a little farther away from the beach than we were in Muizenburg, but the weather is much mellower. For one, there is not wind, and therefore sand, pelting you in the face from all angles. There are also not as many waves, since the beach is situated in a port. The water is warmer, and there are no Great Whites threatening to eat the swimmers. Overall, it is beautiful. The town that we are in is called Porto Rafti, about an hour (public transport) from downtown Athens.

As I think about the next few months, excitement overwhelms me. The amount of studying that we will be doing is a lot, but it will be great to learn, in depth, about the New Testament. In a couple of weeks we will be going to places like Corinth to walk in the steps of Paul, getting a better understanding of the context of the early Church.

I hope to learn more about what the social climate is in Greece as well. Since it is so close to Turkey and the Arab world, I am imagining that the diversity will be astounding. Whenever multiple cultures come together, there is always an interesting dynamic.

This morning Tim, Carla, and I got up early (even though it’s Saturday) to take pictures of the sunrise; which happens to be around 7:30 in Greece. Since the waves aren’t as crazy, and the wind isn’t blowing seawater into my lens, it turned out to be quite an enjoyable experience. I look forward to many more. The new background for the blog is from the shoot this morning… I couldn’t help but praise the Creator…

“All the earth shall worship You

And sing praises to You;

They shall sing praises to Your name.” – Psalm 66:4

I have been appointed to Communications for the PhotogenX Round the World Track. I am excited about the prospect because of my experience with blogging, and because I really like to do it. During the week, I will be collecting stories and information from the team and sending out the updates once a week. Pray that I will be able to keep up with what’s going on and accurately convey the spirit of the team with the updates. I am honored with the opportunity.

Update from All Over

Touching down in Capetown, South Africa, I couldn’t believe I was going to be in this beautiful continent for the next month, and again in the months to come. I am sure that it will be filled with different memories and experiences, and look forward to them with all of my heart.

Capetown is like nowhere else I have been in Africa so far. It is actually hard to believe that I had been so close to a place like this only 4 months previous. The weather is cool, windy, and sometimes rainy (the kind that doesn’t include a lot of precipitation and no lightning); unlike Uganda: hot, humid, and prone to downpours with lighting that you think is going to strike you in the head (and the thunder so loud that you think it did).

The people here are a mix of black and white. There are many tribes (like Zulu) that add to the black population, and many “tribes” (like Afrikaans) that add to the white population. Most everyone keeps to themselves, but some are outgoing. The poverty isn’t as blatant and neither are the range of diseases that were found in Ethiopia and Uganda. That isn’t to say that there aren’t the diseases, they just aren’t in the open as much. South Africa still has the highest percentage of HIV infections in the world, and not as much awareness advertising (that I have seen).

As far as the town where we reside, Muizenberg is the location where surfing was introduced to South Africa. I didn’t really know what the living situation would be, but I never expected that we would be only blocks from the beach (I go there every morning). The area also boast the highest population of Great White Sharks in the world. Some of you may have seen documentary features on the Discovery Channel about the sharks that jump out the water to feed; yeah, that’s here off the coast a few kilometers at Seal Island. They do have a shark spotting system here though, which is good for the hundreds of surfers that frequent the breakers.

The PhotogenX team is a little bit smaller than once anticipated. Over 50 were accepted to the program, but now there are only 25 that will be traveling to each place. Probably about 18 have been here most of the time with the DTS portion, and a few joined later (like myself).

I am excited to see what transpires over the next nine months especially. There are some high hopes and great ideas developing, and the overall spirit of the school is positive. I am glad that there is still a huge emphasis on Injustice, which is part of my passion as well. Many of the ideas that I have in my head is what other people have been thinking and processing as well. Its good to fellowship with others who have similar dreams.

I also have a few picture and words about St. Ameria’s in Uganda. PICTURES!!! There has also been expressed interest in sending a YWAM team down there to get some much needed construction accomplished. It continues to amaze me that the work is continuing there. It will be such a blessing to return one day and see all the Lord has done there through people like you.

I want to thank those of you who attended the Not Alone Benefit Photography Show and supported the orphans. I have been in contact with the administration from each of the orphanages and they will be getting the transfers soon! They are very excited even though they don’t know how much they will be getting.

The whole vision for Not Alone is also going ahead. It may not seem like it for a while, but I know that the time spent here and now will influence the future vision. People have been pretty excited to hear about it and what God has done. For now, I am surrendering the vision to the Creator who will continue to mold and form it into what he wants it to be. That is the best place for it!

I haven’t decided yet which day that I can update the blog, so hang with me for a few weeks. Since the travel will be sporadic, the blog-updates may be as well! Thank you for your patience. I appreciate the feedback, as usual, and am honored that you would share this experience with me!

Love and Blessings in Christ

John Paul Vicory

[Love is the Movement]