Departure Date and Silent Auction

Life is a trip. God has put me on the road to service in the Navajo Nation. To see how the whole story began click here. My arrival date in New Mexico has been set. I will be meeting Terry Matthews at the Albuquerque airport on Monday, May 25th. Backing up 5 days from there means that I expect to leave driving out on Wednesday, May 20th. Sara sat me down and talked to me about the trip out. She knows that I will be excited and will push to get there as soon as possible. I'm not sure why that's so since I can't do anything much until Terry's plane arrives. She has insisted that I drive normal hours, i.e., not very late at night or very early in the morning. She wants me to be on the road when help is available if I run into trouble. She also insists that I stay each night at somewhere safe, clean, and with a continental breakfast. Her point is that I can not only eat breakfast, but can also grab a couple of pieces of fruit to help me through the day. She knows me well enough to know that I'll neglect myself rather than take the trouble to do the right thing at the right time. Knowing myself, I would probably only stop to use the bathroom and grab a biscuit at the Bo's or when I was so dead tired I couldn't safely continue on. I told her that I would text her when I crossed state lines, went through major cities, etc. That way she can follow me as I make the trip and raise the roof if I begin to loose control. Maple Springs UMC, my home church, will be including my commissioning as a missionary representative as a part of the church services of Sunday, May 17th. I invite all of my family and friends to be a part of one of the services and help me to celebrate the acceptance of my calling. There is a man and his three children that I met when I was working at Old Salem this past fall. Ben Newell is the director of Together For Hope of Arkansas. He and his family live in Helena, AR which is on the Mississippi River an hour or so south of I-40, my direct route to New Mexico. I've been in touch with Ben a couple of times via email and we hope to get together to break bread on my way out. I'm guessing that I'll be able to get there around lunchtime on my second day traveling. I am looking forward to seeing him and his children again, maybe meeting his wife, and taking the time to share with each other God's plans for our missions. I know from experience that a two person support group is not a bad thing to have. On Sunday, April 26th, from 2 p.m. until 5 p.m., Maple Springs UMC is holding a Missions Fair. We will be using the day to showcase the missions that are going on within our church, community and around the globe. We are teaming up with the group, Stop Hunger Now to make and distribute 10,000 meals. We will have crafts for kids, VBS registration, Sundaes on Sunday, and great music in our fellowship hall. We will also be holding a silent auction. Proceeds from the silent auction will be going to help support my own ministry to the Navajo. (I want to take a second right here to thank all of those who have donated items for the auction.) There are some neat items and you may find that you have to bid against me for a couple of them. If you are a member of Maple Springs, please volunteer to support the Missions Fair with your time or gifts. Whether or not you are a member, please plan to attend. I know that you will have fun. There is just one last thing for now. If you have found a way to support my mission trip with money or donations for the silent auction, thank you very much. If you would like to make a donation of either cash or a quality auction item, that would certainly be appreciated as well. I can feel the power of prayer behind my effort. If you are one of those praying for me, please don't stop. I will never have too many friends praying. I love you all. More later.

When and What?

Life is a trip. God has put me on the road to service in the Navajo Nation. To see how the whole story began click here. It seems that the most common two questions I'm hearing now are, "When are you going?" and "What will you be doing?" I expect to be able to arrive in Albuquerque, NM, in order to meet my pastor and friend, Terry Matthews at the airport there sometime in the last two weeks of May. The exact date has not yet been set. Terry will fly out to help me get my feet on the ground. He has been there many times by now and understands much that I will have to learn. I'll meet him at the airport in Albuquerque and we will travel together the rest of the way to Shiprock. I'm sure that he will be a great help to me and I really appreciate the fact that he is willing to give up some of his valuable time in order to be with me. The time available to get to know each other better and have one-on-one conversation is a big plus for me too. I actually expect to leave 5 or 6 days prior to our planned meeting. The drive doesn't take that long, but I want to be able to see a little something of this country as I travel. Some part of the time, I'll travel off I40 and on what little remains of the old Route 66, the Mother Road. That appeals to the romantic in me. I'll post the actual departure date and expected arrival once the date is set. Just exactly what I will be doing is not tightly defined at this time. Rodney Aist, the Director of FCNAM, has drawn up an eight-point job description for me. Each point defines an area of hoped for impact, but until I begin my service, it is difficult to say where we will be most successful. I use the 'we' there to describe the team of Rodney and me. In football terms, Rodney is going to be the player / coach, plan the offense and defense, and call the plays. With his guidance, I'll try to be successful blocking, tackling, and running the ball. Yeah, it is hard to imagine this chunky body carrying a ball, so it is a good thing that I won't really have to run very often. Briefly, here are the eight points defined in the job description: 1) Advocacy Program - Work with the director in developing the initial phases of a ministry advocacy program, i.e., advocating for the Navajos and helping them to advocate for themselves. 2) Men's Ministry - Work with the Shiprock UMC pastor to strengthen the men's programs of the church. 3) Local Missions - Explore possibilities of engaging with the church's local missions program. 4) Congregational Development - Become familiar with the curriculum of the Five Practices of Fruitful Congregations and implement its language in the work with FCNAM. 5) Mission Team Program - Work with the Cove church (35 miles away) to develop the congregation's summer mission team program for 2010. 6) Navajo Undergraduate Program - Research and document undergraduate education available for our member congregations. 7) Promotion and Development - As determined by the Director, engage with various local promotional and developmental projects. Liaise with the Western NC Conference and the W-S District in developing ministry support. 8) Administration and Supervision - Needed administrative work as defined by the Director. As you can see, the scope of these areas is wide and exciting with many opportunities for His service. They are areas that are very open-ended and the work on them and the impact from them may well outlast me by years. At least that is my hope and prayer. I hope that this answers, at least somewhat, the two questions I mentioned at first. As always, I ask for your prayers. I know that God will never fail me. I would like for you to pray that I will have the strength and skills not to fail God.

There's More To It Than Just Packin' A Suitcase!

Life is a trip. God has put me on the road to service in the Navajo Nation. To see how the whole story began click here. For the past few days, I've been using almost every means available to begin to raise money for my ministry. I've sent emails, written snail mail letters, contacted Sunday school classes, and talked to folks face-to-face. Now, one of the very hardest parts, staying steadfast in the belief that God will provide and that the money will be available as needed. I've found out that some things will be more expensive than I had hoped, but hey, I'm a fan of peanut butter and Ramen Noodles and I need to loose some more weight anyway. Yesterday, I received the job description for the job I will be doing. There are 8 areas noted on it. I'll have no reason to ever be inactive or bored. The job description excites me a great deal. It provides me with opportunities for research and planning on big picture, long range project areas, hands-on work with the Navajos through our churches and other social advocacy groups, and work with the mission groups that visit the area each summer. There is a lot more detail, but the big thing is that it makes me feel like my prayers about my calling are being answered. There are several items that I'll be able to start work on even before I go out. Can you say "Five Practices of Fruitful Congregations"? I've been spending a lot of time with my nose in a monster book called, "The Foundation Directory." I borrowed it from a local foundation in an attempt to find funding for my own ministry. I've not been very successful there, but it has given me wonderful ideas on possible support for our programs. Now I just have to make about a million pages of notes before returning the book. I'm told that the book is very expensive, so I don't think I'm going to buy it just for casual reference. Still 6 or 7 weeks before I start packing my suitcase, but I don't think I'm going to be able to just wait for the time to pass. More later.

The Hardest Part

Life is a trip. God has put me on the road to service in the Navajo Nation. To see how the whole story began click here. Today I begin to work on the hardest part of my call to being a missionary... raising money. I'll be using email, snail mail, the church bulletin and newsletter, speaking to Sunday school classes, applying for grants, and anything else I can think of. I have to make myself remember that I'm not asking for money for myself. I'm asking for money in order to be able to do the things that God wants me to do. When Moses fled Egypt after killing the Egyptian, he left a life of untold wealth and became a shepherd. He had less than nothing when God called him to return to Egypt and lead the Israelites out of captivity. I'm pretty sure that Moses didn't tell God he couldn't go because he had no money. I'm also pretty sure that God didn't plan to pack him a bag lunch. God just expected Moses to begin his mission and assume that he would be provided for. I believe that God will provide the resources for me to make this journey, but He expects me to do the work. Today I intend to write a letter / email to be posted to family and friends asking for donations; a difficult thing to do in this economy. Today I'll also work on comments I want to be able to make to Sunday school classes, during the church hour, or to anyone who will listen. Today I'll begin an address list of family and friends I want to contact. Today I'll contact a friend who understands grants and who has the resources to help point me in the right direction to seek one or more grants. God will provide, but like Moses, I have to at least make the effort to strike the rock with my staff before I am granted water. Prayers for success are requested.

In The Beginning

I'm sure that this blog will start slowly, but I hope that it will soon explode with new thoughts, ideas, and experiences. I was once an active member of First Baptist Church in Winston-Salem. Although I didn't pay much attention at the time, First Baptist and First Presbyterian were making several joint trips each year to Mission Emanuel in the Dominican Republic. My friend, Monty Y., went with a mission team, for a week, one summer. He returned changed. He sat in our Sunday school class and tried to recount his experiences. He got pretty choked up telling of his visit; the things he had seen and the things he had done. It was clear that the Holy Spirit was moving in him. I wasn't sure where the thought was taking me, but I knew immediately that I wanted and needed some of whatever blessings he had received. Each of the next two years, I made a DR mission trip myself. The work was hard, but the reward was so much greater. As time allowed, I tried to stay involved in Mission Emanuel and in reaching across cultures in my own home town. Because my mother and other members of my family were active at Maple Springs UMC in Winston, my wife, Sara, and I moved our membership back to Maple Springs, the church I had grown up in. From my experiences, I knew, and told family members and friends that, should Sara happen to leave this world before me, I would need to involve myself in missions in order to keep my soul alive and my heart from breaking. I now believe that God has plans for me that don't include doing things based on my idea of when a good time to begin would be. That takes me up to now. A couple of years ago, I retired from a career in computer systems and went to work as a historic interpreter at Old Salem . In January of this year, I got caught in an economic layoff. Even without a "burning bush" experience, I strongly feel that God has spoken to me and said, "I want you to work for me now." So, with a loving and supportive wife still beside me, I began to look around for doors that God was opening. I first approached Jack Larson, the director of Mission Emanuel. Although I thought I would be a good fit, Jack lovingly and logically let me know that Mission Emanuel was not a door that God had opened. He encouraged me to keep praying and seeking God's will. Two days later, on Monday, February 16th, I met with Terry Matthews, the senior pastor at Maple Springs, to talk about service opportunities. In hindsignt, Terry is a resource I should have approached earlier. I've known him for a lot of years and have grown closer to him over the last couple. Terry has long been active in working with the Methodist churches, on the Navajo reservation, in Arizona. He was instrumental in leading Maple Springs to unite with the Window Rock, AZ church in missions to the Navajo. I told Terry that I felt that I was being called to mission work, but that I needed to get out of my comfort zone and to immerse myself in a different culture. Being able to go home to dinner and my own bed each night was not where I felt I was supposed to be. Terry had an idea. As our church becomes more active in missions to the Navajo, there would seem to be a benefit in having a presence on the reservation. Terry knows the director of FCNAM (Four Corners Native American Ministry) and promised to contact him for us. Yesterday, exactly one week after our meeting, I heard good news. There is a need and a position for me on the Navajo reservation. I will begin in May serving a three month internship - the oldest intern they've ever had. The internship can be extended if all parties agree and this is something I fully expect to happen. Although the needs must be fleshed out, initially I will be involved in helping to coordinate the mission trips made by other churches to the reservation. I will also accompany the Navajo youth on two summer trips that they have scheduled. Other times will be given to assisting the Navajo pastors of the Methodist churches at Window Rock and Sawmill. Between now and May, I will be involved in raising funds to support the trip and will be preparing myself spiritually, mentally, and physically. Life's a trip and I'm beginning a new leg of the journey. More later.