Jan 23 2007
Vertigo and God’s Promise
I'm leaving tomorrow for a conference in Malta. It is late and I should be asleep, but I can't settle down in my heart yet! Too much to think about before I leave. Some last minute details for my trip, but also I'm thinking about, and praying for, my family tonight. Let me get a few things off my chest, then maybe I can go back to bed. And please, I hope you don't feel I'm bragging in this post about traveling so much. If you haven't noticed already, we do a fair amount of that. But that is our call, and there are downsides. Hang with me for a few lines. First let me tell you a little more of what I'm doing this week, then the rest. The little country of Malta forms the piece of land at the end of the boot that makes up Italy. Remember the geography class in Grade School? It will be an important time to look at models of ministry and partnership, and to network with people working with our focus groups here in Barcelona, many of whom come from North Africa, but also from other areas in the region.
This afternoon, Erick left for the little but important country of Oman on the Arabian Peninsula with his school. He is participating in a very fascinating conference on water conservation, desalinization and other related topics. 7 other students and two faculty from his school are attending along with other students from Uganda, Saudi Arabia, England, and of course Oman. He is excited as we are for him. Nicki continues her studies at CBC/Ecuador with reports of growing and stretching in her spiritual life. Kjel is holding down the other American continent in his last semester at North Park in Chicago, keeping busy with work, play and studies, not necessarily in that order. Carol will be home here in Spain keeping us all coordinated and stabilized. Her job may be the toughest.
I’ve had vertigo before and this is a little like that. It all makes me a little dizzy trying to keep track of where God has each one of us this week. I don't think we have seperation anxiety but we do miss each other and wonder how each is doing in their place. It also makes my mom’s [that would be grandma to my kids] heart a little anxious, trying to keep track of us all in prayer. Will you join her, and us, praying for God to watch over us, to bless and use us, to expand our vision for what God is doing in our respective places, and how he wants to use us in his service? The journey is truly an adventure and he is so faithful. He promised to be with us to the ends of the earth. I’m staking my life on that promise this week especially.
Oh, by the way. The photo composition above is a mosaic of a single photo that I took this last weekend at Plaza Catalunya, rotated on its side several times to make this interesting piece. Hope you like it. You can click on the photo and it will take you to my photo page where the original is posted. Anyway, this composition made me think of vertigo a bit.
Another by the way. My first class of Arabic tonight went well. I'm in a small group of 7 students, three from Morocco, two from Spain, the teacher from Syria and me from the US. It will be intense and is a language entirely new for me, unrelated to anything I've ever tried before, except a semester of Hebrew in seminary too long ago to be of any help here! Well, I think I'm ready to turn in. Hasta next week. Don't think I will have access to my blog in Malta. We'll see. As always, comments are welcome.
