New Favorite Song

Hey guys! I found the chords to my new favorite song called "Forever Holy" by The Glorious Unseen. This song was new to me about a week ago and I love it, so I thought I would promote it along with the whole cd. Enjoy!

Refusing the words "home sick"

People often ask if I am getting home sick. What does that even mean? Do I find myself physically ill because I miss family and friends? No. Do I miss family, friends, students, Diet Dr. Pepper (from McDonalds with extra ice!), math, youth ministry, my actual home, worship, fellowship, etc. ABSOLUTELY! Would I come back home if given the opportunity? ABSOLUTELY NOT! Is it hard? ABSOLUTELY! I have always looked at being home sick as a weakness which is why I never utter the words. I prefer to call it "missing the familiar" (note that I just made that term up).

As I ponder this whole topic I am coming to realize the huge blessing in missing home. What a great blessing it is to have a place and a people to miss! Also I realize the crazy phenomena that a good number of these people that I miss actually miss me too. This is somehow great comfort knowing that they (probably whoever is reading this) are actually remembering to pray for me. In addition to this, it seems to me like I am going through a "purification of motives". When I am having moments where I am really missing something about Da Hood I tend to ask myself if it is worth it. Would I choose this path again? Every time I come to the same conclusion that I am right where I should be. AND, each time I am a little more convinced as well. If I did not have anything to sacrifice then I can imagine that it would be a lot easier to lose focus.

Last night we sang some hymns in church. It is amazing how the words hit me totally differently being away from home. I was struck by the following lyrics:

Great is Thy faithfulness

Great is Thy faithfulness

Morning by morning new mercies I see

All I hath needed Thy hand hath provided

Great is Thy faithfulness

Lord unto me

When I sing this song now I have a little different perspective to sing from. Thank you Lord for your faithfulness to me!

Switching gears a little.... Two of the little people that I miss the most are featured in the following video. It looks like they are having a blast! I hope they save some tread on the tires for when I am back in town. Enjoy!

Let's Get Started!

Ramadan is now over and it is time to get our English program started! I have been assigned my teaching load which consists of 4 classes a week. I will have a morning class specifically for women twice a week, and a level 3 class two nights a week. I am very excited to get started. We have registration Sunday, Monday and Tuesday and then our classes will start the next week. I am a little nervous about teaching english, but I am 99% excited. 

We also have some fun social activities planned for our students. I am in charge of putting together games for our first coffee shop evening. If you have any fabulous ideas of group games that we can play and practice english with then let me know. I am working on adapting Taboo! 

Mom, here is a picture for ya ;)

Journey to See Mary

Here is the next Beirut entry:

My second day in Beirut my friends took me out to see some sights. One of these sights included a trip up to Harissa which is about 20km north of Beirut. This is the site of the largest statue of the virgin Mary in the world. She is huge! She is known as "Our Lady of Lebanon". She weighs in at 15 tons of bronze. You can take the circular stairs to the top and catch a great view. I got a bit dizzy on the way up. This is quite a popular place of pilgrimage for many catholics.

 This next picture was taken from the top of the Mary's stairs.

Also, there is a very large cathedral which has a spectacular view of the coastline. The cathedral has a really funny shape and I asked my friend what the meaning behind it was. He thought that it was built to look like a ship. I think he said some more stuff, but I forgot! :(

Another attraction at this site is the gondola lift called teleferique which takes you from Mary all the way down to the sea (not actually in the water!). We opted to drive the very steep and winding road up to the top. It was a very beautiful drive with fantastic views around each corner.
This next picture is taken from the view point by Mary. The church is the Melkite Greek Catholic basilica of St. Paul. 

It was a beautiful day spent with beautiful people. I actually have 2 more posts to do just from this one day in particular. More to come soon! :)

Dr Pepper

I have been trying to figure out how to blog about Beirut. There are many things that I would like to share and it seems like a lot of pressure to make it one entry. SO, I am going to spread it out for a bit. Here is entry number 1:

Before I start tell you too much about my trip to Beirut I need to tell you a bit about my habits in Oregon. I love Diet Dr. Pepper. McDonald's has the best Diet Dr. Pepper EVER! It is so amazing that there have been times when I have been in bed sick and someone calls to see if they can bring me anything and I will ask for a Diet Dr. Pepper from McDonalds. No 7 up or soup, just bring the Dr. to me. 

Anyway, I had a feeling that Jordan would probably not support my habit of the Dr so I was not too disappointed when I was unable to find it anywhere. Then came my trip to Lebanon! My friends picked me up at about 10pm from the airport. We dumped off my stuff at the apartment and went to a grocery store in a mall. Yes, in a mall. After picking up the essentials I proceeded to the checkout counter. As I approached the counter I heard something like angels rejoicing. I looked to the right to catch a glimpse of the gloriousness and there sat a Diet Dr Pepper in a small refrigerator. After counting the cost of buying such a luxury I grabbed it up and proceeded to the checkout. I immediately began contemplating when I was going to partake in the heavenly refreshment. 

Upon arriving back at the apartment I put the Dr in the fridge (after taking a picture of course). 

I decided that night two would be the night. I had the sense that waiting a bit longer would some how heighten the experience. 

Since I was staying alone in an apartment I wanted to figure out the best way to share the experience with all of my fans (sometimes I pretend that my blog has a large viewing audience). So I decided to take some pictures to capture the actual moments. Here is my picture right after opening up the can and getting ready for the first drink. Can you see the excitement and anticipation?

Then I took a drink. It was HORRIBLE! 

This picture doesn't even begin to describe the awful taste that had just entered my mouth. I felt like my taste buds had been violated! You might wonder what I did with the once thought "heavenly juice" but more accurately described as something that you would make your children drink after saying a bad word. I drank it. That's right. I am so cheap that I couldn't let it go to "waste" even though it tasted like acidic waste. I paid around 2 bucks for the can so I finished it. 

 

Beirut!

Hello All (Joyce),
I am currently in Beirut having a great time. I have had the opportunity to go and see some historical sights and also to take a lot of pictures. We went to The Dog River which unfortunately was only a puddle when we were there. However, this was a popular passage way for many armies coming through the area and they all "left their mark" (a side note: I tried to convice my friend that this is way it is called Dog River. Apparently there are other reasons! I thought I was pretty clever though). There were carvings dating clear back to 1265BC. I took MANY pictures but unfortunately there is not much wireless access around here, so I won't be able to post any of them until I get back to Amman.
On Sunday I was able to go to the very first service of an Alliance church. I brought my camera along and as it turns out it was the only one around. So, I all of the sudden became the photographer. I was able to take some video as well and put together a little movie for the pastor and this new congregation. It was a priviledge to be able to bless them with this gift.
From this little project it seems like I have some upcoming work in the movie making business. The school that I am visiting would like something similar put together, so I am very happy to do that for them. This will be a larger project which is probably going to require me coming back in April! I know, it's a tough life, but somebody needs to do it :)

My First Iftar

I had the best experience being here so far on Thursday night. I feel like that is a pretty big statement because I have done a lot of cool things. I mean... I saw PETRA! But all of that is rubbish compared to Thursday night. A few weeks ago I was invited by one of my teammates to go and visit one of her friends who is Jordanian. I jumped at the opportunity. Well, the visit got canceled and was rescheduled for this past Thursday. The excitement had kind of dwindled to be honest, but I still really wanted to go. Then the morning came and I was sort of having a rough morning. It was one of those mornings when you sort of regret asking the Lord to search your heart because He does and shows you some really ugly stuff. It was one of those days. All I saw was my own shortcomings. By the time I was getting ready for the visit I really just wanted to call my teammate and say that I could not make it. I am really glad that I was too much of a chicken to call because the night was AMAZING!

A little background information: We are currently in the middle of the season of Ramadan. To quote wikipedia for you, Ramadan is the Isl. month of fasting, in which participating Mus. refrain from eating, drinking, smoking and indulging in anything that is in excess or ill-natured from dawn to dusk. Fasting is meant to teach Mus. patience, modesty and spirituality. Ramadan is a time to fast for the sake of Allah, and to offer more prayer than usual. During Ramadan, Mus. ask forgiveness for past sins, pray for guidance and help in refraining from everday evils, and try to purify themselves through self-restraint and good deeds.

Given this information you can see that sundown is a big deal each day. You definitely don't want to be on the roads around 7:00 (right before sunset). The family gathers together for "Iftar" where they all eat together and break the fast for the day. It was a great honor to be invited to this dinner. 

I had been told that when you go on a visit that you should probably not eat much that day because you will be expected to "eat well." Usually when something is suggested it is a good idea to take heed because I don't know what the heck I am doing! So, I listened to the suggestion and I was glad that I did! Also, on our way to the home my teammate said, "be prepared to be kissed a lot and to eat a lot." The words "a lot" did not really even begin to describe the situation that we were about to find ourselves in. This woman, who had never met me before, was kissing my checks as if they were something sacred that were about to disappear! The joy that she was exhibiting from having us to her home is unexplainable. 

The evening just continued to get better from this point on. We shared great food, great stories (from what I understood!) and some great dancing! There is an artist called Omar Al Abdullat who was hired by the king to write some songs about Jordan. This woman played us the tape and sang/danced to the songs. It was such a good time. 

Sometime in the middle of the visit I tried to explain to my new friend how happy I was to be in her home. I told her that I had a bit of a rough morning, but that her hospitality and warm heart has turned one of the lowest days into the best. It was fun to see her light up. I think she understood me! :) 

Reflecting on this evening I have a new outlook on learning this language that seems to be very very difficult. It is to be able to communicate well with Jordanians, to spend quality time in their homes hearing from their hearts, to be able to understand how to do the crazy dance moves that she was pulling out, and to be able to walk along side of these amazing people with open communication. Thursday night I was reminded of why I am in Jordan... to be friends with Jordanians!

Note: Sorry there are no pictures to capture this evening. I said numerous times, "I wish I had my camera!"