The Herbsts in Zurich

Here’s a picture of Christian and Sabine Herbst in Zurich.  Below it is a pic of me and Danny Chow in Beijing.

Lynne and I are actually in China and Hong Kong for a week, returning January 6 to the new year in Seattle.  In two more days we will have reconnected to precious friends from all over China, having spend New Year’s in Guanzhou for their 20 year anniversary.  Hard to believe it was in 1991 that a few intrepid souls moved there to start God’s work anew.

In June, we’ll be teaching at the European Bible School–we’ll get to see Berlin folks, including the Herbsts, who we’ve known for over 20 years.  They were young disciples with the Marks’ in Munich back in the day.

Not everyone gets a chance to see these wonderful parts of our family, so I’m being a “Blessings Witness” to tell you about them.

Danny and Me in China's capital

Such an amazing blessing that in fact, we are connected to brothers and sisters all over the world!

I was so inspired by Alex’s blog yesterday, and completely agree with him that the zeal and faith of the younger people in our church is so inspiring!  It made me think of another group in our church – the older people!  Yeah, I’m talking about anyone over 35 or so, especially those folks that have been around awhile, seen the ups and downs of the Christian life.  I’m talking about the people who have read the Bible cover to cover multiple times, heard thousands of sermons, been a part of many different ministries, and seen several leaders.  They’ve raised their families in the church, studied the Bible with all kinds of folks, and even seen some of them leave the faith.  It is their zeal and faith that inspires me and calls me higher.

Last week we had the pleasure of spending an evening with Mack and Zoe Strong, two people in the thick of life.  They have two wonderful young boys, Zoe is in the thick of a graduate program, and Mack is busy with his football analyst career.  Despite all of that, they serve as deacons, Bible Talk Leaders, study the Bible with people all the time, and basically serve in any way asked of them…awesome.

I just got an email from Ellen Soter, who makes sure the Eastside announcements are sent out every Wednesday evening.  Actually, that is just a SMALL part of what she does over here.  We’ve known the Soters for years, and it seems that with each passing year they seem to be serving more and more…wow.

Last night we had dinner with Mike and Laura Fouts, whom we’ve known for about 15 years.  We actually served in the ministry with them years ago, and it’s so good to be reunited with them!  It was so awesome to sit and talk with them about life, the ministry, family and so much more.  As always, Mike filled me in on the people he is studying the Bible with…incredible.

Today we are having Greg and Lisa Brumley and their family over to watch the Huskies win the Alamo Bowl.  They are another couple we’ve known for years, and are thrilled to be building a close friendship with them.  They have been Christians since the Ice Age (sorry guys), been in many different churches, been a part of about a hundred Bible Talks.  I’m not sure they hear anything “new” these days, but their faith is so contagious and they love the church so much…amazing.

We are so grateful to serve on the eastside with such faithful people.  Sure, we are older, balder, and many are getting pretty gray!  However, in an era where too many people seem to lose their idealism as they get older, our church is full of people who continue to grow in their faith, no matter what life throws their way.  People like the Tachers, Pflaumers, Storz’, Johnsons, Fawcetts, Stirrets, Brumleys (all of them!), Webbs, Gammons, and so many more.

Thank you for your faith and inspiration – we are all blessed because of it!

Daren

Here is a picture of one of “my” quiet time benches at Jack Block Park in West Seattle looking across Elliott Bay toward downtown.

A blessings that I cherish tremendously is the ability to spend time with God in a beautiful setting, a place to read my bible and walk and talk with him and admire his creative power. What an inspiring artist God is. Seattle has so many such places. I have had the privilege of living in many extraordinary places around the country: New York, Boston, Denver, Boulder, Redondo Beach/LA and now Seattle for the last 14 years. Carol and I are so happy in Seattle that we can’t imagine ever leaving. I have a long list of special places to pray and keep finding new spots all over the city.

My wish for all of us in 2012 is that we will be devoted to intimacy in our prayer life and walk with God in a new and empowering way. I hope that our consistent connections with him bring him great joy and give us the strength we need to answer his callings for our daily lives.

“Be joyful always; pray continually; give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus. Do not put out the Spirit’s fire; do not treat prophecies with contempt. Test everything. Hold on to the good. Avoid every find of evil. May God himself, the God of peace, sanctify you through and through.” I Thess. 5:16-23

My Mom, Stephen, and Lynne's Mom

Here’s a picture of Stephen’s Washington University graduation day with his two grandmothers.  The holidays, among other meanings, say “family” to most of us, and I’ve been reminded this week about the blessing of a wonderful, spiritual family heritage. Where would Seattle Greens be without these grandparents/parents?  Without my mother and father’s faith, would I have even had the chance to respond to the gospel?  Without their love and nurture, would I have been capable of a reasonable degree of confidence?  Without their longsuffering support, could I have even been educated, let alone been in a place to see and understand the world?

While it’s true that a few among us have survived abusive or dysfunctional families-or-origin, most of us have been lucky–BLESSED–to have parents, and grandparents who have helped us find our feet, our faith, our character, and our calling.

It’s Christmas morning, and it seems appropriate to think about all I have that makes life meaningful.

Second chances. A real purpose.  Deep friendships.  Complete forgiveness for my sins.  Unconditional love.  A tremendous family. A supportive church.  A roof over my head.  A future to look forward to….where did it all come from?  JESUS.

God bless you all on this Christmas day, as we celebrate the birth of our savior.

Daren

When I was a boy we went to St. Paul the Apostle Catholic Church on the corner of 59th street and 9th avenue.   I always loved attending church for Christmas.  There was something so special about the way the service seemed to honor the birth of Jesus.  With a giant organ playing in the background, I grounded my faith in the birth of Christ and the stood in awe of Emmanuel, God with us.

At times in my faith, I’ve longed to connect with those feelings again, to have a special service without main points or spiritual direction. Sometimes it it just fine to be still and know that Jesus is Lord and God is God.   Today my family is all dressed up and enjoying a grade a meal cooked by my wife.  We are going to Church, to sit together, pray together and sing together.   We don’t have the pipe organ working yet, but we do have a grand piano and plenty of talented musicians and narrators.   Thank you Jay Kelly, for your inspiring leadership and insight into our needs.  Thank you to the Seattle Church for it’s continual reliance on God and not man.   And what a blessing it is to worship God on Christmas eve and celebrate the birth of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.

This week, with the new year just around the corner, I was working on streamlining “Goals for 2012” when three prominent deaths (The Good, the Bad, and the Misguided) jolted my focus onto something further downfield.  Playwright and former Czech Republic President Vaclav Havel (The Good) left a heroic legacy of “Living in Truth”:  he was a brave dissident during the Cold War when his country endured Soviet domination.  North Korean dictator Kim Jong Il  (The Bad) perished like a pre-Christmas Scrooge—to the relief and rejoicing of millions in Asia and around the world.  Can you imagine nearly an entire planet cheering your death?

And Christopher Hitchens  (The Misguided)—eloquent (to put it mildly) writer for Vanity Fair and an unusual amalgam of liberal and conservative views—passed from a battle with esophageal cancer.  Hitchens was particularly famous for both penetrating and cheeky cultural and political analysis, his vehement opposition to Islamic fascism, and a sardonic atheism.

I met Hitchens once on an airplane and briefly discussed foreign affairs (I ran out of things to say quickly) and my faith, which he accepted for that moment.  I liked him, and it saddens me that anyone can journey so thoughtfully through life and yet miss the greater point:  this is only the beginning.  As 1 Corinthians 15 says, we will all be changed-in a flash, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet.  We who believe will start lives that never end.

The last five minutes of Disney’s Beauty and the Beast capture that miracle–how I imagine we will feel on that day, goose bumps, tears, and all:  when the beast comes back to life, transformed into a prince, and sees everyone who was cursed set free to be people again, he says with overwhelming astonishment and gratitude, “LOOK AT US!”

We are a people celebrating the birth of Jesus for many reasons.  The most important reason is the defeat of Death. The greatest Christmas miracle, the greatest Christmas morning, will be the one on which we will awaken to find the spell of death broken forever, and ourselves with our Father in His house of many, many rooms.