On the Missio Dei

Thin Places and Transparent Vessels

On Saturday, our decompression and reflection day, Courtney, our receiving missionary, arranged for us to travel down south to Glendalough, Ireland.  Glendalough, as he described it, is a "thin place," a place where spiritual and physical worlds live in very close communion, where the connections are quite easy to make.

 

Glendalough, Ireland

While we were there, we walked to the Upper Lake as a group, picnicked, and then took some time to wander individually and reflect on all aspects of the trip in order to be able to answer the question, "How was the trip?" when we arrived back in the States.

On Saturday evening, Joe and Sharon invited us to their house, where we munched on pizza (they have Dominoes!) and were free to ask questions, once again inviting Joe to share his heart and pieces of his testimony with the group - and on more individual levels.  Some of us heard some fun stories from Sharon on when she and Joe first got married (e.g. the time as a newly-wed that Joe got on the bus after work and wound up at his mother's house instead of their house, because he had "forgotten he was married"!).  Here, we also talked and planned what decisions faced LFC with the project of One More Neighborhood in Huntington Green, asking his experience to share wisdom with us.

While we sat around his living area in the Donnelly house, Joe shared that nowhere in the Bible do the writers describe someone as having great faith.  Faith is faith.  What matters, however, is the object of the faith.  Having faith in a great God will allow for unimaginable feats.  "We are all clay vessels," Joe reminded us. "The clay is gonna show on occasion, but the idea of a life of faith is to become as transparent as possible in our clay by pouring our faith into the big-ness of God." He encouraged us not to draw the conclusion of the experience of the trip as meeting someone or a mission that 'has great faith,' but to see the work that he and Sharon participate in to be an as-transparent-as-possible vessel to show off our great, great God.  

So, how was the trip?  In order to answer this, I will become no longer the spokesperson for the group, since everyone, though sharing experiences in the same realm, can have different perspectives on them. While at Glendalough- on a Saturday during the busy, holiday time in Europe- there were people everywhere.  Initially, I was disappointed by this, longing for solitude and quiet meditation in the wildest, beautiful place we had been (at least in the past day).  

 

And yet, as I sat on the shore of the lake, with the waves lapping into the cove and a French family of 3 eating lunch on a log about 5 meters from me, the Lord reminded me that His creation includes the sixth day - the day where He created man in His own image, where He designed that humankind be His clay vessels aiming for transparency.  

Day 1, Sunday, 8/7, as Joe shares with us the mission we will be working with and towards for the week.

In Glendalough, in the mission center, in Joe's house, in Ireland (and now that I'm home, here), the Lord reminded me of the thin places- the connection of spirit and physique - within the human creation, particularly in the blessing of relationships.

 
The Lord not only shows His beauty in the amazing wonders of His creation, but in the simple ability of humans to connect: to smile at each other and say a word of greeting in the grocery store, to share our burdens and joys with closer friends, or to serve a mission on the other side of the world through some cleaning up and loving on some beautifully-made children.

People mingling in Temple Bar area, Dublin.

The beauty of the flowers, and those who attack the weeds - Tracy and Elaine.

Earl's namesake, a very wonderful place to eat, which we found out on Saturday morning.

Our photographer in the wind.  I hear Hollywood calling...

The beauty of our Savior is that this is life, that He created us in His image, that He hand-paints the sky for us each morning and decorates our world with beauty in natural form.  It's messy sometimes, dirty most of the time, but He knows and invites us not just to relationship with others and with the world around us, but with Him, the artist and author of all of it.  We are not alone, and this is this is (one of) the message(s) of Ireland for Lake Forest Church.  

Might we be vessels that carry that truth so that all may see it, and, in seeing, share it with us, so that our joy might be complete.

 

The value of a child's smile

Our hearts sunk at 1pm on Friday as the children reconvened with their parents for the last time for the week. After a final two days of camp consisting of baking chocolate chunk cookies and planting flower baskets, these children had captured the hearts of not only the members of the team designated as children's camp workers, but of the whole team, as Mike made balloons into dogs and swords and Courtney, Earl, and Tracy participated in the final day of games to earn points for the children's teams.


Sharon, Joe's wife, reminded us a number of times that if we had not come this week, the children would not have had a club to go to; our presence made it possible for these children to come hang out at the project and to give their mums and grandmums a break from caring for them over the summer.


Bri has a shadow in the form of a child! :)

 
This is why Darrell was not the photographer this trip. :) 

 

Zack telling the story.

Not only that, but, as Joe said, they were able to hear from us- the crazy cool Cole and Zack, the fun and ball-throwing Caleb and Matt, the diligent and wonderful Darrell and Kat, and the sweet girl with the camera, or a child, around her neck, Brianna- that each of them are special to God and that He loves them and wants to have a relationship with them. And the relationships that began to form over the week were cut short on Friday at 1pm, so that we threw ourselves into cleaning to avoid the sadness that threatened to overwhelm us.

Here are just a few snapshots of the last days of camp, and the children that captured our hearts:

Baking



Mmmm, cookies



Snapshots:

 

This, in these faces and so many more, was camp.

P.S. The planting pictures didn't make it onto the thumb drive, so those will have to be postponed.

A Goodnight and See you soon

Wow. Time flies when you're not sure what time zone you'll be in tomorrow. As I mentioned briefly, Internet has been patchy
(I've found some in the hostel's public toilet beside the lobby here). We don't have a computer to upload pics... and we're getting up in less than six hours to walk to get on a bus to get on a plane. Don't worry, this blog isn't over yet, but the update for present time ascertains that the finishing of the blog will be occurring in the States. All is well, everyone is well, we are tired yet joyful and filled with a renewed sense of hope as we have been poured into by Joe's wisdom and vision here while we have served. Some of you we will see tomorrow, and the rest will hear from the blog in the next few days as we work out picture details. Oh yeah, and that thing called real life. God is blessing us in abundance- may it overflow to you! Next step, a 7ish-hour plane ride. Cheers.

Lights in the Darkness at Hell Fire Club

Thursday evening

There is a story that they tell in Ireland about the bad gambling problem that has plagued the country here for hundreds of years. Back in the 1800s, this building situated with the most beautiful panorama of the city was a hotel at which people would spend evenings gambling, drinking, and participating in other forms of debauchery, for lack of a better word. At the end of the century, the story goes that one night at the gambling table, a man looked under the table and saw that his neighbor at the table had the hairy feet and legs of an animal: Lucifer, at the gambling table. In fear for their lives, everyone ran out of the hotel as the hotel spontaneously burst into flames.

This 100-year burned-out building, now called Hell Fire Club, has thus had this amazing view to itself for a century- except that Joe shared with us that this building has now become a home for the power and practice of darkness, where Irish come and practice witchcraft even up to the present day.


In some of these pictures, you can see how the building soaks up what meager sunlight is at the top of the hill. And yet, we hiked up here to experience the panoramic views that cannot be captured on film in any way. We watched the rain drench the city below, testing the wind to see if it would hit us or not. As a mini miracle, it sprinkled on us but poured in the city down below.

 
The view from Hell Fire Club

Joe, his wife, two of their daughters, and a resident missionary named Jamie from Canada came on the hike with us that evening. This Thursday night, Joe taught us a lesson in faith. Again. As we watched the rain clouds, wondering where they would go, he encouraged us to consider that here are two possibilities in life: events that we can control and events that we have no control over. His lesson is that, no matter which situation we find ourselves in, we have a CHOICE. As he said through illustrations, "So much [of our lives] is written in that flashpoint, that moment of decision, in how you will react." 

The story (short version) he told was that of a situation about 12 years ago when his car was stolen and a ransom note was sent to his house asking for 500 Euro or his car would be destroyed. Through prayer and turmoil, as a family, Joe found himself showing up at the meeting place that the gang suggested with what he found to be more valuable than silver or gold. As the gang asked him for the requisite money, in his nerves, Joe found that God spoke the words of salvation through relationship that he personally treasured more than money or his car. Then he walked away from the gang, unscathed and unharmed. Four days later, after Joe had sent for the insurance claim papers, the police called to say they found his car. It was washed, waxed, and filled with petrol- not destroyed.

This is the faith that is lived out through decisions that have the opportunity not only to change lives around you, but to change your own heart. This is the faith that allows the Dublin mission to carry on and persevere, even in the small decisions and trials of each day.

As we gathered in this place that is used so often for works of darkness, we convened in prayer, laying hands on the Donnelly extended family and praying through the darkness that their light might shine ever brighter. We prayed for people: those that minister there, those who are ministered to, those who are being raised up as the next generation, and for those who strive to come against the project. In this way as well, we were able to minister and encourage the project and our family here in Dublin, to minister to very real and very human needs.

Johnnie Fox's from the outside.

The pub, inside.
After an evening on the mountain, we travelled to the most famous pub, just south of Dublin, near Hell Fire Club where we hiked, named Johnnie Fox's for a wonderful traditional Irish meal.  We fellowshipped with the Donnelly clan and ate, took pictures, laughed, and learned from each other.  One of Joe's friends, Ronan, has been our driver on the trip. On the trip home, he gave us a driving tour- from 10:30 to midnight!  We were a bit tired, but his stories and his hard-to-understand accent is fantastically worth the loss of sleep for the experience.

 

Prayer for the Land of Rainbows and Whirlwinds

Joe has done it again.  Last night (Wednesday night), after working with the children, painting, and the demolition of an entire building, we traveled about 15 minutes north of the city to Howth ("Howt").

 
Dock side of the city of Howth after dinner.

Howth is a small town surrounded essentially on three sides by water. Our first stop was not in the town, however, but along the perimeter on Howth Head trail.  

 

Joe sitting on the sign that sums up the trail.

We first took a hiking jaunt to one of the Martello towers in the spitting rain, where we were given the option to go for a hike to meet the driver at the next stop or to ride to the summit and hike down to the lighthouse (a different one).  

The group in the spitting rain near Martello tower, where one group hiked the perimeter and the other group hiked down from the summit.

The hike portion was "about 25 minutes," per Joe's estimation.  Mike, one of those who took the trail, timed the trip (as one of the faster walkers) at an hour and a half.  

Mike stands at the door and knocks along the perimeter of Howth Head Trail.

However, the views for all of us were worth it.  Along the trail, the hills dropped as cliffs into waters that collided on the rocks below.  At any turn of the trail, we didn't know what form of beauty would be around the bend.  We either walked up stone steps, travelled through a green 'gate' formed with hedges or trees... or thistles, along dirt paths that wound down towards the waterside, or beside rock walls and picturesque gates that led to houses of people who lived along the water.  

Once both groups arrived at the lighthouse, Joe introduced this as the "land of rainbows and whirlwinds," which was demonstrated to us in the sights and winds around us.

Rainbows

Whirlwinds (the effects, of course)

At the summit, which was quite a straight-up-the-mountain kind of hike, Joe sat us down on the wall to invite us to pray for the country of Ireland, the land of whirlwinds and rainbows. Rainbows symbolize promise, so we prayed the promises of God over this country that lives within the beautiful scenery and yet 99% of the people move without a knowledge of its Creator.  The gusts of wind along the coast were strong enough to hold us up as we leaned into them.  On Wednesday night, these winds held a symbolic reference to the Spirit of God moving among the people of Ireland.  We called on the Spirit to come, to move in this beautiful country among the people who in a spiritual sense live in darkness without a solid sense of hope.

 

After experiencing unique and spectacular sight of the Creator's work, there was something piercing about Joe's call to search our own hearts: how well do you really know the Creator?  For me, the beauty and wonder of the place was so amazing, I felt as if I was unable to take any more in without exploding, and it is just as hard to try to express it here.  So, this will do for now. 

Demolition: Walls Coming Down

Just for fun...

 
On Wednesday afternoon, the job of tearing up a building to make room for the new counseling center became the primary focus for Zack and Cole as we all prepared for the dumpster to arrive.  

The younger of us had the most energy, so they were quite anxious to take this job. Kat said it best as a moving moment yesterday that is "in many ways metaphorical of what God can do" and what He is doing here in Ireland. We are not just moving rubbish (trash) to a dumpster to clean out, but we are taking part in an experience that in a sense 'cleans out' the rubbish in our lives.  And knocks down walls, like this one.

 

 The final wall comes down.

Darrell: "So what're you gonna do the rest of the week now that your building is torn down?"

Zack: "Uh, I don't know. Javelin stuff?"

Flexing to Live a Lighthouse Experience

Gumby painted today and is practicing his stretching flexibility.  So are we.

Plans are not all they are cut out to be. Though Kat sat at a computer all day yesterday (Tuesday) scribing words to songs to play and sing in the park last night, by the evening we realized that the mission to the park needed to not be the main priority of our group. Yesterday afternoon/evening, Joe took us on a vision walk.  By the time we got back, it was late, so that we found that the main need was to finish the poopy-pipe project before the rain, eat dinner, and sleep.  So the park mission did not happen, as our plans had warranted. However, the vision walk- our "lighthouse experience"- was worth it, cited as the high for at least half of the team in our daily reflection this morning.  

 

We rode in a car to the lighthouse parking lot!  Our feet were quite thankful for the tidge of a respite.

For the vision walk, Joe drove us further out along the bay than the project to the South Wall, a miles-long wall of large granite stones that served as the protective wall when the docks were historically closer to the sea.  At the end of a (about) 2-mile walk along the wall that formed a breakwater for the bay is a red lighthouse.  

(Yes, we walked that. And back.)

Our team walked out to the lighthouse with Joe, and he shared the story of how this lighthouse taught him (and now us) a lesson about restricted and unrestricted vision.

 

"When I was a kid, I used to come down here, fishing, even into my teens.  I could nearly name every fish that was in these waters, and this place has a lot of significance to me, representing my childhood."

This particular lighthouse was a place God used to speak to Joe about the mission of the community center before he even saw any of it come to fruition.

In 1996, Joe and his wife, Sharon, had to make the decision as to whether to buy the property of the mission or let the 1896 completely run-down building be demolished by the city.  The vision of pragmatism, like the sites in the city of Dublin, said, "demolish it. too much work, too much trouble," and yet, there was the question of what God's unrestricted vision said.  At the end of a week of prayer and fasting, God led Joe to this lighthouse, the familiar place of his childhood.  Not only did he find his way here, but the painters who come for one week every five years were here- and on lunch break- so the lighthouse door was open.  Joe asked if he could go in and look around.  At the top of the lighthouse, where he could see the city of Dublin on one side and the water that stretched to Liverpool on the other, Joe gained a bit of insight into the unrestricted vision of God.  It was this place, where he brought us, where Joe heard God say, "yes, take on the mission, for My glory."  

 
Joe and Sharon in the cafe at the mission, 15 years after Joe's lighthouse decision.  God knew, Joe listened, and here are the 15-year fruits.  This trip allows us to share in the calling into his purpose.

To be a part of this mission, with the vision that God has instilled in Joe beginning at the red lighthouse, became a little more real and living with this excursion that 'cost us' our trip to the park last night.  However, in the chilly Irish breeze, walking along the wall to the red lighthouse, we learned a lesson in seeing the world as God sees it, unrestricted and not assuming that the world's way, the easy way, is the way God wants to work.  So the flexibility that a mission trip requires allows for these moments, these "lighthouse experiences" to penetrate our lives and consequently our hearts.  The danger that we fall too frequently into is to be too busy 'doing' to 'be.' This 'being' allows us to listen and move to a place where vision is unrestricted, where God's way is heard and followed, and where hearts are opened to new possibilities.  This is the importance of flexibility, not just for us here in Ireland, but for all Christians as a daily life practice.

The Joys of Service, through pictures

Bags and bags of moved and cleaned materials and pulled weeds the size of small plants, children's smiling faces and the laughter and screams of kids at play: this is the main joy that we live in in the blustery chill (and often wet) that is Ireland this week.  

 

("KIDS")

Time directly interacting with the children is like a whirlwind every day from 10 to 1.  

We go from a service that we as a team have almost completely taken over from Joe to time that includes activities of various sorts.

Yet, each moment, no matter what is happening, is a treasured and sweet moment with the 19 that God has hand-picked to bless us this week.  

During the service, Matt leads the group in music, teaching the children a few new songs as well as Joe and the children teaching us new songs with actions ("not motions, actions").  Caleb, Zack, Cole, and Kat are teaching a Bible story Tuesday through Friday this week, while the team works together to keep little ones with short attention spans engaged in what is going on.  

On Monday and Wednesday, the children made crafts, played a computer literacy game, and jumped in a bounce house afterwards for their activities.  

Painting

Basketball in "the garden"

On the slide

Creativity at work

On Tuesday, we headed over to the park and played on the playground and then to the football (soccer) pitch (a fake grass field enclosed in a fence) to play football, skip rope, and just have a good time (= trying to keep the younger boys from climbing 8 ft. in the air on the fence). :)  

On most afternoons, the children's team takes a few moments after lunch to plan and pray for the following day and then slide out (or in) to help the construction team with whatever projects they are working on.

Construction, aka, Facility Services

The construction team (facility services) is involved in a number of necessary projects around the center.  

The backyard of the facility includes a large greenhouse and a number of raised flower beds, with an area on the far end of the property dedicated but not yet set up for a reflection area and an area closer towards the facility preparing to be built into a Family Counseling Center in the next few years (think construction project for next year).  

(The backyard from the far end of the property, the reflection area. The building to the right is the greenhouse and the gray, yellow, and brick buildings are the community center.)

The team's jobs include cleaning out the... entire backyard: demolishing a storage room along the property wall, ridding the beds of weeds, and organizing supplies and materials in the greenhouse and bed areas, in addition to the inside project of painting one of the rooms in the school to prepare for the upcoming school year.  

(The inside of the greenhouse, cleaned and organized!!!)

Mike, Matt, and Caleb replaced a "poopy pipe" (the plumbing) in an area soon to be dedicated to a mom ("mum") of a student here who died of cancer.  

On Thursday and Friday, we will be all hands on deck to clear out dumpster-loads of trash and weeds so that the materials can be readily accessed for a water recycing area to go under the reflection area, the plans to be made for the counseling center, and the planting of flower baskets (which the children will do as their activity on Friday).

The beginning (and only the beginning) of the pile for the dumpster.

Moving furniture, outside.  It's not just thunder we hear.

"Wait.  Why did we think this was a good idea?"

 

Weeds, weeds, and more weeds.  Watch out for the slugs. Ew. 

Zack and Cole beginning the grand process of demolition.

Hope you enjoy the pictures; yesterday was too jam-packed to throw some of these up then, to be explained in the next post.

 

The site and the work verbalized

Day #2 on the site, so we'll share some thoughts of some of the work we are doing as a way to detail the trip. Since this is the first time we have been in Ireland as a planned mission, there is a learning curve for all involved. On day one (Monday), in speaking of where we have seen God the most, the majority of the team spoke of the passion of the founder and director of the community center through which we are working, Joe. Distinguished with a lilting Irish accent, when Joe speaks about the mission that God has called him and his wife to for the past 13 years and how he has watched it grow under the hand of God and the hope of the gospel, there is a tangible peace and assurance that settles into the room, as none of our team who hears his words can doubt that we are supposed to be here. The vision here is larger than any human can fathom or accomplish and yet it continues to grow as God meets each dream He gives to Joe and Sharon with more than they can ask or imagine. For instance (the heart of the Irish people are their stories), Joe told the story about how ten years ago he told some Irish farmers that God's vision was that his Dublin project would begin to take monies raised in one of the poorest sections of the city to give to the third world. The number he anticipated Dublin would give? 10,000 Euros. Joe told us how the Irish farmers laughed and told Joe that if that happened, they would eat their hats. Since 2006, the project has given over 20,000 Euros a year to various projects in the third world. The farmers have not returned to eat their hats.

 

This is the environment in which we work: one embued with the hope of the gospel, the generosity of the Spirit of our Savior, and the faith it takes to pull off something without nothing.  We are working with children and working in and on the facility, putting hands and hearts to use for the purpose of loving people as they live out their role in God's story. The three construction people have prepped a room for painting, cleaned out a greenhouse ... and an entire backyard to prepare it for use, and a number of other projects while the other part of the team are in children's club with 19 children from the community, ages 5-12. The children's club involves music, prayer, and a Bible story followed by fun time that so far has included computer (literacy) time, crafts, and outdoor play.  The weather has actually been wonderful for the past two days, with only a tidge of rain - coming down only about an hour during the workday (instead of all day!), so both teams have been able to get a lot of work done outside.

 

It is slowly coming to consciousness how blessed we as a team are to be here; what a honor to serve a living God in a land that is only 1% evangelical Christian and to meet those who honor that God by reaching out with a message of hope that comes through Jesus Christ.  Tonight, we will spend time playing music and hanging out at the park in the community, an extensive area with football fields, playgrounds, and walking trails on which the community roams and plays.  We are tired but thankful and trust in God to guide us as we participate as His hands and feet (and voices and smiles).  

 

Meet the Team Pictures, Quotes, and a few Updates

 
Hello on Day 1 of 'Kids' Club' and Facility Services in Dublin, Ireland!  We were oriented yesterday by Joe, walking through the bright blue door that leads to the flower-lined walkway and outside cafe into a vaulted mission hall with wood floors, natural acoustics, and painted butterflies hanging on the walls. The cafe is bustling in the afternoon with daily-made salads and Hot Savory offerings such as Lasagne and Cottage Pie.

 

Yesterday, Darrell's bag showed up, right on time.  He went to the desk at the hostel to ask if his bag had arrived, and the man behind the counter said, "No."  The other person behind the counter then responded, "Well, wait. What's that bag?" pointing to a bag on the floor. It was his, at 11am.  Darrell is wearing new clothes today, including his favorite scuffed-up shoes.

So, let's Meet the Crew in pictures from the past few days.  

Courtney (right) and Caleb (left) during sight-seeing on Saturday.

 

Kat/ Kathleen (left) and our photographer, Briana.

 

Matt (left front), Caleb (right front), and Mike (right back) playing speed Scrabble before lunch Sunday.

 

 

 Earl (left front), Mike (left back), Darrell (center), and Zack (right on phone).

 

Elaine drinking espresso. Mmmm.

The team working with the children (predominantly) this week:

Front, left to right: Kat, Briana, Elaine, Caleb, Darrell.  Back row, left to right: Cole, Matt, Zack.

The team doing Facility Services, aka Construction, this week:

Left to right: Earl, Tracy, Mike.

 

Walking Jokes

We do a lot of walking, since the trek to the center from our hostel is about 1.5 miles.  Because of this, we have a number of 'walking' jokes.  Cole and Zack (and occasionally Caleb and Matt) perform urban parcor at the beginning of each day.  Here they are:

Look closely; it's hard to capture.  That's Cole on the poles in front of the bridge.

 

Zack on a cone, if it's not obvious.

Other jokes: the crosswalk sign tends to elicit an exclamation of "Laser tag!" due to the nature of the sound.  We hear that a lot from various members of the team.

There is a running debate between (at least) Matt and Caleb as to whether gelato or ice cream is better.  Locals tend to sway the debate by their comments on occasion, though gelato has been enjoyed by both... pretty often.  Here was their stop last night in the famous Temple Bar area.

What do you think: gelato or ice cream?

That's just a few.  And here are...

Responses from the crew after the first day of working in the community center in Dublin:

"It wasn't long enough." -Briana

"Fantastic. Wait, are you writing this down?  Make mine 'Jolly good. Or just 'Jolly.''" - Matt G.

"When they turned Abba on, it renewed my energy level. I could go another 12 hours." - Earl

"Spectacular." -Darrell

"Cole-tastic" - Cole

"With the kids, great. With Darrell, [untranscribable fart-like sound]." -Zack

"Incrediblllle." - Kathleen

"It left me speechless." -Tracy

"Oh, oh it was fantastic.  The kids are just a whirlwind of joy and happiness.  It was fantastic to be around such, such... uh, a joy. Uhhhh..." -Caleb