A 4-Christmas Season!

Central Asia has held given us some unexpected surprises! We came with expectations, as does anyone who moves into a new culture. Some of those expectations were absolutely “off the wall” and are, for the most part, long forgotten. Some expectations were logical and have been realized, like finding wonderful people. There have been some things that have surprised us – we never expected them. Here’s one.

Even though we did some reading about the area before we left the States, it didn’t sink in that we would find two Christmases here. The predominant Christian church, Russian Orthodox, celebrates Christmas on January 7th. We learned about that after we arrived and were planning our schedule accordingly. As we spoke to some of the believers we work with, they told us, since they are not Orthodox, they celebrate Christmas on December 25th. We asked whether they celebrated the Orthodox Christmas (a national holiday) as well. Their answer, “Of course! Why not?” came as a bit of a surprise. Well, when in Central Asia, do as the Central Asians do. We began to look forward to two Christmases.

December 25th came and went. There were decorations in the city for Christmas in December – more than ever before. (Our partner told us that the level of awareness of Christmas in December is increasing in the last few years, though, many of the decorations are for the HUGE New Year’s celebration.) Suzanne put up a few homemade decorations in our flat and we celebrated Christmas Eve with our friends. We had a great dinner at their home and attended the International Fellowship’s Christmas Eve service. Suzanne and I spent Christmas day together and celebrated with a dinner of “Sweet & Sour Spam.” It was good! Life in the city went on as normal: schools were in session, businesses were open and people went about their normal routines.

When January 7th came around, though a “public holiday,” it didn’t appear any different than a regular day. We had a pastors meeting and businesses seemed open as normal. After our meeting, Suzanne and I had a quiet dinner and evening together. We thought Christmas 2008 (and 2009?) was over. We hadn’t thought it through.

We traveled to another part of the country in the middle of January to work with some pastors. (See our Christmas newsletter and the February 6th blog entry, “How Are You?”) Upon our return, we discovered two boxes had arrived from our son’s family including Christmas presents! So, we had another “Christmas” on January 24th!
We knew that our daughter had sent something to us for Christmas on December 6th and another just after Christmas. We had not seen or heard about either of them. We thought about them periodically and felt badly for her expense for the lost packages. WELL, this week they arrived! On February 19th we had our FOURTH Christmas when we got to open more Christmas presents!

We do feel blessed to be cared about and supported. The people, family and friends, at home have been wonderful in sending notes, emails and packages. All the stuff is appreciated and the people are loved. Thank you. (By the way, we’re beginning to look at heading home in just a few months and don’t need anything more.)

Living in the Mystery

Florence Howard was a saint of a lady at our church in Monmouth, Oregon. I was a young pastor still wet not just behind the ears. Florence was long term mainstay of our small congregation. She had been treasurer of the church for nearly twenty years and Sunday School treasurer for much longer than that. Florence was a wealth of information about the community, the church and life in general. She lived on a large lot just outside of town. It was a modest home and the property was filled with flowers, shrubs and a large garden of which she regularly shared with the pastor’s family.

Shortly after we met, I heard her share one of her bits of everyday wisdom: “You don’t have to look very far to find someone who’s worse off than you are.” When I heard that I chalked it up to just some tidbit that was, perhaps, false modesty. Over our years at Monmouth, I had many occasions to see Florence in all kinds of settings. That phrase was something often expressed and, more often, exemplified through her attitude. Her's was not an easy life. She had the normal issues that affect someone in their eighties. There were also some family issues that were difficult to deal with. In our last year at Monmouth, Florence contracted cancer which was found to be far advanced. It was in that period of time, when she was undergoing unpleasant treatments aimed at extending her life, that the truth of her phrase was truly lived out. Never did she complain how difficult things were for her. She still looked out at others and wondered how she might serve them. In her need, she looked at others and saw their need.

Suzanne and I were assigned a book to read for our “Most Excellent Adventure.” Moving into a culture different from the one you’re familiar with is stressful, can be difficult and is usually challenging. The book is Cross-Cultural Servanthood by Duane Elmer. I found it to be a great book with challenges in every chapter to “be Jesus” among those we’ve been called to serve. I found one quote that deals with this issue of suffering that made me pause and reflect. Here is the quote:

God is trustworthy even when we can’t see, feel or hear him. He guides us in decisions and promises never to leave us, even when his guidance takes us into the fog, mystery and suffering. He is there in the fog, he is active, and he is fulfilling his glorious purposes. Our role is to trust—even if it takes ten years. . .

Sooner or later, often later, the fog slowly lifts. Things begin to make sense. Understanding replaces confusion. Confidence replaces doubt. Belonging replaces a sense of abandonment. Hope returns. God was there all along, working actively, not only on your behalf but in ways that enrich the many other servants he loves. The fog obscures his presence and his purposes, but when it finally clears, we realize that God has kept all his promises to us (see John 21:45). And on those occasions when his people go to the grave with pieces of their past still shrouded in fog, he remains the loving, faithful God worthy of their trust even though the fog never lifted. While not desired, walking in mystery shouldn’t be feared; God, though not visible or audible, walks by our side, and the walk is always worthwhile for the patient, faithful servant. (pp. 184-185)

Christians living in this world cannot avoid issues that confound the rest of humanity. We are part of this world and one doesn’t have to go very far to see those who live in desperate situations. Whether in Central Asia, the middle of Africa, the slums of Brazil or the streets of the US, we see, hear and feel the lostness and pain that go with being human. We see the afflicted. We hear the cries of the hurting. We are part of the world around us and share, to some extent, its pain.

Why? Why all the heartache? Why all the tragedy? Why evil? It’s possible for the Christian apologist to explain the meaning behind it. It’s possible to make sense intellectually of the pieces that are left of lives that have been shattered. But I don’t believe it’s possible to answer the questions of those in the situations satisfactorily.

Duane Elmer touches on something that is important not to forget: we don’t have all the answers and we may never have all the answers. Life for the Christian (really for everyone) involves the mysterious. But, if we really believe in a God who is transcendent, holy and all the rest of the astounding attributes, why should we ever expect to have all the answers? Why should we expect to figure it all out? Is the God we believe in trustworthy enough that we can leave the answers with him? I don’t mean that we don’t ask, or don’t seek, or don’t knock. I mean that, after we ask, seek and knock and still have no answer, we can still trust that the loving Father has things in control and we can still trust him.

If you ask Suzanne, she’ll tell you that I like having answers. As we look at our future, I want to know now what we’re going to be doing in July, and August, and September and on, and on. Is life a mystery for us? You bet it is. But it’s not as confounding as life for the child who’s father has abandoned him. It’s not as difficult as for the young woman who’s trying to cope with abuse. Or for a cancer patient. Or for any number of other people we come across everyday.

Life, as a Christian or otherwise, is a mystery. However, for the Christian, we have One who understands and knows the answers. One day, perhaps on the other side of the grave, we’ll know the answers as well. In the meantime, we trust the One who is trustworthy.

"How are you?"

100 years ago, when I was in seminary, Suzanne and I attended and ministered at Lynwood Friends Church. There was a dear lady attending there who loved God and enjoyed being around His people. For a variety of reasons, she had never learned all of the social skills that so many of us take for granted that smooth interpersonal relationships. Sunday after Sunday people would greet her with, "Hi, Martha (not really Martha). How are you?" And she, not knowing any better, would tell them - everything!

We get lots of similar questions from home. "How are you doing?" That's a difficult question in normal times. What kind of answer are they expecting? Do they really want to know, or are they just being nice? Should I be specific? Should I be candid? How much can I share? All of these questions and more go through our minds. We usually find some compromise and try to match the answer to the person and our relationship with them.

We're doing well physically. This is more than a little issue. It is a great blessing to stay healthy. The work is going, well, that's difficult to qualify. We still progress on working toward a license, but are in a holding pattern on some parts. We have gotten involved in some training which is encouraging. We made one visit to another part of the country which was rewarding. We were asked to try to return in the Spring when, they say, the area is beautiful. We hope to return to see the area, but mainly, to work with the people.

Something that we've come to experience, though the same could be said for almost any situation, is that there is a lot of routine. We're grateful for the opportunity to do some extra study and have the time for growing together in ways we'd not experienced previously.

Life goes on, the winter is passing, and we're thinking of home. Must keep oriented, however, to our present situation. One speaker many years ago gave us this admonition: "Wherever you are, be there!" That's good advice whether you're in the Northwest or in Asia.