Supporter Saturday: Featuring Cat Lovers (Ewww! Gross!)

Today's supporters, Jon & Susan Menton,  come to you from Fresno, California, however, I met them in Davao City, Philippines while their church teamed up with Convoy of Hope and Family Circus Children's Ministry. They are secretly missionaries just like myself, they just masque it with their day jobs.  They're great supporters and have helped me out many times over the last few years of knowing them. BUT, they're SERIOUS cat lovers, I mean, like it's a stretch for us to be FB friends, they take offense to all my, "I hate cats!" statuses (Which I think I'm due for one lest anyone forget!) and I take offense to them blowing up my wall with "look at my cute cats" photos, nonetheless, our love for Jesus and sharing His love around the world supersede this serious flaw that they have!

They've recently be trekking all over the world sharing the love of Jesus through community development. I'm going to tell some of their most recent story in their own words and pictures, it'll give you great insight to who these great people are.

Did you know that....
More than 1,800 children die every DAY of preventable water-borne diseases and nearly 800 million people worldwide do not have safe water?

Jon & Susan know this, this is why they have teamed up with www.lifewater.org  recently going with them to southern Ethiopia a beautiful land and beautiful people surrounded by ugly water and ugly sanitation issues.

Jon & Susan GET IT! Some people cast stones and say, as Christians we shouldn't be out doing all this humanitarian aide non-sense we should leave that to the "World" we should be worried about souls not water and rice, they'd say. I'd like to encourage those people to go without eating tomorrow and maybe  walk several miles in the heat, gather up some dirty water from the river, tote it home, drink up, and then find a place outside somewhere to spend their day of diarrhea and then let me know how their soul is doing! (Those were my words not Jon & Susan's!)

They're nicer missionaries than I am, Jon & Susan would probably say, "Come along with us and see what you think should be done." And take them to the ends of the earth where the above statistics are true.  They'd teach the WASH curriculum (Water, Sanitation, & Hygiene) and train the nationals to dig and repair their own wells and pumps, and how to utilize Bio-Sand filtration, so that the work is sustainable and owned by the people there!

They're really good at Micah 6: 8:

"He has showed you, O man, what is good. And what does the Lord require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God."

I'll close out this tribute to great missionaries and great supporters of other missionaries with a quote from them: "What do you think God wants for people?"they were asked. Their reply:

  I believe God wants all people to know and to love Him and to share that love with others (the two greatest commandments).  One way to begin doing that is to empower people with the knowledge they need to transform their lives and communities.    God is the one who can truly save people, but he wants us to love and care for one another while we are here on this earth.  Something Lifewater does very well.

In hindsight, this totally would be my response to the humanitarian aide haters! Thanks Jon & Susan for being great supporters and great missionaries.

The 100th Blog Post: Keep on Trucking Because this is True

Picking up the Change made it's appearance 7/30/2009 in hopes of documenting life lessons learned the hard way (because that's evidently how I like to roll!) Possibly saving others a few steps and bringing a chuckle or two at both my literal and metaphorical clumsiness! And maybe, just maybe, encouraging someone to take the narrow road because it leads to true life, adventure, and a bit of insanity, but all COVERED by the One who cut the path for us in the first place. 

Although writing the 100th blog post has been on my to do list for a couple of months now, I think it was meant to be written this weekend. Easter weekend. The weekend that over 2000 years ago He went before us one foot in front of the other, a path filled with thorns, accusations, nails, loss, abuse, injustice, lashes, betrayal, great cost, humiliation, alone, carrying His own cross, pain at every level with every step. He sacrificed all, so we could be free.  "It is Finished," He exhaled. And 3 days later, He arose and gave us the following instructions and promise, "All authority in heaven and earth has been given to Me. Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you.  And surely I am with you always to the very end of the age."

One by one the disciples walked the path He had cut for them, each one gaining followers as he went, one behind the other.

In the early 1800s a man by the name of Adoniram Judson chose to join the line and obey the instructions Christ gave over 2000 years ago to GO and make disciples of ALL nations and he became the first missionary to the Buddhist people. In 1813 as he stood on the hills of Pagan in Burma overlooking thousands of vast temples and pagodas and erected idols, he is quoted to have said, 

"Perhaps we stand on the dividing line of the empires of darkness and light.  On shade of Arahan, weep over your falling temples. Retire from scenes of your past greatness.  But you smile at my feeble voice.  Linger, then, your little remaining day.  A voice mightier than mine, a still, small voice will before long sweep away every vestige of your dominion. The churches of Jesus will soon supplant these idolatrous monuments and the chantings of the devotees of Buddha will will die away before the Christian hymn of praise."

Judson didn't live to see this come to pass.  Over 170 years of missionary effort later "Buddhism still looks as strong and impregnable as the fortress of Jericho appeared to the Israelites in Joshua's time.  The Christian impact on Buddhism seems like small cracks in solid, immovable walls." - Elizabeth Wagner.  (But we all know what eventually happened to the walls of Jericho!)

Almost 200 years exactly after Judson stood and made his claim on the hills of Pagan I sat in Bangkok, Thailand with a group of missionaries who have been obediently walking the path for several decades already. Statistics were given of our beautiful nation still only 1% Christian even after Judson and those that came after him, and after decades of service by those I sat amidst. It's overwhelming to me.  I left the meeting a bit depressed and walked outside to self medicate (to get a coke from the 7/11.)  

There's a field that separates the building we meet in and the 7/11.  Rumor has it  from veteran missionaries that when they braved it many years ago it was quite a dense jungle of a field and home to python or some other unbelievably large man eating snake. Just a few months ago it was still a decent lil forest that I would brave the thorns and thistles and critters to get to my coke.  Today there are no trees just rocky ground, brush, and garbage and the outline of a forming small foot path. The path isn't yet clear and far from being "paved" but it's visible, faintly. 

After my 7/11 trek I went to my room to enjoy my coke and my AC and to sadly think about the "impregnable fortress" that surrounded me. In that moment God began to speak to me about the path. He said if we will continue to walk the path, it will become more and more visible to others and others will be curious about the way, about where it leads, and begin to check out the path for themselves and find out why we take it, they will be led to the truth.  Jesus, the disciples, their followers, Judson, the Hosacks, the Johnsons, now us, and whoever follows, we're moving obstacles out of the way, we're stomping down the garbage and the dangerous stuff, we're clearing the way and what was once keeping the path hidden is no more because we all walked it time and time again.  Sometimes begrudgingly, fearfully, not even knowing what we were doing because we can't see it yet, we just were/are putting one foot in front of the other in a dense and dangerous jungle, not even realizing that each step was and is clearing the path for those that would, that WILL follow. 

That weekend I sat in church among a room full of Thai believers and listened as they sang in Thai, Our God is greater, Our God is stronger, Our God is higher than any other, Our God is healer, Awesome in power. Our God. All because of a sacrifice made over 2000 years ago, all because  disciples that got to see the risen Lord listened and obeyed, all because others chose to follow and Judson stood on the hills of Pagan, and the Johnsons and the Hosacks packed up their belongings and moved to Asia, all because every one kept putting one foot in front of the other even when the walls showed no sign of giving way and chorus of "Our God is Greater," could not be heard, they kept/keep going. 

I know this Easter weekend many of you have been faithful Christ followers for many years and the journey has not been easy and when you look in the pew beside you there are still people missing.  People, family, entire nations, communities, you have been on your knees for for so long yet,  and the walls around them don't show any sign of crumbling, keep putting one foot in front of the other. With every step and every prayer you are removing obstacles, you're stomping down the garbage and the dangerous stuff, you're clearing the way; you're being obedient. It is finished. The light will come. One day we'll stand in the light together till then, keep on trucking. 

God desires that all men should be saved and come to the knowledge of the truth. I Timothy 2:4. 

Thank Him and Praise Him and Remember ever step that was taken to get to you so you could get to Him. Sing at the top of your lungs this weekend, Our God is greater, Our God is stronger. Our God is higher than any other. Our God is healer. Awesome in power. Our God. Our God. Because this is true. 

Supporter Saturday: Featuring the Cutest!

                                                                               Today's featured supporter is probably the cutest of them all!  He's also probably the youngest of them all!He's pretty funny too, I sent him a thank you for his generosity and he sent me back a message saying, "No problem, but I'm going to have to go to public school now!"- Kellan  I figure his really cool parents have something to do with his generous spirit.  His mama and I go way back, like elementary school way back.

 This is the oldest online pic I could find of us. She supported me when I wanted to wear my hair like this and now when I want to share Jesus with the world! I'm miffed about the first one, but extremely grateful for the second one.                                                                                             Pretty proud of our quarter of a century old friendship, there are very few people in life who will turn out to be forever friends. Yep! All those people who signed off their notes, BFF, GFF, or FF are just a bunch of liars! (Sorry Jr. Highers!) But if you hang in there though, it's pretty sweet to have support system for the rough times life may throw at'cha! A huge perk being they need no back story! I mean we'll be friends forever, we know too much and it'd take a lifetime to catch someone else up!  Some other perks are the great times like annual Christmas dinners, when they take you on vacation to their beach house, let you play with their super cute kid, and support your mission's habit, just to name a few! Seriously though, if you can hang in there, getting old is a bit easier and a lot more fun when the person you're sitting next to is the same one you jumped on the trampoline with, discovered warp zones with, braved Jr. High with, and owned high school with! Very grateful for the continued support of my forever friend! 

Thanks Lynds! I mean, Kellan! Kellan, I hope one day you'll have a forever friend like me and your mama! Sorry about public school! But we went to public school and we turned out just fine! Just do everything we did! And in case you're wondering what that is, when we weren't studying or excelling in sports, we spent a lot of time in prayer and Bible study! 

Supporter Saturday: Featuring Lauren Spengler

"There once was a girl who had a little curl, right in the middle of her forehead.  When she was good she was very, very good, when she was bad she was horrid."

I think they may have written this nursery rhyme about me! Unfortunately it's applied to my adult life more than my childhood! It definitely applied to my time as youth pastor. I was both an awesome youth pastor and a terrible one! Who hires a 21 year old, with no experience  to mold young minds and hearts?  A guy who knows he's going to resign in a few weeks, that's who! ha! We survived 6 years and when I look at the life of today's featured supporter, Lauren, I think I may have done a few things right.

Lauren was only 10, when I arrived at Englewood and was always a fixture in my life there! Always serving, always the first to show up to help and the last to leave. I'm going to guess that in 6 years she missed less than 6 preservice prayer meetings, youth services, or outreach opportunities. She continues this life of serving to this day! At the end of every service we would open up the altars and the band would continue to play so if anyone wanted to continue to pray or worship they could.  Lauren always stayed.  As a matter of fact, she always made a bee line for the right hand corner of the sanctuary underneath the balcony where a little artificial tree sat, she would always kneel and pray there. I tried to explain to her we don't worship trees, but the behavior continued! So to this day she sends me texts and emails and stuff signed, "your little tree worshipper!"

I shake my head and smile every month when I see her name on my contributors sheet because I know it's a sacrifice for her. She teaches at a church daycare, so I know she can't be making much more than minimum wage, yet each month she gives. I figure she's working a full day each month just to hand over that day's  pay to me!! Her giving humbles me, it encourages me, it drives me to work harder, and represent her well here in Thailand! Plus, she's a reminder to me that even though there were many, many mistakes made in my tenure as youth pastor, that God still blessed my efforts and brought good out of them! And 10 years after leaving youth ministry, I still see fruit from that ministry in Lauren's life! God is pretty cool like that!

Thank you Lauren! I appreciate you and am so proud of the young woman you have grown up to be!

Mac N' Cheese

Before Niah was even able to talk, which I'm not sure I remember when that was since she's just shy of her 3rd birthday with the vocabulary of a 30 year old, she's known what she wanted and how to let you know about it! And I LOVE that about her! (I actually love everything about her!)
** Being so far away from her and Malachi is a million times worse than fundraising by the way!

Anyway, on this particular night, we were all out in the front yard and Cara asked Matthew what he wanted for dinner, before he could utter a suggestion, Niah yells, "Mac n Cheese!"  So, of course, Mac n Cheese it was for Niah! Vocab and negotiation skills like that at 22 months old had to be rewarded!

Tonight, still a bit sick, it came time to eat dinner and if you'd have asked me what I wanted I would've shouted quickly like Niah, "Mac N Cheese!" But that's not exactly something I can go pick up from a street vender here! (I actually have a box of it that I look at longingly every once in awhile, but I don't have a way to cook it in my hotel room! So, I'd have to walk up to the church and cook it and come back and I wasn't feeling up to that challenge tonight!) My heart sank a bit, (I know it sounds dumb, but I don't feel good and I was bummed!) but I pulled some things out of my fridge and was going to make the best of it. Then the phone rang.

"Hey this is Chanda, we just made some some Jumbalya and Mac N' Cheese would you want some of that?"

"Ummm, yes, please!"

I smiled, because I knew God was showing me He cared about the little things.

Who knew James 1:17 was about mac n cheese?  Every good and perfect gift is from above!
 Just like Matthew and Cara knew how to give Niah a good gifts, my Father in heaven takes care of me here in Thailand! Matthew 7:11

Chris and Chanda thanks so much for being so Spirit led and good to me!!! :)

Supporter Saturday! Featuring: Summit Park Church

As a missionary, I've been in nearly a constant state of fundraising since 2009.  Most missionaries will tell you that asking for money is the least favorite part of their job, it's not though, getting REJECTED or worse yet, IGNORED when you ask for money is! Hee! Hee! Not really,  it's tough, but it's definitely not the toughest thing we missionaries attempt! Plus, there's a fundraising UPSIDE.  Yes, when people give it's WONDERFUL, but for ME the upside is WHO gives!

I am constantly encouraged, humbled, strengthened, brought to tears, grins, and to my knees in thanks over the beautiful names that appear on my monthly supporter statement! Some date back to childhood, many are other missionaries, best friends, pastors I've known my whole life or never even met, people I've met along the way on the field, family, former co-workers, friend's parents, kids from my youth ministry days, churches in California, Ohio, Tennessee, Illinois, seriously, it's SO COOL!!!! 

I've wanted to do this for awhile and I can't promise I'll get to it every Saturday, but consider this my start to letting you know my supporters and how much I appreciate them! Join me in prayer for them! 

Today, a HUGE shout out goes to Pastor Scott Obremski and Summit Park Church.

I met Scott O in 1997 at Central Bible College. He went on to James River Assembly of God to pioneer a Master's Commission Program and I went on to Independence, Missouri to youth pastor. Scott brought his Master's Commission team up to KC to minister to my students every year. One of HIS students is now my pastor at North Point Church, Troy Hartman and one of MY students, Shaun, went through his master's commission program, joined my youth staff, and married one of my other youth staff, Kylee and they now attends his church plant! Talk about full circle!  Love this and love each of them!

Have I mentioned I love church planters!?  Church planters understand missions, church planters are outward focused, willing to give until it hurts, willing to invest at a deeper level! Most of my top givers are churches planted in the last 3 years! Summit Park has proven all this and more about church planters. They're still unloading and loading up all the equipment ever Sunday as they meet in a community center, they're still VOLUNTEERING a lot of their own time, money, and resources! They have a lot of needs and visions they still want to see met!  But I called in need and they answered, actually I emailed and they answered with a check! 

I had itemized three budget items that were going to increase as I returned to Thailand:

Housing $200 more a month

Language School $150 a month

Motorcycle $1200 or $100 a month

I asked about 30 pastors around the US if they could cover just one month of one need. 

Summit Park responded with, "We'll take care of the motorcycle."  And they did!



 And God has multiplied their efforts as not only was I able to use the motorcycle of another missionary for the cost of use and expenses, ALL my in country travel expenses, cars, buses, planes, fuel, song taos, tuk tuks, and maybe even elephants are COVERED because Summit Park was willing to give, willing to bless.  I told Scott yesterday that I'm going to name the motorcycle Summit because that's exactly what I want to see happen here in Thailand, I want Christ to be raised to the highest summit, the apex, in the hearts and lives of the beautiful people of Thailand. And I told him by default, it's last name will be PARK-ed because I'll constantly be saying, "where is Summit parked!?" 

I have a huge heart still for Kansas City and the hundreds of students that came through our doors at Englewood Ministries and I am so glad that Pastor Scott O and his family and Summit Park church are there! Praying God will bless them and use them in ways we can't even imagine! If you're in KC and don't have a church home! Go check them out and tell them thanks from their missionary friend in Thailand!

Going for a motorcycle ride!

The Lantern Festival

Loi Krathong (see previous blog) is coupled with a Lanna festival in which hot air, floating lanterns are released into the night sky in order to earn merit by Buddhists.

My students took me to several different celebrations surrounding this and I LOVED it! Fireworks and street foods and carnival games are all part of the festivities. Thankful for my students who let me be a part of this really, really cool holiday!

 Here's the lantern lift off! you can see it for miles! Unfortunately I was still a half mile away when they launched! #fail However, we later found poppers and sparklers and I taught them out to appropriately use both.  Of course the appropriate use of poppers is to throw them at the feet of your unsuspecting friends! This backfired on me as my feet seemed to be the prime target AND once I got home and a box had spilled in my purse and I dropped my purse to the floor and thought I was being gunned down in a drive by!

I taught them how to "write" with sparklers! We only spent about 20 minutes trying to get this photo!

The whole night was pretty amazing!

 If you like dried fish or pork balls or street sushi or guinea foul to snack on then this is the festival for you!





I spent a little too much time and money at the shoot'em over game, but my students got many laughs from my failed attempts.  To say we had a great time together would be an understatement! As a matter of fact on the way home one of my students said, "My cheeks hurt from smiling so much tonight!" Success!

Here are just a few more pics of our evening! Happy Loi Krathong!