I wonder what type of student Jesus was. Knowing practically nothing of his youth (because first century concepts of biography differed considerably from our 20th and 21st century psychology-dominated concepts of biography), we have to guess at what that education consisted of. Training in the Scriptures leading to his welcoming into the Jewish community at… Continue reading The Good News in Schools
Category: Partners
Necessary Evils
I have learned and maintained over years of experience in a variety of vocational fields that meetings are a necessary evil. At best they accomplish some imperfect good. At worst they are a perfect waste of time. I like to think this attitude is not evil in itself, though I’m sure there are folks who… Continue reading Necessary Evils
Blessings in Baguio
On February 28th I winged my way eastward, from Medan to Kuala Lumpur and on to Manila. There I met my colleague, Rev. (and soon to be Dr.!) JP Cima. JP and his family have served in Cambodia for the past seven years after spending a decade working in Vietnam. But through the middle of… Continue reading Blessings in Baguio
Oh, the People You’ll Meet!
I had the opportunity to meet an unexpected visitor this week! A few weeks ago I received an e-mail from a man at one of our first supporting congregations, Peace Lutheran Church Camarillo. Our connections with this congregation go way back – to my first pastoral Call just out of seminary. I was called to… Continue reading Oh, the People You’ll Meet!
Renewing Old Connections
My wife was born in Papua New Guinea where her parents served in LCMS missions. I’ve been hearing their family stories about that formative decade overseas for over 30 years now, 20 of them as part of the family by marriage. And one of the recurring characters in those stories were their teammates on the… Continue reading Renewing Old Connections
Orienting Change
December began with a trip back to the Philippines. Normally I don’t go there this time of year but there is a special occasion – an introductory orientation trip for a missionary new to Asia but not to the mission field. Rev. Dr. Walter Steele and his wife Robyn will be transitioning from the Africa… Continue reading Orienting Change
New Year, New Responsibilities
Work on the mission field is always in flux. At times I’m surprised that, after close to a century doing ministry work in Southeast Asia we lack things that seem basic and obvious, more extensive systems to capture the work being done and connect it with previous work and future work. Part of this is… Continue reading New Year, New Responsibilities
Reconnecting in KL
For those who live and work and travel in Southeast Asia, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia is just KL. Short and sweet, despite the sprawling massiveness of the city. This is my portal to the rest of Southeast Asia and I know the airport almost better than the shape of my house in Medan. This time, because… Continue reading Reconnecting in KL
Growth in Hanoi
We were blessed to have time in Hanoi this past week, providing care & support to the staff and leadership of Concordia International School Hanoi (CISH). This time we were blessed to participate in several larger staff events, allowing us to have more focused time in conversation with different people. One of these events was… Continue reading Growth in Hanoi
Isaac*
Today we met with Isaac (not his real name). Isaac is a refugee living in Medan. He has been here seven years awaiting sponsorship to his desired country – Canada. He was away from his home two years prior to arriving in Indonesia. He left a wife behind in his home country, a country where… Continue reading Isaac*
