Gregg and Margaret Jennings

James Get's Lubed

2010-09-01T09:32:00.000-07:00

Followed by more misadventures of Kasaan in timeout.

Finding Nemo

2010-08-02T15:46:00.000-07:00

The pursuit of a father to embrace his son while watching together in wonder the beauty of creation.

The New House

2009-07-21T19:40:00.000-07:00

Yeah so I promise to get some new shots of the house. This one doesn't really show off the...anything...I'll get some better ones.

And My Heart Beats for You

2009-07-21T19:34:00.000-07:00

Greg Focker here, male nurse, checking his vitals. All clear. Mommy the nurse has gotten to him before daddy the preacher. My work tools just aren't as gadgety fun!

Our Garden

2009-07-21T19:22:00.001-07:00

At the end of March we planted our first garden. Our wonderful neighbors gave us the land to use and we have had so much fun. It has been hard work for Margaret and I in different areas. Me with the weeds and the planting and her with the canning and the blanching. But its been a great experience.

We planted cucumbers, onions, rutabaga, romaine, radishes, cabbage, zucchini, yellow squash, green peppers, beans, egg plant, tomatoes, corn, cantaloupe, watermelon, pumpkins and red potatoes.

With Farmer Kasaan's special gardening magic our little field turned into a money saving, feast.

Kasaan Armstrong

2009-07-21T19:20:00.001-07:00

Aunt Kathy's

2009-04-22T11:42:00.000-07:00

There are few places in our little world that provide as much love, joy, and indulgence as Aunt Kathy's house. Let me explain-if you have kids do you know that one house you go to and as soon as you walk in the friends or family just wants to love on you and your kids in whatever way possible? That is Kathy! Kasaan loves hanging out with his cousins over there but most importantly he loves tuties (Cookies) that he gets there! Life is good for the Jennings, at least now that Kathy is close.

Our Colorful Little Boy

2009-04-20T12:34:00.000-07:00

OK--so this is the beginning of a new beginning for us. I'm attempting to blog and work. I was so good at blogging when I was just a student. I promise to keep up. We are doing great and loving being in Virginia. We miss our dear friends all over the place but we can't wait for you to come and visit us in our new home. We'll get some pics up soon. Love you all!

gregg

Kasaan and Cousins

2008-12-17T07:40:00.000-08:00

Virginia is for Lovers

2008-12-17T07:20:00.000-08:00

Bird, Kasaan and I flew to Virginia last week to interview to serve at Commonground Christian Church in Fredricksburg, VA. The weekend was amazing. We knew we were in the right place with each new conversation. A couple days after flying home we were offered the job and with glad hearts we accepted. It is hard to believe that we will be leaving our dear friends and especially those we have made at Harbor of Hope. We will be moving the first week in January and will be starting down there soon after. The church is 50 minutes from Bird's family and for that we could not be more excited. Just to see Kasaan play with all his cousins last week, people who love him so much was the best thing for us.

Please pray for us as we transition. For those of you who know us well...this chance to serve God is what we have been preparing for for years. Pray that God will give us wisdom to be used radically for him. Commonground is a young church with tons of vision. Vision for mission, vision for the hurting. It could not be a better fit for all of us. Thank you God.

Bird took the pic of this church just minutes from our house here in Lawrence.

Happy Birthday Kasaan!

2008-11-19T07:53:00.000-08:00

On November 17th Kasaan turned one year old. Don't let the smile fool you. He wouldn't go in the tunnel for anything.

I don't know why but anytime Veggie Tales is on the DVD the dude goes nuts. He loves Bob and Larry. So Margaret not only made an amazing cake she also put together an amazing menu filled with Asian noodles, Spinach dip, I made iced lattes, we had home made cookies, cupcakes, and an amazing fruit tart.

So many of Kasaan's friends came over but his best friend Emma who lives with us in the house had no problem showing him what to do with that cake. I could not believe it. Margaret spent so much time perfecting Bob and Larry and then when we put the thing in front of him he wouldn't touch it. Grandma Jennings would be proud. NO SUGAR!! He literally didn't know what to do with it. He hated the feel of it on his hands and the chocolate you see on his lips is from us trying to encourage him that it was the most delicious thing he had ever put in his mouth. Anyway the kid loves Italian he loves meat, he loves yogurt and this cake stuff is too much. Honestly he didn't eat one bite. So I gave him a doughnut so he could fit in with Emma. The chocolate that you see on him was mostly from Emma giving him some love pats.

So many of our friends came over the celebrate with us. We had a limbo contest, we had an apple bobbing contest and we had a cider doughnut eating contest. It was a great day. Kasaan would like to say thanks to all who helped make his day so special.
This kid is just happy to see all his friends. We had so much fun and he better not forget it. Ha!

Baby Steps

2008-11-12T11:37:00.000-08:00

It has been a long time since I have written from my heart. Not that the posts over the last year have been mindless babble but more that I have been guarded and not allowed my words to be vulnerable. It has been a hard year for family and I truly believe I am learning to walk at the same time as Kasaan. As he moves away from the couch and into the center of the room I am moving away from the infancy of my own closed mind. There was once a man in me who knew how to drink deep of the morrow of life. The last couple years, I admittedly have forgotten how to walk. Maybe its the accusation to Paul in me, "too much study has made you mad." Maybe it's the cold of Boston or maybe, just maybe its a weak theology of joy. I have allowed things to be too serious too often. I am guilty of too much advocacy and have neglected the simple things. Baby steps I'm telling you. Back to the laughter, back to the jokes, back to the smiles. When I was 18 months old I was diagnosed with spinal meningitis and had to learn how to walk all over again as a toddler. The last 4 years have taken a different kind of toll on my body and here I find myself learning to walk all over again. Walking in laughter. Taking myself way less serious. Trusting God's work and taking my little ministry way less serious. And if my progress truly is in line with Kasaan's physical abilities; I'll be running by summer.

Drumlin Farm!

2008-11-07T07:35:00.000-08:00

Thanks to some of our great friends we had a fabulous day at Drumlin Farm. A farm where injured wild animals are brought to get rehibilitated and then sent back into the wild. Brian and Andrea Cutler work there and made our visit so speical . They took us back stage to see a giant turtle, a rabbit, and a skunk. We had so much fun. Oh my the Owls. How beautiful. That was our favorite animal. Oh yeah, one more great shot from Halloween.

Walking? What!

2008-11-07T07:26:00.000-08:00

This kid has been walking every day for the last two weeks and he is so proud of himself. He you see him carrying his little lamb (which we named David) back to mommy. A little game of fetch. I throw David on the bed, you walk to him get him and walk him back to me. He is loving it. It also helps with sleep at night. By 7 o'clock his is so tired.

In and around Halloween!

2008-11-07T06:57:00.001-08:00

Bird turned 23 on September 17th and we decided to celebrate at our new favorite restaurant. Italian of course. We had such a great day. We hiked Mt. Monadnock, ate pancakes, and ate eggplant parm! So lately we have been figuring out what the heck are we going to do for money and so I started back up at Starbucks a couple of weeks ago. I'm enjoying the coffee shop but of course its not what the next 10 years hold for us. But for now its working. Bird started working in the ER at Lowell General and is doing that 3 days a week. I'm at the coffee shop the other three days and we are able to avoid childcare that way. It works for us. So one of Bird's best friends in the whole world flew in from Cali last week and they were able to spend a wonderful day together. Janelle Lemons was a part of Bird's Bible study at the seminary and they have something very special. Janelle celebrated Kasaan with us on Halloween as we took him to a local church to hang out.

Bird 100% made Kasaan's costume even down to sewing the name on the front and back of the jersey. If you've ever seen the Green Monster for the Boston Red Sox his name is Wally. Kasaan is our little green monster, born in Boston, and totally lovable. I'm was so amazed at Bird's skill--that girl can do anything with her hands. I wish I was half as artsy.

It was a wild day. By the grace of God we were saved from hitting a dear on the highway, we were 2 hours late to the Halloween party, we dropped Janelle off near Bunker Hill at a friends, so we just drove up to see the historic spot, I mean a jam packed day. And we loved it. Kasaan didn't love the party that much--the music was too loud and he didn't know any o the kids so he clung on to me for dear life. He's like that Monster from Monster's Inc. Totally spooked by stuff.

By the end of the night he was exhausted and fell asleep in the car. Good thing mom is not scared of little monsters she just scooped him up and put him to bed.

Catching up with Great Friends

2008-09-17T04:42:00.000-07:00

Anthony, Candy, and Isabelle Cravaritis were able to stop by for a quick visit while we were in Virginia. Anthony and I were on staff together at New Life Christian Church and roommates for a while before we both got married. Being able to see them and meet their sweet baby girl was huge highlight for us.

Uncle Eddie making Kasaan Feel Much Better

2008-09-17T04:38:00.000-07:00

Crabbing with Aunt Birdie

2008-09-17T04:37:00.000-07:00

Sick Boy

2008-09-17T04:32:00.000-07:00

Family Vacation!

2008-09-17T04:02:00.000-07:00

When you plan a trip to the beach all you think of is the tan, the breeze, the relaxation, the naps in the shade. Yes, we got all of that but we are parents now and you just can't plan for much anymore. With 13 people in a two bedroom beach house we crammed as much fun, games, food, and sun as you can in just a few days. Kasaan got to hang out with all his cousins on Bird's side including the newest addition, Eddie and Paula's son Mason. What an answer to prayers that kid is! Kasaan's first day on the beach he was as chill as we have ever seen him. We kept telling Kathy and mom, "This is not like Kasaan to be so cuddly."

That night he was up all night, screaming and keeping the whole house awake. The next day we took him to the ER where Bird was too sick to even come in...she slept in the car while KJ and I spent a couple hours in the hospital. It turned out that he had just the mouth part of hand, foot and mouth. He had big sores in the back of his throat and he was just miserable. Margaret was no better. She was exhausted and in tears with pain from a migraine. When we got home from the hospital I had two sick kids on my hands. Lois took great care of Bird and I did my best to care for Kasaan.

Oh wait it gets better. We left the beach on Sunday to go back to Northern Virginia from Delaware. It is normally a three hour drive but since it was my 31st birthday we were handed a different adventure. The Bay Bridge sits between the beach and home and on that Sunday morning there was a tracker trailer that went over the bridge. It was a horrible tragedy causing hours of delay. My entire birthday was spent in the car. 10 hours later we arrived at home just in time to go to bed. 10 hours int he car with a sick kid. Lilly was amazing though and she brought so much joy to all of us in the car.

The Maine thing about Acadia...

2008-08-27T17:32:00.000-07:00

Is being with our friends. My favorite thing in Maine was not the view from Cadillac Mountain or Jordan Pond (if you get to Acadia this is a must) but hearing the little ones squeal with laughter, watching them pick blueberries, and leaping on the rocks in the lake. Our neighbors are studying at GCTS from Korea and they are always looking to experience "American traditions". We have grown close to them and they have seen us at our worst as new parents, both of us in tears with no clue what to do next. I'm so thankful for their friendship, God's timing is always amazing, Yoori and I both needed a friend and he provided the perfect fit.

"Dad, I'll show you how to do this one!" This was such a fun trip for me. As a little girl my family went camping almost every summer. This was only Gregg's second camping trip and you would of thought he had grown up camping too. He made great fires morning and night and scouted the forest for fallen wood. The meals were amazing and our neighbors made one of our favorite Korean meals bulgogi. We realized Gregg's tent from his single days doesn't seem as big with his whole family now. He' s a quick learner (or it could of been our fat Rand McNally road map he found in the car as a fire starter). We had great fires morning and night and they were as Max always says, "hotter than blue blazes."

Kasaan's First Chicken Fight!

2008-08-25T14:24:00.000-07:00

It was really a David and Goliath story from the beginning that ended up being a disqualification on both children for not knowing the rules. Bird and I took a weekend trip up to Tilton, NH sometime in the last two month I really don't even know when it was but it was just the best. Our dear friends Julie and Alex live there and they invited us up for the weekend. We ate greasy pizza they took us to a great place or blueberry pancakes and then the whole Cutler family came up for a BBQ. Friends, relaxation, and water a great recipe for the Jennings.

We stayed at a mansion that sits on the Tilton Academy property. The old house combined with the beautiful gardens and small town feel was so nice.

Sometimes I have to pinch myself to see if I'm really living this dream. God has blessed me with such a beautiful wife and the world's happiest, smiliest, baby. But it is hard to tell this kid is still a baby. His personality has come into full bloom and he is all energy and all smiles.

Way behind we know, so we'll start where we left off: The 4th of July

2008-08-25T13:45:00.000-07:00

Living at the seminary would not have been half the experience it was without our wonderful neighbors. Today we had lunch with them on the hill but on the 4th of July we treated our friends Kwang and Yoori to a beautiful display of fireworks on the beach. Kasaan wasn't quite sure what to think of it all but we made some great memories.

I know this is a weird pic to love but holding our son close as he was a little trembly was really special. He relaxed in my arms and enjoyed the fire in the sky.

Kwang and Yoori's girls Hannah and Yannah screamed for joy as they saw the night sky light up. We had such a good time!

Mommy's Canvas

2008-06-16T20:15:00.000-07:00

Bird has always been amazing at creating art out of just everyday stuff. So many of the things in our house or on our Christmas Tree have been her creations. As Kasaan gets older it looks like he is going to have his dad's crazy hair. When others would see this as an opportunity to mourn and wail, Bird saw it as an opportunity for art.

30 Hour Famine

2008-06-16T20:06:00.000-07:00

I could not be more proud of our students. 15 teens raised a combined total of $3,700 dollars to help fight global "hungy". Unfortunately that is my handwriting and not Livy's. My grandpa would have said, "Buy you books and buy you books and what do you know?" Olivia laughed so hard at my mistake she absolutely loved it. She stood out in the rain for over an hour, advertising to the world that we are doing our part to make a difference. Even if we don't know how to spell.

In Case of Brain Farts.

2008-06-16T19:58:00.000-07:00

The Underground Family

2008-06-13T03:46:00.000-07:00

Last night at youth group was one of the most difficult nights of our life. For nearly four years we have served the students of Harbor and have loved each one of the students for who they are. We have seen kids grow to teens and skeptics grow into disciples. Bird and I have made the tough decision to move from Boston and telling the students last night was almost more than I could take. Until moving to New England I had never done student ministry before and I have such a respect and gratitude for the role and for these kids. They have taught me so much over the years and I love them so much. Last night through tears and sobs one of our girls said, "Gregg you can't go...you are like my third dad." She made us all laugh and we needed that release. So with the five weeks we have left with these guys we have decided to make the most of it. Lunches, movies, barbecues, swim parties, hang out, laugh, live, and love. Thank you Underground for making our life over the last 4 years such a joy!

One Smiley Baby!

2008-05-29T07:52:00.000-07:00

Kasaan just never stops smiling. He loves people so much and finds so much joy in being around new and exciting faces.

Rice Cereal Yum/Yuk?

2008-05-13T17:15:00.000-07:00

Not Your Average Joe's

2008-05-13T17:12:00.000-07:00

With the G-Rents!

2008-05-13T17:10:00.000-07:00

Reading Some New Books!

2008-05-13T17:08:00.000-07:00

Among Friends!

2008-05-13T17:04:00.000-07:00

Our Little Family

2008-05-13T16:57:00.000-07:00

Graduation 2008!

2008-05-13T16:41:00.000-07:00

After 3 1/2 years of classes, one mission to Spain, a 45 page dissertation, church-wide prayers to get me through Greek and Hebrew, the diploma's are finally in hand. Praise be to God to my three biggest encouragements throughout the entire process. If it weren't for my wonderful wife and my amazing parents I never would have been able to get here. The ceremony was Christ-Centered just like our education, and we all enjoyed it. I never thought it would be here but wow, what a feeling to be done. Thanks to anyone and everyone who encouraged me along the way, who prayed for us and who supported us.

Welcome Grandpa and Grandma Jennings

2008-05-08T08:34:00.000-07:00

I'm just sitting here waiting for you guys! I really don't care about Daddy's graduation I just want to see you. So welcome back to Boston--don't worry I'm really a Cardinals fan, the hat is just so the other kids don't laugh at me!
Love, Kasaan

2008-04-30T06:46:00.000-07:00

I'm not sure why but Kasaan has hated church. On Good Friday I heard him yelling outside the sanctuary while I was preaching and could barely go on knowing that my kid was screaming. Of course everything was fine he just wanted to eat more but when it's your kid things are just different. However, the last couple Sunday's he has been great. He is sleeping less and that helps out with his happy attitude, not having to go down in my office. Here he is a couple weeks ago, happy as a lark.

Guess Who's Five Months?

2008-04-16T11:04:00.000-07:00

Tomorrow will be April 17th. The taxes are done, Margaret is done with classes for the semester, the New England sun is shining, and Kasaan is 5 months old. What a joy this little guy has been. Life for us has been somewhat normal the last few weeks. Margaret has started a new nursing job. She works one day a week in Gloucester and she really likes it. I'm so proud of her for getting this job. Lots of nurses applied for it but they hired the best one. My jobs are going just fine. Starbucks continues to be a great environment for me to work and Harbor of Hope has seen some great things of God since Easter. So I guess you can say we are doing great. We are eager for the warm weather. We scheduled our first picnic coming up soon and my parents come out on the 8th of May for my graduation. We are looking forward to a great few weeks.

Easter Thoughts.

2008-03-22T20:12:00.000-07:00

Creeping behind our curtain, tomorrow morning, the sun will shine on my face and wake me up. The last two days this has been the case. I love that feeling. Tomorrow as the sun wakes me up it will be Easter. The last several months for us have been very difficult. Baby, school, work, marriage, family, friends, faith, sleep depravity, so many things we have faced we have never had to deal with before. But tomorrow morning I will wake up with the sun on my face. After the sun wakes me up I have two plans. First I'm going to roll over and glance at my beautiful bride...still sleeping of course. When I look at her, since the SON rose up on Easter I know everything is going to be just fine. Bird is the love of my life and the resurrection of Jesus gives us so much hope in marriage, as a spouse we are asked to sacrifice continually for one another...with Easter it is good to know that our sacrifice does not end in death. In marriage the sacrifice does not end it death, it ends in more joy. So as I glance, I will be reminded to keep on sacrificing and to keep on growing as a husband. I've learned that it does end in life...not death.

Secondly, I'm going to walk into Kasaan's room and sing. There is something about Easter that puts a song in my heart. There is something about that kid that makes me want to weep with love. I'm going to sing him a song tomorrow morning. I'm not sure what will come out...up from the grave he arose, or Handel's Hallelujah Chorus, or Christ the Lord is risen today...who knows what will come out...maybe my own little chorus of made up mumblings...."I love you and you are my son, you are beautiful and today is Easter and because its Easter I can love you even more and you never never never never have to die! And I'm going to be your dad for ever and ever and ever and even when we are dead we will be together....who knows what will come out. But I will sing him a song nonetheless. The resurrection of Christ offers me the hope that this kid does not have to die. Christ's defeat of death offers him a life beyond his own. A life not made for this world. This week as I have been pondering what the Cross means to me one day I was doing dishes and Kasaan was playing in the living room. Bird was running some errands and I looked over my shoulder at him playing in perfect peace. Nothing special, just a 2 foot colorful alligator, soft yellow duck and a fluffy bear, in that moment the cross, the tomb, my understanding of love to the point of tears, it all hit me. I would be willing to walk across fire for the life of this little boy. Walk across fire for this little boy. And as I soaped another plate it hit me. "Gregg, I would be willing to walk across fire for you, my little boy. And I have. And now it is over, it is finished, I have purchased you back from the Kingdom of Satan and you are free."

Easter to me is the greatest day out of the year. It is joy, life, love, freedom, hope, and peace. May we take the time to see it everyday....may we take the time to see the love.

Family Photo Shoot

2008-03-12T16:35:00.000-07:00

Peter Christian's Tavern

2008-03-12T16:16:00.000-07:00

Don't you just love it, when you go on a trip and you have to pull off the road for lunch somewhere in the middle of nowhere, and that little lunch spot ends up being an absolute gem! On our way to celebrate our 4th anniversary last week in Burlington, VT, we stopped off in New London, NH for what we thought would be Subway or Burger King, what we got was just the most beautiful little restaurant not in Europe. The lighting, the food, the rustic tavern look, not trashy but Old English. If you can't tell by my writing it has been a while since we've had a vacation. Maybe that's it...any place might have been so wonderful.

But really we had a great time, spending two and a half days in Vermont celebrating our marriage. Burlington was full of great food and great walks. Our last night there though Kasaan melted down around 4 PM. We realized we should just head back to the hotel which ended up being just as great. We ordered pizza and watched a movie. I've just realized something...each March for our Anniversary or Honeymoon we have spent in New England. I'll have to do something a bit more special next year with the big 5th year looming.

Baby Dedication

2008-03-12T16:08:00.000-07:00

On March 2nd we had the joy of dedicating Kasaan unto the Lord. What relief to know that God has created us to live inside the church who is willing to teach, train, and model the life of Christ. We feel privileged to raise Kasaan along side the beautiful people of Harbor of Hope. As a church they promised to encourage Bird and I, model Christan faith, and to teach and train Kasaan in the Lord. What could else could a couple of parents want?

Not much new.

2008-02-27T05:55:00.000-08:00

The last few weeks have been so much fun with Kasaan. On Monday night for example we were on our way out to dinner and he had been so good we were like, "Lets skip the dinner grab fast food and go see a movie." Clearly we were aware of the risks involved in taking a 3 month old into a film but we were willing. He woke up a couple times but other than that he was awesome. Things are really good on our end...this Sunday Kasaan is going to be dedicated at our church. We are excited about that. I'll never forget the days after he was born simply praying back to God this wonderful gift that he had given me. I didn't feel like I was worthy of him or capable of training him. The Lord has given us strength to raise him so far and we are excited about the commitments the church will give us on Sunday to help raise Kasaan in the LORD.

Bird is still very tired. Her class is going well and our schedule is working out just fine for me to be home with Kasaan.

HAPPY VALENTINE'S DAY: Puppy Love

2008-02-14T10:50:00.000-08:00

The Jennings Trio would like to wish yout he warmest Valentine's Day. We stayed in last night and made Eggplant Parmesian (our new favorite thanks to Momma Byrne). Today was wicked cold out but it was so sunny that we just had to go out for a walk. Kasaan was sim

ply adorable in his puppy hat.

I also want to take a second to say thanks to everyone who has been praying for Kasaan's breathing. He gave us all a huge scare a few weeks ago but nothing has gone bad since.

Bird and I are doing well still tryin to adjust to our new family, school, work, life, blah blah blah. It is amazing how intential you have to be when you fill your schedule with non family stuff, to let yourself just "BE" a family.

Anyway, Happy Valentine's to a family that loves you!

David

2008-02-10T19:15:00.000-08:00

I realize its been a while since we've blogged and we wanted to get keep everyone posted on what is going on. My sister Heather sent Kasaan a lamb blanket which we named David. It's really cute and we love it. Life for us has been hard to explain. The last three months have been some of the most challenging of our lives. However at the same time they have brought us unmeasurable joy.

Kasaan has finally dropped into a pretty predictible daily pattern and we feel he knows and trusts us completely. He is smiling a lot and just loves life.

Birdy is 2 courses this semester but they are both considered 1/2 classes. So really she only has 1 course worth of work. She is so happy to have all her work from last semester finished and turned in. Since Kasaan was born in the middle of her semester they gave her until last Monday to turn it all in.

I'm working 3 days at Starbucks and 3 days at the Harbor of Hope. I have found it to work out really good for us as a family.

This is a picture of our son enjoying his Choo Choo Mobile. He is totally mesmorized by it. Every time we turn it on he just loves it.

And in case you were wondering New England weather is still depressing. We had a white out today for like 20 minutes....a complete blizzard and then fog, wind, depression, depression for those of you who live here or have lived here, enough said.

All Smiles After a Scary Night

2008-01-28T17:57:00.000-08:00

Last Thursday night with Bird sleeping, I went in to check on Kasaan. Knowing now that everything is OK it is still tough to get the image out of my mind. Although he was sleeping well his color was pale and grey. My heart sank and I picked him up to make sure that he was alright. He responded immediately with stretching and then hunger cries like everything was just normal. However for Bird and I we needed to make sure that everything was going to be find. We went directly to Beverly Hospital and they kept Kasaan for two days running all kinds of tests to make sure that his oxygen levels were fine. We came home on Saturday with no answers definite answers but we feel confident that he is healthy and in God's hands.

Circumstances this week have been very difficult but through it we have seen God work amazing joy in our lives. Joy that sleep depravity sometimes snuffs out. Thanks to anyone who had heard about Kasaan and was praying. God has answered.

"Oh My Tom Brady...."

2008-01-23T15:18:00.000-08:00

"The Pats are #1"

A Little Tummy Time on the Boppy

"Oh My Tom Brady...yah kid is wicked cute...kinda like my Tom Brady"
This is what Bird hear's everytime she's at Market Basket.

Kasaan wanted to send a shout out to all you friends and family.
"Coooooooo"

Kasaan sportin' the Ilinni Orange...with some drool.

Comfortable in the arms of The Sims

2008-01-05T07:43:00.000-08:00

Jason and Krista Sims were some of our best friends in New England. When they got married Krista had just moved up from Fairfax VA and Margaret and her were like a couple of Southern Peas in a pod. Jason and I went to Gordon-Conwell and church together. Last year they moved to Atlanta to explore the next season in their life and we have missed them greatly. They were the first couple we told we were pregnant and over Christmas, back in Fairfax, we were able to reunite. Kasaan loved being held by both of them and Bird and I cherished the moments we had together.

2008-01-03T14:40:00.000-08:00

Awake or asleep Bird's family loved Kasaan to the last minute. We had a wonderful time back in Bird's home in Virginia. We saw our wonderful friends Jason and Krista Sims. If only we were able to spend more time with them. We miss you so much. We also got to see Brian and Brandi--we went to see 'My Fair Lady' at the Kennedy Center and loved every minute we were able to spend with them.

Kasaan sure took a liking to his family. Aunts, Uncles, Cousins, Great-Grandpa's and Great-Grandma's every one got a chance to hug and squeeze our precious gift. Kasaan is growing in his 7th week on this earth. Every day he learns more and more. What a joy!

Sorry Dad for the purple blanket. Its all we had in Virginia. Not very manly huh? It seemed like Ed (Bird's Dad) had the magic touch. He sure loves his family. What a trip. Kasaan did great.

Reading the Bible as a Church.

2007-12-19T20:35:00.000-08:00

"I am because We are." These are the words of John Mbiti, in his explanation of African Christianity, Culture and life. What can we learn from just one quote?

I wanted to put my paper on our blog for you to read. I hope you enjoy, think, critique, and contemplate the ideas in paper. It is my belief that African churches are on to something so important in the idea of Congregational Interpretation that we would be foolish not incorporate it in our churches. Its so easy and the benefits are numerous. I hope you enjoy the paper. I would be eager to talk with any of you more on the issue. The picture is John Mbiti, one of the most pioneering African Biblical Scholars.

Shalom,

Gregg

Exploring African Hermeneutics to Influence American Homiletics.

2007-12-19T05:57:00.000-08:00

The era of Western Theological dominance is just about over. This does not imply that we have had a bad reign, or that we will not see ripples of Western theology over the next century of global biblical scholarship. By the reign being over, we simply mean that there has been a major shift in the last 25 years towards a much more two thirds world flavor of Christianity. The false missiological concept of the ‘west to win the rest’ has proved just as much a failure as its earlier cousin ‘colonialism’. To use an idea from Samuel Escobar missions in the 21st century is no longer the gospel coming from the west to other places around the globe. We are recognizing that the gospel is going from everywhere to everywhere. [1]

With this shift Africa has become, next to Latin America, the most densely populated Christian continent. By 1985, Africa was seeing over 16,000 conversions to Christ a day. This gave them over 6 million conversions a year. This revival has not slowed down and by the year 2025 Africa may have close to 500 million believers making it the most Christian continent. Lamin Sanneh points out that simultaneously in the west people are walking away from the Christian faith at 4,000 people per day.[2]

No longer can we only look at Africa as a place of mindless voodoo and ancestor worship, but rapidly Africa has become one of the most evangelized places in the world. This truth is no more evident than in the story told by an older woman in Ireland. She says that when she was a little girl growing up the missionaries told her to “give her pennies to save little boys in Africa. She then goes on to say, “Those little boys have grown up and are now coming to Europe to save me.”[3] Africans are developing theologies as well as highly skilled biblical scholars, and we in the West need to be ready to listen.

Sanneh also points out that, “One major factor (to the growth of African Christianity) is how this expansion has taken place after colonialism and during a period of national awakening. Perhaps colonialism was an obstacle to the growth of Christianity, so that when colonialism ended it removed a stumbling block.”[4] What this tells us is that the seed of Christianity has taken root in an African context and that seed is growing, not only in the area of massive conversions but also in the areas of theology and hermeneutics.

No longer are Africans faceless actors on the stage of biblical scholarship. They have become main actors and they have earned our attention. “We still see the West as the ecclesiastical center of the world, even though the vast majority of Christians are located elsewhere. What African’s or Asian Christians are doing and writing seems so marginal to us, and it penetrates our own theological discussion only in a vague, ephemeral way.”[5] Tennent is arguing to allow these voices to come into our thinking, our preaching, and our ecclesiology. If we are truly going to be ecumenical, democratic and dare I say Christian, we need to, not only listen to the voices of church history when it comes to our own hermeneutics but also to the voices of Global Christianity and in particular Africa.

If we are going to be responsible pastors, we need to listen to what the African church is saying and teaching. As we learn from our brothers we will become more and more in awe of the amazing God we are proclaiming. “As preachers of the gospel, we ignore this shift to our peril. We can no longer afford to preach in a way which assumes that the Western church represents normative Christianity and everything else is the ‘mission field’. Today we must allow our preaching to become more globally minded and to acknowledge regularly the global context in which we now live.[6] Tennent is right, only in the sense that globalization has forced the preacher to be more sensitive to other cultures and contexts. However, it is my belief that our preaching not only needs to become more globally minded, but globally shaped. Our preaching needs to become more balanced between exegeting the text and exegeting our audience and our African brothers and sisters have much to teach us, if we would only listen.

There is nothing more arrogant than for a pastor than to think that he has the market on biblical interpretation. Unfortunately this is what many pastors have been taught in the Western forms of hermeneutics. Many scholars and pastors in the West have concluded that the historical-critical method of hermeneutics is a universal imperative and that no other forms of biblical interpretation are worthy of our time and attention. This simply is not the case. “No culture is so advanced and so superior that it can claim exclusive access or advantage to the truth of God, and none so marginal or inferior that it can be excluded. All have merit. None are indispensible.”[7] In basic terms, Sanneh is saying that Western hermeneutics with its scientific theory and with its historical-critical excess does very little for Africans in their churches. He is also saying that even if a community of believers is thriving in the most remote place in the world, their understanding of the truth of God’s word should and must be listened to regardless of their geographical location or their financial ability to publish in the most prestigious scholarly journals.

There is a story that best illustrates what Western biblical scholarship can do for Africa.
A young man from a remote village in Nigeria had the amazing privilege to study theology in the United States. After completing his masters he went back home to his tribe to tell him the wonderful news that he had been selected to go on and do a PhD in theology at a Western University and wanted to know if they would give him their blessing. After completing his PhD he found himself back home. While he was surrounded by a group of men talking about his journey a young woman came up to them exhausted, begging the men to come and help take care of the new PhD’s sister for she had fallen suddenly ill. The men came and saw her writhing in pain on the floor of her home. The men concluded that the young man with all the biblical knowledge would surely know what to do. So they asked him what his suggestions would be. He concluded that they get a doctor. The problem with this was that it would be very expensive and the closest doctor was over an hour away. While the young theologian sat there befuddled, an elderly man came in with a few of the deacons from the church and shouted, “Come on its obvious this girl is demon possessed and needs prayer not a doctor.” So they all gathered around, laid hands on her and sure enough within minutes she was in her right mind and out of pain.[8]

This is a fictional story that highlights the actual problems for Africans who are told that theology and hermeneutics have more to do with scientific discoveries of dead German’s, rather than the issues that all Africans are dealing with from day to day. Unlike the Eurocentric biblical scholars who were preoccupied with the subject of inerrancy and infallibility of the Bible, African Christians believe and respect the Bible without any attempt to defend it and apologize for it. The Bible to them is the Word of God and is powerful and that its power is relevant to everyday life. “They were dissatisfied with Western oriented churches self-imposition of the structure of Western institution at the expense of African culture. They recognized that many of the Eurocentric biblical interpretations and theologies nourished in the Western biblical intellectualist context had no root in the life of the African community.”[9] For this reason African Christians have had the great privilege of rediscovering the Word of God in a new, fresh, relevant way.

As we begin to fathom the revival that God is bringing about in Africa what can we hope to learn from our African brothers in the way of biblical interpretation? How could our congregations be transformed by the word of God if they were a part of the hermeneutical process? Do we have faith enough in God to implement African forms of interpretation which are very communal rather than individualistic? What could God do with a church committed to searching and reading the scriptures together? How should our preaching change to speak more into the lives of our congregations?

The goal of this paper is to explain and apply the African forms of Congregational and Inculturation Hermeneutics together with American forms of homiletics. In conclusion I will show how we can integrate Congregational and Inculturation Hermeneutics with Haddon Robinson’s “Big Idea” and Bryan Chapell’s “Fallen Condition Focus.”

Congregational Hermeneutics:
Two of the greatest gifts the Reformation gave us were getting the Bible back in the hands of the laity and reestablishing the priesthood of all believers. For some reason the laity of this generation in the United States has either willingly, or unwillingly, handed the Bible back to the scholars and allowed them to commence a general spoon feeding. No doubt there are several factors to this sad reality, but nevertheless, the church on very few occasions, is doing their own interpretation of the Biblical text. Paul Heibert recognizes this as a great flaw of the community when he states, “The priesthood of believers must be exercised within a hermeneutical community.”[10] What Heibert is alluding to, is the concept that hermeneutics happens best inside a believing community. It is irresponsible to base our interpretations alone on the wisdom of the scholars and the local pastors. However, it is equally irresponsible to rely solely on one’s own interpretations. So what is a reader of the scriptures to do?

As the Anabaptists before them, many of the African congregations concluded that the answer to this dilemma is found in the belief in, and the practice of, Congregational Hermeneutics. Africa is community. Africa knows itself by its family. Because of this, Bishop David Gitari from the Kenyan diocese of Mount Kenya East has come to new conclusions about how African Christians understand the Bible.

The African culture knows no isolated individuals. Man is man because he belongs. He is part of a larger family, a clan or a tribe. Hence, John Mbiti says, ‘I am because we are.’ As a member of a family, man cannot be left to his own. In some parts of Africa, the Christian gospel has been preached as if it were relevant only to an isolated individual. A person has to make an individual decision to accept Christ. This is an importation of individualistic cultural thinking of the West. Whenever an African person wants to make an important decision, he has to consult the whole family.[11]

In Africa, for an individual to come to concluding interpretive evidence on their own would be to subvert the mission and purpose of the local congregation. “No African would consider the individual alone as the interpreter. The dialogue, therefore, is not so much between reader and text as between community and text.”[12] In Charles Kraft’s book, Christianity and Culture he lists several hindrances to proper biblical interpretation. Two of these hindrances stem from doing hermeneutics in a vacuum. The first one is our cultural conditioning. “The fact that we are totally immersed in a given culture conditions us to perceive of all reality, including God’s revelation, in terms of that culture.”[13]

Secondly, Kraft acknowledges our individual psychological and experiential conditioning as a hindrance to proper understanding. For example, the way our father treated us often times gets projected on how God will treat us; even though this is not true. “Even within shared cultural boundaries, the life experience of every individual is unique. This likewise conditions one’s perception of the revelation. As receptors who are limited in these ways, we interpret the word and other data at our disposal, in terms of culturally organized models that incorporate and exhibit these limitations.”[14] Therefore it is clear how limited the individual is within their own ability to properly approach the text without bias.

This does not negate all together the purpose of the exegetical task. Clearly, we can never be rid of all our biases, but when we approach hermeneutics from a congregational standpoint with the voices of the local church combined with voices around the globe combined with the voices of the past (church history/creeds/saints), our likelihood of bias diminishes exponentially. Then we will be able to hear more clearly what God’s intended meaning for us may be from his word and then therefore its proper application to the church itself.

This mindset of clan, family, community has so permeated the African culture that one simply cannot miss it. The same is true of African hermeneutics. Africans are doing their biblical interpretation inside a spirit-filled congregation of believers. Their hermeneutics are from the church and for the church. This is one area where Western churches can really learn from the African form of Congregational Hermeneutics. First of all, much of our hermeneutics is done from the academy for the academy. This is not to diminish the value of weighty theological reflection, but when done outside the church, the likelihood of these ideas and thoughts getting into the church is very little. It does not take root because unlike African interpretation, it does not stem from a real life issue or problem. Too often biblical interpretation in the West has been simply a mind game for mind gamers.

Secondly, when Western hermeneutics is done in the church, it is usually done by one paid person with the responsibility to interpret the text for the rest of the congregation with all the wisdom and knowledge he has learned from an established seminary or denomination. This is where we unintentionally go back to pre-Reformation days where the Bible is out of the hands of the laity and our churches are sitting and ingesting whatever the priesthood feeds them. It is much more in line with Biblical theology that the single-mom, paperboy, pastor, farmer, truck driver, and politician all do exegesis together. None should be left out of the interpretive equation.

Not only do we see this principle working in Africa, the idea of an interpreting community stretches all the way back to scripture itself. The following examples give biblical precedent for reading and living the word of God in community.

3 Examples from Scripture:
God’s people have been for centuries a people gathered around a text. We will find as we look through the pages of the Bible clear examples of God’s people interpreting God’s word together. “Despite the differences of opinion regarding the precise role of the interpretive community, the communal focus is in keeping the emphasis within the Bible itself, which coalesce in the image of the faith community as a people gathered around a text, listening intently for the voice of God.”[15]

In Nehemiah we find all Israel gathered around the Law of Moses waiting expectantly for God to respond to their new understanding of the text. In Acts 15, it is important to see that several church members have gathered in Jerusalem to decipher and interpret God’s initiative in Jew-Gentile relations. Finally, we will see that in 1 Corinthians 14 a principle put in place by Paul for the whole congregation to “weigh carefully” what is said by the preachers. By looking closer at each of these passages we will see how helpful Congregational Hermeneutics can be.
The public reading of scripture is a historic Christian practices that seems to have lost its popularity in many churches today. However, the public reading of the word of God has always held an important place in the proper understanding of that word. In Nehemiah, we find just a scenario. In 7:73-8:18, Ezra is invited to stand up and read the law. Many of the Levites stand up and quite possibly, in between sentences from Ezra, the Levites explain the meanings of what Ezra is reading from the law.

The end result was a major revival in all of Israel which was followed by weeks of prayer, fasting, confessions, feasting and then finally culminating in a covenant renewal ceremony with Yahweh. It is important to notice that this revival stemmed from the congregation taking part in the interpretation. The text says that as Ezra read the text, men stood to his right and to his left and helped explain the meaning to the people so that the whole congregation stood as one man. What a picture of continuity and unity.

Evan at this point in redemptive history, scripture still needed to be explained. The Old Testament had been written down in the Hebrew language but, “since the people had lived in a foreign country all of their lives, they had lost some of their ability to understand Hebrew. Regardless, the Levites had the job of making sure the people knew what was being said. They were helping bridge the cultural gap between the last seventy years in Babylonia with their cultural heritage found in scripture.” [16] Although God’s word is authoritative for life and faith, it frequently takes hard work to understand the message God has given to us due to centuries of culture gaps and the fact that the original text is in a foreign language.

No matter how hard this task may be the church must be ready to respond. The community in Ezra’s day was not unlike the one at Pentecost, who were “cut to the heart.” They heard the interpretation and they believed. “This illustrates the truth that orthodox doctrine of the authority of scripture is not enough. If it is to be effective it needs an interpretation which is true to the tradition from which it derives. It also requires the reverent application of reason in working through its abiding relevance to the changed circumstances of any given contemporary community.”[17]

This is where African forms of hermeneutics can be helpful to us in the West. They have such a strong focus on current community needs and situations that it is impossible for them to find an interpretation of scripture that does not have current application. The word of God is not something to look at and then walk away from never to have any effect on the community. By using Congregational Hermeneutics we are inclined to be more sensitive to the current needs and situations of how the word of God speaks into the lives of our community.

One could easily offer the critique from the Nehemiah text, that it was the priesthood (Levites) who made the interpretive decisions, not the community itself. While this is a valid critique, one cannot, in an attempt at Congregational Hermeneutics, throw out giftedness and training in the process. As we will see later on through our discussion of Inculturation Hermeneutics the role of the Bible scholar is not diminished just balanced by the rest of the readers. We are not arguing for an anti-intellectual approach to hermeneutics, we are simply offering a voice to the marginalized (church) and adding that voice to the already dominate voice of the scholar. This means that the academician and the farmer will be put under the same rubric for biblical interpretation.

In the case of Nehemiah, it was the community’s repentance that was at stake, as we will see in Acts 15; it is ethnocentricity that was at stake. One of the wonderful benefits of listening to the voices of believers around the world is that our understanding of God expands and this was certainly the case for Peter and the Christians in Jerusalem.

One cannot fathom the missiological mess we would be in had Paul and Barnabas not stood up to fight for the total inclusion of the Gentile believers. In Acts 15:6 the Bible says that the Apostles and elders had gathered together to debate the matter of whether or not Gentiles needed to become circumcised first before they became Christians. The text says, “After there had been much debate” Peter stood up and recognized his mistake. Hermeneutics without the community never would have worked then and it does not work now. The audience fell silent and then Peter spoke about the way the Holy Spirit has clearly come to the Gentiles. He was wrong at the beginning of the interpretation but with help from the Holy Spirit and the body of believers, through communal hermeneutics, Peter, the pillar of the church was able to better understand the heart of Christ’s words.

How can we presume that we are beyond such mistakes when we interpret with such an individual approach? Peter was simply, as Charles Kraft would say “culture-bound in his understandings and interpretations of God’s truth.”[18] What we can understand in the relationship of culture to hermeneutics is absolutely crucial because it can lead us to a much more clear understanding of the word of God and into our severely limited perspectives on God. For example, the African culture is much closer than ours in every way to 1st century Palestinian culture. What do they understand about poverty and politics and servitude that can enlighten our understanding of God’s true nature?

It says in Acts 15:6 that the apostles and elders were present at the council. What we can deduce from this scene is that there was a large body of leadership at this council all representing different congregations throughout the known world. This council was made up of a conglomerate of people, each who walked away from the council enamored by the unity of the Spirit of God at work within the prayerful, spirit-filled believers who were seeking God’s wisdom and truth. Once again the Spirit of God reveals the true interpretation to a congregation of believers who take action, not just take notes.

The final example of the priority of Congregational Hermeneutics is found in 1 Corinthians 14:29 which says, “Let two or three prophets speak, and let the others weigh what is said.” The others in this text must have been a combination of members of the Corinthian church. Paul didn’t care if Apollos or John Piper was preaching his command to the church at Corinth was for the body to weigh heavily what was said to see if it was in accordance with the gospel that he had given them. “In these gatherings, the believers were not merely silent recipients of the teachings of their leaders. Rather, when two or three prophets spoke the ‘others’ were to weigh carefully the messages being voiced. Above all, however, the goal of that weighing was to discern the voice of the Spirit speaking to the community.”[19]

It is vital to notice the difference in many of our North American congregations today who simply sit by as the preacher delivers “his” interpretation of the teaching that he has chosen for “his” church. African churches, not only in Africa, but also here in America, understand this much more than many other culture-based churches. Being a listener is the active part of interpretation. Our churches have the right and the responsibility to weigh the words spoken from the pulpit to see if they are the words of God and to see if they are the correct interpretation. Anthony Thiselton says, “In general this task is a corporate one undertaken by the congregation.”[20]

The passage in 1 Corinthians 14:29 is a reminder to all preachers that we need to be held accountable for our interpretations of scripture. Congregational hermeneutics is one way to find that balance. No preacher, regardless of his rhetoric, should be left to his own interpretations. By using a variety of church members in the hermeneutical process, the pastor becomes more understanding of the needs of the people. Many personalized points of view help the pastor be more aware of marginalized issues that can work themselves out as different people from the church read the text together.

The first step in rethinking hermeneutics and opening up our ears to global insight is to understand that there is no market on a correct hermeneutical method. Before looking at the African form of Inculturation Hermeneutics and to highlight our lack of monopoly on an interpretive method Desomond Tutu, Archbishop of the Anglican Church in South Africa, stated:

Too many of us have been brainwashed effectively to think that the Westerner’s value system and categories are of universal validity. We are too concerned to maintain standards which Cambridge or Harvard or Montpellier have set even when these are utterly inappropriate for our situation. We are still too docile and look to the metropolis for approval to do our theology.[21]

We could respond to Tutu and say that Harvard’s forms of hermeneutical methods do not work

for us either. But the reality is, we are much more like Harvard at times then we are like the New Testament church. We have grown stuffy. Our churches are individualized. We have forsaken the poor and the broken, and we have neglected the cultures around us to stay in our comfort zone.

The other alternative found in the United States is the over sensitive, seeker friendly churches. It seems that in America if you are an evangelical church and are not “seeker sensitive” then you are considered culturally irrelevant. This should not be the case. In the area of cultural sensitivity, we can learn from our African brothers to not water down the gospel and yet still be culturally relevant. One only needs to look at the African conservative stance in the Anglican ideas on homosexuality. Our preaching has to find that balance between the timeless word of God and the ever-changing realities of our world.

Bryan Chapell says, “Application is as necessary for sound exposition as is explication. In fact, the real meaning of the text remains hidden until we discern how its truths affect our lives. This means that full exposition cannot be limited to a presentation of biblical information. A preacher should frame every explanatory detail of a sermon so that its impact on the lives of its listeners is evident.”[22] Essentially, Chapell argues for a hermeneutic with action and until the action items are found in the text then the true meaning of the text remains obscure and therefore any other interpretation would be invalid. Osborne agrees when he says, “The final goal of hermeneutics is not systematic theology but the sermon.”[23] Therefore, as a community, believers are to interpret the text properly and this will lead to transformation.

African theologian, Justin Ukpong, has developed a form of interpretation called Inculturation Hermeneutics that does a very good job of bridging the need to honor the historic text and the need to be culturally aware of what people are bringing to the text. Ukpong looks at five essential elements to hermeneutics which he says allow the interpretive community to be less likely to overlook the meaning to the readers while doing historical justice to the authors intended meaning.

These five elements include the interpreter, the context, the text, the conceptual framework, and the procedure. These are the inner workings of Inculturation Hermeneutics. However before Ukpong defines each of these elements, he insists on the fact that we need to be “reading with ordinary people”[24] while doing our interpretation. It is here that we see the wedding between Congregational Hermeneutics and African forms or hermeneutics. Ukpong believes that is when we read the Bible with ordinary people that the issues, questions, and people in the text that we may pass over will be brought to light by the community. “Thus in Inculturation Hermeneutics the ivory tower mentality that sees the academy as remote from ordinary people is eschewed, and the readings of ordinary people are seen as significant in the production of the meaning of the text. Rather than making interpretation of the Bible the reserve of scholars, this method accepts the validity of the contribution of ordinary people in the process of biblical interpretation.”[25]

Essentially the process of reading with ‘ordinary’ readers can be an area of discipleship for the local church. When we humble ourselves to again understand that Western forms for hermeneutics are not universal, we allow others to teach us and at the same time come closer to an accurate reading of the text. “Reading with ordinary readers has meant creating critical reading masses and building communities of faith that read the Bible critically. It is a mode of reading that makes it possible to overcome the predominance of the elite ideology in biblical interpretation.”[26] By reading the text and developing a community of interpreters, local pastors become more aware of their own congregations as a whole and therefore even more aware of the needs of their people.

This process is best done when biblical scholars are reading alongside the laity. Ukpong never implies an all ‘ordinary’ form of interpretation. By reading with others in the church, the elders and pastors grow in their ability to see and hear thoughts on the Bible from outside their own circle. For the readers in the church who are not scholars, this process allows them to grow in their own critical ability and to glean wisdom from the scholars. Respect and time need to be given to each group so that the community as a whole can come away with a better understanding to what the Spirit is saying to the churches in a particular time and context.
Ukpong further explains this process of reading by saying, “Reading ‘with’ means that the reading agenda is that of the community and not that of the trained readers. The trained readers do not direct or control the reading process, or seek to ‘teach’ to the community the meaning of the text they have already known. Rather, they read as part of the community, and facilitate an interactive process that leads to the community producing a critical meaning of the text.”[27] What a joy it would be for both the clergy and the community to approach the text to determine what God is intending for them to understand and for them to do.

It is important to clearly state that Inculturation Hermeneutics does not imply a reader response form of interpretation. The text does not mean what the readers want it to mean, nor is the interpretation subjective to the culture. “The procedure involves interaction between academic and ordinary readers of the Bible, such that, the ordinary readers are helped to develop critical awareness and to identify and use local resources in their readings of the Bible. In developing the hermeneutics for this approach to Bible reading, the resources of the people’s cultural and historical life experiences are used as complementary to the conventional critical tools of biblical exegesis.”[28]

One of the greatest things about Inculturation Hermeneutics is that it in no way implies that Western forms of interpretations are irrelevant, only that they alone have a tendency to focus too heavily on the historical-critical method and not enough on the cultural issues of our day. Therefore, Inculturation Hermeneutics does not exclude Western forms of interpretation; rather, the argument is that Western forms alone cannot be universal for global Christianity.
So, as we arrive at the five elements of Inculturation Hermeneutics, the first piece of the puzzle is the interpreter. It is Ukpong’s understanding that the historical-critical elements are not the end goal and neither is the authors intended meaning the final goal. But, he realizes that the text itself was ultimately written for the readers themselves. He claims that the reader is a dynamic piece of the interpretive process. “According to Ukpong, however, the interpreter should not be understood as an isolated reader, but as a ‘reader-in-context.’ That is someone who is or has become an insider to the culture for whom the interpretation is given.”[29] It is crucial that the interpreter be able to be critical of both the text and the culture. It is the job of the interpreter to be as sympathetic to the culture in which they find themselves, as they are to the handling of the text itself. When the interpreter moves from one extreme or the other, then they are neglecting the power of the text to speak into any given situation.

Osborn picks up on the biggest danger found in Inculturation Hermeneutics and that is a “reader response” form of interpretation. He argues that “as readers, we want to place ourselves in front of the text (and allow it to address us) rather than behind it (and force it to go where we want). The reader’s background and ideas are important in the study of biblical truth; however, these must be used to study meaning rather than to create meaning that is not there.”[30] When done properly, the interpreter who uses Inculturation Hermeneutics is not steering the meaning of the text, rather he is placing the issues of the day on the text to see if the text speaks to the realities of a particular culture or not.

For Ukpong, the interpreter is a participant in the process of interpretation. There is no neutral detachment. Personal and social factors such as the reader’s race, gender, status in society, all give an interpreter an angle of vision that can be used in the process of understanding a biblical text.[31] When we combine this angle of each reader to a more democratic reading through Congregational Hermeneutics, we come at the text with open eyes and as few biases as possible. When we come to the text alone our biases are seldom exposed and the true meaning of the text can be missed. Therefore, it is vital that the interpreter understand their place in the process. Their goal is to honor the text and honor the culture in which the text is read in order to transform the culture to the likeness of Christ.

The second element of Inculturation Hermeneutics is context. To our Western ears, this should come as no surprise to be an essential element; however for Ukpong this does not mean the context of the historical text. Rather he places the context of the reader as the next step in the interpretive process. He states that “the interpreter can only be honest, therefore, if the concerns of his or her context are consciously brought into the hermeneutical dialogue.”[32] Essentially, for Africans, it is shameful to preach the theological implications of the widow offering her two coins without exhausting the realities of the poor and their offerings to God. This is the ‘so what’ element of Inculturation Hermeneutics.

If we are to approach the text to find its meaning without asking the question, ‘so what?” we are not doing the job of exegesis. As Osborn stated earlier, “The final goal of hermeneutics is not systematic theology but the sermon.”[33] This means that it is the job of the interpreter to come to conclusive forms of application for which people of God can respond to.
John Stott says, “The preacher’s task is faithfully to translate the Word of God into modern language and thought-categories, and to make it present in our day.”[34] The good news for American preachers is that we do not live in an age where little has been written on the subject of application. The truth is that from Karl Barth to Bryan Chapell, homoliticians have been stressing that as we understand our culture we will also see the relevance of Scripture to our times.

John Stott calls on German theologian Tholuck when he states that “every sermon should have heaven for its father and the earth for its mother.”[35] Stott concludes, “My plea is that we treat them (our congregations) as real people with real questions; that we grapple in our sermons with real issues; and that we build bridges into the real world in which they live and love, work, and play, laugh and weep, struggle and suffer, grow old and die. We have to provoke them to think about their life in all its moods, to challenge them to make Jesus Christ the Lord of ever area of it, and to demonstrate his contemporary relevance.”[36]
As preachers, it is essential that we listen to the voices of our teachers in Africa and the West and not neglect the context in which our people are living and struggling. “This means that one aspect of the scholarly task is to ask how a particular text or a particular reading of a text interacts with, responds to, and is reflective of the lives of those who read or hear the text.”[37]

Therefore, we should come to our sermons fully aware of the culture in which we live. Not

ignorant of its depravity nor its beauty. Then and only then will we be able to understand the meaning of the text for our present age.

The third feature in Ukpong’s method is the text. Inculturation Hermeneutics recognizes the text has three dimensions. First, the text is an ancient text that was written in a particular historical time and place, and therefore, ones understanding of that geopolitical timeframe is crucial to a proper understanding of the text. Secondly, the text is literally meaning that it was written in Greek and Hebrew with certain grammatical and syntactical nuances that must be understood for proper understanding of the written word. Finally, the text is transformative, meaning that scholars will fall short of the proper meaning of the text if they do not recognize the demands that the authoritative word of God has on the lives of its readers.

The goal of exegesis is theological meaning and “because it is the theological meaning of the text that is sought and not it’s historical context historical critical tools are used precisely as servants and not as masters.”[38] The goal of the interpretation of the text, as well, is to discover what Ukpong calls the “gospel message.”[39] By “gospel message” he means the particular word from God for the community of readers, as it emerges in the dialogue between the reader, his or her context, and the particular text under discussion. “As this message emerges, it may serve as a critique of the culture or the culture may throw light on the text.”[40]

What we are to gather from Ukpong’s form of interpretation is that every text or immediate context has a “gospel message,” an element of redemptive truth where God heals a people, saves a people, brings justice to a people, brings glory to himself or any other form of good news. This method is not unlike Bryan Chapell’s ‘Fallen Condition Focus’ principle where he argues that every text or immediate context of scripture reveals an element of mankind that is fallen and then reveals how God shows up in that fallen state to rescue mankind, every time.[41] This will be discussed in greater detail further on in this study as we attempt to integrate these principles into practical helps for us in America. But for now, it is good to recognize the similarities in biblical interpretation between our experts and Africa’s.

When we encounter the text with eyes wide open to find the ‘gospel message’ we cannot help but keep in perspective the fallen condition of man and in so doing, we keep in perspective the cultural application of the text to our current situation. However, when pastors focus entirely on the historical meaning of the text their sermons often come off just as dusty. Inculturation Hermeneutics attempts to refocus our thinking on the life which we are living here and now and to read the Bible in such a way and to preach in such a way that transforms a community.
The fourth feature of Ukpong’s inculturation hermeneutics is what he calls the exegetical conceptual framework.[42] The exegetical framework says Ukpong, is that “mental construct within which exegetes are trained. It is basically an orientation in biblical interpretation geared towards certain areas of concern about the biblical text.”[43] He says that historical criticism, literary criticism and liberation hermeneutics are all examples of conceptual frameworks. However, for Ukpong, his main concern is that in Africa, Western frameworks should not be seen as universally valid for all cultures. This is not to say that for us in the West we should abandon our framework entirely or even at all.

As pastors we have been taught to observe carefully the context, the grammar, the syntax, the historical background, and to observe democratically what other Christians throughout history have said about a text. This framework is not to be abandoned or even to be criticized as wrong. As we grow in our understanding of Inculturation Hermeneutics, we simply need to reemphasize the need to move from theology to doxology, from hermeneutics to homiletics. The hard chair study must soften our hearts and the hearts of the church to action.
For Ukpong the goal of exegesis is to actualize the theological meaning of the text in a contemporary context. Since the Bible is an ancient text, historical tools must be used. However, the task is not completed when the syntax, grammar analysis and historical background check are complete. Since the goal is finding the contemporary theological meaning, the historical tools must always be seen as servant and not as master.[44] “The present meaning of the text will emerge in the interaction between the ancient text and the contemporary context. This discovery of the present meaning, however, must be done from a perspective of faith. Inculturation Hermeneutics sees the Bible as a document of faith and therefore demands entry into and sharing the faith of the biblical community expressed in the text.”[45] Ukpong is a strong proponent of Biblical Theology and believes that the conceptual framework cannot be a proof-texting framework but must allow the whole of scripture to speak into a context.
The final element of Inculturation Hermeneutics is the procedure. According to Ukpong there must be a preliminary condition and a series of four steps of analysis. The preliminary condition is commitment to the Christian faith and to the process of actualizing the Christian message with the context of people’s lives.[46] “Inculturation Hermeneutics excludes those who are not engaged with the faith of the church and committed to the task of incarnating that faith in a particular place.”[47] Ukpong is adamant that commitment to the cause of Christ is essential for proper understanding of the text. So in all actuality the fifth and final step of his Inculturation Hermeneutics is the commitment to the historical convictions of Christian mission. It is fascinating to hear the words of Grant Osborn who also appeals to a form of enculturation in the conclusion of his monumental work on hermeneutics.

Finally, realize the necessity of praxis. Proper contextualization recognizes that right understanding ideally results in right practice. The Bible seeks not just to correct thinking or understanding but more the correct action that results. The equivalent Hebrew and Greek words mean both ‘hear’ and ‘obey’. Therefore, changed lives are the intended results of the enculturation of the Word.[48]

There is no doubt, that we, in the West, have heard this message before, this is really nothing new. It is more or less a practical reminder to be about the business of hearing and obeying. In Africa, the Bible is read to speak into current issues, struggles, plagues, illnesses, deaths, and joys. Basically it is used, not only to hear the good news of Christ’s salvation but also to speak to the turmoil that is found in this life and how to handle it. As we attempt in America to preach and teach to the same issues we can learn from our African brothers. We miss knowing the pain and the suffering of our parishioners due to having a less sensitive intuition of the culture. At times, we can be so caught up in preaching the correct doctrine and theology that we forget to exegete the congregation. By incorporating a combination of Congregational Hermeneutics with Inculturation Hermeneutics, our preaching takes on more of a practical essence. When our people can be motivated to listen and obey, we know for sure that the word of God is taking root among them and that it has been preached properly.

As we move away from the steps of Inculturation, it is important to see this method put into practice. The first step in the exegetical process is to identify a dynamic correspondence between the reader’s current context and the historical context of the biblical passage. The text that was chosen to use as an example is Matthew 1:18-25. This was chosen randomly to show how we can use this form of hermeneutics to further our homiletics. Keep in mind that we are working with the American culture, not the African. Therefore, as we read the words of this text, our final goal is to preach this passage in a way that bridges the gap between 1st Century Palestine and 21st century America.

18 Now the birth of Jesus Christ took place in this way. When his mother Mary had been betrothed to Joseph, before they came together she was found to be with child from the Holy Spirit. 19 And her husband Joseph, being a just man and unwilling to put her to shame, resolved to divorce her quietly. 20 But as he considered these things, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, saying, “Joseph, son of David, do not fear to take Mary as your wife, for that which is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. 21 She will bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins.” 22 All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had spoken by the prophet: 23“Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and they shall call his name Immanuel” (which means, God with us). 24 When Joseph woke from sleep, he did as the angel of the Lord commanded him: he took his wife, 25 but knew her not until she had given birth to a son. And he called his name Jesus.

As the exegete, it is important to find the direct correspondence between Joseph and Mary’s world and ours. For example, it is likely that many people in the church will have children and can relate to the stress and joy of birthing a child. Also, it is possible that many people in the church will have wrestled through forms of infidelity in their marriage. They will be able to understand the concerns that Joseph had when he took Mary home to be his wife. It will be important in this passage to explain the use of dreams from a biblical worldview, because this bridge is not crossed very easily in our modern world. This would be a good time to ask members of the church if God has ever spoken to them in an alternative form of communication. Again, the first step is for the exegete to create as much common ground as possible between the issues and people of the text to the people in the church.

Secondly, the exegete must weigh issues in the current context of America in light of the issues of the text. For example, there is a sad reality in America today where often husbands do not listen to the voice of God and are not taking responsibility for the families that they have promised to provide and care for. When Ukpong talks about context, it is important to remember that he is not talking about the context of the text, but rather the context in which the interpreter(s) find themselves. From Matthew 1:18-28 we see Joseph, a righteous man, willing to hear and obey the voice of God in caring for son that was not from his progeny. In America today, we have men from all races abandoning wives and children to seek their own narcissistic desires. For the middle class, they abandon their children to a world of business and leisure. The lower class men may abandon their children for a life of crime, drugs, and pleasure. Joseph had made a promise to Mary to be her husband. By listening to the voice of God Joseph chose to keep that promise knowing that she was impregnated with God Son, not his, Joseph however, he was able to see past the shame and do the right thing.

During this step of the process, all the questions for the text need to surface. For example, what does our culture say about husbands who raise children who are not their own? What does it mean that she was found to be with a child from the Holy Spirit? Is there even a need for a savior to be born? How will our post enlightenment thinking respond to the miracles found in this text, such as the virgin birth and a fulfilled prophecy? Why would Joseph wait to consummate the marriage until after Jesus was born? During this step, we are bringing all the questions that culture would ask.

Secondly, we are accentuating the issues seen in the text that are seen in our culture today. The reason that this step is put before the textual exegesis is that Ukpong has found the trend in Western interpretation that once the text has been critically looked at, exegetes often forget the sermon. They forget that the text is alive and should speak to a community. Therefore, he puts the step of context first so that we will always be looking for how the text can speak into our community and our lives.

The third step in Inculturation Hermeneutics is the one that we know very well. This is the step where the exegete devours the text from a scholarly perspective. It is the responsibility of the exegete to consider grammar, context, syntax, genre, cross references and historical background to decipher a proper understanding of the text.

These are the steps that we have learned at seminary and should never be avoided. “The

difference is that many North Atlantic scholars would consider exegesis complete after just this one step—an end in and of itself. For Ukpong historical analysis is important, but in his method it is relativized by being only a part of a larger process.”[49]

In looking at Matthew 1:18-25, the exegete will need to discover the nuances between 1st century betrothal and current engagement. They would also need to discover the scribal inclusion of the name Isaiah in verse 22. The original and earliest manuscripts simply say “the prophet”. The exegete would do well also to understand the importance of this text found just after Matthew’s genealogy. What importance do Jesus’ natural descendents have on his supernatural birth?

The fourth and final step of Inculturation Hermeneutics would be to form all the findings together by using a hermeneutical format that can be communicated to the community. Ukpong says that this final step is “to draw together the fruits of this analysis in a coherent fashion, but also to express a commitment to actualizing the message of the text in a concrete life situation. In other words, engagement with the text alone is insufficient. The scholar must also be engaged with the community.”[50] Because the Bible is living and active, it is the role of the pastor to communicate how God is speaking into our lives today. The Bible is not a book, but a revelation. It is not an ongoing revelation, but a transcendent word that speaks to all of life and to every situation. It is our job to determine how God’s word applies to our personal situations. By reading with the laity and practicing an Inculturation Hermeneutic, we get a step closer to knowing God’s will for our personal lives.

The following is a sermon written on the Matthew 1:18-25 text. Inculturation Hermeneutics was the main form of interpretation used to help illustrate how African forms of hermeneutics can influence our preaching here in America.

Sermon Title: Divorce in the Birth of Christ.

Text: Matthew 1:18-25

Outline:

I. Joseph is ready to divorce Mary when he finds out she is pregnant.
II. Joseph contemplates the scriptures and the angel of the Lord as he makes his decision.
III. Joseph wakes up from his dream and obeys immediately.

Big Idea: When we listen to scripture and the voice of God, we will conclude, like Joseph that obedience is the only option.

Fallen Condition Focus: Men are unlikely to stay committed to women who become pregnant from anyone else. Joseph has one foot out the door when God shows up. He reveals to Joseph his plan for Mary and Jesus and Joseph is transformed as a husband and a father.

You know there are a lot of things that can ruin an engagement, like finding out your fiancée has a double life as a spy. Or finding out your fiancée is addicted to video games and Star Wars conventions. That could ruin an engagement for sure. If you found out that your fiancée is marrying you to get to your coveted pez candy collection, (which includes Woody Woodpecker) that could cause you to call off the wedding. There are many things that would make you “get cold feet” before you marry someone. What was it with you? What was the biggest glitch in the matrix of your engagement before you got married?

For me, the glitches came after the wedding. Maybe you can relate more to that. Today, we are going to take a look at a couple who are on the verge of divorce and how they respond to their dilemma. This one takes the cake. The #1 for calling the marriage thing off—is what we find in the text this morning, finding out your fiancée is pregnant, only after she tells you that she wants to wait for her wedding night to have sex.

There’s no prescription strong enough that will fix this problem. Turn in your Bibles to Matthew 1:18-25. There, in Matthew, two star-crossed lovers are on the verge of divorce and it’s just about Christmas time. Mary and Joseph’s families had decided that these two should be married. Mary was probably between the ages of 14-16 and Joseph was between the ages of 18-22. We do know that Joseph would have paid Mary’s father a dowry or bride price for her hand in marriage.

We also know that they were legally married but in a stage of marriage where Mary would have still been living under her father’s roof. This phase lasted about one year and then, after that time, Joseph would have taken Mary to live with him. That is the time when normal marriages in Judea would have been consummated.

Joseph and Mary are legally betrothed/ married/ engaged. Call it whatever you want. If they are to break up, it would be considered a divorce and would require the assistance of the city judges to witness and legally undue this marriage. If they divorced, then Joseph would receive back the money, livestock, or other gifts that he gave toward the bride price.

Mary, on the other hand, would be marked as an adulterous woman and could have been stoned to death according to traditional Mosaic Law. Although this punishment was very seldom acted out, she would nevertheless been shamed, seen as immoral, and most likely, she would never have another opportunity to marry. Pretty tough for a girl so young. Like I said, Christmas was just around the corner. Talk about your family issues.

Joseph had been cleaning the house like mad to get it ready for Mary. He’d been watering the lawn, making a new table and chairs, and putting in a new bookshelf and yes, new cabinets as well, he knew Mary would appreciate them. He was in the process of getting everything ready for the girl he loved. They weren’t living together yet and he was making the house ready for his new bride.

As much as he detested housework, he found himself dusting the furniture and removing candy wrappers from behind the couch. It was important for him to place the lamp beside Mary’s chair allowing her the proper amount of light.

Do you remember the preparations you went through before you got married? All the little details Joseph is doing because SHE is getting ready to move it. And then she tells him the big news! “Joseph, I’m pregnant. And you are not the father.”

“Of course I’m not the father! We had committed to wait until you moved in and that night was going to be so special Mary. What do you mean you are pregnant?! Mary…I thought you loved me? Mary…you said you loved me. You said we could have children together and I could teach them to make you cabinets…just the way you like them. Mary…this is impossible. Mary…was it something I said, was it something I did…did you meet him online? How long have you been seeing each other…do I know him…Of course I know him…this town is so small…What’s his name, Mary…what is his name…I could kill him. And all this time…I thought you were saving yourself just for me.”

Joseph had one foot out the door just before Jesus was born. It’s almost Christmas and Joseph wants a divorce. Who can blame him? Men are unlikely to stay committed to women who become pregnant by someone else.

Actually, men and women both have a hard time staying committed for things much less. The truth is at Christmas time we all feel a relational tension much closer to home. What do you do when all signs are pointing toward divorce? When is the last time the word divorce came up in your marriage? Has it been this season? Where do you turn when all roads lead to more and more hurt?

Chaos is disorder, chaos is nowhere to turn. Chaos is that deep pain in your stomach as you are contemplating the ripping and tearing of a marriage that was, for one reason or another left…like a Christmas tree still up at Valentines. That to me is chaos. I have only felt it once we were at a stalemate. We needed help, we needed prayer and we needed to surrender to one another. We made it but only by the grace of God and a lot of hard work.

Many of you didn’t make it and have experienced it and live in a daily reminder of it as you raise your children. Others of you are wondering how to avoid it and if God has any wisdom to give you as you fight for your marriage.

As I have studied this passage this week I have found that Joseph was a pretty cool guy but God is an amazing God and can and desires to heal all wounds.

When Mary told Joseph that she was pregnant with a baby from the Holy Spirit he had enough love to divorce her quietly. What this meant was that with just a couple of witnesses, family even, they could be officially divorced. This would have helped, even if just a little the shame that Mary would have faced. However, without an official divorce from the city officials, Joseph was not eligible for his dowry back. Without the official documentation the bride price still belonged to Mary’s father. Not only was he compassionate, he was willing to take the financial hit for Mary’s sake. Here we start to see the heart of this man. The Bible says that he was a just and righteous man.

He’s thinking that it’s time for a fresh start…time to pick up the pieces and maybe in a few years the right woman would really come along. He was unwilling to consider the life of this boy who would grow up fatherless, and unwilling to look at the statistics that 80% of children from divorced families suffer from depression. He was unwilling to father a child that was not his.
Many of you in this room have had that opportunity and as hard as it is you are doing your best. Step dads, dads who adopt, you know the hard times that Joseph would have faced and maybe you have wondered at times…did I make the right decision? Joseph had one foot out the door, willing to pass this opportunity by when God got his attention.

Put yourself in Joseph’s shoes…what would it take for you to change your mind? Actually, put yourself in your own shoes…what will it take for you to reconsider your love for your spouse? In verse 20, the text says that Joseph was in the process of considering all these things. The paperwork had not been signed, the witnesses have not been gathered but Joseph was contemplating how he would end this marriage as quietly as possible. The God showed up. Verse

20.

20 But as he considered these things, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, saying, “Joseph, son of David, do not fear to take Mary as your wife, for that which is conceived

in her is from the Holy Spirit. 21 She will bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins.” 22All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had spoken by the prophet: 23 “Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and they shall call his name Immanuel” (which means, God with us).

God chose to speak to Joseph in a dream. This was a very common form of communication between God and His people. Around the globe, this is still considered a very important way that God talks to His people. This was not an ambiguous dream like Pharaoh’s that needed interpretation. The message was crystal clear.

Joseph, you are in the line of David. The Messiah is to come through that line. Your wife Mary has conceived miraculously by my Spirit. She is going to have a son and that son, is going to need a father. You are to give Him the name Jesus. You are his father. His job is to save mankind from their sin. Remember what the Prophet Isaiah said, “Behold the virgin will conceive and give birth to a son and his name will be called Immanuel (God among us)” --I am about to be among you, Joseph. Listen to my voice—listen to the scriptures. Joseph, don’t be afraid to take Mary as your wife don’t leave her, love her. I know it’s hard, but stay in this.”

We live in world where too often and too quick and for selfish reasons, fathers abandon their children and their wives. In America today there is a crisis in the family and democrats and republicans both acknowledge the problem.

Who’s to blame? The real question is who is not to blame? Blame the public schools, blame the universities, blame the legal system, blame the entertainment industry and the advertising industry, blame the church, blame your parents blame me…we are all to blame and nothing is going to stop this slide until we take responsibility for our own actions and allow the Spirit of God to change us like he changed Joseph.

Joseph is not the hero of this passage. Apart from a miraculous act of God, Jesus would have grown up like so many of us in America in a single family home. That is not God’s plan for any kid. God is the hero of this story and I beg that you allow God to be the hero of your story.
Joseph did something that you and I can do to help us in our marriages. Joseph listened to the voice of God and he listened to Scripture. In the dream, the angel of the Lord told him what he needed to do. The scriptural proof for this was found in Isaiah 7:14—the virgin will conceive and bear a son and he will save the people from their sins—his name will be Emmanuel.

We have the same opportunity in our relationships—no matter how much of a rut you are in, you have the exact same opportunity laid before us! Listen to the voice of God. We must pray and devote ourselves to knowing, memorizing, and living the scriptures.

The angel Gabriel explained to Joseph Gods plan for Mary. The Bible explains to you and to me God’s plan for our marriage. It is one man and one woman living in sacrificial surrender to one another. Paul said husbands are to love their wives as Christ loved the church. He also said that wives are to respect their husbands. Paul and Moses indicate the importance of children obeying parental authority. God is clear from Genesis to Revelation that he wants to protect you. He tells us that marriage is covenantal like his love for us. We need to honor our marriages the same way that we honor all His other promises to us.

Listen, I am not trying to give you a Sunday school answer for the hard times that marriage brings. What I am telling you is that God saved Joseph and Mary’s marriage…God saved my marriage by this same principle…reading scripture and listening to his voice! He has the power and he will not let you down. Your spouse may let you down, you may let yourself down…but he will not let you down. He will be there the whole way back to recovery. He will be in the counseling office, he will be there in the tears and in the quiet places.

Joseph listened to the voice of God and he listened to scripture and God saved his marriage.

Verse 24.

24 When Joseph woke from sleep, he did as the angel of the Lord commanded him: he took his wife, 25 but knew her not until she had given birth to a son. And he called his name Jesus.
The conclusion of the story is that Joseph woke up and did exactly as the Lord commanded. Not only did he not divorce her; the text says that he took her home to be his wife. What this means is that he broke the year long waiting period and took her home as his wife. Though they were married, they did not consummate the marriage until after Jesus was born. He becomes a father to Jesus and he displays great respect to Mary by not sleeping with her until after Christ is born.

The main thing is that Joseph obeyed the word of God immediately. But the burning question is, and it makes you wonder why Matthew included this, is the very last line. “He did not sleep with her until she had given birth to a son.” First of all, it calls into question the eternal virginity of Mary—but that’s not my burning question. My question is how? How did Joseph, who was already married to Mary, wait to have sex?

My conclusions are random, yet reflective…
1. Joseph did not have the internet in his room as a teenager.
2. Joseph did not have cable TV in his house with all the trash on it.
3. Satan had not entered Hugh Hefner’s heart yet.
4. He’d never seen a Justin Timberlake video.
5. Victoria Secret had not yet sent their mailings to Nazareth.
6. Joseph’s father had taught him the proper respect for a woman.
7. Mary was not an object but a soul and a person with a heart
8. Joseph understood biblical manhood as sacrificial not dominating.
9. Bill boards in Galilee promoted marble columns and fishing boats not sex.
10. Joseph was a righteous man. He had a relationship with God and communicated with God and the spirit of God gave him the strength and the power to be holy. So regardless of the fact that we live in the culture we live it. We too can resist the temptations of premarital sex—and can show self-control when we too allow the spirit of God to take hold of us.

The Bible has a perspective on what fatherhood and manhood should look like. Joseph displayed many of these characteristics. He displayed compassion for Mary while thinking of divorcing her quietly. He was not overly concerned about money and was willing to lose his financial investment in order to honor her. He had a heart that was open to God’s voice. He knew the scriptures and obeyed immediately. He didn’t worry about cultural taboos but, did what was best for his wife by taking Mary home to be his wife. And finally, he had more concern for Mary’s temporary needs than his own sexual needs. Joseph was a man who exhibited great self-control.

Men, I’ve learned a lot in the one month that I’ve been a father. In the hospital, I learned that because of all the dead beat dads that went before me, I had no authority as the father of my son. I could not sign any papers; my signature to authorize our son’s circumcision was not even valid. Only the mother’s signature would do. When my wife got her epidural the nurses pushed me aside so they could hold her, when the nurses talked to us about taking care of the baby they never gave me a glance assuming that I’d do nothing. Don’t get me wrong I understand I was reaping what other men have sown. It is just sad.

Somewhere along the way, the men of this country have abandoned ship. Let the story of Joseph motivate you to a higher standard. In your quiet time, let the voice of God speak to you, in the deep places of your heart and encourage you to live a life counter culturally. Let the word of God penetrate your heart so that it convicts you to obedience and loyalty to your family and to God. But don’t bother reading the Bible unless you want your relationships to be changed.
Joseph heard God’s voice and obeyed. He didn’t divorce his wife and he became a father to Jesus. Remember, men are unlikely to stay committed to a woman who becomes pregnant by anybody else. Joseph had one foot out the door when God showed up. God transformed Joseph’s thinking and he became a husband and a father. What will you allow God to do in your relationships? I promise you he is willing if you are.

One of the questions that remains unanswered is how? How can a pastor and a congregation come together in this process to make inculturation hermeneutics work, and the body of Christ be built up? The benefits to the congregation seem to be endless and the credibility it brings to the pastor, to allow the congregation to be a part of the interpretation and therefore a part of the sermon process can be tremendous.

The first step in the process is for the elders and the pastors to pray. Pray and see if God is leading the church to a more inclusive form of Bible reading. Ukpong would agree that this form of hermeneutics should not be seen as a universal mandate for all churches, rather one way to bridge the truth of scriptures to an ever changing culture.

The second step is to select a rotation of elders to lead and facilitate the hermeneutical process. It would be counterproductive to select one pastor and one elder to the leadership of this process. By allowing all the elders and pastors to lead the group throughout the year creates teamwork, and a unity that cannot be achieved otherwise. It is important that the pastor or pastors who will be preaching the sermons be heavily involved the process. It is important to remember the scholar’s role in this is not to lecture, but to facilitate and empower the congregants to interpret the Bible properly and in a mature fashion.

The third step is to select members from the congregation. It is best to select a variety of people from different genders, socioeconomic backgrounds, ethnicities, and experience. The goal would be to select objectively and creatively. Leadership should not select only the most mature believers to be a part of this team, but a variety of committed disciples who are eager to contribute and who are filled with the Holy Spirit. Truck drivers, single moms, elderly saints, young activists, who ever makes up the church along with those who are marginalized in the church must be a part of this team. The leaders should commit to at least twelve months with one team and the next year expand it by starting new with a fresh group of readers.

The fourth step would involve developing the format for the meetings. Depending on how important a church feels this process is, should determine how many times a month the team gets together to read. The goal of this group should be to meet at least once a month. The scripture that is to be discussed should be handed out to each member of the team one month in advance so they can meditate, pray over, and let the text sink into their hearts. While they are dwelling on the scriptures, they should write down any thoughts, experiences, questions, concerns, or general knowledge they have about the text. Before ach meeting, each member should go through the steps of Inculturation Hermeneutics, in order to be prepared for the group’s time together. At the meetings, each member of the team should have ample time to present their findings and thoughts.

The fifth step of the integration process is for the group to determine the “Big Idea” and the “Fallen Condition Focus” of the text. By determining these two crucial elements in the homiletical process, the group is honoring the text (by finding the “Big Idea”) and honoring the congregation (by finding the “Fallen Condition” of man which drives our application). Once these two elements are discovered, the pastor can take the findings into his study. He or she should do their best to integrate the work of the congregation as much as possible. This process is not to say that the sermon belongs to the congregation. It is vital that the preacher own the sermon by writing, practicing, and delivering it with power and passion. The role of the team is the help bring insight to the pastor’s study.

The sixth and final step of the process is the evaluation process. This process is only effective if it both honors the text and builds up the people. If the sermons are still lacking either in the theological content or the life application, the group has the venue to speak openly and honestly to the pastor. The team needs to develop a rubric for each sermon to help evaluate the progress. This evaluation should be developed by the leadership of the church and the team of lay interpreters. This way, the laity will have a voice to encourage the pastor and to evaluate the messages so the members can grow spiritually.

The conclusion is that the American church has a lot to learn from the global church and in particular the African church. I asked a Kenyan man in our church what he misses most about African sermons and what we in America can learn from African preaching. He said,
I think American sermons are mostly exercises in theological discovery. It is both good and bad. On the one hand, it is good to investigate the history and the context of a certain verse. On the other hand, it robs the sermon of passion and emotion. I miss the passion. The preachers are usually very passionate. Most are not steeped in theology, but their blind faith and passion for God is amazing. I miss the passion.[51]

One way that we, as preachers in America can regain that passion is by understanding the pain, suffering, temptations, and realities of the community we are preaching to. Our churches need leaders and laity who come to the text together to be transformed. Western forms of hermeneutics and homiletics have taken the text away from the believing community and put in the hands of the clergy. This sounds all too pre-Reformation, when the laity was told what to do and the clergy held the keys to the kingdom. We live in a day in age when our passion is waning and our sermons are too cotton candy, seeker sensitive, or too theologically heady to make any earthly difference in the lives of the listeners.

Taking scripture away from the believing community, the exegete made it an object of historical investigation. Armed with the so-called historical-critical method, he thus engaged in an exercise in history, pure and simple, an exercise that appeared all too often to begin from a stance of doubt—indeed, sometimes of historical skepticism with an anti-supernatural bias. Using professional jargon about form, redaction, and rhetorical criticism, the exegete, full of arrogance and assuming a stance of mastery over the text, often seemed to turn the text on its head so that it no longer spoke to the believing community as a powerful word of the living God.[52]

Our mission as preachers is not merely passion alone. The Bible warns us clearly that zeal without knowledge is dangerous. Our mission as preachers is to speak God’s word clearly, correctly, and with zest to help transform the lives of the community. When a church adopts a form of Congregational Hermeneutics combined with Inculturation Hermeneutics the homiletics that are to follow will be focused and fresh. The sermons that will follow will be for the people and in a very real way, by the people. As the congregation learns to spot the “Big Idea” and “Fallen Condition Focus” they will grow in the passion and knowledge of God’s word, and therefore, will be discipled in the process. As the church grows in discipleship, so the mission of God will go forward into the community and around the globe.

As pastors, it is our job to open our ears and humble our hearts to the new ideas, theologies and hermeneutics of the global church. When we grow in this way, our personal biases of the text diminish and we begin to learn from the text in a whole new way. When we do this, our sermons are appropriately grounded in the scriptures while at the same time permeating the lives and hearts of the listeners. God’s word is living and we need to be responsible with this fact. For too long, pastors have grown stale and stymied the life of the text. As we commit to reading the text with those of different backgrounds and perspectives, then and only then will we see the height, breadth, and depth of God’s word for all people of all time in all places.

Bibliography:
Adamo, David Tuesday. Biblical Interpretation in African Perspective. Lanham, Maryland: University Press, 2006.
Adeyemo, Tokunboh. Africa Bible Commentary. Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 2006.
Bosch David J. Transforming Mission. New York: Orbis Books, 2006.
Burton, Keith Augustus. The Blessing of Africa. Downers Grove: InterVarsity Press, 2007.
Chapell, Bryan. Christ-Centered Preaching. Grand Rapids: Baker Academic, 2005.
Davis, Ellen F. and Richard B. Hays. The Art of Reading Scriptures. Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 2003.
Dietrich, Walter and Ulrich Luz. The Bible in a World Context. Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 2002.
Donders, Joseph. Non-Bourgeois Theology. New York: Orbis Books, 1985.
Escobar, Samuel. The New Global Mission. Downers Grove: InterVarsity Press, 2003.
Fee, Gordon. The Spirit of the Text. Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 2000.
Gibson, Scott. Preaching to a Shifting Culture. Grand Rapids: Baker Books, 2004.
Goldsworthy, Graeme. Gospel-Centered Hermeneutics. Downers Grove: InterVarsity Academic Press, 2006.
Hiebert, Paul G. Anthropological Reflections on Missiological Issues. Grand Rapids: Baker Books, 1994.
Jenkins, Philip. God’s Continent. Oxford: University Press, 2007.
--The Next Christendom. Oxford: University Press, 2002.
--The New Faces of Christianity. Oxford: University Press, 2006.
Kraft, Charles. Appropriate Christianity. Pasadena: William Carey Library, 2005.
--Christianity in Culture. New York: Orbis Books, 1979.
Kihumba, Julius. Interview with Gregg Jennings: December, 2007.
Mbiti, John. Bible and Theology in African Christianity. Oxford: University Press, 1986.
Osborne, Grant R. The Hermeneutical Spiral. Downers Grove: InterVarsity Academic Press, 2006.
Ott, Craig and Harold A. Netland. Globalizing Theology. Grand Rapids: Baker Academic, 2006.
Robinson, Haddon. Biblical Preaching. Grand Rapids: Baker Books, 2004.
Sanneh, Lamin. Whose Religion is Christianity? Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 2003.
Spencer, Aida Besncon and William David. The Global God. Grand Rapids: Baker Books, 1998.
Stott, John R. W. Between Two Worlds. Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1982.
Tennent, Timothy C. Theology in the Context of World Christianity. Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 2007.
Ukpong, Justin. Reading The Bible In The Global Village. Atlanta: Society of Biblical Literature, 2002.
Vanhoozer, Kevin. Dictionary for Theological Interpretation of the Bible. Grand Rapids: Baker Academic, 2005.
Walls, Andrew. The Cross-Cultural Process In Christian History. New York: Orbis Books, 2005.
West, Gerald and Musa W. Dube. The Bible In Africa. Boston: Brill Publishers, 2000.
Yamauchi, Edwin M. Africa and the Bible. Grand Rapids: Baker Academic, 2004.

[1] Samuel Escobar, The New Global Mission. (Downers Grove: InterVarsity Press, 2003), 12.
[2] Lamin Sanneh, Whose Religion is Christianity? (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 2003), 15.
[3] Philip Jenkins, God’s Continent. (Oxford: University Press, 2007), 72.
[4] Lamin Sanneh, Whose Religion is Christianity? (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 2003), 18.
[5] Timothy C. Tennent, Theology in the Context of Global Christianity. (Grand Rapids: Zondervan), xvii.
[6] Timothy C. Tennent, Preaching to a Shifting Culture. (Grand Rapids: Baker Books), 203-204.
[7] Lamin Sanneh, Whose Religion is Christianity? (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans), 106.
[8] Timothy C. Tennent, Lectures on Applied Anthropology for Missions. (Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary), Fall 2006.
[9] David Tuesday Adamo, Biblical Interpretation in African Perspective. (Lanham: University Press, 2006), 19.
[10] Paul Heibert, Anthropological Reflections on Missiological Issues. (Grand Rapids: Baker, 1994), 103.
[11] Samuel Escobar, The New Global Mission. (Downers Grove: InterVarsity Press, 2003), 140.
[12] Kevin Vanhoozer, Dictionary for Theological Interpretation of the Bible. (Grand Rapids: Baker Academic, 2005), 32.
[13] Charles Kraft, Christianity and Culture. (New York: Orbis Books, 1979), 129.
[14] Ibid 130.
[15] Kevin Vanhoozer, Dictionary for Theological Interpretation of the Bible. (Grand Rapids: Baker Academic, 2005), 128.
[16] Mervin Breneman, The New American Commentary Ezra, Nehemiah, Esther: electronic ed., Logos Library System: (Nashville: Broadman & Holman Publishers, 2001, c 1993), 225.
[17] D.A. Carson, New Bible Commentary. (Downers Grove: InterVarsity Press, 1994), 328.
[18] Charles Kraft, Christianity and Culture. (New York: Orbis Books, 1979), 116.
[19] Kevin Vanhoozer, Dictionary for Theological Interpretation of the Bible. (Grand Rapids: Baker Academic, 2005), 128.
[20] Anthony C. Thiselton, The First Epistle to the Corinthians: A Commentary on the Greek Text. (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 2000), 1140.
[21] Joseph Donders, Non-Bourgeois Theology. (New York: Orbis Books, 1985), 62.
[22] Bryan Chapell, Christ-Centered Preaching. (Grand Rapids: Baker Books, 2005), 84.
[23] Grant Osborne, The Hermeneutical Spiral. (Downers Grove: InterVarsity Press, 2006), 29.
[24] Justin S. Ukpong, Reading the Bible in the Global Village. (Atlanta: Society of Biblical Literature, 2002), 23.
[25] Walter Dietrich and Ulrich Luz, The Bible in a World Context. (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 2002), 21
[26] Ibid 22.
[27] Justin Ukpong, Reading the Bible in a Global Village. (Atlanta: Society of Biblical Literature, 2002), 24.
[28] Gerald West and Musa W. Dube, The Bible in Africa. (Boston: Brill Publishing, 2000), 22.
[29] David Tuesday Adamo, Biblical Interpretation in African Perspective. (Lanham: University Press, 2006), 70.
[30] Grant Osborn, The Hermeneutical Spiral. (Downers Grove: InterVarsity Press, 2006), 29.
[31] David Tuesday Adamo, Biblical Interpretation in African Perspective. (Lanham: University Press, 2006), 71.
[32] Ibid 72.
[33] Grant Osborn, The Hermeneutical Spiral. (Downers Grove: InterVarsity Press, 2006), 29.
[34] John Stott, Between Two Worlds. (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans 1982), 149.
[35] Ibid 150.
[36] Ibid 147.
[37] David Tuesday Adamo, Biblical Interpretation in African Perspective. (Lanham: University Press, 2006), 72.
[38] Ibid 73.
[39] Ibid.
[40] Ibid.
[41] Bryan Chapell, Christ-Centered Preaching. (Grand Rapids: Baker Books, 2005), 299.
[42] David Tuesday Adamo, Biblical Interpretation in African Perspective. (Lanham: University Press, 2006), 74.
[43] Ibid.
[44] Ibid.
[45] Ibid.
[46] Ibid.
[47] Ibid.
[48] Grant Osborn, The Hermeneutical Spiral. (Downers Grove: InterVarsity Press, 2006), 455.
[49] David Tuesday Adamo, Biblical Interpretation from an African Perspective. (Lanham: University Press, 2006), 77.
[50] Ibid 78.
[51] Julius Kihumba. Email Interview with Gregg Jennings on December 15, 2007.
[52] Gordon Fee. The Spirit of the Text. (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 2000), 8.

Santa's at Starbucks!

2007-12-16T17:13:00.000-08:00

Reaping the employee benefits. Kasaan was the first one that day to offer up his wish to Santa. "I wish that Dad would get his stinking paper done and I wish that mom would stop tickling me so I'd eat more, using cold wipes on my bottom, and changing my diaper in general has become a real drag. Is there anything you can do about that? Also could you give my mom some more sleep? Our Christmas tree is wicked cool so thanks for that one. Oh Santa, I love my bathtime! Could you hook me up with a velvet bathrobe or something! I'm just so chill after my bath I feel like I need to be in something nice up against my skin. But you know what I mean...come on you are the king of velvety bathrobes! Wicked nice! Thanks Santa."

OK so let me tell you what's going on. I'm two days away from finishing my final paper for seminary. Its been a long 3 1/2 years but come Tuesday, I'm never looking back. I'll post the paper on the blog it promises to be a real snooze to 99% of you but for those of you that need some stimulating night time reading to put you to sleep...we promise not to disappoint you. Bird is doing a phenomenal job at being a mom. Stress and exhaustion has reached new levels but the Lord has been so faithful and good. We leave for VA next Sunday morning and will be spending Christmas with the Byrne's. Kasaan is changing almost daily. He is one month old and we just love him so much.

Lois and Lilly = Bed for Bird

2007-12-03T09:51:00.000-08:00

Grandma Byrne and Cousin Lilly came in from Virginia this week and have been a huge help. Bird has been getting much more sleep the last couple of nights. Kasaan has decided after much persuasion from his parents to sleep in 4 hour blocks during the night. This has helped Bird out so much.

Don't let the smiles fool you.

2007-11-29T13:10:00.000-08:00

Yeah...so don't let the smiles fool you all...we haven't slept in what seems like weeks. I was told while working at Starbucks yesterday from one of our customers, "I'm telling you Gregg when Kasaan sleeps through night that first time...at first you'll wake up and wonder what happened or did we forget to feed him or did he hate his bed and run away...then you'll realize no he just slept through the night and that my friend is better than sex." We are tired but the joy far outweighs any amount of sleep.

Grandma and Grandpa Jennings have been in town for a stint and Grandma Byrne comes in tonight with Kasaan's cousin Lilly. It's hard to imagine doing any thing right now but worrying about the sweet baby so we are so grateful for all the help from our wonderful parents. It really is amazing how your life just stops. But really its like your life just begins, a new set of priorities really.

Grandma and Grandpa getting their fill. Dad likes to hold him when Kasaan is sleeping...Mom like to hold him when he's flashing gang signs.

Bird and Baby's first field trip!

2007-11-25T09:26:00.000-08:00

So as is our tradition we went out to get our Christmas tree on Friday after Thanksgiving. Bird and Kasaan have been doing wonderfully.

Kasaan is sleeping a little better and each day is better than the one before.

Welcome Kasaan Julius Jennings!

2007-11-19T17:26:00.000-08:00

Bird's water broke at 11 pm on Thursday night. This was about that same time on Friday night. She was and is my hero! What a job.

Brian Marsh--a old college and DC friend was up for a visit. Little did he know he was going to get the surprise of his life. He was amazing and played worship songs during much of Bird's labor. We laughed we sang, it was from God. Very relaxing.

The joy that was in Bird's hear at the time of the birth was overpowering. She says that the pushing was her most joyous moments in life. Kasaan came within 20 minutes of her pushing. Its just all over her face (not so much his) but she is so happy!

A good profile shot!

We see a lot of Grandpa Byrne in baby Kasaan. I think its cause he's going to be so tough! Or it maybe that Julius has an alternative meaning (aside from Kind) of "downy-bearded youth" So who knows maybe he'll have a white beard someday like Poppy!

Brandi--is Brian's wonderful wife and she was able to fly in on Saturday for the Kassan birthday. I'm not even sure if she had to pack her toothbrush because before you could spell Kasaan Julius Jennings she and B had to head back to DC. But we are so thankful they were able to be here for such a special day.

Bird and one of the many wonderful nurses putting Kasaan in his car seat.

This is the video of Kassan being weighed in.

The beauty and the beast! I'm telling you Bird looks better than me! She was amazing.

From Office to Baby Room with help from Virginia

2007-11-09T07:59:00.000-08:00

Do you ever have a project that just sits around the house? No matter how much you stare at them the dishes just don't do themselves. No matter how much research you do...you still have to write the paper. Our original thoughts were to leave our second bedroom as a 1/2 office and 1/2 baby room. But no matter how much we stared at the space or the crib--things just weren't getting done. That is until Kathy, Bird's sister came up from Virginia. I think her exact words were, "We are getting this done in 24 hours--come on get the keys Gregg we are going to Baby's R Us."

Sometimes it just takes one little piece for the whole puzzle to make since. From the time we got back from Spain until 3 weeks ago we knew we had so much to do but just couldn't do it. Kathy is our baby's aunt and our baby's interior designer. So after the 24 hour mad marathon the room looked great and Bird and her went to the Spa for some pampering.

Kathy was simply amazing! Bird was so encouraged to have some family close by during the pregnancy. For me it was great to watch the sister dynamic going on all weekend. It was like they were teenagers again! Tons of joy! Kathy thanks so much for all your love and support and just for being you. We love you and can't thank you enough!

A Harbor Baby Shower

2007-11-08T08:11:00.001-08:00

This December will mark our 3rd year on staff with Harbor of Hope Christian Church. My job has adapted and morphed from more to less to more over those three years but through it all one thing has remained a constant...the churches unfailing love for Bird and I. We feel so undeserving of the joy and excitement that is thrown our way week after week. On Sunday November 4th in the cafe of the church several people came out to support us and to bless us with baby gifts. We can't thank YOU and Harbor enough. This is a picture at the very end of the shower of Linda Bortmess (also the gal who gave Bird tons of maternity clothes so that she didn't have to be at her own shower in her birthday suite) praying for Bird that she would loose her anxiety unto the Lord and that He would carry us through the next four weeks. There really is not one thing we need. Between our wonderful family, church and friends Baby Jennings is going to be very welcomed.
We played wicked fun games and got a rat as a gift. The couple who pulled it all off were our small group leaders, Priscila and Nathan Keliher. Leave it up to Mrs. Flint to remind us that some point our baby is going to get so bored of all the new toys and so we need to be flexible and have the baby play with what is around the house...aka...our new toy RAT. Hilarious.

New Job!

2007-10-04T07:49:00.000-07:00

We have known ever since signing back up with Harbor of Hope that part time ministry, no matter how rewarding it may be does not necessarily pay all the bills of a family that is expecting their first child. One could also argue that a part time pastor and a part time coffee man won't pay the bills either...nevertheless its my joy to announce I'm a coffee man once again. For those of you who knew me in my Caribou Coffee days, well I'm back at it. I start next week and we could not be more excited. So if you need a cup of delicious, $10 coffee, come in and see me at the North Shore Starbucks in Beverly.

2007-10-04T06:53:00.000-07:00

We have had quite a wild week. First of all we had the Fall Fun Fest and aside from me being in the dunk tank it was a great success. This pic is of the "YO YO people" who also do hula hoop tricks and bad basketball tricks. They have travelled all over the world doing their yo yo tricks and we were able to have them at Harbor. After the festival ended at 3 PM we took all the Underground girls to the beach, out to dinner, and then over to our house for a sleepover! It was wicked fun. After the sleepover we all went to church and fell asleep during group. It was a blast.
On Sunday afternoon Jed and I went to New York to a Young Life Camp for the annual Orchard Group retreat. It was wonderful.

It really has been a crazy week! Here is a picture of Bird last week before all the parties. She is doing well...but is going to have to slow down if she wants to make it through this thing. She is a "Byrne" and you guys simply have one button....GO.

Apple Pickin' at Parlee Farms

2007-09-26T07:53:00.000-07:00

Ten minutes away from the Mill that is 'Harbor of Hope' sits the most beautiful orchard. We saw it a couple weeks ago on our way out of town and said to each other that we simply had to go as soon as possible. Sunday was lovely day and we spent about 2 hours in the orchard pickin' apples. Neither of us had ever gone before and we had a blast. Somewhere among the rows of Empire, Gala's and Mac's I remembered my first job ever. I was probably 13 or 14 and I worked at Fletcher's Orchard in Columbia, MO. My job.....? Cleaning tomatoes for like a quarter for ever 55 gallon trash can full. I'm sure it wasn't that bad but I...now that I think about it...it was maybe like $20 a day for all day. Nuts to think back that far.

We are not sure what we are going to do with a peck of apples and such busy lives but I'm sure we'll think of something creative. Right now there just sitting on the counter but it was a day that we will never forget. Later that night the students from the UNDERGROUND through Bird a surprise Birthday Party, which was the 17th. She had a great day. The kids showered her with all kinds of love and good words. We really are two lucky kids our self.

Thanks to all you UNDERGROUNDERS that made that night so special!

Trying out our new tripod!

2007-09-20T07:57:00.000-07:00

For four years we have tried to take pictures with my long arm reacing out to get an always mediocre pic. The irony of traveling to Italy and Spain and then coming home and buying a tiny tripod is hilarious. But nevertheless this is our first pic with the new device and we love it. Bird is 29 going on 30 weeks on Monday and she is doing very good. A few nights she was unable to get good rest but the last two nights she has slept great. We are looking forward to this weekend. I will be preaching a sermon on 1 John 3:11-18, its the first time in nearly a year that I have preached at Harbor of Hope and I'm very excited. Bird is in the full swing with her internship and simply loving it.

Picture of the Whole Crew!

2007-09-20T07:55:00.001-07:00

Alicia's 15th Birthday Party!

We Danced, we ate fruit pizza, and one girl had the night of her life!

2007-09-20T07:15:00.000-07:00

Alicia, had been inviting us to her birthday party for over a year...the only problem was there was only hope in a little girls heart that she was going to be having the best birthday party ever. But when it all came down to it her parents had to move out of their house on the very day of her birthday. When the Underground students found this out they decided that they wanted to throw Alicia a suprise birthday party. The result was one of the best nights any of us has ever had. As we drove Alicia home that night she said, "This was the best party I've ever had in my life." One fruit pizza, Itunes radio set to a dance station, 6 friends and one girl celebrated, it was the best night ever. Here are a couple more pics.

Olivia and Amanda...I'm not really sure what they are dancing to. This may have been when we had the Spanish Station cranked up loud!

So What's New?

2007-09-19T08:48:00.000-07:00

I realize we are so far behind in our blogging. Many of you are crying out for pics of Bird's progress and I'm once step closer to getting things in order. I've 98% of our pics onto my computer and have them at hand. However, most of the new pics are still on the camera and I haven't put them on my laptop yet. So....one step closer.

This is a pic of bird at the Opera in Prague, which we both fell asleep at.

Bird celebrated her birthday two days ago and unfortunately she was so sick. She fought through the sickness though to wake up for pancakes and was able to go to her favorite restaurant "Border Cafe" for dinner, but was back in bed by 9 PM.

I felt so bad for her, no one should ever be as sick as she was but especially on her birthday. The baby is doing just wonderful. Kicking and moving all over the place. We are back in the full swing of things. Bird has two days of classes and then is down at Melrose High School two days a week logging her internship hours.

I'm at the church 3 days a week and I preach on Sunday at our church for the first time in a very long time. I'm excited and nervous all at the same time. We are filling our spare time with getting the house ready for the little baby and with eating all our favorite meals we missed so much over the summer.

Papers, Cars, Computers, Church and Lack of Sleep

2007-09-11T16:58:00.000-07:00

Nevertheless we are back in Boston and looking to get back into the blogging business.

As soon as we landed in Boston I had 8 days to turn in two papers.

As soon as we landed in Boston both our cars went on the fritz.

As soon as we landed in Boston I got a new computer so I have none of our pics on my new laptop and Bird is using hers in class.

As soon as we landed in Boston I went back to work at Harbor of Hope and have loved every minute of it.

As soon as we landed in Boston it was like 5 A.M. Madrid time and we have just in the last couple days caught up on our sleep.

The last couple weeks have been great though. Bird is back in school (pictures soon to come) and she is also working on her internship hours at Melrose High School. Yes that's the same place where she worked as a nurse...now she's there as a counselor. I think that's so cool.

Our due date has not changed it is still December 3. Oh my goodness how can I begin to tell all the great things that have happened in the last few weeks.

OK I'll be better at blogging. I promise. Pictures are to come.

Thanks again for all the love and support we felt over the blog while we were in Spain. I think we have the best friends in the world.

Polish TV and the Baltic Sea

2007-08-21T13:17:00.000-07:00

Our friends Mati and Jessica being interviewed on a Polish TV morning show, equal to our "Good Morning America". It was wicked cool being on the set of the show and watching them get all made up and junk. The TV station put us all up in a hotel on the Baltic Sea and we simply had a blast. We spent the morning on the set of the show and the afternoon on the beach. These are two of the craziest people I know, last summer they bought a double-decker bus and turned it into a traveling hostel. After that they toured all of Europe by bus picking people up along the way. The word got out to the TV station and they wanted to interview them on live TV. It was such an honor for Jess and Mati to be able to do this. In a couple of days we are traveling to Krakow and going to spend a few days there. We simply cannot image what we will see there. We simply love Poland. The people have been so kind and we love it. Today we took a kayak on the river and toured around the city where our friends live. Tomorrow we are going to the zoo.

Checking out of Czech...for now!

2007-08-17T08:15:00.000-07:00

Every corner we turned down was filled with history and beauty. We stayed two nights in Prague and I'm not sure that I've ever seen a more beautiful city. Bird and I rented bikes our sencond day and saw the whole city from banana seat (not really but that was fun to say). This is a pic our waiter took at a pizzaria. More to come! We have met up with our friends and we are currently in Poland in their apartment. It is so amazing. Tomorrow we take a 7 hour train to the Baltic Sea to the north of Poland for the weekend and then probably to Krakow. More to come! We will most likely spend a couple more days in the Czech Republic toward the end of our trip but we will be in Poland for the next 7 days or so.

Tonight Zurich Tomorrow Prague, Next Week Poland

2007-08-13T00:46:00.000-07:00

We are up and dressed and by the time you read this today we will be on a bus for Madrid. Tonight we have a connecting flight to Zurich and then in the morning we will head off to Prague. We will stay in the Czech Republic for about 5 days and then our wonderful friends from DC Jess, and Mati will be meeting us there and the four of us will be taking a train from Prague to Poland. Mati is Polish and the two of them have a house in Poland and we will be spending the rest of our vacation with them checking out many of the sites in Poland including many of the WWII places.

We are not sure what our blogging will look like for the next two weeks but please check us out periodically because if we get a break, we will be blogging! Thanks again for all your love and prayers over the last six weeks. We have had a wonderful time and are so glad that many of you stayed up to date with us via the blog and other emails. Your encouragement has meant the world to us.

God bless, just a few errands to run around Salamanca and we are off to the bus station.

Gregg and Bird

The People Have Voted!

2007-08-13T00:37:00.000-07:00

Hey you guys, thanks for taking our poll. I sure was hoping that Bird would have to talk to the Spanish Police but it looks like you'd rather see me swimming around in the fountain. We thought for a while that you may be able to see both as a result of me in the fountain but all was well.

It was actually a wicked hot day and so it actually felt a nice taking a dip. The only people that saw me really were the make-out couples sitting close to the fountain for a romantic afternoon. I was glad to give them something to remember!

This was our last night in Salamanca and we were invited by Jesse and Sophie to come over and have Pizza Hut with them. It was wonderful. We had a great night with our new friends from the summer and could not have been more happy about our time here in Spain.

Thanks for all your love and support.

Two Days Left!

2007-08-11T06:26:00.000-07:00

Yesterday was perfect. That's all there is to say. From the time we woke up in the morning Bird had every step planned and it was simply the perfect day. So today is crazy, we have been running all over the city trying to tie up our loose ends. We leave on Monday to start our vacation and we are so excited. We will write more about our vacation but we still have a few things to do in Salamanca before we head out. Tonight we are having a movie night for all those in our Bible Study and tomorrow we are having Pizza Hut, that's right there is a Pizza Hut here, with Jesse and Sophie to say good-bye. It's hard to believe our time is up, it has been one great ride.

Thank You Mom and Dad, For 30 Great Years!

2007-08-09T16:01:00.000-07:00

It's 1 A.M in Spain just now and Bird is in the office at En Vivo creatively working on something for tomorrow's big day. She already has breakfast plans for us and plans for dinner at Isidro's. I am one blessed man. The three people next to me in this picture are my biggest fans in the world. Mom and Dad, you gave me the confidence to accomplish anything in the world and you instilled in me a faith that is unshakable. Bird you are the love of my life and tomorrow when I wake up I will be 30 years old. What ever you have planned for the day I simply can't wait. I feel like I'm 5 and I've never felt that way before on my birthday. The first thirty were good with an amazingly bright spot at the end, that was you! I simply cannot wait for the next 30 with you my love. Then we'll only be 60 and so I can't wait for the 30 after that either!

To all my friends out there and family...you have made my life such a joy. Thank you for enriching me along the way with your stories and your love. I am a blessed man and I have all I want and need. With a sweet baby on the way what else could one dream of. My dreams have come true.

Peace to you all.
Raise a glass, Gregg is 30! Or at least watch a Cardinals Game or something!

ROCK THE VOTE:

2007-08-09T12:29:00.001-07:00

Be sure to scroll down and take the survey at the bottom of the page. Let your voice be heard!

What I've Learned about People:

2007-08-09T12:01:00.000-07:00

This is a picture of last nights Bible Study. We had a quiet, intimate group with loads of good discussion. I feel have learned that people are people no matter what country you are in. People have hurts, scars, wounds but also they have victories and can be heroic. We have loved getting to know the people in our Bible Study. I believe God brought each of us, including myself to this study. Each person brought their own experiences and knowledge to the group and was willing to open up and be honest about their lives and faith, or lack of faith. I told Bird that I am always amazed that in a small group context how quick people are willing to open up and be honest about themselves. Then I thought, if people are not vulnerable to let other people in then the odds are others in the group will never get to know them. I've learned a lot about vulnerability from my good friend Anthony. I've learned that I like it when others are vulnerable, it makes me feel good like I can speak into their lives. However, I myself even when I think I'm being open an honest with others can keep just enough back to be safe and comfortable in my own walled up city.

I've learned people need friends.
I've learned people need love.
I've learned people want to laugh.
I've learned people want to be noticed.
I've learned people want to be know more about Christianity even if they don't want to be a Christian.
I've learned I am more reserved in evangelism then I thought I was.
I've learned people love a cup of coffee over their theological conversations.
I've learned people will label you no matter what.
I've learned people are beautiful.
I've learned people have a lot more in common with each other then they think.
I've learned people can be trusted.
I've learned people love and hate America.
I've learned that I love and hate America.
I've learned I miss the students at Harbor of Hope.
I've learned that family is the best part of life.
I've learned that my life is more important then my message.
I've learned that Italian food is better than Spanish food.
I've learned that people are what they ingest.

Check Out Survey At the Bottom of This Page:

2007-08-08T09:46:00.000-07:00

What the people want the people will get!
Be sure to ¨Rock the Vote¨!

You...our friends and family have been so encouraging and supportive with your comments on our blog. Our only wish is that we could have commented directly to each of your comments. Well now you can see that your voice is being heard. Take our little survey and then check us out next week to see which picture the people wanted most.

Love to you all.
Gregg n Bird

What I've Learned About Fatherhood:

2007-08-07T07:18:00.000-07:00

If you've been around me for a long time you will know that my favorite parable of Christ is found in Luke 15. Jesus is describing to the Pharisee's why he eats with sinners. In that Parable he talks about the love of the Father on a Son who ran away from home and squandered all he had on 'wild living.' A few years ago I read Henri Nouwen's book called the 'The Return of the Prodigal' and in it he describe that we often times associate ourselves with either one of the two brothers. Either we are like the Pharisee's and wonder how God could forgive the worst of sinners. Or we are like the prodigal who ran away from God and has returned to find God a loving Father and a merciful Lord.

Nouwen points out that while those two ways of thinking are legitimate the point of Christ's parable was to get his listeners to live and act like the Father. This thinking has revolutionized my thinking. For too long I had wallowed in my own sin thinking myself quite a Prodigal Son. Then I've had my bouts of Pride and Arrogance much like the Older Son. All along though God was calling me to be like him. To be willing to embrace those who hurt me and are unkind to me. In no way have I completed the journey of becoming like the Father, but in many ways I'm further along the journey then ever before.

The favorite part of my day over the last three weeks has been lying down at night beside Bird. It seems like that is when our baby is most active. She has read that during the day as a woman walks around the baby in the womb feels like they are being rocked and often sleep during the day and are active at night. We have found that just as Bird lays down the sleeping babe wakes.

I've learned that the greatest joy in my day has been putting my hand on her belly and feeling our baby move. Sometimes its a slight bump and at other times its a flip (or at least it feels that way) but always its a miracle.

Bird was 23 weeks preggo yesterday. She is feeling good during the days but simply cannot sleep at night. This morning I was up at 6 and found her reading in the front room and not having one minute of sleep. Nevertheless she is smiling, she is happy, but she is exhausted. Will you pray for her?

A few times in the last two weeks I've been brought to tears thinking about fatherhood. Words don't really describe my feelings. As I've listened to a song or have been thinking about baby names...I've never felt it before...but I hoping that actually being a father may allow to be just a little bit more like the Father in Luke 15.

What I've Learned about Missions in Spain:

2007-08-07T04:15:00.000-07:00

You, in your experience may have had this figured out long before we did. But we are both a little hard headed at times and it often need to learn things for ourselves. All of my missions experience has been in 3rd world countries. Between Bird and I we have been to Mexico 4 times, Haiti, 5 times, and Jamaica once. It's not that we were ignorant before coming to Spain but I would say that we were not prepared for the differences in missiological strategies. In Haiti, I've heard my brother-in-law, who lives there, say, "You simply cannot tell a Haitian how wonderful Jesus is when they haven't had anything to eat in 2 days." I think he is right.

But the Spaniards don't need food in their bellies and Western Europeans in general are in such a different situation from the Haitians or Mexicans what is there to do? What we were not prepared for in Spain was the overall since that we were not needed. This is the trick I believe that 3rd world missions plays on us. We can get so wrapped up into feeding and building that we never take the time to get to know the people behind the hunger.

For a short term trip to work in Haiti and I know from experience, you feel a great since of accomplishment if you've done XY or Z to help relieve the suffering of the people. I've learned the suffering of the people of Spain is not as obvious a bloated stomach and a leaky roof. These are all needs that the body of Christ need to do their best to meet but they are no the needs of the average Spaniard.

There is nothing in my bank account or in my house in Boston that would provide these people with what they need. At the end of the day missions in Spain about relationships. In Haiti, I could go down the street and invite people to a feeding program and we would be able to be the hands and feet of Christ. In Spain if I go down the street and presume to offer them something they would reject me as an arrogant American Bush-Lover.

So what is the strategy? I have concluded that before we find the strategy we need to really understand the problem: I see the problems as follows:

1. Leadership Development in the Church

2. A viable alternative to Materialism and Secularism

3. An oppressive past not only from the Roman Church but from the Government

With problems like these where do we start? What is the game plan? What can we do?

1. Recognize that Spain needs and is still dependent, right now, on foreign missions.

2. Build long term relationships with churches around the world who speak Spanish and who can provide short term training seminars for churches and young Christians.

3. Live a life that proves dependence upon Christ not Materialism.

4. Live a life crucified to Christ not dabbling back and forth with Secular mindsets and hypocrisy.

5. Recognize that no matter how hard a Spaniard may come off as not needing you....you do have something they need...The Gospel. Rejection is a given in Spain. So we need to be confident in the LORD.

6. Church Planting: Most of the churches that we have visited are strong in some ways and weak in others. Spain needs an explosion of relevant church plants that understand the situation Spain is in and that understands Biblical Ecclesiology (Study of the Church and how it should function).

7. Authentic friendships: Where people in Haiti could be described as hungry, the people in Spain could be described as lonely and hurting. Particularly in the University town of Salamanca.

8. Christian Missionaries who are not arrogant, presuming they have the answer to all the Spaniards problems.

9. Strong Christian Families: The average birth rate in Spain just now is dismal. The government is paying couples to have 2 and 3 kids. Kids born in loving Christian homes will grow to be worshipers of God and will grow to be the leaders of tomorrow.

10. Autonomy from other forms of Christianity. The goal of Spanish Evangelicalism is to be just that...Spanish. Right now the Churches in Spain look very American or very British. The goal must be for Spaniards to take over the leadership of the churches and para-church organizations so they will be reaching their own people.

I hope I haven't board you to death. For us the question is where do we fit in? Over the last 6 weeks we have done our best to present Christ as the JOY of life. We have done our best to build friendships and love people where they are. As far as our long term thoughts about living in Spain...we haven't figured that one out yet.

Love to you all.

What I've Learned About Spaniards and the Church.

2007-08-05T15:22:00.000-07:00

Picture of the Cathedral in Salamanca

During my time here in Salamanca I have had the wonderful privilege of interviewing two pastors of local congregations. Pastor Timothy (London) has been in Spain for nearly 40 years. Pastor Kent (Kansas) has been here nearly 15 years. Both of these men gave me absurd amounts of their time to ask all my questions which I am very grateful for. Also both meetings were over coffee as if they spoke my love language. I had an interview which consisted of over 20 questions and I loved their answers on all the questions. But one question that both pastors answered almost word for word was #14 "Is there one doctrine of the Church that Spaniards tend to find difficult to grasp?"

What I was hoping to dig up from the combined 55 years of ministry experience between these two guys was some thread of similarity. And I think we found it. Their responses went just like this, "Hmmmmmmmmm, is there a doctrine of the chur......GRACE. If there is one thing the Spanish people struggle with is Grace. They don't know how it can be FREE and they still feel they have to work to pay off God"

I told them that as Evangelicals we tend to think that we came up with the phrase "SAVED BY GRACE" rather than Paul, and yet even we, at times feel like our good works get us in to heaven. Both Pastor Tim and Kent feel that after centuries of oppressive religiosity from a distorted form of Catholicism, Spaniards who are believers in God, still don't understand GRACE.

What I have learned is that when working with a culture who has been oppressed, whether by the Church or the Government, in Spain's case both, the Doctrine of Grace must be taught and lived out all the more. We are talking about God's most precious gift to us and we simply can't jack this up in our communication and in our daily lives with one another.

Final Week!

2007-08-04T14:49:00.000-07:00

We are one final week from completing our mission in Spain. It has been one of mostly ups with just a few question marks. This week I hope to fill you in on not just what we have done but what we have learned. We have one more Bible Study and we are going to show a movie on Friday night. We will be doing some cleaning at the campus house and a few other odds and end and then we are off. Please continue to pray for us as we are still meeting with people and doing our best to show them the love of God through Christ. This will be a great week! No slowing down for us. We value finishing strong and want to do our best to keep loving these people with every second we are with them.

Shalom,
Gregg

Missions 101:

2007-08-01T16:20:00.000-07:00

Thanks to multiple trips to Haiti and lessons from my sister Heather and her husband Janeil, who live in Haiti, we have learned the first lesson in missions. Do you know what it is? FLEXIBILITY.

Things don't always go the way we plan them. No matter how many emails or phone calls or support letters we send out, sometimes God has to test us to see if we are still trusting in him.

We found out a couple of days ago that our plans to travel to Southern Spain have been changed. We were hoping to travel to Murcia to work with a church during an evangelistic campaign. We were hoping to see how they work with Muslims up from Morocco but it wasn't in God's plan for us. The church down there has changed the dates of their work and Bird and I will be gone during the new dates. So what do you do? You work with God. We are told our Bible Study tonight that we are going to do another study and have a movie night next week. So we are not shutting down, we are not slowing down, we have invested in Salamanca and some of the people here and we are going to give it another week here!

Pray for us as we have only a week and a half left in Spain!

We love you dearly and pray God's blessings on your life!

(Picture from Plaza Mayor--downtown Salamanca)

Close to Home!

2007-08-01T15:57:00.001-07:00

There is so much to say about what was planned to be our last Bible study in Salamanca. First things first. Phylis and Charlie Cutler, our dear friends from Harbor of Hope in Lowell, MA told us that we may be in for a special treat over the summer. Thanks you guys! Your daughter Julie is wonderful. Julie is a Spanish teacher in New Hampshire and is away from her wonderful husband and daughter, India, for 5 weeks while she is studying to get her masters here at the University. This picture was taken tonight, the last time we will see Julie before she heads back to the states. We had the opportunity to spend just a short time with Julie but we have been so blessed by her warm spirit and her godly heart. Phylis and Charlie, you should be proud!

This is the room where we have our Bible Studies. Tonight, which was our fourth study was on Ecclesiastes 5. We had 10 people or so and then we all went out for Tapas and hung out until midnight. It was a blast.

A wonderful thing about tonight was that Margaret invited her Spanish friend Marta to the Bible Study and she came and hung out with us all night. Bird is meeting with her tomorrow for another "intercombio" session (Spanish/English talking). We believe that this was the first time she has ever experienced anything Evangelical and she was welcomed and fit right in.

In this room we will do one more Bible Study and then say good-bye to our friends in Salamanca. I'm not sure what text I will choose. I was only planning for 4 studies in Ecclesiastes so we will see.

Tonight was just a great night! All smiles, lots of jokes, we have made some great friends here in the city and will truly miss them. Carlos (to the left, just landed a job at the University of North Carolina working in Cancer Research and will be in the States for two years. He is a crazy fun dude and we hope to meet up with him in the States as well. Thanks for all your prayers...they are working beyond anything we could have imagined.

Pasta Night!!

2007-07-30T15:25:00.001-07:00

Momma just loves pasta night!

That's right...it's even leftover pasta!

A Sad Night at the Plaza Mayor!

2007-07-30T13:23:00.000-07:00

We had heard our teachers talk about "Charro" dancing, but Saturday night was the first time we got to see it. While Bird and I were in line to get ice-cream at the Plaza Mayor we heard the drums and the hand cymbals and we turned to see all the hoopla in the middle of the plaza. Charro dancing is the traditional dance of Salamanca. The only people dancing were over 70 years old and the scene was just amazing. We thought of the pain that this generation had felt during Spain's civil war (1936-1939) and the joy they must feel now to be able to dance freely without the fear of a dictator stealing their home or shooting the only evangelical pastor in Salamanca (all of which General Franco did). Anyway, after getting our Limon treat we headed to see the dancing. We stood and watched for a few minutes and I decided that I had enough skills to hold my ice-cream and take a picture. Which I did. The problem came in trying to hold the ice-cream and shutting down the camera. The result was a shattered camera on the Charro dance-floor. The dancing cool! Another example of Gregg's great ability to multi-task, not so cool!

Today we went to the local Carrefore (Spain's version of a Walmart) and bought a camera that would get us through for a while. ONE BIG PROBLEM: Actually TWO BIG PROBLEMS: 1. All the Instructions are in Spanish, including all the on screen prompts. 2. The plug for the rechargable battery is for a European outlet and will need an adapter if we are ever going to use it in the States. All of this hit us 20 minutes after walking out of the store.

Enough about the silly camera. Sorry for the delay in the blogs, we are eager to play catch up over the next couple of days.

We love you all and ask that you would keep praying for us as we are about to finish out time here in Salamanca and are getting ready next week to head to the South of Spain (Murcia) to work with a church down there.

Take Care,
Gregg

La Clase de Castillano

2007-07-24T07:19:00.000-07:00

From Left to Right: (Tomas, Margarita, Gregorio, ProfessorJuanjo)

Hola amigos y familia,

This was our Spanish class, of course like all class photos on the day the photo was taken one of our classmates was absent. Gregg and I had the greatest moments in class together and for the first time I was able to kick his butt at something, so I enjoyed it a little more than him. We graduated last Friday and we received our diploma's. It was one of the greatest experiences to be able to study in another country as we learned about history from the inside-out. They shared that there are two very important things in Spain, siesta y fiesta.

Our professors spoke completely in Spanish which lended to some really funny faces and a ton of confusion. One of our lessons was to create a "rap song" to a Spanish beat, we thought this was a creative exercise to enhance our vocabulary. The next day we were told "vamanos", the next thing we knew, we were standing in front of a video camera and told to sing our "rap song". A week later we saw the owner of Letra Hispanica and she told us she put the video on 'youtube'. This is one most embarrassing moments of my life and so if you guys want to laugh out loud and hear the worst white rappers ever check it out at: youtube under letra hiphop.

If I would of known they were going to put us on the internet I would of given a shout out to all of our peeps. We are so thankful for all of our friends and family that have supported us through prayer, encouragement, and finances. We couldn't of had any of these experiences without you guys. Since class has been over Gregg and I have been exchanges words through what is known as intercambios. This is when you meet up with a native that would like to practice their English while you practice your Spanish. I have had cafe with a girl named Marta, who happens to be studying counseling and Gregg has met with Pepe. He is a 50 y.o. man who used to teach Spanish at several of the schools and at the University of Salamanca and now cares for his 91y.o. mother.

We feel our time if almost over and want to make the most of it. We would love if you would continue to pray for the end of our journey here in Spain and that through one last meeting with Marta and Pepe that their lives might be touched for Christ.

A Three-fold Cord is Not Quickly Broken!

2007-07-23T07:17:00.000-07:00

If one falls down the other can pick her up. But woe to the person who when they fall has no one there to help them up. Yes of course if God is a part of your marriage and you are both working in your devotion to God then between the three of you your marriage should have some form of success based on the worlds standards. This week in our Bible study we will be talking about friendship and how if you have two friends that is good but if you have three, well, even better. How do we measure friendship and when and how should we terminate friendships and what would God say about the people in my life just now who are influencing me in a positive or negative way? In Ecclesiastes 4 Solomon has a thing or two to say about friendship, he values it and wants us to value it as well. But I think we should also be wise in our selection. That is the message we are hoping to get across on Wednesday night. Please pray for Spaniards to come and hearts to be nudged.

Making Friends...Some Spanish, Some American.

2007-07-23T06:40:00.000-07:00

Jesse Bentley, my mentor here in Spain, put if very clearly about ministry here, he said, "100% of ministry in Spain could be wrapped up in one word...Relationships." This week for us has seen the ups and the downs of the reality of friends. They come into your life for a time and then they are gone, sometimes forever. During the course of our two weeks studying Spanish we fell in love with a wonderful couple from San Fransisco. Tom and Linda Hall were our companions to Avila, dinner guests last Tuesday and this past Friday we had to say good-bye. Margaret is going to write more about our class in another blog...but each day with Tom and Bird in class was like a trip to the beach, joy, joy, joy. On Friday night, Tom and Linda treated us to a wonderful dinner at Isidro Resturante (A Rick Steve's suggestion for all you travelers). We laughed, we ate, we thanked them for their kindness and then we had to say good-bye. I'm not sure why God puts people into our lives like Tom and Linda who enrich us for such a short moment and then they are gone. Maybe he knew how much we needed some encouragement (and they gave us plenty of that) or maybe he knew that we needed to talk to some people about what we are doing in Spain (and they asked us so many questions about our trip...they made us feel so special). God knows what he is doing and his timing is perfect...maybe Tom needed a laugh in our Spanish class and so he plopped me right down next to him. Whatever God's plan is we are nothing but thankful to him for his timing and his selection. Tom and Linda became instant friends and we miss them dearly. Why do you think God does that?

On the other side of the coin, God has given us two other friends who are from Spain who will feel the pinch when we go. Jarylen pronounced (Hary {soft a} Lynn) and Tommy are two of the most kind people we have met in the entire world. Jarylen has taken us to two Jazz concerts, cooked us dinner in her house with traditional food from her country, and on this night invited us to be her guests at a new Tapas Bar in which she knows the owners who gave us all the free octopus and drinks we could eat. That's right! Both Bird and I ate for the first time OCTOPUS. And I loved it! Bird...not so much! Jarylen is an interior designer and her mom owns a cyber cafe in Salamanca. Tommy is a student and hopes to do missionary work in Mexico in the next couple of years. Yesterday before church (at 7 PM) we played UNO and had simply a great time. Both of them have come to the Bible Study and are strong Christians. It is encouraging to us to see that God has been at work in the lives of young people in Spain.

Both Bird and I value our friends so much and we have been blessed here in Spain to make just a few more. They have fed us, loved us, encouraged us, laughed with us, and taught us so much about ourselves and Spain. We are thankful.

A Glimpse at the Miraculous

2007-07-19T07:04:00.000-07:00

All praise be to the God of creation.
He has blessed us beyond imagination with a glimpse of the miraculous.
He is at work inside of us knitting together every good thing.
He is at work around us spontaneously changing the beauty of the seasons.
He is at work beyond us constructing a place for us and he is at work before us mapping our seemingly impossible journey.
All praise be to the God of creation. Who simply creates.

So what is En Vivo?

2007-07-19T06:48:00.001-07:00

You know I have been writing for nearly three weeks now and have not clearly explaned what we are doing and where we are doing it. I'm going to be as brief as possible and hopefully as clear as possible. CMF (Christian Missionary Fellowship) is a missions agency out of Indiana with church plant work going on all over the globe. A few years ago they decided to add a branch to their organization that reaches out to students at major universities as a part of their mission. It began in Mexico and now they have college ministries in Chili, Spain, Mexico City, Pueblo Mexico, and Bangkok. In the next year they are looking to open up ministries at Birmingham, England and Tuebingen, Germany. Their goal is simple....reach the leaders of tomorrow with the Gospel before they get out of the University. Pretty cool!!!

That is where we are...we are working with students all over Salamanca doing our best to sow seed in Spain and let God do with that small act of faith what he wants. During the school year they have free lunches for students on Tuesdays followed by a 10 minute devotion. On Thursday's they do a full on sermon for the students and then two times a year they go on retreats which would include much of the same spiritual and fun things as a retreat in the states. It has simply been a joy to work alongside Jessie and Sophie as they lead and train tomorrows leaders of Spain in the Faith.

Salvador Dali, Solomon, and a Time for Everything.

2007-07-19T06:29:00.000-07:00

No artist in recent history has captured the essence of the meaninglessness of time better than Salvador Dali. In his famous painting of time we see clocks melting symbolizing how twisted and crazy time can be. This is the picture we used this week to avertise our Bible Study in Ecclesiastes 3. The question on top of the flyer asked the question: "Is there really a time for everything?" Let me say right off, thanks for praying for my skills in coffee. I guess those 3 months at Caribou Coffee didn't help me for last weeks motor oil in a caraffe, but this week the go go juice was much better.

This week we had 11 people in our group going over the amazing poem that Solomon gives us in chapter 3 of Ecclesiastes. The conversation could not have been better. We had skeptics questioning Solmon's wisdom and we had others lamenting the pain of a world filled with death, loss, and war. We had others give testimony as to how through Christ there is hope and still one other student not say a word during the entire study. I want to thank you for your prayers...God has certainly been faithful in nudging people to come and see what he has to offer.

After group we all went out for Tapas. This is a traditional Spanish dish and we met even more people at the Tapas Bar. It was Carlos' birthday and so as in our country we all celebrated. However, unlike in our country it is tradition for the one who is having the birthday to pay for everyone. So we felt honored that Carlos would invite us...and pay for us. Amazing!

Each week Jesse and Sophie (the leaders of En Vivo) have us over just to hang out and have a meal. Tonight we are going over there and tomorrow is our last day of Spanish class. We simply can't believe it has gone by this fast.

We love you all and hope you are doing well.
Peace.
Gregg

St. Teresa of Avila

2007-07-15T15:25:00.001-07:00

We had quite a busy week with our first Bible Study on Wednesday but Saturday was empty on the calender so we decided to go with one of our classmates and his wife to Avila. The bus ride was about an hour and a half south from Salamanca and we knew we were near Avila when we saw the wall. The wall was constructed in the 12th century for protection but now its just a cool place full of tourists. St. Teresa the famous Nun of the Catholic faith, worked and lived inside the city walls during the 1500's. While Luther and Calvin were doing their thing in the Protestant Reformation, Theresa and St. John of the Cross were a big part of what is called the "counter reformation" here in Spain which brought some new life to the Catholics in Spain. Bird, Thomas and Linda (who have ended up being great friends from our class) and I toured all over the city visiting the first Gothic cathedral in Spain and the catacombs of Teresa's monastery. The catacombs are now a beautiful museum and was our favorite part. Most of the city was full of tourism and I felt a little like Christ and the money-changers at the Temple, but the catacombs had a somber more reverent feel to them.

The sculpture of Teresa is just outside the walls of the old city and this lady might be Teresa herself. It was a great day and full of learning and grieving. Learning about a great and godly woman and grieving about what mankind has done with her legend. Either they venerate her or the profit off of her.

This week we hit the books again for our study of Spanish. One more full week in the classroom and then its hello Spain. Hopefully we will have learned enough to not get ripped off. Our Bible study this week will be on Ecclesiastes 3. There is a time for everything under the sun. Please pray for our group. I've talked to a few more people this weekend who said that they would like to come. Please pray for the hearts of the unbelievers that they would melt before the Lord and that as we read his word, HE would reveal himself to them. May God bless you this week as you live your life for him wherever you are and thanks so much for your prayers as we live our life for him here.

Sylvia Santoro: LVE IN CONCERT

2007-07-12T14:19:00.000-07:00

Margaret and I shared a big comfy chair in the back of the concert as Sylvia mellowed out the crowd with tunes of faith, love, and doubt. Later she spiced things up a bit with a Latin beat that had the 60+ crowd up on its feet and dancing. Many people came from all over town to hear the band and to watch the artist paint simultaneously as together they set quite the inquisitive mood. There is an group of college students here from all over the world doing a mission trip this week and they helped invite people to this free concert at the campus house. It was a lot of fun but as soon as I told Bird that it was 10:30 she said, "I've gotta get out of here and get to bed." Momma is muy tired!

Today was a great day. We had Spanish class in the morning and met the two girls who came to the Bible study for coffee on our break. Then after class at 1:30 we simply took our siesta. We both slept and then woke up just in time for the great concert.

Please pray that through the concert and through the Christian artwork that questions will be asked from the Spaniards in regards to God/Christ/Purpose/or anything else spiritual.

We love you all and pray God's blessing on you as you pray and seek God on behalf of us. Peace.

The Coffee was gross but God provided 10.

2007-07-11T14:54:00.000-07:00

This is the picture we posted all over Salamanca to invite students to our Bible study that we held tonight. I was extremely nervous because we posted the flyer at our school and then in two hours someone had taken it down. However, with God in all his providence brought two girls who happend to see the flyer within that time frame and they came (cold turkey) to the group. In total we had 10 people...5 Americans, 1 Brazilian, 1 Dutch girl, and 3 Spaniards. God is amazing, Pablo one of the guys we have been praying for was one of the Spaniards, the other two have become believers through the ministry here on campus.

We went through Ecclesiastes 1 and 2 and it was good. I went way too long (to no suprise of many of you) but they students were very polite and many stayed after to chat and talk more. Many of them said that they would return next Wednesday. The only problem...aside from me going a little long with the game...was that I burned the coffee...it was absolutley gross. Our Dutch girl, Christa, took one sip, got out of her chair and sat it back on the bar.

It seems that Solomon's thought in Ecclesiastes is just the wisdom that many Spaniards need to hear. He is saying that although, wisdom, pleasure, and toil are good for life, they must not be the only desire in life. The students understood clearly that they have a much deeper need in their lives that travel, sex, parties and other stuff will not fill. We were so pleased with what God allowed us to be a part of tonight.

For next week I need to work on my ice-breakers, I've been working with students so long I feel a little out of touch with people my own age. But tonight was a good for me to learn from and next week I think things will go off a little smoother.

Please pray for Pablo and Christa---they are the two who have never made a decision for Christ. What I saw in both of them tonight was a deep understanding that there is more in life that they don't have. Pray for their salvation, pray that God would reveal himself to them in a powerful way.

Please also pray for Margaret and the Baby. She is doing wonderfully and looking beautiful but we certainly would love your prayers.

The Running of the Bulls!

2007-07-08T14:39:00.000-07:00

When most of you read this it will be early Monday morning and the 3rd day of the "Running of the Bulls" in Pamplona, Spain will be over. We have decided that those who participate in this wild tradition fall under one of three categories: 1. Drunk 2. Drunk 3. Fearless and a little tipsy. However, here in Salamanca we have our own Bull to Fight and that is the Spanish language itself. We will be in class 4 hours a day for the next two weeks learning as much Spanish as possible. We are thankful to God for the opportunity to Study Spanish in Spain. We are using the course as an opportunity to invite our classmates to a Bible study on Ecclesiastes each Wednesday in July. Margaret asked me why I chose Eccleseastes and not anything else. It is my belief that a such a secular society like Spain (or America for that matter) could use a good reminder that at the end of the Day all but fearing God and keeping his commands is meaningless. And I like how Solomon couches his thoughts throughout the entire book. Pleasure, toil, wisdom, all the things that we chase after are not going to give us ultimate joy only in fearing the Lord and following his Son can give us final fulfillment. Please pray for us as we begin our Bible Study this week and as we begin our course. Thanks for your prayers and encouragment...we really do need it and appreciate it. Peace. Gregg

Pablo and other answered prayers!

2007-07-07T04:11:00.000-07:00

Thursday night and Friday morning were filled with God's reminders of our purpose here. We have not have hot water at our apartment since we got to Salamanca so we've been coming to the campus house to shower. Late Thursday night, around midnight, after Bird and I both showered, a guy named Pablo came by the 'en Vivo' house. He was looking for Jesse but stayed for an hour and a half talking about everything under the sun. He spoke wonderful english so Bird and I were both able to share our faith in Christ with him and tried to answer many of his wonderful questions. His biggest issue, if you would be willing to pray for Pablo is that he cannot image a good God sending anyone to hell. He has a lot of Buddhist thoughts rolling around in head and feels that God is a giant teddy bear who has no other characteristics rather than mushy gushy sentimentalism. We had a great talk with Pablo and he promised to come to our Bible Study which begins next Wednesday. Thank you God for sending us a person to remind us that not one moment of our time in Spain is wasted.

God also answered a prayer of ours for language school. Originally our plan from the beginning was to take Spanish at the University while we are here. This was going to serve a dual purpose in us getting a great opportunity to study Spanish but also to meet other international students to invite them to our Bible Study. However, we did not raise quite enough to take the course at the university but through God's provision we have enrolled in an alternative course, not connected to the school and therefore half the price. WE START CLASS ON MONDAY!! And we could not be more excited. Please pray for opportunities to meet people and to share our faith with them. Praise be to God!!

Beautiful Doors, Beautiful Girl

2007-07-05T10:04:00.000-07:00

One of the many jewels in Salamanca, aside from the most beautiful pregnant girl in the world, are the public libraries. This is a picture of Bird at one of the many in town. Since the only thing keeping this town on the map is the university, libraries are very common. We are looking forward to spending a lot of our study time in these beautiful buildings. Today was a work day for Jesse, Sophie, Bird and I. We spent all morning cleaning out the "ev vivo" house...more to come on "en vivo" in the future. We are getting the house ready for a Bible study we are going to host starting next week and also we are cleaning for an evangelistic campaign that is coming on Monday. There are about 50 students from all over the globe coming to Salamanca next week to do drama, hold concerts, evangelize and much much more. They will be using our space to do a few of their outreaches. Some great news for us is that we are hoping to sign up for language classes tomorrow and to start on Monday. This is a huge bonus for us because when it came down to the wire we weren't sure if we would be able to afford them...Jesse has found a much cheaper school in the city and we are going to begin classes Monday...YEAH!!! My Spanish is dismal! Please continue to pray for those students who will come to our Bible study. It will begin next week and we are praying and putting up flyers over the city the next several days. Pray that God would put it on their hearts that while they are away from home they should do their best to stay connected to him. Thanks for all your prayer and love.

"Los calles de Salamanca"

2007-07-04T13:23:00.000-07:00

The streets of Salamanca are quite amazing filled with romantic architecture. There is even a working bridge that was built by the Romans 2000 years ago. We walked the entire city by foot yesterday so that "locations" will not be inhibiting in any form. This was a fun opportunity to test more of my Spanish skills out, I'm great at asking questions.....and terrible at understanding the responses as they are quick with their native tongues.
We love all the comments we have recieved, you guys have made us feeled loved, encouraged, and thought about on a daily basis. This is something that is easily taken advantage of in the states, but when you are so far from home every ounce goes a mile. This morning Gregg and I worked on the creation of bible studies that we hope to start advertising for in the next couple of days. We spent the evening with the team leaders at the University Sports Complex where the boys tried connecting with some of the Spainard's through a game of basketball. Time is flying here even when it is light out until 10:30pm. We have decided this is why they have siesta time, otherwise everyone would be exhausted. Love from the Jennings!!

Bird and Bart

2007-07-02T04:15:00.000-07:00

Hola,
Madrid was great and we have finally made it to Salamanca. Before we left the capital though Bird had a chance to hang out with a long time friend from the states. Salamanca is absolutely beautiful. It is the perfect European city with fabulous architecture. The city is alive with thousands of students here to study Spanish. We met this morning with Jesse Bentley, the team leader of the mission. We talked for a couple hours about our goals and expectations for the summer and their vision for us. It looks like we are going to have a great summer full of ministry opportunities. Would you please pray for us to be creative in our ministry? Without knowing Spanish we are limited to the people we encounter. Pray that God would give us wisdom and boldness to be used inspite of our weaknesses.

In Madrid!

2007-06-30T06:49:00.000-07:00

I´ve never blogged from an internet cafe so I apologize for not having any pictures on this message. I promise that pics are to follow. Besides most of what we have seen the last couple have days has been our pillows. The red eye flight combined with Bird´s pregnancy, combined with huge dump trucks outside our hostel window has left us pretty groggy. However, we knew that our time in Madrid would be for rest before we head to Salamanca to do what we came for. Margaret woke me up at 4 am last night to tell me that she felt the baby moving but by the time I got my hand on her belly the babe was back asleep, or playing games with dad.

Our impressions of Madrid so far have given us all the proof we need to believe that this country is in desperate need of Jesus Christ. Today is the holiday called gay day and there was a huge parade in Madrid celebrating the lifestyle. Lots of starving people around Western Europe. Just a quick note to give you our latest news. Tomorrow morning we board a train to take us to Salamanca were we will spend the next 5 weeks. Please pray for our trip and for a courageous boldness to be the light of Christ in such a foggy place.

Rope Holders!

2007-06-27T05:10:00.000-07:00

It's early in the morning on Wednesday June 27th we simply could not sleep any more for excitement. Tonight we will sleep on the plane and tomorrow morning we will wake up in Madrid. Already things have the feel of a real mission trip...anxiety...wonder...worship...the unknown...worry...praise...exhaustion are all emotions we have felt over the last 24 hours. In all of that emotion though, GOD. He has been faithful and we have many rope holders going along with us to Spain. William Carey, one of the worlds greatest missionaries to India told his British missionary board, "I will go into the dark well of India to share the gospel, but who will hold the ropes as I go and be willing to pray for me while I'm in the well?" If you are reading this blog we need and beg you to be our rope holders. God has wonderful things and maybe even trying things in store for us. We are eager to share those with you, will you be eager to hold our ropes as we go into the dark secular jungle of Spain? God bless.

Baby!

2007-05-16T07:38:00.000-07:00

The words are hard to find to describe the joy that Bird and I are feeling just now. On May 15 we went for our first doctor's visit and found out that God has given us a miracle to be delivered around the first of December. Bird has been extremely tired but we celebrated by going on a mountain bike ride and then eating pizza at Casa de Lucca, in Beverly.

We have been told that the sickness goes away after the first trimester and she is counting down the days. Finishing up her semester at school was so hard for her. Instead of reading she wanted to sleep and instead of writing she wanted to day dream about being a mom!

At the doctor we heard the heartbeat for the first time and nothing in all the world can compare to that sound. Life, joy, hope, love and gratitude barely hint at all we are feeling right now. Please pray for Bird during this time. We are thankful to God that we will be in Spain during her second trimester when "they" say she should be feeling her best. We love you all and thanks for your prayer.