La Clase de Castillano

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!

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.

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

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?

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.

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

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.