a change of plans

The past two months have flown by, yet within them seem to hold years of memories and experiences. My team is spending our last week together in Agadir, Morocco working for a learning center before we fly back to the states. The plan was to leave early Monday morning, travel all day and make it to Denver before nightfall. Well, as many of you know, I'm not one who always keeps just according to schedule, and have been presented with a new opportunity...

I'm not leaving Morocco just yet. 

Most of my time in Morocco has been spent working with a couple who own their own trekking company. It has been so incredible working with them, getting to see their heart, their determination, and their purpose for being here. While Christian organizations and evangelism are completely illegal in this country, businesses and tourism are not. So through this business the couple is not only able to stay and live in this very secured, closed country - but are taking groups into the deepest parts of the country to build relationships with some of the least reached people groups in the entire world. While making a video for them a theme arose, "By Any Means Necessary." We off-roaded through rocks and canyons and river streams, trekked through the mud and rain up steep winding paths. We camped under rock cliffs and drank hot chocolate with fresh cow's milk. Ok, so it wasn't all hard work  :)

But more than the physical labor and rough terrain, this theme cut to the heart of their company and why they do what they do. They willingly give up luxuries and comforts to meet the people no one else can get to. They want to love, and share Christ's love, by any means necessary. From trekking through the mountains to expeditions in the Sahara desert, they're willing to go and do whatever it takes. I love being around people who are passionate about life.

So here I am, 6 days before I'm scheduled to leave the country, and I've been given an opportunity. I've been invited to help lead and film a 7 day expedition through the Sahara Desert. There will be 14 of us in all, driving Land Rovers, meeting Nomadic tribes, camping and worshipping in the desert. I have no idea what to expect, but I know God has opened this up as a once in a lifetime opportunity, and an adventure like I have never experienced.

My biggest prayer for this trip is to encounter God like I never have before. 7 days, as far away from reality as I can get. No projects, no facebook, no producing, no cell phones, no distractions. As much as I've taken in the last 7 weeks, I know I haven't taken the time needed to   s  l  o  w     d  o  w  n   and process it. I've met incredible people, worked with dozens of ministries, traveled by planes, trains, buses, taxis and even motorbikes around the world. And I think if I jet home after all of this, I'll miss something. Something big. Something God wants me to take away from all of this. Something he's doing in me. 

SO. I'll be out of communication for yet another week. But please, please, if ever a week to pray for me, this is it. I'll be back from the Sahara Friday, April 10th and should be on a plane home shortly after. This will be my first time traveling solo internationally, but after all I've been through thus far, I think I can handle it  :)

"Faith never knows where it is being led, but it loves and knows the One Who is leading. It is a life of faith, not intellect and reason, but a life of knowing who makes us 'go'.  

- Oswald Chambers

beyond the surface

This week I have been working with some amazingly unique people. Thai hardcore metal rock bands. The Gu Club Underground to be exact. The GuClub is a group of rockers who drink, party, and have concerts all over the city. Most of them can be identified by their tattoos, piercings, long hair & loud clothing style. It's easy to judge them by what's seen on the surface, especially in conservative Thai culture - but when you dig deep and spend time to see what they're really about, it's incredible.

  

Although most of the guys in this club aren't Christians, they wanted to have a benefit concert, giving the proceeds away to a charity or special cause. Over the years they've built good relationships with the guys from an urban ministry called WonGeneration, and through them got hooked up with a school for Burmese refugees on the border of Thailand to donate the money to. The concert was held on Saturday, with over 20 metal bands on schedule, lasting well over 10hrs. It was loud, intense, and put on for something bigger than their own fame and profit. 

 

Being able to partner with these guys and WonGen has been a blast. It's been a rush. & I've made some amazing friends. Our film crew has been working on different projects here, from portrait shots to interviews to filming the bands and traveling with them 5 1/2 hours to the Burmese school.  What started as blank stares and awkward translated conversations led to jam sessions on the guitar, foozeball games, swimming in rivers and bus rides full of laughter. We had a common goal - to help these kids - & in light of that all our differences seemed pretty insignificant. & it made me think of how easily I can misjudge people. To see them as rude or angry, or to assume there's little we share in common... when now I see such talented, genuine people. Friends. I'm in with the GuClub Underground. Now I just need to work on my hardcore face.

  

more pictures at http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2214088&id=17216698&l=435216cb09

connection

Life is defined by connections. It's the connections we have that make us who we are. This week I have struggled through the painful stings of loneliness and the inexpressible joys of community. I have felt completely disconnected from everything, but now sit in bed with a peace and wholeness that can't be defined by circumstances. It's the people I'm connected to. And the creator that connects us all together. 

The hardest element of what I do is feeling like I'm really connected somewhere. I move so much, always living out of a suitcase, seeing new cities and meeting new people and experiencing new cultures. And at the end of the night I can come home very alone. Earlier this week I was reaching the point of breakdown, with tears in my eyes, locked in my room so my teammates wouldn't know. I'd been so project focused, so task oriented that I felt the few relationships I had here were strained and starting to crumble. I wanted a phone call, an e-mail, a text message even from someone back home. But instead I sat in a dark room with no electricity and no connection to the outside world. I cried, I prayed, and I waited for the morning sun to breakthrough the darkness in my heart. 

With that said, today has been one of the best days of this trip. It is our last day in Kathmandu, and it has been all about relationships. We spent time with those who we had been working with, but without the camera. Without the producer hat on. We ate and we laughed and we drank tea and told stories. And it was absolutely incredible. The night air was so warm, and as we sat on the rooftop under the stars all I could do was thank God for the amazing people he's brought into my life. It didn't matter that there's no electricity (the entire city only gets it a couple hours a day), or that the city is polluted with smog, or that miscommunication always throws our plans off schedule. All I wanted to do was stay here, with my team and these wonderful Nepali people. We're connected to each other, and any hardships we've faced seem to get wiped away in the light of the relationships we've made. 

We're designed to be connected. To each other & to Him. When this happens - it just feels so good. I love this feeling. It's me. Laughing and storytelling and completely in love with Jesus. When I buy into that depression that I'm alone, that no one really knows me, that I don't have any value here, it's like being locked in a room with no windows. No chance of escape. I can't live as that person. I refuse to miss an incredible night like tonight lost in disconnection. Life is as rich as the relationships it's made up of. I sometimes forget how wealthy I am. But on nights like tonight, I am so very thankful.