Keepn up with Kel

Anthony's Plot Saved Me

2011-10-21T11:46:00.009-04:00

Sooo, Thursday night I found myself back at the lot on 5th Street. The lot where things happened, the lot where i think I will look back and say, that's where my life changed - again. Thursday night the lot was empty, no one sleeping in cardboard boxes or tents. No signs of life, no painted signs of scripture or explanation. No one sitting on the steps waiting to engage a passerby to give a sandwich, a smile, or an invitation to listen, or join in a prayer service.

Anthony's Plot (check them out on fb), is what I describe as a neo-monastic community. They call themselves an intentional community loving and engaging those in need. Last week, to raise awareness of homelessness and hunger, members of Anthony Plot slept in cardboard boxes and other makeshift shelters in a vacant lot on 5th Street across from the downtown WS library. They invited Hillsdale to be part of the movement by sharing our food with the homeless and hungry folks several days. And we did. Yet, I found myself there at other times just hanging out and interacting w the homeless who would hang out there.

Then several of us from Hillsdale decided that wasn't enough, we wanted to stand in solidarity and support of the homeless, yet also with Anthony's Plot and what they were doing! So we stayed there Monday evening, and all night, and Tuesday morning joining in evening and morning worship, sharing what food various people brought. We sat, and talked and listened as those without homes shared their stories of life and how they arrived in their current situation. I saw those, with what we would consider nothing, share food, or what little money they had, with those around them. I saw love in action from the homed and the homeless. I was hugged by and I hugged people who hadn't bathed in days, people who didn't have tissue paper to blow their nose. I saw folks who were sick and hurting, physically, mentally and emotionally who didn't have medication that most of us get so easily. I saw folks like you and I but for various reasons don't have a place to sleep at night. And I saw followers of Jesus love these people, empower them, and listen to them in ways of authenticity that you and I hope to achieve. I needed more, so I stayed again Tuesday night in the rain.

Then it happened, I'm not sure when, or why, but it happened, I felt like I fit in. I haven't felt that since moving from inner city Bristol, England. I love Bristol, but I didn't totally feel it there either. I haven't felt like I fit in in a very long time, I think the last time was 2007 in Palestine. As one of my friends would say, 'I think I found my tribe' with Anthony's Plot and those on the street. The best way I can explain it is that being there felt right. Were there times of apprehension, and even fear, yea, but despite that it felt right. It felt like Jesus was there loving those in need and me. As I process and ponder these experiences, the Heavy D song, 'Now That We've Found Love, What Are We Gonna Do With It?' keeps coming to mind. What do I do? What does God want me to do with this? It scares me. But not as much as living the normal, expected, american-dream type of life.

More later as I process this and evolve. God loves ya, me too! Kel out

2011-10-20T16:25:00.002-04:00

Requirements:

Act Justly

Love Mercy

Walk Humbly

God speaking in Micha 6.8

2010-09-07T14:46:00.010-04:00

Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you and persecute you. Jesus of Nazareth, quoted by Matthew in chapter 5, verse 44.

2010-08-20T11:43:00.004-04:00

Pic taken inside Bethlehem.

From the a friend in Palestine.

At the request of the local churches and as a way of answering the call in the Kairos Palestine document, I have been concentrating on helping people come here on a different type of pilgrimage; one where they not only visit the holy shrines, but where they also visit with the “living stones”, the people of the land, and in particular, the local Christians. Our UM Resolution on Holy Land Tours lays the groundwork for such a trip. We have many UM bishops and clergy who bring groups on Holy Land Pilgrimages and return to the U.S. without ever having met with a single local Christian. They run their hands along the marble that has been imported from Italy, they stand barefoot in the Sea of Galilee, but never once do they talk to someone about how difficult it is to live a Christian life while living under occupation in this place where Jesus also spent his life living under occupation. These groups stay in beautiful five-star hotels run by the Israelis instead of in the lovely guest houses run by the local churches where the fees would go to supporting the local Christian schools or clinics. These groups drop thousands of dollars in the souvenir stores that benefit the “tourist mafia” instead of buying from our partner organizations where they have a choice of many unique items that are hand-made by local women. The sale of such items provides much needed income for their families. These groups return from a wonderful vacation with photos of the landscape and the holy sites, but without a single photo of any of the people who have preserved our faith for over 2000 years.

This needs to change.

Coming on an “alternative pilgrimage” is one way to visit that would meet our UM resolution recommendations. Coming on a Volunteer In Mission team is another. We had a couple of VIM teams who braved the extreme temperatures to work with some of our local partner organizations or were placed in villages where few ‘outsiders’ ever venture. The itineraries for these teams set up so that they are specific to each particular team. Visits to holy sites are combined with visits to our Advance and partner projects where they see how our denomination is involved in the region. They meet with Christians, Muslims and Jews. Their service projects are all about building relationships, not walls.

I am grateful to all those who have come to this region either as a volunteer or on an alternative pilgrimage. They have not only seen and heard, but they go home with a better understanding of the message of Jesus who called us to love one another without restrictions of who “the other” is. They go home having answered the call, “...for I was sick and you visited me… I was in prison and you came to me.”

God loves you, me too. Kel out

2009-11-06T11:05:00.008-05:00

The picture is of the Clifton Bridge in Bristol. It was an awesome opportunity to preach and complete my Masters Degree in the land of John Wesley, the founder of Methodism. When Wesley came to Bristol in response to an invitation from George Whitefield, he arrived and saw Whitefield preaching in places other than churches. Wesley saw this and was shocked, but joined in. In his journal he wrote, 'I submitted to being more vile, and proclaimed ... the glad tidings of [Jesus'] salvation to about 3,000 people.' Describing his offense of not preaching in a church Wesley wrote, 'I could scarce reconcile myself at first to this strange way of preaching ... having been all my life (till very lately) so tenacious of every point of order relating to decency and order, that I should have thought, the saving of souls almost a sin if it had not been done in a church'. In other words Wesley is saying that he had previously been was so focused on order that he nearly thought sharing the love of God outside a church was nearly a sin. I'm very grateful that Wesley changed his mind about that. Yet, I wonder what preconceived, man-made thoughts of order and decency do we need to change to share the love of God, even if it requires us to be vile? Think about it.

God loves ya, me too, Kel out

2009-03-17T17:17:00.002-04:00

You've seen some pictures of the college, a former mansion. Well, here's what housing for normal folks looks like in Bristol, England. Yes, it's much more densely populated than Kernersville. There's a lot of folks up in here.

God loves ya, me too Kel out.

2009-02-16T12:43:00.004-05:00

Hello from the land of Wesley! As you may of heard, most of England got snow a couple of weeks ago. For some parts, like Bristol, the most in 20 years. It kinda went like this: we got about 2 inches of snow on Monday, then 4 inches of snow Wednesday night. And then 6 more inches of snow Thursday night. By Thursday nearly all from earlier in the week had melted, so it still wasn't very deep. But is the most snow they have had in Bristol in 20 years. There's no sleds to be found. But plenty of snowmen around. The above pic taken was taken in a park. The buses and trains were canceled that Thursday and Friday, so I walked in the snow to get to college on Friday. Took 1 hour and 45 minutes. I had on plenty of clothes and was sweating most of the way. But don't know if I would do it again. I did get a ride home. The joys if being a student in England :).

God loves ya, me too, Kel out.

2009-02-05T12:13:00.005-05:00

Many of you have asked about my seminary work here in England. I'm at Trinity Theological College, a division of the University of Bristol.That's Bristol, England. A very significant place to United Methodists with a lot of Wesley history. The college building is several hundred years old and used to be part of an estate. In other words, it was a house. Maybe I should say a mansion. We Americans think about England and romantic quaint mansions like this. One thing we don' think of is heating a building like this. Like most old buildings here, it's hard to heat and COLD! But aside from that, I am enjoying the training I am receiving here. No, I'm not living on the estate, but am in the inner city of Bristol. Since I am unable to work due to visa restrictions, I have recently started volunteering one day a week at a homeless shelter operated by the Methodist Church. It's sad to see the number of folks who have some very normal problems, but no one to give them a hand when they need it, which results in homelessness. A lot seems to be caused by slight mental illness. Not bad enough to be fully institutionalized, so they are ineligible, but are unable to hold down a full time job and no one to help them stay on their feet. It's kinda scary when I think that Jesus said, what we do to folk who need food, drink, clothes, shelter and friends, we do to Him. (Matthew 25.31-46)

God loves ya, me too, Kel out

2009-01-19T14:14:00.000-05:00

The Reverend Dr. King is a huge hero of mine. He didn't want to be a civil rights leader, he wanted to to pastor his church and lead his flock, but God called him to something more. Dr. King became a civil rights leader as an act of obedience to God.

A portion of his I Have a Dream speech:

"I have a dream. I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character.

When we allow freedom to ring, when we let it ring from every village and every hamlet, from every state and every city, we will be able to speed up that day when all of God's children, black men and white men, Jews and Gentiles, Protestants and Catholics, will be able to join hands and sing in the words of the old ... spiritual, "Free at last! free at last! thank God Almighty, we are free at last!" Kel out.

2008-11-27T10:33:00.005-05:00

2008-06-05T11:52:00.006-04:00

As I was preparing for my time as a missionary in Palestine, I was resigned as Pastor of St Mark United Methodist Church. As you may know I left to go to Bethlehem Bible College in Palestine. Before I left St Mark the Youth choir, rapped a Christian rap song for me. It rocked and praised God all at the same time! Thanks guys!!!!! You see there's no such thing as Christian music, just Christian lyrics and words to put music that praise God. Kel out

2008-05-13T10:03:00.009-04:00

So what are your summer vacation plans? How about a short term mission trip. Check out www.umvim.org click on Volunteer Opportunities, then on the category that interests you. Or look at www.themissionsociety.org then click on Go, then Short Term. These are just a couple of suggestions, there are many good organizations, many doing short term trips here in the US to places like Katrina hit areas, Native American reservations, inner city areas and homeless shelters, KY, Western North Carolina and other areas of the Appalachian Mountains, and there are many international opportunities. Ask your pastor, many churches have places and events ongoing with opportunities for all ages. Most agencies can place you on a team if you don't have a group. And if you're unable, or don't want to travel, check with your local homeless shelter and agencies that provide daily meals such as these in Winston: Samaritan Ministries, the Rescue Mission, Salvation Army, or Bethesda Center. There are plenty of needs right around us. Remember, YOU are the Body of Christ, the hands and feet of Jesus. When Jesus feeds, clothes, builds homes & churches, and shares His love with people, He does it through believers. Where you help it doesn't matter, the important thing is that you and the people you help won't be the same!

God loves ya, me too, Kel out

2008-04-30T18:21:00.006-04:00

Welcome to Bethlehem - the entrance.

2008-04-22T13:04:00.007-04:00

A picture of a mosaic of Joseph, Mary, and Jesus as a baby from the church built where Jesus is thought to have rose from the dead.

You guys have been asking when & where will I be speaking next? This Sunday, April 27, I will be at anoTHEr WAY service at Morris Chapel UM Church in Walkertown. I will be sharing more stories from Bethlehem, but most importantly, about our brothers & sisters in Bethlehem and the day to day stress they live in.

God loves ya, me too, Kel out.

2008-04-03T16:15:00.008-04:00

Krispy Kreme in Oxford, England. Imagine my surprise as I walked around the corner and saw this.

God is awesome! What a great trip to England. Not quite as adventurous as Bethlehem, which one of my friends translates to mean "safer than Bethlehem", but it was great to spend time with several missionaries I met in Bethlehem and see the work they are doing. Some are preparing for fulltime mission service and are hoping to return to Bethlehem, while others are aware that their mission field is Bristol and sharing the love of Jesus with the folks there. As I have mentioned before, Christians only comprise 2-3% of the British population. This really saddened me, but it seems that this small minority is fired up for Jesus. And it seems like all of the dead wood & the branches that don't bare fruit have been cut off, as Jesus said in John 15.2.

These people in Bristol are engaged in some creative ministries of outreach. They are involved in making space in their churches for coffee shops where people of the community can come in have a good cup of coffee or tea, and learn about Jesus if they want. You have to know that these churches are located in inner city areas, surrounded by poverty, crime, homelessness, etc. and unlike in the Bible belt of the states, most folks in these areas don't know much about Christians, or a church, or Jesus. So a coffee shop is a great way to reach out to people in a non threatening way. So is a holistic healing center that a church and my friend are planning. They are seeking to create a place that address spiritual, mental, emotional, and physical healing, knowing that all of these areas are tied into one's spiritual life and relationship with God. Churches in Bristol are feeding the hungry and homeless for free. Imagine this, instead of requiring people to pay to eat, they GIVE meals to those in need one day a week.

What these are doing, are what we in the states need to be doing, assessing the needs of the community in which they find themselves and trying to meet these needs to engage these people. In doing so meeting people where they are and sharing the love of Jesus, instead of requiring them to come into the church on Sunday morning for the first time. If you've forgotten how intimidating that is, go by yourself and visit a church where no one knows you. I've been reminded of this lately as I have been visiting different churches to preach. It's pretty scary at times even for me as the preacher. So let's meet folks where they are in love and grace even if we have to go out of our way just as Jesus did to meet the women at the well.

God loves ya, me too, Kel out

2008-03-22T12:58:00.008-04:00

Wow, it's Resurrection Weekend. On Friday I was able to participate in a multi church cross walk and prayer session. If you think walking down the streets of Kville with about 300 other folks with a police escort makes you a bit shy as people wonder why we are walking with a cross, try walking down the sidewalk in inner city England with only 20 other people and have folks stare at ya. It does tend to make one a tad nervous, but we can either stand up for Jesus or be ashamed, and I didn't want to be ashamed. I thought about what Jesus said: "If anyone acknowledges me publicly on earth, I will openly acknowledge that person before my Father in heaven. But if anyone denies me on earth, I will deny that person before my Father in heaven.",so I waved, smiled at, and prayed for the folks who laughed at us and mocked us.

All over the world Sunday people will be celebrating the resurrection of Jesus and what this means for us. I have the honor of preaching on this most Holy day at Victory Church in Exeter. I'll be in England, preaching to an Indian Assembly of God congregation that meets at a Baptist Church. I hope you have a significant, joyful, and meaningful Resurrection weekend. Praise God Jesus is risen! God loves ya, me too, Kel out

2008-03-16T15:43:00.009-04:00

Before coming to England, I had heard how Christianity had declined here. I heard how when you drive around you see all of these former church buildings which are now taverns, pubs, museums, etc. The church to the left is now a used car lot.

As I write, there's a women's prayer group going on downstairs and I hear them playing the guitar and singing How Great is Our God, one of my favorite songs, and it is beautiful.

It is heartbreaking as I go through town and see all of these former churches. Why is this? Is America headed in this direction? You see, YOU are the Body of Christ. If we don't do God's will and the work He has for us to do, this is what happens. One of my good friends, Pastor Otto, has on the closing of his emails a quote from someone that says, "We are the ones we have been waiting for."

We Americans are highly indebted for the Christian teaching and nourishment that began here in Bristol and headed westward to us. It's sad to see this decline in an area where generations of Americans have benefited from Wesley, his teaching, his lay pastors, and what evolved into the United Methodist church, etc. The folks I am here with are trying to change this decline. They are involved in some creative ways of reaching out to folks, meeting them and their needs wherever they happen to be in life by reaching out, loving and sharing.

Jesus said if we love Him, we will obey His teachings (John 14.15). Some of us would argue is His most important teaching is for us to make followers (disciples). How are you doing in that area? I know, it's tough and everyone thinks that's the pastor's job, but if you're a Christian, it's your job. But instead of telling someone what Jesus can do for them, tell them what He has done for you! If you have nothing to tell, then you may not have a relationship with Jesus. John writes, "And we can be sure that we know him [Jesus] if we obey his teachings. If someone claims, “I know God,” but doesn’t obey God’s teachings, that person is a liar and is not living in the truth. (1John 2.3-4)

Will the place you worship be a car lot in 50 years? What are you doing to prevent it? Are you sharing Jesus? Today is Palm Sunday and the beginning of Holy Week when some 2000 years ago Jesus headed into Jerusalem to die for you and me. He died for us, what are we doing for Him?

God loves ya, me too, Kel out

Please pray

2008-03-13T17:07:00.006-04:00

Hey guys, there are some tough things going on in Bethlehem. Please keep our brothers and sisters in Christ in prayer. Also pray for a dude named Steve I met here in Bristol. Thanks! God loves ya, me too. Kel out

2008-03-08T11:40:00.004-05:00

Cheers and hello from England. I am here in Bristol getting adjusted and seeing the different ministry opportunities. Friday I met Peter and Jane in downtown Bristol. They are Anglican Church missionaries who lived across the hall from me in Bethlehem. It was awesome to see them. It had only been a couple of months since I had seen them, but I had really missed them. They showed me around town and then went to "The New Room". This is the oldest Methodist Church in the world. We attended a lunch worship service and participated in a Lenten Holy Communion. Here's some info about Wesley and this church from a website with a comment or two of mine added. After studying Wesley for years, it was awesome to be here.

John Wesley first came to Bristol at the pleading of George Whitefield in 1739. Whitefield was leaving on a second visit to Georgia and, before he sailed, needed Wesley to sustain the work he had begun. Once the Bristol churches had been closed to him, Whitefield began to speak in the open air to the people of Kingswood, "proclaiming the glad news of salvation".

Wesley was unsure about the ecclesiastically irregular field preaching and came to Bristol somewhat reluctantly. At first he was taken aback by what was happening and wrote he "could scarce reconcile myself to his (Whitefield's) strange way of preaching in the fields". But a few days later, with the departure of Whitefield, he "submitted to become more vile" and in the brickyards preached to (he estimated) 3,000 people.[I love that, Wesley became "vile" and stepped out of the norm to share the good news of God's love, let's do the same] He continued preaching to the poor in the open air, gathering those who responded into religious societies which met in people's homes. Within weeks their numbers had increased so much that a new meeting place was needed. He bought a small patch of land and built what he called "our new room in the Horsefair".

It was used as a dispensary and schoolroom for the poor people of the area as well as for meetings and worship and for 18 Conferences. The Bristol Conference charged with the deepest significance was held in 1771 which took an open stand on the issue of "free and sovereign and universal grace", as opposed to Calvinism.

It was here, in a small room, that the Methodist class-meeting originated which became the basis for membership. The place is still known today by Methodists throughout the world as "the New Room" - the oldest purpose-built Methodist building in the world and the first-ever Methodist chapel, the only building which takes us straight back to the beginning of the Methodist story.

For those who are Methodists (and many others),our heritage is that of meeting people where there are, going to them, not waiting for them to come to us, stepping out of our norms, even to become vile in our own eyes, to share the good news of Jesus. Let's remember that and get out there. Jesus said to GO and make DISCIPLES, not to sit and wait for them to come! I'm preaching Sunday, prayers are appreciated. God love's ya, me too, Kel out!

Moving Out

2008-02-29T16:37:00.007-05:00

I'm back. Sorry for the absence. At missionary training they told us that the return culture shock to the States was much worse than when we are deployed, and they were right. I thought that because I was aware of this, I would be ok. But if I am honest, it's been a couple of tough months as I have been getting adjusted. They told us that depression and even suicide were common with returning missionaries, and I understand that. I understand my friends who returned from the mission field and talked about their depression. Satan is an enemy that tires in all ways to keep us down and ineffective for the Kingdom of God, but God is AWESOME. While here and going through this, I recalled an email I received while in Bethlehem from a great friend who gave me the kick I needed to suck it up, and MOVE OUT when I was being heavily attacked by Satan. Coop talked about SERE military training - Survival, Evasion, Resistance, and Escape. Sometimes when Satan is dogging us, that's what we have to do, focus on getting back to the front lines for the Lord! That's what I'm doing now, getting back to the front lines. The front lines are where ever we are. You don't have to go overseas, or to a economically depressed, or war torn area. For many of us the front line is our job, home, school, community or church.

Sometimes God does send us out to certain places. I am moving out again. I'm going to England to visit some missionaries I met while in Bethlehem and see the work they are doing. This will be a short term trip. I'll be there for only a few weeks. The latest studies show that the Christian population in England is only 2-3% of the total population. Yes, 2-3%! These dudes who I am going to visit have some very unique ways of reaching out to people in their community and offering God's love and healing in an holistic way addressing spirit, mind and body.

As I preached and told you about OUR mission in Bethlehem, I haven't done a good job of communicating about this trip. I was so passionately into telling about our brothers and sisters in Christ in Bethlehem, and the struggles they are going through, I often forgot to mention this. So as I prepare to go, I ask you to keep me in prayer.

It was great to be in your churches seeing you all again and reporting about OUR mission. Last week I was at St Mark, and it was AWESOME!!!

God bless ya!! God loves ya, me too, Kel out.

2008-01-17T17:53:00.000-05:00

This is the view looking out of the front door of Bethlehem Bible College

Mission partners, as I go through the debriefing process of our work in Bethlehem, I think of all the support, prayers and encouragement that sustained me through the rough times. You are awesome! You were obedient when God prompted you to pray, email, and donate. The words of the Apostle Paul from his letter to the Believers in Philippi fits so well: "I thank my God every time I remember you. In all my prayers for all of you, I always pray with joy because of YOUR PARTNERSHIP in the gospel from the first day until now"... (1.3-5) I am finding it will take a long time to process all I experienced in Bethlehem. During missionary training, the instructors taught about the reverse culture shock one experiences when returning to the states. I knew this so I thought I would be alright. But I have had a difficult time, as I was taught I would, upon my return. But as we know God is awesome and meets all our needs (not wants).

National Geographic did a great story on Bethlehem, here's the link. Check it out and look at the pics. This explains a lot about Bethlehem better than I can.

http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/ngm/2007-12/bethlehem/finkel-text.html
More later. God loves ya, me too, Kel out.

2007-12-28T18:45:00.001-05:00

Preaching in Bethlehem on the 3rd Sunday of Advent.

Hello all. Joy to the World, the Lord is born!!!!! Jesus' actual birthday was probably around Jan 6th, what many Christians regard as Epiphany, Christ's appearing. So let's keep celebrating Jesus' birth till Jan 6th. If you can stand it, leave your CHRISTmas decorations up till then. When you neighbors ask why you still have them up, it gives you a great opportunity to remind them the reason for our celebrations and to not allow retailers to dictate our holy-day season. Here's a little history on how we came celebrate Dec 25 as the day of Jesus' birth.

Early in the fourth century, the Roman church decreed that December 25 would be recognized as the birthday of Christ. However, the churches in Jerusalem rejected the December 25 date until the seventh century.

St. John Chrysostom, Bishop of Constantinople at the end of the fourth century wrote: "On this day also the Birthday of Christ was lately fixed at Rome in order that while the heathen were busy with their profane ceremonies, the Christians might perform their sacred rites undisturbed. They (the heathens) call this (December 25th), the Birthday of the Invincible One (Mithras); but who is so invincible as the Lord Jesus? They call it the Birthday of the Solar Disk, but Christ is the Sun of Righteousness."

Reverend Rel Davis writes:

"The festival of Christmas has always been a controversial one in Christianity. The Puritans banned Christmas altogether and during the Cromwellian period in England, anyone celebrating Christmas was jailed for heresy. Probably the most hated of all Puritan laws was the one abolishing Christmas and probably led to popular acceptance of royalty (nb: the Restoration) -- at least the King allowed the masses to celebrate Yule!

In America, Christmas was generally outlawed until the end of the last century. In Boston, up to 1870, anyone missing work on Christmas Day would be fired. Factory owners customarily required employees to come to work at 5 a.m. on Christmas -- to insure they wouldn't have time to go to church that day. And any student who failed to go to school on December 25 would be expelled. Only the arrival of large numbers of Irish and northern European immigrants brought acceptance of Christmas in this country.

Christmas did not even begin to be a legal holiday anywhere in the United States until very late in the 1800's, with Alabama being the first state to make it so."

Some of that info is surprising isn't it? The exact date doesn't matter, what matters is that we praise God for His wonderful gift that allows us to spend eternity with Him. Several days ago I was in Shepherd's Field, the place believed to be the location where the angles told the shepherds of Jesus' birth. I was there with someone who could trace his heritage all the way back to these shepherds, the folks who worshiped Jesus even before His ministry. The first human worshipers of Jesus. That's pretty awesome! We see that peace is bringing larger crowds to Bethlehem this year. I have heard that there have been 2 articles in the WS Journal about this, I praise God. Let's keep lifting our brothers and sisters in Bethlehem in prayer. Merry CHRISTmas. God loves ya, Kel out.

2007-12-13T09:45:00.000-05:00

O Little Town of Bethlehem !

Rector Phillips Brooks (1835-1903) of Philadelphia, wrote the words to O Little Town of Bethlehem in 1868, following a trip to the Holy Land. He was inspired by the view of Bethlehem from the hills. I wonder what he would have wrote if he looked out the front door of the college and saw this??? Despite the mess today, Jesus still meets all "the hopes and fears of all thee years". Bethlehem, and us, needs Him more than ever.

O little town of Bethlehem
How still we see thee lie
Above thy deep and dreamless sleep
The silent stars go by
Yet in thy dark streets shineth
The everlasting Light
The hopes and fears of all the years
Are met in thee tonight

For Christ is born of Mary
And gathered all above
While mortals sleep, the angels keep
Their watch of wondering love
O morning stars together
Proclaim the holy birth
And praises sing to God the King
And Peace to men on earth

How silently, how silently
The wondrous gift is given!
So God imparts to human hearts
The blessings of His heaven.
No ear may his His coming,
But in this world of sin,
Where meek souls will receive him still,
The dear Christ enters in.

O holy Child of Bethlehem
Descend to us, we pray
Cast out our sin and enter in
Be born to us today
We hear the Christmas angels
The great glad tidings tell
O come to us, abide with us
Our Lord Emmanuel

Will I ever be able to sing about Bethlehem and not shed tears? I hope so. Hmmm, no maybe I don't. God loves ya, me too! Kel out.

2007-12-09T00:55:00.000-05:00

Merry CHRISTmas from Bethlehem!! Wow, CHRISTmas in Bethlehem. It's time when the town in the midst of poverty and conflict, comes together, dresses up the best it can and begins to celebrate. Even the muslims are somewhat tolerant of our visible celebrations. But for me as I think about Jesus' birth, and all that this means, and as I see Bethlehem now, it makes me even sadder I think. As I see the town where God choose to give us His Son, the prince of peace, and to see no peace here. To see the churches and descendants in the town that gave us the gift of CHRISTmas, now a minority oppressed by non believers in many ways, and forgotten by so much of the Body of Christ, it is very sad. But at the same time, it is also good to see the Body of Christ come together, remembering that Jesus was born here to give us eternal life with God, and that as Paul writes in Romans 8, our present sufferings are not to be compared with our future glory. In other words, this life ain't it! It's only temporary and there's much more.

The Bible College and the Shepherd Society are gearing up for several CHRISTmas outreach programs. One is CHRISTmas food baskets for the poor. You and I with our work here raised nearly $20,000 just for this project. PRAISE GOD!!! Just like in the US, one of the best forms of evangelism is needs based evangelism, which allows the unchurched to see the Body in action, loving and meeting needs. Here where Islam is the majority, it's nearly impossible, if not out right dangerous to evangelize with words, but when people who are hungry, people whose children are hungry, see what the Christians are doing, they start to think, they start to question what they have been taught. So I, and those at the Bible College and the Shepherd Society ,thank you for making this possible.

Now for something really awesome on a personal note. I will be preaching in Bethlehem on the 3rd Sunday of Advent. How cool is that???!!!!!!! Thank you Lord!

As you read, sing, and hear about what happened here some 2000 years ago, please remember our brothers and sisters in Christ who live here now and lift them in prayer. They really need it.

God loves ya, me too, Kel out.

2007-11-29T12:16:00.000-05:00

Shepherd's Field where Jesus' birth was told to -- The Shepherds.

I have been doing some fill in teaching here for a couple of professors who have been away. I haven't written much about the students here, but they are awesome. Most of them anyway :).
A lot of them and their families come here despite some amazing hardship and adversities, and have an awesome love for Jesus. If you think being a Christian in the US is tough, trying being one where Christians make up less than 2% of the population. You may have read what happened to the Bible Society pastor in Gaza, he was killed for his faith. His wife, kids and extended family have had to move to save their own lives. Many students and their families face various persecutions to come here. Many of these I can not even write about now, but will tell you in person. As CHRISTmas approaches, let's remember the roots of the word. Christ means God's anointed, Jesus. Mas means worship. So CHRISTmas means Jesus worship. That's what Christmas is about. But more specifically, it's about God's love for us.

Some of the students here can trace their ancestors to the first human worshipers of Jesus, the shepherds who were first told of his birth. That's pretty SWEET, I wish I could say that! Don't wait till near Dec 24 or 25 to read the events of Jesus' birth, do it now at the beginning of the season, keep your focus on Jesus and sharing His love. Buy or rent the movie, The Nativity Story. It's pretty accurate and puts a very visual aspect on what many of us having been hearing about for years. Merry CHRISTmas from Bethlehem! I can say that :). God loves ya, me too, Kel out.

2007-11-22T09:49:00.001-05:00

The church built on the location where Jesus was born.

Happy Thanksgiving. (The following info was gathered from several sources.)

It seems that the first Thanksgiving took place in 1621. But in 1624, when a drought threatened all of the crops, which if failed, would result in loss of life, the Governor of Massachusetts, declared a day of prayer and abstaining from food (fasting). When the rain came shortly afterwards, November 29th was proclaimed a day to give thanks to God.

Check out this transcript from Congress:

By the United States in Congress assembled at Philadelphia, the eleventh day of October, in the year of our LORD one thousand seven hundred and eighty-two, and of our Sovereignty and Independence, the seventh. JOHN HANSON, President.Charles Thomson, Secretary.

PROCLAMATION.
IT being the indispensable duty of all Nations, not only to offer up their supplications to ALMIGHTY GOD, the giver of all good, for his gracious assistance in a time of distress, but also in a solemn and public manner to give him praise for his goodness in general, and especially for great and signal interpositions of his providence in their behalf: Therefore the United States in Congress assembled, taking into their consideration the many instances of divine goodness to these States, in the course of the important conflict in which they have been so long engaged; the present happy and promising state of public affairs; and the events of the war, in the course of the year now drawing to a close; particularly the harmony of the public Councils, which is so necessary to the success of the public cause; the perfect union and good understanding which has hitherto subsisted between them and their Allies, notwithstanding the artful and unwearied attempts of the common enemy to divide them; the success of the arms of the United States, and those of their Allies, and the acknowledgment of their independence by another European power, whose friendship and commerce must be of great and lasting advantage to these States:----- Do hereby recommend to the inhabitants of these States in general, to observe, and request the several States to interpose their authority in appointing and commanding the observation of THURSDAY the twenty-eight day of NOVEMBER next, as a day of solemn THANKSGIVING to GOD for all his mercies: and they do further recommend to all ranks, to testify to their gratitude to GOD for his goodness, by a cheerful obedience of his laws, and by promoting, each in his station, and by his influence, the practice of true and undefiled religion, which is the great foundation of public prosperity and national happiness.

(the date was later changed to the last Thursday of November, then changed to the 4th Thursday. )

Thank you Lord for this ministry and the people who have partnered with us! But most importantly, thank you for loving us enough to sacrifice your Son Jesus for my sins, which makes me your your child! I love you Father! Your son, Kel.

Thanking God for Jesus is an awesome way to start the season of Advent and CHRISTmas. I am glad these 2 holy-days are back to back.

Kel out!

2007-11-18T03:38:00.000-05:00

I think this empty building, which is behind locked gates, is very symbolic of what's happened in Jesus' birthplace. The rusty, faded, sign on this building says, "Holy Land Christian Mission".

How often is it that we share Jesus with those we love? Not just invite someone to church, but to tell folks about our relationship with Jesus, to tell people what God has done for us. In the Old Testament when someone had an interaction with God, they often made a monument, or alter, which usually consisted of piling up stones to remind themselves and others what God has done for them. In the book of Joshua, Chap 3, after God has brought the Hebrews across the flooded Jordan River into the Promised Land, before bringing the Priests out of the river bed with the box that carried the 2 stone tablets of the 1o Commandments (the Ark of the Covenant), God told Joshua to choose 12 men to go back into the river bed and each one get a rock that they would carry to the place they camped for the night.

Why would God ask such a crazy thing? He tell us: These rocks will serve as a reminder to you that I (God) stopped the flooded river and brought you safely across. It will also give you an opportunity to teach your children and others about me when they ask you "what do these rocks mean?" (my paraphrase).

What type of monuments do we have around us to remind us, and that will also give us the opportunity to tell others what God has done for us? Remember when God brought you through the loss of a loved one? Remember when you were struggling with a sinful habit or addiction? Remember when you had painful times in a relationship? Remember when your were fighting an illness? Maybe God didn't resolve these situations, but you found out that He gives strength? We all have struggles and there's something that you've been through, or may be going through now, and someone else needs to hear what God has done for you.

But what if you feel like God hasn't helped you, like God hasn't stopped the river for you to cross? There's one important step that God told Joshua and the boys, and tells us. To stop the flooded Jordan, the Priests carrying the 10 Commandments had to first step in the river, then God stopped it. Maybe if God hasn't rescued you from a situation, or given you the strength to deal with it, maybe, just maybe it's because He's wanting you to take a step of faith and trust Him, then he'll stop the river. Trusting God can be difficult at times, hearing what God wants us to do can be very frustrating at times, but when we step out for Him, when our motives are to please God and to act in faith, you can do so knowing that even if you mess up, God's love and mercy are much greater than any mistake we can make when we are stepping out for Him. Even as I am here, I continue to listen, to understand (which takes effort and is tough at times), then strive to obey.

This isn't what I was planning on writing about, I was going to talk about some of the students here at the college, and what they face just to attend, but this is what God wanted.

God loves ya, me too, Kel

2007-11-06T22:19:00.001-05:00

After my last post, and I talked about saying no to the dvds, and hoping to protect my time with God when I return to the US, several people said, "I didn't think you watched that much tv." I don't, I was referring to protecting it from distractions in general. Distractions are one of satan's best tools. When we look at how often Jesus left people, often people in need, to spend time alone with God, we see how crucial this is. Especially for pastors, there's always someone in need, something to be done, someone to encourage, someone calling, someone to pray for, and someone to minister to, but we have to learn to withdraw, like Jesus did, to spend time alone with God. But not just pastors, that's just my perspective. We all have distractions. We all feel guilty if we say no. There's always something to be done. But we all must learn to make time for God, to 46.10. (an action based on psalm 46.10, to be still and know God) I thank my friend for teaching me this. If Jesus needed to do this, if JESUS needed to do this, so must we!! See ya, I am now 46.10. Kel out.

2007-11-02T10:10:00.002-04:00

The view on a hill overlooking the Sea of Galilee.

I have remained strong and not given in to the Seinfeld & 24 dvds, and some cds that were offered too. The good thing is I haven't really wanted to, which is amazing. I have been protecting this time with God cause I know what will try to happen when I return. But I will fight to protect it there too. It's a shame that I am so hard-headed that God had to bring me here to do it.

I have been here nearly 3 months, but it seems a LOT longer. God continues to teach me about me, Him and His love, and the Christians here.

Last week I saw one of the most awesome things I have seen here. It was the 100th anniversary of the church affiliated Scouts. The scouts are similar to our Boy & Girl Scouts, but totally Christian themed. The scouts' marching bands assembled in a staging area and then had a parade to one of the large churches here. There were probably 1,000 scouts, boys and girls, from ages 6-20 with drums and a few bag pipes, from all over the country. And they marched passed some of the largest mosques with carrying Christian flags, pounding on their drums with tight beats and steps. You could really sense the presence of the Holy Spirit as this large group of Christians came together in unity! It was the most unified Christian event I have seen since I have been here. It was awesome!!! To really appreciate how loud this was, you must understand the architecture here and know that the sound echos off of everything. All of the buildings are made of concrete and stone, building against building like a canyon, with nothing to absorb the sound. So these kids were deafening as they were marching for Jesus. By their faces we could see the muslims we passed were not happy about this, and the police knew this so there was heavy police presence in riot gear. But all was calm. Maybe, just maybe, someone became interested in the church. What would happen if a 1,000 Christians in America got together and marched for Jesus?

God loves, ya, me too, Kel out.

2007-10-23T12:34:00.000-04:00

This spring and summer as I planned and prepared to come to here, I sensed God telling 2 specific things about the time here: 1 that what He would do in me would be more important than what He would do through me. Not that what I am doing is insignificant, but working on & in me was the bigger deal. 2 that the things I experience here would not primarily be for my benefit, but for teaching and preaching when I return to the states.

I am seeing both of these things fulfilled. It is easy for me to see that one of the reasons God brought me here was for a break (or fast) from media, people, and from a hectic schedule. So, as my friend says, I could 46.10 – be still and spend time God. And really this hasn’t been difficult, and I have loved the break from the phone, I don’t miss it all! I have been trying to obey God and keep my schedule free from many social events, and I have avoided tv & movies. I have said no to invitations to dinners and outings. Before you say that’s normal for me (I am an introvert), check this out- last week I was offered Seinfeld and 24 dvds to watch, and I declined! OMG, yes, I said no. (Those who know me well are gasping for breath right now.) I said no not because of a sense of duty or obligation, but out of love for God and His love for us, and a desire to be on board with His plan. But more importantly, I didn’t want anything to come between me and the time I am spending with God!

Duty, obligation, and obeying the law, are usually short lived motivators for following Jesus. They usually leave us highly frustrated, very empty, and struggling with guilt. But when we, out of our love for Him, respond to His love, and choose to make the choices Jesus wants us to make, following Him is much easier. Jesus said if you love me, you’ll obey my commands. I think that out of love is how Jesus wants us to obey His commands.

God has been working in me refining me, steering me, and showing me actions and attitudes that He wanted to work on. You see, we never get to the place where we are “good enough”, God continues to want to make us more and more Christ-like (the process is called sanctification). But we have a choice. It has been tough, it has at times been painful (my own fault), but it is good that I am being refined.

As I continue to live in and learn about the situation here, my heart breaks for the Christians. This has been very painful for me, and I sense that this is what God is teaching me to teach and preach. So I ask you to join me in praying for the Christians here.
Kel out.

2007-10-19T06:00:00.000-04:00

Hi, I want to thank all you guys for prayers, support, encouragement and partnership in this ministry. I lift you in prayer and praise God for you! If you aren't getting emails from me, I think that because of my location, firewalls and spam filters are catching them and deleting them, especially if you have a corporate email address. Here's a picture of the remains of Peter's house. Yes, THE Peter.

Last weekend I was able to get away and go to the Galilee region for a couple of days. That was AWESOME! We saw many places believed to be where Jesus taught, preached, and performed many miracles. If you study Jesus' ministry, He spent more time in this area, than around Jerusalem. After all He was from Nazareth which is up north, and made Capernaum His base after being rejected in Nazareth.

I saw the place where Jesus is thought to have fed the 5000; the place where Jesus reinstated Peter in the lakeside breakfast, post resurrection appearance; the Mt of Beatitudes, the place of Jesus' Sermon on the Mount; Capernaum and Peter's house; and I think the my most favorite was Mt Tabor, the Mount of Transfiguration. I know that there is debate about whether or not this is the actual site, but it was awesome. It was very unspoiled. The road was so curvy that the tour buses couldn't get up it and the passengers had to be shuttled by taxis, so there weren't too many tourists. I put my hands in the Sea of Galilee and I touched the rocks that Jesus may have sat upon. SWEET! But I think the most amazing thing of the trip, the thing I hope I never forget is what happened at the kibbutz we stayed at.

A kibbutz is a small community or village, like a farm co-op. This one was built in the early 20th century and had been headed towards ruins and someone started repairing it. In an old barn is a guest house operated by a Jewish Christian. He is a former ultra-orthodox rabbi that came to believe that Jesus is the Messiah about 7 years ago. He operates this guesthouse for believers who are in the area so they will have a Christian place to stay. We arrived on Friday evening and had the traditional Jewish Sabbath dinner and blessing of the bread and wine in Hebrew with about 12 others. That was cool. He then told about his conversion which was an amazing story. He then asked me why I was in Israel. I told him that I was here as a missionary volunteering with Bethlehem Bible College, and learning about the Christians here in Bethlehem. He said, "There's a Bible college in Bethlehem? There are Christians in Palestine?" He was surprised. As I told him about the sufferings of the Christians here, I could see his heart breaking, he was about in tears. This was HUGE. And as God had it planned, as I told him about the Christians here, at the table was another Messianic Jew (a Jewish Christian), a pastor from Germany. He and this former rabbi are friends. He begins to confirm what I am saying, and as we talk, the German pastor and I discover we were at the same worship service the Sunday before. So at this table, this former rabbi had 2 people arrive on the same day, who were at the same church the week before, telling him the same thing. I love to see God work!!! The former rabbi was moved to tears. You could see his heartbreaking and we described the conditions here.

He asked me to bring a word of encouragement back to the Christians here Bethlehem. He asked that I remind them about Abraham and Lot, and about Noah and his family – that God often does great things with small groups of believers. He also wanted me to tell them that he was praying for them. I am honored to do so. I pray it encourages you too. Kel out!

2007-10-11T10:39:00.000-04:00

Well, I have been here over 2 months now, actually 9 weeks, and it seems a lot longer. Thanks for all of your prayers, your emails, and blog comments with prayers and words of encouragement, please don't stop.

As I write this, out of the corner of my eye I see a woman going through a box of donated clothes. How many of us have been in a situation where we did not have enough money to buy clothes? What about food for our children? What would you do if your children were hungry? Would we ask for assistance from the church or government? Would we beg? Would we steal? The sad thing is many here want to work, but there are no jobs.

I have been doing some preaching and teaching. Yesterday I taught a Bible study at a school for blind and handicapped children and adults, the House of Hope. It's another light in the dark place here. After the Bible Study I was given a tour of the shop where the older teens and adults make brooms and pieces of furniture. The shop manager is blind also. He was showing me the saws and various machines that they use. He is literally a better carpenter blind than I am with sight. He gives God all the glory. I'm glad he couldn't see me cringing as he operated the saws. I was praying that he wouldn't get cut while I was watching. He was an older man and very funny, as we walked in the shop, which was dark, he said, "I almost forgot, you need light", like I was the one challenged. He's right you know. It is amazing to see this man and the others working and praising God all the time. It's a cool place.

I continue to meet wonderful Christians here and I am visiting different churches. My heart still breaks as I see the poverty and the oppression of our brothers and sisters here by non-believers on all sides. The older gentlemen often tell me that they wish I could have seen Bethlehem 30 years ago when it was thriving economically and when Christians were the majority. One older man just last night told me, "this used to feel like a Christian town, it doesn't anymore". He's right, it doesn't, because it's not. Christians are now the distinct minority. They feel like the church has forgot about them, and they are fighting alone. I think they are right, we have. Please lift the Christians here in prayer.

Last weekend I went to the Mt of Olives, that was an awesome place. I was able to see Olive trees that are 2000 years old. To see where Jesus retreated to when He needed to be alone, and where He prayed before He was arrested, was amazing. It was good to get out of Bethlehem for a few hours. At the Church of All Nations on the Mt of Olives, they were having a worship service, so we joined in. As I sat there praying I suddenly sensed a child near me and a hand on my knee. When I looked up, it was a 5 or 6 year old beautiful girl who was blind, trying to determine if I was someone she knew. Her mother was praying and didn't see what was happening. I said hello, so she would hear my voice. She asked me my name and sat down right beside me, I mean right up against me, found my arm, then my hand, held my hand and smiled. About this time her mother looked up and I smiled at her to let her know everything was ok. As I sat there I thought about how much faith this girl had, and how God wants us to have the same.

God loves ya, me too, Kel out.

2007-10-07T01:48:00.000-04:00

I want to send my love and prayers out to the family of Mary Watson Perrel. This is a picture of Mary and I at my "see ya later party". Mary went home with the Lord this week and left behind a family that misses her a lot, a church that misses her a lot, a community that misses her a lot, and a former pastor/adopted son that misses her a lot. But I rejoice for her. She's with God !! I was her former pastor, but I'm sure she blessed me more than I did her. Mary had a love for God that was evident when you met her. She was one of those people who the presence of the Holy Spirit just oozes from and you love to be around. She made God a priority, and her love for God, and her relationship with Him, caused her to have a faith that was awesome!

I really got close to Mary and the family about a year after I came to St Mark and her husband JD was having some serious health problems. I never will forget one day when I visited JD at the hospital, I was exhausted, we had a lot going on at the church, I was having mid term exams and seminary was kicking my butt. We visited a few minutes, then I prayed with them as I prepared to leave. After I finished praying, Mary said "Pastor Kel, if you have time, please sit back down, I want to pray for you." As pastor you hardly ever hear this! I will never forget this. Thanks Mary, you rock! The most important thing you can do for your pastor is lift him in prayer, and the second is to make sure he has plenty of time to study the word so hear can hear & prepare God's messages for the week.

Those of you who have heard me preach know that I don't use proper english, I use everyday english. One of my favorite sayings is that "this world ain't it", meaning that this body, this life, while very tough at times, compared to eternity, is temporary. The best is yet to come for the follower of Jesus. Mary often told me she loved this saying, bad grammar and all. And when I was being beat down, she would remind me of this. Saying, "remember this life ain't it", and giving me some chicken salad or chocolate. :) And then she would say, "go home, turn off your phone and get some rest, if you don't take care of you, you can't take care of us". No matter which church you worship at, step up and be a Mary for your pastor! The shepherd needs to be cared for too.

The morning JD went home to the Lord, when I got to the hospital, Mary was in his room alone sitting in a chair beside his bed, with her head on the bed, holding his hand. I walked over, put my arm around her, I didn't say anything. She looked up at me and said, "it's ok Kel, God has a plan". That's real faith !! I wasn't surprised, I knew Mary, what a great example for all of us. You see, it's easy to talk about our faith when everything is going great, or even good, but when you're sitting beside the body of your husband whom you adore, and can say, "it's ok Kel, God has a plan" that's real faith. Jesus said, by our fruits (what we produce, our actions) people will know us, if we are believers or not. Mary believed!

Last week I was able to borrow a phone and call Mary. She told me, "I want to get better, but I don't want fight God's will". God has a plan. Mary believes it, look at her fruit. As I type this, the song I Can Only Imagine just came on. Mary doesn't have to imagine anymore.

Mary would tell you today that you too can have the same kind of faith, the same kind of relationship, with Jesus that she has. It takes effort, just like any relationship. We must make it a priority. She spent time in prayer, she spent time in the Bible, and she spent time minstering to those around her. Just like the Mary in Luke 10.42, our Mary knew and CHOSE what is better. And if we want to be with Mary, and more importantly God, for eternity, we must have a relationship with Jesus. Remember this world is temporary. This life ain't it. God does have a plan but He doesn't make us follow it, we get to chose.

Mary - thanks, I love ya, see ya soon.

Kel out.

2007-09-29T11:03:00.000-04:00

It appears the the internet is back to normal (working 50% of the time), so I will write while it's up. Was planning on writing earlier today, but got sidetracked by some You-Tube old school hip hop. I thought a lot about some old friends and lifted them in prayer.

I am getting more accustomed to preaching through an interpreter. Since the pres church, I have led devotions 2 times and preached again. It helps to have someone with the same energy level as myself translating. Thursday night I preached at a church named The House of Bread, which is what the hebrew word Bethlehem means in english. The Senior Pastor of the church is in the USA now and is scheduled to be in NC talking about Christians in Bethlehem. I will find out when and where and let you know. His son is the Associate Pastor and is pastoring the church in his father's absence. He is also a professor here at the college, so he has his plate full, but has taken time to look after me. He was a good translator for me, it was a great time -praise God. After preaching at a very Spirit-filled service, the family fed me and we watched tv. It didn't even matter that I couldn't understand what they were saying, it was good to watch tv.

The story of the Lost Son, the prodigal son, for you KJV folks, is an amazing story of God's love (Luke 15). We often see this just for someone who has turned their back on their faith and God. But let's look at it from the perspective, and the reality, that anytime we sin, we turn our back to God. Jesus outlines 4 steps for us in this example of God's love.

1 Evaluation. The son realized his condition, he came to his senses. This is a tough step, we often don't want to realize we are in sin, but this is the most important step. 2 Change of attitude and behavior, often called repentance. After assessing ourselves and finding sin, we must change, or turn from the attitude and/or action. Read Psalm 51 that David wrote when going through this process for adultery and murder. 3 Confession and forgiveness. The son went to the Father admitting he blew it, and asked for forgiveness. We must do the same. Confess, not explain it, not defend it, but confess and ask for forgiveness. When we do we will be forgiven. 1 John 1.9 says that, If we confess our sins, God is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness. 4 Accept God's love. Sometimes this is the toughest. In Jesus' example, the father threw and party and loved his son. His son said, I am not worthy. Have you ever felt like that? Of course, we all have. We fail to forgive ourselves after God has. We do steps 1-3, but refuse the Father's love. How many of us have been carrying around the load of a sin that we have confessed and asked forgiveness for, and God has forgiven us, but we have refused God's love because we feel unworthy? Probably most of us.

Regarding the woman who "had lived" a sinful live and then anointed Jesus, and for us who have sinned much and confessed it, Jesus says, “I tell you, her sins— (and ours) and they are many—have been forgiven, so she has shown me much love. But a person who is forgiven little shows only little love.” Then Jesus said to the woman, “Your sins are forgiven.” (Luke 7.47-48). When we receive God's forgiveness, we receive His love. The more we are forgiven, the more we receive love and love God for His mercy and forgiveness . Careful, this isn't permission to sin :). It is encouragement to enjoy God's love when you repent & confess. Don't hold yourself to a higher standard than God does! I'm just about preaching aren't I?

This is what I am experiencing as I realize that we the church are failing Christians in Bethlehem, and with some of my own stuff God is dealing with. Thanks for your prayers, the spiritual battle is tough here. And thanks for your encouraging words. God loves you, me too, Kel out.

2007-09-25T13:24:00.000-04:00

Hi guys, sorry I haven't posted lately, been we have been having a lot of internet trouble. Hopefully it will be fixed soon. I'm keeping this short so I can post it while it's working. Thanks for your prayers, I feel them!!!!!!! Kel out.

2007-09-17T10:56:00.000-04:00

All around me I see people who have been wronged in many ways, intentionally and unintentionally, but who choose to follow Jesus, and being Christ-like, offer grace and forgiveness. May they be an example to us who call ourselves Christ-followers.

Yesterday I did preach at the Presbyterian Church here in Bethlehem. It was strange preaching with an interpreter. I would have to stop every sentence, or half sentence, for him to translate. But I pray that the people heard God despite me, not because of me.

Below is a picture of a United Nations food drop at the refugee camp across the street last week. It looked like something you would see in a movie. Kel out.

2007-09-11T11:27:00.000-04:00

Let's say a prayer for the families of victims of Sept 11, 2001, and those have lost loved ones in combat.

Our internet has worked for a couple of days straight :). So I am posting again. This Sunday I will be preaching at Bethlehem Presbyterian Church. It is an arabic speaking church so unless I receive the gift of tongues (which really means languages, not multiple organs of speech) between now and Sunday, we will be using an interpreter. So please keep me in prayer. Preaching in Bethlehem, SWEET! Last week at the Jerusalem Church I led the service up to the sermon. God is awesome!!

People are asking me what is the time difference there in Bethlehem. I am 7 hours ahead of EST. I have mentioned the tourism and the fact that it bothers me a couple of times, but not expounded on it, so here we go. In an effort to make items marketable and appealing to their customers, the manufactures of the souvenirs have geared their products to the taste of westerners. Most manger scenes that are made here are crafted into the shape of a stable. Jesus WASN'T born in a wooden barn with timers and beams, He was born in a cave.

As you walk through the streets there are the metal frame shapes with lights around them of bells, Christmas tress and even Santa Claus. I understand why they have done this, they tailored their products & environment to meet customer expectations. But wow, what a teaching opportunity missed. Sad!

I am really understanding for the first time in my life how it is to be a minority. To not be able to understand the language, or the writing. To have to ask for explanation on nearly everything, and to try to use the right new words at the proper time. The bad thing about being here is that you need to learn some of both hebrew and arabic, and to be very careful not to say the hebrew to a Palestinian, an arabic to an Israeli. Although most people here do speak some english. No main point today, just random observations. God loves ya, me too. Kel out.

2007-09-10T09:14:00.000-04:00

Saturday I finally went to the Mexican restaurant that I had heard about. This is really the only food, other than breakfast at Panera, that I have missed. Well I miss Foothills too, but that is more the environment and culture I miss. But, back to the mexican place - ahhhhh, was delicious!! Not exactly the same as back home, but it was great. In fact the flavor was much like I had experienced in San Antonio.

Yesterday, I went to church in Jerusalem, the Jerusalem Baptist Church, a small church that is on the grounds of an orphanage. It is the orphanage where the President of the Bethlehem Bible College and his brothers stayed after their father was killed in the 1948 establishment of Israel. He was not fighting, but killed by a stray bullet in a fire fight between Jordan and the pre-Israel paramilitary forces. After the death of their father, their mother could not financially afford to care for the children, so she had to place some of them in orphanages. So this is a special place to Bishara (the President of the College) and Alex (the Pastor of the church, and Dean of Students at the College, also an UMC missionary). These people, who certainly have a right to be bitter, are sharing Jesus with Israelis and Palestianins alike. Could I do it with the same love they have?

After church, I met a friend of a friend from NC who has a ministry in Jerusalem. Yes, in a city I don't know, I walked and found a person I didn't know. Lord, I thank you for cell phones! I'm a guy, so you know wouldn't have asked for directions :) Cheryl showed me some of the non-touristy, modern parts of Jerusalem which was a nice change.

But the big deal of yesterday was when I returned to Bethlehem. As soon as I walked through the check point, the spiritual oppression was so great. OMG, it was an immediate transformation. Of course I have been aware of the spiritual battle here in Bethlehem. And I have really sensed the attacks and oppression on me the past few days. But I think last night was the first time I really realized the extent of it. It is so easy to see the poverty and other oppression, that is hard to discern the extent of the spiritual oppression.

Bethlehem Bible College is really a light in a very, very, dark place. With the combination of the high presence of: # 1 Islam (there are mosques everywhere, I can see three from my room and am often woke up by the call to prayer at 4:30am.); # 2 the large number of atheists; # 3 the many people who claim to be Christians (Christ-like), but are highly religious, without having a relationship with Jesus (in other words, they worship the buildings, the customs, the traditions, the reputation of being this church, or that church, but not Jesus); with all of these things, the presence of Satan and demonic spirits is huge. The percentage of Christ-like disciples of Jesus is very small and we are engaged in a fierce battle. I am really amazed, no not amazed, I really admire those who could leave here, like several of the college professors, and area pastors, but are staying to fight the fight. Many of them have been trained in American seminaries and graduate schools, and chose to return to Bethlehem to keep Christianity alive in its birthplace.

I saw where Bin Laden advised Americans to convert to Islam, if the small minority of Christians, excuse me Christ-followers, here can follow Jesus, so can we. Kel out!

2007-09-02T11:59:00.000-04:00

Well, some humidity moved in yesterday, so I have had a pretty bad headache this afternoon, but it is getting better, praise God. I have been told that several kids: home, public and private schooled, are using my blog as school projects, so I think I should write something more educational. The money that is used here is called the shekel, just like in the Bible. 1 dollar equals about 4.2 shekels. Prices in Jerusalem are about the same as in NC, but in Bethlehem, things are cheaper, so meals, food, and clothes are cheaper than at home, you can get a nice meal for 20 shekels.

Yesterday I went into Jerusalem. Above is a picture of the Old City. I walked to the border crossing where the wall is, went though the screening procedure. You have to show your passport about 3 different times, walk through a metal detector and place any items, backpacks, etc, on an x-ray machine. Then when I got through I caught the bus into Jerusalem, and got of at the Damascus Gate of the Old City. I think this is the first time I have ever rode a public transportation bus. I have rode subways & trains, but I think this was the first time on a bus. Then I met a friend from church who took me around. We were mostly in the arab sector, being Sat, the Jewish Sabbath, the Jewish sector was closed and we ran out of time before we got to the Christian sector. In the areas I saw yesterday, it was crammed with vendors and shoppers buying and selling. It was a mad house. I was told that Sat was the big Arab shopping day, so it usually isn't like this.

Before going into the Old City, we went to the Garden Tomb. This was a pretty much unspoiled as it was only located a few hundred years ago. There is debate whether or nor this was where Jesus was buried. The traditional site was in the Old City where Roman Emperor Constantine built the Church of the Holy Sepulchre. After seeing this site yesterday, I agree it certainly has the characteristics described in the gospels. This was the first time I really had a feeling I was in a holy place.

As I have walked and drove around Bethlehem and Jerusalem for the past 3.5 weeks, the big lesson that God has taught me so far (amongst many) is that: where He WAS (as a human), is nowhere near as important as where He IS (living in believers as the Holy Spirit).

This surprised me. I came here, in addition to the work with the Shepherd Society, I had come to learn and somehow I think grow closer to God because I would be on "Holy ground". But you and I are the temple of the Holy Spirit. Can we get any closer than God being inside of us? NO! It doesn't matter where you are, you are standing on Holy ground because God lives within you. This came to me after sitting on the roof for several nights crying out to God asking Him why He brought me here, why wasn't I experiencing this "high" from being in Israel. And when I realized what God was telling me, I was like, ok I get it. I have learned a lot here in these few weeks.

Keep me in prayer as the work is challenging. And to be honest with you, with the strange combination of oppression, poverty and tourism (I will write more about the tourism later), Bethlehem is a depressing place to be. But the needs of the people are great, and God did not bring me here for a vacation. Other than my headache today, my health has been good.

Ok, good news. Today I went to the Presbyterian Church here in Bethlehem, and even though I had to wear an headset to hear a translator (the service was in Arabic), I was greatly blessed by the message. AND I have been invited to preach in 2 weeks :). btw, this morning before church I was trimming hair with my clippers and put a little thin spot on the back of my head. Imagine my relief to see a blind person sitting behind me in church :) God is good, especially when we mess up! Kel out.

2007-08-30T10:14:00.001-04:00

Still having internet trouble. August 28th was the 44th anniversary of the Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King's, I Have a Dream speech. Dr King is a huge hero of mine. He didn't want to be a civil rights leader, he wanted to to pastor his church and lead his flock, but God called him to something more. Dr. King became a civil rights leader as an act of obedience to God. In memory of Dr. King, his obedience to God, and the justice he helped to bring, I have posted parts of the speech below. Many of you have heard me preach this. As I read the speech now, I think of how this applies to the Israelis and Palestinians.

Selections from Reverend King's speech.

"I have a dream. I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character.

I have a dream that one day every valley shall be exalted, every hill and mountain shall be made low, the rough places will be made plain, and the crooked places will be made straight, and the glory of the Lord shall be revealed, and all flesh shall see it together. This is our hope.

With this faith we will be able to hew out of the mountain of despair a stone of hope. With this faith we will be able to transform the jangling discords of our nation into a beautiful symphony of brotherhood. With this faith we will be able to work together, to pray together, to struggle together, to go to jail together, to stand up for freedom together, knowing that we will be free one day.

And when this happens, When we allow freedom to ring, when we let it ring from every village and every hamlet, from every state and every city, we will be able to speed up that day when all of God's children, black men and white men, Jews and Gentiles, Protestants and Catholics, will be able to join hands and sing in the words of the old spiritual, "Free at last! free at last! thank God Almighty, we are free at last!" Kel out.

2007-08-25T02:21:00.000-04:00

This is a picture of the Nativity Church.

The web access is still iffy here, so if you email me and it takes a few days to get back to you, don't freak. People keep asking me about this, yes, I can cook, but I don't like to. It's much easier for me to meet my nutritional needs by cereal, sandwiches and eating out. This apt has nothing other than a coffee pot to heat water on the stove, pan, a couple of plates & bowls, and some coffee cups. Oh yea, one dish rag and a few utensils. So if I do buy eggs to cook, I must also buy butter, or olive oil. Then I must buy dish detergent to clean with. It's just not an efficient use of my time. However, there doesn't seem to be any restaurants open for breakfast anywhere close by, so I am cooking some breakfast stuff. I prefer breakfast to be my biggest meal of the day, then work my way down.

I haven't written much this week because I have been sitting at a computer all day long looking for funding sources for humanitarian aid. It's quite boring (but the needs are very great, so I keep on) and I really want to be away from the computer when I leave. I really, really, miss preaching & teaching God's word. However,I have been asked to fill on for the pastor of the East Jerusalem Baptist Church for 3 weeks in November, while he is away. He is a professor here at the school, a Asbury grad and UMC missionary. That will be awesome preaching in Jerusalem. :).

Ever since I believed that God was asking me to come here, I sensed that while the work I was to do here is important, the bigger deal was whatever God was going to do within me. I pray I don't miss that. I sense He brought me here for a people and media fast (or break) so I can spend more time with Him. Believe me, if you don't have a tv, or many people who understand english, you have a lot more time for God. It's a good thing.

Last week a particular scripture came across my path several times, so I'm like, "Oh God you mean for me to get this" It's from 2nd Samuel 24.24, when offered free wood & bulls to make a sacrifice for God, David replied, "No, but I will surely buy it from you for a price, for I will not give to the Lord offerings which cost me nothing". In other words it's not an offering if it doesn't have value, if it's not a sacrifice. So, what am I, and what are you offering God in your time, talents, & resources? Is it worth anything, or are we giving God leftovers??

Whoever sent me the donation and Aug 10th Upper Room reading to the kville address- thanks! The Scripture reading for that day is Hebrews 11.32-12.3 The reading came on a day, excuse me, God sent it to me on a day when I really needed it. Again, thanks, you ROCK! God is awesome!

I think of this apartment as very small (it is in a dorm), my friend George who is the Social worker for the Shepherd Society, and who is a life-long Bethlehem resident, just stopped by to pick me up and said it was very big. George is taking me around Bethlehem today, so I have to run now, but will write more later. God loves you! Me too, Kel out.

2007-08-19T12:08:00.000-04:00

Well, I finally did it today. No I didn't get married :) I went to the church of the Nativity, the place where Jesus was born. I really don't know how I feel. When I finally got through all of the buildings to the cave, yep, a cave, not a stable as we think of it (see the movie The Nativity), I was definitely on Holy ground. But as a I came out of the cave, rather what's left of the cave, something didn't seem like I had hoped. The feeling of being overwhelmed to see where Jesus was born, and then laid in a feed box, wasn't there. As I wound my way through the maze of churches, actually 3 share one building, the Greek Orthodox, the Armenian, and the Roman Catholic, (which were beautiful and created to honor and glorify God I hope), I thought this is so typical of man, when God says a cave is sufficient, we have to add to it, usually missing the whole point. I don't know guys, I am still processing this and seeing what God is saying.

Again, the churches, the artwork, the history of the old buildings is great, but as we come and go through the elaborate buildings, and descend to look at the star in floor (this was created sometime back to mark the spot where Mary gave birth), are we missing the point? Would it be better to see a cave and realize that God humbled himself, became a man so He would be seen as available to all, and was born in a cave? I don't know. Maybe it was all of the tourist stuff around, that got to me, I'll let ya know what I come up with. I'm not preaching now, just thinking outloud.

I know I will be back to Jesus' birthplace many more times. Especially at Christmas (Dec 25 & Jan 6). It was good to get out on my own today. I walked down there, which took about 30 minutes, saw the church, headed back and stopped at the store on my way back and picked up a few things. It was an accomplishment to do that by myself. I did manage crack 5 of the dozen eggs I bought :). I can't even get groceries home correctly, much less cook them. I finally realized that if I put the Sgt Coop look on my face, the don't mess with me look, and didn't wander around looking or acting like a tourist, people wouldn't bother you asking you to buy stuff. This is hard for me as I always like to give people a smile, you never know who is in desperate need of one, but it's either do this or be hounded by shopkeepers and kids.

After church today, which was good, I was invited to a lunch hosted by a church which celebrated the transfiguration. We were served whole, fried fish, yes whole, head to tail. But they were great. I thought I would come here and lose weight, but that's not happening, despite my attempts to cook. The same sweet saintly lady who invited us to the lunch, has asked me to lead a Bible study or preach for a ladies group that she leads. She will be interpreting for me, this should be fun. Kel out.

2007-08-18T03:23:00.000-04:00

I have found out that Bethlehem Bible College is the only seminary that teaches pastors in arabic. How will people of this region know peace unless we can teach them about the Prince of peace, Jesus? Really, think about the significance of this. The only college to train pastors, Christian educators, and Christian councilors in their own language. The urgency of the College is that they realize if all the Christians and churches leave this area because of the turmoil, we are giving Satan Jesus' birthplace. Only Jesus can give people peace, internal peace despite external circumstances, peace for eternity. The peace so great we can't understand it. Praise God! We must support this college with prayerfully and financially. This school is training disciples to train disciples. It is an exciting time to be here as they are building a new building for the school.

Please read the book Light Force, by Brother Andrew. It does a great job of describing the conflict here and gives a lot of insight into Bethlehem Bible College. It's AWESOME, I couldn't put it down, and that says a lot coming from me. You can get from Amazon. Kel out.

2007-08-15T13:04:00.000-04:00

Wed Aug 15. Prior to arriving here, I really had no idea of the suffering. I had heard, but not listened. In less than a week I have had my heart broken many times. I have prayed with tears in my eyes asking God for forgiveness as we have allowed this to take place. There are thousands of innocent citizens of Bethlehem who are caught in the middle. As the struggle for land continues, people pay the price. Christians pay the price. There are Palestianian Christians in Bethlehem. Let's forget about the politics for a minute and discuss conditions. For many years Bethlehem's economy has been based upon tourism (people visiting the place of Jesus' birth), and Palestinians working in Israel. With the Israel-Palestine border closing, it is very difficult for tourists to come into Bethlehem, in fact the tour guides highly discourage it, therefore the economy suffers greatly. In addition to the lack of tourism, Palestinians are only able to go to jobs, or doctors, or schools, etc in Jerusalem with a special permit (which is difficult to obtain) and, and must walk through the check point, not drive so they can be screened the same way we do when getting on a plane, shoes, belts, and metal taken off. There is a 75% unemployment rate here. People are starving because their jobs have diminished, or they can't get to them. Children can’t go to school, which places them in the incubator to be future terrorists. The Shepherd Society seeks to be the Body of Christ helping these people in need. Jesus said what we do to those in need (give or don't give- food, water, clothes, shelter, visit in prison, yes prison, and medical attention) we do to Him (Mt 25.31-46. Many of those in need are our brothers and sisters in Christ. Enough said! Kel out.

2007-08-13T10:48:00.000-04:00

Monday Aug 13. Greetings in the name of our Lord Jesus from Bethlehem.

I have seen some awesome sites both here in Palestine & Jerusalem, none very close, but as we drive by they are pointed out to me. I hope to visit Jesus' birthplace this week. Yesterday I went to church in Jerusalem, to an Arab Christian church, pastored by a UMC missionary (and an Asbury grad). He is a Palestinian Christian who grew up in Jerusalem. His brother is the founder and president of Bethlehem Bible College. At the end of the service, I was asked to say the benediction, AWESOME!!!!!!!! Then I had lunch with a local family yesterday afternoon. Their hospitality was great. They live close to the church of the Nativity. Their son George works with the Shepherd Society and is helping me a lot. There seems to be a constant flow of volunteers here at BBC and travelers staying at the guest house from America, Britain, Sweden and so on. It seems that I am the only volunteer for the Shepard Society. If you don't know what this is, read below. I have a small apartment which is meager, but clean, and nice. I do fit on the bed (barely). Everyone here has been very nice and helpful. I do miss home, I miss you guys, but I am where God wants me. No headaches other than the one I left NC with. SWEET! That helps me fight the homesickness. Again, I thank you guys for partnering with me, this is our mission! Please keep us in prayer!

In Bethlehem

2007-08-10T05:10:00.000-04:00

Monday Aug 13 - Things are still good. Internet is still iffy at times, but they are working on it. I was very homesick for a few days but am getting past that. I had a good weekend. There is great need in Bethlehem, poverty is rampant.I am definitely in Palestine, not Israel. I am trying to learn the people, their needs and hopefully the language - arabic. There are many Palestinian Christians in Bethlehem who are in great need. The picture is from looking out of the front door of the college. I have had some briefings on our ministry, and it seems that I will be doing much as I thought. Working with the needs of the poor seeking funding from various worldwide agencies for these humanitarian efforts. Because of the unrest (more on that later as I have a first hand view) there is a 75% unemployment rate in the West Bank . Now only 1% of the population is Christian (down from 70% 200 years ago). However, here in Bethlehem, the percentage of Christians is higher. It is important that we, the Church, be the Body of Christ, here in the birthplace of Christianity, ministering to those in need, who Jesus called the "least of these", remembering that Jesus said what we do to them, we do to Him!!!

Please keep our ministry and me in prayer! Thanks for sharing this with others, you have made this ministry possible. More later, Kel out.

Ok, for those who don't know what this ministry is about, here's the short version. I am volunteering at Bethlehem Bible College in Bethlehem, Palestine. I will be serving with an agency of the college, the Shepherd Society that ministers to the poverty stricken folks of Bethlehem. Bethlehem, whose economy for hundreds of years has been based upon tourism, is now suffering greatly, which means the people are suffering greatly. I will be writing grant requests and other stuff for the Society. I also hope to do some teaching while at the school. To learn more about the Shepherd Society's ministry go to http://www.bethlehembiblecollege.edu/ under the drop down menu "Resources" click on "Shepherd Society". I will be serving as a South-East Jurisdiction United Methodist Volunteers in Mission missionary. Yes, that's a mouth full, so that agency is called UMVIM. Their website is http://www.umvim.org/ It was through these guys that I became connected with BBC. Kel out

AMBUSHED

2007-08-06T14:13:00.000-04:00

St Mark ambushed me with water balloons after a "group pic" at the end of the party. I was soaked! It was AWESOME! I love you guys!

Party!

2007-08-05T09:23:00.000-04:00

OMG, we had an awesome party that ROCKED! Thank you guys for coming out in hell-like heat. We had a great time, especially the group picture. lol I am hoping to get those up. The water balloons were great!!! That was one of the best surprises I ever had. I could have laid on the ground and rolled laughing! AWESOME!!!! I have some pics, but they are kinda dark, hopefully I can get those cleaned up & posted.

The food was great, thanks to everyone who contributed. The music was awesome thanks to Kevin Douthit, the keyboardist/vocalist, and Jonjo Evans, the guitarist/vocalist. You guys rock!!! Thanks for playing in the heat, you blessed us and really set the tone for a night of praising God. (email me if you are interested in having these guys lead worship or play at an event for you)

I spoke at Crews Church today which was a great experience. (Thanks for the love, prayers, and donations.) Remember, step in the water.

Ok guys, were getting down to the big deal- our ministry in Bethlehem. I ask that you pray for my flight and travel to the College, especially Wednesday morning. Coop, I remember what you said- roger that! I love you guys!!!!

Whoever left that awesome comment, I praise God, it was all Him. I just try to be obedient. More later. Kel out.

A Few Days

2007-08-03T20:06:00.001-04:00

Hey guys, only a few days to lift off. Things have been great and crazy all at the same time. I'm ready to be in Bethlehem. I'm tired of getting ready. I think I have all of the things done at the house for my cousin who will be staying here. I owe a huge thanks to my neighbor who was a big help this week with several things. The party is Saturday, and I am ready for that. I hope you all can come. Details and directions are in the blog below.

As the day draws close, I praise God for all of the support. Your financial and service contributions are awesome!!!! I wish to thank the pastors and folks at Oak Grove, Morris Chapel, Love's, Forsyth/Stokes, Hillsdale, Sunrise, Crews, The Refinery, and of course St Mark! You're awesome! I want to thank all of the individual contributors not part of the groups mentioned. Please don't stop. This ministry of ours is ongoing. The more donations I receive, the longer I can stay and hopefully be a blessing to those in Bethlehem.

I have to run now, but more later. Blessings!!!

2 weeks to go

2007-07-22T16:38:00.000-04:00

Here's a picture of Hershey. He's a choc lab-chow mix. He loved to ride! I was worried most about him, what do with him while I was on the trip. He's older and loved staying inside & sleeping on the couch. The only problem is that is he's not too friendly to strangers (as some of you know), so I didn't really know what to do with him. I told God that if He was wanting me to do this, if I needed to put Hershey to sleep I would, but I really didn't want to. A month after I prayed this Hershey passed on from a eye/brain tumor that we didn't know anything about. Dude, I really miss him. But I know that God's timing is perfect. He passed while on the couch, I was so glad that didn't happen while I was gone. So this trip, while being done in obedience to God, to honor and glorify Him, to do His work and will, is also done in Hershey's memory.

Kids in Bethlehem

Bethlehem Bible College

Still Getting Ready

2007-07-13T17:51:00.000-04:00

Less than a month to departure! Things are moving along, and dude, time is flying. You never imagine all of the stuff you have to do to leave the country for several months. I'm vaccinated, insured, and somewhat ready. People are asking me are you packed? I'm like for real??? I have 3 or 4 weeks left,. Most of you guys know how I am :). But as the date draws closer, I am thinking about meds, what will be available in Bethlehem? And most importantly, hair gel availability, j/k :) Jerusalem is a modern city, but as you cross the border into Palestine, it's really an economically depressed area. But from what I am hearing, I will be able to cross the border easily, so most common meds and hair products should be easily obtainable. I've been doing some work at the house getting it ready for my cousin who will be staying there. Things I've needed to do, but haven't had time the past few years.

Last week I taught at Hillsdale Church (http://www.hillsdaleumc.com/), which is an awesome new church. And this week I am speaking at Sunrise Church, another new church which is also rocks (http://www.sunrise-umc.org/).

How do you like Pastor Chip's sign sense of humor?

God is opening many doors and I praise Him for it. This is awesome to see happening, which affirms my discernment that got me here. I may write about that one day for those who haven't heard me talk about it. Many different people and groups are partnering with me in this ministry to be the Body of Christ in the birthplace of Christianity (isn't that kinda weird?). There are many individuals who have contributed and I thank you for it. St Mark has been awesome http://www.stmarkgermanton.org/ , so has Love's http://www.lovesumc.org/ (check out the photo album for pictures of the fund raiser), Morris Chapel http://www.morrischapel.org/ , SedgeGarden http://www.sedgegardenumc.org/ , and Hillsdale http://www.hillsdaleumc.com/ These churches have provided significant contributions. Thank you guys, I praise God for you as we partner in His ministry!!!!

Bethlehem Bible College

Across the street from BBC

Getting Ready

2007-07-04T10:44:00.000-04:00

Wow, what can I say to describe all of this? Don't know, how about - Praise God! It's really hard to believe I am this close to leaving for Bethlehem. Only a month and a few of days and I will be on the plane. Last week was weird as I wasn't preaching, and phasing out of St Mark as pastor. I love preaching, the studying, the listening to God, the prep, and then turning it over to God and allowing Him to edit it, or totally change it. Even despite all of the weird stuff that comes with pastoring, it is the preaching that makes it all worth it. I am preaching every Sunday till I leave as you can see by the schedule on the right. I am creating this blog so you guys who are partnering with me in this ministry will know what's going on. I hope to do a weekly update, with pics, keeping you posted. This is the first one, I hope they have spell check!!!

Only a month left until departure. Ok, for those who don't know what this ministry is about, here's the short version. I am volunteering at Bethlehem Bible College in Bethlehem, Palestine. I will be serving with an agency of the college, the Shepherd Society that ministers to the poverty stricken folks of Bethlehem. Bethlehem, whose economy for hundreds of years has been based upon tourism, is now suffering greatly, which means the people are suffering greatly. I will be writing grant requests and other correspondence for the Society. To learn more about the Shepherd Society's ministry go to http://www.bethlehembiblecollege.edu/ under the drop down menu "Resources" click on "Shepherd Society". I will be serving as a South-East Jurisdiction United Methodist Volunteers in Mission missionary. Yes, that's a mouth full, so that agency is called UMVIM. Their website is http://www.umvim.org/ It was through these guys that I became connected with BBC.

It's been weird adjusting to not being St Mark's pastor. I think Pastor Hagan will be great there, but the whole change of identity is an adjustment. But since I am not pastoring another church, I still feel very connected to St Mark, going to Bethlehem as their missionary. Speaking of St Mark, I love you guys, the many forms of support you have provided for God's ministry has been overwhelming! Thank you!

I need to say a public thanks to my Lay Leader at St Mark, David Griffith, who, because I was sick, stood in for me and took 250 or so water balloons. For those who don't know, I told St Mark as a fund raising event, for $5.00 a balloon, they could throw them at me. (I know we started out with 250 balloons, but I think there were more purchased). This was an awesome example of Jesus taking our punishment for us!!!!!! Thanks David! Of course, there are many, many people to thank, too many to list, but I thank you and pray God's blessings on you!

I do want to say thanks to Pastor Chip and Love's UMC for the Barbecue Chicken fund raiser. Love's, your support is awesome too!

As you see in the pictures above, I am in the fund raising mode. I am preaching at the churches listed, asking them to partner with us in this ministry. If you feel led to partner in this minstry with prayer and financial support, please let me know at kelb777@gmail.com

I want to thank Andrew and Tyler Wilson, Emily Morris for helping me with some significant pre-trip tasks this week, thanks guys!

More later. Please keep praying! I pray God's blessing on you!

Kel