Thank you

It’s too easy to forget to tell the great stories of blessing leaving everyone wondering if the matter.

I read a book by Nouwen where he mentioned that after passing, we leave spirits behind that continue to bless others. Those same spirits are there when we live too, just often clouded by our fallen nature. And so, in a way death clearly reveals the fruit in our lives. You never realize how much you miss someone until their gone is another way of thinking about it.

Thanks for putting this together Jon.

Where or when do I need to show up to participate?

“Lover” by Derek Webb

Like a man comes to an altar,
I came into this town,
With the world upon My shoulders
And promises passed down.
When I went into the water,
My Father, He was pleased.
I built it and I’ll tear it down
So you will be set free.

I found thieves and salesmen
Living in My Father’s house.
And I know how they got in here,
And I know how to get ‘em out.
Well, I’m turning this place over
From floor to balcony.
Then, just like these doves and sheep
Oh, you will be set free.

‘Cause I have always been a lover
From before I drew a breath
Oh, and some things I love easy
And some I love to death.
You see, love’s no politician
‘Cause it listens carefully
So from those who come,
I can’t lose one,
So you will be set free,
Oh, you will be set free.

Go on and take My picture
Go on and make Me up
Oh, I’ll still be your Defender
And you’ll be My missing son
And I’ll send out an army
Just to bring you back to Me.
‘Cause regardless of your brothers’ lies,
Oh, you will be set free.

Because I am My beloved’s
And My beloved’s Mine;
So, you bring all your history,
I’ll bring the bread and wine.
Then we’ll have us a party
Where all the drinks are on Me
And as surely as the rising sun
Oh, you will be set free,
Oh, you will be set free.

I was standing in line at my local fruit stand a few months ago, waiting to buy my bananas, when I noticed the woman in front of me couldn’t pay for all of her produce. It was a cash-only stand and she had just barely over-estimated how much money she actually had. Embarrassed, she mumbled, “Um, ok forget about the carrots.” and started to pull them off the counter. I interjected, “Hey, here’s a dollar. Don’t not buy your carrots over a dollar!” She asked me, “Are you sure?” I was like, “IT’S A DOLLAR.” And she thanked me, took the money, and life was happy.

Side note: as anyone who has gone to Happy Hour with me knows, I do not have a car. Relying on friends for rides is an area where I truly appreciate being shown mercy. (Thanks, everybody.)

So there I was, walking back home from the fruit stand and the same woman pulled over in her car, rolled down her window, and offered to drive me home! I asked her the question she had asked me, “Are you sure?” And next thing I knew, my bananas and I were being chauffeured back to my apartment and I got to have a lovely conversation with a stranger, coo at her baby in the back seat, and we even discovered that we had both lived in Maryland at the same time.

That surprising act of kindness was one of the highlights of my week.
Mercy is contagious. And strangers are often really cool.

Brenna

A BBQ would be great. Why don’t you contact me this week and we can set up a time for you to drop it off.

Thanks for your support!

Jon

Thank you so much for your offer! I know that Dale Whitney our facilities director is away at Side By Side this week, and would like to consult with him first. In cleaning things up though we did take out a lot of plants, so there is a great chance that we are getting ready to place in something new.

Thanks for your support!

Jon

Second, the advice about compliments is insightful and makes sense when you think about it; as a man, because I value beauty, when I tell a women she’s beautiful, to me I couldn’t think of a better compliment to give from my perspective–but it’s helpful to think of how it is received (which is something I may not have thought about as much before); finding quirks and things you appreciate specific to THAT person will be goal now.

Lastly, the comment about men wanting to fix things is dead on! I will try and teach myself to focus on empathy instead of instant handyman…

i’m living in san francisco and am just devastated by the news of the earthquake that just struck haiti. i am a yoga teacher and would like to start a city wide clothes drive at all the local studios. how did you get your clothes to haiti in such a crises???

Bruce Robinson. UPC missionary in Haiti.

Team is fine and eating supper. We got shook up but no damage here and no dishes broken… We are fine [here] at Passe Catabois. The team here is fine. Our buildings are fine. We will see how it affects travel plans…

From Amber.

Everyone here is fine. We felt the quake. It sounds like the epicenter was further south, no damage here. Wes (engineering professor from Seattle U) is flying out on Thursday so we should know then if there are any big issues with travel. I’ll let you know if there are any updates as far as that goes. There isn’t any email at the team house so nobody can write to let people know they are okay. Have everyone pray for the people affected in Port au Prince and the surrounding area…we still don’t know what the damage was.

Other than that, everyone is doing really well, getting along and being all around great. We haven’t done much except organize the sheds at the workshop because the rain has prevented us from going to Foison. Hopefully tomorrow…

Please continue to hold up the team, our dear friends Bruce and Deb Robinson and the Haitian people in prayer. Bruce has also asked for prayer for his mission partners who are located in some of the more affected areas, but are currently unreachable.

Peace-
Jon