Third CRC in Scotland

We're home

2009-02-05T06:45:00.000-08:00

Hi everyone -
Just wanted to tell you we (Harv, Claire, Holly and Me) have made it home safe. Right now it is 7:00am and I am at work. I'm not sure what day it is but my calendar tells me it is Thursday. We had no problems getting home - our original flight to DC was canceled because the plane that was to come to London the day before had some mechanical issues in DC so it wasn't in London. Had nothing to do with the weather. So...they put us on another flight to San Fran then to Seattle. Customs in San Fran was a breeze - no problems at all. Dave R. - if you can find one, I would recommend a box for your souvenir - it would garner much less attention. We landed in Seattle about a half hour later than was originally planned. Ron and Patti were there waiting for us with smiles and hugs. I finally laid in bed around midnight (I assumed at that point you all were just finishing your eggs, scones, and rashers and getting ready for your trip to the highlands). Anyway....we look forward to hearing about your tour. It should be beautiful.

Some great news and an answer to our prayers....Denise (Harv's daughter) didn't have the baby turning procedure done because the baby turned by itself.....Awesome.

See you all soon. Dave

Look what God is doing in Glasgow

2009-02-03T23:40:00.000-08:00

We had a fantastic last day. We managed to finish up all the projects we hoped to complete when we came. We even did a few extra. While everyone was finishing up with the painting and cleaning, Greg V., Dave T., Dan from Re: Hope, and myself (Shawn) built a railing and small wall for some steps near the nursery. With a building as old as the Re: Hope church, there will always be a good number of projects that need to be done, but we felt that we managed to make a significant dent in helping the Re: Hope community improve their facilities.

Dave R. was able to rejoin us about mid-afternoon. He is feeling better, but not quite back to his regular self. In the evening we met with members and staff of the Re: Hope community for prayer. We were divided into four groups and and sent to pray at four different stations: 1) the congregation of Re: Hope and new members who enter the door; 2) the mission of the church in Glasgow and the world; 3) the preaching of the word at Re: Hope; and 4) the children's ministry. Every 10 minutes each of the groups would rotate. After finishing the 4 stations we all gathered together again to talk about what impressions or themes the groups had. One of the common themes was a deep sense of gratitude for the way that God has been and is moving at Re: Hope. We were humbled by God's presence and thankful for the time to pray alongside believers from another country.

After our prayer time, the whole group along with some of the members from Re: Hope went out for dinner. We spent the time enjoying some really good food and shared some of our thoughts, observations, and learnings about the trip with each other. When the whole group gets back to Lynden, we hope to take an evening and share some of those thoughts and our experiences with those who are interested.

This morning we got up early to see Harv, Claire, and the Timmers off. The airline has already made some changes to their schedule because of the weather. They will be flying in through San Francisco instead of Washington D.C., like was originally planned. Please continue to keep them in your prayers that they may be able to arrive home in a timely manner. Most of them start work tomorrow morning, and with the time change it could take awhile for them to get over the jet lag.

With the trip officially being done today, some of us have decided to stay a little longer and learn a bit more about Scottish culture. We hope to spend the day visiting Stirling to learn about the period in history when the Scottish people fought for their independence. Although the trip is officially done, we will still probably keep giving periodic updates and post some more photos from the trip as we are able.

It has been an amazing journey! We are so thankful that God has taken safely thus far.

Walking in a Winter Wonderland

2009-02-03T02:49:00.000-08:00

We had another full day of work yesterday. Dave & Holly and Andrea & myself (Shawn) finished off all the yard work outside. We ended up having two full garbage dumpsters of "rubbish" to be hauled away. As we were starting to put the final touches on the outside work it started to snow pretty heavily. When we asked some people how often it snows in Glasgow, they said very rarely. The weather forecast isn't great for the next couple of days so we are very thankful that we managed to get all the outside work done.

The church building was previously occupied by a school and the basement was used as their cafeteria. As a result there were some old appliances sitting on the basement stage area. Sherm B removed some old natural gas lines which enabled us to move the appliances and create some stage space. Dave R finished installing two new panes of security glass in an external door that were been broken due to some recent vandalism. Greg V, Jerry L., Dan, & Mark (interns at Re: Hope) completed an extension for the upstairs stage. Claire H., Crystal R., Joyce L., Karen V. & Doris Mae B. continue to paint and clean, making everything look nice and clean. Harv B. & Dale R. continue to install new lights and repair old existing lights that were no longer working. The place as a whole looks much brighter.

We also made some fresh coffee and purchased some good cookies to hand out to some of the local college students as they made their way to and from class. It was interesting to see some of the peoples reactions. Some people ignored us, others wondered what the catch was, and still others were very appreciative of a warm cup of coffee on such a cold wintery day.

This morning the men of our group gathered with some of the men from Re: Hope who meet weekly on Tuesday mornings for prayer. We prayed and interceded for the church, Glasgow, Lynden, Scotland, and each other. Shortly after that time of prayer the whole team from Lynden met with the Re: Hope staff so that we could also spend some time praying for them.

Our trip officially ends tomorrow and we are working hard to finish off all the projects today. Our prayer is that we finish strong. Some of us are staying on for a little longer to do some further traveling and to connect with the Re: Hope community a bit more, but we ask that you would pray for Clarie, Harv, & the Timmers as they travel back tomorrow. As I mentioned earlier the weather isn't very good here and there has been a lot of cancellations and delays. We pray that they would have a good flight back with minimal delays and complications.

Dave R is also feeling a little "under the weather." (Sorry I couldn't resist the pun.) In all seriousness though, Dave wasn't able to join us this morning because he isn't feeling well. We think it could be something he ate last night, so we are hoping and praying that it isn't anything more serious and that he gets better quickly.

Finally, if your interested, Re: Hope is reading the book of John this week for their reading groups. As a team we've been participating in this weekly rhythm and finding it a difficult but powerful and worthwhile experience. We would love for you to join us as we continue to read and share three observations with each other.

On behalf of the team and the Re: Hope community we would like to thank you all for your continued support.

Shalom.

2009-02-01T13:59:00.000-08:00

It looks like Dave R and Shawn have been keeping things updated quite well. Saturday was a sightseeing day so the crew took an hour train to Edinburgh - a Scottish city saturated with history, amazing architecture, and tourists. It is really quite beautiful and I know that many many pictures and some videos were taken of the local sites. I also know the tourist shops need to restock after our visit - Dave R will be looking a bit more William Wallace after his accessory purchase but he may need to borrow the Ross clan kilt to finish the look. It was a good day and the Libolts played good hosts to us in their country. Edinburgh sits in a bit of contrast to Glasgow - a more gritty, more industrial city - whose rhythms we are learning while we walk, work, and explore. While no physical work was accomplished on Saturday the day of rest, walking, learning the history, and building community was well worth it.

Today we went to church. It was great to see this ministry in action and to enjoy the lively service. So far this week we have had the opportunity to take part in the Re:Hope community. While we are learning the rhythms of Glasgow we are also learning the rhythms of Re:Hope. We prayed with the staff prior to both services, helped set up chairs, prepare refreshments, and then worship with them. I found that Scottish accents make for good singing, or perhaps the 80 foot ceilings and sandstone walls make for good acoustics. Both services were well-attended. They are growing - today they had more than 20 people show up that had never before. Mostly college students from the nearby University. It is terrific. God is working.

One thing in particular that has struck me while I'm here is the religious history of this place. It is so glaringly evident in the architecture of the city. There are churches everywhere - immaculate, ornate, amazing buildings. But most of them are not working churches - they are pubs, restaurants, and flats. Post-Christian. Re:Hope, with God, is reawakening the work of Jesus in this place.

Anyway....more to come. Dave T

The Assignment

2009-01-29T00:36:00.000-08:00

We had a great first full day of work yesterday. Dave Reimink has created a website specifically for this trip called Caber Tossed. There is a blog and picture section on his website which gives a very detailed description of our day yesterday. You can check it out here.

We are expecting another full day of work today and tonight we are scheduled to participate in some of Re: Hope's regular Reading Groups. Our assignment is to read the book of Luke and come prepared to share 3 observations. We would love for all of you to join us in this assignment. If you have a chance to read the book of Luke and make 3 observations, we would love to hear about your experience and what your observations were via the comment section.

We covet your prayers on this trip. Dave shared a number of prayer requests on his blog, but there is one recent update to add. Dale Ross is feeling a little sick to his stomach this morning. We are not sure if it is because of something he ate, or a bit of the flu.

We Made It!

2009-01-27T10:38:00.000-08:00

Just wanted to let everyone know that we've arrived safely. All of our flights were on time and in some cases early. We left Lynden yesterday at about 4:30am and almost 23hrs later we arrived in Glasgow. We're all feeling a wee bit knackered and absolutely shattered because of our journey.

Some of us are staying with members of the Re: Hope staff, while others of us are staying at a bed and breakfast that is about a block and a half from the church. After briefly settling in our rooms, we met for lunch and an orientation session which included an introduction to the staff, a tour of the church and projects to be done, as well as a Scottish etiquette lesson. We also learned that this week they are celebrating the birthday of the great Scottish poet Robbie Burns. He's kind of a big deal here!

After sizing up the projects, several of us began working for a couple of hours doing yard work and fixing some electrical issues. Then we all met at the Libolt's flat for dinner and now we are all looking forward to getting a good nights sleep.

Thanks for your prayers!

Preparing for the Group to Arrive

2009-01-23T11:48:00.000-08:00

We just received word that Jerry & Joyce Libolt, and Greg Visser have arrived safely this morning in Glasgow, Scotland. They had a long but great flight and are helping to make arrangements for the rest of the teams arrival. The rest of the team is scheduled to leave Monday January 26 at 4:30 in the morning and arrive sometime on Tuesday.

Welcome!

2009-01-21T14:06:00.001-08:00

On behalf of the members of the Scotland vision/mission trip team & Re: Hope Church, thank you all for your support in making this trip a reality. As a team we hope to use this blog, and our picasa photo website, as a means by which we can keep you all updated about what is happening on the trip. Please feel free to use the comments section of this blog as a way of encouraging or asking questions of each of the team members. We will try to post updates as frequently as possible.