6.27.2007

it's official, part 2

After about two hours of oral theological examination I have been officially received as a licentiate in the Northern Presbytery of Grace Presbyterian Church of New Zealand. Translated that means that I'm one big step closer to ordination as a pastor in the denomination. Functionally this doesn't change a whole lot since I'll be boarding a plane on Friday and heading back to the States. Practically though it means that there is a closer and official bond between me and the church here in New Zealand. It also means that I'm tired and looking forward to a more relaxed day tomorrow.

seeking peace for the city

In the Old Testament God tells the prophet Jeremiah to send a letter to a large group of Israelites who were living in exile. Through this letter God had Jeremiah instruct the exiles on how they were to live in the strange and hostile city of Babylon. Among other things Jeremiah wrote these words from God to the exiles, "seek the welfare of the city where I have sent you into exile, and pray to the Lord on its behalf, for in its welfare you will find your welfare."

In a similar way the New Testament describes Christians as exiles in this world. Like the exiles of the Old Testament Christians are to seek the welfare of the cities they live in and pray to God on their behalf. While the Bible teaches that Jesus came to rescue individual people it also teaches that he is in the process of restoring the entire world to a right relationship to the Father. This is why the book of Revelation describes the life-giving power of the Gospel as a source of healing for the nations.

I have spent much time on this trip to New Zealand wandering through Auckland and exploring this city we have been called to. One result of this exploring is that I have had a renewed sense of burden for the city of Auckland and a confirmation of this calling to serve here. Another result is that on several occasions I have been moved to pray for the city and its inhabitants. As I have driven down the streets I have thought about the broken hearted and the oppressed, the lonely and weary, the poor and the needy. I have wept for the prostitutes that crowd the street corners and for all the rest of us who are just as broken and in need of God's grace but who do a better job hiding our hurt and our need.

And so tonight, as I stood atop Mount Eden, I sought the welfare of the city God is sending us to and prayed to the Lord on its behalf. With a cold wind upon my face I lifted my hands toward the city and pronounced this ancient blessing over Auckland:
"The Lord bless you and keep you;
the Lord make his face to shine upon you and be gracious to you;
the Lord lift up his countenance upon you and give you peace."

6.24.2007

it's official


On Sunday morning I was officially recieved into membership of Covenant Presbyterian Church and into the Grace PResbyterian Church of New Zealand. While Brooke will join when we move over I needed to join now so that I could begin the ordination process. It really isn't that big a deal in the grand scheme of things but it does feel a bit strange that I'm now a member of a church outside of the States.

During the worship service I also had a chance to share a bit about where Brooke and I are at in regards to getting back to New Zealand. I also shared the vision for the central Auckland church plant. After the service I had several people come up to me who were very excited about what we wanted to do and some of them are even thinking about joining us. We've known since December that the leadership of the GPCNZ is behind this vision but it's nice to know that average folks in the congregations are supportive as well.

On Sunday evening I preached at Covenant on Mark 8:22-26. This sermon was being assessed by the elders as part of my licensure requirements. Licensure is one of the first steps towards being ordained and usually involves an examination of beliefs and testing of gifts and ability. My examination is on Wednesday night and I still have a bit of preparation to do for that but it should go fine. Oh yeah, I'm told the assessment of my sermon was positive for the most part which means that I passed.

Only five more days before I fly home. Have I mentioned that I miss my wife?

6.22.2007

8 tribes


As someone who is in the process of immigrating to New Zealand I have tried to be a student of Kiwi culture. Therefore, when I saw this book on the shelf in the store I couldn't resist picking it up. 8 Tribes: The Hidden Classes of New Zealand is a sociological look at the various subcultures that exist within this country.

The aim of the book is to break the stereotype of the "traditional" New Zealander (a common myth within the country) by showing that there are actually several distinct approaches to life that Kiwi's adopt. The tribes are labeled with geographical markers but the authors insist that the various mindsets of the individual tribes can be observed all over New Zealand.

The book is an easy and interesting read. I would recommend it to any of my Kiwi friends who keep up with this blog and I would suggest that it should be required reading for anyone thinking of moving to New Zealand or spending an extended period of time here. You can read more about the book here. Also, if you're interested in finding out what kind of Kiwi you are (or would be if you were a Kiwi) you can find your tribe here.

In other news, it's Friday in New Zealand and I have one more week before I head home. I miss my wife and am really looking forward to seeing her.

6.17.2007

gpc general assembly

I arrived safely in Dunedin last Wednesday around 4:30PM after about 30 hours of time spent in either an airport or an airplane. I spent a very weary first night with the Worth family and due to jet lag don't rememeber much of our conversations. They are a nice family that graciously put up with an incoherent, semi-conscious American. On Thursday night I went to out to Waihola (pronounced: Why-hole-uh) where the General Assembly (GA) of Grace Presbyterian Church was being held. For my non-Presbyterian friends General Assembly is the annual gathering of church leaders within a presbyterian denominations.

The GA went well with much good discussion on issues relevant to the ministry of GPC throughout New Zealand. On Friday I was asked to address the Assembly regarding the work we are hoping to do in central Auckland. Those present asked good questions and they responded well to what I had to say. The GA then prayed for us and for this future work. There was also plenty of time over the two and a half days to catch up with old friends and make some new ones. I greatly appreciate the fact that the GPC is still at the size where the GA can take time for genuine fellowship as well as meaningful discussion of issues. Overall the tone of the meeting was warm and irenic.

After GA was over I spent Saturday and Sunday with the Jopson family (Neville, Jan, Kristine, and Michael). We had a great couple of days with each other. We enjoyed good conversation, a few games, and much laughter. The highlight for me was that Neville makes a nice coffee, and likes to drink it almost as much as I do. On Sunday evening I preached at Grace Bible Church in Dunedin. Monday morning I jumped back into a plane and flew to Auckland where I will be until the 29th.

Okay, I think that's about it as far as catching everyone up. I should have regular access to the internet for the rest of my time here so I will try to keep the blog updated with shorter posts. (I had several pictures I was planning to put up but for some reason they're not showing. I'll just have to put them up later. Sorry.)

6.12.2007

d.c. adventures

I returned last night from my D.C. trip. The time there flew by but it was good overall. Thanks to my personal tour guide Dave I was able to see quite a few of the main attractions in a relatively short amount of time. I never made it to the Smithsonian or the Library of Congress though. I decided to wait until I can spend several hours (or days) at each. D.C. is an interesting place. On Friday while we were driving around we ended up behind a black Secret Service SUV that was following behind a black Lincoln at approximately 10 inches or so. It's a pretty interesting city with lots of amazing architecture but I don't think I could ever live there, it's just way too intense.

The retreat went well. I got to meet some pretty cool college students as well as reconnect with Dave and Laura who were our next door neighbors during Seminary. I think the talks went well overall. The students asked real questions and made insightful comments so we were able to have some good discussion throughout the weekend. At one point one during the weekend a student came up to me and said, "Thanks for talking with us instead of just at us." In my opinion that's one of the best compliments I could have recieved.

Now I'm back and preparing to leave again. I get on a plane for New Zealand in a few hours and will be gone until June 29 (or, 29 June if you're reading this in New Zealand). I hope to put up a few posts while I'm away. Until then here are some pics from my D.C. adventures.



























6.07.2007

leaving on a jet plane


I leave first thing in the morning on a flight bound for Washington D.C. where I'll be speaking at a college retreat for Fourth Presbyterian Church. I'm tired and I still have some packing and last minute preparations to take care of before I can go to bed. This will be my first time visiting D.C. and I'm looking forward to it. There will be some down time on Friday before the retreat begins and my buddy Dave is going to show me some of the sites. I have always wanted to visit the Smithsonian and Dave thinks we'll be able to have at least a brief time there. I'm a total geek and could probably spend a whole week in the museum so I'll have to pick my exhibits wisely. I might also try to make a quick stop by the Library of Congress just to say I've seen it. Yes, I am a geek.

For those of you who are interested, I'm giving four talks on the theme "Living as Exiles." The basic point is that Christians are called to live in this world at present as resident aliens as we await the full renewal of the world when it will be ruled completely by the peace, justice, and love of God. The talk schedule is as follows:
Talk 1 - Welcome to the Dispersion: Exilic Orientation
Talk 2 - Expatriates Unite: Living in Exilic Community
Talk 3 - In But Not Of: Exilic Engagement and the Work of Transformation
Talk 4 - Exiles No More! A Sure Hope

We'll see how they go. If your interested in the subject you can read the Babylon Series by my friend Denis.

6.01.2007

food for thought

Given my limited time to write anything original I thought I'd share a few of my favorite quotes from a few of my heroes in the faith. Here they are in chronological order:

"It is living, dying, and even being condemned which makes a theologian - not reading, speculating, and understanding"
- Martin Luther







"God limits our knowledge first that we should be kept humble and also that we should continue to have dealings with our fellows."
- John Calvin








"Do not bury our glorious orthodoxy in the treachorous pit of spurious conservatism."
- Abraham Kuyper







Let me know what you think about these thoughts. I might start including regular quotes from whatever I happen to be reading.