this week...

so, there is a LOT going on over here right now, so i am sorry if my updates seem too far apart or uninformative...

~we had a breakthrough with our Bible translation project: we now have contact to a publisher
~there are Bible studies at the salvation army on acts chapter 6
~i have a meeting with the leaders of Gospel Tribe about working together
~i am preaching (on hosea) at a grill party for homeless etc
~there's the cafe meet-up at the sal army
~germany is still in the world cup and the fans are annoying

but the BIG thing.. the MASSIVE thing... the pleaseplease PRAY thing is

the month of june is ending- the month the foreign service office planned to make a decision on my visa status. they haven't called me in for an appointment yet, so i will go to the open hours on thursday. my chances are slim unless God does a miracle.

after grill

the grill party for the homeless was awesome... but man, i'm beat. it went from 3 till 10:30pm. i would guesstimate we had 20 guests. the food was EXACTLY the right amount- all the meats and salads and cakes were eaten and no one left hungry. we were able to make a few new acquaintances and deepen some of the existing relationships. there is something different about having guests in your own (gospel tribe) back yard. they are opener than at werderplatz.

i spoke... my topic was amos. anyone surprised? cate chose a minor prophet *gasp* ok, so i am predictable. i thought this would be a message they havent heard before (i was right), that it was relevent (talks about God's unhappiness at israels treatment of the needy) and that it would open their eyes to the Love of God (yeah mom, i got your email... odd, i'd already written my sermon!). i was encouraged because they seemed to be listening (i even threw in a non-rhetorical question and got 3 answers), and a lady asked several good questions after.

i am excited about our next grill party in two weeks.. wonder what i'll preach on... *coughminorprophetcough*
and about gospel tribe in general and the way things seem to be going there...

the BBQ gospel

i am not a very big fan of summer. give me spring or fall.. jeans and a light jacket: perfect. but there is one advantage to doing ministry in the summer: BBQ. this week marks the start of one of the most well received evangelism techniques. we will be inviting all the drug addicts, homeless, punks- whoever we find on the streets- to come to the banquet, grab some meat and potato salad, and hear about Jesus. the advantages are numerous.. we will be on our turf not the streets, we have good food which meats (haha pun) the immediate need, there will be no alcohol, drugs or violence (we hope), and i get to hold a short sermon. the sermon is something we don't do in streetwork, there it is all about one-on-one. the conversations are important- they show our "clients" that we take an interest in them and their ideas. they allow for questions and answers (which can be challenging at times), and they build relationships. but a sermon is different... it allows me to share the gospel in a way that is non-threatening, to talk (mostly) uninterrupted and thus make it to the point, and for the guests to listen and reflect without being scrutinized by their peers. so i am looking forward to it...

but what should i preach on?!

new website up!

so my brother suggested that having a website would be better than a blog, since i am trying to inform people of my ministry and needs. so, three days later: i have a website! click the title bar to check it out.