John 15:1-5

1 “I am the Real Vine and my Father is the Farmer.2 He cuts off every branch of me that doesn’t bear grapes. And every branch that is grape-bearing he prunes back so it will bear even more.3 You are already pruned back by the message I have spoken.4 “Live in me. Make your home in me just as I do in you. In the same way that a branch can’t bear grapes by itself but only by being joined to the vine, you can’t bear fruit unless you are joined with me.5 “I am the Vine, you are the branches. When you’re joined with me and I with you, the relation intimate and organic, the harvest is sure to be abundant. Separated, you can’t produce a thing.

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For  a while now I am been directed to this passage in John. Abide…  The theme keeps reoccurring.. The other day, as I was pondering “Abiding” the thought came to me to visit a local vineyard, Tabor Hill. I had been there once years ago when given a gift certificate from my staff.  I originally thought I would just drive out to the vineyards early in the morning and walk around and take a few pictures. With a little more thought, I realized that would be trespassing. I decided to call first.. decided a lunch trip would be the best decision.. so lunch and a free guided tour became the plan.

A friend of mine, Randy Warren recently produced this video after his first trip to Africa. Randy worked as a producer / director for Willow Creek Community Church for thirteen years. About a year ago he moved to Nuru International.

This is an inspiring look at a timeless question: Why are we so poor ?

Randy provided me with this information about Nuru:

“Nuru International seeks to end extreme poverty in remote rural areas through empowerment in impoverished nations and awareness in the developed world.
We are a holistic, integrated development model that empowers communities to lift themselves out of extreme poverty within five years, and then we exit – leaving behind a completely self-sustaining model that is continuing to scale on its own to empower neighboring communities, districts, and eventually the entire country.

Nuru was founded by former US Marine Jake Harriman. Jake got his MBA from Stanford GSB and researched the past 50 years of humanitarian orgs. A Swahili Professor at Stanford introduced Jake to his brother, Philip Mohochi, who had just recently returned to the community where they grew up. And now Philip is the Chairman of Nuru International – Kenya. He grew up in extreme poverty in Kuria, Kenya, and now leads all of Nuru’s Kenyan staff as they partner together to lift their community out of extreme poverty forever. To learn the answer to Philip’s question, watch this video, produced by in-house Nuru Media Staff.”

Here is a direct link to Nuru.

http://www.nuruinternational.org

A mountain man in India. This man has only heard the name of Jesus in his village for the first time just recently.

This word is for him and for me, for we were all created in His image…

Luke 10:27 “Love the lord your God with all your heart, mind, soul and strength.”

Heart: From the deepest place of truth expressed in the inner part of man.. resulting in care of the richest kind with the purest emotion.

Mind: The place of intellect, wisdom and understanding. The place that hungers to learn more about who God is and what He has done and what He has planned. Where we ponder His mighty deeds, the creation and wonder at His beauty, innocence and holiness.

Soul: The sum of your eternal self. The part of you thats hardest to understand because it’s not your flesh, but the image of God in you. The part of you that knows you were made for more than this world has shown you. The part that lies awake in the middle of the night and prays to the Father for all of life to be restored to what it was meant to be in the garden. The part that longs to walk with Him in the cool of the day.

Strength: The hands of action and movement. Putting love into motion.. for the things that God loves, His children. To love Him with all your strength is to let His love move you. It’s to lift the burdens.. and move the obstacles out of way for you and others.

It’s fun to work closely with someone who is really passionate about what they do. Ron is exactly that.. but as intense and seriously as he takes his craft, he knows how to have fun doing it.

Here he is in action.

Everybody loves Ron, he makes everyone feel great and laugh. That’s a great working combination when you are working under the harsh conditions we find ourselves in India.

Proverbs 22:29  Observe people who are good at their work—
skilled workers are always in demand and admired;
they don’t take a back seat to anyone.

It’s cooler here in Chennai today. A cold front with a little rain swept in from the ocean dropping the temperature from 114 degrees yesterday to 86 today. We missed the heat by one day. Raj, our gracious host says the heat has been unbearable.

I guess the cool weather was just the ticket for this guy and created just the right conditions for a nap. The artwork, mountains with sunshine is something you see all over India. Maybe that is what he is dreaming about, sleeping at the base of these artwork mountains.

Just for the record… It did not feel cool to me. The humidity is very high driving the “humiture” well into the 90’s for sure.

Our first shoot starts in 1 hour, the heat of the day.  I think I’ll take a quick nap and dream of Heaven’s mountains and a walk with Jesus in the cool of the day.

God loves diversity. God loves people. He loves China a lot. God loves His church, His children and that is what this trip was about. A discovery mission, looking for evidence of what God is doing. God is at work in China in one of the oldest ways known. Person to person… heart to heart. Right now, the church in China is illegal but flourishing, because God’s children will not remain silent.

As recorded in the book of Acts, in the days of the early church, also suffering under heavy persecution, the church continued to grow in spite of the oppressive Roman government, maybe because of it. Suffering is not all that it appears to be. Sometimes its a catalyst. Often, when things come a little to easy, they lose perceived value.

What is apparent is this. The people gather in small apartments, basements, abandoned warehouses in private. Evangelism is very personal. One person speaks to another, then another and so on. The small communities form close nit families of believers.  It was wonderful to witness. It reminded me of the days in the early 70’s when my wife and I accepted Christ in a small house church in Niles. Then it was a bunch of hippies who found Jesus and community. The community aspect of this is huge. I was a bit jealous as I saw the groups of people gathering together in an obvious display of adoration toward God and each other. In my own heart, I pondered how I could bring some of this home in a bottle.

We have allowed ourselves ( Western culture ) to become so independent that this kind of cultural and personal community seems alien. I for one am longing for it. I think it is one of the key missing elements in the western ways of “church”.

I certainly hope persecution is not the required element for us all to return to a deeper sense of community and shared worship of God.

Every time I go on one of these trips I am humbled by the sacrifice these warriors of God endure.  Like a blast of reality, we are forced to walk into their world. They smile wide and share what they have. They celebrate God with abandon. They are generous with their love. They look to us for help.. I look to them for inspiration.

It’s forbidden to do what they do. Nothing can stop them!

It’s 4:15 am here where I am. We all just spent most of the night on a “night train”  out of Beijing. It was a 10 hour ride in one of those sleeper cars.  I am going to bed real soon..  but before I do..

It’s almost dinner time back in Niles where I live. Mary emailed me and she is cooking chicken..  I love what she does with a chicken..

Imagine cooking dinner on this every night..  If you have food…

I have a prayer on my lips already.. “Father God, don’t let me look away from their need.”

]]> http://blog.geneort.com/?feed=rss2&p=819 5 http://blog.geneort.com/?p=783 http://blog.geneort.com/?p=783#comments Sun, 11 Apr 2010 20:37:18 +0000 Gene http://blog.geneort.com/?p=783 After leaving Petra, we traveled The Kings Highway, our final destination was Amman Jordan. On the way we stopped at Shobak Crusader Castle ( Mons Regalis ) ruins, built in 1112 by King Baldwin I of Jerusalem to guard the road between Egypt and Damascus. The castle fell to Saladin in 1189.

Now this was fun ! I am not what I would call an overly militaristic kinda guy but exploring Crusader Castle ruins… way cool..

These round objects.. yup..  these are chiseled rocks for catapults. Imagine getting smacked with one of these babies.

The ruins were not in great shape. It seems that locals would come by every now and then and cart off blocks of limestone to build their homes.

Every window was designed to defend the castle with bow and arrow. The grates on the ground  are covering window holes from rooms below.

Attacking a castle like this would not have been easy. You have to climb a very steep hill in plain sight.. they would catapult rocks at you, throw burning tar on you and then shoot you with arrows. I am pretty sure I would not have made it up the hill even without the barrage .

Visual images in TV and movies has anesthetized us and distorted our view of violence. In our culture, it is quite normal to gather round the tube or big screen and watch a good blood bath in the name of entertainment. I am not sure how I feel about all that but I am sure in the Kingdom of God.. that wont be so..

Much of the movie “Kingdom of Heaven” was focused on the Crusades and this region, even this very castle.

(Pardon my slight rabbit trail…)  Which brings me to a topic that comes up often.

Matthew 11:12 “And from the days of John the Baptist until now the kingdom of heaven suffers violence, and the violent take it by force.”

I am thankful to the courageous men and woman who for the cause of justice and righteousness take up arms against wickedness. I am also thankful for those who push back the spiritual wickedness in this world by taking the Gospel where it has never been before and or for retaking long lost ground where believers forgot they were in a battle. These people are indeed warriors for God.

Modern day versions of the Godly warrior are probably what the bible refers to as Apostles, Prophets and Evangelists. There are two other offices, Shepherd and Teacher. Without all five offices in place, tyranny and arrogance or ignorance and slavery follow.

When working together as a team, wickedness is driven back into it’s slimy little hole, lives are saved, slaves set free, healing and comfort dispensed and ignorance irradiated.

This is the day I am longing for:

Micah 4:3 He will judge between many peoples 
and will settle disputes for strong nations far and wide. 
They will beat their swords into plowshares 
and their spears into pruning hooks. 
Nation will not take up sword against nation, 
nor will they train for war anymore.

Ok… back to the castle… An archer would stand in this position and rain arrows down on the attacking forces.

Ron would offer helpful historical background commentary along the way.

The road to our next stop, Kerak was marked by stunningly beautiful valley’s

Kerak Crusader Castle

Dan B. looks dashing here sporting a green polo and Wayfayers. What a man !

Kerak castle was huge..

Front door..

“Abandon hope all ye who enter here” .. Dante Alighieri 1306

Ever wonder what it looks like to be carried off to a dungeon ?  This is it..

Your last view of the outside world.

Mark pauses and takes a moment to reflect. Thankful he is not living in a dungeon I expect..

Kerak was built and replaced Shobak as the center of importance. Kerak fell to Saladin in 1189.

Interesting note, the crusader castles were all built a days travel apart. Every night a fire was lit at each castle to let Jerusalem know all was well.

When Moses and the Israelites passed this way they must have begun to sense that God was taking them someplace wonderful. This is along ways from the wilderness of sin.

Not far from Kerak, The Dead Sea.. One dip in this and you itch for days…

I have been hearing about the Dead Sea forever.  It’s nearly 34 % salt.. and 100% mysterious. It’s a lake.. with no life.. Somehow that seems odd to me.

The West bank of Israel is directly on the other side.

The Promised Land!    From the top of Mount Nebo

For the Christ follower, “The Promised Land” evokes all kinds of thoughts and emotions.  This exodus trip was something I will never forget. But this moment for me was very powerful. For me the promised land means Heaven and the life with Jesus I have been longing for. I want it all. The no more pain part, the no more tears part, the no more death part and restoration of the living life as we were intended to live part, with God, our Father, walking in the cool of the day. My heart seems to know how wonderful it will be.

It is said that Moses did not enter the promised land, but I believe he did… but not the one on earth. I believe it happened the very moment he died. I think this was all very much on purpose.

This is not “teaching” but Gene.. thinking out loud… If God let Moses enter the “earthly promised land”, it sets up human thinking again to  believe that this world is the goal, the most important destination. The “earthly promised land” the Israelites inherited was and is fraught with war and destruction even to this day !!  By God refusing to allow Moses to enter the “earthly promised land” and taking him to the”real / heavenly promised land” it correctly identifies where our affections should be, to our true destination and reward.

As I stood there and looked across this valley that Moses saw just before he died I had an overwhelming sense of the Father telling me that “my” promised land is waiting for me.

]]> http://blog.geneort.com/?feed=rss2&p=783 5 http://blog.geneort.com/?p=715 http://blog.geneort.com/?p=715#comments Thu, 08 Apr 2010 11:54:35 +0000 Gene http://blog.geneort.com/?p=715 Every great adventure should start with the unexpected discovery of a hidden passage on a long forgotten trail. Action music also helps ….. clic this and continue.. ( or not )

Petra is just like that.  Petra was re-discovered by western civilization in 1812… who lost it remains unknown. Indiana Jones is credited with reintroducing Petra again to movie fans in “The Last Crusade”. The Bedouins think this is all rather entertaining, they always knew where it was..:)  The city is estimated to have been established in the 6th century BC by the Nabataeans. The city is notably listed as one of the Seven Wonders of the World and a World Heritage Site.

I offer no apology for the length of this post.

Before you enter the city proper, you are teased by this carving. The actual city is still a good walk away.

Before you can enter the city you must navigate a long narrow canyon called a Siq. It’s entirely fitting, adding drama with every step.

A quote by the BBC referred to Petra as “a city half as old as time”. A few steps into the Siq and you had the sensation of stepping back in time.

The sunlight reflecting through the canyon exposed incredible color, texture and detail.

Psalm 19:1 “God’s glory is on tour in the skies, God-craft on exhibit across the horizon.”

If the Heaven’s declare his handiwork, His valleys, carved by His hands celebrate creation.

After a mile walk through one of the most beautiful places I have ever seen, you catch first sight of the city. Petra: Rock

Khazneh: The Treasury

The number one question I have been asked about the treasury: ” is the room inside just like it looks in the last crusade?” The answer…no. We have all been duped by hollywood again.  The room is a large empty space. There are two very impressive carved buildings in Petra. This one and at the other end of town and up the mountain, The High Temple, also called the Monastery.  I don’t think that is by accident. The two main things people worship, God or gods and money. It’s very clear that ornate banks is not a modern idea and as we saw in Germany, ornate churches have been around for a long time. Maybe people feel safer trusting their money to people in fancy buildings. Maybe some people feel closer to God in a fancy building.  Manufactured validation and security. I think both assumptions are very dangerous.

At one time the cash flowed freely in Petra. This is where they kept it. History documents that Petra was an important stop on a vital trade route. The Nabataean’s had harnessed the power  and storage of water and created a monopoly of sorts. Caravans would stop for water, supplies and various and sundry goods and services. In part, a truck stop oasis with a little Las Vegas style entertainment thrown in.

Not unlike the city square in Mainz, Germany, Petra had a town center.

Complete with a Roman style amphitheater.

A great earthquake leveled portions of the city in 363 AD damaging the water system and many buildings. Petra’s decline accelerated under Roman rule due in part to increasing sea trade routes.

Some of the man made structures remain partially standing after the earthquake.

At the far end of town, the trail leads up the mountain to the high Temple.

At this point I had a decision to make. I could hike up the trail or ride a donkey. My pride clearly said hike it. But the memory of the hike up Sinai was alive and well in my calves. Ron V. ( our faithful guide ) was convinced the donkey would throw me to my death and said so.

As I watched my hiking buddies head up the trail, I got on a donkey. I knew instantly I had made a good decision for me. I was having fun immediately.

Mark Beeson took this picture. This may have the first and only time I was in front !

The High Temple aka The Monastery ( “Ad-Deir” ).

The building was dedicated in the first century to Obodas I  ( a deified former king ) and is believed to have been used as a symposium. Basically a place to hangout, drink to much and talk philosophy. There are hints that pagan idol worship and all types of perversions were also entertained here. There is not a lot of documentation about the people of Petra. They had no written language.

Around the fourth century, Christianity came to Petra. It had a church and a bishop named Aterius.

These guys are hiking machines and great traveling companions !

From this vantage point and in this general direction is Mount Hor, the resting place of Moses’s brother Aaron. The Israelites stopped here and mourned Aaron for 30 days. For me, sometimes historical icons like Moses take on a kind of non-humanity. This being Aaron’s burial site stripped away a bit of that for me. Moses was a great man of God, but he was a man, he had a brother a couple wives and a couple kids, Gershom and Eliezer. Aaron was their uncle. To us Moses can become a biblical character, almost like an actor in a movie,  but he was a flawed man just like the rest of us.

One account says he made a serious mistake here at Petra, at least according to Arab tradition. He directly disobeyed God and struck a rock with the rod instead of speaking to the rock as God had instructed him. As a result, neither Moses or Aaron were able to enter the promised land.

Everything has consequences.

If you go up the mountain, you must go down.

At the time when the city was in full swing and enjoying their height of prosperity, you can be sure they thought they were building the greatest city in the world. There was evidence everywhere of a sudden stop to the forward momentum. Stairways climbing to nowhere, half done facades.

The crowds roll in. It was a little easier to imagine what the city would have looked like in it’s “hay day” with thousands of tourists wandering around.

It would have been great fun to leave Petra on a spirited horse, like Indy.. or a Camel.  Maybe next time… Now.. back to the future..

]]> http://blog.geneort.com/?feed=rss2&p=715 2 http://blog.geneort.com/?p=685 http://blog.geneort.com/?p=685#comments Sat, 03 Apr 2010 03:17:19 +0000 Gene http://blog.geneort.com/?p=685 Following the path Moses and the Israelites took, after they received the law from God on Mount Sinai, they traveled northeastward and lived nearly 40 years at Kadesh Barnea. This valley is located along the way near Taba, Sinai ( Egypt ). It’s easy to imagine the Israelites camped out in this valley.

Saladin’s Castle, originally called Pharaoh’s Island 1170 AD in Taba, Sinai ( Egypt )

Near Taba, we passed through a small coastal portion of modern day Israel ( with tons of security ) and into Aqaba, Jordan. Moses took this path ( per God’s instructions ) to avoid family conflict with the Edomites..  and conflict in general with the Moabites.

Our spirits were high, we had just had a good meal in Aqaba and split up into two vans. No trip across a desert would be complete without a breakdown.. What followed could be described as an international incident on the way to Petra.. One unnamed party ( the one on the left ) struck our driver with a plastic pipe when said driver began driving erratically on high mountain roads. The issue was settled without further escalation.

The strange hand gestures indicate the leadership ranking of the passengers as proclaimed by the van driver. Carefully note that the number one is missing, he is taking the picture. Truthfully, these guys are all leaders.

Wadi Musa.. The Valley of Moses, Southern Jordan. Extraordinarily beautiful and incredibly rugged.  The journey of the people of God was epic. I began to realize at this point that Moses was not just a Christian hero of faith but is also an icon for these people. I did not get the chance to ask but I am curious about what the local Jordanian’s really think about Moses.

Trip days can be pretty stressful. Paul and Vic provided a good portion of the trip entertainment.

We are one third of the way to Amman, Jordan … cue music from Indiana Jones..   Next.. The lost City of Petra.