Hope - First Sunday of Advent 2020

Happy New Year!

Wait, what?! It’s November 29!

Welcome to the first Sunday of Advent. In the liturgical calendar, “Advent” (or the corresponding “Nativity Fast” in Eastern Christianity) marks the beginning of the year, not the end.

I don’t know about you, but I’ve never needed a new year as badly as I do here at the end of 2020. So, I invite you to celebrate a new year, a new beginning, today on the first Sunday of Advent, where we light the “Hope” candle.

Last month, Bonnie and I were introduced to the expression, “It’s the hope that kills you.” There are times in 2020 when that has felt true, where things seemed to be getting better, only to get worse again. But that’s not the kind of Hope to which Advent points us.

Advent recalls Jesus entering into our hopelessness to establish his Kingdom, and it foreshadows his promise to return to fulfill that Kingdom. In calling us to be part of that Kingdom, he does not just ask us merely to have hope, but to be hope.

On this Sunday of Hope, standing at the beginning of a new year, of course we hope for an end to the pandemic, for reconciliation between people torn apart by disagreements, for things to go right. But whatever the new year brings, we are messengers and servants of the true Hope, who entered into our darkness and brought light, and who has promised to return to banish darkness forever.

God’s people are called to walk with Hope in the most hopeless of times, and to open up a myriad of pinholes in the darkness for Hope to shine through, sharing the light just as it was shared with us. In a world that is tired and broken, the beginning of Advent is an invitation for us to share the good news of fresh beginnings and promises of a world made right.

So, happy New Year!

Evan

Why are we blogging Advent?

Every year the main fountain in the centre of Kandern gets turned into a giant advent wreath.
Each week a new “candle” is “lit”.

 
For most of the world, 2020 has been a pretty dark time. As this year comes to an end and we start looking forward to what comes next, let us pause to consider the light.

Advent is the time leading up to Christmas. This is when we celebrate Jesus, Emmanuel, coming into this world. He is our light in the darkness.

We don't proclaim ourselves, you see, but Jesus the Messiah as Lord, and ourselves as your servants because of Jesus; because the God who said, "Let light shine out of darkness," has shone in our hearts, to produce the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus the Messiah.

2 Corinthians 4:5-6 (Kingdom New Testament)

Join us this season as we celebrate each Advent Sunday:

29 November - Hope
06 December - Peace
13 December - Joy
20 December - Love

~ Bonnie

A Tale of Two Beauties

Living in this part of the world has a lot of unexpected perks. One of them is the beautiful city of Basel, Switzerland, which is a short car or bus ride away.

Towering among the many ancient buildings along the banks of the Rhine River is the Basel Münster, a cathedral dating back to the 1000’s. Intricate carvings, vaulted stone ceilings and richly-coloured stained glass windows create an atmosphere that is difficult to describe.

On Good Friday, when we had been in town barely more than a week, we had the opportunity to join a friend in attending a free chorale concert held in the Münster, Dvořák’s “Stabat Mater”. The combined voices of a practiced choir in perfect harmony and four world-class soloists filled the expansive cathedral with beautiful religious music.

Had that been the entire experience, it would have been enough. I could easily write this post about the beauty of the cathedral and the experience we had there. As the old saying goes, though, “a funny thing happened on the way to the cathedral.”

As we made our way through the narrow streets of Basel en route to the cathedral, we rounded a corner and heard joyful voices echoing throughout the square. Our friend, who has served many years in Africa, said, “That sounds like African music!” Sure enough, as we drew closer, we could see a large group of folks we soon discovered represented numerous countries throughout Africa. They had set up a small booth and were singing and dancing in the street, wishing everyone a joyous Easter and offering Bibles in a variety of languages.

There is a part of me which is tempted to draw some sort of comparison with the Pharisee and the tax collector praying in the temple, or to the poor widow’s two copper coins, but honestly neither of these quite rings true. Instead of a clear “winner”, I am left with two very different pictures of beauty, both of which were rich experiences in which one could, if willing, truly encounter God in worship.

As we settle into a place which is completely different from anywhere we have lived before, we are encouraged that beauty can be found just as easily in joyful, unpracticed street dancing as in the ancient hallowed spaces of the cathedral down the street. 

Evan

The Beautiful Recovery

For over a year, our post from just before leaving for New Zealand has sat, melodramatically and almost mockingly, at the top of our blog. Both of us have looked at that post and agreed that it needed to be knocked from its perch by something new, but neither of us felt a surge of creativity equal to the task.

A quick stop at Lake Louise with a couple of travelling companions on a recent work trip to Calgary.

The time has come, though, to move forward. The journey ahead of us remains long but this blog should be made to reflect that we are no longer stuck in New Zealand nor stuck in our lives as a result of the events which transpired there.

Since we last posted, we have spent more time than intended in New Zealand, followed by three months of medical leave in Canada, after which we returned to Asia to finish up our two-year term there. We've been back in Canada since summer, again longer than we planned due to follow-up medical stuff, but we're back on our feet and ready to head back overseas.

The surprise for us was "where". We had always intended to return to Asia but we were asked if we would consider relocating to Germany instead! The reasons were outlined for us and after much prayer, consideration and consultation, we felt strongly that this was where God was leading us.

Germany, of course, does cost a bit more for food and rent than what we were paying in Asia, so you'll see our budget dial on the right has sadly swung back down from the fully funded mark. We are excited, though, as we have already seen some tremendous support and enthusiasm from our partners in this work which has helped it start creeping back up.

Our hope is to depart in March 2018, which does not give us much time to secure our budget and make preparations. We're confident, though, that if God has called us then He will provide. If you or someone you know would like to be part of our team and help make that happen, we'd love to hear from you!

Feel free to contact us directly using the form on the side of the page, or click on How to Help or the Printable Donation Form.

Peace!

Evan

The Beautiful Vacation

One of my favourite stories about GK Chesterton, the prolific early 20th-century journalist, novelist, essayist and all-round larger-than-life personality, is the tale of when his friends came round to find him packing his trunk for a big trip.

"Where are you going?" they asked him.

"To London!" he exclaimed, to confused looks as they were at that moment standing in his London home. He went on to explain that he had been in London so long that he no longer saw it, he needed to travel to it again by way of many other places in order to see it anew.

We have not left Asia for over a year now. Asia is our home, we love it, but sometimes we don't really see it anymore. We forget those things that made our jaws drop and caused us to reach for our cameras. We no longer stop and wonder why people are doing some of those things that first seemed so odd to us.



As I write this we are cruising at an altitude of 8839 metres on an overnight flight to Auckland (there's no wi-fi on this flight, so we'll have landed by the time you see this). We're on our way to Asia, by way of New Zealand. A friend is getting married out there and it was a good reason to finally do a trip we'd had near the top of our list since we got married ourselves. We figure we'll swing by the wedding, climb a mountain or two and maybe visit some fjords on our way.

It's been a long time since we've turned off our "work" email and had a real vacation. We love our work and we love where we live, so it's easy for us to forget that sometimes we need to step away from what we do in order to remember why, and for Whom, we do it.

I can't promise how frequently we'll update this blog - all our good intentions haven't really resulted in a well-populated post list - but we'll be on the lookout for beauty everywhere we go. If New Zealand is still anything like it was when I was last there 15 years ago, we won't have to look too hard.

Evan

Where'd You Go?

So, we said we were going to be blogging our latest trip, and then you may have noticed that no blog posts actually showed up! What happened?

I don't like the way my lunch is looking at me.

For about 3 weeks straight we were on the go constantly, morning to night, and the past week we've just been catching up - on sleep, on work, on cleaning (well, that one actually is still on the to-do list)...

But it has been fantastic. We got to spend time with family, see new places and revisit familiar ones, eat fantastic food and, of course, connect with extraordinary and inspiring people.

We are truly thankful for the opportunity we have to be part of the work here in Asia. Thank you for being our partners in that!

Evan

Day 12: Beautiful Rest (12 Days of Beauty)

The final day of beauty. Our last day of work before Christmas. We are looking forward to a few days of rest.

It has been a particular encouragement to me this Christmas to reflect on the wonder of the incarnation - God become flesh and dwelling among us. I think there is a temptation to fast-forward to Calvary, and for good reason. Calvary is central to our faith.

But there was a period of time between Christmas and Calvary where God himself lived among us. Emmanuel, God with us. May you all have a blessed Christmas, and may you find rest in the arms of our God who is ever-present and closer than our own breath.

Blessings,

Evan

Day 11: Christmas Wishes From Canada

You are beautiful. Our friends, family and ministry partners... you are the best! We've already received many lovely emails of Christmas wishes and today we got our first Christmas card from Canada!

We could not do what we are called to without your support. Even if it's just sending us a quick message to say you are thinking of us, it means so much to us out here. Thank you.

Day 10: Beautiful Diversity (12 Days of Beauty)

Today was the "office Christmas lunch". Most people work from home or from remote locations so we don't get a chance to meet up very often. In at least a couple of cases, this was the first time we'd met certain people at all!

We piled into a couple of cars and headed down some side streets until we came to a stop in front of a blink-and-you'll-miss-it (actually we did blink, missed it and had to backtrack) restaurant hidden on the side of the street. From the number of people there it was clear that enough customers are able to find the place to keep them in business!

As we sat around the table, Bonnie and I realized that we were the only westerners in our group. It was humbling and inspiring, because we far too often see our own culture as the "established" church and other cultures as "people we send missionaries to". Even when we know better, it's hard to train your mind to think differently.

The truth is that the Gospel does not belong to us; it belongs to all who hear it and choose to be part of the Kingdom of God. We represented a number of different nationalities at lunch today but only one Kingdom.

Evan

P.S. We sometimes feel we say too much about the food, so I tried not to make that the focus this time but yes, the food was incredible. :)

Day 9: Communion and Community (12 Days of Beauty)

As Evan mentioned yesterday, we have some friends visiting our country for Christmas from a nearby country. It being Sunday, they joined us for a service at the church we regularly attend. At the end we saw that another couple from our organization was in town and visited the same church! Small world.

We partake in communion (or the Eucharist) every Sunday morning. When you are in a new place it is so comforting to share this. To be reminded that no matter where we've come from or where we've gone to, we are one body. 

Being a part of an international organization we really get to feel this when we travel. Despite the different working conditions and challenges, when we meet with colleagues, even for purely professional reasons, we all know that we are working toward a common goal. It is so beautiful to be a part of a community like that.

Day 8: Beautiful Friends (12 Days of Beauty)

I'm writing this on a boat after a wonderful evening out with friends who are stationed elsewhere in Asia and were passing through.

It's amazing to know that we have friends and colleagues who are partners with us in the work we're doing all over the world. Sitting around a table and sharing our experiences is such an encouragement and inspiration.

We are thankful today for the beauty of these encounters.

Evan

Day 7: Art (12 Days of Beauty)

The Beauty of art. In this case, I don't just mean classic fine art. There is something about public art that is also important. As much as I adore meandering through art galleries to gaze at Van Goghs and Rembrandts, public art is so much more accessible and often meant to provoke thought or at least make you smile.

One of our favourite outdoor dinner spots is littered with art. (Don't worry, I won't write about food again.) It's big and weird and creative. I love it! There are so many pieces that I keep noticing ones I hadn't seen before. Here are some: