Friday, October 22, 2010

Update on visa timing

UPDATE: As of October 25, the visas are in! Woohoo! See prayer letter (next post) for details.

Hey friends - FYI, here's what's going on vis-à-vis our impending departure for Spain.

We have learned that Meggan's and Andrew's visas were being detained in Madrid, only to be released when I would arrive in the country and register with the government. This confused us when we first learned of it, but we have since discovered a bit of the rationale for this detention - it serves to curb illegal immigration. Apparently some people have used the system by getting family visas off of a primary visa that goes unused, effectively getting people into the country on false pretenses with no means of support. So, there you go. Our team lawyer in Spain is going to lobby on our behalf to get the visas released into processing. If she is successful, the process should take another three weeks, give or take. If she can't get it released, we will leave in a week, and Meggan will have to fly back to Chicago to pick up her visa when it is ready. That would be a bit annoying, but whatever we have to do, we'll make it work. Philippians 4, baby. Either way, we are confident that we will be leaving the U.S. before Thanksgiving. (We think.)

In other news, this weekend is the retreat for our WorldVenture teammates in Spain. Some of our friends, Brian and Cassie, landed in Spain earlier this week, so they and their boys are able to participate in the weekend. Go, team! We'll see you soon!

Homemade Masala Chai Latte

Drug of the day...

Masala = spiced; chai = tea; latte = milk. I'm mixing my languages, but you'll have to deal with it.

Using what I had at my disposal in Mom's kitchen, I now know that spiced chai concentrate will never satisfy again. Thank you, Dushanbe Tea House of Boulder, for awakening a holy discontent within me for all prepackaged substitutes. Most recipes call for cardamom, but we didn't have any, so I made it work w/o it. All measurements are approximate.

Cinnamon stick
Nutmeg (I used a few shakes of the ground stuff)
Allspice (just a shake)
Ginger root (4-5 slices)
Whole black peppercorns (1-2 tsps)
Cloves (1 tsp)

Add spices to one cup boiling water on the stovetop; let simmer ~6 minutes. Add 1 Tbsp loose Earl Grey tea (I'm kind of impressed by mom's tea selection here; I'm sure any black tea would work fine), brew another ~6 minutes. Strain the brew, or pour the liquid off (easier than I thought it would be). Rinse out your pot, put the liquid back in there, and add one cup of your preferred milk. For sweetener, I added about a tablespoon of Mom's vanilla syrup. I'm sure sugar would do the trick just as well, plus some vanilla extract if you so choose. Heat to desired temperature and enjoy.

I'm thinking this could easily become a party beverage. It would not be difficult to multiply this recipe for a gathering. As an added bonus, my sore throat feels a little better. Placebo effect? You be the judge.

Saturday, October 9, 2010

Car for sale (no longer!)

UPDATE: October 14 - sold! Thanks to all who expressed interest!

2005 Toyota RAV4

60,600 miles
Single owner, well maintained (have maintenance record), has never required any engine repair or body work
Front-wheel drive, automatic transmission

The back seats can also be removed, and there is a luggage cover that can hide anything in the back from an outside view.



Standard features, including:
--Dual air bags
--ABS, traction control
--Power steering
--Power windows, power locks
--Remote keyless entry
--Cruise control, tilt wheel
--A/C
--Single-disc CD, cassette, AM/FM
Additional feature - Toyota "sport package" pedals





Rated for 29 MPG highway, 24 MPG city

Sunday, October 3, 2010

Jeremiah 29:11

"For I know the plans I have for you," declares the LORD, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future."

I think I'm about to step on some toes.

Jeremiah 29:11, the verse quoted above, is a popular line among certain Christians. Some people take it as their "life verse," others quote it to help through hard times, and there are even entire ministries that take the verse as their name. It's an encouraging sentiment - the idea that God has secure plans for each of us in life, and they're good plans, plans that can give us rest.

The problem is, that's not quite true.

We have at least two good reasons to reject it. First, life experience shows us otherwise. Life doesn't work out like that for everybody. Many people follow God with all they are and all they have, but their lives are full of harm and lacking prosperity. Second, the Bible rejects this kind of reasoning. You don't even have to leave the book of Jeremiah - the prophet himself followed the Lord into the miserable life of a misanthrope, and he talked all about it.

But why am I subjecting you to this rant? I just sound like a killjoy. What's the point? Well, some of us experience the good life, where things go our way time and again, and we start to associate our good life with God. We think, since God loves me, he will give me a good life, and that's why things are going so well. Then, something awful or tragic hits us, and we don't know how to handle it. Who knows how we will respond? Some have decided to leave God behind altogether under such pressure. That's the thing - bad theology can be dangerous.

So what's going on in this passage? The first thing to remember is, the books of the Bible were not written to you. They were written to a variety of peoples who lived 2000-3000 years ago in a variety of circumstances. Yes, they were inspired by the same God who loves you and who is active in your life; yes, there are certain commonalities between all people everywhere. These similarities make it possible to learn something about our relationship with God in the 21st century. The Bible is absolutely for our benefit... but it was not written to us.

To whom was this word written? The Lord was speaking through Jeremiah to the Hebrew people in exile. Among other things in the larger prophetic passage that includes our verse in question, Yahweh mentions that it was he who carried them into exile. He discourages the people from listening to the sweet promises of those religious people afflicted with the disease of false optimism in God's name. The promise to prosper and not harm is spoken to a community of people, not to any individuals within the community. It was God's greater purpose to bring the Hebrew people back from exile after seventy years, because he still had a plan for them in redemptive history. Anyone who was an adult at the time these words were spoken would have been confident they would not live to the end of those seventy years - they would die in exile. God had promised to bless the world through them, and he had to uphold them as a community to make good on that promise. There would still be plenty of individuals and families who would live and die, prosper and suffer, survive and thrive. (As an important aside, we see clearly that most lines in Scripture lose their original meaning when you take them out of context.)

What does this passage show us about God? His greater purpose in redemptive history will never fail. We now know that includes Jesus, and through Jesus, that includes us. God went to great lengths to prepare the way for the coming of the Messiah, and God our Savior went through crucifixion and separation from the Father to make a way for you and me to know God's intimate presence. That's powerful, beautiful, and awe-inspiring. What else do we learn? Again, we see there is no guarantee that God has comfortable plans for any of his individual followers. He carried the Jews into exile, both the faithful and the unfaithful, and about two generations died there. God's love for you does not automatically lead to prosperity.

What else can we take for ourselves in this passage? God is the kind of God who wants his people to have hope. He does want his people to prosper, and he wants to give us a future. We have no promise of those things now, but we do know they will be ours in Christ when he returns to this earth. Whether or not we prosper now, we will prosper in the coming kingdom of God. That is our hope and our future, fulfilled perhaps long after we die, no matter how comfortable or uncomfortable our circumstances in the meantime.