dirty bakers dozen

At least you create memories when you do stupid things.

I awoke the next morning at 6:30 to see if the garbage in our building had been collected. Turned out that because of a national holiday this past monday, the rubbish wasn't collected so there were 5 large bins full of trash.

2 1/2 hours later.....I found 13 very dirty tickets.

:)

Edinburgh at Night

Spent several hours walking around the city taking the night shots. If you want to meet a LOT of people at night, carry a tripod and really expensive camera. Met so many people outside pubs wondering who I photographed for.

maddening

Living abroad makes you appreciate the customer service in the states. Sure it's gone down in some ways in certain professions, but on the whole, you are taken care of.

Sometimes, that's not the case here.

Kate took off a few days ago and some train tickets came in the mail. None of it seemed to make sense to me. They looked like promotional tickets marking the fall season. Anyways, I threw out all 13 tickets at just over $60/piece.

I got an email from Kate today warning me to be on the lookout for train tickets for a missions team coming over from the states that she was taking care of logistics for.

Uh oh.

I called customer service to explain the situation. I've spoken with several now and each have explained that they cannot reissue lost tickets. We have to purchase new ones.

All I can say is, there is at least one person in a company that can make exceptions to policy-related issues.

It has now become my goal to find that person before I leave.

then there was one

Kate boarded the train early this morning to travel back to the States. We walked up to Calton Hill late last night which is one of our favorite spots overlooking the city. Had an awesome time of prayer with one another.

I'm here for another week tying up loose ends. It's quiet at the flat. No television, the internet is cutting off tomorrow, and the fringe festival is now over. Though I'm finishing up a research project, I'm excited to have a little time to relax, pray, read, meditate on the past few years and give to the Lord what is His for the future.

One of the things we did was go through our list of supporters and prayed for each one of you. You've made these few years possible. As we continue in ministry in Washington DC, you'll hopefully continue to join us.

The best is yet to come. We're so amped for the next phase in our lives! It's going to be an adventure.

We're dreaming up a bold, exciting initiative that relates to building better bridges between what God is doing throughout the world in missions.

done

Finished my dissertation a few days ago! What a sigh of relief, feels like I've been walking with someone strapped to my back the past month. Feels kind of weird to be finished with school, the past few days I've felt like I needed to read or write something.

Going to University here has played a significant role in our ministry here in Edinburgh. Integration is one of the biggest challenges when living abroad. Some struggle for years to find their niche or level of influence. We integrated quickly through some God-ordained connections. As we have begun saying our goodbyes, the bulk of our relationships has some degree of connectedness to Edinburgh University.

Excited to continue pursuing my passions in policy issues as we make the move to DC.

Looking forward to getting my diploma, or as I call it, my receipt.

Ok, ready to move to the next challenge!

Unplugged Europe

Just finished a great Unplugged conference here in Edinburgh. Had 35-40 leaders from 6 countries arrive at a cozy place called the Jazz Bar just in the heart of Edinburgh.

Tony Foley, Mark Batterson, the NCC staff and Andrew McCourt from Northern Ireland did an awesome job.

Couple things I jotted down:

"Imagine you were more creative and look at it again."

"Being relevant is not just being recent."

delirious and hilarious

Good to have some family in town for a few days, love showing them around. Mark and Joel are over to speak at the Unplugged Conference. They got a few hours of sleep on the red-eye flight so they were deliriously hilarious all day.

They quickly reminded me of one of the many reasons why I'm pumped to go on staff at NCC, always a lot of laughs.

We're golfing St. Andrews tomorrow.

passing of a good friend

We were on the island of Iona the past several days, but while we were there, I received a phone call that really saddened both kate and I. Joe Zickafoos, the director of Radiate ministries in the UK and long-time Chi-Alpha director at several Universities in the States passed away on Thursday.

We met Joe in Edinburgh a few years ago and instantly connected as fellow missionaries on the field. He made countless trips to visit, challenge and mentor us. He was diagnosed with cancer several months ago and had to move back to the US to receive medical attention. In recent weeks, he acquired pneumonia and finally went to be with the Lord yesterday.

When I received the message, I was heading for a service at the Cathedral on the Island of Iona which is the birthplace of Christianity in Scotland (563 ad).

I thought the final words of the call and response at the end were just right as I reflected on Joe's life and prayed for his family:

Leader: "At our end and new beginning,

ALL: "The arms of God to welcome us and bring us home. Amen."

Joe, you're home.

measuring impact

3 weeks until we board a jet plane. So many mixed emotions. I've been really focused on getting time in with people that have been important to us in the past few years and want to continue being in touch.

One of the persons we do not want to lose touch with is Donna.

I met with Donna today for lunch. For Donna, her identity is clearly tied to her gender. She became a transsexual a few years ago. She came to Eikon over a year ago, and though she no longer goes, we continue to see her often.

One of the ways we measure impact and change is through stories, and her story is one we'll hold close to our hearts. She is a follower of Christ, but has some serious obstacles she's trying to hurdle over in life. She has always felt judged at Church when all she's been thirsting for was love and acceptance for who she was. It's been a slow process, but we spoke today about how much visible change I've seen in her life, from her attitude, to her understanding of scripture, to how she sees herself in view of the redeemed self through Christ. I've never been more challenged by her in our bible studies, particularly working through the implications for issues such as homosexuality.

All I can say is, she's made a tremendous impact on our lives. We love Donna and are believing God will continue to renew and challenge her to serve through the love of Christ.

I miss Bob Costas

I'm not gonna lie, watching the Olympics on BBC is just not the same from NBC, the Olympic music, and of course, Bob Costas. All I can say is he's the man. NBC blocks people outside the US to view their website. Suck!

As a student of foreign policy, I watched the opening ceremonies filled with goose bumps and chills. Everyone craves the celebration of solidarity and diversity. I love the pride of one's country. Nothing like watching the US flag and the hundreds of athletes decked out in red, white and blue.

Though the coverage wasn't the same, it was still inspiring to soak up the atmosphere.

Apparently over 4 billion people viewed it.

Let the games begin!

stand-off

I saw my first police standoff today outside our flat (yes, I'm sheltered).

Bagpiper vs. the police..........




It's been silent the rest of the day.

wired

I think it's a combination of having a lot of projects to complete in a short period, the Festival just beginning and preparing to leave in a month has me WIRED! I've been going to bed at 4:30-5am each night for the past few weeks and getting up around 9:30 wide awake. It's 4:30 right now and I can't bloody sleep!

God has been so good to us the past few years, I've been in such a rejoicing state as we wind things down. I find myself trying to hold on to every last drop of our experience here in Edinburgh. I'm a nostalgic guy, so already beginning to miss this place. It's been home to experiencing the most personal growth I've ever had. Kate could certainly echo that.

It all started a few years back when a few of my closest friends and I began to say "let's go all in for Christ." Those words have absolutely ruined me in the best possible sense.

God I'm excited for the future!

Fringe

The Fringe Festival officially kicked off......outside our window! This is the view from where we have dinner. It never gets old.

There is a certain rhythm to the Mile during festival. By the end of the month last year, we could basically map out where each street performer would be and when.

Our blues guy is back singing "sweet home Chicago." Worked till 4am last night, so I awoke to the blues at 10am. A lot better alarm than my ringtones on the mobile.

Good to have the weather turn nice and people laughing and enjoying themselves on the street. What a great way to end our experience in Edinburgh in the last month.