By some miracle, I have been allowed a window of opportunity to post my last blog update. I have been home for 6 days now, and have been more busy than anticipated. As I thought would happen, my return has been sweet yet sad. I have been back to work two days now, and so much has changed there. I didn't realize how long three months was until I reflected on what has happened at home while I was gone; people have been married, babies have been born, and friends have gone home to be with Jesus. I am sad, but in many ways jealous because they now see the face of God. I also want to see the face of God. I know that someday I will, but for now, I am here to do the work that he has for me.
Wednesday 9/21/11
I really cant believe that my trip is drawing to an end. I am in a Plane bound for London trying to remember all of the things that have happened to me in the last 15 days or so. We finished the festival strong. We had battled the Napoli Soccer team for attention. I think there were three games that were happening while we were having the festival making a noticeable drop in attendance, I don't think it lessened the effectiveness of what we did because I know that everyone God intended for us to reach during this trip heard what God wanted them to hear. We had a wonderful last night. I was able to visit all of the tents, take some pictures, participate in some amazing worship, and then it was time to clean up the grounds and start packing all of our things. We stayed at the festival grounds until 11:00 or so. The team did a great job stacking chairs, moving tables, picking up garbage. Julie Neidert and I even went so far as to sweep the entry area outside the park. She and I talked about how cool it was to be able to come and not only serve the people of Casoria and Arzano, but to serve the city as well. I think just being there for people to see that you care and will do something like picking up their garbage says a lot about who we are and about God who sent us. I heard Brian Heerwagon say that there was a mention of what a great job we did for the community in the local newspapers. Naples seems to really be looked down on by most of the people that live in central and northern Italy. Just this morning I was talking to a lady that works for British Airways.. she asked me how long I stayed in Italy. When I told her 60 days, she looked shocked. She asked me where I have been and what I have seen, and when I told her Naples, she said, “and what did you think of Naples?” in a sarcastic and almost disgusted way. I told her that “Naples has a lot of Garbage, but when you get beneath all of that it is beautiful, and the people are wonderful.” She just smiled and went back to getting me my tickets.
After our final Festival day, I chose to stay in Naples with the team and do some of the excursions that they had planned. I wanted to see the places, but they also needed another driver so it worked out just fine. I took a group to see the Naples underground downtown on Monday, and then Tuesday to see the Amalfi coast. The underground was really amazing. I didn't pack my camera with me, but I saw a lot of really cool things. As we drove up the Amalfi coast we stopped at a few coastal towns that are built on the cliffs, they looked very much like the pictures I have seen of Cinque Terre. I don't know that so many people have those southern coastal cities on their radar when they go to see Italy. I had a great time winding back and forth on the narrow road dodging tour buses and rock shear walls. There were several moments when we had to fold the mirrors back and squeeze through spaces that allowed probably a solid half-inch of room. There were a few moments when Bruce Neidert would barely put his hand out the window and pick a flower off the rock wall.. I got to eat some wonderful seafood, put my feet into the Mediterranean, and spend time with new friends. The sun started to go down and it was time to head back to the Hotel, so we started our trip back to the hotels and away from the cliffs.
I had to get up around 4:50 this morning in order to make an early train to Rome for my flight. I made it with plenty of time, it was so nice to not be rushed through an airport. Last night I told Brian and Monte that it was time to head back to reality. Then I paused for a moment; what I have been doing for the last three months is reality. What I do when I am at home is more of an illusion than any mission trip I have ever been on. I am so distracted by the things of this world when I am home. I struggle at home to see beneath the surface of the veneer of lies. Our world has become so believable that everyone sees what is on the surface and can't see the truth that waits beneath. I know when I get home that I will want to save my money for things that I do not need. Things that may serve no purpose other than to steal me away from time that I could spend on becoming closer to my God. We become slaves to our own desires. I am not coming back to reality, I am coming back to an Illusion. Serving God removes the veneer and reveals what the devil does not want us to know; The Truth. I was asked to write one word that could describe what serving in ministry in Naples did to my perspective. I thought about it for a while and what I ended up with was a word that I got mixed responses for. My word was “revealing”. Working in Ministry opened my eyes to the struggles that the People in southern Italy are faced with on a day to day basis. I saw kids not older than 13 years old lighting cigarettes or working very diligently at becoming extremely intimate with other children in public. I could see that Evangelism is viewed as a cult by the Catholic church rather than something that teaches people more about Jesus Christ. I could see how desperate people are to add meaning to their lives. I could see the crust that was over peoples hearts preventing them from hearing what we had to say.
Thursday 9/22/11
I made it back to Seattle. Now I am on the train from Seattle to Portland. I don't have anyone in Portland to pick me up, so I will probably have to find my way, or call people until I find someone that can pick me up. I cant help but think about my new Italian family. I swear I have never connected better with anyone than I have when on a mission trip. There is something about serving God that fills me up. There is an unconditional love that can not be broken. I wish that everyone could know the depth of that love, Unfortunately, it is deeper than we can comprehend... At the same time it's not unfortunate at all, but amazing, breathtaking, unbelievable, and undeserved.
I have gotten so familiar with trains. It is actually quite nice to ride the train back from Seattle to
P-town. It gives me nice time to reflect on my last three months. There is more comfort than an airplane; more leg room, the seats are bigger, and you can look out the huge windows.. I also have an outlet at my feet and WiFi. This train isn't crowded, so I can put a bag on the seat net to me. There are not as many tunnels that the train goes through, so you don't get the pressure in your ears like in Italy. I think that our trains appear to be a little better maintained so maybe the seals between cars are better. The trains here don't go as fast and I'm sure that that has something to do with it as well. I am going to need to check out the bathrooms. I have a feeling that our toilets don't open to the tracks like they do in Italy. I cant say I prefer one way over the other, but I can say that the wind on your backside is mildly thrilling... I loved looking out the window in Italy at the landscapes. I would always think of how beautiful it is. Now that I am home, I look out the window and see what I have seen my whole life. It doesn't seem as beautiful to me because it is what I know. I'm sure that Italians would come here and say that it is so beautiful here because it would be different from what they know.
My return is definitely bitter sweet. There is always sadness mixed with joy when mission trips come to an end. I have never felt like mission trips were a job or a duty to me... Even though you could look at them as a job and a duty. It is me working for the Lord and through that comes amazing joy and satisfaction. I must thank everyone who has been keeping up with me the last three months, and I pray that following my journey and sharing in some of my moments with God have not only kept you interested, but given you some spiritual food at the same time; food that will help you grow. That is my prayer.
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