First Flight

It's Maundy Thursday, which is my favorite day of the year, reflecting on the new "mandatum" (Latin for command) that Jesus gave in John 13:34 to love one another as He has loved us.

As I reflect on that, I can't help but reflect upon the blessings we have received from the Lord, as well as the blessing it is to serve within this region--from here in Cairo, throughout Egypt, into Lebanon, and contributing in Europe.  We love our team, and we love the diversity of people with whom we get to serve and from whom we learn, as well as the moments we share laughing and growing together.  Amazing, everyday is amazing.

I found this video in shared by our friends Chris and Hennie Schoon.  Chris was a friend of ours at Anderson University, and their family lives/ministers in Canada, closer to Hennie's roots.  The video is produced by Vodaphone, which is one of the three Egyptian cellular service providers here in Egypt.  The two ladies in the film, I believe, are Dutch and they're on their way to Barcelona, Spain.  They are each in their 70's, but they're doing something brand new together, and discovering a bit of youth along the way.  One is a bit fearless, and the other more fearful.  One is a widow, the other still married.  Their perspectives to this adventure couldn't be more different, but they are meeting each other for the first time and taking the leap together, and become good friends in the process.

Enough of the description, just do yourself a favor and take ten minutes to watch and smile:


I think what I like is how this represents a bit of what we do here in Three Worlds; helping believers across the region to reach beyond themselves into something new, while reaching out to each other, and discovering a greater sense of youth and vitality along the way.  It's a risk, but it's so rewarding, too.

Thank you for your continued interest, thoughts, and prayers--for taking the risk with us and discovering the joy along the way.  Hope your Easter is wonderful...

3 Questions with Sharon

One of the things I've enjoyed doing whether by video, or just in conversations on the field, is to ask a leader three questions; some of those end up to be great conversations, and others great interviews.  When I can, I like to share those answers with our readers/supporters so they can get a glimpse of what we're doing and a chance to "meet" those with whom we are serving.  I think our Three-Worlds teammates need to use this pattern too, but it hasn't caught on yet (maybe, I'm not much of a leader of my peers, huh?!?)

Last month, we had the special treat of having Sharon Skaggs in Cairo, and the added treat of needing to spend a lot of time with her.  Sharon and her late husband Russ served in a similar role in Cairo back in the 80's.  They also worked with the Cairo Christian Fellowship, and with the Egyptian Church of God pastors.  Her connection to ministry in Egypt is deeper than that: before her family, her father and mother in-law, Wilbur and Evelyn Skaggs, began the CCF when they were working with Church of God congregations in Egypt.  Sharon's son and his family currently live in Maadi, too; and her daughter and son in-law, Jamie and Patrick, are our direct supervisors as regional coordinators of Three-Worlds.

So, to say that Sharon has a knowledge of the ministries, people, and culture of Cairo and Egypt is a bit of an understatement.

And, so, it has been our extreme joy and honor to have her as not only one of our predecessors, but one of our supporters and biggest cheerleaders.  In fact, because of her rich history and connection to the work here, we value her opinion and encouragement over and above all others.

Whether in formal interviews, or
informally over a snack,
the children loved to talk to Sharon.

Over the month of March, while visiting her son and his family, she was also needing to do some site visits for another Church of God program called Children of Promise - a child sponsorship program that you can learn more about from that link.  Sharon has been a board member for this ministry for about 18 years, so when they found out she was coming to the Middle East, they asked her to help conduct some site visits.  We have not had direct relationship with this program, so this was an added bonus to visit the Egyptian pastors and to learn more about what they are doing. Given the current situations in Egypt, and since it has been some years since Sharon has travelled to different parts of Egypt, I would accompany her visits.  And since she had not been to Lebanon before, and given Keli's previous visit to one of the program locations in Lebanon (Cedar Home), Keli accompanied Sharon to Beirut.

We were really impressed with what the churches are doing through this program as they are meeting the needs of children and their families within their communities.  If you are looking to sponsor a child through a program like this, we encourage you to visit the above link, and if you decide to sponsor, select Egypt or Lebanon in the sign-up.

Sharon was blessed by every happy greeting :)

Of course, we also had a lot of opportunities to watch her interact with the Cairo Christian Fellowship members.  Some of the parents in our Saturday children's program were taught by her when they were children.  Some of the CCF were led to Christ by her and her family.  Others are dear friends to this day, and there were several joyful reunions shared during the month.  We tried to capture the COP and the CCF visits in pictures, and shared many by Twitter (@ok2serve) and on Facebook.

During Sharon's visit, we asked her to respond to three questions, and here are her responses.

What are a couple of your thoughts about Cairo, Egypt, and/or the CCF during this visit?

Sharon:  This has been an amazing time for me.  When I've come before my time here was very short.  I have so enjoyed having more time with several of the churches and reconnecting with many friends and also being introduced to new leadership in the churches.  

So much has changed since we lived here.  I miss not being able to walk the streets or to take the metro by myself like I used to.  And yet, so much is the same.  I am so proud of the church, the people, who continue to be strong in their faith regardless of great difficulties all around them.  They continue to be salt and light in this country and their light is shining brighter than ever.  I've heard many stories and testimonies of God's faithfulness during very difficult times.  My faith has been strengthened by being with the people here.

You were really impressed with the Egypt Church of God congregations and pastors; why?

Sharon poses with one of the COP
site' s children and leaders.

Sharon: It was great seeing them work as a team in cooperation and supporting each other.  There is an attitudinal change that seemed to filter through everything, meetings, worship, and planning.  There is an emphasis on discipleship and training of young people to be involved in  committees, as Sunday School teachers, and worship leaders.  There were many young people and children in all of the churches.  In both the churches and the Children of Promise program there were those of the majority attending and welcomed into the church.  It is a new day and the faithfulness of believers in this country is speaking louder than ever.  God is at work and I'm committed to pray more than ever for this place.

Any advice for our family as we continue a work your family has been involved in for years?

Sharon:  Continue doing what you're doing and love the people.  I had the joy of working with you when I was still in the office when you started the process of coming to Egypt.  I felt then and continue to believe that you are the right people for this time and place.  Life is much more difficult here now than when we were here and your family has managed it with grace and a smile on your faces.  I probably know better than most people how difficult that has been and I'm so encouraged with the development and growth of the church here.  Thank you for being obedient to God's call on your lives for this time and place.  

Once again, we were blessed in all our time with Sharon, and her continuing encouragement of our family.

Busy, Busier, Busiest, Blessed

Let's begin by apologizing for the long absence in updates!  The last month + has been an endless handoff between us as we have not often been in the same location together.  A recap of what's been happening:

• Keli was in Rome at the end of February and beginning of March for the 3W Women's

  

  3W hosted a fun Women's Conference

  Conference, which was a great event benefiting all who were involved.  

• Keli returned and I was off to Lebanon shortly after to join with Regional Coordinator Patrick Nachtigall in speaking for the shorter Spring staff retreat of Heart for Lebanon.  We also were able to talk with and do some planning with the Ana Terzo young adult ministry leaders there in Beirut.  These are both such a great groups to have the opportunity to encourage and inspire.

• When I returned, Keli took off again on a Women's Retreat sponsored by the local international community church; Keli is active in a weekly women's Bible study that includes several of the moms who bring their kids to the weekly CCF Kids program.

• When Keli returned, I joined the remarkable Sharon Skaggs to assist her with Children of

  

  Sharon (center) planning with Egypt COP leaders

  Promise site visits in Alexandria.  Sharon is one of our illustrious predecessors, one of our supporters and cheerleaders, and the mother of our "boss" (Jamie Nachtigall).  Sharon came to Egypt to visit her son Byron's family (who moved here over a year ago), and as a veteran board member of COP, was asked to conduct the site visits.  I was able to get our first exposure to the work of the program as we interacted with several of the pastors whom we are here to assist.  The program is developing wonderfully in Egypt, and we hope that we can help

  

  Dozens of kids are awaiting COP
  sponsors; can you help?

  encourage others to sponsor children in the Middle East.

• I came back, and without a lot of planning, Keli and I both left at the invitation of Heart for Lebanon to return and contribute to some problem solving in a leadership retreat.  This was our first time to leave the children in Egypt, and the first time we had traveled alone together in years.  We had to hand off our children to three different families living near to the school; this helped each child to stay with a friend, while also enabling them to continue on their activity schedules without interruption--we are grateful for these networks of families that allowed such a trip to take place.  We, once again, enjoyed the opportunity to walk and work alongside of the great Heart for Lebanon leaders; but, this trip also paved the way for Keli to be in Lebanon to greet Sharon when she came in for COP site visits there.  I came back to Egypt and got the kids back home, while Keli stayed and walked along Sharon in Beirut.

• Keli has come back to Egypt now, and we're preparing for a big Cairo Christian Fellowship event tomorrow.

It really has been nonstop for us, and we are so thankful that Spring Break starts tonight so that we can get away for some family time and rest before jumping into more Easter events.  We are blessed by a family in the Fellowship who are allowing us again to invade their vacation villa along the Red Sea--it will be an oasis on several levels.  The busy-ness is also a blessing--we are amazed at the endless assortment of activities, ministries and wonderful people with whom we have the opportunity to know and serve.

Meanwhile, things have not slowed down in Egypt (or Lebanon), and news events are stacking up.  There is no way to respond to and forward all the information links, but we'll comment on a few of the events impacting the region, and you can look up news stories on your own.

AGAIN: we are not political, cultural, or legal experts - we are but guests within these countries, seeking to learn from and serve those whom we walk alongside.  We are not making any judgments or espousing any remedies for the unfolding events around us.  We offer these reflections for those concerned and interested friends and family beyond this region who want to read this personal blog and gain a better understanding of what life is like for us at this time and in this place.

Egypt politics:

The face of the removal of former President Morsi was General Sisi; that event last summer led to super-star/hero status for Sisi.  Many were urging him to run for President, and even his peers in the military urged him as to pursue this option as a "duty' to the people of Egypt.  He recently resigned and declared his candidacy for the Presidency.  He will virtually run unopposed, though the campaign for the last election's 3rd place finisher, Sabahi, is gaining some ground.

The elections have been set for May 26-27; we have heard from some Egyptians that the delayed date is intentional to put the election after the universities have finished their semester and students return home.  This, if true, may prove wise as demonstrations on campuses throughout Egypt have been ongoing and often the flash points for clashes with police.

Parliamentary elections will take place some time after the Presidential elections.

Dangerous "tit-for-tat":

The fallout from last summer's removal of Morsi led to sit-ins by Islamist groups, especially the Muslim Brotherhood.  The sit-ins were becoming semi-permanent tent-cities within existing communities, and when they would not disperse peacefully, there was tragic loss of life.  Different violent attacks have been carried out from the Sinai Peninsula and now into the cities along the Nile, including Cairo, mostly targeting police stations or checkpoints.  Hundreds of officers have died since the summer due to these perceived "retaliatory" attacks.

The MB was labeled a "terrorist" organization by the interim government and those associated with the group were arrested and have been on a series of trials.  Two controversial developments have resulted.  First, journalists have also been arrested, including several Al Jazeera reporters, who claim they were doing a story whereas they are alleged to have been collaborating with MB members; this has created campaigns of protest by journalists.  Secondly, the use of mass trials to attempt to get all the defendants prosecuted quickly led to 529 being sentenced to death in one judgement; this obviously drew a lot of attention around the world, and a lot of criticism.

On April 2, police were again targeted, this time at Cairo University, with bombs set to go off in succession.  The first bomb went off, and then the second after enough time had elapsed for additional police to gather and respond to the injury and havoc created by the first; at least one officer died as a result, with others injured.  You can see the second blast on this amateur video captured shortly after the first blast.  The third happened much later, but fortunately was smaller and not near enough watching crowds, journalists, emergency personnel and investigators--this smaller blast led only to panic, not direct injury or death.

A Generation Gap:

When we talk to Egyptians about all of these events, we get different responses.  The divide is not between Christian and Muslim perspectives, but due to generational differences.  Older generations seem to support Sisi, and even openly support or seek to validate the decisions of the arrests, trials, and judgments against the Muslim Brotherhood.  Younger generations may have supported the removal of Morsi, but have been openly skeptical to quietly questioning the candidacy of Sisi, the trials/judgements, and the responses to each attack.  The young people we talk to are obviously not favoring these violent actions, but are more uncertain about the future of Egypt.

Meanwhile in Lebanon:

as Patrick pointed out, everyone has a fantastic view in Lebanon

According to the UNHCR, on April 1 there are nearly 950,000 REGISTERED Syrian refugees in Lebanon, with another nearly 50,000 awaiting registration.  These are the officially registered refugees--the number is estimated to be much, much higher.  While the estimated population is well over 4 million people, there are whole communities in Lebanon in which the Syrian refugees outnumber the Lebanese; there are an increasing number of Lebanese leaving Lebanon, and it is estimated that far more Lebanese actually live outside of Lebanon.

The numbers alone help you to think about the internal stress on government infrastructure--schooling for children, providing for water, sanitation concerns, etc.  When you factor in the economic challenges in a global recession, you can see this is a growing problem.  But, when you consider that the Lebanese government functions on a razor's edge of balancing power among cultural and religious lines of Sunni Muslims, Shia Muslims, and Christians, then you have increasing societal challenges with each refugee who crosses the border.

With no end in sight for the Syrian crisis, you can imagine the long-term challenges facing this little, beautiful country.  We are inspired by the Church and organizations who are creatively searching for ways to offer hope at such a time as this.



So, that's a bit of what's happening for us.  If you have specific questions, send us an email.  Thanks for your ongoing prayers, encouragement and support...
#PrayForEgypt
#PrayForLebanon
#PrayForSyria