Turangawaewae - Finding a place to stand

Ko tenei te wiki o te reo Maori.
This is Maori Language Week. 


Maori gain a sense of identity in their whakapapa which explains their link to land (especially their marae which is their place to stand in the world) and to people.  As Christians our primary identity is in Christ, so when I speak in Maori my whakapa is as follows:

Ko kawere te maunga          -  Calvary is the mountain
Ko te rongopai te waka        - The gospel is the canoe
Ko te ora hou te awa             - New life is the river
Ko Ihu Karati te tangata        -  Jesus is the man

As we mature our relationship with God we find that when all else is sinking sand, we
can stand on Christ the solid rock. In fact, God is the very ground of our being
(Tilloch).  In his kindness God called you to share in his eternal glory by means of Christ Jesus.

So after you have suffered a little while, he will restore, support, and strengthen you,
and he will place you on a firm foundation. 1 Peter 5:10

He kororia ki te Atua i runga rawa. Maungarongo ki te whenua. Whakaaro pai ki nga tangata katoa.
 Praise to God in the highest, peace to the land, goodwill to all people.

 

Which plane should I take ?

Heart of the city

This afternoon we learned to feel the city of Lima through the heart of 3 Peruvian artists:

Musician Jorge Millones sung and explained the following song dreaming of a new awakening like the dawn in Lima:

Painter Jorge Miyagui showed  pictures, like the one below,  relating to the disappearance of many people during the period of Fujimorism in Peru, uprooting the Shining Path (Sendero Luminoso).

 The words on th ekimono say: to forget is prohibited, and the
(see his portfolio)

Graphic designer Lander Aspajo also shared photos of the city.

The images and words were very evocative and helped us go beyond studying the city to feeling the city and understanding some of its history.

Flying

Last night I flew...in my sleep.

We had just seen the movie Chronicle , where 3 teenagers gain superpowers including flight.  After the movie I said , it would be awesome to fly, and last night I did.  Wow!  O yeah, I forgot to tell you that I kept the rest of my family awake all night with my flying, snoring and running.  They aren't so happy :-)

Honour

Last Sunday we were made ministers of Alto Refugio church.  This was a great privilege.   Pastor Ramiro Montalvo told the church how much we meant to them as we had been informally mentoring them for a couple of years before the church started.    What he didn’t say is that we learnt as much from them as they did from us.  Coming back and seeing how the church has grown is an awesome honour.  Knowing that we were able to be part of what God is doing in Ecuador is awesome.

Here's the ceremony and me preaching afterwards: