Happy Leap Year!

So, once again, I didn't get a post finished "tomorrow" as I'd hoped. Oh well.

Things have stayed busy lately. I spent some time last week visiting Kirsten, who recently had surgery and is now recovering at home, and helped her with some cleaning. Last Tuesday evening I met with Ingrid and Michaela for our biweekly Bible study together. At our previous meeting we started a study of the book of Malachi after having completed James, and it's turning out to be really interesting. None of us has spent much time studying the minor prophets, so we're all learning something.

Last Friday night, as I was coming home from working at Elsa's, I walked by the cathedral on my way to the streetcar and noticed a sign advertising a free organ concert that happened to be about to start in 10 minutes. Back in November I went to a concert in the cathedral which I also had learned about a few minutes ahead of time as I happened by, and I had enjoyed it, so I decided I'd step inside for Friday's concert as well. The man played 8 pieces by 7 different composers on 2 of the cathedral's 3 organs, and I have to say it was an almost other-worldly experience. The large, round stained-glass window on the front of the cathedral serves as a backdrop for the pipes of the largest organ, and there was just something about the lighting, the sound of the organ, and the realization that I was sitting in a building dating back to the 800s. It verged on becoming eerie. The picture below is one I took last summer.


Saturday was the ladies' tea at church. Friday Ingrid and I spent about 4 hours setting the tables and decorating. I learned several interesting ways to fold paper napkins. :) Around 35 women had RSVPed (is there a correct way to write that?), so we set places for 40 people. We ended up having to add extra chairs and dishes to the tables as the seats filled up and people continued to walk through the door. In all we had 44. We had quite a few guests, and several women from the congregations in Hamburg, Kiel, and Braunschweig came, and it was so good to see them again. I see the ladies from Braunschweig once a month when a group of us from Bremen travels there to worship with them, but after first meeting the others at one of the ladies' retreats last spring, I've only seen them a couple times.


The afternoon went really well. Uschi, the speaker, talked about the differences between women of the various generations living today, using examples from her own family, and how we all together serve a God who doesn't change with the times. While I've heard similar presentations in English and from an American point-of-view, it was good to hear this one in German. It gave me a better understanding of the German culture of today and how it's become what it is. For example, I knew of course that World War 2 (termed "The War" by many here) had a tremendous impact on this country, but I don't think I'd ever thought about how it shaped the lives of the children growing up during and directly after that time and how it therefore determined how that generation would view life. That in turn impacted the Boomer Generation, or the Generation of 1968 in reference to the reform movement among university students that reached its culmination that year.

I could go on, but it fascinates me how political and social happenings affect the evolution of a people's worldview and culture. I am reminded again and again how important it is to understand those things in living here and trying to bring the Gospel to these people. A Mr. Murthi, who worked as an evangelist in India, said it the best: "Do not bring us the gospel as a potted plant. Bring us the seed of the gospel and plant it in our soil." I first heard this quote in the Missionary Anthropology class I took years ago at Harding, and I've seen it several other places since. It's stuck with me because it's so true. The core of the Gospel will never change, but the "soil" in which it's planted will vary depending on the people and culture of that place. You have to understand the composition of the soil and adapt accordingly if you're going to successfully help a plant to grow.

*****

I continue to spend quite a bit of time working at Elsa's house. I'm still working to organize Jim's books, and Elsa and I have gone through some of them and sent some to be recycled that are either outdated or not of interest to anyone we know. We've also been trying lately to get more people from church involved with the work. Yek Len, Ingrid, and Jutta have all come to help. Mark has also been coming at least once a week to look at the Bible books, primarily the commentaries so far, to determine which would be most useful in a future church library. We are very glad to have the help, and it's nice to see others "experience" the books and be able to use and appreciate them. So far no one who has come had seen the library previously, and they are amazed when they come in and I show them around. People have heard us say for a while now that "Jim had a lot of books," but that means nothing to them until they actually see them. Chins usually drop when I say that Jim had 4,274 books cataloged on his computer (though I've now deleted records for about 140 that we've gotten rid of), and there are probably at least that many that are not in the computer yet.

Mark and I have also helped Elsa with some other things while at her house. She's been trying to organize some things in Jim's office, so we carried out two bookcases so she will have more space to work, and I did some cleaning for her. Sometimes I just sit and listen when she needs to talk. Especially as we sort through books together, she tells stories about Jim and shares some of the emotions she's experiencing through the grieving process. We rejoice together at the small successes as she finds herself able to accomplish more and more each day. She told me recently that since Jim's death, I've spent more time than anyone else with her. This past week alone, I ate dinner with her three days after having worked at her house. I feel bad that she feeds me, but she insists she enjoys the company and having someone to cook for. For those of you who receive Elsa's email updates, I know she said I've become like family to her, and I'd say the same about her. I'm continually blessed by the fact that God gave me a year to spend working with and learning from Jim and that I can now be with Elsa through this time. And the best part is that through the happy times and the struggles, they each have helped me grow in a myriad of ways that I probably will not fully comprehend until I leave Bremen.

*****

I hope you are doing well wherever you are. Thanks for continuing to check in on me and for praying for me and for the work for the Kingdom here in Germany. To my family and all the others participating in Bible Bowl this weekend: I wish I could be there with you. Bible Bowl experiences are some of my favorite memories. Have fun, and remember that Scripture is the focus. Gott mit Euch.