I am getting more and more excited for my time in Rwanda. It is coming up very quickly. As of now I am planning on leaving for Africa in the middle of April, and returning the middle of June. My time there will be spent working on paving the way for a new project being spearheaded by Highlands Church & Food for the Hungry.

The project itself seeks to make major impacts in Northern Rwanda in several specific fields, they are: Leadership/Church Leadership Development, Business Development, Health Care, and Education.

A few days ago a meeting took place that represented the first time the “key players” from both sides of the project gathered around and begin to discuss how the vision could take place. The meeting was led by Tyler McGrath and Dave Chapman, both from Highlands church. Food for the Hungry was represented by Ben Holman, the president of the organization, and Dwight Jackson, the Country Director in Rwanda, as well as several advocates, and staff members.

As part of the meeting I was asked to create an introduction video that summarizes some of our goals as well as the climate and history in Rwanda.

This was my fist time using this video program and the first time I have worked on a project like this. I hope you like it!

If you have noticed a lack of posts on my behalf recently it isn’t without reason. I have found myself consumed by the activities of my life. I’m not complaining, it just feels as though I am already on to a new project, conversation or thought before I have digested the previous.

The irony of me posting this on my blog does not escape me. The very purpose of this blog is to keep those interested updated. Yet, that which I am supposed to be updating people on has kept me from posting these updates! That, and a new liking to the TV series “Lost” (more specifically the free episodes from all 5 season available online).

But I am before my computer now, and motivated to update you. Expect multiple posts in the coming days. This post is dedicated to my past weekend in Rocky Point, Mexico where I lead another LGLP weekend trip.

The trip itself was a great one. I say this for multiple reasons. First off, we were a bit short of leaders heading into the trip. We have 8 volunteer leaders called Mexico Servants (or MS’s for short). The MS team for this months trip was only 2 going into the trip, along with myself that was 30 people coming down with 3 leaders to facilitate. I was a bit anxious for a few moments prior to the trip, but soon brought back to a peace in Christ, having walked that road before. One reason that peace is easy to digest is that we have an AMAZING MS team. People who absolutely do whatever it takes to serve brothers in sisters in Mexico, as well as those traveling with us. Jessie and Andy, the 2 MS’s whom I referred to above, did so much to prepare us for this trip and get everyone down there safely and ready to serve. Further evidence to the MS teams commitment is the fact that Shelley, who originally had plans in L.A. for the weekend, came to Mexico when those plans fell through last minute (instead of going snowboarding, which was the backup to L.A.). I realize these names may be people you don’t know, and perhaps information you don’t necessarily care to have, but if I am to convey my life, and the life within the ministries I’m involved, I can’t exclude telling you about people like these.

Additionally, this trip was the first trip that my mom came down. She and my sister (who has come down twice before) came down and served along side us the whole weekend. It was extremely encouraging to have their support and see how God is working in their hearts, independent of anything I had planned for the weekend.

Lastly, a friend whom I had traveled with to Argentina (this was when highlands church went with 25 youth in 2007 to serve a sister church) flew in from Chicago with two of his buddy’s. Despite what I’m sure was extremely tempting, they decided to forgo the perfect Phoenix weather and serve with us in Mexico. Despite almost freezing on the first night I think they managed to have a good trip; I know they made it a better trip for all of us. They brought a lot to the group and were a pleasure to serve beside!

Over the course of the weekend we worked on 5 different houses. 3 of these were painted, one had a roof put up, and another had a wall, door, and window installed. Construction continues to serve as a way we can enter into relationships with the community. A testament to this was 4 of the 5 families whose homes we worked on came to our “fiesta” that evening, and we shared together  food, drinks, bad dancing and a lot of fun.

We also continued working with kids at a local church. This has lead to the development of future opportunities that we are currently looking into that could potentially mean working with local churches to develop new projects in areas of the community where no kids outreach exists.

All in all it was a great trip. The volunteers that come down have amazing hearts, and continue to strive for a deeper and more faithful relationship with Christ. I am so grateful for the body of believers that has chosen to use LGLP as a medium to serve and love God and People. We eagerly anticipate God’s movement and guidance within the organization.

This weekend we spent our mornings going through Psalm 23 and Psalm 25, I’ll leave you with the words from Psalm 25 verse 4:

Make me to know your ways, Oh Lord; teach me your paths.

For more pictures from the trip, please click here

The US economy is nearly three times the size of Japan’s (the next largest world economy), but doesn’t rank in the top 20 in foreign aid.

There is a myth that the U.S. government spends what some would consider to be an exorbitant amount of money on foreign aid. Here is what you might not know. While it is true our government gives billions of dollars in foreign aid (27.5 billion in 2005), that number only accounts for .07 percent of the national budget. That is less than a tenth of a tenth of a percentage. On top of that only a small percentage goes towards aiding those in poverty. A large portion goes towards supporting strategic political allies (Israel, Pakistan, Egypt and Jordan), as well as fighting drugs. This measurement of giving (percentage) doesn’t even put the US in the top 20 countries of those who are most generous in giving.

“The Skeptic’s Guide to Global Poverty,” Dale Hanson Bourke. Authentic Publishing. 2006.