What's Cookin'?

There are lots of ways to enjoy cross-cultural experiences while remaining close to home. One of the easiest and more interesting is to find restaurants of different cultures and enjoy their cuisine and atmosphere. I want to tell you of two great places to eat in our immediate area- places that not only give you a taste of another land (sorry for such a lousy pun), but can also put you in touch with people whose backgrounds and experiences can be a delight to learn about.

Restaurant #1 is called Andaluz, 930 S. Brookhurst Avenue (just north of Ball Rd.) in Anaheim. It's Mediterranean/Lebanese in style, with a Muslim flair, and is outstanding. Under new management, the owner has made great improvements, both in the property and in the quality of food served. It's clean, food is served quickly and staff is very friendly. I've only had lunch there, but I can heartily recommend the shawarma (beef and chicken), kefala, kabob, and chicken tawouk sandwiches. Make sure you order hummus as well. Lunch prices are medium (two can eat for under $20) and the ambiance is authentic.

Restaurant #2 is called Merhaba, 2801 W. Ball Road, (corner of Dale and Ball), also in Anaheim. This establishment serves Ethiopian/Eritrean food, and it may be unlike anything you've ever experienced. If you order a combination plate of meat and vegetables (it says it serves 2, but can handle at least 3) you'll receive a generous helping of unfamiliar-looking delights. There is no silverware (unless you request it), as you "scoop" up your food with pieces of a bread-like offering (sorry, forgot the name). Works just fine. You will need a bit more time to eat here, and a bit more money, as it is a little pricey (about $30 for two for lunch, if you have a combo plate). The atmosphere is genuinely east African, the workers (and patrons) are friendly and happy to share their culture, and the experience rewarding.

The purpose of this post is not to critique local eateries, but to encourage you to step out of your zone of familiarity and try something new. And the reason to do so is not simply to consume strange offerings, but to expand your cultural borders and seek to understand new places, customs and people. The best part of these places? The people you meet there and the opportunity to establish relationships that could lead to a chance to talk about spiritual food. But it'll never happen unless you go ahead and give it shot. There's little to lose and a lot to gain (another pun, sorry)...and you may find your cross-cultural opportunity just up around the corner!

Happy eating!

Can You Give Hope?

Our church has a special relationship with Tumaini (the Kiswahili word for hope) International Ministries in Kenya. Tumaini was started by Dr. Stanley and Rose Mutunga for the purpose of assisting AIDS orphans in that country (there are about 2 million there currently). Their goal was to make sure kids who had lost one or both parents, and who were living with extended family or neighbors, would be able to continue with life and education, and have the opportunity to succeed in spite of their circumstances. Their plan was to use sponsorship ($30.00 monthly) to help kids with basic needs and expenses while allowing them to remain within family and community (as opposed to being placed in orphanages, which often have negative impact in community-based cultures such as Kenya).

I know that there are many solid organizations (e.g. World Vision, Compassion International) which do similar works, and that's good, because it's going to take all of us doing all we can to make the difference in place like Kenya. But let me share a couple of reasons why I believe Tumaini makes such great sense:

1. The entire amount you send for sponsorship goes to your child! Nothing is taken out for administrative costs, as Tumaini raises that money separately;

2. It's a grass-roots movement with no layers of bureaucracy. This helps foster a very personal relationship between you and your child, and means that you can find out how and what the child you are sponsoring is doing;

3. It is a "easy" matter for you to make personal connection with your child! We have taken teams to Kenya for three years now, and have been able to sit with the children we sponsor, getting to know them, their families and their situation. I know what my child (his name is Mutinda) is going through, and we have talked and prayed together. I know his grandmother and his brother, and I know that the assistance we provide is getting where it is supposed to go.

All this to say that you could sponsor someone in Kenya and make a lifetime of difference for him or her. And if you can't afford it alone, buddy up with others and do it together. I bring this to your attention because I believe in the need, I believe in Tumaini's plan as a solution (at least in part) to the need, and I believe in our ability to meet the need.

To find out more, go to http://www.tumainiinternational.org/. Or contact me and I'll tell you more about this blessing. And if you have a moment, check out our video of the 2006 KACC Kenya Team:

Where To Next?

We are officially back into our own "home" culture, finally reconnected with what is most familiar to us. During our summer, some of us were introduced (or reacquainted) with a different way of life. Whether it was life in Kenya, Samoa or Australia, we found a different way of doing things, but even more striking, a different way of looking at things. My hope, as one who helps design these kinds of experiences for others, is that even though we return to what is familiar, we will never return to doing things or looking at things like we used to. Our goal is not only that we help change the world in some small way, but that we will be changed as we open our eyes and hearts to what God is doing around us.

As we steam into the fall, we still have trips on our schedule. We will take a team to Atascadero (central California coast) in October, and a team to the San Carlos Apache Reservation (eastern Arizona) in November. The Atascadero team will work with a convalescent and retirement center, and the Arizona team will partner with Arizona Reservation Ministries. There are still a few spots open on each team, but they will fill quickly, so contact us if you're interested.

More importantly than where we are going is where you are going as you finish out 2008. Always remember that you don't have to get on an airplane, cross an ocean or acquire a passport in order to reach out. Your next "trip" may begin right outside your front door. We have talked about "sending servants" from KACC for several years now. Unfortunately, some still think that this means engaging in some herculean effort to travel halfway around the world in order to do what, in reality, you are called to do every day wherever you are. Your mission field is wherever God has you in the moment. So don't wait for some special call- you've been called AND placed! Make the most of it. And may you never be the same.

Zoom, Zoom, Zoom

By the time most of you read this we will be well on our way back to the US. I am currently writing from the airport in Amsterdam where we will soon be boarding our flight and winging our way home again. We have spent much time talking about and evaluating our experiences of the last two weeks, and there remains much to be considered. We learned so much about the way God useserelationships to build His Kingdom, and just how far we still haveto grow (especially as westerners) in that area. We also saw such courage and determination in the lives of those who have been impacted by severe life circumstances that we were challenged to rise to our own life occasions victoriously.

As we prepare to board, I willl leave you with some random photos that express the joy, adventure, challenge and fun that we have had (double click to enlarge):

Kenya: Unpacking Our Experiences

How do we begin to process all that we have seen and experienced in the last two week? That's what we wrestled with tonight in a debrief session. The more we shared, the more there was to share. As we took turns talking, our experiences, lessons learned, highlights and struggles peeled back like layers of an onion. As each was removed there was another to take its place.

Such is the way of successful short-term efforts. We will continue to unfold our thoughts and ideas for weeks and months to come- sometimes privately, sometimes together, and sometimes with those (like some of you!) that we know and love. Be patient with us, bear with us, listen to us and learn with us.

Immediate highlights of our time included:
- visiting the Anne Frank House in Amsterdam and sensing again the ability within people to do great good or great evil, depending upon choices made;
- spending time in the slums of Nairobi and seeing how God is working through courageous men and women making a world of difference there;
- viewing God's creation up close at Nakuru- and almost too close with an unamused rhino and a bad vehicle battery connection;
- seeing the faces of those helped by the dental clinic;
- laughing with each other;
- watching Stanley imitate Pam's laugh, and then everyone imitate Stanley's laugh;
- dip baths from a bucket each morning in Masii;
- loud street parties until late in the evenings;
- lots and lots (and lots!) of children;
- Paul (Tumaini's country director) always on his phone;
- church service in Yoani, with its great singing;
- God coming through in so many ways we could not have thought of.

You'll hear more about our processing thoughts in the days and weeks ahead...stay tuned!

Back to Nairobi

The week is complete and we have arrived back in Nairobi, preparing to leave tomorrow night for the US. It's hard to believe that our time in Masii is over just as quickly as it seemed to begin. We saw much, met many, and did whatever we could to bless people there.

One big draw was the dental clinic we held at the Tumaini property on the edge of the town. With the assembly hall finished we had a perfect place to gather and register people as they waited to see Dr. Ron (on left). We saw more than 200 people in four days' time, and extracted at least 600 teeth! It was unbelievable! And Ron wasn't the only one having fun. We all took turns helping at the clinic, and several of us learned to give shots, pull teeth and even suture wounds!

When not in rotation at the clinic we traveled throughout the area making home visits on several of our Tumaini kids. We visited about 25 families, delivering bags of food and blankets, finding out the conditions in each place, and encouraging the guardians as well as the children. Two great highlights: both Pam and Amanda each found a child they wanted to sponsor, and they signed up to do so! You should have seen the faces of the children they chose! Now they have a new and stronger sense of hope as they have seen God work on their behalf.

Our team has done such a great job together. They have probably laughed more than any team and they have bonded in a special way. God has drawn us together in a special kind of unity that has given us the ability to do more than we thought possible. Close friends became closer and new friendships developed in quick and deep fashion. We are one, and I am proud of them and all they have weathered together.

Thanks again for your prayers. They have been answered beyond your understanding, and Jesus has been lifted up in the lives of those around us in a real way. Our desire was to simply be a blessing to the people of Kenya, and in so doing God has blessed us beyond measure. Isn't that just like Him?!

Tumaini- Kiswahili for Hope

We are currently in the town of Masii, a couple of hours south and east of Nairobi. We have no Internet here, so this post required the 30-minute trip to the neighboring town of Machakos in order to send it. The team is doing well- you’d be proud of them. We kicked off a week-long dental clinic yesterday, with Dr. Ron Jurgensen seeing more than 40 patients. We are only equipped to pull teeth, but there were plenty to be pulled! Ron (with the rest of us rotating in and out as assistants) worked eight hours, and will do so again today. It’s a long day, but worth it when we see the look of relief that comes with the remedy for a diseased, painful tooth.

While some are pulling teeth, others are making home visits to some of the AIDS orphans supported (through Tumaini International Ministries) by Knott Avenue Church members. What a joy to enter a home where the help that many of you give provides hope for those living there. For only $30 monthly, we help meet the physical and educational needs of a child who has lost one or both parents to AIDS. I was able to visit Mutinda Mboya, the boy our family sponsors. He and his brother lost their mom to AIDS while very young (he is now 17 yrs. old) and their dad simply walked away from the family, leaving them with their grandmother. To compound the pain in their lives, he remarried and lives not 30 minutes from them, yet they have never met him. But they both told me, “It’s OK, even if we never meet our father, because we have a Heavenly Father and He will never leave us.”

Their faith and courage are typical of so many of these Tumaini youth who are determined to become all God desires them to be, and have a chance to do so because people like you care enough to make a difference in their lives. For those of you who give, thank you for all you do. You can find out more about this outstanding work at

www.tumainiinternational.org.