Over The Pond

New Blog Site

2006-11-16T17:27:00.000Z

I have expanded and moved my blog site to: http://alan.waldecker.net

More Picts

2006-09-21T14:22:00.000+01:00

I wanted to show you a few more pictures of this church I preached at last Sunday. It's building dates from 1100-1600 in it's various sections. Sadly our digital camera doesn't work very well any more. It looks like my phone took better pictures last time!

Preaching in an Anglican Church

2006-09-03T22:01:00.000+01:00

Today I preached in two Anglican churches in Cumbria (also known as the Lake District - about an hour north of us). It was my first time at an actual service of the Church of England. The two rural churches were about 5 miles apart. The picture here (taken on my cell phone, since I didn't have my camera with me) is of one of them, built....in 1180! There's actually a plaque on the wall with the list of pastors from 1180 to the present. It was fun - and a bit intimidating - standing up in a high pulpit that was built in the 1500's! I'll be back there in two weeks, and I'll try to remember to bring along my camera.

The second church was what is known as an Anglo-Catholic church - which means it's far more traditional, and retains a lot of Catholic influence. It was interesting, especially the "Holy Communion", which felt very Catholic. People "received the host" like you would in a Catholic church, and of course the poor Vicar had to drink all the remaining wine and eat all the remaining bread. But he seemed quite happy about it (for an 83 year old man)!

Surprise Anniversary

2006-09-03T21:52:00.000+01:00

Melissa surprised us with a 25th wedding anniversary bash. It was hosted at the pub where she works, and she prepared the entire buffet meal (for 30+ people). It was a great time to celebrate with friends. Drew & Lissa prepared an embarrassing slide presentation of our life (old pictures can come back to haunt you!). And of course, there was LOTS of food. All in all, it was quite a fun evening!

Scottish Castle

2006-09-03T21:46:00.000+01:00

While we were up in Scotland, we took a walk and ran across this magnificent castle. It was built in the early 1200's. I never get over the awesome history of places like this one.

Scotland

2006-08-17T19:28:00.001+01:00

We spent about 10 days "farm-sitting" for a family up in Scotland. The kids especially enjoyed bottle feeding the lambs. And the peace and quiet was soothing. I even took the kids home for 3 days so Janie could soak it up alone. She had a smile on her face when we returned!

However, The Mini DID Die!

2006-08-07T13:12:00.000+01:00

After spending a week up to my elbows in grease - a head gasket job - another blown head - a new replacement head - and another blown head - it became apparent that the engine block on the mini was cracked and beyond repair. So, she's off today to get a new engine put in her. Well, not exactly NEW, as they don't make these any more, but "another" engine. It was a lot of grease, a lot of time, a lot of frustration...but at least I learned a lot! Here comes the tow truck...got to go.

Summer Holidays

2006-07-23T20:49:00.000+01:00

The summer holiday season officially kicked off here in the UK this weekend. I know it's a bit late for summer to start - but this is Europe, not America. The next 6 weeks finds a frenzy of family vacations - everyone seems to cram them in at the same time.

We have a holiday time away planned for August. We will be housitting for a family in Scotland - on a farm! I'll let you know how that goes.

And this week I plan to start some major work on Lissa's mini while she's in the US. I plan to change the head gasket. Anyone want to come and help? Anybody out there with a torque wrench? Help.....

Janie Passed (her driving test - she's not dead!)

2006-07-04T19:44:00.000+01:00

Janie passed her driving exam this past Friday. Hooray! That makes us Waldecker's 3 for 3 on our first try. She can now drive legally. It took us just over a year, but we managed to get this huge hurdle behind us. Praise The Lord!!

World Cup

2006-06-25T19:02:00.000+01:00

We hosted a World Cup party this afternoon to watch England vs. Ecuador. We had a variety of folks over, from neighbors, to school friends, to football boys, to church friends. It was a fun party, but a boring game. Somehow England managed to eek out a win while boring the fans to sleep. I think there was more "footy" action at the half time and after game match in the front yard!

Emma's Visit

2006-06-25T13:53:00.000+01:00

We have a summer visitor from the States. Emma is a friend of our dear friends in the States, Chad & Lynn Hembel. She is the same age as Philip and this is her first trip overseas. We took a hike yesterday in north Wales with a group from the kid's school. It was a beautiful trip up and around a 850' hill overlooking the ocean (in Llandudno - prounounced CClandudno, with lots of spit)!

A Nice Visit

2006-06-22T17:52:00.000+01:00

While we were in France last week, we had the opportunity to drive down to Barcelona to visit a friend, Ellen. Ellen was a youth group leader at our church in California when Melissa was in middle school and early high school. She is now serving with Agape (Campus Crusade) in Barcelona, where she is involved with evangelism to young people.

We also got a chance to go to church with her on Sunday. One of the pastors at her church is also an old friend of one of my good buddies, Aaron James. And both of the pastors are grads of Westminster. Although my Spanish is a bit rusty, I was able to follow the gist of the sermon.

It's exciting for me to see when God takes the fruit of our labor and sends it out across the world to continue producing fruit.

A Nice Break

2006-06-22T17:42:00.000+01:00

Janie and I were able to get away this past week to France. And it was a very welcome break. We were celebrating our 25th wedding anniversary (which isn't actually until August) early, since a man in the church here offered us use of his place in Perpignan, France. It was a great week of rest, peace and quiet.

Ironically, years ago I promised Janie to take her to Paris on our 25th. We both laughed. Once again, the laughter of God's grace is greater than the cynicism of our laughter. Although we opted to stay away from the chaos of Paris itself, it was a apt reminder of how God provides beyond all we could ever ask or imagine.

She Passed!

2006-06-06T15:07:00.000+01:00

Melissa passed her driving test today. She's all official to take off on her own now. We are so proud of her - it is a very difficult test to pass. The average person takes 45 professional lessons to pass the test. Melissa did it with 4 or 5. This also means one more driver for a very busy household, and most importantly, a significant cut to our hefty petrol (gas) budget. Congrats Liss!

Sunday

2006-05-30T12:27:00.000+01:00

We went to a charismatic church in Manchester on Sunday. It was good worship, but missed the gospel (like most of the other churches we've been to). Whereas the evangelicals say to obey "because God says so", the charismatics give a great motivational speech for obeying - because God said so. But neither are very good at pointing to the cross as any motivation or empowerment to obey. In the end, it's still legalism - and sad to see.

On a very positive note, a couple was joining the church that day and being interviewed up front. During the course of the interview, I recognized his name and profile as a man that I had been e-mailing for a year now - but our busy schedules had kept us from getting together. Last I knew, he was the pastor of a Baptist church and the former head of Youth For Christ in the UK. He's also on the board of a number of youth outreach ventures in the UK. We managed to connect after the service, and plan to actually get together in the near future. God is good.

Baseball

2006-05-26T18:43:00.000+01:00

This week I ran across a guy who helped start a baseball league in Manchester. On Wednesday I took Caleb & Joshua, and on Thursday we took Philip to their respective teams to check it out. They all really enjoyed getting to play again. In fact, they all have games already tomorrow!

Melissa's Mini

2006-05-06T17:01:00.000+01:00

Melissa's Mini,
originally uploaded by alan waldecker.

Melissa got herself a car recently. It's a 1983 Austin Mini. It's a teeny little thing...the top hits me between my stomach and chest. She needed her own car for driving to work - the extra gas mileage was killing us! Janie was able to reduce the driving in her car by half - to a single tank of gas a week (at 45 pounds a pop - that's $75 a week in gas instead of $150!). So it's a huge help to all of us. Now she only needs to get her license - which she hopes to do in the next month.

She actually needed the car to pratcice her driving in as well, since Janie's automatic has too big an engine for the insurance company to cover her - and she isn't willing to learn to drive my stick shift.

So far I've had to replace the thermostat and the water pump (which includes taking out the radiator!). I've ordered a technical manual for repairing the car. I have a feeling we will be spending a lot of intimate time together in the years to come:).

I Passed!

2006-04-06T17:29:00.000+01:00

Today I took my driving test. And I passed! Hooray! What a relief - and a huge burden off my back. It takes about twice as long as one in the States - and encompasses a lot more. But I managed to get through just fine. I guess all those months driving the RV across the country finally paid off! Now for Janie...and Lissa...

Driving

2006-03-23T15:42:00.000Z

Learning to drive in the UK has been a challenging experience. Everything is closer here - tighter turns, cars coming at you in your lane, lanes only wide enough for one car at a time, narrow winding roads. But has graciously enabled us to make our way around and feel fairly comfortable. Until now! Driving in the UK is ONE thing. Getting a license is quite another! I managed to pass my theory test (written exam) without much trouble (if you consider several months of study "not much trouble"). But the driving portion of the exam is unbelievably...stupid. No, it really is! You cross your arms over one another on the steering wheel or "palm" the wheel - you fail. You back around a corner without constantly looking both backward and forwards while staying within a foot of the curb - and you fail. And here's my favorite: the 3 point turn (which in reality is a 10-15 point turn, since the roads are too narrow for a mere 3). You must turn the vehicle around, without wheels touching either curb, and then engage the handbrake inbetween each gear change (to keep all that .0005 mph momentum from thrusting you into the curb), all the while not holding up traffic - or you fail! Corners MUST be taken in second gear. Try changing a gear or turning on a blinker without FIRST looking in your rear view mirror - and you fail! Fail to look in same said mirror for a period longer than 5 seconds - and you fail! Pull in front of the never ending lines of traffic - and you're creating a hazard. But FAIL to pull in front and you're docked for hesitation! It's obvious (even to Brits who hate the test as much as me) that the test is not to see if you know how to drive (legally, safely, etc.)...but only to see if you can drive PROPERLY. Which means - think of any advice or good idea anybody ever had about ways to make driving safer - turn them into immovable laws - and turn psychopathic power hungry neo-nazi's loose on the public to enforce them as driving testers. They say the average person needs 45 professional lessons (@ £20 per hour) to pass the exam. Well, today I spent my first £20. Only £880 to go! (By the way, Melissa passed her written portion of the exam today - congrats). And Janie is quivering in the wings. Pray for us!!

Cold!

2006-03-21T16:08:00.000Z

I'm tired of the cold. I've been cold for so long, I don't even remember what it feels like to be warm again. Day after day of 30's - occasionally breaching the 40's - cold winds - snow - rain. Standing for hours on the football field in freezing cold - sore for the next two days from all the shivering. I'm ready for spring! The time changes to "summer" hours here this weekend. Maybe that will bring some warmth?

All Settled & Busy

2006-03-10T09:12:00.000Z

The move is done! God was gracious to us in this move, making it far smoother and easier than I imagined. We are now settled in the new place, and only a couple of stray boxes remain here and there throughout the house. It's always easier to settle in to a larger place - and we are all appreciating the space to move around without bumping into each other (at least not quite as much).

Football is up and running as well. Our first two weeks of practice have brought about 25-30 boys, and I am slowly getting the help I need to forge them into a team. It has also brought me a lot of contacts in the community - both with the Senior Titan organization as well as through the public media.

Melissa has started her new job as an assistant chef at a motel/pub. A couple in the Warrington church just bought it and hired her on to help cook the meals for the guests. She works long 10 hour days and is exhausted and sore. But she's loving it!

And next week the kids all start school. They all seem excited and eager for the new challenge. They're at the stage of buzz right now about lunch boxes, books, bags, and wondering what it will all be like. Janie and I walked in to find Bryce watching some Disney show about a school kid, and he said, "Since I'm going to school, I need to learn what it's going to be like. How will I know when lunch is if I don't know that bell." It did little good to explain that there's only one other person in his class - and it will hardly be like the TV show. But he'll figure it out!

So that's what life looks like from the upside down world of "everything changing over two week's time". God is good. And faithful. And we're excited to see how the days ahead unfold.

New Hobby

2006-02-09T16:09:00.000Z

Manchester Titans,
originally uploaded by alan waldecker.

This past week I agreed to be the head coach for the Manchester Titans Youth (age 16-19) football team. It's a new team starting up this year, under the supervision of the Titans Senior team (age 19+). It should be a lot of work...and a lot of fun. It's also a bit intimidating. But I'm hoping there will be many opportunities to network with the senior club and mentor some of the older teens. Just one more thing to add to a busy schedule...

New House

2006-02-05T09:28:00.000Z

New House,
originally uploaded by alan waldecker.

Well...we're moving. Here's our new house in Manchester. It's not the 12 bedooms we had dreamed of, but the 6 it does have will suit us well for now. And God provided it for less than we had projected (not quite double the rent). And...we will be moving in 10 days! Yikes. As you can imagine, things are a bit hectic around here right now. More to come later...

Ball Is Rolling

2006-01-25T09:18:00.000Z

I had a good meeting this week with some of the leaders from the North West Partnership. We were talking about how to facilitate church planting in this area. And they were very receptive to my suggestions on how to move forward. We laid out a strategy for fund raising, and we were able to talk extensively about how to get seminary-level theological training started. If everyone follows through on their part, we hope to be able to bring a proposal to the Partnership leadership team in the next month, and to the full body by this Fall. It would probably start as a small pilot program with a few churches. Please pray for all the things that need to be done...attitudes that need to be adjusted (this type of learning style is foreign to the UK)...funds that need to be raised...and potential candidates that need to be targeted.

Leading Worship

2005-12-31T17:39:00.000Z

Leading Worship,
originally uploaded by alan waldecker.

It was a dark candlelight service, so the picture isn't the best quality...but I wanted to show you a picture from our Christmas Eve service, where Melissa was leading worship, and Caleb was on bass and Philip on drums.

Anti-Narnia

2005-12-20T23:44:00.000Z

I thought some of you might be interested in seeing how warped the typcial British perspective is on Christianity. Below are excerpts from a recent newspaper article (Polly Toynbee, Guardian, 12/5/05) bashing the recently released Narnia movie.

Most British children will be utterly clueless about any message beyond the age-old mythic battle between good and evil. Most of the fairy story works as well as any Norse saga, pagan legend or modern fantasy, so only the minority who are familiar with Christian iconography will see Jesus in the lion. After all, 43% of people in Britain in a recent poll couldn't say what Easter celebrated. Among the young - apart from those in faith schools - that number must be considerably higher. Ask art galleries: they now have to write the story of every religious painting on the label as people no longer know what "agony in the garden", "deposition", "transfiguration" or "ascension" mean. This may be regrettable cultural ignorance, but it means Aslan will stay just a lion to most movie-goers.

Of all the elements of Christianity, the most repugnant is the notion of the Christ who took our sins upon himself and sacrificed his body in agony to save our souls. Did we ask him to? Poor child Edmund, to blame for everything, must bear the full weight of a guilt only Christians know how to inflict, with a twisted knife to the heart. Every one of those thorns, the nuns used to tell my mother, is hammered into Jesus's holy head every day that you don't eat your greens or say your prayers when you are told.

[H]ere in Narnia is the perfect Republican, muscular Christianity for America - that warped, distorted neo-fascist strain that thinks might is proof of right…Children are supposed to fall in love with the hypnotic Aslan, though he is not a character: he is pure, raw, awesome power. He is an emblem for everything an atheist objects to in religion. His divine presence is a way to avoid humans taking responsibility for everything here and now on earth, where no one is watching, no one is guiding, no one is judging and there is no other place yet to come. Without an Aslan, there is no one here but ourselves to suffer for our sins, no one to redeem us but ourselves: we are obliged to settle our own disputes and do what we can. We need no holy guide books, only a very human moral compass. Everyone needs ghosts, spirits, marvels and poetic imaginings, but we can do well without an Aslan.

Seminar

2005-12-01T15:33:00.000Z

Just a quick note to let you know...our seminar on Parenting By Grace went well. No one threw anything at us - always a good sign - and everyone seemed to enjoy it. Thanks for all your prayers.

The Two Hour Lunch

2005-11-04T15:13:00.000Z

So, you remember that seminar on Parenting by Grace...? Yeah, it comes a week from tomorrow...

Well, Janie and I went out for a lunch meeting today with the lead church planter and his wife from Grace Fellowship. Good meeting...lots of helpful discussion. Meanwhile, back at the ranch.....

In the span of those two hours...let's see...where to begin. Bryce's painting at the table somehow managed to splatter on EVERYTHING...walls, floor, chairs, etc. Even with washable paint, the white walls are still a bit stained. Ahh, if only things could have stopped there. Let's see, next, Caleb was out vacuuming Janie's car (hoovering, for those of you who are British), and needed to move the car closer to the house so the cord could reach. Drew, in his infinite wisdom, decided to "supervise" Caleb inching the car forward - yes behind the wheel! However, in Caleb's wisdom, the gears were put in motion before he bothered to ask "which" pedal stops the car. Yeah, you guessed it, the car shot forward, right through the garage door. It smashed into our storage area, and pushed the boys huge wardrobe a couple of feet forward (since that garage is also their bedroom). Good thing no one was in there at the time. But the door will have to be replaced. And then, of course, the rushing back and forth to try and "bang" the door back into place meant tons of mud all over the white carpet (because it's always raining here...and of course, they didn't bother to put the mud rug in front of the door). Ahh, if it only could have ended there! About that time, Bryce fell off Philip's bunk bed ladder, flipped forward, and banged his head on a lower rung. THIS is about the time we received our first call - "you'd better come home". Janie is still at the hospital with Bryce, but years of experience says this will take about 6-8 stitches to pull the gap in his head back together (actually, they ended up gluing it back together...no stitches)!

Parenting certainly takes grace. And poor Drew...poor Bryce...poor Caleb.

p.s Janie thinks this all is funny!

Halloween Irony

2005-10-31T19:27:00.000Z

I find it quite ironic that in America - supposedly a Christian nation - Halloween is so widely celebrated...while in the UK, a decidedly pagan culture, VERY few participate in the annual deluge of candy. In California - just in our neighborhood alone, hundreds and hundreds of kids will be out on the streets tonight. A kid can brind home a pillow case full of candy in less than an hour. But tonight here in the UK, only one kid stopped at the door. And Bryce's venture around the streets surrounding our house netted him less than a handful. Oh well, that leaves lots of extra from what we didn't give out. Good thing Janie bought the good stuff!

Church in a Pub

2005-10-25T15:42:00.000+01:00

The Plant,
originally uploaded by alan waldecker.

Lately I've been hanging out more with the guys from The Plant (theplant.net), a new church plant in Manchester. As they say, it's "church outside the box", and they have been effectively reaching the 20-something crowd. This weekly meeting (worship service) takes place in a pub. About 50 people sit around tables of 4-6 and share a meal, fellowship, and post-sermon discussion...while the group sings and listens to in-depth Bible study/sermons for 40 minutes together. This is one of two meeting sites for The Plant.

Football @ the Britbowl

2005-09-26T12:59:00.000+01:00

Football @ the Britbowl,
originally uploaded by alan waldecker.

Philip's American football team played an exhibition game this weekend during the Britbowl (national championships). Philip is the fourth dot on the left.

His team beat the team named best American Football team in northern England (yes, there are quite a few) by a score of 18-0. I guess they aren't the best any more?

As a proud father I also have to say that Philip scored all 18 points, recovered 3 fumbles, got one interception, and had a goal-line to goal-line (not sure how far that is) catch for a touchdown. He also had at least half of the tackles. Philip's take? "It was fun."

When the other team was boasting of their success and their victory in this match last year (before the game), his team mates responded, "Yeah, but now we have Phil." "Who's Phil." they asked. And I love their response. "He's our American dude."

Busy Times

2005-09-21T16:21:00.000+01:00

Ok, so summer is officially over. And so is the grace period for getting settled. And life is becoming increasingly busy. Staff meetings at the church, leading a Home Group, teaching a Galatians Bible study (twice), preaching regularly, mentoring worship leaders, meeting with EG leaders around the North West, teaching theology & writing to the kids, the taxi service to two football practices and one soccer practice, off to Presbytery this week to transfer into the IPC (International Presbyterian Church), mentoring a seminary itern, trying to be a husband and father...well, as I say, it's been busy. Also, still thinking and praying about if and how and when to plant an EG church, how and where to most effectively mentor those who will, buying a small hotel, B&B or pub to be the hub of all this activity. Overwhelming and Exciting! And all this in the brain of a man who turns 44 in two days. It's a good thing hundreds of people are praying for me every day!

No Gas!

2005-09-13T18:06:00.000+01:00

No Gas!,
originally uploaded by alan waldecker.

It's bad enough that we have the highest gas prices in the world (currently around $7.00 per gallon). Now it can't be had at any price! After a spike in prices after hurricane Katrina, protesters are staging shut downs at refineries - protesting not only high prices, but 60% taxes on each litre of petrol (and the fact that haulers from France can truck in goods much cheaper, thus putting British haulers out of work). This has caused panic buying of gas. The government has assured us that there is plenty of gas and no need to panic. But after trying 4 local stations which were all out of gas, I returned home with less gas than I had before!

Graduation

2005-09-03T17:42:00.000+01:00

After 12 years of home schooling (only her freshman year in a public high school), Melissa finished her high school this summer. With all the craziness of moving overseas, we missed any opportunity to celebrate it. So last night we had a graduation ceremony for her. She certainly had one of the most creative and varied educational opportunities that any kid ever experienced! Her high school years took her from a public high school, to living on the road in an rv for 18 months, trips to England and Spain, and now to living overseas. Our prayer is that God would use these varied circumstances to prepare her for living in a global world and give her a heart of compassion for the variety of cultures it represents. Congrats!

Some Responses

2005-08-22T09:48:00.000+01:00

My last post asked the question: "Is there some degree to which we idolize the absolute authority of Scripture?" And I have some thoughts to add to the responses.

Operating under the assumption that it's always easier to see the speck of dust in someone else's eye rather than the plank in our own, let's look at "them" for a starter. What are some ways in which "they" idolize Scripture? You certainly could point to those who claim that there is only one authoritative version of the Bible - and all else are corrupted and evil. That, I think, is an idolization of the authority of Scripture. It says, "we own the corner on the distribution of absolute truth - it's KJV or NIV or whatever." Then there are those who, like the Pharisees, use the Scripture as a way of justifying their behavior so that they need a Savior less than others. They are more pure, more holy, more righteous than those who can't keep up with their moral achievements. And this, I think, is done under the pretense that they have the absolute authority of Scripture as their backing.

My question is simply this. If "they" misuse the authority of Scripture in these ways...are there ways in which we do the same - but possibly are blind to it? This in no way challenges the absolute authority of Scripture. I firmly believe in it. I agree that there is no greater authority. But I do challenge whether we "own" or have a "corner" on it - simply because we have a more pure or consistent theology of Scripture.

But neither is it the ONLY authority. Paul himself affirms that nature itself is an absolute authority on God. Certainly, nature cannot show us a Savior - and for this we certainly DO need the Scriptures. But my point was: do we too quickly assume that the only evangelistic tool we have at our disposal is to take people to the pages of Scripture - take people to churches to hear sermons - invite them to Bible studies...when what they might need is a wise application of Scripture into their cultural context? Take for instance how Paul approached evangelism. To Jews he quoted Scripture as his authority. To pagans in Greece, he quoted their poets to prove a Scriptural point.

And this was the heart of my question: can our high view of the authority of Scripture actually keep us from seeing the most appropriate means of connecting with a pre-Christian heart? Are we at times shooting ourselves in the foot and inept at pagan outreach because we too quickly assume that our appreciation of the authority of Scripture can and ought to be grasped by a pagan who rejects it? Another way to put it would be: if God created every person for a longing to be in relationship with him, how can I most effectively tap into that person's longing in a way that they can understand and relate to? Certainly everything I say to him is based on the absolute authority of Scripture - but if that holds no authority for him - but the desire to be loved DOES - then shouldn't I start there? My point is that I think we lack creativity in relating to pagans, because we assume too quickly that the obvious truth of the pages of Scripture will be obvious to them...or even worse, that it will never be obvious until the Spirit shows him, so all I have to do is keep pointing him to Scripture until the Spirit enlightens him. Which, if you think about it, in it's most tactless way, is what folks do who hold up John 3:16 signs at ballgames or carry placards with verses on it. There's nothing wrong with those verses. But surely there are more effective and creative ways of bringing the truth to bear to a pre-Christian heart. I think we need to recognize that the longing for God is already there - and creative evangelism learns how to tap into that longing in a way that is winsome and powerful. With this most would agree. But I fear that it is our very high view of the authority of Scripture that often stifles our creativity and cheapens outreach to merely getting folks to church - a Bible study - to merely hearing the Word, rather than speaking the truth into their deepest longings.

Idolizing The Authority of Scripture?

2005-08-18T17:26:00.000+01:00

I was talking with someone this week about outreach in a postmodern environment. And as we discussed various methods, it occured to me that we often have overly narrow hang-ups about outreach in circles like ours, where the authority of Scripture is so paramount. Now, I don't disbelieve in the authority of Scripture. But it made me wonder - have we made an idolatry out of this precious doctrine?

Here's what I mean: is truth true because the Bible says so...or does the Bible speak truth because it reflects the ultimate truth of God? And I fear at times that our dogged commitment to the absolute authority of Scripture has created an idolatry that taints how we look at outreach. It narrows our views of evangelism to theological correctness, since we are pointing people to the truth: the Bible! Instead of giving us a passion for people as we point them to the truth: Jesus!

There are countless ways that I think this paradigm minimizes evangelism. Conversion becomes seeing the light of reformed doctrine or giving assent to a series of facts. Worship becomes a series of true and compelling facts about God. Discipleship becomes refining errant theology. Church outreach becomes a series of programs to generate more folks at our various events. We point people to churches where biblical truth is faithfully proclaimed. But should we be pointing them to Jesus instead? Should we be confronting them with the truth of Scripture (which holds no authority for them) or should we confront them with the ultimate truth that lies behind Scripture (and to which Scripture obviously points)? Will a book or a church or a theology save them...or do they need a Savior?

This may seem like nit-picking...or even heresy to some! Certainly Scripture is the only infallible rule for faith and practice for the believer. But is it the only source of truth from which we may encounter pre-Christians? And does our absolute commitment to the authority of Scripture create an idolatry that warps how we do outreach? Comments? Thoughts?

Gracious Provisions

2005-08-12T12:33:00.000+01:00

God has been providing in some pretty amazing ways for us. In fact, there are more ways than I can recount here. But let me just give you a few from one day last week.

First, the laptop I've had since we started on the road 3 years ago died - well, at least the mother board did. I spent a few days trying to track down whether it was still covered under the international warranty I had purchased. I found out that it was still covered - my 3 years coverage runs out on August 16! Savings: $1500.

Second, I was doing some work on my car. In doing so, I disconnected the battery for a few seconds. A big no-no here in the UK. It activated an immobilizer (which most cars have here) and I couldn't start it. No manual came with it, so there was no record of a code to unlock the system. And since I bought a Rover - which went bankrupt this past year - I was told by a local dealer that a code for my car couldn't be had anywhere in the UK. My only option would be to have it towed, install a new lock system - and be without a car for a week or more. After praying and agonizing (more agonizing than praying), I finally found another dealer that gave me an unlock code right over the phone! And no sooner had I unlocked it, than the used dealership I had bought it from called to say that they were sending over a guy to install a remote control lock for the car - since it should have had one - and this would keep this from happening again! Savings: thousands!

In addition to that one fruitful day - God has been providing bikes for us. Since we arrived, we've wanted to find bicycles for everyone - a very expensive proposition here. And since shops don't sell many used ones (government regulations) and they don't have garage sales here - it was a long a arduous process of tracking down leads in various papers. But God was more creative than that. The boys found one at the bottom of a river (we fished it out from a bridge). I found one at the dump. Two neighbors loaned us ones they were no longer using. A family at church gave one to Brea. And a couple of leads in the paper produced the rest. A few trips to the local bike shop, and most are repaired well enough to get us on the road!

Crime On The Rise?

2005-07-20T10:42:00.000+01:00

Since the bombings in London two weeks ago, there has been an awful string of violent crimes here in our area. Maybe I'm just noticing them more. Maybe it's nothing new. But in a culture known for it's lack of violent crime, it strikes me as noteworthy.

A 10 year old girl was brutally murdered here in Leigh. A boy was shot in the back with a ball bearing gun, while fleeing several youths who tried to steal his bike. Three girls, ages 7 & 8 were raped in a park by a 14 year old. A 12 year old girl was annoyed by a 5 year old boy following her...so she strung him up and hung him from a tree. He nearly died.

I suppose every major city has it's share of violent crime. But I wouldn't have expected it here. Is this the result of a generation raised without God in their lives? Is this the fruit of a generation of parents who consciously wanted to be free from the moral guidance of the church? Or is this simply the effects of sin in a fallen world? I'm not sure of the causes of all this crime. But one thing is sure. It creates a climate of heightened interest in the growing problems of the youth culture here in the UK. And it reminds me of the overwhelming need of the gospel to reach into the brokenness that surrounds us.

Stay Out Of London!

2005-07-07T21:11:00.000+01:00

Stay Out Of London!,
originally uploaded by alan waldecker.

Just a quick note to let all of you know that we are safe and ok. Janie and I were away for the past two days at a planning meeting with out team. The kids were home alone. And were they scared? The boys didn't even know about it! What you can't see on this sign along the road during our trip home today: "Stay Out Of London...Listen To Your Radio". We did both.

Concert in the Park

2005-07-04T11:24:00.000+01:00

Concert in the Park,
originally uploaded by alan waldecker.

Went to an outdoor Christian concert last night in Manchester. The music was ok - but all hip-hop - and mostly "white". I miss the creativity of 5 Minute Walk bands like Five Iron Frenzy.

The greatest disappointment was the "message" time, where a high energy speaker urged the kids to make a decision for Christ. I stood in the back by the tent where kids were urged to go and pray with someone. No one came the entire evening. Which didn't surprise me. And wasn't because this is some horribly pagan place. It was because the only motivation he gave was the chance to avoid going to hell some day. It was a message that resonated like a lead baloon. There was nothing about the brokenness of their world. Nothing about the satisfaction for the deep longings of their heart. Just fire insurance. It was a message that apparently had little impact on the drunk 14 year old lesbians who paraded through the crowd looking for a "drag".

Lissa on her way to work

2005-06-29T16:25:00.000+01:00

Lissa on her way to work,
originally uploaded by alan waldecker.

Since we arrived over a month ago, Melissa has been looking for a part time job. She finally found one! She works - where else - at a Fish & Chips shop. She bikes daily to the Chip shop, where she works about 20 hours per week. The most difficult part of the job? Trying to understand the customers. Her boss often has to translate for her so she can find things like an "or" - known by us Americans as a "fork"!

Daily Frustrations

2005-06-16T09:43:00.000+01:00

Sometimes it's hard to convey just how frustrating it can be to try and set up life in a new culture. Most of your assumptions about how things ought to work are wrong. And few know how to tell you, since they can't even imagine what assumptions you don't know!

Take for instance the process of trying to get a cell phone. I stopped by (the first time) to get a phone, and was told that I needed a bill or bank statement that had been mailed to my house. Since it takes at least a month before any bills arrive (and most of them end up getting set up by direct debit rather than any paper bills through the mail), it can be a very long time before anything arrives.

I made several more trips to the phone store, with what I thought were bills in hand. However, they turned out to be letters telling me that bills would be coming some day soon. On one of my trips, the girl suggested that I stop by my bank (which had just closed for the day) and ask them to mail me a bank statement. I called the next day and got them to mail me one.

Ten days later, I received my bank statement. I took it along with my passport (the other required document) to get my cell phone (called a "mobile" here). The same guy I had been dealing with for the previous two and a half weeks, sat down with me and said, "I'm sorry, this isn't going to work. You can't get a cell phone (on a monthly contract) here in the UK unless you've actually lived here for at least 3 years." It had something to do with the inability to do a credit check on my past.

My jaw dropped. I felt like ringing his neck! "Why didn't you tell me the first time?!" He obviously knew from our conversations that we had just moved here from the States!

Take this scenario, and multiply it many times over. From bank accounts (Janie STILL isn't on my bank accout - and no debit card, since no bills have come in her name yet!), to credit cards, car insurance, the nasty letter I got in the mail saying I hadn't paid for my TV license, trying to get doctors and medicine.... It goes on and on.

It's a daily lesson in learning to LIVE by grace, not just preach it on Sundays. It's as if God is arranging everything around us to whittle away at our self sufficiency and turn our reliance more upon him.

And speaking of grace, I ended up walking out of the store yesterday with a cell phone! I still don't know how the guy did it. Maybe he lied and said I had been here 3 years. I don't know. He was banging all sorts of things into his computer. But whatever he did, God provided once again!

Settling In

2005-06-08T13:00:00.000+01:00

It's been far too long since I've added any updates here. And that's indicative of just how busy life has been.

Our shipping container arrived on Saturday, and we've been up to our necks in boxes. We're finally beginning to see the floor again and we hope to have all the boxes put away by the end of the week. Thankfully, everything arrived safely - nothing damaged that we've noticed yet.

We've managed to construct two bedrooms out of the two garages for the boys. They call it "the cave", since it has no light. But that's the way they like it - no glare on the TV screen for Nintendo! Its helped to get them settled in their own space, and Philip finally has his own bed (he was on the couch for a week).

Philip was able to make it to football practice this past weekend. And it was a real hit. The team was surprisingly talented, though to Philip's liking, they were short on talent at the defensive back position. A perfect fit for him. He was also pleased at the balance between how serious they focused on the game, and having fun.

My first regular sermon on Sunday went well...even with technical glitches. It was their monthly "family" service, and I tried to use a video clip to illustrate a point and to help bring the kids into things. After two of us spent most of the singing time on our knees up front (trying to duck under the line of site for the overhead) working with odd patch cords, adapters, transformers, a blown fuse, etc., I got up to preach with all my equipment ready to roll. Just as I came over to take off the lens cap for my projector, there was a white puff of smoke wafting up from a blown transformer. But I managed to expain what they would have seen sufficiently, I think.

The kids are slowly settling in. Having some of their familiar belongings from the shipping container has helped. And as busy as we've been, we've tried to spend some fun family time together each evening. But they still miss their friends and the flurry of activity they were a part of back home.

Janie has been making daily trips to the grocery store, and is slowly figuring out how to find food the kids will eat. She's even got them eating fish and chips. Everything (with the exception of bread for some strange reason) is far more expensive here. And my jaw dropped when I filled up both cars (small cars!) with gas and paid over $120! That same gas in the States would have been under $30.

Well, back to more unpacking....thanks for the prayers and please keep them coming!!

Emotional Chaos

2005-05-26T18:09:00.000+01:00

Well, we're here. In the UK. But tired, and weary, and emotionally frazzled. Just to give you a taste, our most steady, adaptable child, Philip, sat on the floor in tears last night. He has no room yet...nothing familiar...everything is weird and difficult. It's kind of like trying to run under water. You can get there, but it wears you out beyond belief.

We took the kids to McDonalds today (a place we normally we try to avoid) just to give them a taste of something familiar. And their special of the day was their curry chicken sandwich. We found the Big Macs!

Pray for the emotional transition for all of us. Tired whiny kids, lots of impatience (and us big kids aren't much better). Pray for logistics that at times seem impossible - trying to get a bank account, internet, a phone line, etc. They are MUCH more involved than in the States. And it's difficult to get by without them.

Thanks for your prayers. We are living and breathing and surviving on them!!

Ready to Go!

2005-05-17T20:26:00.000+01:00

Our house in Leigh,
originally uploaded by alan waldecker.

We're thankful for all your prayers for us as we spent the last week in the UK looking for housing. God provided in some amazing ways.

Although we had a half dozen homes to look at, only one would actually work for us. And it would have been our favorite anyway! And the cheapest! It also came fully furnished, so that saves us a lot of money and hassle. And it even comes with an outdoor cat - which is great since we'll have to leave our two here!

We were also able to get a couple of used vehicles (pray for grace in being able to drive on the left side of the road!). We only found one automatic (which Janie NEEDS), and it would have been our first choice - even among the stick shifts (mine)! God is so good again!!

We were able to wrap up all the things we need to get started next week - and we did it with a day to spare...so we flew home a day early.

Also, my Irish passport came in the mail yesterday. This was a huge relief, since entering without a visa would have been tricky. But now we can just pass right through with the other "locals". Praise God!

The RV is sold - signed my end of the paper work today. The buyer's should be done in a day or two, and then some friends drive it out to California to deliver it for us. Praise God I don't have to make the trip myself!!

It's now down to packing clothes, saying good bye to lots of friends, and making final preparations for heading over the pond next Tuesday!

We are thankful for your many prayers, and are humbled by God's gracious provisions.

Off to England!

2005-05-03T21:44:00.000+01:00

Off to England!,
originally uploaded by alan waldecker.

Today our shipment took off for England! It's been a busy few weeks getting everything all packed up. And now we're finally done! We had some great help getting things ready, and were able to get it loaded in the 2 hour window alloted to us (exactly). In spite of feeling sick with a nasty cold, God gave me strength to get this done today. Now off to the UK tomorrow to look for housing...

Opposition & Victory

2005-04-24T12:42:00.000+01:00

,
originally uploaded by awaldecker.

I always knew the last two weeks before the shipping container arrived would be the most critical, the most busy, the most important. Apparently the Opposer thought so as well. The week started with being sick, dragging my feet, willing myself to keep packing. God graciously answered your prayers with timely medicine and healing. A day later severe, debilitating allergies set in. I sneezed so much, my back was sore. Once again, God provided healing (and medicine!). And of course, the all-critical weekend for bringing RV viewers brought snow once again! In late April!

One week down. One more week to go. What will the Opposer throw at me this week? I don't know. I do know the snow will melt. And I know that what the evil one intends for my demise, God is using to remind me how just how desperately I need him.

Pray for God's protection in this key week ahead. And pray that each opposition will lead me not to self pity, but to a deeper reliance upon God's goodness and love for me.

Is that an earthquake I feel?

Adrenaline

2005-04-15T17:50:00.000+01:00

It's beginning to kick in - Adrenaline. With only two weeks to finish packing up our household, I'm beginning to feel the pressure. Waking up two hours early. That queasy feeling in the stomach. My mind always racing. Pray for calm nerves, restful sleep, and a deeper level of trust. Whewww... Breathe!

The Quest

2005-04-11T18:18:00.000+01:00

J.R.R. Tolkein said that an adventure is something you come back from - a Hobbit sort of thing - you know, there and back again. A quest however, is something from which you never really return - or if you do, you are so changed, you are never the same person. We started our quest nearly 3 years ago. We pulled up stakes, left our California world of soccer, High Tech Burritos, lots of friends, our church family....and set out to pursue a way to reach postmoderns in Western Europe with the gospel. I guess by some people's standards that makes us missionaries. I don't feel like a missionary. But then, I don't know what a missionary feels like. I just love young people. I love their radical honesty. I love the ways they move through life unbridled from the pretentious games that hold the rest of us captive. I love their disdain of the norms of culture. And I love the fertile ground this breeds for offering an alternative version of reality...a gospel version that says...playing and mastering the games of our culture mean nothing before a God who risked it all to give us what we could never achieve ourselves. It's a message that resonates with my soul, and with a disaffected generation that wants to be loved for who they are - not for what they can become. This is our "fool's hope": to bring this message of grace first to ourselves, and then have it spill over into the lives of our fellow disillusioned neighbors in postmodern Western Europe. It's a quest beyond our abilities, but our hope is that this God who "merely pushed us out the door" will use even weak fools like us to carry his banner of grace wherever he takes us.