POST by JED: For the Love of God!

On my DTS (Discipleship Training School) with Youth With a Mission in Sydney, Australia, there were stax of people from all over the World. 


Half of the team was from South Korea, a bunch of people incredibly well dressed, passionate about Church, disciplined like an army, and pray-ers like you've never seen. They would THROW themselves at the thrown of God! 

In the morning we'd finish up a bit of praise and worship and then the prayers would start. Prayer time kind of felt like a herd of elephants stampeding through the camp. I'd try to send up my own mighty prayers, but was always beaten back by the volume and intensity of my fellow disciples. I'd usually end up thanking the Lord for the two bits of dried toast I'd eaten for breakfast and then hold on to the chair in front, so as to not look like I was exaggerating the effects of this Spiritual Earthquake.

There were also a few Aussies on my DTS. Thank GOD for Aussies, I say... Good fun, laid back, great senses of humour, I was totally at home with them - except for the Queenslander... What is it with Queenslanders?

No DTS is complete without a contingency of Americans. We were blessed with two, a debonair chap and a genuine lass, who were classically Christian America. She watched what she said, did as she was told and was perpetually positive. Enough to make you sick! I found a real friend in her, someone to look up to and be guided by. The  fellow was a great example, took himself too seriously, dressed in polo's and khakis (the American male's casual-wear uniform), read his Bible heaps and liked to listen, rather than speak.

Timothy and Esther were Korean and Malaysian (in that order). Timothy grew up in a deaf orphanage, though had been wrongly diagnosed as a toddler. He was none-the-wiser, using sign language to communicate with his peers, carers and teachers, and attending lip reading classes.

The orphanage staff realised he wasn't deaf when they were gossiping about him in the next room and he came in to set them straight. The orphanage apologised and sent him on his way.

Esther, our resident Malaysian (so studious), was a very wise woman. Timothy and Esther now serve the Lord amongst Muslims in Asia.

Timothy had the most amazing stories regarding faith. One time the couple went into a bank as they needed to withdraw money. They were in desperate need. Whilst they were waiting in the queue Timothy noticed a table with money on it. The guard didn't seem to be aware of the money.

Timothy consequently walked over to the table and put the money into his bag. Esther called out to Timothy in Korean, "Timothy, I don't think you should be taking that money!" He said, "It's okay, my father sent it to me." Once Timothy had popped the money into his bag, they exited the building. Nobody said anything, nobody stopped them. Many bizarre things just like that happened to Timothy and Esther ALL the time.

I can share a snippet of a story relating to us. Whilst not quite as exciting as the bank episode, it was an event involving a great level of faith on the part of Timothy. When things got incredibly tough for Liz and I (there have been many times, but just imagine back to when we eloped) during our brief courtship (we were married within 5 months of knowing each other), he gave his wedding ring to me and told me to melt it down, sell the gold, and use the money to pay our debts. I told him I couldn't take the ring from him, but he'd have it no other way. He couldn't even look me in the eye! He just held out the ring and kept saying "please." I still have the ring to this day.

Back to my DTS... Of course there was Liz the Brit girl, whom I married... Gorgeous, fun, committed to the cause and delightfully quick witted. I now know the significance of the ring, cause I got gold I tell you, GOLD!

And then there were my fabulous friends from the Faroe Islands (Scandinavia - the Faroes are located to the northwest of Scotland, halfway between Norway and Iceland). I loved them the most (ummm... Besides Lizzie of course).

Jonhard, Eydna, Bogi, Lizzie and I terrorized New South Wales nonstop for 3 months. One day we'd be at Bondi, a suburban beach in Sydney, the next day we'd be swimming in a rocky waterfall-fed-lagoon, in the Blue Mountains.

I found the Faroese (under Danish rule at the time) to be overly direct and honest (and you think I speak my mind!), relaxed, passionate about Jesus, a pleasure to hang with, artistic, tranquil, understated and socialistic.

I'd had my first run-in with socialism at college, where I completed my higher school certificate, near the "Hills" district in Sydney's northwest (SILENCE! - To all of you who know the exact whereabouts!!!).

An American teacher adjudicated my class entitled "General Studies". This class, I believe, loosely covered topics pertaining to politics, sociology, and psychology. I don't really remember the specifics, but had a terrific time because of the insightful views of my adorable American teacher.

Now I had been trained by ATIA (the Advanced Training Institute of America, with Bill Gothard) and could not have been more right wing. During a training stint in Indianapolis, I had memorised Bible scriptures from the King James, sung hundreds of hymns, been awoken at 5am to participate in Bible studies, played volleyball in shirt and tie, watched choirs, violinists, bell ringers, and the works. I was practically at a Mormon training camp! I was as right-wing as President George Bush Senor, himself (he was President at the time).

However, during college I bent away from the right-wing camp I had grown up in and leaned over to take a closer look at what was going on with the leftists (I'm sure I thought they were all tree-hugging, tie-dye-wearing, macrobiotic-food-eating, Buddhists). They're not, however I have noticed that there tends to be less Christianity in the camp complimented with a greater level of humanism (which makes sense).  Though I do believe this phenomenon relates more to who constitutes the groups and how the groups were formed, rather than current issues floating about in the media and how we're going to save ourselves from global bankruptcy.

In some cultures, socialism is a bad word, akin to communism (which is, in my opinion, very, VERY bad). However, as I learnt, one of the major focuses, in relation to our political models, is the distribution of wealth. 


Under socialism, I was taught, generally health and education are universally accessible, which opens up the playing field to more participants within society (the most talented students across a nation get the best positions at university, which flows on to industry when both the private and public sectors are offered gifted and capable workers, rather than those who could afford outrageous fees in well-to-do universities, for example...).

I really appreciated my teacher's thoughtful responses to a lot of my hard-line, right wing questions. My American Maestra seemed to be very Christian and I imagined that Jesus would have wanted the same as that which she talked about - the rich giving to the poor, the able helping the disabled, the loved loving the unlovely. 

And so it was, back to DTS, I was sitting with my Faroese friend... She was excited as a letter (remember those days?) had arrived with word that her next move would be to Copenhagen for university. "What are you going to study?" I asked. "Medicine!" was her overly excited response. "Medicine?"

I was shocked. I didn't know anyone who had studied, or was studying medicine. In New South Wales, in the year 1995, the tertiary entrance rank for medicine was 99.5. This number meant that only the TOP half of the TOP percent of school leavers in the state would be eligible to study medicine.

"Wow", I said. "You're going to be rich!" Now the Faroese are typically Scandinavian. Their facial expressions mirror their emotions. They never, EVER brave a smile. "I'm not going to be rich!" she said a tad bit self-righteously (if you ask me). "I'm not studying medicine to make money, I'm studying medicine because I want to help people."

We sat there in momentary disbelief. She, shocked by my inappropriate response to her excitement, and me by her lack of won-the-lotto-glee! I learnt a lesson that day - we should be directed along our path by what God wants for us, financial reward shouldn't be the driver of our decision making. It's not about doing what makes us happy, but rather what pleases the Lord.

Today? Well, I don't know why we're surprised... The World is in a terrible place and we continue to look at our political structures as a source of solution to our human problems. Some idolise government structures and our principled past. They're flawed...

Europe is in a mess. Everything in the ENTIRE World apparently hinges on whether or not Greece leaves the European Union.

I check the Aussie dollar on a daily basis and the news alerts currently feature Greece. Australia makes HEAPS of money through raw materials , such as iron ore (the World's richest woman is Australian mining magnet, Gina Rinehart. Boring tidbit of info for you! But not a boring woman, faaar from it - she's thoroughly fascinating... Scandals, family drama, the journos down-under are having a field day...). China buys these products and exports them to Europe and America in the form of finished products.

If there is a slow-down in the US or Europe (If Greece exits the European Union, their demand for imports will most likely drop), then there is a slow-down in the Chinese manufacturing market, which means there is a lesser demand for Australian products. And so, when Greece is smiling and being cooperative, so is the Aussie dollar.

However, the problem is that Greece, and most countries within the EU, are losing their national sovereignty as the EU demands more political and fiscal control over national institutions. Germany and France, for the most part, are re-inventing history using economics as their firepower.

These two countries strongly believe in the benefits of free trade (who doesn't... in theory), however they also believe in a more centralised base of power. It's kind of like the position the US was in before the individual States surrendered their powers to the Federal Government. However, with regards to modern Europe, these countries have been around for thousands of years, and cultures are simultaneously being eroded away, and all for the love of money.

The US operates via a "free economic market" model, and have historically placed supreme importance on "letting the market decide." However, the market does not always know best and most certainly does not consider the needs of the poor and otherwise disadvantaged. The market is selfish, uncaring and unkind. This has been evidenced through stock crashes, the recent sub-prime mortgage crisis, unfair trade, rising unemployment, etc.

Economics is hard work. There has to be some level of government intervention. Laws are necessary to regulate markets and hold individuals accountable for their corporate actions. Yet some countries have too many laws. Lots of laws results in mountainous masses of corruption. An area of the World famous for corruption is Latin America.

Nicaragua is a country with a turbulent past. They have been abused by other countries. The USA, the former Soviet Union and now Russia, Venezuela, Cuba, Iran are all countries that use, or have used Nicaragua as a pawn for their own political gain. Imagine this, an American even invaded Nicaragua and pronounced himself President!

It's no wonder Nicaragua is left dazed and a little confused. It's no surprise that they have a bazillion laws (that coincidently nobody respects?). Nicaragua has been jostled about, had provisions imposed upon them and they've been left, after several natural disasters and years of civil war (and they say during the cold war that not a bullet was shot - tell that to a Nicaraguan - contra or Sandanista), scrambling to find/create a model of government, suitable to the West, East, North and South - but whilst still maintaining relevancy to their needs, with the right and the left never meeting in the middle. Conundrum? You have no idea...   

Nicaragua is in a mess. Nicaragua is currently a member of ALBA (Alianza Bolivariana para los Pueblos de Nuestra América). The idea behind ALBA is to move away from the US Dollar as the main unit of trade, and to focus efforts upon cooperation and bartering products and services between member states. Good idea?

At the moment the main players in ALBA are Venezuela, Nicaragua, Cuba, Ecuador, Bolivia and watch out, Iran has a special relationship with ALBA. For Nicaragua, the economic community has provided many benefits for the poorer class, such as cheaper petrol, access to bank loans, lower food prices, etc. At the moment, at the grass roots level, the current president's social agenda has resulted in positive change for many of Nicaragua's most needy citizens - even though the President himself hovers under a cloud of corruption.

And so - who will help the people of Nicaragua? I had been chatting with students from Dordt College, in Iowa - USA, who were very impressed with what they saw at the Dutch Embassy. They expressed that the Dutch seemed like they genuinely wanted to help - no strings attached, no tied agreements.

I too was impressed by their story and could relate. At my last school there had been a Dutch student in my grade, and I had frequently chatted with his mother. I could feel the compassion oozing out of her, a couple of times her words caused a lump to form in my throat. Such love and respect for these people we've come to serve. The last time we spoke I felt compelled to take action - "I want to help!" And here we are...

The other day Liz got to talking with some of our neighbours. They're incredibly adorable people, who attend everything we put on at the Community Centre. Mum, Maria, is just 33 years old and has 4 kids. Her mother and brother live with her also. They sleep together in a one room shack that has several partitions. The grandmother sleeps with her son, Maria sleeps with her 5 year old boy, her daughters (15 and 13) sleep together and Nelson, eleven years old, sleeps in an infant's cot.

They are unemployed and have little money. They get sick from time-to-time. It is now the wet season and they face daily flooding and a leaky roof. Their house smells. They do not have adequate facilities to maintain their household. Their country has been beaten and abused and they scramble to make their lives work. Only Jesus can save their souls, but what was his instruction to us. He told us to give to the poor...

Please consider helping us to help Maria today. We want to build her a new home (just one room, but with a cement floor, drainage and a proper roof). Please, consider how much you've been blessed and be a blessing to somebody who needs it. You didn't choose to be born into your wealth (and you are relatively rich...) and Maria didn't choose to be born into her poverty. She is not lazy, she is not a thief, she's a young Mum with the burden of the World upon her shoulders, and she needs your help.

Please contact us: CapitalontheEdge@gmail.com