WorldVenture Archives - Page 8 of 17

Christmas Thoughts

Christmas is slim this year. We had ours early–one big gift so we can get equipment that we need that will be used time and time again. Upgrades are easier to buy than starting from fresh. With IBM offering 25,000 jobs after meeting with President-elect Trump, the economy still feels as if it is rock bottom for us non-profits. Contentment though doesn’t need a lot to be happy.

I’ve always said, Christmas is too commercialized, from Black Friday to Christmas decorations that get put out before Halloween. The tide is turning. 45 stores were closed on Thanksgiving. REI Co-op encouraged people to get outside again this year with their ingenious social media marketing plan, “Will You Go Out With Me?”

We need a bad economy and less money to realize the importance of God and people. Prosperity is always nice and less stressful, but you can forget God. You can also forget the heavy weight of responsibility on the shoulders of those blessed with much. We aren’t meant to hoard our blessings.

Christmas was also not meant to be once a year, but every day for the rest of our lives–living a spirit of generosity. This is why every year we have a Christmas tradition of buying a cup of hot cocoa or coffee for Salvation Army Bell Ringers. They stand outside ringing a bell for hours. Anyone who has to listen to a bell for that long deserves a hot cocoa or coffee, especially on a cold day. Generosity can also be about giving of your time.

I’ve noticed how over-scheduled we are as Americans. Foreigners know us as impatient and in a hurry. Making time for people is not our strength. It’s something we need to work on as Americans. As an over-scheduled and impatient American, the first step towards cleaning up our reputation is attending ERAU’s International Festival on February 25 and the rest of their open-to-the public events.

My goal and hope is to help international students with their needs as newbies in America. With my motor vehicle and administration background, I can help international students with what is needed to integrate here, help them make new friends, and understand English so they can graduate.

Writing For Business Vs. Writing as Mission

Writers work hard to keep their author contracts, sell books, and build their online platform to compete with each other. The difference between a writer who is writing for business and a writer who is writing as mission is vast.

The writer living on support is writing for a different purpose. They are using their writing to bring the Gospel to the farthest reaches of the world. Some writers who are missionaries are using their craft to share stories about the mission field. A writer writing for business is going to go after stories bigger publications will publish. Most stories from the field bigger publications will ignore.

An unknown name won’t bring more readers.
The story may not interest a large portion of their readers.
They may not know how to sensitively write the story so as not to undermine what is happening in that area of the world.

The writer living on support doesn’t have to follow a marketing plan, but they still have to do some marketing. The writer on support shares that in common with the writer doing business. So, the next time you meet a writer living on support to share the Gospel and what is happening in the field, consider supporting them. Don’t feel competitive or put off because you are a writer, too; instead understand how their field is different than your field.

Do you have any objections to a writer living on support versus writing as business?

Fearlessly Looking Forward #bgbg2

It feels like God is nudging me to a cliff. I am standing with my toes over the edge and fearlessly looking out into a grand view. When I look back, I discover I am wearing wings and God has given me the wind in which to fly. 2016 will soon become 2017, and my prayer verse in the CEB of Matthew 4:19 still hasn’t changed. I am still praying for “how.”

Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid. – John 14:27

With our support down to 14% after exceeding my expectations and appearing to be at 16%, I know I have a lot of work to do, but what I have to fear?

God has opened doors from the time I made a decision to go with WorldVenture to now, and if He has opened doors why should He close them without reaching my goals of 100% support?

I will step through doors that He opens. I will fly on the wind that He provides. 2017 is going to be as busy as 2016 has been with church visits, conferences, possibly school, and individual ministry opportunities.

Will you pray for me?

Support Praise! (Corrected)

“Across northern Africa stretches the largest desert in the world. Yet at its eastern edge is one of the richest and most fertile valleys known to man. The valley of the Nile is not fertile simply because a river flows through it: it is fertile because that river overflows, depositing each year another layer of tropical soil washed down from the jungles of central Africa. The mere flow of our lives is meaningless in the desert world. But the man whose life overflows makes the life of his church as fruitful as the valley of the Nile.” – Henry B. Luffberry (1917-2004)

A mistake was discovered in how someone put in their support amount. We are not at 16% as today originally praised. I will update the numbers soon. It is probably closer to 14%. Help me get to 20% by the end of the month (worldventure.com/nhahn).

Fuller Theological Seminary

Please be praying as I go through the application process. Pray for the following:

I get accepted to get a Certificate of Christian Studies.
The cost is what was advertised and that I can do payments.
Time-wise…I pray the load of classes don’t have a time limit. That I can do what my current schedule can handle and finish it for the certificate in a reasonable amount of time.
That I get great grades!

An End of Year Celebration

Please pray for my End of Year Celebration today.

I use this to re-visit what God is doing in the world of technology and celebrate the moments leading up to now. We are winding down to the end of the year. Things ought to slow down now, at least, for a little while.

I hope to cement into financial partners how important technology is for missions and evangelism and inform prayer or non-prayer and support people why I need them.

I am, of course, available to speak to you via Skype or Vsee. Please leave a voicemail or email me a time and day that would work for you. There’s nothing I like better than sharing what God is doing through me and others.

So thank you again!

Nikki

Grand Canyon Backpacking Adventure: Coming Home #OptOutside (Part 3)

Our kind neighbors had vacated the group spot an hour before the sun fully rose and the light crept into the canyon. We could hear them banging food containers and giggling as they looked forward to their next adventure. We had met so many great people from all over the world. It was our turn this morning to go home.

We were both eager and sad. This campground was our home for a couple of nights. The Bright Angel Creek was still muddy unlike the first day when we soaked our sore calves in the ice cold water when it was blue. The creek still tore over rocks in furious temperament, pushing mud to the Colorado River after yesterday’s rain (and snow on the rims). It had risen higher than the first day we sat on its banks.

We started on our journey at 9:30 a.m. Our backs ached, protesting the 25 and 27 lbs we wore, and our legs strained, still feeling the stiffness and soreness of previously coming down the Kaibab Trail on Sunday afternoon. Climbing up would use different muscles. Our spirits soared as we looked forward to seeing what sights God would show us on our way to the South Rim via the Bright Angel Trail. Of course, we began our journey in prayer like on Sunday.

Sing to the Lord a new song!
Sing to the Lord, all the earth! (Psalm 96:1)

What we didn’t realize is how long the Bright Angel Trail was and what an ordeal awaited us. The Bright Angel Trail from Phantom Ranch is about 9 miles long. It’s easier than the Kaibab Trail (7 miles) because it’s not straight up. Some journeys are barren of joy, straight up grueling paths that cause us to wonder why we feel alone. Where is God in our struggles? We think we are alone until we encounter people on the way as in the first day when we discovered a hiker in distress. A little aspirin goes a long way.

Thinking back on your own past, can you recall those times of struggle and how you were never alone? We may not be rescued from the situation, but God gives us the tools, the friendships, and even a way out. How do we recognize these things? Words are easy to speak, but not so easy to live out.

Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds, for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness. And let steadfastness have its full effect, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing. James 1:2-4

So many beautiful sights met our wondering eyes. The mantra kept running through my head, “One step at a time.” Coming home is usually about facing our demons one step at a time and letting Jesus change us from the inside out.

Each step was harder to take. My shoulders ached. Hope grew as we climbed higher through the canyon towards the South Rim. Miniature waterfalls tumbled from gray rocks, framed by the golds and greens of Fall. I had to stop and take it in on occasion. My eyes were laser-focused on reaching the South Rim by dark. Moments like this make you feel impatient to reach the end. Too much focus on the end makes you miss what you can absorb from the journey.

Like this…

What I would have done differently is planned a third day of camping out, and camped out at Indian Gardens (5 mile mark) before tackling the beast up a canyon wall to the South Rim. Most of the remaining four something miles was steep switchbacks in the shadows of the canyon walls. The temperatures began to drop, but it was subtle. Three miles from the South Rim, I pulled on a sweater. My fingers tingled. My back ached. Tony kept stopping every few yards as fatigue made every step painful and hard.

I kept my eyes on the end. I made conversation with new friends. We shared the pain of our struggles up. Slowly and patiently, we passed the first arch. In the distance, the echo of the Grand Canyon Train gave us courage. It’s those little things–God moments–that give us the ability to finish the task we’re given.

I pulled ahead to another curve in a switchback and saw the last tunnel and the brown siding of a South Rim building. Less than a half a mile and we were coming home!

One of the things I did not do was to leave my partner behind. This was a first for us, and I wanted both of us to finish together as husband and wife.

At the end, I cried. To me, this symbolized the whole journey of raising up financial partners–keeping my focus on the end and yet taking note of the sights and sounds along the way, leaning heavily on God to prepare the way.

Click here on verses for suffering. Do you need prayer?

Grand Canyon Adventure: Facing Fears (Part 2) #OptOutside #SocialMedia

A steady rain fell. Hikers from next door encouraged us to come to their group site which had a large, partial stone and wood enclosure. Other hikers soon joined us. Tony and I ate our Mountain House Breakfast Skillet dehydrated meal and felt the hot food warm us on the inside.

Standing in the chill with the thunder echoing throughout the canyon was beautiful. The gray rain fell in sheets. The rocky canyon walls glistened. Lightening flashed.

The chill of the wet air and the crowded enclosure persuaded us to return to our tent. Standing all day unable to do anything was not a fun proposition. Talking to people we did not know was interesting. Hikers in their element are the friendliest and kindest people versus their city counter parts.

Something about the city causes us to always be in a hurry. The noises of sirens and car horns, the rude awakening of an alarm reminding us of pending appointments, or the fast clip of others crossing the street and passing you with eyes averted that say, “I have my own wall that I don’t want you to cross.”

The second is this, You will love your neighbor as yourself. No other commandment is greater than these.” (Mark 12:31)

The rain did eventually stop while we sipped hot coffee at the Canteena at Phantom Ranch. Water dripped off of the leaves and eaves and the Bright Angel Creek roared, stirring up brown muck from the rising flood waters of higher elevations. Our muscles still ached and even a slight hill caused both of us to groan. We decided to walk and explore a place we have never seen—the Colorado River.

Two bridges cross the river—the Black and Silver bridge. We walked the Bright Angel Trail, climbed over the rivers rocky shores til we sat on its banks. The river is a beautiful sea green with strips of red-brown when the sun illuminates it. The bright Angel Trail crosses the Silver bridge while the Kaibab Trail crosses the Black bridge. When you walk the Silver bridge there are grates, and you feel the sway of the bridge and see the deadly beauty of the rivers powerful current far beneath your feet. You feel both secure and in danger at the same time. Life shouldn’t be lived in fear.

Say to those who are panicking:
    “Be strong! Don’t fear!
    Here’s your God,
        coming with vengeance;
        with divine retribution
    God will come to save you.” (Isaiah 35:4)

Even standing on the Silver bridge, I forced myself to look down and face my fears. It takes a lot of effort to get here and moments you think reaching that goal is impossible. We are here, and I am so thankful.

It is now late afternoon. The rain comes in short spurts as I lay in the tent. I love how it spatters in symphony with the roar of the creek. There is no cell signal and my phone can’t access the internet. I have been out of contact with the rest of the world since Sunday morning.

Being out of contact and unplugged is wonderful. There is a danger of becoming jaded in the online world so much so that you can become ineffective. You must take moments to be out of contact and refuel.

Signs of ineffectiveness:

You don’t give the benefit of the doubt.
When someone shares something, you judge it as narcissistic.
You are short on patience.
A loss of creativity and social blindness.
Angry, impatient, and self-righteous.

The online world is just as real and fraught with dangers as the face-to-face world. To live fully as a Christian, we need to balance these worlds.

Our Grand Canyon Backpacking Adventure (Part 1) #OptOutside

Our most challenging hike was South Kaibab Trail. The Grand Canyon has so many layers of color and light. We started out at about 7,000 feet and hiked to 2,700. That is the equivalent of hiking over six miles from Flagstaff weather to Phoenix weather going down hill all the way.

Our endurance never faltered, but from our knees to our feet, we struggled the last three miles to keep our balance. Each time we had to lift our feet over logs was agonizingly painful. We were wobbly, struggling to keep our legs from collapsing beneath us. We found a new respect for this canyon.

The bridge gave us new motivation. We could see the froth of the Colorado River and the narrow green strip where Bright Angel Campground lay under a canopy of trees. We stumbled to the first available campground. I was grateful we had persevered.

by being strengthened through his glorious might so that you endure everything and have patience; and by giving thanks with joy to the Father. He made it so you could take part in the inheritance, in light granted to God’s holy people. (Colossians 1:11-12, CEB)

The bummer was not being allowed to have campfires. As night fell, we sat eating smoked salmon, dark chocolate covered cranberries, and drinking hot Earl Grey tea on the picnic table. Clouds had begun to coat the sky early in the afternoon, and we read in our tent until body aches and weariness claimed us in a restless sleep.

The one thing you can’t do is to pre-judge hiking out based on how you feel the first day. Motivation and determination are what get you in and out of the canyon. If you decide you can’t make it, rescue is hours from you, if it comes.