Father's Day

Kevin had two of his three kids home for Father's Day, and got to talk to the third on the phone (in the 15 minutes he was home, good job Kari on timing that call). We started the day out at church, then the church picnic, you can view pictures on the previous post. What he really wanted to do for Father's Day was to watch the sunset into the ocean with his family. So we all headed for the beach. Here are some pictures, enjoy.

Crossroads Annual Picnic

Great food, water balloons, a pool, and a silent auction to raise funds for Omallas who will be heading off to Uganda in three weeks (2400 euro was raised) made all the work well worth the while. Kevin doesn't often lose, but he lost this battle, as you can see!

Anybody from Woodland Hills recognize the face on the last picture? I got a tap on my shoulder on Sunday morning at church, and there stood Terri Christopher. He was in the country on business, which he is every once in awhile, but he still catches us by surprise every time. Kristi has been home since the 3rd week of May, Terri gave her quite a shock.

Our New Director of Youth Ministries

Its been a long time coming, but finally Crossroads has a new Youth Director! Caroline is from the Dutch Antillies, and has lived in the Antillies, Holland, and the United States. She is full of energy, loves kids, and is deeply passionate about God. And... here she is....

Last week we were at Al’s house for a barbeque. Al, Daniel, Bobbie, and Katie are amazing. They have bonded together as a family since Deela’s death, and are doing really well. Our small group along with a few other people from Crossroads gave Katie an “extreme room makeover”. Her favorite television show is “Exteme Home Makeover”, she watches it religiously every Sunday evening. We gave her a makeover, mimicking the show starting with the makeover team surprising Katie after school and ending with a little bus attached to a string in front of her door and the team shouting "MOVE THAT BUS”. We gave her a room based on a “Secret Garden” theme. She even has a very real looking tree in her room, a labor of love by Mariel Geven. I’m not sure who was more blessed, Katie or all of us who worked so hard on the project.

Tim and Wilma Omala were on Crossroads stage this morning, and we’d love to tell you about them. We first met Tim and Wilma and their two young boys about 14 months ago when they had us to their home one evening to share their vision for Uganda. Tim is Ugandan, Wilma is Dutch. They met in Uganda at an orphanage where they both were serving on a short term missions trip several years ago. As their relationship developed so did the stirring in their hearts for the orphans in Uganda. Now finally, years later, their dreams are soon to become reality. Crossroads is sending them to Uganda where their hope is to birth an orphanage for a few of the 3.4 million orphans presently in the country. Through “Child’s Destiny of Hope”, Tim and Wilma have a vision to equip these young people with skills that match their own passions, interests, and abilities. The 7 minutes on stage this morning came after months of preparation to get ready for this huge undertaking. They have a board of directors from our community who have worked endless hours helping with all the details and preparation to send them off.

A Tour of our Holland Home

We thought you might enjoy a little tour of our Holland House. We are located in a typical Holland neighborhood. Situated right in the middle of busy streets, tram tracks, and a train station, our neighborhood offers a quiet respite from the hustle and bustle. The streets are very narrow, room for only one car at a time to pass. In Holland you can drive on the curbs or sidewalks when necessary, so when 2 cars need to pass going in opposite directions, one simply pulls over onto the curb allowing the other to pass. Each building contains four houses, with a parking lot nearby. Our front garden is pictured here.

The next four pictures are taken right inside the front door. We have a small entry way, then the dining area and kitchen. To the right are a set of stairs going up to the 2^nd level, which has a loft, 2 bedrooms, and a bathroom. The last of this set would not be remarkable in the USA, but here in Holland it is a real treat when Kenny gets some good American cereal as a gift from a visitor! He is loving his Reeses Puffs.

Now we walk through the kitchen to the living room.

We’ve now ascended the stairway inside the front door. Pictured here is the loft, just big enough for our computer. A small hallway leads to the bathroom on the left (where the washer and dryer are located, Kevin and Kathy’s bedroom on the left, and Kenny’s bedroom straight ahead.

We’ll go up one more flight, another winding staircase very typical of Dutch homes. Here we have 2 more bedrooms, plus a little nook with a sloped ceiling for a bit of storage. Pictured below is our narrow, winding stairway, and then one of the bedrooms. What used to be Kari's room now serves as a great guest room.

This home, though small by American standards, is very nice and we are thankful that we have the space for our girls whenever they want to come home, and the room to have visitors very comfortably. We hope you enjoyed our tour, and we’d love to show you the place in person!

Did you hear the one about the Rabbi, the Imam and the Pastor?

Originally posted by Kevin, October 14, 2006

They were sitting at lunch one day, and the first one says…

Actually, there is no joke here. It actually happened to me last week. Because of my role as a “spiritual advisor” I am required by the Dutch government to go through a series of classes. It is an attempt to have leaders of diverse spiritual communities integrate into Dutch society, thereby helping their followers do the same. Frankly, it is designed for immigrants from North Africa and the Middle East, but to be fair all are required to attend.

So there I sat in the first of this seven day class with a Hindu Sikh priest, a handful of Pentecostal pastors from Nigeria, a Muslim Shiite imam, a Tibetan Buddhist monk, a few Catholic priests from India, a rabbi from Israel and a Coptic Orthodox priest from Egypt. It was mind boggling. It also made me glad I was there. With all these religions coming into Europe I am eager to bring the Good News of Jesus and his beautiful Kingdom.

At lunch time I sat down with the imam. Shortly after that the Jewish rabbi joined us and the three of us had lunch together. It turns out the imam is from The Hague. He lives among and works with Indian Muslims. Neither guy was very fluent in English so the conversation was quite stilted. I hope the future classes provide lots of opportunity to talk in depth with some of these people. As I sat there I was thinking that the folks back home are never going to believe this.

The people of the big US of A often carry an unconscious assumption that they, by virtue of being American, are at the center of the universe. I am guilty of that idea – and only see it by being away. But now I bring the same idea over here. This tiny European nation, of which you could put several into the state of Minnesota, holds within its bit of land recovered from the sea a microcosm of almost all the world has to offer. It is like a crucible of so much that is going on in the world. So pray for this nation, the people here and our ministry to them in Jesus name.

Kevin

Whether You Like it or Not

originally posted by Kevin May 3, 2006

January, the heart of winter in northern Europe. I dress for my commute by bicycle as follows: Jeans, tennis shoes, a t-shirt under a long sleeve shirt followed by a zip-up hoody sweatshirt under a rainproof windbreaker. Could be worse I suppose, but that is the gig.

Fast forward to June 1, 2006. My dress for the commute is as follows: Jeans, tennis shoes, a t-shirt under a long sleeve shirt followed by a zip-up hoody sweatshirt under a rainproof windbreaker. Something is wrong with this picture.

Today, I conceded. Kathy and I have had a months-long argument about just how bad the weather is here. She has tended to remember every day as a gloomy, windy, dark and wet event. I have tended to point out the two minutes of sunshine that occurred sometime last week as a prime example of things not being so bad. This should come as no surprise to those of you who know us well – but Kathy is right and I am full of baloney.

Yesterday I biked home to go for a jog before dinner. Warm-up pants and a t-shirt seemed in order for the last day of May. I wasn’t out there five minutes. The cold and wet driving wind turned me right around and that was that.

Then later in the evening, when gathering with several others at the ministry centre for a night of prayer, I was asked what I thought of the weather. “Well, to be truthful,” I said, “it turned me right around when I tried to go for a run tonight. But that doesn’t usually happen.” I was expecting them to say something like: “No but it is uncharacteristically nasty of late.” Instead I got: “Well you didn’t think the two weeks of sunshine earlier in May was going to last, did you?” (I’m the eternal optimist. I can always hope.) “It’ll most likely be like this the rest of the summer.”

That was it. The weather is the weather whether I like it or not. And, there isn’t a lot to like. In church on Sunday Albert, the worship leader, thanked the Lord in his opening prayer for the rain that makes everything so green. To be honest I have no idea if he was being sincere or sarcastic. The people who chuckled must have been with me on that one.