A Quick Look: 5 Things We're Doing in Rome
The shade of chaos once again tinges Rome’s aura as people return from vacations and schedules steadily fill. There is a lot going on in this season for both individuals and groups. Here are my Top 5 Current Events for my Rome City Team. Team growth with new staff and interns. Heather returned last week to work long-term in a variety of our ministries, including English! I’m so grateful for her friendship, wisdom, and hard work. Next is Esther, who arrives in two weeks and will work with our community’s initiative connected to helping the women enslaved by trafficking and prostitution.… Read more >>
Summertime
It’s summer in Rome! And I’ve discovered my great love for a warm and breezy night in this gorgeous city. As the population plummets and temperatures rise, I’m understanding the idiosyncrasies of the city’s life cycle. The pros and cons to the summer transformation are many, but learning to navigate a city with a small town atmosphere is like synthesizing two parts of myself. Not easy, but the reward is great. Some particular joys have included time to plan ahead for the fall, increased time with God, deepening relationships, and some travel. In Italy, most people use the month of August to… Read more >>
The Ultimate "Would You Rather?"
Here’s a snippet of an exchange I recently shared with a student:Student: “Would you rather believe in God or do good things?”Me: “That’s impossible to answer. Because I believe in God, I do good things.”Student: “It’s not always like that.”Me: “For me it is.” And then he decided the drop the argument and return to the main conversation, casually responding, “Okay, okay, fine. You’re right.” So what is this anyway? Here we are, at the intersection of one of Christianity’s oldest debates. Faith vs. Works. Then we start throwing words out there like justification, theology of salvation,… Read more >>
Comings and Goings
“The ultimate sign of maturity is when the church begins sending out its own missionaries (Hale 261).” Whether or not you agree the superlative nature of this statement, you have to admit that Hale has a point. So let’s step away from my life, for a moment, and delight together in the extraordinary ways God is working in and through the local churches. This is a big summer for the congregations I know in the city. Aside from annual events such as camps, the community is responding to visible needs in new ways. One church is increasing their activity to provide aid for some refugees in… Read more >>