Camino de Santiago

I found this on my friend Nate's blog who is on his own pilgrimage in Spain.

Previous Related Posts on L.I.M.
On Pilgrimage
Pilgrim Journey

Cafe Terra Nova MMIV-MMVIII

I just saw these photos posted by my friend Betty last night. It is sad to see Terra Nova close it's doors as a cafe. The truth is though, the dream of Terra Nova had very little to do with a cafe and very much to do some of the people who passed through that place. This place only provided occasional glimpses of the real Terra Nova. While the cafe Terra Nova has closed the dream of Terra Nova lives on...

...at least it lives on in me? How about you?

"But in keeping with his promise we are looking forward to a new heaven and a new earth, the home of righteousness."

On Pilgrimage

I just read two different blogs by people who are on pilgrimages. My friend Nate Walter lives in A Coruña, Spain and just finish a solo journey on the Camino de Santiago. He kept a daily record of his journey and made a couple posts about it over at Unfamiliar Paths. Immediately after reading some of his entries I stumbled upon this post about Urban Caminos at Mustard Seed Associates. In this post Tim Mathis talks about how we perceive the world around us in relation to God effects our own pilgrimage journeys. Are you being faithful to the pilgrimage that Christ has called you to?

Saludos!

New IT Team in Spain

Lori and I had the privilege of catching up with both Nate and Faith Walter as well as Sarah Marshal while we were staying at International Teams this summer. The Walters and Sarah Marshall have formed a new team in Galicia, only an hour north of where we were in Santiago de Compostela. Their ultimate goal is to create a Hostel Ministry for pilgrims and backpackers that come to the region. In the meantime they are beginning the process of language and culture study as they work alongside our good friends at the Vida Nueva Church. We pray God's blessings on their ministries and families as they adjust to a new culture and we invite you to follow their stories on their blogs (here and here).

A nuestros queridos amigos en Galicia

Cuando leo las historias de Nate y Faith me acuerdo mucho de nuestra empieza in Galicia. Parece casi como hoy. Pensamos de vosotros cada día y os echamos de menos. Espero que todo este bien con vosotros y sabéis todo que siempre hay una plaza especial en nuestros corazones para vosotros. Bendiciones, Mateo.

Pilgrim Journey

This past weekend I gave my first sermon at Harvest Community Church entitled Our Faith as a Pilgrim Journey.

Final Wrap Up From Spain

Wow! Yesterday was a very long day. We spent the whole day cleaning every nook and cranny in our house and packing our final bags. Today is our last full day here in Santiago in which we intend to rest, say good-bye to friends and make a final pass through our favorite spots in the city. Tomorrow, we grab a flight to Dublin and then one to London where we will be spending the night. Sunday morning we wake up early and have our long flight from London to Chicago. We would ask you to pray for us this weekend if you get a chance. Pray that we will all be in good health and that our kids (and their parents) will hold up well on our two day journey.

Cheers Mate

We met James at the cafe 3 years ago when he was in Santiago as an exchange student from London. What a surprise this week to get a message on my phone saying he was in town. We went out last night to catch up, talk about old times and some of the difference between English-English and American-English, and discuss some of the deeper issues in life. It was great seeing him again and nice to be able to say goodbye before we leave town. Next time maybe we'll see each other in London or the USA.

The Toms

Our good friend Tom sent his wife Robyn to visit us for her birthday present. It has not only been a present to Robyn, but to Lori and me as well. Robyn and Lori were roommates in college and have remained close friends across the years in spite of large gaps in both time and distance.

We have spent the past couple of days showing her around Santiago and sharing new stories and remembering old ones from our college days and trips to visit her and Tom in Brooklyn. Tom should win the "Husband of The Year Award" as he has set the bar high for the rest of us. We praise God for you two and are so thankful for friends like you!

Bienvenidos Daniel!

Our dear friends Betty and Sergio are like family to us here in Santiago. Their daughter Dahiala goes to school with our girls and that is how we first met their family. They just had their second child Daniel and I was able to see him today for the first time. He is beautiful and we praise God with them for this new blessing!

Spring Time

Last week was Semana Santa in Santiago which means everything came to a grinding halt except for the processionals (like this one that Jacob was in) and tourists who winded their way through the ancient cobblestone streets of the old city. Lori and I were pleased to have the girls home with us as they did not have school. Lori ordered the book "It's all too Much" to help us with spring cleaning and the whole family has appreciated removing our excess stuff.

On Thursday we took the girls on a day trip to the northern coast of Galicia. We had a picnic at these large cliffs that have been carved out by the ocean tides. The cliffs have unique formations that look like flying buttresses and have been donned "the Cathedrals".


On the weekend we finally enjoyed a break in Santiago's cold and rainy winter weather for weather that was slightly more sunny and somewhat springlike. We enjoyed catching up with some friends in SdC on the weekend and having a quiet easter celebration at home. Lori has posted some recent photos here.

I have been reading "The World is Flat" and been thinking abouts it's implications on both the church and missions. It has impressed upon me the need for us to be aware and awake to the changes in the world in which we live.

My Hero

I want to say a special THANK YOU to Chris Warren. When he heard about some of the difficulties that our team was encountering over the past couple months he decided to come and lend us a hand in either closing or selling the cafe. Chris's love for coffee and for people spilled into every aspect of his life during his time here. I am honestly not sure if we would have been able to keep things running and maintain our sanity until the end of February without his help.

Chris came on his own bill even after the funds for his 6 month mission stint had come to an end. He came with zero Spanish and was serving coffees by himself in the cafe after being here only a week and a half. If you have ever tried serving specialty coffees or living in a place where you don't speak the language you realize the bravery that it would take to do both at the same time.

Within no time Chris connected with students living in SdC who are from Spain and all across Europe. One of the nicknames he picked up was Terra Nova Boy. Today he has been making his rounds through the city and saying his goodbyes to all of the people he has met in the two months that he has been here. As he heads out tomorrow we pray God's blessing on his trip back home and and all that he does in the future. We'll miss you Brother!

Closing Well!

Last Friday night we held our final party at Terra Nova (Photos here). It was a wonderful time for us to connect with so many of the people that we have gotten to know during our three years of operating the cafe. In the middle of the party while we were surrounded by our Spanish and international friends Jacob looked over at me and said, "This is what is known as finishing well!". That one phrase not only summed up the evening, but our last four months of finishing in the cafe. I am so thankful for friends like Jacob and Tania Bailey and Chris Warren, because I know that it is because of these amazing hard workers that things went as smoothly as they did.

Final Sale
On Tuesday morning we met in front of a Spanish notary with the new owners and signed all of the papers for the official sale of the cafe. On Tuesday night the new owners came in to help us close and we turned over the keys to them.

What’s Next?
This is the question that I have heard the most in recent weeks. First, now that we have turned over the café, we are going to take some time here in Spain to rest and pray. We will praying for discernment about what we should do next. Where do we go from here? Should we stay or go? Right now, everything is on the table for us, but being able to think about these things without the burden of the cafe will enable us to step back and be a little more objective. Besides praying about our future, we are going to spend our time continuing to connect with our Spanish friends and visiting and connecting with other ministry leaders around Spain to see what other ministries are up to and different ways that they are connecting with the culture.

We would invite you to join us in prayer during this time that God will grant us wisdom and discernment about our next steps.

New Photos

New photos here, here, and here.

Our Friends the Hansens

Chris and Dawn and their beautiful kids Jack and Nora have come to visit us all the way from Chicago for a few days. You can follow their adventure on their blog.

New Photos

Just wanted to let you know that I have uploaded some new photos here, here, and here.

The Rain in Spain falls mainly on the Swains...

...because we live in Santiago, that is.

Today is a typical Santiago dC day in winter. It is raining. I am talking about the kind of rain that breaks umbrellas, and has most people walking around with their pants wet from the knees down because the water is falling sideways kind of rain. SdC is a walking culture (there just is not space for cars) so on days like today you either grab your umbrella and brave the weather or stay indoors drinking tea and coffee. Those who do brave the outside will eventually go somewhere warm and dry to grab a tea or coffee as well.

On days like today, cafes become a warm refuge of conversation and friends where the brave souls who have gone outdoors go to get warm and forget the weather for a few miniutes. Today that's where I am. I'm working the morning shift at the cafe. At 3 Lori is going to come and relieve me and I will take Abi to school for the afternoon. Our dear friends and teammates, the Baileys, return from their visit to States this weekend. That should be a good reunion and we are looking forward to their return.

Well, I hope you have a good day. I am going to return to sipping my hot coffee!

Recent Happenings in SdC

Chris Warren just finished a six month stint in Russia and has come to Spain to give us a hand over the next month or so. (Photo: Russian Candy Bar with "Father Frost"that Chris Brought from Russia. )We have been following his time in Russia and in Athens on some of his blogs.

Chris has been teaching me all kinds of wonderful things about the world of blogging. He showed me some cool things like Google's RSS reader which is very user friendly (especially if you already have a gmail account). He also showed me the Google analytics site. It is a site tracker that gives you many beautiful charts and pretty pictures that show who is visiting your pages and where they come from etc. It looks awesome and I plan on leaving sitemeter behind as I have been wooed by google's simplicity, high quality, and breadth of info.

If you are a blogger Tall Skinny Kiwi recently did an excellent post to give some helpful pointers on how to be a better blogger as well as some general blogging wisdom. I also read this collection of ideas on how to be a better writer. I hope that some of them sink in, because I know that I have much to learn in the area of writing.

Photos, Photos, Photos! Yes I have added some new photos from the holidays which you can see here.

Last Days of Terra Nova

Props to Jacob for this clip.

Christmas lights and Bailey Flights

Santiago is always changing with the seasons and the different people that are coming and going. This year the city hung some new Christmas lights so today I thought that I would get some shots around the city. While I was out I stopped by the cafe to hang out with Jacob. While I was there I got some cool shots of the cafe and tried to capture a little of the atmosphere inside.


Jacob and Tania planned their Christmas trip to the states months ago and tomorrow morning they will begin the 27 hour treck at 5am local time. Please pray for their travels if you are reading this on the 12th. Also pray that their time at home with family will be rich and restful as well as a good time to connect with friends. I have more photos that I would like to load to show you what I saw today. If you want to see them I will be posting them in my Sights in SdC blog.