Images of Holy Week

The Big Picture Blog has an amazing collection of photos of Holy Week from around the world. Some are beautiful and some are disturbing. Which photo stands out the most to you and why?

Guantanamo: Forgive Us Our Trespasses

Marting Luther King Jr. Day

Several years ago I watched the entire Eyes on the Prize PBS documentary and it opened my eyes in many ways to the struggles that African Americans specifically, and minorities in general, have faced throughout the history of the United States. I believe the entire series consists of 10-12 two hour programs that document the civil rights movement. While watching this set of documentaries there was one person who came to the forefront as a true leader and prophetic voice to the United States. That person was Martin Luther King. I am posting the first part of the documentary that focused on MLK, if you like what you see it appears that the rest of this program has been posted to YouTube.

Sin Begets Sin!

I was reading up on the topic of sin today and I came across a quote that reminded me about the current situation in Israel and Gaza ( the quote is definitely not limited to this situation alone).

"If a man has seen his children die from malnutrition because of medical aid withheld, his village ravished by industry that underpaid and sickened the workers, his voice stifled by a dictatorship that tortured patriots, his priests shot for preaching justice and his wife raped by a plain-clothes death squad-- if, after all this, he rises in wrath and bombs the vehicle of a government official with the officials innocent family inside, who has broken the peace? And can we, by military reprisal, restore the peace? Or will our reprisal only justify the rightness of his rage in his neighbors' minds and raise up ten more in his place?"

Burtchaell, The Giving and Taking of Life, p.221

The Advent Conspiracy

To GIVE clean water click here.

Faith of a Mustard Seed

Last week my family was invited to the south-side of Chicago to the neighborhood of Lawndale to have lunch with some friends from our church, Dae and Esther, who live there. Lawndale has had a checkered and difficult history. Our friends both work in medicine and while both of them could have sought out far more lucrative careers in other hospitals, but instead they moved to Lawndale where they felt that God wanted them to be. We had lunch together and then they took us to the Lawndale Christian Health Center where Pat, one of the staff members, gave us a tour of the facility and share the story of LCHC with us.

I believe the most touching thing about the history of the center was the way it began. Pat told us that everything began with a group of students who felt like God had given them a burden for this community. Everyone around them thought that they were crazy when they began to share some of their dreams and visions of a church and medical center. However, they began to pray, save, and work towards doing what they felt God had called them to. They had a vision to see the Gospel lived out in word and deed and their faith led to amazing transformation within this community. As I stood in the middle of the medical center, which was a direct and tangible result of their faith, it gave me chills to think of what can be done when people listen to the heart of God. Today the LCHC provides affordable health care to residents who might otherwise go without proper care. Since it is a Christian Center they are able to meet many more needs (spiritual and emotional) than a typical medical facility might be able to.

Our friend Dae explained to us that one of the doctors who helped start the health center was working as a medical missionary in Africa when he felt like God was drawing him back to Chicago. He said at the time when he moved back to the states the quality of health care in Africa was better then the quality of care available for the residents in the community of Lawndale. How is it possible that in a country with such a high standard of living that we can neglect the needs of our own neighbors?

Today, not only is there a medical center with a workout facility and a gym, but the church in Lawndale is also renovating houses and providing affordable housing for residents of the community. The Gospel is being lived out daily in very real and tangible ways and you can see the direct results in the lives of people. I was truly and deeply inspired by the work and faith of the Lawndale Community Church, the Lawndale Christian Health Center, and of our friends who have taken seriously what it means to follow in Christ. I can only imagine what this world would look like if more Christians would follow in their footsteps.

"I tell you the truth, if you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mountain, 'Move from here to there' and it will move. Nothing will be impossible for you." -Jesus of Nazareth

Become an Investor

Kiva is an organization that provides a place for those wishing to invest in micro loans. These loans are often the difference between a life of destitution and of hope for those in impoverished and war town nations. Check out this video to see how it works.

Thanks to A Fresh Focus for pointing our this organization.

Bono on the Wall Street Bailout

"It's extraordinary to me that the United States can find $700 billion to save Wall Street and the entire G8 can't find $25 billion to save 25,000 children who die every day from preventable diseases."

-Bono

Speaking at Clinton Global Initiative

College Student Facing Punishment For Speaking...

...about his faith. Yes, in the USA. Full article here.

Thanks to the Don't Taze Me Bro Blog for keeping an eye on abuse of power.

Human Trafficking

This past weekend I went to an event that talked about sex trafficking and how one Christian organization is working to rescue women. We heard the stories of three different women who left their home in a tier 3 country with the promise of a new job in a nearby country. Once they arrive they realize that there is no job, but instead they are sold as a "wife" to the highest bidder and left to a life of abuse and servitude.

Sex trafficking has, unfortunately, become more lucrative in the black market than drugs and is a form of modern day slavery. The reason for this is that there is very little overhead required to entrap someone but they can bring in an income for years to come. Often those who are trafficked are put into a system where they have to pay back their "travel and living expenses" to those who have trafficked them.

While no country appears to be immune to human trafficking some are working harder against it than others. According to the US State Department countries have been divided into to tiers based on the way that they respond to trafficking.

• Tier 1: Countries that fully comply with the act’s minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking.
• Tier 2: Countries that do not fully comply with the minimum standards but are making significant efforts to bring themselves into compliance.
• Tier 2 Watch List: Countries on Tier 2 requiring special scrutiny because of a high or significantly increasing number of victims; failure to provide evidence of increasing efforts to combat trafficking in persons; or an assessment as Tier 2 based on commitments to take action over the next year.
• Tier 3: Countries that neither satisfy the minimum standards nor demonstrate a significant effort to come into compliance. Countries in this tier are subject to potential non-humanitarian and non-trade sanctions.

If you would like to know more about how you can fight against human trafficking either visit stop the traffic, the refugee highway or write to me and I will tell you more specific ways that you can oppose this injustice.

Forgiveness...could you do it?

Here is the trailer for a film called As We Forgive: The Story of Rwanda's Redemption

The Story of Stuff

"Our enormously productive economy...demands that we make consumption our way of life, that we convert the buying and use of goods into rituals, that we seek our spiritual satisfaction, our ego satisfaction, in consumption...we need things consumed up, burned up, replaced and discarded at an ever-accelerating rate."

-Retailing analyst Victor Lebow, shortly after WWII

I just watched The Story of Stuff (Thanks to Franco who pointed to it on his blog). After you watch it I would be interested to hear some of your first impressions.

Art in Chicago

Last weekend Lori and I had the privilege of going into the city of Chicago and see an Art Exhibit that our friend Karmen did along with some other local artists. One of the artists who was there has a great site called Don't Talk to Robots. I loved his work and was checking out his site and it turns out that he designed the Harvest site. What a small world!

Anyway, it was great seeing how this group was using art to bring light to some of the issues that people in the city are facing. We look forward to seeing their next exhibit.

Former FBI Interrogator and 3 Torture Myths

UAE and It's Labor Practices

Click here for presentation.