Philippines Updates: November 24-30

Back Home!

This was one of the shortest international trips I have been on. I came back home feeling good -- (I was only "sick" for about eight hours). I was happy to get back home with the satisfaction and confidence that God is doing something great in Manila through this project. I also was deeply encouraged by the high level of commitment the leaders of this project continue to demonstrate. We are making a difference in the lives of thousands of people -- the attendance of the UCPP churches is now well over 3000 and the pre-school enrollment is near 1500. For these young people, the future is bright and a way has been made for them to escape the entrapment of an impoverished life.

Friday: Final Day in Manila
The Task Force Retreat ended yesterday with the groundwork laid for an exciting re-organization that will better serve this growing project. The Task Force members were highly engaged in each discussion that we had along with some very helpful outcomes addressing the challenges of growth, training, and improving the effectiveness of the ministry.
Yesterday there was a coup attempt here in Manila which ended peacefully.
This afternoon I have a final meeting with Val Chavez and the Executive Committee to finalize plans for changes and the 2008 calendar. Unfortunately I feel real sick today so I appreciate you continued prayers. Thank-you.



Tuesday morning -- UCPP office. We are leaving now for the retreat. In the photo you can see UCPP secretary Evelyn and Pre-school Coordinator, Glo, with the boxes of the Bags of Joy.


Monday Morning, November 26th
Redeeming the time…
I make my way through the impersonal mazes of the airports moving slowly closer to the mission that awaits me. The hours crawl by and sleep on the plane is uncomfortable, elusive and restless. As I am now approaching Manila (in one hour we will land) I feel grimy and aware that this will be a long day – It is 2:43 a.m. in Manila and once I arrive I will stay awake for as much of the day as possible.

At the same time, this has been a good day of travel. I had the luxury of completing two books and starting another. My reviews can be found on “Shelfari” on the right column of this blog. I had a fresh read of “The Monday Morning Church” – Jerry Cook’s book which I will be giving to the Task Force Members and using a basis for some of our discussions. I just completed “Mission Mover” – an abrasive, confrontational yet truthful examination of institutional Christianity and a compelling challenge to be driven by mission while avoiding the trappings of organizational religion. This book has also given me helpful perspective for the work that is ahead. I also am 100 pages into “Three Cups of Tea” – a book that I suspect may be life changing. It is a remarkable account of a mountaineer who became lost after a failed attempt at climbing “K2” in Pakistan and after stumbling into a small village, began a new journey of building schools in remote communities that were without schools or teachers. The author’s passion and methods resonate with the heart behind what we are doing in Manila -- a passion for the children who are full of determination but without opportunity. By building schools we provide them with an immeasurable hope that otherwise would be non-existent. For those of you who support the UCPP, thank-you for making a difference!

Saturday, November 24th
Today my journey begins at Seatac. From there I fly to San Francisco and then to Manila. I arrive in the Philippines on Monday and then the work begins on Tuesday. Please PRAY for me as I meet with the leaders of the Urban Church Planting Project. We will be having our "Task Force Retreat" on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday. I fly home on Friday. During the retreat we will be formulating a strategy for strengthening the project, improving our leadership training, calendaring for 2008, setting new goals and confronting areas that need improvement. The Task Force is comprised of the key leaders of the project -- the staff of the UCPP, the District Supervisors and the President of Foursquare Philippines, and a handful of other select leaders.

I will post updates and some photos whenever I can. Thank-you for your prayers!

Thanksgiving

"Give thanks to the Lord for He is good; his love endures forever."

Psalms 105, 106 and 107 all begin with this command -- to give thanks and to express thanksgiving to our God.

In spite of the severity of the challenges and trials that we may go through, His love gives us something to be thankful for.

"What are you doing for the holiday?" We have been looking forward to this week for a long time. Last night I was able to go to a concert with my older brother Kendall along with Heidi, Alicia and Levi. Tomorrow night we will have our "Thanksliving Service" at church. In the morning we will go to Greenlake for a good walk/run before coming home for the traditional Thanksgiving meal. This year we will be getting together with our own "blended family" of friends from Eastside, relatives and people from our community. Thanks to my good friend Russ, we will be having salmon alongside the traditional turkey.

Friday is a day to relax with my family before leaving for Manila. On Saturday I will be leaving Seatac at 4 p.m. for a six day trip to the Philippines. I will be updating my blog regularly while there. I appreciate your prayers while I am away. During this week I will be meeting with the leaders of the Urban Church Planting Project to strategize and plan for 2008. What do we need to change? What can we do better? How can we be more effective?

So what are you doing this Thanksgiving? Aside from your "holiday plans", what are you thankful for? I hope you're able to take time this week to reflect on this question. I invite you to post your answers here. Happy Thanksgiving!

Pursuing Power

"At the end of life, we will not be judged by how many diplomas we have received; by how much money we have made; by how many great things we have done. We will be judged by, "I was hungry, and you gave me something to eat, I was naked, and you clothed me, I was homeless and you took me in.

Hungry not only for bread, but for love. Naked not only for lack of clothing, but for lack of human dignity and respect. Homeless, not only for want of shelter, but because of rejection."

Mother Teresa

I came across this quotation yesterday in an article written by friend and missionary Maggie Josiah, and it reminded me to keep my focus on people -- a compassionate view of those I encounter, those I lead and those I serve. Our world naturally pulls us away from love and towards self-interest and self-preservation. As people pursue a life focused on self, they unwittingly fall into the trappings of power - power feeds on creating a false and overwhelming sense of powerlessness in others. Evil then is able to thrive on the apathy of the powerful. Do you have power? This is one of the more subtle temptations of life and yet also one of the most dangerous sins we wrestle with. How do you resist this evil?

Messner Family Newsletter, Fall 2007

“Dull” has never been a word that I have used to describe the life of our family…Here is an update on the latest happenings at our house:

The biggest news of all is the arrival of our new puppy – His name is Kona and he is an Airedale Terrier. He was born on June 29th. We were looking for an Airedale and I came across an ad in the Seattle Times. To see the puppies I had to drive to a small town just south of Yakima, called Zillah. The main tourist attraction in Zillah is the Church of God. (Church of Godzillah). There was a big litter from which I did my best to find the puppy with the best temperament. We have been thrilled with our dog. He was quickly house trained and is a fast learner. He is gentle and really sweet. People just love him. We took him on his first hike today and went up to Snow Lake and he did great! He made it the full seven miles over some rugged terrain. I’m trying to ease him slowly into the hiking/running routine, but I can already tell he will do well. He also is growing really fast.

Alicia has had an exciting fall – taking her first college course as a part of “running start” – she has English 101 at Cascadia Community College. She also started her first job as a barista at “Get Up and Go Espresso” in Juanita. She usually works on Saturday and Sunday afternoons. She makes pretty good money from her tips and she was able to purchase her first car this past Saturday – a decent, used Honda Civic. We think it is going to work well for her and she is really happy with it (although it does need some work).

Levi is busy playing “Tier II” Bantam Hockey. Making the team was quite a process and now he is playing games in Canada and at home every week. They have a pretty good team and will be going to Victoria this weekend for a tournament. The team charters a bus for their weekly trips to Canada. Parents can ride along on the bus, so we are able to catch most of his games. They practice twice a week and have games twice a week. He is playing defense and has grown so much this year that he is one of the bigger players on the team. He also continues to develop as a guitar player, playing for the school band, the church youth group and for a band with a couple of his friends. He also is learning piano. He is a fast learner and is a very gifted musician. He also has been able to see quite a few live concerts this year, including Steve Vai (his favorite guitar player), EndFest (with Smashing Pumpkins, and Social Distortion), and this past week we went to a great show at the Showbox with The Classic Crime and some other excellent local bands.

Besides taking care of all of us, Heidi spends a lot of her time making the world a better place – she is leading a new support group for teens that have been through abuse, trauma, or are just struggling in life. She is seeing real change and hope with these kids who have been through things that kids should never have to experience. Last weekend she spoke at a “grief” retreat and the weekend before that she spoke at a women’s event at a nearby church. She also is staying involved as a staff member with the Northwest University Graduate School of Psychology. You never know what the future holds for Heidi – she has such a broad arena of ability and expertise -- right now she is considering doing counseling for the public high school. We’ll keep you posted.

My life is pretty steady – no radical changes. I have been busy teaching in several venues that Eastside has (services, School of the Bible, School of Ministry). I am really looking forward to going to Manila at the end of this month to meet with the leaders of the project there. We will be planning the coming year (2008). I also may be teaching a class at Fuller Theological Seminary during the winter term. It will be my first class as a professor at Fuller and the class is entitled Liberating the Laity Across Cultures. Teaching in a Seminary is a good way to be able to invest in developing leaders while at the same time sharpening my own knowledge and abilities as a leader. During 2008, I anticipate preaching more at Eastside Church. Our Senior Pastor, Jim Hayford, has graciously offered me “the pulpit” nearly once a month. I am looking forward to this new opportunity. It is also worth mentioning that Eastside just opened a new 33,000 square foot addition and it is REALLY nice. It includes a wonderful “Lodge”/fellowship hall, kitchen, coffee bar, youth facility, and a great “Kidz Zone”. I continue to enjoy hiking, climbing, trail running, photography, and other forms of outdoor recreation (snow shoeing, fly fishing…). Check out my Flickr website for my latest photos.

That is about all for now. Our holiday schedules will be built around church and hockey – so we are not sure if or when we will be travelling during that time.

Happy Holidays! We hope that you are able to be thankful for many things this Thanksgiving. We are thankful for you – our friends and family.

Matt, Heidi, Alicia, and Levi

(PS – for those that are new to “blogging”, I would encourage you to post comments about anything that provokes a response from you – from this post or any other posts on my blog).