Archive for October, 2008

Dream Center Leg

{ October 31, 2008 @ 11:38 pm } · { 1 }
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This was the real reason for LA… and the Dream Center did not disappoint us.

Of course we did take the obligatory trips… Santa Monica, Bellaire, Hollywood etc. (along with a couple of Shopping Outlets and Dr Phil!)

But our inspiration was most definitely the LA Dream Center, pastored by Matthew Barnet. Shelagh and I were totally inspired by his father, Tommy when we heard him speak at a conference around 8 months ago. I had heard of the church a few years ago. Mafia Don’s getting saved, along with pimps and prostitutes, street folk and gangsters. The church has a phenomenal social outreach program for the poor and needy. For us it sounded like exactly what we were looking for.

Following this short note are a few photo’s from the trip, but sadly they in no way fully capture the incredible ministry of the Dream Center. Astonishing serventhood is the key component that Jesus has put ito this fellowship (running at around 3000 locally with around 60 churches now linked with them) I would just like to note that both Shelagh and I have seen the component of absolute serventhood several times on our tours. Edge, Hong Kong, Fiji and LA. I know that we have it in NCC… but I am also sure that we need to embrace it and teach it and do it even more

Enjoy… and see you all soon!

Muchas love, Pastor Mike and Shelagh xxx

Our highlight and real reason for coming to LA was after we heard Pastor Tommy Barnett talk of a ministry that his son is pioneering in Downtown LA. The Dream Centre… that all sounded kind of familiar to us, so we had to investigate further…

They have just purchased an old hospital that they are converting into a social welfare centre for street people, young people, in fact all people. Its whole ethos is 24/7. and organisation that has a very similar heart to NCC…

The place really is amazing. At the moment they have aound 500 people on site on any day. It has 1600 rooms and needs millions of dollars to refurbish it. Oh and by the way, they are debt free!

We were so encouraged to see their heart to reach out with that “tangible” love of God that we are so absorbed by here in NCC. It is NCC but just on a staggeringly bigger scale. We did realise afresh though that we have so much to learn.

Pastor Cresswell gave us the big tour, and then we had out 1 ½ hour appointment with…

Pastor Clarence. This amazing man of God is the associate of Matthew, the Senior Pastor, and just happens to be Matthews Father in Law. To be truthful, we met as strangers and left as friends… I hope he takes up our invitation to come and preach at NCC sometime! He is so worth listening to!

The church now meets at Angelus Temple, the ministry home in years gone by of one Amy Semple Mc Phearson, the founder (many would say) of the Foursquare movement. Kathryn Kuhlman ministered here under Amy’s watchful eye. The place is steeped in the prophetic and the anointing was utterly tangible…

We rocked up to the Thursday evening service. It was awesome. Millionaires from Beverly Hills sitting with street hobo’s. The service was radical, grungy and totally engaged with the younger culture of downtown, even though there was a great age mix in the congregation, it was predominantly young. Inspirational or what??!!

USA Leg

{ October 31, 2008 @ 10:46 pm } · { 1 }
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Before we went to the Dream Centre.. We had to visit one small unknown place to see if all of the legends were true…

We saw one or two faces on the street that we recognized from somewhere or other…

Max was the first to really get kind of excited… could it be? Could it really be…?

It is!!!! It really is! (Sadly Toto seemed to have a strange twinkle in his eye as he looked at Max, so Max took it as his cue to move on.. Like quick) and in his usual self protective Meer Kat way…

…Max found safety in a place that he never expected! “Yeh? Bring it on Toto! I’m like Toto-ly ready for you any day. ANY DAY!”

He was also thrilled to see that other animal types seemed to have made it big over here. (That’s BIG in the film sense of course)

There were some strange types here though that kind of gave him the jitters… both of the human variety…

…and also the canine variety. Ah well… it is America after all Max!

On a final note, Max thought that he would take the opportunity to take Shelagh to see someone who maybe able to… well help her….

…the trouble was that for some reason the security people had a problem with allowing a Meer Kat into Paramount studious. Really… it’s the truth. Poor old Max had to sit it out in the car. Good job it had a radio!

Fiji Leg

{ October 31, 2008 @ 9:49 pm } · { 1 }
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So then… we leave the wintery climate (well Spring actually) on NZ behind and set off for sunnier pastures… Fiji! As you will note in the pics below, it is a land of contrasts….

Actually Fiji was amazing, we met wonderful people there (for some reason I have no pictures of them…?) lots of Christians, lots of snorkeling and heap big plenty rain at times.

I was kindly invited to preach in the local AoG church on the Sunday, an event that we will probably never forget. Around 40 to 50 people in the church, an amazing worship band, and the presence of God… well, enough said!

Max is conspicuous by his absence on this leg. He disappeared into the undergrowth as soon as we got there, muttering something about “relatives live around here” Happily we met up again at the airport… LA was not to be missed by him! HOLLYWOOD HERE HE COMES!!!!

Love y’all, Pastor Mike and Shelagh

Contrasts… Hmm. Fiji is very rural and very impoverished. I snapped these two future sandwich filling candidates on an early morning walk.

And the car, well! You won’t find me complaining about mine any more!

The beautiful island is surrounded by a reef… keeping the sharks out and the pretty coral loving fish in. as mentioned elsewhere, some of the finest snorkeling ever was to be had here.

Though it did have its moody days as well. We arrived in torrential rain. But then it is lush tropical forests etc. so you have to have rain to have that forests… right?

Our hosts at the AoG Church in the village. In a village of around 260 people they have 8 denominations. Most of the folk in the village were in one church or another.
Pastor Mike in action….. I am never sure if the translators are really translating what we preachers say, or if they are maybe using the opportunity to get a favorite message in of their own? Not really… they were great!
The local village…
….and a local villager.
A couple of closing scenes from the island. It is stunning by day and night. Ah well…. We had better prepare for civilization again. (sadly!)

New Zealand North Island Leg

{ October 11, 2008 @ 8:10 pm } · { 1 }
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Our hosts in the North Island.. Michelle, (Shelagh’s niece) Seamus her husband and Little Seamus Og (Og meaning “The Younger) Many of the photo’s on this leg are family type ones, so I will spare you just this once..

…but awww come on. He is like totally scrumptiously awesome isn’t he? He actually turned into our entertainment for the week.

He likes slides…

…eating…

…sitting in tupperware bowls..

…and well you get the picture. Well he is sixteen months old isn’t he?

Wellington is known as “Windy Wellington”, it lives up to it’s name…

…as can be seen in this photo from a view point over Wellington City. The Cook Strait acts as a kind of funnel for the wind… good for wind surfing I guess! We hung the washing out before we went out on this trip… and retrieved it from the roof when we got home. Really.

Koru.. (Maori for New Life) is seen on a fern that grows all over the place (The Silver Fern is the National Emblem here… you may have seen it on an All Black shirt when they wipe the floor with us) It turns into a full grown fern in its own right. Nice…

Before I disappear to get packed for Fiji (I know.. It’s a tough life…) I thought that I would include a couple of shots from days out…

And say a great “thanks to Michelle, Seamus and Seamus Og for looking after us so well. The evening at the restaurant will stay with us forever. You are a wonderful family. We appreciate you all. Meanwhile all, look out for the next exciting instalment from Fiji.. (Yehaaaawwww!)

New Zealand South Island Leg

{ October 8, 2008 @ 9:36 pm } · { 1 }
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Our hosts in the South Island.. Ross and Pam. A great couple who have known both us and NCC for over 15 years. After years of saying “We must come over…” we did! (so beware all of you who invite us… we may well come!)

South Island is a paradise of Alps, blue sea’s, sheep, seals, sub topical rainforests, sheep, cattle, sea scapes, sheep and generally all things stunning. We tried to spot hobbits… didn’t see one. Were advised by an Aussie not to stand under tree’s, apparently they have “Drop Bears” here, so we are taking no chances.

At Arthurs Pass on the way to the West Coast, we met the beautiful mountain parrot called the “Kea”

This huge bird is the most inquisitive creature that you could meet. You are warned not to leave the car unattended, don’t leave you belongings where they can get them… because they will! They are pretty endearing eh? A nice shot of three birds… The exotic one is mine!

A couple of typical road scenes on the South Island… a roundabout with a railway track going through the middle of it…

…and a bridge that is shared by both cars and trains! NZ is a maze of interesting stuff… it still has that “frontier feel” and its people exhibit that factor. All friendly and kind.

Christchurch High Street. (In Canterbury!) Trams still run here, it has a River Avon… a real touch of home! We wandered around just browsing…

…and eventually came upon one of the oldest building’s in the town… 1850 something. It is a heritage site. It Is a wonderful place.

Another shot of Christchurch, the cathedral this time…

…with it’s backdrop, the stunning Alps. Check out these puppies. Skiing is (apparently) wonderful here, the slopes are about to close as the summer begins to draw in. they are still having snow at the moment, in fact one of the main passes was pretty slowed down a couple of days ago.

A plaque commemorating the first European settlers on South Island. “I saw four ships come sailing in…”

And a shot of Christchurch harbour.

Meanwhile Max is totally getting into the NZ scene. We have been kind of struggling to keep tabs on him of late…. He is really trying to connect in with the local scene…

…chatting to the indigenous populous and all that…

…he insisted on coming to “Hamner Springs” a thermal water bonanza that is heated naturally by the volcanic effects around them. Shelagh found the hairy stowaway just as we got there…

….the burning question to him was “So why can’t a Meer Cat have a go in the pools? Who wrote the rules that say they are not allowed in? eh? eh? Answer me that!”

After hyperventilating awhile thinking about the prospects of a dip, he needed a quick sip of water (boy these sulphery places make a Cat hot) and then…

…time to get changed. It all sounds so easy if you are not a Meer Cat. But when you are a Meer Cat, clearly “Men’s” doesn’t fit, and…

…there is no way that any testosterone fuelled Meer Cat is going to get changed here so therefore what is a Meer Cat to do?

Ahhhh….. As it happens, no problemo! Problem solved as the “family” factor kicks in! Max got a little bit emotional at this point.. He never really got the fact that we are family. (He has not been a Christian for long…) so I have cut out some of the more weepy huggy photo’s .

…after which all that remained was for Max to find a pool that was warm enough for him to enjoy, but not so warm as to make him into Cat soup. Advice was needed… Who to ask?

…after which all that remained was for Max to find a pool that was warm enough for him to enjoy, but not so warm as to make him into Cat soup. Advice was needed… Who to ask?

Ahhhh Enough said Meer heaven!

A quick wrap up and then…

Back to the ranch with the old guys. Well, it’s been a long day, Max reckons he needs a cat nap. So with that in mind it’s time to say “Night night everyone, see you all soon!”

The Great Barrier Reef

{ October 7, 2008 @ 9:53 pm } · { 1 }
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For those who are interested, I thought that I would include a short “re-trace” on our day on the Great Barrier Reef. It was a definite high light for us both. Even though I could not dive (Maybe Fiji?) snorkelling was spectacular. A touch of heaven to us both. Hope you enjoy…

(*Footnote…. No of course Max could not come… he is a Mere CAT. Cats do not like snorkelling… though he did have a shot at the thermal Springs in Hamner, see South Island Leg… coming to a screen near you soon!)

The Reef was an incredible experience.. So many photo opportunities and so little time!

A few examples of life as seen by us under the Corel sea for those who are interested…

Michaelmas Cay on the outer reef… stunning or what? It is a bird sanctuary, the noise is deafening!

Pastor Mike as never photographed before….. I have a similar shot of Shelagh but I don’t think I am allowed to put it online)

Small blue something or other…

Giant clam (probably around a metre in size…)