I went to church this morning. I really like the church I go to, which is good, because there aren’t a lot of other options available if I don’t like it. The Pastor, Graeme, has a very funny and dry sense of humor. He is quite hilarious with his off the cuff comments. Yet most of the congregation doesn’t get his humor. I want to stand up and yell…That was funny people. I’m starting get more and more friends in the church which is nice. I met another guy named Devlin, from South Africa. He works with the teens in church. For some reason there are tons of South Africans here in Bahrain. They are in desperate need of volunteers for the church here. I figured Im here to serve so I should do my part. Im going to start leading the teens during their service. I figure I have teens, I teach teens acting, so I should be able to do it. The only dilemma is that I would miss the service while I would be with them. But, I download Charles Stanley and Steve Madsen from Livermore, and I got about 25 CD services from Lakewood, so I figure Im pretty set in the sermon department here. I usually listen to about 6-7 sermons a week. It really helps me stay strong. Where it really helps is when Im leading my small groups, One on Monday, the other on Tuesday. It’s a really cool feeling when the Holy Spirit prompts you on what exactly to say. So the wisdom I garner from life experience and those messages are easy to convey to those groups.
As I was dropping Reji off after church, we noticed a lot of horse trailers outside this park. Being curious Guy and I ventured inside. It was a Horse Show jumping championship sponsored by the King. It was kind of a big deal. We were just wandering around checking out the sights and we made it over to the VIP pavilion tent. This is where the color of our skin came in handy. No one questioned us as they just assumed we were supposed to be there. I spoke to a couple of people of having my camera crew at KSDI cover the event for archive purposes. So Guy and I sat in the back, but we were ushered to the front in the VIP of the VIP section, the one with the couches. We sat right behind members of the royal family and other elite members of Bahrain society. It was pretty darn cool. The show jumping portion was interesting, they had about 12 nations from all over the Middle East involved with this event. This is just another example of the different amazing activities I’m exposed to over here. I’m very very blessed.
When I got home I took a four hour nap…can you believe that. Im still fasting, so I think that is draining me of some of my energy. That’s why I planned it around the weekend. Again, Im not being pharisaical saying look how holy I am. Because that is not my intention. Maybe some of you can learn or be inspired by some of the things I experience over here. Fasting is very important, and its something that the church doesn’t really emphasize enough. Im so looking forward to my Whopper with Cheese from Burger King when I end my fast tomorrow. I think that is becoming a traditional break-fast meal for me.
I know I’ve been sharing my feelings rather openly lately. I have many people telling me, not share so much about my personal life. Now I agree to a point, where I don’t want to harm my children. But I believe that X is persuading the kids to have an opinion for me not to write about them. She can’t control me, but she can try to have them control me. So I considered the source. That said, Im going to still try to limit what I write about them. I do miss them, and they won’t take or return my calls. I think they are still pretty angry at me. They think Im lying to them. I just have to let God sort that out. I can’t win an argument like this. But as far as opening up about my pain, heartache, loneliness, and the good stuff like my adventures, joy and hope, I think its important to continue sharing. Too many people in the church and outside of the church put on a happy face and cover up the reality. I try to be real whenever possible and sometimes it makes people uncomfortable. Like when they ask “how are you?”…and you respond “pretty dang lousy.” They are not prepared for that because that forces a step into different territory. They just want you to say pretty good…so they don’t have to deal with thinking or potentially entering into a uncomfortable situation. I think its important for people to share what they feel so they can tell the world on an individual basis that they are not alone. Someone else goes through the same pain and loneliness that they go through. If we all keep our pain to ourselves, how can we help others. If they feel like we relate to them, they are more prone to opening up about their own issues. So I feel very comfortable sharing my fears, pains, and disappointments so that I may in an off chance be an encouragement to others. Christ followers need to be real…the ugly parts and all. If they see my struggles…when I have the success it will be more defined. If you have been reading this blog, you will find that my successes emotionally, spiritually, and professionally far outweigh my struggles. Why would anyone want to convert if someone is depressed all the time. The Joy of the Lord is our strength and its our greatest marketing asset. Yes, there is pain in heartbreak, which Im experiencing. But this too shall pass. It always does.
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