Monday, December 25, 2006

Happy Christmas!

Christmas morning with teenagers is the best! I am the only one up and it is 10am, a bit different than all you friends with little ones. The days of kids jumping on the beds at dawn too excited about presents to sleep another wink are long gone. They have been replaced with a more leisurely affair that is gratefully welcome after last night's festivities. We still capture the excitement and joy by requiring the girlies to relive their glee for posterity after the coffee is made and daddy is armed with the video camera!



We need our beauty rest after a super late Christmas eve which found us awake until about 4:30 am! Ashley Brooke and Greg were all involved with me in the Bridge Candelight service not only setting up the stage and hanging one zillion Christmas lights, but they all played key roles in the service as well. Greg lent his mad audio mixing skills, Ashley played Silent Night with the band beautifully on her cello, and Brooke was the dramatic light-switchy-offer and created beautiful ambiance during the candlelight part of the service.



For my first time leading the band, it was a bit more involved than a typical Sunday due to several special details and a Christmas story woven together with music, but along with some funny comments about perfection being overrated, the general feeling was that it worked well. We did an acoustic set with two guitars, some Kenyan drums, and vocals, and hopefully created some space for breathing in God's presence in awestruck wonder. At least that is what I felt my heart and soul needed as the remedy for the busy season.



Christmas in Asia has been unusual and a bit surprising. Here in our very heavily Muslim surroundings, we hear Bahasa Melayu, Chinese, and Tamil spoken everywhere we go (even here at our house!) every day; we hear the melancholic call to prayer and see decorations for Muslim holidays along with men dressed in traditional clothing walking to the masjid, or mosque, and have become accustomed to seeing a surau, or prayer room in every establishment here from the mall to the health club. To see a Christmas tree is, well, a shock. To have a woman with a traditional head covering (I think it's a tudung or hajib) wish me a Merry Christmas takes me by surprise every time!



Although one could argue that the season's greetings are motivated by commercialism, I would ask, does that really matter? To me, it has not only reminded me of our home in the United States and the love and warmth of family- it reminds me that God's got the whole world in His hands. He is here despite the religious atmosphere that characterizes Kuala Lumpur, and the world is not such a big scary place after all. We have found a church family that reflects the beauty of God's creativity in every way from skin tone to spiritual gifts and again I am safe and sound and home in His loving hands.



I am also reminded again to look closer, past the unfamiliar customs and unusual styles of dress, to see the one God was thinking of when He sent Jesus to the world long ago. There are so many things to take in and many things to consider and reflect upon- this 'foreign' culture feels more like home every day.



Ok, everyone is up and it's time to open our goodies!!!



Happy Christmas to you sweet friends and to my wonderful family in Texas, Florida, Illinois.



Love and peace and joy and rest to your souls on this wonderful day!



chryl








p.s. i apologize for the lack of spaces making this post seem like one giant run-on sentence. having html trouble!

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chryl left the ground at 10:11 4 comments

Sunday, December 03, 2006

A Day At The Races...

Well, he did it! The Singapore Marathon is now a memory. Maybe not so fond a memory, but another in the list of Greg's accomplishments. For a more detailed account check Greg's blog. For now here are some pictures to enjoy...
Greg at 15K. Looking solid. Only 28K to go!!

Runspirator Chris cheers on strangers at 30K.


Runspirator Cheryl says, "Excuse, sir. Have you seen a tall-ish white guy with red hair? He may have passed you recently?"



Runspirator Cheryl waves her clappy hands in the ear of a frustrated taxi driver.




A view at the finish line. Greg was here approximately 10 minutes ago.





A view of the Singapore skyline and two proud brothers.

Want to see some cool video of Greg just 15 mins after race.

More to come on Greg's blog. Stay tuned.

chryl left the ground at 11:18 3 comments