Giving Voice, Refuge, Wings
Giving Voice
Last time I wrote I described an evangelistic tool we were developing called a University Survival Kit. After working till the eleventh hour, some nine thousand kits are now in the hands of university students in the cities of Malaga and Barcelona. Here in Barcelona we asked our Christian friends to save us from having to assemble the five thousand kits ourselves and sweetened the deal with the promise of Chocolate Chip Cookies. A throng of eager students answered the call of the sweet tooth within and we spent the evening inserting CD’s and sticking stickers, laughing and praying. It was exciting for us to see their excitement at being a part of this initiative on their campuses. That next week the Campus ministry manned the metro stations and handed the kits out as students emerged from the subterranean metro tunnels and into the light. The kits were received enthusiastically, and it is exciting to think that so many students have the Gospel in their hands. Still, it is impossible to know just what affect the kits have had in the hearts and minds of most of the university students who received them. We have received relatively little feedback from the website, but the responses we have received have been very positive. Some want to know more about Jesus, and some are Christians who want to be involved with our ministry. This is our first effort of this kind and we are listening carefully so that we can learn how best to speak to the longings of Spanish university students.
You can see portions of the Survival Kit at:
Homepage: http://www.agapecampus.org
Survival Kit:http://www.agapecampus.org/+
Encruzijada (Gospel): http://www.agapecampus.org/x
Cuestion con Leche:http://www.agapecampus.org/leche
Giving Refuge
When my work on the Survival Kits wrapped up, I was very ready to turn my attention to a host of neglected affairs. I went to grab lunch at La Trini, a tiny store that serves up the closest thing to a soft taco in Barcelona, and there I met Hendrick and Sirlene. They were penniless, and she was on the verge of tears. They had been walking around all day asking for help. They asked me. I already felt like I was at the end of my own rope. I didn’t want the hassle. I didn’t understand exactly what they needed. I stammered a “No”, and said the unforgivable: “Good luck”. They left and I waited for my vegetable wrap, and stewed in my guilt at turning them away. As a follower of Christ, how could I not feed the hungry? How could I not clothe the naked? How could I be the Levite, the Pharisee? I could not. I ran after them and invited them to stay with me.
Over the next two weeks we grew to love them. She was a kind and genteel Brazilian, he a very likeable and endlessly comical Dutchman. Having no language in common, we learned a new language — “Henk” — a unique amalgam of English, Italian, French, Dutch, and burlesque gestures. Translating from Italian (I think), Hendrick had an endearing habit of calling every woman a “wife”. Hendrick knows a little about everything, and his advice on cooking, cleaning, sex, and business was served up generously along with delicious meals created miraculously from our near empty fridge. He told of his many intrigues in the military in Africa, working for Interpol, living in Corsica. They also assured us that they were in fact inestimably wealthy, and that his funds were blocked only because of a dispute with his ex-wives. Learning what we were doing to serve students, he offered to purchase a place for us and to endow the studio. All of this was, of course, fantastic and unbelievable. And yet, there was just enough evidence to give it a ring of truth, to make us think that it might be possible. Addi, who paints in the studio, had left a verse for me before leaving on a trip home. “You will made rich in every way so that you can be generous on every occasion.” (2 Cor. 9:11) I dared to believe that God wanted to provide for us in this way.
We helped Hendrick and Sirelene get back to Holland and, having reached an agreement with one ex-wife, he arranged to wire the funds to the studio. The uncertainty was torturous, and this last week when the funds tarried, I decided to do a little detective work. I called some numbers on the paperwork he had left us and eventually found someone who had a similar story to tell. It would seem that Hendrick is just a good storyteller, not with malice, but as a way to make and keep friends. And so, we are left as before — tenuous — trusting that God will give us this day our daily bread. These are only the roughest outlines of what has been an incredible adventure. Our life in the bowels of Barcelona is filled with such Dickensonian characters: Lino the Croatian war criminal, Carlos Fernando who feeds the stray cats three times a day, and others. Our love for them grows.
Giving Wings
I keep saying, “we”… but who is “we”? The number of creative hands at the studio has grown over the last months. Allow me to make some introductions. I have mentioned Addi before. She is a painter from England who has recently decided to commit herself to painting full-time. Jonas is a Spaniard from Zaragoza who I knew briefly during my own stint there. He has been involved in the ministry there ever since and will be working as a film editor and translator in the studio. He was a godsend as we were completing the Survival Kits and he is teaching me the tricks of eating cheap: potatoes, potatoes, potatoes. Leigh Ann is an American who served a stint in Zaragoza and will now be working in ceramics and helping to realize some of our upcoming initiatives. We’ve also rescued a couple stray kittens from the street and there are a number of artists in the wings. It’s beginning to look a lot like crowded. Today we had our first meeting of the year. We considered our calling as artists — to behold the wonders of God’s — and planned together how we might be witnesses to his glory through our creative efforts. It was an excellent time together.
Please pray that we are able to work together well as a team and benefit from the synergy of more minds. We have begun planning for the Film Project next summer. Please pray that we would not be intimidated by this huge endeavor. I praise God for all of you who make possible our efforts to be witnesses to God’s glory. Thank you.
Beholden,
Alas eStudio
Calle de Rull 3, bajos 2: Barcelona, 08002
H: 933-178-429 M: 66-17-17-422
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