INDIA(na)

We are now back from INDIA in good ole INDIAna! And wow is it different here in Indiana?! Different smells. Different sites. Different faces. Different tastes. Different attitudes. Different views on where to throw trash. Different ideas of how to drive a car. Different hunger for the Word. Many things were different in India... However, one thing was definitely the same as Indiana. There were a whole bunch of people who God has made perfect in His image. He then sent His son to die for ALL these same people. Both in India and Indiana, we have learned that people long to be loved and Jesus did that with EVERYONE. Jesus didn't care who they were, what they did, or how they acted. He loved each of them with love that can only come from the Father. He may have loved them in different ways, but he LOVED each one of them regardless.

Ali and I had a great time in India. The kids we worked with were great. They hung on every word that we said. They laughed at everything that we did. They interacted with us and expressed their appreciation for us coming to share with them. Quite honestly, we felt like rock stars! Why... I really don't know! If only they knew who we really were...

Now we are back... in Keller Park. We are no longer rock stars anymore. We are back in reality. We see hurting kids. We see hurting people. We see sinfulness, filth, dirt, and blindness. We quickly become overwhelmed and frustrated... feeling like we are running into a parked car over and over again. We are reminded that LOVING is hard and it hurts. We are not rock stars. We are people. And God has called us to love other people.

However, India has refueled us. We are ready to continue on with the call God has given us. We are excited to get our hands dirty again. We are excited to be obedient in the little things and not grow weary in doing good. We are excited to LOVE...

...people just like us.

India in January

I'm sorry that I haven't written this earlier, but I wanted to inform you that Ali and I will be leaving for India this Sunday, January 17, and will be gone until January 31. We have been blessed with the opportunity to go with Dave and Christy Engbrecht (Pastor and his wife of Nappanee Missionary Church) to help with 2 family camps. The first camp is in Ragunathpur and the second is in Northeast India near Bhutan. Ali and I will be in charge of all the games and teaching with the youth of both the camps (this consists of about 2 sessions a day). We are expecting around 700 people at each camp. Some of you may be wondering how we can afford to raise more support for this trip and also leave "The Transformation" at Keller Park. Well... We are NOT rasing any support as Nappanee Missionary will be graciously covering our expenses. We also have things lined up in Keller Park while we are gone. This trip is actually a much needed break as the urban ministry has been pretty tough lately. Satan seems to be working over-time here in Keller Park.

Anyways, we ask that you could pray for our time in India. Here are a few specific prayer requests:

1) Pray for strength and energy as the camps can be very demanding. International travel can really take it out of you.
2) Pray against sickness as this can hamper any kind of ministry you try to do.
3) Technical parts of camp... specifically sound systems as power is often sporadic.
4) Translators... This is a key in any country where the language is different. Pray that the Holy Spirit will speak no matter how "good/bad" the translator is. There are at least 5 primary language groups in these camps.
5) Anointing of Holy Spirit in all services.
6) Safety for 1400 people that will be traveling 2-3 days to each camp.
7) Safety for our travel as in-country travel has a higher risk in India.
8) Humility as we share our messages. We will be sharing about issues such as persecution and many of the kids have already faced more persecution at a greater level than I ever will.

Thanks for all your prayers and support. If I ever have an update on the trip it will be on my personal blog korylantz@blogspot.com.

Blessings to all,

Kory and Ali

Going Back: Vanuatu 2010

It's official... I will be going back to Vanuatu for a discipleship followup conference this coming July! After much prayer and wrestling with God we feel that God is calling us back. If you would like to learn more about our endeavor back to Vanuatu please follow us on my blog at www.korylantz.blogspot.com. I will not be posting on this blog about Vanuatu because this blog is strictly for "The Transformation." I would love to share with any of you more about Vanuatu. I am very excited!

Pressing on,

Kory

The Truly Worthy Poor

Lupton, Robert D., Theirs is the Kingdom: Celebrating the Gospel in Urban America, ed. Barbara R. Thompson (New York, New York: Harper Collins, 1989).

This book was recommended to me by my brother this summer and I tried reading it some before I moved into Keller Park, and quite honestly, I didn't make much sense to me. It just wasn't relevant enough for me. It contains a variety of short stories within the urban context dealing with issues such as poverty, race, giving, grace, forgiveness, etc. After living in the neighborhood for over 3 months now these issues are becoming much more relevant and I can't really get enough of this book. It seems like a lot of these stories have been entirely directed towards me. I just read a story about the how to determine if poor people are truly worthy of your giving. I often find myself stressing over whether or not the person I just gave my money or possessions to really deserved it. Were they really worthy of that? The problem is... I never really find out completely if they took my money or gift and were truly a good steward of it. Why does this bother me? Maybe because I have burned too many times? Maybe because I don't know when to give and when not to? Maybe because I am selfish in my giving and want to feel good about what "I" did for someone else? Something I am wrestling with... but read below to see what the book says (it says it better than I can). Although I found this to be very true, I also found it quite humorous. Here are the potential "worthy" recipients of my giving:

1. A truly worthy poor woman: Is a widow more than sixty-five years old living alone in substandard housing; does not have a family or relatives to care for her. Has no savings and cannot work; has an income inadequate for basic needs. Is a woman of prayer and faith, never asks anyone for anything but only accepts with gratitude what people bring her; is not cranky.

2. A truly worthy poor young man: Is out of school, unemployed but not living off his mother. Diligently applies for jobs every day; accepts gratefully any kind of work for any kind of pay. Does not smoke, drink, or use drugs; attends church regularly. Will not manipulate for gain either for himself or his family; is dependable and morally pure. Does not act "cool" or "hip" like his peers on the street. Has pride in himself and is confident; may sleep in alleys but is always clean and shaved.

3. A truly worthy poor young woman: Lives in public housing (only temporarily) Has illegitimate children conceived prior to Christian conversion; is now celibate. Tithes her welfare check and food stamps; is a high school dropout but manages well with limited resources. Places a high value on education and nutrition for her children. Walks everywhere (grocery store, church, school, welfare office) with her children to save bus fare and keep her sparsely furnished home spotless. Occasionally runs out of food by the end of the month, but will not beg for handouts. Will not accept more than twenty-five dollars per month in help from friends even if her children are hungry because this violates welfare rules.

4. A truly worthy poor family: Is devout, close-knit. Has a responsible father working long hours at minimum wage wherever he can find work. Has a mother who makes the kids obey, washes clothes by hand, and will not by any junk food. Lives in overcrowded housing; will not accept welfare and food stamps even when neither parent can find work. Always pays the bills on time; has no automobile. Has kids that do not whine or tell lies.

I find myself looking for these "worthy" people to give to, but still have not found ONE! My challenge to those who are reading this: During this Christmas season find somebody to give to (money, possessions, food, time) without finding out if they are worthy to receive. Can you do it?

Thanks for the good read Kyle!

Happy Thanksgiving!!!!

This Thanksgiving we were blessed to have my mom cook a whole Thanksgiving meal for the Crew (our youth group at Keller Park)!! Not only did she cook a whole Thanksgiving meal, but it was for about 25 people! Thanks to her willingness to come down and cook for these kids we had a great turnout of about 15-20 teenagers from the neighborhood area. We set tables up in our living room and feasted. My brother Robbie and his wife Kristin joined us in serving food to the kids and hanging out. It was a blast, kids stuck around till 10:30 at night. It was a great way to start off the Holiday weekend, being thankful for the relationships God's allowing us to build with these teenagers.

Question Series: What is that?

What is that in the picture above? For most of us we would be able to answer that question pretty easily. It's a PSP. For me this is more than just a PSP. It represents something much greater than just a game system. It represents a poverty mentality. One might be surprised to walk into our neighborhood and see what kind of "stuff" our kids have and what kind of stuff our kids wear.

The PSP is a prime example of what I am talking about. A few days ago, one of my boys asked me to hold his new PSP that his mom bought him. This is the same boy's mom who I had to pay $2 for to get into her son's football game (this was the first game she had ever seen her son play because she said she couldn't afford the other games). This is the question I want to ask: "How can you afford a PSP, but not afford to pay a couple bucks to support your son playing football?" The answer would/should be: "It's my poverty mentality." There is nothing wrong with buying things... even nice, expensive things. However, I have seen time and time again people living in poverty use their unemployment money to buy clothes, stereo systems, cell phones, etc. There seems to be this mentality that says, "I am going to spend what I have as soon as I can so that I don't lose it. I am not going to start a savings account. I am not going to pay off my electric bill. I am not going to pay me overdue rent of 3 months. I am going to keep moving from house to house until I get kicked out. But I will by a PSP."

I have heard before that it is extremely hard to break the cycle of poverty. That is why you see so many professional athletes come from poverty, make it big, and then lose all their millions of dollars and end up right back where they started. This is extremely sad to me. What can be done? What is my role personally as a Christ follower in the area that I am living?

Would you rather have 3 pairs of nice shoes or food to eat? Seems like a simple answer. But for some reason people around me struggle to answer it.

Sunny Saturday

As many of you know, last Saturday was a beautiful sunny day in the 60's so we took advantage of it at the Lantz household! Kory & I woke up Saturday morning not knowing what we would do with our day because for the first time in a long time it was wide open without plans. Before we knew it, there were knocks at our door, and 10 minutes later we had 4 teenage boys, 2 elementary girls, and a 4 year old all in our house eating some breakfast. Kory & I looked at each other and couldn't help but laugh because here we were in the middle of ministry in our pajamas.

We played outside with sidewalk chalk, rode bikes, colored pictures, put together puzzles, played sports, ate food, and our personal favorite....the girls loved helping us vacuum our new piece of carpet! They stayed over till 5pm and the group kept getting bigger. Poor Kory, by evening he was out-matched 9 girls to 1 boy.

Later that night we got to take 3 of the teenage girls that attend our youth group to the Bethel College soccer game. The night was fun for them being in a college atmosphere and meeting people that Kory & I were friends with.

Question of the week will be coming shortly....