Hands On was here

One problem we've noticed in Italy, at least in Rome and Ariano, is that graffiti is quite rampant. We've seen it all over, including on the front of the Corps here in Ariano. This morning one of our tasks was to try to clean it up a little bit. We had considered painting, but the concern is that it would be a waste of time and money if the graffiti returns. So for today, we scrubbed. And we scrubbed. Eventually, we were able to get most of it off. But some stains just wouldn't come out.





Not to get all object-lessony, but as I was scrubbing, I couldn't help but think of the stains of sin that once were in my life. I think about how, no matter how hard I could scrub, I could never get them out. And yet no stain remains, because the blood of Christ cleanses completely, in a way I never could.

"Come now, let us reason together," says the Lord, "Though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they are red as crimson, they shall be like wool." Isaiah 1:18

Encouraged in Ariano, Italy

I am yet to tell you about the Majors here in Ariano. I should not say ‘the majors,’ they go by their first names – Paul and Virginia. These people are so joyful in the Lord. It is evident that they are mindful as the Lord is mindful; their desires are aligned with His as well. Every morning and every night we come together, rather it has been the majors who bring us together for a time of reading and prayer. Usually it has been a verse or two being read, and then a short insightful thought about it. Afterward, we have an open time for group prayer – aka popcorn prayer. This time has been immense encouragement to me, personally. This encouragement has spilled over into my thoughts throughout the day. I have been motivated, even eager, to be praising and worshipping the Lord.

We began Italian lessons today. I am pumped! I’m about to look over what we learned today so that I may hopefully learn very quickly, at least a little bit, yeah? The son of the majors here is named Simone. He is a blessing. Throughout our day, he is so excited to hang around us and practice his conversational English. Too bad for him – he’s probably getting terrible influence from us Americans! American English is so different from British English. Anyway, Simone is incredibly gifted. He has great musical talent – not only to learn quickly, but seemingly to practice eagerly. God has been well equipping him for a significant thing, praise the Lord!

Our day today began about 9:30. Tomorrow, it will begin at 8:30. We start with breakfast and devotions, followed by morning reading and prayers. Thank you for praying, all you who have. We have experienced grace in Christ in result of your prayers.

I want to remind you to keep your thoughts on things above. Locally! Be filled with concern for the spiritually poor; may your concern overflow that you could not help but to be an encouragement to them because of the Word which lives in you. Be filled with compassion for the needy and hopeless; that even those who refuse to help themselves would have a place in your heart. Let your vision of Christ be transformational to the way you view people. Always remember (Philippians 3:20) that “our citizenship is in heaven!” In other words, we are all missionaries in a foreign land. The mission is Jesus – to the world. Again, the words of William Evans are so motivational, “It is not our duty to bring every individual to Christ, but it is our business to see that Christ is brought to every individual.” Yes! Let the fire of the Holy Spirit, which stirs in you now, spread like a forest fire…a forest fire in the middle of a drought. Let us wrestle together in prayer and evangelism!

In the Love of Christ,

Full Surrender to an Unseen Cause

“It is not the quality of the instrument you place in the hands of God that determines its usefulness, it is the full surrender you make of it. It is not the quality of the agent, it is God’s having the full disposal and undisputed sway in using him.”
-Catherine Booth

“It is not our duty to bring every individual to Christ, but it is our business to see that Christ is brought to every individual.”
-William Evans

Everyday, I am realizing more how the effectiveness we have for furthering the Kingdom of God is not determined by the completion of the tasks we have been given so much as it is the spirit in which we accomplish those tasks.

“Christ be with us, Christ within us,
Christ behind us, Christ before us,
Christ beside us, Christ to win us,
Christ to comfort and restore us.
Christ beneath us, Christ above us,
Christ in quiet, Christ in danger,
Christ in hearts of all that love us,
Christ in mouth of friend and stranger.”
-From St. Patrick’s ‘Breastplate Prayer’

Shalom! :)

Next stop: Ariano

Our time in Rome is drawing to a close for now. We will be be back in a few weeks, but tomorrow we leave for Ariano. Our time in Rome has been a real blessing. Everyone here has been so kind to us, and we will miss them while we are away. We have had opportunities to work hard and enjoy this beautiful city. Everything we have done here, from cleaning the basement to leading worship to acting out the story of Noah has been graciously received. We have no idea what awaits us next, but we are eager to find out. We will post again as we are able.

Team auditions for the part of Noah

A Day of Ministry

Yesterday was a day full of ministry opportunity. We went to two local parks to interact with children and their parents and let them know about the summer children’s program that we will be helping with upon our return to Rome in a couple weeks. We figured balloons and a smile translate in any culture or language, so we brought several balloons to give away and play games with the children. We also brought sculpting balloons and made balloon animals for the children. Our selection was limited to dogs and swords (“cane,” or “spada,”), but they were a big hit. We had a lot of fun playing with the kids, although we had to put the water balloons away, because they were much more popular with the children then they were with their parents.

Later that night, we put on a special service for the residents of the social center. Several residents came out along with some soldiers and officers for a time of worship. We presented an offering of dance, drama, testimony, and praise and worship. We posted all the lyrics on powerpoint in both English and Italian, so we could all sing together. We did manage to learn one song in Italian ourselves to sing with them, Aprimi gli occhi del cuore (Open the Eyes of My Heart).

With the help of Maira as an interpreter, Emmanuel brought the message for the evening. This inadvertently led to one of the most comical moments since we have been here. Introducing one song, I said, “In just a moment, Emmanuel will come and share the message.” Emmanuel happens to share his name with the Corps Officer here. This officer shared with us afterward that in that moment he had a mild panic attack because he had nothing prepared, until he remembered that there was another Emmanuel.

I have heard from other summer missions teams in the past that they had moments when they were put on the spot in the middle of a meeting to bring a message. For this reason we have all prepared something ahead of time just in case. But I never imagined that, even for a moment, we would be the ones to catch our hosts off guard.

Seeing the Sights

Morning Devotions

We have begun inviting residents of the social center where we are staying to join us for morning devotions around the breakfast table. We had a couple takers yesterday, and they eagerly asked if we would do it each morning. We had a couple more today. They struggle a bit to understand the English, but they want to keep hearing the Word. We are trying to learn to overcome the language barrier, as we are excited to share in the Scriptures with them. Some also enjoy the opportunity to work on their English, but they have now asked if in addition to our morning devotions we can also find another time to share with an interpreter. Tonight we will be putting on a special service for the social center with interpretation, and we will look for more opportunities this week to share with them.

Arrival and First Day

So when we first arrived, Captain Emmanuel and Eduardo picked us up from the airport to The Salvation Army. This place is beautiful. Myra was here to greet us - she is technically the mother of, well, Italy in my opinion. Needless to say, we are well taken care of here. The food is great! And abundant. We're all anxious to begin ministry! But the first day was reserved for us to go sight-seeing and rest from the travel here. We roamed around Rome. Bahaha, get it? First we went to see the Colosseum, and then to a few other sights. I'm sure we'll have pictures and more explanations of it all sometime soon.
On a sad note, Tra was not able to get her visa and join us this summer. Please keep her in your prayers, and us as well. She's been a blessing to us all, and our time in Italy won't be the same without her being here. We all do acknowledge that God has a plan for each of us this summer, and that His will is not oppressed! :)

Blessings to you all! Please keep us in your prayers. Please, keep those who we will be coming into contact in in prayers as well.

Chris and the Italy Hands On team.