Mar 12
29
How’s your Serve?
I like to play tennis and when I play, I want to win! But, one of the things that keeps me from winning is my serve. The only way I am going to improve my tennis game and have chance at winning is to go out and work on my serve. It’s that simple….practicing my serve will help me win.
There is a more important type of “serve” that I want to talk about. That is in the area of serving the Lord. Many times I miss opportunities to serve others. Maybe it is because of my lack of sensitivity or spontaneity. Whatever the reason, it’s a poor excuse. Real servants pay attention and are on the lookout for ways to help others.
The Bible commands us in Galatians 6:10, “while we have the opportunity, let us do good (serve) to all the people and especially to those who are of the household of the faith.”
Great opportunities to serve may not last long, so take advantage of the moment. God expects us to do what we can, with what we have, wherever we are. Being a servant means giving up the right to control my schedule and allowing God to interrupt at anytime. Servants see interruptions as divine appointments for ministry. Some people have bought into the lie that serving is only for superstars. Jesus didn’t say that.
John Wesley said, “do all the good you can, by all the means you can, in all the ways you can, in all the places you can, at all the times you can, to all the people you can, as long as you ever can.”
Win the day! Serve Him.
Jan 12
24
New Year – New Location: PART THREE
A little more than a year ago we submitted a couple of posts highlighting our new home & ministry the Lord had called us to in Dubai. Little did we know, God would be calling us out once again, and we would be stepping on the plane headed to the United States exactly 13 months later. It is difficult to fully express the range of emotions that we continue to experience through this transition: Excitement of new ministry opportunities, tension as we pack, weigh & reshuffle the things we’d like to bring back, sadness saying goodbye to many friends, grateful for the miracles we have witnessed this past year, contentment knowing we are following His lead, …and maybe a little apprehension of all the blanks that still have yet to be filled in (but God’s in control!)
One emotional reaction to the Lord’s leading and timing over the last several months has been confusion, to be quite honest. Our plan was to return this summer for Jonathan & Jared to finish high school. (Of course, our plan 18 months ago for them to continue & finish school at Rogers High before we considered moving anywhere!) Confusion as to why now, and confusion why the Lord orchestrates and allows circumstances to fall into place to cause a change in course that’s not at the most convenient time (our time).
While reading & meditating the words of John 15 over & over the last few months… “Abide in Me”… “By this my Father is glorified”… “I chose you”… “Love one another”… “that My joy may be in you, & that your joy may be full”… “no longer do I call you servants, but I have called you friends”… “I am the true vine”… & one verse has really stood out time and again:
“Every branch of mine that does not bear fruit he takes away, and every branch that does bear fruit he prunes, that it may bear more fruit.” – verse 2
The unfruitful, dead wood is gathered and burned. Yes, that’s easy to understand. But pruning the branches that are producing fruit? This picture is clearer to us as we think about the Caubble peach orchard back in Arkansas. We can picture Jack, as every year he works through the orchard, row by row, not only cutting away and clearing the dead branches, but LOADS of branches FULL of beautiful peach blooms. Blooms that would be sweet, white flesh peaches a few months later! The reason for pruning away the fruitful branches is to allow more energy to flow to the even stronger branches resulting in bigger, better, healthier fruit. It also allows more sunlight to penetrate deep into the tree’s center, an area susceptible to wettness & later on, disease.
Do you see where this is going? Pruning is painful! We constantly ask the Lord to prune away the things in our lives we don’t like. But how willing are we to let go of the “good things” and successes so He can bring about an even greater good? Are we willing to take on the pain, hurt or sacrifices that come with pruning in the process? Oh, Lord that You would give us the grace to submit to your pruning, so that your light will shine on us, and that the wind of your Holy Spirit would reach our innermost parts and regenerate us. All for Your glory.
We have two nights left in Dubai, and we’re trying to enjoy them as much as possible in the midst of packing, selling our belongings, a sick child and semester exams. Thank you for your prayers not only this past month, but this past year! God is faithful. He is our advocate. He is our healer, and our provider. And He is continuing to call out to many to Himself here, in India, in Arkansas, and throughout the world. To God be the glory!
International City is like a city-within-a-city, about a 20 minute drive from our house. When originally planned, International City (IC) was intended to be Dubai’s answer to the city’s need for low-cost, clean, modern housing. So 20,000 studio, 1 & 2 bedroom apartments were built up on 800 hectares of land on the outskirts of Dubai. Commercial space to house markets, restaurants, gyms and spas was assigned to the ground levels and residential space are in the upper floors.
The apartments are grouped in themed communities, or clusters: China, England, Italy, Spain, Persia, Greece, Morocco, France & Russia. The architecture of the buildings adhere to the theme or the name of the cluster. Rent ranges from about $14,000 – $24,000 USD per year. (Yes, that is cheap and affordable for Dubai!) International City is built to house 120,000 people. Currently there are appx. 60,000 people living there – including people from dozens and dozens of different nationalities.
International City: parking between clusters and basketball court in background
When you pass by International City on Emirates Road bypass, or on Hatta Road heading out to the desert, it looks like a nice, desirable community from a distance. But when you drive into the development, and begin walking the streets, and peering down hallways in the buildings the desirability becomes less apparent. One of Dubai’s major developers had high hopes for International City. But it seems that when the economic crisis touched Dubai a few years back, the project was abandoned. Not all of the buildings were completed. Trash litters the streets in some areas. Weeds and shrubs are terribly overgrown. Sidewalks are half-complete and become sandy trails. Maintenance workers and gardeners were pulled out. It appears that corners were cut even in basic infrastructure – as one can tell when sewage overflows and stands in puddles in the streets… a major complaint from the residents.
Sewer backwash puddled up in the streets in the England cluster.
There are families that live in IC. You see the kids getting off the school buses, you can hear their laughter ringing through open windows, and you see their clothes hanging on lines or on balconies. But for the most part, IC has become just a step above a labor camp. Thousands of migrant workers have flooded to IC if their companies don’t house them in a camp. Men and women live 4, 6 or even 8 to a room because the rent is so high for someone making $300 a month. Not much is being done to prevent this, and it has angered many residents who originally moved to IC under the promise of a safe, prosperous community for families. Some have been quoted, calling International City “Slum City” or “Sonapur 2.” (Sonapur is a very large labor camp just a few miles away.)
Advertisements seeking roommates are taped on vacant windows all over Int’l City. Because of low wages and high housing costs in Dubai, many workers are forced to share rooms between multiple people.
Things happen behind closed doors that most people only see in movies. Two years ago a report made headlines of a raid on brothels in the China cluster. Men and women were being held captive, and as the police came to bust the operation, Chinese gang members attacked with Samurai swords. The sex trade and human trafficking is rampant. Undercover prostitution businesses pose as massage centers and daily leave business cards on residents’ doors promoting their trade. There are evils that you can hear and see all around. But even more so, as we regularly “walk” the streets in IC, you sense a heavy, spiritual darkness.
Temporary mosques, like this one pictured, can be found in every cluster. These will remain until permanent mosques can be built. These mosques are filled, inside and outside, during the prayer times.
We believe and pray that God is going to do amazing things in this area in the days ahead. There are many opportunities to provide services to the community. Just a few months ago, we enjoyed passing out water to laborers who were working out in the streets on construction jobs. Our friends felt a heavy burden for International City earlier this year, and in September they moved into an apartment in IC, living among the people. We ask that you join us in regularly praying for our friends, and for the thousands of people who live in International City.
One of Leslie’s favorite places to hang out… the souks! The souks are traditional markets where bargaining and trading are the way of life, just as it was in the early years of Dubai. (Although many of the markets have become tourist havens filled with trinkets, and the bargaining power not so high.) Souks and markets can be found across town, but the ones near Dubai Creek are some of the most exotic… & fragrant! The Creek is just a 20 minute drive from our house. But attempt to make the journey at night, especially a Friday night, and it may take you well over an hour to get there. If you love to people-watch and rub shoulders with men & women from all over the globe – night is the best time to visit. Local residents & thousands of laborers flock to the souks after work to get some of the best deals in town from spices to housewares to clothing.
Visiting Dubai Creek can take you back in time… wooden dhow boats are hand-crafted in a shipyard on the Creek and are still used today to transport spices from Iran and lavish textiles from the Indian subcontinent. Even on the hottest of days, a ride across the Creek in an abra, or water taxi, can be refreshing. A one-way trip across the Creek is just 1 Dirham – about 27 cents. We usually park on the Bur Dubai side of the Creek near the textile souk, and ride the abras across to the Deira side where the spice & gold souks & the fish, fruit & vegetable markets are.
Abras parked along Dubai Creek
Street food is abundant in this area. For just $1-2 you can get a brown paper sack full of Pakistani samosas, aloo tuk or pakoras. Go really ethnic and you can quench your thirst with fresh coconut juice – straight from a coconut and served with a straw. A nicer, scenic dinner spot is at Bait al Wakeel. It’s a tasty Lebanese restaurant with a patio sitting right over the bank of the Creek. Even though it’s Lebanese, they serve an awesome Moroccan mint tea. If you want to splurge and go all-out, you can book a dinner cruise on a dhow boat. It lasts a few hours, cruises up and down Dubai Creek, and typically serves an Arabic buffet. It’s beautiful to walk along the Creek at night and see all the dinner dhow boats lit up in white lights returning from their cruises.
The Spice Souk is an area filled with narrow alleyways and streets. The small, quaint shops are teeming with bins and burlap bags full of fresh, fragrant spices from Iran, India, Oman… Shop owners are professionals at begging for your business, as well as men on the street offering “genuine” Prada or Louis Vuitton handbags in their flats upstairs (genuine fake – and illegal!) Walking through the spice souk reminds you of what Dubai used to be like. In the modern age, now most of these spices can be found in large supermarkets. But the shop owners at the souks are always willing to explain each of the spices and their uses, which is nice. You can even pick up some frankincense and myrrh – still used today by the locals as incense. The visitors we take here always say, “This is a DIFFERENT Dubai!”
Spice Souk
Some of the spices we’ve purchased recently: cinnamon, sumac, chili flakes, ginger, bay leaves, & chocolate rocks (OK – not a spice, but fun to eat)
The Gold Souk is just a block away from the Spice Souk. It is probably the best-known souk in Dubai, yet we still have to see any of our visitors buy any gold! If you’re in the market for some gold bangles, gold bars or even gold-foiled playing cards, Dubai is one of the cheapest places in the world to buy. The shop owners at the gold souk sell gold here a little below market value. The gold is sold by weight, and there’s not much bargaining on the price unless you have some special workmanship done to the jewelry.
Who said diamonds are a girl’s best friend? Check out this gold!!
The Textile Souk is full of material from different areas of the globe, but mostly from India and the Far East. There is a wide range of colors, materials and styles. This is a great area to bargain, and best to shop in several different stores before making your decision. Most of the workers will promise you their “best price” but it always helps to bargain and see if that price drops a little further! Inexpensive tailors can be found in most shops, and will gladly alter your ready-made garment for next to nothing. Or, if you want an Indian sari custom-tailored, just choose your fabric, and the tailor takes your measurements and does the rest of the work.
Pradeep & Bethany: No trip to the souks is complete without a visit to Pradeep’s shop.
Leslie & Brooke shopping for saris in the textile souks with friend, Debra
Oct 11
31
Dubai Uncovered: Al Quoz
Al Quoz (al-koose) is a large area in Dubai very close to where we live. In fact, it’s just the next district over from us. Al Quoz is approximately 27 square kilometers located between the older, downtown area of Dubai and “New Dubai” and the Marina areas. This area far from being known as the glamorous, glitzy Dubai that the world has come to know and visit. At first glance, Al Quoz looks to be nothing but block after block of warehouses, cement factories and shabby, concrete buildings. The dusty roads are crowded with large trucks and white buses and vans used to transport migrant laborers to and from their camps and work sites.
But a closer look reveals a few diamonds in the rough! Al Quoz has recently gained fame as a haven for the local art culture, and now is home to dozens of art galleries. Little do you know that behind the doors of some of the dingy warehouses are clean, simple yet very modern galleries displaying works from local UAE artists and others from the Middle East and Indian subcontinent. Guide books and websites now point tourists and residents to Al Quoz and it’s flourishing art scene.
Al Quoz is home to the Times Square Center, one of the smaller malls in Dubai but a nice hangout for those who live close. Any venue with a Caribou Coffee is a plus to us! Times Square Center hosts an “Art Souk” once a month where local (must reside in the UAE) artists and craftsmen sell their jewelry, artwork, clothing, and stationary products. It’s like our own little War Eagle Craft Fair right here in the Middle East! Also at Times Square Center is “Chill Out” – a small cafe made entirely of ice! Sculptures of Dubai landmarks, tables, chairs, even the glasses you drink from are all made of ice. Since it’s a freezing 28 degrees inside, they provide you with a parka, furry hat and gloves during your visit.
Some other noteworthy places in Al Quoz are the exotic car shops and Antique Museum. Jonathan & Jared never get tired of driving down the border of Al Quoz on Sheikh Zayed Rd. and looking at the luxury sports cars through the display windows, shop after shop. Down a side street in the middle of Al Quoz Industrial, almost a sand pathway of a road, next door to a rickety old trailer that serves as a mosque for nearby warehouse employees, is the Antique Museum. Passing by large, dusty wooden sculptures of everything from dragons to camels in what seems like a garage, you enter into a reception area managed by a friendly Indian man named Bob who calls in an escort to guide you through the winding maze of wonders, trinkets, textiles, and dust. Your guide (Faisal is our favorite) opens a small, but heavy wooden bejewelled door and you duck inside the shop. It’s not actually a museum but a warehouse that services many souvenir shops around town. We usually bring most volunteer teams here for an hour or two of one-stop shopping on their way out of town.
But aside from the less familiar wonders hidden in Al Quoz are 120,000+ men & women who are tucked well away from Sheikh Zayed Road, the art galleries and Time Square Center. In the back half of Al Quoz you’ll find block after block of labor accommodations that house workers anywhere from Ethiopia, to Pakistan, to the Philippines. Here you might drive by Grand City Mall that is bustling with men from Pakistan & India on a Friday afternoon. You may smell the fish or mutton being cooked up for the evening rush at the Green Pepper – a little Pakistani joint on the back street of Al Quoz. If you drive through at the right time, you’ll hear the call to prayer coming from every direction and men walking in lines to the mosques that can sometimes span a mile. This is an area of strategic interest not only to our family and our team, but to the Lord who loves and cares for every single soul that calls Al Quoz home during their time in Dubai.
We hope you enjoyed a brief look into Al Quoz: an area that is not only physically near to our family, but a place for which God has placed a passion in our hearts and its sand under our feet.
Oct 11
24
Discovering Dubai
Over the next few posts, we want to unwrap the city of Dubai for you, district by district. We will highlight some of the tourist areas that draw millions of visitors to the city each year. Also, discover some of the off-the-beaten-path areas and venues to get a little taste of where our family and hundreds of thousands of migrant laborers call home. For our family & friends, we hope that this helps you have a peek into what we experience on a regular basis. For our prayer partners & supporters, we want you to get a feel for the vast opportunity here when you peel back the layers of the glitz and glamor of the city.
Here are some sneak-peek photos of some of the areas we will explore:
Sep 11
28
A September to Remember
It’s hard to believe we’ve been back in the UAE for a month now. Back to our home… back to our own beds and clothes tucked away in drawers, not overflowing out of suitcases… back to our cocker spaniels… back to school… and back to work in the camps!
This month of re-entry has definitely had its ups and downs. It seems that God is planning great things in the days ahead because the enemy has been on full alert with assaults and distractions since Day 1. Really, before we even left the States this summer with Jared’s painful, weird illness that took over his body for over a month. Leslie had two rounds of hives, the second one this month lasting 10 days and was quite nerve-racking and painful. John’s jet-lag has settled into just plain insomnia. We arrived at our house with one A/C & dishwasher that had gone out, and the washing machine going out within our first week back. Utility bills the last 2 months have been up to ten times the usual amount – and we weren’t even here! Turns out we have an underground water leak. John & Leslie are just getting over bad colds, which Jared has now caught. Who knew you could catch a cold when the heat index is still 110+ at night?!
Not saying all this to convey a “woe is me” attitude. We are beyond blessed and are grateful for our awesome kids, a wonderful team to support us, a roof over our head and food on the table. So many people deal with so much more suffering. When we start to get discouraged, we go to the Word and know that He is able to get us through any situation or nuisance, though He may not always pull us out of it. Whatever He chooses to use to refine us, we give God the glory. And we move on.
Our neighborhood
What else did we come home to? One, Jonathan & Jared are almost finished with their first month at the American School of Dubai! PTL Jonathan especially has adapted quite nicely and has made several friends. He has already spent time with several guys at Ski Dubai, hanging at the mall, sleepovers, youth group outings, paintball, metro joy-rides… typical teenager stuff! Though hard to admit, we think they actually like their classes. Just as they start to complain about school work, we remind them how much better they have it than we did (just as good parents should). WE didn’t get to take Marine Biology in 9th grade where we got take field trips to snorkel and identify fish in the Persian Gulf. WE didn’t have the option to take Strategic Games in 7th grade where your lesson is playing Chess or Risk against your classmates. WE didn’t have a SUBWAY in our cafeteria!! (Of course, WE didn’t have to wear uniforms at WJHS or WHS either… ha!)
Dubai changed slightly during our 2 month absence. Temperatures cooled off slightly – down to 115-120 earlier this month. It must have been a scorching summer because that’s what our yard looked like. BLACK! Like someone had actually set it on fire! We are looking forward to a chilly 75 degrees this winter. Several new restaurants have opened including Red Lobster, Texas Roadhouse, and drumroll please… a Tim Hortons Coffee shop! Also a new location for Fatburger just opened in our “neighborhood” mall – Mall of the Emirates. (Can we get an AMEN, Karl Garner??)
A “double-double”
But our main highlight this month has been reconnecting with the men and women we left in June, and getting back into the camps. We are constantly reminded how grateful we should be to leave the country when we want to, able to visit our family & friends after just 6 months when many of these men & women go one, two, even three years without seeing their own wives, children or parents. It was also a highlight to meet new friends from Mississippi who gave up a week to serve the Lord and pour their lives into these laborers. God definitely showed out last week during the Compassion Kit parties & our beach “celebration!”
John & friends – September 2011
Thank you for praying for our family, thank you to those who enable us to live here by supporting us financially, & thank you for the many encouraging messages and emails since we’ve been back! If you would like to hear more ministry updates, please click the “Become a Prayer Partner” link to receive regular email updates.
Pressing on,
John, Leslie, Jonathan & Jared
“Look at the nations and watch and be utterly amazed. For I am going to do something in your days that you would not believe, even if you were told.”
Habakkuk 1:5
Aug 11
28
Summertime in the States
It’s been a whirlwind July & August for us back in the U.S.A. Looking back, it seems like it was a quick 2 months – but some days were definitely longer than others! Thank you for praying for Jonathan & Jared as they flew back by themselves in June. They have enjoyed spending time with their grandparents, friends, making new friends in Wynne, fishing, playing golf, attending summer youth camps, tubing at the lake, and Jonathan getting his driver’s permit!
Road trips was the theme this summer for John & Leslie. (And Journey’s “Don’t Stop Believing” became the theme song as we took in some 80’s & classic rock on Rick’s satellite radio!) We enjoyed some great times talking about Compassion Kits and the work in Dubai with various churches and individuals. Thank you to these churches in Arkansas & Tennessee who are putting together Compassion Kits this next month for Project 09.11.11, and will continue on through the next year:
First Baptist Church of Rogers
Geyer Springs First Baptist Church
Maple Grove Baptist Church (Trumann)
Central Baptist Church (Jonesboro)
First Baptist Church of Pea Ridge
We want to send a special thank you to our home church, Wynne Baptist Church, who over the last 2 months have assembled and completed almost 1,200 Compassion Kits ready to be shipped out in early September. We were lucky enough to be in town to hang out with our friends at WBC during one of their Compassion Kits packing nights.
We are headed back to Dubai on Monday, August 29. Jonathan and Jared are excited about starting at their new school, American School of Dubai, next Sunday. John will be back in the camps soon picking up where he left off. And, we are ready to see our cocker spaniels, Baxter and Molly!
Below was our first blog post just over a year ago. We have tried to follow obediently where and when He has led. He has been faithful to strengthen us during difficult times, and we have and continue to marvel at His work in the Middle East and His provision for our family. We look forward to how He is going to work in the coming year!
So this is the second time we have traveled down this road. The first time was in 2000 when we answered God’s call to serve with the IMB in Western Europe ministering to the refugee and immigrant population through sports. It was definitely hard then to break the news to our family and friends. So far, it’s been equally if not more difficult.
Don’t get us wrong, we know without a doubt this is what God is calling our family to during this season of our lives. Throughout last week and the weekend we have, one by one, told those close to us of how God is taking us on this journey. The world is a much smaller place now, but it still hard to tell grandparents, aunts & uncles they will not see their grandsons & nephews for months and months. To tell your best friends… heartbreaking. It’s hard leave your church when so many exciting things are happening, and you are comfortable and love all of your brothers and sisters there.
But nothing is harder than being outside God’s will. Following Him in faith and obedience does not mean everything will fall into place and things will be perfect. Giving up so much – especially daily interaction with our family and friends – is extremely hard. However, nothing outweighs laying those things that we call comfortable aside, taking up the cross, and following Him.
We pray that this blog and the words from our hearts will be an encouragement to you. Especially to you whom God is speaking about taking the next step of faith through your prayer life, finances, going across the street or across the world to share the love of Christ.
Aug 11
7
Countdown to School
After nearly a year on a waiting list and many frustrations with homeschooling, Jonathan and Jared will be starting 9th and 7th grades at the American School of Dubai. Classes start one month from now! Their names have been on a waiting list since September last year. What a great blessing from the Lord that seats opened for them.
The American School of Dubai campus is located in a new facility that opened this past year, though the school itself is several years old. Some things will feel the same as school back in Rogers. It’s an American curriculum, all classes are in English, and the teachers all hold American passports. They will be surrounded by other students (about 1,600!) and many of the same team sports that are offered in the U.S. can be played through the school. (But alas, no American football…)
A few things will feel different, however. Jonathan and Jared must wear uniforms. We don’t dwell on this subject with them very much, but they will get used to it. The campus will be big, and the security is very tight. Even parents must pass through 2 iron gates and check in at a security office. There are a wealth of elective classes to choose from. When registering it was almost like looking through a small college course catalog! In addition to core courses, Jared has selected to take Art, Drawing & Painting, CSI Forensics, Reading Rendezvous, Technology Foundations and Filmmaking. Jonathan will be taking Advanced Guitar, Web Design, Music Recording & Production, Digital Video, Music in Media, and Marine Biology. There are students from all over the world that attend ASD. We think that is a cool thing, and are excited for Jonathan & Jared to finally meet some new friends.
They will be somewhat anxious, excited and jet-lagged when they start classes on September 4. It will be a great education for them as well as some great experiences. God is faithful and knew the right timing and the right school for them to attend. It was a miracle that they were even offered seats this year. We are trusting in His provision for the tuition, too. Every school in Dubai is extremely expensive – it’s a very expensive place to live. But we are confident in His calling on our family to this place in this season working among some of the poorest but most open people we will ever meet. Thank you for praying for Jonathan & Jared, especially in the month ahead. Thank you for praying for the finances that will allow them to attend a traditional school. Thank you for praying these last months for seats to open in a school and for friendships. God’s answer to this prayer will soon come to fruition!
www.asdubai.org
