The Chemnitz song refers to the city as a “himmelblaue stadt” (sky blue city). So here’s a photo that tries to capture that image.
We participated in the “Offnen Tür” (open door, or open house) at FEG-Chemnitz today. The whole church showed up to celebrate the remodeling and re-painting of the building. We’ll get a report tomorrow on how many folks from the neighborhood also showed up.
Bonnie on the S-3 train to Friedrichstrasse.
It was a gray day and had the audacity to sprinkle rain on us from time to time. Here, during a pause in the rain, Bonnie stands at the entrance to FEG-Pankow church. The church currently occupies the top floor of what used to be a commercial building along the parade route for communist dignitaries visiting east Germany.
We had a pleasant meeting and prayer session with Timo Heimlich, the pastor, followed by lunch in a Chinese restaurant also in this building. The church is considering moving to the first floor in order to be more visible and easier to access. They are also considering a partnership with other organizations to establish a community center in this building.
Later in the evening, we attended a home group meeting in the Tiergarten area with Steve and Karen Mack from Berlin International Church. Many of those at the meeting were familiar to us, but we also made some new friends. A great time of fellowship, worship, and prayer…and food, of course.
Now we’re packing our suitcases, getting ready for tomorrow’s train ride to Chemnitz in the southeast German state of Saxony. We’ll be joined on this adventure by a team of folks from Two Rivers Church, our home church in Knoxville.
Our hotel is in the vicinity of the Kaiser Wilhelm Memorial Church. This church was destroyed (along with most of central Berlin) during the WWII bombing raids. The Germans decided to leave the skeleton of the building as a reminder of the war and a memorial to those who died.
It feels good to be back in Berlin–a little like coming home. We had lunch today with Steve and Karen Mack, senior pastors at Berlin International Church. Then we spent some time talking and praying with Beatrice, one of our dear friends here. Tomorrow we’ll do a little sightseeing and visit with Timo Heimlich, the pastor at FEG-Pankow. While we’re there, we’ll also pick up the train tickets for the 2RC visit to Chemnitz and Dresden.
Getting setup with cell phone service and internet service, which took me nearly a week to get in November, took only about an hour today. And we have been able to negotiate virtually all our interactions in German. Pretty basic stuff, but it’s a huge improvement over last year.
Weather here is cool. The temps are in the 60s during the day, but throw in a 15 knot breeze, and it feels chilly. Evenings drop into the 50s.
It has been just about a month since Bonnie and I got home from Germany…or as Mike Edwards astutely pointed out, “since we returned to Tennessee.” If home is where the heart is, our hearts now have multiple homes in this world.
Whether or not you are a Christian, Berlin is an exciting place, and exciting things are happening there. Much of the population is young, professional, non-German, and transient. Change is constant.
But Bonnie and I believe that the best is yet to come–that what we saw this winter was just the first hint of dawn in a city where the coming day will be absolutely brilliant. We want to share what we saw, not that we know a lot, but because the little we saw was compelling. It’s just possible that some of you may be interested in playing a part in what is about to happen.
So if you’re in a group, we’d like to come talk to your group about our adventure. We have a 30-minute presentation that we’ve already given a couple times. Give us a call and we’ll be glad to schedule a time.
Did you know that you can sign up for e-mail notification when a new post appears on this blog? Just click on the Subscription link in the left sidebar on this page. Some of you have already done this. The reason I mention it is that the pace of new posts will slow. We are committed to chronicling our thoughts as we process what we experienced, but we are also committed to doing that over a period of a few weeks. Signing up for an e-mail subscription lets you know as soon as a new post is added without you having to check the blog every day.
Here’s a photographic thought for the day, courtesy of a Berlin sign. The translation follows the photo.
The inscription across the top translates to: “Life is what happens while you’re busy making other plans.” It’s a familiar phrase, but I love the sound of it in German. Tschuβ.
Thanks to all of you who prayed us through the drawn out journey home. And thanks to all of you who did lots of wonderful things for us while we were gone. Although we had a wonderful trip, I can’t tell you how good it feels to be home.
We will be exploring ways besides this blog to share our story with you as we sort through things in our hearts and minds.
Thanks again and know that your prayers and kind acts were a pleasing aroma to God.
Made it to Amsterdam, but…our plane for the Memphis leg had mechanical problems, so Bonnie and I and 400 of our new closest friends are staying at a variety of hotels in Amsterdam. We have spent more time standing in line today (it took over 3 hours to get everyone through security) than we probably have in the rest of our lives. I kept thinking of Dick Moe as I prayed for patience–it’s a dangerous prayer, but it works.
Hopefully we’ll make it home tomorrow (Tuesday). Please continue to pray for us. We can really tell the difference when you are praying. Thanks for all your support and encouragement.
As I write this, it is just after midnight back home in Tennessee. By the time most of you read this, we will be well into our return flights. We leave Berlin at 11 AM local time, which is 5 AM eastern time. Whenever you read it, please pray for safe flights and a smooth transition back into the USA.
It is with very mixed emotions that we leave Berlin. Joy at returning home but sadness at leaving new friends. I have been encouraged to continue this blog to chronicle our re-entry and our progress in sifting through all that the Lord has done and continues to do.
Thanks for all your comments, e-mails, thoughts, and especially your prayers.
Intel has been displaying this giant sign at Potsdamer Platz for a couple of weeks now. I believe that a fair (but not literal) translation is: “Today is born from yesterday.” That’s a rather ironic sign to be sitting on what used to be the death zone between east and west Berlin. And it’s not what you would expect from a future oriented company like Intel, so I’m still pondering what all it might mean. I’ll offer it to you as a New Year’s challenge. Hint: check out Galatians 6:7.
Following are a couple photos of what awaited us this morning. 2009’s last shot, I guess. What you can’t tell from these photos is that the wind is gusting up to 20 mph out of the NE.
Windblown in Germany 