We Made It!!!

Well, friends, here we are…in the Netherlands.

The past few months have been insane. Truly crazy how things have changed and developed and happened. Many many many instances of a Divine Hand at work in a human world. Many many many instances of resistance and opposition by a darker force also at work. And yet, those of us with faith in God know the end of the story: "He who is in you is greater than he who is in the world."

Here's a brief synopsis of some recent events.

Sunday November 10th, we were driven by Christy's parents to Chicago, from which we had a departure out of O'Hare on Monday November 11th.

After a HAUL to O'Hare with our luggage (Imagine moving continents….with a 16-month-old) and a bit of trouble checking in, we made it to our gate, only to see snow falling out the window.

We briefly panicked as we knew that that could mean delays. After conquering the airport shuttle, hiring the baggage guy at the curb to lug our stuff in to the check-in counter, successfully making it through airport security (no small task…), and making it to the front of the line at the gate with all three of us alive and well, all three of our overloaded carry-ons, all three of our overloaded "personal items," Sofie's stroller in a gate-check stroller bag, and Sofie's car-seat in tow for the plane ride, the thought of possibly having to leave that area, or even move to another gate was MORE than enough to cause a small panic attack.

Nevertheless, we made it onto the plane, where we endured about an hour-delay as they de-iced and prepared the plane and runway for take-off.

Sofie did fabulous! Thank you for the prayers as we were concerned that she, an active toddler, may not exactly handle an 8-hour plane ride OK, but she did! It helped that we left Monday afternoon, and arrived Tuesday morning as she got some sleep. As we were getting settled into our seats, we met a young lady that was sitting behind us. Her name is Sarah, and she was en route to Uganda to do mission work. We don't know much more than that, but it was a blessing for all of us to meet and to swap prayer requests.

After arrival and customs and gathering of luggage, we were warmly greeted by Adriaan Bais and Jamie Nachtigall! As our Regional Coordinator, Jamie flew over to welcome us and spend a few days with us, helping us settle and acclimate to our new world! Thank you, Jamie!

Jamie and Adriaan drove us and our luggage the approximate two hours to Brunssum, in the province of Limburg, where we are currently calling "Home."

Over the first week we've been here, we have had several interactions with people from the Church, in small settings and in large settings. The hospitality and welcome that has been shown us is nothing short of extraordinary. The Dutch Church truly understands the biblical emphasis on Hospitality and on welcoming the stranger in your land.

This is a motif that we will share more stories about soon!

We have felt such great love and support from the Church literally around the world. We think of so many of you dear friends who have supported us and hosted us in various cities and states in the US this past year and-a-half. We think of our friends in Canada who showed us such warmth and encouragement in August '12. We think of our friends scattered the world over who have committed to praying for us. We give thanks to each of your presences in our lives.

The Church is not bound by language, culture, race, or nationality.

As we arrived here this past week, our friend in Australia, Pastor Dave Ravell changed his Facebook profile pic to a pic of our family as a way of supporting and praying for us. Dave, we thank you. And in honor of your tribute to us, I sported an Aussie shirt our first day here! Know that we in the Netherlands are in prayer for you all in the Land Down Under!

One Year In...

Recently Christy and I sat with Zach and Audrey Langford at La Nueva Charreada Mexican restaurant in Anderson. We raised our glasses of water and toasted to our 1-year anniversary of being friends.

One year ago (roughly), we were all commissioned at the North American Convention of the Church of God.

I cannot speak for the Langfords (and so, won't...), but the past year has been insane for Christy and I, and Sofie (who joined our little clan almost one year ago, last July).

A year ago when we started this journey, I was the Senior Pastor of the Maple Grove Church of God in Anderson. I served this congregation for 8 years, through this past May, and am presently, technically, Unemployed as we continue raising support.

See, we are not "Employees" of Global Missions until our support is raised 100%. So now we are in the world that so many people have been in in this declined economy: the world of pinching pennies and crunching budgets.

To be perfectly honest, this has caused us great stress, and I think this is something that a lot of people don't always think about when they think of "Missionaries."

I know that I never realized the sacrifices that they made, and the stress and uncertainties that they are forced to live with as their lives are in a constant state of limbo and transition.

And yet, that's exactly where we are right now.

Christy is still working full-time, as all of our Health Insurance is through her job, not to mention our only guaranteed source of income for the indefinite future.

We are working like crazy to connect with the people and congregations who hold the key to our final 20% of Living Link Support. If you are thinking that maybe that's you, take that as a sign that you are part of that group and click HERE.

Over the past year, we have been to 10 different states and three other countries (Canada, Germany and the Netherlands) as we prepare for this major life transition. As for support, we are past the 3/4 mark, or as Joe Nuxhall used to say, "We're rounding third and heading for Home." (Go Reds.) All this traveling has been good at times, but also very exhausting, especially in addition to all the other normal aspects of life and work. Also, the stress of being apart has been tough on all of us (Much of the traveling has involved Daniel going and Christy and Sofie remaining in Anderson).

And yet, in order to get to "the field," this has been the necessary reality under the current structure of us being required to raise our own support.

Now, we are also working like crazy to get our house sold and our goods liquidated. :-) Ten years in one house, as some of you know, is more than enough time to accumulate a LOT of "stuff."

But, for now, we are forced to live in a state of flux.

When will our support fully be in? We don't know.

When will Christy be able to transition out of her job with integrity? We don't know.

When will we make the move to the Netherlands? We don't know.

When will our beloved dog go to live with his "grandparents?" We don't know.

Essentially our entire lives are up in the air.

Pray for our sanity, and pray for the timing of everything to coincide in a positive way for our departure from this context, and our entrance into the next.

As for our new friends, we are more than thrilled to be friends with the Langfords. Even more so, we are thrilled to be teammates, co-laborers for the King's Vineyard. We give thanks to God for our friendship with the Langfords, for the ways that we have been able to sharpen one another in the past year, and for all that God has in store for us in the future!

While you're praying for us, will you add them to the list, too?

--Daniel


P.S. This has not been intended as a "pity party" for us. Rather this is to serve as a reflection over the past year, an update to our current situation, and also as an educational piece about some of the oft-unknown aspects of this way of life!

More than just Ritual Cleansing; a.k.a. Why THREE WORLDS exists.

I want to tell you a little story about my life.

I grew up in the same house that my Grandma grew up in. By the time we lived there, Grandma and Grandpa were living in the house right next door, about 100 feet away.

Naturally, I was blessed to see my Grandma and Grandpa quite a lot. We always gathered there on Sunday evenings for family dinner, and on all major holidays. And because both my parents worked, dad and my sister and I ate dinner at grandma and grandpa’s a few times a week when mom worked late.

In the summers, during the days, oftentimes Grandma watched my sister and I. We knew Grandma and Grandpa’s house about as well as our own.

And so I saw a bar of soap like this one quite regularly.

Whenever I washed my hands at Grandma and Grandpa’s house, I picked up a bar of soap just like this one and lathered my hands real good and made them clean.

And there’s one other thing about a bar of soap. When it got really little, just to be a sliver, rather than throw it away, Grandma collected it into a coffee can. And when that can got full enough, she melted them down into a new bar.

See, Grandma was a child during the Great Depression. Grandma was a teen and young adult during the 2nd World War. Grandma was cond itioned to think and act in certain ways.

I literally grew up in the same house that my Grandma did.

And yet I grew up in a very different time, in a very different culture, being shaped and formed by very different events and influences.

When I walked into the bathroom at my house, which had been my Grandma’s 50 years earlier, I didn’t pick up a bar of soap to wash my hands. I pushed down on the lever of a liquid soap dispenser.

Now, there is nothing wrong with a bar of soap.

It is every bit as much soap as this container of liquid soap. The content is the same. It’s still soap. But the method of delivery of that soap is different.

Today in our house, you won’t find a bar of soap.

It’s true. We have one bar of soap, and I’m holding it in this picture below (and after this picture was taken, I don't know what became of it.).

Thanks, Angie Swonger, for the picture!

Of course I know how to use a bar of soap, and they’re valuable. But I was raised in a very different era than my Grandma, and 10 out of 10 times I will opt for the liquid soap over a bar of soap.

***

I tell you that story as an attempt to illustrate how times change.

Even though my Grandma and I both literally grew up in the same house, we were conditioned culturally in very different ways.

Even though we both grew up in the same country, in the same state, in the same city, in the same neighborhood, on the same street, in the same HOUSE...over 50 years, the surrounding culture had changed in quite a few ways.

Serving in the diverse "fields" of Europe and the Middle East, we have to acknowledge the cultural diversity, even within the Church of God. This manifests itself in different ways. In a more common understanding of "culture," clearly the Dutch Church differs from the Bulgarian Church.

However, in a theological and philosophical way, there is great cultural diversity, too.

Hence, the need for Three Worlds as an overarching model for ministry within the region.

You can also read a blog post I wrote explaining this HERE.

Basically, Three Worlds recognizes that there are three different worlds within the Church. Some congregations could be described as operating within a Traditional world. Others live and work and have their being within a Post-Christendom or Post-Modern world. How they think and act is very different, and the types of people whom they minister to think and act quite differently than those whom the Traditional congregations serve. Also in Europe/the Middle East, there is also the Non-Western world--folks whose faith and understandings of theology and religion were formed quite differently still from those in "the West."

To do effective ministry in 2013, especially across cultural borders, we have to recognize the diversity that already exists, and tailor how we minister so that it increases the odds for seeds to be sown on fertile ground (Ref.: Mark 4:1-9).

***
If you would like to contribute to our ministry, please visit THIS LINK.

The British are coming! The British are coming!

The British are coming! And the Bulgarians! And the Egyptians! And the French! And the Hungarians! And the Italians! And the Lebanese! And the Russians! And the Serbians!

That's right. In just a little over a week, representatives from each of these countries in the Europe/Middle East region, plus numerous others from around the globe, will converge in...

...Anderson, Indiana.

Yes, you read that right.

As Anderson is the home of the national office (for the U.S.) of the Church of God, so Anderson will be home to thousands of people from all around the world for the Global Gathering of the Church of God.

This unique experience will afford those who attend: Opportunities to join in worship with God's global Church; Opportunities to hear the Word proclaimed from men and women serving in various leadership capacities on 6 continents; Opportunities to learn more about the international presence of the Church of God; Opportunities to serve with your money and with your time; And opportunities to connect over conversations with folks you've only seen on facebook and e-mail.

Specifically for us, Three Worlds will host a reception for the region of Europe & The Middle East. 

This will take place on Saturday June 22, from 7-9 PM in the Covenant Room of Park Place Church of God. Three Worlds missionaries, Daniel & Christy Kihm, Zach & Audrey Langford, and Kelley Philips, will be there to host you as you mix and mingle with folks from this region and/or folks interested in this region! We will have updates and interviews with National Leaders present and with other 3W missionaries who are absent from the States. It will be a festive gathering like none other.

Whether you are able to make it to the Global Gathering or not, please be in prayer for all the folks who are traveling great distances to come to us.

Also, we want you to know about ways that many in the region of Europe/The Middle East are celebrating Unity. Here is a LINK to a brief story illustrating creative ways to fellowship on the other side of the Pond.

So to recap:

Saturday June 22, 7-9 PM, Covenant Room-Park Place Church. Be there!!!

We hope to meet you there and share more about God's call on our lives to serve with his Church in the Netherlands.

We're Famous! Round Six!

I was in America's Dairy-Land the other day, presenting in a couple sessions with folks in the Milwaukee area. Here's a brief note from the pastor:

Click Here: Crossroads Church of God

Thanks for the food, support and encouragement!

We're Famous! Round Five!

Next Thursday we will be sharing at Anderson University as part of the Brown Bag Luncheon Series!

Click HERE for that invite!

Thursday April 25th--Noon

*Thursday April 25, NOT the 26th...

We Love Our Living Links: February 2013

Although we haven't written much by way of "news," this Spring has been b-u-s-y continuing to connect with pastors and congregations. Especially exciting is the opportunity to get to know several of our Living Link supporters.

In February, we spent a day with the East Side Church of God, here in Anderson. This is a fine congregation that we have been loosely connected with for the entirety of our lives in Anderson. East Side does so many things very well! One thing in particular is their ability to connect with local college students! East Side has a program for members of the congregation to "adopt" a college student, and intentionally get to know them and support them during their school years. About once a month, after worship, East Side has a meal for college students. This is free and consistently dee-licious! Trust me, I've attended my fair share of these meals. :-)

Another thing East Side does well is support of Missionaries. We are thrilled to be included in this list!

See our giant picture: Left column, 2nd from the Top!

And our brochures in the MIDDLE of their wall of info.! 

It is very strange to walk into a place and find information and pictures of you that you did not bring!!!!

We do, of course, bring some information with us. Here is our East Side display, complete with two tables of goodies!

And, FINALLY, Baby Kihm met Baby Goldman!!!

Our day at East Side was long, as we were introduced in both morning worship services, and shared with two Sunday School classes, and then returned in the evening for their Missions Banquet!

And yet, while exhausting, it was also so refreshing to run into so many familiar faces--people we used to worship with, people who have served as our professors, mentors, colleagues, or just friends over the years, and people who we haven't seen in years (even though we've lived within miles of one another!).

OKLAHOMA (let the singing commence...) -- The very next week, I (Daniel) drove to Tulsa, Oklahoma to speak at the Red Fork Church of God on February 17th.

A few observations: From Indiana, Oklahoma is a LOOOOONNGGGG drive! On the bright side, as I progressed westward, I was treated to better roads. I-70 and then I-44 both kept getting better. I noticed as I crossed into Illinois that the road was nicer than Indiana. Some hours later, I crossed into Missouri, and (in addition to the scenery getting way better!) the road got better too! THEN I was amazed when I crossed into Oklahoma! Not only did the road get exponentially better, but the Speed Limit increased to 75!!! :-)

However, I learned that the Oklahoma highway is a TOLL-ROAD! Boo! Oh well, I guess you get what you pay for, and nicer roads costs money!

I spent my 33rd Birthday with these folks, as I stayed with their pastor, Troy Hires (Wife Jen, Son Jaden) Saturday through Monday. Troy and I were in seminary together, and have journeyed together as our callings have developed and gotten more clear over the years!

My time with this congregation was short but intense. I spent Saturday evening with the Missions Committee, and then gave a presentation during Sunday School and preached in Morning Worship, and then fielded Q & A during a catered (BBQ!) lunch.

I know I'm a nerd, but I got to wear one of those really cool mics that hangs off your ear. It's the little things, folks...

And the lunch, of course...Yum Yum.

I'll end this with one brief story: When I arrived at the Hires' home, Troy came out to greet me. As he did, a few neighbor kids came running out of his house excited to meet me. Upon seeing me, they quickly went back to playing. Later I learned that Jaden had marketed me to his friends as "his guest" who was coming to visit! So all the neighbor kids thought that a new kid was coming to join the neighborhood games! Sorry, kids. :-)

Red Fork, East Side, THANK YOU for supporting us. It means the world to us, and we genuinely look forward to partnering together for the Kingdom!

****

If you are interested in supporting us (as a congregation or an INDIVIDUAL), here is a LINK that will give you all the info. you need. All support, little or big, is needed and appreciated!!!

A Cloud of Witnesses: An Introduction

Rather than make this one super-long post, and since I'm a preacher now preaching with a limited horizon of sermons, this post will become a short series, unraveling our ongoing story in light of the stories of various Biblical characters.

Cloud of Witnesses

As we raise support for the Netherlands, one thing is painfully obvious. We need a lot of financial support. :-) 

Equally obvious: We need a lot of PRAYER!

As I read the 12th chapter of the Epistle to the Hebrews, I am stopped at the magnitude of verse 1. “Since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses....”

This is a summary of chapter 11 and it is meant to encourage us that we are not the only ones who’ve sacrificed to follow Jesus. Nor are we the only ones who’ve suffered to follow Jesus--imagine the disciple who was “sawn in two!” Gads!

I’ve been struck by this passage in a different way, though. The Dutch Church is small: 200-300 members total. And yet the Lord has worked in amazing ways in their midst.

WE are inviting you to WITNESS THAT !

Will you commit to PRAYing and/or PAYing for our ministry?

Don’t look at this as strictly a business transaction or another feather for your Prayer-Warrior hat.

See yourself as a WITNESS for this Church! Think of the amazing ways that God can use you to help encourage this small body of believers in the Church of God!

Through these efforts, I look forward to someday being able to paraphrase this verse:

“Therefore, Dutch Church, since we are surrounded

by so great a cloud of witnesses, 

May we not forget the Lord is a big God! 

He provides for his children and He loves his Church,

no matter her size or geographic locale!”

To support us, please click the Global Missions tab on the right side of this site.

Or visit chogmissions.org/kihm

Project # 42.10041

We're Famous! Round Four!

No sooner had I announced Round Three of our "We're Famous!" installments than I was given fodder for Round Four! So here it is:

Round FOUR!!!! (Pg. 20)

God bless Christian Women Connection!

We're Famous! Round Three!

After a crazy period of busyness, coupled with good old-fashioned writer's block, new ideas are rising to the top and will be published soon. But for now, our most recent blast of stardom:

WE'RE FAMOUS!!!! (Pg. 8)

If you are curious about earlier rounds, visit these links:

Round Two Here!

Round One Here!

If you are interested in supporting our ministry in the Netherlands, VISIT THIS LINK:

Global Missions Page

Beau[ni]ty

For those unfamiliar with the Church of God Reformation Movement (Anderson, Ind), let me give a brief overview of our history.

In the 1880s in the Midwest (USA), a preacher by the name of Daniel Sydney ("D.S.") Warner discerned the voice of God leading him to reform an established Church movement through promotion of Holiness (Ref.: Wesleyan Holiness Movement) and Unity.

The clarion call became: "It's not Luther's Church, or Wesley's Church, or ....Church, It's God's Church!" Hence the name, The Church of God (1 Corinthians 1:2).

In the 125 years that have since passed, though, The Church of God has not always demonstrated and practiced Unity all that well. I think any honest Church of God man or woman would confess that we have failed. Don't get me wrong: We can probably all recite some examples of Unity from our collective past and from our own experiences. But unfortunately that has all too often been the exception rather than the norm.

In our desire to fulfill the words of Jesus' prayer (John 17:11), we have allowed selfish motives, stubborn pride, and little 'petty' differences to get between us. This has resulted in separate congregations choosing to do their own thing, rather than come together under the banner of the Holy One in whom we are reconciled (Colossians 1:20). [If I was preaching, at this point I would say 'Amen?']

The reality is: Unity is a beautiful thing. I first experienced the beauty of unity ("Beau[ni]ty") as a 12-year-old boy in Wanblee, South Dakota, as my youth group came together as one to work at putting a new roof on a Church building on the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation. I learned this again a few years later at Brownsea Junior Leading Training as a dozen random Boy Scouts were paired together to function as one cohesive unit for the week, determining amongst ourselves who would fill each of the needed positions to guide us, and to take care of building and maintaining life at camp.

I have since learned this lesson over and over, whenever Christy and I have led a short-term missions trip, or whenever our congregation has partnered with other area congregations even just for times of fellowship or worship.

It is a BEAUTIFUL thing to see God's Church UNITED!!!

In the hymn, "The Bond of Perfectness," D. S. Warner penned these words:

Oh, mystery of heaven’s peace!

Oh, bond of heaven’s union!

Our souls in fellowship embrace,

And live in sweet communion.

It is a BEAUTIFUL thing to see God's Church UNITED!!!

Over the years I've been in ministry, people have apologized to me for having to deal with unpleasant issues/situations, to which I have responded: "That's OK. It's par for the course. The Church is supposed to be messy because the Church is comprised of people."

And yet, we do ourselves and our Lord a disservice when we allow differences to get in the way of the Unity that we are mutually called to through our shared faith in Christ.

The Netherlands is no exception to this common practice (dis-unity).

And yet, when we were there for our site visit (READ HERE), the Church came together as one.

And it was indeed a beautiful thing.

Such holy moments are not only a foretaste of eternity. They are also a sample of the beauty and joy that can be ours here on earth.

Here are a few questions for us all to chew on:

How can the LORD use our gifts to fill our brother's weaknesses?

How can the LORD use our sister's talents to overcome our shortfalls?


How can we better draw together with other believers in Unity?

Missionary to EUROPE?!?

In October, I was on a riverboat in Cincinnati, OH, celebrating at the wedding reception of my childhood best friend, "Bucky." I voiced a prayer of blessing over the meal and the newly-married couple. A lady (whom I didn't know) asked my friend who I was. He responded that I was his friend, I was a minister, and I was a new missionary going to the Netherlands.

This lady came over to me and introduced herself. She wanted to know more about what we were going to be doing, and she was really taken aback that we were commissioned to serve as missionaries to the Netherlands. "You normally think of people going as missionaries to Africa or South America. I've never thought of someone going as a missionary to Europe..."

This wasn't the first time I had heard such a comment.

Why the Netherlands?? When I present our ministry to congregations, I tell them that we are only going to the Netherlands because that is where the Lord has directed us to go. Clearly, we've got nothing against missionaries being sent to other parts of the world, or ministers staying in their home culture and ministering there (wherever "there" is). However, that is not what the Lord has directed us to do.

A second question to confront is "Why Europe? Is that necessary?!?"

As I have written previously (HERE), the very nature of what we will be doing in Holland is obviously quite different from the stereotypical missionary to sub-Saharan Africa, i.e. However, it is of equal importance in the Kingdom of God.

Consider this quote I just came upon:

"In reality, Europe is a mission field today, and should be regarded as such. There are pockets of vital Christian life and work, leavening centers. But that is about all, for most of Europe has been de-Christianized to an alarming degree.

And what about America? Are we traveling the same road? Is our Christianity becoming too superficial to deserve the name? Is secularism in the saddle? Will genuine revival come, or are we destined also to become a mission field, perhaps one served by the more fervent and younger churches of Asia and Africa?"

---Harold L. Phillips (1913-2006), published in The Gospel Trumpet on November 19, 1955.

1955...

Harold Phillips was a long-time editor of Warner Press, and specifically The Gospel Trumpet, a publication of the Church of God (Anderson, IN). While I never knew Harold, I attended his funeral in 2006 at Park Place Church of God along with many others who in some way are who we are partially because of the way his life was lived as a Follower of Christ.

He wrote those words (quoted above) in 1955, almost 60 years ago. And yet, they still ring loudly true today.

"There are pockets of vital Christian life and work....[but] most of Europe has been de-Christianized to an alarming degree."

In 2013, in Three Worlds, we use the term "Post-Christendom," not "de-Christianized." But Harold Phillips hit the nail on the head with his assessment. He prophetically saw the hand writing on the wall when it was maybe the 7 o'clock hour (1900 hrs). Now, 6 decades later, the spiritual status of Europe is more or less at the 11 o'clock hour (2300 hrs).

That is why it is not just good, but necessary and vitally important that we serve the Church as missionaries in Europe. Physical needs may not be lacking, but spiritual needs certainly are.

In the diverse worlds of Europe, one thing is almost universally true: Secularism.

For the congregations of believers who have remained faithful down through the ages, they are majorly swimming against the stream, proclaiming Faith in Christ in the midst of an overwhelmingly secular society.

One of our primary responsibilities is simply to strengthen these congregations and help them as they strive to be the Light of Christ in a very dark world (Matthew 5:14-16).

Additionally, one of the reasons why this is so important is referenced in the second paragraph of Harold Phillips' quote: "And what about America? Are we traveling the same road?"

It is pretty easy to see that the cultural shifts occurring in North America are leading these countries evermore towards Secularism as well. The Post-Christendom World of Europe today is the Post-Christendom World of the US tomorrow.

The experience we will soon gain navigating ministry in secular Europe will serve as guidance for Church leaders in North America in the coming years (Read prior blog post HERE).

O, may Harold Phillips' quote from 1955

be laughingly irrelevant in 2055.