Now I’m back and everything’s all about the new school we’re running called, Marriage of the Arts DTS.  It’s going to be amazing and there are already 110 students!  Photographers, writers, musicians, dancers, graphic designers, fine artists, crafty artists and videographers all joined together to learn more about their faith, and how to use their arts to raise awareness about what’s going on in the world.  The school not only has a focus on arts but also on injustice.  I believe God has a lot to say to this generation about injustice and is really calling them to do something for those who are afflicted.

This month is full of preparation for the students and for the school to run.  In August Pick a Pocket heads to Hamburg for a retreat, to hang out and see where are next year is headed.  Then from Hamburg I head to England for another conference with some other leaders and staff to talk about Discipleship Training Schools (DTS).  I look forward to talking with some people who have been running dts’s for a long time and have so much experience.  After England, I head back to Herrnhut for two weeks of training staff for the school and then students begin to arrive on September 4th.

I’m extremely excited for this next season!  And I’m excited to get back in the dark room after being away for two months.

Many things are moving forward on the Garbage City project but it is very difficult and new challenges come up every day.  Please pray with us as we try to continue to work down there and look for long term people.  The girls are still doing amazing, they are continuing with their studies and learning more about Jesus.  I will post up some photos soon of what the t-shirts they are working on look like.

Hope has always been one of my favorite words and I am continually learning how to live that out.

Thanks for reading!

It will be a little bit of a whirlwind, but there will be some good quality time with people.  I am scheduled to arrive on California soil on April 29th just in time for my little brother’s birthday.  I will be emerged into wedding preparations as Kate, one of my best friends in the world gets married.  Josiah will head towards California around the 6th or 7th after he gets back from Nigeria.  I am seriously praying he gets enough money to get his ticket over there.  At the end of May we will head to Michigan to hang out with Josiah’s family and do some fishing.  From there we will drive down to Nashville, TN and join up with the rest of our Pick a Pocket team for the tour.  We will be there for a few weeks, going to different venues, sharing about our projects, playing music, putting on a photo and art exhibition and more.  From there we will be back in Michigan for a short time and then back to Germany to start preparing for the next Marriage of the Arts DTS (discipleship training school).

I can’t wait to be home and hang out with friends and family.  I’m always willing to talk about what I’m doing on the other side of the world so anyone who wants to meet up for coffee let me know.

See you soon!

You can still go to the bottom of my page where there is a link to the kick starter and check out the video.  It will give you a better idea about what the book will look like.

As a group of artists trying to bring awareness to the poverty in our world we decided over a year ago that we wanted to create a book.  A book full of images and stories that would speak to our present day generation, inspiring them and generating more energy for the causes that it supports.  We have almost finished this book and are now trying to gather the resources to publish it.  In an attempt to raise the finances we started a pledge on kickstart, that allows people to see what the product will look like and pledge to it.  Please check out the video and help us publish by either pledging or passing this link on to others.

Kick starter site: http://kck.st/cVaU2T or click on the kick starter site at the bottom of this page under Support Us Now

This week is showing the first signs of spring and I feel the effects.  I really am such a Californian, the snow is just depressing unless you’re snowboarding on it.  I’m aware that so much of my new found energy is due to the sun.  Next week I have off and I’m dreaming of all the things I’m going to do with my time.  I’ve got some good books lined up…. well, more like some books that I’m half way through because I haven’t found the time to finish them.  If anyone is looking for a book to read, pick up “Not For Sale”, it is an amazing book.  More on that subject to come.  I bought some flowers and I am planning some quality gardening time on the balcony as well.  So in this amazing week of time off I will be writing a lot more updates and emails… Yeah!  Thanks again Mike for making this possible!

I’m currently back in Ethiopia and a few days ago I went to a place in Addis that they call the trash city…

The sky went from being blue to dark grey as I walked further into the dump.  Immediately I was overwhelmed with one of the worst smells I’ve ever experienced, it was nothing like I remembered from the dump in California.  The thick smoke was everywhere from some of the trash being burned and the combinations of smells made me want to gag.  Every step was carefully maneuvered in order not to step into left over food, used toilet paper, wads of hair, goat feet, animal bones, IV bags and lots of other things I never want to step in.  Vultures and other types of birds swarm around hunting for things salvageable to eat in the trash.  There are stray dogs and pigs running around everywhere.

In the midst of it all you find two stone walls holding up some kind of steal roof.  And here, among all the trash is a community of people living.  They weed through the garbage looking for items they can recycle and food for their empty stomachs.  Their ages range from eight to twenty three and most have been abandoned or orphaned, leaving the dump as the only place for them to go.  There are around fifteen guys and twenty girls.  Some of the girls have families and don’t actually live in the trash but spend all day there, looking for recyclables in order to bring home some kind of food and possibly pocket change.

The oldest guy is a natural leader and really tries to take care of the others.  The youngest is an eight year old who has only known the trash as his home, moving around his cardboard home as the trash piles move.  They all wear smiles on their faces despite their circumstances.  They don’t struggle with finding joy but the lack of hope is heartbreaking… aren’t children supposed to have the most hope?

It shook me to the core, there is so much poverty in this world and I’ve seen a lot of it.  But there is something about total poverty, living in trash with no family and no hope that hit me harder then normal.

The Music DTS, who is on outreach right now in Addis, is the reason I went to the dump while visiting Ethiopia this time.  Ulla and I came down to talk with the people directly involved with Drawn From Water (children’s home).  We’ve been staying with the Music DTS in the meantime and have gained a heart for the people they are working with.

The Music DTS is in the process of moving these guys out of the trash.  They are finding them a home, and are seeking avenues in which they can begin the process of sustainability and financial independence.

The Music DTS spent a night with them in the trash eating what they ate and sleeping where they slept and because of that they trust us.  Before that they were pretty sure we were just another group who wanted to take photos of them and then walk away but they have seen otherwise and are ready to have a different life.

We want to see these kids bathed, clothed, safe, warm, fed, and educated.  Please help us do that in any way you can.  Tell others about it, join us on facebook, pray, donate, or share knowledge with us you may have about garbage dumps.

So the plan right now is to find a house that we can rent and after about six months they can take the rent over.  To find them jobs or to begin a chicken farm which they would all be able to have a hand in and bring in enough money for rent and school.  Other ideas are still in the process but this is what we’ve come up with so far.

We’re hoping to get them to a point where they are fully sufficient on their own but for now we need finances to give them that start.  We want to create an environment that helps them grow, with clean clothes, school uniforms and food that someone else didn’t eat first.  And we want to see them dreaming again of what they could do with their future.

As with every project we need prayer.  Pray that these guys develop hope for their lives, that we find the perfect house, that churches in the area will help support them and people who care about them.  And anything else you can think of to pray for children with out a home.

Just like Drawn From Water, Pick a Pocket is supporting this project.

An update on Drawn From Water and what I did in Ethiopia with that is coming.