Swedish Meatballs: Do Missionaries Lie?

Are missionaries expected to lie when things are hard on the field, or are we allowed to be honest? I can start with saying it’s been a rough go for a while. How long is a while? Hmmm, anywhere from three months to two years. Don’t worry. We’re not gonna check out. We’ve just been going through a really dry time in our mission work. We’ve gone in and out of feeling like we’re not really making a difference here at Restenäs. But just because it gets a bit dry doesn’t mean we shouldn‘t stay. Rasmus with a dirty face.

A few weeks ago we (Veronica, Rasmus and myself) had ‘family church’ on top of a high rock overlooking the Ljungskile harbour. Up there, all alone, we talked, read the Bible and prayed together. We asked God, “What are you doing. What do you want to say to us about our future? Please speak to us!” Then we waited and listened. I’m not going to share right now what we heard God say, but I can tell you it was encouraging! You’re thinking, “Dang it! I wanna hear what God said!” Sorry, not yet.  But together, with God, we’re really looking forward to what the future holds for us. God said, “I know the plans I have for you.. plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you a hope and a future.” Jeremiah 29:11 Thanks for being our friends and especially those of you who support us through your prayers and your gifts. We’re so glad that you are part of our adventure here in Sweden, and beyond..

My Awesome Wife

Veronica is amazing! We have been going non-stop since early June with mission trips, hosting guests and traveling up and down the roads of Sweden. She prepared all the hospitality rooms for our guests. We had a very special time with some my family who came to visit us for about six weeks. I think Veronica’s humour prevented my Dad from buying an early ticket home. She always made sure we had plenty of food in the car before a trip. And, of course, she did a million more things than I could have done to make sure Rasmus was a happy camper. I love her and appreciate her so much! We took our family and some friends out to the nearby island in our tiny boat on evening. V made the whole food thing rock!

Digital Worship
I recently attended a one-day worship workshop led by Sue Rinaldi, a worship leader from England. God spoke to me during the workshop, but not so much about musical worship. Instead it was about using all my gifts and talents to worship Jesus. (read Romans 12) I’d like to share about one of my hobbies, photography, which has been a big part of my life since I was 14 years old. That’s when I got my first camera. It was a Pentax K1000. I think I’ve owned a camera ever since. And nearly 30 years later, last August, I upgraded to a professional Canon D30! Link One of my dreams is to go on a photo shoot, maybe to one of our focus areas in Asia, just taking photos; nothing more nothing less. The photos would be how I worship Jesus. I don’t know about you, but for me, just to stand, half-invisible, on some obscure steps, in some random city for half a day if I want, shooting people and things. That trips my trigger! I even uploaded my first pics on the Hungarian Stock Exchange the other day. Two of them were accepted! See them here :-) I still get excited every time I pick up my camera, or read an article about taking photos, or see some great shots on a website.

I am planning a serious photo shoot at the end of April 2008: taking photos of our new baby! Now won’t that be a cool event? I definitely want to get a few of those fingers-and-toes shots that I failed to capture when Rasmus was born. I was blubbering way too much to hold the camera steady. This is a picture of me and Veronica looking at the unofficial pregnancy test results.

Question: Will Rob blubber this time around?
Answer: Probably. But I just got to get that fingers-and-toes shot! I promise to upload it if I do.

Me, V's papa, Veronica, my brother Brian, our nephew Josiah and V's sister Cissi on top of a beautiful mountain top on the northern high coast of Sweden. My mom and dad weren't up for the 11 kilometre journey.