Good News/Even Better News!

Some of you know I ruptured my left Plantaris muscle (little calf muscle that helps you ‘point your toes’, or in my case, run up hills), last April. After lots of physical therapy and non-running exercise, I began running again on May 24th – our wedding anniversary! What a gift! I was told a minimum of 12, most likely 16 weeks of PT was required for such an injury. God shortened my rehab to 6 weeks! HA-LAY-LOOOOO-YA!

Welp, I was out running the hills of Fiesole late this afternoon…and BAM!...my left lateral calf began to hurt…really bad. In one step I was reduced to a ‘heel walking’ limp. This pain was not in the same place as the Plantaris pain.

So, heel walk limp I did for about 10 minutes…

this is near the olive groves

My normal Fiesole run takes me through vineyards and olive groves. All the olive growers are harvesting right now to produce what’s call ‘New Oil’ – the pungent, taste-filled oil that exists for mere days in November.

As I limped into an olive grove two men were harvesting their gems. One said, “Buona Sera”. I responded in kind. He replied in English, “Are you OK?”. “Oh! You speak English?”. He said, “Certo…um, of course!” “Well, not really. I ruptured a muscle in my calf a few months ago, and I think I injured another muscle…” “Do you need a lift?”, he responded kindly. “Well, I hate to take you away from your work…”. “You need help…you are more important than my work”.

Wow…really? I thought.

I sweat more than anyone you know. I told the kind man, “I am all wet with sweat. I really don’t want to get your car seat wet”. “Nonsense, get in the car!”, he replied, like I would even bring that issue up…

So, the good news is, I get to trust the Lord for the ability to run again…um, soon!

The even better news is, I had the opportunity to open a conversation about Jesus with this man named…I don’t even wanna try to spell it…starts with an “M”, ends in a vowel…like most Italian names.

He was intrigued with what we do, and asked us to come share more with him…when my leg is better. Don’t think I’ll wait for that!

Grace and Peace and Love and Hope and Joy to you all! Thanks for standing with us in this…surprising work!

mark, for the fam

plantaris muscle song

So Utterly Stinkin' Cool!

by Mark

So, our first Americani friends came to visit! Clint and Jill are celebrating their 25th Anniversary in Italia - First stop: Fiesole! We had a blast showing them around for a few days. Clint's a runner, so I took him on my epic trail here:

Praise God for a marriage that reflects well that which it is supposed to point to: Christ and His bride, the church. Way to go Clint and Jill - keep making Him look great!

Then, the girls, Les, and I traveled down to to city outside of Roma, called Promezia, for the Annual Fall Conference for Agape Italia. Way too much to tell here, but we're pumped about what the Lord has done, and for the future plans of this ministry! Both Les and I led seminars for the other staff attending. Les shared the progress of the upcoming Christmas distribution of Magdalena, and I coached some staff in Ministry Partner Development.

Our dear friends, Scott and Valerie (and their daughter and son) attended and contributed to the conference

Scott and Valerie have been a tremendous encouragement to us and Agape Italia for years. We love it when ministry partners visit the field to see what their Kingdom investments have produced, and to be an integral part of the ministry on the ground, in country! Praise God from Whom all blessings flow!

Please pray for our continued usefullness in our little part of the Harvest - for Christ's fame and Glory!

So utterly stinkin' cool!

Grace and Peace and Love and Hope and Joy to you,

mark, for the fam

I LOVE America

by Mark (after having been in the U.S. for a week)

I’m always happy to return to the U.S. after a couple of weeks in another country. I love exposing ministry partners to what God is doing via the JESUS Film in other parts of the world, but as Dorothy would say, “There’ no place like home”.

So, on Wednesday October 6th, when I began my trek to Lake Geneva, WI for our JESUS Film Executive Briefing Conference, I was thrilled to be heading home. As our enormous 747 approached Chicago’s O’Hare, I saw Lake Michigan, Lakeshore Dr., the course of the Chicago Marathon to be held that weekend, and the Sears Tower (or whatever it’s called now), I thought to myself, I love America!

I landed @ 12:35, got my bag, was through customs by 1:10, and was in my buddy’s rental car by 1:20…BAM! I love America…
We arrived @ the resort by 3:00pm, and I was training 14 volunteers to represent the Jesus Film (we call these folks, Ambassadors) by 5pm. Having been awake for 27 hours, and thoroughly exhausted, I called it a night and went to bed…sorta.

By 4am my body was done sleeping, so I got up to have some time with Jesus. The gym opened @ 6am, so my pal and I went over to get a workout I before a day full of meetings. State-of-the-art exercise equipment, English-speaking staff, A/C, and a clean locker room…Man, do I love America!

The scratchy throat and stuffy head didn’t feel right, but nothing was going to put a damper on my time in the States! The leaves were changing, the air was crisp, I was with my homies…other than Leslie being with me, what could be better than this?!

By 3pm, my throat traversed scratchy to downright sore, and my stuffy head moved from an annoyance to a pressure packed head full of snot that made me sound as though I was pinching my nose closed when trying to speak. I went to bed…till Saturday morning…

Our ministry in India was the theme of Saturday morning prayer time. The 50 of us gathered for prayer, over the requests brought from our Indian brothers, felt very small as we heard story after story of the challenges they face in reaching 1.3 billion souls for Christ. The joy with which they speak, even in the face of all manner of trial and persecution, is truly a testimony of the goodness of God. I love America, and I love that Americans can – and have! – come alongside our South Asian staff both prayerfully and financially.

The rest of the conference was profoundly powerful and relentlessly refreshing for all of us. The Lord raised up millions for His work in South Asia. I stood in awe at the kind generosity of our Spirit-filled ministry partners as they continue to give selflessly, even in these challenging economic times. God is good, regardless the circumstances!

From the Jesus Film conference I flew to OC, rented a car (so weird!), and drove out to Joe’s concert in Murrieta, CA. The 100-voice, all male chorale was rehearsing when I arrived. As I entered the church auditorium, my eyes welled as I heard all four parts harmonize “How Can I Keep From Singing Your Praise”. Joe gave me a big ol’ exaggerated wink and smile. Oh please, Lord, I don’t want to weep in front of all these young men, I thought as I fought back the happy tears of seeing/hearing my son for the first time in 3 months!

The boys descended the bleachers to go pray before their concert. Joe was one of the last, as he’s one of the tallest in the top row. “I have no greater joy than to hear of my children walking in the Truth” (3 John 4) is my most favored verse in all of Holy Scripture. It encompasses joy, discipleship, and the Gospel in one succinct verse of Scripture. And it’s what has made my heart tick for the past 20 years, because it’s the Great Commission of Matt. 28:18-20 “And Jesus came and said to them, ‘All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age’”.

Needless to say, the concert was incredible. Joe and I went to dinner (Mexican!) before we headed to his house on the campus of California Baptist University. After excellent conversation with my first born, I slept in the living room of their house. Joe made sure I had the ‘good’ mattress and a clean sheet, and his comforter – which totally blessed me to know that he wanted me to be comfortable in his house.

Monday through Thursday was spent seeing family and friends and picking up stuff we need for the winter (yeah, it gets cold and wet!) in Fiesole. What a joy to be ‘home’ for a few days!

It’s only been 12 weeks since we said goodbye to all that is familiar. Seems like an eternity. Things are so different here. Not bad, just different. And I’d hasten to say, uncomfortable… One long-term staff guys used the analogy of a paper cut when referring to all the micro-challenges in Italy: one doesn’t hurt that much, but when you get a hundred in a day, they all add up to…uncomfortable…

Sometimes I have to force myself to remember why we're here: God's specific call!

Not complaining…just sayin…I love America!

Keeping the Home Fires Burning

By Leslie

Very Cool Fireplace...in the Kitchen

I have always heard that saying, but suddenly I have a real understanding of what that means.... See, on Saturday I had a bunch of wood delivered by Dino - the wood guy. I was able to get a poker and that little shovel thingy at the open market in the piazza the same day. I am so thankful to have this GIANT fireplace that is basically almost one whole wall of our dining area. It is all open so that when you light the fire it’s just in there almost like a campfire. BUT... its really hard to get going (where’s the little key that turns on the gas??) so that once I get it going and start doing other things around the house, I am always walking by and poking and blowing and adding more wood. I am “keeping the home fire buring!!” I dunno, this just made me laugh today. It was a very fall day today - more like it would be in the winter in the OC! Emily and I made pumpkin muffins from scratch.... like, ALL the way from scratch... like, from a raw pumpkin!! Those of you who know me well know that this is amazing.

Today I had to meet up with my friend, Kylie, to work on some stuff for Magdalena. We get to attend a pastor’s meeting on Wednesday morning to pitch them on our idea for a distribution of the film at Christmas. Anyway, I took the usual bus down the hill but since the lady in front of me on the bus was spitting up on the floor at regular intervals, I decided to get off early and enjoy the long walk to the office. And I really do enjoy the walking - so many interesting people and things to see.

But this morning, I was faced with quite the dilemma. First of all, you have to know that the sidewalks here are only about 3 feet wide, and not at all flat. So, I'm walking along and suddenly have a choice to make - step into the street in front of a car, run over a little old lady with a cane, step in the dog pee that is running from the wall across the sidewalk, or walk straight into the cloud of smoke that has just poured forth from some guy’s cigarette.... I mean, how often do I have such decisions to make in America?? LOVE this place!! I know you are dying to know.... I chose the smoke.

Kylie and I had a productive meeting, and split a pizza from my now favorite pizza place. Please pray for me as I am going to try to greet the pastors on Wednesday morning with a tiny bit of Italian. What an interesting life!!

Em and Grace Celebrated their 17th and 15th Birthdays a couple weeks ago



Sketchy Electrical Stuff...We rarely blow stuff up anymore, though!

Permesso di Soggiorno in hand...and other fun things from Italia!

OH MY!! What a week!

News Flash!!! TODAY Mark and I picked up our Permesso di Soggiorno cards... only took 3 hours. But now we are official - and officially finished with the Questura. At least until we have to take the girls back....

****************************************************************************************************

I guess in total, it has been 10 days that we have been going non-stop. We have packed and unpacked 3 times and celebrated both girls’ birthdays (Italian style!) We have taken trains, buses, rental vans, taxis, and walked many miles. God has shown us His grace, His beauty, and His timing in all of it. I will do my best to be brief as I catch you up on the latest happenings.

New Staff Training:

Sunday morning (9/26) 8 of us piled into a rental van and headed out to a little farm outside of Sienna to have our new staff training. All together, there were 18 of us including our trainers. We had great times of devotion and worship, and we learned more about Agape Italia. Also had some time to just talk about - and work through -some of our “issues” about living here. Indeed, there are days when it’s so hard we just want to pack up and get the next plane home. Then we remind each other that God has called us here and He has a purpose in it. One quote we heard (from a man who has served here for over 20 years) was that, “Italy will strip you of everything but Jesus.” Wow.... I have to say we have felt this to some degree. It was good to hear that the things we have felt are not uncommon.

Milano:

We got home Wednesday afternoon and on Thursday morning I left for Milan. There I had two straight days of meetings to talk about “Magdalena” strategy. Our support staff from Orlando is here this week, so they met with Kylie, Elfi, and me. We also met with the ladies from Milan who were instrumental in putting on the premiere there last April. They have huge hearts to see this film bring enlightenment and change in Italy as it relates to the dignity of women here. We had a wonderful time with our new National Director, Franco Bosio and his wife, Maria. They have joined us in our excitement about distributing the film here in Florence at Christmas and then an Italy-wide distribution on March 8th. (More on this strategy later) Franco is one of the most expressive and passionate believers I have ever met. So thankful to be working alongside him and the whole team!!

Got home late Friday night... yes, LATE!! When Kylie and I tried to buy our train tickets at the station, the tickets were sold out. So we had to take a later train that went to the sketch (yes, I said it!!) station in a different part of town. Thankfully, the amazing Gary Runn came and picked me up since there are no buses and it was 10 PM. While waiting in the Milan train station I was thinking how people can be categorized by their treatment of pigeons.... It all started when the man sitting next to me in the long row of cold, metal chairs decided to throw his pizza crust out on the ground for the pigeons to eat. You can imagine the mayhem when the birdies saw what he did. But the problem was, this was right where people had to walk to get to their train connections. So, there are the Dodgers, the Scardie-cats, the Kickers (you know who you are!!), the Oblivious, the Annoyed... you get the picture. Great way to pass an hour delay in case you are ever in this situation.


Tanti Auguri!!:

Saturday morning dawned early! My sweet new friend, Laura, insisted that she have a little birthday party for Emily and Grace. I wanted to help her get ready and so we made plans for me to meet her at 10:30. When I arrived at her house she had switched the plans on me, and instead was taking me to this very cool street down in the city with many shops. They call it “The street of 100 shops.” There we met up with another friend of hers named Cristina. She and her daughters would be joining us later at the party. So, instead of preparing for the party, we strolled the street and had coffee and I practiced my Italian. After we finished, she took me home. I asked her about helping and she said, “no... just come over at 4:30.” These people are so gracious!! 

We spent the afternoon with Laura and her family, Cristina and her family, and our staff friends, the Runns. There were also a few other teens there. We ate three different fabulous, home made desserts and the girls were sung to in English. Aside from the 50 mosquito bites Grace go out on the grass in their backyard, the evening was perfetto!!

Cinque Terre:

Two months ago I booked us a room in Riomaggiore - a quaint little beach town that is part of 5 little towns along the north/west coast of Italy. Course, we didnt know how busy we would be right now, but when I booked it I wanted to do something special for the girls’ birthdays. So, early Sunday morning we got up and went to the train station. Here, I have to confess that I got my family there an HOUR earlier than necessary... what was I thinking?? I dont know... but when we got there we thought the train was at 9:57 and it was at 10:57. They all just looked at me... deer in the headlights.... Thankfully, they are all so full of grace that we just raised our eyebrows and went to Micky D’s for an Egg McMuffin. We arrived in Riomaggiore around 1 PM and went through the tunnel as directed by Mario (the man we rented the room from.) He said he would find us at the end of the tunnel, and sure enough!! He did!! We spent most of the day hiking the trails and being amazed at God’s beautiful creation. I have to say, seeing and hearing the ocean were water to my soul. More unforgettable memories made with Mark and the girls!! I mean, we won’t soon forget the ocean views, the olive groves, the steep climbs, nor the slippery rocks. We might forget that the short train ride from the last terre to ours was 1.5 hours late while we shivered on the cold platform.... But we are getting kind of used to “Italy Time.” Stuff happens late - or maybe it’s just God’s timing. We are learning to relax and go with the flow. Those of you who know me well know that this isnt always easy for me. More sharp edges being filed away.

New Friends - Little Old Italian Ladies!

by Leslie

I think my favorite thing about being here so far is meeting the natives. They are everything they appear to be in the movies - warm, hospitable, friendly.... sometimes a little cautious at first. But it is true, if someone they know makes the introduction, they accept you right away. ( I recommend Letters to Juliet to get a feel for the people. We saw it the other night at a theatre that shows American movies with Italian sub-titles.)

Monday morning I had the pleasure of meeting some of the anziana of Fiesole - these are the little old ladies of our community. They meet every morning in the Tabacchi. This is a little store that gets its name because it sells cigarettes, but it also sells caffe and morning biscuits and has a few little tables set up inside where the anziana can sit and chat and play lotto while they have their caffe. My friend, Tina (who is American and has befriended our family,) invited me to go with her and of course I jumped at the chance to meet these adorable women. The place is only about 200 yards up the street from our house.

So, I met Pina, Lucia, Margarita, Patricia, and Giovanna. They were dressed up and ready to meet the day. They were warm and asked me questions and were kind enough to speak slowly! Not one of them speaks a word of English, so this was very good for my Italian language growth. Pina showed me pictures of her now deceased husband and son. Lucia and I realized that she and Grace have the same birthday. Giovanna didn't win anything on lotto....

Later that day we got on the bus down in the city, and who was on there but sweet Lucia. She recognized me right away and was so thrilled to meet Mark and the girls. She very patiently conversed with me all the way up the hill. We talked about what we were making for dinner, how many siblings we had, how long we would be staying in Fiesole.... So much fun!!

On Wednesday morning Mark and I had a meeting at the bank to see if we could use an Italian bank to help reduce the outrageous fees that we are getting from Bank of America to use OUR money (that’s another story!!) and after the appointment we stopped in for coffee at the tabacchi. Of course, a couple of the ladies were in there along with a new one named Franca. I had to catch the bus for language school, but Mark was staying for a few minutes. The best part was when Franca and Lucia were arguing over who was going to pay for Mark’s cappuccino!! He was a big hit!

The girls and I think that we should go up to the tabacchi every morning and get caffe and chat with these ladies. Probably the best EVER way to learn the language. Praying that God will give us grace with the language and opportunities to share the love of Jesus with the ladies. I am thinking maybe “Maddalena” as a Christmas gift will be just the ticket!!

Magdalena for Christmas!

Job 42:1 "I know that you can do all things, and that no plan of yours can be thwarted."

This whole journey of ITALY has felt like jumping into a rushing river and just being carried along by the current. God is doing things here and is allowing us to be part of it. Soooo exciting!!

My "role" here is to be part of the team that distributes the film "Maddalena" (Italian version of "Magdalena".) God gave me the idea for using the evangelical church here to help us in this task. Of course I had no idea who to talk to or how to go about it, but since I have felt the presence of the Holy Spirit so strongly since our call here, I knew that HE already had it all planned out. I just needed to grab that log floating by and HOLD ON!!

This past week has proven that my sense was correct. It started last Tuesday with a meeting with our new National Director (Franco Bosio.) Through a translator I was able so share my ideas - Franco had already been given some of this information at an earlier meeting. He and his wife added their ideas for further distribution. Franco was so excited about it that he got on the phone during the meeting and called his friend Paul Schaffer and told him that we would be calling to set up and appointment.

Paul is a Canadian believer/evangelist who has lived in Italy for 35 years. He basically knows everyone in Italy who would be interested in this project. I was thinking I had some days to prepare, but Paul said he wanted to meet with two days later!! So, on Thursday our team (Elfi, Kylie, and me - see photo!) met with him. He is very familiar with The JESUS Film, but had not heard of this version. Once we explained the vision for what we felt God leading us to do, Paul jumped in with both feet. He too was very excited. He said he would personally hand out the DVD to about 20 pastors in Florence and the surrounding areas before their monthly meeting in mid-October. He asked us to come to the meeting to explain our ideas and to ask for a commitment from these pastors to join in. He sent me an email on Friday saying he had already contacted 2 other pastors who were ready to be part of it - and his quote to me, "The ball is rolling... now we just need to keep up with it, the Lord will surprise us!" GOD IS SO GOOD!!!

You will hear more about the projects in the weeks to come. But in brief, we are planning (LORD willing) to distribute approximately 2,000 DVDs during the Christmas season through the churches here in Florence. The idea is for the members of each church to commit to giving away the DVD to friends and family who need to hear the Gospel.

In March, we will do a country-wide distribution for a very important holiday here called "Festa della Donna" (Festival of the Woman) on March 8th. This may include a distribution of up to 10,000 DVDs!

So... the water is fast!! Yikes!! But how exciting to be in this rushing river!!

Please pray for God's direction as we work on these projects.

Thanks for your interest in this Italian adventure,

Taking Jesus to the nations, for His Fame and Glory,

Love,
Leslie

Jasmine, the Italian Voice of Maddalena

Sidenote, right off the bat!

(You might be interested to know that I found Haagen-Dazs Belgian Chocolate ice cream at the Esselunga yesterday... eating it as I write this!! And you may think, “Why would she even care about that when she has a gelateria across the street?” But the truth is, this ice cream is amazing, and tastes like the USA!! Sometimes a girl just needs that.)

Okie Dokie, back to Jasmine.

Last April, when Mark and I came to the premiere of “Maddalena” here in Milan, we met the most interesting and wonderful woman. Her name is Jasmine and she did the voice of Magdalena for the Italian version. Not only is she a voice actress, but she is an evangelist who loves Jesus with every fiber of her being. She and I 'clicked' immediately - like you just do with some people. I listened to her testimony about how God rescued her from darkness, as she told it through tears. She shared how the time she spent dubbing “Maddalena” was so rich as she could relate to the woman she was playing in the movie. After spending only two days together, we hugged and kissed each other, promising to stay in touch.

Once I got home I found her on Facebook and we have kept in touch. I knew I needed to spend more time with her, as God had knit our hearts together. We invited her for a visit and she took the train down from Milano last Friday to spend the weekend with us. What an adventurous woman!! Well, we spent three days walking, talking, eating, laughing, crying, and praying together. She worked on her excellent English skills and we worked on our terrible Italian skills. The girls and I figured that she was a pretty reliable source for how to pronounce words in Italian since that is her JOB!! She taught me how to cook the pasta just right, and how to make the coffee taste even better... (she adds a pinch bit of salt!) She also bought me some of those tiny little coffee cups, called “tazzine da caffe”, so that all the Italians that come here don’t have to drink their espresso out of a giant mug!! What a precious time we had. God just confirmed yet again that our being here is part of His plan for our family. We are blessed beyond measure.

Permesso Update

On August 17th (below) Les posted a lengthy, hysterical description of our 7-hour trip to the Questurra (hereafter, The Q). Our goal was to obtain our Permesso di Soggiornio (Permission to stay in Italy this year). You may recall, that trip yielded nuttin (Italian for nothing) but an angry Italian woman and 4 frustrated Americans.

Since then, our Agape Italia office received a letter from the Chief of Polizia saying the Q folks were wrong about denying our Permesso! So, at the crack-o-dawn on Monday Les and I went back to the Q with the Chief's letter for round 2.

Think of The Q like you would the DMV. One large room and lots of windows behind which work people who don't really wanna be there either. The cold waiting area is not particularly clean, and the bathroom...oh my! Just hold it. okay?!

The young Italian man who helped us was indeed surprised to read the Chief's letter. He was jovial and pleasant, working diligently to help us obtain the cherished Permesso. We spoke of America, California, the beach, and ultimately invited him to visit us!

BAM! Five hours and 20 electronic finger prints later we were outta there! The young man behind the glass made all the difference in the world...

Hey here's a thought: Why don't we - the church - be stunned by our CHIEF'S letter?! How about we conduct ourselves in pleasant joy as we work diligently to help lost people obtain their "permission slip" to get to heaven - namely, the Gospel?! We can make all the difference in the world for Christ's sake and glory and fame!

Here's what Chief Jesus' letter says:

"For our sake He made Him to be sin Who knew no sin, so that in Him we might become the righteousness of God." 2 Cor. 5:21

Bottom line: by grace alone, through faith alone, place your trust in Christ alone for your permission to go to heaven.

If this does not make sense to you, please contact Les or me, or a friend you know to be a follower of Christ. We'd love to help you obtain your permesso!

If you'd like to talk, this is our back door. C'mon over!