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Upson Downs 1.3.22
Greetings friends and family, Here we are beginning a new year once again. Loosely quoting Dylan Thomas from A Child’s Christmas in Wales, “It was a never-to-be-forgotten day in a memorable year.” Of course, the author is referring to one of those snowy, wonderful, Christmas days of his childhood. Among many other traditions, we watched the sweet, lovely, and charming movie of the same name after our prep night. We had some newbies for our glorious Christmas season this year, the Williams and Liesl. Yearly traditions include Advent, anticipating Christ’s coming into the world for the 4 Sundays before Christmas. We begin caroling practice (or try to) in November, aiming at excellence in our singing to shut-ins, elderly, lonely, and friends. This year we were able to once again venture out in a truck packed with carolers of all ages and sizes. This was followed by the much anticipated pozole and clam chowder, warming up our cold insides, and then on to an abundance of homemade goodies. The faces of those we sang for made the climb in and out of the truck, the cold fingers, and the practice so very worth it. This is the essence of joy: being neck deep in what is right and good and true! We viewed The Nativity Story, as we have done for several years now, preceded by delicious seafood bisque. Once again we revived the tradition of a stroll through Naples and devoured some of John’s amazing Philly cheesesteak sandwiches, filling the little shop with our raucous presence. Christmas Eve found us savoring anew a scrumptious dinner, the whole evening full of feasting, friends, frivolity, and fellowship. Together we celebrated the Light of the World, and talked about how Jesus brought light into our own lives. What a grand and glorious, never-to-be-forgotten season!
Is it already time to pack away all our Christmas decorations? No more stockings, hung by the chimney with care until the same time next year. January promises to be full and meaningful, having a baby shower, members’ retreat, Rich’s memorial (finally), and sending off some folks for a sojourn in the Northwest.
We covet your prayers and your so many other forms of support, keeping the faith here in this little outpost of Christ’s Kingdom. Like Motel Six, “We’ll leave the light on for you.” May it ever be so.
For Church of the Servant-King,
Regan
Well, it’s nearly Halloween and fall is upon us, (whatever that means in Southern California!) We have been making several trips to the Northwest (where they do have actual autumn,) hoping to encourage our brothers and sisters in their struggles. As the McCorkels return from Portland, the Kjos duo heads up to hang out for a bit. We will see what lies ahead for us all in this endeavor. Coming off break finds us full and busy as usual, looking forward to life together in God’s great adventure.
One event we are anticipating is our Halloween party on Saturday. We are aware that many of our brethren don’t celebrate this event for obvious reasons, but we approach it as a chance to redeem one more fallen and worldly occasion. We look for fun and frivolity, no evil or scary costumes, and an excuse to eat yummy homemade goodies. The kids’ candy exchange as a post Halloween tradition is great to behold; it’s an exercise in shrewd bargaining, tact, diplomacy, with a little peer pressure thrown in for good measure.
November will keep us occupied with Gene Sonnenberg’s long awaited teaching on leadership, taking the place of our reluctantly canceled Wineskins. We are also anticipating hospitality with the Bynum clan, looking forward to welcoming this faithful family.
We are planning a working trip to Tijuana later in November, working with our brother Ramon in a house build and participating in other aspects of his border ministries. One highlight will be joining Abif there and working alongside him after far too long being apart!
November brings our celebration of Grace and Thanksgiving, one of our life-giving traditions. We also look forward to welcoming the Williams family coming from Bend, Oregon to celebrate with us.
So we continue apace, entering with joy the holiday season ahead. We will miss our dear Rich, as always, remembering our last Thanksgiving together, ever in our hearts and minds with thankful gratitude.
Grace and peace to you and yours, especially in this joyful holy season ahead.
Yours in Him, Regan
Greetings! Tonight our men are reviving an old tradition- the baseball draft. I am giving thanks for the special memories that such celebrations bring. Jack Read has been participating in this event since his teen years; now he carries on his father’s legacy. Some things, of course, have been interrupted by Covid-19, notably dinner at Phillip’s and opening day at Dodger stadium. But many others remain the same, such as delicious varieties of hot dogs, haggling and negotiating over teams, and lots and lots of laughter. We have been watching The Chosen in anticipation of Easter and also plan to watch The Passion on Good Friday. We will join together for a celebratory meal on Easter Sunday. Easter is the ultimate joke on the Devil: “He is not here. He is risen!” He is risen indeed. Hallelujah! Sean, Kirsten, and Kristy came for a wonderful visit last week. We are so glad to be opening up again, albeit cautiously. It was especially great to enjoy a special meal on the Le’s first anniversary with much of the wedding party in attendance! Our international Bible study has been encouraging and kind of amazing too. Our visiting angels drop in from Mexico, Peru, Myanmar, and closer to home, Oregon. Meanwhile, back at the ranch, we are teaching a Spanish Bible study and watching our kids. That’s a lot to cover for our little congregation. He is strong in our weakness. Well, that’s it for now. We are blessed to have the abundant life here, keeping us busy and living life with purpose. There truly is “never a dull moment.” Grace and peace to you all, and joyful Easter. God bless us all, everyone.
Regan
Shall I start with an apology or a cliche? Or shall I just start on the daunting task of updating you all on our latest goings-on? I choose the latter, so here goes: Already in the month of March (!!), we are shooting for full coronavirus vaccinations among our adults. I hope you get the point! As Covid-19 cases abate, we are opening up to more visitors. It was a real joy to welcome a Peruvian family this past Thursday, who stopped by because our out front presence attracted their interest; we shared a meal and God’s word with our new acquaintances. As our Thursday zoom Bible study continued, we were relieved and thankful to see a brother from Myanmar. Things are getting worse there since the military coup, and danger seems to be escalating. Also, communications are being severed throughout the country, so contact with those in Myanmar is a real blessing.
The Jesus Centered Bible has been our focal point for 2021. It’s a helpful way of synthesizing the Bible and helps to turn our eyes upon Jesus, which is only appropriate-as Colossians 2:17 states, “He existed before anything else, and he holds all creation together.” Everything coheres in Him. Without Him, the world is truly incoherent, and the void is filled with a “striving after the wind.” We are also continuing our reading. Currently we are being edified by Os Guiness’ book The Call, and are reading a Bible companion guide.
We are busy and productive, seeking to equip ourselves and grow in the measure and stature of our Lord. We are looking forward to a leadership study through Hope International University, led by Jack McCorkel in partnership with our mentor, Gene Sonnenberg. We seek to be ever more thankful, prayerful, and accountable to one another. It’s also crucial to connect with our culture and challenge what we are facing with God’s eternal truths. It is our prayer that others might say of us, “See how they love one another,” validating the identity of Christ in our lives.
We are looking forward (finally!) to the wedding of Leslie and Jeremiah in April. They have been very patient in the disappointment and uncertainty. Leslie will be sorely missed, but we are full of thanks, anticipating much fruit in the Kingdom and we are even glad for the delay in some ways, as it seems to have had some unforeseen benefits.
Rich is still deeply missed here, but continues to be integral to life together in so many ways. His memories, his teachings, his leadership and love linger among us. His library enriches us and his scholarship resonates in myriad ways. We were uniquely gifted by his presence.
As for me, I am recuperating here in this lovely space known as the B & B. It was designed and constructed by loving hands. Here it stands as a beautiful reminder of what love in action looks like. It’s named the Bird and the Baby in honor of Rich, and in honor of that great saint, C.S. Lewis, and his favorite pub in England. It is the perfect spot to heal after hip replacement. It’s amazing how the human body heals, and how human creativity and gifted hands of doctors are used in the process. Thanks be to God, the ultimate healer and Creator in whose image we have been made.
My physical therapist is on her way, so I will close, knowing I have missed telling you about so much of the joyful and abundant life with which God has graciously blessed us.
Keep us in your prayers, and thank you so much for your interest in our lives here at Church of the Servant-King.
Grace and peace to you all,
Regan
We just finished our Celebration of the Children and it was brilliant! Thirty some years ago our pastors conceived the idea of a church calendar where sacred events would be celebrated as a church family. We would celebrate the faithful, that “cloud of witnesses” such as the ones listed in Hebrews 11. We would set aside time to “turn and become like children.” The Celebration of Life Together would be time set aside to do just that.
But this week we celebrated God’s gift to us in our children. We usually start with a basic theme for the week, and this year we chose “time travel.” After a wonderful visit to the Dreamworks concert at the Hollywood Bowl, we had our spectacular opening day. Our seven kids became time travelers for the day. After climbing into their time machines they traveled to 6 destinations in history where they were needed to solve problems.
Each followed a different route to various times in history. They visited Ancient Greece where they trained for the Olympics in archery and javelin throwing and learned how to use their brains and the pulley system. There was a visit to Medieval Times where the children rescued the princess from a dragon lady with the help of a trusty steed and knights. They stopped in to help some cave people interpret their cave drawings and throw some rocks. Pyramid building and hieroglyphics were on the agenda for Ancient Egypt, and their help was required in China’s Ming Dynasty to repair the Great Wall and repel marauders. We all ended up in the Chat N Chew, a 50’s diner where we enjoyed shakes, floats, and burgers and danced at the sock hop.
We swam and played games together at the pool. The rest of the week we took day trips to the zoo, railroad museum, miniature golf, and flew some kites together. At night we gathered to play games, watch movies, and enjoy a crazy mixed-up dinner at the Time Travel Inn. We gave thanks at each gathering, and as the week closed we once again realized the great gifts God has given us in our children. Jesus himself blessed the children and exhorted us to become like them. Once again God teaches us through a Child. We look forward to the rest of our celebrations this year, especially anticipating our Celebration of the Faithful in August.
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Spring Break
You won’t find this on MTV’s “Spring Break”! Today a busload of teenagers and adults from Texas is arriving in El Segundo, California, donating time off work and school to improve a church building desperately in need of help. New lighting will be installed and new coats of paint will “cover a multitude” of scars, bumps, and bruises. New ramps will be installed for easy wheelchair access.
There will be hauling, scraping, prepping, digging, cleaning, and no doubt some complaining too. But there will be joy and laughter, and probably some drama and tears, as well. This is a far cry from Cabo San Lucas, wet t-shirt contests, and endless drinking competitions! Christians rolling up their sleeves and helping other Christians, and finding joy and purpose in doing so, is just what this me-first world needs to see.
Donating time and energy on behalf of others which in no way benefits oneself is the love of Christ made manifest. These “girls gone wild” will be outdoing one another in helpfulness and servant-hood. What a concept! And there will be no hangover in the morning.
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Love
“Above all, hold unfailing your love for one another.” It’s Valentine’s Day and the table is laden with gifts: candy, cards, mugs, gift boxes, home-made pictures, bookmarks, and other mementos of the day of “love.” This unfailing tradition of including all on this day typically reserved only for romantic love elevates the occasion. One single young lady remarked, “Thanks for this day. I never enjoyed it before because I didn’t have a boyfriend.” Indeed, isn’t this how Christ loved us-without regard to our “dating status?” Tradition holds that St. Valentine protested the Roman edict against marriages by secretly performing weddings, ultimately paying with his life. In the spirit of this saint, we extend the gifts of love to all in the family which God has given us. Thoughtfulness and encouragement are always needful, perhaps especially on this day when so many feel left out in the romance category. “So if there is any encouragement in Christ, any incentive of love, any participation in the Spirit, any affection and sympathy, complete my joy by being of the same mind, having the same love, being in full accord and of one mind.” (Philippians 2:1-2)