This month found me revisiting Greensburg, KS as I made a quick tour of our supporting churches in Kansas.   The last time (and the first) that I was there was with the whole family back in 2007 and when we were raising support to begin our missionary journey.  

We knew about the F5 tornado that had ripped through the town, in fact we'd been in neighboring Pratt that weekend, but we weren't prepared to find what looked liked the remains of a war-torn country when we passed through the town just a couple months later.  The tornado had left only 3 buildings standing!  It was shocking.

The shock turned to excitement this week as may niece, Kathlyn (my traveling companion in KS), and I spent a few hours learning about the town's history, reliving the tornado, and then seeing the rebirth of a community.   A stronger, more sustainable town now stands on the tornado plain and Greensburg is living up to its name as many of its buildings are built "green," in an attempt to stay "off the grid."

Sustainable, off the grid living that is good for the environment is Greensburg's goal!  I've often wondered why it isn't in more places and how we could get more solar panels onto rooftops...especially in tropical countries like Colombia.

I've heard "off the grid" be used by people who are trying to avoid social media, television, etc.  As I was traveling around, I realized how nice it was to be disconnected from the noise of such devices...at least for a short time.

Really, in a lot of ways, living "off the grid" can be very beneficial.  But is "off the grid" living the best choice?  It is great for the environment.  It is helpful in clearing our heads.  However, I think that there is a danger of getting too far off the grid, especially when it comes to our spiritual and corporate lives.   God gave us His word to connect us to Him and He gave us His church, to learn to corporately serve Him.   When we disconnect from either of those...the Bible or the Church...our light dims and our salt begins to lose its flavor.

As your international staff members serving in Latin America, it is essential that we regularly connect with you...and stay "on the grid."  That is why we are trying to make annual trips to the USA to give you a Return on Investment report.  On this trip, I could only make it to 4 churches but those were great visits! Not only did I share some of our stories, but I got to hear some of yours.  Please know that each of you are a great encouragement to us and I have returned to Colombia with a brighter light! (I'm sorry that I forgot to take pictures at each church...only got this church sign.)  Rest assured that within the next two years, we will have done our best to visit all of your churches since moving to Colombia... then we'll begin the rotation again.

Our church in Medellin, was concerned about being too far off the grid.  One of the reasons they sought out the FM church was to have a higher entity to which to be held accountable.  They also believe that the combination of lights shines brighter than a bunch of individual lights.  The FM church has provided them with the structure and accountability that they desired.

Nearly 300 people attended the church picnic this past Sunday.  Together they shared their stories about how God has transformed their lives and invited visitors to join the community.   They were joined by Pastor Mike McCune who is here on sabbatical from Omak FMC in the Pacific Northwest Conference.  On Wednesday he taught at a meeting of church leaders (picture at right) and he'll be preaching at church tomorrow morning.   Having him here has been a blessing to both our family and the church!  Living and learning together are just a couple more benefits of living "on the grid".