Overheard in the Lee Household, Pt. 2

*Part 1 with background and pseudo-literary blathering on micro-blogging, etc., is found here.*

Look at me, daddy, I'm kicking the soccer ball. ... Was that amazing? (9/24)

daddy, you have to look mad. you're playing swordfight! (9/4)

mommy, let me get on facebook. what's your status? (9/3)

mommy! mommy! what's this on my finger?? maybe my finger is broken!! / oh, it's just the cut healing. / oh my goodness! my finger is broken! maybe i need to go to the finger place. and he's going to ask me, is it this finger? this finger? or this finger? (8/30)

no, i pee in there first! no, i pee in there first! / is that what the cats in the backyard are fighting about? / yeah. i should bring them inside. / to use the potty? / yeah. (7/5)

hey, don't call me amoz! / what shall we call you then? / squeaky. / ??? (6/30)

hey amoz, you just got a very nice gift! what do you say? / happy birthday! / uh, no, it's not your birthday. what do you say? / thank you, mommy! thank you, daddy! thank you, theo! and thank you, amoz! (6/8)

what would you like for breakfast, amoz? / i want ice cream. (5/23)

are we human/ or are we dancers/ my sign is vital/ my hands are cold... hey, hey, mommy, just amoz sing that song! (5/21)

Aarrrr, I'm a big monster with big teeth, who eats up little boys! / (pointing at Theo, his little brother) Eat him! (5/5)

This is my promise: I will be a good boy and I will get ice cream. OK? (5/3)

I'm sorry, daddy, for saying Go away; I love you. / It's OK Amoz, I love you too. / Mommy, I want some candy. / No candy, Amoz. / But I listened to you. (5/1)

I'm going to make the bagel sad; I'm going to eat him all. (4/19)

mommy, don't go to youth gloop. (but i want to go.) no, you don't want to go to youth gloop! (4/8)

what kind ice cream you want daddy? gorilla or chocolate? (4/6)

(after committing a particularly heinous offense and being sent to his room, when Christe went to get him): I'm sorry, mango chips. (3/30)

My foot hurts. I have a stomach ache in my foot. (3/29)

Amoz and Josiah sitting side by side pooping on their potties: So, how was your day? (3/20)

I'm doing my hot sauce (hop scotch) (3/17)

I don't have any money. Look, I just have dirt. (3/9)

I'm hungry. I need ice cream. I need chocolate. I want popsicle. Popsicles are good for me. (3/7)

Christe: Why is this tennis ball wet? Amoz: It went in the toilet by itself! (3/6)

N. Ireland Update #3: Aug. 16th - 19th

Email to Friends of G.Hope:

Sun. 16th

I preached at both morning and evening services at First Pres Portadown. I was very encouraged to see a great response from the people to the challenge of urban mission. Just like so many other places around the world, Portadown, even though a small town, is becoming ever more ethnically diverse, thanks to globalization. Many of the folks here have a great heart to reach their changing town for the sake of the kingdom--many are already actively doing that--and it is a privilege to dream together about the changes the Lord might be leading them into. Dr. Manny Ortiz will be here in October for an urban mission conference for the Presbyterian Church in Ireland; I pray that it will be a fruitful time for the church.


Mon. 17th - Wed. 19th

Xpression week got underway. Teams have come in from all over UK to do community service works around Portadown. Here is Kurt's take on Xpression:

"The days have been quite full as as our group has joined Expressions. The day begins at 10am when we gather with about 400 teens from 40 churches for a time of worship and receiving our work assignments for the day. The teams then go out into the streets and parks of Portadown, focused on 5 neighborhoods. Some neighborhoods are identitified as catholic others as protestant, and those of Irish descent are now joined by new Portuguese and African immigrant communites. Our group from Philadelphia is working in the Garvaghy area this week. We are divided among the 6 teams (of about 10 - 15 teens) working together in this neighborhood. Our team's tasks range from pulling weeds, and picking up litter to painting murals, or organizing events for neighbors young and old alike. The week's events in Garvaghy include a ladies salon night where women will come to get their nails done, ballroom dancing where older residents can teach the younger, football matches (soccer for all you Americans). At the end of the week all of the areas will gather in the town center for a big celebration."


I've uploaded some photos of the trip so far for you to enjoy. They are found here.

Please continue to pray for us. It is wonderful to see our team participate in energetic and passionate worship, and in works of service with their peers from very different backgrounds. Continue to pray for a deepening discipleship for our team, and that team members would see God in a new way.

Shalom,

--
Kyuboem Lee

N. Ireland Update #2: Aug. 11th - 15th

Email to Friends of G.Hope:

Tue. 11th

• Correction from the last update: The morning session this week is called Kids' Holiday Bible Club, and the afternoon session with the teenagers is called MIMO. I should have known; silly me.
• After the morning session with the kids, the team packed onto the church bus and drove out about an hour to the eastern coast, to a town called Castlewellan. There, we got off at Mt. Pleasant Riding Club, and got on horses for a trail ride up the mountain in Castlewellan National Forest. All of us made it through the entire hour ride, despite some initial fears (and in a few cases, panic attacks). What a beautiful ride through the Irish forest and mountainside!
• Then, off to Newcastle (a beautiful seaside town at the foot of the Mourne mountain range, the highest mountains in Ireland) for a dinner (tea) of fish and chips.

Wed. 12th

• Amoz's birthday! He got a birthday cake at lunchtime as well as gifts from Danny's nephew and nieces--Isaac, Lydia and Sofia. Coincidentally, there was another birthday party scheduled at church, which included a bouncy castle and face painting, so he got treated to those too.
• In the afternoon, Amoz went to Peter Pan's Playground (a large indoor playground full of very excited kids) with Isaac, Lydia and Sofia and their mum, while Christe went tubing with the rest of the team and MIMO .
• You might be wondering how we are managing with the two little ones. With a lot of help! Sharon and her daughter Carrie, along with many others including kids, have been generously lending their hand at taking care of them. At times, it has been a struggle trying to care for both our boys and the team. So I have been looking after the boys at times when Christe needed to be with the team to process and debrief together.
• Tea with our respective host families. We had ours with Alastair Dunlop (assistant pastor at First Portadown who is filling in for Stafford Carson) and his family.

Thu. 13th

• Lyriq's birthday! She also got a birthday cake and gifts at lunchtime.
• In the afternoon, we went caving at Belfast Activity Centre--not in a real cave, but in man-made tunnels made to simulate the real thing. We had to work as a team and crawl on our bellies through some tight openings--even through waterfalls rushing down on us. Some of us even went completely underwater to get out of the "caves."
• Back at the church for a BBQ that some of the church members grilled up for us.

Fri. 14th

• Our family visited 174 Trust in Belfast while the rest of the team did the last day of Bible Club. 174 Trust is a community development ministry operating out of an old Presbyterian church building that is in the heart of a Catholic community, promoting gospel reconciliation among Protestants and Catholics through some wonderful ministries of deeds. We were very happy to spend some time with Bill Shaw, the director of the Trust.
• The plan was for us to join MIMO in Belfast as they viewed the Tall Ships, but it was raining cats and dogs so the Lee family headed back to Portadown instead. Everyone else had a great time at the Tall Ships.
• In the evening, the Bible Club had its closing ceremony at First Portadown. It was good to see some of the results of our team's work, and how they'd bonded not only with each other but with the other leaders from Portadown.

Sat. 15th

• Theo and I hung back so Theo could get some rest (he was getting tired out by all the back-and-forths) and I could prepare for the two sermons at First Portadown on Sunday. The others headed out to Giant's Causeway--beautiful craggy cliffs on the coastline.

Prayer requests: That our team would have energy to continue on into the second half of the trip, and that there would be some significant spiritual growth in our kids. That there would be good opportunities of worship and service. That they would truly meet the Lord, hear him, and respond to him.

Thank you for your continued partnership with us in prayer!

Shalom from N. Ireland,
Kyuboem Lee

N. Ireland Trip Update #1: Aug. 8-10

Email I sent to Friends of G.Hope:

Hi friends,

We have arrived safe and sound in Portadown, N. Ireland! Here are a few highlights from our trip thus far:

Sat. 8th

* The team set off from G.Hope around noon JFK airport in New York. Danny Kwon (my friend from seminary days and youth pastor at Yuong Sang Korean Presbyterian Church in Horsham, PA) drove his minivan and dropped off a portion of the team; I drove our family minivan and handed it into the care of a friend who lives in NYC, Steph Shieh.
* We went through the JFK airport security minus a few liquid gel items; Mikey (the skater of the team) got to keep his skateboard as a carry-on to our pleasant surprise.
* 7:30PM: departure from JFK on Delta Airlines. It was a 5 1/2 hour flight--a long flight for Theo who didn't sleep much, and not much sleep for the rest of the team either. It was a bit surreal seeing the sun rise after only a couple hours after dinner and being served breakfast.

Sun. 9th

* 7AM (Philly time: 2AM) Arrival in Dublin. We were picked up by Danny and his father Garfield, who drove the church bus.
* After an hour and half drive and crossing the North-South border, we arrived in the First Presbyterian Church of Portadown where we were treated to breakfast and then a big Sunday afternoon lunch, with a walk on the banks of the Bann River in between. Danny's mother, Sharon, is in charge of cooking for us--Danny got his whole family roped into this operation!
* We attended the second service at 7pm when we were formally welcomed by the congregation and when the Assistant Pastor Alastair Dunlop preached on the topic of Sabbath (the senior pastor, Stafford Carson, whom I know from his Dean of Academic Affairs days at Westminster, was away performing his Moderator responsibilities for the General Assembly of The Irish Presbyterian Church). Having got almost no sleep, most of the team couldn't help but catch some Z's during the service... everyone was very good-natured about it though! (Everyone at church has been super-friendly and welcoming to us... we are so appreciative of them.) Then we went to our respective host families for the night.

Mon. 10th

* In the morning and afternoon, the team helped lead MIMO (Miss It, Miss Out) kids' Holiday Bible Club (they call vacation holidays here--being from America, the first thing we were thinking was Christmas.) In the morning, the Club is for kids aged 4-11; in the afternoon, the activities are for teenagers.
* The team is having a great time with everything so far, especially learning about the different nuances in culture and language.

Thanks for praying for us and supporting us! I will keep the updates coming from Portadown every few days.

Shalom,

Kyuboem Lee
Germantown Hope Community Church

G.Hope Street Camp 09, Pt. 2

On Friday, July 31, Germantown Hope Street Camp held its Closing Ceremony at G.Hope church building. After four weeks, camp was over. Here's the slide-show of pics from camp that I showed at the Ceremony:


G.Hope Street Camp 09 slideshow from Germantown Hope on Vimeo.

And here are pics from week 3 and pics from week 4. (See previous post for links to weeks 1 and 2.)

I hope you can see from the pics that it was a lot of fun and full of life. I said previously that it was probably the best camp that we'd had so far; and it was.

Gateway 09 team with friends

• We had a wonderful team of enthusiastic leaders who bonded well and made it a great pleasure to work with. (Shout-out: Gateway, you were fabulous!)

• We added some new fun activities that worked really well (like afternoon dance parties, "Ride the Ducks" field trip, photo scavenger hunts, and find-the-counselor in the park) to the old favorites (watermelon fest, water days, atooteetah--sorry, can't explain via blog post, you'll just have to experience it for it yourself--and, of course, the Closing Ceremony when we show the slide-show).
  
• A seminary intern from Calvin Theological Seminary, Andy Hanson, was with us for a whole month away from his family, and served ably as assistant camp director--he allowed me to function without burning out.

Andy with Man Man

• Plus, we got an overnight training for all the different volunteer teams (Gateway team of college student interns who are mainly responsible for the main camp activities; a short-term team from Main Line Chinese Christian Church in Maryland; another team from Ashland Evangelical Presbyterian Church in Voorhees, NJ; and Jr. Counselors from the neighborhood, some of whom were campers just last year) at Ashland EPC that helped to prepare and bond everyone before the camp got started.

Ken gets cooled down

• Ashland's youth group, pastored by a former student and now partner in ministry, Ken Buck, came up big as a suburban church partner with us in the ministry. Not only did they come over as a team of energetic and enthusiastic (if somewhat zany--ahem, Ken) leaders, they supplied the counselors' t-shirts, donated various supplies, and even held a pancake breakfast to raise money for the camp, most of which helped to lower the costs for campers going on the Ride the Ducks field trip.
  
• Witnessing the Jr. Counselors mature was a joy for me personally. They were asked to take part in every daily pre-camp meetings and daily debriefing meetings--this meant they had to be at church by 8:30 in the morning, and didn't get to go home until 4 or 4:30 in the afternoon--a long day for young people. A few of them missed the pre-camp training and had to earn their Jr. Counselor status by working as "Leaders-in-training" for a full work week. Then, we presented them with their "red shirts" together with affirmations and encouragement from the whole leadership team. They responded to this really positively. My dream is that these young people would become, in a few years, "resident camp experts" who could lead and teach newcomers about how things are supposed to go at G.Hope St. Camp... part of our overall vision for indigenous leadership development.

Camp wasn't all fun and games, though. There were also some very hard things.

• When you do ministry, you get to know people, and we got to know some pretty hard things about the campers' family lives. Our hearts broke over their hurts and hardships, and we pray that the Father will look after them and rescue them from all their troubles.
  
• Andy, our intern, had to rush home back to Michigan a week earlier than planned because his father was in a biking accident and suffered a head trauma. (Thankfully, he wasn't as badly hurt as initially feared; he was discharged from the hospital in a couple of days.)
  
• The free lunches that we receive from the City of Philadelphia's Recreation Dept. didn't end up coming three days--they couldn't adjust to some changes we requested, messed up the paperwork and then made us feel like we were the ones who did wrong. So we had to rush over to shop groceries and make sandwiches for fifty or so hungry kids three days--these didn't result in the most stress-free camp days.

By the time we wrapped up camp and concluded the Closing Ceremony, we could only marvel at the experience that we'd shared for four weeks--counselors, jr. counselors, campers--and praise God for a wonderful time. Gateway team members headed home the next day, the short-termers were back to "normal" life already, and so were our neighborhood jr. counselors and campers. Bittersweet. I saw a few Facebook statuses of the camp leaders that basically said, "Don't know what to do with myself away from Germantown."

Week 1 Group

Week 4 Group

But ministry goes on. N. Ireland trip starts this Saturday.

G.Hope Street Camp 09, Pt. 1

I don't have much time to write about this year's Street Camp just yet, but I thought I'd share some of the photos from weeks 1 and 2--Week 1 collection is here; and Week 2 collection is here. So far, it is probably our best street camp yet. It has also been tough and tiring. Tomorrow, we go on a field trip--Ride the Ducks in Philly. I'll share more when I get a moment to breathe.

Happy Birthday, Christe!