BELGIUM: THE FIRST THREE DAYS!

July 1-3, 2010

Sometimes “time” goes so fast and your schedule is so cramped with things to do in preparation and the mind just skips a beat! What beat? The “Blog Beat!” So here we are........

The flight over was uneventful except for the 9 hour layover in Atlanta, but I took advantage of the time and laid out the structure for a new message called: “Connection Power.” So at least the time wasn’t wasted.

I arrived at 8:10 AM on Thursday in Brussels. Their entry process is a breeze compared to other countries. No documents to complete and the customs people just watch as you pass them. Maurico Salazar met me and we were off and running – to the BED! I had not had but 2 hours sleep since Tuesday morning at 7:00. So a quick nap was in order – but the problem – I was so tired and sleepy I could not stop with a “nap”and spent most of the afternoon falling asleep and waking up only to do it again until supper.

Now when you are in Belgium, you MUST have a Belgium Waffle! So after the meal, Mauricio, Betsy, his daughter, and Obed, his son, and I headed downtown to wrap our lips around the best waffle in Brussels! We were sitting at the sidewalk tables indulging and heard the sound of a band. We looked up the street and saw a parade heading our way.

We later discovered that it was the annual celebration of entrance of Charles the 5th from Spain into Brussels from which he reigned while alive. It was unique! All horses, people and vehicles were typical of that period of time. They passed so close that sometimes you had to move to keep from being “sprinkled” (really I didn’t need to participate, I have been baptized) and anyway this was a “horse sprinkling”! The only camera I had with me was my new iPhone 4. Man did it take good video – you will have to see it to believe it!
On Friday morning after 12 hours of sleep (but it was 11:00 AM) Mau (as Maurico is called) told me it was breakfast time. and then we were off to meet a couple of missionaries: Bill & Gretchen Schwartz, who will be moving to Belgium in the next 6 months and Ronald & Margaret Turner from Romania for lunch at Pizza Hut. However it was just 30 minutes after completing a Mexican breakfast: A tortilla with eggs sunny-side up covered with catsup and refried beans. So I only had a Pepsi to drink and enjoyed the fellowship.

I spent the afternoon doing office work – better sermon preparation for the services on Saturday and Sunday. I wanted to get to sleep but when it is still light at 10:30 and 15 minutes later it is just turning dark – but that isn’t all of it – it gets light at 4:30 AM – full light! Added to that is the 6 hour adjustment and you now face another problem. Trying to get you body to cooperate with the newly introduced facts which say it is bedtime. I did not succeed until 3:30 AM and then it was revile at 7:00 and into the car and off to the Church at 7:45 for the graduation service at 10:30.

This was an thrilling experience. I learned that Logos Bible School (which is a two year Bible training school under Covenant Life University) has 60 students that have completed the two year program and many more who have been theire for at least one year since it began. Today, in the service were 6 pastors in attendance who had graduated from Logos and they counted at least 6 more who were not present who are pastors or in active ministry. They represent about 15 churches that have been started by these graduates.

One pastor has 5 Churches he has started or are under his ministry. One student was hired by the Church of God to be the supervisor for Europe for there inter-cultural ministries and spoke to me today and said he and his wife wanted to enroll in CLU by internet and complete their degree. An African pastor to an African congregation here in Brussels also approached me and communicated the same desire.

At the Luncheon the Regional Missions Coordinators for Eastern Europe, David and Linda Fallin were talking with me and the door for placing CLU in Hungary is swinging open as well as Romania. In addition, Logos is going to add the remaining two years of curriculum and become a full extension campus of CLU.

One important item I forgot to state: Many students from Logos are now back in their home countries in Africa and beyond in ministry. So you can see that Life Church through CLU is impacting the world!

Tomorrow morning I will be speaking to an Assembly of God Filipino congregation and then will complete the IPHC (International Pentecostal Holiness) Belgian convention tomorrow evening.

God bless and thanks for your prayers.

Dr D